The sky was in a state of transition, shifting from the darkness of the night to the gentle glow of dawn. Stars still twinkled in the sky, but the first rays of light were beginning to illuminate the horizon. The firmament was tinged with soft shades of pink, orange, and purple.

As the morning light intensified, the effects of the drought became increasingly visible: dry and withered vegetation stretched as far as the eye could see, with exhausted tall grass and scattered trees that had lost much of their leaves. The ground was cracked and dusty due to the lack of rain, and the puddles had dried up, reduced to mud at best.

Only a few oases remained here and there in what had once been lush forests full of life. Tough times had befallen the people in that distant era. Despite everything, the silent and desolate nature welcomed the tribe.

The morning rose cold and dry, and Unnum’s clan headed back to the oasis. There, they hoped to catch some animals approaching to drink, something they couldn’t do the previous night, a more opportune moment, as they spotted some sabre-toothed tigers prowling the area. On the way, the animosity of Ator and Unnum’s women towards the newcomers was evident, foreshadowing tough times for their children and good times for the new wives. At least for as long as the novelty lasted.

But throughout the day, they barely managed to catch anything. They only got a few small prey, and as night approached, they prepared for dinner.

The tribe scattered around the small pond. In its day, it must have been a significant water reserve, but it was diminishing, and in some areas, mud was all that was left.

Tabal got only a piece of meat and a few berries, which he eagerly started to devour. However, his captive companion looked at the steak with eyes reflecting infinite sadness, and before taking a bite, she asked:

“How long has it been since you last had meat?”

She sighed and said:

“I don’t even remember,” she said, looking down.

The boy felt sorry for her. What must have been a beautiful black mane was now ragged and torn, hiding almost all of her lovely face. He, on the other hand, had a clear forehead and brown hair pulled back. Despite also being a teenager, his body was fully developed and indistinguishable from the other men.

Tabal reached out and tried to gather the strands covering the girl’s face, making her look at him. He, in turn, gave her an innocent and affectionate gaze, offering her his food with eyes full of tenderness:

“Eat the berries too. I think you need them more than I do.”

And rightfully so. From the scarce food the tribe had, the girl had barely received anything the previous day, and she must have been without a proper meal for quite some time.

“Hey, what’s your name? We’ve been together all day, and I still don’t know your name.”

“Umma,” she replied while devouring the plate.

“Does the wound hurt?” he asked, noticing she winced every time she opened her mouth. Although it was healing, the slap Ulla gave her on the lip still left it somewhat bruised.

The girl simply shook her head, continuing to eat. Tabal let her finish, and when she did, he asked:

“What were you doing with Samman? When did they capture you?”

“His tribe raided mine three seasons ago.”

“Three seasons?”

“Yes, three rainy seasons. In the territory where I come from, we measured time by the snow. But here, apparently, there’s a dry season and a rainy season.”

Umma spoke Tabal’s language quite correctly, although with a strong foreign accent. It was evident that she had acquired the language in the three years she had been with Samman, Unnum’s brother now dead. The girl still had a sad expression, but she was gradually opening up to her guardian. In fact, Tabal wasn’t with her to prevent her from escaping. It was something that no one in their right mind would dare to do, as a lone woman in that hostile environment would be devoured by wild animals in a matter of hours, or at most, days. In fact, the boy’s mission was to prevent other men from approaching her.

“I am sixteen rainy seasons old,” the boy asserted. “I’ve never been to snowy territories, except those in the mountains. Well, rainy seasons... it’s a saying. It rains less and less. In this season, it hasn’t rained at all. How many do you have?”

“I am also sixteen.”

“Sixteen seasons…,” the boy raised his eyebrows. “And you’re still a virgin... How is that possible?”

The young girl sighed and then said:

“When Samman raided my tribe, I was still not a woman, but then my breasts grew quickly. That was interpreted as a sign.”

“A sign?”

“Yes. When I became a woman, Samman gave up taking me as his wife because the gods revealed to him in dreams that if he did, they wouldn’t favour him.”

“I see. By making that sacrifice, he would gain their favour.”

“Exactly. Our sorceress confirmed it. I was... like a talisman.”

Tabal remembered that Samman was very superstitious. In fact, it was a surprise to everyone that Ulla, the sorceress, sided with Unnum, who was less docile, instead of his brother.

“Well, it doesn’t seem like your gods have been very favourable lately.”

“The drought is bad for everyone, and for us, it’s worse. In the south, it didn’t rain much in the previous season either. That’s why two warriors were planning to kill Samman and take me as a wife. I believe that if you hadn’t appeared, I would no longer be a virgin.”

“Wow... but if you’re from the north, why did you come so far south?”

“Too cold,” she answered. “The herds came here, and we followed.”

“I see... Well, now they’re heading back north. We’re going to start moving that way. We’ll have to stock up on good hides before we get there.”

Umma remembered the gesture from the previous night and thanked him:

“Your hide comforted me. Did you feel cold yesterday?”

“Yes. But I’m used to it.”

She looked at him and smiled affectionately. Then she said:

“You sleep alone... Don’t you have a woman to keep you warm?”

“I’ve never had a woman. I would if I excelled in war, but I’ve never killed anyone.”

“What is your trade?”

“I’m a hunter. Well, you know... In a tribe, we all have to do everything. When it’s time to hunt, we all hunt, even the warriors. And when it’s time to fight, well, we all fight.”

At that moment, some women began to gather branches to stoke the fire. Umma asked:

“Aren’t we going to the caves?”

“Not tonight. We’ll stay here. We’re going to try to hunt some prey that comes to drink at the well. Yesterday, we had to leave because of the tigers.”

“Are there none now?”

“We think not. From the tracks, they must have moved north. We’ll be less cold here,” Tabal continued. “Of course, my megaloceros hide is still yours.”

She smiled again, and at that moment, Kara, the woman who seemed to be her mother, passed by with her children at her side. Umma exchanged some words in her language with her, and when she left to be with Ator, Tabal asked:

“Are you really Kara’s daughter? You don’t look much alike,” he observed, and it was true. Kara was an ordinary woman, with barely any breasts, like all the others. Her face was friendly, with a narrow shape; she had large and expressive eyes and wide hips, undoubtedly a result of numerous childbirths.

“She is not my mother,” Umma responded. “My mother died when I was born. Kara is my wet nurse. She raised me, and I am like her daughter. Her eldest daughter.”

The sunset gave way to a navy blue sky, and some stars were already visible as points of light in the east. The tribe members lay down to begin sleeping, and Umma asked:

“Aren’t you sleeping?”

“Tonight, we have to hunt. As soon as it gets completely dark, we’ll have to leave.”

“Do I go too?”

“Yes, you’ll accompany me during the watch. Unnum doesn’t want to lose sight of you for a moment. He doesn’t trust the men, who can’t stop looking at you.”

“Yeah, I have already noticed it.”

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“But don’t worry about the hunting; it’ll be easy. It’s a matter of staying completely still and silent so that the animals think they are alone. When they are drinking, they’ll be ours.”

The camp was at some distance from the well. The women would stay there with the children, next to the fire, while the hunters would head towards the water. As they set out, Umma asked:

“Why does Ator stay with the women?”

“Haha,” he smiled. “It is said that your mother keeps him ‘very satisfied’.”

“Is that why?”

“No, just kidding. He doesn’t see well at night. Since he only has one eye...”

“I see. I understand. Why did he lose it?”

“A wild horse kicked him in the head. Those were the good times, when it rained. We spotted a herd and scared them with fire to lead them toward a cliff. You know, they go wild, and then they don’t have time to stop and avoid falling. Ator was with other men, blocking a passage, so they couldn’t escape that way. One reared up. And...,” Tabal shuddered, remembering the scene, “well, it gave him a good kick in the face. Losing an eye was the least of his worries. That man is very tough.”

“Yes, he really seems like it. Kara told me this morning that he alone killed a bear, and that’s why he has such a good black hide.”

“Haha, that’s a lie. We found the bear dead inside a cave.”

The girl chuckled, and he was glad she had a good spirit, considering what awaited her.

“Hey, Umma, aren’t you afraid of death?”

“I am immortal, Tabal.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes. I won’t die on the full moon. I’m sure of that.”

The boy looked at her incredulously, but she didn’t seem to be joking. Umma continued:

“The sorceress of my tribe predicted that I would never die. She was a very wise woman who had many premonitions. They all came true.”

“How can that be possible? I mean, not being able to die.”

“I don’t know. The god is also immortal, isn’t he?”

“Well, yes, but gods are gods... and we’re just humans. Do you worship Baloc?”

“Our sorceress spoke of a single God.”

“Baloc, I suppose.”

The girl shrugged. “I don’t know. Who is Baloc?”

“He’s the god of our tribe, although there are many more. Didn’t Samman tell you about him?”

“Only sorceresses talk about gods, and we already had ours.”

“What happened to her?”

“She left us last month. He drank stagnant water. His belly swelled, and he died.”

“Damn drought,” lamented Tabal. “Baloc is holding the water in the sky and denying it to us. He must be furious because strange things have been happening for the past three days.”

“What things? Those strange lightning and flashes?”

Tabal nodded.

“Yes. They happen several times a day without a single cloud in the sky. And not just that. Some women have reported very strange things. Some of them had bleeding, like their monthly cycle, when it wasn’t their time, and it disappeared before reaching the ground.”

Umma raised her eyebrows.

“Well, we’ve arrived,” the boy warned. “Now lie down and don’t move. I’ll position myself behind that tree,” he pointed to a yew tree and crouched down next to it.

The girl obeyed and lay down, quickly falling asleep. The tree was next to a narrow corridor through which herbivores had to pass to drink, and other men positioned themselves in similar spots.

The night passed without a single quadruped appearing. Gazelles, deer, and even a megaloceros were expected, but the first half passed without any sign of them. It seemed that very few remained in that territory, as they had all gone north.

Tabal looked up at the sky and marvelled at the multitude of stars filling the firmament. The crescent moon hid momentarily when herds of clouds veiled its intense silver light. It was a sky very similar to that other night, four seasons ago. Only this time it wasn’t as late, and in fact, the purple hues of sunset were still visible on the horizon.

The tribe, always hungry, had found a herd of horses grazing in a cane thicket at the bottom of a valley. There were at least thirty or forty of them, and the tribe leaders, Unnum and Samman —when the brothers still got along— debated how to carry out the operation. The latter advocated for silently advancing through the grass and throwing their spears when they were within range. However, his brother believed there was a high risk of the animals realising it and fleeing before they got close enough.

Unnum preferred a fire-driven encirclement tactic because Fortune had arranged for the animals to be relatively close to a large cliff, an immense abyss. If they could drive them over, the tribe could satisfy its hunger with the finest-quality meat.

The matter seemed quite simple, and in the end, they agreed to split into two groups, including women. Every resource was useful to block all exits and make the animals run toward the only place where no one was, namely, the abyss.

Samman would lead the group, preventing the horses from escaping through the right gorge, and Unnum would do the same on the left. The valley’s bottom had a natural plug formed by the mountains, and there, the animals couldn’t escape. Among other things, the tribe had set fire to the grass covering the slopes.

With the fire already started, the men who ignited it ran towards the animals with torches held high, shouting at the top of their lungs. As expected, the herbivores got scared and started running in all directions.

The stampede was divided into three sections. One went towards Samman, where they managed to turn the horses and join the second, running towards the cliff. The third section, however, stubbornly insisted on trying to escape, and a good number of animals rushed into Unnum’s area, where a dozen people, including men, women, and even children, tried everything to drive them back using the fire. Some even managed to insert a spear into a horse’s side, although not with enough force to stop it.

Ator was one of those men who risked getting close enough to do that. But his bet went wrong, and the animal fell on him, almost without him realising it. The one-eyed man, who wasn’t one-eyed yet, had lost his best spear and only had a shorter one left, designed not for throwing but for close combat. And that’s what he tried to do.

But the horse faced him, reared up on its hind legs, offering its belly to the man, who tried to embed the weapon in the animal’s belly. Bad idea. Even though he tried to do it from the side, he couldn’t avoid a powerful kick landing on his face, leaving him unconscious. The impact was severe, and eventually, it cost him his eye.

The tribe, although at its peak in terms of number of people, was still insufficient to cordon off the area, and many animals escaped. Mostly through the gap left by Ator being out of the game.

“We must prevent more from escaping!” Unnum ordered, urging the hunters. “If others notice this gap, they’ll avoid the cliff and come this way!”

And that’s what they did. The men regrouped, waved their torches, shouting louder than ever, and managed to corral them.

When the horses reached the abyss, they naturally slowed down, but the force of those behind them, completely unbridled, pushed the ones in front towards their fatal destiny.

Tabal had the nightmarish scene etched into his retina. No less than fifteen or twenty animals fell one after another, crashing against the ground below in a colossal drop.

Men and women hugged and celebrated greatly for that resounding success, in an operation where only Ator was injured. Too bad they could only make use of the meat from two or three animals, as the others would rot in a short time.

Now, they just had to descend the gorge and reach the bottom of the canyon to secure the precious food before the predators found it. And that wasn’t a minor matter. By Samman’s decision, the hunters prepared to descend the most difficult but also the shortest path. They would save a lot of time and could arrive before the hyenas, common in the area. Only he and a couple of men stayed behind and accompanied the women and children on the easy path. It wasn’t a good idea to leave them alone in the middle of the night in such places, and in fact, their group was more at risk than the hunters’.

During that time, Tabal was already twelve seasons old and considered himself a hunter. Therefore, he chose to accompany Unnum’s group along the steep path.

However, he didn’t have enough strength yet, and the gravel covering the narrow trail caused him to slip, holding on only to a branch of a small bush.

“Help!” he shouted, swinging, completely defenceless. Around him, the moon barely illuminated more than the vertical walls of those immense rock formations, and in the background, the darkness of the abyss loomed beneath his feet.

“Help!” he pleaded, as the bush broke loose from the ground, and Tabal fell, just like the horses had fallen a little earlier...

And at that moment, he woke up. Someone had grabbed him.

“What’s wrong, Tabal?” Umma asked. The young man had taken a brief nap for a moment and had dreamed that scene again. The girl noticed his agitated breathing and grabbed his arm.

“Nothing, just a nightmare,” he replied, recovering. “Speak softly,” he whispered. “You might scare away the animals if they come to drink.”

“What were you dreaming about?”

The boy sighed and then said, “As we talked about the horses earlier, I relived what happened that day.”

“Do you mean, what happened to Ator? Did it affect you so much?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s... well,” he resisted telling her, but eventually did. “When we descended the gorge where the animals fell, I slipped and almost fell into the void. It was night, and visibility was poor. If it weren’t for Unnum, who gave me a hand, I would have died that day.”

“Well... thank goodness.”

“Yes,” he sighed again. “It wasn’t the first time he saved my life.”

Umma stared at him, as if expecting him to tell her more. But Tabal wasn’t in the mood.

“Now, go to sleep. Dawn shouldn’t be far, and the animals will be coming… if they come sometime. We shouldn’t talk anymore, not even in whispers.”

The girl obeyed and laid down, although she couldn’t fall asleep anymore that night. She stared at her companion, who now paid close attention to the surrounding sounds. Absolute silence was essential to knowing where the herbivores were coming from and positioning themselves close to corral them.

Finally, just before dawn, three fawns appeared on the path, and Tabal mimicked the sound of an owl to signal that he needed help. Unnum, who was closest, hurried over and blocked the exit while the young man stealthily approached the water.

Finally, when he was sure he wouldn’t fail, he threw his spear, and it hit the side of a deer, which collapsed to the ground. The other fled down the path, but Unnum was waiting and pierced it directly with his spear without having to throw it. The other one ran into the bushes and disappeared.

“Two catches!” they shouted almost in unison. With that, the tribe could eat until satisfied, and there would be leftover meat. The others rushed there, but before they arrived…

They weren’t alone. A pack of steppe wolves, big enough, also vied for the same food. Their eyes gleamed in the darkness, and their growls sent shivers down anyone’s spine.

Wolves... thought Tabal. If it had been a tiger or a bear, it would have been less problematic. They were solitary beasts, and with all the men, now that the children were not around, forming a tight group with spears at their ready, they could have easily scared them away. But not the wolves. They attacked in packs and from all sides. It was futile to confront them, and Unnum gave the order to retreat. At least those two catches would serve to divert their attention from the camp, and the rest of the tribe would be safe. However, they would have to leave immediately.