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Crisis in the Mystical Valley
Crisis in the Mystical Valley
(C) 1991 by Jonathan Lang
CHAPTER 1
Shelat's Den
Season 2091
"Shelat, this water crisis is getting severe. We must do something about
it." Mriss knew that if something was not done soon the village would soon run
out of water. The supply has been dwindling for the last five seasons. Only
now had they realized how bad it was. She knew that they needed to find a new
water supply for the village.
"Yes, Mriss, something must be done immediately." Like Mriss, Shelat knew
that the supply was dwindling. "What will we do if we do not correct this
problem immediately and we run out of water?"
"We would have to move if we don't find water soon. We both know that."
Just then a dirty-brown furred felinoid came in. "Oh hi Friss, you are just in
time. We were just talking about the water crisis. Do you have any
suggestions as to what we should do about it?"
"Why don't we send a scouting party to the head of the stream to see what
the cause of this shortage is and, if possible, correct the problem. That could
solve the problem." He wanted to lead the exploring party if there was one. He
had always wanted to do this. He was qualified, he was a first class scout.
"If there is a scouting party to the head of the stream, I would be willing to
lead it."
"Sure you can lead it. I think that a scouting would not be enough. We
would also need a to send another scouting party to search for a new water
source." Shelat realized that more would be needed then just finding the reason
for the shortage. They might not be able to fix it. It would do no good to
find out the problem if they could not fix it.
"That is a good idea. We should try that." Friss was hopeful that this
would work. If they could find water then they would have solved most of the
problem. All that would be left to do would be to find a way to transport the
water to the village. "Have the clan meet in one day in the meeting room. We
will talk about this then. We will tell them about the ideas and get their
ideas about what should be done. This is important. Make sure that most of the
clan attend the meeting at dark-time" She knew that this was what was needed to
help decide what to do. This problem was serious and needed fixing.
Frith's Den
"Frith have you heard that there is a meeting at dark-time on the water
crisis?" Hanth was excited at the possibility of the water problem being
solved.
"Yes, Hanth, I've heard about it. I hear that Shelat has come up with some
ideas on how to fix the problem." Frith was also excited about it.
"Yes but not without the help of Friss and Mriss." He knew very well that
Mriss couldn't work without Friss.
"Oh THOSE two. Do you know what they planned?"
"Sure, Friss proposed that they send scouting parties too look for a new
source of water for the village and send a scouting party to try to find the
cause of the shortage. He said he would lead one of the parties."
"Will, I'll see you at the meeting. I have to go. I really wish I could
stay and chat but I must go."
"Good bye, Hanth."
Meeting Hall
"You know why this meeting has been called. We have a crisis that must be
fixed and it will take your help to fix it. Do you have any suggestions as to
how we will do this? Friss proposed that we send a scouting party to the
source of the stream and see what the problem is. Mriss suggested that we send
a scouting party to look for a new source of water for the village. What are
your ideas?"
"Why don't we conserve water so we will not run out so soon?"
"Frith, we could try that but we would still run out of water after a
while. We still need to find a new source of water. That will just give us
more time to find it in."
"I agree with Friss's idea and Mriss's idea. We need to find a new source
of water and find out what the problem is."
"Yes, we do Crass. If you're in favor of their ideas then raise your
hand." Shelat counted the hands. "Okay, twenty-five for their ideas. If
you're against then raise your hand." This time she counted only three hands.
"Okay, we will do it."
"If you want to be on the scouting party to search for a new soure of water
then raise your hand. Friss write the names of the volunteers on the slate.
Okay, Frith, Hanth, Crass, Sharn, Torel, Sasha, and Lari. Now raise your hand
if you want to search the stream for the cause of the problem and, if possible,
correct it. Okay, Sharth, Weril, Anerly, Brocha, and Forel. Friss will lead
those that are going to the stream. Mriss will lead those that are going to
search for a new water supply. Those going will meet at their leaders dens at
light-time and shall leave at light-time in two days for their destinations. We
shall expect a report in a moon. Thank you for coming."
Path to Yarith's Den
"Yarith, were you at the cave by Shelat's den yesterday?" She had heard
some strange things there yesterday.
"Yes, I was there and I heard Shelat talking with Frith and Mriss about the
problem of the water shortage."
"What did you hear?"
"That it is worse then we thought it was and that there is less water then
we thought and that it will probably be gone in a season."
"Your right, it is worse then we were told it was. Are you sure that is
what they said?"
"Yes that is what they said." At this time a black furred felinoid with a
'V' on her forehead came in.
"Ho! Fesrith, it's time you showed up. The water crisis is worse then we
were told. The water will probably run dry before the season is over."
"YARR!! That is bad. I didn't know it was this bad. I thought it might
be, but I had not known it."
"I hope they get it fixed. The herd needs water just like we do. They
also use a lot more than we do. If the problem is not solved we will have to
move."
"The cubs won't be able to move for a moon."
"YARR!! I agree. This is serious. We had better get something done about
it before it is too late."
Friss's Den
"This is very important. We must find out why the water supply is growing
smaller. It could mean life or death to the village. If we can we must try to
correct the problem when we find it. We shall meet tomorrow at light-time and
then we will head to the stream. We shall then follow the stream to the
beginning. When we get there we shall try to find out what the problem is. If
we can, We will correct the problem. If we can not then we will return and
report our findings. We will be back within one moon. This may be dangerous
and if anyone wants to back out then they can do so. Everyone must work if they
come. We will not be able to let anyone go slack."
"Will we need anything?"
"Only a knife to protect yourself with."
"We will meet at the feeding ground at light-time in one day."
Mriss's Den
"You all know that we need to find a new water supply soon or else we will
be out of water. This more serious then any of you thought. The stream will
probably be dry in less then a season if nothing is done to find out what the
problem is and correct it. Friss is leading the group that will find out what
the problem is and, if possible, correct it. We will try to find out a
alternate source of water and set it so it will be able to be used by the
village. We could die without the water. We will take only a knife with us to
protect us. We will take nothing else with us. This might be dangerous so if
you want to leave the group please tell me. We will meet at the feeding ground
tomorrow at light-time. From there we will proceed to the surrounding mountains
and try to find an alternate source of water, like another stream or a spring,
for the village. We will search known streams to see how easy it would be to
get the water to the village. Thank you for coming. Good bye, see you
tomorrow."
CHAPTER 2
Feeding Ground
Season 2091.003
"Those of you in my group please come here." Friss was very excited just
as everbody else was. This was a very important time. Everyone that was going
in one of the two groups knew that. Everyone had high hopes that they would be
succesful in their quest. No one was prepared for what they would find, no one
even had the slightest idea what was going to happen. No one, that is, except
maybe Shelat. Most of the people expected this to be a simple evealution party.
They would be surprised by what they would find. "I trust we will all have fun
on this little excursion?"
There were many excited replies of "Yes!" and some "No's!" from the people
gathered here today. They were going to have fun and they knew it. This was
going to be very exciting.
"Shelat has contributed this song for the occasion. I am sure you will
like it a lot. I did."
Goodbye, Brave Souls,
To search for water.
Oh Why, Brave Souls,
To search for water.
Good Luck, Brave souls,
To search for water.
You will be remebered forever.
"I liked this little token of farewell. I hope you did too!" Friss loved
songs and this one was nice for it was written just for the scouts. Mriss, who
also liked songs, enjoyed this one just like the other people. Shelat's songs
were a special treat because they were simple. Everyone loved them.
"I hope you have another song for us?"
"Yes, here is one."
Goodbye Brave Heroes,
For That You Shall Be
We Watch You Go,
For You Shall Leave
We Greet Your Return,
For You Must Succeed
We Will Be There,
Whenever you Need
We Love You,
YOU SHALL SUCCEED!
"That was a lovely song, Shelat I liked it. Do you have anymore like
that?" Mriss was very happy and excited. They were actually doing this.
Before she had not really believed that it was real. Now it was happening. She
was excited about it.
"There are many things out there that you and I do not know about. It can
be dangerous. I was once out there and I warn you to be careful. I was almost
killed by a large animal. It is dangerous and you are not used to the danger.
There are some things out there that you have never heard of. I only went half
way up the mountain but you will be going even farther. Be careful." Shelat
knew that she had to warn them of the dangers outside of the valley. "Even I do
not know all of the stuff outside the valley. There are some dangers and there
are many surprises out there. Be careful and be warned."
"Thanks for the warning Shelat. It will be heeded. We wish to solve the
crisis at hand and not create another one to deal with. This will be hard
enough without complications." Friss was worried, he had not heard these
warnings before. This was completely unexpected. Friss knew the old stories of
dangerous animals, but these were worse, much worse. He was afraid that they
would be too scared to operate properly on this mission. He knew that it was
important. "Shelat, why have I not heard these stories before?"
"Only I knew this, Friss, I was up there by myself. It is worse then the
stories make it sound. I had wanted to go see what was up there. I was
surprised at what I found. There were somethings I had only dreamed of. I had
been unprepared but I was not hurt seriously. As it was, had I not got away
when I did I might not be here today." Shelat felt a shiver run down her spine
at the memory of what happened. It was very scary. It had also been dangerous.
She had lost all the claws on her front paw. "I was the only one to know this
because I was interested by the stories of things in the mountains. Most of the
people had no reason to go to the mountain so they did not go. I, on the other
hand, wanted to find out what was really up there."
"If any of you want to back out now then say so. I will not get mad at you
for backing out. After this information you might want to." No one said
anything so Friss continued. "Since none of you want to back out now, I will
continue. I am proud of you for being willing to take the risks for the clan.
Be proud of yourself. You should be."
Shelat spoke up now, "I have one final song for you now before you go. I
hope you will enjoy it."
Farewell, for now
I shall see
Good luck were you go
It will be
Food and shelter
There will be
you will win
That will be
All will be fine
I will see
With that Friss's group and Mriss's group left the feeding ground, each
heading to their own destination. Anyone watching knew that all would be right
in the end. The groups were confident that their mission would be accomplished.
They would make sure that the mission is accomplished and they would do it
well. This was a exciting time. What would happen no one knew, only that
something would happen. They would be surprised.
"I am glad they are going. This is neccesary. I wish it did not have to
be done. They will probably be back in one moon. I will miss them." Shelat
was tired and went to her den to rest for a while. Most other people went to
places they had to go to. It was still early in the day and everybody had much
to do.
Yarith's Den
"Fessrith, I am glad they went. I don't think I could have volunteered to
do something like that. They are willing to do something most of the rest of
us wouldn't do or even couldn't do. I am glad that they are willing to do
this."
"Yes Yarith, you are right. They are brave people and they are special.
I, too, am proud of them. They are good people. I don't think I would do it
even if I had another chance."
"Fessrith, I am sure you could do it. You probably would like that type of
thing. Anyway, it would probably be fun to do that. Going hiking on the hills
and mountains. I would probably like to do it. Of course it would also be
dangerous. You could get hurt or someone else could get hurt or even killed."
Yarith knew it could be dangerous, but she also knew it could be fun and
exciting. "Fessrith? Are you going to the party at Thriss's den?"
"Yes, I am going to Thriss's party. I think it might be interesting. I
also want to have some fun too!"
"You think you will have some fun?" Yarith was dubious about that.
"Yes it will be. Thriss's parties are always fun." Of that they both
knew. Thriss had a reputation for holding good parties. "Are you coming?"
"If you will be there, so will I." Yarith always did anything that
Fessrith did. They both liked having fun and could find it just about
anywhere.
"See you tonight." With this Fessrith left.
Frith's Group
It is getting close to dark-time now and they are in a canyon with steep
sides. The stream flows down the middle of the canyon and they are following
it. "Since it is getting late, we should start looking for a place to spend the
night. If any of you see a cave or a clear spot we can sleep, let me know." It
was not long before they had found a cave to spend the night in. They had to be
careful or else they would end up in a inhabited cave. But this one was empty.
"Frith, there are some old bones back here. I think that this cave used
to be used." Sasha was excited. She wanted to find out what kind of animal had
lived in this cave before they got here. "Come take a look."
When Frith saw the bones he was surprised at their size. "Don't worry
Sasha, the bones look old enough that this cave has probably not been lived in
for a long time. The bones could even be that of the previous owner of the
cave."
"I'm not scared, I'm just excited." This was true for she really wanted to
find out what animals lived up here that they did not know of. This looked like
one of those animals that they had not heard of but existed none the less. It
was huge and it had probably been dead for years but it was unknown to her as to
what type it was. She wondered if even Shelat knew of this animal. It did not
sound like one Shelat had mentioned. "I don't think any of us would like to
meet the animal that these bones come from. It would probably be very
dangerous."
"I agree, it would probably be dangerous."
"We should get to sleep since we have a lot of hiking tommorow. We don't
want to be asleep when we need to hike. I am sure that you will agree with me.
It will probably take us at least two more days to reach the top of the
mountain. it will then take us awhile to find out what the problem is and, if
possible, correct it. So, sleep well."
Mriss's Group
They had found a nice place that was somewhat sheltered from the wind.
They planned to sleep here through the night. As it was, they needed their
sleep. It was a lot harder the way they were going and it was very tiring. "If
you want, we can have a fire going to keep us warm during the night. It might
get cold during the night. I don't want any of you freezing tonight. Please
tell me what you think we should do." A few people said they wanted a fire so
they lit a large fire to keep them warm during the night. Even though it was
summer it still got cold at night and they would have no one freezing. That
would be just about the worst thing that could happen. If anyone was to get
cold that might delay them and they might not have enough time to find a new
water supply. "In the morning we will discuss what we will do about the
searching for the water. We still need to find out which way we should go from
here."
Thriss's party
"Hi Fessrith." This, of course, was Yarith. She showed up like she said
she would. "You seem to be having a good time here. This is a fun party. I am
glad you came."
"Yes, I am having fun. You look like you are, too." Yarith was obviously
having fun and Fessrith noticed that. "Have you talked with Shelat yet?"
"No, I didn't get to." She was hoping to get a chance to talk with
Shelat. She had something important to ask Shelat and she wanted to ask her
soon. "I am hoping to talk to her."
"Yes, so am I." Fessrith noticed Shelat coming. "Oh! Here she comes."
"Hi Shelat, do you believe they will find a new supply of water?"
"Sure, they will find water. It just matters as to when and I hope it is
soon. We need the water to live and to farm and herd. We must find water."
"That does not guarantee the success of our finding water. We could just
end up without any and have to move."
"Yes, that is true, but I believe we can find water. We just have to look
in the right place." Shelat believed in what she said. She only said something
if she believed it.
"Well, I believe you and I hope thet we do find water. We really need the
water and you know what would happen if none was found."
"Yes, I know what would happen. But I hope it won't. Let's stop talking
and enjoy the party."
CHAPTER 3
Mystic's Den
Season 2091.003
"Mystic, what will happen? Can you tell us what will happen to the groups
going to find the water. I wish to know." Shelat was a friend of the Mystic.
But she, like others, didn't see her often. The Mystic stayed in her den most
of the time. When she left her den it was only on short trips out to gather
herbs and other things needed. Most of the others stayed away from the Mystic
unless they had something they wanted to know. The Mystic, although friendly,
was strange and the others prefered to stay away.
"I see the party that follows the stream find an amazing thing. There is
none of it in the valley. It is only outside it. It is a huge wall thats looks
like rock but is not. It is blocking the water from the stream and creating a
lake behind it. They will also find a different people. They do not have fur
on their bodies. Just on their heads. The other group will discover a new
source of water in a few days and will be back in a week. The water supply will
be close to the villiage and will be easily used for water. The more important
discovery will be up to you to decide."
"Thank you, Mystic. I should have come to you sooner. You have been a
great help. I do not know what will be needed in the future. But you have
helped me a lot."
"You could not have come to me sooner. I was getting herbs. Shelat, This
is important information. But use it wisely. If you use it wrong it could be
dangerous. If you use it right it could help you a lot."
"Thank you. I have to leave now. I am tired and need my rest. After
Thriss's party I am tired."
"Good bye."
Friss's Group
"Good morning. Today we are going up the mountain. Following the stream.
We should reach the top in one or two days. By then we should have found out
what is stopping the stream from supplying the water we need. The problem
could very easily be too much for us too handle. If we can not Handle it we
will return to the villiage. If we can handle it we will." He expected the
group to do what it could. Nothing more.
"Now, let's get out of this cave and head on. There is still a lot of
hiking ahead of us and we want to get it done as fast as possible."
"I especially want to leave in case that animal is not as long dead as we
thought. I would not like the animal that killed it to be passing by and decide
that it wanted to try felinoid for breakfast."
Mriss's group
"We will be heading to a nearby stream. We will probably be there in one
day. I think that this stream will do for the villiage water. I think that if
we do a little digging and build a dam we can redirect the water. If this is
accomplished, we will have finished our part of the mission. If not we will
proceed to the next stream that I know of." Mriss suspected that they would not
need to go futhure for their search. She expected this stream to work. If she
was right it would save a lot of time. She hoped she was right.
"How will we dig? We didn't bring any shovels."
"We will use our claws. They will work better then shovels."
"you expect our claws to work better then shovels?"
"Sure I've tried it before. They work fine. You will know how too dig
when you try."
Friss's group
"Friss, I have been hearing this crunching noise behind us. It sounds as
if there is a animal folowing us."
"Yes, Sasha, I hear it too. I think we should be careful. I don't want to
be killed by a animal. Especially one that I didn't know that it was there."
"Sasha, you watch the back of the group and if you see or hear anything
that could be dangerous, let me know. Don't try to be a hero and try to protect
the whole group. That would be dangerous. You could get killed and we would be
short one person."
They were not bothered by the animal that was following them until late
afternoon. Sasha heard the animal coming and warned them. But the warning was
not enough. The animal knocked Lari aside and he hit his head on a rock. None
of the party could handle the animal. If any got near it knocked them out of
its way. Only Sasha could do anything. Friss tried to get the animal but he
was knocked out of the way. The animal raked his claws on Friss and a large
gash appeared on his side. When Sasha saw this she she got extremly Mad and she
begin to feel something rising inside her. She didn't know what it was but she
felt that she had the power to make the animal leave. She felt a strange
feeling. This feeling was the feeling of power, which she didn't understand.
But she knew that if she told the animal to go that it would. "Go. Leave us."
Sasha yelled, and to the surprise of everyone there, the animal dissapeared in a
flash of blinding light.
Hanth was checking Friss. "Friss will be okay. He got a nasty gash but it
isn't that bad. He will live. In a few hours he will be ready to travel. I
would like to know something. Where is the animal? I don't see it lying dead
so it must have been scared away. But none of us were having any effect on
it."
"Sasha banished it. She told it too leave and it dissapeared. I don't
know why, but it did."
"What did you do Sasha?"
"I just told it too 'leave' and it dissapeared in a flash of light."
"Okay Sasha, try to make that rock dissapear." Hanth was pointing at the
rock Lari had hit his head on.
"Okay. Rock, leave us!" Sasha yelled and the rock dissapered in a flash.
"WOW! How did you do that?"
"I don't know. I just did."
"I am glad you are with us. We need you too protect us."
"You will be useful. We might not make it without you. I just wish it
would get us to the source of the problem. That would help.
Friss's group
That night
"Friss, I am going to go out by myself tonight. I want to try something
and I wish to be alone. Don't be surprised if anything happens that is strange.
I think I am going to try to teleport to Mriss's group to see what is happening
there."
"Okay, but don't get yourself killed. I need you."
"I don't think anything dangerous will happen."
Sasha walked of to a area where she could be by herself. When she got
there she tried to teleport. It did not help that she did not know what to
do.
"Take me to Mriss's group." she yelled. To her surprise it worked. She
was just outside the cave that had Mriss's group in it. She could hear voices
coming from it.
"Mriss, do really believe that this stream that we are heading for will
work?"
"Yes, I do. We would not be going there otherwise."
Sasha started into the cave. She was spotted by Sharth who was acting as
lookout for the group.
"Ho! Who's there." Sharth did not know who it was for all the members of
the group were in the cave.
"It's only me, Sasha."
"Sasha? You were supposed to go with the other group. why are you here."
"I came to check on your progress."
"Mriss, Sasha from Friss group is here. She wants to know how we are
doing."
"Sasha? Friss's group is more then a days hike away."
"I teleported."
"How did you do that? I can't."
"I don't know. I just found out today when a animal attacked us I told it
too go away and it dissapeared. So I tried to teleport here to see how you were
doing."
"Wow! Well anyway we are going to a stream that I think will supply the
villiage with water. We will be there in a day or two. We have not been
attacked or anything and the trip has been uneventful."
"Thank you Mriss. will you please come with me. I have to go but I won't
do it here."
Sasha and Mriss walked outside the cave. "I am going now. Good bye. Take
me back." Sasha yelled. Mriss was surprised when Sasha dissapeared in a flash
of light.
When Sasha got back to Friss's group everyone was asleep so she just went
to sleep. she was tired and she could tell her story in the morning.
CHAPTER 4
Friss's Group
Season 2091.004
"Friss, I hear something ahead. I don't know what it is. It's some sort
of rumbling sound." Sasha was scared. she had never heard this rumbling,
churning sound before.
"I don't know. It almost sounds like a waterfall. Lets be carefull. We
don't know what it is."
"I'm seeing something in my mind. I see something that looks like a dam
made of artificial rock with a tall, hairless, creature on it. The creature is
weird, it uses only two legs to stand on. I have never seen a creature like
this before." Sasha was startled. She had never seen this creature before and
was puzzled by it. "I also see some artificial rock redirecting the water. The
water is falling over it and running into a lake. There is also some objects I
have not seen before. They move around but I can see nothing pulling them.
"I don't know what you're seeing. But I think we will find out when we get
there. Thank you, Sasha, for the information, it might be useful."
"Friss, I don't understand what it is I see. I have never seen these
things before. I'm puzzled by this."
"So am I, Sasha. What you described is puzzling. I have no idea what this
information you gave me says. You probably understand it better for you got to
see it, I only heard it and I don't see it as clearly as you do for I only see
what you told me. But the creature sound like the humans from the old legends.
They are supposed to be as intelligent as we are. It sounds like they are
intelligent if that is what they are and they built this dam."
"You've heard of these creatures before? I thought they were only
legends."
"So did I. But they sound like humans from the legends. Maybe the legends
are true. I don't know what to think. I've never met a human before and I
don't think any of you have either. Although, this might be an interesting
event, legends turning into reality.
"Sasha, I'm hearing the sound now. I think we are getting close. We
probably have only an hour of hiking left before we find it.
"Friss, I think I see something ahead, maybe it's the dam."
"I see it too, Torel. I think your right."
"Just after we go around this bend we should be able to see it better."
Sasha said this just as they rounded the bend. "Well, I think it is a dam. But
I sure don't know what it is made of." Friss was astonished when he saw the
dam. The dam towered over them. Its smoth surface gleaming in the sun. The
group had seen dams before. But never had the dams looked like this. If they
had believed in gods they would have said the gods built it. It was huge. But
it stopped the water and they needed water for their villiage.
"I think we should find out more about this dam. I want to know how it got
here. It looks like someone built it out of rock. But rock of a type I have
never seen before. Maybe we will find the people who built this dam. Maybe
they will let some water pass if we tell them that we need it too live.
"Do you think it was built by humans?"
"Yes, Torel, I do. Maybe we will learn something from them. Maybe they
will learn something from us."
"Friss, how are we goung to get up to the top of the dam?"
"There is a ladder of to the side. Maybe we will use that."
"I think we should find a place to sleep for the night. Tomorrow we will
try to find somebody who will help us."
Mriss's group
"We are heading to that stream you hear. I think we can redirect that one
towards the villiage. We may not even need to do that much work. That stream
used to flow by the villiage. We just have to direct it into the old stream
bed."
"How long do you think it will take to redirect it?"
"Maybe a day or two. No more than that. After that we get to go back to
the villiage and see if Friss's group succeeded in their mission." Mriss
expected both the missions to succeed. She knew that Friss could probably get
anything done if he tried."
"I think we can redirect the water easily enough." Mriss was concentrating
on the problem of redirecting the water. "If we move the tree that is in the
water, the dam behind it will probably give way. Then the water will simply
take the easier way down the old stream bed.
"If we had a rope we could move the tree out of the way of the water."
"I could make a rope out of the vines around here."
"Thanks Forel, that would be helpful. Then we just tie one end around the
tree and pull it out of the way."
"Sharth, will you tie the rope on to the tree." Everyone watched as Sharth
walked across the tree and tied the rope to the other side of it. After she
came back, Mriss asked everyone to pull on the rope to try to change the
position of the tree. The tree moved slowly at first. but once it had been
pulled out of the ground it moved quicker. Now all that was holding the water
back was the dam, Which was begining to give way. Already water was trickling
down the old stream bed. Suddenly the whole dam gave way and a wall of water
rushed down the old stream bed. This churning, rushing wall of roaring, white
water made its way toward the villiage. Mriss's group had succeeded in their
mission. They just had to head back and to wait for word from Friss's group.
"I'm glad that worked. I was afraid we might have to go furthur on."
Weril had been worried all the way that they would fail.
"Weril, you worry too much. You don't need too worry that much. I knew
this stream would work. I had been in the group that was sent here to find out
what had stopped the water. I knew what it was like and knew it would work."
"Well I'm glad you knew it would work, none of us did. I don't know what
would have happened had we not found a stream that would work."
"We would have failed. Now, we have finished our mission, why don't we
head back to the villiage. Any objections?"
"If we hurry, we can get back to the villiage tomorrow."
"Why don't we just raft down the stream?"
"Do you want to? It will take us a day to build a raft. The only wood we
could use would already be dead. We don't have any axes to cut wood with so we
would need to get it from the ground. Do you still want to build a raft?"
"I guess not. It might not even hold all of us at one time."
"Okay, I guess that's settled. Were hiking back to the villiage."
"We will probably be back tomorrow or the next day."
"It is getting late and I'm tired. We won't start back until tomorrow.
Friss's Group
"Good morning. Today we are going to climb that dam and see if we can find
anyone to talk to. I hope we don't find any trouble."
Friss's group had breakfast and started on thier journey. the going was
easy for the stream bed was smooth and they didn't have to do any climbing. As
they got closer to the dam they were even more awed by its immense size. It was
extremly large. They had never seen a artificial structure that large. They
cautiously climbed the ladder even though they did not know what was ahead they
didn't run in fright. They did not know what to expect. When they got to the
top they looked around and saw a human standing a little distance away, and
decided to head for it. They did not know if it was male or female for they had
never seen a human before. But the old legends told of males and females, and
they asummed that this was a female. They did not know it yet, but they were
right.
Friss walked up to the person and eyed it. He had never seen a person
before. The person had not heard him yet, and he was beggining to think that
they were deaf. "Hello, who are you?"
The person turned around but she only saw the felinoids. "Who spoke to
me?"
"I did. I'm Friss. May I repeat my question. Who are you, and are you a
human female?"
The woman was astonished. She could tell that it was the cat talking. But
she had never heard of a talking cat except in stories. "I'm Amanda, and yes,
I'm a human female. Are you a cat?"
"No exactly, I'm a felinoid. I am more intelligent then a ordinary cat."
Amanda was sure she was dreaming. She looked past Friss and saw more
felinoids. One of which had this beautiful coat with a white stripe on its
back. "Who has the white stripe?"
"Oh, That's Sasha."
"Amanda, We need to talk too someone about the dam. It's not letting any
water down to our villiage."
"Friss, I have never seen felinoids before. But if you have a problem I
will help you. Would you like me to take you to my office. I'm the one you
want to talk to and it would be better in my office."
"Sure, that would be fine."
CHAPTER 5
Amanda's Office
"Amanda, the supply of water to the village has been dwindling for the
last five seasons, and if we do not correct it we will be out of water in one
season. The village sent out two groups to try to correct this problem. One of
the groups was sent to try to find a new source of water, while my group was
sent to try to find out the reason for the shortage and correct it if we could.
Now I do not know if the other group has succeeded or not, so I will have to go
on the assumption that they have not. You have said that you will try to help
us if you can. Would it be possible to let some of the water into the valley?"
Friss was sure that Amanda could let some water into the valley. But he did not
want to be demanding for he knew it would not work as well.
"I don't know. The dam was not made to let water into the valley. It
might be possible. But I would have to look at the blueprints for the dam. But
it should not be too hard for the dam is not finished yet. The top Of it still
needs to be finished. It might be possible to leave one section lower then the
rest so some water will spill over and down into the stream. I could probably
have that done easily."
"That should do. We don't need a lot of water, and the other group may
have succeeded."
"I will notify the construction workers of the change so they will build it
into the dam. If you don't want to stay and make sure that they do it you could
head back to the village. I would like to learn more about your people, and
tell you about mine."
"Well, Amanda, if you want to learn more about my people you could come
with us to the village. It is only two days hike from here, and we plan to
start tomorrow."
"I would enjoy that. I will need to go home and get a tent, though. But I
think I can take seven days off work. I would be ready by tomorrow."
"We will be camped around the first bend in the stream at the bottom of
the dam. If you want to come with us then meet us there. Don't worry, it is
easy to find."
"Yes I know, I have been down there. It gives you a good view of the dam.
But you can't see anyone there from the dam. I will be there, Friss."
"I will look for you. I am glad that we have your help."
"Bye, Friss, see you tomorrow!"
"Sasha, are you sure that we can trust this woman? I think I can trust her
but I want your opinion." Friss had felt that Amanda was trustworthy. He would
not have invited her if he did not feel that she was. But he was not sure as
to how well he could tell if a human was trustworthy. This was his first chance
to see a human.
"Friss, I think we can trust her. She seems trustworthy to me. I do not
feel we have anything to worry about. Although I suggest you be ready for a
surprise tomorrow when she shows up."
"How is the other group doing?"
"Mriss's group has completed their mission and are on their way back to the
village. They will probably arive tomorrow, and we will arrive two days
later."
"How did they accomplish their mission?"
"They found the old stream and moved a tree that was rerouting the water.
The water then just poured into the old stream bed and flowed down to the
village."
"I am glad to hear this. Even if Amanda's plan doesn't work we will have
water."
Village, Mystics den
"Mystic, What news do you have for me?"
"I have a lot of news, Shelat. Mriss's group has succeeded and will be
back tomorrow. But you already know that they succeeded because the old stream
is running again. Friss's group has also succeeded and they will be back in
three days. They will have a human with them."
"A HUMAN?"
"Yes, a human. Her name is Amanda. I still have more news. Sasha has
found her powers and will become a mystic like me. Will you be ready for the
arrival of the groups?"
"Yes, Mystic, I will be ready for the groups. I am glad that you told me
this information. I can use it and be ready for their arrival. I have another
song for the welcome back party for the groups. Thank you, Mystic, for the
information."
"Your welcome, Shelat"
Friss's group
"Friss, Amanda is coming!" Lari was excited. Only Friss went into her
office. The others went back to camp to wait for his return. Lari had only
heard that Amanda was coming earlier today.
"Thank you, Lari, I think I will wait for her." Friss went around the bend
to wait for her. Amanda was already at the bottom of the dam and was heading
for the stream. She had not yet seen Friss waiting for her. Just when she got
to the bend she noticed Friss.
"Hello Friss! I didn't see you there. Are you ready to go yet?"
"Sure, we're ready to go. What do you have there?" Friss was referring to
the object that Amanda had with her.
"It's a sleeping bag."
"A sleeping bag. What's that?"
"Oh, it's just a bag to sleep in. It keeps me warm at night while I
sleep."
"I guess you would need one when you don't have any fur to keep you warm."
"Friss, I still can't believe that you are real. I keep thinking that I am
dreaming."
"Well, we are real, and you are not dreaming."
"I am glad to hear that. I wouldn't want to think that I was crazy,"
"Sasha, get the rest of the group. We are leaving now."
"Friss, how do we get to the village?"
"We'll just follow the stream. It goes right by the village. We will be
there in about two days. I've got word that the other group will be arriving at
the village today. They have succeeded in their mission."
"I am glad to hear that. But I will still have the dam made to let water
go into the valley. I think the valley would be better with two streams instead
of one."
"I'm glad. I was afraid that you would change your mind when you found out
that it turned out not to be needed. When we get to the village they will be
expecting us. They will also be expecting you."
"How do they know?"
"I sent a message to the village. They will not be surprised to see you."
Village, arrival of Mriss's group
"Welcome back Mriss. I am glad that you have succeeded in your mission.
The village now has a stable water supply. There is going to be a welcome back
party in two days. Friss's group will be back by then. They have a guest with
them."
"A guest?"
"Yes, a guest. They found a human. Her name is Amanda and she helped them
accomplish their mission. They found a dam that was being built, and Amanda is
in charge of it."
"I assume that if I want to find out more I should wait until they get
back?"
"Yes, except that Sasha has found out she is a mystic."
"Wow, a lot has happened."
"Yes, a lot has happened. I am glad that both the groups have succeeded
and that the village has a stable water supply. Now we don't have to worry
about having to move. I was afraid that we would have to move. I want to meet
this Amanda. I have never met a human before and I would like to meet one."
"Yes, so would I. At least we will get a chance to meet one."
Friss's group
"How are you feeling Amanda?"
"I am doing fine. I am used to hiking"
"I'm glad. I thought you might be tired. We will be stopping for the
night soon. We will be arriving at the village tomorrow night."
"I'm glad. I want to learn more about you. I think the best way to learn
about you is to visit your village."
"I think you might be right. That probably will be the best way to learn
about us.
"This is going to be fun. I get to go to your village and see your people
there, and I get to see how you live in your village."
"Friss, there is a good place up ahead to sleep for the night."
"Thank you, Sasha."
The place Sasha was talking about was perfect. There was a clearing next
to the stream. "I think that we will sleep here tonight."
Amanda got her sleeping bag out and unrolled it. She didn't bring a tent
for the weather was supposed to be good.
"That's good. I am getting tired. Tomorrow we will arrive at the
village."
"Have you ever hiked down here before?"
"No I haven't. It used to be very hard to get to here. Before the dam was
built there was no easy way to get here. When the dam was built, a road was
blasted so that we could get here. That is probably why nobody knew of your
existince."
"Your probably right. Get some sleep, Amanda. We still have to hike the
rest of the way to the village."
Amanda was still not sure if she was dreaming or not. She had only heard
of felinoids in books. But she was convinced that they were real. She had been
hiking with them for the day. Amanda drifted off to sleep while she was
thinking about what was happening."
"Hello, Amanda. Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, Sasha, I did. Where is Friss?"
"He was still asleep last time I saw him. He might be up now, though.
Look over there." Sasha pointed to a area sheltered by some surrounding shrubs.
When Amanda got there she saw that Friss was no longer asleep, although he
looked like he had just got up.
"Good morning, Friss. Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, I did. How about you?"
"I did too."
"Let's go get something to eat." just as he said this, Sasha came to them
with some food.
"I brought you some food. I thought you might be hungry."
"Thank you, Sasha, I am hungry."
"So am I."
"I brought something especially for you." She handed something to Amanda.
"What is that Sasha?"
"It's meat. Humans prefer it cooked, so I cooked it just for her."
"I brought you some food too." She handed Friss some meat which Amanda
could tell was uncooked.
"Thank you, Sasha."
"Sasha, you cooked this well." Amanda had tasted some of the meat and she
could tell it was cooked well. "Thank you for cooking this just for me."
"I am glad you liked it. I tried a little piece of it and it was not that
bad. But it was hot!"
After they had eaten, Friss got the group together and they started on the
hike for the day. Friss had said he expected to be at the village some time
today. The hike was not too bad for they were a ways down the mountain and it
was not as steep and there were less obstacles. The sky was a slightly overcast
so it was not as hot and there was a cool breeze blowing. It looked like it
would be good weather for the rest of the hike.
Village, arrival of Friss's group
"We're almost there Amanda. We should be arriving there in ten minutes.
Look down there." Friss pointed towards a clearing where Amanda could see some
activity.
"I think I see something. Is that the village?"
"That's the village, Amanda." Now Amanda was getting excited. They were
almost at the village.
As they got closer Amanda begin to make out what appeared to be felinoids.
Sometimes she saw one go in or come out of a hole which she assumed was a den.
She could hardly belive that they lived in holes after she had met Friss's
group. She could not imagine them living in dirty, smelly holes, rather, she
imagined them in nice, clean holes which were not cramped but actually quite
roomy. She believed what she imagined was probably right. "Friss, what are
your dens like? I have seen animals which have dens. But they are dirty and
smelly."
"Don't worry, all the dens are clean. We would not live in a dirty den."
"I did not think they would be dirty."
CHAPTER 6
A sudden movement drew Amanda's attention to the trail ahead of them.
Amanda didn't see anything ahead of them so she assumed that it was some animal.
She was just about to give up looking for the animal when she noticed a
felinoid ahead. "So that's what I saw." Amanda thought to herself. This
felinoid had a solid black coat and had a air of superiority. Amanda guessed
that this felinoid was very important in the village. She didn't know who it
was but she wanted to meet her. Upon a closer look she noticed that the
felinoid had a streak of brown running across her forhead. "Friss, who is that
coming toward us?"
"That is Shelat. She is the leader for the village."
"I thought she was an important person. She looks like it."
"Well, you were right. She is important." Friss had been expecting a
surprise when they got to the village. But he had not expected Shelat to come
and meet them. Friss was wondering what had come up. He was afraid that they
had another crisis on their hands.
"Why would she come to greet us?"
"I don't know. Maybe another crisis has arisen. I doubt that. But I
don't know."
"Hello, I am glad that you are okay. I'm glad that this crisis is over."
"Yes, so am I. Why did you come and meet us?"
"I felt like it. Since I had heard that you had a human with you I wanted
to come and see you. I didn't know that humans were real. I had thought that
they were only legends." Shelat looked around the group and spotted Amanda. "I
assume that you are Amanda?"
"Yes, I am Amanda. Friss said that your name is Shelat?"
"Yes, that's right. You humans are interesting. I have never seen a
creature with as little fur as you. I would say that you were furless except
that you have some on your head. Don't you get cold with so little fur?"
"Yes, we do. But we have clothes that keep us warm."
"You look like you could get very cold. I'm glad that I'm not a human. I
don't think that I would like the cold."
"If you were a human you would get used to it."
They group had reached the village by now and Amanda noticed other
felinoids walking about. The village was nothing like what she had expected.
She had imagined a not very well kept place. But this village was clean and
well kept. Amanda was very interested in all that happened. She wanted to find
?out all that she about the felinoids. She had not thought that they would
live in dens. She had imagined huts or tents. Something like primitive
villages she had heard about. So the sight of this one was a surprise for there
were no huts but dens as she had seen from the trail. She wondered how long she
could stay. She knew she had to be back at the dam in five days. But she
wondered if Shelat would like her here three days. She expected that she would
be welcome for a long time. The felinoids were as curious about her as she was
about them. As they past her she could see them looking at her with curiosity.
A few of the younger ones came up to her and touched her, and some of the little
cubs were scared.
"Are you a human?" This startled her. She looked down and saw a little
cub gazing up at her. This had been the first felinoid in the village that had
spoken to her.
"Yes, my name is Amanda."
"Wow, a human. We were told they were only legends!"
"We thought they were." Shelat told the cub. "We only found out about
their existence recently, Sariss. You aren't scared are you?"
"Oh no, I'm not scared. I am just surprised."
"I can understand that. When I heard that humans were real I was surprised
too. Sariss, here comes your mom."
A felinoid rushed up to them. Amanda saw that she looked worried. "I hope
that Sariss hasn't been any trouble."
"She hasn't."
"That's good." The Felinoid turned and hurried away with Sariss.
"Shelat, mothers are always the same, it seems. Human moms are like that
too."
"I'm sure they are."
"Amanda, I am going to show you where you can sleep while you are here."
Shelat led Amanda away from the group to an empty den. "I think this should do.
I don't know how you live but this should be okay for now."
"We live in houses. But this should do. I have never slept in a den
before so I do not know what it will be like." The den was quite spacious, and
it was not dirty like Amanda thought it would be. She noticed that it was quite
clean and she felt it would do. It also had two rooms which made it very roomy.
"Shelat, do all dens have two rooms?"
"Oh no, most only have one room. This one has two rooms because it is for
a mother. They use two rooms quite often. This den was never needed. I
figured you would prefer it because it is unused. You can tell when they are
used and I did not know if you would like a used den."
"If you're ready I will show you were my den is. It is not to far from
here and I thought you might want to know were I am if you need to find me."
"Sure, I'm ready."
Amanda dropped her sleeping bag and followed Shelat out of the den. Shelat
took her across a clearing towards an area with many dens. Shelat showed Amanda
a den near them and told her it was hers.
"If you need Friss, his den is over there." Shelat pointed to another
den.
"Thank you, Shelat."
"Your welcome. You can do what you want now."
"I think I will go back to the den you lent me to have some sleep."
"That's okay. There is a party tonight at the meeting hall." Shelat
pointed at a large den. "That's it right there."
"When is the party?"
"We usually have them at sundown."
"That makes sense. It would be easy to tell when it started."
"I am going to see Friss's group. If you want to come with me you can."
"No thank you. I am going to the den you lent me." Amanda walked back
towards the den. Just as she past the clearing she noticed Sasha going into a
den not to far away. "Sasha, why aren't you with the rest of the group?"
"I wanted a rest. This is my den. Did Shelat lend you the den next to
mine?"
"Yes, she did."
"I thought she would. It is the only unused den."
"Are you going to the party tonight?"
"Yes, I am."
Amanda went down into the den and looked around. The first room was large.
But the second room was even larger. Amanda thought that she would like the
den. But she was getting tired so she decided not to look around but to just
rest for now.
Meeting hall, Party
Amanda headed towards the meeting hall. She didn't want to be late. Sasha
had told her about some songs that Shelat writes, and that she may sing one at
the party. Amanda saw a few felinoids heading towards the meeting hall. When
she entered she was surprised for when Shelat had called it a party she had
thought of a band and flashing lights like what she would have thought a party
would be like. She had forgotton that they didn't have electricity and although
there was some music it wasn't a band.
"Amanda, what do you think?"
"It is nothing like a party I have seen before. But I like it anyway."
"I am glad. I wasn't sure if it would be to far from what you're used to.
Sasha told me about your houses, so I know you're not used to a den. But how do
you like your den?"
"It is comfortable. It isn't what I am used to but I don't mind."
"That's good. Sasha also told me about your parties, and I can see how
this one is different."
"How can Sasha tell you about this stuff? Did she look around while she
was by the dam?"
"Oh no, she's a mystic. She can see it in her head."
"We have people like that but they are fake. They can't see things. They
just say that they do so people give them money so that they can have a prophecy
given to them."
"Sasha also told me about money. She said you have to earn money and then
give it to some one for food or other things. How do you manage? We just all
do some work and everyone is given some food and water."
"Yes, she is right. But we do manage. But your way works for you, and our
way works for us."
"I guess your way works. But I do not understand it."
"Did Sasha tell you about electricity?"
"Yes, she said that it makes many things operate, and that it can create
light."
"She is right. A lot of our light comes from electricity, and a lot is
used to power machines."
"Why don't we just have some fun and talk about this some other time."
"That's a good idea."
"I have a song that you might want to hear."
The flow of people arriving slowed down. Almost everyone was here. Amanda
noticed Shelat heading towards the other end of the room where the floor was a
little bit higher. "I have a song for you." When Shelat said this everyone
grew quiet. It was so quiet that you could almost hear a pin drop.
Welcome Back, Heroes
You Shall Be Remembered
You Have Succeeded
Against All Odds
Far You Have Travelled
And Tired You Now Are
But Honored You Shall Be
For The Plight Of The Village
Was Solved By You
We Thank You
For You Saved Us
The rest of the party was exciting. Amanda was not used to the felinoids
parties and this one was not at all like what she was used to. This was more of
a get together then a party. Shelat did not have any more songs that night.
But it did not matter. The party was fun anyway. Amanda was having a good time
and she was learning about the felinoids and they were learning about her. She
had conversations with many people including the mystic who came, to the
surprise of everyone there, just to talk with Amanda. When it came time to
leave nobody minded. They were all very tired and just wanted the sleep.
Amanda made her way to the den that had been lent to her, and went to sleep as
soon as she got there.
CHAPTER 7
"Amanda, are you awake yet?"
"Yes, I'm up. You can come in if you want."
"Thank you. I have something to say to you."
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, I slept well."
"That's good. Amanda, If you want to you can stay in the village. You
would be welcome."
"Thank you for the offer. But I have to leave the day after tomorrow."
"Oh, I was wishing that you would be willing to live here."
"I'd love to but I have the dam to take care of, and I can't leave it."
"Couldn't you live here and still take care of the dam?"
"No, I couldn't. It takes two to three days to hike there, and there are
no roads so I couldn't drive between here and there."
"Drive between here and there? I don't know what you mean."
"In a car. I'm sure Sasha told you about cars."
"Oh, I understand now. Sasha told me about cars."
"I might be able to come up with something. I really would want to live
here."
"The trail is very smooth. Maybe I could drive up the path to the dam. I
could live down here and drive to work still. But I don't know how you would
like having a vehicle down here.
"I don't think I would mind."
Just then Sasha came in with some food for Amanda. "I had this made just
for you. I thought you would be hungry." Sasha gave the meat to Amanda.
Amanda noticed that Sasha also had vegetables and fruit with her. These she
gave to Amanda. "I also brought some food for you, Shelat." She handed a
package to Shelat that had some raw meat and more fruit and vegetables.
"Thank you, Sasha. Sasha, do you think Amada could drive up the trail to
the dam?"
"Probably, it is very smooth."
"Thank you. Amanda, you can look around the village if you want. If you
need help finding anything just ask someone. I think I will show you were the
mystics den is if you want to talk with her. Just come with me."
"Shelat, can I take Amanda to the Mystics den? I wish to talk with the
Mystic."
"Sure, you can. Amanda, go with Sasha instead."
"Okay."
Sasha led the way past the clearing and the dens to the edge of the village
where the Mystic lives. The den look oddly different from the others but Amanda
couldn't tell why. "This is the Mystics den." Sasha looked inside and saw the
Mystic. "Can I enter?"
"Yes, Sasha, you can enter. I want to talk to you.
"Amanda I want to talk to you to. But at some other time. Go look around
the village if you want. Sasha will find you when I am done talking to her."
Amanda started to head back to her den wishing that she would she Shelat on the
way. She was almost back to the den when she found Shelat.
"Shelat, could you give me a tour of the village?"
"Sure, I can give you a tour. Just come with me." Shelat started off but
she suddenly stopped. Shelat heard a rumbling in the distance that was growing
closer. As it was getting louder she begin to wonder what it was when she
noticed that the ground was shaking. She realized that it was an earthquake!
"Amanda! EARTHQUAKE!"
Amanda was not expecting a earthquake. But she was worried for the dam was
not finished and she was afraid it would not hold. It seemed like it lasted
forever but in reality it only lasted a few seconds.
"Shelat, I don't know if the dam is strong enough. It might give way
because of that quake." Just then there was this beeping coming from a device
she had with her alerting her that a copter was on the way to pick her up. She
knew that this meant that the dam was probably going to give way. "Shelat, a
copter has been sent to pick me up. I think this means that the dam will not
hold."
"I think we should tell the Mystic. Maybe she could do something about the
dam. If it gives way the village would be flooded. But the Mystic might be
able to block the water or redirect it."
"I think your right. We have enough time to tell them before the copter
arrives." Shelat and Amanda ran as fast as they could back to the Mystics den.
When they got there they found Sasha leaving. "Sasha, we think that the
earthquake may have made the dam give way. If it did the village would be
flooded."
"The dam has given way, Amanda. But we can redirect the water before it
reaches the village. There is a copter coming towards us ahead of the water.
It will get here in time to pick you up."
"So the dam did give way. I was afraid it would but I was hoping it
hadn't."
"We need to make sure everyone is in the village."
"Don't worry, Shelat, They are. We just have to wait."
Sasha kept them updated as to how close the water was while they waited.
It seemed like a long time before the water arrived although nobody knew how
long it was exactly. Amanda was wondering how long it would be before the
copter arrived when she realized that she heard a whirring in the distance and
that the copter was almost there. Amanda headed to a clearing where they would
spot her. As soon as the copter landed she got on board and it took off. Just
as they were taking off Amanda could see the churning, white water rushing past
the village and removing anything in its way. "You're lucky Amanda. If I
hadn't got here in time and the water didn't change its course you would have
been right in the path of it."
"I am alright now." The pilot took her back to where the dam had been.
The dam had been completly destroyed. She decided that it would be better not
to try to rebuild the dam. She had just come up with this solution when Sasha
appeared. "How did you get here, Sasha?"
"I teleported. It is quicker then walking here. What are you going to do
about the dam?"
"I think it would be better to leave it as it is. I could move into the
village now that I don't have the dam to worry about."
"You would be welcome."
"I just have to let the proper people know of my decision. Tomorrow I can
head back to the village. Maybe if you're here you could teleport me?"
"Sure, I could stay the night here if you didn't mind."
"That would be fine with me. But I may be able to leave tonight."
Amanda left to find the persn she needed to talk to. When she found him
she told him of her decision and he agreed. She also told him of her quiting
her job. Then she went back to her office where Sasha was waiting. "Amanda, if
you stayed the night were would you stay?"
"I'd just go back to my house."
"Could I come with you. I would like to see what your house is like."
"Sure, I will be leaving now anyway. I could stay the night if you wanted
so that you could see my house. Just come with me. You can ride in the car.
It is slower then teleporting but you have never ridden in a car before."
Amanda took Sasha to her car. It was larger then most cars and provided
enough room for them. While Amanda drove to her house Sasha watched the country
as they passed. She found this a very interesting experience since she had
never ridden in a car before. Amanda didn't live in the city. Instead she
lived out in the country not to far from the dam. When they came to Amanda's
house Sasha was surprised to see how large it was. It was only one level but to
Sasha it was huge. Compared to the dens it was a mansion. It wasn't that fancy
of a house. Just a average house that most people would have. Sasha was
extremly fascinated by the house. Having never been in one before she was very
curious. Amanda got ready to go while Sasha was looking around. "Amanda, this
is so much larger then our dens. But it sure is a lot more cluttered. Is this
house larger then most?"
"Oh no, some houses are much larger then this one. This one is just
average size."
Sasha was extremely fascinated by the books. She had never seen a book
before for all knowledge they had was passed down from mother to cubs. But the
electronic equipment was also fascinating. She had never seen a Television and
she was fascinated by it. The pictures that it showed were interesting and she
watched for a hour. The clocks fascinated her as they did not use any method of
telling time in the village. "Amanda, is this how most humans live?"
"No, there are a lot who can't afford to live like this. Some can't even
buy food."
"Amanda, do you have any more of the machines like the Television?"
"I have a computer. You might like that." Amanda spent some time
explaining the computer to Sasha. Sasha spent a few hours on the computer. She
liked playing around with it. It was better then the Television. It was
getting late and Sasha was getting tired. "Amanda, were can I sleep for the
night?"
"Anywhere, I guess."
"Thanks." Sasha found a nice place to sleep and went to sleep. Amanda
went to sleep soon after.
"Good morning Sasha. I didn't think you would be up yet. Are you
hungry?"
"No, I found some food."
Amanda got some breakfast for herself. "Sasha, are you ready to go now?"
"Sure, we can go now."
Sasha teleported Amanda to the village and then teleported herself. Shelat
greeted them back at the village. "I'm glad you decided to come live with us.
I have decided to give you the den you stayed in."
"Thank you. I think I am going to enjoy living here. But it will be
weird to live in this villiage when I am the only human here."
"Well, that's okay. I can change you into a felinoid like us. Then you
would not look any different then us. That might make it easier for you."
"Thank you, Sasha. I think that I will except your offer. I'm ready."
"Okay, this may be a little strange." Sasha said something under her
breath to herself. A few seconds later Amanda realized that she was having
trouble standing. So she knelt down and that's whenn she realized that instead
of clothes she had a lush coat of beautiful dark-brown fur. This was when she
realized that she had been turned into a felinoid. She tried to walk but found
that although she could walk she didn't do too well.
"Sasha, how do I walk? I'm used to two legs, not four."
"Don't worry, I can't use my powers to help you walk but I can teach you."
Sasha showed Amanda how to walk. It was a complex method, but atleast it wasn't
as hard as two feet. The main problem was getting used too a new method. But
in a little while she was able to walk semi-normally but she still was getting
used to the new method. "Since we now know about your people we will probably
try to join them. Do you think that they would consider us people? Or do you
think they will think that we are just stupid animals?"
"I'm sure that they would be willing to except us as people but there would
still be some people that would dissagree. Some might even think we should be
slaves or pets."
"You keep saying we, but your not one of us."
"Yes, I am. I am one of you now."
"We can deal with that. But we still may not contact your people. We have
had messengers sent to the other four villages to tell them about the news. We
need to have a meeting to decide if we should contact your people."
"Other villages? I thought this was the only one."
"We have five villages in the Mystical Valley. Four of them have small
populations of only about fifty people, but the central village has population
of nearly five hundred people. There are also a lot of people who live on their
own instead of in a village. There are about one thousand of us in the Mystical
Valley." This surprised Amanda for she had not realized that there were that
many people living in the Mystical Valley. But she was glad that there were so
many of them. Amanda felt that they would fit into a human society better if
there were more of them. She had been afraid that there would be a few crazy
people that felt the world would be better off with none of them around. With
only a handful of them that might have been easy to accomplish, but with nearly
one thousand of them it would be less likely to happen.
"Sasha, when is the meeting?"
"Tomorrow at night fall. You need to be there and in your human form. I
will get you before the meeting and I will turn you back for the meeting."
"Thanks Sasha, I will be willing to be there."
CHAPTER 8
"Hello Amanda, I brought you some food." Amanda saw Sasha outside the door
to her den. Amanda felt like the family dog. Although she was a felinoid now
like Sasha and the rest, she still felt like a pet because she wasn't used to
her body yet. She knew that for a little while she woulld have to rely on them
for food.
"I'm glad you came, I was begining to get hungry." Sasha came in and
dropped a piece of raw meat in front of Amanda. Amanda drew back in revulsion,
but her nose told her that it was good. "It's RAW!"
"It's what we eat. You just need to get used to it." Amanda gingerly
nibbled at the meat which she realized tasted better then it looked. Amanda ate
the rest quicky then looked back to Sasha. "Sasha, it's delicious!"
"I'm glad. If you didn't like it you would have trouble living with us as
a felinoid."
"I know. But the only thing that I had before that was raw was sushi."
"Sushi?"
"Raw fish. Sasha, when is the meeting?"
"Soon, I have to turn you back into a human now."
"Okay, I'm ready. But I was getting used to being a felinoid."
"Don't worry, you will be turned back at the end of the meeting." All of
the sudden Amanda realized that she was no longer a felinoid, but was a human
again. This time she was not as surprised as the last time. But she was
surprised when she noticed that she had no clothes on. "Sasha, were are my
clothes?"
"I'm sorry, I'm not perfect. We don't have clothes because we have fur so
I forgot about your clothes." All of the sudden her clothes appeared in front
of her. She put them on right away. "Sasha, I'm ready to go to the meeting."
"We'll stop by Shelats den first." They walked to Shelats den were Shelat
was waiting for them. "Hi Shelat."
"Hi Sasha. Amanda, how did you like being a felinoid?"
"I loved it. I just wish that I didn't have to be a human for the meeting.
But I was a little surprised when Sasha brought me raw meat to eat."
"That's what we eat. You just need to get used to being one of us."
"Shelat, we need to get to the meeting. They are expecting us there."
"You're right. We do need to leave, it's almost time for the meeting to
start. They walked across the meadow too the meeting hall. When Amanda saw
what was inside she gasped in surprise. The meeting hall was huge! Amanda
hadn't realized that a room could be so big when it was underground and
unsupported. The meeting hall was at least one-hundred feet long and fifty feet
wide. The room was packed with felinoids of all different colors. Now she
understood why the hallway into the meeting hall was so long, it had to be to go
so deep underground. "Follow me, Amanda, we're supposed to be in the front.
They have some seats saved for everyone from Friss's group in the front row."
Amanda followed Sasha and Shelat to the front row where there were indeed some
seats saved for them.
"Sasha, are they going to want us to speak in front of the group?"
"Yes, they will. There are groups here from every village and they were
given the power to vote for the village. Shelat will want us to tell about your
people." Just then Shelat walked out onto the stage in front of the group. She
was wearing a beautifully decorated band around her neck. "Amanda, that band
shows that she is the leader of the village. You may see others around here
with similar bands. Some of the people just have bands designating the
villages, while a few have more elaborate bands like Shelat's." After a few
moments the throng of people quited down. "I'm glad you all came. I'm sure
that you know that we are here to determine whether we should let the humans
know about us. Until recently, we did not even know that humans were real. We
had assumed that they were legends and that is how we know about them. Through
stories told from mother to cub. Our legends tell us that humans are a violent
and greedy species and although Amanda, the human that we discovered on the
expidition, says that her species are still like that they are improving.
Amanda feels that if we made contact with the humans most of them would except
us, but she says that there are still some that would not except us. Sasha,
will you tell what you know about humans?" Sasha went up as Shelat came down.
"I stayed with Amanda in her house one night. They are very different from
us and I think that we will benefit from letting humans know about us. If we
let them know about us we will benefit. Humans have something they call
machines. These machines help them to do thngs. They help by doing tasks for
the humans but while they do tasks they do not live. They are objects not
animals. I don't undestand how they work but that is one thing that letting
them know about us will take care of. If we let them know about us then we can
send our cubs to their schools and our cubs can learn what they know. I suggest
that we let them know about us." Sasha went back to her seat and nodded to
Amanda who then took Sasha's place.
"I don't know much about you but I do know a lot about my people. Not
long ago I would have told you to stay away but now I am telling you to let
other humans know about you. Humans have changed. We are more willing to
accept other people then before. We would accept you. There are still a few
people that would not accept you but almost everyone would accept you. I will
not tell you a lie. There are still some people that might want to abuse you or
even kill you but that is a small part of the population. Most of the people
would accept yu with no problems. Both of are people would benefit from finding
out about each other." Amanda went back to her seat and Shelat took her place.
"I would like you to decide whether or not we should let them know about
us." The groups from the different villages discused this among each other then
sent one perrson up to Shelat. "It has been decided that we will let humans
know about us by five votes. A delegation will soon be sent to humans. If any
of you want to be in it please come up to me later. There will be a life-mate
celebration here in half a hour." The life-mate celebration is interesting for
all there is is a party after the village leader declares them life mates.
"Sasha and Friss, will you please come up here. You both agree to be
life-mates?" They both answered "We agree." at the same time. "Then I
officialy declare you life mates." Many people gave presents to Sasha and Friss
during the party. Sasha noticed Amanda in the back of the room talking to the
leader from the main village and hurried over to talk to Amanda.
"Hi Sasha, Congratulations."
"Amanda, would you like to be turned back into a felinoid now?"
"Sure." All of a sudden she was a felinoid again.
"Sasha, is Amanda one of us?"
"No, she is a human. But she is going to live with us so I had changed her
into a felinoid earlier but changed her back for the meeting."
"Oh, for a second I thought that we were tricked." The rest of the day
passed uneventfully and the next day the delegation left to contact the humans.
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