Leading the Witness

[Crue Sarish]

When evening approached and she was confined to her room, Crue?s had little to do but wonder about the fate of the slaves in Dead Rock. A week and a half had passed since she had first visited Blade. Every evening she couldn?t help but see them in her minds eye, growing ever weaker in the sulfur mines while Blade enjoyed his poached fish and cushioned couches and his power grew with each passing hour. She pined to act, to find the right opportunity to speak up and tell someone the truth about the identity of the Fire God.

?Priest!? called a gruff, throaty voice. Crue?s ears perked up as she recognized the speaker and listened carefully for a response.

Crue peered out from behind the curtain, careful not to rustle the fabric as she watched Shuga walk slowly toward the entryway. Dekeft had not entered the priest's home since Crue?s arrival, and neither had she heard them say more than a few words to each other at a time. She was not going to miss a chance to hear why Dekeft had come today.

The High Priest and the First Atilak faced one another. The former in his typical robes of red and black, snake staff in paw and necklaces rattling lightly against his chest. The latter sported the elaborate headdress that signified his authority, its long feathers brushing the ceiling and stone beads catching the candlelight.

?V?y haf you come, Dekeft?? Shuga asked, annoyed by the intrusion.

?Shuga, we haf meal we will share wit? Crue.? In addition to his words, Dekeft?s posture showed that this was not a request.

?She done mush today. She need sleep, ayah.?

?Crue ees strong for small beastah. Mi munga mehk speeshul meal and to revive te healer.?

Shuga took a step closer toward Dekeft, and while the priest was a half-head shorter, he knew where his power lie. ?We go early to seekuh Fiyah Gott. She need to rest en? prepare for visit to mounteen.?

Dekeft?s lip curled ever so slightly and he leaned in toward Shuga.  ?Why you go tomorrow? Treebute not enough to provide tik Fiyah Gott.?

Shuga?s eyes shifted slightly to the right for a fraction of a second. ?I haf keeft tik Fiyah Gott. He weel accept it.?

Crue could see Dekeft growing frustrated as his tan, brindled fur stood on end and the black tip of his dark tail twitched. Despite his insistence, it was obvious he would not defy the decision of the High Priest outright. Eager to keep Shuga from dominating the situation further, Crue stepped out from behind the curtain, as bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as she could manage.

?Dekeft, how good to see you!? she greeted. She nodded in deference to Shuga before she turned toward her guest. ?I would be very happy to join you for a meal! After traipsing through the jungle all day to ready the shrines to Ku?ryg, Mai?ryg, and Lo?ryg, food will help me to recover more than sleep at this point. And I haven?t seen your son Drehm in days! I heard that your wife has recently finished displaying the snake king?s skull in the-?

?Bah, teeny beasty speekah too much!? Shuga proclaimed.

Crue?s delighted expression did not falter. If he forbade her to leave now with the one who owed her a debt, he would be revealing the fact that she was a prisoner rather than a guest. His expression warned her of his anger as he stated, ?Remember t?at you go to Fiyah Gott tomorrow.?

?I will.?

She followed Dekeft out the door. Crue kept the spring in her step until they were halfway to the hunter?s den, then allowed the weariness she felt after the day?s work to show. However, as soon as they arrived at their destination, the rich, spicy scent of supper filled her nostrils and she sighed with pleasure.

Once they stepped down into the den, Crue was greeted by a large viper skull hanging from the ceiling. Other snake skulls and fangs adorned the walls and bright feathers added splashes of color to the room. Dekeft pulled a curtain across the entryway and turned to the squirrel. ?Weelcome, Crue Sarish! Mi family care for you wit? food and drink, honor you wit? time, and show t?anks for your heal of Drehm.?

Not sure what the proper response was for such an official welcome, she smiled and stated, ?I thank you for the honor you bestow upon me. I look forward to sharing this meal with you and your family.?

Dekeft slowly smiled, and led her through several rooms. In their dining room, the food was set out on red clay plates atop a low wooden table. A blanket of woven grass had been dyed a myriad of bright colors and now sat on the floor before the table. Laika, Dekeft?s wife, sat next to her son, and both of them rose when she entered the room. Crue smiled at the happy family, and she felt more at home here than she had in a very long time.

?Welcome to our den, Meess Crue,? Drehm called out.

?Thank you, Drehm.? She grinned at his use of the word ?miss.? She then turned to Laika. ?Thank you for inviting me to your home.?

?Our den ees happy you are here. Leet us grow strong vit? t?is meal toged?er!? she replied, waving a paw toward the steaming dishes.

Crue was delighted by the foods that had been prepared for that evening, most of them made without meat. Atop the table sat a thick, spicy yam soup, spiced coconut pancakes topped with mango and cinnamon, and cold, halved papayas that had been poached in a cinnamon and lime syrup. The smell caused both her mouth to water and her nose to run as she sat down on the blanket with the others.

After a course of pancakes, Crue lowered her voice and addressed Dekeft. ?How many times have you seen the Fire God??

Unprepared for the question, there was a moment of silence before he spoke. ?I? haf seen Fiyah Gott? four times. I em more busy t?en many, en? he has shown seelf to ot?er monkoozers more.?

?Only four times in ten seasons?? Crue repeated, her brow furling slightly as she took in that tidbit of information. She had to refrain from making a scathing remark regarding how much Blade actually seemed to care about his followers. ?And he always shows himself in the robes and mask??

?Ya, ayah!? Dekeft let out a small laugh. ?Fiyah Gott ken no more change hees fur t?en we ken.?

Crue almost laughed. ?Well, what do you think about the Fire God? What kind of God is he??

The elder mongoose looked to Laika and Drehm, an uncertain expression on his face. His wife?s face was neutral, as if encouraging him to make up his own mind. ?He ees te gott we see. He ees te gott vit powah of mountain, who shook ground ven he first come. He keef us knives an? speers stronger t?an rock, an? viktry over te sneeks. He keef Shuga fiyah powah, too.?

Crue had heard all of this from other mongooses who touted the Fire God?s benevolence and generosity, but the story she was told was always the same, as if they had forgotten the way life had been before the Fire God had arrived.

?Does he allow you to honor and care for your other gods??

?Vell? te priests tek care of te ot?er gods.?

?Why? Is your care and honor of those gods any less pure than that of the priests?? She lowered her voice to almost a whisper. ?Is the Fire God so jealous that he will not allow you to care for those your elders honored before you were born? And, why does he need small things like pretty stones and shiny buttons? Why does he demand sacrifices when your other gods are satisfied with your kindness??

Dekeft?s face vacillated between indignation and guilt as he seriously pondered the questions. She hoped it wasn?t too much too soon, but she was running out of time. She wanted to see Lakai and Drehm?s reactions to what she?d said also, but she didn?t take her eyes off of the mongoose leader.

?T?ese are questions for priest,? he muttered and turned his head away.

?That?s what you said when te Fiyah Gott come,? his wife spoke up. Her voice was gentle and her amber-colored eyes gave him a knowing look. ?But eet not stop you from wanting to see te mountain wit? your own eyes.?

Dekeft growled, obviously displeased that she had spoken thusly. Laika growled back, her teeth bared and her expression quickly turning fierce. Though her words were quiet, her passion spoke volumes. ?You are First Atilak to t?e tribe, mungo, but I am Second, ayah! I hunt by your side! I lead ven you can not! I speak ven you will not!?

?Munga-? Dekeft implored, but Laika would not be deterred.

?Crue Sarish speekuh true ef Fiyah Gott. You speekuh true to her ef Dead Rock or I speekuh for you.?

Crue bit her lip and watied.

Dekeft didn?t speak for a few seconds, but he eventually succumbed to his wife?s unyielding stare and flicked a paw in the air in surrender. Drehm scooted closer to hear the story.

?Ven Fiyah Gott come, he speekuh to Priest Shuga. Shuga say he promees monkoozers dat no more die in Dead Rock, t?at te fiyah in te mountain no more burn Ku?ryg, te smoke no more blind Lo?ryg, en? te ash no more choke Mai?ryg. He keef keeft of knifes t?at no break. En? ven night come, we see hees floating den, ayah, lit by blue fiyah and te wings froze in te wind. Te floating den appeah some nights after, seen wit? blue fiyah en? t?en gone.

?We no see te Fiyah Gott for a whole moon-turn. He speekah only to Shuga, show him favah over all monkoozers, en? Fiyah Gott appeah en? make him High Priest. He speekah to me an ask me to listen to Shuga, who be hees voice to monkoozers. I not be First Atilak for long en? I say yes to te Fiyah Gott.

Dekeft glanced at his eager audience and shifted closer toward them. ?One night, I see te floating den return to mountain. I want to see where eet live, so I leave village and run t?rough jungle until I reach ocean. I teek raft ?round side ef mountain, and see t?at ocean go into te mountain. I follow an see te floating den next to teeny bridge. No beast come een or out of den, so I am going to floating den to see eet closer. I am ?bout to entah ven I hear loud BOOM an I row away!? He thrust his paws into the air and his audience flinched at the noise. ?I fearuh te wrat? of te Fiyah Gott, ayah, an go back to village, an no speakuh to no one but Laika.

?One season later, he bring fiyah out ef Dead Rock. He show monkoozers fiyah from hees paws, t?en he keef fiyah to Shuga in return for sacrifice. We keef him snehks, en? then other strange beastah come out of the water en? we give them to Fiyah Gott, too. Prickledogs, Bushtails, Long-eyas, Snehketails, Sleekfurs, en? ot?ers all go to Fiyah Gott. Some sacrifices, some go to te Hellgates. No beast evah come out.?

He paused before confessing, ?I no more go to te mountain ?less Shuga say to come. I hear t'under ef te Fiyah Gott on ocean, but I no want to hear t?under again on t?is island.?

Crue took a moment to allow pieces of his story to fit into place to coincide with what she had been through in the last three weeks. ?Could you find your way back to the floating den?? Crue asked. She leaned closer to Dekeft as she waited for the response.

The mongoose looked her in the eye, his expression wary.

She looked over toward Laika and asked the female, ?As Second Atilak, would you permit your First Atilak to show me where he went??

Dekeft opened his mouth to protest, but Laika silenced him with a look. ?We owe you debt, Crue Sarish. You wish to see vat Dekeft seen, but eef you go alone, you may die. Mi mungo keep you alive.?

As Dekeft capitulated, Crue wondered how many of the tribe?s more important decisions had actually been Laika?s. She decided to leave that as a topic for another time, as they now had important plans to make. She would have to head back to Shuga?s den before he came looking for her and overheard their plans. At Dead Rock tomorrow morning, she would find a way to get a message to Robert or Chak to let them know that whether she succeeded or failed, it would be soon.

?Tomorrow night,? Crue stated, ?we will see what Hell is really like.?