There was a very short ceremony that day, held by the Elders, to swear me in as the group’s Enchanter. It seemed unreal to me, I had never attended an Elders’ meeting before, though I would have to go to them all now. It was informal, and soon over, so I could get away and prepare for Ikaseraz’s death rites. He had probably thought, as he taught me them, that I would be doing them for him. It had not occurred to me then and now I felt hollow inside.
The following day most of our group assembled outside our shelter. Ikaseraz’s wrapped body was put on a stretcher and Father, Sinotsu’s father, Esonde and a fourth man I hardly knew, who had all been appointed by the Chief Elder, each lifted a corner. I had to lead the procession to clear away evil spirits. Behind me came the four men carrying the stretcher and behind that Sinotsu with my family. After those leaders everyone came in any order they happened to find themselves.
It was a long slow walk to the stone circle which was not far from the image of Vezeru at the head of the valley. My new wooden harp was strapped to my back which made me walk more slowly than I might have done. At the circle the four men put the body in the centre on the death rock, then removed the stretcher to a respectful distance and I began the death rites. It was a great relief to reach the end of them without any ill omens and everyone sighed slightly. It was probably in other minds as well as mine that he was fortunate to be going to the spirit-world in mid-summer. The ravens we had called with the rite would come quickly to take him there. There was a long wait for those who died in winter if they froze into the ground. Then I played the carrying songs, those to accompany his spirit, on the harp and everybody sang them with some other instruments playing too. There were many tears and some ululating. Then we left him and went sadly home. Everyone says that we should be happy for him, I try to think of him always with his Eider safely in spirit-world, but the grief of loss in this world overcomes that, for me anyway.
After such a day I decided I would get away for a while the next day. I gave Sinotsu the day off and he begged Oskol to take him fishing which he rather condescendingly agreed to.
The next day started in with wind-driven hail. The sound of its hitting my shelter had woken me early. It didn’t last long, but the impression it made on my mind did. I stayed under my sleeping-furs thinking and snoozing until the sun had risen. There was little warmth in it when it did come.
The daily chores gave me time to think through, yet again, everything Hare and the Ancients had said about the increasing cold. We agreed that the wind was mainly responsible for bringing it and that the spirit-power of the Ice Giants was keeping the wind in the north. If I could only turn it southerly, how the reindeer would love the plant food brought by that warm gentle rain and hours of sunshine. My ambition even extended to herds of mammoths. Ikaseraz had said that he had seen them as a child - they appeared to my mind’s eye from the paintings in the caves - but it had been too cold for them since. I didn’t want to go to the cave to speak to Ikaseraz yet. He needed time to settle in the spirit-world before working on our problems. To give him that peace I knew I must be strong and work alone. I stroked my boar-purse for courage and missed him.
The lullabies my mother had played on her flute when I was a child started playing in my mind. Perhaps it was only because of what I was already thinking about, but they sounded like the wind which had brought this morning’s hail. My harp spoke of soft, warm winds. The last time I had played it was at Ikaseraz’s death rites, so the power of his passing into the spirit-world would be in it. I knew then what I must do. I would go and play it to Great Reindeer Spirit, who gave us prey when he would, and then he would help me. His reindeer needed the warmth too, he would be my ally.
A trip up onto the tundra was necessary for my plan. I would go up past the shrine to Vezeru and Ikaseraz’s stone circle and ask for their blessings on my venture.
It was hard to know what to take in my pack, or rather what to leave behind. The harp would have to be strapped on my back, it was heavy and awkward so other items must be kept to a minimum. My travelling shelter was the single heaviest thing I needed. Lightweight food, so just a little dried stuff. Water I could collect up there. It would probably be peaty but that was better than carrying it. Weapons, of course, though only close-range ones. A dagger in my belt and my bear-claws strapped on one hand to leave the other free.
Once I was in my outside clothing I felt warm for the first time since getting out of bed. One mitten wouldn’t fit over the bear-claws so I collected a fox tail on my way out. At my parent’s shelter I told them where I was going as they breakfasted. They looked a little askance at the heavy harp on my back, but knew my strange ways well enough and didn’t mention it. Mother wrapped the fox tail about my bear-clawed hand leaving the tip such that I could instantly uncover the claws with my other hand. After a shared hot drink I set off.
As always it got steadily colder as I climbed. By the time I reached Vezeru and Ikaseraz my feet were cold despite the body heat generated by the climb. A small piece of white quartz each was all I had been able to carry to give to them. But I knew they would understand and bless my journey.
When I reached the tundra the sun had gone. Grey clouds covered the sky from one horizon to the other. My enemy the north wind buffeted me and stung my face. All I wanted to do was set my back to the wind or even put up my shelter and rest. But it is the difficulty of the travelling which gives the spirit-journey its value. The harder the discomforts which the enchanter overcomes in order to address the spirits the greater will be the blessings they give. I pushed on.
Though I have not got the hunter’s eye, where I had reached by late afternoon looked like good reindeer country to me and I stopped to choose my place to address Great Reindeer. It was a relief to get the harp off my back and I set it carefully on a rock. The shelter was soon up and looked inviting, Dried heather stems from the previous year supplied enough fuel for the small fire I would need, though I would not light it until night fell. My tinder fungus flared in the wind as I unpacked it and I hurried it into my shelter.
With everything done I picked up my harp and calmed my mind. When I travelled along the path to the Great Reindeer my hands played whatever seemed right to please him. And I could feel his pleasure in the sounds, time passed though I was not measuring it. My link to him was suddenly broken when I saw a movement. It stopped instantly, but I knew there was something in the grough behind a peat hag not far away to my left. After gently lowering the harp onto a rock I drew my dagger and released my bear-claws. There were other possibilities but I thought it likely to be a lone hunter from another group. I would have known if anyone from our group was up here. One animal, either reindeer or wolf was not at all likely, though it was about that size. There was no reason for me to move, nowhere was any better than here if I had to defend myself. I was more puzzled than frightened as to what animal it could be, and if it were a person why they would hide. The land here was not considered to belong to any of the groups in the area. Anybody might hunt here if they chose, or commune with the spirits. The normal thing, if it were a hunter from another group, would be just to greet each other and pass on. The chilling thought that it might be an outcast came to me. But I had no time to worry about my chances against an outcast with distance weapons because whatever it was decided to show itself. It was a huge man with a javelin. I stayed perfectly still to see what he would do. Instinct told me to be submissive, but how galling it would be if he went back to his group saying that our group’s enchanter fell on her knees to him without his even threatening her.
He started to walk towards me without raising his javelin. I calmed a little and studied him. There was something about the way he walked that was not right. He didn’t seem to be injured but nobody walked in that strange way. Then he was near enough for me to see his face, a very wide nose and such brow ridges. The shock made me helpless, he was an ice giant.
He looked no more controlled than I was. We both spoke together but neither could understand the other. Seeing our strange situation simultaneously we smiled. That broke the tension and he was the first to think what to do. He put his javelin on the ground with the point facing back the way he had come. I realised that I was pointing my dagger at him so quickly put it down with the handle towards him. First pointing at my harp he then pointed at his ears to tell me that was how he had found me. He made a questioning gesture and I picked it up and showed him how it worked, how to tune it by tightening or loosening the strings. He seemed delighted and urged me to play. I never need much persuading and I played the first things that came into my thoughts. Then I handed it to him suggesting that he try. He looked almost shy and it seemed he would refuse, but I persisted and he took hold of it. He tried to play as I had done but his fingers were too wide. So he tried to pluck with his fingernails but still his fingers were cumbersome. But when he found a thin stone he managed to play the strings with it and I taught him a couple of straightforward tunes.
It was going dark by this time so I lit the fire in the entrance to my shelter and set a drink heating. He watched me but did nothing so I made "go in" gestures. He still did nothing so I went in first to show that it wasn’t a trap. He followed me in then and I saw the reason for his doubts. It was not a large shelter and with him in it looked suddenly much smaller still. He made an expressive move with his arms, deprecating his size, and I laughed. The hail started again then so he went out and brought in our packs and the harp.
When the drink was hot we shared that but each ate from our own food. We smiled again to see that it was the same, dried meat.
After we’d eaten we fell to comparing things from our packs nodding at similarities. I think we both felt the frustration of not having a common language, we seemed to both be trying to explain that our things were lightweight versions of the heavy and sturdy things we used at home. Then we compared our sleeping-furs and then our clothes. With nothing else to compare curiosity got the better of me. I removed some of my clothes and showed him the front of my body hoping that he would do the same. He looked startled but quickly did so and I couldn’t see much difference from the men I’d seen before. There is no need for me to say what followed, everyone knows how all that goes. I’ll just say though that he was as strong and heavy as he looked and it was very good.
In the morning we woke at the same time. It could hardly be otherwise we were squeezed in so tightly. Smiles and gentle touches got us through what might have been an awkward breakfast. Luckily the weather had improved and we could strike camp without the hail. He helped me pack up the shelter and we were soon ready to go our separate ways. I had had time to think by then and had decided to give him my harp. He tried to refuse, but I could see he really wanted it and insisted. I helped him with the straps to get it on his back and he seemed very pleased with it, though my conscience was making me uncomfortable. My reason for giving it was selfish. I wished to please the Ice Giant Spirit in the hope of his changing his mind about us.
My ice giant wanted to reciprocate and searched his pack for a gift. He brought out the biggest and heaviest tooth imaginable and offered it to me. I was thrilled, it could only have come from a woolly mammoth.
The ice giant was re-packing his things. I touched him lightly to get his attention and clutched the huge tooth to my chest bowing to him. He grinned his understanding and pointed at the harp bowing to me. We touched all four hands in farewell then he started north and I south.
If he was left wondering what I was doing playing a harp in the middle of nowhere, I was left wondering why he would take, on a lightweight hunting trip, a woolly mammoth’s tooth. I could barely prevent myself laughing aloud with happiness that such an initially scary encounter had turned out so well. My slight doubts about the existence of ice giants were proved startlingly wrong. But I wondered where were my enemies now. One ice giant at least was not that anymore.
During the first part of the walk back I fondled the tooth to get familiar with the touch of it as well as its appearance. There was no smell to it When I thought its essence was in my mind I stowed it away in my pack. I thought through where to put the tooth to get the most from it and decided to put it in Ikaseraz’s stone circle. While his spirit was still passing - between the two standing stones - to the spirit-world and back to this world he could endue it with even greater power. But when I reached his stone circle he spoke clearly in my mind saying that I should give the mammoth’s tooth to Vezeru.
That did not seem right to me but I was too tired to try to think why he said it. He knew more than I, especially in his present between-worlds condition. I placed it carefully at the stone figure’s feet, silently revering Earth Mother.
Back at our camp I went to my parent’s shelter to let Mother know that I was back. She tried not to stare at me though I must have been a sorry spectacle. I didn’t stay long because she was busy and I was falling asleep.
My own shelter looked welcoming and I greeted the power-objects. Tomorrow was soon enough to start making a new harp. I did no more unpacking than to pull out my sleeping-furs, then wriggled into them with relief. Tomorrow would do for cleaning them too, tonight I would sleep in the smell of my ice giant.
During the night I woke from a dream I was able to remember. Vezeru was giving birth to a woolly mammoth. Of course, Ikaseraz’s puzzle was that simple.