The Fethafoot Chronicles: The Ancient Omen: The Arrival

By Pemulwuy Weeatunga

Australia, around 240BP: There is an ancient legend of forewarning within the great Heart-rock land that has been maintained religiously by my enigmatic, often infamous Fethafoot Clan, since the Dreamtime gave way to the present Dreaming-reality. The legend tells of a colossal tribe of pale-skinned Ghost-people, who had gradually disappeared from the Dreaming cycle many, many generations earlier. The saga begins with the legendary Fethafoot warrior Yungurra-bih-Mah, as he travels through the eastern coast of what is now Queensland, on his way to Eora lands to meet his uncle and clever-man: the infamous Pemulwuy, of the Bidjigal people. What he finds there, will change his own and his people’s lives forever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Feb 26, 2015
• ISBN: 9781483551371

Book preview

9781483551371

Prologue

There is an ancient legend of forewarning within the great Heart-rock land that has been maintained religiously by my enigmatic, often infamous Fethafoot clan, since The Dreamtime gave way to the present Dreaming cycle. This ancient omen tells of a colossal tribe of pale-skinned Ghost-people that had gradually disappeared from the known Dreaming cycle sundry generations earlier. The legend divulges that they were confused and ignorant of their true origins - and of their common ancestry with the Heart-rock people and other indigenous races living across The Mother. It was said that although they were a strange and disparate race, they were also hardy survivors and utterly fearless explorers. But the most important aspect of the legend for Heart-rock and her people was that one day - the prophetic omen whispered loudly - this busy-busy race would arrive at Heart-rock’s far away shores.

The tale of warning tells that they would arrive ignorant of their own ancient Law, which connected people to land and to the Dreamtime ethics and morals – principles necessary to live fruitfully with Mother and each other as the Heart-rock people had done for many thousands of years. It also revealed that when these Ghost-people arrived on our shores they would believe that they were somehow not from the Mother – as other Earth-born people – but from some other, advanced and superior race. Further to these proudly held beliefs, it was foretold that this Ghost-peoples would initially bring many years of terror and death to the sustained peace of Heart-rock land: something awful and away beyond the imaginings of the many simple Heart-rock tribes. This prophetic legend has been preserved dutifully over many generations and passed down by many diverse leaders and storytellers; continuously reinforced by clever-men and our fabled spiritual leaders.

And despite the many generations of telling, the central story and the prophecy of their coming remained unchanged. This was not unusual in Heart-rock, as oral storytelling in song and dance had carried the land maps and ethical foundations of survival in this harsh land since life here began, and the kernels of truth in the information – imparted via pure memory – were always the same in every detail. It was imperative that these details be correct for the survival of a warrior or clan following the water maps and songs across the dry desert areas. If the song-lines were wrong in the slightest, it would lead to a swift death sentence for those crossing much of Heart-rock’s arid lands. Thus, the details of this story, which foretold the return to the Dreaming of a lost and almost forgotten tribe remembered only as the Ghost-people, recently had many elders of the Fethafoot clan deeply concerned.

Numerous signs and portents coming to this Clan’s elders from Fethafoot and colleagues across the land, had begun to weave this almost forgotten ancient tale of a hostile race of materialistic, self-serving people into a near-future collision and prophetic conclusion…

The Clan investigate

And so, this chronicle begins with a young Fethafoot sent on a mission by his clan elders to the Eora tribe, whose lands covered what is now known as the modern city of Sydney and surrounds. The chronicled saga begins about 240 BP, with the legendary Fethafoot Yungurra-bih-Mah as he travels through the eastern coast, of what is now Queensland, on his way to the Eora lands to meet his uncle and clever-man: Pemulwuy of the Bidjigal people.

Pemulwuy had been one of the most vocal doomsayers regarding the prophecy’s approaching fulfilment. The renowned clever-man had requested Fethafoot help to ensure his prophetic magic was accurate – or perhaps, Yungurra-bih-Mah suspected – at least reinforced, what he had seen in his Dreaming investigations. It had been said that the recent omens were so horrific and mind numbing that the usually calm and powerful clever-man had been seen as he wept for his people’s future. It was also rumoured that what his uncle had witnessed, was a new and almost alien Dreaming that grew in intensity in his heart and mind to the point that it was said; even the great Pemulwuy had began to feel that the horror it revealed coming for his people - was abysmally inevitable.

The fact that such a huge and powerful warrior - that in person was more like a giant animal-spirit warrior than a normal man - should be fearful or anxious to the point of weeping, was enough for the Fethafoot to send their most resilient young warrior to meet with him. They knew that Pemulwuy was no braggart or fool. He’d trained on and off with The Clan since his early youth. The clever-man’s own clan had believed that he should have been mercifully despatched at birth, because of his terrible, half-closed magic eye, but the Fethafoot had intervened, having seen his future intertwined with their own. In truth – regarding the Fethafoot having sent Yungurra-bih-Mah on this important quest - the close relationship between nephew and uncle was thought to be tactfully favourable, as even many of the powerful Fethafoot tended to become nervous around this enigmatic clever-man and fierce warrior…

Queensland – Bundjalung Dreaming lands – 238BP (before the present)

Chapter 1

Gathering fact

How sits it with your mother and father, young man? Yungurra-bih-Mah said to the boy he’d been instructed to contact as he travelled through the Bundjalung people’s lands, on his trip south down the coast. Yungurra-bih-Mah was not really interested in the welfare of the young man’s parents. He merely wanted to allay the youth’s fear of his own preceding reputation, which had scared the poor fellow into stuttering silence. The-ey are, they’re go-ood … thank you! Kundji-wah, the boy stuttered out nervously. Yungurra-bih-Mah could see that the boy was well brought up. As he’d replied, the boy carried his head bent low to show great respect and he’d used the generic title of a great warrior, as his people had taught him to say in such circumstances.

The young man stood with several of his friends, all of whom stood in awed silence of this living legend in their midst. He’d treated them like equals and the young men were squirming with delight as they realised that they were actually talking to a man whose fearful reputation of supernatural and fighting abilities was the stuff of legends: these young men had play acted at being this warrior. Thus, they were keen to help in any manner possible, though they were all a little confused that he would stop and make himself known to them, just because of a strange event they’d witnessed recently. Yes, it had been exciting and even a little scary - truth-be-known – but they’d had no idea that a man of his stature would come to question them – and about something they had almost forgotten in their youthful exuberance and their upcoming initiations.

I have been told that you young men may have seen the strange large wind-canoes off your coast - about a full moon ago? Yungurra-bih-Mah queried the boys. I wish to know more about this event – please? Go ahead and tell me of whatever you have seen, he encouraged. Now that they realised that this was a real man before them, and not some spirit or figment of their collective fantasies, the boys opened up and began to talk excitedly – and all at once…

The Ghosts

Ohrr wah, Kundji-wah! They were very big - the biggest ever seen! one boy said quickly. They had very very large woven sails – like our people use to go to the islands – but much, much bigger, another youth said. Yes! That were wrapped up and disappeared whenever they stopped the great canoes, the first speaker exclaimed. Another youth opened his arms wide to show the huge sizes they were talking about, as he remembered what else he had seen that day. There were many strange walk-upright things - like people but not! Many, many of them, he recalled. Wah! On the big floating thing - they were as strange looking as their great canoe; very ahh – pale-white things, one boy said loudly as the others began raising their voices to be heard. Some were wearing odd-coloured furs - and some were nearly naked, the biggest boy said. But only to the waist, with long finely woven skins covering everything down there near em boonty! he said, and pointed awkwardly to his own barely covered nether regions; causing the others to break out into general laughter.

Yungurra-bih-Mah had heard some of this chatter before, but at the mention of the pale people his body tensed and a cold fine quiver shook his Dreaming soul. So, it was really true, Yungurra-bih-Mah thought wonderingly as he listened to the excited accounts of what they’d witnessed. This was now