Moonfall

By Joseph F. Cohan

Moonfall, an ancient planet divided by electromagnetic radiation, is giving up secrets that soon threaten its very existence. Bony Legs, Moonfall's self-acknowledged greatest Healer and a fanatic religious leader, believes that Warts, her only male offspring, can save their tribe and Moonfall. But young Warts, unsure and scared knows he'll be shamed forever if he even once says, "I'm sorry." or "I'm afraid." Warts is always at odds with his sister, Noselips, arguably the greatest explorer and discoverer in Moonfall's history. And Noselips hates Warts because "he's stupid" and "stole" her place as future family leader just because Warts is a he. Gramps, the oldest, grumpiest Elder who ever kept dark secrets, is appointed to be Wart's mentor. Warts begins Warrior training at the Last Moonfall, a place where unseen devils attack and seem to pull him apart as if he were no more than a potato bug. But with Gramps yelling encouragement, Warts survives, finds himself miraculously changed and feels more than ready to fight all the treacherous enemies and natural calamities ahead. What he can't believe is that he'll need the help of his family!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jan 9, 2004
• ISBN: 9781462826698

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Copyright © 2002 by Joseph F. Cohan.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

This book was printed in the United States of America.

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Contents

PREFACE

PART I

CHAPTER I

CHAPTER II

CHAPTER III

CHAPTER IV

CHAPTER V

CHAPTER VI

CHAPTER VII

CHAPTER VIII

CHAPTER IX

CHAPTER X

CHAPTER XI

CHAPTER XII

CHAPTER XIII

CHAPTER XIV

CHAPTER XV

CHAPTER XVI

CHAPTER XVII

CHAPTER XVIII

CHAPTER XIX

CHAPTER XX

CHAPTER XXI

CHAPTER XXII

CHAPTER XXIII

CHAPTER XXIV

CHAPTER XXV

PART II

CHAPTER I

CHAPTER II

CHAPTER III

CHAPTER IV

CHAPTER V

CHAPTER VI

CHAPTER VII

CHAPTER VIII

CHAPTER IX

CHAPTER X

CHAPTER XI

CHAPTER XII

CHAPTER XIII

CHAPTER XIV

CHAPTER XV

CHAPTER XVI

CHAPTER XVII

CHAPTER XVIII

CHAPTER XIX

CHAPTER XX

PREFACE

A zillion or so years in the future, Moonfall, nee Earth, had undergone many changes. It was divided into six radians by six bands of electromagnetic energy that stretched from North Pole to South Pole. The backside of the moon had fragmented and the Everest size shards known as Luna’s Children, hung necklace-like around her in their own mini-orbits. Moonfall had several new life-forms as well.

Unfortunately, much remains the same. The creatures still lack any major degree of insight, show little caring and worst of all, still have that driving, destructive need to feel important.

These are the chronicles of the events that changed this world, the dangers overcome and the terrible costs to and great rewards for all the courageous Dragards that survived their natural and unexpected enemies.

PART I

TALES OF MOONFALL

CHAPTER I

COMING OF AGE IN THE OZARKS

When my flap got sizzled in the Great Dragard/Devil War, I lost my chance to be the greatest Warrior of all time. In fact, I’d have been luckier if I’d just been killed and buried with Hero’s Honors. When I couldn’t finish my Deeds, the tribe stuck me with scratching down Dragard history and outta respect for Mom and Gramps I’ll do my best.

Only before you start reading, I got one warning for all Dragards or others who got the understanding and came here to discover how and why Dragards came to be so wonderful. Every part of the history I wrote is the absolute truth. But when I wasn’t around to see or hear things for myself, I just marked the tablets with what the others told me. So if you get upset how they pop in from time to time to tell their stories, well, I’ll sure understand that.

As you know, Dragards have strong opinions about most everything. In fact, there ain’t a one of us, except for Tooth, who won’t bonk heads if you give us a funny look. We’re the proud descendants of clear-eyed, square-jawed, soft-bellied cave lizards, only we’re ten times as big and come in most colors under the rainbow. But we don’t shoot fire outta our mouths. That’s the stupidest story I ever heard. Just the thought of frying my tongue gives me the shivers. But I can see how some would get confused when the lucky few used our eyespots.

Most of us are happy to chomp on slime slugs, blood worms, crabs and other good food like that and making sure we don’t get caught in spider traps. But some troublemakers, like my sister Noselips-who we call Lips-have a real unnatural curiosity about things. Like, why the women-folk don’t have eyespots. Or even worse, why we’re even here at all. ‘Course, she never wonders that out loud when Mom’s about. Mom will murder your ear holes when she hears blasphemy.

It’s still real hard, even now, almost a thousand seasons after she left home cave to believe that Noselips started us on the path to understanding. But even worse, it was all my fault. When I teased her about her uglies, she scurried off to the caves just to get away from my sass. What she found there eventually brought all that know-how into being along with a lot of problems we didn’t need.

Of course, that understanding, with few exceptions, mostly helped late arrivals. The rest of us still wrap our claws around tree limbs and boulders the way we used to, and most of the understanding’s fancy words don’t ring a bell even for the youngsters. Seems like you need the right kind of brainpan connections. And that’s why it caused a lot of problems.

Now when I popped my shell and Mom pulled me free, the sky was full of clouds and the air so wet, it was like getting hit in the face with fresh bat droppings. All due to a lot of sun rays and some of the other kind from the Great Radiation Desert, I heard later. Moonfall had already passed through her cold and rainy seasons while the dry and windy seasons and maybe even a Dark Time were yet to come. The tart smells of the spice bush flowed over the mountains while the witch hazel, flowering onion, blue star and nettle bushes provided dots of color all over. But it was the dogwood that had so whitened the hillsides this hatching season it looked like the cold season had returned. Still, Mom said it was so pretty, she named me White Warts right on the spot. But everyone has always called me Warts.

If the truth be known, I was kind of lucky to be here at all. Noselips said if she’d had her way, she’d have been the only Dragard Mom ever hatched. And her yammering is another reason I don’t care for her very much. As it was, the tribe ate my brothers when they hatched.

They were really ugly. Extra tails, or some such thing, and real bad luck.

Only Noselips, who’s more than sixty seasons older than me, kept arguing they should eat me because I was all bumpy and the worst possible shade of white. And even with my eyespot, if it ever did work, I hadda be bad luck. Well, Mom picked up a rock and banged her hard enough to bend a few scales, all the while yelling, You just show some of Luna’s Charity, Lips! It may have just been that Mom didn’t want to waste eight seasons of sitting with only time off for relieving herself, but in any case, I was grateful.

Noselips never showed me love or charity for a long while. Let me tell you exactly how rotten she was. When I was first able to understand and talk Dragard speak, she showed me a nest of soft, furry critters and told me to play with them. They like being picked up and tossed around, she said. Well, I woggled over and picked up two real pretty black critters with white stripes and held ‘em up. Mom hadda mix up a potion of the strongest tomato paste to get rid of the stink. I hadda stay outside the cave for more time than it took Luna to change from a sliver of light on one side of Her to the other.

Now you gotta know, I ain’t what any of the women-folk would call handsome. Actually, no one in our family ever was except maybe, for Pop. He had this blue spot in the middle of his head, right betwixt his eyes. Glowed in the dark, it did. And as luck would have it, I inherited that spot. Came from ‘atomic radiation’, Lips said and another reason I was bad luck. Actually, mine was a little more cattywampus-over my left eye scale-and a darker shade. Kind of like that deep pool in the hollow. But it didn’t glow, at least for a long while, and Mom, who I guess just didn’t want the last of Pop’s offspring eaten, said it needed more time so the tribe and Lips had to allow for it.

And Pop could swish his tail so fast, that if he gave just a little jump, it swept around under his peds before even one of them touched down. So he was the talk of all the Dragards, certainly, of all the women-folk. But this sure made someone jealous and so angry that one night six seasons before I hatched, someone done him in. It was at the dead end of the old rock quarry where that awful Dragard stuck a sharp rock into his mid-belly-the only place we ain’t got scales. Gramps was suspicious that Black Flaps, Pop’s younger brother had a lot to do with it but there was no proof. Even though there was bad blood between the two brothers and I don’t know what that was all about, others, including Flaps, put if off as the Devil’s doing.

But since Pop wasn’t around to teach me stuff I needed to know, Mom decided after he got murdered, to make Gramps my mentor. He can’t learn Warrior ways from women-folk, Gramps. So you gotta teach him.

Well, Gramps took me under his flaps, and over the next hundred seasons or so, taught me all the Dragard lore I could sop up. His teaching wasn’t always the way I thought it should be, but I got to tell you, he always made things interesting. Like the first time he really got serious with me. Where we headed, Gramps? I was slithering as fast as I could to keep up with him, but he kept moving ahead of me. Dang, he could move fast. He used a hop, skip and a flap, but my flaps didn’t work yet-they were still knobs waiting to break out of my back blades. Gramps hardly ever touched down so I had to keep up by racing on all fours which, of course, kept my snout pointed to the ground. My back peds were heavier set than my forelimbs. but even so, I could keep up with a deer, almost. Unfortunately, I was concentrating so hard I didn’t keep a sharp eye out for Skoosh the way I was supposed to. It was the worst mistake of my life!

Skooooooosh!

Dang it, youngun. Watch closer! Gramps yelled as he flapped away faster than I’d ever seen. But it didn’t save him.

My eyes had already turned red with shame as the Skoosh’s see-through hide, that was no thicker than a spider web, collapsed. And the most terrifying noise known to Dragards erupted in a giant Skooooooosh! as its vapors blew out through the holes that my talons had punched in it. And the smirch that hit our nose pores came on so fast, I knew Gramps couldn’t have escaped the vapors entirely. For sure, I was going to get it, later.

Sorry, Gramps. But they’re all over the place. I was exaggerating a little, but he should have known it bothered me a heck of a lot more. I was right in the middle of a stink that made those skunks seem like they were perfume sprayers.

Now Skoosh are about five times bigger than a bullfrog. Gramps said they were mysterious critters and I believed that even though I’d only heard rumors about the smell. Gramps had made me sit in one place a whole day, without moving a muscle just to see one. They were very shy and hard to make out. But watching real careful-like, I saw that they didn’t have claws, no snouts to speak of and their bones were hardly thicker than their skins. And when the day turned into night, their bellies flashed like they had fireflies inside.

I snorted to blow out the vapors and stopped to scrape my talons on the bark of a water tupelo tree. Except for what little of it was still stuck to me, there wasn’t even a smudge to show where the Skoosh had been. Strange critters, indeed. Can’t think why Mom and Gramps think they’re so important.

Anyhow, I kept scraping but finally had to tear leaves off a scouring rush to wipe away the last of the goo in my webbing. Those leaves have so much grit they can put a shine to granite. Even so, it took a while. By the time I’d finished, I had no idea where Gramps had gone until I looked up and saw him bob up above the tree line. So I headed after the skinny, bent over shape that was Gramps. But when the forest got so thick that I couldn’t see him, I had to follow his scent. It was by far the most distinct of all Dragards, being that his bowels were always on a rumble. Fact is, if I hadn’t gotten used to it, I think he’d bother me more than the Skoosh.

I finally caught up with him near sunset. He was sitting on a big rock at the far side of a bubbly spring and soaking his claws. As I approached, I got a mighty peculiar feeling I was being turned inside out. But only a little bit, mind you. Gramps held up one talon in a way that made me stop. Then he licked the moss off it.

Hold it, youngun, he yelled. Eat some lichen afore you get any closer.

Well, you gotta know I didn’t like the stuff-too bitter-but I forced down a couple of bites out of respect.

Eat more, he encouraged. It’ll rid you of all the odors.

Now I hadda wonder exactly how much respect I owed, but that was one trouble with the Skoosh. Their body stink caused a heap of trouble with the old folk. Seems our smellers get sharper the older we get. So I scraped another claw full off a water tupelo and took another bite even though it sent shivers through me again. What is this place, Gramps? I asked.

But my hunger was getting stronger than my curiosity, so I added, When are we going to eat? I woggled closer but Gramps held up his other talon and over his snaggle-toothed snout that reached out twice a far as the thickness of his skull, gave me a look I hated.

Stop worrying so much about your stomach and look around.

Well? he asked, after I’d looked but didn’t notice anything in particular.

I don’t see nothing, I answered. But I reached up and scratched behind my ear hole so he’d think I was trying extra hard to see anything that didn’t jump on me. It was hard. The sun was mostly gone and the light from Luna and Her Children reflecting off of the pond didn’t help much ‘cause they were already low to the horizon at this time of the year.

I scratched one more time giving him a chance to slip me a hint, but all he did was to keep touching his claws to the water and making ripples. Dang! He wasn’t going to slip me nothing so I hadda stay stubborn like most other Dragards I knew. I don’t see nothing, I said out of the bottom of my lip. Gramps shook his head sad-like. He don’t get mad no more when I turn surly, which is really too bad, ‘cause I always liked to see his scales rise off his back side.

I know you don’t see nothing, youngun. What ain’t here?

Oh, yeah, I thought. What ain’t here? I looked around and finally I caught the oak by it’s acorns. There ain’t no Skoosh, I blurted.

Right, Gramps said with all the enthusiasm that suggested it’d be another two or three thousand seasons before I ever smartened up.

Ain’t no spider traps, neither. I offered.

Why not, youngun? he asked with a tad more compassion.

Well, if there ain’t no Skoosh, there’s no need for spiders. For a moment I tried to stand tall even though the case of the dizzies was getting a bit worse. I thought I’d figured out that answer right smart so maybe we could eat now. I waited.

But Gramps’ tail smacked the ground. Jehosephat, youngun! What’s the matter with you? That’s like saying Noselips ain’t pretty.

Dang! He was really upset. I could tell by the way he was banging his tail in that rat-a-tat way against his skull. Double dang! If he was getting a mind set, I wasn’t going to eat for a long time.

Once, he had a mood that lasted almost three seasons.

The sun had set now, and in the cooling night air, vapors coming off the pond had an orangy look about them. Gramps! I screamed, backing away lickety-split. This is a radiation place! We’re going to die. But my yelling made me take a deep breath and as I was sucking in more of the orange stuff, I screamed again. I don’t wanna die, Gramps. You shoulda brought Noselips instead!

Close your grinders, youngun. There ain’t no radiation here. That’s just swamp gas.

I smirched, and sure enough, it was only the rotten egg smell. My eyes turned red I felt so dumb. Sorry, Gramps.

He gave one final rat-a-tat and said, Better safe than sorry, I guess. But pay closer attention, youngun. Move your carcass closer to the pond and take a look.

I moved a few squigs closer and looked down. Me, I said. ‘Just like always.

All right, youngun. You feel anything different?

I nodded. I been feeling strange ever since I got here.

Then come around to this side.

So I began slithering around the edge of the water glad he’d forgotten about me messing up. Only as I got closer, he got smaller! I took another few squigs and then a heaviness dropped on me so bad, I felt like I was getting squished right into the ground. Gramps . . . ? I gasped.

You’ll get used to it, youngun. Keep on coming.

I stuck one ped in front of the other but I swear I was climbing a mountain. I could see I was moving level but I never wanted to hang onto something so bad in my whole life. I was heading for a fall right on my snark.

You’re doing fine, youngun. How you feeling?

Just awful, Gramps. Just plain awful. And then the pains struck. First on one side and then the other. Gramps! I screamed. Something terrible’s got me. Help! I’m gonna die!

Keep coming, youngun. You’re doing fine. In fact, you’re making me right proud of you.

I ain’t doing fine, Gramps! I’m dying! I roared as the demons dug in even harder. But I knew I hadda keep trying. And then the ground took a slight rise and somehow the slithering got easier but the pain sure didn’t. And Gramps still wasn’t lifting a talon to help me.

Take another look in the pond, Warts, he encouraged.

I barely heard him for the pain, but I pulled myself over to the edge and looked down. Luna, All Mighty! I swore as I looked at the reflection that seemed to rise clear out of the water. My eyespot was glowing like nothing I’d ever seen, and I had my flaps! Flaps that were skewing back and forth like they were in an earthshake. Gramps! I screamed, again. I got my flaps!

Sure do, Warts. And pretty dang strong ones from the looks of them.

And my eyespot! Have you ever seen the likes of it? My sense of wonder tore the pain away and I just sat to the edge of the pond like a bug stuck in tree sap. I hadda be the most magnificent Dragard that ever was.

Gramps, I finally whispered almost dreading to hear the answer. Where are we?

At Last Moonfall, Warts, he answered in his own whisper. At Last Moonfall

The Magic Place! I said, finally aware that Gramps wasn’t calling me ‘youngun’ anymore.

I couldn’t sleep that night, but Gramps did some mighty snoring. When he woke it was dawn and he told me it was time to get going.

As we left Last Moonfall, I practiced flapping and even though I was a little clumsy, I was already thinking how I was going to impress the tribe. I just knew with my flaps waving and my eyespot glowing, they’d talk more about me than any Dragard ever. The trouble was, that on the way back, my glow went out. I felt even worse when Gramps wouldn’t (or couldn’t, he said,) tell if it would light up again.

But Gramps had gotten me started on my journey to become a Warrior and for at least six seasons I was going to enjoy the glorious Free Time. I’d be strutting around giving the women-folk a look-see and I was positive I’d be their outstanding choice. And I deserved it for putting up so long with that ugly sister of mine.

CHAPTER II

AT THE BOTTOM OF THE WELL

Noselips squeezed further and deeper into the ever narrowing crannies and passageways of the Great Cave. She was trying to get away from the family’s caterwauling, especially Wart’s. But now she was buffeted by the thunder of ice balls crashing against the distant cave opening, Go ‘way, she screamed to the storm. I gotta think. She gave an extra flap to try and drive the noise away, but all she did was upset the bats even more and they, in turn, added their high pitched tweets to her misery.

Ever since Warts came back parading his flaps, he became even more impossible. But his return, at least at first when he was trying to show off, had been something special. She sniggled as the recalling tickled her funny bone, and then gave way to a roar that jiggled her splayed sockets hard enough to spread her lips clear apart.

Of course, it was hard, being part of the family, not to be red-eyed embarrassed when he came flapping in, losing control and banging off the rocks. And when he kept turning over and over and finally caught his snark on a thorn tree, well, her shame grew mightier with each pathetic screech. But when he back-flapped-and she had to give him credit for how fast he did it-and then tripped and finally landed on a Skoosh, well, her humiliation turned into one long hoo-haw after another. It would have been perfect ‘cept it sent everyone scurrying away with all the old folks leading the way.

Get cleaned up, Warts! they yelled.

But Mom, as usual, hadda come to the rescue. She yelled back, You all shush up! Warts gotta learn the same as the rest of you.

Now, Noselips banged her skull against a vein of soft coal in a serious attempt to drive away the recollection of what happened next. But it didn’t help. Mom had stood tall and sung Our Hymn To Luna with all her usual, evangelical enthusiasm. But as usual, she was off-key. Worse, she did it with her talons pushed up her nose pores the way elders are prone to do when the stink gets too bad. It was truly awful. Noselips had been so ashamed, she’d wished her eyes would have dropped right out of her head so she wouldn’t have been able to see her stupid brother wearing that stupid smile as he tried to clean up after that stupid landing

Even now, the memories stung her like yellow jackets getting under her scales. Because it got even worse! Even though Warts vexed them near unto death, after he got cleaned off, he had the nerve to tell that lie about his spot glowing. Dang you, Warts! Noselips grommed, not bothering to give the coal or her head a rest. Always bragging, bragging, bragging. And they believed him! It just wasn’t fair.

Finally, Noselips took a deep breath, counted her few blessings like her Mom always told her and gave thanks to Luna for inheriting Mom’s coordination and smooth as silk flapping skill. Lips was so good, she was the only female who’d ever done a double circle O and not many Warriors could say the same. But it still didn’t count for nothing. Dang!

Early on, Gramps told her, Women-folk ain’t allowed to do Warrior Deeds to earn High Honors. It just ain’t proper. You gotta be a Healer or find some special calling or lay good eggs and raise large batches of healthy Dragards.

But her chances of getting hitched were mighty slim which was fine with her. She hated all the work younguns required and she wouldn’t put up with all the religious training it took to become a Healer. Worse, Gramps didn’t tell her what a special calling might be.

Dang! Double Dang! she grommed again. But her words got caught up in a new cacophony of bat tweets that were growing louder and had an ominous twang to them. Noselips automatically tightened her flaps and came to full attention. Ten heartbeats later, the first skinny vibrations came tingling through her peds so she hunkered down into a tight ball and put her head under a flap. Hope it’s quick, she thought.

But instead, the walls cracked in fifteen directions at once and a thunderous roar drowned out everything including her thoughts and the upset sounds of the bats. It seemed forever before the ground stopped shaking and the bats calmed down. She picked herself up from where a boulder had knocked her on her side.

Earth shakes are getting bigger, ain’t they? Noselips yelled to the bats. But they just ruffled their wings and let their heads hang down again. Fine with me if you don’t want to talk. I see I got new exploring to do, she said staring at the cracks.

Most of them were no wider than a full-grown sunflower and seemed to strut jaggedy-edged through the walls. But two that caught her eye were twice as big as her behind. Lips rolled the boulder out of the way and as she woggled closer to the nearer passageway, warm water trickled down her back and the incense smell of sour snake greens cut into the aroma of the cave. She allowed her nose pores to relax a smidge but her elation for new places to explore suddenly gave way to a grievous sadness. That smell could only have come from one place and that meant that the water slide and probably all of The Glorious Redemption Sinkhole was gone forever.

It was just awful. When she was little, she must have glossed her scales a thousand times at the Redemption-going lickety-split down Devil’s curve before tumbling into the hot waters. The Redemption had existed since the time Gramps had broken shell or maybe even since the very Beginning. Now it was surely just bits of dried mud and rotting reeds. It was almost too much to bear.

Finally, Noselips tossed more stones to the side. Can’t waste time crying over spilt honey, she murmured. It was hard to see for the moment, though. So much of the wall algae had fallen to the ground, there was less light. So she knew she was gonna get her scales banged a bit as she crawled around. That was okay but she turned her head this way and that to be sure she wouldn’t get stuck by those poking stones that jutted up from the ground or down from the ceiling. When she was satisfied, Lips took a few tentative squigs forward and headed into the cleft.

Noselips did have a curiosity. And that fact got her into trouble more than once. The first time when barely thirty seasons old, she wandered into a back cave. Gramps was there with one of the women folk and he screamed bloody murder. Get outta here, Lips, and don’t you ever sneak around like this again!

And that was how she first started sticking her nose pores where they didn’t belong. Ten cold seasons later, she’d followed her best friend who just got hitched and Lips was sure she was going to see the mating ritual. Unfortunately, Lips craned her neck too far and just made an awful cry as she fell from the tree. Mom hadn’t let her out of the cave for a whole season and her friend didn’t speak to her for ten more. And that was after she was full growed, too!

But now, as Noselips made her way, the crevice became a corridor and a dry stink that was new to her, crinkled her nose pores, sent tingles down to the tip of her tail and made her thoughts of getting even with Warts disappear. She was gonna find new History! No one had done that for thousands of seasons. With her energy renewed, she followed her curiosity and the smell of dead Dragards deeper and deeper. But not before she’d hunkered down and whispered, Thank you, Dear Luna, for giving me this chance. I won’t fail You. I promise.

The corridor now entered a huge grotto where the air was filled with even more of the decayed body dust thrown up by the earthshake. Water trickled through the walls forming rivulets and in turn, Noselips heard the growing sound of streams in the far distance rushing over rocks.

Cockroaches, the size of one of her talons, scurried about and stared as if Noselips was going to be their next meal. They stopped when she shouted, No point in licking your lips like that, ‘cause I ain’t gonna be yours for a long, long time. Then she waffled her flaps at them which both made them move away and helped her get rid of the cramps she got when she squeezed through the tight places. But a moment later, she was feeling fit except for a gnawing in her belly.

She stuck her claws into one tiny stream after another. Her first attempts left her hungry, but when she felt the water quiver in one of the small sump holes, quick as a wink, she grabbed a good sized crawdad and popped it down. It took four of those critters to give her a slightly full feeling. But she didn’t dare to eat more ‘cause crawdads did themselves real good by the cockroaches. And after five or six, Lips would begin to taste the tarry flavor and get sick if she ate more. She didn’t want that problem.

The light was better, now. These walls hadn’t collapsed so the glow was constant. She moved around and saw there was quite a bit of room to flap. Luna, all Mighty. This is a big place.

But aside from cockroach scuffling and the water sounds, it was very still. Noselips didn’t hear winds playing against the walls nor even bats tweeting. She smirched again and following the scent came upon a wide plateau. And on it, what appeared to be odd-looking Dragard bones lay side by side, mostly in place. But it was plain to see some had been shucked around when the ground had jumped.

She looked even closer and her back scales rose as she took in the strangeness. Smaller bones by far than normal Dragards, several had knobs where they weren’t supposed to be. When she smirched again, the odor lacked something. Or perhaps had something she couldn’t figure out. The smell was definitely Dragard-like but not Dragard. Almost a taint of Skoosh hung in the air but it wasn’t that either. What kind of a place is this? she wondered.

One I sure ain’t gonna tell anyone about, she answered aloud. This place needed a heap of studying. No bats. No droppings. No larvae. What do you cockroaches feed on? And why are you so big, while these Dragard bones, if that’s what they be, are smaller and different? Or if they were Dragard-youngun bones, still funny looking though, what were they doing in this strange place?

She smirched again. The air wasn’t totally still so there had to be another entrance somewhere. And after she found it, she’d follow the rushing waters and see where they led. Hallelujah! Dear Luna, Noselips sporked while banging her claws together at the same time and making a Circle of Luna. You’ve brought me to Heaven. She knew this hadda be the calling Gramps had talked about. And Lips knew she was gonna figure this mystery out and then spend the rest of her life being famous. And Warts would end up being a nobody like he deserved. Hallelujah!

She set off with a joy that set her scales to tingling again, but this was a warm cave, even hot at times. That slowed her progress as she ventured deeper. When Noselips entered a huge side room, she saw a narrow slit near the top where the wind had cut through the stone wall. By the time she’d clawed her way up to look out, a soft whistling filled her ear holes. But she was shocked to see Luna at Full Glory. Dang earthshake must’ve rattled my brainpan, she murmured. How long have I been down here?

But it wasn’t too important. She’d just go and check out what had to be a river, since the rushing of the water had become a roar. Then she’d head back to Home Cave. It couldn’t be but a tad further. Grotto couldn’t go on forever, she knew. She clambered down to where she could flap and then glided as far as she could.

The heat started to feel like a winter fever coming on so she stopped for a drink. She lapped at rivulets where they were coming through the rocks. It was cold and sweet and didn’t have that awful healthy taste she always gagged on when Mom had to force it down her gullet for one sickness or another. More important, it couldn’t be from these parts. More and more mysterious.

Descending further, Noselips passed by some queer rock formations. Smooth and square they were, and again, like none she’d ever seen. And there were side caverns a plenty that she also didn’t have time for at the moment. Besides, she was getting a pounding in the back of her eyes from the heat. More steam was rising off the water as the streams grew larger and larger. She should have stopped right then, but the excitement pushed her along like a boulder rolling down hill.

She noticed it getting lighter as well. Dang near like Luna Glow as a matter of fact. But now, her mind was beginning to drag like a slime slug. By the time she wondered what Luna Glow could be doing so far into the earth and how much louder the water was roaring, she’d turned the next corner.

The shining beauty of the waterfall grabbed her eyes and drew them downward to a pool receiving the river’s water. Suddenly, a pain lanced through her head. And even though her eye membranes shut down quicker than a cave spider jumping a Skoosh, the glare from deep in the water touched her brainpan and she collapsed.

CHAPTER III

OATH AND CEREMONY

I was standing in front of a roaring bonfire facing the tribe, getting ready to make my speech. But all the while, I was thinking back on how this disaster had come about . . .

It hadn’t been but a few days since I popped my flaps, when my Mom, Bony Legs, was after Gramps to do the ceremony. It’s time Warts took on his duties, she said.

But he just started his Free Time, Legs. There’s no rush.

There’s a rush for me, Gramps, and you know it. And with that said, she shook a flap at the both of us and on her way out stomped her peds so hard, she left Gramps grumbling to himself and me wondering what was going on.

I knew Gramps had either a great or fearful admiration of Mom. He once said, When Legs wants something real bad, she can spare enough backbone to make a dead eel come to attention. Unfortunately, he added, that mean streak and stubbornness comes from her side of the family and no one can figure how they all got that way.

Now Gramps snapped his head up like he’d been in a trance. She gone?

When I nodded, he got up and woggled toward the fire. I didn’t need to be asked or told, as it usually happened, but I started tossing on more logs while he spread his flaps.

"We got trouble, Warts. Both of us, I mean. The last time she got

on me like this was when we had to decide on the correct ritual for your Pop, Star Eye. Legs wanted him to have the Hero’s Honor Death Procession. Gramps backed a bit closer to the fire. Warmth and Checkerberry oil were about the only things that helped his rheumatism. And cussing a lot, of course. Did I ever tell you about that?"

You told me before, Gramps. Two or three . . . But once Gramps started talking, there was no end to it.

She came to me only two days after he was murdered and said, ‘If he can have Hero’s Honors, I can still hatch his eggs.’ And she gave me a mean look that was strengthened by all that Asafetidy she’d slathered all over her chest. Devil’s Dung, it’s called. Never been a Dragard who didn’t hate it. She made younguns wear tiny bags of the stuff around their necks to ward off bad spirits of a sickness. I’m betting it killed a lot more than it cured, he added.

Well, when she came in my cave with her talons splayed out, I backed away. I knew full well there wasn’t time enough to make a decision that would please anyone except her.

Now Gramps woggled around to the other side to warm his belly. You payin’ attention, Warts? I ain’t telling you this for the fun of it. But he didn’t wait for an answer. "The main problem was allowing my own grandyoungun to get the special Death Procession when he hadn’t done enough Deeds to earn them.

"But on the other side of the argument, Legs had me flaps to the wall threatening to annihilate me with her Asafetidy’s boulder melting stink. I hadn’t taken a breath since she roared in with her harangue, and I was sure beginning to feel the need. Trouble was, when I moved toward the opening, she slithered even closer and cut off my path.

’You can do it, Gramps,’ she encouraged me. ‘It wasn’t Star Eye’s fault he got done in. He was on the right path and you know that’s Luna’s Truth.’

But he didn’t do enough deeds, I told her sinking a talon into a wall crack all the while hoping for a chance to push off quick-like.

"’He did more than half,’ she said flashing her grinders at me like one unhappy rattlesnake. ‘And faster than anyone in history,’ she added.

"I knew I had troubles, Warts, ‘cause her eyes were double daring me to move even a tadpole’s length until this was settled her way. Well,

I allowed that what she’d said was true, and truth be told, I felt a lot of pride for my grandyoungun as well. ‘Tell you what,’ I said to her. "I’ll talk it over with some of the Elders and get a feel for it.

"Well, Legs backed off and said, ‘You do that Gramps. I bet you can talk ‘em into it real easy if you try.’ And I coulda sworn her voice was carrying a tad of family pride.

"So I nodded, sealing my agreement and she raced outta the cave ‘Yahooing’ all the way. My lungs were ready to explode, so I scrambled after her to the opening and took in air like a tornado sucking up trees.

I praised our Moon Goddess for the blessing of her fresh, clean air but all the while I hadda wonder why She ever created Healers. Now Gramps looked at me. Easier to die than go through their cures, he grommed.

I didn’t find out till later the reason the Asafetidy never bothered her. Now Gramps gave an almost grinderless smile and whispered, "She stuffed cave moss in her nose pores and didn’t take it out till she’d washed off that awful stuff. Cheating, it was.

Anyhow, I went and fast-talked the Elders-probably my greatest talent, he added with his chest puffed out a little. And convinced them.

This was true. The Elders eventually gave in, even if it was just to avoid his ranting. Mom told me his talent, over the seasons, earned him, and rightfully so, his nickname of Quarry Mouth. But now, I just waited to find out why he’d needed to retell this. Gramps obliged.

Now we gotta deal with this new problem. Having you do the Coming-of-Age Ceremony so early on, is just downright heavy taloned. I loved my Free Time before I had to take on the Responsibilities and this situation just ain’t right!

I nodded my head in agreement. Thanks, Gramps, I said. I knew you wouldn’t let me down.

On the other claw, though, he said, coming back and putting a warm flap around me, having Legs yammering at us for even one more season isn’t to be taken lightly, either. There’s no question that Legs is a desirable catch-being a powerful Healer and such-so she’s had a lot of attention paid to her. And since she hatched those eggs, one of which was you, and a decent time has passed, she’s available. And when there’s twenty males for every female, well, that makes for a lot of healthy aggression. When your Pop passed on, a lot of those who had the courage to woo her got their skulls dented. One even set a record, I remember. Took almost a season before his head popped back normal-like.

Now Gramps lowered his voice. According to tradition, Warts, women-folk can’t be with anyone until all their young males, in this case, you, come of age. That’s why Legs is acting like a deep scale rash. And not even a cool tupelo starch bath is gonna soothe her. Not even juniper tar, I bet.

He shook his head sad-like and I felt trouble coming.

I done some thinking and this is the only way I can make bad news bearable.

It wasn’t even close to being bearable. Be sincere, Warts, Gramps had told me. Make it sound like you want this as much as going to First Dance with Rose Hips.

That was a good thought, I allowed, even as I wondered how Gramps knew such things. In fact, it twicked at my brainpan ever since Gramps had said it. Rose Hips was sought after nearly as much as Mom, even though she’d never laid