13

Six months to the day of Afpoty’s visit Thotkot was ready but Hitla was expecting it.

A girl and her dog were watching a herd of deer when she heard what she thought was thunder. She looked at the sky but there were only a few white fluffy ones to the east. Then she saw it. The horizon was moving like water when seen from afar off.

‘There is no lake in that direction!’ she thought and the Spirit of Spirits said to her to run for the house that she was in danger. So she took off running as fast as she could, startling the deer that took off running in the same direction also but much faster than she could go of course.

When she got to the house she ran in the house where her mother was taking a nap. She ran to her and put her hands on her side near her breasts and yelled, “Mom!” which means Mother of mine. “Mom! Wake up!”

Her mother groaned and turned her head to see She is a Pretty One or Siapo beside her couch.

“Mom,” Siapo yelled. “There is water coming over the horizon! Where is Hiamop, Yamf?” which means He is a Man of Patience and You are my Father. “We need to warn him. It sounds like thunder! Can you hear it? Mom?”

Acium, or A Challenge is Upon Me, woke but lay very still listening for a storm. Siapo was right. It did sound like thunder in the distance. But she was tired and was quite sleepy. So she merely turned over on her side and tried to go back to sleep, but at the Spirit’s urging Siapo persisted and finally Acium sat up and rubbed her face and eyes with her palms.

“Umm, ahum,” she said, “Now what is wrong, Siapo?”

“Water! On the horizon! You can see it moving our way!” the little girl cried. “Are we all going to die, Mom?”

“What did you say?” Acium asked in puzzlement, “Water is coming? Where? I hear thunder of some kind. Your father knows enough to head for the house when there is a storm coming. He will be here soon.”

Then Siapo grabbed her mother’s hand and began pulling on her arm, “Come see!” she shouted, “I haven’t ever seen anything like this water. It looks like a whole lake is coming our way. Really, Mom! It does! Come see!”

Her mother struggled to get to her feet, “What in the world are you talking about Siapo?”

“Come see!” Siapo begged. “Come on Mom.”

She pulled her mother’s body behind her more than she led her outside beyond the high trees that protected the house from wind and rain in the open prairie.

When they got to where they could see the horizon she was amazed. It looked more like a field full of blackbirds than water now. What could it be? It was like nothing either one of them had ever seen. So they just watched.

The Spirit of Spirits said through the mother, “It is men and horses! It is a huge army! Get Yamf! We have to run for our lives!”

Just then they heard her father Hiamop’s voice calling for them back at the house. So her mother took off running with the little girl not far behind running for the house. They had to warn Hiamop.

When he saw them he yelled, “Get the water bags ready! A storm is coming and it is covering the entire sky! It looks like a very bad one! Get to the cellar and let’s settle in while it is still a way off.”

“It isn’t thunder Hiamop!” Acium cried. “It’s a huge army with horses and men! We have to get out of here!”

“There isn’t time,” Hiamop said, “We should have gone to the city as Hitla advised all rural people to do. Now all we can do is hide. Who told you?”

“The Spirit of Spirits,” Acium said. “She wants us to make a run for it. Doesn’t she, Siapo?”

“The Spirit of Spirits!” he shouted. “Then we will somehow make it with her on our side. Get some food and water. I’ll get the wagon ready. But Spirit, I don’t see how a wagonload and the three of us can outrun the cavalry. We are going to need a lot of help.”

Acium ran into the house and came back with two bags of water and a large canvas bag filled with bread and some butter. Hiamop put it in the wagon he had hitched the mule to and helped Siapo and Acium up into the wagon. Then he got in the front seat and gave the reins and snap and the mule took off with him urging her to go as fast as she could.

They had come to a small depression in the flat prairie but they could see the buildings burning behind them as the army took everything they could use; the animals, the chickens, the grain in the cellar, and even the household goods expecting to find the farm deserted and seeing no one not even the wagon that was hidden by the depression where the little family hurried as best they could in obedience to the Spirit of Spirits. But soon they were on their way again and it seemed like over an hour when they could see the cavalry gaining on them from behind with Ruffian Siapo’s dog running hard next to the wagon and the three of them safe for now.

The Spirit of Spirits told Acium, “Have your husband stop the wagon.”

She made her way to the front seat where Hiamop was driving the mule with all there was in him while not spilling the wagon in the process.

“Hiamop!” she yelled at him above the noise. “Stop the wagon!”

“What?” he yelled back. “I thought you said, ‘Stop the wagon!’”

“Do as I say,” Acium yelled.

Hiamop hit the break, thinking the Spirit of Spirits must have spoken to her again. It was slow going and the cavalry was closing fast. But he did manage to stop the runaway mule by jumping on his back and pulling her reins up and back.

As they came to a complete stop the Spirit of Spirits said to Acium, “Now get out of the wagon and the three of you join hands.”

Acium obediently got out of the wagon and picked Siapo up and stood her on the ground beside as Hiamop came to them as they watched the cavalry that was almost upon them.

“Here! Take my hand!” Acium yelled at Hiamop.

“What for?” he said, ‘Thinking all was lost but they would go out together having obeyed the Spirit of Spirits.’ At least that was to their favor after foolishly staying behind for no good reason he could think of now.

“Just do it!” she yelled and Hiamop grabbed her hand looking at her wondering whether she had lost her mind. But deciding it really was the Spirit of Spirits he raised his eyes to see … ? The walls of the city!

They made it! They were alive and since Siapo was hugging Ruffian with her free hand even Ruffian had made it also.

When the cavalry came to the wagon they were surprised.

“When was the last time you saw a runaway stop on its own?” one of the riders asked.

“I could have sworn there were people on that wagon when it stopped,” another said.

“Scout the area,” the first one said, “I saw it too.”

“Scout the area?” the second one said as they were joined by two or three others. “It’s all uphill in all directions. Nobody can disappear out here!”

“It-it’s a miracle, ain’t it?” one of the new ones said.

“Sarge!” another one said as yet another man joined them, “There were three people on this wagon and dog running alongside. Now there ain’t none of them left. Spooky! Isn’t it Sarge?”

The sergeant ignored it and asked, “What’s in the wagon?”

One rode up to the wagon, got into the wagon and came to look out the front where he could see the sergeant better and just held up the two skins filled with water and a large canvas bag full of bread.

“Okay, soldier,” the sergeant said. “You four butcher that old mule and put a horse in its harness with the carcass in the wagon.”

“Aw! Sarge! There ain’t nobody going to eat no mule,” a soldier said.

“We are,” the sergeant said, “If we have to. A hungry army is full of dead men. An army with mules to eat can still fight! Do it soldier.”

“Aw! Sarge, somebody among the footsoldiers can ride her,” he complained.

“Now that is a good idea for a change,” the sergeant said, “Anybody else got a better one? You there, take that scrawny mule back to infantry. Let one of them rest for a while then another and so on.”

“What about the miracle, Sergeant?” the one that was unhitching the mule with an extra horse tied behind it on the wagon asked.

“What about it?” the sergeant said. “We fight men! Don’t worry yourself about ghosts riding a wagon!”

“But what if it were the Spirit of Spirits they talk about?” he said as he placed the horse in the harness. “I am thinking somebody should report this miracle here.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” the sergeant said and then looked around at the men, “The rest of you keep this quiet. Don’t go spooking the whole damned army?”

But the men as well as the sergeant so it turned out could not forget it. 

“They just turned into thin air,” they said to the others when discussing the events of the day and word spread throughout all three battalions God was already fighting for the enemy. The Spirit of Spirits was famous throughout the platoon as well as adored in the city when those that stood watch on the walls all backed Hiamop, Acium and even little Siapo up when they testified as to what the Spirit of Spirits had done.

The commander, the governor of the city was almost more interested in the fact a huge army was descending on the city and immediately dispatched messengers to nearby cities for reinforcements before he said to Hiamop, “What about what was left behind?”

Hiamop said, “Well sir, I imagine they slaughtered all the animals and took what they wanted from the rest, even the grain. But what is that among so many?”

“Some of us would have put all that to good use, Hiamop,” he said, “At least it might have helped you buy some city clothes. That is all.”

Hiamop was convicted again that they never took the ruler’s edict seriously and should have come to the city when they had the chance.

When he was alone he looked up and said to the Spirit of Spirits, “Thank you. I was afraid when I saw the cavalry coming that you wouldn’t help us. I even considered whether I could murder my wife and little girl to save them from a fate much worse than death and I don’t think I could have.” Then he bowed his head and asked Jesus to forgive him and his wife for their foolish decision but it seemed to him even as he did he felt forgiven and Jesus did not want to hear any more about the matter.