Lynx

The Wolverine killed Paladin, my only friend, while I did nothing. He stood his ground, between the monster and the humans he loved, stood it and held unto death.

I screeched a warning cry, but I did not come to his aid. I knew I should have come, but I cowered away from contact with the humans. It has been the way of my kind since the morning of the world. My friend the Paladin died that night, true to the vow he’d sworn.

I am Lynx, of the Folk, and of the Clan of Cat. I shared the kinship of our Clan with Paladin, though I am unworthy to claim it. His is the shining name by which our Clan and our kind will ever be known.

He was a Manx of sooty black, and he weighed a solid thirty pounds, very large for one of our smaller kinsmen who live with the humans. He was strong, and quick, and he was brave. He was my friend.

Paladin came to these mountains from far away, from a city by the shining western sea. He came with his humans, the beautiful one he named “Sunrise,” for her bright hair, and her mate “Speaks Truly.” There was a cub born to them here, a boy who had seen three summers the night my friend fought the wolverine in his defense and died.

If I could live that night again, I’d stand beside Paladin, as brave and as true as he was. But once done, upon the earth and under the sun, our actions can neither be altered nor taken back. That is a power not given to the mortal Clans of the Folk, and I will bear my guilt for all of the life-Walks that are left to me.

The humans my friend loved so well are there still, in their small house on the mountainside, but they will see him no more. He made his Journey to the Sacred Isle, where those of our kind go to rest, between the many lives we live.

Nine are the lives of Cat, and nine are the paths we walk, upon the earth and under the sun. The Spirit Above decreed it so in the morning of the world, and we are true to the path that was set for us. So it is sung, and so it has been remembered.

I know that in time Paladin will return to live once more, and I know that he does not hate me for what I did. I knew it as I watched from the forest edge, while the man he called Speaks Truly fashioned a box of wood, slowly and lovingly, with his clever human hands. I knew it as Sunrise, his mate, tenderly wrapped my friend’s battle-torn body and placed him within it.

I knew it and yet I grieved, as I saw the two of them dig his grave beneath the golden aspens that sing in the wind. I mourned him when they had gone, as I padded silently to the little mound of fresh earth and lay down.

Then I swore to my friend, upon his grave and before the Spirit Above, that I would always live here. I would remain near Paladin’s home and act in his name. Never more would Lynx be found wanting, afraid to come near.

“Until you return, or I end my Walk,” I vowed, “I will ward this house and keep these humans safe. And while breath remains within me, there will be no mercy for any who seek to harm them.”

It was the woman who saw me first, she whom Paladin had called Sunrise. Humans must bring their food from a distance, from the town below the mountain, and then it must be unloaded from their travelling machines and carried within. Sunrise went into the house with all she could carry, and when she returned for more, I was there.

I revealed myself deliberately; I wanted her to know that Lynx, friend of Paladin, was there to see her safely into her dwelling, with all that she had fetched home. She dashed back inside, and in a moment her mate, Speaks Truly emerged. He looked carefully about, but I had returned to concealment. None may glimpse the Lynx unless he wishes it.

I knew they feared my presence, especially near their cub, the human child. That could not be helped, but I hoped that in time they might become more accustomed to me.

Sunrise soon reemerged, and the two of them quickly unloaded the remainder of their food. Then she sat in a wicker chair beside the door, and in her hands was a device my friend Paladin had described to me, but I had never yet seen.

I retreated quickly; this was the human contrivance he had called “phone.” Small and glowing in her hand, it was a device so clever that it could almost mimic a living thing. It could trap a portion of any creature’s spirit, so that its owner could see his likeness at any time, though that creature be far away.

I knew Sunrise wished to trap a bit of my own spirit with it, so that she could show others of her kind that she had truly seen me. This I could not allow, and I ran deep into the forest; I would return later, when she had put “phone” away.

In the days that followed, I remained within earshot of the home of Sunrise and Speaks Truly. When Sunrise emerged to look for the sweet berries that grow in the thickets I was there, though I did not allow her to see me again. When she tended the flowers in her garden I was there, watchful and alert. When she and Speaks Truly walked together in the edges of the great forest, Lynx was there.

And above all, when they brought out their child, the small boy Paladin had called “Red Fox,” I was near, always invisible, but ever vigilant. I had sworn to my lost friend that this human family would dwell here in safety. We of the Clan of Cat keep our vows.

I walked Paladin’s old territorial boundaries by night; my kind are most active then, and it is when I hunt. I reinforced them with my own marks, and the word went out among the Clans of the mountain: Lynx guards the territory of Paladin, the Wolverine’s Bane. Lynx now stands in the place of his absent kinsman.

One night I met old Badger, beside the brook that ran near the house. Though very like in appearance to Wolverine, his Clan is far different in nature.

He posed no threat at all; his place was to watch and to know all that happened upon the mountain. Grey and wrinkled he was, and wise in the ways of life upon the earth that turns beneath the sun, though he seldom voiced his judgements.

He did so now, though. “Keep your vow, Lynx of the Clan of Cat,” he rumbled. “You bring honor to your Clan and your kind.” Badger nodded gravely to me then, and was gone, into the night.

I pondered what he’d said, as I went on about my business. I certainly did not feel honorable. I felt shame. Shame can only be expunged by fresh deeds, better ones, upon the earth and under the sun.

“Very well,” I thought. “Let Lynx be judged by what he does today, not by what he did yesterday.”

In the autumn after Paladin’s final battle against the Wolverine, I saw that Speaks Truly had begun to wear his gun openly. Sunrise did not like the gun and never touched it, but I understood.

The human had his own vow to keep. Speaks Truly was not a hunter and never killed for sport, but he must at all costs protect his mate and their cub. His Clan were not given claws and fighting teeth, and neither could they run or climb, to any great degree. They relied instead on the devices they made with their clever hands.

“It matters not,” I thought. “Lynx is here; my claws are long indeed, and my teeth are sharp.”

That winter was long and bitter, and the snow drifted high against the log walls of the house where Paladin’s humans, now my own, dwelled. I found a new den nearby where I could sleep in shelter: a small cave upon the hillside, whose entrance faced away from the coldest winds.

I knew my adopted family was safe, because the smoke rose from their chimney, and I saw them when they emerged on clear days. On one such outing, I saw Speaks Truly pile the snow and form it into a likeness of himself, to the great delight of Fox, his small son.

Sunrise went inside and returned with an old hat which they placed on its head, and other items they stuck into it to fashion a wry face. The boy, whose fiery hair was very like his mother’s, laughed with that abandon seen only in young creatures who know that they are loved and protected.

I began to understand what had led my friend to give his life for these humans, although I could never live with them as he had done. I was Lynx, and I had to be as the Spirit Above had made me. I was a creature of the forest, not of the hearth.

Still, it was good to watch over them, and know that they were safe. It would be all too easy to love them, as my friend had.

I maintained Paladin’s boundaries all that winter, and kept them fresh. It was unavoidable that the humans would frequently see my tracks in the snow, especially Speaks Truly, who came forth each day to split the firewood that kept his family warm.

I knew he had begun to recognize my distinctive prints in the snow, unique among those of all the other Clans who lived on the mountain, but I could not prevent it. Humans are clever. I hoped he would soon realize that I posed no threat.

Spring came, and with its warm breath, melted the snow away. The meadows began to grow green one more, and the trees shook off their slumber. The wildflowers that grew on the mountain opened and turned their faces to the sun. The Clans who sleep during the cold time began to awaken, and I knew that Bear would be on the move as well.

There had been no members of that Clan on the mountain in recent summers, but that was no assurance that one would not suddenly appear. Their young males roamed widely, each seeking a territory of his own. One might take up residence at any time.

My humans spent much more time outdoors as the weather improved, and I grew still more vigilant. I doubted that the gun Speaks Truly wore on his hip would be effective against a foe the size of Bear, and I did not want to see him try it.

When Sunrise began to allow Fox, now an active, growing young human of four summers, to play outdoors for short periods of time, I came to high alert. Though I did not allow myself to be seen, I was never more than two long leaps from the child, a distance I could cover in less than a heartbeat.

Fox loved the green banks of the brook where the mountain roses grew, but I knew Sunrise did not want him to go there alone. I shared her misgivings; humans are poor swimmers, and a child of Fox’s age could easy be swept off his feet by the current and come to harm.

More than once, I distracted him by calling quietly from concealment in a direction away from the water. His hearing was quite acute, and his curiosity won out over his desire to get to the brook every time.

I knew that if this ruse failed, a louder call would bring Sunrise at a run, for she was never more than a few strides away.

I discovered that summer that my “invisibility” was not completely reliable with Fox. Several times, when I thought myself in a position of complete concealment, he almost certainly knew I was there. He would suddenly turn toward me, as if trying to catch me by surprise. Once he made eye contact and smiled at me, before I could retreat.

Fox was a quick and intelligent boy, after the manner of his kind. I was proud of him. I knew he would tell Sunrise and Speaks Truly of the strange “cat” who was always nearby, but it could not be helped.

My friend had died for this child. He must be kept safe at all costs, and if that meant breaking the age-old customs of my kind, then they would be broken; that’s all. They were never meant to keep us from caring for one another. They were never meant to make us give up our honor.

I came to know Fox very well, over the course of the next three summers. He was an inquisitive, adventurous sort of youngster, with whom I felt great kinship of spirit. He was always exploring, investigating every discarded bird’s egg shell and shiny beetle. He loved to chase the pale yellow butterflies that clustered about the flowers.

Always, he easily penetrated my efforts at concealment. He seemed continually aware of my presence, following him or lingering nearby while he played.

Soon after the dawn of all things, in the morning of the world, the Spirit Above gave to my kind the ability to see and know the hearts of others. I knew that no harm would come from Fox, or from his parents, for their hearts were bright, and good.

With this assurance, in the spring of his seventh summer, I resolved to show myself to him openly. It was time to discard my fear of human contact.

Fox was playing with the seed cones beneath a huge pine, one of the grand old elders of its kind. He could spend hours, carefully arranging them in ranks, then scattering them again.

Sunrise was nearby tending her garden, perhaps twenty of my body lengths away. I waited in a patch of tawny grass which matched my spotted coat perfectly, until she turned briefly away. Then I silently rose up from where I had been lying.

I had planned to call softly to him, but there was no need; Fox immediately turned to face me, and his sky-hued eyes gazed into mine.

I was ready to retreat if he should call out to his mother, but again there was no need. He smiled at me, and put his finger to his lips in the human sign for silence.

A dozen heartbeats passed; Fox had no intention of betraying my presence. This shared moment was for Fox and me alone, and we lived it together. Only when Sunrise began to turn back toward us, did I vanish once more.

Later, as I lay half dozing in the coolness of my hidden den, I considered what had happened. What quality was it of the Clan of Man, that drew so many of my kinsmen to them? They were deadly dangerous, and could easily kill with their clever devices, yet there were always those like Paladin, who befriended them and loved them.

I did not reveal myself again for several days after our encounter. Courage is for me a habit that is most easily formed in small doses. It is not given to every creature to be a great-heart, such as my friend Paladin had been. Such as he are rare, upon the earth and under the sun. But if we do the small things we must, even though we fear them, we will hear the Spirit Above name our names alongside his, at the end of all things.

I was no warrior, nothing like he had been. I never would be. My kind are among the shyest of our Clan, living our whole lives unseen, fighting only if our own young are threatened. Most humans never suspect our presence at all.

Yet to be near Red Fox, the child of Sunrise and Speaks Truly, to guard him and know that he was safe, gave to me a sense of purpose and fulfilment that I had never known in any of my lives.

It was good to watch his mother as she filled her basket with dark, ripe berries, and make certain that no foe could come near her without my knowing it. It was good to stand unseen near Speaks Truly, so that no danger could approach him from behind as he split his firewood or attended to some other outdoor task.

Was this the love that my lost friend had so often spoken of? Could I give my life for my humans, and yet count the price small, as he had done? I discovered that I could and would, rather than betray my vow. When had that change happened?

“Now I understand,” I thought. “Now I know why you died. If you are watching from the Sacred Isle, Paladin of the Clan of Cat, you will see that Lynx truly acts in your name.”

A few days later, I revealed myself to Sunrise again. There had been a short but heavy afternoon rainstorm on the mountain that day, and I knew she would come out when it was gone.

Paladin had told me how unpleasant smells lingered in human cities like the one where Sunrise was born, and I knew she loved the scent of the living forest, when it was fresh and clean.

When the sun shone once more upon the wildflowers, I emerged from my den and waited at the edge of the dripping evergreens. When Sunrise opened the door and came out to sit in her wicker chair, I was there in the sun, in full view.

She gave a little start when she noticed me, but did not get up. I lay down on the green grass of her yard to show her I meant no harm. She did not move, but smiled at me.

My kind do not usually measure time, beyond the counting of the seasons and the summers, but we remained as we were for many heartbeats, sharing the wonderful scented air and clean earth that the storm had given us.

I saw the heart of Sunrise, and she owned no malice toward any creature, upon the earth and under the sun. If her mate or her son were threatened, she would fight to the death, but without hate.

I understood this human woman, and she understood me. We had reached an accord; we loved the same people. From trust born of shared purpose to friendship is only a short step, and from friendship to love is but the blink of an eye. I had taken the final step.

When my shadow upon the grass had moved the width of my paw, I quietly rose and vanished into the forest once more. I knew that Sunrise would tell Speaks Truly that she had seen me, but that no longer mattered.

Three days after our encounter, Sunrise and her family were walking along the chuckling brook, admiring the Clans of the Fishes that swam there. Its water was so clear as to be nearly invisible, and the clouds of the sky could clearly be seen reflected in its surface.

Silently then, I emerged from the trees and openly came near, closer than ever before. My heart pounded, every instinct crying out for me to flee, but I approached to within three or four body lengths from my humans before I stopped.

A look of great astonishment came into the eyes of Speaks Truly, but he made no move toward the gun on his belt. He whispered something into the ear of his mate, and pointed to me.

The two of them smiled then. My world, and my Walk upon it, had changed forever.

That night I met Badger again, waiting for me beside the path. He turned as I came, and his black eyes bored into mine for a long moment.

“You have done well, Lynx of the Clan of Cat,” he said. “You have indeed accomplished much, yet do not become complacent. Your greatest test remains before you.”

I stood pondering his words as he turned to go. What test might that be?

“One alone cannot move the world,” he said in parting. “Yet it still may be moved. Turn not away from what is offered.” And then he was gone, into the summer night.

There are those on the mountain who say that Badger does not always speak of the same world that we of the Folk see with our eyes. Others believe he deliberately cloaks his words in riddle, for reasons of his own. I say that the best answer for some questions is that I simply do not know.

From then on I revealed myself to my family almost every day, at least briefly. I wanted them to know that I was always there, always vigilant, even when I remained hidden.

Speaks Truly seemed to understand immediately. He always greeted me with the nod of acknowledgement that one warrior gives to another. He was saying to me that if we had to fight, we would do so together.

Sunrise comprehended too; she allowed me to lie down beside Fox as he played, building his fantastic empires of pinecones, and then laughing as he knocked them down. The imagination of a human child is endless; to one of them, all dreams are real.

His mother stayed nearby as always, but was perfectly willing to trust me with her small son. Even when he reached to stroke the tufts of hair at the tips of my ears, she made no move to intervene.

Fox and I were constant companions in those good days. Those there are, among the living creatures the Spirit Above set upon the earth, who were meant from the beginning to join their lives. Fox and I were two such.

We walked together almost every day, though not far from the house, because I had no wish to frighten his mother. Sunrise was willing for him to accompany me into the edges of the wood, and there we played together, many long afternoons.

Sometimes, if scent and sound seemed not altogether right, I would make him wait for me while I scouted ahead, ever alert to danger. It is all too easy for a human, especially a child, to tread upon a hidden snake, but my eyes are sharp. I would miss no such foe.

Fox became a true child of the mountain that summer, never having seen the city from which Sunrise had come. He was as much at ease in my world as another human cub might have been on a playground.

I had the sense that Speaks Truly very much approved of this. His heart was good toward me, and my relationship with his son. Life on the mountain was good, upon the earth and under the sun.

I wish that time of our lives could have lasted forever, but life is change. Just as autumn follows summer, and then gives way to winter, the lives of all creatures consist of seasons, one following another. The Spirit Above decreed that it be so, in the morning of the world.

Late that summer, what all the Clans of the mountain had been dreading finally happened: a young male of the Clan of Bear took our home as his territory. The word spread quickly among the Clans of the mountain, as sightings and encounters increased.

I knew that this was a brown Bear, one who had not yet reached his peak size and weight, but who was still enormously more powerful than any of the other creatures whose home this was.

I had never met any member of this Clan, and sought out Badger’s wisdom. He informed me that this was a young male of three summers, driven away by his mother, who had fresh cubs to rear.

“Be vigilant, Lynx,” he rumbled. “Bear will not hunt your humans, but he is unpredictable and easily angered. Keep to your vow, but beware!”

I wanted to question him further, but he turned and was gone. Badger’s words are few and carefully spent, and his errands unknown to any but himself.

I resolved to play with Fox only within sight of the house, and to walk with him only as far as the brook. I knew the boy would not be pleased by this change, but I needed to keep him within earshot of Speaks Truly. I could not face Bear alone; he was just too powerful.

I fervently hoped there would be no need to fight, but the Clans of the mountain live by tooth and claw. One cannot plan the days of his life, but must live what is given to him. Those who prepare themselves have the best chance to see another day.

I was indulging in an afternoon nap in my den, when Bear came to the home of Sunrise and Speaks Truly. I was not there, not as watchful as I should have been, and Sunrise had come outside to gather the red globular fruits that grew on vines in her garden.

My humans had made a serious mistake. Bear is sometimes a scavenger, and will come to the scent of the refuse from human homes. Normally Speaks Truly kept kitchen garbage shut inside his tool shed in bags until time to haul them away, but on this day one of them had set a bag outside and then forgotten it.

I was awakened by the magpies clamoring in fear, as they fled to guard their nests. Then I heard Sunrise scream, and I was on my feet and running.

My den was perhaps fifty heartbeats away from my family’s door and I ran full out, in great bounding leaps. Speaks Truly’s gun echoed six times before I had covered half the distance, and then fell silent.

I emerged from the forest to see him on the ground, lying stunned where Bear had slapped him to the earth. As I had feared, the gun he always wore had no more effect on the giant creature than so many bee stings.

Sunrise was now trapped against the wall of the tool shed, and could not get to her mate. Fox was behind her, and both of them were crying as the roaring, slavering Bear towered over them, standing on his hind legs. A wounded Bear is terrible in his wrath.

I shrieked a battle cry, not my own but the high, wavering war call my friend Paladin had used, and I charged. I leaped high just before I reached my enemy, and came down on his humped shoulders with every claw I owned flailing and raking for blood.

With startling agility for his bulk, Bear simply flung me away without effort. I landed hard, twenty body lengths away, bruised and with the wind knocked out of me.

Then I did the most disgraceful thing I have ever done in my entire existence. I got up and ran away into the edge of the forest. There was death in the claws of Bear! Shame washed over me as I stood there, unable to face my certain end in defense of those I loved.

I strove to catch my breath. This could not be! My family were in dire need; what would it profit me to save my own life, if it meant sacrificing theirs? No! My grief and disgrace would be harder to face than death itself.

I turned and bunched my muscles to make a second charge into the claws of the giant. In my heart I bid farewell to life, upon the earth and under the sun. Death was far better than a life of shame without my family.

“Do you need help, Little Brother?” a deep resonant voice spoke from behind me. I whirled to see two massive feline figures, unmistakably members of the Clan of Cat, but huge, tawny, powerful, and long of claw.

“I am Puma,” the larger of them said in his deep voice. “This is my mate, Night Song.” I had never met any of their family before, but I instinctively knew them as my kinsmen.

“We will fight at your side today, Lynx of the Clan of Cat. Together we will save your humans from the paw of Bear. The honor you have brought to our Clan and our kind has earned this much, and more. Just tell us how you wish to attack.”

“Puma must circle to the left,” I said, thinking quickly. “Night Song to the right. I will charge from here, and draw Bear’s attention. When I have covered half the distance, both of you attack him from the flanks.”

Without another sound they vanished to fulfill their parts of my plan. I took several deep breaths, and then gave voice to Paladin’s high, wavering war cry once more. I charged at a full run, my hind feet striking the ground ahead of my paws at every bound, gaining speed up until the moment I leapt to strike.

Bear turned to roar his hate as I flew full into his face, and at that moment, Puma and his mate struck from both sides at once. Our enemy was bowled completely over, and sprang up snarling.

He probably could have faced the three of us together, but he was a young male, and not yet sure of himself. He chose to flee the scene instead.

I did not blame him; while he might have managed to defeat all of us, he would have suffered grievously in the process. I heard him crashing through the forest as he put more distance between himself and three sets of slashing feline claws and teeth.

“Farewell, Lynx of the Clan of Cat,” I heard Puma call. We will retire for now; your humans have seen enough of us for one day. Keep to your vow, but know that your Clan will always be with you at need.”

Then he and Night Song were gone as well, back to their own secretive lives beneath the great trees. I turned and walked back to my family and lay down on the grass of their yard, to show them that the danger was past. Speaks Truly was sitting up where he’d fallen, stunned, but not injured beyond a few lacerations.

They stared at me with open mouths, as if I were an apparition from beyond the Veil. I wanted to tell them that it would be all right now. Everything would be all right. Lynx, of the Clan of Cat, would never leave them again. Never more would he shame the memory of his lost friend.

Fox came and sat down beside me on the grass, and began to stroke my fur. The Spirit Above is kind; life was there for the living now, for all of us, upon the earth and under the sun.

END