The Daughter of Frigg
Book 2 - A Sister's Heart
From the Diary of: Megan Easter Gossler
As told by: Owen Nomrist
Omega
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The High Plain Centaur Tribe were farmers inhabiting the area of Levering south of Vantage. Walking there from Echo Basin should have taken 5 hours, but loaded down with 10 gryphon carcasses it took all day to make the trek. The walk was easy enough, at least until they reached the Wanapum Dam and Akecheta led them down Huntzinger road which would have been a pretty drive but was an unforgiving walk.
Akecheta blew his horn when they were a half mile north of the railroad tracks just outside of Levering, and as the hunting party came to the outer perimeter of the agricultural village, the entire Centaur tribe was waiting for them. The young men galloping out ahead to meet the hunters while hooping and hollering the whole way.
Akecheta and Honaw brought the hunting party to a stop before the Chieftain, an older and very composed Centaur who seemed to personify dignity and patience as the children interrupted the return ceremony with questions about the hunting and if they had any stories to tell. Akecheta smiled as Honaw and Gaagii and the other hunters talked with friends and younger brothers and lovers, giving brief descriptions of their adventures.
Amanda smiled at the scene, she couldn't remember the last time she had seen such a happy familial, tribal greeting and welcome. This was so different from what her life had been. Fast paced, always working, always on the move. The feeling of this place was so much closer, slower... and relaxed.
A few Centaurs, family of Inteus mostly, noticed he was missing and began asking questions as to where he was. Moving forward to stand just ahead of the older Centaurs and the women the Chieftain, who had noticed everything put his arms in the air to called everyone to attention.
Amanda could tell that the Chieftain had taken notice that every hunter was loaded down with spoils of the hunt. That Amanda walked with Honovi, and that Inteus was missing. He noticed that Amanda had pink feathered hair and the wings of a Harpy, but the tail of a gryphon, and yet she was clearly neither a gryphon nor a Harpy. The entire tribe noticed her nudity and the fact that she had Honovi's gryphon feather loincloth and bra and marriage feathers in her hair. They also saw that she carried a Centaur long knife and a recurved horse bow.
"It is good to see you my sons," the Chieftain called out so everyone could hear, "We are blessed! It is good that you have had a successful hunt... very successful by appearance!"
"Tribe Father," Akecheta called out in response, "The hunt was long and nearly futile but at the end, on our way home we came across a pride of gryphons and this woman. She and another woman were... under assault when we killed 4 gryphons and the rest fled."
"You have much more than 4 gryphons on you backs my sons," the Chieftain answered.
"Yes Father," Akecheta agreed and continued his narration of what happened, "After we cleaned and packed our kills we continued on our way back home when we came upon the gryphons once again. They had terrorized all, and killed some of our Harpy neighbors to the north. Even after the Harpies killed 2 of the gryphons their numbers we were still outnumbered 9 to 6 unencumbered hunters. So, we aligned with Sacajawea and her daughters. It was a great battle, we killed all of the gryphons save the Alpha. However, we lost Cheyenne, one of the human women and property or Honovi; Abedabun, Daughter of Sacajawea; and Inteus of the High Plains Tribe."
"That is quite the adventure, we will build a pyre and light a fire for 3 days for our fallen friends and family," the Chieftain proclaimed, then pointed to Amanda and asked, "Who is that woman, and whose property is she?"
"Honovi's," Akecheta pronounced, "Both women were bought and purchased by legal abdication of tribal gifts, property, and produce from this hunt. What is his, is his and nothing else. Witnessed by us, his 8 brothers, now 7."
"Honovi," the Chieftain called and asked, "Are you satisfied with you purchase? Is she... property or wife?"
"Yes, Father," Honovi answered, "I am happy with my purchase, and she is my wife."
"Very well then," the Chieftain said loudly for all to hear, "My blessings on you and your new family. May you sire many children, and my condolences on the loss of your other woman."
"Thank you Father," Honovi answered.
There was a lot more whooping and hollering from excited children, and questions from womenfolk and mothers, and inquiries about the hunt and what they saw while on the hunt from the older men. Honovi, however, led Amanda down the road to a small barn house. She found the home quaint, very utilitarian, and spacious with objects and furniture uniquely manufactured for a Centaur.
Amanda helped unpack the gryphons meat and bones from his and Cheyenne's kills. The third gryphon killed by Amanda, she gave to Sacajawea. Before they left, Honovi spent a lot of time butchering Sacajawea's carcasses so that her tribe could easily finish their curing process for their meat. Later Sacajawea told them that her Clan would stay only long enough to give birth to the fertilized eggs within her and her impregnated daughters and then they would leave. They would take the meat and move the Clan to a new location further down the river before all 64 eggs hatched a whole new pride of gryphons.
For the rest of the day Honovi took time from every task to show Amanda how to properly prepare the meat. How to pack it and where to store it. Then he took skins and bones and claws and feathers, and showed her his work shop were he tanned the leather, and found different uses for the bones. He explained that over the coming days and months Centaur craftsmen and women would come and barter different bones, leather hides, and feathers from him in exchange for harvest grains, fruits and crafted utensils.
The next few days turned into a week as Amanda made love to Honovi every morning, after lunch, and twice in the evenings, and she found she was happier than she remembered being in a long time.
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Cheyenne woke up the next morning with the spear shaft still impaling her abdomen just below her sternum and exiting her back. Laying on her side, she screamed in agony as she pulled the spear back through her body and out. As she pulled the tip out of her belly, overwhelming nausea swept over her causing her to vomit as darkness shrouded her vision and she passed out.
When she awoke again she was immediately assaulted by the smell of dried vomit on the pavement in front of her. She tried to roll away and couldn't move her lower body at all. Thinking she must be pinned beneath something she looked down and saw nothing was on her! Touching her thighs she felt nothing except her fur and flesh beneath her fingers! Frantically she ran her hands down to her pubic mound, and then up her growing belly until she reached a star shaped scar where the spear impaled her. Above the scar she could feel her own fingers touching her skin, below the scar nothing!
