The Land of Painted Caves - Jean M. Auel [152]
He was smiling while he was mulling his thoughts, but to Ayla, who wasn’t watching him directly, but observing him closely the way a woman of the Clan would, with indirect glances that took in all of his unconscious body language, his smile was deceitful and devious. She wondered why the Fifth had taken him as an acolyte. He was such a shrewd and canny Zelandoni, he couldn’t have been fooled by him, could he? She glanced at Madroman again and caught him staring directly at her with such a malevolent glare it made her shudder.
“Sometimes I think that Wolf belongs in the zelandonia,” the One Who Was First said. “You should have heard him in Mammoth Cave. His howl sounded like a sacred voice.”
“I’m glad you have a new acolyte, but I have always been surprised that you have only one,” the Fifth said. “I always have several; right now I’m considering another. Not all acolytes can become zelandoni, and if one decides to give it up, I always have someone else. You should consider that … not that I should tell you.”
“You are probably right. I should consider it. I always have my eyes on several people who might make good acolytes, but I tend to wait until I need one,” the First said. “The trouble with being First Among Those Who Serve The Great Earth Mother is that I’m responsible for more than one Cave and I don’t have as much time to devote to training acolytes, so I’d rather concentrate on one. Before I left the Summer Meeting, I had to make a choice between my responsibility to the Zelandonii, and my obligation to train the next Zelandoni for the Ninth Cave. The Late Matrimonial had not yet been performed, but since there were only a few who were planning to mate then, and I knew the Fourteenth could handle it, I decided it was more important to start Ayla’s Donier Tour.”
“I’m sure the Fourteenth was quite pleased to take over for you,” the Fifth said. with conspiratorial disdain. He was well aware of the difficulties the First had with the Zelandoni of the Fourteenth Cave, who not only wanted her position, but felt she deserved it. “Any of the Zelandoni would. We see the prestige, but the rest of us don’t always see the problems … including me.”
The abris that hovered around them were shelters of stone scoured out of the limestone cliffs by wind, water, and weather through eras of erosion. At any one time, only some were lived in, but others were available to be used for other things. Some of them were utilized for storage, or as a quiet place to practice a craft, or as a meeting place for a couple who wanted to be alone, or for small groups of young or old to plan activities. And one was usually set aside as a place for visitors to stay.
“I hope you will be comfortable here,” the Fifth said as he led them into one of the natural stone shelters near the base of the cliff. The space within was quite roomy with a level floor and a high ceiling, open in the front but protected from rain. Near one side wall, several tattered padded cushions were strewn about, and a few lens-shaped dark circles of ash, a couple with some stones around them, showed where previous tenants had made fires.
“I’ll send over some wood, and water. If there is anything else you need, let me know,” the Zelandoni of the Fifth Cave said.
“This looks fine to me,” the First said. “Is there anything you think we might need?” she asked her companions.
Jondalar shook his head and grunted in the negative as he went to untie Racer’s pole-drag to relieve him of his load, and to start unpacking. He wanted to set up the tent inside the shelter so it could air out and not be rained on. Ayla had mentioned that she thought it might rain, and he respected her sense of changing weather.
“I just want to ask something,” Ayla said. “Would anyone mind if we bring the horses under the shelter? I’ve been noticing clouds building up, and it seems like rain, or something … is coming. Horses like to stay dry, too.”
Just as Jondalar was leading the young stallion away, the horse defecated, leaving plops of brown, grassy dung