His advocacy in their favor was strong, but when he sat back down again there still remained a few very influential speakers who had not yet had their turn.
The council meeting grew to be very long in duration, as they tended to be when everyone could speak without being limited in their address. A little anxiety danced at the edge of Deganawida’s hopes, as a few more individuals spoke in clear favor of the seven.
Deganawida knew that he was very close to achieving consensus.
Finally, at long last, one of the most respected of the clan sachems rose up to take his turn to speak. Deganawida leaned a little forward, very curious as to the thoughts and leanings of the venerable sachem.
The air was at its thickest, filled with the scents of the smoke, tobacco, and the sweaty musk of the men filling the space.
The clan sachem named Garakontie would be the last one to speak, but his words were the most momentous of the entire council. The sachem could sway consensus with just a few short sentences, something that troubled Deganawida when he knew that he was so very close to securing full agreement from the council.
Long of nose and face, Garakontie, when seen at certain angles, took on an uncanny likeness to the spirited tree dwellers for which his Shadow Flyer clan was named. Like those hardy little forest creatures, he was tenacious, and acutely sensitive in his approaches to strangers.
The Shadow Flyers rendered their judgements very quickly in the wilderness. If something was not deemed to be a threat, the little animals did not hesitate to be seen and heard, whereas a true threat caused them to vanish in a flash of an instant.
While not inclined to make much noise or vanish, Garakontie was never long in his own evaluations of strangers. As far as Deganawida could remember, the Shadow Flyer sachem had always been amazingly accurate about which strangers should be embraced, and which should be shunned. Charm, appearance, and silken words did not deceive Garakontie in the least. He was uncannily adept at getting to the underlying realities, and was never hesitant about expressing any misgivings that came to him. His counsel had been proven correct in hindsight, time and time again.
In such a light, Deganawida listened closely and attentively to Garakontie’s words.
“Deganawida, Clan Sachems, and Wise Ones, I cannot say that these are ordinary times, and I am not certain that ordinary answers can be the correct ones,” Garakontie stated solemnly. “Much is amiss in our world, at a time when we should be concerned only about the migrations of the eel and salmon, the deer hunts, the clearing of fields, the planting of crops, and matters of trade.
“The appearance of the seven strangers, I believe, is no coincidence with the events that have been unfolding. I also believe that it is no coincidence that they came into the hands of Ayenwatha’s war party, so soon after encountering the Wanderer.
“Only He Who Holds the Sky knows the pure truth, but we still must do our best to gain a clear sight of the matters facing our village, our tribe, the Five Realms, and indeed, the entire world. I cannot speak for the entire world, the Five Realms, or even our tribe, but I can say what I see within our village.
“And now, I will tell you truly what I feel.
“I observed the seven carefully at the feast. I can see no hint of the Adversary’s touch upon any of them. Not even a shadow or a hint of the Adversary’s corruption.
“You all already know that they have passed the crystal test, put to them when Ayenwatha’s war party came upon them.
“There is much to them that we do not know, but I say that they are here for a purpose of the One Spirit. I firmly believe that we must shelter and protect them from the Adversary, and from the Unifier. I believe that He Who Holds the Sky will guide us rightly in this path.”
It was one of the shorter addresses, but Deganawida could not have asked for any better support. The words of Garakontie were comforting and reinforcing to Deganawida’s own inclinations. He knew that the clan sachem wielded a great influence with the others, all of whom valued Garakontie’s great ability to fathom the underlying spirit of individuals.
Deganawida slowly arose as Garakontie concluded and took his seat once again. The village Headman was buoyed further by the looks that he now saw upon the faces of the clan sachems and Wise Ones.
It then came as no surprise when the village council fully supported providing a place of refuge and protection for the seven unusual guests.
There were a few parameters put in place, all of which Deganawida found to be very reasonable. The guests would be diligently watched and observed from a distance, and they would continue to be evaluated and measured for any ill signs. They would also be put under guard whenever going outside of the village boundary.
Most importantly, though, they would be given a true place of welcome within the Onan village. They would not be turned away expeditiously, and cast into the woods to fend for themselves.
When the meeting had been brought to a close, and the sachems and Wise Men had departed the longhouse, Deganawida was left with a tranquil and invigorating feeling of relief.
In a way, the village council had just passed a test, further justifying the confidence placed in them by the clan matrons.
They had not had their judgement blinded by the terrible pressure of the looming war. Nor had they rushed to an expedient decision in the hopes of avoiding perceived risks. They had acted reasonably, and with foresight and resolve, and for that Deganawida’s own heart was greatly uplifted.
A time of great pressure and imminent threat could easily move men from wisdom to utter recklessness, and see otherwise compassionate men become cruel and pitiless. Courage often gave way to mere self-preservation in the grip of such trying times, bringing about acts that bordered on the heartless and the barbarous.
Yet the true measure of a man, Deganawida well knew, was whether he became a monster during such a time, or still remained a man.
The storm facing all of them had not dissipated, and would only gather in strength as the hours passed, but the early signs regarding the steadfastness of the village leadership were indeed encouraging.
He could only hope that it was a harbinger for the way that the other villages, and even the Grand Council, would be in the difficult days to come.
Deganawida mused to himself in the wake of the council that a small victory had truly been achieved. He would gladly savor it as he sat within the quiet chamber, as all good moments needed to be celebrated.
Without a doubt, one truth had been established. The members of the village council for The Place of Far Seeing were still indeed men.
Section V
DRAGOL
Dragol and the other Trogen riders guided their steeds downward, to skim along at a slower pace just a short distance above the uppermost reach of the trees. Fanning out in a wide formation, they were able to survey a fairly extensive swathe of land, doubling and tripling their passes to make sure that no swatch of ground went uncovered.
Though more vulnerable to arrows, as they were within the average range of a Saxan bow, the lower altitude formation still gave them some advantages. It helped to lessen the chances of an advance warning being given by a lookout watching the high skies. An unaware enemy presence along the ground was also more likely to be detected before they could melt among the shadows and foliage beneath the Trogens.
Dragol knew that any Saxans within the woodlands were likely to be very capable in such skills. His own kind was adept at concealment in their own lands, and not just due to the ever-present threats from the Elven menace. Navigating the dangers of the wilderness demanded the ability to become motionless in a flash of time, to be able to quickly shroud oneself in forest growths, and to snap into total silence.