After an easy morning walk, the ten travelers made camp in a secluded low spot between grassy mounds not far from the swamp — a perfect place for a group of wanted criminals to divide up their loot and plan their getaway. Ilika laughed at the thought.
Boro saw that firewood was once again plentiful. He, Sata, and Toli brought in a good supply for a long and possibly rainy evening.
When they had done everything they could to prepare their campsite, they gathered quietly around Ilika, looking at him to know his wishes for this tense and important moment in their lives.
“We have become a family, and this is going to be painful,” he began. “I want to give all of you a chance to speak your minds on any subject. After dinner I will ask you to give me, in writing, your final intentions. I’ll sleep on what you tell me, and announce my decision tomorrow after breakfast.”
“Is this where we’re splitting up?” Buna asked.
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“Yes. The capital city is just over these hills.” He pointed to the west.
“Also, that last trail junction we passed goes west and avoids the hills.”
“Are you going to give us more tests?” Toli asked.
“No. I think I’ve tested you guys to death.”
They all laughed or smiled nervously.
“Right now I want you to open your pouches and make a pile of coins so I can see how much we have left. The ship will need some supplies, but I’ll give as much as I can to those who are staying.”
They dumped their coins onto Ilika’s bedroll cover, and Kibi added the tube of great gold pieces she had carried so long and faithfully.
The others chatted among themselves as Ilika sorted and counted the coins, but several pairs of eyes remained riveted to the pile of glittering wealth.
“Having us keep a great gold piece all these months, without losing it or spending it . . . that was a test, wasn’t it?” Buna asked, eyes still on the yellow coins.
Ilika smiled slightly. “In addition to preparing for emergencies.”
One by one the students fell silent as they realized Neti had her hand in the air. “Um . . . I want to say thank you to Ilika for something. This may sound silly . . . but, thank you, Ilika, for making the rule about sex. I’d probably be pregnant from Miko now if you hadn’t made that rule. But Miko wasn’t the right boy. I know that now. He was determined to get himself killed, if not at the boulders, then somewhere. I want to have babies someday, but with a boy who knows how to stay alive. Thank you for giving me that chance.”
“You’re welcome, Neti.”
Ilika finished sorting the coins, then got everyone’s attention. “I’d like to share some thoughts about the two paths that lie in front of you.”
Everyone gathered close.
“Staying here has the advantage that you know this land, even better than most people after our journey. You know the laws, the customs, and the money. You speak the language, and now you can read and write. You will be the most educated people in the kingdom, except for a few old scholars in
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their subjects of expertise. You know the wild foods, and you know where not to eat meat during the summer.”
They all howled with laughter.
“Now the downside of that. As you discovered at Cattle Town, even though your knowledge may bring about changes someday, it’s not going to happen exactly when and where you want. If you use your knowledge to stay out of trouble, find places to live and ways to quietly make money or grow food, and teach others when you can, you’ll be okay. If you think you can strut around and impress others with your knowledge, this kingdom will slap you down and you’ll be lucky if you wind up as slaves again.”
Toli
swallowed.
“Now for the ship. Those who are interested, and whom I select, will have to learn a new language, spoken and written, as well as a new number system and mathematical symbols. There will be completely new laws and customs to get used to. The learning you will do to become my crew will make the last few months look like child’s play. And you will be stepping into a civilization in which you will be the least educated.”
Several of the students smiled sheepishly.
“On the other hand, the language was designed to be easy to learn. The mathematics will seem simple compared to the clumsy system you now use.
And you will actually like the laws and customs of Satamia in Nebador.”
Most of them squirmed with hopeful excitement.
“What if we . . . are selected,” Boro began, “but we discover we don’t want to work on a ship all our lives?”
Ilika talked about the requirements for citizenship in his country that would allow them to learn other jobs, even other professions.
Neither Boro, nor any of the others who would soon be selected, intended to ever leave Ilika’s side. They just needed to hear again that they were not slaves, would not be slaves in Ilika’s country, and that whatever they did would be because they chose to do it.
When Ilika could think of nothing else to tell his students, and they had no more questions, Kibi, Buna, and Misa pranced away, mischievous smirks on their faces. Rini knelt at the fire circle to build a fire and Boro hovered near in
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case he needed help. Ilika went off by himself to consult his knowledge processor and make some notes.
It wasn’t long before the three girls returned carrying their hats brimming with treasure. Using the broth Sata and Mati had already started, a rich mushroom soup was soon cooking.
As the ten travelers shared their last supper together, they looked into each other’s eyes, and saw there the joy of traveling and facing dangers together, and the pain of knowing they would soon be separated into two or more groups.
Nothing remained in their rucksacks to make dessert, but Buna announced she had found mint growing near the swamp, and would brew tea later.
Ilika handed out sheets of paper and pencils, as he had done countless times before, to everyone but Misa. This time, however, it felt very different.
“Question one. What is your name?”
Many of them smiled, recalling clearly when they couldn’t write their own names, and remembering with fondness the large room at Doko’s Inn where their educations began.
“Question two. Do you want me to consider you for the crew of my ship?
‘Yes’ means I think about it. ‘No’ means you are staying here by your own choice.”
Tension filled the air for the next minute. Rini could almost see the life-paths branching out from this moment into the future.
“If you answered ‘no’ to question two, you are done, and can give me your papers and relax.”
Buna and Neti set their papers in front of Ilika.
“Question three. If there is another person in the group that you absolutely refuse to be separated from, such that you would not want to be selected if they were not, put their name down. If not, leave it blank.”
Of the six who still held paper and pencil, most seemed to be writing a name. Buna sat with bright eyes and a mischievous grin, trying to guess them all.
“Question four. List the people you would most like to share a cabin with.
Please give me at least three names, first choice at the top.”
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This required considerable thought and several minutes passed before everyone was finished. Neti had her head on Toli’s leg, her eyes closed.
“That’s all. Give me your papers, and enjoy the rest of the evening. I must keep to myself while I do what I must do, but I’ll join you later for tea.”
Evening was fading to night and Ilika didn’t want to do his work by the fire, so he found a place to sit and set his bracelet for a dim light.
His first glance at the six sheets caused him a double-take. Kibi refused to be separated from Mati, but was not interested in sharing a cabin with the handicapped girl. After a moment of reflection, Ilika remembered a certain private discussion between the two girls behind a goat shed, and smiled with understanding.
He admired Toli for having the courage to try one last time, and set that sheet aside with Buna’s and Neti’s.
Boro and Sata would not be separated, but Sata most wanted to share a cabin with Mati. Ilika nodded.
Mati would not go without Rini, and Sata was her first choice for a cabin mate. Ilika was not surprised.
Then he looked at Rini’s sheet, and frowned. The lad had indicated Neti, Buna, and Mati as possible cabin-mates. Ilika sat in confusion for several minutes as he pondered this. Finally he got up and wandered over to the campfire.
“Rini, would you go on a little walk with me? I need you to help me understand your sheet.”
Rini stood and followed his teacher out of earshot of the others.
“I’m confused by your list of possible cabin-mates.”
“Me too. I just . . . have feelings for both Neti and Buna . . . even though I know . . . they’d never want to be with me, even if I stayed here.”
“I’d like to tell you some things, and see if that helps.”
“Okay.”
“Neti and Buna, as you know, are not being considered. I want Mati to be on my crew, but she won’t go without you. And when we get back to . . . my country . . . the healers there will be able to fix her knee as good as new. She’ll be able to walk, run, dance, everything. Knowing these things, does that help
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you with your list?”
Rini was trying not to grin, but couldn’t help it. “Um, it would make me want to be with Mati!”
“Okay. Thank you. Will you keep these things to yourself until tomorrow morning?”
“Sure.”
They returned to the campfire in time for mint tea. Everyone else tried to read the expression on Rini’s face, but could not.
Ilika sat beside Kibi and sipped his tea, knowing the decision he had dreaded for so long had finally been made.
Actually, it had been far easier than he expected. Neti and Buna had helped greatly by removing themselves from consideration, even though Ilika would miss them both. Toli . . . had a lot of growing up to do, and Ilika’s ship was not the place to do it.
Ilika was now very glad he had gotten to know twice as many candidates as he actually needed, and wondered if there had been unseen forces at work arranging that situation. He would probably never know.
As evening deepened into night, Mati rejected offers from both Rini and Sata to help her brush Tera. Once they had gotten the message and headed for their bedrolls, Mati spent more than an hour caring for her beloved donkey and speaking in soft whispers.
Tera’s heart beat a little faster deep in her chest from all the attention and kind words. She sensed that some kind of change was about to happen to her people, but didn’t know what or why. However, she clearly felt drops of water fall onto her thin summer coat during that hour, and knew it wasn’t raining.
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Deep Learning Notes
A small map shows the swamp and the capital city.
If someone asked you to keep a great gold piece for six months without spending it (about $50,000 in buying-power in the USA in 2010), would you be able?
If Neti had become pregnant with Miko before he died, what would her situation be now?
Which of the students might be tempted to impress others with their knowledge if they stayed in that kingdom?
What emotions would you feel if you knew that all your language and arithmetic skills were about to become useless?
In what sense are wild mushrooms “treasure” in this chapter?
By refusing to be separated from Mati, what power did Kibi possess that she was using?
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What did we learn about Toli when he tried to be accepted even though Neti said she was staying?
Mati and Rini were the same age, but Mati appeared to be more ready for commitment. This is typical, and is one reason girls often date older boys.
Which fact do you think touched Rini the most, that Mati refused to be separated from him, or that she would be able to walk?
