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tried to open its
razor sharp beak to strike at her.
Manana ignored his
feeble effort, having realised that it was too weak to present any danger.
Using her other hand, she lifted the eagles head from off the ground, supporting
the head upright with both hands.
From deep within her
subconscious, strange words began to form. Where they came from and what they
meant, she couldn’t say, yet she knew that they were now needed.
In a sing-song
intonation she began to chant the words. “Scorel kulai indiktoa, karar dakta,”
she murmured. Moving her hands forward slowly, she cupped the eagle's head,
taking care to avoid his razor sharp beak. “Indicate dakta,” she
continued to chant. The words rose from deep within the buried recess of her
mind. They were words from a forgotten time, inborn from generation to
generation of healers.
Lifting the eagle's
head gently, she looked into his eyes and her own locked onto them.
Immediately, her mind filled with strange images. Pictures of a high crag on
which a nest had been built. Warm fluffy bodies huddled together to keep out
the cold. Then a vision of flapping wings and bitter cold. Which changed to
one of elation: Then fear; and finally disappear. Then Manana’s body was racked
by pain, and a fear that almost made her faint once more. The feeling was so
real, that she turned her eyes away from the bird. As soon as her eyes left
those of the eagles, the visions and pain all disappeared.
A puzzled look
crossed Manana’s face. She had never experienced this power, or ability before.
It was a discovery, rather than a mystery. She knew instinctively, that this
was one of the natural healing skills gifted to her. Having overcome her
initial reaction. She looked once more into the birds' eyes.
As she probed, again
there was the quick succession of images, similar to the previous ones. Then
the pain returned. This time she did not withdraw the contact, she held on
desperately as his pain washed through her. Her mind locked onto the eagles and
his pain and fear now became hers. Holding fast to this mental contact, she
once more began to chant, with words both ancient and mostly forgotten by
everybody, except those chosen to feel the power of mother nature.
power to the full.
Keeping up the strange chant, she projected herself further inside the eaglet.
Her mind travelled
through the body, simultaneously feeling the damage and seeking to find it’s
cure. She became a part of him: His blood, heart and veins became hers. She
flowed through his arteries, washing over his broken bones, limbs and ruptured
vessels with her healers touch. Time stood still. Only her mind and his body
functioned in this new universe she had found.
Small drops of blood
seeped from a small wound in his chest. A part of Manana also dripped through
onto the dusty gully floor, where tiny pincers seemed to pierce her as ants fed
of the congealing blood. All around her were dark and evil things in the air
trying to attack her/him. These were strange creatures to her, full of poison
and malice, seemed only interested in sucking the life essence away from the
eagle. She held onto his mind, like a sailor controlling a ship being tossed on
a stormy sea. Fighting these poisonous invaders away, she continued to probe
and cleanse, until she felt the eagles sleep become much more relaxed.
Slowly she withdrew,
returned back to her own mind and body, only to feel a fresh wave of vertigo and
exhaustion overcome her. Tottering backwards slightly, she felt drained of
energy and full of despair. Her sojourn through the eagle's mind and body had
shown the extent of his injuries; and she was uncertain she had the power to
save him.
But she knew she
must try. As the vertigo left, her returning strength increased the confidence
she felt. Standing back, Manana studied the eaglet once more. She knew the
battle to save this creature had not even begun. Once more, she began to
despair of his chances for survival. Now that she knew the extent of the
eaglets' injuries, what surprised her most was the fact that he was still
alive. All she had managed so far, was to comfort and make him feel more
relaxed.
It was then it
suddenly dawned on her, what she had done and the extent of her new found
powers. It seemed unbelievable, that she had been capable of projecting her
mind in such a way. Was this what being a healer meant? Was this why the clan
set so much faith in her healing abilities? Did they know that she would one
day find these gifts? And what other powers were waiting to be discovered?
These questions and more came flooding through her mind. The answers could come
later, she decided. For now it was better to set them aside and concentrate on
the job at hand.
And what a job it
was. Looking towards the eagle who was sleeping as peacefully as was possible,
she set about planning her approach. It needs food, water and warmth if it’s to
survive Manana mused. Searching the surrounding area in the gully, she saw that
this was home to an abundance of life. Lizards, spiders and a variety of
insects could be seen in abundance. Plant life was scarcer. The sun unable to
penetrate fully into the gully, restricted the growth of vegetation available.
“Time to start
work,” Manana said to her self. Removing her outer jacket, she laid it flat on
the gully floor. She felt the cold immediately. The sun would be completely
gone in twenty to thirty minutes. She would have to work fast. Around her
waist hung the bag she used for storing her collected roots and herbs. Taking
it off, she opened the draw strings and removed the collection of plants she
had gathered previously. These she lay on her jacket to study. Arrayed before
her, was wild garlic, sagewood common nettle and luckily enough some valerian.
Remembering the “moors dream” she had spotted earlier. Manana debated whether
or not to go and fetch some. As a relaxant, she new it would be ideal.
Eventually however, she decided against this action, due to the distance she
would need to go.
hings were not as she had first
suspected. Taking her time, she studied the situation more carefully. |
