BEYOND THE PALE: ( The Outlander ) (7 page)

The eastern approach of
Avana was protected by a natural labyrinth of rock. Here the natural red
bedrock was marbled with thin white seams, and had been polished by ancient
streams and aquifers. The ancient water had carved out natural winding
passageways which honeycombed the bedrock. You could easily get lost in these
tall corridors which were open to the sky and when illuminated by bright
sunlight would show the rich shades and hues of colour. No matter how many
times you walked down these passageways, they were beautiful to see, but potentially
deadly if guarded from above. They provided Avana with a natural defensive
perimeter. Though Isa knew that Avana wasn’t defended by guards or any armed
force. It was secluded and hidden, and was not evident from the sky. Hiding was
what both Avana and Isa did best. Isa had the patience of a saint. He had the
perfect mentality to watch and wait, and in his opinion hiding was not enough,
but vigilance was required. As he negotiated a route which he knew by heart
through the maze of passageways, he was annoyed by the obvious lack of lookouts
posted above. Sometimes even a needle could be found in a haystack; and hence
one day the Rangers would probably come here on a routine search mission and he
would prefer to be pre-warned of this event.

After a while the
smooth marbled passageways became narrower until they were just tall thin
clefts in the red rock. As they became too narrow to pass through, they became
easier to climb. Isa clambered up the collapsed boulder clay and had soon
reached the summit of this rocky outcrop. He really loved this view
particularly at this time in the morning. The blue shadow of the Rockies in the
distance was accentuated against the closer rolling green lowlands. However
directly in the foreground of his view was more outcrops of red rock just like
the one he stood on interspersed with green gorse and trees. It wasn’t really
evident to the untrained eye, but he was looking at Avana.

As he followed the
gentle gradient down hill which followed a dusty red meandering path winding
between the other lower rocky outcrops, he would pass small allotments where
different vegetables were being grown. Avana had no large fields of crops as
these would have given away its location. Instead the farming was less
intensive but spread all about in allotments and small enclosures for goats and
sheep, and coops and runs for chickens that were kept closer to the heart of
the community. Isa made a point of stopping to talk to one of the older
residents who up early this morning and presently collecting a rack of honey
from one of the bee hives. The man’s name was Toby and he was one of the
founders of the community and the first non-native and city dweller to come and
join the Hopi. Toby was born on the very first day of this century, but despite
his age, he was the Elder who best related to the youth of Avana. He had a soft
spot for the two young brothers but was particularly fond of Isa. He was used
to seeing them always in each others company, so when he enquired after River’s
absence, he appeared concerned by Isa’s reply that River was simply delayed.  His
limited explanation coupled with his unsettled look told Toby not to pursue the
enquiry; so instead he provided Isa with a sizeable portion of honey and some
fresh eggs to pass on to his mother. Isa gratefully received them because he
had not eaten anything since breakfast yesterday.

Heading on down the
circular path, he looked back at Toby with regret for not being frank with him.
Isa was very fond of Toby and knew that he could talk to him in confidence, but
right now he was in a rush to talk to his Uncle Geren who had a greater concern
with security matters. Toby was more inclined to creative and social pursuits.
Isa remembered how he had been taught to paint by him when he was a teenager. Even
now he still liked to paint landscapes, but his own artwork could never
compare. Toby’s paintings with their vivid colours adorned the communal areas. His
early works had often depicted scenes of disaster. He had left Los Angeles and
sought refuge amongst the Hopi. His move was prescient because that city was
sealed off in a tight security cordon shortly after he left. Then the only
evacuees allowed out, were taken to refugee holding camps near Phoenix. They
would become citizens of the metropolis of Phoenix. The anarchy that prevailed
among those that remained in Los Angeles sealed their fate, and the majority
perished when the sea inundated all but the heights. Toby had depicted such scenes
but they were imagined, because he was by then safely ensconced in Avana
helping build the community. Indeed, they were probably cathartic for Toby who
had lost family and friends; but they served as an ominous reminder for the
other residents, of a time when human society collapsed in upon itself and was
literally washed away by a series of natural disasters.

Before it was a
physical place, Avana was a community of people. Originally based in Utah near
the Four Corners, it was a mutual support collective set up by a few Hopi
Elders. The Hopi were prepared for the eventual breakdown and collapse of the
old world civilisation which they lived in. It had been foretold for many
generations, and so when they recognised the signs of the approaching demise of
what they called the fourth world, they were willing to help others from
outside their tribe who were not so well prepared.

In the early tumultuous
days during the abandonment of the cities, their community rose to over a
thousand. However many of the non natives and ex city dwellers fell away when
they found it hard to adjust to a harder rural subsistence lifestyle. Many left
to seek an easier life through employment within the impressive new citadels
that were being built close to the refugee points of Phoenix, Albuquerque,
Dallas, New Denver, and Kansas City. 

In the past Avana had
been situated in three different locations within the old state lines of Utah
and Colorado. The two prior locations at Four Corners, and another near
Gunnison had to be abandoned when the local populace were evacuated to refugee
detention sites near Denver. Isa was proud that his parents had loyally
remained with the community through both relocations. Eventually the community
found a secluded home hidden in the Ute Pass where they had remained undetected
to this day. That was thirty years ago when Toby was in his thirties and his
parents were in their early twenties.

Now this community of
over three hundred people lived in a long terrace of two storey residences
which looked like it had been hewn out of the rock face. In reality it was a
mammoth elliptical cavern which had been sealed with a long red mud brick and
stone contiguous building. One end of the terrace was now visible to Isa as he
followed the downhill trail around the large last rocky outcrop as it opened
out on to a narrow plateau. This flat sloping area which overlooked a canyon on
its southern side served as the main plaza for the community. The constructions
were a mix of old reconstructed cliff dwellings of the Anasasi Native-Americans
plus some newer constructions built since Avana moved here. The terraced rows
of red mud brick two story houses with their first floor wooden lintels
protruding from each wall appeared unique.

Very few people were up
yet and Avana seemed both quiet and listless. Isa walked through the communal
areas searching for his mother or his sister. As neither of them was in a
relationship, they shared communal sleeping arrangements with other single
women. Isa and River also shared a communal sleeping space set aside for men
but in an area sectioned off from the women for mutual privacy. That is not to
say that the sleeping arrangements were cramped. There was more than enough
space and room dividers for personal privacy, however the residents of Avana
had chosen communal living over the conventional nuclear family model. Newly
committed couples, and couples with young children would tend to seek and
warrant private accommodation. Although once children reached a certain age
they would often choose to live communally with other youngsters. Likewise
couples without an active sex life might often choose to live communally with
others. There were no casual sexual relations in Avana; this was not by decree
but more through cultural practice. Isa like many young people had no problem
with this. It was an academic subject anyway because he had not actually
courted anyone since he was thirteen, and as far as he knew neither had River.
Although some of the others seemed to feel that he lived in the shadow of his
brother, the truth as he saw it was that his interests were not compatible with
having a steady girlfriend, and there was plenty of time for him to find a
partner when he felt different in this respect. River seemed more romantically
inclined than him and did inspire the interest of some of the girls. However he
did not seem ready to commit to anyone as he too had a lust for life and new
experiences. There were plenty of couples that courted each other and all they
had to do was publicly commit to each other in order to be eligible for private
rooms. The elders would see that this need was obliged whenever possible.
Pregnancy was a different matter. Bringing children into the world and raising
a family were seen by all as a very mutually responsible task. Some winters
could be harsh, and it was difficult to produce enough food and necessities to
provide for every single soul all year round. Most resources such as food were
communally shared, thus starting a family required the blessing of your brethren.
Communal needs and requirements had very much shaped and limited individualism
and selfish needs in Avana.

Isa could not find his
mum or his sister in the mixed living areas, and soon stopped looking in order
to start cooking. He was absolutely famished and wasted no time frying a couple
of the fresh eggs on a hot griddle and helping himself to some fresh bread to
spread some of the honey on. Someone had already brewed a pot of coffee and
another of tea, and Isa poured himself one of each as was his normal
preference. As Isa tried to pry loose one of the eggs which had decided to
stick permanently to the hot plate, he felt someone touch his shoulder. He
turned around to see, but there was no one in the kitchen with him. He assumed
that he had imagined it but soon felt someone tap him on his other shoulder.
Spinning around this time, again he found the room was empty. A third tap on
his other shoulder was all that Isa needed to turn around and look down this
time. His small and demure sister Ishtur was crouching low down behind his back
and playing another practical joke on him as was her manner.

“You are meant to be my
older
sister,” Isa challenged her whilst she replied, “You are meant to
be the coyote that no one can catch.” That being said, Ishtur embraced her
brother and handed him another egg for herself, whilst she poured herself a
coffee. As the coffee pot was nearly finished, she started preparing its
replacement. Isa shook his head as he watched Ishtur, wondering from whom she
got her happy go lucky character, which was so different from River’s and his
own. They both adored Ishtur who in some ways acted more maternally
affectionate to them than their mother, who could often seem quite remote and
cold. He blamed their father who had taken the ‘wind from her sails’, when he
had walked away and left them all fifteen years ago. That was before Isa had
even been given the name of Isa which did actually mean ‘coyote’. It wasn’t
until a year or so after the departure of his father Eli, that Isa’s character
traits of wily patience and stealth was recognised by some of the elder Hopis.
When they offered him the Navajo name for coyote, he took it with pride. On the
other hand Ishtur often amused herself by challenging his alleged vigilance by
sneaking up on him just like today. She wasn’t really acting childish; she was
only trying to introduce some levity to Isa who could often appear too dour and
serious for his own good. 

After a breakfast of
eggs on toast, fresh bread and honey, two teas and two coffees, Isa felt quite
satisfied and left his sister and went searching for Geren. He found his uncle
outside near the stables. He was with Isuzu who was one of the Ute tribal
elders. The Ute were indigenous to this south western mountainous area of
Colorado. They shared a strong cultural affinity to the Navajo and Hopi tribes
who were their neighbours to the south and the west, and who along with the forebears
of the Aztecs traced their ancient origins to the underground snake people deep
inside Mount Hesperous, not too far from here.

The Ute had deep
respect for their horses, and Isa knew to find Isuzu either tending to them or
close by. He expected to find Geren with Isuzu. The two men were good friends
and intellectual equals who shared the same mind set. They had just let the
horses out into a paddock and were now leaning against the fence deep in
conversation together. Despite their affinity with each other, the two men were
strikingly different. The Ute elder was heavy set stocky man with long white
hair tied in a pony tail. His Uncle Geren had typical features of his pure Hopi
blood. He was tall and lean and had close cropped jet black hair despite being
in his mid fifties. He looked considerably younger than his close friend Isuzu
who was only ten years older.

Their conversation did
not seem that important to Isa, so he interrupted, “Uncle, I am back.”

“And earlier than
expected,” Geren pointed out. “Is everything alright son; have you encountered
any trouble running the bounds.”

“We encountered a
stranger who was unconscious and wounded; River tended to his injuries.” Isa
wanted to quickly establish River’s involvement in the decision process.