Night Spirit

Six weary Lakota warriors rode into the Black Hills ahead of the horse soldiers of the United State Cavalry after the terrible massacre at Wounded Knee. There was great sadness among the six as they rode the trail into the hills under a moonless sky. They could heard the soldiers pursing them in the distance. Now that it was dark, they could no longer see them.

The leader Ciyuhonke was one of the elders who had negotiated with the leader of the white soldiers for peace. As it turned out peace was not what these men were after. He had held council with Sitting Bull who had fled to Canada from the reservations because he did not trust the treaty that had been signed. In his escape, he saw his wife and son slain in the action.

Next to Ciyuhonke rode the youngest of the six Wahcan who had watched some of friends fall to the gunfire that erupted earlier in the day. The somber expression on his face told of the horrible encounter earlier in the day. Wearing his buffalo skins given to him by his grandmother to ward off the chill of the night they would spend in the hills, Wahcan remained silent like the others.

Two brothers, Louta and Inyan managed to ride away while both their mother and father fell victims. It was said that they could read each other’s thoughts. Every now and then Inyan would look at his brother and see the pain in Louta’s dark eyes.

Makya was the shaman, the connection of this world to the next and he was known to have special powers due to his connection. His magic was considered powerful and he carried his potions in a special bag strapped over his left shoulder.

The final member of the beleaguered party was Hotah who was just a few years older than Wahcan. A few years ago, when they were still boys, Hotah and Wahcan played games that were rough and prepared them for the life as it was now.

“Ciyuhonke, the soldiers have broken camp.” Louta reported.

“Perhaps we too shall take rest here.” Makya urged.

“We are tired and weary.” Inyan nodded in support of Makya.

“So it shall be.” Ciyuhonke dismounted and peered into the black of the night. His eyes were old and did not see as well as they did a few years ago. But the darkness was like a blanket to him. If he could not see the wall of the canyon, he reason neither could the soldiers.

Louta and Inyan gathered sagebrush and wood from the fallen ponderosa pines. Within an hour the brothers had a good fire going to keep them warm.

“We are on the other side of the canyon.” Ciyuhonke reasoned. “And they will not be able to see it during the night.”

“The night spirit will provide us with protection.” Makya assured him.

“We need rest.” Louta nodded.

“Are we going to surrender?” Hotha asked as he put his cold hands out to the fire.

“You saw what happened to our brothers and sisters who put their hands in the air.” Wahcan shook his head, “They were shot down like the tankan.”

As the glow of the fire illuminated Ciyuhonke’s face, the other could see the despair that lingered in the dark bags under his eyes, “You all were chosen to ride with me. I wish to find Sitting Bull north of the border and ride with his people, but I am not sure we will reach the border before we are taken. If you do not want to travel the road we are on, I will not blame you if you return to the reservation. By now the soldier’s blood lust will have been quenched.”

“None of us has any intention of leaving.” Inyan spoke as he made eye contact with the rest. As he did, each of them nodded in turn letting him know they would stand together.

“They number many more than we have.” Ciyuhonke sighed, “We will not survive. I cannot ask you to ride on a road that may end tomorrow.”

“The night spirit may offer us a trail that will lead us to Sitting Bull.” Makya says as he tosses another stick into the fire.

“Even the night spirit cannot shelter us from all those soldiers.” Ciyuhonke shook his head. “If we rise before the sun rise, we might be able to put an hour between us, but our horses are as tired as we are, and the soldiers will catch up eventually.” His smile was warm like when he had put his children to bed for the night telling them that the night spirit would watch over them.

“We will be ready when the time comes. “Wahcan assured everyone sitting around the fire.

“I will also.” Hotah slapped his friend Wahcan on the back.

“Then let us get into our blankets and get some rest.” Ciyuhonke stood outstretching his hands over them as a spiritual blessing.

“All of you.” Makya held out his hands as well with his eyes closed, “May we find the night spirit to be our protector and fill us with the courage we will need to undertake our mission tomorrow if it should come.”

All five of them sat by the fire with their heads bent in a solemn prayer before retiring.

“The darkness is our protection. When the sun rises in the morning, we shall be on our way.” Mayka glanced at the five gathered by the fire, “May peace find you.”

Each of the five weary warriors pulled their blankets over them to keep warm in the cold night air that reached out to them like fingers. It did not take long until all five of them were fast asleep. Mayka lit a bundle of sage grass and waved it over them as they slept.

“Night spirit come and guide us.” He chanted in Lakota as he looked up to the night sky. Stars peeked out of the black blanket of the moonless sky. He knew that the spirit was watching through the small pathways of light emitted from the stars. “You have always watched over your people in hard times and in times of victory. I beseech you now to guide us in your powerful light through the trials and tribulations that lie ahead of us. If it be your will, we will enter your domain dancing and singing a victory chant.”

From beyond the hills came a roll of thunder. Makya smiled because he knew the night spirit was listening to his prayer. The darkness begins to swirl like the storms of the early spring that would come destroying whatever was in the path of these storms. In the destruction, new life would eventually come to renew that which had been taken.

The soldiers had become that wind, destroying the people who had come to the reservation for refuge since the tankan were no longer provided to them as sustenance. The treaty promised to provide for them. Instead the wicked storms came and scattered them to the four winds destroying the sacred Circle of Life.

Sitting Bull had warned him of this day in a vision he had. When Mayka entered his lodge, the great chief was packing for his journey north to Canada. He had talked to some of the authorities who promised saft passage. He asked Mayka to come with him, but Mayka feared that there were not enough provisions. After nearly starving to death the winter before, Mayka feared that the journey would have the same outcome. He chose to stay with his people. After what had happened recently, he wished he had accompanied his leader.

“Hear me great spirit!” His voice rose above the thunder, “Know that we are ready to meet you if that be your will, but keep us in your house and let us once again ride across the night sky.”

More thunder rumbled, louder this time. A silver streak of lightening lit up the opaque sky. He began to dance as he went into a trance. His eyes rolled back until only the whites of his eyes remained visible. Drops of rain began to fall as the dust became saturated forming mud all around him until brown puddles formed all around his feet.

“You have heard me call out to you. I will forever be in your debt.” He whispered as he closed his eyes. “Hear my humble prayer so that we may not fear what lies ahead on the road we travel.”

Walking to the edge of the crevasse, he opened his eyes when he heard the screaming echoing throughout the canyon floor. Screaming both humans and beasts. He knew of the Christian God of vengeance who had sent the flood to destroy the wickedness of those who would not listen to his warnings only sparing one man and his family in a giant canoe with two of each animal, male and female. When this flood was over, their god made a covenant with this man, promising never to do this again, but Mayka had made no such promise.

He heard more screaming and then it was quiet as the peacefulness of the night returned. He walked back to where the others were still sleeping unaware of what had just taken place.

Taking a stick, Makya poked the fire to stir the embers back to life. Through his magic, no rain had fallen here. The ground was still dry, and the embers sparked up to keep them warm until the dawn.

“Did you sleep well, my friend?” Ciyuhonke asked Mayka.

“I had dreams.” Mayka declared.

“Where did your dreams take you?” Ciyuhonke asked.

“Places I longed to be.” He smiled as both of them warmed their hands over the warm fire.

“Today may be our last.” Ciyuhonke shook his head, “I fear riding into the valley where the soldiers are waiting for us.”

“We must do what we must do.” Mayka slapped his friend on the shoulder.

“You are right.” He sighed, “We must face this together.”

“We will.” Mayka grinned, “Where did your dreams take you, my friend?”

“I saw many buffalo waiting for our hunters. The said, ‘Come and be free once again.’” He chuckled, “I was but a boy while the rest of the hunters were grown men.”

“There are many ways to interpret that. I choose the one when we were united as one.” Mayka replied as the twin brothers stirred in their blankets.

“I slept like the dead.” Louta replied, yawning and stretching his arms.

“I too had a good rest.” Inyan added as he stretched like his brother.

“We must get ready.” Ciyuhonke pointed to the two who were still sleeping.

“Hotah.” Louta shook the young warrior, “Walcan, we must get ready.”

Both of the young warriors groaned as Louta shook them in their warm blankets.

“All we have is some jerky.” Ciyuhonke told them holding out a small leather bag.

“I am not hungry.” Hotah shook his head.

“You must have something to eat. You will need your energy.” Ciyuhonke insisted. Reluctantly Hotah took the bag and took a piece of jerky as he handed it to Walcan who also took a piece.

“When are we supposed to be ready?” Walcan asked as he chewed the tough piece of jerky.

“We must ride before the sun rises if we are to have a chance to escape.” Ciyuhonke answered. The sun was just beginning to peek over the flat horizon. He turned to Makya, “I hope we can get through the valley. If we do, I will take to the high country and try to disappear into rocky hills.”

“Those hills are treacherous, my friend.” Makya shakes his head.

“It’s the only chance we’ll get. They will have trouble tracking us through some of those hills.” Ciyuhonke folded his arms in front of his chest.

“The horses are tired. Some of them may not make it over the summits.” Makya puts his finger to his lip. “I have another idea.”

“I don’t want to make it harder than it will already be.” Ciyuhonke turns his head toward the rising sun. “We must be leaving soon. Those soldiers will be rising soon.”

When he looked over, Ciyuhonke saw that they were ready to leave. The twins Louta and Inyan were mounted, their bags packed. Hotah and Walcan were just putting their bags on their dark Nakota horses.

“We’d better get ready.” Makya elbowed Ciyuhonke.

Both of them got their bedrolls loaded on their horses. Ciyuhonke thought about tell them to abandon their bedrolls so the horses would not have the extra weight, but if they would have to break camp, they would face the cold winds from the north. As the sun spread out on the canyon floor, the six were headed down from the rim of the canyon.

“I do not see the soldiers yet.” Ciyuhonke said to Makya who was riding next to him. “It is a good thing, nah?”

“It is a good thing.” Makya smiled.

Even in the early morning light, Ciyuhonke expected to see signs of the soldiers, but when he looked in all directions as he rode behind the others, he did not see a single blue coat or scouts.

“I do not see a single soldier.” Ciyuhonke said amazed by this.

“Perhaps they have gone home.” Makya smiled.

“In all my years I have never known them to go home when there were renegades on the loose.” Ciyuhonke turned to see if they were heading into a trap, but as they rode further along the canyon floor, he did not see any blue coats.

“Are you calling us renegades?” Makya chuckled.

Louta pulled the reigns of his horse stopping him. He dismounted and put his knee to the ground.

“Louta, what is it?” Ciyuhonke asked, but Louta just shook his head and held up the cap of a blue coat. He handed it to Ciyuhonke who took it and examined it closely. “The soldier who wore this is not present.”

“The ground is very wet.” Louta glanced down at his leather boots. “My boots are muddy.”

“Strange.” Ciyuhonke stroked his chin with his hand, “I do not remember getting wet with rain last night as I slept.”

“There was no rain that fell on us.” Mayka nodded. “This I know.”

“What happened?” Ciyuhonke glanced over at Makya who had a sly smile creeping on his face.

“I don’t know what you mean.” His smile widened.

“You called to the night spirit.” Inyan dismounted and his feet sunk into the thick mud. The sun had risen above the rim of the canyon. Surely the soldiers would be awake by now.

“Perhaps I did have a word with him, I suppose.” Makya laughed.

“So, what happened?” Hotah asked shaking his head.

“In the sacred book of the black robes was the story of Moses leading his people out of Egypt. When he came to the sea, he raised his hands and the sea parted.” Makya was still smiling, “Once his people had safely crossed the sea, he put his hands down by his side and the sea claimed the soldiers of the Pharoah. The night spirit made the same promise to me last night.”

“You did this?” Ciyuhonke shook his head astounded.

“When the rain falls on hard sunbaked earth a flood will rage through the canyon. The blue coats had no chance. They were all asleep when the flood swept through the camp.” Makya explained. “Shall we ride on?”

“Yes let’s be on our way.” Ciyuhonke pointed as he held the soldier’s cap. It was the only evidence of their presence. He needed when he finally understood the blue coats had met the same fate as Pharoah’s mighty army long ago. Ciyuhonke discarded the souvenir and continued to ride north with the rest of them.