Everyone stopped what they were doing and congregated in the middle of the encampment where there were tables made from driftwood, like everything else in this, tall grass, but treeless,  place.

Shea had many volunteers to help her carry what they had to trade to that table for her trading items. She hoped, these are not thieves, but found everything in order when they placed what they had carried on the table and arranged it.

Tor led Tsen to the table as well and removed his pack with more items to trade. Some hidden in bags or pouches because they were valuable.

In the meantime, members of the clan clambered up ladders into their homes and brought back many items to be placed on their table close by where they would easily bring them forward to trade. The crowd became excited when they saw what was available by the riches that the evil ones had taken from the entire Rine Valley.

Borg brought his wife over to introduce her. Equally tall with blonde hair with gray streaks in it, matching her eyes, Mara was a beautiful, stately woman suitable for the leader of the clan. Tor did not say it, but her manner and confidence reminded him of his mother. He could see why Borg chose her.

Borg declared the trading to begin, with Mara and Shea leading off the trading with housewares and camp cooking implements and pots. Many items of clay hardened by baking were traded with similar items carved from driftwood. And driftwood accounted for many, many cups, ladles and other utensils needed for feeding a large group of people. But there were also household items carved from ivory and using fish bones, some of enormous size. Shea offered some items of copper, obsidian and flint. Fine baskets woven from vines and tree roots with decorative sides. Trading was heated and rewarding on both sides.

Standing aside, Tor asked, "I see that your houses are raised high above the sand. Is that because you can better fend off raiders from a higher position of defense?"

Borg chuckled at Tor's naivety. "We have done that, but the sea and the river have been our greatest enemies. Often, with storms in the summer and the river very high in the spring, our camp becomes flooded and we retreat to the high houses we have built to withstand the water that washes away everything, yet fills the beaches with newfound driftwood whenever that happens. So we stay here, because of the goodness of the gods of the sea and river providing us with food, building materials and firewood where we have no trees."

"When I came through before on the other side of the river delta, the evil raiders had killed and destroyed the camps of the Danis. I had to rescue some of them."

"It was the Danis fisherman who warned us, coming by and telling us that their camps were being raided, killing the men and raping the women before hauling them and the children away in their boats that they paddled back upriver to their lair like wild animals." He spat on the ground his distaste of them.

"We knew they were coming. Some of us took our boats to the sea. Some of us went into the tall grass and hid. We had little time to gather with us, our most valuable things."

Trading continued vigorously between the two women and other women, whose wares were being brought forth to trade. Occasionally, there was a shout of recognition when some of the clan's possessions were brought out by Shea to trade. 

"That's mine!" was being heard above the clamor of women talking in their strange language. Shea soon understood it. When the woman pointed out wear or markings that were uniquely hers, Shea generously handed it to her. She received many hugs and kisses after that. Site had been

Borg looked up for a moment to check on the shouting and to see what his wife was acquiring, and then, continued, "We fled and didn't return until we were sure they were gone and had taken much of what we had. They burned everything else. We came back to smoldering ruins. All you see here was rebuilt since that evil event. That's why we want to trade. We have to replenish what took us years to gather and make before."

"We have all suffered. Our clan was nearly wiped out when I came back from a raid of my own. My father, uncles and other Thal men were raiders that traveled far to the south to the Valley of the Po to capture young women to trade and to make sure that our bloodline was strong, like my mother. She was a captive, but loved my father dearly. She raised me as a Thal, but I carry some of her strength, too.

"I soured on raiding when my father, my uncles and our small party were all killed in their sleep by an angry old man while I was hunting. I caught up with him and put an arrow in his back. But win I chased him up into ice and snow on a mountain I could not keep up with him because my bare feet were numb and bleeding."

"I have never been to a mountain. And we get very little ice and snow here. Even in winter, when the cold and damp are hard to deal with, we get little freezing weather with warm winds off the ocean, but I have had my feet and hands go numb and know what you mean."

Time came for trading weapons and the two men joined the women in the trade. Afterward, the clan members helped Tor and Shea pack everything up that hadn't been traded while leaving essential items for their use out. Mara took them to one of the stilt houses that they found quite comfortable inside, furnished with seal fur skins and other items that were very strange to Shea.

The celebration had begun and great pots of seafood were being boiled, fish roasted, and dried fish brought out to taste. Tor and Shea offered some of the smoked and dried bison and other animals that did not exist this close to the sea.

There was a rancid fish wine that took some time to get used to, but not wanting to upset their generous hosts, they drank until the alcohol began to make it quite pleasant, after all. Borg proudly showed off his considerable family of children and grandchildren who came by to greet the couple and be introduced.

Around a huge bonfire of driftwood, Tor, now near drunk, found it easy to loudly tell his story of killing the great cave bear and many other tales from his travels to an amazed audience. Including Shea, who found that every time she heard those stories, she learned a bit more about what happened and why she loved Tor so much.

It was very late when the elders left first with the small children. And then, the others began drifting off, filled with food and drink. It was then that Borg made his proposition.

"You know, we have a tradition we share with visitors. Like your raids you told me about to get new blood like your mother, we have a more gentle tradition to get new blood… My wife," He patted Mara on her bare thigh. "Is still fertile after 10 babies. But I would like to have a son or daughter like you, Tor. We can share wives and that way, bring new blood into both of our families."

Tor looked at Shea and she did not show any emotion that he could detect. She just smiled in a way that was hard to read. When he glanced at Mara, her eyes were dancing with anticipation and a true smile was on her face. It was obvious that she had performed this friendly practice before. And was impressed by him.

"Is it all right with you?" Tor inquired of Shea.

"I have found everyone here so helpful and kind. I wouldn't want to go against tradition." She grabbed Tor’s arm tightly and began to think about this virile hunk of a man, Borg. She also thought about all the women that she had shared with Tor. Now it's my turn?

With that, they retired to the largest of the stilted houses that was beautifully decorated with skins of many animals, scales of fish, feathers from many birds and smelled like cedar. On a large bed of dried seaweed sewn into seal skin, the two couples began exploring each other's bodies. It was new to Shea, but she found this big strong man quite capable of lovemaking. Before long, she  was in ecstasy from his hands and lips.

Tor had experienced older women before, but Mara was different. She wasn't eager and overstepping like so many of the older women. She was sensuous and knew how to bring him to the brink of ejaculating and then tease him back down until he found himself, seeing stars as he exploded inside her and she cried out in front of her husband and Shea her great pleasure.

The next morning, Mara asked them to bring their things from the other house to theirs. "As long as you stay here, our house is your house." Shea didn't object.

All that day while the sun shone, Borg familiarized Tor with the camp and the many tasks they undertook that were different from the clans inland. Tor learned all that he could and participated in some of the activities like preparing fish to be smoked and watching the older men work on fish and whalebone, carving icons, amulets and various ornaments and clothing additions from the useful bone. He was also shown ivory carving on a scale he had never seen before in the other clans.

And shells. Used for all kinds of things, and some, just kept for their beauty. Borg showed one that he could hold up and blow in, while it bellowed like a dying bison. "Helpful when finding others in the fog."

Shea was also busy with Mara and the other women learning about seafood soups and dishes that she had never experienced before. Tasting so many of the salty dishes until she had no desire to eat at the end of the day, she was so full of clam, crab, oysters and fish of many kinds that she had not heard of or tasted before.

Shea especially liked the smoked fish. One, salmon, she was familiar with… One of her favorites going back to her childhood at the source of the Rine.

Shea told Mara , "Salmon  arrived in the fall so thick at our waterfall that one could almost walk on their backs as they lay their eggs on shallow parts of the start of the Rine. Salmon was a major part of our winter food stock. Bears were a problem, coming for the salmon. But we always had fat bear meat in winter, too." She winked and Mara understood.

Thinking about that place, she suddenly felt homesick. But would never tell Tor or reveal it to Mara. Some things were best kept secret.

When the day of learning, sharing information and getting to know one another better ended, the two couples retired to the home they now shared for as long as they would be staying.

Tor didn't tell the others, but he was already thinking of moving on. As nice as this place was, it wasn't his place. He needed to move and he didn't know why, but it appeared to be something the gods had ingrained in him, a wanderlust, that kept pushing him forward, to seek out new lands and give up the search for his mother.

Copyright 2021 © Ronald W. Hull

6/1/21