At first, the trail was clear and heavily traveled, having been used by the clan as a way to head back into the deeper forest for hunting and foraging. While the underbrush had not started growing back, here and there in clearings, some purposely burned, they could see new shoots of wheat and oats that would go unharvested, but be a boon to wildlife once they acquired a taste for it. Tor recalled all the rats and mice that were in the fields when they harvested and how they had to carefully store the seeds or the little vermin would surely eat them all.

In the clearings, rats and mice were not vermin, they were food for lots of predators like foxes, badgers, raccoons, opossums, lynx, bobcats and even, wolves. Rabbits could feed and hide amid the shoots when they grew tall and dense. And birds, everywhere, loved to eat the seeds. Eventually, someone may return to begin harvesting the feral crop. Perhaps even us, Tor thought. Inwardly hating to leave his mother's work behind.

Eventually, the heavily traveled path dwindled into an overgrown trail that only took wildlife to the river. But once they reached the ancient dark forest the trail became quite clear again. It opened up underneath and the darkness of the overhead branches prevented new growth on the forest floor. Cleared by the grazing of saplings and lower branches by deer, the natural pruners of the forest. The wild boar with their grubbing and mud wallowing cleared out any brush and cultivated the soil looking for tasty roots, worms and grubs, wild onions and mushrooms.

While game was scarce in the early spring in the dense forest like this, the caravan was well provisioned with everyone, including Shin, carrying a pack on their back appropriate to their ability to move quickly through the forest with a light load. And, if anyone grew tired or they wanted to move faster, Tsen was always there for someone to ride him. But for now, everyone was walking at a fast pace taking them far from the abandoned encampment in a single passage of the sun.

Two cycles more and Shin suddenly began whimpering from a memory of the smell in the air. Tor immediately knew what it was. Shin was being reminded of a painful experience when bees had attacked him when he was much younger. But the memory stayed with him along with their unique scent.

Tor stopped to pet him and reassure him as well as tell the others. "It's okay, boy, we won't make the same mistake and you won't be stung this time." Rubbing  Shin by his ears which he thoroughly enjoyed.

"Let's put Tsen to grazing and we still have time before dark to get some honey." Tor declared with a big smile.

Thad was curious but apprehensive. "How will we get it? Bees sting don't they?"

"I have a method that an elder taught me. We can calm them while you steal from their nest."

"Me steal?" Anxiety crossed Thad's face.

Shea couldn't help but giggle, she knew what was coming.

"Don't worry. I will be helping you and the bees will be calm if you stay calm."

Tor had been to the bee tree three times before and the forest had changed little. But it was Shin, a bit reluctantly at first, but knowing where they were going, who led the way. Before long, they came upon the ancient tree and Tor was happy to see bees still coming and going in the warm spring air. With their winter hoard depleted, the bees were busy with all the spring flowers creating new honey and royal jelly for their young, hatching into new workers. A marvel provided by the gods of bees and flowers. Tor silently thanked them.

They retreated, and from an ember, built a small fire. They found some soft moss and placed it in a basket where they soon had it smoking. Nearby was a sapling with virtually no branches climbing high for an opening in the canopy above. It was skinny, but supple and just what Tor needed. He cut it down and he and Thad quickly removed what little branches there were except for making a Y-shaped end at the top that they could hang the basket on.

Tor gave it a try with the basket with the smoking embers, raising the sapling turned into a pole as high as he could with Shea’s help. Instinctively, he knew that it was long enough to reach the bees' hive. "'We’re all set," he declared. And led everyone back to where the bees were.

When they got there, he whispered to Thad. "I want you to climb the tree quietly without disturbing the bees. When you get close to the nest, Shea and I will raise the smoke basket close to the hive. I want you to let the smoke curl around the nest and the bees until they calm down. Some bees may land on you, but don't panic or they will sting you. And if they do sting you, stay calm…"

He waited a moment for his instructions to sink in, then Tor continued. "Once you see that the bees are quiet, reach into the hive and feel for honeycomb. When you find it, break some off and put it in the bag I'm tying around you now. Get as much as you can so you don't have to climb back up in the tree again."

Thad was petrified at the thought, but knew that Tor had gathered honey here before alone, so he obeyed and started to shinny up to the first branch, being pushed from behind by Tor.

Before Thad reached the hive, climbing carefully and slowly, Tor and Shea had raised the pole and reached just under the hive, letting the smoke rise up and around it on a nearly windless day. By the time Thad reached that point, the bees were crawling slowly on the outside and were quite calm even though a couple of them had landed on his arm as he reached for the hole that had been cut years before.

It was a strange feeling with all of the bees inside crawling all over his hand but he felt the ridges of the beeswax and knew he had the honeycomb in his hand. He carefully broke off a piece, and then, brought it out slowly to his hip and into the bag. After a few trips like that, he could feel no more honeycomb in the hole and he stopped. Working his way down the tree triumphant.

When Thad reached the bottom, Tor patted him on the back and reassured him. "See, I knew you could do it. That wasn't so bad, was it?"

"I guess not. I got stung a couple of times, but it went a lot better than I expected."

"Where? We have to get those stingers out."

Thad showed Tor the one on his arm and the other one on his side just above his hip where the bag was tied. Tor pulled out the stingers and Thad was grateful that he didn't have to.

The honeycomb was a good way to store the honey, so they only squeezed off what they wanted to sweeten. Like their gruel and teas made with various dried plants and seeds that Shea learned from the four clans’ women. But for now, they squeezed out the honey into the drinking gourd and each of them took their fill before returning to the trail. Of course, for his bravery, Shin got to lick some from Tor's fingers to his delight.

Mission accomplished, the caravan moved on until nightfall where they set up a temporary camp under a huge fallen limb braced up against a a huge tree trunk. It rained in torrents that night, but the canopy and all of the moss easily soaked up most of the moisture dripping down, so their fire never went out and they were warm and dry when they awoke in the morning.

With time and distance egging them onward, the caravan moved more quickly with the sweet taste of honey giving them more energy and alertness. They also had something more to trade.

Copyright 2021 © Ronald W. Hull

7/18/21