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Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle left the shattered village of Nunnimingo and headed over the hills that lined the river valley, towards the Creek village. It had been a nice, cool morning, but now the sun was getting higher, and the temperature had started to climb.
They passed through the forest beneath giant oak trees. The lay of the land was not level, but was steep hills and valleys that caught the water and shed it toward the river. As they walked, they had to go over these hills and down into these valleys. The hills were perpendicular to the way they were traveling.
Wounded Eagle and Wolf Eyes spoke little; their minds now on one purpose only. Occasionally they would stop to listen or watch a deer or turkey feed. Sometimes the animal would look up to see what the braves were.
Wolf Eyes was thinking about the massacre and questioning what could be the reason for it. It did not make sense that the Creeks would invade the village; destroying the people in it, then go off leaving the cornfields full of ripe corn, ready to be picked.
They journeyed on farther to the east, and now they began to smell the cooking fires of the village. They slowed their pace and started taking extra precautions not to be detected. They came within sight of the main path that ran by the river. They could now see the mouth of Yellow Leaf Creek. They decided to go in a northerly direction up the creek to find an inconspicuous place to ford the stream.
They moved now ever so slowly to make sure they did not move suddenly and cause someone to notice movement in the woods. It was about dusk when they found a place to cross. The stream had narrowed considerably, and there was a footbridge here that looked well used, so they went across. When they got to the other side, they stopped to listen, and they could hear movement up the stream. It was nothing that would ordinarily be heard, a faint sound, but yet a definite sound that someone was approaching. They quickly got off the path and into some thick canes that grew closely to the path. They squatted down and covered themselves with leaves and sticks of the fallen cane.
The people came in to view, and Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle could see that this was a hunting party. They became very still, not even breathing as the hunting party passed. The hunting party went by and had not detected the two hidden in the canes. They stayed where they were for a while, and then moved farther off the path, before it got totally dark. Then they made camp for the night.
The night was peaceful with only an occasional bark from the dogs in the village, and sometimes a wolf would howl somewhere out in the forest. They ate some dried meat and drank some water. They were comfortable in the spot they had chosen.
The next morning came, and before dawn they were already on the move. They were making their way around the Creek village to the river trail that approached the settlement from the east. They found a bluff that overlooked the river trail, and from there they could observe the comings and the goings from the village. They were high enough that they could see the village itself.
The village was surrounded by cornfields. Behind the cornfields a palisade of logs implanted in the ground surrounded the entire village.
As the morning passed they could see the women of the village coming out to tend the corn. The women were accompanied by some young braves who had the chore of guarding slaves. Wounded Eagle saw this, and his heart began to jump. Could one of those slaves be his mother? He had to find out. The distance was so great that it was impossible to make a positive identification. It was impossible to get closer because it would risk exposure. They had no choice but to wait until there was an opportunity.
They observed the women and the slaves working in the cornfield for most of the morning until the sun got directly overhead. Then the workers disappeared from the field, seeking the shade and shelter from the heat of the sun. The sun was hot on Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle, but they did not want to move. They both became very thirsty and needed to get out of the hot sun. So they decided to move one at a time farther up the hill into a more wooded spot where there was shade. Little by little they inched their way up, first one and then the other. Finally, they were both in the shade of a big oak. From this point they could still see the village, but not as much of the river trail.
When evening came, Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle went over the hill and found water in a small stream that ran down toward the river. They decided this would be a secluded place to make a permanent camp. They even built a small fire that night and cooked some bread from meal they had wrapped in a leather bag. They ate it with more dried meat. That night they got wet because it rained. It was a slow, steady rain that soaked everything.
Wolf Eyes said, “We should take advantage of this rain and see if we can get close to the village.”
Wounded Eagle said, “Yes, they will all be inside except for a few guards. Let us go see how close we can get.”
Wolf Eyes said, “We should not make contact, but just see their defenses. Is that agreeable to you?”
“Yes,” said Wounded Eagle.
So they left their camp and went around to the side of the village that was away from the river. The rain clouds had covered the moon, so that the night was dark. They came out of the woods and got into the cornfield. The ground was soft, and they knew they would leave tracks, so they decided not to go any farther.
They reentered the woods and moved with stealthy caution back to the river path. They stayed beside the path for a long time before venturing out onto it. This ground was more solid, worn down to rocks, and they were able to move without leaving tracks.
They only walked a little way on the trail, and then they moved off of it and made their way in the rough bush that bordered the path. They moved, not breaking a twig or upsetting anything. They could see even though it was dark. Perhaps they could see better than the guards of the village who looked into the light of the fires from time to time. They came to the cornfield that bordered the path. Now they waited to see the changing of the guard and to see how alert the guards were. They also wanted to see if there was anyone else moving around outside the palisade.
The guard changed twice that night. The guards seemed more alert at the start of their watch. After they looked around for a bit they would settle down and become relaxed. Some even closed their eyes.
As the dawn approached, Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle made their way back to the oak tree on the bluff. By the time they got there the dawn was breaking, and the rain had stopped, but the sky in the direction of the sun was a brilliant red among a blanket of scattered clouds. Wolf Eyes relaxed, while Wounded Eagle stood watch. Their concealment was so good that they could not be seen from the village. They could see the village by looking through reeds of high grass in front of them. They would stay here and rest for the day, taking turns at the watch.
That evening, as the sun went down they went back to their camp at the little creek and dug mussels out of one of the deep pools. They rebuilt their fire and cooked the mussels. The mussels were very sweet and filled their empty stomachs.
That night they went again to the river path and were able to get very close to the palisades entrance. They lay low on the ground in the cornfield, among the bean vines that grew on the stalks of the corn. Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle again watched the changing of the guard and how it was done and what was said as the guards changed places. The first guard was a tall man. He came out of the narrow passageway and walked up the river path to the edge of the woods, then turned and came back. When he returned, he spoke the word that meant “all clear,” and the guard that he replaced went inside the wall to the village. The passageway was then his to guard for the next three hours, until his replacement came. And they watched this happen twice during the night.
The second time that the guard was replaced that night, they were inattentive. Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle used this inattention and made their way back to their camp by the stream. They feasted that night on crayfish and mussels again and got a good night’s sleep.
The next morning, after washing
off good in the little stream, they resumed their post on the bluff by the large oak tree. This morning, when the women and the slaves came out to tend the corn, Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle watched intently to see how the slaves were treated. They also wanted to know the condition of the slaves.
Wounded Eagle decided to make the call of the crow to see what the response would be of the slaves. The call had been practiced by the young boys from the time they had been about six years of age and had been demonstrated many times for their mothers. It not only sounded like a crow, but also actually identified the caller as a Chickasaw brave. To the uneducated listener it was just a crow.
When Wounded Eagle made the call, the woman slave looked in his direction. He knew that she was his mother, and she knew that the caller was her son. That was all that Wounded Eagle needed to alert his mother that he was near. She, immediately, returned to chopping the weeds on the corn, but knew that her help was close at hand.
That afternoon, when the sun got high, Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle watched as the workers in the cornfield returned to their village. They watched, this time, to see where the slaves were kept when they were not working. From their vantage point they could see the house where the slaves were taken. They suspected that they would be tied inside the house to one of the lodge poles.
Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle began to plan their raid to free the slaves. They both knew the vulnerability of the guards, and that they could use this to their advantage. They made their plans and then returned to the camp by the little stream to rest for what remained of the afternoon.
When darkness fell on the village, Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle were already nearing the river trail to the east of the village. They waited there until it got totally dark. There was no moon on this night, which helped them tremendously. They went down the trail slowly until they came to the area where the Creeks kept their canoes pulled up on the banks.
Wolf Eyes pointed to the river, and Wounded Eagle followed him into the water. They stayed close to the bank, for the bushes here made great cover, working their way close to where the canoes were beached. There were five braves guarding the canoes.
The braves had a small fire built and were sitting around playing some type of gambling game. Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle noted the guards’ positions, and then they backed away and returned to the path.
The two Chickasaws crossed the path and went into the cornfield. The corn stalks were high enough that it gave them good cover, and they were able to get close to the entrance of the palisade to the village. They stayed there for a long while, waiting for the changing of the guard. There was very little traffic on the river path, as the night was almost too dark for travel.
They waited four hours for the guard to change. The change took place the same way that they had observed it on the night before. The new guard came out and spoke to the old guard. Then the new guard walked up the river trail to the edge of the woods, looking and observing as he went. The new guard returned along the path and spoke to the braves at the canoes. Then he came up and relieved the old guard. The new guard was alert when his watch first started, but after an hour his interest waned. He began to look down at the ground and became unobservant.
Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle stretched their muscles to get them loose. Then Wolf Eyes tapped Wounded Eagle in the chest, and when Wounded Eagle looked his way, he pointed to himself and then at the guard and then made a hacking motion with his hand to his neck. Wounded Eagle understood and shook his head in agreement.
The attack came suddenly to the guard. It came out of the darkness with a skull-cracking thud. He never knew he was under attack. Wounded Eagle came forward and passed through the parallel rows of post into the entrance of the village. Just inside the entrance was another guard that they had not been able to see in their observations. They had reasoned that there would be one there. The guard was there, and the thud had aroused his attention, but an arrow through the throat had quieted him forever. They put the dead guards over their shoulders and carried them out into the cornfield, where they took the scalps. They reentered the palisade and turned to the right and ran silently along the fence, under the catwalk, where there were other guards posted.
They had been successful thus far in entering and being undetected, but now they had to worry about arousing the attention of dogs.
There was a lot of activity in the plaza of the village around the communal fire, which was good for the invaders. All they had to do was take their time. They moved on, not too slowly, but walked naturally, to the house where the slaves were kept. This house was totally dark inside; they had not built a fire there. The door was open.
Wounded Eagle made the chirp of a tree frog and got an answer back on the second chirp. His mother was inside, unguarded.
Wounded Eagle went in the house and spoke in a low voice to find his mother. He cut the strands of sinew that bound his mother and five other slaves. There were four women and two young braves. They were glad that help had come, but they knew to be quiet. Wounded Eagle’s mother had told them that help was near.
The slaves stood up and stretched until the blood came into their legs, and then they were ready to travel. Wolf Eyes was in the doorway, just out of the light of the campfire, watching for the first sign of danger. When the view was clear, he signaled for the slaves to follow him, which they did, out the doorway one by one. They went in back of the house to the palisade and walked, in a natural way, to the exit.
When they went into the parallel passageway, they stopped behind Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle. They told the others their plan to capture the canoes and get away downriver. When everyone was ready, they went out of the palisade and down the river path to where the canoes were beached.
The braves that were guarding the canoes were still around the campfire and paid no attention to someone approaching from the village. Then it was too late for them. Two were dead before the others realized what was happening. Arrows were flying in the night. One of the braves had made it to his bow. He had not gotten an arrow placed in it before he was fatally hit. As he was dying he had managed to get out a war cry.
The war cry had alerted the other guards at the palisade, and now the Creeks were streaming out of the village. They made terrible war cries as they ran toward the canoes. The arrows started to fly and rained in on the Chickasaws.
Wolf Eyes and Wounded Eagle loosed all the canoes and gave them a push out into the river. In the meantime all the captives had boarded and had paddles. Wounded Eagle and Wolf Eyes jumped in, as they pushed off and began paddling out into the river.
They got beyond the range of the arrows coming from shore quickly with no one injured. The river was foggy, and the darkness helped them escape. Wolf Eyes had expected that some of the Creeks would have run down the river to keep them in sight, but no Creeks had been seen. The canoes they pushed into the middle of the river must have gotten lost in the darkness and were difficult to find, or else they would have had unwanted company.
By the time the Creeks had regained their canoes the Chickasaws were well downriver. They did not slow down their paddle strokes, though, until they were far away from the village. They were guiding the canoes by the outline of the treetops on a dark sky background. The dugouts glided silently through the water. The night was calm, with no wind, and even the birds were silent.
Wounded Eagle’s mother was a woman of forty winters. Wounded Eagle was delighted to have her back and was amazed that she was still alive. He sat in the rear of her canoe, as they traveled downriver.
The dawn was breaking, and they had another two hours to travel before they would be back in their own village territory. They were still paddling strongly and knew that they could not quit until they reached the sentries of their own tribe.
They passed the burned out village of Nunnimingo, and the women started to wail the mourning song. They were quickly quieted by Wounded Eagle, who told them that they would have to wait until it was safe.
They neared the place where Three Baskets had beached her canoe, which they now called the landing. And the sentries began their crow calls. Wolf Eyes called back to let them know they were friendly.
They came to the landing and beached the canoes. Unloading from the canoes, the freed captives lay face down and kissed the ground. There was much praise for Wounded Eagle and Wolf Eyes. The two were not ready for the praise they received and did not acknowledge it, but acted rather shyly.
Wounded Eagle’s mother was named Tranquil Lady, and she began to tell her story.
“I was at the fire, adding wood, when they came behind me. I just covered my head and steadied myself for the blow that I knew was coming. I had my eyes closed, not wanting to see what was happening. When the struggle was over, they grabbed me from behind and took me outside. I was so upset that I remember little about what they did. But I do remember they tied my hands, and before I knew it we were walking up the river path. When we got to their village, they tied us to the poles in the plaza, where we stayed for a day, while they celebrated their victory. There were a lot more of us then. They tortured some of the young boys they had captured. Some they scalped alive, right in front of us. Those boys died bravely, singing their death song.
Finally, an old woman came by and pointed us out. They took us to the house and gave us a little hominy grits and bread. Then they tied us to the post where you found us. We were taken to the fields, in the mornings, to hoe the corn. We were made to do the menial chores such as carry water and empty the latrines of the sick. It seems like it was a long time that we had been there, but I know that it was only a few days.”
Wolf Eyes asked, “Do you know, Tranquil Lady, why the attack was made on the village?”
“Well, I have a suspicion that it was the doing of their aliktce,” she said. “He seemed to take a big part in their attack on us. He was also the recipient of much praise during their victory celebration.”
Tranquil Lady continued, “The aliktce is a witch man, and he trumped up the charge and intoxicated the war-like braves with this idea that our whole village of Nunnimingo was polluted with evil and must be destroyed. They would have killed all of us had it not been for the old woman. She would not allow him to have us tortured. I guess she thought they had done enough injustice.”
At this description of what the reason was behind the massacre, Wolf Eyes became very intense and asked this question. “What does this witch man look like?”
Tranquil Lady answered, “He is a medium size man, always wears a mask, but has a big scar on his left shoulder.”
Wolf Eyes said, “I think I know this man. If he did not wear a mask, you could see a scar that crossed his face. It was made by my tomahawk when I was but a small boy. If I had been a bigger man, I would have rid the world of his disservice.”
Wolf Eyes thought long and hard that night. He wanted to return to the Creek village and settle this old score. It had been a long time for the hate to brood in him. There is always a time for revenge, he thought, and I have waited a long time.
The next morning they left the river, heading to Nuktala, The Village of the Serene. The people were anxious to get settled again and get decent food in their bellies.
The morning was hot and humid, typical of the southern region that time of year. When they returned, it would be time for the ceremony of the Busk or Green Corn Ceremony that started the New Year.
Red Talon was anxious to get back and to see Three Baskets. He had thought much about her and was unable to get her out of his mind, though he was not trying very hard. Wolf Eyes was thinking also about Waving Willow. It had been a while since he had seen her. It was not a good thing to see a woman before leaving with a war party. In fact, it was not allowed, because it interfered with the purity of a warrior and would make one weak.
Tranquil Lady looked forward to settling in Nuktala because she knew people there, including the chief’s primary wife, Bursting Flower the Old, who was a longtime friend. She thought about her brother and son and began to mourn. As they got near the village, her mourning grew worse. She worried about the dead. They must send someone soon to bury the bodies of the dead of Nunnimingo, she thought. And how would she mourn on the grave if it were at Nunnimingo, instead of Nuktala. Certainly, they could not move back to Nunnimingo after the village had been destroyed and burned. What was she to do? Wounded Eagle was at home in Nuktala, having recently taken a wife there. He would see what could be done about the dead. He thought, maybe he could bring the bodies of his brother and uncle to Nuktala. That way their spirits would be more peaceful after they were revenged. Until then there would be no peace. He would consult with the aliktce on this matter.
The party was getting very near to the village now, and the Sun Spirit was disappearing beyond the mountains. The clouds were once again a reddish blanket on the horizon, slowly turning to purple and then to night.