Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country Read Free Page A

Pax impulsively rushed forward to aid him, he was amazed at her presence. He demanded to know what the child was doing there, and in hersoft-spoken explanation it gradually came out that she had been tracing his steps for two years.
    Now Aniah was amazed indeed! He, who had no equal in stealth, had been outdone by this little girl! He had gone into the woods a hundred times, and she had always been a few steps away, watching him! Aniah was a thoughtful man. He reflected for a few days on what had happened. When he went out next he invited Pax along—and every time thereafter. He taught her each secret skill that he had—how to use her eyes, nose, and ears, and how to move more quietly than the animal she trailed. In a little while she was able to track even a beetle by the footprints it left in the dust.
    Pax brought down her first deer unaided, and dragged it forth with difficulty as it panted its last. For Aniah there was a certain sorrow in it, not only because it seemed so unfit for a young girl, but because she was so like the doe she had speared. Pax was slender-boned, graceful, and delicate, with large, dark eyes that sparkled with moisture and betrayed a trace of timidity. She whispered something in the dying animal’s ear, and so did Aniah. They carried it home together.
    None of this was received well by the men of the clan (although many of the women secretly rejoiced). At first they even refused to eat the flesh of an animal attained so much in violation of their established ways. But in time Pax’s activity was better accepted and she was granted a degree of latitude, mainly because of the great respect her grandfather commanded; but also, as it turned out, because she was exceedingly good at hunting. Aniah,called the greatest hunter who ever lived, was very old, and becoming more and more rheumatic. He had to reduce his exertions. Zan, whose name meant Hunter, was not especially skilled, although he was as adept as the other men of the clan. Who now became the greatest hunter of the Ba-Coro? No one would admit it, yet everyone knew: it was Pax, a girl.

    Pax was twelve years old when she was given in marriage to Zan-Gah. She was not consulted in the decision. Pax knew her duty and made no objection. She was not really unhappy about it, only a little scared. Zan-Gah was several years older than she, and was already considered a great man of the clan. Everybody seemed to admire him, and some loved him too. She trusted her parents’ judgment, and was inclined to like the young hero who was to be her mate. She recalled that when the elders had met in council, Zan had insisted on the inclusion of women—something that never had happened before.
    It was marriage itself that Pax objected to, not the man her family had chosen. It appeared a form of slavery to her; and a look at the women of her tribe laboring away at their chores did not dispel that impression. Despite her inherent outward grace, Pax was not inwardly peaceful. The fire of rebellion burnt in her—against her subjugation, her sex, and all its restrictions. She was being handed over to Zan like a haunch of venison or an object of purchase. Would he consider that she was his property? She could not accept that!
    It was well after the ceremony that she discovered Zan had no intention of ruling over her; and from that time on Pax blossomed. Far from objecting to her masculine hunting activities, Zan encouraged them, obviously full of admiration for her skill. To Zan, light-stepping Pax was an artist or an elf. She was pretty too, although she seemed not to know it. Gradually Pax realized that Zan-Gah, respected by all, respected her as no less than his equal. He was the one male who ever had done so. Only with this realization did something special grow between them. Only then did Pax surprise her husband with strange and unexpected love-behaviors. Only then could they truly become friends.

    Among those whom Pax admired, Lissa-Na