Turning a Corner (Caveman Chronicles)

The Index -|-

A swirl of purple and grey drifted slowly across the cave in front of Thoka. The purple was faint, almost translucent and wavered slightly as it moved. The grey was merely a mist, but it distinctly avoided intersecting with the purple. “Like oil and water,” she said aloud to herself as she watched it.

The haze shifted as she walked toward it. She raised her arm to touch it, and it flowed around her hand. There was a pulse as the wavering purple caressed her hand like an ocean wave gently washing over her skin. The feeling was faint, but she felt incredibly peaceful and encountered a strong desire to bathe in its light.

Thoka disrobed slowly. She dropped her neck piece on the floor, and then detached the cord that held her loin cloth and let it follow the neck piece. She spread her arms and stepped into the cloud. The waves washed over her skin, and she closed her eyes and raised both of her arms while she savored the moment. She could barely feel the slow and gentle pulse as it moved under her skin and on her bones.

She pulled her fingers apart and the haze separated and swirled momentarily before returning to fill the gap.

“Thoka, Thoka… wake up.”

The jostling of her shoulder pulled her out of the dream, and she opened her heavy eyes. Kpleeb’s blurry face appeared above her, and she blinked to clear her vision.

“What do you want, Kpleeb?”

“It’s almost time to eat. I did not want to wake you, but… it’s almost time.” He grinned in a kind of boyish manner and stood still looking down at her. Finally, he held out his hand in an offer to help her up.

Thoka took his hand and visually appreciated the hairy bicep that tugged her to her feet. [How does he even stay strong in this cave?]

“What I made for you was not at all the kind of food Mam would make,” Kpleeb said. “I could not think of anything for you that was not already my own wish.” He shrugged. “So… I invented some food based on interesting dishes I have had before.”

Thoka did not know what to make of his statement. “Being inventive is good.” She sniffed the air. “I’m hungry as well, so let’s eat!”

Kpleeb led Thoka to the table and presented her with water and a plate. On the plate were four separate pieces or piles of food. “This is wildebeest flavored long grain,” he said pointing. “And this one, it is river shoot wrapped in frog-skin. This one is spotted owl gizzard with a tundra-hare cream sauce. And lastly, a crispy fried pummeled dinga with a spicy dip.”

Thoka nodded. “Thank you, it all looks very good.” She reached and took her scoop and ate a mouthful of the long grain. The texture was slightly sticky and it was warm, but bland. She detected a faint sense of meat, but the wet mountain tribes had not regularly eaten wildebeest, so she was unsure if that was it.

Kpleeb looked at her expectantly, but she only smiled and reached for the river shoot. The frog-skin that wrapped the shoot was cold and kind of droopy and damp. [Not appetizing.] She bit one end of the shoot knowing from experience that they were crisp and delicious if prepared correctly.

The shoot was tough. The frog-skin was chewy and smelled slightly dank, and she put the remaining portion back on the plate. After trying the other two items, she finally gave in to Kpleeb’s queries.

“The long grain is pretty good,” she lied. “I did not like the river shoot much. Too tough, and the frog-skin,” she shuddered slightly. “Blech. The gizzard and cream sauce were interesting, but it tasted much like the long grain. My favorite was the fried dinga. The spicy dip really helped it out. Have you tried it?”

Kpleeb shook his head and reached to test the food he had made. After a minute he shrugged and his face fell. “I see what you mean. I’m sorry that it wasn’t good. I’m not a good cook.”

“It’s okay, Kpleeb. Often, it’s the thought that matters, and I am very grateful that you care enough to make food for me.” Thoka put her hand on Kpleeb’s shoulder and grinned widely.

“Maybe you should leave the cooking to me?”

Kpleeb nodded solemnly, but Thoka poked him in the ribs gently and smiled even harder until he responded with a weak smile of his own.

“We can’t all be the best at everything,” Thoka said. “Cooking takes practice just like anything else.” She reached an arm around Kpleeb’s waist and gave him a quick squeeze before letting go. “Do you want me to eat the rest?”

Kpleeb looked embarrassed. “No, please. Let us eat something we actually like.”

“I could choke the rest of it down… for you,” Thoka said with a grin.

“No, no. You just make what you want and I’ll get what I want. Cave, give me a nicely roasted muskrat leg. Thank you.”

“And I’ll have a bowl of soup. You know how I like it,” said Thoka.

Thoka and Kpleeb ate and talked for some time before Thoka started to yawn. “It’s about my time, Kpleeb.”

“You go to bed so early. Why is that?”

“It’s just my habit. I think better in the morning, but only if I sleep well.”

“Well, I will go continue working on my device.” Kpleeb smiled at Thoka. “Thanks for understanding about the food. I had a wonderful time talking to you as usual.” He stood.

“It was fun, and my soup was excellent.” Thoka smiled brightly. “Good night, Kpleeb.”

Thoka watched as Kpleeb walked away and closed the gap between the caves. [He really is a nice caveman.] She blushed when she remembered the squeeze she had given him. [He didn’t react. I wonder if I surprised him? I wonder if he would cuddle with me?] Her mind wandered for a few minutes, until she finally fell asleep.

When Thoka awoke the following morning, she spoke quietly at the gap. “Kpleeb, are you awake?” He did not answer, so she went to her table and worked to understand the forces that she had begun to discover.

She continued her thread from the previous day. Her special wands moved water, so she tried green goo, spit, and various edible liquids that the cave produced for her. Thoka mixed everything she could think of and tested the mixtures in different ratios. Everything was affected by the invisible forces to some extent except the pure green goo. She was not sure why. She molded her hair with stone and made new threads for her wand. She tried different combinations of meat, plants, and other materials in an effort to find the alloys and shapes that made the most effective threads.

It was mid-day before she realized that Kpleeb still had not surfaced. She stood and slowly stretched her arms, legs, and back. She took a drink of water, and then asked the cave to open the gap. As the surface vacated the wall where the grey stone had opened up, she stepped through and looked.

Kpleeb was face down next to his food outcropping.

Thoka rushed to his side and turned his head. There was a large lump and bruise above his right eye. [He must have fallen… but why?] As she examined his head, she noticed a swollen bump on the back of his neck. The center was a red dot with a puffy white ring, and then more purple that faded into his skin tones. A semi-sticky clear substance coated her finger when she touched the bump.

She shook Kpleeb gently. “Kpleeb, wake up.” Thoka shoved his body over until he lay on his back. He was breathing, but did not stir. “Wake up.” After a few moments she stood and retrieved a handful of water. She splashed his face, but nothing happened. There was nothing else she could think of to do except…

Thoka sat next to Kpleeb and wrapped her arms around him. His body was warm, and he breathed – in and out – slowly. After some time, she drifted off.