"We saw some saigas," Latie said. "Even little ones."

"I think you saw some strawberries, too," Nezzie commented dryly, seeing her daughter's red-stained hands. Latie blushed, remembering that she had wanted to keep them all for herself.

"There weren't enough to bring any back," Ayla said.

"It wouldn't have mattered. I know Latie and strawberries. She would eat a whole field of them, without sharing any, if she had the chance."

Ayla noticed Latie's embarrassment, and changed the subject. "I also picked some coltsfoot for coughs, for the sick Camp, and a red-flowered plant – I don't know the name – whose root is very good for deep coughs and bringing up phlegm from the chest," she said.

"I didn't know that was why you were picking those flowers," Latie said. "How do you know they have that kind of sickness?"

"I don't know, but since I saw the plants, I thought I might as well get some, especially since we were so sick with that kind of sickness. How long before we get there, Talut?"

"It's hard to tell," the headman said. "We're traveling faster than usual. We should reach the Sungaea Camp in another day or so, I think. The map Ludeg made for me was very good, but I hope we're not too late. Their sickness is worse than I thought."

Ayla frowned. "How do you know?"

"I found signs that were left by someone."

"Signs?" Ayla said.

"Come with me. I'll show you," Talut said, putting his cup down and getting up. He led her to a pile of bones near the water. Bones, particularly big ones such as skulls, could be found all over the plains, but as they drew near, it was obvious to Ayla that it was not a natural arrangement. Someone had purposefully stacked them up. A mammoth skull with broken tusks had been placed on top of the heap, upside down.

"That is a sign of bad news," Talut said, pointing to the skull. "Very bad. Do you see this lower jaw, with the two spine bones leaning against it? The point of the jaw shows which way to go, and the Camp is two days away."

"They must need help, Talut! Is that why they put this sign here?"

Talut pointed to a piece of charred birchbark, held down by the broken end of the left tusk. "See this?" he said.

"Yes. It's burned black, like it was in a fire."

"It means sickness, killing sickness. Someone has died. People are afraid of that kind of sickness, and this is a place people often stop. That sign was not put here to ask for help, but to warn people away."

"Oh, Talut! I must go. The rest of you don't have to, but I must go. I can leave now, on Whinney."

"And what will you tell them when you get there?" Talut said. "No, Ayla. They won't let you help. No one knows you. They are not even Mamutoi, they are Sungaea. We have talked about it. We knew you would want to go. We started out this way, and we will go with you. I think, because of the horses, we can make it in one day instead of two."

The sun was skimming the edge of the earth when the band of travelers from the Lion Camp approached a large settlement situated on a broad natural terrace some thirty feet above a wide, swift river. They stopped when they were noticed by some people, who stared in amazement before running toward one of the shelters. A man and a woman emerged. Their faces were reddened with a salve of ochre, and their hair was covered with ashes.

It's too late, Talut thought, as he and Tulie approached the Sungaea Camp, followed by Nezzie and Ayla, who was leading Whinney with Mamut on her back. It was obvious they had interrupted something important. When the visitors were about ten feet away, the man with the red-colored face raised his arm and held up his hand, palm facing front. It was an obvious signal to stop. He spoke to Talut in a language that was different, yet there was something familiar about it to Ayla. She felt she should be able to understand it; a similarity to Mamutoi, perhaps. Talut answered, in his own language. Then the man spoke again.

"Why has the Lion Camp of the Mamutoi come here at this time?" he said, speaking now in Mamutoi. "There is sickness, and great sadness at this Camp. Did you not see the signs?"

"Yes, we saw the signs," Talut said. "We have with us one who is a daughter of the Mammoth Hearth, a skilled Healer. The runner, Ludeg, who passed by here some days ago, told us of your troubles. We were preparing to travel to our Summer Meeting, but first, Ayla, our Healer, wished to come here to offer her skills. One of us was related to one of you; we are kin. We came."

The man looked at the woman standing beside him. It was obvious that she was grieving, and she gathered herself together with some effort.

"It is too late," she said. "They are dead." Her voice trailed off in a wail, and she cried out in anguish. "They are dead. My children, my babies, my life, they are dead." Two people stepped up on either side of the woman and led her away.

"My sister has suffered a great sorrow," the man said. "She has lost both a daughter and a son. The girl was nearly a woman, the boy a few years younger. We all grieve."

Talut shook his head in sympathy. "It is indeed a great sorrow. We share your grief, and offer whatever solace we may. If it is within your custom, we would like to stay to add our tears to yours as they are returned to the breast of the Mother."

"Your kindness is appreciated, and will always be remembered, but there are still those among us who are sick. It may be dangerous for you to stay. It may be dangerous for you to have come."

"Talut, ask him if I can look at the ones who are still sick. I may be able to help them," Ayla said quietly.

"Yes, Talut. Ask if Ayla may look at the sick ones," Mamut added. "I think she will be able to say if it's safe for us to stay."

The man with the red face looked hard at the old man sitting on the horse. He had been amazed when he first saw the horses, but he did not want to seem overwhelmed, and he was so numbed with grief he had put his curiosity aside for the moment, while he acted as spokesman for his sister, and his Camp. But when Mamut spoke, the strange sight of a man sitting on the back of a horse was suddenly brought to his awareness with new impact.

"How does that man come to be sitting on a horse?" he finally blurted out. "Why does the horse stand still for it? And that other one, back there?"

"It is a long story," Talut said. "The man is our Mamut, and the horses answer to our Healer. When there is time, we will be happy to tell you about it, but first, Ayla would like to look at your sick ones. She may be able to help them. She will be able to tell us if the evil spirits still linger, and if she can contain them and make them harmless; whether it is safe for us to stay."

"You say she is skilled. I must believe you. If she can command the horse spirit, she must have powerful magic. Let me speak to those within."

"There is one other animal you should know about," Talut said, then turned to the woman. "Call him, Ayla."

She whistled, and even before Rydag could let him go, Wolf had wriggled free. The Sungaea man and other bystanders were startled as the young wolf came racing toward them, but even more surprised when he stopped at Ayla's feet, and looked up at her with expectation. At her signal, he dropped down to his stomach, but his alert attention focused on the strangers made them uneasy.

Tulie had been carefully observing the reactions of the Sungaea Camp and quickly realized what a powerful impression the tractable animals had made. They had enhanced the stature of the people they were associated with, and the Lion Camp as a whole. Mamut, by the simple act of sitting on the back of the horse, had garnered prestige. They watched him with wary glances, and his words had carried great authority, but the response to Ayla was even more revealing. They looked at her with awe, and a kind of fearful reverence.