Billy Buckhorn and the Rise of the Night Seers, page 15
“Let’s get back on topic, shall we?” Two Bears said loudly. “We don’t have all night!”
“All right, all right,” Tuckaleechee responded.
She recomposed herself.
“I’m going to need help with this one, especially since the boy is in the process of joining forces with the Osage Lookout family and the rest of those intertribal medicine fools. I cast the House of Bones spell on him, but the Lookouts freed him.”
This brought a round of chatter from the group.
“Since then, I cast the ‘conflict and confusion’ spell on the girl called Spider Woman and sent my wolf pack to trap her, but so far all my efforts have been frustrated by the young Buckhorn.”
“I got a doozy of a spell passed down from our Aztec forebears you could try,” said Florida Seminole conjurer Geraldine Osceola.
“You two get together after this meeting, or use your Aztec mirrors to connect, because we still have one last important issue to address,” Two Bears said.
Carmelita returned to her place with the others.
“Our planned weather events,” Two Bears continued. “As you know, the spring equinox falls on March twentieth, when the hours of daylight and darkness are equal. That’s the beginning of the period when our powers become enhanced, and that’s when our abilities to create earth incidents and weather events start to ramp up. No one—”
“You’re going too far this time, Thomas!” Kla To-yah, the Navajo Skinwalker, interrupted. “You can’t tell us when, where, or how to cast our spells. Sure, we joined the Owl Clan to boost our abilities and expand our knowledge, but you trying to control what we do and when is too much!”
All the Owls echoed the Navajo’s complaint with shouts of “That’s right” and “It’s too much.”
Two Bears closed his eyes and concentrated amid the noise. Rotating his hands in a spherical pattern as if he was forming a large ball, he began uttering a mantra in his Cheyenne language. Simultaneously, a spherical pattern of pressure formed around the gathering of Owls on top of the tower.
Two Bears then began shrinking the size of the imaginary ball, and the Owls were compressed into an ever-tightening space. Caught off guard, none of the conjurers had time to transform and fly away. All were caught in the supernatural trap and felt the increasing constraint that forced them into a tiny space, unable to escape.
“Have you forgotten why we are doing this?” Two Bears roared. “Have you forgotten that the white man destroyed our Native peoples, our homes, our communities, and our cultures? Have you forgotten how they reduced us to cowering victims, unable to fend for ourselves?”
He allowed his words to sink in, to resonate within their minds.
“Now, shall we take a vote?” Two Bears bellowed. “All those in favor of following the timetable I’ve set out, say aye.”
“Aye!” the crowd responded, fearful of what their leader might do if they said otherwise.
“All those against?”
No one uttered a sound.
“The ayes have it, then.”
Two Bears separated his hands, and the pressure surrounding the Owls subsided. The Cheyenne sorcerer had won. His followers would obey him, at least for now.
hen Billy returned from his trip to Eastern Cherokee territory with Wesley, he was pleased to learn that his girlfriend was now staying in the family’s spare bedroom.
“I’m afraid my decision to take part in the prophecy has put you in danger,” he told Lisa when they had a chance to be alone. “That’s the last thing I want, but I’m glad you’re staying here with us.”
“There’s someone here in Cherokee country who doesn’t want you and me to be together, or doesn’t want our families to join forces,” she said. “My instincts say it’s the medicine person Chigger has gotten mixed up with.”
“Chigger would never—”
Billy checked himself before finishing that statement. He remembered his friend’s ordeal with the purple crystal and his reaction to the last girlfriend Billy had.
“Let me rephrase that. My oldest and bestest friend, the Chigger I knew before the Uktena incident, would never do anything to harm me or my family. But now I’m not so sure.”
Billy pondered that thought for a moment.
“Well, I’m not hanging around here waiting for another supernatural attack,” Lisa said with finality. “I’m going with you for the medicine initiation ceremony.”
“That’s the best news ever!” Billy said with a great deal of excitement.
The Osage Nation’s one-and-a-half-million-acre Oklahoma reservation sat just south of the Kansas state line. The tribe had reluctantly accepted this property in exchange for lands they were forced to give up in the 1800s, as the federal government made room for white, land-hungry settlers. The centrally located town of Pawhuska served as the capital of the tribal nation, and its modern, sleek office buildings served the current needs of the Osage people.
About three miles east of Pawhuska on a high point of land stood a stone memorial to one of the tribe’s most beloved chiefs, Fred Lookout, a distant relative of Cecil, Ethan, and Lisa.
As he stood near that memorial, Billy took in the wide natural view. Down the hill to the southwest flowed the twists and turns of tiny Bird Creek. Barely visible several miles to the east sat the medium-sized town of Bartlesville, at the outer edge of the reservation. A few scattered farmhouses dotted the otherwise sparsely populated Oklahoma landscape.
All the Lookouts and all the Buckhorns had arranged their schedules so they could participate in Billy’s ordination ceremony, which was about to take place. Also known as the initiation dance, the ritual would be the beginning of his “reign” as the long-awaited Chosen One, the Son of the Sun for these prophetic times.
But there would be several steps and multiple locations involved in the process, and this location was but the first. Billy had arrived early to allow himself time to reflect on the extraordinary events that had led to this monumental moment and contemplate the challenges that lay ahead. Would he be worthy of the new role? Would he be able to summon the strength needed to defeat Underworld forces? What did that even mean?
He checked the clock on his phone. It read 11:45 a.m. The others would be arriving at noon. The 120-mile drive from Tahlequah to Pawhuska only took about two hours, and Billy had driven by himself in order to be alone with his thoughts.
I wish Chigger was here to witness this like in the good old days. I miss him.
But that friendship had mysteriously ended rather abruptly, signaling a final end to childhood. Lisa’s simultaneous appearance in Billy’s life signaled the beginning of the age of maturity and responsibility. The fun times were over, but the teen hoped there were still plenty of good times ahead.
The distant rumble of a caravan of cars traveling over the gravel road interrupted Billy’s reverie. Leading the parade was Lisa on her motorcycle, now with an attached sidecar filled with camping gear. Immediately behind her followed her father in his archaeology van and her grandfather in a rather rare 1948 Ford “woodie” station wagon with one busted headlight.
Behind them came the Buckhorns, Wesley in his red-and-white Ford pickup and Billy’s mother and father in the family Jeep. Wesley honked his truck horn when he spotted his grandson standing just outside the low fence that surrounded the twelve-foot-tall memorial.
Three other members of the Lookout family who lived in Pawhuska also arrived, invited by Cecil. These were Ethan’s brother Chester and his wife, Sarah, along with Lisa’s older brother, Michael. To Billy, the family resemblances and their similarly patterned energy fields were quite noticeable.
After everyone parked, got introduced, and gathered around Billy, Cecil explained why they were there.
“We’ve come to pay homage to my uncle Fred, who served as principal chief of the tribe for a total of twenty-eight years,” Cecil said. “More importantly, he helped preserve our family by protecting our relatives during the 1920s, when sixty of our fellow tribal members were murdered for their oil rights. The actions he took in his life demonstrate the impact each of us can have if we take a stand to improve and protect the lives of those around us. It’s important to remember the sacrifices made by our ancestors as we ready ourselves to face the battles ahead.”
When Cecil finished speaking, Chester stepped forward in the circle. He’d brought a hand drum with him that he used to accompany himself in an Osage honor song. After the song began, all the members of the Lookout family joined in singing.
Their voices echoed across the landscape that surrounded them. Billy, standing next to Chester and Cecil, began moving his feet up and down in rhythm with the drumbeat. Without leaving the spot where he stood, the boy made a full 360-degree rotation, dancing in place.
His unfocused vision seemed to capture faint images of Native spirit dancers who were scattered over the nearby land. Each faced the beating drum and danced where they stood.
“Call on us, for we are ready to help you,” they seemed to say to Billy. Was that his imagination playing tricks on him?
Cecil, who had been watching the boy, leaned over and whispered in Billy’s ear, “I really brought you here because this is a place of visions. What you may see is real. Have no doubts. Trust yourself.”
Billy stopped questioning the scene that unfolded before him.
The message continued: “We’ve been watching and waiting for you to appear, and now you are here. Though we live among the stars, we stand ready to join you on the plains of Middle-world as you fight for the people and Mother Earth.”
As Billy completed his 360-degree circle, Chester’s song ended.
“It is done,” the man said and nodded to Billy. He reached out his hand, Billy shook it, and the brief ceremony ended.
“We have two other stops to make before we conduct the final Son of the Sun ceremony,” Cecil told Billy. “But remember what you saw here, for it may help you in the near future.” The elder stepped away from Billy and called to the others, “Next stop: Sugarloaf Mound, St. Louis.”
Pulling Lisa aside, Billy said, “Won’t you be in trouble with the school for missing your classes?”
“The whole world will be in trouble if we don’t defeat the gathering dark forces,” she replied before giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Supporting you is the most important thing for me to do now. My father gave the school a note of permission to take an extended absence. Maybe your mom and dad could do that for you.”
With that, she put on her helmet and got on her motorcycle, leaving Billy with what seemed like a great idea.
The caravan of cars, trucks, vans, and one motorcycle made its way to Cecil’s house as the sun was setting. Cody, who’d stayed behind, had timed the heating of the stones so they’d be ready for the sweat lodge at about this time. Only Cecil and Billy would be participating in this particular sweat, and that was why Cecil’s younger sister had prepared food and drink for everyone else, who’d be waiting inside the house.
The elder and the teen quickly changed clothes, grabbed towels, and presented themselves at the door to the sweat lodge. Cody signaled that he was ready, and Cecil spoke to Billy.
“This will be your introduction to the ancestor spirits who work with the Medicine Council and provide spiritual protection. The night before your initiation, we’ll perform a separate sweat with all the council members to welcome your grandfather into the circle.”
Then the ceremony began. As before, the ancestor spirits entered the lodge during the fourth round. After entering the lodge, the thirteen sparks of light circled the interior four times and then took up positions around the central pit of heated stones.
The many voices whispering as one said, “Time is short, and the need is great, young warrior. Only a resident of the Middle-world who can reach into the past and also unite with dwellers of the Upperworld will once again subdue denizens of the Underworld. As you rise to meet the challenge ahead, we will assist you with all the power we can muster.”
Then the many voices whispering as one spoke in a language Billy recognized, the sacred language used by the Sun Chief to recapture the Horned Serpent in the lower cave. This time he understood the meaning of the words.
“May Waconda, the Great Mystery, empower and protect you from this day forth!”
Then the thirteen sparks began circling the interior of the lodge, but before exiting through the roof, each passed directly through Billy’s physical body, discharging light-filled energy into him. The passing of each spark through the boy’s flesh was accompanied by a distinct and resounding crackle as his bones, muscle, brain, and skin were infused with high-frequency energy.
It was almost more than his physical body could stand. As Cecil watched, Billy’s body began to glow. He’d never seen anything like it. He’d never heard of anything like it happening to anyone else in the history of the Intertribal Medicine Council.
Billy slumped over sideways as he passed out from the overwhelming energy.
“Cody, come in here quick!” the elder shouted to his grandson. “We need to pull Billy out of the lodge!”
Cody sprang into action, flipping the flap door open and entering the lodge. He, too, saw that Billy’s body was literally glowing.
“Help me get him out!” the elder shouted, seeing that Cody was frozen in place. The pair pulled and tugged to get the boy out of the lodge and onto a blanket.
Lisa, who was inside Cecil’s kitchen serving food to guests, heard the commotion and raced out the back door of the house.
There lay her unconscious, glowing boyfriend. Cecil quickly explained what had happened as members of Billy’s family arrived on the scene.
Not able to think of anything else to do, Lisa grabbed the ladle from the water bucket and threw a ladleful of water on Billy’s face. The boy jerked and opened his eyes, to everyone’s relief. Billy’s glow quickly subsided.
“What . . . what happened?”
“You passed out in the lodge after the spirits left,” Cecil replied. “What did you experience?”
“I was standing in a circle surrounded by thirteen buffalo who were speaking to me,” Billy said. “We were out on the prairie somewhere. Then one by one, they charged toward me and passed through me. Their energy was so powerful it overwhelmed me and lifted me off the ground.”
He looked down at his body, touching various parts as if it felt odd to the touch. “For a few seconds, I was a buffalo—with horns and hooves and fur.”
“Excellent, young man,” Cecil said. “The buffalo symbolizes victory over struggles and challenges as well as new beginnings. They infused you with these qualities and empowered you to succeed.”
Billy was a little wobbly as he stood, so Lisa and her grandfather helped the teen walk to the house for food and water.
“Next stop—Cahokia,” Cecil told Billy as they stepped inside. “Sunrise tomorrow. Better get a good night’s sleep right after we get a bite to eat.”
Billy slept a hard, dreamless sleep that night in a tent in Cecil’s backyard. He awoke the next morning to the sound of sirens. They weren’t the kind one might hear from an ambulance or fire truck that quickly passed by, creating a Doppler effect. These were steady, stationary danger signals emitted from public sirens attached to the tops of tall poles scattered around the city.
He unzipped the flap on his tent and peered out. Wesley, who’d slept on Cecil’s living room couch, stepped out of the back of the house and looked skyward.
“What’s going on, Grandpa?” Billy asked as he tumbled out of the tent.
“Tornado alert,” the elder said. “TV news says it’s a big one to the southwest of us.”
Billy stood next to Wesley and squinted his sleepy eyes at the cloud-filled atmosphere. “I thought tornadoes came in the spring, like in April or May.”
“That was in the good old days before climate change,” Wesley said. “Now weather everywhere seems to be out of whack.”
“Shouldn’t we go to a shelter or a bunker or something?” Billy asked.
“Cecil has a storm shelter basement under the house. We’ll head down if the twister gets close.”
The pair continued gazing upward for another moment as the sirens continued to wail. “Come inside and grab a bite of the wonderful breakfast Cecil’s sister made. We can see what’s happening with the tornado on TV.”
With a breakfast burrito in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other, Billy sat down in a worn, overstuffed chair near Cecil’s TV. A local weatherman was describing the action.
“There’s never been anything like it,” the middle-aged man was saying as he stood in front of a weather map of Oklahoma.
An almost straight red line ran on the map from the town of Pawhuska on the Osage reservation in Oklahoma to the center of Osage County in the state of Missouri.
“First of all, there were no weather models forecasting possible tornadoes at this time in this region,” the man continued. “This thing just came out of nowhere! Second, this is January, not April, so any tornado of any category is a rare event. But add to that the sheer size of this twister and the distance it stayed on the ground . . . Well, it’s downright unbelievable! A category four on the ground for three hundred miles! The devastating Kentucky twister in 2020 touched down for one hundred and sixty miles, killed dozens of people, and did billions of dollars’ worth of damage. I can’t even imagine what death and destruction this one is going to leave behind.”
As the man finished his report, the local sirens died down, leaving a deafening silence.
Cecil and Wesley both noticed a few unusual details about this weather event, which they discussed in hushed tones in a corner of the living room.
“What are you talking—or should I say whispering—about over there?” Billy asked after finishing his burrito.
“A common concern we both share,” Wesley replied. “But it’s too early to tell anyone else about it until more information comes to light.”
Billy decided not to probe any further as he headed to the bathroom to get ready for the next step in his initiation process.
