Chapter 9
The Heart Day

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1_THE DECK
2_THE PARTS
3_THEAHOO
4_THE GARDEN
5_THE BORDER
6_THE CLAYS
7_THE KILN
8_THE CRUCIBLE
9_THE ROCKS
10_THE METALS
11_THE TOOLS

They woke before dawn and deepened the six-mark on the wall. The first six mark they would know. They had accomplished so much in a few short passes. Talk was mostly of the many things they still needed to do. They never forgot to motion and open time out.

They had heard many far off threatening sounds from animals that ate meat. They woke from their dreams when the hangs returned to the back of the cave. They projected the seasons by Horus’s movements through the sky, and made plans for changing weathers. They studied each changing pass of Horus, and sang to their existence, their vision and the codes. They hardened the wall and started turning the soil to build the garden. AMI made some body coverings and planned for more. They harvested the fiber plants to create fiber, make oil and effect medicinal results. They were surprised by the Long-tooth and fought bravely to defeat the vicious predator. They took care of their wounds and planned uses for the Long-tooth’s body parts.

1_THE DECK

First AMI rose and went to the outside cave ledge. She turned looking at BOY and pointed to the outside wall,

I will mark the full deck on this outside wall. Above each pass I will mark the nightly glows locations in the dark by the sparks in the sky. I shall call the dark time ‘set’, for when Horus sets until the ‘rise’.

Then, on the outside wall she scribed the full deck with symbols I did not understand. There were ten symbols and she marked a small straight line beside each symbol when each day had passed. There was the Brave-pass and the Fire-pass, the Time-pass and the Hope-Pass. Then the Horus-Pass and now was another new pass. This would make six passes. Four more passes would make a deck. BOY nodded and said,

These marks on the outside will contain the time we will use. Inside we will continue to mark all past-time.

My thoughts were that the outside carvings appeared to be a calendar of sorts, marking the glows and stars wherever they were at those times. Then if this was their calendar, then the inside wall carvings would be their history for all to know. AMI returned to the inside wall and to crouch down beside the marks. They both discussed what to scribe on the wall. She said;

Let me start with the vibrations of nature.

She scribed what I would call sort of like drum sticks at off set heights, to show the sing. They were up and down lines with a little blob on the end.

I will scribe a five pointed star above the Horus pass to mark the half-deck.

Then she looked at BOY and scribed two circles interlocking each other and said,

These two joined circles are symbols of one, for our Vision, a bond unbreakable together.

BOY said,

Our Wisdom-of-Vision is not made of apart. Together our Vision will open the Codes. Each with the other, we will bear the burdens ahead.

I see. The interlocking circles represented their bond to each other. The bond was unbreakable and their Wisdom-of-Vision will provide the Codes for them to survive and complete their mission. BOY said,

I will scribe deep inside our circles and fill the deep lines with shiny when I can. These circles will not come apart by nature’s codes. They will in turn lock my Vision with you.

BOY suggested AMI scribe stalks of the fiber plant and she did. They stopped and thought. They needed to show how the long-tooth played its important part in their struggle. She thought out loud;

I can scribe the Long-tooth leaping out with our spears in its shoulder and its belly, and you between the beast and me.

She did so. Next I saw them out in the field. They knelt down and hung their heads over the life-less Long-tooth. BOY said,

2_THE PARTS

We must hurry for the meat to last and for us to deter other predators.

They put the rest of the parts in a basket to take away. BOY cut out the claws and the teeth. He cut across and to each leg and pealed the skin away from the body and placed it aside to prepare later and then work into usable skin. There was blood all over BOY. The bloods were setting and they flowed slowly as the parts were opened.

If they left the meat to hang there, the smell would attract all sorts of predators. They brought the meats back to the cave and buried them in the cool back. They needed to wrap it in leaves and cover it with dry dirt to keep the Hangs away. They later would hang the meat on a wood tripod held together with vines. They would eat the meats as they were and cook them in the boiling waters, and then fire cook them on the ends of sticks.

3_THEAHOO

As BOY was cutting the meat into pieces he heard a weak ‘ahoo’  at the end of the field. He grabbed his spear. Then out of the forest edge a devastated creature stumbled feebly toward them. BOY knew instantly and AMI was aghast with childlike glee. BOY yelled out,

AMI. It is Ahoo. He is alive. He is weak and needs help. He must have followed the scent of the long-tooth for left over scraps of food.

He quickly sliced off a large chunk of meat. He grabbed it and ran toward Ahoo. AMI ran after him and brought a gourd of water. They met, and Ahoo looked up at them. A light cream oozed from his eyes. His bright black fur was now mangy with tears and cuts.

He limped toward them. There were sticks and sharp prickles throughout his fur. He was wet. He must have crossed the dangerous river. He was skinny with weak body form. He flopped down in front of them. He looked not like the majestic and powerful Ahoo from Harmony. He had suffered great misfortune. AMI leapt on him and hugged him so closely. She said;

Ahoo you are safe, we are together again. BOY, Ahoo has found us.

Ahoo’s ears fell down and he licked AMI’s face. BOY held him and threw meat in front of him. Ahoo looked at them both. They smiled and he slowly started to eat.

As he ate he knew he was safe and ate faster. He was back with AMI and BOY. A wide tail wagging went on. Oink came running over and rubbed his head against Ahoo’s head and laid down behind him. AMI then gave Ahoo more water.

He became wide eyed and stood. He then sat back on his haunches. He lifted his head to the sky and let out the most magnificent Ahoo. BOY and AMI both howled with him. They knew what was being said. BOY carried Ahoo back to the cave. AMI brought the fur of the dead long-tooth. This time was so happy. Coo came to greet Ahoo and scratched at his matted back.

They put Ahoo close to the fire and placed food nearby. Ahoo would now be safe and comfortable here with Oink and Coo to keep him company. This was a reunion of great happiness. BOY said,

Coo is to alarm. Oink is to find food. Ahoo is to protect. We have much to be grateful for. Ahoo will come back as he was with our help.

They went back to the field to gather the rest of the long-tooth. When they finished bringing all the parts back they took the very few parts left that would not be used or eaten, and set them on a small fire. They sat and watched the smoke as it turned blue from the parts. BOY said;

It is the essence of the departed life back to its parts. Thank you, long-tooth for your parts. We will spread your ashes over our garden and use all the rest.

4_THE GARDEN

They then continued worked on breaking more soil and made a garden just big enough to grow their seeds in. They could make it bigger next return. BOY staked a fence around the edge about waist high and tied the stakes together with long flexible roots that Oink had dug up, along with some tough vines. He said,

Let us make space for the seeds for the size of the plant and tend to them daily with water and care.

Then they decided where to plant each seed. They made long rows in the soil and planted the seeds apart from each other. The fiber seeds were all in one area near the drop to the marshy spot and planted within the lines where the yellow kernels were planted.

The other seeds were throughout the garden. Their foods and their flowers and their stems and their leaves and their roots would have special offerings. These were some of the seeds from the Garden of Harmony. BOY said,

5_THE BORDER

We must teach our friends to stay away from the garden so not to disturb its growth. I will teach a border to them.

When he called Oink, Oink came trundling over. BOY stood inside the fence and as Oink neared the fence BOY held his palm out. He looked Oink in the eyes and let out a low growl. Oink drew back, and circled around. Each time Oink came to the fence BOY growled with his palm out and Oink would draw back. Oink soon wandered away. I felt Oink now knew the garden was off bounds.

BOY called Coo and taught him the same. Coo backed off and circled the garden bobbing his head while walking and pecking at the ground. Coo would not come into the garden.

They had built a garden in the middle of the field in the substance world. They went back and forth to the swampy area with their gourds and watered their seeds. It would be only time till they could harvest their bounty. They could then form foods that would last for a period of time when no crop was ready.

I could not contain my amazement. I was certainly in awe. They were building their world with nothing but AZ creations, the Codes, and the Wisdom-of-Vision imparted to them. I knew in my mind, I could not have survived this long. I may not have even started fire. I would have been predator meat long before now. AMI said;

6_THE CLAYS

I can make containers and lids from the fine clays of the riversides. We need to find the clays and work them and heat them to form. We can make pots to store in and cook in. We can make bowls and basins and cups and additions thereto. There could also be danger near the clays.

She drew pictures in the loose soil with a stick. She wanted to make storage pots and bowls and basins and cups and lids for them. BOY added a strange cup with a tight fitting lid and said;

Let us check the creeks and ponds for clay first. Maybe we can find fortune easier. I will make the hot fire to harden the clays, and drive off the unwanted parts in the clay, and to make other things. The breathe will make the hot fire. The more breathe the hotter the fire.

First they would need the clay. Clay was to be found near moving waters and dry river banks. They went out together with baskets to forage for the clays. They were both armed with spears and a club axe. Going near the river, predators were waiting.

They would also collect foods and supplies on their way to the river. BOY was walking close and in front of AMI with his spear in hand, while looking for nuts and other food items.

On the way to the river AMI searched around creeks and little ponds. She found a pond with milky waters and tore away the bank to find the clays. There were different types of clays.

She took of the cleanest looking clays in the bank and pealed the large cracked pieces from the dry shore. She picked out the non-clay items such as the sticks and rocks inside and discarded them.

BOY carried as much clay as he could in the largest basket. AMI carried nuts and berries and some favoured flowers in hers. When they arrived back at the cave she put the clays into the empty mess then added a little water and stirred and stirred until it became a smooth paste.

AMI needed a large flat rock to pour the paste onto when filtering. She had already made a filter out of tightly woven cords and placed the filter on the flat rock. She poured the paste through the filter and mashed it to pass through the filter. She would then clean the impurities from the filter and then filter again and again, to clean out the impurities. When the clays were pure looking, she poured and pushed the clean paste through the filter and onto the flat rock to dry, and then spread it out evenly with a flat stick.

When she felt the clay was just right I saw her lifting it slowly and carefully, forming it by hand into the crude shape of a bowl. Pushing and pulling and twisting, she shaped more bowls of different sizes. She knew it would need to dry and could take several passes. She would let the paste dry in Horus’s bright light and collect more clay. Then later she made more bowls and containers. She formed drinking containers and larger holding containers and then flat saucers. All the clay was used up. They went out for more clay.

As AMI made more clay, BOY went about securing the wall with a mixture of clay and straw. He stacked the rocks almost waist high on the ledge and smeared the clay mixture in between the rocks. He made it about an arm length deep and flat on the top. The wall would be sturdy and make from the ground to the top a leap too high, for any animal to attempt.

The wall made strong protection for the cave and a flat top for use. He then built a rough stairway up the set wall with flat rocks and the clay to harden them into position. The stairway worked well. Oink and Ahoo ran up and down continually with no trouble at all.

As I saw the cave from outside, I saw it as if a miracle had happened. Where a short six passes ago stood raw wilderness and dangers everywhere, now stood a creation of the Codes with safety and function of use. In almost the blink of an eye these new peoples had transformed the very basic creations of existence into the very basic needs of life. They undoubtedly were going to continue doing exactly that.

I felt it was of great beauty. It was, of all natural things. It was a beauty of no parallel, in my world. I felt my heel lifting up and down as if I had not seen anything yet.

7_THE KILN

In the meantime BOY set about making a kiln by digging a wide fire pit on the ledge outside of the cave roof. He could not dig deep into the hard rock and soils, so he raised the edge with many tightly compacted rocks. He said,

This open area will allow the deadly airs in the clay to escape to the outside while the very hot fire hardens the clay.

A ring of tinder, branches and fire wood surrounded the pit. AMI asked;

Why not test it on some of these items I have made? We can slow dry them by lower heat and then fire them with the hot fire. Some may harden for use. The rest will serve as heat for the next fire.

BOY then placed twigs over tinder in the middle of the pit, and lit them from the burf to start. He then loaded large amounts of the cave bear’s burfs on top of the twigs. He placed some of AMI’s pottery around the inside not touching the flames and not touching each other. They let the fire burn for many partitions at low flame while both blew furiously on the fire for air.

When they thought the clay pottery dry enough, BOY placed piles of charcoal from their fire on and around the fire. He then covered the pottery with dry branches and brush. He fanned the flames continuously with wide leaves and added more food to the fire. AMI joined in to fan the fire. The heat gradually rose and more fire food was added. More cover was put over top. The process took patience and the fire needed continual strong fanning. I saw that later BOY would make an air bellow from the long-tooth’s insides. This would make higher temperatures easy by forcing large volumes of air through the hot fire.

After many partitions and constant vigilance BOY removed the cover from the fire and let the pottery cool. He looked over the pieces and a few had hardened nicely. Some pieces had broken in the firing and would be kept to increase heat in the next firing.

They had made bowls, now they could fire again with more experience and build their supply of bowls and vases and cups and large water basins. They had made pottery by hand. It was crude and rough but a beginning. But they now had the experience and could make better and harder, maybe fancier pottery. BOY said,

8_THE CRUCIBLE

We will need to make tools of great strength, to make tools to turn the ground with, and build a larger garden. We must make very hard tools to cut with and to defend with. We will need tools for many uses. We will need tools to make tools.

To make the tools, we need to find the rocks with the ores we can form into shape with the very hot heat. We can start with the coloured rocks.

We need to first make containers to hold the very hot ores. We can use the finest clays to make them. We also need the completely burnt black woods from the fire to help the metals come out from the ores.

BOY started to make the containers that could hold the hot ores from the finest clay. He molded them about the size of a cup. He shaped the inside wide at the top with a small lip to one side. It looked a lot like a teacup with no handle. The inside he shaped to a point with his knife. It was a carved cone shape inside but it could sit upright. Then he formed tight-fitting lids for each one. He set them by the fireside to dry. When the clay was drier, he fired them as before. They now had crucibles that could hold and grind the hard metals from the rocks.

9_THE ROCKS

They discussed where to find the most coloured rocks. BOY said,

Let us first find the soft ores. They will be in the turns of creeks. We can plate for them there.

They went to nearby streams with their plates, then scooped gravel from the outside of the wide turns into their plates. As they swished the plates they found many small nuggets of black and silver coloured rocks with white crystals growing over them. They also found a few yellow rocks. These they brought back to make into metal. BOY said,

We do not have all that we need. Let us check inside the cave. More coloured rocks may be in there. There are many we can seek.

AMI took two sticks and wrapped dried burfs over the ends. She lit them in the fire and made torches from the burfs and they entered down into the cave. They had looked in before, but only to where light could show. Ahoo led them step by step. Rocks in a cave, it sure made sense to me.

Now this was a whole new world. The hangs were startled and let out shrieks. But they still did not leave as they slipped by. AMI lifted her torch and immediately long rows of different coloured rocks appeared. They hammered away and broke many pieces of the green rocks away from the wall. They now had many different rocks that had metals inside. AMI said,

10_THE METALS

There are many to choose from. We need to start with the easiest. Let us start with the black and silver rocks. These rocks hold some hardness of metal and the ability to form.

BOY affirmed,

Yes, this metal will be easier to work, and will mix with the other ores to form harder metals.

This metal can be had within the heat of the charcoal in our fire and can be formed with the hammer of our club when hot. We will form a hammer of metal and a metal base to pound on when we can.

They took the black and silver rocks and hammered them into small pieces. Then they shook and swirled the pieces in water. The heavy metal ores dropped to the bottom and the rest swished over the edge of the plate. From there they dried the ores and then hammered them into very fine pieces. AMI,

We can mix the ore with the helper and make it easier to melt the metal out of the ore. We will need more helpers to rid it of more impurities when we are able to. For now the helper will work.

Now they were ready, they could make metals. AMI gathered the tiny rock pieces together. BOY put charcoal from the fire in the bottom of each crucible and then loaded the ground metal from the black and white rocks on top of the charcoal. He put a little sand on top. Then he put a round long piece of fresh clay around the top of the crucible and formed a slight spout for gasses to break through. He pushed the lid onto the fresh clay and it sealed tightly. Then he placed the crucible right in the middle of the fire and covered the fire with large leaves to hold heat in. They fanned the fire rapidly and took turns.

When the hot fire had been running for several partitions, BOY pulled the covers off the charcoal and let the crucibles cool. Inside were small nuggets of the metal they could hammer into shape. They dug them out and stored them. They looked to me like tin. Now tin is used for many things, and to harden other metals at lower temperatures, tin is well known in my world. He said,

We must now make the harder metal by mixing the soft metal with the green rocks. The green rocks also hold other metals we will need later.

They now used the green rocks. They went through the same crushing and sorting as before until there was only a very fine powder of the green. They mixed a small part of the soft metal with much more of the green powder on top of charcoal in the crucible. This time they soaked the wood ash burned from broad leafed trees in water and boiled the solution until the water was all gone. They added this ash to the crucibles on top of the rest. They would also use this ash to cover their garden as they knew it contained important aids for their plants.

This time they fired it in the kiln and made the very hot spread throughout it. BOY made round circles of clay like pipes about a hand width wide. He then placed a pipe out the top opening of the kiln for a vent and covered the kiln with bark and leaves.

He then jammed the opening of the bottom pipe in the bottom of the kiln and fanned it vigorously. The temperature rose and the vent glowed of blue and white.

When the firing time was up they opened the dry crucibles and inside was the magic metal. They could now pour it into clay molds or shape it by pounding when still hot. It looked to me like they had combined tin and copper and made bronze. Bronze was very hard and changed how powerful their tools would become.

11_THE TOOLS

BOY would need to make tongs to move the hot crucible but for now he used barks to move it from the funnel to the hard flat rock he placed it on. He then hammered away at the ore with another hard rock to shape the ore.

He had to make many trips back to the funnel, fan the flames below the funnel and then return to hammer more. The extreme heat through the funnel could melt ores and produce metal for tools and parts. The hammer rocks were hard but he needed to replace them regularly as they pounded at the ore. The ore moved and shaped into two long narrow bars. He then curled and flattened one end on each bar as a place to hold on to and then made a flat surface facing each other on the other ends to grab the hot ores. They were simple but he could pick up the ores and move them quickly from flame to anvil and back again over and over.

He had made a tool to produce high temperatures and a tool to make tools with. The tongs were just the start. Over time, he would make an anvil of ore, small and almost flat, and a flat hammer of ore to pound against the hot metals. Then he could make the tools to farm, to cook, to protect, to advance.

Over time, BOY made two sharp hoes by heating the ores in the top of the pipe. One was for hand use with a short tied wood handle the other with a long tied handle for field work to turn over the soil then shake out the sods and place all debris in a pile to the sides. Over time, BOY made a bronze blade as a plow. He connected the curved blade to two long poles and a cross pole that he pulled to turn over the ground in the garden. Later he made a shovel and strong knives. He later made a scythe to harvest the grass grains. And, later he made a machete to cut through thick brush, and a long axe to harvest trees. Over time, he would make many more metals and tools.

The time seemed to go by so quickly, I barely realized what a day meant in their world. They had rescued Ahoo, planted the seeds, made pottery and started to make their first metals in one day. One pass of their time from Big-rise to Big-fall. It takes me half a day to wake up and get organized. Their food supply was started in their new garden.

They were tired and needed to sleep. When they finished their duties they rolled down to sleep in their warm bed. Oink and Ahoo slept by the end of the bed.

Time for a 7 Day Recap