The trip had been long, but after 3 weeks, she had finally made it across the Great Rugged Plain and was now entering the edge of the Great Northern Forest. She thought of the past 3 weeks and the travel with Whisper being her only companion. She thought of the close calls, sleeping with one eye open, hiding. Now, she was here. No place was entirely safe from the Sky Reapers, but it was common knowledge that forests were safer than most places. The denser the forest, the better, and that's just what the Great Northern Forest was: dense.

  She knew the risk in getting there. The best way across the Great Rugged Plain was either solo or

  with a large army. Since she didn't have a large army at her disposal, it meant going solo.

  Now, as she entered the edge of the forest, she thought of the other reason, besides safety, which made this an appealing location for her. Her mother's scavenger camp was located here. JaKel had lived here before leaving and meeting Kunan, JaKaelath's father. JaKel had often told her about her people's camp, far to the north, just as you enter the northern forest.

  JaKaelath never had the motivation to risk traveling the Great Rugged Plain to get there. Now, with Kallian sending his agents all over the wasteland searching for her, she knew this was one of only two options left for her. The other option, she didn't want to think about, would be returning to the Ponu cave. At best, it meant she would be surrendering her identity as a scavenger. She did not want that. At worst, the Cave Ponu might put her in chains for being a spy.

  As she rode Whisper deeper into the forest, a male voice called out, "Stop there!" Two men climbed down from the trees. "Who goes there...wait, by the stars, it's a Ponu!" Both men's eyes widened. JaKaelath says, "I'm a scavenger, I look like a Ponu because I was born as one, a scavenger from this camp found me as a baby and raised me as her daughter. I now seek sanctuary in the home of my mother, JaKel".

  The two men look on until one says, "Go call on the elder, and bring JaKulla". They escort JaKaelath forward.

  A Gathering is quickly organized and held in the middle of the camp. Everyone wants to look at the Ponu who dresses and acts like a scavenger.

  The elder approaches JaKaelath with a woman not far behind. "This is JaKel's sister, JaKulla," The elder says. The woman approaches with an unconvinced look on her face. For JaKaelath, her expression is of no concern; she looks very much like JaKel, just an older version. JaKaelath begins to choke up, "I am sorry, you...you just look so much like her and I've missed her so much".

  A murmur goes through the crowd. "Missed her? Is JaKel ok?"

  JaKaelath then begins the heartbreaking task of informing JaKulla and the rest that JaKel died 5 years ago, and that she died trying to save JaKaelath's life.

  She then tells them about her life in the Great Hill tribe, before they were almost obliterated in a Sky Reaper attack, and the survivors had to join the RedBand.

  One bystander scoffs, "Ain't no way she was in a Red Band camp. We heard about Kallian all the way up here, he'd rather kill a Ponu than take one prisoner".

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  JaKaelath then tells about her mission to infiltrate the Ponu Cave city, and her finding out that she was 100% Ponu. She lays almost everything on the line, wanting to begin anew and with as much honesty as possible. She tells them about the Geeryo Guard and the planned massacre, and how she prevented it and now is being hunted by Kallian. She tells how she first went to Vulture town, but Kallian's agents almost caught her there, so she fled to her mother's home camp.

  Some are still unconvinced, after all, maybe this was a Ponu way to infiltrate a scavenger camp. Others look to give her a chance. Her "aunt" JaKulla, if for no other reason than to learn more about what happened to her sister, says JaKaelath should stay, for a while at least.

  Whatever allusions she had that it would be that simple went out the window when the elder said she would have to earn her place. But, he said, it would be fair. Four female warriors were brought out. She would have a chance to fight each. If she can manage to win against any of the 4, then she can stay.

  The task would not be too difficult for someone possessing the best of both worlds, Ponu physiology and scavenger mentality, but still, JaKaelath let the first opponent beat her.

  She took a blow to her shoulder that sent her staggering. Feigning desperation, she grabbed at her opponent's legs, only to have her deliver a blow with her fists to JaKaelath's back, dropping her with a thud.

  This was her plan. She knew that dominating from the start would cause animosity in the camp. For the second opponent, she let the match go on longer than she maybe wanted, dodging swings, taking the occasional safe blow and delivering blows not meant to end but to tire out her opponent. In the end, JaKaelath came out victorious in the second fight, earning a place to stay.

  Her Ponu Physiology had given her the tools to win, but her scavenger training, by others in her camp and her father, the great warrior Kunan, had given her the know-how to use her abilities to maximum effect.

  That night, she slept in a tent with a new roommate. She would be assigned a new role later. She was happy; this is the type of life she knew. Her roommate, however, seemingly had a million questions about JaKaelath's life. Finally, sleep and dream rescued her from the barrage.

  The next day, she had to contend with the camp kids, asking to see her Ponu suit. She promised to show them if they ate all of their breakfast.

  When they returned, JaKaelath, with a nod of approval from both JaKulla and the camp elder, emerged from her tent with the Ponu suit on.

  She warned the kids, if they see a woman, or a man with this suit on, to be careful, the Ponu can be controlled by an entity called Geeryo, it's a bad spirit she says, in a way they can understand. It makes the Ponu do mean, bad things. When Geeryo is not controlling them, she says, the Ponu can be like regular people, some nice, some mean.

  One of the kids asks JaKaelath, "Will Geeryo make you do bad things, JaKaelath?" JaKaelath smiles, overcome with the need to start out with honesty. She says, "I hope not, but if that happens, there are enough people here to keep me from hurting someone." One of the kids, a young girl, says, "You're pretty, you'd never hurt anyone". JaKaelath wants to laugh; her father was not handsome, yet he was one of the kindest souls ever, yet many Ponus, with their physical beauty, had done terrible things.

  JaKaelath smiled and told the kids to go play. Later, she would join them and show them how quick she really was in a game of tag.