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Life in Stone

Perched atop the tallest yun in the valley, Zibalii sniffed the fresh air and smiled. The hundred foot tall creature was sitting down, reducing its height by half as the iska squatted on top of its flat granite head, her diamond claws digging into its skin to keep from losing her balance. The sound of stone grinding on stone came to Zibalii's sensitive, furry ears as the yun shifted, and she reflexively lowered them against her head to block out the noise. The smile on her face didn't waver, though, as a cool gust of wind blew in her face. She loved being this high up. While all iski had a penchant for climbing, very few ever had the honor of doing so on the holy yuns.

Zibalii turned to look a different direction, and she felt the brush that was strapped to her belt bump against her leg. The pail of water sat to her right, filled to the brim. She'd managed to carry it all the way to the top without spilling a single drop, she thought with pride. However, she'd been sent to climb the yun for a reason. Ibdum Hatha would not be happy if she did nothing but enjoy the view all day. Picking up the pail again, she stood up on her back legs and made her way to the left side of the creature's head. From there, it was a fifteen foot drop to its shoulder.

She retracted her claws into her feet as she walked, going slowly so as to maintain her balance. Whether it was sitting down or standing up, falling off the top of a yun would kill her. The thought made her shiver with excitement.

She crouched at the edge of the yun's head and passed the pail to her long, whip-like tail to free her hands, and then thrust herself out over the edge. Her front claws dug into the stone right at the point where she would have otherwise lost her balance, her tail held rigid above her to keep the water from spilling, and scurried down the massive beast's head and onto its shoulder with the speed of an expert yun-scrubber. From there, she continued to its back, where she spotted what she had come for.

A patch of moss had sprung up on the yun's back. It was less than two feet in diameter, but still an obvious blemish on the holy yun's light gray body. Still upside down, Zibalii made her way to the moss and then lowered her tail so she could reach the pail. Taking the brush from her belt, she dipped it in the water and began to scrub at the moss. As she worked, the yun opened its mouth and let out a big yawn.

The yawn of a yun, she thought with amusement. A yawning yun. A yun yawn. Nobody knew why the yuns yawned. Ibdum Hatha had taught them that the yuns were not

living creatures, merely stone that had been given the semblance of life by the Great Laatia.

"The Great Laatia creates not life," the old iska had said in his raspy voice. "The stones are His, and the waters are His. Neither are alive, but still He delights in movement. The waters move on their own accord, but as the stones do not, the Great Laatia created the yun so that He might delight in the movement of stone."

Because of that, the iski held the yuns in great respect. Zibalii, herself, had been appointed the job of cleaning them whenever moss grew on them. It was an important job, and one she was proud to have. It took her half an hour before she was satisfied that the moss was completely gone. It wouldn't last, of course. The air in the yuns' valley was always damp and humid. There would be another patch of moss for Zibalii to scrub before the week was done- if not on this yun, then one of its fourteen brothers. Tying the brush to her belt once again, she turned around and scuttled up and over its shoulder, down to its legs, which stretched forty feet in front of it. At the far end, its feet rose into the air like tiny mountains. Reaching its left foot, Zibalii bared her claws and climbed it, perching on the big toe.

"Thank you, Lord Yun," she said, clasping her hands in front of her face and bowing her head, "for granting me the honor of cleaning you. May the Great Laatia bless you. Remain strong and steadfast, Master of Stone."

It was tradition for a yun-scrubber to thank the yun once it had been cleaned, though Zibalii had never understood why. Satisfied with her day's work, she turned to climb down the foot and be on her way. Again, the sound of stones rubbing each other rang out, and she turned her head to look, afraid that the yun had finally decided to stand up and move. Sitting on top of its foot like this was dangerous if it were to stand up. Instead, the yun leaned forward, looking at its toe as if studying her. Zibalii froze. She'd been scrubbing yuns for almost three years now, and none of them had ever done something like this. It wasn't supposed to be possible. They were just lifeless piles of rocks, after all. That one would suddenly decide to look at her...

And then the yun opened its mouth and breathed on her.

Its breath was hot and musty, like air that had been trapped for years in a cave. It whipped her bright yellow fur back, nearly pushing her right off its toe. Then, just as soon as it had started, it stopped. Zibalii blinked in surprise as the yun closed its mouth and sat back, just like it had been before.

Zibalii stared at the yun for a minute, but was unable to explain to herself what had just happened. She cautiously climbed down from its foot, never taking her eyes off of its expressionless stone face. She reached the ground and hurriedly backed away, half expecting it to stand up and come after her. It remained as motionless, its hollow black eyes not even pointed in her direction anymore. After taking a few deep breaths to clear her head and calm her heart, Zibalii turned and raced away. Perhaps Ibdum Hatha would understand what had just happened.

As she ran, Zibalii dropped to all fours again. It was unseemly for an iska to walk on four feet unless they were climbing. The animals walked on four feet. The iski were gifted with intelligence, and were as such expected to walk with dignity. Still, running on all fours was faster than running upright. She zipped across of the valley, giving the other yuns that were in her path a wide birth, until she came to the smooth stone wall that served as an exit specially made for the diamond-clawed iski. Reaching the bottom of the cliff, she leaped up and bared her claws, sinking them into the stone and beginning the climb. Normally she would go at a leisurely pace, banging the pail against the wall to the beat of her favorite songs. Today, she climbed as quickly as she could, her tail held away from the wall to keep from slowing her down. In less than a minute, she was at the top. Her clan's village was just over a mile away, all but inaccessible to anyone but an iska. Many of the paths ran straight up the mountain walls. Zibalii raced home, leaping over chasms and balancing on ledges thinner than her own feet without slowing down. As she drew nearer, she began to pass her fellow clansmen, out doing their own work.

"What's your hurry, Zibalii?" one called to her as she streaked past, but she didn't turn to acknowledge him.

Her village was set on top of a tall bluff in the center of the mountain range. Perfectly circular, it wasn't connected to any other walls or bluffs, making it an island in a sea of stone. It rose seventy feet straight up before leveling out, protecting it from thieves and poachers.

When she finally reached the top, Zibalii was breathing hard. She was in very good shape, it was required if one wished to be a yun-scrubber, but she wasn't accustomed to running the entire way home. Once she was able to breathe without feeling faint, she made her way into the village.

Her people were known for living simple lives, and that was made clear in their villages. The houses were short and made of stone and dirt with leafy tree branches as roofs. Most of them held only a single room. The only other thing of importance was the fire bit, where the clan's meals were cooked.

It was still early in the day, so there was no fire. There was, however, Ibdum Hatha seated next to it, surrounded by a crowd of children as he taught them.

"The iski are special creatures," the Ibdum asked in his pleasant, patient voice. Zibalii cursed her horrible timing. Hatha had only just begun his lesson!

"All the other creatures were created by Baffarden the Wise, and the stones and water were created by the Great Laatia," he explained, the children's unwavering attention on him. "The iski, however, were created by both. We are living creatures, like the animals, and yet our hands and feet hold stone."

"Diamonds!" a little boy piped up, holding out his claws for the Ibdum to see.

"Indeed!" Hatha said with a smile. "Our claws are made of diamond. And diamond is stone, which was created by the Great Laatia. Because of this, we honor both Baffarden the Wise and the Great Laatia, for they worked together to create us."

He paused to let his words sink in, and then continued, "We honor Baffarden the Wise by treating each other and all the other living creatures with kindness, since they were all created by Him. We give honor to the Great Laatia by caring for the yun, His greatest creations, in ways that they, themselves, cannot."

Finally seeing her opportunity, Zibalii interjected, "That's my job!"

As one, everyone turned to look at her. Hatha smiled when he saw her, and beckoned her closer. "Yes, indeed it is, Zibalii," he said. "Would you care to tell the children what it is you do to honor the Great Laatia?"

"I go down to the yuns' valley, and I clean the yuns," she answered, unable to keep the pride out of her voice.

"And this brings honor the Great Laatia because His yuns are unable to clean themselves" Hatha continued for her, bringing their attention back to him.

Before the Ibdum could continue his lesson, Zibalii leaned down and whispered into his ear, "Something's wrong. I need to talk to you."

Hatha froze, his next sentence on the tip of his tongue. He turned to look at Zibalii, concerned. "That is all for today," he said finally, turning back to the children. "Think about what you have learned."

That was all the children needed to hear. Ecstatic to have gotten out of their lessons early, they jumped to their feet and scattered.

"Aabo, do not run on four feet!" Hatha called after one of them before rising to face Zibalii. "What is wrong?"

"One of the yuns breathed on me today," she answered, bluntly. Once the words came out of her mouth, she realized just how foolish they sounded. The look on Ibdum Hatha's face when he heard this only confirmed this.

"A yun... breathed on you?" he echoed incredulously.

"Yes," she insisted. "I was sitting on its toe after scrubbing it, thanking it, when it sat forward and breathed on me."

"Zibalii," Hatha asked softly, so none of the passing iski could hear, "is a joke?"

"No," she answered, shaking her head. "I swear, this happened!" "Yuns do not breathe, Zibalii," he said. "They are not alive. Why would they need to breathe?" "I don't know, but one of them did." Hatha looked at her speculatively for a few seconds, and then rose. "Very well," he said. "We will go to the yun's valley together and take a look at this yun."

Zibalii nodded her agreement. The yun might not do it again, but what could it hurt to try? Hatha was an Ibdum, after all. Preachers of the Creators had a special understanding of things like this. Zibalii made her way to the edge of the village, slower than before to accommodate Hatha. The old iska was in good health, and could still climb, but age had still taken its toll on his body. It wouldn't take much effort for Zibalii to leave him behind.

Zibalii owed everything to the Ibdum. Her parents had both died when she was very young, and Hatha had taken her in as his own child. It had been he who had given her the position of yun-scrubber, making her an important part of the clan.

When they finally reached the bottom of the bluff, they set off towards the yuns' valley at a leisurely pace. Zibalii walked in silence, using only two legs this time. Hatha called out to the workers they passed, smiling and encouraging them. That was the best thing about Ibdum Hatha, Zibalii thought with a smile. He always had something nice to say.

It took them far longer to make it to the cliff than it had taken Zibalii to make it back. "It has been quite a while since I've made this climb," Hatha said, peering over the edge. "I hope my old bones can take it."

"You don't have to go if you don't want to," Zibalii assured him, half hoping that he would agree. She wanted an answer to this mystery, but not at the cost of the Ibdum's health.

"No, no," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "If you are telling the truth, then this is something I must see for myself."

Nodding her consent, Zibalii leaned over the ledge and began the climb down, her diamond claws sinking easily into the stone. She could hear Hatha grunting with exertion as he followed close behind her. The image of him losing his grip and falling appeared in her head, and she shivered. Luckily, they made it to the bottom of the cliff just fine. Zibalii sat back on her haunches, tail whipping back and forth through the grass. The yuns' valley was the only place in the iski's mountain range where grass grew in abundance, which made walking in the valley a special treat. An iska's feet might be made for walking and climbing on solid rock, but that only made the grass feel that much softer.

"Now," Hatha said, "show me which yun breathed on you."

Zibalii nodded, and turned to scan the field. Most iska wouldn't have been able to see the subtle differences in the yuns' lumpy, gray bodies, but Zibalii had been around them enough to be able to identify them by sight. She'd even numbered them.

"That one," she said, spying the one she'd scrubbed earlier. "Number six." "It doesn't seem to be doing anything strange," Hatha noted. "Let's get closer," she suggested, determined to show him that he was wrong.

She led him confidently to the yun's feet. Hatha warned her, unnecessarily, to remain vigilant. If the yun were to take a step in their direction, they would have to move quickly to avoid being crushed.

"Hail, Masterpiece of the Great Laatia!" Ibdum Hatha called up to it. "Have you anything to say?"

The giant remained motionless, not even turning to acknowledge them. Zibalii felt anxiety begin to form inside her. If the yun didn't respond, Hatha would assume she had been lying to him. But if it did respond... then what?

"Hmm," Hatha mused under his breath. Whether he believed her or not, he would investigate this matter until he was completely sure. That, at least, gave Zibalii some comfort.

"I have brought the scrubber!" he shouted. "What is she to you?"

Again, the yun gave no indication that it had heard him. Because it couldn't hear him, Zibalii thought. Rocks couldn't hear. Boulders couldn't speak. And yuns couldn't breathe.

"Maybe we're asking the wrong questions," she suggested nervously.

"Perhaps you're right," Hatha decided. "You said it breathed on you. You try speaking to it."

The Ibdum took a step back and motioned for her to take his place. Shaking slightly, she stepped up to the yun.

"H- hello?" she asked in a soft, tentative voice. "It's me."

"Speak louder," Hatha suggested. "It might not be able to hear you."

"It's me," she said again, shouting this time. "I scrubbed the moss off your back earlier."

She waited for a few tense moments, but nothing happened. The breath Zibalii had been holding came out in a rush of disappointment. Embarrassed tears began to turn her eyes red.

"Come, Zibalii," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Let's return to the village."

"I'm not lying!" she insisted, her voice cracking. "I swear, it breathed on me!"

"It probably just yawned," the Ibdum said. "It almost seems like they're breathing when they do that."

Zibalii shook her head, but offered no further argument. She'd seen hundreds of yun yawns, and it was not the same as breathing. They would open their mouths, but no air would come out of them. This yun had breathed on her But how could she convince him of that now?

"I'm sorry for dragging you down here," she whispered, tears staining the fur on her cheeks.

"I don't think you were lying to me," he said softly. She could hear the smile in his voice. "I think you just made a mistake. Everyone does once in a while."

She turned to face him. "I know I don't tell you this often enough," he continued, "but I'm proud of you."

Even with embarrassment still burning fresh in her heart, Zibalii couldn't help but smile at the old iska's praise.

"Besides," he said, looking around, "it has been ages since I've come down here. I think that trip did me some good after all. Come now, dry your eyes and let's get back to the village."

The old iska set off toward the cliff again, and Zibalii obediently followed. Once they made it out of the valley, the walked slowly back to the village. When they the bluff, though, they found the clan in a frenzy. Iski ran to and fro, collecting children and what they could carry of the day's work. The air was full of fear.

"What is going on?" Hatha demanded, grabbing a passing iska by the shoulder.

"Poachers, Ibdum," the iska reported. "They were sighted on the far edge of the range!"

Hatha's eyes lit up with alarm. He grabbed Zibalii by her arm, his grip far stronger than she would have expected, pulled her to the bluff, and motioned for her to climb it.

"What about you?" she asked.

"I must help the others," he answered, already making his way back to the commotion. "Get into the village!"

"But I want to help too," she argued in annoyance. "Don't just send me home like a child!"

The Ibdum spun around to face her again, and pointed towards the cliff.

"Zibalii, as the clan Ibdum and your guardian, I am ordering you to return to the village!"

Zibalii froze in disbelief. A command from the Ibdum, by itself, would have been heresy to disobey. That he had invoked his position as her guardian as well made even stronger.

"They're on the other side of the mountains," he said, more gently now. "I will be fine, but I want to make sure you are out of harm's way. I would never forgive myself if one of those Finger Choppers were to get you!"

Finger Choppers. Zibalii shivered at the name. To the creatures living in the more civilized parts of the world, the primitive iski were often viewed as animals to be hunted. They would cut off their fingers for the previous stone inside, and then kill the iska. It was against the law to do so, but such things were rarely enforced out here. Suddenly, Zibalii felt sick to her stomach, and not quite so inclined to stay and help. Nodding her agreement, she turned back to the bluff and climbed to the top.

It took less than an hour for the entire clan to gather enough food and water to wait out the poachers. There was still tension in the air, but it was not as strong now that everyone felt safe within the village. But, to her surprise, Zibalii's thoughts were not on the poachers. Though she knew the hunters' presence here was a serious problem, her mind kept wandering back to the yun from earlier.

It did breathe one me, she thought for the hundredth time that day.

She didn't share her thoughts with any of her clansmen, though. It had been hard to convince Hatha, who trusted her more than anyone else in the village, just to come with her and look. In these circumstance, the worst thing she could do was give them something else to worry about. When night finally came over the mountains, an iska popped over the top of the cliff, racing into the village. Hatha immediately stood up and hurried to meet him. The two of them spoke for a minute, and then the Ibdum turned to the rest of the clan.

"Pakkem reports that the poachers have moved away from our village," he declared. "I want everyone to remain in the village until tomorrow morning, just to be safe. I will send someone to check their location as soon as the sun comes up. For now, everyone go to bed and try to rest!"

As the iski got up and began to make their ways towards their homes, Zibalii could already feel the fear dissipating. The mountain trails were treacherous, so if the poachers were moving away from them, they would likely stay away. Caution was still needed, but the threat, it seemed, had passed. As she sat there, staring into the flames, she felt a hand alight on her shoulder. She looked up to see Hatha standing over her.

"You've had a long day," he said softly. "Why don't you try to get some rest?"

"All right," Zibalii agreed, standing up. She gave the old Ibdum a hug. "Thank you for believing me today."

Hatha smiled warmly, and let her leave. Her house's door was only a curtain that had been hung over a gap in the stones. Inside, her bed was no more than a pile of grass and a cotton sheet. Zibalii went straight to it, lying down without even bothering to pull off her clothes. Pulling the sheet up under her chin, she closed her eyes.

Sleep did not come, though. Zibalii tossed and turned on her grass mattress for hours, comfortable but unable to surrender herself to her dreams. There was something on her mind that she could not ignore, no matter how hard she tried. The yun. It was there whenever she closed her eyes, torturing her with questions.

Don't be stupid, she scolded herself. Hatha said it was just yawning.

She didn't believe herself, though. Finally, her nerves frayed, she tossed her sheet aside and got up. The village was silent, her clansmen all asleep in their own homes. With a sigh, Zibalii realized she'd already made her decision. Ibdum Hatha wouldn't be happy when he learned of it, but she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep until she tried it at least one more time.

She was going to see the yun again.

She moved silently through the village, the paths deserted. She knew where each of the lookouts were hiding as well, and was able to take a route where they would not see her. She even dropped to all fours to reduce her height. Soon, she was at the edge of the village, and she began the climb down.

Once on the ground, she hid herself in the shadows and took off once again, forgoing stealth for speed. The guards would only be posted within the first hundred feet or so of the village bluff, anyway. The night did nothing to slow her down. She had traveled this path thousands of times, and knew

instinctively where to place her hands and feet. She would sooner tumble into the sky itself, she thought, than fall from one of these mountains.

The moon came out from behind a patch of clouds just as she arrived at the yuns' valley, illuminating it with a silver sheen. Zibalii scanned the area until she spotted yun number six sitting on the far side of the field. Her heart pounding with excitement and anxiety, she scurried down the entrance to the valley. This was its last chance, she promised herself. If it didn't respond again this time, she'd admit that she'd been wrong. She'd never look for life in the yuns ever again. But she had to try this one last time, just to be sure.

The yun was still lounging on the grass like a child watching the clouds, except that Zibalii knew it wasn't actually looking at the sky. Or was it? The thought gave her pause. If the yun was intelligent enough to deliberately breathe on her, what else was it capable of? For all she knew, it was admiring the night sky. She reached the giant's foot, and climbed up it as quickly as she could, perching on its toe for the second time in one day.

"Hey!" she yelled at the top of her voice.

Just like before, though, the yun didn't respond. Zibalii drove her claws deeper into the yun's toe in frustration. It was just ignoring her, she told herself. It had to be! What it had done to her earlier was no accident.

"Look at me!" she commanded. "You did something earlier, I know you did! Why won't you do it again?"

Still it did not move. It stared at the stars with unseeing eyes as if it never intended to budge from that spot. Zibalii's frustration turned to anger, and she screamed, raising a fist and pounding it on the yun's toe. Her voice echoed all around the valley, but the yun did not look down.

Suddenly, all of her energy was gone, and she hung wearily off of the giant's toe in defeat. Her anger at the yun melted away, replaced by anger at herself. She was a fool. She'd been scrubbing these yuns for years, and she was still stupid enough to mistake a yawn for a breath. Tears ran down her cheeks and sobs tore at her chest as she lethargically climbed down off the toe.

She'd disrespected the yun, she realized. She'd screamed at it and hit it. No harm had been done to it, but she had done it in anger. Her integrity demanded that she resign from her position as yun-scrubber the next morning. The thought tore her apart inside even more. She'd never get to climb the yuns or run across the grass again. Ibdum Hatha would be so disappointed...

She reached the cliff and sank her claws into it, preparing to climb it for the last time. Her heart ached, and she longed to look back, but she knew that doing so would only make her feel worse. Better that she just leave now and go back to the village.

"This is it!"

Zibalii's ears perked up at the unexpected voice coming from the top of the cliff. She looked up, curious to see who was there. Only she and Ibdum Hatha were allowed in the valley, and that had not been Hatha's voice. Sometimes children would sneak in, wanting to see the holy yuns. Ibdum Hatha dealt severe punishments to those who tried to discourage such things, though.

But it was no iska that came climbing over the ledge. The shadowed forms that appeared were far burlier than that of any iska she knew. A beam of light appeared, illuminating the canyon wall. With a frightened gasp, Zibalii dove out of the way, narrowly avoiding being caught in the light as it swept back and forth. Her heart began pounding again, even harder than it had before. Her grief was gone, pushed back by fear.

The poachers had found the yuns' valley!

"They're down there, all right," she heard one of them shout. "I can see them from here!"

For a moment, Zibalii thought they were talking about her. But she was alone, and they'd said "they" were down there. Besides, unless they had far better eyesight that she did, there was no way they could have seen her so easily from all the way up there- especially in the dark. A chill of panic ran down her spine when she realized that they weren't talking about her at all. They were talking about the yuns.

The sound of metal being hammered into the stone above her rang out, and she looked up to see them hammering a grappling system into the cliff. They were going to come down here and do something to the yuns, but what? They weren't alive. They had no meat or furs that could be taken back to civilization and sold. Their skin was made of granite, but that could be found all over the mountains. Why come here to get it?

She saw the first poacher strap himself into the harness and begin the journey down into the valley. He was at least two feet taller than she was, and his arms were much thicker. She saw the pair of bone-white horns protruding from his head, and realized he was a makakata. Makakata were ruthless, and were always knowledgeable on how to kill things. When poachers came, they were usually makakata.

The intruder reached the ground, and Zibalii retreated even further away from the cliff. That cliff was the only way out of the valley, and the poachers had it blocked. What was she going to do?

"Okay," the makakata called to his partner once he had unstrapped himself, "send them down!"

The other poacher pulled the harness back up, and tied a box to it, which he then lowered back to the bottom of the cliff. The makakata unhooked it and set it to the side before motioning for his partner to join him. As she watched, a sudden sense of urgency came over Zibalii. The poachers were

already here, which meant that her chances of escaping unnoticed were slim. They were planning to do something to the yuns, though. As the yun-scrubber, wouldn't that make it her responsibility to stop them? She was, after all, they're caretaker. Perhaps, she reasoned as she crept up behind the makakata, this might redeem her for her earlier behavior.

She managed to get behind the poacher without being detected. He was too focused on getting his partner to the bottom of the cliff to notice her. He was within arms-reach when she stopped, realizing that she had nothing to fight him with. She turned to look at the box that he had brought with him. It was large, and didn't seem to be locked. If these were poachers, then surely there would be something in that box that could be used as a weapon.

She moved to the box and unsnapped the latches. To her relief, the makakata didn't was too busy yelling at his partner to hear her. Biting her lip in anxiety, Zibalii opened the box. A scent she vaguely recognized as gunpowder wafted out of it, making her nose twitch. Her whole body began to tremble when she realized what the box was loaded with. Explosives. Hundreds of them.

"No," she whispered in shock. "They- they wouldn't!"

"Wanna bet?" asked a voice directly above her.

Zibalii's looked up to see the makakata standing over her. With a gasp, she panicked, trying to scramble away him. He was quicker than she was, though, and grabbed her by her arm before she could get away.

"Hey, look what I found!" he called to his partner, who had just made it to the bottom of the cliff. "One of those iska things!"

His partner, another makakata's, eyes lit up. "Tie her down before she can get away!" he said.

The first poacher grinned and pulled a length of rope form his belt. He quickly tied Zibalii's hands and ankles together in a painful and very undignified position and then, cackling, left her to check the explosives.

"You're not really going to blow up the yuns, are you?" Zibalii demanded in desperation. "Why would you do that?"

"People say they've got gems inside them," the poacher answered. "This is the easiest way to get them out."

Another wave of shock hit Zibalii. She'd grown up learning about the yuns, but she'd never heard anything about them carrying gems. That wasn't going to stop these poachers from blowing them up, though. Zibalii had to do something. She began to rock back and forth, trying to wiggle out of her restraints. The poacher had tied them too tight, though.

"I say we kill her first," the other makakata suggested, brandishing a knife. "Keep her from calling for help."

His partner shook his head. "Nah, we don't have all night. The giants are more valuable."

With that, he picked up an armful of explosives and made for the closest yun. Giving Zibalii one last suspicious look, his partner followed him. The yun stood there, completely unaware of the danger it was in as the makakata began to lay its explosives on the ground, forming a ring around both its feet. His partner stepped forward and pulled out a box of matches.

Zibalii's breathing became frantic as the poachers continued their work. The one with the matches struck one on the side of the box, cursing when it didn't light. Zibalii found that she could wiggle her fingers, and that she still had enough flexibility for her claws to reach the rope. Her claws were made of diamond- made for digging into solid rock. Cutting through a rope, no matter how thick,

shouldn't be any trouble at all. Her hope rekindled, she began to use her fingers to saw through the bonds.

"Ha, got it!" the makakata exclaimed in triumph, holding up his match. Zibalii sucked in a breath and began to saw faster. Luckily, cutting her ropes was just as easy as she had expected. Shaking her wrists free, she leaped to her feet and charged at the poachers, desperation quashing any sense of self- preservation.

The makakata with the matches heard her coming first, and spun around just in time to get a face-full of her claws. He screamed in pain, his face bleeding, and collapsed to the ground, his match extinguishing itself on the dewy grass. His partner spun around before she could attack him too, his fist connecting with her chin and sending her sprawling out on the ground.

"Guess I should have listened to him," he growled, hardly sparing his partner a glance.

He pulled a knife out of his belt and knelt over her, preparing to ram it into her chest. Luckily for Zibalii, that placed him in the perfect position for an attack. With a grunt, Zibalii brought her knee up into the poacher's crotch. His face turned red with pain, and she managed to get out from under him while he was distracted.

"Stupid little..." she heard him growl as he got up to come after her. "I'll kill you!"

That's what you were planning to do all along, isn't it? She thought wryly as she ran. It dimly occurred to her that this could be her chance to escape. The cliff was unprotected. All she had to do was climb it, and she could make it back to the village. Instead, she was running the other way. She knew she couldn't fight the makakata for long. He was stronger than she was, and he had weapons. She'd only managed to take his partner down by catching him off guard. She wasn't sure what she planned to do now, but... well, she couldn't just let him blow up the yuns, could she?

She found herself at the far end of the yuns' valley. The stone walls here would not provide an exit like the cliff did, but perhaps she could still use them to her advantage. Taking a running leap at the wall, she sunk her claws into it and began to climb. She scurried a few feet upwards, and then looked back- just in time to see a pair of weights, connected by a chain, come flying at her. The chain caught her in the waist, and the weights wrapped around her torso, knocking the wind out of her and making her lose her grip on the wall. She hit the ground painfully.

"You're not getting away from me that easily," the makakata said, coming to stand over her again. This time he planted a foot firmly on her legs to keep her from kicking him. "Don't take it personally. I have five kids, and they all need to be fed."

Zibalii didn't respond. Couldn't respond. Her throat was shut in terror. She couldn't scream for help. Her entire body was frozen as she watched him raise his knife. She shut her eyes.

Then the poacher gave a cry of pain, and his weight on her legs vanished. Zibalii opened her eyes to see him lying on the ground twenty feet away, moaning in pain. In her panic, she couldn't understand what had happened. Was she still alive? What was the makakata doing over there? What had happened? And then a shadow moved over her, blocking out the moonlight. She looked up and saw a yun towering above her. Not just any yun either, she realized. It was yun number six!

Zibalii watched the yun in wide eyed wonder. It stood motionless for a moment, as if it had come there without thinking, as it always had. Then, before her eyes, it raised one of its massive feet. She flinched, thinking it was about to step on her, but the foot moved over her head without touching a single fur, moving directly above the poacher. The makakata only had time to let out a short cry of terror before the five ton foot came down on top of him.

Zibalii scrambled to her feet and ran from the yun. When she was a safe distance away, she turned back to look. It had not moved from that spot, but it was looking directly at her. Behind the yun, the sun began to rise, bringing with it a new day. In the dim light, she could make out the stone giant's face a little better than she could before. It may have been her tired eyes playing tricks on her, but the yun's face almost looked... intelligent. Then she looked back to where it had set its foot. The poacher was dead, and yun number six had saved her- chosen to save her. She looked back at its face in confusion.

What does this mean, she wondered? This goes against everything Ibdum Hatha taught us.

A frenzy of questions began to run through Zibalii's mind. Had they been wrong about the Creators all along, or had the yuns somehow evolved? Were all the yuns like this, or just number six? What would they do next? What were they even capable of doing? Just how intelligent were they?

Zibalii looked at the yun again. Its eyes were still trained on her, like a child looking at an insect. It towered over her, a living mountain that was more than capable of stepping on her. And yet, she didn't feel the least bit threatened. As her heart began to beat more calmly, a different emotion rose up in her chest. A smile rose to her face and she laughed, hardly able to believe she was still alive. Then she bowed her head, clasping her hands in front of it.

"Thank you, Lord Yun," she said, and for the first time she actually meant it, "for saving my life. May the Great Laatia bless you. Remain strong and steadfast, Master of Stone!"

A blast of hot, stale wind blew over her, and she opened her eyes to see the yun's mouth wide open again. Her smile turned into an ecstatic grin and she turned and raced toward the exit. Ibdum Hatha needed to know about the poachers. He'd never believe what had really happened, but maybe she didn't need to tell him. She was the yun-scrubber, after all. This could be her little secret.