In the land of his people Zan meant hunter. He is a young man in his early teens, preparing for a hunt that could bring more death to his people. It will be his first hunt, not one for hunger, but to keep their tribe safe and for revenge of the death of a youngster. Once a lion has tasted of human they would not be safe while it still roamed. He would help to hunt it with his father, his uncle and the rest of the men of his tribe.
The hunt required them to create a large circle around the animal and make it smaller and smaller, thereby trapping the animal in such a way that he was attacked on all sides, more targets to confuse and annoy it. This lion immediately saw a weakness in the line, a line of tall straight unmovable objects but one. There was one weakness in that impenetrable wall. The lion leaped directly at Zan. With no recourse, Zen stood firm holding his spear steadied by the ground. The lion was impaled, but Zan was marked by his claws. The cry immediately went up… Zan-Gah, Zan-Gah. He had now just become a man, Zan the rock, immovable as a rock, solid in the face of danger.
As the celebration died down, Zan has made a life changing decision. He, who had been born one of a twin, had lost his brother the prior year. He did not feel that loss in his soul. Because this was so, he knows that his brother is not dead. Originally his family had thought that he too had been killed by one of the great cats, but with no success at finding his body, Zan was now sure he was lost, or taken by one of the many other tribes as a slave. With his newly found manhood, Zan has decided that his task has been set. He will follow the trail of his brother and not return home without him. A time of growth in a young man's life, of making a mark on the world. Will he reach his objective?
Article comments
1 - Allan R. Shickman
Hi Leslie,
The third book of the Zan-Gah series, Dael and the Painted People, is nearly finished. Watch for it this summer at the new website.
I hope you will pay us a visit.
Allan R. Shickman