would think so, Mitigomij. I see six canoes and probably eighteen to twenty warriors. They will not attack us on the river. They probably do not know how many warriors there are with us. They have seen all the canoes we have and are leery about an attack. My guess is that they will put a few scouts ashore and try to see what we have, and it is quite possible they will have already done that. When that happens, they will know that we do not have many warriors. Our women only carry knives and do not have the skills of a warrior. We will have to come up with a solid plan to rout this group. Our returning warriors are probably still at least a day away from meeting us. The rain, unlike us, wouldn’t have slowed them down at all, but they won’t be here to help with this problem.”
We got into our canoes and started back to our group. When we arrived, we pulled along side Minowez-I and his son. Telling him what we had seen, we started to talk about a plan of defence.
“Our warriors are outnumbered two to one, but we might be able to have an element of surprise,” I said.
“We’ll have to split our meagre warrior group up. Minowez-I, I will leave two of my brothers, Kàg and Wàgosh, with you and your son. With me I will have Mitigomij, the two warrior women, Makòns, and Miskwì. We will take two canoes, but the meat will have to be divided amongst the remainder, enabling us to travel more quickly. The enemy is at least a part of an afternoon behind us. They are coming slowly. I am sure their plans will be to attack us in the next morning or so. Try to push the people to hasten their speed.”
“Mahingan, we’ll be fine. Our warriors will soon be meeting us and we all will be safe. I will have Kàg lead the group and Nigig, Wàgosh, and I will guard the rear. Be careful, my friend. The Haudenosaunee are to be feared and not taken lightly.”
“They have yet to meet us. It is the Algonquin that should be feared.”
I hastily gathered my small force together. Because we did not have to go far from the river, I could take Mitigomij with us. He was by far the most fearsome warrior of our tribe and that big cat of his had proven his worth many times. The two young warriors still had a lot to learn, but their bravery was not in question. The women were to be feared. They fought as a team and were ruthless.
We travelled back down the river and put to shore before the bend. Pulling our canoes onto the shoreline, we hid them in the underbrush and then continued along the riverbank. When we reached the small bay that was nestled into the bend, we all decided that this was as good a spot as any for the trap. Figuring that the enemy would stay on this side of the river, we kept the bend between our group and theirs. I told everyone that we would wait to spring the ambush just as the Haudenosaunee were gliding into the bay, by staying concealed, they would not know how many of us there were. If we could kill or injure enough of them with our first couple of volleys, they might retreat downriver. This element of surprise along with the fear of not knowing our numbers might be enough to turn this skirmish to our advantage.
Silently, we waited in the cool afternoon shadows as their canoes glided silently into our range. Just as I was drawing my bow I heard a noise like a tree snapping in the cold. It was Mitigomij. He had fired his slingshot and caught a Haudenosaunee square in the face with a rock. The man screamed and fell back into the boat, sending the man behind him tumbling out into the bay. I heard one more crack of the slingshot before I could loosen my bow. I watched as the arrow struck a young warrior in the shoulder. Immediately, I restrung my bow and let loose another projectile. This one entered the eye of the man behind my first victim. By that time, as they were being showered with arrows from the shore, I could hear their screams of pain. Three of the canoes had retreated out of the bay as they had wounded and dying men in them. One of the remaining canoes was floating without any guidance, its occupants all dead.
However, we had a problem. Two canoes had landed and their occupants were intent on facing the hidden menace that had ambushed them. There were four of them, and they had the two young warriors cornered a distance from me. As I ran to their aid, I could see Makòns spurting blood from a neck wound and his assailant hitting him on the head with a war club. The two women were aiding Miskwì. Kìnà Odenan had her knife buried in the back of a Haudenosaunee. The man then screamed as Agwanìwon Ikwe hit the dying man with her war club full in the face. The warrior who had killed Makòns now had realized his worst nightmare. Makadewà Wàban. As the man turned to the sound of the panther’s scream, the animal struck him full in the face. They rolled down the small embankment with the cat tearing chunks of flesh from his prey.
“Mitigomij, call the cat off. Let this man live to tell of his ordeal. We have vanquished them; the others are leaving in their canoe.”
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