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“I found the first ones in a valley far to the east of here Jondalar and I looked for ht not have been where we looked, but I didn’t find any until after we arrived here A few days ago, I found a few near the Ninth Cave,” Ayla explained

“And you will show us how they work?” said a tall blond woman

“That’s what she came here to do, Zelandoni of the Second Cave,” the First said

Ayla knew she had not met the One Who Served The Mother from the Second Cave, but there was a familiarity about her Then she ree-mate hoht and hair color He was the leader of the Second Cave, and though the woman looked a little older, Ayla could definitely see the resemblance With the brother as leader and the sister as spiritual leader, the arrangement was reminiscent of the brother-sister leadership customs of the Mamutoi—she smiled at the memory—except with them the leadership was shared and Mamut was their spiritual leader

“I have only two firestones with me,” Ayla said, “but we havesoe woman nodded, and Ayla continued “It’s not hard to do, but it takes a little practice to get the knack of it First ood tinder nearby Then, if you strike the-lived spark that you can blow into a flame”

While Ayla deathered around her, the One Who Was First sent Mikolan, the Second Acolyte of the Fourteenth Cave, to look for Jondalar As the leader of the zelandonia watched, she noticed that no one held back There were noa fire was not a trick, it was a legitier to learn, as she knew they would be Fire was too i they could about it

To the people who lived in that cold, ancient, periglacial region, fire was essential, it was the difference between life and death They needed to kno to start it, how to keep it going, and how to h it could be intensely cold, the broad expanse of territory surrounding thefar south of polar regions was rich with life The brutally frigid and dry winter conditions inhibited the growth of trees, but at the middle latitudes cli the surasslands that supported vast herds of a great variety of grazing and browsing aniy food to carnivorous and omnivorous animals

All the species of anirowing dense, warm, furry coats—except for one The bare-skinned, furless human animal was a tropical creature who could not live in the cold unassisted Humans came later, drawn by the rich food supply, but only after they learned how to control fire Using the fur of the animals they killed for food, they could survive for a while exposed to the elements, but to live, they needed fire, to keep them hen they rested and slept, and to cook their food, both estible When materials to burn were available, they tended to take fire soot how indispensable it was, and when fuel was scarce, or the weather et or snowy, they kne much they depended on fire

After several people had used one of the two firestones toto try, Jondalar arrived with more of them The First personally took the firestones froht the sessions went faster after that Once all the Zelandonia had each made at least one fire, the acolytes were invited to learn the technique, theAyla to teach their apprentices It was the Zelandoni of the Fourteenth who brought up the question that everyone wanted to ask

“What do you plan to do with all these firestones?” she asked

“Fro thean “Willa them for trade It depends on how many we find I don’t think it’s for me alone to say”

Of course, we can all look for soh so that each Cave at this Su can have at least one?” the First Zelandoni asked She had counted them and knew the answer

“I don’t kno , but I think there h,” Ayla said

“If there’s only one for each Cave, I think it should be entrusted to the Zelandoni of that Cave,” the Fourteenth said

“I agree, and I think we should keep this way offire with firestones to ourselves If only we canit would be Think how a Cave will react to seeing instant fire created by a Zelandoni, especially if it’s really dark,” said Zelandoni of the Fifth Cave His eyes were full of enthusiasm “We would command much more authority, and it could be a very effective way to ful”