History

80 1 0
                                    

Narrators POV

Always has been a trouble maker since the day she was born. Of course her father and mother who later passed. They had hoped she'd grow out of the troubled stage. Oh no she only had just gotten started with her mischief. She was close with her twin brother. Unfortunately she had to be sent off when she turned ten. She was causing some trouble at home as it is.

She didn't stop there when she was sent to live with her aunt. Her aunt in her mother's side that is. That is because all her dads family lived on the reservation. Down in forks Washington, by la push beach. Where the legends of the tribe had intrigued her more than anything. She loved hearing her dad talk about the tribes history. How the Quileute legend, the spirit warriors were the first to shift from humans into wolves.

There was said to be magic within the bloodlines. The Quileute tribe settled in La Push and became efficient fishermen and shipbuilders. As time passed, other peoples coveted their land and moved against them for it. The tribe was small and could not defend themselves, so they took their ships and left the land. At sea, Kaheleha used the magic in their blood to defend it.

He was the first Spirit Chief in Quileute history. He and all the men left the ships in spirit only, using the original power of Quileute Astral Projection, leaving their bodies behind under the care of the women. Though they could not physically hurt the enemy, the warriors had other ways.  They blew fierce winds into enemy camps; they could make great screaming in the wind and could manipulate animals to do their bidding.

Animals were the only ones that could see them and help. The invading tribe had packs of thick-furred dogs to pull their sleds in the north, and which were set against them. Bats were brought out of the cliff caverns. As a result, the dogs and bats won and the survivors of the invaders scattered thinking the harbor cursed. The Quileutes released the dogs, who ran wild, and returned to their bodies victorious.

The Hohs and the Makahs made treaties with the Quileutes because they wanted nothing to do with their magic.
__________________________________

Chief Taha Aki

Generations passed and the last of the great Spirit Chiefs came to be. Taha Aki was a man of peace and was known for his wisdom. However, there was one man named Utlapa who believed that they should use their magic to expand their control over the Hohs and the Makahs, building an empire. When the spirit warriors left their bodies their minds were all connected with each other.

Taha Aki did not like what Utlapa wanted and banned him from the tribe. Utlapa left and hid in the nearby forest. Taha Aki was vigilant and protected his people even when there was no danger. Every so often, the Spirit Chief would leave the village to a sacred and secret place in the mountains. He would leave his body behind and searched the surrounding areas for any dangers or threats.

One day, Utlapa followed Taha Aki planning to kill him, but as he waited for him to leave his body he hatched another plan. Utlapa left his body, took Taha Aki's body, and killed his own. Taha Aki knew immediately what was happening when Utlapa joined him in the spirit world. He raced back to his sacred place but was too late.  He followed his body in his spirit self down to the tribe.

For weeks he watched with despair as Utlapa made sure everyone believes he was Taha Aki. Then Utlapa's first edict came: no warrior was to enter the spirit world because he had a vision of danger, but in truth, he was afraid of Taha Aki. Utlapa took liberties with the tribe that no one ever dreamed of. He took a second and a third wife, even though Taha Aki's wife still lived.

Eventually, Taha Aki brought a great wolf down the mountains to kill Utlapa and free the tribe, but Utlapa only hid from it behind his warriors. The wolf ended up killing a young man, making Taha Aki's grief greater. Taha Aki had been away from his body long enough to be in agony. He felt doomed of never being ever to cross the line between life and death.

The great wolf followed him through the forest and Taha Aki felt jealous of the animal; at least it had a body and a life. At that moment the Spirit Chief had an idea that changed the future of the Quileutes. He asked the animal if he could share his body with him and the wolf complied. As a single being, the wolf and the man went to the village. The people feared the wolf, shouting for the warriors' help.

The warriors came with spears in their hands, but they stopped in surprise of what the wolf was doing: the wolf was retreating from the warriors and trying to yelp the songs of their people. The warriors realized what it was doing and could only think that it was being influenced by a spirit. An old warrior, Yut, disobeyed the orders of the false chief and left his body. Yut gathered the truth in an instant and welcomed Taha Aki.

Almost instantly, Utlapa realized what had happened and raced towards Yut's body with his knife. The other warriors were confused. Yut went back into his body but could not fight Utlapa off before warning the others, as he was too old. Taha Aki watched as Yut's spirit left the world and he returned to the wolf's body feeling a great rage. The wolf shuddered and transformed into a man before the eyes of the warriors.

The man did not look like Taha Aki's body, but like his spirit self, which the warriors recognized instantly. Utlapa tried to run but Taha Aki had the strength of the wolf and killed him. Upon realization of what had happened, everything returned to normal. The only change he kept in place was the forbidding of spirit travel. From then on he was known as the Great Wolf or the Spirit Man.

He led the tribe for many years because he did not age. He fathered many sons, who in time found that they too could turn into wolves on reaching manhood. However, they were all different because the wolf form reflected the spirit of the man. Some became warriors like Taha Aki and did not age, others did not like to transform, and started to age.

Revisit Where stories live. Discover now