Anshi: The Lost Eagle of the Steppes

Ode to The Grasslands

Anshi exited his room while Dawa Tuya and Maral left the guest yurt. She was dressed in her finery from earlier and Maral wore a similar hat to Anshi, only in scarlet felt and silver tassel, and his embroidered red coat was trimmed in grey wolf. They joined hands with Tuya in the center and walked over to take their places at the head table. People roared their approval and the Lan contingent marveled at this sudden change in their leader.

Anshi stood taller, imbued with strength and confidence that had only been hinted before now. Lan Ge Ban was as proud as any older brother and Sya Mu was holding rigidly to her self-control. If she had any lingering doubts about her decision to stay only his bodyguard and bury her innermost feelings, it was now locked strictly away. Anshi was suddenly so far out of her reach that her feelings for him were now buried by this sudden revelation. His goals were never going to be able to include her, a soldier with nothing other than her warrior's capacity to appeal to him. And what man wants a soldier as a wife?

'Sya.' She scolded herself. 'Hold on until this evening is over. A few hours more. You can cry a little later and then swallow it forever.'

Anshi waited for his guests to be seated and Lan Ge Ban whispered to Dawa Tuya. "I am a little confused."

She patted his hand and leaned in, to whisper in his ear, "Wait for Anshi to speak. And later, you may take me to bed after this party and punish my transgressions in your own special way." She deftly moved her hand along his thigh and squeezed his manhood and Lan Ge Ban looked hotly into her eyes. His own promised a firm yes.

As the clamor died Anshi looked around, a wide and proud smile on his face. 

"As everyone here knows, I have found a tribe, a branch of my family that I did not expect. I am humbled and astounded by all the many here who have made themselves known to me over the last few days. Cousins, nieces, nephews,  and old family friends. The stories that have been told to me of my birth, my mother, and my lost family, are treasures, that had fled my mind after that night long ago.

My uncle's undying love seemed to be the pinnacle but earlier today, I had another reveal herself to me. My Aunt. She has secretly been by my side this entire time, her relationship to me hidden so she could guard and protect me until it could be revealed."

Lan Ge Ban turned to look at Tuya's profile and saw a tear trace down her cheek, her eyes glued to her tightly clasped hands.

Anshi continued. "My aunt, is Dawa Tuya. One of the first to be chosen by me, outside of my beloved Lans. The one who picked me to be her Chieftain, she also wanted to return to her land, seeking her own people as well."

There was a deep and sudden hush and Dawa Tuya rose.

"As you may remember, I chose my husband and left this land. I was headstrong. I loved and was loved deeply. I freely chose a path that day that separated me from you all. Karma chose to take my husband ten years later. Yet I never stopped thinking of everyone I had left behind and hoping as I did penance in a lonely existence, that I would be able to return. And that is why I decided to follow Chieftain Anshi. He was actively seeking what I had turned from. And I could help guide him home. I saw his sincerity and his desperate need for answers, but I did not want him bound to a person by a slender thread of untested relationship as I attempted to earn my way back to you."

Roars of approval and welcome rose and Ge Ban took her hand as she sat back down. He growled softly. "Your chastisement will be a very special one, my love."

"I am counting on it, my own."

The two Chieftains stood and began to harmonize, both began in a low, throbbing throat-fry, a song they had composed to the grassland they stood on when they recognized one another. 

"O grasses, the thing I remember of you most

was my family's blood that weighed you down.

You drank deep and long, to feed your roots

with my slaughtered tribe's crimson sacrifice.

I will visit you soon to see, to weep, and reflect.

You held my dying people, who rewarded you.

They have nourished you, with you in turn,

Feeding the passing, spice-laden beasts.'

The deeper voice of the uncle receded and Anshi, now way within himself continued, his voice moving to contralto.

'I was stolen from the site where I loved to play

My brothers' laughter, replaced by cries of pain.

I return, O Grassland, to seek my people out.

To find a home, to revive my weary soul

And breathe free perfumed air blown

By the never-ending, rushing wind.'

His cries now reached a point where the vibrato, desperately high and painfully clear, sounded like the sobbing of a lost and wounded child. Many were stunned into silent tears.

'Released from the silence of many long years,

my enemies, cunning heads now beyond reach,

I will seek my peace with their innocent people.

So that their children and mine can play as one

and lead a life that should have been mine.

If the grasslands allow, it will be mine once again.'

The silence grew until Anshi's followers began to scream as one, shouting a prayer for the dead and singing in a new, more hopeful age. As the noise began to ease Anshi took his seat and at his signal, Dawa Tuya stood and shouted,

"Welcome Guests. The feast will now begin!"