Penthesilea's Wish [Vol.1]

Chapter Forty-two

(The ancient region of Colchis, east of the Black Sea, 1245 BCE)

During the summer of Penthesilea's nineteenth year, she willfully joined the contingent of young women who would take part in the traditional "Nights of the Stallion"—their annual mating ritual.

It had been, as on previous years, prearranged that these emissaries of the 'Daughters of the Moon' would travel northward and eastward to meet, under the summer night sky, a gathering of their previous enemies—all men. This once a year caucus had been creatively designed by the women's ancestors for the purposes of initiating the reproductive cycle of their clan. The selected group of their tribe each year, presently the strongest and decidedly most fertile, would invite the men—a select delegation with members of their own choosing. It was held in an idyllic setting where, during the last days of summer, the young women would begin the eleven-day festivities of music, dancing and the drinking of wine supplied by their "guests."

The celebratory nature of the "Nights of the Stallion," in spite of its orgiastic reveling, was a highly necessary part of the Amazon's life cycle and the successful procreation of their clan. Following her last four consecutive years of blood cycles, and her victorious mortal combat while rescuing Euryleia, the young Penthesilea now qualified for the event as a mature woman—and welcomed it.

The ritual had always been sworn to peace on both sides. The Amazons and their former tribal enemies anticipated no violence. Any provoked hostilities between the sexes was punishable by rejection of the participants and banishment from any future annual gatherings. These details, along with certain other strict protocol for the protection of the younger women, were observed by a group of three older 'Daughters of the Moon' who acted within the temporary encampment as a security force. Their presence was also to ensure that those new to the tradition were properly counseled and attended to if needed, ensuring both their safety and maximum enjoyment of the event.

While pleasure was anticipated and encouraged for the women participating, the overall intent was strictly the intention for as many impregnated 'Daughters' as could be gained each year. This they needed for their ultimate survival. Their numbers and continuance as a nomadic culture simply depended on this sacred act. The women participating would traditionally return home exhausted after the eleven days and nights and ever-hopeful their own potential offspring would contribute to the continuance of the female clan, some nine moons hence. The successfully impregnated women from this festival were usually seen to be heavier with child after some sixty days. They were then treated like royalty within the tribe, as all the other women maximized their care and anticipated the birthing season of the collective daughters with great zeal and celebration the following spring.

Once born, any male infants were delivered back to the enemy before the pangs of maternal instinct became too burdensome and potentially destructive upon separation. For this was a reality the Amazons understood and had prepared for over time. The young males were returned to the men's native tribe and breast fed by surrogate mothers within their own nomadic clan for sustenance and survival. These 'Sons of the Amazons' as they were called, were anticipated by their enemy wholeheartedly, as reproduction was a gift in any nomadic society, and in this case they provided the strength of robust males into their warrior culture which welcomed all advantages.

Out of their sense of humanity and maternal instinct, the Amazon women accepted this natural law of child-to-clan love and had found a solution for it, thus avoiding the male infants' mortality. These adopted male offspring were often treated by their pedigreed tribes with special attention, notably when the child grew up to be a heroic warrior or champion hunter among the others. He was often known in such circumstances by the title following his name as, ". . . of the Amazons."

Like the Greeks who had discovered this unique tribe of women during their eastward wanderings, the Proto-Scythians, too, respected them for their ferocity in battle and single-minded separatist ideals. It was to be a legacy of these women that men on the one hand tried to conquer them, compete with them, and exploit them sexually. But they also maintained through the ages a deep-seated., silent admiration for them. A general fear of these women permeated the age and geography while their tenacious culture existed. This respect was later to be easily depicted in all of the art created about the Amazons, particularly among the Greeks in their own Classical Age.

It was understood during this peak of summer reveling that the men in attendance at the "Nights of the Stallion" had to supply the trappings to make the eleven day ordeal one of merriment and pleasure for the women. And for themselves as well. Sumptuous meals were prepared by these visitors for the Amazons' enjoyment, and before such feasts each of the virile male participants would vie for the attention of the females through displays of their strength and bravery. Yet it was the women themselves who were allowed to choose which male or males would be invited to their tents each of the consecutive nights.

These men—all proud and eager to couple with as many of the women as they could muster, showed off their prowess through ordeals of simulated warfare—exhibitions of horse riding, archery, wrestling, and sometimes even singing or playing musical instruments. It was all in an effort to catch the eye and lustful selection of their female audience.

The "Nights of the Stallion" festival was one of the highlights in an Amazon's life, to be repeated each year as long as she wished and remained viable to bring back the treasured daughters into the tribe. But participation was also seen as a requisite duty of each woman in her fertile adulthood to attempt to provide at least two female infants in her lifetime to keep the clan vibrant and growing. This was ultimately seen as essential to the Amazons' crucial sustainability.

The mystery and sanctity of fertility was a strong element of all peoples in antiquity, and it provided the impetus for the Amazons' strict training and preparation for these rites. For their all-women society it included animal sacrifices to certain fertility deities; the girls' education about hygiene and their bodies; and the proper techniques of childrearing. These elements of reproduction and the anticipation of the "Nights of the Stallion," were often discussed around the bright and warm fires in the evenings. The process holistically was highly regarded and a part of every girl's education within the rich life-cycle of the 'Daughters of the Moon.'

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