yllable and gesture: "We must have Council!"

There was Council, and the truth was out. Gral held back nothing in his
telling. Gor-wah listened and nodded and grunted, his brow furrowed and
he growled deep in his throat.

"A weapon of great magic," Gor-wah pronounced, and he prodded with his
fingers at it, almost afraid to touch.

"Arh-h-h!" echoed the males. "A weapon of great magic!"

"Let us have many such," Otah repeated with growl and gesture. "The
tribe of Gor-wah will be greatest in all the valley!"

Again Gor-wah grunted, shook his head slowly. "The tribe of Gor-wah
seeks only food and peace. This we have. We do well without such a
weapon."

"Arh-h," echoed the males. "We do well without."

Gral felt helpless, listening. All attention was now upon Otah and the
Old One. "But we will use only for food and peace," Otah pursued
sullenly. "Such was my meaning!"

Gor-wah rose, trembling. "Meaning? I will give you meaning. Kurho's
tribe at Far End! Already they have taken the lesser tribes. Each year
they come in bold insolence, and only the river separates; in time they
mean to take the whole valley. Kurho has declared it!" He spread his
hands. "Never again will we know peace, if Kurho learns the way of such
a weapon!"

There was pause, a restless unease. And again it was Otah who growled
boldly, touching the weapon: "Such is the reason for many of these. Let
us make them, and none will dare to come!"

"None will dare!" echoed the Council. But there were both those who said
it strong, and those who said in doubt.

Now it was plain that even Gor-wah was in doubt. He was old and he had
known this time would come, the time when another took the tribe, and
that one would be Otah. But now he stood straight and made
pronouncement. "I say no! The risk is too great. You, Otah--and you,
Gral--you will destroy this weapon. It must not be used again!"

* * * * *

Of course it was never done. Otah also knew that he must take the tribe,
and they looked to him now. Soon Lok had the weapon, then Mai-ak and
most of the others, as day by day Gral instructed them in the making.
But they used with caution! Otah reminded them always of the Old One's
words, though none of the Far End tribe had been seen near the river for
many days now.

Until Mai-ak returned from a journey, to announce he had encountered one
of Kurho's tribe. "We exchanged insults. I invited him to come close,"
Mai-ak expl