Cat awoke with a start, his whiskers twitching with agitation. He'd gotten little rest, though he'd slept overly long by his reckoning of the sun's position in the perpetually clouded sky. Stiffly he stretched, extending and retracting the claws in his fingertips. He closed his eyes and drew a slow, deep breath to quell the alarm that still resonated through his nervous system; it was unseemly for the Guardian of the Old Knowledge to betray such lack of control.
In keeping with his talent and training, he often wandered in the ghost-world when he slept. This time, though, while stalking the shadows of that strange energy double of his own reality he'd met with the old-one who was Guardian before him. But how could that be? His mentor was long dead. Seven cycles had passed since Cat had assumed the guardianship of the Cave of Rebirth with the old-one's blessing. Two months later they had laid that estimable elder's bones in the Cave of Ancestors, as they did with all of the feline remains they reclaimed. There was no doubt that it was he, for the carcass still bore his pouch of tools and the necklet of boar's teeth the elder had strung from his first kill.
Cat stood for a moment looking about the cave's entrance where he'd taken time from his reading to nap. All seemed as it should be, and he realized, when he'd finished his brief reconnaissance, that he was hungry. He reached into the hide pouch that hung from a braided cord around his waist and absentmindedly extracted a piece of the dried meat that his mate had packed for him. He began to chew, savoring the smoky taste and leathery texture. The old-one's last daughter was a good provider, he purred to himself as he pictured her face in his mind. Cat was proud to have such a partner; they were well suited to each other, and it pleased him that she'd chosen to remain in his cave even though she was past bearing young. Many of the older females withdrew from the community to live out their days in solitude, growing resentful and ill-tempered.
The males, who were more guardians than hunters, stayed with the clan until they were too old to fight, then they would go off to die alone with dignity. Life was hard and food couldn't be spared for nonproductive members in any of the small, independent communities that had sprung up around the Big Lake territory. The one exception seemed to be the Guardian of the Ancient Knowledge. His only real duty as caretaker of the Cave of Rebirth was to preserve the records left by the creator.
Why, Cat wondered for the hundredth time, was he allowed to be a burden on the whole clan when he provided no real service? The machinery in the cave had shut down long ago and would never run again, nor would they have known what to do with it if it had still been functional. Of course there were printouts, notebooks and logs which were full of information. He dutifully spent at least part of every day reading and trying to understand these papers, but no one ever asked him to use the knowledge he'd so painstakingly gleaned. What was the use of knowledge that no one desired? After he'd gotten past his surprise at meeting the old-guardian in the ghost-world, he had posed that very question to him. Now that he'd finished his light meal and calmed himself sufficiently, he settled down in the waning sunlight of the clearing to ponder his mentor's reply.
"When first we woke from the long cold-sleep, it was in the mind of the first designated Guardian of Knowledge." The older cat sang the memory, like a mother with a kitten to suck. "The old knowledge must be kept for the time when the dream-walker would come. She whose vision will assure our birth, she whose memory will create our truth. While the circle of destiny remains open, our world remains unborn. Heed my song, Guardian of Knowledge, for there is a strange scent in the wind between the worlds which has stirred me from the long-dream to seek you here." His message delivered, he rubbed his nose against Cat's cheek in the farewell gesture, saying, "Warmth and full belly to you and yours. You shall see me no more." Then he was gone.
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