2022-03-26 - How Beaver Stole Fire

The Nimíipuu tell a story of a time long ago, when there were no people in the world (and certainly no whitle settlers who would call them Nez Perce, the people with pierced noses). Animals and trees talked just as men do now. They also walked about. Now in those days, Pine Trees had the secret of fire. The Nimíipuu did not know that Coyote had stolen fire from Skookums, evil spirits from the dawn of time, and that the animals had given fire to Pine.

Pine was meant to give fire to the first human beings but Pine grew proud. They would tell no one else. No one could have a fire, no matter how cold it was, unless he were a Pine. One winter it was so cold that the animals almost froze to death. Then they called a council. They wanted to steal fire again, this time from Pine.

On the river that would some day be known as Grande Ronde River, Pine Trees were also holding a great council. They had built a large fire to warm themselves. Guards were put around the fire to keep off all animals. But Beaver hid under the bank, near the fire, before the guards took their places, so they did not see him. After a while a live coal rolled down the bank near Beaver. He hid it in his breast and ran away. Pine Trees started after him. When Pine Trees caught up near him, Beaver dodged from side to side. Other times he ran straight ahead. That is why Grande Ronde River winds from side to side in some places, and in other places it is straight.

Far above in the sky, watching, Osprey danced on the wind.

She had been there at the meeting with Coyote and the other animals, when he'd planned to steal the fire from the Skookums before. She had fought against the Skookums along with her fellow animals to allow Coyote to escape with his prize. Winter had been too cold. Even the great seahawk had struggled with the waters and how they froze in many places. The fish had gone slow and deep and hard to catch on top of the water. She would not let this happen again, not again.

Her golden eyes, fierce and keen, landed on Beaver as he ran. "Be swift, Beaver! Your sisters and brothers are here!" she called down from, her voice high and proud.

Far above in the trees, watching, Squirrel clung to her branch.

The cold winter decimated (okay, mis-use of the word decimated; destroyed, ransacked, heavily reduced) her stores, leaving Squirrel and her kin in fear of starvation. Cold Squirrel means lean Squirrel, forced to use up her energy to stay warm until spring, when the work might resume. Pine produces no food for Squirrel; at least Oak is a place of food. Why should Pine hoard the Fire?

Why should anyone? Socialism, man. That's where it's at.

"Run, Beaver, run!" Squirrel calls from the tree-tops, safe in the arms of Ash and Oak and Elm. "I will help you if I can."

Raven had committed. Raven said she would help, that she would bring Fire to the people, had played her tricks on Skookum towards that end. Raven does not like being thwarted or made into a liar, unless it’s a lie of her choosing.

Perhaps that’s why her voice is so rough. She’s been cawing her continual complaints, winging through the Pines to scold and pester them. She had promised to help Squirrel with her stores in the aftermath of the Skookum threat, and she does, too. Perhaps a litter forgetfully, when her anger is roused and she makes it her priority to let Pines know, but Raven keeps her promises.

And when Beaver steals the coal, she’s right there, harrying the Pines from above. This time, the lie comes to her, and she croaks it out insistently: “This way! I saw Beaver go this way!” Harrying becomes ‘help.’

As Beaver carves his way through, another digger pokes her head up to catch sight of him, tracking him as much as her covered eyes could. Shrew Mole narrows her eyes at the sight of Beaver as he moves closer, her thin, pink nose twitching in excitement. Eager to help, she begins to dig deep, using her massively clawed hands to help carve the earth below them as she tries to cut ahead, hoping to create a ditch to slow down Pine. The frozen ground is hard to pierce through, and little Shrew Mole struggles at first, her body shivering from the cold. "We are with you, Beaver!" She yells out in encouragement.

He's a strange looking creature: roughly three feet tall at the shoulder, long legs with three hooved toes each, a soft lippy muzzle over strong teeth, his fur ruddy and dappled like a fawn. He has a tassled tail, a high stiff mane, and a bad attitude. Dawn Horse races along, hoof toes very good at navigating tricky terrain, almost prehensile over frosty branches and tumbles of shale. Pine Trees are very very big and he usually lives under their arms, among their feet, with his family. They're small and don't take up much room, much smaller than deer.

But now Dawn Horse is mad. His mares and foals are in danger! His friend Beaver is trying to help and Pine Trees are really kinda being yutzes about this fire thing.

"Run, Beaver, I'll hold 'em off!" Dawn Horse is not big, but try telling him that.

When they had run a long way, Pine Trees grew tired. They stopped on the river banks. So many stopped there, and so close together, that even today, hunters can hardly get through the trees. A few kept on after Beaver and stopped here and there. These also remain here and there on the river bank.

In the air, Osprey circled, calling for Beaver to run faster. Osprey lent Beaver the speed of the wind.

In the branches of Oak, Squirrel called for Beaver to run faster. Squirrel lent Beaver the ability to weave effortlessly between the branches.

In the ground, Shrew Mole called out for Beaver to run faster. Shrew Mole lent Beaver the strength to dig through hills rather than run around them.

Raven called out to Pine, confusing the Pine Trees, and leading many of them in the wrong direction, and that is why sometimes, pine trees grow high in the mountains, all by themselves.

Dawn Horse called out to Pine, challenging the Pine Trees with hoof and teeth. Some of the Pine Trees were insulted and called upon their brothers: "Come help us teach this little animal its place!" And so the Pine Trees circled the small horse-to-be and threatened it with their branches full of sharp needles.

An ancient Pine leapt in front of the dawn horse and behind him came a tall Pine -- and a confused Maple that really wanted to be part of the cool trees' club. "You will not command us!" cried the ancient Pine. "Run away, while you can!" cried the tall Pine. "Yeah, take that, asshole!" cried the confused Maple.

A crooked Pine reached up with gnarly hands to grasp at Osprey. "No more calling out to Beaver where to go!" it sneered.

A small Pine sapling turned upon Squirrel. "You will never steal another pine cone in your life!"

And a twisted Pine tree tried to grow its roots over Mole Shrew. "You will never gnaw in my feet again!"

And of all the animals, only Raven seemed to escape the Pines' notice.

Does it make logical sense that Squirrel, who has so shivered this winter, can manifest flames? No. No, it does not. Sometimes the world is full of inconsistencies... and sometimes Squirrels bring with them the power of other beings, locked in sleep in the distant future.

To be honest, given Squirrel's little squeal as that sapling turns on her probably suggests her attempt to ward it away is instinctive rather than planned: little paws through themselves up in a defensive attempt. "No," she squeals. "You can't have the Fire."

You can't handle the Fire.

Dawn Horse rears up with a shrill scream, lashing his tail and baring his tusks (bet you didn't know he has tusks!). Honestly, he is quite small. "Come on! I'll kick your evergreen trunks! Get oudda heah, Maple, this don't concern you," he adds, because seriously, Maple, you're not up to the task.

He's small, but he's tough and proud.

As the roots from twisted Pine reaches towards Shrew Mole within the earth, Shrew Mole stops in her tracks to square off against it. Maybe it is the fire deep within the Earth's core, maybe it is the burning rage within her, maybe Shrew Mole is just incredibly pissed at being so cold this winter. Whichever the reason, she calls forth her own flames as well, eager to fight back and give Beaver a chance. "That fire was not meant for only you, Pine!"

In these legends, Raven is a Trickster. Raven is a Changer. When the Pines fail to notice her and send their limbs thrashing up to grab her from the sky, Raven swoops back to aid her friends. She's not about to be left out of the action.

Now, somewhere Jules knows she's Raven, and she knows what that entails. But hell if she knows how to harness all these powers from the stories of her childhood and apply them in a Dream. Her caw is frustrated, as she circles above. When the Changing does not occur, Raven returns to what she knows best, so well it's nearly instinct. She hovers near the little Squirrel to bless her with her luck. "Fire, bright! Fire, quick! Fire, grow!" That'll show those Pines.

Crooked Pine reached high for Osprey. The seahawk winged up and away from the grasping branches, full of sharp needles that would poke and hamper her flight.

"Try as you might, you are not tall enough!" screamed Osprey back at Crooked Pine, defiant towards the trees walking still rooted to Mother Earth. "You cannot stop us! Beaver, fly! Quick, to the left, there is a thicket ahead!" Her golden eyes spotted a cluster of sharp blackberries, their thorny vines friends to no one except Bear who braves them each year for the dark and delicious fruits, and Jay who is small enough to fly in and out.

With her sharp golden eyes, she also sees the efforts of the others and gives another battle-cry meant to further embolden them.

Whoosh. The smallest of all the animals raises her little paws and beckon for Fire to consume the twisted Pine tree. Fire blooms on Mole Shrew's command, and this is why Mole Shrew's fur is red: So that we remember that the smallest animal can make a large difference too. Soon, nothing but ash remains of the twisted Pine.

Fire blooms from the very tiny hands of a small bushy-tailed rodent who should not have Fire because the Pines have Fire, and frankly, the small bushy-tailed rodent has no fucks to give. Or maybe it's the fact that the kind of fire that comes with the waking Una's talents are not so much throwing fireballs as it is suggest to something that it could be on fire. A tactic which kind of works pretty well when the target is a Pine Tree who is hiding Fire in itself. Whoosh.

In the air, Raven struggles. Calling on her people's knowledge, she tries to be something else. Raven is small and frail, but Raven is the trickster of the North. When Raven finds that her wings carry her too high for her to become something else, she swoops down and calls out, using her voice to bolster Squirrel's courage.

Dawn Horse issues his challenge and thunders towards his enemies. Osprey circles high, high enough to see just how many Pine Trees are converging on the little horse. She calls out, shrill shriek lending strength to Dawn Horse. It is not enough; the oldest Pine falls upon him, crushing him beneath its heavy branches. Then a tall Pine does the same, and after that, the Maple who wants to be a Pine. Buried under the heavy weights of the trees, Dawn Horse lies still and bleeding. This is why there are no horses native to this land.

The Pine Trees roar their victory and rustle their coniferous branches in pride. Then they turn upon the other animals. "They are thieves like Beaver!" cries the ancient Pine. "They have stolen Fire!" calls the crooked Pine. "Grow over them and bury them!" calls the sapling. "Break their bones!" cries the tall Pine. "Yeah, like, dudes!" calls the Maple.

Squirrel is pleased: pleased to have turned some of the Fire against the Pine, and pleased to feel, even just for a moment, powerful.

She might feel rather more powerful if that Pine did not manage a good thwack back, straight to her small and not particularly well-padded chest. "No" says Squirrel, who refuses to be treated like that, because small does not mean powerless. "No," says Squirrel again as she sees poor Dawn Horse fall. "You can't take Fire back. Fire goes where it pleases; Fire is free."

"Help me," she calls to her compatriots. "We can't let them win!"

It appeared to be going well and Osprey, on high, was pleased too.

But now? She is afraid. Crooked Pine managed to reach high into the sky despite its gnarled trunk and now her leg is bleeding. Dawn Horse has disappeared under many Pines and Maple (who invited that asshole?) and it frightens her even as she watches Beaver run on and on and on.

"If you want Fire? I will give you Fire!" the seahawk screeches defiantly yet again. "Dawn Horse! Rise!" Her cry rattles the very boughs of the Pines. Now, small as her wings are? They blow wind down to the Fire started by Shrew and aided by Squirrel. Rise, Fire, rise!

Fiery red! This is new! But damn, does it feel right! Little Shrew Mole burns with her rage towards Twisted Pine, satisfaction glinting in her tiny, shiny dark eyes as the tree goes up in flames. "The fire is not yours to keep, Pine!" she yells out in her squeaky voice. When she notices her other animal friends are being attacked, Shrew Mole's shifts as the desire to help kicks in. As Osprey moves to help Dawn Horse, Shrew Mole runs towards the Pines to seek out the other little creature in need of help. "Squirrel!" She yells out, gunning for Sapling before it can do any more damage. Since Squirrel is aiming for the head, the Shrew Mole aims for what she knows best, the roots and bottom of the trunk!

So. Raven failed once. Then Raven failed again. And now Raven (and Jules, because seriously Dreamscape, she’s the indigenous person here, wtf is up with not being able to tap into her spirit creature’s innate powers?) is pissed.

Maybe it’s the anger, the fiery rage building up in her breast, that sparks the transformation when intellect wouldn’t. This time, when Raven dive-bombs the trees, she changes mid-air. No longer is she Raven—or rather, she is Raven the Changer, Raven in the guise of another. That’s a whole lotta Black Bear that comes crashing down, throat open in a roar.

Dawn Horse pays for his gallant daring (some would call it 'being an idiot stallion' instead but he never listens) by getting crushed under a great weight of wood. He's tough but he's not quite that tough.

He kicks weakly, then harder as Osprey screams for him to rise. Then, huffing and snorting, he claws his way up from the bottom of the woodpile. "You. Deciduous. Mother. Fucker," he rasps, turning on Maple for no better reason than it'll taste delicious when he rips its bark off.

Fire is free. Fire consumes the sapling Pine and this is why young Pines clump together: They all hope that fire will not come back, and if fire does, it will consume somebody else. Pines do not know that it was Squirrel and Shrew who called down the raging fire. If Pines knew, they would not feed Squirrel and Shrew their seeds. Or maybe they do know, and this is why Pines go to such effort to create Squirrel and Shrew food.

Osprey beats her wings to fan the Fire. The Pines do not know about this either. If they did, maybe Pines would catch fish to offer up, too.

Bear falls from the sky.

Several Pine trees are knocked back -- including the ones that fell on the poor Dawn Horse. He calls and kicks and gets back on his feet, shoulder to shoulder with Bear. The sound of Bear's roar and Dawn Horse's challenge cry resound and reverbate through the hills. This is how thunder came to be. And in a future that no one has yet dreamt, Dawn Horse's cousins from another world will come to run free in the hills, because Dawn Horse can be knocked down, but Dawn Horse bounces back.

The oldest Pine calls out, "Get Bear! She is Raven in disguise!" It rises up and falls upon Bear heavily, doing a great wound to Bear's chest.

"No, the little animals are our enemies!" cries the crooked Pine and falls upon Squirrel.

"The smallest is the worst!" says the tall Pine, and tries to crush Shrew under its roots.

"I blame the horse!" cries the Maple and tries to throw itself at Dawn Horse, but because Dawn Horse is quick, it falls on Bear instead. Because Maple is busy trying to untangle itself from Bear, it falls easy prey to Dawn Horse's flailing, sharp hooves.

Upon seeing this, the ancient Pine calls, "Dawn Horse is strongest!"

"Bear is the strongest!" cries the crooked Pine.

"I'm afraid of Fire!" cries the tall Pine and tries to grow over Shrew.

There is a roar of triumph from Squirrel as the Sapling Pine falls, quickly following her own roar of pain. "Thank you!" she squeaks-- no: yells -- at Shrew Mole, her enthusiastic glee resonating through the words, though it falters slightly as she turns her head in time to see Raven-turned-Bear hit. Squirrel shudders, and draws up all her confidence, releasing a rallying call to her companions as she scampers higher up her branch. It's safe, here, and so, clinging on, she focuses her attention on poor Bear.

"I'll help you!" she promises. "We've got most of them. We can do this!"

Falling from the sky hurts. Trees falling on a fallen Bear hurts even more. Black Bear attempts to rise, first crawling and clawing its way out from under the treacherous trees. Then rise she does, bloodied and enraged, up on her back feet and extending herself to her full height, mouth open in a roar of pain and challenge. Crooked Pine thinks Bear is the strongest? Well, Bear will show that Pine just how much damage it can do with claws meant to rip and rend the bark from trees.

Plus the crooked Pine fell on Squirrel, and that's just not cool. "Pick on someone your own size!" Somehow, there are words emerging through the roar, one resonating over another as Bear, a bloody mess turned murder machine, attacks with her wicked claws.

Distracted by her attack on Sapling, Shrew Mole doesn't notice when the tallest pine aims for her. She was just about to yell back her own squeak towards Squirrel when that squeak takes on a much more vicious cry of pain as the roots reach out to crush her, her surprise widening her covered eyes slightly. Those gigantic clawed paws of hers (in comparison to her body) struggle mightily as she tries to fight back against the crushing weight of Tall Pine. If she had a witty come back, Shew could not voice it as she struggles to breathe. She tries to focus inwards, into the heat of earth to bring forth her fire once more. Please work, please work, please work!

Dawn Horse emerged from the tree-pile and high in the sky, still bleeding from her leg, Osprey cried fierce delight. She then watched with her keen golden eyes as Raven became more than Raven alone: Raven-Bear. The Trees were startled. Osprey was proud and growing prouder

But her safety in the bosom of the wind was not to be kept. Her friends fought and bled and she could not stand to see this happen without recourse. "Live, Fire! Brighter! Higher!" And from the smoke given off by Fire, she appeared out of a stoop from the sky, aiming at one of the Trees menacing her fellow animal friends. Blood might be red on her white feathers, but one foot full of black recurved talons was still hers to use along with her hooked beak.

Dawn Horse screams his challenge alongside Bear-Formerly-Raven. He lashes at Maple, carving deep runnels in its wood with claw hooves and teeth and tusks. "I told you to stay out of this," he snarls, velvety muzzle wrinkled back from his teeth, and spits out shreds of wood.

Bear is hurt but Squirrel will help her and Dawn Horse lunges to the aid of the littler animals.

"Why don'tcha pick on somebody ya own size!" Dawn Horse yells, but he isn't the size of Pines, not at all. Not even the size of Bear. He digs his hooves into the forest floor and charges the Tall Pine, his ears flattened to his head. Anybody would think he has no idea he is so small.

The branches of the tall Pine light on fire. Whoosh! Some of the burning branches fall on Shrew who only manages to escape with her fur singed; this is why mole shrews have red and brown fur. It shows the fire inside, but also where the fire burned Shrew. When Shrew falls, Dawn Horse explodes into a flurry of three-toed hooves and anger. His temper is greater than his little self. The remaining branches of the tall Pine are torn to shreds.

The great black Bear hears Squirrel's call to arms. It is not enough to bolster her all the way: Blood runs from Bear's chest and her ears are ringing with the laughter of the trees. Bear throws herself at the crooked Pine but it bends like a tree against the storm and evades her claws. Then it knocks Bear back with its branches.

The ancient Pine, the largest of them all, lashes out against the little Dawn Horse but Dawn Horse dances aside. Osprey falls from the sky like a feathery missile, and the ancient Pine sways to the side like a strong gust of wind, avoiding her sharp claws.

Only two Pine trees remain to fight the animal spirits. The ancient Pine calls, "I will fight Osprey lest she blinds me!"

"No!" cries the crooked Pine. "Bear is the most dangerous one!"

And further up the mountain the Willows and the Birches cry, "Just share the fire! You are being very stubborn and you will get us all burned!"

Squirrel has had enough. Enough of her friends being beaten by trees (it's humiliating, that's what that is), enough of the trees dodging things (how?!); just enough. There's still hope that their efforts have helped Beaver get away, but that's not certain, yet, and Squirrel, it's true, has lost track anyway. All that's left are the Pines and her friends, and the latter are getting more and more beat up (and let's not pretend Squirrel isn't hurting herself, either; not cool). Squirrel's last straw has been reached. This is Squirrel: Unleashed.

(Such as it is.)

"I'm coming," Squirrel calls to Bear, throwing her little body into the fray. Squirrels and Bears may not be known for their friendships, but-- look. As long as Bear doesn't eat Squirrel, Squirrel is willing to make this work. "Stay back. Help is here. One more push and Fire will be free."

She's the little rodent that could, okay? Maybe those tiny claws aren't much help, but she's seen the fire she can, uh, inspire in other things. It's not much, but it's what she's got. "Shield yourself, Bear. Let me help."

It's embarrassing: Bear can't even rough up a tree. She's in a bad state, addled from the pain, and now slapped around again by that stupid pine. This time, the attempt to roar is more of a yelp. There's sense in what Squirrel says, even if that, too, is embarrassing. Squirrel--Squirrel--is going to protect her and try to end this fight. And so Bear limps back and reaches for something she hasn't reached for before. She's hurting, and right now she just wants her den to wrap around her protectively.

Maybe it was better to stay Raven.

At first it was all triumph as she releases another burst of flames, like excited at the feel of this new power. However, the excitement doesn't last as another squeak escapes from Shrew when the flaming branches fall on top of her. Fire burns both ways it seems! The weight of the wood is enough to knock Shrew's head back with a solid crack, knocking her out completely.

"Shrew!" cries Dawn Horse, kicking the flaming branch off her. "Shrew, get up, get up." He nuzzles her anxiously, standing guard over her. "You're not gonna get through me," he snarls at Pine Trees, prepared to defend Shrew with his life.

Osprey misses and shrieks her fury as she turns hard into the wind. Up and up, she flies, away from the immediate fight, intending to once more come down like the feathery incarnation of a thunderbolt on the tree which swayed like the wind played with it. She can see what her land-born friends are enduring and it enrages her all the more.

"How dare you!!!" Then tucking her wings, the seahawk dives once more after the Ancient Pine who had swayed out of reach of her one-legged taloned attack.

"Go back to the sea and the wind!" cries the ancient Pine and swings its branches to send Osprey tumbling through the air. The bird of prey's claws rake along the tree bark but leave no marks worthy of concern; a Pine's wood is so much more solid than the soft flesh of the fish that Osprey usually hunts.

"You are big and clumsy!" taunts the crooked Pine and swings at Bear who is already leaving bloody paw prints on the ground. Bear tries to take the impact on the shoulder where it might hurt the least; a long gash down her front leg sprays blood on the grass.

Squirrel calls upon the fire hiding in the Pine but the crooked Pine sways and weaves around poor Bear, and barely notices that some of its branches are smoldering and crackling. It proves enough of a distraction at least for Dawn Horse to use his three toes on each foot to dig out poor Shrew.

The ancient Pine focuses his fury on Osprey. "Do not be distracted! The birds are the true threat!"

"Do you not see that Squirrel is red? The fire thinks the Squirrel is its sister!" The crooked Pine raises its branches to bring them on the rodent in the ancient Pine's top.

"Fools," say Willow and Birch. "The Skookums could not fight the animal spirits. Why do you think that you can? And with every breath you waste chasing these animals, Beaver is further away with the spirit of Fire."

Squirrel, it is fair to say, is more fight than actual damage; that's not going to stop her. Granted, she's not actually really helped Bear all that much, yet, let alone anyone else, but... she's gonna do it! She's gonna take down a tree!

"There's only two more!" she calls to her allies, stamping her little foot in excitement. "We can take them! Pines are too stupid to win." Neener neener, indeed.

She's too brave to dodge. Brave-- or possibly stupid.

Angry Bear is Angry, with a capital A. She's been useless, save perhaps for distracting the trees from the smaller animals and taking the wallops that otherwise would have targeted them. This one last hit from the crooked Pine pushes Black Bear right over the edge, who roars out her pain. She doesn't even think, this time. Something in Jules breaks, breaks open, and she grabs for the closest thing to throw without actually realizing that she's throwing without her hands (err, paws). There's a nice big deadwood log just over there, and look, now it's moving, like a big ol' baseball bat that no one's holding.

Osprey may be fury incarnate, a bolt from on high, but she can still bleed. Ancient Pine swings its boughs and despite the grace with which she normally rides the wind, the tree hits. Right to the chest, where delicate and critical bones lie, and the seahawk lets out a high screel as she tumbles. White-and-brown feathers float with stark lackadaisical presence on the air as she hits the earth in no display of aforementioned grace whatsoever.

Her beak parts in panting pain. Can she get into the air again? She is not sure -- and she cannot change shape like trickster Raven can.

Ancient Pine is so tall and she looks up, golden eyes wide and scared. "Friends! Help!" Nothing more hampered than a noble creature of the air stuck on the earth. Skitter-skreeing, she flip-flops in a struggle across the earth to get away from the monstrous tree.

Dawn Horse hears Osprey's cry for help! "Run, Osprey! I'll hold 'em off. Hey Pine! Heads up!"

He wheels to face the Ancient Pine, digs his hooves in, and charges in a headlong rush. His hooved toes patter lightly over the forest floor.

At the nuzzle from Dawn Horse, Shrew Mole begins to rouse, a bit slow at first until she remembers where and why she is there. As soon as she is back on her little feet, she shakes her whole body to wake up, to try and bring back her focus. The cry for help from Osprey is enough to snap her into focus and Shrew Mole moves towards the crazy tree. "Thank you Dawn Horse! The Pines will pay for this!" Digging deep into her tiny little heart, she moves to fire once more towards Ancient Pine!

Bear screams out her rage, and her roar reverbates between the mountains like thunder. A large deadwood log flies, as if by its own power, from the ground and crashes into the Pine trees. If the deadwood had been alive it might have said, "I am Oak and I will hear no more of your squabbles!"

Willow says, "This is going to hurt."

Birch says, "They should have known better. Look how far away Beaver has gone."

The two remaining Pine trees are knocked back by the dead Oak.

Dawn Horse rears, and three-toed feet claw the air. The air becomes gusts of wind that knock into the Ancient pine, sending it rolling down the hill, losing most of its branches on the way. Shrew claps her little paws together, and fire explodes in what remains. One last pine cone flies up into the air where it strikes Osprey, and burns her beautiful plumage.

The crooked Pine lashes out at Squirrel, jumping to safety, leaving a long, bloody trail down her chest. Fire explodes from Squirrel's anger and Squirrel's blood, and spreads to the resin in the crooked Pine. It staggers, trying to avoid Osprey's beating wings, and falls down the mountain side too.

Down the mountain Cedar said, "I will run to the top of that hill. I will see how far ahead Beaver is." So Cedar ran to the top of the hill. Beaver was far ahead. He was just diving into Big Snake River where Grande Ronde joins it. Beaver swam across Big snake River and gave fire to Willows on the opposite bank. Farther on he gave fire to Birches and to other trees. So these woods have fire in them. Ever since then, animals and Indians can get fire from these woods by rubbing two pieces together.

Cedar still stands all alone on the very top of the hill. He is very old. His top is dead. The chase was a long one. You can see that because there are no cedars within a hundred miles of him. Old men of the tribes point him out to the children. They say, "There is Old Cedar. He stands just where he stopped when he chased Beaver."