Indians of North America -- Folklore; Modoc Indians -- Folklore; Modoc Indians -- Religion; Modoc mythology
“My nephews have driven me out,” said Wus; “they won’t let me stay with
them.”
The Loks believed her and let her stay around. When they asked: “Where
are you going to live?” she said: “I have other kin, I am going to
them. Their house is straight east.”
That night Lok had a dream. The dream said: “Your brother’s body has
been stolen.” In the morning she started off to find out if it had.
When she got back, she said: “Just as my dream told me, somebody has
carried off our brother.”
Wus said: “I know nothing about it.”
Lok said: “Yes, you do; those boys did it.”
Wus said: “No, they moved away when you did. You can go and kill them
if you want to. I am going east.”
She started, but when she was a little way off, she turned and went
west. When she got home, she said to her nephews: “The Loks are coming
to fight you.”
“I’m not afraid of the Loks,” said the elder brother. “You must go off
to the mountain. I will put my brother in a crack of the house, then I
will fight the Loks with knives.” He had five knives under one arm; his
bow and arrows were hanging up.
When the four Lok brothers and their sister came, one of the brothers
caught Kékina in his mouth and swallowed him. Kékina stuck a knife in
Lok’s heart, killed him, and came out. The second brother swallowed
him; he killed him and came out; the third swallowed him and was
killed. The fourth brother bit Kékina, then swallowed him. Kékina was
hurt; he stayed in Lok’s body a good while before he could get strength
enough to stick his knife in Lok’s heart and run out. He didn’t cut
Lok’s heart open, and Lok jumped up and swallowed him again. That time
Lok choked, and Kékina nearly smothered; but he made himself small and
rolled out of Lok’s throat.
Old woman Lok said: “I told you those boys would kill you. Now all our
brothers are dead.” Just then Lok saw Kékina. He caught him and
swallowed him again. That time Kékina cut Lok’s heart open and he died.
Old woman Lok jumped at Kékina to bite him, but he ran down her throat
before she could bite; he ran out, and she caught him; again she was
going to bite him, but he ran down her throat and came out. The next
time he slipped down quickly; he cut her heart open, and she died.
Wus came home; they had lots of meat now, and she was glad. When spring
came, little Kékina wanted to dig roots. Wus said: “Don’t go far. The
Lok brothers had a great many kin. You must keep away from them.”
Kékina said: “When I find sweet roots, I want to lie down by them, and
eat them; sometimes I feel like staying all night.”
“You must be careful,” said Wus. “The Loks like the same things that
you do. One might come along and eat the roots and you with them,
without knowing that you were there.”
One night little Kékina didn’t come home. The next morning his brother
began to hunt for him. Off on a flat he saw men digging roots; they
were Loks. He went up to one of them, and asked: “Have you seen my
brother?”
“No,” said Lok, “he hasn’t been here.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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