Chapter-15: Beneath The Full Moon
With the fish in place, Diego used his gourd to gather lake water and cleaned the golden tuna of dirt, grass and small pebbles. All clean, he drank from the gourd.
“Good,” said Chuey, “Now place the firewood in a curved area under the fish.”
Diego grunted and placed the wood as needed, and asked: “How do I start a fire in this place?”
“Step away from the wood pit,” said Chuey. He hovered in front of the fish and opened his beak and exhaled a strong blue flame onto the wood. The fire roared and burned strongly, sending licking waves of heat in all directions.
With the fire taken care of, Diego turned his attention to exploration. He walked away. The tree canopy cast cool dancing shadows on the ground. Blue roses and orange marigolds surrounded the multitude of apricot and maple trees. And, with each breath, a taste of sweet flowers and maple syrup in the air.
Ten minutes later, the aroma of flowers and syrup were replaced with something more appetizing. A delicious breeze rushed in to greet Diego with the smells of smoked fish and carne asada.
The golden fish popped and sizzled over the blue flames at a fast rate. Glistening fat fell on the fire, causing a flash and a rise in the flames. Diego inhaled and rubbed his stomach. The new delicious aroma caused his hunger to intensify.
Chuey flew in front of Diego and perched on an apricot tree, and said: “Almost ready, Guerrero, the fish is almost ready. You should turn back and go eat.”
Diego returned to the fire pit and inspected the cooking side of the fish: golden brown and crisp and firm, well-done.
“See, it’s ready,” said Chuey. “Go on, dig in, dig in, eat.”
Diego maneuvered the fish away from the fire, rinsed his daggers and cut pieces of juicy golden tuna meat, and ate. The outer layer of the fish had the taste and texture of chicharrones. But most parts were too hot to eat, he dropped and spat out small chunks of sizzling meat.
“The boulder,” said Chuey, “use it to cool the fish.”
Diego rinsed a nearby boulder and placed a slab of golden tuna meat on it and waited for it to cool down. A short rest and he tried again, perfect. The meat juiced with a sweet smoky flavor of a tri-tip steak. Each tender bite tasted buttery with a balanced flavor of salt, pepper and garlic.
Chuey gathered a dozen plump apricots for dessert and placed them next to the large fish.
Diego smiled and devoured as much food and water as he could stomach. All full and satisfied, he rested against a maple tree and looked up at the branches. A rhythmic breeze rustled the leaves above. The light pierced through the canopy at various angles and waved across the ground in a hurried dance.
Chuey circled above the golden tuna multiple times, chirping a soothing melody. He landed on the tail end of the fish, as Diego’s eyelids blinked slowly and closed. He drifted and slept.
Thank you
I appreciate your time in reading this blog post. Next Monday I will upload the next part of Chapter fifteen, Beneath The Full Moon, from my first novel: Guerrero of Passions.
Total Consciousness 