The First Cloud Rider

This myth tells a story about one of the most accomplished cloud-readers of the Unull tribe. Cloud readers are people who are able to predict the weather with utmost accuracy, which is a pretty vital skill if you are a nomad who is trying to survive in the Western Plains. However, there are some readers that are not only able to predict the movement of the sky, but also the fate of entire nations. And the very first cloud rider Inke could do even more - or so the story claims.   Inke was a talented shaman, but he also liked riddles and toying with people who came to ask for his advice which earned him a reputation of a so called "cheeky bastard". One day he made an unfortunate bet with a chieftain about one of his predictions that threatened to have him expelled out of the tribe, because one of his jokes (about the chieftain's beard) went a bit too far. And as he was too proud to beg for forgiveness he embarked on a long journey of self-discovery after he gave out one last prophecy: that only the clouds themselves will bring him back to the tribe while the chieftain still lives.   No one is really sure if that was another of his jokes or a legitimate prophecy, but Inke did indeed disappear from the face of the earth into the wilderness and for many years no one has heard anything about him. His last sentence proved to be correct though as one day, there came a storm so strong and so powerful that it tore down all the tents of the tribe and it seemed that everything will be carried away by the cruel wind, obliterating the tribe completely. It seemed like apocalypse is here.   The chieftan tried very bravely with his warriors to save everything they can including their herd of animals and lead them to the safety of the nearby caves for shelter. However, when he went out to rescue a small little lamb that got lost in the storm and was left behind, he didn't make it back.   And that's when it happened. According to the myth, Inke rode back in from the skies, holding on to lightnings like to ropes, and landed to the ground just before the chieftain got nearly swept up off a cliff by another gust of wind. Inke cought him just in time, they made peace and also made it back to the rest of the tribe in one piece which is the true achievement in a storm like that.   Lesson of this story is clear: prophecies or jokes, no words should be taken lightly, because you never know what the universe plans to do about them.

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