40,000 B.C.

Dat and Gar arrived, having run from the field. They were carrying arms but didn't brandish them.

Jugs stood and said, "Roja, this is my son, Gar, and a friend, Dat."

"How did you find us?" Gar asked.

The woman said, "One normally would follow the well-worn path leading down the mountain to a visible plain rather than slip through a crevice that leads to who knows where. The less traveled route led me to your wonderful valley."

She looked around and said, "This is a beautiful place."

Gar was staring at her and was about to lose his patience. She had not answered his question.

Roja stood and said, "The gods sent me to visit you and told me where to find you."

"The gods speak to you?" Gar asked.

"Yes. I am a servant of the gods. They give me tasks, and I carry them out. They sent me here to assist in the birthing of five women and to give you a message."

"I see. What is the message?" Gar asked.

"In do time. You are not ready to hear it. Let's focus on the women. The babies are coming. All of them. Leer, your water is about to break. Let's get you inside to the birthing chair."

Everyone looked at Leer. She looked confused. Then, she cried out, and water splashed on her leather skirt and the ground.

Leer said, "I've been feeling weak contractions all morning. That was a big one, and my water broke."

"Are you a witch?" Jugs asked.

Roja laughed and said, "I've been called that. I am a healer chosen and empowered by the gods. We can argue about my title later. Jugs and the other women will assist me."

The women took Leer to the birthing place. Four hours later, Roja emerged and said, "Gar, you have a son."

"Can I see him?"

"Yes. Mother and child are fine. Gurl has gone into labor. The women and I will attend to her."

She swiped a cup of water, sitting in front of Gar, and downed it.

"If you men want to be of assistance, set a table with food and water. The women will be too busy to make meals. I am commandeering your tents, so you will need to find other places to sleep."

"What?" Dat said.

"There are five more pregnancies to deal with. I will be needing all your tents unless you want your women to give birth out in the open."

"The tents are yours," Gar said.

"Gather limbs and logs. We will be having three bonfires later. Make sure you put some juniper branches in each pile. Don't lite them until I tell you."

"Gar," Roja said. "Stay with Leer and her baby. Dat and Trek, get the wood. Frak, grab the birthing chair and put it in the nearest tent. Follow me, ladies, a baby is ready to be born."

The women headed to the next tent. Eeth and Gurl complained about stomach pain. Mother and daughter paused periodically and groaned when a contraction hit them.

^^^

Gar stepped into the tent and smiled as he looked at Leer. She looked tired. She was pale and covered in sweat. She managed a weak smile and said, "Come. See your son."

She moved a hide, and Gar saw the baby nestled in the crook of her arm.

"He's so little."

"Ha," Leer disagreed. "He didn't seem small when he was coming out of my body!"

The parents looked adoringly at their son.

^^^

Eeth's delivery was uneventful. She had a girl.

Gurl's was more nerve-wracking, not because things went wrong, but

because it was her first child, and she was anxious and nervous.

"Gurl, you have a beautiful baby boy. He's strong. Listen to his screams."

Roja took care of mother, daughter, and their babies. She turned to Frak and said, "Stay here and look after them."

The dwindling group headed to the next tent where Abba had a baby, a girl. Her mate, Trek, stayed with her.

Jugs and Lasa went into labor. Roja managed the deliveries. Lasa had a little girl. Jugs had a boy.

Roja stepped out of the tent and hollered to Dat, "Go get everyone, including the mothers and their newborns, and bring them to where you have the piled the brush. It's time to reveal the message of the gods."

Everyone gathered as Roja requested. Jugs', Lasa's, and Abba's faces were stained with tears.

Roja began speaking as soon as they were assembled. The clan members didn't have a chance to talk or view the babies.

"People, the gods have a message for all of you," Roja said as she looked from one face to another.

"Kin should not mate with kin. A son should not have children with his mother, grandmother, or sister. Nor a daughter with her grandfather, father, or sibling. Aunts and uncles should not breed with their nieces and nephews.

"The offspring of blood relatives are weak, sickly, or deformed.

"Gar, today Leer gave birth to your beautiful healthy son, and Eeth bore you a healthy girl. Your mother, Jugs, and your sister, Lasa, also gave birth to your children."

She took the baby away from Jugs and held it up for all to see. The baby was deformed. She returned it to Jugs, took Lasa's child, and held it up.

The baby was thin, sick, weak, and struggling to breathe.

She gave Lasa her sick baby and went to Abba and said, "You had a child with your brother, Trek. The baby is not well. It will suffer and die."

"Oh, no!" Abba shrieked. Her tears flowed as she sobbed.

"The gods want you to stop having children with kin, and they want you to spread the word that this is a bad practice. The gods are not saying you can't have sex or you can't have babies. You need to find partners not related to you.

"Have your people find mates from other clans. You could swap your young females for their young females so each group can avoid inbreeding."

Gar looked at the sick and deformed babies and the devastated women who carried them for nine months. He said resolutely, "We will change."

"Good."

Roja still had Abba's baby in her arms. She said, "Dat, lit the fires."

He did. The green juniper branches produced thick black smoke.

Roja stretched out her arms and put Abba's baby in the smoke. The smoke instantly turned white, and the child stopped fussing.

The people saw a white dove fly out of the smoke and into the sky.

Roja retracted her arms. The baby was gone. She turned to Abba and said, "Sometimes the gods are merciful. Your child is no longer suffering. She will live out her life in the woods. When you hear a bird sing, think of her."

Roja performed the same ritual for Jug's and Lasa's babies.

She then stripped off her blood-covered robes and tossed them into the fire.

She felt the men's eyes upon her naked flesh. She said, "I am a servant of the gods. Touch me, defile me, attempt to keep me here, and you will die a painful death."

She gave Gar and Dat a steely look. They believed her and cleared all lustful thoughts from their minds.

"Dat," Roja said, "bring me clean clothes."

"Gar," she said. "Remember the task the gods have given you. Be thankful for your healthy children birthed by Abba and Leer."

He nodded and said, "And Gurl's child."

"You are to raise Gurl's boy as if he is your son."

"What do you mean? He is not mine?"

"No. Drark laid with her before you. The boy is his son."

Dat returned with furs and hides.

Roja took what she liked, dressed, and said, "I am leaving. Heed the gods' message."

On her way out, she stopped by the table with refreshments. She ate, drank, and gathered supplies to take with her as she left the camp.

^^^

The clan mourned the lost babies. They were placated when they saw a white dove or heard birds chirping.

Gar and his clan fared well in the secret valley. They were spared the worst of the winter in this more temperate region. They decided to stay there year-round.

They learned to farm and fish and were good stewards of the woods and the animals they depended on for food and clothing.

There was an absolute and abrupt end to incestuous sex in Gar's clan.

Their attitude and acceptance of it flipped 180 degrees.

Gar only slept with Leer and Gurl. Eeth was exclusive with her partner, Frak. Trek and Jugs hooked up, and Dat split his time between Lasa and Abba.

They made a point of discussing with Zep and Leet that in no way would it be acceptable for them to have sex. They were to find their partners outside the clan.

Gar made contact with local clans. They all had birthed deformed babies. Gar's story made more sense than evil spirits and indifferent gods. They accepted his advice and his offer to exchange virgins.

They all celebrated the summer solstice. It became a joint holiday when the local clans got together, shared food and drink, and exchanged young women.

Obviously, more happened. We can discuss that in another tale. This was a simple story to explain how an idea once accepted has been universally banished in all cultures.

There have been a few people who didn't get on the bandwagon, such as the Egyptian pharaohs, Habsburgs royals, and a few others.

But all and all, incest is recognized as a bad idea.

The End