The Lost Tribe: Maliha the Wanderer (Book 1)

The Wanderer

Present day

Maliha sat under the palm tree, her back resting against the rough edges as she smashed open a coconut and drank the cool liquid. Cracking a few more open she continued to drink languidly. Flicking out her blade that she carried on her hip, she began cutting the fruit into chunks. Eating some as she continued to cut away.

When she had diced the coconut chunks, she fumbled around in her bag and took out a loaf of bread. Smothering it with chunks of coconut. The two foods did not complement each other well but it was all she had as of now.

She had followed the water down the mountain and into the marshlands where it rained for months. The earth was so wet from the rain everything was swamp and mud. Getting though that land was harder than climbing down the glacial mountains. She had thought she was prepared for the change of weather that came with the differing climates, but it had been quite a shock to see how unprepared she was. The relentless wet had soaked her clothes through giving her body a different type of chill then what was found in the mountains.

When she had reached the outskirts of the swamp she had met a small tribe who had taught her many things. Like how to make arrows from twigs and other miscellaneous objects. The Yahul tribe also taught her how to shoot, skin and cook a bird, along with various types of cloth making. She had stayed with them for four whole moons before she continued her journey.

She hadn't known where she was heading but her feet continued to carry her from tribe to tribe where she had learnt more and more about the world.

Each tribe had adapted to their surroundings. The most creative were the Feri tribe who lived in the huge trees of the black jungle. The jungle was named aptly for its tall trees that had long sweeping leaves that hung like blankets. No sunlight graced the jungle and so it was in eternal darkness until night came and the leaves curled up letting through slithers of pale moonlight. The plants and creatures had adapted to their surroundings in the ways that nature demanded. Everything was nocturnal in that jungle, the ray of the moon brought life as opposed to the sun.

In the black jungle one could not see the Feri tribes' homes when they walked on the ground. The moment she had stepped foot in their jungle they had climbed from tree to tree like panthers. Chasing her like a ghost riding the wind. Their bodies unseen to the human eye, and their sounds hardly penetrable to her ears. She had run through the jungle from this unknown entity, her moves frantic as she sweated and panted in fear of the phantom feeling of being watched.

The sight of a small girl standing by a river had stopped her in her tracks, so much so that she had been shocked when she had been shot by the same girl.

Maliha had stayed with them for nine full moons and it was the best tribe she had stayed with. They had taught her the ways of poisons, child birth and child rearing. She had mastered how to climb the trees like panthers, though she was not all that quiet. Most importantly they had taught her about her inner self. The voice of her conscience that could be tapped into with enough awareness and control. That was something only the wise elders had mastered. Many it had taken a lifetime to even reach half of their inner self, but they had put her on her journey of self-discovery.

Her journey that had started due to bitterness and escape had turned into a learning curb. That tribe had given her so much without realising it.

Yet she still did not feel the call for home or belonging. The tribes in which she found comfort had been ideal places to settle but she had not felt that feeling, the soothing serenity of knowing you belonged. So, she continued to wander over the planes of the land.

She had stayed with several tribes, some she stayed long periods of time with and others only days. Her lust for wandering had continued to run as had the water of the river. In parts it had dwindled to a tiny stream that would trickle over the rocks, in a slow and steady sway. Whilst in other parts of the land, such as the black jungle it was a large and ferocious river with waterfalls and rocks. Large fish swimming in its depths and even larger animals grazing at its side.