Well, heres my atempt at somthing resembling a story!
Once upon a time, there was a land so thick with jungle and fog that no sky could be seen through the thickets. Light poked its way through little holes in the leaves, and sent insubstantial beams of light down, to illuminate the glistening pools of dew that collected among the larger leaves. The people that lived amongst the flowers and steam were a small, pale, civilized race, that wore garments spun of silk, and dyed exotic colors, from the juices of various saplings, and roots. They were called the Shiana. There were not many of them living together. They were a wandering people, restless by nature. When they got tired of each other, they split, and so eventually, there were no great cities, only little villages, created out of sticks, leaves, and clay, that were inhabited by one group, built on, then abandoned, before being stumbled upon by another wandering tribe.
Among one of the smaller peoples, was a girl by the name of Koani. She was not especially pretty, nor tall. Her arms and legs were slight, and slender, as was the norm among the Shiana, and her eyes were almond shaped, and hazel. Her hair was long, and un-brushed, and an indeterminate color, a fact which she despised, which made her less inclined to brush it.
She didn’t know who her parents were, but that was not unusual either. If parents weren't ready to raise another child, the baby was adopted by the tribe, and passed around. Very few lived with their birth parents.
Koani had the ability to move things with her mind,and it pleased her, although, that too, was not particularly uncommon.
All and all, she was a very average girl.
The village was on the move again. It was time to go.
“Oi! Koani!” Shouted Matina, emerging from the store rooms with a enormous bundle of cloth.
“Better get something fast, because if you dawdle too much, all that will be left is the heavy stuff!”
“Thanks Matina.” Koani hollered back, racing to the store. She tried three packs, and found the lightest, filled with bread. She grabbed it up, along with her four other possessions. There was her other two dresses, a wooden bowl she had carved, and a small chunk of amber on a long cord, which she tied around her neck.
Matina was her age, which was around fifty seasons, and had magnificent blond hair, that was accentuated by the little fuchsia flowers she liked to twist in, and fasten with thread. Koani was very jealous of her friend, but too bored to hold it against Matina. Matina kept her entertained.
“Better hurry up, Ko, or the Albatoris will come and find you and eat your eyeballs.” Matina hissed, dropping her voice dramatically.
There were 18 members of the group. Five children, Koani, Matina, Soraline, plus the twins, Alaro and Leppy. Soraline was the eldest, and was moody, so Koani avoided her, unless Matina was busy. The twins were the youngest, at twenty seasons. Koani and Matina were somewhere in the middle.
The village was on the move in less than an hour. At first, as usual, Koani loved being on the go, as some natural instinct told her they were doing the right thing, but then, later, as her strength began to dwindle, and she became bored of picking flowers with her mind, she hated walking.
Matina bounded up to her side.
“Don’t tell me you’re tired already, Ko.” Matina rolled her eyes, and gave an melodramatic exasperated sigh.
Koani said nothing, and her silence spoke for her.
“It’s from all that mind work. It wears you out!” Mused Marina wisely.
“Leppy’s been doing it too, he won’t leave his brother alone, and you’re both exhausted!”
She lifted her feet up from the ground, and performed a graceful pirouette, twirling her arms above her head, before collapsing to the ground.
Koani laughed, not unkindly. If anyone’s gift fit their personality, it would have to be Matina. Matina loved being beautiful, and attracting attention. She had been practicing lately, and was now able to levitate for up to a few seconds at a time.
She picked herself up, bouncing beside Koani like a puppy.
“Like it?”
“Look who’s wasting energy now, Matina. Flying takes much more energy than lifting things.” Teased Koani.
“Not flying, levitating. I can’t fly. I heard that an Albatoris can fly though. They fly right through your window, and eat your brain.” She widened her eyes, and mimed eating somebody’s brain, chewing big invisible mouthfuls.
Koani laughed. “And where did you here that?”
Matina ignored this, and skipped ahead to the next subject.
“Want to go ahead so we can find the next village first? Wouldn’t that be awesome? We’d be heroes!”
This idea, though forbidden, was very tempting. The rule of the Shiana was stay with your tribe. There were many dangers in the jungle, and some of them weren't natural. There were other, less friendly peoples in the great steamy expanse, one in particular that liked to take down wary stragglers, the Albatoris. Little was known about them, except that they’re gifts were far greater than that of the Shiana, and that they were taller, and had large, deep eyes. They were greatly feared.
A fear that Koani assumed was greatly exaggerated.
“Sure!” Koani sang, exited by the prospect of rule breaking, and exploration.
They snuck ahead of everyone else quite easily. The long leaves made thin red scratches on their legs, and the sticks and twigs tore at the hems of their dresses. Matina walked in front, with fast, confident strides. They got further and further ahead of the group, until they could no longer hear the shouts of the others.
As the day began to pass into afternoon, they decided to sit down, and wait for the others to catch up.
“Ick, these flies are killing me! Can’t you stop them or anything?” Whined Matina.
Koani stopped a fly with her mind. It struggled with her, but she held tight. She put it on the ground.
“Fantastic.” Moaned Matina ungratefully. “The jungle has one less fly.”
Two hours later, no one was talking. Matina was stretched out on a pile of leaves. Koani was still figuring out how to whap away flies, but was getting steadily more frustrated as she realized she wasn’t strong enough to do more than on at a time.
It was getting darker. Koani tried to see the position of the sun through the canopy, but couldn’t, it was too dense, although she could tell from the redness of the beams it was setting.
“Can you get up there and see if our group is near?” Koani asked, breaking the silence. The moth she had been wrestling with seized it’s chance, and fluttered away.
“Nope. Too tall. I can only go a foot or two.”
“Can I get up on your shoulders?” Koani pushed, pushing her luck at the same time. Matina was not known for her over generosity.
“Why don’t I get on your shoulders?” Intoned Matina, demonstrating her infuriating talent for answering a question with another question.
“I can’t fly, remember? Not all of us are gifted with that.”
“I can’t fly either, only levitate.”
“Whatever. Please, Matina?”
Matina grumbled, but, to her credit, consented.
Once she had her feet on Matina shoulders, and Matina was gripping her ankles, Matina floated up so Koani could see out over the canopy. An endless sea of tree tops spread before her. The jungle engulfed everywhere she could see. No trees shifted. Her tribe was not in sight. The hot, red sun was setting behind the horizon.
“Hurry up, Koani, why do you have to be so heavy?” Came Matina muffled whine from bellow. “I can’t hold us much longer.”
“Just one more second.”
“Koani-” Panted Matina, exhausted from the exertion of holding herself in the air for so long.
“One more second!” Interrupted Koani, feeling desperate, and sure she must have missed something. No tree moved, and there was no glimpse of human or animal.
“Koani, you know what happens when you use your skill for too long.” Groaned Matina.
It was true. Koani did know. Using a gift for too long sapped the user of their strength. Overexertion usually resulted in dizziness and tiredness, and in extreme cases, loss of consciousness.
“Koani...” Came the strangled voice from bellow.
“One more second.” She was hurting Matina, and she knew it. But this was their survival, something important, much more so than Matina comfort, and it was unlikely Matina would consent to this again.
“Ok, Matina, you can let-.” Too late. Koani felt the grip on her ankles relax, Matina body crumpled beneath her. She fell, and crashed through underbrush to land in a bush. The thorns made shallow, painful cuts on her back and arms, and tore at her dress. She turned to her friend. Matina was lying on her side with her eyes closed, and her face the color of ivory. Her breathing was heavy. Koani swallowed. She had gone too far.
Oops.
Koani got out of the brambles, and flipped Matina onto her back. Matina was limp, but her breathing was easing up. She just needed rest.
There was a leaf in her hair, caught in the purple thread. The big fuchsia flowers had long since wilted and been discarded. Koani pulled out the leaf, and said, tentatively. “Matina?”
There came no reply.
Koani opened Matina pack. It was filled with cloth. She pulled out a soft woven quilt, and laid it over her friend.
She opened her own pack, then closed it again, buttoning up every button with precision, in fear of eating all the bread by herself.
She picked a few berries of a nearby vine, and put them in her wooden bowl.
She fiddled with the amber around her neck.
Wake up Matina!
Time passed. Koani got another quilt for herself, and huddled next to a tree. The sky was dark. She wished she had a candle, and it was too hot to build a fire.
She looked at Matina again, feeling very guilty.
“Matina...”
Matina eyes moved beneath their lids.
“Sorry Koani, I just couldn’t hold on any longer. I didn’t mean to drop you.” Matina groaned, weakly.
Koani’s feeling of guilt intensified. Why was it that when people were nice, she felt guilty? Maybe because it was she who should be feeling sorry.
“No problem. I probably shouldn’t have made you do that, anyway.”
“Are you okay?” Asked Matina.
“Me? Fine! Are you? I mean, you just lifted us both up about three feet for at least ten minutes! I can’t even hold bugs. You truly are gifted.”
“We’re all gifted.” Matina said. She smiled though, and Koani could tell she was pleased.
“How long was I, uh..” Color returned to Matina cheeks. More than usual, as it happened. Matina, despite everything, was blushing.
“Oh for Abba’s sake.” Thought Koani, grumpily.
“Three hours.”
“Thats not to bad. I was afraid of somthing like-Hey! Whad did you see up there anyway?” Matina’s eyea were opened completely, and she propped heraself up on one elbow.
“Nothing.”
The word rang out in dark, like a crack of thunder, even though Koani had said it very quietly.
“Nothing..” Matina repeated, as though hoping Koani would shout; “Just Kidding!”
“You must have missed them. They’ve got to be on there way. They have to close now, on their way, they’re going to find us.” Martina sounded urgent. She sat up, wincing.
“You’re wrong. You didn’t see. Theres not a person in sight!” Koani said, trying to stay calm herself.
“No I’m not!”
“Face it, Mati,” Koani whispered, into the blackness. “We’re lost.”
Go ahead and hound this. I need to learn how to write better, and this is the place to start! The title is random. I have no idea what this will turn out to, but I supect there will be bandit involvement.
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