The Forest Child

Prologue

My feet padded along the mossy bark of a tree trunk as I ran through the forest, leaping and laughing as my friend, Fawn, chased behind me.

"Race you to the edge!" I yelled behind me, "Last one there has to clean the dishes!"

"No fair!" she shouted back, "You have a head start!"

"Bet you can't catch me!"

I sped down the length of a tree branch and leaped through the air, instinctively putting my hand out and catching a vine as I went. I whooped with glee as the adrenaline pumped through my veins and the air ruffled through my curly, brown hair.

Just as I was about to land on another branch, my callused feet began to glow and my momentum slowed just enough for me to land safely down and keep running.

You see, I'm not a normal human. I was born of the trees and their power ran through me.

Long ago, my people came from a planet called Earth. This planet grew too small for the population, so we began to search for another planet to call home. My great great grandmother and father, Sarah and Joseph, were part of the first team to explore the universe, searching for a habitable place to live. They found one revolving around a star much like Earth's. They called it Lumia.

After several months living on this new planet, people began to change. This planet was newer than Earth and the air much cleaner, giving their bodies the perfect environment to fulfill its potential. Their bodies began to evolve and connect to its new environment. Some, however, more than others. Sara was one of the many who had evolved into something new, a jungle woman. She connected with the plants and animals, feeling the energies that flowed through every being. The longer she stayed, the more powerful she became and for that, the people who did not evolve, like my grandfather, Joseph, grew jealous and despised her. They lashed out at her, saying that she and the others were dangerous and didn't belong with them anymore.

To keep the jungle people safe from harm, my grandmother led them to the trees and made a peace treaty with Joseph and his people, saying that so long as the two peoples kept to themselves there would be no war. The people who didn't evolve moved to the deserts, where they found underwater wells and strong building materials to keep them going and that's where they set up their civilization. Some trade routs have been opened between the two but other than that, our civilizations have been completely separate. That has been the understanding for three generations now.

Even though we weren't allowed to leave the forest, that didn't keep us from getting close to the edge.

I grabbed a vine just as I jumped off of the final branch and reached out with my free hand just far enough to feel the hot sunshine graze against my fingertips. It was fresh and warm and for the briefest of moments I felt drawn by what stood beyond before I swung myself back. Fawn slid down the rounded branch and pushed some stray hairs from her massive afro away from her dark face.

"You're still doing dishes," I said.

"You had a head start," she replied, "Not fair."

I let the vine fall from my grip and watched it swing back and forth.

"You really shouldn't be doing that," she said, "It's forbidden. If Grandmother were to find out-"

"I know what would happen," I replied, "I just want to feel the sunshine."

"You're going to get into big trouble one of these days."

"Fawn, darling, you worry too much."

It was obvious that fawn and I were not blood related, but we still treated each other like siblings, as did everyone else. Grandmother was an ancestor of Sara and the tribe's spiritual leader. Unlike Fawn, my mother was actually Grandmother's daughter, making her my actual Grandmother.