The thunder clapped like a cannon and split a mango tree nearby, scattering the fruits on the drenched muddy ground. The wind lashed across the canopy above him and blew buckets of rain throughout the jungle.
Diego wiped the water from his forehead and tried to orient himself. Branches were falling everywhere as the storm roared.
He was truly lost, and the slave Omar- with whom Diego had come to do business- was nowhere to be found.
He took shelter under a tree and watched the unrelenting storm.
A bird called out.
Diego paid it no mind and tried to stay as dry as possible.
Then the bird called out again.
This time, Diego gripped his musket, though it was now next to useless on account of the rain, but the bayonet was still useful.
“Who goes there? Reveal yourself at once!” he commanded, being familiar with the whistling calls used by slaves.
“Is it you, Omar?”
Diego looked into the bushes and instead of a bird, he saw a face floating in the foliage. Long dark hair. Jet black eyes. For a moment, he thought it was some kind of wild creature.
The figure remained hidden in the shadows, but then slowly, an Indian woman emerged through the dripping heart-shaped leafs.
She wore an adorned apron that glistened with hummingbird feathers, jewelry made of gold, seashells, and blue stones. Her face and body were painted in white, black, and red pigments.
Diego recognized her from a visit to her people’s encampment. She was the daughter of one of the rebellious caciques.
She looked at him with her dark slanted eyes. Then, she turned and disappeared into the foliage.
“Hey, stop! In the name of his majesty…!”
Thunder rumbled overhead.
He ran after the fleeing figure and followed her into the thicket, poking the virgin forest with the bayonet as he ran through it.
Sliced and pricked on his skin, as he ran through the wicked vegetation, he finally stopped to get his bearings and saw the Indian woman slide through a narrow hole in the cliff.
“Wait!” he called out.
The hole was narrow, and he noticed that the surrounded stone looked like coral. His armor wouldn’t fit through it, so he removed it, and entered the opening.
He came onto the mouth of a wide cavernous place with hanging vines around the edge. He had never been in this place and had never heard anyone mention it.
Light gave way to darkness, and only the sound of the storm outside could be heard. He crawled in the dark until he saw a faint light in the distance. He realized he could stand up, but the ground was steep and slippery.
What he beheld next, stunned him beyond wonder. In the flickering light, he saw a lake or lagoon with crystalline water of a most marvelous turquoise colour. The bottom was clearly visible and not a single ripple disturbed the placid water.
The woman stood near the edge of the lagoon, where she had lit a fire on the shore and looked at him with glittering dark eyes.
“Uuuura kaaan!” she said waving one hand. “Uuuraaa kan!” she clapped loudly, and the clap thundered through the cavernous space in a deep echo.
“What is your name?” he asked her.
She did not answer. Looking down, she grabbed a tight bundle of branches and lit them on fire as if they were a torch.
With flame in hand, she made her way around the small lake, dripping embers in the darkness.
Diego followed her down the slippery slope, which he was not very adept at navigating. But the woman, who did not even wear any shoes, was able to move deftly across the rocky ground.
“Kaanooah!” she said and waved the lit bundle of sticks. “Kanouuuuuah.”
Diego looked at where she was pointing and saw a crude boat with carved images on the side.
She handed him the torch then waded into the water to grab the boat. The crystal clear surface rippled under the torchlight. The woman tugged the vessel, then after helping Diego climb aboard, she nimbly jumped into it.
She grabbed a long pole that had been laying on the floor, and dipping into the water, she began to steer the boat into the dark spaces of the peculiar cave.
About the story
Thank you for reading my historical fantasy fiction. The story was inspired by my recent travels. I took photographs like the ones in this post of some fantastic places that made my imagination run wild. I will not say much about the location until the end of the story, but I captured these shots in the same general vicinity of the places I visited.
The story itself is loosely based on facts obtained from my research into this geographic location, and more broadly, the colonial history of the American continent. In this story, I don't mention a time or place, so it could be considered an alternate universe of photographic fiction. I hope you enjoyed it.
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| X | InLeo | NFT Showroom |
Images by @litguru
