Caravan Clan (Incomplete)

ADVISORY.
The contents of the following story may contain depictions of adult situations, nudity, foul language, drugs/alcohol, and/or religious references.

Proceed at your own risk.

NOTES:
Incomplete Novelettes will remain Incomplete due to the material source getting lost and\or forgotten.
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The Caravan Clan
A Fantasy Fiction Story by Geist Von P.A.
10-28-2015-Present
Literature / Prose / Fiction / Fantasy / Short Stories


The Caravan Clan

The sun was high,  humid, and with the essence of Ozone lingering in the air, Ariko, knew they were close.
Many caravan travelers knew these roads and could navigate them by smell alone, as if there was an invisible border that housed their distinct properties.
The sun became blinding as it rose higher into the sky, reflecting off the dune landscape, and the mirage started getting very dense.
Ariko, stopping the Trike, looked over the landscape with squinted eyes before folding back the flap to her leather saddle-bag.
It didn't take her long to find a small, flat, piece of wood containing two very small slits, and a notch on one of the longer sides.
The sun shimmered on Ariko’s braided black hair, and she could feel the warmth penetrate to her scalp as she slid the scarf-hood down her head and onto her shoulders before Strapping the small plank of wood over her eyes.
Her eyes now shielded from the blinding rays, Ariko, tugged lightly on the reins and the Trike and her walked on.
The Trike was already carrying close to a full load, but, Ariko, couldn't hold back her excitement of searching for treasure. Whatever that treasure may be, she never knew. That is what excited her; adventure of the unknown.
It was evening when, Ariko, and the Trike reached the ruins.
The sun was setting behind the horizon, casting long shadows across the land; as if a hand from a hidden giant was trying to evade the dying light and escape into the night.
Ariko lead the Trike into a large alcove, which she recognized as a coddler; a caravan shelter.
It was set deep into a crumbled wall, with a slanted canopy supported by near-by debris and rock.
It wasn't meant to be fancy, it was practical and that was all that mattered after a hard day’s journey.
Untying a bundle of leafy greens, Ariko, laid it next to the Trike and patted him on the head with a smile; Who in return nudged her leg, and looked up at her as if to say; "Thank you.” before taking a shovel of a mouthful.
Outside the shelter there was remnants of fires past, chard remains mixed with grey ash inside a small stone pit.
There wasn't anything to burn out in the Barrens, but the Caravan Clans always carried a viable fuel source, or rather it followed them.
Ariko, crumbled some of the fibrous flakes into a pile before striking her flint.
The dry cakes didn't take long to catch a spark and quickly turn into flames.
Ariko had pulled her eye protection away from her face, leaving them to hang around her neck before removing the earth-colored wrap from her shoulders and packing them away, before leaning back against the low wall next to the coddler.
The flickering fire-light glistened on Ariko’s dark bare shoulders and danced within her brown eyes as she sat there listening to the ambiance of the Barrens.
The wind was soothing, like that of ocean waves crashing upon the shore, and it cooled her from the hot day’s trek.
As the sun cast its last bit of light upon the landscape the sky became a beautiful aura of mixed hues of color, and then the wonderful patterns of a million white dots became visible.
Tilting her head back and taking a deep breath, before slowly exhaling, she gazed upon the night sky and let herself relax.
A dark winged shadow flew overhead, and within this, Ariko, let herself escape into the bird’s perspective.
She could feel the weightlessness of soaring upon high as she circled a few times and then climbed high into the air to survey the surrounding landscape.
Retracting herself from upon high, Ariko, thanked the desert bird before opening her eyes to the ember glow.
As she leaned over tending to the fire, Ariko, expressed without much concern, just outside the visible firelight, to the person standing within the darkness.
The Caravan Clans were not without their conflicts, but as a general rule it was always wise to scout a location, with the intent of proper introductions as to the nature of each traveler’s purpose.
It was no surprise to Ariko when a fellow Caravan Clansman set foot into the firelight.
She had seen him coming, along with his Trike, from the bird’s eye view, and let him know this through speaking in their native tongue.
Khuwonon was his name, and she had known him for many seasons.
He was strong, dark, a good hunter and would make a fine warrior, - if the Caravan Clans believed in solving their hostilities through violence.
- Other than the Carnivores, there were very few threats. -
Both sat within the fire’s glow as the night cooled and the waxing moon washed the land in blue-grey as the wind whispered across the dunes.
Ariko and Khuwonon exchanged stories of their travels as they lay opposite each other around the fire.
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Disappointed feelings were heavy on Ariko as she finally gave up searching the ruins the following day.
She was running low on rations, for herself and her Trike, and knew she needed to resupply before tomorrow’s end.
As they started their journey towards Ogniwo, Khuwonon, spoke of a place of potential.
Ariko knew the location and struck him with a defiant gaze, but her curiosity of the unknown bit harder whenever this location had been mentioned.
She had never let anyone know.
For a time; there was silence as they walked on.
Eventually the Barrens gave way to more abundant vegetation.
Fields of edibles and streams of clear water flowed, along with the ambiance of forest life.
The flyers nestled in the taller growth, as brightly colored insects danced from petal to petal, and the graze animals fed upon their selection of the day.
----
Khuwonon and Ariko nodded respectfully to each other as they entered the Burghal and went their separate ways.
Looking back towards Khuwonon, Ariko, shouted and pointed towards the sky and used a hand gesture to indicate a passing of seven cycles.
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Early morning.
The day of resting.
All was quiet except the gentle song of the flyers.

Ariko was waiting outside the gates to Ogniwo, meditating until Khuwonon arrived.
Feeling the vibrations as she sat next to her grazing Tike, Akiro, knew Khuwonon was on his way.
However.
A few more vibrations indicated the presence of another Trike.
Immediately collecting herself to a standing position, Ariko, peered around the opening in the gate which confirmed her feelings.

"Khu'in?"
Mentioned not was the presence of another.

With crossed arms, Ariko, stood waiting before snorting loudly at both men.
Khuwonon reached out a hand to Ariko with a bowed head and non-linear gaze as he bagan to explain in a soft whisper.
Emotions aside the three set out towards the Mirks.
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Chapter UPDATE 5-9-2018

Caravan Clan: Ariko and Khuwonon's Decent (Chapter III?)

Please note that this chapter (at time of posting) has skipped over a chapter that has not yet been written. The reasoning behind the madness. My mind works in weird ways and it’s better for me to get that chapter/part of the story out as quick as possible and then edit later each part separately so that the entire story blends together.

Enjoy!

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Ariko and Khuwonon slowly walked among the low ceiling room which contained rows of six foot tall towers with flashing lights and the occasional beeping.
When left alone nature seeps into every available space, except she did not penetrate this underground, albeit hidden, location.
It was strange, uneasy, to Ariko and Khuwonon which put them on the defensive and fully on guard.
The light that seemed to pear through windows in the ceiling were unnatural and winced out sporadically.
As they reached the end of the long room of towers, like standing guards, there was a heavy blue-grey door which was slightly ajar.
Ariko and Khuwonon looked each other in the eyes, with out speaking, and nodded to each other before pressing hard in an effort to squeeze through the tight opening one at a time.
On the other side; a descending staircase with which they saw a black sign on the wall, an unfamiliar symbol to them.
Ariko traced it with her index finger before turning to Khuwonon with a questioning look upon her face as Khuwonon expressed further puzzlement.
There was a distant clang, as the sound of something organic hitting steel.
Startled, but ever ready, Ariko fell in line with Khuwonon as they held their Quipf in preparation for whatever may be coming.
There was only silence from the direction from which they last heard the clang.
Behind them the faint whirring and beeping seeped through the big heavy door.
Khuwonon slowly gestured a hand signal to Ariko as he began ascending the stairs, his footsteps barely making a sound.
The vertical hall was a flickering mass of shadows dancing and playing upon its surroundings but, further down, Khuwonon, could see a steady stream of phosphorescent light.
As the two cautiously proceeded they knew now that they were not alone.
Upon reaching the final landing of the stairs, Ariko, fell once again to the strange presence that made her head swim with strange images and voices.
As she collapsed to her knees holding her head Khuwonon grabbed her by the bicep forcing her to her feet and, upon doing so, she seemed to snap out of the trance-like state once again.
Khuwonon gestured for both of them to ascend the stairs and make their way back outside, to leave this place and never come back. Ariko wouldn't hear of it and demanded they press on; further expressing that the lives of the others would be in vein if they had left now.
Besides; Ariko’s stubborn curiosity seems to always take over, especially when scavenging unexplored locations. And this was the most unexplored territory.
There was always talk about the Mirks, each clan having their own stories and ideas, with skepticism as to what lay beyond.
This was Ariko’s time to prove which were truths.

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ADENDUM:
Caravan Clan is mostly intact except The Mirks trek and the twist ending that reveals all.
Basically. It's Futuristic stone-age caused by a man-made cataclysm through gene manipulation and rebellions. 

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Disclaimer:

All rights are reserved to the creator (Geist Von PA).
This document (Entitled; Caravan Clan), partial or entirety, may not be reproduced or copied without the written and signed consent of the creator.
The depictions of characters, places and/or objects within this story are fictitious and are purely concoctions of the creator's mind and are not the subject of any person(s) living or dead.