The Wobbly Wallaby

By Mike Skillicorn

A book about courage.
A mob of wallabies lies on the brink of starvation when a drought strikes the harsh Australian outback.
Unwilling to endure the conditions any longer, a single wallaby with a bad knee gathers the courage to leave the protection of the mob to seek out a better place.
Joined by two of his closest friends, the trio begin a wild adventure through the perilous and unforgiving land.
Danger follows in every footstep, until they are finally forced to confront their gravest fear...
The dingoes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mike Skillicorn
• Release date: Apr 4, 2016
• ISBN: 9780994508805

Mike Skillicorn

Mike Skillicorn is an Australian author and software architect living in Sydney, Australia. Born in Newcastle, New South Wales, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and maintains a passion for the environment and animal conservation. He loves to travel, especially with his snowboard and when he can find a spare moment, enjoys playing guitar.

Book preview

THE WOBBLY WALLABY

MIKE SKILLICORN

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locations is entirely coincidental.

The moral rights of the author have been asserted.

Copyright © 2016 Mike Skillicorn

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted by any means without the prior permission of the publisher.

Published by Skill Enterprises Australia P/L in 2016

Cover Design by Nieves Barreto. Instagram: @nievesbarretoart

ISBN-13: 978-0-9945088-1-2

http://www.thewobblywallaby.com

For Ruby,

without whom this and many other stories,

would have never been told…

…and for the wobble in all of us.

CONTENTS

First Light

The Ridge

Billabong

Goanna

The Wombat Hole

Departure

Alone

Fire

The Leap

Arrival

The Passage

Reunion

Acknowledgements

FIRST LIGHT

I won’t hear of it! the mob commander roared.

He was a gruff, old wallaby, his once stocky frame now showing the signs of a losing battle with age. He had led the mob through every summer of Wally’s life and his unwavering word was law amongst the wallabies.

We will do what we always do, we stay together and see this through. I know it’s dry, but we’ve been through times like this before. We sit tight, stay put and wait for the rain, he snapped, his temper shortened by the cheekiness of the young wallaby.

But we won’t all survive, Wally pleaded, trying to convince the commander that it was time to move the mob on. There’s not enough to eat and every day we wait is another day closer to one of us starving to death. It hasn’t rained for months and there’s no sign of a change coming. Look at the mob! They’re all skin and bones. You have to move us on.

Nonsense! The commander’s dark eyes bore straight into Wally as he spoke. The longer we wait the more likely it is that the rain will come. It can’t stay dry forever. We will wait it out and that’s all there is to it. If that means some of us starve, that’s just the way life is. You and I can’t change that. We’re wallabies and that’s our lot.

You can’t just let us waste away! You’re our leader! Wally argued, his voice rising in frustration.

Enough! shouted the commander. He lowered his voice to a threatening whisper. The rain will come. You’ll see. I’ve made my decision and it’s for the good of the mob. You would do well to stop complaining and try to set an example by making the best of it. I’ve been fair to you Wally, considering the trouble you’ve caused with that leg of yours, now get back to the mob!

The statement jolted Wally, though he knew it was true. He had been born with a bad knee on his left leg and he had caused more than his share of trouble in the mob. Unlike the other wallabies, Wally had always been unstable on his feet, so Wobbly had become his nickname. When the mob travelled, no-one wanted to be too close to Wally because once he was in full flight, a failure in his knee could send him flying off in any direction. He had crashed into trees and other wallabies. He’d even crashed into the mob commander once; an indignity he was sure the commander would never forget.

Wally turned and went back to his place in the mob, dejected and humiliated. He looked over the mob of tired and hungry wallabies, their skins stretched over their bones, their fur tainted red by the dust, knowing that he looked just like them. The drought had been relentless; years of long dry spells that stole the life from the earth and all that lived upon it. Now, with the commander’s words echoing through his mind, he realised there was only one thing for him to do.

I have to leave.

Hearing the words out loud was like hearing the door to a journey swing wide open.

Come on Wally. You can’t just get up and leave, said Jake, surprised by Wally’s sudden outburst. The mob stays together because there’s safety in numbers. We all look out for each other. That’s the wallaby way, it’s what wallabies do.

That’s just what they tell us Jake. There’s only safety in numbers if you’re not the weakest in the group and if it doesn’t rain soon, we’ll all take our turn at that.

The truth was, everyone was aware how bleak things were in the mob, but no one had shown any conviction to leave the mob because everyone knew the consequences. Now the thought was released, it was irresistible in its rebellious appeal.

Look, Jake, Wally said after a pause, you’re my closest friend, you’ve stood by me more times than I can remember but there’s not enough food for all of us now. I can’t just watch the mob starve or worse, become too weak to out run the dingoes.

Jake looked at Wally, shocked that Wally could even think of breaking the wallaby code but he could see the determination in Wally’s eyes.

I’m leaving in the morning. That will be one less wallaby to feed here. I know it’s against the rules but I can’t stay here and starve. Who knows, maybe I’ll find better grazing a little further out.

If you wander off alone the dingoes will pick you off before you’re even out of earshot, Jake insisted.

Maybe, said Wally, but I’ve made up my mind. I’m leaving while I still have the strength. First light.

That night Wally barely slept, his thoughts churning over what he was about to do. It was madness for sure, it was going against everything he had been taught, but something inside him told him it was the right thing to do.

In the morning he rose just as the first light of the red sun broke over the dusty plain. He paused, the striking colours of the new dawn lifting his spirit against the weight of the moment, when a voice startled him.

Well come on then, we can’t stand around here all day looking handsome, there’s adventure ahead.

Jake! What are you doing here?

I’m coming.

You’re what?

I’m coming with you. After all, someone’s got to look after you, haven’t they? he said with a grin.

Wally’s heart filled at the thought of having a friend along, but he knew his friend was taking a great risk. They both were.

There’s no coming back, Jake, you know that don’t you? We’ll be banished.

Banished from what? There’s no food, we’re all starving. I thought about what you said last night and you’re right. This is no way to live. We need to move on. And look who else feels the same way.

Another wallaby emerged from the dim light of the dawn. Well boys, which way are we heading? asked Peg with a smile that never seemed to leave her lips. It seemed nothing could get her down, not even the drought. Wally couldn’t think of two better companions to have along.

East, Wally said and just like that, the three wallabies left the mob behind, plunging into the heart of the sunrise.

THE RIDGE

The morning hours passed quickly as the thrill of the adventure carried the wallabies deeper into the journey and further from the mob. Escaping the bleakness of the mob seemed to put an extra spring in every leap they took; even Wally had been travelling well. But as the sun climbed higher in the sky, the intense heat soon took its toll and Wally’s knee began to misfire more frequently.

Hey, how about a breather? asked Jake, sensing his friend was tiring. We’ve been hopping all morning.

What’s the matter Jake? Can’t keep up? Peg was ready for a break too, but Wally’s occasional misfires were keeping her in good spirits. It was hard not to laugh at the sight of a wallaby