Ichewa

By Joshua Suares Antony

Ichewa, the son of the Kulgan tribe's chief, sets out on his three-day journey into manhood. Just turning twelve, and slated to one day be the chief of his tribe, he is to go out into the rainforest and spend three days fending for himself and subsequently finding himself.

But instead, he finds something that is about to endanger his tribe and his way of life.

In a drama filled with gut-wrenching twists and nail-biting suspense, the ending is not at all what one expects from this slow-burning coming-of-age tale.

But just as he finds himself, he also finds that the world is not at all what his childhood had promised him.

Follow Ichewa on his journey into manhood to find out how it all ends.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Red Scorpion
• Release date: Apr 21, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201981709

Book preview

Prologue

The towering trees of the Amazon threw the ground below them into shadow. Aided by the clouds that showered the ground in rain, the forest was a symphony of tweets and patter. The insects burrowed into their muddy homes and climbed the trees to seek refuge from the torrent. Preparing to receive a new member of the Kulgan tribe, the animals and critters of the forest were doing their best to radiate positive energy into the jungle.

The recent fires of the tribe located at the edge of the Amazon had sent waves of warmth into the forest. Sensitive to all energy, the animals and critters had formed an associative pattern that began with such warmth and ended with the entrance of a young member of the Kulgan tribe into the jungle. And just now, another round of warmth was beginning to spread through the trees of the Amazon rainforest.

Chapter 1 Departure

The chants droned on . As he sat by the fire, watching the flames dance, he felt the anxiety he had been enduring for days cease to exist. With the end of the downpour, the stars had grown visible and covered the land in a glow of peace. Twelve and nearly a man, Ichewa was about to embark on the most important period of his life. Preparations had been made ever since he was born, and his father was hoping he did well.

With white paint on his forehead, Ichewa listened to his fellow tribesmen chant their traditional chant always done the night a member of their tribe was going to enter the forest. It was some time before the chants ended. But they did, and with their conclusion, young Ichewa’s anxiety returned. He grew uncertain, afraid. Never before had he experienced these emotions in such concentration. He retched.

The fluids doused the fire, and darkness descended at once on the group. The members of the tribe stood around its leading members, for the most part with their mouths wide. Some looked on with smug expressions, others with sheer surprise. Some feared for the boy, and others simply did not know what to think. But what they could all agree on was to not get involved.

Realizing what he had done, Ichewa sat back up and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. The son of the chief, he found his mistake sickeningly embarrassing. The very fear of his father’s anger made him want to retch all over again. No, he thought, nervously, I must not.

No one spoke. Then the voice of Ichewa's father, Wachewa, was heard. His baritone voice carried his words across the entire party assembled with roaring authority.

Ichewa!, he bellowed.

The boy did not respond. He kept his head down.

That was a sacred fire. For the gods, did we burn that flame. Your protection was asked by them through those fires. Your disrespect and lack of stomach disgust man and god, alike.

Ichewa felt tears welling up. The second son of his father, he felt his older brother had always been preferred. Two years older than him, Kachewa had completed his three-day test without any mishaps. He was so mature one might have said he entered the forest a man and came back a beast.

For your disgraceful act, the chief continued, you will leave without the guaranteed protection of the gods. If you return, you have a place in the tribe. Otherwise...

A moment of silence hung over the assembled members of the tribe. For Ichewa, it felt like an eternity passed before a voice was heard. Wachewa’s wife, the chieftess of the tribe, spoke. Lekya’s was a gentle repose and a sweet contrast from the gruff register of her husband.

Have no fear, my son, she said. Seated directly in front of Ichewa, amongst the elders, she observed her child with kind but firm eyes. Now. Rise. The son of the chief and the chieftess slowly got up. He stood, but he stood like someone enveloped by fear. His head hung down, and his shoulders were caved in. He was not too fit like his brother. That disappointed his father and made him feel a small, though nonetheless present level of embarrassment among his fellows.

Prepare to leave, Ichewa, his mother said.

Making his customary bow before his parents and the elders, Ichewa turned and walked away from the drenched campfire. Doing his best to keep himself from running, he felt his heart race and his body turn cold. The pressure was mounting. The members of the Kulgan tribe made way before him, and it wasn’t long before his facade broke down. Ichewa ran, tears rolling down his face.

It had not been ten minutes before he came upon the empty