Tribe Rules - S01 E07

Story 2 months ago

Tribe Rules - S01 E07

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 7

Episode 7: Tribe Rules

Jide and Elena stood at the very bottom of the Black Mountain. Looking up was like looking at a giant sleeping monster made of dark stone. The peak was so high that it touched the clouds, and the clouds around it were not white and fluffy. They were gray and thick, like smoke from a dying fire. Jide looked at Elena and took her hand. Her hand was cold, but she gave him a small smile. They both knew they had to find the High Priest. He was the only person who could explain why their plants had no seeds and why their house was so silent. They packed their bags with a little bit of food and some water. They began the long journey up the mountain side.

The path was not a real path. It was just a narrow trail of dirt and sharp stones. Every step they took felt like a battle. The rocks were like small knives that poked at their shoes. As they climbed higher, the air began to change. It was no longer warm and sweet like the air in their beautiful valley. It became thin and very cold. The wind started to blow harder, making a whistling sound through the gaps in the rocks. It felt like the mountain did not want them there. It felt like the mountain was trying to push them back down to the ground.

Elena was very tired. She was a brave woman, but her feet were starting to bleed from the sharp rocks. She did not complain once, but Jide could see the pain in her eyes. He saw the way she leaned against the cold stones to catch her breath. Jide held her hand tightly, pulling her along when the path got too steep. As he looked at her, he felt a terrible weight in his heart. It was a feeling of deep guilt. He remembered the day he left the palace. He remembered his mother, the Queen, and the way her tears fell onto his hands. He remembered his father, the King, and the loud warning he had shouted.

Was this the sadness they had talked about? Jide wondered. He thought he was being brave by leaving his family for love. He thought he was being strong by ignoring the old rules of the Sun Tribe. But now, seeing Elena in pain and knowing their home was empty, he began to wonder if his parents knew something he did not. He felt bad for being so proud. He felt bad for thinking he was smarter than the people who lived before him. He wanted to say sorry to his father, but his father was far away behind the big wooden gates. All Jide could do now was keep climbing.

By the time they reached the middle of the mountain, the sun was starting to go down. But the sky did not turn orange or pink like it usually did. Instead, the sky turned a strange and spooky shade of purple. It was the color of a bruise. A thick, heavy fog began to roll in from the top of the peak. The fog was so thick that Jide could barely see his own feet. It felt like they were walking inside a giant bowl of milk. They had to move very slowly so they would not fall off the edge of the cliff.

Suddenly, the wind stopped blowing. The air became perfectly still and very quiet. Then, Jide and Elena heard something that made their skin crawl. They heard voices coming from the mist. The voices did not sound like people standing near them. They sounded like they were coming from everywhere at once. The voices were soft and dry, like the sound of old paper being crumpled. They sounded like their ancestors, the people from their tribes who had lived a long, long time ago.

Jide, the voices whispered.

Elena, the voices called out from the purple fog.

The couple stopped walking. Elena gripped Jide’s arm so hard that it hurt. Who is there? she cried out. But the voices did not answer her directly. They just kept whispering their names over and over again. It sounded like a thousand ghosts were standing in the fog, watching them and waiting.

Why have you come? the voices asked. Why have you climbed the mountain of shadows?

Jide felt a spark of anger in his chest. He was tired of the mysteries. He was tired of being afraid in his own life. He stood as tall as he could and shouted into the thick purple fog. His voice echoed off the rocks. I want to know why we are being punished! he screamed. We only wanted to be together! We only wanted to be happy! Why is the land dying? Why is our house silent? Tell me the truth!

For a second, there was no sound at all. Even the fog seemed to stop moving. Then, the ground began to vibrate. It started as a small shake, like a shivering dog. But then it grew into a powerful rumble. Jide looked up and saw a giant stone shifting high above them. The rock was as big as a house, and it was starting to slide.

Landslide! Jide yelled.

He did not think twice. He grabbed Elena by the waist and looked for a place to hide. Just a few feet away, he saw a small opening in the mountain wall. It was a tiny cave. He dove toward it, pushing Elena inside just in time. A second later, a huge wave of rocks and dirt came tumbling down the mountain. The sound was like a thousand drums beating at once. Dust filled the air, making it hard to breathe. Jide held Elena close, protecting her head with his arms as the rocks crashed past the mouth of the small cave.

They waited for a long time, listening to the rocks fall. Finally, the noise stopped. The dust began to settle slowly. Jide and Elena crawled toward the opening of the cave to see if they could still get out. The path they had been walking on was gone, covered by a mountain of broken stone. But when they looked at the back of the cave, they saw something they had not noticed before.

In the dim light of the purple sky, they saw a giant stone door. It was built right into the side of the mountain. The door was very old and covered in moss, but they could see drawings carved into the rock. On one side of the door, there was a symbol of a bright sun with many rays. On the other side, there was a symbol of a cloud with falling rain. The two symbols were joined together in the middle by a long, heavy chain. Jide and Elena looked at each other in surprise. They were standing right at the entrance to something ancient, and the door was waiting for them to open it.

Why do you think the sky turned purple and the fog brought the voices of the ancestors? Is the mountain trying to talk to them?

Jide feels a lot of guilt about leaving his parents. Do you think he should have listened to them, or was he right to follow his heart?

What do you think is behind the giant stone door with the Sun and Rain symbols?

The ancestors asked, "Why have you come?" If you were Jide, what would you say to the ghosts of the past?

The journey has led them to the door of secrets! Jide and Elena have survived the landslide, but now they must face the symbols of their tribes.

What lies inside the Black Mountain? Will the High Priest give them the answers they need, or is the danger only just beginning?