Penetrating the tribe (For Lotus Maiden)

Charles Dobson stood on the deck of the small steamer as it chugged slowly up the Amazon, looking out with his binoculars over the broad river and endless expanse of forest. It was hot and steamy, but he was wearing his tweed jacket and puffing on his pipe. He had been lucky enough to be selected to take part in the Geographical Society's 1926 Amazon Expedition, and at 33 he was one of the younger members of the team, taking a year off from his academic research at Oxford. There were scientists of all sorts on board the vessel - ornithologists, botanists, geologists and meteorologists. Then there were the archaeologists, a linguist, and a missionary to bring the good news to the natives. He himself was an anthropologist, interested in making contact with some of the more remote tribes, especially those who had not yet been discovered, and studying their culture and rituals. As well as the scientists from Britain and America, there were the ship's crew, chefs, and a few guides, porters and translators on board.

That evening, the ship pulled into the shore near a small settlement and moored for the night. Eager to make contact, Charles disembarked from the boat, taking his notebook and pencil and Pedro, one of the translators, with him. They padded through the soft mud in the fading evening light towards the huts. A couple of men emerged, wary of the foreign intruders, but they were delighted with the gifts of British pennies that Charles had brought along with him for precisely this purpose, and soon more of the villagers came out and seemed happy to talk. Charles quizzed them - through Pedro - about their way of life, beliefs, and society, and took copious notes in his little book. Since they lived right on the river, they were used to visitors, and had come across white men before, so they were not really the people that Charles had come to study. But they told him a story of another tribe who lived deep in the jungle, that simultaneously amazed, thrilled and horrified him. He was not sure whether to believe them, as it seemed impossible, but he was so fascinated that the story might be true that he resolved to set out into the forest the next day to try to find out for himself.

Lyta lurked behind the thick lines of trees. Her ebony skin blended in with the shadow. The little fabric she wore camouflage with the greenery. Her dark eyes watched the ship pulled in and two ghost-like figures stepped out. Their skin was well hidden under layers of cloth. Little flesh that is exposed was pale like ghost. At least they were tall and sturdy built as if they have plenty stamina. They were different, yet striking nevertheless. They came with gifts and infinite amount of questions. One of them didn’t even speak the native tongue. Yet there he was trying to blend in and talking up a storm.

Lyta had heard about these boat-visitors, whom came frequent and stirred enough chitchat that even the deep jungle spoke about them. So she decided to venture off and see them for herself. She watched them with great interests and lost track of time. It was nightfall before she knew it. She camped out and slept under the night sky until the next morning.

She awoke by approaching footsteps. When she opened her eyes, one of the boat-visitors hovered over her. Startled, she sprung to her feet, pushed him to aside and darted off.

Back on the boat, Charles slept uneasily, disturbed by dreams as a result of the strange story he had been told by the people on the riverbank. If it was true, and he could be the first to properly record and document it, it would be a huge story and a great boost for his career. But common sense told him it couldn't be true. Maybe it was just a legend. Or perhaps Pedro had misinterpreted something they said. But they had apparently said, and repeated, that about 20 miles away from the river, there was some kind of community, or tribe, consisting only of women, seemingly in defiance of basic biology.

Early the next morning, to try to beat the heat, Charles and Pedro set off into the jungle, taking with them some clothes and food, notebooks and pencils, and a Bible so that the Good News could be brought to these poor people. They hacked their way through the forest with sticks and a knife, following the remnants of an old trail. It was hot, hard work. Suddenly they were startled by a young female figure, almost naked, who jumped up in fright and pushed and ran past them, disappearing quickly and nimbly into the undergrowth in the direction they were heading. Charles thought this was an encouraging sign, and they battled on through the jungle.