Iris

The Vuvalini

            "You are much stronger than you think, Iris"

My mother's voice rings through my head as a speck of green appears in the distance, contrasting against the bleak desert landscape. Home. Sand whips against my face, stinging my sunburnt skin. The guttural roar of my motorbike vibrates through my skull as my group and I drive towards the Green Place. I glance down at my empty canteen, and scold myself for finishing the last of my water an hour ago. How could I be so stupid? Traveling far from home without enough to drink can be a deadly mistake, and we can't afford to lose any more of our clan.

We, the Vuvalini, have been surviving on this planet for generations. Many years ago we were a strong band of nomadic women originally called the Many Mothers, who managed to survive after the human race killed the earth. Amongst the sand and desert, the very first members of the Vuvalini found sanctuary on a wide stretch of land where the Tasman Sea once was. These women grew a new world from a few seeds that they had managed to save, and from there, new crops began to grow in the fruitful soils. In the years since the Many Mothers first settled at the Green Place, we've had to protect our land from thieves and intruders who want to exhaust the last of Mother earth's resources. The rest of the world is dry and barren and there are few habitable places left. War has broken out over any area that can sustain life, and the Vuvalini have vowed to protect the Green Place at any cost.

It's been many moons since we've had contact with another civilization. The Many Mothers used to trade with a nearby village that provided us with ammunition and guzzoline. They called themselves the Calupes. Some of the mothers who wanted kids would form relationships with the men there, and bear their children. But soon their water became contaminated, and sickness wiped out the population of the village. Our home, The Green Place, is starting to die as well. We have held on for as long as possible, but vegetation has stopped growing, and our crops have dwindled down to almost nothing. Now, we send out a search party every so often to try and find more people like us. This is my third journey outside of the Green Place, and my hope of a better future is fading fast. Many of our members have fallen ill from lack of nutrients, and we have no medication to save them. There have been eight deaths in the past month, and if we don't find help soon, the fate of the Vuvalini will be grim.

I turn, to look back at the four other members in my search group. We're almost home. Alice, our search party captain, hasn't spoken since we started the ride back. There's been talk amongst the Mothers about the future of our people, and the somber energy around the Green Place is poison itself. My mother told me that some of the women in the treatment hut are so far gone that they can't even remember their own names. I fear that one day, mother will fall to the same fate, and will no longer recognize me. Sometimes I have to wonder if there's even a point to survival anymore. I've thought of running away many times before. Everywhere I look, someone I love is suffering, and another pound is added to the weight sitting on my heart.

Slowly, the sand underneath my bike turns to mud and then grass as we pull up to our home. The smell of fuel lingers in the air. I hate it. It reminds me of how we got to be in this desperate situation. Women gather around our bikes anxiously, but the glimmer of hope in their eyes slips away as Alice delivers the disheartening news. Cassia, the oldest member of our clan, steps forward. She's very small in stature, but her timeworn appearance shows her maturity and wisdom. Her salt and pepper hair has come loose from her tight braid, forming in tangled wisps around her face as she speaks.

"I'm sure that this news does not come as a surprise to any of you. We have known for months that our time here at the Green Place is coming to an end. For now, all we can do is try to hold on to the remainder of our crops, and hope that we can somehow come to a solution." Cassia lets out a short breath, "I suggest that you all go back to what you were doing before, so that I may have a moment to discuss things with the search crew." She turns to face us. "Let's go somewhere a little more private, shall we?"