Nature Rules - 2022 WATTY'S SHORTLIST

Kicking Horse and A New Mom

When Adam forces the groaning Nakimu doors open, a blast of hot air and sand rush past me, blinding me for a moment. This journey is going to be harder than I think. We haven't even made it out the front door and I already want to go back inside. I've grown used to the cool cave air and having food and water anytime I want.

The sun hits my cheek and I feel it blistering immediately. The air is so dry outside of the moisture-controlled settlement and my mouth feels like I have socks stuffed into it. I've been pampered over the last months and didn't realize how much I had gotten used to living in comfort.

As the mob of us moves slowly forward I turn for one last glimpse of Nakimu. I learned a lot here. About my skills, what I can do, what I can't do and who I am. Adam stands tall beside the cave doors. Ready to close them behind us. The Keeper will be heading to another city for the census and won't make the pilgrimage with us. Did he find Trunken? Is the Waterstealer out there? Following us?

I look to the east, that's what I should be thinking about. It's time to think about the future. And getting my family back. I bring my arm up to wave to Adam but stop in mid-air. He can't see me in this large mass of people pulsing up the mountainside.

***

Me, Crinae and Hyla start the hike to Calgary in the middle of the pack but we pick up our pace and edge closer to the front of the group. The Nakimites leading the trek don't have children to weigh them down but keeping time with these adults is already making me tired. I know Crinae won't be able to take this fast marching for much longer. I don't really care about Hyla.

I have to slow down. Crinae and Hyla naturally follow suit and we fall behind the front group. Soon we're walking alone while the others, along with Solomon and Katherine, forge ahead. Far behind all of us are other the settlers – the families and seniors. Every so often when I get to a crest on the trail, I see them off in the distance, shimmering amidst the rising dust and haze.

We left the summit of Nakimu and had a lot of ascents and descents through the mountains. Up, up, up and down, down and down following what used Solomon says was a former cross-country highway. Old pieces of pavement jut out here and there from the sand. I watch where I place my feet otherwise I'll trip over corners of the old asphalt. Rock walls rise high on some sides of the path and on others, there's a sheer drop into a valley of wasteland: boulders and more boulders.

By the time the sun slides into the middle of the mountains, we've caught up with the adults, who are resting in the shade of a peak.

"Want something to eat?" asks Katherine, holding up some hard bread.

"Yeah," I say. My stomach is crying out for food.

Katherine divides the morsels into three and we get our cups out of our packs. I pour Crinae and myself some water using my skills. Hyla can get her own. She knows what to do. A twist of my wrist fills up a cup quickly. It's thanks to Mr. Cho's extra lessons that I know what to do.

Softening the bread in the water I take a bite and lean against a rock. Looking up at the sky, all I see is orange. No blue today. Too much dirt in the air. The weather wasn't going to hold us back though. Only a sandstorm would do that.

"Come on," says Katherine. "We're leaving."

After the short rest, the head group is walking again. They're not waiting for the families and elders to catch up.

As I stand, I notice how sore and stiff I am. My neck aches, my back hurts and my legs are shaky. I thought I would have been in better shape, especially since I used to hike up and down a mountain carrying buckets filled with water almost every day. I got too cozy at Nakimu. My legs don't move too quickly and once again, we slide further and further away from the adults.