Chapter One
'The Fifty Meter Wall, Part One'


The trees are our friends... The trees are our home... The trees are our life...

The leaves are turning colours. The deep shades of mustard seed yellow, burnt orange, and rust-red show signs of the changing of seasons. It also means that the weather will be getting colder soon and that we must find a place to remain warm. It is hard when you have to remain constantly moving. The lifestyle of a nomad is a hard one during the colder months, but in the end it means safety from the real monster; something much more terrifying than nippy winds or shorter days. The true enemy… The Titans.

The elders tell the stories of the beginning of the Titans. They the creatures first appeared more than a hundred years ago. The Titans are nothing more than human-like monsters. They are terrifying. The shortest of them is twice the height of a normal human, while the average usually ranging from seven to fifteen meters in height. To make matters worse, these humungous monsters ate humans. They ate humans not for substance, but for the mere point to eat humans. The stories say the Titans were sent to earth by the gods to punish the humans for their greediness. The humans had become weak due to their material possessions. They lost the ability to value life, so the gods sent the Titans to bring back that value.

The humans came close to dying completely off until the prophetess, Atua Teka, received a message from the gods. She was told to head for the trees. She headed off for a nearby forest filled with towering trees. Only a small group from her village followed her, while the rest stayed behind and tried to fight off the Titans. It turned out the Titans couldn't climb the trees. It turned out that Atua Teka was correct to leave too as the Titans attack her old village soon after she and her group left. Her group was safe from any and all Titans.

Time carried on and the trees became home for Atua Teka and her group. The group grew from other travels seeking safety and soon became known as the Tribe of the Trees. The tribe would hope from tree to tree, not staying in the same area every night. It confused the Titans, not allowing them to swarm in hordes on known locations. It is a practice still done to this day. We in the tribe can easily walk the branches that it is easy to go from one to another. With the weather becoming a bit bitter, it is a bit harder, but we can still move. We have to in order to survive.

My name is Vesa Hollis. I have lived amongst the Tribe for my entire life.

"Vesa! Hurry up!"

The shouts come from my not much older sister, Amisi. She is only three years to my senior, though acts much older. It can be annoying at times, but I can feel the love when she bosses me around. It is the only thing keeping me from snapping back.

We are on the move, like every other day. We only carry what little we own, so at least the trip is light-weight. I only have my blanket, a water canteen, some trail mix, and a slingshot I made. Weapons are illegal in the tribe. We are supposed to trust in the gods to protect us. And it is not like I don't believe. Trust me, I do. I made the slingshot back when I was just a kid. It wasn't meant to be used as a weapon, only as a toy. I just know though the leaders would take it the wrong way just by looking at it. So I keep it hidden.

"Vesa!" Amisi shouts my name again, bringing me back to my senses.

I am standing on a thin branch, meters above the very much solid ground below. Looking down, it can make any guy a bit queasy. I normally don't have much issue, but then again I don't normally look down. I quickly dart of the branch, joining my sister on a much thicker branch.

"Sorry about that," I apologize.

"Seriously, you keep this up and we might leave you behind," she teases.

"You wouldn't do that," I say.

"I might not, but Oku Pono just might," she says, all of the sudden her tone becoming serious and hushed.

She gestures to the man leading our tribe amongst the branches. An older man, about mid-fifties, stands there. One would think he would look brittle and deathly like many other elderly in the tribe, but he appears quite the opposite. He stands with his back up straight and his expression alert. One might even call him intimidating, if not downright terrifying. His name is Oku Pono and he is the leader of the leaders of our tribe; the head honcho, the supreme man. He has the ultimate decision when it comes to leading the group. Oku Pono is apparently the direct descendant of Atua Teka, our first leader. That makes him untouchable and his word law. The rest of the leaders are really just for show when it comes to him.

I make direct eye contact with him as I stare at him for too long. A strong scowl overtakes his face before I manage to pull my gaze away.

"Ah-oh looks like he caught you looking," says Amisi, still serious. "Not good. You know he may just punish you for looking at him the wrong way."

"Is there a right way?" I ask.

"Hush!" Amisi says, placing her hand over my mouth.

I have never had much respect for the man. With all the great tales of Atua Teka, one would think her descendant would at least compare to her. But no, Oku Pono is nothing more than some sleaze. The only reason why the rest of the tribe cannot see that is because the either have rose-coloured glasses on or they are too afraid to think otherwise. My sister is one of the latter. She knows what power he has, so she keeps her mouth shut. Well, I'm not afraid.

"Just shut up and keep moving," she says, finally taking her hand away once Oku Pono stops looking. "And let's hope he didn't hear you."

She walks away down the branch, following the rest of the tribe behind the old man. I stand alone. I hate seeing my sister scared. I don't like to think of her as weak or breakable. In fact, she is really brave in many situations. She can look a Titan in the eye and simple walk away when many people would be shaking in their boots. But when it comes to Oku Pono, she is petrified of that man.

I begin to follow behind the group. I'm usually one of the last, with the elderly and ill, so today is nothing new. No what is strange is my friend, Thales, also being in the back. I look around and find him behind a small group of the ill, hanging on his own. He is normally near the front. He is a social butterfly; hates being alone. So that is why it is so strange to see him doing just that. I fall back in order to be right beside him. I match his pace, which is rather easy seeing how it is slower than the slowest.

"What's the matter?" I finally decide to ask.

Hours seem to pass in silence. I know it is only minutes, maybe even just seconds, but the silence is almost unbearable. It feels like I'm being weighed down by the heaviness when Thales finally decides to talk.

"What if you learned everything is just a lie?" he whispers.

"What are you talking about?" I ask with a chuckle.

It is a silly question; everything you learned is a lie… Who wouldn't chuckle?

"I'm serious," he says, stopping my awkward attempt to laugh it off. "Don't tell anyone, but I went out last night."

I almost fell off the branch. Leaving the protection of the tribe is strictly forbidden. If you were caught leaving, you might be banished completely.

"What do you mean "went out"?" I ask, though already knowing the answer.

"I needed air, so I just went to walk around some nearby trees. A few trees turned into more and before I knew it I was well away from the tribe," whispers Thales. "But that's not what is getting to me. I saw something…"

"What?" I ask.

"A wall," Thales simply says.


So this is the start of my new story. Unlike many before, I am starting away from the walls and the cannon characters. Instead I decided to start off in an unnamed forest. I will tell you, to avoid confusion, that the tribe is in a forest outside Wall Maria. We'll get to the wall next time.

Vesa Hollis is the narrator right now. He is a 17-year old nomadic boy. His sister, Amisi Hollis, is 20-years old. Thales, no surname, is 16 and Oku Pono is 54 and is the direct descendant of Atua Teka, a prophetess from close to ninety years ago.

If you have any questions or comments, leave a review. I will try to answer any questions. Trolls, flamers, and all-around asses can leave. You can also fav/follow so you're up-to-date on any and all updates. I also have another story on this profile, that if you're into Hunger Games you should check out. Thank-you and hope you have a spectacular day! 3