*Choco Adventuras*

I've lived all my life on the cacao plantation, I grew up climbing the under-story trees to harvest their ripening fruits before the rodents could take their turn. I was 16 before I even left the plantation, to accompany the other men into town for supplies. I've lived here all my life.

I've watched as our income has fallen, relative to the cost of the supplies we need to bring in. As the mana that powers our machines has become scarcer and more expensive. Our cacaotero community will not survive another season without a change, this is known to all here, and the trend line isn't heading in our favor.

_{The shady undergrowth of the tropical cacao plantation has been my life.}

There is an expectation, someone in the community must bring back more mana before long. If we cannot power our machines to process and roast the cacao, there is no use defending it from the rodents. Someone must go.

And I suppose that among the community, there are children too young, and wizened elders too old. The engineer and the teacher couldn’t possibly leave their posts and I suppose the women are content to see which man decides to go. Everyone seems to have a plausible reason to stay, except me that is….well, me and Brody.

_{Our elders share the cross-generational wisdom of different types, mostly relating to cacao}

We’ve been eyeing each other, Brody and I, as the rainy season draws to a close, and the paths get to drying and becoming more stable and the time for someone to leave approaches. I suppose he can do the same calculation in his head, no one will say who must go, but there are expectations.

On the third growing moon after the wet solstice, I pack my things. I won’t make a big announcement, I can’t stand to hear the relief in their faces as they realize that they have forced me out; I love them, that is why I must leave them.

As I creep out of the north side of the planation’s barracks in the early morning in the twilight before dawn, I get swept by a wave of nostalgia, and I turn and look back. Soon this gaggle of huts, my community, will be out of sight, and I take a moment to savor the last bit of warmth that comes from being in a place where one is recognized and accepted.

_{Our hero looks back at his home before heading into the unknown. Photo Credit Ledis Arango V. @ecoinstante}

As I stand, breathing deeply the chill morning air, I hear a rustling of feet. From the corner of my eye I see movement, as I turn sharply to face whatever oncoming threat that chooses to challenge me before my adventure can even begin.

'I didn't think you would leave so early', a voice hisses out of the darkness. I immediately recognize it as Fanny, a friend and companion; of all the members of the independent cacao cooperative community, Fanny could have been a possible match for me, if things had worked out differently. She was neither annoying nor abrasive, both interesting and useful. She also had learned some of the elders cantrips which had come in handy when accidents occurred on the far reaches of the plantation...

‘You don’t think you can make it anywhere and back on your own, do you?’ she asked, pulling me out of my thoughts and back to the early morning light.

‘Hmmmm, I suppose I hadn’t yet thought about coming back….’

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This is an entry to the Chibera character contest, where we are basically building out some possible back stories for different characters as we prepare ourselves mentally for the alpha release of Chibera!

What is Chibera, you ask? It is a revolutionary new MMORPG game that is being developed, with all the power of the steem economy built in!

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