The Stolen Goat Boy
Chuma, as our story begins, is an 11-year-old boy living in a Yao village in East Africa. Intelligent and perceptive, he yearns for his initiation as a tribal warrior. His line of Ancestors in the Yao tribe is a strong one, and he is eager to earn his place in that history. But Fate has different plans for Chuma. He never becomes a Yao warrior. Within 10 years - as he grows from boy to man - he crosses oceans, grows up amongst strangers, travels into the unknown and suffers betrayal. Accounts of his bravery spread from tribe to tribe, continent to continent. And thus he becomes a legend, changing the course of African history forever.
“He died after a short but stirring life, having in his own special way, done so much to open up Africa...” (Joseph Thomson 1882)
The Beautiful Apprentice
Entika is an ethereal 13 year old girl who travels with the Oracle, Umi, learning and waiting to become a channel for The Ancestors herself. She was chosen as the Oracle's apprentice because of her skills with animals, intuitively understanding them and also being able to coax them to do her will. As the story develops, she grows into a stunning, talented young woman, acting for Umi as the old Oracle's strength wanes. Although Entika does not share Umi's visions of Chuma, she knows in her heart that their destinies are intertwined.
The Devil
Shetani is an Arab-African, 23 years old, and already has a terrifying reputation as a vicious warlord. With bands of child soldiers he is ruthless in his pursuit of land and power, and amasses more and more guns and slaves to further his ambitions. He was thrown out of his tribe with his left hand grotesquely burnt and deformed, a warning to all of his evil nature. Brutal and undeterred by his disability, Shetani revels in being called "King Cobra", as he is always braced to strike to kill, and loathes any form of weakness.
The Oracle
Umi is an ancient woman who roams from tribe to tribe, acting as the Keeper of Time for The Ancestors. The Ancestors utilize her to maintain the balance between this world and theirs - her visions warn of impending dangers, her skin reflects the alignment of the stars and time, and her energy waxes and wanes as the tribes flourish or suffer.
The Good Doctor
Dr. David Livingstone is 48 years old and by 1863 is a celebrated explorer. He is publicly revered for his bravery, his understated faith and his self sacrifice in service to the British Empire. Now he is on the brink of disgrace, recalled to England having failed to establish a safe missionary outpost, or to establish a navigable river route through the heart of Africa. As he returns to the coast, he rescues Chuma from Arab slavers. A man of exceptional intelligence and determination, his extraordinarily harsh childhood turned him into a lonely workaholic, his zeal outweighed his judgment and his persistence tilted into a manic obsession to stop slavery. Livingstone himself wrote "No great work can be accomplished without pain and suffering, and even death"
The Gentle Giant
Susi is 20 years old when he meets Dr Livingstone. Working for an Arab slave trader, he gives up his position to travel and protect the good doctor. A physically imposing giant of a man, Susi continues to dress in the long white shirts of the Arabs and often wears a turban, but his views on slavery are much altered. Fiercely loyal, he becomes Chuma's right hand man and his geographical knowledge is unrivaled.
The Ruthless Henchman
Dambala is 25 years old and fascinated with terror and pain, curious to test the limits of people's screams. He has filed his teeth into sharp points and he is amused at the fear provoked by his horrific smile. As Shetani's henchman, Dambala has ample opportunity to add the ears of people he has slain to the gruesome necklace he wears. Unlike Shetani, Dambala is not interested in wielding power, but enjoys eliciting terror in his victims.
Some Other Notable Characters
Wakatani is a famous, Zen-like Yao warrior in his late twenties. He understands that traditional weapons will not protect his tribe. He forms a close attachment to Chuma and will do whatever it takes to procure weapons and gunpowder to free and defend his tribe from slavery.
Henry Morton Stanley is 30 years old, with an overwhelming sense of self-importance and fantasies of unlimited success. An ambitious journalist, he wrangles a job from The New York Herald to find a man who wasn't lost. Unlike Livingstone, he travels in extravagant style with a massive caravan, is quick to anger, and he is unnecessarily cruel to those who serve him. A true narcissist, he is intent on advancing his personal notoriety and desperate for respect.
Wainwright is Stanley's skinny African majordomo. Educated by missionaries in India, he is fluent in English. He knows absolutely everything and chatters away in an annoying description of time and place. He wears an ill-fitting English suit and spectacles that are as out of place on an African expedition as he is.
The Khoisan Twins are a delightful and charming pair of trackers that Stanley hires in his search for Livingstone. They travel extensively with Chuma and company. Always together, always moving ahead, their language is a gentle cascade of clicks and pops.
The Chieftainess is the head of a well fortified Yao village. She is an imposing leader who has adapted to survive the scourge of slavery, and is paying a significant price for her tribe's protection from Shetani and his minions.
The Lion Man had his tongue cut out by slavers, and escaped to head a band of mountain dwelling rebels, always ready to lend a hand to those who oppose Shetani.
Along the journey, we also encounter:
The Painted Trickster Tribe - The Keepers of the Dead - The Tall Tutsi - Indian Sepoy Soldiers - Boychild Kalulu - Chief Chitambo of Benguelo - A Network of Arab Spies - Notorious Slave Trader, Tipo Tipo - And many more.