23 - Into the fog

Chapter 23 (Into the fog)

“Commander Thalko gave me three rules.” Tsote began after a node from Commander Thalko. “The first of which was never to encounter his sister Mama Erusa whatsoever. Rule number two was to ensure I never left the village. The third rule was to refer to him as father like all his other children. I have obeyed these rules for the last thirteen years. And it has not been easy most especially when Commander Thalko had to leave to serve you.” Tsote spoke.

“That is understandable. But how when and why Mama Erusa got to you…!”

“I loved her stories. Everyone did…” Tsote told the King boldly. “-but unlike the other children, I dared never to get close to her, never said a word to her. I never received one of her good dreams blessings whenever the other children did to bed. It required us holding hands… ”

“Child talk…!”

“Day came and the night fell. I prayed the nights came faster because I was bullied, despised and treated peculiar during the day when I had a father in a king. When I found out I was of your blood, questions became inevitable. When I crossed river Ulewo, I did not come to mock you father.” Tsote continued “…I only needed to know why me. But the guards wouldn’t listen to me.”

“To be a true son of the King, you were just required to focus. Learn and ensure your Kurota manifested because it is what defines us. The Kurotandi games will not have mercy on you. The warrior laws won’t recognize your royalty or bloodline.”

“But…”Thalko began.

“The best you ever did was look towards the peak of Olkai hill. Reports have reached me you did not only cross river Ulewo but raced further up…” The king spoke. “Does that sound like you only needed to speak to me?”

“You ignored me but whatsoever I was…”

“You did not find me and so…”

“I cried out to you…”

There was a moment of silence. “And so went head straight into the enchanted fog uphill… How exactly did you survive within the – “the king asked just when something came to his mind. He froze in his steps.

“I couldn’t enter the fog because…”

“You don’t think you came to fool me. My guards saw you. What did you use?” He said coming closer and adding. “Because only and only Olko magic can allow you safe passage through that enchantment of the fog. How?”

“I, I was knocked out by one of your guards, I fell, I fell off the path down into a hidden hole where I couldn’t easily climb out of…”

“Wasting my time…” the king spoke and drawing closer to the Halfling child with a disgusted and impatient look. He motioned to the guards. “Guards…!” 

The guard straightened up for his next Instructions. “Bring me his left eye…”

Tsote is seized at once. His struggling could not help him. The next moment he was out lain back against a slaughter tree stump facing up in a strain. Your men held him down as one took a hook-like object. Thalko rushed out after the guards. He was shocked by the king’s unceasing madness. The child was being dragged out! Thalko was confused for what to do and say next! He staggered out and back in up to the king and said.

“What if the child dies my King…?”

“He is lying. The best he has learned till now!” The king sneered from a side.

“You need to let him participate in the games.” Thalko told him. “That alone could force his gift out…”

“Then they know he is here! They know he is near and they will come for him if…” the king spoke with tension in his tone.

“We cannot panic because we don’t know for sure if he met his mother…”

“You should have done better… just as I required of you!” The king spoke turning to Thalko. He walks past Thalko. Thalko looked on blankly. 

“My apologies.” Thalko said with a little bow. “Nonetheless I would also advise that you…”

 “I need no more advice from you. I have listened to you enough times!” the king shut him up.

“You do need my advice…”

“I no longer…”

“Then I won’t be able to keep him a secret any longer from the council unless…”

The king looked his direction and froze.

“Unless what?”

 *** 

The hook was about to touch Tsote’s eyes when the king exited his tent calling out to the guards to stop. The hook was an inch away from Tsote’s pupil when the guards stood back releasing him. Renso looked puzzled and annoyed at the men. However, he had no gap left him to help the boy. He knew him and loved him whatsoever! When Thalko and the King exited, the guards showing he had struggled with them at some point while the King and his commander in chief urged held him.

“Release the child…” came the king. “And have him escorted back to Sambura where I shall find him.”

And he turns to leave he signals to the master of his servants to prepare for the next (-would be last) hike up the hill. Tsote felt a sign of relief as the guards released him but still terror filed his face. He did not know whether he was right to feel annoyed and disappointed at his father but that was what he took him for! He had just showed it.

 He looked towards Thalko. Their eyes locked the same moment when the guards picked him up again and the King turned back to his tent. His senses told him this could not have happened if it wasn’t for Thalko. He felt glad but still he would miss the Kurotandi game. What was this to mean for him, a male trainee yet to turn fifteen years of age without his Kurota!

Thalko glanced back at the king and bowed before he turned towards Renso and summoned over. 

“You will be captain of the escort guards. Once you get to Sambura, leave the child to Yolo, captain of the King’s palace guards.”

Renso nodded. It was not long when the guards collected. Tsote would travel with Renso for the rest of the way and the rest of the guards would escort them from the front and the rare. The child’s life was very important and almost half of the king’s guards went with the escort team. This is when Tsote confirmed he was not just a common child raised on a usual Yakunko village Marakusha. He glanced back across river Ulewo. 

The birds chill chirped and the cheer and screams of excitement about the games rose li roars above the trees. He watched the past games and loved them. His worst part however always was when everyone needed to change for into the Kurota. He dreaded what was within his peers. And he wished it never manifested in him. It is as if his prayer worked but not exactly, as he grew up thinking. Something else was keeping his Kurota and gifts from manifesting.

They traveled northwards first, this time they branched off the route Thalko and his caravan used two days back. Because he had to pass via Nyathiku Village and meet the elder. This time, the journey would lead straight to Sambura without having to go through the Great Plains. They needed to stay out of sight of any travelers for a one good reason. The Halfling child who the guards themselves never knew until the day he went past their watch!

The whole time he did not stop thinking about Makita. She was worried the last time he saw her. Maybe that was the very last time he would ever see her. And what exactly was the king going to do with him in case he turned fifteen without his Kurota manifesting! He decided to ask Renso.

“Why did you do it...?” came Renso. He interrupted with his question first.

Tsote was silent for a while. They were crossing a distributary when they spotted hoof prints of large elephants. These were the same tracks they saw when the Shorango people passed before them on the edge of the Great Plains last time. Strange flowery plants grew within the bases of these prints. It was magic indeed.

“I did not intend to annoy father Thalko… I only-”

“Rules are meant to be broken to some extents and I’m asking why…” came Renso again with a straighter repetition. “-Why? Did you have to go that far?”

“I couldn’t get out of the hole. I called for-“

“Don’t lie to me too. I know you have Olko beads. I saw them the night before you left. You had a night mare and they were glowing upon your chest.”

Tsote looked up at Renso. He normally returned came to sleep after having inspected the village guard to their stations and ensured they were all fed and changed. Much of the time, Sakitha N’meru was fast asleep to be fresh and ready for the next day’s hunt most especially if she would go hunting. 

He was quiet.

“Tell me. Nothing is new coz I knew a few things about you. Thalko and Mama Erusa told me…”

“Mama Erusa…?”

“Yes. She did not come to Marakusha to see Thalko the very first time she came.” He told Tsote who looked confused all over again. So Renso knew! Nevertheless, how much did he know? The wise owl would not be pleased if he revealed everything he saw and heard because someone fooled around with his understanding! Before he could start, the guards at the front called out a warning with a horn. One yard away, the Untu fog crossed their way.

This was unfortunate for them if they needed to be in Sambura before nightfall! The fog was haunted and no Yakunko in possession of a Kurota could cross the fog without Olko beads around his neck. The depth mattered. Because the longer one with a Kurota lasted n the fog, the lesser he breathed and the greater the loss of his or her control of their Kurota. The fog was enchanted from the past using Olko magic. 

Nevertheless, if the fog trail was not deep, they could race through it to the other side without much effect. They needed to know the depth first and Renso had Thalko’s birds. He took the cage from the wilder beast they were ridding and whistling, he released them out into the fog. He did not stop whistling! The birds flew straight in and as they went, he changed to counting his whistle in beats. It took around three minutes for the birds to return. 

Normally, the fog could be safe to race through when the birds did not last longer than two minutes. Three was not safe. They captain of the king’s guards insisted they raced through to the other side lest the fog just spread as the night came. Renso refused. He was in charge here. Nevertheless, when he thought about the possibility of the fog spreading over the night, he had to give in.

They started forward into the fog. They were racing through… half way to the other side; they heard a ghostly growling voice through the fog almost all around them. Renso instructed them were not going to make it they turn back. There was confusion. Some of the men urged they went on to the other side while others automatically turned around. Amidst this confusion, a ghostly Kurota figure rushed from the back and snatched one of the men leaving nothing behind. This is when the men drew back.

“Hold your ground and light the torches again!” Renso called to his men as they took into a formation. He instructed they continued forward. He drew his bow and arrows the moment the first man disappeared yelling in pain. 

They did not see what took him. Tsote looked so hard into the fog. His heart hit so fast when he realized he was not seeing anything. The men knew they could not manifest their Kurotas within the fog. This quickened the loss of oxygen maddening their Kurotas. They dared not! Nevertheless, whatever the intruder was required their inner Kurota to face. Renso did not dismount from his animal. All of a sudden, the creature came again like a dark figure upon four limbs through the fog. 

It came straight from the opposite direction and swept the men aside, knocked Renso and Tsote off their animal into the mud. The animal was dragged away into the fog while some of the men panicked to let out their Kurota. Whoever did lost their ground and steadiness. The Creature disappeared with Renso’s animal the birds breaking free from their cage in terror. 

Tsote rolled over to his knees and as fast as he could, he felt for his beads. but was it the right thing to do? The moment they fell and their animal dragged away back into the fog, men thrust their spears at the creature but they did not catch it. The fog was thick. And by the time Renso rolled back to his feet, his animal and the ghost were gone.

“Tsote?” Renso called to him after having seen him reach for his Olko beads. Tsote looked in his direction and saw what he meant. He had seen him. “-don’t you…!” following that, he started quickly towards the boy. “You know who this is…”

Tsote was confused. He wanted to wear them all the same but Renso took his hand and held it down.

He shook his head. The fire torches were lit again in a hurry and the next command came.

“Secure the boy…!”

Renso spoke as the men rushed back into a ring around the boy. The circle was disorganized due to about what exactly the ghostly figure was here for. Next Renso stoop up with his arrow ready in aim. He pointed this and that way but nothing was coming at them anymore. They waited another whole minute just when one of the men called out.

“Captain, we are losing breath…” he spoke in heavy gasps.

“Let’s move but in a…” Hardly had he completed his next command when the ghostly figure dropped down on them from above throwing all of them into different direction. The men were terrified. They crawled back. Renso saw it coming and dove out of the way. He released the arrow in his bow lit with fire at its tip and some powder Tsote did not understand when he saw him dipping the edges.

The creature lashed forwards into the men, whoever dared to thrust a spear at it! He tore them apart in such a bloody manner while the others who dared run for their lives the creature cared less about. Tsote was confused when he saw the creature diving at this and the king’s men as if to check their faces. Renso took aim again as the creature twisted the neck the man who should have been captain of the transfer. 

He took aim and this is when the creature turned into his direction with all furiousness. He rushed with some bit of fidgeting and took aim. As the creature started towards him, he yells out to Tsote…

“Run you fool. Run for your life…!”

Tsote sprung to his feet and ran but backwards for he knew less how far ahead, they had to go to exit the fog. The last thing he saw was Renso releasing the arrow. Then a piercing scratch of a cry from the creature. He did not miss this time. The creature fell back! The black powder he dipped his arrowheads into was ghost repellant. How and where he got it from no one knew but the moment the creature got up again, he rushed to load another arrow. 

Tsote started running. Nevertheless, he realize he was not going fast enough. Renso was finally starting to loss his breath too and his Kurota was appearing in glitches. He hurt but he took out the bows and arrows and aimed again, when he pulled at his string it broke. The creature was starting towards him. He took the arrow left in his bag and spilt them into two of his hands. And stood his ground ready to clash with it. He yelled. Tsote heard but by the moment the cry sounded, he had the beads around his neck…

“Beads?” He called. The name had escaped his mind. Renso started forwards too towards the creature just when it stopped in its tracks and turned! It had sensed the Halfling child for whom he had come. It turned around for him…

Renso did not stop but started though the bodies of his escort team all lain back torn and dead to go and save the Boy. The creature was fast but the moment Tsote called the beads their right name given them by he himself, they started him forwards! Tsote glanced back and saw it coming. It was close to him, it leaped and he rolled out of its way. This race resembled the pacing in his last dream about the hunt and Mama Erusa. She meant to give him a message when she took him to King Oladiya’ tomb side. This could be the reason. He needed to take caution! He felt its scratch across his back but and from a stagger, he increased speed until the fog started to clear before him.

He made for the clearing but the ghost Kurota was not going to give up. Unfortunately, it was bound to roam within the fog. When it started clearing, the creature’s pace reduced. It started struggling to reach him. It was disintegrating and pushing forward like someone trying to get to the other end of a thinning passage of thorns. Pieces of it started peeling away from it like thorn were tearing it apart. It struggled and all of a sudden sucked back into the fog.

Tsote tripped over a rock ad fell over. He rolled over several times before he hit a dead stump of a tree. He had undergrowth in his ears, hair and mouth. He spat and quickly stood up! He started back towards the fog. He needed to know if Renso made it out of the fog. Nevertheless, he was not appearing. He called out to him several times but Renso did not respond.