Chapter 13: Chapter 13: DEATH I

The journey north was not nearly as awful as Sagiri had thought it could be. He had ended up sitting face to face with Captain Salka who was huge and kept looking at him with pity. He could not understand the reason behind his pity and so he closed his eyes and pushed himself into meditative silence.

“You are going to die in that school. Why did you pick it?” He finally voiced his reason for pity and for a man so confident to feel pity it did not sound good.

“Are you like twelve or thirteen?” He asked, making Sagiri snap his eyes open.

“I’ll be sixteen next month.” He answered wondering how big sixteen year olds looked like in the north.

“You are definitely going to die unless you magically add a hundred pounds and grow a bit taller before we arrive in Galka” he tsked shaking his head again. Sagiri could only feel honesty in his voice and feelings and that scared him even more. With every word Salka said Sagiri’s hate for his benefactor grew. This was the first time he had experienced total dislike of someone. The other four nodded in agreement with their captain and that put a little fear in Sagiri’s heart.

The landscape was neither dry nor wet. They passed arid areas and green ones and even thick forests. One thing however was glaringly obvious. Everyone in the North wielded some kind of weapon as they walked. He had passed the Zonuvaki warriors of the Zonuvaki tribe of the north bearing the death tattoos, they tattooed the number of kills on their backs and made sure to leave their backs bare as a form of pride wielding the double axes on their backs and The Nave clan who wielded double edged spears. They thrived on war and it was obvious.

The captain and his men got some stink eyes from passersby now and then and Sagiri even picked emotions full of hostility. Captain Salka and his men however did not cower or elude any feelings of fear in fact with every hostile look thrown at them their bride swelled and he could only feel their excitement grow. Their blood thirst filled the air and Sagiri could not understand their reaction. It was as if they were waiting for someone to threaten them directly so they could use it as an excuse to tear him to shreds.

He was truly going to die in the north.

Night fall soon fell on the horizon and the group pulled up in the clearing in the middle of northwest. “Lotaga , you stay with the kid, we will get the hunt” Captain Salka said in Korun and Lotaga showed visible distaste. He loved the hunt and Salka knew that.

“Why can’t Yavaga do it, he is clearly the slowest” Lotaga whined. The one called Yavaga did not like the insult and he launched himself at Lotaga at full strength, both of them making thundering contact. They rolled on the rocky terrain as if it was on soft grass. Sagiri was shocked at how fast they fought but when he saw the captain and the other two’s shoulders shake with laughter he knew it was a normal occurrence. The friendly brawl however did not look friendly to Sagiri. The two men moved with incredible speed and pummeled each other like it was a real fight.

“Who did you say was slow? Repeat it in your mother’s honour?” Yavaga bellowed.

“If you don’t stop, you are going to scare the child.” Salka said with a serious tone but they did not care. “I’m going to make you both babysit.” he added and they jumped apart so fast acting like good boys.

“I can sit by myself you all don’t have to worry about me.” Sagiri said in broken Korun intentionally. He was tired of being treated as a child. He also wanted a moment of silence alone.

“Good man” Lotaga was beside him in a minute. He tapped his shoulder as in a friendly gesture but it felt like a brick had been slapped on his shoulder and he lost his footing sitting on the rocky terrain with a thud. They all laughed at his weakness before disappearing into the night. They were surprisingly silent as they blended into the darkness. He put back his Oru-shells and shut his eyes. He welcomed the silence of the night breathing in deeply. He must have been naive to think they would take long because a few minutes later they were back and the smell of blood snapped him back to reality. He had never felt the smell of blood that strong even when he accompanied his mom rusha for house patients. The smell of death was so strong it made him nauseous. It felt familial and he stood up putting as much distance as possible between him and the approaching men who were now carrying a dead wild beast.

“You are scared of blood?” Yavaga exclaimed and they all looked at him as if he was an alien. It wasn’t the smell of blood that threw him off but the smell of death. He had killed small animals before but this was the first time he had reacted that way.

“Death.” He said and they all laughed even harder.

“He is definitely going to die in the north.” Lotaga added as they got to work. They tore the beast open with accurate precision before making a fire. The smell of burned meat soon filled the air driving away the smell of death and sagiri joined the men to eat. He did not eat much but to his surprise the men devoured the whole beast in one sitting and they still acted as if they were hungry. They scattered around the fire sleeping on the rocky ground with no care. They did not even care to leave one awake to watch. Sagiri lay close to the fire and closed his eyes. He was indeed tired because he passed out. But he was soon awakened. The ground under him had grown uneasy and the power inside him stirred violently, making him snap awake. The other five men were still deep asleep. That however was not why he had awoken. He felt them long before they approached. A dozen feet were approaching and shadows were lurking in the distance. He did not have time to think before he tapped both captain salka and Lotaga who were close to him.

The two men shot awake at the mare touch their hands curved into a murderous stance relaxing only when they saw him. No wonder they slept carelessly. Their senses were sharp when the enemy was close but his were sharper. He could feel the enemy a distance away and they were approaching quickly. He needed to inform the men.

“What is it? Don’t tell me you are afraid of the dark.” Lotaga mocked rubbing his eyes to rid them of sleep while salka gave him a death glare. The other men must have been disturbed by the belittle commotion and whispers because they started to wake up.

“Someone is approaching and fast,” he started and the two men closer to him looked at him as if he had grown another head. “Thirteen sets of feet.” he added after touching his hand to the ground to feel the movement. He made sure to put his hand close to the fire so they could not see his glowing marks on one hand as he counted the intruders. The two men looked at him as if he had grown another head and Yavaga went to get back to sleep but only for a second before he shot up. “A twig just snapped in the forest. I think we are in danger,” he said in the most dramatic voice and all the others laughed lowly. Did they think this was a joke?

“They are two vaara away.” He said in all seriousness getting up. From his position facing the night. If push came to shove he would have to unleash whatever was inside him to protect himself. After all his life came before his secrets. The men were still cackling when a twig snapped for real and they all jumped up alert and tense before taking protective stances protecting each other’s back.

“Shh…” Captain Salka said, giving hand sign instructions. The men nodded before Lotaga and the other two disappeared into the night in different directions so fast that Sagiri’s eyes missed them. They were a blur.

“You and Yavaga pretend to sleep.” He turned to Sagiri who was now tense as the approaching steps drew even closer, just half a vaara away. He went to protest but sat Yavaga already sleeping in the most convincing ’I’m dead asleep’ position drool rolling down his face. If sagiri could not hear his steady beating alert heart he also could have been convinced. He looked at captain Salka who was now oozing danger so much so he could taste it on his tongue. He was tense and deadly.

“Move. Now.” He snapped before disappearing so fast into the darkness that Sagiri missed him. For a man that size to move that fast and silent was the real danger. He lay down on his back, his senses sharp and pretended to be asleep.

The night went deadly silent for a few heartbeats but the ground under him still stirred silently as if moving to the beating of his heart. He felt seven pairs of feet move slowly towards the fire. They smelled of the desire to kill and revenge that Sagiri wondered what the captain and his men had done to deserve such hatred. It was slightly more deep and intense than what he felt for his benefactor. They moved even closer and he could feel every muscle in his body tense. Pretending to be asleep while a killer moved closer to you was harder than he thought except in that moment he heard Yavaga snore and matter nonsense as if he was dead asleep.

“You said they were five, I only see two,” one voice whispered right above Sagiri’s head. He was so close sagiri could smell his feet. “You said that the Asakana eyesore was here. It is just a kid and a stupid looking moron.”

“He is still wearing the Galka elite uniform. Just kill him and the kid. We can find that Asakana leech and kill him later.” Another voice answered before Sagiri could hear knives getting unsheathed and he couldn’t take it any longer. What if this was a plan by his ’benefactor’ to eliminate him. He had been naive far enough but not any longer. The white in his eyes disappeared and he snapped them open ready to defend himself but instead a warm liquid spattered all over his face and he froze as he watched a head fall and roll beside him.

A severed head.

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