Shumba was the most muscular of the five and he was almost as tall as Cheetah. He could have been described as the perfect “war hero cliché” : Tall, with a gargantuan physique that looked like it had been chiseled for ages under the tools of the most competent craftsmen.‘Shumba’s field of expertise is bravery,’ the chief said. ‘Up to now I don’t think I’ve met any man as courageous as him,’ the chief beamed proudly at Shumba. ‘He once single-handedly killed a crazed female leopard with a broken spear.’Shumba tightened the seriousness of his face as if this was his counter response to Tawana’s undying smirk.‘And finally, we have Kamba: the Tortoise. He is the wisest man I know and sometimes I summon him for advice.’Tortoise was very short and stubby which made his physique look like a warning to any potential bully, but his skin looked soft. His face looked very calm.‘Well…’ the chief clapped his hands, ‘I think that’s all of them,’ he grinned and turned around to

Hippo looked to be even more up for serious business when he greeted Tawana.Tawana had managed to grab hold of the black mamba’s head but that was after it had attempted to bite him thrice. He was now in a great deal of shock and wondered what kind of inhumane “training” Hippo had in store for him.‘I know you’re royalty, but when I’m training you, you’re a dog!’This insult caught him by surprise. His bladder betrayed him and let loose a few drops to the ground.Hippo led him around a mountain and they stopped in front of a very large boulder. It was the same height as Tawana but as wide as three Hippos standing side by side.‘You see that tree over there?’ He was pointing at a tree about a hundred meters from where they stood. ‘Every day, starting tomorrow, I want you to move this rock an inch a day. Failure to do that and I will give you five strokes on your calves with a whip.’His heart sank with fear and disappointment. He had heard that the training of the

The rest of the team began rushing to his aid.Mandebvu sunk his teeth into Mamba’s throat before running off into another part of the bushes.Brahmuhn knelt beside Mamba. His throat was grossly wounded. Mamba only breathed twice before his eyes closed.In anger, Hippo pursued the lion, hurling his stones at him.‘My chief!’ Tortoise called out to Brahmuhn from behind the bush that Mandebvu had leapt from.Brahmuhn was broken. ‘What is it?’‘I have found the child.’‘Is she alright?’‘She lost a leg but she will live.’Brahmuhn clenched his fists in fury then he stood up. Cheetah had been kneeling beside him and also equally horrified by Mamba’s death. ‘Tortoise…’‘Yes, my chief?’‘Watch over the girl. Cheetah and I will kill Mandebvu.’ Brahmuhn and Cheetah sped in the direction Mandebvu and Hippo had headed.

‘When, your greatness?’ Shiri asked him sounding desperate.‘When I am done grieving, Shiri. When the Vadhindi, the soldiers and my people are done grieving.’‘But even grief is meant to be temporary, my chief,’ Dombo tried to reason with him. ‘The Ndebele could attack us whilst we are still “grieving”. ’‘Dombo is right, Your Greatness,’ Gumbo said, ‘if the Ndebele find us in such a vulnerable state, I’m quite sure they won’t wait for us to finish grieving.’‘So what do you suggest?’Dombo cleared his throat pretentiously, ‘I suggest we mobilize the army fast and strike them hard and scatter the dogs into hiding.’‘Is that a unanimous suggestion?’ Brahmuhn asked eyeing Gumbo and Shiri.The two nodded simultaneously.He grabbed his knobkerrie from beside his throne and stood up. ‘I’ll have to think abo

Brahmuhn was sitting on his throne, all alone in the room. Besides the grief for his father, Chief Kindi and his two comrades, Mamba and Hippo, he was also meditative of the impending war which would take place the next day. The third Elder, Shiri, came in walking in hurried paces. ‘What is it now, Shiri?’‘My Chief, it is very urgent…’‘You know very well that you cannot consult me in the absence of the first or second Elder.’ Brahmuhn sounded very irritated. He had grown weary of the Elders. He had always watched them as a child when they provided his father with “advice” and never really saw their importance and therefore never grew to tolerate them. He began to see their services as irrelevant to the chiefdom.‘Forgive me, my Chief but I have to tell you this.’He sat up straight. ‘Then out with it.’He knelt at his feet. He was breathing heavily in anxiety and he was ne