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2024-10-29 19:42:56The Zulu territory….
"Sipho, try not to sit near the edges of the canoe alright?" Sarh said moving his long brown hair out of the way as he prepared his fishing net.
"Sure, thing Sarh." Sipho replied shifting away from the edge of the canoe
"I can tell you're really excited." Tamba said paddling the canoe with carefully rehearsed strokes.
"Well, yes this is my first fishing experience." Sipho laughed. He placed his hand in the water and let out a happy gasp. The cold feel of the water tickled his fingers and he watched his reflection dance to the rhythm of the water.
Sarh and Tamba were young twin fishermen who have been fishing since childhood. To be honest they only brought Sipho along with them because of his vessel. He could smell any living thing from a mile away. This was accompanied by an usual large nose. There were only few Afikans born with parts of their body as vessels They have been finding it hard to catch fish for the past few weeks so they sought help from the main Zulu kingdom and Sipho was the help they got.
After hours of fishing with Sipho's help they managed to make a bountiful harvest and it was time to head home. The sun was already setting and the night was upon them. It wasn’t safe to be out during night times, especially not while the westerns were hunting down the blacks.
Tamba took a gulp of water from his oak bottle and passed it on to Sipho who did same.
"That nose of yours works pretty well." Sarh said "You'd make a great warrior one day." Sipho smiled and shook his head
"Well, I don't really want to be a warrior. I want to learn western knowledge. What they call ‘science’. It fascinates me. I’ve already acquired some of their content. I haven’t tested their theory yet but they do look convincing.’’ Sipho said.
The twins looked at each other, confused. There is no way the westerns would teach a black the way of science. They only taught their children and used the blacks as slaves.
‘’Maybe after this war ends Sipho but now I doubt any if the westerns will be welcoming.’’ Sarh said.
There was a moment of silence. Despite their efforts to stay alive the war has taken a toll on everyone. Families have been destroyed and people were always on edge.
Sipho caught an unusual scent. He looked up into the sky as if he was looking for something.
"Something wrong?" Sarh asked.
Sipho continued sniffing around. The twins looked at him confused. Sarh shook his head, he knew Sipho liked to play games.
"I'm getting an unusual scent.’’ he said sniffing around ‘’An eagle."
"That's ridiculous, Sipho. Everyone knows eagles don't fly this far." Sarh argued. Sipho gave Sarh a disapproving look as if telling him that doubting his sense of smell was a bad idea.
"Over there." Sipho pointed in the direction of the scent.
Tamba paddled towards that direction. They saw an eagle from a distance. It looked like it was standing on the water. Confused, the fishermen looked at each other. Eagles shouldn’t be able to stand on water that wasn’t normal. But in this world they give in, there’s a really thin line between what’s normal and what isn’t. They got closer and the eagle cried. The scream startled the two and a half men.
They noticed the eagle was made of pure silver and had eyes made of diamond. It looked like was a vessel. It stood on a body like it was protecting it. Sipho smelled the blood from the floating body.
‘’Stay alert guys’’ he said ‘’The blood is fresh whoever did this might still be around.’’
‘’Do you think…?’’ Sarh said looking at Tamba and then at Sipho.
“Hmm westerns.’’ Tamba snapped reaching for a spear next to him. Just in case.
‘’Could he be one of our people who wondered off.?” Sipho asked
‘’Only one way to find out Sarh said ready to pull in the body. The eagle flew and landed on Sipho’s shoulder. Sarh placed his hands carefully in the armpits of the body and attempted to pull it in. He struggled before Tamba came to help. They pulled in the body.
The scar on Kumah’s chest immediately stood out as blood trickled down and soiled his shirt.
Sipho took a closer look at the wound. Traces of gunpowder was evident. However, the wound didn’t look fatal. He was confused. Gun wounds were fatal. He tilted Kumah’s head looking for a clan crest on his nape.
‘’Huh, no clan crest.’’ Sipho signalled the twins to have a look. ‘’It looks like a scar. Could he be a slave who tried to run away?’’
Sarh looked at the silver eagle on Sipho’s shoulder. ‘’I doubt that.’’ He said. ‘’That vessel doesn’t look like something a commoner would possess. Besides, the westerns would like to know what they buy. They make sure every slave has their clan crest.’’
‘’True’’ Sipho agreed. ‘’We cant just leave him to bleed to death, lets get him to the village.’’
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KUMAH Chapter 9
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Chapter 24
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Chapter 23
Sipho walked through the dark eerie forest. The sun had set and the predators of the night were wide awake. The moonlight fought its way through the thick leaves of the forest trees in vain. Sipho could hardly see. Lucky for him he had a keen sense of smell and little light rays that managed to beat the competition helped him to navigate his way through the forest.He carried a bag full of food supplies, Amahle’s potions and some water. He didn't expect Kumah to have made it this far in one night. Sipho’s feet hurt from walking all day. He decided to catch his breath under a tree. He pulled out his bottle and took a sip of water. He sighed.He looked up to get a glimpse of the night sky. The large leaves of the trees brought him back to reality. “They just had to choose the perfect hiding spot for the scout village” He thought to himself. Sipho continued walking till he reached the forest border. The forest was surveyed and safe zones were separated from the dark zones by a magic b
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Chapter 22
It's Jayde at full speed coming straight for Brett. He ditches the walking stick and races through the boulevard gate. Jayde throws a small dagger at Brett only missing his cheeks slightly, but He did not flinch. A ruthless determination keeps him going. He enters a building and climbs up to the first floor pushing anyone who stood in his way. The guards yelled “Hey! no running in the hallway”. Oblivious to their screams, he continued to the second floor. They stared at him and stared back at each other confused. Jayde suddenly bolted past them with incredible speed.While Jayde realized she might lose sight of him, she brushed her fingertips on the walls just to have a glimpse of the blueprint and his location. She smiled. Brett keeps running after what feels like ages, he made his way up a spiral staircase with a small door at the end. He bangs the door open without hesitation. He’s already on the roof. He closed the door behind him and turned the key which was hanging from the lo
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Chapter 21
The day was long gone, and the night was young. Jayde walked into an inn, The Wanderer's Rest. The place was crawling with drug dealers, bounty hunters and assassins who knew her pretty well. She looked around for Brett. Of course, she didn’t expect him to be sitting amongst these people. She did see a whole lot of familiar faces. Some she worked with and others who didn’t want to relive their days with her. “You lost, pretty girl?” A man with a deep voice stood up from his table and walked towards Jayde. She watched as he approached her. “What’s a pretty face like you doing in a place like this.” He spoke Jayde said nothing. She wished she could cut that attitude out of him and shove it up his ass. “You know, I could buy you a drink then we could head upstairs to my room and get some action.” He said licking his lips. At this point Jayde had already pictured him without an arm and her sword deep within one eye socket which should be the ideal case but she had a gut feeling that t
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Chapter 20
EUROPIA CITY Dignitaries gathered at an unknown location to honor the death of Admiral Yvet. The event was held in a huge building which Simone could tell cost a ton of gold to build. It was premium from top to bottom. The event hall was huge and stretched far as the eye could see. She could hardly believe such a building could even exist. The lamp-stands were made from pure gold and the attendants were nothing less of beyond rich. She stood next to Cateline consoling her while holding Zoey’s hand. She spoke to familiar people who were surprised to see her since she disappeared. She scanned through the crowd for Berthold. He was busily getting drunk on wine and trying to pick up the single ladies. She shook her head. Jayde walked through the rich crowd with a tray full of wine glasses. “May I have another glass?” a familiar voice said. Jayde turned to see Kira behind her. Kira was dressed in a long black dress decorated with diamonds. The silver bracelets she wore complimented her e
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Chapter 19..
The next day, the village was lively as usual, everyone was going about their assigned duties. Amahle was attending to the sick in the infirmary. She begun wrapping a piece of bandage on the arm of a soldier who gut cut during practice. She couldn’t shake off what happened last night. She felt guilty for allowing Kumah to leave the village and she didn’t want to think of how she’d feel if Sipho finds out. She’s been avoiding him so far but sooner she’d have to tell him the truth. “Argh!” the man winced. Amahle was brought back to reality by the mans groan. She must have wrapped too tight. ‘’Sorry!’’ she exclaimed The man chuckled. Amahle’s cheeks turned red. The man was in his late thirties, quite muscular as expected of a Zulu warrior. He had long hair and an overgrown beard. ‘’Everything okay?’’ He asked ‘’I’m not the one with the bandaged arm.’’ She snapped. The man was shocked at her response. There was a moment of silence before she realized that he was just trying to be
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Chapter 18
Zulu scout villageThe sun was setting and everyone was preparing for the night. Kumah sat next to a camp fire in the middle of the village with the spear in hand. He examined it from the tip of the blade to the handle. It was elegant. Dingane had already left for the main Zulu clan and he was left thinking about what Dingane said.‘’Mind if I joined you?’’ Sipho askedKumah looked up to him, ‘’Sure’’Sipho smiled and sat next to Kumah. ‘’that’s a cool blade.’’ Sipho said. ‘’Where did you get it?’’‘’Oh this, Dingane gave it to me.’’ Kumah said.Sipho’s eyes lit with excitement. ‘’A royal blade, that’s awesome. Can I hold it?’’‘’Sure.’’ Kumah shrugged.‘’You better not touch that blade
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Chapter 17
Jayde and Kira stepped through the portal and arrived on the main deck. The air smelled of algae growing on the sides of the ship. They walked down the stairs into the orlop, passing through a corridor. The crew were busily attending to their assigned tasks. Some looked at the duo with disapproval, others with fear while some just minded their own business. They stopped in front of a room. Kira knocked. The peephole opened and a familiar pair of eyes looked through. ‘’Hi Big Ben!’’ Kira said He grunted and opened the door. Kira and Jade walked in before he shut the door behind them and leaned on it. Jayde hated Big Ben’s presence. His name was a perfect description of the man. He was huge. Too huge he had to bend slightly when walking through the ship’s corridors. That became his normal posture after bending too often. He looked like a hunchback. Jayde liked to be the dominant one in the room, she hated feeling small. It brought back glimpses of her past. The
