KUMAH

Chapter 6

Warriors in the village stomped the ground with the end of their spears in a rhythm that made the earth shake. Dingane narrowed his vision and bolted towards Kumah attempting a punch aimed at his right eye. Kumah ducked and landed a punch in Dingane’s left rib. The impact was almost pathetic. Dingane’s muscles absorbed the punch like it was nothing.

Dingane let out a chuckle and grabbed Kumah by the neck and threw him. Just as Kumah’s face was about to hit the unforgiving ground, a spear shot from the ground aimed at his face. Kumah noticed it just in time to shift his weight slightly, barely evading the blade of the spear by a hair’s width. He landed on his feet with an unsteady balance and felt blood trickle down his cheek. There was awe among the villagers. Kumah seemed to have kept his composure. Most people were intimidated by Dingane’s figure and would have mentally lost the battle before it even began.

Kumah was already at a disadvantage. He was fighting a prince with years of war experience and his bruised feet slowed him down. Dingane was strong but slow, he had to think of a way to beat muscle with speed. Kumah had managed to survive till now. After his clan was wiped out, he was picked up by a group of organized thieves. They taught him how to be sleek and fast when they went around picking pockets and running

away from guards. These skills could come in handy. Deep down he prayed for a miracle, he knew he wouldn't be able to keep this up with his tricks

for long before Digane caught on.

"You're fast. I'll give you that." Dingane said. He was impressed at how quickly Kumah evaded the spear attack. He was certain that spear would have ended the duel.

Kumah suddenly appeared in front of him with lightning speed aiming another punch at his face but Dingane effortlessly held the punch in his hand. Kumah’s hand sunk into Dingane’s huge hand. He then twisted Kumah’s arm and punched him in the stomach. The impact sent him flying and hitting the ground. Dingane sprinted towards Kumah who was still recovering from the punch.

He saw Dingane closing the distance. Each step he took made the ground shake. He quickly hopped unto his feet to counter the incoming attack. Dingane suddenly jumped over Kumah. Why didn't he attack? Kumah was confused. He turned over to face Dingane when he got a split-second signal from his vessel. He did an improvise back flip, evading the spear that appeared from above.

Dingane wanted to distract Kumah with a false attack so the spear could hit. Or did he?

Kumah was met with a foot to his chest. He let out a wheezing cough as Dingane sunk his foot into his chest.

The spear was a distraction.

Kumah fell from Dingane’s foot like a discarded doll. He struggled in vain to get up. Dingane kicked him in his abdomen and sent him tumbling on the ground. He coughed and groaned. He held his tummy and folded himself in pain.

Amahle stood amongst and watched, feeling sorry for the poor boy. She was surprised he had lasted this long. It was two things, either Kumah was good or Dingane was holding back. She went with the latter. She felt someone tug on the bracelet on her arm. She looked down and there stood Sipho looking concerned. He had his ‘’I have an idea look.’’ on and she didn’t like it. He pulled her out of the crowd

‘’Whatever you are going to say Sipho, no.’’ she snapped

‘’Come on Amahle, we have to do something. We both know he’s not going to win.’’ Sipho whispered.

‘’And just what do you plan to do? We can’t interfere with a sacred duel. Its a death penalty for that.’’ She said signalling to a nearby soldier who came for Dingane’s heavy wear. Her arms were getting sore.

‘’I could try getting into your father’s head.’’ Sipho said over the loud cheers that came from the ongoing duel.

‘’Bad idea, the last time you tried it didn’t end well. He has a strong mind.’’

‘’Then I’ll enter Kumah’s head instead and do something.’’

She let out a loud sigh. She knew if Sipho did something drastic, she would be held responsible. After all, Sipho was her apprentice and what could he possibly do to help Kumah? Definitely not stopping the duel, that would be suicide. Even if he managed to pull it off, what would be the implications? Would Kumah join the Zulus? No, there’s no way the Zulus would allow an outsider to become one of them.

A soft thud brought her thinking to a halt. Sipho’s body laid on the ground, lifeless. Her pupils dilated and begun to flicker. Shit! While she was thinking Sipho must have already jumped into Kumah’s mind. She looked around and no one seemed to have noticed Sipho’s fall…

Kumah felt a surge of pain as he struggled to stand. The fight was over before it even started. There was no way Kumah was going to win this and he knew it. He scanned the faces of the surrounding villagers and saw the faces of his people. His vision was out of focus and shaky. But it didn't matter to Kumah. He fell down to his knees to ease the pressure on his bruised feet.

"I was going to die anyways. So, what's the point in fighting?" He thought to himself.

There was a moment of silence. He closed his eyes ready for the strike that would end the duel.