Brahmuhn’s three Elders were quarrelling amongst themselves, obviously in his absence.
‘What I can’t figure out is why the brute is still alive?!’ Dombo ranted.Gumbo had his thumb and forefinger on his chin, immersed in thought. ‘Those were well over a thousand Ndebele warriors!’ he said looking gravely disappointed.‘How do you know? You weren’t even there,’ Shiri said.‘Dombo and I sent spies to spread threats and insults to their gods and to their ancestors and lied that they were from Brahmuhn to provoke wrath from them,’ Gumbo informed him. ‘In addition to that, the spies also sabotaged their wells, burned a lot of huts and killed a few dozen women and children in the villages. We were positive the Ndebele would attack with a vengeance that could not be quelled, let alone countered!’‘How absurd is that!’ Shiri looked flabbergasted. ‘That would mean the Ndebeles would kill everyone in our village including you!’‘Absolutely not,’ Dombo said. ‘We had made a de‘I have been sent to congratulate you on your victory by the first and second Elder.’‘Acknowledged.’Shiri raised his head slightly. He saw Buhlebenkosi and flinched.‘Is there something else, Shiri?’ Brahmuhn asked him.He quickly turned his eyes to the ground again, ‘No, Your Greatness.’‘Then leave. And never show yourself to me on your own without either the first or second Elder.’‘Yes, Your Greatness.’‘So are you with us, Shiri?’ Dombo asked him when he had come back from Brahmuhn’s hut.‘What?’ Shiri was totally in another world. He had been pondering over what he had seen inside Brahmuhn’s hut.‘We said we bribe one of the soldiers to kill him in his sleep!’ Gumbo told him getting impatient.‘Kill him in his sleep?’ he almost laughed in mockery of their plan. ‘Do you even know how loyal
He tossed his mbanje to the side. ‘What is the meaning of this, Dombo? Gumbo?’ He asked them as he stood up.The two Elders began laughing wickedly.‘I fail to find humor in my question,’ Brahmuhn said, looking furious.‘That’s funny because we find humor in your very existence,’ Gumbo spat at him with a look of disgust on his face.The Vadhindi stood up in fury but Brahmuhn restrained them with a gesture of his hand. ‘What do you mean, Gumbo?’Dombo chuckled, ‘Do you consider us ignorant of your repulsive deeds?!’Cheetah tried to reach for Dombo’s throat but Brahmuhn restrained him again.Brahmuhn gritted his teeth, ‘If you do not explain the meaning of this, I will have you speared within seconds!’Gumbo turned around and clapped his hands loudly to get the villagers’ attention. There was a great silence. It was as if this action held some unseen unnat
‘It’s what my father would have done. A good chief loses his life for an innocent one.’ With these words he left.He returned later in the evening. Buhlebenkosi was still sitting at the far end of the hut in the same position he had left her. He ignored her and continued towards the gourd of water.She looked curious. ‘What now?’He ignored her and kept gulping down the contents.‘Hey!’ she shouted.Silence.She stood up and walked towards him.She spun him around so he could face her but with such effort. ‘Can’t you hear me!’He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. ‘I’m sure you heard what I told you earlier.’‘But your response was just out of pride. It’s not logical and I want a clear answer!’He gave her a brisk shove which knocked her to the floor buttocks first. ‘I already told you, woman that no harm shall fall upon yo
Brahmuhn was shattered by the Elders’ decision. He realized that he should have had considered Shiri’s words before Dombo and Gumbo had executed their plot against him. Another ironic twist, to Brahmuhn, was that he had actually disrespected Shiri more and he, Shiri, was the only one of the three Elders who had actually cared about him. If only he had listened! Now it was too late. The banishment was official. The village was now a distance from him as he walked slowly towards the forest. He was carrying nothing except his knobkerrie and a small pouch both tied to the side of his loincloth. The pouch was loaded with mbanje. He liked his mbanje very much. It always distracted him from his worries and grief. He was smoking it while he walked, pondering over the people he had left behind: Buhle, his trusted comrades-in-arms and the Vadhindi. He blew a cloud of smoke into the air. His eyes were beginning to turn red from the smoking. He began swaying sideways, mu
He nodded his head slowly. ‘Are you not Brahmuhn?’‘That’s “Your Greatness” when a dirty rat like you is speaking to me!’The man did not look offended. ‘All the Ndebele tribes know about you…your victories…’‘Who doesn’t?’ he laughed, returning his knobkerrie to his side.‘I am Bhekumuzi. I am the chief of this village. We are truly grateful for your help in chasing away the Ntokoloshi from our village. They have been terrorizing us for many years, burning our huts and abducting our children, but after seeing your mark I doubt they will ever show their faces here again.’‘Yeah, whatever. I deserve a reward for this. Or else I will be the new toko…toko…whatever nightmare upon your village.’‘Uh…sure…anything,’ he stuttered, now becoming afraid of what wrath Brahmuhn might unleash upon them.Brahmuhn l
‘Your worries should not be placed on her, my chief. Only a man with a death wish shall wish to harm her, and if they do harm her, I shall die as many times as the bruises they inflict upon her.’Brahmuhn nodded and beat his chest with his fist.Tortoise responded with the same action. This was their way of showing gratitude and respect. This was their way of showing how much they meant to each other. This… was a way of saying goodbye.‘Forgive me, Your Greatness but…where are we going?’ Cheetah asked him after they had walked for quite a distance.‘I don’t know.’He stared at him, confused, ‘But, Your Greatness…’‘Where did Shiri go?’ Brahmuhn interrupted him.‘As soon as he resigned, we never heard from him again.’He began to ponder to himself. Cheetah was walking two paces behind him.‘Your Greatness, where exactly did you
dozed off in his temporary home made of leaves and sticks. It was just sticks for support and closely knit leaves for the roof just like Cheetah’s. The appearance of the first star was like a knockout blow to his senses.Cheetah, however, was sitting outside his shelter with his back leaning on a tree.Brahmuhn was sound asleep like a dead baby. As if he had no care in the world. No enemies that would catch him unawares and slit his throat, or worse.‘Humph!’ Cheetah smiled at himself after staring at Brahmuhn for a while. He envied him. A boy who had worshipped the Vadhindi on his arrival at Chaponda Village during his teen years. A scrawny child who used to struggle with the simple concept of clutching firmly a spear. That scrawny child no longer existed but had been reborn as a mighty warrior. A man among men. “The Mighty Brahmuhn”. Just then, Cheetah heard soft footsteps from behind some bushes behind him. He tightened the grip
Brahmuhn woke up with a long yawn. He felt the ground around him and grabbed his knobkerrie. ‘Cheetah.’Cheetah was exhausted. The leopard had drawn most of his energy and even worse still, he had stayed up to keep guard for another three hours before sleep slew him. Brahmuhn walked towards him and shook him awake.‘It’s time to move,’ said Brahmuhn.He slowly got up and with weary eyes, looked around him like clueless prey. He looked as vulnerable as a chicken in the rain. When he tried to support himself with his arm to get up, his wounded shoulder reminded him of the violent and bloody struggle he had had the previous night. The wound stung a lot and he could not help but scream. The intense pain made him fully awake.Brahmuhn grabbed his arm and pulled him towards him. He examined the shoulder then looked into his eyes.‘I fell.’Even if Brahmuhn would have been intoxicated by mbanje, he would still no