Of Glory and Of Doom

TWO - The young commander

The Kayaans were either known for two things; the ability to be invisible and the ability to master the art of war. No folklore has ever recorded the fatality of the Kayaans losing a war or that of a kayaan warrior ever being defeated at war. They went to war with their all and they came back with all the goodies of the war. History had no source for where the Kayaans originated from and why they were so hard to get rid of. Some say they were slave warriors of the gods that dominated the world before their descendants and some said they were the ones the gods put on earth to check and balance other supernatural. No one knew what was true and what was not. Unlike the other occupants of the realm, the Kayaans had a dark skin tone and they would tan naturally even without the sun. It was very easy to identify a Kayaan and they had weird names that sounded ancient. They had a strange language too that nobody outside their tribe understood.

Deep in a large cave with greenery, the Kayaans found their own home between the walls, the forests, and the large lake. No other supernatural ever dared to cross the border to go into the home of the Kayaan because they spared nothing to make sure such a person is dealt with. No other supernatural has a memory of how it looked and those unfortunate to venture into it never came back alive to tell the story. Almost five hundred years ago, King Alok of the bear shifters launched a war on them for killing his son who had defiled a lady close to their borders. Everyone watched with bated breath for the war because King Alok had the strongest army in the realm after the Kayaans. It was like a battle of the two strongest. King Alok’s army was defeated even before the war went on for long and King Alok had to run for his own life. The battle alone had made the bear shifters go down from the rank of respected kingdoms in the realm.

On every full moon, the Kayaans sat by the major source of their water waiting for the gift of the goddess. It’s been over five hundred years since the prophecy and everyone waited for the gift. The goddess had promised them a gift, tossed out by her people and left to die, the shores of water would bring her to them and they would care for her. She would rise and become the best thing to ever happen to the Kayaans. She would bring them the glory that they deserve, one beyond staying within these caves, one that would bring them the best place in the realm. Unlike other supernatural beings, the Kayaans don’t have any other power, they only have the power to control the art of war, the tactics of war, and the mastermind of winning a war.

“The water, it’s turning red and the new flow reeks of blood” A tiny warrior screamed as soon as he made his way into the palace where the elders sat every full moon waiting for reports from the lake. As soon as he delivered the message, he turned back to run in the direction he had come from. All the elders seated followed suit and they all ran towards the lake. The only time their water turned red was either during a bloody war or someone had been killed secretly inside the lake. Part of the reason most of them hated living here was that they bore the brunt of wars that happened besides their borders, their water suffers the most.

The elders had arrived by the water and they all watched as the water turned darker with blood and they knew whatever they were expecting was coming very soon. They had guards who watched here every time in case enemies wanted to violate them through here so they always had people to stand by and watch. They waited and for a moment, it stopped flowing. They all watched with bated breaths as the water trickled in slowly. The oldest chief turned to one of the young warriors before sending him to get the healers, he had a feeling whoever was coming was injured, if not badly injured.

Just as the healers arrived, a barely breathing baby flowed through the hole that serves as a source of water, their faces breaking into smiles as they finally acknowledged the moon goddess gift to them. One of the old warriors stepped into the water to retrieve the baby and he pushed her chest gently with his index finger to confirm if she was breathing or not. He looked at the face of his people before nodding his head and they all sighed in relief. The goddess gift to them was here and it was here on a full moon just like the prophecy had insinuated.

“We would call her Lily, our gift from the goddess. Just like the flower that beautifies our water, this little one would make our tribe great again” The chief declared after the baby was handed over to him and everyone cheered in agreement. The change was coming soon and they can all feel it deep within them. They washed her bloody face with the water before handing her over to the healers.

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“Lily running, he is behind you,” Someone screamed and Lily intensified her race. She could feel Mbazi behind her and she was going to make him suffer a bit before she pulled out the flag she had successfully pulled from the top of the hill. She ran towards the finish line instead and Mbazi increased his pace, he was determined to win the game and so was she. She waited for him to relax because he was almost catching up with her. After he was satisfied that he was close, Lily made a U-turn and she ran back towards the start line. Mbazi was too late before he realized what she did, he toppled over the finish line and he was out. He was the only one who could come close to her speed and there were only two people left in his team inside the game box. She turned around before making a final run towards the finish line, this time with the flag right above her head and he watched her win the game as usual. She stuck out her tongue at him before she collapsed on the floor beside her teammates.

At the stroke of the bell, every child on the playground groaned, it was time for training and they would get beaten because they had exhausted the little strength they had played the tag game. The master would probably ask them to run a thousand laps this time or worse report them to Baba Mbari, the oldest chief. The bell sounded again and they slowly trickled out of the playground with the hope that they don’t have to train very hard this time. Lily held out her hand to help Mbazi who was still lying on the grass, obviously tired from all the running she had made him do. He took her hand before standing up from the grass. They got to the stream and they bent over to wash their faces.

Lily’s eyes caught the reflection of the evil mark across her face, no one had a reason for why she had the horrible mark across her face or why her skin tone was very different from the other children that lived between these walls. When She was taken to a real way with other children, Baba Mbari had them rub her mud and had them wear a mask for her face. She hated her body so much and the only thing she enjoyed about it was her strength and her speed. She wouldn’t mind switching her body with Lyn, the weakest person in the clan just to get rid of the mark. Baba Mbari had told her it was a mark of the chosen one and her skin one signified that she was a hero. She found that hard to believe but Baba Mbari had barely given her a reason for him to doubt her. Everyone insisted it shouldn’t bother her because everyone here loved her, she could eat from anywhere and she could sleep anywhere she liked. Even though Baba Mbari said her parents died in war and the goddess brought her to them with strict instruction to take care of her.

“The mark makes you more beautiful, I’ve seen the way you spend time washing your face, maybe it will disappear one day. In all honesty, I want a mark too. One that would make me look dangerous and one that would make the whole world jealous of me” Mbazi replied and Lily turned to look at him, she had forgotten he was squatting with her. She smiled at him before washing her legs and standing up from the riverbank. Mbazi did the same and they hurriedly walked towards the training hall. Baba Mbari and the other warriors would have their heads if they didn't show up at all. They walked into the hall with everyone watching them and they slowly merged into the background.

“Lily, step forward. Mbazi, step forward.” It’s time to pick the next generation of warriors. This evening, you will fight in twos and the winners will be granted the chance to be the next warriors of our great clan. This is the night you have all been waiting for.” Baba Mbari declared and everyone fell silent. Lily stepped forward and Mbazi stepped forward too. They both looked at each other with no evidence of their friendship on their faces. Tonight was where it would all go down.