This is Me

Chapter Four: Hudem on Fire: The Revelation

The Hudem Empire is a big, ferocious and compact empire to the extreme north of Alberom.

The arrival of their King, Lucas seem to be a moment that takes them to the top of the world in that region.

"Hey..... We caught a big buffalo. We will not kill it so we can display it to our people. We are going to show them how great our King is. Our King is too brilliant. He is a warrior." These are the words of Commander Rua, the right hand man of King Lucas of Hudem.

King Lucas responds; "they already know. This will just serve as a reminder to them. I am the best warlord in all human history." Rua quickly adds; "No one can contest that." "Maybe they want to die" another of Lucas' men says. Rua then says; "No none wants to die."

They all laugh so loud and continue with their drinks in the thick forest where they are for the sole aim of hunting. All men are filled in with alcohol.

With a big buffalo and a large deer already in their custody, they intend to add one more wild beast to their collections of hunt success.

A wild beast is spotted nearby so they match discreetly towards it. They successfully hunt down the lonely beast. However, the beast was not ready to go down without a fight. The beast amasses the strength it could gather at the moment. The beast runs into King Lucas. The available option is to bring down the beast because further hesitation could mean the end of the King's life. The beast is killed at once by Lucas'men. This action is a fraction late. King Lucas is badly injured. Commander Rua rushes towards his King to provide some first aid. The men's effort yields positively. "Yeah we have stopped the blood form rushing out" says Rua. Bleeding halts from Lucas' stomach but he, Lucas had already lost a lot of blood that he had no strength left in him. Lucas faints instantly. "Let us now take him home." Rua says. Rua and the other men rushes him to Hudem for proper treatment.

Back in Hudem City, the shouts of some kids is clear.

"Pass me the ball" says boy one.

Another one says "Well done. Do not pass the ball to that spoilt brat."

Prince Janu is so furious that he slaps one of the two boys. He says; "Who do you think you are? I am a prince, your future King. You must learn to respect me at all times. I might be playing with you but you're just a bunch of commoners."

The two boys are now angry that they drag Janu and beat him up roughly. One of the boys says; "We are commoners and we have given you the beating of your life, a commoner's beating" The other boy says that "never you cross our part. Nunca!"

The two boys instantly run away from the scene to avoid being seen.

Susa, one of the numerous maids in the palace calls out Prince Janu and his elder sister Princess Rosa..... "My Princess..... My Prince". To her surprise, her call is answered only by Princess Rosa. "My princess. Where is your brother?" Rosa points at the incoming Prince Janu who comes in limping. He looks very weak, tired and unkempt. It was as if he had been in a battle for thousands of years.

"My Prince. Can I know where you are coming from?" Susa asks. "I am sorry Susa, I just fell off a tree in the garden. My whole body hurts. I am very hurting." says the Prince. Susa quickly draws the Prince near, undresses him and takes him to the bathroom where he, the Prince freshens up. She also applied some relief balm on the prince's body.

After all these, it is now time for Prince Janu and Princess Rosa to fill their stomachs. She serves them and they ate to their satisfaction.

Beyond the walls. Commander Rua shouts; "Open the gates. We are back."

The gates opens for them to go in as King Lucas lies helplessly on a stretcher. The King is taken to Doctor Ripa's chamber in the Hudem Palace. Doctor Ripa's chamber is a place set aside to treat all royal bloods including the King of Hudem.

"What happened? How bad is it" Doctor Ripa asks Rua. Rua narrates the event in details. Ripa asks them to exit the room for him and his colleagues to take over.

After a while, Doctor Ripa meets with Rua saying; "it is a very bad injury. We have no option than to turn to a surgical solution. The King's intestine has to be properly rearranged." "Alright Doctor. I assume we know no one can get to know the truth about this. If you are asked, you reply by saying the King needs a rest from all social functions and require intimate medical attention. Is that clear Doctor." Rua warns Doctor Ripa.

Doctor Ripa replies in return by saying " Yes, I understand every word of the instruction."

Rua says to the doctor, "when will the surgical process take place?" The doctor replies him,"as soon as possible My Lord. Right away."

"Ok Doctor Ripa. Do your work. I trust you to do a perfect job. You have been so helpful. Please save the King." says Rua.

Doctor Ripa replies with a smile; "Our King will be fine."

Rua leaves Doctor Ripa and his team to do their work as he heads to the King's chambers to have a word with Princess Rosa and Prince Janu.

Seeing Rua, one could tell the excitement on the faces of the two siblings. Since Rua is the right hand man of their father, they expect the King to be behind Rua.

"Where is father?" Rosa asks Rua. Rua responds saying "The King will not be around for a while. Something came up so he had to go on an official trip in respect of the growth of Hudem.. He sent me to you two."

Prince Janu asks Rua. "When will our father be back?"

Rua goes silent for a while. He finally says that ;"The trip will take just a month. King Lucas will be back in a month time my Princess and Prince."

The children's body language is seen to be negative as Rua turns to Susa and orders her to take good care of the children. Rua also place more guards in the chambers to protect the royal family. He also intensifies security set up in the Hudem Palace and Hudem Empire as a whole. Rua finds himself in an unwanted situation. All responsibilities are vested in him. He is to hold the Empire till the King becomes well. This task is a huge one.

Rua goes back to Doctor Ripa's chambers to inquire about the surgical process. The surgery is still on. Rua has to wait for the result of the process. He is looking so disturbed. It is like he carries the weight of the whole word on his head.

Moments later, Doctor Ripa approaches Rua and the following conversation ensues:

Rua asks ; "Doctor. I hope you brought good news. How did the surgery go? Has there been any improvements on the King's health? How is the King feeling now?"

Doctor Ripa gives an update by stating ; "I am so sorry Commander. The situation is more than earlier feared. We need a plant to heal the internal injury sustained by the King. The plant is the Albua Plant." "What!" Rua exclaims.

Rua knows the history behind the Albua Plant. The plant is one powerful plant that cures a lot of disease. The issue he faces is the location of the plant. The plant is located in Alberom. He understands he will have to make a trip to enemy territory. He is ready to protect and revive his King at all cost.

"Off I go. I am leaving for Alberom right now. I will be back soon." says Rua.

He quickly checks into his chambers, picks what he has to. He runs off with his horse to Alberom. On his way to Alberom, nature is not too kind to him. There's a windy rainfall which is accompanied with heavy lightening and thunderstorm. Rua has less options. He has to make camp in order to regroup. The cold is much that he is close to freezing. He camps and sleeps off. The crow of the cock wakes Rua up in the early hours of the next day. He therefore rise to continue his journey. He notices some men returning from a trade expedition from Alberom to their native village. Rua engages them. He sees the Albua Plant in abundance in their possession.

"Can I have some Albua Plant?" Rua asks them.

The men replies him; "They're up for sale."

"Ok. That is cool. I have some gold here with me. Rua says.

An exchange takes place between the two parties.

Rua hurries back to Hudem. He is happy because he will not have to go all the way to Alberom. The journey back home is a fast one.

"You are back. Tell me you have it."

Doctor Ripa asks showing how marveled he was.

"I will not return if I had not gotten it. I am here with the plant. I was lucky. It was a lucky journey. Here it is. Please use it for the King's healing at once." says Rua.

"Wow! You have done it. Well done Commander. I will make us of the plant right away." Doctor Ripa says as he walks back to start the usage of the plant on the King.

Ten minutes after the usage of the plant the King briefly regains consciousness. His voice could barely be heard as he seeks for an audience with Rua. "Rest my King" Doctor Ripa says. Rua ran into the chamber but to his surprise, the King had lose consciousness so fast.

"But I heard his voice. I heard him speak now. What has happened to the King?"

Doctor Ripa replies saying; "That is how the medication works. there is a brief effect. After ten minutes of taking the medication, the patient will regain consciousness for a while before falling back to sleep. This so to allow the medication effectiveness on the patient. Do not fear. We are on the right path Commander. Our King will be fine. You have saved him."

"No Doctor you saved him. Thank you." Rua says.

"The King will now be asleep for the next two days." says Doctor Ripa.

"Why Doctor." Rua asks.

Doctor Ripa replies him by saying; "That is how the medication works. It is systematic and always effective."

"Ok Doctor. I have to retire to my quarters. I will also have to put some other things in place as the absence of the King has brought me more work and responsibilities to handle. I will be back as soon as I can."

"You have done well. The King is in good hands. Our King will be very proud of you Commander." says Doctor Ripa.

However, there is a set back in the discharge of the Kings duty. The King was to receive some delegates from a neighbouring settlement. The meeting is an economic one. Noticing that the news of the King health status could be broadcasted beyond the territories of Hudem, Rua quickly cancels and reschedules the meeting on the King's behalf. His hope is pure. By doing this, he hopes to buy more time for his King to recover.

The fact that Rua has been through a lot since hunting with the King is very obvious. He observes he needs to rest for a while, He goes into his chambers, has a warm birth, eats his food and retires to his bedroom for some needed rest.

In his sleep, he sees Lucas hale and healthy. Lucas and Rua stands close to a water bank having a contentious conversation.

"We are going to do it my way. I am King. Whatever I say is final. I rule this whole territory and everyone must answer to me. All must obey the crown including you Rua."

Rua replies his King saying; "Yes My Lord. What do you have me do to him your Majesty?"

"Take his life. Kill him and leave no trace. I want it all for Hudem. It is my father's dream. Our ancestors wanted this. We must deliver." King Lucas charges Rua.

While both men were talking, a huge storm blows towards them. Lucas and Rua disappears from the scene while all water bodies dries completely.

Rua wakes up concerned. He has just had a dream. He is determined not to speak about it to anyone in order to prevent the worse from happening but little did he know what was at stake. He sighs runs into the bathroom to shower. He returns to his bed and continues his precious sleep which he has craved for long

It is day three of King Lucas' absence. His absence is becoming a major concern. The King has been unreachable since for some days and all council members are growing suspicious of what Commander Rua revealed to them.

"The King has never been this unaccessible since the start of his reign" One of the council members says.

Another one adds that ;"I am sure there is more to this."

However Commander Rua debunks all these thoughts saying the King needed some time away from public functions and meetings. He assures them saying; "Our King is in perfect shape. All he needs is rest. I mean absolute rest. You're right he has never taken this amount of time away from his duties. That was why he ordered me to take his place for this period."

Another council member asks Rua; " We have heard you. We understand. We take your words as authentic. My question is when will our King resume his duty?"

Rua smiles and says; "Very soon. In fact in three weeks."

The council shifts focus to discuss tax matters.

"Tax master. Please update us on tax matters."

The tax master explains how taxes are being taken and how the money realized from tax is being utilized. The council is very satisfied with the tax master's report. They dispersed to met some other time.

After the meeting with the Council of Chiefs, Rua realizes that he has a limited time frame to work things out. He believes it will not be long before the council loses patience on the subject matter regarding the King's sudden absence from public duty. In an empire like Hudem, once you lose the trust of the council, it is very easy to lose that of the people. This corroborates the popular saying in Hudem politics which says; "Feed the Council is equal to feeding the people"

Rua begins to think outside of the box. The main problem he is faces is that he has to do all these all by himself.

It is just two days after the council meeting with the chiefs. An emergency meeting is called for by the council. Rua is pissed because he thinks he already knows the reason for the meeting schedule. He enters the meeting room with confidence. All chiefs stood up as a sign of respect for the crown which he, Rua now represents.

"You may all have your sits" Rua says.

Immediately after taking his sit, one of the chief asks; "Please. where is our King? We need him at this point in time"

Rua though furious, he is still calm replies diplomatically; "I think I told the Council in our last meeting when that will be. Our King will be back."

An old Council member jumps in and asserts that ; "Commander. There is a threat to our land that needs the King's attention. You can not led us on this front. Only the King can. If he is not here I am sorry. We will have to take the obvious alternative."

"What alternative?" Rua asks them. One of the Chiefs replies saying; "Taking another King or we prepare his heir to ascend the throne."

This statement was so shocking. Rua does not know what to say, his heart starts to beat fast.