by Owen Oakley
The woman let out a hearty laugh that emerged from the pit of her stomach.
“Who awe you twying to fool pwincess? Ce’tainly not me! The otha pwisona’s aven’t stopped talking since you awwived.”
The woman crawled to the bars in-between their cell designed for everything but comfort.
There was a brand mark on her left cheek. The woman’s eyes were different colors, one hazel and the other a dark brown almost black. Taj shuddered at the unusual sight.
“Who did you piss off to be cast away fwom yoa lux’ious kingdom?”
The woman didn’t bother to hide the glint in her eyes.
“I do not know who you speak of.”
“Well, let me give you a wo’d of advice now that you’we one of us. Keep yoa ead down and su’vive. This is not yoa kingdom, and we awe not yoa people. That stunt you pulled yesta’day could ave cost you yoa life and oa’s too.”
Taj narrowed her eyes at the woman.
“That woman was elda’ly and could not stand. I would not watch them kill ha!”
“And yet she still died.”
Taj was so enraged during the incident she hadn’t thought about what became of the woman.
“If it wa’ you, no one would ave saved you. You will leawn to look the otha way, to sa’vive.”
The woman rolled her eyes and started to scoot back to her corner.
“Ey, What’s yoa name?”
“Ashanti,” she said.
The name sounded familiar. Taj studied the ground; the thought hit her mind like a thousand waves.
“The Asante people of Ghana?”
“Yes.” Her look of pride couldn’t be denied.
Ashanti continued back to her side of the cell and remained in the corner. Taj watched her in disbelief accompanied by amazement. Something was intriguing about her. Countless questions deluged her mind.
Asante people were a mighty force of West Africa. They had the strongest warriors next to the Zulu Tribe. Their tribe didn’t value money or things that were materialistic. Asantes believed to hold magical powers, but no one knew either way for sure.
Taj had been an admirer of the people since she was a little girl and listened to the elders’ stories about them. Something confused Taj about the woman’s presence.
Why would an Asante be imprisoned? No one dared traveled near their village to wage trouble.
“Did something appen in yoa village? Ghana is the most feawed and wespected place I know.”
Ashanti scowled at her.
“What do you think appened? You people awe all alike including yoa precious Lawk! Powa’ dwunken and no wegawds to anyone else but yoozselves.”
She searched Ashanti’s face for clarity but only found hate towards her. Lark never did anyone harm unless it was necessary.
“Why awe you upset with the kingdoms? We neva’ did anything to you o’ yoa people.”
“Silly ge’l with a title. Yoa fatha unda’mind you. E’ and King Omawi wa’ initiating a plan to seize my people’s land; that was befo’ Muto thought betta of it.”
An expression of pain and that of rage overtook Ashanti’s face.
“I watched as my people wa’ slaughta’d ova’ something as guileless as land. The ones that fought bagk wa’ impwisoned a’ and the west awe dead. Childwen, women, wawwios, all dead ova’ land that didn’t belong to you! Yoa fatha planted the seed that flowered into a massacre of my people.”
Taj froze. Sickness threatened to consume her, but she found balance and remained grounded on her straw. It didn’t make sense, but it explained why he wanted her to marry Salim. He didn’t have the guts to kill innocent people, so he found another power cord.
Her father had turned into someone she didn’t know, if he hadn’t propositioned King Omari, then innocent lives wouldn’t be dead and Ashanti would be free.
Survival was least of her worries; she was held captive next to an Asante warrior with a vendetta against the monarch.
⸞⸟⸞
Days quickly turned into months, and Taj still hadn’t managed to escape. Her effort to recruit individuals failed; no one wanted to help her. Luckily no one revealed her true identity. Otherwise, her time there would have been much worse.
When the crammed prisoners weren’t in their cells for hours, sometimes days at a time, they performed rigorous labor building through the city; more compartments to house more prisoners and mining for valuables.
She had seen her fair share of lashes. The marks on her back were now a part of her and a constant reminder of the hell she endured at Tigray.
The rebellion had become the one thing that satisfied her will to exist. She no longer had the desire to be free but to become a symbol of courage and strength.
Evening illuminated the sky with a mixture of orange, bright pink, and a hint of red. The heat stained their bodies with sweat, dirt clinging to their bare skin.
Ashanti took in the cold evening air they so little experienced and the sky’s beauty that towered over them.
Taj crept beside her and dropped her voice to a low whisper that only Ashanti could hear.
“Hey.”
Ashanti rolled her eyes.
“What do you want,” Ashanti sighed.
Taj realized that she needed to give Ashanti her space especially since the wound was still fresh to Ashanti and what happened to her people.
She couldn’t change what her father set into motion and the destruction that he caused. The only thing she could do was move forward to make things right.
“I want to escape.” My people need me, without me, they’ll fall unda’ a tywant.”
“Yoa people? You’we, not even a pwincess anymo’,” Ashanti nodded to her left wrist. Taj covered it with her hand.
“You’we wwong, befo’ they sent me a’ my people wa’ outwaged at what my fatha ad did. They wemain loyal, and my soldias await me.”
Ashanti released a low chuckle.
“Await to do what? To take on yoa callous fatha’ and yoa indolent and impwudent bwothas?”
The two women continued to move along the path back to the main building.
“I do not speak fo’ them o’ what will appen once I get tha’, but I cannot do this without yoa elp. I know that bwand on yoa cheek signifies that you wa’ once a wawwio.”
“No! I am a wawwio! I will always be a wawwio!”
A guard eyed them from his horse and with a crack of his whip they walked a few steps without a word.
Taj saw the flicker of passion in her strangely colored eyes. She wanted to be free even if that meant reeling Ashanti out with bait for her to join.
“If what you say is twue, you need only to elp me. Fwee yoa people fwom this tywannical place and I guarantee you will ave the wetwibution you seek against King Omawi.”
Ashanti stared into Taj’s eyes and pondered the words she spoke and continued the rest of the journey in silence.
Chapter Seven
When they reached their cells; the night had reserved the sky, and only the moon blessed the cells with a faint light.
Taj’s time with the other captives of Tigray showed her they were all victims of devasting and revengeful events.
No actual crime, only that of punishment, labor, and death. Her father painted Tigray as a place for sick people; people who wanted to do others harm; but it was all a lie.
“Ey,” Ashanti said in a low voice.
Taj set up and hauled herself closer to the bar.
“Let’s say I agwee to elp you. Two gweat wawwio’s can’t take down an ente’ city like Tigway.”
Taj lips formed a smile.
“You think I’m a gweat wawwio?”
Ashanti shook her head.
“I’m se’ious! It would be a suicide mission without mo’ people. We cannot do this alone.”
Taj gasp as an idea sparked in her head.
“Maybe we wouldn’t ave to,” Taj said.
Ashanti lifted her brow. “What do you mean?”
“If
I did it by myself, I would sa’ly die but with you, you ave people a’, otha wawwios. If they see you and me, both engaged in battle all it takes is one o’ two spawks to ignite a flame to set this ente’ ell of a city on fi’e.”
Realization washed over Ashanti’s face, and for the first time, Taj saw her smile and hope warmed her eyes.
They both nodded at each other. Ashanti stuck her hand through the bars. Taj clasped her hand with Ashanti’s.
Her eyes bore into Taj.
“What appened to you Pwincess?”
Taj released her hand and crawled back onto her straw, suddenly timid. She worked hard to suppress those memories. Months passed, and she did well not to dwell on them.
The truth couldn’t escape her, and if Ashanti dedicated herself and offered loyalty, she had to know the truth.
She rested her head on her knees drawn into her chest and rocked.
“Something te’wible appened. Didn’t it? I saw the bruises, you bleed fo’ days.”
Ashanti’s expression softened, and her voice was a soft whisper. The sound of her voice relaxed Taj and made her feel safe to disclose her past.
Taj swallowed hard and before she spoke the tears started to form.
“You can tell me.”
Taj opened her mouth and told her about the evil that conspired that eventful night. Moments when Taj recounted the events, Ashanti wiped away stray tears from her cheek.
It was the hardest thing to relive such a horrible event one brought by her own family. The same family that was supposed to protect, love, and care for her.
When she finished, they both fell silent. Taj stared into the night, Ashanti rested her head on the cell’s bars.
She dreaded reliving that moment and even more so sharing it with another person.
“Ey⸺ Ashanti said, the word caught in her throat ⸺You awe my sista’ now.”
Ashanti stared, solemn and honest. Taj believed her; she felt drawn to Ashanti from their first encounter. It was a relief not to be alone anymore.
“The attagk on my village was an unnecessawy twagedy, but what yoa family; yoa brothas did to you was beyond cwuel. If we don’t ave family then we ave nothing. You may ave loss yoas then, but I tell you this day you ave gained a sista’ that will neva’ betway o’ do you any awm.”
Taj nodded at Ashanti. “And I am yoas.”
Ashanti offered her a warm smile and a curt nod.
“Get some west.”
⸞⸟⸞
The next day the guards’ whips licked their skin more than usual that morning. They had chosen the best time to escape. The conditions were only worsening with no end in sight.
They worked far away from the main parts of Tigray, in the mining pits. Despite the walk to and from the building, they had to endure it to receive their lunch.
The walk, the sun, and its heat weighed heavy on their bodies. Their conditions placed them at a disadvantage. Exhaustion before a battle wasn’t good and neither was the decision to wait another second.
Taj paid attention to the guards’ daily routine. Each day at lunch they allowed the prisoners in the inner part of the city while guards stood around the outer perimeter.
Taj walked around to get her tin can filled with fresh water and a slice of flatbread. Ashanti already had their spot on the sand. She sat down next to Ashanti, kept her head down to shield her lip movement.
“They all ave swo’ds. If we can both get a swo’d, it’s all we need. Do you believe yoa people will join the fight? If they don’t, we will die.”
She made sure Ashanti understood what would happen if the battle remained with only two. There was no room for assumption; they had to be sure.
Ashanti gave an assuring smile and patted Taj on her shoulder.
“My people will wise.”
“Get weady.”
Taj got to her feet, her steps staggered like a drunken person.
“Elp me, someone please elp me!” She had drawn the guards’ attention leaving Ashanti unsupervised.
“Sit down!” A guard yelled.
She continued to stumble over her feet. The guard motioned for someone to apprehend her.
“She as the eat feva’. Gwab ha’.”
The guard wasn’t quick enough, and without warning, Taj collapsed.
On her side, her eyes visible enough to see the guard race in her direction. He knelt down beside her, his sword opened on his waist. Taj’s eyes flew open, and disarmed the guard’s sword and pierced his gut, the pointed end of the blade went straight through to his back.
The other guards retreated to Taj, but Ashanti had already silently taken a distracted guard’s sword and painted it with fresh blood. They were lethal against the guards.
Taj hadn’t lost her edge being imprisoned made her bloodthirsty. All the frustrations, betrayal, and injustice sounded in the courtyard.
She turned to see if Ashanti needed help and found that she had killed twice the number of guards as she.
Taj ogled in awe at Ashanti’s immaculate movements were swift as smoke, flips, and turns, she alternated between her blade and her hands. The legends and stories had not done the Asante Warriors any justice.
The more guards they killed, the more appeared. Ashanti and Taj swing missed the power they had at the start of the battle. They wouldn’t be able to hold out for much longer.
Taj and Ashanti circled around, back to back, and guards surrounded them. Sweat dripped from their brow, and their arms were heavy.
“At least it felt good to kill some of the bastawds,” Ashanti said to Taj.
“I thank you fo’ twying with me.” Taj smiled.
It wasn’t in vain; their dying wouldn’t be for nothing. They killed enough guards to give the others an opportunity to overtake Tigray.
“Ukuvuka! Kuze Kube sekufeni,” Taj whispered.
“Ukuvuka! Kuze kube sekufeni!” They yelled together.
Just as the guards stepped forward to kill them, Taj caught the sight of a boy in her peripheral. He looked to be only fifteen or younger. The boy bolted in the front line of Taj and stabbed a guard.
They joined him, and before Taj could process what happened, prisoners from all directions released battle cries and followed their example.
They fought their way out of the courtyard and into the main halls of Tigray. Once the other prisoners saw the action, they connected the link.
The city of Tigray became a bloodbath. Souls lost on both sides.
Taj stood on the top steps with Ashanti, a torch in hand looking at the many prisoners freed. Time stood still to her, she wondered if she’d ever been free from that oppression, survive what her family did to her.
“I do not ca’ee of yoa status. They deemed us equals unda thee’ assh conditions. We fought as one, su’vived as one, and now we will be fwee as one!”
She gave Ashanti a nod to light the building on fire. Its decayed exterior took only minutes to blaze throughout the city. The people shouted and roared, a sound held in for months, even years for some.
“Ukuvuka!” Ashanti yelled.
“Ukuvuka!” The crowd replied.
Taj watched as the flames engulfed the building. The fire was only the beginning to a long road ahead of them all.
“To Lawk?” Ashanti asked. Taj’s gaze never wavered from the flames.
“No. We’ll build oa’ own kingdom, the Kingdom of Waewood welcomed to all who wa’ eva’ oppwessed, mistweated, and betwayed. Those who need us. We will pwotect them.”
Ashanti didn’t bat an eye. She lifted Taj’s arm in the air.
“All hail Queen Taj of Waewood!”
The people knelt before their queen. A tiny smile hinted at her lips.
Redemption.
Chapter Eight
Roho searched the skies and looked back at the soldiers with a solemn expression. It became their daily routine to search for any signs of Adanya. Each time it came back empty.
“It as been months. We mozt give up. She as not escaped Tigw
ay.” Roho said to the other men.
“We neva stop. Ave you fo’gotten what kind of leada Adanya is and what she means to ha people,” Runako said to everyone.
It shocked him they would even consider losing hope for Adanya’s return.
A gray-headed man stepped forward.
“We don’t need to focus on this. Tha’ awe daily wiots in this place and you wo’wy of one. She pwobably as it betta than we do,” the man said.
Runako squared off with the man.
“Badawi ow da’e you say that? We owe this to ha’. Tigway is an ell! Not fit fo’ the wosst of man and definitely not ha’.”
“We owe ha nothing. The things that appened wa’ of woyal boziness, not a militia; it doesn’t concign us. Oa’ families ave to enda’ this place. It as tu’ned into a wawzone behind these v’y walls. Sides awe being taken and we ave to kill and toss out citizens. She isn’t a’ fo’ these things,” said Badawi.
The surrounding men murmured and nodded. Runako climbed on top of a table determined not to be ignored. The men were too busy uttering their opinions and views; they hadn’t noticed him.
Runako let out a loud, high-pitched whistle. He promised Adanya that she would have the trust and loyalty of all their men. He would make sure he kept his word.
“What woyal do you know that fights in battle, lead the fwont line into dang’ous te’wit’y?”
The men stood in silence; no one could dispute his claim.
“A woyal who tells you not to fight becaoze it’s impo’tant to be tha when yoa child is bo’n. A woyal that wememba’s thoozandz of men’s names and tweats us as an equal,” Runako continued.
The men remembered all that Adanya had done and meant to them.
“Adanya twies to escape ell to get back to ha’’ people. Roho and I told you what appened that night, although, it wasn’t oa’ sto’y to tell. Adanya as gone thwough ell, don’t stop believing in ha’ now. She needs us mo’ than eva.”
The men looked at each other. Runako knew he had gotten through to them.
They didn’t have time to indulge further when a scream erupted in the distance. Runako at his vantage point saw a group of rebels terrorizing the palace’s workers and citizens.
“Webels ave gotten past the fwont gate!”