by AA Lee
He had been in one of his timeless slumbers when the girl’s call had woken him up. He obeyed without thinking, letting his water lift the girl and the older man, but the Fall Guardian could not process that it seemed as though the girl had ordered him to do so. Ordinarily, he refused to meddle in the problems of humans, but he wasn’t able to stop himself this time.
Was it because, in my tiredness, I am not of sound mind? It couldn’t be, he thought. Or have humans always been able to communicate with me, but nobody has ever tried?
The Fall Guardian tried to go back to sleep, but the memory came back, taunting him like a flood and he knew there was no going back to his peace.
Chapter 13
Nora
“We need the full payment. You demanded a lot for the wedding, and we have prepared all we can to fulfill what you asked of us.” Datu Hula had remained seated since the beginning of the meeting, but he might as well have towered over Nora by the tone of his voice. The only thing keeping him civil was the number of people that had gathered for the meeting. It was an interesting subject and onlookers had flocked to hear more about what had happened to later fuel their gossip, but Datu Hula was conscious of how his comments might be perceived.
“I… I’m very sorry about what happened, but I don’t even know if my granddaughter is alive.” Nora’s face was ashen. It had been a week since Kenda had escaped, and she had spent several of those days crying. The men of both Daa and Nayon had searched as far as town, but there was no sign of Kenda.
“Not only have you wasted our resources and our time, but you have also brought shame upon our family!” Datu Hula banged his fist on the table. People gasped. Children nearby wailed.
“I know, and I’m terribly sorry. Please tell us what you deem to be fair compensation. We will come up with it by any means.”
“Considering everything, it should be no less than ten thousand kwartas.”
“It shouldn’t be that much. I was here all throughout the preparations, and that’s about ten times my estimate.” Five kwartas was worth two sacks of rice. Money was hard to come by, and it was rare for Nora to get paid ten kwartas for her services as High Priestess. On occasion, when Nora was able to cure the sick who were not expected to survive, their relatives would pay her ten or twenty kwartas, but she normally received either rice or root crops as payment. The people of Daa were poor, after all. It was much the same in the surrounding two villages, but the villagers had combined their wealth to finance the wedding of Jinja and Kenda. Some had even sold their animals to contribute.
“I think you forgot that you requested a three-day celebration. Even though there was no wedding, all the food was gone. You should not be complaining. Instead, you should be thankful that we are respectful enough not to start a war.”
Silence engulfed Goni’s house, where the meeting was being held. People could no longer remember the last time war had broken out between the three villages. They had always resolved their misunderstandings through talks and giving fines when necessary, even in cases of murder. In cases of wrongdoing, each village was expected to punish their own people.
“It’s not that I’m complaining. I’m thankful that you and your villagers have acted reasonably on this. I’m just asking you to show leniency.” Nora bowed her head a little and spoke again. “It was our responsibility to make the bride submit, and we failed to do that. I, as both the high priestess and Kenda’s grandmother, am responsible for this. I know that I have little right to bargain, but I think five thousand kwartas should be more than enough to cover your expenses.”
“Now is not the time for making jokes, High Priestess!” Datu Hula stood up and put both his hands on the table, facing Nora. “Five thousand? Do you honestly think that five thousand kwartas covers the cost of all that happened? You’re only thinking about the food. What about the time our people have wasted in dealing with this mess? We must give something back to them. What about the materials for the building and the dress? Do you think we just picked them up along the way? And what about the honor of our family? I am the village Datu. People will begin to think that my family is not good enough now that your family does not want to be at one with us. My authority is at risk. You have to pay for that, too. Your apology does not make it all better.”
Some of Nora’s relatives bowed their heads. Some pretended to look elsewhere, and others fidgeted. They didn’t want to be at the center of the discussion because the main issue was money. They didn’t want to be responsible for the payment. Datu Hula’s family members, on the other hand, looked smug, eager to be recompensed. Although Nora did not have a good argument with which to deflect Datu Hula, she knew that he was trying to take advantage of the situation.
“I know I am a nobody, but um… will I be allowed to speak here?” All heads turned to look at the woman who had broken the silence. Kenda’s wedding attendant, Eva, bit her lip.
“And what could you possibly say in this matter?!” Datu Hula’s voice was accusatory, his stare filled with judgment.
“You and I have been arguing here for hours. Perhaps it might help to hear a different perspective.” Nora sighed, grateful that someone had broken the tension between them.
“Um… if it helps… I mean, I don’t need to be paid for my services. Not that my services are worth that much,” Eva laughed awkwardly, “but I’m just letting you know that I’m not expecting it.”
“It’s next to nothing. Don’t worry, we will not count it.” Datu Hula remarked dismissively.
“Then maybe I should let you know that I don’t need to get paid, either,” a man from the crowd said, raising his hand. “I came here to help and to eat good food, and after the bride ran away, we were still able to eat. I’m satisfied with that.”
Several Nayon villagers agreed, and Datu Hula turned beet red with anger. “Fine! I’m going to deduct the payments for the villagers, but we are still looking at a large sum of money.”
“Yes, I agree.” Nora nodded. “Because of that, I am going to return the cow and the bull that was supposed to be given to the kids.”
“That’s out of the question!”
“I will also give back two hundred kwartas that was supposed to be for building the house. After that, I think we could manage to find around six thousand kwartas.”
“No, you’re going way too low. It should be eight thousand, at least.”
Nora shook her head. “That’s still too high. The most we can do is seven thousand.”
Datu Hula looked at the people around him, who were all nodding their heads. It looked like they grew brave enough to participate in the negotiation. “Fine. When can you give it back?”
“Give us at least a year to gather it all.”
Datu Hula drummed his fingers on the table. “One year is too long. We were able to gather all of what was needed in two months. I am sure you can also do that, and perhaps even faster than we did.”
“Your village is much more prosperous than ours,” protested Nora. “If you can just give us more time, we’ll surely be able to pay it all back.”
“No, you have the resources. I don’t want to wait a long time. Besides, there’s a good distance between our villages. Consider the time and effort required for us to keep returning here to get the instalments.”
Nora had nothing more to say. The villagers were also nodding silently.
“I think the two parties have settled it, then,” Datu Romu stood smiling. He had kept silent when there had been an ongoing argument, but as everything was settled, he wanted it to look like he had made a huge contribution toward brokering the deal. “As the datu, I will compile an official document bearing the fingerprints of both parties and signed by me. Nora has two months to pay in full, with the first payment due at the end of this month and the next by the end of the following month.”
“Hold on.” Datu Hula raised his hand. “What if the other party fails to make the payment?”
“In that case, I propose that they be imposed a
penalty in the form of interest. The amount should be discussed by both parties.” Datu Romu went back to his seat, clearly letting the people know that he would have no further participation in the negotiations.
“How about half of the amount owed?”
Nora shot to her feet. “Are you trying to kill us? At that steep rate, we would surely starve!”
“I’m only making sure that you will pay. Of course, there will be no interest if you pay on time.” Datu Hula calmly waved his hands to make his point.
“We will, and we will use all possible means to pay you. However, I am not hoping that it will happen, but just in case we miss the payment date and are late paying by a day or two, half of the amount owed in interest is too much.”
“We will grant you a two-day grace period. In return, I ask that you give our collectors accommodation should that happen.”
“Accommodation is no problem.”
“But,” Datu Hula quickly added, “if you miss the two-day grace period, I will insist on the interest.”
Nora grasped her staff. “But half is still too much.”
“A quarter of the total amount owed and nothing less.”
“That sounds better.”
Datu Romu stood up after hearing the discussion come to a close, but Datu Hula raised his hand to stop him. It was clear he did not respect Datu Romu despite the position he held.
“We have another thing to discuss. It would appear that one of your men helped Jinja’s bride to escape.”
Nora grasped her staff again, tightly this time. “Yes. I can assure you that Goni has suffered as a result of the altercation and is currently imprisoned. It will take time for him to recover.”
“I want that man to be severely punished.”
“Wait!” Nora held up her hand to stop Datu Hula. “Daa punishes its own criminals. That has always been the way. The punishment imposed on Goni is not for you to decide.”
“As much as I want to distance myself from this, I can’t. I’m not trying to undermine you or belittle your gift, but I think we have to secure his prison to avoid his escape. You can communicate with the dead, but you don’t have the required magic to fortify the prison, so I propose that one of our men casts a spell to lock your prison.”
When Nora protested, Datu Hula smiled. “I’m afraid it is a necessary precaution, High Priestess. That man is dangerous, after all, and we have both seen what he can do.”
Chapter 14
Kenda
A blaring sound sent Kenda running back to the roadside. The driver opened his car window and shouted angrily at her. Kenda bowed to apologize, but as she didn’t speak the town’s language, she didn’t know how to say sorry. Merchants from their village knew enough to buy and sell things, but most of the time, deals were completed with a lot of hand signals.
Her stomach growled with hunger. It had been a day since she had last seen green mountains and plains, and it had also been a day since she had eaten. She had no money, no food, and she felt lost for the first time in her life. The market, which was located a few meters away from the river, was packed with all kinds of people. It was so loud that it made her head spin.
She reached the end of the main road and entered the market, the noise getting louder as she got closer. Sellers were shouting here and there, offering their goods to the people passing by, but they did not offer their wares when Kenda passed by. It was almost as if she was invisible.
A few minutes after entering the main market, she spotted a stout woman who looked to be in her fifties. She was wearing an apron flecked with brown and red spots, probably from the fish she was selling. The woman raised her hand high and chopped the tail from a fish that lay on the bench before her. The wooden chopping board bounced with the force.
Kenda cleared her dry throat. “Um… excuse me?”
The woman looked up, her eyes leaving the fish she was cleaning to give her a questioning look.
“I need food.” Kenda touched her belly first to emphasize she was hungry. “I need to eat.” She spoke slowly but not loud enough for others to hear. She opened her mouth and pretended to eat to explain herself.
The woman went back to cleaning her fish and did not answer.
“I’m sorry, but I am really hungry,” Kenda pleaded.
The woman looked up again, muttered something that Kenda didn’t understand, and shook her head.
“Just a little,” Kenda signed with her index finger and thumb.
The woman shouted in an angry voice and shooed Kenda away. Nearby people stared at her, and Kenda walked away in shame, her head bowed. She walked continuously without stopping until she heard a cat’s cry. The cat’s fur was sparse. It also looked a lot smaller than many of the cats Kenda had seen in her village. It looked more like a mouse than a cat. The cat flew to the sidewalk as a man kicked it. The bony cat meowed and walked back slowly to the leftover food scattered around a trash bag, but the man kicked it again.
Kenda stopped but pretended not to care. She saw some leafy greens had fallen from the trash bag. They were dirty and smelly, but she was in no position to be choosy. The man went back inside what seemed to be an eatery. Kenda slowly approached the bag as the man disappeared. The cat followed her, meowing, and Kenda hushed it.
The trash bag was so smelly it made her gag, but she pinched her nose. It looked like the bottom was filled with rotten garbage. She quickly rummaged through the garbage and found a fistful of scorched rice and a few greens.
An angry shout shocked Kenda, and she let go of the bag. It fell to the ground, spilling its contents. Kenda willed her legs to run in fear of the man. The cat also ran behind her as the man followed them, wooden stick in hand.
Customers and vendors alike stared at the chase. Kenda dropped the greens while running. She turned, hesitating, as she decided whether to pick them up or continue running. Judging from the distance between them and the man, she would surely get caught if she went back, so she kept on running, the cat hot on her heels.
The man stopped after about five minutes, catching his breath and resting both hands on his knees. He cursed them one last time and turned his back.
Feeling thirstier than ever, Kenda also stopped and caught her breath. She tried to swallow her saliva, but her throat was dry and she erupted into a coughing fit. She slumped on the ground, and the cat sat next to her, staring at her intently.
Kenda looked around and realized that she was back on the riverbank. She slowly walked to the river, trying to stay on her feet as her dizziness from hunger and thirst came back. The water looked so tempting, but to her dismay, the river was dirty. Trash littered the riverbank, making her wonder if this was the same clean river from their village. The color was muddy, and there was a pungent smell.
It looked like even the cat was hesitant to drink from the river. She estimated about five meters from the river, picked a place where there was no trash and started digging. She continued digging until the hole begin to fill with water. In their village, digging wells near the river was commonplace, and the villagers often drank from them during floods. Water from the wells was normally much cleaner when compared with the river, and so she applied the same principle. She scooped some of the brownish water until the water became clear.
She waited around three minutes to allow the water to settle and become completely clear before she scooped it with her hands and drank. It was nowhere near as fresh as the water from the village, but she was ecstatic to be able to relieve her thirst. She turned to the wary cat and saw from the way its eyes moved from her to the well, that it was thirsty. Perhaps it did not trust humans. Kenda moved a little farther away from the well, and the cat slowly walked to the well and drank.
Her stomach growled. She looked at the ball of rice in her hand, and deciding that she couldn’t stand to eat it in its filthy form. She washed it slowly in the well, carefully compacting the grains to prevent any from washing away. Then she found a large stone and placed the rice atop it to dry.
&n
bsp; She hoped that there was more food to be found than just the spoiled rice. She walked closer to the river and started stone skipping to let her mind work. Stone skipping was one of Kenda’s favorite pastimes, and she had spent much of her childhood perfecting her technique, either alone or while playing with other village kids. After a few minutes, she saw tiny fishes swimming in the deeper part of the water. As she watched, one seemed to break away from the shoal, and, entering the water, she waded slowly toward it. The fish swam away with the slightest movement of the water.
Ever so slowly, Kenda moved slowly toward where the fish had fled. She stretched her shirt, bent her knees, and used her shirt to catch the fish. Almost as though it was mocking her, the fish waited for her to come with touching distance before fleeing again.
Frustrated, Kenda kicked the water where the fish had been only a moment ago, and the water turned dark. She was about to return to the riverbank when her uncle’s voice rang in her mind. “You made the water follow your commands, and the spirits have accepted you.” Her face lit up with excitement. She didn’t know if her newfound idea would work, but she was suddenly eager to try it.
“Water,” she managed to croak. “I don’t know if you remember me, but you helped me last time at the waterfall. You stopped my uncle and I from falling, and I am really grateful. I have one more favor to ask.” She touched the water. “Will you be kind enough to give me fish to eat?”
Silence. Nothing happened. Kenda decided to raise her voice. “My uncle told me that I would be able to command you. So, here I am. I command you to give me fish!”
The meow of the cat sounded like laughter in her ears. She thought that she might have been going crazy, and the cat’s mocking eyes as it slowly walked away added to her hallucination. She finally gave up and walked back to the riverbank. She was incredibly tired and starving as she slumped on a nearby stone. She dreaded the thought of successfully escaping marriage only to die of hunger.