“C’mon! Keep your chin up kid. There is no man that can tell me what to do. I will free you. Believe me,” Ida replied enthusiastically, her smile nearly illuminated the dark cage. Tayo looked at Ida and smiled. But he then began to frown once more.
“Where are you from?” Tayo asked her.
“I come from Istapor, lived there all my life,” She replied.
“You are a Northerner? You are quite a ways from home.”
“Istapor is not the North! I do not know how many times I have to tell you people this!” Ida replied angrily.
Shaken, Tayo apologized, “Sorry-sorry! I never knew that was such a sensitive topic.”
“No, I am sorry. I have just been having men tell me what to do and where I am from all day, I am a little annoyed,” Ida stated.
“I thought there was no man that could tell you what to do?” Tayo asked whimsically.
Cynically, Ida replied, “You must not want to get back to your sister do you?”
“Sorry-sorry! I’ll stop asking questions now,” he replied with a regretful smile.
“Good,” Ida stated with a smug look on her face.
The second man in the cage that caught her eyes chimed in. He was a broad man, his chest resembled that of a bull and arms looked like he could pull a tree stump from the ground. His hair was short and black but he had a short greyish-black beard. His skin was dark but his iris was a bright scarlet.
“A woman that does not listen to a man? Don’t make me laugh,” he said in a deep thunderous voice.
“Who the hell are you? And what is up with your eyes?” Ida asked.
Laughing, he then replied, “My name is Irabor Ahmar. For my eyes, I do not know why they are like this. But they have brought me nothing but pain.”
“Irabor? Well nice to meet you. What do you mean you do not know what is wrong with your eyes? If my eyes were glowing any color I’d be asking a lot of questions,” Ida replied.
“My people were hunted to the brink of extinction over these godforsaken eyes, I do not care to learn why we have them. I would rip them out my head if I could muster up the strength to willfully blind myself,” Irabor replied grimly.
“Here I thought being a Yetim was bad, you had your people hunted to the brink of extinction.” Ida said as she leaned in, staring at his scarlet eyes.
“You can stop staring at my eyes now, you’re making me uncomfortable,” Irabor said as he closed his eyes.
“I just want to see your eyes, come on!” Ida yelled. Tayo began to laugh at their bickering. His innocent laughter was drowned out by the other slaves speaking amongst themselves in the background.
“Open your eyes, dammit! Let me see!” Ida said as she dropped to her stomach and wiggled her way across the cage to get closer to Irabor.
Irabor kept his eyes closed for a few moments. He listened for Ida’s voice but did not hear her. Sensing that his nuisance has finally given up, he peered to see if she was still staring at him, to his surprise, she sat right beside him. Irabor was startled and proceeded to shut his eyes once more.
“Go away!” he stated.
“You know, for a big brute as yourself you are kind of wimpy,” Ida replied mocking the man.
“Shut up! I would have you eat those words if these ropes did not restrain me!”
“I am sure you would big fella, I am sure you would,” she responded with a smile.
Tayo began to laugh even louder, this time his laughter was audible to Ida and Irabor. Ida noticed and cheerfully began, “Aye! There we go! Now you are starting to look less glum!”
“Stop laughing you swine!” Irabor yelled, his eyes berated the young boy as he grunted. Tayo stopped his laughter in an instance.
“You prick! Let the child have a laugh. It is the most he has right now,” she head butted Irabor.
“Ouch! You are very hard headed and I am not just talking about your attitude now,” he grimaced.
“Yea so don’t cross me again!” Ida yelled. Irabor turned away from her disconcertedly.
Ida decided it was time to leave Irabor alone. She rolled back across the cage to Tayo. As she sat upright, she began “Don’t listen to that idiot. If you want to laugh then laugh. It is all you have right now. Use it to keep your spirit up.” The wagon began to roll while they argued. The mood in the carriage brightened in light of their current situation.
Chapter 5: Violets
The winds blew calmly, and the streets were quiet. The moon’s rays illuminated the land so heavily that one could almost feel the light touching their skin. Mansa Hatim sat in his library alone still scouring through the scrolls. There were books thrown all throughout the room. Dishes riddled the table he sat at as he worked. There were several different candles on the table, all new additions, since the previous one had completely melted. The Mansa heard a knock.
“Father, can I come in?” The voice belonged to Nairomi. He offered no response, but she entered the room nonetheless, closing the door behind her.
“How are you doing? Do you need me to bring you another candle? Or some more tea? What about food? You must be starving,” She still received no response.
“I-I’d like to say that I am sorry for my attitude yesterday,” she said timidly. Mansa Hatim remained silent, and continued to stare intently at the scrolls. His eyes fixated on the task at hand.
“Okay enough of this! I am taking to your quarters at once!” she yelled. Nairomi walked across the library to her father, as she placed her right hand on his right shoulder to grab him, he shrugged away.
“Leave me alone! Is there not a policy you should be studying? Or a clan history you should be learning? You need to be diligent with your studies if you wish to be a great leader,” he said as he fidgeted with the papers.
“No, my only concern right now is your well-being! You have been at this since yesterday! The last time you stumbled upon ancient rituals I had not seen you for a month! You will drive yourself mad with this relentless pursuit. I will not let you do this!” Nairomi pleaded.
“Leave me be! I will find a way and there is nothing you can do to stop me!” the Mansa said as he slammed his hands on the table and rose from his chair.
“You have to stop Father! Mother would not want this!” Nairomi cried. They both became silent. The Mansa then turned towards his daughter, stood up and embraced her.
“I am sorry my child,” he gripped Nairomi, sobbing and tightening his embrace.
“It is okay Father, it has been hard on us all,” she replied with tears swelling in her eyes.
“I have been selfish. Immersing myself in this, I have neglected what I truly had in front of me,” he said as he squeezed Nairomi even tighter.
“It is okay, now can you please loosen up. I am starting to lose my breath,” she stated queasily.
“Sorry!” the Mansa replied with an oafish smile.
Nairomi brought her father to his bedroom. She helped him into bed and gave him a kiss on the forehead, wishing him a good night. She returned to his library to tidy up after him, rolling the scrolls up and placing them neatly to one side of the table. As she began to pick up the dishes, she heard the door behind her open, in a fright she lost all feeling in her hands and dropped a plate.
“Pardon me my lady, allow me to clean that up for you,” a member of the Hashish entered the room, his face curtained in a shadow due to his cowl.
“Oh! A Hashish. No, no it is okay I will clean it up. I am so clumsy at times,” she stated innocently.
“As you wish my lady. Allow me to accompany you throughout the night. To ensure your safety,” he replied.
“Safety? Is there not several of you surveying the Palace now as we speak?”
“Yes. But I feel it is more assuring to have someone personally accompany you until you return to your quarters.
“As you wish. Follow me to the kitchen, I need to place these dishes down and fetch the broom.”
They exited the room and proceeded down the steps to the kitchen. As th
ey progressed down the hall, Nairomi began “I honestly do not think I will ever get comfortable around you guys. All your faces are shrouded with these cowls and you are all so quiet and move so silent! It makes me uneasy at times,” she stated jokingly.
“Sorry my lady, this is how we are brought up from childhood. This is how we conduct ourselves. To ensure ones safety,” he replied.
“I understand, I miss the Royal Guards though. They were more talkative. I cannot believe Father relegated them to the Royal Garden,” the Hashish remained silent.
“Ummm, so what is your name?” she asked shyly.
“Hashish,” he replied simply.
Nairomi stopped walking, “Are you serious? You must have a name. What is your birth name?”
“Once we join the Hashish Order we lose the self and become the many,” he replied with his face still shrouded in mystery.
“You guys take this job a little too serious, but I suppose there is a reason for this. Father will not take any chances with anyone breaching the Palace again,” she stated as they continued to the kitchen.
“Indeed. The previous event was rather unfortunate,” he replied.
“Yeah, but mother was returned to us. All was well for a few years. She gave birth to Nairobi and tended to that whiny troublemaker. I wished things could go back to how they were. Once she passed away from the injuries she sustained from giving birth to Nairobi, this no longer felt like home,” she said wistfully.
“I am truly saddened by your loss, my lady.”
“It is okay. People die, I suppose. I just wished father would stop blaming her passing away on Nairobi. Mother used to love that little boy with all her heart. If anyone took her passing the hardest I would say it was him.”
She continued, “I remember one day, Nairobi was running around naked, he had to be two or three years old, but he fell and was crying so a Royal Guard picked him up. As soon as he began carrying him back to Mother, he pissed all on the guard’s armor. He was so upset!” She began to laugh but the Hashish remained silent.
“You are really no fun. No need to be so serious all the time. I am the Princess but we can humor one another you know.”
“I understand,” he said sternly.
Nairomi realized her words lead her nowhere. They finally arrived at the kitchen, which was a large room with a wide stone island in the center and countertops circumventing the room. The island was filled with various fruits and vegetables. She advanced passed the island to a section of the kitchen where they stacked used dishes. She placed the dishes on the counter so the maid could tend to them in the morning.
Nairomi placed her right arm on her hip and scratched her head, “Okay now where is that broom?” Suddenly, another Hashish appeared, as if he came directly from the shadows of the kitchen.
“Ahhh! Goodness! I am going to need you all to stop frightening me!” Nairomi hollered.
“My apologies, my lady. I heard you requested the broom,” he stated as he handed her the broom.
“Wha-, wher-, how? Never mind. Thank you,” she said confusedly.
The Hashish that was accompanying Nairomi spoke, “Brother, how is the Palace looking?” “Completely secured. Besides waking a few Royal Guards who seemed to be sleeping on duty, everything is fine,” he answered.
“Understood. You are dismissed.”
The second Hashish bowed and walked out the kitchen door. Nairomi studies him as he leaves the room, “so he walks through walls when I am not looking and uses the door when I am. Yeah, I am definitely not going to get used to this.” The Hashish that accompanied her remained quiet.
“So are you like, the leader of the other Hashish? I have always been too shy to ask.”
“No one Hashish rules, we all rule. Many are one and one are many,” he replied. Nairomi stared blankly at his response.
“Uhhh, I am going to bed now. Could you just clean up Father’s study for me?” she handed him the broom.
He took the broom but before he could exit, she grabbed his arm and drew him towards her, “Thank you for listening to me ramble on, I know I might have come off as shrewd or annoying, but I appreciated the company actually. But can you please hold a better conversation with me next time, I get bored in here at times. I know nearly all the Royal Guards by their first names and my maidens can be annoying. It would be nice to have a pleasant conversation with someone else for a change,” Nairomi then smiled and gave the Hashish a kiss on his cheek.
She saw a glimpse of his face and replied, “You are handsome. You should remove your hood so I can fully see your face.”
He stuttered, “N-No I cannot. I am on duty, I represent only the Hashish, not myself.”
She smiled, “Okay, okay. I will have you open up to me one day.”
He awkwardly walked out the room with the broom and headed towards the library. She exited the kitchen as well and went to her chambers. The following morning, a horseman arrived at the Palace, he carried a letter. The Royal Guards then accepted the letter and handed it to the Hashish. The Hashish then entered the Mansa’s library, where he had been sitting diligently deciphering the scrolls along with his scholars.
“Your Excellency, if I may?”
He and his scholars turned from the scrolls and looked at the Hashish, “Go ahead.”
“You have a letter, hailing from the Mali clan.”
“Really? Hand it over,” Mansa Hatim requested. The Hashish stepped forth and handed him the paper.
The Mansa’s eyes widened as he rose from his seat as he read the message.
“They are requesting a Gbara!? I see,” the Mansa began to comb his beard with his fingers.
He continued, “I must respect this request. Notify the other Lords. We shall meet by sunset.”
He turned to his scholars, “complete the translations. Report to me if anything of significance arises.”
The Mansa exited the room, and proceeded down the hall. He entered Nairomi’s room and began,
“Nairomi?” his eyes searched for the princess, but only her maidens resided in the room.
Awkwardly, he began, “Sorry ladies, where is my daughter?”
“She said she was going to the Royal Garden,” a one of them stated.
“Pardon me, carry on,” he raced out of the house to the garden.
“Nairomi! Nairomi! Where are you?” he yelled into the garden.
“Father? I am over here!”
He gazed over to his left and saw her kneeling near the violet bushes. She was accompanied by a few of the Royal Guards. She waved at The Mansa to make certain that he saw her. Mansa Hatim darted down the steps and joined them in the garden.
“Your Excellency!” the guards saluted.
“As you were,” he replied.
Before he could speak to Nairomi, she started as she caressed the flowers, “You know the violet is an underappreciated flower. Roses seem to be revered but violets relegated to the back of our minds. I think they are misunderstood. I find them more beautiful than roses, I find them more beautiful than any flower at that.”
“Nairomi, why are you out here? You should be studying.”
“I am tired of studying Father,” she said as she stood up.
She continued, “Day in and day out I read books and write in languages I probably will never need to use in the entirety of my life!”
Earnestly he replied, “I know, I know my child. But for you to properly rule the lands you need to be well versed and educated about it.”
“You know I never aspired for the throne. The one who wanted it was Nairob-”
“Silence!” he shouted. All motion deceased in the garden. The flowers themselves seemed to stand still.
“We will not visit this subject again, do I make myself clear?” he stated sternly.
“But Fath-”
“Did I make myself clear!?” his face began to rile.
“Crystal,” she stated as she rolled her eyes.
“Good. We are holding a Gbara tonight in
the Royal Council room. Begin preparing yourself.”
She stood up and began to dust the leaves, dirt and fallen petals from her dress. The Royal Guards attempted to assist her but she refused their aid. She then hurried off away from the guards and her father into the Palace. She raced through hallway to hallway until she arrived at her room. As Nairomi entered her room, her maidens rose from her bed and one began to speak, her complexion was that of the sands to the south.
“Princess, your Father was searching for you. From the expression on your face I can tell he found you.”
Rolling her eyes she replied, “Yes. He irks my soul at times Awesi.”
“He only wants the best for you my lady.”
“Well why can he not put this much effort into Nairobi. He always pushes him away! Then he has a temper when I bring him up!” she threw herself on her bed.
Another maiden began to speak, her complexion was that of the night sky and her beauty was just as vast, “My lady, I am sure his Excellency has a reason for his every action.”
Nairomi gazed at her and responded, “He needs to let go of the past Baaba. Nairobi is not the reason Mother is gone. And he is going to send himself to an early grave if he does not release some of this resentment.”
The third maiden then began to speak, her skin glowed as if bestowed to her from the sun, “That is why you must assume the throne. Restore order to this household. You will possess that authority once you ascend.”
Nairomi gazed at the ceiling for a few moments, then she turned towards the maiden, “You are correct, Naki. It seems I am the only one in this home with sense.”
She continued, “He is hosting a Gbara tonight, ready my dress. I aim to impress the other Clan Lords.”
“As you wish, my lady,” their voices rang in unison as they bowed and left the room.
Pharaoh of Fire Page 6