by Avell Kro
“Black man coming!” said Shandi in a high-pitched wail, and Rhuna tightened her grip on
the child.
“We cannot resist such a mighty force,” Progress of the Wind said, and Rhuna assumed he
meant resistance with the Dark Powers.
“This is our doing, Brother,” Goram said to Progress of the Wind. “Although we are
innocent of the illness-curse, we have nevertheless aggravated them into this attack on all Atlans,”
he said as his breathing became laboured again.
“In our arrogance, we neglected to consider the consequences of our actions,” admitted
Progress of the Wind with a thoughtful nod of his head.
“We must do what we can to correct this error,” Goram said weakly.
Rhuna quickly summarized the message Damell had given her about what to pack, and
where they would be going, with the instruction to relay this information to all other Atlans in
Safu.
“Save your energy, Brother,” said Progress of the Wind. “Allow me to contact the
Brotherhood and convey messages to all our friends,” he said as he prepared to leave with haste.
As Progress of the Wind hurried out the door, Rhuna heard commotion outside on the streets
and turned to look. She saw Atlans using trumpets to sound the alarm, and people were coming
out of their houses and down the streets to hear the announcement, which was then relayed by
each person to yet more people further away.
“Lozira, pack your things – only what you need and can carry!” Rhuna said urgently as she
turned back into the room where Goram struggled to sit up.
“Don’t try to sit,” commanded Rhuna. “Tell Lozira what she can pack for you, and save your
strength. .or else you could still die,” she added solemnly.
Goram looked at Rhuna for a long moment in silence, and then squeezed Lozira’s hand. “We
shall do what Rhuna says,” he told Lozira reassuringly. Rhuna watched as her daughter obediently
left the bedside to pack their necessary items, and then looked expectantly out of the window until
she saw four of The Reigning One’s attendants arrive with a carry-seat. She instructed them to
enter and assist Goram onto the seat, while Lozira fussed about cushions to make him
comfortable.
Rhuna was delighted to see that one of the four attendants arriving with the carry-seat was
the bald man with the muscular neck who had carried her to the Commoners’ part of the city, and
who had been enchanted by Shandi.
“I go with you,” he said nodding and revealing crooked teeth behind thick lips. Shandi
recognized him and seemed happy as she raised her arms in a gesture of welcome towards the
ruggedman with a gentle nature.
“Sweet Cakes, would you like to ride on the carry seat?” she asked Shandi. Her tears had
dried up and her round faceexpressed excitement at anything new. She nodded and then reached
out for Lozira, who hugged the little girl and then placed her at Goram’s feet.
On the way out of the Atlan part of Safu, walking next to Lozira and the carry-seat amidst
the commotion, alarm and panic, Rhuna recognizedPossessor of Discernment walking briskly in
their direction. She called out to him, asking if he had understood the urgent announcement to evacuate Safu.
“My responsibility is to the Pyramids!” he said adamantly.
“Your life may be in danger!” Rhuna urged.
“I am too old! Leave me be,” he said shaking his head fiercely. “I am close to ninety solar
cycles in age. I would only be a burden!”
“We are taking the old, weak and sick with us!” Rhuna said firmly as she gestured to the
carry-seat. “Your knowledge about the pyramids is an essential part of Atlan life, and that makes
you an important person! Besides, I need help taking care of Shandi,” Rhuna added, remembering
the old man’s weakness.
Possessor of Discernment looked gravely at Rhuna, and then down at Shandi, who held up
her favourite long-eared toy from the Pyramids. The white head nodded slowly as his eyes
moistened with tears.
“In fact, I would like you to take care of her while I go see the Safu Council,” she said
relieved. “Walk slowly with Lozira and the carry-seat, and I’ll catch up with you very soon.”
Sun of the Morning and the other members of the new Safu Council were seated in their
private discussion chamber when Rhuna burst through the doors to relay the urgent
announcement.
“We have been informed,” she answered coolly. “Such an invasion of an Atlan colony is
unprecedented, and there has never been a deliberate attack on Atlans to harm them in any way,”
she stated confidently.
Rhuna remembered her childhood on the isolated Atlan colony island of Chinza, and how
Tozar had taken her away just as the native Zao people were about to kill the Atlans. Taking a deep
breath to calm her agitation, she described her childhood experience to the Council members.
“An isolated incident, under exceptional circumstances,” Sun of the Morning responded with a
huff.
“You are wrong!” Rhuna said with sudden vigour, releasing the pent-up anger she had
towards the woman. “You are endangering your lives if you stay here!”
“We shall remain in Safu because this is our assignment and responsibility as
representatives of the Atlán,” said Sun of the Morning completely unconcerned.“Some Atlans are
remaining in Safu also,” she added.
“So be it then,” Rhuna said gruffly. “I am leaving with my family as quickly as possible!” she
said, turning on her heels and hurrying back to the carry-seat, giving the attendants orders to
continue walking promptly.
The crowd at the ferry crossing pointwas like a stormy sea of agitated people talking in
panic and confusion. Atlans of all ages stoodclosely together as the dock area quickly filled up with
more people. They held their bags of clothes and other items, some fidgeted nervously, others
murmured in discontent and disbelief.
“It is a misunderstanding!” exclaimed a woman holding a leather bag bursting at the seams.
“They cannot drive us out of our home!” said an elderly man next to her. “Safu has been my
home my entire life!”
The woman looked around and then narrowed her eyes as she recognized Rhuna.
“Do you have anything to do with this?” she asked sharply.
“No!” Rhuna responded angrily. “I’ve been trying to stop this from happening!”
“You are the one they call The Star Child…the Banished One,” said a man to her left. “What
have you done to cause this inexcusable outrage?” he demanded. Rhuna looked at the Atlan man
who wore ordinary clothes and held a large bag made from thick textiles. His reddened cheeks
glowed in the sunlight as clouds parted in the sky above.
“I have tried to keep peace with the Ubanti!” Rhuna retorted, and was relieved when the
man was distracted by his family from continuing his verbal attack on her.
As Rhuna stood in the ever-growing crowd of Atlans, she sensed disbelief above all else,
and listened to snippets of conversations around her as people spoke about leaving their homes
and what would happen to those who stay behind.
“Do you believe it could truly be so dangerous to remain in our homes?”
“Perhaps the danger has been exaggerated?”
“We should not risk our li
ves, lest it be true!” replied yet another voice from the jostling
crowd.
“Din-Din!” Shandi squeaked, and Rhuna spun around to see Aradin making his way
through the crowd towards them. Grateful to see him, Rhuna fell into his arms and held him
tightly for a while.
“Black man coming,” said Shandi sadly.
“Yes, Precious,” Aradin said softly, and stroked the child’s soft cheeks. “Many black men are
coming.”
Suddenly, Rhuna also felt seized by disbelief and asked Aradin if they were doing the right
thing to leave.
“Yes, your father said so,” he said firmly. “Despite some misgivings, I do trust him – don’t
you?”
Rhuna nodded, and then admitted that she was grasping at the hope it may be a mistake,
and that they would not have to leave after all.
“Our home!” Rhuna said, feeling the sting of tears in her eyes.
“Maybe we can return in a few days,” Aradin said unconvincingly. “…when the Ubanti
realize that most of us Atlans are innocent and not their enemies,” he said, then quickly shifted his
gaze to Goram resting on the carry-seat.
“They would surely kill him,” Rhuna whispered, reading her husband’s thoughts.
A short while later, Rhuna heard noises and several shouts in the Benshi language which
signalled that the ferry was ready to be boarded. She took a firm hold of Shandi with one hand as
she rode on the carry-seat, and grabbed Aradin’s arm with the other as they began to move with
the crowd.
Rhuna noticed that despite the restless confusion, everything took place orderly and
without incident. Benshi men assisted Atlans onto the ferry, signaling for the rowers to depart,
and then tying up the next vacant ferry. Rhuna counted the people standing ahead of her, and
estimated that about forty people were able to stand on one ferry.
On the other side, everyone walked along the well-trodden path, and Rhuna saw a few of
The Reigning One’s attendants ahead, carrying large bulky items which she assumed were tents
and other necessities for sleeping outdoors.
As the crowd of reluctant Atlans walked along the path through fields of lettuce, parsley and
beans, Rhuna was able to look ahead and behind, and she scanned the faces, hoping to see her
father soon.A movement caught her eye, and when she focused on the figure in the distance, she
recognized her father. She waved back eagerly, a tear in her eye.
“Who is he?” asked Possessor of Discernment who had been standing behind Rhuna. She
turned to the old man and told him about her father.
“It is as I always hoped and believed!” he said with awe when Rhuna had explained her
father’s exile in faraway lands. Damell walked briskly to catch up to them as Rhuna finished telling
the old man about his former student.
“Avenger of Justice, is it really you?” said Possessor of Discernment with awe and wonder.
The men embraced and greeted each other heartily, and Rhuna decided to leave them to talk a
while. She looked around constantly, reassuring herself that all was as it should be, but still she
could not escape the dread she felt deep inside. The vegetable gardens gave way to broader fields of
wheat and barley, and Rhuna felt that they were exposed in this open area, and only the mass of
people all around gave her a small sense of safety.
The sunny day warmed the ground and made walking uncomfortable after a quarter of a
day, and as soon as the meandering crowd reached an open plain, it was agreed to stop and
assemble for further instructions.
Rhuna looked around and realized they had left the irrigated fields of wheat and barley
behind already, and were already in wilderness, even though the track on which they walked
seemed wel -trodden.
“Who takes authority here?” shouted someone. People milled around, agitation and
confusion arising again as everyone looked at each other questioningly. Suddenly a familiar voice
startled Rhuna, and every head turned in the same direction.
“I do!” shouted Damell, who stood on a boulder with raised arms waving to attract
everyone’s attention. “I am Avenger of Justice, and I have brought you into this wilderness to
protect you from the Ubanti Army,” he called at the top of his voice for everyone to hear.
“Why do they attack us?” an angry voice immediately called out from the crowd.
“They mistakenly believe that we, the people of Atlán, have attacked them in their own
land,” Damel answered, and then waited for the murmuring to subside.
“Despite efforts to clarify this misunderstanding, the Ubanti seem determined to reclaim the
land of Safu, driving out the people they view as their enemy, namely Atlans,” Damell continued.
Rhuna admired her father’s ability to speak with such power and authority,taking control of such
extreme conditions.
“How long do we have to stay here?” was the next question on most people’s mind, and
Damell explained that they were not yet out of reach of the Ubanti armies, and therefore stil in
danger. He urged the Atlan throng to keep walking until the darkness of night made it too difficult
to continue, and then to reassess the situation.
“Let us rest here briefly to take nourishment and water,” Damel ordered, and people
responded quickly by rummaging for food in their bags. Aradin already held the small sack of
Shandi’s favourite food, so Rhuna removed a pouch of seeds, figs and dried raisins, then reached
for the blood-building tincture for Goram. He obediently drank the medicine while Rhuna
examined his condition by measuring energy and blood flow throughout his body. Satisfied that
his condition was at least unchanged, she turned her attention to Lozira.
“This is a horrible place!” Lozira whimpered, and then ran her fingers through her tangled
hair. Rhuna looked around and agreed with her daughter as she noted the flat terrain with no
rocks or proper trees, only shrubs and patches of tall grass.
Despite grumbles and misgivings, the Atlan people took up their possessions and began the
slow trudge further in the direction of the rising sun. The Reigning One’s attendants and several
soldiers armed with weaponry also took up the carry-seats or spurred on horses and pack animals
transporting bulky items. Rhuna watched as one of the wagons laden heavily with food, blankets
and tents rattled alongside her, the wheels frequently getting stuck in the soft ground.
“Completely useless device, those wheels!” grumbled an Atlan man behind her. “They
require paved roads, and are therefore confined to cities and a few main roads between centers,”
the man continued.
“Yet they have managed so far on this grassland,” Aradin said.
“They cannot proceed much further past this point, as the ground is becoming too soft and
muddy for the wheels,” she heard Possessor of Discernment remark.
“As I said, a very limited, inefficient contraption,” the grumbling man said.
Rhuna then turned her attention to the carry-seat where Goram had been lying in silence.
Lozira had been walked alongside the carry-seat as close as possible and holding Goram’s hand. It
appeared that Goram had been resting well, and the colour of his skin had improved slightly,so she
examined Lozira, whose disheveled hair and tear-stained face worried Rhuna.
“How are you feeling?” she asked her daughter, giving her a brief visual examination as a
Healer.
“Everything is his fault!” she spat with rage as her face flushed deep red. Startled, Rhuna
asked what she was talking about.
“Tozar! It all started with his stubborn, self-righteous, stupid, stupid jealousy!” she ranted,
confusing Rhuna until she realized that her tirade had nothing to do with the present situation,
rather an outpouring of deep trauma yet to be healed.
“Why do you not say anything about him? Are you not outraged at what he has done? He
wanted you and Damell killed!” Lozira screeched, and Rhuna saw the deep anguish in her
daughter’s eyes.
“Yes, of course I am,” Rhuna said as she took Lozira’s hands. “My feelings show in a
different way,” she said, and then tried to calm her daughter with soothing words and a long, tight
embrace.
“Sunlight is beginning to fade,” Damell called out to everyone. “We should rest here for the
night.” The sound of many tired voices accompanied the bustling activity to prepare the open
area for sleep.
“It is fortunate that the cold season brought much rain, otherwise this would be arid land,
without life-supporting water,” said Possessor of Discernment.
“Yes, the rain has left puddles here and there,” Aradin said, pointing to several pools of still
water. “We can use them to summon visions of what is happening in Safu by means of the Gazing
of the Waters.
“Beware of snakes!” called out Damell, as Atlans began to spread out to find a place to settle
for the night. Rhuna looked up at the dazzling night sky of brilliant stars, and for a moment she
felt excited to sleep in the open under such a wondrous array. There was no need for tents, only
blankets and cushions which were being distributed by The Reigning One’s attendants, while the soldiers checked the perimeter of the encampment, apparently securing it against snakes and
other possibly dangerous creatures.
Rhuna made her way to one of the wagons where food and other provisions were being
unloaded, and asked one of the attendants what was in the sacks and barrels. She was surprised to
learn that the Army had special food to take on long journeys, such as fish and poultry meats