by A A Lee
Kenda did not answer. She refused to acknowledge him. Even a fake smile was too hard for her to do. She wanted him to be angry at her. She wanted him to realize that she was still not broken after two months in prison and give up on the wedding.
Kenda didn’t understand why she hated him so much; after all, he hadn’t really done anything wrong. Maybe he just wanted to get married. Maybe he was just desperate, and that was why he was letting the wedding go on, even though Kenda had been clear in opposing it. However, she concluded that if she did not make herself hate the man enough, she might be persuaded to marry him.
“I can see that you are still angry. It is natural. I am so sorry.” Jinja smiled. “If you cooperate in helping to make this wedding go smoothly, we would really appreciate it.”
Kenda just continued staring. She struggled to control her anger at the mention of the wedding.
Jinja sighed in frustration. “You know what? Forget it. It looks like you don’t want our kindness. I’m tired of playing the kind man part, anyway.” He motioned for the guards to go back to their posts.
Kenda felt relieved that they were leaving. She turned her back and sat down in the middle of the cell. During her first few days of imprisonment, she had hated that the dry earth had no cover, but she had now become used to it. The smell of the soil had even begun to calm her nerves. Now, she hoped to be left alone with her thoughts.
Together, the two guards walked away with near-synchronized steps, leaving Jinja behind. The man had stopped trying to talk to Kenda. Instead, he fished a key from his pocket and opened the cell.
Kenda’s eyes widened as a flood of understanding flowed through her mind. In that instant, all her previous empathy toward the man evaporated, to be replaced by a burning rage. She knew exactly how this strategy worked, and it was always successful. He had come here to violate her. He had come to stop her from shaming his family on the day of the wedding, should she express her opposition to the marriage during the ceremony.
Struggling to control her rage, a hiss escaped between her gritted teeth. She didn’t want to be blinded by anger. Today, she would use her training with Goni on how to fight, her anger subsiding at the thought of her uncle.
Kenda stood up straight just before Jinja opened the door. She didn’t want to be overpowered nor cornered. Jinja slowly approached her, wary now that she had stood. He stood just a few inches taller than her and his body was bigger, but Kenda was confident that she had trained enough.
Kenda stared at him, squarely in the eyes, and she saw a glint of hesitation, but she didn’t fully trust what she saw. She followed his vision as he looked at her clenched fists and the position of her feet, now placed wider than her hips. She had adopted her fighting stance. One wrong move, and Kenda would launch her attack.
“I’m not gonna hurt you,” Jinja said in an assuring voice. “I just want to see the inner part of your cell. Come on, why would I? Tomorrow, you will be my wife. I certainly don’t want any scratches on your beautiful face.”
Kenda knew it was a lie. “Sure, but you can see exactly what the cell looks like from the outside. It’s not like I have the luxury of privacy here.” She was right. There was no privacy, as the cell was only surrounded with wooden bars. She had had to hang blankets when changing her clothes to avoid her nakedness being seen by the guards.
“Well, you’re right, but I just want to know what it feels like to be here.”
Kenda let him move around the cell, but her eyes never left him. “It’s only big enough for one person. There’s nothing here, really.”
He looked at the bundle of clothes that was placed on top of coconut leaves. “They could’ve at least given you a shelf here for your clothes.”
“It’s not necessary. It’s a prison cell.”
Jinja moved toward the water and wooden plates. He knelt down. “What did you eat today?”
“Just vegetables,” Kenda answered. She tried to keep track of his hands, but it was hard to see when he turned his back toward her.
“It looks like your water is unclean.”
“It’s fine.” Kenda moved a little closer to him in order to see his hands. The beautiful sunset was gone, and it had started to get dark.
“Look! It looks like they haven’t washed this bamboo.” He pointed to the bamboo receptacle containing her water.
Kenda stepped closer and looked. Jinja wheeled around suddenly and hit her with dry soil. Kenda’s eyes closed instinctively, and her legs moved back on their own. It was too late. Her eyes stung, and she struggled to keep her balance with the sudden loss of vision.
Disoriented, she stopped moving. Hearing Jinja’s footsteps getting closer, she moved back further until she felt the wooden bars at her back.
A blow to her stomach knocked the breath from her. She crouched and put her hands to her stomach. As soon as her strength returned, she sidestepped to her right.
There was no blow. It felt as if Jinja was toying with her.
Kenda opened her eyes, but her vision was clouded. Her eyes still stung, and the tears were taking some time to clear her vision. She heard Jinja’s footsteps against the dry earth, and in deep concentration, she tried to locate him.
Kenda felt the air move and she sidestepped to avoid Jinja, but she wasn’t able to avoid his next punch. She fell to her knees, blinking involuntarily.
“Water!” she shouted and realized soon after how foolish she sounded.
Jinja laughed maniacally. “Oh, no! You must have gone crazy. It can’t be. You need to look right for tomorrow.”
She extended her hand to reach out for the water, desperately wishing that she was in the right place. Because she could not see, she couldn’t tell each wooden bar from the next. Something wet touched her hand, and she thought that Jinja might be pouring water into her hand out of pity.
“What the…?” She heard Jinja say.
Kenda moved her face close to her hand. She thought that there was something odd about the movement of the water, but she was unable to decide what was wrong. There was no movement from Jinja’s direction, so she hurriedly blinked several times to clean her eyes before he could attack again. The water stopped, and Kenda frowned. The movement of the water didn’t seem to be from above. Then it hit her. Out of desperation and in a hurry to clean her eyes, she hadn’t thought that she was looking down while cleaning her eyes. The water moved up to her face.
Opening her eyes, she stood straight and looked at Jinja. His face was frozen in shock.
Her eyes moved toward the bamboo water container that was still in the same position. She didn’t understand what had happened, and judging from Jinja’s expression, neither did he.
Without a word, Jinja rushed to the door, fear replacing the shock on his face.
Lightning crisscrossed in the sky, and thunder rocked the quiet prison. Then, abundant rain graced the dry earth. Kenda unrolled the mat made of buri leaves in the corner and covered the cell floor with it. She inhaled the sweet smell of the wet earth outside her cell.
In a few moments, Kenda fell into a deep sleep, no longer worried about the wedding the following day.
Chapter 5
Revelation
Kenda’s sleep was interrupted by scuffling footsteps. She stiffened. Her fingers curled, ready for another attack.
“Kenda, are you awake?” The voice was deep and low.
Kenda sat up in a heartbeat. “Uncle Goni!? How did you get in here?”
Goni’s long, black hair seemed almost invisible in the dark.
“I managed to trick the guards. Long story. But I won’t be able to trick them for the both of us to escape here; you know that I have limited abilities.”
Kenda nodded. Goni was a shy man and normally didn’t show his talents unless he was drunk. She had been one of those who had been entertained by Goni’s tricks when she was younger. She and her cousins couldn’t wait for Goni to get drunk for him to show his tricks. She had witnessed Goni transfer her cousin’s mole from her
left cheek to her right. Once, he dared one of the guys in the village to agree to have his penis transferred to his forehead, but as Goni could not guarantee that he would be able to put it back, the guy had backed out.
There were rumors that Goni had more power than just tricks, but nobody had ever been able to prove it. There was even talk that he could communicate to animals and command trees.
One thing that Kenda knew for sure, though, was that Goni was a deadly fighter. Once, Goni had spotted her practicing alone in the forest while he had been deterring birds from eating the rice harvest. She had been so happy when he had offered to teach her. She had accepted the offer, and they had trained and fought in secret. Goni had lightning speed and rock-solid punches. She had gone home several times with bruises and she had had to come up with excuses for her grandmother.
Nobody in the village knew that Goni was a fighter. Everybody viewed him as just a farmer trying to feed his family.
One day, Kenda had beaten him and Goni had subsequently stopped meeting her for training. Kenda hadn’t known if her triumph had offended him, but she had continued her training alone, pretending to combat Goni in her imagination.
“You don’t know how happy I am to see you, but this is dangerous,” Kenda said. “You’ll be imprisoned for trying to take me out of here.”
“I know.” Goni raised both hands to silence Kenda. “But I don’t have a choice. I have always believed that you are the Bringer of Equality.”
“The Bringer of Equality?” Kenda cocked her head.
“The one who can break the curse of the last few hundred years. The Bringer of Equality is also said to be the only gifted who can command the priestess’ staff. If you can’t discover the power within you, then the world will be doomed forever. The curse is spreading.”
“What curse?” She chuckled. “Uncle, did you have a drink today? I can’t even escape from here. What do you think I can do for the whole world?” She stood and pushed her hands against the wood to emphasize her point.
“Shhh! Lower your voice. You’ll attract the guards’ attention.”
Kenda sat back down and fell silent. She wanted to hear Goni’s escape plan—if he had one—instead of him harping on about saving the world, but she was thankful that her uncle had risked his freedom to visit her. She decided to just listen.
“Listen, the reason that you are being forced into this marriage is because there are so few girls of your age. That is the curse. In a few years, girls born into this world will be so rare that it will be impossible for people to procreate. People will die with no children to replace them. Only the Bringer of Equality can break the curse. For generations, my family has been passing on this information to be retained and not be completely forgotten. Since I was a little boy, I have been secretly training to help you. I have always known it was you, from the moment you were born, but I have never been as sure as I am tonight. I saw the sign that the skies shared tonight. You made the water follow your command, and the spirits have accepted you.”
“Uncle, you have far too high hopes for me! Sure, Grandma is the High Priestess, but I don’t have a drop of magic in my blood to help me. How can you possibly know that I am the Bringer of Equality to help bring forth girls into this world?” Kenda laughed. “I am no god.”
“The guards are coming!” Goni crouched to avoid being seen. “They must have heard us. Here.” Goni extended his hand. “I have a gift for you.” The guards were getting nearer as Kenda hurriedly took what seemed to be a white stone from Goni.
“Summon your anger tomorrow. Summon the fire to create smoke. Where there is smoke, you will not be seen. Remember, it only works during the day.”
Chapter 6
I Do Not
“Do you prefer the red one or the white one?” the woman cheerfully asked Kenda.
The attendant didn’t seem tired of smiling or admiring things for the wedding. It was past noon, and they had been choosing her accessories for hours. Currently, they were choosing the flowers for her bridal headband. Kenda couldn’t care less how she would look. She couldn’t stop thinking about her escape. Goni had not been able to explain how to use the stone, except that it was to be used during the day and whilst summoning her anger. Sure, she was angry. She was angry enough that she wanted to throw all the accessories being prepared around her. She was also annoyed that Goni had wasted time talking about the curse, instead of just telling her how to use the stone.
“The red one,” she murmured toward the woman helping her. She didn’t know her name, and she didn’t have the energy nor care enough to know. The wedding would be starting soon, and she had been angry at everyone and everything around her. She was getting tired of being angry to the point of just not caring anymore.
The woman held her wrists and opened Kenda’s hand. Kenda didn’t have the energy to argue, so she just let her arms hang limply by her side. She jerked her hand back when she remembered that she needed to keep the stone.
“I’m sorry, but we need to paint your nails. This should have been done yesterday, but…” The woman lowered her head without finishing what she was saying.
Kenda’s imprisonment was no secret, but she was relieved that this woman did not rub her nose in it. “Yes, of course. Can you put this stone on my necklace?” Kenda asked, showing the attendant the smooth white pebble. “I like it. I think it looks elegant.”
“I don’t think it’s anything special.” The attendant’s unimpressed eyes examined the stone. “I see a lot of this kind when I go to the river. Are you sure you want it to be a part of your wedding appearance? We might have something prettier here.” The woman walked away and rummaged through the things scattered on the floor. “There should be; we have prepared a lot of things for this wedding. Perhaps I should go and ask…”
“Stop. Don’t bother,” Kenda interrupted. “I don’t really care what I will look like. It’s just that this is my favorite stone, and I have kept it for a long time.”
“But… but we have strict instructions to make you look the prettiest today. And we were told to only use the highest quality materials. A lot of people will be watching because you are the High Priestess’ granddaughter!” The attendant’s eyes widened, and her voice rose with excitement.
“All right, then. How about you hide this inside the flower of my necklace?” Kenda stood at her full height. “This is my only request of you. I don’t know if I will ever see you again, but I will be forever grateful if you do this.”
“But…” The attendant started to open her mouth to protest, but no words came out.
“What is your name?” Kenda asked.
“I’m Eva.” The attendant blushed a little. “Thank you for asking. Nobody is really interested in me here. Jinja’s family only brought me because I normally help during weddings in Taa.” She rubbed her hands together, looking awkward as the conversation focused on her.
“How old are you?” Kenda looked straight into her eyes.
“I will be twenty this harvest season, but I’m not so sure if that is correct. We just guessed it. I may be younger, but my mother did not register my birth like many others my age.”
“You are six years older than me.”
“Really!? You talk like you are older. I guess it must be because your grandmother is the high priestess.”
There was a bit of truth in what Eva had said. Even though she was young, Kenda’s voice contained an undertone of power that other girls her age didn’t have. Years of listening to her grandmother in formal gatherings had clearly influenced her way of speaking.
“How old were you when you got married?” she asked.
“I think I was twelve. I was a lot younger than you, in any case. I already have three lovely kids . It is hard, but I am happy whenever I see them smile.” The attendant smiled at the memory of her kids back in her village, her hands still busy working on arranging the red flowers that Kenda had chosen.
“Do you remember your own wedding?”
“
But, of course! I remember it like it was just yesterday. We were poor, but I felt like I owned the world that day. Food was endless, and I looked like a fairy when I saw my face staring back at me in the mirror. I was happy, and the people around me were also happy. I chose my own dress, and we received gifts, too.” Eva couldn’t seem to stop talking about the past, but when she looked at Kenda’s serious face, she smiled apologetically and concentrated on arranging the flowers on her head.
“Did you want to get married?”
“Yes… I mean, no. Ahm...” The woman looked to the ceiling as she collected her thoughts. After some time, she said, “What I meant was that I wanted to get married because of the wedding day itself. I had been to several weddings when I was a child and I saw how extravagant they could be. I wanted to be pretty and eat a lot of food. So, I wanted to get married, but I didn’t really want to be married. I didn’t really want to have to live with a man and have kids.”
“That’s my reason for not wanting to get married, too. I don’t want to commit myself to a life I haven’t chosen.” At the look of concern which spread across Eva’s face, Kenda said, “No, I’m not asking you to help me to stop the wedding. What I am asking of you is a very small favor. I want to be myself at this wedding. You were lucky that there was something for you to be excited about during your wedding day. It is not the same for me. I am not looking forward to being the prettiest, and I don’t want to eat extravagant food. I am happy with any kind of food; I can hunt, and I can farm. Of course I have dreams of being rich someday, but mostly I just want to be independent and able to live without being told what to do. But, as the world is so cruel, it clearly isn’t meant to be, so I want to remember this day as my last day of being me. My last day of having something that is entirely mine. This stone gives me hope.” It wasn’t the whole truth, but she could think of no other way to convince Eva to let her have the stone in her wedding.