by Cassie Wolf
Atsu woke when the early morning chill was seeping through the tent and Pazade had already vanished. Sitting up, he stretched out and glanced around to see if maybe at least one of the sisters had slept in there too or if there was any sign of what he had to do next. But there was nothing at all.
With sleep in his eyes, he stretched and headed outside following the aroma of cooked food. What he found made him jump.
Kneeling over the three-legged cooking pot, the thin masked daughter held a wooden spoon in her hand as she stirred crumbled corn porridge, thick in texture and topped with finely-sliced tomatoes and caramelised onions. The wooden mask tilted in his direction and the spoon hovered over the pot as if frozen.
“Didn’t mean to scare you,” the smoky voice said. She went back to action and grabbed a nearby bowl before filling it up.
“If you don’t mean to scare people, take off that mask,” Atsu muttered and sat down on a chopped log seat.
“You know I can’t,” the voice mocked as she pushed the bowl towards him. “Eat up. We will be leaving later today.”
“Today?” Atsu asked with food spilling out of his mouth.
“Oh… yes. We have not yet been declared war on so Father wants to leave while it is safe and we are alive.” The young girl filled the bowl before her and stood up. “You know spoons exist?”
“You know hunger exists?” Atsu crammed another fistful of porridge in his mouth. The girl gave a faint laugh and went to turn away. “Wait, I need to see someone before I leave, but she’s up in the Chieftain’s hut.”
The green eyes widened as she glanced over her shoulder. “She?”
“Yes, it’s not what you think. She is my sister.”
“Hmmm… what is Blood-and-Shadow known for most? It’s family relations I believe…” The girl went to walk away.
“No, no, no.” Atsu quickly swallowed down another mouthful and grabbed her by the arm, spinning her around. “Nothing between me and her. She is my only living relative; I never felt that I wanted anything like that from her. I just want to say goodbye.”
The young woman tilted her head once more with eyes narrowed. “I know. You don’t need to explain to me, our customs are different and I do not judge nor do I need to know.” She brushed her soft fingers over his bandaged palm and trailed over the cut line. “You are one of my tribe now.”
Atsu watched her hypnotically, his mind drifting into entirely different areas as she delicately touched his palm. He tightened his eyes closed and chewed on his lip, breaking himself from his thoughts. “Yes, exactly. I need to say goodbye to her.”
The woman nodded and glanced over to the group of five warriors a short distance away. “Take them with you, tell them I commanded. My father and sister will be back soon from their training so make it quick.”
Atsu nodded and reluctantly let go of her wrist. The things she brought to mind while in his presence were beginning to agitate him, let alone what her aura had given him the strength to stand up to. Maybe she had cast a spell on him and was really a witch. It would explain a lot, he thought to himself.
The warriors were at first reluctant to go anywhere near the Chieftain’s hut until he told them Pazade’s daughter had commanded it. With his sword on his waist, he led the group back into the tribe’s walls. As they passed the huts, stalls and the people who had made his life hell over the years, Atsu couldn’t believe this was going to be the last time he would be here. It felt unreal that it was actually happening. He always knew he would get away, but he’d thought he would have to run in the dead of the night with nothing on his back and only speed in his legs. He probably would have been caught a couple of days out.
The warriors stared in his direction with disgust behind their scarfs while the five around him paced in time up the hill. He knew he was well protected at the very least if they did try to attack him.
Outside the Chieftain’s hut, the velvets of the witch doctor were a relief to his eyes. At least Inari should understand, and at the worst he could pass a message on to Masi. The group around him came to a halt with spears crossed over their chests while Jasari’s men stared ahead, not even with a glimmer of fear or reaction from them.
“Inari?” Atsu asked.
The Witch Doctor turned and glared at him as if he was a complete stranger. “Do you think this is wise, Brother?”
The warriors changed their stance in a flash. Each one of them brought their spears to the right, as if about to attack. Jasari’s men soon woke up and started to one by one draw their swords. The grinding of the silver against leather made Atsu shudder.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Atsu asked his group.
“The witch doctor known as Inari addressed you as ‘Brother’. You are a member of the Blood-and-White tribe with a name and shall be treated as such. To not name is a disrespect to our heritage,” one of them called out, as if rehearsed to perfection.
Inari eyed the warriors and shook his head. “When he fought our future Chieftain, he did not have a name. It is my mistake, I was not told he had been given one so quickly.”
The warriors didn’t change stance and wouldn’t let Atsu pass them. “I was granted the name Atsu,” he said. “That is how I will now be known.”
“Do you think this is wise then, Atsu?” Inari said, with mocking in his tone.
With a high-pitched squeal, the weapons of every soldier around returned to their sheaths. Atsu cringed at the noise before focusing back on Inari. “Yes. I need to see Masika.”
“Jasari won’t let you and this lot step inside the hut!”
“Inari, I am leaving for good soon. I just want to say goodbye.”
“I can’t let you inside, Atsu. Your sister will not want to see you anyway. She is appalled by what you did to Dia.”
Atsu ran his hand through his thick locks and shook his head a couple of times. He had the men around him and they had obviously received elite training. He could order them to take out the guards around the perimeter, run inside and grab Masika, but then he would have to rely on them being alive while he got her and not crossing other warriors on their path. And on the guards at the front not attacking the tents outside, and the masked daughter who was potentially his future. He couldn’t risk any harm coming to her.
Atsu pushed aside the warriors, who didn’t take their gaze off those beside the doors. He approached Inari and looked him sternly in the eyes. “Years ago, I pulled her out of a burning building, the last of my blood. Last night I got my freedom from this place and may never see her again. Can I still trust you will pass on a message to her?”
Inari glanced away before reluctantly nodding. “Yes. I will grant you that, but I can’t do anything else.”
“I am not asking you to,” Atsu said and leant forward. He whispered for a moment, tears formed in his eyes as he did. Deep down, he knew that this was going to be the last she would ever hear from him. When he had finished, he looked Inari in the eyes once more and patted him on the back “Thank you, Inari. You helped me through the darkest time in my life. I hope one day our paths will cross once more, and not as enemies.”
Atsu didn’t wait for a response and turned around in haste with his group to head back down the hill. Before he got to the exit, he glanced over to the fishing shacks, where the last sign that his family ever existed lay hidden underneath the blankets. The statues of warriors, healers and all those who had brought pride to his name.
As he hesitated, he caught sight of the masked daughter out of the corner of his eye. Her hand was raised in the air over the flames while her feathers blew in the slight breeze. Sighing, he nodded to the warriors at the gates for the final time and let go of the blood he came from.
- CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR -
Masika tossed and turned all night. She struggled to let the events settle in her mind. The sight of Dia had knocked her sideways. His pathetic whimpers in pain showed to her how weak he was, but for the first time in her life, she felt pity for him. He had not chosen to b
e born to this family, just like she had not chosen to be the daughter of a couple who would perish while she was still a child. Maybe beneath it all he wasn’t so bad.
The more the night lingered on, the more she felt a sense of resentment towards her brother. She had risked her life by mating with him in her bed. The fact she was no longer pure would be felt by Dia when the time came and no doubt he would make her life torturous for it.
She had briefly seen Pazade’s daughters in the hut when they had slept beneath the roof and the only thing she thought about them was the strangeness behind the mask. Both had the same glimmering emerald eyes of their father. The only difference between the pair was that one was shorter in height and rounder. Her hate was building towards these strangers who had visited. One of them was going to take her true mate from her and have his children, but the most sickening part of it was hearing that everyone saw her brother wanted it. Everyone knew she didn’t want to go anywhere near Dia, they had been vocal enough about it over the years, but Zaki actually desired this girl.
Masika couldn’t cry any more tears. She wanted to, and felt forever on the verge, but now nothing would come out. She was numb all over, as if nothing in the world mattered. She just wanted time to pass and to be able to see a point in the future where she would be happy.
In the morning, she got out of bed and threw on a long crimson dress before tying her hair back. Glancing out the window to the place where her hut used to be, the thought swirled in her stomach that soon it would be as if her family had never even existed.
“Masi,” a wise old voice came from the door. Inari stood with his arms folded and sadness across his face. “Your brother is leaving now.”
Masika glanced up from the table and couldn’t do anything but nod her head. “He’s not even come to say goodbye.”
“Actually,” Inari started and closed the door behind him before sweeping over to sit at the table, “he just spoke to me at the front entrance after trying to get in here.”
She peeked up her head and raised an eyebrow. “Has he got a death wish?”
“He didn’t try to force it, although I think he was contemplating it.” Inari sighed. “He had a message to pass on to you.”
“Tell me,” Masika said, voice low, and closed her eyes.
“He wanted me to pass on to you that he got his name, it is Atsu now. He told me that he knew he never belonged here and is going to live a life free from the strangers who judge him with what he hopes to be his new mate.”
Masika’s eyes flickered at the words while she tried to painfully swallow. “I see.”
“He said one day he shall be Chief and while that is not right now, he will do everything in his power to get you away from here so you can grow a family of your own by his side and make your parents proud,” Inari finished with a sigh. He watched as Masika struggled to take in the meaning and the certainty that Zaki did not feel the same way about her as she did him. He reached out his hand to her fingertips, and she squeezed his in return.
“Inari,” Masika spoke softly, “can the Blood-and-White tribe read?”
“Yes, they have scholars and elders.”
“Can you send a message to him?”
The witch doctor huffed but nodded as she opened her wide, hurt eyes. “I can but it will have to be quick. Jasari has not yet declared anything against them but I fear he will in the coming days.”
Masika moved her fingers away from him and stood up. She swayed over to the window and glanced down at the cast around her broken fingers. Atsu, as he was now called, was nothing more than a stranger to her. He was not the same young boy who rescued her from the fire or who would comfort her in the night when she was scared.
“Tell him I don’t want him to come back. In fact, I don’t want him to ever return. The male I knew died the moment he joined another tribe. The only reason I ever wanted to leave was to have his child, but now that won’t happen. I can’t watch him with another so I accept my bind to Dia and will have his children. Tell him he is free of me and not to feel guilty,” Masika finished. As much as the words were hard to say, she knew it was the right way to finish things. She just had to hope her future with Dia wouldn’t be as bleak as she had always believed.
Inari’s chair scraped across the floor as he stood. “Are you sure, Masi?”
“Yes.” She bit down on her lip, not allowing herself to form any more tears. She had to focus on the future. No matter how much it turned her stomach right now, she could fight it.
“Are you alright?” Inari asked.
Masika nodded and took a breath, forcing down the sickening sensation as best she could. She went to turn around when the gag reflex hit her. She ran towards the nearby barrel, throwing herself on all fours as she vomited. Inari rushed to her side and took out his flask of water while he patted her back. The tears soon streamed down her face from the force of it and her healing ribs twanged with the pain that shot down her body.
“Try not to upset yourself, Masi.” Inari placed the flask top at her lips.
Rolling her eyes back, she sat on the floor and wiped her mouth, then took a sip and breathed out. “I am fine. It will pass, it always does.”
Inari stayed with her while she caught her breath and the quivering in her legs ceased. It was something she had always done. When Inari first took the siblings in, he had to sit with her all through the night while she vomited until she was retching dry and dribbles of acidic sick poured down her chin. She would end the night in hysterics with her gut aching and empty while her body was running on nothing.
“You can come out of the room, Masi. There are the gardens to get some air in the compound, you just can’t leave the hut out the front. Especially now.”
Nodding a couple of times, she pushed herself up. “I want to go see Dia.”
“Are you sure?” Inari asked.
“Yes. It is my life now. I need to be there for him.”
The pair of them left the room quietly. Masika pulled a passing garasum to the side and told her about the full bucket in her room before she continued into the main hall. It was completely empty except for the usual guards, even the sisters who usually lingered here were nowhere to be seen.
Before Masika entered the treatment area, she turned around to Inari and whispered, “Make sure he gets it.” With a low bow, the witch doctor set off for his hut while Masika took a deep breath before walking in.
Once again, the smell of burning flesh hit the back of her throat immediately. The memories from when she was a girl came flooding back as clear as if the fire was right in front of her. She could hear her brother calling out to her and the high-pitched screams in the background which felt so far away. Shuddering, she approached Dia.
None of his swellings had eased, in fact they appeared to have worsened in the night. His lips looked like sausages of tightened pink leather, as though a simple prick from a sharp needle would make them pop.
Masika grabbed the bowl nearby filled with lukewarm water and a cloth. She wrung it out and brought it to his face and gently patted at the bruises.
“Ma… Masi?” Dia managed to stammer.
She nodded her head and whispered behind a forced smile, “It’s me, yes. I will care for you.”
“Whe…where… Ina… Ina…”
Masika shook her head and hushed him once more. “He is just outside. My brother is going now and he isn’t coming back. I am really sorry for what he did, Dia. Now I can focus on being yours.”
Dia twitched his mouth in what appeared to be an attempt to smile before he whimpered in pain once more. He lifted his hand to Masika’s arm, making her flinch, thinking he would hit her. Instead, with the backs of his fingers, he stroked it softly up and down.
Masika smiled as she cleaned the dried blood from his forehead and let him caress her. His large fingers touching her made her skin crawl but it was keeping him at rest. Maybe over time she would get used to it, like she was sure many others had to within the tribe. Those who wor
e collars around their neck to be dragged around the village had no freedom at all; at least he wasn’t as bad as any of their mates.
- CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE -
When Atsu returned to camp outside the village gates, the people were already beginning to pack up while the Chieftain and his daughters waited by the fire, ready to depart. Pazade stood while the two girls whispered behind their masks, giggling.
“I assume you have sorted what you needed to with no trouble?” the Chieftain asked.
Atsu glanced over his shoulder for a final time and nodded. “Yes. I didn’t get to see who I wanted to but passed a message along.”
Pazade nodded and pointed Atsu in the direction of the tents still needing to be pulled down, along with the sacks of grain, corn and cooking equipment. Not wanting to waste another second, he got stuck into work, surprised by the warriors who took the items from him when he had finished securely packing them away. He looked over to Pazade who was being given the same treatment and realised that was what they were doing. To those around him, he could be the future leader, the strength of whom they’d admire and in times of war, a source of morale for the rightful side.
As the men put the bags and equipment on their backs, Pazade motioned for him to stand by his side as they departed on the journey back to Blood-and-White. Atsu kept looking behind while they walked on the gravel path, hardly believing that this was it. He was leaving the life he knew forever.
Halfway along the marching column were the two daughters side by side, a distance away from the Chief in case they were attacked while he and Atsu were at the front. Through the tall trees and tangles of vines, they saw the last of the furthest-flung Blood-and-Shadow warriors on patrol and a few herb collectors gathering amongst the dirt. With the trail fading, they passed the last of the hunters heading back to the Shadow tribe, dragging their carcasses, tired-eyed from being overworked in the night.
“Atsu,” Pazade spoke after a while in silence. “When we get back to the village, you will find that many people are hostile about the idea of a Blood-and-Shadow member returning with us.”