Welcome to my seemingly endless journey.
A trip that will take you to places I might have visited many moons ago.
It´s a tale that came back to me when I meditated on one of my past lives. A life I told you about in my unbelievable true story.
As promised in that story I will now share this story with you.
Chapter 70
All in all, it seems that Reiko has come to a decision and that his soldiers are allowed to indulge for a night as a thank-you for their loyal service.
As soon as they have reached the city, they, of course, have to perform their official function again, and to keep themselves loved by his men, such a colorful evening is a good move.
The noise certainly makes it easier for me to communicate with the forest man. We don't even have to whisper because, apart from the noise the soldiers make, there turn out to be no guards that night. Which unfortunately is another sign that they are in familiar territory.
“Retsj, can you hear me?”
The forest giant nods. “Long time, old friend,” he says softly. “I started to wonder if you had been killed or if you had managed to escape.”
“Didn't you see us in the caravan?”
“Every day I was carried far behind the group by ten riders, I could see nothing except the remains of the dust kicked up by the horses. Apparently, they had no idea how to protect themselves from me, because they were extremely careful, using many unnecessary security measures. Made me feel important.”
"Are you unharmed?" I ask somewhat relieved.
“They didn't dare touch me except for some abrasions on the ropes. Have you seen Cabilah?”
I hear a crack in his voice, but he continues.
"Last night, I had a view of the campfire, that low woman threw herself at that leader like a bird of prey. Banished us from her heart. I saw how she caressed, how she whispered in this man's ear.” The lines in the big man's face harden, his jaw begins to quiver, while his eyes fill with water.
“That woman has left us, exchanged for those who hold the power. Used us to escape, now using him to escape again. Her words were lies. We were never her friend.” Retsj's voice trembles and a tear slides down his right cheek and disappears into his beard.
“This woman, with that voice and that sadness. Never have I dared to love a woman but her. She gave me the feeling that I was allowed to love, that she understood my sadness, that I enlightened her with my stories and my knowledge. My heart opened for that woman who exchanged us for her freedom. I don't even blame her for that. If this allows her to survive, at least one of us will survive, but she didn't talk about us as friend.”
“For nights on end, we, the fools, as they called us, were exposed to the darkest light imaginable. Lies and distorted facts followed one another effortlessly in her account of the time she spent with us."
"My heart was opened by that woman, but before the seeds she sowed could germinate further they were weeded by the deceitfulness of she who sowed them.'” It's only a single tear, but that tear speaks louder than a thousand words. This giant, who fears nothing, doesn't tremble with anger, only with sorrow.
I know it´s probably not the best time but I don´t know when I would get another chance to share what I know: “We are taken to the city of the leader of these soldiers, the Sikh. The man Numico dreamed about, the man we need to speak to. He is the only one who can stop the bloodshed. According to the leader, Reiko, we will never get to speak to him. And when I look at the facts I wonder if we will ever speak to anyone again.”
“Yet they told me that I must have faith, deep inside me I know that this journey of ours is not over yet. Our journey may be coming to an end, but this quest is just beginning.”
After I shared all the knowledge that Retsj was not yet aware of, the hard line on his face did not diminish.
When he knows what we know, the three of us sit in silence looking at the stars, hoping that our ancestors are still watching over us and will send us the solution to this riddle. So that this journey, which they made us undertake, does not end prematurely. But instead of an answer, the sky fills with dark clouds, hiding what little light the moon and stars send us, leaving us in darkness.
To complete this fateful situation, I am woken up in the middle of the night.
Heavy drops of rain fall from the sky. There is no shelter, my clothes are soaked to the fibers. The cold water also awakens the others, and none of us look hopeful anymore. This is the sad end to a journey that has been so beautiful. Great, despite not achieving the goal, the journey alone would have been worth it.
“It was nice to meet you...” Retsj pauses because we hear rustling from behind our cage. Probably an animal, but possibly a soldier who needs to empty his bladder.
We are forbidden to speak, and even with the prospects bleak, it seems wise to remain silent. My eyes search the darkness for where the sound comes from. But the darkness and the drops falling even harder limit the view to such an extent that no recognizable shapes can be discerned beyond the wooden poles.
Retsj takes another breath to finish his sentence when I hear him let out a muffled cry of surprise. The rustling has gotten louder, and before I can ask what has surprised him so much, someone is standing between the two cages, their back turned to me.
