Chapter 15.

Kamaria's POV.

It took some time to realize how crowded the streets became. Everyone was heading to the same destination.

There was a crowd gathered on almost every street. The swarm of clansmen were heading towards the heart of the Kingdom.

The Garden.

I saw the golden moon door from a distance. There were hardly any guards along the way to the Garden. I blended in just perfectly.

There was only one entrance to the Garden, a wide moon gate, made of gold. Two unarmed guards stood at each side of the gate, holding one end of the door.

I slowed down, reconsidering going in.

If people were gathering in the Garden that meant something had to be up.

The Garden was only opened to everyone when the king needed to make an announcement. As far as I knew, there was no king.

"Nyoka will be crowned king."

I remembered Shani's words. I needed to get in one way or another. I might even meet Nyoka here.

Perhaps we could talk things out.

The entrance to the Garden was swamped by the crowd. The guards standing on either side of the door didn't bother to look at the people entering.

As I approached the door, I realized that there were a pair of boys on either side of the door. One boy on each side had a lokole, and the other one had the drum stick. They began drumming. The sound was disturbing. My feet froze, but the motion of the crowd kept me moving.

The sound was disturbing as it rang out throughout me. I wasn't the only one affected, other people fell on the floor and coiled into balls, trembling. I fought back against the sound.

The screams of the people affected by the sound caused a panic. People ran into the Garden, stepping on those who had fallen. The sound of a roaring engine hit my ears, but it was after a long time that the truck came into sight.

The smell of blood tainted the air, mixed with the smell of petrol.

Guards loaded off the truck, marching towards the people who were trampled on the ground.

They singled them out of the crowd, dragged them into the back of the truck, regardless of whether they were kids or elders. I watched as mothers screamed for their kids, holding tight onto their hands. Those women were whipped with canes until they would retrieve their hands.

A twinge of guilt came across me. I couldn't protect them. I was a warrior and swore my loyalty to my people, and today I found myself unable to shield them. Everything in me screamed for me to get away from that sound. It was haunting.

Guards rushed into the crowd, grabbing people by any means. The crowd moved at a slow pace, I used the opportunity to walk back. Navigating through the crowd wasn't at all that easy. I kept my head facing down to avoid being detected.

A hand reached out to me from the below, but I was moving too fast to realize it at first. It was after I had walked past and felt someone's hands on my ankle.

I heard a child's cry. Instinctively, I looked back and saw the little girl lift her head with blood on the side of her lips. I knew I couldn't leave her behind. Not after I had stepped on her. I made my way to the crowd, in the direction of the gate. The percussive sound was at full blast, jarring on my ears.

It was hurting my soul.

The closer I got, the less I could feel my body. It was like I was transitioning into another world. My body shook, cold sweat dripped down my forehead. I could hear the droplets hit the ground. I could tell every sound apart; the hard fast-moving footsteps of the crowd, the cries of the kids being snatched from the arms of their mothers, and of that girl. I followed her cries.

A drop rolled down my nostril and landed on my hand. It was black.

I gazed at it with perplexity. Then I remember Shani's words;

"First, her blood will turn black then her eyes will change colors."

It couldn't be my blood. As much as I wanted to deny it, I knew who I was. I was not a mere human.

The girl's sharp cry pulled me out of my thoughts. My eyes darted from one foot to another, watching out for anyone in the ground. A tiny body was seated on the floor with huge wet eyes. When her eyes met mine, she stared at me as if she knew I was coming. I reached out to her, but she wouldn't grab my hand. I went on my knees and stretched my arms out to her. She slowly got off the crowd and ran into my arms. Her afro brushed against my cheeks. The smell of shea butter hit my nose.

The drumming was still going on at full blast, it wasn't going to stop anytime soon. They were out there to get us...

The girl pulled away from me and covered her ears with both her hand. She gazed at me with watery eyes.

She pursed her lips, her jaw trembled. She reminded me of myself. I couldn't leave her alone. They would take her, I didn't even know where they were taking them.

I reached out for her with my hand, she gently wrapped her tiny fingers around two of my fingers. I pulled her closer to me, the beauty in her eyes had captivated me. I wanted to protect her. I held tightly to her and as I pushed through the crowd.

"Wait there!" A voice shouted behind me, I continued pushing through the crowd. I felt the girl's hand slip out of my hold, I looked back and a guard was holding his spear in his hand.

His hands rested at the back of the child's neck. I didn't know if it was in a protective manner or in a threatening way. I looked up at him, if it wasn't for the paint across his face I would be able to tell who he was.

He wore black harem pants with a front apron made of wax print. The warrior's face was covered with white paint that went all the way down to his exposed chest in an orderly pattern. Six bands were worn on his left forearm, an indication of his ranking. He had one more than me.

He didn't blink once when he looked at me. The girl clung to him as if she knew him.

"Take the girl with, meet me at the bridge." I didn't want to look at him straight in the eyes, I couldn't let him know who I was.

"Kamaria," he raised the girl's hand in my direction.

"Protect her like she is your own, I beg of you. I'll meet you there. Please trust me, that's all I can say. I'm being watched." I took the child's hand and walked her over to my side. She looked back at the warrior, her face puckered in preparation to cry.

"I don't know who is that but I'll protect her." I went on my knees and picked her up. I lifted her off the ground and turned around. My hand was grabbed from the back. I closed my eyes.

Control yourself Kamaria.

I looked back. It was him again.

"Clean that off, they shouldn't see it." He was referring to the black spot on the back of my hand. I pulled my hand away and turned away. I continued pushing through the crowd, despite having it made it so far through the crowd. I could still feel his eyes on me.