Trouble was brewing in Central Hatua and came in the form of a group of Chofumah men who ambushed one of the Umande supply convoys on its way to the Forest Afor.

These men belonged to a group that called themselves Starfall which, according to them, meant the eventual fall of Mlezi’s spear and rule.

They had disguised themselves as members of the still neutral northern Chofumah and while the warriors had their backs turned, they slit their throats and offered freedom to the Chofumah the warriors supervised.

The Chofumah followed their supposed saviours to the far East, shortly after the sunset, to an area of the Forest Afor which was more of a marshland.

It sat at a lower altitude than the rest of the forest so water from the Umande River and rain ran into it where it gathered in large swamps and bogs.

Members of Starfall had chosen it to be their home after first fleeing Central Hatua.

They had been rejected by the northern Chofumah who wanted to remain on neutral terms with the Umande.

Some of the men Starfall had saved asked what would become of their families and Starfall assured them that they would be saved in time as well but this was a lie.

These men would most likely never see their families again as the punishment for murder in Hatua was death and the punishment for allying one’s self with Starfall was nightmarish amounts of torture.

The families of those who sided with Starfall were left mostly alone but placed under careful observation.

How was Mlezi dealing with the Starfall issue?

He had tried sending out a team of men to wipe them all out but the swamps were unfamiliar terrain and Starfall used this to their advantage.

What was once a team of fifteen was reduced to three as many of them were killed by the swamp's insects and predators, leaving the others to be killed by Starfall who used powerful bows to shoot arrows across the swamp.

Mlezi was currently in the process of trying to corner them and so he placed several teams along the perimeter of the swamp but it was far too big and so members of Starfall sometimes slipped through the gaps his men couldn’t cover.

Speaking of Mlezi, he was currently in North Central Hatua sitting in a crowd of about a hundred who watched as a ceremonial dance took place.

It served to commemorate the departure of the spirits as they made their way to the spirit realm and although Sav’taism had become the dominant faith, some people still thanked and paid respect to the ancestors.

The goddess Sav’ta already existed in the faith of the Chofumah although there was now a bit of confusion as to whether she was the creator of all things or the ocean god, Elohiym. But, regardless, it seemed as though both faiths were managing to coexist and even merge at some points.

People in the crowd rhythmically clapped their hands to the sounds of several drums as they filled the air with their beat.

Sitting by Mlezi’s side was a twenty-year-old Jua who wore a rather sour expression.

Over the years, things had gotten a little tense between him and his parents since he didn’t share their views on how the Chofumah were being treated.

He especially didn’t like how they treated Heziyn.

“Would it hurt you to at least try and enjoy this?” Mlezi asked but Jua remained silent making his father sigh.

“Fine.”

The celebratory dance eventually ended and Mlezi walked out into the spot where the dancers once stood and although everyone smiled and openly spoke when the dancers took centre stage, no one dared make a sound while Mlezi stood before them.

“Wonderful, truly. It is said that there is no future without the past and it is on nights like these that we appreciate all those who came before. So, go now, into your homes and give thanks to our ancestors. May they live on through us but, most importantly, may we continue to thrive in the grace of our Lady.” He said while firmly holding his spear.

Everyone except Jua echoed his last words before making their way to their houses.

Maini approached Mlezi and gave him a pat on the back.

“I’ll never understand how you do that.” The older man chuckled as he accompanied Mlezi and his son towards the southern gate. Walking alongside them were the Fire Breakers who had become the personal protectors for each member of Mlezi’s family.

“Do what?”

“Go from being a gloomy grouch to giving a heartfelt speech. Where do the words come from anyway? I thought your head was filled with knotted brows.” Maini wondered while poking at Mlezi’s deep frown lines.

“Stop it!” Mlezi snapped with a chuckle while slapping Maini’s hand away.

“Also, you’re the only one who thinks my words are heartfelt. Everyone else seems to think that I am a schemer who is always trying to get people to give me more than they have.”

“I didn’t think you cared what people thought,” Maini said as they continued southward and as they walked, the few people who still walked the streets of Central Hatua in the late evening moved to the side.

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“I don’t but it has made talking to people... Difficult. I say one thing and clearly mean one thing but, for some reason, they think I mean seven.” Mlezi said making Maini give him another pat on the back.

“Hey, rest assured that I will always know your true intentions. Well, most of them.”

“Which ones don’t you know?” Mlezi asked with a raised brow.

“You still haven’t told me what really happened to you up there.”

“Really? You’re still curious about that?” Mlezi chuckled.

“It haunts me in my sleep!” Maini cried as they walked through South Central.

Like in North Central, the people parted but, unlike up there, they stared at Mlezi with eyes filled with caution, apprehension, fear, disdain and even hatred.

“Well, too bad because I don’t like repeating myself-“

Mlezi stopped upon seeing that his son had walked up to a wounded man who was trying to walk somewhere, although each step he took made him wince in pain and it was clear that his right leg was broken. Its crooked form was clear for all to see beneath his pants which had their right leg cut short.

The leg had probably been crushed by a large piece of wood as that was the most common injury for the Chofumah who were made to transport wood from the Forest Afor.

Jua healed the man, allowing him to walk again and the man loudly thanked Jua as tears filled his eyes but Jua shook his head and sent the man on his way before returning to his father’s side.

Mlezi deeply sighed before continuing south and it wasn’t long before they were at the southern gate.

“I probably won’t be home for another week since a whole slew of things are going wrong as of late,” Maini said while waving Mlezi and Jua goodbye.

Mlezi nodded before leading his son and men to his palace which sat in the centre of the mountain.

Sitting within, in the master bedroom, was Ua who meditated silently on the floor with crossed legs and closed eyes.

She had seen me do so all that time before and had developed a habit of doing so herself whenever she was stressed meaning she meditated quite often.

Thabiti wasn’t home since he was overseeing the training of warriors and the men he oversaw were marching along the beach all the way to the north.

They would spend the next three months training in the Forest Afor before finally returning home where they would become guards, patrolmen or hunters.

Animals on my surface were so big that sometimes one kill found was enough to feed twenty people and so as people grew more efficient at hunting, they found themselves doing it less.

Agriculture had also taken several steps forward thanks to Life Magic although it was used sparingly to keep crops from dying during particularly harsh seasons.

Thabiti’s wife, Mpole, and Heziyn were helping the maids tidy up after dinner. The palace, along with many houses in Hatua, was lit up by Horn Lights. These interesting devices required that a person mentally pour some Glass Energy into them to make them emit light using Light Magic. Doing this didn’t use that much energy but required that whoever was keeping them on remain focused. Any interruption would result in flickering.

This also had the side effect of having the person’s hair glow as well and in the case of the palace, all the maids usually had glowing hair during the later parts of the day.

Heziyn and Mpole eventually made their way to the front door to welcome Mlezi and Jua who they accompanied to the bathroom where they offered them a change of clothes as they bathed.

The two men then dried themselves, got changed and made their way to their rooms without saying a word to each other.

Heziyn followed Jua into his room and watched with a concerned expression as he threw his chest piece to the side.

“Damn it all.” He cursed while plopping onto his bed.

“Is something wrong?” Heziyn asked as she picked up the chest piece and placed it on its wooden stand.

“For how much longer will I have to follow my parents on this descent into madness? It’s like I’m the only one who sees what’s right in front of us!” Jua yelled.

“Please try to keep your voice down,” Heziyn said while walking up to Jua who scoffed.

“Huh... Sometimes I feel like you agree with my parents. That you wish I would sit still and stay silent.” He groaned as Heziyn sat next to him.

“Come here.” She said while patting her lap.

Jua sighed before placing his head on her lap.

“The plight my people face is of their own choosing and your father isn’t forcing them to stay. I heard one of the maids say that a group of twenty was allowed passage into the Forest Afor. So... At least there’s that.” Heziyn said while gently running her hands through Jua’s hair which was still styled in two large braids.

“So, what? We are just supposed to ignore everything else? Also, chosen suffering is suffering-“ Jua stopped as his door suddenly opened.

His mother then entered the room with a stiff expression and half-opened eyes.

Jua quickly sat up, allowing Heziyn to stand.

She then deeply bowed as Ua walked up to Jua’s bed.

“Your father told me about what happened in South Central.” She said as Heziyn silently left the room.

“Huh... I’m surprised he said anything what with his desperate desire to seem silent and thoughtful.” Jua scoffed making Ua clench her teeth but she took a deep breath before sighing and sitting next to him.

She then patted her lap but Jua raised a single brow in response.

“What to do want?” He only asked Ua to grab his head and force it onto her lap.

“Do you know why your father and I feel the way we do?” She asked as Jua finally stopped resisting.

“We were tasked to bring about a new age by our Lady,” Jua grumbled.

“That is one reason but the other is you.”

“Mmm?” Jua sounded with knotted brows.

“We wish for nothing more than to know that you will grow up safe and have worked tirelessly to that end.”

“So why the unjust, unfair treatment of the Chofumah?”

“I... Everyone has a role to play in our city. Some have more important jobs than others. So, is it not only fair that they are compensated appropriately?” Ua asked.

“If that was the case then the most well-accommodated person would be a farmer or the loggers but no. They are made to live in South Central where you won’t even give them the Glass they need to tend to their many wounds and illnesses!” Jua yelled while trying to lift his head but Jua kept it down with both her hands.

“A Meerkat,” Ua said with narrowed eyes.

“One of them killed your brother for the meat of a Meerkat,” Ua whispered before closing her eyes, taking a deep breath and letting go of Jua, allowing him to sit up.

“I will not apologize for putting my son’s life and needs before those of the people and I most certainly won't apologize for any resentment or anger I feel but... It’s clear that you do not share my feelings.” Ua said while standing up and making her way towards the door.

“But that, in no way, lessens my love for you. So, go to sleep and rest well because one day you will take the reins from your father and I and who knows... Maybe you might be a kinder ruler than we.” She said before closing the door.

Jua clicked his tongue while looking at his chestpiece.

He eventually closed his eyes and begrudgingly went to sleep.

“How did it go?” Mlezi asked as Ua crawled into bed with him.

“I said things while he looked at me and I left the room.”

“Ah... So, the usual.” Mlezi sighed.

“Yes but, as much as I love our son, I love knowing that the land within which he lives is safe so how is the Starfall situation coming along?” Ua asked.

“We’ve got them surrounded. We’ll make a move for their village which is in the centre of the swamp tomorrow but I know we won’t win if we send our men into those dirty waters... So, we’ll smoke them out or electrocute them. Whichever nets us the least losses.”

Ua nodded.

“Good. We will not allow a few Meerkats to get in the way of our Lady’s vision.”

“Hehe, indeed.”

“Goodnight, my dear.”

“Goodnight.”