In the bleak afternoon, the flowers around Usheniko’s mound wilted. Wind gusted over the soil and carried in its arms little seeds from a tulip nearby. The worms and the grasshoppers, they went away as soon as Sachen arrived, and Sachen, when she faced the mound, dropped herself to the ground. She had once again, got out of the re-education classes, which she found it daunting—more than ever her tote bag was filled with homework she expected not to finish. In the meantime she planned to tear all her papers up and scatter them to the grass— doing her assignments was the last thing she desired to do. As for her classmates, they remained the same way. They continued the devotion to their zeal while Ms. Laozina kept encouraging them, and perhaps, they would be like this for the rest of the year.

Sachen could stand it no longer. Her plan to rally up the school and fight against the High Order, it had failed the moment it started. She couldn’t believe it at first. She thought with all her heart that they would win, that they would somehow crush the Holy Army and overthrow the current Leader. In every dreams from her, failure was the unexpected result, and for it to happen strayed her away from the further possibility of saving everybody. But what was the use if she couldn’t think ahead of the consequences? What did it mean to save all? In light of this, Sachen banged her knuckles against the mound and dirtied her uniform.

“Usheniko, I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m a big failure. I wasn’t able to help you, and now I don’t know if I can do anything to change. I just want you to come back and save me... what am I supposed to do? What am I supposed to do? Please Usheniko, answer!”

She bit her lips and scratched her forehead. In a flash the image of Neha appeared, and at once her heart rumbled. She fell backwards to the cobblestone, soon widening her arms and legs, and she loomed her gaze over the wrinkled clouds. Her friend, the one she would spend time with every single day, was nowhere to be found. Sachen didn’t see her at school, nor outside of her house. Every hour when Sachen looked at Neha’s empty desk, she wondered if the latter would ever return—especially after their confrontation. It ached her hands just to remember the moment she slapped Neha, it ached her all over to see Neha wallowing in pain. Sachen knew she didn’t mean to hurt her, and she wanted to apologize. But by now it seemed too late. Damages were done.

Sachen covered her face, and she knocked her head on the mound. Second by second she begged for the gods’ help. Of course, the heavens wouldn’t respond to such a child like her. For she had caused trouble for her friend and for the school, help would never be on the way.

She said sorry to Usheniko again. “If only I were strong, I would have beat up Naransaya. She was the one who pretended to be your daughter. I felt so stupid not to realize it. How dare she did that!” She stomped, and rattled her hands when she recalled Naransaya’s words in the midst of the school riot. “I swear, she was the worst! She hurt Neha and me, and she killed you! How could I let go of her like this... I am so stupid, I am more stupid than Neha.”

Once Sachen ran out of breath, she clasped both of her hands and prayed to Usheniko. Being done with that, she brought from her dress pocket the emerald necklace. “You see this?” she asked herself. The chains were rusted, and the jewel was murky, losing its color. It was the only object Sachen embraced with warmth, and she tried so hard to not lose it. By now however, the warmth from the necklace had ceased to vanish. Sachen could only look at the emerald and whisper, “What have I done to deserve it?” She put it back in her pocket.

Sachen journeyed to the village center, then making her way to the western district. The air was heavy. She heaved her breath and felt a strain in her muscles. Everywhere people talked and pushed each other, thinning out the space for Sachen to run through. Their voices—loud, lively, as if they didn’t have a care in the world. And the autumn cold, it ran goosebumps through her skin, and at any rate she could fall into sickness. She quickened her pace. She didn’t want to get scolded by her mother again for being out too much. Worse, her little brother could become annoyed, for he would not have any more time to play with her before supper.

Sachen slowed down, and when she arrived in the neighborhood, she felt the air becoming heavier. She stopped. At this point she didn’t know whether she was back to her house or not. As a matter of fact, she was clueless. The villagers here, who were once around the streets in the early afternoon, retreated into their abodes and locked the doors and windows. Some of them stared out the windows, with eyes like owls. The crickets and worms on the front lawns burrowed into the soil, frightened of Sachen’s presence—or they could be scared of something else. At the same time, shouts and curses echoed near Sachen’s house, masculine voices they were. The girl couldn’t make out what people were saying, but beyond her imagination she could think that a crime had occurred.

“Who knows?” she inquired herself. She hesitated to walk back to her home, for it could be that she would get caught up in another trouble. Unless she had an abundance of energy, today was not the day to do anything in particular. It’d be better to not bother into the matter right now.

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But the voices never stopped. As Sachen stood there, thinking about what was going on, the voices took over her ears—they irritated her, they urged her to find out. Sachen rustled. “Go away, go away!” She cupped her ears. Before she could say anything more, her feet moved on their own. Faster she breathed, violently her heart shook. Then as she knew it, without paying attention to her pace, she went to the area near her house. Once she was there, she walked a couple of steps back. She gasped, not understanding of what was transpiring at the moment.

A group of soldiers gathered at Neha’s house. They were in full armor. Smiles they had on their faces. The front door contained splinters and holes, the lock was broken. Footprints scattered throughout the footsteps, and the windows on the wall, they were nothing but shards. As of now, the soldiers wrangled Tulisen. They kicked him in the guts and shoved him to the cobblestone. Tulisen spewed blood. One of his back teeth was chipped. No mercy. The soldiers, when they dropped the guardian, howled at him for being a neglectful, mindless person. His face sweltered. He pushed his body away from the ground, and lurched his sights back to the door.

Sachen retreated to the bushes, and overheard a brief conversation.

Tulisen got up. His left foot was limp. “What are you doing... why did you break into our house without a warrant?!”

A burly soldier emerged from the group. “Without a warrant? The Leader ordered for us to get her right away. Didn’t you want her on that spiritual mission?”

“What? I do, but I never expect that you would send her to that god-awful place!”

“Then you should have listened to our Lord,” another soldier said. “Regardless, resistance is futile. You must give her up, for you are no longer her guardian. If you try to fight back, you’ll be out of the Holy Army for good.”

“No! Give her back, now!” Tulisen widened his shoulders. He burst in speed, and tackled the burly man. He elbowed his face and chest, and jostled for his firearm. Immediately the soldiers ganged up on the guardian, and they jabbed him with the barrel of their rifles. In no time Tulisen stumbled. He hit his head on the footsteps, and his forehead bled. He still retained his consciousness.

“It’d be wise if you don’t do anything!” said one soldier. “Stay put and let the magic happen!”

“Why, you monsters-”

“Monsters?” the burly troop uttered. “We are only doing our job. After we had returned home from the front lines, after the Leader gave us the task of retrieving the girl, you have the galls to call us that? Pathetic. I expected too much of an esteemed person in his position like you, but sadly, you disappoint me.”

Tulisen growled. He got off the ground again and grabbed the man by his breastplate. “As a person of higher rank than you all, I demand you bring her back home! She should not be there! If you don’t, I’ll tell-”

Another soldier shrugged and smirked. “Who will you tell?” Everybody laughed at his inquiry. “The Leader has planned this all along, so why do you have to get yourself so worked up?”

The burly man gagged. “Let us go everybody. The man should continue wasting his time. It won’t matter, for the world will be blessed by the candidates in the cave!” He rallied his comrades, and once he punched Tulisen in the chest, they left the neighborhood.

Tulisen coughed. Blood flooded his face. He crawled upon the footsteps, and planted his forehead on the living room floor. Nothing else left for him. “I’m sorry Neha... that I couldn’t protect you. I was a fool all along. I should have not yelled at you like that.”

He closed the door, and soon he turned motionless. No breath. No chance of recovery. Sachen, hearing his words, sprang from the bushes and shook herself. What she had thought of the conversation, the only thing she could tell was that something terrible was about to happen. All too well, now she understood the situation—for better or worse, now she realized the consequences. She blamed herself for coming too late, and for not helping Tulisen get out of the beatdown. But what could she have done had she came here earlier?

She glanced at her friend’s house, then she looked to her side, then she looked at the bushes. Her knees locked onto each other. Her chest stung. At this time it would have been a no-brainer for Sachen to tail the soldiers, but fear blazed through her like wildfire. She didn’t know what to do at first. Neha, she was far away, and most likely Sachen wouldn’t be able to catch up to the soldiers. Tulisen, he was hurt, his blood began to stream to the footsteps. Two problems at once, it was difficult to tackle, especially for a young girl. She could do one thing, but by that it would mean she had to sacrifice the other, and she would feel guilty regardless.

“How, how?!” Sachen messed with her hair, and she pulled so much of her hair that she was close to collapsing under pressure. “I hurt Neha, so maybe I shouldn’t help her. But she’s in trouble. But Tulisen is in bad shape too! I don’t know...”

The sun, once at its peak, was setting itself in the horizon. The bugs went silent, and they ceased to move all together. Sachen paced in circles, and she thought to herself again of her friend—and right away, something struck her like a thunderbolt. Never until this moment did she fathom that there was indeed a small chance to turn things around. “If Usheniko is looking over me, then she must be giving her blessing. Luck!” She decided that if she had enough time, she could save Neha from the possible ravages of the High Order, and she could return to the house and aid Tulisen. Solving two problems in one day, it seemed viable. Sachen believed she was capable, even if she had to do it alone.

Sachen locked in her choice. It was now or never to act. She faced the street ahead of her, and took off. Neha could be anywhere, but from the last words of the soldier, Sachen knew one place where her friend would arrive to. She would not hesitate.