The Uha Tamunaran, now standing on his two feet, upon hearing the question Ibaeran asked and seeing the look of seriousness on her face, simple asked, “Can you fly yet?”
Ibaeran upon hearing what the Uha Tamunaran said looked at him with a look of shock and confusion, unable to understand why he would ask her such a strange and bizarre question.
“How on earth is me being able to fly relevant in this situation?” asked Ibaeran, annoyed and at the verge of losing her temper.
“It is very relevant because to answer one of your questions I will need to know if you can fly” said the Uha Tamunaran.
“Why?” asked Ibaeran, why the Uha Tamunaran needed to know if she could fly.
“Do you want your questions answer or not?” asked the Uha Tamunaran
Ibaeran just sighed, knowing that she would have to go along with him and answer the Uha Tamunaran’s bizarre question if she was to get him to answer her own.
“I can’t” said Ibaeran, begrudgingly answering the Uha Tamunaran’s question.
“Oh, that complicates things quite a bit but, oh well, I think I manage” said the Uha Tamunaran, pondering to himself, confusing Ibaeran even more with his behavior.
“My name is Tonja’Ofurinama but for the sake of simplicity you may call me Ton’Onama” said the Uha Tamunaran.
Ibaeran upon hearing the Uha Tamunaran’s name, thought that it was strange even for and Uha Tamunaran.
“And as for your second question, I can’t answer it with mere words but I can show you” said Ton’Onama.
“What do you mean by you can’t answer with mere words?” asked Ibaeran, wondering why he couldn’t just answer directly.
“If I tell you my reasons for wanting to help you, you may not believe me and because I need you to trust me and my intentions it would be easier if I just showed you” said Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran thought about what the Ton’Onama said and had to admit to help that he did indeed have a point, Ton’Onama did not make quite a good first impression on her due to the fact that their first encounter with each other was late at night while she was unconscious on her bed and when she came to see him in the garden like he requested he attacked her, she would be a fool to blindly believe anything Uha Tamunarans without doubt or question.
“Just how do you intend on showing me?” asked Ibaeran, wondering the Uha Tamunaran wished to show her his reasons for choosing to help her.
“Like I said, I can’t tell but if you let me, I can show you” said Ton’Onama as he extended his hand to her.
Ibaeran hesitated at first but eventually accepted, curious to know more about the strange Uha Tamunaran and why he was so keen on helping her.
Ton’Onama upon receiving Ibaeran’s hand just smiled at her before saying, “Thank you for giving me a chance. I promise I would waste it”.
Ton’Onama then, without warning, lifted and carried Ibaeran off the ground with his bear black fur cover hands.
“What do you think you’re doing?” asked Ibaeran, shocked, worried and confused as to why Ton’Onama had lifted her from the ground.
“Please just trust me” said Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran, just from looking in his silver eyes as he spoke and saw something shocking, it was a look of desperation and Ibaeran wasn’t sure why but upon seeing that look of desperation in his eyes she felt safer and more at ease with the strange Uha Tamunaran.
Ton’Onama upon seeing that Ibaeran had calmed down said to her, “Hold on tight and try not to look down”.
Then, before Ibaeran could even utter a word to question what he meant by ‘hold on tight’, the Uha Tamunaran leaped and in a single bound went high enough to reach the night sky before falling back down to the ground outside the castle gates.
“Are you okay?” asked Ton’Onama; worried that he might have somehow hurt her as they came back down to the ground.
“I’m alright” said Ibaeran, who perfectly fine as Ton’Onama made sure to hold on to her tightly but yet gently enough for her to feel somewhat comfortable on his arms, preventing her from getting hurt in anyway.
“Good” said Ton’Onama with a smile on his face before leaping in to the sky once more; holding Ibaeran tightly and making sure she was safe did so.
Ton’Onama continued leaping until he and Ibaeran had left Nigerona and arrived at another city.
The city greatly resembled Ijawana from the Nation of the South with broke down house and people wondering about in the streets looking miserable and helpless with a few of them not even having the luxury of having a roof above their heads but the strangest part was that every single person there was an Uha Tamunaran.
“What is this place?” asked Ibaeran looking at the city and the sorry state of those within it.
“Welcome to Kiripapaboa, also known as the land of those deemed useless by the tyrant known as the king” said Ton’Onama with bitterness in his voice as he spoke about the king.
Ibaeran watched the way the Uha Tamunarans were struggling, barely having any food to feed themselves and slowly dying away, some of them were so hungry that they were even eating dirt and stones of the ground just to sustain themselves, some had no homes or a roof of any kind to put above their heads and were exposed the harsh elements.
Ibaeran upon witnessing the Uha Tamunarans struggling in a state that was equal to that of her people couldn’t help but feel sad for them and wonder how and why they were in such a state.
“Come along, there is more to see” said Ton’Onama as he led her in to the city.
As they roamed around the city streets Ibaeran saw even more of the sad state the city and its people were in, people selling whatever that could as little as a few grains of rice and a cup of water, helpless and homeless children roaming about the streets scavenging, begging and even stealing anything they could put in their mouths to satisfy their hunger.
“This place is where Uha Tamunaran the kings deems too weak to serve him call home. The Uha Tamunaran kingdom provides nothing for them and they are forced to fight and struggle for scraps, that’s if they can find any” Ton’Onama.
Ton’Onama then led to her to special spot in the city where they saw a couple of young Uha Tamunaran children playing.
“Ton’O” one of the children, a young girl with red skin girl and said upon spotting Ton’Onama along with the rest of the children.
The children then rushed toward where Ton’Onama and Ibaeran stood, gathering around Ton’Onama with smiles on their faces.
“What did you get us?” asked the red skinned girl.
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“Did you bring food?” asked a boy who looked like he was only made up of skin and bones, being so thin that he looked more like a skeleton than a boy.
“I don’t really care if you brought food or anything for us I’m just happy that you came to visit, we missed you” said another boy who seemed to have no bones at all as his body was made up of only flesh and skin causing his body to shake and wobble like gelatin.
Ton’Onama just smiled at the children before bending down to their level and saying, “I’m sorry little ones, I’m afraid I came empty handed today but I brought a friend”.
The children then looked at Ibaeran with a look of both shock and astonishment as they didn’t think that anybody apart from Ton’Onama would want to come to Kiripapaboa.
“Ton’Onama, who is she?” asked the red skinned girl.
“A friend” said Ton’Onama.
“Why did she come here?” asked the boneless boy.
“Because she needed to see something” said Ton’Onama while looking at Ibaeran before turning back the children.
“Alright kids, I need to continue showing this lovely lady around the city, you all can go play and I promise to get something for you all the next time I come visit” said Ton’Onama.
“Promise” all the children said in unison, wanting to make sure Ton’Onama kept their promise.
“Promise” said Ton’Onama.
The children then left and resumed their play, leave Ibaeran and Ton’Onama alone.
“Who are those children?” asked Ibaeran.
“The red skinned girls needed Kolar; she was born with the ability to change the color of anything, the skinny boy who looks like he’s made of only bones with little to no flesh is Etar, he was born with the ability to be able to eat anything from rocks and stone to stainless steel, even extremely harmful things like poison without being harmed in anyway, and the boneless boy is Felesh, born without any bones but can twist and stretch his body in to various shapes. I come to visit them along with people in the city, I try my best to help them out with whatever I can but no matter how much I do it’s never really enough to alleviate their pain” said Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran, upon hearing what Ton’Onama said, turned to look at the children as they played together; they were busy playing a game where Kolar and Felesh would compete against and try to get a piece stone in to Etar’s wide open mouth.
Felesh stretched and twisted his fingers to form a sling shoot which he used to throw the stones at Etar, aiming at his mouth, Kolar on the other hand, used her powers to change the color of the things around her to turn the color stone she held to resemble that of bread, in order to deceive Etar to catch and eat the stone.
Kolar was the one that won in the end as Etar, knowing ful well that stone was not food, still caught the stone, hoping that the flavor of the stone changed along with its color.
“Oh come on Kolar, you cheated” said Felesh, annoyed that he lost.
“No I didn’t, I just changed the color of the stone, Etar was the one who jumped and caught it” said Kolar with smile on her face.
Ibaeran upon seeing the way the children laughed and played each couldn’t help but smile, forgetting for brief moment that they were Uha Tamunarans and seeing them as no more than children.
“Charming little things aren’t they” said Ton’Onama upon seeing the smile on Ibaeran’s face as she watched the children play.
“Why did you bring me here?” asked Ibaeran.
Ton’Onama, upon hearing what Ibaeran said just sighed before saying, “So you can understand that both Uha Tamunarans and humans alike are suffering under the king’s rule”.
“But why?” asked Ibaeran, unable to understand why Ton’Onama wanted her to see the Uha Tamunarans suffering.
Ton’Onama then glanced at the children who were still playing before saying, “do you know what it means to be the Su Baera, to possess the power you currently possess”.
Ibaeran upon hearing what Ton’Onama said remained silent and simply just watched the children play alongside him.
“As the Su Baera you inspire hope not just to the nations of man but also to the Uha Tamunarans. The great burden of protect this world and those we live in it, be it man or Uha Tamunaran, is yours and yours alone to bear, our fates rest in your hands” said Ton’Onama.
“Why are you telling me this?” asked Ibaeran.
“It’s because I, the nations of man, and the Uha Tamunarans cannot continue to live like this, under the rule of a man power hungry mad man. So please Su Baera, I, the nations of man and Uha Tamunarans alike need your help, we need you to put an end to the king’s reign” said Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran upon hearing what Ton’Onama said could not believe what she just heard, an Uh Tamunaran, pleading with her to put an end to the king of all Uha Tamunarans.
“But he is your king” said Ibaeran.
“And these are my people and I owe them much more than I owe that mad man wearing a crown” said Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran upon hearing what Ton’Onama said looked around the city, seeing the sorry state it was in under the king’s rule as the people were deemed worthless by him because of nothing more than the power they were born with.
It was truly sad and sorry sight to behold, and Ibaeran was trying her best not to shed a tear of the people, understanding their pain as she remembered her life as a slave and the hardship she had to face everyday like so many of her people.
Ibaeran then took a deep breath before saying, “I truly wish I could help you people but I’m afraid I can’t. The king’s power far outclasses my own and on top of that I lack control of my powers as a Su Baera”.
Ton’Onama upon hearing what Ibaeran said couldn’t help but smile a little before saying, “A wise man once said that a warrior’s greatest strength is his mind and heart, the mind opens the warriors eyes to the many possibilities including that of failure but the heart pushes the warrior to continue fighting even when they can see clearly, the possibility of failure and if a warriors listens to one and ignores the other failure becomes less of a possibility and more of a certainty”.
“Wise words” said Ibaeran.
“Indeed they are, so tell me Su Baera, as a warrior, why do you choose to listen to your mind alone and not your heart?” asked Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran upon hearing what Ton’Onama said just remained silent, confirming what he said was indeed the truth with her silence.
Ton’Onama then sighed once more before saying, “if training is what you lack I can help train you on how to control the power within you *sigh* and I won’t demand anything from you afterwards. My only wish is that once you have full mastery of your power Su Baera you will choose to use it to free us all from the rule of our wicked king”.
Ibaeran upon hearing what Ton’Onama said looked at him with a look of shock and confusion; he was willing to train her without her having to offer something in return with his only request being for her to choose to help free them all from the king.
Ibaeran then turned to look at the strange Uha Tamunaran that stood next to her, speechless and wondering how an Uha Tamunaran, beings she and her people had learned to fear, could be so kind and caring, at that very moment the Uha Tamunaran seemed more than any person she knew.
“I can’t make any promise you know, the king’s power is greater than anything I’ve ever seen and I don’t know if I can face it even with the power of the Su Baera” said Ibaeran.
“And you don’t have to, you are not under any obligation to help free us from him, I know you only became the Su Baera for the sake of your people and not the Uha Tamunarans, your duty is to them and not us, and I respect that. All I’m asking of you is, please, if you’re willing, to fight for us as well” Ton’Onama.
Ibaeran upon hearing what Ton’Onama sighed just sighed deeply before saying, “Can you please, take me back to the palace”.
Ton’Onama then simply nodded his head before slowly lifting her off her feet and then leaping high in to the sky, making his way back to Nigerona with Ibaeran on arms.
They arrived back inside the garden in royal palace.
Ibaeran and Ton’Onama went their separate ways, with Ton’Onama going the small cabin within the garden and Ibaeran making her way back to her room in the palace.
Ibaeran was still trying to process and come to terms with everything Ton’Onama, as the sight of Uha Tamunarans of people suffering under the rule of their very own king was a sight she believed she would never see and having witnessing it for herself had no words describe what she felt at that moment.
Pity, a word she never believed she would ever associate with the Uha Tamunarans much less use it to describe what she felt for them, was the only thing she feel for the Uha Tamunarans she saw in Kiripapaboa.
Ibaeran was once a slave to the Uha Tamunarans, she had suffered under them and even lost Preyina, her closest friend, someone she loved and cared for with all her heart to the Uha Tamunarans, most people put in the position she was in would laugh with joy in their hearts, enjoying seeing the Uha Tamunarans by the hands of their own king but to Ibaeran there was nothing to laugh about, to her what she witness in Kiripapaboa was fate far worse than anything she and every other human being had ever had to face in the hands of the Uha Tamunaran because humans suffering under the Uha Tamunarans was different and far more humane than Uha Tamunarans suffering under their fellow Uha Tamunarans.
Ibaeran at that moment forgot that there was a clear distinction between the Uha Tamunarans and humans, and saw them both as equal suffering under the same wicked king.
Ibaeran wanted to help both Uha Tamunarans and the humans but then she remembered the king’s power and how it was greater than all Uha Tamunarans, even greater than the Su Baera that came before her and her power may not be enough to go against the king.
Ibaeran had a chance to free her people but she risks losing it if she choose to fight for both her people and Uha Tamunarans as if she wasn’t powerful enough she would fall to king a like the Su Baera before her, destroying whatever hope her people had of being free.
Ibaeran, now lying on her bed thinking about what she was going to do, ether she try to save only her people and let the Uha Tamunarans continue to suffer under their king or fight for both the Uha Tamunarans and her people and risk losing the only hope her people have on being free if she failed.
Ibaeran sighed deeply while thinking about the dilemma she had found herself in, having to choose between saving her people or risk her people’s freedom while trying to save both her people and the Uha Tamunarans.