Chapter 16
Exodus
Towards evening, everyone in the Alpha tribe assembled in the square to attempt to wake Radok up. An altar was set, a kind of podium where all those who volunteered where to be laid down. The volunteers and their families wept as they were laid on the altar and olive oil was smeared all over them. Morriah, his family and I were part of the crowd that surrounded the altar; all watching what would take place.
'Why do they weep?' I asked Morriah who stood beside me.
'They do not know what to expect', Morriah said. 'It is believed that if a superior spirit takes control of your body, you lose your consciousness. Ai! And most times such spirits might not want to let go. As such, whoever allows a superior spirit into him is as good as dead, in limbo in his own body.'
Several pots were placed around the altar, all filled with burning charcoal. Some elders went round, placing the rubincense into each pot. It was not long before the entire square was filled with red haze which made it a bit difficult to see what was going on at the altar. The rubincense had no smell. I felt it move inside me, seeping through my innards. Everyone began to chant the words;
Arise, you worthy child of nature
Wake up from your slumber
Behold your children for you to nurture
Behold so great a number
Though you dwell in places divine
Remember your purpose
To aid all those you left behind
Whenever they summon you
Arise Radok for now we summon you
We chanted for quite a while but to no avail. Suddenly, I felt something, like a gust of wind force its way inside me. I became uneasy as I felt something move inside me. I gasped as I could no longer breathe. My eyes turned white just before I passed out. Everyone was shocked as I slumped. Morriah picked me up and took me out of the square.
I woke up in Morriah's house to behold Cylas, Ozin, Azadus, Morriah, Euphina and a few other Morflon in the room. They were all staring at me especially Cylas. He was amazed at seeing me.
'How long was I out?' I asked.
'A whole day', Morriah replied.
I was shocked.
'What happened to you out there?' Ozin asked me.
'I don't know', I said. 'We were reciting the chants when I felt something seize me. I could not breathe... That is all I remember.'
The silence in the room made me uneasy.
'Did Radok wake up?' I asked.
'No', they replied. 'Not even in the other tribes.'
'That is not good is it?' I asked.
'No', Ozin replied.
'I am just glad you are alive', Morriah said. 'Get some rest.'
'Such a sight to behold', Cylas said as he drew nearer to me. 'In all my travels I have never come across anyone like you; and believe me I have travelled wide... your skin, your hair... pretty unusual in these parts... I am Cylas Silverton, Ozin's brother in-law.'
'Let the human rest', Morriah said. 'You could speak with him later.'
I lay on the bed while the Morflon walked out one by one. Morriah had a smile on his face as he went out. He called the Morflon together just outside his house.
'Could it be', Morriah asked. 'Could he be the vessel Radok chose?'
'I doubt it', Ozin said. 'If he was he should have transformed into Radok. I think he was exposed to so much rubincense, his body reacted.'
'Would he react so badly that he would slump the way he did?' Morriah asked.
'He is a human', Azadus said. 'He is different from us... I mean he eats corn...! It should not be surprising that he reacts to rubincense.'
Trinidos and his army arrived at a deserted tribe. He walked round, stroking his beard and using his claws to pick out strands. He was the only one without armour. He just put on his regal garments. He ordered his soldiers to search the entire tribe for any sign of life. They ransacked the adobe buildings which seemed deserted in a hurry. They searched the woods around and shot crossbows into the streams and lakes around. After an extremely thorough search, there was still no sign of Morflon life.
'Great one', Oldric came to report. 'They appear to have fled north.'
'Is that so?' Trinidos asked rhetorically.
Trinidos began to laugh, much to the bewilderment of the others who were silent.
'They have made this campaign a lot easier', he said. 'They would put up a united front against us. That would save us the stress of travelling all over the forest...But I know they would keep their vulnerable as far away from the battlefield as possible.'
Summoning Oldric he said; 'Take some of your best and brightest and search for where the Morflon hid their female and their young. Search the entire forest. If you find a hideout, mark the place and look for others. Do not come back if you do not find any.'
He then dismissed Oldric who immediately selected some soldiers to accompany him on the mission.
'The rest of us would head north to confront their army', Trinidos said to King Sett, Egon and the other soldiers. 'We shall continue to follow their trail until we get them. Be careful now, for they could be anywhere... But first, burn down everything in sight. Erase any memory of the Morflon's existence here.'
The Alpha tribe was the northern-most tribe. As such, they were the last to leave. They joined the mammoth crowd of Morflon from other tribes who were migrating north into the valley in the hills. The very old, the very young and the female were all to go on this journey whilst the able bodied adult males were to assemble at the Alpha tribe before heading to their camp. I went with them to the valley, Azadus went with them, even Gaiel, though reluctant, went with them. Everyone was leaving, except Ozin. Ozin refused to follow the vulnerable Morflon to the valley. He insisted that he would fight with his comrades, insisting he was fit as a fiddle. Morriah, Cylas and some of Ozin's offspring came to beg him to leave. They met him in his house shining his spear.
'You are over seventy', Morriah said. 'You are too old to wield a spear.'
'Do not insult me', Ozin scolded Morriah. 'Age is just a number. Once a warrior, always a warrior. It is in my blood. I proved that when I came to save you.'
'You got lucky then', Cylas said. 'Remember you were nearly killed in the fortress.'
'Even the younger Morflon were caught weren't they?' Ozin retorted. 'That had nothing to do with age.'
'Everyone has to retire', his offspring said. 'Everyone needs time for his family. How can you be there for us if you are always fighting?'
'I am fighting for posterity', Ozin replied. '... For your own good...'
'Let the others do that', they continued. 'You should not place the burden on yourself. Hurry up. If you leave now you could still meet up with the others.'
'I don't want to go with them', Ozin protested. 'Why do you all not see it from my point of view?'
'Because we love you', Morriah replied. 'We have your best interest at heart.'
'If you love me, you would let me do as I wish', Ozin said.
'Even when we know it is dangerous for you?' Cylas asked.
'You all need me for his battle', Ozin said. 'Very few of you have had experience of great battles. You need my expertise.'
'We need you alive', Ozin's offspring said.
Ozin became irritable.
'So what do I do?' Ozin asked. 'Fold my arms and do nothing? Look at the strokes on my chest. I got them from doing nothing... Some Morflon from the Tau tribe came to our tribe to seek the aid of some Morflon. They begged us to help them stop an emerging terrorist group, the Red clan. By then I was not a warrior. I just wanted to lead a normal life in my father's winery. I declined. Many others declined as well. They left, disappointed. Days later, the Red clan attacked the Alpha tribe. It was the worst attack we had in ages. They sacked the tribe and abducted many of us. One of them grabbed me and put his jagged dagger straight through my chest. He drew it closer and closer to my heart as he laughed. He said he could have stabbed me in the heart, but that would have made me die quicker.
He said he just wanted to see me reel in pain as I bled out. He took a cup and with it he collected some of my blood as it gushed out. Right in front of me he drank it. I lay there in pain as I watched my father's winery burn to the ground... I survived that day, but I was a changed Morflon. I could not help but think that things would have been different if I had accepted to go with the Morflon from the Tau tribe. I became a warrior, along with a number of us who had initially declined... Two cycles later, the Red clan came again, but this time we chased them down and slaughtered them like beasts. They have never come near the Alpha tribe since then.'
The Morflon were silent. They were moved by his speech, but they still thought Ozin deserved to rest, to get away from the rigours of battle. It was written all over them.
'Why do you all think I am going to die if I fight one more battle anyway?' he asked, rather disgusted by the notion. 'I am going to battle and that is final. Anyone who has a problem with that would have to face me in combat and defeat me to convince me otherwise.'
He then began to sharpen his spear. They just stared at him, utterly disappointed.
Ozin silenced them, but they were not ready to quit just yet. That night they met again to discuss Ozin.
'What do we do about Ozin?' his offspring asked. 'He is a stubborn old Morflon.'
'Since he insists, I think we should just let him be', Morriah said.
'Why would you say that?' Cylas asked. 'You know that is dangerous. He is your best friend but he is also dear to all of us. We must do what is in his best interest.'
'Then what do you suggest we do?' Morriah asked. 'Drug him?'
'I already tried that', Cylas said to the surprise of everyone else. 'It did not work. I suggest we take a more direct approach. I have made arrangements for that. Don't worry. By tomorrow Ozin will be on his way to the valley.'
It was midnight. Ozin lay in bed fast asleep when seven masked Morflon stealthily broke into his house. They came into his bed room and surrounded his bed. One of them brought out a piece of cloth and soaked it with a kind of sedative. He then placed it over Ozin's nose. Ozin struggled as the others held him down. He shook and shook, trying to fight his way out. Slowly but surely, his struggling reduced until he was finally still. It appeared as though he was knocked out.
Just as they let go of him, he opened his eyes and sprung up, leaving the masked Morflon confused. They surrounded him, each one wondering how to grab him. Eventually, one of them attempted and met a bad blow on his forehead from Ozin's palm. They all attacked him at once. He broke free and began to beat them one by one, slamming each one on a piece of furniture or on the bare floor. Bent on finishing the job, they kept on getting up and trying to attack again though they were in pain. They fought all over his house, wrecking the entire place. Ozin began to render them immobile by breaking any of their bones he could lay his hands on. One by one they came, and one by one he grabbed a part of their body and snapped it. Crack! That was the sound made as he dislocated or fractured each of his assailants' hands, legs or necks.
After a while, the chaos was over. Ozin was breathing hard as he looked round, staring at the seven Morflon scattered all over his room. Each of them wailed in pain. Ozin went to one of them and removed his mask. He forced him to his feet and began to interrogate him.
The next morning, Cylas was in Morriah's house with some of Ozin's offspring. They were discussing.
'Elder Ozin wants to fight and yet you are looking for an excuse to flee', Ozin's offspring said. 'What a shame!'
'You insult me', Cylas rebuked. 'You and I know that I want nothing more than to see the Morrs pay for what they have done. I have helped you with the smoke canisters and others are working on catapults, but I fear that might not be enough. They have Trinidos and their army is twice ours. That is why I want to embark on this journey... In the cause of my travels, I have made a few friends on the other side. I am going to see if I can get help from them.'
'Do you think they would want to get involved in our battle?' Morriah asked. 'Ai! You know they are all afraid of the Morrs and they would want to stay in their good side.'
'Evil never has a good side', Cylas said. 'Let me try. It is worth the risk.'
'When would you be back?' they asked him.
'I can't tell', Cylas said. 'But I will try to come back before the battle is over...Who has heard anything from the Red clan? Are they not supposed to be with us in battle?'
'Ai! They operate in anonymity', Morriah said. 'They can be anyone, anywhere. They will just integrate into the system and fight with us. After all, they are Morflon as well. They would not want to die. That is what I believe.'
'I think they would just flee', Cylas said. 'That is what they are good at. Such cowards they are. They will flee and come back when the war is over to cause more trouble. Reckless, evil beings...'
'So when are we leaving for camp?' Ozin's offspring asked.
'It should be later in the day', Cylas replied.
'Ai!'Morriah said. 'I am ready any time.'
He proudly raised a wooden club as he spoke with a smile.
'Whoa!' the others exclaimed.
'Are you not going to wield a spear?' Cylas asked.
'Ai! Spears are good', Morriah said. 'But this is my favourite. I call it the Banger. It's been with me for a long, long time.'
'I think I remember this now!' Cylas exclaimed. 'You still have the banger.'
'I caused a lot of chaos with this beauty back in the day', Morriah said. 'Don't you just love the curves?'
'The club will be sliced in half once it comes in contact with Morr steel', Ozin's offspring said.
'Ai!'Morriah said. 'The banger is really hard. Besides I am an artful dodger. I dodge more than I block.'
'So this is what you hunt with?' Cylas asked. 'I pity the poor animals you have banged to death.'
'Ai! Far from it', Morriah said. 'The banger is used for creatures like the Morrs.'
'You shall bang on their helmets with your stick' the Morflon joked.
'Lord Boas felt the wrath of my banger', Morriah said.
They were laughing when suddenly, Ozin stormed in and walked straight to a startled Cylas. Everywhere was silent.
'Surprised to see me?' Ozin asked furiously. 'Your thugs failed. You are lucky I did not kill anyone. What were you thinking, trying to abduct me? How could you be so foolish?'
'I ...' Cylas tried to say before he was interrupted by a fuming Ozin whose breath could be heard across the room.
'No wonder you did not sleep in my house yester night', Ozin said. 'After everything I have done for you... I should have given you a serious beat down. I would have, but I won't. Consider this as payback for helping me rescue Morriah. But the next time you or anyone else tries anything this foolish, blood would spill.'
Everyone was silent as they watched him storm out of the building, just the way he came.
'I hope this has convinced you that I am fit for battle', He roared as he left.
Cylas was literally speechless. He was stunned. He just sat still, eyes wide open; bewildered.