by Iesha Bree
I could tell he was trying to lighten the mood as he continued with the remainder of today’s plans. The thoughts of Amber were no longer important as I watched the clock, ready to take my ass home. It had already been a long day, and all I could think about was the meal I knew my mother had prepared.
Finally, it was time to head home. I made my way to the lockers to grab my keys, not bothering to stand around and talk like everyone else. I quickly made my way to my car since I didn’t really interact with the rest of the class. Shoot, I barely interacted with people in general unless they were my patients at the hospital. Mainly because I never fit in with them, and after a while, I just said fuck ’em. I was going to be myself regardless of what anybody thought of me. Unlocking the doors to my car, I heard my name being called as I looked over my shoulder to see who was calling me, only to see one of my classmates, Jason, running over toward my car. Looking back toward my door, I took a deep breath before turning back around, and now he was standing in front of me, breathing extra hard like he just got done running miles. I waited a moment for him to catch his breath.
“I just wanted to tell you that I thought you did an outstanding job today,” he started, still out of breath.
“Thank you. So did you,” I responded, trying to at least make conversation.
Standing awkwardly, he continued to stare at me like he forgot what else he had planned on saying. I looked around the parking lot to see Amber with a group of her friends, scowling in our direction. I laughed to myself, almost forgetting Jason was still standing there.
“What’s so funny?” he asked, waiting for me to share the joke.
“Oh, I’m sorry. There was no joke, but your girlfriend is waiting for you,” I responded, signaling behind him.
I watched as he looked over his shoulder at Amber leaned against his car before turning back toward me to give me his attention once more.
“Amber is not my girlfriend.”
Turning around to place the rest of my stuff into my car, I laughed lightly as I slid into the front seat and looked at my door that he was now holding. Catching the hint that I needed him to shut my door, he closed it. Leaning down into my window, he smiled like he had something else to say.
“Well, I’ll catch you around,” he stated, tapping the top of my car as he backed away.
Nodding my head in response with a small smile, I put my car in reverse as I backed out of my space, making sure I didn’t run over his feet. Driving past, I watched in my mirror, realizing that Amber had watched me leave. I swear I never understood what the hell that girl’s problem with me was. But I never cared enough to ask her. Looking at the roads and places that I passed, it looked as if the storm that had knocked the power out in the hospital had done a little bit of damage. There were many trees knocked over into the roads, and quite a few streetlights were out. It was crazy that a storm had hit us out of nowhere because I didn’t think we had any reports on a storm coming our way. I turned my radio back up as the sounds of Chris Brown played through the speaker.
Finally making it home, I parked outside of my small home. My mother and I had lived here for as long as I could remember. My mother always made sure that dinner was made by six o’clock, so I knew the minute I walked through the door that dinner would be ready. I’d always been more comfortable with things staying the same. Change was something I found a little difficult. Walking into the house, the smells of steak and gravy wafted past my nose. As I walked further into the house, my mother was pulling out fresh rolls from the oven. I always wondered how she was able to work and come back to make everything from scratch. She was like a superwoman to me; it had always been just her and I. I had never met my father before; I could count on how many times I asked my mother about him. She always said that life had turned him in a different direction.
“How was your day, Emy?” she asked before I could make my presence known.
“It was something; I can say that for sure. Did you see that storm that happened today?” I asked, still puzzled by how fast it had come and how quickly it had ended.
“I did; it didn’t last long. How did you know there was a storm?” she asked as she started to make our plates.
“All the lights at the hospital went out. I closed my eyes briefly because I needed a moment. Amber had just said something to me that made me want to drag that terrible wig she continues to wear out!” I responded as my mom stopped mid scoop.
My mother stopped making our plates before turning around to give me her undivided attention.
“So what happened after that, baby?” she asked.
“Well, once I realized the power in the entire building had gone out, I opened my eyes to see what was going on. Then the power was restored; it’s an excellent thing that the hospital had a backup generator. I can only imagine what would have happened to the patients who needed to be hooked up to oxygen machines.” I rambled on until I noticed my mother was staring off into space.
“Mom, are you alright? Do you need me to help you make the dinner plates?” I asked, standing to my feet to assist her.
I rushed over to the kitchen to grab the plates from her hands. I glanced back over at her to see if she needed to have a seat. It was almost as if, at this moment, she was not here. Placing the plates onto the countertop, I grabbed her hand and led her over to the couch to have a seat. Placing the back of my hand against her forehead to make sure she didn’t have a fever, I leaned down until I was eye level with her as I waited for her to make eye contact with me.
“Mom, did you hear me?” I asked again as she turned to look in my direction.
“I’m sorry, baby. What did you say?” she asked.
“I asked if you were feeling alright. Anytime we have a storm, you get like this. I don’t understand. Are you afraid of them for some reason?” I asked.
I tried to figure out what was going on with my mother. I just wanted her to be okay. She was all I had left in this world; I already felt as if I was missing a part of myself. I didn’t need to lose her, and I used to think that I felt this way due to my father’s absence, but that was never the reason. I knew that to be a fact because even now, I didn’t feel any loss over not knowing him. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath because my heart started to speed up just thinking about the fact that she wouldn’t be okay and that she would leave me here alone in this world with no one to depend on or talk to. I could hear the storm from earlier starting to pick up again, becoming almost violent in a matter of seconds when I felt my mother’s hand on my wrist, bringing my attention back to her alert features.
“Emy, I have no plans on leaving you. I’m just a little tired, baby. I just needed to sit down for a moment. You have to remember I’m not as young as I used to be,” she added with a smile.
My heart returned to a normal rate as I watched my mother move closer to me. I still never knew how she knew everything I was thinking, even as a kid. She always seemed to calm me down whenever I felt this way, and it was the same, even for this moment. Glancing out the window, I noticed the storm had stopped again. With a light laugh, I turned back to face my mom.
“This weather just doesn’t know what it wants to do today,” I joked as my mother did a small laugh in return, standing to her feet.
For the remainder of the evening, we just ate and talked about the other interesting things that had happened in our day. At this moment, all I could think about was the fact that tomorrow would be my last day working under Doctor Stevens. My new life as a doctor would start soon after that.
Up, down, down, I repeated in my head as I continued to do push up after push up, allowing the sound of my heart beating erratically to be the only sound heard. Glancing briefly out of the window, the sun had reached its peak. I only had a few moments before I needed to be down to the main hall for GPP, God Pedestal Protectors, which was the most elite group of men here in Ruella. I had been training since my mother passed on. Since it was only my father and two brothers left behind, I always felt th
e need to step up and handle things the way they needed to handle for my family and Ruella. Many of my people always said I was a carbon copy of my father, but younger. I could still remember when my father was in the GPP; it wasn’t common for a man to have a family in this line of work. Usually, once they found their soul mates, they would retire and become family men focused on protecting their families. I had no intentions of becoming the latter; every woman that I came across here didn’t catch my attention at all. Either the other half of my soul was dead, or she didn’t want to be found, which suited me just fine because I would be promoted to head guard.
Jumping to my feet, I jogged into my room to take a quick shower. I grabbed my gear on the way out of the door. I knew if I wanted even be thought of for this position, I had to show that I deserved it. It wasn’t enough that I was one of the best fighters they had here, and I had the scar underneath my right eye to prove it. Before that day, I would have been described as a pretty boy. Now my smooth chestnut skin tone harbored a few scars, and my locs had grown to reach the middle of my back, giving me a rugged but smooth appeal as the ladies always say. I laughed to myself as I continued to pass by the many women whose eyes I caught. Although I didn’t find anything remotely interesting about the women here, it was nothing to have a little bit of fun with them.
Before walking into the main hall, I stopped briefly to ensure that my armor was on properly. Adjusting my helmet over my head, I took a deep breath before stepping through those doors. I realized I was the first to get here as I stepped in front of the stone gods to pay my respects before going into the armory.
“How did I know it would be you walking in here first?” the current head guard announced with a laugh.
“Early bird gets the worm, don’t they say?” I responded with a nod of my head.
Stepping further into the room, I went to grab everything I would need for today since we were competing to get that head spot of who would guard the council. I knew without a doubt I was the most qualified for this position, but they couldn’t just give it to me; I had to take it, and if I had to whoop a little ass to do it, I might as well enjoy the process. I snickered to myself as everyone started to file in, stepping up to me to speak. Just to avoid all conversation, I stayed in my own area just to get my mind right before the challenge started. At the end of the day, this was more than just a competition for me.
I was leaving with that position if it was the last thing I did.
“Everyone, file in. You don’t have time to chat with your friends. If you’re here right now, you know what today is. It’s all about who wants it the most, and this position comes with just as much responsibility. It’s not just a new position but a lifestyle; you will be bound to stand behind all decisions made by the council,” he instructed, staring over in my direction as he said it.
Closing my eyes briefly, I knew those last words were for me in particular. Mainly because I was not a man to be led blindly. Did I want to protect my people? Yes. If I felt something was not right in any way, I would act solely on what I felt. Regardless of any law set before me, my honor within myself and my family came first. Just giving him the response he wanted, I subtly nodded my head, a cocky smirk gracing my face as he ordered for everyone to head to the battlefield.
Saying a silent prayer to the gods, I checked my helmet and armor to make sure I was ready. Because I had no mercy in sight, I knew they all would be coming for me as well. If they didn’t, it would be the biggest mistake of their lives. Before making it completely outside, one of the other men by the name of Pateek stopped me.
“Hey, why don’t we make an alliance before we go out there? You know, as I do, everyone will be going for your head. If you have my back, I will have yours,” he announced, waiting on my response.
“Nah, I’m good. I work better alone,” I responded, keeping it short and simple.
I walked away from Pateek before he could open his mouth to respond because an alliance wasn’t up for discussion. Every few centuries, the Ruella games were held to see who deserved the position of head of GPP. Your agility and ability to think fast were tested in these games. Everyone in Ruella was in attendance. I stepped out of the armory, having picked my weapon of choice, which was this ancient sword my father passed down to me. Stepping out into the clearing, I glanced around me to hear all of my people cheering at the sight of me. Rolling my head between my shoulders to ease the tension, I shook my hands out as I bounced in place, getting myself in the zone. The crowd’s sounds began to fade away, and all I could hear was the thumping of my heart as the Head of GPP made the announcement. All I could see was his lips moving. I glanced around at the remainder of the warriors.
We all had been trained for this very moment for a while now. I knew the task would be to find a stand-in god and protect them at all cost until we made it back to this stadium. The first to make it back safely would hold the head spot of the GPP. I watched as instructions were handed to everyone, giving us coordinates to our target. Once they were finally ready to begin, I watched as the head GPP sounded off on the horn.
I stood briefly for a moment as everyone raced off through the woods. With a slight chuckle, I shook my head. They all thought that they would actually find their target in the woods, forgetting these were gods. Why the fuck would they be in there? I turned and went in the opposite direction toward the town. I could hear the sounds of metal banging behind me. Sensing the disturbance in the air, I slowed up my large strides. Immediately dropping low, I swung my legs out to trip Pateek, who I knew had followed me outside of the field. He thought he was going to be able to follow me without me knowing. Well, he had me entirely fucked up. He should have worn lighter gear. Once I heard his big body hit the ground, I took his restraints off his belt and tied him to the nearest pole before returning to my path. I came upon the home of Goddess Asha. If my coordinates were correct, this had to be right. I glanced back down once more.
It was odd for them to hide a god here since it was said that she had to be cast aside due to an unknown reason to the people, but we knew it was some dishonor that went against the ways of our people as Council Leader Ra told it. I slowed down until I was now into a light jog because this all felt too easy to me. I glanced around the door frame to see that it was sealed by magic. Taking my time, I stepped over to the side as I threw my hands into the air, breaking down the keys that were in place to keep the door sealed. My hands moved in a practiced motion, almost as if I was throwing up words in sign language.
Dragging my hand across my forehead to rid myself of the sweat this complicated pattern had brought, I grabbed a rock and threw it through the doorway to make sure I could make my way inside without being killed. Once I was convinced it was safe for me to enter, I heard my name being called as God Ra appeared outside of the door. Before I could step inside, something in me wanted to search this house from top to bottom, but I couldn’t understand what gave me this dreaded feeling the further I walked away from the front door toward Ra.
Bowing briefly to pay my respect, I glanced up as he smiled down at me.
“You have done a great job, soldier. We knew you would be the only one who knew what to do. You have completed your task and can return,” he responded.
Briefly, he glanced over my shoulder toward the opening of the house. I turned around to glance back at the house once more, and the feeling of something being there that I needed to see persisted. Returning my attention to Ra, this nagging feeling that something just wasn’t right wouldn’t go away. I tilted my head to the side in confusion as I jogged back over to the entrance, preparing to seal it back up.
“Oh, son, you don’t have to do that. We will seal it back up after the event,” he called out abruptly like I knew he would.
Little did he know, I wasn’t sealing it back up again, but I placed a pattern that would alert me of who entered this home. Also, there were pure intentions since I had every intention of returning to see what he needed it unlocked so badly for. Droppi
ng my hands, I turned around, and with a slight nod of my head, we magically materialized back to the stadium.
Throughout the event, I watched how the head GPP talked in private with Ra as they both glanced in my direction. Concern was written all over both of their faces. Although I had gotten the position now, I was curious as to why. It would be a few weeks before I was formally given the position. I stood to my feet as I slipped out of the clearing and back into the town when I was alerted that Queen Serafina wanted to see me. Making my way up to the palace, the guards led me inside the wide crystal doors to what seemed to be an inside garden, Serafina sat gracefully on a bench beneath a Rubella tree. Glancing up from the flower, of which the petals she had been picking off one by one, she stood slowly with a big smile before waving me over to her.
“You’re excused, Horae,” she called out to her guard.
I watched as he stepped outside of the room, nodding his head and closing the door behind him. She took my hand into her own, leading me over to where she had once been sitting.
“I hear congratulations is in order now that you’re now the new head of GPP,” she started.
I nodded my head yes slowly bringing my hand up to cover my smirk. I had gotten the position I could practically taste; I wanted it so bad as a child. It was truly mine for the keeping. This was the moment I had been working on all of my life, and to have this honor in my lap was what made me more than happy but proud.
“Thank you, but I’m not in the position yet until the ceremony.”
“Oh, don’t be so modest! You deserved this position. Ra and I are so proud of you; we knew it would be you who would soon get this position. Before you’re placed into your new position, I have something that only you can handle,” she proceeded.
“I’m all ears.”
“We need your help locating this woman,” she responded.
