by Slay (epub)
“Kruger Park has a rampaging elephant. The matriarch killed its entire herd in one night. The rangers found her eating the flesh of her young. Bullets and tranquilizers do not work, and no one can get close to pierce its hide. They need your help. Will you accept the challenge? This is your calling, hanzvadzi mudiki! Accept it!”
“This is coming from the man who was worried about me falling on my own weapon. Now you want to send me into a battle with an elephant? No. I will stay here.” Aziza picked up her scythe and plunged it into the river again.
“What is all this training for if you do not put it to good use?” Jokum sighed and stood up to reason with her. “Our village is safe. We have not had an attack in three years. Please. You are more than your past buried here.”
Aziza shrugged him off and paced along the river’s edge. She sighed and rubbed her hands down her face.
“Fine. I will go. But I doubt I will be able to stop a…a mutated elephant? This is madness.” Aziza once more grabbed her scythe and offered her arm for Jokum to take. His broad smile churned Aziza’s gut.
“You do not need to escort me. Did you really think I walked this whole distance in my state? Ha! No, the Order sent an escort to drive you to the park.” Jokum tapped her arm and pointed to the white vehicle a few yards away.
Aziza swallowed her uncomfortableness in small quarters with strangers and climbed in the passenger seat, the driver closing the door behind her. The driver helped Jokum into the back seat and they dropped him off at the village before turning south towards Kruger National Park. Aziza kept quiet as the driver talked on a headpiece to his wife the entirety of the trip. She closed her eyes and dreamed of a little girl with amber eyes, smiling up at the monster who ended her life.
2.
“Here we are! Kruger Park, Mozambique side!” Aziza jolted awake with the shaking of her shoulder and blinked at the frightened driver with a knife to his throat. “Um…huh, sorry to wake you.”
“The fault is mine.” Aziza withdrew her knife and settled it back in its holster. The driver rubbed his neck and stepped away from the vehicle, leaving the door open for Aziza to exit. She cracked her neck joints and flexed her muscles as she stepped out of the car. Twelve hours was a long time for muscles to sit unused. She stretched her legs and jumped a few times before following the driver to the entrance of the park, scythe slung over her back with her pack.
“Aziza! Welcome! How was the drive?” A South African man in khakis approached them inside the park and opened the gate for them. “My name is Charles Petersen; I am the head ranger of this quadrant. I trust you have been informed of the situation?”
“You have a elephant eating other elephants.” Aziza eyed the man in front of her, not confident with her English. Charles paid the driver and closed the gate behind them. The Milky Way illuminated the rich earth underneath Aziza’s bare feet.
“Yes, the matriarch, Talik, killed her herd. She has been feasting on the remains near the caves. No animal has come near the fresh meat, not even the jackals. It’s like the meat is tainted or they are afraid of Talik. I am afraid of Talik, if I am being honest. She was the sweetest creature in our preserve. Whoever did this to her needs to be stopped.”
“’Who’? You think someone changed her?”
“Yes. The vampire virus does not transmit to animals, nor has there been any recorded evidence of it appearing in the animal kingdom except through humanity. Someone is behind this experiment and needs to be stopped. I was told by the Order that they would send their best hunter to find the culprit and stop Talik.”
“Oh…I am a hunter, not the police. I can help kill the elephant, but I am not good with people. I am not part of the Order, only doing a favor.” Aziza shook her head and Charles placed his hands on his hips, fussing over his lip.
“Well, I need the elephant taken care of first. I am grateful for any help I can get, even if it’s not what I asked for. Come on, let’s sleep and plan our attack in the morning.”
Aziza nodded and followed the ranger along the fence line to a stake out elevated above the ground on wooden support beams. The guards lowered a rope ladder for them to climb up and settle in bunk beds for the night. Aziza lowered the mosquito net and sighed heavily. Why am I here? The Order is wrong; I am not the right person for this job. I hope Jokum and Heakim are safe and in bed. I wish I were sleeping under the stars and not in this hut. Aziza listened to Charles snore as she drifted off to sleep.
3.
Aziza opened her eyes to men rushing about and shouting outside. She yawned and was thankful to find her scythe untouched under her bed. She opened the door and peered over the balcony to the men arranging in formation below, some hiding behind Jeeps that were not there last night.
“Morning! Here’s some jerky. It’s all I could muster for now. Eat as much as you can before she gets here.”
“She? What is going on?” Aziza accepted the meat from Charles.
“Talik is coming. We heard her trumpet a couple miles away and our scouts reported her coming straight for us. Have you heard an elephant’s mutated sound? It’s unnatural and leaves a cold shiver down your spine. This morning it sounded like a banshee. Ah!” A woman wearing a white lab coat climbed the ladder and joined them on the terrace.
“Aziza, meet Hannah, our resident vet and behavioral expert. I called her in to observe and help with the attack.” Aziza shook Hannah’s hand.
“Charles, she is charging. She is going to bust through here and knock those cars aside. We need to get off this–"
Before Hannah could finish her thought, the ground thundered and Talik broke through the canopy. Aziza froze in horror. Talik’s trunk was crusted with blood and guts, her tusks serrated, and her back teeth sharpened for tearing flesh. Her body was skin and bones, the normal fattened hide missing, making her legs look like stilts and her tail a whip behind her. Aziza covered her ears as Talik trumpeted a shrill piercing war cry before charging the cars in front of her. Gunshots ensued but the bullets bounced off in different directions. A couple spears stuck from close range, but Talik reached behind her and took them out with her trunk before breaking them apart. She reared up on her hind legs and Aziza could see the piercing red eyes spewing puss down her face.
“This is a monster.”
“Yes, she is. Now GO!” Charles pushed Aziza out of her trance, and they descended the ladder one by one. Hannah dropped to the ground and ran for cover in the nearby trees. Charles landed and switched to commander mode to organize his men. Aziza jumped down the remaining distance and rolled to the side as the elephant broke through the ranks to ram a support beam head on. The beam snapped in half and the outpost collapsed on top of Talik. The men cheered thinking she had doomed herself, but Aziza watched with fascination as the elephant reared up through the settling dust and debris to approach her.
Talik raised her trunk and spit blood on the ground before charging. Aziza waited, scythe in hand, until she was in range. Aziza howled and ran directly at the oncoming elephant, Talik slowing down in surprise, giving Aziza enough time to anchor her staff and vault herself into the air above Talik’s head. Aziza smiled thinking her plan would work, but Talik caught her midriff in the air with her trunk. Aziza gasped as she was flung into the side of a tree, knocking the air out of her lungs. Talik charged but Charles ran beside her, piercing her side with a spear, causing Talik to change direction and focus her attention back on the rangers. Hannah appeared out of nowhere and helped Aziza to her feet.
“Thank you.” Aziza coughed out once she could breathe again.
“She’s smart and fast. You will have to be cleverer than that to defeat her. What were you thinking, running right into her? Are you crazy?” Hannah tsk’d and continued watching the elephant’s movements. Aziza scowled at her, ready to defend her actions when Talik ripped the door off a Jeep to use as a shield against the spears. Aziza picked up her scythe and used this distraction to attack again.
“No, wait!” Hannah tried to stop h
er, but Aziza pushed her away. I am a warrior; I know how to fight. Aziza ran behind Talik and hooked her back with the tip of the antelope jaw, pulling herself up onto the heated animal. Talik tried to grab at her with her trunk, but Aziza sliced at her attempts with her knife causing the elephant to hesitate. Aziza took that moment to swing her scythe around under Talik’s neck to slice her throat, but Talik grabbed the wooden staff and broke it in half.
“NO!” Aziza thrust her knife between the elephant’s shoulder blades. Talik bucked her off and struggled to remove the knife from her back. Giving up, she crushed Aziza’s scythe head underneath her feet and charged out of the clearing.
“After her! Don’t lose sight of her!” Charles commanded his men to follow Talik, while he stayed behind with Aziza. Aziza kneeled next to the broken pieces of her finely crafted weapon, cradling the broken jewelry in her hands.
“I am sorry about your weapons, Aziza. I tried to stop you, but you ran straight into the fray again. We have to be smarter than that.” Hannah reached down to offer her a hand, but Aziza swatted it away.
“I should not be here! I am not one of them! I trained to protect my village, not stop giant beasts. And now my weapons are gone! I am useless! I was the wrong choice for this. I am going home.”
“Wait, Aziza, we could really use your help still! Your bravery –”
“My bravery? I saw brave men and women fighting today. You are smarter than me. I am sure you will come up with a better plan. I am going home.” Aziza pushed past the doctor and the ranger and walked away towards the exit.
Charles caught up to let her out, misery and disappointment written plainly across his face. Aziza sighed and walked toward a bus stop to take her home, feeling the weight of failure on her shoulders.
4.
“Amai! Amai! Look what I caught!” Ichiya ran up to Aziza holding out the tiny fish on the strand. Aziza grinned over her daughter’s head at her husband bringing in the big haul of river shrimp.
“Big catch today?” Aziza asked her husband but Ichiya responded.
“Biggest one I ever caught!”
Aziza laughed and ruffled her daughter’s thick locks, bringing her in close for a hug. They picked up the blanket and picnic supplies and walked back towards the village, enjoying their last happy moments together before the vampire attack would take it all away.
Aziza opened her eyes to see Jokum standing over her. She sat up and motioned for him to join her under the tree. He nodded and chose a nearby rock to sit on.
“Aziza, why are you here?”
“Ugh, not again, Jokum. You know why I am here. I lost. I lost to an elephant, and she broke my weapons. I was not strong enough to defeat her.” Aziza crossed her arms over her knees and rested her forehead on them.
“No, I am asking why are you here, by the river? You are not training unless sleep is a new form of meditation.” Jokum hmph’d and poked her with his walking stick.
“Why are you here? Did you walk this time?” Aziza peeked through her fingers at the old man.
“Yes, I walked. I brought my cane to ease the strain, but I do not think it helped. Why did you fail?”
“I did not choose to fail, if that is what you are implying. I fought and I lost. End of story.”
“No, you fought and relied on your weapons, not on yourself. Aziza…you are a strong woman, the strongest I know! You should be able to overcome anything in your path. Why did you not work with the ranger’s team to take down the elephant? Why did you go at it alone?”
“Because I am strong, just like you said! I have the strength to take down whole herds of elephants, but this one was different. She was a monster.”
“Were you afraid?”
“Yes. Terrified.”
“And yet you charged anyways. Why?”
“Jokum, please, I do not know what you want from me. Just leave me in peace.”
“Mahru would not leave you here to wallow in your misery.”
“Do NOT speak my husband’s name.” Aziza stood and fisted her hands at her sides. “You were not there when I had to pry his fangs off my daughter.”
“You are right, I was not there, but do you not remember the man your husband was before he became a monster? He was a willful man who always saw his projects through to the end. He was dependable. You should honor his life by living the way he did.”
“I do not need this, Jokum. Even if I went back, what am I going to use to defeat the elephant? Or even find the real vampire? I do not know how to hunt vampires, only kill them when they come at me.” Aziza collapsed on the ground again and wiped away the tears from her eyes.
“You can use your eyes.”
Aziza looked up at Jokum and watched him remove a potion bottle and a book from his satchel.
“What do you mean? What is that?”
“An old legend. I found this in my travels a long time ago, probably before you were born. I concocted the serum, but I do not know if it will work. However, if it does work, you will be able to see the heart of any creature, including the vampire’s heart. You do not need your scythe to pierce a heart, Aziza. You do not need all your strength to take down this monster. Sometimes admitting to your flaws and asking for help shows the biggest amount of courage and strength. Do you want to try again?” Jokum swirled the yellowish liquid in the bottle and opened the book to the correct page. Aziza eyed the potion suspiciously.
“What must I give in order for this legend to work?”
“Your eyes. You will lose your sight in order to see the truth.” Aziza blinked a few times, contemplating the loss as she gazed across the river. She closed her eyes and watched her daughter run across the bank, chasing her father. She took a deep breath and kneeled before Jokum.
“I will do it. I do not need my eyes to see the most beautiful thing on earth.”
Jokum nodded and instructed her to lie down. He poured the liquid onto her face without warning and chanted from the book while Aziza screamed in pain. She reached up to touch her eyes but found the liquid burned against her skin. She could only scream as her eyes glazed over and she passed out.
Aziza opened her eyes to a cloudy sky. “Jokum?”
“Here I am, mudiki.”
Aziza sat up from the ground and looked around her.
“Where are you? I cannot see you.” She could only see white fog and hear the coursing of the river.
“I am behind you, under the tree. Tell me, what do you see?” Aziza turned and gasped. She saw Jokum and the tree, but they were not Jokum and the tree in flesh. Aziza blinked and rubbed her eyes as she tried to make sense it.
“I see an outline of you, or an inside of you. I see your heart beating and every vein shooting from it. I can see your whole blood system, Jokum! And it is blue! And it pulses every few seconds with a light. But the tree…the tree is green…but it is not a web of lines like your blood, it is splotches of green moving constantly, like little buses going up and down the trunk.”
“Wonderful! The legend is true! Hallelujah!” Jokum stood up to dance but Aziza pulled back in fear as she watched the veins in his arms and legs move in different directions.
“The legend is…disturbing.” Aziza tried to stand but found it difficult to grasp not being able to see the dirt beneath her feet. She could hear the river, but she could not see it. Aziza walked towards the river and fell with a yelp when her foot plummeted into the water. Before swimming back up, she marveled at the inner workings of fish life swimming near the bottom. She could see all of them, all their blood, moving in unison and breaking apart and coming back together. Aziza broke the surface and used her hands to feel her way back to shore. Jokum reached out a veiny hand and she grabbed it, surprised to feel his flesh in her hand.
“This is too strange, Jokum. How am I going to fight like this?”
“It will take time to get used to, I am sure. But now you can help the rangers stop the elephant by piercing its heart! I will send for a car to take you! You must go! Defeat the monste
r and discover the truth about the world around you!”
“Thank you, mukoma. For everything. I will do my best to make you proud.” Jokum embraced her and she awkwardly put her hands on his back, several inches above the veins she could see.
“You already have, shiri diki. Soar to new heights and describe the world to me when you come back.”
5.
“Aziza, I’m so glad to see you!” Charles welcomed her over with a wave and she inched towards him. She could see the heads of those around her turn and follow her slow movements. “What’s wrong? You’re moving slow and your face is contorted and your eyes…they are clouded. Is everything alright?” Charles offered his arm to her and she took it gingerly.
“I gave up my eyes to see the truth. I can see your blood and your veins and the trees and the grass and other creatures crawling just below the surface of the earth, but I cannot see your guns or your spears or your cars.”
“Woah, okay then…are you able to fight at all?”
“I…I am not sure…but I will try.”
“Okay, well, here’s the latest development. Our vampire elephant can now camouflage herself into the herd. We followed her to this pack, but my men can’t determine which one she is from the others. And the bulls ran us off for disturbing them, so we haven’t been able to get close enough to determine which one she is. Can your newfound “sight” see her?”
Aziza followed his outstretched arm and concentrated between the trees to the swaying grassland in the breeze. She spotted a few creatures moving about, but some would venture away and disappear into her fog.
“I can see a few, but my sight is limited. If I could get closer, I could tell you more.”
“Roger that. Amad, lead Aziza closer to the herd, but don’t spook them!”
A man touched Aziza on the shoulder, and she turned to dignify which man she was following. He nodded towards her and walked along the tree line closer to the herd. Aziza followed him, trying to pick up her feet as much as possible to avoid tripping on dead logs or rocks. She rammed her knee into a boulder and cursed loudly.
