by Jim Spencer
*
‘What the hell was that about?’ Arion asked Cordell after a minute or two.
‘Put it this way. She likes you and he isn’t too happy about that.’
‘That’s a bit random,’ Arion exclaimed, though he didn’t mind. He had had feelings for Sana as soon as he saw her. It was interesting that she felt the same way.
‘Look, today is gonna be a big day Arion. Have you made any plans?’ Cordell asked him.
‘Well, this formula requires governing. Sana was right. We need a law to stop people misusing this device.’
‘You realise this ‘device’ is practically everywhere, don’t you?’
‘I’m aware, but they don’t need to know that. Too much knowledge, you know.’
‘Good approach. So, what about the other problem?’
‘What other problem?’ Arion tried to avoid.
‘You know what I mean. Tribe country marrying someone from civil country.’
‘Oh, come on Cordell. I’m not going to marry her.’
‘You’re in a different culture here. They don’t exactly do things the way we do. You might not have a choice.’
‘Look, I’m not being forced into something here.’
‘So you telling me you don’t want to be with Sana’
He didn’t answer.
‘Look, the others didn’t want to tell you, but it’s pretty obvious. When you’re around her, you’re different.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘It’s means your feelings are showing like a sore thumb. Everyone knows, even Ruto. He just didn’t want to say it.’
Arion was suddenly feeling uncomfortable about tonight’s talk.
*
Arion sat down uncomfortably on the hard floor as food was prepared for the masses. Tonight a goat had been sacrificed. It was edible, so Arion didn’t complain. Everyone ate their fill and finally sat down in the end discussing where to go from here.
‘We should attack, really,’ one of the tribe members said.
‘Nothing would have happened if it wasn’t for ‘him’,’ another one said, pointing to Arion.
‘Look, I made this formula to help people not kill people. It’s unfortunate it can be used in that way.’
‘It doesn’t matter, does it? If you weren’t meddling in matters of the Creator, then we wouldn’t have this problem today.’
‘So, let me get this straight. You’re telling me it is my fault that Civil and Tribe country have these issues, is it?’
He didn’t answer, so Arion continued,
‘War was going to happen one way or another. I’ve spent two years trying to avoid something like this from occurring. Simply by keeping my formula a secret from the high chancellor has probably kept you alive today.’
‘So I’m supposed to be grateful, am I?’
‘You know what. I am saying that. Because let’s be honest, if I wanted you dead. We wouldn’t be talking right now. You’d already be dead; the formula would already be in the hands of Civil and there would be nothing left to do. SO SHOW SOME FUCKING RESPECT.’
This was enough to keep the tribesman quiet, though he certainly felt like saying more. Ruto spoke again,
‘What is your plan Arion?’
‘Do as Sana suggested. Go to the courts, create a law which prohibits the use of this formula except for medicinal use.’
‘Laws can be broken.’
‘Depends how you write them.’
Ruto nodded and glanced at Sana. Then out of the blue, he came out with the obvious,
‘Do you like my daughter?’
‘I’m sorry, what?’ Arion had to ask again to make sure he hadn’t heard incorrectly.
‘You can’t possibly be thinking of this,’ the other tribesman spoke, ‘your daughter is promised.’
‘To who?’
‘My son,’ the tribesman mentioned.
‘Really? I remember you asking and me saying that when the time comes, it will be her choice. Emphasis on ‘her’.’
‘Who cares what she thinks anyway?’
‘RANDO. Do not insult me,’ this seemed to stop Rando the tribesman and practically everyone in the room. Even Cordell raised his eyebrows, a rare feat.
‘I’m sorry, Ruto. I thought…’
‘You did not think Rando, you assumed. I never said to you that that would be the case. After all, the person who is getting married should have a say as well. This is no laughing matter.’
‘I didn’t say it was.’
‘Then why are you treating her opinion as a joke?’ he seemed dangerous now. The others were somewhat dumbstruck, they didn’t know what to say. This was completely out of their remit.
‘Well, a woman...’
‘Can do anything a man can. And more. The only thing she lacks is physical strength. Can you not see that, Rando?’
‘Well yes.’
‘Then I’m sure you have the ability to respect that.’
Rando the tribesman simply sat there like some two-year-old, having been told that he was wrong and to deal with it. The only thing lacking was a tantrum. Ruto ignored his looks and moved on,
‘So Arion, do you like my daughter?’
Arion wasted no time in answering honestly,
‘From the first moment I saw her.’
‘No need to be too specific. She is still my daughter.’
‘Sorry.’
‘It’s ok, Arion. Normally I would not take well to this, but Sana seems to like you as well. Otherwise she would have spoken against me, by now,’ he looked at his daughter, who simply shrugged,
‘He’s alright, I guess,’ her father looked at her enquiringly,
‘Ok, fine. I like him,’ her father nodded. He didn’t seem entirely happy, but not disappointed either.
‘It is custom here, that if two people like each other, then we join them in matrimony.’
‘That is not the tradition where I come from,’ Arion spoke out, to which Ruto seemed uncomfortable with. He closed his eyes, sighed for a moment and then continued,
‘Nonetheless, I would like you to consider this. I can give you till the morning to decide.’
‘I’ll definitely think about it. But I have one request. With all due respect,’ he added quickly.
‘Go on,’ Ruto asked him.
‘I would like to spend some moments alone with her.’
‘You know I can’t allow that.’
‘Ok, that’s fine. How about just an hour. I promise it is only to speak to her.’
‘I wouldn’t expect any less. Very well then, you have an hour after this…meeting, I suppose has finished,’
‘Thank you.’
‘Now, moving onto other notes. Civil armies are moving towards our other tribes. Some of them are advanced, some are primitive in every sense. We only choose to use technology. They won’t easily trust anyone outside of civil country, however noble their intentions. I need some volunteers to come with me to the other tribes. We will have to go by foot to avoid detection.’
Some people raised their hands to volunteer, others objected saying that they were not worth considering since they had abandoned absolutely everything.
‘We haven’t got time for trivial pursuits. We are all in danger here.’
Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough to deter people. Ruto didn’t show any expression but seemed a little disappointed to Arion. It was hard to know for sure. Once it was decided who would go with Ruto, he then moved towards the soldiers.
‘Lastly, we need to decide what you do.’
‘We’re staying,’ one of Cordell’s crew spoke out.
‘That is fine. I am not objecting to that. What I am saying is that we need eyes and ears inside civil country. We need to know what is happening. And if everything goes well and we’re able to defeat our enemies, then we need to build a united front.’
‘That could be a long way away.’
‘I have always been hopeful.’
‘That’s al
l good,’ Cordell spoke, ‘but we need to figure out what we’re doing now.’
‘We could spy on them,’ Patrick came out with. Ruto looked over to him and he seemed to shrink somewhat in stature.
‘Don’t worry.’ Ruto seemed to realise what he had done, ‘I just want you to explain yourself.’
‘Well, we can split up,’ Patrick spoke, once he had gained enough courage to be able to.
‘You would be willing to go to civil country and spy for us?’ Ruto asked.
‘Yeah. And when it is all won, then we can help from within.’
‘That’s actually not a bad idea,’ Cordell intervened, ‘but how are you going to persuade them to take you back in?’
‘Come on Cordell. I’m the dumb one. Everyone’ll believe me when I say I was forced to come.’
Impressed, Cordell nodded his approval. Ruto then moved to Arion,
‘I definitely have to go to neutral country.’
‘You will have to go by slow transport. We don’t know who else is out there,’ Ruto warned him.
‘I know. I need help though. I’ve never been there before.’
‘I have. I can take you,’ Cordell intervened again. The crew looked over at Cordell,
‘You guys know you’re good enough without me.’
Ruto nodded his approval,
‘Very well then. It’s settled. I, along with my volunteers will attempt to unite our tribes in this time of need. Patrick, is it? Yes, Patrick will take his men back and spy on our behalf. Arion, pending his decision will make his way to neutral country to try to bring a diplomatic solution to this crisis.’
‘That sounds about right.’ Arion said.
‘Now Arion. You can stay in my tent for the hour. I will send Sana after you in a moment’
Arion seemed somewhat surprised at the sudden end of the meeting and made his way rather sheepishly towards the tent.
*
Arion sat down on the earth, feeling more nervous than he had ever done in his life. What would he say? He honestly didn’t know. He had never been good with women, that was a known fact. Always the shy type. He could barely look Sana in the eyes without becoming nervous. Was this what had given him away? He couldn’t help but feel it was that. Although he also understood that marrying Sana would mean definite peace in this newfound world. If it ever came to fruition. That was another thing to see.
In the meantime, he could see Sana walking into the tent, looking eager to speak,
‘So should we get married here, or what?’ She spoke mockingly.
‘No, no. Just a talk. I suppose I want to make you aware of certain things before you do make your final decision.’
‘My decision is final. But go on then, if it makes you feel any better.’
Chapter 16
They sat down, talking for a few minutes, but it felt like he had always known her. She seemed to understand his jokes and would not say anything when he spoke. Possibly because she didn’t know him that well yet.
‘Look, Sana. This is happening a little too quickly for me.’
‘We prefer to get things over and done with.’
‘Yeah I noticed,’ Arion couldn’t help but smile at this.
‘I’m sorry. I’m still not aware of civil country’s culture. If they have one.’
‘Not really,’ Arion answered, choosing not to take offence at the remark. She was right, all they did was work and marvel at the extravagant. There was nothing cultural or sophisticated about it in all honesty. He just never saw it that way before. He told her of what civil was like and she listened, occasionally rolling her eyes or shaking her head. Once he finished, then she spoke again,
‘They’re not exactly great people, are they? What about your family? Why are they the way they are? I mean, I know they hate you. I could see that from the first moment I saw them. But why is that?’
Arion sighed and thought about this for a moment. He honestly didn’t know why they hated him. He had never honestly done anything to them. Eventually he ventured,
‘I guess it was because I was born.’
‘Explain,’ she asked, somewhat confused at this. She was sat down cross legged and leaning forward. Whether that was deliberate, he didn’t know, but he had great difficulty in keeping his eyes on her face. How the hell did some men do it?
‘My father was the one who earned the money. He was the eldest, you see. My grandfather was, shall we say, not ready for parenthood. I guess he put too much pressure on him. My father managed, but had to prioritise when I was born. Suddenly the family were getting less because I was born and they had to fend for themselves. I guess they didn’t like that.’
She shook her head and this time did speak,
‘Greed ultimately gets you nowhere. I don’t understand people’ she sighed and continued, ‘so I guess you have nothing to lose.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Marry me. Start a new family and forget your own. They clearly don’t care about you.’
‘A bit direct, don’t you think? ‘
‘I told you before. I’m an honest woman. I know what I want.’
‘That’s good and all. But at least restrain yourself.’
She simply smiled at this. Arion continued,
‘Look, they might not like me, but they are still my family.’
‘Who don’t care about you. So, see them, just keep your distance.’
‘I suppose that could work.’
‘What about your father. Tell me about him. Were you crying because of him before?’
Excessively direct is what he would call her questioning, but he didn’t mind. He had been keeping this inside himself for a long time.
‘Yes,’ he finally answered after a second of strained silence.
‘Tell me about him. What was he like?’
‘He was direct, but noble. He never had a great deal of time for me, but tried to spend as much with me as he could. He pretty much worked all his life. He was twelve when he started and sixty when he died.’
’48 years of work’
‘Yes, I know. He was on sick leave when he died.’
They were silent for a second before she spoke again,
‘I’m sorry about your experience, Arion. You’ve not exactly had the best examples to follow.’
‘No I haven’t,’ he admitted.
They sat in silence for a moment, whilst Arion thought everything through. She awaited his answer. All his family had ever done was use his father. And he had served them and not truly lived his life. His mother he didn’t remember, but he recalled his father saying that times were difficult. This led him to assume that his mother had not exactly been treated well, though no one ever clarified this. When he came back, they seemed to be more concerned with the properties that were to go in his name and were only too happy when he said that he didn’t want anything.
It was a shame his father’s legacy had to end this way. Everyone simply took their share without caring whether they were the rightful owners or not. That was the last straw if he honestly thought about it. He had made his decision.
‘You know what, Sana. I will marry you. I’ve got nothing to lose, not even my reputation. And I’m sure it’ll make my father happy to know that his son found some form of the happiness he never did.’
Sana smiled, in a more empathetic manner,
‘I hope to help you achieve that. I will tell father.’
‘That’s fine, you do that. Just out of curiosity, what would have happened if I said no.’
‘Most likely banishment.’
‘Most likely?’ he asked.
‘Yeah, most likely,’ and she left him with that, leaving him to wonder what a ‘No’ would have bought him.
*
‘Our new ambassador to peace,’ Ruto announced as soon as Arion walked out of the tent. He was somewhat taken aback by this statement, but it was true. Ruto gave him a new status and the people around him gave him a level of respect, and at least he had some fr
iends who were honest about their affection. That was already more than he had had in his entire life so far. This was possibly his happiest moment.
*
‘So when will the wedding take place?’ Arion asked Sana, who sat down near him.
‘Technically, it’s already happening.’
‘Really? So can I get away with it if I touch you?’
‘Not yet. Besides, I’d probably hurt you if you did.’
‘Yeah, so what is happening?’
‘Sacrificing an animal in honour of the occasion.’
‘Oh ok. Then?’
‘Pretty simple. They carve it out. Prepare the meal. When that is getting done, we get a scholar from the village.’
‘You have scholars?’
‘Oh yes. Not recognised by civil country, but they don’t recognise anything. Sorry.’ She added.
‘No that’s ok, I know. So, what this scholar do?’
‘He reads you your nuptials and you repeat after him. Then he will ask you whether you take me to be your wife.’
‘To which I said yes’
‘Of course, you would say yes,’ she answered, looking cross.
‘I’m kidding,’ he laughed. ‘And after that?’
‘That’s it. We both agree, he asks to double check I am ok with the decision, and then we feast.’
‘No party or anything?’
‘Not much time, I’m afraid. But I will be accompanying you.’
‘So I can’t even venture on a man’s duty on my own?’
‘Normally yes. But let’s be honest, you don’t exactly have experience. And Cordell is good, but he is beginning to show his age a little. So you need young legs.’
‘Not that I was looking at your legs,’ he commented, to which Sana simply smiled again, adding a stare which made him tingle beyond belief.
The wedding ceremony was rather simple as everyone from the tribe, which turned out to be less than 50 people due to the recent attacks, all gathered and sat around one small campfire. The animal was presented towards the scholar, who sat and read a small prayer and blew on the meat. He then asked Arion to recite as best he could.
Feeling hot and uncomfortable, Arion tried his best to repeat after the scholar, but had to be told certain things two or three times, for he kept saying it wrong. Once that was finally out of the way, the scholar asked the simple question;
