MUJANG (The Red Seekers)

-One

MUJANG

(The Red Seekers)

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Writer: Testimony Amarachi Ndukwe

( Tess Amara )

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Chapter 1

Little, slender fingers ran slowly through the strange, glowing writings on the wall.

The fingers kept moving slowly across the writings which were glowing a dim white.

"You'll never understand those, Karen," A voice spoke.

The young girl stopped running her fingers along the wall and then stood and simply stared at the writings.

"...for now," The voice added.

"I know," She replied quietly, then slowly walked to the single window in the room. She stood there and stared at the outside.

Outside there, there was chaos.

All of the men and women there were with swords and they were fighting with each other aggressively.

Not in the gentle manner in which her mother and Mujang Connor always fought in, in the training room.

This one was different. Aggressive.

Loud sounds of clashing swords filled the air and her eyes roamed through the bleeding bodies scattered on the ground in the midst of the fighters.

Just then, her eyes landed on one of the fighters as he pushed a sword into his opponent's stomach.

She gave a quiet gasp at the sight and stepped back from the window as the person pulled out the sword and let his victim fall to the floor.

A lot of houses were on fire as well.

"What's going on, Mother?" She finally asked, turning to look at the woman in the small room with her.

She was a pretty woman and was on a red dress. Her hair was packed up in a tight chignon.

"What's going on where?" Her voice was calm.

"Outside," Karen replied. She was starting to panick, "That's not a training, is it? These people...they're killing themselves."

Her mother sat on the floor and gently began to untie her hair.

"It's called a war, Karen. A war is going on."

Karen looked back through the window just as another building caught fire.

She was fully panicked now.

"Aren't we going to get hurt, Mother? We need to leave here."

Her mother simply smiled.

"We aren't going to get hurt."

Karen gulped as she tried to believe her mother.

The building they were in, was right in front of the battleground.

Her young mind couldn't fathom why her mother was being so calm and relaxed when a b****y war was going on just few feets away from the building they were in.

She watched as her mother finished untying her hair and let it fall loose onto her shoulders.

Her mother then smiled and motioned for her to come to her.

Karen dragged her feet across the room to her mother, and when she got there, her mother led her to a low stool and made her sit.

She soon began to feel her mother's slender fingers raking through her hair slowly.

"Your hair needs braiding," She spoke from behind her.

Karen's eyes moved to the open window but she quickly moved her eyes away from there and gulped.

She was afraid, but her mother looked calm.

She breathed out and relaxed, then.

If mother is calm, then there's no need to be afraid.

The loud and aggressive clashing of swords were still echoing all around. And the shouts still rented the air.

She stayed seated on the low stool as her mother gently began to braid her long black hair.

For few minutes, silence reigned between them.

Only her mother's fingers moved on her hair as she braided it, and only the shouts and sword clashes, coupled with the crackling of fire, could be heard.

Halfway through the braiding, her mother finally spoke.

It was a question.

"What are you, Karen?"

Karen looked up and fixed her eyes on the wall before her.

"A Mujang," She replied softly.

"Are you ever to forget that?"

"No," Karen answered with a smile.

"Tell me your name," Her mother spoke again.

She was almost done with the braiding.

"Karen."

"No. Try again." She finished with the braiding and turned Karen around on the stool to face her "Try again," She repeated.

The smile on Karen's face widened.

"Mujang Karen."

Her mother smiled broadly.

"That's right. You're a Mujang...and your name is Mujang Karen."

"Just like you're Mujang Athena...and Connor is Mujang Connor."

"Yes." Her mother grinned.

Karen's blue and green eyes shone due to the smile portraying on her face, then she placed her hands on either sides of the stool.

"What's a Mujang?" she asked.

Athena gave a little laughter and smoothened Karen's hair.

"A Mujang is what you are...and what I am."

"I know but what..." Karen's question was cut short as a part of the roof fell down to the floor. It was covered in fire and it didn't take long for the fire to move on to the rope lying near it. The rope itself led to a curtain in the room.

"Mother?"

Karen was back to her panicked state and her eyes held fear as she looked from the fire to her mother who was still kneeling in front of her.

"Yes?"

"The fire."

"I know." Athena gently stood and then walked to a corner of the room where her long sword was.

Karen had always admired her mother's sword.

It was carved beautifully and the designs on it were beautiful as well.

She watched as her mother took the sword from where it was lying against the wall.

Athena turned back to Karen with the sword in her hand.

Karen, herself, was no longer seated on the stool.

She was standing now as her eyes watched the fire circulating around the room.

"Karen." She heard her mother's voice and she turned towards her.

Her mother, Athena, was now standing before her with the sword.

Athena gave a little smile and stretched the sword towards her daughter.

Karen gently collected the sword and surprisingly, it was light. She'd always thought it would be heavy in her hands.

Infact, it was her first time holding a sword.

Athena slowly went on her knees in front of Karen.

Confusion flashed in Karen's eyes for a moment, but she relaxed again when she saw her mother smile.

No matter how relaxed she was, though, she couldn't ignore the fact that she was beginning to feel the heat of the fire on her skin.

The fire was circulating around them really fast, and the heat of it was a little intense.

"Do you remember Mujang Nolan?" Her mother asked and she moved her attention back to her.

Mujang Nolan.

Of course she remembers.

Nolan had challenged her mother, Athena, to a sword fight once. Not the friendly one like the type her mother usually has with Connor.

Mujang Nolan was known to be an evil man and a bad seed.

There was something dangerous, aggressive and deadly in Nolan's eyes as he challenged Athena to a fight.

Everyone had been there.

She(Karen) had feared so much for her mother, but at long last, her mother's sword had moved through the air and sliced off Nolan's head.

She could remember the scene clearly, and it was almost like it was playing before her again.

It was the first time she'd seen someone's head being cut off and she'd watched with wide eyes as Nolan's head flew through the air before finally landing on the sand.

She'd watched as blood poured out from his beheaded neck and it was then that Mujang Connor had seen her and led her away from the crowd.

"Yes. I remember him," She finally answered her mother, "You cut off his head."

The fire had fully surrounded them now and was moving higher and higher.

"Good. Now do the same to me."

"What?"

"Karen...I need you to cut my head off." Athena's voice held seriousness now and she was looking straight at her daughter without even as much as a blink.

"I can't do that!" Karen's heart was pounding now and tears were already starting to trickle down her cheeks.

Her mother can't be serious. Right?

"Karen..."

The fire was inching towards them now... surprisingly, very slowly.

"Why would you tell me to do that?!...I can't!! Why would you want to die?" She was fully crying now as she threw the sword away, making it land on the floor. She ran to her mother and threw herself on her as she kept crying. "You aren't dying. How can you tell me to do that?"

"Karen, please..." Athena gently pulled Karen's body away from her and placed her hands on her shoulders, "You have to do it."

"I'm not doing it!!"

"Yes, you are."

The sword slid back to them on its own and raised itself on the air before Karen.

She knew it was her mother's doing.

"Karen..."

"No!!" She yelled at her, then looked around. Her fear of the fire was back now and this time,it was back in full force.

"Get us out of here, Mother. We need to leave here." She looked from the fire to her mother who was still in her kneeling position, looking as calm as ever.

She noticed, then, that the strange writings on the wall were glowing even brighter.

Athena gently placed her palms on her little daughter's cheeks and sighed softly.

"Karen, Look at me."

Karen wiped her tears with her arm and fixed her gaze back on her mother's face.

Her blue and green eyes met with her mother's grey ones, and that was it. In a split second, she suddenly grabbed the sword from the air and slashed it through her mother's neck.

The blood splashed on her cloth and on her face as Athena's head rolled off her neck and onto the floor.

Athena's headless body remained still in her kneeling position, before it finally fell on the floor with a light thud.

Karen's heart started to pound even harder as she suddenly realized what she'd just done.

Her eyes moved rapidly and continuously from her mother's head to the body and she stepped back as the sword slipped from her hand and fell to the floor.

"No!!"

Her head was literally swimming and she suddenly felt dizzy. Her eyes looked round at the fire that was now closing up on her.

On them.

"No!!"

Her mother's blood on her face seemed to be blocking part of her vision, coupled with the tears that were rolling off her eyes and down to her cheeks.

The whole room seemed to be spinning and despite the blazing fire, she could see some of the glowing writings merging together.

The glow on them changed from white to red and suddenly started to form something.

Soon enough, it formed out a large red alligator.

She screamed as the alligator dived through the fire with a wide-open mouth and swallowed her whole.