The Seven Feathers of Lucifer

Wake up! Wake up!! Dumka's grandma shouted lightly. It's 5am about the normal time for the average farmers to go to the farm. Dumka struggled with a heavy eyes to wake up from an old handcrafted mat as his grandma hurried into a semi detached hut which was their kitchen beside a roundly constructed hut. Dumka's grandma brought down the sweet potatoes she was cooking from the fire place-a three stone pillar adjacent to each other with firewoods placed in-between. Dumka managed to get up because his eyes were still engulfed with sleep as he didn't sleep early over night. Over the night, he has been out in the forest hunting and returned home late. He washed his face, took his farm tools and left to the farm while his grandma prepared their meal and later joined him in the farm. Dumka was a young man in his early twenties, a hunter, farmer and also good in kitchen duties. His parents died when he was about 6years old and have been living with his grandma since 6. He was the only child living with his grandma and so always assisted her in almost everything. They lived in a tarch hut directly behind the village general stream. They were seen by villagers as slave as they lived in seclusion. They were not wealthy but had enough to sustain them and so they were happy.     After a hard work at the farm all day, at sunset they started going home. Along the way, Dumka stopped over one of his trap site to inspect one of his traps he had set the previous day.  Unfortunately, his trap was empty. On his way back, he decided to take a bath at a nearby river. All this while, his grandma was sitting by the major road (a track road of about three passerbys). Then, he joined his grandma and they walked home. After their normal evening meal, rest and duties, Dumka decided to take a stroll around his vicinity to ease off the stress of farm work. He strolled towards the king's palace to admire the beauty of royalty and splendour of wealth lavished in the king's palace. While he was admiring all that, the king's daughter ( Princess) was also taking a stroll in her father's compound (the palace). The princess was an epitome of beauty by definition ranging from her smoothly, ravishing skin as though she is coming out of a refiner's furnace. Her long black neatly styled royal hair-do made her beauty spark. Her body shape was a true definition of Heaven's made with straight legs and curvy shape. Dumka couldn't resist the beautiful work of God displayed in the princess as he was staring at her with meticulousness and aggravated feeling of exasperation. He was physically lost but emotionally focused on the princess. It was unfortunate because the princess didn't notice his stare neither his presence. He regained consciousness when the king's head of security tapped him on the shoulder and asked what he is doing here....dumb founded as he was, he could only say "am sorry, I was just passing by", leave at once...the guard ordered. Dumka got home perplexed...with his thoughts and mind rotating with a 360° revolution around the princess. He couldn't sleep that night, as he kept visualizing her in his eyes with mixed feelings of joy and sadness. He managed to sleep that night. Early the next morning, he woke up as usual, took his hunting tools and went hunting. He became a shadow of himself even while in the forest hunting. He couldn't focus on targeting animals for a shoot without seeing the princess image run through his eyes. He struggled through out the day from hunting to setting of traps but ended up getting nothing. One would say Dumka ought to be sad about this unfortunate misfortune but no he wasn't sad. He kept smiling profusely to himself on thinking about the princess. One would as well as say, Dumka will go home to consol himself against his wasted hunting efforts throughout the day but no, he didn't go home but rather went to the palace with the high hope of seeing and at least talking to the princess. This time, he went behind the palace where the princess' room was opposite the back view of the palace so he could see her as a matter of emergency. While standing there with the self belief of seeing the princess, he overhead some palace maids telling the king that the princess took a stroll to the royal river with her Entourage. Disappointed he looked, sluggishly he started going home with thoughts running through his mind, "but why am I thinking about the king's daughter when it will only remain a thought and not a reality?, Am I in love with the princess, even if I am, she can never love someone like me!!". Those were his thoughts as he walked along. Because of Dumka's state of mind and loss of focus, he hit his big right toe against a tree stump and sustained injury. While he faced down to attend to his injury, the princess and her Entourage were returning from the royal river through that path Dumka also took. When Dumka raised his head to seek help, he saw the princess walking elegantly beautiful towards him and Dumka stood up like a lion that has seen its prey. The gaze in his eyes were as of raging fire! Lost in stare, he didn't realize when the princess got close to her. The princess stopped and saw him bleeding on the leg and asked, what happened to you? Realizing himself, I am fine just a minor cut...he said. Do you need help? The princess asked... ehhhh....nnn.....no...no....I mean...yes....yes I need help....he answered stammering. The princess mandated her maids to take him along to the palace and ensure the palace herbalist (medics) attend to him. While on the way to the palace, Dumka couldn't believe he was actually riding with his fantasy woman and also going to the palace. It was a moment of bliss for him!