A Heart In Flames

CHAPTER TEN

The couple planned their entry into the forest till sunset. They were so occupied with the mission that, they did not desire to enjoy each other as a new and young couple would often do.

At dusk, they had their supper, and decided to spend the night in the boat at the shore. Their decision seemed wise because they did not know what awaited them in the forest. Sleeping in the forest for the first time at night would be such a dangerous thing to do.

Unlike the usual short dusk Oma and Mansa knew about, it took many hours for the darkness of the night to arrive. Mansa was the first to realise. It wasn't normal.

“Why is it taking so long for the night to arrive after sunset?” she asked. “This is not how it used to be.”

“I cannot tell. Maybe . . .” Oma saw a huge bird fly from the sea into the forest, and that made him not to complete his reply to Mansa. The bird was as huge as an adult pig. Its wings were strong, long and wide. Its long claws could be seen in the sky as it flew. And its beak looked bent and sharp. The bird flew deep into the forest where the huge tree stood.

“Never in my young life have I seen a bird like this,” Oma exclaimed.

Mansa just gaped when she saw the bird. She was so surprised to see such a huge bird to the extent that, she could not get the right word to describe it.

“This is a strange place. This is probably just the beginning, we may see much stranger things,” she said at last, when the bird got out of sight.

“Do not be afraid. We must accomplish our mission for all humanity. The evil tree must go down for the millennial misfortune to stop befalling mankind.” Oma's determination was as strong as before and he sought to encourage his wife to have same courage.

“I am no longer afraid,” she said. Have you soon forgotten that I am the one that slain the deadly monster? My fears are gone and never a time shall they return. We live or die. There is no turning back.”

Oma smiled happily. He was happy about his wife’s determination and courage. “You are the one, my brave and lovely wife. You are the one that killed the deadly monster, and you shall forever be remembered for it. Every one on earth will praise you when they hear that you are the one who killed the monster.”

The talk about the huge bird continued for a long time. They talked until the atmosphere grew dim, and the night's darkness finally covered the horizon. Mansa fell asleep while they were still talking. Oma kept awake. He didn’t want to sleep. He feared that he might sleep deeply again. He never again wanted his wife to struggle alone should they faced any attack again.

The night was long and cold but Oma tried not to fall asleep. From time to time, with his sword in hand, he strolled the beach to see if anyone or anything dangerous was approaching. But often, he saw or heard nothing except a strange sound of a bird that came from the forest once in awhile. Nothing at the shore seemed to pose danger.

Once, when he was returning to the boat after strolling the beach, he saw something very shiny in the shallow waters at the shore. It was a shiny beautiful thing that pulled him like a magnet to see what it was. Oma got thrilled by the beauty and glamour of what he saw, but he was vigilant too—he knew it could be a trap, so he held firm his sword as he approached it.

“This could be a trap,” Oma said and stopped.

The more he tried to get closer to the shiny, beautiful thing; the more it moved deeper into the sea. He wanted to stand and see where the shiny, beautiful thing would go finally but the thought of his wife sleeping alone in the boat made him give up the idea. He walked back to the boat and saw his wife safely asleep.

The shiny, beautiful thing followed him to the boat. Oma then saw it clearly. It was a beautiful fish that had the legs of a turtle.

“From where did you come?” the beautiful fish asked Oma.

The brave Oma became surprised when he heard the fish speak. He thought for awhile before he replied. His answer was not friendly. “What if it is the wizard that want to trap us again?” he reasoned.

The beautiful fish went back to the sea without saying anything more to him. Perhaps, it didn't want to scare Oma the more, or it just didn't want to be in trouble.

The brave Oma continued to keep on the watch as his wife slept. The night grew longer and longer, and everything turned weird as he waited for morning to arrive. The strange bird sound in the forest multiplied, the colour of the huge tree in the forest turned red, and the sea started boiling with huge waves. Oma got worried by the weird happenings, but he wasn’t afraid. He trusted the sword and the axe.

Many hours continued to pass and at last, the morning star became visible in the sky. The weird happenings stopped. And Mansa woke up.

“You slept so deeply. Many weird things happened when you were sleeping. Our first night at the shore of Mokoo is over,” Oma told her.

“Did the wizard come back?” she asked with curious eyes, and stretched herself.

“A long, dark night carries lots of things that the eyes never see during the day,” Oma answered simply. “Let’s focus on the task ahead,” he added.

Mansa did not want to say anything more. It was not necessary. After all, she had seen many strange things already during the voyage. And even if there were more stranger things she had not seen yet, she was sure that sooner or later, she was going to see them, and have her eyes fed.

The couple got prepared shortly after and got on their way into the forest.