THE LAND OF THE DEEP

The Encounter

I had tasks that I dealt with according to the time of the day.

sometimes, it was sitting still tending to the fire bringing it alive for the night to keep the brooding mosquitoes and worse of all the Thwargs away.

Thwargs were surprising fast but disease ridden, foul and decayed humans, their skins had no trace of ebony,it was pale and brittle due to lack of blood amongst other things.

Other times it was watching for the Energy Vampires they were as their name suggested servants of the evil god or enforcers as they were called around here.

They came down the bridge constantly looking for diffrent things. Some for business others pleasure , many just cause they were stationed to be down here for the day, whichever It was I kept watch and was to by all means delay any encounter.

whichever way but I always maneuvered them ,this was what I did and I did it diligently. I was committed to serving my poor father who had raised me under the bridge just below the port The bridge led to the a great wall and the entrance to the port where you could get a shop that would take you to the city gate and another that would ascend you to the city , it was a very expensive trip even if I saved till the day I died I would not be able to afford it.

I wasn't allowed there none of us were but it was nice to hope and dream that someday I would not just be below the city . It was nice to hope and dream that someday I would be accepted and that was all I wanted.

My father said I was born with the amusing notion that I didn't belong down here with him and all his rats but, I truly felt this way . Though I grew up in a neighbourhood that didn't support education, I went out of my way to read ,every one was always head in the cloud drunk or drugged or , overdosed ,I abstained from drugs.

I belived it slowed down my instincts and wits.

A couple people mostly elderly men had tried luring me with it whispering

"Come along fine girl , I get something very nice for you "

They'd get angry no matter how much I tried to be polite in saying my firm and final

"NO thanks "

Words like,

"you think you're too good for us " or

"You little smelly Ashewo"

And once someone was sorry but still I felt insulted

"oh I know you,you're old metal claw's daughter he always talks about your funny ideas of leaving the ghetto, no vex "

He laughed and put his hands in his pocket

" Don't tell your daddy o"

He laughed some more like I was the funniest person in the world then walked the other way .

Whatever the reply I always gave a tight smile and walked away very quickly.

Half of the girls like me stuck down here would be more than overjoyed to give themselves away for a quick fix.

It was heartbreaking but moondust was their entire worth and it kept diminishing.

I saw a few my age who used to flourish beautifully now with either kids that they couldn't take care of or losing it all in the streets trying to find someone to take them in for a fix.

Some were dead and no one spoke of the passing , the body was just carried to the river and dumped like the rest of them. I always tried to hide my judgement or pity even though it was there deeply hidden Inside of me, I also knew I did not want to be one of those girls.

On the nights when my father would drink and drink till I could move him to a different state and he would not know, I'd make sure I sold every last bag of his Moondust then sneak out to the old Settlement.

I would take a route created by the Smugglers passing the bridge careful to cross all the main patrol roads without getting noticed ,Avoiding the EV's was one part but there was also all the monsters lurking in the dark ready to pounce on unsuspecting victims although I never considered myself a victim. Suspicious of every sound every move and the slightest form of distress would trigger my attacking instincts,I always fingered my blade at those moments for reassurance.

Every Time I took this risk I knew in my heart it might be the last but it was totally worth it.

I succeeded and eluded my obstacles and the view of the city was always a rewarding sight ,there it stood far from this part of the bridge, I imagined being driven in through those gates, the lights I loved so much would be brighter and and much more illuminating in there.

The bridge led to the city ,At first no one understood what it was for until the walls had been completely built high and the city rose above did we realize the city was not for everyone just for the ones who could afford .

Some people found ways to secure safety working for Madams and Ogas of the city but I was unfortunate.

I had never tried to leave but I didn't think I'd be accepted till I built myself properly and could present myself as a proper lady whatever that really meant. Under the bridge the definition of a lady would be someone who took a bath once a day and slept with the highest ranking of the scum that lived in that hellhole or the humble but witty wife of a moondust distributor but then again humble had it's own definition down there.

I never shared these thoughts with my father and I assumed he would do the same thing he did every time I made a suggestion, laugh loudly and proclaim my naivity slurring every word

"You think reading a few books and abstaining from the dust will save you,that city is a den of wolves the devil you know Chilioma "

He'd pause take a drink of that god awful cheap whisky then continue

"is better that the angel do not know and trust me they will eat you alive out there "

He'd slap me playfully but a little too hard on my back and then come up with some absurd errand for me to run. I loved the man but he was a prison of closed minded ignorance and had no Idea, he thought he'd seen every thing .

There under the bridge with the rats was where He belonged cause he chose it and it was an easy choice.

My prize was the city , Anywhere that looked prospectively better than where I was coming from was good for me honestly and the city was that place now.

Even if my father was right about the city it was still better than here ,I had a goal and felt deep down nothing would stop me achieving it. Sighing at the moon and casting my tired eyes to the beautiful lights from afar illuminating my entire dreams.Thoughts of life in there slowly began to creep back into my mind they'd be clean air ,water and not a single INVASION of Thwargs. I could bet on my life they didn't need to light fires and keep patrol there except safety patrol but it would be safe and everyone would live as one. I read thousands and thousands of stories about the city and the historic great flourishing . The Tribes United and formed a great city for the development of the entire southern Clan,ruled by River People and Barriwerre Tribe as the overall ruler he had a selected council members from each of the five southern tribes.

There were traders , businessmen, scientists , healers all stationed in the city , anything you needed it was there you'd find it all in one place for every tribes to collectively and co-operatively grow together, there was no reason for our settlement , the river port was a trade point and settlement for tradesmen from The four Elemental clans of Our Democratic Federation. The collective mistake was that, we thought the city was a refuge for everyone,but it was a sanctuary for a selected few.

A Great evil was lurking they knew it was coming, It was birth by our own mistakes and crimes to the river.

Down here, there was a just constant hunt for Thwargs and even more so for supposed Hooligans who sold the dust and illegal expired goods from the port they controlled the entire supply chain of the illegal doings cause like it or not I was aware the city had it's little corruptions. They didn't need fires cause of the hydro supply electricity powered by a device called RFILRANS , an elemental machine that was used to mine oil for sales and also convert the filtered spilled oil to energy.

The Thwargs hated the light it peeled and damaged they're already weak sockets with yellow watery eyes that had sores and scars that stunk but they were surprising fast though brittle bones and skin made them vulnerable .

I remember the first time I saw one ,

he had been hunted and killed by my father and few other men.

It lay there looking humanlike but with grotesque disfigurement the pale skin made me throw up and my father took me in almost immediately and slapped me.

"Silly girl how dare you embarrass your Mkpagi that way "

He slapped me again this time drawing blood from my lip , his voice now turning into a growl ,

"you dare show weakness "

He huffed like an angry bull about to attack

"do you want them to think the daughter of metal claws is Weak!"

And that followed with a slap so heavy it was basically a blow I staggered back slowly and nearly fell but immediately stood my ground, If I fell I'd let him win.

The sound of soldiers approaching shook those Thoughts from my mind and alerted my instincts. They were loud not the usual patrol it was almost as if they were chasing someone one or about to .

I pulled out my dagger and ran to the dark and steep walkway leading under the bridge. I had scouted here as a child and hid at my little corner of deception it was c***k in the wall opened to an alleyway that led back to smugglers route or back to the The settlement. The sound of the footsteps were closer now But the closest steps belonged to a boy who was moving towards my direction.

I crunched deeper in my spot and watched as he ran towards the walkway and looked frightened to the bones, I also noticed he was dressed in the garbs of the city dwellers.

He was sporting Black jeans, a shirt and a worn out black leather vest Jacket,gloves and leather boots same color and condition as the vest.

I assumed he might be carrying a weapon of sorts cause he had the physique of a warrior but I could easily take him and I had the element of environmental Awareness I could easily navigate an escape and outsmart the stupid EV's using the steepest routes and most crooked paths.I quickly calculated the risk and the chances of my plan failing were slightly high but I did love a challenge .

A gateway into the city flashed before my eyes and abandoning logic I let adrenaline take the wheel then came out of my hiding spot and said "follow me " and he did

*************** *****************

ZouZI

I could sense the locket ,I had been following it beckoning to me for days now , and now the trail was close very close the feeling lingered around.

I spotted a girl she stood on the edge of the bridge unaware of my presence

that was good if she was an enemy.

I could not help but notice, on her head sat a huge afro curly and deep black,

it was blowing slightly in the wind. Her skin was ebony dark like her hair ,she was perfectly curved even clothed in a cotton long sleveed garb made of local fabric and pants made in thesame fashion her pants.Her entire profile from this gave me a view of her slight hips ,well formed buttocks and carved calfs ,from what I could see she was below average height and petite in nature. She was looking beyond the bridge overlooking the sea far into the city hundreds of miles away . The lights could be spotted from this far distance , it was something I found quite amazing and I did not use that description with the city often.

There was something about her essence that was alluring,I found it almost Godlike and I could feel myself being drawn to her , her force ,energy, her light .I decided to approach but stopped short,her demeanour had changed from silent longing and she had become suddenly alert listening and then I heard it too soldiers they were approaching.

I saw the girl run towards the walkway leading down the steps I assumed she would run down but instead disappeared into the wall , I finally realised there was a c***k just right there. I approached her hiding place putting on my most frightened face,

I didn't need her to know that I had been watching and just as I had hoped she took a chance and came out of her hiding place saying ,

"follow me "

and so I did.

We ran down the bridge walkway and reached the alleys , she chose the most dangerous and complicated parts and the one the Enforcers were least likely to follow. I could tell this was her kingdom and she knew her way around more than the supposed patrol. I could hear the the footsteps and dogs hammering behind us and the sound of the shots and whistles.

I looked back severally and saw that the the Enforcers were still behind They had spread out she was ahead and said to me

"our aim is make sure they would not reach the midpoint before us, so keep up city dweller and stop looking back!"

we ran finally got to where I hoped was the midpoint, then zigzagged into another alley way leading to the river bank , I could spot rows of rows of zinc houses lined at the far end.

The SAHS were coming and I knew we wouldn't make it towards there .

She ran to the river and I wondered what we were doing but followed her lead . She turned to me pointing the banks, she held me then said firmly,

"Get in "

I hesitated but when she got in , I followed suit.

We pushed ourselves deep inside the waste as deep as we could, It was almost impossible to breathe The water was contaminated beyond repair but I stayed knowing our lives depended on staying underneath.

I heard the Squad stop short and saw the flashlights over the river top then a voice said

"He's gone ..maybe the f*****g Thwargs got to the bastard first "

And then I heard thesame voice issue the command to fall back .

The river was obviously filled with Thwargs. We were as still as a corpse but Dead as well Living corpses lived here and they could come at any moment it took the SAHS a few minute to disembark but they finally did.

She pushed her way out of the water and wiped the waste and mud from her eyes, then held out her hand and pulled me out then, The unexpected happened. She pulled out a dagger with her left hand pushed it against my wind pipe careful not to draw blood

"You have a lot explaining to do city dweller "