Divine Deception: The Will Traveller Chronicals (16 page)

“It would seem
that I am to get all the glory for something only you can
accomplish” The greying giant said softly “I mean, the only way the
whites will give us back our land and teach us these things, is if
you make them isn’t it?” He was certain of my answer.

“I really can
understand why you believe that Martin but I don’t” I answered
“There are far more good white folk than bad, believe me.” I
replied equally softly “Most people, of all colours and creeds,
want to live peaceful, prosperous lives” I said.

“We lived in peace
with all the other tribes for hundreds of years, until the white
man came” Martin told me “They have to control”.

“The ugliness is
in the past Martin” I reminded him “You just saw that history
recognizes it all as a terrible, but necessary, episode, in the
development of your own people” I told him. He nodded slowly then
brightened

“Well we’d best go
pick our two delegates Lord Robert” he suggested. We went out to
arrange the meeting with his people.

“But Martin, even
with Lord Robert protecting us from them now, letting those white
men come here is just like surrendering! They can attack us as soon
as he is gone” one man worried, when Martin had gathered the
Council in order to select two candidates. The speaker was a
powerfully built man in his forties, and, given that none of the
twelve other men in their room, had witnessed what Martin and I
had, his scepticism was understandable.

“Did Mother not
always tell us that we had to co-operate with the white man or we
would face extinction?” Martin queried softly.

“True, but that
was before they came and murdered her and the rest” Came the man’s
cryptic reply.

“We are strong now
Martin” A slightly younger, equally well built councillor spoke out
“We do not need to sit up and beg, like trained dogs, to get what
is ours back. We can take it back and make them teach us their
technology” He was spoiling for a fight.

“That may well be
true” I cut in “But if you do, you will start a war that will still
be being fought by your great grandchildren” I warned him, with
certainty in my voice.

“Lord Robert’s
words are true and can be trusted” Martin rose from his chair and
stood, arms folded, looking around at his chieftains “Who among you
has the will and courage to go there with Lord Robert?” He asked
them. There was a moments silence then the first Council volunteer
rose to speak

“I have no problem
with going to their village, I would like to see how they convert
the acolyte into power” The man, who was in his late fifties told
Martin.

“As you came up
with the two stone guns Barain, that makes you a sensible choice”
Martin agreed.

“But I’m not
comfortable with them coming here.” Barain added.

“I will not bring
back white men who know anything about weapons or war” I assured
him.

“They will be here
to work out the return of your lands and fair restitution for what
has gone before” I told him. But the real breakthrough came when
Martin softly announced.

“Mother has shown
me everything, just an hour ago” He told them,

then paused “That
is why Lord Robert is here, to help us fulfil our rightful destiny”
He declared solemnly. No-one made a sound.

“You have had a
vision?” One of the older men asked, awestruck.

“No” Martin
replied, looking the man straight in the eye “I touched her hand,
she held my face. She told me she was in service to Lord Robert,
who is our spiritual Father. From him we must learn to trust the
white man and learn, so we can improve our own lives”.

“Then it’s clear I
must join Barain and Lord Robert” The older man replied “I need to
see how they govern themselves, do you think they will allow that
Lord Robert?” He asked.

“They will do
exactly as Lord Robert tells them Muldar” Martin answered for me,
with some vehemence. “And you must always do exactly as he says” He
added with considerable firmness.

“I know you all
may find it hard to believe” I told them “But you’re going to find
that most of the whites will be glad to see the start of this new
peaceful and prosperous era. Most of them will be happy to see
co-operation between your two peoples” I told them.

“And those that
don’t?” asked Barain searchingly.

“I will insure
that no closed minds will be detrimental to our endeavours” I
promised him.

By the time the
meeting was over, darkness was well on its way. I didn’t want a
night arrival back at Carabindy, if I could even find it, so I
decided to accept Martin’s invitation and stay for the celebrations
which were just getting under way. After a quick freshen up, in the
huge all wooden bathroom, next to my equally large, beautifully
furnished bedroom, I donned an ornately woven red kaftan that had
been laid out for me and joined the party downstairs. My arrival
had a dampening effect on the spontaneity of my hosts, until a very
brave young woman, in her late twenties, came shyly up to me and
invited me to dance. My acceptance and enthusiastic gyrations to
the hypnotic rhythm completely broke the ice. We were soon joined
by a dozen or so handsome physiques and statuesque figures all
looking far smoother than yours truly.

I reasoned that
this exercise was all about participation and not really smooth
performance, so I kept it up for a while. Martin and two of his
older chieftains looked on patronizingly, exchanging wry glances.
Fifteen minutes of that musical workout left me in need of some
fresh air, so I excused myself to my delightful and far more
competent dance partner and headed for one of the big carved doors
that led outside. Surprised that there were no house guards
anywhere, I let myself out into the chill mountain air. Cold as it
was, you’d have thought it was a warm summer night, if you looked
at the many thousand revellers that stretched as far as I could
see. They danced and laughed around a hundred or more bonfires,
wearing nothing more than short tunics.

Although I tried
to remain unobserved, a group nearby saw me and, within a matter of
seconds, I had a mass of screaming humanity before me. Now I knew
how rock stars felt, frankly, it was quite scary. Suddenly they
went dead quiet, and I saw that Martin and some of the others had
come out to join me. The much revered leader walked over to me and
lamented.

“If only you could
speak with them all” He waved at the throng..

“I can, if you
wish” I replied, but he looked as if he doubted that. Then,
remembering who I was, Martin stepped a little closer. “Then please
do so Lord Robert” He softly requested.

I went to step up
onto one of the very solid tables which were all around the
building’s broad balcony, but instead found myself floating up to
about three metres above the ground.

There were some
gasps and a few in the front tried to move back.

“My much beloved
children” I began “This celebration marks the end of conflict and
hardship for all of you” I spoke quite softly, yet, once again, I
knew everyone heard me clearly “From tomorrow, you will learn of
the true power within the two stone. Within the next few weeks, you
will be going home to your lands, to rebuild your villages, replant
your fields and live evermore in prosperous peace. This, I, Lord
Robert, promise you” The reaction was tumultuous to say the least,
then, in time with the pulsating drums, they began to chant. “So
long ago, Mother say so, now he comes and now we know” Again and
again they repeated the lines. Smiling, Martin and his equally
pleased colleagues looked on. Eventually we went back inside to
rejoin the party. Intoxicated as much by the auspicious occasion as
by the slightly sweet wine that flowed freely, the well built party
guests were no longer the least bit inhibited by my presence. On
the contrary, though I had chosen not to accept the constant offers
to dance, being content to just sit comfortably and watch all the
fun, it soon became clear that virtually all the women, whose ages
ranged from late teens to late twenties, were making a
none-too-subtle play for my attention. Martin came over and sat
beside me on a nearby chair.

“You know Mother
asked me to be sure you left your seed” He grinned, despite trying
to be serious “There is not a woman here who would not be honoured
to carry it” He went on

“Choose some, I
will send them to your rooms Lord Robert” He offered, smiling yet
completely serious.

“Choose some!” I
exclaimed “Martin, I have had an incredibly long day, fascinating,
but really exhausting” I told him straight faced “Very soon I am
going up to those wonderful quarters you’ve provided. Send up the
one you choose and I will try to oblige” I told him smiling
tiredly, trying to hide my anticipation With all eyes expectantly
on me as I rose to leave, I wished them all a good night and a
great future, then headed off up the wide wooden staircase to my
quarters. Before I had even had time to remove my Kaftan and sit
down, there was a light tap of the door.

“Come in” I
invited and in walked a girl who could grace any fashion catwalk in
the world.

Old Martin hadn’t
lost his eye for beauty, nor his libido I suspected. I didn’t doubt
that he had made sure his seed was well planted. The incredibly
beautiful and lithe ebony skinned woman walked over to stand in
front of me. With a deft stroke, she undid a small clasp and her
thin, already brief dress fell to the floor. Few women are at their
best when completely naked, this one was the exception. Though
slim, her breasts were perfect and firm, her skin absolutely
flawless and her face almost elfin, with generous lips and huge
clear brown eyes. As I reached out to draw her to me, she went down
on her knees and slowly removed my thin pants. From there on, I was
just putty in her hands. ‘Mother’ got her wish and I finally got to
get some badly needed sleep.

I awoke just in
time to see the sun reach the top of the highest Eastern peaks of
the huge basin. Again, a gentle tap announced the arrival of a
deliciously underclad dark skinned cutie, but this one offered food
not herself, making it clear she’d be happy to be dessert. Though
tempted, I opted to eat, get dressed and seek out Martin, Barain
and Muldar; I wanted to get this mission started, even though I
felt much had already been achieved. The three men were waiting for
me outside the main house’s huge front entrance.

“You slept well
Lord Robert?” Martin inquired, as I walked over.

“My guest insured
I did thank you Martin” I replied smiling. My two soon-to-be
travelling companions wore western style pants and work shirts. I
asked where they had come from.

“We made quite a
few so we could get closer without warning them” Barain explained.
They had planned well these ‘savages’. I telepathically summoned
the two eagles. When they arrived, the men got onto their perch
like transporters and, with a mighty swirl of dust and feathers,
they were airborne, both gripping the handrail fearfully, as the
ground slipped away from below them. I waved goodbye and lifted
vertically up, till I was alongside them. Both men relaxed
considerably when I joined them, perhaps bravado, or maybe they
just felt safer knowing I could fly without the birds. They soon
began to enjoy the fabulous view and often pointed out where
villages had once been. Soon these now empty spaces would once
again be the home of a thriving rural society.

As I could
apparently only communicate telepathically with non humans, there
was no way to tell the folks at Carabindy that we were coming. I
wanted to fly ahead but didn’t want to risk some trigger happy fool
using the helpless black men or the birds as targets. To say that
our unannounced arrival, on the State Building’s balcony, caused
considerable consternation is really putting it mildly. There was
complete pandemonium. Susan and Jim Carpenter were the first to
come out and join us, just as the two black leaders jumped down off
their perches and the two huge eagles launched their enormous
bodies back into the sky.

“Lord Robert”
Susan came forward cautiously “We were a little concerned when you
didn’t come back last night” She said, looking quizzically at my
two guests.

“These two
gentlemen are the Chiefs of two of the many tribes who live over in
the Eastern Mountains” I told her and Jim, adding “This man is the
Chief of Carabindy and this is my representative” I introduced them
to the two black men “Jim, can you assemble your main people so I
can explain everything to all at one time” I asked him, adding “I’m
anxious to see their reactions to what I’m going to suggest”. Jim
turned to Susan.

“I’ll get right on
it Jim” Susan automatically responded, then, with a quick, anxious
glance at the tall State leader, she ducked inside.

“You wouldn’t like
to try it out on me first would you Lord Robert?” Jim asked, quite
understandably trying to maintain his position of overall
authority.

“I would if we had
more time Jim” I replied evenly “But with ten thousand well armed
and angry tribesmen, just over on those mountains, and more of them
arriving every day, even the tribal leaders don’t know when their
King will order the attack” I told him. Barain and Muldar caught my
drift and agreed.

“Maybe not much
time” Muldar muttered, adding “Maybe none”.

“But surely you
can prevent this invasion?” Carpenter almost challenged, then
remembered himself and added “Lord Robert”.

“That’s what I’m
here for Jim and that’s why Muldar and Barain are here too” I
added, trying to reassure the Carabindy Leader.

“They want to come
over to our side?” Jim asked me, as though the two black men were
not standing there beside me.

“No Mr Carpenter”
Barain’s deep voice was cold and clear “We have not come to
surrender to you, we have done quite enough of that already” He
said bluntly “The fact is, we have come to offer you a chance of
survival” Barain added coldly. The two men faced each other, equal
in height, but the black man’s physique was twice that of
Carpenter’s.