From the Beginning: The Old World (24 page)

I rowed slowly the whole night, listening to the words of the black priestess, hearing the secrets and the encrypted arts of the future that would be haunted by the past yet once more.

“You have to finish what you started,” she coughed, the air in her lungs was running out.  I knew her time with us was nearing its end as well.

“Shshsh…Rest now. You can tell me all about it when we arrive,” I smiled at her with compassion, straitening the blanket on her shivering body.

“There’s no time! Grace! You have to listen to me!” More coughs tore at her chest, and she almost choked. Violet leaned to her and picked up the sleeping babies, and I gave her some water. She took a sip with much effort, and only wet her mouth a little.

“Grace! Listen to me my child—” she breathed heavily, each word was uttered with great difficulty. “The prophecy will come back to haunt you if you don’t finish your task.” A horrible grunt came out of her throat, and her eyes almost rolled in their sockets. “His children… you have to eliminate… don’t tell them—forbidden love! Brothers, twins…” she mumbled confusing and contradicting words. “As long as there will be on the island of peace… your children—Grace!!” She suddenly sat up, her dark eyes opened widely in astonishment, the white around her pupils glowed in contrast to her dark skin, and her hand reached and was placed on my stomach.

“Your baby girl,” she whispered with a mysterious smile. “She is the heart of the world. There is only love in her heart. Don’t take it away from her!” Her voice stifled and stuck in her throat as her eyes turned completely white when they rolled back into her skull. She collapsed back, as she drew her last breath.

My tears choked me as I felt her neck had no more pulse. I closed her eyes and covered her face with the thin blanket. I burst out crying. All I went through in the past hours was now gushing out with the death of the dark woman. I cried for a while, releasing the baggage of the most horrible day of my life.

“I promise you priestess, whose name I never knew, that your son will grow in a new and better world, surrounded by an abundance of love, just like you wished to give him yourself. I will return to the black island, which from now on will be named the island of dawn, as a new dawn will rise on it today bringing a hopeful message for the future, and I will lead the people to peace and fellowship amongst them. I shall also rename your son Dawn.

Although he is black-skinned, his eyes will shine with light, wisdom and the love you had bestowed upon him. Go on your journey to the other world, and the wise women will welcome you with open arms, embracing you into the world of ancient knowledge. You shall remain in my heart forever!” I whispered a requiem in a stifled voice. I was well aware that without her valuable help I could not have won the battle with Cole.

With much effort we unloaded her body from the boat into the waters of the great sea, with the big rock that I used to kill Cole with, tied to her ankle to weigh her down. Violet and I said our farewell with mixed emotions and wiped a tear in the still of the night. We swore to each other that the details involving the rape and the murder that happened on this dark night, we would keep a secret. It will remain between us two.

At first light, we could see the shores of the island of peace, close and promising…

The first rays of sun illuminated the cave. Jamila raised her head, waking up abruptly. “They here!” Her lips whispered in a tremor. “They come!!” She repeated again and again, her voice grew louder waking others from their slumber wondering what this was all about.

“They back! They here! Jezebel! Jihan! Thallal! Ibrahim—my Attalla is back!!! Grace back, come quick!!” she called again and sprang to her feet, running towards the shore. One by one they all woke up to the news and ran after her.

Jamila ran as if her life depended on it. Tears rolling down her face as she kept calling mine, Jonathan and Violet’s names, encouraging people to follow her. Her bare feet splashed into the water that sprayed everywhere. She came towards our boat, the water coming up to her waist and she was laughing and crying for our arrival—and we cried together with her.

“Jamila!!” I called and jumped into the water, embracing her close, crying with joy on the shoulder of my dear friend.

“Grace!! ‘Ouchtee’!! (sister) I worry too much!!” she cried out loud, grabbing my face, examining me with love. “Where my Attalla?” she whispered with her eyes gleaming.

Violet handed her the sleepy baby that just now had started to wake up from all the hustle smiling a big smile at the sight of his beloved mother.

“My Attalla!! My Attalla!!” she hugged and kissed him, showering him with loving kisses. Her tears dripped on his smiling face, and his little hands extended to hold her face as if he was trying to tell her how happy he was to be back.

Ibrahim also came up to the boat, water up to his waist like his wife, and hugged them both. More people came over and helped drag the boat to shore, calling to us joyfully, wiping tears of happiness and joy.

Jamila passed Jonathan to the arms of Ibrahim who had started walking back to shore and turned to me, hugging me and blessing me with a thousand more blessings.

“I brought you another gift, Jamila. Another gift like Jonathan—Dawn. A new baby that also needs a wonderful mother like yourself. He’s the black witch’s baby that was actually a priestess like me. She saved my life—and now we shall save her son’s life.” I pleaded to her with my eyes to accept the offer.

“You know child is blessing to me. I raise ten children together if I need!” She smiled happily and I knew I had made the right choice. When we reached the shore and were close to the boat again, I stopped her.

“Jamila, this boat holds bad news as well,” I prepared her and Ibrahim cautiously. “It’s Chamid, he… he followed us and helped us. He saved us and —” I swallowed the lump in my throat unable to finish the sentence.

“And he paid with his life for it!” Violet finished my words for me revealing the worst.

Immediately, Jamila’s heartbreaking cries replaced the joy and happiness, as she jumped into the boat grabbing her brother-in-law’s lifeless body.

“No, no!!! ‘Lesh’ (why) Chamid, ‘lesh’?” she called out in tears, trying to understand why she didn’t notice his absence, how he had managed to evade her, and how she didn’t know of his plans.

“Jamila, he came after us in the raft we had built and came to save his son, so he could give him a better life in your arms. Chamid gave his life for the sake of us all. Thanks to him I was able to kill Cole.” My words subsided and the crowd surrounding us was silent, gravely processing the information. “If it weren’t for Chamid, I would have never succeeded. But now the horrible threat of the black bird is lifted, and the new world is safe and protected again.” A renewed power was fused into my voice when I briefly shared the highlights of the twenty-four hours since we had left the island on our secret mission.

The men helped take Chamid’s body out of the boat, and a convoy of people, both grieving and happy, started to make its way back to the cave.

t the very same time, three strong, frustrated and very worried men—made their way running to the beach. Word of our return had just gotten to them when they were busy building a raft to come after us. 

Big Roan ran so fast, like he never did before and despite his large size, he passed his two friends and arrived first at the convoy climbing up the slope.

“Violet!! Violet!! Where is Violet?” he called excited and distraught and almost knocked her over to the ground as he pounced on her with a loving hug. The worry that was trapped in his large body was finally released with a big sigh and tears. Violet also finally felt safe in his arms and the flood gates of her tears broke open too. The spectacle was both funny and cheerful—a couple of giants rolling around crying and laughing like two little children.

Connor and Jack approach hesitantly. They both knew, each in their own way, of the prophecy and the battle I was about to fight. They both feared the worst. With worried faces filled with love, they both welcomed the convoy. Jamila and I were in the rear as I was backing her up, holding her shoulders. She noticed my two men and stopped.

“Connor, it is Chamid!” she called out to him, broken. He came close and took her in his arms for a comforting hug.

I stood next to them, yearning to feel his arms around me, but inside I felt it wasn’t yet time. Jamila needed his support right now as if he was her own father.

Beyond her sobbing, he looked at me with his clear eyes, deepening a green gaze into mine, trying to guess what I went through since the last time we parted with a kiss.

I lowered my eyes out of the fear he would manage to read what my soul and body went through, afraid to read in his eyes the past that was revealed to him in the sacred cave. I moved towards Jack, leaving Connor to lead Jamila after her dead brother-in-law.

Jack stood on the side, like me waiting for them to distance themselves a little and only then he came close to me too. As soon as Connor and Jamila disappeared into the big cave, he took me in his arms, squashing my lips impatiently and wildly, showing me how worried and concerned he was for me. His hands burrowed in my hair, grabbing it, holding me, his face close to mine. “Grace—you are one crazy woman!” he breathed out with relief, as it was difficult for him to show emotions since he was trained not to. The master of emotional control was now too distraught to keep quiet.

“I thought I was losing my mind with worry and frustration! What were you thinking, leaving like this without help? Without a word? I almost went crazy when I thought of what might happen to you if you meet that scum, the black bird,” I rubbed his forehead against mine as he came clean about his feelings.

“I did encounter him, Jack. I fought him, and I won. I never imagined myself killing a person—and only you can possibly understand the feeling I have right now. On the one hand, the clear understanding that this was exactly what I should have done, and now we shall be free from Cole’s threatening presence, and on the other hand, the horrible feeling for taking another man’s life and what it meant in my own life. But it marks the end of Cole’s cruel and inhumane rule of terror. On Dawn Island, there are many other survivors for which we must set an example of the ways of the new world.” I shared my feelings with him, as he kept interrupting me with his kisses.

“Just promise me you will never venture into something like this alone again—otherwise, I will ‘kill’ you myself!” he threatened me jokingly, but I knew his concern was genuine.

“I am sorry if I caused you to worry this much. But on this journey, I had to go alone. I could have gone only to bring Jonathan without getting closer to Cole, but that’s not what fate had in store for me. Just as your role was to be my personal, as well as the tribe’s bodyguard, now you will be my messenger to other islands. I was chosen to put the forming tribes on the right course. Those who choose to hold on to the past, or act in a manner that does not become the human race anymore—their place will not be with us. Cole was a threat to all the good that has yet to be created, which is why it was my duty to get him out of the way,” I concluded.

We stood there holding each other for a few minutes more, kissing and caressing each other, and then we joined the rest of the tribe who was paying their final respects to Chamid for his bravery and the sacrifice he had made for our future…

* * *

On the west bank of the island, not far from the little cave where we hid the raft that was used by Chamid on his last journey, we buried him with a short and moving ceremony.

Not much was said because in fact no one really knew Chamid. Beside Jamila, Ibrahim, and Chassan, who mourned and grieved for their member of the family, there was no one there to deliver a eulogy. I described his heroic acts in his final moments, and how he had tipped the balance in our favor when he pounced on Cole without any fear for himself.

After I had concluded my short eulogy, we covered Chamid’s body with dirt and marked the grave with a pile of rocks. After that, we scattered leaves like we did in our first burial ceremony when we buried Rebecca. The tribe members walked by Jamila and Ibrahim and paid their respects and gave their condolences, and slowly returned to the big cave. I stayed with them for another short hour, hugging Jezebel, who hardly spoke from being so upset, and she found it hard to describe to me how anxious she was for my safety.

When Jamila and Ibrahim also turned back to the cave together with their children, I sent Jezebel along with them and stayed by myself in the island’s new burial plot, paying my respects to the man who had saved my life.

I kneeled for a long hour on Chamid’s fresh grave, silently reenacting all the sights of the last couple of days in my head. Suddenly the vibe slid down my spine, making me jump to my feet, calling me to return to the little cave. I naively thought that I would gain a little rest, but there were other issues that waited for closure, loose ends that could wait no longer…

Fearfully I approached the cave, sensing the strong, energetic presence that was waiting for me in there. Connor came out of the cave’s opening and stopped in front of me. Our eyes met and the vibe grew stronger.

We stood silent and frozen for a while, not knowing how to break the ice. It was obvious to me that the past, recently revealed to him, was weighing heavily on him and he had found it difficult to tell me what was in his heart.

It was also clear to him that awful things had happened on the black island, and I didn’t know how to share it with him.

“I just wanted to say—” we both spoke at the same time.

“I am glad you are here! —” We smiled at one another embarrassed. It was the first time our words intertwined instead of finishing each other’s sentences.

“You first, no you!” The awkward verbal duet continued, and we became silent again, looking at each other half-doubtfully and half with anticipation—and burst into a short liberating laugh followed by another silence.

This time the gaze deepened, and our eyes grew dark with passion and yearning. The longing to feel each other again broke the ice, magnetizing us with a fiery love, which devoured us with a kiss.

“Grace, my love—” His eyes and hands caressed me tenderly, and his lips gently kissed my face when we embraced in the cave, his body engulfing me, his love intertwined in mine.

“I know,” I put my hand on his lips. “There is no need to say. You saw and remembered the past. I understand,” I caressed his face, my heart overflowing with my love for him.

“No, my silly valentine, you don’t understand. I told you then and I am telling you now, whatever happened in the past will not change my love for you! What happened in the past pales in comparison to what you had to go through now. What matters, and is most important right now is the present. I love you now, now and forever. In the past, I was an idiot, and it’s best for me to forget that.” He concluded with an apologetic smile, embarrassed by the confession of “guilt.” “The past is dead! Gone and buried. From now on there is only you, me and tomorrow!”  He said playfully kissing me some more, reawakening my passion again.

“Connor, my love—my beloved!” I patted my stomach, radiant and smiling at him happily. I held his hand and placed it on my stomach, confirming the answer to the question that glistened in his joyful eyes. “The past is indeed dead because now we have the present and a new future that is waiting for us!”

* * *