The Prophecy and The Northern Star (Part One)

She hugged her daughter like a hen protects her chick under her wings. The cold harsh wind of the sea storm that protects Kalima Island should not take her away, nothing in the world should.

"Spare our life!"

Yakota yelled to the storm.

"Please."

He pleaded.

Alma's body was shaking. Karuna could feel her daughter's fears and she wanted to absorb it so that Alma could be happy and jolly again. She hold her daughter tighter, not leaving any cracked open for the cold wind to touch her. Then she felt Alma's ear on her breast, near to her own heartbeats. It was as if she is a newborn baby all over again, seeking for a nurturing hands, love and protection.

"Do not fear what's coming. You should always know, the God in the sky protects us…"

She was not sure whether the words were for her, or her daughter. But, maybe, it was for her daughter. For she, herself, had gone through the same storm although she was just a baby, cried endlessly in the ship. Her parents did not survive.

"We are going to make it out alive! I am going to protect you. You are safe. Keep your body underneath me, and hold the blanket. Don't move."

The boat spinning around in a circle movement, and the waves of the ocean swung them to the left and the right. She looked at the sky. There was the north star, the guiding star. Help us, she whispered in her heart. Help me, she whispered again, I want to see a better days with my daughter and my husband. The stormy sea calmed for a while. She checked on her husband, whom because of the terrifying moment, looked like he is already a hundred years old weak man. Yakota grabbed the paddle and the boat started to move, slowly, slower than what she thought. But, it moved.

She kept her pose, Alma started to mumble.

"Is it over now? I can not breath…"

"Stay there. We are not safe yet."

The storm could came back anytime before they reached the nearby island. There was no island on her sight, so the battle was not over yet. How could a human being win against nature? She did not know, but she survived, so there must be another stronger power that protects life. Was it the north star? As soon as she made a wish, the storm calmed. There was a possibility that the secret Dakita, her adopted mother, told her was true, real and it worked well. Or, was it the spirit of her real parents who might be pray for their safety? Or, could it be the prophecy? She forgot the prophecy, but her husband brought it up before they left.

**

There was a joyous sparkle from his eyes. Karuna remembered, the same sparkle was present during Alma's birth and when they got married. It was a good sign. Yakota got his hope back after having to see deaths of their people. Right after midnight, when the silence was tored apart by the sounds of owls, frogs, and a group of geckos, someone knocked at the backdoor. Alma was the first to stand upright.

"Dad!"

Karuna opened the door. It was her husband. He looked at her with a hopeful gaze, then held her shoulders.

"Good news, and we need to talk."

Alma yawned.

"Do not go back to sleep Alma. We will leave…and…"

Although the light of the oil lamp was not bright, he realized that the boat was dragged out of the room. Then he saw a bundle of clothing, and food.

"You've prepared everything?"

"Alma did it. The problem is how to drag the ship, to the sea…"

"I need to tell you something…

**

As all his emotions were cleansed up, the mind becames clear and Yakota calculated on what to do next while his body laid still in the water. He could die if he left. He could also died if he stayed. His death should not be the main factor that influence his decision. His thought slightly move to his wife, Karuna, who was raised by another slave, a young woman named Ditaka. There were rumours on her real identity. Some people said, she was probably a daughter of criminals, ran from their island, and trapped around Kalima Island. Some said, she probably an illegitimate daughter of strangers who decided to just put her into a boat and let the destiny decided whether or not the baby would alive. There was no good story about her, except from what she believed, her own made up tale.

"I believe that my parents was sailors who were killed by the pirates."

Yakota did not really care about her parents. All he knew was she had an intriguing eyes, the type of eyes that had seen joy, death, jealousy and sorrow at such a young age.

"You are beautiful. You do not have to think about your parents. It is okay if you do not really know who they are. What matter is, since you are a good person, we could safely assume that both of them are good person."

He could not believe he said such a words. He used to speak profanity, and all of a sudden he spoke wisdom. It must be true that at the gaze of the lover, everyone becomes a poet.

"You said that because you want me, didn't you?"

Karuna's laugh sounded like the most beautiful song someone ever sang. He laughed too, partly because he was nervous, and he was also started to questioned his own motive. He was sure it was not lust. There was a compassion in his heart. Instead of wanting her, he wanted to be her savior.

"Your eyes captivated me. I just want to protect you."

"That is what a man said when they want a woman."

"Who told you that?"

"My mother."

"Your real mother or..."

"Ditaka. I never spoke with my real mother, do you think it's a joke?"

She looked more beautiful when she was a little bit angry. Yakota shook his memory off and started to did the calculation. If he died alone, both the mother and the daughter might leave. If he went with them, all of them could leave. In both case, his wife had a little chance to survive only if they leave. She survived as a baby, so maybe the cold harsh wind knew her, and would not chew her alive.