Alheri Trip

Lumana castle

The general had got some interesting news for the Emir, but the Emir was quite busy with the Queen, He was massaging her back because she was feeling some strange pains, but in order to respect the Emir, the bell in the Emir chambers was always rung when there was an emergency, Emir Hana had to stop what He was doing, He pleaded with her, and he sent for her maids to continue, He couldn't wait to digest the news.

The general began immediately "We got an information that the Midwife kaka had left Lumana for Alheri Emirate and that She had become the royal Midwife."

"Really? we need to get there as soon as possible!"

" It is very far your highness, we must start the preparation, I will assign the Assistant General to take my place in the Palace"

" Do I have a pass to the emirate Alheri?"

" Yes your highness, you do "

" Good, Get the guards ready, and take the healthiest Camels, how long do you think it would take?"

" At most five sunsets, our return depends on how early we find her,"

" Alright, you can start the arrangement right now" Emir Hana said, the general bowed and turned to leave but Hana stopped him for a while " General Makau, make sure you find her and bring her to me,"

" I will , your highness, as far as she is alive, we shall find her, she was a popular Midwife in lumana,"

'" Tell her that my Wife have been having some cramps and She might not be far from labour and She is the only Midwife I trust, and don't forget to tell her that I would double the price of any mount she is been paid in Alheri " Hana had made up the story, the Queen's pregnancy was not yet visible.

The General obeyed and began to put what He said in action. Emir Hana mentioned it to His Chiefs that He had sent for the Midwife to be assured of Hamza's identity but they were pessimistic.

" Your highness, what if she turns your invitation down?"

" That would clearly mean that her hands are dirty,"

" Your highness, you and I know that many left lumana for their own safety,"

" Yes, I remember people ran away from lumana when Gamsheka started unleashing his terror, but they were amazed when their family who stayed behind in lumana kept sending them food,I call it a miracle, the land had never experienced famine ever since Lumana banned the old beliefs, and people have returned to stand with Lumana till the end,"

" Your highness, We agree that Gamsheka is our only problem but let us find another means to put a stop to his terror,"

" The Maker said my son , Amir will kill him , so He just needs to keep trying until the final time comes, and i don't believe that I am wasting my time searching for the identity of someone who gave Amir another chance to live, if only Amir was not a twin or if the stranger didn't look like my son then I would have thought otherwise,"

" Your highness, Gamsheka would attack again in two moons,"

" We are ready,"

" Your highness, would Prince Amir fight? because he is still indisposed, " the Chief smirked.

" He will fight, you have nothing to worry about,"

Amir chambers

Barau who had always been with Amir decided to take a break , it'd been a while he visited his dying father,

" I need to check on my father, " He said to Amir who had lost his smiles.

" Prince, you need to be alive to prove to the Emir that the stranger is lumana's enemy....I need to leave now"

Prince Amir glared on, He was going crazy, He didn't know what to think.

Barau proceeded to his family House, the House was a storey, and His family stayed at the top, He met his father lying helplessly with his eyes closed.

" You will survive this Baba," He sobbed quietly , then, He left for the main room, where He met his mother , Kadada was sieving some juice.

" Mama," Barau called out.

" My son" Kadada stopped to embrace him " You are so close to the house but i still miss you,"

" I miss you too,"

" you look sad,"

" I had checked on father,"

Kadada sighed heavily , she also became dull " He is not getting better, all the medications the physician administered seems to have stopped working, I am so tired"

" It's fine mama," Barau patted her.

They were quiet for a while,then Kadada broke the silence " How is Amir?"

" He is still depressed, but the stranger in the palace is waking him up,"

" Waking him up in what way?" Jikau burst in from no where, He must have been in the room typically hiding some where.

" Baba Jikau, how long have you been in the room?"

" I was by the door, you left it opened, don't tell me you believe in the demon in the palace,"

" But baba jikau, He stopped Amir from killing himself, "

" He is trying to buy your trust and He is winning just like the way he Has won that of my brother, hana"

" Baba Jikau, the Emir is taking the investigation more seriously,"

" Don't you see that the stranger has initiated a distraction? Gamsheka will attack in two moons and instead of the Emir to plan Gamsheka's end, He is there trying to find his son's dead twin"

"But ...

" Listen to your uncle, the boy is a bad omen, if He remains here many things would go wrong"Kadada intervened.

" The demon has evil plans and he will display them in no time ,"Jikau continued " I am very sure He is from Gamsheka, He is an evil twin, the real twin died during birth,"

Barau was thrown into intensed confusion

" Whoever He is, He is a bad omen which we must get rid of, but the security is so tight up there , more reasons why we need you to act fast" Jikau said with a very serious expression.

" Me?"

" Yes, You are the only one Amir and the Emir trust , He doesn't listen to me" Jikau said" I noticed that your Father's condition got worse ever since the Stranger appeared, and the Queen has been falling ill lately,"

" Baba, these two you mentioned have some underlying conditions, the Queen is pregnant and my Father had been sick for a long time,"

" Okay, keep defending him, maybe He is also winning you too" Jikau said ,then he used the exit door.

" I still wonder how He got in, I actually closed the door,"

'" Son, your uncle is a ghost at times , but listen to him, the boy is a bad news, He is using the old beliefs and charms and he is winning"

"There is no evidence Mama, but I will keep my eyes on him , I promise."

Alheri Emirate

The General's journey to Alheri was successful, the Emir of Alheri warmly welcomed them. He demanded for their intentions and the General stated " the Emir of lumana's queen is close to labor and we need the Midwife Kaka's attention, she is one of the greatest Midwife Lumana has ever had,"

" Hmmm, I regret to tell you that she had left the palace, she had been so ill, but I have other midwives, I could let you go with one if you don't mind"

" I appreciate your Kindness, but She is the one he seeks for, We shall appreciate if you could permit me to see her at least"

" That is not problem, but she has been ill and had not shown a sign of recovery, you will see for your self"

The Emir of Alheri ordered the guards to lead the General to her place.

Midwife Kaka place

The Midwife Kaka was old and feeble, she lied on her bed with eyes focusing on the ceilings, her daughter, Yatsohi was with her when the General arrived.

" You are welcome" Yatsohi was so tensed at their sight.

" Thank you, we are from Lumana Emirate,"

The statement caught the Midwife's attention, as she turned to them , Her body shivered, which made Her daughter panic, the General was also alarmed " what happened to her?"He asked

" She fell a ill a long time ago, We have tried everything , but it remained same, we got herbs from every Emirate except Lumana but it didn't change, She hates to even hear the name ,Lumana,"

" But lumana is her native, She worked as a midwife for ages."

" She became ill when my father died, the illness is worst now , She hardly speaks, She only nods, She can't move any part of her body aside her head" she sobbed heavily.

" Stop crying, what's your name?"

"Yatsohi,"

" It is a pity, We came here for a different purpose, but we shall help her, She is a good person, Gamsheka's recent attacks must have been her reason for avoiding Lumana,"

The midwife began to nod her head, she tried to speak but couldn't.

" It seems she wants to have a conversation with you," said Yatsohi.

The general walked to her bed and began his questions.

" do you recognize me?"

The Midwife nodded and her daughter interpreted" when she nods, she means yes,"

" Would you like to come with us to Lumana? We have a very good physician,"

The Midwife hesitated, She dropped a tear, and nodded twice, She looked her her daughter and shook her head.

" She wants to come with you but She doesn't want me to come along" said Yatsohi

"Then you have to stay back ,"

" No I cannot, I would take my younger ones to the my uncle's place, I must go with you please"

The Midwife kept shaking her head vigorously, then,the General took Yatsohi outside.

" She really doesn't want you to come along, " The General whispered to her " don't worry, We shall take you without her consent,"

" I would love to go with you, I barely know anything about her own family, She was a stranger in Alheri and She wouldn't say anything about them " She said.

" Our Physician is good, He will treat her"

" I heard so"

" We needed her because our Queen Is close to labour but now , She is the one who needs us more, so get prepared, we leave by tomorrow, it is going to be very long journey"

By the following dawn, The General bed farewell to the Emir of Alheri after stating his intentions and the journey back home began , It was going to take more than five sunsets because they had a sick person amongst them.

Lumana

Emir Hana was impatient, He couldn't wait for the General's return, Barau was also back to the palace, Amir had brightened up, He and Barau and the queen were having their breakfast at the Royal dining hall when Hamza walked in , He was obviously confident, he wore a very fine robe.

" What is he doing here?" Amir asked with so much disgust.

"I invited him," Hana replied and sipped his tea.

" For breakfast at the royal hall? You have not confirmed him yet , he is not royal " Amir pressed on, Barau gazed at the Queen, but he was very careful with the stolen gazes, the Queen never noticed, Hamza drew a chair and made himself comfortable while He waited for the maid to serve him.

" If you don't feel comfortable , you may do as you please," Hana directed to Amir.

The Queen gave a grimace of pain as she spoke " I think I need to lay my back,"

" I warned you to stay back" Emir Hana said and asked to maid to lead the Queen Kyawo to his chambers. He was left with Amir, Hamza and Barau, Barau was worried about her but of course, He couldn't express it. Amir had stopped eating, He glowered at Hamza who was more concerned about his meal.

" Why are you not eating? the meal will get cold," Emir Hana directed to Amir.

Hamza decided to tease Amir "Your highness, the look on the prince's face can bake a bread, there is no how his meal can ever get cold, "

Amir got more irritated, He stood on his feet and said "I can't stand this, Barau, meet me at the training arena,"

Barau was almost through with his meal, he dumped it ,bowed to the Emir and ran along with the Prince.

" Why is he angry?" Hamza asked

" He is not angry, he is depressed, my son is not always like this. He recently lost his bride a day after he wedded her,"

Hamza was remorseful " Oh, I never knew, is that the reason why He wanted taking his own life?"

" Yes, I will forever remain thankful to you for being there at the right time,"

" I can't imagine his pains " Hamza stopped eating, the food suddenly turned sour " I feel so sorry for him, where is the training arena? I owe him an apology,"

" What apology? He doesn't want to see you because you stopped him from doing his desires,"

" Suicide is not desire, He is probably hurt and needs more than what you are giving him, Your highness, I can't thank you enough for being so kind to me, I mean,few sunsets ago, I was struggling to survive but here I am today, dining with royalty , eating the meals I seldom or never ate, " Hamza said" please permit me to go the arena and have some few words with him, please,"

Emir stared at Hamza for a while, the connection was stronger He began to feel like he had known Hamza for a very long time. He admired Hamza's determination and sense of humor, he prayed silently for a good outcome from the General " I still have something to tell you," Hana said.

Indoor training Arena.

Amir was offmood, He was alone with Barau in the training arena pulling off his endurance skills which was pushing the mighty stone laid on a floor. Hamza interrupted the trainings, Amir was getting tired of being angry when ever he sighted his so called evil twin.

" What do you want?" Barau asked

" Well, the Emir gave me the permit" Hamza was playful as he spoke " I was bored, Why is this place short of real swords?"

"What do you want here?" Barau repeated with a stronger expression.

Amir signalled to Barau, the signal meant " ignore him" Amir continued with his endurance training.

"Why are you striving so hard to push the stone?" Hamza asked.

Amir finally gave it up, he replied " if you are here to watch, watch and Stop barking"

" Well, I feel it is not too hard to push"

Barau chuckled " nobody born of a woman can push that stone"

" Then how did it get here?" Hamza continued

"It was not as heavier as this, it is being modified every year to gain his current weight,"

" Oh Barau, you talk too much, let the moron be " Amir added as he applied more chalk powder on his palms.

" Why not let this moron try?" Hamza persisted

Amir glared at him followed up with a warning smile, He walked up to Hamza and the distance between their faces was Locked.

" You want to push the stone?" Amir asked looking straight into Hamza's eyes.

" Why are you being dramatic?"

" Okay, two faced demon, push this stone and I will step down as the crowned Prince since that is what you crave for!"

" prince! That's expensive," Barau intruded.

"You are joking , ain't you?" Hamza was more playful, he grinned and clapped " I can't believe this, Nasara was indeed a prison, I can't believe my transition could be so fast," Hamza said, He dusted his palms with the chalk powder, knelt on the carpet and in one trial , he moved the stone with little efforts, Amir could not close his mouth, while Barau almost fainted.

" It is not black magic, It is my natural strength" Hamza became more serious, Barau struggled to speak, he could not tell if it was black magic, it was too rapid and no spell was casted.

" How did you do that?" Barau asked

" I have never had a chance to express it," Hamza walked back to Amir to maintain the former position" I was a locked up child in a locked up land but I didn't let it get to me, I have been through a lot , I had more than enough chances to choose death, but I didn't because I have a mission and I won't die until I accomplish it," Hamza continued " Prince Amir, Barau, if I had evil plans , I wouldn't waste so much time to execute it. I have shown you all I have , my strength , which I was not supposed to , but I did it to gain your full trust , My hands are clean and I am still here because I only want the detailed map to continue My journey and secondly, I have remained here to honour the wish of your good Father"

Amir was dumbfounded for a while he had tears in his eyes and was remorseful, He turned his back at hamza and quietly said " you can't understand"

" I do, it is all about Gamsheka , the Emir had told me, we heard a little about him too. I am sorry I called you weak, many would have given up, but you have been strong, your wife's death was the actual reason behind your bitterness, not Gamsheka, I am glad I came here, I wouldn't have realized we had similar mission, I learned that Gamsheka is the gatekeeper of where I plan to go travel to, and I must conquer him to gain access to the Mugunta but I have made a promise to the Emir, that no matter what the outcome of my identity is, I shall stay back to help end Gamsheka then I shall proceed with my own mission, you shouldn't give up, you should not die until you achieve your aim, that is the realm i live in"

Amir broke down, He sat down on a mat and sniffed so hard, Barau was in the middle , he had double thoughts, a side of him believed Hamza while another side felt it was a trick but there was something certain, the old belief spells couldn't work without audible incantations.

Hamza gave Amir a hand "you need to apologize to the Emir,"

Amir looked at him and replied " I am sorry for everything I have said to you, it wasn't easy,"

" Thanks ' Barau patted Hamza" We shall not mention what we just saw,"

Amir managed to lift himself and the trio chatted on until they all left for Amir's chambers, Amir had a hot bath, He wore one of his finest robes and his best smiles, He left for his his Father's chambers along side Barau and Hamza ,Emir Hana was overwhelmed, the three of them bowed to him.

" Baba, I am sorry, I am really sorry," Amir apologized and went in his knees

" Hamza what have you done?" Emir Hana asked delightedly, He lifted Amir and hugged him, It was an emotional scene.

" I was troubled, but I will do better,and learn more on how to handle my emotions,"

" I am proud of you, what ever you have done hamza, I am really grateful, it was so fast" Emir hana said as Hamza and barau kept smiling,

" Baba, I hope you are fine?" Amir asked

" Hmmm, I am finally convinced , now is time you regain access to real swords, I can feel it. My Amir is back"

" Well, sorry to cut in, I am craving for some fresh milk, I have my kegs with me, please permit me your highness" Barau said

" of course Barau"

" Fresh milk , my favorite drink, I am coming with you. Let's give them some more space" Hamza added, Emir Hana granted their request and they both hopped out like little children.

The Emir and his son sat on a mat to have an intensed conversation

" How is the Queen?" Amir asked

" She is getting better,"

" Baba, Hamza is so strong, He moved the mighty stone with his fists"

" He told me about his strength which is a rare gift. My father told me that his great grandfather was one of the strongest men lumana had, so this might just serve as another strong evidence that this boy might be our blood,"

" That's true Baba, but what did the Maker's messenger say about Hamza?"

"The Maker's messenger said nothing was really revealed to him, but after all his prayers, he was told we have an enemy within and Hamza is a treat to the enemy, which means that Hamza is really for us, "

" The Maker didn't reveal who the enemy was?"

" He said the enemy will reveal himself soonest , We all have to be observant,"

" Hamza is strong baba, there was this feeling I had when He was speaking to me, I felt stronger and more determined to conquer my fears,"

"He is more than you think."

" I and barau will keep his secrets safe,"

" His gifts wouldn't be a cause for alarm, if he displays them, it will only frustrate the enemy more, apart from it being a concrete evidence in my investigation of his identity,"

" When would the general return?"

" I told them to return, after they must have searched for her in two sunsets,"

" I pray they find her,"

" I pray more, above all , I am glad you are back,"

" Thanks to Hamza"

As Barau and Hamza strolled to get the milk, Hamza noticed that the citizens eyes were on him while they walked through the market.

"Don't be surprised, the only difference between you and the prince is your birthmark" Barau snapped

" I had to look into the mirror countless times to get used to my face,"

"Nasara law on stranger is outrageous,"

" Nasara is not a place for humans. We shall talk about that later," Hamza said, They got to the milk maids store, the milk maids were glad to see them, Hamza was honoured, They usually stop attending to other buyers when ever they sighted barau,the Maids were skinny but extremely attractive.

" They are beautiful" Hamza confessed

" Their milk is also beautiful" Barau added and they all laughed

" Would the keg be enough for everybody?" Hamza asked

" who is everybody? The Emir and Amir despise the milk, I am the only one who takes it," Barau replied

"Apparently, they are missing a lot, I can take the full keg,"

" they are picky,"

" the maids are so beautiful. I see the reason why you walked all the way from the place to get the milk yourself," Hamza joked, the milk maid store was two stone throws from the palace.

" I am sorry Your highness, but very soon we shall have a smaller store close to the palace , you won't have to walk down, and we have always told him to send for us if he wants the milk but he prefers walking down" the Milkmaid said.

Hamza grinned " He has his secret missions, it is fine"

They were served and They return to the palace, Barau was told by a guard who was positioned close to his chambers that his attention was needed, His uncle, Jikau had sent for him. Barau obeyed, he left for his family house but as expected, He was welcomed with blames and accusations.

" Have you also fallen into his trap? What nonsense are you doing with him? You are loosing your brain, " jikau was furious , Kadada also had a straight face.

" I don't understand your plight, what evil has He done since He arrived here? You call him a demon and He had consecutively proved you wrong, He successfully brought Amir out of the shadows in a blink! What else do you want him to do?" Barau was fierce.

" You have not heard about the Trick lord, he would buy the strongest men's trusts with His powers, and still betray them at the end!"

Kadada's cleaner who stayed at the base of the house interrupted with deafening sounds of knocks on the door , Kadada rushed to the get the door, the Cleaner who was gasping reported "the Queen, it seems something bad has happened to her, there is chaos in the palace, some of the maids are waiting at the base! "

Kadada was also a Midwife, She ran along, Barau was alarmed at the report.

" I need to go Baba Jikau " Barau said , he was trembling.

" Wait, " Jikau stopped him " I don't care about the hidden feelings you have for the Queen, I care about Lumana, it's obvious something terrible has happened to the Queen and this is just the beginning, the trick lord has more in store for us,"

Barau stared at jikau for a while, He didn't know what to believe, but that didn't stop him from running to the palace, he got there and heard the news, the Queen had miscarried her baby , Barau didn't know where the tears came from, He tried to hide his emotions but he couldn't, He ran into his room and broke down completely.