The year is AD1300, late medieval
era and the middle of the world is being subjected to
a political transformation and thus wars are
constantly fought. At this times clans invade other
clans to increase there military might by taking
prisoners, here more than a dozen and a half clans
have been taken over and there wealth plundered and
families destroyed. Inspired by the story of the
Persians where its king and army leader
recruited 300 soldiers to fight an overwhelming
battalion of 100000 Greek soldiers, Colonel Caesar,
commander in chief of armed forces and internal
security is bent on not negotiating with the enemies
and coming to terms, but rather, he is going to war he
concluded, saying “the only way to defend is to
attack”.
Average height, pot bellied with a fearsome
mouthstache; A man of no nonsense character, never
married and lives with a dog (Doberman breed). Colonel
Caesar has mastered the art of war which was later
written into a book by the famous Chinese general
Shang Zou and his ways have been crafted by cunning
and selfish concepts later to be written also into a
book by the famous Italian statesman Nicollo
Machiavelli.
Set for battle and awaiting
final moves to launch an attack on a possible threat.
Ahmad is a local peasant boy in his early twenties,
tall, great physique with blue eyes, very humble and
decent, he has always been helpful not only to his
parents and elders but to the whole community (I mean
the peasant community). the son of a peasant farmer
and grown by a single parent, he is always on the farm
.ahmad is so hard working that his father sometimes,
most of the times will have to insist that he takes a
break or take the day off. With no friends and wide
class demarcation, he is always equipped with his pen
and paper as he writes poems as his past-time. His
writings have gained him fame among the peasant youths
and even in the top class, reports have been heard of
the peasant writer but the segregation between the
buogeirs and the bags of potatoes will not permit his
break through. On the politics of existence in his
society he ones wrote-
“…while we struggle in
silence and in pain
Farm and labor in
the rain
Providing the so
called better lots with milk and grain
I know, not in this
ephemeral world is our gain…”
On that fateful day, Gini, a young beautiful
girl was walking alone by the bush path on her way to
the river bank. She usually goes there to enjoy the
serenity of the environment, admiring the waves as it
hit the river bank and the cool breeze that blows on
shore. An average height, soft spoken with voice as
smooth as a silk, magnificent and simple with
character built on the complicated pillars of
excellence, gini epitomizes what is after nearly 700
years termed as the “cool chick”. Ahmad from the river
on his way home met gini on the path; the path is so
slim that two people can’t pass by, so suddenly on
seeing her approach; either for chivalry or for the
fear of the dominant by the dominated ahmad skidded
into the bush and made way for her to pass by. Without
even noticing his presence as he greeted her, and him
not minding whether she responded or not because its
soaked in there genes that the peasants are the weaker
group, they are always the subjects and they are
always the non significant even if they are the group
that produce crops, man power and Labor. Not sooner
have they passed gini screamed and slumped, under
normal circumstance an average peasant will run for
his dear life in such a scene to avoid being
implicated in what could be framed as
“inferior-superior syndrome”(the law of this era will
never agree that it wasn’t a peasant that harmed her)
but ahmad raced back to her and queried “what’s the
matter miss?”
Excruciatingly gini replied “I got bit by a snake”
pointing to the spot on her left leg.
Hurriedly ahmad knelt down, took off his bandana and
tied her leg a bit above the wound and said to her
“this will hurt a bit but its very effective”. Then he
took a shell from his pocket and made a little
laceration on the spot and bent down and sucked the
venom and spit it out ,he did that for like 6 times
and said “I guess its ok now” He tired the wound with
her handkerchief and stood up, as he reached out and
pulled her to her feet gini low spirited got engulfed
by shame and said “ thank you for saving my life and
am so sorry for ignoring you earlier on when you
greeted”, ahmad smiling replied “its ok” not sooner
has he said that there eyes met and a feeling engulfed
both of them, transfixed and gazing into each others
eyes for a moment, suddenly there state of hypnotism
was disrupted by a gun shot in the bushes, probably of
hunters. In shyness gini lowered her gaze and decided
to be on her way home for proper medication. As she
was about to live she introduced herself “am gini” and
he recuperating from his state of hypnotism replied
“ahmad”.
Smiling gini queried “are you Ahmad the peasant
writer?”
Shyingly he smiled lowering his gaze, and she asserted
“I know you are the one”
“Yes I am Miss” answered ahmad .then gini thought of
an idea, and invited ahmad to her home, ahmad fully
aware of the unrealistic approach of the situation
turned it down, even though they are both fully aware
of the concept of existence between the two social
classes, gini insisted that ahmad should come saying
“I know what you are thinking and why you don’t want
to come, forget about all that, besides my parents are
normal and are not going to be bothered if they see
you”
“Ok then, I will come when and where?” asked ahmad
“Tomorrow 4pm, if you get to the armory just ask of
the registrar’s house you will be shown”. Smiling
ahmad nodded in affirmation and said “I will write you
a poem and bring it tomorrow, that’s my gift for you”
excited and astonished gini held his hand and as there
eyes met that feeling which engulfed them earlier
flooded there nerves again, still like some statue
they looked into each others inner most recess,
suddenly gini broke off and hurriedly took off.
In the dead of the night with the stars
stretching into the infinite galaxy, insects chirped,
owls hummed and the whole world slept, but Ahmad
seated on his wooden chair and writing materials is
baffled between two thoughts-firstly he has thought of
a thousand poetic ideas but still not the best as he
crinkled the 20th paper and threw it away after
scribbling some lines, then secondly the crazy feeling
that engulfed him at the site, but when he pondered he
got lost, the more he pondered the more he got lost,
on this situation ahmad later wrote
“A lot of things are beyond mortal’s
comprehension, like the flying of birds and
The creation of the earth among other
mysteries, but I must confess what ever it was, the
feeling that wrapped me in that spot is one thing
beyond my comprehension”
On her hypnotizing electrifying eyes ahmad tried so
hard to describe it as it was that organ of her that
subjected him into the defenseless statue-like state,
on that he ones wrote-
“If I am to put down how
beautiful her eyes are,
My only regret will be that the age
of the future will come to say
This poet is a liar, for
these qualities are of angel from heaven,
And not,
of earthly mortals.
But I will blame them not, for
they have seen not that which I have seen
And they have
felt not that which I felt…”
Coming out from the abyss of thought, ahmad
began to write,
“Oh
charmer of all hearts,
If thy
love is a predator,
I pray
in supplication,
For I want
to fall an easy prey,
To the sweetness that
thou hold to mine heart and lips,
And as the
sun rises and set,
I
know that someday,
Against segregation hurdles mine
heart shall live to conquer thy love,
I
know that someday,
Against the claws of poverty mine
heart shall live to conquer thy love”.
No sooner has he finished, the day broke. Mean while,
Colonel Caesar on a final inspection of the amoury was
on his way, and then, decided to breeze in and pay a
quick visit to the registrar. On knocking on the door,
gini hurriedly answered the door, Colonel Caesar on
seeing gini felt a tingling feeling through his spine,
for a moment the scene brought out a calm, soft like a
jelly image out of the hard as a rock brutally dreaded
monster.
“Please is the registrar home?”He calmly queried in a
tone he has not used in decades.
“No daddy is out, he went to the orchard farm” replied
gini
“Please tell him I called” said Colonel Caesar as he
walked away.
Back at Ahmad’s house, he has been getting set for the
moment, changing one clothe after another, trying to
perfect his looks but his inner-self said “look
peasant you must know that clothes never make the man
but man makes the clothes”, suddenly he had a boost of
morale and made a decision.
Walking in the bougeois suburb,
ahmad pondered a lot of things, what if I get
embarrassed and kicked out of the house?, what if even
worse I get arrested and sent to jail for
transgressing social class limits?, while his mind was
racing through this thoughts he approached some people
in a shop next to a house that was closer to the
amoury. As he was about to ask he heard a sweet
feminine voice saying “are you going to come into the
house or you are going to stand there all day?”
Smiling he stepped up to her and greeted “peace be
upon you and your entire household”, she answered
“peace be upon you too” as she led the way.
Colonel Caesar in his house sat
sipping on ruwan bagaja (a strong alcoholic drink that
in the 21st century came to be known as vodka), his id
and ego conversated, the former cruelly asserted “that
is my woman, that is my wife and if hell is going to
be let lose I will make her mine against all odds” and
the latter assuringly responded “the registrar is a
man of dignity and high reputation. The whole of the
community respect him, even the peasants who have
always had great animosity for the upper class respect
this man and pay homage to him. He was responsible for
calming warring tensions between this clan and other
clans and single handedly improved bilateral ties with
other communities”. Satisfied with his own assumptions
he smiled and sipped on his vodka.
Back in the house, ahmad was hosted by gini
and was served numerous delicacies among which
includes adobo, as he enjoyed his meal, she sat next
to him and was staring at him with affection. Shied by
the look he took out the poem and as he handed it to
her he said “can you do me one favor?”
“Yeah “she quickly asserted
“Don’t read it here till am gone” he said
“Ok” she said as she collected.
Then they talked about a lot of things, and had a good
time, quickly they became so much close as if they had
known each other for years. Suddenly the door swung
open and the registrar stepped in, gini quickly stood
up and ran to her dad welcoming him and pulling him by
the hand towards ahmad.
“Dad this is ahmad, the one I told you gave me first
aid treatment when I was bitten by the snake” she said
.Heart thumbing ahmad quickly stood up and greeted the
registrar. the registrar smiling and invitingly shook
ahmad’s hand and said to him “thank you for saving my
daughter’s life and I want you to from today onwards
consider this house your home too and if there is
anything I can do for you don’t ever hesitate to come
to me”
Deeply touched by the registrar’s words tears began
clouding up in ahmad’s eyes and all he could say with
shaky voice was “thank you sir, thank you sir”
.Sensing the uneasiness in ahmad the registrar quickly
said “I will live you kids to enjoy yourselves” as he
stepped on he turned around ones more and said “thank
you” as ahmad could only smile back.
“gini” said ahmad lowering his gaze
“Yes” replied gini
Hesitating for a while he continued “I don’t ever want
to lose your companionship, please tell me you will be
my friend forever”
Confessingly, Gini reassuringly replied “you took
what I wanted to say right out of my heart, oh! Ahmad
I promise to be there till my dying days”
Ahmad raised his head, and as there eyes met he
reached out his hands and held hers, smiling he said
“may our hands forever hold firm, and I promise to be
truthful and be there till I take my last breathe”.
It’s about sunset and ahmad decided to
take his leave,”I think I have to be on my way” he
said.
He could visibly see the feeling of not wanting to
part from him on her face as well as her mood. “Hey!
What is wrong my dear?” he queried
“I don’t know ahmad but I just don’t want you to go”
she lamented
“Don’t worry” he said smiling “someday you and I will
be together to never part” he told her.
“Really?” she asked smiling and restoring that high
spiritness she has always had.
“Yes” he assured her and continued as they stepped out
“we will be together and talk and laugh all day and
night, I will write you poems every day and tell you
bedtime stories too”.
Speechless she was and all she could do was smile with
tears flooding her eyes, observing this uneasiness he
stopped and said “thanks for walking me dear, I guess
you have to go back now”
Facing each other with no words to utter both began to
take steps backwards, and ahmad’s inner self wants to
ask when will he see her again but his gutless peasant
half is pressing his tongue down, after a moment he
said “when can I see you again?” smiling she
subconsciously said “tomorrow”
“Where and what time?” he asked
“Hmm!” she thought for a while and said “4p.m by the
river bank”
“Ok that will be great!” he exclaimed and she turned
back walking home. Transfixed, ahmad could not walk
away as he stood there like a statue watching gini
pace away. Later that night he wrote about her
deportment and grace-
“…if all the leaves in
the world were paper
And all the
oceans and seas were ink
And shakespear and 100 of
his likes are put together to write
How beautiful her eyes are and
in numbers outline all her graces,
It will take them eternity
without getting close to describing her…”
Lying on his back, ahmad couldn’t sleep. A million
thoughts raced through his head, his peasant half
stressed ‘what the hell do you think you are doing?,
you and this girl are not compatible in any way, take
it from social to economic as well as exposure status,
they are the dominant and you are the dominated, they
are the oppressors and you are the oppressed, they are
the strong and you the weak get over your head peasant
or else you will land yourself in a pool of trouble”
while at the same time his egoistic half boosted his
morale saying “she is the one girl we have been
waiting for, don’t be suppressed, love knows no bound
and it conquers all regardless of background, age or
tribe” in between these thoughts he ponders of what
transpired and what will transpire tomorrow.
On the day of the appointment both
couples came to the scene 5 minutes earlier with gini
elegantly dressed arriving later.
Smiling she said “it’s better to be an hour early than
be a minute late, isn’t it?” ahmad pacing up to meet
her replied “yeah, and it was also said proper timing
is what sometimes make the difference between a fool
and a wise man”. Both laughing they walked along the
river bank to a spot where gini said is her favorite
spot. They sat there under the palm tree and talked
for hours.
“Can I ask you something ahmad?” said gini
“Please do ask” Replied ahmad
“Do you really mean it when you said someday we will
meet and never part, and that you will write me poems
and tell me bedtime stories?” she queried
Looking towards the ocean and at the horizon, ahmad
replied saying “I swear by the one in whose hands my
life is, I will do that and even more” he paused for a
while and then continued ‘I will cook for you, I will
bath the kids and even wash your clothes”
Suddenly they were quite; as he turned to her he saw
tears over flooding her eyes and down her cheeks. He
moved his hands and wiped her tears then she raised
hers and placed them on the back of his palms. Moved
by that scene ahmad was so touch as gini tried to
force a smile.
‘Please don’t cry, please don’t cry” he kept saying
not knowing the wiping of the tears from her face made
her shed it the more.
The setting of the sun depicted a romantic
spectacular and yet breath-taking site, “can we walk
on the beach” she asked
That will be great he said and stood up and offered
his hand and raised her to her feet. Holding hands as
they walked along the beach. As the current splash
against the sands, a baby turtle was thrown out of the
water, spotted by gini “look a turtle” she said
pointing at it. They stood there looking as the
helpless turtle struggled in the sands
“Wait here my dear let me put it back to safety” said
ahmad, as he left gini’s hand and walked towards the
turtle. She stood there watching, and thinking how
sweet and thoughtful of him to save the turtle. He
picks it up and puts it back in the waters, as he
turned backing the waters and the sun, he saw the ray
of the setting sun in her eyes, and speechless he
stood and managed to get the words to say “your eyes
are beautiful, you are beautiful”
“Why if I may ask?” she naively asked
“Cause” he hesitated and then said “because I love
you”
No sooner has he said that she ran to him and flanged
her arms around him and they hugged.
“I love you too ahmad, I love you very much” she cried
Colonel Caesar arrived at the
registrar’s home and as the door was opened, gini
greeted and said her dad isn’t home that he has gone
to the office. “I know, am not here to see your dad I
came to see you” he said in a commanding tone
.flabbergasted and taken aback she said “me?”
Forcing a half smile he said “yeah you, may I come
in?”
Not to be labeled arrogant and impudent she lets the
door open and he walked in and sat on the sofa. He
told her all he had on his mind and his intensions,
but gini, although shocked to her bone marrow was able
to stay calm. Then she told him she is highly
flattered and it will be a privilege for any spinster
in this clan to be involved with him but however she
is so sorry and can’t accept his offer because she is
engaged with someone else.
“Engaged with someone else?” Colonel Caesar thought to
himself. His inner self talked “no one takes from me
what i want, and when i set to get something i take
it. When I play I win, and that’s by any means
necessary.”
Gini and ahmad sat on the
beach and after a whiles silence she said, ‘my love
can I confide in you?”
Why not?” replied ahmad and gini narrated what
transpired between her and the colonel. Upon hearing
this ahmad got shocked to his spines, subconsciously
he stood up and then knelt down. gini frightened by
his reaction asked “are you alright my soul?”, ahmad
made it known to her how this situation can steam up
trouble. he told her this can affect not even his life
but his whole family’s, he confirmed to her how brutal
Colonel Caesar is and how he can go to any extent to
eliminate his foes. He even told her how he hanged a
peasant for resisting his courtship with his daughter
and how he executed a soldier, his whole family,
relatives and business associates, even the family’s
dog wasn’t spared .and, all this because he wanted to
defile the man’s sister. Ahmad told her “if he knew I
am with you believe me an a dead man”
“No my darling, nothing will happen to you, nothing
will happen to us” she assured.
All he said was “ok I believe you” as he submitted.
Later at home ahmad while continuing his most
acclaimed works titled THE ARCTIC CAMEL: Memoirs of a
peasant boy wrote on how gini seem to control his
intentions-
“Her effect over me is like the
efficacy of a deadly poison,
The blinking of her eyes seems
to reset my thoughts.
Depicting the character
of a good girl,
When a girl of her caliber says “do”, men will
not hesitate to pronounce it “done”.”
Meanwhile Colonel Caesar has put surveillance
on gini and her activities outside the home. Reports
brought to him have implicated ahmad as her male
friend and probably lover. Having fully known how
folly lovers are and coupled with the fact that he
will not spear anything that will stand between him
and the girl, Colonel Caesar pondered all sort of
strategies he will use to take ahmad out of the way.
After giving it much thought, he decided to force some
peasant youths into the army among which include
Ahmad.
When ahmad told her the news
of the recruitment, gini cried uncontrollably, despair
looming in the air, both couples manage to be strong
as tears flowed from his eyes too. Reaching to wipe
the flood of tears from her eyes, she too managed to
gather the strength to wipe his.
“Hey don’t worry, everything is going to be fine’ he
said, paused and then continued “the only problem I
have is the parting from you, am not afraid of the war
or anything”
So brief the time of recruitment and call up. the
couples didn’t even get the chance to have a proper
parting, as Caesar ordered the reporting of new troops
in the dead of the night.
Personnel sent to ahmad’s house said they will leave
with him right away, his dad never protested because
its ingrown in all men in the Mediterranean era that
being called to the army is Nobleness and that that
particular time was chosen to avoid absconding by
recruits. Ahmad thought about a lot of things, like
running away, but the punishment for that is death,
refusal will not even be possible. Ahmad packed his
things amongst which include his writing pad; he
hugged his dad as tears rolled down his cheeks,
His dad said “come on my son; don’t cry because you
are going to the war. This is nobleness, to serve and
die for your country and people”. But ahmad was crying
for another reason, it wasn’t the war or the thought
of death, but the circumstance of his recruitment. He
knows it was because of gini and it hurts him even the
more to realize he is going to be separated from her.
“May god be with you” his dad bid farewell as he
reluctantly jumped on the carriage and they rode off.
On the way ahmad begged the soldiers to give him a
chance to bid farewell to his girl, though the other
soldier declined, he was the one recruited by the
colonel to keep an eye on gini and he was the one that
implicated him, but the 2 other insisted that he may
see his girl but he has to be snappy. He agreed and
they went by gini’s house. On knocking on the door for
quite longer than necessary, the door opens and the
registrar stood in front of him
“Pardon me for intruding into your privacy sir, but am
on my way to the camp and will like to bid farewell to
gini” he painfully pleaded.
Moved by his plea, the registrar asked him to come in
as he went in to wake gini up. The situation that
ensued was so heart touching that even the colonel’s
spy was touched by the scene as they left gini on the
floor wailing and her dad trying to console and calm
her down.
2 days passed and the loneliness is becoming
unbearable to both gini and ahmad. Even worse for
ahmad he is constantly engulfed by warring thoughts.
To why everything he starts ends so abruptly he wrote-
“As I creep
through the tunnel of time,
Every corner I take to start a new beginning,
I find myself near the end,
I turn seeking for reason,
Why there I always an end for a beginning,
But I got lost in my head, the more I pondered the
more I got lost,
But then I came to realize, to begin is a quest whose
reward is ending,
The price of beginning is paid in the currency of
ending,
What ever we decide has a motive and every motive has
a direction,
It’s either this way or that way, one way or the
other,
But we are constantly moving towards one direction,
And that is always towards the end,
I go there not because I can change my ways,
But still because I know I will get what I want
there.”
Another 48 hours and situation began to get way out of
hand and gini couldn’t take it any longer; so she
decided to pay ahmad a visit since she was told he is
in the training camp in the second amoury near the
city’s exit. Not very far away from her residence, she
applied for permission and was granted to visit in
another 2 days time that is Sunday, which seemed so
far away like forever. The colonel having being
informed of her coming got so mad and thought “even
after setting him into the army and getting him away
from her?”
His wicked Id told him “what is happening to you, have
you forgotten the concept of crush you enemy totally
so that they may not retaliate?”
His inner self further said “a good end justifies what
is morally wrong…you see if you will kill ahmad which
is morally wrong to get to gini which is the good end
here, then your actions are justified”
Then the colonel set out a plan to
blow up the amoury, he planned it with 2 other
subordinates, to blow up the place, this will not
spare anything living there, even bacteria will be
eliminated by the heat. As they left, the colonel
pondered, “will I want to kill one boy at the expense
of this clan? , will I destroy ammunitions built over
the years for just mere feelings, will I risk the
invasion of this land because of love?”
As he was about to make a turn around decision, his Id
counter attacked saying “its better you lose a war to
another clan than to lose a war to your kinsmen, you
rule here, apart from the ruler, all bow before you,
you give orders, men follow them or they die. It’s
better to lose a war to another clan and live a
satisfied life as a prisoner of war than to lose a war
to a common peasant boy”. With that he stood firm for
the plan to be executed.
On that fateful day gini woke up
so early, got set and packed all goodies she has
prepared for ahmad, even her dad was happy to see her
mood change for the positive. On arriving, at about
500meters to the camp, an explosion occurred shaking
up the earth that sent a cloud of dust and fire into
the sky. The whole city felt the thunder-like sound
and the tremor, it felt like an earthquake. Rushing to
the scene, she got off the horse and rushed into the
camp that now looked like hell. A few solders running
up and down, bodies laying everywhere, blood flowing
and buildings and tents on fire. Confused, crying and
praying, gini ran helter skelter at the scene looking
for her soul, crying as she searched; suddenly she
heard her name called in an excruciating tone. she
turned and saw ahmad lying in a pool of blood, ’ahmad
my babe” she ran falling unto him and raising him and
placing his head on her lap she cried uncontrollable
as ahmad managed to talk “please don’t cry my love” he
paused in pains, coughing blood and then continued
with a smile “I know its painful my love, and I feel
like we just got robbed, but God does as he wills and
we mortals have no control over what God has decreed”
He coughed and then said ‘from him we came and unto
him shall we return’
Almost insanely gini screamed, crying “please don’t
talk like that my love, I will take you to the doctor,
I will take you home, to me”
Ahmad managed to raise his bloody hand and wipe away
the tears from her cheeks smearing blood on her face
“my love today I die a successful man, today I die as
the happiest man in the world, to have been loved by
you is ultimate success..” as he coughed blood.
“Please don’t talk like that, please don’t talk like
that” she cried
‘My only regret is I have not lived to tell you
bedtime stories, bath the kids and write you poems” he
paused shuddering in pains and holding on so tight to
her.
He said “I promise to fulfill my promise in the next
world my dear love”
no sooner has he uttered those words he began smiling
looking beyond her face and into the heavens above,
his body shuddering violently “smile for me my love, I
love you” he said and his head fell to the sides and
the held on he did to her loosened, gini never wanting
to believe what has happened buried her head on his in
her hand, suddenly…I had a tap on my shoulders, its
was my cousin waking me up and saying “wake up its
time to breakfast”
Half awake and moody I walked towards the bathroom and
I opened the door, my cousin said “man is the
fasting?”
Smiling “I had a dream, a sweet tragic dream” I
replied and closed the door behind me.
![[send message]](https://www.writerscafe.org/images/mail.png){kind=small}
![[befriend]](https://www.writerscafe.org/images/friend.png){kind=small}
Share This
Email
Facebook
Twitter
Read Request
My Library
Flag Writing
