Ipyana

“When is the attack?” Asikwese asked. His wife poured us both a cup of tea and placed boiled cassava on our plates. I was looking forward to biting into this. Everything tasted different here in Chitipa.

“We are not sure.” Sali replied. “But it will result in a lot of casualties if allowed to happen. Diminga has been stockpiling weapons for five years now.”

Anzgambo perched herself on the brown couch her husband was on. “We need to warn the League of Jume.” She sighed. “This is connected to the EMP. They didn’t want us to update it because they wanted to attack us with robots.”

“You think this goes all the way up to the government?” I asked as I partitioned the cassava and placed this partition in my mouth.

“It’s obvious. They’ve always wanted to take Utawaleza. They just didn’t want to do it a way that makes seem guilty. There will use this maniac to do their dirty work and then after she is done they will swoop in and claim that Utawaleza is too damaged to care for itself. Then they will take it over to protect it.” Asikwese retorted.

I sipped my tea. For a moment we were all silent.

“The elders’ army is not equipped to handle an attack from robots.” Anyazgambo lamented.

“Here is a compilation of everything you need to know.” Sali gave her a file. “Be careful who you show this information to. Diminga is clever. She probably has people working for her in the League of Jume and the council of the Elders.”

Anyazgambo nodded her head. “You do great work girls, your parents must be proud of you.”

Sali and I had packed some clothes just in case they made us stay as they usually do when we visited them. Anyazgambo asked us to stay. And we spent the evening talking about what we had discovered so far about Ulalo. I fell asleep on the couch. When I awoke, I found Anyazgambo giving Salifya herbs that could help her with her insomnia. I didn’t even know she was having insomnia. I went up to the room they always put us in. The next day I made sure we left in good time. Akuzike was singing at his church. I did not want to miss it. I got there in time. He sang a song based on a hymn that talked about how we were going to meet our departed beloveds in heaven. Each note, carried his grief and his hope in Christ, it was moving to hear.

“You sang beautifully.” I told him after church.

“Thank you for coming.” He smiled.

“This is my new apartment.” Ama said walking around her house. It had two rooms, combined with kitchen, bathroom and a sitting room. “I haven’t got much furniture yet but I will soon. I will be teaching at Misuku Secondary School. I know tomorrow will be hard because my taller pupils will laugh at me but after that it will get easier right?

I saw an ad calling for participants in Utawaleza research. The articles I have seen on Utawaleza misrepresent us so I am definitely going to this one to state the record straight.” The next video would be about how she met my dad. I went on to the next video. “So the guy who was doing the interview was so rude. I forgot what he said but his tone was ‘all mzati are dumb’. I got so annoyed I left. He called me this evening and asked to meet so he could apologise. He offered to come to my house but I refused. I don’t know him. He could be a socio-path or a rapist. I need to be hyper-vigilant in this realm. So I told him I would return to Sikwese’s office where he was conducting the interview. This better be a good apology.” I laughed. She had just met her future husband and she did not know it. She hated him. I wonder what my dad thought of her. Oh I wish my dad kept video diaries too. All I have to know him is what others say, his few social media posts and his academic articles. “He was polite. He apologised for his tone and explained to me that his mother was from Utawaleza and was chosen as an elder. I haven’t heard of anyone running away to avoid being an elder. I get where his bias is coming from now. He asked me if I was willing to continue the interview. I accepted.” I looked at the time. I should have been napping like I planned to so I could work on finding the war-bots in the afternoon. My fingers pressed play. I had to skip the next video because she was talking about her students finally stopping to tease her because of her height after she punished their ring leader. “The question read statics show that most individuals from Utawaleza become addicts, paedophiles, physical abusers or some sort of criminal. It infuriated me. I told Lusayo those statistics were conjured up to fit the government’s narrative.

‘What narrative?’ He asked.

“That Utawaleza is harmful to the cultural progress of Zamania. And there only reason they’ve found that is because they watch mzatis more than anyone else. If they watched the people born here as much as they monitor us they would find we are just as vile as the people here. No they would find the people in this contaminated realm are more vile than us.’

We argued about this for a long time, him supporting the data’s integrity and me questioning it. I asked him to give me the paper so I could read it on my own and see if it had any truth to it.

‘I will tell you what I think next week.’

Sayo glanced down at his tablet. ‘Deal. We really should get back to the questions.’

She started shortening his name to Sayo? They must be getting close. I watched three videos in between talking about the continuation of their debate, her job(I skipped through this one) and then the video where she said that was her last interview with my father.

‘I have been so busy with work I have not been making many videos this last year. Lusayo came to the school today. He gave me a copy of his and Sikwese’s paper on Utawaleza.

‘Read through it. Let me know if I am misrepresenting you.’ He said.

‘Thank you. I certainly will.’

I stared at him, this tall, handsome man who was looking at me and obviously thinking of what to say to me. Why did he come all this way? He could have sent it via email surely.

‘You finished your masters?’ I finally said, my hands fingering the edge of my desk which was between us.

He nodded. ‘My graduation is next week.’

‘When next week?’ I asked him just to make conversation.

‘On Friday. Sikwese is throwing a small party afterwards even though I refused. It starts at 12 am. You could come if you want if you are not busy with work.’

School closes this week Friday and I was going to be free. But I was not sure what this man’s intentions were with me so I told him I would see.’

‘Have a good week.’ He said. I walked him out of my class, past the school yard and even upto the school’s gate.

‘That’s why I chose to do my masters here in Chitipa. I wanted to learn the old fashion way with teachers and books and not knowledge inserted in your brain.’ He said.

‘It took me some time to get used to the tube but if I go for further study I am definitely utilising it again. It makes it faster and easier. My favourite part no tests to take.’

‘That’s probably there only advantage of the tube.’ He retorted. We stopped walking. ‘It was lovely seeing you.’

‘It was good to see you too Sayo. Thanks for bringing me this paper.’ He gave me an awkward wave and left. I watched him walk. He turned around. I smiled at him and he smiled back. Then I turned and went to my classroom. He was my height times four. It was a surprise we were able to hold a conversation with all those feet between us.” She laughed at her own joke. “I suspect he likes me. I find him interesting. But he is so tall. It could never work out for us. That’s why I shan’t go to his party.” I played another video. “I know. I know. I said I was not going to go. But I met his boss Asikwese who asked me if I was coming. I said I was not sure. He told me I hope you come, you are there only person outside the history department that Lusayo has invited. I don’t know why but I felt bad. I did not know Lusayo was that fond of me. It was confirmed, he liked me. I was not sure how I felt about him. Yes I enjoyed our chats but was going to the party a good idea? Would I not be sending the wrong message? I wondered to myself as I walked to the party. Inside were mostly other history students and one other lecture. Sayo looked handsome in his black suit. When he saw me he rushed to where I was.

‘I did not think you would come.’ His eyes were dancing with mirth.

‘Me neither.’ I said scanning the room. Apart furniture forming a rectangle in the centre of the room, Asikwese’s living room was filled with pieces of art, curioles and masks that he had gotten from Utawaleza no doubt.

‘So nice to see you, Asimenye. Come, we have just started eating.’ Asikwese said ushering me towards the table. I picked out some food and sat down in a corner. Lusayo was surrounded by his friends who were arguing about the factors that led to the ousting of Robert Mugabe Zimbabwe’s first president. From time to time, Lusayo would throw a smile at me.

‘He is so happy you are here.’ Asikwese whispered to me as he took my plate from me.

I followed him. ‘I am here as a friend.’

We entered his kitchen.

Asikwese whipped his head to face me. His lips were drawn out in a smirk. ‘You have no idea what you do to him.’

‘Me?’ What did that mean?

‘Yes you. I have never seen him so willing to open himself up to anyone.’ He placed plates in the kitchen sink. ‘I almost made him stop interviewing you, he would always take so much time chatting with you. With the other interviewees he would often take less time than assigned on the interviews. But then I realised what was going on and I said to myself ‘Nengezwayo who are you to stand in the way of young love?’ It was true we would often stray in our interviews and chat about other things and chat afterwards too. And when I was the last interview of the day, he would walk me home. But that did not mean that were building something. My face felt hot. Did he just tell me that Lusayo liked me? Yes I knew he liked me but having Asikwese say it made me feel embarrassed. Asikwese was so certain I returned Sayo’s affections.

‘I had no idea.’ I said. I had to leave this place. It was a mistake to have come here. I knew that now. I picked my handbag from where I sat and walked towards Lusayo so I could say goodbye.

Before I could speak, he said. ‘I have not been a good host.’

‘It’s alright. I enjoyed the food. I must go.’ My eyes darted around the room. ‘Several papers to mark, another downside of this traditional form of education.’ I added a chuckle to hide the nervousness in my tone.

‘Please stay, there is desert coming.’ His eyes staring into mine. I nodded my head and went to sit on the corner I had sat on. Surprisingly, Lusayo sat with me on this couch meant for two. I ended up leaving much later than I intended.

“It is dark now. I must leave,” I said to him. He offered me a lift a home saying he was going to drop his friends near where I stayed. I entered his pod last, I noticed the two friends he was dropping had all sat behind, leaving the sit next to Lusayo as there only vacant seat. Was this deliberate? Did they also know? Of course they did, Sayo kept to himself and I was there only friend outside his academic circle who came to his party. They knew. Now I really regret coming here, I thought to myself.

I saw how Sayo was looking at me when he was debating with his friends. It was a look of a man drawn in. Sayo sat next to me for the rest of his party. He sat next to me on that couch meant for two, how did he know I would be okay with him sitting so close to me? I had created undue expectation by coming to his party; in his friends and worst still in him.

He dropped his friends off first. We spent the part of the ride where were alone talking about his paper. He stopped the pod near my house.

‘Thank you for coming today.’ He smiled down at me.

‘You are welcome.’ I retorted, my eyes locking with his hickory eyes.

‘Maybe we could meet for lunch and discuss in detail your insights on Sikwese and my paper?’

I looked away so he would not see my eyes and mouth widen with surprise. I did not expect this shrewdness from such a laconic man. I turned and glanced up at him again. His hickory eyes seemed illuminated which made them even more beautiful. ‘Okay. When?’

‘You decide a place and a time and I will be there.’ The small smile that had been on his face when he dropped his last friend grew into a bigger smile.

“Goodnight Sayo.” I said stepping out of his pod.

“Goodnight Asi.” He returned cheerfully. Had this been his plan all along? To ask me out to lunch? When I turned to watch my front-door close, I noticed Sayo had watched me enter my house. It was only when my door closed that he flew away. Why did I accept his invitation? I noticed my lips were drawn out in a smile, a smile that did not leave after I showered. A smile that would reappear when I thought of how he kept smiling at me as his friends chattered away. A smile that returned when I remembered how close he sat with me on the couch. How we kept brushing into each other.

Those beautiful hickory eyes. So deep. If we did get together and have a child, I hope she or he has Sayo’s beautiful deep kind hickory eyes…Asimenye! Get a grip! I entered my bed.

Asikwese’s words keep ringing in my mind. What do I do to Lusayo?”