Remember Utawaleza is contained within Zamania. Ayamba travels to the borders between Zamania and Utawaleza. A terrorist group of the zamanians have attacked Utawaleza. They are adverse to this province without technology. They think it is retrogressive. They have attacked it with robots. Diminga is the leader of Ulalo, the terrorist organisation that has attacked Utawaleza.

Utawaleza’s border has an Electromagnetic Pulsanator (EMP). This device ensures no technological devices work within Utawaleza. The current one is out of date and needs to be updated. But to update it Utawaleza needs approval from Zamania government. Diminga made sure that they did not get this approval. So that when her war robots attacked Utawaleza, the EMP would not be able to deactivate them. In this chapter Ayamba leads a team of Zamanians retrieve the updated EMP which will deactivate the war robots attacking. Am I making sense? Please read this chapter,.

The plot of this is in Mirage my other book which in my works.

Ayamba

We walked past metal encampments, encircled with metal fences. A few months ago, this was a flatland with grass and trees devoid of technology. We entered the encampment Zidana had told me to go to. A soldier at the gate ushered us to a Akafula woman called Wiza’s office.

“Call Anyazgambo.” She said to the soldier. She greeted us both, motioning us to the seats in front of her desk. We sat down and she sat down behind her desk. I told her who we were.

“Ah. I wish I knew I was meeting an elder’s protégé. I have been so casual.” She blushed.

“There is no need for formality now.” I said.

She got up. “It’s my understanding that the Mlenje have been trained in modern weaponry?”

Both Mazaza and Nyasha nodded.

“Okay. Ayamba stay here, I will take your men to get settled with the other soldiers.” She left with Mazaza and Nyasha. She returned with a mzati soldier. The woman who I later learnt was called Anyazgambo, greeted me on her knees as per custom despite my protests.

Four normates, and two Akafula entered the tent. They each sat down. They showed me the current location of the EMP.

“This is called Mlunduli’s lab, its named after the electric engineer who designed the first border Utawaleza had.” I said. “It will take us two days to get there.”

“You have done well locating the EMP.” Anyazgambo said looking at one of the Akafula. “I know Fantchika hid it well.”

“That he did.” The Akafula replied.

“This is Ayamba, he is an elder’s protégé. He will take you to the place you found. The terrain requires someone who is familiar with it.” Anyazgambo said. “I trust him and his mentor Elder Zidana. They are one of the few people I trust in the Council.”

The Akafula who had spoken earlier introduced herself as Ipyana and each of her comrades. I listened carefully to remember their names.

“I am going with you.”Wiza said. “We need to be a small group so we can be agile. We leave tomorrow at 4 am. Get as much rest as you can. Another team will follow us with medical and tactical support.”

Naledi, Mwase, Ntawale, Luntha and Lindiwe left the bunker. Ipyana stayed behind.

“I have something I need to tell you.” Ipyana said when the others had left. She told us about an article on an Ebola outbreak in Utawaleza. And that a journalist had written a story about the Ebola outbreak and his source was someone connected to Diminga the leader of Ulalo, Khataza. “It may not be that important.”

“Khataza is there one who started the Ebola outbreak.” I told them.

“How?” Wiza asked.

“He destroyed the plant used for its cure and made sure a certain village on a trade route had contact with the simians that carry that virus.” I retorted.

“Diminga must have sent him to do that.” Wiza said.

“Possibly. We are still looking for his accomplices.” I said.

“This is what Diminga wanted, to make it look like Utawaleza is filled with contagious diseases.” Anyazgambo fumed.

“Indeed. Luckily not all plant cures were destroyed. We found the remnant and it is being used to treat.”

“Is it okay if I get that information out to the media?” Ipy asked.

I nodded.

The last time I slept on a bed was when I went for training for modern weapons at a secret training base near the border. It was always uncomfortable how soft it was. The uniform I wore, was too tight and attracted heat. If Zima saw me in this, I am certain she would burst into laughter. How was she? Did she think of me as often as I thought of her? We started off at morning light, after baths and breakfast. Naledi and Ipyana walked together in front of us, I stayed behind with Ntawale and Mwase, further behind us was Luntha, Lindi and Wiza. Mwase stopped to catch his breath, his hand resting on a tree branch.

“Ipyana and A.K were holding hands.” Ntawale said.

Mwase glanced down at Ntawale sympathetically.

“I really thought I could show her I was worthy of her love. I thought she could love me the way I loved her.” Ntawale lamented.

I looked down at the grass that had been forced to lie down because of our footsteps.

“Lucky A.K. he has her affections. A prize I failed to win. I did everything, Mwase. I did it all.”

Mwase placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “You were not what she wanted. That’s all there is to it.”

Ntawale drew his breath in and resumed waking. If Zimatha married someone else, would I be this broken up about it.

“I guess the important thing is she is happy. A.K seems to care for her.” Ntawale choked, his voice sounded as though they were a multitude of knives in his chest.

“It will be okay,” Mwase said with a smile.

“So you keep saying. I have read a lot of poems about unrequited love. ” Ntawale looked up at the sky. “Oh, what could be worse than my situation?”

“Knowing she returns your feelings but being unable to be together because you are bound to an arranged marriage.”

They both turned to face me. Why did I say that out loud?

“You found someone?” Mwase asked.

I nodded my head. “I think she likes me too. But I relinquished my rights to find a mate when I became an elder’s protégé.”

“Can’t you make sure she becomes your betrothed?” Ntawale asked.

“No. She is an ex-criminal, daughter to the man who started the Ebola outbreak. I wish I never met her.”

“Can’t you ran away to Zamania and be with her.” Mwase said.

“I made an oath. I’ve never been so conflicted in my life.”

“I know how you feel but don’t wish you never met her. I wouldn’t trade my time with Ipyana. Because they were good times. You should rather value those and accept things as they are.” Ntawale turned around after saying that and continued walking.

I chuckled. “Sounds like you need to take your own advice.”

“Definitely, and I will.”

I dipped my feet in the river before us. My eyes closed, an image of Zimatha stroking the marks on my shoulder appeared in my mind. Had she thought of doing that before? Did she ever feel the way she did about me towards anyone else? How was she? What feelings did she have for me? As we waited for our evening meal, Ipyana asked me if I enjoyed being an elder’s protégé. Zimatha’s face appeared in my mind. I told Ipyana our role was similar to their mzengeli. Mwase was surprised I knew that much about their realm. I told him it was part of our training.

“I should probably show you how to use a solar blaster,” Wiza said sitting next to me.

“I know how to use them. It was also part of our training.” I told her.

Her mouth slightly widened. “Oh.”

“What else was part of your training?” Naledi asked.

“I can’t discuss that.”

I pulled myself awake, checked the window, it was not dawn yet. My eyes turned to Zimatha, who was lying on the kama on her back starring at the roof.

“Are you okay?”

Her cheeks were stained with tears. She shook her head.

“Did you sleep at all?”

“I did,” She rasped.

“What’s bothering you?”

I sat on the mat. I wanted to sit on her kama but it would be inappropriate.

“I am just thinking about my life. Did Khataza take me in so he could harvest my bones?”

“If that was his intention he would have done it by now.”

“You don’t know that Aya. Maybe he wanted me grown so he could harvest stronger bones or something.” Her voice came out strained like something in her throat was blocking it from flowing freely.

“I think despite what he is, Khataza loved you.”

“Then why did he abandon me?”

“Some people’s love is broken. It is love but it is broken. I think Khataza’s love is like that.”

She wiped a tear trekking down her face. I felt so powerless to help her.

She held out her blade, a sharp little thing about the size of a finger, with a small wooden handle. “The weapon I am most proficient with is what he used to kill them. I can’t stop using it because we are in trouble and this is the weapon I know the most.” A torrent of tears rushed out of her eyes with these words. I watched her cover her face and heave her back with the tears.

“It’s not your fault. You didn’t know.”

“I wish we never went to Chilema.”

“I understand. But knowing is better than being ignorant no matter how painful the truth is.”

“He killed my parents Ayamba. The man I call Father killed my parents in cold blood.”

She turned her face away from me. Her backed arched with each sob.

I walked to the other side of her kama. I knelt beside her kama. “In a few moons, he will be captured and he will pay for what he did.”

She reached out her hands. Our fingers interlocked. “That’s the thing Ayamba, I don’t know if I want that. I don’t know if I want him executed. I still love him.”

“I understand.”

She cried until dawn, she would squeeze my hands as she did. And other times I stroked her knuckles not knowing what to say.

At the lagoon I felt close to her, but that night at the chinyiha village, I felt bound to her. I startled out of my memory. OH. What a fool I had been. This was a lion’s territory. I had led the team into a lion’s den because I was so distracted by my memories.