Pronunciations:
Kuleza- Koo-lay-zer
this is a chichewa name. the full name is Kuleza mtima which means gentle in spirit.
Chichewa is a language spoken in Malawi and Zambia.
Naledi- Ner-lay-tee
This is a sesotho name meaning star. sesotho is spoken in South Africa.
Chapter 1
Naledi walked into my sitting room fully dressed in Aka-rebel uniform. Her hair drawn back into a bun accentuating her diamond face. She told me about Xo’s theory on reprogramming the warbots, explaining the mechanics and how this could even our odds in the war. My heart was racing. She was going to war front!
“I am going to Utawaleza,” she said.
I starred at her silently. She was going to die. I was going to lose her. I was going to lose her like I did Taurayi. I would be alone again. These last few months with her had been wonderful and she was going to her death.
“Kule, say something.” She glanced up at me, her tiny hands reaching for my own. I let her fingers caress my palms. “Please.”
“Say what Naledi? You are going to what could be your death.” She looked down. “And you tell me hours before your departure.”
“I didn’t know how to tell you,” she sighed. Her chocolate eyes peering into my own. I wanted to grab her and lock her up in a cage so she would leave. I didn’t want to lose her. I knew that pain all too well. She placed her hand on my cheek, pulling me from my thoughts. “I will be back.” She forced a smile on her face. I squeezed her hands. She pulled away her hands and placed herself in my embrace. Her face resting on my chest. She had never done this before? How did we get here/ how did I let her in this much?
“She will be safe,” I put my hand on Xo’s shoulder and squeezed it. He did not respond. Salifya had been gone for seven hours now. I know Xo was worried about her surviving with the baby. If this had happened four months ago, Sali would have taken out the guys who had taken her without any problems. Sanudi always hated Xo with a passion. I couldn’t bare to think what he would try to do to Salifya.
“Ipyana said she got a message form Salifya and they traced it to where they think she is being held.” Xo told me. He gave me the location and then went to wear his armour and grab his blasters. I surveyed the building they were going into. When I saw the fight Sali was in, my heart dropped, would the baby be okay after that vigorous movement. luckily it was, Sanudi the mastermind of all this was put behind bars. All of it reminded of Taurayi. We were three months form our wedding when she died. Her body was so charred from the fire, that there was no body viewing at the funeral. I thought of going to a bar and submerging myself in liquor but I reminded myself that was the old me. it had taken a lot of effort to pull myself out of my alcoholism after she passed. I decided to go to a bot match across town. I was still rethinking my choice. The bar was five minutes away from where I was, I could leave now forfeit the money I paid for the match. That’s when I saw Naledi. She asked me if anyone had taken the seat next to me. I told her no, she sat down. her perfume filled my nostrils. How could she smell so good at the end of a day like this? We had all been looking for Salifya. She commented on how tired I looked and I commented on how tired she looked too. We placed bets on which robot would win the fight. I won the bet. I almost felt bad since I had insider knowledge from snooping around. She said she would come to the bot match next week. My lips drew out into a smile. He turned and walked to her pod. I wanted to watch her walk away but realising that I might get caught I reluctantly turned around walking back to my pod. Naledi had always fascinated me, she would speak her mind no matter and she was witty too. I could sense that I enjoyed our time together without Ipyana, Xo and Salifya, a little more than I should have. Why was that? I asked myself as I drifted to sleep trying to remember the scent of her perfume.
There were several bot matches after that. she made them more interesting than they’d been in the past.
“What is it you do?” she asked.
I glanced down at her blue hair parted into two flat twists. “I check for backdoors and other flaws in software.”
“Like Xo?”
I nodded. “Except he is more hardware oriented.”
“Ever come across software you could find bugs in?”
I shook my head. “Not yet.”
We reached the door to her apartment. It was all over soon. I wanted to meet again before Saturday. Saturday was too far away. yes we interacted at least once a fortnight when we met at Xo;s house to discuss our advancements in neutralising Ulalo, but I preferred out time alone.
Her lips formed a smirk “Don’t forget to send all you get on the bots in the next match. I want my revenge.”
“I will send it you but I cannot guarantee you will win.”
“Cocky hacker, huh? I look forward to wiping that smug look off your face.”
Xo walked out of the apartment complex. “Hi Naledi.” Xo turned to me and gave me a look. “Hello Kuleza.” I knew an onslaught of teasing was coming my way.
Xo told us that he had come to check Ipy and Naledi’s security software to ensure not bout could it breach it again.
“It’s looking good. Where are you two coming from?” Xo teasing tone was evident. I threw a glance at him. Could he not wait till we were alone to tease me?
“A bot match,” Naledi responded. Was she oblivious to his tone. “Thanks again for the upgrade Xo.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“I should go. Have a good evening.” I smiled down at her.
“You too,” Her face lit up in a smile. A smile I knew I would spend hours trying to remember, holding onto the warmth it made me feel inside. Reluctantly, I turned to leave Xo followed me. after Naledi was in her apartment complex, Xo put his arm around my shoulder.
“Sooooo, the recent influx in your attendance of bot matches on ths side of town has not been to support local businesses?”
I shoved him off me. “They are good matches.” I didn’t want to look at Xo. I knew the smirk he had on his face.
“I approve,” He said.
“Of what?”
“Of you and Naledi.”
I turned to face him. “There is no me and Naledi.”
“Not yet, but there soon will be,” he crowed. “Man! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“Its fairly new and I knew you would be like this.”
Xo just laughed. He would always get excited when I got close to a girl even when there was nothing going on.
“So you are hiding behind bot matches? C’mon Kule, ask her to lunch or something.”
I shook my head. “It’s too obvious. Right now we’ve just started texting. We are still getting to know each other.”
“You guys text! Is that why you suddenly know how to text back in time or the location of your phone.”
I ran my fingers down my face.
“I know you think you are playing the long game but what if you are playing it too safe?”
“I don’t know.” I exhaled. “It’s been so long. I don’t know.”
Her smile haunted me for days to come. Her blue hair, her tawny complexion and her piercing eyes were a blend of beauty. I found myself scrolling through her social media, admiring the wit in her posts and the beauty in her pictures. Xo had a point. Maybe I was being slow and overcautious. I sent her the intel I gathered on the bots in the Saturday match.
Naledi: Lets make it interesting. Loser buys winner…milkshakes or ice-cream?
Was she asking me to a beverage meet? No. Kuleza don’t get too excited. Naledi is social. Such meets don’t mean as much as to her as they do to you.
Me: Deal.
“I can’t believe I lost to a police officer.” I got up from my seat.
She laughed heartily. “Full disclosure my minor was in robotics.”
The noise from people rushing outside the auditorium made it impossible to continue our conversation.
“Your minor was in robotics,” I said once we were outside. “How come you don’t use it?”
“Because I have no intention of accelerating the singularity.”
I chuckled. “If the singularity was meant to happen, it would have happened ages ago.”
She raised her shoulders in protest. “Nope. I will not partake in our extinction.”
Unable to contain myself, I laughed. “I had no idea, you were so paranoid.”
She glanced up at me. “Only the paranoid survive in the end.”
I laughed harder.
“Enough laughing ,you owe me a milkshake. And for all those laughs, I will pick a high end joint.”
“Pick away, you earned it Sarah Connor.”
I was not sure she got my Terminator reference. After all that movie was from a century ago. But every computer lover had at least seen one version of it. Her punching my knee confirmed my theory. She had seen it. “Not funny.” Her lips were trembling.
“Your lips disagree. I can see you holding down a laugh.”
She let out a chuckle. “Its late, I forfeit my reward.”
“No no. C’mon I am a man of my word. We can do it Saturday.”
She raised her eyebrow at me. Was that too obvious? Xo would be proud of me for being so bold.
“Sure. Its your money anyway.”
Did that move reveal how I felt about her? What if I scared her away?
With Taurayi, it was easier. We were already friends since we had been classmates in college. Naledi and I had been acquaintances till a few weeks ago. Meeting her made me nervous. We would be outside the loud bot match environment which meant we would have to conversate. And there were no bots to comment on this time, so I would have to think of conversation. I was not known for my great conversational skills. She looked pretty in her green dress. It was the first time I saw the tattoos of leaves attached to a stem on her arm. She was usually in long sleeve clothes. I noticed there was sadness in her eyes. She was thinking about the murder of her superior Detetective Superintendent Suwedi. Salifya had told me about it. I was not sure she would come out tonight after what had happened. I was glad to see her. I just wished I had some of Xo’s charm so I could lift her mood.
“The funeral was yesterday. It was very sombre. Despite his mistakes, the DSU was a good man.” She croaked. “I don’t feel safe anymore. I don’t know who to trust at the station.”
I should hold hand and comfort her. no she is not mine yet. But she is broken. I clutched my milkshake. And took a deep sip.
“I wish that I didn’t know what I know about his death. I wish I thought it was just a robbery like…” she froze. I turned around to look at what she was looking at. Her eyes were fixated on a middle aged man at the counter. I was about to ask what was going on. When she said, “I have to go.” she took her bag and dashed out leaving her milkshake unfinished. I starred at the man. why did he elicit this reaction in her.
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