Prologue
The cool night air danced over the tops of the towering trees; a pinch of sand and earth within its gentle embrace reflected the pale glow of the moon above. The lethargic twists of the breeze spiralled downwards to the earth uttering a muted howl as it reached down, whispering its secrets to any who would listen. Leaves rustled as it flowed over them as if greeting the sweet air from on high, welcoming it down into the Earth's domain. The sky's breath swayed onwards though the hushed undergrowth collecting more minuscule gifts from the soil. A flutter of dried leaves echoed out into the small clearing before it as it sauntered towards the collection of little shacks, the wind's fingers carefully traced the tops of the roofs, as if to reacquaint itself with the memory of the little village. It weaved through the orange blaze of the torches, the flames crackling and bending under the airs will. Further it ventured, wrapping its brisk lack of form around the strange objects before it. As it took its leave, it brushed against the warm and dark skin of a woman standing in an alcove. Small goosebumps formed on her arm as it kissed her bare flesh before finally fading away into the inky blackness of night.
The woman sighed taking in the night air and idly wrapping her arms around herself. Her eyes stared out unblinkingly at the two small figures sitting in the middle of the soft grass. A sad smile tugged at her sun beaten features as she watched the two children, unaware of her gaze. Time stood still as she watched them. The occasional little chuckle snapped her from her trance, the eldest of the two sat watching his sister, hanging off her every word.
"No matter what, he never gets tired of hearing her wild stories... They have grown so close," a man's voice made her jump. The woman turned, her face lighting up in a warm smile to greet her husband,
"Hunapo, you scared me..." His heavily tattooed face creased into a fond smirk as he wrapped his arm around her.
"It fills me with pride to see them like this," he carried on as if he hadn't heard her, "This gives me great hope for us."
"It's almost unbelievable," she thought out-loud, "that we would be blessed with such an honour... For our darlings to be the saviours of your people." Hunapo paused, taking a moment to examine his wife,
"Elsa," he started, a hint of aggravation in his tone, "our people." Elsa's eyes remained fixed on her children for a few seconds, "They will be the saviour of our people." He removed his arm from around her shoulders, keeping a stern gaze on her as he turned to enter the small shack, "It's late," he shot her a forced smile, put them to bed."
The sun rise crept over the thick canopy towards the village. The trees groaned and creaked under it's hot stare as if coming to life. Elsa stood in the doorway smiling and waving to her husband and a group of other men as they made their way towards a large, unkempt vehicle, rifles and machetes slung over their sun kissed frames.
"Mama, mama." She smiled broadly, peering down in the direction of the little voice, "I want to go." Elsa wrapped her arms around her son, a playful chuckle escaping her lips,
"My little one," she placed a gentle kiss his forehead and brushed some stray black hair aside, "you are far too small!"
"I am not small," he urged, folding his arms huffily. Elsa shook her head in amused silence,
"One day soon, when your father feels you are ready, he'll take you out hunting with him." The little boy fell silent, she watched, almost knowing exactly what he was thinking. Her little boy had always been awed by his father, both of her dear children had. Hunapo Talugmai had always been the strongest warrior of his tribe, a shining inspiration to all those around him. Elsa, her children and everyone else they had met had felt it, been drawn to his power, the overwhelming force of his charisma. It was no real surprise she had stayed with him when he had asked her all those years ago, abandoned her family and everything she had ever known to be at his side.
"Mama," the boy grabbed her hand playfully, she smiled in response,
"Go on Vaas," she motioned to the clearing outside, "go play with your sister," her smile faded as she watched him join his sibling next to the chicken coop. A small swell of heartache made her usually bright eyes darken as she stared out at them. It wouldn't be long before Hunapo would be back. With a sharp intake of breath to clear her mind, she took one last glance over her shoulder before venturing back into her home to make a start on her chores.
The gentle creaking of wood echoed though her ears. The sun had started to creep towards the end of the horizon, pouring out the last vestiges of warmth into the small island and all of its inhabitants before its departure. Elsa's ears picked up as the roar of an engine grew closer. Her attention drifted back to her task, her brow knitted as she plunged the needle through the rough fabric, mentally counting the seconds until her husband returned. A small smile danced on her lips as the happy cries of her children welcoming their father home met her ears. With only a moment's pause, Elsa rose to her feet, clearing the well-loved table before her and packing away the clutter as neatly as she could manage. Her eyes examined the collection of shelves for a moment, making sure that everything was tidy and in its place. The hurried pounding of excited feet grew closer, she turned to face the doorway, her face beaming with a pleasant smile.
"Mama!" her little ones chimed in unison, Vaas stumbled into her, his little face sporting a broad, proud grin,
"Papa killed a demon!" her daughter let out an excited laugh,
"I bet his eyes were red and hot like fire!"
"Yes, Citra," Hunapo's voice made his wife jump, her eyes focused on him as he made his way over to them, "His eyes were like fire, the coal in his heart fuelling his murderous rage," Hunapo's voice was playful, yet tinted in menace.
"My papa is the strongest warrior," Citra said, her youthful face beaming with pride. Hunapo laughed and heaved her over his shoulders. Vaas stared up at the two, a small smile on his face as he watched his sister giggle. Else knelt down beside her son, wrapping her arms around him,
"And one day when you're all grown up, you will be strong, my darling little warrior," she whispered. Vaas simply smiled proudly at his mother.
"Elsa," Hunapo started, carefully placing Citra back onto the wooden floor. The two watched each other for a moment before her husband finally spoke, "Hunting is hungry work." Vaas watched his mother as she nodded sweetly at his father's statement and began collecting a mass of cooking utensils before heading swiftly out the door to cook their dinner.
"And what did my children do while I was away?" Hunapo removed his rifle, hanging it beside the doorway,
"Vaas and me went tiger hunting!" Citra exclaimed happily, her bright eyes begging for her father's approval,
"Tiger hunting?"
"Yes, but there were no tigers anywhere. It's lucky for them because we would have killed them and made nice coats out of them. Vaas and me would have beaten them up really hard!" The little girl clenched her fists as she was drawn further into her story, punching at the imaginary beasts, "Vaas said we should climb up high so we could see them but they were not there, but then Vaas fell down and hurt his arm and the crying would have scared them off-"
"Citra," her brother hissed, cutting her off, his full cheeks beginning to glow crimson, "I did not cry." His sister watched him for a moment, visibly surprised at being snapped out of her train of thought. Hunapo reached down and examined his son's wound, a bloodied purple patch above his elbow caught his attention.
"Crying over a scratch like that?" their father's voice was low,
"I didn't cry but it really hurt, papa..." There was a tense pause,
"No, no, Vaas did not cry. I think that I cried because I was worried." Vaas shot a quick and thankful glance at his sister.
"Is that so...?" Hunapo knelt to face his son, "Do you see this?" he gestured to a large scar running from his collar bone to his navel, "That, my son, was very painful. But I did not cry." Vaas' eyes stared at the lumpy scar tissue, tracing over the snakelike curve of it as he tried to imagine how much pain an injury like that could cause. "Do you know what I did?" His hazel eyes slowly peered up at his father, he shook his head, "I grabbed the demon by his neck," he placed a heavy hand on the nape of Vaas' neck to emphasise his point, "and I thrust my blade into his heart." Hunapo cracked a brief smile at the little boy and patted him before rising to his feet. "Remember that, my son."
Elsa watched as her little ones and Hunapo emerged from their shack to join the rest of the village for dinner; she stared at her son, his head lowered in what seemed like shame. A sad smile split her blank expression as she watched Citra place a comforting hand on his back. Images and voices raced through her mind as she tried to decide what her husband might have said to them in her absence.
"Elsa?" her friend's voice cut through the haze of her thoughts,
"Sorry, Ani, you were saying?" Ani raised a curious eyebrow at her friend before motioning over to the stack of plates beside her,
"Pass me those." Elsa obliged, "You are not with us today, are you?"
"My mind is... otherwise occupied," she confessed, her voice nearly as low as a whisper, "I heard the men got into some trouble today?" Ani smirked, keeping her eyes on the boiling pot of stew before her,
"I thought Hunapo the Brave would have at least told his wife by now." Elsa smiled slightly at the mention of her husband's nickname,
"He most likely has not had the chance."
"Maka said they encountered some of those filthy foreigners." Elsa risked a quick look over at her family, the words 'filthy foreigners' stabbing at her gut like needles. "They sicken me," Ani muttered, "They come here like this island is their own, they enslave and they corrupt everything they touch... At least those... creatures usually have the good sense to stay away from us." She paused, taking a small glance at her foreign friend realising how what she had said could be misconstrued, "It is a wonderful thing," she smiled warmly at Elsa, "We found a foreigner worthy of a Rakyat heart." Elsa smiled sweetly at her, it was true that since she had met Hunapo, she had been welcomed into the heart of his people, something had started to fester after all the years. Not long after she had decided to stay, a small group of vicious thugs had laid claim to the island she now resided on. What Ani had said was true, no matter how poorly she had phrased it, those foreigners were ruthless and brutal. The group was small at first, then it seemed like more of them had arrived on her new home each day. The other inhabitants of the island had reacted in radically different ways to the invaders, some had hid, some had come to the Rakyat for protection and others had tried to integrate themselves into the foreigners' world by becoming as useful as possible to the beastly creatures. Elsa's eyes absent-mindedly traced over her family; Hunapo and his Rakyat had seemed to go out of their way to welcome her into their culture, their homes, and yet, in her most silent moments, she knew she would never really be one of them.
After dinner, Elsa sat at the dining table watching her husband complete their nightly ritual. Hunapo sat on the floor in front of her children telling them the great history of their beloved tribe. As gifted as Citra was at telling captivating tales, it was Hunapo who reigned supreme. Her little ones stared up in absolute silence as their father delivered the fables end.
"Papa, papa," Citra shifted in her seat with excitement, "Tell us about the giant's skull again."
"Not tonight, my daughter," he smiled, his weathered skin creasing under its pull, "You must learn the way of our people, feel it when the wind blows, sense it when the river churns and see it when the enemy is near. These lessons are important to you both, as the future rulers of the Rakyat." Elsa sat in silence, only half listening to the speech she had heard Hunapo make a thousand times before and surely would a thousand times again. "As a warrior of the Rakyat," he began in his native tongue, "You must be at one with this land, be at one with the blades of grass beneath your feet and with the skies above us." It made her feel uneasy, that no matter how long she had lived there or how many welcomes she had received, very few of the Rakyat had shared their language with her. A few words and phrases here and there but never anything too in-depth. The long speech eventually came to an end, Hunapo leaned closer to the little ones, placing a hand on their shoulders, "I tell you this because it is your birthright, my children." He placed a kiss on Citra's head and patted Vaas on his shoulder, "One day," he took a deep, relaxed breath, "When you have grown and proved you are worthy of the Tatau, you will be our saviours." Elsa felt a lump form in her throat as she watched Hunapo usher the little ones off to bed. "One day they shall make us all proud," he whispered to himself, taking a seat opposite his wife. "Elsa, are you troubled?" his words implied compassion but his tone lacked any feeling. Her hazel eyes met his as she toyed with the idea of telling him how she felt, really telling him how she felt. "Do not make me beg," he warned with only a small hint of joviality evident in his tone.
"I'm just..." she chewed the inside of her lip, "overwhelmed."
"Elsa," he cautioned, knowing full well she was hiding something.
"I," she paused, her nerves jumped as she tried to wrap the right words around her thoughts, "It is just, they are so young..."
"The young must learn; it is my duty. My duty as their father and the leader of my people. I saw it Elsa," he held his hands up to emphasise, "I saw them rise, rise upwards and save us from those..." he glanced at her for a moment, "Filthy outsiders," he muttered in his mother tongue, "I saw them, fighting side by side for their people, driving those out who dared to challenge our strength."
"They are just children, Hunapo-"
"No," he snapped, a little louder than he meant to, "They are our saviours. Do you doubt me? Do you doubt me as your husband, Elsa? As your better? You don't believe I have the strength to shape those children into the glorious leaders the Rakyat deserve?"
"Of course I do, Hunapo, I didn't mean-"
"I am sick of your disrespect. You come here and I take you in, I provide you with everything you have ever wanted and this is the respect I receive?" Elsa could feel her bottom lip quivering as his words cut at her heart like blades,
"Hunapo, please-"
"Do you know what happened today?" Elsa shook her head, desperately trying to avoid his furious stare, "Citra lied to me. She covered up Vaas' moment of weakness." Hunapo stopped, as if waiting for an explanation, "Just as you cover for his weakness. You coddle him, Elsa, you are making him frail."
"He is just a child!" she snapped back and immediately regretted it. The silence was deafening in the little hut as he sat there watching her. Without a word he rose to his feet, leaning over the table so he could stare her directly in the eyes.
"No, Elsa. No he is not."