Vol. 1: Chapter 05 – New Friends part 1

Like Don't move Unlike

 

46

Translated and edited by Tianic

[dropcap]I[/dropcap] heard screaming, fire, and explosions. I’m holding strange a weapon, and I’m killing with it. I encountered people and I killed them. Mists of blood erupted from my casualties’ bodies. Fragments of muscles and organs were dancing in the air. Dead bodies descended from the sky in all the ways possible. I don’t! I don’t wanna watch any longer! I was screaming, but I felt there was a stone on my chest. I couldn’t speak.

Then my back touched the ground. A disgusting fat man stepped on my chest. He was laughing! He’s laughing! I was overwhelmed with hatred, sadness, and a little regret.

“Don’t blame me… I have to abandon you.”

“At least with you together!”

My powerless hand let go of a silver object that was shining red. Looking at their dilated pupils, frightened face, and muddled steps. I was extremely satisfied… hahahahaha…you want me dead! You are going down with me! COME ON! 

BOOM… The thing in my hand exploded, my fingers were gone, pale bones were all that were left on my arm… I smelled of death.

It was a drastic explosion. The fire destroyed everything.

“NOOOOOOOOOOO!”

I struggled to awake, there were beads of sweat mixed with tears on my face, streaming down. I was shivering in the cold. What a terrible… terrible dream… Who was that man in my dream? He’s definitely not me. I didn’t like killing.

The sun’s coming up! It brought warmth on my face, drove away all the cold from last night, so comfy!

“Cohen, say goodbye to your father.”

“Yes! See you, tomorrow father!”

“Cohen, be a good boy. You want anything from DC?”

“I want books! A lot of books!”

“Sure, I’ll bring a lot of books then.”

“Pinky swear!”

“Of course, father will never forget what I’ve promised to Cohen.”

“Thank you, father! Cohen will be a good boy!”

---

Soon I got bored, my mom was with my father, brothers were in class. I began counting birds under the garden tree, thinking about what to do today? Now no one seemed to have time to play with me. Thin finally I decided to go out.

Hurried with lunch, I grabbed granny’s book and ran out. I returned the book and wandered alone on the market. There were some children over there, I decided to go and talk with them.

At a quiet corner of the market, a discussion about “fat sheep” was taking place.

“That guy, take a look. That guy with black hair.”

“Yeah, boss, I saw him.”

“Marfa, can you see how much money he has?”

“Boss, me and Jack saw he has a lot of money, the yellow ones.”

“You stupid, that’s called gold.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Moya, you go and fight with Jack in front of him. Marfa, you and I take the gold.”

“But Wilder… no, boss! Jack is my brother. I promised my father no bully. Can I beat up Marfa?”

“Shit! If you beat up Marfa then who’s going with me to steal… no… get the gold?”

“Ok, boss, I know. Jack, I’ll go easy on you. Bear with me, we’ll have food once we get the money.”

“Just do it, I’m not afraid of pain.”

The boss, Wilder assigned the job. When Moya was about to fight with Jack in front of the fat sheep. The ‘fat sheep’ came right to them.

“Hello there! What are you doing? Can I join you” I said, not knowing anything about I being the fat sheep.

Four kids aging 7, 8 years were quite baffled when they saw me going towards them.

“Boss, am I still fighting Jack?” The running-nose boy asked the boy with grey hair.

“Fight my ass! You stupid!” The grey hair snapped.

“Hey, you boy! What’re you doing here?” The grey hair asked me toughly.

“Oh, I wanna see what’re you guys are up to. I’m alone. Can I play with you?” I answered honestly.

“Play? Who wants to play with you. We are doing business, go away!” The grey hair looked really unfriendly.

“Business? What business? Can I join you?” I had no idea that I was asking to join their gang.

“Dress like that you must be a nobility, what can you do?” The running-nose boy said.

“I can do a lot of stuff.”

Looking at me, the grey hair pondered, then said, “Alright, if you want in, you call me boss.”

“Why call you boss? You don’t look much older than me?” Boss… what a familiar word.

“Are you stupid? Boss means leader!” The nose boy said, “Wilder is our leader, so we call him boss! Wilder is very brave! Last time when we were hungry. He climbed up the cliff behind the old red-nosed man’s garden and stole… no, got apples for us.”

“What? Are you guys getting starved very often?”

“Yes, you have something to eat?”

“Yeah, what do you want?” Luckily I have money on me today.

“You! Really?”

“I want bread!”

“Jack loves meat!”

“Marfa want chicken!”

---

Five kids with their belly full were lying on the grass.

“Wilder, is this the place you climbed last time?” I pointed to a steep hill and asked, “It doesn’t look so hard at all.”

“Well, why don’t  you give it a try.” Wilder said lazily, “to the top it’s the red nose’s garden, and if you go up there and grab an apple, I’d call you boss.”

“Really?” I asked, “You call me boss?”

“Positive.”

“Ok!” Such a brilliant name will belong to me!

“When I saw him walking towards the tiny cliff with his eyes shining, I knew I was not boss any longer…” Many years later, Wilder, as one of five generals of the empire, said regretfully to his wife.

I had climbed and climbed, tried very hard to keep my body close to the ground. Every piece of grass, tree root had made a great tool for climbing. Every rock became my standing point. I had never climbed anything before. But I was not scared. I had been excited on the contrary.

“This was not hard!”

When I was about to finish begin looking ahead. I saw the thing that was standing in front of me, was not trees full of fruits. It was a… a piercing sword!!!”

Looking at the swinging blade, I can’t help but stick my fingers into the mud tightly. Sweat was all over me once again. My heartbeat was rising. I was waiting, waiting for my trial. Gosh, someone must be coming for me.

“Sis! Come come! I caught a thief!!”

Wait! Did it sound like a girl’s voice? I raised my eyes, what the hell?

A girl younger than me was staring at me with great interest like I was an interesting toy. She had a pair of bright eyes. The sword looked huge compared to her tiny hands, she had to try very hard to hold it steadily.

To my great relief, she was smart enough to lean the sword to a rock.. I’ve always considered a sword as a dangerous thing. I never thought a sword would be any more powerful held by a girl. She could lose the balance and the sword would hit me!

“Sister?” Another girl appeared from behind, “what are you doing?”

“See! I caught a thief!” The girl told her sibling proudly. She pointed at me with a finger.

“Please lady, don’t lose your sword!” I prayed

“Really? Let me see.” The elder girl looked at me, “He’s just a boy!”

“Aren’t you just a child like me! Why are you talking like an adult?”

“Don’t forget you are a thief!” The younger shouted, “I’ll tell grandpa!”

“I’m so sorry, the two of you kind ladies, can I get up there before you do anything? I feel like I’m going down! If I slip away there’ll be no trophies for anyone.” My body was going numb. But to survive, I had to grab all the good words and say them with the most sincere voice.

“Alright, come up.” She sounded like a nice elder sister.

I climbed up clumsily and sat down, all wore out.

“Hey, little thief, what are you doing here?” Needless to think, that mischievous voice came from the younger girl.

I had no other way but to tell her. I pointed to the tree above my head, and confessed, “Apple.” I said tiredly.

“Apple?? Ahahahahaha!!!”

“Why, what’s so funny?” I have no idea what are they laughing at, but definitely laughing about me.

Do you know what it was like to have 2 girls laughing with their hands on the belly? Now I knew. I didn’t even try to figure out why.

When they were back on their feet and told me to look at the tree, I realized how stupid I was… The green and finger-sized fruits were swinging on the trees. This… this is apple??

“Hey, you cute and lovely thief, you don’t eat an apple like that, do you? Or have you no ideas when to eat the apple, don’t you?”

“Sister, don’t laugh at him… look his face is all blushed.”

Dear God, let me die. Stealing apple in spring, what a shame…

“The first time I met him, it was in my grandpa’s garden. Me and my sis were only past 6. He was 7. Black hair, black eyes, delicate face, suddenly appeared in front of us. I didn’t know if he came from the sky or underground. Of course, we treated him friendly. He was so funny. But who would know we both married him.”

excerpt from Diary of Queen Rhona Jr.