The Legend of Hombarume (Legends Series, #1)

67.

'But my husband, you are not well,' Chemedzai said.

'I have to go find her, I have to do everything I can to help, I am already losing light,' Garikai replied.

'But who will take care of you? What if something dreadful happens to you?'

'May the gods forbid it,' Garikai replied.

'Please my husband, I worry you are not in the right mind to be wandering around the village, wait for the elders to do what they must,' Chemedzai pleaded.

'Simba, wherever he is, would never forgive me if I lost his bride on top of him, I will not allow this to happen, I cannot allow this to happen.'

Garikai still saw Simba's face and his voice was constantly ringing in his ears.

'It should have been you,' he said.

It kept on plaguing him as he set out to look for his bride to be who had now mysteriously disappeared just like his nephew had, like fated lovers, disappearing into the void together, except he knew that there was something terribly wrong, something had happened to Simba, or whoever it was that was visiting him.

Now Garikai had new motivation to find Cheneso. After what her father had said, he suspected that he was not the only one who was being taunted by spirits from beyond. He did not want to reveal this to him for fear of what his reaction would be, but now he knew that if he found Cheneso, he would get more perspective on what was happening to him.

As Garikai left the hut, he found himself falling into the strange pool, trying as best as he could to swim, but he felt like his body was being weighed down by rocks, he kept slashing the water, trying as best as he could to defeat it but this time it was getting the better of him, this time he had failed. Suddenly, someone extended their hand out to him. He was coughing and wheezing, while the water was swirling around him, trying to swallow him. He grabbed the hand without any hesitation.

When his head was finally above water enough for him to look up without taking another gulp of water, he realized that it was Simba who had saved him, but this time, he could recognize his kind eyes and his soft voice, this time he was sure that the person in front of him was his beloved nephew. Just as soon as he started to feel like he had been saved, he felt his hand slipping, he was losing his grip, and when he looked up at Simba, he found the terrible smile on his face again while he was hovering in the air above him like a bird.

'It should have been you,' he said.

'No, no, no!'

And before he knew it, he was on the path from his homestead, dripping wet like he had actually been in the water. He stopped for a moment, thinking about what his wife had said to him, how worried she was about him, then he thought about what had just happened and he tried to attach a meaning to it. Did Simba really believe that he was supposed to be the one to encounter whatever evil that took him instead? Or what is some sort of depraved creature that derived pleasure from tormenting him?

Either way, it seemed to be working wonders, slowly but surely, he was losing his grip on reality and he was terrified that whatever was happening would take him, kill him at some point. Perhaps he was being taught a lesson by the gods, that he should have taken care of family, been at Simba's side, perhaps then he would still be here. He did not know the gods to be so cruel, but then he did not know the gods at all.

As he thought further about family and being by their side during times of trouble, he came to the conclusion that he had to be by his wife's side and protect her and his children from whatever was happening in the village. When he turned around to head back, he found that he was no longer on the path but in the middle of the pool again, but this time, the water was not trying to devour him, it was calm and relaxing, even warm.

It was dark and the sky was lit by tiny fireflies that hovered around with their lit bodies, just as Simba had mere moments earlier. It seemed so peaceful, so quiet and tame. Unlike a few moments ago when his nephew had tried to drown him, now he was just floating around in the water, too scared to do anything, knowing fully well that Simba would appear at any moment, blaming him yet again for what had happened to him.

After a few moments of noticing that nothing was happening, he started pushing his body towards dry land. He had not been entirely able to swim or been a lover of water, but he was surprised at how he could easily move his body out of the water, like he was a raft in the river. When he got to the edge of the pool, he noticed something at the other end of the pool, an animal staring right at him, and as it came closer to the water, the fireflies lit it up to reveal that it was a sabertooth lion, beasts that they had only heard of in tales from their grandparents, with fangs so long and dangerous..

It was huge and it roared at him as soon as he expressed panic. He started to step back from the water, his drenched legs quivering constantly from the new fear that had now infiltrated him. It kept on approaching the water as if it wanted to take a drink, but Garikai did not want to take any chances so he started to move faster, making sure that it was still in clear view, then he could have sworn that it was now on the water, not sinking but moving slowly, shifting forward as if it was on a solid slippery surface. He could not believe his eyes, but he knew instantly that he had to start fleeing at once.

At that exact moment, the lion took a marvelous leap and landed somewhere in the middle of the pool. Garikai ran faster than he had ever done before but he could feel it, he could feel that the creature was right behind him, ready to pounce, ready to end his life. At that same moment, he tripped and he knew that it was over for him, but as soon as he hit the ground, he felt the impact onto the dry sandy ground instead of the wet forest he had just been in, he was back near his wooden gate where he been and could taste the blood in his mouth.