The Legend of Hombarume (Legends Series, #1)

24.

The sudden disappearance of the prince had no doubt brought confusion to the villagers, especially after one of their own was arrested for it then later on released. A fresh rumour was now spewing even more confusion and fear within the people of Rujeko village, the rumour that the prince was a beast, an abomination.

No sooner than Hombarume had been released, word had already travelled far and wide that Pomerai was apparently a creature of the night that roamed freely during the day. The ghastly ones, even worse than the ones they called zvikwambo. This was a very concerning story and as it is with every concerned group of people, there is only one offspring, widespread panic.

Consider the extent of the panic, especially when there is another siting of the beast that had been mythical a day or two ago. Consider the extent of the panic when every tragedy that will occur in the future will be attributed to the beast, the Chief’s own son.

No one would publicly condemn him, no one would be caught speaking ill of anyone of royal blood but when people gathered in small groups and shared beer and wild fruits, the talk was only but inevitable.

The incident that would later spread the panic happened the same day Hombarume was released. No one saw it coming at this point and no one had really digested the idea that was being peddled, the idea of a vile creature roaming the village. No one even turned a hair about the death of the healer, about the boy who was left behind but soon enough they would care, soon enough there would be so much chaos that it would be the only thing they cared about.
Soon.

***

The night saw Anesu traversing through it with only but an oil lamp to guide him to where he needed to be, the mysterious pool. He had almost told his two new companions about it before they both insinuated that it didn’t exist. He saw no use in protesting further about it so he foolishly decided to prove to himself that what he had seen was real.

The silence of the night was haunting, partnered by the howling of the soft wind as he walked slowly and patiently guided his small orange sliver of light that could be seen bobbing about in the pure darkness. If a witch attacked him, no one would know or help him because only a few dared travel the night, late alone venture into the thick bushes after nightfall. There were far too many stories for them to ignore.

Anesu walked on, shoving his fear to the very back of his mind as he was heavily motivated by the urge to know what was going on. He at that point also remembered that one of the voices had alluded to him being of royal blood which was extremely absurd. The night was quiet and you could see a few orange flickers in the homesteads until the light eventually stopped as Anesu got to the path through the forest that led to the stream.

The pool was there, a still large mass of water in the middle of nowhere, well hidden from prying eyes and those that would taint it. It didn’t exist only in his mind like the two village fellows had suggested. It was as real as what he had seen that very morning, day turning to night and the base of the pool disappearing, almost taking his life. He stared at it for a while longer, still deciding on what to do. Would he get back into the water again or would he just stay on the edge and wait for something to happen?

He looked around, placing his lamp on the ground while searching for the golden head, maybe it had been there the whole time. It wasn’t there. Maybe it was too dark to really see, or maybe he should actually get back in the water where he had found it early on.

He removed his garments before becoming fully immersed in the still clear water which was cold. The pool wasn’t deep at all, he made a shallow dive and he got to the bed then back up. He had now begun to get acquainted with the water, fully appreciating its coolness when something pulled at his leg, jerked really hard and pulled him to the bottom of the pool. It was the man who had sat at the edge of the pool earlier. As soon as Anesu got to the bottom and had identified who had pulled him in, everything began whirling around like the pool was spinning and suddenly, what had been up was now down. The base of the pool was above Anesu’s head and when he looked to the stranger for answers, he had already disappeared.

How was he going to get out of the water? He was running out of air and soon the water would fill his lungs and he would drown. He looked up above him again to be sure of what was happening, but there was surely no escape. When he finally looked down, he noticed the small glowing light that was slowly increasing and he swam to see if for sure it was the head. Just like what had happened early on in the morning, as soon as he retrieved the golden artefact, something changed, the pool whirled back to normal again just in time for him to breathe.

‘Why did you return?’

The stranger who had been in the pool with him earlier was now sitting on the edge of it like he had been that morning- or night.

‘I came for this,’ Anesu said, pointing at the head amid his heavy breathing.

The golden head was still shining and water was dripping from its surface.

‘Leave while you still can.’

The stranger disappeared and Anesu decided to heed his warning and leave now that he had the head. He grabbed his lamp which was still where he had left it and started to walk back. After a few steps he started feeling heavier and heavier, like something was weighing him down, then he heard the invisible voice behind him laughing boisterously in its deep horrifying tone and he turned around immediately. At last he saw what was beyond the ghastly voice.