The Shelter
Hi all today I'd be sharing a story that was written by a friend of mine and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did. So here's it:
My name is Kida Roland. I am from a small village in Belgium. My village was graceful, green and peaceful until our village was invaded by the global terrorists led by the evil demon; Bruce- that became my husband and the father of child. Before me, I watched my father dragged across town by a wild horse with no one riding it until all his flesh peeled off his body on the rough unforgiving ground. I saw his blood, his innocent blood on the floor and I could not do anything. My only sister whom I adored and cherished and would have given my life for in any world was also taken away from me when an arrow pierced through her heart while we were escaping the cross fire of arrows in the battle field. She was trying to protect me and I could not do the same for her. Only my mum and I were left until they captured alongside other woman for slavery. For 13 months, which is almost five hundred and forty four thousand, three hundred and twenty minutes of her life; she spent subject to the feet of men young enough to be her son. I watched her cry in pain everyday they beat her up, strip her naked if she did the little things wrong. Maltreat her and underfeed her until she could no longer hold on to life. At my age, I considered myself helpless and weak. Other families were gone, homes were destroyed, babies were slaughtered, farms were burnt and there was no stopping them until they took over the whole village and we could do nothing because we became nothing.
Yes, I was young when my life was changed and my dreams were shattered and I had to live with the pain and the agony of watching my family die before me. Every day, the guards would train us to fight for our new master. We would fight each other and only one must always survive. It was either life or death on the field at our age. And I would curl up on my bed in the prison cell every night to cry and wish I had died with my family. I would scream at times praying that the pain would go and I would wake from this dream. I would ask God if he even knew me, because I didn’t know what a girl of eight years would do alone in a world of war. I thought to myself why I was left alive when they could have ended me alongside everyone and I got my answer when Bruce took me forcefully into bed and made me his wife. He showed me love like I have never felt for twelve years while in the prison. He gave me a son that I cherish with all my heart but that does not erase the fact that he is still the monster that created my pain. I will never forget all he did to my life and to my world. Though, he gave me the perfect gift, he must not be alive to make my son like him. I will dedicate my being to protect the remaining people in my village. We will rise from the ashes and defeat Bruce and his darkness from inside. I am not waiting any longer. Even though I have been scarred, I will not hesitate to protect my village with my life and to do that, I created a world away from the pain, away from the destruction where I would personally train my brothers and sisters to fight for their village and for their right. This world far away from everywhere and behind Bruce’s back, is what I called SHELTER.
Throughout all the times I helped my village that has now become my new family in the Shelter, Bruce did not know about it. I made sure he didn’t. Every enemy that found out ended up dead. It is not my fault that I have learnt how to kill so brutally without any sign of remorse as long as my family and my son are safe from the hands of the darkness. On the day we planned for an attack, I made sure my son was taken far away from the village area to a distant land that even I did not know about. He stayed with my most trusted servant and I instructed her that if anything should happen to me, she must protect my son with her life and teach him the necessary skills to take over my place in the village. I could almost not let him go, my son, my life, my handsome little gift from God to give me hope for a better day. To see him leave with her on that horse felt like I loosed another member of my family but this one-this one brought me hope. I would fight for the freedom of my son. I made sure we were ready. All of us were ready to take back our lives and fight till victory. We marched out of the shelter and as I expected, Bruce had been informed of our resistance. He didn’t know who led it but he was very determined to end every competition regardless.
Meeting face to face was our fate. He stood with his hundred men standing behind him with swords and horses and shields and spears and other sharp weapons that were sure to end us because we came to that battle, that day, with nothing but carved weapons, our faith and our bond. When our opponent picked up the attack and ran towards us, the ground trembled and the stones jumped. The sound was loud and fearful. I knew that I wasn’t the only one afraid that we were going to lose. I knew that I wasn’t the only one saying goodbye to our home, our life, our loved ones, our beliefs, our faith and our hope. I had given it all up but still stood strong. If we were going to die, we are going to die fighting not standing, so I sounded our alarm for attack and both sides collided. The battle was grave because you had to be alarm at every moment. As I swung my blade left to right, I had to duck, I had to jump and run. I blinked and the sweat dropped from my lashes and it seemed over as the blade pushed through my abdomen. Everything began to move slowly, and all had ended for me. The lives I had lived and the one my son was going to live flashed through my eyes. I had failed, my son was going to pass through the same thing and I fell on the floor, weak. I could not move and I felt my blood drip from me until I saw it on the floor and on my clothes. Life was leaving me slowly but the battle went on.
I heard Bruce scream from behind me trying to take revenge for me but I could not hold it much longer, that was the last thing I saw.
When I finally opened my eyes, it was a new day. I could not stand-not yet because I was till healing. My son was beside me, smiling at me and I could not help but cry. Whatever happened that day, I don’t know but we won. We got back our village and once again, we felt light. My son could have the perfect life my mother wanted to give me. My son could dream and have his dreams come true just like my father hoped for me. I was going to everything for my son and my family and if any darkness comes again, I am ready to create another SHELTER for them no matter what it takes.
THE END