Legend of the seven siege

Lionel

I sat at the back of the other children gathered around, my ears paying keen attention and my heart longing for more, far beyond what words can express.

"Oh yes Lord ADLINE, defeated that great god whose name was HUTA(conqueror of all gods)" she said with her face beaming with smiles.

" Wowwwwwww!!!!....." all the kids screamed out feeling energetic.

I wasn't left behind, I felt all worked-up and energetic in my inside having some chills down my spine as I listened carefully to the story nai-nai(grandmother) as we would normally call her shared to us and my imagination flew wide and opened as though a well in me had been unlocked.

I imagined myself all great and mighty as the lord ADLINE, as I rode on my victorious brown horse and a flaming sword of my own coming home victorious and all the villagers hailing, welcoming and worshipping me, this was a picture I couldn't take my mind off. That picture has lingered on in my head for the past two weeks ever since that nai-nai has been coming around to tell us this story and I could say for sure that it woke something in me that I never thought was there.

"Lionel! Lionel! Lionel! you're missing out on the good part" Michael said waking me from my fantasy. I nodded back at him in response, coming back into my reality that I'm just some orphan who nobody will ever love, who nobody knows about, someone who doesn't even know where the next meal is going to come from. Nevertheless I wasn't going to let all that pain and suffering ruin a good story for me.

"Lord ADLINE smashed the golden gem on the earth surface, putting the great HUTA into the core of the earth forever never to be seen again" She said waving her hands from the sky up down to the earth slowly in a dramatic way.

"Woahhhhhhhhhh........." we all chorused excitedly.

"But that's not all, when he smashed the gem on the earth surface the seven siege then appeared all over the country."

"As you all know our country is the center of the universe which possess great powers." She said looking at each and every one of us.

"The lord ADLINE sacrificed himself for the greater good of the future" she said lying flat on the ground playing dead.

"Did he die???" one of the children from the crowd asked curiously. I was also curious to know if the fictitious man I looked up to actually died.

"Nothing has been heard of him ever since" nai-nai said.

"uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.........tell us some more nai-nai" all the children chorused and she smiled back at us.

"When lord ADLINE smashed the gem on the earth surface and the seven siege appeared he sent a message through a magical talisman to all villages, that the siege must be activated every twenty years. This is done to keep the great HUTA in the core of the earth this has now become a new tradition for many villages who believe and it must continue in every generation" she said moving her hands and body to the rhythm of her story.

"Nai-nai, do I get to be among those who activates the siege and keep HUTA in the core of the earth?"Michael asked.

Michael and I have been good friends for fifteen years, he was my bed mate in the orphanage home I envied him a lot, but in a good way and I only did that because he was so full of joy despite the fact that he lost his parents. I lost my parents but I couldn't find anything that was worth being joyful about because losing my parents was losing my joy but I never understood the secret behind his joy. Here we are at twenty still listening to children stories.

Nai-nai laughed out......

"I don't know Michael, but some of you will be chosen by the gods or rather for some of you its your destiny," she paused, looking around.

"But, that will be at the right time, when you're older to activate the seven siege" nai-nai replied so full of joy looking straight into my eyes and winked. I shuddered at the wink.

Why did she just wink at me? Does it mean that I get to be one of the chosen ones? Does it..... No I'm probably just overthinking it.

"Nai-nai tell us some more......" the children cried out, snapping me out of my impossible thoughts.

"That will be all for today children. Some other time I'll tell you some more" She said, dismissing us.

"Next time, I'll tell you about the wolfs and the werewolves and all of the mythical creatures that exist in our world," she said, waving at the children.

All the children went back to their respective houses, but I hung around the corner just looking at her.

Not so long after the children had gone home, the villagers, parents of the children walked angrily towards nai-nai.

One of the mothers of the kid stepped forward and stood in front of nai-nai.

"You foolish woman, you need to stop feeding our children with stupid and untrue stories."

"Yes my child is beginning to have nightmares just from hearing the story" another mother said angrily.

"Get out from our village"

"You do not belong here, leave here at once or we'll kill you" the woman in front of nai-nai threatened.

She bent down to pick the coins she got from telling today stories as she picked up the bag where she kept her coins, the bag turned upside down and all the coins fell to the ground I lunged forward to help her.

I got a better view of her, being up close to her. She always had on a cloak, her long grey hair flowing down her shoulders, her blue eyes were so beautiful and the wrinkles on her skin the testament of how old she has gotten.

As I bent down to help her pick her coins I looked up to see their angry, unbearing faces. They were probably mad at me for helping her, for helping an outsider, for helping someone that they do not like.

A memory of me being in a similar situation came rushing into my mind, a memory I have chose not to remember. I quickly gathered the coins for her, stood up immediately and gave her the coins I had gathered.

"So you're going to help this strange woman?" The woman standing in front of nai-nai asked, looking at me with a stern face.

"It's no wonder you're an orphan," she said, tossing me aside. My forearm slightly grazing the ground, wincing in pain.

She then turned to look at nai-nai.

"And as for you leave this village and never ever return," she threatened nai-nai pointing at her.

The villagers present there all shouted in agreement that she should leave the village

"GET OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"GET OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

I looked at her out of pity she was old and yet still mistreated this way and despite all that treatment she looked towards my direction and gave me the most captivating smile ever.

She walked away passing through the gates, The villagers after seeing her walk through the gates all turned and returned back to the village. She turned back to look at me again with a smile on her face and I found myself smiling back at her, she was the sweetest thing I've known.

At that moment I started feeling some chills on my skin and I started having some thoughts that brought about some questions that immediately flooded my mind.

'Who is she? Could she be my nai-nai? My aunt? I would love to have an aunt' I wondered and giggled inwardly knowing quite well that she wasn't any of those things. I'm an orphan and will always will be.

I watched her squat slowly by the gate and noticed that she had dropped something just by the gate, she then smiled at me once again and then walked away.

I ran to the gate immediately to see what she might have dropped. I saw a piece of clothing, I took it from the ground and some things fell from it, some coins and an old locket necklace.

"Lionel! Lionel!!" Michael shouted from afar running towards me. I quickly put the treasured gifts in my pocket

"Yes, yes, yes Michael what is it????"

"What was that???" He asked, looking at me suspiciously.

"Huh???" I pretended as though I didn't know what he was talking about.

"Don't pretend Lionel I saw the way the woman looked at you and you came to pick up something here right?"

"Michael" I chuckled, making it seem like as though he didn't know what he was saying.

"It's nothing. I have no idea why she's behaving that way towards me and it was just a piece of clothing she dropped I came to pick." I said showing Michael the clothing to convince him that it was nothing.

He looked intently at my eyes to know if I was lying and he was convinced.

"Alright then," he said. I sighed in relief.

"C'mon let's go home it's getting late" Michael said holding my hands as we ran to the orphanage that we called home.

Luckily for us we could catch up for dinner. We were served some slimy soup and bread. Well, at least I could get something to eat today.

I rushed my food and went outside to the side of the house. I brought out the locket necklace. I opened the locket to see if there was any valuable thing and then I saw a painted picture inside it.

The picture was a man, carrying a baby boy who looked like he was twelve months old. The baby looked a whole lot just like me. I looked at the picture intently and I could instantly see the resemblance. It was me and a man in the picture. The man looked just like me and his face looked awfully familiar but I couldn't remember where I had seen him before. For all my life that I can remember I've lived in this village alone. So, who is this man?

I placed the locket necklace on my chest. Whoever this man was he must be related to me somehow and for nai-nai to have this locket necklace then she must know something that I don't.

I held it closely to my chest, this necklace felt like a treasure, far beyond the coins nai-nai gave me. Now I have a treasure that's worth fighting for. I couldn't be less happy

I could somehow feel that I and this man were connected somehow.

And in that moment I received a sense of purpose and I'm going to pursue it to the ends of the earth.

I lacked purpose in this village, but upon seeing this necklace I found a purpose and that is finding this man, finding nai-nai and figure out the truth.