AKAME ASSASINATION (29)
"Koji… a tourist?" The man couldn't see the figure well in the darkness, "Your name, it isn't one I know. What tribe are you from?"
"Not a tribe you know of." Koji answered.
"How?"
"Like I said, I'm a tourist."
"You mean you're not from around here?"
"Yeah."
The man lowered his machete, "You should leave then."
He then walked passed Koji to pick up the piece of cloth he had dropped previously. "You have come at a bad time."
"Have I?"
"Yes, things are happening and there is a limit to how many people I can trust."
"I'm not asking you to trust me, in fact I haven't asked for anything so far. So why drop your guard?" Koji observed the man's behavior not to be typical.
"You took the time to learn our language you don't seem too bad."
"I learned it because I travel a lot for work."
"Work?"
"Yes, I'm a hunter." Koji answered.
"But why travel a lot to hunt?" The man went and sat back in his previous position, "Are you into exotic meat?"
"Yes, you could say that." Koji then turned his attention to the herd of cattle and flock of sheep he had brought, "Seems a bit too early to be grazing."
"Normally, but due to the recent incidents I can't really afford to do it any other time."
"Incidents?"
"Yes, the reason I have telling you to leave. I can sense a war between our two tribes brewing, truly is concerning."
"War is always bound to happen is it not?"
"Mh?" The man chuckled, "So you believe that too?"
"Naturally, doesn't everyone. Put more than 3 people on an island and a conflict is sure to arise. Those who don't think that are living in denial."
"Denial of what?"
"Denial of reality." Koji's voice was low this entire time as though speaking from a place of experience rather than pulling whatever he was saying out of his ass, "Real life people are messy, and greedy, and selfish. If everyone was happy, optimistic and loving and caring wouldn't you have more land to graze your flock?"
The man didn't answer, he let Koji continue.
"Wouldn't we all be living in a place where we could hunt freely and do whatever it is that brings us joy? But it isn't like that, is it? I do agree though, war is a pointless waste of resources and time."
"And human lives."
"?"
"That's the most important part, is it not? The amount of human lives lost to achieve the goals of foolish leaders who don't want to get their hands dirty?"
Koji shrugged, "I suppose that is something to consider when talking about it."
"Something to consider?"
"Tell me, do you hate war?"
"What gave you that idea?" The man was being sarcastic.
"Its ok to hate it and its ok not to want to be apart of it, you can choose if you want. But you can't also deny the fact that you can also choose to be apart of it. Even if you say you have no choice, there is always a choice and sometimes people chose to kill other people for their own sake and what they believe in.
The white folk you talk about, all they try to do is instigate you guys and poke you in the direction they think will benefit them. What do you people do about the situation? Come together under a shared threat so as to figure out how to do it? Or do you blame the other party first because they are closer and easily accessible?"
"…"
"In reality maybe there should be a war, maybe people should fight to the death and maybe you should lose everything then maybe you'll understand how not to be played for fools."
"How are we the fools?" The man stood up, Koji couldn't see but he could sense the rage in his voice. "Whose fault is it we are in this position? Those white folks refused to even hold meetings to discuss how we can help each other, all they care about is their position and wanting to grab more land for themselves. We've played by the book and look at us now."
"So you people try playing the victims? Grow up, if its that obvious then tell me are you and the Massai going to hold a meeting to discuss your recent kidnappings?"
"I know it wasn't them who did it…"
"Then why aren't you telling the elders?" Koji poked more and more, "Why are you challenging me about it? A man from a foreign land who is going to leave you to your war and go live out a life somewhere else. I might even forget about this as I move on simply because its not my home. But you and everyone else have the power to change that using your words rather than getting all angry and frustrated that the white folk are actually using their brains to try and extort you. If you want something done right, you better learn to do it yourself. I wise man once taught me that."
The man couldn't say anything, because all of what Koji had said was something he believed. It was something he should've invested in, instead of whining about it all the damn time.
"So its really the white folk who are doing this?"
"I'd say obviously but if you didn't know then I guess it wasn't that obvious."
Koji came to this conclusion the same way any regular person using their brains would come to this conclusion.
"If you guys fight each other then there would be no need for them to do that. They have an image to uphold and doing it this way, in this nice clean way they won't be caught and can claim your land."
"How?"
"That's the part I'm trying to figure out. Its been a day and I still haven't, but I'm getting close, some theories are brewing so I'll find out what its about."
Koji turned and was walking away.
"Wait!"
Koji stopped.
"You just came here to tell me that?"
"I guess so."
"Why?"
"You aren't asking the right questions."
"What do you mean?"
Koji pointed back at the bushed, "Why haven't you asked me about the creature over there, where is came from, what its doing here and if I know anything about it?"
"Um…"
"Its because you're scared. Not of that creature, or the war, or even the white folk. You're scared that knowing the truth will hurt you in one way or another, you are scared of the truth. Unburden yourself, the truth might be hard to hear, but if you don't hear it you'll just become another ignorant fool."
Koji continued walking away this time his back turned to the man.
"Koji!" His pronunciation wasn't perfect but it was good enough, "It doesn't feel right that someone from a different tribe should help us with our problems."
"Good thing I'm not helping." Koji waved the man off as he walked away.
TO BE CONTINUED!