The next morning, Omari was in a strange mood, images of his father's dead body flashing in his mind. He sat down, resting his back against the walls of the hut.
A sharp pain exploded between his eyes.He placed his right hand on his forehead and shook his head a bit, the green glow still in his eyes.
Inside the house,Kael and Sekou had their heads planted on their parents' bedroom door, listening in.
"He's our son,how can you say such a thing?" Ayoka spoke.
The chief paced around the room,"It's only a matter of time until he kills someone, and I don't want that someone to be from this family." He sighed.
"If you don't want him dead,then let's abandon him, because I can no longer raise that cursed child."
The words felt like a stab to the heart for Ayoka,"Maybe he is the way he is because you never loved him; you treated him like a murderer from the day he was born."
Slap!!
The moment his hand connected,the world seemed to freeze. The chief stared at his own palm, then at the red mark blooming on his wife's cheek. The rage drained from him, leaving a cold, sickening hollow in his gut. He had never... He would never... "Ayoka..." his voice was a broken whisper.
The two brothers listening instantly ran away after hearing the slap.The chief instantly opened the door when he heard their footsteps, but they were already gone.
He wanted to leave but stopped himself.With his eyes closed, he turned around to see his wife frozen in shock, tears streaming down her eyes.
He extended his hand,reaching out to her, "My wife, I'm sorry," he whimpered, about to hold her hand.
She flinched back as if from a viper.The hurt in her eyes was a sharper pain than any spear.
"What happened to you?"she breathed, her voice trembling.
"Do you hate me too...do you hate me because I gave birth to him?If your belief in that divine doctor is that strong, to the extent of wanting to kill your own son, I will take Omari and leave," she cried.
The chief instantly hugged his wife,holding her tight, his emotions high, afraid of losing her. She shook and pushed, trying to get away from him, but after a few minutes, she finally relaxed but was still in tears.
"I'm sorry,Ayoka, I'm so sorry," the chief apologized.
He continued,"I promise I will change; I will try my best to love him."
Kael and Sekou were heading outside.
"Our father,he hit her. How could he hit her? It's all because of that bad omen," Kael raged.
Sekou placed his right hand on his chin,
"Blaming him for taking my spear didn't work;next time we will steal money and we take father's prize hunting spear, the one from his first alpha kill, and smear it with blood and hide it in Omari's spot. Father will surely get rid of him after that. He has already reached his breaking point."
Omari snapped his eyes open,the green glow brewing with intensity; he heard what they said from outside the hut.
Before Kael and Sekou could reach the door,Omari appeared holding a piece of firewood.
"What did you just say?"
Sekou and Kael took a few steps back.
"Sekou,what's wrong with his eyes?" Kael backed away in fear.
"Seems like bad omen is finally showing his true colours,"Sekou replied, but before he could continue with his taunts, a piece of firewood flew past him, hitting Kael in the head.
Kael fell down,his vision blurry.
"Kael!!"Sekou yelled.
He turned around and Omari wasn't there.
Boom!
A powerful punch landed on his right cheek;one tooth was sent flying as he was pushed three steps to the side.
"You demon..."
Before Sekou could finish his sentence,Omari dashed forward and dove shoulder-first into Sekou's stomach, dropping him to the floor, and instantly started ramming fists into his face.
The glow in Omari's eyes intensified while he used his hand to choke Sekou.
Die!
Omari whispered while hardening his grip on Sekou's throat.
"O...ma..ri...sorry,"Sekou tried speaking while his throat was being crushed. Omari started punching nonstop, sitting atop Sekou.
Ayoka and the chief came running with Kael behind them.He had escaped and went to call them.
The first sight they saw was their third born bleeding out,unable to fight back, being thrashed by Omari. The chief instantly rushed forward, kicking Omari in the stomach and sending him flying and crushing into a wall.
Ayoka's eyes snapped open in shock while she looked at her half-dead son,Sekou, struggling to breathe. The rest of the world went silent and she couldn't think straight.
The chief picked up his spear,"What is that disgusting look in your eyes, you devil child? I should've put you to rest years ago," he said, lifting his spear up, about to kill Omari.
Ayoka,still unable to hear anything and not blinking, just shocked, looked around, unable to understand what was going on. Her eyes landed on her husband about to kill Omari.
She moved her eyes to Omari and saw the green glow in his eyes and the murderous rage in them,"Something is definitely wrong with him; is he truly cursed, a bad omen?"
She took a step forward and started running forward,"What am I doing?" she asked herself.
"No,it doesn't matter if he is cursed; he's my son, I will not let him die like this."
She stopped in front of Omari,hugging him, the spear impaling her in her shoulder.
Ahhhh!She groaned in pain.
"Run!"she yelled.
The world snapped back into focus.The green haze vanished from Omari's vision, and the first thing he saw was the dark stain spreading across his mother's shoulder, the shaft of his father's spear protruding from her body.
The all-consuming rage evaporated,replaced by a cold, gut-wrenching terror.
"Mom?"he whispered, the word a choked sob.
Run!!!!!
Omari,I said RUN!!!
His mother's shout reached him and he could feel a bit of rage in her voice;she was mad at him. He looked to the side and saw his brother lying on the ground covered in blood and instantly understood why she was mad.
He stood up and bolted out of the house.The chief followed and stopped at the door, "Catch him, catch Omari the cursed child, bring him to me dead or alive!" the chief roared with rage.
He quickly returned to his wife,"Ayoka, my stupid wife, why would you do that? Thank god I was able to avoid your vital organs at the last moment."
In the forest outside the village,the hunters and warriors of the Tongo clan were tracking Omari down. A few miles ahead of them, Omari was sprinting.
Branches whipped at his arms as he tore through the forest,the ground uneven beneath his pounding feet. Roots coiled like traps, forcing him to leap and stumble, while the sharp scent of pine and damp earth filled his lungs. Shadows stretched between the trees, and the thrum of his heartbeat seemed to echo against the rustling leaves. Every step cracked twigs and sent startled birds flapping into the canopy above.
The hunters were closing in;he needed to hide. He looked around for a hiding spot, but all he could see were trees. He kept on moving forward.
"He's close,this way," one of the hunter's voices echoed.
Omari started looking around frantically;there was no chance of him outrunning trained hunters.
He started breathing slowly,in and out, to calm himself down a bit, his ears listening intensely. He was the son of a great hunter after all; how could he not have a few tricks of his own?
His ear twitched and he dove to the left,grabbing a venomous snake by the neck, pressing it against the ground. He carefully picked it up and ran forward, looking for a place to hide. The hunters heard his footsteps.
"He's running that way!"
They all bolted,following him. He found the right place to hide while running and turned right and slid on the ground into a small bush and quietly held his snake, waiting.
The hunters reached the area near the bushes he was hiding in.
"Let's spread out;he couldn't have gone far."
They started looking around,whacking and opening bushes.
One of them saw sliding tracks leading to a bush and a sly grin appeared on his face.He slowly followed the tracks and lifted his spear with his right hand into the air, ready to stab, while his left hand was preparing to open the bush.
As soon as he opened the bush,a snake came out flying and bit him right in the eyes.
Ahhhhhh!!!The man screamed.
The other hunters turned and ran towards their friend.Before they could reach him, Omari followed behind the snake, reaching for the man's waist, grabbing the man's knife.
He got on one knee and slashed the hunter on the right leg and bolted,leaving the hunter screaming in pain.
Two of the hunters took chase of Omari while the rest stayed to help their friend.
"I can't run for long;I need a plan; these guys are relentless," Omari thought.
He ran,exhaustion and frustration on his face.
"Wait,the river! I hope this stupid idea works," Omari thought.
He turned and increased his speed,pushing beyond his limits; two veins popped up on his forehead while he ran, gritting his teeth.
After a few minutes of painful running,the river finally came into view. A bitter smile appeared on Omari's face.
"Thank the gods,they didn't bring the dogs. If they did, they would've caught me by now. They must've underestimated me since I'm a child," he thought.
He stopped at the river and stared into the water,"I hope this plan doesn't backfire."
The hunters following Omari finally reached the river.
"That cursed child should be hiding under the water;let's see how long he can last," the hunter boasted.
Omari was hiding underwater and started blowing bubbles up to the surface.
"There,"one of the hunters spoke, pointing at the bubbly part of the water. He slowly walked towards the bubbling part, lifting his spear up, ready to strike. Once he reached the edge of the river,
Haa!!he groaned, stabbing into the water.
"The water near the edge is not that deep,so once he stabs, his spear will get stuck in the mud below, and for just a second... he'll be stuck, and that'll be my chance." Omari thought.
"Got him."Omari shot out of the water, sinking his blade into the hunter's shoulder, barely missing the throat. He pulled the hunter into the water with him and tried to drown him. The hunter struggled for a few seconds but was able to overpower Omari. His friend pulled out his arrow, not knowing where to shoot; he waited, his bow and arrow pointed at the water. The hunter started swimming up, but Omari followed and clung to his back; he pulled the knife out and brought it down into the hunter's back with full force.
Ahhhh!
The hunter tried screaming but started choking on the water.Omari held onto the knife and, using his legs, he kicked himself away from the hunter. Holding his knife, he swam for a few seconds and finally passed out; he had stayed underwater for too long.
The bow and arrow-wielding hunter saw the water turning red and,a few meters away, a body came to the top, floating away.
Seeing that,the hunter thought Omari was dead. His friend's head came to the top, coughing, "Cough, cough, cough, help!"
The hunter dropped his bow and arrow and dove in to save his friend and dragged him out.
He coughed a few times before he spoke,"He got away."
The second hunter quickly picked up his bow and arrow,but Omari's floating body was gone, taken by the water, and he couldn't leave his severely injured friend alone.