As soon as she lifts his foot from my face, she unleashes a barrage of punches. A terrifying grin stretches across her face. I try to move my arms, but Mukasa uses her robotic arm and foot to restrain me. With each blow, a fury plunges into my core, forming a fist, but my mark prevents me from acting.
The girl pauses, her breath heavy. She directs her gaze to the podium, staring intensely at the white-haired man. Then, she grabs me by the neck with both hands, choking me with that terrifying smile. I desperately try to pry her hands away, but even the strength of her non-robotic arm is too much for me.
This may be what I deserve for leaving the girl in the forest to fend for herself. I look towards Mukasa's face as I grip her wrists.
Her face tightens into looming shadows. It reminds me of when Lilah defended me from Porter. This follows the memory of the blood-filled bed, and me holding her wrist to stop the bleeding. If only I could understand why she did it.
Staring into the tense eyes of the girl above me, I can't help but ask the same question. Why harbor so much hatred to the point of wanting to hurt others this way? Why would a human want to harm another?
As my thoughts fill with that question, a jolt of electricity runs through my body, gradually spreading from my right hand over my entire arm. Foreign memories assault my mind like images culminating in a blinding light.
When I open my eyes, I find myself walking on the streets of a city of wooden houses nestled in a forest. The world is much larger. I feel warmth in the palm of my hand, and I see Emru holding it. The people in the village greet her with joy. She extends a warm smile.
"What's up, my little Mu? Weren't you excited to give your Father the gift?"
"Of course! It's just... do you think he'll like it?"
My mother squats down and pets my head.
"Anything you give him, he'll love. Who wouldn't be happy to receive a gift from such a cute girl like you? Besides, this red flower is the same one he gave me when he asked me out," she says while caressing my head.
I blush and return a huge smile.
"You're right!"
My mother stands up and takes my hand again. However, upon returning home, we are greeted by the sound of things breaking. Men stand in front of our house with their weapons drawn.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" my mother shouts.
One of the men approaches.
"Where is your husband?"
"Who gives you the right to barge in like this and wreck someone's home?"
"We're sorry, Emru, we're just following orders."
"Orders? From whom?"
"From your father."
"He would never do this to me without consulting me."
"We have reasons to suspect that your husband is the one causing havoc on the borders of the fire clan."
I can see my mother frowning and narrowing her eyes. She grabs my hand and starts walking.
"Chief, we found him!" one of the men inside our house exclaims.
When the man comes out of the house, I notice the red wooden mask in his hands. Its shape resembles that of a wolf.
The chief takes the mask and looks in our direction.
"Catch them."
"If you come any closer, you'll find out why they say I'm the best warrior in the clan," my mother says with a firm silhouette, standing in front of me.
"That's why we came prepared," he says as more clan warriors emerge from the streets. "Maybe if you were alone, you could handle us."
Emru looks at me and relaxes her expression.
—"Alright, but take me to my father."
The warriors grab us, and in the process, they make me drop my rose. As we leave, I see them crush it under their feet.
Eventually, we reach the top of the great cliff where I visit my grandparents. The grand entrance of the cave always seemed terrifying. The warriors who always welcomed me with warm smiles now tense up and sharpen their faces.
They place us in front of the carved rock throne. My grandfather is seated on it. However, he seems like a different person. I hide behind my mother.
"What's all this about, Dad?"
My mother asks, but my grandfather doesn't look her in the eyes or respond to any of her questions.
"We can start now," he says after a while, looking back behind us.
"What's happening here?" I hear my father's voice.
His short white hair and red irises never fail to bring me happiness even in those moments. I try to run towards my father, but one of the warriors stops me. My father notices this and sharpens his gaze. He stands before the warrior, and eventually, the warrior surrenders and lets him pass. My father pets my head.
"Sorry, Dad, I lost your gift," tears run down my cheeks.
"Don't worry about that. Once this is over, you can give me the gift."
My father positions himself between my grandfather and us.
"There must be a reason why you called me as soon as I returned from my journey. I'd prefer you start explaining, Makusu," my dad says.
"I would also prefer the matter to be resolved as soon as possible," my grandfather extends his arm to receive the wooden mask. "We found this mask in your house. This leads us to believe that you are the one causing trouble on the borders of the great clan."
"Someone could have easily placed the mask there. I hope the great Makusu Puño de Fuego has more evidence to threaten the best warrior of the clan in such a way."
"And you are correct. I wouldn't let such fragile evidence lead me to this conclusion."
The warrior leading the men who wrecked our house steps forward.
"Ilukar, you and your men claim that you were attacked using this mask."
"That's right, sir. My entire squad was attacked by a man wearing this mask when we were supervising the Golden Forest. I had one of the golden slaves follow him to determine his identity."
The warriors bring forward a man with golden hair and dark skin, whom they restrain with chains.
—"Without a doubt, it was this man. I saw him take off the mask."
My grandfather sharpens his face.
—"Ilukar, do you expect me to believe the words of a slave?"
—"Don't worry, sir. I made him swear an Altum oath." Ilukar stands in front of the kneeling man and throws a dagger at him. "By Altum, I command you to cut your own throat if what you say is true."
—"What? This wasn't part of the deal!" the man screams in fury.
The man tries to attack Ilukar, but the moment he disobeys, he starts screaming in pain. His skin begins to dye in this dark gray color. Before I can see more, my mother covers my eyes, and when she uncovers them, a puddle of dark water is in place of the man.
The clan members present exclaim and start talking among themselves, surprised. I can't stop trembling as I don't understand what just happened.
—"Based on irrefutable evidence, I am compelled to sentence the execution of Aleifr Puño de Fuego for the acts of betrayal committed under the name of The Lobo Rojo."
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