The castes

The torrential rains that Mahara and Teunie encountered along the way did not reach Vila de São Paulo.

The afternoon was sunny with the occasional very white and luminous cloud adorning the brilliant blue. Around Isa's house the afternoon sun shone brightly, illuminating the trees and making the black chopins that were perched on their branches shine.

The strong rays of the sun hit an ox cart that was passing in front of the hybrids' house with intense heat. On its wheels, reddish dirt was stuck here and there, revealing its recent passage through some muddy mud road. As it hadn't rained in the village, that cart probably came from some very distant farm that had still received some traces of the rain that had fallen to the north towards Gehucht.

Ox dung was left on the road as the cart passed. The smell was strong and pleasant, Afonso inside the house inhaled it strongly, delighting himself as the poncho touched by Henrique began to glow like green embers. A green fire came out of the mystical fabric in a jet and bathed Henrique's body, which absorbed it.

– It's done. – Said Mahara. – The poncho belongs to you. You are Tuatu's new enforcer.

Isa started to cry. Her last hope was gone.

– And now?

– Keep it well. That is all. There's nothing left to do.

– And when should I pass it on? I mean, for another heir.

– The poncho will let you know when the time comes. For now forget everything and live your life. There's nothing left to worry about. My mission is accomplished. Let's go. Me and Teunie were talking on the way. We are thinking about going to Bahia.

– Oh no, brother! Stay at least a few weeks to kill the longing. And in that time, who knows, I might be able to persuade him to stay in Vila de São Paulo. We still have so much to talk about! Furthermore, I want Alípio to meet him.

Mahara looked at Teunie.

– I think we can stay for a few days. – Said Mahara.

– Then come and settle down in Afonso's room. Afonso, You stay in Henrique's room.

– Yes mom. I'm going to get my things from the room and prepare it for our uncles.

Teunie was full of himself when he was called uncle.

– Tell me uncle. – I wanted to know, Henrique. – One thing I don't understand. When my mother told us the legends... Why didn't the men from the village of Caarô, when they were transmuted into panthers, stay in the village? Instead, they left in the direction of the mystical forest?

– Because, except for the one who was offered as an offering, none of those who are transmuted remember their human life. It's as if they were being born again.

– Hmm...

While Afonso was tidying up the room for the guests, Isa and Mahara chatted, remembering the old days of sharing news with each other about this or that acquaintance. Teunie contributed comments. Henrique, who was just listening, had to leave the room reluctantly. His brother called him to help with the cleaning.

The day passed quickly. Isa prepared the meals with Mahara's help. At the end of the afternoon the boys finished the job. The guest room was ready. They entered the room where the brothers were talking in the company of Teunie.

– We've been thinking. – Said Afonso.

– AND. By the look on your faces, it looks like you were there. – said Mahara.

 Teunie was standing against the wall with his arms and legs crossed. The boys were sitting around the living room table.

 The table was made of noble wood and very well crafted. There must be excellent carpenters in the village, Tênue thought, as she couldn't take her eyes off the wooden table and seats, admiring the exquisite work that had been done with the wood. In Gehucht the furniture was very rustic and did not have the finishing and care of the carpenters in Vila de São Paulo.

– Afonso wants the honor of being the heir. The poncho left Amber when she went underground. So if I go there he will abandon me too and you can bring him to Afonso.

– Oops! Let's go slow with this angle. Things don't work out that way. The poncho left Amber the moment he decided to abandon the world of men and not when he entered the underground to visit it. If that were the case, he would have abandoned me long before Amber was born.

– It's just that you only visited the underground and didn't want to live there. What if I propose to live in the underground city for a while?

– That won't work, my dear nephew. The poncho cannot be fooled...

– Are you sure about that?

– Um... No, I don't.

– Then it's worth trying. – They both looked determinedly at Mahara.

– It seems that I will not be able to persuade them otherwise. Okay, come with me underground for a while, if that's what you want. But I'll just take you there. I have Tenue, I won't leave him to live underground with you. Together with Andries, Amber and Marinus you will be in good hands.

The boys smiled. They felt victorious.

– Hey you! Aren't you forgetting me? – Isa said.

– Take it easy, mom. This decision is not yours.

– He's right, sister.

She got upset and left the room furious.

– Tell me uncle. My mother once commented briefly about glossy green panthers. What do you know about them?

– There are only rumors in the underground city. There were few of them, but they died or simply stopped being useful to the city. Nobody knows for sure what happened. Perhaps only members of the high caste know this.

– What is the underground world like? – Afonso wanted to know.

– Mystical panthers are divided into castes. The lower caste is the descendant of the human child that Caarô delivered to the underground. They are all silver panthers. Any descendant of this child is born silver. This was Tuatu's will. Indigenous legends never dealt with this aspect, as what happened underground was unknown to them. The upper caste is made up of the original violet panthers, that is, the true daughters of Tuatu, the first created by the god. They do not transmute into humans. They say that when they join Tuatu they leave their panther form and take on another non-human form. These panthers are very secretive and keep secrets that we don't know about. During Tuatu's arrival, the lower classes are prohibited from leaving the underground. Only those who were offered can leave with the high caste. I never questioned myself about this prohibition until the god appeared.

– What happened? – I wanted to know, Henrique.

– I have no doubts. It is the high caste panthers and the offerings that open the way for Tuatu to come into this world. Being outside, I mean, outside the underground I could notice the energy of the roars of the high caste panthers and the offerings before the night of clear sky appeared. The energy of its roars opens the way for Tuatu to enter our world.

– What about other castes?

– There's only one more. The middle caste. It is made up of violet panthers, but these are the descendants of the humans that Tuatu transmuted to satisfy his anger. The middle caste can transmute into humans, just like the silver ones, as they are hybrids between humans and the original violet panthers.