Part 10 (2)

"Your Highness!" shouted someone from far away.

Governor Babida heaved his head to look in front of him and saw the interim henchman Baba who then began walking up to him at a fast pace and excitedly.

"Your Highness, I'm so happy to see you. I was extremely worried about you. The attack surprised all of us in the mid-evening and we had either to retreat or perish since that strange walking tornado seemed invincible," confessed the aide-de-camp Baba to the woodsman.

"I was outside, on the esplanade of the administrative headquarters, taking some fresh air when unexpectedly the temperature dropped considerably and the wind blew stronger. Leaves, sand, and objects of all sorts therefore began to fly. And then a massive tornado emerged." The henchman Baba recounted to Governor Babida who with the young maiden Suzie listened to him attentively.

"However, what was the most striking was that in addition to its strength, the walking tornado seemed inhabited by an evil spirit with great intelligence. Indeed, it behaved as if it had a conscience. It was purposely following random people to kill them. It was staring at them and then chasing them. It stopped its race when its target escape. And also the imperial warriors didn't know how to handle such a monster, with no body, no bones, and no blood but just made of wind. It was simply invincible." The youngster Baba went on, reporting his side of the story to Governor Babida who was now very thoughtful.

"Thank you, comrade!" said the Governor of Okunde to him.

The lumberjack thereupon rose and entered an intense reflection about the critical situation and the revelation from his henchman about the nature of the new enemy.

Then he spoke to himself: "We shall see. We shall see!" with an air of defiance.

Once his deep moment of thinking was done, he went back to sit next to his bride Suzie who was as well very concerned.

Refugees were moving up and down in the main compartment of the magical cave.

Children were having fun on the playground, unmindful of the danger that was outside, decimating other little boys and girls like them who didn't have the chance to run away to a haven.

Governor Babida was looking at them while his bride Suzie was holding him by the right hand and had her head laid on his right shoulder.

And suddenly the lumberjack as if he had found a way out of the walking tornado threat, stood up and told his entourage: "Wait a minute, I'm coming right back!"

He then started to move toward the exit of the magical underground while the young maiden Suzie, his henchmen Polo and Baba, glanced at him gradually disappearing from their sight, and interrogated themselves about where the Supreme Commander was going and for what purpose.

"But...my love..." said the bride Suzie as her groom Babida was unexpectedly departing.

However, the latter never answered her back. He kept moving forward since what was in front of him at that moment was far more important than anything else, including their marriage.

Putting an end to the walking tornado massacre was now the top of his priorities.

And ultimately, the people behind him could no longer see his tall and massive physique. He was gone to the unknown.

"Where is His Highness heading to ?" asked a refugee who like many others were taken aback by the woodsman's departure.

Nonetheless, no one could give him a response.

The lumberjack was now alone in the long alley that led to the exit of the magical cave.

He walked up very determined to stop the madness that was unfolding on the other side of the rock at the entrance of the shelter.

Finally, he reached the big stone which detected a human presence and opened itself by rolling to the right side.

The movement shook up a little bit Babida, for it was out of the blue.

He got out of the cave which closed on his back. Governor Babida was then struck in the face by the sun which had long risen and was savagely shining over Okunde village.

It was so hot that the black skin of the logger burn and he was forced to rush under a palm tree that was nearby on his left and protect himself from more harm by the impolite hot glowing ball upon the sky.

"Oh my goodness! What a hellish sun up there!" exclaimed Babida as he sheltered under the cooling branches of the palm tree.

"Well, I am going to stay and wait here for some time until the temperature decreases to a bearable level." He then added.

The lumberjack sat on the grass, leaned against the palmea's trunk and rested, extremely tired since his sleep had been disturbed last night by the unpredicted attack of the walking tornado.

"Has anyone an idea of where Governor Babida is gone?" The young maiden Suzie quizzed the logger's henchmen Polo and Baba.

"Well, young Miss, I wished I knew. However, I am as ignorant as I believe, the youngster over here by my side is too. Isn't it comrade?" replied the senior aide-de-camp Polo as he lightly tapped the right shoulder of his younger collaborator Baba with his left hand.

"Yes My Commander, I don't know either. But I'm just guessing." The interim henchman Baba declared.

"Oh guessing? Well, may you speak out?" The senior henchman Polo asked his young collaborator.

"My Commander, I think His Highness Babida is going back to his office." The aide-de-camp Baba revealed his mind.

"Office?" exclaimed in unison the young miss Suzie and the senior henchman Polo so confused by the youngster Baba's assumption.

"Yes. But unfortunately, I can't speak more about it, for it's a State affair."

"Oh I see, you can't speak more because of me since I'm neither a military nor a stateswoman, so I can't be told about it. Well, I understand anyway." expressed the young maiden Suzie a bit disappointed, nonetheless reasonable.

"I'm sorry, young Miss!" told the aide-de-camp Baba, presenting his excuses to her.

The senior henchman Polo stood quiet, for he knew what his younger comrade was assuming Governor Babida went to do in the office.

Being a henchman allowed to have access to top military defense secrets, and to be aware of all key matters of the empire before anyone else down in the hierarchy.

Hence, to avoid any breach by his younger collaborator, he switched the topic so the young maiden Suzie would not ask more questions and put the youngster Baba in an uncomfortable situation where he would mistakenly reveal military intelligence.

"Oh, they are distributing hot beverages over there. Comrade, come with me and help me take one for the young miss." He suddenly said, distracting his entourage.

"Oh yes, surely, My Commander!" replied the youngster, then followed the senior henchman who was already walking away.