The war and the alliance
50 kilometres near the capital of the Bahle people , King Busani 's army and his brother Prince Mandla had locked horns .King Busani had managed to halt his brothers army before it could reach the capital of the Bahle people . The battle of the brothers had dawned, the scorching sun screamed on men as sweat trickled down their faces; the bulging eyes of men blazed with hatred as both sides clashed. This was trailed with the banging and bashing sounds of clubs and spears that cursed the heavens .Men were groaning and yowling as the battle ground became crimson and greasy with gore. Molten red blood splattered from the men's wounds, bodies on each side dropping dead like the dried leaves falling from of a tree. The blood and dead bodies of men became married to the ground .The windstorm of arrows on both sides were whizzing and whistling through the sky as they rained down on the battlefield destroying their targets. The battle ground continued to fill up with more dead bodies, filling the air with a nauseating and ungodly smell. On that very day all the birds retired to their nest leaving the sky to the chaos of men. Only death could smile and applaud these horrific acts, one thing was only certain, they would only be one winner .
King Busani was not going to allow his brother Mandla to take the crown which was bestowed on him by their father .King Busani's men fought with all their might ,he was not going to give away his birth right and he was willing bath in his brother's gore. King Busani had promised his people , his brother's head but his brother army was overpowering the royal guard. Prince Mandla's army comprised of his loyalists and his allies, sworn enemies of the Bahle people ,the Langa people .
Mandla actions angered King Busani, he had never imagined that his brother would team up with his sworn enemies just to gain power .As much as this angered King Busani ,on the other hand it gave him a moulded purpose ,which was to defeat his brother by all means necessary. Prince Mandla was the elder brother to King Busani and according to the laws of the Bahle people the first son of the king was the rightful heir to the throne however Prince Mandla's delinquency, spineless character led to him being denounced by their father, King Zibulo and his elders as the rightful heir . King Busani was chosen as the rightful, his character and statue won the heart of their father, King Zibulo and his council of elders .Facing great humiliation ,Prince Mandla disappeared and appeared after 30 years claiming the throne .
Prince Mandla claims gained the favour of some ruling class. The ruling class was not happy with the way King Busani was handling state matters .They were against King Busani's decision to appoint her daughter ,Princess Nomakazwe as the heir to the throne. The appointment of a female heir was a sacrilege to the laws of the land .The Bahle people were a proud patriarchal society, the ruling class was not willing to accept a woman as their leader. The second issue that had divided the ruling class was King Busani's peaceful policy. King Busani believed in fostering peace and trade with other states ,while ruling class wanted war, the ruling class believed in total dominance .They believed in creating a empire were all other tribe and states were under the Bahle Kingdom .
These discontents had bred an opportunity for Prince Mandla to reclaim the throne .Slowing the opposition grew dividing the ruling class and slowly these sown seeds of discontent bred a civil war .The Kingdom of the Bahle people were divided into two camps the king Busani and Prince Busani's camp. King Busani had offered peace, but his brother had rejected the sweet and sourness of a compromise .War had finally dawned, Prince Mandla intentions were clear as the will of the gods ,he wanted the throne and he was willing to have it at any cost.
The battle continued the king's forces grew weaker, by the second, Prince Mandla forces were gaining ground, the generals manoeuvring methods were quickly dodged .King Busani needed reinforcement's .General Manqoba, young energetic warrior in his early thirties rushed to the king as he watched the battle on the hill top, "My lord , I am afraid the Prince Mandla's armies have cut of main roads this has greatly delayed our reinforcements ''Manqoba spoke with a heavy heart .The king was shuttered with the generals message , ''What about Princess Nomazwe and her reinforcements can they make it ?,do you have any news from them ?'' , the king queried desperately . ''No my lord we haven't received any news'', Manqoba responded sadly, but my lord I will let you know of any news'', the Manqoba reassured his King. "I we fall by my brothers spear , tell the Prince Busani and his commanders, to quickly evacuate the capital and burn the capital '',the old King spoke with a heavy heart as he said his last command . "Yes my lord, may you live long oh great elephant the responded to the Kings command .The Bahle people resembled their king as elephants, because they admired the nature and strength of elephants .
The battlefield told a sad tale for the king's armies as by each second Prince Mandla's armies gained the ground .The king took his spear and shield, he was now ready to get into the battle field and fight his brother. "My king, it's against the law for you to fight, we must protect you , if you are dead they will be chaos, let us your people fight for you, Commander Maxaba, the kings right hand man pleaded with king Busani. ''No , Maxaba ,I am a servant , I serve my people ,it is my right and destiny to fight and die protecting them, This is my last command to you my good friend ,protect the crown princess Nomazwe ,make sure that she preserves the principles and values of our people " King Busani spoke his last wishes and together with his king guard they descended from the hill tops into the battle field .
As the king joined his army, the king's army rejoiced, their morale boosted, they fought with fierceness of the last kicks of dying horse. The king's army charged, slaying their armies gaining little ground.
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As the battle continued near the capital, Princess Nomazwe had embarked on journey to find reinforcements .Nomazwe had not told her father that she was going to find the infamous demon war lord ,who was known as Diliza , his name meant destruction. Nomazwe only followed faith and hope, she had ignored the facts ,that this could have been an old bed time stories that the elderly told their grandchildren .Even if the stories were to be true would the demon listen to her plea ,demons were known for tormenting humans ,by killing and cursing them . The legend that dominated ,was the story of the demon war lord ,Diliza who was hungry for blood and fought with his wings as shields ,the legend said that he killed his enemies with a single stab to the heart .It was said that his spear didn't miss the enemy heart. The legends continued to say he only fought so that he could drink human blood, human blood strengthened Diliza. Diliza had been used by many kings as a mercenary solider in order to win wars but it came with a great price for the Kings ,that they later regretted .Diliza grew tired of war and human blood , he retired to the evil forest where he lived in blue pool cave .
The Evil forest name was outweighed by its nature as it welcomed Nomazwe into its pulsing heart, its irony riddled Nomazwe's mind with doubt .The fables and legends that been vividly painted in Nomazwe 's mind were smudged by it's beauty. The stories that were painted were of its ugliness, the beast that lived in it and the demon war Lord, Diliza who reigned in this no man's land. Nomazwe was welcomed by mahogany brown forest, the sprawling archaic and majestic trees that castled the forest, the cool breeze that brushed over Nomazwe's face, the beautiful sounds of the birds that praised and danced to beautiful hums of nature, the leafy carpeted forest floors, whose rustling foliage and crunchy twigs added rhythm to the nature's hum as Nomazwe dived deep into the Evil Forest, a leafy paradise it was. The barking sounds of the baboons as they leapt from one brunch, the scampering hares as they moved away from her, the sounds made her heart skip for a minute as the screaming fables of forest haunted her mind.
The seasoned smell drifted up from the forest floor, her mouth became watery as she saw the antediluvian trees dipped with her favourite's fruits: from the sweet bird plum ,sugar plum ,wild custard apple , the lantana shrubs that were spread all over the forest, the gummy snot apples, the dark smelly –berry finger leaf and the sour plums. These fruits tempted Nomazwe to feast on them, but the fables, narrated that every fruit in the forest was how poisonous.
Nomazwe 's mind was seeded with doubt , all the legends about the evil forest were untrue in her eyes , surely a demon would never exist in such a paradise ;maybe it was just a mirage ,to lure its victims ,the perfect devilish trick ,Nomazwe comforted her mind .
Princess Nomazwe had gathered courage to find and follow a legend, and to cross the evil forest where the demon lord stayed .Her id and ego were in constant war with each other as she made her way in the evil forest. Her heart sank with fear as the horrific stories of the evil forest filled her mind .Nomazwe specifically remembered the story that her grandmother told her about the Ghouls that ate people .The Ghouls were a species that lived by eating people and lived in the evil forest they hungry for human flesh .
With all these doubts and fears that battled Nomazwe mind, her determination to try all possible ways to save her kingdom outweighed her fear .Nomazwe had distinguished herself as warrior,her body was painted with scars from different battles ,she wore them proudly ,in the world of the women of Bahle kingdom ,they shunned her ,men were intimidated by her presence, after all she didn't have the tenderness of a woman ,they thought .
Nomazwe's brilliance as warrior and competence as a leader made her gain favour in King Busani's eyes ,his father had his council of elders .Nomazwe was chosen as the heir to the throne, a decision that had divided the royal family as the Bahle Kingdom was a patriarchal society. Nomazwe was faced with the burden of constantly proving herself to her people and the royal family that she deserved the title. Her brother ,prince Busani the second hated her with a passion as he saw Nomazwe as one who stole the crown from him.
Nomazwe battled with her decision to seek the help of demon, she wasn't sure whether her decision would strengthen her position as the crown princess and rightful heir to the Bahle throne .Nomazwe new that this thought would not matter if his Uncle Mandla had taken the throne .These questions would later be answered after the defeat of his Uncle.
As Nomazwe walked in the lonely evil forest, her mind was restless, she couldn't hear the footsteps that grew louder behind her .The Ghoul had marked it prey, it had been following Nomazwe for a while .It stealthily hid behind the cover of the trees ,making sure that it had locked its target .Nomazwe spear and shield had made it hesitant, the ghoul was searching for a perfect time and place to kill its prey.
Nomazwe ,heard the tricking and rushing sound of water course nearby .In excitement Nomazwe reached into her bag and took out a map ,and fastened her eye on the map ,glancing around to see if she was going in the right direction .The map clearly indicated that the demon caves were next to a stream .At last ,she had reached her destination .The Ghoul saw the opportunity of an ultimate surprise attack on its prey .
"Whaaa! ''the ghoul roared as it leapt into the sky slapping Nomazwe to ground with its claws ,Nomazwe crumpled to the ground ,pain surged her body, as she witnessed the beast her stomach clenched in terror .The Ghoul 's simian eyes glimmered hunger as the beast salivated ,its ice cold and merciless eyes captured Nomazwe .The Ghoul stood like an ape ,its clawed hands touching its feet, its skin pale as the moon, it was nature worst creation .The Ghoul roared loudly this time , displaying its long fangs and jagged teeth ,its cauliflower ears at sprouted at either side of its bold head .Its presence could send a man to his early grave ,the ghoul was ready to devour its victim . Nomazwe was not going to be killed by this beast ,so she grabbed her shield and spear rose up ,stood in a defence position .Nomazwe could taste salty blood that tricked into her mouth from the cut she had developed when she fell on the ground .The ghoul was , insulted by the stubbornness of its prey ,roared much louder , it charged towards Nomazwe with anger bashing Nomazwe . Nomazwe fell to ground ,the Ghoul charged again now , leaping into the air ,ready to execute its fatal move , Nomazwe grabbed her spear and ghoul collided with the spear, the spear pierced the ghoul straight into its heart ,the ghoul cried out in pain, its blood covered Nomazwe body .the ghoul wasn't willing to be defeated so easily ,it tried to throw a few attacks with its hand but Nomazwe pushed her spear further and deeper into its heart ,the attacks gradually stopped as the ghoul slowly died .The ungodly and nauseating smell the ghoul body produced made her sick.
Nomazwe was taught never to leave her weapon ,no matter what circumstances ,the bahle people believed that the warrior weapon was married to the warriors hand .Nomazwe pushed away the ghoul body that was covered her ,the lifeless body of the ghoul lay beside her ,with its eyes protruding ,the eyes of ghoul spoke of how it has suffered from the Nomazwe's spear and also its resilience to live.
Nomazwe was breathing heavily, in disbelief that she was still alive, and that she had killed this creature. Nomazwe thought that Ghouls were fables that people talked about .This meant that the fables were true, this also meant that the Demon existed .Nomazwe faith was strengthened, she quickly rose up and pulled out her spear that had sank deep into the ghoul's body .
Nomazwe rushed towards the sounds of the rumbling water ,she had finally reached the stream that had been illustrated on the map. Nomazwe heart leapt with excitement mixed with fear, her fear reminded of the fact ; that she could die, she had made a stupid decision ,but her excitement told her that they was hope .Nomazwe could see the caves that illuminated blue pool .Legends said that the blue pool in the cave would heal any diseases and it was also the sanctuary of the demon war lord Diliza.
Nomazwe crossed the stream and headed to the caves, the ponds of blue water that illuminated light were her guide ,she didn't know where she was going, the map only led her to the cave and it did not contain any directions on where the Diliza the demon war lord resided.
Nomazwe entered the devil's palace ,the musty air made it difficult to breath ,the dense shadows displayed spiders as they prepared they traps ,their webs glistened like a diamond .The cave was gloomy, Nomazwe could only feel the rough limestone walls of the cave ,her hands jammed through the fissures as she blindly made her way. The only way she could get the demon's attention was to shout.
''Diliza!'' ,she called out the demon war lord . "Diliza!'' ,Nomazwe called out again, the name of the demon war lord, the cave was dead silent, "Diliza !'', she called the demon out again ,this time the sound of the bats screeching and fluttering their wings startled her .
Doubts started creeping in slowly in Nomazwe mind, she had definitely fooled herself into believing in this farfetched story. Nomazwe thought of her journey her people and the war; she decided to search the whole cave .Nomazwe was not willing to give up, so she continued to search for the mysterious demon war lord. "Diliza! , Diliza !, I summon you demon war lord...., I have a proposal for you...''. Nomazwe paused listening and waiting for a response but Nomazwe could only hear her echoes that filled the walls of the caves and the sound of the screeching bats.
Nomazwe continued to search and suddenly she felt a gently tap over her shoulder, Nomazwe adrenaline crashed through her ,she quickly turned around to see what had touched her and she didn't see anything .Her heart was pounding faster with fear ,she felt another gentle touch over her shoulder ,fear fluttered in her stomach ,she turned around ,her eyes wandering in every direction searching for the unknown and she didn't see anything .Nomazwe knew she had to be calm, in order to catch whatever was touching her shoulder ,she remained still and pulled out and clasped her spear firmly with her right hand her left hand holding a shield , she waited like a lion watching over its prey , she listened to every sound that was produced by the caves nature .She felt the gentle touch again and she swiftly turned around to attack the mysterious creature ,Baam!!! ,she was accompanied by a heavy blow to the head that made her unconscious .
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Nomazwe was welcomed by the cacophony of debating voices ,her eyes were slowly clearing blurry images to clear images .Nomazwe ,noticed she was transferred to another part of the cave and this part of the cave was filled with natural light .The voices of started speaking " who is she , said the female voice . " How did she know I was here?" , said the male voice . "Hey I don't know ok, I don't know everything" ,replied the female voice . "You have one simple job to be my eyes and ears'' , the male voice demanded. "Why didn't you kill her ", the female voice queried. "You fool, I first have to find what she knows before ,I make that decision '' , replied the male voice
The images became clear as day light ,Nomazwe saw , an back of the tall creature ,with a back covered in wings ,the body of this creature was well built and masculine .Nomazwe immediately knew that it was the demon ; the demon was talking to a huge Burmese python, she had never seen or heard of such a huge python was had a tan background colour and was decorated with dark brown blotches , they were in a huge argument . "Excuse me, demon?" , Nomazwe disturbed the argument. Suddenly they was abrupt silence as the demon and the snake eyes turned to Nomazwe and the snake hissed .Nomazwe's stomach clenched ,her heart beating more faster than her breath, she was terrified .
Diliza the demon, his leonine, deep sunken eyes blazed with anger , they were tundra cold ,Nomazwe heart leapt to her throat. Diliza's heard was decorated with large horns, which seemed like God had crowned this creature to be the king of all beasts ;his pointed ears sprouted from both sides of the head. Diliza's ebony , masculine body was decorated with scars that celebrated his battles and there he stood 8 feet tall, he stood as god ; Nomazwe's stomach clenched as her eyes captured the beast. Diliza unfurled his black raven, bat like wings ,as he moved closer to Nomazwe and he said ,"don't ever call me by that name human'', Diliza reprimanded Nomazwe ,displaying his jagged teeth.
Diliza's voice was deep, it rumbled as he spoke ,it made nature to listen .Nomazwe nodded her head as fear had swallowed her voice. "Yes, you heard him, don't ever call my master a demon" ,the python emphasized ,hissing louder .The fact that the python talked ,freaked Nomazwe :talking animals were only associated with folktales shared by the elderly after supper. Indeed the evil forest was evil and mysterious. "Will you shut up, Ntombi", Diliza reprimanded Ntombi the python.
The name Ntombi meant a young woman . "I was only making your point clear, because I can sense her stubbornness, "replied Ntombi in defence, her head rising higher. "Enough!, Ntombi, I can handle her perfectly ''Diliza clarified her position, Diliza eyes glowed red, this tamed Ntombi ,her head slowly and gently lowered .Nomazwe new that ,glow that had been produced by the demons was not a good sign.
Nomazwe gathered courage , so she whistled in the dark ."I am sorry, ok , I didn't know, my name is Princess Nomazwe of the Khumalo clan, the crown princess of Bahle kingdom .Nomazwe stopped to see their response and then continued ; "I need your help ,we need you to assist us in winning the war ". Diliza laughed at Nomazwe's proposal, "I am no longer the war lord that you seek, I vowed to live a peaceful life, I am sorry you came here for nothing '', Diliza responded while turning away from Nomazwe. " I came here, because my people need your help ,you are the only hope my people " ,Nomazwe protested. "And I gave you my answer, human , Diliza eyes glowed . "Whatever you need, we are willing to give you in exchange for your services, we are a rich nation. Nomazwe replied softly.
"I don't need your gold, but what I desire is more than that, and I am afraid you are not prepared to give me that human, Diliza reasoned. "As I speak right now, the sovereignty ,the history and most of all the lives of my people are at stake ,I am willing to pay any price ", Nomazwe reasoned . Ntombi hissed and she moved her body towards Nomazwe and said "Be careful of what you wish for human ''.A chilled went down her spine as the Ntombi 's cold body touched her body .
Diliza moved closer to Nomazwe, Nomazwe stepped back wards ,she raised her spear ,Diliza stopped and chuckled .Diliza admired Nomazwe's courage although he could smell her fear ;"for the price of my spear I demand your hand in marriage in exchange '',Diliza made his demand .Nomazwe couldn't believe what her ears were hearing , " I can't offer you that, it complicates everything, my people will not accept this arrangement, I am crown princess, heir, you can ask for something else ,Nomazwe protested. "Then I am afraid, we don't have an agreement, I told you that what I seek is more than gold, I seek love and peace. "What good will love and peace be if you will not be loved, Nomazwe reasoned. "Good bye princess we have nothing further to discuss, your people need you", Diliza ended the conversation as he turned away from Nomazwe .Nomazwe saw that she had no upper hand in the argument since she was the one asking for help, she had to agree to be married to this monster and probably she was going to be denounced and rejected by her people.
Diliza knew his demand was absurd , no human would accept such a demand ,but he was now tired of war and his blood thirsty nature; that is why he had retired to the evil forest and made the cave his home. Diliza wanted a peaceful life ,something that was totally against his nature ,most of all he was curious to know what love felt like ,he admired the human emotion ,he had always admired it the peaceful life of a human .When Diliza had seen Nomazwe something moved him, he had never met such a courageous woman ,who had dared to risk her life just to meet him. Diliza admired Nomazwe's courage and her dedication towards her people. Diliza had turned against his nature, he had failed to kill Nomazwe .Diliza knew that Nomazwe was special, and he thought maybe he could finally get the life he longed for. Diliza didn't know anything about love and emotion, yet his heart was yearning for it.
Diliza looked at Nomazwe, her beauty outmatched the scars ,that were all over her body, her brown skin suited her beauty. Diliza had lived for hundreds of years, Nomazwe was the only human that had captured his heart. Diliza heart had never pounded so fast but when she carried Nomazwe to his quarters, his heart surprised him. Diliza expected Nomazwe to turn away, any normal human would do that yet, for the first time his heart wanted her to agree.
Diliza was overwhelmed by these thoughts and emotions .Could this be love he thought, he quickly dismissed these thoughts .A demon by nature wasn't capable of love that is what he was taught by his elder demons. The demon's purpose, in was to cause chaos in the human world ,the truth was he hated this mission ,.Diliza only wanted peace .
Nomazwe knew the consequences of her decision. She remembered her father's words; royals were destined to always sacrifice everything that they loved for the prosperity of their kingdom .Nomazwe's mother, Queen Khanyile, had mentored her and prepared her for this; Nomazwe remembered her mother's words "My daughter a princess does not marry for love but it is her duty to her kingdom., a princess who sacrifices her happiness for the sake of her people and her kingdom is blessed and divine". Her mother's words gave her courage to accept the demon's deal with a heavy heart.
"I accept the your demands Diliza, you have my word, as soon as victory has been served to my people, I will marry you, Nomazwe said these words with a heavy heart .Diliza was shocked by Nomazwe's decision, he didn't expect the princess to accept his proposal .Diliza really wanted to ask the princess if she had carefully considered his request. Diliza stopped himself, he didn't want to show sympathy and concern.
Diliza smiled, and replied "then we have a deal however your word, is nothing human, humans are unpredictable, they change like the weather, in order for us to fully seal this deal we shall have blood pact and Ntombi here will be our witness" .Diliza took out a knife and gently cut his hand , black blood trickled from the cut and filled his hand and Nomazwe gently cut her hand and they made the pact by shaking their hands in agreement . "As a witness to this alliance, this pact will only be overridden by either death, failure of both parties to fulfil the demands of these pact will lead to death , said Ntombi as she hissed loudly ,giving a stern look at Nomazwe .
Nomazwe had made a deal with the devil ,it was now official, she was now the demon's war lord fiancé .Diliza disturbed her thoughts ," Ntombi can you please give me my spear ,it has been long since I tasted human blood '', Diliza requested .Ntombi responded by vomiting the spear ,Ntombi's mouth widened each second, this was accompanied by the rustling and crunching struggled to release the weapon , slowly unearthing the spear ;the spear had doubled heads , a spear head at each end ,the spear gleamed with the colour of freshly baked spear from black smith's oven. Diliza held the spear and swinged it as he displayed his attacking moves . "You still have the moves , considering that it has been nearly a century since you fought" , Ntombi teased her master. Diliza and Ntombi laughed , " thank you for taking good care of her ,duty calls" .Diliza looked at Nomazwe who was still shocked about what she had just witnessed and said "Take me to the battle field "