Array Ashley - Murderville

“Shoot!” the man yelled at the top of his lungs. A’shai let out a roar while pulling the trigger and closing his eyes, sending a bullet right through the man’s chest. A dark red circle appeared on the man’s shirt and spread as he hit the ground and his blood seeped out into the dirt. The recoil from the blast sent A’shai flying onto his back, sweeping him clean off his feet. A’shai’s hands shook violently as he took in what he had done. He looked over at the man that he had just shot and noticed that his chest was rapidly moving up and down, signaling that he was still alive.

“Look at you… pissed your damn pants,” the older man said mockingly as he shook his head out of disappointment. He had hoped that A’shai was ready, but from his hesitation it was obvious that he was still a child. “You didn’t even finish!” he added as he stepped over the wounded victim. He then reached into his waist and pulled out a revolver. He put two bullets in his head, rocking him to sleep forever. A’shai flinched at the sound of both shots. He knew that he was expected to be just as callous as his mentor but A’shai couldn’t conform to the ways of bad men. He didn’t have it in him to kill recklessly as the other rebels around him did. A’shai looked into the eyes of the ruthless killer. Ezekiel was the head of the Rebellion, a radical group of hoodlums who terrorized villages and took a violent and lethal stance against their government, but also against humanity. The tyranny that they caused wreaked havoc and spread hysteria throughout many areas of West Africa beginning in Sierra Leone. The mob of men went from town to town killing the men, raping the women, and recruiting the children to work the diamond mines. The young girls were usually kept for sex slaves or servants.

Aside from being the leader of the violent clan, Ezekiel was also A’shai’s father and a strong disciplinarian. “Now get up boy!” Ezekiel yelled as he snatched his son by the arm and yanked him to his feet. “Look!” Ezekiel grabbed A’shai’s chin and made him look at the dead man beneath them. Tears streamed down A’shai’s face as he looked at the corpse. Ezekiel struck A’shai across the face, delivering a hard slap. A’shai’s neck felt as if it would break as his head went flying to the right. Ezekiel knew nothing about how to be affectionate towards his child, and he thought he was showing tough love. He gripped A’shai’s chin tightly… painfully once more.

“Look at him, son! No tears. Rebels do not cry!” Ezekiel yelled. “Say it! Rebels do not cry!”

“Rebels do not cry!” A’shai repeated as he wiped his tears away and stuck out his small chest. Ezekiel nodded in approval as he watched his son assume a soldier’s stance. He rubbed A’shai’s head and smiled.

“Come on!” his father ordered as they left the tent and entered the bloodbath that was taking place at the hands of his group. The village was being annihilated. A’shai gripped his gun in terror and watched helplessly as a surreal pandemonium unfolded.

Tat! Tat! Tat! Tat!

The sounds of automatic assault rifles exploded in A’shai’s ear and angst overwhelmed him causing his heart to race frantically. The people of the village ran for their lives, causing dirt to fly up in the air from the mini stampede. A’shai couldn’t believe his eyes. He was horrified as he witnessed Ezekiel shoot a round into a fleeing man’s back. It was a complete massacre unfolding, and the blood of innocents stained the earth.

The roaring laughter of Ezekiel echoed through the air as the man dropped. Ezekiel acted as if he was hunting game instead of slaughtering humans. Seconds later a little girl came running out of a hut and went to the slain man’s side. “Papa! Papa!” she cried as she flung herself over the man’s body, becoming soaked in his blood. The ten-year-old girl had just witnessed her father be brutally murdered in cold blood. The girl kneeled next to her father as he lay there motionless. She began to shake him, hoping that he would get up but there was no use… he was silenced forever.

A’shai looked on in anguish as he saw the young girl cry while hugging the dead body. He was frozen in terror and plagued by guilt. When he noticed the other rebels run to the girl and snatch her up, he snapped out of his trance. A’shai didn’t think about what he was about to do, he just reacted. He immediately sprinted over to the men as they taunted the girl, groping her backside and private area as she cringed at every touch.

“No, leave her alone! Let me have her,” A’shai yelled as he grabbed her butt and then pulled her into an empty hut nearby. As she kicked and screamed, A’shai’s heart ached because he realized that she was terrified of him. He didn’t know why he was drawn to the girl, but it was something about the way she looked. Her features resembled his dead mother’s and had instantly piqued A’shai’s interest. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

“Little A’shai is about to get his first piece of poo nanny,” one of the rebels yelled as they watched A’shai force the girl into the hut. The rebels cheered as the two disappeared from sight, believing they had just witnessed what was to be A’shai’s rite of passage. In their eyes, he had just been initiated into the Rebellion officially.

“Nooo! Help me!” the young girl screamed as she kicked and punched wildly. She fell onto her back as A’shai tried to grab her hands and calm her down.

He placed a firm hand over her mouth to stifle her panicked cries. “Shhh! Please stop hitting me. I am not going to hurt you. Just pretend like I’m hurting you ok?” A’shai said as tears began to form in his eyes. He did not want to harm her in any way, he only wanted to save her from the other violent rebels. He grabbed her tightly and put his hand over her mouth. “Listen. I am not going to hurt you. Trust me. Now, I’m going to take my hand off your mouth and I want you to scream like I’m hurting you, okay? I promise I will not touch you. You have to stay in here with me for a while and don’t run out. The rebels out there will rape you,” he said as he looked into her eyes, showing his sincerity. She nodded her head in agreement and A’shai slowly stood up and took two steps back, letting her know that he didn’t have any bad intentions.

The girl screamed at the top of her lungs and A’shai could hear the rebels outside of the tent laughing while cheering him on. A’shai was ashamed to be a part of such a mob and as he looked at the girl, he wished he could save her… but inside he knew that he couldn’t.

Fifteen minutes had passed and A’shai watched as the girl cried in the corner as she shivered violently. He didn’t know what to say to comfort her so he said nothing at all as he awkwardly watched over her. Just then, Ezekiel entered the hut.

“A’shai! Time to go!” he said as he glanced at his son and then over to the young girl.

“She’s beautiful,” Ezekiel said as he looked at the frail, fair-skinned girl who sat balled up in the corner. A’shai remained quiet as he looked at his father’s lustful eyes and wondered what would happen next.

“Come on! Take her with us!” his father ordered as he waved his gun in her direction. A’shai wanted to protest, but held his tongue knowing that disobedience would not be tolerated. A camouflaged jeep full of rebels was waiting outside of the tent and A’shai reluctantly did as his father said. He ran over to the girl and picked her up and then forced her into the back of the Jeep. That single event would change both of their lives forever.

A’shai awoke suddenly in alarm and instinctively reached for the pistol that lay concealed in his waistband. With sweat glistening on his brow, his heart raced, and his tense body was on full alert. It wasn’t until he heard the steady beep of the heart monitor and saw the silhouette of Liberty’s body that he realized where he was. He had experienced another nightmare… another reminder of the world he had left behind so long ago. Peace was foreign to him. In his twenty-five years he had never known serenity. His childhood had been filled with mass murders and brutality. Make money, not friends: it was the mentality that had been drilled into his head. He had learned how to shoot a pistol long before he had learned to shoot a jump shot. Growing up in Sierra Leone he had no childhood; all he knew was money and destruction. It was that same thought pattern that had allowed him to survive and make a name for himself in the States. He was the epitome of the American dream. If he was white, he would have been a businessman, but with skin as dark as mahogany he felt that his rightful place was on the throne as the king of the streets. As he rubbed his goatee he leaned forward in the uncomfortable wooden chair, resting his elbows on his knees as he looked at the love of his life. Liberty was beautiful-even with her chapped lips, sunken eyes, and unruly hair he had never seen a woman as exquisite as she. She was the perfect example of the female specimen. She was his lady, his everything… she was the better part of him. The world was too corrupt for an angel like Liberty. The world didn’t deserve to feel Liberty’s footsteps upon it. She was too pure, too good, too beautiful to be a part of such an ugly place. That is what A’shai told himself when he thought of her condition. That’s the logic he used to justify her situation. GOD had better things intended for Liberty. HE could show her a greater love than A’shai… at least that’s what he convinced himself of to stop his heart from breaking. He had seen many tragedies and survived much devastation, but no loss had ever felt as great as the one he was facing. Just thinking about it put a damper on his spirit. Liberty was one of the very few people who could ever make him feel. He prided himself on being as sturdy as a brick wall. He was unbreakable, like the Great Wall of China. He was impenetrable, like the mighty gates of Rome. Untouchable, like the infamous Nicky Barnes. Despite all of these things, Liberty had broken through his cold facade. She penetrated his guarded heart and touched him in a way that was so intimate only the two of them understood. Now she was sick… dying the doctors said, and there was nothing that he could do but sit back and watch as destiny slowly took over.