Hero's Conundrum/Chapter 9

I can’t believe this . . . Joseph? Really? Has he killed Bansao this many times? Does he knows something? Now I have even more questions. But I’ll deal with that later, now I have to concentrate on Sammael, he is outside the camp and I need to have a serious talk with him. I waited for him to be alone then went for it.

“What the hell happened Sammael? You better have a good reason for doing what you did”

He smiled and said, “I’m glad you are ok, you always are and I’m fine, thanks for asking”

“I’m not in the mood for jokes, tell me what the hell happened?”

“Well I told you not to appear in front of your people if there was another you. The only way to fix that this time was treating you like an impostor, thanks to that now Sarah and Joseph are convinced that you are the real Marduk.”

“You are lucky I talked to Joseph first or this conversation would have been totally different.”

“I bet it would have been”

We started talking towards the camp and he told me “You need to get this into your head. I’m not an enemy and I’m not what you think I am”

“Stop it with the riddles, I have enough questions as it is, I need answers, who are you really? How do you know all this?”

“Do you remember that I told you I came from far away looking for someone? Well to be honest, I was hired to find someone and I have no idea who that person is, I only have a description of him. First I thought it was you, but now I think is Bansao.”

“Who sent you?”

“I can’t tell you that, I really can’t tell you much without aggravating the situation. I’m sorry but I can assure you that you will get your answers, trust me I’m here to help. All I can tell you to satisfy your curiosity is that you and Bansao are connected, you are both opposite poles and ironically one depends on the other.”

That didn’t help at all, but we reached the camp and everyone was waiting, then suddenly they all pointed their gun at us, I raised my hands and Sammael said

“They are not pointing at us” I turned around and there was Bansao with some of his men, he smiled and said,

“Don’t listen to him Marduk, do you truly believe he is here to help you? They shot you and they knew who you were, they saw you, it was no mistake.” He is trying to confuse me but I already talked this out with Sammael I need to trust him. Bansao continued,

“Let me guess . . . he told you that he can’t give you all the answers right? Of course he did, can you see they are manipulating you because they need you? Well at least he’s right about one thing, I do have the answers you need. Join me and I will tell you everything.”

He was either listening to us, or he is telling the truth. Sammael looked at me and said,

“Marduk I’ve been telling you to join him, but you need to make a choice, it all comes down to this. Everything that happens form this moment on depends on the decision you make now. But no matter what you choose I will stand by you.” Then Bansao shouted

“I’m going to give you one last chance to join me, what will it be?”

“I already made my choice” and charged onto Bansao men. My people stood behind me and started fighting Bansao men, Sammael was like a machine every calculated step he took, brought down several of Bansao men. Sarah, Joseph and John were pretty good too. I went for Bansao and he tried to run away. Bansao people were defeated and we all have Bansao at gunpoint.

“Kill me!” he said as he kept walking backwards and laughing. “Have you ever wondered why sometimes you wake up covered in blood? The knife? Just tell me . . . Who are you?”

“Ok, tell me what I need to know and I’ll let you go.”

“I’ll tell you what you need to know, follow me alone and I’ll show you”

“No, no more games, start talking” I shouted.

“This information is for you and for you alone, do you really know these people? Would you really trust them with a secret like this?”

“I know them enough to trust them. Sammael! John! Grab him and put him in the cell”

They took him, dragged him to the cell, a cage prepared just for him. “How long do you think you can hold me in that? You had your chance and you lost it” he shouted while being dragged.

They put him on a cell, under surveillance with four guards at all times. When I approached the cell, John told me “Back off”

“Why”

“I don’t think is wise for you to be close to him right now. You have all the others convinced but I still don’t understand. I’m still trying to understand and the only thing I can think of is that you and Bansao are working together.”

“Come on John, you know me, I’m only looking for answers I’m desperate I need to know what’s going on with my life.”

Then Bansao said “Get me out of here and I’ll tell you everything.” I know he is saying that just to escape, but I really need to know what is happening.

“John I need you to trust me on this, I need to take Bansao out, I will bring him back”

“I don’t know Marduk, I want to trust you but this have been very confusing lately. I don’t know what to think, you know? Sarah was supposed to relieve tonight me and she is not here yet, since she and Joseph found you, found you she has been . . .”

Before he could finish Sammael arrived with Joseph and asked “What is going on?” John explained to him what I wanted to do and Sammael replied.

“Let him do it he is our leader, but we’ll follow him and let them talk alone, watching them” Everyone reluctantly agreed, and we got to a cave, then they left us alone, Bansao was still in cuffs, but as a precautionary measure I strapped four grenades to him with a string on each of the grenade’s safety pin.

“I see that you still think you got the upper hand and that will be your downfall,” he said smiling. “Ok fair enough, I’ll talk, first of all, you are not a normal human, check the palm of your hand for a scar” I checked and there was a scar, a small line. “Inside the scar is there’s a claw that looks like a knife, a very powerful knife that you can only use instinctively. I have seen you using it, even though you don’t remember, but that’s not what you want to know is it?”

“No, I want to know what the hell is happening, where do I come from, why are we like this?” In less than a second he stood up and removed the string of the grenades safety pins. Now he has four grenades and I have a rifle. I pointed the gun at him and he said,

“Relax, if I wanted you dead you’d be dead by now, we will fight but not now, we need an audience, I just wanted you to see that against me, you will never have the upper hand”. He put the grenades on the floor and sat on the floor, I was standing beside him, and he said “I’m done trying to convince you to join me. You are convinced that I’m the enemy and no matter what I say, you won’t change your mind. I guess you have to see for yourself. I just want to end this madness. I’m tired”

He let his guard down, I took advantage of the moment, kicked some dirt on his face and hit him with the rifle, in an effort to reach for the grenades. Then suddenly he was standing beside me, took my rifle and kicked me so hard that I went rolling on the floor. When I looked up he was pointing the rifle at me, he lowered the rife and threw it back at me, then said, “I told you, we will fight, but not now, be patient” as he sat on the floor again besides the grenades.

I took the riffle and sat in front of him, and asked him how does he knows so much about me, and he said that he have been watching me for a long time.

“Once I noticed that you had those abilities I knew I could use you for my cause”

“What cause, total domination?”

“That’s what have been feed into your mind so that you could end me. They saw in you a way to defeat me and they have been manipulating you this whole time.”

“How do I know that you are not the one trying to manipulate me? You killed many of my people and you even executed Elijah in cold blood. Hell you almost killed a kid if it was not for my intervention.”

“I know it sound hard to believe, but trust me I had my reasons to kill Elijah and I would never kill a kid, I knew you were going to stop me before I tried.”

“I don’t believe you and I know that you come back each time you die, but there must be a way to defeat you”

“There is one way but if you do, it’ll be the worst mistake you’ll ever make, trust me”

“Anyone in your position would say that”

“Ha ha ha ha, in my position? Do you think you got me?”

“Yes, this time I took my time planning this, if I kill you you’ll be left for dead and then you’ll come back and be free again. So I will keep you prisoner until you die of old age, so you see. I won.”

“You don’t understand I have already escaped and you just haven’t noticed.” He stood up and I shot him in the knees as fast as I could. He fell on the floor screaming.

“YOU SON OF A BITCH!” that’s the only thing he cried after getting shot.

“I told you I took my time planning this, it’s finally over. Thinking you always have the upper hand made you cocky and that was your worse mistake”

I got close to him and started tying him with a rope then told him “This is what is going to happen now, the shots were a signal for my people to let them know that I finished with you. They are coming to take you to the camp and once we are there, we are going to cut your arms and legs so you won’t be able to kill yourself. Sammael and you told me that the only way to end this, was to join you. I figured that you joining me could end this too and is the most peaceful approach.”

He stayed quiet and I finished tying him, then a group of armed men entered the cave but they were not my men, I can’t believe Bansao was already expecting this. I raised my arms, I looked at Bansao, he was sitting on the floor and said “These are not my people either”. Then Sarah entered the cave and told the armed men “Take them both”, they put a bag in Bansao’s head and in mine, then took us.