How Humane is Kalim

In the town of Wiliri lived an old merchant who was a descendent of the great Carbine family. He had many shops and many houses. Carbine loved his son, Kalim, who he wished will take over the fortune once he departs.

Kalim was a handsome, dark-haired, quick-witted, young man, full of fun. When fairly a young man he had been given to drink and was riotous when he had had too much, but after he married, he gave up drinking, not entirely.

One rainy morning, Kalim was summoned to his father’s office with his uncle standing next to the old seated man.

“Ya Kalim, I have decided something for you,” said his father, “I am sure you will understand why I am saying this.”

Displaying a firm posture, Kalim stood at ease and listened without objection.

“Ya Kalim, you need to do what I say for the sake your well-being, for you and your family’s future,” his father pronounced and waited to sigh, then added, “I need you to go to the great cities and tell us what you saw.”

His uncle frowned at his father and whispered, “Hannes, what are you doing?”

“His time has come. Don’t interrupt me,” strongly whispered back his father, which Kalim could clearly hear.

“Kalim, my son, you will leave at the end of this month that is in the first new crescent moon and return at the end of the next month. If I don’t see both your hands attached to your body by the second new crescent moon, you will have to find your own fortune. Understood?” his father bellowed upon the confined silence in the room.

Kalim nodded dispassionately.

“Ya walad, excuse yourself,” mentioned his uncle after his father gestured him to leave.

Just as he closed the door, he unintentionally eavesdropped on the discussion inside which immediately followed.

“Hannes, you told me that he needs to build a shop in the neighboring town. What is in your mind?” concerningly whispered his uncle.

“Nobody wants to live in towns and villages anymore. The times are changing and that is why we need our offspring to live a better life in a better place,” his father strongly whispered back.

There was a brief silence during which Kalim thought of leaving, but he heard his uncle’s voice, “Ya Hannes, you have one son who doesn’t have a son, what will happen if he doesn’t return?”

“Leave this room. Help Kalim. Give him some meaningful advice. Tell him what is necessary and what is not. Get him prepared,” Kalim’s father murmured sotto voce.

Later that evening, Kalim’s uncle dined in his house. They predicted about the cities and its fairs and how invisible the stars would look and how people would speak and act.

“Ya walad, I am going to a trade festival in a nearby town. You will come with me and see how big towns work. I will leave at dawn and probably return the day after tomorrow. Don’t travel with a big dump. Keep your weigh light for many reasons,” his uncle instructed.

Kalim gave an impassive smile which annoyed his uncle to which he laughed. They nodded, talked some more, and soon his uncle left.

****

When Kalim returned from the trip, he learned many things that changed a few facets in his life. But most importantly, he gained the confidence to leave this town behind. He felt unrealistically at ease with what the future held, knowing that there were only three days left for the first new crescent moon to shine.

“Kalim, will you not meet your father?” asked his wife.

“Many things in life are worthless and to me, meeting him before leaving will be too” he said without realizing the hate in his speech, “I will leave tomorrow, so…”

“So what?”

****

Setting off in his horse from the town of Wiliri, Kalim headed north to where most developed cities were expected to settle. During his journey, he met other travelers and merchants, some rich in gold and arrogance, some rich in hardship and ungratefulness, but he met someone who was very much like himself, Aksionov, who was on his way to a fair.

Stepping into a different world, Kalim inhaled and marched towards a building which said: ‘Inn for you’ on a luminescent, hanging board.

Before he could enter, a sturdy, short, fair-haired man graciously interrupted, “Sir, where do you expect to keep your horse? If you plan to park it in this inn’s stable, you will surely lose it. You should come with me.”

“No. Please. Wait. Who are you?” hesitated Kalim.

“Oh great, we speak the same language. The name’s Willroy Shieric but you can call me Will. Surely, you look like you are not from here? Are you visiting someone?” the sturdy man named Will rattled on with a friendly smile.

Looking at his horse and the little he packed and traded, Kalim waved away the intuition of fraud and answered the man, “Alright Will, I am Kalim Carbine.”

“Carbine? I think I have heard that somewhere.”

“Uh huh? I am from Wiliri Town.”

“Oh, is it in the south?”

“Yes, I came from the south-”

“How long did it take to get here?”

“About three days.”

“Not that far then, huh?”

“I guess so. Would you say it’s far?”

“Ok Kamil-”

“Kalim,” Kalim corrected

“Ah, yes, yes. Mr. Kalim. Come with me. We will get you a good place to stay,” Will beamingly invited Kalim.

He glanced over the road from where he came from and remembered his uncle saying, “Ya walad, in the cities, people wouldn’t unnecessarily be kind to you. You should know that they will be good if they see some advantage for themselves in you or else, they simply want you doomed. Ya walad, I know you will bring back great respect with you, son.”

“Hey Kalim. I am waiting for you, man.”

“Ah, where do you want me to go?” Kalim asked without displaying doubts.

“Don’t doubt me, I will show you a nice flat which you can buy in exchange for your horse. It’s a great deal, Kalim. Trust me, I know you will love that flat. I am sure of it,” Will twittered on.

Curiously staring at Will for a moment, he gave in and agreed to follow him.

In front of a white mansion door, they stopped where Kalim watched over his belongings and Will clicked a button, attached to the wall, which flashed out yellow light and screeched an annoying noise, then he lit a thin cigarette. Will inhaled and gazed at the horse then at Kalim who kept an eye out for him too.

“Take it easy, man,” Will winked and added, “This may be your first time but it sure will be fun as hell.”

Kalim asked why had they stopped, to which Will responded, “Kalim, this is the house where you have to buy a room.”

“I don’t have to and you said it was a darn good flat,” stated Kalim.

Will blew the smoke on Kalim’s face and hissed, “This is the city of Mordad. What were you told when you were send here, huh? This is not the wonderland you were promised, pretty boy.”

A ray of green light flashed from the space between the button and shrieked as the doors automatically opened, leading the path it once blocked.

Kalim was forcefully preceded into the house. A young, plump lady with black hair drenched in water descended the stairs. She waved a hand and pointed at the horse just before a servant from behind the curtains sprinted and snatched the rein off Kalim’s hand and took it outside.

“Oh, Lady Lain. It is my pleasure to see you again. I have some good things to share with you,” Will pleaded with the same beam when he first met Kalim.

“What is this?” the now seated plump lady signed glancing over at Kalim.

“My deposit”

“What makes you think I will except it?” she gave Kalim a narrow-eyed look.

“Oh, Lady Lain. I am here for a request which I will, without a doubt, payback as soon as possible and this piece of deposit is to insure you that I will not run like all the others,” Will tried to persuaded.

She wrung the water out of her hair and said, “Stand behind the chair and tell what it is. Whatever it is, I will keep the piece.”

Before Kalim could open his mouth, he was hit unconscious.

When he woke up to the sound of a bang, he saw himself dressed in white head-to-toe. Another noise banged from the half metal door followed by the voice of the plump lady from earlier, “Oh servant, this is your first day in the Lain estate. Don’t talk to me.”

Clinging to the metal bars of the door, he screamed, “Let me go! This is the biggest mistake! I swear! Let me go! I don’t know you! He-”

“I ordered not to talk to me! Oh, how sad it is now that you would get any penny for the rest of the year. Another servant will tell you things to keep in mind. Don’t mess up,” her voice slowly vanished in the end.

A rush of teardrops ran down his face which drenched his collar and sunk in his chest. His cries echoed back in the insides of his head where it banged so hard, he couldn’t help but scream more and cling hard to his dark, dark hair which he wished to pull off its scalp.

After some hours, he couldn’t remember how he slept again, he couldn’t remember his name or his identity. Many servants pitied him as they gloomed through the dark metal bars of his door.

An entire week clawed by; his instability kept growing as his vision appeared to blur. Kalim didn’t speak a single word in the period of 7 days. He counted the seconds till he couldn’t. He vomited the food till he couldn’t.

In one of the sleepless nights of the following week, he remembered someone. The image of an old man occur in his mind where that figure said, “Ya Kalim, come back home.”

He screamed and roared and fell back crying.

A woman appear in his door and commanded, “Stop shouting! Come with me.”

She unlocked the door and helped him stand. As they exited the house through the kitchen door, she stood aside and pushed him away. He lied on the damp grass, gapping at the stars. He remembered someone telling him, “You wouldn’t be able to see the stars, Kalim. It’s just a dark canvas for a sky in the night there.”

Biting his lips, he cried silently as he tried to remember the face of the man who told him that.

The woman whispered, “You have to run away.”

She waited.

“Hey! Young man! Get up! If you don’t want to run, then go sleep inside.”

When she checked his eyes and nose, she realized he would never get up again.