Chapter 69. Lover, Father, Brother

NABU

The sun has disappeared into the thick clouds, the ethereal calmness of a sunless evening taking over. Whiffs of dust particles still fly around leaving a mild smell of ash in the air.

Sitting under a tall, leafless tree, I ignore the pains of my healing thigh wound while a feather dances between my fingertips. I managed to travel with my all-important diary since I made an agreement with myself to record all the adventures and chronicles that occur in my life.

At this moment I am lost in the words I am scribbling into the scroll, the mildly pungent smell of my black ink adding to the allure of the moment.

The thrill of war has died down giving way to the agony that followed—the counting of losses, sad burials, torturing of the enemy, and sharing of the spoils. I choose not to take any part in that. After all, my mission is never driven by the longing for money and spoils.

The screaming of tortured soldiers hung in the background but I let it fade