The Invisible Whisper
Preparation

Every night I smuggle some food of long shelf life into my place without realizing it. With the rations we received at the end of winter, it was impossible to accumulate enough food like this. I need another way and I see only one option.

I am not at all proud of what I produce, but I need a stockpile of fish and dried meat, flour, and nuts. This will be difficult because these supplies are well protected.

In the end it wasn't too bad, after all a portion of the food was for me and what I would take was less than what was rightfully mine until the first harvest. That I would claim it all at once and not tell anyone about it might not be neat, but at least it was not theft, I told myself.

My plan was simple, on the night of my departure, I would sneak into the cave. I'll go far, counting done because it always happens in the afternoon. Only then will they discover that there is a missing piece. Soon they will find out that I am no more. Links will be created quickly, although they will guess the reason until I return.

I plan to not tell anyone in the village about this trip. Nor will I speak to Aruna's parents, I cannot involve a child in this dangerous endeavor. Besides, they'll never agree to it. This will pose too much risk.

What will I say to Aruna?...

The idea of having to keep it a secret, or worse, lie, pierce my soul like a jagged arrow, piercing at full force. I had enough trouble swallowing and tears were flowing. Leaving Aruna, I don't want to, but I have to protect her. Is it my head, my heart, or my ego that wants to take him, and who is stopping me?

Given the risks, I also need to familiarize myself with the current weapons. Many years ago I used a bow, and it was only for hunting. Nothing in our tribe is more vulnerable to innovation than the weapons that youth and girls have.

Our bows were used for hunting, as none of us had ever faced another human. Yet we are all trained in hand-to-hand combat. The military side of our tribe is traced back to the sea demons that drove us away. Since then, our community has been arming itself.

Both men and women trained in the art of defensive blows from the age of twelve. Disarming and disarming enemies, with and without weapons. However, it should be clear that fighting is inevitable, and neither side should be the aggressor. That's the golden rule, a vow each of us makes.

From generation to generation, the techniques have been refined in such a way that anyone who mastered them well would have a very deadly hand. Unfortunately, my last training was a long time ago. I need a very good reason to join the younger generation once again. Because why do I have to do it? I'm the one who never left the village.

The idea came quite quickly, I would join forces to keep my mind and body sharp and active. I told the coach that I was not fit and because I had no wife, I thought it was necessary to improve my muscles and condition. It would make me a more interesting party. His coach, whose body was gilded, was able to understand this so well that I was accepted.

The sword is still the same, but there is a new, lighter and smaller throwing axe that is more effective and more deadly than the big axe of my time. Moreover, the old bows I learned had evolved into lighter and stronger models. Every day I train myself in using these weapons without being seen by the tribe.

Days pass like ships in the middle of a storm, nights pass faster. Sometimes a week has passed without me noticing. Fun is different, but I feel stronger and more deft. It was as if I was adjusting my body more and more, something I had previously failed to do.

Physical has never been my strength, my preference is spirit. Now I'm learning that it's also about finding balance to achieve a more balanced being. Because even though I was very tired and fell asleep at the beginning of the night, my choices lately have become increasingly clear to me.

It started with my own indifference. Since I was confined in my own mind, he could also have mastered that feeling. He had protected me from the tears of the past by letting my feelings remain silent and giving me the only reason.

I never understood why I couldn't find love with the women in my tribe, couldn't build a deep friendship with the man I grew up with. I told myself it was because I was different. Now I realize that I'm the one who wants to not let them get close.

Then something happened even though I rejected it, forcing me to look directly at my sadness, to conquer it instead of moving away from it. Will this coming journey free my heart enough to open it to warmth and gentle caress?

This requires weeks of intensive training, but now I was already as physically strong as most of the youths in my tribe and had mastered the fighting techniques in such a way that I could blindly fend off the attackers.

It also means my last reason for not leaving has been lost. I must now take the steps I have prepared for a long time. Three nights from now there will be no moon. It would be an ideal night to leave.

Still, there's one thing, something that doesn't let me go. Star-studded eyes, the face of the child sounds wise.

Aruna has asked me to take her and I have more or less kept my promise. Was it my secret desire not to leave the village that ensured everything possible to prevent my departure? Or was it the boy's wish, which he valued so much that I was constantly faced with it?

I have to tell him directly. I can't live with myself. I'll leave without telling him.