Roshma Book 1: The First Steps

It was finally the day of my Samsara the day arrived. Not shrouded in the glory that I had originally imagined it in upon my arrival at the Academy, but it arrived the same. I got up and dressed myself in the long silky green robes that had been given to us for the ceremony. It was absolutely beautiful outside, it almost seemed too good to be true. The temperature was warm, but comfortable, there wasn’t a cloud to found in the whole sky and the Alpha Star was so bright that it seemed out of place. Maybe my whole life was the set of a film and the director was now shining at the light directly in my eyes.

Upon arrival at the academy I proceeded to the courtyard where hundreds of chairs had been set up in front of a makeshift stage. Two of the courtyards many fountains flanked both sides of the student seating area and white marble arch stood in front of the stage. I’m guessing that we would have to pass under the arch as some kind of symbolic pass from into adulthood and onward towards our destiny. It was all a show but it was so pleasant, so inviting and seduced me into letting my guard down even if only for a moment. For a couple of hours I forgot there was a global war going on and we were fighting against the genocide of our very race.

In spite of this temporary optimism, I couldn’t help but notice how small the ceremony was. Many of my fellow comrades had gone off to join the theater of war, I knew death was inevitable, but still I hoped that none of my classmates had died. These thought s slowly slipped away as I took a seat and waited for my name to be called. This was a monumental achievement in my life even if it had arrived under unfortunate circumstances.

Then it happened. They called my name over a speaker, “Tyerow Nathaniel Hawkins.” I proudly marched down the aisle, and I swear to you it was one of those moments that’s immortalized in one’s memories. I scanned the crowd with a sense of false hope of seeing my family. To my surprise, saw my family-dad and mom even my sister Cierra. Was this really happening?

I got my certificate of completion and shook the hand of some important people but that suddenly wasn’t as important anymore. I felt emotions well up inside of me and almost cried. Okay, maybe a tear ran down my face but no one noticed. I don’t know what it was, the stress, the uncertainty about where to go next or something I ate the night before, but it had been forever since I had seen any of them.

It was my choice to leave Desantiago and with that decision I left my kin in the desert, but they were never out of my heart. Sure, we had talked some on the com-link from time to time, but this was the real deal. The details of the moment are a little blurry; what I do know is that the first thing I did was run up to them. I embraced my mother saying, “I didn’t think you guys were going to be here, there’s a war going on its dangerous to travel?”

My mom replied, “We wouldn’t miss this for the world!”

My dad said, “War, smore. Since when have the Hawkins’ been about playing it safe? I still know a couple of military people, we had a small squad protecting us on the journey and while not the wisest decision it is definitely one I would make again.”

Cierra contributed her two cents as well, “Mom and dad made me come.” She was always so sweet. When I thought this moment couldn’t get any better, Katotta ran up to me and gave me a big hug, “I’m so proud of you, you did it, hopefully that’s be me wearing those robes in a couple of years.”

I looked her straight in here fiery eyes, “I Know you’ll be wearing those robes in a couple of years’ time. You’re a special girl, they don’t make many like you, and I see success in your future no matter what path you chose. ”

Katotta blushed slightly embarrassed by my flattery, “I appreciate your complements, but I feel you’d say that about anyone, you’re a nice guy it’s just who you are.”

I gave a coy smile, “You aren’t wrong there, but when I say it to you I really mean it.” With that we parted, and despite my stellar mood I had to wonder if that was the last time I would ever see her. The thought was enough to make me shudder.

Katotta seemed to have peaked my father’s interest, “Who was that girl, is that your girlfriend and why haven’t we heard about her? She was really pretty” I saw mom give him a subtle elbow him in the side.

I scrambled for the words to say, “Oh that was Katotta. Don’t you remember her? She visited Desantiago often, she and James were a thing for a while.” He gave me a disappointed look before saying, “Well you’re a grown man why don’t you have a girlfriend?” We were in the middle of a war I think there was more pressing issues at hand than my love life or lack thereof.

I was again searching for the words to say, “I’ve been really busy the last two years training to fill your big shoes dad.” At least that’s what I kept telling myself. My parents just shook their heads.

The rest of the evening we talked and laughed. We were a happy family. It was great, but it ended all too soon, they were headed back to the desert and I was headed head-long into this war. Still I pleaded with my family and told them they could stay with me, and we would make it work. I would even sleep on the couch if I had to.

The old man sighed, “I would love to Tyerow, but my place is with the people of Desantiago. If the enemy wants to destroy my home they have to get through me first.” The man was certifiably insane.

My mom brought a large box into my house. Inside the box was a blanket. She said, “This is a special blanket of the Indra people, a sprit blanket. As long as you wear this, you will be safe and it will ward off bad spirits.” The gift was nice in thought but I couldn’t run into battle with a blanket around my shoulders. Even my sister Cierra told me that she missed me, and trust me, when I say that means a lot. They left and I went to bed. A blanket of tranquility fell over, me tonight there was no place for nightmares.