Niyonga's Journey

Chapter 2

As the man who was speaking gives the other men his command, the men start going after more people in the village. The men, tackling villagers as they scream out in agony for help, put them in shackles and attach them to each other.

I look at mama

"What's happening mother? Why are the men hurting them?"

"I don't know, child," mother says as her voice shakes. As we stand and stare at the men (who don't seem to see us for some reason) Akuo breaks free of mothers tight grip and runs towards the trees where he'd been earlier.

"Akuo! Come back!" Mother and I yell. As Akuo turns to look at mother, he is tackled by a man who twists his arms and legs and puts them in shackles.

"Let go of my child!" Mother screams at the man as she runs to Akuo. Then, mother is tackled and put in shackles. Akuo and mother are chained together and now are sing forced to move by the men who tackled them.

"Run, child! Run!" Mother yells to me as she and Akuo are chained to the rest of the shackled villagers. So I take my mothers word and run as fast as my feet will carry me, until I am hit with a brute force and am knocked to the ground. As I struggle, kick and scream to be released, I am shacked just like the mother, Akuo and the rest of the villagers.

As I struggle to walk in the shackles and chains, the men are basically dragging me towards the river along with the rest of the villagers. As I'm walking with the men, I scan for Mother and Akuo but I do not see them anywhere.

"Mother! Akuo! Where are you?!"

I scream in hopes that I will get a response. Nothing. When I yell and scream for my mother, the men use the whip that they used on Kalani.

I feel a deep burning sensation as my back and arms start to welt up in pain. As I'm forced forward along with the rest of the villagers, all yelling and trying to fight back, we are all forced onto a very large boat along with a lot of other people who've been on here for a long time, as it seems, judging by their frail bodies and there desperation for food.