SHAYAN ( A TRIBES REALM TALE)

FOUR

Shayan didn't know what to make of the news. It was surreal for him. Nun could be bluffing but a huge possibility that he wasn't. Things like this weren't something that could be joke about. Besides, Nun was serious when he told him about what he heard – about him taking the role as the village Chief. Suddenly, a lot of questions ran through his mind and he wanted to burst out of the room to see his mother and pleaded that he didn't want to become the village Chief, that he wasn't ready. But he couldn't do this, he knew for a fact that the title was his to take when the right time comes. Could this be the right time?

He wasn't prepared yet. What could a 13-year-old boy do to be a leader? "I can't do it." He whispered. Unaware that he spoke the words loud enough for Nun to hear it.

"Yes you can. You are born to do this Shayan." Nun said.

Shayan shook his head to disagree but Nun stood up and walked towards him and placed a hand on his shoulder. The grip was strong enough that Shayan looked up to meet Nun's gaze.

"You have to believe that you can do it Shayan. You have to find that in your heart." Nun said.

"But what if I fail?" Shayan's eyes were searching the answer in Nun's molato face. "What if I make a mistake?" He was scared.

"You will." Nun started. "And you will make mistakes; even fail, many times along the way. But through these failures and mistakes, you will learn." Said the ever-wise Nun.

Shayan looked down to the bamboo floor then he brought up his hands and saw how small and fragile his fingers were. It wasn't a leader's hands but that of a boy, a young and inexperienced boy. His gaze went back outside the window and once again he saw the children playing carelessly up the hill. Some were climbing trees while others... well, it's useless to reminisce a childhood that he was bound not to have in the first place.

Nun saw the anxiousness in Shayan's face and he fully understood. He knew the struggle that his nephew and best friend was going through. Even he never had the desire to take the role that young Shayan was bound to take for it would bare a mountain of load on his shoulders. He didn't know if he could take that kind of responsibility. He moved closer and put an arm around Shayan's shoulder as he leaned closer to his ear.

"Your grandfather was a mighty warrior and a great leader to us all." Nun said with pride. "But he was once a boy like you and I." He smiled.

Shayan looked at him with due respect. He thought about it for awhile and realized that Nun was right. His grandfather became the chief during his younger days and he turned out fine. He would be fine; he had to believe that everything would be fine. If the Gods wanted him to be the tribe's Chief, then the Gods would guide him every step of the way. A smile broke in his face as he stared at the ever-wise Nun.

"How do you know all these, Nun?" He asked wondering.

Nun shrugged as he put his hand down from Shayan's shoulder and faced the window. "I just know." He said smiling tilting his head to face Shayan.

"You just know. Right." Shayan mocked.

"Yeah. A gut feeling, I guess." Nun paused then sighed. "I can see it in you Shayan. I can see you as a great leader of our tribe. Even greater than your grandfather."

"flattery huh?"

"No. I am serious and I've never been wrong. Ever."

Shayan and Nun stared at the views outside the window. The clouds rolled up at the horizon as the wind picked up on the hills. The shadows of the trees stretched the affluent meadows as the Sun shifted towards the nearby mountain. The day waned as it entered mid-afternoon.

Finally, the door of the room opened and Myrah entered. The two boys turned around to face her. She was radiant and beautiful in her freshly woven barrel of red clothes. She smiled and her eyes glinted like a star in the afternoon. She moved forward and from the look in his mother's face, Shayan knew that his fate had been decided. He stood straight as he stared at his loving mother. He was surprised how calmed he felt when he was at the verge of panic awhile ago. Thank the Gods for Nun and his comforting words, his gifts of tongue and counseling. He would never be a Baylan but no doubt a priest in the making. Nun who made him realized that becoming the tribe's Chief was not the end of the world but a beginning of a new one for him.

"The Elders wanted to speak to you." Myrah said in a gentle voice.

Shayan looked at her, trying to read a hint of what lies ahead when he faced the Elders. But all he saw was an animated light that sparked in her mother's eyes. She smiled and her face radiated the love of a mother with complete adulation for her only son. She was proud of him. She was proud of what he would become. This revelation scared him. He was afraid with the responsibility that he was going to face but he would never disappoint his mother. So, whatever fear inside of him, he vanished it in his mind. He would not entertain it and he would not allow the doubt to rattle him. Whatever the challenge was he would accept it for it would bring honor to his mother and his family. He would continue the tradition and carried the legacy that was passed down from father to son. He would be the Tribe's Chief.