DREAMERS

I

The beginning

The cleansing happened every year. The moon was hidden by thick clouds, and the night dark.

A veil of silence hung over the crowded slums of lower town, houses shut and windows locked. Chickens clucked softly, almost as if aware of the somberness in the air. Goats chewed slowly, blinking in the darkness.

On a normal night, the air would have been vibrant and full of sounds and activities—cleavers thudding against wooden benches as the abattoirs cut down heaps of goat and cow meat, and sometimes pork, and the chatter of the market women selling their wares, or the backfiring of lorries and bikes, and the playful giggles of children.

The night was never dull in lower town, but this was no normal night; it was the night of the cleansing and everyone was required to stay indoors.

Even without the curfew, no one still would have left their house, for no one knew when it would be their turn.

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A dog pushed through a wooden fence and stared in the distance, wagging its tail slowly. Almost immediately, it started barking. A door opened behind and a man hastily rushed out and picked up the barking dog, muttering some harsh words as he dragged it into the house and shut the door.

In the distance, the soldiers marched on. Long rows of men progressing through the mud road in unison, all dressed in black and armed with rifles. Their faces were covered with white masks, slashed with red marks—the ceremonial veil of the cleansing. It was going to be a long night.

The soldiers split up in groups of three and went in all directions. In each group, a soldier held a small box which had a cowrie in it, and also a small black device.

The only sounds that night were the thudding of boots; even the soldiers had a solemn silence to them, for as much as they were following orders they knew that their families were out there and could easily be affected by the cleansing.

A group of three marched to the house with the wooden gate, where the dog had been barking. The gate creaked as one of them pushed it open and stood guard, rifle in hand. The other two walked up to the house.

A nod from the soldier with the box and the other one approached the door and knocked.
‘Open,’ he said and a moment later there came a clicking sound from behind the door and the soldier with the box walked in, leaving the other one standing outside the house.

‘Where are the members of this household?’ the soldier asked calmly. A thin man came forward, his face drawn and his eyes sad.

‘Just me and my wife,’ the man said and his wife, a large woman, joined him. The soldier looked at them and then stepped aside, looking around the house.

It was a small place, with just the living space and a door leading to the back, and another leading to a side room.

‘Are there no children in this house?’ the soldier asked, taking out the box. The couple exchanged looks, their eyes low, and then shook their heads. The woman’s lips shook and the man held her hand.

‘It is just us.’

Just then, a bark came from the other room followed by a soft whimper. The soldier turned sharply to the man and then at the door. He shifted aside and made to walk to it when the man stood in his way and clasped his hands together.

‘Please…I beg you,’ he pleaded. The woman clutched the cloth wrapped around her chest and stood transfixed as the soldier glared at her husband.

'You shall be punished if you don't step out of the way.'

The man fell on his knees and continued pleading, shaking his hands.

'Please, she...we don't have any other...'

The soldier shifted his foot back and planted his boot against the man's ribs, sending him crashing against a small table.

'My husband!' The woman cried and knelt by the man. They both looked up when the soldier kicked the door open and the dog's bark became enraged and loud.

It was hard to tell what was going on, but the growls and barks became louder, followed by a grunt and then a loud yelp. The dog became silent.

The soldier soon came out dragging a little girl behind him.

'Let me go!' She shouted in her local dialect, her eyes wet with tears.

'Mama! Papa! Help me,' she cried and the soldier flung her across the room, over to where her parents were. The man and woman scrambled towards their child and held her close, crying, and pleading.

The soldier grunted and took out the box. It was a small square wooden box with an open by the side, sealed with clear glass. The cowrie inside was visible, with a red string tied around it.
The family looked up in fright.

They hadn't thought this day would ever come, until their daughter started showing strange signs and sleepwalking, and shouting in her sleep. All that was two weeks ago, when she turned ten.

Holding the box in front of the little girl, the soldier kept his eyes on the cowrie through the clear glass. The family waiting, lips trembling and body shaking. The girl stared at the box, not sure what was happening, then she started sweating and shaking.

'Mama,' she winced and then fell on the ground, thrashing violently. The woman screamed and went for her daughter, while the man bit his lips and shook his head.

Slowly, the cowrie shifted from side to side, hitting against the box, until it rattled noisily. The soldier placed the box back in its place and turned around and left. It was done.

A few seconds later, while the soldier stood outside and waited, his eyes on the sky, the other soldiers went inside and grabbed the little girl. Screams rang out as the woman tried to hold on to her little girl but there was no stopping the men.

Once with the little girl, the soldiers exited the compound. The woman's screams rang through the night, but it wouldn't be the only one that night. The cleansing had begun.