Five years ago, a merchant and his wife came to her house late at night with their sick baby. The baby was having a fever. Initially, they thought the baby was just having a common illness. After being examined, the healer suggested they bring the baby to an expert healer in the center of the city.
The baby was exposed with inflammation, which was an outbreak at that time. A few days later, the healer heard the baby died, as did her mother. The expert healer in the center of the city could not do much. Both the merchant and the wife were infected, but only he could survive.
No one knew that the merchant had mummified his first child and on that day he met the healer and threatened to find the fire lily for resurrecting his child.
The healer could not refuse him because the merchant was in his power in his village. the rumors about fire lily were not a secret anymore in that village. Everybody knew that there were some flowers in the church they called Barones church, able to resurrect a dead man with the help of a mythical creature named Manji. But it was not an east thing to find that plant and surely someone to be sacrificed for that ritual.
Four year passed, but there were no clues where the fire lily was located. Many times they went to the Manjis but they always took the wrong flowers.
It might be countless how many times they had come to that place in the past years. She only remembered once or three times a week she came there since those years. Anytime the merchant came to the market, he would try his luck to find the lily to resurrect his little daughter.
…
When I heard all of her stories, I could only sit still. I had no idea what and how I should respond to it. I saw her eye bags got darker and her expression was perplexed. A smile she tried to force made me understand how four-year nightmares she had been through were really horrible for her. When she smiled she wanted to get rid of all the loads and freed her from such a nightmare in that place.
"I want to tell you," she spoke softly, "I took you here for you to meet Manjis. Those two old women have been waiting for so long for your coming," her expression was a bit lively. "They will show up in a few minutes. So you just have to make sure you can use the time your best,"
Fire lily would come up in the twilight at around 4.45 to 5.00. the Manjis would also show up in the same duration, but at dawn, when the sun was about to rise until the sun rose.
Mika was the name of that healer. She warned me to use the short time I had to think well what I wanted to ask from them. She gave me the lily that I handed to her previously, and asked me to use that opportunity to ask for one life from the Manjis.
When the sky showed a long orange line in the East, another morning came. My heart bit faster. In the dark of the church wall, I faintly saw wooden rocking chairs moved very slowly. I also started hearing two old women talking.
And…when things started appearing more clearly, I saw two old women were knitting and sitting on the rocking chairs. They were sitting face to face, their clothes were dark black as if they were made of iron sand. And at the hem of their clothes, I saw fine grains of sand falling.
"Oh," said one of them. She looked shocked as she realized my presence, "I am glad you are coming." As she said she walked to my direction slowly. I also walked slowly to her direction and I handed out fire lily in my hand to her. "For me?", I nodded, my mouth locked, could not say any words.
"What is your wish?" asked the other woman.
I was still quiet for some time. After taking a deep breath and making up my mind, I spoke convincingly, "Nothing," their expression was surprising. Their faces were like lumps of sand and I could see clearly the wrinkles on her forehead. Her eyes were black and empty, staring at me in confusion. "I just want to give this to you. Everybody said that the lilies here are all white. I want you to have the flame color one, when the sun goes down in the dusk, the color will glow red. It is really beautiful," I explained to them. "Keep it!". I felt I had done my mission. I looked at Mika and smiled.
"Thank you," They replied almost in the same time.
"We don't take this for free. There is a fair price we have to pay to you." The other woman spoke up and moved closer to me. She took my hand in hers. It felt so cold that the touch hurt my skin. "If you need any help, meet us here." Then their voice disappeared as the sun rose and faded their body into sand and it was carried away by the wind. Only the rocking chairs were moving slowly.
When I came back at the inn, Mickey and Kerberos were waiting. Their aces looked worried.
"Where have you been?" Mickey snapped fast.
"Meeting the Manjis," I replied lightly as if I was just meeting old friends alone.
Mickey and Kerberos did not say anything. They kept staring at me with the look I could not comprehend.
"You met them alone, Miss?" This time Kerberos asked.
I nodded and was ready to sleep. Suddenly I felt so sleepy.
…
I did not know how long I had slept, when Mickey woke me up and I heard noise outside the inn. Wondering what noise was about, I looked out of the window. Mickey was looking out through the window, too. People were swarming a place only a few meters away from our place.
"What is going on?" I asked half unconsciously.
"Someone has suicide." Mickey was watching while sitting on the window.
Not long after that, some people were carrying a big white bag. At that time I just realized it was a dead body. I gave a careful look, some of them were not strangers to me. I saw a man with burnt injuries standing by the entrance of the inn. He was the man of the caravan owner we took a ride with.
I stood on the third floor which gave me hard access to get good sights. I decided to go downstairs.
After I went out, I saw the caravan owner was crying in front of that big sack. At that very moment my consciousness gave me a big blow. That body was Mika. The image of that woman came to my mind. It felt only some hours ago that I was with her in that church and right at this time, she came back to my eyes lifeless.
I realized that 'death' was like a very selfish creature. They would come to anyone at any time regardless of time and conditions, as they liked.
I walked back from the crowd and I went back to the inn quickly, "The wife of the caravan owner killed herself," I told them nervously. I was stuttered.
Mickey and Kerberos did not look shocked a bit, but not like me. I was with her in the morning. I lost another person again. Someone I started trusting, someone who could understand the world I lived in was normal enough, and someone that would understand my thoughts.