Neddin's lips remain straight as an arrow. His long plumed corona is shaken by the arid wind of the late night. A line of red dye covers the eyes and forehead of the leader, who fixes his stern gaze on the subdued, kneeling maid.
The tribal group stands at what was once the entrance to the crevice, now turned into a ditch of huddled boulders. The giant waked the village with its thunderous ascent and left. Only a few men were allowed to accompany the leader and find out what was going on. His most loyal guards, the champions of the hawk (Zell), the pig (Tashala), the Tasmanian devil (Maaca), and the Komodo dragon (Bironte), each dressed in the skins of their respective animal.
"Tell me the story again," the leader demands. "Order your words. Don't stammer this time"
Majani, cowering on the ground, retells again how the princess surprised her and asked her to visit the crevice. In the underground the situation became confusing, finally the giant takes Nadjela away.
"Could it be...? Could it be that he chose her as a wife?" Majani murmurs. A fanciful and romantic idea to perhaps force herself to believe that Nadjela's safe.
Neddin twists his lips into a sneer of deep contempt.
"Are you sure my daughter tempted that monster?"
The fury in the leader's tone shakes Majani. The girl sinks her forehead to the ground.
"It's my responsibility! Everything is my responsibility, my lord! I should have convinced the princess not to come! I should have called the guards to escort her to the safety of your abode! I was very foolish. Please punish me as you see fit! But I beg you, don't throw me into the forbidden areas"
Majani crawls over and sticks her head between the leader's feet, bathing the leader's fingers in tears. Neddin clicks his tongue and takes a couple of steps back, as if disgusted by the demonstration.
"Time is running out," Neddin says. "Those hateful old men will be here"
Majani stops sobbing, but not fearing. Strangely, she spies from below the figure of her leader and protector, who now paid little attention to her. Neddin looks up the mountain, where the temple stands and the wise elders sleep. Hearing how her venerable leader speaks of them with disgust, the young woman is disturbed.
"The bone sacks will be disappointed. There is nothing to tell them. My daughter was taken by that being, and her servant perished under the collapse. Perhaps losing this last hope will bring them one step closer to the grave, I hope"
Majani blinks uncomprehendingly, as if her leader's words were spoken in a strange language. She doesn't notice Zell positioning behind her back. By the time the bowstring comes down her face and against her throat, it's too late. She can only struggle and let out strangled moans. She attempts to stand up, but a kick from Zell behind her thigh forces her to remain on knees. With a crunch, Majani's body shudders one last time before going limp.
Neddin orders the body to be disposed where the beasts devour it. Bironte throws the corpse over his shoulder without much effort, Maaca accompanies him and takes the opportunity to steal the pearl earrings. Tashala retreats to her home, arguing that needs to check on his family. Zell remains with Neddin for a new mission.
They march to the hot springs inside the mountain. In the steaming secrecy, Neddin pulls out a heavy leather suitcase from a secret compartment in a wall. He removes the pins, places the password on the padlock, opens the suitcase, and removes from inside two gold bars and a rectangular laptop computer, old and little bigger than an adult hand. He hands the objects to Zell.
"The official version is that you are traveling to look for my daughter. Find a high point and as soon as you get a signal, contact the predator"
"The predator is dangerous and cruel, are you sure you don't want me to find someone else?" Zell asks without a trace of emotion in his voice. Despite his lack of expression and his dark, cold eyes, the falcon's champion is a very popular man within the tribe, his accuracy is unparalleled, and the women find him very attractive.
"I know the predator's cruelty, and his insatiable appetite for maidens. What he did with the leader Zendaya, how he destroyed her body and mind in one night, is well known. Even with such a background, the predator is still the best mercenary this side of the continent... I cherish my daughter, but I have several girls, and tribe only one. I will not risk corrupting the village with foreign influences. Besides, it's about time Gaita started acting like the big sister and heiress she is supposed to be"
As the village mourns Nadjela's abduction and Majani's death, Zell straps a cloth bag on his back with food, water, and the items given to him by Neddin. He secretly adds a seed from the El-nido-de-todas-las-plantas, though he doubts he needs it. So far in his life he has yet to meet a warrior who can compare to him.
Zell mounts the ostrich, and rides into the forbidden zones.