Chapter 6: Yekepa

It had been a couple of hours when Thomas’s jeep finally came to a stop at the town limits of Yekepa. The Nimbus Mountain range was in front of him. He finally, against all odds, reached the town. The storm clouds he saw ahead of him had started to clear up.

“What a shame, this place has been reduced to,” he said. “This place was a paradise for people. Liberia was trying to find other things that they could export besides being so dependent on rubber, and it didn’t work. This place has been abandoned, plundered, and wrecked.”

He could see abandoned machinery equipment as he looked at the homes, now rustic and neglected. He had old photographs that he reviewed of the area when he was briefed. It showed that the homes, warehouses, mills, mining equipment all worked. They had their own massive swimming pool in an area that people normally could never even dream of having, especially in this poor location. It served as the last checkpoint to all the other neighboring nations of Liberia as well. Beyond this town, you were either in Guinea or the Ivory Coast.

“There still should be people here that I can question about this mysterious man that Outreach wanted me to investigate. He has to be around here somewhere. They hide in plain sight. That is what they always do.”

He put the jeep into gear and drove himself into the town. Homes were well spaced and far apart from one another. He decided to travel slowly, taking a slow speed in order to begin his search. He was looking for anything that was out of the ordinary. He decided to drive down to the LAMCO itself to see if there was any sort of activity taking place. He spotted the two people that were walking by the side of the road. An elderly man, he was walking with a younger woman. They looked like they were holding baskets of food.

He decided to pull the jeep over to the side and have a word with the people. The people were surprised to see a lone foreigner deliberately stop to go ask something so unusual.

“Excuse me. I came from a far distance to this place. I need to ask for information here. I am looking for someone. Maybe you could help me out?”

He put his jeep into park as he rested his hand on the seat. He was looking at the two people as they stopped and put down their baskets.

“I am sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt your work.”

The woman shook her head as she looked at them. She put her hand on her back as she walked up to the jeep and looked at Thomas. Like everyone else in Liberia, she had a fairly dark complexion. The older man also approached and stood beside her, looking at this man as if he some lost tourist.

“What do you need help with?” the woman asked.

“I come from the United States,” Thomas explained. “I was sent to go and explore your town. I am ... looking for someone. It is an odd request, but I am really interested in finding him.”

“What does he look like?”

“He was supposed to be bald and possibly have a light complexion similar to mine. I need to know, do you or have you heard of any cases in your town of a man that was shot but could not be hurt?”

The woman thought about it for a moment and shook her head. “No, I do not know of any person or story of that type.”

The old man put his hand to his chin as he thought about it.

“It supposedly happened 10 years ago,” Thomas continued. “He was part of a church organization. Maybe he was just visiting, I don’t know. Anything you might help me out with. He was supposedly shot, but nothing happened to him.”

The woman shook her head. “I am sorry. I don’t know anything that could help you.”

“Alright, then, thank you for helping me out.”

She nodded as Thomas put the car into forward gear. He was just about to put his foot on the accelerator pedal when the old man spoke up.

“Yes ... I have heard of it. I myself never saw what you claim to be looking for. However, there was a friend of mine that claimed to have seen what you just described. Nobody believes him, but he is sure what he saw.”

“Can I meet him? Any information will help.”

“He lives right by the old LAMCO warehouse by the pool in the house on the far right when you turn into the main entrance of the camp. His name is Joseph Saah. I have not seen him for some time, but he still lives there. Go and talk to him. He could tell you anything.”

“Thank you,” Thomas extended his hand to the old man, and he responded in kind by shaking his hand. The woman followed suit by shaking his hand as well. The two individuals stepped back as Thomas shifted to forward gear. He got off the side of the road as he watched the two individuals take their baskets. He looked at the passenger seat. He only had one seat available and would have offered them a ride to their destination otherwise.

He got back to the road and drove further into the town. It split into multiple directions. He decided to proceed down the main road. The LAMCO remains were not far if he kept going straight.

“Focus your mind, my child,” All told Zoe.

Zoe and All were meditating at the statue. She was struggling as her mind prevented her from shaking off thoughts.

She put her hands up in the air. “I ... I am trying. I guess I am getting tired or need to see something.”

All had his eyes closed. He was in a meditative stance as he kept his hands on his knees. The distant chimes were still there. Zoe was following suit, but she was shaking her head. Even though it had been a couple of days, she was still troubled by her past events. Understandable in such a situation, but the loss of her brother haunted her.

She took her hands and slapped her knees. “I ... I can’t keep doing this. I need something, I need to do something All. I keep sitting here meditating with you. I don’t know.”

The monk opened up his eyes as he turned his bald head to her.

“I try to relax, but I am just getting ... tired of doing this,” she said. “I still don’t even really know who this person we are worshipping.”

“He is Siddartha Guatama,” The monk simply replied to her with a calm smile. “We are not worshipping him. We are remembering his teachings.”

“I never met him,” she told him. “I have seen a little bit of Christianity, but we never ... followed this religion. Who was he?”

“Somebody that changed many things, my child. He paved the way for the future for me and changed my beliefs on many things. I learned how...”

The monk stopped talking. Something seemed to trouble him. There was a slight concern on his face.

“What is wrong?” she asked him and noticed his face twitch a little bit. “This is the first time I have seen you behave this way.”

He took a deep breath. “Men with weapons are approaching us.”

Zoe had a distressed look on her face as she looked at the door. She believed him when he said it looked like he had some sort of sixth sense.

“Monji and Tim, we need to go see if they are alright.”

The monk nodded. “They will be here very soon. Hurry and get them in my home before it’s too late.”

Zoe got on her feet without hesitation and ran out the door before All said one last thing.

“No guns, Zoe. No weapons of violence in this home.”

She nodded without even thinking about his words. She ran to the nearby home where Tim and Monji were at. She practically barged into their home.

“Tim! Monji!” she yelled.

Tim, the boy, was sitting at the center of the table peeling vegetables as his grandmother was currently stirring a pot on a wood-burning stove. She was old but still capable of taking care of herself and her grandson. She turned her attention to the young woman. Tim stopped peeling and looked at Zoe.

“We need to get in All’s home! They are coming, and they will...”

“Let’s go,” was Monji’s only words interrupting her. Tim needed no explanation as well. Tim practically ran to go get his guns.

“No ... All specifically requested no guns.”

Tim hesitated as he looked underneath the bed and finally nodded. There was no time to do anything else. It probably would not have mattered if he brought the guns. A revolver and a rifle against a small group of men with assault rifles were not good odds anyway.

Monji ran as fast as her body would let her. It took her less than a third of a minute before she reached the door of the monk’s place. Tim and Zoe went and helped her up the step as Zoe opened up the door leading into All’s small home.

They were greeted by a relatively relaxed monk in red robes. The monk bowed his head to Tim and Monji. “Welcome to my home, have a seat and relax,” as he gestured to his two beds.

Zoe was at the entrance of the door as she closed it behind her. They made it just in time. Monji went and sat down on one of the beds as Tim sat close to his grandmother. He held her hand tightly. Zoe was looking at the monk, scared. She was still amazed at how these two when came to perceiving this house.

“How soon?” she asked.

The monk said nothing. They could hear a truck outside the home.

Outside the home, a small unarmed, flatbed truck pulled by the house. It consisted of four men. One was the driver, one a passenger, and two in the back of the bed of the truck. Two of the men were armed with assault rifles. The other two were armed with machetes. They pulled the vehicle to a stop and turned the engine off. All of them got out of the truck and readied themselves.

“So the bitch is still alive and hiding in that small little house?” Zoe could overhear one of the men.

“Yes,” another voice responded. “According to our scout that was watching the village. he saw her go into this place.”

“Those fuckers said they shot her dead. They fucking lied!” another voice responded.

“Don’t worry, the General has something planned for those men. He is happy to know she is alive, though. He told us to make sure we bring her back so he can ... properly take care of her.”

Zoe sat by the door as she put her fist to her mouth. She was scared. A tear came down from her face as she cowered in fear. She obviously did not want to go back north. Who knows what horrors they planned on doing to her. She sat absolutely silent.

A man, most likely the driver, armed with a machete, used the blade to tap at the door. “Zoe! Come out of there! We know you are in there!”

He took his blade and slid it down the door, making the sound of metal sliding against the wood. One good kick, and they could come storming in.

Zoe, with absolute fear, watched as All came up to the door. He was in no fear or displaying any signs of distress.

Before they put their foot to the door, the monk opened up the door as he stepped to the foot of the door. He took a good look at the men. There was no sign of any emotion on his face as he starred down at the four men.

“What? ... Who are ... fuck this. Where is Zoe!?” yelled one of the men.

“I am sorry, my child, I do not know who you are talking about,” the monk replied.

“A young woman came from up north, and she was seen living at this house. Your house! Tell us where she went, or we start cutting you piece by piece!”

Zoe was still away from the open door, so she could not be seen by the angry men. She knew they would very easily carry out their threat. The monk was in extreme danger of being cut down. Then they would grab her and possibly kill Monji and take Tim for whatever foul deeds they wanted to do to him. These men were more than capable of doing it, and she had seen what they had done first hand with no care and no remorse.

“My child, there is no need for violence. Please put away your weapons and leave.”

The driver threw up his hand. “So be it. Take him!” he screamed to the other men.

Zoe was shaking in her spot. She knew what they were going to do. She turned her head to look at the monk that stood at the entrance, ensuring no one got past him.

One of them shouldered his rifle as he approached the monk and grabbed his arm. He wrapped his hand around the monk’s arm and then tugged hard ... however ... he didn’t move.

The man gave a questioning look at the monk that simply smiled at him. The man exerted a heavy force when he pulled him to yank him out of the way. Zoe could only see so much from her angle, but the monk could not be moved. The man still had his hand firmly grasped on his arm. He tugged hard to yank him out of the way so they could get inside ... yet he did not budge.

The man released the monk and backed away as he looked at the smiling monk. The other men gave questioning looks as to the scene that was unfolding.

“I can’t move him. It’s like he weighs like a truck!” the man said to the others. Zoe was shaking as he looked at All that stood like a wall.

The driver gave an angry look at the monk. “Get out of the fucking way, or you die!”

“Please, my children, leave this place and do not return. This can end peacefully. It must end peacefully,” the monk pleaded with a relaxed voice to the men.

Zoe couldn’t let this happen. She can’t let them kill him. She had to surrender herself to them.

She struggled to get on her legs as she pushed herself to her feet. Tim and Monji were held close together, trying to keep one another calm.

“No one ... no one has to die because of me,” she struggled to say out loud as she stepped behind the monk. All was not moving from his spot as his head turned slightly to look at her. She was now in the visible range of the men as they could see her from inside the home. “I give myself up ... please don’t hurt them.”

“My child,” the monk addressed to her. “You are in no danger. I know you are trying to sacrifice yourself for me. It is not necessary. Please have a seat and relax.”

Zoe was in shock as the monk was deliberately doing everything he could to put himself on the line to protect the people inside the home. Even if she tried to leave, he stood in the way like a wall. They would have to cut him down to get past him.

“We see her! Last warning, get out of the way!” one of the men yelled at the monk.

“Why are we bothering with this? Kill him!” yelled the driver as he looked at All.

The other man armed with a machete lifted it high in the air as he walked up to the monk. He was just about to swing the blade at him.

“Nooo!” Zoe cringed as she yelped, putting hands to her face. She knew the monk was good as dead. But...

The blade smashed into the monk’s shoulder hard. Like the sound of metal slamming into metal, the machete’s blade bounced off, doing absolutely nothing to the monk. Instead of metal going through flesh, it was like he swung at a metal pole.

The blade recoiled along with the man as it took him by complete surprise. The man with the machete jumped back as the other men stood staring at the scene take place.

“It’s not possible,” said the other men. “He has nothing to protect him. He should be dead.”

The monk smiled calmly. “Please, leave this place, my children. There is no need for violence.”

Zoe stood in disbelief as she watched everything. Even she could not believe what she saw, even if the last couple of days brought new ideas to her.

The driver was both shocked and angry as he walked up and grabbed one of the assault rifles from the men and pointed it at the monk. At point-blank range, he positioned the barrel at the monk’s chest. The monk stood unfazed as he stood there, ready to be gunned down.

The driver pulled the trigger, a shot rang out as a rifle round flew and went straight to the monk’s stomach and then bounced off, doing nothing to him. The men could not hurt him.

“It’s time to go,” said one of the men. “We can’t hurt him, we can’t get past him, we can’t do shit to him.”

“I will ram that truck through him if I have to,” the driver said to the monk.

“I don’t think that is going to work. If he can survive being shot at, I think it will only wreck our vehicle. It’s time to go. We will tell everything what happened to the General.”

The driver stomped his foot into the ground. He had no choice but to give up. If a powerful man could not be moved or swayed to get out of the way, what else could that monk do?

The monk bowed his head as the men went back into the truck. The other men still stared at the monk in disbelief. The driver started up the vehicle as they backed up and drove back to the road. There, they headed up north.

It was quiet and peaceful once again. The monk closed the door as he looked at Zoe. She was almost at a loss of words at what just happened, but she was grateful for the miracle that just occurred.

Tim ran up and hugged the monk’s legs in happiness and relief. Zoe came up to him and then hugged him. All simply took his arm and tapped her shoulder.

“We always have the power to change things for the better,” the monk told her. “No one had to be hurt, no one had to be injured or maimed by another, because peace has won this day.”

“Thank you for saving my life,” Zoe told All. “Thank you...”

She released her hug on him as she backed away to let Tim follow suit. The boy went and walked up to her grandmother as they started to relax.

Zoe had a lot of questions to ask this monk, and hopefully, he was going to start talking.

Monji broke the silence. “I think it is time for me and Tim go back to our house. We ... have food that needs to be cooked.”

The people of the village were used to such horrors and aggression to the events that just transpired. Zoe already knew this. People lived and died just as quickly in a system of violence. It was not to say they were scared for their lives of such events, obviously, but they simply just got up and continued like nothing happened. They were used to it. She prayed for the day this came to an end and that they can live their lives without the fear of getting killed. Nonetheless, she was happy to be alive.

Monji and Tim proceeded to leave home as they walked back to the house, but Zoe asked one last question.

“Monji, why did you stay here with your grandson when everyone left?” Zoe asked her.

The grandmother looked at her “Hope ... Zoe. We learned to live here no matter what. We will not be chased out by thugs or warriors that want to kill and devour everything, even if it kills us.”

Zoe nodded. “I understand. Take care of yourself. You too, Tim.”

The boy nodded with a smile as they left home and went back to their house. This left Zoe with All. The monk was standing with a contemplative look to himself.

“Who are you?...” she asked him. “You saved my life, but I must know who you are. They grabbed you, they slashed you, they shot you, and nothing happened to you. How is this possible?”

“What do you see right now?” All asked her with a calm look.

“I see a bald man in red robes that prays to a statue of another man.”

“What else do you see?”

“An aura that glows around you,” she answered. “I have not seen that glow since I saw the warlord once.”