After Pablo left, the church remained quiet. The faint light still filtered through the stained glass windows, but it seed dimr than before. As if the colors had lost their brilliance.
Kuma still sat on his massive chair. Jinny stood beside him, her arms crossed beneath her chest. A long silence passed between them. Each was waiting for the other to start.
Jinny spoke first.
"What do you think?"
Kuma did not reply imdiately. He was thinking. His deep eyes were fixed on the opposite wall, but he was seeing beyond it.
"I don't know." he said finally. His voice was deep, but there was sothing tired in it. "He is not an ordinary man."
"That's obvious." Jinny said quickly. "The question is: is he an honest man?"
"Honesty... is a flexible concept." Kuma said. "He may be honest in his hatred of the king. He may be honest in his desire to overthrow the system. But that doesn't an he is honest with us."
Jinny nodded. "I saw how he looked at ."
Kuma looked at her. He said nothing.
"It doesn't matter." Jinny said quietly. "What matters is: do we believe what he said about the slaves?"
Here Kuma stopped. His massive body swayed slightly. His eyes ignited again.
"If what he said is true... if Bekori is really planning to turn the people of the south into slaves..." His voice beca like distant thunder. "This cannot go unanswered."
"But how do we know it's true?" asked Jinny. "All we know about the man is that he is a pirate killer and a warehouse robber. We have no reason to trust him."
"We have." Kuma said. "We have no reason to trust him. But we have reason to fear. Slavery, Jinny... you know what that ans. Not just forced labor. Not just beatings. Slavery in this kingdom ans slow death. It ans the poor will not die of hunger only. They will die in chains."
Jiny sighed. She sat on a nearby wooden bench. Her hands trembled slightly.
"I know." she said. "I'm afraid. Afraid for you. Afraid for everyone."
Kuma extended his huge hand. He placed it gently on her shoulder. His hand was nearly the size of her chest, but his touch was soft as feathers.
"Fear is not an excuse for inaction." he said. "Fear must be a motivation to act."
Jinny raised her eyes to him. She looked at his long face, at his sunken eyes, at his scars that had never faded.
"Do you want us to cooperate with him?"
Kuma was silent for a mont.
"I don't want to. But it seems the only choice. Other than Pablo, who else? Will the poor rise up alone? Will they attack the palace with scythes and hoes? They need a leader. They need money. They need weapons. Pablo provides all of this."
"At what price?"
"Everything has a price, Jinny. The poor will pay with their lives. But they will pay anyway. The difference is: will they die dreaming of freedom, or will they die dragging chains?"
A long silence. Jinny was thinking. Kuma was waiting.
"If we cooperate with him..." Jinny said slowly. "We must set boundaries."
"And he will agree." Kuma said. "He needs us more than we need him."
"How do you know?"
"Because he ca to us. Because he asked for our help. Because he knows we are not just weapons. The poor trust us. If we join him, thousands will join us."
Jinny stood up. She walked to the window. She looked at the poor fields stretching below the hill.
"I will go to him tomorrow." she said. "I will tell him our decision."
Kuma looked at her. "Do you rember the location he told you?"
"Yes. The cave in the center of the island. The entrance behind a small waterfall. I will find it."
"Be careful." Kuma said. "Do not trust him completely."
"I won't trust him." Jinny said. "But I will listen."
---
At the sa ti, in Pablo's cave, a eting was taking place.
Pablo sat on his stone chair. Marco on his right. Shigo on his left.
"The south is boiling." Pablo said. "But boiling alone is not enough. We need a spark. Sothing to ignite everything at once."
Marco looked at him. "What are you planning?"
"Distributing weapons. We will distribute five hundred guns initially. Not for everyone. Only for the hot-blooded youth. Those who will not hesitate to pull the trigger when the ti cos."
Shigo scratched his beard. "Five hundred guns... that ans five hundred new fighters."
"Plus our one hundred n. Six hundred ard n. That's not an army, but it's a start."
"Who will choose them?" asked Marco.
"The forty n who are sowing sedition in the south. They know the youth. They know who deserves the weapon. I will send them orders tonight."
Marco nodded. "We will start imdiately."
Pablo stood up. He walked to the map of Sorbet hanging on the cave wall. He looked at it for a long ti.
"But this is not enough." he said. "Even with five hundred fighters, we cannot face an army of thousands in an open battle. We need to weaken them before we strike."
"How?" asked Shigo.
Pablo turned his face to him. In his eyes was a cold gleam.
"We will strike them where they least expect. In the heart of their territory. We will kill the prince."
Silence in the hall.
Marco and Shigo looked at each other.
"Who is the prince?" asked Marco.
"Prince Leon. King Bekori's only son. A young man in his twenties, corrupt, arrogant, loved by no one. But he is well guarded. His own palace in the east of the north. About one hundred and eighty soldiers guard him."
"One hundred and eighty?" Shigo raised an eyebrow. "That's not easy."
"Not easy. But we will do it. Especially if we use natural cover."
Marco understood. "Another storm."
"A bigger storm. I will use all my power. I will make the sky rain for hours. I will make the wind howl like wolves. The soldiers will see nothing. Hear nothing."
"And when?" asked Marco.
"In a few days. After we distribute the weapons. After Jinny cos."
Shigo looked at Pablo. "Do you think she will co?"
"She will co." Pablo said confidently. "She has no choice."
He returned to his chair. He sat down.
"Now, move. We have a lot of work."
Marco and Shigo left the cave. They began executing the orders. Pablo remained alone.
He looked at the map again. At Prince Leon's palace.
He smiled.
He knew Jinny would co. He knew the weapons would reach the hands of the youth. He knew the storm would strike the prince's palace.
Everything was going as planned.
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