Journey

Tsitsi walked in late to her science class. She walked straight to her teacher with a note from her previous class.

“Good afternoon, sir. Sorry I'm late,” she said while giving the teacher in front of her a note.

This was a rule at their school: if a student was late, they had to provide a real reason or get punished.

Tsitsi had stayed behind to help her English teacher collect books, which made her late for science. However, her English teacher wrote a note explaining that she was assisting her.

“There is a group assignment. You are working with Group B,” her science teacher told her emotionlessly.

She scanned the classroom with her eyes, looking for a group with fewer students. She saw a group at the back of the class with only two boys.

“That must be Group B,” she thought to herself.

“Wait for your other group member,” the science teacher told her.

That’s when she saw that another girl in her class was also late. Her name was Chipo. Though she did not know Chipo very well, she was glad that there was another girl in her group.

The two girls gave each other a little smile before walking together in silence to join the two boys at the back of the classroom.

Rudo softly greeted the gentlemen before sitting down.

“Sorry we are late,” she added.

“It’s okay, you’re here now. That’s what is important,” one of the boys said. His name was Blaze.

“There is supposed to be five of us, but I don’t think Ngoni is here today,” Blaze added.

“He’s here. I saw him in Coach’s office on my way here,” Tsitsi told the others.

“Well, aren’t I lucky to be paired with the latecomers,” Abel, the other boy in the group, said rudely.

The others ignored him.

“Let’s get started, shall we?” Rudo said with a polite smile.

The group began to read the instructions of their assignment so that they could begin.

The lesson was already halfway through when Ngoni walked in. You could tell he was not in a good mood.

The teacher told him to join his group at the back. One glance at them was enough to tell that he was not going to enjoy working with them.

So, with a sigh, he walked to them.

“Sorry I’m late,” he grumbled.

“What’s my part so I can work on it at home?” he added.

“Unfortunately, we aren’t allowed to work on this at home. Sir wants it done in class where he can see us doing it on our own,” Chipo told him kindly.

“He’s not even watching,” Ngoni said with an eye roll before putting his head down to sleep.

His group members dared not say a word to him. They could already see that he wasn’t in a pleasant mood, so they continued working without him.

“Hope he knows we aren’t putting his name on the project,” Abel whispered.

The others rolled their eyes at him while Tsitsi gave him a warning look.

“I don’t care, Abel,” Ngoni said with his head still down, causing Abel to blush from embarrassment.

The others sniggered but were interrupted by the intercom in their class.

“This is an all call, all call, all call,” the intercom said, with the last “all call” sounding robotic.

“Huh?” the students asked each other with laughs.

“This school and its broken intercoms,” one student said, making the class laugh.

“This is an all call,” the intercom said again.

“It’s officially a new revolution,” an unfamiliar voice said from the other side.

“Teachers, seize the small earthen vessels,” the voice commanded with great authority.

The students were now confused. Was this a prank?

What was going on?

They looked at their teacher, who had seemed off all lesson.

He did not move.

“Sir?” a student called out.

“Mr Mavhu?” another student called louder.

He slowly looked up with red eyes, like someone who had been crying.

“Prophecy said a time will come where man is tested and if he survives. For eternity he will live, but the level of suffering in between no man yet understands,” their teacher told them.

“Wage a good war, earthen vessels. As for me, I am weak,” Mr Mavhu said before getting a knife out of his desk. Making a few students gasp.

“Run, run, run, not home but to a land made for such a time by those who read times and seasons. For now, there is no telling who the real earthen vessels are. Your parents cannot save you, for they are already gone"

"Go to the land, find refuge there. Time is not on your side,” he added.

Tsitsi felt like he was looking directly at her when he said it.

Soon, the teacher took the knife, about to stab himself, when an explosion happened from one of the groups' experiments, filling the whole classroom with fog.

The students coughed and covered their noses, trying to escape, but they all fell to the ground unconscious.

“This is an all call. We had a glitch in our system. Please ignore the previous announcement. Thank you,” Ms Pebbles, who works at the front desk, said in her sweet voice.

That was the last thing Tsitsi remembered before waking up in her bed.

She looked at the clock on the side of her bed, and it read 19:30.

She sat up, rubbing her head.

How did she get home?

Was Mr Mavhu okay?

She felt a sharp pain in her head. She winced in pain before lying down again.

A light knock on her door woke her again.

“Hey, honey, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” her mother said softly while entering her room.

“I’m okay, just a headache,” she told her mom.

“Oh no, I think you might have to miss school again tomorrow,” her mother said while feeling her child’s head.

“Again?” Tsitsi wondered.

“You’re very warm,” her mother told her.

She just sat there, confused.

She did not miss school. She did go to school, and Mr Mavhu said some strange things. He even tried to kill himself. Was it all a dream?

“There is also something I need to tell you, honey,” her mother said while holding her hand and bringing her out of her thoughts.

She looked at her mom.

“One of your teachers has passed away, Mr Mavhu. He slipped in his tub and hit his head open. He was taken to the hospital but did not make it,” her mother told her.

Tears began filling her eyes.

He killed himself. He really stabbed himself.

What is happening?

“Oh, honey, come here,” her mother said while hugging her.

She allowed herself to be embraced. She wanted to tell her mom, but her tongue felt tied, like she couldn’t speak anymore.

Then she saw a small mark on her mother’s neck.

An incision.

She had never seen that before.

It wasn’t there in the morning when she went to school.

What is going on?

Her head started spinning, giving her a really bad headache. She began to scream in pain.

Her mother held her.

“It’s okay, Tsitsi. Honey, bring the warm compress,” her mom called out to her dad, who walked in with a warm towel on a tray.

Her mother placed the towel across her daughter’s forehead, filling her with instant relief.

And for a second, she saw Mr Ivhu sitting in front of the class, his eyes red from crying.

Then she remembered his words: “Your parents cannot save you, for they are already gone.”

Tears began to fall from her eyes.

What is happening?