I hear a distinct sound, a vocalized melody. My captor stops for a moment and looks around, closing their eyes as they wait to perceive where it comes from. 
“What is this noise?” - I ask. 
“Something is wrong. The village will reunite. I was considering taking you to the elders for them to judge your fate. Still, I think whatever happened is more pressing than a Duilleoger captive. I’m afraid you will have to wait for your sentence.”
Sentence? Could they really be… 
They pull me as they lead the way, forcing me to walk faster until I run. I’m not as good at running as them.
As we approach, I can hear the villagers’ voices; they are vocalizing a melody together as more and more people approach. 
“Sit here.” - My captor says, pointing to their feet, indicating I should sit in front of them in the circle of the village that was becoming more and more complete. As I do so, my captor joins in the song. 
The voices vocalizing this melody in a loop sound better than the song of the Gods that come through the great wall. It gives a feeling of peace, and I notice my heart beating slower to the sound of this beat. Even though I’m anxious about being a captive and about my big and rash decision to run away, I feel extraordinarily calm under the sound that more and more people join. Then, suddenly, it all stops and the whole tribe is silent.
An elder rises. They were the only ones sitting other than myself in this circle. But while I sit on the floor, they sit on red leaves. 
“Welcome, everyone. Pir will tell you the concern.” - They point to another individual.
“I’ve seen Banners stealing our leaves again. They took my child away!” - Pir falls to the ground crying, and other parents approach them and try to give some comfort.
Our legends said that Dergers are solitary people, but this seems like a very supportive community. Are all the legends wrong? What else can be proven false?
“You heard the concern. What solutions can we offer Pir?”
So... Dergers brainstorm solutions… Together? 
“We could negotiate your child back. They are after our scarce red leaves. We can offer them the leaves in exchange for the child.”
“No! That’s not a good idea. They will start kidnapping children in exchange for leaves.”
“We can go there and kill them all!” - Another one suggested.
“No. No unnecessary bloodshed. Our lives would be lost too.” - The elder intervenes.
“We trade this Duilleoger captive that I found. They can be a good slave.” - My captor, Yzet, suggests. 
Suddenly, all eyes land on me, and my anxiety returns. 
“No! I refuse!” - I say. My captive holds my arms higher on my back, making it hurt a bit.
“Shut up, foreigner! You’re a captive, not a guest.” 
I had never been in such a position before. I feel afraid. I should have never left my home. I had it good before. Now, before the possibility of becoming a slave, I see it. I was spoiled. I was an idiot. Why did I act so irrationally? I want to go home. 
My heart beats out of my chest in fear and anxiety. The elder comes closer to inspect me. 
“Get up, child.” - I did as instructed. The elder inspected my clothes and my physique. 
“Hm. Where did you find it?” - They ask my captor. 
“In the territorial cross, at the centre of the world. They claim to be a scholar. I decided to arrest them so you could judge them.”
“Hm… Duilleoger… I see. Bright green garments. You’re more than just a scholar, aren’t you, child?” 
I avoid answering.
“We all know that Duilleogers like their strict hierarchy. Scholars are halfway in the chain, and there’s no way you’re one of them. So, answer. Who are you?”
“My name is Ar. I’m… The child of the Duilleoger chiefs. But I do not wish to exert power anymore; hence I recently adopted the function of a scholar. I wish only to observe.”
“Hm.” - The elder shows themselves as thoughtful. - “Alright, what would you do in this situation?”
“First, try to communicate with them to assess if the child is still alive. If so, try to understand why they kidnapped the child, and then negotiate a trade deal that is advantageous for both from there and request the child’s return, unharmed.”
The elder seems surprised by my idea. 
“Alright. Let’s go with that. Yzet, keep an eye on the captive. Don’t mistreat them too much for now. Let’s see if their idea works. We shall gather tonight in respect for the kidnapped child.”
As the elder says this, people split, and I’m taken to sit under the watchful eye of the elders.
The people return soon after, carrying dry red leaves and several fungi, each contributing with whatever little they had. A different vocalization starts as they gather in a circle, by seniority order, children in front of their parents or tied to their backs. In contrast, the young adults gather in the centre, start a fire and cook. Food is distributed, first to the children, then to the elders, then to the adults, from the oldest to the youngest. I was the last served, but plenty was still left in the pot. 
Everyone eats in absolute silence, and then the vocalizations return. And as the fire burns out, people leave, climbing different branches of the red plant by themselves or carrying their children with them. There was no group bigger than three people. Most childless adults climb alone. 
My captor returns next to me and looks at the elder silently, expecting orders on what to do about me. 
“You can stay here with us and help keep guard on the captive you made. Let’s see how they handle the negotiations tomorrow.”
Wait, what?
I look at the elder, inquisitive.
“Ah, yes. You had the idea, so you will lead. You’ll be executed if the deal is not advantageous for us or if the child doesn’t return safely. That’s your sentence.”
An anxiety wave overcame me and made me almost throw up my dinner. My hands shake, and I feel cold sweats on my forehead. It’s too much responsibility. I escaped Duilleog to escape this kind of thing. Why didn’t I just remain quiet?!
I stay up at night while my captor sleeps. Only the elder remains awake.
“Tell me, child. Why did you escape?”
“Because I was not happy there. I wish to discover the ways of the Talamh. The free ways. I just… Got captured on my way there…”.
“Hm… The Talamh… I’ve met a Talamh before… Many, many lights ago. I was a youngling like you are. I’ve found them trying to explore the world. They had been nearly everywhere. I was wary at first, but something about their eyes told me that it was okay to trust them. They would sleep near the border, and so would I, just so we could see each other as often as possible. Eventually, we fell in love, and we talked about uniting all tribes for a while. To end the concerns once and for all. So innocent we were…” - They shake their head with a smile. - “...And then we loved each other. And from that love, I carried their child, and they carried mine. We helped each other give birth, and for a while, we raised our children together, and we soon became with child again with two more. But then, Banners found us as they stole the red leaves. They took my Talamh lover and our unborn child in their stomach. They killed them. I raised our remaining 3 children by myself, in the safety of the middle of our territory. My tribe didn’t know my children’s ancestry for a long time. I managed to convince my own elders that I managed to impregnate myself. Still, they suspected there was a second party involved. But, to my surprise, my children were accepted by the community regardless of their ancestry. Even today, every now and again, a relative of my Talamh lover leaves gifts for my children and grandchildren by the border, where we used to live.” 
“Wow…” - It’s the only thing I manage to say. If I ever carried the child of a foreigner, my village would kill the child and me. Every marriage in Duilleog is carefully planned. To have a child out of love like this sounds… Almost insane to me, but at the same time, I wish for it to happen this way. I can’t help but be amazed at how strong of a community the Dergers are, even though they live mostly by themselves. They are wary of others, but apparently, only outsiders, unlike what the legends claimed. And even then, from the stories this elder just told me… Not always. It can also mean that perhaps there’s still hope for me. 
They look at me. 
“Yzet is a grandchild of mine. And like you, they’re very curious about the world. I can’t encourage people to go to Duilleog or Bán simply because it’s too dangerous. But to Talamh… I do.”
“Uniting the tribes…” - I repeat. - “That sounds like a very good idea.”
“But nearly impossible to achieve, child. The competition lasts for far too many generations… You know how Duilleogers are. Stiff, obsessed with control. That would never work for the Talamh, even if you convinced the Banners and the Dergers to get along and obey.”
“But, what if we all lived the Talamh way then?”
They scuff.
“And you really think your people would agree to that?”
“Right… Probably not.”
They yawn as Yzet wakes up for their guarding shift.
“Get some sleep now, child. It’s going to be a long light soon.” 
They caress my head in a parental fashion. Something tells me they don’t dislike me as much anymore. I may be able to go to Talamh after all… Maybe instead of execution, they’ll just let me go to Talamh. 
As the Gods light up the world, I’m taken to the centre of the world, alongside Yzet, and some other villagers, including the child’s parents and the elders. 
The Dergers hold their weapons as they stand along their territorial line, drawn on the ground.
“Hold your weapons. They always keep guard… They’ll be here soon.” - The elder says. Yzet’s hold on my hand ties grows stronger, not out of fear, but concern, as I understood as I saw their face. 
To be continued…