Chapter 7 — Present Day
After school, Sancaka walked together with Gatot, Tara, and Abas. They were not heading toward their homes, because they were on a small mission to pick chili peppers. Abas had invited them to harvest chilies from his father's field. He had already asked for permission, so Sancaka didn't need to worry about an angry farmer chasing them away.
"The chilies in your father's field are really red. They must taste great," said Sancaka.
"Thanks. My father really is the best when it comes to harvesting chilies," Abas replied proudly.
Sancaka lifted his head and looked around, checking the surroundings to make sure no one—especially Abas's father—was nearby.
"Friends, my father said that some Dharma might be coming to our village," Sancaka said.
His three friends immediately turned to look at him.
"There are Dharma here? Where are they?" Abas asked excitedly.
"My father didn't tell me," Sancaka said. "But before I left for school, I overheard him talking with his friend. They said the Dharma are coming to Wanasura Village to search for something in the forest."
"Sancaka, you shouldn't eavesdrop on your father's conversations. If he finds out, you'll get scolded," Gatot warned.
"Relax, Gatot. I didn't get caught," Sancaka replied casually. "So come on, friends. Let's go to the forest and meet the Dharma troops."
The three friends looked at each other before responding.
"Maybe we shouldn't," Tara said. "Do you remember what happened a few years ago when we went into the forest? We almost got eaten by Kurawa."
"That was a long time ago. Maybe the Kurawa are no longer around our village," Sancaka said confidently.
"What would you even do if you met the Dharma?" Abas asked.
"I'll tell them that someday I'm going to become a Dharma," Sancaka said while looking up at the sky. "I'll become a strong Dharma so I can help people… just like the Dharma who saved me in the forest when I was attacked by a Kurawa."
His friends didn't respond. They simply exchanged smiles as they watched Sancaka's enthusiasm, then continued pulling chilies from the plants.
After finishing, Sancaka and his friends stepped out of the chili field. They stood on a patch of bare ground without grass, cleaning the mud from their sandals.
Sancaka looked down and rubbed his footwear against the ground. Then he knelt and used his hands to scrape off the remaining mud stuck underneath.
While still looking at the ground, he heard footsteps approaching.
Sancaka turned toward the sound and quickly stood up when he realized that strangers were coming. He didn't recognize their faces as villagers from Wanasura.
He narrowed his eyes as he saw three men approaching from a distance. Seeing Sancaka standing still made his friends look toward the figures as well.
As they got closer, Sancaka could see the face of the man walking in the middle more clearly. And when the distance shortened even more, Sancaka began to recognize him.
The clothes worn by the three men were different from what the people of Wanasura Village usually wore. They were dressed in white-and-yellow uniforms, similar to the special forces of the kingdom.
Sancaka stepped toward the man he thought he recognized. The three men who had been walking toward him slowed their pace.
"Look, a kid is coming toward us," said the man on the right.
"Hello, uncle," Sancaka said cheerfully. He suddenly hugged the man he had approached.
"You're the uncle from the forest back then, right?"
His friends behind him were shocked to see Sancaka hugging a complete stranger. Meanwhile, the man being hugged was also surprised by the sudden embrace.
"Hey, who are you, kid?" the man asked.
"My name is Sancaka. I'm the kid you saved in the forest near this village," Sancaka said, releasing the hug.
The man scratched his head, trying to recall the memory.
"When did I ever come to this village and save a child?" he said with a confused expression.
The three men began discussing the past among themselves. One of them felt like they had indeed visited Wanasura Village before.
Sancaka overheard them mentioning names.
The man on the left was called Arjuna.
The man on the right was called Karna.
The older-looking man in the middle was named Bima.
It was Bima who had saved Sancaka when he was younger.
By now Sancaka's friends had walked closer and could clearly see the three men he was talking to.
"Back then, my friends and I were exploring the forest near here," Sancaka continued. "We went there to see a bird-of-paradise. When we were about to go home, suddenly we ran into wild Kurawa, and they started chasing me."
"Right, friends?" Sancaka said while turning back toward them.
His friends simply nodded. They still remembered encountering the Kurawa, but they didn't clearly remember Sancaka meeting a Dharma knight.
"Do you remember, Uncle Bima?" Sancaka asked.
"I think I do," Karna said. "You once saved a child in a nearby forest."
The man on the left laughed.
"Oh, I remember now," Arjuna said. "The locals here told us they had never found any Bloodstone. At the time we suspected something, because there was an area in this village where people weren't allowed to step. So it's possible the villagers of Wanasura were lying back then."
Sancaka and his friends didn't really understand what the adults were talking about. They kept mentioning something called Bloodstone, a name none of the young people in Wanasura Village had ever heard before.
"Sancaka, what's a Bloodstone?" Gatot whispered.
"I don't know either," Sancaka whispered back.
"How about we just ask them?" Abas suggested quietly.
Sancaka thought that was a good idea and was about to ask.
"Uncles, what is a Bloodsto—"
But suddenly Bima seemed to remember something.
"I remember now," Bima said. "I once saved a child in this village. Back then some kids were playing in the forest. We happened to be passing through with the Bhayangkara knights. We saw a child being chased by a Kurawa, and I killed the monster. Do you remember?"
"At that time I told you to pull the noisy kid away before the Kurawa killed him," Bima continued while pointing at Karna.
"That was me, Uncle!" Sancaka said while raising his hand.
"I was the noisy kid," he added proudly.
His friends behind him chuckled quietly at Sancaka's behavior.
Sancaka began jumping up and down with excitement after meeting the Dharma who had once saved his life. Bima then lifted Sancaka into the air, making it seem as if he were flying.
"I remember now," Karna said. "When I was still a Bhayangkara knight, I carried this kid away from the Kurawa on horseback."
Sancaka looked at the man on the right. Only then did he realize that Karna had indeed been the one who rescued him back then—when Karna was still a Bhayangkara knight.
"When was that again, Karna? I honestly can't remember," Bima asked.
Karna paused for a moment, closing his eyes while scratching his head as if trying to recall the memory. Then he opened his eyes and continued.
"Several years ago we came to this village to search for the Bloodstone," Karna said.
"When we arrived, the locals told us they had never found any Bloodstone. They said the only things that could be found in Wanasura Village were rice crops and spices."
The man standing on the left laughed.
"Oh, I remember now," said Arjuna. "The local villagers here told us they had never found any Bloodstone. At that time we became suspicious, because there was an area in this village that people were forbidden to step into. So it's possible the villagers of Wanasura were lying back then."
Sancaka and his friends did not understand what the adults in front of them were talking about. They kept mentioning "Bloodstone." It was the name of an object that none of the young people in Wanasura Village had ever heard before.
"Sancaka, what is a Bloodstone?" Gatot whispered.
"I don't know either," Sancaka whispered back.
"Then why don't we just ask those uncles about it?" Abas suggested quietly.
Sancaka thought it was a good idea and was about to ask.
"Uncle, what is a Bloodsto—"
But suddenly a memory flashed through Bima's mind.
"I remember now," Bima said. "I once saved a child in this village. Back then there were some kids playing in the forest. We happened to be passing through with the Bhayangkara knights. We saw a child being chased by a Kurawa, and I killed the monster. Do you remember?"
"At that time I told you to pull the noisy kid away so he wouldn't be killed by the Kurawa," Bima continued, pointing at Karna.
"That was me, Uncle!" Sancaka said while raising his hand.
"I was the noisy kid," he added.
His friends behind him chuckled quietly at Sancaka's behavior.
Sancaka began jumping up and down with excitement after meeting the Dharma who had once saved his life. Then Bima lifted Sancaka into the air, making him feel as if he were flying.
"I remember now," Karna said. "Back when I was still a Bhayangkara knight, I carried this kid away from the Kurawa on horseback."
Sancaka looked at the man standing on the right. Only then did he realize and remember that Karna really had been the one who carried him away back then—when Karna was still a Bhayangkara knight.