Book One: Alpha World
23 Eps.Il Mio Namo Black
"Day, compralo!! go, buy!!
"Fresh corpse, affordable price!!"
" Barter with anything you can!!"
Three fat men in slum clothes of Italian models stood at the edge of the village of Abu Death, right beside the village exit gate. Their face is as good as possible to attract buyers. Today is a lucky day for them. How not, there were twenty fresh corpses in colored clothes they found in a river of corpses near the beach. Their massive auction opened faster than it should. Usually they have to wait one more week to sell their goods. For the residents of Abu Death Village looking for decent food was a difficult item, even for the rich.
Thirty years on, they can only take the victims of a black plague that has not decayed. If in one week they do not get any food even a corpse to be consumed, they resort to sacrificing ten of them to become the food of one villager. No wonder the Abu Village residents have fierce faces ranging from adults, women, to children.
No one from outside the island ever came to the island. In addition to frightening, clean water needs are very deficient and also insufficient food factors.
Flies flew around the fresh bodies. Also buyers are starting to swarm, auctioning corpses. Three of them are ready. One man raised the first body. One person offered the corpse while giving an initial price, two small bags of salt.
"Cinques! Five pockets!"A buyer's permission.
Others immediately shouted, "Sette, seven bags of salt! dallo A me! Give now!"
Until finally the final price was won with ten bags of salt and a bundle of rice by the brown-robed buyer and the corpse was immediately thrown by the first merchant at the highest bidder. Rice is a fairly rare item so it costs more than salt. When calculated, in Abu Death Village the price of a small bag of rice was five to ten small bags of rice.
The auction continued smoothly until the sixteenth corpse. The orange-clad corpse was still fresh, smooth, and clean.
"Questo il diciassettesimo, seventeenth corpse!" The second trader.
"The initial price of nine bags of salt because this corpse is so good look!" Said the third merchant who gave a price while pointing at Zam's body which was still in a coma and actually had not died. All the prospective buyers stared at Zam's still-clean body in astonishment. Each of them began to look at the barter items they were carrying.
"Fifteen bags of salt!"Shouted a skinny woman from behind the crowd.
"Twenty-three bags of salt!" A fat man arrogantly raised the entire pouch in his hand.
Twenty bags of salt and five bags of rice! Sbrigati, give it to me!"Shouted a brown-robed old man with black patches from near the first merchant who carried Zam's body. Within a few seconds the third trader immediately smiled, swinging his hand a sign inviting him to take it.
"You really put a price like that or just Nero? Huh uh?" The third merchant asked the black-robed young man seriously.Nero was a young man living alone in a rickety house at the end of the village.
"Over, yes, right, I want to barter for the price I mentioned. I repeat my offer while I show you." The young man opened the large box that was originally carried on his back. He took three bags out of his big box.
"One large bag of rice and two sacks of salt as I have mentioned." Nero, who was always dressed very tightly, lifted his sacks and showed them one by one. Everyone could only turn their backs to see the amount of rice and salt it brought. That's enough to be a family meal for a whole month.
With a stammer and a surprised face mixed with joy that overflowed the third and second merchant nodded his head involuntarily. The first trader immediately withdrew the Zam which was almost handed over to the previous bidder and immediately gave it to Nero.
Nero who received it immediately threw his three barter sacks at the second merchant. He switched to lifting Zam's body which was still in a coma. Without further ado he immediately turned to go towards his street.
"Where did you get all this rice and salt from Nero?" The first trader asked Nero who was just about to step away. Nero simply turned his head at the first merchant.The wrinkles around his eyes showed that he was smiling.
"It's none of your business, old man.." He said casually and immediately continued in his footsteps. Zam's rather heavy body was shouldered casually while staring around.
The whole of the village of Abu Death looks seedy. There is no place that is managed. Everyone lives by their own ambition to sustain their lives without regard to their surroundings. Although there was the so-called village apparatus in Abu Village of death, it was all useless at all. That was because his apparatus was also only concerned with themselves. There was hardly anyone in the village who cared about others.
Life there is exactly like life in big cities that are only selfish. No greeting, giving, even helping. It was an impossible thing within the Village of Abu Death.
Nero walked quickly to the outside of the northern border, where he lived. The rickety house can be said to be somewhat more colorful than other houses. His house has never been visited by anyone. Understandably, in Abu Death Village visiting is a taboo subject.
Nero entered his house decorated with blue orchids on its walls. Also paint the walls are deep black. The way he walked changed relaxed and slowly when entering the house. The door of the house was closed and he took Zam to a long wooden table, laying him down slowly.
He opened his hood and took off the cloth covering his mouth. His pure white and spotless face was completely different from the face of the people of Abu Death Village. Although his face was as scary as the other residents.Especially with the hue of his lethargic face, pale as if filled with hatred.
His hand then moved quickly to check the pulse on Zam's hand and neck. His face remained cold when he found out Zam was still alive. Like an expert doctor he opened his closet and took out bandages, gauze, and others.
Nero checked every wound on Zam's body. Every wound he cleaned and treated, the torn part immediately he sewed and bandage. Thirty minutes and it's all over. His face was cold without sweat.
Nero tidied up his tools, placed them neatly in the closet, and passed by leaving Zam just on the table.
