Ulong Dagger

Fire and Rescue Investigation

As the farmers' mothers moved eastward, Ulong and Awang retreated slightly, slowly away from the streets to make them invisible to the enemy.

"It looks like we have to wait longer or find a detour to get past the enemy" Awang said.

"Is there no other way than here bang?", asked Ulong.

"There is, but it is very far to the west, and I can expect at a time like this there will also be company soldiers waiting for us along the way as they are hiding here. Then if we can escape from them then from there we have to walk a few more kilometers to the North over the bridge that is also guarded".

Ulong listened to Awang's explanation.

"If we cross this road we can reach our hiding place in about three hours, we just walk straight across the vast thatch ahead to reach a shallow place on the river Bedera that can be crossed while carrying a horse, from there we will find a small forest, very safe" awang explained.

Ulong listened carefully, then he stared at the road that led to the right.

As if knowing what Ulong Awang was thinking continued, "if you follow this road to the east, you will, from this road we can turn to another road to the north reaching a bridge about five hundred meters from here, the bridge is also guarded".

"Usually there are only about five or six soldiers there, we can beat them. The problem is the soldiers who hide in the weeds in front of us. They will quickly come to help, in case there is a commotion on the bridge" Awang explained.

Ulong nodded in understanding.

He watched the field in front estimating where the soldiers were said to be hiding.

Several people were seen walking across the street in front of them. The men walked with the produce, as if they were farmers or planters who came home from dusk.

Almost everything that passes by is female. Even if there are men, only the elders. Because most of the men went to fight against the company.

Suddenly crossed the idea in Ulong's mind, although the idea seemed to need to be discussed further with Awang and other friends.

Awang looked at Ulong, Ulong's expression as if implying something, "what is Long?" tanyakanya.

"Don't you see that that field is so dry?"asked Ulong while pointing at the vast field of weeds across from them who said the mother had company soldiers hiding.

Awang stared at the direction that Ulong pointed, indeed almost all the dry weeds because of sunburn and untouched rain for days.

"Not just across, here around us also the signal dries Long".

"But there are more lights, one spark can light up a field that is as large as that" said Ulong.

Awang wide-eyed and laughed softly, "Ah yes it is, we can use the weeds by burning them at once with the enemy troops hiding there", he said understanding of Ulong's intentions.

Starting from the idea they continued to observe the situation there with the aim of ensuring where the enemy is, and how much, so that they can set the fire appropriately.

While they were observing and discussing strategy, there was a rush of several horses from the west.

They stared in that direction, before long the company's cavalry walked slowly closer.

At first Awang and Ulong thought only the company's horsemen were approaching.

But after they were close enough, they were seen behind them carrying several horses without riders, then at the very back there were two soldiers holding each one a rope.

The rope was connected with several natives who half ran following, the hands of the natives were tied forward.

As soon as they got closer, Ulong and Awang were immediately able to recognize the people whose hands were tied.

They were the warriors who had separated from them and continued on their way to Binjai.

The soldiers that were caught were all men, they looked dirty full of dust, and exhausted, there were also some abrasions and bruises on their faces.

I don't know how far they have run around like that following the company's troops so it looks so exhausted.

Ulong and Awang looked at their situation with great fury.

"It's almost dark, fast you're walking" snapped a soldier holding one end of the rope.

Suddenly the cavalry was stopped by the rider who was at the front.

Those who rode turned to the thickets of bushes and weeds across from where Ulong and Awang were squatting watching.

There not far from the road, stood a company soldier while raising his right hand.

It turns out that it was true that the mother who just passed by, there the companies were hiding waiting to ambush the soldiers.

After the company soldier stood his friends who were hiding there at the same time after standing up.

Ulong and Awang counted twenty-four soldiers hiding in the field opposite them.

They speak Dutch (between the company soldiers who hide among the weeds with the company soldiers who are passing).

Although they speak Dutch, Ulong and Awang who have known Dutch people a little bit can understand what they are talking about.

They said they would take the prisoners for interrogation at their posts in the Kelambir Lima area.

Ulong put his ears on listening carefully until the cavalrymen who took the prisoners away, and the company soldiers who were on the other side again hid themselves in the thickets of Ilang and scrub.

"Let's go back, that's enough that we see and observe" whispered Awang.

Ulong nodded and they returned to where their horses were moored. By then the sky was almost dark.

"It just so happens that the direction of our journey is in line with the post where they brought the captives" said Awang while riding his horse.

"We can save the prisoners first and then we can take them to escape to our hiding place" he continued.

Ulong listened and nodded in agreement, had Siti and Paijo been caught, then most likely they were also taken there, he thought.

They also drove the horse to where their friends were waiting.

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Laksmi and the others immediately prepared as soon as they heard the roar of horses stepping closer.

Some of them were there about to pull out the weapon but Laksmi held back, she extended her hand to the side signaling for restraint.

"There are only two sounds of horse legs approaching, probably bang Awang and bang Ulong" he said.

Hearing that the others sheathed the weapon back.

True what Laksmi said, before long Ulong and Awang appeared riding their horses through the thickets.

The two of them jumped down from the horse and walked over to his friends who were gathered waiting.

Ulong and Awang took turns telling the things they found.

They gave two choices, immediately went to save themselves, or saved the new captured army after it saved itself to the Awang hideout.

"I agreed to save the lascar friends, there will be no more struggle if the fighters are captured" said Anggu Razak.

The princess and her nephew who were listening nodded, they looked confident and ready to release the captives.

Putra, and Laksmi certainly agree because they have the same thoughts as Ulong, which is to find out the whereabouts of Siti and Paijo.

While Arman and Mat Kecik, they both are happy to fight and will follow wherever Awang invites them to fight.

All agreed, so they set up a plan under the bright moonlight that night.