Ulong Dagger

Struggle and Conspiracy

Noon.

The sea breeze feels so cold approaching to land, controlling the waves to break on the beach.

Ulong walked up to Awang who was standing on the beach staring at the sea.

"How about bang?", asked Ulong to Awang.

Without looking, Awang answered.

"If the struggle is not over, but there is relief in my heart".

"It's not that we managed to kill two of Ki Bayu's pets, but more than that, we've managed to protect the population from terrible terror".

Then Awang turned to Ulong and smiled, "thank you brother, you have guided us so far" he said.

Ulong just smiled and looked down embarrassedly praised like that.

Awang looked back at the sea and then turned to Ulong.

"It's good that we don't linger here, I'm afraid the company combed all the way here and found us, I don't want the residents here to get into trouble" he said.

"I also think so, but with the defeat of Ki Bayu it should be easier for us not only to pass through the company's forces, but also to return to operation" Ulong said.

"You mean?" ask Awang.

"I see the people here are very skilled at the sea, I think with the difficulty of our journey on land is it possible for us to ask for their help?" reply Ulong.

"But for that I rely on my brother's knowledge because my brother knows the situation better" Ulong said.

Awang glared in admiration.

"The good idea is Long, but what about the company's fleet?", asked Awang excitedly.

"Well that's where we need the expertise of reliable sailors, the company's fleet is not much, and there will be no fleet if we damage their ships or steal them" Ulong replied.

"As we know that the wars they have fought over these years are mostly on land, and that is what they are preparing for, attacks from the sea they will not foresee" Ulong explained.

Awang smiled broadly at Ulong's words, it was amazing the idea of his friend who was younger than him.

Yes, as long as he knows, the company focuses more on the ground to protect their plantation assets. They are not very strong in the ocean.

He had heard the story of some inter-island traders, that on an island called Selebes the people of the Bugis tribe who were very skilled at sea repeatedly ravaged the company's navy.

Hearing footsteps running closer, they turned their heads and saw Mardiani and Salhah running over.

The two girls at first glance look similar, both face and clothes. They wear a long knee-length shirt in red, on the right and left side of the shirt there are hemispheres to facilitate movement. Then below wearing black trousers on the side of the shoes are tied up to the calves, while above they wear a black veil covering the hair whose ends are wrapped around the neck.

Ulong was about to leave for fear of disturbing, but Awang held back by holding his shoulder.

"This is heavier than Long's war" Awang whispered.

Ulong glanced at Awang, grinning without saying.

"Bang Awang see our hands" said Mardiani upon arrival in front of Awang. The two girls showed each two gold bracelets in their hands, Awang watched their hands alternately.

"Gift from Pakcik Rustam", said the two of them in unison with pleasure.

Ulong smiled listening to the babbling of these two girls who said, showing off the bracelet in hand, and noticed Awang who looked groggy as usual when Mardiani and Salhah were nearby.

"Beautiful right?" tanya Mardiani spoiled. Awang nodded.

"My mountain, is it right?", asked Salhah.

"It really fits in the hands of both of you" replied the diplomatic Awang.

Ulong stared at their cheerfulness. Besides being handsome, Awang is so good, also very patient to serve these girls. The attitude that Awang showed was like an uncle to a nephew, probably because the age of the two girls was far away from him, Ulong thought.

But such attitude also seems to make these girls feel at home nearby.

They really fit in, Inner Ulong noticed.

Not so long Ulong saw Rustam walking towards them, from afar he was already smiling widely.

"Thank you for the gift Pakcik" Mardiani and Salhah said as the old man arrived before them.

Ulong and Awang nodded respectfully at Rustam.

Rustam smiled at the two girls, "it is appropriate that the flowers are decorated to beautify themselves", he smiled.

He turned to Ulong and Awang, then smiled again.

"What's the matter Pakcik?", asked Ulong to see a smiling Rustam.

"If you are the path of the order, then everyone on this coast wants to invite ananda all to be entertained in their respective homes as a thank you" said Rustam chuckled.

"But the patik is worried that it will interfere with your business, or worse it will invite trouble for you, so we finally decided to do one banquet as an expression of our gratitude, that is in this village" said Rustam again.

"So the villagers hope you don't go anywhere first, we will have the banquet tonight" he concluded.

Ulong and Awang glanced at each other.

If a banquet is not dangerous, Awang thought, moreover they should talk about what Ulong had just said to the villagers.

Awang nodded then glanced at Mardiani and Salhah.

The two girls looked at Awang then nodded, Ulong smiled and nodded.

"Well, the dipper was welcome" said Rustam clapping and laughing.

And so it was a sense of gratitude because these coastal villages had been freed from terror, the residents of several villages around the coast came to prepare a banquet.

Men and women from the surrounding villages who are still there enliven the village, they help as much as possible to hold events. The atmosphere felt so warm and full of familiarity.

Children were seen running around playing around cheerfully, while men helped peel coconuts, weed fish and so on.

Mat Kecik was very happy, back and forth he elbowed Arman to see the women who were preparing food, the Son who recently was often with them just silently watched.

And the night after the special banquet was opened, torches lit up the village.

The old man who was previously in sabet kris Ki Bayu was present there, Anggu Razak managed to give him a cure for the poison for warangan (arsenic), which comes from keris. At that time the parents were seen present sitting with them accompanied by the child and his son-in-law. Seen his hands are still wrapped, although there is still sadness, but it has been slightly treated with the defeat of their village terror.

⚜️⚜️⚜️

A week later in the city of Belawan.

As a port city this place is very busy. People are seen passing around here and there with various needs. The pedicab delivery looks here and there walking slowly down the dusty dry streets, some empty while some full of cargo.

It was almost noon.

Suma who was fully dressed as a company soldier came down from her horse in front of a large building located on the edge of the highway. Two servants were seen standing on the terrace near the pillars of the building, he chatted briefly with a servant and handed the horse harness to the servant.

The two maids had indeed been ordered to wait for him. As soon as a servant brought a horse, another servant asked Suma to follow him walking into the building.

Suma also followed the waiter across the front room which was wide enough with a sofa that surrounded the room. There was a popular Dutch song at the time being played from a black disc in the corner of the room.

A Dutch woman sitting at the table beside the entrance, the reddish-brown curl-haired woman was writing something in a large book in front of her, the woman just took a quick glance and continued writing.

They continued to walk across the long hallway through three doors that opened on the right side. It appears that some indigenous and Dutch men are writing or checking the records in these rooms.

After passing through three rooms, they arrived at the end of the hall that brought together another large room that had a balcony above it. The balcony is fenced with wood in a shiny plitur. The waiter took Suma up the stairs to the balcony.

Then from there they found two doors closed, they walked towards the very end of the door.

The waiter knocked on the door, a heavy voice came from inside, "get in".

The waiter outside opened the door and let Suma enter the room.

Suma took off the hat worn and put it up, a typical hat of the company soldiers who at the top of the middle pointed. Then he stepped into the room.

Inside the room were four Dutch men dressed in suits, neat, and elegant, sitting casually on several sofas arranged around.

Two of them wearing white suits were sucking on cigars, four large windows on the wall wide open to channel air so that the room did not become stuffy.

There were several cups of coffee on the table, two ceramic cigarette ashtrays, a lighter, and a metal cigar box that glittered open the lid, a cigar bar is seen in the box.

These Dutch men were officials of plantation airlines in North Sumatra, important players who determined the course of trade and government here.

"Please sit down" said a man in a thick, blonde mustache.

Suma headed to a single sofa and sat facing the man. Put his army hat on his lap.

"Please" said the man again as he thrust a box containing cigars at Suma.

Suma grinned and grabbed a cigar in the box and put it on her lips.

Another Dutch man, a black-haired and mustachioed man sitting on a single sofa to his left picked up a lighter from the table and helped Suma light a cigar on her lips.

"We are in the middle of a light conversation about the quality of tobacco and its marketing in Bremen (Germany)" said the man with a thick mustache.

"How much interest the European population has in this Deli tobacco" he continued.

Suma slowly sucked the smoke from the cigar, feeling the sensation of the smoke flowing into her lungs.

It is inconceivable how much struggle the Dutch did for this thing, even though the result is only pseudo-smoke, thought Suma.

Not so long ago the waiter who had ushered him into the room with a cup of coffee, after putting a small dish-topped coffee cup on the table, bowed respectfully and left the room.

After a moment of silence watching Suma, the Dutch man who had opened the conversation.

"I heard there was an urgent matter that you were going to say a few days ago so that this meeting was held, if we may know what kind of urgent matter it is?" he asked.

Pursue the seat and place the cigar in hand onto the nearest ashtray, and put on a serious look.

"I would like to report that the stability of security has been maintained enough with the arrival of the assistance of troops from the island of Java" he began the report.

"With additional troops and weapons arriving last month, we managed to push the rebels' positions away from the company's key assets" he said.

"We have heard this, but hearing it directly from you who are local soldiers feels so good, because you better understand the situation here" said the Dutchman.

Suma smiled, "I really appreciate that you all understand this, that we local soldiers better understand the situation here" Suma said.

"But that's not why I asked for this meeting".

Suma looked at the people in the room, composed the words then continued.

"Even though the thing I want to say is actually still related to that".

"The most important thing I want to ask you is to withdraw Ki Bayu's authority" he continued.

The men looked at Suma with probing gazes.

"Actually not only withdraw his authority, but more to us have to arrest or maybe finish him" Suma said again.

The Dutch men in the room were shocked. One of those who was sucking on a cigar coughed.

"I mean sir?", asked one of them, this time who asked was a thin man with glasses.

"The situation here is gradually under control and the presence of Ki Bayu here can damage the situation" Suma replied.

"The old man is acting increasingly wild, massacring innocent people and massacring dozens of indigenous companies under my command" he said.

"There was one more incident before that, where he was also involved in an argument with Lieutenant Heidrich, so my superior attacked him. From that incident I can estimate that maybe that was the reason that caused him to attack the company's forces".

Then Suma recounted the incident on the night that Heidrich was so furious trying to kill Ki Bayu.

The Dutch men were listening seriously.

"I think what Lieutenant Heidrich said that night was right, with Ki Bayu behaving brutally like that it would cause more fierce resistance than the natives" Suma said.

"So what can we do to help with your duties?", asked the Dutch man in a thick blonde mustache.

"Give me a warrant to arrest Ki Bayu, I will give it to Lieutenant Heidrich to convince him to go after Ki Bayu" Suma chuckled in her heart.

According to Suma's estimation, Heidrich would be unlikely to be able to defeat Ki Bayu. The company will be slaughtered by the old man, so that Heidrich will be considered unable to carry out the task. Then he will submit himself to take the authority of his superiors and order his secret troops to hunt down Ki Bayu.

And, when the task succeeds as he planned, then he will become the military ruler of this region.