Cuda's Revolutionary Life (Episode 1 Decision)

Sharukop was a country inside Hanjarjah. For hundred years now Hanjarjah had been ruling over Sharukop, it has taken over the crops and mines of Sharukop too. A strange rule at Sharukop was that every boy who was born in Sharukop had to be registered so that when he reaches the age of fifteen the people in charge take him to Hanjarjah as a slave. 

 Cuda was a girl of Sharukop, her biggest dream was to see her father. Her father had last came to Sharukop fifteen years earlier, married her mother, and got her as their only child. Since then he had never returned to Sharukop. 

This month Cuda's mother had got a letter from Hanjarjah by Cuda's father saying that he was coming to Sharukop. All of her family members were preparing for his arrival, cleaning the house, putting new tiles at the entrance, flowering the small block that was near their house.  

But the family considered that the main purpose of his arrival was to get Cuda married. The highest post of a man in Sharukop was of a peon at a government office of Hanjarjah. Cuda's family expected that Cuda's father will look for a peon at a government office to get Cuda married with. 

Cuda's father came a week after the letter came. She saw him entering her village with glassy eyes. All of the villages have come to welcome him with flowers and gifts. Haruj who was standing next to Cuda said 'They say he is your father, do you believe it? your father?' 

Cuda ran through the crowd and stood in front of her father, he sat down on his knees held Cuda's chin gently with his big hands 'You are Cuda, right?' Cuda nodded holding her tears back and her father hugged her tight, tears sliding from his eyes too now. 

Haruj came from behind and said 'They say you work in Hanjarjah, do you really? They sell cucumbers there, my father brought them last year when he came, did you too?' 

Cuda's father stood up now and patted Harju's head and picked out two cucumbers from his bag and gave it to Cuda and Haruj. 

Haruj screamed in happiness and gestured him to sit down and spoke something in his ear and gave a mischievous smile. 

After Cuda's Father's entered the house talking to the elder women about the condition of crops, the new Hanjarjah officer for their village, training of the boys who were going to Hanjarjah this week for work, etc. 

One of the women's said at last, 'So we need to prepare, right?'

Cuda's father said, confused 'For what?'

The woman rolled her eyes and said 'Cuda's wedding!'

Cuda's father's expression tightened 'Well, I have been thinking about that, but no preparations for now. We'll think about that later 

‘I’ll like to go on a walk with Cuda’ Cuda’s father said in the evening.

They walked between the fields and talked ‘Cuda, could you answer a question?’

‘What question?’ Cuda looked at the tall figure of her father beside her.

‘Could you tell me why all these boys go to Hanjarjah?’

‘Because they work there, like you.’

‘Well, can’t we find a job here in Sharukop? Like what’s the problem in working here?’

‘Actually I to ask that question, can you tell me why they don’t work here but in Hanjarjah?’

‘I think I know why’ He looked at Cuda with playful eyes 'The world is big and it is divided into continents and continents are divided into countries. Our country is Sharukop and the place I go to work in the country Hanjarjah. Our country, Sharukop is inside Hanjarjah and that's a problem. If it were to be like, Hanjarjah and Sharukop as lying differently then we would not have been going to Hanjarjah to find work'

'So those people are dominating on us cause our country is inside theirs's Cuda exclaimed

'You are intelligent Cuda!' Cuda's father smiled 'But should we live like this forever and not like other countries which live freely and enjoy their resources?' 

'Surely we should but how?'

'Revolution' Cuda's father said dramatically. Then they were quiet for the whole walk. 

At night Cuda came running to her father 'Father can't we people of Sharukop fight a war against those people of Hanjarjah'

Cuda's father felt a sudden proudness in his heart 'Well, Cuda people have already thought about that'

'Didn't the idea work?'

'For now, it's working, some people go to Hanjarjah secretly and plan in there' 

 'Why do they go to Hanjarjah and not be in Sharukop?'

'Because the people of Hanjarjah have big and massive weapons that we people of Sharukop don't even know about!' Cuda's father looked at Cuda who was unable to speak now so he continued 'Cuda it's getting late you should go and sleep. I will tell you something very important tomorrow morning' 

Cuda could not sleep for the whole night thinking about her country and the cruel country of Hanjarjah and the important thing her father was going to tell her the next morning.  

In the morning when father woke up Cuda had already fetched water from the well, washed her father's travel clothes, and made breakfast with some leftover bread that was given to her mother for working in the cotton fields. 

'Seems like people of Sharukop are really active, it's not even dawn and you and your mother are on for work, by the way on what corps are those people of Hanjarjah making us work on, this month? asked Cuda's father as he washed his face from the water Cuda had fetched. 

'Mother and most women of our village are working on melons and corns right now, they have all gone early in the morning for the city in the west, mother says they grow sweeter over there' Cuda brought her father some bread and water.

'Thanks for the breakfast, Cuda. Your mother will return tomorrow evening, I suppose.'

'Yes, if those ruthless people of Hanjarjah don't stop her for doing the crops of pepper' Cuda gave water to a small plant that has grown in the small block. 'You were going to tell me something important today, will you

'Yes, I surely would, but for that I want you to come to sit in front of me patiently' 

Cuda sat on the chair with a broken arm. Her father continued 'Do you remember  Himarah?'

'Yes, that girl who disappeared last year, she is thought to have gone with her father to Hanjarjah, but that's impossible, how can a girl of Sharukop go to Hanjarjah? they aren't allowed there' 

'Well, some girls could, if they act to be what they aren't'

'What does that mean?'

 'I mean that some girls could cut their hair and wear men's clothes and look like boys and then go to Hanjarjah' 

'But they keep records of boys who need to go, don't they? and also what's the logic after girls acting like boys and going to Hanjarjah?'

'There is, there is the logic, my dear, those girls don't go there for enjoying and things, they go there for collecting data, for spying what those people of Hanjarjah are planning against us and for spoiling their plans. 

And if you talk about the records that they keep of boys, it's no big deal, those people are hungry for more and more laborers and nothing else. If I simply go and tell them that I'm taking my son to Hanjarjah then he would see the documents and say that I have a daughter and no sons and then I would say no there's a mistake, he will just take a look at you and let you go into the train without even enquiring about it to anyone.'

Cuda nodded 'So do you want to take me to Hanjarjah and do all of the spying work with other girls like me

'No doubt you are my daughter' Cuda's father chuckled 

'and will I have to work there like you men do?'

'Yes, if you act like boys there also. But you could just go and make yourself look like what you are looking like right now and say that you are the daughter of the officer in charge of this village. I have talked to the charge he is a tender heart and is working with us people of Sharukop'

Cuda was out of words now. 'See Cuda, you have a choice, yes or no, you could also come and also not, it's wholly on you. But you need to tell me your decision soon, cause if you want to go with me, you also need training, a lot of it.'