The Malacca prepared for its voyage to the Cape of Good Hope. At the dock in Batavia two crew members dragged the body of a woman across the deck, all the way down the steps, along the narrow corridor, and flung it into one of the compartments reserved for cargo destined for the Dutch settlement at the foot of Africa.
Susanna, convulsing with fever was trapped in the belly of her floating prison that bobbed on the waves of the ocean, unaware of the treacherous journey towards the foreign shore where her destiny of banishment awaited.
Unconscious, burning with fever and infection her floating prison restricted standing up straight or moving around. The confined space trapped the smell of death and disease that clung to the air.
***
Nommoa of the Goringhaiqua was on his return voyage, back to his beloved Cape of Good Hope. Hard as he tried he could not sleep. There was something on the ship that disturbed his spirit.
He sat up and rested his back against the door. He could hear his master, Commissioner Cunaeus, snoring above the noises of tthe ship and the sea.
He crossed his legs, closed his eyes and raised his hands in prayer. "Thank you Tsui for taking me home. From now on I will go to Hoerikwagga, sit in your presence and wait until I hear your voice. The Commander sent me across the big water to learn about their language and their ways, but you, Tsui sent me there to find the heart of me, Nommoa of the Goringhaiqua. I am sorry if I disappointed you with the Bible thing but it was tthe only way to get home. Please forgive my betrayal."
He settled back onto his mat, his thoughts flooded with one full winter ago; when he sailed in the belly of a wooden crocodile on the big water, exited at the thought of going to Batavia like Autshumao before him and Goree before Autshumao.
He hated Autshumao for not telling him about this Batavia of the Dutch. He wished the ship could run over waterthe way he ran among the dunes and the forests. He wished he could open his eyes and sit on top of Hoerikwaggo with the whole of ||Hui !Gaeb beneath him. He hated their clothes and their food and their bad manners. He wanted to go home. He wanted to return and take his position as Nommoa, warrior of the Goringhaiqua.
The oversized jacket and pants was folded into many pleats around his waist in order for it to fit. The clothes scratched his body and trapped his arms and legs. The first night he slept naked outside the door of his master's cabin. It caused much disgust and he was instructed never to do it again. Since that night he slept on the inside of the cabin, at the door.
The Bible that his master gave him had to go everywhere with him. Carrying his master's holy book was a betrayal of his Tsui but he had to do it if he wanted to go home. So he carried it around and told everyone about his master's God in the heavy book.
He smiled when he remembered how horrified his master was when he told him of the powers of Tsui-//Goab. He covered his ears and forbid him to ever mention Tsui again. But he, Nommoa of the Goringhaiqua knew there was no one more powerful than Tsui-//Goab who brought rain and thunder to his people who lived below the protection of Hoerikwaggo.
But something was not right in Batavia. Every day he prayed to Tsui to take him home, but Tsui was deaf to his prayers. Then, one night Tsui put a plan in his dream. He told his master that his God in the thick black book was mightier than Tsui and that he wanted to go home and tell his people about this new God who was mightier than Tsui. His master was very pleased.
'If you want to go home, promise that you will read from this Bible to your people. Tell the slaves that the white man's God was above all other gods.'
'I promise, master Cun,' he said. But every night he asked Tsui to forgive him and promised that he would make up for betraying him.
He told Tsui about the smell that assaulted his mouth and nose on the ship and asked for help because he could stand it no longer. After talking to Tsui he got up. Upon following the narrow wooden corridor of the ship, the smell led him to a door. He stopped and put his ear to it. He could hear moans and groans on the other. He pressed his ear harder against the door. No mistake. Behind the door was a woman. When The sound of the night fell on the ship, his curiosity got the better of him. After the guard made his rounds he sneaked down the squeaky wooden passage and opened the door.
She lay in a corner, tossing and turning. He placed the back of his hand on her face and pulled it back. He had touched an angry fire that he recognised. He knew it was the kind of fire that would claim her spirit so he fished out the water in his knapsack and lifted her head. Gently he wet her crusted lips and dripped a few drops into her mouth. He tore off a piece of the coarse linen cloth from his shirt, cleaned the area around her ear and applied a little of the salve he brought with him from home and applied some to her wound. After he moistened the cloth and placed it on her head, he made his way back.
For a whole week she hardly stirred, until one night. The eyelids that had been closed for so long parted with a weak flutter. They blinked a few times before the two black and white marbles zoomed into focus. For a few fleeting seconds the two black pupils stared straight at him. Then they closed again.
A broad smile spread across his face as he gazed at the miracle that unfolded in front of his eyes. He could not contain his awe. He wanted to jump and dance until the break of day but the condition of her filthy prison was not fitting to thank Tsui for bringing back the woman. It was his duty to protect this woman from the evil spirit of Gunab who hid himself in the hearts of sailors on the ship. After a few seconds she opened her eyes, once again. This time they remained open.
He put his finger on her lips to remain quiet and whispered. 'Gunab wanted to take you.'
'Gunab?' He could hardly hear her.
'But Tsui-//Goab chased him away and brought you back.' She shook her head, saying that she did not understand him. He could see that she was in a lot of pain. 'Ssh,' he said and put his finger on his lips. Do not move your head.' She tried to touch her ear, but he held her hand down. 'Not yet.' He bent his head over the side of her face and inspected the wound. 'It is oozing but the ointment is working. Listen to me. I am going to help you but the sailors must not know you are awake. Do you understand?'
'Yes.'
'For now. pretend you are a sleeping skunk until I figured something out.'
'I will be okay.'
'Listen to me. These sailors-'
She pushed herself upright and steadied her body, assessing her environment. Aware of the indignity of sitting in her own excrement she lowered her eyes. Her upper lip trembled at the extent of her fetid impound. 'I have been in worse,' she said. 'This one is not bad.' A faint smile hovered on her blistered lips.
'In Batavia I heard talk about those voyages-' Something in her expression made him stop. 'Drink up.' He forced down the lump lodged in his throat.
The sounds of the ship and the gentle movements of the waves filled the silence that had settled between them. Her hands struggled to steady the mug as she took a few sips.
'I must go and check on my master but I will be back. Remember what I said...'
'Who are you who risk so much for me?'
'I'm traveling with my master and I'm going home to the Cape.'
'You are a slave?'
'No. My people are at the Cape. The Commander sent me to Batavia to learn their language.'
'Who are you, then?'
'They call me many names. Anthony. Domineer. Doman. But to my people I am Nommoa of the Goringhaiqua.'
'Nommoa it is,' she said, examining him from head to toe.
'These,' he said, wiping his hand down the lapel of his oversized jacket patched in various places, 'Were given to me in Batavia. But Nommoa do not wish to speak about himself. I heard the sailor call you One Ear-'
'I am Kismia.'
'Nommoa's ears like that name. Better than One Ear.' This time her whole face smiled, but her lips started to bleed. 'No smiling.' He stood up. 'Or laughing. For now.'
The next day he emptied the night bucket of Commissioner Cunaeus and when he returned to the cabin he mustered up the courage to speak about Susanna. 'Master, that slave with the one ear who is going to the Cape. She is the property of the Company?'
'What business is that of yours, Domineer?'
'None. But she is the property of the Company. And she must arrive there alive because the Commander needs the labour. That makes her your business?'
'Out with it, Domineer. What is all this about? She is a convict and of no concern to you or me. She is the responsibility of the captain.'
Nommoa was not about to agree that easily. 'She is alive, for now. She may survive the voyage because she is young and strong. That means the Company can still get twenty-five years from her labours. And if she bears children-'
The Commissioner grinned. 'You are a clever one, Domineer, and sly like that Autshumao. Oh, you will be the perfect one to replace Eva. Now, speak. What is the story about this slave?'
Having heard Nommoa's version of events the Commissioner sought an audience with the captain. The matter of the one-ear slave came up, in light conversation, in the captain's cabin. But later that night, the devil in the Captain's spirit took effect. He swore and simmered long after Cunaeus retired. He summoned his second-in-command.
'The audacity of that low-ranking Dutchman. Dared to interfere in my management of the affairs on my ship.' He growled and cursed. 'Let her stew in her own piss and shit for the rest of the voyage. No food, and no water to drink or wash. That is an order.' At the door he called the confused man back. 'And when she's almost dead, dump her overboard.'
Two days later Nommoa realised that he misjudged the extent of a captain's power on the open sea. It became clear that his scheme had unintended consequences for Susanna.
'It was a good plan, Nommoa but it had become impossible to remain a sleeping skunk. They kick to check if I am awake. If I do not stir, they leave no food and water. I cannot pretend to be sick for much longer. What if they feed me to the sharks...'
'Leave it to Nommoa. He will make a plan.'
'Do not risk your life for me. I will figure it out from here.'
'According to my master we will only reach the Cape in a week's time if it is Tsui's will for this ship. If it is his plan for you to reach the Cape then he would expects Nommoa to fix his misjudgement of the captain's character and my master's lack of power on his ship.'
One night, when the soldier came below deck, Nommoa rushed to him with news of a mad slave running amok. Nothing could have prepared the sailor for the sight when he opened the door. He rushed back outside.
Cunaeus became obsessed about a constant smell that ruined his appetite and lodged itself into his nostrils permanently. When word spread about a mad slave who covered her whole body in her own faeces, the Commissioner had enough. Prompted by Nommoa they investigated and low and behold, there, right in front of him sat the source of his unsettled stomach. With the majority of voyage almost behind him he could feel his powers return. He marched to the captain and confronted the brute who showed him no respect during the entire voyage.
'You shall have our property cleaned up before she reaches the Cape. If you do not comply, I will report you to the Company and you will never captain a ship for them for as long as you live.'
With the permission of the Commissioner, Nommoa checked on the condition of the Company's property once a day. 'This is the best I could do. Seawater. It is good for your wounds too,' he said, and pointed to the infected area around her ankles. 'Some old pieces of sailors' clothing I traded and-' He fidgeted in his pocket and pulled out a piece of red cloth. 'Here, tie it around your head like the sailors. After several trips above deck and several buckets of water a person emerged. She broke down. Not publicly or loud, but in a private kind of way. The staccato sobs got stuck somewhere in her proud neck, and on the contractions of her full lips. The muted vulnerability made her more attractive than the first day Nommoa set eyes on her.