Blood of a Stranger – SUMMARY OF THE STORY

THE SUMMARY OF THE STORY

ACT 1, SCENE ONE

Maligu, the king’s adviser, stands in front of the cave waiting for Soko, the chief priest, to come out. The chief priest of the land is supposed to be sleeping in the cave every night to atone for the sins of the people, but, Soko stays there in the day and spends his night in a nice hut inside the forest. Only Kindo and Maligu know this.

Maligu informs Soko that a white man is coming to Mando land. Soko is surprised at this having known that an albino (Baliha) is not allowed in the land. Maligu tries to convince him that a white man is not an albino. He tells Soko that the white man is coming to farm tobacco in the land and that anyone who will work with the white man will become rich. Soko also wonders why Maligu is telling him this instead of the King. Maligu says to Soko that he is the mouthpiece of the gods and whatever he tells the people they will believe. Hence, he is to tell (lie to) the people that the coming of the white man is ordained by the gods and the ancestors. Soko is reluctant to accept this, but Maligu puts it to him that he should not pose as a true priest after all he sleeps in a hut inside the forest instead of the cave. Soko agrees to tell the people that a white man is coming and if he is driven away, evil will befall the land.

Kindo drags Wara, his secret lover to the side of the cave. Wara is uneasy because they are beside the shrine and what they are about to do might annoy the gods. Kindo informs her that there is no cause for alarm, after all the priest does not sleep in the cave. Wara tells him to shut up and stop blaspheming or the gods will strike him down. Wara insists they leave the cave side and make use of the forest. But, Kindo refuses, saying that the forest is dangerous and he didn’t come with his weapon. Besides, hunters might sight us. Wara does not believe this. Kindo drags her closer to the cave telling her that it does not harm. There Kindo tells Wara that he sense that something unpleasant is about to happen in the land, and he needs to be prepared. Just as they are talking, Soko comes out of cave beating a gong. Kindo wonders why Soko is calling the people to gather. He senses that something has happened. Kindo drags Wara inside the bush to do what they came for.

SCENE TWO

The people of Mando gathers to know why the summoning gong sounds. Soko stands in front of the stone of sacrifice. The King, Kindo and Maligu enter and the rite begins. The King and his elders drink wine from a horn but, Kindo refuses to do same arguing that he cannot drink from the same horn with his king. Soko asks the ancestor to come help him to understand his dreams as he makes sacrifices to them. Soko smears some blood and applies it on the Kind’s forehead. Then, begins incantation, goes into trance and speaks in strange language: “a stranger will come to the land. If you want peace, receive him and treat him well. If you want peace, throw more blood of a virgin from another land”.

Having heard the message, the King orders Maligu to prepare for the coming of the stranger. Kindo appeals to the king not to accept any stranger since they always bring trouble and calamity to the land. But, the king stands on his words that the stranger must be welcomed. Maligu also agrees to this. As such, the King orders Kindo to go and find out what this stranger looks like. Maligu says that there is no need for such finding that the letter his brother sent him explains everything about the strange visitor. On hearing this, Kindo demands to see the letter, but, Maligu declines on the ground that Kindo cannot read. The king explains to Maligu that his son, Kindo can read. Maligu declines again owing that there are some personal information in the letter. An arguments ensures and the King calls Kindo to follow him inside.

As the king exists with Kindo, Soko joins Maligu. Maligu jokingly asks him if he has returned from the land of the dead. Soko blames Maligu for telling the king about the letter, and Maligu asks him why he added virgin sacrifice to the plan. Soko replies that he will name Wara when the sacrifice comes up because Wara is not an indigene of Mando. Maligu alarms that Kindo will make trouble for them if they are not careful. To work against Kindo and reduce his power, they both plan to declare Wara a stranger before the king and that she is ripe for the virgin sacrifice.

 

ACT 2, SCENE ONE

In the palace as the people expect the arrival of the stranger, The king asks Kindo if he has seen the white man, Kindo replied yes, but he was not able to see his face; that he covers his head with a cap like that of the government officials. I am waiting for Maligu who has gone to see the white man, he says. As Maligu enters, he informs the King and the people that the white man will not make it to the palace today, he is tired. Maligu tells the people that the white man will come tomorrow and he, the white man, will make the people rich. Kindo refuses and orders the guards to go and bring the white man to the palace and drag him forcefully he resists. Soko appeals to the king to control Kindo before he incurs the wrath of the gods who emphasized that the stranger must be treated with respect if the land wants peace. But the king blames Maligu and Soko for backing the white man against the custom of the land.

Kindo begins to question the right-hand man of the white man who follows as the white man is being dragged to the palace. The right-hand man says that his name is Andrew Samuel Stevenson Parker Thomas, Esquire, and that he is the white man’s secretary, adviser and interpreter and not his servant. Kindo orders the guards to punish the white man for not paying homage to the king. Kindo moves forward and throws the white man on the ground. Soko tells the king to stop Kindo before he brings curse to land. But, king ignores him and leaves the scene for Kindo to handle the issue with his own discretion. Kindo orders the guards to give Parker, forty-two strokes of cane (42). Maligu tries to intervene but stops when Kindo threatens to beaten him.

Kindo insists that the white man bows before him and lick the dust, order wise, he will be flogged. Maligu cries to the gods to have mercy on the land. Kindo then orders the white man to come tomorrow to properly present himself before the king. Then he leaves with Wara and two guards. The Whiteman blames Maligu for allowing Kindo to treat him with disrespect and asks if Soko can be trusted. The white man gives Maligu some money to use and buy things for those will work with him, and make provision for women and other logistics.

SCENE TWO

Maligu, Soko and some girls gathers around the white man drinking and dancing. Maligu tells the white man that men are ready to work for him, courtesy of the gin and tobacco given to them as gift. However, the white man demands that Wara be brought to him, but Malign refuses opining that Wara is Kindo’s woman. The white man threatens to take back the money he gave to Maligu if he cannot give him whatever he needs. Then Maligu agrees to bring Wara.

Kindo comes to find out from the white man why he chose to come to Mando land. The white man also known as whitehead, says that Mando land’s soil is fertile and good for tobacco plantation. Kindo also enquires about who gave gin and tobacco to his people. Whitehead replied that he gave some men money to go and get it from somewhere else. As Kindo leaves, Soko and Maligu enter to inform Whitehead that Wara has been kidnapped and is in Whitehead’s compound under the vigilance of Parker.

Kindo confronts Maligu and Soko for giving gin and tobacco to the people having known its negative effect. He tells them that whitehead is evil. Parker runs in to inform Maligu that Wara has escaped. Both Maligu and Soko takes different routes in search of Wara before Kindo finds her.

Soko is the first to find Wara and pretends not to know what is happening. He asks her why she is running. After her explanation, Soko tells her to run to the next village and not to Kindo, that she will be safer there. Wara escapes to the next village. As Maligu meets Soko, he inquires if Soko has seen Wara. Soko affirmed that he advised her to run to the next village. Maligu likes Soko’s decision that it will prevent Kindo from sending whitehead out of the village and denying them the opportunity to make money. Whitehead enters the scene and promises to give Soko and Whitehead more money if they bring him whatever he asks. He also makes plan to kill Kindo before he drives him out of the village. On hearing this, Maligu and Soko starts perceiving that Whitehead is evil and that they will stop assisting him before he puts them in trouble, but Maligu opines that it is already too late to do so.

ACT 3, SCENE ONE

In the King’s palace are whitehead and Parker waiting for the king’s arrival. They prostrate as the King and Soko enters. The king asks Soko if he has prepared the girl for the sacrifice and Soko lies that he has done that. Whitehead breaks into the conversation asking that the gods can take animal instead of a human, because where I came from virgin sacrifices are not allowed. On getting a negative response, he apologizes for dabbling into Mando land’s custom. The King overlooks this and asks Whitehead when he intends to start his farming and if that will not hinder the men from attending to their farms. Whitehead promises that the work in his tobacco farm will be in the morning and will not hinder the men from working in their own farms. He also promises to build a school where Mando children will learn how to read and write if the men works hard in his farm.

In the absence of the king, whitehead confides with Maligu that he is not actually in their village with the sole aim of planting tobacco, but to extract diamond. More so, he reveals to Maligu his plan to get Kindo banished from the land for killing parker. The king comes back and informs Whitehead that his people are ready to work. Whitehead succeeds in convincing the king that tobacco is good for the body, the king starts taking it and becomes addicted to it. As the time for the sacrifice draws near, Whitehead tells Maligu to offer more gin and tobacco to the people so as to have their track covered.

SCENE TWO

The king looks confused and Whitehead sits beside him complaining that he has never seen a human sacrifice before. The girls start to dance as the drummer runs the drum. The priest who is now Maligu enters with his face covered with a mask. Kindo orders the sacrifice to stop, but the king refuses. Kindo then informs the king that Wara is no longer a virgin and that the body lying in the stone of sacrifice is not Wara but Parker.  Just as he is speaking, two warriors enters with Soko’s dead body and Kindo tells the king that he killed Parker for killing Soko. Immediately, whitehead shouts that Kindo has killed someone in peace time and must be banished, Maligu supported him. Unfortunately for Kindo, the king agrees to banish him. Kindo’s men arrest Maligu and Whitehead, and force them to confess their sins. Kindo then ask his men to place whitehead on the stone of sacrifice, there he kills the white stranger. After that he turns to the people telling them that he will leave, but to come back later to take what belongs to him – the crown –  when is father, the king, travels to the great beyond.