Forgotten Heroes

Karina Ong sat in the backseat of the car with her only son Simon. She was reading today's newspaper. The chauffeur, Slamet, was struggling with the usual Jakarta's traffic. It was holiday season for school, so she took Simon to Jakarta History Museum.

She was a Chinese woman in her mid thirties. She was just an ordinary looking woman but her appearance is far from ordinary. Her clothes were made of fine expensive materials. Her glasses, shoes and handbags were of branded marks. Looking at her at a glimpse was enough to know that she came from an upper class society.

Simon Ong, a hyperactive eight-year-old boy, was restless. He was singing the tunes from the car audio. Sometimes he would look to the front and complained to Slamet or his mother.

"Pak (Mister), can we go faster?"
"Mommy, can I have the mineral water?"
"Pak,I want another song. Change the cassette, please?
"Mommy, I don't want to go to the museum."
"Can we go to the theater, instead?"
"Mommy, Mommy, let's turn around and go to the theater."

Karina put down her newspaper and looked at her son with a smile.

"Simon, what did I tell you last night?"

"Mmmmmh.... But I......" Simon knelt on the seat looking at the back shield."

"What did I tell you, Simon?

He sat back on his seat, looked bored and sighed, "You said One Play Day, One Study Day."

Karina smiled and kissed her son. "Now we go to the museum and learn history. Tomorrow, if you still want to go to the theater to see your favorite clowns, we can go and I will watch the movie with you."

"They're not clowns, Mommy. They're super heroes."

Karina looked at her son, seriously. For a moment she seemed to be thinking. But a few seconds later her smile widened and she put away her newspaper.

"Do you want to hear a story of heroes?"

"Oh,yes.. yes. Yes, Mommy." His face was suddenly brighter and he started to ask questions, "Can they fly? Are they bulletproof, Mommy?

Karina laughed, "No.. not at all. They were just humans. Like us."

"Like Batman? Bruce Wayne?" He seemed more interested.

"Not that tough. But they faced a much greater enemy than Batman. And it happened a long long time ago, before human invented super hero gears like those Batman has." Karina chuckled seeing her son's interest grew.

"Tell me, Mommy... tell me about them." He sat nicely waited for his mother to start the story.

"But before I tell you the story, you have to know the background and situation of the place, my dear. A bit of history, OK?"

Simon nodded and waited patiently. Karina however, realized that the story she was going to tell was in fact too violent for a child as old as Simon. So instead of telling him the whole truth, she decided to tell it in a more entertaining way. However, when she was telling the story, the actual scenes were pictured in her mind. She would tell him about it when he got older.

"So here is the background of the story . . . ." She started.

The time was the 18th century. The year was between 1730 to 1745. At that time, Jakarta was much much smaller than today but as busy as today. The harbor was called Sunda Kalapa (Coconut Town) because of the many coconut trees, it was one of the busiest harbors in Asia.

Those days, Jakarta was called BATAVIA, a name given by the Dutch. The city was ruled under Dutch colonial. The highest power was of a Governor General of the Trade Company of East Indies or Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie. VOC for short.

There was no Indonesia at that time. The whole archipelago was separated in big and small kingdoms. Each kingdom fought others, to conquer, to expand their territory. Batavia, however was a unique place. It was an open city, as much as today. It used to be part of King Jayawikarta's territory, but he was fooled by the Dutch and lost the most important territory in the archipelago.

People from many different races and places lived in Batavia for the same reason: MONEY. The lucky traders and the Dutch officers erected big houses and villas by the banks of beautiful Ciliwung River. Some even had their own boat yards. If you walked in the city, you can see boats in the canal. They were transporting imported goods directly from the harbor or carrying exported goods to Sunda Kalapa. It was such a beautiful scene.

Beautiful Europeans Ladies walked around the city for shopping, carrying beautiful colorful umbrellas, followed by 3 to 5 slaves. Some ladies preferred to go on a carriage pulled by a horse to enjoy the scenery around the river and canal.

Everybody felt secure living in Batavia because the city was surrounded by fortified walls. The north side of course was open to the harbor, guarded with a bastion. To the south, there were only two gates out of the city. One is called Pintu Besar (Big Door) for the use of Europeans. The other is Pintu Kecil (Small Door) for locals, slaves, and Chinese.

Why Chinese? Those days, the Chinese played important roles in trading, just like today. They owned factories and big shops. But the Dutch didn't let them live inside Batavia. They could work in the city or opened a shop inside the walled city, but they could not live in it. So they mostly had their luxurious houses built closely around the city wall and by the riverbanks.

But not everybody enjoyed the glitter and luxury of Batavia. When I said the locals, I meant the Betawi people, the original inhabitants of Batavia. They were the most miserable people in Batavia. They lived in the vicinity of the city, very poorly. Their houses were made of wood and the roof made of palm leaves. You wouldn't find floors inside the houses, for they didn't cover the ground with anything. Just plain ground. When it rained, the water leaked in and the ground became muddy. Most houses didn't have bathroom. They bathed and washed their clothes in the river. Yet, they took the water from the same river for drinking and cooking. This bad hygiene caused them to often suffer typhoid, cholera, dysentery and tuberculosis. Those were deadly diseases at that time.

Since the Betawi people were the original owners of the land, VOC ordered them to plant their land as directed by VOC. For example, in one area, all neighboring lands were to be planted by cane. Other areas for coffee, spices, and other crops with high value in international trade. All the crops would be taken away, then exported by VOC to other countries. All the money went into their pockets, and not a dime was given to the Betawi people. They planted their lands for free, leaving them only limited space to plant rice and vegetable for their own food.

Beside the Betawi people, there were also slaves. These people came from a defeated kingdom and were sold by their new ruler as slaves. Their lives were as miserable as the Betawi people, but slaves who were willing to change whatever their religion into Christian were set free. They usually recruited to work for VOC or Dutch Officers.

The last one was the Chinese. In the beginning of the 18th century, many Chinese junks came to the harbor carrying porcelains and other cargoes. These junks also carried immigrants who at that time were not quite welcome. These Chinese immigrants ended up having no jobs in Batavia and became a very serious problem. They lived as poorly as the Betawi people and the slaves. And worse, they were regarded as traitors to their ancestors' tomb in the Middle Kingdom for having neglected their responsibilities in their motherland. Those who were born overseas were regarded as barbarians.

By the year 1720 the market of cane sugar dropped causing lay off of many workers at the plantations, including Chinese. This caused more problems as more and more people were out of jobs. Thus, based on this situation, the Council of the East Indies in 1740 decided to release a new policy for Chinese workers that required them to hold a permit to work in Batavia. Those who didn't have permit would be deported to Sri Lanka to work on plantations.

However, rumors circulated among them that those unlucky people never landed in Sri Lanka. They were dumped into the Java Sea. Then, desperate Chinese formed gangs to attack VOC outposts outside the city walls. They couldn't get inside the city because the VOC mounted cannons above the walls. The situation outside and inside the walls was like heaven and hell. Inside the wall, the city remained peaceful and beautiful. Rich officers' wives could still walked along the river not knowing what happened outside.

Among thousands of those unfortunate people, there was a man. His name was Fung Min Yau. He was imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit.

Fung Min Yau used to sell vegetables and fruits to houses. He carried them around the town. He was not as poor as the slaves, yet he couldn't be considered rich either. He used to live happily with his wife and young daughter named Fung Yin Li. Yin Li helped her father by working as a tailor. Her customers were middle class Chinese ladies. She sew Kebaya, the common clothes used that time. The three of them didn't have much, but they could save a little for their future, or sometimes to help their neighbors in need.

Until one day, Min Yau's wife got very ill and had to be admitted to the Chinese Hospital. The doctors diagnosed her to have tuberculosis. The costs for medicines and hospital were too much for Min Yau and his daughter. They spent all their savings, but not enough still. Min Yau had to borrow some money to a local loan shark named Lo Shen Hui. He was a man of mid 40, very fat and very cruel. Yet he had a lot of money that the locals often borrowed from him with high interests. He was regarded as one of desperate ways to get money.

When Lo Shen Hui learned that Min Yau had a beautiful daughter, he offered him a solution of how to pay the debt. If Yin Li was to be his bride, all the debt would be erased and he would build a new and much more healthful house for Min Yau and his wife.

Poor as he was, Fung Min Yau was a man of honor. He would never sell his daughter to an old loan shark. Knowing that his offer had been turned down, Shen Hui got really mad and set a trap to imprison this old man. To tell the story short, Fung Min Yau was charged with murder of his neighbor. Everyone in the neighborhood knew that an old man as kind as Min Yau would had never been able to kill his neighbor. Yet, no one dared to testify. They were afraid of Lo Shen Hui and preferred to keep quiet.

Thus, the old poor Min Yau ended up in City Hall's prison, awaiting his trial for execution. As everybody knew, the City Hall's prison was a very inhuman place. Prisoners were crowded in a small, damp underground dungeon with only small ventilation. The sun barely sipped through the hidden iron bars and when it rained the room was flooded with water. The prisoners did everything inside the dungeon, from eating, sleeping to their hygiene purposes. Food was not given by the jailers. Thus the family of the prisoners had to deliver food for their relatives captured in the prison. A sum of money had to be given to the jailers for every food delivery in order to make sure that the meal would reach the right person. Due to the conditions, mortality rate was very high among the prisoners. Four months imprisonment guaranteed slow and painful death to them. Most of the prisoners didn't get to attend their trials for they were long dead before.

Lo Shen Hui's plan was to wait until Fung Min Yau's execution took place. The court had ordered that the trial for him was set in 3 months. He was sure that an old man like him would never last two months in the prison. When he died, he would marry Yin Li, as a token to pay her father's debt.

However, before his plan worked, on October 9, 1740 a major chaos hit Batavia. Unknown to the VOC, a fire started inside the city. Chinese rebellions had successfully attacked inside the city wall. The Governor General of Batavia, Adriaan Valckenier, ordered all citizens of Batavia, slaves, and artisans to kill all Chinese in the city without any exception, including women, children, elderly and patients in the Chinese Hospital. Those who didn't carry out the orders would be severely punished.

The biggest slaughter started in an instant. People killed the Chinese in random and looted their belongings. At first, women and children were spared, but by afternoon, the killings continued with no exception at all. All patients in the Chinese Hospitals were killed leaving only two blind men alive. Dead bodies were thrown in the canal, making the water red of the blood. Decapitated bodies were all over the streets; heads were lying on the ground. The beautiful and peaceful scenes of Batavia were instantly turned into horrifying hell of devilish action. People seemed to lose their insanity. Those who killed were no longer able to differ Chinese to dogs. Those who fled for dear life were held in panic that they ran around without directions. Some people who were able to hold their insanity but already lost hopes of their lives preferred to hang them selves or burn them selves rather than being captured then slaughtered and died undignified. In the course of only 5 hours, almost half of Batavia was burning on fire. The scene was hellish that there was no comparison or even an exact word to describe it.

In the midst of the chaos, our dear Fung Yin Li hid under thorny bushes around the city hall. She was on her way to deliver food to her father.

The story of our heroes started from this point on.

Yin Li was walking fast towards the city hall. She knew that her father must have had been very hungry by now, so she quickened her pace. Yin Li was a relatively young woman of 16 years old. Her feature was quite beautiful with her black long hair and black eyes. Her skin was yellow and smooth, yet her face didn't give impression that she was Chinese. She inherited her beauty from her mother, a Betawi woman who got married with her father, a Chinese immigrant. And from her father, she inherited the brain of a smart trader.

She was still quite far from the city hall when she heard the sound of pistols everywhere. She dropped the food canteen and quickly ran to find a safer place. People were running and some more were chasing them with miscellaneous things. Pistols, blades, wooden sticks, even rice pounders were used as weapons. She didn't quite understand what the commotion was about, yet instinctively she hid behind a parked carriage.

"Kill the Chinese! Kill them all!" She heard similar words shouted by the people. She began shaking with fear as she saw dead bodies lying on the streets. Once again she looked around to seek safer place to hide. Some people went pass her not noticing. She was thankful that her looks didn't resemble Chinese. She covered her jade necklace with her shaking hand. If someone saw it they would kill her in an instant. The pendant bore Chinese characters of her family name.

She suddenly realized that there were thorny bushes behind the parked carriage. She fled towards it and hid under them. Her smooth skin was scratched here and there and some thorns cut even deeper. Her clothes were torn in several places. Some thorns even stuck in her skin but she ignored the pain as she moved deeper under the bushes.

She was now practically sat on the ground. Blood ran down her skins and wet her clothes. Yet she didn't quite notice her own condition, for from her hide out she could see the horror of the slaughter. She was crying and sobbing hard, her whole body was trembling in fear and pain. Her mind became numb and she was on the brink of insanity. There was only one thought that saved her from going crazy. Her mother at home. She was not a Chinese so she would not be harmed. And her neighbors knew that her father was imprisoned in the City Hall. Yin Li was afraid that these devilish people would somehow torture her mother to find out where she was.

This thought had saved her from losing her mind. She clung to the thought of her mother and prayed to Thian (God) to protect her and her parents. Still the scene in front of her was too horrifying for a young girl to bear. She finally lost control of herself and fainted.

Rausin walked out of the mosque with his four friends. They had just finished having lunch and doing the midday prayer. They had to go back to the cane plantation and worked.

Rausin was the youngest among them. He was only 23, yet his face looked older than his age. His black curly hair was kept long touching his shoulders and he grew a beard that he kept neatly trimmed. One thing very typical of him was that he always had his peci (traditional hat) wherever he went. He never left home without it. While he worked, he kept his peci together with his clothes. The workers in the plantation used to work bare-chested due to the high temperature in the field. They literally worked under the sun. The second reason was that most of them didn't have too many good clothes to wear. They would rather keep the clothes for formal occasions and prefer working without them.

The five of them looked very tensed and spoke very softly. The rumors of what happened in Batavia had spread and reached the plantation that was located only a few miles outside the city and could be reached by a 3-hour horse ride.

Rausin, Ardan, Rozak, Sanip and Ali were old friends. They were bonded by the same faith of losing their lands to the VOC. The whole area of the cane plantation originally belonged to their grandfathers. Their grandparents had been once rich landowners. Yet now, the five of them worked for free, as slaves did. They were told to plant their lands with cane and to follow the rules of Cultuurstelsel (The Culture System) which required them to work in the plantation at least 60 days in a year for free. They lived in poverty. But as Betawi people humor was always part of their lives. So if they were often seen laughing and joking, nobody would be surprised. The only entertainment for people like them was humor.

The village where they lived was called Kampung Tebu (Cane Village) because the whole village was used by the VOC for cane plantation. There were only two big houses in the village, one owned by a Dutch Officer who also owned the plantation. His name was Cornelius Janssen. The other, a smaller one belonged to the Bek (Supervisor) of the plantation Bek Yanto, a half-Arab half-Javanese man. Other than that were small huts belonged to the locals.

Among the five friends, only Rausin was single. The others were married and some had children. They were much older than Rausin, but they all respected him very much. Rausin was not only smarter than they were, but also wiser. They often came to him for advice even though he was only 23. He was actually a shy guy, especially among women and girls.

Rausin was also highly respected for his talent in Pencak (Martial Art). Young as he was, he already became a master and had apprentices, some even older than he was. Rausin still had a master though, a very old man who lived in a small hut not far from where he lived. It was said that the future of the Perguruan (Martial Art School) depended on Rausin. It was also said that Rausin most probably would replace the old master when he died.

When the VOC first settled in this area they were worried about the people from the Perguruan, and closed it down. The big wooden house that had been used to be the quarters were burnt and demolished. Unknown to them, the Perguruan still existed. They didn't have place to gather, so they spread the martial art teaching in houses. Sometimes they learned the styles at night. The Perguruan became a closed and secret society that only trusted people could join.

Rausin and his friends were forced to live in low profile. Sometimes the people who hardly knew them very well considered them rather silly. This act was necessary to avoid VOC's suspicion. However, the number of people who joined the secret Perguruan increased from time to time. By that time, their members consisted not only of people from Kampung Tebu, but also from neighboring village, Kampung Gula (Sugar Village) where the sugar factory was located.

Thus, they became the number one enemy of the VOC at the area. They robbed VOC's carriages from Batavia that carried money or rice for Cornelius Janssen. The carriages going to Batavia that carried sugar from the neighboring village were often robbed too. The robbers wore black masks. They were very skilled and strong. They had killed many Dutch and officers. Cornelius Janssen suspected that they must have been apprentices of the old Perguruan, yet he could never even capture one to prove it.

Hearing about what happened in Batavia, made the five of them aware that the transportation of goods and money to and fro must had been delayed. Yet they realized that it had been two months since their successful robbery. The village people never expected anything from them, but lately they couldn't even get rice for a descent meal. They felt that they were needed to do something.

It was decided then, that they would rob Cornelius Janssen's warehouse as planned. The carriage robbery had to be pended until they heard more about the situation in Batavia.

As they walked out of the mosque they split up. Some went back to the plantation, some went back home. Rausin, Ardan and Rozak had to go back to the plantation where they were needed to cultivate the cane and stack them to be transported to the sugar factory in the neighboring village. They worked hard until almost dusk.

When finally Rausin arrived home, he was completely exhausted. His old mother had been waiting for him and welcomed him as he walked inside the house.

"Hello mother. Is everything all right?"

"Yes, Usin. Go wash yourself and I'll prepare your food. You look awful."

"Thanks mother."

Ten minutes later he reappeared from the backside of the house with a much more refreshed look.

"Who carried the water from the river, Mother? I didn't have time to do it yesterday, but our tempayan (water tank made of mud) is full."

"Oh it was Ali. He came by and asked if he could do anything for me while you were gone. He also brought some grass for our cow. Such a nice man."

Rausin smiled and started eating. His dinner consisted of steamed vegetables eaten with sambel (plundered red chilies) and steamed casava. All came from their small back yards. Their chicken had not laid eggs for the last 3 days. And their cow produced even less milk. She had given the milk to Rozak's wife who needed it more than they did. She had 3 children to feed.

His mother smiled watching him eating. As his stomach was beginning to get full, he ate slower and realized that his mother didn't eat anything. He stopped chewing and asked, "Why are you not eating, Mak (mother)?"

"Oh, I'm not hungry. You go on finish the meal, Usin."

Rausin stopped eating and quickly reached the glass of water on his right. He drank it quickly to clear his mouth and throat.

"Mak. This is the only thing left in our back yards, isn't it?"

"Who said so? We..."

Rausin rose from his seat and took another plate. He put it in front of her.

"Please, Mak. Eat now. I've had enough. I'm gonna do Shalat Maghrib (dusk prayer) and after that Shalat Isya (night prayer), then I'll recite Qur'an, for awhile before going to bed. I promise you we'll have something more to eat tomorrow. You just don't worry about it, all right?"

He bent and kissed his mother's forehead.

Mpok (Mrs.) Ati watched with teary eyes as her son walked to the back room to wash his feet before praying. The front room not only functioned as a living room, but also as dining room, and at night as Rausin's bedroom. All that was in the room was a large bamboo divan. Three people could seat on it. The bamboo divan was commonly used as seating place, since the houses at that time usually didn't have tiled floors.

Ten minutes later Rausin's beautiful voice was heard reciting the words from the Qur'an.

Fung Yin Li opened her eyes slowly. She felt pain all over her body. At first she was confused of her surroundings, but slowly the memory returned. It was dark all over her and the killings seemed to have been stopped somehow. She slowly managed to get out of the thorny bushes although the action caused more cuts to her skin and tore more parts of her clothes.

Under the moonlight, she saw dead bodies were still on the streets. She walked quickly to the direction out of the city. For a few meters she could still hold her emotion, but after a few more meters she began to cry. She saw heads scattered on the streets, some she could recognized as her neighbors. She walked faster and faster avoiding more and more corpses, not noticing her surroundings. She was lucky that no Dutch officers were on guard on the outposts of the city walls.

The street was empty. Nobody seemed to want to go out after what happened today. When she reached the canal, she couldn't stop her crying anymore. She ran away from the scenes and ran faster until she reached the city wall. The canal was full of corpses that if she wanted to she could cross to the other side by walking on top of them, without wetting her feet. She felt her feet sticky with blood from the corpses. She wished she could reach home soon and washed the stain away. She was on the brink of panic and ran faster.

When she reached her neighborhood, she was completely out of breath. She didn't see a root from a tree on the ground in the darkness and stumbled in to the front porch of her aunt's house.

A woman came out and saw her. She almost screamed but quickly covered her own mouth. She ran towards her and helped her up.

"Yin Li!! Thank God you're alive!" She whispered the words, crying.

"Cing (Aunt) Hasnah ..."

It was her mother's sister.

"Sshhhh! Don't say a word. Let me look at you."

"No, Cing. I have to get back home. How's mother?"

"No. No. No. You shouldn't go back there."

Yin Li sat on the porch, feeling very tired and hungry.

"Why Cing? Is she allright?"

Hasnah didn't answer her. She was crying now.

"Yin Li, I think you should go out of this place now. Who knows what will happen tomorrow? Go south, my dear, go away for your life."

"Cing Hasnah, I can't. If I go, who would take care of father in prison? I didn'' get a chance to deliver him the food today. He must be very hungry by now."

"You... you... haven't heard?" She asked in an awe.

"What Cing? What?"

"There are no more prisoners in the city hall for now, my child. They all.. they all have been executed this afternoon. All 500 of them."

Yin Li's face became paler and she screamed, "NO! That can't be. That's not fair, he didn't do anything. He had not been tried yet. NO!"

"Ssshhh. Be quite, Yin Li. Do you want to wake the whole neighborhood up?"

She sobbed and tried to restrain herself. She had felt weak after running but hearing the news made her feel even weaker. Yet, her confused mind suddenly focused back on her mother.

She rose without saying a word and started to walk back home. Hasnah tried to stop her but she shoved her away.

"Yin Li, listen to me, my dear. You have to get out of here now. Go as far away as you can, my child."

She heard her, but she kept on walking towards her house, which was located a few more meters from her aunt's.

As she was closing on, she saw that the door to the house was wide open. There was no light from inside the house. She started running and went inside the house, calling her mother.

"Mother, mother, where are you?" She went quickly to the kitchen, guessing her way in the dark and then lit a candle.

She searched the bedroom and found it empty. She continued to the backside of the house and walked out to the side of the house, practically circling the area.

As she reached the side she saw in front of her the big mango tree. Something was dangling from its strong branch. Under the tree she saw a wooden bench lying on its side. She dropped the candle and ran as fast as she could. Once again she stumbled and fell to the ground. Her right elbow knocked a rock and bled. She didn't notice it and rose and ran again. Her mind focused only on the thing dangling from the mango tree.

She stopped a few steps away from the tree and walked slowly under the dangling body. She was crying and breathing heavily. She looked up and circled the body to see the face. The face was dark under the shadows of the tree, but she could see its eyes opened and the tongue dangled out of the mouth.

The strength that was only a little left in her suddenly sucked out as she recognized the body as her mother's. She fell to the ground, sitting under the dangling body, sobbing and shaking her head. She screamed and punched the ground in front of her over and over again. She didn't care if anybody would hear her. She would be happy if someone came out and kill her that instant. Her mother must have had killed herself after hearing about the execution. She must have had thought that her daughter had been killed on the street. Her head throbbing with pain and she felt her eyes hot and everything around her started spinning. Once again, she fainted and fell on the ground.

Rausin woke from his sleep. He quietly walked to the backside of the house and washed his face. He didn't want to wake his mother so he tiptoed out of the house, grabbing his blade on the way out.

Once outside the house he ran to the meeting point and quickly wore his black mask. A few seconds later he heard his friends coming. In the next five minutes approximately 15 masked men already gathered. Each of them spoken out a pass word as they arrived.

Rausin gave some orders in whispers and then they were split in 3 directions. Each group consisted of five men.

Rausin and his men ran fast towards the warehouse that belonged to Meneer (Mr.) Janssen. They closed in from the north and lied down on the grown. The tall grass and some bushes hid them from the view of the guards. The other groups would take from the east and west. The warehouse had received some stuff delivered from Batavia three days ago. Among them were sacks of rice. For two nights the hired guards around the warehouse were on full alert. They were armed with pistols and guns. It was impossible to penetrate and each time they had to fall back. But tonight, they seemed a little off guard. Rausin could see that there were fewer guards tonight. Only around 8 to 10 men, and they all looked tired and sleepy.

Rausin smiled behind his mask and nodded to his friends. The five of them were responsible to take off the guards, while their 10 friends would charged the warehouse and robbed ten sacks of rice. Each sack weighed exactly 100 kilograms. So it would be hard for them to fight with the burden on their shoulders. That was the reason why Rausin's group consisted of the best fighters, they were responsible for the success of the robbery.

He signaled his men to move and they simultaneously charged. Rausin held some stones in his left hand while his right hand held the shining golok (blade). He aimed the stone to one man and threw it with his inner strength. The stone landed on the neck and the man fell in pain. Before he could move any further, he thrusted his golok to his chest. He moved on to the nearest guard and swung his golok across his chest that killed him instantly. In the corner of his eye Rausin saw a movement from his right side. He quickly threw another stone and successfully preventing a guard from shooting one of his friends. The stone hit his temple rendered him unconscious. One of the masked fighters who stood close by finished the job by sticking his golok to the falling guard's stomach. The fight happened too quickly for the guards to realize. They had barely enough time to defend themselves. Rausin's four fighters were truly experienced fighters that the guards mostly got killed before they could even let out a warning scream.

The ten men had carried ten sacks and ran out of the place towards the woods. Rausin signaled his men to retreat and they disappeared in the dark as if they were carried away by the wind.

Fung Yin Li opened her eyes slowly. She was still lying on the ground under the mango tree, under her mother's dead body. She sat and looked up at her mother with an empty stare. She began to cry. She looked down at the ground, sobbing. Suddenly she laughed. She laughed hard, but the tears kept falling down her cheeks. She tried to focus her mind in vain. Everything around her stopped and she felt like sitting in an empty room. A nice, cozy and bright empty room. All she can hear was the voice of her aunt saying, "Go south, my dear. Go away for your life."

Yin Li murmured the words. Her face showed no emotion, her eyes stared to her front. She stood up and started walking away from the tree. She walked towards the road.

"Go south. . Go south.." She kept murmuring.

Yin Li walked and walked and walked for hours, all the way to the south. She murmured the words over and over again. She walked passed rice fields, plantations, and further and further south. The moon seemed to have pity on her. It shined so brightly as if showing her the way.

"Go south. . . Got to go south . . . "

They had finished distributing the rice to the neighborhood. One cup for one head. So they just pour the rice in a corner of the front door to every house in Kampung Tebu according to the number of people living in it. At dawn when they opened the door they would find it and quickly hide it away for safety. When the rice still remained, they shared it with Kampung Gula their neighbor. Usually 10 sacks of rice were enough for both Kampung. The number of people had not changed too many for the past two years.

Rausin, Ali and Rozak who lived close by each other returned home from Kampung Gula together. They sneaked carefully among the houses as not to cause suspicions. When they were close to the cane plantation, they had to walk under the shadows of the trees because the moon was shining so brightly. Rausin signaled them to walk inside the plantation among the cane to avoid the moonshine.

Ali was a short, dynamic man. He liked to joke very much. Rausin liked him for his fresh jokes. Sometimes, when he had so many things in his mind, he came to Ali just to listen to him talking. Ali had been married for years but had no children. Twice he had tried to marry another woman to get offspring, but his wife had threatened to kill him if he left her for another woman. One night she had run after him with a blade on her hand. She said she was going to cut his manhood in half if she found him fooling around with Mirah, a lovely young girl who lived near them. Rausin remembered that night very well, for he was the one who helped solving the fights between them. All ended nicely when it was proven that there had been nothing between Ali and Mirah. Furthermore, Mirah was known to have her eyes on Rausin.

Rozak on the other hand was the opposite. He was a big man, much bigger than Rausin. He had a very thick mustache that he kept very neatly. His beard and mustache were his pride. He had two wives and 3 children. He was expecting the fourth by the end of this month.

As they began taking the path to the cane plantation, Ali grabbed Rausin's clothes and pointed to the middle of the road.

"Usin, stop. Look there!" He whispered.

Rausin stopped immediately. Rozak who was walking in front of him turned back to check out what was going on.

"Seems like a woman to me." Rozak said.

"Ali, you stand guard here and watch that body. I'll check out around. Rozak, you check out that way. This can be a trap, so be careful."

Rausin disappeared among the cane branches, followed by Rozak who went the other way. Ali crouched by the road, under a big tree closely watching the figure of the woman lying on the ground. He noticed that she was breathing slowly, so she must be alive. Her clothes were torn here and there.

"Damn, I'm sure this is a trap." He murmured to himself. He waited patiently while observing his surroundings, listening to every sound. He took a deep breath and let his inner strength flow to his five senses. He could hear the night owl, the wind brushing against the leaves. He couldn't see anything out of ordinary out there. He heard footsteps closing in. Ali hid himself further from the road. As the footsteps became closer he recognized the smell. It was Rozak's bad body odor.

Ali was surprised when he realized that Rausin was breathing down his neck while Rozak was coming from the opposite direction. Ali cursed.
"Why you always do that? You move like a ghost."

Rausin didn't answer, instead he looked at Rozak demanding reports.

Rozak said, "All clear. I don't think this is a trap of whatever we thought it was."

Rausin frowned and turned his head to look at the body.

"Then, we have to help that woman." He said. "You two watch my back while I carry her here."

"Yes!" Rozak and Ali answered in unison. Before they even closed their mouth, Rausin had fled to the middle of the road. Both of them looked at each other and shook their heads.

"He does move like a ghost." Rozak said.

Rausin squatted by the woman's body, to take a quick examination before taking her. She was obviously alive, but unconscious. That was the most important thing. So he carried her and ran back to their hidden place. He put her slowly on top of a grass area under the tree.

Ali and Rozak came nearer to look.

"I don't know her, do you?" Rozak asked.

"No." Ali said.

Rausin touched her necklace, "She's not from around here. This is a Chinese alphabet. Probably her name."

Ali and Rozak looked at her closer but thought of things other than what Rausin was talking about. They noticed that her clothes were torn in many places revealing her beautiful smooth skins and also parts of her beautiful firm breast. Both swallowed hard staring at her beautiful feature.

"She has scratches and cuts all over her arms. Some of them are still bleeding. I think they need to be bandaged. What do you think happened to her?" Rausin asked his companions.

When he didn't get any answers he looked to them and found that they were staring at the woman's body.

He slapped each of them in the head softly.

"You greedy dogs." He shook his head while taking of his clothes to cover her body.

"Oh, come on, Rausin. How many girls can match her beauty in our village, eh?"

Rausin smiled, "I'm not saying she's ugly. I just remind you guys to help her. She needs our help, not our stares."

"Our help? Our help?" Ali repeated Rausin's word.

"Do you think I'm crazy enough to take home such a wonderful woman? My wife will hang me on the beam of our kitchen." He continued.

"Same with me. I wanted to help her Rausin. Oh.. yes I want to, but my wife will send me out of the house. Then, where would I live?" Rozak commented.

Rausin looked at her again and turned back to his friends.

"I guess I don't have any other choice but to leave her out here, right? And you know I can't do that."

"Yes you can." Rozak said.

Rausin took a deep breath, "You know, this will not be as simple as you think, Ali. Look at her necklace, guys. Look at the wounds at her feet. She must have run away from Batavia, probably walking all the way here. You know what I think? I think she's a survivor of today's slaughter in Batavia."

Ali and Rozak looked at him like he was crazy.

"All the way here? Man, she must have walked like 8 to 10 hours. That's not possible, Rausin."

"Yes, it is possible, why not? When she wakes up, we can ask her about the situations in the city."

Rausin carried her up again.

Rozak stopped him. "Rausin, what if she was raped. And when she wakes up she accuses you? Listen, this is too dangerous for our mission. Inviting a stranger to your house might risk our identities as mask murderers. Leave her."

Rausin looked at his friends in disbelief.

"We have killed many people, guys. We are killers, we are robbers. But we killed those who worked for the Dutch. And we rob only those who have a lot and not willing to share. We do it for the sake of our people. People, who live under pressure, people who live in poverty. People who can't defend themselves against the oppressor. Does this woman looks like a person who can defend herself?"

Ali and Rozak shook their heads.

"Then, let me help her. You guys just keep your mouth shut until we're sure who she is."

Rausin spoke in his usual way. Very nice yet very firm. His deep, yet clear voice sounded like a poem when he was talking. Only the glow in his eyes indicated when he was mad or joking. And only those who were close to him can understand it. Among women, Rausin was known as a charming, mysterious man. Among men, he was highly respected for his wisdom and insights yet was also considered mysterious.

Ali and Rozak both knew very well that at the moment Rausin was really angry. They now understood why. Both of them had regarded the woman as not only a threat but as an object of their sexual fantasies. That made them afraid of helping her, afraid of the temptation she might pose. But Rausin, younger as he was, could see that this woman was only a victim. Until he knew more about her, he regarded her as a person in need of help.

Ali and Rozak looked down. They didn't dare to look at Rausin's eyes. Their faces were blushing in shame. And they knew, Rausin noticed that too. Rausin started walking and both of them followed closely behind him. After a few meters, Rozak took the lead as he saw it was difficult for Rausin to lead the way while carrying the woman.

They arrived at Rausin's house at almost dawn. Ali and Rozak hurriedly went back to their houses after helping him settled down the woman inside the house.

Mpok Ati was surprised to see the woman, but she didn't ask anything. She knew that Rausin never liked being asked when he was in a bad mood. And from the frown he was wearing on his face, she knew that he was annoyed with something.

She noticed that there was a heap of rice in front of the house. She knew that Rausin's mission was a success tonight. She quickly put it in a bowl and kept it in a hidden place in the kitchen.

When she came back to the room, Rausin had already closed the front door and was busy in the bedroom, hiding his masks and golok.

Mpok Ati looked at the woman. She was covered with Rausin's wet clothes. When she took it away she was surprised to see the wounds.

"Will you take care of her, Mak?" Rausin was already standing behind her. He was still bare-chested, his black trousers were wet.

She looked at him, "Yes, sure. But .. but who is she?"

"I don't know, Mak. We found her lying on the road. I'm gonna take a bath now and I have to go work at the plantation."

He turned his back and walked away.

"Usin. . Son, are you allright?"

"I'm allright, Mak. Just a little tired."

"No, my son. You can't lie to me. You are upset."

Rausin looked at her mother and smiled, "It's just those old brats, Mak. Ali and Rozak. They.. they.. well, they looked at that woman as if she was just a piece of meat. I. . I. . "

"It reminded you of Marni?" Her mother asked softly.

Rausin didn't answer straight away. His mother shook her head.

"Who said anything about Marni?" He answered at last.

"Your eyes did. Anyway, it's not important. What important is, I have to take care of her wounds now. And you, young man, you go take your bath, do your Shalat Subuh (dawn prayer) and go to work."

Rausin smiled, "Yes, Mak."

Mpok Ati continued her work and stopped only to see that the wet clothes were stained with blood. As always, every time his son got home from a robbery, his clothes were always stained with blood. The blood of the men he had killed.

"After I'm done with this young lady, you're next." She spoke to the heap of clothes on the ground.

Cornelius Janssen hit the desk in front of him. He was a tall, blond man. Even his mustache was blonde. He was a very corrupt man, just like most VOC's officers. All he could think of was interests, advantages and mostly money.

"You idiots!!!!"

The Bek (Supervisor) and the head of Centeng (body guards/hit man) were standing in front of him, reporting last night's incident.

"How many times should this be happening again, huh? Five? Ten more times before you can catch them?"

Bek Yanto willed himself to offer an explanation. He was afraid of his boss, especially when he was in such a bad mood like this.

"But Meneer, they were so many of them. They. . ."

"Shut up!! I don't want to hear your stupid explanation!" Once again he hit the table and rose to his feet.

"You!" He pointed his finger to Centeng Amir.

"You told me that your men are the best fighters. Well they're nothing but a bunch of idiots."

Amir was a stubborn man, he was not afraid of Janssen.

"Meneer, I told you that my men are the best Javanese fighters. I also told you that the best fighters in this area are the Betawi people. As you know, non-of them are willing to turn to Christian while you only want to pay those who turn their religion into Christian. If only I could recruit some of them, I believe we can stand a chance against the mask murderers."

"You stupid idiot!!! How can you tell your friend from your enemy?"

Bek Yanto stepped in into the conversation, when it came to credit, he wouldn't miss a chance.

"Meneer, I know some people who are not interested in robberies or murders. They are true Moslems, very religious, but live very poor. And most importantly, they sure know how to fight. They can bend a gun with their hands. Their inner strength are so strong, Meneer. They were descendants of the founder of the Perguruan."

Janssen sat back on his chair. He motioned his two workers to close the door.

"Now how do you know that these people are not one of the gang members?"

Amir walked closer to the desk.

"Meneer, these people are not interested in anything but praying and martial arts. If they were the ones who robbed the warehouse, they wouldn't have been hungry by now. But even this morning, I saw one them sharing cow milk with neighbors."

Janssen nodded his head several times.

"Martial Arts you said? Why would they learn it if not for fighting?"

"Tradition, Meneer. They have to carry out the tradition, to their children, to their grandchildren and so on and so on."

Yanto added, "Yes, Meneer. There are three of them. They lived near the house of the old ex master of the Perguruan. Their names are Rausin, Ali and Rozak. They are nice but rather stupid. They work at the plantation too."

Janssen seemed to be thinking. His fingers were drumming the desk.

"And you think they are interested in money." He asked.

"Oh, yes, Meneer. Rozak has a wife and three children. He will be more than happy to get the job. The main reason they never took the opportunity is religion. They will never convert their religion, even though they will have to starve to death. They believe that God will feed them and will not leave them in hunger. Stupid!"
Janssen seemed satisfied with his answer and rose from his seat.

"Then, what are you waiting for? Get them to work. They'll get the same payment as your men."

Both Amir and Yanto fled out of the room. They were thankful that their master's wrath didn't cause them more trouble. Last time they didn't get their full payment because of the robbery.

They both went in a hurry to the plantation to follow up the plan.

Rausin walked home under the sun. The temperature was rather hot today. He felt a bit dizzy. Probably because he had not eaten anything since dinner. He didn't feel too hungry though. His mind was focused on the offer he had received from the Centeng.

He suddenly felt hungry. The pain on his head was getting worse and he felt sleepy too. He had not slept since the day before yesterday.

He thanked God when he finally made it home.

"I'm home, Mak." He shouted as he walked in the house.

His mother appeared from the bedroom.

"You're early, my son. Didn't they need you anymore at the plantation?"
Mpok Ati asked while walking to the kitchen to prepare the lunch.

"Not today. I go wash myself first, Mak. Then I want to eat, I'm really hungry."

Ten minutes later he was sitting on the bamboo divan enjoying the hot rice, boiled egg, vegetables and his favorite sambel. His mother sat in front of him, eating too.

He had been so hungry that he totally forgotten about the woman he had brought home last night. After he finished eating and drank 2 glasses of water, he lied down the divan watching his mom who started to bring the dirty plates to the kitchen. Then he remembered about the woman. He sat up quickly.

"Mak, how is she? Why is she not eating with us?"

Mpok Ati stopped and turned back, "Look for yourself, Usin. She's in the bedroom."

"What? You're telling me to go to a woman's room while she's inside?" Rausin looked at her mother in amazement.

"She wouldn't notice. Just go and look for your self." With those words she left Rausin and walked to the kitchen to start washing the glasses and plates.

Rausin stood at the doorway of the bedroom, looking inside. The woman was lying on the bed, her eyes staring at the ceiling. She was murmuring something.

Rausin turned his head towards his mother in the kitchen, "Mak, I think she's awake."

"Just go in." His mother answered shortly.

Rausin turned his attention back to the woman. He stepped inside and walked slowly closer to the bed. He watched her and followed her gaze. She was not exactly staring at the ceiling, she was staring at empty space.

Rausin bent down towards her to hear the words she was saying.

". . south . . go. . south . ."

"Go south." Rausin said the words.

"That's what she keeps saying." His mother was already standing behind him.

Rausin turned to her mother, "You mean she just keeps staring and saying those words over and over again?"

His mother nodded. " I think this girl has lost her mind."
She sat on the bed and caressed her arm. "Poor girl." She waved her hands in front of her, but she didn't respond.

"Look at her Rausin, she's very beautiful."

Rausin came closer and watched the woman carefully.

"Yes, she is, Mak."

"Come and touch her skin, my son. It's so smooth, like the alabaster floor of Meneer Janssen's mansion."

Rausin chuckled and shook his head, "Alabaster floor?"

"Come touch for yourself . . . go on." She insisted him to touch her.

Rausin touched her arm and caressed it. He turned to his mother and smiled, "You're right, Mak. It's like touching alabaster floor, but much softer and warmer." He said mockingly to his mother.

"Speaking of woman," His mother started, "Mpok Siti came by this morning. She was telling me that her daughter Mirah, you remember her right? You saved her from Ali's wife wrath. Well, she likes you very much. Mpok Siti wants us to have a stronger and closer relationship as family. You know . ..."

"No!" Rausin "Mak, please . . . I don't want to hear this."

Mpok Ati motioned him to sit on the bed next to her. She hugged him and caressed his hair with love.

"Will you listen, until I finish speaking? Hmmm?"

Rausin broke free from her hug, "No. I said No!! I don't want her, or any other woman."

Mpok Ati gave him another hug, "Why, Usin? Because you still love Marni?"

This time Rausin broke the hug with force. He was now standing in front of his mother. His face was dark, yet he wore no emotions. It was frightening for Mpok Ati 'cause she knew that he was in anger.

"Why can't you stop mentioning her name in front of me, Mak? Huh? She was a whore. And she is dead!! She was murdered, and I'm happy for it. I wish it were my own hand that took her life. She's out of my life. That damn whore is dead, Mak!! Dead!! Long gone!!"

Rausin spoke the words in high tone. Never before he talked to his mother in such way. Never before he talked to anyone that way. Yet, Mpok Ati knew Rausin wouldn't get carried away by his anger, as always. He only needed a few minutes to let go of the anger boiling inside, then it would subside. She had to bring the subject up, everyday if it was necessary, until Rausin realized his fault.

He was standing in the middle of the bedroom, looking down at the floor now. Breathing heavily. He was calming himself down.

Mpok Ati stood by him and reached his face, "Are you done?"

Rausin hugged her, "I'm sorry, Mak. I didn't mean to be rude to you.."

Mpok Ati nodded and smiled. He took his arm and led him to sit back on the bed. The woman was still staring at the air, speaking the same words. They looked at her for a moment.

"Will you now listen to my words, my son?"

Rausin nodded.

"I know you don't want me to bring up the subject about Marni. But Usin, sometimes the past is not meant to be forgotten. And believe me, I know that first love is very hard to forget."

"Mak, please.."

"Let me finish, allright?"

Rausin didn't answer.

"Allright?" she demanded his approval.

He nodded his head.

"Usin, I never liked her, even from the first time you introduced her to me. But I saw how much you adored her, I saw how happy you were beside her. I didn't have the heart to tell you."

Rausin looked at her mother with a sad look, "And I thought you liked her.."

"I did like her after a while. She was the one who taught you how to be a man. Ever since your father died, I always worried about how to raise you as a man. Marni had helped a lot, whether she realized it or not. Before you knew her, you were just a na�ve boy. You get mature fast when you were with her. And I knew that she loved you very much. I knew that was true. So I learned to accept her in my heart."

"Mak, please.. she was a whore." Rausin sighed impatiently.

"Usin,.. Love is blind. You loved her for what she was, not what she did. It was true that she was a materialist. She sold her body for money. But she was willing to leave it all for you. That was the reason she got killed, Rausin. You know it. She was killed by one of her jealous clients. He didn't want her to stop, he wanted her to keep serving him."

"She deceived me, Mak. Don't forget that. I only know about all this after her death. I wasted my tears on her grave."

"And now you wasted your hate. Why would you hate a dead person, my son? You're right, she had deceived you and betrayed your trust. But she had paid.. with her life."

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                                                               Forgotten Heroes - continued