War and Peace

By

Jacquimac

Part Thirteen

The day of the settlements meeting arrived and plnety of food and drink was loaded on to carts along with the younger children, we were hoping that everyone would have a good time seeing it might be last time these people had a real get together for some time.

The next day we saw aircraft fying overhead but they were too high to tell which side they belonged to. As long they bombing the area it wouldn`t matter, it could be that were that were carrying out aerial reconnaisance, we had marked the roofs of the houses so hopefully if it was photo recon flight they would see the markings.

Day after day reinforcements were heading for the front, it looked like the occupying forces were getting a good pounding, I reckoned that the most we field would be around ten thousand men with our troops being scattered round the world.

Days became weeks and the fighting was getting closer, eventually both armies ground to a halt and dug in. Peace negotiations were started so the waiting game continued. A ceasefire was announced while the negotiation teams met and I presume that both sides used the time to reinforce their postitions.

Within the settlement we kept the children near our makeshift bunkers and the barricades erected, the livestock had now to fend for themselves although a few of us would go out and check on them now and again.

Being as young as they were the children didn`t quite understand what was going on around them Abigail was now four and Adrian six. To them I was still their mother as they had memory of the woman that gave them birth.

Although the adults were slightly on edge they appeared to coping well enough as long as they were kept busy, the children well like kids anywhere they adapted very well and were full of questions, usually questions we couldn`t answer.

Several weeks passed and we were told a peace compromise had been reached between the two armies, whether it suited the settlers we wouldn`t know until the details were announced.

A committee was formed and I elected as main spokesperson for the settlements a position I tried to refuse but when it was pointed out that I had lived almost four years in the settlements and knew of other places i was the best person.

The meeting was held in the Admin center and went on for days, at first the occupying forces objected to me attending but after the settler committee told them I was their main spokesperson they agreed.

The Allied forces deputation didn`t know why the objection had been made as they hadn`t as yet been informed of who I actually was.

Before the meeting got underway properly I demanded the release of all the detainees before we discussed anything, this took both sides by surprise they didn`t expect any initial demands at this stage.

The chairman started going on about protocol and I said "Protocol be damned we want all the detainees returned to their loved ones now" and we walked out.

We must have waited around two hours outside and no matter how hard they tried we refused to reconvene the meeting, it wouldn`t have been so bad but it was raining hard. and it was cold but we wouldn`t give in.

Late into the aftenoon we decided to home and started to leave the compound with the guards trying to stop us but we just brushed passed them, as we passed the gaurd hut we told them that we return when the detainees were returned and not before and went back to our settlements.

Two days later several trucks arrived and the men from our settlement got out and rushed to the arms of their loved ones.

They were told about what happened in the settlement since they went into captivity and after thanking me tried to take over, but the women refused to acknowledge their right to take charge. After all they had run the place doing all the work the men did plus their own work of raising a family for four years

The next day an officer came to the settlement and asked that talks now be resumed, I told him I would have to contact the rest of the committee first.
He told me that he was to accompany me to see the the others and had a car at our disposal.

I went around and spoke to the other members and they agreed to meet at Admin center the next day, once we had contacted everyone the officer happily dropped me off at the settlement and went to inform his superiors.

On my return to the settlement there was a meeting in the hall, the men were informed about what was happening and demande to know why I was their main spokesperson.

Ethel being the Village elder told them that I had refused and had only accepted under duress, that I knew how these other thought and how to get our demands.

Of course the men still complained till it was pointed out that I was the one responsible for getting them released and that nothing else had been discussed till they were home, that shut them up but they weren`t happy to say the least.