Heart of the Hunter

Grant Ross,Connie Chiume,Nicole Fortuin,Nathan Castle

Johnny (Peter Butler) and Zuko (Bonko Khoza) were members of a group of armed activists called Alkebulan, determined to eradicate corruption in South Africa. Johnny was once a popular lawyer and the Director of International Relations, but when Daza Mtima (Sisanda Henna) was released from prison and gained power, Johnny got repeatedly demoted. Clearly, Johnny's stance did not align with Mtima's. He started a counterintelligence operation with elite assassins to take down Mtima, and Zuko was one of them.Zuko was born to activist parents and had grown up to always voice for the right cause. He had taken an oath during his initiation in which he promised to fight for justice and to protect the innocent. Johnny Klein found hope when he got access to files that exposed Mtima. Johnny trusted Zuko to ensure that Mtima was not exonerated by the courts, even though it had been a long time since Zuko had left the group.Johnny was diagnosed with cancer, and he had Mtima's PIA agents (reporting into Mo) tracking his every movement. However, Johnny managed to escape an attack when the PIA agents tracked the wrong person. Agent Naledi was on point for intel on Johnny's location. Mtima is planning to fight an election and puts pressure on Mo to deliver Johnny to him.Johnny knew that he was running out of time, and the truth would be buried with him if Mtima found him before he could connect with Zuko. With time running out, Johnny met Zuko at his workplace. This meeting was observed by PIA agents. Zuko was not ready to leave behind the beautiful life he had built and endanger the future he envisioned with girlfriend Malime (and their son Pakamile), but he had a change of heart upon finding out that Johnny was suffering from a terminal illness. Johnny handed him the key to the locker at the airport and instructed Zuko to head to Maseru, where he would find elders to show him the right path. Johnny distracted the PIA agents, while Zuko headed to the airport. Just when the agents thought they had succeeded in cornering Johnny, he shot himself and simultaneously jumped off the highway. Johnny had done his part for the welfare of South Africa. He had assigned Zuko the task of bringing out the truth, and he had also contacted Cape Town Sentinel journalist Mike Bressler (Deon Coetzee), whose career Mtima had ruined during his investigation into the state capture.Zuko had no choice but to bid goodbye to Malime (Masasa Mbangeni), knowing that their lives would be at risk if he continued to stay in touch with them. Malime never questioned Zuko about his past, but she could guess that he was in trouble when Johnny knocked at their door. Zuko chose not to disclose much about his life as an assassin, and when he suddenly decided to leave Malime was left wondering if he was just like all the other men who promised her the world but failed to live up to it. Pakamile (Boleng Mogotsi) and Zuko shared a beautiful relationship, and he looked up to Zuko. He was the only one who knew that Zuko planned on proposing Malime and when he left all of a sudden, Pakamile did not lose hope. He had complete faith in Zuko and he was confident that he would return to their lives. At the airport locker, Zuko found a passport and an flight ticket to Maseru.The PIA agents arrived at Malime's house and forcefully dragged her out. They wanted to find out more about the files Johnny had, and they believed that kidnapping Malime would help them stop Zuko. Malime barely had any knowledge about her partner's criminal past, but she tried to cooperate in the hopes of getting back to Pakamile. Naledi (Nicole Fortuin), who was a member of the radical activist group, had infiltrated the PIA. Zuko contacted Naledi after he embarked on the mission. She advised him to focus on the task while she tried to find a way to make sure that his partner remained safe. She got in touch with Malime and tried to give her some hope.Unfortunately, Mo got a whiff of Naledi's true identity and interrogated her. Naledi refused to give away any information, and she was taken away to be further tortured. Mo was unaware of how skilled a fighter Naledi was, and it was only a matter of minutes before she managed to tackle the guards. Naledi assisted Malime in escaping, but the entire situation was too overwhelming for Malime. The chaos and confusion resulted in Malime failing to land after jumping off a building to save her life. Malime did not survive the fall, and Mo decided to kidnap Pakamile to keep Zuko under pressure. Pakamile was in extreme pain after losing his mother all of a sudden and being locked up in a tiny room without any contact with his loved ones. After escaping Naledi contacted Bressler. Naledi tells Bressler that Johhny and Zuko were running a counterintelligence operation against Mtima with elite assassins. She says that Malime died due to Mo.The Director of the PIA (Presidential Intelligence Agency), Molebogeng Kwena (Connie Ferguson), found out that the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Thandiwe Makeba (Connie Chiume), was also involved with Johnny and his group. The connection between Makeba and Johnny was something Mo was keen on finding out. She was surprised to learn that Mtima knew about Makeba's involvement, and he also had incriminating evidence against the former minister for her involvement in illegal mining. But even with the evidence against her, Makeba continued to be a threat to Mtima, and Mo was instructed to silence her. She had no choice but to obey Mtima because of her tainted past- her father was closely involved with the apartheid regime. Mo met Makeba to find out about Johnny's plan, but all the former politician disclosed was that Mtima would lose everything he had built by Friday.Thandi believed that it was her duty to protect South Africa from people like Mtima, who would not mind selling the nation for their own benefit. She and Johnny had created a deadly weapon, Zuko, to ensure that the innocent would not suffer from injustice. Thandi hoped for Mo to side with the cause after finding out about their pure intention, but it was all too late for Mo; she was already knee-deep in helping Mtima. Mo struck Thandi with a blunt object, and the former minister bled to death.Zuko felt reconnected with his ancestors when he reached Maseru and met the elders at the village. They tended to his wounds and handed him the letter Johnny had left for him. Zuko was reminded of the cause he was fighting for and how it was greater than everything else. He found the files Johnny had promised, and before releasing them to the public, he burned down the file of Alkebulan. Just when Zuko accepted his role in the grand scheme of things, Mo informed him how every member of the group had been compromised. Zuko was furious when he found out that Malime met with an accident and Pakamile was kidnapped. He realized that the only way to stop Mtima was by exposing him, and he contacted Mike Bressler to hand over the files Johnny had left. They secretly met at a restaurant, and before handing over the documents, Zuko laid forth a condition: he was desperate to be reunited with his family, and he hoped for Bressler to help him.Bressler helped Zuko connect with Naledi, and it was from her that he found out about Malime's death. Zuko realized that before destroying Mtima, it was important that he get his son back. Naledi had been keeping track of Mo, and she had located a cabin she frequented. Bressler recognized the cabin; it was where Mtima lived when he visited Cape Town. Zuko broke into Mtima's cabin to seek his ultimate revenge.With the spear handed to him by his elders, Zuko slayed Mtima's guards one after the other. Mtima was easy to knock out, and by the time he came back to his senses, Zuko had his spear pressed on Mtima's throat. The presidential hopeful was well aware that Zuko was desperate to get his son back, and he knew that he would not be harmed as long as he had Pakamile. Zuko instructed Mo to get his son back, and in the meantime, Mtima tried to lure Zuko with money.Mtima's PIA agents arrived at the cabin, and what followed was an intense fight where Zuko triumphed. Mo brought along Pakamile to stop Zuko and force him to hand over the files. Zuko explained that he had already handed over the files for printing, and Mtima's political career was over. Mo was holding a gun, and she pointed it at Zuko. Mtima encouraged her to shoot him dead and prove to the world that she was not a traitor like her father. Mo crossed all boundaries, fearing being publicly shamed for her father's association with the apartheid regime, but she realized that as long as Mtima lived, there would never be an end to her misery.Mo shoots Mtima dead. She wanted to kill Zuko as well, but Naledi came to his rescue. Mo was shot dead, and it was all over for Mtima and his supporters. The next morning, the murders of Daza Mtima and Molebogeng Kwena made it to the headlines. There were officially no suspects, suggesting that Zuko and Naledi had managed to walk away Scot-free. The files Johnny had gathered made it to the public, and those involved in the State capture were apprehended. While some sense of justice was brought into the world, Zuko headed back to his childhood home at the Great Fish River with his son by his side. He wanted to live a life of a recluse and dedicate all his time to farming, just like he and Pakamile had always planned.