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CHAPTER
CHAPTER TITLE.
Saga/Series
BOOK
The First Mission
GENRE
Historical fiction, African fantasy/mythology, Epic fantasy, Action and adventure
READING TIME
8 to 12 minutes
STORY ARC
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đź“– First Mission CHAPTER LIST ▼ | ||
Hunt for the Primal-Sacrifice
They arrived at sunrise, and with them followed the mysterious aura of death, the one in the lead was a Babalawo at the level of Balogun, and with him two other men, both about seven feet tall. The Babalawo wore a large Agbada over his vest to conceal the nature of charms he had fortified himself with, his hair was shaved in the manner of the worshipers of Eṣu the god of mischief (Mohawk), with several beads tied to various combined strands of hair. The other two men had placed a folded palm leaf in their mouths to prevent themselves from talking throughout the ritual. They each wore a single white cloth, which was tied on their left shoulder and tucked under their right armpit. The first man held a calabash filled with leaves and water while the second man held a rope firmly in his fist.
The three strangers mysteriously walked out of a tree outside the borders of the village, and purposely walked towards Ilu-ina. The moment any of the villagers spotted them from afar, they would immediately jump away from the footpath in fear, any who unwittingly drew close to the three men without meaning to and realises it at the last minute would run in the other direction as fast as his or her legs would carry. These mysterious men were popularly known as the sacrifice hunters, every village in Yoruba land is plagued with them. The moment the sacrifice hunters are out in broad daylight, then it means that the god they serve is desperately hungry for human flesh, such desperation is usually carried on in the form of transferred aggression through the worshippers. The moment they bump into anyone along the way, that unfortunate soul is immobilized by the Babalawo and the two priests are expected to carry the victim to the shrine to appease the gods. A terrifying sight indeed, but today they were after something even more precious than a common human sacrifice. The prize they seek is the ultimate sacrifice.
Kayọde was the first to notice the approaching hunters, the lowly albino was alone in the outskirts of the village seeking solitude from all the negative scrutiny of his peers. He felt the fluctuations in the spirit realm and watched in horror as the tree opened to allow the three strangers easy passage into the village. In an instant he realised the implication to the village, Kayọde ran towards the Balogun’s hut with the intent of warning her against a sudden invasion.
“Balogun! Balogun!” he shouted the moment he laid eyes on the female warrior, “they are coming,”
The Balogun had just finished sharing a bottle of schnapps with a few of the female titleholders, something that she hasn’t been able to do often because of her rank. When she heard Kayọde’s cry of distress. She waited patiently for the boy to reach her outside the house of the Iyalode, and then she regarded him quietly as he took a moment to catch his breath.
“Ki lo ṣẹláşą?” (what’s going on) she inquired,
“I saw them!” Kayọde exclaimed, “They are coming into this village for a human sacrifice,”
The Balogun suddenly realised that there is indeed trouble brewing in the air, ‘but how’ she wondered. The Adegunju are the ones in charge of all that happens within the province, so who would be bold enough to walk into the village to obtain a human sacrifice in broad daylight. Especially now that the offering of human sacrifices was forbidden within the Adegunju province. The Balogun wasted little time on ‘hows’ and ‘whys’, she simply jumped into action, no one in this village is going to die today.
The sacrifice hunters walked through the village unhindered, they took notice of no one and ignored the activities of the public who seemed to be in a village-wide panic. The Ẹṣọs who noticed the passage of the sacrifice hunters did nothing to challenge them for fear of the Babalawo but they did shadow their footsteps and warned innocent bystanders away, allowing for time to pass and their numbers to grow, that way they would be able to overwhelm the intruders through superior numbers. They finally reached the Balogun‘s hut at midday surrounded by a group of Ẹṣọs who kept their distance but remained alert, the Balogun walked out of her hut to greet the strangers hoping to dismiss them without any form of conflict. The Balogun had her Ọtun and her Osi standing by her right and left-hand side respectively, while the Akọgun stood several feet away prepared for a sudden attack.
“Greetings Balogun of Ilu-ina,” the Alawo greeted, “my name is Gbokọyi and I am here for the primal sacrifice that was kept within the confines of this village several years ago,”
“You have no right to that sacrifice,” the Balogun replied, “it’s not yours and the use of human sacrifice is forbidden within this province,” she sneered,
“I did not come by my authority,” Gbokọyi chuckled, “I came by the authority of the Alaafin of Ọyọ, you have no choice but to obey,”
“Liar!” one of the Ẹṣọs screamed.
The Balogun cursed beneath her breath, how did the Alaafin learn about the primal sacrifice hidden within Ilu-ina village. Then the realization set in, the Alaafin of Ọyọ could not care less about the existence of a primal sacrifice, but the Baṣọrun of Ọyọ was another story. The Baṣọrun of Ọyọ was a very powerful man corrupted by the political system of the Yoruba Empire with only one goal, to gain even more power.
“By Alaafin you mean the Baṣọrun of Ọyọ, right?” she said in a poisoned tone.
“The officials of the empire are no concern of yours, you have only one purpose,” the Babalawo responded, “to obey, so hand over the primal sacrifice,”
“I would rather die,” the Balogun growled, and every warrior present got set for battle. Hopefully, they will be able to overwhelm the intruders through their numbers.
“Then face the consequences,” Gbokọyi chanted, “just remember you have been warned,”
The next moment every Ẹṣọ felt a stinging pain being transferred into their bodies through their incisions, the stinging pain invaded their entire nervous system breaking down their will to act or react to instincts. Only a few of the Ẹṣọs were not affected and these were rendered immobile by a chant cast by the Alawo to limit their movements.
“It’s a pity,” Gbokọyi mocked, “The Baṣọrun told me that there might be a little resistance but I told him that the warriors of Oduduwa are loyal, how low you have fallen,”
“You don’t have the right to use the oath of Oduduwa against us,” the Balogun gritted,
“The oath is a means of controlling stubborn Ẹṣọs, Ẹṣọs who fail to obey those in authority,” Gbokọyi responded, “and the Baṣọrun has given me the authority to execute any who defies me,”
Quite suddenly, the Akọgun broke the chant that held him spellbound and with that, the chant that held every Ẹṣọ was broken as well. Many of the weaker Ẹṣọs fell to the ground weakened by the attack while the other weaker ones simply passed out. The Akọgun walked purposely towards the sacrifice hunters and raised his right hand in preparation for combat.
Gbokọyi reacted based on survival instincts, he shouted with authority forcing his spiritual strength to its highest level to land a single killing blow
“I have heard of your powers Akọgun,” Gbokọyi growled, “take one step closer and I will be forced to kill you and all the men who stand here today,”
The Akọgun must have pretended that he did not notice the Alawo’s last words because he failed to reduce his pace, he kept on moving towards the object of his anger with purpose.
“Then die,” the enraged Alawo growled in hatred, throwing a small ball of clay the size of a bead at the bare-chested Akọgun. To his shock a spectral form appeared in front of his opponent and intercepted the earthen missile, thereby saving the Akọgun’s life. The Alawo chuckled at the irony, a member of the dead saving the life of the living. Then he moved in for a secondary attack, if he can’t use his seeds of death, then he will use the destructive covenants of the gods.
“How dare you insult the authority of the gods?
How dare you disobey the authority of the king?
You dare to disobey, and even behave like wild dogs
Do you think that you are free to fly on the eagle’s wings?
Without facing the consequences your rebellion has brought
I am the banner of Ọyọ
And I hold the flames of vengeance
I serve Ogun, the god of war
You have offended the high king, death with certainty is an assurance
Now burn, burn in the flames of wrath”
There was an explosion around the two arms of Gbokọyi, as the smoke cleared it revealed him holding two Idas (swords) of pure fire, which he held firmly within his hands.
“These are the blades of Ogun god of iron fire and war, the god that thirst for human blood. You might be the Akọgun of this village, but compared to me you are just a mere ant. I am a student of the great Abija Wara, you can never best me,” with those words the Alawo lashed out his attack, engulfing the entire compound with the divine fire of Ogun god of war. All the other Ẹṣọs jumped away from the attack, lest they get accidentally consumed by the burning wrath of Gbokọyi.
“Pitiful!” Gbokọyi gloated, “if he is your strongest warrior, then Ilu-ina is not worthy to serve as Ẹṣọs under the authority of the Alaafin. I will not ask again, where is the primal sacrifice?”
“He was sent on an errand,” the Akọgun responded from within the pillar of fire that the Alawo summoned. Gbokọyi was completely taken aback by the possibility of Akọgun surviving his burning attack, the image of his intimidating opponent standing in the centre of the fire shielded by 6 astral beings was disturbing. Gbokọyi felt a strange kind of emotion, a sensation that he had never felt in a long time, an emotion that he had long forgotten, “fear!”
“You are still beneath my authority,” Gbokọyi growled stubbornly,
“There is no need for a continued battle,” the Akọgun said to the Alawo’s relief, “I will tell you where to find the boy,”
“Where is he?” the Alawo demanded, “in the name of the Alaafin, I demand you tell me,”
“He is on his way to Ẹdáşą village,” the Akọgun reported, “His quest is to unseat the present Timi of Ẹdáşą,”
“Akọgun! No!” the Balogun exclaimed,
But it was already too late, the Alawo waved his staff three times, then chanted the words Ọfẹ. Then he vanished instantly accompanied by his two assistants.
“How could you?” she shouted, “Ṣeyi and Akin are members of this village, it is our duty to protect them,”
“I know,” the Akọgun replied, “but that fool had the authority of the Alaafin on his side, our oath as Ẹṣọs is our weakness. I had to make a choice,”
“Now Ṣeyi is in danger, I must send out scouts and warriors to protect them,” the Balogun said in a defeated tone,
“There is no need for you to send anyone to protect them, they are quite safe,”
“And how do you know that?” the Balogun gritted, gesturing for all the Ẹṣọs present to resume their normal daily activities, and to help those who have been immobilized.
“You should remember, this quest that they are on is not for the village,” the Akọgun explained, “it’s the Watcher’s quest, ask yourself this question. why did the Watcher send that boy on a quest, days before the arrival of the sacrifice hunters?”
“He knew that they were coming!” the Balogun said wide-eyed by the revelation
“In my opinion, I believe the Watcher wanted them to reach this village. He wants them to find out where Ṣeyi is from us, that way Ilu-ina village will not lose the favour of the Alaafin,” the Akọgun observed,
“Then what happens to them in the forest?” the Balogun wondered,
“I kill them!” the Watcher replied, as he appeared from the shadows, “brutally, and slowly,” he concluded with menace in his voice.
“I should have known,” the Akọgun said in understanding,
“It’s only a matter of time before the knowledge of the primal sacrifice reaches the men of power,” the Watcher said with hatred in his voice, “God ordered me to protect that boy with my life, along with a few others living within this village. I will protect them, as it is my duty. So, don’t worry about Ṣeyi’s well-being, the sacrifice hunters will never reach him. But I will not protect him from the dangers of the quest, his fate is sealed by his actions,”
The Balogun and the Akọgun nodded their heads in acknowledgement of the Watcher's words, knowledge of the primal sacrifice is something big indeed. Men of power would kill just to lay their greedy hands on him, even though a human sacrifice is important, a primal sacrifice is something else entirely. A primal sacrifice was a person or a child blessed not only by the spirit of God but by the essence of nature as well, they are being blessed by God almighty and deep within them exists the divine favour of God. They are known to possess a very strong spiritual essence and they unconsciously attract the spirit of good fortune. Anyone who uses their blood for any kind of ritual is sure to succeed, the last time someone had tried to use Ṣeyi for such a sacrifice was when he was still a helpless baby. The memory of the horrific event still made the Balogun uncomfortable.
CHAPTER RECAP
Three sacrifice hunters enter Ilu-ina at sunrise — a powerful Babalawo named Gbokọyi and two silent priests. They’re not here for a common offering. They’ve come for the "primal sacrifice" hidden in the village for years. The Balogun and her Ẹṣọs try to stop them, but Gbokọyi uses the Oath of Oduduwa and spiritual attacks to cripple most of the warriors. The Akọgun is forced to reveal that Ṣeyi has been sent to Ẹdáşą village to unseat the Timi. As the hunters vanish to hunt him, the Watcher appears and vows to protect Ṣeyi and Akin, but warns that he won’t shield them from the dangers of their quest. We learn the truth: Ṣeyi is a "primal sacrifice" — blessed by both God and nature, making his blood incredibly powerful.AUTHOR'S NOTES
This chapter changes everything. We finally get a name for what Ṣeyi is: a Primal Sacrifice. That explains why everyone hates him, and why his life has been so dangerous from birth. I wanted to raise the stakes here and show how big the political game is — the Baṣọrun of Ọyọ is pulling strings from the capital. The Watcher is back, and he’s not playing. Next stop: Ẹdáşą village. Things are about to get violent.Subfura Community Discussion.
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đź“– First Mission CHAPTER LIST ▼ | ||
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