When Gods Bleed (6 page)

One night while he was sleeping with his wife, he opened his eyes
and saw leaves whirling around. He got up and the leaves seemed to be leading him to the bushes. He followed, curious yet cautious of everything. The leaves stopped in front of a blind man who was sitting with his legs crossed.

“Who are you?” Obi inquired.

The skinny blind man with a long stick rose and bowed.

“Your
Majesty, forgive me for obstructing your dreams, but what I have to say is urgent.”

“Are you a madman? Why are you referring to me by that title? Or has your blindness taken you in the wrong direction? The
King’s palace is at Didasu.”

“My two eyes might be blind, but I see better with my third eye over here
,” he said, pointing to forehead.

“I am impressed you have a third eye and you can do a little magic
. I’d like to continue this conversation, but I have to go back to bed,” Obi said, then started walking back home.

“Are you not Aneaton's son?”

Obi stopped. “My mother was Nneka and my father was Ifeanyi the Ikaza.”

“You can lie to me, but to yourself is simply
unforgivable.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Did I not tell you I see better with my third eye? Do not try to pretend ignorance with me. Your lies are sieving through every word you say. Both the Ikaza and his wife told you who your mother was.”

“How would I put this to you, blind man? I really do not care if my father is a god. I cared for the mother and father that watched and taught me how to grow and I have a deep affection for the life I am living now, so leave me alone.”

“I understand and I see how your heart has brightened since you had your bride, but I would like to let you understand a picture. Yes, the Ikaza's wife had pure feelings for you, but your mother’s feelings were also genuine. The only reason you are alive and she is dead is because she sacrificed her life for you.”

“I have heard this story before,” he said with his back still to the blind
man. ”She let me live so I could grow up a man and not a King.”

“It is no longer about what you
want; it is now about her honor. She was buried like a criminal. Even under torture she never let you go and the man who let this happen is living in the bosom of indifference,’’ said the blind man, putting his hand on Obi’s shoulder.

“How long have you known I was the son of the
King?”

“From the first day I saw you.”

“How can you see me? You are blind.”

“I was not always blind. I chose this destiny the day I saw you during your mother's funeral. I used to be the
protégé to the former Ifa priest.”

“So!” Obi exclaimed.

“I succeeded him.”

“That is not possible. The worshippers of the Ifa god would not let you be their highest priest. You are too young.”

“That is why I had to offer my eyes to the shrine to prove I was worthy. There are some other things I had to do, but I am sure you don't want to hear them.”

“Why are you here?” Obi asked.

“The King is aware that you are alive. They are coming for you, so you and your wife should go and hide somewhere.”

“How do you know this?”

“I have been following you everywhere you step since I became the Ifa priest. During your wedding, a woman fainted when she confronted you. She was the King-Mother. I followed her back to her home and it took awhile before she confronted her son. Probably she wanted to make sure she was in her right senses.”

“Wait. Am I to understand that you followed us all of this time and we did not notice the presence of a blind man behind us?”

“I was not in the form of a man when I followed you. When I followed the King-Mother, I did not want to attempt to transfigure and enter the palace because I knew the Ishu priest would detect my presence in any form I took. Luckily for me they let the King-Mother's servant enter with her, so I used her because she was deaf and dumb and got to listen to what they said.”

“You are saying that you changed into some form of a creature or an animal and followed me all over the place and then you entered the body of a deaf and dumb girl and listened to everything they said
in the palace.”

“Yes.”

“I am not going to ask how that was possible but I want to know, why are you helping me?”

“Because it is your birthright and, like any other human, I am moved to do what is right.”

“Your lies are sieving through every word you say.”

The Ifa priest smiled.

“The height of every Tikpapa's ladder ends at him becoming the Headman to the Oracle. To become the Ifa priest I had to give away my source of vision to everything around me and now I see only through darkness. I killed everyone in my family line, then I begin to wonder what I have to give up again to reach the top of the ladder. Did I not mention that I am also too young? You have to be old with your hair totally white before you are deemed worthy.”

“What are you trying to say?” Obi asked in
a soft tone.

“I would like to serve as your
High Chief, the Headman to the Oracle, if you would let me,’’ the Ifa priest said, now flat on the ground to give maximum respect.

Obi chuckled.

“Honestly, this King thing is not for me, but if I ever make it there alive, I will not have anyone else by my side as my Tikpapa. But are you sure you can match with a man like the Ishu priest?”

“Till then, Sire. As of now, I suggest you
head toward the river. When you cross to the other side, go straight. I will join you at Utagba when I can. Make sure you don't take horses, or they will trace you,’’ the Ifa priest said before he vanished into the darkness.

“Obiani, Obiani,” Amina shouted as she entered the bushes.

“I am over here.”

“What are you doing here at this time of night?”

“Pack some food and a few things for yourself, we are leaving here now.”

She never argued with him when he was serious
so she ran back to the house to do as she was told. Obi gathered his sword, knife, bow and arrow. When she came out, he took the bag from her and gave her a knife, but she refused it. She raised her wrapper to show him her own scabbard tied at her waist. He smiled and knew that if anything touched her skin, death would be the only redemption.

“Are we not taking the horses?” she asked.

“No.” He released the horses and smacked them, making them run in the opposite direction. “We are walking.”

*

The Head-of-Government watched his general come toward him with his head very low and he knew something was wrong.

“I sent you on a mission over three days ago, why are you coming now?”
the Head-of-Government said in a very harsh tone.

“There was nobody in his home.”

“Did they travel on a leisure trip?”

“I doubt it. They left everything behind except the horses. We traced the horse path on a fruitless adventure. Their horses were purposely released to mislead us.”

Arubi got up and left his home with the general behind him. He sent two messengers on errands, the first to the King to announce his arrival and the other to the King’s envoy. By the time he got to the palace, his presence was already announced, so it did not take him long to appear face to face with the King.

“Talk to me,” the
King said, clearly agitated.

The
Head-of-Government signaled to the general to speak.

“We did not meet them in their home. They seemed to have fled—
”

T
he King’s servant interrupted the general in announcing the arrival of the King’s envoy.

“You may leave and get the best pathfinder around,’’ Arubi told the general. “He will probably be heading toward his mother’s people in Utagba.”

Arubi then asked the King’s envoy to explain the status of the relationship
between the King and the provinces.

“We are all aware that we have only nine provinces because the Utagba people have still refused to merge with our kingdom and they are growing stronger under total allegiance to their Okpala. They still don’t have a chief,’’ the envoy responded.

“Okpala
? Who is an Okpala?”

“An Okpala is the oldest retired
chief in a province, My King.”

“I know what an Okpala is you fool.” The King sighed and put his left hand on his waist.
“Forget about them. We will talk about them another time. Continue.”

“We have Ihua of Ahoda. As long as you can give him the power to do what he wants, he is for us. The Ezeonisha of Abogima is indifferent to the
King, but he is strict with the customs of the land. Atani of Ozuoba has an unshakeable loyalty to you. Okon of Ndemili still despises you since Arubi became the Head-of-Government. He still feels the position was taken from him. Akuna of Ogwashi is loyal to you because he has not gotten a better offer. We can’t say what Gbangba of Alloida is capable of doing. Ike of Ogbe will give you his honor till his death. Otiotio of Suyema is a man that you can rely on, but I don't know if his allegiance to you is till his death. Last of all is the Head-of-Government, who is by your side.”

“Thank you,
Envoy, for your explicit dialogue. That will be all for now.”

The
Head-of-Government discharged the King's envoy, who was disappointed that they did not let him share the other information he had to give.

“Somebody told them,” the
Head-of-Government continued. “They were aware when we were coming. The leak came from this room.”

“Talk me to in a straight manner,” the
King said.

“Okonjo's loyalty is questionable.”

“Be logical, he won't be stupid enough to warn them because he has nothing to gain.”

“Then someone dangerous to us is protecting the young man. We are not sure how long we can keep the information from reaching the commoners. The boy will definitely have chiefs who will embrace him when he gets to them, not to mention that he happens to be a good friend of
Gbangba.”

“How do you know?”

“It’s my job to know, Your Majesty. He grew up to have a brother who happens to be the general of Ozuoba, but it seems they are now grave enemies, all the better for us.”

King Nwosa shouted for his servant and told him to get the Ishu priest and the
Okpalaukwu. Then turning to the Head-of-Government he said, “Give me an open view of where we stand.”

“Sire, we are not sure, so let’s look at it from the worst perspective. He is definitely supported by a man or men of some degree of power, so we call a meeting inviting all the chiefs to the
Conference Room. Anyone who does not make himself available has violated his allegiance to his King with death as the only punishment. But if they should all be present, then we take advantage and eliminate any chief capable of dishonor.”

”
Supposing he really is my son?”

“That has nothing to do with the situation at hand, Your Majesty.”

“I was under the impression it has everything to do with the situation at hand. I have this painful intuition that he is my son and the people seem unsatisfied with my successor…I was thinking about accepting him publicly as my son because the thought of shedding a drop of blood from my own son…burns me somewhere inside.”

The
Head-of-Government smiled and nodded.

“
That is an alternative. But I doubt if your other son will give up the chance to be King. Even though he is crippled and weak, there will still be chiefs who will be ready to back him and I have not mentioned how delicious your death will become. Sire, once there is room for another successor as strong as you are…everyone will seek your death, especially your chiefs, so they can take advantage of the months the princes are battling.”

“Whatever chaos this creates, I ought to have
separated my spirit from this body.”

“You seem to forget one more thing
—his mother died for him to survive. That is one sacrifice no man can ever forget, especially if the order is linked to the man whom he should call father.”

“I did not order her death.”

“But you let it happen.”

The
King closed his eyes and then opened them with a look of concern. “What do we do now?”

Before the King got an answer, t
he Ishu priest and the Okpalaukwu walked in. The Ishu walked around the room with his fingers twisting in the air.

“What are you doing?”
the Head-of-Government asked.

“I am trying to think.”

“What is going on?” the Okpalaukwu asked impatiently.

“Aneaton’s son is alive
,’’ the King said.

“With all due respect, Sire, that is impossible. I witnessed the ritual death of that child by the Ogun priest,” the old man replied.