[size=16pt]ODE[/size]


Meaning: 1 – A hunter
2 – A fool


Summary: When novice hunter Segun Odeolu decides to prove his worth by attempting to slay a monster of legend, he and his friends are drawn into an adventure with monstrous fiends, Orishas, possibly the end of the world and what it truly means to be an Ode.

This work is Copyrighted. If you are going to post this anywhere else please acknowledge me as the author and refer them here atleast.


Note: This is my first attempt at writing fiction. This is intended as a strict writing exercise with the goal of posting at least a 1000 words everyday. It is said the way to be a better writer is to keep writing. I would appreciate constructive criticisms and that is what I’m looking for here. Anyway I hope you enjoy this tale I’m crafting and thanks for the time you take in reading this.



[size=14pt]

Prologue[/size]

The quarry was near.

The forest is quiet with thick trees growing with spindly branches that shoot off to unnatural angles, twisting and turning to defy nature’s order. It is here the fabric of reality begin to fray at its edges. You begin to perceive things beyond what our senses are capable of. It is here in the shadows of the Great Forest that I complete my journey to become an Ode. The Great Forest, home to a thousand and one dangerous creatures is where the initiation into the Brotherhood of the Hunters takes place. The initiate leaves the comforts of humanity with its structured existence and technology and enters into the Great Forest where reality loses its meaning to hunt and bring back his first kill alone.

I am accompanied by the sound of the wind whistling gentle encouragements from my mother, the sound of the night filled with warnings from my ancestors the great hunters of time past when men still hunted gods and the sound of my silence which muffled my own primal fear and excitement as I stalked the beast.

The hunt was drawing to a close and this period is regarded as the most dangerous where the lines between the hunter and the hunted become blurred and the predator can very easily become the prey if one is not careful. I am however Segun Odeolu, son of the Eso Eruku Kunle Odeolu the hunter who singlehandedly felled the river serpent and killed the leader of the underground ghommids of Isale-Eko, Descendant of Ode Agbitan who hunted side by side with Akara-ogun. I shall not be bested by a mere Kpelekpe.

I am soon distracted from my musings when another presence enters into my field of awareness just at the very tip of its range south east of my current position. I focus to determine more details about it and a smile slowly builds my face, finally I have found the creature and in record time. It has taken me 3 days but I finally made it here. I scan around and there is no sign of my fellow competitors. Victory is assured. Tonight I shall be feasting in the coven as a hunter with the ability to travel as much as I like into the great forest with no handholding from any of the trainers. Today I shall prove to my father I am truly his son.

As I move closer, I recheck my hunter’s mask which is to prevent the Kpelekpe from sensing my presence. I make sure my knives are in the proper position and then notch my arrow. I intend to slay this beast from afar, no need for unnecessary danger. Getting to the 100m mark from where I perceive the Kpelekpe to be I see one of the bigger forest trees so I suppress my instinctual fear to the abnormally designed tree and begin to climb. I soon find a suitable perch and take my first look at the the beast's hideout

The beast is said to be a result of an experiment of one the Orishas, I forget which one. Sade would probably know, the crazy bookworm, anyway it was created out of boredom when the Orisha decided that the best way to relieve that boredom was to grant an hyena all sorts of body enhancements, gift it with intelligence and then let it lose in an unsuspecting village. An hour later they entire village was dead and hyena was in the house of the Baale taking his time with the baale’s last born slowly taking little bites out of him while enjoying the song his cries made.

This was the sight that the village hunters met upon returning from their daily hunt. A murderous rage filled them but for all their efforts it managed to evade them and escape into the forest where it began to spawn. The slippery nature and ability to evade anything but the most skillfully set trap has allowed it continue to exist till today. Now hunting it is used as a test for novice hunters as it forces us to use all our cunning to track and really isn’t all that strong in a fight. If you lose to Kpelekpe you don’t deserve to be a hunter in the first place.

As I settle down in my position. I begin to reinforce my hunter’s mask to reduce my chances of detection by anyone and slowly decide to wait for the animal to venture out of the hideout so I can take the kill. Patience my father said is one of the greatest skill a hunter can possess greater even than all his supernatural abilities.

The next 15 minutes pass like this as the beast still hasn’t got the memo that it’s time for it to die and is content to wait me out. I began to adjust when I noticed to my right a glint of light from what was definitely a knife. It appears another of my competitors have found the monster too. This changes the game as now I can no longer be patient.

I begin to affect some changes to my current gear. I channel my emi changing it to ase then tap the arrow already notched to change its property from the piercer to incendiary round. The process takes just over a minute which is far too long. In that time I focus my sight on who exactly it was and as it turns out it is exactly the worst person I could wish for. Akanni Solagberu.

Akanni and I have a very long history as rivals, can’t remember who started it but I know I hated his guts from the first moment I laid eyes on him. Since our parents were friends, his father being the Eso Ole. We were groomed together in the hopes of fostering the same relationship in us our parents had. It didn’t. Going to the same schools only helped fan our hatred for each other.It didn’t help that we always wanted the same thing, the position as head apprentice which he won, the girl which I won and now the prize as the first one to bring down the Kpelekpe.

He notices me and sends a cheeky grin my way before jumping 30 meters in the air to land closer to the hideout without making any noise. Showoff. Seems like he wants to attack the hideout head on.

I quickly disabuse him of that notion as I shoot my arrow which flies true and strikes at the mouth of the hideout. This causes a mini –explosion and the home of the hyena is destroyed. Now is my turn to smirk at Akanni who was destabilized by it.

I jump down to cover the best exit route for the beast and draw out my ada, saw a quick prayer and prepare to cut down the monster.

The wails of kpelekpe sends a chilled feeling down my spine as it emerges from the hideout. The sight of it is a grotesque sight to behold with its body proportions taken to unnatural sizes. It is so obvious that this is not a creature of the Olodumare. I see the moment it processes where Akanni is standing and its decision to run down the path I have blocked, just as planned. Not to be deterred Akanni hurls a fireball at it which narrowly misses striking only a bit of its hind leg and he gives chase.

As the beast nears my position I emerge and use my ada to strike at its flank cutting deep into the creature. The wailing intensify and the forest gains a even darker hue. It manages to shake off my strike and bounds deeper into the forest but I know it won’t be long for this world as my ada is coated with effects that would continue to act on its injury and will eventually kill it.

In any case the chase is on. I run after it the forest greenery turning to a blur at the speeds I’m moving at. I feel Akanni catching up and I pour in more speed as we travel even deeper into the Great Forest.

We suddenly enter a clearing we feet it before seeing it, the pressure of the forest weigh even heavier on us. The forest which has seemed foreboding before gains a new sinister edge to it and the world suddenly becomes a darker place to live in.
In front of us was the husk of the dead kpelekpe, its head missing from the body and standing on top of it slowly chewing what remains of the head was an Aja oro

I wet my pants a bit.
(to be cont)


Ps: sorry about the cliffhanger (well not really) but that is all I have for today, next part should be up tomorrow.

Double post. Please Ignore

AN:This is my first ever fight scene I'm getting down on paper so I'd appreciate any pointers on how to make it better so please I ask for your help oo. Criticisms are the lifeblood of an author.


The Aja Oro is a creature of Esu, created during the Red night to hunt down the hunters as they battled the forces of the Orishas. It was created to be the hunter’s hunter and they caused a sizeable amount of havoc in those days as it spread chaos amongst the ranks of experienced and battle honed hunters so you can imagine why I was completely terrified and this is understating what I actually felt. What remained of the species at the end of the war were beaten into the forests of old, drilled into their subconscious to avoid human settlements.

Another Dumbfounded presence bursts into the clearance and a small part of me whispers at least Akanni would go down with me, this causes a chuckle to escape from my lips and the Aja oro swivels hits head to face me.

From what I knew the creature was made up of shadows though you would not know with when you stare him in the middle of the forest under the canopy of trees. It just looks extremely black with only the edges of creature showing the with it’s ripples as it danced to avoid the little pinpricks of light that managed to make down to the forest floor. Looking at the creature was like staring into the abyss well this abyss stared right back with burning coals that are its eyes. It was not yet fully grown but that didn’t make it any less dangerous.

“it looks like you have completely bleeped us up yet again” Akanni mutters his first words to me today,

The sound of his voice annoys me and if not for the monster in front of us I’d punch his face right there and then.

“Well at least I know who it will go for first Oloshi, the Aja Oro always targets the weakest person first” A smirk appears on my face as the idiot looked a bit worried there for a second, good to know I’m not the only one that acknowledges my superiority.

He begins to reply but cuts it off as the Aja oro makes its move.

The monster begins to stalk gently moving almost carelessly to his next prey. Us. It believes we can’t hurt it and is looking forward to the thrill of the hunt, fulfilling its original purpose for its creation. The hunting of hunters. A smile so twisted adorns its visage.

My fear quickly begins to turn into anger. This baby monster thinks us prey, we who are descendants of the great hunters of old that drove its ancestors to near extinction, we who have received knowledge that has been passed down generations. We are stronger than the first hunters to face it and I will not go back home to face my family and tell them I was ran away from a beast no matter what it is on my first solo hunt. I’d rather die here than face the humiliation of my elder brothers. A burning rage swells up in my stomach.

“Left ” I say to Akanni with my voice completely flat and without waiting to see if he heard I begin moving so as to flank the creature. I can feel his disapproval all the way from there but I know he understands, we may hate ourselves but the benefit of being trained together means I don't have to explain in detail my plans.

Since I got to the clearing I’ve been converting my Emi to Ase, using my authority over the laws of the natural to strengthen my muscles to preternatural levels, imbuing myself with the strength to lift a tree, speed to outrun a cheetah and bringing the awareness to that has been in the background come the forefront of my mind, right now I can see the individual raindrops in a storm, nothing escapes my awareness. I extend my Ase to my ada breaking as many laws of physics on it as I can making it unbreakable, sharper than a nanoblade, an extra buffer of Ase to surround the blade so as to break through the various protections of the monster. The sword gains a white sheen as the amount of Ase I’m pouring into it begins to manifest in the physical.

As I move I see Akanni doing the almost the same thing as he moves to the right of the creature. This is to make the Aja to split focus between targets and force it to choose who he goes for first which would allow the other an opening. A simple plan but the best plans are often that. His face begins to glow as he starts using his Ase, his authority is geared more towards fire unlike mine which is focused on enchanting objects. For a moment we catch out eyes and I smile as much as I hate the guy I know with him by my side this beast stands no chance.

It honestly surprises me when the beast chooses to lounge towards me, really, the stupid creature considers me weaker than Akanni Akanni of all people. My anger blossoms inside me and explodes around me as I scream my battle cry and charge.

I put on a burst of speed and get near to it before nimbly twisting out of its part and slicing through its calf with my ada, I score a confirmed it. Before it can react any further an extremely thin lance of fire bursts out from Akanni outstretched finger, the scorches the very air it passes through before slamming through the head of the creature. It slumps down.

Well that was easy.

Or not as a roar escapes it, the head shifting in the blink of an eye to where the back was and it comes again at us as its body reconfigures itself into its new dimensions.

I notice its body even after changing still has the injury I inflicted on it and is slowly leaking out shadowy mucus.

I move to block its path again but this time shadow tentacles come from its mouth moving at a high speed and begins trying to entangle me.
It is with lucky shake of my head that I narrowly escape the first. I jump twisting through the air as I dodge the next two, my ada cuts off the next one before it can touch me. I keep moving forward as I hope to enter its range where I can do some serious damage.

With my hyper awareness I notice Akanni with one knee on the ground and his hands in front of him, a very hazy area that surrounds him. Any of the tentacles that seek to touch him simply burns as it reaches that area. Looks like he is summoning a fire elemental. That is some serious shit and I wonder when he managed to learnt that.

Well I’m not out of surprises too as I get close to it. I shape the Ase surrounding my sword causing it to spin at the tip and I jump right in front of it and stab. I close my eyes and quickly activate one of the basic instructions in the use of Ase to teleport a short distance away. It drains me but saves me from the massive explosion that occurs. The whole area awash in a bright light.

As the area returns to normal, I hear Akanni cursing me. I spare him a look and it seems like the elemental he summoned managed to protect him from temporary blindness. I feel a pang of disappointment.

I face the creature and it’s head I completely gone and I start laughing.

It isn’t until Akanni walks up to me and slaps me I stop. I react folding up my free hand to punch his face when his face made even uglier by the snarl of the face he says

“ You idiot, now you have alerted every creature nearby to our location including that ones parent pointing at the headless Aja Oro.

My reply dies in my throat as I hear the thumps of something big coming this way.

This is very good, i love the description of the forest, explanations of the weapons and their abilities and you introduced those characters well and looks like they have a good relationship...

Although there are some serious issues with past tense and dialogue otherwise its OKAY.

as for the action you need shorter sentences in the fighting part and less emotions when dueling until maybe he has stopped to think or smetin cuz normally when fighting you cant have time to think about your past.

Thanks a lot I really appreciate it. I've made some minor corrections to the tenses. Will try and rework the duel to reflect your criticisms. Again I really appreciate your help.

no probz just keep it up

Sage, I hail. Your imagination reminds me of another writer of Yoruba legends, my brother, Red.

Though there are a few inconsistencies in tense, my biggest grouse will be with your writing style Or Use of language. There is a particular style associated with the narration of legends - a sort of loftiness of words, a superiority of grammar.. I don't see a lot of that here, or perhaps, I should say its disjointed. For the parts where you write about Seguns lineage or history, you employ a bit of that style but when talking about his present, you switch to frivolous language. The effect is that I cant determine in what time setting this is taking place. Is it in our modern era, where we have books that the "bookworm Sade" can read? Or another time altogether?
The Setting of your work should be clearly understood from the first 100 words you write.

Also, i think it'll improve the reality of your dialogues if you spice it with a few Yoruba phrases.

Forgive the long missive. Im excited about this and you can bet that Ill be following closely.

Weldone.

whitemosquito:
Sage, I hail. Your imagination reminds me of another writer of Yoruba legends, my brother, Red.

Though there are a few inconsistencies in tense, my biggest grouse will be with your writing style Or Use of language. There is a particular style associated with the narration of legends - a sort of loftiness of words, a superiority of grammar.. I don't see a lot of that here, or perhaps, I should say its disjointed. For the parts where you write about Seguns lineage or history, you employ a bit of that style but when talking about his present, you switch to frivolous language. The effect is that I cant determine in what time setting this is taking place. Is it in our modern era, where we have books that the "bookworm Sade" can read? Or another time altogether?
The Setting of your work should be clearly understood from the first 100 words you write.

Also, i think it'll improve the reality of your dialogues if you spice it with a few Yoruba phrases.

Forgive the long missive. Im excited about this and you can bet that Ill be following closely.

Weldone.

Thanks, you don't know how much I appreciate this. Your criticisms about grammar is something I've been conflicted about and I think it shows. The story is supposed to be set in the modern times but right now the characters are in a primal forest where time and human understanding of the universe have no place and I think this contributes to the disjointedness appearing in the story. The parts referring to bookworm and distance in modern terms are supposed to show the character is from modern times but I think I can make that clearer when editing.

As for tenses, this has been my biggest problem writing as I tend to switch to whatever feels best in the middle of writing, sometimes unconsciously. This is one of the bad habits I'm trying to break by writing this so I'd really appreciate if for future parts you can help point out where I change tenses.

Next part should be up this evening

sage1000:


Thanks, you don't know how much I appreciate this. Your criticisms about grammar is something I've been conflicted about and I think it shows. The story is supposed to be set in the modern times but right now the characters are in a primal forest where time and human understanding of the universe have no place and I think this contributes to the disjointedness appearing in the story. The parts referring to bookworm and distance in modern terms are supposed to show the character is from modern times but I think I can make that clearer when editing.

Okay, this is easy. Use a distinct writing style for when they are in the forest. ONLY switch to modern expressions when they are in contemporary time. For further clarity, you can choose to write one Setting in itallics while the other remains in regular fonts.

sage1000:

As for tenses, this has been my biggest problem writing as I tend to switch to whatever feels best in the middle of writing, sometimes unconsciously. This is one of the bad habits I'm trying to break by writing this so I'd really appreciate if for future parts you can help point out where I change tenses.

Next part should be up this evening

*smiles* no p.

AN: Not really happy with this part, but here goes


So there we stood, two of the finest hunters in our generation, from a lineage of men that has made this forest their playground, trained by the best to surpass the greats, armed with the knowledge to break the laws of physics with impunity, weapons that would the national army to shame and at our feet lay dead a monster of legend. It is therefore logical what our next action would be.

We ran.

We scrammed.

I have never used as much ase to assist my speed as I used now, the tunnel vision developed as a result was the least of my worries, we must have been going at over 70km/hr and yet the sound from the forest kept getting louder.

“Would you stop screaming like a little girl? You are leading those things to us” Akanni asks snidely as he pulled up beside me, his face screwed up in concentration as he tried to create enough ase to maintain his speed. His fire elemental now curled up around like a coil gives a little giggle.

If my looks could kill unfortunately I do not have that ase yet. Instead I adopt my loftiest smirk dripping in condescension and answer

“Excuse me, I’m not screaming it’s a battle cry meant to channel the spirits of old and receive assistance from them okay.”

“Sounded like the whimpering of a child afraid of the dark.”

“The way you sounded when you saw the Egungun right?” I reply cheekily, fond memories distracting from my impending death.

“Bleep you.” his face turning to almost the same shade as his elemental.

“Nah, I prefer Bisi.” and now I’m on a roll.

“That’s not what sh-----look out” he screams mid-sentence referring the goat looking creature that suddenly appears in my front.

My ada flashes in front of me and obstruction is divided into two equal pieces but it is too late to avoid crashing into the tree. Let me tell you tell you crashing into a tree moving at the speed I was moving at is not a fun experience at all. I think I even cracked my spine. I manage to redirect the excess ase that was powering my speed into fixing my back by increasing the speed the cells in the spine are being produced so as to fix it faster. I stand slowly taking a look at my surrounding and a dawning comprehension begins to fill me with dread.The tree I have just slammed into is exactly the same one at the edge of the clearing, the exact same place I entered the clearing from. My legs mechanically move forward and as I enter I see the body of the dead Kpelekpe.

The thumps become clearer and it sounds like laughter, sounds like but isn’t more like something trying to imitate laughter but not understanding the emotion behind the action. It is flat, empty, devoid of feeling and yet it was managed to project more fear than any human could ever do. The shiver down my spine became a full blown fit. The forest has chosen the worst time or perhaps in its opinion the best time

Akanni’s expression mirror mine. The fear, anger and resignation are exactly the same, even the elemental recoils slightly into him, and the flames flickering out slowly. This is when the stubbornness that made me burn my hand as a child despite all my mother’s beating rears its head and I scream.

“Show your face you ugly reject of your mother, dickless bastard of your father, I Omo Awon Oro Afonja command you.”

I really should be given an award for that performance, I didn’t sound at all like I wanted to vomit.

The laughter increases in pitch as if the thing knew exactly how I felt and then I see a visage depart from the shadows.

“For killing my pet and disturbing my rest you will die here, erased from existence and all who knew you would forget you ever lived, your life ending meaninglessly and cast into oblivion.” Its voice raspy from disuse but delivery no different from someone telling you what the weather is.

Akanni's growling distracts me from my thoughts as he growls and utters a single word

“Ina”

The elemental rushes to confront the monster, growing in flames as Akanni infuses even more ase into the creature.

I slip into the void where all distractions melt away where you become one with the emi that surrounds you and I imbue the ground around me commanding it to rise up around the creature and seal it in with the elemental. I stagger as I leave the void, the action has taken a lot from me and would have killed me if I stayed longer there.

The elemental sees my construction and detonates with the force of several packs of C-6 and only the barrier I constructed prevents us from being burnt to a crisp.

I let a sigh of relief, the combo move appears to be successful.

As the barriers slides back to the ground, we see an inferno still raging inside but what turns my stomach is when the creature walks out of the flames with his hand dragging behind him the elemental which appeared like it had been wrapped in plastic while it was completely untouched by the flame.

It utters a statement unintelligible to me and a sphere of compressed air whips around him. As he steps forward the howling winds become grey with dust before rapidly expanding engulfing the area.

My eyes widen as he releases the hand holding the elemental. The fires from the elemental fuelled by the power of the wind becomes a massive flash of light and heat that roars into the heaven and the entire clearing is engulfed in the searing flames.

I narrowly escape by jumping upwards while Akanni tries to build a wall of fire to surround himself and repel the inferno.

My jump proves to be a big mistake as my chest is punched through by sharp blades made of wind. Blood spurting out from the holes made there. I drop under the pull of gravity but the tree breaks my fall as I land on one of its branches. It seems my luck holds as I am saved from the raging inferno below.

Akanni screams as he is slowly being overwhelmed by his own elemental turned against him.

Alone, trapped, and injured with no chance of help as no Full Ode is allowed to enter the forest to help the initiate. It appears I am dying with no hope of relief. It is that kind of desperation that forces one to do the unthinkable.

I say the words I am not supposed to know, words I saw where nothing was to be seen, words that have been whispered in my mind for the past 3 years, words that do the unforgivable. I say the words to summon the unmentionable. I summon my mother. May Olodumare forgive me.

She appears like she has always been there, not tell-tale flash or sign to signify an authority over space. Dressed in a simple flowing blue dress that yet portrays so an incredible amount of poise. She is a vision of ethereal beauty.

My mother kneels beside me as she floats on the air smiling quietly and she gives a peck on the cheek that reaches the very tip of toes, healing and rejuvenating me completely then turns to face the creature. I am saved and yet I’ve damned myself.

Rain begins to fall as she rises to face the creature. I notice somehow not a single drop manages to touch her. The downpour quenches the fire like it was just a spark and not the large forest fire it was.

Slowly her smile begins to change no longer a loving one but one of a cat that has finally corned the mouse in a corner. The first expression crosses the creatures face and it is fear. It tries to run but is rebuffed by the rain which starts melting it slowly. It runs round in the circle the rain has made trying to find an escape from the downpour.

We watch in silence as it melts to join the water until it is no more. I pretend not to notice the horrified look Akanni is giving me. We are at least alive but whether it is better I cannot tell.

Lovely so far

Definitely following this piece

AN: I've gotten really excited about this story, got some new ideas that have expanded the story and now adds a new pretty awesome layer of world-building to the tale. These ideas will become clearer when we get to the story proper but I've dropped some clues in this part as to what it is.
After this I should have only one more section of the prologue then we move into the story itself. Sorry for the errors here, it was pretty rushed.


The rain slows down to a drizzle as I trudge down to where my mother floats. The water washing away the mud or is it blood that caked my face.

“Better you leave now, they must have noticed your presence by now and would be on their way” I tell her, my voice flat reflecting the way I’m feeling. I should be panicking but I don’t have the strength for it or better yet I just couldn’t bring myself to care.

She gives me a kind smile in return but it is not real, a good caricature of human emotion, something she definitely does not have anymore and instead floats away to the center of the clearing to await the arrival of the hunters council that are definitely on the way. Her sky blue wrapper making for an entrancing figure.

With nothing left to do I walk back to where Akanni has taken a seat on the forest floor, exhausted by his continuous use of ase over the course of the fight. The look he gives me is a mixture of horrified, disgust and surprisingly worry. I didn’t think he could think of anything other than himself.

“Do you realize what you have done, the amount of trouble you have put us in?” he asks the bitterness and anger losing its edge due to his exhaustion. It is still there though if you squint. Seems like my worldview is still correct, the only worry he is feeling is from what could probably happen to him in the aftermath. Guilt by association, whether he would be punished alongside myself.

Thankfully I am saved from replying when the very air begins to ripple. A deep sound like bass yet somewhat concentrated begins to grind reverberating through the air. The air is soon shattered into infinite fractals as a hole through the fabric of reality is made. It is the Agaju Guild as only they have the audacity to causally teleport through the forest laws like that.

The people who spill out are big, hunters without peer in the world that remains. I count seven before the hole is closed and reality as the forest dictates reasserts itself. These are the people who act as the first line of defense against everything that is Other. The black and white scheme of their mark them as belonging to the Agaju Guild. A guild named after the legend, leader of the small group of men who took Lagos back during the Red Night. A group that went on to be famous as the first in and the last out of any situation during the war. After the war they settled into being the guardians of the breach to make sure humans are never caught by surprise again. The very guild I had high hopes of joining at the end of today. To see so many of them at once, what I feel is without words but it was definitely not good.

They are completely covered first in which skin tight suit layer mad of some hybrid of mail and nanomesh enchanted with ase with no space to show any identifying marks. On top of this is the armor which is black and made up of a multi-layer alloy which is said to be the strongest material in the world. This was built to take a lot of punishment and yet allow for a range of flexible movement as they patrolled The Gates. These men here are the finest hunters in the land and from their appearance and the way the move there is no doubt as to its veracity.

They move with military precision, surrounding the area around my mother, no movement wasted and the very air tingles with the ase at the command of these warriors. Their leader is Oyabi, his face the only one not covered by the white suit and is signified by the two white stripes that dissect his face just across his left eye to form a cross rippling as if alive takes a look at my mother where she floats with a serene look on her face and what can only be described as amusement and then stares at me with an expression so intense I take a couple of steps back. He beckons at me wordlessly and I walk towards him.

Oyabi is regarded as a legend in his own right, he was part of the original member of Agaju's team that fought back in Lagos and is now the only survivor left so that means his actual age is unknown but I'll put him somewhere in his fifties. With his innate strength evident in his muscles straining to escape the confines of his , extremely high command of ase that characterized every member of that group coupled with a ruthlessness that is unmatched by any other person with perhaps the exception of the Are-Ona makes him somebody not to be trifled with. It is only because of his disregard for politics and his obsession with destroying everything Other that hy e is not an Eso. He is the kind of man my father calls a friend.

I move a few steps closer to him and I notice it, the ripples in the air around him caused by his ase. His face show his disappointment.

“I expected more from you” he says “It seems it is like mother like son” At his words my stomach plummets even further. He bends to peer at my eyes looking for something and I don’t know what he sees before he adds.

“You have shown yourself to be a failure, a selfish little boy and unworthy of the title Ode, if it were up to me you would be given the mercy of a quick execution because above everything you are just a stupid child but because of that prissy bitch” he says gesturing at my mother whose face darkens and lightning beginning to spark around her “that would not be possible, an Eso council is on its way here to judge you fate, but know this humanity will never forgive what you have caused here today and any hopes you have for being an ode is forever gone.”

His words hit me like a sledgehammer and unbidden the tears begin to flow.

Before he can continue lambasting me, the Eso council arrives landing quietly with nary a sound. They most have being flying at speeds beyond what I thought was possible to get here so fast. There are three of them, three Esos are all that are required to make judgement. Dressed in their warrior garb of bloodred armor, they show they have come for war if need be. Another man lands just behind them dressed in in a simple buttoned down shirt and trousers like a simple civilian, everything about him unassuming and utterly unremarkable especially in contrast with the greats he came in with, I stare trying to divine his intention and then I notice his armband which is green and marked with a red symbol I know he is a member of the Ogboni.

I gulp and Oyabi look at me says it all, it is that serious.

The Ogboni strides forward to approach my mother and everyone present tenses except the two people involved. He speaks to her the voice low in an ancient language I feel like I should know but yet is unintelligible to me. Five anxious minutes pass like this as everyone stands wary anxious and worried about a possible throwdown. He wraps up his discussion with her and turns to tell the council that the Judgement can continue. The sigh of relief is palpable.

The Eso Gbonka strides forward and with his staff he hits the ground which shivers as his ase comes in contact with it. He clears his voice and announces.

“The Council for the judgement of the Initiate Segun Odeolu is now in session.”

AN: This part falls completely short of my goal but I've gotten tired of the prologue and want to move to the meat of the story. Will have a complete rewrite of the entire part again when I've put sufficient distance from this part as it needs some serious reworking and a lot of more expansions to the character interaction, descriptions and fight scenes. This last part especially needs it.


As he says this, the rest of the Esos move to stand adjacent to him, forming three points of a triangle with him front and center. The rest of the hunters form a circle round them. Oyabi already to where Akanni was and the Ogboni stands beside my mom.

The Eso Gbonka continues after he sees everyone is in place.

“I believe we can disperse with the formalities due to the unique nature of this case, let the accused step forward and state his plea.” He asks and looks at me. His eyes daring me to make a case.

I don’t

“Guilty’ I say for I am and my father even if he didn’t succeed in teaching me anything, has taught me to take my punishment with all due diligence.

“ Very well” he continues “ Then there is no need for a drama, now to the judgement. For the crime you have committed would warrant death but due to the standing of your father, contribution of your family and the special difference about your case” his eyes flickering to where my mother float, for a moment a rictus of hate crosses his face. “ You are hereby banished from the coven, your name stiken from the record, you will be stripped of all titles and paraphenlia related to the Ode, acting in the capacity of a representative of our body or possession of any item belonging to the body would be considered illegal crime of a Grade 1 status. You are not to return to the council lands or areas operated by the council. You are thereby declared a cast-off.” He finishes and the then spits in front of me The remaining Esos proceed to do the same. The Eso Sadoe cups my face after spitting and whispers softly to me

“You have broken your father, the ferocious bear is now led low. He sent his resignation of his position to the Are-Ona. You finally get your wish, I hope you are happy.” She ends twisting the knife even deeper.

I never wanted this I want to answer her but the words are lodged in my throat and cannot find expression as I notice the tear that slips down her face before it is misted away like it was never there. She cannot allow weakness, not even here.

‘ I accept the wishes of my elders” I say in humble supplication as I am cut off from everything I know, my friends, my dreams, my goals, my desires and wiped out in a single instant.

I am suddenly all alone.


“..Ah, so this is how the world ends, as we watch everything so carefully built up destroyed with a smile on their face by the gods we worship.”

- President of the United States George Graham, after the simultaneous destruction of New York, Berlin, London, Tokyo, Moscow, Beijing and Paris in what was the first salvo in the event now known as The Red Night.

Alright. Bravo! I must say, you do have a story to tell. And I don't mean that lightly. I've seen a lot of people take pen to paper, having nothing worthwhile to write about. You do not fall in that category.

You got the pace right. For your first and second fight scenes, the timing and pacing were impressive. However, I feel you should have stretched some more the entry of the Hunters et al, painted further a vivid description of each of the groups...You know, with fiction esp the supernatural, one cannot overemphasize the power of imagery. Your readers will see through your eyes, so details are very important. I understand that ur in a hurry to finish the prologue, but Still.....
Then, the introduction of some of the characters were too abrupt, almost non existent kpakpa. Oyabi is a case in point.

I like the way you impregnate suspense when concluding your updates. You leave the reader thirsting for more. That's a gift of storytelling. WEldone.

Nontheless, I think it time we addressed your tensal errors. You'll have to pick one; present Or past tense. And stick to it. There can be no changes/switches at all during the narration. I'd recommend the Present Tense, (present continuous) you seem to flow better with it.
Finally, there were very little punctuations! Wetin happen Na?? No commas, fullstops etc. Choi!

You're off to a good start; your story piques my interest. Please continue.

whitemosquito:
Alright. Bravo! I must say, you do have a story to tell. And I don't mean that lightly. I've seen a lot of people take pen to paper, having nothing worthwhile to write about. You do not fall in that category.

You got the pace right. For your first and second fight scenes, the timing and pacing were impressive. However, I feel you should have stretched some more the entry of the Hunters et al, painted further a vivid description of each of the groups...You know, with fiction esp the supernatural, one cannot overemphasize the power of imagery. Your readers will see through your eyes, so details are very important. I understand that ur in a hurry to finish the prologue, but Still.....
Then, the introduction of some of the characters were too abrupt, almost non existent kpakpa. Oyabi is a case in point.

I like the way you impregnate suspense when concluding your updates. You leave the reader thirsting for more. That's a gift of storytelling. WEldone.

Nontheless, I think it time we addressed your tensal errors. You'll have to pick one; present Or past tense. And stick to it. There can be no changes/switches at all during the narration. I'd recommend the Present Tense, (present continuous) you seem to flow better with it.
Finally, there were very little punctuations! Wetin happen Na?? No commas, fullstops etc. Choi!

You're off to a good start; your story piques my interest. Please continue.

Thanks a lot, I'm really happy you are enjoying the story so far an grateful for the compliments from an already established author here. I've made some minor additions to the part that introduced Oyabi and the guild so as to help readers with description.

The criticism regarding abrupt character introduction is something I also discovered on a second read through, I wanted to avoid bogging don the narrative with too much descriptions that it seems I erred in the other extreme. This is something I will take note to avoid in future parts.

As regarding tenses, I think I'll follow your advice and stick to present continuous and try hard to avoid getting caught up in past tense.

Major corrections to the prologue will come after I've finished a significant portion of this story as I don't want to get stuck revising and editing what I have on ground because it could very easily cause me to give up on the story.

Thanks a lot. I am really grateful for the review.

Next part should be up soon, hopefully today. I'm trying to craft a way for my characters to get to the various points/events I had in mind when I started this story.

Descriptions definitely got me.
#following

CHAPTER ONE


Interlude: The Father
The sun rose in the west.

It was a beautiful sight to behold, the colors and hues providing a most splendid vision of beauty and yet it was another perversion on the natural order of things caused by the Red Night. Yet and perhaps because of this the sunrise was one of the few things left that he enjoyed. There was something about the world rising up to fight for yet another day in spite of all hardships and injuries suffered that common sense would have dictated for it to have given up a long time ago. He could do no less, so everyday waking up at the crack of dawn he would make his way down to this secluded area of the park sitting on his favorite stone bench by the pond and wait to watch the sun, ever majestic in its presence rise.

The Butterwings dancing as they floated on top of the pond, the rays from the sun refracted around them into beautiful prismatic colors, the birds singing in angelic tunes as they thanked Olodumare for yet another day, the smell of the beautiful flowers filling his nostrils with such beautiful scent. This spot was truly a slice of heaven in this hell that is earth.

The tranquility of his morning musing is disrupted when someone enters into the park, his bodyguards hidden in discrete locations around the park tensing up at the feel of his presence. Waving his hands he signals them to stand down, it is a friend.

Kunle Odeolu had certainly aged well, gone was the scrawny seven year old kid with vengeance in his eyes at the loss of his family during the Red night and his place stood a powerfully built man, leader of men and perhaps most important to him a family to call his own, a family that was the cause of the visit. He stood just a shade shorter than him at 6’4, his body a deceptively lanky frame honed into a killing machine by experience as much as it was training and his ase a gentle wave flowing all around him.

He made his way to him, standing behind his bench like a ceremonial guard. The image is however ruined when he opens his mouth.
“7 guards Afolabi? And just for a visit to the park, are you growing senile in your dotage because this is paranoid even for you?”

I smile, there are very few people that could talk to me like that these days, most preferring to kiss the ground I walk on or otherwise stay out of my way even those that knew me before. It takes a kind of person to talk like that to the Are-Ona Kakanfo.

“hmmm, you should take that up with Moremi.” I say.

He grimaces “No never mind, it is perfectly natural” He too knows the viciousness of Moremi and her over protective spirit is not something to be trifled with.

“Sit down old friend, I rarely have time to enjoy your company.” I gesture to the space beside me on the bench. I wait for him to sit down.

Together we enjoy the vanishingly rare moment of peace of quiet.

The spell is broken again when he speaks

“It has begun, she took the bait in the forest.” He hides it well but the pain and bitterness he feels is still present in his voice.

“Good, then perhaps this plan would succeed.”

“I have resigned and I expect most would blame it on my honor or distraught over the incident or something foolish like that.”

“So I take it everything is in place then.” I ask, the question mostly rhetorical as I know the man sitting beside me is one of the most efficient men in the world.

“Yes, The Sango Initiative was easier than expected, other pieces should begin to fall into place. Hope you are ready to handle the fallout when the Consul gets wind of what we are attempting here.”

My face turns into a frown as I think of those spineless cowards led by that lazy idiot Alfred Beaucourt. I say as much.

“The Consul is riddled with incompetents and cowards who are too scared of their own shadows to take the decisive steps needed, rest assured I have a contingency plan to deal with them if they become a problem.” I can see the curiosity as to my contingency on his face but he is wise enough to know he shouldn’t ask.

“and what about the message from our Isreali Allies? Ben-Judah reported that Texas has entered into a worrying alliance with the Naaglooshi clans. Her president, Margaret Underwood signed a blood pact with them. We might be looking at another war on that continent as I doubt The Consul would take such a major breach of the accord lying like that, this could easily devolve into another war on the continent with us expected to fight alongside the members of the consul at a time when we need all our forces on ground here.”

“It would be a cause for concern, it is something that has been on our radar for a while now. The mad woman could not have picked a worse time than this. We will have to trust in the Baron of Greater Chicagoland and his allies to contain the situation long enough for us to complete our plan. At that point it would no longer be relevant.”

“You don’t like leaving our fate in the hands of others like this” he says sharply then stares at my face and the smile there. “..ah the Ogboni”

We keep quiet again, enjoying our companionable silence before I break it this time

“Your son, h-“

I am cut off by a wave of his hands. His voice steady but the pain present to no one except those that know him well.

“There is nothing I can do for him now, He has to survive on his own.”

Our silence turning into one of regret.

XXXXXXXXX

A.N: Rewrote this part below

Chai. Sage, I dey come for you.

A.N: Okay I didn't really like the last part so I rewrote it and added some more details to it. Enjoy.

Segun
Ile-ife University was built as a testament of human will. It was one of the first major construction work to be undertaken in this new era. The original university was destroyed by the Orishas so after the end it was decided to use their sprawling palace as the base for rebuilding the school.

The Palace was originally made up of 5 towers. Four at the cardinal points with one in the center. The towers rose to the sky like the tower of babel, which was probably the inspiration. Made of some unidentifiable material not native to earth prior to the Red night. It proved to be virtually indestructible. Each tower was several square miles in width with the center one almost twice that. It made the decision to convert it to an institution of learning the limits and how to improve our powers over them even more ironic. Learning how to destroy them in their indestructible was the kind of joke Akara-Ogun was said to have found extremely funny.
Now it provided a very beautiful scenery. The juxtaposition of the otherworldy palace towers combined with the human buildings made for a dazzling sight. It looked even better in the evening when the glass-like materials from the towers refracted light into beautiful fractals of astonishing colors.

The University is now regarded worldwide as one of the premier authority on all things supernatural. It is one of the biggest point of pride that all citizens of Oyo had. It took my sister’s husband Femi, all of his family connection to up to the point of owing several people favors to wrangle me an admission into here and he is the favorite nephew of the Bashorun.

I was extremely lucky to be here.

Yet no matter how good this opportunity was, it could not compare to what I had lost and instead of the beauty, the joy that a normal student would feel upon entrance into this institution, it felt more like a burden, a punishment for my crime. It might not be as stiff as others might have clamored for but it was one all the same the pain of losing out of my goals, dreams is beyond unbearable.

My fall from grace has not been a particularly pleasant tale, now banned from all form of military service I would have the dubious distinction of being the first Odeolu to be a civilian. My father has all but disowned me, not deigning to speak to me since my misadventure in the forest. The only contact with my family since that day has been through my sister Bolanle.

It makes waking up mornings a painful thing as each new day just serves as a reminder of what has been lost. I slowly stretch on my bed, my body in a struggle with my mind to go back to sleep.I am sorely tempted and was about to but the decision is however taken out of my hands when the ridiculous alarm by my roommate starts belting out the most nauseating piece of music ever created in the history of mankind. The song was supposedly a hit before the Red Night. Another proof that maybe the Red night was a good thing.

I attempt to use my ase to create one of the most practical gifts ase can provide. A field of silence but unfortunately my roommate as learnt that I am a deft hand in the use of ase and has upgraded the stupid alarm to one enchanted to ignore all but the highest authority on silence fields which makes the basic one I just weaved rather useless.

I manage to sit up and the cross eyed look on my face sends Matthew, my roommate into a round of giggles who predictably is already up and fully dressed. The overly fat boy has been my bane of existence since I was enrolled here determined in his own words that no roommate of his is going to be a “sad guy”.

“What time is it?” I manage to croak, the sleep not fully leaving my eyes yet and my head pounding. itin Seems I took one too many beers yesterday.

“7.30 and that gives you about 15 minutes to get ready, you know how Dr Lekan is.” He replies, his voice being unnaturally loud and cheerful for a Monday morning. The reminder of the lecturer annoys me even more and it is most irritating lecturer teaching the most useless course in the entire campus. African History. How such as course could be made compulsory is beyond my comprehension.

I stand up, staggering a bit as the migrane swings a full blow at my head. I quickly use my ase to restore my mental health to peak efficiency.
One of the benefits of being trained, the ability to cure hangovers in a flash, sure it has its risks but I really don’t care right now. It is worth the look on Matthew’s face as I shake it off and walk straight to the bathroom.

“Man I’ll never get over just how good you are at authority manipulation.” He says as he shakes his head at my command over my ase. He doesn’t know just how close I was to being an Ode.

Getting ready takes less than 10 minutes and together we leave our room and head to the nearest dropper. The boys on campus are housed in the north –eastern tower. Supposedly the Tower where Ogun made his abode. The sigils on the wall and the slick futuristic twist to the building carries the hallmarks and signature of the Orisha.

As we hurry there, Matthew starts reciting the history of Songhai trying to reassure himself that what he read last night in preparation for a maybe pop-quiz is still in his head.

We hear them before seeing them. Their arguments getting progressively louder and it is probably the same stupid one they have been arguing since last week.

“-Then consul can’t do anything, Califero is a powerful bastard and don’t forget he has dragons, dragons man, big hulking, flame breathing dragons’ The voice of Bolaji ever so distinct.

“So? Yeah he has dragons but you bring you dragons and I raise you the Immortal Knights. Those guys are no joke. Remember what they did in Aberdeen, they fucking killed Zeus and now you think some dragons are going to scare them?” and that would be Lawal.

“You talk as if they were alone, the Legions where there too. They had the entire Consul backing them up and still they lost here quarters their number and that included the best they had then, Morning Knight, Rage Knight, Silent Knight all gone. So no I don’t think they have the chops to take on Califero now."

Lawal’s reply is cut short as he notices us and smiles when he sees Matthew, the short boy often said to be as black as Esu. Not to his face though, nobody wants to face his temper.

“If it isn’t lover boy and Segun running late for a class.” He says.

We all share laugh at Matthew whose failure of epic proportions at wooing the resident ice queen is now the stuff of legend amongst the freshmen earning him the nickname.

“How is Kemi these days?” Bolaji teases referring to the Ice Queen. The short boy said to be as black as the devil himself. He says this as he shakes Matthew’s hand causing him to blush.

“Enjoying the pleasurable company of Aisha, the company who are not enjoying” he replies and throws everyone into another round of laughter even Bolaji who seemsto have gotten over being dumped by his long-time girlfriend upon entrance into the university.

We continue the good natured ribbing and teasing until we get to Dropper. The unironically named device does exactly as started. It drops you. It was supposed to be an elevator but since gods cannot be bothered. It is just a straight drop to the floor. You step to the door state the floor you want to go to and then enter the empty space trusting the enchantments to control your descent. It is as unsettling as it sounds.

I separate from the group when I receive a phone call from a familiar number that really isn’t supposed to have my line.

I tentatively pick up

“Hello Sade” I say and prepare for the tongue-lashing that is to follow.

“Idiot, when I think you can’t sink any further in your stupidity you always manage to find a new hole to dig yourself into a new one. You just left like that ehn, I’m not worth a goodbye again?, You-’

“Ah No oh, I was trying not to prevent negatively affect your chances, associating with someone like me won’t have helped.” I cut her off trying to reduce her well founded anger at me.

“Mumu I know that what your stupid brain must have been thinking and if you had even up to two brain cells to rub together you would know I can take care of my self.”

“Eh..sorry” I say and I can practically hear her sigh and picture her face as she looks upward as if to ask Olodumare for the strength to deal with me

“Sorry ke, you are not yet sorry oo, I will still make you and that is not the worst part. You now contoct the most ridiculously stupid plan and you don’t even think to call me ehn” She says her voice progressively getting louder.

“How did-“ I attempt to ask, feeling somewhat shocked before she cuts me off

“I’m Sade.” Her smug reply to my unfinished question.

“Ah Good point.” She has always been good at finding out about things she isn’t supposed to know but thinking it through, this is a bit much even for her

“My sister told your right’’ I say almost certain that is the case.

“Well yes” My suspicion confirmed. “and don’t even think of excluding me from it or I will curse you straight into the black hole you brought your mother from. Okay? I will be there tonight.”

I sigh and reply in the affirmative, very few people could stand in the part of Sade special crazy.

She cuts the call soon after and I put my phone away chuckling to myself as I make my way into the lecture hall preparing to listen to yet another annoying class.

The class was half-full, most students already tired and unwilling to take more of the able doctor’s bullshit. It made finding a suitable seat at the back of the class easy. The class was in one of the man–made structures built around the center tower that served as the main lecture theaters of the university.

The Doctor had already started droning on, his nasally voice that sounds like the chirping of birds ever so distinct, while the rest of the class did their own thing. The serious ones like Sola paying attention to his every word and writing it down, those ones sat in front. The smart students studying for the next class, that is the group where Matthew belongs and the rest of the class content to gist away poking fun at others. Three guesses which group I fell under and the first two don’t count.

“- and so looking at the similarities of the rise of the global powers that rose post RN, one can infer that most of it can be attributed to nature of the leaders themselves and not the structure of pre-existing system or institutions. This does not mean to say these government structures existing beforehand had failed, China and Israel being very good examples of these but when compared to the new post RN powers whose formation can mostly laid at the feet of a single charismatic Leader as recorded in nations like Songhai, Greater Chicagoland, Zulu Brazil and Oyo-“

He suddenly cuts off, turning his gaze to the door and staring. This causes me to sit up and crane my neck to try and get a view of what he was looking at. Somebody then chooses the moment to step into the class, the blue dress looking very familiar but it isn’t until she turns to address the lecturer that I get a good glimpse of her features.

I do and the only thought that runs through my mind is Oh shiiiit.

It was my Mother.

I tune off the discussion between her and Dr Lekan, already making my way down from where I sat, my mind furiously trying to decipher why and how she got in here to see me. The University is supposed to be one of the most defensible locations in the country with complex wards and security schemes to keep things like her out. The fact that she managed to enter here without any alarm does not bode well for me.

“Can Segun Odeolu come down right now.” His face a bit red when he practically shouts this. I pay him no mind, his position on the scale of things I’m worried about is very near the bottom.

She then turns around and looks slightly surprised as if noticing me for the first time, a gentle smile on her lips.

“Come son” her words filled with for warmth for me only sounded chilling to my ears.

We step outside amidst the murmurs of the students as Dr Lekan tried to control his class.

We walk in silence until we have left the lecture area entering the gardens where there are no-one to eavesdrop. She takes a sit below on the trees and stares at my face for a few seconds. It begins to grows uncomfortable before she breaks the silence.

“You’ve grown” is the first thing out of her lips. “ Seems like Kunle has been taking good care of you’

“What do you want? I don’t believe you came all this way just to tell me that and how did you get past through the wards here.”

“Manners son.” I feel the sting of her ase like a slap on my face as she chides me. A subtle reminder of what she is.

I fall silent unwilling to face her ire.

She continues. “Can’t a mother just want to check up her son?” Seeing the disbelieving look on my face, she chuckles.

“I have a deal, technically an Oath with the Ogboni, part of it allows me to come and see you.”

The look on my face turns to abject horror and for a second I forget to breathe.

She frowns as she waves her hand and scoffs “Part of the Oath means I am not supposed to act in any negative manner towards you and the family. As if I would ever want harm to befall you.”

She rises from where she sits and cups my face in her hand before continuing.

“Know this son, I love you and even though I know you don’t believe that right now hold on to that and if that isn’t enough you should take comfort in the fact I would not hurt the one who freed me.”

She holds my face for a moment longer before dropping her hand. She turns to walk away before I find my voice

I ask “What are you going to do now that you are back?’

She turns face giving me a sideways glance with a vulpine grin on her face before she answers.

“Why, to finish what I started of course.”

Am not yoruba, but ur story line has made me try to research on the yoruba history. Nice write-up, and for it to be a fantasy is worth applauding. Keep it up, and pls post regularly. Thanks.

chikuzy:
Am not yoruba, but ur story line has made me try to research on the yoruba history. Nice write-up, and for it to be a fantasy is worth applauding. Keep it up, and pls post regularly. Thanks.

Thanks, that is the high praise. It is worth noting that this story also came from me researching into the yoruba history from a completely different story idea. Some of the ideas here are drawn from the great book Forest of a Thousand Daemons by D.O Fagunwa and translated by Wole Soyinka although I am taking a lot of liberties with it.

Won't be able to post a part today but felt I should explain some details about the world that the characters won't mention since it is common fact to them and I am trying to avoid an infodump in the story so these details may not come out till much later or if at all.

The story takes place in the future our world. The mysterious Red night happens and shatters countries, most of the world superpowers as we know know are simply gone and completely broken like USA where it is more like feudal lords fighting for parts and territory now. Nigeria too no longer is a country. The disasters and human nature causing it to fall. In the wake of this we are left with Oyo, a country that emerges from the ruins ans spans from Niger to the north, Lagos to the south, Kogi on one side and reaching all the way to Ghana. The North is broken into minor warlords though although would fight against each other would untie to fight outsiders so the great countries that border them just let them be.

The highly militaristic Oyo is now one of the great powers in Africa and a major challenger in the new world order with countries like Brazil, China, Israel and Canada as the main players on the global stage. The UN is replaced by the Counsul and is made up of these great powers ith the purpose of safeguarding the world from the threat of the gods.The reasons why things are like this will be hinted at in the story and some of them are outright spoilers for what I have planned.

The main divergence is that the gods all over the world are real and are not so nice. There is magic as seen so far. More of it would be explained in story and mythical creatures are also real so we have cool things now like an air force made up of dragon riders in brazil etc. Most of the story would be based in this Oyo country hence the yoruba fantasy but there will be glimpses of what is going on in other parts of the world

Will answer any question regarding clarification as long as it does not include spoilers.

whitemosquito:
Chai. Sage, I dey come for you.

Hope you keep enjoying it o

EHEN!!!! NA now I understand wetin you dey talk since!
Honestly, this info should be in the Prologue too o. Infact, na this gist suppose be the main the main Prologue.

Meanwhile, lemme get a breather in the office, Ill show you something.
Ride on!!

Am still following sha, hoping to understand the story. Who be e mother maself? Is the father still alive?

My mind is in a daze as I tried to digest what I just heard. The Ogboni making a deal with my mother made my skin crawl. Most of what they do is shrouded in secrecy although rumors of activities often made it out. The Calabar disaster for instance, the single largest loss of life on the continent since, the entire city just wiped off the map in an instant. Still the idea that they would deal with her considering what she had done, who she is now and what she was planning to do seemed like another Calabar in the making, this time only larger. Dealing with Orishas has never gone well for us.

The rain hammering down with its furious might, the lightning belying the horror that filled the night that covered the stench of death in the air. My face covered in blood not mine as I tried to crawl away. Away from the festering smell, the putrid smell like that comes from the carcass of a dead animal left to decay. Except it wasn’t a dead animal, it was my brother. A boy whose face should be filled with smiles and laughter just yesterday as we bid our father a good journey should be not this twisted visage of horror and fear. A boy I promised my father I would protect, serve as a good big brother to, the same way Niyi and Akin protected me before they went for their apprentice training. I have failed and now I crawl away like a stupid coward.

I cry out for help but there is no one to answer my call, she has killed them all, all the guards, the cooks, the friends I had known, the monster killed them, my mother killed them.

I am half way across the room when I hear footsteps and I know it is her when I hear her voice as she whistles a soft tune, the tune to the lullaby she usually sang when I could not sleep, the tune that was eerily in tone with the thunder strikes outside as if the rain sang along with her I reach a new depth of despair.

She enters into the room and smiles at me, the same smile she gives when she disappointed like when I spilled the flour in the kitchen and then looks at my dead brother and then at me, her expression unchanging as she says.

“it is unfortunate that you and your brother were caught up in this. I had wished to spare you this pain.” And then I realize she wasn’t just a monster. She was a mad monster.

I spend the rest of the morning holed up the cafeteria as I try to regain my composure. It would not do for me to appear rattled for the meeting later today.

I am soon disturbed when my friends find me, strange though to think of them as friends. They have been groomed all their life to become the elite of society the next generation of leaders, maybe even sit on the Oyo Mesi while I as bred to be a warrior, to fight at the fringes of humanity and defend against all enemies from the ether. We couldn’t be any more different and yet, well as it is said stranger things have happened

“So this is where you’ve been all this while ehn, don’t blame you I too would hiding if Dr Lekan was that mad at me.” Lawal says as he takes the sit next to me, his hands swinging across my shoulder

“Yeah, hope the girl was worth it though” Matthew joins in on it too, sitting on the sit facing me.

“Did you not see the girl? She is definitely worth it. I would even take another year, maybe even two of our able friend the Doctor for the chance to be with that kind of body.” Bolaji says as he rounds up the bunch and takes a sit beside Matthew.

They all murmur their agreement to that.

I couldn’t help it a small smile appears on my face unconsciously.

“the bastard is even smiling”

“Spill, who was the woman, have you been holding out on us” Bolaji asks as they face me with all seriousness.
I couldn’t hold it in any longer, I burst out laughing. I keep going as Matthew whispers loudly to the others. “Uhm guys, I think he is going insane.”

“it was my mother.” I say finally as I manage to get myself together to string a coherent sentence. The dawning realization on their faces proved amusing as well as the awkwardness they felt.

“Still tho, She’s pretty hot.” Bolaji says with a smile tugging at his face. He was always the crazy one

Well the awkwardness some of them felt.

“She will make a pretty MILF.” He continues

This time nothing stops the laughter that pours out, then I realize just maybe I am going insane.

We stay there and spend chat about inane things, from girls, debating the finest girl in the class to sports, who would win in the upcoming Cage tournament final between Balogun Thunder and Sonni Ali, to politics, the dwindling strength in the capital to the most inane or stupid.

Time flies as the hours pass quickly and afternoon turns to evening.

My phone starts to chirp and immediately I know what its for. I pick up and answer

“don’t worry I’m on my way” I say before cutting the call. I make my apologies to the guys and soon head out.

It is time for the meeting.

Iolite:
Am still following sha, hoping to understand the story. Who be e mother maself? Is the father still alive?

The father is still alive. He is the one talking with the Kakanfo in the beginning of this chapter. As for the mother, it is partly a mystery although I've been leaving hints to her identity. My aim with this story was for it to be with an air of mystery, the audience left to figure things out themselves as the story moves forward as those are the kind of stories I enjoy.

Hmm. Okay. Me thinks His mother initiated the Red night thing{which is why the elders and co are upset with her}, was killed in it and in Segun's bid to get out of his predicament with the Kplelekpe snr, he released her from "sleep."
Anywho, Im hooked. However...

sage1000:
CHAPTER ONE


The sun rose in the west.

It was a beautiful sight to behold, the colors and hues providing a most splendid vision of beauty and yet it was another perversion on the natural order of things caused by the Red Night. Yet and perhaps because of this the sunrise was one of the few things left that he enjoyed. There was something about the world rising up to fight for yet another day in spite of all hardships and injuries suffered that common sense would have dictated for it to have given up a long time ago. He could do no less, so everyday waking up at the crack of dawn he would make his way down to this secluded area of the park sitting on his favorite stone bench by the pond and wait to watch the sun, ever majestic in its presence rise.

The Butterwings dancing as they floated on top of the pond, the rays from the sun refracted around them into beautiful prismatic colors, the birds singing in angelic tunes as they thanked Olodumare for yet another day, the smell of the beautiful flowers filling his nostrils with such beautiful scent. This spot was truly a slice of heaven in this hell that is earth.

The tranquility of his morning musing is disrupted when someone enters into the park, his bodyguards hidden in discrete locations around the park tensing up at the feel of his presence. Waving his hands he signals them to stand down, it IS a friend.
Kunle Odeolu HAD certainly aged well; gone was the scrawny kid with vengeance IN his eyes OVER the loss of his family during the Red night and IN his place stood a powerfully built man - leader of men and perhaps most important to him, a family to call his own - a family that WAS the cause of the visit. He stood just a shade shorter than him at 6’4, his body a deceptively lanky frame honed into a killing machine by experience as much as it was training and his ase a gentle wave flowing all around him.

He made his way to him, standing behind his bench like a ceremonial guard. The image WAS however ruined when he OPENED his mouth.
“7 guards, Afolabi? And just for a visit to the park? Are you growing senile in your dotage? This is paranoid even for you!”

I smile, there are very few people that COULD talk to me like that THESE days; most preferring to kiss the ground I walk on or otherwise stay out of my way even those that knew me before. It takes a kind of person to talk like that to the Are-Ona Kakanfo.

“Hmmm, you should take that up with Moremi,” I say.

He grimaces “No never mind, it is perfectly natural.” He too knows the viciousness of Moremi and her over protective spirit is not something to be TRIFLED with.

“Sit down old friend, I rarely have time to enjoy your company.” I gesture to the space beside me on the bench. I wait for him to sit down.

Together we enjoy the vanishingly rare moment of peace of quiet.

The spell is broken AGAIN when he speaks.

“It has begun. She took the bait in the forest.” He hides it well but the pain and bitterness he feels is still present in his voice.

“Good. THEN, perhaps this plan would succeed.”

“I have resigned and I expect most would blame it on my honor or distraught over the incident or something foolish like that.”

“So I take it everything is in place then.” I ask, the question mostly rhetorical as I know the man sitting beside me is one of the most efficient MEN in the world.

“Yes, The Sango Initiative was easier than expected, other pieces should begin to fall into place. Hope you are ready to handle the fallout when the Consul gets wind of what we are attempting here?”

My face turns into a frown as I think of those spineless cowards led by that lazy idiot Alfred Beaucourt. I say as much.

“The Consul is riddled with incompetents and cowards who are too scared of their own shadows to take the decisive steps needed, rest assured
I have a contingency plan to deal with them if they become a problem.” I can see the curiosity as to my contingency on his face but he is wise enough to know he shouldn’t ask.

“And what ABOUT the message from our Isreali Allies? Ben-Judah reported that Texas has entered into a worrying alliance with the Naaglooshi clans. Her president, Margaret Underwood SIGNED a blood pact with them. We might be looking at another war on that continent as I doubt The Consul would take such a major breach of the accord lying like that, this could easily devolve into another war on the continent with us expected to fight alongside the members of the consul at a time when we need all our forces on ground here.”

“It would be a cause for concern, it is something that has been on our radar for a while now. The mad woman could not have picked a worse time than this. We will have to trust in the Baron of Greater Chicagoland and his allies to contain the situation long enough for us to complete our plan. At that point it would no longer be relevant.”

“You don’t like leaving our fate in the hands of others like this” he says sharply then stares at my face and the smile there. “..ah the Ogboni”
We keep quiet again, enjoying our companionable silence before I break it this time

“Your son, h-“

I am cut off by a wave of his hands. His voice steady but the pain present to no one except those that know him well.

“There is nothing I can do for him now, He HAS to survive on his own.”

Our silence turning into one of regret.

When I say present continous, thats what I meant.

The Club was full. Light and darkness playing across the gyrating bodies as the students celebrated like there was no tomorrow. A thick knot was gathered across the bar as the drinks flowed freely. Built just on the outskirts of the campus it was always outside of the University regulations making it very popular with the students.

It was also the location of his meeting. So making his way to the tall winding stair case that stood out like the centerpiece of the club and led to the more exclusive levels. He took his time to greet the bouncer positioned there, a friend that helped him out with drinks from time to time before ascending.

Upon entering the room already reserved for his guests. He quickly made his way to the seat as the the extreme end facing the door.
It didn’t take long for the others to start trooping in

First was Bankole. A former soldier, from what I could gather he had served in the campaign in the Niger –Delta. A clusterfuck of epic proportions and had narrowly escaped being executed alongside his comrades and instead been given a dishonorable discharge. Now he plied his trade as a mercenary. Hopefully he would be of some use here. I see the moment he notices me and startles, I’ve been told I resemble my dad who is rather famous in the military circle. I nod at him and he returns it before taking a seat.

Another five minutes pass before the next guest.

“Balogun Thunder is definitely going to carry the tournament, he is at his peak” A pitched voice coming from beyond the door was saying.

“He may be good but there is a reason why Zuma is the undefeated champion for the fifth year in a row, he is out of everyone’s league and I don’t think a Sango wannabe would have what it takes to beat him” this time the voice coming from a boy about to break into his manhood.

I cause my ase to sense what is beyond the door and the I begin to feel the presence of three prebuscent kids, I frown wondering what three kids could be looking for here at this time.

“Oh stop this, you guys have been arguing this point for hours to no resolution and we are finally there, we should at least look professional” the third voice, the second girl chimes in.

The two mumbled their apologies and they step inside.

My eyebrows climb up to the roof as I take in their appearance. Dressed in school uniforms, a red short below a stained white short sleeve shirt for the boy and a red gown for the girl complete with pigtails on one of them. They couldn’t look more out of place if they tried.

“What’s up bitches” the boy says as he tosses us a wave

“Behave yourself or I’m calling Uncle” the girl in pigtails practically screeching as she delivers a slap to the back of his head.

"I’m behaving, I could have called them names but I didn’t” He replies as he takes a seat and thumps his legs on the table.

The third girl looks up as if pleading with Olodumare for guidiance. This brings a small smile to my face

“I apologise for my brother’s rudeness and lack of professional courtesy” The pigtails girl says looking at I and Bankole.

Bankole just blinks at them and goes back to ignoring everything in the room however my curousity is peaked.

“Just who are you guys?” I ask as the girls take their seats beside the boy.

“We are your consultants, the guides into the Irunmale Forest.” The quiet girl answers. The skepticism on my face is plain to see because the
boy immediately adds

“hey don’t knock on it, looks can be deceiving and very few people can say they have as much experience as us, we did live there for almost ten years.”

“But you can’t be more than twelve.” I say disbelief covering my face.

“13 human years” he replies drily.

It is then I get it, the forest has been known to distort reality even on a greater scale than the great forest so much so that a day in there can stretch into weeks, months and possibly years. They may look like kids but they are most definitely not and are very dangerous. I wonder what Makinde has been thinking contracting them.

“Ah see his face as he begins to get it” the boy adds “you can almost see the little gears turning in hisn head.” He receives yet another slap from pigtails.

“You should have some respect for our co-workers” the quiet one says.

A pout forms on his face but he keeps quiet.

It isn’t quiet for long as the door is thrown open violently. Completely detached from its hinges it is left to fall to the ground as the next member of the crew walk in.

The kids already have weapons drawn, the boy holding a pair of axes, pigtails with a chain wrapped around her hand and quiet one with a sword that looks just like one given to an Ode. I am already on my feet with a throwing knife poised to leap for the throat of the intruder. Bankole though doesn’t even react.

“Sorry Sorry Sorry…I apologise for the noise.” A very familiar voice says loudly as she enters the room carrying a stack of books. The weapons disappear they just as quickly as they emerged and I settle down in my seat. Sade would never cease to amaze.

“…and your solution was to blast the door off its hinges?” pigtails asks completely bewildered at the turn of events.

“Well it was the most efficient way.” She answers sheepishly as she drops the books on the table then gestures towards the door with her hand
and directs it back to its position. Some measure of Time based ase in use.

She then turns towards me and smiles the bright megawatt smile she uses before going for the kill.

“Hey traitor” she says as she begins to walk towards

“Oooh, this is going to be good” the really annoying brat says as he rubs his hands together only to be shushed by his sisters who also seem interested, Even Bankole looks interested.

I realize my mistake as she suddenly appears in front of me. I should have never taken my eyes off her, her time shenanigans are too dangerous for that and I brace myself for the incoming hit. She slams the stack of book she was carrying on my head.

It hurts.

“That is for all your bullshit” she says and I raise my head from the table and manage to look at her, at least the middle one in what appears to be three versions.

“We good?” I ask with hope filled voice.

“Oh come on, of course not, I’ve just gotten started with you. We are going to have so much fun. Also you are paying for my transport here.” She replies.

I can only nod as I begin to plot all the ways I’m going to use to kill my sister.

She takes the seat next to me.

The door opens again and two men step in. The first a rail thin man dressed in what was obviously a very expensive suit. That would be Makinde, the owner of the club. The second a huge man that more doubled the size his partner, his bodyguard Festus.

Makinde takes one look at the gathered crowd and claps his hands together.

“I see we are all complete, so who is ready to kill a monster?”

whitemosquito:
Hmm. Okay. Me thinks His mother initiated the Red night thing{which is why the elders and co are upset with her}, was killed in it and in Segun's bid to get out of his predicament with the Kplelekpe snr, he released her from "sleep."
Anywho, Im hooked. However...

Heh, you are slightly off. The mother didn't initiate the Red night, that happened when Segun's father was still a child.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to make those corrections. I've changed the mistakes and hopefully there would be less of those in future parts.

A.N: Sorry for the delay between updates. Hopefully it wont happen again. Help on how to improve in writing the dialogue would be appreciated.

I roll my eyes. Makinde has always been a showman and really loves his dramatic actions, his melodrama is almost beyond pare, I say almost because no one can top Aunt Moremi. He was my sister’s boyfriend when we first met and after a run in with my elder brothers the relationship ended and he has seen become something of a family friend. They never did tell me what they did to me and his face always goes pale when I raise the subject with him.

Right now though, he is just the person I need, his connections with the criminal underground is just what I need to get into Irunmale forest.

The way through the Ode may have been blocked but criminals have been smuggling into the forest ever since the cordon went up. My sister is right in this, there is more than one way to kill the one-eyed leopard.

“I trust you have all been made comfortable, the snacks on the table are for your enjoyment.” He says as he gestures his hand to the sickly looking donuts and meatpies laid on one corner of the table.

The boy scrunches his eyes as he tentatively reaches to touch it before sharply pulling it away.

“I have eaten many a foul thing but by far this is the foulest I’ve seen.” He says in a solemn voice as he attempts to imitate the speech patterns of the Bashorun. This draws a chuckle from Bankole and that leads to everyone staring at him.

He blinks again and says “What? I thought it was funny.”

“That is not why we are staring.” The boy drawls out.

“We thought you were one of those stone men.” Pigtails says in a timid voice that is barely above a whisper. Bankole face changes briefly to a frown and then back to its inscrutable nature so quickly it could be easily missed. Sade however guffaws loudly and goes on for almost a minute before I am forced to try and slap her back in an attempt to stop her.

Try being the operative word here, somehow I missed. Her power over time has always been remarkable just as my power over enchantments and marked me a prodigy, it was only her lack of interest in active military duty that she was not already a ranked special force official.

“okay so can we get down to business.” Makinde says as he settles down with Festus taking a guard position.

“Introductions are first I suppose.” He gestures to the children. “These are the Bush babies, you won’t find greater expertise on the matter of Irunmale on this side of the law. Don’t let their appearance fool you Tola, Tolu and Tope are the best at what they do.’” He finishes as the gestures to the quiet girl, boy and pigtails respectively. They give a small wave to the rest of us and Sade energetically waves back. The boy blushes, would be cute if he wasn’t an annoying little shit.

“Bankole is as professional as it comes, I don’t need to go into his credentials here but he is good in a fight and most definitely not a stone man.” He says this with a smile on his face.

“Segun was regarded as a prodigy in the Ode and if not for a little tiff with the council he would be a full Ode right now.” Little tiff he calls it, how droll. I see the kids readjusting their assessment of me, probably thought I was just a strongman here. I smirk at them.

“and last but definitely not the least, Sade. She according to what little I could dig on her is already regarded as an expert in the RnD of the Special Forces and we are lucky to have her.” This time everyone elses eyes widen. Even Bankole for a split second.

“Then how come she is part of this?” Tolu asks

“Oh I just couldn’t let this big oaf” pointing at me “go do something as stupid as this without being there to record it.” and that would have heralded the loss of my self-esteem if hanging around her hadn’t already inured me of it.

“Now that I can get behind, he does look quite stupid.” The idiotic brat says. I show him stupid, my emi already rumbling for release within me

“yeah I guess he does, though still a sight better than yours.” With a thoughtful look on her face while she places her hand on my already folded wrist to soothe my anger.

“stop bickering, you may be children but also professionals. Act like it.” Bankole says in a commanding voice that silences everyone else retort.

“Okay now on to the agenda.” Makinde picks up. “This job in particular is a rush job. A transport belonging to the client was hijacked by a group of Ghommids known as the Hanged Jackals. They are native to the village in this forest. He wants a package recovered and the heads of the Ghommids delivered to him.”

“Why not just go to the authorities? This is the kind of job they specialize in.” Sade asks, which something that has me curious. The Ode would love a chance to tear into the Ghommids.

“well, the package is something the client wouldn’t want the authorities as you call it to get their hands on.” I am faintly surprised. There is very little that would be considered contraband in this kind of situation.

“Heads? Isn’t that over the top and besides it would make the job infinitely harder.” I ask.

“ah yes, that part is non-negotiable although he would settle with any part that of the Ghommid that serves an important function. You see, His children were part of the transport.”

“for this kind of job the pay would have to be substantial.’ Bankole says.

“That is very true. He is willing to pay a million cowries for the delivery of the package and hundred thousand per head of ghommid delivered. Each.” My eyebrows climb to the roof, that is a whole lot of money and even though I wasn’t doing this for the money I can still appreciate an amount that working as an Ode for years is unlikely to bring me.

“coooool, I was about to walk away with my sisters but you mentioned the money so I guess we’ll do it.” Tolu, the brat adds.

“Yes, however crudely my brother put it. it would suffice. How do we identify the package?” Tope asks

“if you choose to accept, you will meet your contact at the rendescvous. He will inform you there.”

From there I tune them out, even though I finally have the chance to achieve my aim of getting into the Irunmale forest. I had wanted to become an Ode so I can do this legally but this way would also suffice. I finally have the chance to save my brother.

A.N: No part today, was a bit lazy so instead I have decided to give a basic breakdown of the current political system in Oyo.

Oyo is ruled by the Oyo Mesi. A supreme council made up of 7 principal officials.

The Bashorun - The Prime Minister.

The Laguna - Secretary of State. Heads up the nation's foreign affairs ministry.

The Agbakin - The Attorney General. Heads up the Legal affairs of the country.

The Samu - The Finance Minister - Head of the National treasury and in charge of all matters relating to finance.

The Alapini - Representative of the Ogboni on the council.

The Akinniku - Head of all Internal Security.

The Are-Ona Kankanfo - Head of the Military.


Below the Oyo Mesi is the General Council which is a parliamentary body whose members are voted in by the public every 5 years alongside the Bashorun.

The other members are chosen from the individual ministries and ratified by the General Council who can choose to reject a particular candidate for the position in the Oyo Mesi.

The System is repeated on the State level with it's Mesi having the following differences
The Oba - Bashorun of the state
Balogun - Akinniku of the state
Eso - Are-ona of the state


For the Military Side

The Are-Ona Kankanfo is basically the Defense Minister and usually the strongest ase User in the Military. Chosen from the High Esos by the entirety of the Esos.

The Esos - These are the Generals in the Military and whose number at every point in time must be 70. The High Esos are the 16 named Esos who are in charge of the various departments and arms of the military. The rest of the Esos are the field generals and state heads of the military branches.



It is still very basic and I didn't put some details up due to spoilers. Expect an extra large part tommorow.