Revenge In Blood ❧CHAPTER 22: JOURNEY OF THE WANDERER - PART 7: DISCORD

"I shall put confusion in the midst of thy enemies."

(Written).

(Edited).

×~×

After a very long ti, the people had forgotten what had conspired between them and the female. Years and years went by, pausing at one particular day when they would rember the King's action of saving them from the anger of the gods by banishing the witch, as they gathered and celebrated among themselves to the day which was now recorded in the Kingdom's wall of history.

“My King! We have a problem...!” Soone said, barreling himself through the eting of the King and his Council of Elders. He knelt on his knees, sweat dropping down to the ground he had placed his hands on to stabilize his nerve-racking body.

The Elders, visibly shocked at what the young male was doing sprung into action; “Have you no respect, child? How dare you bulldoze through our midst — the King's Obi — like you own the place?!” An Elder, which the boy had recognized to be called "Dike" when he looked up, had said.

The other Elders watched as the man reprimanded the young boy, and the male who was being scolded pursed his lips in agitation.

Ignoring what the old male was saying without dilly-dallying, the boy looked up at the King, speaking; “My King! May I have an audience with you?” He asked in a lightly raised voice, trying to drown the Elder's cautioning into the background.

“The audacity to ignore in front of the King! Who do you think you are —?” He shouted, interrupted by another voice.

“Now that is exactly the question that has been on my mind,” Elder Obinna said calmly, continuing; “Dike! Who do you think you are to be stopping this child from speaking to the King?”

“Have you gone mad?!” Now the Elder being addressed by Obinna was angry, as one could notice it from his almost trembling figure.

Elder Obinna went on, “The boy ca here to seek an audience with the King. Clearly, from the way he was panting, even a madman could tell that sothing was wrong sowhere! You didn't wait for the King's reply when you began shouting at the boy.”

He paused a little, to catch his breath; “Yes, he made a mistake, but seeing as the King is sitting here before you, Dike! You didn't wait to listen to what the King will say...”

The other Elders, who wore their chieftaincy cap and carried their canes, muttered in silent agreent with what Obinna said.

“Do you now see the King as you mate, Elder Dike?” He finally asked the old man who was standing up, and Dike, embarrassed that he was rebuked in front of a young male kept silent.

“You are asking the boy who he is... The thing that has been on my mind ever since is 'who are you,' Dike, before the King?” A silence reigned over them when Dike didn't speak a word in response to his answer.

“Let tell you, as soone who is part of this Council, you are nothing”. He looked into the Elder's eyes; “Always wanting the King to play according to your little gas... Don't think that we haven't noticed what you've been doing all along. Keep your plays to yourself, Dike”. Elder Obinna said with a finality, looking at Dike, as he warned the other Elder.

The tension in the air amongst them was nearly palpable. Not only could the Elders and the King feel it, but the people of the Kingdom, too, had noticed that sothing big was coming, and that made them all on edge and antsy.

“Now now!” Elder Kalu, the pacifist, spoke, standing with his hands placed out in front of him as a gesture, telling them to calm down and not argue when the boy was here. “Let us all sit down and hear what the boy has to say.” He said, and looking at the young male with that always-present cunning going in his eyes, he spoke; “Stand up! What are you still doing prostrating like that?”

The male, who was confused about what had happened stood up, bowing only to the Elders who saved him from the old Elder he had rembered to be Dike. The thing was that he had never liked the Elder Dike, and after hearing nasty things about him, his dislike for the Elder increased a lot.

“T-thank you!” He said in an appreciating manner. The King raised his Ofo, indicating that they should all keep quiet. Looking at the boy, did he say, “Now, boy, tell what this 'problem' is?”

The boy, bowed at the King, “Igwe!!” Raising his head, he looked at the King telling him of what the issue arising in the Kingdom was about.

“My King, the cause of the problem is about the whites”. The boy said vaguely, to which the King asked; “what about the whites?”.

The young male saw the question as a go-ahead to continue as he inhaled deeply, bracing himself, not knowing how the King would react to what he was about to say; “...Igwe! The people from the tribes aren't comfortable at the thought of staying with the whites...”

After seeing that the King kept shut, he continued a light vibrancy being acknowledged in his tone while he spoke.

“They are not satisfied with your decision of permitting the whites to stay with them in the Kingdom! They are saying that the oyibo's be kept sowhere else; anywhere apart from the premises of the Kingdom, my King!” He said.

“They are...” He hesitated, correcting himself as he started again; “No, we all are afraid of the ideas the whites would have my King.” He said in a hasty tone, making sure to try and cross over the point intended.

The King, looked at the boy with a contemplative face after he had listened to the male. “These whites you all are afraid of are the ones who are helping us with weapons and ammunition that would enable us to fight back when the barrier is down.” He said in a low voice, taking notice of how the boy had a strange look after he had ntioned the barrier.

Deciding not to dwell on it, he continued; “And we — in exchange for their help — are allocating to them so of the oil and other minerals we had taken mines. The trade is equal between us, so why are they panicking? Or is there sothing else you're not telling ?”

No, it wasn't a fair trade, but the Igwe didn't know that. The King didn't know that the value of the unrefined oil, or the minerals alone, was enough to bargain with for the war arms. The whites were simply leaching off of them, and they hadn't even taken ti to think about "if they were giving more than what they're supposed to".

Or maybe the King and his Council knew, but they turned a blind eye to this ignorance?

No one was sure, and as neither did anyone want to be accused of baseless assumptions, they all had shut their mouth to the truth.

The young male hesitated at what the King had pointed out, and he stamred, sweat dripping down his flushed skin.

The King waited with slitted eyes, for what he was about to hear from the boy. Bracing himself by adjusting his seating on the throne, he waited for the boy to gather himself together.

The boy began, not knowing how to put it into words; “My K-king... Th-there has been avid conflict in the Kingdom ever since, and rumors are flying around that you didn't tell them the truth, thereby having a hand in it”. He said, trying to calm his fast-beating heart.

The King and his Council were confused as to what the boy was saying, and one of them, not having the patience to let him continue, urged him to go on with a hand signal; “Apart from that, there's another issue of our crops dying, my King.” He said, skipping the other topic.

“And who is the person or who are the people spreading the rumors?” The King asked, wanting to match the young male's pace.

The male noticeably shivered at the King's question as he said, “Strange people”. He said as though he didn't want to dwell on the subject.

The Elders, who were waiting in anticipation, said, “Boy! Stop with the vague responses and tell us fast!” Elder Kalu spoke.

“I don't know how to explain it, my King, but so have been saying that the males who are spreading the gossip are from beyond the barrier.” He spoke up, shutting his eyes close, not wanting to see their facial expressions.

Elder Dike was the first to deny; “Ta! No one who has been thrown outside the barrier with no mories of their previous life can co back in!” He shouted, then looking around he asked, “Am I wrong?”.

Other Elders agreed with Dike's claim, but the King kept silent. “But... but it's true!! I've even heard stories that the males had told them of the outside!”

The male refuted, seemingly trying to side with the strange males. Even from the way he ntioned the outside, the Elders and the King knew that he was excited at the prospect of soone from the beyond visiting the kingdom.

But alas, his dreams were crushed.

“Did you hear it directly from him?” Soone among the Council had asked the thrilled boy, snapping him out of his reverie.

“I-I don't understand...” He said, confused.

Elder Obinna clarified what the other Elder had said, “He ant that did you hear all these 'tales' from the horse's mouth?” All eyes were on the boy after the question was asked, and he shrunk under their gaze, replying with a mumble of his own, “No, I did not.”

“Then that settles it...” Elder Okpara, who had been silent all this while, spoke up; “Anyone could forge a tale like that using only his imagination, don't get deceived and carried away by those stories”. He cautioned the boy, who bent his head in sha.

He kept quiet for so while, before perking up again; “My King, what about the problem of the whites and the dying crops?”

“The crops may be dying from a pest or disease, so the clans should take precautionary asures to make sure it doesn't continue. And as for the whites, leave them be; anyone who has an opposition should co to directly”. The King said, and the male, who was a bit excited to pass on the ssage of their King, beca downtrodden after he heard the nonchalant words he had spoken.

He left the Obi to tell his Clan Head — who would deliver his words to other Heads — what the King had spoken.

•×~ו

Sowhere in the Kingdom, people had gathered there at night under the glow of their lanterns and candles discussing.

“That's what he said?” A person asked, and another answered with a, “yes”.

“The decision is very wrong, and we have to change it!” Soone shouted as others agreed, but it wasn't heard loudly through the wind's violent breeze.

“We are going to change it”. The calm voice of a female, who had startled the others who were huddled together, was heard in response to the yell. The person who replied with a soothing tone wasn't seen even under the lampshade because she was relaxing against a tree as its branches covered her face in darkness.

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Wishing y'all a spectacular entry into November! 🙌🏻

✦Ofo: staff of authority