Dethroned episode 1 – 2
DETHRONED
Episode 1
By AMAH’S HEART
I sat dejectedly with my hands on my chin thinking of what I will be eating tonight as I haven’t eaten all day
and to make matters worst, the worms in my stomach were already crying for food reminding me that I shouldn’t try sleeping on an empty stomach again like I did yesterday night
I sighed as it seems as though I will likely be doing so anyways.
There’s no doubt that it has been two days since I last tasted anything edible, I mean it is not like I do have a choice anyways since the wild fruits and vegetables I was feeding on in the forest are no more available because of the current drought in the Land.
The drought is actually affecting everyone in the village and it begun two months back when an image of a masquerade had mysteriously appeared in the sky.
Typical of a village like mine, the main source of getting water is through rainfall and stream
so in the absence of no single drop of rain in the Land for two months now, the subsequent effects were that the crops in people’s farmlands dried up same with the village streams, which inevitably led to serious hunger and thirst plâgue in the once fertile Land of Yada.
Noticably, it is the less privileged villagers like myself and more people in the village that were more at the receiving end of this plague
What I mean is that ever since this plâgue started, the once chubby adults including myself keeps on slimming down on a daily basis
whilst for the once slim adults, there are looking more like yam ínfected firewoods without bløød cells
As for the old folks, the look more like those who are inches close to joining their ancestors early, whilst young children are looking like what I could best describe as a ‘sorry sight’
The only set of people that doesn’t really seem affected by this drought situation are the wealthy families in the village who had warehouses with foodstuffs that were stacked there way before the drought had surfaced,
and these set of people are just too self-centered to think of sharing their food items with other hungry villagers like myself.
Well, my name is Rana Uka and I am currently two decades old, this is just me venting out my frústrations on the plâgue that has befallen the Land of my forefathers.
I sighed some more as I thought of the unavoidable consequences that might inevitably occur if this drought plâgue still persist longer than this month
It is an already known fact that hunger is one of the slow kīller of humankind and inasmuch as much no déâth has yet been recorded in the Land,
I do know it is only a matter of few more days before it will eventually happen due to lack of food; first it will be to the less privileged villagers and next to the wealthy ones when the finally run out of the food supply in their warehouses
I think it is about time I throw light on the community I do come from which is none other than the Almighty Land of Yada.
My community which is The Land of Yada consists of three neighboring communities; The Land of Gada and The Land of Zada of which The Land of Yada is the one with the highest population hence it is the most feared and respected amongst the three.
Traditionally, the three lands are governed by one priestess and a particular lady chosen for that responsibility becomes the overall ruler over the three merged communities.
To all and sundry, a priestess words and declarations are final and since there are the overall highest authority, this automatically makes the community which the mantle of priesthood rest on the strongest and most respected community. it is one of the reasons the three communities often wishes and sometimes bâttle to have the priestess chosen from their Land.
From time memorial, the priestess is usually chosen from either of the three communities and from what my late parents told me, the chosen priestess can only be dethroned once and automatically loses her mantle of priesthood if a special rítual is collectively carried out by the villagers for her dethronement.
The priestess is the one who communicates directly with the deities and serves as connection between the gods and the people, but it is sad to say that it has been over two decades yet no priestess has ever been enthroned after the dëäth of the previous one that was chosen from the Land of Gada
from what I had also heard from the wide-mouthed kinsmen, the reason for this is because no one has yet been seen to be in possession of the powers that is befitting of such a mantle of priesthood.
And fortunately for us as the villagers, throughout those years we were never bothered by it since we never had a serious need for a priestess
but with this drought that has just befallen the Land, we will definitely need a solution before it ends up wiping the whole community out.
Already divinations, sacrifices, and inquiries has been made to several deities in the Land but none has been able to solve this problem for us, for some reasons the are rather keeping silent on our pleas.
Who knows? maybe if our land had a powerful priestess like other formidable communities do, then the deities would have harken unto our pleas and communicated a profound solution to whom is empowered to hear them
but since the opposite is the case, we are left with limited choice but to endure this for as long it will likely last.
As for me Rana, I can only wish that I could not dïe of hunger before that time of breakthrough finally comes through.
I thought heaving sadly as I adjusted well on the thatched bamboo bed I sat on, and then gently I laid down whilst placing my two hands under my head for support in the absence of a pillow.
Sometimes I do feel so alone in this village of mine and ever since the dëäth of my parents two years ago, I have been staying all alone in this thatched hut I inherited from them
I have to admit that there is absolutely no day I don’t miss them and oftentimes wish I still had them here with me.
I sighed again with my eyes now closed, I intended to force myself to sleep but a loud yawn involuntarily forced its way out of my mouth and the worms in my stomach did not quit singing for food
I shook my head pitifully as I pushed the dreadlocks on my head backwards and dramatically said to myself in low tunes
” Rana I think it is about time you quit pitying yourself… I have to go out and find anything to eat before hunger will use me to open the first death record in this land of mine…” as I was saying this, some strange noise coming from the door startled me.
I lay with the w@r of hunger rumbling in my intestines, I heard a heavy scary thud on my wooden door
I startled in fear, who or what could that be?
I sat up and turned down the light from my oil lamp, that was the little oil I managed to get through begging yesterday and it was almost burning out.
I lowered it more, and sat still.
Wondering what was going on and who was trying to break down my hut.
Another loud and more scarier sound from the door send me crashing off from my bamboo bed.
Fear gripped me because another hit may eventually destroy my poor door that mut and rust has eaten halfway.
“What is going on, what am I going to do now..?
I crawled under my bamboo bed and hide while praying to the gods to come to my rescue.
Read – Thorn between episode 35 – 36
DETHRONED
Episode 2
By AMAH’S HEART
As I lay with the war of hunger rumbling in my intestines, I heard a heavy scary thud on my wooden door
I startled in fear, who or what could that be?
I sat up and turned down the light from my oil lamp, that was the little oil I managed to get through begging yesterday and it was almost burning out.
I lowered it more, and sat still.
Wondering what was going on and who was trying to break down my hut
Another loud and more scarier sound send me crashing off from my bamboo bed.
Fear gripped me because another hit may eventually destroy my poor door that mut and rust has eaten halfway.
“What is going on, what am I going to do now..?”
I thought inwardly as I crawled under my bamboo bed to hide while praying to the gods to come to my rescue.
” Open this door right now! we know you are in there!.. open this door!” A masculine voice rang out as the pounding on the door increased until they finally succeeded in breaking down the poor door to gain passage
They barged into my thatched room and from where I laid hidden I was shaking in fear of the unknown.
I could see their feet and from my mental calculation I could tell that there were about two men in the room
Oh, my heart was pounding as though it will force its way out of my chest and I watched from my hideout as the ransacked my room, making a mess out of the little possession I had in the room
After some minutes of searching, I heard them ask each other in inaudible tunes
” Guy, I thought you said you kept an eye on her… and that you never saw her leaving this room since today” I heard a familiar voice ask another man
Wow! so it is actually me that they came looking for…? but why…? I queried myself in confusion.
Somehow I knew it wasn’t a good idea to run into a lion’s den, that is why despite my confused state I kept mute and continued staying hidden under the bed
” I swear it Jack.. the girl hasn’t left this house since yesterday!” the second guy huskily responded probably in an attempt to convince the first guy.
The ‘Jack’ name the second guy previously mentioned rang a bell in my head immediately
Jack! isn’t that Mazi Ejiro’s son?. Oh my gods, if truly my assumption is right then it means I am finished!
Jack is one of the nøtorious village stout who is reputable for all kinds of hāvocs especially if you offend him, his partner in crime is another nøtorious stout by name James
It’s now I understand why the first voice had sounded so familiar when I heard it
but then what does Jack want from me? I mean I honestly do not remember doing him any wrong, so why me..?
why exactly are they here looking for me? or did I unknowingly do anything wrong to them…?
should I just go out and confront them, that way I will find out what all this is about and offer an apology if needed..?
I was still battling with these thoughts within me and made up my mind to opt for the later until I heard the next words that frightened the life out of me
” So James where is she?.. you know we need to find her quick to finish our job else we lose the remaining money… and even stand a bigger chance of losing the part payment we were given!” Jack uttered already out of impatience.
“…you know what? lets just get the héll out of here!”
I laid there shaking in fear wondering what job there were paid to carry out that involves me
” Wait Jack! I think we have been ignoring the bed area… we are yet to check under it… who knows? the girl might actually be hiding herself there” the second guy whom I figured is James said abruptly halting Jack’s movement.
Afterwards James begun shattering my beddings and before I could think of a way out of this impromptu mess,
he lifted the bamboo bed I was hiding under and threw it to the other side leaving me bare to any normal eyes.
I laid there staring directly at their faces and I actually thought that my world is going to end since I have been caught,
not until I heard Jack stomp his feet on the mud floor as he shouted at James
” now that you’ve lifted the bed you assumed the girl will be hiding under, where is she?.. tell me James! have you seen her anywhere around this room?” Jack kept ranting on and on at James who retaliated already fed up
” It is enough man!.. after all we are in this search together… moreover it is possible that the Rana girl must have ran away earlier tonight when I left to call you… which means it is not entirely my fault!”
” James if it not entirely your fault then who is sharing in the blame for your incompetence..?”
I looked at these two vibrant men arguing and I wondered if they were blind or something.
I mean I was obviously laying right beside them without any more coverage yet the couldn’t see me?
I felt something like an electric current passing through me and when I looked up to see what is happening,
I realized that it was Jack who had walked through me to the other side of the thatched hut.
From all indications, Jack isn’t giving up hence he wants to search my room more thoroughly by himself
On the mud floor I was feeling so anxious whilst my poor chest was beating very fast.
It is out of this fear and trepidation that I poked my left fingers into my braided dreadlocked hair that is beautifully adorned with cowries delegated to unmarried maidens like myself.
In the process, a cowrie fell off my hair and laid close to my ear region.
I sighed heavily upon seeing this and with my outstretched hands I reached out to take the cowrie so as to replace it,
Before I could successfully pick it up I saw Jack’s eyes looking towards my direction,
slowly he walked towards where I laid and bent very close to my ears region
Out of fear I withdrew my hands immediately but deep within me I was praying to the gods of our Land that I shouldn’t be caught.
then right there before my eyes Jack slowly picked up my piece of cowrie with a crocked smile on his face
” Look what I found James…” Jack said as he lifted the cowrie up to show James
” So? Jack if I may ask what do you intend doing with that thing?” James asked looking at Jack in disdain
” James this is definitely one of the cowries that Rana uses to adorn her braids.. I guess while she was running away she forgot it here but this will be to our advantage” Jack answered laughing
” You are confusing me Jack! I don’t understand what you mean by being to our advantage… how will a common piece of cowrie help us find her?” James quizzed and truly with the look on his face, I could tell that he is truly confused by Jack’s previous statement
I was confused too and my ears aches to hear what Jack’s reply would be
” Oh common James! don’t be a dúllard.. anyways like I said earlier this will definitely be useful in our next search for Rana.. so don’t worry your head because I do have a solid plan”
With this conclusion, Jack eventually gave up on the search and together he left my hut with his partner James who held my cowrie in his right hand.
After I was sure the stouts had gone, I stood up from my laying position and sat up straight on the mud floor
I adjusted my back to rest on the wall of my hut and my mind keeps wandering
Who is paying Jack and his partner in crime to search for me and why?
also I don’t understand why James and Jack couldn’t see me even when I was right beside them?
or wait! am I now a dead person?
what exactly is going on with me? I thought inwardly as none of today’s happenings was actually making sense to me.
But what I didn’t know is that they were not entirely gone, they were hiding outside waiting for me.
Tbc