Akyeaa: Chapter 6

Ntim tossed and turned in his bed that night. Despite his best efforts, something kept him awake. A sense that something malicious, something utterly dark was in the village. In his house. In his room. Ntim sat up from bed and stared at the doorway in horror.

Standing there, in pitch black clothes, with eyes that seemed to peer into his very soul was the harbinger of destruction. The self proclaimed god that the founder of the village had nearly been sacrificed to.

He remembered the stories of her origin well. Centuries ago, a childless couple had been given a doll, with the promise that it would become a child overnight. That night, the trees withered away, the birds fell from the sky, and all their livestock died inexplicably. The doll had become a child but the fauna and flora of the village were no more.

The child was named Ekuaba. But it wasn't long before the village realised the enormity of the couple's crime. The first to disappear were the village gossips, then the drunkards. The bullies were next. In time, she would become the village's fiercest warrior.

She slaughtered entire armies and was worshipped as a god of war. One who demanded allegiance through sacrifice. The sacrifical slave, Abeiku escaped and his village paid the ultimate price for it. Only her followers survived.

She peered at the old man. 'You remind me of Abeiku. You look just like he did when I pointed him out for sacrifice.'

'Is that why you're here?' To destroy his village because he fled from you?'

'No. I'm here because I want to live forever. I'm in this room because you and your people have five minutes to leave the village before we burn it down.'

'You brought your followers?'

'All fifty of them. Do you know why they follow me? It's because I've trained them to be utterly loyal to me. To sacrifice their children, like Abeiku's parents did or abandon them in the forest, like the parents of your new nkunimdifo) means that nothing matters to them anymore. Except me.'

Ntim rolled off the bed, grabbed a rifle from under it and took aim at her head. 'You'll never get the sankofa bird. I'll make certain of that'.

'I don't care about the sankofa bird, boy. And if you've read the legends about me, that akodze isn't going to do you much good'.

The rifle went off twice. Below her followers restrained the guards and patiently waited, unmoved by the gunshots. A blur of white punched one in the gut, causing her to double over. A second had her teeth knocked out as Akyeaa kicked her in the face.

She tackled a third with a low sweep of her right foot. The remainder brandished their torches at her and attacked. She spun away from the flames and fought back, clearing a path through them.

Suddenly a gray haired figure was thrown out of Ntim's house. Akyeaa recognised it and dove towards it, catching Ntim before he could hit the ground. Akyeaa gently laid him down and gritted her teeth as Ekuaba walked out, untouched.

Without warning, Akyeaa darted towards her, arm swinging. She put all her strength into her left arm, her fist striking Ekuaba on the chest. She then kicked her across the chin with her right foot and struck her belly with her right knee. Ekuaba did not budge an inch.

She struck the nkunimdifo) across the face with the back of her left hand, sending her crashing into Fosuaa's counselling hut. There was a loud creak as the hut slowly collapsed on her. The followers nodded in approval as Ekuaba brushed aside the debris with one hand, revealing a very stunned Akyeaa.

Ekuaba dug her left knee into the fallen Akyeaa, her right knee cracked the ground next to her. She then calmly pummeled Akyeaa into the ground. Over and over and over again. Until Akyeaa, nkunimdifo) of Ankonamkrom lay very still.

She rose to her feet, walked up to her followers and snapped her fingers. Immediately the followers, encouraged by her show of force, began to set fire to the buildings. Ntim led the villagers away with Fosuaa carrying Akyeaa. Ordinarily, they would have stayed to fight but one glare from Ekuaba was enough to let them know that resisting the attack was futile.