Nyansakrom:Chapter 1

When Nyansakrom (the village of wisdom) was first established, Dede, who would later be known as the strongest asafo in the village, was but a child. Agor, brother of the true ruler of the village decided that the village had to go to war with other villages to expand its territory. Akua, the true ruler, once content with listening to music and sleeping all day, was forced to oppose her brother, the self proclaimed king Agor.

This gave rise to the first civil war dividing the village into two sides. An eight year old girl named Dede was forcibly recruited along with other girls by an Asafoakyere (female Asafo Captain) named Kyeiwaa to be a part of Ekua's forces. The children were forced to duel each other from sunrise to sunset. Those who failed to endure this were locked up in the )bour efiase (Rock prison).

Kyeiwaa then trained with Dede harshly, their duels ending with Dede unconscious in the dirt and bleeding from knife wounds on her arms and legs. Kyeiwaa treated her this way because she believed that a nearly inhuman fighting force was needed to protect the village.

Years passed and Dede rapidly rose through the ranks to become an asafoakyere edziekyir (deputy) of the second Asafo Company, one of 8 all-female Asafo Companies. Led by Warqueen Ekua, both sides clashed fiercely on a daily basis. On one Monday morning, their battle was extremely severe.

Dede slashed through the blades of two asafo and struck their heads with the hilt of her afena (long sword). She dodged the arrows of eight archers and sped towards them, sheathing her akodze and drawing out her spear. She struck two of them with the wooden shaft, and kicked three in the face. Two of the asafo slashed through her spear, snapping it in half. She struck their heads with the two halves and leapt at the last one, kicking her in the face.

She spun quickly to her right, seconds before a spear struck the place where she had stood. An asafo lunged at her, her ndar (machete) swinging wildly at her neck. She sidestepped the attack and struck the left side of her head, felling her.

A bloodcurdling cry of anguish rang out from behind her. Alarmed, she spun around to find Kyeiwaa slashing several asafo's faces with a bloodstained afowatsena (double or triple bladed akofena). A wide grin was plastered on her face amidst the cries of anguish. One bloodstained asafo scrambled away from her.

Kyeiwaa continued to approach her, even when the asafo snapped her akofena across her knee in a gesture of surrender and knelt before her. Kyeiwaa slashed her across the chest, kicked her down and as she swung her akodze downwards, Dede darted toward the enemy and blocked Kyeiwaa's swing with her own afena.

Kyeiwaa glared at Dede. 'Step aside, asafo'

'She's already beaten' replied Dede. 'She doesn't have to die'.

Kyeiwaa shoved Dede aside and swung at the asafo again but Dede blocked the strike. Kyeiwaa then swung her akodze at Dede, forcing her backwards as she blocked each strike.

'Kyeiwaa, sheathe your akodze' ordered Ekua. 'Dede's right. 'That asafo, along with the others, is a prisoner of war'. Kyeiwaa glanced around her as Ekua's asafo bound and restrained the opposing asafo.

Kyeiwaa sheathed her akofena. 'Yes, Warqueen Ekua'. 'The mbrewanananom )kofo) (fighting sages) and the other asafo will join you shortly in the War room.'

Dede led the prisoners of war into )bo) efiase and made sure that their wounds were treated, before leaving for the Posuban (Asafo Armoury). She handed over her afena, bent and cracked from blocking Kyeiwaa's strikes, to the sekanbontrofi (weapons maker). She was given a new one and sheathed it, rubbing her bruised palms on her way back to the efiase.

Suddenly Kyeiwaa marched into the efiase with 10 other asafo. They drew their akodze and edged slowly towards the prisoners until Dede blocked their path.

'As part of the asafo's training to be more inhuman, Kyeiwaa began, 'I've decided that the asafo attempt to kill as many of the prisoners as possible'.

Dede unsheathed her afena and brandished it. 'You're not going to hurt them. 'They've been through enough".

The other asafo unsheathed their akodze and charged at her. She punched one in the face and takcled three from below with low sweeps of her legs. Three of them lunged at her but she evaded their blades and swung her afena once, slashing through the blades. She stepped forward and they nervously stepped back.

Irritated, Kyeiwaa shoved them aside and walked over them as she unsheathed her afowatsena. Dede steadied herself as Kyeiwaa lunged at her. Kyeiwaa's swung at her with such force that even though Dede blocked it, she was sent sprawling backwards. Dede began to rise from the ground but Kyeiwaa stamped on her chest with her left foot and kicked her afena away with her right.

She raised her akodze to deal Dede the killing blow when she felt someone tug on it. The akodze was wrenched from her grip and Kyeiwaa turned around to face Abrewanana Ewurama, leader of the fighting sages.

'You shouldn't treat your subordinates that way, Kyeiwaa.' she warned. 'It's bad for morale'. 'Warqueen Ekua has ordered that you let the prisoners of war return to Agor's territory.

'Why?' asked Kyeiwaa as she lifted her foot from Dede.

'Probably', cut in Dede, as she dusted herself, 'because it would be a good way of showing our side's commitment to a peace agreement between us and Agor's forces.'

'We don't need a peace agreement, ' scoffed Kyeiwaa. 'With our superior fighting prowess, killling Agor's forces will only take a few days'.

Ewurama sighed. 'Kyeiwaa, given your recent behaviour, you have clearly forgotten that life is precious. As a result, Ekua has ordered that I counsel you for the remainder of the week, starting tomorrow.'

That night, Dede led the prisoners of war out of the efiase, Kyeiwaa was able to gather 15 like-minded asafo for one purpose: to attack the prisoners before they reached the enemy camp and in the confusion, kill as many of Agor's forces as possible. Dede was a few steps away from the border separating both sides when they were ambushed by Kyeiwaa and her asafo.

'Send the prisoners across the border' Dede instructed three of the asafo. 'The rest of us will hold Kyeiwaa's group off".

As the asafo attacked her, Dede blocked their attacks and slashed through three asafo blades in one swing of her akodze before striking each asafo with the hailt of her akofena. She kicked an asafo into two other asafo and blocked a strike from behind, spinning around to strike her foe with a sheathed afena.

Three asafo took aim at her and let off six arrows which she slashed, deflecting the arrowheads into the bowstrings of the asafo, splitting them. Behind her, two asafo on her side used her blade breaking style to slash through their opponents blades before striking their heads with the hilts of their akodze.

Three of Kyeiwaa's asafo spun towards her, synchronising their attacks as Dede blocked each strike until she spun away from one of them, disarmed a secondand struck her chin with the hilt of her afena, felling her. She leapt towards the two, striking them both simultaneously with her right and left feet.

Kyeiwaa swung at her from behind but she spun to her left, her hilt angled toward the back of her head. Kyeiwaa grabbed the hilt, wrenching the akodze from Dede's grasp, slashed her left arm and kicked her in the ribs. Dede stumbled backwards, ducking as Kyeiwaa aimed for her neck with her machetes.

She drew out her own machetes and fought back, their blades drawing sparks each time they clashed. Kyeiwaa forced Dede backwards and slashed through her machetes. She swung downwards on Dede's left shoulder but she sidestepped the attack, wrenched a machete from Kyeiwaa's left hand and punched her in the throat.

Kyeiwaa stumbled back, coughing and sputtering. Dede clutched the akodze with her right hand, the left clutching her bruised ribs as they circled each other. Dede darted forwards striking Kyeiwaa across the chin and sending her into a pile of leaves. By midnight, the other asafo companies led by Ekua and Ewurama arrived at the edge of the border and detained Kyeiwaa and the asafo that came with her.

'By tomorrow, the peace agreement will be finalised.' Ewuramam revealed. 'Agor and the top ranking members of his ekuo (faction) will be sent to a new efiase called Mampam, guarded by the fighting sages.'

'When this village was founded, the mbrewanananom were formed to prevent wars from occuring. However, we failed and even worse, had to take sides, against our pacifist beliefs' Ewurama sighed. 'Leaving the village and guarding the Mampam prison is our way of making up for our failures'.

'Dede, since you are the most powerful asafo at present,' said Ekua. 'I want you to become the Asafoakyere of Asafo Company 2.'

'Very well' noted Dede. 'But I have conditions.'

'Name them'.

'No more forced recruitments into the asafo. An asafo must be aged 16. The blade breaking techniques will be mandatory for all asafo and each of them must embrace a philosophy of restraint and peace.'

'Agreed' noted Ekua.

The next day, both sides met for the reunification of the village. After the ceremony, Dede asked Ewurama whether the peace would last this time.

'I certainly hope so, despite the war-filled times we live in' she replied. 'Perhaps in the future, we will all be united as one people with one destiny'.

'Then for now, promised Dede, 'I'll do my best to keep the peace'.