Saadakrom; Chapter 2

In the biggest forest of Saadakrom, under it's largest Odum tree, stood three women. Kneeling in the middle of them was a young girl.

It's founder, Saada held a calabash of white powder, which she sprinkled on the head of the girl.

'Akumaa, do you promise to be a true woman in this village of women by being awesome in word and in deed?'

'Most definitely'.

'Then rise, Akumaa. From this moment forth, you're a woman'.

'Esteemed elders, give her the goods'.

Silently, the two women handed Akumaa several pieces of cloth, 20 bags of gold dust and cowries and two machetes. Which could be used for farm work and self defense.

It was a very different concept of puberty rites from the type Akumaa's hometown had had in mind.

2 years earlier, she and eight other girls had been forcibly dragged to the riverside of her village by the other women. They had been informed that they would first undergo what they termed 'essential cutting' before they would be paraded in front of the menfolk as real women.

Saada and her women had suddenly appeared by the riverside, and sensing that the girls were in distress, she had struck down 20 of the women and men barehanded, and had given them a choice. Stay in the village with its backward ways or join her in searching for a haven.

Saadakrom was that haven. A village of women that was spared the internal conflicts of Nyansakrom and Annankrom. It's outer walls were surrounded by a series of mazes that no invading army could get past. Akumaa dropped the goods on the mat of her own hut. Her designated abrewanana watched her quietly.

Every villager had one abrewanana assigned to her until they reached adulthood. After Saada bade her farewell, she headed to the village circle to pick her future occupation from the elder who oversaw occupations.

She had no intention of joining the Afena Fitaa (White Longsword), the elite guard of Saada. She decided to join the nkwansrafo (spies). They gathered intelligence during vital supply runs and crushed those who dared to attack them.

)baapanin Awo assigned them to a two woman unit, which included her best friend Sena. Sena was usually troubled and had a haunted look in her eyes. Like one who was burdened with a great secret. She was brave, honest and smart, traits which Akumaa found admirable. Sena managed a rare smile when she noticed Akumaa.

They headed to Nnwomkrom, the village of music, not just to get supplies but to find any intel that might be useful to the village. Most people outside the village did not believe that their village existed and Saada aimed to keep it that way until the world around them purged itself of senseless violence.

In two years, Akumaa hoped that the village would become self sufficient, removing the need for a supply unit. Which was all well and good, considering that their enemies were said to be everywhere. They entered the village and were greeted with the sounds of xylophones and drums.

'Alright this place is a bit strange. I will not be coming back here soon' decided Akumaa. There was a short clack of an akofena being drawn out of a b)ha (scabbard) behind her and she spun away from it as it slashed the stall. The wielder's face was covered in red and black warpaint, her arms bore the image of two red snakes and she wore the black garment of an )brafo) (state executioner).

The wielder eyed Akumaa and swung again at her, her blade missing her neck by inches. Akuma drew out her machete and swung it at her opponent's, intending to break her blade. The )brafo) swung her blade twice, the first swing pushing her akodze back, and the second disarmed her.

The )brafo) sunk into an offensive stance but Akumaa, rather than flee, clenched her fists and charged her. Her right fist surged towards the )brafo)'s neck but she stepped aside and blocked the punch with the flat side of her blade. Akumaa winced as bolts of pain shot through her fist.

She rubbed it and stopped only when she noticed the )brafo) grinning at her.

'I'm sorry, little one. Do you need a moment to ease your pain?'

Akumaa's left fist shot towards the )brafo)'s stunned face but she stopped it, inches away from her nose, drove her knee into Akumaa's belly and smashed her fist into the right side of her head.

Akumaa stumbled to her left, wondering for a brief moment, why everything was spinning around her. She was kicked squarely in the chest by her opponent into a yam stall, crushing it.

'It's nothing personal, girl. As a villager of Agyemankrom, it is our duty to kill villagers of Saadakrom'. Thinking quickly, Akumaa threw four yams at her face and by the time, the )brafo) sidestepped the yams, Akumaa had fled.

In the centre of the market, a tall )brafo) faced Sena. 'Sena, my daughter, your assignment was simple. Wander the forest until Saada's forces found you. Live with them and at the right moment, lead us into the village under cover of darkness to claim it as our own.'

'Yet, ever since your stay there, you've refused to contact us outside the village walls. If you are no longer committed to the cause of Agyemankrom, then I take you back home by force and we will extract the information we need from you.'

Suddenly Akumaa lunged at the )brafo), slamming her into the ground. Akumaa seized a stunned Sena's hand and led her out of the village. They did not stop running until they were safely behind the walls of Saadakrom.

'What happened?' Where are the supplies?' asked Awo.

'Back at the village' panted Akumaa. 'Women in scary warpaint attacked us. They said they were from Agyemankrom and that it was their duty to kill us".

Awo sighed. 'You're lucky to be alive. Agyemankrom used to be a great and prosperous village. It had dreams of creating an empire and to ensure it's success of expansionary wars, their priestess selected one woman to be sacrificed. That woman was Saada.'

'Shortly after Saada freed herself, assisted others and founded this village. Agyemankrom had a new leader, one who was more logical. But in time, she grew fearful that Saadakrom would eventually become a threat to its existence and demanded that both villages reunify on Agyemankrom's harsh terms.

'Saadakrom refused and for eight years, Agyemankrom launched a campaign to claim it. It's armies had trouble locating the village and when they did, they found that it was ringed by a series of mazes, so complex that for days, they could not find the village walls and were forced to return from whence they came.'

'They felt humiliated and as a result, the traditional extremists, led by the priestess rose to power after a series of revolts against their queen. The village,once numbering 500 now had only 20 inhabitants.

Led by her, they were trained to become a lethal fighting force, bound by the belief that killing any villager of Saadakrom and claiming it as their own would enable them gain the glory and power of an empire that they sought so many years ago.'

'We can do without new supplies for now' . Awo concluded. 'You ladies should get some rest.'

They thanked her and left for their huts but halfway there, Akumaa looked around to ensure that no-one was present, seized Sena's shirt and hurled her into her hut.

'Alright, Sena. Even with all that paint on, I could tell that the )brafo) you faced was your mother. ' Explain yourself, because when you came to the village, you told me that she was dead.'

'That was part of my instructions. To gain sympathy as an orphan who had been banished from her village. To be part of the community to the extent that I would easily be able to lead the people of Agyemankrom into the village under cover of darkness.'

But after living here for so long, I'm no longer interested in betraying my people'.

'Agyemankrom?'

'No, when I say my people, I'm referring to Saadakrom. The people of Saadakrom are my people now.'

Akumaa sighed in relief. 'Well, your people are going to panic if you tell them this. Only the founder and the elders should know about this.'

'Sorry about the rough treatment' Akumaa said as she left the hut and headed towards the training grounds of the village'.

'We were told to rest, Akumaa'.

'I got smacked around today like a puppy, Sena. I have no intention of resting for a long time. '

In the ruins of Agyemankrom, )komfo Nyamekye listened to Sena's mother for 1 hour, then raised her hand for silence.

'So your daughter has betrayed us?"

'Yes'.

'You may leave'.

As she left, Nyamekye sighed. The only option left was to try and burn the maze of trees down. But she knew there were enough firebelts to stop this. Saada would see to that. She always seemed to be one step ahead of them. She suddenly sensed a prescence in her hut.

'I told you exactly where Sena was going to be. I even sent her along with just one person. And yet you still failed to take her.' said a soft voice.

Nyamekye relaxed. 'Sena's friend ruined our opportunity. We'll need more support from you before we can lay claim to Saadakrom. With both of us ruling it on equal terms of course.'

'Alright, Nyamekye. In a month's time, Saada will be in the village centre to make a brief announcement, the details of which I am currently unaware. I can lead only one of your best archers into the village the night before, to take up position and strike her down when the moment is right.'

'Why not lead us all in by yourself, tonight?'

'Because of your recent failure, I was instructed by Saada to triple the village's security. It will be decades before it is relaxed again. By then, you may have lost your grip on power. '

'This will be your last chance. Saada's death will shock the village at its core, allowing me to call for reunification of our villages. In time, Agyemankrom will become the dominant force and with our fighting force and your ambition, we will begin our march to becoming a great and glorious empire.'

Awo quietly left as silently as she came. The )brafo), bearing the image of red snakes on her arms approached Nyamekye.

'Why didn't you give us the order to attack her and torture her for information?'

'Because, Kwansaa, she came here tonight with 20 hidden archers, one for each of us. She could have killed us anytime she wanted. '

'Can we trust her?"

'No, Kwansaa, but in a month's time, you will accompany her to Saadakrom and kill it's founder. A five woman unit of nkwansrafoo will follow you both, and will return once they have spotted the entrance to lead the rest of us to Saadakrom and to victory'.