That night Dioha could not sleep. He kept pondering over what Eshu had said. As one of the Watchers, and luckily still having his past memories intact, Dioha knew his colleagues and their antics. Eshu was a schemer, a negotiator, always never revealing his true intentions. Even his face never gave him away unless he chose so. Dioha knew there was more to what Eshu said during his visit, he just couldn't piece together what the god of wisdom had in store for him. Eshu's visit only solidified Dioha's suspicion that Eshu had a hand in his death. He was the main suspect now, followed by Aganju, then the others. Dioha couldn't afford to trust anyone just yet. Dioha tossed and turned in his small bed for hours. Unable to bear it any longer, he got up at 2am and left his room.
First he wandered into the dining hall which was totally deserted at this hour. Next, he went to the training ground. There at the training ground he met a few cadets working out. These were the most senior officers of the force. Even the Grandmaster was there, lifting an insane weight. What he was lifting must have been 650kg because the entire flat round metals from the other weights had all been removed and placed on this weight the Grandmaster was lifting. Several cadets eyed Dioha as he walked in. Since there was no law prohibiting juniors from mingling with seniors, no one could question why Dioha was here. But from the looks that many gave him, it seemed like they might but they didn't. Since the weights were not available, Dioha decided to sprint round the arena 300 times. Since he was lacking in strength he decided to increase his stamina a little bit believing this might improve his strength too. Besides with his deficiency in strength, he needed to have the stamina to drag fights for longer periods and wear out the enemy. He didn't know what he'd be facing in the test but he needed to be as prepared as possible even though he was going in at a huge disadvantage.
Dioha began his run at a normal and natural pace. He still didn't want to give himself away. Enforcers ran faster than every other race or tribe, but Dioha, as the Watcher for the Enforcer tribe, could run even faster. He didn't want to raise suspicion though rumors had intensified after the latest visit by Eshu. His intention with this run was not to go faster but to run at a certain speed for a very long time without reducing his speed. Some cadets observed him while others continued with what they were doing though they kept glancing his way every now and then. The Grandmaster was among the latter. He lay on his back lifting weights and would look at Dioha whenever he ran past him. Soon Dioha got to 300 rounds but wasn't feeling the list bit tired, so he decided to continue till he was. He continued to 500 at which point he noticed his speed dropping. He increased his speed some more but was only able to sustain it 50 more rounds, after which he sat on the floor in a corner, his chest heaving up and down as he rested.
A wall clock hanging on the wall of one of the complexes near the training ground showed the time to be 4am meaning Dioha had run for two hours. The senior cadets were now sparring but this was different from what the juniors did at noon. This spar was in the form of a hand tussle, where the two contestants placed their elbows on a flat surface, held each other's hands in a firm grip, then pushed. The hand that went all the way down to touch the flat surface would lose the match.
Dioha decided it was time he headed back inside, hit the shower and return to bed. He got up and headed towards the exit. As he approached the group of cadets someone spoke out, calling Dioha to come and prove his mettle in the arm wrestling. Some cadets scolded the person who suggested such a thing but others applauded and joined in. They blocked his path while Dioha shook his head and waved his index finger at them. They insisted yet Dioha refused to change his mind or budge. Some senior cadets expressed their anger and disappointments by calling him names such as weakling, pussy and other derogatory names. Still they wouldn't part for him to go through. Some shoving and pushing around ensued and Dioha never retaliated once.
"LET HIM THROUGH! RESPECT AND HONOR IS WHAT THIS PLACE IS BUILT ON. NEVER FORGET THAT."
And that was the Grandmaster intervening at the last possible moment before the scene degenerated any further.
The disgruntled cadets stopped at once and let Dioha through. The Grandmaster had partially hoped Dioha would partake in the arm wrestling. He was curious and would have loved to know more about this little kid who the council treated with such respect. Of course the boy looked so much like the Watcher for the God of war who had been killed eighteen years ago, but it couldn't be him. It was as impossible as the sun rising in the middle of the night. He had his suspicions though, and he was seldom wrong.
That morning during breakfast, everyone waited to see Dioha at the dining hall, especially those who'd heard of what transpired in the middle of the night. Dioha woke up that morning to find that breakfast had been brought to his room already. Because he had slept very late he'd had to stay longer in bed. After taking his bath and meal, a cadet had come to inform him that he had a guest in the waiting room. Dioha headed straight to the waiting room where he was met by Osoose.
"IN YOUR CURRENT STATE, THIS TEST IS GOING TO BE LIFE-THREATNING FOR YOU." Osoóse began.
"YOU SHOULD'VE SWAYED THE COUNCIL AWAY FROM THIS IDEA." Dioha replied sitting down.
"AGANJU HOLDS SWAY NOW. YOU SAW THERE WAS NOTHING I COULD'VE DONE. BESIDES YOU WEREN'T EXPECTING THE COUNCIL TO JUST REINSTATE YOU, WERE YOU? YOU DIED, YOUR SEAT WAS DECLARED VACANT, AND JUST IN CASE NO ONE FILLED YOU IN, A WATCHERS TEST WAS CONDUCTED SOME YEARS AGO, AND NO ONE CAME OUT ALIVE. NOT EVEN ONE." Osoóse supplied.
"THAT'S COS I WAS STILL ALIVE."
"WHICH IS WHY THIS TEST IS HOLDING. ALL THE TRIBES IN THE ENTIRE NGAME KINGDOM ARE AWARE OF THE TEST. THEIR CHIEFTAINS WILL BE JOINING US HERE TOMORROW. IF YOU COME OUT VICTORIOUS THEY WILL BE WITNESSES TO THE TRUTH, WHICH IS, THAT YOU'VE BEEN ALIVE ALL THESE WHILE AND YOU HAVE FINALLY COME FORTH TO RECLAIM YOUR SEAT."
"BY LOOKING INTO MY HEAD, SEEING ALL I'VE BEEN DOING THESE YEARS." Dioha countered heatedly.
"YES, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, CONVINCE THEM AS TO WHY THEIR SONS ALL DIED IN THE LAST TEST. THIS, THEY WILL TAKE BACK TO THE PARENTS OF THE KIDS AND PUT ACROSS TO THEM...AFTER THAT TEST YEARS AGO, THE PEOPLE LOST FAITH IN THE SYSTEM. TEMPLES ARE RECORDING FEWER AND FEWER ATTENDANCES. OUR MAKERS ARE GETTING WEAKER AND WEAKER COS FAITH POWER IS DWINDLING. PRAYERS ARE NO LONGER OFFERED IN EARNEST. THE PEOPLE'S HEARTS ARE TAINTED WITH DISTRUST, ANGER, AND FEAR. SO MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE, THE COUNCIL NEEDS YOU TO SUCCEED, TO RESTORE OUR RIGHT STANDING WITH THE POPULACE." Osoóse finished.
"WELL, EXCEPT I GET HELP FROM THE COUNCIL I'M AFRAID I MIGHT BE UNABLE TO GUARANTEE SUCCESS. THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN A BETTER WAY TO RESTORE THE PEOPLE'S FAITH IN THE GODS."
"THERE IS BUT AGANJU WON'T LET THE COUNCIL CONSIDER IT. HE WANTS US TO RULE THE PEOPLE THROUGH FEAR AND TERROR. AND WE KNOW THAT ONLY SERVES HIM MORE. LOOK AMADI, YOU HAVE TO DO ALL YOU CAN TO PASS THE TEST. WHEN YOU GET BACK TO YOUR ROOM, YOU WILL FIND A RING WITH A BIG TOPAZ NEAR THE HEAD OF YOUR BED. IT'S IMBUED WITH MAGICAL PROPERTIES TO UNLOCK YOUR FULL ABILITIES, BUT BEWARE, IT WILL ONLY LAST 24 HOURS. AFTER THAT, THE RING IS USELESS AND YOU ARE BACK TO THIS CURRENT STATE. CONSIDER IT A GIFT FROM THE COUNCIL. YOU HAVE MOTHER NGAM'S BLESSINGS TO USE IT." Osoóse lowered his voice considerably when talking about the ring.
"GREAT. HEY, CAN YOU DO ME A FAVOUR?" Dioha asked.
"WHAT IS IT?"
"I NEED YOU TO LOCATE A FRIEND, A CONSCIOUSNESS THAT SHARED THIS BODY WITH ME. HE'S BEEN WITH ME RIGHT FROM THE TIME I CAME BACK, BUT I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM HIM OF LATE." Dioha said.
"YOU MEAN THE SOUL THAT HAS SHARED YOUR BODY. HE'S STILL AROUND BUT HAS WILLINGLY CHOSEN TO TAKE THE BACK SEAT." Osoóse calmly answered.
"WHY?"
Dioha was very disturbed to learn that Lanre had purposely chosen to ignore him. To learn that nothing was wrong with Lanre yet he kept silent all these while was very upsetting.
"HE IMPEDES YOUR POWER WHEN HE SHOWS UP. YOU CAN'T HAVE HIM AND YOUR POWERS AT THE SAME TIME.
HE HAS FIGURED THAT OUT."
"BUT I DON'T EVEN HAVE UP TO 50% OF MY POWERS RIGHT NOW SO IT'S USELESS FOR HIM TO STAY HIDDEN ALL THE SAME."
"YOU SHOULD KEEP YOUR VOICE DOWN. YOU DON'T WANT TO MAKE YOURSELF A TARGET." Osoóse shushed Dioha.
"I'M ALREADY A TARGET. WHOEVER WANTS ME DEAD IS STILL OUT THERE AND WILL KNOW AFTER THIS TEST, THAT I'M STILL ALIVE."
"YOU HAVE TO START CONSIDERING THAT THERE MIGHT COME A TIME YOU HAVE TO LET YOUR FRIEND GO SO YOU CAN ATTAIN YOUR FULL POTENTIAL AGAIN." Osoóse advised.
"NOT IF I CAN HELP IT."
Dioha was going to make reference to the fact that he was using someone else's body but decided against it. Better to hold some information back, even from allies.
Who knows, Osoóse may even already know this wasn't his body.
"AMADI, YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE STUBBORN ALL THE TIME. BESIDES, YOUR FRIEND CAN HEAR YOU. HE WILL COME OUT IF HE WANTS TO, BUT IF YOU ASK ME, I'LL SAY HE'S DOING YOU A FAVOR." Osoóse said with a smile.
"WELL, I DON'T NEED SUCH FAVORS. LANRE,DO YOU HEAR ME? I DON'T NEED SUCH FAVORS." Dioha raised his voice a bit at the last sentence.
"YOU HAVE TO CONCENTRATE ON WHAT IS AT STAKE HERE AND NOW. BUT, IF I MAY ASK, HOW COME YOU'RE THIS WEAK?" Osoóse asked.
Dioha was thinking how best to answer the question. Clearly, Osoóse didn't know this was a hijacked body. He had reservations about revealing everything that happened to him to the council especially since the mastermind of his assassination was likely a member of the council. Thankfully, Osoóse gave him options he could pick from.
"DID YOU LOSE YOUR POWERS WHEN RUSHING BACK THROUGH THE VOID? OR YOU WENT BACK IN TIME? I CAN REMEMBER WHEN YOU ENTERED FOR THE WATCHERS TEST AS A YOUNG BOY WITH OTHER BOYS YOUR AGE. YOU WERE SO SURE AND CONFIDENT. EVEN EAGER TO TAKE THE TEST. A TRAIT ALL WOULD BE WATCHERS POSSESS A DAY BEFORE THE TEST."
"I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO MY POWERS. IT COMES AND GOES." Dioha answered vaguely. Of course he knew why his powers were erratic. Of course he knew if he reunited with his real body, he would regain his full powers. But it was better he kept that information to himself for now.
"I CAN BANISH THIS CONSCIOUSNESS AWAY FOREVER, ALLOW YOU START GAINING YOUR POWERS BACK. HE SHOULDN'T EVEN BE TETHERED TO YOUR BODY. MUST HAVE FOLLOWED YOU THROUGH THE VOID. PESKY SPIRITS." Osoóse said with a hint of disgust.
"ENOUGH ABOUT THAT ALREADY. LET'S TALK ABOUT WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING IN THE COUNCIL SINCE I WAS AWAY." Dioha quickly changed the subject.
The Gods hated spirits, this feeling obviously radiated amongst the Watchers also. Dioha didn't think Lanre was pesky so he changed the subject.
Osoose and Dioha sat in the waiting room for hours catching up. Lunch was served to Dioha in the waiting room. Osoose left in the evening when it was very late. Dioha went straight to his room after that, had dinner and a bath before turning in for the night. At midnight an ominous alarm went off.