Their ultimatum cropped around their necks suffocating them slowly to their death. Surely, if the day shall pass, and they haven't fulfilled the wishes of the witches shall calamity fall on them.
The eldest priest who was given the role of building the shrine quickly order the rest of the priest down into their shrine as even himself had followed closely behind them.
To Osabiegun he mentioned even if a snail shall be killed, it will try its own best to survive. The same way he left had the chiefs and elders left the palace one after another even when sadness struck their faces like thunder from the sky.
At least, if by the next day and the cloud could still be brighter like the snow would be worthy of appreciation. But all these hadn't even gave Osabiegun a bit of hope. To him, the night shall continuously rule the day in endless bloody combat which sunk their hope to the bottom of the sea.
Deep down, if there was a power he would wield to defeat the witches he will not hesitate to find it. But where would he even find such a power? That, Sango the most powerful among all the deities had left him caused his little hope that even another god does not exist.
Osukapo, who noticed the departure of the chiefs and elders, confidently came out of her hiding and had a seat with Osabiegun and Oranmiyan. She knew nothing to say as even herself was totally discouraged yet, opened her mouth for some words to breeze into his ears.
Her husband, Osukapo called in her sweetest tone. The King of Ifa-ile, she called again. One whom no one dare to confront lest, die by their own courage, she said slowly.
That, everything that went on in the palace while the elders and chiefs were there she knew. Oranmiyan who looked surprised how she knew, could not get his anxiousness satisfied. But even Osabiegun had not really cared if she listens secretly or got to know about it by chance.
The witches were only too powerful when they come together and their power always limited once they are alone was the words she said slowly.
That, to catch a tiger, one must be slow to action and at the moment one shall pick a race, it will only be to mislead the tiger to a bait she uttered gently again.
Definitely Osabiegun will not deny the fact that the words of Osukapo had always given him hope when he needed it. And even if what she said had not occurred to him any wisdom, he had risen up boldly and sent to the eldest priest one of the guards to act on building the shrine as quick as they can.
The eldest priest who had already begun this function received the command of the king and with no further delay acted more on his role in building the shrine.
At least, if Ifa left them to perish shall the shrine of Ifa be used as the shrine of the witches as according to the witches the shrine must be in darkness. They removed and burnt all white clothes and cowries and replaced them with black clothes which was used to cover the whole of the wall.
Two of the bamboo trees were cut down from the swamp area of Ifa-ile only to be sunk into the ground in the shrine.
While the rest of the priests continued to design the shrine, the eldest priest and two of the young priests had dabbled into the village once again.
As the desire of the witches noted, for the blood of a goat must be spilled around the shrine, the blood of two women must be spilled Inside the shrine: one an old and the other a young.
But to have easily picked any of the villagers by himself and the two young priests he had taken along could easily got them beaten up, if theif lives were not even taken. He had not thought twice before he took his race firstly to the palace.
In his words as he spoke yet to Osabiegun again, only the head shall command the tail and the tail shall wag to the music of the head. Which meant, no one dare tackle the command of the king lest, perish away like the butterfly which belittled the danger of the fire.
Rapidly in these steps had Osabiegun command four of the royals guards to follow them. At the moment they were about to leave the palace had the royal bard began again another song which told the tale of the battle which involve a wholesome number of snail against an elephant.
With no struggle in his sonorous voice had the elephant marched slowly and gently on all the snails even as they weld their shell and their sharp horns, they had perIshed away like they never existed.
If anyone would develop the boldness and in their slightest mistake asked a question, shall they behead their heads and add it as more sacrifice to the witches were the command he had given to the royal guards.
The moment the villagers beheld their presence as they walked confidently in the village, peeing from a window to window in search of what they know not and as they continued to rant like a mad dog, they knew something was fishy.
Every mother and father, every husband and wife, every son and daughter all ran into their nearest safety. While some fled into the bushes some banged their locks behind their door. But even so had the royal guards caught what they wanted: an old woman in her escape jumped into her own capture.
Yet again was a door they thought could not be opened had been forced opened by the strongest of the royal guards. And if the whole family had struggled against the capture of their little daughter will have all of them served as a lesson for treason was why the only love they could portray was to cry.
As their deed was done made them head back to the shrine. The eldest priest who hadn't stop to recite the incantations which notified the witches of the heads they brought for them. That, they will rest on them and made them purified for their glory.
At their arrival at the shrine had the royal guards returned to the palace. In this speed had the eldest priest called on another set of the young priest for the preparation of the captured.
At first, they wanted to be strong. That, not a tear shall fall from their eye lid, but they couldn't as they already know it was the end of their journey on earth. At this moment were they taken into a separate hurt than the shrine.
The hurt was a smaller round house made from clay and thatched roof. In the ancestral practice of the priests, since the days of their fore fathers had the hurt been used for the function to prepare a sacrifice.
For this reason alone had the hurt always benn in terrible pollution. But even according to the rule that guided the hurt, no one, not even the priests themselves shall cover their noses as they must act as if not a sniff had occurred to them.
First, was their hair scrapped as they have been before washed with water and total nakedness have they made them. They made them get on their knees and a spell they have cast on them to make them numb that even though they knew what was happening, they had not moved a muscle.
The eldest priest yet again remained standing in between them as he began with another incantation mainly that the witches will accept this shrine and these heads as they will honor the desire of Osabiegun in defeating the village of Efon.
At their separate backs had two of the young priests taken their position with sharp cutlasses in their hands and the intact the eldest priest had closed his mouth for a quietness, they took to action as their blood splashed through every corner of the hurt.
In that instant had they placed empty calabashes by their necks as they waited to allow the rapid flow of their blood to finally gush into the calabashes.
In the same way had they slaughtered a black goat by its neck as the eldest priest continued to call some incantations, they allowed its blood in a separate calabash.
The command of the eldest priest instructed them quickly to chop off the head of the woman and the daughter which they did in their utmost strength and force.
This instant had the eldest priest carried in his both hands the two calabashes, all the rest of the priests followed closely behind him with three of the young priests who had carried the calabashes which contained blood of the goat, and the heads.
In the middle of the shrine had the eldest priest stood as he rants yet another incantation which called the presence of the witches to witness their desire.
The signal he gave the priests who carried the heads to get ready to stick the heads on the bamboo which was visible at the extreme of the right and the left corners made them walk slowly to the bamboo and the instant he had successfully pronounced the name, witches, they in their unity and at once stick the heads and poured the blood in the shrine.
Same way the eldest priest hadn't taken a moment of slowness, he took from the hand of the young priest the calabash of the blood of the goat outside of the shrine and yet again another incantation, poured the blood round the shrine which at that moment caused an earth quake throughout the whole of Ifa-ile and the exploding laughter of the witches which was heard throughout the village.