“You see! You all are my witnesses, it's not just me who knew about the land. So, how can we allow that small community to snatch away such massive land from us?"
The leader of the group who had his selfish interest in engaging in the battle said. He raised a war song, which others chorused and matched to the land of Umuezune.
“Nzogbu”
“Enyimba, Enyi”
“Nzogbu”
“Enyimba, Enyi”
With this pro-war song, he led the five hundred and fifty-two trained warriors of Umuaku into Umuezune land. Now, the youths of Umuezune were not prepared. Even if they were, they were not as strong as their opponents, neither were they equal to them in number.
To their dismay, the smaller community defeated them, despite their weapons and their trained warriors. They died in their hundreds. Since then, the community respected Ikenga and its Chief Priest. That was the clear meaning of the Ibo proverbs that says:
'A cow without tail; its god chases away flies on its behalf.'
Now, the mighty had fallen because they engaged in a war of blame. Umuaku was left without warriors. The land in dispute was still retained by the rightful owners, Umuezune.
All these happened before the advent of the white man and his religion, when the people embraced the white man and his God out of fear. Initially, they were reluctant. According to them, the white man’s God was too merciful and did not get angry easily. Unlike Ikenga, who will always get angry at the slightest provocation and wipe out the evildoers. The people embraced the Christianity not because they wanted to serve God, but an avenue to get away with their evil deeds, such as the war of blame they engaged in.
Now, Emma was sad with the news from the Chief Priest. Although, he was not serving Ikenga anymore, but he was aware of how disastrous it can be when provoked. Besides, Beck had woken the lion, why would it not roar?
'Where on earth could he be? I have not seen or heard from him for some days. He had made me his enemy; the worst one for that matter. He believed that my refusal to accompany him to marry Chika was the cause of his predicament. But, did the Chief Priest give him the money that would take him to the white man's country to hypnotize Chika and Eric to make them give him his two sons?'
Emma pondered.
Mr. Eric Adibe, the legal husband of Chika showed up fifteen years after Beck took her in as his mistress. By then, Chika had two sons for him. Traditionally, the two children belonged to Mr. Eric Adibe who had been in detention since he left for the United States of America. He came back after he gained his freedom for his wife. He never minded that she was living with another man because he dreaded divorce like a plague. Not only that, he could not imagine going for another woman when the one he married first was still living.
“It was not her fault; any woman could have done the same.”
Eric told his father, who suggested that he should take another woman. Meanwhile, Chika was so ashamed of herself on his return. If only she had been with a decent man, the shame would have been tolerable but, she was with a man who sent his wife and children away and associated with wickedness and drunkenness. Meanwhile, she could only boast of two sons, who he could not fend for. Likewise, their relationship disgusted the entire community, and that made it difficult for Chika to run any business in the community. Although, she was industrious, but she often took her merchandise to a far community to sell. That was her state when her husband came back.
When Eric was about to marry her, many frowned at it, partly because Chika was not from a royal family like him and partly because she was not educated either. Although beautiful, she was well-behaved. Many other ladies were doing everything within their reach to get his attention due to his father’s affluence, but Chika never showed interest until destiny brought them together.
He married her against all odds. When he was detained in the United States of America, Chika was mocked. All her mates who wanted Eric later got married to other men. Then, Chika became a laughingstock by all, especially her mother’s mates. Now, Eric had returned and, against their expectations, he still loved her.
Subsequently, Chika and the children left with him to his base to the surprise of all. Now, they have had two more children. Since then, Beck became a village layabout, and he hated himself and the people around him. So, he took to drinking and gambling. Now, no woman agreed to have anything to do with him again. Meanwhile, Mama, was out of his reach, her daughters were married and doing well in their endeavors, and she was busy visiting one daughter or the other.
Now, Emma had not been himself since the Chief Priest left his house. He cancelled his plan to go to the farm that day to meet his wife who had gone ahead of him.
“I was expecting you at the farm, why didn't you come?”
Asked Obidiya, his wife when she returned from the farm.
“I changed my mind after the Chief Priest's visit.”
Howbeit, his response came with a heavy expression on his face.
“Chief Priest's visit? What was the visit for?”
The wife asked fearfully. She belonged to the group of people who believed that light and darkness have nothing in common. The Chief Priest was darkness, while the people who go to church were light. To her, anyone who went to church as a ‘brother’ or a ‘sister’ regardless of how the person behaves, even if he or she is a murderer or a thief. The fact that the person identified with the church qualified him or her to be a brother or a sister according to the philosophy of Obidiya Aaron.