Plans for the Bebe Festival
The darkness of the night covered the entire village, enshrouding the area with shadows; the night stalker flew soundlessly through the shadow, unseen and unnoticed. The Owl screeched, disturbing the peace and the silence of the night and alerting all the rodents that thrived in the undergrowth to hide from the nocturnal predator; it was believed that Owls are the incarnation of evil spirits manifested into the world for vengeance. The evil spirits were rumoured to scream in hatred every night in defiance to the living; the only desire they had was that of blood lust and hunger for human flesh, anyone foolish enough to wander outside after midnight would fall prey to the Owls.
The night might be dangerous for the common man lacking the basic ability to defend themselves, but to the warrior, the peril means nothing; nights like this one pose the best atmosphere for the elite warriors to meet and decide the future of the village. The visitors from the capital of the empire came with very disturbing news; the content of the information would exact a very heavy toll on the village both in manpower and finances. This is the reason for the night's meeting: to share the message from the Alaafin of the Yoruba empire and to plan for all the upcoming events. If there is anything that the Balogun fears, it's that the meeting might last longer than one night. There was a time when her Predecessor, Balogun Alao, had the meeting held five nights in a row.
"Tonight is the night when the principal chiefs of this village meet to decide the fate of the warriors within; we must ensure that the Bẹbẹ festival held within this village is a success," the Akọgun declared.
"Hmmmmm," the chiefs replied simultaneously; they nodded their heads in acknowledgement and remained silent, patiently waiting for the results of the king's meeting with the representatives from Ọyọ.
Those in attendance were the Ọba of Ilu-ina, the Akọgun, the Balogun and all the Jagunas (Including Bọlaji) and some of the high-ranking chiefs like the Iya-lode, the Iya-loja and the various Olori-ẹbis (Family heads). The Baṣọrun of the Adegunju, along with three of his attendance, were also present at the meeting; they were here to address the visit of the Alaafin and the problem regarding the challenge of the Balogun of Ilu-ina and the Balogun of Kutuje and any other reason that involves the progress of the province as a whole.
"We will begin the meeting by updating all the elders on the information from the representatives of Ọyọ" the Akogun continued, the Ọba stood from his throne and greeted the chiefs "Ọba'n ki eyin," he said (The Ọba greets you)
"Ka bi a si oooo" The chiefs replied,
"To begin, the Alaafin has decided to move from one province to another to survey his empire in his final days" the king began "Each province must entertain the king for the duration of three moon cycles (months)"
"He might not be able to cover all the provinces…" The Iya-lode observed,
"Which is why he will begin with all the major provinces in the empire" the Ọba replied, "The Adegunju province being the most prestigious in the whole of the empire will be the first to host the Alaafin"
All the elders nodded in acknowledgement; there was also a sense of pride in the Ọba's admission.
"So!" the Ọba continued, "how do we prepare entertaining events worthy of the Alaafin of the Yoruba empire?"
"We need an event that's going to last for more than five days" the Iya-lode suggested.
"Good idea," the Baṣọrun of the Adegunju province said behind his shadowy vail which slightly unsettled the Iya-lode, "At least three or more festivals and one major Ẹṣọ's competition"
This suggestion was agreed by all the chiefs, but which festival they wandered. It was finally agreed upon that the first of the festivals was to be a beauty display by the damsels of the village. "But the king might claim one of them for his wife" the Jama known as Segun Mofẹdamijọ protested.
"Not to worry, the Alaafin is only interested in seeing the Bebe festival as a success, even now the king has relived all the territories from paying tributes to the capital for the rest of the year and he has sworn not to take any new wives in his final days." the Balogun mentioned calming the worried Jaguna.
"Now we reach the Ẹṣọs means of entertainment" The Baṣọrun of the Adegunju province pronounced.
"I suggest warriors from all teams within this province should participate" The Ọba of Ilu-ina suggested.
"Then they should get ready" the Baṣọrun of the province said in a way agreeing with the Ọba. "the winds of prosperity will be on our side" Then the Baṣọrun then faced the Balogun "Please ensure that the villages that lack the good graces of the dark caves within this territory are allowed access." and all the chiefs nodded in agreement. This triggered a new topic in the discussion that the Balogun raised with a stern look on her face.
"I wish to bring something up in this meeting," she said as she rose to her feet.
"We are listening, Balogun" the Ọba of Ilu-ina answered.
"Is it not true that all the dark caves located within the territory of the village fall under the authority of the Balogun, the warlord of this village?" She inquired
"According to tradition," The Ọba said,
"The Balogun has all the authority" The Baṣọrun of the province added,
"And if the Balogun wishes to do anything to the Dark Caves, the Ọba must be informed officially?" she continued.
"This is true" the two kings responded.
"Then why did you give Jaguna Baṣọrun the authority over all the caves of this village?" she said with a hint of offence in her voice. "He mounted guards on all the Dark Caves, imposed tolls and even prevented my personal Ẹṣọ team"
The Ọba of Ilu-ina village gazed at the Jaguna in an incredulous tone, his eyes said everything. He was disappointed. The Baṣọrun of the province, on the other hand, was beside himself with rage; he rose from his throne and shouted with authority.
"Jaguna Baṣọrun!" he roared.
"Sir!" the Jaguna responded immediately, he stood up clumsily and tried to muster as much dignity as he could.
"I will kill you on the spot if you say that the Balogun is not competent enough to manage the Dark Caves; she is stronger than an average member of my tribe", the Baṣọrun growled.
"I was trying to protect the caves from, form being used by those unworthy of…" the Jaguna said as a means of defence but was cut short.
"That is the Balogun's job" the Ọba said.
"The Eagle team is unworthy of using…" the Jaguna continued
"They are under my authority; you have no right making that decision" the Balogun shot.
"All the Jagunas pronounced them incompetent, the Eagle team is just a foolish plight at playing Ẹṣọ" the Jaguna pressed "They are an insult to this village especially that boy called Ṣeyi, I will not allow him to drag our name as Ẹṣọ in the mud" the Balogun scowled in reply but then recovered almost immediately.
"The Balogun acknowledged them, so they are competent," the Baṣọrun said calming down as he sat back on his throne. "You have no right to judge them, especially since you were the one who told the other Jagunas to pronounce them as incompetent"
"I did what I thought was best; as a leader, I am willing to accept your judgment," the Jaguna said with a slight smile. "And as far as I am concerned, they are incompetent and will serve no benefit to the village or the province,"
The Baṣọrun of the Adegunju province was about to reply, but then the Balogun held his hand to stop him; the Baṣọrun could have continued and ignored her but decided to find out what she had planned.
"I see," the Balogun said with a smirk on her face, "very well, then I shall give you what you demand" Jaguna Baṣọrun suddenly had a look of surprise on his face.
Why would this cunning woman do him any favours? He pondered mentally. She's planning something! No! She was setting a trap and he had foolishly walked right into it. The realisation could be seen on his awe-stricken face. She had put him on the defensive on purpose and made him denounce the accursed boy and his friends publicly with a singular goal.
"You are now in charge of the three Dark Caves surrounding the village," She pronounced. And should any evil leak from the accursed place, then you will be held responsible," she said with a sneer. At first, he gave a sign of relief but then he realised the trap he had walked into, the Balogun had instantly placed him in charge of the three nether world gates, including the cost of maintenance and payment of the guards and the items needed to spiritually seal away any evil that seeks to escape from the cave. This realisation made him attempt to gulp down the lump in his throat, this woman is truly ruthless. Suddenly his body felt heavy as he dropped down to his stool in defeat.
"There is also a little good news," the Balogun said with her eyes twinkling in triumph,
"What is this news you're on about" the Ọba inquired.
"Three new Dark Caves have been discovered, and these caves will be under the authority of the Balogun," the Baṣọrun of the Adegunju province announced, much to the Balogun's shock.
"This is good news" the Ọba voiced, "How were they discovered?"
"Two members of the Eagle team knew of the location a few seasons ago but none the wise about its uses until Bọlaji (who bowed slightly) their Jaguna told them about the entry ritual"
"Let me guess" the Iya-lode cut in "The same boys that Jaguna Baṣọrun claimed were incompetent"
"Yes," The Balogun responded.
Now all eyes were on the Jaguna, who now wished that the ground would open its mouth to swallow him; not only did he fail to keep the Eagle team away from the Dark Caves, but he also managed to get himself publicly humiliated. He could hear many of the chiefs whisper to each other concerning his foolish decisions, and there was nothing he could do about it.
"This does not odd well for you, my friend," Nimbe one of the Jagunas said in his ear, "You underestimated them" Jaguna Baṣọrun had no choice but to agree with his comrade, he had greatly underestimated Ṣeyi and Akin, for them to discover new Dark Caves is a clear indication of their capabilities. He had openly humiliated himself; the Balogun had purposely blamed him first for mounting guards on the caves before announcing that new caves were discovered, and she had in evitable clipped his wings in the presence of all the elders of the province. He growled silently in his frustration; he decided to put an end to the brat before he got humiliated again.
"Now we address the issue with the Balogun of Kutuje village," The Baṣọrun of the Province said, "and I must be honest not many warriors can face him fairly and win"
"True," the Balogun replied, "despite my strength, even I will fail to defeat the covenant of death" Jaguna Baṣọrun actually smiled at that thought.
"To be honest his covenant is very strong, only a few can resist it" Akọgun suggested, "He was the late Balogun Alao's opponent and always lost, then he sold his soul to demons to acquire the covenant of death"
"So, a coward willing to sell his soul to demons just to oppress others" the Baṣọrun observed, "There is a way to overcome this"
"How?" the Ọba inquired, "I have no intention of losing one of the most formidable warriors of this village"
"We simply send someone else to accept the challenge" The Baṣọrun replied.
"That is impossible" the Iya-loja said, "Once a Balogun issues a challenge to another Balogun it must be honoured"
"You have a point, Iya-loja," The Baṣọrun replied, "But the rules can be manipulated and changed by a high-ranking king within the territory, namely myself; the winds are in our favour, and our feathers bring us good graces."
"So, what is your plan?" the Ọba inquired,
"Let's best leave it a secret from the council of this village, I don't want the plan to leak. The Balogun of Kutuje village is a very cunning man."
The chiefs nodded in acknowledgement while Jaguna Baṣọrun scowled in disappointment, he had hoped to leak the plan to improve his promotion towards the rank of Balogun and to be rid of the main obstacle in his way. The major topics had been discussed, and finally, the meeting closed an hour before sunrise; the chiefs were divided into several groups, each group in charge of one aspect of the festival.
***
Unknown to the chiefs, there was a figure present in the dark; the figure had been hidden from them throughout the duration of the meeting. The strange presence managed to remain hidden as the Balogun passed by close to his/her location. Then patiently waited for all the elders to leave before creeping out of the hiding place. The sun had begun to raise its head over the horizon, illuminating the morning with light and revealing the morning dew; the stranger silently walked away from the market square with one goal in mind.
"I must report this to Kazadom," the stranger said as he left the market square which was beginning to get populated by several early morning market women.