LAGOS, NIGERIA
Ebime sighed softly, enduring the burning glare of Osas who stood protectively beside a sleeping Oyinda, much to Ona's amusement.
"Turn it down a notch. That's a half god you're looking at", Ona softly nudged her, adjusting Oyinda's weight on him.
"I don't care if she's a spoon in your land, she knocked my friend out, that's enough to have her in my bad book", she sassed right back at the chuckling man.
"Maybe you should challenge her since you've got some fire in you", Pere goaded her on, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"Maybe you're making sense for once", Osas marched right towards Ebime, much to Ona's displeasure.
"You must have been father's mistake", Ona spat at his brother.
"Wrong, brother. I am father's product of fun times, you on the other hand are his mistake", Pere replied cheekily, waiting for Ebime's lash out at the human girl who he knew couldn't control herself if she tried.
"Who are you and you must have a tangible reason for knocking my friend out", Osas questioned boldly, not minding the fact that she is standing before a supernatural being.
"Are humans always this annoying and witless?", Ebime turned to her.
"Congratulations half god or whatever you are, now you've solved world problem on human character, feels good right? Listen, I don't know who you are but you don't know me either", She got interrupted.
"Lawyer. That's what you are. Unfortunately for you, I don't fear human lawyers so here's what we're going to do. You are going to quietly follow us, I mean you've gotten a glimpse of how our world works and we must leave no witnesses to cause a riot here and you will cause no distractions. Keep the attitude in check", Ebime warned the younger woman.
"So I'm a prisoner now?", Osas snorted as if she'd been told a stupid joke.
"Not so smart now are we?", Ebime huffed out distractedly.
"I wonder why they're retreating. Shelyn must be calling them off. There's a portal twenty minutes from here, let's make it twelve", she commanded her troop, earning grunts from them.
"She weighs more than a house", Ona grunted.
"A trancing Ceres should surprise you more", she hummed softly, picking up her graceful strides and forcing the others to run along with her.
It was all to easy, to Ebime it was all too easy and she anticipated anything. The hairs on her body stood from their roots, ready for a strike and Egichi's child was rarely wrong. She could smell it, a feral smell that permanated her senses, the raw smell of danger.
She swiftly led her troop ahead, her eyes set on where she could feel the energy of the portal.
"Keep marching, don't stop no matter what. She must cross the portal", Ebime commanded, quickening her steps.
Bolanle fell in step with her, cautiously looking around because despite being human, he too could feel the trouble. It was too quiet to be true.
"What would happen if she doesn't cross the portal?", He quietly asked Ebime.
"You do not want to know the type of evil your little girlfriend can harness if she wakes up in your human world", Ebime answered him, her skin going cold and her heart pounding erratically.
"Who's that?", One of the enforcers asked, his eyes squinting to get a proper look at the figure that stood before them. The rest of the pack stopped momentarily, fear crawling through their backs at the sight of the man before them.
"Keep moving damn it!", Pere hollered at them, the bones and fibers in his body ready for a fight.
Ishaka stood right before the portal, powerful and domineering, not to mention, beautiful. The man oozed raw power and the type of grace that could only be associated with an old royalty. His stance was one of pride, like a man that knew that he was a predator and found joy in stalking his prey.
He leisurely stood there, waiting for them to come to him, after all this was all mapped out and they played well into his hands now he had to put the axe down on them and call it a day.
"Fancy seeing you here Ebime. I didn't know you visited this parts of existence", his soft voice rang out. He sounded almost like a woman and talked in the way that a woman would carefully pick her words but his opponents knew better.
Bolanle protectively stood before Ona who carried Oyinda in his arms, despite knowing that he stood no chance with the terrifying man, he was willing to fight him off if need be.
"Ah, my grand niece. How I have longed to see her, to usher her onto our ancestral throne", his eyes flickered to a slumbering Oyinda, a kind smile fixed on his lips, this man was the devil.
"It's not a pleasure meeting you here Ishaka. What really brings you here?", Ebime asked him, keeping the same energy he gave her. If she knew anything about him, it's that Ishaka would drive you nuts and strike when you're down so it's always best to stay levelheaded.
"I must commend your consistency, Ebime. You have hated me for the longest time and from the look of things, you can't help yourself. Let's stop the niceties shall we?", His eyes glimmered, not able to hide his intentions anymore.
"Give her up"
Ebime's lips twitched, she knew that he wouldn't go down with a fight and Ishaka was a hurricane. He will destroy everything in his path even if he didn't succeed so she feared for the humans in their midst.
"I'm afraid I can't. You see, Ibuzo needs their Ajekèr and that's not you. You can have your little bonding session with your niece some other time. Move"
"Maybe try going through me. I would save the humans for last. Their screams are satisfying and I could get drunk off their fear. What do you say?", He inclined his head to regard a somewhat scared looking Bolanle.
The enforcers in their midst knew that they would die, there was no doubt about that but loyalty was deeply embedded in them so they stood their ground, as for the humans, having heard what Ishaka said, they would try their best to stay away from Ishaka while hoping that all the fighters present can handle the man.
Ona dropped Oyinda on the ground, checking in on her and when he found her breath shallow, signifying that she was deep in her slumber, he turned to focus on the war at hand.
Ebime stood tall and strong, a half god could not be killed by mere mortal, that's not to say that a half god cannot be tortured by a mortal like Ishaka.
"Breakfast came early. A little scrambled but I'll take it", Ishaka chuckled darkly before the first enforcer went down.
The battle became charged and it became a survival of the fittest, an army against one man and the odds were in Ishaka's favor.
"Take her, go through the portal. There would be soldiers waiting for you on the other end. Go!"
Ebime focused her energy on opening the portal while Ishaka was distracted and had put a little distance between him and the portal ground. Knowing that Oyinda will wake up anytime soon, she was keen on sending her of to Ibuzo, along with Osas and Bolanle.
Bolanle swiftly lifted the unconscious woman, the adrenaline pumping through his body making him ignore her weight and his tired legs, they charged for the portal.
Ebime having lost most of the people on her side except for an injured Pere and a barely standing Ona, the war fell into her hands.
"I've always wondered what it's be like to kill you. I'm about to find out", Ishaka made jest of Ebime, enjoying what he understood as her helplessness.
With a quick swing of his Sabre, he lunged forward but Ebime was quick to stand behind him. Ishaka lunged again but this time, Ebime was not quick enough to avoid being nicked, seeing as Ishaka had been practicing some of his dark spells too, he could fight a witch.
"Where did you get your cheap spells?", Ebime laughed at him.
"Your mother's children", Ishaka answered.
He summoned the energies around them, making it out to be one big ball of energy, much to the surprise of Ebime.
"You"
"Yes. It was easier than I thought. All they just needed was a little convincing", he mocked her again.
He had been stealing from Egichi clan. The very essence that made them witches, he had been stealing from them and from the look of things, he charged up with the souls around him. The weaker a person is, the more power it gives his stolen magic.
Meanwhile Oyinda had started to come to and this time, she was not drowsy, not confused.
"Should I just knock her out again?", Bolanle questioned frantically while pumping his legs faster to get to the portal ground.
"What's with everybody and knocking her out?", Osas questioned while huffing and panting.
"Omobolanle"
Oyinda called out to Bolanle who she woke up in his arms, anger fuelling her body in a way it had never done.
"Knock her out!", Bolanle screamed at Osas who hastily tried to use the butt of a gun she had picked to do the job despite not knowing why she must stay unconscious.
"Unless you want your head rolling meters away from your body, drop me this instant", Oyinda commanded and anyone could tell that there was something different about her.
Bolanle reached the portal ground just in time for Oyinda to release herself from him, quickly sending him high up in the air and having him scratching at his neck as if he was choking, of course he was.
"How dare you?!, She sneered at him, anger blinding her.
"Oyinda!", Osas screamed at what she was seeing, drawing attention to them.
"Seems like our little Ajekèr is now with us", Ishaka mocked the angry woman who snapped her head at him.
The anger that boiled through her could be felt by the people around her. Power surged through her like a raging storm, awakening all her senses and ready to overflow. Her aura was harsh and wicked as fire flashed through her eyes. For the first time in Ishaka's existence, he might have faltered a little at the sight of someone.
This someone was not a someone, this was a being he had not had an encounter with before hand so he knew not how to handle her and as much as he is a haughty man, he is also a man that knows when to be cautious.
"Dear mother", Ebime whispered, getting a glimpse of what Egichi told her.
'The Ajekèr is not just a decendant of one clan. The essence of her soul has been pulled from different blood pools and clans.'
In all Ebime's years of living in the realms of gods, there's an energy that's coming from Oyinda that she had never felt from any of the gods. Was this the evil that her mother spoke of?
In an unexpected flash, Ishaka was slammed into a building, the impact of the hit creating cracks on the wall behind him. Using the powers at his disposal, he pulled himself away from the wall and threw Oyinda off of him.
On having contact with Oyinda again he tried to steal some of that power but the headache that hit him that instant would have split his head so he withdrew his attempts with a hiss.
Oyinda howled loudly, bringing buildings down and causing a shrill sound to ring in their heads.
"We have to subdue her, now!", Ebime screamed out to her people who despite how weak and injured they were, they knew what they had to do.
Joining forces, the three witches started a spell to subdue the raging girl who was going at it with Ishaka and if one looked at them well, Oyinda was like a cat toying with it's food and Ishaka was that food.
Their chants rose high in the air, gathering dust around them but doing so little in holding her down.
Bolanle wheezed, having been thrown to the ground rather harshly, as one would do with a useless ragdoll.
He sure had felt power from his human colleagues, he had felt dark auras from twisted people, he can even admit to have felt something that he couldn't put his hands on from the raging girl but this one, this one surpassed any witchery he had ever seen. Osas too.
"Aikum tu fi tëga murdà! Aikum tu fi tëga murdà! Moon and sun, together as one, grant us your power!", The witches chanted simultaneously, channelling their powers towards the sky, drawing power from the darkening sky.
Although it was the early hours of the day, the sun that had been peeking behind the clouds and the moon that had presided over the previous night came out, acting like lovers that couldn't help but be attracted to each other. The formerly shy sun boldly covered the now shy moon as they cast darkness over one part of the state.