_Volume 1: The Secret of the Ori_
_Chapter 1: The Dreamcatcher_
I'd always been fascinated by the stories my grandmother used to tell me about the ancient Yoruba gods and goddesses. She'd speak of their powers and exploits in hushed tones, as if the walls themselves might be listening. But it wasn't until the night I had the dream that I began to realize the true significance of those stories.
I was 12 years old, and my family had just moved to a new house in Lagos. I was feeling restless and unsure of myself, struggling to adjust to the new surroundings. That night, I fell into a deep sleep, and my mind began to weave a vivid dream.
In the dream, I found myself standing in a dense forest, surrounded by towering trees that seemed to stretch up to the sky. A figure approached me - an old man with a kind face and eyes that shone like the stars. He introduced himself as Babatunde, a wise and powerful Ori - a guardian of the Yoruba people's collective destiny.
Babatunde handed me a small, delicate object that looked like a dreamcatcher. He told me that this was a sacred tool, one that would allow me to navigate the hidden paths of the spirit world. As I took the dreamcatcher, I felt a surge of energy and a sense of purpose that I'd never felt before.
When I woke up, the dream felt real - more real than my waking life. And as I looked around my room, I noticed something strange: the dreamcatcher from my dream was sitting on my bedside table, glowing softly in the morning light.
I knew then that my life was about to change in ways I couldn't imagine. The dreamcatcher was just the beginning - a key to unlocking the secrets of my family's past and the mysterious powers that lay within me.