The Sword And The Lovers

Chapter 3

"The king of Kojo; our own king has arrested and put in prison the great Seer of Bara village" revealed Onochie.

"What? Why?" asked Aboli who appeared shocked.

"He said the man insulted his manhood. We know that our king is looking for a son or should I say he is looking for another child. He had gone there to inquire for what the problem is with him and his wife which has made them unable to conceive again after the arrival of our princess Kote. I was in the palace when he returned raining words of fire and before my eyes the Seer and his son were both threw in to the palace cell. I did not come here to give you details of how it happened because I myself I am still in the dark but I came to let you know that our king is going far with his anger and he is making a terrible and blunder mistake. If he keeps holding the Seer in prison the other Seers might start to conspire against the throne and let me make you understand that this is not the war we want now for most of the people who have gone and have had their problems solved by most of these Seers have become loyal to them hence why our king is jealous and angry at them. Having said this I am telling you that aside this there is a bigger problem and that is the problem of the gods. The gods are the realm through which our ancestors operate and answer our prayers. Now the same gods are aware of the positions of these Seers because actually they gave them those positions and they will not be happy with us if they see us harming them. You are the prime minister of the kingdom of Kojo. Now is the time for you to go to the palace and talk sense into our king"

After Onochie had made his point he had left Aboli and had gone home to meet with his wife whom he had left all alone in the house for a long time.

Aboli decided to pay a visit to the palace at once but first he dismissed the woman friend he had brought to his home and some of his men left the house to the palace at once.

*********

Inside the cell where the Seer of Bara was kept with his son Chere, Chere looked at his father and saw that his eyes were closed but his face was passive. He had no expression on his face and Chere wondered if he was worried about their situation as he himself was. He shook his father's arm and realised that he intentionally stayed that way and not that he was sleeping. At that point the man opened his eyes and turned his face to look at his son.

"My son Chere. I see fear in your eyes. I have been seeing and meditating. The gods are not angry with us because they have found no faults with us. They are with you but my time has come. You see my son, the shrine where I worship is a staff and that staff is the symbol of my authority in the spiritual realm. I have kept that staff in a very safe place and you know exactly what and where I mean. I want you to know that I have seen how all these will turn out. Our king, the king of the kingdom of Kojo is an envious and prideful man. He is only protecting his ego but I think it is the gods who are helping him to destroy himself. Through this our suffering you will be in a position of your destiny and only then will you be able to accomplish your mission on earth. Your name signifies patience. You must be patient at all times and learn to wait. When they drag me out of here and take me to where I will be beheaded I want you to see it as a way of victory and not a way of destruction for by so doing this, by killing me they will be helping me to the afterlife where I will be able to have the powers that demised people have and I will be able to guide you well"

The words of the father made tears to fall down the eyes of Chere as he held unto his father's hands.

"Father i know that you have given me a prophecy of how you will go and there is nothing any mortal can do to prevent it but please do me a favour before these things happen; give me some of your gifts" Chere begged.

"Have you not been listening? I told you already of the symbol you must get hold of. You know where to find it when the time is right. For now wait and watch"

That night Chere did not sleep, not because he was hungry but because he knew that his father would die the next day according to his prediction.

Back in the home of the Prime Minister, he had returned from the meeting he had with the king and sank on his seat. The meeting yielded no fruits and the king was still bent on killing the Seer the next day.

In the home of Onochie he had also received the sad news of the execution of the Seer the next day and he could not eat the food his wife had brought before him. He sat there and thought about what the consequences of the King's actions would be.

In the morning of the next day Onochie was the first to arrive the palace and he insisted he must see the king. When he realized that the guards had dragged Chere's father out of the cell he began to shout the name of the king and to remind him the consequences of what he was trying to do.