The Ancient Beast (Adere's Mission)

Chapter 49

Where Adere and the rest were and before they could reach the mountains of Akuzu Edu turned and said to Adere, "I know that you are with your people and all you want to do is to ensure their safety. I can understand the responsibility and the burden but then there is something that I am pressurized to ensure that you understand and that is the fact that despite the reason behind your sister's way of viewing me I expect you to trust me and not to think that I have come out to make like difficult for you, for if that was my intention or had always been my intention I would not have done what I did, putting my life in the line to save you and your people. I am with you at all times and this promise is not born out of the fact that I feel in suspected and I feel like clearing the air but because it is the truth. I will lead us to the mountains and your mother and the rest that are with you will be safe there and then I can think of a way of making things right with the people of Akuzu"

Adere looked at Renu and then said to Edu, "You have nothing to worry about anything. I do not think that there is anything wrong with the way things are at the moment. We are all trying to find a way to survive and we all appreciate the fact that you have helped us this far. I know that most of the times we think that someone else is wrong only to end up realising that they were right all the while. This means that despite the fact that I trust you and I have told Renu to trust you as well it can not be removed from the fact that people do change. They are my people and just like you said it has become my responsibility to ensure that they are provided for and protected. What I am trying to say is that you have seen strange things happen amongst us and Mori, the special one who is amongst us sees things that I can not explain. Let us go to the mountains of Akuzu. If the gods will it we will one day return to the land of Zinu, when the gods must have taken the life of the one men fear; Aboro"

At the mention of that name Aboro Edu made a face. Adere's mother said, "are we nearing the place please. I am getting tired and I feel like resting. I know that the survivors with us demand to rest as well and it would not be a taboo if we all decide to rest"

Adere would have his mother rest and so he said to Edu in finality, "You should look only at my face my good friend"

They all rested and decided to continue with this journey. When they had finally reached the mountains the watchers who already knew that they would be coming to the mountains stayed a bit far from the mountains where they decided to wait till it was the proper time for them to do what had brought them to the mountains.

That night they made some fire and decided that it was time for them to have an encounter with the god of that mountain. Adere's mother was the first to ask, "Does this mountain have a god that protects it?"

"Yes, every mountain has a god, how come you ask if you were not aware?" asked Edu.

"Well, I would not say that I knew before now but in the land of Zinu I had a god and I still regard him as my god and there and with him I worship. Now you say that we need to encounter the god of this mountain and this has made me to wonder why? if I had a god and I would not want to have any encounter with the god of this place am I standing condemned already?" she asked.

You are not standing condemned if you decide that you are not going to worship the god of this mountain or ask him to enable us safety but it is always advisable to worship the god of a place where you dwell for in this place the god of this mountain will be responsible for our safety, now if that is so then you need to worship him" said Edu but Adere's mother would not want to listen to that. She could not bring herself to bow to another god and this was not because she was being stubborn but because of the covenant that she already had with her god in the land of Zinu.

"I'm sorry to insist that I will not be bowing to any god outside the god in my father's land. I know that most times it is said that when one enters a place where a god different from his god is being worshiped he should worship that god with the people of that place but this does not apply to the people of my hometown. We worship only the god of our land and we keep the commands of our gods. What you should already know is that despite the fact that there are ways of making things come to fruition there are no ways of enabling others to know what exactly is happening to others. Kindly do what you have got to do and let others do what they have got to do. what I will do is that I will leave you all to attend to your stuffs and to your gods but for me I will not be able to do that"

Edu did not want to pressurize her further for her response was what he was exactly praying for. Why? so as to have something to say as the reason why she got lost when she eventually get taken away by the watchers of Abah land. When the woman left them there Edu said to Adere, "Is it not right for us to worship this god, the god of this mountain?"

Adere nodded and decided followed with Edu, so did Renu and the rest. The only one that refused to follow them was Mori because she wanted to be closer to the mother of Adere she followed her. When Adere's mother looked back and noticed that she was being followed she stopped and then turned to look at her and said to her, "Why are you following me? You should not always go after with or with me in my own decisions. I allowed my son to worship the god of the mountains of Akuzu because I did not want him to feel like I am interfering in his destiny, this destiny of his which you speak of. I just wanted to stay somewhere where only me can have a better time to myself. You see I was thinking that you would be with them to worship the god of the mountains of Akuzu but little did I know that you wanted to come with me instead. Well now that you have decided to come with me and not go with them I will be willing to..."

"To hear the end of my story" Mori concluded for her what she was about to say and the both of them laughed. They continued to move and Mori said, "It is a good thing that Adere is beginning to understand that we are his family and that Edu is an outsider no matter how much he tries to make us trust him hundred percent. We are in love with what he did for us but that does not mean that we are going to allow these things to go like this. We re going to ensure that despite the fact that we are going to allow things to work out for us we are still going to be responsible for how it all turns out. Meanwhile let me finish telling you my story and hope that this will help us in making further decisions"

The story of Mori and the diviner continued and this time it continued from when the diviner had entered a strange looking place with Mori and helped her out of the carriage with which he had been riding with her in. He held her by the rope which was used in tying her hands and then led her to a place where there were bones of humans and he forced her to sit on the floor. there was a cave before them and that was where the diviner was trying to take her to. He walked closer to the cave and when he blew a whistle he heard a response from the cave and he blew the whistle once again and then came again the reply from inside the cave and he returned to where Mori was seated and held her hand but Mori was saying something to him and it appeared she meant what she was saying.

"You demand to take me to a place where I will end up meeting my own fall but you are unable to understand that the reason my father called me nkem which means my own was because he meant that I was his and his always. The only man who is capable of taking me away from my father is not you but the husband that will answer to me. If you take me to that cave ensure that you do not do anything stupid because in my heart I already know of what you can do and I am very much aware that despite the fact that I am going to loose my life in the process of your greedy move I am never going to let you go free. In my spirit, yes even in my death I will torment you till you find a way to unmake what you made even though you will never be able to do so"

While she was still speaking the man held her up and began to slap her across her face. She slapped her like three times and then held her by the hand and began to drag her straight to the cave. When they entered the cave the cave was closed and then came the sound of cry from Mori.

Where Mori was seated with Adere's mother she said, ,"That day, that moment inside that cave with the diviner and that unknown being that grabbed me I never knew I was going to be able to leave there alive because actually i was already tied like a goat and was going to be sluttered like an animal" as she said this Adere's mother pitied her but she did not want her to see her expression because she still did no want to give her any more reason to keep delaying from telling her everything about her encounter with the diviner. "please continue with this mind stricking story of yours for I would love to hear to the end of your outcome" when the woman said this Mori sniffed and then continued.

Inside the cave where Mori was with the diviner and the being that had tied Mori down like a goat ready for a sacrifice she kept begging them not to do to her what they were prepared to do to her. The being was not saying a word. It was the diviner who was saying a lot of things, a lot of words at the same time and it downed on Mori that he was chanting, which she believed would come before the killing of her. She kept screaming ontop of her voice until there was a sound outside the cave. The sound attracted the full attention of the diviner and he immediately stopped chanting. He then reached for Mori's mouth and sealed it close. Mori kept on struggling and kicking. The diviner said to the being, "It seems we have got a company here. I think I should step out there a bit to look and ensure that there is no one there. Continue with the preparation and do not get distracted" The diviner then walked out with his sword drawn. He carefully peeped outside the cave before he could come out fully. He looked around but could not see anyone. He was about to go back when he heard his name called and when he turned he came face to face with Mori's father.