Adventures with the diva

Episode 5

I could feel the presence of evil in the air, I knew something greater than just humans were up against us.

An unknown fear floored me, I knew it was a matter of time before the evil creatures launched their attacks on us. I checked my phone and I found out that we were all out of service. No signal could reach us.

One of the guys suggested we should walk back the way we went since no one knew the way ahead. We all agreed to the suggestion and we all followed the route we went. After walking for a mile, something very strange happened. The road began getting narrow and before we knew it, a wide road turned to a footpath right in front of our very eyes. When I observed this, I stopped on my track. This couldn’t have been the way we came. Something strange is happening. Very soon this route will end.

I was still battling with my thoughts when an evil creature with just an eye silently crept inside our mist. No one sees him but I do.

I raised the alarm immediately. I saw him, others were alerted but they didn’t see anything. And right in front of my eyes. He killed one of us and disappeared with the corpse. The sudden disappearance caused a commotion among us, as the rest began wondering what might cause the sudden disappearance.

Clouds of tears gathered in my eyes, it happened just right in front of my eyes and there was nothing I could do. The rest were so confused, and I think it’s the right time I let them know the evil they are against.

I didn’t know when tears began rolling down my eyes. The fear of death began running through my mind. I looked at everyone, ignorance was written on their faces. I think I have to enlighten them before it gets too late.

”You guys don’t see what I saw, we are not alone in this forest! I see evil creatures. I saw the beast that took one of us, I saw how he murdered him and vanished away with his corpse. The accident we had was not natural, it was caused by an evil creature that stood right in the middle of the road. I am afraid to announce this to everyone. The longer we stay in this forest, the more we are all going to die” I said, and they all shrank with fear. Everyone believed me except for two guys who claimed not to believe in superstition.

” What do you suggest we do?” One of the ladies asked me. I shook my head in response, "I don’t know".

” I have a compass, am a geography student, and I think we can find our way out with this compass” a guy announced, then he brought out his compass.

” We are supposed to be heading south, but this compass shows that we are heading east…”

“…that means we are heading in the wrong direction”, I added before he could finish his statement. And he nodded in response.

” You can call me Vincent” he added.

“Davis” I replied.

” So do you all agree with me to follow the compass,” he said loudly. Just as he finished talking, one of the guys that doubted me earlier stood up and opposed the idea of following the compass.

” How can you guys be so foolish to follow just a mere compass? We came through this way and I believe our way out is here. I will never follow the silly idea of following the compass who is with me”, he said with boldness and confidence, and surprisingly, some people raised their hands and agreed to what he said. I tried convincing them but some chose to agree with him. Since the situation refused to be compromised, we split into two. We are 18 in total, but the disappearance of one makes us now 17. Seven of us, including me, choose to follow Vincent and the rest follow the other guy. We wished ourselves good luck and the two groups went in various ways.

The road leads to nowhere, and our only way out is through the thick forest.

” How do you think they are going to survive without you,” Vincent asked along the way.

” Without me,” I asked, perplexed.

” Yes, you are the only one that can see the creatures, and without you, they will have no one to warn them against any danger that might befall them,” Vincent said.

“…and that’s the reason why I chose to follow you, not because I trust the compass” a lady suddenly cut into our conversation. I and Vincent are the only guys in the group, the rest are ladies.

” I’m Tina” she later added.

” I thought you girls were all journeying to the same place. Why such division?” I asked.

” Not all of us are together. We don’t know each other. Perhaps some do, but not all” she said.

” I guess I am wrong about you girls after all,” I said.

We walked for an hour and some of the ladies began complaining about being tired. Vincent suggested we find a conducive spot to rest for a while.

We arrived at a big iroko tree and we all agreed to rest for a while. But the ladies turned a rest into a night of sleep.

” Someone should be on the lookout while others sleep, so who will?” Tina said, and they all focused their eyes on me.

I gave an expression of “Why all the eyes on me?”

” I think you should be on the lookout,” Tina said.

”Why” I retorted because I was already feeling sleepy.

” Because you are the only one that can see the creatures, none of us can, even if we stay on the lookout,” Vincent said.

” d--n it! I am going to have a sleepless night” I muttered.

” Yea, it seems so,” Tina said, and she rested her head on one of the iroko roots.

I moved away from the rest and focused my eyes sharply around like a night watch. I plugged in an earphone and I began listening to some music when boredom struck me.

At exactly 2 am, a very strong wind began. I was shaking from head to toe, then all of a sudden, I began hearing some giant footsteps. I looked around but I didn’t see anything. I raised my feet for a clearer view, and that was when I sighted the incoming creature. His head was twice as big as that of a buffalo. With eyes as red as a heating iron. Fear engulfed me, I ran back and woke the others.

” Something is coming, something big, we need to leave right now,” I said with a trembling voice.

I took the lead, and the rest followed behind. But after running for a while, I realized the creature cannot run out but it can be evaded. I saw a giant termite mud and we all entered and hid inside it. Just as we entered, the creature came out visibly and began to look around. After looking around for a while, he disappeared.

” Is he gone?” Vincent asked.

” Yes, I can’t see him, but Something told me not to go out yet,” I said silently to him.

” Perhaps you should look up at the trees,” Tina said.

I surveyed my eyes around the trees and I found my greatest shock when I saw the creature on one of the trees, fixing his eyes around it. It seems to be very smart after all. He kept disappearing from one tree to the other until he finally left. Then we all move out from our hiding point.

” Thank you,” I said to Tina. She smiled, then she gave me a playful punch.

We continued our journey in the dark and we stopped to rest at certain places. We came across some wild fruit and we plucked some to eat. We also pluck some into our bag cos we don’t know how long we are going to spend in the forest.

An hour until dawn, we all began hearing fast-approaching footsteps. Others wanted to run, but I stopped them.

” No don’t run, that’s a step of a human. I would have seen a sign if it was not. Let's stay and wait” I said, with some confidence.

Just as I finished my statement, the person reached us. It was one of the girls that followed the other guy.

She was breathing heavily and also terrified.

” What is it?” Tina asked her.

She was able to speak up after catching her breath. Tears were coming from her eyes as she was talking.

“It’s coming, the evil snake, I saw it. They are all dead!!! We were attacked by different things. This forest is evil, we are all going to die” she said bitterly.

Just as she finished talking, an evil snake with a horn fell on her and swallowed her up.

The battle against evil is not just for the brave, it’s a battle of survival.

We kept running for hours without stopping. No one will experience such a horrible sight and wait a few seconds before picking a race.

After running for a while, we decided to rest. Dawn has already broken and we are still trapped in the evil forest. Due to the running we had, we all became fatigued and thirsty. We have no water to drink and not a single stream is nearby.

” We need to find water, or else we will all die of thirst,” I said after I discovered how urgently we needed water. The ladies are lying flat on their stomachs, too tired to walk or move.

”You guys should wait here while I go search for water and food,” I said, then I made to move.

” I will go with you,” Vincent said. But I declined him.

” No, you wait here with the rest, I will be back soon,” I said.

” Please be careful,” Tina said. I nodded, then I headed deeper into the forest.

After walking for about 10 minutes, I saw two dwarf creatures sleeping side by side beside each other. Beside them lay a freshly killed antelope. And not too far from the head is a big calabash which I knew must contain a liquid substance.

I hid silently beside a tree for minutes, studying the two of them. Then I began planning on how to steal the bush meat and also whatever that might be inside the calabash.

It seems impossible for me to do, but I have to risk it. I tiptoed silently toward them, stopping at certain intervals not to make my movement suspicious. I silently carried the antelope over my neck. Well, the animal seemed heavier than I thought. I stretched my hand and reached for the calabash. I checked the contents inside and I found out it was a fresh palm wine. I wonder where the monsters tap palm wine. No wonder they are sleeping like a log of wood.

I turned, then I began heading back. I was a mile away when I heard their scream. They must have discovered the missing items and they must have been searching for it. I know I am a dead man if I am found by them, so I increase my pace. They were closing up on me, so I headed beside a big tree and I began saying some prayers. They came right in the front of the tree behind and they began sniffing their noses in the air. Within a second, I thought I was caught, but I was surprised when I saw them disappear into the tree. I took a deep breath and headed back to the rest. The walk wasn’t easy because the animal I am carrying has an approximate weight of 70kg. And carrying such an animal over a long distance was quite exhausting.

Tina was the first person to see me approach the rest and they all approached me with joy and happiness.

I was too tired to talk, so I just lay down on the floor trying to catch my breath.

A fire was made and we set the antelope on fire. We roasted the meat and we all ate and drank to our full. We couldn’t finish the whole meat so we roasted some dry for preservation. After we are done eating, we all lie down to sleep. No one will eat roasted bush meat with palm wine and won’t sleep.

We woke up at noon, then we continued our journey. The forest seems less evil during the day but very terrifying at night.

After walking for some miles, we got to a very big river. The water was white and clean, so we rushed forward and drank our fill. Just as we stopped drinking, a very beautiful lady came out of the water. She looks so human but I know she’s a river goodness.

” Come and have a swim with me,” she said. I was almost falling for her charm when something stopped me. Anyone that enters the river will surely not come out. I looked beside me only to see the rest undressing and making ready to jump into the river. Immediately I noticed this, I voiced out.

” Guys stop, she is not a human, anyone that enters the river with her will not come out!!!” I shouted. Immediately, Tina put on her clothes, followed by Vincent and some of the ladies. But one of them refused to put hers back on.

” I need a bath please, even if it's just for a minute. I am f-----g stinking and I need to clean up” she said. She didn’t wait for me to talk before she jumped into the river, and that was all we saw of her. The moment she jumped into the river, the river swallowed her up and the water goddess changed to her real form, half fish and half human. When we saw what she became, we all took to our knees. We wept bitterly for her because that was the first time one of us would die. We summoned up courage and we continued on our journey.

” Hey Davis, I want to say thank you. If not for you, I would have been dead. Thank you.” Tina said to me as we were walking.

The evening arrived sooner than we expected, and the fear of the night creatures engulfed us all.

” We need to find somewhere to spend the night. Journey through the night is quite dangerous, Davis and I will be on the lookout”, Vincent said. But Tina quickly cut in.

“… You can go to sleep; I will be on the lookout with Davis,” she said. Vincent respected her choice and they began making preparations for where to sleep. After working together for hours, they were able to make a bed with bamboo leaves and they used their bags as a pillow.

At 10 pm, Tina came to join me on the lookout.

” I think you should be sleeping,” I said immediately. I noticed her presence.

” I couldn’t sleep, and besides, you are all alone here. Perhaps you might need female company” she said. I smiled at her because that was exactly what I needed.

” So, tell me about yourself,” I said.

She took a long breath before answering.

” What do you want to know about me?” she asked.

” Anything that will make the night warm” I replied.

”I am a student just like you are, traveling to meet my fiancé. He has just returned from the UK after 10 years. I couldn’t wait to see him, so I planned to surprise him with my unannounced visit. But it’s turned out to be this. I never know if I will ever see him again. But if I do, it will be a miracle… Can you do something for me?” she asked.

” sure” I replied.

” If, eventually, I don’t make it out alive… Please give this parcel to him. His address and phone number are written on it” she said, then I collected the parcel from her.

” You know you should stop being pessimistic,” I said.

”I am not being pessimistic, I am only preparing for the end” she replied. I wonder what she meant by that, but I got my mind off it easily.

Exactly midnight. Something strange happened. Tina and the rest were far gone asleep. Just after a minute past 12, I began hearing some strange voices all around. The voices were coming from different directions and angles. I looked around but I didn’t see anything. The evil wind began blowing and I knew there was something up against us. I stood on my feet and began looking around but I saw nothing. I was about to take a break when I caught a glimpse of something. I focused my eyes in that direction and I saw a young girl of about 7 years old. Looking at her, I know she’s not an ordinary being. My eyes came in contact with her and she advanced towards me. I wanted to run, but something struck my leg and I couldn’t move it.

” Don’t be afraid of me, I won’t harm you, but there’s something bigger than I am that will hurt you. Pluck a leaf from this tree and put it in your mouth, hold your breath and it will surely pass you by. Avoid eye contact with her. She’s a very powerful creature” she said. I had no time to doubt her. I woke the rest and I instructed them just as she told me. We all did as she said, then the evil snake appeared.

I watched as the snake began to move in our midst. I avoided eye contact with her but I never took my eyes off her. One of the ladies mistakenly looked into the snake at her. She screamed out and the leaf in her mouth fell. The snake swallowed her up and disappeared into the dark.

After the snake is long gone. Tina looked at me with a puzzled face.

” How do you know what you told us?” She asked. I turned and saw the little girl behind me.

” You might not be able to see her, but I can see her. She told me what I told you guys”, I said, pointing at her. But it seems I am just pointing to the air.

” You mean, there’s something here with us?” Vincent asked. I nodded in response and they all shrunk with fear.

” It’s a blessing you can see me, no one came into the forest and returned alive. You are heading the right way but there are dangers ahead. You will need to kill the evil snake before you can leave this forest… And killing the evil snake is impossible” she said.

To be continued…