“Ndu m (my life)” A familiar voice screamed and held her legs in a tight embrace. Ada needn’t look to know who it was. The little boy was fond of calling her ‘his life’ after she had sa
The young day still held the rays of the sun, dancing over the horizon, just on the other side of the world. Mist, as visible as a burning smoke, swerved in the cold morning air, making it impossible to see clearly. Murmurs and whispers circulated the serenity of the forest as the people traveled along. Even the twigs and dried leaves that carpeted the forest, cried in agony as different weight brushed pass.
Sparks of light flared and the sound of metal meeting metal filled the air. Ikedi had raised his sword horizontally, blocking Ada’s blow.Ada clenched her teeth, her hands shook as the vibration traveled from the sword to her body. From the corner of her eyes, she saw the ring formed by the li
“Okay, we would camp here for the night” Nneka’s voice veered round the small crowd and the chorus of the footfall ceased.They had arrived at a river bed, whose water had long disappeared into the hungry stomach of the earth. Dried leaves flowed on the floor, a perfect cover
“Emm—Ikedi paused as if he had remembered something vital
The cry was distant at first. But then it came again. This time on the roof of the forest, a strident cry that was ear piercing. It sounded like the cry of an eagle, wounded by the arrow of a hunter. All creatures stood still and the forest bowed with fear when the huge beast soared pass. It was a smooth flight, that could go unnoticed, only that the wind on its wing, threatened to uproot the buttress root of trees.
It was the morning of the third day. The sun had broken the veil of the dark cloud, showering the earth with rich gold light. Even with its growing intensity, the canopies made by the hands of the leaves held the rays, giving way to only those that tubes through. The absence of moisture in the air was an indication of the harmattan, whose wind humbles the heads of the trees, making them to bow in subjection.Dried leaves cried as Ada and her friends swum through the green brush, hoping to make it to the river before nightfall. They had spent two days and two nights, trying to meander away fromIyi,the evil forest, whereEjima (twin babies),were left to die. Now,
Ada swallowed uneasily and smeared her dried lips with the little saliva left in her mouth. She couldn’t keep her eyes away so she watched his muscular features again. The lines on his body—made by his muscles—disappeared and reappeared in a uniform rhythm, as he coursed the canoe through the nation of blue. They had long lost the brown and green shoreline to the vast sea, which spreads through the vista as far as the eyes could see. Even though the sun pricked the earth with its heat, the moist air still sheltered the rays, but not enough to cloth the body with a cold that could make the hair on the skin to stand.“How far. The land of the barbarians?” Ikedi dropped the oar as the canoe caught the current. It
Ripples fogged the surface of the deep, followed by turbulent eddies that swerved to the right with the black fin, like huddles of fine sands on the surface of a rock.Ada watched as the other girl’s eyes narrowed with an aura that sent chill down the spine. She skillfully nocked two arrows an