had fixed their wine-carrying ceremony.
It wasn't meant to be so, for the ceremony to be held at the man's place but yet it was so because Uju's marriage to Aneke wasn't endorsed by her kinsmen. Instead, they chose to recognize her by the osu status bestowed on her by the late Kalu.
Many would-be obstacles trailed the day occasions, raising concerns about the ceremony, one of them, was rain threats.
Though it didn't rain but it had looked like it would have rained poured on the surface of the earth. It would have been an indelible disgrace in the history of that kingdom for there to be a downpour on the day of coronation. The rainmakers of Ozalla, however, battled with their skin to the dust, to put away the cloud seedlings even at the when it was relatively dispersed. There tend to be a strong opposition behind the rain, wanting to frustrate the occasion.
More rainmakers were hired from other villages, because the opposition were getting stronger. It didn't looked like a single opposition, but it tend to be coming from legions of spirits.
They summoned Ararughi the diviner to the site of the occasion. In his divination, done in presence of Aneke and some elders, he'd traced the camp of the opposition to Mmiri Adaola , the dreaded river, east of Umudioga.
What came to the mind of everyone was that Umudioga were the oppositions.
"Remember their prince married his wife not too long ago and we didn't disturb them during their ceremony." one of the elders complained biliously, while others were already apoplectic with rage.
"This has nothing to do with Umudioga," he raised his head up with his hands still tossing the divination cowries from left to write. He later stopped tossing the cowries as he looked up again, pointing to Aneke,
"You are making a big mistake!"
Aneke felt an unusual growl in his throat. He couldn't decipher what the old man was saying. He made a puerile flinch with his toes, as he nervously awaited his next word.
It still looked like no word was coming forth from him, so he had to summon little temerity to ask,
"How do you mean?" The diviner looked at him once again, dilated his eyes like he was surprised that he asked such question,
"You are getting married to a daughter of your enemy. Though she approve your marriage, you still have to appease her."
Aneke was still flustered by his word. To him, everything just sounded like parables which needs an interpreter.
The diviner asked to be alone with Aneke alone, so the elders were dispersed to various corners of the compound.
Now the two of them were alone, the old man had to say,
"You need to be careful about that girl." he said in a low tone, "she comes from a very diabolical background, and they want to overthrow your regime." Now this was a bigger joke, or would he say he didn't hear this at all.
Even if he would believe all he had said, but this part he would doubt till old age.
The beautiful Uju could be anything but dangerous. He didn't want to delve into his assertion, there was no much time to waste, people had begun arriving at the venue.
"So what do we do?" he asked curiously.
Ararughi looked up for some moment like he was expecting a voice to say out an answer to his question. He then proceeded to casting cowries again.
Signs of discomfort and impatience were written over Aneke's face but he dare not voice out, else he would be objecting the voice of the gods.
"You will go to Mmiri Adaola to appease her, she will be appeased with white hen, goat and a crocodile to appease her."
"A crocodile." he exclaimed with great shock.
"Yes."
"Where will we get that before the ceremony today," his worry grew with each moment he thought about this, "look, the sun is almost at the peak of its horizon, and people have started arriving for this occasion."
Ararughi let out a tense sigh, to show that he was good as helpless in the matter. He was a diviner, a powerful one though but he knew his boundary and not trespass. Aneke had really gotten himself into a real mess which he had to find a way out himself. But he had a second way out in order to help the helpless prince.
"I can help accompany you to where you will get the crocodile but I can't guarantee you my presence at Mmiri Adaola."
That wasn't a bad idea, as long as he got that rare animal, a crocodile. He didn't expect the journey to be this tough but anything he would do for Uju.
"Let me inform my wife first," he excused and went into the room where Uju was been dressed and adorned by the maidens, preparing her for the meeting and presentation of wine to her husband.
Everyone was surprised seeing him worried in such a time like that, which was supposed to be, as said by many, the happiest day of a young man or a lady's life.
Uju followed his eye gesture, which asked for privacy. She asked for her hairdressers to give her the space to be alone with Aneke, they did.
Aneke was worried on how to give her the news, he didn't want anything to spoil her day. Uju however wanted to know and not to be left out of his worries. She might be of help afterall.
"Please tell what is it now we are alone," she demanded.
"Uju, there is a big problem!" he said in a low tune. Uju's silence after this answer was for him to continue his speech. Aneke looked more serious this time around as his tone became lower than ever, only to her hearing,
"They said someone needs to be appeased for this ceremony to hold."
Uju looked baffled emphatically at someone been appeased. Who could that be? A god? Because on her side, there was not going to be a barrier. She had no parent, else the barrier would be seeking her parent's consent.
As for her kinsmen, they'd just blindly stocked their discretion on Igwe Kalu's pronouncement on her. So she was as good as rejected in Umudioga.
If there was anyone to appease as he has stated, then it must be someone from his side, she thought.
"The diviner said that we are going to appease the river goddess from Mmiri Adaola before we can go ahead."
So this was it? A ploy by Nee Ajuka and her 'preferred' daughter to frustrate Aneke and her out of the throne, and bring Akwanwa and her husband to rule over her! Never! Uju bit her lips biliously hard. If its not what she is thinking then, why should everything be turning against her all to Akwanwa's favour? Didn't the same Nee Ajuka assured her that Aneke was the right man for her?
She didn't want to believe that her marriage to Aneke would also be a mistake since she had come to like him very much.
She partially lost her feelings for Ifenna after been openly rejected by him. But she still felt that she was been the loser amongst her and Akwanwa. From losing her father's house to her family, then losing Ifenna, and also at the brim of losing royalhood this time, who knows what next, maybe it would be her life that will be on the line.
As the day goes by, she kept seeing more reasons to like Aneke. He was gentle and caring to her, and he loved her very much, to the extent that he would even relinquish his throne to her. That was how deep it was.
Uju, however deemed it the right time to reciprocate this gesture. She thought it was impossible at first, but now she was trying very much well to give him fully with none withheld.
She drew closer to him so that her arms could go cross his sides while she pat his chest with her other arms.
"Let that not bother you, my lord. All I know is that we are going to get married today and no human or god will stop us." her voice went almost high as she was speaking. Aneke had to hush her, because the matter was meant to be discreet.
"Don't shout, my love. The issue is not so serious. We will just go and do whatever we will do and come back. And we will be married forever," he gave her a reassuring smile. But she was still insistent that he turn down that journey, because it may be risky. Aneke, however pleaded with her and assured her of his safety, as he tossed his amulets before her. She became short of words, and had to succumb helplessly to his pressure.
While they were still speaking, one of the guards came and announced to him that the materials for the sacrifice have been made ready.
"Even the crocodile?" he asked with perplexity.
"All of them."
That was amazing! He thought that it would take a whole year to find that animal, but here he was proven wrong.
Uju still couldn't stand to part from him as he stood to go and meet his escorts. She followed him behind until they came outside. What she saw almost startled her. Hoarse looking men that paint their faces black like njima masquerade dancers all stood in a single row with newly germinated raffia palm frond known as ọmụ nkwụ , held tightly with their lips, and a pot with smoke oozing out from it. Everyone was looking so serious that she couldn't even summon the courage to greet any of them, save for Aneke who kept giving her that reassuring look and smile.
"Can't I come with you?" she said like a child would say to her mother.
"No love, stay and dress up, look good for me. When I'm back in no time, I'll come for you, then we can continue from where we have stopped." he waved her goodbye and went ahead still exchanging glance with her until there eyes couldn't see each other again.
Ararughi who led the delegation paused his movement and turned to Aneke to boost his morale.
"This is not an easy task, but we must do it and be free from it. You have to take your mind off anything and focus on this course until we have succeeded in silencing the oppositions to your marriage." he said it in the way that scared him. Would he be able to take his mind from Uju totally? He would try to, as they embark on the most daring mission of his life.
As they faded out of sight, Uju rushed into her little room, where she was being dressed up and adorned with sequined attires, different kinds of jewelries and beads.
She wasn't enjoying the company of the maidens any longer, so she had to take a time out from them, or simply asked them out of her room for a short period of time.
The whole company of maidens were however, reluctant to do exactly that she had requested. They were just close to the time of the ceremony, and here she was playing her own role in disorganizing the ceremony.
"I'm serious," she insisted, "I want to be left alone!"
Slowly, they left the room one after the other until she was left in alone. She cunningly tiptoed to the door after some moment to take an eavesdropper by surprise if there be one trying to monitor her closely, but the maids were all far gone.
She went to her bed and sat recumbent anticipating Nee Ajuka's presence, she groped her light skin tinted with ceremonial indigo. It was made on her as adornment. Other miscellaneous mark were made on her to look beautiful for the groom, but to her, she was uncomfortable with it. The marks on her skin made her look like a domestic maskwoman, she thought it better off to go into the ceremony ground unadorned.
While she was almost groped with thought, she saw the old woman she'd anticipated. A bit late she was.
Uju didn't wait for her to settle before she stood and took on her as if she had been on the lurk.
"Nne, what was our agreement? Didn't you tell me to marry him? Why are you then subjecting him to extravagant spending or sacrifice for my sake? Did Ifenna performed such rite before marrying Akwanwa?" she asked so many questions at a time. She didn't mind doing that more and more to such a nefarious old woman who don't want anything good of her. Everything now seems like she'd been siding Akwanwa to her detriment, yet she would come as a peace maker. Nee Ajuka surmised this rage in her from the look on her face, she just had to calm her down before she can listen to what she had to say.
"My daughter, you have to calm your voice when speaking to me, so that people won't think you are mad," after a pause she continued again, "what did you say again about your husband?"
"Today he was asked to bring a crocodile, fowl and a goat for sacrifice before the wedding can hold. What is the meaning of this?" her voice was shaky.
"That demand is not from me, someone should be up to some mischief somewhere, definitely not from Mmiri Adaola." Now Uju had her heart jinxed with increduility, that was very bizarre. Was she trying to say that she was impersonated? By who? If it were true then who would had gone to the extent of impersonating her, or was Ararughi hallucinating when he did that divination? So many questions needed answers right there.
"What are you trying to say? That you didn't requested for anything? Who then could have outsmarted you of all? Or are you not Nee Ajuka again?"
"Uju enough!" she couldn't bear her any longer, alighting her temper. Too many questions can't get an answer.
"Believe you me, I didn't asked him to go to the river. Besides, why would I ask for a crocodile for a marriage sacrifice? Crocodiles are only required of men who wants to do diabolical things. You can go outside , you will see daughters of the river seated for the occasion."
This was too surreal to even phantom. Before now she'd thought that noone could do such but time and act had changed her thought on it.
She still didn't believe what she'd heard, she would see things for herself.
Quickly, she hurried out of the room, not turning back to bid the old woman farewell.
As she came out, seven pretty maidens dressed in uniform came before her, and bowed in greeting,
"Greetings to you, princess of our kingdom, we are here to grace your ceremony." they chorused.
"NO! This isn't true!" Uju screamed running towards the direction of Umudioga were Aneke and the entourage of ritualists had gone through.
The whole arena was put in pandemonium, as people ran helter skelter trying to get hold the running bride. Some who didn't know what was happening were also on the run towards their home. None wanted to be victim of an unexpected circumstance.
Uju had already gone some distance farther while some energetic sprinters made progressive chase on her. Though noone knew what had happened, why she ran so fast that noone could beat her speed.
Those who ran after her had became exhausted and had withdrawn while some jogged in the same direction making sure she didn't get out of sight.
Uju's pace was decreasing, been exhausted after long distance run, right inside her she thought about what Ajuka had told her. Aneke had been deceived into troubling a still water, but by who? She had a suspicion of Akwanwa, but she didn't wanted to starting tossing blames until she had fulfilled her mission.
Just as she progressed the sun came up from the clouds which had been hiding it, hence debilitating her, so she halted falling to the ground.
Just as she was trying to regain her breath, she saw the sun been eclipsed ephemerally, the resulting shadow of a giant bird surpassed her. She quickly looked up to see what was not a bird but that same strange and rare animal. That was a dragon! She noticed who was behind it. Akwanwa, of course, but who knew her mission.
Uju didn't know how closer she had gotten to whom she chased after, until she saw the weird animal descend in a farther distance. She hurried to see what it was about to do but it seems it wasn't going to spend much time on the ground. Uju saw the weird creature pick up a man amongst a band of men she saw from afar whom she presumed to be the group that went with Aneke. She ran with her strenght, and would have flied if it were possible to put on hold the creature's plot but too late for her, the it had dropped the man from an high altitude making him fall with his back on the hard earth.
TBC AT 4:30PM
