When Gods Bleed

by Njedeh Anthony

  The chief kept deferring the matter until there came a time that something had to be done. So during the Feast of the Ikenga—attended by people from all over Utagba—Akuna told Pokzee to sit by his side. Men and women performed their folksongs, plays, and cultural dances. Masqueraders with canes chased after children and blessed anyone of respect.

  During the cultural dance of the Alloida people, Pokzee was mesmerized by one of the dancers and Akuna saw the lust in his eyes. He asked Pokzee as they sat on the sandy floor underneath palm trees, “Do you like her?”

  “How can anybody not like that body of fire?” Pokzee replied, loud enough to be heard over the drumming of the musicians.

  “Things might not be what they seem when you take a closer look,” Akuna said, looking into his eyes.

  “If she is a cobra, let her bite me, but she will bear my children as my second wife.”

  When the dance was over, Akuna asked his envoy about the girl.

  “Her name is Nkiru, daughter of our late envoy. She has not been touched by any man before.”

  “Then why has she not married by now?” Pokzee asked.

  “The suitors who came for her hand could not afford the dowry.”

  “When the day is over, tell her to go to Pokzee's hut with her party.”

  “Chief, that is a shrewd request,” the envoy spoke carefully.

  “Are you trying to tell me that my general cannot afford her dowry?”

  “No, Chief. But there is a slight possibility that she may refuse.”

  “Then if she is not interested to take the hand of a great man in marriage, let her not come to his hut when the moon is full and she will never step into this land again.”

  “Chief, this is a simple issue. If she does not want to come, it’s not a problem. The whole place is packed with women looking for suitors,” Pokzee pleaded.

  “Go and deliver my message to her,” the chief commanded the envoy. He turned to Pokzee, talking as though his pride was at stake. “If she does not come with her party to see you, tell me first thing in the morning.”

  He rose and marched over the sandy ground, through the huts, and out of the feast with his entourage.

  It was the full moon and Pokzee awaited Nkiru and her party. He was alone because during the introduction to a woman for the first time, nobody in his party was allowed to be there. He began to wonder. How much bride price will they request? I have not really investigated her background. She could be a slave. May the gods forbid. When I marry this girl, I will not waste energy with any other woman for at least two weeks, but there is a possibility that she might not come.

  There was a heavy rap on the door. That son of mine thinks he can keep knocking on my door anytime he feels like. I will teach him a little respect. This is a ploy by his mother to prevent me from getting a new woman.

  He opened the door and instead of his son, he saw her. He stood amazed at her coming alone, then she walked past him and with every step she took she dropped a piece of clothing. Pokzee was still facing the door. By the time he turned around she was naked on the floor. At this point the only thing in his head was that if this was temptation, he was only human. With a fierceness he could not control, he grabbed her close to him and started to suck on her breast like a calf feeding from its mother. He held firmly to her hips and looked into her eyes. Then he penetrated her and she grabbed tight to him until he ejaculated.

  When the intercourse was over, he looked at her with a smirk on his face saying, “I thought they said you had not seen a man before.”

  She smiled. In a sudden flash she got up and ran to the wall, pounding her head continually against the hardened clay. With blood on her head, she dashed out of the door naked, screaming, crying while running like a lunatic.

  “People of Utagba, I came to Ogwashi to dance for the Ikenga. Was it evil that I should come to dance here? The people of Ogwashi have taken my innocence away from me. What wrong did I do to make Pokzee capture and rape me? What have I done to be punished like this?"

  Pokzee immediately put his clothes back on and went to find out exactly what was going on. By the time he came out, a multitude awaited him by his gates. Nine heavily armed warriors told him that the chief requested his presence.

  “Let us go. I am ready,” he said.

  Pokzee's wife grabbed her husband, screaming, “Nobody is going to take my husband anywhere!”

  He reprimanded his wife, telling her to go back and prepare food for him to eat. He looked at the warriors and apologized for his wife's actions. As they walked to the chief’s Haku, women started spitting and insulting him, but all through this, his head was still high.

  He got to the conference room to find the chief, Akuna's Tikpapa, the envoy, four of the elders, and Nkiru. They were all seated except the girl and him. Akuna looked at the girl, now covered with a wrapper, and instructed her to speak.

  “I was informed by my envoy that my presence was required by Pokzee, but I said I was not going to go because I felt I deserved to be a man's first wife. If I had to become a man's second, he had to be of great standing.”

  Pokzee thought about the situation. Why would she go out of her way to do this? I might have offended someone in her family line. But the envoy told me she has not been touched by any man. He even told the chief. She did not wait to hear what I intended of her, but what have I done to this vixen to breed such intense hatred?

  “When the different provinces had presented their dances, I decided to go to the stream to have my bath with my friends. In the bushes I saw a glittering light, so I decided to take a closer look,” she said, stopping to wipe the tears from her eyes. “As I went nearer to it, I felt a firm blow on my head and a strong grasp covering my mouth. I tried to scream, but he was too strong. He was just too strong.”

  At that point Pokzee, the chief and the elders made no expression. Only the envoy had tears streaming down his cheeks.

  “He took me into one of his huts and took away my innocence. He said if I told anyone what happened, he would destroy my life. I told him my life was already destroyed. That’s when I started to scream in the town before your men brought me here.”

  Akuna looked at Pokzee and asked him with authority, “Did you sleep with this woman?”

  “Yes, but she came out of her own will.”

  “So, I am to understand that she just walked into your hut to get raped?” Vacoura’s envoy asked.

  “I am not obligated to answer to you,” Pokzee replied.

  “I am the envoy, a representative of my chief, the questions I ask are the questions Chief Vacoura asks you. Or am I to understand that you cannot answer the questions of my chief?”

  “She walked into my home and had sex with me, not rape,” Pokzee said through gritted teeth.

  “Then where did the blood from her head come from?” the chief asked with disappointment all over his face.

  “She... hit her head on the wall by herself.”

  One of the elders got up and spat on the ground, anger in his every word.

  “Do you think we are goats that you kill and eat with our eyes wide open? The man is as guilty as the devil. Give him the punishment he deserves,” the elder yelled.

  The chief looked at the other elders and they all nodded in approval.

  “Do you have anything to say?” he asked Pokzee.

  “If the Oracle has opened the gateway of my death through this deceptive snake, then let it be.”

  “Pokzee,” the chief now said paternally, “is this a deliberate attempt to have us at war with the people of Alloida?”

  “She lies,” he said, his large burly form, straightened.

  “I, Chief Akuna of Ogwashi, put you on exile from this land and if you—”

  “A great apology, oh Great Chief,” the envoy interrupted, “ but if this man roams the kingdom, it might set an uneasiness for my people because the girl’s life cannot be secured. Not to mention that my chief might feel you are preserving him somewhere, as he ha
ppens to be one of your respected Omees. It’s not as though I believe that a man of your integrity would engage in such a thing.”

  The chief rose, looked at his elders and then he said with a heavy heart, “I sentence one of the greatest Omees in my time to death by noon. Until then he will be confined to prison.”

  They escorted Pokzee to prison to await his execution. He spent the whole night in a six-by-six clay-bound wall, trying to unravel why he was in this predicament. A light appeared in front of him and he saw a lizard, which transformed into a man—the Ifa priest.

  “Am I to be honored with the presence of the Great Ifa during my execution?” Pokzee asked, bewildered.

  “Honestly, young man, I did not know of your existence in the past, but as of now the oracle has labeled you an asset to the King. Chief Akuna has violated the laws of the land.”

  “So it was the chief who put this dilemma on me.”

  “Are you trying to debase me so I will come all the way here to settle such a trivial issue as your rape case?”

  “Sorry for my uncultured interference, Great Ifa.”

  “Your chief has broken the laws of the land. He has been trading with the Portuguese and purposely forgot to ask the permission of the King. Upon the wealth he claims, he still sheds tears of poverty when asked for his taxes, and most especially, there is a disloyal approach to his character. I came to take his life and install you as chief, but this situation manifested. As you said, you were put in your predicament, probably to prevent an early succession. As of now there is nobody else worthy of taking the title.”

  “What must I do?”

  “You will chew these leaves as they lead you to the platform. As you get there, spit them out and shout, ‘AGAM OBODO OZO.’ You will disappear to a safer distance. You have twelve days to clear yourself of any allegations. If by that time you have not returned, I will not hesitate any longer to take the life of your chief and replace him with who I see fit.”

  “What if the people reject your choice?”

  “Then the people of Ogwashi will go to war with the kingdom of Utagba and every Omee who exists on this land will be slaughtered, every commoner and child will be made slaves, and all the women of this land will be distributed as concubines to the masses.”

  “Is this what you foresaw or a threat of what you are capable of?”

  “It’s not what I am capable of, but what your King is capable of.”

  “But you are aware that they would never accept anybody you choose.”

  “That I am aware of. It is probably the reason why the King chose you before this predicament, but notwithstanding, there is a contingency plan.”

  “May I ask what it is?”

  “If I tell you, it might prevent you from coming back.”

  “I do not have a choice. I have to come back or else my wife and three sons will be executed.”

  “It is to put a man from Abogima to govern your people.”

  Otuturex, the name echoed in Pokzee's head. I wonder what his attachment to the King is based on that he is ready to destroy our population for him. He is positive that the people would reject his decision and the King is positive that no chief is going to come to our aid.

  The door unlocked and three Omees entered telling him it was time. He looked behind him to find out the Ifa priest was not there, but the leaves were on the floor. He picked them up and started chewing as they led him to the platform.

  Why does the Ifa priest want to help me? It would have been more convenient for the King to let me die. If the King squashes the land, he would be able to suck the sweetest fruits from the land, increase his slaves, put in the kind of chief he can trust, not to mention how fertile our land is.

  Every step he took seemed steep. Pushing the cursing spectators with tears in her eyes was his wife, not missing a pace of his journey.

  “I am still here,’’ she shouted as she followed him. “I am not going anywhere. If it be my destiny that we cannot be together in the land of the living, then I will wait for you in the land of the dead.”

  Tears nearly fell from his eyes looking at this woman, but he believed that men don't cry. Watching her as he was escorted, he knew his wife did not deserve this humiliation. I promise to come back to you, my sweet wife. Everything will be as it was and I swear to you I shall have no other wife till death. These were the words he wished he could tell her through the horde.

  As he climbed the platform, he looked around to see the people who were there to celebrate his execution—an angry mob that despised rapists more than their enemies.

  As they placed his head in the wooden framework, he spat the leaves. Before he could say a word, from the crowd he heard those words that haunted him throughout the days of his life: AGAM OBODO OZO.

  There was an explosion on the platform. The three Omees on the platform ran down. Everybody started chattering, with only the Tikpapa walking cautiously toward the scene.

  Pokzee looked around, unable to run with his neck locked. The noise from the crowd started to fade, and there was clearer visual on what was behind the smoke: It was his wife.

  “People of Ogwashi, you have the wrong suspect. The person you should be punishing is me. I am a witch,’’ she declared.

  “She is lying. She acts from an untamed love,” Pokzee screamed.

  Nkiru cut in asking, “Am I so stupid that I don't know the difference between a man and a woman?”

  “I changed into a man and grabbed you from the stream,” Pokzee’s wife replied.

  “She lies. It was I that raped her and took all her innocence away. Do not listen to a word my wife says!”

  “If I tell tales, how do you explain the scar I put on her face.”

  “You did not do anything to her face. She did it by herself. If you attacked her, how did you know I had asked her to come?” Pokzee said, still screaming.

  “I did not know she was coming.”

  “But I was at the feast and I saw the way he was looking at her when she danced. That’s why I attacked her at the stream.”

  “She speaks falsely. She is a liar. She is trying to protect her husband,” Nkiru said.

  “What makes you so sure she was not the one?” the Tikpapa asked, his eyes fixed on hers.

  “Well, I should know. I slept with him…I mean he raped me.”

  “I know my wife. She is no witch. She is trying to take my burden.”

  “Or it is you trying to carry hers?” one of the elders asked.

  “I tell you on the lives I have fought and died for, my wife is not a witch.”

  “Then how do you explain her entrance to this platform? Whatever she did, it’s magic,” another elder said.

  “It was the Ifa priest who cast that spell, not her.”

  “You lie. Nobody witnessed the Ifa priest arriving,” the envoy said, hoping he was right.

  “He lies to protect his bride. That was why he refused to defend himself properly during his trial,” another elder said.

  “I said nothing because I knew I was guilty of the crime committed.”

  “My husband is a fool to die for a crime that I committed. Today it is Nkiru, tomorrow it could be your wife, your brother, or your only son I will possess.”

  “Please do not listen to her, she is lying,” Pokzee said with tears in his eyes.

  “Watch my husband cry like a woman. Does he not know that men do not cry?”

  The oldest elder stood up and said, “I am not worthy of being an elder in this province. How could I have been a party to the execution of a man who brought pride to our land?” He dropped his staff and walked away.

  “No, no, that’s what she wants,” Pokzee screamed from his enclosed wooden framework.

  Chief Akuna rose with indifference on his face and spoke with an air of command. “Release the great Omee and prepare the witch for an immediate execution.”

  Two Omees walked toward them—the first went to tie his wife up and the other released Pokzee.

  As s
oon as he was free, he grabbed the Omee by his testicles and neck and threw him over the platform. The other Omee used his clenched fist and hit his back. Pokzee staggered, but not before using his elbow to bang the Omee’s jaw. A taller Omee climbed the platform and threw a punch. Unfortunately, he missed and received half a dozen across his ribs before he was thrown over. Another charged at Pokzee like a deer. He fitted the man’s neck into a jab from his elbow. The next Omee was bigger than he was and immediately squeezed him in a bear hug. Pokzee head butted the man, but the Omee refused to ease the grasp, so he used his knee to continuously pound on his testicles until the man fainted.

  During this time, his wife was tied by her hands and feet. All that crossed her mind was that if there was a greater man to die for, she would never see him and if that person existed, she did not want to live to see such a person because she was proud of her man—her only man.

  Pokzee looked at the crowd and saw more than three thousand Omees waiting in line to hold him down. He rushed, untied his wife, put her up on his shoulder, using his elbow to hit the next Omee who entered the platform and then he ran and jumped into the crowd of spectators. They didn’t call him the bull for nothing. As they landed, there was chaos amongst the crowd.

  The Tikpapa shouted, “NODI YADI BA FO YEH JEKE EBE OBONE.”

  The crowd parted in the middle, where Pokzee was frozen in a spot with his wife on his shoulder. The Tikpapa waved his hand and both man and wife collapsed on the ground, unconscious.

  Pokzee opened his eyes to find himself in his hut along with the Ifa priest, who was drinking palm wine from a calabash.

  “Where is my wife?”

  “They have executed her by burning her on a stake. I could have sworn she was laughing during the execution.”

  “You could have saved her.”

  “Yes, but she chose her destiny. A sacrifice was required. This palm wine is still sweet after two days.”