It was one of those evening the moon had betrayed the night. Darkness press upon the earth like it never did. The oil lamp was lit around the thatched Hut, all but a weak attempt to brighten up the shades.
It was quiet, except for the hits of the pestle by mama who was pounding yams. The insects, overjoyed by the rhythm, joined in continuous hiss to create a perfect melody with the mortal.
Ngozi had join mama in the kitchen immediately after she came back from the dance at the village square. Her sweat had washed off the juice of the uli tree designed by mama on her face and body before she left.
Aka had gone to hunt the goats back to their pens in other to avoid theft.
Papa sat bare chested on his seat outside the Hut, humming a song, while he tapped the head of a tiny little bottle in preparation of his tobacco ritual before meals.
'Papa please come and tell me a story' Obi cried. Clinging closely to his father's arm and finding a way to stroking the hairs in his armpit.
Papa snuffed in for the fourth time the lump of tobacco he had taken with the thumb of his hand, his eyes almost blood shut in tears and he sneezed heavily, with some mucky splitters escaping to obi's body. It gave him a cozy and chilly feeling which he enjoyed.
'You will have to wait until your siblings are ready' Papa said after sneezing for the second time.
Papa had always told stories to them most nights together. Obi, being the last born of the house, feigned being hurt, and wanted to cry. He was used to having his way around the house.
Aka had joined the company of Obi and his father, his body stank heavily of the smell of an unwashed he-goat.
'Tell us the story of how the Fox became less afraid of the cock' Obi shouted.
Aka shrugged in contention that papa had told that several times. He suggested another, which led to disagreement and altercation between them, until papa restored normalcy and started.
'In the land of Ujeh lived a particular set of individuals as slaves. They called them Osu.'
He made a pause as if to make a mental recollection of fact. He dropped the tobacco bottle at the edge of his feet and continued. Obi and Aka sat on the floor excited at papa's entrance of the tale, and listened with captivated attention.
'Their plight could be traced to the demise of their empire and King who fell to the warriors of ujeh land.' He continued.
'This happened many years ago. Even before the present sufferant were born and bred. Most of them never knew the truth of their origin. The elders and holders of their sad history had either passed on with time or nature has incapacitated them with weariness and senility.
'They were humans whose lot were that of a pig. The rulers of Ujeh, in their magnanimity, built them slumps as houses, leaving them with little or nothing to feed on. ###### They were given to ostracism, excommunicated and shunned.
Their children died by the numbers, unceremoniously from severe want of care. Their women were no good than an instrument of gratification of orgasmic desires.
The only use that the youths were, was to channel their manpower into building community monument.'
Papa stopped at the sight of Ngozi, who was done with mama at the kitchen and had brought in a small bench to set before him. Food was ready. She came in the second time with a stainless tray on her hand, which contained the plate of Pound yam and the bowl of vegetable soup.
Aka, stood up to help bring the washing water, as well as a cup of drinking water taken from the calabash at the kitchen.
He, not wanting to miss a word in the tale, ran frantically. Almost spilling liquid on the floor as he set them on the bench. He joined the listening company of Obi and Ngozi, who had helped herself to the floor too.
Papa did not take cognisance of the food that was set before him. His voice sank into whisper but to clear enough to the creatures of the night to hear. He continued.
'The Slaves resolved among themselves after much contemplation to meet with the rulers of UJeh and lay bare their hearts to them of their predicament. Maybe, they thought, the rulers will look upon them with fair countenance. So they decided that the day of 'Eke' would be most perfect.
The fateful day came with much labour of waiting. The eldest among their clan, two other person and a keen young man made the entourage. They call him Ozumba.
Ozumba and the rest directed their feet to the palace of UJeh in great optimism.
He (Ozumba) wanted to talk to the rulers. He had very much wanted to look them in the eyeball and ask what great distain his people had done. He had wanted to ask the reasoning behind the fact that the rulers had made them to suffer for the sins of their ancestors. The rational behind them being labelled a thing sacrificed to the gods, a social outclass and the benefits of this misdeeds to the dying body of his clan. But It was not to be so.
Through filial piety and universally held sentiment in Africa, the elder spoke to the rulers. His speech was softly spoken, and had a trace of a humble plea. He reminded the rulers that the were still humans and not swines! That they have been ear bending to instructions of the rulers and contributed financially and physically to the development of the community. Their only plea is not to be bound free, but to be looked upon with dignity of humans, mitigating their hardship, while they still sing the chorus of the rulers of UJeh. This was not much to ask, he thought.
The rulers listened in reproached impatience. Thereafter the 'Osu' were done, the head ruler, had stomach enough affront from the infidels, stood in rage, and ordered that they were to be done with. Detaching the tongue of theirs forever in silence, and be a lesson to those who would nurture such temerity to confront them.
This the guards did. Living them in the state of the thin line between cross worlds. They had manage to escape but not in one piece. ###### Ozumba and the other two with him aided the elder to their shoulders who was taking his last dole of breath. They reached home amidst pain and suffering, laying the elder on the floor with hope that nothing was left of him.
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The women ran out in shock to see their dying husbands and sons. Clasping their hands in their flatten breast and head, wailing uncontrollably.
Then an interesting thing which for the life of them they never imagined happened.
THANKS FOR THE READ
