It was in the midnight when utter somberness would gag the noisome wide mouths of the daylight and the clattering sing-songs the iron plates make as they pounce on the kitchen grounds in the night. Crows to them somewhere, in far distances, their dear oracles had revealed just of recent would take young horses eon years to reach, are cherished as trusted messengers. But to them here at Abule Aderibigbe, they are omens that something inconceivable was about taking place upon the roof on which it had cawed, at times upon the village over which it had cawed. Their elders in their priceless arts and wits in the course of their red eyes and reeking teeth had said that the chameleon excrete which stained your white regalia made us vex much whilst the earth beetles rolled the same with dirt into morsel with love to survive.
“The rhymes of this times are sure different. I can even feel the earth crust burning within the ambience of its round construct even beneath my flat feet” said the man as he wobbled through the dried path with the rustlings of the leaves leaving by sibilance of his passage.
It was the time of the year when the clouds, those four brothers, white wools holding the blueness of the heaven still would not fill back abysses lying between them in the looks of rifts. It was the time of the year when the misunderstanding around the faces in the skies would occupy the minds of those owning and manning the gate where rain sleeps so that it might run out and fall on them. It was the time of the year when the sun would come out pulchritudinous with queenie poses and quizzically poking gazes as she would stagger through the maps in the sky. It was the time of the year when men ooze reeking waters right from their armpits almost immediately they were out on a new day. It was the time of the year when hands might not want to close their tiny windows to rest in the night. It was the time of the year when kings would sleep right next to the sills of their tiny windows whilst their slaves do not sleep but fan them to sleep as the minions bathe under the heating hands of heat so they sweat wet as if drenched of the fall of rain. It was the time of the year when the sun would scorch the green leaves till they grow from greenness into the colour of the sun to fall for people like Ade to walk on to rustle for the airs to appreciate and make news of the time abound. Ade was a popular, good and respected famer and hunter who was always on his ways down to the farm as early as plausible. He was blessed with many children just from one wife. He was one of those men who would not listen to the items of advice that might not assist he was so stubborn. Friends and family had come to sit right next to him, even at times, to the face of his only wife, to encourage him to take in another wife. He would not listen to that as he had his own schema which he said he would never revealed to no one, yet as per bringing in another woman to stay in his hut.
On this day, as he was on his way down to the farm as usual, with his two dogs. One is Ajewole. The wife begged him to name the second one right after the time they met. She explained she was not complete till they met for he asked why. She begged Ade after a lot of sensuous teasing in bed and off bed to let it be so. He was left with no choice but to give in. So he named the female one Mopelola. He would always remember and fear women for their powers in spite they are as fragile as chicken eggs with lighter shells. He always felt awed in the head when he had concluded right in the head, in his heart and in his mind he was not going to bend to the words of women on some specific decisions but he ended up doing their biddings with joy.
The path to the farm looked filled with emptiness as he had only met an old woman trying to gather woods for fuel by the side of the tiny route to his farm. The dogs were far at the back and he would not notice that as he was far lost in the course of the thoughts on how to harvest next on getting to the farm. It was the harsh barking of Ajewole and Mopelola that drew the fitted nicker of this consciousness right back into reality to behold act. He ran backwards with all the energies he had thinking the dogs might have seen or smelt some big antelope around or some big snake that might fetch him some good trading by barter.
“Eh… eh…eh… hey… Ajewole… Mopelola… What is it? Which animal this time? Big? Small? Long? Hairy…?” asked Ade, with a gait and impression the dogs would stop to bark and would give responses.
The dogs barking began to drop in pitch as they had seen their owner around to handle the matter. Mopelola was the best when it comes to not giving up its stance facing the right direction the entity in question went for Ade to chase. Ajewole had already left smelling other paths of the bush around and was seen stooped and relieving his bowels.
“Alright, alright… I understand Mopelola. I understand. It went that way right? I grasp! It is alright. You can wait for me here” said Ade as he dashed roughly into the bushy side on the right side of the tiny path to his farm to have a look at the beast they have seen not that far enough from the village.
The ways they have barked were unusual. He was worried, maybe it was another wild cobra they smelt or so. He began to be stealthy with each pace he took so the rustling of the leaves and crackling of the dried straws and sticks would not make him lose that one shot he had left in the gun right across his back. As he approached, he would take some steps calculatedly and halt to hear or see the beast or whatever it was rustles the leaves on the ground, crack the straws or the dried sticks on the ground. He heard nothing. He walked a bit further around the more continuing in the selfsame approach and suddenly, he began to overhear the ground rustle, the straws breaking and the dried sticks on the ground were all reacting together simultaneously and consistently. He wondered what sort of beast it would be. He was a bit fidgety as he was trying in spite to bring to the fore, the gun lying right across his back gently to take the one shot left. He raised the gun up to his right eye targeting assiduously what he had not seen well. His right hand forefinger was already wet lying across the trigger and his paces were more meticulous than before to the extent that he was like a filoplume feather, landing on a calabash of water. He paused fixatively to use his ears well then. Then, he began to over-hear sensuous sounds. They were emitting from the other side of the bushy wall. The rustling continued to increase and the noise she was making was not of pain but of enjoyment. He thrust back the gun gently to his back and approached much more carefully as he could see their clothes right on one side next to the root of an iroko tree. He hopped gently to have a clear view. He had a clear view as he peeped through the holes in the thick wall.
“Yeh, ah… ah… Kabiyesi... Ajiun… So, you are the beasts I have been chasing ehn!” exclaimed and shrieked Ade.
The two of them as bare as they were rose from lying on the king’s regalia as if they have both seen a famished lion needing to feast. They shook uncontrollably. Ajiun ran to the back of the king, still bare. Ade had already re-collected his gun from his back back to the front, in his hands was positioned for a close shot.
The king then summoned courage and said: “would you dare shoot your king? Have you all of a sudden forgotten who I am? My powers…! Have you forgotten the old adage that the king kings over everything? The gods would haunt you till you die a miserable death if you shoot.”
“Rubbish… That would be after I have killed you first…” said vexatiously, Ade.
“O, okay do it…” said the king as he moved closer and put his hairy chest to the front sight of the gun boldly.
TO BE CONTINUED….
