CRADLE OF THE GODS

Chapter 6

The men were now lost and separated in the forest. Okoh and Ehiedu wandered round the forest in search of Ibe and Orewa and vice-versa. By this time Ehiedu was weary. His eyeballs sunk into their sockets and his skin was getting pale.

Okoh and Ehiedu had journeyed long when they decided to take a quick nap under a shade as the sun was scorching. But Ehiedu found it hard to sleep. He rolled and moaned and his belly rumbled in hunger. He sat up, frowning and hissing. It was yet another bad day for him. He caught sight of a stream not far from where they were. He looked at Okoh to see if he was still sleeping and when he was certain, he tip-toed towards the stream. He smiled as he got to the stream, at last some water to quench his thirst. It was overdue.

He knelt down by the stream and placed his two hands together. Creating a hollow with his palms, he scooped some water. No sooner had he brought his hands to his mouth when Okoh kicked his hands causing the water to spill. Ehiedu's countenance said it all.

"Kill me!" he yelled. "Put me out of my misery!"

Okoh looked at Ehiedu in pity. He was silent for he knew Ehiedu was suffering, but something in him just couldn't let him go.

"We would find a way", He assured Ehiedu whose eyes were soaked in tears.

"We would get through this."

They sat by the stream in gloom when suddenly, they heard a roar. Several snarling sounds were heard and it seemed like some animals were running.

The animals were like huge sabre toothed tigers with crocodile skin. They were three in number and they had been chasing Orewa and Ibe who climbed a tree for safety. The animals surrounded the tree, their long canine visible as they growled. To the horror of Ibe and Orewa, the animals began to climb the tree as well. Orewa and Ibe climbed higher, looking down at the animals that also climbed the tree with tremendous speed. Orewa attempted to use his crutch to ward them off. They in turn waved their paws to try to bring the men down. Death, it seemed, was their surety.

Ehiedu and Okoh came to their rescue. They hurled stakes at the animals, killing one in the process. The other two animals came down from the tree to attack Ehiedu and Okoh whilst the corpse of the third came tumbling down. Orewa and Ibe were happy to see their comrades alive. They cheered on as Ehiedu and Okoh tried to flee the enraged animals. When they and the animals were long gone, Orewa and Ibe came down from the tree.

"They are still alive!" they exclaimed, laughing hysterically.

They were still celebrating when they heard something rustle in a bush nearby. Orewa and Ibe slowly inched backwards. They were utterly shocked to see who came out of the bush.

"Gods of our fathers!" Ibe exclaimed. "It is Biose!"

Biose crawled out of the bush. His body was severely charred. He had barely crawled out when he slumped. Orewa and Ibe rushed to his aid.

"Stay back!" Okoh warned as he and Ehiedu raced to the scene. They had somehow managed to escape the animals.

"Get away from him or you would join the spirits."

"What do you mean?" Ibe asked, but he did step back a bit. "This is Biose."

"The Biose you know is dead/", Okoh said. "What the creatures did to him, no one can survive."

"But we can't just leave him here", Orewa said.

"Believe me", Ehiedu said. "Biose is dead, turned into one of them."

"I'm surprised you are still alive yourself", Ibe said.

"Well get used to it", Ehiedu replied.

Their attention turned to Biose whose body began to morph into a giant scorpion.

"Gods of our fathers!" Ibe exclaimed.

"Run!" Orewa yelled.

The men fled as the giant scorpion chased them, knocking down trees in its path. They soon got to a dead end as a hill lay ahead. The men noticed a crack in the rock leading to a cave. The crack was big enough for only one person to squeeze through at a time. They raced towards the crack with the scorpion was hot on their heels. Because Orewa was injured and Ehiedu was weak the men were slow and there was no way they could all make it through the crack before the scorpion caught up with them. Ehiedu was aware of this so he stopped running. The men noticed he had stopped.

"Go!" he yelled.

The men paused. Obviously, they did not approve of whatever he had planned. They didn't want to leave him behind.

"Go!" he yelled again. "Extend my regards to Agha."

The men reluctantly ran on as the scorpion almost caught up with them.

Ehiedu used his weapon to distract the scorpion. He tried his best to fight the scorpion, even cutting off one of its legs, but the scorpion stabbed him in the gut with its stinger. Ehiedu's entire body immediately turned purple. The scorpion flung him to a tree and used its pincers to rip Ehiedu to pieces.

When the scorpion was done with Ehiedu, it proceeded to chase the remaining men made it into the cave. The cave shook as the scorpion hit the cave several times, trying to break through. The men listened in horror, hoping that the rock would not give in. Eventually, the scorpion stopped and went away.

The men moved deeper into the cave, looking for another way out. They had barely walked anywhere when they noticed something quite interesting. It was as if they were outside. The place looked like a beach, only there was no water around. Everything, from the sky to the ground, was grey; though in different shades. There was no sun, but the place was lit up. Everywhere appeared desolate.

"Gods of our fathers!" Ibe exclaimed.

"What is this place?" Orewa asked.

Okoh put on a smile. It appeared as though he was about to burst into laughter.

"Why are you amused?" Ibe asked. "Have you lost your leaf as well?"

"After all this time", Okoh said, ignoring Ibe's comment. "We are here at last!"

"You don't mean it", Orewa said. "How do you know?"

"I just know", Okoh replied.

His companions stared at him as he moved ahead.