Page 62 of Wrath of the Oracle

“If I am going to make the journey with you, you have to tell me everything about my dreams and tattoos,” Sholei said. When Musembi opened her mouth to protest, she added, “I mean everything, from the beginning to the end.”

“Very well, but you must remember I can only tell what I learned by chance. It might not be the entire story,” Musembi said.

“Do you know the poem of eagles and snakes? Can you recite it?” Musembi asked.

Sholei nodded and began to recite the words scribbled underneath the statue of Lord Keita and Asaa.

Snakes don’t fly with eagles.

Snakes crawl on the ground as eagles soar the sky.

But what happens when they meet?

Will the snake drag the eagle to the ground? Or will they soar in the heavens together?

A never-ending battle, forever locked in a vicious cycle.

“The words are written on the base of Lord Keita’s statues across the land. Even the high priests don’t know who composed these words. After the great battle of the sky gods and Keita, the words appeared,” Musembi said. “Haven’t you wondered why, out of all the numerous gods we worship, High Lord Keita and the other sky gods are most revered?”

“You warned me against visiting the temples or ancestral shrines in the medicine yard. How could I learn about the gods?” Sholei cast Musembi an accusing glance. It was too late to blame the woman. Since Sholei never had the motivation to learn about the gods, she cared about being an Imperial Physician more.

“I kept a statue of Lord Keita in your room, and you kept getting headaches whenever you came across it. I didn’t know if the other gods would affect you the same way, so I closed the ancestral shrine room and warned you against visiting the temples.” Musembi shrugged her shoulders. “It’s said that when Joka, the water god, threatened to flood this world, the sky gods, led by Lord Keita, stopped him. They managed to lock Joka away, but before that, he placed a curse on Keita. Keita was to experience a cycle of love and death until the water god broke off his bonds and returned to this world.”

“Where does Asaa fit in this story?” Sholei raised her eyebrows at Musembi. “Or the Oracle?”

“The water god’s daughter can bring him back to life. It’s just that she has never succeeded in her quest, and Lord Keita keeps stopping her. The Oracle kept saying fate is a fickle lord. Because why did Asaa have to be Keita’s love? The two have been locked in a battle for ages, with Asaa losing each time. The Oracle is the previous reincarnation of Asaa.”

“Let me get this clear.” Sholei narrowed her eyes at Musembi. “Asaa is the water god’s daughter and Lord Keita’s enemy. But since the water god cursed Lord Keita, he also directly endangered his daughter?”

“I told you I don’t know the entire story. Every priest has a different version. Lord Keita must stop Asaa from awakening her father. He must stop the snake in your dreams, and, in turn, you,” Musembi finished in a chilly voice. A shudder ran through Sholei’s body.

“Why hasn’t Keita made an appearance until now?” Sholei asked in a small voice.

“I don’t have the answers to all your questions, Sholei, but I will tell you this. Lord Keita possesses Ojore’s body in this lifetime, and I don’t think your meeting was a coincidence. The Oracle keeps calling him the Star from the North. Maybe Keita’s biding his time before he attacks.” Musembi shrugged her shoulders.

“There is a reason the Oracle insists you kill Ojore as soon as possible before Keita takes over. But once he does, I don’t know what will happen to you.”

”Ojore and I don’t deserve this.” Sholei shook her head. “Why do we have to bear the burden of the gods?Why can’t we be Sholei, the Imperial Physician, and Ojore, the Prince of Dembe?”

“The next time you dream of the snake in your dreams, stop and confront it. Maybe the Oracle will reveal herself to you. She is ever in the presence of Asaa.”

Ojore blinked as he tried to keep his eyes open. Dizziness accompanied by severe headaches had plagued him since he left the camp for the Keseve Market. For the hundredth time, he cursed the potency of Sholei’s poison. He hadn’t collapsed in the middle of the fight by sheer luck.

After securing the Keseve Market, the Dembe charged into Mukuru City and headed for the palace. Beneath him, Radi raced toward the open gates of King Gusiwaju’s palace. As they neared the palace, he knocked down the orange and brown banner of the Mukuru Kingdom, and the men behind him cheered. The streets of Mukuru were deserted as people hid behind closed doors. Horse hooves thundered, and war cries rent the air as the Dembe army charged forward.

Bodies of dead alliance soldiers lay over the open gates as Ojore made his way to the palace. Black smoke from fallen torches billowed in the air and added to the dark ambiance. Palace servants, retainers, and other officials huddled together under the watch of his men. They avoided his gaze as he passed.

“Akima,” Ojore called for his second in command. “Gather all the royal women and send them to the north. You know what to do with the males.”

Akima nodded grimly and turned toward the inner quarters of King Gusiwaju’s courts. They knew what came next after they occupied a new kingdom. The males of the ruling king didn’t survive. The females were sent to be nobles’ servants around the Dembe Kingdom and her states.

Before the court, a handful of city guards drew their weapons on Ojore.

“You won’t stop me from breaking that door and getting to King Gusiwaju,” Ojore said as he dismounted Radi. He sheathed his weapon and glared at the men before him. “Unfortunately, I have no time to fight you. Something else requires my urgency.”

”We shall protect the sovereign of Mukuru from Dembe invaders to the last man standing!” shouted a palace guard, his voice loud against the cloudy morning. The rains pounded the entire night and only let up that morning, but the dark clouds didn’t go away. Up in the skies, the ever-present eagle shrieked and swooped low to land on one of the bas-relief pillars before the court.

“There is no more Mukuru,” Ojore sneered at the men as he stepped forward up the stone stairs. “KingGusiwaju, will you hide behind your men or come out and face me?” he shouted as he took another step.

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