Akata Witch

“Royal blood means royal responsibility,” Anatov said, speaking for the first time since they’d walked in.

“The free agent,” the blind woman said. Her voice was shaking. “She’s-she’s seen it.” They went silent. “Haven’t you?” the blind woman asked.

“Seen what?” she asked, feeling her throat constrict.

“You know what I speak of,” she said. “It’s why you all are here today. It’s why Black Hat has been kidnapping, killing, and maiming children. He is only one leg of the centipede, and the centipede’s head is yet to emerge.”

“It’s going to happen? For sure?” Sunny said.

“It will,” the blind woman simply said.

“You’ve really seen it?” Ali asked, his voice softening for the first time. Sunny nodded. “I’m so sorry. No one so young should witness the end of the world.”

“The beginning,” the blind woman corrected.

“Can someone speak straight?” Sasha said. “We’ve been told we have to fight Black Hat. We four, not you all. Sunny is the youngest, Chichi is the oldest”-he looked at Chichi, but she said nothing-“or maybe she’s the youngest and I’m the oldest. I’m fourteen and a half. Why us? What can we possibly do? Who is Black Hat?”

“He’s right,” Orlu said, standing up. He placed his hand on Sasha’s shoulder, a sign for Sasha to keep his mouth shut. “We need information.” He addressed the two women on the left and the toucan man. “Great Oga Ntombi, Oga Bomfomtabellilaba, Oga Ali.” He turned and addressed the blind woman and the man beside her. “And Great Great Oga Abok and Oga Yakobo, you are all very, very old and wise beyond imagination. You’ve traveled a long way. But what seems clear to you is confusing to us.

“Please, tell us how Black Hat is only one leg of the centipede, as you said, Oga Abok. Why do we have to do this and not a group of older, wiser people? Tell us what to do!” Orlu sat down and the room was silent.

“Checks and balances, you see?” said the woman Orlu had called Bomfomtabellilaba.

Abok, the blind woman, spoke. “There will be a nuclear holocaust, but there will be something else, too. It will bring green and everything will change. Many laws of physics will shift and become something else. This place will become a new place. Sunny isn’t the only one who’s seen it. Several old ones have seen it, too.

“Whether Sunny knew it or not, she has always been a Leopard Person. Just as her grandmother was. All free agents are what they always were-Leopard. And she is a child of the physical and spirit world. Sunny, you have friends and enemies in the spirit world, for before you were born you were a person of importance there. What kind of person were you? Well, that is something you’ll have to figure out. A friend or enemy of yours showed you that vision in the candle. It changed you, no?”

Sunny nodded. It had been the first sign of what she was.

“Now, as I said, many know of what’s to come. Some see that they can take advantage of it. Imagine chaos, and then in the middle of it all, someone comes with a logical blueprint for a new order. What would you do? You would follow that person, no? The closer the change comes, the more Black Hat types we will see. I say he is a leg of the centipede because I believe he is one of several, a minion. Above him is the true leader.

“Black Hat’s real name is Otokoto Ginny. As you know, he passed his fourth levels, which means he is expert; he is master; he is powerful. But something went wrong, and now he is corrupt, too.

“Otokoto was a Nigerian oil dealer who did big business with the Americans. But he had greater aspirations than financial wealth, just as he sought more than just chittim. He wanted power. That remains his greatest hunger, and his hunger has opened him up to terrible powers of the earth. There is a forbidden juju, a black juju. It is old and secret. He had only part of the juju and needed the book he stole from the library for the rest. The juju is to bring the head of the centipede through-Ekwensu.”

Chichi and Orlu gasped so loudly that Sunny jumped.

“Why would anyone do that?” Orlu asked in a strained voice. Chichi looked about to cry.

“The hunger for power will lead a person to dark, dead places,” Abok said. “He’s lost control of himself. He is lost. He will attempt it. Especially now that he has that book. If he brings Ekwensu through, Ekwensu will build an empire. She did it once before, thousands of years ago, and it was only by coincidence that Ekwensu was sent back.” Abok paused. “People say it was a combination of lightning, an angry willful girl, a rotten mango, and perfect timing.”

“What’s expected of you four is simple,” Abok said. “Two children have been taken. It happened two hours ago. Your job is to bring them back safely to their parents.

“This rain is no coincidence. It is sent by Ekwensu. The thunder and the lightning and the water cleanse the atmosphere in preparation for Ekwensu’s arrival. It’s like rolling out the red carpet for a great queen. You see all the leaks? No natural rain could penetrate library walls.

“In about six hours, Black Hat will perform a ceremony on these two children. He will have them drink Fanta laced with calabash chalk, a substance that will enhance the spirit life within the children. Then he’ll kill them. And when he completes this ceremony, he’ll have gathered enough force to bring Ekwensu through.”

“Will…” Sunny hesitated. But she had to know. “Will he recognize me?”

Sasha, Orlu, and Chichi all looked at her, baffled.

“He might,” Abok said. “Though you don’t look like your grandmother, there are other ways to know a spiritline when it runs strong.”

She clenched her fists. “How do we find him?” she asked.

“He owns a gas station near Aba,” Taiwo said. “Start there, follow his tracks. Use the element of surprise. He is arrogant and has no respect for young people. He will not be expecting you, and when he sees you, he will think you harmless.”

“Why didn’t people do this for-for all of the other children?” she asked.

“Timing is everything,” Abok said. “It wasn’t time.”

“We had people try, but they all came to a bad end,” Ali added quickly.

“Timing,” Abok said again. “This time, it will be right.”

“We hope,” Ali said.

Sunny frowned. “You mean you’ve sent other groups like ours? And-”

“We have and will continue to until Black Hat is taken down,” Yakobo said. “More is at stake than your lives.”

“Black Hat is a shrewd sorcerer,” Abok said. “He has protection, but we have watched for loopholes. The children that returned maimed but alive were all rescued by Oha covens.”

“Did the rescuers escape, too?” she asked.

None of the scholars replied. That was answer enough.

Sunny held the phone closer to her ear and turned away from the others. They were on a funky train, speeding down the road in the rain. The line remained quiet, but she knew someone was there. “Mama, hello? I can hear you breathing.”

“What do you want?” her brother Chukwu said. “What did you do?” There was the sound of a struggle. “I want to know!” her brother demanded.

“Let me talk to her,” she heard her other brother Ugonna say.

“Give me the phone,” she heard her mother snap. “Sunny?” Her voice sounded thick and she sniffed loudly. “You there?”

“Yes, Mama.” Silence. “Hello? Mama?”

Silence.

“Is-is it raining there?” her mother finally asked.

“Yeah.”

“Of course it is,” she said quietly.

“Mama, do you…” Sunny tried to speak, but it felt like something was softly squeezing her throat. It was the pact she’d made with Orlu and Chichi.

Silence.

“J-just come home,” her mother whispered. “Make sure you come back home.” Silence. “Be brave. I love you.”