Incompetence

(Incompetence, The Rhino Group)

The Osi-Balogun was able to arrange a meeting between the unworthy candidates as they are called and each of the Jagunas at separate times; this will be the last opportunity for them to prove themselves worthy of becoming a member of the warrior group. The first of which is the elder known as Agba-Nimbẹ.

"Are you two still thinking about Balogun's punishment?" Kenny inquired

"Yes," Akin said

"No," Ṣeyi said

"Ṣeyi don't worry, I will take care of Akin" Kenny encouraged

"And I will too" Modupẹ added in a shy tone

"Gbabẹ!" Ṣeyi said in a forced cheerful tone

Gone are the days when he and his best friend Akin were alone, now he has a host of people who care about what will happen to them. So what, if the Balogun decides to punish them, he has been through a lot in life and he has conquered every stumbling block in his way. This will be no different.

"When I return, I will let her realise her mistake," he declared in a rebellious tone, He intends to pull a far more deadly stunt than he has ever pulled before that way he can cause her extreme heartache.

Just like Ṣeyi, Kenny chuckled, always looking ahead and never discouraged. The real problem is Akin the hunchback with real self-esteem issues, the only time Akin is able to master any confidence is when he is close to Ṣeyi, this punishment will weigh on him the most.

Modupẹ sat down quietly, not even saying a word glad that she is on the same level as Ṣeyi, her mind ripe with all the emotions she intends to express to him from her heart but she lacked the courage to place them into words. As Ṣeyi chatted away with Kenny on meaningless things, a stranger appeared behind them, using the silence of the background to mask his presence. He held a large calabash filled with palm wine and from all indications, he is quite tipsy. It took the whole team about five minutes of aimless chatting before they realised that something was amiss, the newcomer is Nimbẹ Adebanjọ one of the great Jagunas of the village.

"Eee! – are you Ṣeyi -, Akin, Kenny – Kayọde and Modupẹ?" The man who reeks of alcohol inquired

"Yes" Ṣeyi replied in a curious tone

Somewhere deep down in his heart he hoped that this strange-looking man is not the same man that they have been waiting for the past hour. Nimbẹ is a well-respected Ẹṣọ of Ilu-inọ village, those who were in his group usually called him "Amọti" because of his drunken habits

"Incompetence, to imagine you wish to become warriors. You are all nothing but weaklings, I still believe that you are unworthy of my group," Nimbẹ said to Ṣeyi's horror

"What!" Ṣeyi exclaimed, "We will prove you wrong, no matter what" but somewhere deep down Ṣeyi saw the look in his eyes, the look of rigidity. This man has already made up his mind he surmised, the question is whether Nimbẹ is going to be biased or not.

"Are you sure about that?" The Jaguna mocked, "From what I hear your combat power is lacking, after all, one chant is not enough to impress all the Jagunas"

"Then test us" Kenny declared, "If we pass then you will accept us into your group"

"A challenge, Ṣeyi, before you go on your Iṣẹ" Nimbẹ voiced, "something to prove how capable you can be and if I should accept you into my group"

"Let's do it" Ṣeyi growled in determination.

"Then come with me," Nimbẹ said calmly, "my tests can be tedious, sometimes it can do damage to the surroundings so we will go where I can test you without anyone interfering"

Nimbẹ led them to the large pasture outside the village there were a few small trees and some large stones had cluttered the environment, the terrain usually changes due to constant grazing done by the Fulani's and their cows. Some of the elite warriors of the village also use the grounds for combat training and sometimes, those going through punishment from time to time usually clear the land occasionally. For Nimbẹ this is the perfect spot for him to try out these new applicants.

"Wait here," Nimbẹ commanded, "While I walk to the far side of the training ground"

The pasture is a very large parcel of land cleared by the Oba for public use, sometimes the land is used as a venue for one festival or another and at other times, one noble family or another uses it as the venue for a party. The reason why it is called the Ẹṣọs training ground is that the people who use it the most are the Ẹṣọs. Nimbẹ slowly walked across the field without showing any signs of weakness or drunkenness, as soon as he reached the other end to Ṣeyi's relief he called out to them. The distance might have drained his hoarse baritone voice, but for some strange reason they heard him clearly, maybe he is chanting.

"These are the rules of our match," he pronounced, "You are to reach me through this distance and touch me, that is if you can"

"Let's go" Ṣeyi declared with every ounce of determination he had at his command, then he took a deep breath and then hesitated. "That's impossible" Ṣeyi exclaimed, for some reason his ability to switch with objects around him and within the environment seems to be out of control or the ability had been nullified. To imagine that his chant could fail the very first time he thinks of using it is shocking, it seems like there is still a lot more for him to learn.

"No Ṣeyi, it is possible" Nimbẹ voiced "while we were on our way here I chanted a weakening incantation on each of the four of you without your prior knowledge, none of you will be able to use any of your chants on me for the next few hours"

"Wow!" Kenny exclaimed in surprise, "He's good"

"If you want to win you must touch me before Sunset" Nimbẹ gloated "that is the rule of this game, you are not allowed to use any chant or incantation, the only skill I can allow is the use of physical strength. The rhino is a beast that constantly charges forward without looking to the right or to the left it is never distracted"

Meaning the so-called drunken warrior had always been five steps ahead of them, the Osi-Balogun had always thought them to be cautious, not to trust anyone and to be on guard at all times. He would be disappointed to find out that they have ignored every one of his teachings and now they are going to find it hard to manipulate the game to their own advantage.

"You do know" Nimbẹ continued "that once an Agba declares his men 'Incompetent' it means that they will never be promoted to the next rank, therefore, if you can't perform the simple function such as touching me then you are all incompetent."

By this time, they had crossed one-quarter of the field knowing full well the desperate position they are now in they have decided to put in all their efforts in passing Agbanimbẹ's outrageous test. To their shock, they noticed that their Agbara had started to fade; Nimbẹ must have chanted over the whole pasture filling it with his own Agbara so as to slow them down. The essence of Nimbẹ's chant spread across the entire environment, adapting it to his taste.

"Remember when on an Iṣẹ the closer you get to your goal the more difficult it becomes to succeed" Nimbẹ's voice taunted as the boys approached. "The rhino is a beast with the strongest defence in the animal kingdom, if your defence lacks the will of steel then it will break as easily as grass"

"What does he mean?" Ṣeyi wondered, like an answer to the unvoiced question a rope hidden within the grass caught hold of Ṣeyi's right foot, causing him to fall upon his face, unfortunately, he did not complete the fall the rope tied up both his legs together and swung him upside down before he could complete his fall. Ṣeyi was suspended in mid-air hanging from a tree branch "a chanted trap" Ṣeyi growled. Kenny and Akin also got themselves caught in similar traps, Akin fell into a hole that appeared suddenly out of nowhere and Kenny stepped into a dusty zone pre-chanted with the deadly sleep chant, Kenny fell into a standing slumber immediately after he inhaled the contaminated dust.

Angered by the fact that Nimbẹ didn't even move an inch in order to decommission three young Ẹṣọs forced Ṣeyi to rethink his attack strategy, that is if he had one in the first place. Kayode and Modupe remained behind at the starting line still unsure of themselves.

"The ability to elude traps is the natural trait of an Ẹṣọ" Nimbẹ taunted to Ṣeyi's irritation, how is he going to move forward if he cannot pass this foolish test.

Ṣeyi drew out his pocket knife without hesitation in order to cut the ropes that held him suspended, luckily for him, Nimbẹ neglected to reinforce the rope with a chant so his pocket knife was able to slice through the rope in a matter of seconds. Now on his feet again Ṣeyi continued to plough forward wary of any other traps Nimbẹ might plant within the environment. Ṣeyi deduced from the sounds behind him that Akin had just crawled out of the hole and Kenny for some strange reason was stumbling behind. Ṣeyi knew that he had to keep his mind clear and focused if he is going to...

Ṣeyi fell into a pit skilfully hidden pool of quicksand and Akin, who was running with so much force that he found it difficult to stop and foolishly followed Ṣeyi into the pool. "Oh No!" Ṣeyi said in a long-suffering tone. Kenny is the only one who noticed the quicksand before he fell into it, instead of helping the others out of the trap Kenny simply ran past his two trapped friends and ran towards his goal only the fall into another trap. He tripped over a rock that just appeared out of nowhere and fell into a small bush of rapid growing grass, chanted tangle weeds to be exact; the weed grew all about him tying him firmly to the ground.

"Ṣeyi, Agbanimbẹ has the ability to manipulate the environment into creating traps" Akin observed "which he uses against his opponents, I don't think we can win this one"

"We will win," Ṣeyi said in determining the tone "we just need a new strategy, first let's get out of this trap"

Both Ṣeyi and Akin were able to to the edge of the pool, luckily Nimbẹ didn't make the chant too powerful or they would have sunk to the bottom as they tried to come out. Ṣeyi was able to pull himself out of the trap and then he helped Akin out as well "come on let's go" Ṣeyi said and Akin followed him in his heels.

Kenny had managed to worm his way out of the tangled bushes and he had continued his progress towards Nimbẹ with the hope of proving to the seasoned Ẹṣọ that he is worthy of the rank, blinded by the fear of being declared incompetent. Modupẹ and Kayọde are the only ones who had waited behind at the starting line, Kenny wondered why, were they afraid of facing the challenge. He should ask them the moment he is able to when this is over. He hopes that Ṣeyi wouldn't find it very difficult to escape the quicksand, "I hope he catches up" Kenny thought with a slight tang of guilt. He had barely gone twenty paces away from where he was trapped in the tangled weed when the sudden sensation of weakness washed through his entire body, he felt his breath shorten and his muscles ache. To make it worse, he had no power to stop what was happening to him, how, he wondered. He had walked into the sleep chant; the next thing his unconscious mind processed is the blissful awareness of sleep.

Ṣeyi and Akin found Kenny in that transfixed state, sleeping upon his own two feet.

"The sleep chant, Gbabẹ!" Ṣeyi acknowledged, "Agba Nimbẹ is indeed very powerful, Kenny is not going to be able to wake up until sunset"

"Let's wake him up now," Akin said, shaking Kenny's hand

"What happened" Kenny exclaimed immediately after he regained his consciousness "I fell into another trap, again, we must...," He said, moving ahead

"No, wait," Ṣeyi said, stopping Kenny in his tracks "if we are going to win this, we`ll haft to do this together, he has more experience than we do and the time is running out" and to stress his point Ṣeyi pointed at the sun

"So what do you suggest that we do" Akin inquired

"Akin distract him by jumping as high as possible, Kenny, you run beside me we'll be the ones who'll be scouting ahead for possible traps and..., Where's Modupẹ?"

"She's still at the starting line" Kenny replied

"And Afin?" (the word Afin is a slang used to qualify albinos)

"Also at the starting line" Kenny continued

"What!" Ṣeyi exclaimed in a tone of disappointment "why are they still at the starting line?"

"I guess they think they are not expected to do any fighting" Akin replied in a helpful tone "Kayọde is a summoner and Modupe a healer"

"Then we'll haft to go on without them," Ṣeyi said, trying to master the anger within his voice "Let's go!"

In an instant, Akin launched into the air using every ounce of strength he has at his command. Ṣeyi and Kenny followed, staying on the ground observing the terrain ahead for possible traps and portholes. Nimbẹ laughed at their strategy and summoned up enough Agbara to inflict some damage, he threw over thirty chanted stones into the air, which suddenly interconnected in pure green Agbara to create a strong chanted net. Judging from Akin's current path and the direction of the nets trajectory he'll be trapped in a matter of seconds, Ṣeyi and Kenny jumped to Akin's aid grabbing the edge of the net as it was about to ensnare Akin and pulled it away from the path. The moment Akin landed Ṣeyi and Kenny jumped into the air, they could not quite reach the same altitude as Akin yet they are able to maintain some distance from the ground.

"Look out Akin" Ṣeyi cried from above

"The soil is covered in a strange black substance," Kenny concluded

In reply to their warning Akin rolled into a ball supported by the basic structure of his twisted body, Akin is able to protect himself against external attacks. He simply rolled into a ball like an armadillo, and like a ball elude all traps without being affected by any external attack; the nature of his skin gives him full protection. Akin rolled over the poisonous black substance, then jumped into the air as Ṣeyi and Kenny landed, Ẹṣọs are able to adapt the chant of the leopard shadowing the trees to jump across long distances. Now to Ṣeyi`s pleasure they are making great progress, using this strategy they are able to discover a trap before it is sprung. Nevertheless, Nimbẹ still had some tricks in his pockets, to be exact some white powder, a chanted powder that he poured into his right hand, then whispered a few words into the powder then he blew it into the air towards the direction of the three boys who think that they can best all his obstacles.

The moment Ṣeyi, Akin, and Kenny came into contact with the chanted dust in the air it responded immediately, causing a spontaneous reaction. The dust suddenly adopted the properties of a solid silk-like substance, which wrapped itself about the three boys effectively tying them down. No matter how hard they struggled, they found it difficult to escape their web-like restraints. Ṣeyi cursed as he struggled against the restraints while Akin and Kenny tried chewing through the tough bindings and that is how they remained until sunset.

"So you failed," Nimbẹ said philosophically as he strolled across the field to meet them

"We tried" Ṣeyi argued still struggling with the silk restraints

"We failed didn't we?" Kenny said in a broken tone

"Yes you failed," Nimbẹ said in a sad tone. To be honest, they had succeeded, the last chant he used on them was an extremely powerful one and common Ẹṣọs like Ṣeyi and Kenny never had a hope of breaking it. He was forced to use it the moment the three boys had decided to cooperate, and to be perfectly honest the 3 boys showed all the promise of being perfect rhinos. But it is a shame that he has no intention of recruiting them into his group cause he has no intention of being ridiculed by all the other Jagunas so he simply turned around snapped his fingers releasing the entrapped boys "You are not capable of excelling in the rhino group, you five have no aggressive-charge in you; I'm sorry" saying this he walked away while taking a swing from his calabash of palm wine

Ṣeyi roared in frustration, they were so close to achieving their goal, "I will not give up" he growled

"Ṣeyi" Akin called in his usual goofy way

"Yes!" Ṣeyi replied in a controlled voice

"What will we do now?"

"There are four groups," Ṣeyi said, "and we've only tried one we still have more chances"

"We'll use the experience form this one to prepare for the next test," Kenny said with pain in his voice, "Failure is not in our path" these words caused a silent agreement amongst all of them, they all made a silent bow to try their best. "Now let's work on Kayọde and Modupe"

*****

(Incompetence, The Elephant Group)

The following day the five of them marched towards the Jaguna of the elephant group, Jaguna Baṣọrun the leader of the most powerful group in Ilu-inọ village. Ṣeyi and the rest of his friends reached the meeting about an hour after sunset Jaguna baṣọrun was already there with the rest of his group having a meeting and the pride and authority he exerted was so contagious that they stopped in their tracks.

"We are the elephant group, we are a group of power and we can settle for nothing less" he roared, "And for those of you who have just joined us, remember, you were chosen for power and we will settle for nothing less. Power answers all things."

"Gbabe!" Ṣeyi acknowledged, in a tone that is a little too loud for comfort. In doing so, he disrupted the Jaguna's amazing speech. In a matter of seconds, all eyes were on him including Nike's adorable ones, it became an awkward situation.

"What are you doing here?" He growled in rage

"We are here to…" Kenny began to speak but then was cut short by the sharp voice of the Jaguna

"Now I remember the rejected dancers who think they're Ẹṣọs," he voiced causing the rest of the group to laugh, "The Osi-Balogun argued on your behalf, but it's useless; you are all useless"

"That's a lie" Ṣeyi roared defiantly, "We are every bit as capable as the rest of the Ẹṣọs that was chosen" the Jaguna scowled offended by Ṣeyi's defiance.

"I once served with Ṣeyi and Akin, they are capable," Bọlaji said in Ṣeyi's defence

"Bọlaji" Jaguna Baṣọrun growled offended by his sudden response, "You might be one of the most proficient warriors under my command, but that does not give you the right to speak against my authority"

Bọlaji frowned, the Jaguna might be a man with a high charismatic authority but sometimes he dims his shine with his oversized ego. The only reason why he still stays in the group is because of the loyalty he owes to Nike's father who happens to be the founder of the group and a well-respected Ẹṣọ. Both Bọlaji and Jaguna respect him greatly, not because of his level of charisma but because of his belief in their strength and their will to never give up.

"In this group, it's all about power," the Jaguna pronounced, "Therefore, your test will not be a combat or a survival test but a test of power"

The Baṣọrun then drew out one of his fingers and called "Agbara o!" in an instant the ground erupted with a tree branch growing at an accelerated rate, at the crow of the branch sprouted a brown flower which opened with a beautiful white orb within. "This orb measures the power potential of every warrior, the brighter it glows the more powerful the candidate. An elephant is a beast of power and the grass the enemy, we in the elephant group have only one duty we trample upon the enemy"

"But…" Bọlaji tried to say but he was cut short by the Jaguna's sharp gaze, for one thing, the orb did answer to the potential of the power within the spirit of a warrior but it is incapable of measuring the power of those who are unskilled in the use of power. This means that the test was rigged against them from the very beginning, the orb was given to Akin first and it radiated faintly.

"That is trash" the Jaguna pronounced, "Go home you don't have a single amount of power in your body"

Akin swallowed in pain and then handed the orb over to Ṣeyi who tried to make it glow as well, but to his disappointment, the orb didn't give a single speak of light, all the onlookers laughed to Ṣeyi's annoyance.

"Not even a drop of light." the Jaguna mocked, "that level of power cannot even work for a cockroach." Now the laughter got even louder "Next!"

Kenny stepped forward and nervously took the orb and tried to make it glow in response to his determination, but he failed the orb did glow but just slightly a little brighter than Akin's did. "I hope you're not going to ask me to add you to my group with a power level as weak as that" more laughter. Kenny didn't need to ask anything to know that he's not qualified, the mockery holds an edge that can cut through any man's determination.

"You're next," the Jaguna called gesturing towards Modupẹ "take the orb and show us how weak you are," he mocked and all the audience chuckled

Modupẹ seriously wanted to hold Ṣeyi's hand at that moment but felt that she would make the moment more embarrassing for them. So, she walked forward to take the orb nervously the instant her finger touched the surface of the orb the reaction took effect shocking everyone, it flashed like a bolt of lightning showing the full ferocity of her power. All the other Ẹṣọs greatly admired her raw power, there is no contesting that Modupẹ would be chosen for the elephant group.

"It seems like we have a golden egg in the rotten bunch" The Jaguna declared, "With that raw power and my training you can open your full potential in a short period of time" he tempted

Modupẹ looked at the Jaguna with a kind of anxiousness in her eyes, the decisive moment. She can choose to be a member of the elephant group if she so pleases but she had made up her mind on what to do even before they had extended their hand of welcome.

"Are you going to take Ṣeyi and the rest as well?" she inquired

"I have no intention of accepting the incompetent into this group of power," the Jaguna replied, "Now choose!" he pronounced "Leave these weaklings and join a group that will lead you to a position of glory or run along with these failures"

"I would rather stay with my friends" Modupẹ replied, "All of us or none of us"

"You will regret that girl" the Jaguna pronounced, "None of the other leaders will ever take you into their group because they see you as nothing but accursed weaklings"

"How dare you" Ṣeyi whispered, finding it difficult to contain his anger. "I thought you are a good man but now I see things differently"

"Measure your words before you insult your elder's boy" The Jaguna pronounced then he looked at Kayọde "your turn," now his voice sounded like he was irritated and now he just wanted to get rid of the pests that are disrupting his group meeting.

"Not interested," Kayọde said surprising everyone with the power in his voice, usually Kayọde is the shy type always silent and leaving his thinking to others. "Like Modupẹ said if you won't take all of us then there is no point" and thus the bond between them grew stronger.

"Hmmm!" The Jaguna acknowledged, "Leave this place and don't ever return"

Ṣeyi and his friends quietly turned their backs and walked away with seriously mixed feelings, "I want to kill him" Kenny snapped, "He's a bastard!"

"Easy Kenny now is not the time to rub it in his face," Ṣeyi said in a calm controlled tone, clenching his fist "All dogs have their days, his day is coming" Ṣeyi growled

As Ṣeyi and his friends left Bọlaji stood up boldly to face the Jaguna, he did not like the way his leader treated Ṣeyi and his friends and he knows that they would become capable warriors of the village if they were given the chance.

"Agba!" Bọlaji called "You didn't haft to be so harsh to them"

"How dare you address me the same way you would address an equal Bọlaji?" the Jaguna roared, usually he would have measured his words but the presence of Ṣeyi and his friends had soured his mood. "Don't you dare challenge my decisions again. Is that clear," he roared

Bọlaji replied the only way he knew how to, he stood up and slowly walked away from the meeting ground. The Jaguna was about to raise his fist to unleash his power on the disrespectful underling but the sudden cold stare in Bọlaji's eyes told him that the boy is willing to face him blow for blow and even die if he should make any sudden irrational decision. The Jaguna swallowed his pride and allowed the boy to walk away knowing that he would return to apologise later, 'today is a bad day.' He thought it's all because the cursed child and his friends invaded his sacred meeting.

The 10 Roaring Lions

Ṣeyi and his friends were still fuming when they received a summons from the next Jaguna, Agba Ṣẹgun Ooni the commander of the Roaring Lions. They decided to respond to his call immediately, after all, they need to be acknowledged as Ẹṣọs as quickly as possible, they were soon in the presence of the great Ṣẹgun Ooni of the roaring lion group.

"Step forward!" he commanded "Let's get this over with"

"You summoned us agba?" Kenny said

"The Ọtun convinced me to test you, the Osi knew that I would never heed to his voice," the Jaguna said "You want to become the roaring king of beast? Then you must prove it to me"

"What's the test?" Ṣeyi demanded, with all the determination in his eyes.

The Jaguna smiled, impressed by Ṣeyi's determination "Then we shall begin"

"We will not lose" Kenny pronounced boldly

"This is the Lion's group" the Jaguna pronounced "Fear is forbidden, the moment there is an element of fear in your personage then you have already failed. We are the roaring lions, we laugh in the face of fear and we conquer all the enemies. Fear is for the weak"

"Our test be based on fear?" Modupẹ asked

"Your test will be based on how you handle fear; fear separates the kings form the peasants; the strong form the weak; the chiefs from the labours, the predators from their prey and the Lion group from all the other groups in this village." He chanted boldly "To be a member of this group you must be fearless"

"Then this is a test to see if we can overcome fear?" Kenny spoke out responding to the situation.

"Exactly!" Ṣẹgun Ooni said "Be ready"

"For wha…" Ṣeyi said in curiosity but his question was answered immediately.

The reply came in form of a sudden ambush, 7 men jumped out of the nearby bushes and hidden spots fully prepared for battle and poised in an attack stance. The attack was too sudden and those being tested too unschooled on how to manage a situation as serious as this, Modupẹ practically hid behind Ṣeyi; Akin placed himself in the front line prepared for an attack; Kenny poised himself for an attack with his hands in a defensive position. Kayọde suddenly exposed a face of horror but the source of his terror is more from within than form the attack, in an instant all five of them were pinned to the ground. The attack was over before it started, the Jaguna stood motionlessly without even showing an expression on his face.

"That was pathetic" Ṣẹgun Ooni commented, "Not even one of you activated the incision, not one of you drew out a weapon and not one of you even put up a decent fight. Fear overwhelmed you so much that you failed to react"

"But!" Modupẹ said.

"You are not worthy of the title of lions" The Jaguna declared, "and this is how your test ends, with your undeniable failure"

Ṣeyi sneered in bitterness; Kenny had the expression of surprise and Modupẹ was just shocked. Akin and Kayọde simply remained motionless, they were too surprised to even react. The Jaguna looked at them with contempt and then he snapped his fingers for the attackers obviously members of his group to release their inexperienced captives.

"Try harder and maybe you will be acknowledged" the Jaguna said with a passive smile, "For now it's impossible for you to become a member, let's go!" then the Jaguna walked away with his men close behind.

The pain of failure was indescribable, Ṣeyi swallowed bitterly trembling with suppressed rage. Akin touched Ṣeyi's shoulder in discouragement, Ṣeyi couldn't even look at their faces this pain of defeat was a really big blow to their confidence. He doubts they would ever be able to recover from such an experience. They failed to notice another presence within the vicinity, Bọlaji hid behind the largest tree and observed the test form a distance. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fist in disgust, the entire test was rigged for them to fail. The one with Jaguna Baṣọrun was rigged as well, the group leaders must have had an agreement on how to reject the ones they don't favour.

"Painful isn't it?" a familiar voice sounded form the shadows

"So you're concerned about them too" Bọlaji commented "It seems like …"

"They've all agreed, they have no intention to recruit an accursed into their group. Ṣeyi and his friends never stood a chance of being recruited" the watcher responded

"From all indications you've come with a solution" Bọlaji observed. He then turned to face the watcher the one mystery he will never be able to solve; the watcher was dressed in his usual form; covered form crown to sole like a traditional masquerade. Today the aura surrounding him is different it had a mysterious edge to it, not like the first time they met then his aura was uneasy and filled with strong negative emotions anger being one of them. The first time he met the watcher, it was two seasons earlier and then he was young ambitious and lacked a certain level of self-esteem but now he sees the world from a different angle. The watcher convinced him to follow Ṣeyi and Akin on their first mission, he only promised that if he should accept the mission then his progress as an Ẹṣọ would escalate at a rapid pace and he foolishly accepted. The mission was completed successfully and Since then he never met the watcher, the demon must have gone on some more important task forgetting his promise but this didn't bother him in the list. Bọlaji would have supported Ṣeyi even if the watcher didn't ask, so he knows that the watcher would not appear to him unless it pertains to helping Ṣeyi and the rest. He suspects that there is a reason why the watcher has an interest in Ṣeyi, a reason why he the watcher sent them on a mission right before the ritual hunters' form Ọyọ visited the village. The mystery of the watcher who can comprehend it, he concluded that it is none of his business to ask the watcher about his acts or deeds.

"I do" the watcher replied, "But I don't think you will like the solution I have up my hidden sleeves"

"What do mean?" Bọlaji asked feeling uneasy

"The solution depends on you Bọlaji" the watcher said with mockery of his voice, "But it requires that you make a very hard decision, one decision that is going to make a lot of enemies"

"Ẹṣọs make enemies every day" Bọlaji said with a straight face, "I'm not afraid at all"

"Let me say it again in a different way," the watcher mocked, "Many of your friends will become your enemies, this is going to be the most difficult decision of your life"

"If it's for Ṣeyi then the risk is w ell worth it" Bọlaji responded with the same determined expression "the seeds of progress must be planted no matter the cost"

"That is exactly what I wanted to hear" the watcher said with a hint of humour in his voice. Bọlaji can tell that the demon had a grin beneath his mask, the watcher must have something downright evil planned.