13 |New Problem II

"J- JuJu?" Emperor Ado stuttered.

Elawo nodded. "One of the JuJu underneath the Evil Forest seemed to have broken its seal".

Their faces ran pale.

One of the Elders then asked, "B- Baba, how sure are you of this assumption?"

"It's not an assumption, My Elder. One of the solid signs of a JuJu is the physical modification of a Tawongi. They can make any evil creature evolve into a stronger unnatural form of themselves in exchange for something of course".

"So that means a JuJu runs free?" Another asked with a worried grimace.

"Luckily not completely. There must be a crack on its seal. Enough for just a small part of it to sip out".

"So it can be contained, right?" The next Elder inquired.

"With immediate effect? Yes. Because if we delay any longer, the crack could greaten wide enough to let the JuJu crawl out completely. And when that happens... Catastrophe will befall our land and every other it touches".

Kamyla stared up with a bewildered expression.

Emperor Ado then thought for a while, pinching his chin. "In that case, Baba, what do you suggest we do? A rebound ritual?"

"That would have done something if there wasn't a crack in the JuJu seal. But now that there is a leakage, we have no choice but to have it manually repair it and return spiritual balance in the Evil Forest".

"You mean the warriors going into the forest to have it resealed?"

"Yes", Baba Elawo then gazed at the three. "But given the present strength of our warriors, I wouldn't put all my cowries on it".

The warriors lowered their heads in shame.

"So what do we do now? Wait for them to train and prepare themselves?"

"Your Majesty, I have a far more surmount solution that we can rely on whilst preparing our warriors alongside".

Ado furrowed his brows. "Which is?"

"A Summoning".

"What?!"

"A Summoning?"

"Is that even still possible?"

"That hasn't been done in centuries now". The Elders glanced between themselves.

Ado then asked, "A Summoning? Of who exactly?"

"Aku Makil. The first Sah'Jangi warrior".

The warriors' eyes widened.

Danji then spoke, "But, Baba, there will be no need for that. We can stil—"

"If we do summon him", Baba interrupted, "It will assure me that you three and the rest of your army will get the proper exposure and training you need to crawl out from your lazy skins you have grown over the years to put my efforts to shame".

Kamyla grimaced, "But... But we can do better, Baba".

"I think you three have done more than enough. Maybe my training wasn't good enough to get through your thick skulls". He tsked, turning back to the Emperor.

"Your Majesty, I strongly advise that we go back to the ways our Ancestors had paved for us in such times of crisis. Before things go out of hand and words spread out to cause even more panic".

Emperor Ado stayed silent, scrunching his face into a mused expression.

"Baba, don't you think you are putting such a weighty decision at a rush?"

"I understand, Your Majesty. But understand that is whole situation will continue to rapidly escalate before we can enjoy the luxury of time".

Ado then turned to the Elders. "Elders?"

"Yes, Your Majesty?" They bowed.

"What do you think?"

The Elders turned to themselves, leaning closer to share silent whispers amongst themselves. After a few moments, they looked back at the Emperor.

One bowed, "Your Majesty, Baba Elawo has a point. This is a sudden knock on our door we were never prepared for. If we try to delay any further, the outcomes may not be in our favour".

"Exactly, Your Majesty", the next agreed. "Besides, what if there is another attack before we come to a conclusion?"

"An immediate problem like this deserves an immediate solution".

Emperor Ado nodded subtly to their submissions, resting back on his throne to take a few more moments to think.

He then exhaled softly. "Baba Elawo?"

"Your Majesty?"

"This Summoning Ritual. What are the requirements?"

"Some unique herbs, bones and animal parts from the Evil Forest, which I have already required from my previous journey and back".

"Is that all?"

"And three human blood sacrifices".

"Three?" Ado frowned. "Meaning we have to sacrifice three of our people?!"

"Worry not, Your Majesty. I believe we already have the candidates for that without any cost".

"Who?"

• • •

"Leave me! Leave me!! Let go of me, you animals!!!" Azada bellowed, shaking vigorously in his chains as he was dragged out of the palace dungeons and into the palace square.

Ajefe pushed his body roughly, forcing him to land hard on his face next to the others on the ground. He grunted.

"That's all of them", Ajefe dusted his hands.

Azada quickly pushed himself off the ground, turning to the three Sah'Jangi warriors that gazed down at them.

He frowned, "How dare you! Do you know who I am!? You pieces of shit!"

Ajefe scrunched his brows. "For a potential blood sacrifice, he sure is mouthy".

Danji crossed his arms. "We should probably stitch his mouth before the ritual".

Azada quirked his brows. "What the fuck are you talking about?!" He quickly began to struggle to free from his chains. "Let me out of these! Let me go!"

Kamyla frowned, "And nail his hands and feet together while you're at it. He's too shaky".

He snapped his eyes at them. "What the fuck are you talking about!?"

"Is that all of them?" Baba Elawo's voice came from the palace doors, causing the three to turn in his direction; He carefully stepped out of the building with the Emperor and Elders trailing after.

The warriors bowed. "That's all of them, Baba. All healthy and strong with no deformities", Danji responded.

"Perfect".

He and the other Supreme Heads circled around the Arabian captives.

Elawo then said, "We only needed three, but I guess an extra head wouldn't hurt, right?"

Azada and his men froze.

Azada stuttered, "H- Heads? What for?"

Baba Elawo blankly ignored his question, looking up at the three.

"Danji, go to my shrine. My student will be there waiting. Ask him to hand you all the items I had prepared last night and let him follow you and come back here".

"Okay, Baba". Danji paced away quickly.

Emperor Ado then furrowed his brows, turning to Elawo. "You had prepared the items since last night? I thought this was an impromptu decisions?"

Baba Elawo smiled. "Of course, Your Majesty. But I had planned to suggest this idea to you all initially, but due to their report, I rushed it".

Ado didn't loosen his frown. "Is that so?..."

Elawo smiled, looking back at the remaining two.

"Kamyla, Ajefe, you two should carry the sacrifices and begin your journey to Diowo".

"Diowo!?" Their brows quirked.

"We'll be performing the ritual in our village?" Kamyla asked.

Baba nodded. "Yes. Unfortunately, your village is the only one aware of the werehyenas attacks. And aside from the fact it is one of the closest villages boarding the Evil Forest, their size makes it easier to manage the secrecy of our activities".

"Oh..."

"For now, this ritual and the reasons and circumstances that surround it are only known between us and you three. It is best to let a few numbers as possible know about this until our solution has been confirmed. The Capital is too populous for such".

The two bowed. "Yes, Baba".

"Now, off you go. You should arrive there before evening".

They nodded, stepping forward to grab the chains of two; one in each hand and dragging them away in the direction of the main gates.

Baba then turned to the Emperor. "Your Majesty, you and your family must prepare to leave now as well. It is good if you all are present for the ritual as the royal family".

"Hm. Very well", he nodded, turning to walk to the palace doors.

Baba Elawo smiled.

• • •

Hours later...

Kamyla and Ajefe jogged steadily through the forest on their horses' backs, with Azada and his men being dragged behind in an open wooden carriage.

They screamed and grunted through the cloths gagged tightly between their jaws, agitating loudly over the wooden surface in an attempt to pull free from the chains and jump from the carriage.

Kamyla and Ajefe ignored them, keeping their gazes locked on the long wide path between the forest trees.

Ajefe then called, "Kamy?"

"Hm?" She turned.

"How do you feel about all these? This ritual?"

Kamyla grimaced lightly, "To be honest, I'm not sure..."

"Me neither. Everything just seems so fast to me. Like I wasn't expecting this aside from getting scolded at and being put under intensive training schedule".

"No one was. But you heard Baba, it needed to be quick because we can't tell what will happen at any moment. Things have already escalated pretty far in such a short period of time".

"True..." He then exhaled. "Although, I do wonder how he'll look".

"Who?"

"The warrior. When they summon him to take a physical form, I wonder how he will look? What will he be like?"

"Hm. I thought so too... How do you think the first Sah'Jangi warrior of two centuries ago would look and behave like?" She asked.

"You know, history had it that there were giants those years ago. Maybe the first Sah'Jangi warrior was a giant".

"Hm. The textbooks did describe him as an enormous man with terrifying appearance and ridiculous strength capable of ripping an animal into two!"

Ajefe grimaced, "Since that's the case, I have a feeling he'll be pretty disappointed when he sees us".

Kamyla bit her lips, "I think so, as well. He might even be ashamed of us and spit on our grounds but..."

She gazed down, "But I think we should let that affect us negatively. Instead, we'll use it as a trigger of motivation to improve ourselves to surpass our limits and strengthen our wits. To the extent, that both he and Baba Elawo will have no choice but to acknowledge us".

"That sounds like so much suffering already. I am already tired in advance!" Ajefe weaned, dramatically throwing his head backwards.

Kamyla smiled. "You are always tired of everything".

"Exactly!!" Ajefe then raised his head, "Let's just hope he doesn't have a short temper and cruel training method as Baba Elawo".

"The Aku Makil! Not have anger issues? Ha! In your dreams, Ajefe", she chuckled. "I have a strong feeling this ritual will definitely change our lives in many ways possible".

Ajefe sighed in future misery.