5 - The illegitimate child

Chapter 5 (The Illegitimate child.)

“My father…” Tsote spoke with his eyebrows rising. He looked back at him and took in two deep breaths… “Uhmm! My father.”

“Told you once I’m not your real father Tsote… forgotten already?”

“Yes you told me but…” he stammered. “You want to say my father lives here in Sambura city.

“Indeed...” came Thalko. “Your father is a very powerful and influential man.”

This lightened Tsote’s face up a little. Just as Thalko added

“But just to let you know he has two other sons older than you.”

“They have their mothers?”

“Yes but you won’t meet your mother…”

“Why?”

“Your mother… your father knows best. However, try to behave royal come what may because this is a special day for the king and his whole family. We call it the Sh’inka Day.”

“Shinka?” came Tsote. “What happens on Shinka day?” 

“It’s a Yakunko Tribe day. The day our tribe rose to the throne. Our ascension to the throne has been sustained by the I’nka.”

“The I’nka. Is that the black stone of the balance we hear about in folk tales?” 

“Yes child… the story is as true as you can see.” He said leaning close and whispering into his ear. “But what you will learn this day not everyone knows and must remain our little secret.”

 Tsote nodded because he knew what Shi’i meant and Inka meant to the Yakunko people. The words Shi’i meant day like any other day but Inka was the name for the strangest and most powerful stone on earth.

We possess and draw our life and understanding from the Inka seed. It is a stone from which the gods of the earth drew their powers and the same stone from which the earth, the water, the air and all nature drew the power to exist. It is the origin and center of all nature and power!

It’s believed, the stone was guarded by seven gods of nature until Klode borrowed it to fix a few dry land problems. One god alone could not contain the stone’s power. It wounded him and drove him back into the mountains where forever his wounds will flow like fire gems down river Ulewo forever.

While gone, he Yakunko claimed Klode trusted them with the Black seed of nature so they could protect and rule the dry lands on his behalf until the ends of time, which Tsote did not believe.

Not long after, the realm of men crumbled due to Oladiya’s greed and warlike nature.

To keep the black seed a mystery to the other tribes, Yakunko kings denied the possession of the Inka Black seed. It was not easy to teach generations of men that the Yakunko drew their power from the possession of the Inka seed without their confession. Nevertheless, it was easier to keep the Inka seed hidden and exposed only and only to heir of the Yakunko throne. 

And when a new Yakunko King inherited the throne, they had to perform the Inka ritual so as to find the favor of the past Yakunko kings as well as the Inka seed itself. Otherwise, the ruler would encounter unending challenges.

 “Will I see the king…?” He asked Thalko after a long moment of silence.

“Yes but not in person until your Kurota manifests…”

“Did M’boguku meet him in person when his Kurota manifested?”

“No…” Thalko replied. 

“Why…”

Thalko didn’t appear willing to respond to this question but responded saying.

“He has an attitude… just.” He did not lie because Tsote suffered from his character on a daily basis and his manner couldn’t have escaped Thalko’s attention.

“The Kurota we possess within us has attracted us so much hate from our sister tribes and I fear us…”

“You must not be afraid of who we are.”

“I feel it’s dark, too dark within us all….”

“I see…” Thalko spoke in a very lazy tone as if he had just seen the reason as of why Tsote’s Kurota fails to manifest. “You must have been taught better… Oh! Renso, Renso.”

 “Your teacher has not done his best to show you the importance in how importance of being different, powerful and blessed with life twice longer than any other mortal tribesman…” Thalko started. There was another moment of silence before he added. “…the jealousy, the hate and the enmity lasts inevitably.”

“They think we are monsters within…. And that we need cleansing.”

“Where did you hear that…?”

“It was just a dream...”

“A dream… when my sister returns, you shall talk to her. I’ll need a report.” He told him. He looked very serious about this. Just then, they came to a halt in front of the palace ground. The captain of the palace guard welcomed Thalko and they were motioned to follow. 

The shelters here were twice more splendid compared to Thalko’s. They were fit with runes and marks of gold, Ivory and strange solid forms protruding from high walls here and there as well as around bends and corners. There were servants coming and going every now and then past them giving the commander such respectful gestures.

Tsote felt very small. The best thing was M’boguku, his father had instructed to remain with Renso until they got back. This embarrassed M’boguku the more until he could bear with it no more. He waited for his father to part before he could do something else stupid. And if he did, I don’t think Thalko was to tolerate his behavior any longer to bring him along to Sambura again. All the same, Tsote was not going to be there to report. 

They came to some round alcoves made out of a spread of tree branches and a waterfall on the other side. Overlooking a long gorge of many silent people from all the other different tribes. A little lower from this alcove, there were three other alcoves. The center alcove looked like the king’s from its very setting. The other two were slightly position on either side of the king’s alcove. The two seemingly belonged to the palace the different official. The alcove on the right belonged to Yakunko chiefs and elders who were already seated waiting for the king’s arrival. Chiefs from the other tribes were still waiting on the alcove above. 

Tsote knew where the king would sit from the looks of the alcoves. And he was anxious to look upon the Yakunko king. The King’s throne was curved from strange stones. It stood at the center of the middle alcove with two more seats, an arm’s stretch away on either sides of the throne. The two seats were shorter and slightly lower compared to the throne. 

A square statue stood behind each of these two seats and the rest were guards… The floor in front of the throne was spread with animal skins down the steps. Two large elephant skulls faced out from the four corners of the throne and the ivory was pained with gold. Mammoth ivory curved out wards from the steps leading to his throne. I cannot explain it all but it was splendid and powerful a setting.

Where Tsote stood, only the chief stood and the king did not appear unless the alcove was cleared of representative chiefs and elders arrived from the different twelve tribes. There were many chiefs here wealth and fat significantly coming from all tribes waiting to meet someone more important. They kept arriving. Thalko asked Tsote to remain behind. One of the guards took his animal hide back gear off him leaving a light leather cloth. 

He started down towards the chiefs and other tribe elders. Thalko embraced them and walked all the way to the King’s closest official who was a splendidly dressed Yakunko with dark markings and bracelets made out of gold and stone. He led him aside and motioned to him towards Tsote. Tsote wondered what he was saying to the strange looking man less of a warrior unlike so many other guards around the alcove entrances. From there Thalko nodded at Tsote and started back only to come to a halt at the center of the alcove. There was a young man being led through from the left and everyone was paving way and bowing with due respect.

Whomever this was the guards next to Tsote bowed too. But Tsote looked puzzled until a hand pushed him lower. He fidgeted to bow. When he rose, again he saw Thalko bowing low too. And the young man who wasn’t even half Thalko’s age, most probably two years older than Tsote placing a feathery stuff over Thalko’s shoulder and the other like he were more important compared to Thalko and at Thalko’s bowing the young man was honoring him back. For a second he alone stood straight with two maidens, two Yakunko warrior guards as well as a very well dressed older woman almost Thalko’s age and seemingly, the boy’s mother.

“Who is he...?” Tsote began just as Thalko started back towards them… and the rest letting the young man through.

“His name is Mozia O’mondo, the king’s older son.” One of the chiefs they had entered with from Nyathiku responded. Thalko Arrived and motioned to him. The man Thalko had crossed to meet was behind him. He turned and introduced him. N’dwoku was significantly a Kobewa from observation.

“This is N’dwoku, the king’s youngest advisor. He is half Kobewa and the only the king trusts. And he will take you around to your father. I will meet you after the occasion. Its family day son and you can ask him as many questions as you please…”

Thereafter, Thalko turned to some other general in charge of the palace guard who showed him away the direction Prince Mozia O’mondo had appeared. They left followed by two of his guards. N’dwoku turned back to Tsote once again and taking him by the hand, something only Makita normally does, led him away to the same direction the Prince was head with his mother. 

This way please…” N’dwoku started forwards. No one else among the chiefs and other officials seemed to head this direction but he felt their gazes. He felt the hate barren deep within these non-Yakunko chiefs and their escorts for what he was. Nevertheless, he remained reserved no to shame Thalko.

“This way please.”

The passage N’dwoku took winded down from the right to face the throne. Tsote was counting the number of fires burning in the mouths of tiger heads curved out from the walls of the passage as they slopped. The light glowed warm against his flesh. They had left the alcove above and now they were on the same ground with the king’s throne. From here, they stood in line with the guard and statues behind the throne. 

The drumming never ceased. And this is when he saw the king appearing from the back of the throne to his take his position. Thalko followed! Everyone bowed and did not rise until the king was seated. Thalko walked down to his seat and the moment he sat down, the chiefs and the rest of the elders followed. The peoples stayed watching and chanting in response to the drum beats. 

From down here, Tsote could see the king in the closest distance he had never seen him before. He hardly recognized them but sat focused out into the ceremonial ground. The ceremonial ground stretched two yards away and was looming with thick buttress trees of about two hundred feet high. The branches of these trees forms a network only possible with the influence of magic. They formed bridges that could support four people walking side by side and supporting hundreds of hanging shelters. The bridges linked different levels with hundreds of shelters from this wing to the other wing where the Yakunko people chanted and danced on top these bridges and shelters in response to the drumming below! The king was present and now the ritual would begin.