Order of the WEB - The Trial 2

Nana had barely managed to make it down the hills in time. He looked at the rising sun and let out a low but deep sigh. The weather was still cool, the night chill lingered, but the little warmth from the rising sun hit his face. He had changed from his usual outfit up on the hills; he would bake in his usual clothes since the hills were normally very chilly as compared to the base. He was now in a pair of blue jeans, a sleeveless ash hoodie and a pair of Sankofa sneakers; he didn’t use to be a big fan of their sneakers; but since he was mandated to wear them because they sponsored the Red Hills Arena, he had grown used to them. His duffel bag was draped over his shoulders, his red cap in his right hand; and he seemed prepared for his trip to the Ashanti Kingdom. He looked behind, taking one last look at the red gate that served as an entrance to the Red Hills and smiled.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be back in ten days.” He said, as he put on his red cap and walked off. Today was the first day of his trial, minus that he had to be back on the Hills by the eleventh day from this morning. He knew this being his final trial, wasn’t going to be an easy one, and with what he had been sent to investigate, he knew for certain that the success rate of the trial was clearly below fifty percent. However, that didn’t bother him as much as what Akose had told him. He had never really put much thought into death, unless of course when he was facing Esi, that was a different case all together, but being told you were going to die; now that was special. Apparently Akose’s ability had evolved and now she got glimpses of the future and past, like the time to her space manipulation; and she had caught a glimpse of him dying. In her vision his right hand had been cut off and he was caught in the middle of two attacks. She hadn’t seen his opponents, but according to what she saw, his death was clear. He unconsciously touched his right hand as he thought of it. Why now?

He walked towards the trotro station on the side of the usual busy road; it was as if it was afternoon already, traffic was heavy and people were everywhere. Of course, it was a market day, he had forgotten all about that. The sudden sound of a loud horn caused him to turn on reflex causing him to bump into someone. He turned to find an old man about a couple of inches shorter than him stagger backwards. He immediately caught the old man before he lost his balance.

“Opanyin, are you alright?” Nana asked as he helped the old man. The old man just mumbled angrily in response, shaking Nana’s hands off him.

“Children of nowadays, you don’t watch where you are going! Nearly made an old man break his hip.” He complained bitterly causing people passing by to look at the two of them. Nana tried to smile, but he was not doing a good job hiding his embarrassment.

“Opanyin, I am really sorry. It wasn’t my intention. I hope you are alright?” Nana asked respectfully. The old man sized him and nodded begrudgingly. The old man looked to be in his seventies at the very least; he was slightly hunched over on his walking stick. He was in a pair of togas and a faded fugu, he wore a pair of leather sandals. He had a bald head. The only hair on his face was his grey beard. He looked frail, yet somewhat energetic at the same time. Something felt familiar about the old man, but Nana couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

“We thank the gods.” Nana said with a smile. “I’ll be on my way then.”

“Oh, the lack of respect amongst these new generations is something to be ashamed of; if only our ancestors were alive to see this. If this had happened in the good old days, a young man would have asked how to be of service to the old one, but no! Not in this generation.” The old man wailed; Nana who had turned around and was just about heading back on his way quickly returned to the old man, to prevent him from causing a scene, as he seemed to be drawing more and more attention.

“I’m sorry old one, how can I be of help to you?” Nana asked as politely as he could. He was beginning to lose his cool; he had to catch the earliest trotro in order to be on time. He couldn’t afford to lose a minute.

“Now you are moving in the right path young man.” The man said tapping Nana on the shoulder with his walking stick.

“The old ways must never be ignored; they must be adhered to and respected in order to attain enlightenment.” He continued to preach. “Now per the old ways; you are obliged to do one thing for me, without complaint, or risk carrying the curses of the dead ancestors.”

“Yes, sure thing.” Nana said without paying much attention, he just wanted to get to the station. “Whatever you need old one.”

“Good, I like your eagerness.” The old man said proudly. “Now I want you to carry my things over there, I’m going to the Ashanti Kingdom, and my back is killing me.”

Nana gave out a huge sigh of relief as he heard what the man said. It meant they were both heading in the same direction; killing two birds with one stone. He saw the bag the old man was pointing to; it was twice the man’s size. Was this old man travelling with everything he had in his life? How did he even get it here in the first place? Nana couldn’t help but wonder which poor young soul had been made to carry the load before him.

“Of course old one, it won’t be a problem at all.” Nana responded heading for the bag.

“So you plan on living up to your promise?” The old man asked with a sinister smile Nana had failed to notice.

“Yes please.” Nana bent down to pick up the bag and found himself struggling. Nana stared at the bag then at the man in shock. How was this possible? How could the bag be that heavy? The old man just smiled back like everything was normal.

“What? Is it too heavy? They just don’t make strong young men like they used to in the past. What do they teach you people in the Arena?” The man complained. Every muscle in Nana wanted to just leave the old man behind and go on his way; but he had heard of the curses of old people, and with Akose’s vision and this being his last trial, he couldn’t risk it. He put in more of his strength this time and managed to carry the bag.

How is this bag so heavy? Who the hell is this old man? Nana thought to himself.

“Let’s go then.” The old man said walking in the direction Nana had just come from.

“But, the station is this way.” Nana said pointing to where the old man had been coming from.

“I know.” The man said walking on.

“If we don’t go now we will have to wait a long time for the trotro to fill up.” Nana explained. The old man walked to Nana and took his duffel bag.

“Let me help you with that.” He said hanging it on his shoulder. “Who said anything about trotro?”

“What are you talking about?”

“We are walking to the Ashanti Kingdom.” The man announced, guffawing as he walked.

What did I just get myself into?

In the Second (Now First) Elmina Vassal Chief’s Palace…

The palace had been restored; all the damage from four years ago had been fixed. It had taken long, but they had managed to finally return the palace to the way it was meant to be. It hadn’t been easy doing the restoration, especially since their duties had significantly increased after they climbed up to the first vassal.

The Queen walked to the throne room at top speed.

“Where is the Chief?” She asked the Royal Guards standing at the entrance of the throne room.

“He’s gone out my Queen.” The two answered in unison.

“This man never listens.” She said in frustration, white mist began to emanate from her.

“Easy mom, it’s a bright warm day, we can’t afford to have everyone here dry and trembling.” Her eldest daughter said appearing behind her mother, the younger sister following closely behind.

“Akosua, your father is going to kill me one of these days.” The Queen complained as she rubbed her temple. She looked at her younger daughter; and smiled lightly.

“You know it has been four years since you came out of your exile. You really have to return to acting like the daughter of the seco- I meant first Vassal Chief.”

“That’s what I have been trying to tell her.” Akosua added. “All she does is train all day.”

“After the attack on the family four years ago; I really can’t afford to lazy around. My power has decreased greatly and I have to make sure to restore it all.” Esi Mansah said with a serious look on her face. Her mother and elder sister stared at her with total confusion. What was she talking about? Decreased greatly? She single-handedly protected the house against the Eliite Warriors of the former First Vassal Chief.

“You know, now that I think about it, she has always been this way mother.” Akosua chuckled lightly.

Mansah stood there flustered. She had been released from exile after she defended the palace four years ago; but she still hadn’t fully adjusted. She still blamed herself for the attack. She had a lot of making up to do.

“We heard from Esi last night; she sent your father and I a message.” The Queen said, her daughters followed her into the throne room.

“Are you kidding me? I barely hear from her at all these days, but she somehow always sends her grandparents messages instead.” Akosua complained, feigning tears.

“Well, what do you expect? Not only am I a great mother; I am an equally awesome grandmother.”

“She actually just wanted to tell us one thing.” The Queen went on. “It’s about Nana.”

The Queen’s words rang in Esi Mansah’s ears. She hadn’t seen her son since after the first stage finals four years ago. She had tried to get into contact with him, but it wasn’t possible to contact anyone in a Specialized Arena, since they were closed off to outsiders, except during special events. She had rehearsed what to tell him when they spoke for the first time. Not that they hadn’t spoken before, but she had never told him who she was during the times they met. They had never spoken as mother and son.

“You trained him well I must admit.” The Queen said with a smile.

“What do you mean?” Mansah said with a nervous smile.

“Come on, we all knew you snuck off to train him when he was preparing for the SCT.” Akose added.

The two sisters laughed lightly; their mother took a seat in her throne.

“What did she have to say?” Mansah asked.

“Well, I don’t know how you’ll take this; but your son is the King of the Red Hills Arena.”

Mansah stood there, frozen with excitement. Her little boy had grown well and strong. King? Even she hadn’t seen that coming. He had done a lot of growing within the four years. What exactly had he done? How much had he trained to make it to the top of the Red Hills?

“If I remember correctly that means he’ll be fighting in the Royal Family Battle right?”

“Yes.” Akose answered their mother. Then she realized what their mother was trying to say. “Oh… I see.”

“See what? It is after all normal for the king to be in the Royal Family Battle.” Mansah added.

“That’s not what she was referring to? We have two from our family in that battle; your Nana, and her Esi.” The Queen said with a knowing smile.

“Wait, Esi is also the head of her Arena?”

“Yes.”

“That means-”

“Your son and my daughter will be facing off in the Royal Family Battle. I hope he’s ready for that.” Akose said wrapping her arm around Mansah’s neck.

Day two of the Trial…

Nana panted loudly as he struggled to stay on his feet. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been this worn out. He was almost at his limit. What the hell was this old man?

“You see, that’s my problem with this generation, you are not made of stern stuff.” He said walking towards Nana. “You should be thankful you ran into me kid; I am going to whip you in shape, though it won’t be literal. Looking at you, losing any more weight is going to ruin your balance; I can’t help but wonder how you trained to make use of your size though. You must have had a good master.”

Nana’s head was filled with unanswered questions. It was day two and he still hadn’t arrived at the Ashanti Kingdom. How had he been talked into this? How did this man know about his weight and balance just from looking at him; and how come he was tired and this old man had barely broken a sweat?

“How do you do it? How do you move like that?” Nana asked in between breaths. He adjusted the heavy bag on his back and took a deep breath exhaling and stretching. The old man stopped, laughed and shook his head.

“It’s easy; I don’t make useless movements; every move I make is aimed at making my next step faster. You kids these days focus too much on making flashy movements. Getting better is not about looking good or a flashy physical transformation; it’s about being efficient, doing something that will normally take fifty percent of your capabilities; with just ten percent or even five, but achieving the same results. That’s the correct meaning of being strong.” He took the bag off Nana and flung it over one shoulder without as much as a grunt. “Easy.”

Nana stared in shock, it had been a while he had felt that- shock, and it excited him, his blood boiled. He wanted to learn, he wanted to be able to become efficient, better.

“Now before you ask me to teach you-” The man three the oversized, heavy bag at Nana. “I’ll only consider that, if you can make it to the Ashanti Kingdom by night fall. We seem to have another hundred kilometres ahead of us.”

“It has been roughly thirty hours since we set off, and we’re now only halfway there?” Nana sighed out of exhaustion.

“Well, that’s your fault. On my own, at full speed, factoring in rest; I could have been in the Ashanti Kingdom in fourteen hours. I’m too old to do it like I did when I was younger.”

They both continued their journey on foot, it was afternoon but cloudy; making their journey bearable.

“So, kid… tell me what ability do you have?”

“I don’t have any ability.” Nana replied as they walked.

“What?”

“I have never really needed it; Tumi works fine for me.”

“Kid, you have a lot to learn.” The old man chuckled.

“What do you mean?”

“We are going to find your ability before we part ways.” The old man took a step and disappeared from Nana’s sight. He’s fast! Nana took off after him.

“Watch how I move, and try doing same.” He said once Nana was behind him.

Who the hell was this old man?

“I am going teach you the old ways.” The old man said with a sinister smile.

Big Head hated having to blend in with the regular people. It might have been the wise thing to do, but it didn’t mean he had to enjoy trying to be normal to avoid detection. He stood behind a man who was twice his height and build. The man was testing Big Head’s patience. He was holding up the line with his indecisiveness, even the kenkey seller looked frustrated. The customers behind him grumbled with dissatisfaction, but knew better than to confront the overly built man who could probably break the average person in two.

“Excuse me, big one, would you be quick? We are all hungry here.” Big Head said as calmly as he could. The man turned to look at him, a deep scowl on his face.

“Do you have a problem?” The man said; he seemed as if he would burst from his tight t-shirt anytime now. 

Big Head sized him up. He could take him easily, if he wanted to. He was all muscles; nothing to back it up. Just one clean hit; and his head would roll off his body. Regular people were so fragile; it was sad. Maybe he could at least teach this one a lesson without drawing too much attention.

Boss, we’ve found him. He seems to be lodging with an old geezer; but it is him alright. Do we proceed?

They’d found the king who was supposed to come and investigate them. It had taken a few days longer than projected, but they had found him nonetheless.

Do a little more recon, report back and await my orders. I have to go and inform the other two about this. He had to go and tell his brothers now. They had to make a move now.

“What is the problem? Are you too scared to speak now?” The voice of the big guy in front of him pulled him out of the temporal telepathic link.

“Excuse me?” He looked up at the big guy. He had almost forgotten all about him. He didn’t have time to deal with ants. “No, I’m okay; let’s do this later.” Big head said tapping the man on the shoulder and walking out of the line. Those gathered there were confused; they had been expecting a confrontation.

Big head didn’t have time for this; he had better things to deal with. People to get rid of… kings to kill.

The Queen mother had tried sleeping, but she hadn’t had much success there. Her husband had been away without a word for almost two weeks. It was dawn, and the sun was just about rising as she walked into the throne room.

“Has anyone told you how beautiful you look in the morning.” A familiar voice said. She chuckled lightly.

“Flattery won’t save you from this one.” She replied.

“I know I should have said something, but time was of the essence. And I mistakenly left my communicator when I was leaving, so I couldn’t call.” The Chief explained as he walked towards his wife. “Where are the girls?”

“They left earlier for the Red Hills, they want to watch the tournament.”

“Ah, the arena tournament.” He said grabbing his wife by the waist.

“Where did you go?” She held his head between his palms.

“I went to spend some time with our grandson. I had to teach him a few things.” He responded with a smile.

“Wait… what do you mean?” The Queen said letting go of his head.

“It’s a long story. Let just say the Elders gave him a trial too much for him to handle; I had to do something about it. Something big is coming.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Your brothers are not dead. I met Quick Feet.”

“What?” The Queen said with shock. That wasn’t possible; she was there when they were taken down. She had killed Quick Feet herself!

“Why did they move the Royal Family Battle to the first event? It’s normally the last!” Debrah said pacing up and down. He was angry; everything was a mess; their King wasn’t yet in, and if they wanted to win this battle, they needed him. The rest of the members of the royal family were all gathered in the waiting room.

“Where is our King? He’s supposed to be back today right?” Dasebr3 asked nervously. Akose was quietly sitting down trying to distract herself from their current predicament.

“Calm down everyone.” RT said from where he was sitting. “We know what to do even if Nana is not here. He made us prepared for it.”

“RT is right. You all need to chill.” Dziedzorm said from behind the screen of his handheld console. “He’ll be in.”

Dziedzorm saying that helped calm their nerves. Dziedzorm had never been wrong. Enyonam gave Akose a reassuring look, and Akose responded with a weak smile. The sound of a horn echoed throughout the Red Hills and the sound of spectators at the Arena cheering loudly followed. It was time to begin.

Dziedzorm for the first time willingly shut down his video game and got up from where he was. He had an unusually serious expression on his face. He adjusted his glasses and walked forward.

“I, Dziedzorm invoke my position as interim King in the absence of our true King, Nana.” The remaining members of the Royal Family bowed and acknowledged their interim leader. They rose and all looked at him. He looked totally different when he had a responsibility.

“Let’s go show them the difference between their leaders and our true King.” A sinister smile spread on his face.

To be continued…

Note from the Author

Hey guys, yet another Thursday. So this chapter is more talk and less action. There’s also a lot of scene movements too. It’s quite a loaded chapter and I hope you make it to this moment. Thank you for reading and thanks for your support. Next week will be action packed!! I promise!

Yours Faithfully,

everydayGladiator

Order of the WEB - The Trial (Prologue)

Nana had finished packing his small duffel bag, though he wasn’t sure if he would describe it as small; it had been a present from Akose when he was leaving for one of his earlier trials, yes it did look small, but it could contain as much things as the average trunk. Probably because Akose had tweaked the space of the bag someway.

Ever since he had been told about his last trial, Nana had been feeling uneasy and extremely on edge. He had first wondered if it was just his nerves getting the better of him, or that he was just really anxious to finish the trial; but he had come to realize that wasn’t the case. Something just wasn’t right, the air didn’t smell right; it was like the calm before a storm. Similar to the feeling he had before fighting Effah four years ago during the final round of the First Stage. He had come to trust his gut feeling, and steeled himself for whatever was ahead of him.

There was a knock on the door to his quarters; he stopped what he was doing and headed for the door. Behind the door were all members of the Royal House, led by Dziedzorm, which was rare. He noticed the grim expression on their faces; except Dasebr3 who seemed more lost than anyone. There was a long silence which made Nana nervous; what had he done wrong this time?

“What aren’t you telling us?” Dziedzorm complained from the back. “You’ve got us all extremely agitated.”

“Why? What’s wro-” Realization then hit Nana of what they were talking about. It was because of his Tumi.

“He seems to have forgotten again.” Debrah chuckled.

“Sorry about that guys, I had completely forgotten all about this.” Nana said, extremely nervous now. This is the one Tumi he felt extremely self-cautious about.

“You don’t have to apologise King. We are merely just concerned.” R.T assured. Throughout all this Akose was quiet and was barely looking at Ato, which made him more worried. He didn’t like it when she was upset.

“Everything is fine.” Nana reassured. “I’ll be off the Hills for some time.”

They all stared at him in surprise, but no one asked any question. Akose still stared downwards. Nana went on to explain as best as he could, but before he could even begin to do that, he was interrupted.

“That’s why the Supervisors summoned you up there right? Whatever reason you have to leave the Hills.” Debrah asked.

“Yes; and I wish I could tell you all why, but you already know the drill. We should be used to this by now.” Nana explained.

“But why now?” Dasebr3 chipped in. “We are starting the competition in twelve days, we-”

“Dasebr3, don’t question the decisions of the Supervisors, they are all ranked Elders. Even the king knows not to question their decision and authority.” R.T reprimanded Dasebr3.

“R.T is right.” There was a short silence. Nana took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Anyway I’m sorry I put you all through that. It should be better now.”

The grim expression on their faces cleared up; though they still looked a little worried. Dziedzorm stretched as though he had just been freed from being shackled.

“So, when are you leaving?” Enyonam asked.

“Tonight.” Nana responded without flinching. “I should be down the hills latest by morning if I move quickly.”

The Red Hills were vast, they were difficult to navigate and could take days to make it to the peaks. It would take the average candidate who is a part of the Red Hills a day to make it up the hills or descend it. Nana, hoped to do it in six hours. He needed all the time he could get.

After settling things with his Royal Family and reminding them of their various duties, they left and he went back to getting ready. Akose stayed behind to help him, she packed his duffel bag in silence and Nana didn’t know what to do to make her speak.

“So… one week without you having to worry about me. That should be fun and stress free.” Nana laughed nervously, but Akose didn’t reply. There was a long silence as she packed without saying anything. Over the four years Nana and Akose had grown closer to each other, more than they even cared to admit. The rest of the Royal Family knew of this, and Dziedzorm normally referred to Akose as unnamed Queen of the Red Hills. Both Nana, and Akose had never really said anything to each other, but it seemed they didn’t have to; they both just knew.

“I will be back in eleven days, I promise.” Nana said. He walked towards Akose, and took hold of her hands, stopping her from folding. “Hey, look at me; you know I never break my promises.”

For the first time she looked up at Nana, and he understood why she was looking down the whole time. She looked like she had been crying her eyes looked red and sore. Care and worry flooded Nana who immediately sat her down on the nearest chair and knelt in front of her.

Kid… what did you do to make her cry. Kram popped out of nowhere.

I have no idea! Nana replied to Kram in total confusion.

Well find out then! A gentleman should never make a lady cry! Haven’t I thought you anything at all? Kram scolded.

Well to be fair you haven’t really-

I dare you to finish that statement.

“What is wrong? You look like you’ve been crying.” He sounded genuinely worried, and Akose knew he was, but she couldn’t bring herself to speak. How was she supposed to?

Are you sure you it wasn’t because you forgot to do something you were supposed to? Kram asked.

Well… even if I did, she wouldn’t react this way.

Kid, she might like you, but a lady can only take so much. You probably finally wore her out with your forgetfulness.

“What is it Akose? Or do you need me to do something?” Akose looked up in response to his question.

“Wait, I forgot to do something right? I am such a terrible person… I am so sorry. What did I forget to do? Tell me and I will get it done right now. Did I forget to eat – no I had supper just an hour ago. Wait did I forget to-” He took a sniff of his clothes and shook his head. “Nah- it’s not that either.”

His rambling caused Akose to smile unconsciously, which he took notice of, causing him to smile and calm down. Akose couldn’t help but wonder how she had gotten stuck with this guy, who could get so distracted with his duties as King and training that he even forgot to take care of himself. He hadn’t always been like that; even within the brief time she knew him before the incident four years ago at the Battle Royale.

“Nana…” She started.

“Yes, Akose, what is it?” He asked in response. She was silent for a while as if contemplating whether to go through with what she wanted to say. “You can tell me anything, you know I always listen to you- well not always, but you know I try my very best to.” He chuckled, she smiled back at him.

“I want to ask you to do something for me.” She went on.

“Sure, anything-”

“Anything?” She repeated.

“Umm- yes, anythi-”

“Please don’t go.” Her request left Nana speechless. This wasn’t the first time he had left the Hills for a trial, this was the fifth. Yet, this was the first time Akose had ever asked him to do this.

“Why?” Nana asked calmly, he smiled at her to reassure her he was listening. He had to know why.

Same time, somewhere in the Ashanti Kingdom…

The night was a warm one, the hooded figured weaved through the busy streets, the traffic was intense, and the heat wasn’t helping. Frustrated trotro drivers exchanged harsh words from behind the wheels of their vehicles. He made sure to avoid bumping into anyone. He couldn’t afford to be seen, he may not even be recognized since it had been so long, but he couldn’t afford to risk it either way. He was the careful one; and that had served him well so far. He got to a pub with an eerie glowing red sign; “Don’t Mind Your Wife”. This was where they had agreed to meet. He entered and walked straight to the seats in the corner of the room, the place was badly lit, and was convenient for their meeting. Two people were already in the seats waiting for him.

“What took you so long?” The first asked, he was relatively bigger than the other two, but could be barely seen due to the dimly lit room; his size was what set him apart from the other two.

“I had to make sure of a few things; plus, I had to be extra careful, which is mainly due to your impulsiveness!” He retorted harshly to the big one. “How many times must we tell you to clean up your messes?!”

“Hey, you might be the smart one, but don’t think I’ll allow you to disrespect me because of that!” The big one retaliated.

“Oh would you shut up. We had a plan, he created a perfect plan for us, and we were so close to our goals; but because you couldn’t control your hunger we are in this shit. Don’t think your seniority will help you get away with this.” The third said in a calm yet intimidating tone. He was the eldest of the three, and even the big one knew better than to challenge him. Their table was silent or a while.

“Big head, tell us what you’ve found out so far.” The eldest of the three said to the hooded one who had just joined.

“Okay, due to the glutton over there, the heads of the Eight Lights are getting suspicious and are on high alert; they are taking no chances. They know only one person has the ability to steal Tumi, and the fact that that person was supposed to be dead more than a century ago has got them thinking.” He couldn’t see his face, but the glutton could feel Big Head shooting him a condescending look.

“I am trying to lead them from discovering the truth, but it’s proving difficult. They are approaching this with the mind-set that all three of us managed to survive the raid by the Hunters.” He added.

“Shit.” The eldest muttered to himself.

“I’m really sorry bro-”

The eldest raised his hand, signalling the glutton to shut up.

“So what are they doing now?” He asked Big Head.

“Here’s the funny thing, they sent a King to investigate the issue.” Big Head explained.

“A king?! You idiot! What is funny about that?! A king may not be as powerful as the heads of the Eight Lights, but they are stronger than even the Vassal Chiefs.” The glutton shot at Big Head.

“I hate to agree with what he’s saying, but the glutton is right.” The eldest added.

“You didn’t let me finish; I’m not talking about one of the four Kings of the four kingdoms, I’m talking about an honorary king. A King of a Specialized Arena, and not even a formidable Arena; the Red Hills.” Big head explained. The eldest was silent; he couldn’t help but feel something wasn’t right. However, Big Head was the smart one, and he had learnt not to question Big Head’s intelligence.

“If it was in the glory days, we might have cause for worry; but not now. They really made a big mistake sending an ant to catch a Tarantula.” The eldest said. “At least, that is one good news for us.”

“Oh, and there’s one more.” Big Head added. “Despite how foolish the glutton acted, it has helped us get one step closer to getting to our goal.”

“What do you mean?” The eldest asked.

“He managed to get Father’s attention. He came out of hiding and is coming for us.” Big Head replied, the excitement and anxiety in his voice was obvious.

“How did you know?” The glutton asked hastily.

“His Tumi; AKOMA NTOASO. It has grown weak, but I can still feel the link; and I can felt it. He knows we are alive, and he’s coming to deal with us personally.” Big Head explained.

“Good… come old man, it’s time we retired you once and for all.” The eldest said with a sinister laugh. The three brothers had waited long for this family reunion, and it was going to happen anytime now.

On The Red Hills; In the Common Room of the Royal Family…

The other members of the Royal House were trying to figure out what it was, and why their King had to leave the Red Hills just a few days before the competition; Dziedzorm lay on the floor playing his video game.

“This isn’t the first time he has had to leave the Hills because the Supervisors said so; but why doesn’t he tell us the reason behind his leaving?” Debrah fumed as he paced up and down.

“Could it be that he doesn’t trust us completely?” Dasebr3 asked nervously. They all turned to look at him, shook their heads and went back to what they were doing.

“It’s not that. If it’s a matter of trust, there’s no issue there.” Enyonam replied. How could they be so sure though, Dasebr3 wondered to himself. They seemed to trust him completely.

“Pacing up and down won’t solve anything.” R.T calmly interjected. “Dziedzorm, you know, tell us what is going on.”

Everyone stopped and turned to Dziedzorm, who paused the game he was playing and jumped from the floor.

“Hey, hey, leave me out of this… I only know as much as you all do.” He said lazily.

“Dziedzorm, the new raging winds video game comes out-”

“He’s going on his final trial.” Dziedzorm said before R.T could finish speaking.

“Trial?” They all looked at him confused.

“What do you mean by trial?” R.T asked.

“First you all have to swear you do not tell anyone about this.”

They all nodded in response.

“The trials are a set of optional tests given to people with great potential- and I mean the cream of the crop, aiming to become King, Story Teller or Elder. It comes with its benefits. However, they are almost impossible to pass; hence the reason they aren’t popular. And before you ask, our King refuses to tell us about this because he is forbidden to discuss details pertaining to the nature of the Trial with anyone unless ordered to by the Elders who assigned it to him. This is our Kings fifth and final trial… which only goes to prove what a monster he truly is.” Dziedzorm talked so fast he had to take in a deep breath at the end of his lesson.

“How do you know all this?” Debrah asked.

“Come on, it’s Dziedzorm, what doesn’t he know?” Enyonam commented.

“She’s right, I do know everything… plus I was approached to take the test; but I turned it down like any logical person would.” He waved at them and headed for his quarters. They all stood there trying to process what they had just been told.

“But how was it that Bra Panyin Dziedzorm was approached to apply for this test?” Dasebr3 asked out of genuine curiosity. He knew that Dziedzorm outranked him and was in a different league than he was, but how come he was approached but R.T wasn’t?

“The answer to that is simple; Dziedzorm is the most powerful amongst the Royal House, second to only the king.” R.T answered. Dziedzorm was feared by the everyone in the Royal House except the king; he may act like a child most of the time. But he was a scary opponent to face.

Enyonam had been a War Monger since before Nana became king; she had served under Debrah and now served under Nana. She had seen the capabilities of both kings and their Royal House and was glad to have been able to stay long enough to serve under her current King. Sure he was younger than her, he was younger than half of the Royal Family, but she had come to realize age meant nothing in their tests; she had begun her Northern Desert Test six years ago; and she probably wouldn’t have applied to continue this year, had it not been the fact that she felt more ready than ever to complete it; and it was all thanks to this kid who came and beat their asses back in shape.

She had realized Akose hadn’t been in the common room with them. She had been acting strange the whole evening. Was there something wrong between her and Nana? Enyonam passed by Akose’s quarters as she returned to hers. There was no response as she knocked on the door, but she could hear that someone was in there.

“Akose… are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?” There was no reply for a while. She was just leaving when a small voice from inside asked her to enter; she did.

Akose was sitting on her bed her legs crossed. Her eyes seemed swollen. Had she been crying?

“Hey, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” Enyonam tried to be as gentle as she could. She wasn’t particularly gentle, but Akose had been teaching her.

“Guys are so stupid.” Akose pouted.

“Okay, so are we talking about Nana or our King, because I can’t help if it’s the king we are talking about.” Enyonam said, threading lightly.

“I asked him to stay and he still went.” Akose continued.

“Why? It’s not like it’s the first time he’s left-”

“But it will be his last.”

“How do you know that?” Enyonam asked. Akose shouldn’t know about the trials. She wasn’t in the common room when they found out.

“He won’t come back.” Akose continued.

“Why do you say that?”

“He’s – he’s going to die.”

“What?! What are you saying?”

“Nana is going to die.”

To be continued…

Note from the Author

……………………………

Yours Faithfully,

everydayGladiator

Order of the WEB - The Countdown

“Is that so?” Esi asked with a soft chuckle. He had gotten much stronger huh? “I need to see this for myself.”

“So, are you going to tell him?” AJ turned her gaze to Esi who was looking down from the roof they stood on. She liked the view; the Red Hills truly was a beautiful place especially at night. “You know; he still might think you want to kill him, though he still sort of admires you despite that, for some weird reason. Hell, even I hated you till like two years ago.”

Esi laughed lightly, it still felt surreal to AJ, hearing Esi laugh. She obviously hadn’t known Esi as long as Nana had, but she had never thought that Esi was capable of expressing any emotion at all.

“I can’t.” Esi said casually.

“Why?”

“He needs the challenge; that’s the only way he can get stronger. You see, when I was younger, I did swear to kill him.” Esi explained casually. “He was an abomination that stained our family name. Not that it was his fault, but I thought, wipe away the abomination and the family’s honour can be restored; even if he was a well-kept secret. Which apparently he wasn’t.”

AJ knew what she meant by that; the incident at the final round of the SCT four years ago.

“When I was old enough I was sent to an Arena to train. There was this kid there; young, innocent, who wanted to train with the older kids so badly. He was a slave at the arena, and the older kids reminded him of that every single day. One day after one of my training sessions, this kid approached me – me, who was feared by everyone there, not just because of how strong I was, but by my royal blood- and said something I will never forget.” Esi chuckled; which caused AJ to just stare in shock. Did her friend have a heart after all?

“So, I was seven at that time right, and this kid was like two years old-”

“You were put in an Arena at seven?” AJ asked, completely perturbed.

“Six actually, my grandmother insisted they wait a year.” She replied.

“What the hell kind of family are you guys?!” AJ was trying to make sense of it. “Well… that explains a lot.”

“Do you want me to finish or not?”

“Go on, go on, don’t mind me.”

“So this kid comes up to me and says, ‘I am free’”.

“What?” AJ asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Same question I asked; mind you this was a slave who just walked up to me and said he was free.” Esi chuckled lightly again. “Then he replied that he meant he was free to spar with me, since no one else wanted to. I asked him whether he won’t be punished, but he replied that he was done with his chores and could do whatever he wanted, as long as he didn’t step out of the arena.”

“Wait, but how is this possible, if Nana is your brother/cousin whatever, and this kid you’re talking about is Nana, how was he a slave?” AJ paced up and down.

“Will get there. Family drama.” Esi replied. “So, I decided that why not teach him instead-”

“Aww, isn’t that cute, you did something nice-”

“I only did that because it was the tactical thing to do, not only will it be my way of thanking him, but it will help him defend himself against being bullied.” Esi quickly cut AJ off.

“Yeah, trying to be all emotionless… you are just a big softie at heart aren’t you.” AJ ducked in time to avoid a roundhouse kick. “Relax! I was just kidding… I think…”

“Anyway, so a week passed, then a month, then a year, I realised he was a very quick learner, he never stopped training, every opportunity he had he trained; he had down all the basics of the Southern Dance by the age of four, two years after I started teaching him.”

“So, what exactly went wrong?” AJ asked impatiently.

“When he was four I decided to find out more about who this kid was, because I realized I knew nothing about him. I asked around but found nothing. It was like no one knew anything about him either; even the master who was very fond of him and protected him most of the time claimed to know nothing about the kid. I couldn’t blame him, he was new to the Arena, and had started teaching there when Nana was three. So, I decided to ask the Master who headed the Arena, but he evaded all my questions. Then that night I was summoned by my mother and my grandparents- the vassal chief and his queen. They had heard of the enquiries I was making and wanted to talk about it. Apparently they knew of the fact that I had been helping a slave in the Arena train, and they didn’t mind. They just thought I had the right to know who I had taken as a disciple.”

“Oh… so that’s when you found out.”

“Yes.”

“So, what did you do?”

“It really shook my world. The kid I had been helping and had grown to- to-”

“Don’t worry… I get it, just go on.” AJ knew Esi hadn’t gotten to the point she could truly admit that she actually cared for Nana.

“That was the love child of the Aunt I was closest to. The reason why my family’s honour was stained. The person I had sworn to kill; that’s when the intensity of those words hit me; sworn to kill.” There was a long silence.

“I trained home after I found out, I didn’t step into the Arena for two years.”

“Wow, you left him for two years without a single word?” AJ stared at Esi with empathy. “That’s harsh.”

“I returned to the Arena when I was eleven; he was six by then. He had grown bigger than I remembered; at that moment, I knew I couldn’t go through with it; there was no way I could kill my Aunt’s son.” Esi however, knew that wasn’t her main reason for going back on her words. “I wanted to continue teaching him, but…”

“But what?”

“He couldn’t remember who I was.”

“What?!”

“He had somehow blocked that memory, apparently it’s a defence mechanism of sorts, to protect himself. He was just a kid when I left without a word.”

AJ knew what she meant, she had heard of people suppressing memories of experiences and entire life stages. It was normally unconscious, the minds way of protecting the person from trauma.

“So, I decided to keep my distance.”

“What changed?”

“The silly child had gotten lazy! Even though he had a good master, whom I later found out was sent by my grandparents to train him; this kid was taken his stupid time getting stronger.” She said with anger. AJ laughed out loud, surprised by Esi’s sudden expression.

“Why?” She said barely.

“I don’t know why exactly but compared to before, even though he had learnt more, his progress rate was much slower, and he didn’t train as much, I couldn’t stand it!” She spoke rapidly. “If I didn’t want to kill him then, at that moment, I wanted to. He was becoming useless.”

“So one day I approached and asked to spar-”

“Oh no… come on, he was just a kid.”

“With potential- who was throwing it away.” Esi retorted with conviction. “After breaking as much bones in his body as I could without causing major damage to him, I told him I was his elder sister, and that he’d better not forget my name.”

“That doesn’t sound so ba-”

“Then I told him I was going to kill him, and that the only way he could stop me was if he grows stronger.” Esi added.

“You psycho; you ruined his childhood.” AJ complained. There was a short moment of silence.

“To be honest I thought so too at first… but I think he’s doing just fine.” Esi said with a proud smile on her face. Something Esi rarely did; smile. “I really can’t wait to see how strong he’s gotten.”

It was barely morning as Nana climbed to the peak of the Red Hill. He had thought he was coming down with a cold the previous night, he had been sneezing all night, barely had enough shut eye (someone was probably talking about him); but he did feel much better and slightly more rested as compared to before, and his weight seemed to be returning to normal. He could feel it.

Climbing to the peak of this particular “hill” had been no joke when he first decided to challenge for the seat of King. He didn’t understand why the still called it a hill, it was even higher than some mountains in the kingdom. Worst part was how steep it was. Who thought of putting up a building up there in the first place? He looked down to see people who now almost looked like ants from where he stood slowly moving around.

He walked towards the huge hall which was the dwelling place of the Supervisors who rarely descended the Red Hill. He couldn’t picture spending the rest of his life there; he shuddered at the thought of it. He got to the huge doors that served as the entrance to the RED HALL, the doors slowly swung open on their own. He entered and walked towards the one seat at the centre of the large hall. The place was dark, and his footsteps echoed loudly. He sat down and waited, like he always did when he was summoned here. A familiar voice echoed through the room. He had grown used to the distorted voices of the Supervisors, which was meant to hide their identities. He knew better than to try finding where the voice came from.

“Nana Okai, King of the Red Hills, you have been summoned here today for two reasons. Any questions you might have must be saved till you are done being spoken to.” There was a short silence, as if to allow him to digest what he had just been told.

“The first is to commend you for your hard work as King. Being able to successfully restore the glory of the Red Hills, which shall be revealed to everyone in the starting Competition. Your current Royal Family is worthy of being likened to those of the glory days. And we do expect your Royal House to not let down the Red Hills. We do know this year’s events will be the toughest we’ve had in a while; with it being the gathering of the famed Royal Eight. And we also heard the Pure Queen is none other than Esi Bondzewaa, the winner of the First Stage of the SCT.”

“On behalf of the Royal House, I thank you for the commendation and swear to restore glory to the Red Hills, no matter the opponent.” Nana responded. Esi… she lived up to her reputation. Nana couldn’t help but feel excited. He wanted to see how strong she had gotten over the past four years.

“The second reason why you were summoned here is to let you know that your final trial has arrived.”

Nana’s eyes widened as he heard that. Finally! The final trial! He had almost forgotten completely about it in all the excitement.

“You know completing this trial will make you eligible to be under the discipleship of a Story Teller. The only thing you have to do after completing this trial is pass the Second Stage of the SCT. Then you can train as a Story Teller.”

Nana knew this better than anyone, even though he had already decided to complete all three stages of the SCT, completing the trials meant he could not only decide to skip the third stage, but also make him the top candidate for the position.

“Your trial is as follows; you will have to travel from these parts to the Ashanti Kingdom. In one of the villages there have been rumours of people having their Tumi stolen from them.”

Nana had heard of this, that there was once an Elder who could steal the Tumi of others. However, it was known to be just a myth. Apparently, it was more factual than myth.

“The last time anything like this was heard was nearly three hundred years ago, after the Kingdom had recovered from its encounter with the Order of the WEB. Your trial is to find out what exactly is happening and report back to us. You are allowed to use any means necessary to complete this trial. The duration for this trial ends when the Inter- Specialized Arena Sports Competition officially begins. If you are not on the Red Hills by this time, you would have failed the trial. Is that understood?”

“Yes. Understood.” Nana said rising from his seat, just as he was about to leave the room he was stopped.

“One more thing King.”

Ato sweated profusely as he swung his sword. A part of his training since childhood swing the sword in a form of a strike one hundred times very morning. As he grew older, the number of swings increased. When he was fifteen, he had to swing it at least nine hundred times. Now he was twenty-three, and he had lost count. The black blade which weighed more than at least a ton in its base state was his choice for this exercise.

He had only one intention to get stronger. Memories from his fight with Esi four years ago haunted him every single day. He had never been so broken in his life. In that very moment, he had realized what true power looked like. For one year after that fight he never picked up a sword. Not until the second year when news of one of the candidates from his group fighting for seat as King of the Red Hills reached his ears. In that moment he knew the only person who would do that was his former teammate. He knew he couldn’t sit around and be left behind. He knew what he had to do.

He smiled unconsciously as he thought of his two teammates. The smile on AJ’s face. Not to mention Nana had grown stronger, and looked good as king. Both teammates had become heads of their Royal Families too; he couldn’t wait to see what they were capable of now.

“Boss, what is it?” His advisor who had just entered the training area asked.

“What are you talking about?”

“For a second there it looked like you were smiling. I wanted to know what it was that was making our boss who never smiles smile like that.” His advisor said with a chuckle.

“Have you forgotten who you are speaking to?” He said staring blankly at his advisor.

“Just kidding boss… Don’t mind me.” The advisor chuckled nervously, immediately exiting the room.

Shit! He had let himself get distracted. He couldn’t afford to show weakness no matter what. He had no teammates, no friends. He just had one goal; defeat anyone who stood in his way. And with a goal like that, there was no place for childish thoughts. No. Not even his former teammates. Not even AJ.

“Have they all gathered?” Nana asked. His Royal Family followed closely behind. They tried to keep up as Nana seemed to be walking faster than usual. They couldn’t help but wonder why their King had been on edge since he returned from The Peak.

“Yes King.” Akose responded. She was itching to know what had happened, but she knew it wasn’t the right time yet. He seemed to have a lot on his mind at that moment.

“Alright then. Let’s go welcome our guests.” He said.

They all stopped on a round platform that was at the far end of one of the numerous underground passages found under the Red Hills. They could hear the loud cheers and gyama from above them. Dasebr3 seemed more nervous than he had ever been, and Dziedzorm was enjoying torturing him.

“Oh guys, one more thing?” Nana said as the platform they stood on began to rise. “The Supervisors just gave us the go ahead to remove our Adesua.”

They all just stared at him in shock, even Dziedzorm had stopped tormenting Dasebr3. Slowly smiles started appearing on their faces, one after the other.

“How long has it been since you made them put those things on us?” Dziedzorm asked after a low long whistle.

“Six… no seven months.” Nana said with a nervous chuckle. He knew they had not completely liked that particular strategy of his earlier.

“What is the Adesua you guys are talking about?” Dasebr3 asked slightly confused. He hadn’t been a part of that.

“Oh… you just wait and see kid.” Dziedzorm said cunningly. “You shall see what monsters are around you very soon.”

Every one of the Royal Family members started laughing lightly, even R.T. Nana’s training was one of the hardest things they had gone through as members of the Royal House. Outside, he was normal, likeable, even considered by some on the Red Hills to be too soft. But the moment it was time to train, he was the devil himself. Yet, being giving the Adesua was the toughest they had had to endure.

“Do you remember the first thing I told you all when I became king?” Nana asked with a smile.

“How could we forget.” Debrah commented with a scoff. Akose laughed lightly.

“I am going to kill you all one day; and the only way you can stop is to get stronger. Until then trust me to make you strong.” R.T recited.

“Oh yeah, you were so mean back then.” Enyonam recalled. Nana chuckled nervously; he remembered that day. He had gotten a little too carried away. He reminded himself of someone.

“Well, I take it back as of today.” They all stared at him in shock. “You have all grown much stronger than then, and I doubt I could live up to that promise myself.”

They had nothing to say in return, even Dziedzorm was in so much shock he had dropped his console without realizing.

“Thank you King!” They said in unison, including Dziedzorm.

They were met with loud roars and intense gyama as they appeared in the centre of the extremely large outdoor Arena where the competition was going to be held. The seats were packed. The Welcome Ceremony meant twelve days till the official start of the competitions. Eleven days for him to complete his last trial.

“Welcome all of you, to the RED HIILLS.” Nana’s voice echoed throughout the Arena. People shouted and cheered loudly in response. A familiar aura caught his attention, it was so small however, it seemed no one even noticed. He looked up to see her; with her usual bored expression. Hello sis, he thought to himself.

Esi had waited patiently to see Nana, and it had been worth it. She had let out a whiff of her aura, and he had caught it. She was impressed. He had grown; this was the kid she had met at the Arena so long ago.

In a faraway place… In a location known to no one…

He had known that someday his children shall return and cause havoc. He had expected it; after all, they were his children. He might have been impressive as a god, but he hadn’t been that good a father, and it was time to correct that once and for all.

He stopped and looked at the writer, he nodded a greeting which the writer responded to. He smiled knowingly.

“I should have known you were up to something.” He said as he walked through the hidden forest. “You this so called Millennial generation are always up to no good.”

“Well I can’t blame you; it was my fault after all. I should have been a better parent.” He went on. “Your readers probably think I’m crazy right- though they probably have figured it out by now.”

“I wish I knew what exactly it was that you were planning, but I know, I know… you hate spoilers. How boring of you. You must learn to live a little you know. I have been around for much longer than you have; so you should listen to me.” He sat on a log and sighed loudly.

“You have?” He asked with raised eyebrow. “Wait- who did you send?”

“Oh, that one… smart decision. I will be enjoying this one. I can’t wait to meet him; his father was a great person.” He added

“What do you mean “is”?” He asked confused.

“No spoilers? Really?” He gave the writer an exaggerated look. “Guess I’ll have to start weaving then. We will talk another time; I have to leave. And make sure you get well soon.”

“You’re welcome.” He waved, walking away.

To be continued…

Note from the Author

Hey guys, how are you doing? Well I’m glad you’ve made it this far and I’m glad you’ve been enjoying this series. Once again thank you for the support. Sorry this chapter wasn’t as action packed as you might have expected. Had a terrible cold and headache, so decided to avoid action scenes which can take a huge toll on me. I’m much better now though. However, I think it was a success. Gave more depth to the plot; that’s what I think at least. I did once again enjoy this chapter too, particularly the ending. It amazes me how the plot unfolds each time, I didn’t even plan that ending with the whole messing with the fourth wall stunt, it just sort of happened. And I loved it. I thank you for the love, support and everything. Please keep the comments coming, the feedback helps me bring out better content for you the readers; so please keep ‘em coming.

Yours Faithfully,

everydayGladiator(With a cold)

Order of the WEB - The Arrival 3

The doors to the Royal Quarters swung open; the rest of the Royal family stared as their king whom they were waiting for, entered with Debrah draped over his shoulder. They all let out an exasperated sigh as the two entered the quarters.

“You two really have to stop showing up to meetings like this.” Akose complained with a stern look on her face. She was pissed; everyone in the room knew better than to piss Akose off.

“Really sorry… We thought there was more time.” Nana chuckled nervously as he explained to Akose.

“You really have to think of our safety too; you might survive her wrath, but the rest of us just might end up… not existing on this plane.” Dziedzorm said adjusting his glasses. He was busy fidgeting with a handheld console. Nana just chuckled nervously in response.

“I’m guessing everyone is present then.” Nana looked around the common area of the Royal Quarters.

“Yes.” One of the Royals responded. His hair was neatly braided and covered his ears. His eyes were covered with a bandage.

“Alright then.” Nana stared at Akose and nodded at her. “Call the meeting to a start.”

The room was shaped like a rectangle; in the centre of the room was a marble floor with a map of the Red Hills depicted on it. On either sides of the map, three seats were found and what looked like a throne stood at the end of the map. The Royals took their seats; Akose and Dziedzorm’s seats were closest to the throne. After their seat was Debrah’s seat and on the other side, the seat of the bandaged Royal.  The final seats were occupied by another female Royal with a Mohawk and a male royal who looked very tense and young in comparison. He barely moved in his seat.

“Before this meeting shall begin; the Royals must identify themselves, to be recognized and acknowledged by the house.” Akose announced.

“DASEBR3! MESSENGER OF THE ROYAL FAMILY!” The Royal at the far end shouted, causing the other Royals to wince. Debrah who was struggling to stay conscious sat up startled by the outburst. Nana chuckled lightly.

“Dasebr3, this is your second meeting since you became part of the Royal House, there is no need to be nervous. You can relax. It is a family after all, remember that.” Nana said trying to calm down his nerves.

“YES NANA. I’M SORRY NANA! THANK YOU NANA!” Dasebr3 responded loudly.

“He has a long way to go.” Dziedzorm teased, his eyes still glued to the screen of the console. Akose then signalled for them to move on.

“Enyonam, the War Monger of the Red Hills.” The girl with the Mohawk said. She looked calm and intimidating at the same time.

“R.T, The Red Hills’ Guide.” His voice was deep and soothing. His braided hair only added to his commanding presence.

“Debrah, Protector of The Red Hills.” Debrah said from where he sat.

“Akose, Advisor to the Royal House and the King.”

“Dziedzorm, Strategist.” He continued barely looking up from his console. The rest of the Royals sighed as they had gotten used to Dziedzorm’s nonchalant behaviour. They had come to realize why he was personally appointed by the king; he was the most reliable out of them all, when the need called for it.

“Nana Okai, King of the Red Hills.”

The Adinkra Symbols imprinted on the backs of all the seats glowed in response.

“Am I the only one who isn’t comfortable with my ass being warmed by these seats whenever we are acknowledged by the Hills?” Dziedorm complained, squatting on the seat.

“BRA PANYIN DZIEDZORM YOU CAN’T SAY THAT!” Dasebr3 protested as politely as he could; still a nervous wreck.

“Oh… Dasebr3, did you just question my authority? It seems you are ready to fight me for my seat.” Dziedzorm taunted as he raised his eyes from the console and stared at Dasebr3, causing Daasebr3 to tremble violently.

“THA- THA- THAT’S NOT WHAT I WAS DOING BRA PA-” He stuttered.

“Dziedzorm, stop teasing the kid. You are making his condition worse than it already is.” R.T said in Dasebr3’s defence.

“R.T… you too?” Dziedzorm shifted his attention to R.T

“I will stop supplying you with games if you don’t apol-”

“Sorry Dasebr3, you know I was just joking right?” Dziedzorm apologized with a bright smile.

“This is just too sad to watch.” Enyonam complained.

“Alright, enough with the goofing around, let’s get down to business.” Akose said sternly, sending chills down the spine of everyone gathered there.

“Easy Akose; try to remain calm.” Nana added cheerfully, his voice riddled with nervousness.

“Are you trying to say I am not calm?” She asked with a too perfect smile. “I am very calm, right guys?” She turned to face the other Royals, a chill ran through the room. They suddenly felt their skin crawl; their face beaded with cold sweat.

“Of course.”

“Very calm”

“The coolest”

“Who even said anything about not being calm?”

“Don’t listen to the King, he’s just starved.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t even know what he is saying.”

They chorused trying to get Akose back to normal. There was something about Akose they all feared, and at the same time respected. They were mostly reminded of the fear part however.

“Exactly.” She replied cheerfully with a radiant smile. They all let out a sigh of relief; that was way too close. “Reports.”

“ALL VISITING SPECIAL ARENAS HAVE ARRIVED AND HAVE ALL BEEN SHOWN TO THEIR VARIOUS QUARTERS!” Dasebr3 said loudly. Not as before, but still loud.

“All seven of them?” Akose asked.

“YES!” He confirmed.

“Enyonam.”

“Apart from The Zebras who challenged a candidate from the Red Hills, without going through proper procedure, no form of challenge has been made by us or any visiting Arena. However, we have been asked to pay a fine by the Arena Supervisors for a Royal accepting an unsupervised and illegal challenge. And it’s a huge fine.” Enyonam added. Dziedzorm sighed loudly with frustration.

“I am sorry about that guys.” Debrah tried to apologize. R.T nodded acceptance, Dziedzorm complained about Debrah costing him the new released video game, Dasebr3 tried to cheer up Debrah and Enyonam slapped the back of his head.

“Alright, we shall get the money ready by tomorrow and we will have Daseebr3 submit it.” Nana said from where he sat.

“I think it’s best you go instead-” Before she could end her words a double edged axe rested beneath her neck. The atmosphere in the room had shifted. Murderous aura filled the room as the Royals all stared at Enyonam with deadly expressions. Even Dziedzorm had paused his game.

“Easy guys, let her finish what she is saying.” Nana tried to reason with them.

“No King, just because democracy is being practiced under your rule doesn’t mean we can allow insubordination to fester in the Royal House. We can’t allow you to be challenged.” R.T said, still in a calm voice, his axe unmoving from where it was.

“R.T you should learn to relax a little, Enyonam only-”

“He’s right King, I shouldn’t have spoken the way I did. It was wrong. It wasn’t my intention to challenge your authority. I apologize to the house.” Enyonam said boldly, accepting her reprimand.

“The house accepts your apology.” Akose said. R.T withdrew his axe and the atmosphere returned to normal.

“Please thread cautiously next time.” R.T added. Enyonam nodded in response.

“As you were saying?” Nana asked.

“I think the Supervisors would like to speak you King. They didn’t say about what, but they insisted you visit the peak of the Hills as soon as you can. Hence, my suggestion, which I should have worded properly.” She explained.

“Don’t worry about it.” Nana smiled at her. “I wonder what they want to talk about this time.” He added wearily. He yawned without even realising.

“King.”

“Yes?”

“May I ask when was the last time you slept?” R.T asked still in a calm tone.

“Well, if today is really the arrival of the seven Specialized Arenas then I guess it’s been three days.” Nana said with a goofy smile. His Royal family all stared at him with a blank expression. Did their king have a death wish or something? Who in their right mind trains nonstop for three days?

“If I may suggest, I think you need to find something to eat and rest properly.” R.T expressed his concern in the most mechanical way. He was the most principled of the bunch; which was the more reason why no one understood why he seemed to get along best with Dzeidzorm. “The two weeks ahead us are going to be hectic, and judging from what Enyonam relayed Dzeidzorm’s prediction is right; they wouldn’t summon you otherwise. Something big is coming; we need you prepared for it.”

“I second. I’m always right after all.” Dzeidzorm called from behind the screen of his console.

“So do I.” Debrah added.

“I second too.” Enyonam added.

“I SECOND TOO! SORRY KING!” Dasebr3 shouted with his hand raised.

“Will he ever not be extra.” Enyonam scoffed.

“They are right King; you need to regain your strength.” Akose said to Nana. “We have a busy week ahead of us.”

Nana wanted to protest, but the smile on Akose’s face and the pleading looks his Royals were giving him for fear of what Akose might do, made it clear to him that he wasn’t supposed to say no to Akose.

“Fine. What about the meeting?” He asked.

“I can take it from here.” Akose replied.

Nana knew better than to protest. He got up from his seat and headed out of the room.

“Wait- one last thing… Is she here too?” Nana asked. The question caught Debrah’s attention, he knew who Nana was referring to.

“Yes she is.” Akose responded.

“You hear that Debrah?” Nana asked with a smile. “Things are about to get interesting.”

“Who is he talking about?” Dasebr3 managed to whisper for the first time since the meeting started.

“His sister.” Enyonam whispered back to him.

“His sister?”

The meeting had come to a successful end. Debrah was taken to the infirmary by Akose and Enyonam. Enyonam’s healing abilities made her a valuable asset to the Royal Family. R.T, Dziedzorm and Dasebr3 walked back to their rooms in silence, except for the sounds from Dziedzorm’s console.

“What would have happened if Enyonam had truly wanted to challenge Nana for his seat as King, what would we have done?” Dasebr3 asked breaking the silence.

“Our jobs.” R.T responded without hesitation.

“I know that, but what if we were not there? I know Nana is strong to be able to be King, but they say Enyonam is the strongest War Monger out of all the Specialized Arenas in the kingdom. Wouldn’t that be a problem for the King?” Dasebr3 asked in a nervous tone.

“What do you think I meant by our jobs?” R.T asked not stopping for a second.

“Umm… Protect the King?”

“Oh… kid, you have so much to learn. When Nana became King, our number one job as members of the Royal House changed.” Dziedzorm said, hitting the pause button on his console.

“Changed? To what?” Daseebr3 asked, trying to keep up.

“After seeing what our King was capable of, we changed our number one job as the Royal Family, with his approval of course.” R.T explained still walking.

“To what exactly Bra Panyin?” Dasebr3 asked anxiety evident in his voice.

“Our number one job as the Royal Family is to protect anyone who dared to challenge the King, from the King.” Dziedzorm said with a snicker. “R.T putting his axe under her throat wasn’t to threaten her, but to remind her that.”

Dasebr3 couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He knew the King was strong and had even defeated Debrah a number of times, but was he that powerful.

“No, he is not that powerful.” R.T added as though reading Dasebr3’s thoughts. “He is more powerful than that.”

“But how can you be so sure?” Dasebr3 asked. He had stopped walking now. The other two stopped walking too.

“We’ve fought him before, and each of us lost miserably.” R.T responded and walked off.

No way! If R.T was saying that…

“Oh he forgot to add one thing; he’s always been embarrassed about it.” Dziedzorm sang from behind Dasebr3.

“Forgot to add what?”

“Each of us lost miserably after we took him on at the same time.” Dziedzorm said with a sinister smile. “Whatever training he puts himself through is not for show; no one in our Royal House will be foolish enough to challenge the current King for his seat.”

He gave a peace sign and walked off resuming his video game.

He fought the Royal Family all at once… and they lost? How was that possible?! It didn’t even make sense. At that moment, Dasebr3 understood why they all respected the King that much.

AJ had tried exploring the Red Hills, but even with her ability it proved a daunting task. The place was bigger than she ever imagined. The place was pretty at night; where she was barely had any light. Where the hell was she? She had tried sleeping; but it was a fruitless endeavour. How could she after what Akose had told her? She knew he had potential, but could he have changed that much in four years? To the extent of being compared to Red Hills Kings of the glory days? She had to confirm this herself. However, from what she had seen, he really had grown strong. Was he now stronger than Ato? Her? She slapped both her cheeks to snap out of her thoughts.

“You do know I can sense you right?” She said out loud. Someone had disrupted the static surrounding her. She caught a flash of red light from the corner of her eye; as fast as ever! She quickly jumped sideways avoiding a fatal blow. She watched as the tree which had been behind her sliced into two and blow up into many smaller pieces. What kind of kick was that?!

She looked up in time to see a kick headed straight for her. It suddenly felt like time had slowed, the static in the atmosphere thickened becoming almost solid. An electrical halo formed around AJ’s head, taking the form of a crown. She disappeared in a flash of lightning and appeared a few feet away from her attacker.

“Is that anyway to say hello to a friend?” AJ complained. “You nearly gave me a heart attack, you loli.”

“I had to see whether you had gotten lazy… and stop exaggerating, I was barely trying.” Esi replied stepping into the light. “You know how much I hate being called a loli.”

To be continued…

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

Friend?? What the hell happened four years ago?!...

I AM TIRED!!!! I really have no idea how the professionals pull it off but this is hard. Today I shall lament small… my soul is weary! Okay… enough of that, Hello readers, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I really appreciate the support, and I am more than happy to provide more content (It is so hard!). I hope I have made up for being out of touch for so long. Another chapter I have enjoyed and I hope you enjoy as much too. Something big is coming… Something big… Let’s hope our characters will be prepared for it… Because even I’m not! That’s all I will say for now! Winging it!...

Yours Faithfully,

everydayGladiator

Order of the WEB - The Arrival 2

The air surrounding the three was as still as could be; everyone stared at them, wondering what exactly was going to happen next. Would they defy the King of the Red Hills? Everyone wanted to know what would happen next. As if in response the remaining members of the Royal House of the Red Hills appeared behind their king.

“So which will it be?” Nana turned to look at Ato, unflinchingly.

She really broke him; he has a completely different look in his eyes. He isn’t the Ato you knew four years ago; this guy is an animal. Kram observed and Nana knew he was right. Laughter from AJ caught the attention of everyone there; Nana stared at her wondering what she was laughing about. The lightning bolt dissipated as she walked away from where she stood.

“Wow! I am impressed, no scratch that; I am so proud fucking proud of you!” AJ said jumping at Nana and sticking his head under her armpit. Everyone else gathered there, except Ato stared in shock as the supposed King of the Red Hills was being bullied by the Lightning Queen.

“Something about this just doesn’t look right.” Debrah complained to Akose who stifled a laugh under her breath. Debrah wasn’t used to seeing his King having any sort of fun whatsoever except when he was training or fighting. Nana was protesting wildly, but it was obvious to Debrah that the first person to ever defeat him was smiling genuinely for the first time since their fight two years ago.

“I thought the same thing the first time I met them as a team, but that’s how they relate.” Akose explained. “She is like the charismatic leader of a gang.”

“AJ it has been four years, I’m no more a kid.” Nana muttered to AJ.

“I can see that; you seem to have gotten stronger, and taller too. I can see you still are cuddly, not like before but still. You don’t plan on getting trimmed?” AJ asked, scrutinizing Nana.

“I did… it didn’t work for me.” Nana explained as he straightened his clothes.

“Ato, I see you are a bigger douche than before.” AJ said walking towards Ato. Who just stood there unmoved by what was going on. AJ stood there waiting for a reply. “Are you really not going to say anything?”

“We are no more teammates; I have nothing to say to you.” He turned and headed towards Zebras.

“Did you forget about our contract?” AJ said causing Ato to stop. “It seems you still remember it, good.”

“Whatever contract you think you had, it is null; the person you had the agreement with, that person wasn’t me.”

“Coward.”

“What did you just call me?”

“You heard me. You should know by now that unlike Nana over there who will tolerate this bullshit attitude of yours; I won’t. You’ve had four years to get over what happened during the Battle Ro-” Before she could finish, Ato swung his sword at her at an incredible speed.

“You have to watch that temper of yours sweetheart.” She taunted. She had managed to block the swing of his sword with a blade made out of electrical energy. Jolts of electricity travelled down Ato’s sword, but he still held on as if it was nothing.

“This is the last time I’m going to have you disrespect my hill.” Nana said approaching them, the ground shaking with every step he took. Debrah, who was now on his feet got ready to jump in to defend Nana; but was stopped by Akose who placed a hand on his shouldler. With one stomp Nana created a stone wall barrier between the Zebra King and the Lightning Queen. Ato looked at him with an intent look.

“It won’t work on this one.” Nana said, as he knew what Ato was trying to do.

“Whoa! Look who grew stronger, and more level headed… Are you sure you haven’t kidnapped the real Nana?” AJ teased loudly from where she stood; excitedly inspecting the wall he had created.

“Weren’t you always the level headed one?” He protested to AJ who wasn’t even listening.

There was a loud ring which caught everyone’s attention; causing them to look towards the gate. Nana looked at Akose, who in response closed her eyes and concentrated. Her power over space was beyond being able to conjure objects from it; but she could also see what is happening at a place once she concentrated, as far as she had been there. It was as if should open a window in space and peer through it- just like a window- to see what was happening at the location. It was similar to Nsamanpowmu; but was more tailored for storage and surveillance unlike Nsamanpowmu which was as diverse as its wielder.

She walked towards Nana and whispered into his ears. AJ’s eyes widened as she recognized Akose. A sly smile spread across her face.

“I totally forgot about that.” Nana gave an exasperated sigh. “Wait it’s today?”

“Yes it is.” Akose responded.

“How long was I in the training room for?” He seemed to have lost track of time.

“Three days. And it seems you lost track of time again.” Debrah answered walking towards him.

“What are we going to do when our king dies of starvation? At this rate, it could be any day now.” One of the members of the Red Hills Royal Family added adjusting his glasses.

Nana turned to face Ato and AJ.

“I am sorry for keeping you waiting, and our poor reception.” He apologized. “You both seem to be here for the launch of the Inter- Specialized Arena Sports Competition.”

“Obviously… why else would I climb up this hill?” AJ looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

“I seem to have been a little distracted.” Nana looked around as though searching for someone. He indicated for the members of his royal house to step forward.

“Please follow them, they will show you around, and direct you to where everyone will assemble.” Nana said signalling the Zebra’s and AJ to follow the Royals.

“Where are your people?” He directed to AJ, looking around.

“We’ve already been shown in; I just came here because of the ruckus.” She explained following the Royals. “See you inside.” She grabbed Akose, and started grilling her with questions. Nana was surprised she remembered Akose. The Zebra’s followed close behind, Ato in the lead.

“Debrah…”

“Yes, Nana, what is it?” Debrah said approaching Nana.

“Come with me; we need to prepare for those coming; my guess is she will be here too.” Nana said as they walked through the gate behind everyone else.

“Do you mean-”

“Yes… her.”

There was complete silence as they walked. Debrah couldn’t help but shake with excitement. The one who was probably stronger than him in pure physical strength was finally coming to the Hill.

“Calm down; your Tumi is all over the place… are you scared?” Nana asked.

“No… not scared; I am excited!”

“I shouldn’t have even- oh yeah, that reminds me. There is something I have to show you.”

“What is it?” Debrah asked with a confused look.

“There is something I must prepare you for. Judging by your abilities and data gathered by Paa Kow; the two of you have a high chance of facing each other in the battle round. If that were to happen; I’d rather you are prepared.” Nana said with a serious look on his face. She will kill him in his current state.

Do you think two weeks is enough time for him to face her? Kram asked.

Well, taking into consideration his ability… there might be hope.

You are forgetting one thing kid, the laws of nature and physics mean nothing to her either.

Nana hated to admit it, but Kram had a point. He just had to pray the two never met, though Paa Kow’s predictions were barely ever wrong. He looked over at Debrah; he wasn’t shocked to find him smiling manically. After all, he had lost to Debrah six times before; four of which was without his ability. Debrah was different from all the people he had fought; Debrah was the perfect example of a fighter with raw power. Till Nana had appeared on the Red Hills, Debrah had had no interest in getting stronger; but was just a being of natural strength and raw power. If it was ever to be a battle of physical strength maybe… just maybe…

“When was the last time we sparred against each other?” Nana asked with a chuckle.

“About a week ago.” Debrah responded.

“It’s already been a week?”

“Yeah, how would you notice, you’ve spent almost all of it in the training room. You really must eat something; you seem to be losing weight; you know what happens when you do.”

“Yeah… Let’s see what has changed within a week.”

“So this is where we are lodging… I must say it’s very nice.” AJ said inspecting the quarters that had been assigned to her and her people. She followed Akose who showed her to the private room reserved for her. “You guys on the hill really spare no expenses in taking care of your guests.”

“Nana is to be thanked for that.” Akose explained. “Ever since he became head of the Royal House of the Red Hills, he has made sure that the Arena supervisors invest in refurbishing and improving conditions on the hill. The hill has been known for dwelling on past glory, but things are definitely different now. We have the strongest Royal House yet according to the Kyer3kyer3nyi tasked with this Arena.”

“Impressive; the kid really grew up huh? I probably have you to thank.” AJ walked towards Akose, a grateful smile on her face.

“What do you mean?” Akose asked in a high pitched voice. She covered her mouth, surprised by her own voice. She was clearly flustered.

“You know what I mean. He seems to respond well to you. I must say I was surprised to see you were on the Red Hills as well, but I am glad you are here with him. You know how to keep him in check.” AJ started unpacking. Akose chuckled nervously.

“But- I didn’t do anything; it’s not as if I could… he’s always been much stronger than I was and-”

“And he listens to you. What happened during the incident four years ago made it perfectly clear to me. And he obviously likes to impress you; remember when he fought you at the Monument of Three?”

Akose mumbled unintelligently as she tried not to seem affected be what AJ was saying. She was always flustered when she remembered the first time she met Nana. He could have easily taken her cowries back then, but he had spared her. Sure she had hated him at first; but all that changed especially during the final round of the First Stage.

“Easy… you might end up cracking your cheeks open at this rate.” AJ teased. She snapped her fingers as sparks of electricity filled the room and settled.

“What was that for?” Akose asked out of curiosity.

“Think of it as an alarm; I tend to be a heavy sleeper- side effect of my ability-, and that is what wakes me up.” She explained

Akose continued to help AJ settle in her room as they exchanged gossip about their experiences over the past four years.

“Can I ask you something?” AJ said suddenly in a serious tone.

“Yes, what is it?”

“How strong has he gotten?”

There was a long silence.

“Can I be honest with you?” Akose asked. AJ nodded in response.

“In a fight, you wouldn’t recognize him. He is completely different from four years ago.” Akose tried to explain.

“What are you saying?”

“He is the strongest king the Red Hills have ever had in over a decade. And he is even being compared to the kings from the Red Hills’ glory days.”

From Akose’s tone AJ could guess that she wasn’t joking around. That she meant every word she just said.

That wasn’t possible; how could he have grown that much in just four years? AJ thought. How much training did he put himself through?

“You won’t make it past five minutes with her at your current level. And this is comparing you to her four years ago at the finals.” Nana said walking away from Debrah who lay on the ground panting heavily, unable to even move a muscle. “Judging from how much she probably trains, you right now won’t make it past the first minute against her.”

Easy kid… He won’t be able to recover from this much. Not only did he come at you with everything he had; you barely put your all into this. Kram protested

What do you mean? Nana clearly had no idea what Kram meant.

You know what happens when you lose weight, not only is your balance totally off, you lose half of your total power; and he knows that better than anyone in your Royal House.

Shit! I had totally forgotten about that. I shouldn’t have-

But, it was necessary. If he can’t recover from this, then it’s best he experienced it now. Look at what happened to your former team member after losing to her.

Nana stared at Debrah who was laying on his face. He wanted to find a way to assure him; but he knew Debrah better than that.

“I’m sorry; but that’s the truth. I promised you guys when I became king that I’d never lie to you.” Nana said walking towards the door of the training area.

Debrah lay on the ground. His body screamed in pain. Is this all he was capable of? He had once been the best; he had once been KING of the Red Hills. And now the gap between him and the one who challenged his throne two years ago was a wide chasm. It was hard to believe he had once defeated this same Nana without even breaking a sweat, no, this wasn’t the same Nana, he had grown drastically; a totally different person. He didn’t hate Nana, no, he admired him, he respected him. This is what being King truly meant. He had to get stronger; he had to close the gap; he had to become a reliable FIHANKRA for his King.

“One more time.”

Nana stopped in his footsteps. He could feel the air in the room change. He turned around to see Debrah barely on his feet. The sweat around his body began to evaporate as heat emanated from his body.

“No... I need to eat. You know what it-”

“ONE MORE!” Debrah shouted, blue wisps of light began to whirl around him.

He is like you! Kram was genuinely shocked. Nana couldn’t help but smile.

“So that is the true colour of your Tumi.” Nana observed.

“If I can’t beat you in your current state then I’m worthless to the KING!”

“Alright; what is the current score?”

“Forty-three to six in your favour.”

“Fine… Come at me with all you’ve got.”

She looked up as she sensed a shift in the air. It had been four years since she felt something like this. The hairs on the back of her stood. The feel of the earth beneath her bare feet had changed. A storm was brewing, and it excited her.

“We have arrived at the gate of the Red Hills, Pure Queen.” Her advisor informed.

“I’ve told you I hate that name.” She complained in her usual bored tone.

“Well, I can’t call you Esi in the presence of Yellow Suns.” The advisor said in a hushed voice. She was referring to the candidates of their Specialized Arena. The only all-female Specialized Arena in the kingdom. The Yellow Sun Arena.

“Finally… it’s been so long since I heard my name.” Esi responded, ignoring all that her advisor had said.

To be continued…

Note from the Author

I have one thing to say…

I probably enjoyed this chapter than any of you did!

Yours Faithfully,

everydayGladiator

P.S. Thanks to Carl for the art work; I really appreciate it bro! Team OotW!