The Dark Goddess

Chapter 9

The little light coming in through the thick thorn bush hurt Osoosi’s eyes as he slowly opened them in a daze, then he realized he had been unconscious and was just coming to.

‘Damn’ he swore as he propped himself up on his elbows then sat up, looking round his surroundings he discovered two things; one, he wasn’t in the mortal realm anymore seeing as he had reverted to his plain godly form even while unconscious.

Two, he was trapped.

He came to this conclusion after he saw that overhead and around him were really thick thorn bushes that formed a dome and was humming with power. Someone had intentionally put him here to keep him there and only one name came to his mind; Oya.

“How did I get here?” he asked himself shaking off the daze from his head and eyes, then he started to remember; 

After the encounter with their dark child, he and Oya had come close to fighting a godly battle on the mortal realm (he shivered at the memory of he and Oya going all out in a battle for the first time), but then they had been interrupted (thank all the gods) by… well gods if he had to guess, those that ruled over the domain their dark daughter was, and that new fact showed him just how difficult the task to end said daughter had now gotten.

Those gods were going to be hard to deal with now that they know about he and Oya’s presence in their domain and any other intrusion from him or her was going to be met by ruthless eviction by them, this fact also gave him a bit of assurance that Oya as well wouldn’t be able to make any moves as of yet.

After the interruption and seeing clearly the intent of the coming gods, he and Oya had decided to make a break for it but since she had the higher mobility ability, she had offered to help him escape the encounter with the gods and despite having second thoughts about the innocence of her intentions, he had agreed since logically that was by far the best escape route.

They had escaped on a tempest, one of Oya’s roughest minions and although he had ridden on a couple of storms with her, this was by far the toughest, roughest and most dangerous, then suddenly they phased into the godly realm and utter calm befell them.

Even the raging of the tempest was noiseless and without force or strong movements to it, he suddenly got on his guard as he deducted whose realm they actually entered but he was too late as he discovered the tempest they were on had been swept away from under him and he was actually falling.

He thought about trying to use his powers in anyway that he could but even as he was trying to form the thought as he fell, he saw purple energy mass together in a ball from above him and shoot right at him, the impact was the last thing he remembered.

Now, he was awake and alert and it was time to face the dour reality of the situation he currently is simply because one of the most dreaded domain for another deity to find himself is where he currently is; the domain of Babaluaye, the deity of pestilence.

Osoosi knows that sooner or later the pestilence god would find him there and if was a betting god he would bet on sooner rather than later.

That gave him very little time to either escape the dome of thorns prison he was in or to make plans and strategize on how the meeting with Babaluaye would go.

As he glanced around the makeshift prison he was in, he found a sour irony in the fact that he a deity of justice was trapped in a prison.

Oya had done a good job, that he could tell because his scan of the prison brought him no weaknesses on the dome that he could exploit to make an escape from and that was coupled with the fact that the dome could be accessed from the outside making him a sitting duck albeit a godly sitting duck.

‘Guess it plan B then’ he thought to himself then he sat down in a meditative position with his fingers interlocked in between his laps and then started to cultivate power.

Something so sure Osoosi knew was that so long as Babaluaye was still the same from the ancient times, it was sure he would test three things out of him; his power, his tolerance and his will, and if he fails any at any point in time, his death would be slow and extremely painful.

So, he filled himself to the brim with power and as well filled his reserves, he determined right then and there that no matter what he was going to make sure he leaves this place so he can continue of his quest of world peace and order by killing his illegitimate dark child.

“You’ve passed the test of will, hunt god!” A deep but hoarse voice said seeming to come from everywhere.

Osoosi open his eyes at once and slowly started to get up while looking for where the voice was actually coming from.

Then, the thorn bush dome prison started crumbling like it had been stricken by years of decay, it decayed and crumbled all the way down beating up dust all around, and when the dust cleared, Babaluaye could be seen in all his gently menacing glory.

Just like the illness and diseases he was the charge of, Babaluaye looked silently deadly, he had this expression on his face that was gentle and hard at the same time.

He stood a head shorter than Osoosi but his frame was much more bulkier, the hair on his head sometimes withered as if they suddenly aged decades in an instant but then another look showed them being so full, black and lush with prime age.

He wore a trench coat that got to his ankles, all around the coat were images swirling around, they were images of people being stricken by different forms of diseases, plagues even but the images would be quickly replaced by those of healing and vibrancy.

“Your will is strong as shown through your determination, but do you have what it takes to breakaway from the harsh hand of fate? Your will alone won’t do, you need a high level of tolerance” the pestilence god, Babaluaye said.

Osoosi tried so hard to think on what the next test could be since he had actually even passed one without knowing he was even being tested, he felt he needed to get ahead of Babaluaye and figure out what the next test would be.

But try as he might, he couldn’t think of anything, trying to form thoughts became like trying to run in chest deep mud, and he couldn’t just take his eyes off Babaluaye’s trench coat and the images swirling around it.

Then a thought finally formed in his head ‘why weren’t the images showing any death?’ he wondered, because it was plain as day from some of the images that their afflictions couldn’t be cured, yet right before revealing their deaths, the images swirl and show those of good health and vibrancy instead.

“I know what you’re thinking hunt god, why no deaths?” Babaluaye asked and his voice seemed to be even more hoarse than before just like someone that had been coughing till their throat was raw.

Osoosi managed a nod even as he started getting weary and his actions and movements dulled, he couldn’t for his life pinpoint what was wrong with him.

“Well it is simple” the pestilence god continued “I am not the one that is charges with death, that duty belongs to another, besides, no matter how harsh an ailment, illness or disease is, it is not the actual cause of death, cause of death comes from two places hunt god, one is when the mind has given up and lost its will, the other is when the body has lost its tolerance and fails, only then does death comes to claim its prize”.

The more Babaluaye spoke, the harder it became for Osoosi to focus and hold anything together, his eyes started dimming so he tried to wipe them with his palms but when he removed his hand from his face, he found black blood on them, apparently Babaluaye had started work already and stricken him with a disease.

“So what will it be hunt god? I said you passed the test of will, but the second test requires your will as well, what will fail you first? Your mind or your body?” Babaluaye said this time with a clear deep voice.

The pain came late for Osoosi, but when it struck, it hit him like a wave of searing heat passing under his skin and boiling him from within.

He tried to think, he tried to figure out what the disease he had been struck with in particular could be, maybe if he did then he would know what he can do to counter it, but try as he might he couldn’t figure anything out, especially when the disease suddenly changed its pattern and symptoms.

Suddenly the searing pain stopped and he grew cold, then he stopped feeling anything at all, his eyesight became clearer but pinpointed, then came the hallucinations, he was sure he was hallucinating because if he wasn’t what was Oya doing there in front of him half naked, dirty and bloody.

He understood the bloody part, Oya could sometimes get messy while killing, but he did not understand the dirty part, Oya was never dirty.

Then again she was eating the intestines of someone who laid dead on the ground, Oya never did that. Then another scary thing happened, Sango the god of thunder and fire came wearing goatskin and joined Oya in eating the intestines, Sango never did that either, besides Oya has never shared a meal with her husband Sango in forever.

Osoosi thought the scene was more than scary enough as it is but then it got a whole lot more scarier when the dead body rose to a sitting position and was begging them to stop eating him, it got scarier yet and Osoosi’s heart almost gave out when he discovered the begging dead body was he himself.

From his point of view, he started begging them as well to stop eating him, he cried and fell into despair, he knew it was the end for him, he couldn’t fight his way free from the two gods, each was more powerful than he is, besides even if he gets free, he couldn’t possibly run with his guts hanging out half-eaten, so it would be better if he just gave up.

Then something clicked for him in his head, something about not giving up, he held on to that thought like a mountain climber hangs on to the rope for dear life after slipping.

Yes, he shouldn’t give up, he should fight, he should break free, he should escape the clutches of Oya and the trap she had set through Babaluaye.

At that thought he woke up wide eyed and clear minded and the pain started afresh for him, but at least no more hallucinations, he was in pains and aches of all kinds for what seemed like forever, but he could bear it without the thought of giving up now that his mind was crystal clear on the path he has chosen.

Then it stopped, it all stopped, he was suddenly thrust right back into good health and as he stood up he discovered something appalling.

Babaluaye heaved a disappointed sign, “no god has ever failed, some went mad for a while but none failed” he said not trying to hide his disappointment at all. Then he started to take off his trench coat.

“This leads us to the final test hunt god, you have to beat me in power contest in order to break free and exit my domain” the pestilence god said as he folded the coat and then stretched it out sideways where it crumbled away into the wind like dried up leaves.

Osoosi had dreaded this moment ever since he made the appalling discovery; all the power he had cultivated was gone, sapped by the tolerance test, now he had no reserves and no extras, just a bare minimum.

By then he couldn’t help but think this in itself was a test, it is near impossible to beat a god in his very own domain unless the difference in godly status and power was great.

For him, Osoosi knew very well that their godly status and power was close to equal, and now he even had close to none, so what was the point in fighting.

Then an adage came to mind that made him even sure of his decision; ‘Mo’ja Mo’sa la fi un mo akinkanju okunrin’ (a great warrior should know when to fight and when to run).

“Babaluaye, the one who inflicts yet heals, the one who afflicts yet liberates, look at me, I am at the end of my strength as I have needed it all through your trials, I cannot fight you in this state, also because it would be an insult to your person” Osoosi pleaded.

“Therefore, I yield to you, great one, you alone have the power to create an exit to your domain and beating you -if I could which I can’t- wouldn’t even give me that power, I am at your mercy and has been since entering your domain” he finished pretty sure he was doing the right thing.

Babaluaye suddenly burst out laughing after Osoosi finished his pleas, but the laugh was weird, awkward even, at first it sounded like any hearty laugh from a grown man, but then it changed into a sickly laugh full of rasping and coughing.

“Well well well, you are the very first god to enter my domain and not exchange fists with me before figuring out the obvious, no one, no matter how powerful can escape my domain without my consent, you know hunt god, maybe you should have been the wise god” Babaluaye said very pleased Osoosi figured out the actual deal even before they fought.

Most deities already start fighting with him, trying to overpower him or escape his domain before they realize it was futile and gave up (well except for that one time with Sango who actually was able to overpower him and force him to open up the exit to the domain, still a sour topic).

“You see power is not just what you can do physically, but your mental strength as well, if you hear power and believe it only has to do with your physicality then you are wrong, I’m glad you have more than enough mental strength hunt god, you’ve passed all my tests” Babaluaye confirmed much to Osoosi’s relief.

“Thank you great one” Osoosi said in return and then behind Babaluaye, a dark hole formed up swirling and sucking things in, he figured that was the exit.

As he passed right beside Babaluaye on his way to the portal the pestilence god caught his hand and held him fast.

“I wouldn’t make Oya cross anymore if I were you, she knew you would be able to get out this successfully that is why you are here, believe me if she wanted you out if her way totally there are other ways and means she can use, just be careful hunt god, I wouldn’t want you to lose your head, you seem to know how to use it well” Babaluaye said to him then dropped the hand he used to hold him so he could go his way.

Osoosi nodded once, but the message already sunk deeply in. No more underestimating Oya, full focus on the task at hand, as he stepped in the swirling portal, he couldn’t help but think on just how many people had been Oya’s victim and made to disappear by her with help from the likes of Babaluaye.