The Dark Goddess

Chapter 7

Ami’s lungs burned for air and rest as they ran, she didn’t know what she was doing running with a stranger but the alternative was to be killed by another stranger who claimed to be her father.

“Damn! Who is this guy? He keeps finding us” the guy she was running with said through gasps, ‘I’m gonna call him locks’ Ami thought to herself as she glanced at him and saw his dreadlocks swinging furiously at his running motion.

She wanted to reply with something catchy like ‘oh he’s just my murderous father whom I didn’t know existed till a few moments ago’ but she was busy gasping for air as well.

Just as she thought ‘ok it can’t get worse than this’ thunder boomed and dark storm clouds started gathering, she glanced up and shouted “Really? A storm?” and as she did she stumbled and fell bringing Locks down with her as well, they were holding hands after all.

As they stumbled, fell and crashed a couple of thoughts flashed through her mind;

‘why are the few people we’ve met just staring at us like we’ve gone crazy, can’t they see the seven feet tall spear wielding bald headed freak running after them?’

‘Where are Locks’ weapons? The last thing I want is for me to be skewered by mistake by the one that is meant to be saving me’ she thought just as they crashed into a wall.

She was dazed and the wind was knocked out of her but Locks was already getting to his feet and facing the persistent oncoming threat, he flicked his wrists and both silver and gold sickles flashed into existence into his hands.

‘What a weird weapon’ she thought again as she tried to get up to her feet, only then did she hear Locks calling to her and telling her to run while he holds off the murderous father.

‘he must be crazy if he thinks he can do that’ she thought to herself again, now she was on her feet but she stayed behind him, no way she was going to let another person die on her behalf and a stranger at that, she got angry at that point.

“Valiant effort young man, but its all for nothing” said the murderous father as he now slowly approached them hefting his spear, “you need to leave her now and save yourself, I don’t want to be responsible for an unnecessary death” he finished.

Ami’s anger turned to rage ‘so it’s my death that is necessary?’ she again thought to herself in furious anger wondering why she can’t speak the words she is forming but can only think them loudly.

“I am not leaving her old man, go prey on someone else” Locks replied bravely but Ami heard his voice quaver, then to her he said “Peaches, why aren’t you running? Allow me to save you from this bully please, just run, I’ll delay him long enough for you to escape”

As he said that a few things clicked in place for her, firstly she felt pressure in her chest like she had been holding her breath, second she felt the pressure within her link with the pressure around her and the feeling was all too familiar.

‘Hello powers’ she thought to herself.

She calmed and placed a hand on Locks shoulder, he looked back at her and his jaw dropped in astonishment, from his eyes she could see hers glowing.

She realized something else, she was the one causing the storm, it hasn’t descended yet because she was holding it in, that was why it felt as if she was holding her breath, it was also why she stumbled when she spoke earlier and why she hasn’t been able to speak because subconsciously she knew that will release the hold she had on her powers.

Locks took a step back so now they were standing side by side, she really commended his bravery because he got over the surprise of seeing her eyes glow in a flash and was now ready to fight by her side no questions asked, she should really ask for his name, not now though lest she blast him with the attack that was meant for her murderous father who was now cautious in his approach as he saw the change in her.

“So I get to witness your granted abilities after all, I have to say, you are more like your mother, looks and abilities both, it’s a shame you cannot be allowed to live” he said and poised himself to throw his spear.

But that was it for Ami, his last statement threw the lid off everything she had held in, so, she screamed.

The effect was immensely phenomenal.

A tornado descended from the storm clouds gathered above and wreaked havoc on the very spot the trio was, debris, dirt, anything loose or on the floor blew around in an intentional manner, all aiming for the murderous father.

Ami and Locks weren’t affected by the effects of the storm save for the strong winds that blew at them, but Osoosi was barraged by the storm, debris flew at him and the winds tore at him such that he had to poke his spear deep into the ground and hold on to it so that he won’t be flung off by the storm.

Osoosi dropped to his knees at the barrage of the storm even as he held fast to his spear, his flesh ripped and tore from the force of the winds and strikes of the flying debris, all he could do was curse the frail human form he is in.

The storm raged on more and more and started to widen and spread, it started to tear chunks out of the buildings around so as to have more weapons to hurl at Osoosi.

“Uhm, Peaches, you gotta stop this, its spreading and it’ll start affecting people in their houses” Locks said to her.

At first Ami’s thoughts were ‘let it, they didn’t do anything when he was chasing me with murderous intent’ but then she thought better about it and released her hold on the power hoping it would dissipate.

But it did not, it suddenly seemed like it was now alive and won’t stop till it has achieved its aim of destroying her acclaimed father.

“I… I can’t stop it, it won’t stop I’ve tried” she said back to Locks who then put on a sad sorry look that said I don’t blame you, its not your fault but I’m sorry there will be lives lost.

Ami tried hard to pull back the storm, to scatter it, dissolve it, all to no avail as it just kept on hitting her father with anything and everything its tearing off.

“Maybe we should leave this place, maybe if you are not here anymore it’ll stop” Locks said.

But Ami knew that wouldn’t work, she could see the life in the storm already, it wasn’t going to be extinguished till its done, or by something even greater than it is.

Suddenly she saw a debris fall right through the center of the storm and stand upright, ‘wait that’s not a debris’ she thought, ‘it’s a person’.

And sure enough standing unaffected in the center of the storm was a woman dressed in what seemed like an ancient battle regalia of some ancient native tribe.

She stretched her arms sideways and it seemed the storm was reluctantly obeying her, then it seemed as if she was sucking in the storm, sure enough the storm kept reducing till it was nothing but fairly strong winds.

After this the woman started moving closer to where the murderous father still knelt all bruised open and battered, he was unmoving and Ami actually thought he had died till she heard him start chuckling.

“No way, for him to survive that he is definitely one of the powerful ones” Locks said adding to the confusion in Ami’s head.

Then she heard the woman speak to her father “Oso stop this act of idiocy this instant, this is not an atmosphere to be raging out or exposing your godly form, there are other powers at play here and I feel we are intruding in another godly domain” she said and something about her voice seemed really familiar to Ami.

At first Ami thought the woman must have believed it was the man -her father- who caused the storm hence why she was addressing him as such, 

But then she saw his form wavering and flickering and in one of the images that flickered she saw him in what she believed was his true form; still tall, well built and armed with more weapons but made entirely of pure energy.

She couldn’t even describe it well even as she was looking at him, but she knew one thing for sure, if he came out in that form he would achieve his aim.

Locks must have seen the same thing because he came close to her and whispered in her ears that they needed to get out of there immediately.

Ami still wanted to know what the deal was with those two and what would happen after, but she had a feeling she might be too involved in the what would happen after part so its better to just run away as Locks had rightly suggested.

As she was about to turn with Locks and run she heard her father tell the woman “You can see why she cannot be allowed to live? Already she is creating iji, the devastating, destructive and mindless type, just like you make, she is too dangerous” he said standing and already he had no more wound marks in his current form but he was still flickering between the forms.

“But she is our child… “ was the reply the woman started to give before Ami was pulled away by Locks and she couldn’t hear them anymore, it was then that it clicked for her that the woman was the very same one in her vision bare weeks ago.

As they ran, tears stung her eyes as she pondered on what was to become of her now that her life had suddenly taken this dramatic turn.

*

“They’re gone, but it doesn’t matter, I can and will still track them down” Osoosi said to Oya who had a wild but sad look in her eyes, his other part had warned him that she was onto them and on her way, but he hadn’t expected her to arrive so quickly, she must’ve moved at unimaginable speed, he thought.

“Oso don’t do this, don’t force my hand into action, I don’t want to fight you” she said with a sad voice to match her expression.

He was furious, with himself for not getting what he needed done on time, with Oya for interrupting, with himself again for being so foolish in the first place to have let this even happen.

But he didn’t let his anger show in his voice as he faced the one irresistible person to him in the entire universe, “you know deep down that I am right, else why are you feeling sad?, I bet you didn’t expect to arrive and find her to have spawned a perfectly functional iji of proportions, she is dangerous and you know it” he finished and turned his back on her.

“I saw, but still she should be given a chance don’t you think?, to live, to grow, to control her powers, its not fair to just want to end her for being who she is, she didn’t ask to be born, that was my choice, don’t punish her for my mistakes” she said trying to placate him.

“You are right Oya, this wasn’t her choice neither was it her doing, it was our mistake, and so it is ours and ours alone to correct, I cannot let this go out of hand, what if the next iji she spawns is even more devastating than this and goes berserk as well, you saw she had absolutely no control over her spawning, I’m sorry Oya, I just can’t, if you’ll have to fight me for that then so be it”

As he finished his words, he turned fully to his godly form (well a miniature version of it since it was only seven feet tall), light and pure energy made up his form, his spear strapped to his back, his quiver on his shoulder and his bow in his hand, the hunt god in him fully surfaced.

Oya, knowing fully well the kind of being her lover was, knew that there was nothing she could say to get him to back down or change his mind.

Her own body flashed once and she herself turned to her godly form, where Osoosi’s light was silver and grey in color hers was purple, the clothes that was on her burned off, she didn’t need clothes now, her entire self was energy.

She had just her sword in view but Osoosi knew she was armed to the teeth, this fight was one he dreaded, but there was no other way, he had a plan though because he knew fully well that he cannot beat Oya in a straight out battle, so his cunning would have to come into play.

They stared each other down, each daring the other to make the first move, Oya was stronger with more battle prowess since she is a goddess, while Osoosi was a hunter so his skills laid in precision, accuracy and cunning.

It seemed like forever as they were both locked in eaxh other’s gaze, but it was only a few moments and as they considered their moves, suddenly a booming rolling thunder sounded from far away.

They both looked to the sky in the direction of the thunder and with their keen eyesight they spotted a threat that was more than both of them to each other.

“I told you we were intruding in other gods domain, see for yourself the oncoming horde” Oya admonished Osoosi.

“I can spot at least five chariots one even seems to be flaming, we cannot withstand them even if we work together, what do you suppose we do?” he asked her.

“Well we can’t stand around, we have to leave” she answered with a bit of satisfaction.

“hmmm, fine, but this isn’t over, not by a long shot” he said with a grim attitude, then he altered his form back to human as she did as well.

“You are not fast enough to escape them on your own, you are a hunter not to ever be a prey, come with me, my iji will take us far away from here faster than you could say storm” she offered casually.

Even though she was being casual about it Osoosi spotted foul play, no way Oya would forgo the fact that he was still out to murder her child, well their child, but he had no other choice so he took her hand and immediately a storm minion, a tempest to be precise rose round them and swifted them away.