CHAPTER 14
Ogadi, wearing her usual work clothes, a football jersey of her favorite club and jeans, set out with Nwata in tow to Okammiri.
Ogadi boarded a taxi and told the driver to stop them at Okammiri.
The sexagenarian driver looked at her as if she was crazy, “I'm not going to drop you off at Okammiri. Get someone else to do that.”
“But why?” Ogadi asked. She hated waiting on the side of the road for a ride, and ordering one was out of the question because it cost more.
The driver shook his head at what he considered her stupidity, “Why are you even going there, by the way? Haven't you heard that someone was murdered there?”
“I know, but it's urgent.” Ogadi refrained from telling the driver that she was going to the river because a body had been found there.
The driver looked at her incredulously as he reiterated his first statement, “I can't take you there. I value my life.”
Ogadi replied, “Fine. Just drop me wherever you feel comfortable as long as it's in the direction of the river.”
The old man nodded as he ignited his engine. Ogadi was happy to finally be on the road.
As the car moved, Nwata stared out of the window, asking Ogadi various questions.
“No, that is not a bird, it's an airplane.” Ogadi corrected Nwata when it said it had just seen the biggest bird ever.
“What's an airplane?” Nwata asked curiously.
“It's a machine that carries people to their destinations, just like this car. The only difference is that it flies in the air.” Ogadi explained.
The driver gave her a long glance from the rear-view mirror. Since he couldn't see or hear Nwata, he probably thought she was talking to herself, Ogadi reasoned.
Her fears were confirmed when he asked her, “Who are you talking to?”
Ogadi surreptitiously pulled out her Bluetooth earpiece and affixed it in her ear.
She raised part of her afro up to show him the earpiece.
“Sorry,” the driver apologized sheepishly.
Ogadi waved off his apology with a smile and continued her discussion with Nwata.
“Since the airplane is a means of transportation, why didn't we use it? I want to see how its stomach will look like.” Nwata said.
Ogadi chuckled, “We didn't use the airplane because it's used for traveling very long distances. Also, it's very expensive.”
Nwata nodded, “You know, in the underworld we have an airplane too.”
Ogadi's jaw hung open with shock, “You do?”
She thought the underworld had no technology whatsoever. Her anxiety kicked into overdrive as she imagined the technological gadgets the underworld had access to. She hoped they didn't have missiles, tanks, and drones.
“Yes. But unlike the airplane here, when the one in the underworld flies, its wings move,” Nwata said, making a flapping motion with his intangible hands.
Ogadi's anxiety decreased by a notch. So the “airplane” Nwata spoke of was probably some beast in the underworld and they had no technological gadgets down there, but that beast could be just as destructive.
“Does it kill?” Ogadi asked apprehensively.
“No. It's very lazy. It doesn't do anything except fly the king about.” Nwata said.
“It's the king's pet?” Ogadi asked.
“Yes. The king feeds it better than any of us although it does the least work.” Nwata said indignantly.
Ogadi saved the bit of information in her brain. She'd tell her grandmother when next they spoke. It would do them good to know about these types of creatures and find ways to counter them if they ever attacked the earth.
After some time, the car came to a stop at a grassy plain and the driver turned to her, “This is the farthest I can go.”
Ogadi thanked the man and gave him some naira notes.
The man took them and looked at her worriedly, “Are you sure you want to go there? From what I hear, evil spirits inhabit that river. They must have killed that poor lady.”
Ogadi beamed at the man, “Thanks for your concern.”
She and Nwata got out of the car and walked the remaining distance to the river.
* * *
When Ogadi got to the river, she was disappointed. She'd heard so much about the great Okammiri, home to the priestess of Oshimmiri. The river was said to be long, deep, and large, with water as clear as crystal.
What Ogadi saw disgusted her. Sure, the river was as long and as deep as Ogadi had heard, but the water was anything but pure. A patina of chemicals prevented anyone from seeing through the water. Water hyacinths and plastic waste floated on the river, while hideous little frogs leapt out of the water, croaking to their hearts' content.
Okammiri no longer looked sacred. On fact, it had become a cesspool of waste. Because people were scared of the river and seldom used it for their activities, many factories had taken to dumping their waste there.
Ogadi swore angrily. This was yet another desecration of her religion.
She was going to take this up as her next project in Nke Ala. She was sure her grandmother would approve.
She brought out her smart phone and began to take pictures. When she was satisfied with the number of pictures she'd taken, she nodded grimly and steeled herself for what she was going to do.
She took off her sneakers and left them on dry land, she was not about to wade into the murky waters with them.
She then said to Nwata, “Stay here.”
Nwata shook his head, “Mother, I want to go with you. I don't want to stay alone.”
Ogadi did not even consider his request. She knew not everyone would welcome a demon, even one as harmless as Nwata.
“Just stay here,” Ogadi commanded firmly and left before Nwata could reply.
Barefoot, she waded into the water, her jeans discoloring with the dirt in it. She closed her eyes as she felt the plastic waste swirl around her. Although she was disgusted, Ogadi forced herself to keep moving, gritting her teeth as her wet jeans became heavy.
When she'd gone a considerable distance, she called out,
“Priestess of Oshimmiri, hear my plea!
I have come before you as a Gate Keeper.
From one servant of the gods to another, I need your help!”
Her greeting was followed by deafening silence. Even the croaking frogs stopped and waited.
When she received no reply, Ogadi reiterated her words. For her worries, she got no response.
Ogadi huffed with frustration. This was not how her outing was supposed to go. After she'd gotten her grandmother to let her do this, the last thing she wanted to do was fail her.
“Please, if you can hear me, I need your help. The world needs your help,” Ogadi pleaded desperately.
Not long after her plea, she saw a form rise up from the water and move gracefully towards her. As the form got closer, Ogadi saw that it was a young woman who had a white wrapper tied above her breasts. Her hands wiped the water off her face and arms.
She stopped in front of Ogadi and gave her a frosty glare.
Ogadi stared at her unabashedly. Up close, Ogadi could see that the woman was no more than a girl of about sixteen years.
“Are you the priestess of Oshimmiri?” Ogadi asked, knowing the question sounded foolish but at that moment, she was too surprised to care.
The glare was still present on the girl's face when she replied, “You disturbed my prayers by summoning me. If you're going to waste my time asking useless questions, then I'm going to leave your presence.”
Rude much? Ogadi thought. Outwardly she apologized, “I'm sorry, I just thought you'd be older. You look to be only sixteen.”
The priestess' glare turned into a scowl as she growled, “I'm seventeen. What do you want?”
Ogadi replied, “A sacrifice was offered here to bring Dike Aru back from the underworld. I want to know if you saw anything.”
“And why would I tell you anything?” the priestess asked belligerently.
Ogadi's nostrils flared with anger. She didn't have time to cajole a difficult teenager. Her jeans had started changing color and her feet were pruned.
“I'm Onye Nche.” Ogadi replied just as belligerently.
“You?” the girl asked disbelievingly, “Why aren't you in your uniform?”
“I can't go around with only a white wrapper to cover me,” Ogadi explained impatiently, “But I'm a Gate Keeper. If I wasn't, how would I know how to summon you?”
The priestess narrowed her eyes as she considered Ogadi's words.
Finally, she said, “Fine. I'll tell you what I saw.”
Ogadi beamed and as the priestess opened her mouth to speak, they heard someone scream Ogadi's name.
Right after that, bullets wheezed past them and without wasting time, the two females submerged themselves in the unclean river.
* * *
Phillip ignored the voice in him that told him to run away. Instead, he ran towards the tattered man holding a locally made pistol and tackled him from behind.
The pistol flew out of the man's hand and fell into the river. The man gave Phillip a feral look and gave him an upper cut.
Phillip's eyes watered as he cursed. Never in his twenty-five years on earth had he been hit that hard. He reciprocated and gave the man a jab to his right ear and landed another blow directly in his face as hard as he could.
The man wasn't even disoriented as he pushed Phillip away. Phillip staggered and the man stood up, launching a kick to Phillip's middle.
Phillip dodged the kick and gave the man a kick of his own. The man grabbed Phillip's foot and twisted.
Phillip cried out in pain and doubled over. The man took him by his neck and led him to the river. Before Phillip could think of anything, the man kicked his legs and they gave way, effectively bringing Phillip to his knees.
The man smirked as he shoved Phillip's head into the sordid water.
Phillip held his breath for as long as he could, struggling to break the man's hold on him but before long, he ran out of breath and unwittingly inhaled, causing the water to enter his nose. He cried out at the painful sensation and belatedly realized his mistake when the water got into his mouth too.
His body recoiled at having tasted the vile water and before long, Phillip became weak.
He was about to answer the beckoning blackness when he heard a gunshot and felt the hold on him slacken.
He immediately pulled himself out of the water and lay on his back, breathing heavily.
From his peripheral vision, he saw Ogadi holding a pistol and looking pissed.
* * *
Ogadi was spitting mad. Someone she didn't know had made her submerge herself into the unclean river. Now she'd gotten her favorite jersey dirty and she was so soaked to the bone that it looked like she was flirting with pneumonia.
While under the water, the priestess who could swim as fast as lightning had brought a gun to her. Ogadi had taken the gun and hoped to the gods that it would still work.
Then she'd come out of the water and seen a man trying to drown another person. She'd aimed for the man's arm and had fired. The kickback had thrown her off, but the bullet still managed to graze his shoulder.
The man grabbed the wound and began to wail.
Ogadi and priestess ventured out of the water to check the person who'd almost been killed and was shocked to find out it was Phillip Anyanwu.
All her thoughts of concern flew out the window as she glared at him, “What the hell are you doing here?”
Phillip sat up and looked like he was about to reply when he regurgitated on the ground next to him, expelling all the water he'd been forced to take.
“Why, saving your life,” he said weakly.