After everything was done, Ochieng" and Apeleka were ready to leave by noon. Nyangini and her family were reluctant to let them go but Ochieng" insisted. He took out a "hono" fruit that he bit for Opiyo sometimes back and cut it halfway with a knife. He tossed one half to Nyangini and asked her to help themselves with it. Of course he told her the fact that just a tinge of the fruit would be enough to help someone, so that she could use it economically. He left out the regeneration part. That could raise their greed....
They climbed the horse that was well fed by Yamo and fled. They used the short cut, Jakony singing from time to time.
At Odindi Clan, the Chief"s compound,
Chief Ong"am sat on his three legged stool looking very sad. Ten clan elders that sat near him weren"t any different. Their clan was currently in topsy-turvydom. The chief"s eldest son, Otieno Ok.u.mu wanted to overthrow the chief and many people from the clan were supporting him. The chief had insisted on retaining the seat until his youngest son came back. He could only hand over power to Ok.u.mu only if Ochieng" didn"t want it.
The chief had thought of giving up but after he got the message from the dead Elder Anyona, he became affirmative and decided to continue clinging to the stool until Ochieng" was back. This worsened the Odindi clan"s predicament as many people were dying. Even in today"s meeting, he was to have thirteen elders but three decided to stay away because they were already tired. To be more precise, they were ambivalent.
The day before this meeting, Otieno Ok.u.mu had given a warning to the chief to vacate the stool by dusk, lest he slaughtered the chief with all the clan elders that supported him the next day. Very many warriors were by Ok.u.mu"s side and Ong"am couldn"t seek help from the tribe headquarters. This was because he had to use a warrior as a messenger to do so. Ok.u.mu having made some of his warriors guard the clan, who could dare do anything against him.
Today, chief Ong"am sat with the ten clan elders waiting for their end. His loyal soldiers were with him as well. His eight wives including Achola Nyakune sat in their shacks with their hands resting on their palms. Nyakune obviously couldn"t show that she was supporting her son.
The chief could not suspect her because her son was living away. In the Lu tribe, a son could only have his hut in his father"s compound when he was still young and depending on the parents for survival. When he was grown enough and had his own family, he had to go to a land that was given to him by the father and set up his home there. The hut he was staying in while in his father"s homestead was scourged. Ok.u.mu and a few other chief"s sons had gone to their own homes.
"I greet you all the cl..." After a long silence, the chief stood up and began but was cut short when he saw his son Ok.u.mu walking regally to his compound, behind him was a group of warriors with swords in their hands. The chief and the ten elders felt their hearts skip a bit. They knew this was their end. Even the few warriors that were with them perspired uncontrollably.
The chief and the elders were powerful warriors while they were at their prime. Now, they had to be trepid before a group of young men just because they were too old to fight. Ong"am was even in disarray because he personally trained that ungrateful son of his to become the man he was.
"Have you made up your mind, father?" Otieno asked in cold blood the moment he arrived before his father.
Instead of answering, the chief looked at his son directly in the eye and asked, "What Otieno? Are you going to kill your own father?"
"That is not important father, what is important is the stool that I want." Ok.u.mu answered quite impatiently.
"Hmmh." One elder snorted. Ok.u.mu turned his head to the elder and asked, "Do you have a problem elder?"
"Hmmh! I don"t know how to talk to ungrateful b.a.s.t.a.r.ds like you." The elder snorted again and said contumeliously.
That angered Ok.u.mu, he decided to ignore the elder lest he died out of anger. He turned to his father and continued, "I wonder how hopeless a chief like you sometimes can be. Ochieng" has been away for over seventy seasons now. You don"t even know whether he is dead or not, all you think of is handing over the stool to him."
"At first, I respected your decision, but I later realized how absurd my way of thinking was. I came to wonder whether you valued me or not. How can you think of handing power over to your youngest son instead of the eldest?"
"You know he is a thousand times better than you. I thought of the entire clan and even the whole tribe when I made this decision. It is not in your place to question me." The father threw his hand casually and turned his head away not to see that thankless son of his. It was as if it was not his son standing before him but some dejection.
"Then I am sorry father. I will have to kill you to save the clan. Many people want me to lead them, I won"t sacrifice their will just because you want to hand over power to that dead dog..." Ong"am couldn"t let his son finish what he wanted to say. Could he let him insult the son he loved than he loved himself?
He slapped Ok.u.mu hard on his left cheek. The slap was accompanied by Ok.u.mu"s spilling of blood and spittle. Even a few of his teeth were knocked off. He careened backwards before coming to a halt with great difficulty. His left cheek reddened forming a pattern of his father"s hand.
"Did you slap me?! Did you just slap me?! If I don"t kill you I won"t be qualified to be your son!" Ok.u.mu hollowed before he hurried to his father with his sword raised high.
He was just about to pierce his father"s head when an invincible flurry of cold winds blasted them off. Most of the people present were thrown several metres away. Those who stood their ground squinted and keeled over. Those who fell, including the chief and his son were moaning in pain. Some warriors even died by their swords because they carelessly held them during the fall.