THE LEGEND OF KIWAKAAZI

It was great shock to Safihutu when lightning struck her from behind. It went straight through her heart. She let go and was falling. While falling she had only one question on her mind, ‘How, how did this human defeat me?’ And it all started about two hours ago after Gbonto was perceived destroyed by Soruja Aadu.

Safihutu shouted, “It seems you are all on your own, Anan. Soruja Aadu’s lightning drains the very life impulse of its prey. Gbonto may look like rocks but it is a living entity and has a life impulse. It did not stand a chance from the very beginning!” Soruja Aadu struck its chest some more and once again attacked Anantie. The nhutus moved out of the way but Anan was unmoved by the big apes lightning fist.

An arm made of rock emerged from the ground and again punched the ape. Gbonto once again emerged from the ground. He and his brother Anantie had a good laugh. Anantie explained, “Your Soruja Aadu may have a unique ability to drain life from its prey but Gbonto also has a unique ability to amass life from the earth. Your pet’s technique was not going to work on Gbonto from the very onset!” They laughed harder and irritated Soruja Aadu. The ape said, “This time, I will drain everything. Not even a single drop will remain.” Anantie said, “It seems you got on his nerves Gbonto. Don’t let him catch you again.” Gbonto smiled while he was nodding.

Soruja Aadu disappeared and wrapped its lightning body around Gbonto. But before the electrocution could begin, Gbonto had reduced to soil. Gbonto’s head appeared on the surface of the earth behind the ape laughing. The ape fired lightning at him and again he disappeared. Gbonto appeared behind a tree on the ape’s right. The ape moved in that direction and burnt down the tree with his lightning. Slowly, Gbonto moved the ape away from Anan. Anan turned to face the four nhutus that huddled around one another. Safihutu’s eyes were still green. “Her eye color means she is still using lightning only. I have to get rid of the three quickly,” thought Anantie.

Safihutu said, “I can’t fight now. The three of you will have to take him down.” The black-haired nhutu attacked from his left with her spear and the blond-haired nhutu attacked from the right. Anan lifted his left arm and stopped the air-borne spear of the black-haired nhutu. The blond-haired nhutu was ready to attack from behind. Anantie turned right and a whirlwind carried the blond-haired nhutu away. It only stopped after she had been smashed into a tree. He turned left and attacked the black-haired nhutu with his right hand. She jumped and summersaulted in the air. Anantie stomped his right foot into the ground and a large earth wall appeared behind him. Fire arrows stuck to the wall. Anantie jumped and suspended in the air while the earth wall exploded filling the atmosphere with rock fragments.

The three nhutus regrouped. The red-haired said, “His abilities rival Safi’s.” The three nhutus looked down and found themselves trapped in sand. Water filled the sand and lightning attacked from above.

Elsewhere, Soruja Aadu was slowly rising up from the ground. He moved his head left and quickly returned his head right. He turned and Gbonto was nowhere to be found. He screamed and sent lighting through the ground over a wide radius around his body. Safihutu floated in the air on a hexagonally shaped rock. Using this much lightning weakened her and she was forced to her knees. She covered her mouth with her left palm and coughed. She looked in her palm and noticed she was bleeding.

She looked straight ahead and perceived a curved flame of fire coming at her. She could not react quickly enough. The fire exploded when it came into contact with her. Her hexagonally shaped rock collapsed and her burnt body also collapsed to the ground. Anantie wondered, ‘Is she dead?’

Elsewhere, Soruja Aadu sat on the ground and did not move after Safi was burnt. Gbonto emerged from the ground and examined the ape. It was motionless as if it was dead. Anantie noticed the rise of the earth again. Four of them this time rose simultaneously. He rose higher above the ground and observed what was happening. It was all the same. First the earth bubbled over and bubbled over some more. The bubbling over earth revealed the shape of a head, then a neck, next the shoulders and arms and slowly but surely four female statues were formed. A spark in the heart region grew after air rushed in and it spread throughout the body. It burnt the body but the effect of the burning was a living and breathing human being.

Gbonto was reckless. He got too close to the lightning ape. The ape suddenly opened his eyes and locked his fingers around Gbonto’s solid rock neck. The lightning ape said, “You are not getting away this time, Gbonto.” Volts of electricity started flowing through Gbonto’s body. There was no way to escape this time, offspring of Asaase Yaa (Earth Goddess).

The four nhutus were ready. The fun begins again. Anantie breathed in and exhaled and hot air rose from the soil through many holes. The red-haired nhutu floated on fire. The blond-haired nhutu floated on a hexagonally shaped ice block and the black-haired nhutu floated on a hexagonally shaped rock. Safihutu was back on her hexagonally shaped rock watching proceedings. The battle was taken to the sky.

Blond-haired nhutu used some hexagonally shaped ice crystals as steps to get closer to Anantie. She swung her ice sword; the one in her left hand from left to right. Anantie caught it with his right and his right burst into flames that melted the ice sword. She quickly swung the one in her right. Anantie swung his left arm and the wind that blew as a result shattered the ice sword into a thousand pieces. Anantie showed her his left palm and a long earth rod shot from his palm through her neck. She bled and down she went.

The black haired nhutu was next to attack. Using hexagonally shaped rocks as steps, she run towards Anantie. Then she summersaulted so that the fire arrows fired by the red-haired nhutu from behind her can attack. Anantie closed his eyes and very cold air quenched the fire arrows. The black-haired nhutu attacked Anantie with her earth spear vertically. Anantie again caught it with his right hand. He pointed his left finger and shot fire at the black-haired nhutu. Only one nhutu remained because Safihutu is useless. She had invested all her power into one giant attack – a giant lightning ape.

Let’s talk about the ape. Not only was it strangling Gbonto but it also electrocuted the earth golem. Gbonto’s eyes lit up and glowed white. After a long time of electrocution, Suroja Aadu let go of Gbonto. Gbonto shrunk. He repeated, “Anan…Anan” and crumbled. “Now to end this,” said Soruja Aadu. He disappeared.

Anantie surrounded the red-haired nhutu with very cold air. It moved around the red-haired nhutu. She looked up and was rising out of the cold air when close to a thousand pointy ice crystals attacked from above. She suffered multiple injuries and presumably died. While the three nhutus reassembled, Soruja Aadu appeared. Safihutu said, “It seems your friend has been taken care of.” Anantie looked genuinely surprised. He closed his eyes and said, “It can’t be. I really can’t feel him.” Soruja Aadu opened his palms and held them about 50cm apart. Lightning run from one palm to the other. He clapped and shot light at Anantie. Anantie took in a deep breath and opened both palms to stop the lightning attack from the lightning ape.

The light struck Anantie’s palm and pushed him backwards. Anantie moved his arms forward but he could not control it. The lightning attack from this ape was too powerful. Anantie screamed and summoned all his strength and still he was being overwhelmed by lightning. He threw his arms in the air and was hit by powerful lightning. He fell on his back and while on the ground, streaks of light could be seen still passing through his arms and feet. He felt weak and could not rise to his feet. The reassembly of the three other nhutus was completed while he was being defeated by the lightning ape. Anantie was trying. He was doing everything to get up and stand on his feet. He even shouted, “Get up Anan!” to himself but his body refused to respond. Soruja Aadu repeated the ritual. He opened his palm and held them about 50cm apart. He clapped and shot lightning again at Anantie. Anantie watched with horror while the lightning flash travelled towards him. There was no way he could avoid death now.

When Anantie and Gbonto first met, he knew that people will not understand and accept their friendship. They trained in the forest and places where people will not find them. While playing and training one day, Gbonto suddenly frowned. Anantie felt the air around him and said, “Someone is watching us. Someone is here. Help me find him before he tells on us.” Gbonto and Anantie started their search for the spy. Anantie stopped in front of some bushes, smiled and nodded. “The spy is hiding behind those bushes,” said Anantie. The bushes moved and moved and the spy was not coming out. Anantie was terrified. It was an accident. He did not mean it but somehow his emotions commanded lightning from the sky seconds before the spy came out of hiding.

It was Xhamla. She begged, “Don’t hurt me.” But it was too late. Lightning was going to strike her down. The worried look on his face signaled Gbonto. Gbonto’s body crumbled and reassembled close to Xhamla. He held his palms over her head and formed a shield that protected Xhamla. He directed the lightning back to Anantie and he stopped it. The lightning moved in a circle around Anantie for a while until it dissipated.

Back inside Nomposuro, Anantie thought he was going to die when Gbonto appeared in the path of the lightning attack. He held a rock shield and absorbed the lightning like he did for Xhamla and collapsed back to the ground. Gbonto appeared behind Safihutu. She did not even see what hit her. It was quick and after she got hit, her minions all turned to stone mummies. Gbonto appeared in front of Anantie and said, “Anan…Anan.” Anantie said, “Thank you my brother.” He closed his eyes and Gbonto disappeared. Anantie lay there exhausted and weakened.

Now we return to the main story. I hope you enjoyed this commercial break as much as I did.