HARRIET DIGBORI Wins August Edition of the Monthly Writers Series.
THE ETUK ENCHANTED FOREST
Madhe was at the height of his storytelling as the flames from the burning woods reached the heavens. We sat around the bonfire, our eyes glued to Madhe as he imprinted images of valiant warriors in our minds, with the beauty of the heavens looking down on us, crickets chirping in the sand, and the cool night air hitting our skin and sending chills down our spine. For many generations to come, people would retell the stories of mighty warriors who had bravely defended our lands.
Madhe was rumoured to have lost touch with reality and to have become blind as a result of a previous encounter with the gods. Others claimed that a battle encounter caused his blindness. The impact his stories had on each of us was all that mattered.
Madhe was an unusual man. His face had deep scars on both sides, with a large mottled scar on his forehead. It was said that his encounter with the god of fire birthed that mark. Madhe was a freak of nature. When he stood, his back hunched and his height almost reached the heavens. He was said to be one of the fiercest warriors in the land, with thousands of markings on him depicting the number of men that fell in battle at his hands.
He was the most feared man in the land. It was said that the King even sometimes trembled at the sight of him. It was the end of yet another amazing tale. We all retired back home, not without dissecting Madhe's tale on our walk back.
The feast of the maidens was just around the corner. It was that time of the year when girls were initiated into womanhood. It was the most anticipated event in the Kingdom of Nazum. The maidens are taken away from their families for three months and fed good food, mostly fruits, vegetables, and good protein. During that time, they follow a traditional skincare routine, which makes their skin glow like the stars.
Once every year, the king chooses the most beautiful of the maidens to be one of his wives. After the king has made his choice, the rest is left to the bravest warriors and the wisest men of the land. Preparations for the feast were in full swing. The entire kingdom was flooded with decorations in preparation for the feast. Every year, the artisans outdo themselves with innovative designs, bringing colour and life to the event.
Every participating household held special prayers to the gods for their daughters to find favour in the sight of the King. It was said that the wealth that came with being an in-law of the royal family was unmatched. That day was quickly approaching. The tension was felt in the four corners of the kingdom.
It was the day of the feast of the maidens. The entire kingdom was gathered in the village square. Upbeat music filled the air, as the rhythm from the drums matched with the feet of the traditional dancers, fully dressed in their folkloric traditional attire. Their waists moved with ease, like ones devoid of bones. Their embellished skirts with opulent frills and garlands moved in unison with their waistlines. Their electrifying dance steps cast a spell on the audience.
The air was full of both sweet smells from the food and smoky smells from the slow roasting of good meat. The King spent a lot of money on the party, making sure there was plenty of food, drinks, and entertainment. Warriors with oiled skins and a lot of muscle fought in a show to show how strong they were. The last man standing was crowned the strongest in the land and was awarded with gold coins by the King.
The loud blast of the horn saw every activity at the village square come to a sudden halt as the maidens were ushered in by the Chief Priestess of the kingdom. We gazed at their beauty in awe as they looked like angels. Their skin shone bright like expensive pearls. They were clothed in beaded white wrapped skirts which stopped just below the cup of their bottoms. With their bare breasts exposed, teasing our eyes, expensive beads with beautiful bursts of colour lined their waists, perfecting their silhouette. The Maidens were a sight to behold. The maidens' dance began quickly, as they moved their hips seductively in an attempt to entice the King.
Amongst all the maidens present, Jumi was the fairest of them all. She was outstandingly beautiful with rare features; her eyes were hazel-coloured that shone brightly in the sun; she had a small pointed nose with full beautifully shaped lips; her skin shone brightest and her beauty was always a mystery in the land. She got tongues wagging and it was no surprise that the King was spellbound by her.
It was time for the king to place the crown on the head of his chosen maiden. The Maidens stood in formation as the King passed through their midst, as was customary. It was glaring who he had eyes for. We all waited in anticipation for him to place the crown on Jumi's head.
The King stood in front of Jumi as the crowd cheered him on. We were all enchanted by her beauty. She was the crowd's obvious favourite. As the King placed the crown on Jumi's head, the King, Jumi, and all the maidens disappeared into thin air.
There was a deafening silence in the village square. We had just encountered the unimaginable. Where did the King, Jumi, and the Maidens disappear to? Was this part of a magical act to crown the day? Or were we plagued with an unthinkable dilemma?
A huge stampede followed, people scattered around, running for their lives, running to safety. Were we even safe? The unimaginable had occurred, and there was no one that could explain what we had just witnessed. There was dead silence in the land for 3 days. No one dared to step out of their house out of fear of the unimaginable. Our king had suddenly vanished with the maidens with no explanation. This had never happened in the kingdom; stories had never been told of sudden disappearances.
The morning of the fourth day came with the sounding of the gong by the town crier. Everyone was ordered by the elders of the land to gather at the village square for a meeting. Sorcerers, seers, priests, and priestesses gathered to consult the gods and proffer a solution. Their magic and powers seemed useless as the gods seemed silent.
The warriors were fully dressed for battle with Madhe at their forefront. The only problem was that they had no idea with whom or where they were at war.
There was murmuring and mourning around the village square. The families of the maidens that disappeared were gathered near the warriors. There was intense wailing from the women. The men looked distraught as they tried to console their wives.
The clouds suddenly turned dark, like there was an impending thunderstorm. Flashes of lightning filled the sky and a strong gusty wind hovered around us. The villagers froze as a little girl with long flowing hair, dressed in a pure white flowing garment, descended from the clouds. Her face shone like bright crystals, and we were afraid to look directly at it. Madhe suddenly turned towards her as if drawn by a certain unexplainable force. His white eyes suddenly turned black as if possessed by a dark supernatural force.
He stood side by side with the girl as they spoke in unison. She uttered words that only Madhe could hear. It was like she possessed Madhe and he became her mouthpiece.
"Hear this, people of Nazum." Your king and maidens are held captive in our underwater kingdom. No man born of a woman was to ever lay hands on Jumi, the daughter of the goddess of the sea. The goddess is angry. To set them free, the rare diamond hidden in the dark forest of Etuk would be revealed to only the purest of souls. This diamond should be thrown into the Uzi river; only then would the king and maidens be set free. "
The girl disappeared into the clouds as Madhe fell to the ground with intense vibrating movements. His black eyes had now turned white. The dark clouds were swept away by the white fluffy clouds drifting away across the skies.
The search for the purest of souls began. It was a daunting task that needed to be executed in such a short time. Each household was to present at least one male that had a pure soul among them. They would then be presented to the Chief Priestess, who was to make the final decision on the selections.
They were to go through a few days of intense training to get ready for the task ahead and be able to handle the challenges they would face in the dark forest of Etuk. It was believed that only one of them would come out victorious, and that one person happened to be me.
The dark forest of Etuk came with its own share of hallucinations and temptations. No one ever comes out of the forest the same. It was said that a thousand souls had been lost chasing the untold wealth the forest possessed. We had to go through Mathki, which was meant to prepare our minds for whatever might happen at Etuk. We left with a last warning from Madhe to not eat or drink anything presented to us in the forest.
It was finally time for the chosen 10 to depart for the forest. We said our goodbyes to our families, as there was a high possibility that none of us would return alive or the same. The Chief Priestess performed a final ritual on us. We were smothered with a pungent-smelling white paste, markings were made on our chests and backs, and we were presented with an amulet for our protection, which we swore to never take off.
The people of Nazum bade their farewell as Madhe led us to the entryway of the forest and left us there to continue our journey. As we walked into the forest of Etuk, its beauty was revealed to us. This beauty could not be seen from the outside, but as you step into the forest, it becomes a magical world on its own. The trees made slow, rhythmic dancing movements as calm music emanated from them. Looking into the sky was breathtaking. There was a burst of colour dancing in the clouds as luminous bands of stars aligned in them. This was no ordinary forest, but an enchanted one.
As we made our way deep into the forest, we came across a tree filled with butterflies shaped like humans with glistening wings. Nazir stepped closer to the tree to admire these human-shaped butterflies. He reached out to touch one of them despite our warning and got sucked into the tree. He was gone. Madhe had warned us not to touch or take anything from the forest except the jewel that would be revealed to the chosen one. We had lost one of us to the forest, but its beauty made us quickly forget about our encounter. Or was Etuk playing tricks on us?
We came across a small bridge paved with pure gold. It led to the other part of the forest. As we moved across the bridge, we came across bags of gold coins littered around the bridge. Overcome by greed, Budta and Relar took some coins and hid them in their clothes. As we got to the foot of the bridge, they both struggled to come down, but they were stuck. We tried to pull them off to no avail as the bridge suddenly disappeared with them.
We were down to the 7 of us. We continued our journey down. We got tired along the way and decided to find a place to lay our heads to rest as the forest was always bright and never had nighttime. I was awoken by the sound of loud music. I looked around and couldn't find the remaining 6. As I picked up pace towards the sound, there was a feast of barely clad beautiful ladies, moving seductively to the rhythm of the music, drawing us in with their eyes. I spotted Tunmi, Gezar, and Nadhe dancing in their midst. I nudged the voices in my head telling me to join them. I had to find the remaining 3 before the voices broke their spell.
I found Henod around the corner as he was searching for the rest of us. We split up to cover more ground as we didn't want to lose anyone else to the forest. We were successful in our search and we continued our journey down as the feast and everyone in it had suddenly disappeared.
As we made our way deep into the forest, we came across several strange-looking magical creatures. As long as we didn't disturb them, they caused no harm. Shortly after, we got to the spring of Olem. We came across a girl called Anum. She was the gatekeeper of the spring. She told us that whoever drank from the spring of Olem would have eternal life. She spoke such enticing words. The more she spoke, the more the thirst for water increased. Birat was drawn in by her seductive words and had his fill of the water. He shortly disappeared with Olem and Anum.
The forest had a way of draining your willpower. Before we went on this trip, we had training, but it seemed like child's play compared to what we went through. We came across the well of Boali. A little girl named Chula was the guardian of the well. The well grants three wishes once a coin is tossed into it. Chula asked for our amulet in exchange for a toss of the golden coin that would grant us our every desire.
"Can the well bring the dead back to life?" Luzag asked.
As long as you wish for it, every one of your desires will be met, "Chula responded, giving a cunning grin." Luzag proceeded to take off his amulet. Nothing we said to him would change his mind, as he was already drawn by the promises of the well.
He handed his amulet to Chula, who, in exchange, gave him a golden coin. As he tossed the coin into the well, he smiled as he looked into the well and uttered, "Mama". He disappeared shortly after the well. Luzag was the only child of his late mother, who passed away about a year ago. They shared a very close bond and he was left shattered after her demise.
The forest had taken eight of us, and we had no idea who would come next. We had been walking for a long time and decided to rest our feet for a while. We took our position by the foot of a tree and got sucked into the tree to a whole new part of the forest. We found ourselves in the midst of 10 elderly women. They called themselves the protectors of the realm. They congratulated us on our journey so far, and since it was down to the both of us, we were asked to fight each other, and the victorious one would be led to the diamond.
We were presented with a choice of weaponry to be used in combat. There was no way I would go up against Henod in battle. I called him aside to talk to him and remind him of how deceptive the forest could be. Also, the diamond was to reveal itself to the purest of souls and not someone leading us to it.
We agreed to stand our ground and not go against each other. As we went back to meet the protectors of the realm, Henod grabbed a spear and hurled it at me. I was instantly transported back to the foot of the tree without Henod. The forest had taken 9 of us, and it was left to me to complete the mission. An overwhelming feeling of fear crept in. Journeying into the forest without company wasn't the same.
I came across a river not far from the tree. There I met an elderly woman at the river bank who was struggling to get on a canoe. I assisted her in getting on the canoe. She asked that I paddle her to the end of the river, and I was free to have the canoe to myself after that, which I obliged.
"I didn't think you'd help," she said.
I smiled as I continued paddling. I avoided her gaze as this enchanted forest had its fair share of tricks.
"What you seek is closer than you think," she said as she jumped into the water.
I looked in an attempt to search for her, but there was no sign of her. The water was as clear as the sky. My eyes met with a shining crystal sitting on the river bed.
This had to be the rare diamond, I thought, as I jumped into the river to retrieve it. As I held the diamond, I found myself on dry land, at the bank of a river.
I looked around in bewilderment, as I was no longer in the forest of Etuk. I immediately recognised where I was; it was the Uzi river. I instantly threw the diamond in the river and headed back to the village.
There was a sound of rejoicing in the Kingdom of Nazum. The King and the Maidens had been returned. I was giving a warrior's welcome as I lived to tell the tale of the enchanted Forest of Etuk.
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