Chapter 44
I thought we had cheated death, but in the end, I'll really kill my wife. The gods are cruel."
He stretched out his hand to the wall, hands trembling seeking for aid.
" Will I go down in history as a king without an heir? If only I hadn't investigated this pregnant, she would have made the decision on her own, now that I know, I can't let her kill my child but neither can I let this child kill her. Am stuck between a rock and a hard place.
What an ill fated love this is.
He hit his head with clenched fists, as if to drive the anguish out of it.
My heart ached for my husband as I began to relive the position he was in.
"My destiny demands this much suffering my Prince, it is not your fault."
Words that penetrated but could not comfort him.
He came and hugged me.
It's OK to not have the baby. I want you more than our child. The thought of not growing old with you makes sadness seize my soul more than having an heir.
Prince Sepo had had the royal midwife prepare me the concoction to have an abortion and brought to me the morning of his consecration.
First he went and slept at the royal oracle's shrine for two nights getting Imbued in the ancestors' blessings.
Then when he came back to the palace. The royal oracle instructed him on the principals and ethics of the Sekeletu Kingdom, together with the courtiers.
That same evening, Prince Sepo wore a purple toga.
He stood proud and erect on the podium as the oracle placed a crown oh his head and handed him a spear as the Kele palace's protector.
He smiled at me with a dazzling smile as he lifted the spear in the air. I sat with the other royals in the shade.
Drums resounded. Musicians broke into a joyous frenzy. The place was packed with people from all the Kele villages in their gayest clothing. Three visiting Letuyako courtiers coming to congratulate the young King, well more like spying. Security has never been tighter... To avoid what happened in Seke, worriors where not allowed to drink.
He stepped on the carrier, gold in colour to present himself to his people. A mighty chorus arose from the crowd, drowning out the drums and the music.
" May our King triumph!" the roar arose from thousands of throats.
King Sepo and his courtiers left early to the audience hall and left those who wanted to feast, feast.
King Sepo climbed the three stairs to his throne for the first time. Sitting on it.
The courtiers made obeisance as one and King Sepo acknowledged it." On behalf of me Mbau kani and my fellow courtiers, make humble submission to this King and his heir to come, accept King Sepo as a sovereign of Kele palace. Does this King accept accept our humble submission?"
" Yes, I accept, my courtiers."
He made obeisance to his courtiers, The only time he will ever do it and sat on his throne and the courtiers did the same.
" I have two things to discuss with you all, first thing on my agenda as King is the official restoration of Princess Zae's title as Princess and enthroning her as my Queen.
" My King, restoring her as Princess is no problem but enthroning her as Queen can not happen if she hasn't bore you an heir." one of the courtiers told him.
King Sepo leaned back on his chair.
He knew, he would have to work a little hard to persuade the courtiers to make me his Queen.
" Princess Zae has done a lot for this palace and it is only right to make her my Queen."he retorted.
" Then let's just wait for her to get pregnant and everything will resolve itself, there is nothing wrong with that is there, my King?"
" Unless, she can't give you a child, there is nothing to worry." Mbau kani assured him.
King Sepo shifted in his chair. He had no more to say without rising suspicion.
"Ok, the second one is our war with the Letuyako. As you have heard complaints from our villages of the Letuyako raids on our villages, rape, plundering even desecration of our shrines.
We will not hold back. My predecessor gave us permission to go to war before he died, we will not disappoint him. The time for retaliation has come." he said grimly.
" Showing them we are not like the Seke, they defeated." One courtier added.
" Our sovereign King Yanga was murdered, we must avenge our Sekeletu Kingdom."
All the courtiers where in alignment.
" We will prepare to attack both Seke palace and Letuyako in fourteen days.
Talks of a War were kept secret, We didn't want word reaching the Letuyako and giving them time to enhance their defence. It was cowardly but it needed to be done. Normally you would let the people you are waging a war with know of your plans like the Kanjis did but the Letuyako didn't deserve such formalities.
King Sepo didn't like wars and I feared for his future as King of Kele because wars were an everyday occurance in other parts of the region. He was doing this primarily for me and my parents. and I loved him even more for that.
Mine and King Sepo's love blossomed despite the curse that enveloped us. He snatched every possible moment of time to be with me.
He had become busier than he was, when he was Prince regent, Sometimes I thought I could see him blame himself for making me do what I wanted to do.
Kill our baby.
It was a tension that we both wanted to eliminate but would still linger in the unspoken words and the action done prematurely.
He blamed me too.
For being an Oracle Princess, but he blamed Nyambe more, so I wanted to believe.
********
Exactly Fourteen days later we left Kele palace. King Sepo had elected to lead the attack on Letuyako himself. Wina, King Sepo's two personal body guards Nawa and Aka and I went to Seke Palace.
Instead of a horse, I sat on the cart that carried all of our weapons and supplies until three days later when we reached the wooded plains of Seke Palace.
I was overwhelmed with the feeling of nostalgia. These was the path I had shamefully passed on my way to Kele three- years- ago. My heart began to beat faster. I was full of adrenaline.
Since we reached Seke in the evening, it gave us an advantage of making it hard for the Letuyako gate guards to spot us in the woods. We readied our selves, Five hundred in total. By the time, we all were ready, it was dark. The Letuyako had lit torches, that dimly lit the palace . You could see the silhouettes of the trees and the buildings against the night sky on the other side.
Figures moved from the gloom on either side of us, on Wina's command they silently moved towards the gate.
I looked on the other side of the gate to see if my parents' heads still hung on poles but no, there was nothing, not even the poles, Wina must have thought the same as I caught his sight in the same direction, The expression I was associating with his guilt taut on his face.
