Chapter 14 - The Fight For Oyo

Still on Rave god reruns

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War had been declared, and word had spread through all the Yoruba Cities like wildfire. There was talk
about a new god, a god that challenged all the Yoruba gods put together and cursed them. Men from
villages, armed with weapons began to flood the road that led to Oyo. They pleaded to enlist in the army
that was going to take back the capital of the Yorba people. Displaced men and women, children,
servants began to attach themselves to the five gods. Ode had made to send them away but Omotola
told him to let them be. The day the fighting men reached one thousand, Omotola finally acknowledged
and addressed them.
‘Warriors, I am Omotola, breaker of oaths, Stormbringer and Earthshaker, First of the rave gods, created
by Olodumare but born of humans. I have declared war on the pillagers who have taken our city from
us. I march forth to lay waste to the entire Nupe race. I have challenged your gods and found them
wanting’.
Murmurs rose and died down when she continued
‘Know this; o ye children of men, brothers and fathers will die on this journey for freedom. Women, your
husbands would be ripped away from you, your sons and your fathers. This war is bigger than each of
us; it is for the Yoruba race as a whole. Look at your children’.
Some men looked down at their children playing around their feet with fierce protection in their eyes.
‘Do you want them to grow up not knowing their heritage? Do you want them to grow up as fugitives
and slaves in their own land? I charge you all. Think not about your future but that of your children.
What future will they meet when they are your age? Anyone who goes into this war will go under my
command. Anyone who goes into this war must be ready to die for our people. If you cannot do this,
leave before dawn’.
And with that she turned around and went into a tent made of rocks that she created every night before
sleeping. The next morning, the number of men had increased to fifteen thousand.
Oduduwa, Ode, Sango and Oya stood watching as more men trooped into the camp by the minute.
Odudwa shook his head and gave a rueful smile.
‘I hate to say it, but she has a way of riling men’s hearts’, he said to the rest of the gods beside him.
‘Yes, that she does’ Oya replied.
They were all standing in a wide area with a one foot fence surrounding them for half a kilometer radius.
The men in the camp had given them a wide berth, looks of fear and reverence on their faces as they
gave the gods they worshipped a wide berth. They brought the choice meat and wine to the gods and no one in the camp would touch any food till someone among them came forward to ask the gods for
their blessing to eat.
Ode felt Omotola tugging at him through their bond and immediately stood up.
‘She wants to see us’
Sango frowned and gave him an inquisitive look. ‘How do you know that?’
Ode had kept the knowledge of the bond between himself and Omotola secret and he was not about to
reveal it. Not without her permission anyway. They all trudged to the rock tent erected in the middle of
the camp. As they entered, they saw Omotola, a young maiden with fierce eyes and an aura of power
surrounding her, bending over a map on the table she had created. It still bugged Oduduwa that he
could not summon things out of the air like she could. She motioned them over and pointed at a section
of the map.
‘Oyo was built to withstand heavy siege and withstand ground assaults. My spies have discovered a
loophole just above the city gates. A weak section of the wall that can be targeted and brought down.
We will need to move fast and strike extremely hard at the right moment. I want to limit bloodshed’.
They talked military matters for a while, with all the gods providing input and suggestions. At the end of
it all, Oya was put in charge of the food, women and children. Sango would lead the footmen; Odudwa
was in charge of the cavalry while Ode would stay by her side to help fight the Nupe gods wherever they
were. Oduduwa protested at first, wanting to be the one to stand by Omotola but she wouldn’t budge.
She had expected Sango to offer and was a little disappointed by his silence. They all dispersed and went
to their various stations.

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It had been two week since Omotola’s speech and the army had grown to 100,000 men and counting
with 40,000 as cavalry. Oyo was two days away and the atmosphere of war was heavy in the camp.
Women and children were packing their belongings and Omotola saw a few tearful goodbyes here and
there. She wished she could promise that no man would die but she knew it wasn’t possible. The well of
power inside her was only limited by her human strength and she needed the swords of men to
supplement that strength. The army had close to 5,000 archers of passable value as most of the men
were not hardened warriors but seasoned farmers. It had taken serious and vigorous work to beat her
army into the fighting shape it now was and she burned to unleash it on the Nupe.
Oduduwa had told her that it was good for the men to see her so she had started making rounds of the
camp every day at dusk, standing on a rock that hovered 6feet of the earth in a brilliant show of
seemingly effortless power. It worked. The men stood up straighter, chest out and felt good whenever
she floated by. This evening was no different as the men she passed by struggled to be the one to look
more ‘soldierly’. She had almost completed her rounds when Ode landed from the sky right in front of
her, a look of apprehension on his face and said:

‘Omotola, the Nupe have summoned their army, over 300,000 strong. They march with inhuman speed;
they will be here before dawn’.
Omotola nodded like it did not bother her for the sake of the men watching and faced them
‘Spread the word, we fight at dawn!’
She turned the last corner as the men began to bustle around, getting ready for the fight the next day.
As she entered into the tent, she saw Oduduwa and Oya arguing heatedly while Ofiran, the man the
people chose to speak for them standing on the opposite side of the ‘table of war’ as Sango called it.
They stopped as she came in and faced her, both about to speak at once. She cut them short with a
wave of her hand.
‘The Nupe’s mobilize against us. They will be upon us by dawn’.
Oduduwa did not wait for her to finish speaking before he disappeared out of the tent, presumably to
go and prepare his soldiers. They had prepared for every contingency including the fact that the Nupe’s
would not want to be holed up inside the city gates. Oya gave her a sharp nod and left to hurry the
women and children out. Omotola gave sharp orders to Ofiran and he ran to carry them out. More
people streamed in and out of her tent for hours taking and receiving orders, and when the first rays of
light peeked from the horizon, Sango came into her tent.
‘It is time’
She nodded and summoned her godly armor. Ode had taught her how to use the inbuilt armor in every
god that was specifically designed to fit them, and as the black scaly armor rippled over her skin and the
large sword sprang from her hand, she felt invincible.
She stepped out and saw that the army had already fallen into formation, with the archers at the front,
the chargers and the footmen immediately behind. Each god stood beside their assigned places with
their weapons of war in hand. Omotola strode through the army as they made way of her and she
continued till she stood where everyone in her army could see her properly. She created a large rock
beneath her feet and levitated it so she was visible.
‘I will not give you sweet words or make you feel good about going to your deaths. Death is a serious
business that should not be joked with. But know one thing, one way or another, this battle will end
today. One way or another we will be victorious’.
And as she turned to face the enemy and saw Gutsu, the first of the Nupe gods, her anger kindled and
she shouted
‘One way or another, they will all die!’
The cheer that rose behind her was deafening.
Sango’s voice cut through the cheer.
‘Archers! Ready! Fire!’
The Nupe army watch in hypnotic fascination as the arrows flew into the sky. They were so much that
they blocked out the rays of the emerging sun. Omotola heard the panicked shout of the Nupe
commander telling his men to take cover as the arrows fell in their midst, cutting men down like flies.
Omotola smiled to herself. The war had begun.

source

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CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN