Obiageli - Episode 4

 

Oluchi waddled the river with Adanna a day later, after her encounter with Eberechi she was desperate to find a child at all cost, so the next morning she had gone to the neighbouring village Allu to see Adanna who was taking her through the bushes to the place she had spoken about.

"Are you sure we are on the right track?"she asked, they had gone on for hours and Oluchi had no idea of where they were

"Of course, I have come this way several times"Adanna assured her

" To do what?"

"Some things are best left unsaid my sister, but usually he gives me herbs when my children are sick"

A silence as they walked on"is it still far away?"

"Not so much now..we would soon be there"

Oluchi couldnt believe Adanna usually came there alone, it was all really bushy but there was a shrine in front now, a river flowed at the back of it, a man was squatting by the river with his back to them

"Welcome woman" he said without looking back, oluchi was surprised as he glanced at Adanna wonderingly, they were two women, why woman, or maybe he recognized Adanna as his regular customer..he turned

"I know why you are here..just make sure you dust your legs before coming in" he said, Oluchi relaxed to the fact that many men had told her before they knew why she was there but preferred no solution in the end, they both dusted their legs, pulled their slippers and entered the shrine barefooted, the man was inside the shrine now, with a strange stick in left hand

"I want to know which village you are from" he addressed her, oluchi was taken aback, if he knew why she was there why won't he know the village she came from, glancing at Adanna who urged her she replied "Chiolu"

"Hm.."he drew something on the ground with his strange stick then looked at her

" you have big problems "

"I have only one big problem Dibia..its.."

He laughed showing his brown colored teeth "you think having a child is your only problem..the gods are angry with you its the reason you have not been able to bare any children"

"But but..I need a child..children desperately, please helpme" this was the first time somebody was saying something different, "please help me big them if there's anything I can do.."

"Him..let me see" he began playing with his stones like a child "one thing you have done and not done"

"W..what is it baba?" She asked, scared glancing at Ada

The dibia looked up and stared at her

"You refused to help a woman with her child once and she cursed you"

"Ewo.." Oluchi gaped, it had been Eke day, she had been 15 then, she was hurrying to go meet with her friends in the river. A woman had asked her to help hold her screaming child, while she rushed to the market but she had refused ..the woman had been barren before she had the child

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/obiageli

. Adanna glanced at her surprised

"Please Dibia i would do anything you ask..is there no way to reverse the curse. Eow" Ada consoled her

"hmm..you have a lot of sacrifices to make"..he paused "the curse can only be reversed by the one who pronounced it.."

"Shes dead..shes dead o.."

"Hmm..what a sore tale"

"Please help me Dibia ..please, I have faced too much shame"

"The gods can forgive you if you meet some conditions"

"Any thing.. I ll do anything"

"Your friend here would be a witness to this..if any condition is broken the child would die"

"ah", but she nodded anyway this was the first hope she was having

The Dibia stared up muttering as he said

"There would be no other child"

"arh..h"

"She alone chose to come"

"She?" Oluchi looked disappointed but Adanna stayed her

"You want the child or not"

"Y..yes Dibia"

"A boy would never stay.. let the girl come"

"Ok Dibia, I'm grateful" anyone

"Shes a princess and should be treated as one, if ever she is maltreated she ll fall sick and go back.." he spread his stones again and continued "There she is already emerged from the water" the women craned their necks to see something in the stones but saw nothing, he stood up and went out, carry a pot, he fetched water from the river and gave to her

"Take this, she must bathed in this for the first 7 days of her life, don't allow any other woman bathe her or with any other water if you do she ll develop rashes"

As Oluchi took the pot with shaky hands she asked

"Is she then an  Ogbanje?"she asked

"No..this one would stay, if you do all I have said"

Oluchi nodded vigorously, the conditions weren't so difficult, the Dibia turned his stones again

"One more thing...I fear the most important", he made sure he met her gaze when he said

"She must never get married"

Oluchi gaped, glanced at Adanna who also looked shocked, how were they going to pull that off

"But supposing shes beautiful and grown and men come asking for her hand?" Ada asked

"Yes..its totally not my decision but her fathers"Oluchi chirped in

He stared into space"Any man who marries her would die"he looked at her, her mouth was parted in shock

"Any man who touches her would face the wrath of the gods"

"H..he dies?"

"Come every Eke day to collect water for her bath till she is 3years old..you have just one sacrifice to make..I ll list the items now..3 white wrappers, coral beads, white eggs, 7 white hens, palm oil.."he began listing...they left at sunset.