The Last Survivors - Episode 21

 

Usman must have found courage in Verah’s boldness. They all had forgotten he was still there. He shouted from the exit door where he stood watching Verah confront the devils, “You powers of darkness, I command you in the Name of Jesus, catch fire now!” If they all had not been there to witness it, no amount of persuasion would have made them believe what happened when Usman made that command. Right before their eyes, the scorpions on the floor caught fire and exploded . An invisible force lifted Anna and flung her on the floor. That gigantic scorpion which had gone into Anna crept out of her body burning with great fire. Usman must have got high on the result he got. He ran towards the scorpion and put his feet on it, shouting, “Usman shall tread upon serpents and scorpions!” Whatever happened to the scorpion when Usman matched on it, no one could tell. If he crushed it into the ground or it went into his body, there was no explaining it. When Anna got up from the floor, she looked stunned, wondering what had happened.

Usman was eager to hear from Melinda and her friends about the kind of demonic manifestation he saw that night came to hunt them; Melinda obliged him and gave him a detailed account of how it all began. Usman was shocked by the gory tale he heard

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. He however could not figure out why they failed to get Strong Pastor involved in their renewed plight. “Why didn’t you get the pastor whom you mentioned involved all these while?” asked Usman. “He has been out of Lagos for long. We gathered he is in the Gambia on a mission work”, replied Melinda. “I do not believe you need to get down to the temple of this occult group or the grave you mentioned to destroy this evil force. I can make a decree from here and your friend would be sent free from the bottle you mentioned. Oh my God! Young woman, did you see what God did to the scorpions? I can unleash the mighty name of Jesus from here and the scorpion spirit you call Ayari will turn against the occult men who invoked it against you! Do you believe this can happen?” Melinda and her friends, including Jeff echoed. “Yes we believe!”

“Now let us begin. Mark my words. You will get to their temple in the morning and see it in devasation. A battle is coming! A bigger battle is shaping up even as I speak, but before it begins, it shall end swiftly. Relax. God has raised a man to do your battle! I see him dressed in blood, I see him mocking at the lifeless bodies of his enemies. Who is Simon amongst you?” asked Usman. “He is the one locked in a bottle”, replied Ochuma. “He is the Man of War! We need to pray for God to break his spirit out of that bottle” They all began to pray as Usman led them. Even Doctor Briggs joined them. A passer-by would have mistaken the hospital for a church. Everyone prayed, including nurses and patients who dragged themselves out of their sick bed. The bottle in which, Simon’s spirit had been locked cracked. When the bottle cracked Michael and the elders of Circle of Stars were in a meeting in one of their secret chambers in the temple. After laboring much in prayers, Usman told Melinda and the others to go to sleep. He assured them that the battle was over. Usman left the hospital and returned home that late night. Austin and the others were a bit skeptical about sleeping. However before long they all dozed off out of weariness.

About 4:00 am in the morning,a large cloud of darkness swept into the hospital while they all slept. Michael, in Simon’s body, emerged from the cloud, followed by two elders, one of the elders was okunowo. The three of them had razor sharp machetes. Michael walked over to where Melinda and the others lay and told Okunowo to lift Melinda into the cloud of darkness. Okunowo lifted Melinda while she still slept and carried her into the swirling cloud of darkness. “These are the heads I asked for and none of you could give them to me. Now I have to take them myself”. Michael without hesitation swung his machete upon Austin’s neck and Austin body fell off the bench upon which he slept. Michael stepped over to Osoba’s body and asked the elder by his side to pick up Austin’s head.

When the elder stooped to look under the bench for Austin’s head, he suddenly moaned and grabbed his neck. Between his fingers which held his neck, blood surged. Michael was shocked; he couldn’t figure out what happened. One of his elders was dying someone had slit his throat.

Michael was scared, as he retreated from Osoba, he saw Austin sleeping like a baby under the bench with his head in place. He was certain that just some seconds earlier he had beheaded Austin. As Michael stood watching in utter shock, he felt being chocked inside Simon’s body. He called out to elder Okunowo who was inside the swirling cloud of darkness keeping an eye on Melinda. Okunowo raced out to him for help, when he drew closer, Michael raised his machete in his hand and lumped off his head. He didn’t want to do that, but he did it. Michael jumped into the cloud, kicked Melinda out of it and vanished. Melinda landed on the floor and woke up with a fit of anxiety. Her eyes darted about as she breathed heavily. She didn’t even know when she slept off or how she ended up at the spot she woke from. She sprang to her feet and then saw two dead bodies on the floor; she noticed they were dressed like persian priest. “Austin! Verah!” Shouted Melinda. The alarm in Melinda’s voice startled all of them. They woke up thinking they were under attack. “Look at these! They must be from Circle of Stars”, announced Melinda. “If I am right, these are some of the elders of Circle of stars”, said Osoba. “Christ! They came here to kill us; but what could have killed them?” asked Austin. “This much we know, they are dying; someone certainly is killing them. I think we should head down to their temple and finish this off”, said Etim with enthusiasm.

Without much ado they gathered their stuffs and went into Osoba’s bus.
Early that morning when Michael returned to the temple of the Circle of Stars, he met a commotion. A swarm of shadow scorpions had invaded the temple and were devouring the elders. The prayer said at the hospital had turned Ayari against them. The elders were happy to see Michael back at the temple. They were hopeful he would use his enormous power to banish the scorpions; but much to their shock, Michael needed help as well. He seemed uncomfortable in Simon’s body and moved nervously. With unsteady steps he moved into the inner chambers of the temple, and when he returned, he had in his hand one of the persian blades which adorned the temple. He gave the elders no chance at all to escape. He moved like ghost. One after another he took their heads. The elders were confused they didn’t know who to run from; whether the shadow scorpions which devoured them or their lord who had gone mad. What the elders did not figure out was that Simon had retaken his body; he was having a fight inside his body with Michael and was winning. He made Michael do things he would ordinarily not want to do. When he was done with the elders, he staggered back into the chamber where Michael’s body was kept in a cone-like coffin and pushed out the coffin into the temple.

He dragged out Michael’s body from the coffin. At this point, Michael’s voice could be heard in the temple but not from simon’s body. Simon had gained a greater control over his body. He found a few priestly garments in the temple and dropped them on Michael’s body. Michael could tell what Simon was about to do; Simon was going to burn his body and those of the dead elders.

Michael’s voice grew louder in the temple and objects flew about at his command. Simon was undeterred, after gathering materials he felt could make a bone fire; he set Michael’s body on fire. Amazingly he didn’t hear Michael’s voice after he set his body on fire. He still wasn’t done; he went back into the chambers and found gallons of oil (only God knew what they used them for) and emptied them all over the temple. As the rays of early morning sun shone into the temple, Simon discovered that what he had mistaken for oil was actually blood; the elders stored human blood in gallons. Though he was disappointed that the blood won’t help him start the kind of fire he hoped to start, he was however glad he poured them out on the floor. He had to make do with the veils and curtains in the temple to set the temple on fire. Simon stood outside and watched as the fire grew and feverishly overwhelmed the temple and all the things in it. He smiled, happy that the fight had finally come to an end, but he was wrong. The gallons of blood he emptied on the floor had awakened Michael and all the dead elders. With fire on their bodies, they dragged themselves out of the temple and came after Simon.

Simone was shocked to see them alive. Most of the elders had no heads, their bodies just dragged toward Simon. Michael was in the lead, with his eyes flaming. Simon’s only detense was the blade in his hand, the wall and the gate were too high for him to scale. There was little time for him to have a plan; he just threw himself into the battle.

He aimed at Michael’s outstretched arms as he reached to grab him and slashed them off. He stepped backward and hacked the blade into Michael’s right leg; the blow left Michael’s limb hanging only on sinews and flesh from the knee. Thankfully the fire began to over power the elders; one after another they fell to the ground. Michael stood on a foot still burning; he couldn’t move having lost two arms and a foot. Simon moved back like an athlete about to leap over a high jump and aimed at Michael’s head. “Now old friend, I would like to see you rise again”, Simon gloated. By now the roof of the temple had begun to burn, people from miles could see it. Simon looked around, searching for a means to get away. Then he heard a pounding sound on the gate. He ran to hide and listened to the voices at the gate. He picked one umistakable voice. It was Melinda’s. She was shouting an order to someone, “Ram the gate down! Simon is inside, we can’t let him die!” Simon ran out of his hiding place shouting, “Melinda I am fine!” As he drew near to the gate there was a heavy bang on the gate. It jangled and collapsed to the ground. Simon stood still watching in unbelief, his friends would stoop at nothing to save him. Melinda and the others ran into the compound following behind Osoba’s bus with which they tore down the gate. They were all armed to the teeth and ready for a fight.

They all stood still when they saw Simon standing in the middle of the compound holding a persian blade in his hand. They had been told Michael was in Simon’s body; so they could not tell who was standing before them, whether Michael or Simon. Osoba jumped out of his bus and demanded, “Who is in that body, Simon or Michael? Declare yourself!” “Hello friends, it is me Simon. The battle is over take it easy!” None of them moved, they had seen enough to believe Michael and the elders could do anything to deceive them. “I think it is Simon. Who could have set the temple on fire?” said Melinda. “Melinda don’t assume anything, we don’t know what happened here yet”, said Austin. Verah stepped closer and commanded, “You foul spirit masquerading as Simon, I command you in the Name of Jesus bow to your knees!”

Simon stood still and watched them; a few seconds passed and he said, “It is me Simon, Michael had left my body. Look at him; I burnt him and the elders. I fought him out of my body. I burnt the temple. I was already free when he came to the hospital to kill you all. It is me Simon!” Osoba moved and stood before Simon and said, “If he so much as moves a finger, cut him down!” Osoba studied him to know if he was real and then said to Austin. “Bring the fire from the temple, we are going to burn him!” “No Osoba you can’t burn him, he is Simon for real”, protested Melinda.
Simon tightened his grip around the blade in his hand and narrowed his gaze on Osoba’s neck. Austin returned with some coals of fire and kept them in-between Simon’s legs.

Read " Urenma (The River Goddess) " by the same author ( Ifeoma Isabella Okeke )

. “Wait Osoba! There is another way to prove whether Simon is the one inside that body. I am going to pray, if he reacts violently kill him”, said Verah.

Verah came close and began to pray, “Heavenly Father if there be any foul spirit in this man or any other human spirit other than his own. I command now let there be a violent reaction in him in the Name of Jesus!” Simon responded, “Amen!” Verah paused and asked, “Simon is that really you?” “Verah it is me! I burnt these people you see here. I destroyed their temple. I burnt Michael’s coffin and the body; there he lies dead! I think we should leave now, the police will be here any moment!”
Melinda rushed forward and put her hand on Simon’s head and declared. “If you are not Simon. I command Holy Ghost……………” The others responded “Fire!” Simon began to laugh at them, they all hugged him and hurried into Osoba’s bus.

On the road back to the city they all wanted to know how Simon got out of the bottle; he explained to them that the bottle cracked and his spirit floated out of it like air. While the others harrowed Simon with questions and told tales of their horror adventure. Melinda rested her head on Austin’s chest, and said, “Babe I think it is about time we had that wedding”.

The End.

Do you believe the story has really end? What if Michael found a way and came back to be the Son of Melinda and Austin. Has the battle truly end. (Lol just joking oooo)

Thanks to those who read and commented on this story, I am really grateful to you all.

May the Grace of the Lord be with us
Amen

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Urenma (The River Goddess)