Chapter 2: 2 .Where Elephants Fight
"I just received instructions from our father," Esan says, with a big smile on his face, he starts to tell the revelation to Iku but Iku cuts in.
"Ogun had to wait hundreds of years before talking to his sons, all of them had to. Why you smile like a little child about that bothers me, but right now we have some demons to deal with, brother and I feel the presence of a dark spirit, too."
"Be calm my Lord," Akpena interrupts him.
"Tell me what to do one more time and Eledumare himself would have to come down here to rescue you from me, old man!" Iku snaps at him.
"You blaspheme, brother," Esan cautions.
"Oh but I don't care, Esan. The gods woke us up after locking us away for hundreds of years and for what? So that we can fight their war again, a war they wouldn't even tell us anything about!" Iku screams as he walks around the cubic room.
"We were made to do the biddings of the gods, brother. I thought you enjoyed the fighting. What exactly are you angry about, Iku?" Esan asks.
"Well, I am sick, tired, and angry!" Iku replies.
"You're always angry, brother. Though I know not whom or what causes your anger now."
An explosion is heard at the gate and the three of them rushes to check what had caused it. The gate has been destroyed and demons have infiltrated the compound.
"Esin. I knew I felt the presence of a dark spirit," Esan says as he unsheathes his sword, which starts to glow red as it did before.
"That bastard took a lot of our brothers, Iku. Tonight we avenge them. Unleash the fury of the gods on this whoreson and his minions," Esan says as he points his sword at the enemy.
"I couldn't agree more with you, brother. I promise you Esin's head tonight," Iku replies and charges at the enemy head-on, cutting the demons standing in his way to shreds with his scythes.
"Won't you join in the fight, my Lord?" Akpena asks Esan.
"I'd only be in my brother's way. He probably wouldn't even recognize me by now. Everything is the enemy to him in this state, you see."
Esin watched from where the destroyed gate stood, but when he couldn't bear the sight of Iku destroying his demons, he charges at him himself.
As in the dark spirit of suffering and dishonor. The perfect answer to Iku, the warrior spirit of death, was created by the unnamed god. These two have been rivals since the war between the gods. When the unnamed god went against the other gods and sought their destruction.
The unnamed god stole the knowledge of creation from Orunmila, the god of wisdom and peace, he then created the dark spirits in order to fight the other gods and destroy them.
He stole the cunning from Eshu, the god of mischief and trickery, then tricked Ogun the god of metal, weaponry, and war. He got Ogun drunk on white Palm wine and stole the secret of weaponry from him, then created weapons strong enough to kill a god.
Esin charges at Iku and as he unsheathes a large sword that had been concealed under his cloak, Esan screams. "That's a god killer!"
Iku was too busy to hear his brother's warning. Esin strikes at him, Iku blocks the attack with his scythes but the impact sends him flying and tumbling until he lands in front of Esan.
He stands up and removes his hood to expose his face. Iku's skin is pale like that of a dead man's, his head is covered by grey dreadlocks that goes down his shoulders and his eye is just two giant holes filled with darkness.
He stares at his brother with anger on his face. "He wields one of the god killer weapons."
"I warned you but your anger blocked your hearing," Esan replies.
"One hit from that sword, even a scratch is fatal to us. What's the plan." Iku asks as he grabs his weapons.
"Do I hear things, brother? Iku you want me to tell you what to do?" Esan teases him and starts to laugh.
Esin walks some paces towards them, sticks the tip of his large sword into the ground, and screams as loud as he can. "You two stand no chance, you are outnumbered and I have a god killer."
Esan continues to laugh and pays no interest to what Esin is saying.
"Stop this foolishness at once!" Iku snaps at him.
"I am thinking. Brother let me think." Esan whispers and continues to laugh. Akpena joins the laughter too.
"Oh the old fool joins him," Iku laments and shakes his head in disbelief.
"I ask you to surrender peacefully or in my master's name die here and now, the choice is yours," Esin concludes.
Esan suddenly stops laughing, looks at Iku, wild-eyed.
"Do you remember when we battled the last Uaka in Benin?" He asks.
On hearing this Iku looks roguishly at Esan. " It's about time we do that again." He replies as he starts running towards Esin's position.
Esin retrieves the god killer sword. " I guess death dies tonight." He starts running toward Iku's position.
The two of them met and, their swords clashes and sends flares of energy that pushes them back a few paces. Iku thrusts the curved edge of his scythes into the ground in order to balance himself. He grunts as he struggles against the energy wave."Being this close to the sword alone weakens me." He thinks.
As Iku struggles to hold on, Esin, already recovered enough walks toward him, lifts up the god killer, and whispers. "Know that it will fill my dark heart with so much joy to watch you have a taste of your own medicine, death."
Iku screams. "Now, brother!" A portal opens behind Esin and Esan emerges from the portal. Esin turns to his back and is met with a stab. Esan thrusts Idajo into his heart.
"It is my sword that fills your dark heart, Esin. It isn't joy." Esan says as he stares into Esin's quizzical face. On seeing what happened, the shadow walkers retreat into the shadows and vanish one after the other.
Esin starts to fall into pieces as the sword Idajo sucks the life out of him, Iku walks over to him and with a slash decapitates him. He picks up the head and throws it at Esan who stares at him slack-jawed.
" He was already dead, Iku," Esan complains.
"No, he wasn't." Iku disagrees as he cleans his weapons.
"He was dying." Esan insists.
"I promised you his head and I delivered it." Iku groans.
"You have issues, brother. You do." Iku replies and bursts into laughter.
"Bring us some white Palm wine my good friend, Akpena. The gods must be celebrated, for we have vanquished the wretch called Esin."
Akpena appears with the gourd of wine, struggling to keep his balance.
"I thought the demons had gotten this one while he cowered like a little child." Iku murmurs as he continues to clean his scythes.
"He is immortal, Iku. No demon would dare harm him, only the gods can." Esan spits and stretches his hand to collect a calabash filled with white Palm wine. He sips the wine, exclaims in satisfaction, and begins to dance.
Iku continues to clean his already shining scythes, focussing on them unblinkingly.
"You're a fucking drunk like Ogun. No wonder you're always ready to answer his call, even when he locked you away for hundreds of years."
"You don't hate a child for taking after his father, Iku," Esan replies, looking dreamy as he continues to dance and drink. He looks at the destruction caused by their fight and thinks to himself.
"We are supposed to protect the world and those who inhabit it, but the things we can do puts them in more danger. We are in fact the problems we seek to solve. We want to keep the peace, so we create weapons, but weapons do one thing and that is to destroy. We are not much better than the humans themselves and wherever Elephants fight, it is the grasses that suffer."
Esan dances for a while, he sits down beside Iku and offers him a calabash of wine. Iku finally stops cleaning his scythes and collects the wine and sips it.
"This thing tastes as good as I remembered." He murmurs and gives Esan a sideways glance.
Esan's eyes widen in surprise. "Nothing tastes better, brother." He smirks.
They hear the sound of footsteps coming from the destroyed gate and they both raise their faces to see who comes their way.
"Our brother Ogbon is here." Esan declares with a radiant look on his face.
"Welcome, brother!" He screams at Ogbon who walks slowly towards their position as if his giant head is too heavy to be carried by his little body.
Ogbon is the warrior spirit of wisdom and trickery. He was created by both Orunmila and Eshu, the trickster.
He is clad in a white robe that goes down his small body. The robe is so long it would take two more people if his size.
"What in the seven hells is he wearing?" Iku whispers, looking glazed as he continues to sip his palm wine.
Esan drops his calabash of wine, walks toward Ogbon, and takes him by his arm.
"Welcome home, brother." He then hugs him.
They both stood there for a while. "Let's get you inside, kid." Esan whispers to him and tries to let go of him but Ogbon grabs him tightly and mumbles, "They got Imo. Find the weapon."
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone