Iyanda

This is a tale of Love, of Bravery, of Pride, of Sacrifice, and of War. 

A tale of Life and of Death…

This is a tale of three, a god, a prince, and a lovely princess.

*

Princess Iyanda was the fairest of them all. Yes, she was indeed beautiful. Her hair stretched down her back like the great rivers of Idale, her face, shining like the Sun in its full radiance. She had the lips of a goddess, and her body was shaped like the fine contours of the earth itself.

Princess Iyanda was the jewel of her father's eyes. Indeed, she was a jewel in the eyes of all the neighbouring Princes, but she had eyes for only one, the handsome Prince Aremu of Ibale.

How handsome he was, graceful and royal in carriage and disposition. There was none like him, at least to her.

'Come with me,' he had told her, 'you'll be my queen'. He had asked for her hand in marriage but her father had refused.

The Kings of Idale and Ibale were arch enemies and even though the king of ibale was dead, her father had stated he would rather die than have his daughter betrothed to the heir of the Ibale throne. The feud between the rulers wasn't about to end even though one was late. The sins of the father would be passed to the son, her father would say.

They had been meeting secretly just to see each other. At one time, she even thought of eloping with Prince Aremu to Ibale but she knew the repercussion would be severe. Her father would have razed the whole of Ibale to have her back.

Her Prince Aremu…His lips were so firm…so masculine. His arms strong and yet gentle. She was his Queen and he was her Prince. Her heart yearned for the day she was going to be his queen.

Everyday she prayed, and everyday she begged her father to reconsider his stand. Everyday he refused, and everyday she cried herself to sleep. She knew one day her dreams would come true, one day she would be together with her one and only love.

It became harder as each day passed to live without him. Any day without his smile and gentle arms was like torture to her soul.

Unknown to her, her dreams to be with Aremu was about to be shattered. On that faithful day when everything was about to change, she was summoned to the palace court by her father. Right next to her father sat a stranger she had never seen before. His attire gave off his royalty and her father's disposition revealed the king's fondness of the young royalty.

'This is Ogidi, a great king from a distant land,' her father said cheerfully. From the old king's smile it was obvious he had been totally charmed by the young king. She could see why her father was so charmed, the young king Ogidi reeked of powerful royalty.

He was taller than the tallest man in Idale, almost four arm lengths. He was well built, with the most powerful arms she had ever seen on a man. His jaw was well shaped and his mouth was straight and pointed. His skin was the finest ebony, smooth and spotless, shiny to the extent of reflecting his surroundings.

His hair was plaited and he had two large gold ear rings in both ears. His attire was made of the most beautiful hide she had ever seen; she didn't even recognize what kind of animal produced such hide. Underneath the hide was a lace gown strewn with gold threads. His entourage also looked powerful and gracious, but they were nothing compared to Ogidi. 

She couldn't get her eyes of the young king even if she wanted badly to. He sensed her gaze and returned it with a smile, bowing gently. His eyes were like fire that seemed to see right through her soul. His stare had the strangest effect on her. She felt all the hair on her body stand, as if under a force. She suddenly had the strangest attraction to this total stranger. He conjured a passion in her that made her legs quiver.

'He has come to ask for your hand in marriage,' her father said excitedly.

'But father,' she was going to protest.

'Stop!' her father commanded, not giving anything she had to say a chance. 'You will do as I say, because I know what is best for you,' he paused, as if to allow his admonition sink in, 'this fine young king has come a long way to seek your hand and so far, I consider him a most suitable suitor for you.'

'But-'

'Say no more,' her father ordered.

'Your majesty,' the stranger said in the most masculine and graceful voice she had ever heard, 'maybe she needs time to consider my proposition. I must say she's the most beautiful of all the princesses I've seen in all the kingdoms I have journeyed through.' He smiled at her, knowing his flattery obviously impressed the king.

'Indeed, she has been groomed by the finest. She's not only beautiful but also wise. She has the wisdom of her mother, the late queen. My queen, the most amazing wife,' the king looked up in a reflective mood.

'I'm sorry to hear your queen is late,' Ogidi was quick to interject, trying to console the king.

'Oh! She's alive in my memory. In there she'll never die,' the king of Idale had made up his mind about his daughter's suitor. 'We shall celebrate tonight. Iyanda go and prepare for the feast, wear your finest attire,' the king gestured in a celebratory mood.

She was in love with Prince Aremu, and though she wouldn't deny being almost immediately attracted to this ruler from a distant land, she had given her heart to Aremu. In spite of her love for Aremu, something in the eyes and smile of Ogidi conjured feelings she had never felt, feelings she could not explain.

'Yes father,' she knelt before her father. She was ready to challenge her own emotions, she definitely wanted to know more about this strange ruler, 'I will see you at the feast,' she said to the stranger, turning to leave the court, not even taking a glance at the stranger.

She felt the eyes of the stranger piercing her back. She knew she was treading a dangerous path. She knew it would have been wisest to abscond with Aremu, but this stranger conjured the strangest of feelings in her and she wanted to know more about him. Just before she exited, she turned back and caught the eyes of the stranger, piercing and full of mystery. He smiled at her, and she smiled back.

*

The feast was strange indeed. Ogidi seemed to have everyone present under a spell, even her father fawned at him. He was the cynosure of everything around. One would have even thought he was the King of Idale. Or maybe she was just imagining things, after all the feast was in his honour.

He left her father's side and walked up to where she sat. 'My Queen,' he smiled and bowed lightly.

'Your Queen? I have not even accepted your proposal,' any attraction she felt for this stranger was already starting to wane. Why had she even taken notice of him, Aremu was the love of her life, 'and by the way, I am already betrothed,' she ended sharply.

'Not anymore. You are betrothed to me now,' the strange king replied conclusively.

Who did this man think he was? She thought. Even if he was the most handsome man she had ever seen, and even if he had completely charmed everyone in the palace including her father, she wasn't going to fall for him. 'Will you excuse me, I choose not to continue with this conversation,' she was already getting irritated.

Ogidi just stood there smiling, she felt uncomfortable as the handsome King just stared at her saying nothing. Suddenly, he pulled her to himself. 'Look into my eyes,' he commanded, and to her surprise, she immediately obliged. His eyes were a pair of the most amazing eyes she had ever seen. Something in those eyes seemed to attract her to the king.

'You will come with me tomorrow,' he said conclusively.

'Ye-'

'No!' She couldn't believe she had almost agreed to what he said. What was getting into her head? What was he doing to her? She tried pulling away from him, but he held on to her firmly.

'Tomorrow, we shall journey to my kingdom and you shall be my queen,' King Ogidi smiled, a mischievous look on his face. He had succeeded in penetrating the young princess's defence.

'Yes I will, my lord,' she answered not knowing how or why, all she knew was that this stranger was the most attractive man she had ever seen and she was going to spend the rest of her life with him. Aremu was now only a memory, a distant memory that was no more. Ogidi, this totally irresistible stranger was now the love of her life. The love she had been waiting for.

'Good,' Ogidi smiled, satisfied with himself.

The next day, they set out for king Ogidi's kingdom, Iyanda with all her servants.

*

Prince Aremu had waited all night for princess Iyanda at their usual meeting point, somewhere in the hills between Ibale and Idale. One hour turned to two, and then to three, until it was dawn and he could catch a glimpse of the rising Sun.

Why hadn't princess Iyanda showed up? He thought. Something must have been wrong. It was unlike princess Iyanda not to keep to her words.

He would go and look for her in the palace in Idale, and he would not leave without her, even if it cost him his life. The king of Idale, princess Iyanda's father, would have to kill him this time.

When he got to the Idale palace, he knew something was wrong. Everyone, from the palace guards to the servants wore a forlorn expression on their faces. Even the king had his face buried in his hands as he sat dejected on his throne.

He looked around for princess Iyanda and he couldn't spot her anywhere around.

'Your Majesty, I'm here for princess Iyanda,' he bowed, almost defiant, but respectful. To his surprise, the king looked up and just sighed. 'Where is she your majesty,' he tried to keep his voice low.

'I wish I could answer you,' the king replied, his shoulders sagged in defeat, his face blank and morose. 'My daughter is gone, and it is entirely my fault.'

'Your majesty, what are you talking about,' he was getting more confused as time passed.

'If I had known, I would have betrothed her to you, but I was blinded by my hatred for your father the king of Ibale. Now she is with a total stranger on her way to a kingdom we don't even know anything about. I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye. I don't even know when or how she left,' he sighed again, nodding his head.

'Your majesty, you gave Iyanda to a total stranger? I do not understand,' who had taken iyanda? What was his princess Iyanda's father talking about?

'He had us all under his spell. I had no control of what I was doing. Now it is too late, I have my daughter betrothed to a powerful one who has her under his spell. What have I done?' his voice was filled with anguish and bitterness.

What was the king talking about? That princess Iyanda was gone, and with a total stranger? He wanted to pull his sword and strike the king but he knew better than to loose his composure. It was entirely his fault, if he had eloped with princess Iyanda, her foolish father wouldn't have given her away cheaply. 'We must find her'.

'We followed her trail immediately we regained our senses, but it just seemed to lead to nowhere. It's as if …they just vanished. What have I done to deserve this,' the king once more buried his face in his hands.

'I'll find her,' Aremu said, devoid of emotion, only hard set resolve and pure rage. He would find his Princess, 'I will find her and I will bring her back.'

'I'll have my best warriors go with you and may the god's go with you,' the king stood up and walked up to Aremu hugging him tightly, 'my son.'

Aremu stood there, in the king's hug, close to tears. This was going to be his father in-law. Any animosity he had felt towards the king immediately disappeared. It broke his heart that Iyanda was gone, but he wouldn't blame it on the old man. He was going to find her and everything would be fine. He hugged the king tightly like a son would a father. 'I will find her and bring her back to you…I promise.' Even if it was the last thing he did, he was going to bring his princess back, and together they shall rule Ibale, he as king and Iyanda as his queen.

He was going to assemble the finest of his soldiers, and along side the soldiers of Idale, they were going to go after this Ogidi and rescue his princess. He was going to assemble an army of ten thousand soldiers from Ibale, Idale, and other neighbouring kingdoms that owed him favours. 

He was ready for war, but war with whom. He had no idea were this Ogidi was from; where his kingdom was, who his people were, where Iyanda was.

'I'll find you my love,' he said facing the sky. How could he live without her…there was no way he could.

There was only one person he could go to. Only one person could tell him where Iyanda was. Itan the wise one, who knows all and sees all, who is one with the gods and they, one with him.

'This will be a difficult quest my prince, for here you deal not with an ordinary being,' Itan had told him when they met.

'What do you mean he is no ordinary man, he might be powerful in magical things, but even his magic will be no match for my sword when we meet,' Prince Aremu said raising his sword.

'You do not understand, my prince. You deal with no ordinary man here…as a matter of fact you deal with no man but a god,' Itan knew the Prince's quest was a forlorn one, for no man stood against a god and lived.

'A god!' Aremu couldn't believe what he just heard. If it hadn't come from Itan the wise one, he would have thought it foolishness. 'I don't understand.'

'Yes, a god. Ogidi is no ordinary being but a god. Ogidi is the god of the high seas. In Ibale, we know him as Odo. He is known by other names in other places. Prince Aremu, no mere man battles the gods and lives,' Itan nodded his head hopelessly.

'Where then is Iyanda?' for Iyanda, Aremu would battle ten gods. His life meant nothing without Iyanda. He could not live without her.

'Where she is, no man dares ventures. She is with Ogidi in the land of the gods,' Itan replied.

'How do I get there?' he had made up his mind.

Itan saw the determined look on Aremu's face. He would have tried his best to dissuade Aremu from embarking on this suicide mission, but he knew Aremu, if Aremu sensed he had knowledge about the way to the land of the gods, the young king would not hesitate to strike him dead if he didn't get what he wanted. 

'You embark on a suicide mission, I must warn you, but since I value my life, and because you are my king, I will tell you how to get there,' Itan knew his king would never make it out of the land of the gods, but he had no choice. It saddened him that he was sending his king to an early grave.

*

The Armada…the ships were hundred in all, a centurion for every ship. We all had one aim in mind…war.

We were on our way to the greatest battle of all time, a battle against the gods, and we were not afraid. In our minds, we would conquer and rescue the fair princess Iyanda.

It was the seventh hour of the seventh day of the seventh month where the gateway between the land of man and the world of gods opened up in the high seas.

We sailed east toward the sunset, and at the seventh hour, the Sun set granting us passage into the land of the gods. Just as Itan had said, it was only through the magic of seven that we could gain entrance into the land of the gods. 

We had sailed for seven days, seven treacherous and challenging days in the raging storm of the high seas. Even the seas fought us, but we prevailed. The spirits of our own courage and determination was too strong for the treacherous seas.

On exactly the seventh hour of the seventh day, a translucent orb engulfed us in the high seas. Coming out of the orb, what was once a clear sea was now covered in fog? Alas, we were in the land of the gods.

*

They couldn't see their hands even if they put it in front of them. They were in enemy territory. Aremu had to make sure they were all calm and ready.

'Alas we arrive the land of the gods, and alas we shall leave with princess Iyanda,' he said, gallantly raising his sword. The ten thousand man army raised their swords in unison, chanting and cheering.

Suddenly, the fog cleared, and right in front of them, facing them was an even greater number of ships. The war was about to begin.

'Destroy the humans,' came what sounded like an enraged lion roaring from the commander of the enemy ships. He was not human but a hideous giant with massive horns and red blazing eyes. In his hand was the largest sword any of them had ever seen. 

'Charge!' he screamed.

The ships charged at them, and they charged at the ships. The two fleets moved faster towards each other, battle ready, poised for mayhem.

Suddenly, fiery darts started falling from the skies catching his men one after the other. They soon returned the attack with their own hail of arrows. Some of the creatures in the advancing enemy ships went down in throngs. The demons fell to the human arrows, but rose as quickly as they fell, for the human arrows could not harm them for they where immortals.

The brave warriors fought on, falling one by one to the onslaught of the immortal beings. The battle waged on for seven days, and though some were able to get to the shore of the land of the gods, they didn't get too far.

On the seventh day of the battle, all except one of the ten thousand had fallen to the might of the immortals. They fought gallantly and bravely to their ends to save the princess of their king's heart whom had become the princess of their heart, for to these men the desire of their king was also their own desire.

Prince Aremu was taken, almost dead, but still alive to the dungeons of the god of the high seas, Ogidi, for he wanted the prince alive.

In the dungeons, he found solace in the dream world, and didn't want to wake up, for in the dream world, princess iyanda was still his'.

She was right beside him as he ruled Ibale. They held each others' hands and sang together. Then they left the court and were on a ship, sailing in the high seas, singing to each other. The sounds of the waves were love songs, and the wind whispered poems of the heart. In the dream she was his, and he would never let her go.

Then suddenly, the sea started roaring like a ferocious animal, and the wind shrieked; a deathly, sickening scream.

What was happening to his perfect dream? What was happening? Thunder, lightening…the ship started to rock violently, quaking from the force of the waves around it. They were both tossed from one part of the ship to the other, until the ship suddenly gave way to the force of the sea, ripped apart in the middle, the ship scattering in different directions, throwing Iyanda and himself into the raging sea.

He held on to Iyanda, trying to save her from the abyss that was the waves. The violent waves tugged and pulled dragging Iyanda from his grip. He began to lose hold of her, until the wave suddenly tore them apart. She disappeared in only a moment, taken away by the ferocious sea. Then he was in a vortex, right in the middle of the sea. He was being sucked in and there was nothing he could do. He fought and thrashed to no avail.

Powerless, he was slowly being pulled into the vortex with tremendous force. He took a look at the doom that awaited him in the darkness of the vortex, and right there in the middle of the vortex was Ogidi's laughing face, taunting him, teasing him, mocking him…

He tried to swim against the force of the vortex but couldn't, he was drawn closer to the evil face in the darkness. He tried to fight the force but he was powerless against it.

'NO!' he screamed as he was suddenly jerked and sucked into the dark abyss that was Ogidi's mouth. Then he was falling and falling, into the endless abyss.

'NO!' darkness engulfed him, and doom caressed him. Then he landed.

The floor was murky and wet. It was still dark but he could make out a shape opposite him. His head spun and his whole body ached; he wondered why he was still alive after such a fall.

'You are awake now,' an old man's voice spoke in the darkness, 'you are in Ogidi's palace dungeon, and I'm Ake, ruler of the dwarf people and god of the deep forest.'

He sat up and stretched his hands. Even his lovely dream had been taken by Ogidi. 

Oh! Iyanda, how I miss your warm embrace, as long as I am alive my purpose would be to rescue you from the evil Ogidi and make you my queen. 

'Who are you?'Ake asked, this time he was closer to Aremu, until he was right in front of him.

Ake was a dwarf indeed; Aremu now had a closer look at the short man. He had a sturdy rotund muscular frame, with a long curled grey beard.

'I am Aremu, ruler of Ibale people,' he said not wanting to go on.

'What brings you here?' Ake asked, wanting to know why the young handsome ruler was locked in the dungeon with him.

He didn't really want to talk much but there was something very accommodating about the dwarf king that made him just want to divulge everything. Besides, he wanted to share his heart ache, and Ake was the only one around.

'It is a long story, but to cut the long story short, Ogidi, the ruler of this place took my princess by casting a spell on her. I came here with an army to rescue her, but they were defeated…they are all dead. I am now trapped here, a prisoner of the one who stole my queen,' he couldn't go on; his failure to rescue Iyanda was too much to bear. 

'I have failed her,' Aremu said in deep melancholy.

'No you haven't. As long as there is life, there is hope, and you are still alive, so there is hope that one day you can get to rescue your princess. I will tell you my story,' they both sat down on a stone slab at a corner of the dungeon.

'I was also locked here by Ogidi, and my people work for him as slaves. I might have failed my people, but I hold on to the hope that one day I will leave this dungeon and free my people or someone else will do it,' Ake said, placing his hand on Aremu's shoulder, hope emanating from the dwarf's old wrinkled face. Aremu could only wonder where such hope came from.

'Are you really the god of the deep forests,' Aremu asked wondering why he couldn't use his powers to rescue both of them. Maybe the old man had become disillusioned from being in the dungeon for too long.

'Oh! You think I am mad,' the old man said. Aremu was shocked that the old man had read his mind, 'and no I can not read your mind. I am old and from experience I know the human mind can be very monotonous and feeble, hence very predictable. Yes I am the god of the deep forests, and no I can not use my powers to rescue us both for I have been stripped of my powers,' Ake stared ahead at nothing in particular in the dungeon, lost in his thought.

'When Ogidi conquered my kingdom, he also conquered me and took my powers. Now he possesses my powers and he's stronger than ever,' the dwarf god said.

'That means he can never be defeated,' Aremu said, realising how hopeless his course was.

'Yes he can,' Ake smiled, he turned to face Aremu. 'You can defeat him Aremu.'

Aremu looked at the dwarf god in shock; he hadn't told Ake his name.

Ake's smile widened knowing what was on Aremu's mind, 'Inside you dwells something stronger than Ogidi, stronger than me, stronger than the whole Universe.'

'What is that?' Aremu asked what powers Ake was referring to. He didn't know of any powers he possessed except for his physical strength which waned as every minute passed.

'Love, Aremu,' the old man said, 'Love conquers all, and it is only with love that you can defeat the evil Ogidi. In you I have seen no greater love for another and this, Aremu, is the key to conquering Ogidi and rescuing your princess…and my people.'

Ake took the hand of the young prince and looked into his eyes, 'make love your greatest weapon, and your greatest strength, and you will surely defeat Ogidi.'

'But, I…' the doors of the dungeon suddenly busted open and four hefty guards came in and dragged Aremu out, 'I don't understand,' he yelled and they dragged him out of the dungeon.

'Keep quiet,' one of the guards barked, hitting him at the back of his head.

'Love is the key,' Ake answered at the top of his voice.

Ten other heavily armed guards waited outside the gate of the dungeon, joining the guards with Aremu, they all led him away from the dungeon. He knew this was the end; the guards were leading him to be executed. The end had finally come, and he would never inhale the sweet smell of Iyanda's love again. Life had dealt with him a hard blow; maybe death would bring solace and take the pain away.

He could see dwarfs working at every turn they made. Ake was right; his people were really in torment. They carried heavy boulders, were made to break rocks that were virtually unbreakable, they dug pits, pulled weights ten times their size, they were whipped, and beaten, scorned at…The dwarfs really needed redemption. But he would never be the redeemer, he was being led to his end, and there was nothing he could do about it. They would have to wait for another redeemer.

Over a hundred enemy soldiers now surrounded him, with looks of extreme animosity on their faces. They didn't hide their hatred for him, the mere mortal that dared try to conquer them. 

They led him to a dome that was already filled with spectators; and what a spectacle he would be, he thought. Murmurs of amusement filled the air as he was led to the middle of the dome where he was bound in even heavier chains.

The end had finally come, every hope in him had vanished, and there was nothing more he longed for than death.

The crowd suddenly went silent. He looked up at the crowd and saw the reason they were silent; Ogidi stood, his hands raised in mid-air and next to him was the most beautiful lady, both in the land of mere men and that of the gods. Iyanda!

How could he give up on her, he never would. As long as he could still breathe, he would never give up. Her beauty intoxicated him. He looked up at her, but she didn't seem to recognize him, she just stared blankly at him, like a total stranger.

Rage stared up within him. What had Ogidi done to his princess?

'O-G-I-D-I!' he screamed with all his might, rage gushing from the very depth of his soul.

'Silence!' Ogidi replied.

The soldiers immediately responded, hitting him at the back of his head, and then holding him to gag his mouth. He tried to scream out his frustration, his hatred, his anger, his helplessness… All of that came out only as a muffled sound because of the gag.

Ogidi continued, 'Today, we have a love hungry human among us.' Everyone laughed except Aremu. 'And today, we shall see him fight for his love and his life. A spectacle to behold,' Ogidi laughed, 'I'm not ready to give up my beautiful queen, and he's not willing to let go of her, so, I have given him a fair chance to fight. If he lives, then he can take my queen, but if he dies, then…he dies,' a roar of laughter exploded in the Arena.

'Let the games begin!'

The guards unchained Aremu and removed the gag in his mouth. He immediately plunged at one of the guards, but the rest contained him.

In a moment, he was left alone in the Arena, all the surrounding gates locked. The crowd suddenly became silent. He could see a mixture of terror and amazement on their faces. Whatever was attracting their attention was right behind him. He wondered what was so terrifying that was behind him. 

He slowly turned around.

The crowd remained silent.

He had made a full turn when he saw the creature that was in the Arena with him. The most hideous creature he had ever seen stood in front of him, staring with the most evil and dark eyes. The creature was from the depths of hell itself.

He stood there without a weapon, staring at the creature, which stared back at him with a hateful hungry look.

The creature had the head of a great cat, black and hideous with big red eyes that seemed to burn with fire. The tongue was that of a serpent's and the teeth were long and sharp like a tiger's, blood dripped from the edges of the creature's mouth probably from previous meals. The creature had a chain around its neck with a sword as its tag.

He realised the sword round the neck of the creature was the weapon he was supposed to use. He was supposed to somehow get the sword and slay the cat with it. He wondered if he was going to get to the sword alive. He stared at the hideous creature, and the creature stared back growling, waiting, and biding its time.

On its paws, the cat was the height of two grown men one standing upright on the others' shoulder, and he was sure it weighed more than ten grown men.

With one leap, the cat pounced at him intending to pin him down for the kill, but his timely swerve saved him from the paws of the cat. He quickly stood and ran a little distance away from the hideous cat from hell.

The Creature turned its head and stared straight at him. Its eyes had more fire in them now. The creature stared at Aremu, it was shocked it hadn't already caught its prey in its first strike. Aremu's swiftness both amazed and angered it.

Aremu kept his gaze steadily at the cat. If he could just get the sword around its neck he could at least have a weapon to defend himself with. The deliverance of Iyanda and the dwarf people were in his hands and he wasn't ready to end up as meal in the belly of the hideous creature which was now approaching him slowly…calculatingly.

The creature seemed to be assessing him. It wanted to put an end to the man by its second pounce. Aremu sensed the cat's determination to end his life and knew he had to do something fast. He stared at the sword around the cat's neck. The chain around the cat's neck extended to the middle of the Arena. If he had any chance of stopping the blood thirsty creature, he had to somehow use the chain, and he had to use it fast. 

He suddenly darted for the chain and the cat sensing what he was doing chased after him. He got to the chain, just before the cat pounced at him; he quickly shoved a part of the chain into the cat's mouth as it was about to grab his neck. The cat recoiled and shoved its paws at him; he quickly docked to the side and threw the chain round the cat's neck. He felt a sharp pain as the creature's claws tore into his flesh. He had to ignore the pain as he pulled the chain down lowering the cat's neck just enough for him to jump and grab the sword, yanking it off from around its neck. 

He heard the cat's jaw snap very close to his head, he had been lucky not to have his head already between the teeth of the creature from hell. He quickly moved to his left side, rolling under the cat. He had the chance he had been waiting for; he quickly thrust the sword into the cat's side. The cat screamed in agony and leapt away.

The cat circled Aremu, observing him. Its eyes burnt with deathly fire, it was determined to finish the fledgling man once and for all. It pounced at Aremu, this time with more rage. Aremu quickly jumped to the side, rolling over to avoid the deadly cat's grip. The cat followed his move leaping at him instantaneously. He followed the cat's move by another quick move escaping the cat's grip again.

Immediately, he charged at the cat, which caught the feline by surprise. Before the beast could react, he had slashed one of its legs opening a gaping hole that soon became a blood tap. Blood gushed out of the cat's fresh wound splattering blood all over Aremu, the cat roared in agony and before it could recover from the Aremu's first strike, he had dug another blow at the cat's lower torso. 

In pain and shock and in a frantic effort to prevent another strike, the cat swung its paws at Aremu, flinging him into the air, the cat immediately pounced for the kill intending to catch Aremu in its jaws, but even in mid-air Aremu attacked the approaching beast severing the Feline's serpent like tongue and part of its jaw in one powerful swoop. They both landed with a thud on the hard rocky ground.

The beast screamed and writhed in agony, bathing Aremu in more of its blood. Before the beast could recover, Aremu took a quick thrust at the left breast of the beast, cutting through its heart and slaying the beast.

The Arena became silent.

The feline beast lay motionless and lifeless, its conqueror standing over it in triumph. He had avenged the deaths of many who had fallen to the strong jaws of the beast of death in that very Arena. 

Everyone in the crowd stared on in awe and amazement. A mere mortal had just defeated a feline demon from the pits of hell.

Aremu raised his sword and roared, in agony, pain and triumph, his voice echoing in the silent Arena, 'To freedom!'

They all stood up as a sign of respect to the mortal. All except Ogidi and his bewitched princess Iyanda who just sat there observing Aremu with no iota of recognition, her mind stripped of her true feelings for the man that stood in the middle of the Arena.

Ogidi stood up and raised his hand and everyone took their seats. He wasn't about to make an hero out of this mortal, he was going to put an end to Aremu even if he had to do it himself. In the end no mortal would take the glory and honour that belonged to him. A mere mortal…the thought of it disgusted him.

'Aremu,' Ogidi raised his voice, first looking at Aremu, and then looking around the crowd and back at Aremu. He continued speaking, 'I must say that I am impressed. You've defeated Ori, the great fire cat. I could order for your execution right now, but I will have mercy on you and grant you a warrior's death,' he stopped and gestured with his hands describing his magnanimity to the crowd, 'I offer myself as a challenge.'

The crowd fell silent, all staring at their ruler Ogidi in amazement.

'Yes, I'm going to give you a show you'll never forget,' the crowd roared with cheering, 'I will do battle with the conqueror of Ori,' the crowd went hysterical, chanting the name of their leader.

Aremu took a battle stance, readying himself in the middle of the Arena. He had known Ogidi was going to fight him, his pride would not have allowed him to do otherwise. Hatred filled his eyes as he watched Ogidi get ready for the battle. One thing lingered in his mind- to kill Ogidi. The next thing was to kill Ogidi, and to kill him again was the next thing on his mind. Killing Ogidi was the only thing on his mind at the moment. 

He stared at the man, or god, that took his princess away from him. Ogidi was going to pay for everything he had done. He was going to pay…with his life.

Ogidi leapt into the Arena intending to finish off the human in one blink. He smiled as Aremu charged at him. He smiled as the human approached…this was going to be easy.

Just before Aremu could get to Ogidi, he noticed he had begun to sink in the ground. He looked down and to his shock, what was once a sandy floor was now water – deep, raging, tempestuous water. He looked up at Ogidi who was now at a distance, still smiling.

The water sucked him into the middle of a vortex that had formed in the middle of the body of water; he was neck deep as he tried to stay afloat. He fought to stay afloat as he was pulled in deeper into the vortex.

He had to stay afloat, he had to slay Ogidi. For his princess, for freedom, he had to fight. At a distance he could see the Ocean god standing effortlessly on the water, he swam toward Ogidi, but the harder he fought against the wave, the weaker he got.

Ogidi raised his hand and from the vortex, a hideous sea creature rose. The creature had three monstrous slithering heads; each head resembled a shark, dragon and tiger in one repulsive mix. The creature roared snapping its shark teeth at the air around it. The three heads suddenly fixed their gaze at Aremu.

Aremu saw the dreadful creature that stared at him and a pang of fear gripped him, almost paralyzing him. He held on to his sword tightly, still trying to fight the wave at the same time.

One of the heads charged at Aremu, Aremu stared in terror as the creature crashed into him. Now deep in the bowels of the Ocean, Aremu tried to swim to the surface. The creature turned and charged again after missing Aremu from the first strike. Aremu held onto the jaw of the creature as it tried to catch Aremu in its jaw. They both plunged deeper into the water as Aremu fought hard to keep himself from the jaws of the creature.

The deeper they went, the stronger the creature got, and the weaker he got. He could feel his arms about to give way to the creature's jaws as it slithered and twisted in continuous curls. He knew what he was fighting for, he could not afford to get killed, he had to fight for his love…he had to fight.

With all his strength he pushed himself away from the creature and the creature came after him in pursuit. He quickly moved to the left of the creature and thrust his sword below the jaw of the creature slitting the neck open. Green, oozing fluid that was the creature's blood poured out of the decapitated head as it writhed in agony. The creature raised its decapitated head out of the sea along with Aremu who held tightly to the creature's neck.

Shock gripped Aremu at the sight of what stood in front of him. Before he had dipped into the water, it had been a three headed creature which he had decapitated one of the heads, now before him where hundreds of hideous heads all charging at him at the same time. At the distance he could see Ogidi standing on one of the heads, wearing a heinous smile on his face. 

One after the other, hideous head after hideous head came after him snapping, thrusting aiming to tear him apart in their jaws, and one after the other, slashing, gashing, hacking, he ripped and severed the monstrous heads from their necks.

Suddenly he felt a sharp pain, one of the creatures had caught him on the leg, and he thrust his sword between the creature's eyes. Curling in agony, the creature flung him up, a hundred more heads waiting for his descent, ready to catch him between their jaws. He kept slashing and striking and one severed head was replaced by ten more. Teeth after teeth tore at his flesh until he was covered in his own blood.

Looking ahead, somewhere between life and death, but still slashing with all his strength, he saw the smiling face of the ocean god, Ogidi. In rage, he leapt at Ogidi, using one of the creature's heads as a pivot. Tossed and suspended in air and time, only one thing lurked in his mind, to plunge his sword into Ogidi's chest, the one who had taken everything he held dear from him.

The sword didn't get to its target. Ogidi had leapt at him in midair.

'This is where you meet your end,' Ogidi whispered in his ears.

Aremu didn't understand what was going on until he looked down to find Ogidi sword in his chest. He stared at the sword in shock, and then looked up at a smiling Ogidi. He tried to talk, but his pain was unbearable. His whole body trembled in pain.

He fell to his knees, Ogidi's sword still in his chest. The sword had gone through his heart. He tasted blood in his mouth. Darnkess started to shroud his vision as he stared at the face of his conqueror, Ogidi. He tried to reach for Ogidi, but he fell to the ground instead, he stared at Ogidi's feet as everything went blank.

*

Ogidi removed his sword from the dying heart, flinging Aremu's limp body to the dusty grounds of the Arena that was just a moment ago a raging sea with a Sea monster he had conjured.

He had defeated the brave human who had dared stand against him. He admitted to admire Aremu's bravery, but also detested his foolishness. Who dares to stand against a god and live? Now he was the hero, he looked down at Aremu's lifeless body, and raised his sword in victory. The crowd roared the name of their ruler.

Ogidi roared back. He was their king, he was their god.

The crowd roared his name, and he roared back.

*

Aremu was engulfed in darkness. He felt a void he had never felt before; empty, endless, hopeless…was he dead? He felt light and free, like he was free of every restraint, but his heart was heavy.

What had plunged him into this darkness? He wondered. He tried to remember, but he couldn't.

At a distance, he saw a flicker of light begin to form in the darkness. Where was he? He had no idea. The light grew larger and brighter until it engulfed the darkness.

Suddenly everything was beautiful; the darkness had been replaced by beautiful endless light. He felt the weight in his heart fall off. The light seemed to be cleansing every evil and trace of hatred in him seemed to ebb away.

He felt an arm come around his shoulders. He knew those arms; he had felt them so many times before. The arms wrapped around him in warm embrace and he felt safe and loved.

It was the warm embrace of Iyanda. How could he have forgotten the love they shared so soon, his heart had been taken over by hatred for Ogidi that he had forgotten what he shared with Iyanda.

He turned and placed his lips on hers, and they both kissed a long sensual kiss that seemed to last for eternity. Her face was a beauty to behold, he had almost forgotten how truly beautiful she was.

'Iyanda my love,' Aremu whispered into her ears, to him she was the most beautiful woman in the Universe.

'Aremu my love, I will never love anybody else, you are my one and only true love,' she whispered back, tears running down her eyes.

Aremu wiped the tears from her face with his hands, 'don't cry my love. My love for you is as endless as the skies; the sound of it is like the sweet song of the morning birds. Your love fills me like sweet wine and satisfies my tongue better than the sweetest honey. Your love is like the warm embrace of a mother, and your beauty compliments like the milk that flows from her breasts. I will forever cherish you,' then it dawned on him that he was dead. He was a spirit. The realisation devastated him. Suddenly he felt gloom claw his heart, sadness filled his heart.

'-but we are now in different tiers,' he forced the words out of his mouth, 'I am doomed for without your love, I can not exist. Death has succeeded in separating us,' he embraced her, kissing her hair.

'No my love, even death can not conquer love…love conquers all,' she said with a smile on her tear soaked face and then she started moving back. 

He tried to hold on to her, but he couldn't, he then tried to go after her as she went farther but he couldn't move.

'Iyanda, Don't go!' he screamed with all his strength, the more he tried to move the farther she went until she began to vanish.

'I'll never leave you my love. Remember, love conquers all,' she smiled at him before finally disappearing.

'Iyanda!' his heart ached for another moment with her, his love had vanished, and even in this place of light he couldn't exist without her.

He reached out to the light toward where Iyanda had vanished; this time, he wasn't going to let her go. As he moved deeper into the light and it started to engulf him until he was surrounded by bright shining light. He felt the light take form and lifted him up from his feet. The light took him higher until the light around him was almost blinding. He closed his eyes, covering his face from the brightness with his hands.

'Iyanda…'

'Iyanda…'

'Iyanda,' he kept whispering as he reached out into the light.

He opened his eyes slowly and he wasn't in the light anymore. He touched the ground beneath him and took some of the sand in his hand. He stood up slowly and looked around.

He was back in the Arena and in the Arena with him facing ecstatic spectators and backing him was a strong looking large man raising a sword. Aremu spotted Iyanda in the crowd and smiled at her, and she smiled back.

The crowd suddenly fell silent after they noticed him. He could see the look of shock and amazement on their faces. Iyanda…he had finally found his love.

Ogidi turned to an Aremu he had killed a moment ago, staring back at him, breathing. Aremu's face glowed with a radiance he hadn't seen before and his eyes where bright as if a flame burned in them.

'You are dead!' Ogidi yelled, 'You are dead. I killed you,' he was in total shock.

Aremu ignored Ogidi and focused on Iyanda, 'Iyanda,' Aremu called, waving at his beautiful princess, a smile on his face.

'Aremu,' Iyanda ran towards the Arena, cutting through the crowd.

Ogidi was mad with rage, 'You must stay dead,' Ogidi screamed, charging at Aremu, his sword held high, ready to strike.

Aremu saw the enraged god charge toward him. He calmly drew his sword and smiled. 'This is for Iyanda,' he whispered to himself.

Ogidi aimed at a clean swoop of Aremu's head, but Aremu quickly dodged the blow that would have decapitated him, and in one quick move, he thrust his sword into the heart of the enraged god.

Ogidi froze in pain, and after a short hiatus, he smiled at Aremu, the sword still in his heart, 'But I can not die,' he boasted, 'I am immortal'.

Aremu smiled back, 'Love conquers all.'

'What?' Ogidi barked, wanting to annihilate the man that stood in front of him, but for some reason, he couldn't move.

'Love conquers all,' Aremu thrust the sword deeper in Ogidi's heart.

Ogidi staggered backward, holding the sword in his chest. He could not believe what was happening, 'but…' the rest was only a thought, gods cannot die.

'Love,' Aremu interrupted.

Ogidi wrenched the sword out of his chest and the wound started to close. Ogidi smiled at Aremu, and then burst out in uncontrollable laughter. 'I am immortal! You see! I can not die,' Ogidi screamed.

Then he suddenly froze. The wound stopped closing and a light began to spread from the middle of the wound, 'NO!' Ogidi screamed now in terror. He could not understand what was happening. The light continued to spread like a wild fire until it engulfed the whole of Ogidi.

'NOOOOOOOOOO!' Ogidi screamed as he exploded into tiny dots of light.

Iyanda ran to Aremu embracing him. They held unto each other for what seemed like eternity, none of them wanted to leave the other.

'I love you,' Aremu said to the one woman he had ever loved.

The crowd fell silent. They had seen their ruler defeated by a mortal. They stood one after the other until all of them where on their feet.

Aremu looked around and he saw consent in their eyes. Some of them bowed lightly. He had half expected the soldiers to rush at him and arrest him, but they instead bowed their heads lightly one after the other.

Iyanda looked at her love, the brave Aremu. A man who had sacrificed everything to rescue her from the hand of a tyrant god, a man who had followed his heart and who had shown all, both mortal and immortal that true love existed, and with one thrust, he had written his name in the pages of the book of immortals.

The name Aremu, the brave prince of Ibale would forever be remembered for his bravery, courage, and mostly his love.

*

'And that is the end of the story,' the little dwaflings applauded, their faces aglow as Ake, the oldest dwarf closed the 'book of the greatest story ever', which the dwarf god had told to generation after generation of dwarfs.