D-Day

___ Execution Day ___

A week had passed since Prince Obiora's death. Ikemba visited him two nights ago with a horrified expression; just as Uche had predicted Prince Ikemefuna had announced he would be taking a prayer retreat in Ikenga's temple on Dike's execution day for the prosperity of the nation.

What Uche didn't know was this idea was coined by a chief and supported by many. It felt like the entire royal court was slowly turning on the royal family.

'Was this a coup carried out by the chiefs and titled men of the kingdom?' Uche couldn't help but wonder.

He suspected the chiefs but he needed to know which one. The problem was Dike didn't know much about these men. The relationship between military and civil officials had never been... good. Only the king could gather both sides in a place.

Killing the prince and the kingdom's greatest warrior on the same day is just brutal, but that was Dike's fate.

The early morning sun was blocked out by the thick clouds clustered above; even the heavens were saddened by his fate.

The sounds of the gates unlocking awoke Uche from his light slumber, his eyes seemed dull and lacked the fiery spark it had days back. His gamble either pays off, or he dies and becomes just another victim of the world tree.

He watched silently as the prison guards cautiously walked around him. Two guards unlocked the chains from the shackle point, and the other two stood two steps away, brandishing spears. 

{Name: Obinna Dike}

{Ancestry: Igbo}

{Spirit level: 1}

{Strength: 9} {Agility: 8}

{Health: 10/10} {Spirit Power: 10}

{Fatigue: 5%}

Uche took one last glance at his stats before they pulled him off his feet and led him out of the cell. While everything transpired, his cellmates remained cooked up in a corner, not knowing the monster of a man who spent only three weeks with them was once a glorious general.

He walked out of the holding cell and walked through the narrow corridor. His hulking figure made it impossible for people to walk by his sides; two had to walk ahead while another two walked behind.

The fear in their eyes was evident. If Dike were to decide to go down fighting, they would be the first to die. They had to draw lots to choose the prison guards who would take this job and they were the unfortunate souls.

Fortunately for them, Uche wasn't unreasonable like Dike. That would have been the general's final act if he lived this long but he knew it was another death sentence. This prison housed not less than twenty soldiers armed to the teeth, how many could he kill?

Exiting the building, they walked into the prison yard. A dirt-floored open space in the center of the prison was used for forced labor.

Uche squinted and lowered his head; he had been locked in for three weeks with only small rays of sun penetrating his cell. Ikemba stood there with three prison guards flanking his sides and four horses waiting behind.

Uche ignored them and glanced at the high wooden walls and the twin watchtowers manned by four guards with their arrows pointed at him. 

If Uche were Dike he would be broken by this sight. 

'Honorable my ass.' Uche shrugged.

The victor writes history, and in tales shared with the younger generation, he will be painted as a traitor who died a shameful death, and his body will be thrown into the evil forest.

The chains binding his limbs were undone and new ones which bound his limbs together and not apart were worn on him.

And so the Journey began. Ikemba and the three prison guards mounted their horses. The large wooden gates swung open and Uche began taking slow steps forward while Ikemba and his men followed his pace.

As they approached the gate, Uche was greeted by a crowd of villagers bearing different reactions. The dozens of people all at once were overwhelming; even Uche struggled to maintain his confident facade.

Pa-!

Uche clenched his ass cheeks and squinted hard as a whip cracked on his back. Amusingly, he didn't even lose a point from his health bar for this.

He glanced over his shoulder, his glare making the prison guard's legs wobble before he collapsed to the ground. A stream of urine rolled down his muscular ties while he scuttled back like a fish trying to flee on land.

Scoffing disdainfully he returned his frosty gaze to the crowd and then fell silent. He walked forward and a path was cleared for them to walk through. Two guards are stationed outside.

They followed a single road leading away from the prison. It was flanked by thick vegetation and led into the outskirts of the town.

From there they entered the market square filled with crowds in the hundreds. Everyone came to see the fall of this great general. They once celebrated.

The narrow streets made it difficult for large groups to move quickly so Ikemba and his guards were on guard and stuck close to Dike.

Minutes later they arrived at a wide intersection that split into different areas of the town.

Thud!

Uche stopped at the center of the crossroads, a cold gleam in his eyes.

"Okafor, kill all of them!" He barked viciously before anyone could react