AMAYA
(Son Of The Moon) – Rihanne Maya
Episode 1
She laboured away in a little side room. The contractions were still intense but the change of plan slowed them down a bit. One of the midwives spritzed her face with lavender scented water to help her cool down and relax. She looked down and saw it was a boy. Her fourth boy! He was totally perfect and had a head of thick black hair.
“It’s a boy!” One of the midwives announced. “He has a bracelet on his wrist. He is the chosen one! The son of the moon!” She exclaimed.
“Let me hold my baby!” My mother said. You can’t be the chosen one for the gods. They should go and look for another baby,not my Amaya. ” She continued.
“I’m going to break the news out to the chief priest. The moon son has arrived!” One of the midwives sprinted away.
“Let me get a bowl so I can wash the baby. “The mid wife said. But! Before she returned,my mother had escaped from the dimly-lit room.
“Adaugo! Adaugo!! Ewoo!” She screamed.
My mother sneaked into our compound that night and ran away into the forest with her three children. When the midwives returned,they couldn’t find my mother.
“Adaugo is gone o! She’s gone oh!” She ran straight to my father’s shrine.
“Woman! What is after you?” My father,the chief priest thundered.
“It’s…! It’s…! Adaugo!” She said.
“And what about her?!” He exclaimed.
“She had just given birth to the chosen moon child with a bracelet on,but before I returned with a bowl,she had already escaped the room. ” The midwife cried out painfully.
“What nonsense are you talking about? Adaugo?! How? When? To where? Oh gods of our land! What’s happening? ” He then stretched his staff into a white bowl filled of water,and a picture of my mother, running with her kids into the woods appeared on the water.
“What?!” My father exclaimed.
“Eye of the gods,what’s the problem? ” She asked,but my father did not respond.
“I release a gross darkness to engulf the entire community.” He spurred. “Stop her! Oh gods of the moon. Stop Adaugo from escaping this kingdom with the moon child. “
Suddenly,the light went out and the entire community was left in pitch-darkness. The full crescent moon had just started to cast it’s silver lining glow, slowly lightning up the night.
“Christian! Vincent! Keep running into the dark alley with your sister. Avoid the silver moonlight by all means. ” Mama thundered as she kept her pace towards the dark path. She was carrying me in her arms,when suddenly,she stepped into a porthole and sprained her ankle. She fell down screaming.
“My leg! Christian! Slow down! Come and have the baby!” She queried while struggling on her feet.
“Mama! Mama!! What’s wrong?! We have to keep moving. The moon light is close to us. ” Christian,my elder brother thundered.
“Take the baby! Save Amaya and run faraway, across the river,before the moonlight catch up with you people. I can’t afford to lose all my children in a night,to that wicked god. Run straight to my grandma’s village after the river, for help.” She shrugged. ” When you get to the river,lower Amaya’s hand into the water,it will aid your crossover. ” Mama cried profusely. Thereafter,Christian collected me from her.
“Amaya?! Is that his name? Mama we are almost closed to the river. Let’s keep moving!” Vincent pleaded in-between sobs.
“Mama don’t do this na,the light is close. ” Chimamanda pleaded bitterly. Here shortly,the moon cast it’s silver glowing light on mama. ” Go! Go with Amaya. You can’t help me. Make sure that you won’t give up Amaya to your father and that evil god. ” Mama cried bitterly as we watched her been washed away into the silver light of the moon, turning her into tiny sparkles of fireflies,and as she faded into the light. And…! She was moon-snatched.
“Ruuuuuuuun!!!” Christian thundered.
Finally,we arrived at the river bank.
“Mama told you to lower the left hand of Amaya that has the blue-purple bracelet on,into the water. ” Vincent reminded. So Christian lowered my left hand into the water and the whole water froze. That was how we escaped the wrath of the gods of the moon that night. Here after we had crossed over, the natural crescent moon lit our way out of the forest. We then found ourselves in our grandma’s village.
Whenever we wished to see our mother,we would go out at night and stir at the moon in the grey sky. She had been moon-snatched and held hostage by the moon gods of our land.
“Brother! When will the gods free mama?” Chimamanda inquired.
“The very day that,that evil child of a baby,Amaya is finally submitted to the moon gods, that’s the very day that mama will be released from her hostility. ” Vincent sparkled angrily.
“Stop that right this minute. You’re hurting mama more with your choice of words. Christian cut in. “All we can do now is run out at night to see mama being frozen(crusted over by freezing) in the moon. I believe that one day,victory will be against all odds. “
“I guess papa is happy now. His quest for fame and power has been finally granted by the gods. ” Chimamanda said.
“May God forgive him. ” Vincent shifted in.
“My children!” A call sprouted from behind. ” You all are not asleep yet?” An old woman asked.
Sorry grandma! We were only looking at the moon. ” Christian replied.
“You still miss your mother, Adaugo I guess! Don’t worry,everything will be fine some day. Come! Come!! Come!!! It’s late already. You ran all the way through that long path,from your village. You need some rest. ” Grandma said. “Okay mama!” Christian replied. “
“Good night my children. ” Grandma said and returned to sleep.
My father’s shrine,back in our community.
“Christian! Christian!! How dare you run away with the future chief priest of this kingdom? Do you know the repercussion involved in this act alone? Amaya is a moon child. He was chosen by the gods of the moon,to serve as a messenger of the moon. There’s nothing anyone will do about that. ” My father fused up angrily, following our escape from the village in his shrine. “The gods of the moon must be very angry right now. ” He dragged a knife out of an earthen pot immediately.
“Bring the goat right now. ” He called.
One of my father’s shrine messenger then dragged out a goat.
“Oh gods of the moon,please! Accept this sacrifice from me. I will make sure that my son,Amaya gets back into this shrine to serve you as you have chosen. ” My father then slit a knife into the goat. He spilled it’s bl00d on the altar as he enchanted continuously.
OpraDre AMAYA AMAYA AMAYA
©️ Rihanne Maya
