The last song of the ancestors

Akachi found it difficult to understand what he was feeling at that moment. He had been unfair to his grandfather. Azekel hadn't been silent, he had been insensitive. He rose from the ground. He held out a hand to the old man. The man wiped away his tears and stood up too. They gave each other a big hug.

Azekel placed his hands gently on his grandson's face. His voice was still hoarse. He found it difficult to express his feelings. He wanted to go with his grandson to rescue his own son, but without his mediumship, it would be a burden.

"Forgive me for not going with you, I no longer have my powers."

Akachi took his grandfather's hands and placed them on his chest. The Spiritual Key of Faith emitted an intense glow.

"I'm the one who apologizes. You gave up your position as a sage so that the spiritual key could be used to treat me. My father sacrificed even more, he was even considered a traitor by the mediums. It's time to do justice to all that effort."

Feruzi nodded. Mashal offered his grandson and grandfather more coffee. Spin Bomb raised both arms and shouted:

"That's it! Now it's time to go after the Circle of Sages and kick their asses."

Everyone laughed. Only one person didn't seem to be keeping up with all the excitement, the gunman from Ilê Apanyan. The five sages were too powerful. They held the spiritual keys and the extent of their powers was unknown to him. Spin Bomb had trained, but the undertaker didn't know what the training was. He doubted that a layperson could learn any martial art in such a short space of time.

Akachi was an unknown. He possessed the Spiritual Key of Faith, he had achieved an evolution, but he didn't control all of its power. By going to the enemy lair, he could hand over another spiritual key to the sages. The last key's whereabouts were uncertain, but he assumed it was already in Ojwang's possession.

"Calm down, let's get ready. It's a rescue mission, but there won't be any options to comply with our enemies. We'll have to kill them all if we have to. Those of you who are going, do you know the price you're willing to pay?"

Azekel saw a harsh reality in those words, and the former Sages were not willing to accept it. The current Circle of Sages were the young people he, Nyatui, Mashal and Feruzi had once pinned their hopes on. A second generation of mediums eager for change, bold in their actions.

Akachi bowed his head. He didn't consider the sages to be his enemies, but at the same time, he didn't see them as allies. The real person to fight was interim president Ojwang. He had turned Ilu Nla upside down. A man with no scruples, interested only in gaining power.

Spin Bomb felt a chill in his stomach. He tried to show confidence, but deep down he feared what would happen. He wouldn't back down, whether it was against the Circle of Sages or Ojwang's Cyber Troop. He understood that only a joint effort would rid the country of the interim president. Nothing would ever be the same again, but it would be much better than it was.

Fadala straightened his glasses and, in a deep voice, asked the pair of mediums sitting on the cushions:

"What terrain are we going to face? What are the abilities of our enemies? We need to draw up a master plan and a backup plan."

After a fit of coughing, Feruzi moved the cup away from his parched lips and answered his question:

"Yes, preparation is the mother of all strategies. You must have already been dazzled by the skills of the sages Jabir, Nkechi and Durojaiye. But their power is no match for Ekundayo, the Sage of Justice and leader of the group, and Hakim, the Sage of the Law and his right-hand man."

Fadala felt a slight tremor. He had formulated one-on-one confrontations; it wouldn't be sage to face all the sages together. They would be much better matched than the undertaker and his group.

"We will only succeed if we face each of the sages separately."

Mashal reasoned about the proposal. He put the white clay cup down on the tray and asked:

"Should this be possible, which I very much doubt, who should face whom?"

"Leave the sage Jabir with Akachi, the two of them have had a first fight and need to decide the outcome. As for Durojaiye, she'll be your responsibility, Spin Bomb."

Feruzi closed his eyes and shook his head. He was dissatisfied with Fadala's proposal.

"I don't approve of that decision. Besides, your techniques could provide good support against the other sages."

Spin Bomb got up from the floor and noisily started arguing with his master. He began to pinch her cheeks, distorting her face, while simultaneously telling her to obey him. She pulled at his gray hair, making his head tilt from side to side.

Finally, tired of the little wrestling match. Gasping, she said self-confidently:

"You're not coming, old man! I didn't train all this time to be an extra. We need to rescue Akachi's father, I'm going with you, and don't try to stop me."

Student and master stared at each other in fury. Neither would give in. They crossed their arms and turned their backs on each other.

Fadala took advantage of the end of the discussion and continued to describe his plans.

"As for Nkechi, leave her to me."

Mashal laughed loudly. In a single meeting with the sage men, Fadala had already drawn up a plan of attack. What worried the master of suspicion was underestimating the power of his opponents.

"Did you know that Nkechi reached the position of sage without knowing any Ofó?"

"Yes, she made a point of telling us that."

"Don't confuse trust with recklessness, undertaker."

"I won't. Now tell us everything we need to do."

Mashal and Feruzi looked at each other and described where the Judgement Stone was. Fadala seemed to be taking mental notes of everything. What worried him most was the description of the abilities of the two remaining sages. They were not enemies to be faced alone, they required a group effort.

The hitman raised the possibility that the sage men were putting Adisa's life at risk. Feruzi wasn't unaware of this possibility, but he dismissed it. He ignored how far the Circle of Sages would go for their goals. He was clinging to the old images that hung over the sages.

Mashal was less idealistic, and believed that Adisa was at risk of death in the venture. But he didn't want to spoil young Akachi's dream of finding his father again. Together with the others, he devised the rescue plan. Azekel would stay and have the task of keeping the rebel camp in order. In the morning, the other five would go to the Judgement Stone to rescue Adisa from the Circle of Sages.