Àlùfáà-Àgbà looked at Tofa and then back to the Lord Regent. ‘We should discuss these matters in private.’
‘Speak,’ the Lord Regent’s voice boomed.
Àlùfáà-Àgbà clenched his fists. But the law was the law, and the current Lord Regent Babátúndé now had the power he’d once had, and Àlùfáà-Àgbà had to bend the knee.
Àlùfáà-Àgbà talked about the passageway that the intruders had come in through, the boys they had taken, and how they escaped using strange powers to shield themselves from the maidens’ arrows.
‘Agbára òtútù,’ the Lord Regent said as Àlùfáà-Àgbà described the thing the intruder had created.
Tofa listened intently, even though he made sure his gaze avoided them both. He wondered how his father knew so quickly the magic that Àlùfáà-Àgbà was describing. There was a whole world of things his father and Àlùfáà-Àgbà, who had been his teacher and mentor from young, had kept from him, even as they claimed to prepare him for the throne. For starters, Tofa wondered what in the world agbára òtútù was. Never in the time he spent studying under Àlùfáà-Àgbà had he ever heard that term before.
‘How is this possible?’ the Lord Regent said. ‘You told me they were all wiped out. When I took your place as High Priest, you were supposed to tell me all the secrets of the Order from before the days of the First Sun until now, and you said that the people of Òtútù and their cursed magic would never be a threat to this kingdom again.’
‘I told you what I had to,’ Àlùfáà-Àgbà replied with a straight face. From the look on his father’s face, Tofa knew he was mere moments from calling his guards.
‘Àjànàkú, I wear the crown. To lie to me is treason worthy of death. Tell me the truth. The whole truth.’
The older man shifted where he stood. Clearly uncomfortable and deeply insulted that the Lord Regent had called him by his first name and without his title, the law was the law, and so quietly, he began. ‘The girl must be found. That’s the truth. Our forefathers had the right mind to eliminate her kind. They’re an abomination.’
The Lord Regent listened quietly, leaning forward on the edge of his seat.
‘History says the cursed people of Òtútù were lost to the sands, and the gods claimed back their lives, but some still live. Somewhere deep in the north, beyond the sands, at the edge of the continent.’
The Lord Regent’s frown deepened. ‘I know my history, Àjànàkú. I don’t need you to tell me what the people of Òtútù can do, I need you to tell me how they can still be alive and how long you’ve known about this threat to our kingdom. How could you keep something like this a secret? You’ve put us all at risk, and for what?’
What history was this? Who were the people of Òtútù and why had his ancestors tried to eliminate them? How could there be something other than agbára oru? And a kingdom outside of Oru that he hadn’t heard of? As far as he and the rest of the kingdom were concerned there was no rival kingdom on the continent. Tofa only knew of the sand raiders that lurked around the outer walls, and they had no magic at all. They were barely surviving and could hardly be called a kingdom, least of all rivals. Was there really an enemy dangerous enough to rattle two of the most powerful men in Oru? Tofa’s unease grew as he wondered what other secrets the Holy Order were hiding from everyone and from him.
‘Did you know about this?’ Tofa whispered and glancedback to his sister, then sighed. He’d done it again. His shoulders slumped and he turned towards his father.
‘Who else knows about this?’ the Lord Regent asked after a few moments of silence from the Elder Priest.
‘No one else,’ Àlùfáà-Àgbà replied and turned back to face Tofa, ‘other than you and the crown heir.’
Tofa adjusted his body, rising to his full height, preparing to step forward if he had to.
‘How do you know where exactly the people of Òtútù are?’ the Lord Regent asked.
Good question, Tofa thought, raising his gaze to Àlùfáà-Àgbà for the first time since he walked into the room.
‘Eighteen first suns ago, there was a girl of Òtútù hiding in this kingdom. Luckily, we found her and interrogated her. We learned that the people of Òtútù settled north in the mountains.’
The Lord Regent stood from his throne, his voice was a low growl, ‘Eighteen first suns ago I was Lord Regent. Why didn’t I meet this girl?’
Àlùfáà-Àgbà tried unsuccessfully to hide the ugly scowl on his face. Eighteen first suns ago, the transfer of power would have still been fresh. No doubt Àlùfáà-Àgbà made that decision as though he was still in charge. Tofa was certain of one thing. When he was crowned as sovereign, for as long as he ruled, his word would be final above all.
‘And where is this woman now?’ the Lord Regent said.
Àlùfáà-Àgbà looked at Tofa and then to the Lord Regent knowingly.
‘Oh, gods! Àjànàkú! What’s this that you have brought to our doorstep? You killed her?’
‘I did what was right for my kingdom and honoured the gods who blessed us with this gift to protect ourselves. We must protect ourselves from their rot, chaos anddestruction! We can’t leave them alive! This is war. You, of all people, should understand what’s at stake.’
‘How can I? I didn’t see for myself what magic the girl left behind last night. And in the tradition of keeping your secrets, you have removed all evidence of it,’ the Lord Regent said.
Àlùfáà-Àgbà had been many things to Tofa over the years they’d spent together. Years he remembered fondly. But Tofa knew Àlùfáà-Àgbà well enough to know that this wasn’t the full story. It wasn’t ever the full story. There were more secrets to be uncovered. Right there, Tofa decided he wanted to know more about these people and their power that threatened his kingdom.
‘That abomination couldn’t be left to mock our gods. The people mustn’t see it. They mustn’t know of the past our ancestors fought to erase.’ He paused. ‘Lord Regent, the war that Oru fights is behind closed doors, in whispers. Our real enemy, our only enemy, is the people of Òtútù. It is our solemn duty to finish what our forefathers started. You know what powers they hold; their core is blackened, turning everything and everyone they touch to rot. No one with the blessing of agbára oru is safe as long as people who can take away those abilities are out there planning our destruction.’
