“The bandits are here.”
Prince Gane slowly opened his eyes once he got the confirmation. The white coral ring on his index finger shone in the overhead lantern as he stopped tapping to the priest’s chants. Gane knelt on the cushioned floor before the ancestral worship hall for the Onyonka family.
A deceased raider he had killed in the recent bandit attack in the capital.
“Have you confirmed it’s them?” Prince Gane turned his head to the side and Guberi, a soldier under the city guard’s regiment, nodded. Gane rose from his kneeling position and bowed before the ancestral shrine, a wall splayed with bronze heads and wooden figurines that depicted the ancestors of the Onyonka family.
Gane cast a last look at the bronze head that was added on the wall, Makulu’s. As he straightened his white robes, the cries of the bereaved reached him as he turned to the old man, Makulu’s father.
“I am sorry for the loss of your son. King Gusiwaju and the court of Mukuru assure you that the city guards will do everything to bring your family justice.” Prince Gane assured the old man. The strain lines on his forehead had deepened and tears shone in his aged eyes.
As the only son of his father, Makulu was loved and raised in luxury. What drove such a privileged man to join life in banditry? Was it the thrill that came with terrorizing innocent civilians in the city? Prince Gane wondered as he gazed around the luxurious room. High lanterns shone light on the bronze heads of their ancestors. The Onyonka family were traders, affluent with extensive trading caravans in the Keseve market.
“Thank you, Prince Gane. If you hadn’t delivered his body back home, we might not get the closure we have.” Lord Onyonka wiped the tears from his eyes with his backhand, staining his white mourning robes. Behind him, several members of the Onyonka family wailed. They were dressed in white robes with thick bead necklaces and bracelets. As per the funeral traditions, they had shaved their heads.
“Receive condolences from the King.” Prince Gane bowed before the congregations. A court official attendant passed a small sack full of gold coins to the bereaved man. Burial ceremonies in the city were communal, and every family received a token from the court to facilitate the ceremony.
Soon Gane started out of the ancestral hall. His position as a city guard, a role thought to be beneath nobility, made it his duty to attend the funeral caused by the bandits’ attacks and deliver the funeral proceedings.
Yet, that wasn’t the only thing that brought him to attend the funeral rites of the man he killed. Rather, it was a ruse to attract the leader of the bandits. Leikun. Gane’s plot seemed to have worked.
As the fifth son of King Gusiwaju, Prince Gane practically had no power in the palace hierarchy. His title as a prince was as weak as the roar of a lion cub. His birth mother, Lady Kajala, didn’t come from an influential clan, unlike his elder brothers, whose mothers hailed from prestigious backgrounds. Prince Gane didn’t have support in court and he had to find another way to grow his reputation.
His father, King Gusiwaju, barely recognized him and Gane took on the role of fighting the bandits to gain the King’s favor. So far the plan wasn’t working, and Gane had brushed death’s hand more than once, the recent being the fight where Makulu lost his life. More than once Gane wanted to give up, but his mother insisted that though the path might be difficult once Gane curbed the bandits epidemic in the city, his father would eventually recognize him.
“All praises belong to the King.” Lord Onyonka and the members of his clan bowed as the prince passed them.
Prince Gane left the hall, his white long gown billowed behind him as he walked away, and his three personal guards close behind. Rain water and wind sprayed in his face as he neared the door. Seasons were changing and the long rains from the north had settled. The change in weather made it difficult for them to fight the bandits as rain washed away their trails and hindered their mobility in chasing them down. It didn’t help that the bandits hid inside the treacherous Mawindoni caves on the outskirts of the city. Gane and his men barely penetrated the booby-trapped escarpments.
Their leader, Leikun, was black smoke in the night and he could never be traced, despite the number of surveillance Gane held or the bandits he tortured.
That changed recently when Gane changed tactics in his attacks. To send a message to the mysterious Leikun, Gane attacked his inner circle of subordinates. The city guards kidnapped bandits who splurged in wine and women after a successful raid on the pleasure lounges in the capital. In prison, Gane would torture them and send parts of their body to the entrance of the Mawindoni cave with a request to meet Leikun if he wanted to save his men.
The method didn’t seem to work and Gane lost several city guards in taking down the brutes, but Gane didn’t relent. His arrests worked to boost his status among the city guards. The residents of Mukuru appreciated a royal who showed concern for their plight, too. In court politics public opinion carried weight and Gane counted on that for his future.
After the torture and death of a hundred hardcore bandits, Leikun sent a message that he was ready to meet. Gane set up the meeting at Makulu’s home during the funeral, a neutral ground for the city guards and the bandits. No one was stupid enough to start a war during a funeral unless they incurred the anger of Lord Ashe, guardian of the afterlife.
That didn’t stop Gane from bringing more security. His men, city guards, blended in with the mourners.
“Are our men in their positions?” Gane asked his guard, and Guberi gave him a curt nod. If Gane didn’t agree with Leikun, he would take his life. Outside the great hall that was supported by tall pillars made of ivory bas-relief, a guard handed him a heavy white parasol.
“Prince Gane, if you’d follow me.” A bulky man with an unkempt beard and hair dressed in gaudy white robes appeared at the bottom of the stairs. The man’s eyes were sharp with a deadly glint. Was this Leikun? Gane had no clue about the looks of the notorious bandit. Everyone he tortured gave a contradicting identity. The men would rather die than reveal the identity of their leader. They portrayed the loyalty that Gane wanted.
Thunder boomed in the distance and the skies opened and pelted the hundreds of congregants that stood before the great hall. They all came to pay their respects to the dead. In Mukuru traditions, death was a rite of passage and it didn’t matter if the deceased was the worst person on earth, they were guaranteed a befitting sendoff.
Gane walked down the stone stairs from the ancestral hall. He passed the people of Mukuru capital who were on their knees and chanted after the priests, dressed in colorful robes, and offered prayers for the departed soul. No one seemed to mind the rain that pounded down on them.
A path between the congregants opened as the Prince Gane passed. Mud spluttered on his robes as Gane followed the bandit to a secluded path behind the main residence. The homestead had several houses and was fenced with a waist-high mud-brick wall. Geometrical murals were painted on the wall in different colors to add to the beauty of the homestead.
“Are you Leikun?” Gane asked, but the bandit only grunted. Gane cast a glance around and spotted some of the city guards amongst the mourners. They carried hidden weapons and followed from a close distance. They would attack once he gave the order.
More people crowded the path as it opened to an open gazebo amid a blooming garden. Past the garden was the wide bonfire next to a dug-out grave. Once the burial rites were done, the deceased was to be lowered into the grave.
A tall, lithe man stood beside the blazing fire, his gaze lowered towards the grave. Prince Gane paused in his steps and observed the stranger. He held a red parasol with golden frills on the edges. The golden strings danced in the wind and the bright fire reflected in the man’s hair, bouncy curls dyed a deep red ochre color. The man was dressed in startling red robes that complemented the color of his hair. In the sea of white and colorful blooms, he appeared foreign, someone who didn’t belong.
“Leikun is waiting for you.” The bulky bandit that accompanied him walked ahead to the lithe man. The brute whispered something and the man dressed in red nodded, his curls bounced with each movement. The brute took a step back and initialed for Gane to approach.
Prince Gane’s feet sloshed through the wet grass as he crossed the thatched gazebo and walked towards the red-clad man. The stranger’s gaze didn’t turn from the grave.
“How many men did you intend to put on the cold earth if I didn’t reply to your message?” The man began, his low husky voice tugged something in Gane’s blood. Was this Leikun? He wouldn’t be so young. Gane shook his head. He expected an old man with the experience of commanding hundreds of men and not someone of his age.
“Since you made an appearance, I guess, one hundred.” Gane paused beside the man. Up close, he was a head taller. Gane reassured himself the floral scent that drifted to his nose came from the garden and not the bandit. Bandits were ruffians who didn’t care about personal hygiene, let alone apply scented body butters.
“One day you’re riding a horse with the wind in your hair and the next you’re dead. How fragile can life get?” under the crimson parasol, Leikun’s features were light. His skin was unblemished apart from a thin line of mustache above his upper lip, he didn’t have facial hair. Everything about him was a contrast to what Gane learned about the bandits. Yet the way he spoke made Gane alert.
“The challenge is finding balance in the chaos.” Prince Gane waved his guard off and took the white parasol in his hand. The guard glared at the bandit that brought him in the back. The relationship between city guards and bandits was fire and water. After the raid, bodies from both sides continued to rise.
“Is your balance torturing and killing off as many bandits as you can?” Leikun asked and turned to face Gane. Words failed Gane as he took in the man before him, wide eyes with an almost innocent look. Nothing about the man screamed a bandit, rather, he appeared as a son from a wealthy family in the capital. Someone like Makulu.
“Bandits are a scourge in the capital, the death of one assures residents of Mukuru have at least one night of undisturbed sleep.” Prince Gane took in Leikun’s golden loop, earrings on his left ear, and the matching thin armlets wrapped on his upper sinew forearms.
“Your little stint has caused me hefty losses, Prince Gane.” Leikun’s wide eyes found Gane’s. “How do you plan to pay me back? It’s not easy to find and train loyal men like Makulu.”
“Shouldn’t you be remorseful at the death of your lackey?” Gane scoffed. “After the months you caused chaos, you’re lucky I don’t strike you down where you stand, Leikun.” He knew bandits were cold-blooded bastards, but having their leader speak so coldly about his men was different.
But again, nothing about Leikun was what he expected.
“Death is the path of every man, Makulu knew what he was signing up for when he joined us.” Leikun chuckled, the sound light like the jingles of the golden frill on his parasol. “When you cut off his skin and gorged his eyes out to get him to confess, weren’t you remorseful?”
“If you didn’t want me to torture your men, you should have revealed yourself earlier,” Gane said and Leikun’s gaze roamed back to the grave. “Their blood is in your hands.”
“I am sure today you aren’t planning on letting me go.” Leikun picked up some loose dirt on his slender fingers and sprinkled it inside the empty grave. A silent sign of veneration to the dead. The action contrasted with his bitter words on Makulu.
“You’re a businessman, Leikun.” Gane followed Leikun’s hands as he picked another lump of red earth. “Have you ever thought about doubling your profits and protecting the lives of your men?”
“Won’t your plan to collaborate with you alienate further in court?” Leikun turned to Gane.
“You manage many men and to keep up with their needs, you require more raids and funds. I have cut your manpower by half and if something isn’t done soon, you will have angry, hungry bandits snapping at your feet.”
“If you Prince Gane happen to die, we could continue with our business as usual.” Leikun’s gaze held Gane’s. “You’re the thorn in the lion’s paw. Once it’s pulled out, nothing stops the beast from hunting.”
“I might be the unfavored son of King Gusiwaju, but you don’t want to bear the title of the killer of a royal.” Gane took another step towards Leikun. “My father might not care for me, but to save face, he will channel all state funds until you’re dead. Instead of fighting, shouldn’t we work out a deal where you get to keep your men and cattle while I impress my father?”
“You plan to deceive the crown to satisfy personal needs?” Leikun raised a thin red-painted eyebrow and Gane’s eyes lingered at his symmetrical facial features for a bit too long. Something in Leikun’s gaze made Gane take a step back.
“I plan to end the needless deaths of both city guards and civilians you converted into bandits.” Gane cleared his voice. “Let Makulu be the last man to die in my torture chambers.”
“How do you suppose this plan will work?” Leikun shifted his gaze and Gane breathed easily again. “Won’t the court suspect our dealings?”
“To keep up appearances, you will limit your raids to the wealthy. No need to attack the poor pastoralists who make their living by raising cattle.” Gane said. The torrent of rain had turned into slow showers and Gane closed his parasol. The priests’ chants had given way to a harmonized song. The burial rites were almost complete and the funeral procession would soon start to the grave site.
“What do you say?” Prince Gane had to get Leikun’s answer fast.
“Have you ever owned a dog, Prince Gane?” Leikun asked, and Gane wondered why he would bring that out of nowhere. Prince Gane had to get Leikun’s answer fast.
“When I was ten, I joined my first royal hunt, and I defeated my elder brothers. The Queen gifted me a hunting dog.” Gane’s gaze hardened at the memory. “It turned out that it wasn’t a domesticated animal but a wild fox. She hoped it would turn on me.”
“What happened?” Leikun asked with keen interest.
“That night it couldn’t stop barking and my elder brothers locked it in my room to quell the noise.” Gane gritted his teeth. “If it wasn’t for a friend, I might have been bitten to death.”
“Your friend?” Leikun’s gaze found Gane’s.
“Soon after, bandits attacked his family, and he…” Gane’s voice trailed off. He didn’t want to think about the devastating end to Riat’s, his childhood friend’s life. “Why are you bringing this up? It has nothing to do with our cooperation?”
“What happened to Riat?” the chimes of Leikun’s umbrella rang as he moved closer to Gane.
“Why do you ask?” Gane met the inquisitive gaze in Leikun’s eyes.
“Bandits attacked your friend’s family, but you’re willing to work with me? Isn’t that betraying him?” Leikun took another step forward. Foreign emotions swirled behind his gaze, and Gane swallowed the guilt that churned in his chest.
“Difficult situations need tough decisions.” Gane shifted his gaze. “We both gain more by working together.” Gane shifted his gaze. “I’m willing to overlook my past grudges to forge a way forward.”
“I would expect nothing less from the son of Gusiwaju.” Leikun’s fingers tightened on the parasol’s handle.
“What…” Gane began, but Leikun turned away from him.
“Give me time to think about your suggestion. You will get your answer in two days.”
Leikun’s gaze strayed to the far distance. Gane wanted to answer, but the funeral procession was heading in their direction. The pole bearers came first with Makulu’s body followed by the priests.
“I look forward…” Gane turned to find that the bandit had disappeared, along with the tantalizing scents. As he searched the crowd, Gane wondered how Leikun came to know of Riat’s name. He didn’t remember mentioning him.

Dear readers, the snippet above is an introductory story to some of the characters in the novel, Wrath of the Oracle, a fantasy romance novel based on African mythology.
If you enjoyed the short read, check out the novel on Amazon and KU
Check out the link below.
https://a.co/d/boFZIAM