All Chapters of EJIMA: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Cause the sun to riseSing to the heart that weepsCause the moon to fallLet the heart that weeps singThey said we are a curseThey said we course the land with curseBut we are like Rehab the harmless dragonTheir ignorance were the cause that cursed the land. Cause the sun to riseThe blight of ignorance has walloped our mother with curse.But in our infinite troubleIn our heart melting like the oil from a candle waxThere lies the one, the king, the mother of all mothersThe father of all fathersHim and him alone took us inThere walked the king of kingsThe God of godsHim and him alone took us inShelters us, fed us and clothed us.There smiled the love of all lovesSaying, I will never leave you nor forsake you We are EjimaWe cried, We screeched, we screamed, and the God of gods answered. Cause the sun to ri

Ahh, this heat will not kill me. Njideka fanned herself with her hands. She was not drenched with sweat, but she could feel the hotness in every part of her body. A cup of cold water will do. She picked up the clay cup. The bamboo bed whined from her weight when she stood up. She was grateful for the coldness of the ground when her bare feet kissed them. I should spray the mate on the floor. She thought, looking at the hard floor that was made of mud. She headed outside, towards the kitchen to get the water. The sun has not shown its head yet, but its rays rested on the edge of the palm trees, giving light to the warm glorious morning.“Nwanyi mara mma, ututu oma, (Good morning beautiful woman),” Mama Nnenna greeted “Ututu oma

"Ugo m. Nwanyi mara obi di ya (My eagle. The woman that knows the heart of her husband)" Uche called.He traced his hands on her neck until they rested somewhere on her chest. She moaned when the spark of ecstasy traveled from his soft fingers down into her bones, igniting every limb with a longing that can hardly be expressed in words. It was as if her stomach had wings and was about to fly. Everywhere those hard but soft hands of his touched vibrated her nerves and sank her heart in that river of passion and love, which could only drown but not kill. The way he calls out her name was breathtaking. How long has it been since he left for the war? Two years? She couldn't tell. But every part of her yearns and glued to his bulging chest, as though it was the land of forever."You know we would die of starvation if we remain... in... bed," Ejima said, but her words had betrayed he

It's been three moons since the incident in the forest, yet Ejima could not shake off those angelic eyes. Their smiles still waxed her brave heart and mended it with a warmth which she could not explain. Those rich dark eyes that glittered with the sun were still evergreen in her memory, and drove her consciousness into that valley of hysteria, as though it were only yesterday. Her sleep had been fill with lurid sights which at a time made her wonder if she had offended the gods in touching the babies. She had even screamed herself up from sleep one night when she had seen a silhouette of some twin figures chasing her with a horsewhip."Are you okay?"Ejima shifted her weight at the voice of Nneamaka. Her emotions anchored itself to the soft voice of the woman as her wandering thoughts dived back into her body. She had left Uche at home and had visited Nneamka's house to help her with the cassava she had harvested."You lo

The leaves had lost the morning dew and bashed her skin as she traced her way deeper into the forest. The previously cleared paths were losing their visibility as the grasses tried to sprout their heads from them. It was becoming difficult to even see the white sands.Until the decree of the King and the curse that had been placed on the forest, this place used to be her favorite spot. The tall trees and their branches always made it a tourist site for hurting and fetching firewood. But now it had been labeled with the name, Iyi. A name given to a cursed forest in the distant Village of Alaocha. Stories have it that the Iyi forest in Alaocha used to be the prison that harbored all kinds of mystical creatures until princess Ada's lineage and wiped them out.Ejima rounded a bend and entered the path that led into a canopy of trees and shadows. The heating sun still blessed the forest with its yellow gaze, but those broad le

Ejimmamara wiped away the sweat that walked down the bridge of her flat nose, but sneezed twice when she accidentally sniffed the dust in her hands. She wiped the tears that followed and tried to return to work, but leaned away when a sharp pain strode through her waist. She hissed out the frustration from her teeth and tightened her grips on the wooden hoe. All the light-headedness and the weakness she had been feeling for the last four months had turned out to be pregnancy, a pregnancy she never wanted.Pregnancy is the joy of motherhood. It is a harbinger that announces the birth of a new life. Mothers throughout the village always rejoice when they take in, but to Ejima, pregnancy had become more of a curse to her than a blessing.She bent slowly and was glad when her hands touched the heap of earth and grass. With the hoe, she dug around the brown tendril and tried to pull with her free hand. The yam obliged at the first trial, but sn

The lights of the sun were hiding on the other side of the world and the birds were retiring to their nest by the time Ejima decided that it was time to go home, having fed enough on the bread of affliction. She tried to swallow but the fluid in her mouth was all gone. Her lungs were dry and her stomach was empty. But she was not hungry either. What kept flooding her mind was all the time she had spent with Uche.He was her first love. They had met on the eve of the new yam festival after she had danced with the other virgins. It was love at first sight. He too had performed that day. He had wrestled with Dinta—who turned out to be Nneamka’s husband—and had lost. She had tried to console him but that was what actually sparked the fire of their love. A few

“I don’t think she can make it” Someone was saying. The words were gibberish and echoed in her ears like a multitude of people all saying the same thing simultaneously. Her legs and thigh were on fire and her body ached, but it was difficult to lift a limb.She tried to lift her head, but it was as if there was something pinning her down. Where am I? She tried to recall. The memory flashed back and a new pain sparked through her spin. She saw her husband and her best friend in her mind's eyes, smiling together, and laughing at their own jokes. She scoffed. But the image of her fall also flashed in her vision. My baby. Her hands would not move

 How long had they carried her? Ejima whizzed, fighting through the rope that gaged her mouth. It was hard to get enough air, especially since her hands have been tied backward. The firm grip of the guard which locked her to the body of the Ostrich did not add any ease at all. She tried to struggle but realized just then that there was no strength in her. The weakness of childbirth was kicking in and it was taking all of wills power not to drift into the world of serenity. The pace of the Ostrich eased as they came before two burning torches. The Palace guards alighted, and one of them undid the rope that held her to the Ostrich. She fell heavily from the animal and cursed, but the gag in her mouth

Ejima yawned widely, not bothering to cover her mouth. She rested her weight on the broom and allowed her golden gaze to wander through the place she now calls home. It was nothing close to the size of her husband’s compound, and the dried leaves that carpeted the floor made her want to cuddle under her skin. Bloody cashew tree. She hissed and wiped the sweat drop that had strolled towards eyes eyelid. Leaning away from the broomstick, she continued with her chore, hoping to be done before the sun hangs on the center of the earth.But for the many trees, nothing stood for miles, just her small hut and the grasses. It would take about eight to ten miles before the next house could be seen. Seven weeks have passed since they drove her out of her husband’s place,