Chapter 2: Face-to-face with the deity

"After much deliberation, the king and the people of Ohanta community agreed to send four men to Ndikwe community to trace the origin of the traveler. The villagers waited for so many seasons, but none of them returned.  Nothing was ever heard about the men. Their disappearance remained a mystery in Ohanta community till today." 

"But Father...."

"Ani nne stop interrupting me," Mazi Ugwu said. 

"Just one question Father" Anine said with index finger up. 

"Go ahead"

" How many days will it take a man from Ohanta to get to Ndikwe?" Anine sorted to know. 

"I have not embarked on the journey my entire life, but my father told me it is a three-day journey" Mazi Ugwu responded. 

"So since then, no one tried to trace the origin of Ajonwa?" Anine asked. 

"After some seasons, when Ajonwa began to release what he had in store for the people of Ohanta, three men embarked on a secret mission. They told no one where they were going - not even their parents could explain where they went to. The men returned after twenty-eight days. My father said the whole villagers assembled when the men were sighted at the market square. 

The three men narrated how fruitless their search was. According to them, the traveler lied to the king. No one was driven out of Ndikwe like a common criminal. The king and the villagers lost hope of tracing the origin of Ajonwa." Mazi Ugwu narrated to his daughter. 

"Hei woman!"

The Chief Priest shouted at Anine who was lost in thought. 

"What are you doing here all alone?" The Chief Priest asked. Anine was startled by the unexpected question, so she stammered. 

"Nothing I...." 

"You are needed in Ajonwa's inner chamber right now. Please do not keep him waiting. I repeat, do not keep Ajonwa waiting because you won't be alive to share your story."

Anine knelt before the Chief Priest of Ajonwa. 

"Please Eze Ajonwa help me. The last time I visited Ajonwa's inner chamber, he inflicted me with scratches and bruises on my genitalia. He spanked me, pushed me, called me names that are not mine, he even tore my flesh with his teeth. Please Eze Ajonwa, help me." Anine pleaded. 

"Keep quiet woman! Other women were all brought here at a tender age. None of them has ever complained of being manhandled by Ajonwa. Did you see that young girl that was brought here yesterday? Her mother said she was born eighteen seasons ago. She has visited Ajonwa's inner chamber twice today." 

"We...what? gods of our land! Where are you?" Anine supplicated quietly. 

"Since you came to this shrine, you have been complaining of one pain or the other. If you had allowed your daughter to answer the call of Ajonwa, she wouldn't have died and you wouldn't be here...."

" My daughter is not dead she is alive!" Anine interrupted with a loud voice. 

"Be careful woman, remember shedding tears is a taboo in this shrine. I shall show you no mercy if I see your tears. Your daughter has been missing for the past ten seasons, and if she returns home alive, she will not be allowed to step her feet in this shrine, unless she returns a virgin. Ajonwa hates leftovers that is why he has not been fair to you. Do not keep him waiting." The Chief Priest repeated before leaving. Anine ran after him. 

Anine walked straight to Ajonwa's temple. The magnificent edifice was made of mud bricks and woods. The temple had about four hundred chambers, including separate chambers for the master, his wives, and the Chief Priest. The temple also had bathrooms and lavatories.  The ceiling of the chambers were supported by painted wooden pillars and there were further chambers attached outside the main temple. No one had ever visited any of the chambers except Ajonwa and Eze Ajonwa.

The temple occupied about one acre of land, and despite the hills around, it gave the appearance of very open space with plenty of trees and vegetation. The inner chamber where Ajonwa slept with his wives had the appearance of an ancient cave.  

Intercourse with Ajonwa deity was one of the most distressing, horrendous, and demeaning experiences anyone could have. Ajonwa used the women as sex objects who were there to satisfy his sexual prowess. 

Anine walked down the narrow entrance that led to the inner chamber of Ajonwa deity. She found herself right inside the chamber. She began to recall how she felt the first time she was brought into the chamber and stood face to face with Ajonwa, the folktale she has heard so much about. 

That day was the first time she saw Ajonwa deity in human form, and also a day she would never forget in her life. She recalled how the Chief Priest led her to the inner chamber after explaining all the dos and don'ts of the shrine. She was so afraid of meeting Ajonwa for the first time since she was born in Ohanta community. 

Anine was told by her late father that Ajonwa had nothing to do with women who had been defiled by another. He only wanted virgins and so she was not worried that she might be raped. She concentrated on the answer she had ready for Ajonwa about the disappearance of her daughter. She kept repeating her lines as she looked around the cave-like chamber. Her heart was pounding harder than ever. 

The moment Ajonwa entered the chamber, Anine forgot all her lines. The deity, who appeared in human form pinned her against a wall and ripped her sackcloth with his left hand. Knowing what was about to happen, Anine froze. Her whole body went numb. She couldn't move. Ajonwa began to have canal knowledge of her in a way that she had never experienced.

"You will remain in this temple until your daughter returns!" Ajonwa announced before leaving the chamber. 

He drifted  out of the chamber as if nothing happened. Tears were in Anine's eyes, but she tried to look brave. The Chief Priest listed all the taboos and their consequences for her before leading her to the inner chamber of Ajonwa deity. 

The intense penetrative sex left Anine with physical injuries and emotional pain. She lost her sense of control and self-worth. Since her husband died, no man had ever laid with her. She took an oath never to associate with any man for the rest of her life.

She could not imagine her daughter and other young girls who were sent to the shrine going through such inhumane treatment. For once, since her daughter disappeared from the village, Anine was grateful and happy that she did.