Singapore, 2014
In a sovereign island city-state in maritime Southeast Asia, a man stood behind a door with clenched teeth. He was furious as a taut smirk plastered on his face. His lips were stained with clean blood. Blood originated from a fresh wound he had gotten during a fight some minutes ago. He felt his body contract violently as he tried to reach out for his door key on his side pocket. Slowly, he drew the key out of his pocket and stretched towards the key hole to insert the key and unlock the door.
“Robert Lond!”
He turned and peered into the darkness of the
Munich, 2014"Which one is him?" Michael said slowly, feeling perplexed."That is him. He is the one at the centre. Not similar to the picture you saw in California though," Savannah sneered."Clark!" Michael shouted, desperate this time.Clark answered with a solemn snort. "What is it?"Michael looked at Clark in the eye, ignoring his ignorance and the bottles of cluelessness that filled his mind. "Take a look at the four people that were staring at Alger back in California!"Clark stared in bewilderment at the picture before him. “What is this place? Why is it so similar to hell? Why is it still the same four people we saw at California? Fuck!” Despite the weary blast of excitement on his face as they arrived Munich, he looked at the picture through squinted eyes with less ecstasy.Savannah said nothing as she removed the picture that had brought some air of thoughts to the room and changed it to a picture of a ful
Munich, 2014"We cannot conclude that your husband is dead without any verifiable evidence," Clark was the first to break the silence that had engulfed the room.Savannah exhaled but said nothing.“Where is the proof that he is dead?” Clark demanded.“We just heard it on the phone,” Michael responded for Savannah.The reality of Savannah and Michael accepting that Robert Lond was dead surprised Clark.“I want to meet him as much as you want to meet him but we all heard what the Singaporean woman said. Robert Lond is dead,” Michael continued.“Savannah,” Clark urged, ignoring Michael “we did not come all the way from America to watch you accept a false statement from an unknown woman in an unknown place with an awkwardly symbolic number. If your husband was dead you should have known already. It will be better to forget what the woman said and look straight ahead at what lies up fro
Munich, 2014Below a large reprinted version of the late 15th-century mural painting by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci widely known as 'The Last Supper', was a picture of two werewolves having sex under a full moon. To the right was a western painting of the Egyptian patron god of lost souls and the helpless, Anubis, and beside the anthropomorphized jackal-headed god was a list of werewolves caught on plain sight by human eyes. On the far wall, two brass soldiers stood, holding swords curved at their edges."What is this place?" Clark asked as he placed a leather-bound book they had gotten from the Bavarian State Library on a dusty table."A secret place my husband used to study in. I have only been here once. Robert always told me how important it was for me to not look into things I couldn't comprehend," Savannah explained.Michael moved inside the room, looking around in astonishment. What the hell is this place, he thought. The air of the room
Munich, 2014Clark shook off the thought in his mind. "Absurd! The story of this unknown boy is absurd!" He yelled."It is probably an ancient story," Michael added."Written in modern English?" Savannah questioned. "All academicians know that the style of writing in that story is basically of a modern era."Clark had plenty to say to defend Michael but he did not. He was more bothered about the significance of the story than the era it was written.“The story has a lot of information to give,” Clark went on. “I just don't get why whoever wrote it didn't leave us enough clues.”“I still maintain that it is of a modern era,” Michael said, more loudly than he had intended."We need to calm down and focus on what is at stake," Savannah said, drawing their attention back to the leather-bound book they had gotten from the Bavarian State Library.Clark agreed. It would be a waste of time if t
Igboland, 1810Blackwheel's voice stopped. In the dim light of the crescent moon he saw the cloudy eyes of his daughter as it trembled on seeing him. He stepped backward, aware of the fact that he had made a mistake to be seen in plain sight, in his full form, covered in werewolf skin. He had a wild impulse to turn around and walk away but he did not. He just stood there, looking at her and watching her look at him. He felt trapped in a tangle of deep shadows, shadows as dark as the night that stretched above his mind. The way he had spoken had made her to be afraid of the man who he had become, and yet the way she had acted only made him to be aware that she was not afraid of him, that she was not afraid of what he was capable of doing to her. In his mind, he felt totally weak as he fought the urge to not get mad at her for rejecting him, as he fought the urge to not consider the fact that he had been rejected by the woman he had waited for many years to meet."I am y
Igboland, 1810"I love your accent," the hunter complimented as soon as Blackwheel accepted his offer of palm wine. "I have never heard a man of a different skin color speak Igbo in the manner you have spoken. Do you mind telling me who you are?""My name is James Blackwheel," Blackwheel said, trying to form a smile on his face."I have never heard of that kind of name before," the hunter admitted, pulling a stool close to him so he could sit down properly and see Blackwheel's face clearly in the dark."Do you believe in Igweka-ala?" The hunter asked."Who is Igweka-ala?" Blackwheel asked, feeling confused."He is a potent Igbo god that we worship. He grants us supernatural powers. He gives us the ability to see in the dark when no one is watching. He is our everything.""I have never heard of such a god," Blackwheel said, draining the remaining liquid left in his gourd. "The w
Igboland, 1810Blackwheel felt unsettled as he passed two women who were looking at him in an awkward way. Do they know what I have done? He ignored the thoughts of being captured for murder as he tried to remember the hut he had seen his daughter, Nneka come out from yesterday. In all his years of executing people, he had never felt the way he felt when he struck the hunter's neck in the morning. He knew the image of the hunter's dead face would live forever in his mind. He knew he would have to atone for the blood of an innocent man when he was done fulfilling his mission. Now, he had to set his mind on the mission. Find Nneka and Nwakaego and get the necklace from them!Blackwheel turned as soon as he remembered the path that led to Nneka's hut. When he got to the compound, he stopped and asked a young girl in distinct Igbo if she knew where Nneka's hut was. The young girl said he was standing in front of her compo
Igboland, 1810Blackwheel had no idea on what to do as he saw Nwakaego. Her youthful beauty was definitely intact, and yet he could not bring himself to go closer to her and invite her for a hug. Was he being stung by his conscience? He watched as she sat down, detached, his mind running into full circles like the blades of a windmill, wondering if an immediate apology would make his current state any better. Somehow, he doubted himself. The thoughts of Nwakaego blaming him for all the years of his absence. It was as if she understood the alarming need for him to disappear about two decades ago."You have a grandson now," Nwakaego started, raising her cheek. "How is your wife in England?"Blackwheel kept quiet as he tried to hide the shame that filled his face. The public exposure of his English wife in an inappropriate fashion to Nkechi and his daughter was not something he was expecting to deal with, not in a hot afternoon with news of a dead hunter flying aro
Chibuzor Victor Obih was born in the southern part of Nigeria. Delta State to be precise. His writing includes essays, poetry and short stories. He likes to play soccer, read, study and above all, write. He is currently a fourth year student of a renowned public university in Nigeria. The University of Port-Harcourt is where he is pursuing a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering. The Last Full Moon is his third book and his third attempt to explore the beautiful world of a novelist.
Kano, 2022There was no light. There was no sound. There was no imaginary figure running around his mind and playing games with him. The road that was up above him was clear and black. Fear, Ifenna now realized, was an intense rush of displeasure that motivated a man to run for the security of his own life. Short of breath, he fumbled through the blackness towards the road, almost staggering, almost allowing the image of seeing Kelvin raising a gun and shooting at him revolve around his head. He found a soft spot and made an attempt to rest when he realized that he had to make sure that Jane was safe. But how could he reach her when he couldn't remember where he had last seen his phone? Just then, as he was thinking about the location of his phone, an alarm he had set up in his phone about a week ago to make sure he attended all the morning exercises class rang. He reached out towards his left pockets and brought his phone out. He smiled as he felt grateful that some unfo
Pennsylvania, 2022Maria sat very still, listening and not listening. She was looking at the face of the man who had come in place of James Blackwheel, to ask for her forgiveness and understanding. If someone had asked her to repeat the words of the preacher, she would not have been able to do so without making a single mistake because she didn't understand what he meant when he told her to forgive and forget. She didn't understand the ease he felt as he let those words slide out from his tongue as if it would take away all the atrocities that James Blackwheel had committed in his life. But she felt and sensed the genuineness in the preacher's voice and she saw meaning as she tried to reason in the same plain he was reasoning. As the preacher talked more about forgiveness and its positive impact in the modern society, a vast dark silent void lifted away from her eyes and she could see familiar images which grew large and powerful; familiar images of Blackwheel planting hi
Pennsylvania, 2022Not once during the five days following the explanation behind Uju and Abby's death had an image of their dead bodies buried underneath the ground come into Maria's mind. She had thought about it bitterly until she could no longer cry or think again. She had thrust the whole scene back and forth, and there it still lay, monstrous, horrible and terrifying as it had been before. She was not much of a believer but she believed in the power of words and truth. And to think that her ancestral father, James Blackwheel who she had never met was involved in their deaths made her feel awful and sad. She was not so much in a bad stupor or in a wayward lane with brown leaves falling quickly with no end. She was in a bizarre situation where she saw Uju and Abby begging for their lives and being punished for doing so.Having been briefed by Detective Doe about the incident that had kept her in the dark, she made a quick call to Clark with the hope that he would answe
Lagos, 2022Kelvin stopped listening, feeling fear for the first time. He had not thought that the message sent to him using a foreign number was a solution to his love problem with Sharon. A solution that came with a price. How could he explain to Ifenna that the gift Maria had given to him during his last trip to America was greatly desired by a group of people who tagged themselves as members of a secret organization called the 'Priory of Göteborg'? Oh, Lord! He was drunk. The members of the 'Priory of Göteborg' were all drunk to think he would accept their offer and take the life of Ifenna because of love. How could he? The instructions he had gotten from them was clear and simple. Take the necklace and eliminate the target. But how could he do that when he was greatly attached to Ifenna in ways that the members of the Brotherhood didn't understand? How could someone who knew absolutely nothing about his life choose him as a tool to achieve their quest? What
Lagos, 2017KELVIN:Hey! How are you doing? I finally came back! I missed talking to you! How have things been going on your side?BELLA:Hey! Good morning! Or afternoon to you I think! It is great to see you back. I missed you!KELVIN:I missed you too. Good afternoon!BELLA:It is 7 am here and I'm hooking up my morning coffee drip. The weather is really not that bad. I am sure you can relate with the feeling of the weather. It feels cold but it isn't. I think the weather is in a good mood today.KELVIN:So, do you have a pipe inside your body? That is great! Honestly, it is!BELLA:I don't have a pipe inside my body! Coffee is great! Lol! All day long! I never see the need to sleep.KELVIN:You seem happy today. That is a good trait.BELLA:I suppose so.. every once in a while it happens. I guess I am happy today because you finally came back. It is always great to reunite with a long lost friend even if he has
Lagos, 2017KELVIN:What is your real name then? Mender? Bella? I don't want to make any assumptions about your real name so you wouldn't feel bad about it. I was trained to accept people's decisions on things affecting them. I respect privacy.BELLA:Hi. Your pic is adorable. Whose baby? Is that you?KELVIN:No! Just placed a baby there because I have been unhappy lately. Glad you like it.BELLA:I love all babies but more from a distance lol. When they are close they are all noisy, little germ machines lol. Except for my children, they are perfect, naturally perfect. They don't look like pumpkins with bitter tears.KELVIN:That is good to hear. So, which one is your name? Mender or Bella?BELLA:Bella. Bella is my real name.I was planning on using Mender as a pen name for a new genre I am working on. Like I told you before if you can remember, I am an author.KELVIN:Alright. That would be a lovely ide
Ontario, 1983It was morning. The church bells had just began to ring when Blackwheel arrived. In the dark and silent room, the drab light of the weary sun outside filtered in through the silky curtain, allowing a limited passage of light. Already, the coming of the sun had been announced through the sound of the bell like a messenger sent forth to disseminate information for the time being."I have to prepare early. I don't have much time for myself or for anyone," Blackwheel muttered to himself and yawned. He was feeling tired from the long walk he had had a day before.Sitting himself up, in an upright position, he held his head with his hands as if he was trying to adjust it and move it away from his neck. It was as though his mind was about splitting from his head. His eyes roamed to the door which led to the entrance of his room when he heard a noise. He was expecting someone but due to the delay, the little hope that rose in his heart about ten hours ago had died dow
Lagos, 2017KELVIN:Why? Is there a problem.ZOE:Just have different priority lately.KELVIN:What kind of priority. I thought we promised to be really close?ZOE:Yea, we did! Someone close to me went through a difficult ordeal and I spent a lot of time with him, I have had to babysit my three year old nephew a lot. Also, I reconnected with a friend I haven’t seen in six years and I am trying to write a novel, and even after a full regiment of antibiotics my cough is getting worse. Sometimes life happens. If it is a problem for you, then maybe don’t wait after me so much. I can’t promise hours of texts daily. I spend already that time nearly daily just answering everyone who texts me and ask for help with their writing or publishing platforms (on top of everything else), social media is turning into a full time job and I am trying to reduce that and keep my focus on writing but it is hard. I only have so many hours in