Atala chewed the last piece of his guava, licking his lips to remove the final crumbs.

  “Something has changed.” Esu finally said.

  “I know,” Atala replied. “But I do not know what. I have the feeling like I just tasted new food.”

  “Could it be the nature of Ase?” Esu offered. Atala paused, extending his senses into the surrounding Ase.

  “No, it feels the same,” he replied. Atala thought of Epe’s last words wondering if this was what he meant. Was this the best way? He shook his head, this was not about the quality of their oath, this was the only way for Ayin, his kingdom to survive.

  From the moment Iku began its blood sacrifice of humans, they were placed on this path. He looked up at the sun, beginning its descent for the night. He studied the earth and saw nothing different. But that feeling of...strangeness clung to him like a cloak.

  “We need to find a place to rest and sleep,” he said. “Any unforeseen changes can come after that.”

  Esu nodded in agreement, and they walked in silence till they found a grove of mahogany trees evenly spaced out, side by side, forming a perfect circle. The brothers slipped through its gaps before Atala used his Ase and the earth rose, blocking the gaps they came through. They made no fire expecting the moon to come; it had been almost full the previous night. So, it came as a surprise when Atala glanced up and froze; there was no moon! The sky was clear with nary a cloud in sight and the stars sparkled somewhat, but the silver circle that governed the night was nowhere to be seen.

  “Blood of my ancestors!” Atala cried out. “Esu, I think we found our first consequence.”

  Esu peered up wide eyed at the sky, no words escaping his lips. Atala’s thoughts began to travel; if the moon vanished, what else…

  “A star just vanished.” Esu called out. Atala glanced up, following Esu’s finger. A piece of the lion constellation was gone; one of the stars that made up its eyes. Atala’s heart pounded. Another vanished and another then as if by command, the entire sky lost its light. True darkness fell over them and so dark it was that Atala could only see Esu’s orange eyes. He reached for his Ase wanting to use its glow when he heard rushing water. The sound came from everywhere, the sky above, the earth beneath, his own blood, Esu’s heart. The Ase around him trembled like children before their father, seeming to melt away from him. Horror and fascination swept through him and then light burst all around him. It took him seconds to realize, the moon and stars were all back and there was no sound of the river.

  The two brothers stared at one another; the tension thicker than honey. “Should we really be doing this?” Esu finally asked.

  “We are already on the final step; in fact, we have already crossed it,” Atala replied. “Asking that right now would be foolish. All we can do is continue and hope that we can get what we desire.”

  Atala thought of his dying wife. Yemowo’s unconscious form came into his mind; her hair graying, her skin thin and wrinkled. There was also Ayin, now the enemy of the other kingdoms because of his own folly. Orun, his second brother was there in his place, but how long could he last before one of the chiefs slipped a knife in his back?

  “If we stop, we all will die.” he reminded Esu. “Better to die chasing our goal than to die due to our fear of its completion.”

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  Esu scratched his left ear before lying on the floor, his arms under his chin legs curled up; like a dog would. Where the fur grew, the white marks of Odu, the pathways of Ase was faint and already part of it was already vanishing. The more the fur spread, the greater the damage to Esu’s ability to use Ase. Soon, he would no longer be able to use it. Atala sighed, another reason to get the fruits in his hands. According to legend, the fruits could restore and preserve a person for all eternity. The thought of Iku, who had lived before humans were even born getting hold of them sent shivers down his spine.

  “I guess we should talk about our more pressing issue,” Atala said. Esu’s eyes opened for a moment, his jaws sat open, tongue slightly out.

  “Iku.” Esu said, seriousness and dread spreading over his face. “It would have been perfect, if we could have used him as a sacrifice, but-”

  Atala shook his head. That would have been impossible. Iku was the father of spirits, the mightiest of them all, the symbol of death. Atala had met him a few times; first as a youth when he killed Akogun, their older brother then when he killed their father. His heart clenched, fiery rage still pouring through his flesh after all these years. But the shadow of Iku lay over the battle with the spirits even though he rarely came to the battlefront these days.

  “What do you think he will do?” Esu asked. Atala thought for a second of the spirit’s almost mocking attitude to humans.

  “Before going to Ile-Aye, he will come for us.” Atala said. “He views humans as lesser beings and will want to wipe away the stains that killed his sons.”

  “As if the others were not bad enough,” Esu said. “We barely got through them and now death itself hunts us.”

  “And when we win, even death will have no power over us.” Atala countered. “Now, let us talk about practical methods. Iku is powerful, but not omnipotent.”

  They spoke long into the night of their own experiences and what others had written down about the death god before finally going to bed. As he closed his eyes, Atala felt the earth shake and once more the moon winked out of sight then returned.

  Ancestors have mercy.

  Atala dreamt of water, which like an untamed lion ran over the earth, rising to cover every inch of land from the blade of grass to the treetops and then the tall mountains. Animals were pulled into its depths and human dwellings fell before it. The great stone walls built all those years ago that kept spirits out till this day vanished beneath its rage and all life was swallowed, reduced to their primordial ingredients. In its depths, eyes opened, and shapes materialized-

  Esu’s cry of shock dragged Atala back to reality and his sword rose out of its place as he jumped to his feet. Corpses rose out of the earth, their sockets glowing a crimson red, some only had bones, others carried bones covered with remnants of flesh. One such corpse held Esu’s feet; its strong bones almost shattering his brother’s arms. Atala’s sword imbued with Ase cut through its head. The corpse’s eyes darkened, and it fell limp, unable to fully rise. Atala’s Ase flowed from his feet into the ground and the ground rose to form stone lions, their eyes glowing with white light. He moved them forward and they fell on the corpses, their Ase imbued nature allowing them to neutralize Iku’s power.

  “Are you okay?” Atala asked. “How did they get-”

  “It’s gone.” Esu whispered and Atala’s lips sealed themselves. His eyes twisted in pain knowing what Esu had lost. The fur had spread all over his body leaving no visible Odu marks.

  “I can’t even sense...it.” Esu whispered. “I-I am a cripple”

  “Do not say that!” Atala declared. “Remember, if those fruits can save Yemowo, they might be able to repair your Odu and turn you back.”

  “How do you know there is more than one?” Esu countered. Atala pursed his lips, his brother’s words bringing forth his own fears. The ritual they did; the killing and sacrifice of the seven great spirits along with the multiple sacrifices of humans Iku orchestrated had done something to the world. Would that just fix itself when they got the fruits or did it-He shook his head clearing his thoughts. He would take it one problem at a time. The pressing problems now were saving Yemowo, restoring Esu and ensuring Iku did not get the fruit first. Then he could consider consequences and other notions.

  “We can only hope,” Atala replied then added. “But we have a more pressing matter. I do not think you can come with me without your Ase. It is too-”

  “So, you will send me back, through the Spirit Wilds without any means of protecting myself?’ Esu inquired.

  Atala shifted with discomfort. “When you put it like-”

  “We are already here, and we will finish this or die trying.” Esu said. Grinning, he added, “I might not have Ase, but my claws and teeth will do.”