Bassa Geyla Face Mask, Wood
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Thomas Kai Toteh
Mount Smoke
Novel Excerpt
Ne-wulu village overlooked the River of the Dead right below Mount Smoke. All of the children, women and men in the village, old and young, were magicians. They lived in peace while protecting their culture from destroyers alien to the land.
Mount Smoke was invisible to outsiders and became uneasy whenever strangers passed by. The River of the Dead was the same way, but became even more restless than the mountain. Mount Smoke got its name from the cloud of smoke pouring from the top of the mountain into the sky, which was visible to the other villages and towns near Ne-wulu. Sometimes at intervals in the day and night, sounds of merry-making echoed from the river. The river was inhabited by the spirits of ancestors and the spirits of dead young people who were forced to their early graves by wars and diseases in the immoral world. Drum beating, singing, and chanting war songs rose up from the The River of the Dead at the first sign of imminent danger.
The villagers never lacked food, though they did not farm. Their food and everything else they needed came from the river and the mountain. The supreme laws of the village were not to see each other's blood, cheat, betray the village, and not to commit adultery or fornication. Violators were stoned to death and their bodies were marked, so that they would be identified after reincarnation.
News about the power of the isolated village spread when hunters who ventured too close were cut off from going further. They became traumatized by a magical spell that was thrown upon them from the top of Mount Smoke. The village became a force to contend with as the central government spread its control to the rest of the region and evangelism hit the other villages and towns around Mount Smoke and the River of the Dead.
Government forces and foreign missionaries called Ne-wulu village a city state and declared it undesirable. Together, the missionaries and government representatives designed strategies on how to dismantle the invisible empire. There was no way to communicate with the village of all-witchcraft. No roads led there. Witches and wizards from other villages under the control of the government and missionaries were left in their sleep whenever they had the slightest thought of intruding on Ne-wulu village. The population of Ne-wulu grew fast because the death rate was far lower than the birth rate. Boys and girls were healthily growing and being taught all sorts of necromancies from flying to and from other villages to turning leaves into medicines to cure every disease and sickness.
Midnight at the new moon, older men and women got ready for the mid-week meeting to deliberate on fortifying their village. Suddenly, an alarming sound fell from the sky to rock the ground of the village - the first of its kind. Everyone in the village shivered and started running around. Some hurried for their most powerful charms to challenge the intruders.
"That was white man bird. That is how it sounds and moves in the sky." The village chief, head of the sorcerers spoke to his followers as they all stood around somewhat perplexed and angry in the open. "We must be in readiness. It is not clear why we were not informed before time. The River of the Dead and Smoke Mountain did not signal us. Something must be wrong. Perhaps someone has committed an abomination amongst us that might cause the river and the mountain to be silent at this unusual event." The flying of the white man's bird over the village was followed by vigorous night patrols both on ground, in the air, and under the water by all the witches and wizards, male and female, young and old.
Early at daybreak, the chief of the village along with five other top sorcerers flew on their flying brooms to the mountain to get words from Mount Smoke about the flying of the white man's bird over the village. They performed a short ritual for the men's successful meeting with Mount Smoke. A downpour of rain blessed the onset of the men's journey. Then the rain ceased and a plump cloud and blue sky shone over the village and its environs. White and thick smoke from Mount Smoke turned the sky gray in the direction of the men journeying from Ne-wulu village.
The villagers continued their dances, singing, and battle cries, patiently awaiting their representatives to the mountain. Voices of jubilation reverberated from the River of the Dead while dark-gray smoke encircled the river. "Victory to Ne-wulu village," the villagers chanted in reaction to the river's ecstatic shift after the flying of the white man's bird over the village. The villagers sang and danced, marching toward the river and back in a show of solidarity and respect for the spirits of their ancestors and the spirits of loved ones.
Hours passed and the men were yet to return, but the villagers did not panic. If something terrible happened they would see a sign. The older villagers sensed that the situation about the white man's bird must be a multifaceted one. In any case, they expected a result that would demand complete vigilance over their village. Just after pondering about their representatives, a white dove landed from the direction of the River of the Dead. It held in its beak an envelope addressed to the head and citizens of Ne-wulu village. As the villagers tried to get close to the bird, it flew back to its destination.
Soon after the bird flew back, the men landed one after another in the center circle of the village from the sky. The villagers hurriedly left their huts. In the center circle or the meeting place, they assembled to listen to their representatives to the mountain. Every creature was silent. The River of the Dead stood still. The atmosphere around the village was static. Mothers hugged their babies tightly to their breasts. Then the chief elder cleared his throat and gave a battle cry and he received a heroic response and cheer. Then the chief got into his report: "We have consulted our oracle and some of our ancestral spirits were there at the mountain. We were told that the government in the corrupt world in collaboration with the white man's gods are eyeing our kingdom. Our kingdom has survived centuries and still stands as a world of perfection. We know no hunger. We know no wars and pestilence. Our gods are giver of everything and have interceded on our behalf for centuries.
"Our oracle says the unusual sound over the village was an iron bird. Its mission was to locate Ne-wulu village. This iron bird was piloted and owned by white men who belonged to a missionary group, the white man's gods. The oracle told the men this is a conspiracy to invade the village, hold the villagers captive, enslaved, and subject them to the rules of their government and beliefs of the alien gods.
"The oracle gave assurance to us that the River of the Dead and Mount Smoke would protect our village from the intruders. Their world is corrupt. Their culture is destroyed and wars, hatred, and pestilence they live with. Without any sacrifice, the River of the Dead and Mount Smoke would crush any invading force. The land surrounding Ne-wulu village, the animals, rivers, and everything within the limits are protected today, tomorrow, and forever." The chief elder concluded the message from the oracle to loud applause from the villagers and a triumphant blast from the River of the Dead. Mount Smoke clouded the sky with dark smoke in every direction except over Ne-wulu village, which had a clear blue sky.
Copyright © 2005 Thomas Kai Toteh
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