THE OZIDI EPIC OF NIGERIA PART FIVE

FOR PART ONE CLICK HERE. FOR PART TWO CLICK HERE. FOR PART THREE CLICK HERE. FOR PART FOUR CLICK HERE.   

PART FIVE: At the conclusion of Part Four, the hero Ozidi, who possessed the strength of ten men, a lightning sword and the ability to pull other weapons out of his mouth/ innards, had killed yet another of his father’s murderers. That latest fallen foe was Akpobrisi, Wielder of Net Weapons as well as his troops.

Ofe, the main villain behind the slaying of our hero’s father, had hoped Akpobrisi and his soldiers would be capable of eliminating Ozidi. Ofe was expected to be the next man to face the avenging Ozidi but he was far too craven to do so. He blamed the citizens of Orua for the murder of Ozidi the Elder, lying that they pressured him to betray the dead victim even though the ambition of him and his co-conspirators was truly to blame.

Still, cowardly Ofe sought to throw another against Ozidi the Younger. He forced his right-hand man Badoba to face Ozidi in battle. Badoba tried to convince the despicable Ofe that they should both attack the hero together. Ofe refused, still hoping to avoid facing Ozidi in combat.

Now Ofe tried to convince his lieutenant Badoba to flee Orua with him to avoid Ozidi’s wrath. Oreame, Ozidi’s grandmother, knew that unless all of Ozidi the Elder’s murderers were slain then his soul would remain trapped in the deadlands limbo and could never join his ancestors. Oreame used her sorcery to cast a spell that made Ofe and Badoba brave enough to not flee Orua.

The next day at sunrise, tall Badoba with his long sword and Ofe with his dark magic went to confront Ozidi at the palace of his uncle King Temugedege, the unfit puppet ruler whom Ofe and his co-conspirators had ruled Orua through. Ozidi drew all his weapons from his mouth as well as his singers, his lizard and his trained monkey. 

Badoba and Ozidi fought each other and the wind from their swords was powerful enough to knock down all the observers. Eventually, Ozidi with his sword made of lightning triumphed over Badoba and beheaded him.

Ofe had been watching all of this and in a panic he fled. His wives also abandoned Orua and went into hiding.

Ozidi, for his part, took Badoba’s head to the trophy house, then once again berated his Uncle Temugedege for his uselessness and cowardice. Our hero celebrated with his mother Orea and his grandmother Oreame, but knew full well he must go forth to find and kill Ofe in order to free his father’s soul from the deadlands limbo. 

I ‘LL PICK UP NEXT TIME WITH THE CONTINUATION OF THIS EPIC MYTH FROM AFRICA.