6 By 2002, the digital warmth that had once fuelled their correspondence had cooled into a professional, almost clinical politeness. Their emails were now short and infrequent, stripped of the longing that had once sat between the lines. For Ese, the distance was a shield. After the disappointment at Mr. Bigg’s, she had convinced...
Interminable – 5
5 The evening air in Mushin was thick with the scent of rain and exhaust as Omejele trudged back from the workshop. His muscles were tight with the kind of fatigue that settled deep in the marrow, a byproduct of a day spent wrestling with a stubborn engine and hours of intense study under...
Interminable – 4
4 The National Stadium complex was a sprawling monument of concrete and ambition, a far cry from the dusty clearing of the Uromi grammar school field. Stepping out of the Mercedes-Benz, the leather seats still smelling of premium hide and the engine purring with the quiet authority Omejele himself had tuned into it, he...
Interminable – 3
3 It was a Monday, the day Omejele usually felt most powerful because his uniform was at its crispest, freshly laundered after a weekend of back-breaking labour. He had 200 Naira, the final balance of his, 1250 Naira arrears, tucked into a small plastic pouch and hidden in his pocket, ready to present to...
Interminable – 2
2 They had settled the stalemate with a decision to reach out to a prominent village high Chief for help that evening. The walk to Chief Edward Odion’s compound was a journey of swallowed pride. The evening air was cooler, filled with the smell of woodsmoke and the distant chorus of crickets, but Omejele...
Interminable – 1
Interminable by Blessing S. John-Abhulimen Synopsis At fourteen, Omejele had nothing but a brilliant mind, a fierce pride, and a crushing poverty that threatened to drag him out of his Uromi village school forever. Then there was Ese—beautiful, graceful, and utterly out of reach. Driven by a quiet, desperate devotion, Omejele vows to conquer...
The Way of Iron – 7
7 Down in the central basin, the massive bonfire was still roaring, casting a hellish, dancing orange glow over a scene of absolute, unmitigated slaughter. A proper, full-scale civil war had erupted in the dark. A distinct group of veteran warriors, the ones who had been whispering in the corners for days, had drawn...
The Way of Iron – 6
6 They walked in tandem until the camp was a distant, glowing ember. Aremu could feel the weight of the old man’s presence, an aura of ancient iron and suffocating history. “You speak to me of secrets, yet you keep the most dangerous one buried in the capital,” Aremu started, his tone sharpening. “Your...
The Way of Iron – 5
5 The morning on the volcanic island arrived with a blinding, humid glare. The stormy grey clouds from the night before had parted, leaving the basalt clearing slick with sea spray. Aremu stood among the ranks of the three hundred, his muscles burning as he ran through the rapid, aggressive forms of the Falcon’s...
The Way of Iron – 4
4 The sun climbed to its zenith, beating down on the lowlands with an unmerciful, humid heat, but the truest fire was burning inside Aremu’s chest. All through the day, the sickle in his hand moved with a mechanical, mindless rhythm. He hacked at the dry wheat stalks, his body slick with sweat, while...