Chapter 127 - Reflections; Meeting Niniola

Sunday remained rooted to where he had been stooping to try to sniff on the conversation that had been spoken in hushed tones earlier. And now, he wished he never had done that.

Was it not said that ignorance was bliss? Then he should had just adhered to this and gone ahead to the Council House instead of trying to sniff out what was being said. And in a way, he blamed himself for this.

Perhaps, if he had not stayed back, he would have been spared the agony of knowing that he was destined to be a demon. His eyes watered, his c.h.e.s.t heaving as he suppressed the incoming sobs.

"You cannot say that" Maerius' voice ripped out again.

"Why can i not>]? You and I know that the lineage of The Elder has been tainted already with what had happened with the Last DemiGod, okay? So, is it not rather evident that those traces of darkness in the latter would come back to find his own descendant to continue from where it stopped? No matter how you say and look at it, Sunday should not live because he is a demon waiting to be unleashed." Orunmila Shope fired out, her voice equally as loud as the voice of the Third Prime, Maerius.

She turned her head to the silent but pensive Elder and spoke. " The Son of Prophecy will bring destruction to us, so, kill him, Elder. Do not hesitate." She paused. "After all, he is your son and who better should do that but you, yourself?"

The Elder swallowed, shaking his head. "You ask a hard thing of me." His eyes were watery already. "He is my son, how can i ever look up to this day knowing that i killed him with my own hands?"

"What?" Sunday gasped, turning to gain visual on them. His father was willing to kill him? The only thing he was worried about here, from what he heard was how that would rub off on him.

Coming from the person he idolized, Sunday was heartbroken.

"Aaagh!" Sunday yelped just as soft weight slammed into his back, sending him sprawling into the open and down to the ground.

Angered, he rose up from the ground and turned around, howbeit, on his knees. His face momentarily lightened as he saw the form of Tayo smiling at him with a Cheshire smile.

"Why did you do that?" Sunday growled at him, fisting his hands. He was in no mood for jokes.

"What? You said, first to reach Maerius decides what to do and instead of you going to him or waiting till they were done, you were hiding here. " Tayo shrugged innocently. "So, I wanted to pay you back for tripping me back then. And i did that, so, consider us even." Tayo added with his smile widening even further and his eyes closing shut in the euphoria of his payback.

"We are eve. We are even. We are even. We are even." Tayo began to chant in a sing song voice, making faces at the back of Sunday.

Meanwhile, at the sound of the commotion, the Primes turned to their direction. The anger that was lacing the words that they hurled at each other vanished immediately. They took the minute to catch their breath, pondering on what to do. Seeing Sunday here, at the time when they were discussing him. 

That hit wrongly. And as at it was they were at a total loss of words to say. They each gaped, looking on, speechlessly, before swallowing and exchanging guilty looks with one another.

For a moment or two, Sunday and the Primes exchanged looks, they looking helplessly and Sunday fuming and glaring hatefully at them. After all, you could not blame him. Hearing them discuss so lightly the matter of his life or death hit differently. Tayo on the other hand, shut his mouth, looking from the Primes to Sunday as he tried to comprehend the current stalemate between the two.

"I knew it was bad. It was a bad idea all along." The Elder fumed suddenly, slamming his staff against the ground too. "We should never have had to discuss this here. But you, you..." He glared at the veiled lady, Orunmila Shope.

"Oh, don't blame me." She retorted. "None of this matters, Elder The sooner he knows that he is the demon himself, the far better it is for us and even the better it is for us to clean him off the slate." Orunmila Shope lifted her staff and rammed it down in annoyance.

"Me..." Sunday raised his left hand to his c.h.e.s.t slowly. "Me, demon?" His eyes glistened as he stared at the Primes still.

"No.... No... No... No..." Sunday shook his head, his voice beginning to rise in tempo and sound. "no... NO... NOOO... NOOOOOO.... NOOOOOOOOOO" 

He screamed, tears running down his eyes as he beat his c.h.e.s.t. The next moment, his feet doubled down the ground as he ran, running back into the forest.

"Sunday..." The Elder called out after him, his own eyes bulged out at the sight of Sunday running. 

"Noooo... Look at what you have caused." Maerius thundered and then doubled down on Sunday. 

Or made to double down on him only to be restrained by a hand clutching to his elbow bend. It was Second Prime, Anu.

She shook her head at him, her own eyes glistening with tears. "No, let him be. He needs time to digest all of this."

"What are you saying? Do not tell me you are siding with them already?' Maerius stared at her with horror in his eyes.

"Trixius, fighting Trixius cost us a lot. A lot in terms of Irunmole lives and whatnot. I would hate for such an experience to happen again through another of Trixius' descendant. No offense to you, Elder."

----

Sunday ran. 

He had no way in destination. Still yet, he kept running. All of what he had heard was just so much for him. Demons were a taboo, followers of dark who kept o challenging Eledumare and all of Eledumare's creation.

For him to be destined to become a demon later... It went against all of his will and soul.

"Heyyyy..." A feminine voice rapped out, hushed as he slammed into awaiting fist from behind a tree. "Watch where you play to. You boys had been plying over there and i did not disturb you so, do not come to my own place and blow my hideout okay?"

"W-What?" Sunday blinked as his b.u.t.t rammed into the ground, his environs being the forest in which he had been playing with Tayo, earlier. 

Before his tear filled eyes was a girl. The smaller form of Ninioa pacing about and nagging into the air with her hands to her tiny h.i.p.s, just about his height.

"Now, you brought yourself here. Third Prime would know I am here and... heyy..." Small Niniola frowned as she saw the silent tears from Sunday's eyes.

"You are crying... Why? I didn't hit you so much, did i? I am sorry. Please..." Niniola pleaded, squatting in front of him.

"No, not you." Sunday sniffed. "They say I am demon."

"You are not a demon. You are an Irunmole." Niniola blinked, reaching her hand to his shoulder. "Is it okay if i... If i... er.. If i hug you?" She stammered but Sunday did not answer. 

Seeing this, she bit her lower lip and threw herself on him, patting his back. "Don't worry. No one would turn you into a demon, okay. I would be here with you so that that never happens, okay? I mean, if you decide to be my friend... Please..." Niniola muttered into his ear, her own tears beginning to run down her eyes as she remembered the day too, that day when she had been cursed.

It was mutual, the pain they shared. One from the fact that he was destined to be a demon who would be cast out and killed, eventually and the other from the pangs of loneliness and been an outcast

***