The last song of the ancestors

The routine of training and working in Okafor's store left Akachi exhausted. However, when he remembered that this could help him reunite with his father Adisa, his vigor returned. As he recovered some of his memories, a sense of urgency welled up in his chest. Adisa was at risk under Ojwang's control.

When he woke up on that watershed morning, his face showed determination. Spin Bomb joked with the young man that he was too excited. He ate breakfast greedily. Fenyang shared his optimism. They had done a good job. It was far from ideal, but for Akachi, it was very good.

The apprentice picked up his tungsten sticks. On each handle, he tied a ribbon. He put a red one on the left and a blue one on the right, just like the wooden sticks used by Guardian Ori. He left Spin Bomb's house without listening to what the swordsmith was saying.

He took to the street and walked down the hill. As he passed, the locals greeted him. Akachi was no longer a stranger. He was part of the community. Chrome Hill was a society made up of misfits, social outcasts and anonymous runaways. There was always room for one more.

The boy headed for the entrance to the favela that led to the road to the garbage dump. Jarda and Smoke had never appeared again. A group of Central Command observers waved to Akachi and allowed him to leave. The young man continued walking, climbed through the clandestine cemetery and arrived at the clay pan. Yasini was already waiting for him.

"Very well, Akachi. I'm not going to teach you anything else today. I only wish that my teachings had paid off. Show me that you are worthy of being the user of the Spiritual Key of Faith. Firm the spirit of Fenyang in your body, become the vehicle of its strength and memory."

"Yes, Master Yasini. Fenyang, we've decided to do this together. Concentrate and channel your Axé together with me."

"You got it, bro!"

Akachi closed his eyes. Fenyang did the same. They both began to channel their Axé into their bodies. Little by little, the vibration of their internal portals acquired the same frequency. The metaphysical body of the Ori Guardian slowly overlapped with that of the medium. The air around the boy became hot and dense.

He opened his eyes and they emitted a strong light. It was two existences manifested in a single body. In a double-toned voice, Akachi shouted:

"FIRM SPIRIT!"

A curtain of dust rose into the sky. Yasini put her arms in front of her face. She had never felt an Axé as powerful as that. It was like a divine spark that appeared before her eyes. A force that surpassed nature and spirit, it was the Divine Emanation of Fante Obatayie.

All this without uttering a single word of Oriki, without knowing a line of Ìtan. That was the power of a Spiritual Key, which granted the medium the power of a Sage. Zuber mischievously whispered in Yasini's ear:

It's such a waste to have such great power in the hands of such a little boy. Let's take it for ourselves.

If it fell into the wrong hands, Ilu Nla's Cybertroop would do a lot of damage…

Fuck Ilu Nla, Yasini! Are you stupid or what? It's a golden chance. With this artifact, we'll put anyone under our boot. Don't just stand there, move!

"All right, Akachi and Fenyang, listen to me. I want to see the extent of your abilities as mediums with Guardian Ori in place. There's no point in receiving the spirit if you can't work as a team. We'll fight each other. Don't worry, it'll only be a friendly match, a test event for what's to come in the rest of the month."

"It's the first time I've received a spirit, I don't know if I can control all my strength."

"Is it for real or just for fun?"

"Look, Yasini, how confident those worms are."

Yasini sang her Oriki to Zuber. He affirmed his Ori Guardian. Now the two combatants were on equal terms. At least as far as spiritual aid was concerned.

Akachi, although they don't show it, I'm sensing some malice there, bro. Don't give these guys a hard time. I still can't figure out what they're up to.

I know. Sounds like fun. We don't have any advanced techniques, so I'll have to rely on your combat experience, Fenyang.

Leave it to me, bro! Yasini is a spearman. The javelin a allows him to attack from short and long distances. He must be very good at thrusting, it's not good to attack him head-on. It could go badly. Let's use a distraction and approach from the flanks. His speed will be our surprise effect.

Akachi concentrated his Axé on the soles of his feet, increasing his weight. He dug his heels in, cracking the ground to the point where the stones in the deepest layers rose to the top. Before they hit the ground, he hit them with his sticks. Using the repulsive force of his Axé, the speed of the stones reached great velocity.

Yasini felt like he was in the middle of a bombardment. With the tip of his javelin, he crushed the rocks. This caused a curtain of dust around him that blurred his vision. He didn't see Akachi hit his abdomen on the right side. A double, well-placed blow threw him a distance. He staggered and only stopped rolling when he used his weapon as a brake.

Yasini didn't see the blow. He didn't even have time to use his most powerful defensive Ofó. An enchantment that covered her skin with a thick layer of iron. Yasini rose from the dusty ground. He spat out a mouthful of blood. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

They were ingenious, I can't doubt that. You shame your Yasini ancestors. You are not worthy to carry our spear.

Silence, old vulture. Who knew they'd take it seriously? It's Fenyang. He's strategizing, he must have realized that I'm better at defending than attacking. He'll try to lure us into his web. He'll try to beat us through exhaustion. He'll distract us, then strike from below. I underestimated them. They work well together.

Stop admiring the balls of our enemies, you idiot. I'm not embedded with you to watch you take a beating from someone who isn't even competent to be a trainee medium. Get a move on, you wretch!

The same trick won't work on me twice in this fight, Akachi. What will you do when your strategy collapses?