Prophecy

I am currently shaping this into my first Fantasy novel. Think of this as a peek behind the curtain of the writing process. All the chapters that have been shared are coherent and can be enjoyed on their own; however, if you want a more polished work where all the dots connect, let’s meet in 2026, when I officially drop the book.

Katana On Trial: Chapter 31

Learn about Katana’s playground here. Read chapter 30 here.

Alee came back in the company of two men. “This one is a Seer, and he can prophesy. And this one is his handler,” she said. One of them was a bag of bones in a black frock embroidered with red flowers, and the other one had mass to him, as if he had been eating for two. He was in black trousers and a red leather vest, and the buttons around his stomach looked like they would pop any minute. “Don’t mind his underfed exterior; his seeing ability was blocked, and he has been fasting for months trying to unblock it,” Alee added.

Keepia Greenland was dotted with these skinny men wearing black and red frocks to the point where I was now losing count of them. Aame would later tell me that the Seers of Keepia Greenland had sworn an oath of honesty, humility, and chastity. When they fell short of this oath, the gods punished them by taking their seeing ability, forcing them to fast, drinking only pine water until they were appeased.

“We beg of you, to let him prophesy on your wife, Beatrice,” the handler pleaded. I threw Alee a look that said, How dare you tell this stranger about Beatrice and her condition.

It was known in all of Keepia that it was a bad omen to be prophesied upon by a Seer who had been blocked by the gods. Many said that his curse often transferred to you. If he had broken the oath of humility, you became prideful; if it was honesty, you became a liar, and if it was chastity, you became promiscuous. It was said that Anasa province was full of men and women alike, who had been prophesied by Seers, who had broken the oath of chastity.

“We have silver for you,” the handler said after noticing our reluctance. 

“So, this is what it’s really about. Money. Alee, I knew it was not Beatrice, but your pockets interest you were looking after,” Aame said and laughed.

“The journey to Nobii City is long, and we need all the silver we can get,” Alee smirked.

“So, Beatrice doesn’t have an option then,” I said, worried.

“We don’t have an option,” Alee said. “But don’t worry, Katana, these are old beliefs whose power has long withered; a few cryptic words from the Seer won’t do your sweet Beatrice any harm, in fact, it might add to her vocabulary, and we might hear something new other than her repeated slogans,” she added.

“An easy thing to say when you’re not the one being prophesied upon by a blocked Seer,” Aame said disinterestedly, while filing her nails with the bark of a kijiti. 

The animosity between the two sometimes made me wonder if they were sisters, let alone twins.

“You should be prophesied too, sweet sister, because your wits are beginning to leave you just like Beatrice’s,” Alee responded.

“Let him prophesy to me first, if there is a curse, let it befall me before it does Beatrice,” I interrupted the brawl.

“Now there is something you don’t see every day. A chivalrous man,” Aame said. “Careful, you don’t end up becoming promiscuous, prideful, or a liar like someone I know,” she added.

Alee began saying something, but the Seer interrupted with his ritual. He told me to remove my sandals so that I could be one with the ground. It was known that the ground was connected to everything on earth, and it knew every secret under the sun. He removed his sandals too, held my hand, and began kneading my palm while staring into my eyes. I stared back at his watery green eyes and saw a wrecked man who was trying to reclaim himself. I wondered what he saw when he stared into mine. I did not have to wait long to know.

“The Great seat of Nobii City is vacant, a boy from Churo village comes. He comes, he comes, he comes,” the blocked Seer said, and then he let go of my hands hurriedly.

The Seer proceeded to Beatrice, who was already barefoot, staring into the vastness of the sky. “They are coming.. Where am I?” she muttered when the Seer got close to her. The Seer stood her up, held her hands, and began kneading her palms.

“They are coming for you…” He began, and then he let go of Beatrice’s hands and held his head in great pain. He held her hands again after what felt like a lifetime. “They are coming for you. Where they come from and go to unknown, unknown, unknown,” he said, and let go of Beatrice’s hands for the last time, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

“He should do Bobobo next,” Alee said. 

The fool was seated next to one of the donkeys that was pulling our cart, playing with its tail; it was a wonder that it had not smashed his face in yet.

“Bobobo has been that way for as long as I can remember. If there is any more prophecy to be done, let it be from your camp,” I said, and Alee dropped the subject.

“That’s silver for two,” I heard her telling the handler. 

“Katana, the Great Ruler of Nobii City,” she teased me when she rejoined us.

“Flattery from the blocked Seer, so you could allow him to prophesy on your wife, Beatrice,” Aame said.

“What do you know about prophecy?” Alee said.

I left the twins to their brawl and went looking for Beatrice and Bobobo, who were nowhere to be seen. I walked towards River Keepia, which was less than a klick from where we were, making a lucky guess that they would prefer its serenity to our chaos. When I got there, besides the rushing water, I heard chatter coming from behind a tree. I did not believe my eyes when I peeked and saw Beatrice speaking to Bobobo as if her wits had never left her, and I wondered for a second how long she had been faking it.

*

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image credit: mick haupt