Emene: The King’s Last Son

Emene: The King’s Last Son

🌘 Emene: The King’s Last Son

Episode Thirty-Eight – The Road to Destiny

The morning sun rose slowly over the village, painting the huts in hues of gold and ash. The world seemed calm, but inside Ebube’s compound, the air was thick with unspoken resolve.

Obiagu stood at the threshold, his face hardened, his staff in hand. His eyes no longer carried only pain—they burned with purpose.

Uju, her twins bundled against her chest, watched him with a trembling heart. “Must you go so soon?” she whispered, her voice breaking.

“I must,” Obiagu replied firmly, though his eyes softened when they met hers. “If I linger, my courage will turn to fear. And fear is what they always wanted for me. I cannot give it to them.”

Ebube stepped forward, his staff of office in hand, the mark of a man who had seen many storms. “The palace is no longer just a home of kings,” he said. “It is a pit of serpents. If you enter it, you must walk with the mind of a hunter, not the heart of prey.”

“I have hidden long enough,” Obiagu said. His voice wavered but did not break. “The Queen tried to erase me. My brother may already be searching for me. But I will not hide. Not anymore.”

Ebube placed a hand on his shoulder, steady and firm. “Then you will not go alone. I will walk beside you until the ancestors themselves turn me back.”

Uju’s tears slipped down her cheeks as she stepped closer, pressing a small leather amulet into Obiagu’s palm. “It was my mother’s,” she whispered. “It guards against ill-willed spirits. Keep it close. And… come back to us, Obiagu.”

For a moment, the young man faltered. This was not just a journey—it was farewell to the only family that had ever embraced him. He bent low, kissing Uju’s forehead, then bowed deeply to Ebube.

“Whatever awaits me,” he said, his voice steady, “I will meet it as my father’s son.”

The village gathered quietly as he and Ebube set out, their figures small against the endless road. Children clutched their mothers, elders whispered blessings, and the air seemed to shift, carrying the weight of destiny.

Behind him, the ashes of his hidden life smoldered. Ahead, the palace loomed unseen, waiting with its secrets and its dangers.

The road to destiny had begun.

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