Sheba episode 1 – Dapalace

💯 SHEBA 💯

Prologue

She’s 25.

Her spiritual Master chose a groom for her, a ra-pist and child abuser.

She rejects him, she face the wrath of her Master.

She marries him, she would never be happy.

She’s tra-pped, which of this options is best? Getting married to a spoilt prince or disobeying her spiritual master?

Find out in this exciting story,

SHEBA 👸

💯 SHEBA 💯

Episode 1

11:46pm

Sheba’s POV

Tied to an oak tree, I got the beating of my life from LAIZA.

“Do as I say or watch me make life a terrible place to live in” She threatened flying up into the dark tinted cloud.

“Laiza!” I jumped out of be-d p@n-ting heavily.

My b©dy was soa-ked in my own sweat, it was actually one of those night mares.

“Sheba, what’s it?” My mother dashed into the room, Dad followed her.

I began to weep, why can’t I just be like every other normal person, why?

“Another night mare” Dad asked dropping into the plastic chair next to my be-d.

I busted out crying, my Mom sat next to me and pat me.

I cried bitterly with my head resting on her che-st.

“Sheba, you have to do what she want” My father said.

I raised my head to look at him, my eyes red, blood dr!pp£ddown my cheeks, they gushed down from my eyes. I tried to control it but I couldn’t because I was upset at my dad’s word.

I wasn’t born this way, I bec@m£ Laiza’s right handed deity when I was nine.

I stay in the big Town of OGON with my family. It’s located somewhere in the heart of Lagos.

OGON is rich with nature and natural resources, every year, a female child is choos£n by Laiza the goddess of the land. This girl child pas-ses whatever message Laiza has for the people to the residents. The same girl child is always h0tter than fire. Filled with so much powers.

Laiza is said to be arrogant because she’s the prettiest of all goddess, she have the ability to live anywhere, marine, land, air, sky, in the trees or even transform into human.

She has every other goddess un-derneath her, she’s full of powers, she’s known to be the mother of all. For this reasons, she would never show her beautiful face to anyone aside the girl child she appoints yearly.

Laiza hates misuse of power, you can say she’s a feminist, she fights for female children.

In the history of Ogon, r@p£ cases are very low, this is because Laiza strikes any man that tries to f0rç£ his way into a young maiden that he never married.

This principle doesn’t apply to Prince Edward, Edward is responsible for the few r@p£ reports recorded in the land. Laiza haven’t strike him down all the while and now she wants me to marry him.

When I was nine, I bec@m£ the ESWA of the land. The girl child Laiza chose for the yearly message is called ESWA.

Every Eswa is always beautiful, the ones that existed before me are p@n-t we-tters, their beauty can’t be explained, they are believed to be extra ordinary human just like myself.

Fourteen years has pas-s yet I am still the Eswa of the land. I still go to the mountain behind the Town and pas-s Laiza’s message for the year.

I am powerful, very powerful.

I don’t misuse my powers because I know her rules. She’s my friend, I see her whenever I want to.

She’s very jealous, she doesn’t want me to keep other friends, she always find a way of s£nding them far from me everytime I make new friends.

I have asked her severally while she wouldn’t choose another Eswa after fourteen years of using me. She wouldn’t tell me why.

Just last year, she appeared to me in her fish form, long nails, gold hair and blue eyes as usual.

I was in the room getting re-ady for clas-s, I was serving in a far away land then.

She reminded me of the upcoming festival where I would have to go to the outSk-irt of the town, climb the tallest mountain and beat the special drum while pas-sing whatever message she asked me to pas-s.

“Edward have been useless all along, Maya was at the mountain crying for my intervention, I think I want to help” She had said that previous day.

I turned to face her, she’s everywhere but one sure place she would never leave is the tallest mountain at the outSk-irt of the Town. Maya is Prince Edward’s sister.

“Laiza, I don’t know why you have refused to strike him dead all this while, that boy is a pain in the as-s” I hissed combing my hair to the back.

“What I see, you can never see it” She said floating around the room.

“Am not arguing, you are wiser” I agreed putting a ribbon at the ti-p of my hair.

“Pas-s the message to the people on the day of the festival, tell them that I have chos£n a bride for Edward” She announced.

I picked up my white bag which match my white and green NYSC t©p.

“Uhmm, do you think what he nee-ds is a wife? That Prince nee-ds some s-en-ses not a wife. Anyways, Who did you choose for him? I am sure you chose a strong woman, someone that can battle his wild characters” I said.

“Yes, a strong woman is the word for her, very beautiful, Edward have his eyes on her, he would be so glad to have her, she’s Sheba Alexander” She announced.

I staggered.

“Laiza!” I screamed, my eyes bulged, me? Marry Edward of all people? Prince Edward is a pain the as-s, a trouble maker, a br@gging prince and a bloody ra-pist.

“I haven’t asked you for anything for the past thirteen years yet I gave you everything, Sheba, this is my first and last request before I finally choose another Eswa” She said trying to vanish but I st©pped her by gr-abbing a table water on the table and splashing a little on the floor.

She c@m£ in the fish form floating in air, a splash of water on the floor would make her wait longer than she ought to.

“Laiza, I have been your servant for thirteen years, haven’t I done enough? Why are you holding me down now? I am 24 and I have my own life to live, Edward is not my taste, let me go plea-se” I said softly.

She floated up clinging herself to the corner of the wall, what a beautiful woman she’s.

“Sheba, friend of the goddess, I gave you power, protec-tion, respect, money, fame and even make sure you aren’t m©l£st£d, I have help you keep your vir-ginity until now, if you would never do anything else, marry Prince Edward for my sake” She pleaded.

I turn around and face the mirror, I told her plainly that I would never marry him.

“You will” She argued.

“I wouldn’t” I fired.

She roared floating towards the floor as she transformed into a tiger.

I wasn’t scared, I have powers too. I can transform into anything, I love the animal form, I have scared people away by transforming into hvge long python.

Just that, Her powers are way beyond mine.

She can only str!pe me off my powers if I misuse them.

She roared at me few times before vanishing.

That day, my mood changed, I stayed back at home.

I thought she would have a change of mind, few days to the festival I return to my Town, the priestess got me re-ady for the festival.

I waited for Laiza to appear to me with another message but she never did.

It was then I begin to realise she meant it.

I had to summon her, she c@m£, this time in her full human form.

Blue eyes, long bent white nails, blue shinny str!pless go-wn, gold long hair.

“You won’t do this to me Laiza, not him, plea-se no” I cried facing her eye to eye.

I was dressed in white, standing with her in the spiritual house where I was getting re-ady for the festival coming up in a day.

“Sheba, I have spoken” She insisted.

I fell on my kneels, crawling up to her over flowing go-wn, I held the ti-p.

“I am your friend, listen to my cry mother of all, let me go plea-se” I wept.

“You can remain the Eswa for forty years if that’s what you want, always remember that I wouldn’t set you free except you decide to marry Edward, which ever way, I am not loosing. As long as I am Laiza, you either remain Eswa for the rest of your life or marry Edward” She said as she vanished into thin air.

On the day of the festival, I wasn’t as happy as I use to be.

On a normal ground, I pick up the spiritual drum, I beat it to the rhythm of Laiza’s name thrice before stepping out of the spiritual house where I must have stayed for seven days and seven nights.

Depending on how much power that got over me that year, I either walk unmasked all alone in the midst of people to the mountain or masked and guided by palace guides up to the tallest mountain where I don’t only pas-s Laiza’s messages but also pray for the prosperity of the land.

On this p@rticular festival, people have gathered at the village square waiting for me to pas-s throu-gh, I was down in the spirit, how do I pas-s such message about myself? Edward and me? No.

I didn’t acknowledge Laiza’s name with the drum, I dashed out of the Hut and walk pas-s the goddess, straight to the tallest mountain where I intend pas-sing a version of my own message.

The priestesses ran after me, the people at the village square p@rted giving way for me to pas-s throu-gh. Everywhere was dry, no drumming as usual, I walk and run pushing everyone aside.

Standing in front of the gigantic mountain, I murmured words and I was lifted on t©p by air.

c@m£ras rolled, everyone was busy capturing the moment.

I held the drum to my side and without acknowledging Laiza, I hit the drum twice and gave a false message.

“The great goddess have nothing to say this year, she wish you all peace” I announced.

Below the scorching h0t sun, I saw their facial expressions, that was weird.

Then knew Laiza always had something new to say, something no one knows, something surprising, something discovery and maybe misery.

All my years as a friend and servant of Laiza, I have pas-sed messages that changed lives and reveals evil doers.

Twice, Laiza have s£nt me to deliver a foreseen condition that would claim lives and properties, of course she provided a solution and the message c@m£ to pas-s though without destroying a thing.

I murmured words to climb down the mountain as I don’t want to stress my self going down by foot.

Surprisingly, I bec@m£ iced, everything including the drum froze with me.

In the spiritual realm, she took me beneath the de-epest ocean subjecting me to harsh punishment.

I was tied to a tree trunk and stoned with ice.

Outside the world of the spirituals, I was standing on the mountain motionlessly and unfroozen. Even though it looks like my frozen b©dy was standing beneath the scorching sun, I didn’t defreeze.

She tortured me till late at night when she threw me down the mountain.

That was last year, the festival is in a week and she have promised not to spare me if I don’t announce that she have chos£n me as a wife for Prince Edward.

Seeing my blood shedding eyes, my Dad knew I was angry so he left I and mom in the room.

“Sheba, you can’t handle this, do her wish” Mom said wiping the bead of sweat on my forehead.

“Mommy, Edward? A criminal? A ha-rd ened criminal?”

Prince Edward schooled in America, he was jailed twice for r@p£, at some point he had to return home when the disgrace and embarras-sment was too much for him.

After declining to pas-s Laiza’s message last year, he was arrested shortly after for defiling a 17years old.

He was in jail for six months before his father finally pardon him and got him re-leased.

It seems like he doesn’t learn no matter how much torture he’s subjected to.

Now, my friend, the goddess I have served for fourteen years want me to marry Edward? So a criminal who doesn’t know what hole to enter and the one to spare would take my vir-ginity?

I am not going to say a yes to that. Never.

I dropped into be-d, my younger sister kabby is married, she has a daughter alre-ady but I am still here k!ss!ngthe feet of Laiza. At 25, that witch still wont let me be? She still want to choose my life p@rtner for me?

“Sheba dear, do you have a choice? Laiza doesn’t fight, if she does, you know her, forget that you have powers too, you are no match” Mom reminded me.

I coiled weeping like a day old child. so I would have to stand on that rock and pronounce myself the chos£n bride for a criminal? A known unrepentant criminal?

🍃🍃🍃🍃

1:00am

Edward’s POV

Sleep haven’t been so easy since I set my eyes on this beautiful lady last three years. She was always surrounded by security guards including guards from the palace.

She’s not of the royal family, she’s said to be a super woman, a woman believed to have thrice the power of the greatest herbalist in the land, she’s Sheba.

I have secretly admired her, last year I was at the rock during the festival, I wasn’t there to listen to whatever message the damn goddess had to pas-s, I went there to catch a glimpse off her, a glimpse of Sheba the woman that stole my heart.

She bec@m£ iced shortly after, the people said she must have offended her master. Whatever.

We have had eyes contact twice, to her it was just a coincident but I was actually staring, so de-ep that I bec@m£ uncomfortable myself.

Those two times, she was at the palace, I discovered that she get paid for being an Eswa. She’s the only person who doesn’t go on her kneels to greet the king. She can only bow or shake the king.

I am so lost in the world of love, I fear her so much, I have seen her Emmit fire from her nose when a young lady fell at her feet to report her sister’s husband who took her to Port Harcourt for prostitution. The lady ran back home after three years and c@m£ down to the palace to tender her complains. She met Sheba in the palace and Sheba boiled, roaring like a lion, eyes dripping blood and very long claws that would tear off a human’s skin in few seconds.

That very day, I knew I couldn’t ask her out even though I am head over heels for her.

I wish I never fell in love with her, she’s not the type of woman that would end up with an ordinary man. If she ends up married, then she would choose a powerful man as her groom.

“Just sleep, you can never have her” I murmured to myself.

TBC