Night wrapped the forest in a velvet hush as the group made camp. Ayo sat apart from the others, tracing the new markings on the blade with trembling fingers. The vision, the doppelgänger, the symbol—all spun in his mind like storm winds.
Temitope approached silently and sat beside him. "You've seen the shadow-self. It means the soul is remembering."
Ayo kept his eyes on the sword. "He said he's the part of me that remembers… What if I don't like what I find?"
Temitope's voice was calm. "Then face it anyway. Power without self-awareness becomes destruction."
A rustle from the campfire broke the silence. Ngozi and Ifedayo were debating strategy.
"We can't just chase relics blindly," Ifedayo said.
Ngozi folded her arms. "And we can't stay still either. We're being hunted."
"By something that looks like him," Ifedayo replied, nodding toward Ayo.
"He's not that thing," Ngozi snapped. "He's the one carrying the weight of all our gods."
Ayo stood. "Where's the next shrine?"
Temitope unrolled a map etched on animal hide. "Far west. Beneath the ruins of Odan, in the territory of Yemoja's descendants."
Ngozi raised an eyebrow. "The River People? They don't welcome outsiders."
"Especially ones with lightning powers," Ifedayo muttered.
Temitope smiled faintly. "They might, if we bring them something they've been missing for centuries."
"What?" Ayo asked.
"Hope."
***
By dawn, they crossed into river lands. Lush marshes stretched before them, the air thick with mist and the scent of wet earth. Canoes carved from giant logs waited by the banks, guarded by figures dressed in silver-and-blue robes.
Ngozi stepped forward confidently. "Ngozi of Yemoja's breath, daughter of the water. We seek passage."
A tall woman emerged from the shadows, spear in hand and silver circlet on her head. Her eyes were pools of moonlight.
"We heard whispers," she said. "That the Trickster walks again."
Ayo stepped forward, uncertain.
The woman studied him, then surprised everyone by bowing low.
"If Ekwensu rises to restore balance, then our ancestors were wrong to fear him."
Temitope whispered, "Not everyone views him as evil."
They boarded the canoes and floated down a river so still it reflected the sky. Fish leapt in silence, and strange glowing lilies lit the way.
Ayo watched the water and whispered, "It's beautiful."
Ngozi smiled. "This is why we fight. So magic like this survives."
***
The shrine was hidden beneath a submerged temple. They dove deep, following the glowing markings on the sword. It pulsed stronger the closer they got.
Inside, ancient walls bore carvings of gods dancing, fighting, weeping.
Ayo placed the blade into a slot in the center.
Light exploded, this time tinged with silver. And another voice spoke—not from above, but from inside Ayo's mind.
*"Return the tide. The river remembers."*
Suddenly, visions again.
—A younger Ekwensu, cloaked in laughter, danced barefoot in water. Yemoja appeared, stern yet fond.
"You shouldn't trick the river."
Ekwensu winked. "It wanted to laugh."
"You think everything is a game."
"No," he said softly. "Only the parts that hurt."
—The memory faded.
The sword reshaped once more, the silver light now part of its edge.
Temitope's voice broke the silence. "Second soul shrine, complete."
Ayo exhaled, heart pounding. "Why do I feel more like… him every time?"
Ngozi placed a hand on his shoulder. "Because he was you. Or… you were him."
Ifedayo suddenly tensed. "We have company."
From the shadows emerged soldiers of shadow, wearing broken armor etched with godly symbols. Their eyes were empty hollows.
"Corrupted guardians," Temitope said. "Spirits twisted by the war."
They charged.
Ifedayo leapt into the air, her hammer smashing down like thunder. Ngozi moved like a wave, blades slicing with precision.
Ayo hesitated—then something in him snapped into place.
He raised the sword. It responded instantly, slicing through the air with a howl of wind and water. A wave surged from the blade, sweeping the attackers away.
Temitope's staff glowed as he sealed the shrine behind them.
They stood panting, soaked, but alive.
Ngozi looked at Ayo. "You're awakening."
Ifedayo added, "But what exactly are you becoming?"
Ayo looked at his reflection in the water—eyes glowing faintly, face not quite his own.
"I don't know," he whispered. "But I need to find out before something else finds me first."
---