Editaha market day, was also the hunting day. Since his last encounter with Echid Itiaba, Akpan Umogwo of Ibong Nto Ekpe had allowed three market weeks to pass before he ventured again into the Ibong forest. He traced his bearing back to the giant Ukpa tree with the canny knack which hunters alone are capable. Since creation and since their great great grand ancestors ventured into the area to settle, the Ibong Forest had never been deforested. In his routine encounters, he has confronted various dangerous animals like the Chimpanzee, the violent bush pig, the elephant, many lions and tigers. That he was still alive owes to his knowledge not only of the ways of the beasts but the best traditions of his ancestors.
There were many means to escape from the attacks of beasts of tremendous violent capacities and there were technologies in which great snakes become play things. He knew several leaves, ways and means of taking captive big snakes like Ebre, Ibom, Asabo but he knew there was no leaf that can tame the wild Anaconda alias Echid Itiaba which was the name the natives gave the snake. It can best any human in the water and on the land. That he was back in the forest late at night in search of the mystery light of the ancient snake owed to one fact, Akpan Umogwo feared no danger.
As he strode quietly towards the giant stem of the Ukpa tree that early part of dusk, he listened hard to every noise, movement and sound. In his repose he saw great games come out to feast and predators on their trail. He saw gazelles, the bush fox, the bush pig and even a lioness walked past without noticing his presence. His hunting machete and spear were handy but none of them were the reason he was in the forest that night. He had bested an attacking leopard before, it's skull hangs at his family hut as a memento. The fangs of gruesome snakes and their beautiful skins decorate his walls. The skin of other animals cover the village drums. But tonight was for a new foe, an enemy he has never conquered.
His first encounter with Echid Itiaba also called UKARAPA was at Idim Nto Ekpe. His skin still tingles today when he recalled the penetrating stare of the humongous beast. He stood there immobilized as a citizen standing in front of a despot. The mighty snake stared at him as he lowered his gaze. For some strange reasons, UKARAPA did not attack the hunter that morning as he went to fetch his palm wine, it glided majestically into the stream which gave out some form of drumming befitting the approach of deity.
As he leaned on the Ukpa tree, the subtle fear returned. He dipped his hand into the hunting bag, brought out a bottle and sipped from it and said to himself, I am Akpan Umogwo, the famed lion killer, I cannot be afraid. He stood there in stoic bravery till the morning came. No Anaconda showed up and no luminous and mysterious light defied the dense darkness of the virgin forest. He sighed and took his weapons to check his traps and later left for home.
Having repeated the vigil on three consecutive hunting nights and without sight of the great Anaconda nor her light, Akpan Umogwo who had brought a big earthen clay vessel Ako Ata along with three doubled ISIGHE to use and smother the Snake's moon when he takes possession of it decided that after that night, he may just give up on the chase. He said to himself, who knows, maybe that giant Echid Itiaba was one of the gods out on a routine feeding or to inspect creation and I was just lucky to witness it? By tomorrow the new moon would be out and that will be the third new moon since I started keeping vigil for the mystery light.
Tonight he said, I'm going to climb a tree so I could survey the forest a bit farther, who knows, I may see the glow of the incandescent light and go after it. As he made to leave the Ukpa tree, he heard the thicket roar from the distance. That is a trademark sound. Not even the giant elephant induces the thicket to worship it like Echid Itiaba compels the forest to bow to her.Akpan Umogwo froze in his path. He dipped his hand after some minutes into his bag, took another sip from the bottle of akpuub, muttered some incantations, took a leaf out of the bag and bit in in his mouth and waited for destiny. (to be continued)
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