)komfo Ko (War priestesses) by Nana Kwame Antwi-Boasiako (e book reading free txt) 📕

The sun was shining that day in the Takoradi Business District. People were rushing to work in their vehicles and others walked along the pavements leisurely. Suddenly the ground began to shake and large cracks open up along the roads and pavements.

Cars slammed into each other and people scrambled for shelter. Red clawed hands shot out of the cracks and then one by one, red, brawny figures, known as the Nik, rose to the surface. They wielded serrated swords and their blood-red eyes scanned the horrified populace.

One of them dashed towards a terrified young boy and swung its akodze (weapon) at him. Suddenly the boy vanished in a flash of blue light. The sword struck the ground, where the boy had stood seconds ago. The creature growled as one by one, the entire populace vanished in flashes of blue light.

A large combat boot stomped the ground behind the creature. It spun around and glared at Pimaa, a dark tall teenager with braided hair, wearing a large T-shirt and baggy jeans.

Aadzeoyi, a dark girl wearing a red bandana and brass knuckles, leapt at it from behind and punched it to dust in one blow.

Two of the creatures charged towards the pair but two firm hands gripped their heads from behind and slammed them into the ground headfirst. Nafisa, a dark girl with strands of grey hair and piercing eyes and an armband dusted her hands off and turns to the rest of the creatures.

The Nik hissed and charged at the girls from all sides. Pimaa unsheathes a large ahafo sekan (hunting knife) from the b)ha on her jeans and slashed eight Nik who charged at her to dust. Sharp blades shot out from under her boot.

She slashed three on the left and the right with spinning kicks and then slashed six more with low sweeps of her boots. She blocked a blade's swing with her own and slashed it to pieces before slashing its wielder.

More of the Nik come at her, blades swinging and she unfurled a set of serrated chains before swinging it at them, slashing them to dust. She charged at the rest facing her, chain swinging and slashed them to dust as well.

Aadzeoyi punched the Nik to dust with her spiked brass knuckles. She points her brass knuckled fists at five others, who leapt at her. The spikes flew off, and struck them, turning them to dust.

She drew out porcupine quills from a pouch on her baggy jeans And flung it at ten foes, turning them to dust. She grabs two daggers from a pouch on her baggy jeans and began to cut a path through the Nik, turning them to dust.

A blade was swung at her from behind but she caught it with both hands and kicked the blade into the wielder, turning it to dust. Another came at her with an axe but she smashed the wooden staff with her palm and it’s wielder to dust.

Eight Nik came at Nafisa from all sides but she blocked their blade swings, punches and kicks with her bare hands. She evaded two clawed blows and punched two Nik to dust. She spun to her left and kicked three of them to dust.

Two rushed at her but she caught them by the necks, raised them up and slammed them into the ground. She caught a blade swung from the last one, broke it in half in her hand and turned it to dust with one palm strike to the chest.

She lunged at one and head butted it to dust. With lightning speed, she punched and kicked a path through the remaining Nik. She slammed the heads of two Nik together and struck the last two down simultaneously with flying kicks.

''Well, this was easy'' Pimaa sighed.

‘’True,'' Aadzeoyi agreed. ''We didn't even need to use our )komfo Ko (warpriestess) gifts on them. ''

''The ancestors gave us those gifts to use if the Nik's numbers became too big for us to deal with using simple battle arts alone.'' Nafisa pointed out.

‘’Given the fact that they are dead warriors who have been denied access to the ancestral haven, it''s likely that we will have to use them sooner rather than......''

Nafisa paused and stared at the eastern part of the district.

''Nafisa, what do you see? Pimaa asked softly.

''Nik burrowing from underground...Heading towards the old zoo!

‘’I'll teleport us there'' Pimaa said.

She snapped her fingers and they vanished from the district in a blinding flash of blue light.

The )komfo Ko appeared in the middle of a zoo and found themselves surrounded by the Nik. The creatures drew out arrows from their quivers and fired. The girls evaded the arrows and darted towards them. Pimaa slashed six arrows aimed at her with her ahafo sekan and struck eight archers, slashing them to dust.

She spun towards the others and slashed them with her boot blades. She sidestepped a spear swung at her from the left, slashed it in half and slashed the wielder to dust. She then flung the spear at another Nik before blocking a swing from a Nik wielding an ahafo sekan.

The Nik swung the akodze at her again and again. She sidestepped the attacks and slashed it to dust. She then dashed towards the others and slashed them with her ahafo sekan.

Aadzeoyi swung her brass knuckled fists at the Nik, crushing them with each blow. A Nik swung an ekyem (shield) at her, which she evaded. Others attacked her with ekyems in one hand and akofenas (swords) in the other.

She sidestepped their sword swings and struck their ekyems, cracking them with each blow. She then flung her quills at their akofenas with such force that they snapped. She punched through their ekyems and smashed the wielders to dust.

Nafisa grabbed a Nik by the shoulders and ripped it to dust with her bare hands. She elbowed one behind her to dust and punched a fist through one, turning it to dust. A Nik fist swung at her but she blocked it before punching the Nik to dust.

A large Nik charged at her and swung both arms down on her. Nafisa grabbed both arms and grunted as it tried to push her into the ground. Her feet began to sink into the ground and the Nik smiled jubilantly. Nafisa smiled back and headbutted it to dust. She then smashed the remainder to dust with her fists.

The cracked ground of the Zoo shook violently and the cracks grew even wider as more of the Nik rose from the ground near the Zoo entrance. Over a thousand Nik charged at them.

White flames surrounded Pimaa’s ahafo sekan. She unfurled her chains which immediately burned with white hot flames, yet remained intact. She charged towards the enemy and swung the flaming ahafo sekan in their direction.

A wave of white flames shot out from her akodze and scorched over a dozen Nik. The Nik kept coming at her as she swung her chain above her head. She then swung it in their direction and a larger wave of white flames shot out. The flames burnt fifty Nik, turning them to ash in minutes.

She spun it even faster and sent one end spinning at other Nik. The chain burned the Nik it came into contact with. She swung the chain around one and it wrapped around it before burning it to ash. She closed her eyes and swung the chain at a Nik on her left.

The chain wrapped around it but didn’t burn it. She lifted the chain upward, sending the Nik into the sky, where it began to burn. With a loud roar, she sent it crashing to the ground. The Nik and the chain exploded in a ball of white flame that expanded and scorched more than a hundred Nik.

More of them charged at her through the smoke and she slashed them to ash with her ahafo sekan. Aadzeoyi punched several Nik to ash with her white flaming brass knuckles. She flung several quills at the Nik which burst into flame upon contact, burning them.

She slashed through the Nik with quills in both hands that burned with white flames. A Nik swung a fierce punch at her but she blocked it with her quills. She skidded backwards, her quills broken from absorbing the impact of the punch and snapped her fingers.

Several flaming quills appeared in mid-air on both sides of her. They then flitted forwards, burning a thousand Nik. More quills spun through the air until a large whirlwind of quills was formed. The Nik were pulled into the whirlwind and scorched inside it.

Suddenly the whirlwind of quills died down and several quills rained down on a hundred Nik from the sky, burning them to a crisp. More Nik charged at the girls. Nafisa glanced at an exhausted Pimaa and Aadzeoyi and snapped her fingers.

Dark clouds began to fill the sky. Thunder roared and lightning flashed fiercely across the sky. A fierce wind blew across the zoo and Nafisa pointed at the Nik with her thumb pointing upwards. A thousand lightning bolts fell from the sky upon the Nik at the same time, disintegrating them at once.

The ground shook from Nafisa's attack and large dusty winds blew from where the Nik had been. Nafisa snapped her fingers again. The sky then slowly became sunny again and a large crater was left at the entrance of the zoo.

Pimaa snapped her fingers and the people reappeared in the city in blinding flashes of light. They stared around, bewildered and confused about what had happened to them.

Exhausted, the victorious )komfo Ko walked towards the exit of the zoo.

The End.