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Rulers of the Darkness by Michael Ohan 180 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-0161; ISBN 1-55395-798-9; US$18.50, C$22.95, EUR15.00, £10.40 Rulers of the Darkness is a story about a despotic and iron-fisted king who will go to any length to crush the only man who dares to challenge his misrule, including manipulating him into prison. However, a turn-around of events earns the prisoner a state pardon and consequently, his kingdom errupts into a state of anarchy with a heart-tearing climax.
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About the Book
About the Author
Reviews
Sample Excerpts
Catalogue Info
About the Book
In a typical African kingdom, the king is almost elevated to the status of a demi-god. He is so feared, so respected, and so honoured. Yet most kings in Africa are dictatorial, extortionistic and, inevitably, ocultic.
King Okolo Ojie, the second, of Ifeku-omon kingdom has all these attributes. In addition, he heads the cult of Witches and Wizards in his kingdom. Collectively or individually they cause mysterious deaths, accidents, barrenness, crop-failures, madness, etc., and the blames are heaped on society's deities and ancestors.
No one dares to oppose the king's misrule. Your days will be numbered if you do. However, fearless and courageous Omunsun Adodo soon becomes a thorn in the flesh of the king and his ruling caste. Consequently, Omunson finds himself manipulated into prison for a crime he did not commit.
But when one of the notorious and ruthless wizards in the kingdom confesses to Omunsun's innocence of the crime for which he is imprisoned, he receives a state pardon, and suddenly the kingdom of Ifeku-Omon errupts into an orgy of violence, political power-play and intriques, resulting in its climax in the king having to make a choice between himself and his throne; Omunsun Adodo, a choice between his life and his people; and the people of Ifeku-Omun, a choice between darkness and light.
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About the Author
Michael Ohan was born in 1962, in the little and serene village of Okede in Ewohimi, one of the chiefdoms in the Great Benin Kingdom, in Nigeria. He attended the then Salvation Army Primary School, Okede, from 1969 to 1975 and then proceeded to Pilgrim Baptist Grammar School, Ewohimi, in 1975 for his secondary education. He graduated in 1980 and had a stinct as a primary school teacher, between 1980 and 1981.
In his quest for a higher education, he resigned his teaching job against all financial odds and proceeded to the Institute of Continuing Education, Benin City, for his Advanced Level, in 1981. Thereafter in 1984, he was admitted at the Institute of Education, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria, to read Government and Economics. He graduated in 1987 with distinction in both majors and was also awarded the prizes for the Best Student in Economics, Best Student in Government, and the overall Best Student in the Department.
Since leaving the University, he has been in business overseeing Asodue Nigeria Limited and Mctopp Computer College, both in Nigeria. He is also involved in humanitarian activities, being a member and immediate past Projects Director of African Gerontological Society (AGES), Nigeria Chapter. He was a delegate from Africa to the United Nations Second World Assembly on Ageing held in Madrid between the 8th and 12th of April, 2002.
Rulers Of The Darkness is his first published novel. He currently lives in Spain where he is working on his second novel: The Return Of The Negro.
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Reviews
"(RULERS OF THE DARKNESS) is at once a tale and a fable, a story for our time and for all time, and a political parable."
Mark Sykes, Consultant Editor-In-Chief, ATHENA PRESS "Readers Report." Letter of June 10, 2002.
Sample Excerpts
CHAPTER THREE: THE GODS ARE WILD
1987
The wartime Prime Minister of Britain, the late Winston Churchill, had once said to the wartime U.S. President, late Franklin Roosevelt, "Here is the answer which I will give to President Roosevelt: Give us the tool and we will finish the job."
The Magistrate who had sentenced Omunsun Adodo to four years imprisonment was given the tool and all he did was to finish the job.
Omunsun was taken to serve his term at the Federal Prisons at the Headquarters of his own Local Government Council. If you had ever been to visit a friend or a relative in Nigerian prisons before, or if you had served a sentence in any of the prisons in this country once, you needn't be told about the decaying social and health conditions of the prisons. This was the only regret Omunsun had had of his imprisonment. In fact, he had thought that he wouldn't come out of the prison alive. He had thought that if he came out alive, he would be in a very dangerous state of health which could eventually render him an invalid throughout the remaining days of his life. He was often hopeless and distraught throughout the period he spent in prison.
He often withdrew himself to one of the corners of the room he was allotted with a hardened criminal, who was convicted for murder, and had often stayed without food for days. Why they decided to make him share a room with a murderer he wouldn't know. Perhaps King Okolo Ojie and his cohorts had a hand in that too, he had often thought. Perhaps they had really concluded arrangements with the prison wardens that he shouldn't come out of prison alive. Why else would they cage him with a murderer?
Omunsun couldn't help but think. He would think of his past, his present and future. He would think of his wife, his relatives, his very few friends and his past dreams. Dreams that he had wanted to see come true. Dreams that had been shattered to his face. The irony of the whole situation was that even in that state of hopelessness and uncertainties behind the prison walls he still had dreams. He still had thoughts that life would sooner or later change for the better. Omunsun had hoped in the midst of hopelessness.
He had found solace, courage and hope from the life history of predicaments, hopelessness, failures and eventual success of one of the world's greatest rulers - Abraham Lincoln, the late U.S. President. Omunsun had been taught by his history lecturer of the life story of this great U. S. leader and the story had been his fountain of courage over the years. This man had lived life full of failures yet he eventually rose to the pinnacles of greatness and his name had been imprinted in the annals of America, and indeed the whole world, with indelible ink. Omunsun had never forgotten the history of this colossus of courage: Abraham Lincoln had failed in business in 1831. He was defeated for the Legislature in 1832. Again, he had failed in business in 1834. His sweetheart died in 1835. He had had a nervous breakdown in 1836. He was defeated for Congress in 1843. He was again defeated for Congress in 1848. Defeated for Senate in 1855. He was defeated for Vice-Presidency in 1856. Again, he was defeated for Senate in 1858. He was elected President in 1860. To Omunsun, he was courage personified.
Omunsun was one of his greatest admirers, and he had believed that he needed such courage to pass the tests of his time, to survive the persecutions and the morbid schemes against him perpetrated by the evil generation that he had found himself born into in Ifeku-Omon Kingdom.
Two days after the second anniversary of Omunsun's stay in prison, an event took place that had made him think that his life had come to an abrupt end. He had just returned from taking his bath at one o'clock on a Sunday afternoon when he met his roommate coiled up in one of the corners of their room, gun in hand. He stopped abruptly, swallowed his breath and almost started to wet his pants. He could not retrace his steps because the gun was pointing at him.
"Come nearer, buster", his roommate, who was simply called Dave by everyone, said quietly in a flat, menacing voice. Omunsun had forced his legs out of the ground and moved closer to him. He had always feared David even without a gun; and now, holding a gun in addition to his menacing personality and ruthless reputation was more than what he could stand. His mouth turned dry and just could not open to talk. He thought the end had come. One thought that immediately crossed his mind was how Dave was able to get a gun into the prison yard and how he had been able to keep it out of his knowledge. This had confirmed his suspicions of the possibility of the prison wardens conniving with King Okolo Ojie to have him eliminated. He suddenly wanted to fall on his kneels and start to beg Dave to spare his life when he was stopped by Dave's voice. Prison life had softened Omunsun.
"Ever heard of jailbreak in your life, buster", David had asked him. Omunsun could not talk. He merely nodded his head in answer to the question. Dave quickly sensed that Omunsun could faint in his hands if he continued to point the gun at him. This punk could foul-up the whole of my plan, he had thought and quickly lowered the gun to the floor.
"What's the matter with you, buster?" Dave continued. "Can't you talk or are you some yellow-man? Oh! You thought I was going to shoot you? I ain't going to shoot you just yet, but I will strangle you if you don't cooperate, understand?" Omunsun was always nodding his head all the time Dave was talking. He didn't trust his voice to speak out.
"I will do anything you say", Omunsun forced himself to say at last, "as long as you promise me of the safety of my life."
Dave laughed menacingly. In fact, that was the first time Omunsun had seen or heard him laugh. Omunsun thought his laughter sounded like a Mercedes Benz lorry straining to climb the famous Okhuahe Hill on Benin-Asaba road with overloaded cargo.
"I can't give you that promise, buster", Dave said at last. "It's only God who can give you that promise in this dungeon, no other person can. You know that in this place no life is safe even that of the Superintendent. Honestly, buster", he continued, lowering his voice, "You don't talk about safety of life in an attempt at breaking a jail or during prison riot, or do you?" He paused, frowned his face, and raising his voice, he said: "What's the matter with you, Omunsun? Are you becoming jelly or what? I thought they said you were very tough? I thought they said you single-handedly dealt with your king? May be you need shaking up. Now listen to me carefully. I have been here for the past fifteen years and in this place you either fight by yourself to keep your life or you lose it. You don't wait for me or any other person to keep your fucking life for you. You think the wardens or the Superintendent are here to keep you alive? You are a joker to think so. They are here to scrape a living. You know how I laid my hands on this gun? Through one of the people you think are here to keep your life safe. You had better wake up now to the realities of this place."
Omunsun's legs had become weak and he had quickly sat down. He had always heard of the corrupt practices of prison officials but he had never believed the rumours to have an iota of truth in them. But now he was seeing it pop and plain. He then realised how easy it would be for King Okolo Ojie to hire a gunman amongst the prisoners, slip him a gun through any of the wardens to gun him down in his room any of the nights.
He had become shaken with fear.
Dave thought he had had him where he wanted him. He thus decided to give him time to think over his hot spot. He had thought Omunsun had been hooked by his bait. He gave Omunsun about two minutes to think and realise the fix he was in, before he made his proposition known to him.
"I know that your life is in danger", Dave broke the silence, "and I want to help you. Do you understand?"
"Yes", Omunsun retorted, "but how do you know that my life is in danger?"
"You will please let me die before you bury me. Just remain on your seat and listen to me, okay?"
Omunsun nodded
"There's very little I don't hear in this hell-hole they call prison", Dave continued. "Two weeks' ago I heard from some of the prisoners who were sent outside to do a job that someone was trying to buy information from them about you. I don't have to tell you the implication of that, neither do I need to tell you who were after information about you and why they needed it. I must quickly say that the boys told me that they refused to cooperate with the man. According to my informants, the man sensed their hostility and quickly left before they could organise themselves to manhandle him." Dave paused for that to take effect, then continuing, he said:
"They have failed the first time, but they may not fail the next time. They were unlucky the first time to meet a group of prisoners who were not as greedy as every prisoner ought to be. Perhaps next time they wouldn't be unlucky." Dave waited again for that to sink in.
"You will agree with me that as long as you remain in this prison for the next two years, your days are numbered. The only person who would have been able to protect you, and perhaps who has warded them off for the past two years, is me, in case you don't know. And believe me, buster, I am breaking out of this jail. There is no stopping me. You must know, buster, that when I am no longer here with you, you are exposed to the wolves. Sooner or later the long arms of the feudal lords and devil reincarnates in your town would reach you. Perhaps, you never knew that I liked you. Perhaps you have always looked upon me as a criminal, a murderer. Perhaps you didn't know that my life was ruined by a member of this class of people whom you have single-handedly been trying to wipe out from amongst your people." Dave's face changed expression. He was panting with rage. Omunsun saw it and had become emotional .He had felt that the man must be feeling some emotional pains inside him. Dave had suddenly smiled. It was a bitter smile.
"You want to hear the story of my life?" He asked, still smiling.
"Sorry, Dave, I wouldn't want to hear it if it will invoke any pains in you", Omunsun said.
"Haven't I lived with the pains for the past fifteen years? Ain't I going to live with it for ever? But that you may know that I wasn't born a murderer; that you may know that people made me a murderer; that the society made me a murderer; I must tell you the story of my life. It's not much of a story, anyway. I married my wife sixteen years ago. A year after we were married, one rotten and stinkingly rich man in my town used his enormous wealth to influence her and snatched her from me. Don't you think such a man deserved to die, buster? I took a cutlass to his house, met him in his sitting room and cut him to pieces. It was easy. Now, people call me a murderer and a hardened criminal. Tell me, buster, was murderer written on my forehead the day I was born? Was anticorruption crusader printed on your forehead the day you were born? You will agree with me that the society influences people's actions. It makes murderers, thieves and armed-robbers out of people. When I grew up, I had ambitions; and believe me, buster, it didn't include holing-up in the prison yard for fifteen years and being called a murderer. Haven't you heard that when a dog is driven to the wall it fights back? I was driven to the wall and I felt that such a man who could snatch a wife from a poor man just because he is poor, was not fit to live", he stopped, picked up the gun and placed it on his laps.
"I have never regretted my action. But I am now aware that our society is crawling with moral degenerates and insanes of the type who snatched my wife from me." He shifted his position on the floor.
Omunsun waved at him to stop and then asked him: "Do you know what has become of your wife now?"
"A point of correction, please", Dave snapped at him.
"She is no longer my wife. And as a matter of fact, I don't care to know what has become of her. All I know is that if I get out of this place alive, my first task would be to locate her, wreck her life and make her curse the day she was born. After I have settled my score with her, I will enter society; and now that I have been made a murderer, I will remain a murderer for life. When I hit any city I will turn the city into a panic city, I will unleash a reign of terror and horror on that city yet to be experienced in this country. Do you know my target, buster? The so-called rich", he paused again and smiled at Omunsun, flying his tongue around his lower lip.
Catalogue Information
