Amobi and the Door Beyond Time (PREVIEW)

6. We Shop for Weapons of (Mostly) Mass Destruction

"Weapons?" Kosi asked, perking up. I'd never seen her so excited. "What kind of weapons are we talking about here?"

"Well they're not weapons per se," Francis explained. "Think of them as instruments. They'll help you channel your magic and keep it from going haywire. See magic's like fire; a great servant, but a terrible master."

I.K nodded, his face a picture of rapt attention, but Kosi merely yawned and instead looked around. They were leading us back to the small town through the market place. Traders were hurriedly closing their shops while some stragglers made some last-minute purchases. A mother frowned down at a basket full of live snails, bargained for a minute, then paid for the lot.

"Where are we going?" I asked. "I thought you said we were going to get our weapons."

"We need money to buy them first," Chioma replied. 'And they're not weapons, they're..."

"Instruments of magic, blah blah blah. We've heard," I waved a dismissive hand. "Also I don't know if you've noticed but we're not exactly rolling in cash at the moment. Where are we going to get the money from?"

"That's okay," Francis replied. "Your money would be next to useless anyway. We use more... archaic currencies and we're going to our treasurer so she can give you guys the standard loan." Chioma's face curdled at the word 'treasurer' and I had an inkling of who it might be.

We took a hard left this time when we got to the town, dodging the path to the shrine. More of the town unfolded itself before us and everything in sight teemed with activity. Parents returning home from jobs, pedestrians hurrying home and night owls preparing themselves for some fun. Soon, a small building painted red and black came into sight. Francis hesitated for a beat and came to a halt.

"I have to be getting back to the youth centre, Chioma can you take it from here?" She nodded once and he hurried away. Despite his excuse though, I got the sense that Francis didn't want to meet whoever was in there. The building itself wasn't any more welcoming up close. A foreboding shadow seemed to cling to it and I kept getting a weird vibe from the place. I.K and Kosi seemed to be mirroring my thoughts.

"I don't like this place," Kosi announced. "It feels... wrong somehow."

"It's perfectly fine," Chioma assured us, slightly amused. "There's absolutely nothing to be afraid of."

Just then the door to the building burst open and two girls ran screaming from it, yelling something about monsters and blood.

We turned back to Chioma, but she merely laughed and continued walking towards the now wide open door.

I.K shuddered. "I feel like we're the foolish rat in the proverb."

I frowned. "What rat?"

"Seriously, are you even Igbo? Who doesn't know the proverb of the rat and the lizard?" Kosi asked, then went on talking before I could say anything. "The lizard once came to the rat and said that they should both go for a swim, even though it was raining hard outside. The rat agreed and the two friends swam to their heart's content. But when they emerged, the lizard's scales kept it dry and warm, while the rat's hairy body trapped the water. In the end, the rat died from the cold."

"And what has this got to do with our situation?" I asked, deciding to mess with them a little. They exchanged exasperated looks.

"It's a proverb Amobi," I.K said, as if to a child of two. "It means following others blindly without thinking of the consequences of doing so. It advises against blind faith."

"Whatever," I yawned. "Besides it's already too late to go back. We're here."

Chioma hurried to the door and disappeared inside. After a moment's hesitation, we went in after her to find...