The Owl's Path

Watch for the owl on your death day.

Follow the owl, he knows the way.

I knew the owl would come that day. It was expected. Although, I do not think it expected me. It was not there for me after all.

But I would be the one to go with it to Otherside. I would take the journey to the waters of Akatosh and drink, forever severing my ties to this world. I would make the sacrifice if it meant saving my other half the pain of death. A soul for a soul, and identical at that. At least, that is what we have been told all our lives.

Tolu and I were born together, identical. We shared a womb, we shared a life, we were one. In our tribe, twins were a celebration. We were special. Two bodies sharing one soul. That is the belief of the People.

In our tribe it is customary to name infants at seven days old. The holy men gather and divine a name worthy of the child. That name determines one’s path in life. Abitoluwa, or Tulo, was to be a sacred man, a man of the Divine. That was his purpose. My name, Adedeji, meant that the crown has become two. An odd name, to be sure. Without knowing its purpose, I grew up lost to the path I was meant to tread. Being the second twin, it seemed that my existence was only to emphasize my brother’s.

We were meant to be together for always. Life does not always go according to plan.

It was not our plan, for instance, for Baba to get lost on his way to Erska, or for him to be killed by the caravan for the little coin he had on him. It was not by choice that we lost our family home and lived in a hut in the slums of the village. And it was by accident that a diviner chose my brother to inherit his work in the shrine, forcing me to work any job I could get to support the needs of our family.

Tolu lived up to his prophecy. He trained day and night at the temple. He was well loved by everyone, and especially beloved by Iya. He walked a sacred path and would one day be a great man. I was nothing compared to him. I worked as a field hand and made enough to support our house so that he might study and become a diviner. But I did not despise him. I loved my brother. But, because I am a lesser man, I wished he would vanish. Disappear from my life so I might have a chance at my own destiny.

Perhaps it is this wish that forced the Divine to intervene. For one day, Tolu fell ill and did not recover. The medicine woman could do nothing, nor Iya’s prayers. Tolu put on a brave face for her, but even he could not hide the disease that ate at him inside.

I have watched Tolu wither and fade over the past few months like a plant in drought. It was strange to watch his face, my face, grow thin and sallow. He could no longer take solid foods, nor drink enough water to quench the burning fever. His brown eyes once bright with life now swam with feverish clouds. We had hoped for a recovery, a miracle. Iya prayed day and night that he might be spared. At last, Iya invited the diviners to perform the death dues. An owl totem would be carved from the sacred ìrókò tree.

According to legend, the journey to Otherside is guided by Ey’wan, the great owl. It is a tale told throughout the village by young and old. It is tradition to carve an owl totem from the sacred tree to adorn the neck of the soon-to-be deceased for Ey’wan to guide the person to their final resting place.

The day the totem was delivered, Iya sobbed in great heaves. I realized I had to do something to prevent this from happening. That is when I came up with the plan. It was not the best plan, but it was something I could try. I could trick Ey’wan if I were careful. I could follow Ey’wan to Otherside in Tolu’s place. Once the soul had been taken, the marked one would be saved. I could save Tolu’s life.

I sat in wait as the evening grew long. Iya stayed by Tolu’s side with her colorfully carved prayer beads in hand. I expected this. I had a tea prepared with valerian herb. Iya would be asleep within the hour, as she had not slept all week.

I sat. I waited. I watched. Tolu squirmed under the sheets. sweat beaded from his dark brow. At one point he cried out in pain through dry, cracked lips.

“Rest brother. Your suffering will end tonight,” I reassured him. He could not hear me, though I wondered what he would think of this plan. If he would try to talk me out of it, or would he accept this sacrifice as a necessary step. He didn’t have a choice now, and it was my fault.

I took the owl totem from Tolu and strung it around my neck. I inched into the bed with him and draped my arm over his chest. His breathing was slow and ragged. It would not be long now. Please, I prayed, let this work!

I closed my eyes and rested next to my brother, savoring each second.

Then I felt it, a presence that permeated the room; cold and electrifying at the same time. I opened my eyes and was startled when I realized the lights had disappeared. The fire in the hearth stopped crackling. The flame was there, but it had turned blue and cast an eerie evanescent glow. Tolu stopped breathing.

“Tolu,” I whispered in his ear.

I heard a whoosh and felt cold air on my face. I peeked up from the bed, and just above perched on the bed frame, was a great white owl. It was no ordinary owl. It had a bone white face, but where normal barn owls had brown or gray contour feathers, this one had electric blue and purple ones that shone as though they were luminescent. Its eyes were hypnotizing, sparkling blue-white crystals. Light crackled from those eyes as though lightning would strike from them if you stared too long. It was maddening.

I glanced away. I held my breath and stilled my body. The owl hunched over, inching nearer as if to examine us. A deep chill pierced into my chest as the owl inspected me. Please, I thought, get it over with.

I didn’t expect to feel so numb and so scared. I was second-guessing my plan when the owl’s claw dangled in front of me. I almost gasped aloud but caught myself. I watched as its long sharp talons grabbed the totem from my neck. I felt the cold wind again, as the owl flapped its mighty wings and took the totem in its talons.

Within the blink of an eye, I found myself on a forest floor. The bed was gone. Tolu was no longer there. I searched around but found nothing but tall trees. The cold still permeated but was less freezing. Craning my neck, I searched my surroundings and saw on the edge of the canopy the white and blue owl. Ey’wan.

Stand. An ethereal voice commanded inside my head.

Shaking, I pulled myself up and slowly rose to my feet. This was no ordinary forest. The trees shimmered in a rainbow luminescent light, and the ground was out of focus, as though it were a fuzzy photograph.

Follow me.

The great owl spread its wings and leaped from the branch. I followed the owl’s path up a winding trail between bright multicolored trees whose leaves glittered in a bright opalescent light. It was surreal, this world of tangible color and light. It was strange and beautiful.

I followed Ey’wan up the trail. It gradually became steeper, and I could begin to see a bright, glittering sky through the treetops. Time passed, but exactly how much I could not tell. There was no sun, no stars or trail markers. It was a constant flurry of color and light. I could have been walking for minutes or hours, or even days.

We eventually reached a clearing where there was a pond. The great owl perched on a log near the shore and faced me, its alien eyes piercing through me like a needle through skin.

This is the end of the path, the edge where our worlds meet.

Fear filled my throat and made me gasp for air. This was my choice, I reminded myself. I had to see this through for Tolu. This was my path, I was certain of it now.

Drink from the water of Akatosh, all things, and rest in eternity. Ey’wan commanded.

I stepped into the water. It was surprisingly warm and welcoming. It glistened in colors I had never knew existed. All pain seeped from my body. All worry and doubt melted. I waded to my knees and bent to cup the magical liquid. I craned my neck to drink and paused, alarmed to find what I saw in its reflection.

Tolu, Iya…even Baba. They were there; my memories, my thoughts, my emotions, my life! swirling in the water before me. I could feel Tolu’s smile and smell Iya’s cooking. I could hear Baba’s laughter. I could feel the pain of my broken ankle when I was six, and the rush of terror and joy from the first girl I kissed when I was eleven. I could see the fields I worked every day for the last ten years, the seeds I planted, the animals I tended. I could feel the plants growing and flourishing. I sensed their energy. I had never thought highly of my job, but an overwhelming sense of pride welled up inside from this memory.

But mostly, I felt love. Love from my family, from my village, from Tolu.

“Deiji.”

“Tolu!” I gasped. My brother was there, emanated like some phantom from the dregs of the pond. Water trickled down his taut skin, but he was no longer emaciated. He was healthy and strong like he had been not four months before he fell ill.

“Do not drink it, Deiji. It is not your time,” Tolu smiled at me and I could feel the warmth as though the sun shone directly on me.

“But Tolu, I will not be missed. You are needed. You are to be a diviner. I am nothing.”

“Not true. You are our rock Deiji. You always were. Iya loves you, and she needs you to take care of her now. You always were the more sensible one,” Tolu smirked.

I could feel a cry clawing its way at the back of my throat. Tears budded in the corners of my eyes. “No! You don’t understand.”

Tolu took my hands and lowered them, spilling the water from my fingers. “It’s okay, brother. We will be together again some day. I will see you in Otherside. I love you.”

I grappled him in a hug, permitting the tears to fall freely between us.

When I opened my eyes, I was hugging my brother close, we were back in the bed at home. Tolu was gone along with the owl totem.