Short story: The stolen sceptre
Long ago in a certain kingdom, the sceptre of the King, Nana Oboadi, was stolen. This sceptre, which was in the shape of a horn, was the symbol of authority of the king, without that the king had no authority to rule his people.
After it was stolen, several investigations were conducted in the kingdom to find out where it was. Fortunately one day, the king woke up to the good news that the sceptre had been found in the old abandoned castle.
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At the mention of that old abandoned castle, Nana Oboadi nearly fell off from the stool he was seated on. This was because having the sceptre in that castle was just as losing it because that place was guarded by a group of hooligans who used the old castle as their hiding place.
They also hide their booties there. Anyone who was not a member of their group that tried to get closer to the castle either died or returned maimed.
After a long meeting with his elders, Nana Oboadi decided on a handsome reward for the one who would be able to bring the sceptre.
Because of the reward at stake, many of the able-bodied young men of the kingdom offered to go in search of the sceptre but unfortunately, majority were those who lost their lives and the few that returned too were handicapped.
The kingdom soon run out of able-bodied men yet the sceptre was not found. The king stands to lose the throne and calamity could befall the townsfolk too. The entire royal household was in a state of despair. The king’s daughter, Ewuradwoa, was the most worried.
While taking a stroll around the kingdom with a friend, she shared her worries. This friend of hers was in the company of another friend who was not a native of the kingdom. After listening to Ewuradwoa intensively and analysing all the options, he decided to help Ewuradwoa and her family.
Simon was his name and when he told Ewuradwoa his desire to help, she declined to present him before the king. ‘No! and I say a big NO! Do you know you can easily lose your life? Besides, why do you want to make such a sacrifice when you are not even a native of this kingdom?’ Answering her barrage of questions, Simon told her that he hated evil.
Upon his insistence, Ewuradwoa had no option but to introduce him to her father and the elders. Nana Oboadi in particular was so happy that he promised to give him anything he asked for in return for that sceptre. With their blessings, Simon left the kingdom in search of the sceptre.
True to all that he had heard, the place was well guarded. His intention was to use intelligence to outwit the guards so that he would enter the castle to take the sceptre.
Simon presented himself to the guards as a missing and weak person. They were, therefore, very nice to him. After just two days with the people, he got so much information as to where exactly the sceptre was in the castle and what they intended to do with it.
On the third day, he offered to assist the guards to guard the castle. At a point they said they were tired so he advised them to sleep so that he would guard the place. His suggestion sounded good so the two guards agreed.
When he realised they were fast asleep, he went inside the castle, quickly took the sceptre and used the secret route he had learnt from the guards to the kingdom. Meanwhile, after not hearing from Simon for three days, Nana Oboadi and the elders thought he was also dead like the others.
He had, therefore, called a durbar with the intention to abdicate the throne since he couldn’t protect its most treasured property. Just when he had stood up for the rites to be performed, Simon appeared with the sceptre in his hands. There was wild jubilation in the entire kingdom, especially among members of the royal family.
The surprising thing was that he refused any reward. For his selfless act, Ewuradwoa realised he was a good man, one who was not greedy for wealth.
She, therefore, convinced the king to let her marry him and the king agreed. Indeed, Simon and Ewuradwoa got married and the king took advantage of their union to present him with a precious gifts.
Christabel Batali,
Harlem International School,
Achimota, Ofankor.