“They want a piece of land to build their shrine,” said Uchendu to his peers when they consulted among themselves. “We shall give them a piece of land.” He paused, and there was a murmur of surprise and disagreement. “Let us give them a portion of the Evil Forest. They boast about victory over death. Let us give them a real battlefield in which to show their victory.” They laughed and agreed, and sent for the missionaries, whom they had asked to leave them for a while so that they might “whisper together.” They offered them as much of the Evil Forest as they cared to take. And to their
...more
