"The gods do not bind themselves to men. Men must first bleed, then burn, then bind."
— Spirit Codex, Chapter of Oaths
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Location: Outskirts of Enugu — Dusk
Obinna moved with a limp now.
Each step forward stirred a small breeze behind him, a sign that the Nine Rings were still watching. On his right arm, two glyphs pulsed — one a burning circle, the other a tear inside flame. Together, they ached like wounds yet whispered like promises.
The forest had quieted. Not with peace — but with anticipation.
Azụmiri glided silently above, his eagle form now larger than a buffalo. Spirit fire coursed through his feathers, lighting the dark canopy in soft flashes.
> "The Reaper has marked you," Azụmiri said from the branches. "You've tasted pain. But pain is only the threshold."
Obinna didn't answer.
His face was hollow. Haunted. But deeper than that… carved with resolve.
He had seen too much in the Second Ring — death through the eyes of enemies and friends alike. And now, he felt every spirit that had passed through him still watching. Still guiding.
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Flashback – Earlier That Morning
After the Reaper vanished, Obinna collapsed beneath the shrine once more. Hours passed in silence.
Then Azụmiri returned, solemn and slow.
> "I will teach you what I can," the spirit beast said. "But even I do not know the nature of the next tests."
> "Then what do I do?"
> "You bind."
Azụmiri's eyes glowed.
> "You are not the only one who survived that bombing. The Nine Realms have chosen others. If you walk alone, you will die."
> "So I need allies?"
> "Not allies. Bindings."
> "What's the difference?"
> "Allies can leave. Bindings cannot."
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Back to Present – Spirit-Cleansed Stream, Aro Path
They arrived at a wide stream laced with blue petals. Obinna knelt and washed his face in the water, trying to forget the screams of lives he didn't own.
The wind shifted.
Someone was watching.
> "Stay low," Azụmiri murmured from the trees.
Obinna didn't flinch. He simply whispered, "Whoever you are, come out. If you mean harm, my spirit will burn you where you stand."
A pause. Then the sound of sandals on rock.
A young girl emerged — barefoot, no older than twelve, skin dark like volcanic ash, eyes glowing faintly green.
But she wasn't alone.
A massive serpent, white with blue markings, coiled behind her like a protective veil.
> "You carry war in your bones," she said in a voice too calm for her age.
"And grief in your blood."
Obinna stood slowly. He could feel it — the divine pressure. She was marked. Chosen.
> "What are you?" he asked.
> "Mbanugo. Daughter of the Grove. The serpent is Ọkụnna, my beast. And you…" — her eyes narrowed — "you smell like broken skies."
Azụmiri landed with a low thud beside Obinna, wings flaring slightly.
> "She is bound to the southern seals," Azụmiri murmured. "Chosen by the Grove, one of Biafra's inner lights."
Mbanugo tilted her head.
> "They told me someone would come. They said if he bled enough, the Grove would send him to me."
Obinna raised an eyebrow.
> "Send me? For what?"
> "To bind."
> "I don't even know you."
> "Good," she said flatly. "Binds based on knowledge break. Binds based on wounds endure."
Obinna almost laughed, despite the pain.
> "What's this binding? Marriage?"
She rolled her eyes like a girl who'd already lived a thousand years.
> "It's spiritual. Not romantic. Your fire meets my poison. Your rage steadies my visions. If we survive this, we become anchors. For the other champions."
> "Other champions?"
> "Yes," she said softly, "There are nine."
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Elsewhere – Hidden Temple, Sokoto Region
A masked priest placed his palm on the forehead of a kneeling boy.
Around them, a circle of imams and cult elders chanted in Hausa and Arabic. Above, strange sigils glowed with northern magic.
> "He must rise before Biafra gathers its fires," one murmured.
The boy's body shuddered.
> "Let the spirit of the North crown him," the elder said, his voice cracking from age.
Far away, Obinna's third glyph flickered — but did not appear.
The war was moving.
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Back to the Stream
Obinna stared at Mbanugo.
He hated how young she looked. How tired her eyes already were. But he also knew: something about her presence calmed the fire inside him.
> "How do we bind?" he asked.
She smiled for the first time.
> "The Grove gave me a song."
She began to hum.
The river stilled.
Azụmiri bowed his head.
Ọkụnna, the serpent, wrapped around Mbanugo and began to glow.
The two beasts touched foreheads — fire and venom, sky and soil.
And Obinna? He felt his third glyph burn into place — a serpent coiled around a star.
He felt his soul shift.
He wasn't alone anymore.
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⚔️ End of Chapter 4 – Paths of Binding
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📘 Mini-Dictionary (New Terms Introduced)
Mbanugo – A mystic child of Aro Chukwu Grove, spiritually bonded with the southern Igbo lands. Her name means "Child born on the day of death."
Ọkụnna – A rare serpent spirit beast of poison and illusion. Represents intuition and protection.
Bindings – Deep spiritual contracts between chosen on
es that cannot be broken. They share aura, instincts, and sometimes dreams.
Inner Lights of Biafra – The strongest champions the Nine Realms bless from within Biafra's core regions. Each one is tethered to an ancient god or shrine.