Babida the lumberjack and his companions, Uncle Bibi and the young maiden Suzie, were shaken up by the late Governor's henchman's assertion and were now impatient to know the content of the rolled golden paper.

"I have to admit that I, myself, was hooked by His Majesty's proclamation," the Emperor's messenger then said, piquing, even more, Babida and his associates' curiosity.

"Let me read it to you first before its formal publication!" The late Governor's aide-de-camp spat out as he unfolded the papyrus.

"By imperial order of His Majesty Batang V, at the third moon following the passing of Governor Kola II, our valiant warrior Babida the lumberjack will be Commander of the imperial forces and lead the military expedition to the Forbidden Mountain where dwell the newborn Monster and the devilish bats that threaten peace upon our land.

Shall the new Commander of the armed forces succeed in his mission, shall he be rewarded with the second most valuable position of authority in the empire," the henchman Polo revealed the imperial order to the woodsman and his companions.

"In short, Comrade Babida, you are from now on the Supreme Commander of the imperial forces and soon you shall become Governor of the province of Okunde. I wish you victory in the battles against Edimo, the god of ruin and his maleficent creatures," he clarified and kneeled before the new imperial army chief Babida the lumberjack with the right foot on the ground while extending his hands and forming a fist.

Uncle Bibi kneeled as well to pay his homage to the new Commander.

The young maiden Suzie was in shock. She refrained from jumping on her lover Babida and embracing him in front of their host Polo, though the temptation to do so was extremely strong.

She quietly thanked the ancestors for their favor upon the logger and implored them to guide him in his new position.

As for Babida the lumberjack, he remained still since His Majesty's decree wasn't quite a surprise to him given that he had already received the revelation from the ancestors a few days back.

He was just wondering how the divinities made the Emperor appoint a non-member of the imperial family to the rank of the army chief, the third most influential position in the land.

Yet, since it wasn't the right moment to investigate the mystery, the logger put the interrogation on standby and celebrated his nomination with the henchman Polo and his companions.

"Long live His Majesty Batang V!" The new Commander in chief of the imperial forces declared.

"His Majesty shall be assured that I shall fight till my last breath to defend the land against its fierce enemies." Babida the lumberjack boldly added.

"Well, My Commander, it's time to introduce you to the troops," the aide-de-camp Polo told the woodsman who nodded.

"Guards!" The henchman Polo shouted with authority.

And two young and fresh imperial sentinels rushed to his office.

"Play the announcement horn! There is a message of great importance from His Majesty, Batang V!" The imperial messenger Polo ordered.

"At your command, sir!" The two imperial guards exclaimed in unison and left the room.

A few minutes later, the sound of the horn resonated three times across the area and caught the attention of the troops in the Okunde's garden.

"Oh, oh! We have a message from the Emperor earlier than scheduled, whereas only one moon has passed yet," a warrior uttered in astonishment.

Imperial soldiers left their tents i the lawn of Okunde's garden and massively flocked to the Governor's headquarters' esplanade. They heaved their eyes to the balcony and waited for the imperial messenger.

There was a bit of nervosity in the air. The men in uniform were extremely depressed since the bats' attack and were in dire need of a leader to boost them up and guide them to victory.

At the beginning of the military expedition to the forbidden mountain, they had only one target: the newborn Monster. And now they also had the terrifying flying mammals to defeat.

The imperial soldiers kept looking at the balcony of the administrative building to perceive any human shadow but there was still nothing that was happening.

They began to groan, for they were very impatient to hear His Majesty's message. When they were starting to get a bit too loud, the late Governor's henchman Polo showed up holding with him a folded papyrus.

Like one man, the troop kept quiet to listen to the imperial messenger. Polo unfolded the sheet and commenced perusing His Majesty Batang V's order.

At the mention that Babida the lumberjack was going to be Commander of the imperial forces on the third moon following the passing of Governor Kola II, the men in uniform went wild and cheered.

They whistled and chanted so loudly that their voices crossed Okunde's garden and reached the center of the village.

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Polo had not finished reading the imperial message yet. So he lifted his hand in the air to command the troop to recollect itself and allow him to go to the end of the decree.

The warriors obeyed the instruction and stood still. The imperial messenger thereupon resumed his announcement.

He informed the troop that their new Commander was tasked by His Majesty to continue the military expedition to the forbidden mountain and annihilate the newborn Monster and the devilish bats.

Polo went on by also informing the soldiers that Commander Babida would be elevated to the position of Governor should he accomplish his mission.

This last news caused more noise than the previous cheer. The men in uniform tapped the ground and shook dust. Youyous emerged and spread above the Governor's headquarters' esplanade to the last limits of Okunde village.

However, Polo wasn't done yet. There was something important that needed to be added to the spectacle: the introduction of the nominee.

Thus the late Governor's aide-de-camp extended his hand in the air again and the warriors calmed down.

"Now, comrades, let's give a salute to our supreme Commander!" He yelled with great excitement.

The men in uniform went wild again as Babida popped up and got close to the balustrade followed by Suzie and uncle Bibi. The euphoria reached at that moment its peak.

The imperial warriors then kneeled to salute their new leader who greeted them back, standing.

The lumberjack thereupon took the floor and heartily spoke to his men: "Comrades, today His Majesty Batang V has chosen his humble servant that I am to pursue a great mission that had been started by the late Governor Kola II, may he rest in peace. We all know what the challenges in front of us are. It's time to get rid, once and for all, of all the dangers that disturb the tranquility of our land. Be prepared for the ultimate sacrifice if necessary!" He said to a troop that was very hot and together they screamed for victory.

His speech done, the lumberjack returned inside the Governor's headquarters with Polo and his companions, uncle Bibi and the young maiden Suzie.

They went back to the late Governor's aide-de-camp's office as the evening was about to fall in Okunde.

Before the first half of the night, the news of the nomination of the woodsman was spread across the empire.

Suzie's grandmother was alone in the chalet in Ekule village and was as usual sitting on the rattan chair, listening to the radio.

The matriarch wasn't paying much attention to the newscaster until she heard the name of Babida the lumberjack.

"...Jack will become Commander of the imperial forces on the third moon following the death of former Governor Kola II. His Majesty Batang V has decreed. Moreover, the Emperor will later promote the new Commander to the function of Governor shall he exterminate the empire's enemies, namely the newborn Monster and the evil bats." Grasped big Momma who was daydreaming.

She jerked and her focus was now at its fullest. She thought some spirits were trying to make fun of her.

So she opened her ears wide to listen to the newscaster again but he didn't repeat the information about the logger and was now giving other scoops about the empire.

"Zut! When is the next report session?" The elderly cried out, pissed off.

In Okunde, the Commander of the imperial forces to be, Babida, along with uncle Bibi and his crush Suzie contemplated the wild animal sculptures in Polo's office.

"What a beauty this Kigali leopard is!" said the lumberjack, amazed.

"Who is the author of such artistic perfection?" He asked the late Governor's henchman.

"My Commander, I regret I don't know much about him but the sculpture is more than fifty years old." replied Polo.

"Hmm... impressive!" The logger stated.

Toc, toc!

An imperial sentinel knocked at the office's door, then came in.

Polo and his visitors interrupted the sculptures' admiration and glanced in the direction of the entrance.

The imperial guard saluted them and uttered: "Pardon me dear Commanders but dinner is ready. You may come to the dining room."

"Oh, perfect!" Polo reacted.

The late Governor's henchman then glared at the Commander of the imperial forces to be, Babida and invited him to go for dinner along with his companions uncle Bibi and the young miss Suzie.

They all hence left the office and were escorted by the imperial sentinel to the canteen.

The guests entered the massive room and noticed a table at the other end filled with plenty of food.

There were almost all the delicacies that the Batang empire could offer. Nonetheless, Babida was more attracted by crabs and gombo sauce which he put in impressive quantities in his dish.

Uncle Bibi was also very hungry. The snake meat they ate in the afternoon had completely disappeared from his huge stomach. Like the lumberjack, the old man picked a great portion of crabs with gombo up which he mixed with fufu corn.

The young maiden Suzie felt a little bit embarrassed by the avidity of her companions, however, she refrained from saying any criticism in front of the host Polo.

She showed more manners and took just some boiled rice with fried fish and pepper. Contrary to her gluttonous companions, she ate with grace and style.

The host Polo was very satisfied, for his guests were having a great moment. He then ordered they brought palm wine, the most fermented one, so the evening would be even more memorable.

Not so long after his command, an imperial sentinel came with the most refined palm drink he had found in the Governor's headquarters' cave.

He handed over the bottle of the alcoholic beverage to Polo who uncapped it.

Puff!!! That was the sound of the opening of the container. For there was gas inside, some of the drink flowed out and poured on the ground.

A friendly atmosphere was created and everyone enjoyed the beautiful time.

After a few hours of eating, chatting, shouting, and sketching dance steps, they were all tired and felt sleepy.

The late Governor's aide-de-camp Polo ordered they take Babida and his companions to the guest apartments, which two imperial sentinels hastened to do.

They took the Commander of the imperial forces to be, Babida, to the most spacious guest room.

Thereafter they conducted uncle Bibi to the next one, smaller but also comfortable.

And ultimately, they lodged the young maiden Suzie in the ladies' guest room, almost as big as that of the lumberjack.

All the guests in their chambers, the guards returned to the late Governor's henchman Polo and reported to him that the visitors were nicely installed and in security.

Polo thanked them and asked them to leave, then went to rest as well.

Toc, toc, toc!

Someone shyly knocked at the door of Babida's room. For the lumberjack was a bit drunk after he slightly abused of the palm wine during the dinner, he wasn't thus quite sure where the noise was coming from.

Toc, toc, toc!

The visitor was persistent, though he banged the egress always timidly. This time around, the lumberjack understood someone was at the other side of the door.

So he woke up and was swagging because his legs were weakened by alcohol. He opened the door and was surprised by who was standing in front of him.

The young maiden Suzie was at the doorstep and was looking more beautiful than ever.

The palm wine that was circulating in Babida's veins vanished instantly and his mind was as clear as the water of the fountain of Ebuka, the god of purity.

"What are you…doing here, young Miss?" He whispered to her with a trembling voice.

"Aren't you sleeping yet?" He added, displaying low self-confidence before the devastating beauty of the young maiden.

Suzie looked at the muscular lumberjack eating his lips, gradually losing his ability to speak and glaring from left to right to see if there was any imperial sentinel around.

Then when the logger was far from imagining what was going to happen, the young miss caught him off guard by jumping on him and laying her lips on his.

"Oh, wow! Well,..." said Babida but he was hushed by the fatal woman who placed her right index finger on his mouth.

The young maiden went for the second round of kisses and this time the Commander of the imperial forces to be, was more active.

He grabbed her by the waist and they passionately exchanged affection. They moved into Babida's room, closed the door, and landed on the soft mattress of the bed.

And suddenly…the young miss stopped everything.

"Not tonight, big boy!" She said to the lumberjack who was already in the firmament.

"Not before marriage!" She clarified.

"Ah! No! Alright!" answered Babida a bit disappointed but very comprehensive.

As per the Batang empire tradition, sexual intercourse outside wedlock was a big NO.

And the Commander of the imperial forces to be, knew better than anyone that he had to be an example not only in military life but also in private life.

Therefore he declared to the young maiden: "We shall marry by the will of the ancestors after my mission to the forbidden mountain."

To this, Suzie replied with excitement: "I can't wait for that."

Then Babida told her to go back to her room immediately and make sure no one, especially Uncle Bibi see her.

The young maiden kissed him for the last time and vacated. The lumberjack was now alone in his room and couldn't believe what had just happened.

He pinched himself to check whether he was in a dream or not and realized that what unfolded moments ago was all real.

He got off the bed and neared the room's window. He looked outside and spotted a three-quarters moon. That was the second moon since the passing of Governor Kola II.

TO BE CONTINUED...