Ioopu felt a sharp pain in his chest and his hand went to the source of this pain. He felt a thick sticky liquid between his fingers and for a moment wondered what it could be. He looked across to see if Gope was still there, but the hut was empty.
Ioopu had always been disliked by all of the villagers. His arrogance and bullying had led others of the village to avoid him. For all of his life he had preferred his own company. He was convinced that the other people living in his village were jealous of him, and wanted to take the wealth and position that was rightfully his.
Ioopu belonged to the prestigious Enename class. His father Ramanmada was a chief. His family possessed great areas of land and numbers of coconut and pandanus trees, which meant that they had great power within the village.
Their village was very large; it was comprised of different hamlets. Members of the same family lived in each hamlet and a chief represented them. A chief could be either a man or a woman. The head chief of the village however, had to be voted in by all of the chiefs. The head chief had the power to make decisions in regards to the whole village, whereas, the others could only make decisions for their hamlets.
When he was younger he often enjoyed insulting and picking a fight with the boys from the lower Sitio class.
“They are only our servants!” he would state to anyone listening.
There were times when he was younger, that some of the other boys from the two higher classes would join in his banter, but they had eventually become tired of this game and went on to other more interesting pursuits.
Ioopu understood from an early age, that although his parents were rich and powerful, they were not the most powerful family in the village. The great head chief Ekriaro was the most powerful man in the village, and Erangue his son, was also richer and more powerful than his father.
Erangue had been chosen to represent their people when traders from other islands came. He wore that prestigious shell armband; he was the one that the wandering tribes would deal with, exchanging fine pieces of shell money and jewellery.
Ioopu had always felt jealous of this power and felt it unfair that his father did not possess it. Then one day it would become his, as he was the oldest son.
As if this was not sufficient to give Erangue a higher distinction, he had also married one of the richest women from the village, not only did she have land and many coconut trees, but also prestige and respect; she was known for her magic powers; she was the most powerful sorceress in the village.
As the years passed Ioopu’s envy had become hatred. He would however console himself knowing that Erangue’s oldest son had died.
In later years Erangue did have two more sons, but they were still very young and they too could die, he reasoned to himself. Ioopu often sat and brooded about the injustice of his fate, “I was born to be the head chief!” he would smirk to himself.
Ioopu avoided all the people in the village, even his own family. His parents were concerned about his behaviour. He would sit alone talking to himself, and did not join in with the other boys in their games. But they thought that he would change when he became older.
When Ioopu had gone through puberty, there was a great celebration, even though it had not rained for many years and the people of the tribe often went hungry.
“I am a chief’s son. I belong to the Enename class, so there must be a great celebration. I am now a man! It is in these times that we must show our wealth. We are above the others and we must show it!” he had declared to his parents.
It was during this period that he met his only friend Gope. With Gope he found a true friend that understood him.
“Not even my parents understand me.” Ioopu would often explain to Gope.
As the years passed, Ioopu with the help of Gope, became even more manipulative and cunning, and was unpredictable and often cruel. He would often fight with the other boys he believed were trying to take from him what was his birthright. His greatest ambition was to one day have power over the village. Gope was the only one who understood his worth, and they would often discuss the day the he would become the head chief.
Ioopu, like all the members of the village was governed by the spirit world. They prayed to the powerful spirits of their ancestors for protection and wellbeing. But all knew that the dark spirits were evil and vindictive. The dark spirits were called upon to avenge a wrong, to curse a rival’s crop, cause an illness, and even inflict death.
In the shadows of the village, there lived a dark spirit sorcerer. He was the purveyor of evil spells and illnesses. The villagers openly shunned him; he was the embodiment of the dark forces, and they were afraid of him. However, they would secretly visit him when they needed his powers.
The spirits had spoken to Ioopu and told him that they would help him become the great head chief. So with the help of Gope they had formed a plan; he would learn to use the dark magic. Then as the head chief he would be able to control both the physical and spirit world, and no one could take away what was his by right.
One morning after deliberation with his friend, he decided to carry out his plan. He crept away from his village and went to the old sorcerer’s hut.
“I am Ioopu, son of Ramanmada. The spirits have sent me so you can teach me how to use your powers.”
The old man knew who he was, and also knew about his reputation.
“My magic power cannot be given to all!” he stated, eyeing Ioopu suspiciously.
There was something about this boy that intrigued him. He was good at reading a person, and he could sense ambition and something else, he could not recognize.
The old sorcerer looked at him for a moment and thought. “I need an apprentice. I have no children of my own and when I have joined the spirit world, my powers will be lost forever. This boy will be dangerous if he has my power. I need to call upon the spirits and ask them to help me decide,”
“Come back tomorrow, son of Ramanmada and I will give you my answer. I must ask the spirits.” And with that he lowered his head and began chanting.
Ioopu looked around the dark hut filled with small vessels containing bones, stones and different vegetations. The hut had a strange pungent smell and he liked it. He got up and walked out silently.
In the forest nearby, Gope was waiting for him, and they discussed what they would do when he had gained the old man’s knowledge and power. Ioopu told Gope of the people he would curse when he was able to use the spells.
The person he hated most was Erangue. He would cast a curse on him and Ioopu relished the thought of Erangue’s downfall. Gope smiled and agreed with him.
The next morning they set off again to the sorcerer’s hut. Gope would wait for him and then they would discuss the potions and spells.
The old man was expecting him. He had called upon the spirits for a long time and they had decided that Ioopu would make a good apprentice.
“We will start,” stated simply the old man.
Ioopu had turned out to be a very keen student. When he was not with the old man he would join Gope and dream about his illustrious future; he would become the most powerful head chief the village had ever had.
“No one will be able to stand against me. I will be richer and more powerful than my father, and I will marry the richest women of the village.” He would then smile with his friend already anticipating his future.
One day as he watched some of the children play, he noticed a small girl playing with her two friends. She was very small but spirited as she kept up with the two boys. He knew who she was; she was Erangue and Emanear’s only daughter Ekewane.
“One day she will inherit all the land and coconut trees belonging to her mother,” he smiled pleased at this thought. He compared himself to the other boys of the village, and felt confident that he was the best choice to one day be her husband.
“She is not very pretty, but then you can have many wives!” said Gope when Ioopu discussed his plan.
He sometimes watched Ekewane and co
mpared her to his sister Emett, she was prettier and like the other girls of the village spent a long time caring for herself, whereas Ekewane seemed to be only interested in swimming and fishing like the boys of the village.
“She will change,” he would mutter to himself.
When the islanders had first decided that they must leave their island home, Ioopu disagreed with his father. He had argued at length with him, but his father had chosen to leave with some of the other families.
He had then sought out Gope and complained to him. Gope however, convinced him that in the new land, he would not have to compete with Erangue, and his father would be the head chief.
“When your father becomes old, you will be the great head chief in this new land.” explained Gope.
Ioopu was surprised that he had actually enjoyed the preparations to leave their island. He knew that those that were not leaving felt envious, so he relished in the thought that he was one of the chosen ones.
The journey however was terrifying. He had lost hope of reaching land and it had seemed his dreams had ended. Then, they were once again safe! The nightmare was over. His dreams would come true; he was destined to be great. But yet again Erangue was first! He had felt so angry, so full of hatred for this chief who was always ahead of them.
Settling into the new island was not exciting for him. He took his rightful place beside his father. He spent most of his time sitting along the reef talking to Gope, or hidden in the undergrowth practicing his chants and spells. The other members of the tribe did not take any notice of took him; they were too busy setting up camp, finding food, and discovering the island.
He had almost hoped to encounter a hostile tribe so that Erangue would be killed. But the island seemed to offer nothing more hostile than the spirits that constantly screamed! He was not fearful of the spirit world, because now he had the power to control them.
Ioopu had noticed Ekewane when he arrived, and his initial plan seemed to be on track again; he would marry her. Here on this island he did not have any competition.
He also noticed that Ekewane had made friends with three others, and he had often crept to where they were sitting at night to listen to their conversations. In the end however, he became bored and decided that he need not be concerned, after all Emarr was one of the Sitio class, and Ekewane’s parents would never allow such a marriage. The other boy Bagonoun had come from another island, and therefore was not worthy of any thought.
When Ekewane had her initiation ceremony he had informed his parents that he would marry her. They had approached Erangue and Emanear to ask their permission for their son to marry her, as was their custom. Ioopu was sure they would be grateful, but she had refused!
He had felt so humiliated, so angry with her! Who did she think she could marry better! Even though she was chief’s Erangue’s daughter, and she had inherited her mother’s magic, she would never find a better husband!
It was then that he started making plans with Gope. “One day she will be my wife and her powers and land will be mine. I will have many wives, and then she will become their servant. How dare she refuse me!” he assured Gope.
Ioopu’s hatred for Erangue had increased. He wanted revenge, so he set about making his curses. He would make Erangue suffer. Then all those that supported him would also be made to suffer. His only concern was Emanear, would her magic be stronger than his?
The opportunity to further carry out his plan arose when the tribes had eventually parted. His father had the second choice to decide where to live, and had chosen the lake. This choice was pleasing to Ioopu, he would be far away from Erangue’s village and so his plan could be carried out much easier.
At first his parents opposed his plan, but then he could be so persuasive; he had reminded his father about the frigate bird game defeat. Knowing that his father still felt humiliated and could not live it down, by Ioopu marrying Ekewane they would also inherit her magic and powerful ancestors.
So the plan had come about. Ekewane would marry him, and once they were married, Erangue and Emanear would have to accept the way they went about the marriage, and probably grateful to him for marrying their wild daughter.
“But she had disappeared! How she escaped he did not know, but felt afraid that she had called upon the spirit world to take her away. How powerful was she to be able to command the spirits this way?”
He became fearful to leave his hut and only Gope was always there with him. Every day his mother would bring him food and water, but he never acknowledged her: he sat alone in the dark hut constantly muttering to himself.