Two Lions on His Shoulders

By Rick Bramhall

This is a fictionalized version of the life of the first emperor of the great Mali Empire. He went by many names, including Sunjatta, Sundatta, and the Lion King. I have choosen to call him by this name because it references one of the greatest stories about him. The story starts with the story of his mother, as all stories of heroes should.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rick Bramhall
• Release date: Mar 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005865993

Book preview

Chapter 1

Extraordinary, astonishingly beautiful flukes of nature happen every once in a while. In this case, it happened in a village in west Africa, probably in or near the current country of Mali. This village was one of about half a dozen that made up a small kingdom.

At birth she had been nothing special and had been given the name of Aba, which simply means that she was born on a Thursday. But by the time she'd reached puberty and gone through all the rites of passage for a female from that area, she was something else. She decided that her adult name would be Falayah, which means walks with dignity, and no one begrudged her the appellation. If anything, it didn't begin to described her beauty.

The people of that area are known for the dark richness of their skin. In bright sunlight, it shines with a yellowish-tan gleam, if the person is healthy enough. However, Falayah's skin was so jet-black that there was a blue glow to it.

But of course there was much more to her looks than exceptional skin. She was tall for a woman and walked with an easy grace, her shoulders naturally falling back, her long legs flowing with great coordination. Her breasts were never much larger than other young teenage girls of her age, but they sat high and firm, suggesting that they would not droop for years to come,

Her musculature was almost male, the way it curved in and out in pleasant patterns. Her upper arms and thighs showed great strength as they rippled. Like all young women who had not yet been pregnant, her waist was much smaller than her chest or hips.

Poets both young and old would go on about the swivel of her hips and the ripe plumpness of her buttocks. But, they would sing, this was nothing compared to the wonder of her face. It was a perfect oval, with no harshness or sharp angle anywhere. Her lips were full, her cheekbones high and prominent, her eyes disproportionately large for her face. Especially long eyelashes seemed to defy gravity. They had a special swoop to them that were compared to the wings of birds.

Ah, those eyes! the poets would exclaim. One could look into their deep-brown depths and seem to fall forever. They spoke of nobility, calmness and a sharp awareness of the world around her. And yet they also spoke of an openness and friendliness that seemed to welcome all.

Of course, every kingdom has its beauties, so even as these odes and paeans about her traveled, people thought they were merely the usual exaggerations of bards and griots. How could could anyone know the truthfulness of their words unless they'd seen her for themselves? And so, in her small kingdom, she remained a hidden beauty.

Now it just so happened that Falayah had an older sister. This older sister was the first wife of the kingdom's ruler. She was also known far and wide as a very knowledgeable, effective sorceress.

This ruler was so old that no one alive could remember his birth. It was speculated that he must have lost some of his legendary strength as he grew older, but no one was foolish enough to test the theory. Not that anyone would want to, as he was a very jolly fellow, well-liked by all who met him. His wide, toothsome smile set in a wrinkle-free face was his special charm and passport.

He was called Ade, which means King. Those who knew him before he became king were also wise enough never to call him that name. If a stranger came into the kingdom, they automatically called him Ade, as was the tradition in that part of Africa.

The king had wed the sister for the plump, full figure that she had. She had all the outward womanly traits, but in much more quantity than normal circumstances. Her breasts were round globes each the size of a child's head, while her hips suggested she could give birth to twins at the same instant.

She had much, but not all, of her younger sister's beautiful face. Behati was perhaps a shade lighter than Falayah, but not much. They both had the smooth, soft skin they'd inherited from their mother.

But his majesty was especially surprised to find that this young woman was also very intelligent. From the beginning, she gave him such excellent advice that he began seeking out her council on a daily basis. It did not hurt that her reputation for magic kept people fearful of her and, by extension, her husband.

So pleased was the older man that soon after marriage, he bestowed on her the special name of Behati, which means a gift of happiness. Being a sorceress, she had another, secret name that no one knew. If someone learned of that name, they could do her great magical harm.

One night, as the king and Behati rested after having sex, she turned to her husband with a particular look on her face. The king was very good at reading faces, which was one of his sources of power. He knew this particular look on her face quite well.

What bothers you, my little melon patch? This was a special endearment that he only used with her in private.

Behati chuckled in the low, smoky way that she knew her man found sexy. You know me too well, husband, she replied. I worry about my young sister, Falayah. Although your kingdom is large, my lord, I'm afraid that there is in it no young man here worthy of her grace and beauty.

The king rolled over on his back on the woven pallet and looked up at the thatched ceiling. Perhaps he could have done more, when he was younger, to expand his kingdom larger. He knew his first wife's words were true.

Yes, he admitted, I noticed that at the recent coming together festival, she did not favor one youth with her favor. Instead, with each dance, she lined up with a different young man. We have many handsome and strong teenage boys but perhaps you are right. It would not be wrong to marry her off to a wealthy man of yet a larger kingdom than mine.

With your permission, sire, I will think on this matter. The king had no doubt that she would think of a fine solution.

And so she did. However, this plan was not just fine, but brilliant. After the next day's long morning of hearings, where her husband passed judgments on many cases and took in many petitions, the two of them retired to the shade to rest during the sweltering afternoon. Once again,  Behati had excelled in her advice and council.

I think I have a solution to not one problem but two, she remarked in an almost off-handed manner.

I have known you long enough not to be surprised, her husband smiled at her. But considering that I am the king and am supposed to know everything that is going on, perhaps it would be best if you tell me which two things you are talking about.

Dear husband, she feigned surprised, did we not just finish hearing about the monster water buffalo that is terrorizing our farmers?

Aye, the king moaned, as we have been for the last month! The poor farmers in our southernmost village are so terrified of this beast that they have not been able to tend their crops!

Again, people who only hear about such things from afar might well expect that this was an exaggeration, too. Water buffalo are known for their nasty temperaments as much for their sharp and deadly horns. But people have been dealing with such beasts since the beginning of time, a listener might say, so how can this one be any different?

But this one was quite different. For one thing, from hoof to shoulder she was taller than any man alive. From side to side, she was wider than most peoples' houses. Her horns were stronger and thicker than that of any man's thighs.

Her ferocity was so great that at first people assumed she must have had a calf nearby that she was protecting. It didn't take long for an investigation to show that this wasn't the case. She was simply the most ill-tempered beast anyone had ever seen.

It is undoubtedly untrue that flames came out of her nostrils or that her bellows were great enough to knock people from their feet. However, it was true that the huffs of breath issuing forth from her nostrils could be seen from a distance. It is also a fact that her enraged calls rivaled the roars of the grouchiest of male lions and could be heard from miles around. The noise was so great that travelers set on visiting that poor village changed their minds upon hearing it.

Now there were those who insisted that this was witchcraft on the part of Behati, although they would never  had said so to her face. Her supporters, and there were many, argued against this gossip that, while her magical powers were great, the king's first wife was viewed daily by innumerable people and so couldn't have turned herself into the buffalo. This is simply a case of people being jealous of her status and deathly afraid of her sorcery.

However, this water buffalo's ferocity was of a magnitude that made the cow seem bewitched. And Behati was certainly strong enough to cast a spell from miles away. But it is probably a misjudgment to assume that she would endanger the lives of her subjects just to further the marriage prospects of her little sister.

This is what she suggested to her husband, the king: We could put out a call to all the mightiest hunters from kingdoms far and wide to come here to slay this beast. Whoever could take it down would certainly be worthy of the beautiful Falayah.

The king had his doubts. Hadn't the mightiest warriors and hunters in his own kingdom been unable to end this threat? He had serious doubts as to whether a man would be better than his hunters just because he came from afar.

He didn't see what harm it could do to send out such invitations, though. At the very least, it would bring visitors from far away, some of whom might wish to make a good marriage. The idea of being bound to a powerful king by marriage brought him daydreams of what would certainly be a profitable enterprise.

And so it came to be that the very next day the king made a royal announcement. Runners were sent out in all directions to spread the word.

Chapter Two

West Africa is a very large place. During this time, before the written word had reached it, there were no maps that encompassed the whole of it. So we cannot know how far the message spread.

However, the words of the kingdom's runners were taken up by others at the formers' place of exhaustion and spread even farther. It seems not unlikely that it reached the ocean to the west and the desert to the north. It seems unlikely to have reached as far as the Nile in an easterly direction. There is no way to know for certain how far south it went, other than to say it is extremely unlikely to have extended out over the ocean.

The king and his first wife were conscious of just how far things had gotten, though, when they found themselves greeting mighty hunters who took months to reach them. It is a good thing, Wife, remarked the king, that we announced this contest when Falayah is young. Otherwise, she might grow to old age before finding a mate.

Behati laughed heartily at this, as she did with all his witticisms, but even more so because this one was true. They soon lost count of the number of strapping young men who came to give their respects before heading out to take on the monster water buffalo. A few of them even the king had to admit were taller and stronger-looking than anyone in his own kingdom.

Then one day there came to the fence surrounding the king's compound a pair of hunters. They were invited in, as was the custom of the place. Because they came together, the king welcomed them together. He shared two kola nuts between them and they sat before him on the visitor's mat.

Each one of the young men was a sight to behold. They were fitted with muscles that rippled in the sun and had beautiful white teeth that sparkled in the light. There was a sharpness and gleam in each pair of eyes that suggested they were more intelligent than most of those who had come to this contest before them.

I am puzzled by one thing, the king admitted. Since the prize for killing this beast is the hand in marriage of my enchanting young sister-in-law, how are you two going to choose which gets to marry her? He was also puzzled by the land they claimed to have come from, since he'd never heard of it, but that would have been a very impolite thing to say.

We come as proxies for our king, said the slightly-taller of the two. As impressive as we two are both in appearance and skill, so much more so is he who rules over us. He wants young Falayah for his own and we will gladly give her to him, as he has promised us much wealth in return.

When they casually mentioned just how much wealth they would received after a successful mission, the king was more than impressed. It dawned on him that the ruler of their kingdom must have more wealth than he and all his constituents combined. And it did not take much more questioning for him to realize that this kingdom of theirs was larger than any two kingdoms he'd ever heard of.

He explained to the two hunters that they would have to wait their turn at tackling the mighty water buffalo, that another hunter was already scheduled to hunt the beast today, and another already slated to try tomorrow.

The slightly-shorter of the two replied that it was alright, that they wanted to watch the other the other hunters perform, so that they might learn from their mistakes. This struck the king as imminently wise and he told them so. He tried many times to learn the two hunters' names, even going so far as to try to trick them into revealing them.

It is not our wisdom you are praising, said the shorter of the two, again. These are the instructions of our lord and master.

I wish I could meet your king, the king admitted. He sounds like he must be a very great man. This was a remarkable statement coming from any ruler. How many kings do you know who are willing to admit there may be someone wiser than themself?

You will meet him when you come to our kingdom for the wedding ceremony, they both promised.

Again the king was suitably impressed. He'd never before met a hunter who did not hedge his bet when setting out to kill a ferocious monster. In his experience, they always did this just in case they were not successful.

It was a rule that he himself had always followed. In the old days, when he was still a spry young hunter and warrior. He would look up in the sky and pretend to see signs of a rain storm or the chances of a sudden strong wind. I will be successful, he'd tell his people, unless the gods ruin my chances with rain or wind. His people, back then, were always surprised at how true his predictions would be. Sure enough, if he came back empty handed from either hunt or battle, it was consistently the fault of the weather.

To not prepare an excuse ahead of time suggested to him that they must be the most successful hunters of all time. It must be that they always succeeded and never came back empty-handed. If this far-away king had warriors the equal to these, that would explain why his kingdom was so large.

After politely giving the necessary thanks and praise to their host and his first wife, the two touched their heads to the ground and then left. Now it so happened that the king had already been impressed by the hunter who was stalking the monster buffalo that day. He was sure that this hunter would sense the presence of these two and that he would complain the interference had thrown him off his game.

With this handy rationale, the king decided to follow these two and watch them from a distance. That way he could judge their stalking skills and at the same time be a ready witness should today's hunter cry foul. There being no time to dilly-dally, he set off not far behind his two guests without the benefit of his usual bearers, who technically were supposed to keep him from touching his feet to the ground at all times.

There was more than one path going south to the village haunted by the monster water buffalo,  but the two foreign hunters, being experts at this sort of thing, instinctively took the one that would get them there the fastest. The monster water buffalo was currently ruining a field of sorghum just south of this southern village and so the two continued on through the village. It was easy to tell which direction to go, as the buffalo was raising its usual ruckus.

Since the beast was standing right in the middle of a large field, it was not possible to get very close to it using the cover of surrounding vegetation. The land in this unfortunate area was already littered with the remains of too many hunters who had rashly thought they could kill the beast simply by rushing her. There were those who said the buffalo munched on the bones of the dead at night, but of course it would have been too dark to have seen this.

The two new hunters were noble enough to give that day's hunter a fair chance, and so they sat down at the edge of the flooded field, out in the open where the water buffalo could see them. That way, the monster might be lulled into thinking no one was approaching her. They also made sure they did not stare at the spot in the surrounding jungle where the current hunter was sneaking up on her.

Instead, they made small talk among the two of them, hoping to cover whatever sounds the hunter might accidentally make. The king, seeing all of this and spying the day's hunter out of the corner of his eyes, too, joined them. And so all three squatted there, spears poking harmlessly up towards the sky, bows hung loosely over their backs, and commented on the size of this water buffalo.

Is she not the biggest you've ever seen? asked the king.

The taller of the two answered, Yes, you were right to describe her so. I wouldn't be surprised if her hide is two fingers thick.

Yes, commented the other, she will be very difficult to kill. Her horns look as sharp as the tips of my arrows.

Indeed, agreed the king, you'd almost think someone had sneaked up on her and sharpened them for her.

The current hunter already had his friends and relatives celebrating his victory, for it was thought that such good vibrations would weaken the will of the monster and strengthen the arm of the man. Their chants and songs could be heard in the background. The stomping of their feet raised a gentle cloud of dust over the village.

Meanwhile, the hunter edged into position, carefully placing each foot while at the same time not taking his eyes off his prey. His choice of weapon suggested that he, too, figured the buffalo must have a really thick skin. Readers in the United States might better know this from the version used by early Native Americans, sometimes called an atl. It utilizes the theory of the lever to cup the end of a spear with an extension, greatly increasing the power of the throw.

This particular spear was also enhanced by an extra-thick shaft and a point made of obsidian. This glass-like volcanic material was not found locally or even anywhere in the general region. The hunter had paid many hides for this razor-sharp material.

If there had been radar-guns back then, the speed of the spear would most likely have been clocked at over a hundred miles per hour. It was nothing more than a blur as it sped toward its target. The obsidian point did its job, penetrating the monster's tough hide.

At that point all the world seemed to hold its breath. The hunter sucked in his air, the bystanders forgot to breathe, the chanting and stomping from the village ceased. Even the monkeys and birds of the jungle paused in their incessant calling.

The mighty water buffalo stopped in mid-snort. Her tremendous hooves skidded, sending up a spray of mud in all directions. The animal came to a dead stop.

Or so it seemed. The huge spear hung from her right flank, its shaft still quivering. The beast turned her head, her horns flashing in the sunlight. With one gigantic blood-red eye she looked over the offending weapon. Then slowly, slowly the spear lost its hold. Its true perpendicular line to the ground became increasingly more acute. The great beast's skin shivered, as though reacting to the bite of a fly. The spear clattered impotently to the ground.

This last movement the hunter did not see, as he was already racing away from the scene as fast as his legs could take him. His timing turned out to be not only impeccable but life-saving. The monster was right behind him, leveling trees right and left with her great horns. Having plowed a furrow into the jungle, she stopped only when the crush of fallen trees became too dense. A second of hesitation on the hunter's part would have left him part of that dense debris.

His friends and family were not disappointed in his failure. Instead they rejoiced that he had survived the encounter, a result that was only true in about half the cases so far. This little invention of Behati to ensure her younger sister a good husband had greatly reduced the number of hunters both in the kingdom and the entire surrounding region.

The two hunters from far away had one more day to wait. This second day for them featured a hunter they personally knew, as he lived in a kingdom not far from theirs. They were out to the field at the crack of dawn to wish him well, but couldn't find him anywhere.

Naturally they sat down to wait. Soon others joined them. As the sun made itself whole in the sky, there was a general concern as to what might have happened to that day's hunter.

Some unkindly suggested that he had simply skipped out, his bravery lost at the sight of yesterday's damage. His two acquaintances asserted against this, as they knew first hand of his courage. He is up to some trick, one of them said.

Yes, agreed the other, he is simply lulling the beast into a false sense of security. When she has been fooled into thinking there will be no attack on her today, that's when he'll strike.

Finally one of the two noticed something but didn't say anything. His friend caught on when the secret was relayed to him by a subtle play of his partner's eyes. There was the slightest of ripples in the flooded field, something that only the very finest of hunters had the ability to observe.

Neither one said anything to the others present. They did not believe water buffaloes had the ability to understand human language, but you could never be sure. It is well-known that hunters are a superstitious lot.

The cow certainly gave the impression that she expected nothing. As was her usual wont, she alternated chewing her cud with excessively loud bellows that hurt the ears of all within a mile of the field. When the hunter finally burst up out of the water, a mere foot away from her flank, spraying water in a fine display in all directions, she hardly turned her head.

After so quickly jumping up, it took the hunter perhaps a full second to cock his spear arm back and then thrust it forward. However, this was enough time for the huge monster beast to kick out at him with one massive, sharp hoof. There was debate for days afterward as to whether the hunter might have made good his spear if the kick hadn't broken his left shin.

As might be expected, this shattering of his lower leg caused his spear to glance ineffectively off the water buffalo's side. In fact, he went down in the water, causing a splash again. Only now did the monster move.

She twisted her thick neck just enough to sink one of her horns into the poor man's back. The water quickly turned red. There was wide-spread agreement that this particular field of sorghum was ruined.

Chapter 3

It was a warm summer's night and so the two hunters were lying outside their assigned hut, on woven grass mats. They were on their backs, staring up at the starry night. No matter where they went, this was one of their favorite things to do, because no matter how far away from home they were, the same stars were shining overhead. It was a sense of the familiar to them and made them feel that the world was not that large a place after all.

Do we have a plan for tomorrow? asked the taller one.

Do we ever?

No, of course not. We cannot plan ahead, because we never can tell what we'll find where.

I think it would be wise to assume that the monster will be in a different field tomorrow.

I think that is a good guess.

Pssst!

Why do you say that?

I didn't say that. I thought you said 'pssst.'

It's me, Behati.

Since the two hunters had excellent senses of hearing, they were easily able to figure out that the voice was coming from inside their assigned hut.

What do you want?

And how did you get inside our hut without us seeing you?

Keep your voices down! Do you want to get me into trouble?

I don't know, it's seems to be you could tell your husband anything and he'd believe you.

Just real casually, inch your way inside here, came the voice from the dark interior of the hut.

Since they were not only great hunters but very curious besides, they did as she suggested. They could just barely make out the figure of a woman inside. Out of the shadows, she pushed a couple of items toward them.

In the moonlight of the doorway, they picked up and examined the items. One was a section of a reed. The other was a small, glazed clay jar. What's in the jar? the shorter hunter asked.

Sneezing powder, came the answer. You know what to do, right?

Yes, they both said, it is a very good plan.

One more thing, said the taller one, could you get us a small jar of honey?

It will be by your left elbow when you wake up.

And true to her word, the asked-for jar was by the taller hunter's left elbow when he woke up not long before dawn. Both jars were sealed with wax and so they knew the contents would not be diluted by water seeping in. They set out at a quick but silent pace towards the southern fields of the southernmost village.

This seems as good a point as any to remind the readers that these two were professional hunters of the highest caliber. What they were about to attempt should, under no circumstances, be tried by anyone at home, no matter how tame a water buffalo you think you have on your hands.

Not too much later after they set off for the southern village, the king's household was rising for the day. He had gotten in the habit of being up by dawn, after so many years of being a hunter. His lowest-ranked wives were busy preparing his breakfast and, with six wives, there were always plenty of children running around his compound.

He was surprised to see that Behati was also up early. There is no reason for you to be up so early, he said. Go back to sleep and get some more rest.

I cannot sleep any more, she explained. Today is the day those two hunters from that large kingdom so far away are going to try to kill our monster. I want to be there to see it happen. I feel it in my bones that they are going to succeed.

That wouldn't have anything to do with you placing a spell on the beast, would it? the king teased.

Husband, she frowned, you do me a great injustice. It is important that this contest be seen as fair to all hunters. I would do nothing to harm your reputation.

Perhaps the best spell she ever cast had been on her husband the king. He always believed everything she said. He apologized to her now.

Then you and I can go together to watch them in action? she asked hopefully.

The king agreed that this was a good idea and he sent off for his litter bearers. Do you think we have time to do this up right, and proceed there in full ceremony? he asked his number-one wife.

Oh yes, she replied. I suspect that they are going to take their time and approach the buffalo as slowly as possible, in order to not be detected by her. I think that is a lovely and grand idea of yours to make a big deal out of this. Remember, if these two hunters fail, they will feel like they have brought great shame upon their kingdom and their powerful king. They will be highly motivated to succeed.

At this the king laughed. I suspect not wanting to be killed will be high enough motivation for them!

As you might imagine, with all that goes into an official royal procession, it took some time to get the whole thing together. In the interest of fairness, the king chose the bearers of his litter each from a separate village. So one of his many children ran to each village  to summoned them. Everyone that was to be in the procession then had to wait on them to appear. Meanwhile, the king's wives had to argue who was going to stay behind and look after the kids.

By the time the event got underway, dawn had already broken and it looked like it was going to be a fine day, with a clear sky and sparkling air. The king remarked on this with regret to his first wife, who had the honor of walking beside his litter. If we can see far, than so will our beast be able to, he sighed. There is nothing like a thick fog for sneaking up on big game.

The word soon spread throughout this tiny kingdom of the honor their king was to bestow on these two hunters. By the time his litter and retinue began winding their way to the far southern fields, there were many of the king's subjects lining the route, cheering and singing. There was much singing and beating of drums all along the way. Any time the Ade decided to make a big ceremony out of something, his subjects took that as an excuse to celebrate like it was a holiday.

Behati had to hold her ear quite close to her husband to hear his remark during all of this. It may well be, he practically shouted above the din, that this racket will drive our monster away!

His wife smiled and then laughed at his witticism. Actually, attempting to drive the huge buffalo away with extreme noise had been one of the first things they'd tried, long before she'd come up with her plan to benefit her sister. She really was pinning great hopes on this day's hunters; she wanted very badly to visit this great king's realm and take a prominent role in what would be the grandest wedding in anyone's memory. When this event was celebrated in the song of future griots, she wanted her name  and the names of her descendants to be mentioned in it.

As expected, they found their monster had moved into a field even farther south. She couldn't have gone any farther south without leaving the sorghum fields altogether. The families who owned these fields, of course, were quietly rooting for more blood. Then maybe the beast would have to leave their fields and travel to another kingdom's paddies to terrorize another collection of poor souls. Anyone over the age of four knew that such a thing would have been terribly impolite to say so out loud.

As everyone in the kingdom, so it seemed, settled in patiently to await the coming action, an old man, tall and sinewy, stopped in front of the king's compound. Strapped to his back was a xylophone, although the seven year-old who slowly approached him didn't know that. In his relatively brief life, he'd never seen a griot before.

Everything seems rather quiet around here, the ancient griot said to the boy.

And I got stuck here with all the babies, the angry child pouted.

Ah, there must be something important going on, surmised the musician. Well, never mind child. I'm sure the next time you will be old enough to go, too.

There isn't going to be a next time, the boy pronounced. This is a once in a lifetime event, that's what my father the king says.

By this time, the lowest-ranked wife of the king, stuck