Skin of the Sea

Kola tells Simi to save herself. She refuses, suddenly remembering the day she was taken from her home in vivid detail. The òyìnbó ship closes the distance to their boat, and Simi and Kola are surprised to find people with dark skin like theirs looking down at them. They board the ship, which was taken from a port, and the people aboard are on a mission to “take back those stolen from us” (76). Kola makes up a story to explain their presence in the middle of the sea. The captain gives them supplies for their journey and vows to go after the ship that took Kola next. Suddenly, a clap of thunder rips through the cloudless sky, and above, Sango, one of the orisa, appears, looking angry.

Oya, Sango’s wife, appears beside him, the two orisa crackling with energy. Sango shoots a bolt of lightning at the ship before the crew make it known they aren’t slave traders. The orisas cease their attack and land on the ship, where the people on board bow before them. Sango and Oya have been seeking out slave ships and destroying all they come across because they refuse to “leave the pleas of our people unanswered” (89).