Power

by Theresa Jones

  “Really?” I answered, as if I didn’t already know. “Hmmm... Well I am sure she will be waking up soon then.”

  I had come to their place early, in anticipation of Sam waking long before her mother. I knew Allison would be exhausted after everything that had happened yesterday, especially considering the toll it takes on the body coming through the doors to the Compound for the first time, and not to mention all that had happened in the last week. I expected her to awake frightened and confused, wondering why she was so weak, hungry, and disoriented. Until then, I just had to wait and watch over Sam until she woke.

  Though it wasn’t likely that Allison would wake up any time before noon, I made a splendid breakfast for me and Sam. We had finished eating and were resting our aching bellies on the couch when Samantha, off in her own little world, started singing a lullaby I had never heard before. Despite the fact the she was usually off tune, the sound was captivating. I leaned back against the pillows on the couch, just listening to this little beauty sing softly to herself, when I heard a loud thump come from Allison’s room. Samantha reached the door before I was even standing, popped it open just enough for her head, and was whispering in..

  ***Allison***

  I woke up the next morning to the smell of sizzling bacon, freshly ground and brewed coffee, and what must have been fluffy pancakes and syrup. My first thought was, Why is Mom cooking on a Monday? But then I remembered everything. I wasn’t at home. And who knew if I could ever go home again.

  Opening my eyes, I felt disoriented. There was no window in the room to see if the sun was up, though there was an old, antique looking clock hanging from the wall almost right in front of me, telling me it was after 10. I threw my legs over the side of the bed and thrust myself up to stand. Almost as soon as I did, I wished I hadn’t. My legs gave out from underneath me, and I fell to the floor, bruising my behind.

  I heard a small patter of feet and realized Sam must be awake already. With that thought came the sudden turn of the door knob. As she inched the door open, and light spread through my dark room, she whispered, “Mom, are you awake?”

  Such a simple question, yet the feelings it gave me were not simple. It meant she was ok, she was here with me, and she had been waiting for me to wake. Whatever else was going on, we were together.

  “Yes, sweetie, I am.” Using the bed for support I was able to lift myself up to stand again, but the effort was useless. As Sam came bounding in, she ran straight over to me and jumped up to hug me. Though normally I would have been able to steady myself and pick her up to hug her back, I felt so weak I just fell right over on the bed. Together we lay there in a strong embrace. I wanted to hold her forever. She smelled sweet, and her face was so pure and innocent.

  People had told me time and again that she would never be born with light hair or blue eyes. That brown was dominant; she would have to be born like me, brown and boring. But they were all wrong. Her skin was white and creamy, and yellow hair fell around her face. Her eyes were large, perfectly round, and bright blue, with speckles of dark blue and white. She was special, unique, gorgeous, and all mine.

  “It’s about time you woke up. I have been waiting forever!” she exclaimed when I finally released her from my grasp. Though I felt weak, I sat up to talk to her properly. I didn’t know why my arms and legs felt stiff and weak, but I wanted her to see me strong and in control.

  I answered with, “I love you so much, my beautiful Samantha.” I felt like I could never say it enough. She made a face at my sappiness, and I realized just how lucky I was to have her with me. She brought everything into perspective.

  “Mom, did you hear me? I love you too, but I really have been waiting forever, you know,” she said, looking at me with almost a scornful look.

  “I’m sorry, honey, why didn’t you come wake me?” I asked while I flopped onto my back. If we were going to sit here chatting, I may as well make myself comfortable. She moved to accommodate me, and then climbed up onto my stomach.

  “Well, David asked me not to. He said you needed rest.” As if on cue, David walked in and flicked on a lamp on the other side of the room.

  “I didn’t want to turn on the overhead light first, figured your eyes would adjust better this way,” he said as he walked closer to the bed. When he sat and looked deep into my eyes, I nearly forgot Sam was there leaning against me. He had a way of making butterflies ravage my insides. “How are you feeling?” he asked when he finally looked away. I wondered if he had the same experience looking at me as I did when I looked at him.

  He continued, “Are you hungry? Do you have a head ache?” as he was speaking he was reaching towards me to place the back of his hand on my forehead. He had a way of making me feel better, just by being there.

  “Umm… I do feel a little lightheaded and hungrier by the minute. It smells like a friggin restaurant out there!” My hand instinctively went to my stomach. It really did feel like I was starving. David held his hand out to me; I accepted the help, remembering how well I did the first time I tried to get out of bed.

  “I can bring you some food, if you would like, Sam and I just finished eating.” I realized then, he wasn’t trying to help me out of bed, just helping me sit up. “Don’t try to stand, you will feel pretty weak for a while.”

  Determined to show him that I was not weak, I tried to stand. I heard myself saying something like, “I’m fine,” knowing that I could very well fall again. But I would not allow myself to be weak. Not now, not after everything that’s happened. I had always had to be strong, and now would not be different. I would master this, just as I have mastered everything else I have ever set my mind to.

  David, realizing my determination, had his hand under my elbow, helping me up, and was saying, “You do not have to push yourself. The first day here is usually a difficult one. Your body will have to adjust.” Why did he feel like he had to discourage me?

  After standing, I pushed his arm away, looked him straight in the eyes and said, “Listen, David, I appreciate your concern, but I already told you, I am just fine.” He looked shocked, but still skeptical. Determined to get my point across I added, “Why are you here anyway? I thought this was my home?” That was probably a little too much, but it was already said, so I kept my face serious and didn’t back down.

  I honestly didn’t want to hurt him. I just needed him to know that I wasn’t some pathetic little girl. His face looked momentarily pained and then his eyes lost the warmth I had become used to seeing there.

  I told myself it didn’t matter though; I was done being someone I wasn’t. Done not saying what I wanted to say, just to prevent an argument. Done just getting by, because everyone else’s feelings were more important than mine.

  His face changed as he said “I understand. You can do things yourself. If you need anything, I will be in the living room. As a courtesy, there is always someone with you when you first come to the Compound.” And he turned around to leave. Before he left the room, he added, “And since you are obviously in no pain, and ‘just fine’ we can begin your training today, rather than waiting a day or two as we usually do.” And then he was gone.

  Sam came up beside me, worming her hand into mine, and asked, “Are you ok, Mom?” I loved that child more than life itself!

  “Oh Sammy girl, I’m ok, just a little tired and grumpy… and hungry! What did y’all eat in there?” With that, she smiled big and wide, flashing her bright teeth.

  “It was so good, Mom. David made all this stuff, like bacon, sausage, pancakes, toast, and eggs! It was so yummy I ate so much my tummy felt like it was gonna explode!” She leaned against the bed giggling then she dragged me into the kitchen to eat some much needed food.

  ***

  I walked into the Hall feeling annoyingly nervous. I had instantly regretted the way I had treated David this morning, but unfortunately for him, I was too stubborn to admit it.

  The journey from my own room to the Hall had seemed very long. We had gone down several
hallways, a couple of different elevators, and now, finally arriving in the Hall, we were meandering through it.

  David was walking beside me, leading me to my destination. “I will be your teacher, Allison. Rick will be staying with Sam for now, until she gets comfortable enough with the some of the artists.”

  I looked up at him as he talked to me. I wanted him to look back at me – so I could at least show him I wasn’t angry with him – but he kept his eyes ahead of him, scanning the room. His hand was placed at the small of my back, making sure that I followed him closely.

  “The artists?” I asked, while we continued our journey.

  “‘The artists’ is just a general term. They are the ones who descended from Arabella. They dance, paint, draw, sculpt, sing, and so on. About 99 percent of the time, descendants of Arabella are female, so aside from Sam always having something to do with them, Rick decided that being around women would be a familiar experience for her.”

  It didn’t matter how fluidly he spoke or how articulate he was, he always seemed to confuse me. “Arabella?”

  “Ahh, be patient, Allison. We are going to learn the history right… about… now.” And with that he stopped, twirled me around to face him, and sat, motioning for me to sit as well. We sat on the floor with our legs crossed, facing each other.

  “Why do we have to sit here?” I asked, realizing just how huge the Hall was; it seemed to go on for over a mile in every direction. And yet, there was not one other person anywhere around. We were just sitting, the two of us, in the middle of a large, empty room.

  He leaned back on his hands for just a moment to catch himself as he chuckled. Though his laugh was thick and velvety, I didn’t like the sound of it when it was directed at me. Maybe my comment this morning wasn’t going to go completely unpunished. The lack of amusement on my face was obviously apparent as he composed himself and explained, “I realize that we cannot see anyone else in this room, however when you were walking next to me, did you not notice that we were weaving? We did not come to this spot in a straight line…”

  I hadn’t realized it before, but as he said it, I did remember walking from side to side. He continued, “When people study in the Hall, the power surrounding them hides them from the others, gives them privacy. We cannot hear or see them, just as they will not be able to hear or see us. We can, however, feel each other’s power. So I had to find a spot that was not already occupied.” Now that I knew, I could feel others around me and I wondered at not feeling it before. It was an odd sensation, knowing that there were tons of people in the room, but I couldn’t see any of them. It also kinda creeped me out.

  He leaned back, as if to prepare himself, and began. “Now Allison, this will be your first lesson. You will learn about your power, where it came from, why it came in the first place, and what you will be expected to do with it. You will also learn who has power, the differences in power, and the different power strengths and abilities. You will learn about Damien, the group he leads, and what their agenda is. As we go along, feel free to stop me at any time and ask questions. There is no point in me moving on if you have questions left unanswered.” I nodded in agreement and he continued.

  “Well, ok. We will start at the beginning. Try to remember that this is the story that has been passed down from generation to generation, so there is some debate about it. In Greek mythology, Zeus was the principal God, the leader, so to speak. He had a companion named Cratos, the son of Pallas & Styx and the brother of Nike, the Greek goddess of justice. Cratos – which is translated as strength or power – was submissive to Zeus, but to Zeus alone. It has been said that Zeus sent Cratos to rid the universe of evil and that the other lesser gods helped to maintain that peace. The Titans wanted control of Oympus and thus a battle between the gods and Titans ensued.” He paused, to be sure that I was following, which I was so far.

  “Since the rise of the modern religions, however, the story has been altered to make it more relatable. Think of Zeus as the God of the Christians, Cratos, Michael the Archangel, the lesser gods are angels, and the Titans as demons.” He paused again, making sure that I could make the connection. I was born and raised Catholic, so I knew the reference he was making. “It is said that Lucifer, the angel of light, became jealous of God, and began a revolt against Him. At that time, God sent Michael to cast Lucifer out of heaven and into Hell.”

  This I already knew. “David, I was raised Catholic. I know that story.”

  “Well, I am sorry if I am going too slow for you.” The sarcasm dripped from his words. Now I could add smart ass to his list of qualities. “As I was saying. This obviously infuriated Lucifer, who then built up his army in an attempt to rule the earth and take souls away from God. He and six other demons came to earth, one for each of the seven deadly sins, to start an uprising against God and anything good.” He paused, giving me a look that dared me to make any more dismissive comments.

  So far the story was making sense though, so I nodded, hoping he would continue.

  “Lucifer and his followers impregnated seven human women. Though it is not important, it is said that each woman died in childbirth, a horrible, painfully slow death. The first written record of these demons was published in 1589 by Peter Binsfeld, who was part of the Order. Though at that time, they believed the descendants of the demons were merely witches or warlocks.

  “Each demon had a prominent evil. Lucifer – the leader, and worst of them all – had the evil of pride. Anyone we know of who has descended from him has been almost purely evil, and usually very powerful. The next two powerful demons were Amon, whose evil was anger, and Mammon, whose evil was greed. Almost all of the Rising has descended from one of these three demons.”

  Thankfully he paused again, I shifted slightly, to readjust my position and stretch my aching back. And this time I had a question. I remembered hearing that term once before and wondered, “What is ‘the rising’?”

  I noticed at that moment, when he was looking right into my eyes, that his eyes were the same rich green as when he had entered the Compound. No longer the hazel eyes that I had grown accustomed to, they were a deep emerald that seemed to bore straight into my mind. I wondered how long they had been like that. How could I not have noticed the change? Staring at him like that I was drawn into how handsome he was. Ha! Handsome didn’t even begin to cover it. He was gorgeous! His tan skin, with the tousled hair, and those eyes – either green or hazel, both were… I tried to focus. I had asked a question, I needed the answer.

  “The Rising is the opposite of what we are. It is composed of those who have descended from the demons I am telling you about. Damien is currently the leader of the Rising.” Just hearing his name brought back the memories, the hate, the smell, the pain. I shook the feeling from me. And I nodded to show my understanding.

  He continued, “The four others were Leviathan, whose evil was envy, Beelzebub – gluttony, Belphegor – sloth, and Asmedeous – lust. These four have ruined the way society sees so many things and have played up evil, however, they are not usually the ones we have to worry about.”

  We didn’t have to worry about them? I might have a made a face. They were demons just the same. Surely something should be done about all of them. David looked down in his lap and took a deep breath. I must have been his worst student ever.

  ***David***

  I consider myself a calm and decent man, but Allison just gets under my skin and drives me crazy. There she was, sitting not more than a few inches in front of me as I am telling her about the evil in the world and she has this expression on her face – like she thinks it is not important that we have to go up against this real evil on a nearly daily basis.

  I dropped my head; it was hard for me to accept how difficult it was for me to look at her. She was beautiful, but that wasn’t all. It had been years since I have had any feelings other than friendship for a woman. But seeing her, being around her, was doing things to me I never thought would happen. Unfortunately for me, they wer
e also feelings I couldn’t allow myself to feel. I took a deep breath, hoping my blood would stop trying to boil over. I needed to get away. “So, are you thirsty or anything? You want to get up and stretch your legs?”

  She leaned back, curved her back inward, pushed her arms up over her head, and let out a small noise, something between a grunt and a sigh, as she stretched. She nodded, and started to stand, “Yes, I definitely need to stretch my legs.” I stood next to her and helped her rise, instinctively placing my hand at her back when she was beside me. She didn’t seem to mind, but I had to be careful. This urge to reach out to her, to touch her, even if just a touch as small and subtle as this was dangerous. I also had the strangest urge to protect her, like something special and precious. But I knew that wouldn’t go down well with her.

  “How long have we been in here now?” She was asking because logically we couldn’t have been there any more than 10 or 15 minutes, but her body had to be feeling like we had been there for hours.

  “We were only sitting 15 minutes or so.” I reached for her with both hands, placing them just below her waist, and let my power flow from me. Just enough that I could take away the stiffness, the pressure from the power flooding over her now, and the pain from the weight of the power in the Compound. She looked up suddenly, surprised at first by my hands, then at the relief I provided. It wasn’t fair how right it felt to hold her like this though, to lay both my hands on her curvy hips.

  “What the hell was that?” There was not anger dripping from her voice, as I might have expected, rather, surprise, or maybe even excitement I heard. I smiled, I couldn’t help it.

  “I felt something when you touched me. It was like… I can’t even explain it!” Her eyes lit up as she talked. It was a beautiful sight – to see her so helplessly excited.

  As I was going to speak, she started again, “Your eyes turn bright green when you use your power. I know that is what you did!” As if I was going to deny that fact. I couldn’t help but laugh. It felt good to stand so close to her and just let go.