“Yeah,” Wanda wondered why the piercing look was on Becky's face.
“How did you know that the Vitrian weapons and Méndez could shrink and extend.” Becky became inquisitive.
Wanda wore a fake smile. She didn't want to bring up the discussion about Eric and how she had seen him use it. “I've heard people say so many things in the last two days.”
Becky wasn't fooled, so she continued to stare for a moment, then looked down and brought out a Necatus that was stuck in a strap on her waist. She showed it to Wanda, she focused on the object, and suddenly from the small piece that was smaller than the size of her palm, it became long as Becky held it. As it extended, Becky threw it towards the target.
“To shrink a weapon or your Méndez, you only need to concentrate and focus on it.” She paused.
“What about the glowing?”
“The glittering comes after adequate praying. The Praying Méndez will glow when you have spent adequate time praying. How much you pray is what charges it, and when you face demons, it will glow based on whether you have spent adequate time in prayer or not.”
Wanda looked confused. “Who accepts or determines whether the prayers are good or sufficient...”
“Really?” Becky funnily looked at Wanda. “Do I look like God to you? All I know is that as a Vitrian, you have to pray constantly, not that we all do. I know some don't even pray for weeks, but when you pray - your Méndez is charged – and no demon can come near you. But some Vitrians are so lazy they look for other means to strengthen themselves.”
“Other means?”
“Yes ... sorcery, of course,” Becky said, looking at Wanda like Wanda must be the greatest fool on earth to be so naive about everything. “Well, without power in the Praying Méndez, you are dead meat if you meat a demon out there.”
Wanda's eyes changed knowing what Becky was referring to, although she knew Becky was just sarcastic.
“I'm not trying to scare you. I can be blunt; I know people say that.” Becky added, seeing the expression on Wanda's face. “But I still believe you're dead meat going out there with us, no matter what anyone says. Alexis knows that, and I can't understand why he wants you to get yourself killed.”
“Why are you so ...” Wanda turned her head and looked at Becky in a frustrated way.
“What!” Becky smiled sheepishly. “Look at the Necatus you are holding.” Wanda looked down at the silver twelve inches long sharp-pointed peg in her hand. “You can barely throw it straight at a target. You'd be lucky we only meet weak demons that would die only by you stabbing them with the Necatus, if not,” Becky paused and then spoke her next words out perceptibly, just to annoy Wanda, “you - make – for - good - meat.”
“Enough of your brashness!” Wanda threw the Necatus in her hand down, the shiny object clanged on the floor and bounced up several times until it came to a halt a few metres away.
“Oh, you think, it's going to be walking to some of your school parties or chatting with lover boy Petter,” Becky spoke with a funny weak sound, annoying Wanda even further.
“Petter is not my boyfriend!”
“Yeah, right,” Becky blinked several times. “A lot of people are going to get injured today; that's if we are lucky no one dies.”
Wanda began to think about it. Becky was right. Perhaps all those people at the medical hall are suffering because of her.
“But that isn't my fault,” Wanda disassociated herself from the attack. “The Vitrians would have gone to find the rebels with or without me.”
“No, if you hadn't shown up here, we would have easily continued to live happily, and the rebels would be in possession of the Healing Méndez.” Becky tilted her head to the side as she spoke. She had her hands on her waist and a furious look on her face. “Do you know what really happened to your dad?”
“Don't go there,” Wanda's response was curt with a venomous undertone.
“I guess the rumour is true then ... your mum never told you as I heard. She hid you away since your dad died nine years ago.”
“Stop it!” Wanda warned with her voice now louder and stronger than before.
“He was torn apart by a demon; it was so bad that a lying-in-state could not be done for him as much as he was loved around here.”
“Stop it!” Wanda shouted and pushed Becky hard with her hands. Becky staggered backwards. “How can you be so bitter? How can you be so insensitive? Do you know how painful it is, hearing all of this?” Wanda was vexed; her eyes were red, but she was determined not to give Becky the satisfaction by breaking down in tears.
Becky controlled her body from falling. “I think you should know and think about the number of parents and children that might die today.” She walked away towards the dressing room.
“I hate you!” Wanda yelled. In anger, she picked up a new Necatus and threw it. To her surprise, like a scene captured in slow motion, she watched the Necatus totally turn into a burning metal as it rotated in midair towards the target point.
It stuck straight within the circle marked on the target object and set the entire target object on fire. Wanda looked at her hands, wondering where the fire came from. Her hands were vibrating vigorously and were extremely hot, but she didn't understand where the fire came from. She only stood in shock, watching the target object as the fire instantly engulfed it. It burnt totally and extremely fast.
“Holy fire!” Bathe exclaimed in shock as he showed up in a rush at the entrance of the elders' training area.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Chapter 11
“Wow!” Bathe picked a fire extinguisher, hurried to the target object that was burning, and released the foam on the fire. He placed the extinguisher down and looked up; Wanda followed his gaze to see Alexis walking away from behind the glass separating where he was in the dressing room and the elders' training area.
Bathe walked up to Wanda. “It seems to be true that your chosen power works with rage.”
“The prophecy,” Wanda muttered, remembering the prophecy that Alexis had spoken about the day before.
“Rage that shall burn with holy fire,” Bathe said, and Wanda looked up to see a smile of satisfaction on his face.
“Did I just do that?” Wanda was distraught.
“I'll remember to be careful and to keep away from you when you are annoyed,” Bathe said, trying to lighten her melancholic mood.
“I'm not in the mood right now, Bathe” Wanda looked firmly into his eyes, searching for answers. “Did I do that?”
“That was a compliment, not a complaint,” Bathe tried to lighten her mood. He wanted nothing to disturb her from going out with them, so he paused for a moment and then answered as his lips wiggled at the edges. “What do you think? Metals don't suddenly turn into fire.”
Wanda looked sad. “I didn't mean to do anything wrong.”
“Becky told me she said something about your dad.” He waited, but Wanda only remained silent, looking away in vexation. “She's with Alexis now ... on the other side.” He pointed. “I saw the fire and came running.”
“I don't care if she's reporting herself. She deeply hurt my feelings.”
“You know a lot of people here are looking forward to what would come out of you at the end. Some people are scared, and some are worried. Some feel good, and some don't even know what to expect from you.”
“What happened to my dad?” Wanda asked, not listening to what Bathe had been saying. She knew asking her mum would be better, but she couldn't let her mum know what she had planned. She left a note for her mum that she would be spending the day with Petter to get to know the Fortress better and meet some people. “How did he die?”
“I saw Sofia before coming here,” Bathe tried to avoid the painful discussion. “I told her you're okay doing well with some other children.”
“You can just tell me you don't want to answer,” Wanda told him, making him know she knew he was avoiding the question. She started walking back towards the entrance
.
“He was killed by a demon,” Bathe spoke, and instantly Wanda stopped in her tracks. She didn't turn back to look at him, but she waited for him to continue.
“Don't blame your mum. She never wanted you to feel such pain as you are feeling now when Marcus died. You were only seven or was it eight. She told you it was a car accident and asked me and everyone else to keep it that way.”
“The demon ... did it rip him into pieces?” She inquired, still not turning back to look at Bathe. Her rage was enormous in the room, raising the temperature of the enclosed room beyond the room temperature.
“That should not matter, Wanda.” Bathe refused to respond directly. “What you need to know is that he was such a great man to everyone who knew him.”
“Then we should get going very soon. The rebels would pay,” Wanda said. “Whatever it would take, I'll make sure they pay. I'll kill them one after the other.” She walked away, briskly.
Bathe took in a deep breath as Wanda walked away into the dressing room. Slowly he spoke to himself, “if only you knew that anger would destroy what you love. I wished that you had inherited the gift of a more peaceful approach like your father.”
The dressing room was like the room for a team of sportsmen and women where they changed before setting out for a match. It contained rows of lockers for people to change. Wanda sat in front of the cabinet Becky had previously assigned to her. She thought about her father; the brutal death he had and painful tears trickled down her cheeks. She stood up and gently opened her closet to change, and as the anger grew, she slammed the door to the locker and wept some more. The loud noise of the metal door slamming shut resonated in the dressing room. With her closet adjacent to the entrance, she walked away to a corner, weeping quietly so that no one would see her.
Suddenly she froze at the corner of the dressing room where she squatted and wept. She could hear Bathe and Alexis talking about her.
“Are you sure she's okay, or you need me to talk to her,” Alexis asked.
“She'll be alright,” Bathe assured. “Wanda is strong, and Becky should not have mentioned anything about Marcus.”
“Well, you know Becky can be stubborn.”
“Ah!” Bathe moaned. “I wish she hadn't. Wanda is a good girl.” Wanda was surprised at Bathe supporting her. “Everyone believes she's The Chosen, and that's no reason for Becky to test her rage.”
“I know, but as much as I'd cautioned Becky, you’d also agree with me that we have to let Wanda know the power that resides in her.”
“Yes,” Bathe replied, his voice was yet unhappy. “Becky shouldn't have dropped the news on her like that. Telling her Marcus was torn to pieces by a demon is not right.”
“If the old and dead prophecy is right we should let Wanda vent her anger.” “Not by us aiding the anger,” Bathe refined the statement.
“Becky didn't aid it,” Alexis corrected.
“It sounds like she did to me. She knows better. We don't talk or make fun of Vitrians who have lost loved ones. It is against the law.”
“Well, I am the head council,” Alexis said. “Do you want to file a complaint about Becky ... she's just a child too.
Bathe took in a deep breath before continuing. “Leave it - I am sure Becky was just under pressure too.” He waved the issue off.
“I do agree with you, my friend,” Alexis' voice sounded cunning. “Tell me again, this demon you fought before getting here?”
“What about it?” Wanda could hear the surprise in Bathe's voice that Alexis wanted to hear more about the grayish-white creature.
“You said it held onto your Praying Méndez briefly,” Alexis said.
“No, not briefly,” Bathe corrected. “It stepped beyond the barrier I created.” Bathe looked perplexed again for a second remembering the scene. “It was like I could not bind it. It held on tight to my Méndez, practically draining the power out of it, and by the time its hands were off, my Méndez was out of juice.”
“Emm!” Alexis sighed. “That's disturbing. You are one of the men with the strongest Praying Méndez around here.”
“Yes, it's a concern for me too,” Bathe answered but didn't realise Alexis' worries were different from his.
“Do you know what shocked me the most when I challenged it?”
“What?” Alexis looked surprised.
“It spoke ... it spoke very audibly when it clubbed its hand around my Méndez.” Bathe turned and saw Alexis jitter like he had seen a ghost. Of all the years he had known Alexis, he had never seen him look so hysterical.
“What, you mean like the usual babbling of words, demons do in their ancient language?”
“No, Alexis,” Bathe retorted. “I know better than that. These were audible words, like you and I are expressing right now.”
“Not possible!” Alexis shook his head. “What did it say then?”
“That my prayers were not strong enough, that they were weak.” Bathe looked away again towards the window. Your praying is weak; you should do better. Those were the exact words it said.”
“Why didn't you mention this when the elders met yesterday?” “Alexis ... It would be scary for many people. I have made sure my Praying Méndez is better ready; should we meet the demon again, it shall not survive.”
“And when you went back with a few people to get Sofia and Wanda's clothes ...”
“Yes, the demon was gone.” Bathe interjected. The sensors couldn't pick any information on the demon. It was like the sensors couldn't even trace it, like it left no scent – no wild foul odour that we usually perceive when a beast has been in a place. There was also no odour when I was in front of it with my Méndez. I checked the archives at the Vitrian hall and there was nothing on any demon with such a description.
“I need to go and see Ventress,” Alexis got up quickly, and Bathe wondered why the sudden haste.
“Okay,” Bathe responded gently. He was confused about the urgency that Alexis had and why Alexis had to go to Ventress. He placed his hand on the Praying Méndez on the table. “Do you want me to give this to Wanda?”
“Yes, tell her I'll see her before we embark on the journey.” Alexis was out of the room in no time.
∞∞∞
Half an hour later, Wanda was back in her clothes. Blue pair of jeans and a long-sleeve silk top with a pair of trainers. Her hair was still packed up in a ponytail as Becky had done it before the training commenced, and she kind of felt to live it like that for their outing.
She suddenly noticed someone by the entrance to the dressing room. She turned to see Bathe by the door.
“Are you okay?” Bathe asked.
“Yes,” she answered, got up, and ran her hands on her thighs, smoothing her pair of jeans out. “I don't feel like going home ...” she broke off, looked away obliquely, and then corrected. “More like - I don't want to start a discussion with my mum about my dad.”
“I understand,” Bathe started walking towards her. “You can wait here in the Praying hall. We would be off very soon anyway.”
Reluctantly she confessed to her eavesdropping. “I heard you talking to Alexis a few minutes ago.”
“You did?” Bathe looked surprised.
“I didn't mean to listen in,” she said quickly. “I was only walking around in the corner of the room when I heard you two talking.”
“It's okay.”
“Let's walk to the entrance; we can chat while waiting for others. Vitrians are usually time conscious.” They commenced walking. “And I won't blame you for listening when people are talking about you or when the situation is so crucial.” Wanda turned to see the serious look on Bathe's face. A passing thought flew through her mind again that Bathe was only pretending. She felt he was only interested in getting her out to the rebels and the demons.
“Why?”
“There's a lot going on now,” Bathe replied. “And I'm sure your mind must be twirling up and down, looking for every little answer you probably can get.”
“Yes, you are right about that,” Wanda put her hands in her pocket. “Why do people stare at me and think I am this so-called chosen person?”
Bathe smiled and continued to look ahead as they left the elders' training area.
“There was a prophecy some centuries ago. Alexis quoted part of it yesterday.”
“What was it ... I mean this prophecy?”
“That a child would be born to set things right among the Vitrians. And the word out there is that you are the one.”
“I guess they hate me then.” Wanda felt like crawling into a shell.
“Nooooo,” Bathe laughed gently. “I think it's more of curiosity than hatred....”
“You sound like you don't think I am the one.”
Bathe took in a deep breath. “No offence, you are a good girl Wanda. No, I don't think you are, though the whole Fortress believes Alexis that you are The Chosen.”
“Why don't you?”
“I believe the person would come from a full-blooded Vitrian; someone born to a family where both parents are Vitrians.”
“Is that what the prophecy says?” Wanda requested.
“Not really, but from what we know from the Vitrian history, the full-blooded Vitrians are more gifted than half-blooded Vitrians. That's why your dad was able to convince your mum not to worry about you or Jason having any traits of The Chosen.”
“Why was my mum worried then?” Wanda became surprised at the sudden introduction of her dad into the discussion.
“There were rumours of some Vitrian children who had the gift of The Chosen or any traits as The Chosen disappearing or suddenly dying. It started about sixteen years ago. And not being a full Vitrian, your mother was extremely disturbed of what might happen to you and Jason.”
“What happened to the children?” Wanda was inquisitive. Before Bathe could answer, she included. “And the rumour?”
“The rumour faded away. Most of the parents, whose children had died left the Vitrians, most never came back, and later one by one, they were attacked by demons and killed.” He took in a breath.
The Healing Mendez (Vitrian Secrets, #1) Page 13