by B R Coelho
The vision disappears and I’m back staring at Nana’s violet glowing eyes. The same color as Alo’s bright light.
“Selena…it’s you!” Nana says, tears streaming down her eyes. They’re not tears of sadness, but of joy. She’s smiling and beginning to laugh. Me? What does she mean?
“You are the chosen one.”, Nana repeats grabbing my palm and opening it. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. The same marble from the vision is now in my palm, and it’s beginning to glow.
Chapter Six
I’m getting ready for bed, dark marble in hand. Its still glowing, pulsating a bright purple hue regularly, like a heartbeat. What a day! I tried to ask Nana about what she meant. Being the chosen one. But she didn’t get a chance to answer. She was gone. Sound asleep in Lalaland. The whole experience must have taken a toll on her. I couldn’t blame her.
She was snoring softly, a slight smile on her face. I gingerly rose from the springy mattress, inching toward the door on tiptoe, careful not to make a sound. I turned off the lights and headed back to my room. That’s when I realized how much time had passed. I looked at the clock, it was two in the morning.
Where should I keep this? I keep asking myself. The marble in my hand is glowing violet colors that shift and warp with each passing second. The glow is illuminating my dark room and it looks like a mini-light show. I could keep it in a locket, or maybe store it in a jewellery box somewhere.
But the question that keeps running on and on in my mind is ‘why am I the chosen one’. And even more importantly, chosen for what? As soon as my head hits the pillow, I drift off to sleep. In my deep sleep I begin dreaming. I dream of Uncle Gomez.
He looks eerily similar to the vision I had in Nana’s room. I knew I was dreaming, but it felt so real, like he was actually there.
“Selena, we finally meet.”, Gomez says to me, smiling brightly.
“Uncle Gomez, is it really you? Are you real?”
“As real as a dream is ever going to be, Selena.”
“What happened to you? How did you die?”
“It’s not relevant Selena. What matters is that you are the chosen one of Alo.”
“Chosen for what?”
“Let me show you.”
Suddenly my dream melts into a vision of an ancient Mayan structure. It is a giant Mayan temple; the sound of traditional drums and music pierces the din. Ululations and strange grunts and chants pepper the soundscape. Grey smoke is billowing into the night sky with the flames casting an orange glow on the supplicants below.
The supplicants, or worshippers if I’m being more direct, are wearing traditional garb. Their faces painted in a mixture of red ochre and charcoal black. Some wear masks and dance around shaking what looks like obsidian-blade daggers in their hands. Their bodies brandish a variety of jewellery, from ominous gold-plated necklaces, to jade-colored earrings and bracelets.
“Where are we?”, I ask looking at the strange dances and practices going on below.
“More important than where Selena, is when. We are looking at our ancestors from 700 years ago as they were.”
I instantly recognized the place. I saw it in Nana’s vision, with Alo. But it took me awhile to do so. I recognized it as the foot of the boulder I had tried to lift with my mind. Most of the boulder had been carved out with the resulting limestone and rock used to build the sprawling pyramids that dotted the landscape. It was breathtaking.
“They’re offering worship and praise to Alo, and there is your ancestor. One of the descendants of Maya, one of many priestesses of the Goddess of the mind.”
There was a figure, a young woman dressed in ceremonial garb. She had a giant headdress made of giant leaves that were painted violet. In her hand she held the same orb as the one I had. I could tell because it was glowing. But in this case, it was glowing with such an intensity I had never seen before.
“What was her name?”, I turn to look at Gomez who was floating beside me.
“Jura.”, he mumbles unemphatically.
“She was one of the chosen few of Alo. Including the first of the priestesses, Maya. But Jura was consumed with the desire for power and control. And this is what led to the downfall of the empire.” Gomez continued.
The vision faded.
“That marble you received in your hand is known as the third eye. It enables the user to control their power. It also enhances the powers of the mind. There are three of them namely telepathy, telekinesis, and the third and darkest of all, mind control.”
“Mind control?”, I ask my jaw almost dropping to the ground.
“Yes, Selena this marble grants you all the powers of the mind goddess as well as divine knowledge of the universe.”
“And with great power must come great restraint in using it. But some of the chosen have been driven drunk with power and decided to use it to their own ends.”
He looked at me accusingly. The memory of me cheating on my exams comes to mind. I immediately feel the guilt. Like a lump stuck in my throat. Hey, gimme a break! It was just a couple times, and more importantly I didn’t hurt anyone. I couldn’t even control my powers if I wanted to. I never asked for them in the first place. In an almost chastising tone, Uncle Gomez continues with:
“The responsibility of the chosen one is great. It must be met with the utmost purity. This is why I must show you the downfall of Jura.”
Another vision appears and I see Jura. She’s floating in the air, her body seems to be consumed in violet light. She looks extremely powerful. Her form bears a striking resemblance to that of Alo, when I first met her.
“Jura was seduced by the power of Xibalba the god of the underworld. He offered her untold power, more than that Alo would provide, if only she provided a regular supply of souls to him. Drunk with the thought of unlimited power, of being the goddess consort of the cursed lord, she waged war on all of the neighbouring tribes of the Maya. Bringing unnecessary and unprovoked bloodshed for the sake of sacrifice. Something you know well enough that Alo prohibited.”
The vision shows Mayan armies swarming the forest bed like fire ants. All the warriors shaved bald and painted in ochre red, carrying obsidian tipped blades. They decimated all the villagers they came across. Like an undying plague that swept across the Amazon all the way up from South to Central America.
“As a priestess she was able to influence the decisions of the chieftain of the Maya, saying that it was a decree from the mind goddess herself to perform these heartless actions. It reached a point where the chief refused to obey her commands. The people had grown weary of war and wanted peace. Eventually she opted to use the forbidden power of mind control.”
The vision shows Jura using her power to enslave the armies of both the Maya and the other tribes. They looked like they were having epileptic fits as a mysterious red mist seeped into their minds, then all of a sudden, they stood up. Their minds were completely blank, their eyes wide open but with no emotion or feeling to them. They then proceed to build statues in honor of Jura, offering sacrifices and tribute to Xibalba. Something I remember the mind goddess strictly forbade.
“The mind goddess was not pleased with this.” Gomez continues.
“Alo stripped her powers from Jura and soon the pyramids, the civilization and everything they had strived to build was destroyed in an instant. Neighbouring tribes heard of the waning power of the powerful mistress. Xibalba abandoned her in her hour of need, and she fell.”
The vision changes to show the Maya under attack. Jura’s powers are now totally diminished. In the end, she is struck down by enemy invaders as she cries out to Alo for forgiveness.
“The ancient culture of the Maya was brought to ruin because of the irresponsible actions of a power mad despot. Power corrupts Selena, and it corrupts absolutely. This is why you should only use your power if and only if necessary. You should show it as much respect as you would a burning flame. Power, like fire can be destructive, but it can also be used for good.”
“Okay, I’
ll do my best to use it responsibly, but what is the purpose of the chosen ones?”, I ask still not understanding the point of all this power.
“In times of dire need, the goddess has given her powers. There is a war on the horizon, Selena. A war between the children of man and the indigo children.”
“What do you mean, indigo children?”
“We are the indigo children, Selena. The indigo children are the link between mortal man and the gods. We are the prophets, seers, and healers of the world. People will always be afraid of what they don’t understand. What they fear, they will eventually hate, and this is what led to my death.”
“But we must understand their perspective and try to live in peace with them, despite their prejudice. For only together will we prosper.” Gomez finishes.
“So, you want me to protect people who despise me? Who are afraid of what I am?”, I ask, my voice taking on a cynical tone.
“Yes, Selena. You must find the strength within you to resist the urge to misuse your powers. There are others out there who will not agree with this doctrine, they will misuse their powers for their own gain. You were chosen because the goddess sees something within you, a spark that she saw in the first priestess, our ancestor Maya.”
“But Uncle, they murdered you. And if they found out what I can do, they’ll probably try to do the same to me, or worse turn me into some sort of weapon.”, I say.
“Selena, there are bad people as well as good people in this world. What we do is for the sake of all the good and just people in this world.”, Gomez says.
“So, how do I help them then. How do I help in this coming war?”
“By stopping those among the Indigo children and humans who would use their power for harm and personal gain at the expense of others. If we show solidarity with the just, then maybe they might trust us.”, Gomez says his lips curving into a bright smile.
“So basically, you want me to be a super-hero?”, I ask looking at him glumly.
“Yes, Selena. Being a hero is its own reward and will gain you favor with the goddess of the mind. I’m afraid our time is now up. I must leave you now. Tell Nana that my death was not her fault, she’s blamed herself for my death all these years, and I’ve watched her suffer. But you have the sight now, and you can get the message through. Tell her that her little caramelo thanks her for all she did. She will understand”, Uncle Gomez says his smile widening into a grin, and with that the dream ends.
I wake up to pitch blackness. I had forgotten about the marble. The third eye. Now I know what it’s called. It was still nestled in my palm. Telekinesis and mind control? Woah?! And I thought telepathy was a doozy. I have to try it out, I think to myself. I have to figure out how to use it. I am still unsure whether the dream I just had was real or just a figment of my over-arching imagination. Well I wasn’t imagining the third eye in my hand. It wasn’t glowing anymore it was cool to the touch as if it was metallic. In the pitch-darkness of my room it appeared even darker, like a black hole in my palm. Strange.
Not wanting to attract any attention from my parents, I decide to leave the lights off. I grab one of my books from the bedside dresser, and place it on the bed. I begin to focus on it. Nothing. Not even a twitch. I thought using my powers would be easier now. I tighten my fist and begin to concentrate, willing the book to move, rise, do anything other than just sit there like a…a book.
Then I remember the vision. I remember what I felt right before I lifted the mountain. It was an emotion. Not a thought. Emotion was the key to my power. It always was. So, I thought back on that emotion of surprise and wonderment. Then it all came rushing back. Like riding a bike. The more emotion I felt the more I felt the electricity flow within me. Curiously, violet light began streaming through the tightly closed fist. I slowly opened my palm. My room exploded in the glowing violet light. It kept growing brighter and brighter as my power increased inside me.
The book began to lift up, higher and higher and higher. Funny thing is it wasn’t only my book, a pencil, an eraser, even a chair, right beside me, and myself began to rise. My unruly, unkempt hair felt like it was billowing in the wind and I could feel violet light emanate from my eyes. I was doing it. I was doing it. The book, pencil, eraser, and chair all at once. Juggling them was a bit hard. Like flexing a muscle that had been paralysed for a long time. I tried to control their movement and mine, floating in the air like I was weightless, but it was shaky. I moved the objects around haphazardly around the room. It was exhausting, even for that brief moment. I let them all drop suddenly, and plopped onto my bed with a thud.
I don’t think anyone heard it. My parents were still sound asleep. So, yeah I can do telekinesis now. Those were my last thoughts as I drifted off to sleep.
Cathy, Brie, Lauren and I had planned to go trick or treating this year for the last time. I mean this was the last year we were going to be kids. Passing the threshold from fourteen to fifteen as Lauren called it. It was going to be a chilly October night, not helped by the light drizzle that had sprinkled the streets of Arlington, New Mexico.
There was always something ominous about Halloween. Something terrifying, yet exhilarating. Something tragic yet magical. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Even though it was a school-day in the middle of a school week, nothing could shake off that familiar feeling of being one with all that is spooky in the world. Being a super-powered freak like me didn’t help things of-course. I was going to dress up as Jean Grey from the X-men. Fitting, don’t you think? Brie was going as Velma Dinkley from Scooby-Doo, Cathy was going in as Bat-girl, and Lauren finished of the pile as Maleficent.
I had been practicing my telekinesis over the past weeks. My powers had grown ten-fold since then. I was now able to lift my bed off the floor and set it down gently without so much as a thump. Nana and I had become quite fond of one another over this time too. We never missed a minute in speaking over telepathy when I was home. It was like texting someone on your own private network. Mom and Dad were loving it, and seemed amazed at how we seemed to have buried the hatchet almost overnight. If only they knew. Oh! If they only knew what weird things happened right under their noses.
We meet up at Cathy’s house since it’s in the neighborhood of the well-to-do. The reputation of this neighborhood for giving candy is well known as the streets are filled to the brim with little draculas, frankensteins, zombies, white-sheet ghosts, and super-heroes holding plastic jack-o-lantern bags. We walk down the street showing off our rather rudimentary and tacky costumes. Brie’s costume is the only one that seems remotely authentic and real, except her Velma was a tad overweight. We start off at six thirty pm on the dot. Going from door to haunted door looking for treats.
There are some elaborate spooky designs on the lawns. We get all types of candy. Brie is especially hyped for all the candy we are getting. There are boatloads of marshmallow candies, chocolates, liquorice, mints, toffees, gum, all the different types of cavity causing goodness you could think of. Things are going on smoothly until we meet them. Them? You ask? We ran into the blonde octopus and her crew. They aren’t dressed in Halloween get up like the rest of us.
Brie is the first of us to start panicking. She wants to get as far away from here as is humanly possible.
“Guys, let’s just go this way. We can side step them and avoid them.” She says pointing at a detour, sliding her large glasses up her nose. She looks like a terrified version of Velma Dinkley who’s just seen a ghost.
“Oh, come on! Who cares? What are they going to do? Laugh at us for being kids and not acting ‘cool’?”, Cathy says striking a heroic pose in her bat-girl suit, as if it made her temporarily invulnerable to the potential embarrassment and humiliation that is coming our way. I want to do the same but a little voice in my head is telling me to avoid any form of confrontation. Any emotional outburst on my part will not bode well for them. I still couldn’t control my powers very well. And telekinesis, unlike telepathy, is a very visual power. Everyone will be able to s
ee it.
“Yeah, let’s just go this way Cathy. I don’t want to ruin my night by being laughed at and teased by those twits.”, I agree with Brie, as I look at Lauren, hoping for some support.
“I agree with Cathy! We should just go down there. What’s the worst they can do? They’re just kids. Not some friggin’ monsters.” Lauren says waving her plastic cane with a devilish grin plastered on her face.
“Alright, I surrender.”, I clutch onto my necklace as if praying for a miracle. The necklace housed the third eye. I wish I would have kept it home tonight. Stupid me, thought that it would go well with my tacky looking costume. We start walking down the street. I can feel the anxiety within me build almost instantly. The group is hooting and hollering, as they terrorize the younger kids. They are stealing their candy. Tears are streaming down one of the little girls faces as she walks past us. Monsters.
They don’t have any costumes on, but they sure act like a pack of ghouls. I feel intense anger growing within me. I look over at Brie, she’s as nervous and doe-eyed as the girl whose candy was stolen. She clutches onto her bag ever tighter. I look at Candy. She’s defiant. If she had any fear within her, she didn’t show it. In fact, she picked up the pace. Lauren looks lost. She wants to look tough, but at the same time looks terrified.
Cathy makes a bee-line for the gang making fun of the kids and yells authoritatively.
“Hey! Stop it!”
The laughing and chuckling stops and the group suddenly notices us. At first, they’re taken aback. What kind of kid had the gall to come up to them and tell them to stop. Then a look of familiarity dawns on them. It’s us. Octavia steps up with crossed arms surrounded by her crew.
“Nice outfit Cathy, seems some people just can’t grow out of being a kid.”, Octavia says smirking.
The whole gang laughs, cheering on.