by Navi' Robins
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
After a while I could feel Jaffrey warming up to me and our training sessions became more personal and we both began to relax more. One day after going through battle training that involved fire and teleportation against conventional weapons; we were sitting having a meal when I reflected on all the power and skill I displayed during my training. I didn’t mean to be boastful but I was absolutely badass and couldn’t see anyone or anything stopping me. I mean it was like I could conjure up whatever I could imagine. How could anyone stop that? So it was confusing as to how the Baraqu, who centuries ago numbered in the thousands allowed the weaker order of the Shadows to take control of this realm?
I didn’t want to ask because Jaffrey could be extremely long-winded when he spoke. I would think I was asking a simple question that should take a few seconds or minutes to answer and before I knew it I was being lectured for hours. I chalked it up to him being thousands of years old filled with so much knowledge that it was impossible for him to give an answer that wasn’t detailed. But the question plagued me and I decided it was worth the long answer. So I asked him and his answer sent a chill up my spine and removed all thoughts of invincible “badassness” from me instantly.
The story went that after the great divide and the discovery of the effects of negative emotional energy, the Shadows went on a campaign to destroy humanity. Destroying entire civilizations just for that quick hit of negative energy, which pain, suffering, and death produced. The Shadows were driven mad with power and were well on their way to eradicating all human life in this realm. But a secret order from within the human ranks rose up. The Kashaptu or the Order of the Wiccan—witches and warlocks gifted with the knowledge to fight back against the Shadow demons. To this day no one knew where they received the knowledge of “binding,” but this spell was like a blocker or inhibitor for Shadows and Baraqu. If this spell was cast, we couldn’t use our powers and would be vulnerable and easily dispatched.
The Kashaptu didn’t differentiate between the Baraqu and the Shadows and they declared war on both factions. Eventually a truce between the Baraqu and the Kashaptu was reached once they realized the purpose of the Baraqu was to protect mankind, not destroy it. But then along came Alal, half Shadow, half Warlock. Soon the legend of his power spread over the entire planet and he created his own order of Kashaptu and they waged war against mankind and the Baraqu. With some Wiccan still on the Baraqu’s side they were able to combat any binding spells that the opposing side would cast, but then things changed when the hybrid Anshargal was murdered. After the massacre of several thousand Baraqu at the hands of the Shadows while being binded by the Kashaptu, the order of the Baraqu decided to wage war against all Kashaptu regardless of allegiances. Soon witches and warlocks were being burned at the stake and tortured to admit they worshipped the devil. This caused great numbers of the Wiccan to side with the Shadows and their skills of binding were used to hunt down every Baraqu on the planet. The Baraqu were powerless to stop the onslaught and the reign of the Shadows began. The Dark Ages wasn’t named because of the black plague but because of the Shadows coming into power. Eventually the number of Baraqu Warriors being born became less over the centuries until none were born at all. With the planet being controlled by negative energy nature’s natural selection kicked in and only produced more Shadows. Soon only people who possessed powers within the realm of reality were born, but none with the ability to control time and space like Jaffrey and me. Men and women that were born with special physical or psychic abilities were the norm nowadays for Baraqu. Jaffrey referred to them simply as Baraq and not Baraqu. The Baraq were those blessed with the bloodline but not the full ability of the Baraqu. He explained that it was in error that people called them Baraqu. They were not Baraqu but a watered-down and weaker version of the Baraqu. They were effective in their own way but were nowhere near as powerful as he and I.
It had been so long since anyone had direct contact with an actual Baraqu that many believed they were a myth or fairytale. That only the Shadows ever existed and the Baraqu were an idea created to give those fighting against them inspiration to keep fighting a losing battle. Jaffrey’s existence has been kept a secret from all besides a select few and my grandfather was among them. Baraqu and Baraq were forbidden from exposing their powers or practicing their powers in front of normal humans. It is a rule that has no leniency and punishment was banishment from the order. In the old days punishment was death, but with the odds stacking up against the Baraqu they revised the punishment scale. Can’t keep killing off your allies when their numbers are so few.
So in a nutshell, we were completely and hopelessly outgunned, outmaneuvered, and outnumbered. Yeah, this revelation made me even more enthused about joining their ranks. Not! Also with positive energy being a rare commodity in today’s world I was even more limited in my effectiveness. After listening to this side of things I suddenly felt less omnipotent and all-powerful. I felt like a kid in a candy store with a pocket full of money but no one working the register. I had all this potential and no way of realizing it. It was a depressing revelation.
Hand-to-hand combat as well as weapons training became an important part of my training after our talk. Jaffrey wanted me to be able to defend myself effectively if I found myself in the company of witches and warlocks. I thought I was well trained in martial arts but after going a few rounds with Jaffrey he revealed to me something totally different. What I had been taught was a watered-down version of what martial arts originally was. Jaffrey was more effective and aggressive with his training. He taught me how to overcome my adversary in three moves or less. I was used to about seven moves or less so you can imagine my surprise when I learned I was overextending a confrontation. A confrontation that could be against a more powerful foe than your average mugger or schoolyard bully. When I told him the story about my fight with the senior quarterback I thought he would be proud of how quickly I ended it. But he wasn’t, he was alarmed that I allowed it to continue past the first action of physical contact.
He said that the action of the quarterback reaching out to push me should have been the first of a two-move confrontation; it should have never progressed to me striking him in the throat and stomach. He wanted me to learn how to keep a confrontation as brief and deadly as possible. He kept repeating over and over again, “Let you be your enemy’s last confrontation or one he’ll never forget.” Speed and precision were paramount in my hand-to-hand combat training and learning every pressure point on the human body was essential in successfully completing this training.
There were also other things I learned about my abilities that I could use if I ever found myself being bound by a spell casted by a witch. We possessed the ability to change the makeup and density of our bodies. Give more density to your bones and muscles and you possess superhuman strength. Add more density to your outer skin and you could withstand gunfire and knife attacks. It took a lot of concentration to maintain the changes I could do to my body but the benefits were incredible. I could run faster than a speeding car, jump higher, lift an SUV with one arm, and withstand a direct hit from a grenade launcher. One thing that kind of sucked…you couldn’t do away with the pain. If you got hit by a bullet you wouldn’t die but you’d wished you had. More density meant more nerves per square inch; more nerves meant higher sensitivity to pain and boy was the sensitivity turned up to the max. Jaffrey always reminded me that no matter what you did there was always a response or reaction from the universe. Some good, some bad, but there was a price for everything.
Changing the natural makeup of one’s body meant that you gained certain benefits but there was also a price to pay and excessive pain was the currency of choice. So I had to endure another course of training on how to withstand pain and function as normally as possible. Training with Jaffrey was harsh and unapologetic. He knew what I was up against and he wanted me prepared. The confrontation with Jason was pure luck and had he known what and who I was before I did he woul
d have killed me quickly and there would have been nothing I could have done to stop him.
He trained me on how to fight a Shadow and anticipate how they would come at me. They were masters of deception and perception. They could change the entire scene of battle by a thought. They could project negative energy and images all around you. They could create an environment of despair and pain. These were their most powerful and greatest weapons against the Baraqu. I had to become a master of my own mind and emotions to not let them control how I thought or felt. If my mood and thought patterns became negative and tainted with fear and hate my powers would become ineffective and I would be defeated before the first blow was thrown. The mind was the most important tool in battle and I needed to sharpen it to a razor finish.
Sometimes during my training I thought about my mom and Sarah, hoping they were all right. Jaffrey assured me that they were being protected and their whereabouts were not known at the moment by the Shadows. But he also warned me of my lack of focus during my training. I wanted to listen but the teenager in me wasn’t having it. I would constantly allow my consciousness to wander outside of this place and look in on my family. Even though I wanted to trust Jaffrey, I couldn’t. I trusted another man besides my father and that man tried to murder us. I vowed to never make that mistake again and I aimed to keep it. So I never told Jaffrey of my ability to travel outside these walls without my body. He never mentioned the Baraqu possessed this ability in my training nor did I want to bring it up. I’m sure he had his secrets and it was only fair that I had mine. I thought about Manny too and how I was going to kick his ass for knocking me out like that. I was still sore about the whole scene that played out that night and I wasn’t planning on letting it go anytime soon. After so many days of training I became comfortable in my daily routine and started to get a sense of normalcy back. As if that was even possible in my situation. But then something happened that removed that sense of routine once and for all and changed my life forever.
One night I decided to whisk away again from Jaffrey’s basement abode and look in on my family. They were eating dinner and the mood was much better than it had been in a while. Sarah seemed more upbeat and my mom was completely healed from her encounter with Jason. They were all laughing at the table, talking about the good ole times when Manny, Sarah, and I were much younger. At this moment I felt a yearning to rejoin with them. I realized just how much I missed them and needed them in my life. I just remained there in the kitchen, listening and watching them. Then I heard it. It was like a very low screech and then a murmuring. It was coming from outside in the backyard of my grandparents’ home. As much as I wanted to stay something compelled my consciousness to move outside to see what made that noise. It was particularly cool on that night and much darker than usual. To an untrained eye it just seemed like bad weather or a cold dark night. But something felt off, something felt wrong. Like an evil presence was stalking this house and soon when the time was right it would attack. I was moving across the backyard looking for anything unusual but I didn’t find anything. The murmuring had stopped as soon as my consciousness moved outside so I couldn’t pinpoint where the sound came from.
After moving over the yard several times I decided to head back inside and then I heard it again. This time it was louder and seemed to be coming from outside the kitchen window on the right side of the house. I quickly moved over in that direction to see what it was before it disappeared again. As I got closer I made out what appeared to be a cloaked shadowy figure peering in the window. The figure was pressed up against the window, screeching and hissing and I knew exactly what it was. A Shadow! They had found us and were here to finish the job Jason couldn’t. I rushed over and tried to attack it but I wasn’t actually there so I had no ability to attack the Shadow. It seemed unaware of my presence and continued to watch my family eat dinner. It was just as hideous as Jason’s form but much smaller but still a frightening sight regardless of its size. I just watched it helplessly while it watched them, growling and scratching at the glass. The Shadows were going to make their move soon to draw me out of hiding. I knew Jaffrey would more than likely tell me I couldn’t leave, that it would jeopardize everything we trained for, but there was no way I would leave my family defenseless. Manny did leave security officers at the house but none of them were any match for a Shadow. I had to do something and I had to do it now.
I quickly returned my consciousness back to my body and jumped out of bed, running around Jaffrey’s place like a chicken with its head cut off. I was trying to find a way out but couldn’t find one clue. I became enraged at my failure and started throwing things everywhere and screaming at the top of my lungs. The images of my family being mutilated at the hands of the Shadows kept flashing in my head, enraging me even further. I felt like my skin was on fire with the anger coming from inside me. I wanted out of this place and I would tear a hole in the middle of this temple to make that a reality. Before long I could sense Jaffrey standing behind me, watching me like I’d just lost my mind.
“Aiden! What are you doing?”
“I need to get out of here, now! My family is in danger!”
“How do you know that?”
The question stopped me in my tracks. Do I tell him about my secret ability? I wanted to, but something inside me gave me pause and warned me against revealing this to him. As much as I admired this man and owed so much to him, I still couldn’t trust him. The wounds left by Jason’s betrayal were still too fresh.
“I can feel it! The energy inside me is telling me they are in danger!”
“Aiden, our powers don’t work that way anymore. Baraqu haven’t been able to foresee the future for thousands of years. You are hallucinating! Relax and stop destroying my home!”
“I can’t! Let me out of here Jaffrey, or I swear I will burst out of here by any means necessary. I’d rather die than sit here knowing my family is in danger and I did nothing to stop it.”
“Aiden, it is dangerous to allow you to leave.”
“So, I am a prisoner here?”
“No, you are not; it is for your own protection that I keep you here.”
“I don’t need protection—my family does. Jaffrey, let me out of here now!”
I was hysterical and could barely see clearly from the tears and sweat falling on my face.
“Let me out!!!”
“Stop! Stop now, Aiden! I will release you but if I do this you must promise me you will return. Your training is not complete and I refuse to let you leave without a promise that you will complete your training with me. Again you must be blindfolded when you return here; I can’t risk my location being compromised. The power is awakening inside you and it is only a matter of time before you figure out where I am. In order for our kind to continue I must remain a secret and invisible to the eyes of the Shadows. But this is not the only term of my agreement of releasing you.”
“Anything! Jaffrey, just let me go, please!” I begged.
“You must admit to the one thing you refuse to feel.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know exactly what I’m referring to.”
As much as I wanted to play dumb, I knew exactly what he meant. Jason; he wanted me to admit after almost being murdered by him, watching him attack my mother, after the betrayal of loving him to find out he was my worst enemy, after being forced to destroy him; he wanted me to admit that I still felt love in my heart for that man, that I felt remorse about taking his life.
“Jaffrey, you know I can’t do that.”
“You can’t or you won’t?”
“I can’t. Why would you make me admit that? What kind of game are you playing?”
“This isn’t a game, this is life and death. If you go out of this place with that lie stuck in your heart I fear this will be the last time I see you alive. You can’t live a lie, whether it’s right in front of you or hidden. Lies will weaken you, distort your perception, and lead you down a path of destruction and fail
ure. Truth and acceptance is the only way to release the last shackle you have on your mind.”
I fell to my knees at that very moment, tears streaming down my face. I knew Jaffrey was right and if there was one thing I’ve learned here is that my belief in myself was my greatest weapon and my worst enemy. Carrying this lie and anger was not going to help me and I felt that whatever I was to face tonight was going to be formidable and I would need every ounce of faith in myself to defeat it. But what he was asking of me was world-shattering. I didn’t want to but as the tears kept pouring from my eyes and my heart ached at the pain it felt, I had no other choice but to face this emotional tsunami inside my chest. As much as I wanted to dismiss what I felt for Jason, I couldn’t. He was dead and gone and I still found myself thinking about him— the times we talked, all the games he took me to, the way he made my mother feel, and how his presence made us feel complete as a family. It was because of him that I was able to focus and win that first game of the season and it was his belief in me that pushed me to want to do better. I wanted to make him proud and deep inside I wanted him to be my real father instead of the man that lay in the ground dead for over a decade.