The two women looked into each other's eyes for a few seconds without saying a word. Then, embarrassed, Emily lowered her head and turned on her heels.
“Wait!” cried Tara, as she watched her walk away.
Emily turned around slowly. Tara could feel her heart pounding.
“Emily, I forgive you for not believing in me. I forgive you for trying to eliminate me to save Diane. Everything you did, you did for the Fifth Legion, I know that. I don't blame you anymore.”
Trembling, Emily remained motionless, unable to say a word. Tara couldn’t act indifferent any longer. As she let go of the door handle, she grabbed Emily and hugged her tight. A moment later, Emily took a step back and said, her voice filled with emotion:
“If your objective is to eliminate the child in a week, I’m sure the mission will be relatively easy now that the demons have left.”
“I can't wait to get back to the Sphere Emily!” exclaimed Tara, smiling as she took Emily by the shoulders. “I can’t wait to see the other missionaries of the Fifth Legion again, to explain myself to the Decision-Makers, to take back my rightful place as seraph and participate in the military councils again!”
Emily smiled sadly:
“And when do you intend on asking the Congregation for their forgiveness?”
“The Sages won’t accept to see me until I’ve fulfilled my mission. They’re testing me. When I’ve killed the child, I hope to be able to present myself to Them. I'll wait for their call.”
Emily nodded:
“Training room in five minutes.”
“I’ll be there in a jiffy!”
Boosted by the adrenaline, Tara rushed back into her room and put on her workout clothes. She was so happy to have retrieved her weapon that she felt like the whole world belonged to her. Solemnly, she approached the bed to get her sword. When she touched it, she could feel the power of its fluid flowing through her body: she and Hagen were physically and spiritually connected.
Without wasting a second, she rushed to the training room where John was patiently waiting for her. Medium height, slightly thin and with the face of a child, Tara found him touching. His sword, stored in its scabbard, was the same size as Hagen.
“There you are,” he greeted her with his boyish grin. “I want you to know that I’m so happy and proud to be able to teach you something in this lifetime.”
Tara smiled. He was definitely endearing.
“How did it go at City Hall?”
“Oh, the usual administrative duties,” he said, remaining evasive.
His lowered gaze was evidence that the subject made him uncomfortable. Surprised, she asked:
“Did Diane's order for you to return home interrupt you in anything important?”
“Oh no!” reassured John, looking Tara in the eyes. “It's nothing, it’s just that Hugo can be slightly aggressive when he feels that his loved ones are in danger.”
Tara remained perplexed:
“What does this have to do with Hugo?”
“Nothing, but... you know... he's the one who came looking for us when you called us back...”
“And?”
“And nothing... It's just that, you know... He doesn't like Stanislas to go out without him when the demons are around, like they were this morning.”
“Yes, but he wasn't alone, he was with you.”
John grinned scornfully, mocking himself. Not wanting to show his pain to the seraph, he looked away with sad eyes.
“I’d like him to trust me,” he finally admitted, looking down. “Hugo means a lot to me. In our previous lives, we were always very close, like two peas in a pod. The lives in which we were together were my favorite incarnations. We were on the same wavelength for centuries... And I have no doubt that Torak and I are still very dear to Dante, Hugo’s angel.”
Tara nodded. Torak was John’s angel.
“However,” he continued, “he’s extremely macho in his current incarnation: strength is the only thing that counts to him now, and as you can see, my body in this life is no stronger than a twig. Hugo seems to have forgotten all the centuries we spent together and instead, he spends all his time belittling me... But, despite his disparaging remarks that hurt me deeply, I can't forget the brave and generous people he was in other lifetimes…”
John paused for a moment. After a long silence, he shook his head, as if trying to remove the memories from his mind.
“Well, if you don't mind Tara, let's start training. I see you brought Hagen...”
“Hold on. What happened with Hugo at City Hall?”
“I don't think now is the time to talk about it,” John tried to avoid the question, but his eyes revealed his grief.
“On the contrary, I think right now is the perfect time.”
John lowered his head. He wasn't going to disobey Tara...
Staring at his feet, he agreed to tell her more:
“You know that Stanislas is very important to Hugo...”
“Yes, I know. He's the one who raised him. He's his foster father, right?”
“Yes. Do you know the circumstances that led Stanislas becoming Hugo’s foster father?”
“No, I have no idea.”
Surprised, John raised his eyebrow and looked at Tara interrogatively:
“No one ever explained it to you?”
“No…”
John smiled absentmindedly. Caressing the mount of his sword, he began to explain:
“Stanislas is Hugo’s adoptive father. The original plan was that he would take him under his wing at the age of fourteen or fifteen, as we do for all our missionaries. He was to be brought here, to Emily’s place, where he would have had his Revelation. And only after his Revelation, was he to leave his family of humans to be trained in combat and develop his spiritual capacities... And at the age of twenty, he would have become the outstanding warrior he is today.”
“So, you’re saying that it didn't go as planned?”
“No, it didn’t. Stanislas took custody of Hugo when he was only three years old. Hugo had been severely beaten by his parents. He knew before incarnating that he didn’t have a choice as to which family he would be born into: he had to choose the body that would best meet the needs of his mission as a legionary. He knew the suffering that awaited him before he descended from Heaven, and he knew what kind of individuals his parents would be... But once incarnated, a three-year-old child remains a three-year-old child. Whether you’re an angel or not, your vulnerability and your suffering are the same.”
“The poor thing,” said Tara, who hadn’t expected to hear such a sad story.
“Yeah, poor guy. And when Stanislas found out how Hugo was being treated, he couldn't wait until he was fifteen. He kidnapped him...”
“And what did his parents do?”
“Nothing at all. They didn't even press charges. They felt relieved of their burden.”
Tara looked at John, moved. She imagined little Hugo, a defenseless child, abused of and beaten by such monsters. She was sickened by the thought.
“When Stanislas took him under his wing, he promised to make him a great missionary for the Fifth Legion. He taught him how to read, how to count. He was a surgeon, so he also taught him his trade as soon as Hugo was old enough to open a book... That's why Hugo can operate now, and repair almost any type of wound. He's been doing it since he was seven years old...”
Tara nodded. Now that she knew a little more about the relationship between Hugo and Stanislas, she was deeply touched.
“That's why Stanislas is so precious to Hugo. His whole world has revolved around him since he was a boy,” concluded John. “Unfortunately, because of his old age, Stanislas can no longer fight and defend himself as he used to. Hugo knows this and is permanently in fear of something bad happening to him. He would never get over it. He could overcome the death of Stanislas' body, because he knows that he would reconnect with his angel in the Sphere, but the annihilation of his soul by a demon, would cause him to suffer for m
illennia.”
“So, what happened at City Hall? And what does it have to do with you?”
“Hugo thinks it's my fault that Stanislas went out this morning despite the threat. He doesn’t understand that Stanislas has his own free will, that he decided by himself that he wanted to go with me. Instead, he blames me.”
“Did he hit you?”
John smiled awkwardly and looked down. Tara could feel the sadness eating away at his frail adolescent body. Hugo had indeed hit him. But John’s affection for him was such that he didn't hold a grudge. He suffered in silence, forgiving Hugo for his violence.
“You don't have to endure such treatment,” Tara replied, revolted.
“Don't worry about me. It won't last forever. I'm looking forward to our return to the Sphere, or Hugo’s next incarnation. I’m hoping that we’ll get along better next time around. Until then, I refuse to hurt him just because he hurts me. I have all the time in the world, I can wait.”
On these words, John took his sword out of its scabbard and began to rotate his wrist.
“Let's start training, it's already late. Have you reestablished contact with Hagen?”
“That depends on what you mean by ‘reestablishing contact’.”
“Do you know how to make it change shapes, for example?”
Tara thought for a moment. Now that John had mentioned it, certain things started coming back to her. She remembered her dreams. The fine weapon that Madeleine always kept in her corset was none other than Hagen.
Her eyes wide with excitement, she exclaimed:
“I remember how to turn her into a razor-sharp jewel!”
John looked at her questioningly as new memories filled her mind: more often than the dagger, she had chosen to wear Hagen around her neck in the form of a pendant during her previous incarnations.
“I made it transform into a pendant...” she whispered in admiration.
“Please,” John invited her to go ahead as he stepped back and put away his sword.
Tara looked at Hagen. She remembered back to this other era and asked her sword to transform so she could tie it around her neck.
“Transform yourself!” she ordered gently.
But the sword didn't budge. The light waves continued to flow peacefully through the crystal as if no command had been given.
“You don't have to talk,” John laughed. “It thinks with you. You were both created from the same energy. You are one.”
Tara looked again at her sword. She needed to focus. She knew Hagen by heart. A pendant. She focused on a pendant. She would concentrate intensely and visualize the pendant so Hagen would understand. John came closer to get a better look at the scene.
She didn’t take her eyes off the sword. She would succeed. Hagen would understand. She needed to transform it into a pendant so she could take it with her wherever she went and use it whenever she needed to. A pendant, so it would always be in contact with her and never leave her side.
Suddenly the sword seemed to agree. Its light intensified. Tara felt it disappear from her hands, as the matter was transformed into a very clear, slightly violet light energy. The next moment, she was holding a very light gold object in the hollow of her palm: a necklace so exquisite that it was worthy of master jeweler. And from this fine gold chain, hung a crystal drop pendant, animated by Hagen’s distinguishing feature: the living violet-blue light that flowed through it.
Tara brought the pendant closer to her face to better examine it. The necklace felt so weightless that it was bewildering. And what's more, it was perfectly to her taste.
“Very good,” congratulated John, satisfied with her work. “Your spheric weapon will take on any form you ask it to. For example, if you ask it to transform into a firearm, it will obey. In fact, it will materialize any object you mentally visualize. Whatever it is. Even if Man hasn’t invented it yet. It's your mind that shapes Hagen.”
Tara smiled. The universe she was discovering thanks to Hagen had every reason to please her. She contemplated the pendant while visualizing a revolver she had seen in a movie. She quickly realized that she needed to be relaxed and have a clear mind for Hagen to understand her thoughts. Seconds later, she found herself holding a crystal revolver in her hand, with Hagen's light waves flowing through it.
“It's beautiful!” she exclaimed in amazement.
“Yes, it’s magnificent, but above all, it attracts attention,” John commented in a grave voice. “Any human who would see such a weapon would automatically be suspicious. Humans haven’t always been our friends. Sometimes being discreet it wiser, so you’re better off camouflaging it to make it look like a real revolver.”
Tara nodded and looked at Hagen again, while visualizing a black anthracite revolver. It didn't take long for the crystal to disappear and be replaced by metal. Incredible!
“All right,” John commented with a smile. “We can move on to sword fighting now. Bring it back to its original shape.”
Immediately, Hagen became a luminous sword once again. Tara was progressing quickly. John took his weapon out of his scabbard and stood in combat position:
“Let's see what you’re made of.”
Tara also got into position. She was surprised by the spontaneity with which she had imitated his posture. John took a quick step forward. Immediately, she took one step to the side and moved Hagen up towards his chest. The sword seemed very light to her. Her movements were fast and accurate, as if she were telling Hagen what to do.
Without hesitation, John drew his sword and pointed it straight at her. Tara immediately dodged it and blocked his sword, thereby turning the situation to her advantage. He found himself face to face with Hagen, trapped.
“Unbelievable!” he exclaimed, as he broke free. “Although you didn't incarnate into a body reserved for seraphs, you seem to have kept your reflexes.”
“I couldn’t be more surprised myself,” said Tara, proud of herself. “It's as though I’ve done this my whole life.”
She smiled, relieved. Sword handling wouldn't be as difficult as Thai boxing she thought.
“Let's continue,” John ordered, getting back into position.
Tara did the same. This time, John attacked more vigorously. But he didn’t stand a chance in the face of Hagen.
“Impressive...” he said, catching his breath.
They fought this way for over an hour, non-stop. John, who had been chosen by Diane to teach Tara the art of the sword due to his extraordinary skill, hadn’t managed to win a single duel. Tara couldn’t stop smiling. Sword fighting came easy to her. The movements came to her naturally, almost intuitively. Hagen was part of her, and she was part of Hagen.
As she won victory after victory, she felt Diane's satisfaction as she moved through her body and watched through her eyes. Each one of Tara’s victories was a victory for Diane too. She was becoming who she was meant to be. She knew that now. Soon she would regain her rightful place with the Seraphim.
“That’s enough for today,” declared John out of breath, while she approached him dangerously with a mischievous grin.
“Already? But I'm not even tired!”
“Honestly Tara, I don’t know what else I can teach you... You're much stronger and talented than I am.”
“Oh...” she tried to deny it, but she was flattered nonetheless.
A huge satisfied smile stretched across her face.
“Believe me, said John, I don't think it’s even worth it for you to continue training with me. I think I should be learning from you.”
He stepped back, sweaty and completely out of breath. Tara raised her chin proudly, savoring her second big victory of the day.
“Alright, in that case I'm going for a walk,” she said, turning Hagen back into a pendant and hanging it around her neck. “I haven't stepped foot out of this place for at least a month!”
“What are you going to do?”
“I don't know yet dear. But rest well, you've done a great job.”
Jo
hn looked at her with a false air of reproach as she walked away laughing. She was strong and free at last!
Now that her safety was assured, her old obsessions came back: taking a shower, getting dressed up, putting on makeup and making herself look pretty. She wanted to be a woman again! She had been dreaming about it for weeks. She hadn’t done her hair in what felt like a lifetime. It was always tied back in a thick bun for her workouts.
When she arrived in her room, she rushed to her wardrobe and grabbed Max, devouring him with kisses. The cat, half asleep, gave her a sullen look, not understanding her sudden change in nature.
Still as excited as ever, she ran to her large pink and cream marble bathroom. When she saw the gold and fuchsia mosaic fresco in front of her, it was like she was discovering it for the first time. Her eyes could see again. She wouldn’t feel like a prisoner ever again! The end of her captivity had finally come. More than ever, she was going to enjoy life to the fullest, and as a seraph to top it all off!
Smiling, she gazed at the Italian shower on her right and the enamel jacuzzi on her left. Today, she felt like taking her time, she would take a bath. Preparing her bath gel and hair creams, she let the hot water run for several minutes. When she pressed the "Rocky Inlet" switch, the lighting changed instantly. The yellow light gave way to the bright light of the sun, characteristic of the south of France. The silence of the bathroom was broken by the sound of waves crashing onto the rocks and the cicadas singing in the pine trees. Tara admired the change, silently observing her surroundings. Before undressing, she went into the living room to ask the other residents not to disturb her. She wanted to enjoy her bath in peace.
As she passed her head through her open door and looked down the corridor, she discovered Hugo and Nina slumped on the sofa. When she saw the coach lying there with her feet resting on Hugo, she had a violent heart palpitation. She remembered that to Diane, Nina's angel was none other than the Marquis De Villiers, and that the seraph seemed to care for him at least as much as she, Tara, cared for Victor...
HAGEN: 1. Revelations Page 28