Chapter 14: 14:Preparation

I am sitting on the sofa, facing a large brown bag placed on the table by Cassiel, which is blocking the television.

“Miss Cassiel, what is this?” I raise my hand uncertainly.

"Since we’re going to be attacked, we have to prepare ourselves,” Seth watches while eating bread.

“Shouldn’t we inform Assan about the situation, sister?” Cassiel looks at Seth.

“I’ve already sent a warning through Shekinah, waiting for his response,” Cassiel opens the bag and takes out some boxes from inside.

She places three small boxes on the table, throws one to Seth and keeps a fifth one in her pants pocket, How can she fit so many things in her pockets?

“Are you going to wear the ring, sister?” Seth places the box on the kitchen counter.

“Not now, I’ll keep it for when we raid the enemy base.”

A ring? What use would a ring have? I move my hand to open one of the boxes, but a simultaneous scream from Seth and Cassiel stops me.

“Don’t even think about it, kid!” I look at Cassiel, confused.

“This kind of box is for storing large objects and releasing them in the same position. If you open it carelessly a blackboard might fly into your face,” I stare at Seth and let go of the box.

“Patent pending too?”

“No, I patented this one a few months ago,” I respond with a whistle.

“Unfortunately, these boxes are more used as weapons than for transport.”

"What do you mean?" I look confused.

“The box releases the object in the direction it’s pointed at. Many members of the church use them to throw large objects at targets, which are usually mages,” Cassiel looks at Seth, who seems to have become depressed.

“So, what’s inside these boxes?”

“Your study materials,” I look at Cassiel as she takes out two more boxes from the bag, blinking confusingly.

“You didn’t say we were going to prepare for an attack?”

“And we are, your study will be for that,” she replies.

My eyes light up, and I stand up from the sofa.

“What am I going to learn? Prayers? How to make sacred items? Chanting on the move?!”

Cassiel calmly takes one of the boxes and points it toward an empty area of the house. The box opens, and a blackboard with some strange drawings and words written in Hebrew flies out and lands in the area.

“You...”

“I...”

Cassiel walks up to the blackboard, turns to me and Seth.

“You're going to learn to shoot and mark territory.”

“...Huh?” I don’t understand.

“You will learn to use Ephesians 2:21-22.”

“In which the whole building, properly joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In whom you also are built together for a dwelling place of God in Spirit,” Seth recited.

“Am I going to become an architect?” I asked, confused.

’Funny guy,’” Cassiel opens the second box and a staff appears flying out from inside, falling onto the table.

“I use bows, miss...”

“We know, kid, but you take too long to shoot with it so I gave Cassiel the idea of the staff.”

“Alright, what should I do?” I say as I grab the staff from the table.

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Cassiel walks up to the blackboard, takes some chalk and begins to write something in Hebrew on it.

Me’aret hakosmim, means "Wizard's Lair", I stand up from the sofa and Seth leaves the room.

“Mages are stronger than us in their lairs and workshops because they are underground—a world of reason, mind, and metals. To deal with this and capture mages in their lairs, we use Ephesians 2:21-22.”

“By chanting Ephesians you guide your Shekinah to the staff and can discharge energy. When it hits a point it becomes a sacred territory for the Lord.”

“But how does that interfere with a mage’s workshop? It’s still underground.”

“You need to hit the energy focus points of the workshop. If you hit them all, it will become a sacred place for a few hours, and the advantage is reversed. The hard part is hitting them all while facing the mage.”

“So it will be useless for me to take charge of this, Miss Cassiel. I can't chant while moving so isn't it better to leave this to you Miss or Mr. Seth?” Cassiel looks at me with a judgmental gaze.

“Seth is busy enduring attacks and the mage's relatives, and I am blind in one eye. Do you think my aim is good? Based on what Seth said, you are the most capable of us three for this.”

I hide my face with my hands, overwhelmed by shame. I am so stupid.

Cassiel doesn't pay much attention and goes to the fridge in the kitchen, grabs a yogurt to eat and returns to the living room.

“You will use the staff and shoot at the blackboard. Ephesians shots are not at risk of breaking it,” she sits on the sofa to eat.

“Understood...” I get up from the sofa, and then a question comes to my mind.

"Shouldn't we be preparing for the attack we will face instead of attacking the lair?”

“The best preparation involves things that will be useful in the long run instead of short run. While training with Ephesians you will also train your resistance through the use of Shekinah, your aim, and your cadence,” she takes a spoon to her mouth.

“But what about you two?”

“I just need to rest to regain my energy. Seth is already preparing the golems.”

With this answer, I give up trying to guess about those two and go to my suitcase to get a cloth and clean my glasses. Once done, I walk to the middle of the room, adjust my posture by positioning my legs and hold the staff with both hands while aiming it at the blackboard.

“Alright...” I close my eyes, letting my memories echo in my mind, and I recall the first time I arrived at the Vatican.

My sister and I were rescued by an old knight named Abraham.

We were living in Germany as children in a remote village where there wasn't much, but we lacked nothing.

One day, despite our parents’ warnings we went to play in the forest with some friends.

It was the worst day of my life. One by one, my friends were killed by a creature that inhabited the forest, a Litch made of branches, leaves, and dead animals wandering the region.

My sister and I ran through the forest, but a green energy grabbed us and knocked us to the ground.

The Litch appeared, grabbed my sister and drove its right hand into her stomach to kill her.

At that moment a white light illuminated the forest. The old man appeared with a halberd and striking the creature, after fifteen seconds of foghting the Litch was destroyed—it was a Knight of the Holy Church.

The rest of my memories after that are vague. I only remember my sister and I leaving with him so she could receive treatment for her wound.

When we arrived at the Vatican, we entered through an underground passage to the city beneath the cathedral. The city’s name was Splendor Dei, and it was where I spent the next years of my life.

When we arrived, my sister was hospitalized for two weeks at the city’s main hospital, called the Cathedral of Restoration. She was released on December 27th after a mysterious recovery.

The effects of the Litch’s wound cannot be undone without a purification ritual. Unfortunately, because of the cost of the materials it is only performed once a year in October and participants wishing to undergo it must acquire several ingredients in advance and pay the difference for the rest.

That’s why I became a member of the Church. Now that I am finally allowed to go on missions I can earn enough money for such purposes. Before leaving, Mr. Abraham said he would help me find the ingredients if I managed to.

My initiation ceremony was held in the great cathedral of the Vatican and it was the first time I entered a church, as the city below does not have one.

The great cathedral shone with countless chandeliers and white quartz crystals. Glass mosaics let in light where the priest blessed us.

Long rows of new Church members extended through the sacred halls of St. Peter’s Basilica. In front of us, above white staircases, was an elderly man dressed in papal robes. The ceremony was performed by none other than the current Pope himself.

One by one we ascended the stairs and the Pope blessed us with good luck, health, and God’s protection before handing us a glass of holy water to drink—a drink that would mark us as full members of the Church and empower us.

At no point in this process did we feel like servants. We were not forced to kneel, and we were treated as equals even by that man. But everyone knew we should show the utmost respect to him.

With the end of the event we were directed to our stations, and now I am here with this vivid memory in my mind.

Finally, I recite the Prayer: “In whom the whole building being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In whom you also are built together for a dwelling place of God in Spirit.”

I feel the Shekinah moving through my body, the energy passing through my lungs, into my arms, reaching the tips of my fingers, and focusing on the staff.

A burst of light is shot from the tip of the staff and hits the center of the blackboard.

“You did it on the first try, kid, very good.”

“Thank you, Sir—”

“Now repeat that until you collapse from exhaustion on the ground, and even after falling.”

“Huh?”

“Exactly what I said. You will train until you collapse to improve your cadence and physical endurance.”

“But then how am I going to help in the battle?”

“Don't worry about that,” with those words, Cassiel stands up and heads to her room.

Frustrated, I ended up spending the rest of the day training.