Judith Slays Holofernes, Pt VII

I didn't get up early, and thus I am up much too late, working on this.  Finally getting things rolling, but only feeling so-so about it.  But that's the great thing about this time of year- I just slap it down and post it, no time for endless obsessing over it to "get it just right" before moving on...

That being said, there's a lot more research I want to do for this.  ::sigh::

***

She cocked her head to the side in response to this statement.

“I am called to be a servant to the God of gods, as we all are,” she said slowly.  “Sometimes I know what that means, and sometimes I do not. But what do you mean, Ku-Aya, when you say I am called to be a servant to mankind?”

“You are what my people call a Potential, my lady. It means we have seen signs that you might be the Chosen One.”

“The Messiah?”  Now her face held a trace of amusement, and I shook my head, for the Judaean word she used had religious overtones that I did not intend.

“Not the Chosen One your people foretell,” I said.  “The One you believe will save the entire world. No, the Chosen One I speak of is called Slayer, and it is always a girl- one girl in all the world, given the strength and skill to stand fast against the forces of darkness.”

She considered this for a moment, then asked, “Who does the choosing, then?  And who the giving?”

“We don’t know how the choosing occurs,” I said with a calm I did not truly feel, “Nor how the power transfers from the fallen Slayer to the newly Called.”

“Don’t you?” she smiled at me oddly.  “It is obvious to me, Ku-Aya, that if such a being as a Slayer exists, a power of good against evil, then it must be the God of gods who chooses her, and who also gives her the power.  But tell me- who are your people? For I thought you were Babylonian.”

“I am, my lady,” I said, “But when I refer to my people I mean the Watchers.  For as long as there has been a Slayer, there have been Watchers, people devoted to watching over them.”

“Surely that is not all you do,” she said dryly.  “For if there is only ever one Slayer at a time, that would leave a great many of you milling about.  And anyway, how is it you ‘watch over’ someone who is divinely blessed with strength and skill?”

“We also train them,” I said defensively.  “Being strong doesn’t do you much good if you don’t know exactly how to kill the beast you’re facing. But you’re right: most of the Watchers don’t have a Potential- usually we are in contact with no more than perhaps two dozen at any given time (although our scryers tell us there are more in lands too distant to contemplate).  The majority of Watchers are devoted to the pursuit and preservation of knowledge.”

At this she nodded.  “Yes, that make sense,” she said.  “And you mentioned your father casting a spell- you must also be students of magic, then.  Eldritch power to complement the physical power of the Slayer.”