Judith Slays Holofernes, Pt VIII

I was relieved at how quickly her mind worked, how quickly she was accepting what I said.

“Yes, precisely.  We are the mind that directs the body of the Slayer.”

“And yet you say I am not this Slayer?”

“Not yet, my lady.  But you might be.”

“But I also might not be,” she said, reasonably.  “And what does it mean, if I am never Called?”

“I-” my mind raced furiously.  What did it mean, if she was never called?  A lifetime of me Watching, waiting? In the Diaries I’d read, all Potentials were either Called, or killed waiting to be Called.  Either way, the lifespan of a Chosen One, chosen or not, was not long. But should I tell her that? I glanced up into her eyes, which held no fear, only patience, and I gave her a truth, if not all of it.  “No Potential has ever been Called past the age of five and twenty,” I said at last.

She gave this some consideration, staring into a distance I could not see.  “That is more than a decade away, Ku-Aya. I am very likely to have children before then.  It is my duty to my husband and the God of gods to increase the number of our people. How does it affect them, if I am Called?”

“Truthfully, my lady, I do not know.  Usually we find our Potentials before they are married, and we take them away for training.  But there was... an upset... in Babylon. It threw our Council into chaos, and we were not able to come for you as quickly as we’d have prefered.”

Her eyes turned back to mine, and she smiled with no mirth.  “An upset? You mean Sennacherib, of course.” I nodded, and she continued, “Yes, I can see how that might cause chaos.  He is a ravenous beast who will not be content until he’s devoured the world. Is he the evil you would have me fight?”

“The Slayer is not Called to fight the evils of men,” I said.  “That is left to other men. The Slayer fights demons and their ilk.  It is what they were created to do.”

“We are all of us created to stand against evil in whatever form it takes,” she said sharply.  “But I can see that it might be best to start with demons and work one’s way up to kings.”