The Angel's Humanhood

12. The Talk of Shame

The door of the hut opened slowly letting in the cool night air, Wahag tensed and hauled himself up. He got to the door and swang it open to see who is there, but there was no one around. Holding on to the wall and the door frame, Wahag staggered to look outside. In his delirious state, he saw a black figure escaping. He tried to chase after it but when he released the wall he fell over and couldn't track where it went. Wahag crawled back into the hut to where he had buried the ball. He laid his hand on top of the piled dirt and fell back into deep sleep enforced by a body fighting an invader of its own.
"Where is it?!" A figure of blazing with dark bloody flames yelled with rage at a smaller dark being.
"There was a sky guardian." The small figure curled in a bow. "He had the fire energy, but he casted a human shield."
"You fool!" The flaming creature casted the smaller being away. "Bring it to me now! Or all you and your kin will burn in my eternal flames!"
Wahag woke from his disturbing dream due to a wet feeling on his forehead. He groaned and tried to cast it away, but it was held heavy on his forehead.
"Stay still, will you!" Prince's familiar rough voice didn't agree with his throbbing head.
"Hold him down. He needs to drink this." Another familiar voice, Dow. Dow?
Wahag jumped forward sitting up and was rewarded by horrible head throbbing and dizziness that threw him right back in place.
"Prince, come on! Hold him still!" Dow said irritated.
Wahag felt Prince's thick hands on his shoulders, Dow's small hands were at his forehead. He couldn't dare admit that it almost felt nice, before she pinched his nose shut and started to forcefully pour something down his throat. Wahag choked and swallowed, and then spat.
He was fully aware and sat up.
"If you weren't being such a man-child, I wouldn't have to do that to you," Dow washed a ragged cloth in a bowl.
Wahag held his head in fear it would split into halves and fall off.
"What in God's name is happening?" Wahag managed.
"I am not sure. I think you just got the flu or something. You have been in and out for days now," Dow sounded puzzled.
She is wrong. Your fire energy is fighting with the water energy growing in the body. It's making it hard for me to heal. They need to find harmony.
"Are you kidding? How would fire and water ever find harmony?" Wahag replied outloud disregarding the audience.
"What's he blabbing about?" Prince ushered Dow.
"Not sure." Dow had a serious look on her face. "Wahag, do you recognize us?"
"Urgh, stop talking. My head is going to split!" Wahag felt nauseous. "Wait did you say I was out for days?!" Wahag uttered before his ears started to ring fiercely and groaned in agony.
"I don't know what to do." Dow looked at Wahag as if trying to find the answer. "He needs a hospital," said Dow to Prince.
Prince met Dow's eyes but didn't move, "How?"
"I don't know. We have to figure something out," said Dow and reached around Wahag to pull him up.
Wahag, who was groaning in pain, calmed. His breath was heavy and tired. Dow confused tried to lay him down again to check his pulse. When she released him, he grabbed on to her arm.
"Wahag, can you walk? We need to get you to a hospital."
"No, I need to find, Sal. You have to summon him for me." Wahag, while holding on to Dow's arm, had no doubt that her energy was powerful. Just by touching her arm, her energy suppressed both his water and fire energy. But, he wasn't about to cling to her for comfort.
"What?... Summon? How?"
Wahag wasn't sure himself. In jin form, all you needed to do is track their energy at that automatically took you to them across releams. Humans are bound to one releam, constraint by their physical form in traveling to and from a place. But, every human has a jin reflection. Can she control her reflection? Wahag in a human body couldn't see or sense other beings as well as in his jin form. But he was sure her reflection would hear her. Would it obey her though?
Wahag managed to control his composure by focusing on Dow's energy. "Sit." Dow looked at Prince, who gave her an unknowing shrug.
Wahag continued, "I need you to follow a voice in your head. I know I have one voice which is the body. You probably have more than two, your body and a jin reflection which whispers things to you, dark things." Dow blinked, but then nodded.
"Follow any dark thought you have right now, and summon that voice forward."
Dow reluctantly closed her eyes and did as told. Wahag could sense her energy change. It filled his head with visions. He could see her standing mighty in front of her equally mighty reflection and he allowed himself to be sucked in the image to stand among them.
"What do you want from me?" Dow's reflection had a cocky look, unlike its human reflection.
"Summon, Sal," he commanded.
The reflection snorted, "And, why would I?"
"You will do as commanded," Dow interjected. Her voice echoed and engulfed the world around them.
"Fine. I have the worst, being stuck to her!" The reflection protested.
Everything faded and Wahag's eyes were wide staring at Dow sitting in front of him in the hut.
"What just happened?" Dow looked around the room.
"That was your reflection from a different realm," Wahag managed slowly, still suffering the war within him.
"I know her. I thought she was me! That's not me?"
"No, she is not. Every human has a reflection like that. They connect you to other realms. Most of them follow the commands of the devil and whisper darkness into your soul."
"Wait, do I have one too?" Prince, who Wahag completely forgot was in the room, asked.
"Yes, Prince. You have one too."
"Wow" Prince said in a deep voice.
"What happens now?" Dow asked.
"Well, Sal has been summoned. He will come." Wahag tried to lay back down.
"Okay. Let me get you some food," Dow started to get up.
"Wait!" As much as Wahag hated it, if she leaves the room he knew he was doomed.
Prince raised an eyebrow, "I will go get the food" and added with a meaningful smirk. "I will just leave the door open," he finished with a wink.
"What's wrong with his eye?" Wahag exclaimed.
Dow's face was flushed and then she sighed, "Nothing. I will beat some sense into his sorry behind next time."
The silence in the hut was deafening. "When did you guys move me here?" Wahag was lost for words.
"Ah, well Prince was taking care of you for two night. When I came back, I felt it would be better to take care of you here, closer to the lake. So, we moved you last night."
Wahag nodded and cleared his throat. And Dow turned to him with a jug of water, it made him notice the healing cut on her hand from the other night.
"Where were you?" A pain in his chest settled heavily as he looked at her and remembered the look she had on her face that night.
"I wanted to find answers. That ball was in my home where Joza found me. But we will talk about that later," she ushered with her hand," You have to tell me, how did you heal Dodi?"
"Dodi! Right, how is he?"
Dow smiled warmly, "he woke up. He is weak, but didn't stop asking about you."
Wahag smiled to himself, "Thank God. I am only as capable as God allows me."
Another long moment of glaring silence passed, Wahag swallowed.
"I am sorry." Wahag's words were met by a confused reaction from Dow, "Prince told me about the villagers. I didn't know," he added.
"Don't be, I..." A loud hissing laugh interrupted Dow.
"How touching," Sal leaned on the door frame, "But, Wahag, you are about to have much much much... much more to be sorry for," he added with a scary grin.