The Called

Chapter 1

"Hello, Vada Springfield.  My name is Hera and I think that you're like me," I say, looking the girl in the eyes.  Her hair was black and her skin was so pale I could almost see all of her veins.  She trembled from the cold of the powerful wind.  

     "What do you mean 'like you'?" she asks, her voice quivering.  I force the winds to slow and get a bit warmer.  I bring a wind around her and make her float with my wind current, her hair flying around her head.  Her fingers gently brush into the breeze, a slight look of panic and tranquility at the same time, if that were even possible.  

     I ease her back to the ground.  

     "Do you hear the whispers?" I ask her, hoping that I could find one  lead as to what  the whispers were and why  I could control the wind.  

     "Yes, but not from the same place as you do.  I hear the whispers from everything living or something that just died.  I can control any living creature or plant like a puppet," she says, slightly shy.  

     "Can you show me?" I ask her.  She look up nervously but nods her head.  A weed growing from the crack of the filthy alley started to shake.  It pulled itself away from the wall and started to dance.  I smiled.  

     She grabbed the weed and gently cut off one little green leaf.  It tried to claw away, which must of still been a command of hers.  She set the weed back on the ground and she grew the leaf grew back in seconds.  

     She had it dance again for a few seconds, a strange rhythm moving its fragile, green limbs.  

     It fell to the ground all of the sudden and turned it's once vibrant green a brown with slight green spots covering it's delicate leaves.  She looks at me nervously.  

     "Fascinating," I say and glance at the dead weed.  The weed twitches and turns green again.  It pulls itself up and starts dancing again.  It danced and pretended to be a zombie, running around and pretending to eat other weeds.  

     The weed falls, being what it was moments before, slipping silently back into the crack in the wall.  Vada's eyes are always nervous as she glances back at the weed.  

     "What happened to your parents?" I ask forcefully.  Her smile quickly turns into a frown.  

     "It was an accident, I swear.  It was the day I realized what the whispers were.  The instant it happened I knew I had to stay away from people.  From everyone around the world.  I didn't want to hurt anyone else," she says and a few tears fall from her eyes.  

     "I dedicated my life to studying the whispers.  I call them "the Calling."  I try to find people that are called, too, though you're the only one so far," I tell her.  She looks at me curiously.  

     "You mean that you believe that there are others with the whispers?" she asks me.  I nod my head and smile.  

     "Would you like to help me in my study and find others that are called?" I ask her the question I had been meaning to ask when I found out that she had the Calling, too.  

     "I will join you.  I am scared for you, though," she says and looks up at me nervously.  One of her eyes was a burning amber and the other was a dark green, like pine trees, softly but strongly staring back at the sky.  

     "Good.  I will show you where I stay," I say.  I quickly rush down into the nearest train station and wait for a train to come.  There were a few rats, clawing at garbage.  Vada notices them as well.  They both stand on two legs and start to dance, Vada avoiding looking at them.  We were far enough away that it wasn't suspicious.  

     There was a man, playing the saxophone.  He suddenly started to play a pop song, which the rats danced to.  People started to notice the dancing rats and started to clap to the beat.  I clap to the beat, too.  A big smile comes to my face.  Vada barely focused on using her power.  She clapped to the beat as the next song started.  

     I saw a boy in the crowd, looking around to see if anyone was concentrating.  I walked over to him.  He looked about twelve and looked very uncertain about his surroundings.  

     "Hello," I greet him.  He looks at me suspiciously.  

     "Who are you?" he snaps, taking a step back.  

     "Do you hear the whispers?" I ask him and only last minute realizing how crazy I sounded.  He seemed to understand, though.  

     "Yes.  How come those rats are dancing like that?" he says and gestured to the rats, a new one having joined them.  

     "I have a friend who can hear them too.  Where do you hear them from?" I reply and smile.  

     "I hear them from water.  The water down here is old and dirty.  It screams in pain and is nearly deafening," he replies and shakes slightly.  "Where do you hear your  whispers?" 

     "Here, I'll show you," I say, and have the wind slice through the station and pulling away the water.  He sighs in relief.  

     "How did you do that?" he asks me.  

     "Can you control the place where your whispers come from?" I ask him, silently taking notes in my head.  

     "I don't know.  Let me try," he says.  He looks at the drinking fountain.  I was pretty sure that no water would surface from the tiny hole, but some came flying out, reaching the cement ceiling and splattering against the head of a grumpy woman.  He stops the water and laughs slightly.  

     "Thank you.  I dedicated my life to studying the whispers and today I have discovered many things about them.  For example, my friend hears the whispers from anything living.  She is currently controlling the rats and man playing the saxophone," I tell him and smile.  

     He nods his head and I rush back over to Vada.  

     Today was the day I met Aiden and Vada.