68 - IN THE BRIGHTEST DAY, IN THE DENSEST NIGHT...

 

68 - IN THE BRIGHTEST DAY, IN THE DENSEST NIGHT...

 

Alice left the room quietly. Yes, for a few moments anger dominated her being, especially when that bushman (but was he really a bushman? Everything indicated that that man was much more than he appeared...) addressed her, speaking in his native language ... after all, who was Zechariah, in reality? When she was passing by the salon she saw the sweets counter and couldn't help herself... a banana cake, fresh out of the oven caught her attention. She asked for the candy....and ate it all by herself. As she had said before, the little teacher was simply crazy about sweets... and it was the only thing that calmed her down when something took her out of her mind. It wasn't the case this time... she left the meeting room because she really had something to do... she wasn't sure what it would be... her ideas were a little scrambled... it was like a cloud had rolled over. spread all over her mind and didn't let her think straight. Yes, she knew she had to do something…but, no…she didn't have a clue as to what it would be. Alice just devoured the candy, paid for it, and hit the streets. The weather really didn't promise anything good... the lightning cut the sky in such a way that they seemed to want to break the veil of the firmament. And the icy wind was cutting everything in front of him. But, strange, the girl thought... for her that seemed so comforting... yes, in a normal situation she could even be terrified, due to the fury of the weather, but she was strangely calm...

Without realizing it, she walked towards the exit of the village. Her steps were quick, purposeful. And when she realized it, she was already out of sight of anyone who might be venturing through the village streets. And, suddenly, a transformation began to take over the girl... her complexion became lighter, her hair grew a little more, she became a little taller than she already was, and her clothes changed... . the blue skirt and blouse set she was wearing, all embroidered with flowers and butterflies, became a long white dress, almost translucent... and, in the end, an intense luminosity totally surrounded her, leaving her inside a ball of fire... that in no way hurt her. Then, without her knowing how, the fireball took to the skies, cutting through the black cloak of night...

- Mr. Zacarias, could you explain yourself, please?

- What happened here? Why did the teacher leave?

- Guys, stay calm... the teacher had a task and went to fulfill it....

- But what kind of task was that, Mr. Zacarias?

- In the middle of the night? With this weather?

- Who would be crazy to do anything with that time? With the threat of a sudden downpour?

- Guys, not a single drop of water will fall today...

- How not? And these thunderclouds, what are they?

- It's not rain, I can tell you that...

- So what is it?

- That, my friends, is the manifestation of the power of Alice, the little teacher...

  A sepulchral silence took over the room. Everyone didn't understand exactly what Zacarias meant by that, but the fear of knowing the truth prevented them from asking. And each one of them was immersed in their thoughts... they tried to understand Zacarias's words, but no matter how hard they tried, nothing made sense... the first to break the forced calm that prevailed in the room was Alberto...

- But what power, Zacarias? What madness is this?

- Doctor, I'm sorry to tell you this... but your girlfriend is a vampire... and today will be the battle between our group and hers...

Zacarias' speech hit Alberto like a shock... he was so disconcerted by what his companion said that he didn't know what to say... what do you mean, Alice was a "vampire"? Vampires don't exist... and if they did, surely Alice couldn't be one of them. After all, the two of them spent a pleasant few hours when the sun was still at its highest point, and Alice was delighted with the warmth that emanated from it... and, after that, he accompanied her to the Church, where she took the Holy Communion... no, Zacarias could only be mad at his premise...

- Mr. Zacarias, what you are saying makes no sense at all...

- And why not, doctor?

- She goes to church... receives the priest's blessing... she can stay in the sun as she pleases...

- AND...?

- And, as far as I know, these creatures can't do that...

- I wish it were really like that, Doctor Alberto... but unfortunately, it's not.... the only thing that has the power to stop these beings, my friend... are silver bullets...

- Silver bullets? It's because?

- Because, I don't know... but it works.... and before you think too much... today we're going to face two werewolves, three orioles, a curupira... this one isn't as dangerous as the others... you'll only be supporting the monsters so they can attack us... oh yes, I can't forget... two oxen and a headless mule... these last two are the most dangerous... ah, yeah... I was forgetting... we're going to face the conductor of all this fuzurca, of course... and guess who it will be?

- The teacher?

- No, my people... the teacher doesn't exist.... we're going to face the head vampire...

-But... if you know that she is the head of the group, and if she was already here... why did she let her go?

- Simple... to destroy the woman in white we need to wait for the two parts to be united... if we destroy only one of the parts, in fact we are not destroying anything... her essence returns to the uninjured body, and after the cycle starts again...

  - But... where are we going to find silver bullets at this hour? And how are we going to find the profes... the woman in white?

- First I want you to put your weapons and ammunition on the table...

Everyone was surprised by the request... the first to put their weapons on the table was Zacarias, of course. He unbuckled his belt, arranged his knife next to the revolvers and even the bow he used in his day to day fighting was deposited there...

- Guys, I promised you that today you would witness a transmutation... well, you have to trust...

Not knowing whether or not they should obey Zacarias's orders, everyone did as he asked... and soon the pile of weapons was on the table... when everyone was already unarmed, he called the three girls closer to him ... that's when the group found it strange, really... what did Zacarias expect? That the girls magically transformed things around them, as if they had the Midas touch? Yes, things were getting more and more surreal... with each passing second, Alberto felt that he didn't belong there... he was a man of science... and that went against everything he had, for years , he had learned and practiced... Duarte really didn't know what to think... and for that reason he decided not to think about anything. Whatever came ahead, he would face. And, Juvêncio... well, Juvêncio had been waiting for something like that to happen since the day he set foot in that city. He knew that nothing there was what it seemed. And it was proving itself now...

- Well... and now?

It was Duarte, trying to figure out the next step... Zacarias didn't answer... he just asked the girls to spread their hands on the table, and to recite some words that he would say... and it was done... .in the end, when everyone went to get their guns back... surprise was on everyone's face.... after all, the lead had turned to silver....