There's no weight as heavy as the one exerted by the truth, to carry it over one's spirit can leave a permanent deviation.
Every time Stefan crossed gazes with a villager he remembered what he was keeping away from them. The nice greetings he received while he walked in the direction of the church only added fire to his guilt.
All those kind people continued with their usual life without knowing about the horror that was about to come. He told himself that there wasn't another choice, the risk of making the information public exceeded the benefits. All of this left them with one option, they had to find a way to convince the villagers to train without mentioning the imminent attack.
In the search for an ally, Stefan made it to the parish. It was a Saturday, so the place overflowed with the presence of the community members. In the territory that surrounded the building, the younger ones sat in circles and played games. All of them said hello to the newcomer, their enthusiasm surprised the leader who smiled for the first time that day.
Once he passed through the big doors of the church, he encountered plenty of people praying. Between them, father Zenkin acted like a guide, answering questions and offering support.
"Father. Can we talk in private?" Asked Stefan to let his presence known.
"Stefan! What a pleasant surprise," said Mr. Zenkin. The tone of his voice expressed joy but his eyes showed concern. "Follow me, we can talk in my office."
With fake smiles printed on their faces, they undertook the short trip. As soon as they entered the room the real feelings arose.
The office remained as the leader remembered it. Being a man of habits, he sat in the same chair that he used the first time. The priest also took his place in front of him.
"What brings you here? Your attitude tells me that's not good news," said father Zenkin.
"We have serious problems, whatever you're thinking right now, I can assure you that it can get worse." Answered Stefan, going right to the point. "I'm trusting you with this, only a small group of people knows what I'm about to tell you, and it has to remain this way."
"I understand, I guess we're talking about life or death information."
"Exactly. And after what happened with Casimir I don't trust anyone inside your community, because I don't know them."
"What happened with Casimir?" Asked the oldest man.
"You don't know anything about it?" Stefan's voice was full of surprise. "With how fast the information spread in this village I thought you would know about it. He betrayed us, he's part of Peters' cult."
"I'm sad to hear that he fell into the wrong path, I know his family, they're wonderful people. It's a hard strike for our community and I imagine that's also very harmful to your people."
"Do I have your word that this stays between us? It could be catastrophic if words get out."
"I won't say a thing. All I want is the best for my people, I won't do anything to put them in danger," promised the priest.
"The demons will attack in two weeks, it was their plan from the beginning. They'll use the solar eclipse to their advantage, their main goal is to reduce a third of the population."
"They'll attack everyone?"
"Every single person in this village, including the elders and the kids. No one is safe. We can't let the demons know that we're aware of their plan, and at the same time it's important that we get ready to fight."
"That's why you're here, you need my help to convince the villagers."
"Do you think we can convince your people to train their powers? We're already working on a safe place for those who'll need it."
"We can talk with them right now," commented Mr. Zenkin. "We can't waste more time, I'll call for a reunion and introduce you to them. Then you can explain how we're starting the training. Don't worry, I know how to make them accept."
"We also need the Mayor's support."
"But you don't want to tell him the truth."
"I don't know him well enough."
"Alright, I'll find a way to make him agree to the need to increase the village security. The demons aren't being exactly subtle, this last week the village suffered plenty of attacks, I can use that to our favor."
"Thanks, you're very helpful." Stefan expressed his gratitude.
"Thanks to you. You're the one working the most here. Now, go to the backyard, you'll find a statue of the Virgin Mary. Wait there, I'll tell my people to join us."
The leader of the Protectors found the statue just like the priest said. Even as an atheist he felt the warmth coming from the woman's eyes, the sculptor had done an excellent job. Allowing the comfort given by the work of art and the rays of sunlight to sink into his body, he waited for the public to come.
It wasn't long before the first person approached, the rest followed in a short span. The majority of the members of the multitude talked to each other, others preferred to pay attention to the unknown man.
Stefan let his gaze wander around the place, the big, flourishing trees resulted easier to look at than the villagers. The guilt still stopped him from facing them.
As promised, Father Zenkin was the first one to talk.
"Thank you for coming. In these last weeks, the entire community of Umbra suffered from numerous attacks caused by demons and, sadly, by other villagers who chose to be on the evil side. We know we have God's protection, he sent people on our way to keep us safe, but we can't sit and wait for salvation to come knocking on our door."
"Yes, I'm tired of doing nothing." A man inside the multitude screamed.
"The evil is getting stronger," continued the priest. "They even destroyed the home of the protectors of this village, they did it because they know they're a threat to them. We can do our part, I'm not talking about starting a war but we can learn how to defend ourselves and our loved ones. That's why I asked Stefan a favor, and he agreed to help us learn. What do you think?"
A chorus of words of agreement filled the backyard. Excitement could be seen in their eyes and smiles.
"In that case, I'll let him explain the details," said Mr. Zenkin, signaling the leader of the resistance.
"Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you all. Our training system is simple, there are two different classes everyone has to take, one to learn how to control your power, and the second one is for physical training. You'll have to respect your trainers, trust them, they won't ask you to do anything outside your capabilities. There would be two groups at different times for each class, you can join the one that you want. It's important that you continue to practice outside of training, we can teach you how to do it, but your growth depends on you."
All the presents maintained their silence, the reactions were non-existent. Seconds after Stefan finished his speech the nods appeared, this helped the leader to relax.
"It's official then," concluded the priest. "We'll begin our training."