Ella Awakened by S. E. Duncan

encouragement.  She unlatched the
box and opened it to reveal two identical weapons.  They looked like short
swords, something that would be used in karate or another form of martial
arts.  Each was a little less than two feet in length.  The guards that
protruded where the handle and blade came together looked more like prongs than
traditional guards.  One prong curved up in the same direction as the blade of
the weapon, and the other curved down in the same direction as the weapon’s
handle.  At the center point where the blade, handle, and two prong-like guards
came together sat a large, smooth, blood-red stone.
    “These were
your father’s sai.  The sai are the weapons of the warriors from my world.  I
have kept them for you in case you ever awakened.  Now that you have, they are
rightfully yours.”
    Ella stood
and picked up one of the sai, and the red stone glowed for a few seconds. 
Burke picked up the second weapon and handed it to Ella.  When she touched it,
its stone glowed briefly also.
    “The sai
stones glowed in recognition of your worthiness to wield them.  They wouldn’t
have glowed had you not been a warrior.  The sai are the weapons of balance. 
The north and south facing yoku, or prongs, represent this balance.  Everything
in the universe has an opposite, and equilibrium must be maintained.  For
darkness there is light, for male there is female, for good there is evil, for
ocean there is sky; the examples are endless.  Warriors have protected and kept
this balance for all time.  These are lessons all children back home learn,
whether they’ll be warriors, healers, or common folk.  The legends of the sai
are very important to us.”
    “I know,”
Ella said.  “I mean I didn’t know what they were called, but I could just feel
the importance when I touched them… the vibration and the glow, it’s like
they’re speaking to me.  No…it’s more than that; it’s like they are a part of
me.  There’s nothing more natural or right than the weight of them in my
hands.”
    Ella took a
step forward and struck out with one sai as she brought the other across her
chest in a defensive maneuver.  “I just know how to use them,” she said with
awe.  “Let’s go outside; I need some room.”
    Burke
followed Ella as she excitedly went out to the back yard.  He watched as she
took off at a run and flung herself into the air.  She did a series of twists
and flips, jabbing and cutting at the air with the sai.  It was hard to believe
this was the same girl who only twenty-four hours ago was so weak she could
hardly sit up.  It wasn’t as if Burke had never seen the beauty and
gracefulness of a warrior in action, but his heart soared to bear witness to it
once again.  Ella’s natural form, strength, and talent rivaled her father’s.  He
was saddened by the fact that James wasn’t here - he would truly be proud of
his daughter.
    Working her
way back across the yard in what could only be described as a dance of battle,
Ella came to a stop kneeling before Burke with her head bowed and the sai
crossed in front of her.  “Very impressive,” Burke said.
    “I can
hardly believe how natural this all feels.  Although for some reason, I think
it would be even more exciting if I didn’t know there was something out there
waiting to put my abilities to the test,” Ella told him.  “The warriors didn’t
have some kind of magical armor did they?” she asked only half joking.
    “Unfortunately
not,” Burke answered.  “The warriors mostly wore leather to protect them
against abrasions and such.  Their speed and strength had always been armor
enough from the dangers of our world.  Of course, the Demon wasn’t of our world. 
Why don’t we go back inside; we still have a lot to talk about, though you will
also need to train and run through drills and maneuvers much like you were just
doing.”
    Ella and
Burke continued their discussion in the comfort of the living room.  “I