Away from the main city districts, in distinct plain grasslands, far out in a vast space of nothingness: a single hump on a hill stood out, suspiciously having an entrance way to an underground. Within, a small blinking light of red pulsated. But inside was a ginormous space of vast corridors, cross beams made out of the roots of past trees, and hard dirt with dozens to dozens of people in red and white robes sitting, spectating, their eyes locked onto a small platform that was empty at the edge of the bottom. At the very bottom were hundreds beyond hundreds of people, also waiting and anticipating for the arrival of something or someone on that platform made of wood. Around them were potuims, and ontop of them were candles dimmed out. Then, a sudden burst of wind came from the entrance, transforming itself into a trail of black and red smoke that lit the candles and landed on the platform. The crowd kept quiet, and behind their hoods, twisted smiles erupted from beneath their cloaked faces.
As the smoke dispersed, a single man emerged and his outfit screamed of hierarchy and leadership, representing something completely out of a fairytale. His outfit alone said that he was the leader of a cult and represented power and manipulation. His hair as black as the nightsky, his eyes blacker than darkness, the man brought his arms up to the air, and let out a loud grunt.
“My fellow children, my fellow followers! How are you all this fine evening?!”
The crowd responded by shooting their fists in the air, chanting something in medieval english. This made him smile ear to ear, and lower his arms to his sides.
“I’m glad to hear that! But you’re wondering why I’m here alone and not with the other four archbishops? Well, that’s because we are awaiting a tragedy in the making! But once it ensues and cleanses us from this altered timeline, then we will make ourselves known to the world… And remind—we! the cult that worships Envy still exists!”
The crowd grew louder in excitement, shouting, “Hail Abyzou! Our Mother of Creation—Destruction and Rapturer to Sinners!” This fueled his excitement tenfold, and made him clap his hands to quiet the crowd down.
“Yes! Yes! That’s it my fellow followers! As your third strongest archbishop I shall inform our leader of Sin to begin the assualt to this cruel normal world…”
His smile turned upside down, and he bowed his head for a moment, only to bring it back up to the crowd to express the most vile sinister frown to them.
“And revive our lost God, and prophet… The world—no! Our known universe will witness its rightful cleansing that almost got set foot! If not for a measly rising Angel that resolved and took away Abyzou!”
The crowd all growled and chanted, “To hell with children that worship a non-existent God! Damn the Exorcists for existing—Damn any lost lambs!”
“Yes… Yes! Let us await, and once we’re back in the correct flow of time… the world will never be the same again!”
“Hail murder! Hail to a new universe awaiting to be rewritten by Abyzou~All hail—!”
Then, a loud clap of thunder shut everyone up. A flash of light had interrupted their visions and blinded everyone for a moment. Once their visions returned, standing beside him now was another man of their cult. He appeared calm yet happy, feeling generous of their chants. His outfit was black and red, a mixture of a business suit and one made for fancy occasions. His short brown hair that was glistening like caramel and his eyes of unholy red stood out. The crowd knew exactly who he was and everyone bowed, the ones on the ground took a knee along with it. The man speaking earlier stepped aside and also bowed to him.
“Why… I did not expect you to show up like this, my brother of madness.”
He did not say a word, only to snap his fingers which made the giant crowd stand straight, and pay attention.
“What brings you to our meeting, grand leader?”
He nodded to the crowd before bringing his eyes to his partner. “I just wanted to check up on you, and everyone else before I plan my attack tomorrow afternoon.”
His voice was soothing, powerful yet raspy.
“Ah, I see… but knowing you, you’re also here to warn us, correct? Given the nature of who you are.”
“Right you are, but it’s more of a reminder. Because whether she still exists or not… you have to remember just who she had bewedded?”
He was quickly caught off guard, gasping and clenching his fists but not in anger but more so excitement.
“Yes… the usurper of our clan, that malevolent esper who could’ve been a grand Witch—Perseus!”
“Yes, I’m not sure where he’s exactly located but we’ve detected his mana twice, and he’s just as if not more powerful than he was before.”
“Hmm, but it’s nothing that we can handle now since we’ve climbed the upper echalons of his last power gap. We or I should say, the top two like yourself should be more than enough to handle him.”
He chuckled and crossed his arms. “I’m far beyond what he was like in the past. When I did feel his presence the past month, it wasn’t enough for me to draw concern.”
His partner rubbed his hands together, intrigued and amused. “I could say the same for myself even though I rank below haha! This confirms that our plans will go and flow into fruition!”
The crowd raised their fists in the air, and the two did the same. Together they all closed their eyes and everyone had different glows around them. Each person emitting a different colour, but the two standing, their glow was more eminent, and it reeked of hatred, determination, repulsion, but more importantly, envy.
The leader opened his eyes, and furrowed them. “Tomorrow we begin our assault on the world, and resurrect our fallen Angel of destruction… Abyzou!”
The crowd pumped their fists in unison without a sound, saying, “All hail Abyzou, our breeder of destruction and creator of life!”
The second guy chimes in, but his eyes screeched anger and ambition. “We shall resurrect her so she can rewrite our universe! So she can create a new one in which the weak die and the strong survive! Let the world know of our hunger for a stronger race and most importantly, a world in which allows us to do as we please without repercussions.”
The leader crushed his palm, drawing blood. “We are the future! The hell that we bear witnessed years ago was just the beginning of her cleansing, and I can assure you what awaits us is a world of beauty, prosperity, and strength. Together, all as one, we will eradicate all those who stand in our way… Glory to Abyzou!”
Everyone together raised their hands in the air, and aimed their heads to the ceiling, all shouting, “All Hail Abyzou!” before the hump on the hill deflated back into the earth. It was quiet, eerie, and the man in the suit was floating right where the hump was. With a grin on his face, he gently hovered down, and clapped three times, and nature responded. A gigantic tree erupted from the ground, towering over the emptiness of the flatland. It looked taller than the sears tower, thicker than a mountain, and the roots themselves would make a house appear tiny. It was dead, but he knew it would have life return to it. The grin on his face gave that assumption, and he was confident that they would achieve their goal.
“Tomorrow, we’ll find out what’s really going on in this wretched world, and see if that monstrous man still coexists… William H. Christ.”
His grin faded and he grabbed his chin.
“He’s the only thing that stands in our way. It’s inconceivable that a being like him can exist. It’s so unfair, so comical, absolutely… Godly.”
He blinked and a small tinkle occurred from where he was looking at. The twinkle went away quicker than he could think, and in ten seconds, an explosion of sheer magnitude erupted. The blast wave killed off the grass, fluttering his hair, clothes as he stood watching the destructive chaos ensue. To him it was beautiful and brought back his grin. The mushroom cloud reached into the clouds, and continued as the aftermath spread further out. He sighed and snapped his fingers, erasing all that was done and bringing back the grass to life by tapping his foot.
He was starting to crumble like dirt, and let out a single satisfied grunt. “Here I come… society.”
***
A new day has dawned, it’s halfway into the afternoon and Jack has barely awakened from his slumber. Sitting on the edge of his bed, the young man’s perplexed over the encounter of Sarah’s mother, Samantha. Finally meeting a great Sin, and knowing that she’s your close friend's mother has left a bad taste in the young man's mouth. It’s frustrating to Jack, but he felt a little more closure knowing that she has the potential of eradicating Mallory. Although, his heart didn’t want to think of such an idea, yet his mind and body screamed for its doing. At this point, whatever the outcome may be for Jack, all he wants is a simple calm life again.
He let out a breath, a grunt, and wiped his face. “Alright, what’s the plan today Jack.” he said while getting up, “let's find out what weird shit we encounter today, shall we?”
He got up, did his usual routine of washing his face, prepping his gun, and putting on today's outfit, this time without his coat and only rocked his v neck blue shirt and jeans. His boots were showing their age but that didn’t bother him because he loved these boots that have carried him through this journey of complexities. Afterwards he went to the living room and crashed on the couch, taking a deep breath and groaning loudly which got the attention of his sister who was eating her lunch at the moment. Eric was present as well, and he shook his head at the sight of Jack. Angela took one more bite of her sandwich and quickly went to her brother. Eric didn’t bother and remained in his seat to finish his lunch.
Angela sat beside him and edged her adorable face towards his that was staring up at the ceiling. “So, you’ve finally awakened from your stupendously long slumber, huh mister?”
She sounded sassy, bitter, but happy to see her brother looking less stressed and actually for once, had his normal basic blunt face. He took a glance at Angela, smirked and patted her head. She responded by rolling her eyes, looking away briefly then brought her glance back with a smile.
“You ready to head out, like I promised?”
Angela leaned closer, kissing his cheek. “Well I need you to eat your lunch first, brother.”
Jack let out a breath. “Right, what’s on the menu?”
“My special Latin sandwich.”
“Oh? That sounds new. What’s inside of it?”
She got up, and grabbed his arm, pulling him off the couch to guide him to the kitchen. When they took their seats, Eric looked at Jack and let out a fatherly sigh, but one filled with disappointment and shame. Jack was aware of his frustrations, and he wanted to tell his uncle everything that’s happened. But he knew he wouldn’t understand completely. As of now, Eric only knows only a glimpse of what this world hides, but in this timeline he knows a glance, so Jack wanted to wait it out more. That way, as life continues, and more is shown to Jack about Eric’s awareness to the paranormal, supernatural, this crazy stuff that drives him mad, then he can feel confident in telling him everything.
“Take a seat and I’ll make it for you.” Angela said as she walked over to the counter where some of the ingredients were placed.
Jack did so and brushed his hair back. “Sup Eric, how’s the day so far?”
Eric had just finished his lunch, and tapped his mouth with a napkin. “Aight. You still acting all stupid, crazy as fuck? Barging in and out of normality huh, you big stupid depressed guy.”
“Damn uncle. Ruthless as always, huh? My bad if I’ve been behaving weird as of lately, we’ll talk about it later.”
“Why not now?”
“Eh, it’s complicated.”
Eric rubbed his chin, and sipped his coffee. “Like supernatural crazy like your scary girlfriend Sarah?”
“Oh no, not even close. But it's in the same grey area.”
“Damn, aight then. Also you’re slow ain’t chu?”
“Wh-what do you mean by that?” Jack asked, tilting his head.
His uncle can’t help but chuckle at Jack’s typical dense nature. As his nephew stayed in a confused state, Angela put his lunch in front of him, and it looked wonderful. It definitely showed how much she loved her brother with its presentation. From the bread properly placed, a nice slice of fluffy cheese, the ham in between it, the lettuce and some sort of orange sauce, she even went as far as to have a nice display of slice avocado next to it. Jack’s wowed and he dug right in without hesitation. That first bite was pleasant, but he knew that these sliced greens were going to make it even better. When he did add them, he was indeed right, and was blown away with flavours.
“This taste great, thanks si—”
“The sister whom you can’t trust no more!”
Jack grabbed his head, and rubbed it. Angela wondered why he had paused and looked as if a sudden migraine had interrupted his complimenting. Samantha’s voice whispered into Jack’s mind, and echoed again the same nuisance statement that was sadly true. But he wasn’t going to allow her to intervene. She may be right, but this Angela’s different from the one he knew. Yes they’re the same person but an altered version of her, although, her appearance resembles Mallory more than previously. He let his hand off, and took a quick breath, and went back to eating.
I have to tell Sarah what her mom did to me and this contract, perhaps she can explain further about the situation that’s about to transpire. Jack thought.
“Brother, are you going to finish on what you were saying?” she asked while leaning forward.
“Ye-Yeah… it’s delicious sis. Thank you.”
Eric grew tired of Jack’s strange state, and decided that this was a good opportunity to ask what's really bothering his nephew.
“Hey, baby girl.” he said.
“Yeah uncle?” she replied.
“Would you leave the two of us alone, I gotta ask your brother something personally. If you don’t mind.”
Angela can read her uncle like a book, and knew by his serious expression that this was business talk.
“Sure, I’ll just be upstairs watching my wretched cartoons ya both despise.”
The two gave her a thumbs up, a nod, and she shook her head in sass. She got up, quickly hugged her brother and left the room. Jack continued to eat his sandwich and Eric waited until he was at least a bite away from finishing. Once Jack got to the last portion of his meal, Eric clapped his hands, which made him jump.
“Alright my guy, what’s your deal?”
Jack rolled his eyes. “You spooked me man, damn. And what do you mean by that?”
“Don’t play with me, just tell me what’s going on in that thick skull of yours.”
Jack knew that this was coming. But he didn’t know how to properly respond to his uncle's request without sounding like a lunatic. Feeling perplexed and conflicted, Jack’s mind made up a choice, which was to lie about his situation.
“I uh… I’m in a heap of shit, that’s what’s going on.”
“Hmm.” Eric gripped his chin for a second, thinking, analyzing his response. “Nah, there’s more, but you just can’t tell me, right?”
Jack’s surprised, although he knew his uncle was a fantastic communicator, and the years of social experience, his direct poker face making his enemies tremble before their demise, he knew he would read right through the young man. Jack groaned. He wanted to tell his uncle, really he did but he’s not sure if there might be a catch or consequence to him telling someone normal like Eric. Even if he did, would that in return have his faith set, for him to be killed? Hurt badly? Or perhaps transform Eric into a horrific monster. The possibilities are endless. So Jack ultimately chose to finally reveal just the surface of his problems.
The young man took a deep breath, and lay back on his chair. “Damn uncle, you’re too good at this.”
“I am, aren't I? But my guy, it’s not about trying to be a bother, push your buttons, or treat you special, I’m just concerned for someone I care about.”
His words hit Jack like a truck. Feeling confident in Eric’s emotional response, Jack now felt more comfortable revealing more to him.
“Well, I’m in dire shit, uncle. And it’s in fact supernatural, but possibly, beyond that.”
Hearing this made his uncle grunt with annoyance. “Ah fuck, what is it this time?”
“Heh… it’s kinda hard to explain, but I kinda made a deal with someone, and then another person came along, and I also made a deal with them.”
“Oh! So you just accepting offers, just like that? I thought I taught you better than that my guy!”
“Yeah yeah, anyways, all of this comes back to a simple solution, which revolves around what's inside of me… the darkness in my heart.”
Eric’s confused about what his nephew is telling him. It didn’t sound as supernatural as he makes it seem. It more so sounded as if his nephews undergoing through some counseling which he was all for it.
“Ey, you sure this doesn’t sound like you signed up for counseling? Because if it is, then go for it. You fucking need it!”
This made Jack chuckle, and in response he grabbed a napkin, balled it up and threw it at Eric.
“Whatever uncle, but you’re kinda getting the hang of what I’m in. The supernatural part is the people involved and possibly, the consequences behind their help.”
“Ahh shit, if it’s like that… then I probably don’t want no part in it to be honest. After seeing your friend Sarah demonstrate it that day already had me on edge to put a bullet in her skull.”
“Jesus uncle… you were really going to kill her on the spot like that?”
“Duh?! I mean, it’s realistic, ain’t it? Imagine yourself, you living life normal, everything you see on tv, internet, comics, whatever, you know it’s never possible when it comes to like, powers whatever. But then one day, having witnessed such an event you would only dream of doing, imagine, or as I said to then be shown right in front of your eyes. Nuh, I reacted what most men with a gun would do, in a state of panic and hopefully shoot my way out of the situation.”
This event had Jack thinking, wondering what she did that really spooked him. Eric’s really tough to break, but when it comes to things that no one can comprehend, he loses it. Such an example was back when he was sixteen when they both tried finding clues to Dr. Cato and Mallory scared the life out of him that eerie night inside the abandoned facility.
“Say uncle, what did she do that caused you to react so heavily?”
Eric began to think, resting his giant arms on the table and tapping it with his thick fingers. Each tap sounded like a hammer, making the young man flinch his right eye.
“Hmm, give me a second… Ah! It was when you were coming across some spirit and she was the one who saved you, although she looked a little different.”
“Different, in what way?” he asked, a hint of concern trickling out of his breath.
“She was wearing some dress, and her hair covered half her face, but I did see her eyes glow like silver.”
“Si-Silver?” Jack’s eyes widened and the young man quietly gasped. “Samantha…” he muttered.
So it was Sarah’s mother who had revealed the supernatural world to him this time… damn. Jack thought.
“You aight?” Eric said, raising a brow to his spooked looking nephew.
Well, at least that’s better than the way he found out through Mallory messing with us, and my fight with Mathew… then to the events leading up to the Exorcists.
“I’m good, just thought of something stupid that’s all.”
“Hmm, whatever. Anyways, I’m going to stop the conversation for now. I gotta go to a meeting to do business.”
“Oh, where are you going?”
Eric stood up from his chair and got his plate. “I’m about to make a deal of a lifetime that’ll get us more racks. And you’re going to have a part in it, my guy.”
Jack also repeated the same action as his uncle. “Alright, lay it on me.”
Eric took some steps back to put his dishes in the sink. “I’m going to call you later, give you some coordinates and I want you to be my eyes. Rumor has it that the area is infested with a new upcoming gang, and they love to ambush the big guys to make bigger introductions.”
“Hm, that does sound juvenile.”
“Hah! And you ain’t different from them?”
Jack stood next to his uncle and started washing the dishes. “Whatever, heh. So I’m guessing I’ll just lay low in the area and keep an eye on anything suspicious, right?”
“Mhm. You got it. For now, go and hangout with your baby sis. She really needs to get out, I’m getting worried that those cartoons are rotting her precious brain… given the nature of some of them and especially them damn figurines of hers that dry our wallets.”
“Yeah… no kidding.” Jack replied, letting out a chuckle.
Jack smiled at that comment, mainly at the fact Alexandria watched the exact same ones his sister did. The way she mimicked the characters, their voices, it really made the young man miss her more. But the haunting image of the giant who was behind the hellish smoke with glowing eyes was the most prominent memory. The eerie way it raised its shadowy arm, and seeing a red dot shine at his eyes that flashed red, and the sound of a gun exploding made him clench the sponge in his hand.
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“Just what the hell was that thing…” Jack murmured.
He brought up a plate covered in red sauce up to his face, and watching as the dish soap slowly trickled the red off it to drip down the sink flashed more of that horrific scene. The image of Alexandria lying encased from the rubble that took her life, her lifeless arm, and Jack desperately doing everything that he could to see if she was fine by ripping off a leg, it really raised more mystery’s of this unknown entity that killed him in that altered time.
He brushed the plate, revealing the clean surface below. “That symbol… it too was on Alexandria’s hand as it burned red behind the smoke screen.”
He furrowed his brows.
I have to find out what killed me and Alexandria… I-I wonder if Sarah’s mother can answer about it, more notably the symbol. Jack thought.
“Yo, yo Jack, you aight?! You acting strange again.”
Jack quickly shook his head and chuckled. “Yeah yeah, just thinking. I gotchu uncle, I’ll be with Angela while you do your business. And once I get it I’ll drop her off at home and head on over there.”
Eric shrugged and patted Jack’s back. “Alright man, just wanna be sure. I’m still concerned but it's whatever, for now. Right now, I need you at one hundred percent, aight?”
Jack nods, “Understood… I may be a little fucked up in the head, but I ain’t broken—yet.”
“Shit, I think you’re already broken, you probably just aren’t aware. Peace!”
Eric walks away and eventually heads out the front door. Jack couldn’t help but chuckle at the fact that his uncle may be right about him being broken. Already his emotions have undergone so many different changes even he wonders if he still feels pain, empathy for anyone that isn’t close to him, or doesn’t value his own life anymore. Jack continued washing the dishes until he was finished, afterwards he cleaned his hands, took a shower, got ready for a new day, and walked upstairs to Angela’s room.
He knocked and already, he heard something inconspicuous. “Uh, Angela… wha-what was that?”
“No-Nothing…! Fuck…!” she replied.
It sounded like intense moaning, then buzzing sounded and eventually he heard, ruffling, and stuff being moved. Jack’s curiosity got the best of him and he welcomed himself in. Once he was in, he saw her frozen in place with her laptop in hand and one fist slammed on the keyboard, but the screen was frozen with an image of two women from one of those cartoons doing something sexual. She was embarrassed and awkwardly closed her laptop, her face beat red, she looked away in shame.
“I… I…” She said,
She nervously scratched the back of her neck, forced a giggle and turned back to Jack. He blinked a couple of times and grinned, understanding the situation. He moved his hand to tell her to get up. She slowly got out of her bed and stood on her toes.
“My bad, I shouldn't have barged in like that.” Jack said.
Angela bowed her head, and also grinned. “Hmph… whatever brother.”
Jack chuckled and brought his hand out. “Come on, let's go to that stupid shop you like, and whatever cartoon you were watching is proof of what Eric said, they’re no good for you and will rot your brain.”
Angela rolled her eyes and quickly went up to her brother to smack his arm before getting ready. “You two will never understand, true culture!”
“Whatever sis, put your shoes on, let's ensure the promise I gave you yesterday.”
Angela smiled, “Right!”
***
At the other side of town, in her room reading and rubbing away yesterday's confusion, Sarah was researching any possibilities of Jack’s absence in the altered timeline they were put in by William. Sadly, after hours of reading, she couldn’t find anything. She let out a loud aggroed sigh and closed her black text book. She looked out her window and set the book down, watching the afternoon sunshine shone through it, lighting up her dark room.
“Sure is a nice day, I wonder what’s in store for me today, but more importantly, for Jack.”
A sudden knock interrupted her peace, turning the goth girl's attention to her bedroom door.
“Who is it?” she asked, brushing some of her hair behind her ear with her fingers.
The door knob turned and then her door creaked open, and surprisingly, out of everyone in her home, it was her father that was the guest. This made Sarah nervous and mildly grinned. Never did she imagine this scenario. He nervously raised one hand to wave, but it looked awkward. To Sarah, he looked adorably shy while doing it. He walked in and closed the door behind him, and glanced around.
“Wow… so this is what your room’s like?” he said, slowly approaching one of her bookshelves. “Your tastes are like mine…” he muttered.
She dropped her jaw and stayed in a state of butterfly inducing happiness. She crawled to the edge of her bed, watching as her father scanned her bookshelf.
Holy crap… This is too surreal. But why am I enjoying seeing this? What kind of sadistic nature do you hide Sarah? Sarah wondered.
He grabbed a book that caught his eyes. It was dark blue and on the front cover, it was written in German with a photo of a robed man on a white horse.
Since when did she get this book? It kinda looks like—?
“Sarah… this wouldn’t happen to be my book, wouldn’t it?”
Sarah closed her mouth, glanced around, and sat on the edge of her bed.
“Uhh… I can explain…”
He turned around to look at her while holding the book. “Really? Because I could’ve sworn that I’m the only one in this house who speaks and reads German.”
His sarcastic voice, and nature made Sarah giggle, covering her mouth adorably. Seeing her react like that made his heart race and he was more than tempted to look at her beloved eyes. But he couldn’t, to him, it’s a curse to which he never wants to repeat.
“Okay, you got me. I took it from our small library downstairs to understand your culture and language. But I gave up really quickly after translating one page.”
He shook his head and grinned. “Sarah… This has nothing to do with my culture but it was written by my great, great, great grandfather.”
“Oh wow! Now I really want to read it. What’s it about? And what does the cover reference?”
Hearing her daughter’s excitment over his first grandfather's ancient text gave him some motivation and courage to stay longer. He walked to her, sat on the floor for her to see overhead, and raised the book to her. She tilted her head and waited for what he had to say or explain.
“This book, right here, is more than just a passage of his literature.” He brought the book back to his eyes, and smacked the cover. “This was an event that occurred and an experience told by him, one in which this world will never remember nor recognize.”
Sarah’s eyes quivered with excitement. She let out a soft gasp, and had a big smile on her face. She felt like a kid again, and this was a scenerio she always wanted to experience: A story being told by her father, whether bedtime or an afternoon kill session, this was always something she dreamt of.
She hunched over, “What do you mean by that? You make it sound like it’s a fairytale to the world, but to us, it was in fact true?”
He lowered the book, and flipped it open. “Look at you, miss puzzle solver.”
Her first compliment told directly from her father. This made her blush and smile more.
“Well, I do take after you. Mom always did say you were good at solving complicated scenarios.”
“Hmph,” he cleared his throat and quietly read some of the texts. “This really brings back memories.”
He read the book in his thoughts while Sarah patiently waited. This went on for three minutes until she grew far too impatient from the excitement that was consuming her soul.
“Father… Come on! The anticipation’s killing me here. What’s this book about?”
He slighlty turned his head to where his daughter was, and saw the edge of her raven hair. Although he wasn’t completely turned her way, her arouma hit his nostrils like a torpedo. Her smell reminded him of her mother: The bewitching stench of complete manipulation and attraction. This scent alone can swoon the manliest of men, and have them completely fall victim and succumb to their vulnerability.
I loathe this scent… absolute. No, no no… it’s your daughter, not that damned bitch! Don’t explode and react to anger, control your emotions, take control of them! Don’t allow them to ruin this moment, do it, relax. He thought.
To further tame his emotions, he took deep breaths, to which Sarah responded respectfully by easing back.
Maybe I shouldn’t have gotten that close to him… since he’s still not used to my presence. Sarah thought.
After giving himself some silence, and taking another breath, he was able to control his emotions and continue his bonding moment.
“All right…” he murmured. “This book, right here, passed down by my first grandfather is the telling and legend of the four horsemen.”
“Ooo, please explain further more, father!” Sarah replied, again letting her enthusiasm get the best of her by leaning closer to him.
Once her scent was present again he immediately gripped the book, almost denting it with his grip strength but he quickly defeated his anger and went deeper into his thoughts, pretending that he was talking to himself.
“The four horsemen were powerful men, loyal to the church of Christ, and were crusaders.”
Once Sarah heard that, she felt some disgust about them now. “Crusaders huh? If I’m correct they were pretty brutal and baraberic during the dark ages, showing no mercy to their foes and to those that were opposed to the church.”
He nodded. “You’re correct, but these men were different and incredibly special.”
“In what way were they special?”
He flipped the page, and a portrait of them standing together made Sarah’s jaw drop. They were tall, their physique resembled that of viking legends, and their clothing looked especially holy and what you’d expect from top knights from the highest kingdom. But the man in the middle, he was ginormous and screamed the mightiest warrior in existence. His long hair and beard really made him look intimidating.
“What made them special? Well, it’s the mere fact that not only were they men who were loyal to the church of Christ, but they were Pope Clement the VI’s personal guards, and believed to be hand picked by God himself.”
This didn’t make the goth girl that much ecstatic about them, rather it sounded typical and lacked luster and what you’d find reading a normal fairy tale or an urban legend story. She let out a disappointed sigh, and her father responded by raising his finger, wiggling it.
“I’m not finished. No need to be sassy, Sarah.”
Sarah blushed and looked away. “So-Sorry…”
He quietly chuckled, though it was faint and not enough for his daughter to notice.
“When I say hand picked by God himself, it means much more than that.”
Again he flipped the page and revealed a bunch of texts along with an image of the huge man.
“They were also the first Exorcists to exist, and the first to expose the supernatural in its fullness to the world.”
Now her attention was caught again in its fullness. This was the first time she’s ever heard such a thing, and this was something she never imagined hearing, perhaps never. Not only were they the first Exorcists, but they were also the first ever people to perhaps show the world that supernatural beings like herself existed. Just that thought alone made her arms shake, and strike fear all over her body. She raised one of her hands and saw just how much it was trembling. Sarah’s father can sense the fear coming from her daughter, and it made him question if she’s underestimating herself.
“You need not fear, Sarah, for they caused practically no harm to Witches. Only to hunt demonic beings and anything that didn’t correlate with our natural world. But from what my great great grandfather said, they did a pretty shitty job at doing that since they caused so much commotion and ruckus that even people started to believe they were a danger to not only themselves, but to the natural world.”
“Wow really? That’s wicked… but back to the topic of their legendary status: What did they do to earn that from our community and theirs?”
He closed the book, and set it down on his lap. His eyes turned serious and Sarah could feel the change in the air.
“They earned their respected status by fighting a foe, one many have forgotten… and for good reason.”
Sarah swallowed and her body reacted on its own, getting off the bed to get on the ground to sit next to her father.
“Who… was that?”
Her father remembered something that made him go silent. A flashing image of him in the same seated position when he was just eight years old: His great great grandfather was telling him of the story of the being that took the lives of all four of the most powerful beings at the time, the lost tale of—
“The black death itself… is what they called him. A sorrowful man that was the core of the awful disease that almost wiped out everyone in Europe. He… was the one who took their lives, and riddled the world into blackness for another hundred years.”
Sarah’s eyes shrunk, and she couldn’t believe her ears. “Is there an image of him?”
Her father gripped his chin, and tried remembering if this book did have one. He opened it again and scrolled through the pages to see if there were any. He managed to find one, one that even made his eyes shake. The image itself would haunt anyone's dreams because of not only due to how it was drawn, but this was something that his first grandfather had experienced first hand.
“This—is what he managed to recreate when he encountered the black death.”
He pointed to the image and Sarah peaked closer to see. They were almost touching shoulders but her father was too focused on his storytelling to pay attention to his surroundings. Once Sarah’s eyes lay on the image, it made her gasp.
This… this thing… being, it almost looks like—
She was so caught up by the image that her tiny shoulder and hand had touched his arm. He reacted so fast, falling to the side and screaming in agony, which made Sarah fall to her side and hearing her father scream like that just by contact made her heart ache. Her father got on his feet, and turned to her, pointing his palm at her and almost created a mass of energy until her mother appeared out of thin air. She stood between them and she gently lowered his hand with the tip of her finger, and her face looked angry.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she said, her voice sounding vicious and strong.
His rage was blinding him and he responded by growling. Sarah’s eyes watered and she hated seeing this grizzly nature he was putting on. She got up, grabbed her chest, and bit her lip. Sarah’s mother furrowed her brows and she smacked him, and that brought him back to his normal state.
“You dare raise your hand at my precious daughter?! Have you no shame? Leon!”
“Don’t you dare say my name… you promised to never say it!”
“That promise has no meaning when you threaten your own blood!”
He balled his fists and lowered his hand. “I didn’t mean it! You know that, you ungrateful, disregarding, vile bitch!”
She crossed her arms and raised a brow. “Call me whatever you want, but if you ever try to hurt my—!”
“Your?! She’s also—!”
“And it took you this long to acknowledge her existence? You’re a pitiful man… why did I even marry a disgrace like you.”
He brought up his face, showing her his frustrations and scrunched nature. “You think I wanted to be with the likes of you? You forced me into this marriage you damned… Witch!”
“Oh please, admit that you fell for me and thought of proposing to me before I took control and stripped you of your man—”
“STOP IT!” Sarah screamed.
Both parents turned their attention to their daughter, and her eyes were flooded. Her father quickly walked to her, and he wanted to grab her to comfort his daughter, but he knew he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Seeing her father being the first to try to ease her pain made her question her mothers behaviour and true motives. Yet this was also a surprise, and showed just how much he truly cared for her despite the years of silence and avoidance. Her father bowed his head, and apologized, but it was barely heard, yet enough to impact Sarah. Sarah gazed at her mother, and saw a casual grin on her face, questioning her true nature.
“Mom… what’s with the grin?”
“My—grin? It’s nothing, my dearest daughter, I’m merely responding to your fathers behaviour that’s bringing amusement to me.”
Sarah carefully took some steps forward without coming close to her father. She slowly walked past him and gave her mother a face of confusion, uneasiness, but more importantly, discomfort. Sarah’s mother responded by lowering her arms and wiping the grin off her face.
“What is wrong with you?” Sarah said, mildly shaking her head. “Have you no shame? Treating your own husband like this?”
Sarah’s mother gasped and she scrunched her face in confusion. “Sarah, sweetheart, please, it’s not what it appears: I mean my attitude and demeanor.”
Sarah shook her head and slowly walked backwards. “Whatever… at this point, not even I know what’s real anymore—Just like my friend Jack feels.”
Her daughter took one last look at her father who for once, tried looking right into her eyes. This made Sarah shut them immediately and run away, leaving both parents alone. Sarah’s father let out a single tear and he too walked out of the room, hanging his head in shame. Samantha remained, alone to wallow in her own shame. Never has she experienced something like this: Rebellion from her own child. But it wouldn’t be right to call it rebellion when Sarah in fact had every right to feel the way she did. Samantha brought her gaze down to the book her husband had in hand. She went to it, picked it up and flipped the pages. She sighed and walked to Sarah’s bookcase, gently putting the book back in case.
She had paused and lowered her arm. “This feeling, it’s strange, and for once, this is a first for me.”
She couldn’t understand if this was guilt, shame, sadness, or something else. Yet she also can’t help but bring out half a grin, a twisted one at that. She flung her hair, made her way to Sarah’s bed and sat on it, rubbing the surface.
“Oh my loving essence of life… if only you would understand why I behave the way I do.” she giggled and transitioned it to a quick session of laughter. “I really am twisted aren’t I? Oh pity…”
She fell back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Her curtain of hair covering all of Sarah’s bed, with her arms spread out, her grin was gone and in place was her nonchalant nature.
“Whatever odds come against me, I will never have anyone, anything, take away my dearest creation… my adoring, lovable, and replica of my past, my Sarah.”
She lay there, basking in silence while her father went in search of his daughter. He was downstairs, looking to where she might’ve run off. Luckily he found her in the backyard, sitting on one of the wooden benches placed beneath their only tree. He quickly went to her, and within close proximity, he heard her soft whimpering. If there was an opportunity for a father to embrace their daughter from behind and tarnish the worries off her soul, this would be that time. Sadly, he can’t in conjunction with his dormant emotions. Instead, he loudly cleared his throat, and she heard it, which made her quickly wipe her eyes.
“Fa…ther?” she said, sniffing repeatedly, bringing her legs up and hugging them.
Her father walked to the side so she could see him enough. He looked straight ahead and deeply sighed. The sorrow and disappointment in his breath made Sarah realize just how much her father’s suffering. She wondered if she’s also to blame for his internal battles.
Her father put a hand on his hip, and embellished in the beauty of his backyard. “It’s… a beautiful day, isn’t it?”
Sarah’s eyes glistened as she hugged her legs tighter. “It… it sure is, father.”
There was a brief pause before Sarah’s father could say something.
“Sarah, I… I want to apologize for my actions. If-If you would just understand… un-understand my pain, then you’d realize why I behave the way I do towards your mother.”
Sarah closed her eyes for a moment before speaking. “Do… you-you—hate, mom?”
A deep wrinkle formed between his eyes, a glint cut through them as it thinned. “I absolutely… loathe her.”
His honesty, his tone, it made Sarah’s gut wrench in pain. She didn’t like the fact that her parents hated each other, but after seeing a glimpse of how they are when both are present and in anger, she wanted to seek the truth behind it. This sparked a new ambition in Sarah, one she hoped would bring them together and she can have a loving family as she always sought of having.
“Father… I think I have a new goal.”
“What would that be, Sarah?”
Sarah brought a tiny subtle smile, and looked to her father who stood like a true father figure. His glistening blonde hair shining from the sun's rays, his glamorous blue eyes that had a small twinkle of life in them, it more than motivated her to hopefully look into them and see them sparkle.
“That one day… not only can I look into your eyes, but—”
Her father softly gasped, and in slow motion, carefully brought his gaze to her, but only seeing her glistening pink lips. Her black hair and pale skin shoning, it was as if he were sent back in time, a time in which he and Samantha shared a similar moment like this.
“To hold you in my arms… and embrace the man who helped bring me into this world.”
In hearing her soft voice, her words echoing hope into his dark mind sparked a moment of happiness in his heart. For just a brief moment, his eyes twinkled and came back to life, and almost made him break down in tears. He quickly looked away, diverted his attention to the blue sky, and closed his eyes. Sarah smiled and also brought her attention to the sky, basking in the moment with her father as their bond was finally beginning to grow. This is the start and first step of Sarah’s ambition.
***
On the other side of town, Jack had just left the store he hated going into but promised to bring his sister after yesterday's oddness. During the whole time he was in, he couldn’t help but feel reminiscent of Alexandria. Apparitions of her imitating her favourite characters brought a smile to his face, but to then have it wiped from the haunting image of the diner in ruins and him facing her corpse. It brought a new weight on his shoulders. As he stood outside, and waited for Angela since she had to use the restroom, luckily the shop owners really liked the way she dressed and how adorable she was, they allowed her to use their bathroom: His phone rang and he reached into his pocket, seeing that it was just his uncle that was just calling.
“It looks like it’s time.” Jack flipped his phone open and put it against his ear. “Yeah? Is it time?”
Eric was with a dozen of his men, all were pretending to play streetball in new territory. “Yeah, I’ll text you the address and call you one more time before things get started. I’m going to make this call short, I’m in front of the house, and already, I know things are a little off.”
Jack nods, “Got it. Take your time, I’ll just finish up with Angela, take her home and drop her off.”
“Aight, text me when you arrive at the location. It’ll be a block away from my location but it should be a fourway street, and a perfect spot to see if anyone's in the mood to set up an ambush. That spot is perfect since the street I'm in has a dead end, and that fourway is the only way out.”
“I gotchu, uncle. See you in a bit.”
Jack hung up and so did Eric. While putting his phone away, Angela had just come out in the nick of time. She patted herself, and she looked not excited as she usually would be leaving this dumb store. She did have another bag with her, and Jack wondered why since he just bought her a new figurine. He raised a brow as she quietly walked up to her brother, stared up at him, and started shaking.
“You… okay, Angela?” he asked.
She lowered her head, reached into one of the bags, and pulled out what was in the second one. She shot it right in his face, her eyes twinkled with excitement. Jack backed off and Angela pumped her free arm with the bags around her elbows, looking as if she finally got an achievement.
“Oh yeah! I got it! Let's go!” Angela shouted as she paraded around Jack.
Jack watched his sister’s adorably acting while staying confused. “What did you get?”
She stopped and shoved it at his face again. “Okabe, acquired! This time it’s the “Mada Scientist” persona! At long last, I have all of my Stiens Gate collection complete.”
The way she pronounced mad scientist made Jack laugh. “And who gave you that doll?”
“Augh! Why I never! This is not a doll, mister! It is… art! And they gave it to me since they really dug into my taste of ‘true culture’ and outfit.”
Jack grabbed Angela’s hand and started dragging her. “Uh huh, did they? Whatever it may be, let's finish this conversation after I drop you off at home and pick up Eric.”
“Oh come on! Wait… you may be onto something, yes yes, it’s all according to the flow of time. We shall continue with uncle Eric as I enlighten ya with true art and culture, muhahaha!”
“Yeah yeah, let's get to the car Miss, mad scientist.”
Angela stuck her tongue out but giggled as she grabbed onto Jack’s arm. The two walked their way back to the car, hopped inside and were off. During their car ride it was quite noisy for Jack since Angela kept imitating this character she got for free. He’s seen a couple of them before, different poses, outfits, but this one was humorous to him from his pose. Before, Angela even said he resembles him a little bit, comparing their faces, but Jack being an evil twin of his. Remembering this thought made him roll his eyes but grin at the thought.
Seeing my baby sis like this really reminds me of Alex… damn. He thought.
To clear his mind, Jack started playing loud music to which she responded by poking at him, trying to get his attention again. It was annoying but it’s more than needed for him to keep his mind crystal clear for the time being. After a long drive of loud music, Angela’s singalongs, they arrived home, and Jack parked the car.
“Alright, I’ll be back. I’m going to go get uncle Eric, he needs a ride and some backup.”
Angela understood, and before getting out of the car, she reached into the bag, and pulled out that character. “If it’s Sern that you’re after, then you two give em hell!”
She backed away, did his same pose, and Jack saw an apparition of Alex beside her, which made him smile. Again she did another and laughed maniacally to mimic the character, and surprisingly, Jack didn’t hear Mallory’s voice in the laugh. Maybe it had to do with the fact that she’s much different than the original Angela as he thought. Jack gave his sister a thumbs up and she gave him a wave then kissed goodbye, walking back to the house.
“Alright, it’s showtime.” Jack said while putting the car in drive.
At the same time, he texted his uncle that he was on the road. Stopping at a redlight, he got a text back and it was the address he had to go to. Jack closed his phone and once the light turned green, he stepped on the gas. The location wasn’t too far, it only took Jack roughly twenty minutes to get there. On arrival, he parked the car a block away to make his presence more natural as a normal pedestrian taking a walk. While walking to the address, Jack saw the fourway intersection his uncle talked about and understood what he was talking about: It being a perfect ambush from all angles.
“So all I have to do is just chill near that bus stop, and bench area and keep an eye out for anything.” he said.
Jack didn’t have his jacket with him to conceal his firearm. So it was tucked behind his pants with his shirt doing the rest to hide it from the public view. Upon arrival at the bus stop, it was quiet. He tucked his hands into his pockets and took a glance at the area. The houses closeby appeared vacant, their infrastructure rotting away, some small corner stores having barely any customers, it appeared normal for an area like this. There were a couple of kids playing across the street, and another came around the corner riding his bicycle. Seeing them enjoy their youth despite the area they’re in gave more weight to Eric’s early statements told to Jack. He could’ve remained normal and enjoyed his early teenage years while Eric did the rest as a foster parent. Sadly, Jack’s mind was too corrupt from seeing the freedom and self relief of other young juveniles who joined gangs and looked to be the happiest.
“Hmph… enjoy it while it lasts, kiddos.” Jack said.
He took a seat on the bench and waited, watching anything that might look out of place, inconspicuous, or obvious for an attack. After waiting, watching the kids play, something did catch his eyes. A car, an old sedan that was right out of the mid 90’s came from around the corner, driving very slowly. Someone had their arm stuck out, and as it was getting closer to Jack’s view, he saw only two male drivers, both black. At first the young man shrugged it off, thinking they were no more than just showboating their nice old car. But as it was driving past Jack, they gave him a quick glance, and stopped for a moment.
What are they staring at? Jack wondered.
Jack pulled a cigarette out and lit it, looking away as he did. They started driving again, but much slower than before, and the young man could see the driver's suspicious gaze remain on him from his rear view mirror. That’s enough for the young man to reach into his pocket again to get his phone, and make a quick phone call to his uncle. It rang and rang until Eric answered.
“Yo, uncle.”
Eric was standing on the front porch of someone's home, his boys also keeping a lookout while they stood near their parked cars.
“Did you catch something off?” he asked while looking at one of his guards that stood at the edge of the porch.
Jack tossed away the cigarette. “Yeah, there was a black old car that just drove by, there were two guys who gave me an odd gaze, and I think you know I’m talking about.”
Eric nods, “Right, thanks for the info, I’ma send one of my bois over there now to see if they can spot it.”
“Gotcha, I’ll call back if it comes back.”
Jack hung up, and when he brought his eyes back to the street, the boy on the bike was staring at him. Jack titled his head, and the boy slowly raised his hand, waving to Jack.
Jack grinned, “Can I help you with something, kid?”
The kid rode his bicycle closer to Jack. “whatcha doing mister? You’re just sitting there, waiting for the bus?”
The kid was a young black boy, he had a fade from a popular rap artist that Jack’s seen getting popular from his demographic. He had a white long tee, and jeans, also wearing normal sneakers. The young man questioned why he asked that at first, but without giving it another thought, Jack got up from his seat and walked up to the kid.
“Yeah I am, now I suggest you go play with your friends over there instead of talking to a stranger. You don’t know who you’ll come across no matter if you’re being genuine.”
“That’s true, but you seemed approachable so I just wanted to ask since I’ve never seen you around this area.”
“Fair enough. Now, ride along. I’m not trying to be rude, but I’m the type of person that likes to be alone when he gets the chance to.”
The kid began peddling, “Understandable, see ya.”
The kid rode away, and Jack’s alone once again. He took a breath, and already, from the corner of his eye, he saw another car eerily pulling up, and park. This time it was a brown sedan, appearing like an old retired cop crown vic. Jack’s senses were firing up, and the young man caught on to the situation that was starting to unravel. He casually wandered around the bus stop, appearing to just grow impatient of the bus taking long to lessen his suspicion.
He reached into his pocket, dialed Eric, and waited for him to answer.
“Come on uncle, pick up.”
The phone kept ranging, and the black sedan returned, but parked a block away, then honked twice. In response, the other suspicious vehicle backed up, and drove away, and immediately, this brought a small panic to the young man.
“Eric… pick up.”
Jack dialed again, and another car drove from around the corner where the black sedan was parked now. It drove past Jack, and the young man can see a red and black handkerchief around the passengers and drivers wrists. He’s never seen these colours before and answered the assumption about the new gang in town. The car drove off, and disappeared into one of the streets. The kid with the bicycle returned, riding around the young man but Jack’s eyes were locked onto the black car.
“Eric, come one man.”
His impatience showed when he briefly gripped his gun. Smacking his lips, and dialing one more time, the kid with the bike stopped again, waving to Jack to get his attention once more.
“Hey, mister, could I ask you something else?”
Jack’s eyes remained on the car, “not now, and didn’t I tell you to take a hike? Go on, I ain’t playing. You shouldn’t be around here.”
“But mister…”
“Go kid, you’re starting to piss me off, it’s dangerous around here. Get moving.”
He did what Jack told him and rode away again. Finally, his uncle had answered.
“Uncle, we got a situation.”
Eric walked out of the home, and closed the door behind him. “My bad for answering late, meeting you know. And what now?”
Jack stepped forward, made his way into the open, and crossed the street to an empty sidewalk. “It appears the rumors are true. They’re here and are already plotting to take you guys by surprise.”
The kid with the bike was riding around Jack again, and this time, the young man was getting annoyed by his presence. But paid no mind to it and chose to ignore his annoying biking.
“There were three cars, but one remains, a black car with two men inside. They’re staring hard at me. I don’t know why since I’m not making myself stand out.”
Eric gripped his chin, “Hmm, they’re even smarter than we thought. Change of plans.”
As Jack stood, slowly pacing back and forth, making it seem like he was having a normal conversation on the phone, the men in the black car honked twice again. This made the other car drive again, parking closer to Jack’s location. They were at least twenty feet away now.
“You might wanna hurry uncle, I got a bad feeling about this. Time is ticking.”
The kid with the bike wanted to stop again but Jack gave him an angry stare, scaring him out of his stop. He bicycled away, and Jack brought his eyes back to the black car again.
“I think they’re on to me, uncle. I think it’s time I best leave this area.”
Eric made his way down the steps and indicated the rest of his boys to follow suit. Everyone started getting in their cars and once Eric went into his, he saw a suspicious vehicle from his rear view mirror that was creeping from the corner of the four way street.
“Yo Jack?”
“Yeah?”
“Did one of those cars look like an old Crown Vic, colour brown?”
“Yeah yea, that was one of the cars that drove past me and then out of sight.”
Eric stuck his hand out, telling his boys in sign language to go out and patrol their backs to check on the car. Half did and half remained, while they waited for their boss’s next move.
While Jack waited on his uncle's next move as well, that kid came back, but this time being awfully too close to Jack’s comfort. He circled Jack like a shark, and this made the young man lose his temper for a moment.
“Hey! What did I just say?” he mildly shouted.
The kid stopped, “that scar on your face… How did you get it?”
“Get out of here, what are you still riding around here for?! Go!”
The kid squinted his eyes but looked sad and rode off one last time. Jack grunted and when his eyes were on the kid that brief moment, bringing them back to the street, the black car was just fifteen feet from him. This made his heart race and he could see the two men eyeball him hard, and he knew that look in their eyes all too well. His street sense was screaming at him, telling him that it was time to bounce!
“Eric, I need back up now, get someone here or else I’m in a heap of shit.”
“I gotchu I gotchu, I’m on my way, you’re just down the block, right?”
Jack nodded. “Yeah, but hurry, they’re closing the gap and I’m pretty sandwiched alright at the moment."
“Stay on the phone, we’re driving to you now, give us one more minute aight.”
“Okay.”
Jack waited, his pacing grew slower, and the young man clenched a fist. His adrenaline began pumping, and his danger signals went off, the black car honked once, but one that lasted five seconds. This made the young man squint his eyes, scrunch his face, and once the horn let off, he heard a gun go off. He felt a sharp pain coming from his back, around his abdomen, which made him look down. He saw red spread where the pain was coming from along with an exit hole from a gunshot wound. The young man’s eyes pulsed, and he wiped the area, bringing his bloody fingers up to his face.
“What… the…?”
The young man turned around, and saw the kid with the bike with a gun in his hands, the tip of the barrel smoking as it was aimed at Jack. He looked traumatized and appeared to be hyperventilating. Jack’s eyes bugged out and he tried reaching for his gun but the kid started spamming the trigger, shooting Jack multiple times until the young man stumbled backwards and fell.
He lay there with his phone still in his hand, staring at the grey bleak sky. Eric heard the gunshots through the other side of the phone, and shouted for his nephew's name. The kid on the bike rode away, tearing up while the black car creeped its way to Jack. They parked, both men got out, one who looked like a normal citizen to society while the other guy looked more of what someone who presume to be in a gang. They watched as Jack gurgled on his own blood, and the black tar behind his body being drenched in crimson. They went back into the car, and drove away in a hurry. Jack could feel his life drain away again, and his vision became hazy.
“Jack! Jack! Yo, Jack!” Eric kept shouting.
Jack could hear his uncle shout his name from the other side of the phone. But the young man’s life was draining away as he lay flat. Blood flowed from the side of his mouth, and soon after, his grip gave out as the phone fell, bounced on the ground. Jack’s eyes became lifeless as the pool of blood grew bigger behind him. A church bell went off, and a white dove had landed on the bench, and gazed upon Jack's lifeless body.
A soft breath echoed into the empty subconscious of Jack Samr, and then was followed up by someone saying, “It is time, my child. Let the flow of time finally correct itself, but in the meantime, have a long rest, you need it, boy.” William said.
A deep wrinkle formed between his eyes and the mighty being took a deep breath before saying one more thing before clapping his hands to fix the error in time.
“Welcome back… to normality, Jack Samr.”