My desire, my… desire, my ambition, the thing I seek, was almost in my reach! Having found the man that I thought would succumb to this desire, not only met the criteria, but had all the attributes I needed to finish my goal; fell short and bleak, costing wasted time. Alas, he was nothing but a mere fool, a fool in which I had to control with my own hands. His love and devotion were meaningful, but his pride as a man was weak. I need more, more to reach my goal, the one thing I’m so envious of having, one all my colleagues have achieved or will do down the line!
A woman with raven hair, a gothic dress lathered in red glitter, stood on a hill, overlooking a small rural town down a river stream. The hills coated in the last essence of winter, making the air moist and chilly. Her eyes as crimson as the blood flowing inside her body, a small shone of the sun had hit her, turning her into a sparkling Angel of darkness. The woman raised her hand to the sky, letting the small light tan her chalk skin, and feeling the rays of the sun warm the palm of her reaching hand.
I’ve searched for a decade after betraying, damning, shaming, humiliating the man who desired me. It’s not my fault though, he didn’t have what it took to be the one I seeked, but…
The woman brought her gaze to the sky, raising her arms, reaching for the air, and closing her eyes. She felt nature coating her skin in a layer of chilliness. She slowly closed her hands, and abruptly reeled them, creating a chaos of wind blowing into the town, creating a fog of grey. The sky had turned dark grey, she opened her hands again, spreaded her arms as wide as she could, letting the sky cry tears of white. Nature called for her children to take shelter, animals taking cover inside the barks of trees as the woman stood amongst the blizzard chaos. She opened her eyes, smiling afterwards and brought her twisted gaze to the town, shooting her hands out to it, and bringing forth the destruction of the poor town. A landslide engulfed the town in a blizzard hell, creating wails of terror and pain that brought amusement to her ears.
One day I’ll find what I Envy so dearly, what I desire so intensely. And until that day comes, if I can’t find what I most want!
The woman’s smile turned upside down, and she looked depressed. “My burning desire will eventually turn me into the personification of a Sin…” She brought forth her hand to her face, staring at her palm, “and if I do, I’ll gladly scorch the earth until I get what I achieve.”
The wild blizzard consumed the area entirely, leaving her the only living being left amongst the white hell. She collapsed her hand, and looked to the sky once more.
I won’t let anyone get in my way, but if I happen to be stopped by a force stronger than me… then I’ll also be glad to accept the fires of hell that’ll welcome me with open arms.
“Even if that means burning for eternity.” The woman smiled and snapped her fingers, melting everything away and bringing back the life that was once there, but only nature, not anything man made. “It’s not my fault for thinking this way, I just can’t help it,” she giggled, “for now, I’ll continue forward. To seek my mission and hopefully to achieve… my dream!”
The woman spread her arms out, letting the earth below her feet raise her to the peak of the sky so she could taste the clouds. Her hair billowed with the freshness of the clear clouds, her desire cackled out, echoing its passion across the blue skies. She continued to laugh and laugh, until her laughter slowly transitioned into soft whimpers, letting the earth know of her true feelings for the desire she most seeks; one she hopes to achieve, someday.
***
The clouds continued to thunder, letting the town know of the storm coming. Linnea and Oskar ran out of the church, covering their faces from the intensity of the mysterious coming storm. Oskar glanced around, trying to find Jack while his sister called out for him. Oskar didn’t have time to be calling out and potentially lose another tourist. He ran around, searching for the young man that eventually led him to peek around the back of the church. There, he saw two people standing, almost ready to shake hands. Upon further glance, he saw it was Jack and the gorgeous woman that were about to shake hands.
“Oiy! Jack! Is that you? Stupid American!” Oskar shouted.
Jack quickly snapped out of his hypnotised state, and looked around, seeing the chaos. He lowered his hand and blinked confusedly. The roaring storm was brief to the young man, it mysteriously died down the moment the woman lowered her hand too and sighed. The young man appeared caught off guard as to why this happened, even giving the women a suspicious gaze.
Jack stepped away and got serious. “Okay, I don’t know what just happened, but! Mind telling me who you really are now?”
The woman glimpsed at Jack’s phone, still hearing the voice shouting to Jack. She was silent, glared back at the young man but again, sighed. She lowered her head momentarily, and as soon as her face was revealed again, she looked calm and happy.
“I already told you silly. I’m a researcher, one that seeks the answers of this specific religion.”
Jack wondered. Even in the brief moment he went empty, before that, she asked about the existence of Witches and more notably, that feeling of treachery that came out of her. When the young man wanted to ask more, Oskar came rushing to his side, grabbing his shoulder. He said something native which made the woman giggle and caught Oskar’s attention.
“Oh, sorry, didn’t mean to say that in front of you.” he said to the woman.
She flailed her hand to Oskar and wiped her eye. “That’s okay, no need to apologise, I was just having a small conversation with Jack.”
“During that weird storm that suddenly vanished?! Look, I’m for shooting your shot or whatever, but during what just happened a moment ago!” Oskar swirled his hand, “to me that’s crazy as hell.”
The woman shrugged. “I’m crazy, what can I say?”
Jack brushed Oskar’s hand off his shoulder, getting close to the woman again. “Hey…”
She grinned at Jack and placed her hands behind her back. “Yeah?”
Jack took a deep breath, “are-are you a… Witch?”
The woman stared in response to Jack. He felt a little regret asking her that question, feeling it was rude. It made him frown and moan. The two stared in silence while Oskar scratched his head and wondered what Jack asked her because his voice was too low for him to hear. The woman didn’t fade her grin, instead she expressed a more genuine smile to Jack. She placed her hand on his chest, and gently tapped it. The woman walked away without saying a word, Oskar watched as she vanished from around the corner of the church.
Jack turned around and was left flabbergasted. “I guess that’s a yes… maybe?”
Oskar grabbed Jack’s shoulder, and shook his head. “It’s okay Jack, handle your rejection like a man. I know, let's take a walk into the woods as I mentioned. That’ll help ease your mind.”
Jack groaned and looked at Oskar. “Rejection? What are you talking about?”
Oskar smacked his tongue, shaking his head again. “Damn, she rejected you that bad huh? Made you forget what it meant, what a shame.” Oskar let go and proceeded to walk to the trail that led into the woods, “now, let us—”
The device in Jack’s hand shouted, which made Oskar look around and feel spooked. Jack gasped loudly and walked off for a moment, telling Oskar he’ll be back in a minute. Oskar flailed his hands to the young man and waited for him.
Jack placed his phone against his ear, “William, why are you—?”
“You stupid idiotic, ah! You were this close to causing a horrific catastrophe, stupid bellend!” William grabbed his face and grunted, “how gullible of a man are you, really, my goodness…”
Jack was still confused on why William was angry at him and did all that shouting. “William, was she a Witch? Is that your reasoning for insulting me and—”
“Jack, just shut up, please… you have me stressed out. You know what, I’ll call you later, I need to cool off over your complete stupidity. I haven’t been this crossed since Archard came close to revealing our secret to the public back in the mid 2000’s…”
“But you said you'd only call me three times! You can’t just hang up, wh-what about me?! And your stupid trials, huh!”
William felt too crossed to even respond to Jack properly, instead he just grunted more and went back to his seat to self monologue while Jack listened.
“First it was my colleagues who made repeated mistakes for the past twenty years, created Sin, and funny enough… Witches and demons have given me less of a headache since 2004.” William dragged his hand across his face, “and now a stupid selfish doctor and his partner have tampered with the natural balance and this stupid boy can’t help but be a desperate gullible fool for the answers he seeks… believing anyone!”
Jack moaned in anger, “Uh, I’m still listening, and here, William…”
William chuckled and deeply sighed, “I don’t care Jack… You have no idea how much shit I’ve dealt with in the past 200 years. Fixing, solving solutions to the actions of—Man! Heh, it’s really sad.” He toned down his voice and massaged his forehead, “I’ll call you later, I need to take a breather before you really piss me off.” He stared at the screen and watched as Jack turned annoyed, “until then, please find a way to cool off that hothead of yours, Jacqueline.”
William had hung up, and the young man stared at his phone as it beeped. Jack felt annoyed, angry at him, feeling like William’s burdens weren’t comparable to his. Yet, Jack quickly realised that everyone has their own problems and William’s been alive a lot longer than he has. He’s seen more than Jack could ever think of, so the young man brushed his narcissistic feeling of pain away. He put away his phone and sighed, turning around to Oskar who stood at the entrance trail, talking to his sister who looked pissed off as well.
Once Jack got over to the two siblings she shot her finger at him, aggressively. “You, you’re done! You’re on your own after supper, you understand?”
Oskar intervened, dropping her hand. “Woah, no need to be so direct. We could’ve—”
“Okay, if that’s what you wish for, then I’ll leave once nightfall approaches.” Jack said, catching both siblings off guard. “If it’s to avoid any further trouble for you guys, then I’m not going to argue the outcome.”
Linnea dropped her angry face and Oskar remained chilled. She didn’t mean to come off so aggressively but the fact that Jack didn’t argue her outcome meant the young man had already seen this coming. She questioned if he’s used to this type of treatment or is he a runaway instead of being lost like he claimed to be?
Jack grinned at the two and nodded. “Say Oskar, show me the woods, I would love to learn to ease this anger I have within myself.”
Linnea puts her hand out before the young man can take another step further. “Jack, look I’m sorry, it’s just if Oskar lost you… then he would be a bigger laughing stock to our town. That’s why I said what I said…” Linnea said, sounding sad.
Jack understood her entirely, feeling sympathetic. “No need, I’ve caused a lot of trouble to a lot of people and it wouldn’t be fair to do the same to you two.”
Oskar tapped his sister's shoulder and proceeded forward into the trail. “We’ll discuss this later, let me show this man our wonderful nature, and teach him something about Peace.”
Jack waved to Linnea and followed behind Oskar. The two walked until they were no longer visible to Linnea’s sight. She hugged herself and turned around but got spooked because the woman with raven hair was standing behind her the whole time, eerily quiet. Linnea backed away and spoke natively to the woman, sounding to be upset with her. The woman didn’t say a word and continued staring deep into Linnea’s eyes, creeping her out. Again, Linnea repeated what she said, and finally, the woman responded by saying three words which made Linnea’s eyes bulge out.
Linnea panicked and backed away more. “No, it-it can’t be… I thought you were wiped out by—!”
“The Exorcists? Many were, but not me. You’re a sneaky girl, almost had me fooled. Reveal which belongs to my beliefs.”
Linnea scrunched her face and dug into her shirt, pulling out a necklace with two medallions. One represented Christianity, the other Witchcraft. This made the woman furious but at the same time, amused. She smiled at Linnea and Linnea let the two symbols dangle around her neck. She bawled her fists and swallowed, staring her down.
The woman clapped her hands twice and stepped forward. “You sneaky Esper. No wonder you travel around so much, it all makes sense. In fact, you want to know what else is funny? And this involves your brother too.”
Linnea furrowed her brows, “What? What are you talking about…?”
The woman giggled and tilted her head. “I’m the reason for all the disappearances of the lost tourists, that’s why.”
Linnea growled and felt ready to sock the woman in the face. “So it was you! You who made my people disappear!”
“Well it's not my fault you wicked Espers wanted to find out the truth to that town's vanishment. You all just kept coming and coming after me, one by one, getting in my way of my mission.”
“Oh! What could that possibly be?!”
The woman’s eyes gleamed malice and she got closer to Linnea but she stood her ground. “What I desire and what every woman dreams of having in the pursuit of happiness, my dear Esper…”
Linnea moaned but kept her cool. “I-I don’t care, you just leave my brother out of it, you’re the reason why he’s a town fool.”
The woman grew annoyed with Linnea, grabbing her arm. “Huh?! How is it my fault when it was You! Who planned such foolish beings to hunt me down!” She reeled Linnea towards her face, “you used your brother as a centre magnet to have them easily enter this heavy Chirstian environment.”
Linnea crushed her eyes and didn’t fight the woman's words. What she was saying was true, and it impacted her so much that it made her shed a tear.
“I-I did, and?!” Linnea pulled her arm away from her grasp and massaged it, “I didn’t know it was you until now, I had to investigate the matter.”
“Who’s side are you on?! You pray to both but seem more on the side of God than to the guardians that I pray to, Esper.” The woman grew suspicious of Linnea’s title and gripped her chin, “Wait, are you even an actual Esper? Or are you just their messenger girl?”
Linnea frowned and looked away. “Th-That’s none of your business…”
The woman rubbed her chin and circled Linnea to analyse her hypothesis. “Hmph, so you are just a messenger. I can’t feel anything within that body of yours; no mana, no energy, nothing… what a shame, had me pumped for a second.”
Linnea stayed quiet while the woman grew tired of their conversation. She yawned and walked up to Linnea again, grabbing her hand and staring up to her.
“If you were one of them then I wouldn’t be able to touch you this easily without some sort of retaliation, right? But if there’s one thing you did correct today, then it was telling that boy Jack to leave your house.”
Linnea gasped, “What do you mean, good thing?”
The woman held Linnea’s hand with both of her tiny hands and massaged it. “It’s exactly what I just said, girl. He’s bad news, very bad news, a feeling of sorrowed darkness like no other—but!” The woman’s eyes glowed and Linnea could feel her hand grow hot, “I’m much worse than any nightmare you’ve ever dreamed of… be glad you weren’t one of them but just their stupid lookout/messenger!”
Linnea pulled her hand away and rubbed it, watching as the woman’s eyes glowed hotter. Her hair shot up, fire erupted around the edges, and eventually her body was engulfed by the inferno. The intensity of the fire and rays of the heat made Linnea cover her eyes, and once she felt the chilly air of Norway touch her face again; as she opened her eyes, the woman had vanished.
Linnea grabbed her chest and shed another tear. “A Witch that uses flames, is the worst of them all; the most dangerous and evil of their kind…” Linnea grabbed her medallions and stuffed them back into her shirt, “I’m sorry, brother for using you.”
***
On the dirt trail, walking amongst a heavy fog, a draughty breeze sending chills across the body of Jack but not affecting Oskar, both men were on their way to a spot where Oskar loved to sit and bask with nature. Oskar walked over big root lines of trees with ease without looking while Jack tripped more than twice throughout the walk. During their now ten minute nature walk, Oskar hasn’t said a word, rather, it was Jack making all the noise because of his clumsy nature. He felt tired, out of breath, the cold was mainly beating him down more than the walk itself. Oskar paused for a moment and brought his sight to some bushes to his left.
Jack stumbled on another thick tree branch, “Damn it… hey, Oskar, where are we going, exactly?”
Oskar turned around to Jack and pointed to the bushes. “Follow me and you’ll find out.” he went into the bushes, pushing through them and disappeared.
Jack hugged himself and followed, pushing through the bushes and what revealed to him was a haunting sight of beauty. It was a small spot, but the area that it overlooked made the young man speechless; he could see the side of mountains, endless trees that were either skeletons or barely nourishing with the harsh climate. A cold spring streamed in front of them, never has Jack seen water this clear before. He could see his reflection just from where he’s standing. Gazing to the sky, Jack could see the eeriness of it; the tainted blue sky filled with streams of grey with darkened clouds of concrete scraping the last essence of blue.
Jack stepped forward and felt the wind more clear, the air fresher in this spot, which made him take in a huge breath. “Wh-Where are we? It-it’s absolutely breathtaking.”
Oskar too breathed in all the air his lungs could hold, spreading his arms out. “I know, wonderful isn’t it? This is my spot of peace and freedom, I like to call it—” Oskar brought his arms out forward, “Dystopia!”
Hearing the name he’d given the spot made Jack give him a look of pity. “That-That was lame, I was expecting something cooler to be honest. Like something in your language of some sort?”
“Oh fuck you American, at least I’m not crazy and talks to some weird contraption, haha!”
Jack rolled his eyes but chuckled alongside Oskar. The two men stared into the heart of nature, feeling cleansed of their sins, but Jack quickly frowned, feeling his sorrow return. He couldn’t help but imagine doing this with his sister before her strange behaviour, and especially, with his friends he cared for.
Oskar can see the cloud over the young man's head. “Are you reflecting there, my friend?”
Jack kept quiet, keeping his gaze upon the trees and landscapes. He walked forward the crystal clear water and dug one of his hands into it, feeling his hand freeze. He ignored the frost pain and lifted a scoop of water, watching as it drizzled off and between his fingers. Jack for some reason, felt as if he’s done this before, but not in his dreams that he remembers, nor any recent supernatural events; instead it was like he’s done this in another life. It started to rock his mind, vibrate it and bring him down to a knee which made Oskar go to him.
“Hey hey, you okay? What's gotten into you as of lately?” Oskar asked, lifting Jack back to his feet.
Jack rubbed his head and stared at his freezing palm. “I-I don’t know…” it trembled and twitched, “this place, it-it almost feels like I’ve been here before, but why?”
“Oh Jack, I don’t know what type of drunk you are but whatever it is it sounds better than Heroin.” Oskar chuckled.
Jack dropped his hand and stared forward, and the word flashed black and white; seeing the forest covered in a deep snowy hell. Trails of smoke come out of the corner of his eyes, engulfing the area and turning the trees into ash. Jack blinked and saw his arm reach out, but tar and had blood pouring from his veins. This made Jack go into a panic, and Oskar had enough of the young man's delusional weirdness. He smacked Jack and that was enough for him to come back into reality.
“Ouch… that really stung, Oskar.” Jack said, rubbing his cheek.
Oskar shook his head and wrapped his arm around the young man's shoulders. “Okay, I think it’s time we teach you something I like to call, Fred!”
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“F-Fred? Who’s that…?”
“No no, it’s pronounced, F~R~E~D!”
Jack lifted a brow, “F-r-e-d…?” he repeated but in doing so made Oskar laugh his butt off. “What? Di-didn’t I pronounce that right? What does it even mean anyways.”
Oskar shot his arm into the woods, “It means peace in my beautiful language, my friend!”
The young man replied with an unmeaningful “Oh…” that hurt Oskar’s pride as a Norwegian. This made Oskar less enthusiastic about teaching Jack about peace but putting his pride aside, he felt that it was necessary to teach a youngster like Jack to not stress himself so much. With only knowing him for about a day, already, in that span Oskar has concluded that Jack has serious mental issues besides anger and stress. This also reminded him of his own problems with the town mocking him, getting on the same level of stress and delusion as the young man. The only advantage Oskar had over Jack was years of experience and this spot to relax his ageing mind.
Oskar again took a breath and before saying anything, scooped one of his hands into the water stream. “Alright Jack, first lesson,” he held the water the best he could but almost all of it fell or slipped through the cracks of his thick fingers. “You see how still I was, but the water continues to pour?”
Jack’s eyes were on that water like a kid window shopping for toys. “Yeah, what about it?”
Oskar raised his hand and swung it at Jack, splashing water at his face.
“Hey!” Jack shouted, wiping his face.
Oskar wiped his hand while chuckling, “That’s your mind as it floods with all the stress you put yourself into.”
Jack wasn’t amused about having water being thrown at him without warning. But the young man kept his cool to hear Oskar’s advice. He's heard many but to the contrary, have never held any weight or given him enough motivation to take after their lessons. Being in a spot like this definitely personified this first lesson, due to the fact he showed an example of his actual flooded mind.
“I guess you’re right… I do stress myself, but for good reason!”
Oskar sighed, “but not for everything you dunce. Look—’ he scooped his hand again but this time raised his hand without keeping the water in hand. “You see how I allowed the water to freely fall, by doing that I let go of the problems and allowed myself to embellish in a peace of mind.”
Jack felt like a child with Oskar’s demonstrations. “Meh, you wouldn’t understand the situations I'm going through…” Jack then murmured a thought into the back of his mind he’s always stabbing himself with, Even if I told you, you wouldn’t understand.
“Jack, I don’t have to understand or have you tell me a sob story; we all have a story to tell, whether it's the most depressing, agonying, perhaps the worst story to be told!”
Oskar placed his hand on Jack’s broad, stiffed shoulder.
“But what if it tops all of the above, Oskar?” Jack asked, sounding upset.
“You know, stories told either by relatives, parents, or things you’ve watched on your box television by people with extraordinary lives…” Oskar dragged his hand down Jack’s arm, tapping it. “...Have gone through hell to get to where they’re at.”
Jack understood where Oskar was coming from, but he felt conflicted about his lesson. His life is a perfect example as to why he can’t just take in his advice; the hell, the pain, never ending conclusions have all given him a reason to never have the time to relax and deal with his inner demons.
The young man turned to the water, watching the stream flow. “Oskar… I’m sorry, but even your advice won’t change my mind.” Jack rose his eyes to nature once more, “the roads, turns I’ve dealt, overcome, but having a new roadblock to get around with at every stop; the life I’ve lived thus far has given me justification to keep this stressful state.”
Oskar felt the impact of the young man's words that came out of his steamy breath. Just the tone alone in his voice sounded like a man who’s faced and even experienced death alone. With that, Oskar has concluded to end his lessons of peace and leave the young man to deal with his demons. Only Jack alone could face them because no matter how many lessons or examples that Oskar might show him or what he says, it’ll never change his current state of mind.
Oskar spotted a rock and walked over to it. He sat on it and stared at nature for the time being. Jack wondered why he got quiet and decided to sit down. The young man walked up to him and came close to asking something but Oskar quickly shot his finger against his mouth. He quietly shushed Jack and pointed at the scenery, advising the young man to do the same. Jack grunted but understood his new friend, he too sat down just four feet away from Oskar. He watched alongside his new friend, quietly reflecting on his life, thinking of what will happen once he gets kicked out tonight. Yet despite the last bad thought, he understood and felt better about the decision, enough for him to close his eyes and listen to the water flow and birds chirping into the cold sky.
The two men sat in silence, basking with nature, feeling the cool damp air bristle against their faces and hands. This went on for fifteen minutes until Oskar got up and let out a huge yawn, stretching as much as he could. He placed his hands on his hips and nodded to the forest, turning around to the bushes from where they came out of. Jack hadn't noticed yet, he was close to falling asleep, that was until Oskar whistled loudly with his fingers. It made Jack’s eyes explode and almost fall backwards. The young man looked over his shoulder and saw Oskar mocking him, then he winked at Jack and instructed him to follow suit. The young man grinned and got up, patting his pants and before walking off, taking one final look to the forest, not without another flash of that earlier illusion disrupting it. He quickly shook his head and followed Oskar, saying goodbye to the spot.
As the bushes tumbled, settled with both men disappearing behind its thickness, a shadow lingered towards it. In the reflection of the clear water, a sea of red drafted in, and behind it was a woman's face. She stood at the other side, near the edge, her red dress glittering and shone on the water. She stepped into the water, making it sparkle as she walked on it to get to the other side. Reaching where the two men were, stepping out of the water without a drop or stain of wetness on her gorgeous romantic red dress, the woman in red removed her red hood and revealed her mesmerising hair of personified blackness.
She gently rose her hand and blew a kiss in Jack’s direction, and murmured, “Goodluck to you, Jack… May God bless you, and Sarah,” and by saying that, a powerful gust of wind blew in his direction, fluttering her hair and dress.
It was brief but powerful, enough for the two men who were walking back to the church to quickly look back at the direction. They saw the trees settle back in place while snapping, creaking from its violence. Jack felt something hot touch his cheek which made him rub it and raise a brow. Both men wondered what that was but were quick to rub it off and continue back on their walk. The woman in red expressed a gentle yet wicked smile and gently pulled her red hood back over her head. She collapsed her hands, said a prayer and turned to red sparkle dust, being blown away by the breath of nature.
***
It’s almost nightfall, a new night was brewing and the three were back at Oskar and Linnea’s place, sitting by the fire and enjoying coffee with steamed buns. Earlier in the day when they got back to the church, meeting up with Linnea, they noticed how strangely spooked she appeared. Her brother asked numerous times what happened throughout that duration of them being gone but she would never answer but instead scolded him for losing Jack. When Jack asked she shoved him and called him a jackass which made him grunt in annoyance. Eventually, they stopped asking when their taste buds called for food, which worked in Linnea’s favour.
From then on, all they did was explore the town, Linnea explained more about the heavy Chirtian culture that ruled their town. That topic made Jack ask himself about that strange woman who looked like Sarah on her telling him about Witchcraft being connected to the town. He wanted to ask Linnea but thought it wouldn’t be appropriate since he’s already been getting on her skin too much, or so it seems to Jack. Towards the end of getting lunch, being toured through town, Jack was enjoying himself and actually felt sad about getting kicked out to a world he’s still not used to. He questioned how he’ll get through William’s trial to get back to his time, but for now, the young man wanted to embellish this new memory he’s sharing with the two siblings and for once, felt some sort of peace.
The thought of him experiencing this peace made him laugh out of nowhere, which made the two look at him crazy. The two siblings looked at each other, shrugged and also giggled.
“What’s so funny, my American friend?” Oskar said.
“Yeah, what’s humorous enough for you to laugh like that? Have you no shame, disrupting this Fred!”
Jack set his coffee on the coffee table in front of him and rested his arms on his lap. “Sorry, it’s just the thought of what Oskar said earlier that came to mind.”
Oskar clapped with excitement and pumped his fist. “Ooo, don’t tell me you’re actually taking my advice?!”
Jack nods in response to his happiness. “Yeah… I am my friend.”
Linnea glanced at the two, as if they were childish. “What are you two talking about?”
The young man stared at the fire as it crackled and gleamed off his eyes, feeling his inner rage deflating. “Peace…” he said.
Oskar sipped on his coffee and nodded repeatedly, feeling proud of himself. “Oh yeah, your brother did something right after all. And! I didn’t lose him, eh eh? What do you say to that, my dear sister?!”
She gave him a cold stare as she sipped her coffee, “Yeah, you almost lost him twice but you know, I’m just a petty bitch afterall.”
Oskar lay back on his seat, disappointed in his sister's words, but couldn’t help and chuckle at her brutal face. “Ah fuck you! I still love you though.
Linnea remembered the woman's words echoing in her mind, feeling guilt puncture her stomach. She fought the feeling and overcame them to smile back at her brother and raise her mug to him.
Linnea brought her mug forward to Jack’s line of sight. “I love you too, brother. You know I’m always proud of you for always trying.”
Oskar also did the same and both siblings tapped their mugs. “To a better future, and to our new friend who we’re sadly saying goodbye to.”
Both siblings looked at Jack who still had a grin on his face. He embedded this scene into his mind, hoping to not forget these two for being so kind to him in a place that’s alien to him.
Jack grabbed his coffee mug and joined in their salute, tapping theirs. “Yeah, cheers to a better future.”
All three were enjoying themselves, sipping and rejoicing near the fire until Jack’s phone rang. He deeply sighed and set the mug down, telling the two siblings he’ll be back before saying goodbye. Oskar swirled his finger near his dome to call him cuckoo, and Linnea replied by raising her thumb to him. Jack walked and got out the front door, closing it behind him and pulling out his phone.
He flipped it open and answered, “Yes William?”
William was also sipping coffee and looked to be in a better mood. “Jack Samr, I’m glad you’re in a better mood from what I’m seeing.”
“Yeah, I am. Say William, about earlier, my bad if I angered you that much.”
William was surprised to hear Jack apologise to him, enough for him to raise his mug to the screen. “What’s this? The boy of a million problems has a sense of accountability?! How magnificent! And I assume that it was all in the hands of one of your new friends?”
Jack grins. “You can say that, but they’re kicking me out… so I feel a little bummed out about it. But despite their decision, I think it’s for the best given my track record of bringing problems.”
William nodded to Jack’s statement, but not without feeling the opposite of his made up mind. “Well, I say that’s good for both parties, but one of those siblings is trouble, believe it or not, Jack.”
“Really, how so? They both seem normal to mee, can’t be Linnea. Unless you’re talking about Oskar’s problems with tourists.”
“Nope, it’s something completely different, a deeper problem, but this isn't your time. So I won’t tell you who, rather I’ll leave you to guess.”
Jack hates it when people tease him or don’t reveal the issue at hand. It made him roll his eyes but didn’t bother to ask further.
“Okay, I know this is our last phone call, so what are we going to discuss? A better explanation of the trials going forward, or perhaps answering more about earlier.”
“Hmm, I think I will continue our discussion from earlier. I’d rather let the trials speak for themselves than have me spoil everything.”
Jack coughed and thought it would be better for him to sit on a nearby bench rather than stand like a suspicious drug dealer waiting to sell to another lost soul. In a couple of steps he went to the closest bench and sat down. He was seated beneath a street lamp, allowing him to see the warmth inside of him being breathed out.
“Alright William, please explain more about these Sins or at the bare minimum, give me a glance into it rather than a glimpse.”
William smiled and was more than happy to explain each Sin that man has committed through their dawn of existence.
“Gladly…” William cleared his throat, “remember when I told you about you meeting a holder of Sin?”
“Yeah…?” Jack replied, nervously.
“That woman, one day will turn into the embodiment of Envy; The feeling of insatiable desire.”
“Wh…at? She’s a Sin?! But doesn’t everyone Sin? Especially someone like me?”
“Of course Jack, but there are special cases… horrific unnatural ones that throw balance off our world. Great catastrophes made by people who become the very embodiment of these particular Sins! And when one person transforms into this curse, they’re humanity 80% of the time will be no more.”
Jack lay back on the bench, “that sounds wicked, but that 80%, you’re telling me some people are able to keep their sanity even becoming such repenters?”
William stared at the screen, seeming to be in a trance of remembrance. He gently blew air out his nostrils and also lay back on his chair, sighing, but not just an ordinary sigh, it was one filled with regret.
“I’ve seen it first hand Jack, when it tears their minds apart… or in rare cases as you said, the person is aware.”
“That sounds worst in my eyes. How many people in history have become these so-called holders of Sin, specifically Envy?”
“In our current time, she’s the only one to exist as far as I’m aware. But in our existence, there have been a total of five with two of those being repeated.”
Jack’s intrigued by this, and wonders who they might be. Co-could you say the Sins that have caused chaos.”
William was hesitant at first, but grinned. “I won’t tell you who they were, that’s something personal I wish to not discuss. But I’ll gladly name the Sins that have brought the world to its knees. “William raised his hand, “The first to was Greed, repeated again two hundred years later, then Pride, Sloth, and lastly, the woman.” And with each saying of these sins, William lowered each finger, crushing his hand with anger.
“So Greed was repeated twice, then Pride, Sloth, and now, Envy…” Jack wanted to ask about the other three sins.
It was very interesting for him to learn this and come to understand the existence of people like William. Yet more questions rose from the spirits he encountered, people who were dead but came back to talk to him, demons, and much more. All this was fascinating to Jack, it made him want to explore more of these Sins and actually made him believe in God if all this was true, but his hatred for him for leading him down this road still stayed despite the evidence. If William’s here to help him not only make his life normal again, and get rid of the girl, in Jack’s mind, that would make William God and not the one everyone believes in including the Exorcist.
“Has every Sin almost made the earth come to an end, as you say, William?”
William lowered his hand and went into another trance, hearing screams, laughter, and scorching infernos rattling his eardrums. He blinked and rubbed his chin, sighing his past away.
“No… just three of those have, but one event did destroy reality that you were oblivious to. Though that’s something I can’t speak about, it hits home and I’m still trying to get over it.”
Hearing this made the young man shiver in terror, and wondered when that happened. The fact William said the world has come to its end many times and actually did meet its end eventually made the young man question if she was better off killing off the human race, seeing as they were to blame for all these unnatural occurrences. Feeling sick to his stomach, the young man decided to change the subject back to the topic of the woman who he encountered earlier today.
“So the only holder of Sin alive today is that Woman?” he asked, fighting his bowls and swallowing to beat it.
William returned his grin and let out air. “She hasn’t turned yet, but not even I! Have met this bearer of Envy, my dear boy.”
Jack’s confused now, letting out a “Hagh?” and getting off the bench for a moment. “But how? So you’re telling me I’ve met the first one before you have?”
“No no, that’s not true. We’ve both encountered her, but her actual true self, the nature of her Envious maliciousness has yet to come out for us to bear witness the wicked existence of that woman!”
Hearing this made Jack more afraid of the woman, seeming relieved and thankful for Oskar for stopping him from shaking her hand. “Holy fuck…” he said, which made William clear his throat loudly. “Oh sorry, but has anyone ever met her? The actual entity of Envy?”
William chuckled, “Yes, in fact you’ve already met him.”
“Wh-Who?”
“My dear friend and right hand partner, Archard, alongside our five other members.”
Jack gasped loudly, surprised to hear that there were others beside the two. “Woah, wait wait, there’s five more of you guys?!”
William nods and chuckles beneath his breath. “You have much to learn and see my dear boy, but yes. There’s not only just five more but many. A total of a hundred spread across the world.”
“You’ve-You’ve got to be joking… so… they’re just as powerful as you two, who amongst those one hundred are the strongest?”
William’s eyes glared and he stood on his feet, grabbing his cane. “No one is as powerful as I, Jack Samr. I'm not just an Exorcist hired by those two daft fools who’ve made your life complicated, but I am their leader and founder.” He pointed his cane to the screen with Jack turning pale, “I am the most powerful being to ever exist in reality besides God and his Son! I am William H. Christ the Sixth, the bestower of balance and an apostle to God!”
This made Jack’s heart race tenfold, feeling his powerful words strike his eardrums and hitting his brain a dozen times over. Jack was afraid of William already, but after hearing all this, and truly understanding the magnitude of his status and power, it made his fear for William a permanent feeling.
Jack slowly sat back down and grabbed his head, “How can someone like you exist? It just doesn’t make sense… you’re like something out of a fictional book, the shows my sister watches, and the comics she reads.”
The young man scratched his head and really thought to himself that there was no other way of beating this guy other than to follow his commands, and every action. This made him so upset that it actually made Jack throw up, feeling all the other problems seem miniscule compared to William.
William felt he got too carried away and lowered his cane, shaking his head in amusement. “Sorry for scaring you more, Jacky boy. And I don’t blame you for throwing up, it’s not the first time someone reacted like that to my existence.”
Jack wiped his mouth and gagged. “It-it’s not only that, it’s the fact there’s no way in hell I-I can take you on or find a way to beat you… it’s sickening to think there’s not a chance of beating someone so unfair.”
William laughed and sat back down, slapping his knee. “If there’s one thing I like about you Jack is that attitude of yours. You’re strong and blunt!”
“Yo-You’re giving me too much credit here…”
“Perhaps, but what you still have wrong Jack is that I’m not the villain here. I’m far from it; yes I introduced myself a bit too aggressively, but Jack… I really am here to help not only your mentality, your life, but that girl who’s seemingly made your existence a blackened hell.”
“You mean… Ma-Mallory?” Jack murmured.
“Oh, is that what she calls herself, hm. Nevermind that, listen Jack, there’s more to her than meets the eye. She’s no ordinary apparition, she’s—”
Suddenly, Jack’s phone cut out and beeped. The young man looked to the screen and saw it static, leaving him troubled. He closed it and reopened it, and redialled his previous call, but it did the same thing again.
“What the hell just happened? Why did it cut out, no no no… he was about to tell me more! Why-why did it cut out!”
Feeling troubled about the situation, he rubbed his forehead and got up, looking up at the street lamp. He felt bitter and angry about the phone, so much so he wanted to break it, slam it even on the ground. But his mind quickly told him that this was the only scapegoat to solving the powerful man's trials. His only tool to get back to his timeline. Jack walked away, going back inside to the siblings home who saw his distraught face. Linnea was just collecting the mugs and Oskar was reading the paper.
She got the last mug and approached Jack. “Everything alright? You look more upset than ever before.” she felt that it was her fault, mainly for kicking him out into the cold to wander without a guide. “Listen, you-you don’t have to go tonight, you can stay here…”
Jack slightly grinned and walked over to her to tap her shoulder. “No, that’s okay. I appreciate your change of heart, but it’s best I leave.”
Oskar set his paper down and deeply grunted. “Oh boy, something's ruffling your feathers and it has nothing to do with my bitchy sister's decision.” He looked to Jack, concerned again for his mentality. “What’s wrong, my friend?”
The young man kept his composure and grin, glanced at the two, feeling sad to say goodbye. It was for the better though, he can’t allow the two to get into his business and potentially have them caught up in the shithole he’s dug himself in.
“You worry too much for someone you’ve only known for two days, Oskar. And Linnea, I’m sorry for causing trouble for your brother, thank you, both of you for your hospitality.”
Linnea sighed and smiled. “I’m sorry for acting too bitchy. Are you sure you’ll be okay? You said you’re lost, I don’t want to hear bad news about you.”
“I’d rather it be that way than have your brother be blamed for my disappearance. Besides, I’ve been in worse situations than being lost in some town. I’ll be okay, I’ll find my way back to my group.” Jack said.
Oskar got up from his comfort and went up to the young man, giving him a bro hug. “He’ll be okay Linnea, this young boy’s seen hell like no other. He has the eyes of a dead man, this might be for the best of his fucked up mind.”
Jack gently pushed Oskar off, “Hey…” all three laughed and the young man nodded to them both. “I won’t forget you two. I’ll be telling my friends about this and my sister as well. Your kindness will not be forgotten.”
The two then hugged Jack and said something in their language. When he asked what it meant, the two let off, Linnea’s eyes sparkling and Oskar’s smile giving off light, in unison they said, “May God Bless You!” It made him smile and feel less stressed about his situation. Their blessing sounded meaningful and left such an impact that it made Jack almost quiver with nervousness. He played it cool and waved to the two, walking back to the door and before leaving, he took one last look at them. They both waved at him and he turned around to the dark town street, closing the door behind him.
“Goodbye, you two.” Jack walked off, about fifteen feet away, but Linnea quickly came out, shouting his name. “Yeah?!” he shouted back.
She reached into her shirt, pulled out the Christian medallion and stared at it. “He might need this more than I do…” she muttered, closing her hand on it and praying something as Jack stood in the dark wondering.
Jack was about to shout again until he saw her throw something and he quickly caught it. He looked at it near a street lamp and saw the holy relic glisten. Once his eyes were back to Linnea, she had already walked back inside, leaving him alone to ask what she just threw to him. Seeing that it was something belonging to the church, he was surprised to not have his hand burning, but quickly realised this only happened to items belonging to people like William. Jack smirked and tucked the good luck charm into his pocket and walked off into the night, and didn’t look back for a while.
He wanted to look back one more time, feeling so thankful for them. He had to, just to pay more respect and to never forget them, but once he did, he saw someone standing beneath the street lamp where he was sitting on the bench, talking to William before mysteriously being cut off. He wondered who it was, but couldn’t make out the shape. Whatever they were wearing, it sparkled brightly beneath the yellow light. He squinted his eyes and once he blinked, they vanished, which made him produce a loud, “Tch…” and he returned back to his walk.
As he reaches the edge of the town, he’s once again back on the dirt trail that leads up to the church. “Where do I go now… I’m back to square one. And it’s still cold as shit,” he reached into his pocket, flipping open his phone. “William, what the hell happened.”
The young man stared at his phone, waiting to see if it'll change or ring at the least. Then, it came to him, a thought which made him sweat and almost go into a panic.
Hold up… he said he’d only call me three times! Which means, I’m-I’m stuck, and he won’t talk to me until I solve this trial!
“Damn it all…” Jack muttered. “What the hell do I do now man, what could this first trial possibly be!”
The young man tried redialling William but to no unveil, it went static. He angrily closed his phone, repeated this process five more times until his attention was caught by two outlined figures lurking within the darkness, walking up the hill. He raised a brow and quietly put his phone away, seeing who it might be. Jack followed the two shadows and upon further observation, he recognised who they might be.
“It’s those two edgy guys… the one with black hair and the blonde one.”
He questioned what they were doing out at this time of night, alone. He made sure they couldn’t catch him as he followed them up the hill because once they got the chance to stop just for a moment, they would scan their surroundings. So he hid near trees and bushes to stay hidden. Jack followed and followed until the blonde one ran ahead of the black hair teen, leaving alone but not on purpose. It appeared he was running ahead to get something from how the black haired one pointed and said something in their language. He stood there and looked to be waiting on a cue from the blonde teen.
The young man was hidden in the shadows of darkness, behind some trees and hoping bush to bush. “What are they up to? Where's the other guy?” Jack whispered.
This went on for almost fifteen minutes of Jack staring and the one teen standing, practising air guitar. Finally, something happened, a whistle was created to which he responded by quickly running up the hill, disappearing from the horizon out of Jack’s sights. The young man quickly ran after his tail, but soon after, he accidentally tripped, falling on his arm. He quickly got up and once he patted himself down, he heard a whisper in the wind, making him erratically glance around. They whispered, “Jack…” and it was the voice of a soothing mature woman, one he’s heard of before. It made him breath heavy and prepare himself for anything supernatural, but as that voice quickly came, it vanished away.
“What the hell was that?” Jack said, walking back to the main trail. “Not now not now, I was just on their asses. Fuck, I hate being caught off guard like that.”
The young man rubbed his arm and brought his gaze forward and saw hellfire being spawned from the horizon of the hill. The fire reached into the black sky, puffs of black smoke going into the atmosphere of the once clean air now being polluted. Jack ran up the hill, as fast as he could, and once he reached the top, he saw the church in a fiery blaze. He couldn't believe his eyes; the place that was beautiful and awe inspiring was being burnt to a crisp. He felt livid by this site, he wanted to find out who did this and lord and behold, his eyes were set on a familiar backside, that being the teen with black hair throwing up devil horns and basking in the glory of the church burning.
“Hey!” Jack shouted to him, making the teen turn round to face him, “what the hell have you done?! Why-why would you vandalise and do this to your town's only relic of prayer?!”
The teen looked displeased seeing Jack but also appeared afraid, concluding that he was caught and being ratted out. He said something in his language and flipped Jack off, most likely cursing at him. Jack was angry and approached him, balling his fists and the teen readied himself, getting into an noobie fighting pose. Quickly he rushed Jack like a bagger, but the young man dodged and kneed his abdomen, bringing him to a knee.
Jack grabbed him by the collar of his leather jacket, bringing him up to his face and seeing black makeup on it. “What are you dressed as, a clown?!”
The teen replied, heavily grunting as he tried fighting Jack’s intense grip. The young man replied also by punching him in the abdomen and throwing him on his butt. The fire grew more intense, blowing hot air at the two as wood began to fall on the ground. Jack covered his face and the teen tried getting up but he was groaning in pain from Jack’s power punch. The young man didn’t want to kill him, instead capture him to show the people of the criminal behind this arson.
The hot air blew Jack’s clothes as he towered over the teen who grew in a panic. “I knew you were fishy the moment I bumped into your friend. I know bad people the moment we meet eyes.” Jack took a step forward, the teen panicked and crawled away as fast as he could, “not so tough now like you were doing back at the shop, right?”
The teen raised his hand, stopping Jack in place. He began pleading to Jack, which made him smack his lips. Once Jack was about to take another step, he felt something hit his back, which made him cringe in pain and stumble forward. He turned around to the ground, seeing it was a rock that was thrown at him.
“Who did that? Son of a…” Then his eyes locked onto the teen with blonde hair, glaring back at him with a gasoline can in his hand. “I can’t wait to get my hands on you too!”
The blonde teen didn’t respond and instead spun around, giving momentum to his arm and throwing the can at Jack. Jack got to the ground and the can hit the burning building, rupturing and erupting a small blaze that headed towards them. The black haired teen got up and ran away as fast as he could to avoid being burnt alive, but Jack didn’t allow him to get far. He grabbed the rock and threw it at him, plunging him back on the cold ground face first. The blonde teen went to Jack throwing a punch and landed one. Jack retaliated, giving him a huge uppercut that made him fall on his back.
Both teens groaned and Jack stood on his feet while the hellfire behind him was at its peak, turning the sky darker and raining ash. “I’ll make sure you two are caught and get the proper justice you deserve for doing this.” He glanced at the blonde teen who got up to a knee, “you on the other hand, you’ve got the eyes of a future killer. I think it’s best you get the bigger blame for this than your scrawny friend.”
The blonde teen brought his head up, glared into Jack’s dead eyes and ground his teeth. Jack deeply sighed and started approaching him. As he did, another rock was thrown at him by the black hair teen, which made him livid. Jack turned his attention back to him, shouted, “Enough!” stabbing his finger in his direction. He kept his eyes on him for a little longer to make sure he wasn’t being sneaky again or seeing if there were anymore rocks around him.
“Good, now sit the fuck down while I beat the leaving shit out of your friend.” Once Jack turned around, his body nudged, and he froze. “Wh…at? Di-did… you…?”
The blonde teens eyes were bugged out, he was sweating and looked more surprised than Jack. He gasped repeatedly and whimpered, seeming regretful of his action. He backed off and Jack saw what he had done. There was a knife embedded into Jack’s bowls, spreading red across his blue shirt and sending chills all over his body. The young man gagged blood and collapsed to his knees, hovering his hands near his fresh wound, bringing his gaze to the panicked teen.
As the teen stood there in a paused, scared state, his friend came to him, grabbing his arm and telling him something then started pulling his arm. They were both in a state of panic and didn’t want to face their consequences. The two ran away with their tails tucked between their legs and left Jack to die. The young man watched as they ran off into the darkness, leaving him to bleed to death and face eternal black by himself. The sounds of the fires crackle, the building slowly withering away, wood falling on the ground one by one, coming closer to the young man's vicinity, made him feel more vague than ever before.
“Why… why this?” Jack murmured, “Th-This can’t be… part of the—trials!” Jack coughed out more blood and fell on his side, letting his warmth spill on the ground.
He shut an eye and gripped the cold grass with one hand while the other held the grip of the knife. The tower that overlooked the town was moments away from collapsing, and Jack could hear it slowly brittle away to come falling on him. He didn’t want to look at the burning building; this way, he could ignore death and not look it in its eyes. Instead he wanted to keep his eyes to the lit up town, remembering his new friends and the lesson of peace.
Am I going to die… here? Without getting back to my time, I-I can’t believe it. Jack thought.
The tower limped and the last wooden frame that held it in place had snapped, collapsing the tower within itself and falling to the side towards Jack’s dying body. The young man gripped harder, hearing the scorching wood come at him, feeling the heat get closer, and one of Jack’s eyes watered. The tear fell off his face and touched the ground, and Jack accepted his fate. The tower crashes onto Jack’s body, squishing, burning his body into overcooked meat.
The young man's vision turned black and red, and before death cut his life support off, he heard someone; a woman's voice, the same one whisper into his burst eardrum that made its way into the last wave of his brain, “May God bless you on your new journey, Jack Samr…” Flashing the darkness into white and red to eventually leave his vision printed with a permanent white void with red sparkles to float about.