Eight years earlier
The home phone rang.
It drew the attention of two kids, one twelve while the other was fifteen. The twelve year old would one day become the girl known as Melissa, and that is what they would wish to be referred to in their memories. It mattered not that they were fooling themselves into thinking they were a cis man back then, or that they didn't call themselves by that name at the time, for it was who they truly were in soul. That was all that mattered.
The girl next to her, gripping the controller and forcing herself to not break it from losing again, was Grace. They were exceptionally tall for a woman, even at her own age, with dirty blond straight hair and looking like a vampire with how goth her clothing was. She couldn’t see the phone from where she sat in Melissa’s bedroom. The only two in the house were located in their parents room and in the kitchen, and while the bedroom one was closer they knew their mom would get mad if they walked in and grabbed that one.
Then again, that was about all their mom did around them in the first place.
The phone continued to ring for some time, and then went silent as the call went to voice message. Instead of leaving one, however, whoever had called hung up and then dialed the same number again. The phone had returned to ringing, and with a sigh Grace got up from the carpeted floor. Melissa followed after her, both pretty certain at that point it had to be someone they knew. There wasn’t any reason for them to keep calling otherwise, unless the caller was continuously dialing the wrong number thinking it was correct.
They headed out of their room and towards the stairs. The two had to pass their parents room as they did, and could hear their mom watching one of those televised pastors again. As far as both kids were concerned they were likely spitting garbage again, claiming things to be the devil when they truly weren’t. It was why, when Grace had told Melissa she liked girls, they had specifically avoided telling their mom or dad. Dad especially wouldn’t like it.
Melissa and Grace rushed down the stairs and towards the kitchen in an attempt to make sure the call didn’t go to voicemail for a second time. As if it was a competition, both reached for the phone to grab and answer first. Grace, as usual, won due to her height and arm length, leaving Melissa to pout. That put a smug look on her sister's face as she pushed the green button, placed her free hand on her hip, and put the phone to her ear. Melissa, while still upset about losing the race for the phone, waited patiently to see who was on the other end of the line.
“Hello?” Grace said. Melissa watched her sister’s eyes beam, a barely audible masculine voice reaching her ears. “Hey pops. What is it? Oh, yeah, ***** is here with me too. Got it.”
Grace pressed a button on the phone and placed it on the kitchen counter. Melissa rested her arms on the counter and tapped a finger in excitement. She was young and didn’t think the circumstances were a bit weird, considering she had heard he was just going to do some grocery shopping. They did need it rather badly, given the amount the future girl smacked on. It didn’t sound like he was at the grocery store however, for she couldn’t hear the sounds her mind typically associated it with over the phone.
“Hey *****, “ Her dad said from over the phone, his voice sounding a bit monotone. Neither Grace or Melissa thought much of it. “Listen, there is something that I need to tell you both. Are you listening?”
Sister looked at future little sister, then went back to the phone. Both were curious as to what it was he had to say, because it wasn’t often their dad asked things of them. Neither could think of exactly what it was he would need them for, which made his question even more curious. Both more than willing to help their father out with whatever he needed, both turned back to the phone.
“Yep. Listening loud and clear,” Melissa replied. There wasn’t any real excitement in her voice, but she had rarely showed it before discovering her gender identity and transitioning.
“Ditto,” Grace stated, nodding.
“Good. I’m glad to hear,” Their dad replied, voice stilted and bland. “Listen, I have been brought somewhere to do something very important today. A mission from God itself. I want you two to hear what is to come.”
While Melissa was still blindly curious, Grace’s entire body felt discomfortable at what her dad had just told them. It finally hit her that something was wrong, her stomach feeling as if it had been flipped upside down. She stood frozen in place, Melissa bouncing the heel of her right foot on the ground as if desperate to move. Grace couldn’t bring herself to talk, move, blink, or perform any function that could have possibly kept her sibling safe from what was to be. After all, this was her dad, and she didn’t feel it in her to disobey them given what he had done prior.
“I love you both, you know that?” Their dad asked. He didn’t wait for either of them to answer. “You are both good kids, and God blessed me with the ability to spend my life with you. I couldn’t be happier, and I hope that you will continue to follow the ways that your mother and I have taught you. You wouldn’t want to go to hell when you die.”
“Of course not,” Melissa replied in pure naivety. “I love you too daddy.”
Those words finally got some reaction, out of Grace, though she would come to believe that none of them had been the right action. She slammed her hands down on the counter, spooking Melissa as she did. She stared at the phone, hands planted firmly instead of turning the off speakerphone so that neither of them could hear what was to come. Instead, heart beating as if it was a cheetah at full speed, she opened her mouth and shouted at her father at the other line.
“Dad, what are you going to do?!” Grace asked, pleading that he would give her an answer.
He didn’t say a single word to either of them again, and never would in his life. As the silence went on, Melissa wondered if dad had hung up the phone and grabbed it to check. They were greeted by the call time on the small, digital screen of the home phone still ticking up more and more. He had very clearly not hung up, which left the question of why he hadn’t answered Grace’s question. Melissa didn’t notice as Grace finally made to grab the phone from her siblings hands, but she had not done it fast enough. They finally heard something from the other end of the line.
A bang.
That bang was followed quickly by another, and then another, with more and more coming quickly. Screams soon joined in with the bangs, which both recognized as gunshots, piercing their silence like a grandfather clock. It didn’t stop, just continuing on and on with more and more screams joining in what could only be described as a horrific choir. Neither could imagine what was going on at the other end of the line, for their dads end of the phone had become such an unholy conglomeration of sounds that it all started to blend together in Grace and Melissa’s mind.
The moment the first shot had rang out, both siblings had become like statues. Melissa was too scared to move her hands to the ‘end call’ button on the phone she held. It was real, but she couldn’t tell if it was her father who had fired the shot or had ended up on the other end. No, with the amount of terror, pain, and emotions she had no name for welling up within her as she stared down, thoughts jumbled and nonsensical. She couldn’t form a proper thought as things continued until, even more suddenly then the bang had come, their father ended the call from his side. The only sound they could hear was the phone’s long, low beep that came with him hanging up
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
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“Her father had killed multiple people, injured others, and even raised arms against law enforcement when they arrived,” Lucy explained, her words devoid of any emotions as she recounted the story. Vee had remained silent the entire time, Dragon only speaking when she found herself unable to tell a piece. “She fooled herself into believing that what she had heard wasn’t true, but then the officers arrived at her family’s doorstep. She had loved her father till then,” She paused for a moment. “That… is about everything.”
“Her dad said he had done it in honor of God, but that was an excuse,” Dragon said, the name ‘God’ said with such vitriol and hatred that it made Lucy wince. “That is all it ever is for them. Catholics speak of loving neighbors and forgiveness, and then use one man dying on a cross as a means to commit horrible sin after horrible sin,” She gritted her teeth, eyes glaring at the blankets she sat on with such rage that she swore she had burned a hole through them. “That man she called a father was the same. He just wanted to kill.”
There was a silence following Dragon’s words, the only sound being one of the nearby dorms blasting EDM. Lucy had to shake her head and remind herself of not just Mellisa’s experience with christians, but Dragon’s as well. Her friend looked at her, and then darted her eyes back to the floor. After several deep breaths, Dragon met Lucy with a calmer, yet still disgusted, expression on her face.
“I’m not taking what I said back,” Dragon told them. “You’re the exception, not the rule.”
“That is fine,” Lucy replied, nodding her head as she inched her way over to her pillow. “Besides, you aren’t wrong. Those who invoke God or Christ’s name to commit atrocities are greater than anyone wants to admit. I can’t tell anymore if we've done more harm than good.”
“Yet, despite that harm, she chooses to make a magical revolver with her new powers,” Vee says, tapping where a normal person’s chin would usually be. “Why would she do that to herself, given what her father did?”
“I can’t be sure but personal theory? Familiarity,” Lucy answered, taking off her socks and pants. She slipped under the blankets as she took her shirt off and flung it onto the closet. It landed on the doorknob. “Outside of making me temporarily deaf earlier - which saved my ass mind you - she is comfortable using them. Besides, considering what she asked us after explaining who her father did, I trust her to not do the same thing he did.”
Vee tilted their mouth-head, then looked up to Dragon. The girl put the doll on the floor, following her friend's lead and sliding under the covers of her temporary bed. She waited till only her head and neck could be seen by Vee and Lucy before undressing, kicking and punching her clothes out from under the blankets as she did. When she was done she laid silently on her back for a bit, eyes on the ceiling. It was only when she felt the barely noticeable weight of Vee climbing onto her chest that Dragon answered it.
“She asked, after we learned about what her father did, if we still wanted to be around her,” Dragon said. “We all said yes. Blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb, after all. We trust her to not do what her father did.”
While Dragon couldn’t see it while laying down, Lucy had nodded in response to her words. The mere fact Melissa had asked them that was enough to know just how improbable it was for them to follow in their dad’s footsteps. Happy sigh left her mouth, briefly closing her eyes before realizing she had forgotten something. Opening them, she rolled till she was on the edge of the bed and looked down to Dragon.
“Hey, can you turn the lights off?” She asked her friend. “I’m already comfy.”
“No. Already commando,” Dragon replied. “You do it.”
Neither of them noticed as Vee slowly looked down at the blankets, still standing on Dragon. The doll, feeling a bit uncomfortable all of a sudden, trotted off their dreamer and stared over near where the door to the dorm was. Right next to it was a light switch in question. It seemed out of the doll’s reach by normal means.
“As I said, I’m comfy,” Lucy replied, sinking into her blankets till only her eyes and upwards were visible. “You can just put something back on. Your clothes are closer to you anyway.”
“Wait, so you also…” Dragon trailed off as she looked back at where she had seen Lucy throw her shirt. That was quickly followed by a facepalm. “Great, so we’re both completely undressed and neither of us want to get clothes back on right now. Guess we’re sleeping with the lights on.”
As if the universe wished to prove her wrong, the lights suddenly shut off. Both having no idea what did it or who was responsible, both Dragon and Lucy briefly ducked under the covers. Dragon was the first to emerge back at, wondering if the power had perhaps gone out. A single look towards the dorm’s door told her no, as she could make out the tiniest bit of light coming from the hallway. Concerned that it could possibly be the other nightmare, she once again dove back under her covers and closed her eyes.
“Geez, I thought I was helping,” Vee called out through the darkness. Lucy poked out of the covers, noticing the doll standing under the light switch. “You both wanted the lights off, and now your acting like the dark is the scariest thing ever. Which do you want? Make up your mind!”
“How did you… how the hell were you able to reach it?!” Lucy asked, pointing at the pomeranian size doll, then up to the light switch, and then back to Vee.
“I’m a living nightmare. Do you really want to question what I’m capable of?” Vee asked back, arms out and shrugging.
“In my defense, I’ve had less than a day to get used to this all,” Lucy reminded it. She shifted so her shoulders weren’t close to the edge of the bed any longer and sighed. “It… It hit me now that I’m not sure how much this whole situation has set in with me. Parts of it still feel unreal, but then I remember what that nightmare said.”
The process of thinking back on Zarlaus’ words was not a pleasant one. It hit her how, despite how fantastical some elements of their situation felt, his words had hit the core of not one but two fundamental flaws she and her friends had had to deal with her entire life. How many people hated her, Melissa, Drew, Dragon, and Holly just for being them? How many individuals had been killed because of that? Why did they have to keep fighting for their very right to freely be… them?
It hit her quickly that what she had faced earlier wasn’t some embodiment of irrational fear, but something else. Zarlaus was too human, too normal and yet also not normal enough at the same time to make her comfortable. For the first time, she asked herself a question that she would come back to somehow more times than she would ever be happy about. A question that she didn’t realize Dragon had just as much as her, yet so unwilling to voice it.
“What caused a nightmare like that to exist?” Lucy mumbled, wrapping her arms around her hips in an attempt to comfort herself. “Do I want to know?”
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After a time, Lucy and Dragon fell into an uncomfortable sleep. Vee could see them both start to smell more heavenly than earlier, having to shake its head and mentally scold itself no. Its dreamer had experienced first hand what a living nightmare could do to a dreamer in reality, and the doll silently wouldn’t harm them in that same way. If it was just Dragon in the room, she was certain that she would be able to stop herself. Sadly she was not, and for the safety of Vee’s dreamer and their friend, it knew it had to leave for the night.
So, not long after they had fallen to sleep, Vee flattened its shape to the point it couldn’t be called three dimensional and slid under the door. Once it was in the hallway, it returned to its regular plush self and let out a relieved breath. The smell of nightmares was being blocked by the door behind it. At least it seemed like it, because the smell of nightmares was still rather prevalent in the hallway, leading her to wonder if somehow had fallen asleep outside their dork somehow.
That was when she turned to her right, and her mouth-head widened at the sight. Before he was the particle of energy that had once made up the nightmare known as Zarlaus. It gave off a hue that Vee almost didn’t recognize as an extremely dark blue. That would definitely be the source of the smell, and if the smell wasn’t bad enough then the fact the doll had completely missed it earlier was. Vee shook their head, knowing that said failure to identify it on the way to Lucy’s room was likely due to her concern for Dragon, considering exactly what they had just gone through.
If Lucy didn’t get to punching its dreamer’s birth mother first, then it would make sure to do much, much worse.
That could be done after she took care of what was in front of her, however. Leaving nightmare energy just floating around wasn’t bad but it was most definitely wasteful. Dreamers had no use for it, living dreams would eradicate it, but Vee saw a more useful purpose for what was before it. A chuckle resonated from wherever their voice came from, rubbing plush hands together and letting out a sigh of pure delight. It was always good to have a plan B after all, in case plan A fell apart.