--==Chapter 27: I Can Take Them All --==
Crowseph had given up on attacking my barrier, but I wasn’t letting down my guard. I didn’t know how much punishment the force field could actually take. I wanted to be ready to slip through the door if they resumed their attack and the shield fell. Still, my best chance of helping Alice and Jessica would be if Crowseph gave them up.
“Are my friends still alive?” Sori asked for me. I was interested in an information exchange. Crowseph could remember the loops, and he certainly had information I wanted. But I wasn’t here for information; I was here for them.
“Friends? How much do they really remember about you? For that matter, how much do you remember about them? No, don’t answer that; we don’t care other than to note your over-sentimentality. As for whether they’re alive? They will be in a few hours. For now, their bodies have been broken, and their souls rest in limbo, awaiting the start of the next loop.”
“Fucking Asshole,” I said, furious. “You’re not making me want to make a deal.”
“We told you before that you were too late. That didn’t change just because you managed to surprise us.”
“You said their only hope was my shadow. What did you mean?”
“When we met before, you had access to a Shadow. You could step into and out of it at will. You were capable of storing people and items in it. Anything put in your shadow would not reappear when the day once again looped. You alone seemed capable of killing permanently. It was your main leverage against us. Without it, we are less concerned by you, or would be, if you didn’t manage to steal one of our own from us.”
“I took one; I can take them all,” I said through Sori, unsure if it was true.
Crowseph ignored my threat and gestured at the necklace I still held in one hand. “I assume that’s the means of control. A talisman of some kind?”
He must not have seen Sori snag the string of silver buttons and deliver them to me. Better not to give him answers, at least not ones that would ease his caution. Besides, he hadn’t answered my question.
“We’re not done talking about the shadow. You haven’t said everything. What made you think I could use it to help Alice and Jessica. You said I’d need it to ‘save’ them. How does that work if you’ve already killed them?”
“Even you can’t hold death in the same esteem as you once did, not now that its grip is so transient. They have died, but time will return them to us. As I told you, they will be hunted, haunted even, by trauma demons born from their own minds and experiences.”
“You’re saying their violent deaths at your hands traumatized them even with their limited memories?”
“Or because of their limited memories, who can say. But yes. More than just traumatized, though. Their traumas won't manifest as nightmares, but nightmares made flesh. We’re sure you know the beings we’re talking about; twisted and violent creatures who eagerly attack anyone they see.”
“Have you looked in a mirror? Sounds like you.”
“Of course. How could we be anything else, born from shared suffering as we were? However, unlike trauma demons, we can reason and remember.”
“Great. How is any of this related to helping Alice and Jessica.”
“Our first meeting was not so different from this one. Another woman was meant to be one of us. You took her from us, but you were also too late then. We expected her to join us in no more than a loop or three. We watched her, watched you and Titania work to save her from herself. When she didn’t join us, we investigated. What we found was an empty vessel. She was still and without aura or will—without a soul. When her spirit rejoined her body, the memory of the trauma was gone, as was the demon. It was the power of your shadow at work.”
“I’d love it if you could be more specific," Sori said dryly, excellently reflecting my sentiment. "Also, who is Titania?”
Crowseph gave me a flat stare. “Titania. Your ally, the child soldier. Half human half trauma, with pale bat wings and demon horns protruding from her head.”
Their description was a mix of familiar, confusing, and revelatory. “Do you mean Nia? Blonde? About yea high?” I asked, holding up a hand to estimate her height. Her dad’s name was Titus; Titania could be her full name or a nickname.
“It's as you say.” Crowseph nodded.
I wasn’t surprised that Nia had been helping me before I lost my memories. She’d clearly been familiar with me in that first loop. It was also the surest I’d been that it hadn’t been a dream. As Crowseph had said, she’d had pale green wings and horns growing from her head. She’d also clearly had memories I didn’t. Even if I found the ‘shadow’ people kept going on about, I didn’t know how to use it to help Jessica and Alice. “Ok, So Nia helped. But what did I actually do?”
“We couldn’t tell you how your own shadow magic worked. Some of the humans might be able to tell you more. We hypothesize that your shadow is a tool of destruction. Having met you, we doubt it's especially complex. Now. Your turn. How did you put that crow’s mind outside our grasp.”
Did that bird asshole just call me stupid? Stop, Sori, don’t say that out loud. Thankfully Sori didn’t repeat my inner monologue.
Sori had talked about broken trash collectors, which also seemed to refer to the mysterious shadow. He’d also called the ether a memory dump. Maybe that was literal. My shadow could really be some kind of portal to another dimension. I considered how to respond. I was starting to get the shape of things but was still at a disadvantage. Crowseph was playing it cautious, but I had no sword to match my shield. I doubted Sori was actually able to control Crowseph’s whole flock.
Thinking fast, I passed on a script to Sori. “I’m weighing the value of what you shared and what I could share. What I know will reshape your understanding of this new world. So I’ll require further concessions.”
“That was not the agreement.”
“Well, it was never sealed; it's a living deal. You can decide for yourself whether I’m holding up my end if you ever hear what I’ve learned.”
Crowseph pursed his thin lips in thought as he weighed me with a piercing look of a predator trying to lock on to prey. “Fine. It’s a living deal. Take care lest you starve it. What further terms would you ask.”
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“I want to know what the previous accord was. I want to consider a new accord. It apparently benefited us both once. I want you to leave Alice and Jessica alone. Dead or alive, they return to their friends and family with me. And you leave people under my protection alone.”
“We told you. Alice and Jessica are already half ours. The rest is not unworkable, although your protection cannot be unlimited. Again, however, it is workable.”
“What do you mean they’re half yours. You’re saying you can’t stop the process?”
“They will be haunted by a demon in future loops. It is a demon spawned from their own minds. Over time it will grow. Eventually, it’ll get strong enough to claim their minds, very much like how you claimed that crow's mind. You can see why our interest is piqued.
"When their minds are seized, they’ll become enemies of all, including our flock. To prevent this, we destroy and divide their trauma between us. This allows us to join them and bring them into the flock. With or without our intervention, your friends will be gone. We know of no way to stop it without your shadow. If you want us to make a new accord—and learn of the old one—or for us to agree to the rest, we require you to tell us how you wrested that part of our flock to your side first.”
I decided I might as well tell what I could. It really wasn’t much. “I found an otherworldly being in a dream. He's possessing your bird. His name is Sori, and last time I saw him, he was a floating silver eyeball.”
Crowseph looked at me skeptically. “I’m going to need much more information.”
Sori hopped off my shoulder and flew forward to land on a rolling tray table. “Allow me,” Sori said. “As you can see, there are no strings on me. You wanted to know how I took control of your fine feathered friend here? Well, the owner was out, so I thought I’d just make myself at home. You know, squatters' rights.”
“What?” Crowseph said.
Since my voice box had just taken it on himself to ditch me, I just gave Crowseph a doggy grin; that was the most relatable they’d been all day.
“I’m a dream spirit. I live in the dreams of everything that dreams, wandering from mind to mind.” Sori said.
I was pretty sure none of that was true. Or rather, I doubted whether Sori knew if it was true.
“When I saw this empty body just lying around, I had to take the chance. Tell him Sam—oh right, you can’t talk to Sam. Or rather, he can’t talk to you. Well, actually, both, though I suppose it depends on what you mean by talking. Or what I mean, since I’m the one that is talking.”
Honestly, I didn’t know what I’d expected, but I was almost giddy with delight watching the confusion on Crowseph's face.
“It’s a tiny mad god. Or some kind of spirit of the inane and insane.” Crowseph said, looking at Sori in a mix of disgust and wonder. “You are right. This changes everything.”
I had no idea what Crowseph was talking about specifically, but progress was progress.
“I will cede the hospital to you in its entirety if you give me this being.” They said to me, awe in their voice. Sori was still standing on the rolling table, so I didn’t have a way to respond, even if I wanted to.
Sori snorted. “That’s a terrible deal. There’s a whole town out there. They have a Sears.” He said, his voice filled with awe. “I just read about it; I haven’t actually seen it. Do you think it’s as cool as it is in the movies?”
“Tell me, spirit, how many of my number can you actually control at once,” Crowseph asked, already learning to ignore Sori’s ramblings.
A lot, please say a lot! I thought, desperately hoping Sori might somehow still be able to hear me.
“Oh, just the one. Yeah, you don’t have to worry about me taking over your whole flock. My only real option would be to take over one bird at a time and fly head-first into a wall or barbed wire or something, over and over until there were none left. It would take several minutes, so – You know, nothing to worry about. Right?”
I stepped up behind Sori-crow before he could undermine his own threat. I picked him up gently, and placed him back on my shoulder. The force field didn’t move with me, confirming a suspicion. I’d have to let down the shield to get away from Crowseph. Considering the yellow barrier blocked the doorway, I was the one trapping us together at this point.
Hey, Sori, translate for me again, I thought at him.
“Sori was never a human or an animal that he remembers. I believe he’s a part of the apocalypse that sealed off this town.”
“The town knows what it did,” Sori said sinisterly before chuckling maniacally.
“He’s not something I own or can control, But like he said, it would be a terrible deal. Sears or no, you are brutal and violent. However you prefer to dress or present yourself, I won’t just unleash you on a town.”
“You are an arrogant fool. You have never leashed us, and we fully expect you to destroy yourself in short order. Again.” Crowseph responded. “But fine. You asked what our previous accord was. It was simply one of territory. You and yours would respect the boundaries of our roost. In exchange, we wouldn’t claim those under your protection. Three of you broke that accord by invading my territory. We allowed you to pass through unmolested. Your charges weren’t as respected. When they tried to pass through later, we defended our territory, and three of us were killed by Alice. We allowed them to retreat, but such action cannot go unanswered. You should understand.”
I remembered running through the ER, chased by bullets that I later realized Jon had been firing. Jon must have followed me, but I hadn’t realized Alice and Jessica had too. “I’d lost my memories, and I’m sure neither Jessica nor Alice knew anything about it.” Crowseph hadn’t mentioned Jon’s involvement, so I wouldn’t bring him up, in case it made things worse.
“That’s unimportant. It's not a matter of respect; it's a matter of practicality.”
“I want two addendums," I told the creature. "First, if you get a territory, then so do I. If crows come into surgery again, don’t expect me to ignore that. Second, I want to bring this crow with me when I leave. I don’t usually have a voice; it will make communicating the accord easier if I can speak like this.”
“You are far from controlling surgery. It will only be considered your territory while you are personally present. Even that is generous. Take the crow. But treat him kindly. Violence against him will be considered breaking the accord.”
We hammered out the details over the next little while. Eventually, we reached an agreement that neither of us liked and brought the negotiations to a close. I lowered the force field and cautiously approached Crowseph to accept their offered handshake.
I was stuck behaving more civilly toward the creature than I wanted to. I didn’t know how many people they had tortured and killed to grow their weird collective, but this wasn’t the same world I grew up in. I also had enough on my hands without trying to take on more.
Crowseph was an issue that needed to be addressed, but hopefully not by me. It was also becoming apparent that laws and morality were about to go through a dramatic shift. Society would be dragged along whatever it tried. I didn’t know what that would look like yet, but, if it was going to be anything other than chaos, temporary peaces would have to be found with natural adversaries.
Alice and Jessica were dead. After I lowered the force field, Crowseph stepped into the hallway and sent crows to deliver Alice and Jessica's bodies to Nia’s group. I hoped they showed them some respect—if only to soften the blow for Nia and their friends.
“Well then, Oberon, until one of us gains a new edge. You really did sell your advantage too cheap. Ultimately, your spirit friend is impressive but limited in its own ways. And if one exists, so do others. Don’t let yourself believe this matter is entirely settled; We’re sure we’ll speak again.” As they turned to walk away, they dissolved into hundreds of crows that disappeared down the hall into the ER.
"What a tool," Sori said from my shoulder.
--==