Act 0 Chapter 6: Grumpy

“Give me your body!”

Shadowy clouds followed the skeleton in its trail as it rocketed towards Solomon. It tried to enter Solomon as soon as it touched him, but not allowing himself to be possessed so easily, Solomon resisted.

Their hands clasped in midair, and the ensuing struggle lifted him off of his feet as the shadowy skeleton pushed him in its flight. With their hands clasped, the two of them rocketed towards the colossal double door.

At the moment, the colossal double door was halfway opened, having begun to open itself as soon as the book was taken. The two rocketed through that opening, going deep into the other side of that door, and leaving dark clouds in their trail until the shadowy skeleton finally managed to make its way inside Solomon.

Suddenly, Solomon’s body stopped in midair and black light crackled as a dark shadowy cloud reminiscent of flames enshrouded Solomon. Then gently, he fell down to the ground. And with the last momentary flash of black light, the flame-like shadows receded into Solomon, and his eyes closed themselves as the shadowy skeleton encroached into his inner world.

“Solomon!”

The last thing he saw was the two twins running towards him, calling out his name.

Inside Solomon’s mind was a blank, white room, stretching out as far as the eye can see. There was nothing in it, no clouds, no sun, no traces of insect nor life, not even the infinitesimally small specks of dust, nothing. There were no sounds either. None of the singing of the cicadas, none of the sounds of static, not even the sound of the air moving.

It was a bright, pure white room, perfectly tranquil and devoid of any traces of the world outside. A world completely separated from all other existences. An isolated domain. And at the center of that tranquil, isolated, white world was little Solomon, floating over the ground with his eyes closed. The young boy looked at peace, sleeping there floating above that tranquil, white world, without a care. Much like a young baby cradled in his mother’s arms.

Then suddenly, from the white floor below Solomon, ripples surfaced. One, two… then three. From smaller ripples to bigger ripples. And slowly, gradually, Solomon began to open his eyes. The white world’s brilliance entered his eyes, but it singed him not. It was bright, yet at the same time it was as if it was not, and his eyes did not flinch at the luminance of that pure white world.

Gradually, Solomon began to prop himself up. And as he came to a stand, his bare feet touched the ground, but the floors did not ripple. The floor in this world was neither water nor liquid, it was light. Yet Solomon’s feet firmly planted itself onto that floor of light without falling through, and as it snugly grasped the ground, a warm sensation passed through Solomon.

“How pleasant,” he thought. This whole white world seemed as if it existed just for him. A bright, warm world he belonged in. A safe domain where nothing could harm him. Immersing himself in the warmth of that world, Solomon gradually closed his eyes as he stood, and he breathed a deep breath. Air filled his lungs, and as it left his mouth in an exhale, the sound of his breath leaving resounded throughout the whole world.

That world was comfortable. More comfortable than any bed Solomon had ever slept in. More comfortable than even his own home. So much so that perhaps only his mother’s embrace might be able to compare itself to it.  It was warm and relaxing. And never in his life had he felt more warmth than now. But like thunder in clear skies. Like the abrupt flash of lightning on a clear, sunny day. The warmth of that world was suddenly taken away as a cold, icy feeling encroached into that warm domain, a black dot appearing at the ceiling of this world.

*Tud Dub

At the throbbing of his heart, electricity jolted throughout Solomon’s entire body, and he clenched his chest as he looked up to that small, black dot that suddenly appeared at the ceiling of this pure, white world. Was it pain or was it something else? Solomon knew not. But he felt a strange sensation crawl up from inside of him as he looked into that tiny blob of darkness in this blank, white world.

That small dot above him pulsated. Once, twice… then thrice. Each time it did, Solomon would feel electricity jolt throughout his entire being. At the same time, the floor would ripple, the world would grow colder, and the black dot would grow bigger. 

*Tud Dub

The throb of his heartbeat echoed throughout that now impure, white world, as Solomon’s entire body broke out into a cold sweat. Fear and panic began to seep into his soul. And slowly, that pulsating black dot at the ceiling of this world began to grow.

Strands of black lines began to stretch out from it, reaching to the horizons of this blank world. Then suddenly, the ceiling cracked. And the area around where that black dot was, suddenly shattered. Shattering like glass, black and white fragments fell down to the boy. And as the ripples on the ground grew erratic, the warmth of this world left.

The black lines multiplied, stretching themselves towards the horizon, filling this world and forcefully dying it in its color. At the same time, fog shrouded the land, and a strange sense of violation filled Solomon. Then from where the world had shattered, a dark, shadowy, burning skeleton entered. Black flames and shadows made up its entire body, while the visage of its bones gave shape to its figure. Red light filled its empty eye sockets. And the lower body that should have been there was replaced with a tail of shadow and black flames.

Gulping, Solomon recalled what had happened, and he realized that the shadowy, burning skeleton in front of him was none other than the one who had forcefully entered him. As the world grew dimmer, the burning skeleton descended, and the ripples grew fiercer. At its descent, dark shadows followed it. As it inched nearer towards Solomon, the world grew darker and darker. The shadowy, burning skeleton locked gazes with Solomon, and it reached out for his face. Suddenly, Solomon found himself looking through a hazy screen, at a blank, shadowy world.

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That world was a reversal of the world Solomon was in a while ago. And in it was a dog made of shadows all alone by itself, searching its surroundings. Then it muttered, “Where is this place?” But strangely enough, the dog’s mouth did not move. “Is this the bottom of the abyss? Where are the mistresses?” continued the dog, but again its mouth did not move. At that, it occurred to Solomon, and he thought to himself, “It’s not talking… rather its thinking. Only, its thoughts are resounding out loud.”

Then the shadowy dog’s visage suddenly cleared up, and it shed its shadowy form. “Grumpy!?” exclaimed Solomon as he immediately recognized the dog before him. “Mistresses? Mistresses, where are you?” barked the dog as it continued to search its surroundings, having clearly not been reached by Solomon’s abrupt exclamation.

But although his words fell on deaf ears, Solomon was not in the least bit surprised, having already realized that this was but a dream. More than that, he was now sure that the dog before him was Grumpy. For unlike the dog that had stood before him and the twins just moments ago, this one had on it not a single whiff of that perilous aura that made him quiver in his shoes. Its gaze was gentle, its expression although confused, had no malice in it. And with that, Solomon was certain that the dog before him now was no other than good ol’ Grumpy.

Then right as Grumpy was walking aimlessly in that shadowy world, looking for the twins, the shadows of that world suddenly gathered into a great swirl before Grumpy, and then into a giant blob. Not long after, that blob formed a head and two blank spaces of white appeared on its blank, shadowy face. Towering over Grumpy, it brought its face closer, and it spoke, an ancient voice resounding, “Where is the boy?” it said. “Boy? What boy?” questioned the mutt, a look of confusion on its face.

Then the shadowy face towering over Grumpy, lifted its hand, and pointed to a corner. In the direction where it had pointed, shadows amalgamated, and in their mixing and melding, they formed clouds of shadows, showing what appeared to be images. There, a cloud of shadows that resembled Solomon appeared, followed by two clouds of shadows that looked much like the frolicking twins, trailed by another that looked like Grumpy. More clouds of shadows formed, this time forming what looked to be the forest the group had earlier entered.

And there, the three children walked about aimlessly, playing an innocent game of exploration while the dog trailed behind, brooding over whether they were going to the lake and have a sumptuous meal of fresh fish or not. It was the peaceful image, the tranquil and innocent memory of the group’s quiet days.

But then without any word of warning, clouds gathered around the cloud of shadow whose silhouette was much like Grumpy’s, dying its cloud a hue of purple, strikingly conspicuous in contrast to the black and white of the rest. Then suddenly, that figure dashed off. A moment later, it came to the attention of the other clouds of shadows, representing the three children, that the dog had gone missing, and they scurried off to find the dog. And just as memory would serve, the dog arrived upon a cottage, followed by the twins, and eventually by Solomon. Then as the clouds of shadows dispersed, the ancient voice resounded once more.

“That is the boy I seek. When a gap to the veil was opened, I slipped a hint of my power through it to attempt a connection, hoping to somehow find a way to bring him here. In the end, although the connection was weak, I managed to lead you.”

Grumpy’s ears tensed.

“But of course, I have neither interest nor curiosity in either of the affairs of the two little girls or yours. You three are but extras, meat toys that unknowingly found themselves wrapped up with a prized treasure. All that matters to me is the boy, the young boy leading the two girls into a game of exploration in that harmless little forest of yours. Should I find hold of him, then I will trouble you and your masters no more.” Then pausing, it continued, its voice turning somewhat threatening and heavier “Bring him to me.”

Grumpy’s eyes opened wide, then narrowing, he retorted a resounding, “No!” and continuing, he declared,

“I might not know the boy very well! He might be a little annoying thinking himself to be nice and all, doing something unnecessary as actually carrying me down that accursed ladder. But the boy is the mistresses’ friend. And a friend of the mistresses is a friend of mine. Therefore, I, Grumpy, swear, not to let your filthy paws finds its way on so much as a strand of hair on that aloof of a brat!”

At that, Grumpy let out a threatening snarl, baring its fangs towards the giant blob of shadows.

Solomon was touched at the dog’s statement, but at the same time, he wasn’t sure what to feel as the dog had just clearly insulted him. But without much time to ponder on those warm thoughts, the shadows very quickly began to accumulate around Grumpy, and soon anguished screams could be heard from the poor dog.

“I am not asking for your cooperation, mutt. I am ordering you! And if you refuse to do so, then I will simply take your body, and do everything by myself!”

At those last words, the dream ended. The last thing Solomon heard was the anguished cries of a poor, brave dog, who although afraid and well aware at the futility of his struggle, chose to steel his resolve and sacrifice what life it had to defend a boy he barely knew.

“Grumpy…”

As that name left the boy’s lips, he opened his eyes.