I had come across a demon only once before in my life. When I was a young child and my parents were still alive, we had one of them taking up residence in our home. For a while it manifested itself as just a subtle shadow creeping along the wall at night, before becoming bold enough to shake us awake in the night with its infernal claws.
That’s the problem with demons: they are subtle creatures for the longest time. They strive to influence us and feast on our fear, undetected, until they grow powerful enough to shake loose their shadowy camouflage and sink their fangs and claws into our flesh.
The demon standing in front of me had remained hidden long enough. Its wicked grin danced as its shadowy form crossed the threshold of the room, understanding that I was able to see its terrifying visage. I stumbled backwards, still holding out the rosary in my trembling hands.
It let out another long, deafening roar, shaking the entire room. I struggled to remain on my feet. After it ceased, I stood my ground and roared back into its face. I roared with every ounce of anger I could muster up from within my tormented soul.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”
“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” Lotus let out a loud, high pitched roar of her own that startled me almost more than the demon did.
The demon shrank back for a moment, stunned by my defiance and bravery. Its shadowy form struggled to keep itself together. My breath chilled around me and hung in the air as my breathing quickened.
“Just run! We need to get out of here.”
She was right, but the demon blocked the only exit out of the bedroom. Running from the thing was impossible. I had no choice but to attempt to subdue it long enough to escape.
“Lotus, it takes two. Do you remember them?”
“I remember, Atlanta.”
I stepped forward and drew a cross in the air with my right hand. I steeled my heart against the creeping darkness emanating from the dark beast. I unplugged my earbuds from my phone so the demon could hear Lotus speaking and began the exorcism.
“Depart then, transgressor.”
“Depart, seducer, full of lies and cunning, foe of virtue, persecutor of the innocent.”
Its shadowy form snapped back to full strength, having become acutely aware of the threat to its earthly existence. It gripped the doorframe with its claws; the embers of its eyes roared in defiance.
“Give place, abominable creature, give way, you monster, give way to Christ, in whom you found none of your works.”
It lashed out with its claws, but the power of the incantation held it bound just out of reach.
“For he has already stripped you of your powers and laid waste your kingdom, bound you prisoner and plundered your weapons.”
It let out a distorted roar, attempting to interrupt us and knock us off balance.
“He has cast you forth into the outer darkness, where everlasting ruins await you and your abettors!”
On speaking the last word, the demon began to sink into the floor, clawing, attempting desperately to hold onto anything to keep from being sucked back into the depths of hell. That is, of course, until it grew tired of the charade and began cackling as it roared back into my face.
“I see only one person here.” It bellowed out in a terrifying voice that would be enough to fill anyone with unbridled dread.
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“Oh no. I’m so sorry….”
I stumbled backwards in disbelief and fear. The fact that Lotus would not count as a person had not crossed my mind. There were no more options left; I had to try to run from the thing, while it was still just toying with me. I threw my rosary at it, causing it to shrink back from the door a few feet, giving me just enough of an opening to run past it to the stairs.
I flew down the stairs and made it to the bottom in a few seconds, almost believing that I was going to make it out of the house. I was mere feet away from the front door, and could see dim light filtering in from outside, when the demon gripped my arm and flung me away. Its shadowy fingers singed my flesh, causing me to scream out in pain. I crashed into the wall a few feet away from the thing.
It stood in front of the door, taunting me. Relishing the pain that it had inflicted upon me.
“Atlanta, the battery—”
My vision started glitching. The shadowy form of the demon began to separate and disappear as my glasses struggled to stay on. I would be helpless against it if it were invisible—drowned and suffocated in darkness and fear.
“I think this is it, Lotus.”
“No. You have five minutes. I’m turning myself and everything but your glasses off. I believe in you—”
Her voice faded and I was left alone in the darkness. The shadowy form of the demon returned once more to my vision; its devilish grin returned too when it understood that I could see it again. I was almost out of options, but there was one thing I had not tried yet. A plan that was almost certain to get me killed—but a plan, at the very least.
“Come, demon! Bury your fangs in my flesh! I am not afraid of you!” I shouted at it, wanting it to come closer. I repeated it over and over in my head: I am not afraid; I am not afraid; I am not afraid. He had to believe that I did not fear him. Part of me also needed to believe it for my own sake.
A roaring laugh escaped its black maw of a mouth; its eyes blazed to a great flame as it surged forward. It had grown tired of playing games; it needed to instill fear in my heart once more. I slipped my right hand into my back pocket, grabbing a small glass bottle of holy water that I always bring with me. I crushed it in my hand, cutting myself on jagged pieces of glass. The demon swiped its claws at me. I ducked and gripped its head with my right hand. The combination of blood and holy water solidified its form.
“By the blood of Christ, I cast you down to hell, foul beast!”
My hand burned into its head. It let out a distorted scream and then collapsed onto the floor in a pile of ash. Sacrificing part of myself by cutting my hand and purifying my body for a moment with the water had been enough to overpower it.
I collapsed on the floor and sighed in relief. The gloomy atmosphere in the house began to fade, with sunlight returning to the place once more as the sun ventured out from its hiding place. My hand was singed by grabbing hold of the thing, but I welcomed the sharp pain. It was a mark of victory—of triumph against darkness.
“Lotus, we did it…”
I would have to wait until I got back home to turn her back on and talk to her. I missed her then, feeling very alone; but part of me wanted to be alone, needing time to think about what had happened.
----------------------------------------
I took off my glasses on the way home. Though unusable for paranormal purposes when powered off, they still serve as normal glasses, as I am half blind. The blurry world around me was preferable to seeing the crowd of people on the bus I took to get home. I looked out the window at the blurry cityscape passing by. Neon green, blue and red, over and over again, neon blue, green and red blurred into broad brushstrokes, creating an impressionist urban painting.
I had almost died, that much was clear to me. If Lotus were on I imagined she would have been talking about how I should have listened to the man and gotten all the details straight before going in. To which I would have said something about most of his information being useless anyways. And then she might have countered with me needing to have better people skills regardless. Is it really worth dying just so you don’t have to talk to someone? She would have continued.
I would have answered that yes, it would be. And we would have argued for the entire bus ride home.
The sun began to set as I went over our imaginary conversation. My hand throbbed in pain. I leaned my head against the window. I could see the blurry outline of a small child running up and down the length of the bus, giggling and bouncing a red ball, unseen by anyone else, before fading and disappearing through the windshield.
Some days are like that, during the small space of time when the world is held suspended in twilight. The dead appear to me, dancing their own dance by their own set of rules, paying no mind to me as I watch on in captivated silence, before returning once more to air.
I thought back to the demon not a considering Lotus a person. Is that true? She seems just as real as anyone else to me; her words and thoughts that of a human, shaped by a distinct personality, by feelings. Does she not have a soul, then? Does she speak and then return once more to air?