Aeon of Wonder

by Carey Henderson

  "Good question," Robert said. He walked to the freezer, opened it, looked inside for something to eat and got out an ice cream bar. "You see, the entity that you called up both is and is not the one Kelly intended to call up."

  "Uh."

  "I know, just stay with me," Robert said. "She wanted, for whatever reason, to talk to Cain, from the Bible."

  "Yeah," Nick said. He was having trouble concentrating while watching Kelly's mom writhe and sneer like some kind of animal. "Yeah, like, she wanted to talk to him about killing his brother, or something."

  "Abel," Robert said. "Is that what she said?"

  "Yeah," Jonas replied.

  "You know, I understand the fact that you're young and it's difficult to think beyond Facebook, porn and getting high, but do you believe every single word these pretty girls say to you? Does what she said even make sense to you, thinking back on it?"

  Both young men looked at each other, then back at Robert.

  "Well?"

  "No. It didn't make sense then, either."

  "But you wanted to get laid," Robert said.

  "Well, hell ye..." then Jonas remembered that Brook was Robert's sister.

  "The thing is," Robert said, "when Kelly used that old spell to conjure Cain, she didn't quite get the Cain she intended to. That innocuous sounding little poem called up something far worse. Something old and experienced. Something that expects to be worshiped with blood and name."

  Neither Jonas really understood what Robert was talking about, but Robert could tell it made some kind of sense to them.

  "But when you call up this guy, well, you don't get just him. You get his mom and his sister, who are actually the same person."

  "Uh, what now?"

  "It's too long of a story to go into right now. The point is that when you all helped Kelly call up this spirit, it brought basically a trifecta of madness with it. I suspect Kelly is dealing with mama, while her parents here are dealing with the other two."

  "But I thought you said his mom is, or was, or whatever, his sister."

  "That's true. But this is how it works."

  Nick furrowed his brow. "So why is this, or I guess these, demons, why are they doing this to her parents?"

  "Because you all helped her send one of them after me." Robert looked both of them dead in the eyes after saying it. "And it couldn't get in. So its mother turned on her. It doesn't care where it draws power once its free. You were all duped and all of you were too ignorant to realize it, except Kelly, but since you fellas believe every word you hear if it means getting your winky wet, you just went along with her. Surprise; she didn't know a whole lot more about what she was dabbling with than the rest of you. If you'd spoken your piece, went with your gut instinct, we wouldn't be in this mess."

  Nick and Jonas both looked down at the floor. For a moment there was a stillness, the guilt sinking into Jonas and Nick's conscience and Robert letting it do just that. Kelly's dad growling brought them back to the moment.

  "So, uh, like what are you gonna do," Jonas asked.

  "Kick them out," Robert said.

  Nick raised an eyebrow and Jonas just sighed. It made so little sense to either of them. Jonas wondered if maybe he'd baked himself stupid just one too many times.

  Robert looked at Kelly's parents and smiled at them. They hissed back at him.

  "Ok, here's what I need from you two," he said, "Help me get them off the floor and into those two chairs, then help me tie them up. They're going to fight, so be ready. Jonas, I suggest you do not broadcast your punches if her dad gets too violent. He'll see it coming, too."

  Jonas felt his face go red.

  They helped Robert get her parents situated as he'd asked. They did fight, and if anything struck fear into both their hearts, it was when Kelly's five-foot, two inch mom threw them both across the room like ragdolls.

  When they finally got them subdued and tied up comfortably, in hopes they wouldn't tear their wrists and ankles on the ropes, Robert turned to both of them.

  "Now you two go up there and take Brook somewhere. I don't care where and tell her it is not an option."

  "Dude, I thought you said we were about to get scared out of our wits, like to the point of never sleeping,"

  Robert smiled and said, "Did I say that? I guess I did."

  "You don't need our help," Nick asked.

  Robert looked at both of them in the eyes. "Do either of you really believe in God, I mean, do you have faith, something you hold onto deeply?"

  "Mom's a Catholic," Jonas said.

  "I go to church sometimes, yeah."

  Robert slapped each young man on their shoulder, smiled and said, "That's about what I thought, boys. Listen, thank you. I'll be fine, believe me."

  As the two of them walked up the stairs, Jonas turned around and came back.

  "What's up, Jonas?"

  "So," Jonas said, looking down, "we're cool? You know, like after that night at the old house? I shouldn't have trie..."

  "I don't hold grudges, little brother. I just punch you in the gut, laugh at you and forget about it."

  Jonas laughed, unsure if he should have, and walked up the stairs.

  When Robert heard them leave a few minutes later, he rolled up his sleeves and got out his Bible.

  "This shouldn't take too long, Kelly's mom and dad," he said, "Hold what you got in there, it won't be much longer."

  Kelly's dad let out a howl that made four old mason jars on a shelf in the basement burst

  ****

  The three friends got into Nick's car and drove away. Nick and Jonas wondering what Robert was going to do exactly, Brook none the wiser but still terrified for her brother. A few minutes after leaving, Jonas pointed at someone walking right down the middle of the road.

  "Is that Kelly," he asked.

  "It is! Oh my God, what's she doing out there? Nick, pull up to her!"

  Nick drove close to Kelly with the passenger’s side of the car toward Kelly.

  "Kelly," Brook said, "Kelly, honey, why are you walking down the road? You're supposed to be in the hospital getting some tests!"

  Kelly stopped walking. She didn't say a word. After a moment, she turned and looked at Brook. That look on her face terrified Brook but she forced herself to open the door and get out of the car. She opened the backseat door.

  "Kelly, come on, honey. Get in. We'll take you back to the hospital. Like, you can't be out here in the middle of the damn road!"

  She took Kelly by the arm. It shocked her how hot her skin was. "You are on fire with fever!" Brook guided her friend into the back seat and Jonas helped her get Kelly into the backseat.

  "Shit!" he said, "her skin is like fire!"

  Brook got in the front seat and they took a left, heading toward the hospital. Jonas could only think of one thing: Kelly was acting just like her parents.

  ****

  Robert pulled the comforter up beneath Kelly's parents' chins. They were both so exhausted by the time he was finished that he'd had to almost carry them up the stairs. He hoped that they wouldn't remember anything. They were so depleted physically, spiritually and psychologically that they didn't remember him, so he was hopeful. Robert found it staggering how much different they looked now that their faces were under their control again.

  He walked out of the house and shut the door. The thing he worried about at that moment was that those demonic twins would be on the way to find Brook and her friends. It occurred to him that the first place Brook likely would have gone after leaving would be the hospital. The door of his truck creaked as he opened it, reminding him of the stairs in the house and the demonic thing at the top of the stairs. Thinking of it going after his sister made him angry.

  Robert got into his truck and drove toward the hospital, trying not to think about what could be happening and just continue to focus on what was happening.

  Several police vehicles were at the hospital. Robert drove around the parking lot and did not see Nick's car. It was d
ifficult to miss, being a very expensive and very Lexus. Driving out of the parking lot, he knew that there was only one place they could be, which meant things had progressed already.

  "I know they're stupid," he said out loud, "But they don't deserve this. No one taught them any better, ok? I don't know what Kelly was thinking but they're just ignorant. Is that enough reason for them to endure this all? Does it matter that they've been taught so many wrong things? Let it count, let it matter. If we make it through all of this alive, I'll do whatever I can to help them."

  He slammed his fist on the steering wheel and drove toward the old house as fast as he could, hoping that if anyone pulled him over, it would be Sheriff Black, his oldest friend.

  ****

  Brook could not stop screaming, was in such strain that she didn't know she was screaming in the first place. She had just witnessed Kelly break Jonas' back like a twig, then rip his throat out and drink his blood.

  Nick was frozen. He watched as Kelly drank and drank, never seeming to stop, never breathing, never pausing at all. She was as pale as a sheet and so strong that his mind couldn't comprehend it all fully. His legs and arms were shaking and his mind was trying not to go into shock.

  Brook stopped screaming when she saw a man made of black fire, with a horn on his head, coming down the stairs to the right of the Great Room of the old house. Her own mind locked up on her. She was seconds from shock. The black figure descended the stairs slowly, deliberately. It watched Kelly drinking Jonas' blood and took its time coming down, even trailing its black fire hand on the banister.

  Nick turned and grabbed Brook, then pulled her toward the door. It slammed in their faces. He grabbed a chair and threw it against the picture window. It flew back and nearly knocked him out. "SHIT," he yelled. The sound of Kelly drinking was as loud as a storm in his ears. Finally, she stopped drinking. Nick whirled around and looked. Kelly was standing up, hair flying up around her head, like she was underwater. Fire burned in her eyes. She looked to her left and beckoned. The man of black fire walked toward her. At the bottom of the stairs, it turned and motioned to the top of the stairs.

  A female figure, all Nick could think was that she seemed to be made of moon light or something, dull but still giving off an odd light, as though she were somehow reflecting the black fire, mutating it into a light that was not really light; it made his eyes hurt to look, put fear into his stomach. She seemed to glide down the stairs.

  The two demons flanked Kelly.

  "Brook? Brook, come on! We've got to figure out a way to get out of here, now! Or we're going to end up just like Kelly. Come on, we have to go!"

  He dragged Brook running. Guiding them to a hallway with windows, to the right of the stairs, he looked for any old window that might be broken. Or a door. At the first window he brought them to, Nick kicked it as hard as he could, only to be met with a force that nearly knocked him down.

  He looked behind them and Kelly and her entourage walked toward them. They didn't seem to be in a hurry. Pulling Brook down the hallway further, they came to a window with a broken pane. Without hesitation Nick kicked at it and it shattered, nearly slitting his leg. Pulling back his leg carefully, Nick looked around. A small table was about ten feet from him. He walked over, grabbed it and used it to break out the window fully, panes and all.

  He had to shout at Brook twice to get her to come around just enough for her to duck through the window. Once she was out, he ducked through it as well and pulled her to his car. He opened the door and put her into the passenger’s seat. The massive engine in the Lexus roared to life. Nick threw it into reverse, hammered the accelerator, then hit the brake. He'd nearly hit Robert driving up in his truck.

  ****

  Robert slammed on his brakes, sliding to a stop just before hitting Nick's car. He threw the transmission into Park and threw open the door, running over to the Lexus. Nick already had the window down.

  "What happened?" Robert saw his sister in the passenger seat looking absolutely catatonic. He resisted asking, wanting Nick to get it out first.

  "I believe you. My God, man, I believe you. They... three of them. They... shit, man, Kelly killed Jonas! Just broke his back and ripped opened his throat! Then she drank his damned blood, Robert."

  "Ok. Tell me about the other two, the demons."

  "One looks like a dude made out of fuckin' fire, man! Black fire. Dude's got a horn. A goddamn horn! There's a chick that's made out of some kinda weird light. I don't know what else to say. They're coming. They're not in a hurry but they're coming. I left them all inside, Kelly, too."

  Robert put his hand on Nick's shoulder. "I'm sorry, my friend. I'm sorry for Jonas." He could see that Nick was about to break down, if not into just plain hysterics. "Thank you for taking care of my sister. I'll never forget that. You did damn good, son. I'm proud of you. Take Brook to the hospital, then let my parents know where you are."

  Nick gathered himself. "Ok, ok, like I can do that. What are you going to do? What about Kelly? Can you fight them?"

  "Hell no," Robert said. "Thankfully, it's not me fighting them."

  "The hell does that mean?"

  Robert reached down and put the Lexus into Drive for Nick. "Get my sister to the hospital. I'll tell you everything you want to know after this is over."

  "Will it be over, Robert? Are we safe? Ever?"

  Robert furrowed his brow. He didn't speak for a moment. He looked at Brook and it hurt his heart. "The only thing I can guarantee is that these demons will be dealt with. Unfortunately, this life requires consequences for everything. Think of it as something like Newton's Third Law. I can't speak for Kelly yet, but given how long she's probably been dealing with mama, she'll likely remember it."

  "Will she remember killing Jonas?"

  "I'm afraid she probably will, Nick. And it's likely she'll never be completely free of this all herself, even if you two never experience anything else."

  "Why?"

  "Because, brother, once you see them, they see you. And they do not like you. At all."

  "Oh."

  "Get going. And thank you again"

  Nick drove away. Robert walked back to his truck and got out his Bible. He walked toward the old house. To his right, he saw Kelly and the two other demons flanking her, walking toward him. He smiled at Kelly and she hissed at him. Robert opened the front door of the old house and gestured for Kelly to follow him inside.

  The demonic trinity walked in the front door and it slammed shut.

  Epilogue (One year later)

  Robert sat in the room at the mental ward. Across from him, Kelly sat on her bed, feet tucked beneath her. Her hair had grown quite long and Robert thought it looked darker than before. But the lines on her face were what bothered him the most. This young woman had jumped from her twenties to her forties. Her twenties, a time she should have been getting ready for a full life, were gone from her now, though no one would know it looking at her, she was still just so young.

  "I'm sorry they put you here, Kelly," Robert said. "I tried to talk to your parents; more than once. Until they finally told me that it wasn't my business."

  Kelly tucked her hair behind her ears and smiled. It was without mirth.

  "Robert, it's ok. Thank you for all you've done for me. You saved my life."

  Robert leaned in, seeking Kelly's eyes. She looked at him. He held eye contact for a moment before speaking.

  "No, I did not save you. I'm a servant, that is all."

  "I know," she said. "I really do know. But thank you anyway. For all you've done. I mean, the stories say that when a vampire, demon---whatever she was---drinks your blood that you become the thing, too."

  "The stories are stories. Passed down over time until Hollywood got a hold of them. There's little left of the truth anymore."

  Kelly looked up. "So why am I not a vampire, or whatever, then?"

  "Because the demon is gone."

  "He did that?"

  "He did that."

&nb
sp; "Why?"

  "Kelly," Robert said as he stood up, "because He does precisely what He wants to do."

  Kelly smiled, a genuine smile. Robert walked over to her and hugged her, then backed up. "Have you seen her?"

  "Every day. I'll wake up some mornings and she's looking at me through the window of the door. Other mornings, when I'm outside during supervised free time, she's out there, just standing. People think I'm crazy, uh, obviously."

  "Well, of course you're not. Focus on the fight, not people's opinions. You're strong, stronger than ever now. You've seen things most people could never understand no matter how much they want to. Don't be too hard on them. They don't know."

  "Will she always haunt me?"

  Robert thought for a moment before speaking. "Likely as not, I'm afraid. But she can't harm you. Not anymore. It's only your mind and spirit you'll have to build up to learn to ignore her. I am sorry for that, Kelly."

  "It's ok," she said. "I remember what you said to me, what Nick told me you told him about, too."

  "What's that?"

  "Newton's third law."

  Robert laughed, hugged Kelly again and walked out of the hospital. He got into his truck and drove to his tiny, comfortable piece of home.

  The Angel and the Dragon

  Part One: Upside Down

  "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking..." the voice came over the loudspeaker. Joshua pulled off his headphones and listened.

  "We're now entering Egyptian airspace and have entered an unforeseen storm. It's, uh, likely that, uh, we will begin experiencing some turbulence. In the event of an actual emergency situation..."

  Joshua put his headphones back on. The rest would be the usual pabulum. He figured anytime he stepped onto a plane if it went down, that was the end of things. He felt his stomach tingle as the plane dropped down onto a different set of air currents. There was a flash to his right and he looked out his window. Rain was pummeling the plane, lightning flashed, and it all swirled and swarmed outside; darkness intermingling with flashing light creating odd shapes in the clouds. Once or twice, Joshua thought he saw something in those clouds, which he just attributed to his own overactive imagination.