by Drue M Scott
“WAIT!”
What Would an Angel Do; the Devil Wants to Know
The ocean was violent. Every attempt to stand was met with a crashing failure. He wasn’t sick, as most of the other passengers and crew were, but Brennan struggled to remain upright as the waves struck the vessel carrying them from Europe to the Americas hard.
“Go back down!” His father yelled as water crested over the ship and rained down on the deck. “Now, Brennan!” His father was normally reserved, almost stoic, but fear covered his face equal to the seawater drowning the exposed deck. Everything seemed to be out of its rightful place.
Brennan had come from the lower deck inside the belly of the ship to search for his mother. She was not where she had promised. Nothing had gone as planned, as best his young mind could remember, since leaving Ireland. His parents fought constantly, the captain was missing, and the other passengers were screaming and arguing constantly. Some form of mayhem had taken hold, and its grip was tightening.
“Goddamnit, Brennan. Go!” The last words Brennan would ever hear his father say barely rose above the thunderous crashing of waves against the hull.
Shocked by his father’s sternness, Brennan twisted his body to move towards the old wooden ladder that had brought him up. Swaying in time with the list of the ship, he began to cry. He wasn’t hurt by his father’s words, though they were harsher than he could ever remember his father being, nor was he too concerned with the waves and raging storm, but not seeing his mother, her soft loving smile and comforting touch, troubled him deeply.
“Ma!” Screaming as loud as his small voice would allow, Brennan began to descend the wide-wrung ladder back below decks. The aged, wooden planks, only half remaining in the position they had once been secured, proved to be difficult in the rocking of the ship for Brennan to navigate. Slipping as he attempted to lower himself back below, he plummeted to the hard, wet floor 10-feet down. Pain shot up through his chest as he landed squarely on his back. Abruptly, the world went black with the last flash of lightning and thunderous boom.
##
Brennan can you hear me? Unsure if those were the right words to use, Jason tried to reach Brennan’s essence gently. Am I talking? Can we hear? Goddamnit, this is ridiculous. His frustrations were multiplying with each moment. Accepting that he was only energy, that souls are merely a two part life-force, was becoming easier, but the understanding of how energy interacted with other energy and space was far beyond what his patience would allow. Brennan had suddenly gone completely silent, and Jason could no longer feel his presence in their prison. How am I inside a soul with another soul within a human and ok with it? Brennan! Only silence. He knew something was wrong. Devin had murdered yet another young man, and it crushed Brennan. Jason knew that this monster was killing people using Brennan’s body, and it was more than his fellow captive could bear. Maybe I should have been easier on him. Jason continued to search the darkness for any indication that Brennan was there. I forgive you. Can you forgive me? Hope sprung forth with his words but died immediately under the silence that bore heavy dread on him. Frustration at his own anger in confronting Brennan plagued his thoughts. He knew before he had ever really approached the subject that he had forgiven Brennan whatever role he played in the mess they currently found themselves in. But fear for his love, Mikale, overrode his other emotions, and he fired off insults and accusations that were not fair. I’m sorry.
“He’s taken his leave, lost in a space, somewhere between here and there, gone without a trace.” Devin echoed his voice into Jason.
It felt like vibrations, subtle strums on guitar strings, but each wavelength of power strung together words. They were sick words; Jason hated them.
“Just be patient, my little snack, your hell is very near, and you’re never coming back.” Devin laughed, the twistedness of his joy sickened Jason.
“What have you done to Brennan?”
“I’ve done nothing.” The image of Devin, black suit, red tie, and shark-tooth grin, flickered into existence. Jason couldn’t tell if it was seeing, sensing, or just knowing that brought the disgusting image into sight.
There is no such thing as sight. Jason argued within himself. Dear god, what is happening? “If you didn’t do anything with him, why can I not feel him here anymore?”
“He is doing to himself, what all men do, when they realize their hell, is what all men do.”
“Stop playing games. You have won. Just tell me what is going on, where is Brennan?”
“Realizing his choices in life,” Devin paused coughing in a mock clearing of his throat, “in death, are of his own doing. He is learning he never REALLY had a chance.” Abrupt silence cut off Devin’s last words leaving Jason befuddled.
But, where is he? His own energy began to flutter; it mimicked the heaving of one’s chest in an uncontrollable fit of sorrow. Brennan! Struggling to reach out to his friend, are we friends?, strained his life-force in hopes of connecting with some part of Brennan that might still be locked away inside Devin. Is this my fault? Did I push him so hard that he shut down? Fear and panic shot through him. Am I stuck here alone forever? “BRENNAN!”
##
Opening his eyes Brennan noticed the sky was still angry, but it was a different sky, it was not above the ocean but rather above the wild Californian terrain. Rain stung his eyes, the stench of blood filled his nostrils, and a pain deep within his chest radiated throughout his body. Victoria was dead, and the knowledge of how and by whom, flooded his thoughts relentlessly. Anger began to swell within him. Somewhere, he knew he was being forced to relive tragedies in his life, but it all felt so real. His own understanding of souls and energy faltered. Sight without eyes, sound without ears, memories without a brain—everything was based on physical existence, but that was what he knew. Fear and great loss showered down on him with the rain as his essence fell deeper into Devin’s trap. Am I feeding the downward spiral?
“NO!” His own voice sounded foreign to him as it scratched past his hoarse throat and bloodied lips. “You motherfucker!”
“Such language. Tisk, tisk, tisk.” Devin stood before him. They were surrounded by darkness with only small specks of radiating light that danced far off in the distance. Suspended in emptiness but held in place by a power that felt menacing, Brennan knew Devin’s strength was growing. Soon, he would have little chance in freeing himself or Jason from the jaws of this maniacal entity. Desperation stung his conscience; anger riled his spirit; his soul was on fire.
“What the…?”
“Shhhh” Devin interrupted Brennan before a full thought or phrase could be conveyed. “We’re going to leave you here for a spell. Lost among the million memories of a life you once lived,” Devin paused to laugh hysterically, “twice lived.” His enjoyment of Brennan’s pain tainted his words, “How many times have you lived?” The question mutated his laughter into something mechanical and distorted. “Don’t worry though. I’m saving Mikale’s death for dessert. You’re gonna love what I do with him.” The demon-like, metallic echo of his voice dropped off with sudden and deafening silence.
##
Evening had taken the day, and the stars were faintly dotting the sky above them. Devin stood over his fresh kill as Jacob looked on in befuddled amusement. The elderly woman with silver-blue hair and crooked smile, the third victim since taking control of Brennan’s body, was now only a macerated mess of bloodied flesh and body parts, none of which were attached correctly.
“Picasso,” Jacob fumbled the word from his mouth as he dropped the needle from his arm. “Fucking Picasso. Get it, cause her arm is attached to her pussy and her head is… wait, where IS her head?” Wobbling deeper and deeper into a warm flush as the drugs Devin provided him flooded every thirsty fiber of his body, Jacob laughed.
Barely able to cover the stench of death, the tall pines and full fir trees around them stood as guards blocking their deadly exploits. Their varying shades of green under the darkening sky and misting rain pu
lled at Jacob’s attention. Taking a deep breath, resting his hands to his hips, and lifting his chin to the sky, he arched his back. His vertebrae cracked in succession. “How many more?” Jacob’s words airily floated from his lips. Ecstasy colored his every movement and every word. “This is so good.” With his skin prickling at the delicate touch of the air around them, Jacob shivered. It wasn’t a cold shiver; it was a drifting off into paradise involuntary movement, and he loved it. Just beneath his skin, Jacob could see blue/green light swirling. It danced in rhythm to his heart, which slowed with each beat.
“Until I know you harbor enough energy to level a city.”
“Ha!” Jacob slouched as laughter vibrated in his chest. “Silly, I can’t level a city.” The heroine cocktail Devin had given him guaranteed that there would be no more mishaps or fear filled tuck-n-runs as had happened in the park; unfortunately, it also made him a rambling idiot.
“The city will stand, and the bodies will fall, flesh to dust and that is all.” Devin could see that the friction swelling up in his “secret-weapon” was nearing its breaking point. Providing the right catalyst to trigger the instability further was all he needed to do.
“You’re so funny,” Jacob stumbled over the pile of mangled flesh reaching for Devin. “You look like that boy, but you sound like my…”
Grabbing him by the shoulders and firmly pushing him an arm’s length away, Devin shouted, “Your master! And don’t you fucking forget it.”
“Aye, Aye, el Capitan!” Gesturing to salute, Jacob’s legs gave out bringing him swiftly to the ground. Landing half on the bloody mess and half on the wet grass before Devin, he smiled. “I’m just gonna stay here for a moment.” As his eyes closed under the mist and gentle breeze, a webbing light shown through his lids. Each small vein carried smoldering embers of fractured souls and friction-heavy energy. Devin knew it would not be held for much longer.
“Do that,” Devin spit his words as he floated up from the scene. He understood that the power Jacob harbored was far greater than he could defeat if the man decided to fight against him. Keeping him stupefied was his only option. Carried off on the soft breeze he let his concern fade in time with his form as it glided into the shadows of trees and disappeared.
##
Equal parts hate and fear fought within Brennan. He could not break free of the spotted darkness around him nor could he amass enough strength to reach for Jason. Is Jason still here? Having no answer to the question soured his thoughts and ramped-up his alarm. Mikale, the likeness of his friend passed through him, I love you.
Off to his right, one of the sparkling white cinders in the emptiness flared up. Its glow grew stronger and hotter. It vibrated shaking away all that could be seen and replaced it with the image of Mikale. Fast-forwarding through memories, the image shifted and warped in waves equally shifting Brennan’s energy to match. Seeing Melissa kick Mikale in the groin and land a hard right hook on his chin played on repeat. It was the last sight he had seen before reconstituting with his spirit. The flashing images hurt. Each sequence moved closer to the tormented eyes of his friend. Reflected in Mikale’s dilated pupils, Brennan could see the deepest pain a human could ever know funneled down to a fine point, a singular glimpse into the depths of another’s soul. The groin kick and chin punch hadn’t knocked him out; he was giving up. There was nothing left to live for. No reason left to fight. Everything he loved had been stolen away, including his will to continue.
“You would be right.” Another memory, is this a memory?, quickly interrupted. This time it was of his and Mikale’s first meeting. Brennan could feel the sand beneath his feet and the salt air that entered his lungs, distracting him from the fact that at present he had neither. Mikale’s words, his feelings from that day, played through Brennan’s memory as though they were taking place again. Time had somehow reversed, and he was back on the beach near the Golden Gate Bridge. The recollection was tangible. It was, in every way that Brennan could understand, happening again. He recognized the uneasy feeling that washed over him when he first entered Mikale’s being. The then-stranger and now-friend had felt a sense of melancholy in the moments just prior to Brennan’s polite invasion. At the time, however, Brennan had allowed his life—death—to overwhelm him, and so he wasn’t as keenly aware of the struggles others were dealing with. Clueless to the challenges that would soon befall them both, he was simply caught up in the purity of the moment, the ecstasy of sharing another’s life-force. Mikale’s confession about contemplating life and hinting to the idea he had pondered ending it, struck Brennan much harder than it did when originally spoken. The remembrance of the event held more power for him as he finally understood the words and their implications. Was I meant to find Mikale? Was Jason only a pawn in making Mikale more susceptible to me?
MIKALE! Heavy sorrow and guilt weighed down on Brennan as the memory faded. He understood why Mikale had given up that day, why he had no fight in him after Devin killed Jason; love itself had been murdered. It was a feeling he knew too well. It was the same feeling he had had before uncontrollable hate and vengeance ravaged his mind. It was the numbness of losing the one thing you could never bear to lose. He knew what Mikale felt because it was exactly how he felt when Victoria’s life had been taken.
“Now imagine how much pain he will feel when you torture and kill him.” Devin interrupted sending the sparkling light of the memory floating back into the empty black around them. “I don’t think there will be anything sadder in the whole of this pathetic fucked up universe.” Devin pushed his essence against Brennan’s life-force. “I don’t know what I will enjoy more: seeing his face as you cut his throat, or feeling your energy explode in grief, giving in to me completely when you realize who it is you have killed.” Swirling his being around his captive, Devin forced shocks of energy upon Brennan. “So, tell me, if you could go back to that day, what would you do?” Rapidly coming to a halt, Devin’s image flashed in front of Brennan. Strikingly handsome, in a distorted morbid way, he was bare chested with black, tight-fitting slacks and no shoes. His greased-back, dark hair glistened in a light that wasn’t present. His eyes, blue with small red pupils, glared intently at Brennan. The pale skin Devin showed was barely able to contain the glowing anger that swirled within him. It reminded Brennan of a thin veil stretched and about to tear. “Come, come, dear boy. What would you do? The devil wants to know.” Laughing, blood spilled free of Devin’s shark-tooth smile. “If you knew it would save him the torture he is about to suffer, would you have chosen someone different?” Devin leaned in close. “Would you have not allowed yourself to become so attached?” Widening his grin, Devin floated back a few feet. “You’ve failed him so many times now; I am beginning to wonder if you understand anything at all about Mikale.”
“Why are you doing this?” Defeated anger washed over Brennan as he tried to speak. The confusion and fear he felt blocked Devin’s trailing words from fully registering in his mind. He knew that everything Devin said, in one form or another, was a crazy game he wanted all of them to play. But Brennan didn’t understand it. All that he recognized, all that he could understand was focused intensely on discovering Devin’s motivation in that moment.
“Why?”
“Because I can. Because I deserve to rule this pesky planet. Because she needs to know that I am powerful.” The smallest falter in his voice cracked as he spoke. It wasn’t enough to be obvious, but Brennan caught it just as Devin finished speaking.
“You hate her that much?” Brennan questioned the emptiness. The flickering lights had all faded to black and even the image of Devin had begun to disintegrate into vapor and float away. “Kyna is dead. A mistake that I will never forgive myself for making.” Sadness and guilt swelled up within him. “You made sure that I…” Brennan couldn’t finish. He knew the words he wanted to speak were fact but not true. No one “makes” anyone do anything. He had a choice. I could have stopped. I could have…
“You think she’s dead, ha?” Devin
chuckled. “I wouldn’t bother with any of this if she were dead.”
“What?” Brennan interrupted with urgency. “Kyna is alive?”
“NO!” Devin shouted, “You should focus more on what is coming next. The realization will be worth the wait.” The dissipating fog of Devin lingered, softly rising upward like the smoke from a long-burning cigarette. “Oscar, Mary, Angel, Victoria…” Heavy silence fell upon Brennan with the confusion of why Devin was listing names. “Oleg, Kathryn, Ulna, and Mikale,” he continued, “all for one and one for all, but search with only sight and you will fail.” The last of his words trailed off as the entire environment became a flash of red light and unbearable heat. Blinding and numbing, the light engulfed all that Brennan knew; it was emptiness and malice.
Retaliation
“WAIT!” Abruptly sitting upright, Mikale shouted before falling back limp to the thin hospital bed. The springs, way past their prime, squeaked in disagreement as Mikale’s weight bore down heavily on them. The whole bed shook at his return. As sharply as he had lifted his body from the aging bed, he was prone again, motionless as the dead. Shock and fear filled Haley as she tried to close the over-sized wood door to the room while maintaining a clear line of sight to Mikale.
Catching his foot in the jam before Haley could latch it shut, Sergei pushed his way into the room. “Stewart?” He questioned quickly assessing both Haley and Mathieu while slamming the door shut behind him. “Is Stewart okay?” Running for one of the cheap hospital chairs, Sergei continued, “Something or someone is coming for…” He paused to prop up the useless chair against the door handle to the room. “Is Stewart in this man?” Gazing down at Mikale, Sergei cocked his head slightly to the left.