Incident 27

by Scott Kinkade

  He forced his eyes open and rolled out of bed. After hitting the “OFF” button, he ensured the room’s return to tranquility. He rubbed his eyes and looked around. Captivating rays of sunlight flowed in through the window of his dorm room, and posters of bands and movies he didn’t recognize adorned the walls. Wait—why didn’t he recognize them? Oh, well. Aside from that, everything else seemed to be normal here at Seraphim City University.

  A primal sense of panic shot through his body. Seraphim City University? Why wasn’t he at Divine Protector Academy?

  The memories came flooding back to him. He had been fighting with everyone at Stonecroft, but then the Ark came out of the ground. Arcturus grabbed it, and then…nothing. Ev had woken up here in this place that seemed familiar but wasn’t. What the hell was going on?

  Someone knocked at the door. He hopped off the bed and opened it.

  His blood ran cold when he saw who was standing before him. Indescribable terror paralyzed him. This was impossible, it couldn’t be happening!

  “Hey there, son!” Dom Bannen grinned like this was a normal social call. He may have gone gray, but this was without a doubt him.

  Ev staggered backwards until he hit the desk on the far wall, and even then, he desperately tried backing up further. “No, no, no, no, no! You can’t be here! You’re dead! I killed you!”

  His parents entered the room with looks of confusion on their faces. “Ev, sweety—are you all right?”

  “You look pale as a ghost, son. What’s wrong?” He tried getting closer to Ev who hysterically waved him off.

  “You stay away from me!” He felt ashamed of himself in that moment. He had powers far greater than any human, yet he was still terrified of his father. He needed to get it together.

  His mother’s pleading eyes stayed lock onto him. “Ev, please, talk to us. What’s going on?”

  It was then that his brained started putting the pieces together. Arcturus had opened the Ark. Ev was living a normal life at a normal college. His father was still alive and being nice to him. Son of a bitch—they had succeeded! They had created a new world.

  Ev decided to confirm this for himself. “Last year in Stiftung—was it attacked?”

  They exchanged worried glances. “What are you talking about?” Anni said.

  “Was Stiftung attacked by giants last year?”

  “Oh!” Dom said, relief washing over him. “He must have had a dream. We did show up pretty early. Look, he hasn’t gotten dressed yet.” In fact, Ev was wearing a wrinkled t-shirt and boxers.

  Anni laughed. “That must be it. Stiftung, attacked by giants!” She had a good laugh at her son’s nonsense.

  Dom stretched out his arms and pretended to thrash about. “Better watch out, son! There are giants roaming around. Arrg!”

  Ev knew it was best he tell them what they wanted to believe. “Yeah. Of course. It was a dream. I just woke up, you see.” He made an exaggerated display of shaking his head to get the last bits of sleep out of there.

  “I was so worried there. I thought something was seriously wrong with you,” Anni said.

  “No, no; I’m fine, really. I just, uh...need to get to class. I’m going to be late.”

  “Right,” Dom said. “We’ll take the tour later when you get back.”

  “Tour?”

  “You promised to take us on a tour of the campus today,” his mother said.

  “Oh. Yeah—of course. We’ll do it when I get back. Right now, I really have to be going.”

  * * *

  After enduring what was without question the single most awkward experience of his life, Ev exited the Riordan Men’s Dorm and entered the sprawling campus of Seraphim City University. As the highest-ranked college in Morovia, it did not disappoint. The landscaping was immaculately done, with not a single shrub or leaf out of place. Beautiful fur trees lined the many walkways that traversed the college grounds, and countless expensive benches ensured everyone had a place to sit down at all times.

  He recalled the last time he had visited here. That was the day after his first encounter with refghasts and the day of his introduction to the world of gods. So much had changed since then; he had met so many interesting people, and fought in multiple deadly battles.

  When he reached Rowling Quad—a brick-laden area with miniature waterfalls on each of the four corners—someone yelled, “Ev!” He turned around. To his utter amazement, Maya ran up and gave him a fierce kiss on the lips. “I thought you were going to meet me outside the women’s dorm.”

  “I...uh...I mean...” Her shocking display of affection had blown him away. This was just too sudden.

  “Oh, well, I managed to find you, so it’s fine.”

  “Yeah. Uh, sorry about that. My parents showed up this morning, so it skipped my mind.”

  “Oh! Right; of course. That’s understandable. Well, anyway, let’s get to class.”

  “Just a second,” he said. “Have you seen Arcturus around here?”

  Like his parents, she looked confused. “Do you mean Professor Reich? He’s probably in his office right now.”

  “Uh, yes. Professor Reich. And...where would his office be again?”

  Rolling her eyes, she replied, “The Liberal Arts building, duh.”

  Ev put up his hands in an appeasing gesture. “I’m sorry, but I have to go see him real quick. I’ll talk to you later.” He ran off, saying, “Bye!”

  “Ev! Wait! What are you doing?”

  * * *

  Ev vaguely recalled where the Liberal Arts building was from his previous trip here. He took the main walkway around the massive Cherub Stadium and, after asking strangers for further directions, he ended up at his destination. The large, four-story building, like everything at Seraphim City University, hadn’t come cheap. Millions of yaros (Morovian currency) had gone into building it and furnishing it with modern amenities. There were computers and a big-screen flatscreen in every room to ensure students received the best education possible.

  After looking up Arcturus’ office on the directory in the lobby, he proceeded up the nearest flight of stairs and found the room he was looking for.

  The door was open. “Ev! Come in!” Arcturus was cuddling with a stunningly beautiful woman Ev had never seen before.

  “Uh…Hey,” he said.

  Arcturus motioned to his companion. “Ev, I’d like you to meet Quandisa, a tenured professor like myself. Quandisa, this is Ev Bannen.”

  She took his hand. “It’s so nice to meet you.”

  “Likewise. I guess.”

  “Baby, would you mind giving us a minute?”

  “Sure. But don’t take too long. You know I can’t stand to be away from you.” She exited the room.

  Arcturus took a seat behind his desk. Ev suddenly noticed the suit he wore. He looked nothing like the Arcturus he knew. “I bet this is all very strange to you.”

  “You can say that again.”

  The suddenly tenured professor beamed like the sun. “We did it, Ev! We created a new world. A perfect world.”

  “Yeah, I figured that much. But why is my dad alive, and...nice?” He had trouble getting that last word out. It was just so weird, and maybe a little creepy.

  Arcturus’ smile dimmed for a moment. “I’m sorry. I should have asked you first. Do you want me to make him dead again? I can do that. I make the rules here.” He seemed especially proud of that last part.

  “No, no—I mean…I don’t know. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad having a loving father around. I never got to experience that.”

  “Me, neither. But you should definitely give it a try. I brought both my parents back.”

  “OK. Maybe you’re right. I’ll give my new-and-vastly-improved dad a chance. But if I could change the subject here—what happened to Maya? She doesn’t seem to be aware that anything’s changed.”

  “Ah,” Arcturus said. “It takes some adjustment. When you woke up this morning, did you believe this had always been your reality?”

&
nbsp; “Well, now that you mention it, I did. Just for a moment, though.”

  “It was the same with me. Your memories of the previous world are at odds with the new one. Don’t worry; Maya will return to normal pretty soon. In the meantime, why not enjoy the more affectionate version of her.”

  OK, that sounded suspicious. “Wait a minute. Did you change her personality on purpose?”

  He shrugged. “Not directly. I simply altered her background. You and she grew up together. Due to the familiarity, you’re madly in love with one another. But like I said, she’ll grow out of it soon enough.”

  “Oh. OK, I guess that’s fine. Just as long as she doesn’t stay that way. That’s not the Maya I know.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Enjoy campus life they way it was meant to be.” He then added, “By me.” His smile remained intact, but despite his assurances, Ev thought he detected something in his expression, something dark, when they spoke of the new Maya. Maybe it was just his imagination.

  “One other thing,” Ev said.

  “Yes?”

  “Can you send my parents home? I need some time to get used to the idea of having my dad around and not trying to kill me?” He tried to say it as a joke, but he was dead serious.

  “Sure.” He clapped his hands. “Now they’re back home with no memory of coming to visit you. Just call them when you’re ready to see them.”

  “Thanks.”

  * * *

  After leaving Arcturus’ office, he thought about going to class, but realized he had no idea which classes he was taking. Hell, he didn’t even know what his major was. At the Academy, he hadn’t decided on one yet, so he couldn’t even begin to guess what it might be here.

  He returned to his dorm room to look for his class schedule or something to tell him what he was supposed to be doing. As Arcturus had promised, his parents were gone, to his great relief.

  In his desk he found a folder containing all his info. Turns out he was an engineering student with a sixteen hour week schedule (a respectable number). Of course, it soon occurred to him that he didn’t have to be an engineer. This was their world; he could do whatever he wanted. He could have anything he wanted. Wasn’t that something? Wasn’t it...?

  Contrary to his expectations, the thought depressed him. If he could get anything he wanted with just a clap of Arcturus’ hands, then, he realized, life had no meaning. Struggling to get what we want is what defines us. Without that, I’m nothing. I have no reason to exist.

  He lie on his bed for a while, contemplating what this all meant going forward. What could he possibly have to look forward to? Well, there was Maya. He could be happy with her, right? No; as soon as she returned to normal, she would be just as unhappy as he was. His heart sank as he imagined the two of them alone in this happy yet miserable world. Had he made a terrible mistake? Surely not. He needed to think of the greater good. This world was full of happiness and no one ever had to suffer again. Wasn’t their unhappiness a small price to pay for that?

  Eventually, he decided that it was, and got up. Noticing the stubble on his face, he went to the bathroom to shave and poured a dollop of cream into his palm (he always used too much). He picked up the razor and—

  “Ev!”

  Scared out of his mind, he dropped both the mound of cream and the razor. “Shit! What the...?” Brandon was looking at him from someplace dark on the other side of the mirror.

  “We don’t have a lot of time. I need you to listen to me.”

  Ev stared, aghast. “What the hell are you doing in my mirror?”

  “I’m not in the mirror. I’m in Gehenna.”

  “The place where the Tower of Babel and the Nephilim were stored? Why aren’t you here in the new world with us?”

  “Because Arcturus doesn’t want us there. As far as I can tell, the only people who transferred over are you and him.”

  Ev ran his fingers through his hair as the tension mounted in his stomach. “No, no, no. I know for a fact Maya made it here.”

  “No, Ev; she didn’t. That’s just a copy he made. He played you. Maya’s with us over here. I know you’re confused, so let me explain.

  “You may have noticed Bethos didn’t participate in the battle we just had. That’s because he stayed behind to make certain preparations. You see, he has the unique ability to transport people between worlds en mass. We knew there was a strong possibility we wouldn’t be able to stop the Ark from activating, and we needed a backup plan just in case. I’m sorry to say this is the best we could do. Bethos warped all of humanity and all gods here the instant the Ark activated.”

  “Well...” Ev said. “I mean...OK. You can just have the President transfer everyone to this world.”

  But Brandon shook his head. “I’m afraid that’s not possible. The laws of the world Arcturus created are absolute. No one gets in without his permission. The most we could manage was to temporarily open up a window to you. We can’t go through it; we can only use it to communicate.”

  Ev could feel madness encroaching on him as everything fell apart. His nerves were rapidly being frayed. “I-I don’t understand. Are you just going to spend the rest of your lives in Gehenna?”

  Brandon’s expression was one of sadness and desperation. “No, Ev. We can’t. Gehenna doesn’t have the atmosphere to support life as you know it. It’s a mostly empty void. Right now, we’re using our conjuring abilities to create oxygen and warmth for everyone, but even though we’re gods, we can’t keep this up forever. Sooner or later, we’re all going to suffocate.”

  “No!” Ev said. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this! Everyone was supposed to be safe and happy. And now you’re telling me everyone’s going to die because of me?” He fought to hold back the tears and the agony, but it was futile. He had effectively killed everyone.

  “Don’t give up just yet, Ev. We can still return the world to the way it used to be. There’s a way, but you’re not gonna like it.”

  Ev raised his head from the slouched, defeated position it had been in. “There’s a way? Tell me! I’ll do anything.”

  “It’s simple, really. You have two choices. Arcturus rules your new world. Maybe you can convince him to cancel it.”

  “And if he refuses? What’s the other choice?”

  Brandon replied, “I think you already know. You have to kill him.”

  No. “But...we did this so that we wouldn’t have to kill anyone ever again. He’s my friend. I mean...I thought he was.”

  “Open your eyes, Ev! He just sentenced everyone in existence except the two of you to die! He’s no one’s friend. You’ve only got one chance to make everything right. No matter what he tells you, do what needs to be done.”

  “Why? What’s he going to tell me?”

  Brandon avoided eye contact with him. “I can’t say. I’m too ashamed. But believe me; it’s not worth sacrificing every last person for. Please, Ev, you have to—”

  The mirror suddenly went back to normal, and Ev found himself staring at his own reflection. They must have used up the small window they had to talk.

  Ev couldn’t believe this. Arcturus had lied to him. The Maya of this world was nothing more than his puppet designed to keep Ev in blissful ignorance. And now everyone was going to die unless he did the one thing he wasn’t certain he could do. Arcturus had a lot more fighting experience than he had. How could he hope to overcome him?

  He slapped himself. That kind of negative attitude would kill everyone for sure. Maybe if he talked to Arcturus, he could convince him to change everything back. But what if you can’t? Are you prepared to kill him?

  Yes, he told himself. But his lack of confidence said otherwise.

  * * *

  Arcturus had left his office. After about an hour of searching, Ev found him on the hezball court in Lang Civics Center. The huge building held shops, restaurants and enough seating to hold thousands of people.

  By the time Ev made his way down to the court, Arcturus was finishing up throwing a
hezball through the octagonal goal situated seven feet off the ground.

  Ev approached him and said, “We need to talk.”

  Whatever Arcturus had been doing before Ev arrived hadn’t caused him to break out in sweat. He was just as dry as he had been when Ev saw him last. “Oh? What about? Let me guess—you want to change your major. No problem.”

  “No, it’s not that. Look, I...I need you to change the world back to the way it was.”

  Arcturus stared at him for a moment before erupting into boisterous laughter. “You’re hilarious, Ev! ‘Change the world back to the way it was’. You are just too much.” Ev waited for him to stop laughing, all the while keeping the look of grim determination on his face. After an uncomfortable silence, Arcturus said, “You’re serious. I can’t believe this. Why would you want to go back to that world of evil and suffering?”