by G W Mullins
Jen watched the TV intently as Daniel faded into dreams. From time to time he flinched and jerked. Jen didn’t think much of it. But when Daniel started to talk in his sleep, was when Jen became concerned. She looked at him trying to make sense of what he was saying. She watched him jerking harder and pulling at the blanket trying to get free. She had to know what was going on in his head. Then she remembered that night in the cemetery house when their hands met and she joined him in the ghost world.
Jen reached down and pulled Daniel’s arm out of the sheet. She knew his powers were almost gone but maybe there was a chance he might still have something left. As she took his hand in hers, a glow started to emit from his body and engulfed them both. It started out the brilliant blue she remembered and then it lightened and turned white. The glow was different than before in color and intensity. As it wrapped around them, she closed her eyes. She had found her way into his mind.
“Daniel, what is going on here? Why are you upset?” Jen asked.
“They’re here, in my head, even as I sleep. They are trying to contact me.” Daniel replied.
“How are they here? We are alone.”
“We’re never alone. I am marked. They are using the hand prints like a tracking device. They are ready to come for me.”
“That doesn’t make sense Daniel.”
“Jen, I died over 60 years ago and was buried; now I am alive and becoming human. Can you tell me how any of this makes sense?”
As the two argued about their unexplainable existence, the dream-state they were occupying started to change. There were no shapes in the dream-state, no life or forms when Jen had started to communicate with Daniel, but that changed quickly. Daniel saw the darkness taking shape just in front of them. A black mass formed much like a ball, then it split into seven equal pieces. Each one keeping an equal distance and forming a group of lines until all seven started to stretch and form silhouettes of people.
Jen pulled back in fear. She was well aware of what was happening. Daniel was right, they were tracking him. Daniel grabbed at her arm. “Don’t be scared they can’t hurt us here.” Jen clung to him and watched as the forms completed their transformation. The shadow figures were complete.
A sound filled the space, one unlike they had ever heard, it started out like a humming and then changed. It was a dull annoying noise that reminded Jen of a test pattern. It changed and morphed until it was as if several of the same sounds were overlapping into and echoed effect. And then, a voice came out of the chaos.
“We are the Shadows of the light. We are all powerful. We are enforcers. No one is exempt from the light. You walked in the land of the dead. You saw much that a living person should not. The dead know you were one of them. Now the dead want you back. While you were in the light you encountered seven of our brethren. They sensed your weakness and reached out to you in an attempt to help you cross over. As they tried to help, you fought and escaped. This is unacceptable. Now those seven will come for you and reclaim you for the dead. No one can deny the light. Together we enforcers will show you the error of your decision.”
As the voice diminished, the forms once again joined together in a large black mass and disappeared. Daniel breathed deep and turned to Jen. He shook his head and let go of her hand. The dream had ended and Jen returned to her own consciousness. Daniel woke up and turned on his side to look at her.
“See what happens when you play in my head. You get more than you bargained for.”
“Tell me about it. How did they do that? They were all there in unison.”
“Dead people can come to you in dreams. It has always been a built-in clause with death. You get to say good-bye to loved ones. Some people use it; others who are too close minded don’t. I guess you have to be a believer and accepting for it to work. I always thought it was nice that people could make one last visit in a dream. I guess most think it is just a dream and don’t believe it ever happened. The Shadows just tapped into that ability.” Daniel explained.
“Well, at least now we know they really are coming. We have to go, but how do you run from what can come from nowhere and how do you hide from it.”
“We get away from people. The city is too full of opportunities for things to happen. If we head upstate to the mountains, we’ll be safer.” Daniel lied; he didn’t believe his words any more than Jen did.
He rolled over in bed and looked up at the ceiling. He ran it all through his head and tried to formulate a plan. It was no use; how could he ever fight a legion of the undead? If they could take over the bodies of people who were about to die then their Shadow Zombies could appear anywhere or anytime.
As Daniel propped himself up as started to turn towards Jen, he felt the pain on his arm. The pain grew and the extreme burning sensation increased, he pulled at his shirt sleeve to expose the area. His skin emitted a bright red glow where a handprint was on his forearm. It was the first shadow who had touched him.
Daniel looked up at Jen as she was staring at the handprint. She took a deep breath and reached out to touch him. She could tell the pain for him was intense. Daniel leaned forward and rested his head on her shoulder. Jen held him until the pain subsided.
“At least we know when they are about to come for us.” Jen whispered.
“Yeah, but how do we defend ourselves against an undead army?” Daniel asked sarcastically.
“We do whatever it takes. You morphed into a different form. You are more human than anything now. Your powers still exist. We just used them and, in the mausoleum, you used a blast of light. You didn’t have that before. We need to figure out what other nifty little things you can do. But in the meantime, you have to sleep. Whatever abilities you have acquired will only work better of you are rested.”
Jen watched as Daniel went to sleep. Once he was completely under, she quietly left the room. She didn’t want to wake him. Jen knew she would not be able to be quiet with all that was going on in her brain. She headed down the hall to the living room. Everyone else had gone to bed and she was alone. It was something that she had grown used to before Daniel came along.
She opened the front door as a cool breeze coated her entire body. It was cold but it was also a nice sensation. Jen pulled herself up to the banister that ran around much of the porch and looked out over the city that lay below. She used to think that the city was filled with danger. There were so many bad people who could hurt you. Now, they seemed like nothing to her. Nothing frightened her as much as the undead.
Her grandmother once took her to a cemetery, and Jen remembered she was so afraid. She wanted to leave. The stones that had people on them were frightening to her. Jen thought of them as the dead. She remembered her Grandmother telling her “You have nothing to fear, the dead can’t hurt you.” Jen knew now, how wrong her grandmother was. The dead can hurt you, more than you will ever know.
As she turned to go back inside, she did not notice the trees out front of the house. The top levels were filled with ravens, all watching the house. As the door closed, the birds all made a caw noise and the same time and took flight circling the tree. As they descended to the ground, they joined together in a mass of black taking the form of a woman with long flowing black hair and dressed in a black gown. She smiled with an evil expression, and with a flick of her fingers released one black raven into the night. “Stay and watch my precious one. Let me know when they leave. I have plans for these two. I won’t have the Shadows getting in my way.”
4 On the Run
Daniel awoke at 6:30A.M., he confused and unaware of his surroundings. As he set up, he tried to piece it all together. As he scanned the room, vague memories flooded his brain. He looked down on the bed beside him and saw Jen curled around her pillow. She had fallen asleep watching TV, watching over him as he slept. A smile worked its way across his face, and for a moment he found peace. Sadly, it was short lived as the pain on his arm returned but even stronger than before.
Daniel quickly slid out of bed and ran out the
door before he could disturb Jen. He didn’t want her to wake up that way. She had already been through too much. As he walked down the hall, a familiar ball of light appeared before him. The orb bounced up and down as if trying to get his attention. Its brightly light glow filled the hall and led him forward.
As he reached the front door, Daniel stopped in his tracks. He wasn’t sure if he should follow or not. This could be a trap. He wandered if the Shadows were capable of forming themselves into orbs. If it was a trap, he was not falling for it.
“Don’t be scared, I am not here to hurt you.” A voice echoed from the area of the orb.
“Who are you? What do you want?” Daniel asked.
“I am Elizabeth. I have come to talk with you.”
The orb moved forward and disappeared at the door. Daniel ran forward and touched the door where the orb had been. The surface was warm to the touch. As he opened the door and looked out, he could see the bright light outside. For a moment he thought it was the light of morning. Then he saw the orb and knew it was causing the blinding light.
“I’m here, so talk. What is going on?” Daniel insisted.
“I am sure by now you know the shadows are coming for you.”
“Yes, I got that from the message they sent me. They seem pretty sure I don’t stand a chance with them.”
“You should never give up hope. When you believe, anything is possible. You just have to work for what you want.” Elizabeth’s voice echoed in an ethereal tone.
“Work for what I want...what the hell does that mean?” Daniel was confused.
“Don’t give up, anything is possible. Look at it this way, coming back from the dead is considered an impossible task. But you did it. You are here before me now, looking quite human.”
“Yeah, quite human and now totally powerless because of it.” Daniel was starting to get frustrated.
“No, not powerless at all! You are just changing. As your spirit became human and transformed, your abilities changed and grew as well. You have a great deal of power within you. It is merely a matter of learning what your abilities are and how to use them.” Elizabeth explained trying not to give Daniel too much information.
“OK, I can defend myself. I do stand a chance. But how can I fight if I don’t understand how to fight?”
“It will come to you in time. I am not permitted to tell you everything. I am only being allowed to guide you because you are a special case.”
“Who is allowing you to guide me and why aren’t you permitted?” Daniel was getting angry.
“I will give you the short version. Life on Earth is not all there is. There is a higher level called the Guardians. They watch over everything in the world that is good and make sure it is protected and kept in line with where it is supposed to be. There is a balance of good and evil and the Guardians ensure the balance is kept and that neither good nor evil take control.”
“Why don’t the Guardians just make sure good takes over?” Daniel asked.
“If one side had all the power, there would be total chaos. Evil is a necessary thing, just like we need light and dark. That is why the Guardians choose souls of people who have passed on to ascend and become, for lack of a better word, angels. They are sent back to earth to keep the balance.”
“Does this mean I am one of these angels?”
“Let’s just call you an angel in training. You are not trained or at full power yet. But you are getting there.”
“Then why are the Shadows coming for me? How is it they do not know what I am?” Daniel demanded.
“Because my boy, as I said, you are a special case. You were supposed to be waiting to ascend. Then you met a young lady who gave you the will to live again. And you went in to the light to fight for your right. End result, you got the attention of the Shadows who were never supposed to know about you. Now you are becoming human, as you would have if you ascended properly and you are attaining the powers you would have been trained to use. If you had done this in the right order.” Elizabeth said sarcastically with a smile on her face. “Which you did not.”
“So, what do I do about the Shadows? Can you call them off?”
“No, I have no power over them. They operate by their own rules. They are enforcers of the light. The Guardians cannot control them or the light for that matter.”
“What is the light? Where does it come from?”
“The light is a collective force. It is all powerful, and all our thoughts, dreams and love fuel it. When people die, their souls go into the light. It is like another infinite world. You might refer to it as the afterlife.”
“You mean like heaven. Are heaven and hell real?”
“You couldn’t pay me to go into that one. Let’s just say, life is all in what you believe is real.”
“So, what do I do now?” Daniel asked.
“You fight my dear boy. Learn what you are capable of, and use it. The Shadows will come for you. And every one you saw in the light, will attempt to reclaim you. Not as you saw them but in the form of a person who has just died. You will know when they are coming by where they marked you. The pain from the marks will tell of their approach. But you knew that didn’t you?”
“I have felt the pain already starting a few hours ago.” Daniel explained.
“The Shadow will have until midnight to claim you. If that one does not claim you by the stroke of twelve, then you have survived it. Just as if all seven have not claimed you by the next full moon, they forfeit their right to you.”
“We just had a full moon, so I have roughly a month. Will you be with me throughout all this?”
“Yes, just think of me as your supervisor. I will come if you need me. I will also be guarding you from any evil forces who want to interfere. You are destined to do so much more than you could ever imagine. I will make sure you achieve your destiny.”
“What about my abilities? When will I achieve full power?”
“You should be getting there within the day or so. You’re going to have to learn to control these powers by trial and error. Some things will come naturally to you like the ability to orb. It is much like what you did before when traveling in the ghost realm. You will also have the ability to concentrate energy. Please use this wisely and never direct it at an innocent human. You will have a kind of telepathic ability and the ability to heal, but these will come in time and with practice. All your gifts need, is a bit of concentration and you should have no problem using them.”
“I guess I can’t do anything but learn to use my abilities and wait for a Shadow attack.”
“Keep moving, if they have trouble tracking you, it will be harder for them to kill you.”
“What if they do win, is there any way you can save me?”
“I don’t know. Let’s just hope it does not come to that. I must leave you now. I have others I must attend to.”
“Are there a lot like me, angels in training?” He laughed at the thought.
“There are more than you could imagine and they are everywhere. The humans are innocent and need someone to guide and inspire them in life, love, art, music. In most cases, they do not even know they are guided. Protect yourself and Jen. Do not let the Shadows get too close to her. Remember she is not like us; she can be hurt.”
In about a second, Elizabeth faded and the bright light of an orb replaced her and shot towards the sky. Daniel looked on with a new hope. He would not be totally defenseless. Elizabeth had restored his faith.
5 The Shadow Cometh
Daniel woke Jen from her sleep. She hadn’t moved since he had left her. Pulling her long brown hair from in front of her eyes, she smiled up at him. She was beginning to get used to looking at him and not through him.
“You really are here. It wasn’t a dream after all.” Jen said wiping the sleep from her eyes.
“No, not a dream. I am very real and here.” Daniel laughed at her.
As she sat up, she reached out to hug him. It was so different now. She could feel his w
armth. It never existed before, when he was a ghost taking her into the ghost realm. They could touch and she would only feel a tingly electric charge. Jen liked the warmth much more.
Daniel sat down on the bed still holding tight to Jen. As he moved his head back to look at her, and their eyes met. It was as if he had seen her for the first time. His heart raced, it was a new sensation. Being he had been dead for so long, it was one he had forgotten. Before he knew what he was doing his mouth found Jen’s and they were one.
“What was that for?” Jen asked.
“You saved my life. Without you who knows where I would be now.”
“Don’t give me all the credit, you saved yourself.”
“Well, If I can survive the Shadows, maybe we can enjoy this life we achieved together.”
“We will find a way. We always do.” Jen insisted.
“We might be better off than we imagined. We need to talk.”
Daniel went on to explain everything that had happened that morning with Elizabeth. As he spoke, Jen could tell there was a new hope within him. She was glad to know he would be able to defend himself and that in a month this might all be over.
~~~~~
Martin Emery was a truck driver; he had been for more than twenty-five years. His life consisted of long hauls and bad food. He had abused himself by lack of sleep and too many chili dogs. His waistline was proof of his abuse. He had felt a bit off ever since the night before. He was trying to keep his eyes open and make the last of his twelve hours until he could get off the road. He kept having strange feelings in his chest but he just attributed it to the food that he had eaten at a greasy roadside diner the night before.