Demonic

by Karl Morgan

  Julius said, “I will find her, brother,” and disappeared.

  The emperor smiled at Drake and said, “That will be all.” He snapped his fingers again and the man was gone. “Well, I suppose it goes without saying that our first priority is to find a way to regain control of those two portals. Without that, anything else we do is probably a waste of time. Everyone except Lucius can leave now. Thank you for your time.” The other advisors left the room. “Tell me about our special prisoners. How are they doing?”

  “The wife and daughter of the Bill Watson are confined in our second deepest dungeon. At your request, their cell is large and well equipped, so they are not suffering. We record all activity as per policy and they are watched around the clock. Clearly, they are distressed at being confined, but we have seen no suicidal tendencies as yet. The other prisoner, your father, remains in suspended animation in Cell One, a hundred miles under this city. At your request, only your brothers have access and they do all monitoring.”

  Gaius smiled. “Perhaps I should meet with the two women and explain things. I must admit to being curious as to what type of female would attract me and what my children by such a woman would be like.”

  “Of course, Majesty, you may meet and spend time with them at your convenience. Do you really believe that man is you from an alternate reality? We have killed many Bill Watsons and Bill Stewarts there already.”

  “I suppose I don’t know that answer, Lucius. However, the fact that the angels and demons of that realm are fighting together against us makes me believe it is a possibility.”

  “Sire, some of your brothers have advised me that they believe the demon exiled last night was that Bill Watson.”

  Gaius smiled again and noted, “Personally I pray he was not the one. If he encounters the realm where the others were exiled, and shows them their true nature, we should be hoping for annihilation by the rupture of the multiverse. That would be a much quicker death.” He noticed Lucius was looking at him oddly. “Are you all right, Councilor?” A look of horror crossed Lucius’ face and he jumped to his feet and reached for the emperor with one hand and his dagger with the other. “Lucius!”

  Lucius grabbed the white furry arm and wrenched Proctor out of the emperor’s chest. Gaius pushed his chair back and pulled his own dagger to fend off the attack. Then he saw the enforcer in Lucius’ hand. “My God, Emperor, this thing was inside you!” The enforcer was squealing and trying to pull itself free. Lucius dropped his dagger and held the enforcer down on the table with both hands.

  “Why were you inside me, devil beast?” Gaius screamed. Five bodyguards rushed into the room to protect the emperor. They stood silently watching the creature struggling with Lucius. “Answer me now!”

  “Emperor must forgive Proctor,” the enforcer whined. “This is a mistake. Proctor apologizes most sincerely.”

  Gaius plunged his knife into the creature’s throat and cut its head off. Black blood spurted onto two bodyguards. The body trembled for a moment and then stopped. “How did you know, Lucius?”

  “I didn’t. I just saw a small white hand coming out of your chest. I had no idea what it was or what it meant. Are you well, emperor?”

  The emperor’s face had become ashen and he sat down heavily. He was panting for air and shivering. Lucius rushed over to a cabinet and pulled out a glass and filled it with whisky and handed it to the emperor, who took a large drink. He began to calm down and after a moment or two he sighed heavily. “I thought they worked for us?”

  “I think we all did, Majesty,” Lucius agreed.

  Faith stepped through the portal with Jim and Irene Stewart to make certain they would be protected by her family. She was surprised to see the two Dom Emmanuels standing not far away in a heated discussion. She headed over that way to find out what was going on. When her father noticed her approach, he motioned for the other Dom to be quiet. “Father, I brought these two people from the other realm. They were about to be murdered a second time by the emperor.”

  “It’s all a bit ironic when you think about it,” he replied.

  “I couldn’t agree more,” the other Dom said.

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Sweetheart, don’t you see: Jim and Irene Stewart are the couple who adopted Bill and Mary in that reality and just Mary in this one.”

  “They probably didn’t know themselves, my dear,” the second Dom noted. “After the two were grown and moved out, something happened that changed them from normal children raised on a farm into terrible people, thirsting for power and consumed with avarice.”

  “Yes, they told me they did know about their children, but what I cannot believe is that neither of you know what caused this mess to happen? Is that even possible that you don’t?” she asked. They both just shrugged. She looked at the second Dom and asked, “Is it safe for you to be on this side, Father?”

  “Probably not, but your father and I need to understand what happened if we are to have any chance of stopping all of this. We are also puzzled that we are still separate forms even when we are in the same reality. If we were truly the same deity, you would think we would merge when I stepped through.”

  She shook her head, trying to understand what he had said, but then shrugged it off. “I’ve got to get back and find Bill.” She turned to return to the portal.

  “I can’t let you do that!” both Doms said in unison. She spun around again and looked back at them blankly.

  The second Dom said, “Faith, both Bill and the other Faith are no longer in that reality.”

  “I know that!”

  “We currently have no way to look for them and unfortunately, we are impotent to do anything for them now.”

  “I already mentioned this to Mary, and she has agreed to continue trying to find Bill or at least his family. I’m going to go help her.”

  “Faith, both Mary Stewarts are here in this reality,” her father said.

  She sighed heavily and said, “Father, just tell me what to do. All of this is giving me a headache.”

  “I think you and Dom need to go back there and try to find Bill’s family and Dom’s brother. With Lou’s help we may even find Bill and hopefully stop the madness.”

  “There is the other matter we were discussing,” the second Dom said.

  “You can tell her. I need to get back to Las Vegas to keep an eye on the two Marys.” Dom disappeared.

  He took her hand and began to lead her back to the portal. “We believe that the two realities will move apart soon. If the portals remain open too long after that begins, both realities and potentially the entire multiverse will implode.”

  “That would be the end of everything.”

  “Yes, although I would probably be around to start it all again, but everything else and all of history would cease to exist. As you can guess, I will not allow that to happen.”

  “So you will close the portals when it begins,” she confirmed and he nodded. “Then anyone stranded there will be there forever.”

  “Mostly likely they would be stranded only a thousand years. That seems to be the periodicity of the membranes; however that could change as well.”

  “What are we to do?”

  “First, we must move quickly. Now that my daughter and Bill are lost in more membranes, the likelihood of finding them is low. But we must find my brother first. He and I working together should be able to free Bill’s family. Then, I hope, our power is enough to end the emperor’s reign of terror. Faith, you understand that you could be stranded too?”

  “Yes, but since you are still my father, that wouldn’t be so bad.”

  “Thank you, dearest.”

  One hundred demons pounded the air with their wings, heading north. It had taken hours to convince many of the other Bills of their true natures. One remained at Iguazu along with the other Bills for safety and security. One had promised to protect them with his life. He also knew this was his reality and the task had fallen to him to save the planet and beg
in to rebuild. Bill and the others had flown through the night over South and Central America and were disheartened by the absolute darkness. No signs of human inhabitation were visible at all. As the sun began to rise, several complained about being worn out and so Bill led them to a park in the center of the ruins of Mexico City. They all morphed back to humans upon landing so as not to terrify any surviving residents.

  It was a hot day and most of them found shady spots to lie down for a nap. Bill and Seventeen looked through looted shops for food and fresh water. They had separated and Bill found a small grocery store with a shelf of bottled water and some packaged foods. He took a bottle of water and drank half in a single swallow. He sat on the floor of the shop in the shade and leaned against the wall. Almost instantly he was asleep.

  In his dream, he saw a small concrete room. In the center was a tiny metal bed with a filthy thin mattress. Lou, his father, or the same being in a different reality, was curled up on the bed and appeared to be sleeping. His body was emaciated and his skin was mottled with scars and insect bites. Bill looked around the room and noticed cameras were mounted every foot or so, tracking every inch of space in the cell.

  Suddenly, he was in outer space. He could see faint stars and galaxies, but they had to be impossibly far away. Something pushed him in the back and he spun around. Faith was floating in space and appeared to be unconscious. He tried to wake her but she did not respond. He reached out to shake her.

  “307?” a voice said.

  Bill opened his eyes to see Seventeen in demonic form looking down at him. “What?”

  “We have a problem.” After pulling Bill to his feet, the two demons rushed back toward the park and the others. Most of the other Bills had already morphed back into demons and were exhorting the others to get angry and fight. Massive waves of enforcers were approaching them down two broad boulevards. “Should we fly away, 307?”

  “No! These bastards are trying to take over our home. Do this!” He stuck his arms out straight in front of him and a battle axe appeared in each hand. He turned and ran toward the advancing hordes, screaming and belching fire at the enforcers.

  Two dozen demons flew just over his head with their own weapons and dived into the mass of creatures. He glanced back and saw the park was empty and he smiled, knowing every Bill was as eager as he for revenge. He dived into the advancing throng, slashing and cutting them into pieces. The dying creatures screamed in pain and more of their brothers climbed over their bodies to advance the fight.

  He heard Seventeen’s voice in his head saying, “There have to be millions of these things, 307. I don’t think we can kill all of them. More and more just keep coming.”

  Bill was consumed by his anger. He was covered with enforcers and kept hacking and chopping away at them. Suddenly, the words Faith said in front of the Stewart’s farm house slipped across his memory. His battle axes dissolved into nothingness. The enforcers took their opportunity to bite his body and tear at his flesh, but their mortal fangs were useless against him. Somehow, deep in the mass of evil creatures desperate to kill him, Bill Watson was filled with joy. He hadn’t felt this way since Faith joined with him for their voyage to Syria. He was filled with light and love and began to glow brilliantly white. The enforcers abandoned his body and moved back. Bill had become an angel. He started to spin around and soon a funnel cloud enveloped him and pulled the enforcers in. A minute later, the other Bills stood by dumbfounded as the tornado had pulled all the creatures into its vortex. Bill walked through the wall of the tornado and moved over to where his brothers, as demons, stood. “This is our reality too. You are all angels as well as demons.” He patted Seventeen on the cheek and then walked back toward the center of the park. The other Bills followed. Millions more enforcers were pulled from all corners of the Earth and added to the vortex, which was soon more than a mile in diameter.

  By the time the group arrived in the park, only Bill had not become a man again. He extended his right arm and a long silver sword materialized in his hand. He drove the blade into the ground and then carved the shape of a door into the dirt. He drove the blade into a corner of the door up to the hilt. A corner of light appeared and the sword faded away. He leaned over and grabbed the corner and pulled it open. The Bills could hear terribly growling and hissing from the other side and Bill motioned them to move back. The tornado began to move toward the opening, and the other Bills were now running to avoid being caught up in it. Suddenly the tornado began to be sucked into the opening. The screaming of the enforcers was a horrible din as they disappeared back into their own reality. When they had all passed through, Bill closed the portal. The sword reappeared in his hand and he drove it all the way into the center of the shape. The door outline and the weapon disappeared, and Bill was human again. The other Bills joined him and they began to cheer and congratulate each other on their victory. While they were celebrating, they did not notice people coming out of broken down buildings and heading for them.

  “That was awesome, 307,” Seventeen said. “Can we do that again?” The others laughed and applauded.

  “Do you think we could all do that?” another asked.

  “We are all the same, 111,” Bill replied.

  “Gracias, senor,” a strange voice said, pulling the Bills out of their revelry. They looked around and saw dozens of people coming out of ruined buildings and heading toward them. ”You are truly an angel sent by God.”

  “How did you do that?” a familiar-looking young woman said as she approached. When she was ten feet away, she said, “Dad?” She looked around frantically and was overwhelmed by a hundred identical Bill Stewarts. Her eyes glazed over and she fainted into Bill’s arms.

  He laid her down on the grass and patted her cheek. “Sandi, it’s okay, please wake up.”

  She looked up at him blearily and whispered, “What happened here? How did you do that and why are there so many of you?”

  Bill picked Sandi up in his arms and then changed back into an angel. “I’ll let your father explain it, sweetheart.”

  “But you’re my father.”

  He smiled at her and turned to Seventeen and said, “You’re in charge for now. Help these people any way you can. I won’t be gone long. As soon as I bring everyone back here, we’re going to Las Vegas.”

  “You want to go gambling?” Seventeen gasped.

  “Something like that,” Bill laughed and then he and Sandi disappeared.

  It was one o’clock in the morning and Mary, Maggie, J.C., and Jonas were in the bar working on their third round of drinks. They were seated in a semi-circular booth with the men on the outer edges. Maggie was pressed against Jonas. He was playing along with her as best he could. Mary felt very uncomfortable with the situation, but she knew the stakes involved here. It was the Bill and Mary of that realm who were causing the terror and war in this one. Maggie or her brother were directly involved in trying to kill her and had kidnapped Bill’s family. She kept looking at J.C. for some indication of what to do, but he just smiled back at her.

  Maggie was beyond drunk and slurring her words. “Jonas, did I tell you how hot you are?”

  He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. “You ain’t seen nothing yet, babe.” He kissed her lips and she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back passionately. “How about you and I go back to your room for some privacy, Mags?”

  She pushed him away. “That’s all you guys think about! I still want to have more fun first.”

  “Whatever you say, but believe me, Mags, we would be having fun.”

  “Maybe J.C. and I should excuse ourselves?” Mary asked.

  “No way!” Maggie shouted. “Bestie, you and I are not finished having fun yet.” She squeezed Jonas’s leg and he jumped. “Honey, how about you and J.C. take us to another place with dancing, and I don’t want any fancy, frilly place like this. You look like the kind of guy who knows places as bad as me. Take me someplace nasty!”

  Jonas waved the
server over and slipped him four hundred-dollar bills to settle the tab. “Okay guys; let’s get out of this stuffy joint!” Maggie could hardly stand so Jonas held her up and headed toward the door.

  Mary pulled on J.C.’s arm to wait. She whispered, “This is getting out of control. Maggie is completely losing it.”

  J.C. smiled and said, “It is all going according to plan, Mary. Come along and you’ll see.” He took her hand and they headed toward the door and the other couple.

  Outside on the street, a Hummer limousine was waiting for them. “Now that’s what I’m talking about,” Maggie laughed as she climbed onboard. When all four were seated inside, the limo pulled out into traffic. “Where’s this awesome place you’re taking us?”

  “It’s just a couple blocks off the Strip, Mags. They don’t allow nasty places on the main drag.” She cooed and nestled next to him and closed her eyes. In less than five minutes, they pulled into the lot, where dozens of motorcycles were parked. The bar was named Lou’s, and it looked identical to the one where Bill and Mary had stopped outside of St. George, Utah. Mary looked at Jonas and J.C., trying to understand what she was seeing. Jonas winked and gently shook Maggie to wake her up.

  She opened her eyes blearily and looked outside at their new locale. Her eyes shot open wide and she shouted, “This looks like my kind of place! Let’s go!” She jumped out of the limo and ran to the door, threw it open and went inside.

  The others exited the vehicle and Mary stopped them before they reached the door. “Guys, what’s going on here? How is this place here and not still in Utah?”

  Jonas and J.C. grabbed her arms and pulled her to the door. Jonas said, “What else have you seen lately that makes any sense, Mary? Please just try to enjoy the ride.”

  “Jonas, were you really going to have sex with her?”

  “Absolutely I would! Why wouldn’t I? I know she is technically you from a different reality, and I suppose that makes her the sister of another me from that place too, but here she’s just a hot, impetuous little snob who always seems to be horny.”