Dead Time Series

by Jason Wilcox

  One of the men let out a loud whoop and they started charging at Caden. They were a gang! The closest man, who had a wooden club with nails in it, was almost to Caden. He swung at Caden’s head, but Caden ducked, disarmed him and slammed the club into the man’s head, knocking him to the ground.

  Another gunshot rang out, but this time it hit Caden in the right calf, taking his leg out from under him. He lost his balance and hit the asphalt hard. People began whooping as men and women closed in on him.

  A blood-curdling scream stopped everyone in their tracks. Caden, who was getting back on his feet, looked up to see Tagen violently kill the man wearing the bulletproof police vest.

  It was time to act quickly and join the fray while everyone was in shock. Caden attacked the closest person to him, which was a woman with a homemade machete. Seeing the attack coming, she swung at him, but he dodged. He followed with his elbow on her arm, making her drop her weapon. Another man close to them lifted his pistol to shoot Caden, but he saw it coming and kicked the man in the knee. The gun went off, but missed Caden and shot the woman, knocking her to the ground.

  Moving quickly, Caden disarmed the man and spun around, pointing the gun at everyone that had been gathering to attack. Another scream rang out and Caden turned to see Tagen sinking his nasty black teeth into the older scout. A group of armed men were headed over to attack Tagen.

  Distracted, Caden wasn’t ready for the spear that stabbed through him, piercing his lower abdomen. He dropped to the ground gripping the spear.

  “TAGEN!” Caden screamed at the top of his lungs. Someone hit him in the head with a metal club making his vision blur. He could feel blood soaking his shirt and dripping down his head. His movements became slow and clumsy.

  Someone grabbed Caden’s hair, and he could feel a blade against his neck. Before the person could cut his throat he was knocked backwards, and the spear painfully ripped out of him.

  “Get up and heal yourself!” Tagen snapped.

  Struggling to push himself up, Caden turned to see Tagen attacking those around them. He bit into their necks as they kept attacking. A couple of gunshots went off, but the bullets didn’t seem to hurt Tagen, only made him angrier.

  Things began to clear again, and Caden could feel his muscles getting strength back. The pain in his abdomen and leg diminished. He looked down and felt where the spear had pierced him; the hole in his skin was gone. He was unsure how that could be, unless it was what the dark souls had done to him. Pulling up his shirt, he could see where he had been stabbed. Black skin had formed over the wound.

  Getting up, Caden watched as Tagen took down one last person. The rest, only four or five of them, were running in fear. Human bodies and blood covered the street, each one chewed up badly by Tagen.

  Tagen stood up and looked at Caden with his dark red eyes narrowed. Human blood dripped down his chin and covered his claws.

  Ignoring the look, Caden bent down to pick up the small gun he had dropped. He tucked it into his pants and headed towards his sword. A woman Tagen had killed lay on top of the sword. Using his foot, Caden pushed her off and picked up the sword, strapping it back on.

  “Thank you for your help,” Caden spoke without looking at the dark soul, not wanting to challenge him.

  “Level with me, Mauldrin.” Tagen was closer than Caden realized. He spun around to see him only a couple feet away.

  “My name’s Caden,” it was a stupid thing to say when Tagen didn’t seem too happy, but just then Tagen screamed in pain and grabbed his hand. Reflexes kicked in and Caden moved to Tagen’s side to see if he could help.

  “What happened?”

  Tagen hissed and pulled his hand away as Caden reached for him.

  Not letting Tagen’s response bother him, Caden tried to take his hand to help. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine,” Tagen snapped while uncovering his hand. Two white marks stretched across it. They looked like cuts but weren’t bleeding. They looked more like white scars.

  “What are those?” Caden asked. “Let me see so I can help.”

  Tagen’s dark red eyes grew wider looking at Caden with shock. “Enough games Mauldrin. Why are you not using your powers or the sword? You could’ve been killed back there. Why didn’t you pull the sword, or better yet why didn’t you just throw a hand up and disintegrate them? Are you toying with me, to test me?”

  Afraid to answer, Caden stared at him. He couldn’t believe Tagen still thought he had powers after the fight. There was no way he was going to tell the truth; the creature might kill him. “We need to keep moving.” Caden looked away from Tagen. There was a large sign down the road; they were close to his old office. “I want to stop by a place not too far from here before we continue.”

  Tagen let out a low growl and narrowed his red eyes.

  CHAPTER 4

  Demons stood around Bridget as they made their way out of the woods. They were headed towards what was left of the foothills, to the gate. She marveled at how far back they had cut into the hill to get rid of the dark soul’s old home. Mounds of rock and dirt were pushed to the side as they followed a well-walked path.

  Her right eyelid twitched. As much as she wanted to help get Caden back, she was scared to go through the gate to try to find him. However, she knew she couldn’t let the others know of her fears.

  There were five demons around her, three were pitch-black, another dark blue, and the last a dark brown. They were the five going with her. Each of them had tattoos displayed on different parts of their body. She had once asked about the tattoos. Maselda wouldn’t tell her much, except that each demon had their own individual markings that gave them power and an infinite life span.

  Azgiel, Maselda, and Kaz walked ahead of them with two trolls and two demons behind them. Everyone was solemnly quiet.

  Torches could be seen ahead, lit in preparation of the sun setting. A few feet farther stood demons holding swords, guarding the gate. It was the first time Bridget had set eyes on the portal. The arch was large and the strange liquid center sent a chill down her spine. What she volunteered for was now becoming real. A large part of her wanted to back out, even though she knew she couldn’t.

  As they lined up in front of the gate, the demons on guard kept an eye out.

  “Let’s start with the scout,” Azgiel spoke while looking at the demons around Bridget.

  The lead demon moved towards the gate to stand next to Azgiel. With a huff, two demons from the back came forward and stood on either side of the gate, drawing their swords. Green letters glowed on their swords. Azgiel previously told Bridget the demons were going to be there in case things failed and they had to break the gate again to keep Triaad’s armies off the planet.

  “Remember, check out the surroundings and come back to report,” Azgiel spoke to the demon. Without further conversation, the black demon walked through the swirling liquid.

  “Stay ready boys. If I give the signal, cut that gate down.” Both demons nodded as Azgiel spoke. An uncomfortable silence followed.

  The silence made Bridget feel uneasy. She walked over to one of the large boulders and sat down. Warmth from the hot day’s sun radiated from the rock. Her current surroundings were such a contrast to what they had been the first time she was in that location saving Caden. There was now no cave, no dark souls, and no dark matter.

  She looked up at Azgiel. “Did you ever figure out what happened to the dark matter?” Her question was swallowed by silence. Azgiel ignored her, caught up in watching the gate, ready for anything. His reaction made her feel embarrassed for the interruption.

  As slow minutes went by, tension levels rose. There was no way of knowing what was happening on the other side. They had to sit and wait for whatever may come.

  Finally, a severed human head flew through the gate and rolled across the ground. The demon followed, his sword covered in blood. Azgiel had thrown up a hand, ready to signal the demons to cut the gate down. Instead, he brought his hand down and a smile
grew on his face.

  “You ran into some resistance I see,” Azgiel spoke as he approached the demon.

  “Very minor. Only two guards, but they’ve been dealt with.” They both looked at the severed head.

  “Good.” Azgiel’s smile grew and he turned to the other demons. “I want you to get in there and clean up the mess. We can’t have Triaad knowing something happened.”

  With those words, the demons went through the gate. Bridget didn’t quite know what to do with herself. She stood and walked to the gate. Two human bodies were brought through as she approached.

  “Sir, how do you want us to clean the blood off the floor?” the dark blue demon asked.

  “Take their shirts off and mop it up,” Azgiel responded without missing a beat. Hearing Bridget next to him, he turned and faced her. “As soon as they are done cleaning up the mess, you’ll go with them. Now remember, you must stay hidden. The demons know the area and the secret passages to get you out of the castle. We don’t want anyone to know the gate is working again. If by chance they find you, they might think you came from the gate…”

  “We need to get back through as quickly as possible. Yes, we know.” She smiled as she tried to tease with him.

  Azgiel turned away without responding. Bridget didn’t understand. The last few months he had been different, more distant. Feeling the distance, she laid her hand on his arm. Azgiel paused for a moment without looking at her. His head dropped, and then he walked away.

  “How we looking?” Azgiel called out impatiently. Just then, two demons came out of the gate and threw blood stained clothing on the ground.

  “We’re ready,” a black demon said. “I think we better go while we have the opportunity.”

  “You heard him. Let’s move,” Azgiel ordered. The five demons quickly went through the gate. Bridget started to follow but Azgiel stopped her.

  “Take this.” He handed her a dark brown robe that he had been carrying on his shoulder. She took it and wrapped it around her, pulling the hood over her head.

  “Thank you.” She smiled and gave him a hug. He was startled and froze in his tracks. The robe was a sign to her, a sign that he cared. He nodded as she let go. With a deep breath, she walked to the gate. A breeze blew against her back as she stood inches from the swirling liquid. Her heart pounded in her chest.

  After taking another breath, Bridget reached her right hand into the gate. It was ice cold and made her lose feeling in her fingers as they slipped in. She wasn’t positive, but it looked like the particles in her hand seemed to separate on the other side. Knowing she needed to hurry, she tried to convince herself to go. “Come on Bridget, go!” she spoke under her breath. Without another thought, she stepped in.

  Everything was silent, and her body lost feeling. Her sight was gone and her self-awareness seemed to be slipping. Then there was a bright flash and extreme cold as feeling started coming back. With a slap that felt like a belly flop in a pool, she was on the other side. One of the demons grabbed her arm to move her quickly across a huge dimly lit room. Large pillars lined the walls, and a throne was not too far from the gate. The air in the room was stale and smelled of burning candles.

  Walking softly, but moving fast, they went to the back of the room behind the gate. They came to a small dark hallway behind one of the pillars. The brown demon felt the wall for a minute then pushed his thumb against a spot about three feet off the ground.

  Rock ground against rock, creating an echo through the massive room. A small doorway opened. Bridget wasn’t sure how the demons were going to fit, but surprisingly they did and dragged her in with them.

  The demon behind her closed the door, encasing them in blackness. A small amount of light came from her glowing skin, covered under the robe Azgiel had given her. She held tightly to the demon in front of her as they went down a flight of stairs which were covered in a layer of dirt from lack of use.

  “Where will this lead us?” she whispered, as she tried not to touch the slime-ridden walls.

  “As long as the tunnel isn’t blocked, we’ll be just outside the castle’s courtyard,” the demon behind her whispered. With his deep voice, it didn’t seem much like a whisper.

  The stairs ended and they began to walk down a long tunnel. A thin layer of water now splashed under their feet. Bridget was grateful the demons could see in the dark, since she couldn’t see much past the glow of her skin. She hoped they would be out of the tunnel soon, since the rank, musty air made it hard to breathe.

  After a couple of minutes, the tunnel seemed to disappear. Bridget could barely make out a small room. They came to a stop, and the demon she had been holding on to, guided her to a rock bench connected to the wall.

  “We might be here for a while, so make yourself comfortable,” his deep voice rumbled in the room. Following his instructions, she sat down on the hard cold surface. At least there was no slime; the rock surface was dry with a small layer of dust on it.

  Two of the demons went on ahead and disappeared into the darkness. A thud was heard and then daylight was seen down the tunnel. The room they were in looked like an old guard station with shields and swords on the walls. Unfortunately, another thud rang out and the light disappeared.

  The demons returned and gathered around Bridget.

  “We need to wait until night sets in,” one of the black demons spoke. He had a white tattoo that started on his forehead and flowed down his nose onto his cheeks. Bridget could make it out from the glow of her skin. It was some type of ancient symbol. “Then we can try to break back into the castle, as Azgiel ordered, and search for the sword.”

  It bothered Bridget that only the sword was brought up and not Caden, but she kept her mouth shut. This wasn’t the time to start an argument. She had to believe they meant to find both of them. She took off the hood, which allowed her skin to light the room a little better, and rubbed the back of her neck. If only Caden would summon her.

  “As far as I could tell, it’s probably mid-day on this planet, so we have time ahead of us. Bridget, if you need sleep, please get it now,” the black demon spoke.

  She didn’t necessarily need sleep but was willing to take his offer since they were going to be heading out soon to risk their lives for Caden. She nodded then closed her eyes and leaned against the rock wall.

  Something had worried her since they arrived. She could no longer feel Caden. She wasn’t sure if she didn’t have a connection with him, or if he was dead. Not wanting to let horrible thoughts get to her, she shoved the idea out of her mind and tried to rest.

  CHAPTER 5

  Gravel crunched under Mauldrin and Tagen’s feet as they walked next to one another. The sound reverberated off the small buildings surrounding them. A large brick building stood at the end of the street. He could only assume that Mauldrin was leading him there.

  Eyeing Mauldrin, Tagen looked at the human’s black veins under his pale skin. With the sun’s light diminishing, the veins appeared to become darker.

  They hadn’t said anything since the encounter with the street thugs. Tagen felt confused about what happened. He couldn’t wrap his mind around why Mauldrin didn’t do more to protect himself. There had to be a catch, a trick, some type of manipulation, especially since Mauldrin appeared to care when he was in pain. No master has ever shown me such kindness before. Tagen ground his teeth. There is no way Mauldrin cares. It has to be some kind of trick or manipulation. What’s his purpose?

  With each footstep, Tagen noticed Mauldrin seemed to become more distracted with the broken road below. The man was strange, different than other humans. Just the way he acted around Tagen and other dark souls made him peculiar. Typically, humans treated dark souls with fear or disgust, but not him. He actually treated Tagen like another human being.

  A black smudge on the sidewalk caught Tagen’s attention. It was in front of a patch of weeds that came out of a crack in the concrete. He walked over and knelt down.

  “Dark souls?” Standing quickly
he looked around, but there was nothing. Without a master, and left to their own, Tagen wasn’t too sure how rogue dark souls would respond to Mauldrin and him. To make matters worse the sun would soon be gone and as far as he knew, Mauldrin couldn’t see in the dark.

  “What is it? What did you find?” Mauldrin demanded as he approached.

  “Nothing.” Tagen pushed past Mauldrin. “Are we headed to that building there?” he asked pointing towards the brick building. Mauldrin nodded and sped up to walk in front of him.

  Wasting no time, they reached what was left of the doors. The left door hung on one hinge, while the other had a large hole through it. Red rust sprinkled the cement as Mauldrin pulled the one-hinged door open. The hinge groaned, letting out a loud noise which echoed through the ghost town. Tagen turned to see a dark shape disappear behind a barely standing house with one wall caved in.

  “Let’s go,” Mauldrin said as he stepped into the building. Tagen ignored him at first, debating between going with Mauldrin or going to see what was out there. It had to be a dark soul or he would have picked up the scent by now.

  “Tagen.”

  Reluctantly he followed him. The building was a mess with garbage strewn across the hallways and holes in the walls. An elevator down the hall was smashed open.

  They made their way up the stairs. Mold grew along the walls, and dark stains covered the steps. Each step they took echoed through the empty, cold, building.

  They reached what looked like a kitchen with black tiled floors and a huge opening for what used to be a window.

  “What are we doing here?” Tagen asked as he walked over to where the window had been.