“It took me a week to get enough information together to hurt you. It took me a month to get enough to destroy you. It took two months, too obliterate you and this company entirely.”
Jacob’s mouth opens up.
“Sure, most of what you did, would have just been a little bad PR. Something, a smooth-talking business man like you, could overcome. Though, tax fraud sure is a big no-no. That’s a three-too-five years sort of big no-no.”
“How could you do this to me, after everything I did for you?”
“What? I was doing as I was taught.”
“I’ll kill you; do you have any god damn idea what you’ve done?”
“That will net you another twenty-too-twenty-five.”
A noise is hear from his phone.
“Yes, I am here, put everything on hold.”
Quinn starts to leave.
“Wait, where do you think you are going?”
Quinn turns back.
“Since my internship has expired, I figured I’d spend a little time on my other hobby. It’s felt like it’s been forever since I snapped a good photo.”
Quinn realizes something.
“Oh yeah.”
Quinn quickly snaps a photo of the enraged man.
“Thanks for everything, Jacob.”
As Quinn walks off, the world begins to melt away.
“Wow, you were actually cool. Got my heart beating fast there.”
“Why does everyone say that?”
Quinn asks, staring at Alastor, as the two stand in the melting world.
“Hm?”
“Nothing.”
“This here, was the first major formative event for you. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“Yes.”
“Not just for the end of it.”
“...Of course not.”
“Because for everything he might have done, to everyone else.”
“He never treated me poorly. Not even once.”
“I wonder why?”
“...I couldn’t know.”
“I know.”
The world has melted completely, leaving just grey, at this point.
“Do you know why we saw this?”
“No.”
“Come now, is that really true? I don’t think it is.”
“You plan to make some grand stand point out of it.”
“You could put it into nicer terms.”
“Why should I?”
“Because, I am simply doing what I have to do.”
“Yeah, I got that.”
“You Quinn, during this whole engagement, did one thing.”
He points to Quinn.
“You simply sat idly by, wishing that things weren’t wrong.”
“So?”
“It doesn’t end there. If it did, we might not be here. You didn’t just not believe the rumors, you actively still believed in the people around you. It wasn’t that they were lying, it was that they were wrong. You crafted a narrative, that kept intact your feelings towards both parties.”
“Of course, I did. Why would I want either side to be in the wrong?”
“That’s the thing Quinn, you can’t ever have something go wrong. You run away from reality at every chance. Clinging to the slightest hope, that absolutely everything can work out.”
“What if I do?”
“That isn’t how the world works. You are playing with forces beyond your wildest imagination, and yet, here you are, still making the same mistake you made back then.”
“I-I.”
“Am pathetic!”
“No! What’s wrong with trying to make sure everything goes well?”
“You tell me?”
“...It’s because, it’s not always possible.”
“Yet, you act as if it always will be.”
“Still, I do the right thing when it counts.
“That’s because you’re a coward, that only acts to do the right thing once your conscience can’t take it anymore.”
“What’s wrong with that!? If it means that I end up doing the right thing in the end, how is that a problem?”
“You tell me?”
“...Because I shouldn’t need to have a reason to do the right thing?”
“...”
“Perhaps, you are right. There’s a particular girl I know, who doesn’t need a reason to help someone in need. I don’t think I can fully be like that.”
Quinn looks up determined.
“But maybe, I can get a bit closer to it, having seen how someone else does it, firsthand?”
“Maybe you can, maybe you can’t?”
“What type of half assed answer is that?”
“It’s a real one. Even if you try and have everything work out, inevitably it won’t. The more you play in a delusional version of things, the more you work off of diluted facts, the worse things will end up. I have mixed feelings in the case that you die; but I wouldn’t be able to exist with myself, in this world or any other, if you let her, if you let them, die as well.”
“That’s why I’ll protect them!”
“There it is again! You have to have everything. You both think of yourself as a coward, and a weakling, yet you can handle these stakes beyond your grasp?”
Alastor starts walking towards Quinn.
“Thinking of yourself as a coherent person. Logically explaining away every action you take, that doesn’t line up with that image you have crafted of yourself. Taking what others have given you for granted, except of course when you need it. Wanting to have someone who can help you out; but not actually letting them do so. Wanting to be by yourself, but being too much of a coward to actually push people away.”
They stand face to face.
“You want a girl far superior to yourself, yet you want to be the one to help her, with her problems. You can’t even solve your own. Thinking you can, without any information at all, try and trick the devil into doing what you want. You can barely trick yourself.”
Alastor places his forehead onto Quinn’s.
“Paying lip service to the fact, that you can end everything happily, simply by dying. Then desperately trying to survive, fully knowing that if anything goes wrong, people, countless people, will suffer.”
Alastor and Quinn both raise one hand each. They touch finger tips, then push their hands together.
“You want to have all the upsides of being a specialist, with none of the downsides. You want all the benefits with none of the risks.”
Alastor caresses Quinn’s cheek.
“You are truly greedy.”
“Yeah, I’m greedy.”
A smile begins to spread across Quinn’s face. The grey realm cracks.
“I am insanely greedy. I want absolutely everything. At least, everything I’m interested in. I want to live a happy life, fix any problems I might cause, no matter how improvable.”
The cracks spread out further and further.
“No matter how impossible, no matter how contradictory, I will have both sides of every coin.”
The entire realm is fragmented beyond recognition.
“I will make sure that there is a happy ending, for everyone! I’ll have everything my heart desires, because I am the greediest man there is.”
The grey realm shatters, revealing a blindingly white space. The two men give big smiles to each other. Alastor begins to speak.
“Then, if I may be so greedy, as to ask you a question. Who am I?”
“You’re me.”
The man stares at Quinn and slowly closes his eyes.
“And I’m happy, I am.”
Alastor hugs Quinn as tightly as possible...
“Thank you... I was so scared and lonely. I felt like you left me, traded me off. I know now, that someone as greedy as you, would never truly let me go.”
As the two men get closer together, the white light shines brighter, and begins collapsing inwards...............
As the light disperses... Quinn is whole, once again. With th
e bit of blue, having returned to his eyes........
I guess, I can turn the narration over...................
Thank you, for understanding me............................................................................................... ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Chapter 10: Eden
Standing in the middle of a Terrace, Quinn slowly opens his eyes, seeing two people staring back at him.
“You got your soul back!”
“You got your soul back.”
Neri and Lucifer say, nearly at the same time. Quinn looks to Neri, then to Lucifer.
“Yeah, I did.”
“I could tell, because of your eyes. There finally back to normal.”
Quinn looks into the distance, while pulling down his bottom eye lid. “I can still see though.”
Lucifer bends in, closer to Quinn.
“Eye color... Oh, yeah, they did look a little different before.”
“Alright, now that we accomplished what we came here for, how do we get out of here?”
Neri asks. Lucifer points up.
“Reach the peak.”
“Simple enough.”
“Something tells me, there’s probably more to it.”
Quinn adds. Lucifer twirls his hand, as he starts walking down the path.
“There’s always some sort of extra catch, to these types of things. Everyone’s looking for an edge.”
The three-start heading through the higher layers. With each layer, less and less souls inhabit the place. Until they reach the final layer.
“There’s like no one here.”
Quinn says as he looks around, at the loose scattering of souls.
“Each layer represents a vice, that a more capable person would get hung up on.”
Lucifer states.
“Wait, that doesn’t make sense, isn’t this the Terrace of Lust?”
“Indeed, it is; but it’s going off of the broader sense of the term.”
“Oh, I understand.”
“I don’t.”
Lucifer twirls around, and starts walking backwards.
“Someone worried about the opposite gender, obviously would fall long before this layer.”
His gaze tightens on Quinn. “Huh, a picture really is worth a thousand rude comments.”
“I must be fairly bad at this then.”
Neri states.
“Since I got trapped on the second Terrace.”
“You’re actually looking down on yourself?”
“It is an accurate sentiment, is it not?”
“Listen here, most people would have been trapped on every floor. This wet towel somewhat makes sense, as to only falling on one.”
“A casual jab at me while explaining things.”
“But you only fell on one. Besides, you also got out of it with breakneck pace.”
“Hmm, so it’s more about the overcoming of problems, rather then having one in the first place.”
“Sure whatever.”
“Thanks for the pep talk, Mr. Lucifer.”
“...Don’t call me that.”
“Alright.”
They continue higher, until reaching the peak.
“This is The Earthly Paradise, otherwise known, as the Garden Of Eden.”
Lucifer points behind himself, to thick stone walls, enclosing most of the top layer.
“I was curious where Eden would be. Seems like, it isn’t really on Earth, though.”
Neri states.
“It is on a pseudo Earth.”
“That is not the same.”
“All seems the same to me.”
“Guys, you kind of just glossed over the whole, Eden thing.”
“Listen here devil boy.”
“Is that going to catch on?”
“You have been made aware of far stranger things, than this.”
“True, alright let’s head in.”
“Just like that?”
“I mean, it is a garden, right?”
“...Indeed.”
“Then how do we get in.”
“Heeeyyy!”
Neri yells out while standing on the wall.
“How did she?”
Quinn asks.
“I don’t know, I wasn’t really watching her.”
“I see a door!”
She starts running along the wall. The two men follow the general direction, and eventually arrive at a door, with Neri in front of it. Quinn is somewhat out of breath.
“Why are you winded?”
Neri asks.
“I picked up the pace, once you left my sight; but even then, I still never saw you again.”
“Until now.”
“Until now...”
Neri looks up to the door, then to Lucifer.
“How do we get in?”
“I don’t know.”
“This is a big door.”
“It sure is.”
“We could climb.”
The two look at Quinn.
“How do we open this door?”
“I’m sorry...”
“Don’t be.”
“You should be, at least little.”
The door starts to creak open, inwards. As it does, the garden comes into view. The three look at each other, then walk in. The plant life inside looks very familiar, yet unlike anything specific. Eventually, as they keep walking, they arrive at the center of the garden. Two streams flow parrel from each other. Standing in a basin within the middle of the streams, is a woman. She has long brown hair, and darker tanned skin. Her eyes are small; but have a loving feel to them. She’s wearing all white silk robes, with a blue cloak. As she walks across the unmoving water, she begins to speak.
“Welcome to Eden, I shall be your guide, for your time here.”
She looks over the three.
“I hope you enjoy your time.”
“What is this, a shotty hotel, that you are trying to sell with service rather than quality rooms?”
Lucifer says.
“As you can see, Morningstar, this place lacks neither. If anything, it would be my hosting, that is lacking.”
“It’s a bunch of plants, not exactly impressing me.”
“Then I take it, a bunch of fire and brimstone is better?”
She says with a smile.
“Better than this.”
Lucifer mumbles to himself. Quinn raises his hand.
“Uh, excuse me, how do we leave?”
“You just got here; wouldn’t you like to stay a while?”
Quinn looks around. “I mean, it is just a bunch of plants.”
As he thinks this, a wave of serenity washes over everyone.
“Maybe staying here would be nice.”
Quinn says.
“We wouldn’t have to deal with oddities for a little while.”
Lucifer states, as he does, something snaps inside of Neri.
“Ah! Guys get it together; this place is trying to keep us here!”
“You seem to have the wrong impression.”
The woman says.
“Eden does no such thing. You are simply, beginning to feel the calmness of the area.”
“That might be even worse. Quickly, how do we get out of here, you do know that, right?”
She looks to the girl.
“Yes.”
Lucifer and Quinn start skipping in the field, and playing with the flowers.
“Neri, join us.”
Quinn says.
“...No.”
“Come on, it’s fun to skip around.”
Lucifer adds, with a big smile. This causes a mixed feeling in Neri’s stomach.
“Seriously, can you give use the way out of here?!”
The woman points
to the two streams.
“Two rivers flow around each other, through Eden. River Eunoe and river Lethe. Drink from Eunoe, and forget your sin, and rise above to heaven. Drink from Lethe, and forget your goodness, and descend to hell.”
“And, is there a river for Earth?”
She shakes her head. Neri examines the rivers. Quinn and Lucifer are holding hands spinning in a circle, humming a tune.
“Mhhh.”
Neri’s face is getting more strained over time. “My head is starting to get foggy. Perhaps, I should rest for a moment?”
As calmness washes over the girl, she focuses in on one specific thing. Gritting her teeth, she shouts out.
“I can’t be a Paranormal Detective, if I’m stuck here!”
She pulls her fist back, and punches her self in the face, with everything she has left. As blood drips from her nose, she looks up determined.
“Which river is which?”
“Left is Lethe, right is Eunoe.”
“Got it.”
She starts thinking. “If we go to hell, we have Lucifer, who might be able to get us out. Though, Heaven seems like a safer place. However, if it is anything like Eden, it might pose its own problems. Also, I don’t know how a demon would do in Heaven.”
Quinn walks over with a flower crown on his head, and one is his hands. He slips it onto Neri’s head.
“Why do you look so serious?”
She looks at the boy, with an agitated stare, while biting her lower lip.
“Hey Quinn.”
“Yes?”
“Sorry.”
“For?”
Neri headbutts Quinn. The two flower crowns explode off. Quinn’s head jerks back, and the back of his skull slams into the grass behind him.
“Ah!”
Quinn holds his injury, head still on the ground, with his spine arcing back up.
“Are you awake?”
“I wasn’t asleep.”
Quinn gets up.
“There had to be a better way, to break the trance.”
“Oh good, it worked.”
“Yeah, it worked really well, too well if I do say.”
“You can heal though.”
“It doesn’t hurt less.”
“Noted.”
“I don’t feel like you actually noted that.”
“Did you hear the details?”
“Yeah.”
“I think I figured it out.”
“Yep.”
Quinn walks over to Lucifer.
“Hey, hop back inside of me, until we are out of here.”
“Okie-dokie buddy.”
Oddity Specialist: Purgatory Page 14