by Carl East
I looked down on the woman but she was now dead, and I placed my hand over her chest to release the tortured soul. When I returned to Purgatory Raymond and Jonathon were waiting for me.
“Mark, I don’t need to tell you I’m sure, but it is not allowed to interfere with mortals who are not dying. Killing mortals is strictly forbidden, and we need an explanation as to what happened down there,” said Jonathon.
“I can’t explain it, I saw what that creep was doing and suddenly saw red. It was like I was having an out of body experience, and only realized what I’d done after I’d done it,” I replied, truthfully.
“Well…there will be a review, and the decision made on such reviews is final. If you are found guilty of flagrantly disregarding the rules you will be stripped of the office you hold.”
I acknowledged him and decided to await my fate back on Earth, yet I couldn’t help thinking that getting rid of people or rather monsters such as that psychopath couldn’t possibly be a bad thing. Two hours later Jonathon appeared inside my apartment.
“The decision has been made Mark, and I’m glad to say in your favor. It seems that man would’ve gone on to kill another six people before being caught and stopped, it also seems that the laws governing your behavior have been relaxed somewhat. That doesn’t mean you are free to go in search of these killers, but whenever this type of thing happens in the future you have now been granted a certain amount of flexibility,” he said.
“I’m glad Jonathon, although I have to admit I thought I was going to lose my position,” I replied, sighing with relief.
“I’m pleased that times are changing, as I think far too many bad things happened in the past which escaped retribution,” said Jonathon, thoughtfully.
With that, Jonathon returned and I was left to carry on with business as usual, little knowing that across town at this very moment a demon was materializing in a darkened alley and a strong smell of sulfur filled the air.
It stood up, brushed the soot and charred flakes of dead skin from its legs, before stretching to its full height. I glanced around the alley. Its skin was tinged with a light green color, but its eyes were blood red. The hands were tipped with black sharp talons, and it stood at over six foot six. It took a deep breath and then began to change into a human male, until it stood looking like any other mortal only naked.
Walking to the edge of the darkness in the alley, it waited for the first human to pass by.
At that moment, my watch sent me a signal, which told me that my next client was due south. I left the building like a mortal this time and homed in on the signal, to find a house on fire with people trapped inside. Quickly entering I walked through the flames and passed the living room where a Christmas tree was ablaze and candles in their holders on the mantel were melting from the intense heat. I then homed in on where the watch was telling me to go and since there seemed to be no one on the ground floor; I shot up the stairs to hear cries and screaming coming from one of the bedrooms.
When I walked through the wall, I found a man pinned by a charred beam pleading with his son to climb out of the window. His son was trying desperately to free his father, but the strength needed simply wasn’t there and he refused to leave. My watch indicated that the man was the target, but the image of this boy trying so hard to extricate his father was more than I could bear.
I lifted the beam up and dragged the man free, but to them the beam lifted itself and the father slid out on his own. I then pushed the window frame as hard as I could, and the whole thing shot out and landed on the lawn below. The child seemed frightened, as he couldn’t make out what was happening and then he felt himself being lifted by unseen forces and watched his father rise from the floor before seemingly being thrown through the open space that was their window.
In reality, I had hold of both of them. I was jumping out onto the lawn. When I hit the ground, I laid them both down and stood watching them. The fire department was busy looking after the fire but the ambulance driver who had witnessed the pair leaving the house ran over to where they lay. Moments later, they were being rushed to the hospital, and then I realized that my watch was no longer indicating that I was needed.
I put my head down, knowing what I’d done, but I knew that if the same situation were to happen again, I’d do the exact same thing. It was Christmas for heaven’s sake, how could I let that little boy’s father die? I looked up and shot out into the sky, before intercepting the ascension light and appearing once again in Purgatory. Taking my cloak off, I watched as Raymond entered the room.
“No need to say it, the cloak’s all yours. I guess if you want this job done correctly, you need to take away my compassion, because I simply cannot ignore the suffering. I know I shouldn’t have saved that Guy, as it’s against the rules and all that but if you’d seen that kid’s face you would’ve done the exact same thing,” I said, before Raymond could utter a word.
“Actually I only came in to congratulate you on a job well done, and although you broke protocol compassion was something I came to talk to you about. God in His infinite wisdom has sent word that because this is the season when He gave man the greatest gift he had to give, His only Son for the good of mankind, that you are to save as many deserving people as possible, in the course of your duties,” replied Raymond.
“I can’t believe it, I felt sure that because I clearly ignored the rules and saved a life, possibly two, that I would lose my position,” I said.
“What can I say, God moves in mysterious ways,” replied Raymond, leaving me to return.
***
Across town, a tall man entered an apartment block and walked over to the lift.
Excuse me sir, but unless you are expected or have an invitation from a guest you can’t go up,” said a security guard walking up behind him.
“I have the highest authority to enter this dwelling, and you are pathetic if you think you could stop me,” replied the stranger.
The guard didn’t need any other excuse. He removed his nightstick from his belt and then tapped the Guy on the shoulder.
“Please sir, I must ask you to leave, you’ve not been invited here,” he said, raising his arm.
The man moved swiftly, turning on his heel and grabbing the hard wooden stick before yanking it out of the guard’s hand and discarding it onto the floor. His eyes then turned a bright color red as he stared at the guard. The security officer stepped back, and something within him said ‘no job was worth this crap,’ and started to run. The man’s pointed teeth were then revealed when he smiled, as he watched the guard running out of the building.
He then continued his journey up to the tenth floor, and headed for room 1068. When he got there, he walked through the door and as he did so, his clothes fell to the floor.
***
I was back in my apartment when my next client was revealed to me, so I quickly went downstairs and walked out of the complex. I then orientated on where the client was, and sped off in that direction. Arriving outside another apartment block, I quickly used the lifts and waited until the compass stabilized while passing the floors. It settled on the tenth floor, so I walked through the lift door as it carried on to the top.
I walked along the corridor and stopped at room 1068 noticing a pile of clothes just lying on the floor. I walked through the door and found that my next target was a woman who was pinned to the far wall with nails through her wrists and ankles. Blood was smeared on the walls and I wondered what kind of animal could do this type of thing, before walking over to her with the intention of setting her soul free.
“That didn’t take long,” said a voice behind me.
I turned to see a tall naked Guy with red eyes, and as he looked back at me, I could see his pointed teeth.
“Who the hell are you?” I replied.
“You could say I’m an interested party, wanting to see how the Reaper works,” he said.
“You’re not mortal are you? Why would you do this?” I asked.
“Because I can and I wanted to you fool,” he shouted, and as he did so, he changed into his true form.
“Well, I’ve never seen a demon before, but that’s got to be what you are? I thought you weren’t allowed to cross over to this side though,” I said, not feeling in the least bit intimidated by his show of teeth.
“You changed the rules there my friend, to which I must thank you by the way. You changed the balance of good and evil when you decided to be all noble so we can now redress that situation, and I thought it would be a good idea to get rid of the only creep who could interfere with our little pleasures,” he replied, pointing to his victim.
I didn’t need to hear anymore, and with a movement that must have looked like a blur I tried to strike him hard in the face with my fist, only to find my hand passing straight through his head. He caught me when I was off balance and threw me through the wall into the adjoining apartment. When I stopped myself, I immediately passed back through into the room, only to find him waiting on the other side. He hit me hard and I passed through the floor, but how was he managing to make contact. I stopped myself from going through the next floor and into the apartment below, and used the stairs to get back into the fray.
This time I was cautious, and was aware that my watch was going crazy. I wondered if it was actually trying to help me, which is when I got the idea. When I entered he was waiting, but I ignored him and crossed over to his victim. I released her soul, and her head fell forward. I then turned to face my opponent once again.
“Still trying to do the job I see, you’re pathetic,” he said, walking towards me.
When he was near enough, I thrust my hand forward into his chest and let go of the soul I was still holding.
“What are you doing…I can’t…what have you done?” he screamed, as his skin started to burn, peel and flake off.
I’d gambled that a soul in balance couldn’t exist inside an evil entity, and now knew that I was correct. The demon fell to his knees, and tried to extricate the soul inside him, but his hands burnt whenever he touched it and after a few more seconds, he burst into flames and turned quickly into ash before falling to the floor. The soul hovered over his remains, and that’s when I retrieved it.
I was deep in thought when I returned the soul to Purgatory, and didn’t notice Raymond and Jonathon coming into the chamber.
“Another good job Mark, but tell me have you learned anything?” said Jonathon.
“So that’s it, this was all a way of telling me why I shouldn’t interfere with mortals,” I replied, the light suddenly dawning on me.
“God knew that you wouldn’t listen to words alone, you are a compassionate man but we knew you needed to learn why we do the things we do. That’s why you’re a Reaper. I personally wish we could save everyone who is in trouble down there, but the balance of good and evil has to be maintained. Man was given the freedom of choice to do good or evil. When we shift that balance as you did, there will be consequences,” said Jonathon.
I realized the truth of it all, and from that day forward, I vowed not to interfere. I didn’t want to be responsible for innocent people dying through my eagerness to save lives; I also rationalized that whenever I took a soul they were going to a better place anyway, so why change the balance.
I learned a hard lesson that day, especially since it cost the life of a woman I didn’t even know. The guilt that I felt for that was terrible, especially because of the time of year, but I eventually worked through it and continued to do the job with the best of my ability. There were still times that I wanted to save lives, but like a pathologist that has to distance himself/herself from the work ahead, I just got on with it, knowing that if I didn’t do the best for the poor souls who would?
The End
Time Loop
Jake knew he was about to die, as the tractor-trailer in front of him plowed into the tanker. However, he wasn't ready yet; he saw the tanker hit the post and the electric wiring land on top, setting the fire that created the fireball. He was doing eighty-mph when it happened, with no way of avoiding the carnage ahead. Just before the fireball hit he could have sworn he saw his own car up ahead, then blackness. He suddenly found himself back at his desk, looking into the computer screen in front of him.
"What the hell just happened?" He said, getting to his feet.
He spotted a newspaper on his desk; it was the day before the accident, the date clearly printed at the top. He had to double-check this, opening his door he shouted for his secretary to step into his office.
"What's the date today Madeline?" He asked, as she came through the door.
Madeline told him it was December 2, 2000, confirming that it was indeed the day before. He told her thanks, and she left closing the door behind her. He sat back knowing that there was only one explanation, he had somehow been sent back in time. This was hard to take in, but it was the only explanation, that made any sort of sense. He clearly remembered the fireball heading towards his car, and knew that he couldn't avoid it. He decided to act and prevent the accident from happening in the first place, thereby putting every right as it were. However, what kind of action should he take, should he not do anything, allowing the events to unfold as they may? Alternatively, should he try to stop the tanker, before the collision, which would certainly prevent the entire nasty affair from happening in the first place?
He hadn't made up his mind when his secretary entered the room again; she bent down in front of the filing cabinet to place the latest reports in the bottom drawer. This time yesterday, he had seen the exact same thing, and although he was turned on by the fact that he caught a glimpse of her panties as she bent over. He hadn't done anything about it, only this time he wondered if it was possible to change the past.
Getting up, he walked over to the door and closed it, and then he walked over to Madeline, who was still bent over. He placed a hand on her inner thigh; she shot up taken totally by surprise. Looking at the lust in his eyes she kissed him, he in turn placed his hand over her rounded butt cheeks, pulling her skirt up until his hands were above her panties. Then placing both hands inside the elastic rim of her knickers he pulled them down. She had to stop kissing him at that point, as he lowered himself to the floor lifting one of her feet then the other until her panties were off and discarded.
He stood up once more, kissing her lips and then started to unbutton her blouse revealing a bra that was struggling to keep her breasts in place. Moving his hands around the back of her unfastened blouse, he unclipped the bra freeing the occupants in front. Her breasts sprang forward jiggling slightly as they came to rest on his chest. He then removed her blouse, admiring her gorgeous figure. Still kissing her passionately, he then unzipped her skirt allowing it to fall to the floor; she was now only wearing a pair of shoes. Taking his jacket off, she started to undo his shirt, while he unzipped his trousers, his free hand cupping a breast making her moan slightly.
Before long he too was naked bar his shoes, she looked down to see his erect cock, almost feeling it was looking back at her. Taking it in her hand, she whispered how big he was; his cock throbbed in her hand as they continued the kiss. Then he allowed his free hand to go between her legs, finding that she was very wet and ready for anything. He inserted a finger just past her lips, circling her vulva and making her groan with the pleasure she was feeling by his touch. She then broke the contact by bending down to take his cock into her mouth. He pulled back slightly as she started to gag, but she was fine for she then took control by holding his butt and pulling him closer and deeper.
She then proceeded to give him the best oral sex he had ever experienced, making him feel the back of her throat with the tip of his penis. She clearly had done this before; he started to moan with the pleasures that were coursing through his hardened cock. Looking down and watching his member being engulfed by her mouth, was a memory he’d never forget. Her tongue could be seen wrapping itself around his cock when she came backwards, and licking the bell end just before takin
g it back in to her mouth. He wasn't going to last long at this rate and sure enough, his cock started to jerk, warning them both of imminent ejaculation.
When he did blow, he wasn't expecting the force of his exit; it fairly erupted into her mouth making her gag once more. She soon had it under control, lapping it all up and finishing him off. Once she was sure, he would stay hard she stood up again. Turning her around he gently bent her over his desk, and after placing his cock at the moist entrance, he pushed forward.
At first, it was snug, but then it suddenly plunged forward making her grip the table with surprise. She was very tight as he started the rhythmical insertion of his cock, going back and forth very slowly, and enjoying each movement. She begged him to go faster but he wanted it slow, he could feel every inch of his cock rubbing the inside of her vagina as he moved it forward, then after a while, he did speed up. He wanted to satisfy her needs as well as his own, she was starting to push back at this point wanting the orgasm, no, needing the orgasm. He could hear her moans, which just served to egg him on further. He really started to go fast now, their bodies making a smacking noise as they hit each other. Her voice was getting a bit too loud as she started to climax.
He could feel her juices running down his balls and knew she was coming; he tried that little bit harder to give her an orgasm to remember. Her hands were gripping the sides of the desk, as tears streamed down her face at the sheer pleasure that was taking over her entire being. Again she came, his plunging cock not once letting up its relentless onslaught. Biting her lip, her legs started to feel weak, and her hands hurt from gripping the desk so hard, but she didn't care she wanted him to take her. She had wanted this for a long time, and now it was happening she didn't want it to stop.