by M S C Barnes
second after the mist trails disappeared into the crying baby, one emerged as if it had been thrown out, shooting skyward to form into a cloud which hovered momentarily over the figures below. It then became misshapen, as if it was being sucked at; it elongated on one side and was pulled back along the A road to disappear into the distance.
The movement on the ground had not ceased; Seb’s mum and his newborn baby brother were wheeled, on a stretcher, into the back of an ambulance. A cover was placed over the lifeless body of his father and a screen erected by the roadside as police officers began examining the scene. And then the image in the mirror shrank, leaving Seb staring at his own reflection. He felt numb.
“Torhtian ende,” Mr Duir said quietly. The disc stopped spinning and with a deafening clap flipped to lie horizontally then disappeared as he waved his arm.
Seb could hear Scarlet sobbing and felt Aiden and Zach’s eyes on him. He knew he understood and though his mind tried to block the thought it nagged at him. The soul that should have taken my brother’s body was thrown out by my father’s soul.
Quietly Mr Duir spoke. “The soul which should have shared this present existence as your brother was expelled by a trespassing soul …” He paused, seeing that his words had hit home.
For Seb they hadn’t just hit home, they had demolished his idea of home. His father, his wonderful father, had been living with them in the shell of their brother’s human form for nearly five years as a trespassing soul! He had taken over the body of what should have been his youngest son! And where had his brother’s soul gone?
Then a deeper truth sank in: if it were true that souls return again and again, this soul, father–brother, whatever it was, was just another soul in a sea of souls that randomly crossed each other’s path before wandering off to encounter others in a multitude of experiences and existences. And it all meant absolutely nothing – kinship, patriarchal, filial, matriarchal bonds, friendships – all were nothing; just brief encounters in a continuous cycle that you never remembered. Each existence was a new birth which wiped clean the previous relationships and so made those relationships worthless.
He wasn’t my father. He isn’t my brother! Seb glanced at Scarlet who had her head in her hands. She’s not my sister; she’s just another soul passing through …
His thoughts twisted, became bitter and resentful and finally, in self-defence, became hard and uncaring.
Without a word he stood up, turned towards the entrance door and walked away – walked away from this pointless group of random people who meant nothing to him now.
You Decide
It was only when he got outside the door, letting it click shut quietly behind him, and stared up the dark, winding staircase that Seb wondered if he had been foolish. He had turned his back on his only group of friends. But what did they matter? No one mattered. Not even I matter! he thought, staring at the jewel-spattered walls. This is all pointless.
He climbed the steps, his footfalls thudding on the cold stone, and tentatively picked his way round the spiralling staircase. Just as he was about to call for flamers he was relieved to see a thin shaft of light and trotted quickly up the final turn. He pushed the door open against the drag of the overhanging tapestry.
He packed bare essentials, clothes, some meagre food supplies and a bottle of water and then walked out into the crisp, bright morning.
The slight chill in the air gave a promise of autumn. He hadn’t a clue where he was going, he just knew that he wasn’t staying among the teachers who had brought nothing but disturbing thoughts and devastating revelations.
He ignored two large shadows that swooped and flitted in the sky above him, past caring what any of the strange between world creatures around him were and, looking down, watched his canvas pumps eat up the ground. In thirty paces he was under the tree canopy. In thirty more he had lost the path. Stopping to get his bearings he stood in a twilight darkness created by the interwoven oak branches, whose leaves allowed only the smallest of sunlight splashes to reach him as they blew in the wind. Sounds were muffled, rustling, the skittering of some small creature in the nearby bushes, the odd creak of the tree branches. Nothing else; no road noise, no urban sounds, not even birdsong, he noticed.
About to tramp back the way he had come, Seb felt the hairs on his neck stand on end. He could hear breathing, snorting, quite close by.
“Flamers,” he whispered. A few friendly orbs on a low-hanging branch lit up beside his head. Relieved at their presence he tried to shake off his fear and then heard a considerably louder snort to his right followed by a whimper. Seb recognised the sound – Cue!
Frozen on the spot he waited for the wolf to pounce. After a few startled seconds Seb slowly turned to look at the beast who was simply sitting, staring at him, drooling. It whimpered again, then sneezed, shaking its huge head and spraying saliva and snot left and right.
“What is the matter with you?” Seb said, taking a step back. Cue whined.
After standing silently with the wolf-stag for several minutes, Seb decided the creature was no threat. He looked around expecting to see the teachers, his friends. There was no sign of any of them and now he was fed up.
“Well, I’m not spending the rest of my day standing here!” Cue licked his nose and waited. Seb picked a direction where the woodland was least dense. “Right, I’m going this way. You go your way!” He shrugged and took a couple of paces. Cue leapt in front of him, blocking his way. Each time Seb tried to sidestep him, the wolf blocked his path. Eventually Seb conceded.
“Okay, which way would you have me go?”
Immediately Cue bounded to the right, towards a cluster of gnarled old trees. Seb followed, feeling strangely comfortable in the wolf’s company.
One leap from Cue took him fifteen feet from Seb who had to trot to keep up. A few minutes of progress and they came to the bank of a small brook which was hardly visible beneath the vegetation overgrowing its path. Some wooden planking was just about discernible through the criss-cross of branches and leaves and Seb pulled the foliage away, pricking his left thumb on a thorn as he did so. He winced but, ignoring the injury, continued clearing away the greenery to reveal a small rowing boat, with one flat-ended oar tucked under the middle bench.
“Well what’s the point of a boat on a brook that’s only inches deep?” he said to Cue who sat dribbling beside him. Seb stepped down the shallow bank. The boat was obviously grounded on the pebbly bottom. “Which way now?” he said, waiting for Cue to lead him on. The wolf just whined.
“I’m going back!” Seb was annoyed now that he had followed Cue in the first place. As he turned he nearly bumped into Heath who was standing less than an arm’s length in front of him. He stumbled backwards in surprise, placing a foot into the cold water. Heath laughed and Seb smiled awkwardly, looking round for the others. Heath appeared to be alone.
“Well done, Cue. Seb, get in the boat; there is danger and Aelfric has asked that I take you somewhere safe.”
The level of the river was rising, reaching Seb’s ankle.
He mumbled, “No thanks. I’d rather be alone.”
Heath took a step forward and Cue stood up. “Seb, Aelfric has instructed I protect you, take you to a place of safety, and that is what I intend to do.”
“I said no!” Seb felt angry. He had spent the last few days being managed by these teachers and sundry strange characters and as charming as Heath appeared to be the sea-change in Seb since watching his father’s soul take over his brother’s body was dramatic. He felt no allegiance to anyone, no wish to delve further into the philosophy and politics of being some sort of soul Custodian. No one mattered, none of this mattered and for the first time in his life he felt comfortable in his own skin. “I’m leaving, and don’t send Cue after me,” he said.
The water had reached his calf. He wondered fleetingly how the flow had grown so quickly but now, with one foot already wet, he placed the other in the water and stepped to the m
iddle of the brook. The boat bobbed closer to him.
“Seb, you are the new Custodian and all manner of dangers await you. You need us, those who have lived this existence for centuries. We can protect you. Alone you are exposed, isolated – in danger.” Heath took another pace towards Seb. Surprisingly Cue leapt forward, blocking him. “Cue, be still; he needs to come with me.”
The flow of the brook was now quite strong and Seb struggled to keep his footing. As Cue stood between Heath and him, Seb took the opportunity – he waded across, clambered up the opposite bank and ran.
A buzzing sound flitted past his ear.
“Alice, I’m not coming back. You all need to leave me alone,” he shouted.
Alice appeared in front of him. Seb closed his eyes and ran through him, feeling a charge of electricity as he did so.
“Charming!” Alice protested.
The trees seemed endless and Seb ran on blindly.
“Do you even know where you are going?” Alice asked, floating along beside him, unhindered by the obstacles Seb was struggling to negotiate. Seb ignored him. “Scarlet will be worried,” Alice’s voice rustled.
“Ha!” Seb laughed nastily. “Why would she care? Why would I care about her being worried? We’re not really related. It’s all just,” he stopped. “Pointless. Temporary, shallow and pointless!”
“And what was it before?” Alice asked, the