The Obdurate Avidity: Chapter 35
-TurtleBoy-
James looked over at me with confusion smeared across his face, jumping from floor and scurrying across the room as quickly as his feet could take him; he scampered to throw on his clothes, “Who is that?” He asked in a whisper of panic.
“I don’t know… Austin maybe?” I rolled off the bed and slipped into my clothes, by the time I had made my self presentable I heard the familiar silent *thud* of James’ closet door… He did not just hide! This is his house! I shook my head in amusement and with a smile opened the door…
“Who is it?” I heard his muffled voice escaping from the partially opened door of the closet.
“Goofball!” I teased, “There’s no one there! Get out here!” Closing the door I whipped around and swung open James’ hiding spot; jumping back in a fright he bumped his head on the clothes pole.
“AHH Geeze!” He screamed, “Why’d you do that? Oww!” He moaned the cutest moan imaginable while rubbing his head with embarrassment, “What do you mean no one was there?”
“What else would that mean?” I giggled, “It was probably just Austin being silly.” I shrugged while roaming back towards the bed.
“Could be I guess. It just didn’t sound like him is all.” James pointed out while staring blankly towards the door.
“When does he sound like himself lately?” I teased, “Things have been a little messed up recently; wouldn’t you agree?”
“True, still... I don’t like unexplained noises. It never ends up being something good.” James made his way back to the bed and sat himself down at the edge while bracing his hands at his knees.
“On the bright side, whoever... or whatever it was waited for us to be done.” I smiled at him with a mocking expression on my face as I made my way to sit down beside him.
“That’s right... It did wait... Why?” James looked at me as if he had discovered Atlantis itself, “What are the odds? I mean... Every time we’re interrupted, it’s after we’ve already finished.”
“Timing is everything I guess.” I shrugged dismissively and threw my arms around James’ shoulders, “You’re reading way to far into this, just relax, we’re safe; I’m happy, you seem happy... Well you would if you weren’t so paranoid all the time anyway.” James turned his head towards me, a look of offense smeared across his face; as if I had just insulted him somehow.
“What? Hey! Ever think that maybe you’re not being paranoid enough? I mean, shit look at everything that’s happened! It never ends to amaze me that you just don’t seem to get worked up for too long about anything, you just kind of write it off as ‘one of those things’ like it was nothing.”
“Woah, hey... I’m sorry, I am, it’s just, too many messed up things keep happening for me to worry about everything. If I did that we’d be miserable every minute of every day. Seriously, on an average day, how many fucked up things happen to us? Think about it, right now.... You burst through my bathroom wall covered in flames, I fought a ghost that looked exactly like Martial, you were abducted by one of the Brethren; one of which wants to meet again! My Mom flipped out and took off, your brother is possessed by an army of ghost children and we’ve got two evil twins conspiring against us!” I stopped to observe James through his watering eyes, “Hey.” I said softly, “I’m sorry, I just don’t find a simple knock on the door to be all that spooky right now.”
James buried his face into my shoulder, rubbing his eyes against the collar of my shirt. A violent sniffle escaped his nostrils and his breathing became labored an unpredictable. As the dampness from his tears soaked into my shirt his body began to tremble, feeling his grip around me become tighter I reciprocated and held him as close as I could, “Hey, it’s alright... Everything’s gonna be fine, you’ll see. I’m a tough mo’ fucker... most the time, and you’re hotter than hell – literally!”
“Adrian?” He whimpered to me softly.
“Yea?”
“Just shut up.” He made a small attempt to make his words come off as humorous, but it was obvious he really wanted me to shut up; how could I argue with that?
We spent a good fifteen minutes just holding each other, just being in each others arms. James cried himself dry; it got to the point where he just couldn’t summon another sniffle or muster up another tear. After which, he just relaxed himself to calmness against my chest.
“You alright?” I asked him cautiously, trying to avoid any more offense.
“Yea.. I don’t know what happened.” He admitted as he drew away from my chest and looked into my eyes through his reddened, puffy glare.
“Don’t worry about it, everything’s messed up; it’s allowed.”
“I know, it just seems to always be me that freaks out.”
“Are you kidding? I think I hold the record for that, you can be considered stone compared to me most of the time.” I forced a faint giggle and raised my hand to the side of his face, while gently wiping the moisture away from underneath his eyes.
“Hey! Are you calling me cold?” He smiled with a look of sarcasm.
“Of course, you’re the coldest!” I teased.
“Gee, thanks.” He gave me a playful punch in the shoulder and rose to his feet.
“Any time beautiful.” I smiled up at him, than rocked myself back and leaned forward while bouncing to my feet.
“Hehe, beautiful... You’re so gay!”
“You’re the beautiful one! I’m studly!” I poked out my tongue and squished in my eyes while blowing a sloppy raspberry in his direction.
“Aww gross! Stop! I’m getting... Ewww, wet!” James backed away towards the door, “Let’s go. Looks like we’re done here anyway.”
“You may be right, what next? Do we chance another messed up event or do we just hang out here?” I asked only partially sarcastically.
“Hell if I know. I doubt us staying here would prevent anything from happening.”
“That’s probably not far from the truth, what should we do than.”
“Well... We should probably take Austin to the creek. I figure, the only way to sort all this out is by confronting it head on. Right now everything we know involves Austin and the twins.” James explained, causing me a moment of surprise.
“You sure? I mean, we don’t have to.” Truth was, I didn’t really feel like dealing with anything else today, much less provoking it.
“Yea, I’m sick of all this. I hate everything we do always getting messed up by something else happening, I hate not being in control even when it feels like we are.”
His new found determination was strange, only moments ago he couldn’t contain his emotions; a complete mental breakdown... well nearly I guess. Now he wanted to push it? “Why?” I asked accidently thinking out loud.
“Why? Because if anything else is going to happen today, I’m going to cause it. I don’t want to have to keep crashing down every time something happens, I don’t want to just sit here and never have any control over my own life. We keep saying ‘we need to find answers’ but something always sets us apart from our goals, we never accomplish anything... Why? Because I’ve had enough, I’m turning fifteen in two days, the same day something really big is meant to happen... or from what I understand, I’m going to have some kind of a party, I’m going to have fun, we are going on vacation soon and we’re leaving all this crap behind us!”
How do I reply to this? Can I? I thought it best just to go with it, chances were more than good that James was right. We kept losing our way and losing control; enough is enough... shit! I feel inspired, “Let’s go.”
James looked at me with an awkward smile, like he had expected me to form some form of retaliation, or even find some means of talking some sense into him. But everything he said made sense, it was time to stop allowing ourselves to lose control, it was time to fight back.
Out of nowhere a shirt covered my face, all that I heard was a loud *Whoosh* sound followed by the smell of James’ laundry detergent. I took a perving moment to breath in the calming scent that helped make up what was ‘James’ than tore off my shirt and replaced it with his.
“If we’re going to fight evil, we’re going to do it with clean clothes.” James blurted; his face drenched in humor, as a smile spread violently across his cheeks.
“You always think of everything.” I smiled back at him.
James hurried down the stairs and marched directly into the living room. Austin was curled up on the couch watching television, appearing to be half asleep. “Hey!” Shouted James, “We’re going to the creek, you coming?”
Austin’s eyes widened and his head shot up from the cushion that had been supporting him, “Really?” He asked with surprise.
“Yea, Hurry up and get ready.” James forced on his shoes and rolled mine towards me, “You too!” He giggled.
“Yes sir!” I smiled through a salute, while bending over to grab my shoes.
“Is Josh and Alex gonna be there?” Austin asked through excitement.
“I’m pretty sure.” I replied.
“You guys ready?” James asked, still sounding as determined as ever.
“Yup!” Both me and Austin replied in unison.
James turned away from us, trying to hide his smile, he was being serious and this was no time for games. Exiting the house, me and Austin marched in behind him, attempting to make a pun of his seriousness. With the sun shining high and bright, we followed in behind James the entire way to the creek; directly behind him with every step that he took. Austin began to mimic my movements in behind me, so I decided to do the same to James. I wasn’t sure if he was aware of what was happening in behind him, but it sure was amusing.
That beautiful butt of his tooing and frowing before my very eyes, every luscious step allowed for a slight jiggle until it was consumed by the muscle of his gluts... Nice. Austin’s giggles echoed in behind me as my feet would randomly dance from side to side in an obscure attempt to throw him off his game. It was weird, ever since that dream, or whatever it was, I didn’t feel as apprehensive around Austin; I wasn’t sure if it was the messed up dream I had of him, or if it was just the fact that he was such a little cutie. Just looking at him, one would never guess what kind of evil he had lurking inside; or was it evil?
“Would you two hurry it up?” James said sternly, trying to hide his amused smile by dipping his head forward and towards the ground.
“We are hurried!” Screamed Austin through piercing giggles.
“Yea we are hurried!” I agreed with a smirk, “We’re almost there anyway, what’s the problem?”
James looked back toward me and his brother, he looked agitated and amused all at once, “You’re right... Sorry Adrian. I don’t know, I just can’t figure out this feeling I’m having.” He stopped in his tracks and looked down the street towards the ice cream shop where we normally passed to get to the creek.
“What feeling?” I asked feeling a sudden plague of seriousness consuming me.
“I don’t know, it’s hard to explain.” James looked back down the street, “We just got to hurry up... I don’t feel right.”
“Alright.” I agreed with him’ feeling his emotions absorbing into me I grasped how important the situation was to him and decided it best to stop messing around and follow along.
“Can we stop for ice cream?” Asked Austin through a whiny, pleading voice.
“No, not right now.” James replied without a thought.
“Maybe later bud.” I said to him with an assuring smile.
“No...” He whined some more, grabbing my wrist and pulling me away from James.
“Austin?! Let go, we’re going to the creek to meet your friends!” I tried to reason with the boy.
“But I want to go now! Why can’t we go now?” He stopped his efforts and dropped to the ground. A hard thud could be felt in my toes from the impact of Austin’s body hitting the pavement.
“Cut it out Austin!” Screamed James, his eyes wide and his nostrils flaring,he marched over to his brother to try and bring him to his feet, “What’s your problem all of a sudden?”
“I want Ice cream!” He screamed.
“You are not doing this because of ice cream!? Stop acting like you’re four and let’s go! We’ll get you something on the way back home.” James reached down and grabbed his brother’s arms; the moment he pulled up on the boy’s retaliating body Austin’s head snapped to the side, sinking his teeth into James’ left hand.
“OWWW!!!” James jumped back, his eyes began to tear almost instantly and his face crossed with a deep shade of crimson, “What’s wrong with you!”
“We’re going home.” Whispered Austin, “We won’t be going to the creek today.” He slowly climbed to his feet and dusted off his legs, a tiny smile creased to the side of his face as he looked up at me, then back over at his brother.
James cradled his hand to his chest, covering it with his shirt. Blood could already be seen soaking through the fabric as he attempted to wipe the tears that were obstructing his view. “What the fuck... Who are you?” James screamed in pain and fear.
The boy’s smile widened and his eyes sparkled in the sunlight, “You know who we are. You know why you cannot go to the creek... We’ve told you, why do you not listen to us?”
“Holy shit.” Was all I could think to say; was this really happening? Did I somehow fall asleep or something? Maybe I didn’t wake up and I’m still sleeping...
James didn’t look surprised at all, in fact he looked angrier than anything, “I know what you told me, but you knew I would come anyway!” He paused for a moment and looked towards me through guilt stricken eyes, “You wouldn’t have told me if you didn’t want me to come.” He was looking at me, but he was definitely not talking to me.
“James?” I stuttered out, “What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry Adrian... I wasn’t supposed to tell you, they said it would be bad...” James looked at his brother, “He said it would be bad. I looked over at the small boy in front of us; Austin was staring at his brother’s bloodied shirt, still smiling. He turned his head upward, glaring deep into James’ eyes,
“You were warned.” Whispered a strangely deepened voice from the throat of Austin’s small body.
Austin suddenly dropped to the ground his body limp and lifeless. In a panic I rushed to his aid, falling to my knees and cradling his head in my arms, “Austin? Are you alright? What was he talking about James? What’s going on?” The questions and confusion that followed only became deeper by every passing moment. James looked down at me, his face drawing a blank. It was either, he didn’t know where to start, or he wasn’t going to.
“You’ll find out, we’re wasting time, let’s go!” James turned from his brother and marched his way towards the ice cream shop.
“James! Stop! What about your brother?!”
“He’s not my brother!”
The words were sharp and painful; they hurt me just hearing them. How could he be so cruel? And why was he being so secretive all of a sudden? I reluctantly left Austin in the street where he had fallen, climbing to my feet I quickly ran to catch up with James.
“Stay quiet.” He whispered sternly, he crouched downward as he approached the tree in behind the parlour, “Look, there they are... Just like in my dream.”
Dream? Is this for real? After all this stuff about him telling me to share what happens to me, all of a sudden he’s doing this? I dropped down in a crouch beside him and looked down towards the creek; Alex and Josh were running after Joanne and Christine, but Caleb and Kevin were nowhere to be seen. “I don’t get it, what are we watching for?”
“You’ll see.” Announced James as he began to slowly creep his way closer towards the water.
The closer we got, the more confused I felt. There weren’t any answers all of a sudden flooding to mind, no sudden feeling of satisfaction towards what was happening; only hurt. I couldn’t believe James was keeping this from me, we just talked about this, seems to me that we always have this discussion. I knew that I should just trust his reasoning, that was what a relationship was, wasn’t it? I looked over at James, trying to follow his gaze to wherever he was looking; it seemed to me that he was seeing something completely different.
“Adrian!” I heard a familiar voice scream from beside me, “What’s happening to me? What did you do?” The voice screamed; I turned my head in surprise, falling into James and throwing out my arm in defense. The figure in front of me was coming closer, its arms hugging at its sides as it dropped to the ground, “It hurts man! It really hurts!”
I looked in shock at Kevin, who was curled up in the foetal position on the ground before me. His face was soaked in sweat and veins were bulging from his neck, “Help me!” He screamed in obvious agony, “Oh GOD what did YOU do to me?!”
“Holy shit!” I jumped to my feet and climbed over Kevin, “I’m sorry! I didn’t know this would happen!”
Kevin rolled on to his side, his eyes bulged and dirt flew into the air as a heavy line of green and black vomit shot heavily against the ground. Small traces of blood were visible in the form of small lines which were diluting slowly into the rest of the mess beside him. James stared at the display in front of him; shock seemed to have consumed him as well. He looked up at me than down at Kevin.
“Shit...” Started James, “What about Caleb?” His concern bled through his pores almost literally, he jumped to his feet and scanned the area for any sign of Kevin’s brother.
“Kevin,” I took him by the shoulders and tried to force him back to some form of lucidness, “Where’s your brother? Is he alright?” But there was no answer; he was too lost in whatever it was that was happening to him.
“Shit Adrian,” James threw his hands to his head, anxiety and fear took him over, “This isn’t how it went, it wasn’t supposed to happen like this!” He paced forward and then back again, seemingly trying to work out the best way to start searching for Caleb, “What if... I mean... Kevin’s like that, what if I gave something to Caleb too? FUCK! HE could be ashes by now!”
“James! Calm down! You’re not helping... we need to get him some water, he’s burning up. Help me get him to the creek.” I grabbed Kevin around the shoulders and James nervously gripped his legs. The kids were all playing on the other side of the creek near the rocks where we had first met, completely oblivious to what was happening. Kevin’s moaning became more and more painful to hear, his body was nearly scolding hot and his sweat seemed to be decreasing; which I’m guessing, wasn’t good.
“What are we doing?” Asked James, “do we just throw him in?”
“Yea... I think that will be best... Well, maybe don’t THROW him.” I wasn’t positive, but I could have sworn I smiled after saying to throw him, but I don’t think I’m willing to admit it completely to myself.
We quickly reached the bank of the water, without a second thought we both stepped right inside; the coolness flooded up our legs an absorbed deep into the fabrics of our clothes. Kevin’s entire body instantly began to tremble in random convulsions, his lips fell blue in tone and his skin appeared clammy and pale. “What’s going on?” Kevin asked faintly.
“We’re trying to cool down your body; you’re burning up pretty bad.” James attempted to explain.
“Did you find my brother?” He asked.
“Not yet. Let’s take care of you first, and then we’ll go and look for Caleb.” I promised while scooping handfuls of water into my hand and gently dropping it on Kevin’s forehead.
“What are we gonna do Adrian? Should we find a doctor?”
“Are you crazy? What has a doctor ever done for us so far?” I looked up at James, his ambition had completely left him, all that was left was a broken version of himself; almost empty.
“Shit I don’t know, Nothing? It’s just... this is too messed up! Is he gonna die?” James scampered back and forth in the water, unsure of what to do with his self.
Over the next few minutes, Kevin’s color started to seep back into his skin, the veins began to decrease and his screaming had stopped completely. The kids in the background still howled and hollered completely oblivious to what had just happened; James however didn’t find any comfort in Kevin’s nearing recovery. “James, it’s alright, Caleb will turn up.” I tried to assure him, which obviously brought him no satisfaction; I could see the guilt smeared across his face and the stress still seeping freely from his pores.
“That’s not the point! We really messed up this time! FUCK! We’ve got to be more careful! How could we do this to someone else? WHY!? Damn-it! I’m so stupid, if I just... if we just... This isn’t how it was meant to be!”
“Hey, calm it down James. You’re getting yourself worked up for nothing. Whatever you were expecting wasn’t good, was it?” James’ face dropped to the ground as his cheeks reddened. Clutching his fingers deep into the grass and dirt he looked towards me with a heavy look of grief.
“No! It wasn’t good!” He screamed, “But! It was necessary, I know it was... Is. Somethings have to happen in order to make things right.” His eyes began to water once again and they soon matched the heavy crimson tone of his cheeks, “You don’t understand...”
“No James, I don’t! You don’t want to tell me? Why? Tell me. We aren’t keeping secrets remember?” I could tell how hurt I was sounding; I was hurt, what was with the sudden bi-polar behavior?
“HEY!” Screamed an echoing voice, from off in the unseen distance, “Get away from my brother!”
“Caleb?” James looked up at me, than behind himself towards the creek.
I looked in the direction that James was looking, “CALEB!” I screamed, while jumping to my feet. “YOUR BROTHER IS SICK!” Dodging around James, I ran towards Caleb who had appeared from behind some rocks. He remained still, neither undisturbed nor concerned with his brother’s current state. Carefully tip-toeing across the dead log that lay as a bridge to the other side of the creek, Caleb still remained still. I know I’m not a genius, and I know that I’ve been known to miss a lot of things recently, but something about this situation just didn’t seem right...
“AGHHHHH!” I heard from behind me; whipping my head backwards I saw James dangling in the air. His feet violently shaking back and forth, his face nearing a shade of purple as he gasped for air. Kevin had risen to his feet and was now holding James off of the ground with only one single hand.
“JAMES!” I screamed as loud as I could while sliding to a halt and ricocheting myself off of a boulder to return to him. “Let him go!” My voice cracked and whined under the stress of my adrenaline; water jumped and fell from all around me as I trudged through it next to the log that I had used before.
“Adrian.” I heard from behind me. I refused to look; I didn’t want to look, but it seemed so close.
My peripherals caused me to flinch my face to the right as a heated string of what could have been flames sped past my face and caused me to fall hard against the waiting ground. Laughter sang inside my head as a dark shadow gazed over top of me. James’ muffled screams could be heard only yards away; Caleb stood over me, smiling and his skin coarse and blurred at the same time. His body’s moisture could be seen evacuating from his aura and fleeing from his pores. Kevin’s scent seemed to be altered, the rhythm of his heart moving to a different beat.
“You’re not going to be waking up from this one.” Smiled Caleb.
“Why are... “ I shook my head to focus my vision, “Why are you doing this?”
Caleb just smiled down at me and looked over towards his brother, “Drop him!” he screamed, “We still need him dip shit!” Unexpectedly Kevin complied instantly and literally dropped James to the hard ground.
“This is fucken awesome!” exclaimed Kevin who was smiling so wildly that it looked as if his jaw might break in two.
~Adrian~ The wind seemed to instantly cool and the sunlight was suddenly blocked with dark, thick clouds, ~Not yet Adrian~
Caleb’s face fell into disappointment and Kevin began to scream as if he were going to die. He fell to the ground and cradled his ribs, “AHHH! FUCK!” He whined, while rolling onto his side.
~Not Yet~ the whisper was close... maybe even, behind me. I turned my head and looked upwards, a shadowy figure stood directly behind me, small and thin looking.
“Austin?”
~Destined souls become anxious~ was his reply, his eyes flooded white as pearls.
“Fuck you kid!” Yelled Caleb, trying to maintain some control; but it was obvious, he was scared.. terrified even.
~Not yet~ he repeated, this time looking towards Kevin.
“Let’s go Kev.” Announced Caleb as he backed away from me; making sure to keep a close watch on the small child who was only a few feet away.
Kevin forced himself to his feet, awkwardly stumbling towards his brother. He wiped his eyes dry of the falling tears and without once looking back, followed Caleb back to their waiting siblings. Without a single thought I jumped up and ran towards James, who was still laying in silence on the ground. “James!” Dust flew into the air as I slid across the dirt to his side, “Are you alright? James? ...You okay?” I lifted his head from the grass and brought him close to my chest, dropping my chin softly against his forehead, tears dropping against his face, “James?”
~One night~ I knew it was Austin speaking, his lips even moved, but the voice seemed to echo inside of my head. It was so loud it hurt my skull, ~The Brethren will be here~ The boy slowly made his way towards us, his feet barely touching the ground as he approached, ~Do not trust the Brethren~ He crouched down slowly beside us, his face blurred and unfamiliar – forming from one entity to another as fast as cards were shuffled; laying one hand over James’ chest, Austin fell to the ground, as if being dropped from a tree.
James sighed with a heavy moan through a sore throat, pushing himself upwards onto the support of his elbows, he looked up at me and then down at his brother, “That is what was supposed to happen.” He looked back up at me, with a small unsure smile, “I’m sorry... I should have told you... I just, wasn’t supposed to.”
The reasoning I remained unsure of, the result, only left more question. One more night? What am I supposed to do? I’m supposed to have answers; I’m supposed to have things worked out! How am I supposed to do anything without knowing what it is that I’m supposed to be doing! I looked down at James, peered deep into his beautiful eyes, trying not to wonder what was going to happen, or if he was still keeping something from me... “Are you alright?” I asked softly.
“Yea, I think so. Just sore.” He looked down at his brother once again, “What did he say?”
“Huh?” I raised an eyebrow while looking down at Austin, “Nothing... well not really. Just, ‘not yet’ and not to trust the Brethren. Nothing really useful.” I’m guessing my disappointment was evident in my tone, James sat up beside me, swinging his arms over my shoulders and around my neck,
“It’s okay, everything will work out” He buried his face into my chest, “I hope.”
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“I really don’t understand this kid.” I admitted while looking down at the small child as he lay unconscious, “What is he? I mean... We know what he is, kinda, but is he good or bad... or something else?”
“I think its best not to think too hard on that.” James lowered himself down to one knee while folding his shirt into halves, and then gently placing it over Austin’s forehead. “I’m having enough problems trying to remember that he’s still my brother... at least somewhere in there anyway.”
James made an attempt to pick Austin up; only succeeding in bumping the boy’s limp head back onto the ground. He looked over at me, failure in his eyes and an awkward gesture on his face, “Ummm... you think you can manage?” He asked with a faint giggle.
“Sure.” I replied with a soft smile as I leant forward and scooped the dead weight of the child into my arms.
I climbed to my feet at the same time as James, and followed in behind him while attempting to keep my hidden steps from stumbling. We had just made our way up the tiny hill, towards the ice cream shop, when Austin’s eyes shot open; his lips spread in a wince and his teeth clenched together as if he were being electrocuted. A muffled scream escaped in a hum through his saliva drenched teeth, which vibrated harshly against my ear drums. I felt the muscles in his back tighten and contract as his arms shot towards me at a rapid and surprising pace. A hearty slap echoed around us when his hands made contact with the temples of my head; his stare concentrating deep into my own. As he dug his fingers deeper and deeper into my skull, and pulling my hair as a result of his clenching fists. Just when I thought I couldn’t take anymore, just before I threw the boy to the ground, everything went dark.
It was like all of my surroundings were made of liquid: dark but with a faint shine which emphasized the ripples that were delicately rolling their way around me. My entire body became cold and clammy as an eerie fog began to make its way over the water gently rolling itself towards me. As I concentrated on its partial beauty I noticed something... something within the fog, a dark silhouette, no! Several of them! I stared in awe and fear at the same time - they were multiplying! Soon hundreds, if not thousands, of them could be seen: dark shadows of blurred children. I wanted to run but knew it would be useless to try.
~Time runs short~ thousands of whispers echoed from all directions as the ripples of water became increasingly aggressive.
“I know! What do I do?” I wasn’t completely sure what I had meant, but that was the best I could muster.
~The change has already begun~
~Compromise to your heart~
~Betrayal is not what it seems~
“What?! I don’t understand!” The whispers were speaking, trying to help... but I couldn’t make any form of clarity through their voices, and they just kept speaking all at once.
~The one you love is destined for corruption~
~Do not allow your heart’s deception~
Lightning began to spread along the water’s surface like a snake lashing at its prey. Its light consumed my surroundings allowing me partial glimpses of the children’s faces. They were pale and bloodied some with chunks of rotted and brutally mangled flesh. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what had happened to them nor did I want to... Their eyes were lifeless, filled of a pale white expressing only death. How do I know that I can trust them? Look at them! They’re horrifying!
~Follow your heart Adrian~
~Now wake into clarity~
A surge of electricity surged throughout my body. The physical pain against my temples returned, and the brightness of day plagued upon my unready eyes. “You can put me down now.” looking down at the boy in my arms - he was smiling and once again filled with life. Will I ever get used to this? Leaning forward, I placed the boy onto his feet. With a smile still stained against his cheeks, “Can we get some ice cream now?” he asked plainly, through a chilling tone of innocence.
“Are you all right Adrian?” James asked with concern, I must have looked as pale as I felt.
“Yeah, I’m fine... Your brother just spooked me a little.” Austin tossed his brother’s shirt back to James, and then skipped merrily ahead of us.
“Are you sure? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” James asked again in scepticism.
“You have no idea.” I replied sarcastically, “So - we going for ice cream?”
“Ha-ha, well I guess... I’m sure we’ve done weirder things. Might as well act normal for a while.” said James as he awkwardly slid into his damp shirt.
As much as we had tried we just couldn’t enjoy our time at the ice cream parlour. It seemed too artificial; like we were attempting to dismiss everything that had been happening. It’s too bad life isn’t as simple as it was when we were Austin’s age. Ice cream could have cured everything back then.
Austin was humming in delight as he devoured his double scoop, chocolate dipped, cookie-dough ice cream on a wafer cone. He spun on the stool where he sat, round and round, causing his happy noises to become distorted through fluctuation. Even on the strangest, most stressful or bizarre of days, this would have still come across to anyone as cute; of course, it was an eerie cute. One was never really sure how to react while knowing what we knew about this boy. Sure it appeared cute, but who was being cute? Which entity was in control? Was it one or all? Was it them or actually him? Confusion, the word just didn’t seem sufficient.
“All right, let’s get back to the house.” suggested James, looking over at me as I fluttered passed him from miles away, “Adrian? You with us?”
Shaking my head subtly, “Yeah, sorry... just a bit distracted I guess.”
“You’re not hiding anything from me are you?” asked James with a slight tone of hurt in his voice.
“No... Well, no it’s fine.” I replied in hopes to comfort him in his worry, probably failing.
“At least say it like you mean it.” said James behind a forced smile.
“Are we leaving?” I said as a reminder, and hoping to change the subject.
“Yeah, we’re leaving. Come on Austin, let’s go home.”
Austin didn’t pout or plead. Instead he just smiled and hopped off of his stool. Licking at the remaining portion of his ice cream, he followed quietly in behind James as we left the parlour and made our way back towards their home.
I wasn’t exactly sure what had set it off, but all of a sudden my spidey-senses must have been tingling or something. Everything seemed off. I wasn’t exactly sure what it was, the sky was normal, the trees were normal, we were normal. Maybe it was the silence, but that wasn’t exactly out of the ordinary for this tiny little town. The air seemed stale and unmoving, the leaves on the trees looked like they had all frozen in time, and not even a branch would sway from its position. I looked towards James, he seemed unaffected by the absence of... well, everything. Of course, Austin... wait, where was Austin? “James? Where’d your brother go?”
“Huh?”
“Austin, he’s not here.” James stopped in his tracks, and surveyed his surroundings carefully.
“AUSTIN!” he screamed, “GET BACK HERE NOW!”
“Dude, something’s not right... what’s going on?” I asked somewhat rhetorically.
“How the fuck should I know!” snapped James in an obvious state of worry.
~Adrian~ James froze, and looked back at me.
~Adrian~
“Dude, did you hear that?” whispered James.
“Yeah... you can hear it too?”
“Yeah.”
~Adrian, this way Adrian~ the moment the words stopped a gentle breeze brushed against the backs of our necks. Scattered leaves and twigs slid across the street towards an opening in the trees.
“Don’t go.” demanded James with a panicked tone of voice.
“Dude, I gotta... Remember? Get things done – right?”
“Well... shit, I’m coming with you.”
~ADRIAN~ the voice’s urgency increased with the wind. James was first to run towards the gesture.
“James! Stop!” my scream filled of anxiety, “Wait.”
James took my hand as we slowly tip-toed our way towards the summoning voice. The trees sheltered us from the days light. With every step our surroundings became darker and less inviting.
~Adrian~
“All right, we’re here... what do you want?” I demanded sternly, as I examined the surrounding trees for any evidence of another presence.
“You were supposed to be alone.” said a familiar voice as the form of a man emerged from the trees.
“Deal with it.” snapped James.
“James?” I whispered, “Careful... he could be dangerous.”
“Who cares, I’m not leaving you, not with him.”
“So you do remember Me.” said the man, “Do I detect a grudge?” he asked sarcastically.
“Wait... you’re from the sanctuary.” I realized, apparently out loud...
“I don’t have long, I’ve already been discovered. Listen carefully and nothing else! The change begins tonight, everything you know or think you know is no more. Rely only on your instincts. Follow what your heart says. I know you’ve had interference from the other side, and I know you don’t think you can trust me... Which is why I’m not asking for your trust. You James, whatever you do, do NOT leave Adrian’s side, not until this is over, not under any circumstances. If you want to get through this, you need your love for each other to guide you. Adrian, I know you’ve been told not to allow James to change, but, it might be necessary. Dangerous yes, but I see no other way of defeating what you’ll be up against... Just stay close, and act as one – just as you already are.”
“You’re not making any sense.” I said in almost a pout.
“I said listen!!” shrieked the man “This is not a game, there aren’t any rules. Those twins, they may appear to be dangerous... don’t destroy them, you will need them... The demon child, keep him close as well, he is the key.”
“Austin? Where is he? What have you done to my brother!?” screamed James nervously.
“I’ve done nothing. You will find him where you always find him, where his power is the strongest, at home. Adrian your basement holds a secret, it has appeared to you before; a spectre. For the key to work correctly you must bond the two together and bind the key with its tumbler. It will become clear once this is done.”
“Wait... That’s it? That’s all the answers? We’re supposed to be fine with this... just do as you ask?” I plead in unsatisfied confusion.
“Have you received better instruction? All you have is trust Adrian, go with your gut and follow your heart. In the end, that’s all anyone needs.”
“But...”
“They’re close, I must go... We won’t cross paths again Adrian, it has been an honour.” As his words ended his body became transparent, and his existence before us literally ceased. He was gone and we were again alone.
“You get all that James?”
“Oh yeah... I took notes and everything.”
“I guess we’re going to my house...” I said nervously.
“Yeah. Wait, we’re actually gonna listen to him?”
“Got any better ideas?”
“Guess not.” shrugged James, “All right, let’s go.”
Back to main menu
Back to Chapter Selection
-TurtleBoy-
James looked over at me with confusion smeared across his face, jumping from floor and scurrying across the room as quickly as his feet could take him; he scampered to throw on his clothes, “Who is that?” He asked in a whisper of panic.
“I don’t know… Austin maybe?” I rolled off the bed and slipped into my clothes, by the time I had made my self presentable I heard the familiar silent *thud* of James’ closet door… He did not just hide! This is his house! I shook my head in amusement and with a smile opened the door…
“Who is it?” I heard his muffled voice escaping from the partially opened door of the closet.
“Goofball!” I teased, “There’s no one there! Get out here!” Closing the door I whipped around and swung open James’ hiding spot; jumping back in a fright he bumped his head on the clothes pole.
“AHH Geeze!” He screamed, “Why’d you do that? Oww!” He moaned the cutest moan imaginable while rubbing his head with embarrassment, “What do you mean no one was there?”
“What else would that mean?” I giggled, “It was probably just Austin being silly.” I shrugged while roaming back towards the bed.
“Could be I guess. It just didn’t sound like him is all.” James pointed out while staring blankly towards the door.
“When does he sound like himself lately?” I teased, “Things have been a little messed up recently; wouldn’t you agree?”
“True, still... I don’t like unexplained noises. It never ends up being something good.” James made his way back to the bed and sat himself down at the edge while bracing his hands at his knees.
“On the bright side, whoever... or whatever it was waited for us to be done.” I smiled at him with a mocking expression on my face as I made my way to sit down beside him.
“That’s right... It did wait... Why?” James looked at me as if he had discovered Atlantis itself, “What are the odds? I mean... Every time we’re interrupted, it’s after we’ve already finished.”
“Timing is everything I guess.” I shrugged dismissively and threw my arms around James’ shoulders, “You’re reading way to far into this, just relax, we’re safe; I’m happy, you seem happy... Well you would if you weren’t so paranoid all the time anyway.” James turned his head towards me, a look of offense smeared across his face; as if I had just insulted him somehow.
“What? Hey! Ever think that maybe you’re not being paranoid enough? I mean, shit look at everything that’s happened! It never ends to amaze me that you just don’t seem to get worked up for too long about anything, you just kind of write it off as ‘one of those things’ like it was nothing.”
“Woah, hey... I’m sorry, I am, it’s just, too many messed up things keep happening for me to worry about everything. If I did that we’d be miserable every minute of every day. Seriously, on an average day, how many fucked up things happen to us? Think about it, right now.... You burst through my bathroom wall covered in flames, I fought a ghost that looked exactly like Martial, you were abducted by one of the Brethren; one of which wants to meet again! My Mom flipped out and took off, your brother is possessed by an army of ghost children and we’ve got two evil twins conspiring against us!” I stopped to observe James through his watering eyes, “Hey.” I said softly, “I’m sorry, I just don’t find a simple knock on the door to be all that spooky right now.”
James buried his face into my shoulder, rubbing his eyes against the collar of my shirt. A violent sniffle escaped his nostrils and his breathing became labored an unpredictable. As the dampness from his tears soaked into my shirt his body began to tremble, feeling his grip around me become tighter I reciprocated and held him as close as I could, “Hey, it’s alright... Everything’s gonna be fine, you’ll see. I’m a tough mo’ fucker... most the time, and you’re hotter than hell – literally!”
“Adrian?” He whimpered to me softly.
“Yea?”
“Just shut up.” He made a small attempt to make his words come off as humorous, but it was obvious he really wanted me to shut up; how could I argue with that?
We spent a good fifteen minutes just holding each other, just being in each others arms. James cried himself dry; it got to the point where he just couldn’t summon another sniffle or muster up another tear. After which, he just relaxed himself to calmness against my chest.
“You alright?” I asked him cautiously, trying to avoid any more offense.
“Yea.. I don’t know what happened.” He admitted as he drew away from my chest and looked into my eyes through his reddened, puffy glare.
“Don’t worry about it, everything’s messed up; it’s allowed.”
“I know, it just seems to always be me that freaks out.”
“Are you kidding? I think I hold the record for that, you can be considered stone compared to me most of the time.” I forced a faint giggle and raised my hand to the side of his face, while gently wiping the moisture away from underneath his eyes.
“Hey! Are you calling me cold?” He smiled with a look of sarcasm.
“Of course, you’re the coldest!” I teased.
“Gee, thanks.” He gave me a playful punch in the shoulder and rose to his feet.
“Any time beautiful.” I smiled up at him, than rocked myself back and leaned forward while bouncing to my feet.
“Hehe, beautiful... You’re so gay!”
“You’re the beautiful one! I’m studly!” I poked out my tongue and squished in my eyes while blowing a sloppy raspberry in his direction.
“Aww gross! Stop! I’m getting... Ewww, wet!” James backed away towards the door, “Let’s go. Looks like we’re done here anyway.”
“You may be right, what next? Do we chance another messed up event or do we just hang out here?” I asked only partially sarcastically.
“Hell if I know. I doubt us staying here would prevent anything from happening.”
“That’s probably not far from the truth, what should we do than.”
“Well... We should probably take Austin to the creek. I figure, the only way to sort all this out is by confronting it head on. Right now everything we know involves Austin and the twins.” James explained, causing me a moment of surprise.
“You sure? I mean, we don’t have to.” Truth was, I didn’t really feel like dealing with anything else today, much less provoking it.
“Yea, I’m sick of all this. I hate everything we do always getting messed up by something else happening, I hate not being in control even when it feels like we are.”
His new found determination was strange, only moments ago he couldn’t contain his emotions; a complete mental breakdown... well nearly I guess. Now he wanted to push it? “Why?” I asked accidently thinking out loud.
“Why? Because if anything else is going to happen today, I’m going to cause it. I don’t want to have to keep crashing down every time something happens, I don’t want to just sit here and never have any control over my own life. We keep saying ‘we need to find answers’ but something always sets us apart from our goals, we never accomplish anything... Why? Because I’ve had enough, I’m turning fifteen in two days, the same day something really big is meant to happen... or from what I understand, I’m going to have some kind of a party, I’m going to have fun, we are going on vacation soon and we’re leaving all this crap behind us!”
How do I reply to this? Can I? I thought it best just to go with it, chances were more than good that James was right. We kept losing our way and losing control; enough is enough... shit! I feel inspired, “Let’s go.”
James looked at me with an awkward smile, like he had expected me to form some form of retaliation, or even find some means of talking some sense into him. But everything he said made sense, it was time to stop allowing ourselves to lose control, it was time to fight back.
Out of nowhere a shirt covered my face, all that I heard was a loud *Whoosh* sound followed by the smell of James’ laundry detergent. I took a perving moment to breath in the calming scent that helped make up what was ‘James’ than tore off my shirt and replaced it with his.
“If we’re going to fight evil, we’re going to do it with clean clothes.” James blurted; his face drenched in humor, as a smile spread violently across his cheeks.
“You always think of everything.” I smiled back at him.
James hurried down the stairs and marched directly into the living room. Austin was curled up on the couch watching television, appearing to be half asleep. “Hey!” Shouted James, “We’re going to the creek, you coming?”
Austin’s eyes widened and his head shot up from the cushion that had been supporting him, “Really?” He asked with surprise.
“Yea, Hurry up and get ready.” James forced on his shoes and rolled mine towards me, “You too!” He giggled.
“Yes sir!” I smiled through a salute, while bending over to grab my shoes.
“Is Josh and Alex gonna be there?” Austin asked through excitement.
“I’m pretty sure.” I replied.
“You guys ready?” James asked, still sounding as determined as ever.
“Yup!” Both me and Austin replied in unison.
James turned away from us, trying to hide his smile, he was being serious and this was no time for games. Exiting the house, me and Austin marched in behind him, attempting to make a pun of his seriousness. With the sun shining high and bright, we followed in behind James the entire way to the creek; directly behind him with every step that he took. Austin began to mimic my movements in behind me, so I decided to do the same to James. I wasn’t sure if he was aware of what was happening in behind him, but it sure was amusing.
That beautiful butt of his tooing and frowing before my very eyes, every luscious step allowed for a slight jiggle until it was consumed by the muscle of his gluts... Nice. Austin’s giggles echoed in behind me as my feet would randomly dance from side to side in an obscure attempt to throw him off his game. It was weird, ever since that dream, or whatever it was, I didn’t feel as apprehensive around Austin; I wasn’t sure if it was the messed up dream I had of him, or if it was just the fact that he was such a little cutie. Just looking at him, one would never guess what kind of evil he had lurking inside; or was it evil?
“Would you two hurry it up?” James said sternly, trying to hide his amused smile by dipping his head forward and towards the ground.
“We are hurried!” Screamed Austin through piercing giggles.
“Yea we are hurried!” I agreed with a smirk, “We’re almost there anyway, what’s the problem?”
James looked back toward me and his brother, he looked agitated and amused all at once, “You’re right... Sorry Adrian. I don’t know, I just can’t figure out this feeling I’m having.” He stopped in his tracks and looked down the street towards the ice cream shop where we normally passed to get to the creek.
“What feeling?” I asked feeling a sudden plague of seriousness consuming me.
“I don’t know, it’s hard to explain.” James looked back down the street, “We just got to hurry up... I don’t feel right.”
“Alright.” I agreed with him’ feeling his emotions absorbing into me I grasped how important the situation was to him and decided it best to stop messing around and follow along.
“Can we stop for ice cream?” Asked Austin through a whiny, pleading voice.
“No, not right now.” James replied without a thought.
“Maybe later bud.” I said to him with an assuring smile.
“No...” He whined some more, grabbing my wrist and pulling me away from James.
“Austin?! Let go, we’re going to the creek to meet your friends!” I tried to reason with the boy.
“But I want to go now! Why can’t we go now?” He stopped his efforts and dropped to the ground. A hard thud could be felt in my toes from the impact of Austin’s body hitting the pavement.
“Cut it out Austin!” Screamed James, his eyes wide and his nostrils flaring,he marched over to his brother to try and bring him to his feet, “What’s your problem all of a sudden?”
“I want Ice cream!” He screamed.
“You are not doing this because of ice cream!? Stop acting like you’re four and let’s go! We’ll get you something on the way back home.” James reached down and grabbed his brother’s arms; the moment he pulled up on the boy’s retaliating body Austin’s head snapped to the side, sinking his teeth into James’ left hand.
“OWWW!!!” James jumped back, his eyes began to tear almost instantly and his face crossed with a deep shade of crimson, “What’s wrong with you!”
“We’re going home.” Whispered Austin, “We won’t be going to the creek today.” He slowly climbed to his feet and dusted off his legs, a tiny smile creased to the side of his face as he looked up at me, then back over at his brother.
James cradled his hand to his chest, covering it with his shirt. Blood could already be seen soaking through the fabric as he attempted to wipe the tears that were obstructing his view. “What the fuck... Who are you?” James screamed in pain and fear.
The boy’s smile widened and his eyes sparkled in the sunlight, “You know who we are. You know why you cannot go to the creek... We’ve told you, why do you not listen to us?”
“Holy shit.” Was all I could think to say; was this really happening? Did I somehow fall asleep or something? Maybe I didn’t wake up and I’m still sleeping...
James didn’t look surprised at all, in fact he looked angrier than anything, “I know what you told me, but you knew I would come anyway!” He paused for a moment and looked towards me through guilt stricken eyes, “You wouldn’t have told me if you didn’t want me to come.” He was looking at me, but he was definitely not talking to me.
“James?” I stuttered out, “What’s going on?”
“I’m sorry Adrian... I wasn’t supposed to tell you, they said it would be bad...” James looked at his brother, “He said it would be bad. I looked over at the small boy in front of us; Austin was staring at his brother’s bloodied shirt, still smiling. He turned his head upward, glaring deep into James’ eyes,
“You were warned.” Whispered a strangely deepened voice from the throat of Austin’s small body.
Austin suddenly dropped to the ground his body limp and lifeless. In a panic I rushed to his aid, falling to my knees and cradling his head in my arms, “Austin? Are you alright? What was he talking about James? What’s going on?” The questions and confusion that followed only became deeper by every passing moment. James looked down at me, his face drawing a blank. It was either, he didn’t know where to start, or he wasn’t going to.
“You’ll find out, we’re wasting time, let’s go!” James turned from his brother and marched his way towards the ice cream shop.
“James! Stop! What about your brother?!”
“He’s not my brother!”
The words were sharp and painful; they hurt me just hearing them. How could he be so cruel? And why was he being so secretive all of a sudden? I reluctantly left Austin in the street where he had fallen, climbing to my feet I quickly ran to catch up with James.
“Stay quiet.” He whispered sternly, he crouched downward as he approached the tree in behind the parlour, “Look, there they are... Just like in my dream.”
Dream? Is this for real? After all this stuff about him telling me to share what happens to me, all of a sudden he’s doing this? I dropped down in a crouch beside him and looked down towards the creek; Alex and Josh were running after Joanne and Christine, but Caleb and Kevin were nowhere to be seen. “I don’t get it, what are we watching for?”
“You’ll see.” Announced James as he began to slowly creep his way closer towards the water.
The closer we got, the more confused I felt. There weren’t any answers all of a sudden flooding to mind, no sudden feeling of satisfaction towards what was happening; only hurt. I couldn’t believe James was keeping this from me, we just talked about this, seems to me that we always have this discussion. I knew that I should just trust his reasoning, that was what a relationship was, wasn’t it? I looked over at James, trying to follow his gaze to wherever he was looking; it seemed to me that he was seeing something completely different.
“Adrian!” I heard a familiar voice scream from beside me, “What’s happening to me? What did you do?” The voice screamed; I turned my head in surprise, falling into James and throwing out my arm in defense. The figure in front of me was coming closer, its arms hugging at its sides as it dropped to the ground, “It hurts man! It really hurts!”
I looked in shock at Kevin, who was curled up in the foetal position on the ground before me. His face was soaked in sweat and veins were bulging from his neck, “Help me!” He screamed in obvious agony, “Oh GOD what did YOU do to me?!”
“Holy shit!” I jumped to my feet and climbed over Kevin, “I’m sorry! I didn’t know this would happen!”
Kevin rolled on to his side, his eyes bulged and dirt flew into the air as a heavy line of green and black vomit shot heavily against the ground. Small traces of blood were visible in the form of small lines which were diluting slowly into the rest of the mess beside him. James stared at the display in front of him; shock seemed to have consumed him as well. He looked up at me than down at Kevin.
“Shit...” Started James, “What about Caleb?” His concern bled through his pores almost literally, he jumped to his feet and scanned the area for any sign of Kevin’s brother.
“Kevin,” I took him by the shoulders and tried to force him back to some form of lucidness, “Where’s your brother? Is he alright?” But there was no answer; he was too lost in whatever it was that was happening to him.
“Shit Adrian,” James threw his hands to his head, anxiety and fear took him over, “This isn’t how it went, it wasn’t supposed to happen like this!” He paced forward and then back again, seemingly trying to work out the best way to start searching for Caleb, “What if... I mean... Kevin’s like that, what if I gave something to Caleb too? FUCK! HE could be ashes by now!”
“James! Calm down! You’re not helping... we need to get him some water, he’s burning up. Help me get him to the creek.” I grabbed Kevin around the shoulders and James nervously gripped his legs. The kids were all playing on the other side of the creek near the rocks where we had first met, completely oblivious to what was happening. Kevin’s moaning became more and more painful to hear, his body was nearly scolding hot and his sweat seemed to be decreasing; which I’m guessing, wasn’t good.
“What are we doing?” Asked James, “do we just throw him in?”
“Yea... I think that will be best... Well, maybe don’t THROW him.” I wasn’t positive, but I could have sworn I smiled after saying to throw him, but I don’t think I’m willing to admit it completely to myself.
We quickly reached the bank of the water, without a second thought we both stepped right inside; the coolness flooded up our legs an absorbed deep into the fabrics of our clothes. Kevin’s entire body instantly began to tremble in random convulsions, his lips fell blue in tone and his skin appeared clammy and pale. “What’s going on?” Kevin asked faintly.
“We’re trying to cool down your body; you’re burning up pretty bad.” James attempted to explain.
“Did you find my brother?” He asked.
“Not yet. Let’s take care of you first, and then we’ll go and look for Caleb.” I promised while scooping handfuls of water into my hand and gently dropping it on Kevin’s forehead.
“What are we gonna do Adrian? Should we find a doctor?”
“Are you crazy? What has a doctor ever done for us so far?” I looked up at James, his ambition had completely left him, all that was left was a broken version of himself; almost empty.
“Shit I don’t know, Nothing? It’s just... this is too messed up! Is he gonna die?” James scampered back and forth in the water, unsure of what to do with his self.
Over the next few minutes, Kevin’s color started to seep back into his skin, the veins began to decrease and his screaming had stopped completely. The kids in the background still howled and hollered completely oblivious to what had just happened; James however didn’t find any comfort in Kevin’s nearing recovery. “James, it’s alright, Caleb will turn up.” I tried to assure him, which obviously brought him no satisfaction; I could see the guilt smeared across his face and the stress still seeping freely from his pores.
“That’s not the point! We really messed up this time! FUCK! We’ve got to be more careful! How could we do this to someone else? WHY!? Damn-it! I’m so stupid, if I just... if we just... This isn’t how it was meant to be!”
“Hey, calm it down James. You’re getting yourself worked up for nothing. Whatever you were expecting wasn’t good, was it?” James’ face dropped to the ground as his cheeks reddened. Clutching his fingers deep into the grass and dirt he looked towards me with a heavy look of grief.
“No! It wasn’t good!” He screamed, “But! It was necessary, I know it was... Is. Somethings have to happen in order to make things right.” His eyes began to water once again and they soon matched the heavy crimson tone of his cheeks, “You don’t understand...”
“No James, I don’t! You don’t want to tell me? Why? Tell me. We aren’t keeping secrets remember?” I could tell how hurt I was sounding; I was hurt, what was with the sudden bi-polar behavior?
“HEY!” Screamed an echoing voice, from off in the unseen distance, “Get away from my brother!”
“Caleb?” James looked up at me, than behind himself towards the creek.
I looked in the direction that James was looking, “CALEB!” I screamed, while jumping to my feet. “YOUR BROTHER IS SICK!” Dodging around James, I ran towards Caleb who had appeared from behind some rocks. He remained still, neither undisturbed nor concerned with his brother’s current state. Carefully tip-toeing across the dead log that lay as a bridge to the other side of the creek, Caleb still remained still. I know I’m not a genius, and I know that I’ve been known to miss a lot of things recently, but something about this situation just didn’t seem right...
“AGHHHHH!” I heard from behind me; whipping my head backwards I saw James dangling in the air. His feet violently shaking back and forth, his face nearing a shade of purple as he gasped for air. Kevin had risen to his feet and was now holding James off of the ground with only one single hand.
“JAMES!” I screamed as loud as I could while sliding to a halt and ricocheting myself off of a boulder to return to him. “Let him go!” My voice cracked and whined under the stress of my adrenaline; water jumped and fell from all around me as I trudged through it next to the log that I had used before.
“Adrian.” I heard from behind me. I refused to look; I didn’t want to look, but it seemed so close.
My peripherals caused me to flinch my face to the right as a heated string of what could have been flames sped past my face and caused me to fall hard against the waiting ground. Laughter sang inside my head as a dark shadow gazed over top of me. James’ muffled screams could be heard only yards away; Caleb stood over me, smiling and his skin coarse and blurred at the same time. His body’s moisture could be seen evacuating from his aura and fleeing from his pores. Kevin’s scent seemed to be altered, the rhythm of his heart moving to a different beat.
“You’re not going to be waking up from this one.” Smiled Caleb.
“Why are... “ I shook my head to focus my vision, “Why are you doing this?”
Caleb just smiled down at me and looked over towards his brother, “Drop him!” he screamed, “We still need him dip shit!” Unexpectedly Kevin complied instantly and literally dropped James to the hard ground.
“This is fucken awesome!” exclaimed Kevin who was smiling so wildly that it looked as if his jaw might break in two.
~Adrian~ The wind seemed to instantly cool and the sunlight was suddenly blocked with dark, thick clouds, ~Not yet Adrian~
Caleb’s face fell into disappointment and Kevin began to scream as if he were going to die. He fell to the ground and cradled his ribs, “AHHH! FUCK!” He whined, while rolling onto his side.
~Not Yet~ the whisper was close... maybe even, behind me. I turned my head and looked upwards, a shadowy figure stood directly behind me, small and thin looking.
“Austin?”
~Destined souls become anxious~ was his reply, his eyes flooded white as pearls.
“Fuck you kid!” Yelled Caleb, trying to maintain some control; but it was obvious, he was scared.. terrified even.
~Not yet~ he repeated, this time looking towards Kevin.
“Let’s go Kev.” Announced Caleb as he backed away from me; making sure to keep a close watch on the small child who was only a few feet away.
Kevin forced himself to his feet, awkwardly stumbling towards his brother. He wiped his eyes dry of the falling tears and without once looking back, followed Caleb back to their waiting siblings. Without a single thought I jumped up and ran towards James, who was still laying in silence on the ground. “James!” Dust flew into the air as I slid across the dirt to his side, “Are you alright? James? ...You okay?” I lifted his head from the grass and brought him close to my chest, dropping my chin softly against his forehead, tears dropping against his face, “James?”
~One night~ I knew it was Austin speaking, his lips even moved, but the voice seemed to echo inside of my head. It was so loud it hurt my skull, ~The Brethren will be here~ The boy slowly made his way towards us, his feet barely touching the ground as he approached, ~Do not trust the Brethren~ He crouched down slowly beside us, his face blurred and unfamiliar – forming from one entity to another as fast as cards were shuffled; laying one hand over James’ chest, Austin fell to the ground, as if being dropped from a tree.
James sighed with a heavy moan through a sore throat, pushing himself upwards onto the support of his elbows, he looked up at me and then down at his brother, “That is what was supposed to happen.” He looked back up at me, with a small unsure smile, “I’m sorry... I should have told you... I just, wasn’t supposed to.”
The reasoning I remained unsure of, the result, only left more question. One more night? What am I supposed to do? I’m supposed to have answers; I’m supposed to have things worked out! How am I supposed to do anything without knowing what it is that I’m supposed to be doing! I looked down at James, peered deep into his beautiful eyes, trying not to wonder what was going to happen, or if he was still keeping something from me... “Are you alright?” I asked softly.
“Yea, I think so. Just sore.” He looked down at his brother once again, “What did he say?”
“Huh?” I raised an eyebrow while looking down at Austin, “Nothing... well not really. Just, ‘not yet’ and not to trust the Brethren. Nothing really useful.” I’m guessing my disappointment was evident in my tone, James sat up beside me, swinging his arms over my shoulders and around my neck,
“It’s okay, everything will work out” He buried his face into my chest, “I hope.”
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“I really don’t understand this kid.” I admitted while looking down at the small child as he lay unconscious, “What is he? I mean... We know what he is, kinda, but is he good or bad... or something else?”
“I think its best not to think too hard on that.” James lowered himself down to one knee while folding his shirt into halves, and then gently placing it over Austin’s forehead. “I’m having enough problems trying to remember that he’s still my brother... at least somewhere in there anyway.”
James made an attempt to pick Austin up; only succeeding in bumping the boy’s limp head back onto the ground. He looked over at me, failure in his eyes and an awkward gesture on his face, “Ummm... you think you can manage?” He asked with a faint giggle.
“Sure.” I replied with a soft smile as I leant forward and scooped the dead weight of the child into my arms.
I climbed to my feet at the same time as James, and followed in behind him while attempting to keep my hidden steps from stumbling. We had just made our way up the tiny hill, towards the ice cream shop, when Austin’s eyes shot open; his lips spread in a wince and his teeth clenched together as if he were being electrocuted. A muffled scream escaped in a hum through his saliva drenched teeth, which vibrated harshly against my ear drums. I felt the muscles in his back tighten and contract as his arms shot towards me at a rapid and surprising pace. A hearty slap echoed around us when his hands made contact with the temples of my head; his stare concentrating deep into my own. As he dug his fingers deeper and deeper into my skull, and pulling my hair as a result of his clenching fists. Just when I thought I couldn’t take anymore, just before I threw the boy to the ground, everything went dark.
It was like all of my surroundings were made of liquid: dark but with a faint shine which emphasized the ripples that were delicately rolling their way around me. My entire body became cold and clammy as an eerie fog began to make its way over the water gently rolling itself towards me. As I concentrated on its partial beauty I noticed something... something within the fog, a dark silhouette, no! Several of them! I stared in awe and fear at the same time - they were multiplying! Soon hundreds, if not thousands, of them could be seen: dark shadows of blurred children. I wanted to run but knew it would be useless to try.
~Time runs short~ thousands of whispers echoed from all directions as the ripples of water became increasingly aggressive.
“I know! What do I do?” I wasn’t completely sure what I had meant, but that was the best I could muster.
~The change has already begun~
~Compromise to your heart~
~Betrayal is not what it seems~
“What?! I don’t understand!” The whispers were speaking, trying to help... but I couldn’t make any form of clarity through their voices, and they just kept speaking all at once.
~The one you love is destined for corruption~
~Do not allow your heart’s deception~
Lightning began to spread along the water’s surface like a snake lashing at its prey. Its light consumed my surroundings allowing me partial glimpses of the children’s faces. They were pale and bloodied some with chunks of rotted and brutally mangled flesh. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what had happened to them nor did I want to... Their eyes were lifeless, filled of a pale white expressing only death. How do I know that I can trust them? Look at them! They’re horrifying!
~Follow your heart Adrian~
~Now wake into clarity~
A surge of electricity surged throughout my body. The physical pain against my temples returned, and the brightness of day plagued upon my unready eyes. “You can put me down now.” looking down at the boy in my arms - he was smiling and once again filled with life. Will I ever get used to this? Leaning forward, I placed the boy onto his feet. With a smile still stained against his cheeks, “Can we get some ice cream now?” he asked plainly, through a chilling tone of innocence.
“Are you all right Adrian?” James asked with concern, I must have looked as pale as I felt.
“Yeah, I’m fine... Your brother just spooked me a little.” Austin tossed his brother’s shirt back to James, and then skipped merrily ahead of us.
“Are you sure? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” James asked again in scepticism.
“You have no idea.” I replied sarcastically, “So - we going for ice cream?”
“Ha-ha, well I guess... I’m sure we’ve done weirder things. Might as well act normal for a while.” said James as he awkwardly slid into his damp shirt.
As much as we had tried we just couldn’t enjoy our time at the ice cream parlour. It seemed too artificial; like we were attempting to dismiss everything that had been happening. It’s too bad life isn’t as simple as it was when we were Austin’s age. Ice cream could have cured everything back then.
Austin was humming in delight as he devoured his double scoop, chocolate dipped, cookie-dough ice cream on a wafer cone. He spun on the stool where he sat, round and round, causing his happy noises to become distorted through fluctuation. Even on the strangest, most stressful or bizarre of days, this would have still come across to anyone as cute; of course, it was an eerie cute. One was never really sure how to react while knowing what we knew about this boy. Sure it appeared cute, but who was being cute? Which entity was in control? Was it one or all? Was it them or actually him? Confusion, the word just didn’t seem sufficient.
“All right, let’s get back to the house.” suggested James, looking over at me as I fluttered passed him from miles away, “Adrian? You with us?”
Shaking my head subtly, “Yeah, sorry... just a bit distracted I guess.”
“You’re not hiding anything from me are you?” asked James with a slight tone of hurt in his voice.
“No... Well, no it’s fine.” I replied in hopes to comfort him in his worry, probably failing.
“At least say it like you mean it.” said James behind a forced smile.
“Are we leaving?” I said as a reminder, and hoping to change the subject.
“Yeah, we’re leaving. Come on Austin, let’s go home.”
Austin didn’t pout or plead. Instead he just smiled and hopped off of his stool. Licking at the remaining portion of his ice cream, he followed quietly in behind James as we left the parlour and made our way back towards their home.
I wasn’t exactly sure what had set it off, but all of a sudden my spidey-senses must have been tingling or something. Everything seemed off. I wasn’t exactly sure what it was, the sky was normal, the trees were normal, we were normal. Maybe it was the silence, but that wasn’t exactly out of the ordinary for this tiny little town. The air seemed stale and unmoving, the leaves on the trees looked like they had all frozen in time, and not even a branch would sway from its position. I looked towards James, he seemed unaffected by the absence of... well, everything. Of course, Austin... wait, where was Austin? “James? Where’d your brother go?”
“Huh?”
“Austin, he’s not here.” James stopped in his tracks, and surveyed his surroundings carefully.
“AUSTIN!” he screamed, “GET BACK HERE NOW!”
“Dude, something’s not right... what’s going on?” I asked somewhat rhetorically.
“How the fuck should I know!” snapped James in an obvious state of worry.
~Adrian~ James froze, and looked back at me.
~Adrian~
“Dude, did you hear that?” whispered James.
“Yeah... you can hear it too?”
“Yeah.”
~Adrian, this way Adrian~ the moment the words stopped a gentle breeze brushed against the backs of our necks. Scattered leaves and twigs slid across the street towards an opening in the trees.
“Don’t go.” demanded James with a panicked tone of voice.
“Dude, I gotta... Remember? Get things done – right?”
“Well... shit, I’m coming with you.”
~ADRIAN~ the voice’s urgency increased with the wind. James was first to run towards the gesture.
“James! Stop!” my scream filled of anxiety, “Wait.”
James took my hand as we slowly tip-toed our way towards the summoning voice. The trees sheltered us from the days light. With every step our surroundings became darker and less inviting.
~Adrian~
“All right, we’re here... what do you want?” I demanded sternly, as I examined the surrounding trees for any evidence of another presence.
“You were supposed to be alone.” said a familiar voice as the form of a man emerged from the trees.
“Deal with it.” snapped James.
“James?” I whispered, “Careful... he could be dangerous.”
“Who cares, I’m not leaving you, not with him.”
“So you do remember Me.” said the man, “Do I detect a grudge?” he asked sarcastically.
“Wait... you’re from the sanctuary.” I realized, apparently out loud...
“I don’t have long, I’ve already been discovered. Listen carefully and nothing else! The change begins tonight, everything you know or think you know is no more. Rely only on your instincts. Follow what your heart says. I know you’ve had interference from the other side, and I know you don’t think you can trust me... Which is why I’m not asking for your trust. You James, whatever you do, do NOT leave Adrian’s side, not until this is over, not under any circumstances. If you want to get through this, you need your love for each other to guide you. Adrian, I know you’ve been told not to allow James to change, but, it might be necessary. Dangerous yes, but I see no other way of defeating what you’ll be up against... Just stay close, and act as one – just as you already are.”
“You’re not making any sense.” I said in almost a pout.
“I said listen!!” shrieked the man “This is not a game, there aren’t any rules. Those twins, they may appear to be dangerous... don’t destroy them, you will need them... The demon child, keep him close as well, he is the key.”
“Austin? Where is he? What have you done to my brother!?” screamed James nervously.
“I’ve done nothing. You will find him where you always find him, where his power is the strongest, at home. Adrian your basement holds a secret, it has appeared to you before; a spectre. For the key to work correctly you must bond the two together and bind the key with its tumbler. It will become clear once this is done.”
“Wait... That’s it? That’s all the answers? We’re supposed to be fine with this... just do as you ask?” I plead in unsatisfied confusion.
“Have you received better instruction? All you have is trust Adrian, go with your gut and follow your heart. In the end, that’s all anyone needs.”
“But...”
“They’re close, I must go... We won’t cross paths again Adrian, it has been an honour.” As his words ended his body became transparent, and his existence before us literally ceased. He was gone and we were again alone.
“You get all that James?”
“Oh yeah... I took notes and everything.”
“I guess we’re going to my house...” I said nervously.
“Yeah. Wait, we’re actually gonna listen to him?”
“Got any better ideas?”
“Guess not.” shrugged James, “All right, let’s go.”
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