It was midnight when I received the call. I couldn’t believe that anything could have been more precise than that moment but I was in for a little treat. Right on the dot, I couldn’t understand severity of the situation that was on the other side of the line because I was so intrigued by that simple concept. As I rolled out of bed I told the officer on the other end of the line that he had to slow down, he was talking faster than a mind that could consume mass fabrications of information.
‘Where is this at?’ I asked.
‘Off center and fourth, you really must hurry.’ And I did. If it wasn’t for the entire regions police force at the crime scene I would have received a speeding ticket but I knew that this was big from the way that it sounded so I sped away. ‘Everything was so confusing.’ The officer said on the other line. ‘Like this was the work of a brilliant mind, someone who knew what he was doing. He had to know the victim personally from what the evidence could provide.’ I had my own individual theories.
There has been a string of murders that have been happening in cities outside of our own, major populated cities but never in the same county. I guess that is what kept his tracks all neat and tidy that is if it was the same person, all for the name of a cult who sacrifices upon the heads of many. The counties don’t speak about cases to one another so what is new for one county is a mystery in another, I knew this, they did not. It was a month into Fall, leaves crunched under my feet from the full grown trees that lined the streets all across town.
By the time I crossed the police line I could see a thin dripping blood trail on the sidewalk and leaves as I was heading to the house. Gradually, it went from a slight drizzle to heaping handfuls that trailed on and off the sidewalk occasionally going into the gutter that separated the concrete from the street. He wasn’t walking steady, even someone stupid could figure that out but then it led to the stairway.
Police stood just outside the building right before the stairs. I looked at the stairs themselves and they were covered in blood and little pieces of metal. The blood spill covered each and every step that led up to the doorway and even on the door there was blood but it was more placed than spilled, I could tell this because it was in the form of writing on the door. One word over each other creating six lines spreading from the top of the door to the very bottom. Six simple words to create a very unique phrase yet confusing at the same time. I thought to myself as a few detectives that were talking a few feet away from me started to walk towards me while carrying on their conversation. What did this phrase even mean? As the detectives got in reasonable speaking distance I looked towards them.
‘So where’s the body?’ I asked
‘That’s a good question’ responded one detective.
‘The best bet is inside but we haven’t even dared to take foot on the steps yet.’ Responded the other.
‘And why is that?’ The two officers looked at each other and one kicked his feet into the ground as the other spoke up.
‘I know this sounds very unprofessional but we have told everyone to wait for you.’ I hid a smile in the back of my mind and I thought to myself that it was a very wise move for them to do that. More police tape crossed the walkway to the first step up to the house; I walked under it and kept my head down as I crouched in front of the first step. The little pieces of metal that I originally saw in the midst of the blood looked shinier from up close. Whatever form they had before was now destroyed because it looked as if it was squished together but with closer examination I thought that they might just be in their original form but it wasn’t metal.
From the shine that glowed off of the pieces I could see that it wasn’t metal but silver. Each piece had a distinct similar shape that looked like they laced in with another piece, a puzzle, as you will. I motioned to one of the forensics experts and told him to pick up all the tiny pieces that he could find and I walked away as he started. I walked back up to the two detectives and waited for their conversation to end before I interrupted.
‘Has anyone walked on these steps before you closed it off?’ They looked at each other again as if they were conjoined twins waiting for approval from another.
‘Maybe.’ Said one.
‘There’s no telling if someone has but no one will now. Everything is locked down and were just a few minutes away to see what’s inside.’ The forensics expert walked past me showing a little baggy of little pieces of silver and a puddle of blood. I looked back to the detectives and they reached towards their belts as they walked towards the steps and motioned to other police officers to follow them. I took a few steps back and watched as everyone gathered around the steps and the detectives started to debrief them. I looked down to my watch and noticed that it was ten till one as I rubbed my eyes and wished I went to bed sooner.
I took my position on the nearby park bench that was just across the road from the apartment and relaxed. The city smog filled my nostrils and as I breathed in to realize that everything was moving in slow motion. Police officers rushed up the steps to the front door and kicked it in. As everyone rushed inside I looked around me to see falling leaves from the tree branches above me falling into my lap. Then neighbors’ trying to get a glimpse of what was happening from past the police line. Someone was swinging in a swing behind me, chains rattled and squeaked with every moment. Birds flew across the sky migrating to somewhere warmer and before I knew it I heard someone yelling my name.
‘Get over here!’ Yelled one of the detectives from inside of the house. ‘You need to see this!’
___________________________________________________________
As I took my first step inside a deep smell of dampness filled my nostrils. It was more humid inside the house than it was outside and it was even raining. The house looked fairly normal aside from all of the buckets of blood that was splashed on the walls, ceiling and floor. The forensics team already entered and as I turned a corner I thought there was a flash mob of cameras as if my name was irrefutable.
The whole house was one big serial number for evidence. I wouldn’t really be sure if anything here would not be considered evidence as the solid fact is that whoever was here left his mark on everything. It only took a mere few seconds later until I heard a ‘freeze!’ in the distance. I rushed towards where the noise originated and it first took me through the living room, then the dining room and then a kitchen. Every room of which was covered in blood and flesh and symbols that lined the walls and floors. Parts of body parts hung from barbed wire that was placed within the ceiling of a small hallway, I ducked underneath them to reach another living room in which where the noise came from.
Several SWAT officers stood a few feet away from a young man, pointing there guns at every limb of his body yelling various profanities to inflict damage on his own self esteem but he just sat there in his knees, praying. Praying with his hands clasped together wishing for some big outsider to whisk him away from all this madness and carnage—how sad. He sat in the middle of a circle of blood that was now staining the hardwood floor that we all stood on. Circle upon circle traced around him with strange pictures and text; I’ve seen this before but never while it was still on motion. I’ve always been a few days behind this cult but now, now everything has changed. It’s as if I am now walking side by side by the messengers who offer riddles and puzzles and death.
From the shape of the person’s body I could tell that it was a young man. Button down plaid shirt, jeans but shoes less as well. On his face, however, was a plain white mask of an ordinary face that you see on masquerade masks. He had a shaved head and earrings from what I could tell but something was off, he didn’t move. An officer took a few steps closer to him and as he reached towards him, a handgun was taken from the holster and hid it behind his back.
‘Give me your hand sir.’ the officer said to the man.’ We will make it easy on you if you’re easy on us.’ The man kept his hands clasped together but moved them so the officer could reach. The officer reached for his hand and pulled him to the ground forcing his two arms apart, which sprayed blood everywhere.
‘Damnit Mathison! We needed him alive!’ Yelled one officer. I began to push myself between the officers that were toward the man and rushed to be directly by his side. He was shaking for a few seconds but by the time I felt for a pulse on his neck none could be found—great. I carefully reached towards his face and took off the white mask he was wearing. Porcelain, the mask was heavy as I prepared to take it off. A red ribbon traced in little slots in the corner of the mask and a tie laid behind his head. I felt some wetness on my arms and as I looked down I noticed what was his cause of death.
Steel wire was traced in the long sleeve arms of the shirt and underneath the skin of his wrists. When his arm was in the grasp of the officer, he dragged him down to the ground which caused enough tension underneath his arms which ripped out the steel wire in the mans wrists. Upon a closer look the steel wire was carefully sewn beneath his veins so they were ripped out causing death rather quickly. This was on both arms from his wrists all the way down to his elbows. I looked at his hands for a moment longer and I noticed something rather peculiar. His hands were small along with his fingers almost like a woman’s. Then I put everything together. I quickly took off the man’s mask and to my surprise, it was a woman.
I heard a lot of murmuring behind me as I examined the face. Duck tape covered her mouth from saying anything and dried tears poured down her face. She was crying for help not whispering her prayers. There were reports of a woman screaming in the house along with that same woman screaming out in the streets for a minute or two before she was taken back into the house.
‘This must be Elizabeth Mahoney.’ Said an officer behind me.
‘She was the one who called the police.’ Said a detective that walked in seconds after she died. ‘She said a man abducted her son, two daughters and her husband. Said she was hiding in a closet and the abductor left the house but that didn’t seem the case from what the neighbors said. A tall man with a white mask, that white mask. She would be the only one to see her face and she’s dead right?’ I turned around to nod to the detective. ‘Right. With the help of our mutual friend here we will get even closer to who is doing this, with the cooperation of the other counties. Thank you for finding the patterns.’ I nodded again and stood up to look down to the body.
‘What we are looking at is a different case from your normal serial killers.’ I cleared my throat and continued. ‘Whoever has done this, he has a ritual through all his kills but he ran out of time on this one. He knew Elizabeth was here because he took the rest of the family out of the house, like all the other scenes but this one was different because she was able to call the police and yell for help. It was something that turned this easy kill into one big mistake and that’s why he left her alive. He wasn’t going to have any enjoyment out of it so he left it for us but it is not certain if he knew that she would die which would make me believe that he should still be close.’
‘I talked to one of the neighbors and she said that two men arrived and only one left with the family.’ Said an officer in the crowd. This put everyone on their toes and I saw several others scanning the room.
‘You checked all the rooms correct?’ I asked. The detective straightened out his back and walked towards me.
‘All but the attic. This house has one but we can’t find the entrance anywhere.’ Just then, all of the officer’s radios went off and the dispatch on the other end began to talk.
‘Reporting to all officers. A man with blood on his hands has been spotted in a nearby park.’ I thought to myself if that was the person who was behind me, the one in complete darkness. All the police officials rushed out of the house and I followed immediately after them. As soon as I stepped outside a rush of people surrounded the swings in the park and from my position I could see him lighted up from the police helicopter and car lights—he was covered in blood and so was the sand beneath his feet. He was melancholy but not suicidal he looked up to everyone around him.
I rushed further up towards him onto the park bench that I was sitting on from before. As I positioned my feet so I could see over the surrounding officers I noticed a piece of paper. I looked back up to see the man talking and several people looked back to me and motioned me to head over. I jumped down from the bench and hurried towards him as I heard a few officers saying that he asked to see me, and then calling me by name. I walked past the crowd to see the young man on a swing with a knife in his hand pointed at his neck.
‘I’m a big fan of your work you know. I’m surprised to see that you are treating me like this, like a monster. I’ve done nothing wrong.’
‘This is the first lead you gave us. Why are you doing this mister…?’
‘Cheeky. You’re cheeky thinking that I actually led you to something. That’s really cute. You know, I just wanted to give you some insight, an understanding if you will. Understanding for all the chaos but you will see that my chaos is peace. To every road there is an end and one cannot be an individual thing in this end. The end is futile and will come with or without me.’
‘But what should I call you?’ I asked again.
‘Why can you not understand what life can be? I find this thing I have given to you very accepting.’
‘Yes I do but I just wanted to know your name, can you tell me that?’ He smiled to reveal his small teeth that were covered in blood.
‘Understanding I only want you to understand. To no longer be immune to what you want to see.’ I scratched my head in confusion to what he was saying then responded.
‘You want me to call you understanding?’ He smiled again to show off his crooked grin.
‘That will do for now. He dropped his knife into the sand and kept a gaze right into my eyes as police officers pulled him to the ground and cuffed him. I hurried back to the bench to see the piece of paper now on the ground. On the outside it addressed my name and on the inside was several different words varying by length and meaning. None of the words from that moment correlated to another but certain words in the mess stood out to me.
Suspension and triangle, sow and knife, eye and mask. These were some of the words that stood out in my mind though their meaning meant no significance for me. I sat back down on the bench confused to what everything means but why me in particular? I’ve felt the thrill of the chase and just now I was finally getting somewhere. It’s been years since the first one of these scenes were discovered and although this man in particular was caught, I doubted that it was over.
Understanding. That’s what he wanted to be called. It somewhat makes sense if you really think about it. He’s a serial killer and the one thing we don’t understand is serial killers; why they do what they do, what controls them, how they feel in the grand scheme of things—I know I do. I examined the rest of the house after the police officials took the man away and everything grew more complicated in my mind. Various numbers littered the walls and various phrases such as ‘Light is not eternal’, ‘Follow the mask of death’ and an even stranger ‘She is proud’.
‘Give me a copy of every photograph you take.’ I said to one of the forensics team. ‘And make sure I get a chance to see that silver when you are done examining it.’ He nodded as I walked away. There were no marks on the body of the woman till we got here so where did all the blood come from? And whose body parts are hanging from the ceiling? Most importantly was where is the missing family?
At every crime scene so far the family has gone missing and one member was left behind being offered as a sacrifice. The blood fills in all the crevices of shapes and symbols that were carved around the left behind victim. None of the other families have been found, which makes this the fourth missing. No silver pieces were left behind in any other scene and evidence of a murder only stood on the fact that the helpless individual was dead. No trace of anyone has been left but now—as I looked straight into the face of evil and what it brought to the worked upon the blood stained walls—I feel that I have just found them.
___________________________________________________________
I couldn’t sleep when I got home later that night so I reviewed over the evidence that was found in the previous crime scenes till the sun came up. Soon as it turned to be a reasonable hour I received a call that the blood on Understanding was his own. Understanding cut himself wide open and bled all over himself yet, there were no large cuts over his body. His fingerprints were taken off by lye and he had no dental records that could be found anywhere—his identity will remain unknown. Nothing of Understanding could be linked to the crime scene yet there he was. I was told that he was to be sent to a mental ward because of his suicidal idealation but other than that; nothing else could have been done.
‘So you’re telling me that he is going to be free? We know he did it why can’t anyone else see that?’
‘He’s not going to be free.’ Said the Sergeant on the other line. ‘He will be in a mental ward for a minimum of four weeks only if he shows sign of improvement and I doubt that he will. Take that time to review over what you have and tell me immediately if you find any leads. He’s at the station right now being seen by a clinical psychologist, he’s asking for you again.’
‘All right. I’m on my way.’ I hung up and put on the coat that was sitting on the chair I was sitting on my back. I made few movements when I was here from last night and I made fewer as I left.
___________________________________________________________
‘There are so many things I want to tell you. I know you’ve been aching to know. How we run. Where we settle. What we worship. I know you have figured out some but you are yet to see the practice, I should show you sometime when we get out of here.’ I looked through the window to see several police officials scratching their heads on what they could turn into evidence but they jumped head first into deep waters, they couldn’t make heads or tales out of it. ‘I want to tell you more, but too many people are watching.’ I looked behind me again to shrug at the officials outside and they motioned for me to talk to them.
‘Ill be back.’ I pushed myself away from the table that was between us and walked outside to see the sergeant talking to several other higher up officials talking in a corner.
‘Get him to say as much as you can for the sake of the investigation but as soon as he’s released from our custody I guess your research can come first. I doubt he will say anything to link him with the case but it’s worth a shot. The attorneys are saying that finding him in the playground was made to look like a suicide that began to happen conveniently before police arrived on scene. Nobody saw him enter or leave the house, it’s almost as if he really is innocent. The only thing that can remotely tie him in is that he knows of you and this cult you’re investigating and that’s it. Yes the scene appears to be a cult killing but it’s all based on one man. You. I’m sorry. I think you are a very valuable source but no one else will think that way to turn the tides.’
I knew of the situation and how it was all jumbled in some big mess so I nodded in return but a little feeling inside of me wished that he would get away just so I could follow this to the end but who knew of the grave consequences that could follow. I walked back into the room where Understanding sat and as I sat down he leaned in towards me.
‘So have you read my letter?’
‘I have.’ I said. ‘But I don’t understand it, what is it supposed to mean?’ Understanding leaned back into his seat.
‘Oh no no no no no. That is for you to find out and me to wait for. I’m a very patient man you see and there is so much for you to learn.’
‘Please tell me.’ I said
‘Once when I was young, my father took me to a Broadway show. It was a play of a man who was coming of age and the trials he had to face before he could turn into a man. Much like myself at the time I was at my point in life that I wanted to understand what life was about.
‘I want to become a man’ I asked him.
‘In order to do that you need to understand the importance’s of mortality and realize that becoming a man only gets you even closer to death’.’ He told me.
‘What must I do?’ So after the show was over he was able to get me into the personal dressing room of the main coming of age character and he asked him from his own personal experience how did he know when he was ready to grow up? The young actor chuckled at my father saying that he was just acting and that this play took no involvement into his personal life. So my father hit him. When the young man came back to, he was now in an unfamiliar environment than what he was in previously. See, my father has this kill room in the basement of the house he raised me in and here was where he gutted the animals he killed from a previous hunt. He tied the poor man to a chair constricting his arms and legs to such a point that they were being constricted by the ropes around him.
My father told me that I was to watch this man for an entire afternoon and listen to what he wanted to say and report to him by the time supper was ready but I was to never be within two feet of him. Later that day I told my father about how the young man was trying to weasel his way out of the situation and tried to reason with me to let him go even though I had no power or authority to release him. My father didn’t like this one bit so he gave the man back one if his hands so he could cut off one of his fingers. So once this previously numb hand had a moment to feel again it felt the most of two worlds the sweet and the sour. Bliss and pain. You can’t be enlightened unless if you find yourself at a standpoint. This is what my father taught me. Once I felt that I was stuck in one spot, like standing still in a grassy field, I then could move forward and move on.
He then told me that I was to cut off one finger every hour till the young man realized that he was not going anywhere. One hour passed, one finger was taken, and then another, then another till he had one finger left. The young man was now in a depression, he could not take one more second of it so he did nothing. The only thing that passed his lips were shallow breaths of dread and disgust for the next hour. We were now at a stand still.
‘I’m glad that you finally realized that you aren’t getting out of this.’ My father told the young man. ‘But because you now understand, it doesn’t mean that this is over, it just means we can move on. He lost his hand with his last finger next and that brought out a new uproar out of the young man so he lost the other and he continued to yell and scream till he lost consciousness and eventually died. My father finally told me that if I wanted to move on to a new phase then I would have to leave something behind and that’s what we all have to do if we want to change our habits or our everyday lives. Something needs to change and it has to leave us forever if we want to continue to move forward.
So what I am now telling you is that if you want to learn something new about things that were previously hidden to you, then you have to leave everything you once believed behind you. Up can be down and white is now black. If you really want to know then you have to give up everything you have. Then when everything is up for grabs, that is when you can move on and only then will everything change.’ I was speechless after he told his story yet it made sense in my head. I had to prepare myself to listen to other people’s beliefs and maybe just as everything is said and done I will no longer believe anything that was once known.
___________________________________________________________
It took roughly a fortnight before all the press released all the information about what happened that night. It took a week just for them to obtain enough information on the details of the incident. ‘Cult Killings’ were released as every headline that you could find, it even made national news because to even my surprise, it was bigger than just a few counties. It was a shocker that no one picked up on these killings any sooner but when most of the killings were put together I found that there were at least one hundred other cases that were all across the fifty states. I received many phone calls due to my expertise on the subject and they continually asked me what happened but the government wasn’t in on it so there were no plans to cover it up. ‘Read the newspaper.’ I say. ‘I also have a book published on the very subject.’
Soon as the press blowed over me, a new report was released that the suspected killer was still alive and in fact he was. He was sitting in a padded room with his own name on it within the mental health institution that was attached to the hospital. Everybody wanted a piece of Understanding; how did you do it, what was going through your head? Anything to get him to tell his story but he never talked to a single soul. At some points people thought that he was unable to speak till he mentioned the numbers.
To every single syllable pronounced with the slightest of tongue it was the same every time, 7, 16, 6, 21, 14. He made the words sound almost violently to the ears but every syllable was articulate. After a few months of silence since he last talked to me, everything died down and that’s when he made his call. When the caller ID said the local mental institution was calling I wasn’t sure if it was going to be a good idea for me to answer but only time could tell. He asked for me to see him on a cold December’s day, an early frost bitten morning.
I knew it was going to be a bad day but something compelled me, something that may have been not of this world. I felt the pull of Understandings wishes and I could only feel attracted to his charisma. Reading the reports of his first day at the institution, he made his presence clear. Whatever he did, they left it out of the public report but an officer of the law and two employees ended up in the hospital that very day. His way of letting all the other individuals who lived there that he meant business.
___________________________________________________________
‘You should see his cell sir; it’s nothing but all those numbers and symbols carved in whatever he can sneak inside with him, sometimes, it’s even his own blood. The lead psychologist says that he is to remain under constant supervision of unbelievable proportions; he’s defiantly using the taxpayer’s dollars efficiently. Whoever this man is, he is well educated and he is very familiar with the system.’ Said the orderly that was leading me. He stopped just inches away from the doorstep of the conference hall. He looked over his shoulder to see Understanding sitting alone at one of the tables and he leaned in to me.
‘If I were you I would keep my meetings with him very short. He has a way of getting into your head its scary. His last two roommates committed suicide this past month and they were fine people. They had no suicidal ideolology till he came around. There’s no evidence to prove anything but I know for a fact that he has something to do with it. He now has a room to himself; we can’t afford any more casualties’
‘I understand where your coming from. I guess I’ll see what he wants and hopefully it will put this to rest.’
‘I’ll be out here if you need anything.’ I nodded to the orderly and he nodded back as I passed him to get inside the conference room. Understanding looked up from where he was and gave a big smile to me. He tried to get up but shackles that were on his waist prevented him from getting up. He reached out to shake hands with me but all I could pay attention to was the rattling from the chains connecting his wrists—he is chained up for my safety, lets not ruin that.
‘I’ve been waiting for you. I couldn’t help but feel anxious with your arrival. Have you figured anything out?’ I sat down in front of him and situated several papers and photographs between him and me. ‘This doesn’t have to be anything like an interrogation. I’m willing to tell you everything as long as you are hot for the chase.’
‘Ceremony.’ I said out loud.
‘What?’ He replied.
‘Ceremony is the first word when reading left to right downwards. The entire manuscript is whitened out other than various key words. Since ‘ceremony’ is the first word and the only word that has to deal with an action in conjunction to a place then this piece of paper has to deal with how you conduct your ceremony before you killed your victims. You would have known that I have a larger perspective on what goes on in your cult than anybody else so by leaving that word only I would know what the other words meant.’
‘I’m impressed. You’re completely correct that these words are the main details to a ceremony but not the ceremony you are looking for. You think all of our sacrifices are the same but that’s not true. Some are sacrifices as others are offerings and some, some are for our own personal gain.’
‘Personal gain?’ I asked.
‘There is so much you don’t know about what we do and why we do it, let me show you.’ He looked through several of the photographs and situated them in chronological order putting the first known case to his far right. ‘This one was an offering to our deity as you look that he was found crouching in a middle of a square in the center of a circle containing symbols around the individual. The writing is done in charcoal and brick dust leaving it to be a nonpermanent location.’
‘It’s a victim. The person you killed was a victim.’ I corrected him. Understanding laughed to himself aloud and pointed to a picture showing the man in the square.
‘Are the man’s hands bound together? No. If he was not bound then why did he allow himself to be killed in the name of our god? He was one of our own and he sacrificed himself for the good of the Morte. I looked at the photograph closer examining what was left of the man’s neck that was holding his head on his shoulders.
‘How could someone want this?’ I asked.
‘Our members are loyal and though we may be few in numbers it doesn’t mean we don’t have faith. There is a special place reserved for him especially.’
‘What of his family?’ I asked. ‘He had three kids and a wife.’ He pointed to the last photograph from the most recent crime.
‘Dead regretfully but only the mother and their oldest son. The rest are in a safe place out of sight, out of mind.’
‘And what are you going to do to them?’ I asked again.
‘Nothing bad. It’s not like we’re out to kill everyone, just the ones who offer themselves and the ones who get in the way.’
‘What about this one?’ I pushed the most recent photograph towards him and he chuckled as he looked at it.
‘Not so fast.’ He pushed it back to its appropriate location to his far left and pointed to the next one chronologically. ‘This one was a sacrifice. Blood was demanded on the head of the family due to inappropriate actions and the remaining members of the family—like the other one—were to be dismembered into sixteen equal parts individually to decorate the final offering. This also was the same fate as your fourth case as well. You can call these people victims, I grant you that. They were not willing to be part of the ceremony so there bodies were suspended around the final offering.’ He pointed to all of the photographs from the last crime scene with all the body parts dangling with barbed wire.
‘If your organization is so secret then why are you telling me Understanding?’
‘I respect you. Trust me everything here is by the guide of The Elders. I’m not going behind their back, they need me.’
‘How so?’ I asked.
‘I’ve been chosen directly from our god as a speaker from The Dawn. Without me there would be no prophesy and there would be no second coming.’
‘Second coming?’ I was confused. A second coming means that they were here before, how could that be possible?
‘It’s exactly as it sounds. They have been here before. One by body and the other by spirit and together they will bring the end of days and I alone will bring them home.’ I sat back in my chair while reaching for a handkerchief in my pocket. I broke out in sweat when he first described what he did to few of the families but when he mentioned a second coming I could only feel a need to fight for salvation.
‘Why do you want the world to end?’ I asked. Understanding shook his head back and forth to look back at me.
‘No no no. The end of days isn’t the end of the world. It’s the end to the order and function that you live in from day to day. Your life isn’t going to be easy and happy any longer unless if you join us in the end. We are beacons to the new world telling everyone to come home; it is safe here. You can’t be serious thinking that all of these wars and disasters have nothing in common with each other. It’s the worlds way of saying that its ready for its creator to come back where it belongs.’
‘When will all this happen?’ I asked.
‘Very soon; when you least expect it.’
‘So tell me. What was this last ceremony, is it the one that is within this manuscript?’
‘Yes and no.’ He explained further. ‘Yes because the ceremony you saw is apart of the final ceremony but no because that manuscript is details to not just one event.’ I looked down to the piece of paper to see a thin line that nearly separated the paper in two halves. Words like suspension, wire, metal, mask, limbs, painting and mirror was on the upper half as eye, chorus, sepulture, box, blood, triangle and end were on the lower half.
‘I never saw a mirror or a painting anywhere at the last ceremony. Why are these words on the first half?’
‘You didn’t look hard enough then because they are there.’ I got up out of my chair and started to walk out the door in search for the nearest pay phone but none were found in the building I was in. I headed to the front office of admissions that was across the main courtyard to see if they had a phone there and they had the only one in the building. I called the police station and asked for the lead detective on the case.
‘Were there any paintings or mirrors found in the house?’ I asked. The detective on the other side took a long pause before answering.
‘Well. There was this oddest thing that we found concerning the mirrors. All of the mirrors that could be found within the house were smashed other than one large one on the second floor main hall but it wasn’t sitting on the wall. It was apparently installed into the wall and there was no taking the mirror off because we couldn’t get behind it. I have a feeling that something may be on the other side of that mirror but I have been too busy to look into it. It’s only a hunch though.’
‘And the painting?’ I asked.
‘There were no paintings found in the house unless if you count all the writing that was on the walls then there were plenty of paintings but if your looking for an actual painting then your out of luck. Why? You have a lead or something?’
‘I’ve been talking to Understanding. He wanted to talk to me and he mentioned that a mirror and painting were used for their sacrifice.’
‘Then get back down to that building and check it out. I have the metal pieces here but I can’t seem to get them together. Something is missing; I’m ordering the forensics team to do another forensics sweep to see if we left a piece. I’ll meet you at the building.’ I hung up and returned to the room in which Understanding was sitting in by himself.
‘Sorry for the wait Understanding. Something came up and I have to go. I’ll talk to you again when I get the time.’
‘You never asked about what happened in this last crime scene.’ As he held up the photograph of the mutilated woman. I sat down again.
‘So enlighten me, what happened?’ Understanding smiled again and sat the photo down.
‘But first I need to tell you a story.’ Understanding resituated himself in his chair. ‘When I was younger I got friendly with a strange man. He always rested himself underneath a bridge that was a few blocks away from my house. Little by each visit I got to know him much more. His name was Emery and I remembered seeing his picture in the newspaper year’s prior. He was one of the first known cases of a mental disorder that was unnamed at the time but it dealt with a conjunction of many other disorders. Vivid hallucinations, bipolar, major depression, paranoia, loss of reality and the most peculiar of all that strung everything together a belief that we do not exist contradicting every single thing we do on a daily basis. Emery, this poor soul, believed that he was receiving messages from the unknown telling him of this story about a series of mirrors in association to a place and how each one got you closer to a parallel realm to of which grew increasingly unreal and sadistic as he told me where they were. Then one day, I never saw him again. He just disappeared off into the wind but he left me a note, it read. ‘I am not crazy, there are more who believe. 7, 16, 6, 21, 14.’ I never believed him till the Coram Morte found me, and then everything got so real. He found what he was looking for and the people have awaited his return till now. With all the blood and sacrifice we can turn the spirit into an actual being and that’s what we are preparing to do. These messages we’re receiving are from our god he is with it! This so called heaven isn’t a place we go where we die but a place where our thoughts take actual form. Elizabeth said she had this vision with us but she was only lying to see inside what we do to expose us to the press more than what everyone from the news and you already know. There is still plenty you don’t know, let this be a first lesson. Fanatics they call us but everyone is dead wrong.’
‘So you are the one who killed her?’ I asked.
‘Yes.’ He said. I looked down to my watch and noticed another hour passed.
‘This isn’t over. I’ll be back after I find something.’
‘You mean you want to find the painting? You’re right, this isn’t over but I can’t be one to say that when you get back ill still be here waiting for you.’ Understanding looked at me blankly with a big smile on his face.
‘Are you planning on getting out of here Understanding?’ I asked.
‘My purpose here is finished. Whether I get out today or a few years, I will get out. I would be careful in the world nowadays, there’s no saying when someone is just willing to slip a knife in your neck.’ Then smiled.
___________________________________________________________
‘You know, that young man is the root of all evil.’ The detective said as I met him near the front steps. ‘If you would give him the chance I’m pretty sure he would try to commit genocide or anything that could be worse, it’s just this feeling ya know?’ I nodded to him as we proceeded up the steps and cut the tape that was securing the door shut. Several other people were behind us ranging from forensics to miscellaneous police forces. ‘There you go.’ The detective motioned to me to make the first step in and as I did a big whiff of a rotting something blinded me for a few seconds.
The small phrase that was originally written on the door was wiped away with various cleaners. I really didn’t know what to expect but that was certainly something that I was expecting yet I didn’t acknowledge it till it was to late. ‘Smells like death.’ I said aloud as a man behind me yelled ‘Here here!’ I looked down to the others that were at the bottom of the steps and every single one of them had their noses covered with their hands, shirts and whatever else they could get their hands on.
I took my first step in flicking the light switch to see that the power was out—something else I was expecting but didn’t acknowledge. I motioned behind me for the detective to give me a flashlight and as soon as it was in my hands I continued forward. Blood still littered the walls and looking up to the ceiling I could see pieces of barbed wire but all of the body parts were taken down by the forensics team.
‘I don’t know why this place hasn’t been cleaned yet but thank god that no one has. It’s just our luck that someone has been sitting on this for a few weeks because if he hadn’t there would be no evidence to go back to.’ Said the detective behind me. I then entered the room in which Elizabeth Mahoney had died. I kept in mind of what Understanding had told me and as I examined the room I noticed that the symbols and how things were put together was just like the offering in which the man sacrificed himself willingly.
‘Elizabeth, the woman, she was tied up right?’ I asked.
‘Well it depends on how you look at it.’ The detective continued. ‘It appeared as if she was praying it was as soon as we moved her we noticed that she was tied up in a messed up sort of way.’
‘Could you say that she was doing this willingly?’
‘Excuse me? The woman was crying and it appeared to be a home invasion, there’s no way this was willing. She was screaming for help at one point, there’s no way she was in on this.’
‘I’m not so easily convinced.’ I said. ‘She would have gotten our attention if she was in trouble. Maybe she was willing to do this and then got cold feet?’
‘What about the family that was kidnapped?’
‘The cult is holding them somewhere. They would have to have a place to hold all of the other families that were taken.’ I turned around to look at the drawings in blood that were on the wall. ‘Look. That drawing right there, does it look like a building?’
‘More like a church.’ Said the detective.
‘Yes! That makes sense. They are a religion. They need to congregate somewhere. But, that building doesn’t look familiar.’ I stood in confusion looking at the drawing for a few minutes. ‘But this can’t be the picture Understanding was talking about, we need to find that room to the attic.’ I began to head upstairs as the detective followed me.
‘What are you hoping to find?’ The detective asked.
‘A room.’ I responded ‘A room that will solve all the riddles. Something that will make me…understand.’ The detective chuckled for a bit.
‘You’re starting to sound like him you know? Better be careful before you turn into one of them.’
‘I won’t.’ The stairs were stained with blood as if a waterfall of the stuff was flowing down the stairs. When I reached the top the blood stopped at the last step almost too perfectly. It brought me flashbacks of when I first walked inside, the chaos that took place, the lives that were taken, that smile on his face. I knew that it was all over now but anxiety pulsed through my veins like something bad was going to happen and when I reached the top of the stairs I was out of breath and leaned up against the wall as I was bent over searching for air.
‘Are you alright?’ I looked back up to the detective and nodded.
‘I just need a second.’ The detective walked ahead of me further down the hallway until he reached the mirror.
‘There is defiantly something off with this mirror.’ Yelled the detective. It’s like I’m looking down a tunnel almost.’ I began to walk to him as he continued to talk. ‘Have you ever wondered what was on the other side of a mirror? Like a parallel dimension and everything on the other side is just mirroring exactly what we do just to protect us from knowing the truth. Like we aren’t really real and the ones on the other side is really the ones living, as we are just something else? It’s crazy when you think about it, like everything is just a sham and were just some practical joke.’
‘I think you are the one who is starting to sound crazy.’ I said.
‘I’ve read your book and there is some pretty convincing stuff in there. Like the one section about whom they worship and how the gods we talk about to this day are really just smaller parts to one big scheme. It’s crazy to think that people like Jesus Christ were really just one way to live while others choose Buddha or something else. Nothing is wrong. That’s the part that really stood out to me. Every religion is right because they are all connected to a higher one. God is God. Whoever it is, it can do anything it wants and who says it has to be one way? God doesn’t have to live like that because God is limitless. If you want to be reincarnated then go for it! Choose that way! It makes all the similarities in every religion make sense doesn’t it? How can there not be one way with several ways to do it?’
‘From the way it sounds, you are more than just a reader?’
‘Semantics. But I think you are right. This cult is really something of the future, you believe it right?’ I thought to myself till I caught up with him.
‘I’m not exactly sure what I believe anymore. Yes, this is an eye opener but why does the core religion live so violently?’
‘We were created in his image as several people say. Who says that God isn’t violent or disturbing? Maybe it’s unsettling to us because its something our minds can’t understand? Maybe violence and blood and metal is God?’ I stood in astonishment till I looked at the mirror.
‘It really does look like your in a tunnel. Like the mirror is not really touching the front but a piece of glass is what were up against.’ I started to feel around the mirror as the detective walked away and came back with a statuette of some famous mans head. ‘What are you doing?’ The detective looked at the statuette in his hands till he began to act on impulse and threw it directly at the mirror, shattering everything in its path.
There was no tunnel on the other side but a staircase up to the attic. ‘Well there you go.’ I pushed some of the dangling pieces of the mirror off of the frame so I didn’t cut myself on the way in and I began to walk up the stairs as the fanatic detective followed as he picked the statuette up again. ‘You never know.’ He said.
As I reached the top I saw lit candles surrounding a large square room. Carvings were in the floor and a painting overlooked everything on the ceiling. It was a painting of a chapel but the focus was on the pulpit where a little box sat on it. Next to the box in circles around it were eyes contained in octagonal metal cages as mirrors surrounded the box.
‘Does that look familiar to you?’ I asked while pointing at the metal cages that carried the eyes.
‘Yes. I think we found our missing piece.’ As the detective was pointing at the table on the other side of the room. On the table were several pages of paper with random writing and drawing on them, a large leather bound book and metal wires that pointed up to a circle in which the eye sat on. The detective took out a little bag of metal pieces and silver that were found originally on the steps by the crime scene and have it to me. I poured the pieces on the table in front of me placing each of the metal pieces between the eight pieces of wire and they all clicked into place as the pieces of silver were shattered into tiny pieces that was the bottom of the object.
‘With everything set up here, I think that woman was in on this, how could she not know of this in her own attic?’
‘You’re right.’ Said the detective. ‘She was a member of The Coram Morte till she found out what was going to happen to her family.’
‘And what is that?’ I asked.
‘They were going to be sacrificed 7, 16, 6, 21, 14. Seven people to be sacrificed and cut into sixteen pieces individually. Six pairs of eyes. Twenty one curious souls and fourteen mirrors around it all. That is what is demanded.’ I turned around cautiously wondering how he knew of this while I was still in the dark. ‘Its called a Looking Glass. The thing that holds the eye in your hand.’ The detective said. As I turned around to see him with the statuette firmly griped into his hand. ‘We appreciate your struggle to find out about us but we can’t allow you to go any further. We have secrets and we like our secrets kept, nobody of a easy heart would want to join if they knew what dark things we do to conjure our god but after this, after you, everything will come forward and there would be no denying what we are. The one true religion. The bringer of the end of days.’
‘What are you going to do with me?’ I stuttered over my own words as I back up a few steps into the wall behind me.
‘Nothing for as long as you stop pursuing this religion we hold dear. We need someone to tell our story once everything is finished and you are the best man to do it. We have chosen you to be such a man for us but don’t let that fool you; we will kill you regardless of who you are to us. There are more of us than you think. We are around every corner. We are everything you see. We watch you when you sleep. Go home. This doesn’t concern you anymore.
___________________________________________________________
I never listen. Prudence Benedict’s Chapel, that’s where they congregated. I read in the newspaper a few days after my run in with Understanding. It read ‘Local Church Begins Fundraiser For Disabled Children’. The picture above the article with a man standing in front of the church is what got me going because it was the exact same building that was drawn in blood on the walls of Elizabeth Mahoney’s house to the fine detail and nobody picked up on it. It got me thinking that he wasn’t lying when he said they had people everywhere, the detective I mean. Someone else should have noticed it then again, maybe someone has and they just ended up in a body bag with everyone else that gets in The Morte’s way.
That weekend they were hosting the fundraiser, everybody who was in the cult might as well be showing up and as I arrived I realized that it was no small social event. It was spring now so there was a farmers market in one corner as a local band was in another. Arts and crafts, street performers and there was even a clown cheering up all the kids and this is what the world hides behind? I marveled at how high the church building stood as what appeared to be the minister of the church approached me.
‘I hear there’s a storm coming and a big one at that. Something about coastal winds and the hurricane hitting Florida, it would be a wise choice to stock up on canned foods for your family.’ I looked down from the church and to the minister. He reached out his arm towards mine. ‘Jethro is the name and you are?’
‘Keen. You’re really keen about this, you sure know how to wow a crowd.’
‘Well thank you.’ Jethro shook my hand and motioned for me to walk further into the crowd. ‘What brings you here on such a quiet day?’
‘I’m thinking about joining your little church here.’
‘Oh really?’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘And what made you decide that if I may ask?’
‘I’ve had a recent brush of death and it got me thinking that maybe there is something more to life then what I previously thought.’ I said.
‘Well there is plenty of room here at Prudence Benedict’s Chapel and our members are really friendly, I’m sure you will like it here.’
‘Well thank you, I’m sure this will be a perfect fit.’ Jethro caught eyes with another person and nodded to me as he walked away. Nobody looked familiar since I got here and even odder other than the minister nobody seemed to recognize my very existence. Chills went down my spine as I looked around and not a single eye looked in my direction, everyone had to know who I was. I started to ask around if anyone knew who Elizabeth Mahoney was but nobody acknowledged my question other than a slight glance towards me and I knew I wasn’t seeing things. Some people looked scared to the very thought of the name but nothing particular stood out to me till I received a call from the mental health institution.
‘Your patient escaped.’
‘My patient? I don’t even know the guy!’ I yelled.
‘We never caught his name, you were his only visitor, and so you are the first to know.’
‘And how did he get away if I may ask?’ I heard some mumbling on the other side of the line.
‘No more than a hour ago, he bit the ear off of a staff and locked him in his room as he escaped, would he have any idea where you are right now?’
‘No. And don’t worry about me; he wouldn’t do anything to me. He respected me.’
‘You be careful out there. Oh! He left several items here and he addressed them to you, you should stop by as soon as you are able.’
‘I’ll be there.’ I hung up the phone and began to walk back to my car but not till I thought that I caught a glimpse of Understanding in the crowd. One second it looked like he was starring at me and the other he just vanished. He’s getting inside my head.
_________________________________
‘What was the meaning of the phrase on the door? I noticed that you neglected to ask me this when you saw me but there’s no big worry. Maybe this could be the greatest mystery of them all and you forgot to ask, maybe you will never know what all of that meant. Oh well. When I was first asked that question years ago I always thought it was a word that sounds sharp or threatening but I was wrong. Then I thought it was something that crossed senses, a smell you can taste, a feeling that you can see and maybe I was on the right track but its you to figure that out now, good luck.’
That was the letter Understanding left for me in his cell along with a book about the Occult and several drawings of a hill, and a boat. The hill was a small grassy knoll that was on fire, you could see a silhouette of a tree in the background. As the boat was a large shipping freighter that was being tossed around in a big storm. Neither of these things made any sense to me but I’m sure it meant a lot in Understanding’s eyes.
I closed the bible that was on my lap that had Understanding’s letter as a bookmark. It was now Summer time and nothing has stood out to me at Prudence Benedict’s Chapel that was out of the ordinary. Maybe I was wrong? Maybe I was just paranoid? It’s always the moment that when you loose all your hope is the exact moment everything becomes clear.
‘Its finally happening?’ Said one man.
‘Yes.’ Said the other. ‘The same night as the full moon. It begins at midnight but most of the congregation won’t be there till a few hours later, you know how it is.’ I stood steadily around the corner reading the letter again as others passed.
‘I guess the sacrifice of Jethro’s wife and kids was worth it after all. It’s good to finally see him at peace, it’s been a long time.’
‘Only a few days longer. Then everything will be complete.’ The two people whispered to each other for a few more minutes then left. I looked down to my calendar to see that the next full moon was only a few days away; it was time to finish what was started.
___________________________________________________________
I camped outside an hour early and foot traffic was at a medium. I snuck inside the church when it was only a few minutes till everything started; luckily enough for me the last person to enter through the door left it unlocked. Even though what they were doing was dangerous to keep a door unlocked I also understood the secrecy that had taken place so I would understand that they weren’t on the highest of guard. I kept my distance from the people who were inside, as they were getting ready for their ceremony.
As several walked behind the front pulpit and down some stairs, others gathered in front of the pulpit looking through a large wooden box to put on white robes and white porcelain masks. Behind the podium sat several mirrors lying on the floor and as I looked up and around the walls I could see that thick curtains were over the windows and ribbons decorated the walls. When the coast was clear I rushed to the box myself and gathered myself a robe and mask. As long as the masks stayed on I would remain in the clear so I began to walk down the steps as everything lit up under candlelight.
I heard chanting in the basement as I was heading down the steps and what started to be several voices in a whisper turned to one voice that was addressing the crowd.
‘Good to see that the turnout is much more than we expected. I can only express my humble gratitude to everyone who showed up. We are very well deserving to have such devoted followers.’ It was Jethro who was speaking to the crowd. I walked into the room to see at least thirty people in front of the minister who was also wearing a mask. ‘Come in, come in!’ Jethro pointed to me. ‘Don’t be shy we thank you for showing up.’ He looked back down to the crowd and began talking again.
The basement looked as if any other church basement would. Several boxes titled with different holidays were on the walls around us. The floor and walls were made of concrete, as the ceiling was the same wooden floor that was upstairs. I tuned back to Jethro. ‘—And if there is anyone who is willing to leave right now, now is the time. We only need twenty one people but more is okay so if you are unsure about what you are about to do then please leave now.’ Two people bumped shoulders with me as they tried to get through the doorway as the rest stood their ground. ‘There is no shame in leaving. Some are not as ready as others but the ones who remain; you will be exalted forever. It is now time to turn our time over to our leader.’ Jethro took a few steps back as Understanding took his place in the room. He was wearing a black robe and no mask while carrying a tray in his hand.
‘Now those of you who are ready please take a drink and be seated as we say our parting words.’ People moved in a single file line to each take a drink as they sat in the seats around the room. I was the last to approach him and he looked deep into my eyes. ‘Thank you for showing, your patronage will not be forgotten.’ He couldn’t have known who I was but for some reason my heart dropped to the floor. I took my seat and took a sip.
It had the likeness of blood. The sour taste stung my tongue but I didn’t wanted to be known. If I was found out then I had to get out. This was just the beginning and if this was going to end then I had to be nowhere in sight. Suddenly everything began to slow down and Understanding started to talk again but I could only make out a few words of what he was saying. Everything around me turned fuzzy and I thought ‘could I have been drugged?’ It was stupid of me to take a drink at a cult meeting but as Understanding came up to me and looked directly into my eyes he said soft words to me.
‘Its not what you think. This isn’t going to kill you, it will only help you see.’ His smile grew across his face and everything grew inproportionate. The walls began to fall down and everything imploded around me. I looked back and forth to see the other members but everything got so dark I could only see the hands in front of me. I brought my hands up to my face and it appeared as if they were melting. I grew into a panic and tried to get up but I noticed I was chained to the chair. I began to scream but Understanding walked up to me and put his finger to my mouth. ‘Shhhh. It will all be over in a second.’ He brought up a giant needle to my face. ‘This. This is going to numb any pain you feel in the future, see you on the other side.’ Then stabbed it into my neck. I felt only a slight pinch and I focused on the needle but when I tried to come to, I only slipped away.
___________________________________________________________
I woke up to find myself tied down to a chair in a dark room. I tried to move myself around and I could feel the chair wobble back and forth on its four legs. My legs were tied to those legs and my arms were wrapped behind me. I attempted to speak but tape stuck to my tongue as my mouth opened an eighth of an inch. The air smelt like flowers, like I was in a big meadow but a draft came in from under me and I knew immediately that wherever I was, I was secluded. Away from anyone I have ever met and there was nothing I could do.
‘Do you feel that? That tingling down your spine? It’s wet and cold and its only looking for a home.’ It was Understanding whispering quietly into my left ear. He brushed his lips against my cheek as he turned to look behind him. I could tell his motions but I couldn’t see him I shook my head back and forth trying to see if I could see any light but darkness prevailed through the deep. I felt—from whom I am guessing—Understanding reach behind my head and then I felt it. He tightened whatever was over my eyes then patted the top of my head.
‘We will assemble together in the midst of this hallowed night prepared to garrote the fiends who oppose us.’ Several chants followed Understanding, as the distance grew farther between him and me. Speaking again in a louder tone. ‘We will welcome our succubi in our hearts as we suck from the marrow of our enemies. Incipe iuventus et sacrificium faceret.’ I heard movement around me as feet shuffled along with the chants.
‘We have all gathered here to bear witness to the new beginning.’ Another but lower voice spoke. ‘The Sow they call her The Wretched she calls you!’ Murmuring of several people began; they all sounded surprised in their speech. ‘But you are no more Wretched than the slime that grows inside of us. It keeps us warm and safe and you have assembled our home and I appreciate that but it is now time for the beginning of the end. To bring the harbinger back to his world so we can accept the skin of another.’
‘I appreciate your kindness Elder but it is not clear if The Sow will return here!’ Said a third man. ‘She has spoken to me to bring her son back from The Dawn but a new key has come into play. Something that can be even more effective than the return of The Sow. She tells me of unfinished business through The Dawn and there are many more acts till the end.’
‘The Overseer is correct.’ Said Understanding. ‘The Mother Sow is not finished with The Dawn and wishes to keep the void open. Someone has to take her place but it must be someone far more in tune with The Dawn. Someone raised under our care to claim the birthright!’ People cheered and chains rattled in the distance.
‘Quiet!’ Said The Overseer. ‘It’s said then. We must raise one as our own and when we are ready The Sow will return.’ People began to cheer again—it could have been hundreds. So many voices echoed through halls and reverberated into my ears.
‘It is time!’ Yelled another man.
‘You are in an dark alleyway, darkness creeps around the corner and kisses you on the neck.’ Sounded that Understanding was reading a passage.
‘You hear a man scream for help, you walk to him, he dies before your eyes, he is only mortal. He falls down to the ground with the scum of the ground!’ Chanting echoed behind him in Latin. From what I could make out, the speaker was telling a similar story in the other tongue.
‘The ground around his body turns into a meadow, you can see and smell everything Mother Nature has given us but it is only mortal. You set fire to the field and hang the man on the lone tree on the soft hill on the horizon. The sky consumes all light and everything turns into a shade of blue!’ People started screaming, as the chants were growing louder. I could tell Understanding was walking toward me because his voice turned to face me.
‘You are now on a boat. You see a man and a woman are getting tossed by the sea on a piece of driftwood and you let them stay on your boat but you find that they are only mortal like the scum on the ground! Cock the pistol; pull the trigger, catch and release! You shoot the woman first and approach the man! You need to devour his soul! You scream into his ear, 7, 16, 6, 21, 14, she would be proud! Fire! End the man’s story! Take his life. Lengthen yours! She is waiting for you! Black! Blue! Become salvation! Make, her, proud!’
It was as if the gates of hell opened. Sounds of ticking and rattling roared through the air as if some massive machine was around me as liquid started to form around my feet. Yelling and cursing came from every tongue in the room and it sounded as if they were surrounding me. I grew uneasy and started to rock the chair back and forth hoping something would break loose but it sounded as if the chair was bolted into the ground.
A loud screech of metal against metal and violent screams pierced through all the present sound and I felt liquid rush down my face. I quickly determined what the source of it was and it was from my nose and eyes. It drained down to my lips and when I was able to acquire the taste the smell of blood ran through the air and the taste was the same. I spit everything I could out of my mouth but it kept pouring more and more down my face as the liquid around my feet was now at my ankles.
A quick push from behind me released me from the chair and I fell head first into the liquid at my feet and it was the same of what was already in my mouth. I spit out everything that I could but before I made another move, all sound stopped. I scrambled to my feet brushing off my face to get anything wet off my face as I attempted to listen to anything happening but all I heard was flowing water. A slight crash rung out in the distance and I thought ‘The ocean?’ I never spent my time to listen to the waves before but I am now for an assurity that what I was hearing was the crashing waves by the coast. I began to take off the blindfold as I reached behind my head but I realized that it was already taken off.
I felt the gaping holes of where my eyes once were and they were gone. Darkness was all I could see and that’s how I’ll live the rest of my life. I tried to cry because of my newfound lack of sight but no tears were granted to my face. Thick blood rolled down my cheeks and I could only think that this was the end. I imagined what could be in front of me and I saw a red door at the end of the hall that I was in. I began to push forward but the currents grew and pushed me to and fro.
I don’t know why I imagined a door at the end if the hall if anything I was pushing myself further into the ocean but as I reached out to touch the doorknob I actually grasped one in front of me. I was hysterical for a moment, joy overcame my heart as if I could see regardless of my eyes but I had to pull myself together because I wasn’t out of anything just yet. I began to turn the handle as the waves started to push behind me so I propped myself up with the doorway. From the second I began to crack the door I saw a bright light on the other side but the waves pushed me forward into the room as the door swung open violently.
It was actuality. I knew there was light in front of me. It was a room that seemed to be brighter than the sun but I knew for a fact that it was bright in this room. I could feel it through my bones and it appeared like it in my imagination till I then put my hands in front of my eyes and there they were? I felt my face again and my eyes returned! I looked down to my clothes and I was in bright white linens as if I was born again then two men appeared before me. I was overcome with joy in my heart and I thought was I in heaven? Before I was able to say anything their faces began to clear up and there was a woman behind them.
She smiled toward me and then her eyes. They were fixed on my body and it felt like I was being stabbed repeatedly. I fell down to my knees in anguish as she watched my every movement and that gaze! It brought back that screeching of metal and man. A tone so much sharper than any sound imaginable and then I knew it. I was not dead but somewhere else but when everything is said and done I would rather scratch out my own eyes and listen to that ear searing screech for the rest of my life than to see that gaze again because of that, that gaze may just be sharper than any sound imaginable.
