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Chapter Nineteen
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GRAY.
The moment her eyes closed, and the part of her that was seer took over, and she could only see with her soul—-
GRAY.
It filled her vision, and nothing else she could see except...
GRAY.
So many dreadful shades of gray.
Unforgiving overcast skies.
Poisoned waters of a nearby creek.
And finally, the dirt-gray lined nails of a boy of thirteen, who was just now starting to dig with his rusty old shovel.
The boy, despite his tender years, had twisted tastes that made him smile at the feel of crushing rabbit necks between his fingers and stabbing the light out of the eyes of days-old kittens.
Dig, dig, dig.
The boy kept digging until he was able to yank out the devil's apples from which an archdemon had been making his insidious whispers for thousands and thousands of days, just patiently waiting for the right one to come along.
The boy fell under the archdemon's thrall the moment their eyes came into contact, and all at once he realized what a terrible, terrible mistake he had made.
The creature had lied!
He would have eternity to live, yes, but it was the worst kind of eternity, for now he was trapped and tortured within his own body.
The archdemon was in control now, and the boy only lasted for minutes...just minutes before willingly succumbing to madness. Anything was better, anything was better than knowing how his stupidity had thrown him into the pits of eternal damnation.
This was the thirteenth boy, whose name the archdemon didn't even care to know. It mattered not, after all. Boys like him never did.
****
THE ARCHDEMON, NOW in control of the boy's mind and body, went to work immediately. This boy was a keeper, the archdemon decided. A handsome face, strong, strapping muscles...yes, yes, a keeper, so he must be careful...
The archdemon made his puppet roam throughout the town until he found what he was looking for: simple-minded Felix, whom he was quickly able to deceive.
Let's put the boys to sleep, he told Felix, and when they wake up, you and the boys will be in Paradise.
Devil's apples needed to be drenched in blood thirteen times before it could open a Devil's Door, and the archdemon could hardly contain his satisfaction as he watched the simpleton follow his every command.
Twelve boys abducted, twelve boys dead, their eyes torn out so that even if they became restless in the aferlife, they would never know it was him. They would only see Felix and no one else.
Now, the plan was for the archdemon, through his puppet, would kill Felix and turn him into the thirteenth sacrifice. Once the Devil's Door opened and he was freed from Hell, he could then play the victim, a young, terrified boy who had only killed Felix in self-defense, and maybe...he could even cry and pretend to blame himself.
I wish I could've saved the other boys from Felix, but it was too late.
Humans were gullible, after all.
Yes, yes, he could do that.
But the archdemon's plans were all for naught, for the one fly in the ointment that he failed to prepare for was the interfering hand of God.
It was the only reason, the only way that a simpleton like Felix had been able to win a fight over his puppet, and the archdemon was left howling in rage when he heard of Felix's death.
That was no heart attack that killed Felix, just God being meddlesome and whisking the simpleton into the safety of Heaven. God's favorite sons tended to be like that idiot, after all.
****
PATIENCE, THE ARCHDEMON whispered to himself. The devil's apples had already been drenched in blood twelve times, he only needed one more, and until then...
He made his puppet bury himself in a grave not so far away from the other boys. Wrapped his magic around the body of his puppet to preserve its state while the world around it changed.
Must be patient.
Thirteen years passed, but no one cared to listen to his whispers.
Must be patient.
Must wait for the right one to come along.
And after another thirteen years, his patience was rewarded.
Even better, the one who heard his insidious whispers was the sweetest prey. A man who thought himself righteous but was in love with power at the same time. Oh, how deliciously evil this man smelled.
Come dig me out, the archdemon whispered, and I will make all of your dreams come true.
And of course, the man did as the archdemon asked, and soon, the perfectly preserved body of his puppet was out of its grave.
Now, you must take this body where it won't be found. Then you must kill it. Only then will my powers be free, and I shall make your dreams come true.
But of course, all of those words were lies. Once the body of the thirteenth boy started shedding its blood, the Devil's Door opened, and the archdemon was finally able to cross over.
And as for his new puppet...
My new little toy, the archdemon crooned. I shall have such fun playing with you.
The man didn't answer, too busy screaming as monstrous flames began to eat his flesh.
The archdemon rubbed his jaw. Now, where do we start? Your life appears quite interesting. Why do they only call you Warden? Is that truly your name—-
ZARI!
The sound of Elsa's singsong voice tore into her visions, and as Zari came out of it with a shuddering gasp, the first thing she saw was Elsa's burnt face looming upside-down just inches away from her own.
"I had to bring you out," the ghost whispered. "It's that man, Zari."
Zari's heart was still racing, and a thin film of cold sweat was still plastered over her skin. It took a few seconds to find the strength to push herself up and concentrate on Elsa's words. "What man are you talking about?"
Elsa floated herself back into an upright position. "The one who makes bad places."
"I don't understand." And another thing she didn't get was why the ghost was still whispering.
"He was there at the park watching you. Then he was where you work. You talked to him. Remember?"
And she did.
Zari did remember Elsa whispering about bad places, but all those times she had thought Elsa was talking about the murders. But all along Elsa had already sensed the archdemon's presence—-
Elsa pointed towards the door. "He's outside. He wants to make this a bad place."