“I uh…I think we are good, Miss.,” Zane jumped in to say before Janie’s cheeks turned nuclear from blushing so hard.
“Phew! That’s a relief!” Miss Pip said, pretending to wipe the sweat from her forehead. Meanwhile Zane leant into Theo and muttered two words, making him choke on a laugh,
“Awkward much.”
“Now let’s get back to it then shall we…if you would all like to follow me I can show you to your new crib,” she said walking ahead and back towards the staircase, but before the others could follow Theo stepped up to the leadership role.
“Not so fast.”
“Theo.” Ena hissed his name, warning him not to do anything she would consider rash but Theo had gone beyond all the strange behaviour and cryptic answers. So he decided to just come right out and say what was on his mind.
“First we want to know what exactly happened to us on that bus and why we are here?” Miss Pip paused her skipping strides and they all watched as her shoulders slumped. Then, before turning back round to face them, she looked up at the man in the shadows who, until then, they had all forgotten was still there watching them.
A few silent moments passed as if they were somehow communicating with each other without speaking and it was only when Theo noticed the man nod his head that Miss Pip turned to face them.
“Okay, so you wanna know what happened?” Theo looked back to the others after Miss Pip had asked this and noticed them step a little closer so they didn’t miss out on the answer…one everyone was obviously desperate to hear.
“Yes, we do.” When Theo said this Miss Pip simply shrugged her shoulders and said,
“Suit yourself, I was going to wait until we had cookies and milk but no time like the one that ticks.”
“I could wait ‘til there’s cookies.” Zane said and Theo lightly punched him on the arm, letting him know now was not the time for jokes.
“Just explain what happened to us,” Theo demanded again, not expecting for one minute that the next three words out of her mouth would be the ones she said…
“You all died.”
6
It’s Always the Quiet Ones
“Uh…come again?” This came from Zane, who seemed to be the only one who could speak at that moment, well that was until Theo shook his head and muttered,
“That’s impossible.”
“Oh I think you will find it’s very possible, especially with a death dealer hitching a ride,” Miss Pip said snorting a humourless laugh and saying it in the same matter of fact way as she had used when telling them all something as dire as ‘you’re dead.’
“Carrick.” Theo snarled the name.
“I think I am hearing things again.” Janie said holding a hand to her forehead as if feeling faint and it seemed like an automatic reaction for Ivan to take a step next to her just in case she fell.
“Well I for one am not listening to this nonsense anymore, I am so outta here!” Ena said turning on her heel and pushing past Zane who looked concerned.
“Oh no Pickles, there is no need for that…buggar but I knew I should have done this over cookies and milk…they were chocolate chip as well,” Miss Pip said shaking her head at herself.
“Ena wait!” Theo shouted after her and jogged to catch up before she got to the main doors.
“What?!” she snapped spinning around to face him.
“Look I know this is all crazy and I agree with you that we need to leave but not before we at least get an explanation,” Theo argued as Ena crossed her arms over her chest in protest but when he had finished she just rolled her eyes and threw her arms back up in the air when she had heard what he had to say.
“They’re lying! Can’t you see that this is just some big sick joke to them?”
“But why? Come on, think about it. Why would they bring us all the way here just to make us believe we had died…for a joke?!” Theo asked knowing he was slowly cracking her resolve.
“Yes!” she shouted back but Theo knew it was a lie.
“Oh come on, you were on that bus too Ena, so you can’t possibly believe that!” Theo said now being the one crossing his arms and raising a disbelieving eyebrow at her. It was when he saw her shoulders slump that he knew she was losing her argument.
“I don’t know what to think anymore other than how crazy this all is…I mean think about what she is telling us Theo…she is trying to convince us that we all died for god’s sake! So what exactly does that make us now…ghosts?!” Theo had to agree with her on this because as much as he wanted to take her hand and walk out of there with the rest of them, telling himself that it was all a lie, he knew he couldn’t do that.
“I don’t have the answers Ena, but I just know that they do and if I walk out of here right now then I will be doing so always asking myself what happened this day but more importantly…why.” He knew he was getting through to her when he saw those big light blue eyes of hers look to the side as if thinking things through herself.
“I’m scared, okay.” she whispered suddenly as if admitting some big shameful secret, one that Theo already knew. It was one of the things he was best at picking up on in people…fear. It was one of the reasons he was so sympathetic to other people, as though if he allowed it he could feel it for himself, as if it was something he could touch or taste without actually experiencing the fear himself. And looking back at them all now, he could feel it coming from everyone.
But Theo wasn’t afraid. No…he was angry.
“You’re not alone but if you walk out that door right now, then you will be. There’s strength in numbers Ena, I truly believe that,” he told her and at that moment he really wished he could have taken her hand in comfort, for both their sakes.
He found himself surprised by what a single day had done to him. He had started this day with little knowledge of his future it was true, but if someone had told him that he would end it by trying to convince others to band together, then he would have called them crazy. Theo was a loner by choice, so what was it about these four teens that made him finally feel as though he belonged for the first time in his life. He had known them for what only felt like minutes but he was ready to risk his life for them and call each of them family.
“I hope you’re right about this, that’s all I can say,” Ena said after sniffing loudly and trying to shake off the remains of her emotions.
“Me too. Now let’s go get our answers,” Theo said nodding over his shoulder back to the others, who were nervously watching this play out between the two of them.
“Plus, who else is going to look after Janie and warn her about the dangers of being flirted with by handsome and charming boys?” Theo joked nudging her arm with his elbow and forgetting himself…something he seemed to do often around this lot. Ena gave him a wry look and a one-sided grin, without looking at all affected by his brief touch.
“Don’t push it English, you’re not that charming,” Ena said walking ahead of him, making him laugh and he couldn’t help but shout back,
“But still handsome!”
“Umm… debatable,” she answered smirking and walking backwards for a few second to face him when she said this.
“Yay! The gang’s all back together!” Miss Pip said clapping her hands to the balcony above. Theo frowned, because from back where he stood he could now see there were a lot more people up there than he’d first thought.
“Alrighty then, who wants to see their new room?!” Pip shouted bouncing back round to face them as if the death bomb she had recently dropped hadn’t just rocked the foundations of their world. Theo quickly stepped back into his leadership role and strode straight past the others until he faced Miss Pip head on.
“What we want is an explanation …right…now.”
He said the last two words leaning closer down to her, making his point.
“Fine! But if I don’t get to eat cookies then at the very least I insist we all sit down to conduct this little chin wig…some people were up all night painting some
bedrooms you know…and when I say some people I actually mean me and when I say some bedrooms, what I actually mean is yours!” she replied before storming off in a huff to one of the booths which was tucked away next to one of the staircases at the far end of the room.
Theo looked back at the others to see that none of them quite knew what to do so he did the only thing he could think of and that was to shrug his shoulders and follow her to the booth. As he took his place he had to wonder just how many confused people before him had sat in that very same spot wondering what on earth they were doing there.
“Righty O, let’s get this…oh dear, that’s not good…and quite inconvenient if I might add,” Miss Pip said with a slight twinge of an English accent and stopping herself as if she could sense something suddenly wasn’t right. It was only when he noticed the panicked look in Miss Pip’s eyes as she looked to the others, that his senses went on high alert. His whole body tensed as if he could feel the energy around him pulsating and beating as though they were all locked inside a giant drum.
“Theo! You’d better get over here…as in now!” He heard Zane shout and Theo was up and out of his seat in a heartbeat.
“Oh pants, it’s happening sooner than we thought,” he heard Miss Pip say behind him as he launched out of his chair. He ran full speed back over to the group who were all huddled over someone on the floor. Zane had his back to him but stood back up when Theo got there, revealing who it was that needed help…
“Janie?” Theo whispered her name as he bent down behind her, once again stopping himself from taking her hand. She was shaking her head back and to, muttering something he couldn’t understand. It was almost as if she was speaking a different language or was someone possessed.
“What happened?” Theo asked not taking his eyes from her.
“We don’t know, one minute we were about to follow you and the next she just collapsed,” Ena said as she rubbed Janie’s shoulder and tried to keep her head steady enough so she wouldn’t hurt herself.
“Yeah, she started muttering something about ‘this isn’t my body’ and then she was gone...it was just lucky that Ivan caught her,” Zane said and Theo looked up to Ivan who was frowning down at Janie, looking upset.
“AHHHH, IT HURTS!” They all jumped when Janie started screaming in pain and she twisted her body back on itself as if something was trying to get out of her.
“Get over here!” Theo shouted back to Pip who was approaching them slowly. She didn’t answer him or rush over as he’d hoped but instead she looked up at their audience in the shadows. Theo could feel his anger mounting as the helpless seconds ticked on and he stood and marched over to the centre of the room.
“Is this what you wanted?!” he demanded, stretching out his arms before carrying on,
“Is this some kind of sick spectator sport you freaks like to play or do you just get a kick out of being cruel!?” Theo shouted up at them making Miss Pip put a hand to her mouth and gasp. The shadow above them didn’t respond but just folded his arms and continued to watch in silence.
“That’s what I thought!” he snarled out and turned his back on them when Janie started screaming again.
“DO SOMETHING!” Ena bellowed up at them when she too let her anger overtake her fear.
“They won’t help, come on, let’s get her out of here,” Theo said walking over to Ivan who had now backed away in a corner with his back to the rest of the room. It was obvious he was upset at seeing Janie this way and didn’t want the rest of them to see.
“Ivan, I need you to carry Janie out of…Ivan?” As Theo approached he could now see Ivan’s large frame shaking in the dark with his head tucked low as if trying to keep something in.
“Ivan, are you alright?” Theo asked quietly so as not to startle him, when he knew that he looked anything but.
“No closer!” Ivan shouted in a grating voice that didn’t sound like it belonged to him.
“Ivan?” Theo whispered as he took that last step and the second he did, he quickly realised his mistake was not listening to Ivan’s warning… but it was too late.
“RRRAAH!” Ivan suddenly threw his head back and roared up at the ceiling causing cracks to ripple their way along the stone arches and rain down debris. Theo covered his head protecting himself against any bigger chunks falling down before looking back at Ivan to see something completely different looking back at him…something terrifying.
“Oh God,” Theo muttered in utter shock when looking back at the monster that Ivan was quickly changing into. Twisted horns were tearing through the back of his skull and growing up over his face, as if trying to create a mask of bone.
Theo started walking backwards slowly as though expecting that any sudden movements would cause Ivan to suddenly charge at him like some demonic bull.
“What the Hell is that thing!?” Zane shouted finally realising what he was seeing.
“Stay back, all of you! Just move slowly and…Ena?” Theo started to warn the rest but this was when he noticed that what was happening wasn’t just affecting Janie and Ivan but also now Ena. Zane also snapped his gaze to Ena who was standing on her tip toes completely ridged as if something was pulling out her limbs. She looked like some frozen ballerina, locked in the most unnatural position. Her arms were straight above her head, stretched out and her fingers were shaking erratically. It almost looked as if she was being electrocuted or at the very least an invisible electric current was touching her fingertips from above, because either way her body was pulsating from it.
“What’s happening to them?!” Zane shouted looking from one to the other. Theo did the same and Zane was right, they were all changing right in front of their eyes. Janie was now surrounded by a black mist that seemed to be seeping out of the pores of her skin and floating around her still body as if it was protecting her. It also looked as though it was trying desperately to form into something but just before it did, it would burst as if not yet having enough power to do so.
“I don’t know, but we need to get them out of here!” Theo shouted back to Zane as he stepped closer to Janie. But as he did this the dark smoke around her started to form into large scorpion tails and lashed out at him, trying to pierce his feet.
Theo jumped back just in time and in doing so must have startled the beast in Ivan, who had been quietly trying to contain himself in the corner.
“RUN THEO!” This roared warning came from the last person he expected and that was Ivan, the human part of the beast that started to charge at him now. Theo could tell that Ivan was trying to fight himself but as he lowered his head and got ready to charge, he knew that his friend had lost the battle within.
None of Ivan’s features were left and it was as if the monster inside of him had completely consumed every last shred of his humanity. His face was now completely covered with twisted thick horns that interlocked by his chin and his size had almost doubled from what it once was.
What little was left of his clothes hung off his frame in shreds as he had obviously burst out of them. Even his skin had turned to smoky ash coloured rock. In some places it was even hardened the way molten lava cools rapidly when it hits the sea and his once smooth skin was now bulks of charred twisted stone.
And he looked unstoppable.
Theo watched as he charged straight for him with his horned head down ready to cause maximum damage and he waited until the very last second to make his move. Just before the monster could hit him Theo made a grab for Zane and rolled them both sideways out of his way. Ivan the monster couldn’t stop himself in time and was about to go crashing into the stage area when Theo could hardly believe the next thing he saw. The shadowed man quickly jumped down from the balcony and whilst in mid-air a huge set of dark wings erupted from him, making him look like some dark angel falling from Heaven.
The man landed just before Ivan reached him and the impact sent a shockwave of power crashing through the room. This not only forced Ivan’s monster to go flying backwards saving himself from imp
act, but it also hit everyone else like a thunder wave, knocking them all out…all but Theo.
He lay motionless on the floor unable to move but unlike the others, he was still conscious. Theo looked at each of them and saw that not only had Janie’s shadows disappeared but Ena was lay back on the floor as if fast asleep. Even Ivan was slowly turning back to the boy he used to be and Theo’s eyes widened in shock as he witnessed the horns retracting back into the base of Ivan’s skull.
“Well that didn’t exactly go as party planned as we’d hoped… not like the others,” he heard Miss Pip say and watched as she walked over to join the dark stranger with wings.
“Are you surprised?” The man said in a dry tone and Theo closed his eyes when he saw the man start to walk his way.
“I guess not given whose stubborn blood he carries,” Miss Pip responded on a laugh. Theo could hear his footsteps getting closer until they stopped about a foot away from his head.
“Careful little Imp or I will tell them you said that,” the man warned without any hint of an actual threat in his tone.
“So what now?” she asked ignoring his previous comment.
“The joining will have taken it out on their hosts, take them back to their rooms to rest, they will need it.” “Aww the poor little mites, they will be plum tuckered,” Miss Pip said
sympathetically just as Theo felt the man lower down on one knee next to him.
“So what about Theo…he’s not asleep you know?” she asked, making Theo suck in a breath, knowing that his time pretending to be unconscious was at an end.
“No, but he soon will be.” Hearing the man say this was what made Theo open his eyes and what he found staring back down at him wasn’t the shadowed Angel he’d been expecting.
No, it was a shadowed…
Demon.
7
Freedom
The Glass Dagger (Afterlife Chronicles Book 1) Page 6
