Scars of the Earth

by C. S. Moore

  It was a terrible thing to watch, these Scars unfolding. Sometimes you had scenes like this, love, laughter, calm; but it was merely the calm before the storm. If they were here, in this Memory, something was eventually going to happen; something terrible enough to Scar a spirit, and the world.

  It was really a beautiful day in the memory, the sunlight seemed almost golden as it reflected off of the surface of the smooth water and highlighted the cotton blowing about on the breeze.

  It’s spring time. She thought, making note of every detail. Cottonwoods shed their seeds in the spring. Suddenly the young man was on his feet. He was dressed in a humble suit that reflected the style of the 1940’s.

  “Come on! It will be fun; the boys and me do it all the time.” He said to his sweetheart with a smile dancing around his lips.

  “I can’t John! For goodness sake I am in my Sunday dress! My Mama would tan my hide.” She replied.

  “What if I told ya that I’d give you all of the dead presidents in my wallet?” He asked.

  “I’d say that I don’t want anymore Lincolns jingling around in my purse.” She giggled.

  “Oh I have more than pennies you little tease. Now are you up for fun, or not?” He asked as he offered her his hand.

  “Okay, but it is your own fault if my Ma won’t allow me to see ya for a month.” She said taking his hand.

  They walked hand in hand down stream laughing with each other and giving shy kisses, until they reached a tree. It was a great deal larger than the rest of the ones lining the river making it seem out of place. Its wide branches stretched out over the water and dangling from one of these strong branches was a thick rope.

  John picked up a long stick propped against the tree and leaned over the bank swiping at the rope. After a few swings the improvised hook snagged it and he pulled it into him. His girlfriend looked nervous as he held it out to her.

  “You go first; show me how to do it.” She said hesitantly. He straightened his shoulders.

  “Okay. Well first make sure that you have a good grip on the rope. Like this see.” He said showing her the position of his hands.

  “Alright.” She said.

  “Then just walk back a couple steps and do this.” He said and ran off the edge of the bank swinging into the air. When he reached the highest point that the rope came to he threw himself back, doing a flip before hitting the water. He resurfaced in a few seconds flipping his hair back causing drops of water to rain down all around him.

  “Just like that huh?” She asked sarcastically.

  “Well you don’t need to do the flip, I was just impressing you.” He said as he swam out of her way.

  “I believe the term is ‘just trying to impress you’.” She said jokingly.

  “Nope, no trying about it. I impressed you. Now get down here with me the water’s fine.” He said while floating on his back. Her smile faded then.

  “I don’t know if I should do this John, if I come home with a broken leg my Pa will probably kill you.” She said looking down at the fifteen foot drop.

  “Oh, you get free health care anyway; your Dad’s a Doc. So don’t worry so much, it isn’t that high. I wouldn’t have you do it if it were dangerous, now live a little.” He chided.

  “Alright, but if I break my leg I’m not letting you sign my cast.” She giggled at him and straightened her shoulders as she had seen him do.

  “Okay, make sure that you have a good grip and let go around the middle…that’s where the water is deepest.” He instructed.

  She took a few steps back and ran off of the edge, closing her eyes as her foot left the earth. She swung out over the water, her dark locks shining in the sunlight. The rope reached its highest point and she threw herself back.

  No! Amanda heard John think. Don’t try to flip, don’t! His mind raced as he saw her falling fast. She attempted to right herself as he had, but to no avail. Her eyes shot open, full of fear, and met his right before her head awkwardly struck the water.

  Amanda knew that the loud crack that sounded couldn’t have happened in real life. He must have imagined that he heard her neck breaking afterward, but all the same it chilled her to the bone.

  He swam over to her body quickly pulling her out of the water and laid her on the bank.

  “Mae?” He whispered.

  She didn’t respond, her body limp and lifeless. He put his head gently on her chest where her soaked Sunday dress clung to her skin.

  “Mae?” He screamed. “Mae, wake up.” He took her face in his hands and kissed her hard, half expecting her to slap him across the face as she usually did when he got fresh.

  I guess not too many people knew CPR in the forties. Not that it would have mattered. Amanda thought.

  “Mae, don’t leave me. Don’t go.” He begged her through sobs. He gently picked her up in his arms and began running. There was no need for the Healers to give chase; they were drug along with him. He ran across two wheat fields with Mae’s limp body in his arms before a small town came into view.

  Looks like a postcard, little white church and all. Amanda thought as they neared the quaint country town.

  “Help!” John screamed out frantically. “Someone Help us please!” He begged. His voice was so full of pain Amanda had to lean on Cole to keep herself standing.

  Where is he going? Doesn’t he know it is too late? She wondered. She could see that he hadn’t given up; he still believed that he could save the very dead girl in his arms. He has to believe that. She thought. He can’t go on without her.

  She couldn’t believe the pace that he kept. He had run three miles before Amanda understood his destination, the hospital. She sucked in a breath as John’s words to his sweetheart played in her mind. “Oh you get free health care anyway; your Dad’s a Doc.”

  Oh no. She thought. She was beginning to understand why this memory hadn’t stopped by the rivers edge. It isn’t only this girl’s death that was scarring. It’s whatever happens next. With Mae’s father.

  Amanda felt herself pulling back, attempting to fight the force dragging her along after John. She didn’t want to see what happened next, she didn’t want to feel this boy’s pain. He was such a simple fragile spirit. Madgie and Cole were looking at her thoughtfully.

  They haven’t put it together yet. Neither of them knows what is coming. She thought.

  “Mae’s father is a doctor.” Amanda said quietly.

  She turned to look at Cole and his eyes met hers. He scanned her face searching for the reason behind her apprehension. She looked away from him turning back to the boy that she was scared to follow.

  “We are headed to the hospital.” She said gesturing towards the building that was growing in size and clarity at their approach. Madgie’s face contorted in pain and Cole’s fell in realization.

  “Oh!” Madgie cried. “You don’t think that…”

  “Yes, of course something terrible is going to happen. We’re here aren’t we?” She stated bluntly. Like the girl’s death wasn’t hard enough on him. She thought, choking up. What is going to happen now?

  John’s screams had caused a stir and people began flowing out onto the street from small shops and eateries. They were all done up in their Sunday best, but it didn’t stop the women from dropping to their knees as John passed by.

  “Mae!” Some of the women cried out before fainting. And Amanda understood why they did. Mae’s body was devoid of all color. Her once pale, milky skin was now a nauseating grey.

  Some of the men joined John in his run to the hospital. A tall middle-aged man ran next to him. He was dressed in a police uniform, but that isn‘t what struck her. As soon as she saw the man she knew who he was, John was the spitting image of his father.

  “What happened John?” His father asked.

  “She hit the water.” Was all John said. His father looked confused by this short answer, but didn’t question him any further. It was plain to see that John was in a state of complete hysteria.

  “Y
ou’re tired son, here let me help you.” He said leaning down to take Mae from his arms.

  “Don’t touch her!” John screamed. “Don’t touch her!” The man jumped back. “Mae will be fine, she just needs a doctor. Right Mae?” He asked looking down at her lovingly.

  Amanda took in the haunting building as they entered the hospital grounds. It stretched toward the sky, towering over the small town.

  It looks disproportionate. She thought.

  The building was stretched tall, like a yard of taffy, and its surface reminded her of seeing something through water. The color of brick faded from dark scarlet to light pinkish tones and the windows bowed so badly that Amanda was sure they would break at any moment, spewing shards of glass all over her. Just then she heard a voice ring out so loud that it shook everything around them, including the bulging windows.

  “Whaaat hasss haaappened?” It asked. Amanda shivered as her skin tightened into goose flesh and she wasn’t the only one. She felt Madgie shudder next to her.

  That voice! It sounds so-inhuman. She thought. The hospital doors trembled in their frame before bursting open. Oh my God. She thought, still being drug along on wobbly knees.

  The man stepping out of the hospital wasn’t at all what she had expected. He was in a long white coat like the doctors she had seen on Television, but he didn’t resemble the tall proud men with good cheek bones. He looked more like a wounded animal. He limped out of the hospital gasping as if each movement brought him incredible pain.

  The man looked up at the approaching group of men when they were ten yards from where he stood and Amanda’s mind swirled in confusion. His eyes were double the size that they should have been and a solid sphere of black. She wasn’t taken back by their size or color, or by the severe pain that was so evident in them. She was confused by the feeling they gave her. She wasn’t at all fearful; she just felt that they were eyes in need of help. They were eyes that she fell in love with instantly, and that could only mean one thing.

  He is a trapped spirit. She thought. Amanda looked over at Cole and Madgie and saw that they reflected her astonishment.

  “Two spirits in one Scar.” Amanda said wonderingly.

  “I have heard of this happening, even heard rumors about Ancients healing scars with thousands of trapped spirits, but I have never experienced it. This is like opening a Cracker Jack box and getting two prizes!” Madgie exclaimed excitedly. Amanda tried not to feel angry, most Healers felt this way. Excited to heal every Scar, free every spirit, save every soul. She knew that she should feel this way too and probably would, if their pain didn’t affect her so.

  “Ya.” Amanda said breathing out hard. “Double the fun.” Cole gave her a squeeze, letting her know that he understood her reluctance. I struggle with one person’s pain. How will I deal with two? She asked herself.

  “You can do this Amanda; you are so much stronger than you know.” Madgie whispered as if she had spoken the question aloud. She felt Madgie’s warm hand enclose her forearm. “Don’t try to separate your love from their pain; it is your love that releases them from all of this. Allow yourself to love them and take their pain on to your shoulders without resistance.”

  “I don’t know that I can Madgie!” Amanda squeaked as John stepped nearer to Mae’s father. “I’m not like you, or the rest of the Healers. When they put their pain on my shoulders, I fall. I am too weak!” Madgie’s grip on her arm tightened at her words.

  “You are so young Amanda, and therefore accustomed to speaking about things that you don’t fully understand. But I will not let you speak about yourself this way. No matter how young and stupid you might be!” Madgie huffed. “No, Amanda you are not like me, or other Healers, you are so much better than us. You feel for these spirits as if it were you in pain!” She spun Amanda towards her so that they were face to face.

  “You have more love and empathy in your heart than any Healer that I have met in my many decades. If you would just own who you are, you could be the strongest of us all.” She released her then in a frustrated fury. Amanda felt hurt that Madgie was so upset with her, but she couldn’t feel offended. Because somewhere deep inside of her a cog clicked into place.

  I have never stopped fighting who I am, what I am. She thought honestly. This was no epiphany; she had known this fact her whole memorable life. She never forgot running, never made excuses for it. This was different though, for the first time in her life she thought that maybe she wasn’t too weak. Maybe Madgie was right.

  Maybe feeling their pain as if it were my own isn’t weakness; it could be a strength if I allow it to be. If I stopped stifling it with my fear and apprehension… She was snapped out of her thoughts by Mae’s father’s icy voice.

  “Whaat is thiss?” He asked. The hissing voice seemed to infiltrate her very being, slamming into her like a strong gust of wind. Only this wind seemed to move through her, leaving in its wake the feeling of rage and remorse. Her bones felt heavy under the weight of it, making it hard to stay upright. Cole put a hand out to steady her.

  “Are you alright?” He asked, his perfect features twisting into a mask of concern. She was equally thankful for his concern and annoyed by it at the same time. After all SHE wasn’t the one in need of help. She was whole, she was strong. She thought about her life, about all that was happening outside of this Scar.

  Out there I may be a damsel in distress; but in here, in here, I can be somebody’s knight in shining armor. She thought.

  “Did you feel that?” She asked. Cole and Madgie nodded their heads in unison.

  “Hate.” Cole whispered.

  “Rage.” Said Madgie.

  “No, no. Beneath that. There was something else, regret?” She said turning to her companions.

  “I’m not getting anything but anger, quite concentrated. It’s making me sick to tell you the truth.” Madgie said through tight lips as she turned her eyes away from the doctor and back to John. Amanda stared at her mentor and then glanced back to Mae’s Father. His hollow eyes were full of despair as he looked at his lifeless daughter.

  “Mae?” He whispered. When she didn’t respond he ran to her as quickly as his disjointed body could move. “Mae, baby?” He said as he shook her out of John’s arms. John seemed unable to object, unable to speak at all.

  He knelt in the parking lot with Mae’s cold, wet body in his arms. He held her tight as he desperately put his ear to her chest knowing that he wouldn’t hear the tale tell flutter of life. He had seen more than enough dead bodies to know better. But reason and knowledge didn’t stop him from laying her flat on the pavement and starting CPR. The crowd of sad faces was hushed as he worked on her, pumping her stubborn heart, wailing out pleads to God, and crying all the while. After thirty minutes of this a tall man stepped out of the crowd and walked over to him. That’s John’s Father. Amanda thought.

  “Bill.” He said. “She is gone.” He put a comforting hand on his friends shoulder.

  “No!” Bill cried out. “She can’t be.” He looked up at John’s father with eyes full of sadness. “My baby can’t be.” In a flash his eyes were full of anger. “You did this!” He shouted as he spun to face John. John looked as though his words had slapped him back to the present.

  “What?” John asked, his voice still distant.

  “You killed my baby.” Bill spat. John’s face filled with sadness, but he didn’t argue. John’s Father put a hand on Bill’s tight shoulder and as he raised his arm Amanda saw a gleam of silver flash from under his coat.

  “Bill lets get her inside.” He said simply, trying to diffuse the situation. Bill turned to go along with the officer and before he made his move, she knew why she could feel his regret. She knew what was going to happen. She darted forward ignoring the part of her that was screaming for self preservation.

  This is just a memory, I can’t be hurt here. She told herself. REALLY? Just look what happened last time. Self preservation shouted. Oh, shut up! She told herself as she leapt between John and Ma
e’s Father.

  Her feet touch the ground just as Bill grabbed for the sheriff’s gun, kicking him aside. There was a shout from the crowd as he turned and fixed the gun on John, but John didn’t scream. He looked resigned, maybe even happy that his pain would soon be over.

  She dropped her invisibility, allowing them to see her. And the rest of the memory faded, leaving just the three of them. Mae’s Father looked bewildered, but John didn’t, he looked as if he had been waiting for her.

  “Who are you?” Bill asked. She turned away from John and spoke to Bill.

  “Put that gun down Bill, put it down now or you will forever wish that you had.” She said. The words came out of her soothingly, not threateningly. Bill looked taken back, but his grip on the gun didn’t lessen. “This was not John’s fault, he loved your daughter.” She could feel John’s happiness at her words.

  “I said, who are you?” He shouted. “And where are we?” He asked, looking around. Nothing could be seen, but the three of them-spot light center stage. Not the hospital, or the parking lot, or any people. “Where is my Mae?” He demanded.

  “Mae is not here. She has moved on.” She said. John’s head shot up.

  “Moved on where?” He asked in a rush. His boy like features stood out to her even more as he asked the question.

  “I don’t really know. You can find out, you can be with her. Just let go of what is holding you here.” She pleaded.

  “But, it was all my fault. I don’t deserve to be with her.” John said, looking at his feet.

  “Just answer me this John. If God takes back the people that he misses a little early, who do you think that he would have missed the most.” She asked. John closed his eyes and Amanda watched the thoughts and memories of Mae floating behind his eye lids.

  “Mae.” He whispered almost inaudibly. The air tasted sweet and Amanda could feel him letting go. Just before he vanished in a burst of light, John smiled in recognition at something that she couldn’t see. A surge of euphoria welled up inside of her chest and a lone tear slid down her cheek. I can see why Healers love this, yearn for it even. She thought. But she didn’t get to enjoy John’s lingering joy for long.