‘Come on then you Freak’ he screamed at the top of his lungs as he ran with his arms waving above his head. Still no response from anyone or anything, and who knows how long he ran for, it could have been days or it could have been months before he finally snapped. There were times when he ran and there were times when he walked, he no longer cared which direction he took. Sometimes he would just sit and mutter to himself about the posies and how they were all going to fall down. He no longer knew why he sung it or even what a posie was, didn’t much care. He would sit in the darkness, searching for an end to it, but it wasn’t there, the only thing he could rely on being there was the never-ending darkness. Eventually even the mocking echoes stopped, so he was just running around, shouting out gibberish, in the hope that a voice not of his own would answer him back, but they never did.
He had only occasionally questioned why the hunger or the thirst had never struck him and he had now spiralled down the descent into madness so it wasn’t something he thought about. He didn’t think about anything anymore, he just ran and ran and ran because that’s what he was born to do, thats why he was here, to run in the darkness like a little beetle in the basement.
‘Beetle, beetle, beetle’ he repeated to himself over and over in his head and then out loud, liking the feel of the new word on his lips. If you had asked him what a beetle was he wouldn’t know, he just knew the word and he liked it.
He had torn the clothes from his body, he had eaten some of the shirt, not because he was hungry, but just because it was something new to do with his mouth, one of the trouser legs had been stuck up his naked butt for a while and followed him round like a tail until he had lost it. He was quite saddened at this and had crept along on all fours looking for it but it was gone forever.
‘Beetle, beetle, beetle’ he repeated in a manic fashion.
His body was bleeding all over from cuts and bruises as he had fallen many times in the darkness and taken to scratching his body along the ground when he itched. He didn’t care, he licked it away or at least he tried to but usually just ended up falling over and causing more damage in the process.
The little beetle foraged around in the darkness for what you or I would call maybe a year or two before he heard a voice boom out of the darkness towards him
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
It had been a few weeks since the events in the hospital and that poor old man Liu had handed over the strange box to Clara before he died, but ever since then, Seb had not left Clara’s side. He had moved into her house and was temporarily sleeping in the spare room. He had called in long term sick at the school; he had no idea when, or even if he would go back. He just knew that there were more important things that he was now somehow involved in. Clara had taken on the most amazing and wonderful transformation since they had met Liu.
Her hair had regained its youthfulness and was more golden than ever. It was as if the sun reflected off it and made it sparkle, no matter if there was a cloud in the sky or not. Her skin had also regained its youth, not a blemish or scar to be found, and her eyes... well he could have quite happily jumped in and drowned in those eyes. He could no longer remember if her eyes were blue before or not but they were the brightest blue he had ever seen and if he looked into them for too long he found himself falling into a sweet trance which made his body feel warm and fuzzy, like the memories of the summer holidays of his youth when his Mum and Dad would take him into the “countryside” and they would go for long walks up Brecon hill or over the Malvern’s. He loved the different smells and how the air always seemed to be so much cleaner, so much purer. He always knew when she was around nowadays because she smelled of those special days, she always smelled of honeysuckle or lavender, or the sweetest strawberries.
Her house was overflowing with flowers but these flowers never died. She would talk to them or sing them sweet lullabies as she went about her chores. It wasn’t a scene from a Disney movie though... oh no, there was a darker side too.
For a start there was the song that had been going round and round in her head, it brought her to her knees in agony every time she heard it. Seb couldn’t hear it, he understood it wasn’t meant for his ears but she said that it was the most haunting sound and it meant something but she just didn’t know what. It made her extremely sad when she heard it and it filled her full of pain. He didn’t need to see her on her knees crying or watch her shouting at the skies asking over and over “Why wont you tell me what it means... what should I do to stop it?”, to know when she was sad because nowadays, when she cried it always seemed to rain almost instantaneously, if she was frustrated and angry at whatever it was that was putting that song in her head then there would be a stormy night ahead for everyone.
When they had finally realised that the weather conditions were not just a coincidence (and it took a while) they both sat and laughed at the recent weather reports on her television. It had been one of the major news headlines over the past few weeks but they had both been too engrossed in their research and trying to figure out what this trident thing was to notice, so when they did, the laughter that followed was also a way of relieving the tension that had built up in them both over the last few weeks and who could blame them. Clara had somehow become “The Guardian” or “The Keeper of the Tapestry” whatever that meant, Seb still wasn’t quite sure, he just knew that if she stubbed her toe in the kitchen, then some little village in the Outer Hebrides would probably pay for it. He chuckled to himself at the thought as he was sat searching on his laptop for meanings of the word “Trident” and still having no luck determining the relevance. They knew that this was the key but had no idea as to what the trident was.
He was sat at the little computer desk in the corner of the room by the window, laptop humming away under his fingers when he heard an almighty set of thuds and turned to see Clara come crashing through the door. She fell to her knees in a slump over the arm of the sofa nearest to the door and along with it came the thunder. The rain immediately began to patter on windows, seconds later the howling wind followed which seemed to shake the very foundations of the house. It whistled by him as if it were circling the room.
‘Why wont it stop, what does it mean... please Joseph help me? She looked imploringly towards the ceiling, her hands outstretched as she agonisingly called for Joseph again. She had been calling for Joseph to come and give her guidance for some time now, but as each day passed it seemed more and more unlikely that he would appear. Her golden hair was in a state of disarray as it danced around her head, the wind was blowing it in ten different directions at once, her blouse was only kept on her back by the buttons at the front, otherwise it was beginning to look like some strange sort of cape. Seb jumped off the little desk chair, knocking it over in his haste. He fought his way over to her and with a great amount of effort managed to wrap his arms around her waist and at least lift her half way upright, so that she was leaning against the sofa, legs akimbo .
He stroked her hair softly as he had done on other occasions and flattened it down to make it look a little less unkempt, and then he lovingly stroked her face softly as he turned her towards him so that he could look deep into those blue eyes. As he began to speak, the wind softened to a low breeze, nothing but a whisper of its former storm.
‘You’ve got to learn to control this very soon La’ he whispered while he traced his finger down her cheek, knowing this would sooth her. She found his hand with her own and pressed it closer to her cheek and looked up towards him. ‘Thankyou’, she said... ‘thankyou for being here for me, I couldn’t go through whatever it is we’re going through or whatever else it is we’re going to go through... not without you by my side... I just wish Stan were here too’. It was like the mention of his name instantly slammed an invisible barrier between the two.
‘I’m sure he would be very proud of you’ he said as he reluctantly pulled his hand away, it no longer feeling comfortable to be so close to her skin, awkwardness hanging in the air like an eggy fart.
She lifted herself onto the sofa fully and Seb needn’t have worried about the awkwardness between them because no sooner had she sat down, she stood up again and looked toward the corner of the ceiling.
‘Joseph... Joseph?’ she called to the ceiling. ‘Is it really you? My lord where have you been?’ Seb didn’t know whether to hold on tight or just run from the room. Based on previous experiences, he was probably better to have legged it, but the inquisitive mind held him captive. So he grabbed one arm of the sofa and sat tight looking into the corner of the room but seeing nothing.
Nothing happened for a lifetime of seconds, the little clock on the side cabinet behind the sofa ticked louder and louder, it seemed to be the only thing that would defy the silence, but then that is because time will never be silenced or stopped he thought, someone said that time waits for no man, well I guess it wont be silenced for any man either he mused. He looked at Clara and watched her while she waited for a response from the ceiling, which in any other circumstances he would have classed as very odd and be calling for the men in the white coats right about now. But these were no longer normal circumstances and hadn’t been for a while now.
‘Come through Joseph, you can do it... just concentrate harder...focus yourself, I know you can do it...I need you’
And he did, he came through in a blast of green light, much like before although to Seb it looked like the ceiling was giving birth to a man because of the way his head came through first and then he seemed to push on the ceiling with his hands to force the rest of himself through. Clara showed the instant relief on her face when for the first time he actually stood before her as a man albeit an out of focus, unstable image of a man. Seb thought straightaway it was like watching his sky tv in the middle of a storm.
‘My god, I’ve never seen you in the flesh...so to speak’ she flushed a little at the unintended pun and wrapped her arms tighter around herself.
‘Clara, I don’t have much time, it’s becoming more difficult each time I try to contact you. There are major disturbances on the planes...something is not right, but I have been given a message to bring directly to you’. Clara felt a little bubble of hope slowly inflating inside of her. Could it be, could it be that her Stan had finally found her, could it be that he had been watching over her all this time...and if so, why had he not contacted her before, what had prevented him? and Joseph snapped her out of her thoughts.
‘I have a message to give to you but before I do I need to explain something to you which you may find hard to believe.
The message comes from an angel, a celestial angel. There are three types of angels, The arch angels are Gods warriors and they will fight at his side if they are ever called upon to do so again. The celestial angels, well... they watch over the astral planes like guardians. Keeping watch of the spirits that have found themselves to still be tethered to your world. They watch over the ones that just can’t seem to let go but they are not allowed to interfere, normally. And then you have his Guardian angels, they stand watch over all of Gods children. The message I have for you is from a Celestial being named Ramiel, he is also Gods messenger.’
Clara could hardly believe what she was hearing, messages from angels? She had to take a seat in her favourite chair, next to Stan’s picture. Seb pulled up a chair and sat next to Clara as Joseph went on. There was a mixture of fear and wonder spread across Sebs face as he listened intently to the spirit of Joseph. He looked on with a sense of awe about him. ‘Just wait till I get back to school, the kids are gonna love this. Re class will be a little more exciting I reckon’ he nervously laughed. Clara grabbed his hand and chided him,
‘You’ll say nothing of this to anybody... not that they’d believe you anyways’ he harrumphed in agreement, who would believe that they had been visited by a spirit from the other side heralding messages from angels and all the other kooky stuff that had been happening lately? The image of Joseph began to flicker as if he were fading in and out.
‘Please, I must give this message to you before it is too late, this may be the last time I can visit with you Clara’
‘Go on Joseph, tell me what you must’
‘The Angel Ramiel knows that you have met with the dragons, he knows you have a very important role to play but even you are not aware of the enormity of your situation as of yet. There is an evil that has been let loose on the world, an evil which is as powerful and as strong as you are now Clara. He will bring hell upon this earth unless you defeat him. Clara momentarily recalled the vision that the dragons had shown her and shuddered at the thought of the dog monkey and the pigs at their picnic table. ‘You have the four elements in your pocket and you must use them to defeat the evil one, but first you must find the Trident’ there it was again she thought, that blasted trident. ‘Ramiel knows you have been searching fruitlessly and would not normally be able to involve himself or interfere in any way but it is of the utmost importance that you find this trident. He says that the dragons have already shown the trident to you, you just have to think back to the visions they gave you and you will find it. You can’t defeat this evil one, not without The Trident’
The image of Joseph became weaker and more unstable, time was running out.
‘But I don’t remember anything about a trident... I really don’t, how will I know who this evil one is and How will I defeat him with a stupid darn trident... I just don’t get it.’ There were so many more questions she had but she could see there just wasn’t time.
‘When you find the trident, the dragons will come to you again. They will help you to understand more clearly. I have done what I came to do and I must go now Clara... I am feeling very weak.’
‘Will I ever see you again Joseph? She asked as the tears welled up in her eyes.
‘I don’t know’ was the only answer he could give before he vanished back into the ceiling and then was gone. Clara hoped he was not gone forever, she could see that it had put an awful lot of strain on him to come through and deliver his message from an angel.
‘Well... what do we do now? asked Seb, breaking the silence that had entered the room in wake of the spirit Joseph. Clara sat back in the chair and took in a deep breath through her nose and said very solemnly, ‘we find that trident before it’s too late’.
‘Well....yeeees’ he drawled rather mockingly ‘but you still don’t know where or what it is and I haven’t got a.....’
‘Yes I do’ she interrupted him, Joseph told me to look back and remember what the Dragons showed me, I can’t believe I didn’t remember it sooner. I guess my thoughts have been kind of clouded lately; we’ve been looking in all the wrong places. I remember now, when they took me above those hills and they showed me the visions of what is and what would be. There was a pub and if I’m not mistaken’ she sat up excitedly now and blurted it out, ‘yes thats right, It’s coming back to me now I know where to look, the pub that was in those visions, well it was called the trident and there was a big iron trident on the side wall of that pub... that must be it. She gave the arm of the chair a little victory slap and said ‘we’ve got to find that pub’.
‘Do you know something La, that’s the best thing you’ve said all day’ he then bravely
CHAPTER TWENTY NINE
Gavin had let Craig escape into the darkness so that he could have a little fun with him, much like a cat playing with a mouse before the deadly strike. He had been watching the little man run round and round inside the building but he had stretched Craigs own personal timeclock so what would have been a minute for you or I was effectively turned into a week, or a month for Craig. He also messed with his senses, this is why he thought he was running around in total darkness for what seemed like forever, when in reality he was just running around the inside of the building.
When he tired of watching him he bellowed,
‘TIME TO WAKE UP LITTLE MAN’ and Craig looked up from floor, still naked and bleeding, still uttering those words beetle beetle beetle but he could see something now. Li
ght was beginning to make its way back through to him and he could see the figure before him. It called to him and he went, still on all fours like a duty bound pet.
Actually having Craig on all fours and so obviously detached from his mental faculties was an unexpected side effect but not an unpleasant one. If anything it was going to keep Craig alive a little while longer until Gavin bored of watching the little beetle. The beetle man stopped at his feet and pawed at them straining his neck to see what this new thing was. He sniffed around Gavin’s legs and feet, not too sure what to make of it, he then decided he wanted to see what it tasted like so made to bite the leg. As he lifted his head back to sink his teeth into the leg, one of those legs came up and caught him full force under the chin and he went reeling back across the room.
‘Ha ha ha who’s the freak now hey? He laughed as the beetle man scurried for cover.
Saul had been watching his little protégé and was quite impressed at how he had managed to control the skills he had learnt and was even more impressed at his imagination and originality, he then thought back to the dark twisted mind he had to start with and realised Gavin had a head start anyway.
‘I think your little pet is hungry, shall we feed him his dinner’ Gavin turned to see Saul turn his head up to the ceiling. His eyes brighter than ever and the little demon that liked to hang around the chandelier watching, jumped back into the ceiling and emerged seconds later. It released a large package as it swung back up onto the chandelier, again to sit and watch.
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