The Awakening

by Ryan Sova

  Detective Klaben’s car sped up. She whipped into the parking lot and then slammed on her brakes. She then exited her vehicle with her gun drawn.

  “Turn around and put your hands in the air,” she said in a commanding voice.

  Garry calmly walked towards her.

  “TURN AROUND AND PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR, OR I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU WHERE YOU STAND!!!”

  Garry started chanting.

  Detective Klaben opened fire, hitting Garry six times. Garry was not harmed in the least bit, though. This was due to the shield that he had previously erected around himself moments before she had arrived. All of Detective Klaben’s rounds bounced harmlessly off of Garry’s shield.

  Garry continued to approach Detective Klaben. Then, just as he finished with his spell, he extended his hand and a bolt of lightning sprang forth from his fingertips. The lightning bolt hit Detective Klaben in the chest and instantly dropped her to the ground. Detective Klaben lay paralyzed on the ground, unable to move due to the electrical shock that she had just received. Garry began chanting again.

  Just as Detective Klaben started regaining the use of her limbs, Garry extended both hands towards her. This time flames shot from his fingertips. Garry poured his willpower into this spell and soon the flames had changed color from orange to blue, and then finally turning bright white.

  Detective Klaben writhed on the ground, frantically trying to escape the flames. Within seconds, the pistol that she was carrying liquefied in her hands. The asphalt by Detective Klaben also started to bubble and liquefy as well. The tires on Detective Klaben’s car then popped due to the extreme heat. Moments later, Detective Klabens car burst into flames.

  Detective Klaben then suddenly made a desperate leap onto the hood of her car and rolled off on to the other side. Garry chanted a few words, traced a symbol, then waved his hand, effortlessly lifting Detective Klaben’s car and projecting it hundreds of feet. It landed on its roof and slid several more feet into the parking area just behind the building.

  Garry continued to walk calmly towards Detective Klaben, chanting another fire spell as he went. Detective Klaben looked like a wounded animal, desperately trying to escape from her predator. She kicked frantically with the leg that hadn’t been burned to a crisp and clawed at the ground with her hands. She was still consumed in flames and was unrecognizable due to her burns. Her flesh was visibly regenerating, trying to keep up with the destruction of the flames that she was still consumed in. From behind him, Garry could hear gunshots ring out. He passively felt them as they bounced off of his shield. He paid no attention, though, to who was shooting at him. Garry stretched out his hands and shot fire at Detective Klaben once again.

  Detective Klaben let out an unearthly, high pitched scream. Garry immediately noticed that the gunfire from behind him stopped once Detective Klaben started screaming. Then something hit him.

  A car had just pulled into the police station parking lot and had rammed Garry while he was in the process of burning the last bit of life out of Detective Klaben. The impact had thrown Garry several feet and had caused him to land in an empty area of the parking lot, a bend leading to the front of the building. Garry had not seen the driver of this vehicle yet, but his feelings told him that the person driving this vehicle was also undead.

  The car had stopped moments after hitting Garry and was now parked next to where Detective Klaben was lying. The bumper of the car was now caved in from its recent impact with Garry. A man exited the vehicle and ran towards Detective Klaben. Garry recognized him the moment that he saw him. This man’s name was Officer Casy, the same man who had stabbed the living Detective Klaben in the neck and had turned her undead.

  Garry rose from the ground, he was still unharmed due to his magical shield. Officer Casy was now helping Detective Klaben to her feet. Garry assumed that Officer Casy was trying to load her into his car so that he could help her escape. Garry started readying another spell.

  After helping her to her feet, Officer Casy put his left arm around Detective Klaben and walked her to the passenger door of his car as quickly as he could. Officer Casy then reached to open his passenger door when his car suddenly rose from the ground and levitated several feet above them. Officer Casy looked up and stared at his car for a brief moment.

  Garry then brought the car down on top of both of them using such a level of force as to completely flatten the car. The car bounced twice before settling on top of Detective Klaben and Officer Casy.

  Garry began chanting again while continuing to walk towards the car. He then brought his right arm back and threw a ball of fire at the car. The car exploded with such force that several windows at the police station were blown out in the process. A huge ball of flames rose from the car as it was thrown back, rolling end over end until it landed squarely on top of two marked police cars that were parked several feet away.

  Both Detective Klaben and Officer Casy were now in flames and lying on the asphalt. Garry started readying another spell. Within moments Officer Casy was back on his feet and frantically stumbling to get away from Garry. Detective Klaben, on the other hand, only seemed to have use of one of her arms at that moment. She tried pulling herself with her one usable limb, but was unable to move.

  Garry stretched out his hand and released another bolt of lightning. This bolt branched off in two directions, hitting both Detective Klaben and Officer Casy. Officer Casy fell to the ground instantly. Both were paralyzed. Garry quickly cast another spell and then waved his right hand toward himself. An unseen force grabbed Officer Casy by the legs and dragged him back to where Detective Klaben was lying.

  Garry then quickly conjured another spell, extended both hands, then shot flames at both Officer Casy and Detective Klaben. The unearthly screams returned. This time there would be no escape for the dead. The screams soon ended. In the aftermath, all that would remain of Officer Casy and Detective Klaben would be a pile of ash.

  Garry then turned his head and looked at the police department. All of the officers that had been shooting at him earlier were now gone. Garry assumed that they must have fled inside the building. He momentarily thought of entering the station and cleansing it of all undead, but quickly decided against it. For one, most of the day shifters were still coming in to start their shift, which would cause a great deal of chaos and confusion. For two, not everyone at the station was undead and Garry was still very apprehensive, even now, of killing innocent people. Besides, Garry thought, I already got what I came here for. With that thought, Garry cast a teleportation spell and, within moments, he was back in Detective Grant’s living room.

  Detective Grant and Anna Grant were both sitting at the dining room table eating morning breakfast when Garry arrived. Anna looked up and said, “Garry, you’re back.”

  Detective Grant then added, “Did you kill her?”

  Garry walked to the table and took a seat. Then he answered, “Yes.”

  Anna shook her head and then added, “So sad, she was such a nice lady and a good mother too.”

  Detective Grant looked at his wife sympathetically, “I have worked with her for all these years and I know more than most that she didn’t deserve this. But you have to remember, she was murdered over a year ago. This monster that Garry just sent back to hell is not the Detective Klaben that we all knew and loved.”

  Anna responded, a tear streaming down her face, “I know, but I still miss her.”

  After a slight pause, Anna said, “Garry, you must be hungry. Go help yourself to a bowl of cereal from the kitchen.”

  Garry responded, “Thank you Miss Grant, but I’m not hungry.”

  Garry shared in the feelings that Anna had. He knew what Detective Klaben was, but he also felt as if there was some piece of her that was still alive, even now. In his heart, Garry felt ashamed of what he had just done. But in his head, Garry knew that the creature he had just destroyed was not, in fact, the same woman at all.

  Garry felt torn in his emotions. He reminded himse
lf while sitting at the table that he did not kill Detective Klaben out of any kind of personal vendetta. There was, in fact, a strategic reason behind it. Garry had learned from his dream about Donovan that Detective Klaben was more than just a dead minion to the Master. She was his right hand. The Master would confide in her, sharing his plans with her frequently. Her loss would hurt him greatly, which is ultimately why Garry targeted her.

  Garry had also planned out this attack for another reason as well. He wanted to test out what his magical limitations might be in battle. Before today, Garry had never tried to kill any of the undead before, so he had no way of knowing how much willpower it might take to wage this kind of war on the dead. This test gave Garry a good indication of how well he might be able to fare if he were to wage an all-out war on the dead. While this battle might have outwardly given the appearance that he was untouchable, Garry knew that this illusion was far from the truth.

  In reality, the battle from this morning took a lot out of Garry. While it didn’t leave him as drained as Atonick was when he faced the dead, Garry could still feel the toll that this fight had taken on him. He reasoned that he probably still had the strength to engage in a magical battle like this again, right now if he had to. If he were to push himself to take on a third battle like this, or a battle that would require him to use three times as much magic as he used today, Garry would then be pushing himself to his limits.

  So the cold, hard reality of what he had learned from this fight was simple. It took Garry one-third of his magical energy to kill just two of the undead. When you think about it, it’s actually quite pathetic, Garry thought to himself sarcastically.

  I have all this power now. So what am I supposed to do with it? How do I stop this undead plague before it wipes out all life on Earth?

  CHAPTER 22

  It was not long before Anna was off for another day of caring for the sick. After she left, Detective Grant asked Garry what his plans were in regards to the continued fight against the dead. He also asked Garry about how he and his wife Anna could help. Garry realized that Detective Grant was still under the belief that the only chance they had of fighting back was for Garry to run a solo purge campaign on all of the undead, spending his days killing any undead that he could find and then returning back to his safe haven at their house whenever he would need to rest.

  Garry had to admit that it would have been a good plan if Garry had the willpower to wage that kind of war. Unfortunately, his battle this morning with Detective Klaben and Officer Casy showed him that such a war would be impossible. Garry now knew that he had nowhere near the willpower necessary to carry out that kind of campaign. He had to explain this to Detective Grant, who then responded with the question, “So what are we going to do then?”

  Garry still didn’t have an answer for Detective Grant, which was frustrating to say the least. To tell someone that the world is coming to an end and there is nothing you can do about it will not sit well with anyone. Detective Grant was doing well, though, at controlling his emotions under the circumstances. In the end, Garry had to reassure Detective Grant that his dreams had to be showing him all of these things for some reason and that maybe the answer just hasn’t been revealed yet. Then, it suddenly occurred to Garry what had happened in his dream last night.

  “They are about to teach me how to time travel,” Garry blurted out.

  Detective Grant responded, “Good, maybe you can go back in time and stop this thing where it began then.”

  Garry shook his head and responded, “No, I won’t be able to change anything from the past, I’m afraid. I can only look. That’s it.”

  Detective Grant responded, “What the fuck good is that!”

  Detective Grant was done talking. He sat on the couch and started flipping through channels, desperately trying to find something to take his mind off the subject.

  Before long, Jesse was up and another day of PJ Masks ensued. Throughout the day, Garry continued to wonder what he could do about the spreading plague of the undead. He now realized that a direct attack, like the one that he waged this morning, would not work at stopping such a widespread problem. But what can I do, Garry continued to wonder?

  Before long, Garry conceded that he must have been right this morning. Maybe the answer just hasn’t been revealed to me yet? Garry thought about time travel again. Could time travel be the answer? Garry continued to think about this possibility. What good will time travel do for me? If I go to the future, I might be able to see how we are all going to die, but what good will that do? I’m not King Noah. I don’t have an entire nation at my command. I have one small family that believes me. That’s it! So how will knowing the future help anyone?

  As Garry continued pondering these questions, his mind drew a blank. There was just no answer to any of these questions that he could see. His famous go to answer of, “I just need to wait until my magic gets stronger” was insufficient now. He realized that his training in magic was just about over. So what can I do now with all the magic that I have learned?

  Garry sat quietly pondering these questions throughout the entire morning and into the afternoon when finally, an idea came to him.

  Garry rose from the couch and addressed Detective Grant, “Detective Grant, I have been thinking and something occurred to me just now. If this world suddenly goes to heck (Garry was watching his language in front of the little one), we are all are going to need supplies, survival stuff like a first aid kit, food, water, tents, sleeping bags. You know, stuff like that.”

  Detective Grant responded, “Good thinking, I’ll take Jesse and go shopping right away. You should probably stay here though. After all, I wouldn’t want authorities to find out that I am harboring a known fugitive.”

  Garry responded, “I was actually thinking of going by myself. I could just go and teleport to a Walmart in Canada, grab a shopping cart, fill it with everything that we will need. Then I can just teleport back here with the cart.”

  Detective Grant shrugged his shoulders and said, “Well I don’t usually condone shoplifting but, under the circumstances, do what you need to do.”

  Garry continued, “I will need to use your computer to map out a location in my head for the stores that I will be teleporting to.”

  Detective Grant responded, “Help yourself, you know where it is.”

  Detective Grant had a computer table in the dining room. Garry took a seat at the table and turned the computer on. Once the computer was finished booting up, Garry ran a Google Maps search, first locating a Walmart in Toronto, Canada, then locating a second Walmart in Edmonton, Canada. Garry studied each location, committing them both to memory. Then, once he was confident that he knew where he was teleporting to, he cast his spell and appeared in Toronto.

  Garry had teleported to the parking lot area. He then calmly walked into the store, grabbed a shopping cart, and then started shopping. Once Garry had filled his shopping cart to the brim, he found a secluded section of the store and teleported out with the shopping cart. Then Garry repeated the same process again at Edmonton.

  By the time that Garry was done, there were two shopping carts loaded to the brim with survival supplies at Detective Grant’s house. Garry was now exhausted. He retired to bed early and slept throughout the afternoon and evening hours.

  Garry was awakened by the smell of bacon. Upon rising from the couch, his stomach growled. It was then that Garry realized he had nothing to eat all day yesterday. Garry walked to the dining room and took a seat. He was starving.

  Both Anna and Detective Grant were in the kitchen preparing breakfast. Once Anna saw that Garry was up, she smiled and said, “Good morning, Garry. I see that you did some shopping for us yesterday.”

  Detective Grant added, “Now that you’re rested. Maybe you can help me pack all this stuff today.”

  “I would be happy to,” Garry responded.

  Detective Grant then added, “Oh, they attributed your attack on the police station yesterday to a car bombin
g. I thought that you would be curious to know.”

  Garry responded, “Anything new in the news?”

  Detective Grant responded, “No, everyone is still freaking out over all the disease outbreaks.”

  Detective Grant and Anna started preparing plates and serving the food, which consisted of a ham and cheese omelet, bacon, and toast. Once Detective Grant and his wife were finished preparing and serving the food, they both joined Garry at the dining room table.

  Detective Grant then asked, “So, are you a time traveler now?”

  Garry answered, “Yep.”

  Anna then asked, “What does that mean exactly?”

  Garry answered, “It means that I can now look into the future or the past.”

  Anna responded, “But can you go there? Like as in Back to the Future?”

  Garry answered, “Well, I could, but the consequences are pretty horrible. King Noah warned me again not to change anything when I time travel. He said that if I did, my own death would be certain. At least going into the past it would be. And I also run the risk of wiping out all life on Earth as well. So no, time-traveling Back to the Future style would NOT be a good idea.”

  Anna responded, slightly confused, “He spoke to you directly?”

  Garry answered, “Well, I mean Nephal. He spoke to Nephal, not me.”

  Garry quickly finished his food, then returned to the kitchen to pour himself a bowl of cereal. After a short while, Anna was off for another day of work. Then, Detective Grant and Garry worked together to pack all of the things that Garry had taken yesterday from the two Walmarts. Detective Grant had several luggage bags stored in his closet that were used for this purpose. They worked quickly to finish packing all of the bags before Jesse could wake up and help. And by help, that would have meant running off with everything that she could get her hands on and scattering them all throughout the house.