Surgence

Chapter 110: Surgence

 

 

 

 

            He wanted to move forward but was paralyzed with indecision. He had the car in gear but was pressing the gas and it just revved uncontrollably. He realized it was in neutral and not low-drive like he’d thought. He looked over and girl was not where she’d been previously. Trevor was scared; he got so scared that he shifted back into park and left it there. Then she appeared. She popped up by the passenger window, whining and shouting, looking like a masked figure ready to dissect him. Trevor became terrified. He shrieked and pressed the gas peddle but it just sputtered when he was still in park. He looked past her to the buildings and then back at her and she just held her face up the glass but he couldn’t see it. All her hair was in the way and covered it perfectly to a t and scared him half to death. When he moon cleared the cloud-cover and shone back down, he could see her skin more clearly. Pale and squirmy looking skin that stuck out among her black leggings and halter-top. All at once she was flying, levitating off the ground and holding onto the side of the car with persistence. A cloud of deep shadow appeared around her and engulfed her hands and head. Trevor could see the lock of the door begin to crack and come undone as she tugged on the handle.

            There was a cold draft coming through the door where she was pulling. For a second, he thought she might break through. But, with a glimpse of her rattling the door with all her might there was simply no way she was going to do it. He could see a chiseled grin behind that muss of black hair where she was floating. “She must be a witch.” he thought. But, witches don’t normally do this kind of stuff around where they live. It was excruciating and he was just about to take off. “What if she follows me?” That wouldn’t be good. He was only a mile and something away from where he lived. If she found out then things could turn south real fast. He spun the wheel and took off forward. She was following him. Flying along at a pace which hardly matched his own. He could see her pale scrawny limbs suspended permitably level with the ground and she looked like she was soaking up the night air. Stilted in the middle of the road, she hung in the balance directly in the middle. As he wheeled away he hoped she wouldn’t keep following him. “Maybe she’s related to that ghoul that David took care of.” he pondered. She may not have been a witch, but an apparition like the last he’d faced that covered him in ice. It was a terrifying fleeting feeling that made his nose crumple and breathe out heavily. When he made it home, he climbed into bed and fell right asleep.

            The day after he decided to check out the place during the daytime. When he made it an irrational tinge stung his nose again. He was probably reliving the image of it somewhere in his mind. He knew which apartment she’d been sitting at and it was haunting him. Maybe he should go back up there today and face her during the day. It wouldn’t be as difficult to capture her in broad daylight. He didn’t want to kill her. He needed to keep her in check and if he could he would push her up against the wall and keep her at bay until he could get some information out of her. Anything; about what she was or maybe how she could help him. Something like that. He took off on foot and tread up the street without pause. He moved right up on the place in a matter of fifteen minutes or so. It wasn’t too far away, he walked down the walkway which wasn’t scary in the daytime, and rapped on the door. He waited for many minutes and nothing. He turned the handle; unlocked. He pushed the door in, not without some precaution, and walked in.

            He closed the door, banking on no one having seen him breaking in and stood in the first room of the place. There he gathered himself; coming to terms with the fact that he was trespassing. He put his hand on the first table to the right of him. He heard a loud bang and metal rolling in the next room. Then a black cat strut out of there and into the room with him. His heart skipped a beat and he went to nurture and pet the cat so it wouldn’t do anything else. It just huffed and walked to the base of the stairs. He heard noise. More than that, human foot-steps. He ran to the kitchen and stood behind the wall. He heard one girl saying, “Here kitty kitty.” and panicked. Unsure of what to do, “Should I wait and leave? Should I show myself and take her by surprise? Either way he was the intruder and he had to act quickly.”

            “Um, what are you doing in here?” She’d crept in while he was lost in thought. “Oh hi, um, I came to check you out.” he said without thinking. “Check me out? What’re we at school or something?”

            “No, I guess not. Hey! You attacked me the other night. Shouldn’t I be the one asking the questions.”

            “No, because you’re in my house and what I say goes. Sorry, I get uppity around this time of year.”

            “What do you mean? From the way I looked at it you were a wild witch.”

            “I am a witch, and you’d better watch out. Cause I could kill you dead in a blink of an eye.”

            “So could I.” he said with a lump in his throat. “Are you a witch hunter?”

            “A demon hunter actually. But, I can be a bit more indiscriminate if I need to.”

            “Oh, can you now?” she rolled her eyes. “I can. Take a look at this.” He flashed his hand one good time full of energy running through the course of his veins. “Oh my God. What is that?” she looked at it begrudgingly. “It’s so beautiful, what can you do wi…”

            “Be careful it’s dangerous.”

            “What can it…”

            “It’ll turn you to ashes in an instant.”

            “Oh… amazing.” She was fantasizedly curious. He wondered if she actually wanted him to do it to her in some sick masochistic form of synergy. “Don’t touch my hand right now if you want to live.”

            “I wasn’t gonna.” she replied in a semi-childish way. There was no hope where this conversation was going. “You’re a witch, huh?”

            “Yes, what of it?”

            “So that’s why you were hostile to my car and flew off the ground.”

            “Yes. I wanted to put you in a stew and eat you probably.” she admonished. “You’d have a hell of a time trying to get me into that pot.” he laughed. “I see that now. But, I’d probably mince you up first before I did any cooking.”        

            “That’s inspiring.” he said sarcastically. “What do you want from me Mr. glowing green hands.”

            “Well, I might smite you. Unless you’re some use to me.”

            “How could I be of service.” she said a little taken a-back. “you could show me your room. We can talk up there.”

            “Okay, you’re the boss, man.” They went up together, pounding the stairs as they went. Her room was small. The curtains tethered so that they wouldn’t flop down and move around. The bed sat a few feet off the ground with the slats holding it up. “Make yourself comfortable wherever.” she said. He did so, sitting on the floor in the soft carpet. The cat had followed them in and was nuzzling up against Trevor. “So how does a witch afford her own apartment?”

            “My Mom pays for it.” she told him. “ahh, I see.” he said. “and what does a witch do here?”

            “Oh, you know, spy on people with my crystal ball, torture the neighbors, prepare to kill. That sort of thing.”

            “You’re starting to sound like my master.”

            “and who is your master?”

            “If you don’t already know then I’m not telling you.”

            “Alright, alright, don’t be so testy.”

            “My master is one of my well kept secrets.”

            “I haven’t seen your master in my ball. I have seen you stop a demon from killing your friend.”

“She could be lying. Then again, it had been a while since he’d seen Don.”

“Alright witchy. What can you do for me?”

“That’s a good question. What can I do for you? Besides feed me of course.”

“Yeah, I can’t let you do that. What do you know about a certain angel?”

“I know a lot. Including knowledge of angels. I also know you’ve eaten a phoenix feather. Which makes you much more powerful than I.”

“I already knew I was probably more powerful than you.”

“Oh, well then, I guess I can’t…”

“Okay, okay.”

“I see. The rogue angel is far away right now. Of course if you wanted to settle your score you’d gather your friends. Especially the other one you spend so much time with, and call him down.”

“Is that what I would do?”

“Yes, I would imagine, but I think deep in your heart you know you’re not ready to fight him.”

“Maybe not, but I’ve no other choice.”

“Right. If that’s the case, I can construct a device to bring him down and keep him down.”

“What might that be?”

“It’s a lightning rod of sorts. It’ll use magic to keep him tied to the ground.”

“Sounds too good to be true.”

“Oh, but it isn’t. I can have it ready by tomorrow.”

“Really? What do you want in return?”

“I want safety. From you and your boys and whoever your master is.” she elaborated. “I can do that. I’ve needed to see my master for a long time now.”

“Good. That’s all I want from you.” They shook hands and Trevor was still sitting on the floor unsure of what to do with himself. “I shall show you now the angel’s domain.” She pulled a clear glass ball out from behind her bed-spread and turned her head back and laughed. “It wasn’t too easy getting his location you know.”

“Yes yes. Thank you very much and all.” Trevor told her. “I would still like you to tell me who your master is, but I guess I can live without.”

“I might tell you.” he said not without some retraction. She pushed on on her ball of glass somehow and brought it up to him. “See I can lift this just as I can elevate myself. The crystal sphere was floating down toward him just as she had the night she assailed him; also the night before. “Now let me give you a window into the world of the rogue.” He couldn’t believe his eyes. He could see the angel holding onto himself in his bed chamber. He looked afraid; like somebody would drag him out of there at any time. Trevor winced a bit and didn’t want to look anymore. He averted his eyes. “What’s this? It seems we’ve lost connection for some reason.”

Trevor looked at the ball. It was now blank with no sign of the angel in present. He flipped his eyes up at the girl. “So tell me what is it you seek? Where was I seeing just now?”

“I want the name of your master and the source of your power. Also, he was in heaven in the heaven of his own device.”

“My master’s name is Don and my power come from the demon lord Greeley.”

“Oh, everything is making sense. I see your partners have demon lord’s power as well. “Yes, most of them do. I’m using them to set this world right.”

            “Indeed you are.” she said in subtly sweet voice. “our ends to the means are the same.” she said at last. Trevor was sent home with an incomplete feeling deep within his brain. He was told that if he ever needed her, he would be allowed to come back and call upon her. He highly doubted that that would ever come to that, but he supposed it was possible. He walked the street nightly and all the Earth was calm and peaceful. “Just remember I’ll be watching you.” was the last thing out of her mouth and the last thing he thought about before going to bed that night.