Kal’s Locket

The child sits with folded hands in his lap while intelligent blue eyes stare aimlessly at the blank wall opposite him. He’s not moved in the past twelve hours. An extraordinary amount of time for a thirteen year old to stay still. A single tear rolls down his porcelain like cheek as I open the steel door to his room.

“Hello Kal, my name is Doctor Franklin. I’m a child psychologist here to talk to you about what you’ve been through the past couple of days. Does that sound alright?”

He makes no attempt to acknowledge my words. I watch as the tear falls from his jaw before leaving a wet circle on his white gown. Moving closer I notice a slight twitch of the child’s left thumb, the one that a team of doctors had just sown back on last night.

“Does your thumb hurt? I can get you some pain killers if you’d like.” Receiving no answer I continue. “Kal, I have been sent here to talk with you and not at you. If you don’t speak back I will be forced to leave and you’ll receive no other visitors until your trial. I don’t think being secluded is what’s best for a teenager who has just been through a traumatic event like you have. What do you say? Can we have a conversation? Just a word and I’ll be able to stay around and keep coming back.”

I lean against the padded walls of his room as he continues to stare into space. His thumb twitches again and he lets out a sigh; the first noise he’s made since being taken into custody. A metallic shriek draws my attention towards the door before I look back towards the child.

A sinister smile has spread across his thin lips and his head is tilted to the right which brings those bright blue eyes in line with mine. Terror floods over me as his mouth creeps open producing a mechanical click as it does.

“Doctor Franklin, it is nice to meet you.” Kal’s voice sounds much older than his thirteen year old body looks.

“Thank you, it’s nice to meet you also. How are you feeling today?”

“I am doing well. My mind is bored with little to stimulate it in this cell, my body aches from the past few days work, and I feel as if I have lost something recently. I would like to offer you a cup of tea however, as you can see, I do not have the required ingredients to do so. Instead the best I may offer you is the seat I am in, as I will move to the bed.”

“Thank you, that’s kind of you Kal. What hurts on your body? We can probably get you some sort of medicine to ease the pain.”

“Oh that will not be necessary as I do not believe I am much longer for this earth.”

“Kal, you’re thirteen. You’ve got a lot of time left on earth. What work have you been doing the past few days that has you so tired?”

“You know of the work. It is why I am in this cell, and why you are here to speak with me now.”

“Will you take me through it please? I need to hear about it from you.”

“Why should I?”

“It will help me understand what happened and what caused the events to unfold that did.”

“What will that do for me?”

“What I determine from what you tell me will effect your trial and what happens to you after.”

“So I do not have an option in this? If I choose to speak no more, what will happen then?”

“I will leave and you will receive no visitors or communication with the outside world until your trial.”

“That sounds depressing. I choose to speak to you, Doctor Franklin. Where shall I begin?”

“At the beginning.”

“How far back?”

“When did you start to feel differently, like you may want to do what you did?”

“Okay.”

Kal lays on his back and smiles at the ceiling as I drum my fingers against the notebook before I bring the one pencil that I was allowed to bring into the room out and begin to listen to the child’s tale unfold. The room seems to disappear as his wise voice is cast over the small space creating a magical effect.

“They were good people; the ones who were raising me. Never did I go hungry or feel the embarrassment of having old clothes with holes or stains that I had to wear to school. They taught me to ride a bicycle, throw a ball, follow instructions, fix a car, and other staples of a good childhood. We loved each other and we were happy.”

“On the night of my twelfth birthday is when things began to change. You see doctor, they pushed me into having a party that I did not want. Instead of enjoying the night I left my house and wandered through our neighborhood before coming to an old graveyard.”

“The gravestones seemed odd to me with their large gargoyles, chipped stone, beautiful marble, and other magnificent creations fixed on top of the markers, so I went around and inspected them all. One by one I ran my hands along them and felt the words inscribed into each before feeling the different toppers of each.”

“Reaching the end of the graveyard I found a rather beautiful slab of marble that was engraved with only the initials RHP that I spent a moment to look over. There was a carving in the stone of a griffin that was wrapped around the initials and wrapped around the griffin was a necklace.”

“A glint from the moon caught the heart shaped blue topaz locket which brought my hand to it greedily. The beauty of the necklace compelled my fingers to snatch it from the stone. The white chain slide around my neck with ease and seemed to fit as if it were made for me.”

“The next thing I remember is walking into the front door of my house with a smile on my face. My parents were sitting in the hallway chairs with anger clear on each of their faces. The moment I walked in they began to scream at me, like I had done something wrong.”

“Instead of arguing with them I simply walked towards my room after apologizing and laid down for the night. That night is when the dreams began.”

I wait for the child to continue but am disappointed by his silence. Processing the information he has given me leads me down no roads to any worthwhile knowledge about the cause of this travesty. My eyes travel over the boy again and I’m unable to process how such a small person committed these heinous acts.

My deep voice fills the room before I even develop an entire sentence. “Tell me of the dreams, Kal.”

“The first night was minor and they grew worse each night.”

“Can you tell me of the first dream?”

“When I closed my eyes a dark purple sky bloomed above me. Three suns of different colors that were red, blue, and yellow all lit up the sky which allowed me to see the same graveyard that I had been in prior that night. Looking closer I noticed the stones had been replaced with statues of human bodies shaped like the gargoyles and other creatures that I had seen earlier.”

“As I looked on in awe a scream erupted from my throat as the statues began to break apart and regrow on the ground in front of me. I tried to turn and run from the morbid scene but my legs would not work. Instead of running away I was forced to peer into the glowing pink eyes of the monsters before me.”

“They began to walk towards me, each step sending a rumble through the ground that shook me in place. As they got closer I could hear the labored breathing and saw saliva dripping from their mouths. My stomach was about to push its contents out when my eyes sprung open to the concerned faces of my parents.”

“They kept asking me if I was alright so I explained the dream to them. Their initial response was to preach scripture to me. They believed the Lord could cure any problem just by talking to Him. They told me that my dream was because I was insubordinate the night before and that if I continued being so that the dreams would get even worse.”

“After spending hours being lectured by them I was locked in my room with nothing to do for the rest of the day. They took my books, the radio, magazines, and everything else besides my bible from me. I was expected to read it front to back before I was allowed to leave my room again, which I did. Every word of it I made myself read in an attempt to become a better son and to avoid worse dreams than the night before.”

“I was allowed to come out of my room early in order to eat, but then was forced to go back into it and was shut up for the night. Hearing the lock snap into place made my heart sink. The fear of nighttime flooded over me and left nothing but terror in its place.”

“Instead of reading more of the Bible I laid down and sleep took ahold of me faster than I thought possible. Another dream ensued the moment my eyes closed.”

I nod as I continue to scribble down what I find important. His tone has gravitated towards one of reflection and I don’t want to stop it. He continues as I thought he would.

“The second dream took me to an indoor area that I didn’t recognize. The walls were coated in a blue fire that, as I watched, spread onto the ceiling before stoping in a circle over my head. The floor was the deepest black I have ever seen, giving me the feeling of being suspended in air.”

“A fear washed over me as a doorway opened up in the wall of fire that I hadn’t noticed before. Through it walked a tall figure that I couldn’t quite make out. On its head sat a crown of sorts with objects dangling from it. I sat, unable to move, watching the thing advance towards me in the slowest fashion possible.”

“When it reached the edge of the circle that the fire had drawn above me it stopped. It stood in front of me for what seemed like hours before I tried speaking with no success. As the wind escaped my throat the figure leaned in towards me, bringing its face into view.”

“Large blisters covered most of its face, the only parts not covered by the puss filled balls were its eyes, mouth, and nose. Its skin was grey with dark red lines drawn in perfect circles every few inches. The things I saw dangling from the crown on its head sent me into a panicked craze.”

“Fetuses.”

The single word is spit out of his mouth in a voice that seems like multiple different voices at once. Between the sound of his voice and the image of a fetus hanging from a crown I push backwards away from the now sitting child.

“A fetus? Like an unborn child?”

“Why yes doctor, that is exactly what I mean. Unborn children dangled from the crown of the figure in my dream. Their cries made the fire retreat from above me and back towards the walls. As the fire left the thing came closer to me. Its red circles seemed to grow brighter with each step he took.”

“I couldn’t move so I just closed my eyes and began to cry from the fear. A pressure built in my chest and seemed to stop when it hit the necklace that I had taken from the grave. Howls of pain erupted from the room I was in before a force pushes me hard enough to knock me onto my back. When I opened my eyes I was back in my room with my parents looking down at me again.”

“There was no worry for me in their eyes this time, only anger. They blamed my lack of discipline to turn to scripture for the dreams that were keeping them awake. They said that if I wasn’t going to try to fix it then they would force me to in their own way.”

“Do you know what their way was, Doc?”

“No, but I would appreciate if you could tell me.”

“They shoved me into a closet with a nonstop recording of a man screaming scriptures at me. They only let me eat bread, two slices every six hours. I had to use a bucket for my waste. They kept me in this room for the entire day. From the moment I woke up with them over me until that night at midnight.”

“I wasn’t allowed to sleep, the closet was so small that the bucket for my waste was also used as a seat. The only kindness they showed was giving me a board to put over the bucket so I wasn’t sitting in my own waste. At midnight they opened the door with smiles.”

“They feigned love as they opened their arms for me, expecting me to forgive them instantly. Instead I walked past them and towards my room. My father caught me by the back of my neck and spun me around. Stars exploded inside of my head as his fist broke my nose.”

“His anger was new to me and cowering away only made it worse. He walked after me while drawing his belt from his pants, the crack of which sent shivers down my entire back. He beat me that night, and didn’t stop for the next year or so.”

“I didn’t have another dream for the better part of six months. The only terrifying things in my life were my fathers new anger and the holiness of the house I was raised in. On one hand I thought that the scripture had worked for me. After all, the day I had spent in the closet had been the last time I dreamed.”

“That made me accepting towards my parents demands of Bible study and church. If it could help me not see those terrifying things in my dreams than why wouldn’t I accept the Lord, you know?”

“It changed though when my father came into my room one night. Alcohol was noticeable the moment he walked in and I knew something bad was going to happen. Instead of fighting it I pretended to be asleep as he satisfied his demonic needs. It’s scary how the most righteous people are the most demented in reality.”

“Once he finished himself he left. After cleaning up the mess he left I fell asleep crying. Voices filled my head as I drifted in and out of sleep. Most of it was Latin, I recognized it from movies I had seen, unable to understand it but knowing the sound. One word in particular kept coming up which sounded like muerte but somewhat different.”

“The figure from before came back into my dreams. Bright blue circles were on the inside of the red ones he had before. The grey skin looked darker than before too. The disgusting blisters looked to be less swollen and his lips were turnt up in a smile.”

“That night he spoke to me. Nothing that I can recall now, but I do know he spoke. His voice filled the entire space we were in, including inside of my head. The echoes bounced around my brain for what seemed like days afterwards.”

“I let the newfound hatred grow inside of me for my father. The disgusting thing he had done proved to be the undoing of any respect I had left for him. The demon of my dreams promised to protect me from anymore of the sickness inside of my father and I accepted the offer.”

“When I did accept his offer something shifted inside of me. A fire seemed to begin to burn deep inside of me as I accepted that I would never accept that form of abuse again. Or any form of abuse. It had all gone to far, and I had a demon on my side to stop it from happening again.”

“After that night my father left the house for a few weeks, blaming a work trip on his absence. I knew though that he was just ashamed and wanted to escape his demons. That will never be possible though, sins like that do not just disappear.”

“When he came home he was a different person. There was no more alcohol in the house, he was quiet and calm. The heart shaped locket of blue topaz around my neck seemed to burn against my skin as he hugged me the first night he was home. I pulled away and saw the hurt in his eyes and smiled in response.”

“The first night he was back went well. We had supper and I went to bed. The demon I had been talking to nightly came to me and asked if I wanted my father to go away again. When I told him no he seemed to get upset and left my dreams. I wouldn’t see him again until the second weekend of my fathers return.”

After a short pause the child continues. His tone has become deeper than before.

“I thought we had began to become a family again. Fathers drinking had stopped, my mother had calmed down with the scripture readings, and I wasn’t having dreams anymore. My father lost his job and came home with a bottle of whiskey.”

“My mother was gone at her sisters that night and father became the same man he was before. The anger, aggression, and perversion came out within an hour of him returning home from his job and I was forced to bear the brunt of it.”

“He pushed me into my room and instead of shutting the door and walking away he walked in after me. I could feel the lust coming from his body and tried to cry out but his hand covered my mouth. The locket began to burn against my skin so hot that the smell of burning flesh caught my fathers attention.”

“He spun me around and saw the hole in my shirt and the locket searing my skin. A gasp came from his mouth as the monster from my dream appeared between him and I. With a swipe of the demons hand my fathers heart came out of his chest.”

“The demon bite into it as I watched. Feeling my eyes on him he turned and offered me the still beating organ. Without waiting for my response he shoved it down my throat. I could feel the puke rising, but before I could throw the heart back up the demon snapped his fingers which makes the feeling disappear. The flavor was amazing, the fresh blood was warm. I wanted more.”

“My mother walked into the house just then as she hummed along to a churchy song. The sound seemed to anger the demon, and he disappeared downstairs. I heard a scream which took me downstairs myself and saw the same fate had taken my mother.”

“I demanded the demon tell me why her, but I got no response. Instead he disappeared and the locket went with him. Now I’m here, with you.”

“So a demon killed your parents, not you?”

“That is correct. I have never lifted a finger in violence towards another.”

“Why do you think the demon attacked your mother? If you had to guess.”

“She had allowed dad to do what he did. She knew about the first time and sent him off to get help. She let him do it again, she should have never left me alone with him after that.”

“So the demon was protecting you still?”

“Yes I believe so.”

“Why would a demon care about a thirteen year old boy?”

“I do not know.”

“Do you believe in God, Kal?”

“I do not.”

“But you do believe in demons?”

“I know that they are real, for I have seen them.”

“If demons are real isn’t it a fair assumption to say that God is as well?”

“I do not know.”

“The cops who found you say that you were holding a knife. Can you explain that?”

“I got it to protect myself if the demon came back. I was scared.”

“I don’t think that you’re scared of anything, Kal.”

“You do not know me well Doctor.”

“The cops found no evidence of another person there either. Entity or otherwise. How do you explain that?”

“I am not capable of explaining it.”

“Why do you think that the demon helped you?”

“I think I received a power to rid the world of a sick pair of humans.”

“Do you think that you killed them yourself? Is that a possibility?”

“No.”

“Is there anything you can tell me to prove it? Are you sure that the necklace is gone?”

“I can show you.”

“How can you show me if the necklace is gone.”

“I am done with the body of this adolescent. You will feel my power inside of you now.”

“What are you talking abo…”

The child jumps out of the bed and tried to attack me. His strength more than I would have expected, but I am able to subdue him without much more than a simple scratch on my arm.

“Calm down, Kal. Relax. We’re almost done here.”

“Let me go!” His voice changes as he fights me.

“Who are you?”

“I am Rothgard, bringer of the end, protector of innocence! I demand you allow me freedom!”

“No!”

I push the child down into the bed as the orderlies come in with the tranquilizer ready. Moving out of their way I watch the child fall asleep while they are still pushing the medicine down with the plunger. My feet take me out of the room and towards the waiting attorneys. Both the prosecuting and defense are there and waiting.

“So, do you see what I’m talking about? My client is clearly in no mental state to stand trial.”

“What do you think, Doctor?” The prosecutor asks. Her voice seems defeated, she knows the child is ill.

“He has suffered a dissociative split in his personality. It was once known as multiple personality disorder. We believe that it becomes present in individuals who suffer trauma like Kal has as a coping mechanism for that trauma. The demon he speaks of is his protector, it is who killed his parents. The heart shaped locket he speaks of is the imaginations way of calling on said protector. The shape of it as a heart is a subconscious way for his mind to display heartbreak. The fact that it is a locket, splits in half, shows the pain he feels in his heart. In my opinion the child is unfit to stand trial and needs to be hospitalized.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” The two attorneys say in unison before turning to walk away together. They would get a full report on the child by tomorrow night and that is the last I would hear from them unless the judge wants a statement.

As I watch them go I can feel a weight increase in the pocket of my shirt, beside the spot that Kal had scratched. Reaching into the pocket I feel the metal of a heart shaped necklace. As my fingers slide against it the world turns black.

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