A Soul Protected

It was over, finally over!

This battle, though both my friend Harria and I knew there would be many more to come, had been hard fought and hard won. It had taken a toll on everyone involved and dealt a great deal of damage to my family, but it was finally over. We had come out victorious, we didn’t have a choice considering what was on the line if we lost, but at least we had won.

I stood, well actually, floated in the spirit plane hearing the witches scream in their own personal hells. I looked out from the amorphous rock outcropping that I perched on and saw them writhe all around me, each in a sickeningly eerie green-yellow miasma. Their eyes were focused on something which only they could see. It was unnerving, and I couldn't help but smile.

I had come here partly out of curiosity and partly to close this chapter.

I needed to know why the entity that the coven had worshipped as a god had targeted my tiny son. The coven's motivations were clear, they wanted power and would do anything to get it. They didn't care whom they hurt. Whether they were kids, babies, or their own loved ones, I always wondered how a person could get that way.

I floated there, my pensive thoughts putting me in a darker mood.

The rocky gray alcove beneath me contrasted starkly with the rest of how the surrounding astral plane appeared, scarlet clouds painted with splashes of burgundy and inky black lazily whirling all around me while farther down below me were different colored pockets within the cloudy mass....each held a witch in her own personal version of hell, efficient if I do say so myself.

Interesting meeting place, I mused. I picked up the cup of tea that sat at my elbow and felt my mouth twist. It was a fragrant apple blossom variety. An ornate Victorian tea table and tea set grew from the rock, as did the tasseled oriental cushions on either side of said table. All done in deep green and gold with dashes of red.

I wondered what exactly this imagery was designed to convey to me as I knew, in reality, I was a ball of energy floating around an energy field....the dramatic backdrop was definitely a bit of supernatural theater. I just wondered who it was truly aimed at.

It was quite cozy, well amidst the dark clouds of pain and the screams that currently echoed throughout this small patch of the spirit plane.

Neither I nor the entity that had passed itself off as a dark demigod to this coven of particularly nasty body-switching witches had had a say in picking this meeting place. This was just where we had popped out.

The coven whom my friend Harria and I had to stop, had done horrible things, and they had been stupid enough to not only go after children around me...but my own small son.

Even bribing a dying ex-military contracting psychic to switch bodies with my son.

My insides turn to ice at the memories.

Truthfully, part of me wanted to forget that it ever happened and run far away with my little boy, another part of me wanted to put a bullet in my head, but the biggest part of me wanted to make sure that this never happened to even one child ever again.

My lifelong anger issues kept me anchored in my resolve for vengeance and kept my protective instincts thrumming.

I sighed into my large and ornate teacup, it had been a long and grueling battle for my child's soul, and I was completely wrung out. Harria's naturally energetic and always ready to throw down nature had taken a vacation as well.

She had fought like a tigress for my son and while she was strong, we both were, it had taken a toll and had left my son with trauma that he could never truly talk to anyone about.

I took a long pull, the tea now tasted like roses and was thankful that I had co-slept with him or I wouldn't have been quick enough to sense what was happening, I also said a silent prayer of thanks to my spirit guides as they had been a big part of the battle.

This meeting was mutually agreed upon for my part, it was due to a mix of curiosity and a need for closure. I wasn't sure what the would-be demigod’s intentions were. I probably should have cared but I didn't, his greatest gift was to be able to manipulate a being into doing what he wanted. I looked out over the pockets around us and felt my lips curve into a smile. I hated every one of those witches so much that I felt my blood burn in my veins.

I pulled my attention back to my teatime companion. His ambiguous form shifted persistently, almost restlessly. He could appear in any form he chose, apparently, he had dispensed with the pomp and ceremony that he usually displayed in favor of a more practical approach for today he looked like a reflective glowing cloud. This was the same entity who had conscripted a coven of witches to do his bidding, many dark and nasty deeds had he accomplished by using those in the mortal plane who were foolish enough to follow him and to believe his lies and promises.

This coven was no different than the many who had proceeded them. They all believed that he was an all-powerful ancient god and that he would protect them from the consequences of all the misdeeds that they committed in his name...no matter how horrific.

In exchange, he promised that he would give them power. The power to heal themselves, the power to become rich, power over others, etc. It was the same old story...opportunistic entity, foolish mortal. Had any of them been smart or observant, they would have been able to see that he wasn't truly doing ANYTHING, they were doing it all themselves, to terrifying effect.

The one who was currently shrieking below me , her eyes had deteriorated to almost complete blindness through cataracts. He gave her a way to siphon sight from others. She chose children, but the more she siphoned the more she needed as the cataracts grew out of control with every siphon.

She writhed and twisted, I could tell she was in pain both physically and mentally. I sipped my tea which had changed again to have a bit of lavender and vanilla hints mixed with Earl grey.

I could see many of the rest of the coven in similar agony and it hit me that there really was quite a lot of difference in the pitch and quality of a human scream, as they each had their own unique harmony with them.

"And they had no idea of what you actually are?"

The entity resolved itself into a man who looked to be pushing fifty with dark brown hair, he wore a dark blue set of robes giving him the look of a wizard, he smiled and chuckled "No. None of them ever do."

I looked at him and shook my head “ How old are you really?”

He held his chin and thought for a moment “Well that’s hard to measure to you. Hmm, the people that I was part of had built empires and drove themselves across the earth, all their efforts and accomplishments were in vain as they crumbled and turned to ash. They enjoyed a centuries-long reign only to be forgotten long before the civilization that rose to power and fell before what you would call Atlantis. I am ancient, child.”

“You have been doing this for THAT long?”

He smiled “Uhm Hmm.”

“So how did you pass yourself off as a god? No matter how old you are or how much power you manage to gain…a god is going to be a bit of a stretch isn’t it?”

He smiled ”A few simple magic tricks and anyone will believe anything. The more cynical and jaded a person is, the better the trick works. This particular coven were easy marks. They were drunk on their own meager power plays. A few parlor tricks and a few promises were all that they needed to do what I wanted them to do. To be fair, they took it much farther than I intended and were far more inspired than I was. They were useful.”

“What were you, originally and how have you hung around the mortal plane for so long without crossing over?”

“Hmmm that is an interesting question, I was corporeal, and I lived my life amongst my people. I ate, I slept, I interacted with others, I worked." He seemed genuinely fuzzy about the details.

At his last word my second sight homed in on his life, it tangled itself with my empath gifts and gave me a quick overview of the entity's life. I saw and felt it…at least the twisted mess that his memories had become.

He, it had been a man, had come from an ancient people who embraced an informal caste system. He had been some form of magic user, perhaps energy worker would be more accurate, but not how we imagine things like that today and he had been well versed in his job, very committed to it and to the sect that he belonged to. His sect and society felt very connected to the earth, almost shamanic in nature. I caught a flash of greenish robes and large boulders with glyphs carved into them, perhaps a staff.

He had just been going along in his life when he had been killed unpleasantly, I sensed persecution of some form…his death had been one of many but had had a different quality then the others around it. He felt a touch older & there was something significant about him at his death. I then felt what had sustained him after death and through the centuries before he said it.

"HATE. It's what has kept me moving in your world. Pure and simple." He floated staring into his teacup.

I looked at him and knew that it was both hate and rage that burned in him even now. His life had ended unjustly, unfairly, he had done nothing wrong. The difference between him and the others who were put to death was that He had enough power, enough strength and enough resolve to seek vengeance.

His actions on his journey were absolutely unjustifiable and unforgivable! He had taken a dark and warped path; it had gotten more and more twisted as the years flew by. I understood his emotions, and why he felt the way he did but I could never condone them.

What had started out as an understandable response to injustice had turned evil. It made me sad in a small way. To harbor that kind of hate for so much time would change anyone. His actions were inexcusable, and he was completely absorbed in his hate, it made me stop in awe of the sheer willpower that it took to be that way.

It also made me regretful for all the good that much strength could do if pointed in the right direction, it made me sad for the fact that this entity was lost and would never find his way back to any semblance of himself because he was too consumed by hate.

All of this is why I wished that my gifts would come with a return receipt, it would have been easier to just hate him. I didn't want to care, but it's kind of hard to be black and white when you can truly experience both sides of an issue. I prefer simplicity.

I took a moment to catch my breath "Did you teach them the body switching?"

"No, they had already been through a few rounds of switching before I came along."

Harria and I had to go to a death deity ourselves to get the switching shut down. The coven had been cheating this deity and had managed to slide under his radar for years. Needless to say, he was not happy and was particularly brutal since he felt he had been played for a fool.

"The consequences for that coven have been terrifying, did you know what would happen to them?"

"Oh yes. Of course. Given their deeds, how could their consequences be anything but terrible?" He looked as though I were being a bit slow.

“They believed you could erase their consequences.” I remarked pointedly as I looked at him over my cup, which currently smelled like a spiced chai.

"I just put it off for a few hundred years, no one can get in the way of something like that." He scoffed at the thought.

"But they were your people, your acolytes?"

"That is the wrong word. My people have been dead for a long time. I do not have any acolytes. They were entertaining, less efficient than those I have made offers to before, prone to histrionics and rather clumsy." He said it all as if he were chatting about the weather.

"Is this a joke to you?" I asked levelly, this entire situation left me incredulous. The conversation only served to intensify that feeling.

He grinned "The best joke. A trick, one that I have played over and over as you know. One that I will continue to play and continue to be successful with."

"To what end."

"Well now, that's simple. My Revenge."

My disgusted confusion must have shown on my face as he laughed long and hard. It took me aback. His reactions were so callous. He truly cared nothing for any of the people who worked for him. They were less than tools to him...less than a rock or a plant. They meant nothing to him. I was completely shocked that any being could be so cold.

Once he calmed, I asked, "How many times have you done this before?"

He waved his hand out over the clouds below us and as far as I could see the clouds were filled with pockets of screaming entities, all in that same yellow-green energy. It went on and on without end. I shuddered. There were also pockets that seemed dormant and darkened but filled with the same viscous looking miasma.

"You keep them?!"

He shook his head incredulously "No, why would I."

"But they are all here."

"This has nothing to do with me. I don't care what happens to them. There is always an equal and opposite reaction for all actions. No being can stand in the way of that. The moment that they chose this path their consequences were set, the only thing in question was how devastating the consequences would be. They chose the course of action that led them here, they had plenty of other options”

I nodded “You did talk them into it though.”

“They had chosen this path long before they met me. I made them an offer and they took it.”

“Wow!” I spoke

The entity sipped his tea and stared off distractedly , lost in his own thoughts.

I sipped my tea. “What are those darkened pockets?”

“Ah, those are set aside for the ones who haven’t yet shuffled off their mortal coil. Not to worry the spirit plane is patient and their consequences will wait for them.” He snickered.

I could almost feel bad for these people….nah, they deserved every minute of it.

"Why come after my son?" I almost didn't want to ask, I was terrified of his answer, I didn't know if I was strong enough to hear it….but I needed to know.

He opened his mouth to answer me, and everything collapsed around us, I felt myself snapping back into my body and jolted upright to see my little boy fast asleep beside me, Harria stood at the doorway of our bedroom looking concerned.

"Where were you? You weren't even breathing Allison. "Her green eyes were filled with worry, the deep ashy circles beneath them leant an exhaustion to her that was unnatural. Coupled with her red hair and pale skin, they made Harria look ill.

"Went to chat with..."

"The entity. I told you the coven was getting what they deserved. I know, I know, it's a lot to take on faith." She smiled ruefully.

"Considering what they tried to take, yes, it is." I knew my face displayed the unpleasantness that I carried in my heart.

Before that feeling could grow, my thoughts were interrupted by baby Max's cute little snores as he rolled over to snuggle, well honestly it was more like burrowing up against me.

I couldn't help but smile, he was the love of my life, my whole world. I hugged his little form tightly and felt my heart contract painfully at the thought that I almost lost him.

Harria softened a bit "Allison, Max is ok. They didn't get him. We weren't going to lose." She said it softly. She knew how I felt, and that it would take a long time before I would calm down and feel safe.

"The entity plans to keep doing this." I said over Max's tiny shoulder. I had picked him up and had him clutched to my chest in a bear hug cradling motion. "I was yanked back before I could find out why he did it. "

"It doesn't matter why. I've already arranged some help. He won't be doing anything else anymore." Harria's mouth twisted into a smug frown, and I could feel her resolve.

I had ascertained that the entity went dormant for long periods of time to conserve energy and escape notice from any deities or beings who could stop him. Those beings would find him soon, if they hadn't already.

"The coven has been stopped, the psychic died and was taken to judgment, the entity is being…wait no he has been found and stopped. The battle is done." Harria had a direct line to different deities and angels and such.

I Smiled a little "So Pizza Palace? We could let Maximum overdrive here eat his body weight in cheese pizza??" I said it very quietly so as not to wake him up.

"Yeah!!! I love their fries!!!" Harria beamed.

"I will call Carl and let him know."

"That husband of yours is going to eat his own weight in pizza, are you sure that's in the budget?!" Harria was teasing. She had started staying with us when the supernatural attacks had gotten worse and was now pretty much a part of the family.

"Well, you and Mom are going to eat your weight in fries so we can't be unfair now, can we?" I laughed.

Harria laughed.

Max started to stir.

My Mom poked her head into the room "What's going on?"

"Pizza Palace" Harria & I chorused, at which point Max's eyes popped open and he chirped "Pizza!"

"Ooohh! I love their fries!!" Moms’ eye's gleamed

I held Max's excitedly wriggling form and just smiled. I knew we had more coming, but for today I wanted my son to be happy!