The Heart of Darkness

by Akane-Rei

PART TWO

Evil in the Midst

"How many powers of darkness claimed him for their own?"

--Marlow from "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad

**FLASHBACK . . . to a different time and a very different world . . .**

Who the hell did they think they are? he thought as we was unceremoniously forced to kneel before them. The unseen chains that bound his hands to his back chafed him to the very essence of his being. The utter powerlessness subjected to him grated his very soul. Slowly, he lifted his bowed head and glared hatefully at the Council of Guardians.

"You have no right to do this to me!" he spat.

The Council stared at him, through him actually.

This angered him even more. Their calmness and serenity at this moment -- HIS moment of disgrace -- enraged him more than anything else at that time.

Ingrates! he thought. After all I did for them!

Then the Council spoke as one.

"For your crimes against nature," said the disembodied, but unified, voices, "you are banished from your home world . . ."

THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!! he mentally screamed.

The Council winced at sheer volume of his thoughts but continued, "Sentenced to forever be trapped in a carbon cylinder . . ."

He felt the cold brush of air coming from below and above him. The cold surrounded him, enveloping his being, embracing his essence, solidifying all around him.

"All the while retaining your full consciousness . . ."

It's not enough that they banish me, he thought. Oh no. That would be too easy. They want me to be aware of my suffering, too! AHHHRG!

"Your cylinder will be ejected from our galaxy and hurled as far away as possible . . ."

Sentenced to a life of nothingness, he thought.

He felt his cylinder shift.

"This is the judgment of the Guardians . . ."

He felt his cylinder rise, taking him. He wanted to shout and curse and rail at the Guardians, the circumstances, and the Fates that contributed to his destiny, but he couldn't. His cylinder has rendered him immobile.

"Execution of sentence will take place in five counts . . ."

All he could do is stare down at those responsible for his predicament.

"Five . . ."

He can feel his rage overtake him . . .

"Four . . ."

He can feel his heart dying . . .

"Three . . ."

He can feel his soul shriveling . . .

"Two . . ."

His desire for revenge growing . . .

"One . . ."

His hate intensifying . . .

"Execute."

His aura darkening . . .

The cylinder shoots up to the heavens towards an unknown destination.

He watched as he hurled through space. Time passed and still he watched, unable to do anything else. He watched as he passed through solar systems, crashed through meteors. He watched when there was nothing to watch buy empty space. He watched everything, but not once saw anything. He watched unseeingly as stars formed and collapsed. He watched as blackholes are born and comets make their rounds. He watched as his cylinder scrape the side of a moon and crashed into a planet. That was when he started to see.

He was pretty sure that this planet was fairly young. In fact, from the looks of it, uninhabited. He noticed the inordinate amount of sulfur present and felt several seismic activities. He was making a more detailed study of his environment when he noticed it. Had he not been a part of his cylinder for so long, he might have missed it. He concentrated and felt for it again.

Ah, he thought. There it is.

His cylinder was gradually weakening. It may take millions, even billions, of years before it weakened enough for him to escape, but it was there and the carbon cylinder was definitely continuing to decay.

So much for eternity, he thought.

For the first time in nearly fifty million years, he smiled.

**END FLASHBACK**

MAINE, USA

PRESENT DAY

"So what's the plan?" asked Jonny. He was sitting in his bed, Indian style, looking down at both Jessie and Hadji, who were occupying the floor space in his room. Jess was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling with both arms behind her head. Her jean clad legs were propped up with her feet facing the door. At the sound of his question, she flipped to her stomach and faced him.

She raised her elbows up and replied, "Well, dad is supposed to take mom out to an early dinner for her birthday in order to get her out of the house. While they're having dinner, we'll be letting all the guests inside the house and basically getting ready for her to arrive."

"It was really fortunate that your mom had a week off from her dig in Peru, Jessie," said Hadji. "And on her birthday, too, no less." Hadji was in his usual meditating stance, though Jonny doubted his friend was meditating at this time . . . but then, with Hadji, you never knew. He shook his head.

"I'd say it was lucky," he said. "We rarely get to see your mom anymore."

Jessie smiled a secret smile to herself.

Jonny saw it.

"What was that?" he demanded.

Jessie looked at him innocently. "What was what, Jonny?" she asked, making a good impression of being perplexed.

"That," said Jonny pointing to her face.

By this time, Hadji was staring, too. "I, too, saw that, Jessie," he said. "You are keeping something from us."

Jessie grinned at her friends as she slowly rose to a sitting position. "Really, you guys, I don't know what you're talking about."

She got up on her knees and stared at her friends.

She was out of the door before Jonny finished saying, "Let's get her, Hadji!"

"Why that little --" said Jonny as he and Hadji chased after her.

"She always fast, our Jessie," said Hadji while running.

They saw a flash of red hair disappear through the front door and they followed, hot on her heels. Before going out, though, Jonny -- in a rare moment of brilliance -- grabbed a hoverboard and signaled Hadji to do the same. With a few more hand signals, Hadji nodded and moved to intercept Jess from the front with his hoverboard, leaving Jonny to cover her back.

Jonny saw Jessie look ahead and see Hadji.

Here's my chance, he thought. He quickly came up behind her and snatched her into the air.

"Hey!" she exclaimed. "No fair ganging up on me in your hoverboards!"

Jonny and Hadji laughed as they got off their hoverboards.

"All's fair in love and war, Jess," said Jonny, looking down at her mop of red hair.

Jessie squirmed. "Oh yeah?" she challenged. "So where's your army, hot shot?"

"Will the Bangalore cavalry do?" asked Hadji as he approached the two.

Jessie looked at Hadji and said indignantly, "I can't believe you're siding with him on this, Hadji!"

"Jessie," said Hadji reprovingly. " I am not siding with anyone. I am merely here to satisfy a curiosity. The fact that Jonny happens to share my curiosity is nothing more than a happy coincidence."

Although Jessie's face was turned from Jonny due to their current position, Jonny felt sure that Jessie was at this moment glaring at Hadji. Then all of a sudden, he felt her relax from his grip. Thinking she finally gave up trying to get away, Jonny slowly loosened his hold on her . . . and promptly found himself on his back, staring at the sky while trying to catch his breath. Then he saw Jessie stare down at him, concern written on her face.

"Jonny, are you okay?" she asked.

Then he saw Hadji's face. "My friend," he said, "how many fingers am I holding?" He presented him with three.

Jonny closed his eyes and said, "What happened?"

Silence.

Finally, "Uh . . ." said Jessie, "I happened."

Jonny slowly sat up and looked at her. " Run that by me again, " he demanded.

"Well,yousee,youweregrabbingmefrombehindandIwasn'tstrongenoughtobreakyourgri psoIflippedyouonlyIdidittoohardand," she stopped to breathe.

Jonny held up both his hands in front of her face. "You flipped me," Jonny said slowly. "Okay. I think." He finally caught his breath.

Jessie nudged her hand to his cheek. "You sure you're okay?" she asked softly.

Jonny reached for her hand and held it against his face. "Yeah, I'm okay," he said staring at her green eyes.

They were like that for awhile when Jessie broke contact and stood up.

"Good, " she said. "I'll go back to the house then."

She left.

Dazed, Jonny stood up and stared after her.

"What just happened?" he asked to no one in particular.

"Perhaps it is time to go back now, my friend," said Hadji quietly.

Jonny only nodded and the two friends started to walk home, each alone in their thoughts.

******************************

Hadji groaned inwardly as he walked home with Jonny. He didn't know that it was going to affect him this much. He had no idea it was going to affect him this much. When he saw Jonny and Jessie and the mutual awareness that sprang between the two, Hadji though someone had stabbed him with a knife and twisted, the pain was so great. In fact, he had taken a few steps backward in response to the painful picture they both made.

These reactions must stop, he thought to himself. They are your friends. If they wish to be together, then you should wish for their own happiness.

*What about you, Hadji?* a voice inside him asked. *Do you not deserve happiness as well?*

Hadji stood still and closed his eyes, trying to block the inner voice.

"Hadji?" he heard Jonny's voice.

Hadji opened his eyes. "I will be back in a while, Jonny," he said. "I think I will take a walk on the beach for a while."

Jonny shrugged his shoulders and said, "Okay." He ran to the house.

Alone, Hadji headed towards the shore and proceeded to wage an internal battle against himself.

*********************************

In an uncharted cavern in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, an ancient being breaks free of his prison and heads to the nearest shore.

**********************************

"I am happy for you," Hadji practiced. He made a face and tried again. "I am happy for you, my friends."

He bowed his head. He was practicing for a time when he will have to say those words to Jessie and Jonny. He knew it was only a matter of time before those two got together.

"I am happy for you both," he tried again.

*Liar* said his inner voice.

Hadji ignored it.

*You are such a liar, Singh*

He tried to remember the look on Jessie's face during that interlude with Jonny.

This is what Jessie wants, he thought.

*Do you not remember?* his inner voice asked. *She used to want you . . . you . . . you . . . not Jonny . . . you . . .*

Hadji shut his eyes, but images of Bangalore, of Jessie, of a scene in a conservatory, appeared in his mind.

**FLASHBACK**

His palace in Bangalore . . . in the conservatory

---"I love you, too, Jessie," he had said.

He saw her eyes flash with happiness.

"But only as a sister," he continued.

He saw the sparkle leave her eyes and the hurt take its place. He saw her gulp as she struggled to say something, anything, and then finally give up.

The silence lasted an eternity for him.

Finally, she took a deep breath and smiled tremulously at him.

"We'll . . ." she began, "we'll always be friends, won't we, Hadji?" she asked softly.

He looked at her tenderly and said, "Always," in an equally soft voice.

"Thanks," she whispered and hurriedly left the room.

He had wanted to follow her and comfort her, but knew that she needed to be alone at that time. So instead, he walked out into the huge palace balcony and stared at the stars.

**END FLASHBACK**

*You blew it*

*Boy, you sure know how to burn your bridges, Hadji*

*The greatest thing that you could have had was handed to you in a silver platter and you threw it away*

"Shut up!" Hadji shouted. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!"

He was breathing heavily.

*You are such a Johnny-come-lately*

*Or should we say Hadji-came-lately?*

Hadji stared unseeingly in his hands until he felt their wetness. He tried to clear his vision by blinking his eyes when he noticed that they, too, were wet.

Tears, he thought. "This is not good," he said to himself. "It would not do at all for your friends to see you in this state."

He breathed deeply and struggled to regain the serenity which he was known for. He didn't know how long he stood there, but when he opened his eyes, it was already dark.

He closed his eyes again in an effort to solidify that feeling of peace when something nagged at the edge of his consciousness. He opened his eyes and observed his surroundings, trying to pin point the origin of that feeling. His eyes finally settled in the ocean.

There's something there, he thought. Something not quite right.

He concentrated his energies on finding the source when, as suddenly as it appeared, the nagging feeling of wrongness disappeared.

Frustrated, he stared at the ocean a little longer before heading back to the house. He was determined to tell Dr. Quest of this phenomena because despite the fact that the wrongness disappeared, a feeling of deep foreboding had replaced it.

**************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** ****

Revised December 29, 2001