The Heart of Darkness
by Akane-Rei
PART EIGHT
A Heart of Darkness
"I looked at him as you peer down at a man who is lying at the bottom of a precipice where the sun never shines."
Marlow in "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad.
Michael felt weird. The moment the opening in the wall had appeared, he had felt a . . . stirring. A calling, if you will. It was as if there was something there . . .
He shook himself. He was being fanciful. He didn't know what that . . . thing has planned, but whatever it was, he'd be damned if he'd let it succeed. If he had to make it his life's -- or death's, now that you think about it -- goal to deter it from any form of satisfaction, he will.
He looked back at the girl in front of him. Her breathing is shallow and she had started coughing up blood. He wanted to touch her, to smooth her hair back to her face and cradle her in his arms, but his form prevented him. He hated this physical nothingness. He didn't even know what he was. Is he a ghost? Or just another person in a different plane of existence?
Should have paid more attention to Sunday school, he thought. Then, maybe, there's an answer there somewhere.
He never really thought of the concept of a soul before. Sure he went to church and all, but for the most part, he did it to please his parents. He never thought about the afterlife or anything like that.
"Well, you are now," he told himself, looking at his transparent form.
Suddenly, the light that emanated from the wall caught his attention. Whatever it was that thing wanted, it seems it was beginning to achieve it.
*******************************
There it was, he thought as he stared at the opening he created. The thread that holds the universe together. He smiled inwardly. It was ironic to think that the whole cosmos were held together by this one single thread, no thicker than the ones the humans use for needlepoint. Ofcourse, this was a special thread. Almost indestructible, in fact, with the exception of one thing. Legend has it that only a heart so dark, a soul so black, a mind of hate, and a life of evil can overcome and break the bonds that hold literally everything in the universe together. Well, he considers himself to be a candidate for all of those categories and now is the time to see if there is any truth to those legends.
He watched the display of lights that surrounded the thread. Since the Guardians of the universe never considered that a Wielder might want to destroy this precious link, they had left it virtually unprotected. An oversight in their part, really.
When the opening in the wall reached a diameter of seven feet, he stopped widening it even more and just stared at his prize.
Soon, he thought. Soon.
Finding no further use for the Wielder's body, he immediately discarded it and took his own form.
*********************************
Jonny watched as Hadji's body crumpled in the floor and another being began to form. He watched and gasped as this thing, this evil thing, was one of the most beautiful phenomena he had ever seen. The form, almost as if it were made by an array of lights converging at one point, began to take the shape of a human, if not the features of one.
He felt the sphere that held him collapse and he braced himself for a fall. He hit the ground with a decided thud, but he quickly sprang into his feet and ran towards Jessie. Her condition hadn't looked good from afar and now that he got nearer, he realized that his distance deceived him. Jessie's condition was much worse than he had thought. He began checking for her vital signs.
He knelt beside her and tried to lift her head into his lap, but he noticed her wince and he stopped.
"Jessie," he said softly. "Please, Jessie."
He saw her try to open her eyes and finally succeed.
"J . . . Jon . . . Jonny," she rasped.
She began coughing uncontrollably and he watched in horror as he realized the full extent of her injuries. His heart began pounding loudly and a feeling of dread began to take over his consciousness.
He saw her eyes glaze over. "Jessie," he said urgently. He brushed her hair off her face and tried to force her to meet his eyes. "Jessie," he said again, "stay with me here. Please."
He watched as she tried to say something. He leaned nearer to hear her words.
"Pro . . . promise me," she whispered.
"Anything," he told her.
"S . . .s-s-stop her," she said.
He knew she was talking about Jeanette and the thing that possessed her. That same thing that got into Hadji. He watched her labored breathing and said, "Anything for you, Jess. Anything for you."
He saw her try to smile, but ended up grimacing. She tried to lift her right arm towards his face so he took it for her and held her hand against his cheek.
********************************
She can vaguely see Jonny's face as he leaned down on her.
'Anything for you,' he had said.
She could hear the trembling in his voice when he said that and she knew she was in a bad way. She's beginning to lose feeling in certain parts of her body and although she welcomed the cessation of pain, she also knew that at least in pain, she knew she was still alive. Now, she was just . . . drifting.
She felt her palm touch her cheek. Despite her blurry vision, he was close enough for her to see tears beginning to form in his eyes.
"That bad, huh?" she tried to say, but ended up mouthing some garbled sound.
He leaned further down and kissed her on her forehead, his lips lingering for a long time. In that moment, she felt all the love he had tried to give her flood her being.
She had been so stupid. Stupid and scared. He was right when he called her a coward the night before. She had been a coward. She was afraid to take a chance. She was afraid of getting hurt and now . . . Now it's too late. Too damn late. There's no time . . .
He lifted his head and stared into her eyes.
She drowned in those blue pools of love and with all the strength she had left, she said, "I love you."
*********************************
Jonny's eyes widened. He stared at her disbelievingly at first. Then for some inexplicable reason, he felt anger well up in his chest.
"No," he said. "No, damn you! Why now?! Why not then?!"
The words, 'when we had the time,' were left unsaid.
He saw her flinch at his tone, but he couldn't help his anger. He couldn't help feeling cheated at the moments they could have spent together. It was as if someone gave him a gift he had been wanting for a long time, only to have it snatched away. It was then that he realized that, deep inside, he knew Jessie was dying. And he hated himself for it. He hated his inability to do anything, his so-called involvement with Jeanette, his helplessness at the whole situation. But most of all, he hated the fact that he had given up on Jessie's surviving. Some people would call it realistic, but then, he had never been realistic. He had always hoped for the best. His optimism had helped them all through some tough situations.
*And it's going to help you now*
Jonny looked up.
*Live for the moment, Jonny*
He saw no other person.
*Before it's too late*
He stared at Jessie.
There's so little time, he thought. So little time left.
He wrapped her in his arms and cradled her tightly against his chest. He felt the tears fall from his eyes and cursed fate.
*****************************
Jessie felt tears form in her own eyes, too. She felt the warmth of being in his arms, and reveled in it even as she felt herself drifting off.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
*****************************
'I'm sorry,' she had said.
"Don't be," he said. He tightened his embrace. "Everything's going to be alright."
*****************************
"Liar," she said.
"I love you," he said.
"I know," she said. "I know."
She felt herself float in the air and a bright light claimed her.
*****************************
Jonny felt it when her last breath left her body, but he continued to hold her, his mind trying to deny what his eyes already told him.
'I know,' she had said, 'I know.'
He closed his eyes and tightened his embrace one last time, then gently laid her down the ground. Slowly, he stood up and stared at the scene in front of him, a scene he had tried to put at the back of his mind, a scene he had hoped was a nightmare.
Since that . . . thing wasn't doing anything yet but stare at that opening he created, Jonny decided to go to Hadji first before dealing with the creature.
He found his friend lying in the ground staring at nothing. He kneeled down and said, "Hadji."
No response.
"Hadji," he said urgently.
He won't respond, you know
He turned his head and so the creature facing him.
To be more specific, he cannot respond. He is nothing more than a vegetable now
Jonny felt his fists clench and, without thinking, sprang to his feet, intent on attacking this . . . thing when he felt himself lifted from the ground and hurled into a wall. Hitting his head, he sat for a while, trying to get his bearings.
You will not interfere
Again, Jonny got up in his feet and continued his futile attempts to attack the being only to be thrown back again and again.
You are being quite a pest
Jonny, bleeding, bruised, spat back, "You took away the best things in my life!"
It will not matter in the whole scheme of things
Jonny saw it step into the opening in the wall. He watched, exhausted, as the being wrapped itself around . . . something. Just then, he felt the ground begin to shake violently. He tried to stand from his position, but the shaking jarred him back.
Jessie, he thought. Hadji. I'm sorry.
*****************************
Michael had watched a transparent Jessie leave her body. He had thought she would see him, hear him, but she didn't. For some reason, that part of her didn't linger on earth like he did. He saw as a blinding flash of light enveloped her. The last expression on her face was serenity.
He couldn't help but feel a pang of regret and envy. Regret because he was, for all intents and purposes, alone and envy because of the peace she found.
Why am I still here? he thought.
Another jolting shake of the ground startled him out of his self- pity.
He looked around and saw Jonny struggling to his feet, trying to reach Jessie and Hadji. There was something in his eyes . . . or maybe not. Maybe that's it. There was nothing in Jonny's eyes. It had an empty, vacant look to it. The look of man who's world just collapsed from under him.
Just then, a sound in the other side of the room caught his attention. A glowing line seems to have been drawn on air. It widened until it almost resembled a door.
He looked closer and saw something approach from the other side.
He gasped. Their forms are very much similar to the one that being took.
*******************************
They're here, he thought. And they're too late. Too late.
He could feel his presence even as he felt the thread drain all that was him. He could feel the world literally collapsing even as his essence pours itself out.
They were too late.
The only thing he regretted was that he could never see the look of utter defeat in their auras.
A small price to pay for the destruction of everything that is.
**************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** ****
Revised December 29, 2001
by Akane-Rei
PART EIGHT
A Heart of Darkness
"I looked at him as you peer down at a man who is lying at the bottom of a precipice where the sun never shines."
Marlow in "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad.
Michael felt weird. The moment the opening in the wall had appeared, he had felt a . . . stirring. A calling, if you will. It was as if there was something there . . .
He shook himself. He was being fanciful. He didn't know what that . . . thing has planned, but whatever it was, he'd be damned if he'd let it succeed. If he had to make it his life's -- or death's, now that you think about it -- goal to deter it from any form of satisfaction, he will.
He looked back at the girl in front of him. Her breathing is shallow and she had started coughing up blood. He wanted to touch her, to smooth her hair back to her face and cradle her in his arms, but his form prevented him. He hated this physical nothingness. He didn't even know what he was. Is he a ghost? Or just another person in a different plane of existence?
Should have paid more attention to Sunday school, he thought. Then, maybe, there's an answer there somewhere.
He never really thought of the concept of a soul before. Sure he went to church and all, but for the most part, he did it to please his parents. He never thought about the afterlife or anything like that.
"Well, you are now," he told himself, looking at his transparent form.
Suddenly, the light that emanated from the wall caught his attention. Whatever it was that thing wanted, it seems it was beginning to achieve it.
*******************************
There it was, he thought as he stared at the opening he created. The thread that holds the universe together. He smiled inwardly. It was ironic to think that the whole cosmos were held together by this one single thread, no thicker than the ones the humans use for needlepoint. Ofcourse, this was a special thread. Almost indestructible, in fact, with the exception of one thing. Legend has it that only a heart so dark, a soul so black, a mind of hate, and a life of evil can overcome and break the bonds that hold literally everything in the universe together. Well, he considers himself to be a candidate for all of those categories and now is the time to see if there is any truth to those legends.
He watched the display of lights that surrounded the thread. Since the Guardians of the universe never considered that a Wielder might want to destroy this precious link, they had left it virtually unprotected. An oversight in their part, really.
When the opening in the wall reached a diameter of seven feet, he stopped widening it even more and just stared at his prize.
Soon, he thought. Soon.
Finding no further use for the Wielder's body, he immediately discarded it and took his own form.
*********************************
Jonny watched as Hadji's body crumpled in the floor and another being began to form. He watched and gasped as this thing, this evil thing, was one of the most beautiful phenomena he had ever seen. The form, almost as if it were made by an array of lights converging at one point, began to take the shape of a human, if not the features of one.
He felt the sphere that held him collapse and he braced himself for a fall. He hit the ground with a decided thud, but he quickly sprang into his feet and ran towards Jessie. Her condition hadn't looked good from afar and now that he got nearer, he realized that his distance deceived him. Jessie's condition was much worse than he had thought. He began checking for her vital signs.
He knelt beside her and tried to lift her head into his lap, but he noticed her wince and he stopped.
"Jessie," he said softly. "Please, Jessie."
He saw her try to open her eyes and finally succeed.
"J . . . Jon . . . Jonny," she rasped.
She began coughing uncontrollably and he watched in horror as he realized the full extent of her injuries. His heart began pounding loudly and a feeling of dread began to take over his consciousness.
He saw her eyes glaze over. "Jessie," he said urgently. He brushed her hair off her face and tried to force her to meet his eyes. "Jessie," he said again, "stay with me here. Please."
He watched as she tried to say something. He leaned nearer to hear her words.
"Pro . . . promise me," she whispered.
"Anything," he told her.
"S . . .s-s-stop her," she said.
He knew she was talking about Jeanette and the thing that possessed her. That same thing that got into Hadji. He watched her labored breathing and said, "Anything for you, Jess. Anything for you."
He saw her try to smile, but ended up grimacing. She tried to lift her right arm towards his face so he took it for her and held her hand against his cheek.
********************************
She can vaguely see Jonny's face as he leaned down on her.
'Anything for you,' he had said.
She could hear the trembling in his voice when he said that and she knew she was in a bad way. She's beginning to lose feeling in certain parts of her body and although she welcomed the cessation of pain, she also knew that at least in pain, she knew she was still alive. Now, she was just . . . drifting.
She felt her palm touch her cheek. Despite her blurry vision, he was close enough for her to see tears beginning to form in his eyes.
"That bad, huh?" she tried to say, but ended up mouthing some garbled sound.
He leaned further down and kissed her on her forehead, his lips lingering for a long time. In that moment, she felt all the love he had tried to give her flood her being.
She had been so stupid. Stupid and scared. He was right when he called her a coward the night before. She had been a coward. She was afraid to take a chance. She was afraid of getting hurt and now . . . Now it's too late. Too damn late. There's no time . . .
He lifted his head and stared into her eyes.
She drowned in those blue pools of love and with all the strength she had left, she said, "I love you."
*********************************
Jonny's eyes widened. He stared at her disbelievingly at first. Then for some inexplicable reason, he felt anger well up in his chest.
"No," he said. "No, damn you! Why now?! Why not then?!"
The words, 'when we had the time,' were left unsaid.
He saw her flinch at his tone, but he couldn't help his anger. He couldn't help feeling cheated at the moments they could have spent together. It was as if someone gave him a gift he had been wanting for a long time, only to have it snatched away. It was then that he realized that, deep inside, he knew Jessie was dying. And he hated himself for it. He hated his inability to do anything, his so-called involvement with Jeanette, his helplessness at the whole situation. But most of all, he hated the fact that he had given up on Jessie's surviving. Some people would call it realistic, but then, he had never been realistic. He had always hoped for the best. His optimism had helped them all through some tough situations.
*And it's going to help you now*
Jonny looked up.
*Live for the moment, Jonny*
He saw no other person.
*Before it's too late*
He stared at Jessie.
There's so little time, he thought. So little time left.
He wrapped her in his arms and cradled her tightly against his chest. He felt the tears fall from his eyes and cursed fate.
*****************************
Jessie felt tears form in her own eyes, too. She felt the warmth of being in his arms, and reveled in it even as she felt herself drifting off.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
*****************************
'I'm sorry,' she had said.
"Don't be," he said. He tightened his embrace. "Everything's going to be alright."
*****************************
"Liar," she said.
"I love you," he said.
"I know," she said. "I know."
She felt herself float in the air and a bright light claimed her.
*****************************
Jonny felt it when her last breath left her body, but he continued to hold her, his mind trying to deny what his eyes already told him.
'I know,' she had said, 'I know.'
He closed his eyes and tightened his embrace one last time, then gently laid her down the ground. Slowly, he stood up and stared at the scene in front of him, a scene he had tried to put at the back of his mind, a scene he had hoped was a nightmare.
Since that . . . thing wasn't doing anything yet but stare at that opening he created, Jonny decided to go to Hadji first before dealing with the creature.
He found his friend lying in the ground staring at nothing. He kneeled down and said, "Hadji."
No response.
"Hadji," he said urgently.
He won't respond, you know
He turned his head and so the creature facing him.
To be more specific, he cannot respond. He is nothing more than a vegetable now
Jonny felt his fists clench and, without thinking, sprang to his feet, intent on attacking this . . . thing when he felt himself lifted from the ground and hurled into a wall. Hitting his head, he sat for a while, trying to get his bearings.
You will not interfere
Again, Jonny got up in his feet and continued his futile attempts to attack the being only to be thrown back again and again.
You are being quite a pest
Jonny, bleeding, bruised, spat back, "You took away the best things in my life!"
It will not matter in the whole scheme of things
Jonny saw it step into the opening in the wall. He watched, exhausted, as the being wrapped itself around . . . something. Just then, he felt the ground begin to shake violently. He tried to stand from his position, but the shaking jarred him back.
Jessie, he thought. Hadji. I'm sorry.
*****************************
Michael had watched a transparent Jessie leave her body. He had thought she would see him, hear him, but she didn't. For some reason, that part of her didn't linger on earth like he did. He saw as a blinding flash of light enveloped her. The last expression on her face was serenity.
He couldn't help but feel a pang of regret and envy. Regret because he was, for all intents and purposes, alone and envy because of the peace she found.
Why am I still here? he thought.
Another jolting shake of the ground startled him out of his self- pity.
He looked around and saw Jonny struggling to his feet, trying to reach Jessie and Hadji. There was something in his eyes . . . or maybe not. Maybe that's it. There was nothing in Jonny's eyes. It had an empty, vacant look to it. The look of man who's world just collapsed from under him.
Just then, a sound in the other side of the room caught his attention. A glowing line seems to have been drawn on air. It widened until it almost resembled a door.
He looked closer and saw something approach from the other side.
He gasped. Their forms are very much similar to the one that being took.
*******************************
They're here, he thought. And they're too late. Too late.
He could feel his presence even as he felt the thread drain all that was him. He could feel the world literally collapsing even as his essence pours itself out.
They were too late.
The only thing he regretted was that he could never see the look of utter defeat in their auras.
A small price to pay for the destruction of everything that is.
**************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** ****
Revised December 29, 2001
