Short Story 2

‘Transient Predators’

Eddy stepped off the filthy single Decker bus, glad to be out into the fresh air. The bus ride had taken over thirty minutes and he felt as if he had escaped being cooked alive. The bus driver must have had poor circulation, for despite the warm June evening, he had pushed the bus’s heaters to maximum.

His thoughts turned with a mixture of excitement and anxiety, to the evening class that he was about to attend. Some of his friends thought his new-found recreation very odd and uncharacteristic - and they told him so. He countered by telling them that he had always been fascinated by the subject and was determined to see it through. He did not tell them that he had always had a kind of sixth sense that he was different. It was a sense that he felt with a mixture and fear and excitement, would one-day manifest itself, - then all his sub-conscious questions would be answered. Maybe, hopefully this opportunity was the first stepping stone to his long awaited resolve.

On reaching the corner, next to the old dress shop, Eddy saw a familiar figure leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette. She turned, pushing away from the cold brick wall and said, ‘Hi Eddy.’

‘Hello Jane.’ Eddy replied, feeling more relaxed at seeing his friend in this small old town. Every time he came into this town, the vibes did not feel right somehow. For a reason he could not define, whichever building he entered, he always felt ill at ease.

They made their way up the bank towards the small school. On reaching the entrance, Eddy stopped to glance at the notice board making sure the next class had been scheduled in two weeks time.

‘Come on.’ Jane said eager to enter the class and learn more about the subject she chose to keep quite from her friends. She clasped Eddy’s arm and led him into the brightly-lit room.

The tables had been placed in a large circle with the coffee machine brewing quietly in the far corner. Steam spiralled slowly up into the large beamed apex ceiling. It was only then that Eddy realised they were the last in the classroom. Slightly embarrassed he sat down, looked up partially through his eyebrows, and nodded meekly at the other attendees.

At the other end of the table an elderly woman stood up, her presence immediately quelling the chatter. Eddy focused on the short, thin old lady. Her physical appearance was contradictory to the strong voice and sharp mind she possessed. Beth Shepherd spoke clearly to her students, proud to see her skills and knowledge passed onto another generation. ‘Hello everyone. I’m glad you’re all here. Tonight we’re going to digress from palmistry and discuss the subject of tools used by mediums in their pursuit of spiritualism…starting with Ouija boards.’

Two hours later, Eddy stepped out of the building and immediately lit a cigarette. He said farewell to the some of the class, including Jane who was collected by her father, anxious to be seen in his new Mercedes. He started walking towards the telephone box to ring his mother, and inform her of his plans - at her insistence.

One hour earlier, he had made up his mind to join a birthday party at a friend's house.

As Eddy made his way towards the party, he thought about the things he had learnt earlier that evening. From what Beth had said, Ouija boards were considered by many to be dangerous. Dangerous because it can be a tool used to draw spirits that you would not want to meet because it was claimed that they were easier to find than lose - if you believed in the supernatural. Eddy wasn’t sure what to think mainly because he had not seen any spirits even though he was convinced that he could occasionally recognise a person’s aura - when others couldn't, and that's one of the things that made him different. Over the years, the eerie sensations had grown stronger, and the auras had intensified. It was difficult to explain to friends' who did not share the phenomena. When he hinted at it they merely scoffed. To avoid being regarded as a freak, and to keep his friends, he kept his secret.

As soon as he heard the bass sounds from the latest R&B song he knew he was close to the party. The beat increased in volume and as he approached the house, he was pleased to see the party in full swing. God knows how birthday boy Garth was overcoming the displeasure of his parents. Entering the house, he noted many of the crowds lazing around with drinks.

Eddy spotted a friend from college and asked, ‘Hey, Jo. Seen Garth?”

Jo who was trying to impress, somewhat successfully, the girl perched on the chair’s armrest, did not break contact to reply. He merely pointed up to the ceiling.

Eddy pushed his way up the stairs, weaving through the littered bodies. He reached the top and slowly craned his head around the first door, unsure what he was going to see. The room was dark and its silence was shattered by an alarmed voice shouting from underneath the bed sheets and piled clothing, ‘Out now,’ which was accompanied by a higher pitched giggle.

It did not sound like Garth, so Eddy left hastily. He reached the next door, oblivious to the rush of footsteps coming from the staircase behind him. A hard push met Eddy’s back, slamming him up against the door-frame as a girl dashed passed and in the nick of time, emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. Eddy grimaced as he proceeded quickly, leaving the poor creature to her own devices.

Entering the third room, he was pleased to see Garth sitting on the floor with 5 other friends, most of whom he knew from college. Timidly, Eddy sat down as Garth passed him a can of strong lager.

‘What’s happenin’ Garth.’ Eddy asked politely.

‘Just talking, we’re wonderin’ what to do next.” Garth replied, slightly bored by the way his birthday party had turned out. ‘Any ideas?’ he asked in return.

Eddy couldn’t help himself. Since the class earlier on his thoughts had been dominated by the curious world of the medium. The words blurted out, egged on by his strong curiosity for strange phenomena. ‘I'm no expert, but I've always been curious, how about trying out a séance?’

For a brief moment, Eddy knew he had their attention, they all became serious. The group itself sensed eagerness in each other to try a séance but held back from full agreement. Body motions confirmed uneasiness but they were influenced by the drinks and stimulated by the idea. Garth took the responsibility of speaking first.

‘OK. How is it done?”

At that moment, one of the girls stood up and said soberly, ‘No way.’ Paul who had worked hard all evening to gain Jenny's favour, followed in hot pursuit as she left the room. Slightly disgruntled, Garth asked, ‘Any other chickens.’

No one moved.

Eddy told the group how to set one up. The group busied themselves preparing Eddy's alphabet cards and the exploration for the monopoly board and glass. They all sat down, reversing the board on the floor with the cards placed around it, glass placed ominously in the centre. The group's mood had changed to one of sheer expectation and nervousness. The group fidgeted, eyes darting from friends to floor and back to friends.

Garth placed his hand on the glass expecting the others to do the same but Eddy interrupted. ‘Listen, erm… we should be careful.’ His instincts were now crying out for the attention and the procedures Beth had passed on earlier, and they flooded his thoughts. ‘We should clear our minds. You know a six pointed star - well I think we should imagine a ring of stars around us or something similar to focus on.’

Garth pulled his hand away and joked by saying. ‘What and holding hands eh?’

Eddy simply replied, “Yeh.”

Garth looked puzzled. He’d known Eddy for over a year now and it was a shock to find this shy friend to know more about a subject than himself. The group joined hands, luckily girl boy girl boy, to everyone’s relief.

This time Eddy took control not knowing where this strength in character was coming from. ‘Everyone close your eyes and clear your minds,’ and a few minutes later, ‘now think of a fence of stars around the group.’

The noise from downstairs was dispelled from the group's thoughts. Garth thought the central heating had gone off as the temperature fluctuated from warm to cold and back again. But the warmth persisted and he relaxed, noticing one or two glimpsing to see if the others were concentrating. Smiles appeared but after a while, they faded.

Eddy slowly opened his eyes to peek at the group. He was amazed at the various coloured hazes surrounding members of the group. He wanted to jump up and examine each individual's aura but he controlled his thoughts and continued the séance. ‘Now touch the glass with one hand.’

The group reached forward and touched the inverted tall glass. ‘Keep your eyes closed and imagine the star fence. Now think of a spirit.’

Mark, to Eddy’s left, spoke suddenly - his voice full of fear, ‘Oh Shit. I can see Hitler,’ and then laughed out aloud breaking everyone’s concentration by pure shock. The others moaned at Mark’s little prank. He refused to apologise and joined the others in a second try with a wry smile.

Eddy emphasised the need for each member to open their minds, otherwise they were wasting their time. ‘If we want to find out if there is anything to this spirit business we have to concentrate as one - or pack up now.’ He looked at each of the group in turn for an answer. Again they were amazed at his sudden change of character. The group became surprisingly serious. The room fell quite as if separated from the real world. Sue, sitting next to Mark, shivered in response to the apparent mixture of hot and cold temperature changes in the room.

Suddenly, the glass moved a fraction across the red back of the monopoly board. No one pulled their hand back but they all opened their eyes. Mary spoke first, ‘That was you wasn’t it Mark?’

Mark could not think of anything to say. His mouth was ajar - his thoughts confusing his normally clear thinking mind - was it someone in the group who had moved the glass or was it...

Eddy tried to calm the group, ‘Close your eyes and think of... say Henry VIII.’

Once more the group became quite, all minds focusing with trepidation on the fat figure of Henry VIII. Silent minutes ticked by before anything happened.

Garth could not wait any more, he pulled his hand from the glass and scratched an itch on his nose. He reached over to resume his finger position on the glass. As soon as his skin touched the glass it moved in a complete circle of three hundred and sixty degrees.

Eddy spoke slowly, ‘Is that Henry?’

One of the girls giggled with amusement but soon became still with fear as the glass moved to the card labelled yes.

‘OK you can open you’re eyes now,’ informed Eddy who then asked, ‘If you are Henry VIII which year did you die?’

The glass did not move immediately but then forcefully shifted the four numbers. One. Five. Four. Seven.

Garth looked over to Mary, as her father was a historian at the college. ‘Is that right?’

‘Er. Yeh.’ She replied hesitantly.

‘How many wives did you have?’ Garth asked, now mesmerised by the events - although it could be Mary herself.

The glass moved to the number 8. They all new Henry VIII had seven wives and Mike giggled and joked, ‘Another sex maniac?’

At that moment the light dimmed. Eddy spun around checking that no one had come into the room and altered the light-switch, no one was there. He looked back to the group concentrating on the outer form of the human circle. Coloured auras started to appear before him but they had changed since last time. The colours were the same but he could also see an unusual greyness appearing in-between Sue and Mark.

Mary sensed that Eddy was not breathing normally and inquired, ‘Eddy, are you OK?’

He did not reply but sat erect, glaring directly in front of himself, unaware that the others were now staring at him, their attention drawn to his wide-open eyes. Everyone retracted their hands, unsure what was happening, unable to see whatever Eddy was glaring at.

To Eddy, the grey cloud continued to move, now backwards towards the small bookcase. Unlike the other aura, this was just a cold, foreboding grey. No life. No emotions. Just pure grey.

Mary took Eddy’s arm and shook it, ‘Eddy you’re scaring me!’

He tried to speak but could only lift his arm and point towards the grey cloud. Was it a spirit? A concept? Maybe an energy field of some sort. Now the grey entity flew up to the ceiling and sped around the four walls staying high, out of reach. Eddy's head swivelled around as he watched its movements. 'No,' he started to shout, ‘Get out. Get out!’

The group jumped up, unable to control the situation. Mary simply ran out of the room.

‘Why? What the hell do you think you can you see?’ shouted Garth, his voice overpowering the chatter from the others.

The grey entity now darted down towards the bookcase. Every book flew out and arced across the room, pages inexplicably tearing out. Eddy could not see it through all the paper flying around the room. That was it he was out of here. He focused his thoughts to moving his frozen body to safety but as he approached the only escape route, the door slammed shut.

The remaining four dashed across the room, one girl screaming historically. Between them, the lads grabbed the door handle and, as the force seemed to abate they managed to prize the door open - but what on earth was forcing it shut. They managed to keep the door open until the others had left the room but as Garth left, the force pushing the door seemed to intensify causing it to slam shut, locking Eddy in the room.

Then the papers fell to the floor as if someone had switched a giant fan off. The temperature in the room was now dropping. A malevolent presence seemed to approach Eddy as he stood helpless, his back against the door. In the far corner, positioned by the side of the desk partially out of view the grey form waited.

Eddy stooped down, keeping his eye on the figure. It suddenly moved, straight towards Eddy. He stood up straight trying desperately to imagine a protective psychic field around his body. Stars emerged in front of him but there were gaps in them and to his horror the grey figure moved through them, and he shuddered violently as the chilling cloud seemed to pass through him. Eddy shut his eyes, he couldn’t bear it any longer. He could only form a mental image of one thing - the face of Beth Shepherd.

Amid the, arctic atmosphere, he waited and waited then finally he opened one eye. The room was now static and empty. Then suddenly with the force of his five friends behind it, the door crashed open, knocking Eddy to the ground.

Everyone hesitated on the thresh-hold before entering the room.

‘Whatever it was, I think it’s gone,’ the shivering form of Eddy informed the others.

‘Yes, but where the hell has it gone - and will it be back,’ asked Garth nervously.

Fifteen minutes later Garth announced the party was over - rather earlier than expected. Each person now made his or her own way home. Eddy shook hands with Garth, neither speaking from the impact of their shared ordeal.

As he made his way home, Eddy stopped dead in his tracks as he recognised a gang further up the street. He did not want to mess with them, he had been through enough tonight. They would no doubt want anything of value he might have. Eddy looked to his right. The only other alternative was to cut across the old mausoleum - neither route held any appeal. The less dangerous option would be the graveyard. And as he turned his right, Eddy realised that the gang up ahead had noticed him. In one fluid motion, their voices excited, the gang members mounted their mountain bikes and accelerated in his direction.

For the second time that evening, Eddy felt terror building up inside him. He was now running as fast as he could across the field, his vision focused on the large flat roofed mausoleum, silhouetted against the moonlit sky. The building grew in size, as Eddy ran through the black iron gateway. The shale pathway crunching noisily underneath his footsteps. The path led up to the mausoleum’s massive double doors, then separated, skirting around the building and leading off at right angles to the other exits - silent graves rising from the ground making the area even more sinister. The exit Eddy needed was directly on the opposite side, but as he lurched to his left he felt his right leg slide from beneath him on the loose surface. He fell heavily to the ground with a dull thud. His left wrist bore the full brunt of the fall and he knew instantly that something was wrong with his arm. No serious pain but his arm seemed to swell quickly. Had he broken it? But as he did not cry he doubted it.

Eddy looked up, short of breath from the fear and the exertion. He saw the gang burst into the graveyard, and within seconds they had surrounded him. No escape. Nothing left to try.

The leader nicknamed Muzzy a dimwit by Eddy’s standards lifted his fat thigh over the seat and walked arrogantly over to Eddy. His large frame formed a shadow against the moonlight and made his features indistinguishable. As the large silhouette became focused, a feeling of dread filled Eddy. The same grey haze he had encountered earlier surrounded Muzzy! Eddy started to breathe heavier as the throbbing pain from his broken arm suddenly vanished.

‘I’ve been after you wimp, and now I see that you are ready to meet me as an equal,’ Muzzy said, stopping four foot away, unsure why Eddy was lying on the floor. The others did not even make the usual derisory comments, as they to knew something important was about to happen.

Puzzled by the meaning of the big lad’s words, Eddy pleaded ‘Listen. I had to tell the police that you beat up little Jimmy Price. They were convinced that I was involved!’ He did not want a physical fight with a youth twice his size - anyway, punch-ups were not his forte.

Muzzy twitched his right arm and a small baseball bat dropped down from his sleeve to stop with a slapping sound in the palm of his hand. ‘Yes, your ignorant interference cost me dearly. He was one of us, but the overmasters chose a weak one, I crushed him. Now it’s your turn to pay the price.’

Eddy squirmed on the floor, the fat boy’s words meaningless, although a feeling of unusual calm befell him. He instinctively knew he needed time to rally himself - but could not understand why. He looked up at his aggressor, noting how the haze became larger, somehow more powerful. Then he spoke, his voice strong and confident, ‘Why do you persist in persecuting the weak, do you want everybody to fear and despise you?’

          Muzzy considered the question and answered, ‘You do not realise your new identity - you really don’t get it do you!’ he then turned to the others and ordered them to leave. They complied without question, even though they longed to see the outcome.

          The bully watched his minions leave the mausoleum before turning back to the prone form of Eddy, ‘Listen up newcomer, it all began for me about three years ago, when I was sixteen, I knew I was special then. I was on holiday with my parents in Haiti, when we went to watch a voodoo ritual led by a houngan or priest called Zulle. He singled me out immediately and asked me to take the seat of honour for the mock ceremony. He danced among the other dancers and chanted a lot then he took both my hands and gazed directly into my eyes. I became entranced. When he moved away I alone saw a cloud of dirty, grey smoke come at me and I felt freezing cold as I felt it pass through me. Everyone thought it was a con, as I sat there shivering and terrified. Once I had recovered, I felt the power - and I soon learned that we of the overmasters could recognise each other… all adversaries.’

          Eddy writhed on the floor, as the bizarre homily began to make sense in part. He was also aware that soon he would have to defend himself.

          ‘Times up, no more talking, you’ll have to learn the rest as you go, if your new overmaster doesn’t lose too often, which will be much more painful for you afterwards - they do not like to lose!

Eddy froze. His mind went numb as Muzzy lifted the bat high above his head and stepped closer, a mixture of malice and pleasure on his bloated features. ‘NO!’ Eddy screamed.

Muzzy ignored the sound, his eyes wide open and exuberant. Tensing his muscles, he prepared to swing the bat down on Eddy.

 Once more Eddy felt in control of his body, his mind becoming crystal clear in a way he had never known before. He waited, as time itself had slowed down.

                As Muzzy’s powerful swing reached half its arc, Eddy lashed out with his right foot and connected with his antagonist’s hand, crushing it against the hickory shaft and sending it spinning into a lichen covered headstone. As though he had been programmed, in the same movement he retracted his leg, and kicking from the knee made full contact with his scrotum.

                The sudden look of surprise on the face of Muzzy turned to one of distorted agony as the pain reached his nerve centre. He dropped to his knees like a felled oak, then clutching his injured appendages, toppled forward pinning Eddy to the ground.

                It felt as though he was glued to the ground, the squirming weight was much greater than his own. Ignoring Muzzy’s repeated sibilations of, ‘You bastard,’ inches from his left ear, Eddy knew he had to get from beneath the beast before he recovered enough to fight on, as no doubt he would. Most of the weight was to the left, so he heaved from the right, and relieved, he felt the carcass move. Then as the centre of gravity cleared him, the bulky form rolled clear, still cursing.

Eddy was aware that the moans had ceased, and as he struggled clear, saw a flash of light at the same time as feeling a sledgehammer blow glance of his left temple. The impact of Muzzy’s punch sent Eddy rolling to his right side, but with a well timed shove of his hands he managed to regain his feet. He was slightly dazed, but whether it was an adrenaline rush or some other cause he felt ready for more.

                His enemy was almost on his feet, his eyes already set on him. Abandoning any of his previous caution, Eddy attacked with all the force he could muster, raining accurate blows on a surprised but defensive Muzzy. The big combatant was caught slightly off balance, and as he staggered backwards he conceded several blows to the head. Bellowing from the bottom of his lungs, Muzzy halted his retreat and pushing with both behemoth arms, he forced Eddy back several steps. They both stopped and stood there panting, and eyeing each other defiantly.

                The bully spoke, as though drawing on his experience to give him an edge, ‘You can’t win you know, but then you can’t walk away either, neither of us can. Are you ready?’ Eddy was unruffled, ‘You don’t get to me any more wide-boy. Are you saying that one of us must die here tonight?’

                Muzzy produced an ugly smile as he savoured Eddy’s ignorance, ‘Unconscious will do. The overmasters cannot control us then. But afterwards  you’ll feel like you’ve died, the overmasters hate to lose and they let us know it. It helps you to remember to give your all, you know, not to chicken-shit out of the fight! Enough talking,’ and with that he lunged forward, fists flailing.

                Eddy was ready and deftly leapt to one side, and as the bulky figure came alongside, he pivoted on the ball of his foot and added to his impetus with a roundhouse punch to the back of his bull-like neck. He instantly followed his foe, ready to take advantage of his loss of balance - only to see him travel several steps then trip over the marble surround of a grave and hit the headstone head first with a heavy thud. Eddy dashed over to the inert body, ready to follow up his attack. It was not necessary. Ironically, Muzzy lay motionless in the foetal position, his earlier liberated weapon lying underneath his face like a giant cigar. He picked it up and put it in his pocket.

                ‘I guess your overmaster won’t be very happy now lard-ass!’ Eddy said sardonically, and turned and left the cemetery.

As he walked along, his mind buzzed with a thousand questions. He could only theorise the answers. During the combat, he was convinced that he recognised himself and a thousand Muzzys’ in a thousand conflicts. They appeared in myriad attire designs through the ages. Images of past, violent times flooded his thoughts. He tried to remember, and make sense of Muzzy’s words. Jimmy is one of us  - the overmasters’ chose a weak one; new identity; meet me as an equal; recognise each other. Then the common factor hit him harder than Muzzy, but with greater dread. The haze! We all see the grey haze that singles us out from the rest. My God, it’s a kind of possession. But why had this only just happened. They obviously needed a conduit - a gateway. Of course, the séance, the Haitian voodoo ceremony. That’s why Muzzy had been a bully for about three years. Eddy needed to find out more and to decide what to do about his uncertain future.

                The next two weeks passed without incident. Eddy seemed to suffer no side effects, in fact he seemed more aware and alert. He visited the libraries and wrote to historians in his quest to find out more about his situation. Most of the information he obtained was based on theory and ancient legend. However he did manage to produce a thesis.

                    Eddy felt he was now a warrior in a war of Manes - a war that had been raging for hundreds, no thousands of years. A war between adversaries formed from a collective band of damned souls that began as soldiers waging a war of pure evil - in an evil age. With the passing of time, the essence from their slaughtered corpses rose to form a malevolent force capable of controlling a being, a bearer to emulate and continue their origins. In this case physical combat was fuelling their thirst for violence.

                The rest he collated from this theory coupled with recollections from that fateful night. Anyone surrounded by a coloured aura are unaware, powerless and of no threat to bearers.

The overmasters control by their skill, but they depend on the physical condition of the bearer. Once unconscious the defeated can do nothing, the clash is over. Once too weak with too many defeats, the overmasters leave bearer and seek a new one.

          Knowing that Muzzy was not suffering or in a state of torment, Eddy accepted the fact and decided to train to get his physical condition in tune with the psychic and survive. He decided against going to the authorities, being certain he would be interred and treated like a schizophrenic. His biggest worry was just when and where was the next combat coming from.

          Whatever happened he was now a player in a perpetual conflict:

An eternal war.