six pages

The Lord of Spirits

The Sixth Page

He took the paper and closed the car glove compartment; he opened the paper and read...

The third page... It was a trick of mine. I wanted you to come into our lives; how I long for your presence in our lives; but it seems your spirit is still inside your body; and it seems you will go beyond six pages; go to this place and there you will find the spirit summoner, Warren; also known as the Master of Spirits;

Signed, your father, Damon

At the bottom of the paper were lines and words in Damon's handwriting describing the way to Warren's house, the Master of Spirits

Orion puts the paper in his pocket; closes the car's glove compartment; starts the engine; the car drives off into the night; Orion says as he drives, looking at the paper:

"How will we deal with this Spirit Lord? I think facing him won't be easy; his house seems to be surrounded by many trees; these lines Damon drew indicate the presence of trees around the house." Orion arrives at Wern's house, stops the car, opens the door, gets out, and closes it. The house appears large, situated on the edge of a large forest of tall trees; a dim yellow light emanates from the windows.

Orion approaches the house with slow, cautious steps; he hears the murmuring sounds of spirits among the trees of the forest. Orion seems afraid, but he doesn't look back and heads towards Wern's house. He looks around fearfully; he gets closer to the house; there is silence, only the sound of Wern's footsteps on the ground; the sounds of murmuring return in panic. Wern arrives at Wern's house; he looks at the nearby window. He went to the window and looked inside. He saw Wren, the Lord of Souls, standing there, surrounded by spirits. They weren't souls without bodies, but bodies with different faces and features. It seemed they had been killed before; the marks of the knife and the blood flowing from their necks were all too visible. The scene was terrifying and horrifying, especially with the murmuring that began to be heard again. Their numbers seemed vast; it was unlike anything Orion had ever seen before.

Orion took a few steps back and stood looking cautiously and fearfully from behind the windowpane. He whispered to himself, "Oh God, what is this? They don't seem to be human! But their bodies are human! How can they look like this, with their necks cut, and yet they stand as if they feel nothing?!"

Orion stared inside. The scene was even more terrifying. Wren was standing before murdered human bodies, each with a different wound. Wren looked at them and said, "O bodies dwelling in the graveyards, these are your human counterparts." O wandering spirits, these are your bodies. O spirits without bodies, return to bodies that resemble your own.

Ron approaches one of the bodies and stands before it, saying,

Ron, Lord of Spirits:

Enter your body, O spirit.

Something resembling a thin, transparent white mist enters the body. The body stirs and raises its head.

The Spirit Lord, Warren, says:

Rise.

The man rises and looks at Warren.

The Spirit Lord, Warren, says:

Do you know who killed you?

The man says:

Yes, I know him.

The Spirit Lord, Warren, says:

You will go out and kill him.

Orion stands outside, peering through the window, hearing and seeing what Warren is doing. Orion turns away from the window and says:

Orion:

It's as if I see a god bringing people back to life. Not only that, but he also seems just. But what should I do?

Should I kill this man who seems like a god, or leave him alone? He doesn't seem to kill; he seems to be bringing these darkened people back to life so they can kill those who killed them. Why does Damon want to kill Warren? Page three says I must kill the Spirit Lord, Warren.

Orion turns back to the window and looks inside again to see that all the bodies have been restored, and the spirits are standing before Warren.

Orion whispers,

"I don't think I'm capable of facing all these spirits."

Orion leaves the window and withdraws. He heads to the car, gets in, starts the engine, and the car moves slowly through the forest towards the asphalt road at night. Orion arrives at Damon's house. He stops the car, turns off the engine, opens the door, and gets out. He walks towards the front door, opens it, enters, and closes it. Orion enters the living room, heads towards the stairs, and walks up the hallway to the second floor. He heads to the library, enters, and looks at the books lying on the floor. He kneels and begins to pick them up, placing them back on the shelves and arranging them. He seems to have realized how important they are when he saw Warren, the spirit master, controlling all these people. He begins to read the titles of the books, one after another, until he notices one that catches his attention: a book titled "Spirits Don't Die, Bodies Die." He turned and sat down in the chair, opened the book, and began to read its pages quickly, one after another, as if searching for something. It seemed he was searching for that secret the Spirit Lord used to summon spirits. He read the book quickly in minutes, closed it, and stood up. He went to the library and returned the book to its place. It seemed Orion hadn't found the secret he was looking for. He stared at the titles of the books, one after another, but suddenly the black cat appeared, entering through the door of the room and howling. Orion turned around and saw the black cat. Orion said...

Arion:

Dan Wren has many souls, and it seems he brings these souls into bodies and uses them to kill these murderers. Why would Damon want to kill Wren? I didn't know Damon was evil! And I can't kill Wren when he has all these souls. The power I have in my body isn't like the power Wren has. Physical strength alone isn't enough. Wren has the power of knowing souls. I looked through these books, searching for this power Wren possesses, but I didn't find anything that would give me the strength to confront Wren or judge whether what he does to the souls is for good or evil.

Arion raises his head and looks for the cat, but he doesn't find it.

Arion:

This black cat can't speak. He can't help.

He heads towards the library door, leaves the room, and goes to his own room. He enters, looking very distressed. He stands in the room. Arion whispers to himself, saying:

Arion:

Wren brings the similar-looking dead bodies and brings the souls into them. I could bring a body that resembled Damon's and bring his soul to it; but I can't do that myself. Only Lorne can help me with that; and then Damon will come back to life. But getting close to Lorne seems very dangerous; it seems that switching between the two lives is very easy for Lorne and Damon. I used to think that souls were something immaterial that couldn't be seen, but I saw them in Lorne's house; something white and misty, as if it were wearing white clothes; entering bodies easily; I feel confused in my mind; I don't understand anything about this strange world.