uncured

Hole

A portal opened in the middle of nowhere, but it was daytime.

“Hey, where are we, wizard kid?” Elizabeth said to me.

“I don’t know, man. We are probably lost somewhere,” I replied.

“The wizard kid has brought us into nowhere to be offered as a sacrifice! We are done for!” Max said in a loud, playful voice. He walked towards me and said, “Bro, what’s your plan? Are you planning to kidnap us or what?”

“Nah, bro. I’m just lost. Check your phone location and Google Maps to find our location,” I said.

“Why didn’t I think of that?” Henry replied. “Hmm, we aren’t really that far from home, though! We could actually use a taxi from where we are.”

I replied, “Didn’t you guys notice it’s daytime? We were in the night a few seconds ago. Did the time suddenly fast forward, or did we time travel?”

“He has a point,” Henry said. “What really happened? Or should I say, what is really happening? The past few days, I haven’t even been able to process this… I don’t really understand what’s happening.”

“Yeah, it’s all confusing,” Emma added. “Ever since we entered that hall, everything has changed. The men in red, the demon whatever, the time, the teleporting… it’s all just not matching up.”

“Maybe what really happened,” I suggested, “is that while we were in the teleporting hole stuff, time was fast there, but time was more faster here because we didn’t spend much time in the hole, right guys?”

“Bro, listen to what you’re saying. Does it even make sense to you?” Emma replied. “And how were you able to use magic, or whatever you did in the hallway, when we were being chased by those demons? What was that exactly? Are you part of the secret, or are you a demon pretending to be a human just to lure us and gain our trust so you can finally use us as a sacrifice and eat us with your demons? Are you trying to drag us to hell?”

I was stunned, looking so confused my mouth dropped like it was about to touch the floor. “How is that even possible?” I said.

“Well, basically, from what we have seen, anything is possible, bro,” Henry replied. “She might be right.”

Everybody moved away from me. What a bunch of idiots, I thought to myself while holding my head. “Well, no. What you're saying is wrong. I’m not a demon—at least, I don’t think so!”

“The wizard boy isn’t sure!” Emma replied.

“What’s wrong with you all? I don’t know what happened, okay? I think one of the demons possessed me—and you guys too, but mostly me—and she gave me her powers. I don’t fully understand it yet,” I said.

“She gave you her powers? Who’s she? And why would she give you her powers?” Henry asked.

“I… I… hmm. I don’t know. I’m just assuming. I don’t really know. It’s just what I thought,” I replied.

I can’t let them know about the Demon Queen. It will only make things worse. I have to figure it all out on my own, I thought to myself.

When we got home, we decided we weren't going to go to school for some time because the principal would probably be trying to kill us or capture us. We don’t really know what he’s up to or what his motive is, but for now, we have to stay safe and avoid unnecessary attention. I know what you are thinking: If we want to avoid attention, why would we stay home for a week? People will be worried and come to find us. It’s because we don’t really have a reasonable plan for this, so we just cowardly decided to stay at home.

I was lying on my bed trying to think about everything that had happened. My mind was foggy and clouded, like I just passed through a life-or-death situation. Or, yeah—I did. My heart was still pounding hard, my lips were dry, and the atmosphere felt deserted. I stood up from my bed.

“I need a warm bath,” I said.

I went to the shower and turned it on. As I was showering, I remembered everything the Queen had said to me.

(The fate of the world is in my hands.)

My mind drifted so far into thinking that I forgot I was still in the shower. What will I do now? What should I do? Should I tell James? No, I can’t. I can’t tell anybody. I have to settle it on my own; besides, I was chosen for this.

“Don’t be stupid. I wasn’t chosen. I am just being used as a toy. Dammit, this is hard to do. It’s just confusing. What would my aunt want me to do in this situation?”

The air within me became thick and my breath heavy, my heart aching from all the pain and thinking. This was too much for a sixteen-year-old man. I didn't know what to do. I broke down and started crying. Tears flooded my face; my eyes became pale.

Ding-dong. My doorbell rang.

“Who could that be?!” I shouted from my bathroom.

“It’s James! What happened, bro? Please open the door!”

I got dressed, pretended to be happy, put a fake smile on, and opened the door. “Hey, James,” I said to him. “What’s up?”

He replied, “What’s wrong, brother?”

“Wrong? No, nothing is wrong. Does anything feel wrong?”

He said to me, “Don’t lie to me. I know you, Oliver. Something is wrong. Do you mind telling me?”

“Well… it’s nothing much. I’m just depressed because life is hard now, and I feel a lot of pressure on me. People are expecting me to be someone I’m not.”

“I understand,” James said. “It’s a normal thing; everybody goes through that phase. Don’t let it consume you. Don’t be too stressed out about it. Be what you want to be. Do what Oliver wants to do and what he thinks is right.”

He took his leave. “Have a nice day, Oliver.”

I thought about what he said and decided maybe he was right. Night fell, and me and the bullies all gathered at my house, waiting for the demons to come—and hoping they wouldn't.

Then, the clock clicked to midnight. The atmosphere changed instantly into a dark sensation. Chills ran down my spine and sweat dropped from my face, hitting the floor. It felt like I could hear the drop getting louder and louder. Then—

Boom. Demons everywhere in the room.

Emma screamed in terror. My eyes started to glow.

“Nooo!” I shouted in fear. “You can’t!”

I was trying so hard not to use the powers borrowed to me.