Fall Foretold

Game master blew a brain

The two of them dropped on the seats beside Laura, like they came for war.

"You got any problem with me?", she asked, wondering.

"Yes, we do", Felix said and pointed at Joe. "That kind of problem."

"Have you spoken to him, today?", Jackson asked.

"No", she replied. "He hasn't spoken to me since yesterday. I was even trying to tell him something but he just shunned me"

"Ok, we are about to tell you a secret", Jackson said and Felix nudged him, getting his attention. "I know what I'm doing.... Ok, Laura. Joe likes you" "No, he said he doesn't", she replied and folded her arms.

"Wait!", Felix exclaimed, getting an idea. "How could he have come to you voluntarily to say that, except you asked him? Did you ask him? Do you like him?"

"What do you want? Why are you here?", she said, refusing to answer.

"Well, Joe really likes you and he was pretty jealous when you introduced Davis to us"

"I already broke up with Davis so why won't he talk to me?"

"Well, as you can see, he's not really talking to anyone, right now", Jackson said.

"Why's his eyes glowing like he's drunk? is he high on something?"

"He's definitely not", Felix said. "He's not himself. Something is controlling him, right now, and if he's harsh or acting weird, we need you to know that that's not Joe."

"What are you saying? Is it insanity or what? Something takes over him, once in a while?"

"No!", they chorused. "It's a one-time thing. He'll recover soon."

"He's always hiding something. You're always hiding something. What's wrong with you? What is controlling him? I want to know his secret or I’ll go to him, right now, and punch his face for lying"

"We might know the secret, truly", Felix said. "But it's an amazing one and, as long as it remains a secret we have no right to share it. I assure you that he cares about you and he will tell you his secret when he gets control of himself".

*********

"Wait up, man", Jackson said, as Felix ran after Joe, who had suddenly developed some sort of superspeed at walking. Felix had only seen him turn, so he ran after, while Jackson was busy packing his backpack. Putting his books together in his backpack, he ran after them. "I'm coming!". He ran, as fast as he could, shouting 'damn! damn!', as an hand of the backpack folded, making corneuncomfwalk.

Felix kept running after Joe. He kept turning into corners. His legs seemed to be walking, slowly, but they couldn't catch up. Joe turned into an alleyway. Felix increased his speed, knowing there was no other turning. Immediately he crossed into the alley, a baseball bat hit his head.

"What the...?!", Felix exclaimed., as he fell on the ground. "What are you...?"

There were three people attacking him. Joe was no where to be found. Davis was one of them, while the other two were in ridiculous masks. "Shut your trap, man", one of them kicked him hard.

"Davis? What are you doing?"

Davis hit him with a bat, again. "Don't call my name, fool. I know your secret"

"What secret?", Felix managed to reply, wondering which secret he wasn't aware of. "What are you talking about, mother-in-law?!"

Another bat hit him on his side. "Just shut up!"

"You know,. when our third guy went to the diviner, he was specific about the girl we should abduct. That means a lot. She was definitely connected to the man in mask. She was bait and it worked. He came with an army... Now, that day I came to the school, I needed her to introduce me to her friends. She did, just as I expected. I saw it in your face. I don't know what innocence you see in my face but forgive me, man...."

Jackson stared at them, hiding behind a trashcan. He cracked his knuckles. "They are just three, right?", he muttered to himself. He was about to jump in when he saw the gun with Davis. He called John Cage, immediately.

"Oh, please. I am not who you think I am. Ok?"

"Shut up! You had a crush on her. Then, she became the perfect bait to get you, isn't that it?", Davis said, and slowly pulled out his gun.

John picked up the call. "Hello, emergency?"

"Emergency! Gun type emergency. Track the phone", Jackson muttered back.

Davis put a finger, across his lips. "While your die, I need you to know it's not about Laura. I don't care. This is about my destiny. I am your replacement"

"Wait!", Felix shouted,

thinking of a way to escape. "I know who the Shadowmask is. it's not me"

"Stop kidding. I saw that jealous look in your eyes"

"There are a lot of people crushing on her. I know who the Shadowmask is. His mask fell off when he returned to school, that night", Felix said, trying to get in his head. "I was in the boy's bathroom when he returned to the school. He's one of our seniors who also has a crush on Laura. He's pretty insignificant in the school but he's physically strong"

"You're trying to deceive us, right?", Davis said, dropping his hand, as the others in the mask kept striking him with their bat.

"I'm not the Shadowmask. If you really need to kill him, killing me will be a waste"

"No, it would be revenge for the jealous look. I mean 'will be'. Pardon my English 'cause you're not surviving the day... I'm just pretty anxious to feel the power of the prophecy", Davis raised the hand with the gun, again.

""Hands up", Jackson shouted, to distract them. They turned. Davis moved, stealthily, towards the trashcan with his gun pointed.

A cop car drove in, blocking the entrance into the alley. "Weapons down! Arms in the air!", John said and, with superb perfection, he shot at David's gun, disarming him. They were busted. Felix had passed out, already.

★

"Mr. Ryan? Why would you walk into the church with a gun?", St. Sylvester said, with a worried look, as he approached Joe's father.

"I won't be shooting it, here", Mr. Ryan replied. and stopped in front of the priest. "The church just happens to be my first check point, before I start shooting"

"What is the problem?"

"I just need you to know that whatever happens, it's your fault. What did you tell my son?"

"How do you mean? What's going on?"

Mr. Ryan leaned closer. "Since he returned, I began to see the changes in him. What did you tell him?"

"I told him what he needed to hear. I was put in the position of showing him the way to fulfilling destiny"

"What destiny?"

"The kind of destiny we need. Your son is the prophecy", St Sylvester said. "I don't need to lecture you on this, you already know it. You know the danger that looks above us. If he doesn't fulfil the prophecy, you know what will happen?"

"What will happen is I won't lose my son!!!", Mr. Ryan yelled.

"No", the priest yelled back. "We will lose everything, everyone. Your son will die, just like I will and you too. Unless we choose to burn in eternal he'll"

"A prophecy never blows away without coming to pass. God always finds a way. You always said that to us, didn't you?"

"Look back into the Bible. Every prolonged prophecy always had strife's, challenges and death in the added years. Moses would have gotten to the promise Land if the wilderness journey wasn't prolonged. There's a 90 percent possibility that we will suffer, the ones you love will suffer and we will have to wait for the next angel to bring the prophecy to life. Think about it, Mr Ryan. Think about it".

Mr. Ryan remained silent, for a few seconds. It made sense to him but the fact doesn't change anything. His son had changed into something unwanted. "What are we going to do about my son, now?"

"What's wrong with your son?"

"He held the key. Now he has turned himself into a monster"

"As long as God lives and Joe has a good heart, the key has only evolved him. That monster you look at is an archangel. The key has only revealed his true potentials"

"What if he takes the key and unlocks the beast? He's not in control of himself."

"Take a deep breath", St Sylvester turned his back, walking to the altar. "Have you taken a deep breath? Just sit home and watch. It's all part of the prophecy"

*********

"Welcome, dear brother", Lucifer greeted, as if he had his eyes behind his head. "It's been a long time you've walked in with a gun."

"Maybe I felt you didn't deserve an attack, then", Mr. Ryan replied and walked closer to him, pointing the gun. "What have you done to my son?"

Lucifer turned his wheelchair, facing his brother. "Kevin? You dare accuse me of what?... I never wrote the prophecy. Neither did I ever try to stop it."

"You found the key. Now my son is bringing doom upon all of us", Mr. Ryan, Kevin, replied.

"When I make a vow, I never break it!", Lucifer scowled. "You know how often these demons howl in my head?"

"You made your daughter, didn't you? Whose powers did she take to fight? Who gives her strength? Who makes her confident? From whom did she get the idea of unlocking the beast?"

"I have made sacrifices, Kevin", Lucifer shouted and stood up from his wheelchair. "You didn't beat me. I let you win because you were right. I had been doing that wrong thing. Now, tell me; if I have kept myself in this b*****e, even in my own home, why would I use my daughter when I can do worse?... I have left the dark, Kevin"

Mr. Ryan fell, kneeling before his brother. "I'm sorry, John. I need to find a way to get my son back"

"Relax, brother. He's only evolving. It's part of the prophecy"

"We both know prophecies. His name wasn't mentioned so he could be replaced. I can see something else, John. I'm scared."

"Trust your son, and trust me. Your son will be okay"

He stood up. "The pastor said it depends on him. It depends on my son if the prophecy will be fulfilled with him"

"I'm sorry,. brother. It truly depends on your son. If he deals with anger, fear or hatred, we might lose him to the beast"...

★

A car drifted and stopped behind him. “What’s the issue?”, John asked, walking out of the car with a pistol.

“The Shadowmask. He’s coming this way”, Cedric replied.

“Damn! We should have brought a pack”, John replied.

“I didn’t think of that. What happened at the school?”

“Looks like Davis isn’t the innocent kid we thought he was. He attacked the boys; the boys we had addressed at the school, earlier.”

“Are you kidding? For what reason?”, Cedric asked, remaining alert, in case the evil Shadowmask would run at them.

“You called me, immediately I caught them. He wasn’t alone. He had two friends named Craig and Luis. I didn’t interrogate them. I had to come, immediately. Someone else is on it”

“Ok. Let’sget ready. I can feel him getting closer”, Cedric said and John grabbed another pistol.

“I don’t think this is going to work. We know he’s impenetrable”

“Yes, we are not shooting him. We are shooting the key out of him”, Cedric replied. “With sanctified bullets”

The two headed beast, with wings, horns and a sharp-edged tail, appeared, running at them. His large wings were spread out, straight, like he would cut everything standing in his way. Darts began to shoot out, at them, from the edge of his wings. The two bent their heads, quickly, and began shooting.

John’s bullets seemed to be ricocheting off the monsters body. Cedric shot thrice at the beast’s chest and the Shadowmask jumped back, as Joe jumped forward, out of it’s chest.

Joe stood up, slowly, as the demonic Shadowmask also rose to it’s feet.

“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”, Cedric said, awed by what had happened.

“I really don’t know if I’m dreaming or something”

Joe turned back and looked at the beast. He shapeshifted immediately, grew a second head with extra horns, a long sharp tail, wings of white and gold, and a greater fiery aura. The dark Shadowmask shot darts at Joe, who caught all of them with his wings and threw them back.

The dark Shadowmask moved it’s sharp tail, heading for Joe’s head but Joe caught it with his fangs, directing electricity from his veins, to his teeth, and to the tail. The dark Shadowmask only staggered, backwards and Joe poured out dragon's breath, consuming the dark Shadowmask in fire. The Shadowmask burned up, quickly, as it’s physical body blew away with the air, and it turned to the key. Joe also turned back into his human self. Cedric picked up the key and carried Joe, with John’s help.

“So this is him”, John said. “The great Shadowmask”

“Yea, he’s just a kid”

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

Cedric and John had put a gun to his head while the Shadowmask, stood, in his normal costume, before him. The diviner surely, was afraid.

“What do you want from me? I have no money”, Mario faked a cry.

“You know what we came here for. Drop the pretense”, the Shadowmask replied. “Why did you lie to me?”

“Me? I don’t lie. Why would I? I can’t remember ever telling one”, Mario kept crying.

“Shut up, damn!”, Cedric said, frustrated.

“The key”, the Shadowmask said. “You knew it couldn’t be destroyed but you asked me to try it. You knew what would happen. It was your plan”

“The daughter asked me to do it. I’m sorry”, Mario said, crying. He stopped, all of a sudden, and started laughing, wildly. “I helped you, i***t”

“Shut up or I’ll put a bullet in your head”, Cedric threatened.

John interfered. “No, let him speak”

“Without the key, you might never reach your full potential. I helped you… and besides, you’ve only been worrying yourself, all this while”

“How do you mean?”, the Shadowmask asked.

“You cannot stop the Unchaining. Someone will unlock the beast and monsters will swarm the city, for we are standing on a beacon. The prophecy was never to stop the Unchaining”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’ll see, my dear. Now, I do not deserve the life I live”, Mario said, slowly, as if sorry for his actions. “Goodbye to the game master”. He raised a gun to his head and shot out his brains, before anyone could stop him.

★

“Shadowmask!”, she howled from the top of a building. There was loud music, filling her ears, but she strived hard to get her voice louder than the music. It was impossible and she knew it but she tried, anyway. She could hardly hear her own voice. “Shadowmask!!! Show up to me”

She was almost crying. She had gone through a lot of stress to get out of the house unseen. If what Davis said was true, the Shadowmask might have his eyes on her, already. Why was she used as bait to get to him if he didn’t know her? If he liked her, then she had to know who it is behind the mask. “Show up, now, or I’ll jump…. 3…. 2…. 1”

She threw herself off the tall building of four floors.