Enigma of the Soul - Book 1 - Pieces (6 page)

A smile comes to his face when David remembers what happened at his birthday party and how Marnina and Zebedeo had to trick him in order to make it all happen.

Marnina and Zebedeo secretly planned David’s twentieth birthday party for two weeks. It was tremendously hard to make everything go as planned because David caught them talking about a party a couple of times.

David’s birthday comes, and a little trick needed to be played. David had no idea what was going to happen within the next couple of hours. Marnina was being sneaky about her intentions when she asked David to go into town and get some unique ingredients for dinner. He agreed and left for town on foot. As David walked out of sight Marnina, Zebedeo, Markus, and Wendi all started decorating for the party. Handmade decorations appeared everywhere in the backyard. Tables go up, and food is put on them.

Wendi turns to Marnina, “Is he coming?”

“He said he would be here,” Marnina replies as she continues to work on the decorations.

“I know, but I don’t see him yet.” Wendi says.

“Don’t worry; he is a man of his word.”

“When is he going to show up?” Zebedeo asks, handing Marnina some rocks to hold the tablecloths down.

“Merlin told me that it was going to be a surprise, and it will be remembered for a long time,” Marnina replies to both Zebedeo and Wendi.

“It’s just about that time because more and more people are showing up. When is David due back?” Wendi asks.

“Anytime now. We better hide everyone before David walks up and we all get busted,” Zebedeo looks up at the sky to survey the sun’s position.

Wendi takes a couple of steps towards the front of the house and is knocked down by an unforeseen force that astounds her. Dazed by the blow from the mysterious object, she tries to regain her breath as she gasps for air. The sun blinds her as it shines around a shadowy figure standing over her. It extends out an arm, reaching to grab her by the shoulder. Wendi screams in terror as it comes closer and closer to her. Her body stiffens up as it shakes in fear of the unknown. Then it touches her with its cold wet fingers as they slowly wrap around her upper arm sending chills down her spine.

‘I’m going to die!’

Wendi’s hand makes a fist and swings towards the shadow’s head. The shadow lets go of her and freezes her in mid-air.

“Hello there. You must be Wendi; I am Merlin. Can you point me in the direction of a Mr. David Turner?” The shadowy figure speaks up as the smoke from the portal fades away. No one watching can believe what is happening in front of his or her own eyes.

Markus speaks up. “Mr. Merlin, sir, I… we… hum… he… is not here ye. We sent him on an errand into town, and he is not back yet,” Markus puts out his hand to shake Merlin’s hand. Merlin shakes hands with Markus.

“Markus, if I remember right you, are David’s brother, younger brother I do believe. I deeply apologize for the interruption that I have made to your little party for Mr. David, young David.”

Merlin waves his hand and Wendi falls to the ground. Before anyone could say more, they hear the sound of footsteps coming around from the front of the house. Merlin thinks fast and makes everyone in the backyard disappear by turning them invisible, including all of the decorations. David strolls into an empty backyard.

“Where is everyone now?” David says as he glances at the empty house and backyard. He walks into the middle of the backyard, scratching his head.

Everyone yells surprise! David falls over due to the shock. Some people start to laugh aloud as other people gasp.

Merlin strolls up to David, puts out his hand to help him up, “Happy twentieth Birthday!”

David faints.

After a couple of minutes, David comes to and realizes that Merlin is one of the many people standing over him waiting for him to wake up. David stands up and shakes Merlin’s hand to thank him for coming to his twentieth party. Everyone chuckles as David is shocked by how many people have shown up. His older brothers, Dave and Gale, and his older sisters, Sara and Joanne, have all created small families of their own. There are people from town that knew Lardeo family. Everyone has an enjoyable time playing games, talking, and eating until dusk. People start to bid everyone else good-bye and leave to go home. A couple of people stick around to talk and hang out until the sun comes up.

“It looks as if everyone has had all the fun that one can have,” Markus says, standing next to Merlin and David, sipping on a fruity iced down drink. Wendi comes over holding one of the last sandwiches made for the party.

“Do either of you want this?”

“I would love to have it; if that is okay with you two?” Merlin inquires about the sandwich.

“I’m not very hungry,” David says rubbing his belly.

“Neither am I,” Markus adds.

“I guess you are the winner of a new ham and turkey sandwich,” Wendi tosses the sandwich to Merlin as he smiles back at her. He unwraps the sandwich and takes a bite just before David starts asking all the questions he ever wanted to know.

“How old are you? Where do you come from? Why are you all alone all the time? Do you have parents like me? Who are your parents? How long have you been doing magic? Can you time travel?”

“I am 5,000 years old. I do not remember where I came from, due to the fact I have no idea whom my parents are. There was a couple that raised me from the time I was a baby to when I became a young man, and then time started to slow down for me. I do not age like everyone else. I have been doing magic ever since I can remember, and I think that is why I do not age like everyone else. Yes. I can time travel, but that is a whole different story that is too long right now,” Merlin stopping to take a couple of more bites of his almost finished sandwich.

Markus signals David to ask the question that has been on both their minds. David shakes his head and Markus nods back to him.

“What else would you like to ask me?” Merlin says with a little grin at David.

“Well I, ah, would like to ask if you take on any apprentices. Like maybe a young man that finds you very interesting and loves everything that you do?” David finally gets it out.

“No, I am very sorry, but I do not. There is only one of me, and there is a good reason for that. Which I cannot tell you. Ever. I am very sorry,” Merlin tries to lets David down gently but it begins to back fire on him.

“You mean I’m not someone that you would be willing to train in the art of magic? Or am I just not a magic type of person?” David says sarcastically.

Markus figures it out and comes to Merlin’s defense, “What he is trying to say is he is very special, and he cannot teach you anything that could be taught to an ordinary person.”

All this information hits David like a ton of rocks because he realizes that he is a normal person and nothing can change that. David feels depressed and heartbroken. His idol just crushed his dreams.

Merlin knows it is time to leave, as the moon is the only thing lighting the now dark backyard.

“I bid you a good night.”

Merlin takes a couple of steps forward and disappears in a cloud of smoke. David and Markus head off to bed.

There was a white door to the far end of the room. Dimitri glances over at Belial as he points to the door and asks. “Where does that go?”

“I don't know. This is your soul not mine,” Belial replies as he looks around at all of the pictures hanging on the many walls.

Dimitri stands in front of the white door with his hand inches away from the knob. An angry feeling comes over him as he turns the knob. A room of mirrors is what is waiting for Dimitri behind the door. Thirteen mirrors wrapped around in a circle to form a tridecagon with the last mirror on the back of the white door. Dimitri and Belial walk into the middle of the room, looking into every mirror but not seeing their reflections.

“I have never seen anything like this before,” Belial stares into a mirror.

“Is this part of my soul?” Dimitri asks.

“It has to be,” Belial replies.

“Long time no see. I haven't seen you since that day you and me decided to steal from that rich boy,” a stranger’s voice says echoing throughout the room.

“Who said that?” Dimitri spins around searching for a face to the voice.

“You don't remember me do you? You created me on that very day. You have created a lot of us over the years. Different individuals for different situations that you, Dimitri, experienced throughout the years. I just figured that I should speak up first because we had such a great relationship in the past,” the stranger’s voice answers Dimitri.

“How many are you?” Dimitri says aloud.

“There are thirteen of us, and the oldest is the youngest,” a woman's voice replies.

“This is getting deep. What kind of life have you had in the past?” Belial asks Dimitri.

“A very rocky past created me. My name is Jack, and the first to speak up was Edward. The woman is Julie, who took care of you after your stepmother died. You have nine other people or monsters within these mirrors waiting for you to talk to them,” Jack makes himself seen to Dimitri and Belial in the mirror behind them.

“There are thirteen of you. So where is the thirteenth? Jack only told me about twelve,” Dimitri walks up to Jack’s mirror and stares him in the face.

“The thirteenth person does not want to show himself to you because he is scared of you. Personally, I don't blame him.” Jack glares deep into Dimitri's eyes.

Edward comes forward behind Dimitri in another mirror with Julie beside him in the mirror to his right.

“Why are you here with this demon?” Edward asks.

“The important question would be: how did you get here in the first place?” Julie asks Dimitri.

“This is Belial, and yes, he is a demon. He is my judge and told me that if I make it past this test that I will go to heaven. We have to work together so we can go to heaven,” Dimitri says to the three that he and Belial can see.

The dark parts of Dimitri soul turn nine mirrors to black obsidian stone and shout out, “You will never go to heaven! You will die here with us!”

Four mirrors remain untouched by the dark, demonic parts of Dimitri’s soul. These four mirrors form a triangle that Dimitri and Belial are standing in the middle of it. The last empty mirror on the back of the door slowly turns to jade. Julie's mirror starts to change to amethyst while Edward's mirror changes to snowflake obsidian. Jack's mirror does not change and stays with Dimitri and Belial, watching to see what they will do next.

“Dimitri, I think that this is going to get even worse. You need to end this quickly before anything bad happens,” Belial tells Dimitri as he looks at Jack. Dimitri just looks straight at the mirror that turned to jade.

Dimitri thinks to himself, 'Why is that mirror so different than the others? And why did it not show me the last and final thirteenth piece of my soul? Is that the most powerful and indispensable part of my soul?’

“You best get ready for the hardest thing that you will ever face in your present or past life,” Jack stares at Dimitri. “Here it comes.”

Hands and feet start to merge from the black obsidian mirrors. Nine creatures now slowly pace around Dimitri and Belial snarling, clawing, and taunting them. Each of the creatures has a different number branded on their body. Number one stops in front of Dimitri and talks to him while the other eight continue to circle them.

“You locked us away when you decided to repent for what you started. We didn't like that too much. We like to come out and play. We like to have fun with other people. So why did you lock us up?”

“I remember that I made you. A personal monster specially made for each person that killed my father and stepmother. But I was wrong for doing so. Nobody should be punished for what they did by a human being when there is a higher power at work at all times molding everyone and everything. I am sorry for making you all. But I guess since I made you that I must unmake you,” Dimitri stares into the darkness of the monster that is part of his soul.

“You will not win! You will perish here because I know something that you forgot. You forgot that two of the parts of your soul are almost as bad as me and the other dark parts. The other part is a motherly figure that will not fight anyone or anything due to the fact its soul purposes is to protect you and to take care of you.”

“That is what I'm counting on," Dimitri holds his hands up to the ceiling. "Jack, Edward, and Julie join with me! We shall overcome this darkness that is in my soul.”

The three mirrors that are holding Jack, Edward, and Julie crack and fall to the floor as the pieces of their souls fly out to combine with Dimitri. Dimitri becomes more whole as he watches the nine dark pieces of his soul combine into three different monsters.

“I'll be right over there while you take care of this problem,” Belial backs over to the last mirror that still has not revealed itself yet.

“Dimitri, we are going to destroy you!” The three dark monsters say in unison.

“Bring it on,” Dimitri whispers beneath his breath and hears in his head. 'Let's do this.'

The three monsters circle Dimitri changing their form and shape becoming smaller or larger, adjusting themselves to the different pieces that they're made out of. One monster becomes large and bulky as its body becomes more muscular, taking on the raw strength that is hidden within Dimitri. The next monster becomes tall, thin, and fluid-like as its arms and legs swim through water freely like a bird flying through the air. This monster laughs as it looks at Dimitri making silly faces at him. The last monster stops in front of a black obsidian mirror that has joined together with two other mirrors. Slipping back into the mirror, the last monster's body becomes black with gold lines outlining the different shapes of puzzle pieces that make up it's ghostly figure. It stands on the other side of the mirror watching the other two monsters circle.

Energy surges throughout Dimitri's body as he readies for the fight of his life. Jack, Edward, and Julie watch through Dimitri's eyes as the monsters taunt him. Jack and Edward tell Julie that they will take care of these two monsters and that it will be no problem. Julie curtsies to them then backs away. Dimitri smiles at the bigger, stronger monster then yells at the top of his lungs as he charges at him. His fist makes contact with the head of the large monster and the hard, leathery skin of it’s face. His fist slides off, and Dimitri loses his balance but regains it as he swings his opposite fist at the other monster. The fluid-like monster dodges Dimitri's fist and laughs at him as he falls into one of the mirrors. Looking up, Dimitri see the large hand reaching down to grab his head. He swings his arm and knocks the monster's hand away only to be caught by the fluid-like monster's open hand, waiting for him to mess up. Dimitri's body is yanked up like a puppet on strings.

‘Are you three done getting your butts handed to you?’ Julie asks Jack, Edward, and Dimitri. 'Because if you are then I would love to show you how it’s done.’

Julie takes over Dimitri's body and begins to dance. Shaking free from the fluid-like monsters grasp, Dimitri jumps in front of the bigger monster. The fluid-like monster swings its fist at the back of Dimitri's head. Dimitri curtsies to the two monsters as one punches the other one. Dimitri dances around the two monsters for the next five minutes making them hit and tear each other apart. The tears on their skin stay open to show miniature three-dimensional puzzle pieces on the inside of their bodies. In between the puzzle pieces are golden lines outlining the different shapes that make up the innards of each monster. The puzzle pieces joints shake and pull at themselves with each blow. The stronger monster falls to the floor with a thunderous thud and lies there in antagonizing pain.

Dimitri cannot believe that he is winning this fight, and he hasn't thrown a punch for about five minutes now.

'See, you guys just needed to trust a girl every once in a while.’ Julie says just before she gives the final blow.

The fluid-like monster stands waving back and forth as it seems to run out of steam. It lifts up its claw to point at Dimitri as if it were calling for one last dance. Dimitri nods his head and walks towards this monster knowing that this is the end. The monster takes two steps forward as Dimitri walks with his hand out waiting for the other hand to lead. Looking down at the larger monster dying, Dimitri sees that its hand is trying to move to catch his feet and trap him. Dimitri smiles down at the larger monster then smiles at the monster standing in front of him now. After swinging its arm at Dimitri and missing, a look of fear comes over the fluid-like monsters face as Dimitri catches its hand. Dimitri spins around to put his back into the chest of the fluid-like monster and flips it over his back. The stronger monster’s arm pierces the fluid-like monster’s chest as it is flipped onto the other monster. It explodes into millions of tiny puzzle pieces that fill the room. Dimitri touches the stronger monster to see what happened to it after being hit by the other monster's body. Crumbs to the floor with millions of puzzle pieces rolling away from it.

Dimitri stands up and looks to Belial. Belial looks back at him and shrugs his shoulders. They both stand in disbelief the pieces are sucked into the black obsidian mirror like a black hole. The two monsters’ mirrors disappear.

A ghostly hand appears from the black obsidian mirror as it reaches for Dimitri. Its fingers wave back and forth as the arm that is attached to the hand becomes more visible. A foot then a leg steps into the room with Dimitri and Belial watching and waiting to see what is to come out next. The limbs are black with gold outlines of puzzle pieces covering its skin. A dark featureless face comes through the obsidian mirror and begins to speak.

“I have been waiting for this to happen for a long time now. Do you think that you are all kindness and light? Let me tell you just a little something about your inner soul. It is I, a dark, hollow, nothingness waiting to be unleashed on the world so it may destroy it and all the good that is in it. Oh yes! You are an evil little person deep down that loves sadomasochism. You are the beginning of chaos. Welcome home Dimitri.”

“What is your name?” Dimitri asks.

“You already know my name. You named me a long time ago. Have you forgotten? Have you forgotten me? Or have you locked me away to try to forget all my greatness. I will tell you my name, but then we shall finish what we have started. Agreed?”

“I agree to nothing. Say your name.” Dimitri replies.

“Draven is my name because it has a hollow meaning. Thank you Dimitri for naming unadulterated chaos.” Draven bows to Dimitri.

“Now I must destroy what I have created. Prepare for your destruction, Draven!” Dimitri takes a fighting stance.

“You think that you can destroy me? By what means do you think you can accomplish this? By ripping me apart? How about un-thinking me? You are as dumb as you look. I had been created long before you have existed and even longer before the anyone else, too. There is only one that can destroy me, and that one is too weak to do so now. Go right ahead and take your best shot,” Draven waves his hand in a fighting motion.

Belial watches Dimitri dash straight towards Draven and swings. His hands land in Draven’s chest. They sink into the golden outline black puzzle pieces until only three inches above his wrists show. Unable to move, Dimitri tries to free himself by putting a knee against Draven’s hip, but his leg only sinks into Draven’s hip. Draven laughs as his hands rest on Dimitri’s shoulders.

“This might hurt a little bit.”

Dimitri's skin opens as if 10,000 razors have cut to reveal what is underneath. Dimitri is hollow on the inside. Draven's body is beginning to disassemble itself, slipping through the cuts on Dimitri’s skin and into his hollow body. Dimitri’s body becomes darker with every puzzle piece that enters. The last puzzle piece enters Dimitri’s mouth as he falls to the floor. The cuts on his body seal up and glow gold while changing into different puzzle pieces shapes and sizes. Putting his legs under himself, Dimitri slowly stands with his back to Belial. Dimitri lets out a giant roar and stretches out his arms. When Dimitri turns to face Belial, the demon sees a face that he fears. Eyeless sockets, black with golden swirls, stare straight at Belial with insane hatred. Black golden hair hides half of Dimitri’s face with the rest going everywhere it wants to. His mouth is distorted by golden fangs hanging as a low laughter falls out. His body twitches this way and that as he steps closer and closer to the jade mirror.

“It is time! Time to end this! Time to take over this hollow body, and give it the soul it has been wanting and waiting for. For so long that it has forgotten what it was made for,” Dark Dimitri points at the jade mirror talking to somebody that Belial cannot see or hear.