A Soul Left Unsullied

Chapter 10: Darkest Secrets

It felt like an eternity passed before we received the last letter for the last trial.

On this one, the ink was black, which left me with a feeling of dread. Why did they suddenly change it up?

It simply read, "Welcome to your last trial. Take care not to fail again."

A giant boulder fell from the sky mere millimeters away from a sleeping Lilith. Despite the ruckus it caused, she took her sweet time waking up and stretching.We assembled next to her, eager to see what would happen or if she knew something.

She touched the boulder, and a loud voice rang: "This pod contains all of your deepest, darkest secrets; you can choose to learn them or to remain ignorant. As long as your love doesn't turn, you may be granted a safe stay."

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

What were we supposed to do to help with deep, dark secrets?

Should we convince them to ignore it to keep their peace of mind? Or would it be better to have everything out in the open?

I looked at Lilith quizzically, and she waved me off.

I turned my attention to George and Edward, who were now fighting in hushed voices.

"We shouldn't open the pod; it's better to let the other person keep their secrets, and we can learn them gradually by living together." George said it in a soft, reassuring voice.

Full of venom, Edward responded, "Why should we listen to you when you cost us the last trial? Or have you been hiding something from me? Are you afraid now that it might be revealed?"

In turn, George raised his voice and said, "I was trying to preserve both of our dignities. I failed; I completely admit to that, but this is neither the time nor place to blame each other. If it is truly our deepest and darkest secrets, then you should be on the same page as me."

Edward was getting visibly agitated. "Why should I? I have nothing to hide from you! I am not our town's manwhore, after all."

A stunned George turned to his lover and asked, "Where did you hear that? Have you been gathering information on me? Whatever sins I have committed cannot surpass yours. I have heard that you inherited your father's temper and tendencies toward violence. God only knows the carnage you left in your wake."

At this point, Lilith and I tried to separate them; this fight seemed like it would devolve rapidly. We took them away from the pod to have a chat with them.
From their separate corners, they still shouted at each other, "Murderer," "Old Fool," "Crazy Bastard," and so on.

I was trying to calm Edward down when he shoved me off violently and sprinted towards the pod.

Upon seeing him do that, George attempted to catch up to him and no doubt, stop him. Lilith grabbed him and didn't let him go. I chased Edward, but it seemed I wouldn't be able to stop him as he was much faster than me.

Lilith was trying to wrestle George into place, somewhere behind me. Edward's greedy, extended hands were mere millimeters away from touching the boulder.

In an instant, I heard a loud crash, and I saw Edward collapse under my very eyes. I caught up to him and kneeled beside him. Blood was gushing from a head wound. Besides him was the brick that had just hit him.

I turned back to see George's horrified expression; he was as pale as Edward. George collapsed on the floor, in shock at what he had just done to his lover.

It seemed Lilith had been too busy trying to wrestle him to the ground to see he had picked up a weapon. Or maybe she knew and had let him do it? She was a demon, after all; she would be thriving on this suffering and betrayal.

I turned my attention back to poor Edward, who had been failed not once but twice by the man he loved.

His breathing was labored, and it seemed he wanted to say something, so I leaned in.

As soon as I did, his body literally exploded into a thousand pieces.
I was covered in blood, organs, and brain matter. I didn't know what had happened or what to make of this situation.

I turned around to see if the same fate had befallen George.

Where he once sat, there was nothing but blood and body parts. Unlike me, Lilith wasn't hit with anything; her naked self didn't have even a speck of blood.The blood and organs splattered in front of her and all around her, but she remained untouched.

She got up and headed towards me to help me up. Aunt Lisa sat down next to me, trying to talk to me, but I ignored her.

My legs were shaking; I placed my arms around them and stayed in this position for a few minutes. Just as the shock started wearing off, a voice boomed again."Thank you for your contribution to the portal, and better luck on your next trials!"

On the way out of the mall, Lilith tried to make small talk. "You handled his seizure well; where did you learn how to do that?"

"EMT training." I was in no mood for this.

"That must have been fun. Do you have any other hidden talents?" She asked lightly, as if we hadn't just witnessed something horrific.

"Maybe" one-word responses would help her understand that despite her helping me, I didn't really want to engage with her.

"Not much of a talker, uh?" She tightened her grip on me.

When we arrived back home, I went to take a shower. I didn't talk to anyone or eat; I just ruminated on my failure, on what had happened, and on what my role in this was.

Before I went to sleep, I overheard Aunt Lisa say to the demon to give me some time, as it took me a while to open up to people.

Were it any other time, I would have corrected her, saying that it might take me time to open up to people but that I would never open up to Lilith. Lilith was a demon that enjoyed pain and suffering, a demon that might have very well sabotaged our mission for her own pleasure. Even if I didn't have any proof of it, I could never open up to a creature of destruction like her.

Instead, I just slid in bed and closed my eyes, hoping that the haunting sight of Edward's death wouldn't follow me in my dreams.