PARANORMAL,
CHAPTER FIVE
GOING INTO THE Ether was easy for Scott. It was like breathing. One second he was there? The next. His body went limp, almost like he was sleeping. His state was a lot like Athos's. Except he was sitting straight up, eyes wide open, black in color. He even occasionally blinked. "Vital signs look good, eyes are responding to light", Thalia was saying, not that anyone was paying attention. She'd learned to check vitals and things like that as she got older, because every time Scott did this she hated being idle. Besides, it was nice to be able to have some medical experience — in case any of them ever got hurt. God, she hoped not.
Jem was too busy fussing over Athos, rightfully so. Thalia didn't mind that. She was sure that it was keeping his mind occupied. "You're okay", the boy was whispering. He was holding Athos's hand, brushing his curls back.
And Alex was helping Marcus, not that he needed it. It was more Alex fussing over Marcus. For once Thalia was actually glad her brother wasn't around. She couldn't help it when she rolled her eyes. "He's doing an astral projection, not going to war", Thalia muttered bitterly, interrupting the pair's cheerful aura. "My brother is the one in danger here, not you. Athos is in danger." They weren't doing anything wrong. Not at all. Thalia was just on edge. Knowing her brother would have been upset had he been there, she supposed, didn't much help.
Unrequited love was such a bitch.
She didn't mean to snap, it was just hard being the only person her brother confided in. And she and Scott weren't twins, but she swore she could feel his pain. And he could feel hers. Linked. Inseparable. They were each other's forever, in a way. The one bond that could never be broken.
Danika snorted, gaining Marcus's attention. She couldn't help herself. They were all acting like children! It was tiring. She was stressed. It slipped. She didn't even find it funny. It was just laughable to her that, even now, they could all still be immature. It showed how they each had a ways to go. She was glad to be with her friends. To go through that journey with them. The latter narrowed his eyes. "And what's funny, Dani?" He wasn't angry. Not even annoyed. He was slightly hurt. But who wouldn't be hurt if their friend giggled at them?
"Don't talk to her like that", Lillian snapped almost immediately. See? On edge. It was like everyone in the room was walking on pins and needles.
"Cool it", Minhyuk interjected, for once being strict. Someone had to be the voice of reason around here. "Marcus, just do your stupid projection thing and let's get this over with", Minhyuk mumbled. "Lives are at stake. No one has time for any of you to bicker."
"Give em a break", Beverly mumbled. "We're all tired and freaked out. We're bound to start snapping at each other." That's what humans did when they got stressed, unfortunately. They took it out on everyone around them.
Though Marcus couldn't go into the Ether with him, he was able to communicate with Scott when he was inside. Thank God for astral projections. Minhyuk didn't actually think the ability was stupid. It came in handy. It was special.
Alex stayed by Marcus's side until his eyes closed, and he then turned towards Thalia. "Are you being a jerk towards Marcus because you used to have a crush on him?" He wasn't being mean towards the girl, not all! He just wanted to know what was going on so he could help solve it. Thalia had gotten really annoyed with them, and he wanted to know what was up. He wanted to fix it.
"If you think I give a shit about Marcus right now, you would be wrong", Thalia shrugged. "Get out of my face, Alex. Because, the way I feel right now, I could punch someone. And if you keep talking to me about something so stupid, it might just be you." She wouldn't actually hit anyone, never. Not when it came to them, anyway. She knew Alex only wanted to get to the bottom of it. But it wasn't her secret to tell. And that fact alone was stressing her the hell out.
"Oookay, how about we all take a break", Estelle suggested. She walked over and placed her hands on Thalia's shoulders. "Come over here with me, yeah? Let's take a breather." Thalia reluctantly allowed herself to be led away. She was always more relaxed in Estelle's presence.
While everyone else separated for the moment, Hal snuck over and placed his hands on Mason's shoulders. "Ah!" Mason fumbled for the camera, barely able to keep it from falling. The dark haired boy sighed in relief when realizing that it was only Hal. "Jeez, Hal, you scared the shit out of me."
"That's kinda the point", Hal grinned cheekily. "I know we haven't really talked lately, I wanted to know how you were doing after what you saw last night. I'd like it if you put the camera down for once. Walk with me?"
"I'm okay." He stuck out a pale hand, which Mason wasted no time in taking. "Yeah. Totally." The two began walking away. It's not like they would be needed for a while anyway. They took the time to enjoy talking to each other.
MEANWHILE...
The Ether was a cold and dark place. It was the stop right between Hell and Heaven where the most wicked hung out, too bitter to move on. When Scott arrived there, a lantern was waiting on him, as always. He picked it up, the flame flickered a little.
"Scott, can you hear me?"
"Yeah, Marcus, I hear you. You can go, you know. I really don't need your help." He didn't see the point of having Marcus exert himself if he didn't need to. All this was doing was tiring the dark haired boy out.
"No can do. If something happens, I need to know."
"Whatever then", Scott mumbled. As long as he got Athos.
Scott continued walking until Ms. Gilinsky's house rose in the distance. A version of it anyway. It was like their dimension, but backwards. He found a girl, drenched in water near a wrecked car, standing before it. She looked depressed. But who wouldn't be depressed if they had a rain cloud constantly drenching them? "Oh, hi. Are you Susan?" She nodded. "Gonna take a wild guess and say it's not you who took my friend from your grandma's house. Any idea who's in there?"
She nodded slowly. "They call him Cor Custodis, The Keeper of Hearts. He... likes to manipulate people. But he feeds on hearts that he steals from his victims. He keeps them in jars."
"You don't think he—"
"No, he sold your friend for something more valuable to him. He's okay. I can take you to him, but you'll need to make a trade of equal value."
A trade of equal value... Scott nodded. "Just take me to Athos, please."
"As you wish." Susan turned and began making her way down a narrow corridor. Scott squeezed his way through after her. "He's in there." They'd arrived at a large, oak door covered in chains.
"Thanks, Susan. Visit your grandma sometime, okay?" The girl nodded, and then she was gone. The door swung open, inviting Scott in.
The place was filthy. The floor was sticky with blood, and the place smelled of rotting flesh. The demon that appeared before him was long and skeletal, its nails newly sharp. Its blue tail flicked as its beady black eyes locked on him. Scott didn't hesitate to hold the lantern up in its face. It hissed, baring its crooked, sharp teeth, and covered its face. Demons hated light. "You don't wanna hurt me", Scott said simply. "Let's talk."
It grunted. The ground thundered beneath his feet. It scraped its nails along the wall as he walked. "Talk fast, mortal."
Above ground, in the mortal world? "I don't mean to alarm anyone, but Scott is seizing pretty violently in here!", Daphne had shouted. Thalia paled. No one would have to tell her. She knew what was happening. She knew, and it killed her inside.
Meanwhile, Scott had done as told. He talked until they reached a row of cells. Only one was occupied, where a weak looking Athos crouched in the corner. Scott slowly approached the iron bars. Athos tiredly looked up. "Scott?" He wasted no time in standing up. The bars swung open, when they had been locked moments before. "What are you doing here?" The two shared a long embrace. Though it was so cold that their breaths came out in clouds, Athos remained warm.
In one swift move, Scott shoved Athos out. The door swung shut once again. Scott's hazel eyes flickered over to meet the demon's black ones. "A deal's a deal. Make sure he gets home safely."
It nodded, and they were off before Athos could even ask what happened.
Athos awoke with a start, taking in a sharp breath. Jem was the first to greet him, panicked blue eyes immediately calming. "Never scare me like that again. Do you hear me? Never!"
Athos nodded, but his focus was on the empty chair in the center of the room. "Where's Scott's body?"
"What do you mean?", Beverly asked, furrowing his brows. "He came back just before you did. He told us you were coming too. Did you hit your head on something?" Scott had stopped seizing. And when he'd come back he'd said 'he's on his way' and then announced that he was hungry.
Athos looked confused. "Scott... didn't back come with me... He traded places with me so I could— Where's Thalia?"
"She went with Scott", Daphne said, voice just barely above a whisper. "Into the kitchen."
Thalia leaned against the kitchen counter, eyeing her brother. Her blue eyes narrowed. Her voice was cold. "I don't know who the hell you are, but you are not my brother." She touched the small paring knife on the counter, as if it was her last defense in this world. Her fingers closed around it. Paring knives weren't worth much, but she would make it work if needed.
A twisted smile grew on his face as he turned to look at her. "Such a smart little duckling." Thalia picked up the knife. He looked amused. "You're going to kill me? With that? Oh, how cute." A sick smirk grew on his face and he stepped forward, just as the rest of the group filed in. "Go ahead. But if you kill me now, you kill him too."
Thalia flung the knife then, as if it burned her. "Fuck you", she spat. Like a fire cracker exploding, she lunged forward and punched him in the jaw. She'd apologize to her brother later... If she ever saw him again.
"Thalia", Estelle scolded, grabbing the girl.
"Oh, no. Please, do let her continue", he chuckled, a deep rumbling sound. "It doesn't matter. He'll die anyway." The words sounded foreign, even if they did come in her brother's deep, raspy voice. Scott's voice had always been akin to playing a song on guitar to Thalia. Enough to lull her to sleep in its own. But this... This was the source of nightmares.
Daphne narrowed her eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"
The thing in Scott's body looked at his palms, which were already bruising. "The dead cannot walk among the living for long. The longer I am in this body, the quicker it will die. It will rot from the inside out." It's not like it cared. Nothing would happen to him when Scott's body died. It only meant that Scott could never return. "By that time, I'll be long gone. But him? He'll never come back."
Thalia was hysterical. Her sobs mingled with screams, though the words were unintelligible. It wasn't until she was crying on Estelle's shoulder did she calm just enough for her words to be heard. "He promised he would come back."
"Don't worry", he said, waving a hand. "I'm not here to hurt anyone this time around. I just wanted... more time. There's nothing you can do for him anyway."
"There's gotta be something we can do", Zoey insisted.
Thalia took out her phone, her eyes on the creature before her. A creature. Not her brother. "There are only two other people I know who can journey into the Ether." Her sobs turned into hiccups. She shakily moved her fingers across its screen, dialing a familiar number. It rang twice. "Mommy?"
EDITED JANUARY 17, 2020
added minor details.
JANUARY 10, 2020
ew, I hate this. to make up for it, y'all wanna
see something sexy?
who knows, maybe I'll bring in a few new
characters next book.
ON TO THE QUESTION. two questions cause
i forgot one in the last question.
do you guys want some mini chapters of previous
missions once the book is over? is there anything
specific you would like to see? ( either in this book
or the next. ) aaand i lied, three questions. how many
books would y'all like to see in this series? because... 👀