Chapter 5: I WANT TO KNOW. CAN YOU SHOW ME

Chapter 5: I WANT TO KNOW. CAN YOU SHOW ME

“It’s really very surprising Robert. I’ve actually been waiting for you for a while now. You’re the last piece we’ve all been waiting to meet.”

“Okay, first off, I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. Secondly, if you could stop the thing you’re doing with the lights… however you’re doing it” he pointed to the flashing light bulb over him, “…yeah I’d really, really appreciate it. And thirdly, what exactly do you mean by “’we’ve’ been waiting”? Who’s we?”

"Here" she said, pointing to the book on the table that definitely didn't catch the eye till this moment. She picked it up and flipped it open. Elizabeth Garner and Taylor Carlyle, your sisters… foster sisters, attended her funeral. They were the first ones here, and the first of the eight of you guys to be cleared on what's actually going on here."

"What do you mean by 'what's actually going…"

"Makayla Fackler was here two years ago, similar predicament. Only difference is she asked less questions than you’re asking right now. Was definitely the most charming of all eight of you. Jacob Fackler died a year ago so his consignment might never be accessed. 

“Hold on, Jacob’s dead?”

“Abdul Javani was seeking refuge in this building after being shot. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how exactly he was able to get the password right. But now that I think about it, all he actually needed to do was to open the door" she smiled, paying little to no attention to the look of complete confusion hooked on Robert's face. "Jonathan Fackler visited here a couple weeks to his infamous journey to the North. Which is one of the many reasons he's in prison, awaiting the final procedures regarding his death sentence in a couple days’ time."

"Wait, what the hell are you—? Jacob’s dead, Jonathan’s in prison? Makayla’s charming? Javani was shot? And since when are Elly and Taylor on time? I'm still so confused right now" he said. "And isn't that seven people including me? Where's the eighth? Where's?”

"Mary?"

"Exactly. Where's Mary?" He said, still trying to piece together what exactly he was being lured so delicately into. 

"Mary disappeared the night of Miss Maya's passing. She's the only one that might know something we don't. And to justify that cause, there wasn't any consignment left for her."

"What? What are you even…? What do you mean by consign…? I'm so fucking confused right now" He said, abruptly getting up from his rather uncomfortable chair and gently massaging his head that felt like it was about to burst open any moment. 

"I know it's a hard pill to swallow Robert but…"

"No shit Erica, I didn't even know I was sick and you're telling me it's a hard pill to swallow? I have no idea what the fuck all of this is. But once again, it's my fault. Look, I only came here to find out what happened to my aunt. This, all this" he said gesticulating to the grand building, “…is way more than what I bargained for. And by the way, just a little glimmering question. If Aunt Mia is dead, and the only eight people she cared for either know about this already, are dead, in prison or vanished into thin air, who the fuck are you Erica?" He asked, summoning the boldness to look at her eyeball to eyeball, his eyes gradually depicting more and more restlessness.

Taking a deep sigh, she whispered, "They did warn me about you."

"What'd you say? What’s that supposed to mean?"

"You mind taking a seat? This might jolt you a little."

"Thanks, but no, I'd rather stand."

"Okay then. Let's try this one last time", she cracked her knuckles, closed her eyes, and then took a deep inhale. The lights around the building began to tinkle, every one gradually bursting and consequently dying out, until there was nothing left but darkness. That was when her eyelids lifted up and Robert's murky eyes met a set of fuming red ones. Very, very different from the calm purple ones she had graced him with to begin with. "Robert Banter Barrison" she said in an astonishingly deep and resonating voice, "open your eyes" she added, gradually lifting off the chair and then off the ground, her smooth legs dangling a couple feet in the air, Robert following suit a couple seconds later. "I want you… to see". At that exact moment, Robert's eyes immediately changed color, instantly resembling Erica's red ones. His consciousness swiftly travelled to the deepest depths of "The Hidden". In less than a couple seconds, he found himself wandering in a completely different space, time, and reality. Erica floating undauntedly just in front of him. 

And then, she began her narration. "In the beginning, there was darkness. But after sacrifices of time, effort and energy, the universes were created. Man was gifted monsters, the powers to defeat them, and the subtle gift of intuition." She swiped the air like one would do when using a tablet or android, and a different reality appeared. No longer one of pitch-black darkness, but one of something that looked even worse. Blood, pain, hunger and torment. The light was too dim to fully uncover this reality's details but it was audible enough to give your goosebumps, goosebumps. “The creators deemed it fit to try and correct what they felt was a mistake, and so in one sudden action, they sacrificed themselves to their own creations, but also chose to live on and multiply through them.” She swiped again and this time, four glimmering rays of light, and four murky voids of darkness were floating right in the empty space in front of them. "So, with the last piece of decent energy they had left in them, the supreme beings forged eight separate rings. Each of the rings possessing the ability to rule, dictate, and control a particular realm. Every single power in existence is a product of the eight gifts entrusted to every generation by a guardian. This generation's guardian, was your Aunt Mia, whom I took over from after her sudden passing" she said, looking thunderously at Robert, the fear still looming in his glowing red eyes. "These gifts are now the responsibility of the eight of you. Or at least the seven that still breathe. And although you are indeed the last one to receive a consignment, you my friend, also have a responsibility. A gift awaiting you, whether or not you choose to accept it. This Robert, is what's actually going on.” At that exact moment, the facade of that reality came to an abrupt end, leaving Robert prey in the hands of gravity, falling without caution on the wooden floor, while Erica gracefully got down on her feet, then sat back down on the chair beside her. 

"For a number of years now Robert, I’ve been keeping my eyes on you. Knew this day would come one way or the other. You’ve been looking for a reason to die. Well… I think you’ve got the perfect excuse now. Any more questions Robert?" She asked, crossing her legs, and looking back at the dark-skinned male writhing in pain as he tried picking himself up from the floor