Chapter Five: A long Time Later

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The lamplight illuminated the forest and its corpse of Lauren in front of me. "So this is where your memory of her ended, huh...What a tragedy", I said, staring down at her face. Looking into dead, empty, and lifeless eyes. Her chestnut hair mixed into the dirt and pool of her own blood. A missing left arm and a right leg. At last, the open wound on her chest was made by the person she once loved.

"When you touched her cold skin and starred in the fading light of her eyes, his control over you disappeared and the moment it faded, all of the emotion you built up inside of yourself, including the newfound pain of losing a lover. Came out crashing and overwhelming your mind, hence you collapsed on the ground", I said standing back up.

I looked at Edward's pale face, as he sat on the bench underneath a streetlamp in the middle of the forest. I walked over to him, "Funny how this wasn't the end of your misery and the worst was yet to come", I said while coming and standing beneath the streetlamp. "So, let's think about what happened next. A long time later", I said, flipping off the light of the streetlamp.

The light came on and we were in a dimly lit bar, just the two of us. I tightened my bow tie, pulled back my hair, and fixed my vast coat. "Alright, I like this style", I said, turning around and grabbing a large bottle of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky, out of the large shelf of Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey, and placing it in front of him.

"This was your... poison? Well, a mixture of self-punishment and self-pleasure at the same time", I said while Edward only stared at the bottle. "Every time you were alone or the thought of what you did to her came to your head. You drank it until you would pass out", I said, picking up the bottle and opening it. I pulled the trash can from underneath the bar table and started pouring it all in.

"Well we aren't here to forget, now are we Edward", I said while I maintained eye contact with Edward, until the bottle was empty, after which I threw it in the trash can itself. "Let's talk about what happened after you chose to come to London with Sebastian, Since...well your parents were dead and you never received any calls from relatives, no. More like you were forgotten. Anyway, here you met her", I said that and a figure appeared next to Edward.

She leaned her elbow and stared at Edward who also stared back at her, with a miserable expression. "Another object with which the world tried to screw you over...again", I said.

"Catherine was a dead ringer for Lauren. Light blond hair and light brown eyes, and that seductive smile drove you insane. She was just like her in every way, how she talked and acted, and just couldn't leave you alone...but in all honesty, you just wanted to give in to it", I said as the world changed around us again.

...

We sat on a bench in a public park, just on the edge of a society where Edward had spent eight years of his life. "Right here at this spot, you would come here when you felt really adventurous", I said, taking in the fresh air, as the world moved around us.

"You tried your best to keep your distance, but just remembering their faces and a name to go with them made you aware that they existed. The mailman by the name of Douglas, Duncan's family of three that lived right in front of your house, and those two children from Robinson's house down the street, that entitled mother that lived next door, and that young couple who would take walks together, that old German veteran on the corner street with that barking german shepherd, and many more of those that came to st. Paul to pray including Catherine. All of them were here so you would know that they are here, "I said, getting up and walking inside the St. Paul cathedral.

"Such a beautiful creation of such disgusting creatures", I said looking around the marvelous Cathedral. An unobstructed view of the altar and pulpit, straight from the doors. Twenty-four large windows inside the dome up above and rose windows on the floor of the transept. The interior with natural lighting and was also electric lighting as well, enhancing the man-made beauty.

Masqueray design on the arches above connecting to the roof. Responsibility of course going to the archbishops and designers who succeeded Ireland and Masqueray assumed the responsibility of transforming the Cathedral's stark, whitewashed interior into a decorative masterpiece. And at the last, the chair in the sanctuary denotes the Cathedral as the Archbishop's church.

I came to and sat down on the red velvet cushion, on the chair in the sanctuary. "Such a nice one, isn't it? huh, priest Edward foster", I said looking down at him. "You kinda thought of this place as your new home, since you worked as a priest along with that bastard Sebastian. All-day and every day hearing that dumb and idiotic confession about pointless things", I said smiling at him and again he was not amused.

"But then came the real reason why you came here the original Red cross", I said and it appeared in Edward's hands. A six-and-a-half-foot Red Cross, top twisted and long enough to be grabbed by two hands and long cuboid bottom. Two sides guard longer to complete the shape of a cross. With the smaller one fused in the middle. The Red Gem glowed red resonating with our eyes turning them ruby red.

"So, many secrets that they kept, the vaults underneath the Cathedral and the riches that they contained. But none was more important than the one which meant destruction for the rest. Only we were able to remove it from its podium and only we could wield it and use it to its full potential. Someone like us, who only knew rage and anger could understand its power, the power of Destruction in the palm of our hand", I said, as the people appeared around us and the day resumed as usual.

"But then that day came along which would change your world forever, as soon as he stepped inside the cathedral, you knew who he was. You switched your attention from those around you to him, as he came and sat down on the firstmost bench in front of you. You could tell he was special, so special that the world revolved around him like he was the center of the universe.", I said, coming down on the marble floor and standing beside Edward, staring at his past self in front of us, staring at the man in the trench coat confusedly.

"His sapphire eyes burned brightly, as they stared in your mind. At that time they were all here, all those people you knew, including Catherine. Picking herself from the bench not before looking at you with a smile, just when you turned to the unwanted visitor. The thing he said and the one that made you sure that he was responsible for all that had happened before he could say otherwise. Just that one sentence he said with a smile that made it all clear. "How have you been, Mr. Foster".", I said.

Edward Foster,

He was certainly the man that brought my phone to Sebastian. Whatever he was, he for sure was not a human. His eyes were burning sapphire-blue, similar to a flame on a candle.

"You, who?...", suddenly a scream interrupted what I was going to ask. The scream came from Catherine on the floor, hearing everyone suddenly standing up. But it wasn't because of the scream, but the figure standing in front of the entrance.

I moved away from that man and in the middle of the row. To get a better look at the figure. And the moment I realized what it was, my knees felt weak. The pain wielded up in my stomach. It was similar to the monster haunting my nightmares, that fucking Mannequin.

But this one was different looking; a top opened spiral head contacting a normal-looking neck, plain shoulder, chest, and hip, with a spiral abdomen, spiral arm ending with proper human hands, and last the legs spiraling to a pointed tip.

The tips however didn't touch the ground, floating an inch above it. The last important detail was the White Gem embedded inside his chest. Burning a soft white glow. My eyes went back on the stranger, staring at me with sapphire eyes. His elbow resting supported his head.

I immediately started begging, "Please...don't, they don't deserve this...", but he quietly brought up his finger to his lips. "I am not the one doing this, young lad", he said without moving his lips, while his voice echoed inside my head. He raised his resting hand, "Though, I can do this much for you", he said, snapping his finger.

It appeared above all of us, the Red Cross. Dropping down to the floor. "Good luck, I hope you prevail young lad", he said and I heard his voice. But when I looked back at him, he was gone. I gritted my teeth, as the resonance began with the Red Cross in front of me.

While the spiral raised his arm and a white haze escaped from behind him. Covering every inch of St. Paul and everyone other than me and the stranger. I would have called the Red Cross to me, but my mind stopped when my eyes went to Catherine. She was staring at me with fear, as a white haze outlined her body.

It wasn't just her, everyone and everywhere had started emitting a white aura. I took my eyes off her, knowing full well this was the last time I would see her. I raised my hand towards the Red Cross, "Come to me!", I commanded it.

The Destruction of the concept of Space and the concept of damage. Then everything became loud, like thunder.

Everything moved around me, the structure of the cathedral breaking apart in a violent vortex. The sheer volume drowned my thoughts and focus. I along with everything else got swept up with torrents of wind. Cradling the Red Cross, my vision became blurry as I went around spinning and crashing into multiple objects.

"Stop!"I yelled at last and with the Destruction of the Concept of momentum, it all stopped instantaneously. While I came back crashing down on the ground with the rubble falling onto me. Everything went quiet at that moment and I could only hear my breathing. General Destruction. The rubble broke apart into thousand pieces with force sending it forward.

The light broke in, blinding me for a moment. As my vision set, the clear sky came into view. I picked up myself off the ground with the help of the Red Cross. I looked around with a heavy heart. There was nothing left of the cathedral, not even the platform. All were uprooted and thrown around in the nearby buildings and roads.

I couldn't see any other person in the ditch in which I was standing in. Then my eyes finally caught the spiral standing far in front of me and an object floating beside him. A jolt and the object flew at me, landing in front of me and rolling towards me.

It was the head of Catherine, dead and expressionless. I stared at it for a moment, then I looked away as I went past it with boiling rage. I couldn't understand what expression I was making, but I knew too well that that thing was just fucking with me.

"You spiral piece of shit...I don't know what you are! or who sent you! or who is inside of you! I'm going to tear you apart!", I yelled at it, and in response, it raised its hand again. The same white hazy as before escaped from underneath its feet covering the whole ground.