The Reaction Went Wrong

It was a busy day, Hans entered his room and laid his back on the swivel chair. He was becoming too old for these. He wasn't strong and stout like before, he had lines on his face, defining his age. Also, those lockets and amulets in his waist was draining him greatly.

He closed his eyes to get a nap, but the telephone rang like the crazy talkative woman on the next door. Annoyed, he thought not to answer the phone. But the man on the other line didn't have any patience, so it rang again and he had to answer the phone, "Yes, Hans Hendrick speaking!"

"Hey, Hans!" a worried, serious voice spoke.

"Yes, Will! What is it?"

"Listen, man! I wouldn't call you at this hour if it weren't serious."

 "Come on! There's a whole new batch of exorcists who recently joined us. Why don't you send one of them up?"

"Cause they can't handle it!" Will growled, "It's a LEVEL 10 emergency!"

"Oh," Hans grunted in frustration, "When do I get to quit and leave all these behind?" he started to pack his items.

"Oh, there's no end to God's work! Get on with it, QUICK!" Will spoke through the speaker, " The location is Canawba, Alabama."

The line ended.

"Uh, I really need to take a break," he left his apartment and went outside.

The highway was quiet today. Almost no vehicles were running. He waited for a while, "Great, do I have to now walk the whole way to Oakville?"

Then all of a sudden, a taxi stopped in front of him, the window opened and the cabbie looked at him, "Where to, Mister?"

"Oakville," Hans answered.

"Well, that's a long way," The cabbie smiled and opened the door, "As long as I see some coppers!"

Hans sighed and got in. The cabbie started to whistle and drive the taxi.

"Well, no offence, but…I'm on a hurry. Can you please…just turn down the volume a but and turn up the speed a little?"

"You sure?" the cabbie looked at him through the rear view mirror.

"Oh, I'm damn SURE!"

"Then buckle up, sit tight and WHOA!" he turned off the radio and kicked the accelerator.

The taxi shot like a bullet ignoring the traffic light and police through the streets of Manhattan.

"Too much thrust!" Hans could barely lift his head due to inertia. He muttered in that situation, "TOO…MUCH…THRUST!"

"You asked for it," The cabbie shouted, "Now you get it!"

"Alright! I take it back!" wailed Hans.

The taxi slowly sped down. Hans let go a sigh of relief. His heart was still running like a racing Stallion, and his chest was thumping like hammer beats.

The cabbie looked at him through the looking glass, "I think I've seen you before."

"Thank you," Hans said, "But sorry to disappoint you. I'm not a famous man. So you must be mistaken."

"Maybe, maybe not," he asked, "Anyway, what are you UP to? Where are you going at this hour? What IS it, that you do?"

"I'm a…" Hans stopped and looked through the wind screen, "Wait, why aren't we moving?"

"Well, we reached Canawaba."

"Why didn't you…How did we arrive so fast?"

"Consider…my cab has wings."

Hans shook his head and handed some cash in his hand," Double if you stay to pick me up again."

The cabbie attempted a salute and said, "Aye, aye, sur!"

Hans went on foot to find the addressed location. There it was, an old and really, creepy house with a very innocent looking door, before which a very tense middle-aged man with a bald head was walking in circles and smoking.

"Het, you!" Hans called him, "I got a call  a while ago."

"Oh, so you…are the GHOSTBUSTER they sent?" the man looked at hin with doubt, "Second floor, I've been hearing screams and roars!"

"Can't people even have some quality time alone?" Hans waved his hand in frustration.

"Only if old Martha had a living husband," he twisted his face, "Don't never'eard of her having a pet dog either!"

"Alright, I'll look into it."

Hans opened the front door and stepped in, he went to the elevator and pressed the switch, which didn't work of course. So, he continued on foot and started climbing the staircase.

The air was getting heavier, it was harder to breathe  he had never felt such powerful and evil aura before. His entire existence felt the urge to run away. The amulets were jingling in his support.

But he gathered courage and found the correct apartment which was not too hard to find. Black stripes were spreading like roots from the door's sides. He knocked on the door and a shrill scream was heard from the inside. Immediately, he bashed on the door with his shoulder. It wasn't locked and he stumbled. And immediately a metal piece pierced the air and hit the wall behind him right where he was one second ago.

He looked ahead instantly, but couldn't see anyone. But he heard some noise. Maybe it's a rat, he thought. But to make such a noise, the rat has to be bigger than a dog.

He, supporting on his hands, sat up and crouched along the corner. As he reached the next room, he could find that the room was almost blown to bits. Like a level-10 hurricane had wrecked havoc in here.

Almiras brought down on floor, closets emptied, water rinsing on the floor. From the left corner of the room he heard a whimpering.

He advanced in the darkness, while touching the steel table at the center of the room. He found that the body of the metal table has been scrubbed away, like scratched with giant claws. What type of beast could have done this? He thought.

Judging from cooking accessories, he could understand that it was a kitchen. He picked up a cooking spoon as a weapon and kept the other hand in his pocket feeling the touch of vial of holy water.

He could see the structure behind the curtain, moving lightly, making sobbing sounds. He raised the spoon and moved the curtain with one hand. Then he got still, it was just a kid. He sighed in relief, "Hey, kid! What the hell's going on?"

The girl, crying, raised her head and looked at him, with her scared eyes, "My…granny, she's…"

"She's what? Possessed?"

"Shh…" she put up one finger on her lips, "She'll hear. She always does…"

"Don't worry, I'll get you out of…" he suddenly silenced as he say that his armed hand was raising slowly.

"Wait, what's going on?"

The girl stared at the spoon with scaredy eyes, paused, sobbing out of fear.

"No, NO!" Hans grabbed his armed hand with the empty hand and tried to stay it from doing it, "Stop! I don't wanna do it!"

A long pause of silence, then the spoon brought itself down on her head. Hans grunted in frustration, as his hand went out of control and it started hitting her until her head smashed like an eggshell. Blood sprinkled and soaked his face, hand and hair.

"No, no! Stop!" Hans broke into sobbing. He's killed someone, a young, innocent girl. No, he didn't. He's been forced to do it. But the police won't understand this.

He looked at the blood soaked spoon and suddenly he felt like being shocked. He dropped the spoon on the floor. The police would surely convict him of murder.

He tried to step behind, but he stumbled on the debris and fell head-first on the sink. Instantly, he felt that two hands pulled him into the water. It was choking him. He struggled to get free, but the hand was just too strong.

Almost unconscious, he put his hand in his pocket and picked out the holy water vial. Then he spilled the water in the sink. Instantly, the water heated up and a voice screamed in pain. He rose his head from the water, taking in deep breaths, coughing and astonished to discover himself in the bathtub in a separate room.

He looked here and there but couldn't see anyone. He slowly stepped out of the bathtub, that's when he heard the calm music.

He first thought it was a choir of sorts. Then he understood that it wasn't any song. It was metals clanging together, producing light metal rifts. He looked beyond the room. In dim light, he could see a lady silhouette slowly descending. It seemed some tentacles emerged from her head. But as he got closer, he could see that it was metal scraps wrapping her head, also hanging her from the roof. So, she controls metals. But how would he prove that to the cops?

"Hey, Black Beauty!" he called on her, "Nice hairstyle!"

She waved her hair, or should it be called metal tentacles in the air. As he got closer, he could see facial outlines on her face. That was no lady, probably the girl's granny, possessed by this demon.

"I see you've answered my call," the demon hissed at him, "How poor!"

"So, you wanted me to come!" Hans replied, "Why? How do you know me?"

"Oh, who doesn't know you…" the demon smiled, " You're quite famous in the underworld, you know? Capturing demons and all…"

"So you know it, well…what does that matter to you anyway?"

"I'll kill you. Take possession of those demons you've been carrying and take their powers."

"whoa, slow down, take one step at once!" Hans said, "So easily? Just like that?"

"Why not?"

"No, it's just…I've never heard of demons possessing other demons!" Hans tried to distract her with bluffs, "I mean, how is this even possible?"

"No possessions," she hissed, " I suck out their powers and dispose of them…"

Then she fingered across her hairs, well…hair-looking metal sheets, anyway. Her eyes suddenly started glowing, "And I know how you operate, my dear!" She started waving her hands and the wind started swirling, levitating small metal shards and shrapnel with it.

Hans tried to take out an empty amulet, but the whirlwind was just too strong. He barely closed his fist around the small tinker.

"YES! I know what that is…" she pointed her tentacles at the amulet, "I won't let you perform the ritual!"

"Let's see who wins," Hans grinded his teeth and started speaking his incantations.

The shards started to swirl more wildly and some of them even touched Hans while hovering, leaving bloodied marks on his arms and face. Hans screamed, but continued to chant. The demon's growling intensified and the amulet was almost about to be lost from his grip.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open by the taxi driver. He gave one look at Hans. Hans also looked at him, and THAT was enough to distract him. The amulet flew away from his fist. But the cabbie jumped forward and grabbed it with inhuman agility. Frustrated to see another opponent, the demon screamed a shockwave.

Hans flew behind and crashed on a pile of debris. He felt like his head cracked into a thousand little pieces, he could also feel his left hand sprained, and a few of his ribs cracked. He couldn't see straight, but he somehow managed to support him on his right elbow. Then he saw the cabbie sat  down on the floor with one knee bent, stabbed by a metal rod.

Horrifiedly, he grabbed the rod and it immediately dissipated into a poodle of shadows. Then he looked at the demon like nothing's happened.

"It's impossible!" she spoke, "How did you?"

He started advancing towards her, slowly increasing his pace.

"It's impossible…" Then it seemed she could understand what was actually going on, "Wait! I know your secret, you!"

Before she could finish, the cabbie jumped on her and punched her in the face. Without letting her mutter something, he continuously punched her.

It seemed like her metal magic wasn't working on him. Then he took something on his fist. Hans could see it. It was the amulet. Them he punched her very hard in the face and her body started dissolving into smoke.

The demon began screaming as its skin began to melt. Hans saw this process for the first time in someone else's perspective. He was already very weak. His body began to shake. The cabbie slowly turned back, his eyes glowing bright red. Those bloodshot eyes, Hans couldn't support on his right arm anymore. He fell on the ground, unconscious.