Souls of the Wickard

Max sat back on the swing with such a wide grin all his teeth showed with a marvelous shine.

'' so, what's your unique skill'' James, looking relieved to be free, asked without wasting a second.

Max's wide grin had faded, and his eyes consciously avoided the others' scrutinizing gazes. He now understood the stick's incredible power, but he realized that seeing through anything would do nothing to help his reputation. To save himself, he decided to give them a false answer.

''Ting!!!, Ting!!!''

< Don't >.

The hair on his body instantly stood up as a chilling sensation of being watched pierced deep into his soul. He expected this; the divinities possessed powers beyond his comprehension. However, knowing that such immense power was observing him day and night didn't make it any less creepy.

He let out a profound sigh before revealing his unique skill. '' my unique skill is called observer's eye…. it allows me the ability to see throw anything''. He found it unnecessary to mention the other skill since it was somewhat clear his divinity was only interested in witnessing the reaction that James and Alice would have to the initial skill.

And just as Max thought, their reaction was that of suspicion. Alice moved behind James, using him as a shield from Max's gaze.

''it's not activated, and even if it was---'' Max paused as negative thoughts rushed through his brain as if he was connected to the dark side of the internet.

'' why did he stop; why did he stop'' Alice frantically asked James as she hid more from Max's gaze.

After this funny situation, the three sat on the swing to have a simple and fun chat, until they saw the sun setting making them feel the tired state of their bodies.

Max found out that James and Alice also fell asleep for a week, and he also found out from James, that the non-participants of the games fell into a deep slumber unaware of the chaos which was occurring around them. 

'' Ok….. I should go before my family goes wild in search for me'' Alice smiled as she returned to her home.

'' Bye, hope we meet again tomorrow, triple Max '' James teased as he also left the park.

The last to leave was Max; he wanted to see the sunset before heading home, which brought him a sense of normalcy. After watching the moon rise, he went home, feeling excited for the next day.

9th January, 2025. In the black house, the official residence and workplace of the president of the country of Acirema. There was an intense meeting that made the atmosphere in the meeting room thick with discussion.

Twelve ministers were seated along a beautiful marble table, where white papers were haphazardly spread across its surface, creating an impression of disorder and impatience. At the head of the table sat the president, William John White.

He sat there, exuding an intimidating energy as he glared at his ministers. His striking blue eyes caused a shudder of fear, while his once-blonde hair was now reduced to only a few strands. The wrinkles on his face were a testament to his age.

His hand placed on the table with his fingers interlocked exemplified his authority, he said nothing but his gaze secretly judged every movement of the people in the room with him.

''Have we tried nuking it'' A minister at the far end of the table suggested.

The other ministers glared at him, they considered his plan so stupid only a child would think of it.

''think, Minister Roger, think'' The minister closest to him replied with disdain.

''It's a fucking floating castle, not every think can be solved with nukes'' A minister further away from Minister Roger exclaimed with a deep frown, he quickly looked away feeling Minister Roger didn't deserve to be a minister of a powerful nation with his low I.Q.

''How are we going to control the blessed, some have powers or abilities or magic or whatever, that can easily cause chaos, and when they do, no prison can hold them''.

The minister closest to the president raised the question and stood up, letting the others know the situation's urgency. The meeting room was sent into another uproar of discussion, yelling, disagreements, and misunderstandings.

As the meeting became more intense with the ministers behaving more like a pack of barking dogs than reasoning humans, President White tapped the table, in the time it took for his finger to glide off the marble table the room went completely silent.

The ministers quickly turned their eyes to the head of the table like a bunch of scared robots. White said nothing but his gaze froze the ministers in place, their mouths became dry and sweat trickled down their faces.

'' Bring him in'' White ordered with a wave of his hand.

The doors to the meeting room opened with a thud, the ministers swept their gaze to the opened door.

'' slap!!, slap!!''

The sound of a flip-flop against the pristine floor of the black house echoed throughout the meeting room with a distinct wet tone.

A man in an all-white lab coat with a white plane top and shorts entered the meeting with an infectious gloomy look and a melancholic aura that made the ministers feel weak.

He was a lanky giant with a lazy neck and bent back from overworking, his eyes were a mixture of brown and purple and his hair was a deep violet. He wore black glasses that fit neatly on his face.

He stood at the end of the marble table, adjusting his glasses before sweeping his cold gaze around the room. The ministers instinctively avoided his gaze, as though looking directly at it would make their hearts stop.

'' the divinity who hungers for the souls of the wicked is the name of my divinity'' He said in a slow and calm tone.

White's gaze softened as he listened to Dr. John Frost the leading head of the country's nuclear program.

Dr. Frost let out a long yawn before continuing ''my divinity grants me wishes, I have no control over the wishes rather my divinity randomly generates a wish... Today it generated three wishes''

All eyes in the room were now focused on Dr. Frost, they didn't blink or say a word patiently waiting for him to finish.

'' in exchange for the souls of the criminals who have committed the most heinous crime it will grant the wish'' He adjusted his glasses before continuing '' In exchange for a thousand souls of murderous, terrorist, and war criminals, it will grant the first wish…. Instantly building a facility to train, equip, and monitor every blessed in the country''.

A faint smile appeared on President White's face, he was pleased with the information he was hearing, and the other ministers exchanged glances of joy upon hearing such news.

'' In exchange for every soul of a rapist or a pedophile, a thousand devices that can seal and capture a blessed will be produced'' Dr. Frost glanced at the ministers with a frown before moving on to his divinity's final wish.

'' for the final wish, I would need all the ministers to leave the room'' Dr. Frost sneered with a firm look.

The ministers glanced at the head of the table, and with a wave from White, they all quickly left.

'' in exchange for the soul of 36 criminals who have directly or indirectly killed a child my divinity will grant you a wish to meet a divinity''

As his brain completely processed the information, the smile on his face stretched from one ear to the other, his eyes beamed with eagerness.

" We will quickly gather the souls for your divinity," White said, raising his hand in agreement. His smile was still as wide as ever.

Dr. Frost snapped his fingers and an illusory red orb of light appeared above the marble table, the orb illuminated the entire room with a sickening red glow that caused anyone who stared at it to feel great discomfort.

The illusory red orb of light began shaking and pulsating like a human heart until it began to drop gold knives from its light body. Many knives poured out before the red orb faded into nothingness.

'' kill the criminals with these, stab them directly in the heart'' Dr. Frost bowed before slowly leaving with an expressionless face. 

The president reached out to grab a golden knife closest to him, he smiled at it before gently placing it back on the table. He reached below the marble table and pressed a red button hidden there.

'' You heard the doctor, come for the knives and put them to good use'' he let go of the button and leaned back into his chair with a satisfied grin.

''Knock!!, Knock!! ''.

Max lying down comfortably on his bed, excepting only a peaceful day with little to nothing to do when that peaceful thought was shattered by heavy and consistent knocking sounds bursting through his home.