They Called Me FIVE

LANCE

Magnus grin at Jesper.

"It's okay man. I'm fine. We're here to take you back."

Jesper hesitated. "But my father he..." I placed my hand on his shoulder.

"Jesper, there's something I need to tell you." I swallowed a big lump on my throat. "You see...when Sam is lifting your brother and father in the air like that -" I pointed to the blue man Sam trapped in the wall. "I kind of lost it when I saw you tied up to that dark room. My shadows of death escape out of me and.. And..."

I couldn't finish what I was about to say. I pointed my hand to the flight of stairs, directly into the bodies of his brother and father. Lying on their backs, eyes open but no life is found in their eyeballs.

"I'm so sorry." I said. My voice cracks and I let it trail off. I dont deserve forgiveness. I don't know if our relationship can be fixed. Or will it ever get any better.

Because, if I was in his position and another guy kill my family right before my eyes, I would get really angry too. I won't forgive him. No matter how cannibalistic and disgusting my family was.... In the end, they're still my family.

Killing them is something I would never forgive.

Jesper scuttled over and kneeled beside his brother's lifeless body. He did not say anything. His face devoid of emotion. I wish it has. I wish he'd cry and lash out at me. I wish he get angry and blame me, hate me, ostrocized me for what I did.

But he did not do all those things. He stayed quiet. Through the battles he kneeled so still beside their body.

Somehow the Blue Man manage to fight off Sam's telekenisis. He rip it apart like curtains draped flimsy around his frame.

Seven immediately leap to aid Sam in his fight. Sam is having a bit trouble. He kept on lifting debris of walls and hurling it at the Blue Man but this tall dude defend himself by breaking the brick in tiny pieces using his lean arms.

Sam tried and failed many times in lifting Blue Man off his feet. He hurl him a strong invisible wave and Blue Man, without a fail, break the wave in half.

I know the wave is Sam's Space blessing. Seven slam her fist in the ground and punctured thick strings of hard roots from beneath. It wrap around Blue Man's neck. Choke him on the spot. His face turn a shade of green. Air is failing to receive entry into his lungs.

I thought the fight is over. Seven and Sam satisfy themselves in chaining him in place. But something won't set right with me. I know there's something more.

I place my hands in the ground. Feel the shadows of death spreads like wildfire. I'm too shaky to put reins on it.

I'm aware its killing the grasses and slowly withering the potted plants nearby. I couldn't help it. I need to check something.

The bones of three hundred men shook. I plunge deep into my gut to raised them back. I couldn't.

I grit my teeth and tug deeper. Half of them moved their feet, without a head nor limbs. Just feet.

And that amount has taken a huge toll on me. I'm feeling dizzy. My mind is battling with anxiety I'm having a hard time to breath. I have them surround this house.

One particular bones, this one has more grudge and traces of negative feelings clung unto me. I raised it.

The bones did not take much of my strength when it rise, far stronger and tougher among my dead armies. I appoint him to be the leader. I have him stationed at the front porch, together with the others who have slowly develop limbs right at the hip.

Me taking other living things' life force is kicking in. Plants, insects and weak animals are slowly dying, pumping me more strength to enforce more dead armies.

I know this is wrong but I couldn't help it. I know killing masses of plants will garner my comrades' hatred, especially Seven but I don't care.

I want this. The rush of power filling my limbs. The intoxicating flush of life force providing life to my limbs...is addicting.

My eyes are glazed when I snap it open.

"Five?" Seven asks in my head. "What are you doing?"

Seven lifted both her hands to strangle the Blue Man a little tighter. He's making big pathetic attempts to escape the ropes but Sam and Seven won't let him.

I could not find a fiber of my being to care about this man. I'm more inclined on completing the ressurection of my dead army.

"Stop it Five." Seven told me off. "Stop what you're doing. Its dangerous!"

"What? Is he trying to do something?"

One second, Magnus is buck naked, wearing nothing except his shirt, the next second, he has his full black costume geared on. With his crosswords at ready.

"He's raising the dead buried deep underground to life! Stop him Magnus. He's weakening all of us."

My head snapped to Seven's direction.

"What? Am I affecting you?" I rasp.

"You are! We are opposite. I'm life, you're death. If you continue to kill the small life forms around us, I'm greatly affected. Weakened. Half of my power rooted from the plants in my surroundings, and if you're taking that away, you'll render me powerless. Sam can't hold this Imp for long, alone. So please... Forget what you're doing and help us. Kill this Imp."

I don't know about stopping. What I'm doing... I have no control. My hands can't stop extracting more and more life force. I flung my hands and the shadows rippled from my fingers.

It shots directly to the blue man. My shadows rested on his neck. My hands felt the pulsing of his veins.

Seven said kill him. But snapping his neck in half is such a waste. I open my mouth. I willed my shadow to eat away his soul.

And it did.

LANCE

I suddenly found myself clutching my heart. A strange ache squeeze my chest, making it harder to breath.

Foreign sensations swept over me. Something is stuck at the deepest part of my mind. A memory.

Locked away by olden years and flooding other memories. But I'm sure. The image has me and Seven on it. Sitting inside a room, red curtains are draped at the glass window, we are situated right across each other. Pile of books stood between us. I can see her face.

The light aura of life blooming around her. I want to reach out to this Seven. Ask her what is this? Am I really reincarnated?

Is this my past life? Then who am I really? Who is the me who go by the name Lancelot? Suddenly, the pleasure and intoxication I felt from absorbing life force is gone.

My mind is suddenly clear. I can breathe and sense of doubts washed over me. Why did I raise my dead bones again?

To fight? Fight what?

Seven?

I look at her. She back away from me. Her eyes refusing to look at me. Yet I stared at her openly. Struck at the shameful behaviors I've been showing to her since this morning.

She did not necessarily ask me to kill. It was her, begging for help. And after I confide to her all the things I could never tell myself....I really am shameless.

"Seven...I -" I stretch my hand, hanging in the air. Would an apology suffice? I can feel Magnus and Sam stare at the back of my neck. Almost as if urging me to go on. Apologize.

Now that the intoxication effect is gone, I felt so drained and tired. It was one of those feelings after you finish working on your assignments. My blessing squeezes the juice out of me.

I realized why Seven and Magnus are so adamant in not letting me raise a dead army.

"You were right. I'm sorry." I look down at my hands. A flicker in the air made my heart pump all the blood flushing to my brain. I just saw my hand, in skeletal form. A shiver went to my spine.

Maybe she's really right. I was unstable. I was reckless. I let my blessings overwhelm me. Now I'm experiencing the aftermath. Maybe my blessing is not really a friend. Maybe I need to exert control on it. Before it overtake me.

This power must love messing with people's lives. I was suffering the side effects. Because I was negligent. I was too trusting... That this power won't crank up my reasons so bad, it will cloud my ability to think.

"If you're thinking this happened because of your blessing you're wrong." Seven murmur.

"What?"

"Just please....don't use it too much. Raising the dead bodies with unsettled grudge can wear you off. Because the moment you decide to tap your powers on them, their burden will become yours. Their grudge will be your chains. Their hatred will be their hold to tie you towards them, sticking their selves to you... forever."

I was taken aback. "That...is that even possible?"

Magnus walks and stops between us. He study Seven. "It is true." He cock his head.

"How did you know about that Seven? As far I know, that information is only seen and recorded in the journal of Lancelot." He gestured towards me.

"There's no way you can have knowledge about it.