CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
WEAKENESS & ALLERGIES
Clijsters stooddirectly in front of the old man, glancing at him as he sat weakened. Two bows had pierced his chest and two inches of each bow was visible jutting out from the back. He looked as though he was about to die. Clijsters thought he should call Chloe; maybe she wanted to see him. He was cautious not to get too close to this man to avoid attracting the flying metals to him.
Things seemed to look ugly then. Maybe this old man had followed them to inform them that Santa was coming after them. Immediately, Clijsters started to calling out to Chloe, without touching the old man.
Clijsters heard running feet on the floor and then saw the old man turning his head, as Chloe was coming from upstairs. Clijsters then helped to seat the old man so that he could lean on the wall properly.
“What?” she yelled. “Who hurt him?”
In a few seconds, she was right there.
“Don’t touch him,” Clijsters declared. “Stay back!”
“Why?” she argued. “He needs our help!”
Clijsters rose to his feet and faced Chloe, turning his back to the dying old man.
“No, because I’m allergic to metals, they cause an intense reaction to my body that suddenly weakens me,” he confessed. “If we get any nearer to him, those bows in his body would start flying out of him and sticking on my body.”
Chloe relaxed a little, but; in a moment she started wondering how somebody would be allergic to metals? And then she remembered him again claiming that he hated bears. The first thing she thought was to find out why Clijsters always said he was allergic to metals and bears. Her thoughts were then flowing like water.
“Trust me Chloe, there’s nothing I can do to help him. So just stay calm,”
With few hand gestures, Clijsters told Chloe that he knew exactly what had happened to this poor old man. Clijsters eyes were wide and anxiously wary, blood had spattered on his fingers as he had already touched this old man while helping him. He looked at the old man again. He was bleeding profusely, and his wounds were very difficult to handle. The bows would be difficult to remove if anyone tried to help him, because they had loops at both ends. His face was turning pale so quickly. His mouth couldn’t open, but at least he tried to move his eyes. Recognizing their presence, the weakness showed in his eyes, his face looked cyanic and he was short of breath as his tongue could barely move.
Clijsters told Chloe, the old man was named Gregory.
“Chloe, this is so unfortunate that we can’t even help him but it’s Santa who did this to him.”
They waited for what seemed like a voice, as the old man wanted to warn them of something. Immediately, Clijsters knelt and asked him, “Gregory, where’s Santa?”
“Santa,” the old man opened his mouth once and for all, “I don’t know...”
Clijsters looked up at Chloe. Her teeth were clinched, maybe due to the cold, and she was speechless as she watched Gregory pass away. “This can’t be true, Gregory.” Clijsters called. “You can’t die now, Gregory.”
Chloe looked weak due to witnessing the death of the old man and tears were falling down her cheeks. Both of them seemed frozen, as if this were the end of everything. Clijsters knew Santa would be there very soon.
“This Chloe, it’s your experience of life. From now on; you have to be more careful as it will determine your survival on this odyssey,” Clijsters said, with more emotion in his voice. “Here weakness portrays death. And death is what we all have to experience at some point. At times I always thought my race was unshakable. Instead, I discovered that I was wrong, there is only one strength, which can help us regroup our extraterrestrial life.”
