Parallel: A Story Of Two Universes

6-BELIEF

I looked around wildly, infatuated with the amazing sights around me. Buildings taller than anything I had ever seen, people walking all over in beautiful clothing, and no walls to lock this moment in. Ironic that the group dedicated to destroying the barrier between universes puts barriers around their very own people. I walked out onto the sidewalk, slowly making my way to the first building I could see. I gazed through the window and saw rows upon rows of people shoving products across a table, as others waited on the other side while holding a trolley of sorts. I knew that I might be able to get help from somebody in here, so I walked to the door and reached for the handle, however, as soon as I could it blasted open to the sides. I took a step back, the Keeper had never shown me anything like this! I hesitantly stepped through the door and nearly everyone glanced over at me quickly, then back to their previous focus, and then looked at me once again, this time for much longer. They had a look of terror in their eyes as they all looked around at my bruises and cuts, I probably wasn’t the most ordinary-looking person here. I opened my mouth and got ready to say something, but with everyone gawking at me so ferociously I didn’t know what to say. A man let his basket fall to the ground and stepped over to me, placing his hand on my shoulder and asking quite a lot of questions. “Are you alright, son? You look like you’ve been beaten within an inch of your life! Where are you even coming from? I’ve never seen you around here before…” I opened my mouth once again, glancing around at the others before responding slowly. “I… well I have been beaten. I need… I need some help… A lot of help.” He nodded and called out. “Can someone else help me carry him?” My heart sank, where were they planning to take me?! Being carried was never a good sign before, it either meant a beating or incarceration, but in the outside world, it could be even worse. “Wait, where are you taking me?!” I blurted out. He kneeled down to meet my eyeline and spoke calmly. “We’re going to take you to the police, they’ll make sure you’re safe and that the people who did this can’t do anything ever again. But you’re too hurt to walk, so we’re going to carry you to the car and get you there.” I had heard of these people, the police, from the Keeper. I knew this wouldn’t be as bad as anything back there… most likely. A woman came over and she helped pick me up, allowing them to both carry me outside and to a car. They opened up the door and set me in the back seat very slowly, with the man thanking the woman and then readying the car to drive over to the police. He began to try and talk with me, and I tried to be as responsive as possible. “So, who exactly did this to you?” I took a moment to consider if I should say the truth or not, and the answer became clear quite quickly. “Well, I grew up in- in a cult. They did this.” He took a deep breath and waited for a moment, I could even see part of his neck through the seat and he was nodding. “And… you got out of the cult?” The uncertainty in his voice lead me to believe that he thought I was full of it, but I pushed through and explained a bit further. “Yes. They beat me. They chased after me. I nearly died… but now I’m here. Do you really think these police will be able to help me?” He shook his head, I could tell he was starting to take me a bit more seriously now, after all, I had blood all over my shirt. “Well, I’m not entirely sure, but they’re going to try and help you. I don’t know what exactly they’re able to do about this, but if there is a cult around here doing this, maybe you can help them find it.” I nodded slowly and laid back down on the other car seat, feeling the vibrations of the road being rolled over so rapidly was relaxing. I had never really seen the outside world beyond what the Keeper had shown me, but so far it seemed quite similar. The small glimpse I got into what they call a town was nice, and maybe once my purpose is fulfilled I can experience more of it. I glanced out of the window after sitting up a bit more, looking out towards the forest that gracefully let the sun cut through it like a blade. “How much longer until we’re there?” I asked, he lifted his hand from the wheel and let it fall back onto it softly. “Shouldn’t be more than 10 minutes, we’re almost out of the woods now and then we’ll be in the city… Is that going to be a problem?” “No, I’ll be able to hold on for a while longer, I’m pretty sure.” I continued looking outside, the forest purely mesmerised me. The thought that something of human creation so entirely delusional and evil could exist wrapped beneath such a beautiful environment is mind-boggling. **CRASH!** The window on the other side blasted open, shards of glass flying everywhere. I looked over toward it and saw that a memorial rock had been thrown. A rock with my sick monster of a mother glorified on it was the first thing to hit the car, as more stones and bricks continued to smash against the sides. The driver screamed out “What the hell is this?!” He swerved the car around to try and avoid the oncoming cultists, who began rushing out toward us with their blades and rocks. They attempted continuously to break the car down, but seemingly to no avail until suddenly I could hear a popping sound. I looked through the other window to see that a cultist with a spear had punctured one of the tires. “WHAT THE HELL, WHO ARE THESE FREAKS?!” He cried out once again. “Um, I think the tire just got slashed.” He looked back at me and continued to drive the car as far as it would go, then he fully turned around once we totally stopped and spoke again. “You listen to me, you get out of the same side as me and run along with me perfectly. Then, once we’ve broken through the crowd, you need to run as fast as possible. Understand?” I nodded as a cultist rushed toward his window with a hammer. He opened the door right before impact, causing it to fly into the attacker. He walked out and grabbed the hammer, beginning to fend the others off quite effectively. I got out of the car and rushed to be right behind him. “Listen, kid, I don’t really count myself lucky for being your driver on this trip, but at this point, all I hope is that you’ll make it. Follow me for a bit longer-” A cultist managed to jab him right in the side. As he began to fall to the ground I had to do something, fast. I kicked in the direction of the spear, snapping it in half. I pulled the half with the blade out of him, tears beginning to stream down my face in this battle of depravity once again, and shoved it right into his killer’s abdomen. I pulled it right back out and began to run down the road again, the crowd of a dozen or so crazed maniacs chasing after me. It continuously felt like they were about to get me, but I just kept running. I finally started to see the tree line break as more and more of them stopped chasing, it was incredibly strange. They seemed almost repelled by the city as I began to enter it, and I began to feel more secure as a result. I looked around desperately, with people all over the streets I knew someone would be able to help. I rushed over to a man in a green sweater and began to frantically ask him questions. I knew that entering the city was forbidden for those freaks, but who knows what sort of insane attack they could have prepared already. “Do yo-, um, do you know where I c-could find the police station?” I asked, trembling at an insane rate. “Well, I think it might be around there…” He pointed over to my right, and I began to rush over in that direction. Even though there was still a chance of them finding me here, I felt truly free as I looked around this unfamiliar city, feeling like I was at home despite never having seen it in my life. I guess that’s what happens when your real home really sucks, anything better starts to feel perfectly natural. I ran and ran through the cold air, not knowing when I’d finally get there, but I knew I had to hold out hope. Eventually, I saw it, a bright blue sign on a large building which read “POLICE”. I walked up to it and opened the door slowly, looking inside and seeing a man sitting at a table. I walked over to him and began to speak once again, this time nearly breaking down completely due to relief. “I-I need he- I need help. C…an you give me… help?” He looked up at me with concern and terror. “What do you mean? Are you in need of rehab? Is someone after you? Are you hurt? What do you need help with?” I slowly held up my hand before I could feel the crash coming. Whatever I drank before had worn off by now and yet I was so close. I felt all the pain come surging back, and the shock nearly killed me. I fainted barely a second after holding up fingers implying “TWO”. I woke up in a grimey room, surrounded by grey walls and some sort of mirror. I was sitting down, which was strange, and as I opened my eyes further, I saw a different man sitting across from me, laying his hands on the metal table. “So, son, what exactly are you doing here? You came in last night asking for help and then fainted, and we found blood and injuries all over your body. Some of that blood was the same type as yours, some was definitely not… Can you explain what’s going on here? I just need to talk with you…”