Astronaut Exorcism

All There in the (Monster) Manual are stories based on creatures from the Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual, over 2022 I released a different story fitting the theme every single week! Could be fantasy, science fiction, horror, or something else entirely.

This Week's Inspiration: Horned Devil

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"An astronaut has been possessed by a demon on the Babel Space station."

Father Flannagan looked around the table at the five men and one woman from NASA. No trace of humour showed on any of their faces. No sign that this was some kind of joke. Instead, what Flannagan saw was embarrassment and desperation.

"I see," Father Flannagan said.

Dr Johnson adjusted his tie and cleared his throat. "We were hoping you might be able to advise us on what actions to take next. You came to us recommended as someone who might have dealt with this kind of issue before."

"Possessed astronauts?"

"Possession, demonic possession, if that is what you call it?"

Father Flannagan took a few moments to collect his thoughts. Thirty-eight years old, Flannagan looked older. A roughshod face and greying hair ageing his appearance but estowing him with a certain gravitas. He also looked out of place in his simple black shirt and pants, white collar at his throat. The folk from NASA all appeared slightly nebbish, soft, uncomfortable, and wore suits and ties, or a ruffled blouse in the case of the solo woman.

"You'll have to forgive me but you are men, and women, of science. All my life I have faced nothing but scepticism from your like. Given the nature of my work for the church I've even been called a liar, a conman, a charlatan. Now you claim you want my help?"

"Father, with all due respect, yes, you are correct," Johnson said. "Two weeks ago if you told me I would be seriously consulting with someone in your line of work, an exorcist, I would have laughed in your face. But there is a saying you might be familiar with, that has guided me up until this point. Once you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, is the truth. Well, in my view, and the view of the men and women of science around this table, we have very much entered the realm of the impossible becoming merely the improbable."

The ghost of a smile quirked the corner of Flannagan's mouth. "Perhaps you had best illuminate me further."

A large screen came to life at the head of the boardroom, first displaying the NASA logo as Johnson fiddled with his phone. Two astronauts in puffy suits bounced into frame as a recording started to play. They appeared to be picking their way across the exterior of some kind of space station. Huge, winglike solar panels loomed in the background against the gentle curve of the earth and a field of empty blackness. Shielded facemasks covered their features. Another NASA scientist took over the explanations. Father Flannagan had been introduced to all of them but it had happened so fast the names were all a blur.

"Twelve days ago, astronauts William Cutshaw and Natalie Applegate were in the middle of a routine systems check on the exterior of the BSS. Cutshaw was then struck by some kind of unidentified force."

Tethers trailing behind them, magnetised boots clinging to the space station's exterior, the astronauts looked like toddlers in little sumo suits as they tottered away from the camera. Surrounded by the unforgivingly harsh nothingness of the void, free from oxygen or gravity. Chatter over their radios relayed their movements and intentions. Naturally the scene had no sound except for those tinny voices. One of the astronauts separated from the other and continued toward an arm of the station, awkwardly kneeling by a large panel. Then suddenly, without warning, a blaze of white light looped into frame and slammed into the astronaut. With a brief flash, the light appeared to travel into his suit and be completely absorbed. The astronaut, William Cutshaw, went boneless. His magnetic boots failed and he drifted free, given a shove by the bright object's momentum. Only the man's tether kept his unconscious body from shooting off into the abyss, arresting his drift and snapping him back toward the space station. The radio came alive with questions and responses about what had just happened, tightly clipped panic in the speakers' voices. Magnetised step by step, the other astronaut, Applegate, made their way over to help Cutshaw.