For I Am Calm

Chapter 8: Adversus Veritatem

No more... stop, no more of this... Silence in my mind at last. I look up to see Xavier and Phylos nod. Xavier turns to me and sighs. "I don't know a nicer way to say what I have to say so I'll just get to the point. Your outbursts have been... less than optimal for our situation. But if the General thinks you're going to be of help to us then we're going to let it go but that'll not happen anymore. My patience is going thin and to be frank I think your mental wellbeing is too. It'll become a liability." He says it bluntly. I can understand where he's coming from. "So that just means if we ask you to go back, you'll have to go back. Not just for our protection but for yours too." Phylos adds trying to sugarcoat it but he didn't need to. I didn't feel offended, I was going to say something along those lines when I thought it was appropriate. I looked over at Annalise who looked apologetic. I give her a little smile assuring her it's ok and she smiles back. 

Eventually we encounter a few doors. All the same, nothing differentiating between them. "Is this a right door wrong door sort of thing?" Phylos asks as he looks at them. "How should I know?" Annalise sighs. "What if they lead to the same place?" Xavier suggests, that could be likely but is that correct. "Could we just be overthinking it?" I think about it for a moment. There hasn't been any trap or puzzle or riddle. The only trick door was almost obvious there was something to it. These are normal plain doors... it's like a trick question, there's nothing special, just pick one and see what happens. I walk up to one and I hesitantly open it. Nothing bad has happened... yet.  I take a step in and I look around the room. "A cradle?" I approach the cradle. As I look around the room a little more it looks like some nursery but it seems to be unused. "Is someone expecting a baby?" Xavier leans on the doorframe. "Maybe." I shrug. "It's been an honor being with you Corette... I promise that-"  that sounded like Ira'nox... I looked at the others, they didn't seem to be concerned, perhaps it was another memory resurfacing but this was the first time I even encountered that demon. Or was it some remnant of the past? 

I started to search the room to see if I can find anything to support my theory... "No! Don't take my boy away from me!" a woman's voice cries out. There was a chest though the padlock that would have locked it was weathered greatly. "If they were expecting a baby it would have been years ago." I note. Phylos comes up behind me and looks over my shoulder. "Perhaps." He nods. As I opened the chest my hands got a layer of dust, I wiped them off with my damp pants. We look inside and there were various toys. I pick up a stuffed goat toy... ironic. The chest protected these toys from the dust and aging. "My dear, I'll only get the best for you." Ira'nox again, is he a father... I look down at the toy and I feel something emotionally, I don't know what but I could tell my eyes were about to water. A sense of loss was emitting from these toys, that's the best way I could describe it. 

Once this room was fully searched we moved on to another door. Annalise opens the door and a big open room is revealed. "Oh shit..." Xavier exhales in frustration. Ira'nox... and a bunch of other people. With weapons. "So glad you can join us." A smile stretches across his face. I wish I could tell what he's thinking but I could almost definitely tell this is going to get bloody soon. I feel his eyes on me, I look up and he's staring right at me when we lock eyes. "He has his father's eyes." I guess that voice was this Corette lady... he gives me a wink. My eyes widen in confusion, Xavier sees this and backs away from me. "Are you in on this?" He shouts. "What? What makes you think-" I get cut off. "I saw that look it gave you, what's that for huh?" He gets up in my face. "Hey.. calm down man, it's just trying to mess with your head." Phylos chuckles nervously. 

I guess I never noticed Xavier's quick assumptions and quick to anger. "I've got no idea what he's doing." I whisper to Xavier who isn't convinced. "You knew how to open that door, you knew where that trap door was in the basement. It's too convenient." He argues. I see Ira'nox laughing to himself... he did something, what did he do. I looked at Xavier and he looked royally pissed. I backed up expecting he'd attack. "You know what, fuck you man. I have held my tongue for this entire investigation and now I've had enough. Nothing about you lately is right. You've been the problem every time something happens and I'll be damned if I don't do shit about it." He exclaims as he rushes towards me. "Wait Xavier don't-" Annalise tries to stop him. I shut my eyes waiting for an impact. A few moments passed and I opened them. I look at Xavier who stopped abruptly and the both of us look down. The dagger I found and kept with me was now stuck in Xavier. I let go and Xavier keels over. I was speechless, my entire body started to shake. "I didn't mean to... I didn't.. I just killed him.. I killed a man..." I stammer as Xavier grew deathly pale. 

The life that was just there a minute ago left his eyes as Phylos and Annalise stand there silent and in shock. Time stood still for a moment... I never killed a man, I didn't want to kill a man, it was in defense, right? I'm so so sorry Xavier... sorries won't bring him back. Ira'nox did nothing but laugh. "Why are you laughing?" Phylos demanded an answer. He shakes his head and waves his hand as he continues to laugh. He wipes his eye before getting it together. "I didn't expect this outcome." He sniffs "The irony is funny." I feel tempted to hide, Ira'nox did something to Xavier, who's to say the others or even myself have been tampered with as well. "I'm bored now, kill them." Ira'nox orders. That's when I ran out of the room. I look back to see Annalise and Phylos fight for their lives. Despite their efforts they were killed and I did nothing to help... but what could have you done, be honest. You sacrificed them so you could live. Nothing wrong with living. "You're a selfish little brat. Only thinking of yourself" shut up, just shut up. I shut the door and ran into another room in hopes they wouldn't think to look here. But that doesn't work unless by some miracle it actually does work.

When I wasn't busy trying to stifle my breathing I took a good look at what room I was in. Another bedroom. "I don't know. If it's a girl maybe Ophelia... if a boy.. hmm, maybe Dam-" the door violently swings open. "If you were a boy my wife would go on to name you Damon. And that she did." He says in a somber tone. Name me. Me... me... yes you... what was he getting at? "No.. no no no that can't be." I laugh nervously, why would he play with me before killing me? "They took you from us. No.. what they did was more heinous. They stole you, they kidnapped you!" tension filled the air. I couldn't tell if he wanted to murder me or what but I was scared. "Why would I believe you?" I hesitantly ask. "I don't expect you to. But what I need you to do is wake up." He gets closer. "What?" my back is up against a wall. I couldn't move. "Wake. Up." His hand reaches for me, that's when everything went black.