Gravity Powers - Stranger Than Mystery - Book 3

Chapter 5 - Letting Them Know - Part 2

Markus was looking out the window. He didn't even bother to go out when the hologram of Tad Strange's face appeared in the sky.

The other kids, however, were outside and freaking out at the large hologram high above them. Tad's face was looking around for something then suddenly flickered out.

His walkie talkie had been going off all day but he never answered it. He just let it buzz and beep right beside him against the window. Now, Kai was trying to call him. "Markus! Come in Markus! We need you!" He said.

Markus looked at the little radio but then went back to staring out the window. "Your dad's in danger!"

He heaved a sigh and grabbed the walkie talkie. "I'm here. What's going on with my dad?"

"Your dad, my dad, and a few others are fighting whoever that guy is! He's like that one guy your parents always talked about. You know. Bill Cipher or whatever his name is." Kai said.

"That's impossible. Bill is destroyed. Along with all his friends and brothers."  Markus answered in a monotone voice.

"Apparently there's one guy." Kai said. "Dude. Are you okay? You haven't said anything in a long time. A lot of stuff has happened."

Markus grabbed the radio and yanked it closer to his face. "I'm fine, okay!"

"Markus. It's okay. We're your friends. We want you to be happy." Kai said deciding to go about this another way, the way his mother would.

"I said I'm okay!" Markus barked through the radio.

"He's in here." Pacifica said opening the attic door. Kai, Violet, Samaera, and the triplets stood there in the doorway and filed inside. Pacifica had a sympathetic smile on her face and shut the door.

"Dude." Alex started.

"What are you guys doing here?" Markus asked.

"We've been looking for you." Kai admitted. "We all were worried. Even Vi. But she won't admit it."

Violet bumped his side with her elbow. "Do you have any idea what's going on?" Mavis asked him.

"Some demon attack. So what?" Markus said.

Violet ignored his rude and unserious attitude towards this situation and showed him her phone screen. On it was a video taken from Portland showing someone flying up to a giant blue cubic head and a piercing screech as the head dissipated.

"That.....That just means they took care of it." Markus said trying to make it not seem so bad.

"No man. It's not over. This guy, Tad Strange? He's been all over Oregon. I think he's looking for something. But every time he makes a visit somewhere, people's shadows come to life and start attacking them." David said.

"Aliens are one thing. Demons. That is something I fear none of us have experience with. They can bend the fabric of reality if they wanted." Samaera spoke up.

Meanwhile, Pacifica was settling the other kids down. Trying to take their minds off horrible thoughts. "Daddy's gonna come back real soon. It's ok. It's alright." She said trying to sound as calm as possible. Every time a demon appeared, Cryptis, Caesar and Atbash, and even Bill Cipher, she was worried. Worried about who would be unfortunate to cross paths with those horrible beings.

Tad Strange was very different. He was strange in terms of demons. And in turn, was worse than any demon. The only other one who did something so awful was Bill Cipher.

"Pacifica Elise Northwest. Daughter of Preston Nathaniel Northwest and Priscilla Elise Northwest. New queen of the Northwest empire. In a way, your legacy is like mine will be. Built on the backs of the lesser." A voice hissed in her mind.

She froze in place while the kids backed away. "W-who's there?!" She asked.

"Don't be afraid....of me. I'm only here to test you. Name's Tad. Tad Strange. And well....I like bread. But I digress. I'm here to talk about you. And your....legacy." The voice now had a vessel in her mind. A large blue square floated around her. He had a single eye and a bowler hat and tie. He resembled Bill Cipher in a number of ways.

"Y-you're that demon." She gasped and pointed at him.

"Guilty!" Tad shrugged with his thin arms up. With a snap of his fingers, the scene changed around her. The room became dark except for many...bells of every shape and size hanging around her from unknown sources.

"This is the test." He said and sat back as the first bell started to hauntingly ring at a slow pace.

She cringed at every low chime. Suddenly three more bells added to the mix. Ringing once in a row while the first one continued its simple beat.

She started to flinch. Memories and laughter filled her head. Glimpses of every party, every lesson, every swing.... She suddenly started to feel that pain again. The emotional and physical pain slammed into her with every bell's ring.

To make it all worse, the demon floated around her as she grabbed her sides from the pain. Her back felt like it was bleeding intensely.

"I love this song. Have you heard it before? From that one old film Rufus Tinka and the Candy Factory. When he sings that song before showing the children his store. How he made the magic that changed the world." He said tauntingly.

"Let me go! Please! My children need me!" She screamed.

"Now now. Could you speak up please? I couldn't quite....hear that." He laughed maniacally as he put a hand to where his ear would be.

"Leave me alone!" Pacifica cried and fell to her knees as the pain was to much to bear on her feet.

"This is only the beginning, Mrs. Pines. I'm gonna do this to everyone I know is a threat to my plans. How well they can handle their worst fears is how well they'll handle me. I must say, despite your 'change of personality' from when you were younger, your biggest fear has nothing to do with anyone else. Just you. But....makes sense since your father was such a horrible, horrible....perfectionist." Tad said.

"Stop it! My father was a great man in his final minutes! I forgave him! I'm not selfish! I don't want to be selfish! Let me go!" She screamed and thrashed around. Suddenly, she felt warm hands on her back where the pain once was. Tad and the bells disappeared and the scene returned to the bedroom with the twins hugged her tightly on either side and the baby was crying in her arms.

Tad had taken her worst fears and stuffed them in place of her own children. He'd skipped fighting the real warriors and went straight to the innocent ones. But if he was able to make such a sweet thing appear as one's worst fears, then maybe they shouldn't fight him....Or risk having their escape from fear be the beacon for it.