Possessed
Gahh!
I bolt awake.
Owwwwwww.
My head hurts.
Like, really hurts. Wow.
It's like someone's taken an axe and cleaved it right in two.
What the heck?
I don't think I've ever been in this much pain before.
Ahh, it's starting to lessen.
It still hurts! But at least I can think now.
Huh...
Where am I, actually?
I’ve opened my eyes, but it’s almost as if I haven’t. Everything is completely black.
I don’t mean dark, I mean pitch black. Like I’m in some sort of void.
The only thing I can see is myself and the bed I’m lying on.
Wait, isn’t that strange?
As far as I can tell, there’s no source of light. But I can still see perfectly fine.
Past the bed, though, there’s nothing. Just blackness.
I look down at my body, and see three gashes going diagonally down my chest, with a thick red liquid oozing out.
What happened to me?
But while I’m thinking about this, a face with a maniacal grin suddenly drops down from above.
“Heya, roomie!”
Gahh!
I bolt awake.
Owwwwwww.
My head hurts.
But more than that, what’s with this weird sense of déjà vu?
It looks like I’m at the tavern, laying on a bed. What was that strange nightmare I had?
I can definitely tell that I’m awake now.
Not only is my head tearing me apart, but there’s a searing pain coming from my chest as well. Could it be...?
Well, your guess is as good as mine, ‘cuz my upper body is completely covered in bandages!
Seriously, what happened?
The last thing I remember was touching some sort of orb...
......
...huh? That’s it?
That doesn’t tell me anything!
“...Lintel?”
Gah?! Who’s there?
“Lintel! You’re awake!”
Ah, it’s Roxy. She was sitting in the corner of the room, but seeing me wake up, she runs over to the bed. I guess she was worried about me.
Hey, that’s nice and all, but can you keep it down? Shouting like that is making my head throb.
“Lintel! Please, you have to listen to me!”
Agh, loooooud.
“Whatever she tells you, do NOT trust her! Do n-!”
Hey, who turned out the lights?
Oh.
I’m back here.
Did I pass out again?
Everything is black. I’m back in the void.
“You know, it’s not polite to ignore your guest.”
Gahh! It’s that weird face again!
And this time there’s a whole body along with it!
There’s a girl sitting on my bed! Who is this?! I don’t recognize her at all!
“-annot trust a thing she says, do you understand?”
Ooof, Roxy shakes me back into reality.
Owwwww, I can feel my brain rattle in my head.
What’s she saying? I can’t quite-
“Hey, are you LISTENING to me?”
Oh god, you’re too close. Toooo close.
The strange girl is right in my face, inches away.
Everything starts to melt together.
“Lintel! Please, talk to me, snap out of it!” That’s easy for you to say! There’s so much going on, I don’t know what’s real. “I- I’m... not dumb!” “Huh? What are you talking about?” Shoot, I think I said that to the wrong person. “It’s going to be ok, I’ll explain everything. You just need to trust me.” |
“You dumb reptile, are you really as dumb as you look?” Agh, what’s with this girl? “Hah, just my luck. Saddled with an imbecile. I bet you’ve never had a thought in your life.” “I’m sorry, I-” Nope, wrong person. It’s so loud, I can’t tell which side is which. I just need some space. Maybe closing my eyes will help. |
I close my eyes. Ok, this is more manageable I think. “Just take a breath. I’m here for you-” Stop it, please, this is too much. I’m trying to figure out what’s going on. |
I close my eyes. “Heeey, heeeeeeey, don’t just close your eyes and ignore me. I’m talking to you, you know? God, didn’t anyone teach you manners?” Nope. I still can’t focus. I can’t even think. |
“Lintel, please. Look at me. Come on, open your eyes. What’s she saying? Don’t listen to her. She’s going to try to steal your body, you can’t let her. Please, Lintel, jus-” |
“Oh, I’m going to enjoy this. You’re tooooo easy. I’m gonna make your life a living hell, until you’re begging to give me your body. You’re gonna wish she killed you back th-” |
“SHUT UP!!!”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Silence for the first time since I woke up.
I don’t think I’ve ever yelled so loudly before. I feel a grating sensation in my throat, to accompany all of the other pains.
But at least it’s silent.
What am I going to see when I open my eyes?
Which side am I on?
I’m scared.
I open my eyes. I’m at the tavern. Roxy is staring at me, shocked.
“What... what’s happening to me?”
Roxy explains what happened.
Apparently, the orb I grabbed had her sister’s soul in it? Weird thing to just keep lying around, but ok.
And since I touched it, her sister is now possessing me. So, I guess that’s the girl I saw in the other place.
“Listen, Lintel. This is very important: I placed a powerful curse on you to keep you safe.”
That seems counterproductive, but I keep that to myself.
“The curse is called the Chain of Consent. It has two parts. One part is good for you, and the other is bad.”
Ah, I guess that’s why it’s a curse.
“The good part is that it prevents my sister from doing anything with your body, unless she has your permission to do so. Basically, she won’t be able to control or take over your body unless you tell her she’s allowed to. This is the consent part.”
Ooooooh, I see.
Wait, isn’t that really good?
The kids back home are always telling stories about ghosts that will possess people and make them do terrible things.
But it sounds like this curse completely protects me!
So I guess that even though I’m possessed, we can easily go and get me exorcised without her stopping us.
“The bad part is... she can’t leave your body.”
Oh.
Oooooooh.
Wait, seriously?!
What does that mean? Like, she can’t pop out and possess other people? Or...
Does that mean she can’t be exorcised? At all?
“Her soul is completely chained to your soul. This is the chain part. This also means that if you die, she dies with you. It might be possible that a skilled exorcist can break the chain, I don’t know. This kind of spell hasn’t been used in hundreds of years, so it’s not like there’s any precedent...”
I barely even hear her. What does this even mean?
Am I going to be possessed my entire life?
I mean, if she can’t do anything to me, maybe I can still live a normal life.
But it doesn’t feel good, you know?
I feel dirty. Tainted.
I don’t want a demon possessing me!
“One more thing.”
Oh great, there’s more?
“The consent part is powerful, but not infallible. You need to make sure to not trust her, whatever she tells you. She might tell you sweet lies, but never let her convince you to let her take over your body.”
Um... what?
Wait, I thought I was safe?
“Do you understand? She’s going to try and trick you to give her control. And once she does that, it’s over. You’ll never get your body back. Promise me, ok? Promise me you won’t listen to her, and you won’t agree to anything she asks of you. Ok? Promise.”
I guess this must be really serious, the way she’s looking at me.
“Ok. I promise.”
Little did I know how quickly I’d break that promise.