Chapter 60 - Revelations

 

Tyler POV

 

The world is full of deception, and so is everyone, so am I. The world lies to us, others lie to us, we lie to others, and we lie to ourselves. I've known this truth for as long as I can remember, and at first I liked to believe that because I knew this, then I would not be deceived or would be deceived less, that I would be closer to the truth, but that was just another lie I told myself. No, I get deceived just as much as anyone does, such realism has only given me a different reaction to things than most. My pain and feelings of betrayal are channeled into bettering myself, into learning, and if necessary, retaliation. So once I am betrayed or lied to, everything thereafter is on me, it's my responsibility to handle the situation. But...I don't know what to do this time. Half my life has been a lie, the realization of my parents' lie hurts almost as much as their deaths, and almost as much as my original parent's deaths. I can forgive Nia, there's warmth to her psychotic dependency and literal worship of me, but my parents…

 

I sit where I have for the last few hours, an alley a mile and half from my home. Sitting, and listening, to the malice spoken in my home against my father. The only ones to defend him are Cortana and Gwen, bless their hearts. How had I been so blind growing up? Because it's easier to believe that everything is fine, because once you acknowledge a problem, then you have to do something about it or let guilt tear at your mind. 

 

*SIGH,* "Wallowing in self-pity won't help, time to go take care of business." I say aloud.

 

Diamond finally decides she's had enough as she removes her fangs from my neck and looks into my eyes. "Please Master, tell me what's wrong. Are you still mad about this morning?"

 

"It's not about you."

 

"Then--"

 

"You'll see later tonight. Put our friend here in a Duffel bag, we have somewhere to go." I nod to a naked vampire, gagged and bound in a thick silver chain, and lying in a pool of his comrades' dismembered flesh and blood. Terror fills his eyes as Diamond gets off me and walks towards him, bag in tow.

 

Having settled on a course of, I morph into new clothes with a jacket and start laying down a thick layer of dust in the alley. It should reduce itself into white phosphorus in a few minutes. Once Diamond is done, we leave the alley and watch from afar as a miniature sun blinks in and out of existence.

 

The city's lost a lot of its life since me and Green Goblin had our fight. During the day, it's not too noticeable, but most people know better than to stay out after dark outside the downtown area.  

An hour later, we made it to St.Mary's Catholic Church. It's an old building, older than the neighborhood it's in. I stop outside the church grounds and slightly open the duffel bag, and cut a hand off the vampire before bagging it and stashing it atop a lamppost. Then we enter the church grounds and enter the church. It's unlocked for visitors like always. Rows of candle lit pews file towards the altar, the space empty of people save for the Nun who takes care of the place at night and a man in prayer, Matt. 

 

I sneak a glance inside the duffel bag only to find a small puff of smoke and the silver chains, not even dust. Looks like it may be a good idea to turn some holy grounds into defensive way stations if they're this effective against demonic energies. 

 

"You may come with me if you wish to pray or speak to Sister Margret over there, otherwise please stay here." I whisper to Diamond.

 

"You're religious, Master?"

 

"No, but that doesn't mean I don't believe. For all intents and purposes, God is real, and we're living in his creation. I don't care about your sins, only that you better yourself. If God is your path to do so, then I encourage you to try."

 

"But I'm undead, I don't have a soul"

 

"And?"

 

"I think...I'll go talk to Sister Margaret." Diamond says timidly.

 

We depart as I head to a pew diagonal of Matt's and sit and bow my head in silent prayer.

 

First off, God, or The One Above All, whichever you prefer. I would like to say sorry for breaking into your multiverse without your permission. And thank you, for letting me stay here so far. Sorry for not communicating earlier, my previous multiverse...worked differently at higher levels of existence, such as yours. I'm sure I've caused you a great deal of extra work, so if there's any way I can help and make up for it, let me know, though I am weak. I understand-

 

"You do not understand, though in time you will." I hear to my left. 

 

Next to me is a man, a slight grin on his face as he watches me. His face and body have a timeless look to them, but his eyes are deep with age. A dim light slips in through the painted glass, not enough to lighten the area, but enough to give an aura of some sort to the place. Everyone else is still here, Matt's right ear is slightly pointed at me while he's in prayer, though I know he hasn't noticed anything, no one has. If anything, everyone smells more relaxed.

 

"Hello, what may I call you?" I ask passively.

 

"I am the one you were trying to communicate with, if that's your question. Names are meaningless for beings like me. 'You' will be enough identification for now."

 

"...Thank you for letting me stay here."

 

"'Let' is a strong word. You would have been an interesting phenomenon when you entered, I couldn't have simply sent you back out. And now it's too late, even if I wanted to."

 

"What do you mean by 'would'?"

 

"I can't remember any of the previous times I've observed you or your realm. I can only guess based off of the shadows of my previous actions, with the help of my counterpart of course."

 

"What do you mean 'my realm'? Why can't you remember? And are you talking about The One Below All, You're working with him?"

 

"This...world you inhabit, this realm of yours, is like a tumor growing inside of mine. And yes, I work with my counterpart, both with and against. I create, and they eliminate the weak and unstable portions. But a handful of the infinite multiverses do not. When one lives with infinity, they need more than themselves as companions." He says quietly, a somber look on his face.

 

"Sorry to be such a cancerous presence. I might not have come if I knew it would be such a problem."

 

"'Might not have' huh? It's not a big deal, I welcome the challenge."

 

"Like you welcome the Beyonders?"

 

"Yes, like I welcome the Beyonders and my counterpart, but at least I can remember them. There are powers beyond my own, I suppose."

 

"Why did you appear to talk with me?"

 

"So I could talk with you. I was hoping to learn many things from you, your origin, your personality, and many other things. But-" He stops and looks in a certain direction, before looking back. "But it looks like I'll have to cut it short...In order to maintain the integrity of our two realms, I'm slowly separating the two and helping expand the information yours contains. Out of necessity, I'm copying over the portions of my realm that are more stable and relevant to you."

 

"So, what do you need me to do?" 

 

"I need you to stop praying to me, or any other god for that matter. It's destructive in ways that would take eons of your time to explain. And I need you to become more integral in your realm, the closer it's tied to you, the easier it will be for me. And lastly...I need you to maintain your family."

 

"...Why my family in particular?" I ask slowly.

 

"I had to turn your family into a singularity in your reality, since I couldn't alter you in particular. Too large of a deviation from your family's most likely course of events and both of our realms will shatter, leaving hardly anything behind. For me, it'll be but an instant, you'll have maybe 200 years before we're left out in The Space Between."

 

"Did you decide how my family would be?" I growl.

 

"I am neither powerful, eccentric, nor stupid enough to create such details in your realm. Such details are either a result of random chance, you, or powers beyond either of our controls. Nonetheless, you'll have to forgive your mom."

 

"She lied to me and enslaved my father!"

 

"She's a nice person. And he was more like an indentured servant, he agreed with the situation, most of it anyway."

 

"You're plenty eccentric”. I grumble.

 

"Perhaps. I hope we'll have more time to converse next time we meet. Please do as I ask. I would hate for us to meet again homeless." 

 

And just like that, both he or it and the aura it brought was gone. The church returned to its darkened self. I have so many questions. If I had the time, I would figure out the answers like I used to do in my original multiverse, but I barely have the time to figure out the complex and arcane physics of this universe. Since I can't act with certainty, I'll just focus on what the most likely truths are. 

 

Matt finally gets up and walks towards me. I stood up to face him.

 

"Did you come to see me?" He asks quietly.

 

"Why would I come to this specific location to see you? I could call you or see you at home."

 

"So the answer's yes, I can guess what for. Then what is your other reason for coming here?"

 

"Perhaps it's for revenge, perhaps it's to make a simple purchase."

 

"Perhaps it's for too many things to count. You're exhausting, you know that?" He sighs.

 

"Then my revenge has unfortunately been accomplished."

 

"The church isn't a store to buy things at."

 

"Then I'll make a sizable donation with the full knowledge that I'll receive a good from the church."

 

"Is there really a vampire infestation?"

 

"It's not dying down, that's for sure. But I think you'll be fine. I'm sure you've had experience with the paranormal before." 

 

"Tyler, I'm sorry for-"

 

"I've delivered two new suits to your home. One specifically made for combating the paranormal, the other for a wider range of encounters. I expect you to wear at least a portion of the first under your civilian attire, and the full suit when you're out...adventuring. At least until the current situation is resolved."

 

"...Thanks. Sometimes I wish you were angry, it would give me a little peace of mind."

 

"Oh, but I am. My brain throbs with anger, I struggle to keep it from fracturing. But that simply serves to make me want to stop it, not continue. I'll see you at home, Matt. Stay safe." I hand him a silver cross with a sharpened tip resembling a stake or dagger. 

 

"Be kind, will you? She's actually very nice."

 

"Why does everyone say that?" I whisper under my breath.

 

Walking past Matt, I head over to where Sister Margaret and Diamond are talking in low voices. Diamond bows to Sister Margaret and joins me at my side.

 

"Hello Sister Margaret." I greet them with a nod of my head.

 

"Hello, what may I do for you?"She asks with a hint of suspicion, looking between me and Diamond.

 

"My name's Tyler, I'm like Matt's nephew. I'll be delivering some things for you and the rest of the church's staff to keep on your persons."

 

"What for?"

 

"It would be better if Matt explained it to you, but it's to protect you in these rather...extreme times we live in. Secondly, I would like to request holy water, as much as you can spare, as well as any sacramentals you can spare. I will give back to the church in excess, though I understand if you don't have much to spare."

"No, we have extras, but...It isn't my place to give it out."

 

"Please, it could be a matter of life or death."

 

*SIGH*"Do you swear to not use it in any magical practices?"

 

"I swear on my life." I answer darkly.

 

"That is unnecessary. I will take you for your word, though, I hope the pastor will be fine with this."

 

"I'll make sure he is."

 

"Then follow me." She turns and walks away.

 

She leads us down a hallway and unlocks two doors for us. One contains a large stone basin covered by a silver lid and full of a salty liquid. The other is full of a variety of different plastic tubs, glass bottles, and items. 

 

"Holy water, blessed salt, blessed ashes, blessed candles, blessed oil, and holy cards. Everything else is made as needed, and I am not up to the tasks." She gestures.

 

"This is more than enough. Thank you, Sister Margaret." I fill up three bottles containing Holy Water, ashes, salt, and oil. I have no use for the other things, and there's no sense in taking more if I can't recreate the materials in the moment of need. 

 

"I know you said you would reimburse the church, but there is no need to with just this much."

 

"A return of good will to the church, then. Please be careful, It is quite malleable." I reach into the side of my jacket and pull out an ornate artistic plaque made of silver and gold depicting the birth of Christ, just small enough to seem like it could have been in an extra-large jacket pocket.

 

"This...this is too much." She holds it back out fiercely.

 

"Nonsense, it's not enough." I smile before walking away.

 

I stop once I get outside the church and take a deep, cold breath as I absorb the bottles I got from Sister Margaret.

 

*SIGH* "Isn't it wonderful tonight, Diamond?"

 

"...yes master."

 

"Don't give me that. Tell me how you really feel."

 

"It scares me. Even though I can see everything better than if it were day. It scared me when I was a normal vampire as well." She says flatly.

 

"It scares me too."

 

"You're scared of the night too? But-"

 

"Yes. I'm scared of what lurks in it, what inhabits the world when light isn't there. I'm scared of the stars and everything about them. The things I know about them and what lies amongst them terrifies me, and I dare not imagine the things I don't know. Everything, absolutely everything scares me Diamond, including myself. But in that fear is an unbridled curiosity. It makes me feel alive. There is so much to do, so much to experience, so much to know." 

 

"...did something happen in the church, master?"

 

"Ha...you could say that. Nothing that wasn't likely. Did you enjoy your talk with Sister Margaret?"

 

"Yes, it was useful...please don't tell Mistress." She whispers.

 

"Wh-oh right. Your secret is safe with me."

 

"Really? Thank you master!" She turns to hug me with a gleaming smile, but quickly changes back to a stoic expression and turns away.

 

"Diamond, look at me." I demand softly.

 

With resistance, she turns to face me, and I notice her eyes dilating rapidly and her skin starting to tighten. She's gotten emotional, which also means she's hungry.

 

"How long can you remain functional?"

 

"I don't need to eat."

 

"This morning wasn't your fault, if anything it was mine. Just tell me, I don't have the energy to argue with you."

 

"I can hold it for half an hour." She says softly.

 

"Okay. That's fine."  I hop back up the pole where I left the vampire hand to find it squirming much more actively than before, almost falling off. I grab it and, hoping for the best, try to reproduce the holy water. And a clear liquid forms, and it sizzles when it hits the vampire's hand, burning through it. 

 

Once the vampire remains are gone, I land in front of Diamond, startling her. In a sudden loss of control, she bares her fangs wide and snaps onto my neck. Not a second later, she tries to remove herself slowly, but I pull her head back down.

 

"Once you're done, meet me back home."

 

She moans in affirmation.

 

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