THE ARMAGGEDON: Man Eat Man

Chapter IV

His wife led as they walked down the stairs from the bedroom through the living room downstairs out of the house. After they reached outside, she walked him towards their miniature stowage. David was already scared to the stomach… soldier or no soldier. Even they that fear not people nor animals haveth fear for the unknown.

He tortured himself with questions about the mystery ahead that would explain Jonas’ claims of being a psychic and or a herculean. Any normal human being would wish such contentions last words coming from the mouth of another, and with possibility of being true and the reality. He tried to hold his cool but, the thought of what was about to be revealed at the storage ridiculed the cool.

In other words, he was not ready to accept the becoming reality. He found himself in Jessica’s shoes a while ago, mute and somewhat frozen. Just a few minutes later, they entered the storage. Jessica reached for some old shield-like metallic plate and pulled it as though she wanted to arm herself for battle. At that moment, David could not recognize his own storage.

The sight of his wife pulling the shield got him even more afraid and worried. He was a soldier, but definitely not one equipped enough for a warrior’s shield. Shortly, some part of the floor clicked. An entryway he had never seen in the past ten years, since they bought the house, just popped. The shield was not for battle but, just a lock on steroids.

Jessica knew about the secrets within the miniature storage from her grandmother. Her deceased parents, uncles and aunts knew but wanted nothing to do with it. Their mother would spend so much time in there almost to have none around them. Some of them thought of her as deranged just as other people said.

She pulled the lid open. David saw an opening with spiral stairs downwards into the darkness. He could hardly see beyond three feet ahead. Luckily enough, Jessica had some tricks of her own as well. They did not have to drill longer into the darkness. There were lanterns built into the passage.

She reached for a lighter, lit them torches and, deeper into the passage she led. She had let go off his hand but he just followed. Sometimes, people get too deep into something that, even with options, they are going nowhere. He was in too deep to turn back and with a curiosity to feed.

The corridor though, was more of a stairway to an underground level, the world below the earth. From the look of things, it was clear that, the last time a person ever-stepped foot into the corridor was, when Jessica’s grandmother, Rebecca, was alive. The strong thick cobwebs from various spiders and the remains of brutally murdered insects were evidence enough to the fact. As if that was not all, the walls of the corridor seemed as if they had life.

He could hear a soft but disturbing sound around them as they walked through. It was as if someone was in the walls just watching and warning them not to go any further inside the corridor. Alternatively, maybe, it was his brain trying to react to his feeling of fear and making it three-dimensional. Surely, that…he could not tell but…if I were to guess, I would say it was the latter.

In the encounter of such situations, the worst decisions one can make are to think or try to give in to their fear; it does not end any better. The best decision is to face the fear shoulders high, chest in front, eyes as wide as they can get and hands full with anything that can be used for defense when need be. Trust me, as a soldier, David had stared death in the face one too many times. Nevertheless, dark creepy hallways that no one had ever walked for ages were no match. They would scare anyone to their death.

With both having curiosities to feed, fear had lost in the polls. After all, how do you fear your own storage? Well, I think a secret doorway that leads to the earth below the soil would do that. Finally, the long corridor ended and once again, they had another door to open. David’s curiosity was growing by the hour. He could not wait to see what his wife was to use this time for a key. He was having an adventure at his own stowage. Things could not get any complicated for him.

As it appeared, she did not seem to remember the key they used to open it back in the day. Unlike other doors where you just need remember where the key is; that one door was among those she had to remember the key itself. They started looking for clues on how to open the door. They brushed the walls around the door in search of clues but they were not getting lucky. They searched everywhere they could think of including the ceiling above them.

Jonas’ mother had become tired and needed to take some time off the key search. If only she remembered how they did it with her grandmother, things would be easier for them. She sat down on the floor to take a breath as she thought of the challenge. At last, the time off did help them somehow. Indeed, it is true that, sometimes, in order to gain ground, you have to slow down. As she sat on the floor, it came to her that, even the floor itself could have the clue, and was part of the corridor as well.

All the while that they were searching, none of them had thought of looking down at their feet. On her knees, she went, and indeed, there was something on the floor. At the place of the door mart and in its place and position was a piece of writing. It was not clear though since, the place had not seen a soul for since ancient. All the dust and dirt from the walls and the roof had settled there.

They had to scrub for a few minutes to make the writing clear for them to read. It read; ‘Sometimes, the key is the impossible.’ Finally, it was visible and readable. At last, there was the key in writing, but, as you and anyone else can imagine, not just any key but yet another riddle. As the two were busy trying to decode the key for the doorway, I decided to take some time with myself too.

I took some time off to take a break and to get some air. Everyone needs a break from time to time. After all, I did help them with the hard part of finding the key. It was time I left them to handle the ‘easy part’ on their own. I know you ask who am I and where I went to take my break.

As you may have noted so far, beside it being a time of many possibilities and great abilities, you should know…as I was, I am, and will always be. I am whom I am, always watching and hiding in plain sight ready to answer and guide. All you need is ask in faith and it shall be done. In my temples, I took my break but watching closely not to miss any detail.

Mr. and Mrs. David were still trying to figure out what the statement meant as a key. 

“Why the hell would someone write such a statement in the place of a key and leave no clues? I do not remember my grandmother reading this. Was this even legal at the time?” Jessica asked looking disappointed and having lost hope of opening the door.

David got down to sit on the floor as well, “Well, I do not know much about history but, I would say that, whoever wrote it knew that the right people would have the answer for the riddle. If we are the right people, we will open the door,” he replied.

“Do you think we have what it takes to unriddle the riddle?”

“We surely have what it takes. Is that not the reason it is in our compound and not in someone else’s backyard? Again, you mentioned something about your grandmother. Maybe…it has to do with it.”

“Honey, not maybe, it has everything to do with it. She has everything to do with it.”

“Everything to do with what honey…the end of the world or, the fact that my son believes he is Goliath?”

“As weird as it may sound, I am afraid it’s both.”

”Oh my God!” David expressed in surprise and confusion. “Things are getting better and better. I think I am developing feelings for this day.”

“Me too honey…but, don’t you think we put our feelings aside and back to the riddle now?”

“Good suggestion. In the military, we did not always depend on skill…you know. Sometimes, we had to have faith and improvise.”

“So, how do you suggest we have faith and improvise? I am not military like you.”

“Of course but, the writing does say the answer is the impossible. We just have to find this impossible and we will have the key.”

“What do you think it is then? I cannot think of anything in my mind.”

“I think it must have something to do with a door or, whatever you have inside there.” David replied.

After a while of thinking, Jessica seemed to have deciphered the riddle. David might have spoken just to keep the conversation going but his words did mean something after all. His statement had opened Jessica’s mind fully to see the answer.

Jessica stood from her sitting position quickly and looked down to him, “That’s it! You got it honey. You just cracked the puzzle. What do you think would be the least expected by a regular person? What would you think to be impossible with doors?”

“I don’t know but, for sure, if you ask me, the impossible would be to leave that door unlocked, which is technically… not possible at all.”

“And there…honey…is our key. Unbelievably…this door is unlocked. We just need to push it and we are in. In fact, my memories from childhood are now coming back. I do not recall my grandmother ever entering a key anywhere. We would just come and she would slide the door open.”

“Well, I admit that it does make some sense but, there is only one way to surely find out. I think this is where you tell me I am the soldier?”

Jessica, with a smile imprinted on her face, “Brilliant honey; that is how Jonas was born…and before I knew it…I found myself living in your house.”

David went ahead to push the heavy door open. Indeed, the answer was the impossible. The door was unlocked after all. It was just a matter of pushing and getting in. The door slid open and they entered. The situation inside the room was no better than the corridor when they first opened it. A tonne of darkness that ridiculed their eyesight graced their presence.

Again, as usual, they went for the torches and lit them for some light. The room was just as you could imagine. The toughest and finest webs from the finest spiders as well as, the empty shells of brutally murdered insects decorated the room. Of course, such an ancient room would not have the ‘anciency’ if there were no dry bones from dead animals and insects around the place. Those animals and insects that had no patience and wisdom enough to find their way out of the dark room.

David was a soldier and therefore, thick webs and a few dried bones on the floor did not scare him. What did scare him though were the old framed pictures on the dusty ancient walls. There were pictures everywhere about the Armageddon and the dreams Jonas used to talk and write about as well. As if that was not all, there were tonnes of journals in the room.

Actually, the room was almost covered in hand written journals and ancient weird looking things. It was more of a library or an archive than a storage. Jessica’s grandmother made sure of the transition with her handy work all over the place. Those journals were what had brought Jessica and David into the room. The journals and the pictures held the answers to all the questions they had about the Armageddon and hopefully, Jonas’ special gift.

Without wasting much more time, they got to work and very busy to feed their curiosity. They went shelf after shelf looking for the right journal, or, at least, a starting point. I will tell you this because, I know you do not know and may have a curiosity to feed as well. Actually, that is why I am here. When dealing with things or forces you do not understand, the last thing you need to do is, confusing yourself in the name of looking for answers. You want to face the right direction to avoid going nuts, death or even worse.

That is what Jessica was doing. David on the other end could not do much but just feed his eyes as he looked at the future that was the Armageddon in wait. They continued with their search encountering strange and very ancient things as they searched. The room carried a lot of history in its wall shelves.