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Caelum Sky- Chapter 5

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Caelum Sky – 5



The next two weeks went by uneventfully. I wasn't spoken to, I didn't speak to them. Things greatly relaxed between us all, I considered it a grace period; it gave me time to really take in my surroundings, to know the people I was 'guarding', to develop a sense of myself all over again.

The house was perched on lifts, stilts, almost, on the edge of the Juan Julio Cemetery. I had no idea who Juan Julio was, but he was apparently important enough to get his own cemetery named after him, that lucky dog. The Faegels, my landlords so to speak, lived in a practically uninhabited area- there was the cemetery, an abandoned house much farther down the road, and something like a fishing dock farther then that. That was the limit of my vision. I habituated a brown house, the very back end of the second level touched regular ground, with the basement acting as the bottom level, while the front was held up by thick supports. The garage was partially into the ground as well, a door leading straight into the basement.  On the front of the house, overlooking the road was a long, serene deck that I spent a lot of my time on, laying about peacefully as I adjusted to new life around me.

From time to time I'd patrol the perimeters, sit on the edge of the property alongside the road and watch the cars whiz past, or take my time to get to know the names and dates of my silent friends in the graveyard.  Maybe one of them had importance, I still felt like a fluke, and if nothing else, it kept my mind busy. I felt like I had places to be; restless.

I grew more used to my form, as well. It didn't nearly feel as awkward as it had, still weird, but the sensation that I was scooting around on my hands and feet soon fell away.  It had a lot of natural bounce to it, a lot of pep, lots of energy. I found time racing birds, lapping the yard and bowling over items in the yard with my house-chain if I could gather enough speed. I managed to keep myself busy in the simplest way, but it did the trick; I came to appreciate the littlest bit of life I could still enjoy.

The Faegels were interesting people.  Katherine left early each day, taking Amber with her, to return at about 6 that evening.  There was no husband, no boyfriend, not one that I had met. She was a woman of about 35 years old, a smoker, her skin the slightest tinge of grey on an otherwise youthful face. She had dark blonde hair dyed black, a thinner, taller woman, self dependent.  Very laid back, she was, altogether, a good mother.  Even pushing her to the edge of her limits, she managed to bounce back quickly, only taking a few breaks now and then to glare at the house in disbelief, shaking her head.

Amber seemed to be about four years old,  tow-headed, at the age where she was a handful; often see her bolting across the yard after a bug or bird of some sort, occasionally taking her time to stop and wave in my direction before bounding back to her mom.  The girl kept an eye on me at most times, more silent more recently, after her mother told her it would be best to leave the doggie alone because it needs rest. I didn't mind a break from the fascinating world of ghost whispering, and neither did Katherine.

On the weekends, she spent a lot of time gardening, up keeping a bed of flowers alongside the garage; Amber was always out there with her, and they  pretty much spent the days doing little things; cleaning, maybe watching a movie, playing outside. It wasn't a flashy life, there weren't box socials or midnight raves going on, just mundane family type of work. Either way, I made sure to keep guard, lest the serial rapists get wise.  

It was later that day when the vow of silence was broken, Katherine bending down to talk with Amber before they both came in my direction, sprawled out on the grass. I heard them before I saw them, the little girl whispering "hi" with each step she took closer to me, finally stopping just short of where my spirit and the grass intersected. I yawned, stretching out before closing my tired eyes.

"I have a name for you."  The mother said matter of factly, her daughter nodding in agreeance. "I mean, only if you want one."

I quickly flopped back on my stomach, nodding my head rapidly in hopes that the little girl would repeat my answer; she did.

"Alright, good. I actually have a list of them, let's go back into the house and get you a name." She began walking without me as I scrambled to my feet, trotting behind her like I was an actual part of the conversation. "I appreciate the time to relax, too. I'm not 100% on my house being haunted by maid-ghosts, but you're better then whatever that thing was before." She trailed off her words as we entered into the building, guilt stricken.

Katherine put Amber down in the middle of the kitchen, quickly walking to the other room to get her name list.

"Watch her if you could, ghost." She said it nonchalantly, just like 'hey, goddess of the wind, wash the dishes if you could, please' I watched after the mom, becoming increasingly aware of the child at my feet.

"Your mother says some odd things. Things that even I find weird," I looked back to the girl, muttering under my breath, "Things that a dinosaur demon-person ghost finds weird…" She stood beneath me, unamused, a look in her eyes that demanded I play with her, or she'd be tempted to drink the chemicals underneath the sink out of boredom.

"Uhhhmm, wanna play Simon says?"  The girl's frown turned immediately, jumping once in place before she took a few steps backwards, readying herself.

"Yes. I do."  She swung her arms at her side, waiting for my first command; I gave a little laugh and stood on all fours, mirroring her.

"Alright. Simon saaayyysss…. Touch your nose!"  I pulled my head closer to my stubby arms, touching my nose; the girl did the same, "alright, good. Simon says pat your head."  I lowered my head more to the ground, patting the top of it; I hit something hard, something that was not a part of my body; instantly I froze.

Feeling around the outside of it, I could tell it was a circle, with some sort of rubber strap connecting around my top jaw-horn. Following it back to the circle, I felt a bridge over the top of my head, with a similar circle on the other side: it was in a natural dip in my head, and felt like nothing at all.

"Goggles?" I wondered aloud, the mother came back into the room to find her daughter jumping around with her finger on her nose and hand on her head.  She looked at her and laughed, scooping Amber up to sit on her lap.

"I see you two had a game going on, eh? Well, maybe next time doggie can teach you how to fold laundry, help mommy out with some cheap labor on her chores." She laughed and bounced the girl on her lap, ruffling through the papers scattered about the table.  Grumbling slightly, I stood next to her, the kid pointing out exactly where I came to sit.  "Alright, so I was looking through their database of names, what they mean, and where they come from. If any of my suggestions sound good, knock on the table, let me know."  She smiled oddly, warmly, like this was commonplace, looking to the names.

"You are a woman, I presume?"

I knocked on the table.  Beneath the demonic exterior, at least I was.  Same couldn't be said for dinosaur fish-breath here. Hell, I didn't even know.

She went through the names she liked, one by one, starting with Abigail, Abby,  some wacky Hawaiian names like A'la'a  to names like Kirsten,  Kady, so on and so forth. Nothing struck me, everything rolled off like bad jokes as I sat there, playing with the goggles on my head. They didn't move.  I tried jabbing my finger underneath it, using my tail to try and pry it off, but it was held on tight.

Katherine kept going through the list, the wear obvious in her tone as well. Least she was making an effort to bring me a little comfort, which for the last week I figured she was just hoping I'd leave.

"… Nabeela, Nadeen,  Nahara,  Nao, Nella, Neri, N…."

Bells went off. Whistles, firecrackers, snap-pops; they all went off.  It sounded so close, like it hit me over the head with familiarity. I knocked on the table rapidly, almost like a drum. Neri. Neri hit a nerve. As a ghost, nerve-hitting was important.  It was like a burst of light, of energy, of excitement. Agh, yes, there was hope after all!

"Which one, you freaking woodpecker?" Katherine spat out. I stopped drumming on the table, resorting to prancing around it instead as she read the names off one at a time. When Neri came up again, I knocked on the table and sat, almost proud of myself.  It wasn't my actual name, but it sure as hell was close. Close was good.

"Neri" The mother tongued the word carefully deciding if it stuck or not. "Yeah, alright, I can live with that." She leaned over where I had sat before and patted the air.

"Means 'My Burning Light'. Fancy." She shuffled her papers as her daughter snickered and looked at me. She was trying, even if it was comforting the air. Katherine sat up in her chair, looking to the empty spot still, "My work is closing down on Thursdays and Fridays now, so we'll be keeping you company here at the house more often. I'm hiring a babysitter those first few days, so please don't scare the hell out of her, okay? It's important for me to do my work here, so don't think we'll be playing and romping around all day, Neri"

I stared at the mother for a moment, before giving a knock on the table once more from the opposite side. Her glance switched to the end before looking to her daughter.

"Was Mommy talking to nothing for a while, Amber?" she smiled as she said it, the 4 year old laughing in response, before pointing me out. "Anyways, we also have a repair man coming in tomorrow to fix our walls, as well.  So, you know, don't scare him either. Don't get me wrong; scare everyone else, but just not those people. Do your best to keep the Jehovah's witnesses away from my doorstep, while you're at it." She got up from the table, taking Amber with her, leaving me to sit alone in the middle of the kitchen.

I sat, perfectly still, hearing the fading footsteps, the barely audible birds outside, the house resting.  This is what it was all going to be. Silence.  My stomach began to slowly knot up, slowly churn on itself, rising to my heart, which began to beat harder and harder.  That was the only sound, like a sharp-ticking clock in silence, it only personified how damn empty this house was; more specifically how damn alone I was.  The relaxing was nice, but it wasn't enough to keep me entertained, to keep me happy.

Neri. Well, Neri was bored. Neri was feeling destructive. Neri was going to crack under some pressure if something interesting didn't happen in the next ten minutes.  I began to breath hard, searching for something to chew on, something to destroy in an inexpensive way.  I left the house, strutting across the field, trying to figure why I felt this way. Maybe all the isolation was finally getting to me? Maybe this is why there were no nice ghosts around? They all just finally snap because they're too bored. It was starting to make sense why we haunted. I personally felt moved to scare the hell out of someone, just for some entertainment. Just for…Something. Interaction, maybe.

Without thought, I loped to the trees, feeling that familiar pull on my ankles before I could get there. I growled out loud instinctively, leaning against the chains to the point where they hurt. I could still feel that. I wasn't all dead.  I pulled for a while more.

It wasn't enough.  Doubling back, I ran full out to one of the posts supporting the house, trying to bang my head on it. I don't know what I was thinking; I think I just needed to know I still existed, even if I didn't exist in a traditional sense.  No use- my head kept going though the post, no matter how angry I was. I couldn't seem to hurt myself on the "physical" things I could touch, just grab and manipulate them.

"Gehh, this really is hell!" I tried one last time, almost tripping down the hill as I passed through it once again.  I stared angrily at the post before going back inside, looking around frantically for something to destroy.  If only there was something here I could break, something on my level-like a pal ghost I could talk to or beat up--- Eyes wide I stared at the phone.  I… could… call the angel. Not to go all buddy-buddy with him, but to, you know, maybe get some pointers on how to deal with all this unbearable free time. That wasn't too taboo, was it? I wasn't inviting him over for a drink; I just needed someone to actually talk to.

"Yeah, yeah, keep telling that to yourself, you desperate little thing" I muttered under my breath, flipping through the cards on the table before I got to the only exorcism card in the bunch.

"Great Beyond. We go to the great beyond of savings." I read flatly, feeling my glimmering hope fade already.  "God that's square."

I knocked the receiver off the hook, the numbers on the inside of the phone. Turning it over, I tried to dial the number on the card, finding my fingers hitting four numbers at once.  Pushing it back onto its stand, I tried again, this time using a pencil.  It hummed, warbling like static air.  I kept where I thought my ear was to the end of it, even finding the dial tone relaxing in some way, before a man briskly picked up the phone- the priest.

"Hello?" He said politely, like he had been waiting for this call. "Hello?"

"Yeah, uh, can I speak with the other guy? Razzle…I…think?"

"Hello?" He sounded annoyed, juggling the phone in his hands, "Heelllllooooo? If this is a prank, for the last time, this is a real business." I was going to lose them if I didn't do something quick. Panicking, I began to smack the phone on the counter and growled into the receiver, before putting my ear back to it.

The priest hesitated, laughing almost before there was a second voice in the background, a sort of arrogant, stuck-up 'I know all and see all' type of voice. The angel!

"Hey, I think your demon pal's on the phone" He chuckled, the phone being turned over to what anyone else would consider dead air.

"Hello?" He said, fairly calm and confused. I started to sweat a little bit; this was a stupid, stupid idea. What the hell was I thinking?

"Hi." Was all I said. It was all I had to say.

"YOU! You have some nerve calling me! You think you're some hot-shot, eh? Think that since you managed to cower long enough that you've won, you spit?

"No, I-"  

"If we weren't busy wiping out the rest of your friends, we'd be over there exterminating you off the face of all levels of this planet!" He seethed at the end of his words, too angry form another sentence, and giving me enough time to get a word in. I thought angels were supposed to be all happy and not overbearingly violent.

"You're not really a lot of fun to talk to, anyone ever tell you that?" I grumbled, the growing feeling of guilt and frustration outdoing my boredom tenfold. Oh yeah, this was a bad idea to call.

"And NOW you think you're such a smartass that you can call me here and hex me, or harass me, or whatever the hell you're doing?  God, its cases like yours that make my job all the more necessary, erasing stains like you off this plane of existence for good. God damn you!" the phone switched hands as I heard him storm off, the priest muttering before the phone was hung up.

"Maybe it called to say it was lonely…" he laughed, the phone silencing with a click.  I stayed where I sat, the deafening silence again bearing down on me. I sat like that for an hour, the warning sound, or whatever it was, blared on the other end until I could hear Katherine come down the stairs.  With a heavy sigh, I exited out the back door again, walking silently, downtrodden until I was at the edge of the cemetery.


There I sat, until the sun fell below the horizon, thinking everything over. Maybe I was dammed to haunt this house, to be so completely separated from everything around me. I didn't deserve any special calling, or anything different then any other ghost, I guess. Maybe I should just count my blessings that I can communicate with the two people I live with, stop being so demanding. Just what was I thinking this was all about? It felt like I was waiting for something to happen, that I was waiting for excitement to come along.  I think my imagination was stretching just a little too far.

Crickets chirped in the cemetery before me, the fog slowly rolling in from the northernmost edge of it. My exit lump of dirt was all but absorbed back into the earth, grass covering over the bump like it never happened. Everywhere around me, life was telling me it was moving on, while I sat in the same instant I left with; confused, lonely, and frustrated. The graveyard unnerved me before, I never stayed out after dark, for fear of whatever monsters had attacked me underneath were lying in wait for me here. But now, I just hoped that a few other spirits might be around, just for some conversation.

"Is anyone out there?" I called out to the cemetery, sitting politely on the edge of it. "I'm not looking for a fight or anything like that, just for some other bored spirit to talk to."
A whole lot of nothing answered back.

"I'm not as mean as I might look, I swear." I said a little quieter, feeling stupid. "I guess you guys don't have a lot of ghosts coming over here to chat, I mean, I don't blame you. If I saw some dinosaur-faced demon sitting and talking to me, the last thing I'd do would be strike up a conversation."

I chuckled, just a bit, leaning heavier on my haunches.  I listened for any sound, any voice.

"I'm starting to think this whole life after death thing's a lot more of a pain in the ass then people make it to be."  I hung my head low. Staring at my feet, I wiggled my claws, letting out heavy breaths. "I'm starting to wonder why I'm even here at all." The graveyard was silent; it seemed to be filled with nothing but resting bodies, their souls long departed.  

"You can always tell me stuff" I jumped, scanning for the voice, only to find it coming out of Amber, standing ten feet behind me. Her mother was farther up the hill, arms crossed.

"She won't go to bed until YOU go to bed," Katherine smiled "Neri."

"Why don't you tell me stuff?" the girl squatted closer to me, sitting side by side. I was a little awestruck, taken back, babbling on my words out of shock.

"B-Because you're young." I grinned haphazardly, my mind reeling.

"Nuh uh, I'm almost …" she held up one hand, fingers splayed out, "Five!"

"Ah, well, that does make you a big girl."  I smiled, looking back to the graveyard.

"Do you miss your family?" the girl asked honestly, sitting a little closer to me.  "Cause I miss my dad sometimes."  I could hear the mother shifting her weight a little, letting out a sigh.

"I do." I lied, I didn't have any idea if I had a family or not.  Amber scooted until she was practically rubbing elbows with me.

"You're very warm" the girl looked up at me, making me smile.

"Why thank you. That's very kind of you to say" I was a little confused, but let it slide. "What happened to your dad, if you don't mind me asking?"

"He got sick. He's with the angels now. That's what my mom says."  She looked over the graveyard with me. "Are you with the angels too?"

"No, I don't think so." I looked back to the mom, who was busy picking some dirt off the side of her house.

"Is that why you and the angel were fighting?"  She started picking the blades of grass alongside her before looking up at me.

"You could see him too, eh?" I laughed a little, more nervous then anything. "I think we were both just very confused. Him especially."

"Is that why you're sad?" Because you're confused?"  She was hitting these questions with a creepy amount of accuracy, for someone her age.  Her mom was staring right at her as well; she must know how observant her child was.   "Maybe you and the angel can be friends?"

I laughed out loud at that one, hushing myself so I wasn't belittling the kid.

"No, I don't think that's going to happen. He's not interested in being friends."

"Is that why you were calling his number?"  She giggled back, knowing she had me cornered. I could feel my eyes bug out of my head, at least a little bit, before seceding and hanging my head in comical shame.

"I think it's time to go back inside" I grinned, getting up from my spot. I could tell Amber was shivering from the cold out here, and that her mom would appreciate the parental duty of keeping her kid healthy.  We trudged back up the hill, Amber relaying what our conversation had been about.

"Neri, stay alongside me here" Katherine said quieter, then louder for her daughter. "Go on ahead inside honey, mommy's gotta talk with Neri" Amber looked at both of us, opening the back screen door by herself and going inside.

"I know you can't talk back to me, so just listen."  The mother spoke tersely.   "I don't want you calling that priest anymore, I mean, I though that was your rule, and here I find you calling him yourself. Are you looking to start more fights with this 'angel'?"

She put her hand on her head, puling back her hair.

"If you're bored, or depressed, or whatever, let me know instead of calling and looking for trouble like that. When I said I was with you, I meant it; those two are nothing but a drain on my finances." Katherine said, "You're bored? I can understand that. I'll get you some puzzles or something in the morning. Sound good?  I'll do my best to keep you entertained; you seem like an active…spirit."  The woman laughed, starting to head inside.

"Boy, I guess it's good that my only neighbors are a bunch of dead bodies, I think I'd have child services called on me if people saw me talking to dead air in the backyard all the time." She waved a hand over her shoulder, "C'mon, it's time for bed."

I felt honored. At the very least, more accepted into the tiny family on the hill here, having people consider me like that. That night I curled up just alongside Amber's bed, sleeping heartily with the rest of them like I belonged. Maybe other ghosts haunted because they were stubborn, that they didn't try to fit in.  Maybe because they actually missed their families, longed for them, wished for that interaction.  As I drifted off to sleep, I wondered what I had done different then all the others to be so included like this.  


Life was more comfortable after that.  That next morning, I awoke to a stack of puzzles lined up just outside the girl's door, everything from 500 to 5,000 pieces. They were stupid pictures of puppies and three ducks and a ball, but it was entertainment.  Eventually, we found other activities for me to do that would keep me entertained; play blocks, little square blocks that I could make spaceships, or castles, or something called a millennium eagle out of, and finger painting. It was all kiddy stuff, but It was quick, cheap entertainment, and it kept me from feeling like I had to gnaw on the walls to be happy.  

I eventually found out why none of the family members ever visited: they lived out of state, quite some distance away. Katherine's parents were self-absorbed, fascinated with their own lives, while she had a brother who wouldn't know his own sister from the road kill alongside a highway.  They were a terribly disjointed family, pinning all blame on Katherine, who had run off with her to-be husband some time back.  She could be a little rough around the edges, but she meant well. And in all honesty, she seemed to do better on her own anyways.

I watched over the house as requested and stayed away from the babysitter while she was over. Every now and then, I'd kick a chair just to keep her on her toes, which led to Katherine telling her eventually that the house was haunted by a friendly ghost. It didn't matter; it was the last we saw of…Tully…or whatever her name was. We got a new babysitter after that, one who liked to rummage through the cabinets; not looking for food, but for money. She left after I made a doll float after her, one of those dolls with the roll-back sleepy eyes, cocked to an angle where it looked like it disapproved of what you were doing. Our last babysitter was an older woman, Sabina, I think her name was, who even after we told her that the house was haunted with a nice ghost, stayed.  She even insisted on leaving a small plate of food out for me, just so I felt included.  Death was good for a while, things worked out, and everyone benefited. It stayed like that for three wonderful years.



Sabina sat in the padded chair, watching the TV while Amber and I played with a  mix of her Darby  dolls and play blocks,  what we dubbed  'The grand castle siege on Hollywood' .  I waggled the identical blonde doll at the other, ushering a challenge of supreme despair.

"Come, Darby, I challenge thee to a duel! Your Carmel macchiato against my Grande espresso!"  I laughed, shaking the tiny coffee cup in Amber's direction

"I splash thee with fruity flavorings and a dash of my Claymore!" she posed the tiny sword in Darby's hands, smacking the coffee cup from mine.

"Vile Fiend! You've ki----" I shuddered to a stop, feeling the air around me ripple and distort, a large black mass pulsing in the corner with a start.  My vision snapped to it instantly, slowly getting up.  On alert, I stood over Amber protectively as the disturbance passed alongside the walls. As it channeled through the TV, the screen flickered madly before turning off with a start. It then sharply shot to the farthest wall, leading into the kitchen.

"Neri, what is it?" Amber asked cautiously, still bent down low.

"I don't know. Get your mom, keep everyone in this room, okay?"  I began to pace into the kitchen, the shadowy lump of energy hanging around that corner as well.

"Be careful!" Amber called, darting behind me to go get Katherine from upstairs.

"Ohh, I'm always careful" I said absentmindedly, glaring down the mass in the corner.  It spiked out as I crept nearer to it, distorting and re-forming itself like it didn't know what to do. With a low, haunting sound, it began to laugh, the mass heaving and chuckling as a face came to surface in the black goo.   Two yellow, pupil-less eyes rolled around to face me as the mass dropped to the floor.  Taller, taller it got until it towered over me, body forming into one I could barely remember, one that I had never seen myself, but was unmistakable.

"It's been such a long time, my good friend!" The demonic mass chided happily, its head skidding on the ceiling; its eyes rolled around in two channels over its head, balancing on two heavy front legs and a long, disorganized tail from behind.  I started to shake my head back and forth. This… this wasn't possible! The demon seemed to pick up on my confusion. "A little confused? You thought that holy water had gotten rid of me, eh? Please, I'm not that easy to kill. You had it right he first time, he's really just that pathetic."

I kicked up a quick smile trying to cover my confusion, taking a few steps away from it.

"You're the demon that gobbled me out of hell, aren't you?" I spoke bluntly, a little mystified to say the least.  Why didn't this thing attack back three years ago when it all happened? Why wait this long? It made no sense!

"Well, yes, mostly that, but I'm also quite a bit of YOU."  It laughed at my face, a mix of horror and confusion.

"That's actually quite a bit more confusing." I spat out, looking to where I was cornered.

"Come my queen, it's time to go back now."

"---What?"  I glared at the beast, pulling my lip back in a snarl, "I'm sorry, I think I actually quite like it here, and I've got no interest in going back there. I'm not your queen, either" The demon gave what could be considered a frown, crouching down lower to the ground.

"You're not going to make this easy, are you?"

"No, I plan on making this quite difficult" I grinned, spotting Amber and her mother out of the corner of my eye.  "Stay over there!" I yelled to her, the girl stopping in her tracks.  Too late; the demon spotted the two of them, charging in their direction; I lunged, grabbing onto the trembling bits of its tail and pulling down hard.  Amber screamed, pulling back on her mother as well as the demon's jaws snapped just short of the two women.

"Call the Priest!" I shouted through clenched teeth, gritting and tugging at the demon, "That bastard's the only one who's got the equipment to deal with something this big, even if his accomplice is a total asshole!"  

The demon whipped around and charged straight into me, knocking out the south wall of the kitchen in the process.  I tumbled head over tail quite a ways into the field, hoping that the sunlight would kill the hulking black mass emerging from the house. It roared, lurching foreword, doubling over with a second set of arms growing out where a set of legs should be. Scrambling to my feet I tried to face it, the two of us circling around one another, snarling.  My thoughts were only of my terrified family inside.
Chapter Four: [link]

Chapter 6: [link]


--- This chapter is massive. I, uh, didn't realize this, and for some reason figured that 10 pages was my goal--after double spacing it. This is nearly 12 pages, single spaced. *awkward laugh*

Lots of stuff happens here; slow at first, it finally gets to the good crap later. As always , let me know your theories, thoughts, comments, points of concern, etc. :)
© 2009 - 2024 ALRadeck
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Matthew-Travelmaster's avatar
Wow, just wow....nothing more to say. ^^