In front of me sat a plate of steamed vegetables and rice on flat bread. A carafe of sweet tea, unfortunately with no ice, had been placed in the center of the table. Upside down paper cups were stacked neatly beside it. Frankly, it was the best thing I’d seen in weeks. Even before everything had changed, my diet tended to come out of a microwave, or a fast-food drive through.

“This is great,” I said. “Thank you so much for having me.”

“You’re quite welcome,” Said Tiller’s uncle.

Tiller had introduced his uncle to me as Pastor Belk, a minister at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, or at least he was before the events of Eldritch Night. It was the first time I’d heard the term, but apparently it was commonly used among the survivors of Charleston, though the term was generally only spoken in hushed tones.

No one used the ‘A’ word. Apocalypse or Rapture had become taboo. I guess the connotations were too final. If you admitted the world had ended, then what was left to do but wait? I wondered if it was the end Father Belk had imagined when he gave his sermons.

Sitting next to me on my right was Tiller, and I was seated across from Pastor Belk. To my left was a young girl with a blue dress and two puffy, gravity defying ponytails. When I caught her staring she turned away, hiding her face.

“This is my sister,” Tiller said. “Tish, say hello to our guest, Mr. Finn.”

“Hi,” she said with a small wave, still not meeting my eyes.

“Hello, Tish,” I said. “I wondered who was keeping Tiller here in line. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“Thanks,” she said hesitantly. “Is it true you’re a monster hunter, and you travel with a blue demon? My friend Mike said…” The words were a torrent, flowing together until they were almost unintelligible.

“Calm down, sweetheart,” Pastor Belk said. “Let’s say grace first. We can talk over our meal, okay? You don’t object, do you?” The pastor turned towards me awaiting an answer.

“Uh, no,” I said. “It sounds nice.”

Pastor Belk had us all briefly hold hands as he said grace over our meal. The simple prayer gave the meeting a sense of normalcy. I cherished that feeling, fleeting though it was.

“Please, eat,” Said Father Belk.

“Thank you, again,” I said. “Really.”

The food was delicious, the vegetables crisp and fresh and the bread flaky and warm. The tea was room temperature and overly sweet, and it was exactly what I needed. It made me think of home.

“Pastor Belk...” I said.

“James is fine,” he said.

“Alright, James,” I continued. “You don’t know a woman named Margaret Finn, by any chance? She goes by Maggie. She’s not Lutheran, but my mother probably would have sought out a priest if she were here.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know her,” The pastor said. “I’m not the only minister that survived, however. I wouldn’t give up hope. Is that why Jonathan brought you to me?”

“Who is…” I started before realizing he meant Sergeant Tiller. “Right, Tiller. No, but it is the thing that is on my mind the most. Thank you, anyway.”

“Uncle Jim,” Tiller said. “I was hoping you could show Finn here the skill we talked about, the one from last week.”

“I’m still not comfortable with all this,” Pastor Belk said while shaking his head. “This skill… business.” He spat the word ‘skill’ pausing after the word with a frown on his face.

“It still seems like sorcery, witchcraft, and the act of receiving power from any source outside of God doesn’t sit right with me.”

“Pastor Belk,” I said. “James. There are real demons out there. I have seen them. I’ve fought them. Whatever this system is, whatever its source of power, I do know one thing. It can help us fight those things that are truly evil. It may be the only way to stay alive.

“I’m trying to fight one of those demons now, one that may literally be targeting my soul. Your skill might give me what I need to defeat it.”

“God will be our Shepperd,” Pastor Belk said. “But he gives as much as he takes.”

The pastor sat here for a minute, looking at his food before he looked up and spoke. “All right, I’ll show you, but just you. I won’t have it affecting my family.”

“Good. Thank you,” I said. “Where can we go?”

“We have a small room over at the Port Authority. It’s used for prayer meetings and counselling. It should be empty right now. Let’s finish our food first, though?”

“No complaints here,” I said.

***

You have been blessed! This status effect will increase your resistance to all negative ailments and effects. If a citizen is already under the effects of an ailment, being blessed will reduce the effects and duration of said ailment. Additionally, a priest can use Bless ® to drive out evil spirits, curses, and corrupting forces.

The blessing itself had been simple. Pastor Belk dabbed some water on my forehead and read from the bible. He quoted multiple verses, ending with the words, “Do not become overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

The Pastor stood in front of me not moving.

“Did it work? Can you feel it?” He asked.

I could see the energy take form as it left the pastor’s hand and flowed into my forehead. It spread through my head and then slowly seeped into my bones before spreading slowly out into the rest of my body.

“I can feel it,” I said. “Can you do it again without all the scripture? Try just focusing on the skill and saying the name.”

“Alright,” he said placing his hand on my forehead. “May God bless you and protect you from evil.”

I felt it hit me again, stronger this time. I stumbled back as I felt a burning behind my eyes. My skin tightened as I felt a numbing tingle make its way up my limbs.

I focused on the corrupted memory of Liv and Troy as the soothing energy washed through my mind, seeking out the corruption. I could feel the two energies opposing each other, one a gentle, warm light and the other icy black with the taste of rot.

The energy from the blessing was passive, seeking to surround and protect my memories. To drive it out not by destroying, but by denying it access. It shielded me from the dark energy that was slowly awakening, consuming all around it. In a battle of attrition, it was clear what the results would be.

I immediately knew how foolish this decision had been. I was playing with forces beyond my control. I hadn’t expected such a violent reaction, in hindsight it was probably unavoidable.

I had no choice but to continue.

The Peacekeepers would kill me or imprison me if they discovered the corruption. Letting the degradation of my mind continue was an even worse outcome. My only choice was to find a solution on my own, and risking my life was an acceptable cost if it meant I could be free.

I began to shake uncontrollable, my knees buckled, and my jaw clamped shut. I sank to my knees and looked up at the pastor. “Again,” I said.

Pastor Belk stepped backwards, “I’m sorry," he said. "I don’t think this is working.”

“Please,” I said. I opened my eyes and tried to hide the pain by loosening the tension in my face. “It’s working, this isn’t dangerous. Just a little unpleasant.”

He must have trusted me because I soon felt a hand pressed against my forehead and the low murmuring of a prayer. A soothing power flowed into me.

The two powers swirled around each other. I saw images of a bright white energy flowing around a pitch-black ooze, thick and viscous. Images of memories flashed briefly before my eyes, but I was unable to keep them in my mind for longer than a moment.

It was as if I could see the competing energies fighting over my mind, metaphor made real.

I was beginning to understand the shape of these two powers. I had discovered that my ability to learn skills relied on my own understanding. For instance, I didn’t learn new skills from watching Catayla scouting and sneaking because I hadn’t understood the principles behind what she was doing.

If I was going to harness this energy I would need to understand the basics of how it functioned. How it was shaped.

I could feel the flavor of Pastor Belk’s faith upon the energy of the blessing, it was gentle and didn’t confront its opposition head-on. Instead it shielded and renewed, giving strength, and defending instead of attacking.

The power of corruption meanwhile sought only to consume and replace, trying to strengthen itself by gaining a foothold in my mind and by absorbing the power of the blessing.

This confirmed a theory of mine. If the eldritch energy, the dark power that was corrupting my mind, could absorb and be reinforced by the power of the blessing – then they must be connected. Perhaps different sides of the same coins, or alternate forms of the same energy.

It was like the difference between alternating and direct current. The same thing really, just in a different shape and used in different ways.

Tentatively, I reached out for the dark energy in the same way I had tried to manipulate my mana during my imprisonment by the BMS. I hadn’t been successful then, but I was counting on my reactive adaptability recognizing the life or death nature of my current situation and lending me a hand.

I was only alive because I had developed a resistance to venom. It was time for an encore.

The energy fought me and whenever I thought I had a grip on it I would lose control, like water slipping through my fingers. It did slow the energy, however, just a fraction but it was enough. The power of the blessing started to surround the eldritch energy, the dark mana.

Congratulations! You have learned a new skill(s). Mana Manipulation Ⓤ (0/10)

Congratulations! You have learned a new skill(s). Eldritch Manipulation Ⓐ (0/10)

This is what I was waiting for. I threw all my focus into containing the eldritch energy, forming it into the simplest form I could imagine – a sphere. I compressed the ball of corruption as much as I could, allowing the golden light of the blessing to coat it. I almost immediately gained two levels in eldritch manipulation, and containing the globe of darkness became the smallest bit easier.

I powered every ounce of my being into containing the dark energy. I imagined my mind as a vice holding the sphere tighlty and gradually tightening - making it smaller and denser.

I tried to sever the darkness from my mind completely, but the energy had nowhere to go. Having no way to contain the dark energy, I tried to push it out of my mind, but it resisted. It fought, clawing itself further into my consciousness.

I looked around, but I could no longer see my surroundings. Instead I was in a grey void, my memories swirling around me like constellations of dancing light, as a sphere of shadow and gold hung over my head.

I could feel myself slowly losing control, gradually losing the battle to stay awake. In a moment of desperation, I grabbed the sphere of swirling light and cast it into a dark corner of my mind.

In this state I could see the barriers and connections between my memories, and I used those connections to wall off the section of my mind before breaking it off and sending it into the grey void – an island of darkness in a sea of emptiness.

As the island drifted out my eyes closed, I slid into sleep.