In the quiet town of Carthage, a chilling series of murders shatters the peace, leaving teenagers dead without a trace of motive. David and Sarah, local high school students, are drawn into a labyrinth of supernatural intrigue as they uncover a conspiracy that spans the realms of mythology and extraterrestrial deceit. With the help of shape-shifting reptilians and ancient gods, they must navigate a world where nanotechnology can control minds, and numerology can predict the next victim. As the line between friend and foe blurs, David and Sarah find themselves in a race against time to save those they love and prevent Ragnarok, the prophesied end of the world. “Prelude to Ragnarok” is a thrilling journey through the power of myth, the mystery of technology, and the battle for free will.
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Prologue: “God’s Will”
“Geoff, what has gotten into you?” Eliza yelled. The man who was once her best friend was chasing her with a knife.
“I do what I must,” Geoff stated stoically.
Eliza wanted to scream, but she knew no one would hear her. Her parents were out for the evening, and the nearest neighbors lived a quarter of a mile away.
Eliza stood on one side of the large glass table; Geoff loomed at the other end. Geoff was closer to the kitchen door, ready to block it if Eliza attempted to escape by that route. Her voice shook as she asked: “Have you completely lost it? This is insane!”
“I do the will of God. Ask no more questions.” His usually gentle blue eyes were cold and empty, as if no soul was living within.
The emotionless glare stoked a flame of fear within Eliza. She observed other differences in Geoff. He usually kept himself neat, but tonight his dirty blonde hair was unkempt, and his t-shirt and jeans looked like he’d grabbed dirty clothes out of a laundry hamper. Also, what was all this talk about God? Geoff had never been a religious man; Eliza was the one who attended church every Sunday.
“It’s not ‘God’s will’ that you murder me! It’s one of the commandments that ‘thou shall not kill.’”
Geoff didn’t flinch. “I met God face to face. Who are you to question God’s will?”
“You’re crazy! Nobody speaks to God face to face. Are you on drugs?” Yet, as Eliza said these words, she knew they weren’t true. Something evil was going on in this town. There had been two recent murders. She feared she was about to become the third victim.
Geoff gave no reply. He stared at her, unblinking. Then, without warning, he grabbed the table’s end and violently flipped it over. The sound of glass smashing was deafening.
Eliza desperately scanned the room for something she could use as a weapon to defend herself. The closest thing she could reach was her parents’ antique vase, sitting on a windowsill. It was a silver vase, standing a foot high and probably worth thousands of dollars. She grabbed the vase and swung it with all her might at Geoff’s head as he charged her with the knife. However, Geoff’s reflexes were quick; he brought his arm up for protection and knocked the vase from her grasp. It shattered into a worthless heap.
In the scuffle, Geoff lost his grip on the knife, and it clattered to the floor. Eliza dove for it. Her adrenaline pulsing through her body, Eliza grabbed the knife and stabbed Geoff in the leg. He roared and grabbed Eliza by the hair. In one swift motion, he pulled the knife from his leg and plunged it into Eliza’s throat.
Strangely, she felt no pain. Her final thought was of her parents and the horror they’d feel when they found their only daughter dead in a pool of her blood on the kitchen floor. She closed her eyes. Blackness took over.
Chapter 1: Dr. Loran
“So, how is it affecting you?”
Typical counselor question, David thought to himself. Everyone has been affected by the three murders. The first murder happened on April 24th, about a month ago. Jennifer Alden was found strangled to death in her own apartment. The murderer? Jack Dixer; a champion football player and class president.
Soon after Jennifer’s body was found, they located Jack, who had hung himself from a tree in the local park. The same rope used to murder Jennifer; he used to take his own life. Shock stung the community since Jack was known as a cool-tempered, good student. He had always been upbeat and happy. Since he came from a well-to-do family, no one in their wildest dreams could ever picture Jack as a murderer.
The connection between Jack and Jennifer was uncertain. According to fellow students, they barely knew each other. In fact, there was confusion over how Jack even knew where Jennifer lived. The local police couldn’t find any leads.
Rumors circulated that Jack had been secretly stalking Jennifer before he killed her. Supposedly, he had a secret crush on her, and she had turned him down. David believed this to be false. He reasoned that people were just looking for excuses to explain the murder.
Almost two weeks later, another bizarre murder took place. Michael Johnson, a quiet student, broke into his father’s gun cabinet, walked two miles to Trudy Calihan’s house, and gunned her down. The next-door neighbor heard both a shot and a scream, and the police were on the scene quickly. Michael confessed to the crime, and the police arrested him at his home. He claimed that he had spoken with God, who had told him to do what he had done. Immediately after they took his mug shot, a mysterious sudden death overtook him. No further information was given.
A few days ago, the murder of Eliza Grant by her best friend, Geoff Zimmerman, occurred. They found her dead in her parent’s kitchen in a pool of her own blood. The police found Geoff later in a nearby woods, slashed to death with his knife. The evidence seemed to indicate that it was a suicide. Some people couldn’t picture Geoff going through with such a task, but others thought guilt may have overwhelmed him when he came to his senses. The police had no leads on any of the murders. There seemed to be no pattern at all, aside from all the victims being female while all the murderers were male. Some theorized someone was using hypnosis or some form of brainwashing on the male students. Yet to be able to brainwash three students to the extent of committing murder seemed virtually impossible.
Carthage, New York, is a reasonably small town situated in the Northern part of the state. It had a steadily low crime rate until now. Immediately, parents looked for scapegoats such as rock music and violent TV shows. Most professionals, like the sheriff, detective, and the new school counselor, doubted a connection between rock music, TV, and the murders.
Some people tagged a local punk band called Jaguar Sunday as the culprit. They played at several village dances, and some parents believed their influence played a part in the murders. Jaguar Sunday’s lyrics may have seemed violent if one didn’t look closer, but David thought that these particular parents were just trying to find someone to point the finger at.
“David?”
David snapped out of his daze and looked up at the counselor. The room seemed overly silent as David searched for an answer. The only sounds that he could hear were the clock’s ticking, the filter in the counselor’s aquarium, and the occasional footsteps in the hall.
“It’s scary… and tragic. I hope they catch whoever is behind it.” David always felt a little awkward expressing his feelings to any adult. Especially over a situation so delicate.
The counselor was a middle-aged man. His eyes were continually unreadable as if he was able to hide his emotions from the best of psychologists. If one were to see him for the first time, they would probably peg him as a computer nerd with his overly thick-rimmed glasses and evenly parted dark hair. He usually wore a sweater, which he kept perfectly neat. He was never seen with a wrinkle or a stain on his clothing.
The counselor, whose name was Peter Loran, nodded his head while saying, “I see.” He stared at David with a thoughtful look. David twitched a little under his gaze. He hated being stared at as he felt Dr. Loran was analyzing his every move. At last, Dr. Loran spoke: “So, you want to be a detective?”
Oh no, David thought; here comes a lecture on not being involved with the investigation. He decided to be honest. “Yeah, I do.” He had been down to the police station a few times to offer any help he could give them. However, they told him that the investigation was too dangerous.
“Good… good. There needs to be more of that around here, the way things are going.” Dr. Loran said, with a sarcastic hint in his tone. “Yet, I’m sure you know what is best and to leave this to the professionals.”
David felt a little irritated; he was concerned and wanted to help. However, it seemed like no one wanted his help. He was trying to piece everything together in his mind to no avail. “Yeah, I’ll stay out of it,” David lied.
He had always been interested in solving mysteries. Scooby-Doo had been his favorite cartoon growing up, and any mystery show that appeared on TV never failed to lure his attention. Solving riddles and puzzles was a specialty of his.
“Okay, now that we have that settled, I believe it’s time to bring up your friend Sarah. I have received complaints from your mother….”
David knew the counselor would bring this up at some point, so he was ready. “Listen, I’m not going to stop being friends with her!”
“But she’s the type of girl who will bring you down. You’re a good kid, David, and good kids need good friends.”
David was annoyed. He had been best friends with Sarah since childhood. She had changed, but David didn’t see anything wrong with her. Sure, she wore black clothing, dyed her hair black, and wore black lipstick sometimes, but she was still his friend. It was occasionally difficult living in a relatively religious town. It felt like everyone watched everyone else instead of minding their own business. “I don’t know why you people have to always judge others…. You don’t know her like I do!”
Dr. Loran sucked in a breath. “I know her better than you think…and she may be a little paranoid, as you have said yourself. That is the last thing you need right now with what’s going on. You have told me before that her conspiracy theories are getting on your nerves. I think it would be best if you step back and take a break.”
David wished he hadn’t yelled that out in anger. He always would tell the wrong people the wrong things. Then he felt like he couldn’t go back on it.
He recalled the incident when Sarah brought up the idea of ancient aliens and how they might still influence the world. She loved talking about UFOs and secret societies. That day he was frustrated with her and ended up repeating her words to the counselor. Sarah was bothered by the fact that he stormed off and mentioned the ordeal to Dr. Loran. Now it was being used against him.
“Yeah, I don’t agree with her on some things, especially when it comes to conspiracy and religion, but we usually get along pretty well besides that.”
“I can’t tell you what to do, David. I just think it would be for the best. I’ll let you decide, though.” Knowing Dr. Loran, this would not be the last time he would push this issue with Sarah. He had a tendency to bring up the same subjects over and over.
David looked at the clock and was glad that this session was almost over. He hated being told what to do and was nowhere near thinking about ending his friendship with Sarah. He looked at her as the sister he no longer had.
He recalled the night his sister died. At age thirteen, the doctor found a tumor forming on her brain. They attempted to remove it, but the doctor was under the influence of alcohol and slipped, doing fatal damage during the operation. From that day forth, David had a hatred for doctors. He was fourteen at the time. Even his parents attempted to reassure him that it was a mistake, but David could read the anger in their eyes. They couldn’t hide their own disgust toward that particular doctor from him.
From that day on, David did his own research into natural healing. Sarah shared this interest with him, and they studied it together. It never ceased to amaze either of them how dangerous mainstream medicine could be when improperly used.
This tragedy also created an unhealthy fear of death in David. He hoped to one day get over this phobia. Sometimes he felt afraid to ride in a vehicle because an accident could happen at any moment. He was scared of visiting the doctor because they might find something wrong with him, and he would suffer and die. Sometimes the thoughts would send him into a panic attack.
The session ended, and David walked out and down the hall. An adult he didn’t recognize was approaching. There was something strange about this person; it seemed he was trying to look away. David decided to shrug it off as nothing, but he thought he caught an unnatural yellow in the man’s eyes as they passed each other.
Chapter 2: Girls, Bullies, and the Number 13
David quickly found Sarah in the hall. Sarah was a girl with sad blue eyes, yet they always shined with a glimmer of hope. She dressed exclusively in black, with long, dyed black hair. The color only emphasized the beauty in her face, yet most people didn’t see this. They couldn’t get past her dark dress style and lack of socializing with others. Many titles were pinned to her, such as “gothic witch,” “Hell’s maiden,” and even “Satan’s bride.”
Sarah had begun her “dress in all black” style five years before. Even though the insulting comments hurt her, she refused to change. This wasn’t the only thing that separated her from other people. She was a practicing Wiccan in a school whose population was generally Christian, further distancing her from her peers. She was often ridiculed for her beliefs and treated as an outcast by students, parents, and teachers alike.
She boldly wore her necklace with a Pentacle, which she claimed represented the elements of Air, Fire, Water, Earth, and, most importantly, Spirit. The other necklace she referred to was the “Triple Moon,” symbolizing the Triple Goddess. She always explained the Triple Goddess as being three aspects of the Goddess. There was the Maiden, which represented youth and purity. Then there was the Mother, which represented fertility and growth. Finally, there was the Crone aspect of the Goddess, which reflected wisdom, old age, and even death. David didn’t believe the same as Sarah and never took the time to understand her beliefs on a deeper level.
The halls were full of students getting things for their next class and talking at their lockers. David could sense the sadness that hung in the air. He hoped the murders would end. There had been times between classes when a few people would break down and weep because they were close friends with a victim, a murderer, or, in some cases, both.
“So, how was your visit with the ‘shrink’?” Sarah asked, not hiding her distaste for the counselor.
David shrugged. “It was okay… I guess.”
“What did he have to say this time?” Same Sarah; always straightforward and to the point.
In all honesty, David did not want to answer this question, so he tried to give a vague answer. “Not much. Just talked about the murders,” he said, as he shrugged his shoulders, trying to pass it off as if it was no big deal.
“David, I know when you’re hiding something. Just come out and say it,” she stated, but with a smirk as if to say, “ha-ha, nothing gets by me.”
David hesitated for a minute and cast his eyes to the ground. He knew there was no getting past her; she knew him too well.
At last, he responded, “He thinks I should stay away from you.”
“And… what do you think?”
“I think he is full of crap!” The smile on Sarah’s face put him at ease. The two of them spent the next few minutes telling jokes about Dr. Loran.
It was then that David noticed a bruise on Sarah’s jawbone. To see Sarah with a bruise of some sort was not unusual. However, getting an honest answer about how she received such bruises was like trying to set ice on fire. She would always tell a story about how it was some accident or how she tripped, but David knew she wasn’t that clumsy. He never liked her dad from the moment he met him. Something just didn’t set right. Sarah’s mother seemed as harmless as a dove, and David believed she would never harm Sarah.
He didn’t see her parents very often, but Sarah rarely got to see his mother since she was not allowed in their home. His mother was troubled by Sarah practicing Wicca and thought she would bring demons in with her if allowed in the house. David stood by Sarah, though, not because he had a crush on her, but because he knew her for who she was: a caring person who hurt inside. David couldn’t understand how people could completely reject others based on faith, especially Christians like himself, who should show compassion rather than rejection.
He knew deep down that her father abused Sarah. He once anonymously notified Child Protective Services after Sarah came to school with a black eye and a welt on her cheekbone. Yet, they couldn’t prove where the black eye came from, and David guessed that Sarah had been forced to lie. He decided he would not bring it up today because he knew it would only upset Sarah more.
David’s attention was instantly distracted away from Sarah. Lauren walked by, a girl David had a crush on for years. Her hazel eyes met his. She walked past him, and her light brown hair seemed to fall perfectly, reaching slightly past her shoulders.
David held his breath, wishing he could muster up the courage to talk to her. As she reached her locker, another male student met her there. They gave each other a quick kiss, and David could feel the jealousy well up inside. He knew the guy she dated, Mr. Jock himself. Evan spiked his short brown hair with gel. He always walked the halls like he expected everyone to bow down to worship him. David sometimes wished Evan would be choked by one of the turtleneck sweaters he always wore. He was a football and basketball player. His father was a physician, and his mother was a surgeon, so David knew that he didn’t have a chance with Lauren with Evan in the picture.
“Do you want me to grab some paper towels to wipe your drool off the floor?” David snapped back to reality, and it took him a minute to register what Sarah had just said. “You’re pathetic to continue to chase after that girl. You’d be lucky if her brain is bigger than a pea. She is so snotty that I feel like wiping her with a giant tissue.”
“Hey! Go easy on her.”
“I am.” Sarah had that defiant look in her eyes. David decided not to press the issue and changed the subject.
“Oh, and Dr. Loran told me that I can’t help with the investigation.”
“That’s dumb. You probably could do better than our clueless police force. You’re not going to listen to Dr. “Know-it-all” Loran, are you?”
“Of course not. You know me better than that.”
“Yes, I do, and I’ll help as much as I can.”
“What do you think you could help with? I mean, you research conspiracy theories and alternative viewpoints of history. How could that possibly help?”
Sarah looked offended. “You don’t think there’s some kind of conspiracy here?”
David wasn’t keen on conspiracy theories. They were theories, and that was it. In fact, there wasn’t enough evidence in David’s mind that the Illuminati still existed or that the Fraternity known as the Skull and Bones was trying to control the government. Sarah needed to stop reading that crap as far as he was concerned. “Conspiracy is never the logical place to start an investigation of this sort.”
“But some murders take a conspiracy to some degree.” Sarah shot back.
“Yes, but you tend to look at larger conspiracies like it’s some secret society or something of that nature.”
“You have to admit; these murders are… um… rather bizarre!”
“True, but that doesn’t mean there is a conspiracy… but I’ll get off your case and let you do your research.” He knew there was no winning an argument with her.
“Thank you,” Sarah said with a smile. “As long as we can combine research.”
“Sure, anything helps, I suppose.” David sounded doubtful.
Just then, a student named Luke Dilton and some of his buddies walked up. Even though Luke was only eighteen, he was a youth pastor at a local church. He always carried a Bible with him, along with a stone face. His attempts at being hip and trying to fit in seemed rather “fake” next to his fire and brimstone attitude. He looked at Sarah and said, “Hey, witch, will you be having some snake stew tonight?”
Sarah was quick; “I’d rather save them so they can bite you. I want to see if your holy flesh can handle it.”
“At least when I die, I’ll be in a better place…unlike you!” Luke taunted.
“Unlike me? I’d rather not enter Heaven if people like you reside there!”
“Ha, you’ll be burning as the maggots eat through your body for eternity.”
“That’s why I don’t follow your god. He is cruel. The words of Thomas Paine, ‘belief of a cruel god makes a cruel man.’”
David decided to step in. “Come on, Sarah, don’t go too far.”
“Yeah, Sarah, why don’t you listen to David?” Luke and his buds walked away. David looked at Sarah and was taken aback by her glare.
“What did I do?” David retorted.
“Isn’t it obvious, or are you too stupid to realize it?” With that, Sarah turned around and stormed off.
“Well, it looks like I’m alone on the investigation,” David said, but Sarah was already too far away to hear him. He just wanted the arguing to stop. Luke was the one attacking her, not him. She shouldn’t be mad just because he warned her not to go too far. David felt Luke was a poor excuse for a Christian with his bullying tactics. Perhaps if he actually read the Bible he carried around, he would realize that loving others and doing good were at the top of the list of things Jesus taught.
* * *
David was sitting in physics class, not paying attention to anything the teacher said. It was easy to drown out Mr. Jenkins’s monotone voice. In fact, it wasn’t unusual for some students to fall asleep in this class. One of them was Jake. David would get amusement out of watching Jake’s head tilt down and suddenly jerk up to wake up from sleep, only to repeat the process. David was thinking about the murders and trying to see a pattern. He wrote down all the dates that the murders occurred and just stared at them blankly.
“David, who invented the electroscope?”
David snapped out of his daze at the sound of his teacher calling his name. He hesitated, trying to recall what exactly the question was. Once he did that, he recalled the answer, “Michael Faraday.”
“Correct,” Mr. Jenkins said and continued his lecture. David sighed in relief as he could return his focus to the dates he was gazing at.
As he looked at the murder dates, he saw a pattern: April 24th, May 7th, and May 20th. Then it occurred to him—
All the murders took place exactly thirteen days apart.
Chapter 3: Imaginations from the Other Side
The final school bell rang, and David knew he had to go to the police station. If his theory was correct, it had been nine days since the last murder, which left four days until the next one.
He hoped to find Sarah, so he didn’t feel awkward about going. However, she was nowhere to be found. Probably still fuming over him for whatever reason—women are a strange species. The police station was a bit of a walk from the school. The May rain felt nice with the light mist in the air.
When he arrived, he asked the clerk if he could speak to an officer, and she asked him to have a seat. At that point, he wished he had brought a book or something. He hated waiting with nothing to do. To keep his mind occupied, he counted the tiles on the chess-like floor. After close to a half-hour, Police Officer Cook strolled out and beckoned David into his office with an annoyed look.
Officer Cook was a pompous young officer. David was immediately disappointed to have to talk to him out of all the officers in the place. He was incredibly demeaning toward high school students. His stone brown eyes caused one to feel as if they had a gun pointed at them. On top of that, he was one of the most physically fit officers on the police force. “So, what brings you here?”
“I just thought maybe….”
“First, your name, kid,” Cook interrupted.
“Sorry… David.”
“So, what brings you here, David? My secretary said you think you might have a lead on the student murder case.” Cook did not attempt to hide his sarcasm.
David was not confident if he wanted to tell Cook, knowing the officer would ridicule him, but he was here already and there was no point in holding back. “Well, I noticed that all the murders took place thirteen days apart.”
“And…?” Cook responded with his eyes drilling holes into David’s brain.
“You don’t think that means anything?” David suddenly felt foolish even bringing this up.
“Look, kid, I’m not here to waste my time on some teenager’s stupidstitious beliefs. I’m here to find criminals and put them in jail using hard evidence. Now, unless you have a real lead, don’t bother me again.” With that, Cook mentally shoved him out of his office.
David was discouraged and angry. The outside mist no longer felt good as he made his way home. David didn’t understand why Cook wouldn’t listen to him and then be a jerk on top of it. He always thought it was better to hear someone out rather than dismiss something that could be important. Then again, Sarah often accused him of not listening when she wanted to discuss her conspiracy theories. It wasn’t easy having different opinions from his best friend, but things were as they were.
* * *
When Sarah arrived home, she went to her bedroom and broke down in tears. How could my best friend not defend me against the school’s biggest jerk? She felt a strong mixture of anger and sadness. It would have been better if he hadn’t stepped in at all, but no, he had to make it seem like I was the one going too far!
Her bedroom was her place of refuge. When she was home, she often stayed there to avoid her dad’s drunken tantrums. She decorated her walls with posters of fairies and owls. She had an altar on the east side of the room with candles placed throughout.
From childhood, she’d been aware that she had a fascinating gift. It was something that she told no one about. Sarah could perform meditation and enter an altered state of consciousness where she would enter another world. She wasn’t sure if it was like a parallel world, but it was a place where she found peace. She decided to do this now and put in a CD with a Shamanistic drumbeat. The rhythm helped induce her into a relaxed state of mind, easing her entry into this other world.
Within ten minutes, she was in the other world. The beauty always put her at ease. She usually found herself in a wooded area with tall pine trees and bright green grass. The sun shone brightly in the evening sky. Unlike in the real world, animals were not afraid of her here. A squirrel scurried to her, and she bent over to pet it. After a few minutes, she began walking, and a little owl flew down to greet her. Its yellow eyes pierced Sarah to the soul. Then it turned its brown and white speckled body and flew off. It flapped its wings a few times, pulled in briefly, and repeated this process of bounding flight. Sarah had done some studying on Shamanism, and it was common for a Shaman to have an animal spirit guide while making a spiritual journey.
Sarah followed the owl until she reached the edge of the forest. She came upon a familiar grove. When Sarah came to this place, she often learned valuable information. In fact, a year ago, it was revealed to her that if she walked her usual path to the school, which led through the woods, a rapist would attack her. Sure enough, a strange man had been discovered in that part of the woods stalking younger females. His records revealed that he formerly spent five years in prison for sexual assault on a minor. Fortunately, he didn’t attack anyone that day. Sarah, who always walked alone, would have been a more likely target.
She trusted the information given to her in the grove. The path in the forest led directly to the center. Olive trees surrounded the grove. Their twisted appearance gave them an ancient feel. The green leaves gave off a silver glare, an unusual appearance compared to the real-world’s trees Sarah was familiar with.
The little owl swooped into the grove before Sarah and flew out of sight. When Sarah entered the opening, instead of the owl, she saw a woman.
The woman stood close to six feet tall. Although young in appearance, her eyes shone with eternal wisdom. Around her body, she wore a white toga and a blue tunic, giving her a mystical authoritative quality. Her breasts, forearms, and biceps were covered with steel. A golden battle helmet with a red plume in the center covered her head.
Sarah bent down on one knee to honor the Goddess Minerva. Minerva advanced and put her hand on Sarah’s shoulder. Within her mind, Sarah could hear the voice of the Goddess. “My dear child, an evil plot is unfolding that might bring the world into chaos and darkness. There has been great turmoil within the spiritual world, which may soon shift into the physical.”
Sarah then spoke back using her mind. “Is there anything I can do, my Lady?”
“Yes. Know that the happenings in your area are just the beginning of this great turmoil entering your realm. Keep your friendship with David strong; that will be necessary for the future. Forces are operating to break apart your friendship. As strange as it may seem, your friendship may prevent things from going too far. Go now, show the world your light and love, and be an example. You may not see me, but I will be at your side, giving you guidance and wisdom.”
With that, the Goddess disappeared, and Sarah was left alone. It was always an honor to speak with Minerva. In Roman mythology, she was known as the Goddess of wisdom, defensive war, and weaving, among other things. She was also the Goddess that Sarah felt closest to. She was known as the equivalent of the Greek Athena.
Sarah was walking back out of the grove and into the forest when something grabbed her attention. She noticed a clump of grass and a few brown blades of grass within that clump. Typically, this would not have caught her attention. However, she had never noticed decay of any sort within this realm. She knew what Minerva had spoken to her was true, but seeing this proof struck her heart sharply.
It wasn’t long after this that the Shamanistic drumbeat ended, and she was able to bring herself back to the present. Sarah sat in bed and thought long about what she had just heard. The words, “your friendship may prevent things from going too far,” echoed in her mind. She could feel her pulse racing when she thought the deities depended on her to do the right thing in some ways. Yeah, she was angry with David, but that would pass. However, she was concerned Minerva could see the bigger picture and that a significant challenge lay ahead for her and David’s friendship.
There was no way she could go to David about this. She could not even tell him about her spiritual journeys, as he would say that she was dreaming. Maybe one day, he would be more open-minded, and she could explain it to him, but she would remain silent until then. She stared at the phone in the bedroom, hoping David would call and things would be fine.
* * *
After David went home and ate some dinner, he contemplated on whether to call Sarah or not. He knew she was angry, and he didn’t want an argument. Finally, he gave in and called her. She seemed glad that he had called, but David apologized anyway “for earlier,” even though he didn’t know exactly what he was apologizing for. It seemed to work, and Sarah remained pleasant.
He told her how the murders happened thirteen days apart and that the cops would not listen to him.
“Of course, the cops wouldn’t listen to an eighteen-year-old boy, especially if you talked to ‘Cocky’ Cook. He’s got his head so far up his you-know-what that his stomach acids constantly burn away at brain cells of humbleness,” Sarah replied with sarcasm.
“Yeah, that’s for sure,” David said with a chuckle. “He shouldn’t even be a cop with his attitude.”
“Heck, with his attitude, he should be in a Nazi concentration camp. Maybe that would knock him off his horse of arrogance.”
“Doesn’t your father know him?” David recalled seeing her father and Officer Cook talking at a local restaurant over coffee.
At this, Sarah was silent for a moment. When she spoke again, she changed the subject. “Hmmm, it is interesting that the murders were thirteen days apart.”
“Yeah. Do you think it means something?”
“Not sure, but thirteen is an interesting number.”
“Why? Because the number symbolizes bad luck?”
“No. It has a deeper meaning than that.”
“How so?”
“I don’t know everything behind it. Many recognize it as the day that the Knight Templars were rounded up and arrested. Some take it back further and relate it to the Last Supper.”
“The Last Supper… as in Jesus and his apostles?”
“No. The last supper we had together. We had thirteen candles lit, remember?”
“Huh?” David was confused.
“Of course, I’m referring to Jesus and his apostles, silly. There were thirteen people there. Some believe Judas was the last to arrive; therefore, thirteen symbolizes rebellion. I also think that thirteen is a number used by secret societies, but I’d have to research that more.”
David didn’t say anything to that. He knew Sarah was genuine in what she believed, but it still irritated him. He could not fathom the idea that secret societies pulled the strings of government and were working their way to control the population.
Sarah interrupted his thoughts: “I will look into this more and see what I can come up with. It’s hard to go by since there have been only three murders. I will also see if there is any significance to the dates of the murders.”
“Sounds good to me,” David said. “I will continue to see what I can find out myself.” At that, they ended the call.
David had many questions running through his head. Why would ordinary students be interested in the number thirteen? What other bizarre things will I find out?
That’s when it occurred to him – at least three out of six students involved had their birthdays early in the year. He couldn’t be positive, but he was pretty sure they’d all fallen in January
Chapter 4: The Note
David wasn’t sure if this meant anything. If they were all at the beginning of the year, that likely could be more than a coincidence. He had to confirm the others’ birthdays.
He again had to meet with Dr. Loran. At first, he’d liked the psychologist, but he was beginning to get annoyed with him. He seemed to be a bit of a know-it-all, almost like officer Cook, minus the cockiness.
It had already gotten back to Dr. Loran that David had talked to the police about the investigation. “I do suggest that you leave the investigation to the authorities. You know that if someone finds out there is a kid running around trying to meddle in their business, they might not be so merciful to you.”
“Yeah, but they will come after anybody involved in the investigation.” After saying this, David realized his defense was weak.
“True, but professionals know how to handle it, and you’re not a trained professional.”
“Well, I do believe in God, and I’m sure I will be okay. David said in earnest.
“Let’s talk logically. Many people I talk to believe God will protect them. One example would be soldiers who go off to battle. Many of those same soldiers wind up dead.” Even though sad, they died an honorable death serving our country, as they were well trained to do what they do. You, on the other hand, might just end up getting yourself killed if you’re not careful.”
“You mean you don’t believe in God?”
Dr. Loran threw up his arms in protest. “I didn’t say I don’t believe in God. I’m just saying that if he exists, he doesn’t automatically rescue everyone who puts their life in a risky situation.”
“Then what do you believe?”
“Well, I don’t know if it is my place as a counselor to bring up my personal thoughts regarding religious beliefs.” Dr. Loran said.
David wanted to know more. “Aw, come on, I won’t tell anyone.”
“Well, if I answer your questions, please don’t be offended. They are my personal beliefs, and I don’t want them to have a negative impact on the counselor/student relationship.”
“Okay, I won’t get offended,” David said.
“Well, first, I’m not sure if the Biblical interpretation of God is accurate.”
“How so?”
“Well, the Bible says that God is perfect, all-powerful, all-knowing, as in he knows everything that is going to happen and is ever-present, right?”
“Correct.”
“That would mean that in the beginning, when there was just God, everything had to have been perfect. Correct?”
David didn’t answer. He didn’t know where Dr. Loran was going with this and didn’t want to fall into a trap.
Mr. Loran continued, “However, there came a time when God created angels. He created one that everyone knows, called Lucifer. Now a perfect, all-knowing God who hates sin will not create anything less than perfect, right?”
“Well, I don’t know about that. God gives everyone a choice.”
“Possibly, but to give everyone a choice, he would have to create that choice, which goes against what he stands for. Therefore, he had to create sin, so angels and humans could choose not to follow him.”
David was stuck without an answer, and Peter continued to put the nail in the coffin. “God then had to create a place of eternal torment for those who do not follow him. After the angels, he made humans, whom he knew would fall. He would end up having to send a vast majority to Hell to suffer for eternity. After seeing this side of God, Hitler doesn’t seem like such a bad guy.”
David felt offended even though he promised not to be, especially by the last statement. Yet, he didn’t have a good comeback. Dr. Loran had unexpectedly pinned him in a corner. He believed that Dr. Loran was wrong, but he wasn’t sure how to reply. He’d have to pray and hope that God would open his heart. David finally mustered up something to say. “So, what exactly do you believe?”
“Well, I believe the definition of good and evil is sketchy. I do believe in some of the moral teachings of the Bible, such as treating others with love. But then the Bible becomes extreme when they must stone someone for picking up sticks on the Sabbath, or God telling his people to slaughter nations including infants.”
“Where does the Bible mention that God ordered his people to slaughter infants?”
Dr. Loran was prepared with an answer. “I believe it was 1 Samuel 15 when Samuel instructed Saul to wipe out an entire nation, including the infants.”
“Anyway, I need to ask you to stay out of the investigation,” Dr. Loran said, suddenly changing the subject.
“I guess I’ll stay out of it,” David stated, caught off guard.
“You don’t sound like that is what you really intend on doing,” Peter challenged.
“What do you expect me to say? If I say I want to involve myself, you will tell me to stay out of it. If I say I will stay out of it, you won’t believe me.”
“I’m just trying to look after your safety. I support your wanting to be a detective and hope that is what you eventually do if it continues to be your desire. However, you need to be trained to do that kind of work. Soldiers are trained before they go into battle. Police officers are trained before they can do their job.”
David needed to manipulate his way out of this conversation. “I see what you’re saying. I will consider it.”
“That’s what I’m looking for.” With that, the session ended.
David was glad it was over. He felt very frustrated and wasn’t about to give up his quest to solve the murder mystery. He knew there were patterns, but he couldn’t prove his theory. He was hoping to piece enough together to be able to stop the subsequent murder, which might be in three days.
* * *
Peter Loran kicked back in his chair and smiled to himself. He thoroughly enjoyed discussing religion with people, especially when it came to confusing them. Messing with people’s heads was a specialty of his. People like David even made it more fun, who believed with such intensity. He knew David well and knew he wouldn’t give up his faith over a simple argument.
If it were not for having to remain professional, he would probably not suggest that David avoid investigating the murders. In fact, Peter was hoping David wouldn’t listen to him. The police had virtually no chance of figuring things out, as they were overly rational. One would need a very open mind even to consider what was happening. Sarah might also be of use, as she seemed to be much more open-minded than most people in the area. He knew that the more he tried pushing Sarah and David apart, the more David would cling to the friendship.
* * *
That night David went home from school exhausted and tired, for it had been a long day. He looked up at his light blue house, and memories came to him about the not-so-distant past before the murders began. He didn’t realize how peaceful things had been. Any kind of indifference seemed petty as compared to now. People in his church would argue over whether or not to put a cross on the wall upfront. Some people believed it would offend people, while other more rigid believers would say that the offense of the cross was needed, and if someone was offended, they didn’t belong in the church. With the murders, petty arguments decreased. As he entered the door, he heard his mother say, “There is an envelope on the table for you. Someone left it on the doorstep.”
David thought this was rather strange. Maybe it was a friend or someone he knew giving him a message. He secretly hoped it would be a letter from Lauren telling him of her attraction to him. He knew it was doubtful, but he could always expect it.
He walked up to his room since he didn’t want to open it in front of his nosy mother. He would never forget the day he came to his room and found his mom reading his journal. He never heard the end of it. When he was angry with his mother one day, he wrote a few nasty things about her in his journal. Of course, she just happened to be reading that part when David walked in. David felt ashamed but angry at the same time. Although it happened over a year ago, it still put a damper on his relationship with his mom.
He shut his door and tore open the envelope, surprised that his mother didn’t have a look at it already. As he read it, he felt chills go down his spine. Unsigned in bold letters, it read: “Keep your nose where it belongs, and stay out of the investigation, or else….”
Chapter 5: Fallen Angels
David stared at the letter for several minutes. The handwriting was unrecognizable. He hoped the letter came from the police department to try to scare him out of the investigation. He figured it probably did since hardly anyone else knew of his interest in the case. David was too determined to allow the letter to convince him to stop investigating. He sat in his bed, looking across at his wall and the large Ghost Rider poster he bought the year before at the theater in Old Forge, NY.
A bit of fear was put into him when he considered that the ones instigating the murders might be behind it. How would they have found out? He thought that maybe Officer Cook was somehow connected. Perhaps he was so tough on David because David was on the right track. It also seemed strange to David that Cook was heading up the investigation, yet they were not getting anywhere. Typically, from what David had heard, Cook did a better job than this. He stopped staring at the letter when his mom called him down for dinner.
“So, who was that letter from?” his mom asked as soon as he sat down.
David hesitated, not thinking this through, “It was just a friend, nothing more.”
To his relief, she asked no further questions.
The night went by slowly. He called Sarah and told her what had happened. They didn’t talk long, as Sarah was attempting to research something on the Internet. She told him not to worry and that it was probably ‘Cocky’ Cook, but her words didn’t appease his concern. He got online and tried to find some new people to meet. He really wasn’t up for researching and concentrating. At 11 PM, he went to bed, but his nerves would not allow him to sleep.
After midnight, he turned his bedroom light on and opened the window because his room felt a bit stuffy. As he looked out, he saw a Mustang parked on the side of the road. As he tried to get a better look, he thought he saw someone sitting in the front seat. He tried to recall if he had seen this car in the area before but could not. It seemed strange that someone would be sitting out in his vehicle at this time of night. Perhaps he was feeling edgy from the letter and was reading too much into it.
He closed his curtains and tried to focus on the investigation, but stress and lack of sleep muddled his mind.
However, something else was troubling his mind—his discussion with Dr. Loran about God. They were good questions that needed some answers. He turned on his computer, and while waiting for it to boot up, he peered out his window and saw the mustang still there.
He searched Google using different combinations of words until he found an article titled: “The real reason why God led the Israelites to slaughter other nations.”
He clicked on the article, unprepared for the information he was about to view:
“Many well-meaning believers teach that God sent the Israelites to slaughter other nations because he was a God of justice, and sin needed to be punished. While this may be true, there may have been deeper reasons, especially where the slaughter of children and infants was concerned. One reason could have been because sexually transmitted diseases were probably not uncommon since there likely were sexual rituals performed by other nations. I do not believe there is sufficient evidence to prove this argument. However, after putting years of study into this, I have come to the conclusion that there was another reason more troublesome than that of disease. This had to do with the fact that some of those nations had offspring of fallen angels among them.”
David held his breath at this. He had never heard of such a thing and read on to see if more evidence was given.
“Genesis 6 points out that the sons of God came down and mated with human women, creating offspring who were heroes of renown. Some believe that the early church suppressed certain writings. One of these writings was the Book of Enoch, which goes into greater detail about these fallen angels, or Sons of God, also known as the Watchers. Fortunately, this book has become very accessible over the Internet, and if one view chapter six and the chapters after that in the book of Enoch, one will see in greater detail what was meant by Genesis 6. We see that the flood came and wiped away all but eight people. However, it is obvious that these “sons of God” did not stop after the flood. When Moses sent the twelve Israelites to spy on the land God wanted them to conquer, they felt like grasshoppers compared to the men they spied out. Then you have the famous Goliath and David story.”
David started to make sense of it all. It appeared that God wanted to suppress the offspring of the fallen angels. If what he had read so far didn’t shock him, what he was about to read would.
“It is believed by myself and many other researchers that these activities have not ceased. They went underground, but they were no less effective.
“Another great misunderstanding is that the Bible is the absolute truth.” David didn’t like what he was reading, but he continued. “We don’t have the original writings with us here today. Some scholars believe the first five books of the Old Testament, often referred to as the ‘Torah’ or ‘Books of Moses,’ may have come from four or more different sources. These sources were written much later than most people are led to believe. Scholars refer to these as the J, P, E, and D sources. Then there is the Redactor, or a few redactors, one of which many people believe was Ezra. It has been shown that one of those sources has a much more unmerciful version of god than the others. This was the P source or Priestly source. This source seems to illustrate a more brutal god than the other sources. Someone probably wrote this source around 500 B.C., a much later date than the alleged period of Moses’ life. This may be why the Old Testament God seems contradictory at times.”
“Even so, this does not negate the idea that angelic beings possibly mated with human women, and an entirely new race was made. If these beings do walk the Earth, we may be in more trouble than we expected.”
David stopped reading, letting this new information sink in. It was a little far-fetched; he’d always believed what the Bible said. He had never heard of these four sources. What was this priestly source? He was too tired to focus on it any longer. He bookmarked the article to re-read at a later time.
He turned the computer off and peeked out his window again. The Mustang was still sitting there, so David ensured all his lights were off. He waited about five minutes and took another peek out the window.
The Mustang was gone. David suspected that whoever was in the car watched him and waited for him to go to bed. Could it be the same person who’d left the mysterious letter?
Chapter 6: Lauren
The mysterious driver pulled away from David’s house. He had found David quite amusing. Then there were the police sending him a warning to try to scare him. The driver had to laugh at this. Neither David nor the entire police squad were a match for him. He drove back to the police station, as he was on duty overnight.
* * *
David could barely pull himself out of bed in the morning. He wasn’t used to operating on five hours of sleep. He skipped breakfast because he didn’t feel hungry and walked to school. Once again, the weather was gloomy, emphasizing the despair hovering over the town.
As he arrived, his friend Kory approached him. “So, did you hear the news?” Kory was not a close friend of David, but he was always up to date on the latest gossip. David found him somewhat annoying since he constantly butted into other people’s affairs.
“No,” David responded, too exhausted to care.
“Lauren broke up with her boyfriend!”
David reacted as though he’d been splashed with ice water. “Really?” He replied, not able to hide his excitement.
“One of her friends caught the asshole kissing another girl. She’s free now; you should ask her out as soon as possible.” David hated how the whole school knew about his attraction to Lauren. He knew it was his fault for making it obvious; if only he could be more discrete.
“Me? Ask her? You know how I am with girls, Kory. I can’t just go up and ask her out.” David recalled a situation a few years back. He had been going to high school dances for over a year but was always too afraid to ask anyone to dance with him. Eventually, a dance came around in which David decided to go up and ask for a dance. The first girl he asked said, “no.” He was discouraged, but he continued. Within a half-hour, he asked five girls to dance with him, and they all said “no.” After that, he went outside the dance and started to cry. Thoughts of suicide and worthlessness bombarded his brain. He had lost all courage.
After he had sat down for five minutes, he made his way to the nearby Black River. There was a bridge, and he had made up his mind that he was going to jump to his death. He had felt depressed before, but this was the first time he truly felt like dying.
As he arrived at the bridge, he began to crawl over the railing. He could still clearly recall the crashing water below him, calling him to his death. Thoughts raced through his mind; some pushed him closer to jumping, while others held him back and told him things would get better. Suddenly he felt a hand grab him and yank him back down.
“I had a feeling something bad was going on.” David had turned to see who had spoken, and there stood Sarah, a look of concern in her penetrating blue eyes. David was surprised to see her since she hadn’t been at the dance.
He explained to her what had happened.
“Those girls are bitches! They are definitely not worth taking your life over.” He knew she was right. They walked to the other side of the bridge, where there was a gazebo. Sarah led him up to it. “It’s those girls’ loss, but I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to dance with you.”
Without music, they held each other in the gazebo under the moonlit sky and slowly danced for several minutes.
David found Sarah very attractive, and if they had not been long-time best friends, he would probably have asked her out at some point. Yet, he did not want to lose her friendship or make things awkward.
Kory’s voice brought him back to reality, “Come on, bro! Do you want to miss out? All the guys are going to be pursuing this one; don’t hesitate.”
“It’s going to take me some time to build up the courage and figure out the right words to say. But, uh, thanks for the tip.”
David thought all day about a way to approach Lauren. The day slowly dragged by. David didn’t have much to eat because of his anxiety. This had been the first time since the murders began that he had not thought about the investigation. Attending classes seemed almost pointless, as he couldn’t focus on the teachers’ words. The courses he had with Lauren, such as physics and social studies, were even more difficult. He was shaking from nervousness and wanted nothing more than to get up and walk around, as sitting still was torture.
He didn’t discuss it with Sarah because he knew her disdain for Lauren. In fact, he was trying to avoid Sarah; she would pick up on his nervousness and ask questions. Lauren seemed more withdrawn than usual, obviously saddened by the breakup. This added to David’s apprehension, as he thought that she would turn him down with her pain being so fresh. Then again, maybe he could be of some comfort to her.
Eighth period was over, and he had made the decision to approach her. He knew she would be at her locker. As he saw her standing there, his heart raced. He slowly walked up to her, having second thoughts with every step. Nothing else was real to him, as his surroundings became a blur. He mustered up the courage to speak.
“Hi, Lauren!” He could feel adrenaline rage through his body. How was she going to react? He thought she might look at him like he was an idiot. Heck, he felt like an idiot to even think she would consider dating him.
“Hey, Dave,” she replied. Her tone was friendly, and David relaxed a little bit.
“How are you?” He asked.
“Oh, stupid English class wants me to do an essay I have no time for.” She said in frustration.
“That sucks. Teachers like to give us more work than we can bear.” That’s it? That’s the best I can do? He thought to himself.
“Yeah, really, then on top of it, I suck at essays.” At least she was actually talking to him rather than giving one-word answers or walking off.
“Well, I’m pretty good at essays, although I suck at Social Studies.” David was becoming more at ease talking to her.
She turned to face him; her deep blue eyes made him feel almost hypnotized. “You know, if you’re good with essays, maybe you could help me out.”
David was more than happy to have this opportunity. “Sure; when would be a good time to get together?”
“Well… the thing is, I’ve gotten involved in too many after-school activities, and then my other classes give so much homework that I can’t get to it all. I trust you with it and know you can do a better job than me.”
David was slightly disappointed since he’d hoped to spend time with her. But at least this was a start. She gave him a rundown of the essay, which appeared quite complicated, but he said, “Sure, I’ll do the best I can.”
“Thanks, sweetheart,” Lauren said, batting her eyes at him.
David felt a sensation of joy when she called him “sweetheart.”
Just then, the scene was interrupted by another student running down the hall yelling: “Beware, the Brotherhood of the Snake has returned; they are behind the murders, BEWARE!!!”
