Foolish Magic
The news was depressing as usual. A gun fight had broken out in Monterey and it had spilled into the aquarium. It had began and ended out of nowhere and as usual most of the victims were innocent civilians. These incidents have been becoming more and more common across the country and they showed no sign of stopping.
“While authorities are still unsure of who is behind these attacks and why they are being perpetrated, an official statement from the FBI stated that several of the corpses of perpetrators have been found with tattoo of a crown on them.” Said the lady news anchor. After this she said a few things and passed it of to a panel of people who began to argue over what had just been stated. I looked at the clock and saw it was time to go. I packed my things and headed outside.
When I walked outside the school I say a man laying on the side of the road. He had ragged short hair wore beat up jeans and a tank top that used to be white. He smelled terrible. I walked towards him and handed him some money. He took it and smiled. His teeth looked worse than I’d expect. He stared at me with a look that made me freeze a little. It appeared that he was staring me down trying to remember every inch off me. His eyes pierced me like bullets. With a mischievous snicker he pocketed the money. He put his hands together as if he was praying and said.
“Thank you, a thousand times thank you. I’ll always remember you and if I get the chance I’ll pay you back a million times over” He said. He shot up to his feet with speed that shocked me and made me take a few steps back. He did a shallow bow snickered turned and walked away with a slight giggle. I stood there stunned for a second before walking away.
My friend Tommy was waiting for me. He was a few years older than me but we still considered ourselves good friends. We had met at a summer camp a few years ago and we had been hanging out ever since. Though we go to different high schools he still picks me up and takes me home from time to time. It was a lucky coincidence that his house was like five minutes from mine and that our schools are literally 4 blocks apart. I went outside so that he could pick me up and take me home. I jumped into the dirty blue sedan he drove. It was a gift his parents gave him for his eighteenth birthday. It was a beat up old thing but he loved it all the same. Tommy is a short man (but still taller than me) with dark brown hair and and darker brown eyes. He had a pale complection and a frame of average built. He wore loose fitting jeans and a t-shirt with his school logo on it.
“How you doing Diana?” He said as I hoped into the passenger seat and threw my back pack into the back.
“Good.” I responded. We quickly went through the usual greetings before Tommy started to drive down the rode. I saw him smile nervously as he drove. He kept taking subtle glances towards me. He wanted to tell me something but was to scarred. Growing up I was always able to read people’s faces. My dad always told me that I could get rich of poker if I wanted to. He opened his mouth to speak but then BANG. I looked back to see that a car had crashed into another one behind us while merging.
“You hear that ridiculous news story?” He said with a nervous smile.
“The one about the shooting?” I said.
“No the one about the conspiracy guy saying that the shootings are government planned assassination squads. He came out with a new waco one.” He said.
“What is it?” I asked.
“He thinks the random fire bombs are ancient native american monsters being who were imprisoned by the Spanish Missionaries when they first came here, being released by the deep state to force the US into submitting to the UN globalist.” He said. I looked at him sideways. In addition to the shootouts the state of California also had to deal with weird fire bombings. A statue of a dude named Junipero Serra of highway 280, the San Francisco de Asis mission, the California Academy of the Sciences and most infamously the Golden Gate bridge had all suddenly burst into flames.
“He blamed it on what?” I asked.
“That’s the nice toned down version of what he said. Point is everyone’s super mad cause duh.” He said. Even though by miracle there was no casualties in the bombings everyone was on edge. We continued to shoot the breeze until he dropped me of at home.
“See you tomorrow.” He said. I gave him a hug.
“See you tomorrow.” I responded before walking away. I was alone in the house. Parents out of town and they trusted Tommy and his family to make sure I was in good. I sat down and began to microwave a frozen burrito when I heard a knock on the door. Thinking nothing I went to open it.
The moment I did three masked individuals forced themselves in. I took a step back my heart felt like it exploded in panic. Two of them rushed forward and pinned me to the ground. I fell hard. A thunderous knock shook my vision to a blur. My breath grew swift and violent. The men held me still. I stood frozen shocked. One of the men on top started screaming, I couldn’t tell which one.
“Where is Sinkalip?” He demanded. I felt my lungs shriveled up, my body started shaking. One of the man slugged me in the mouth a few times. The blows shook me, my hole face felt dented. The pain radiated like fire. I closed my eyes.
“Please not please no please no please no.” I cried. A man grabbed my skull with a big ruff glove and pried one eye open.
“Where-is-Skinkalip?” He whispered softly.
“WHERE!!” He screamed. I cried. They positioned themselves on top of me in such a way that they crushed me. I could feel my stomach and ribs begin to cave in. They slugged me again.
“I'm gonna die I'm gonna die I'm gonna die I'm gonna die” I weeped softly.
“JOHNSON RODRIGUEZ STOP AT ONCE.” A loud voice boomed. The men shot up to their feet at once and stood strait as pencils.
“But Brother Low we know that she’s interacted with that thing. She is dangerous.” One of the men protested.
“Did you forget the reading so soon my son. Skinkalip is a monster of tricks. I’m certain this young daughter of God knows not her sin.” Brother Low said as he walked towards me. Regaining my power to move I tried to wriggle away. It hurt. The man called Brother Low kneeled next to me and did the sign of the cross in the air. He then cradled me close to him. I could do nothing but ball like a baby.
“Oh dear sweet child forgive these men, they know not what they do.” He said. He held my head in one hand and with the other he put my hands to lay across my chest. From his pocket pulled out a small bracelet made from blue glass beads that sprinkled like diamond stars.
“A nice piece of jewelry is it not my dear sister Diana.” He said. I did not respond.
“It is said that the stones for such a marvel can only be made my angels, but I have some doubts about that.” He said. There was a warmth to his voice, like he was telling a child a story. He looked at me. I stood their shaking and bleeding, my body was stiff with fear. He sighed.
“Mrs. Diana sweet sister, I apologize for the ruffness but it is necessary in our line of work, especially when dealing with such foul creatures. We Knights of Glass must always be vigilante, that’s the only reason we have survived since the 1700s.” He pulled a white cloth from his back pocket and began to whip my face clean.
“Don’t worry, we will protect you we’ll make sure that you never have to worry about-” He cut of abruptly. Stood there in fear. He then rolled to his side and layed on the floor wheezing. I thick layer of smoke formed around him. In a panic I scuttled backwards away from the mess. I looked up and say that the other two men where in the same situation. The laid on their hands and knees, all of them gagging, coughing, wheezing, crying panicking. Then they collapsed. Dead.
I heard footsteps and looked up at the open door. There stood a man, he wore dress shoes, a clean white collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up and nice pressed dress pants. His face was polished clean and his hair was swept back in a wave. He took a long drag from mostly smoked cigarette and didn’t let up till it hit the blunt. He then gingerly held it it his hands face up and with a swoosh and a flick of the wrist a new one was in its place. He looked at me and grinned cheekily. His teeth shined bright enough to blind you.
“Thanks again for the cash.” He said. I fainted.
. . . . .
I woke up in a soft bed my bed. My bed. My face hurt. It heart A lot. Suddenly I panicked. What what what… What Happened. I remembered the events but that couldn’t have real. I shot up and picked up a small makeup mirror on the side of my bed. I opened it up and looked in shock upon my face. It was bruised and lumped into a wild mess. I touched my face gingerly, it was very tender.
I heard a noise come from my bedroom door. The man stepped in and I recognized him. It was the man who a gave the cash to, the one who also appeared at the door in fresh new cloths.
“You’re awake good. I got food for yeah.” He said with a smile.
“What, wh-what happened to me.” I asked.
“Some not so nice men decided that you needed a makeover I’m afraid.” He said.
“Who are you?”
“I’m not sure that question has many answers, and I’m not sure what your people would use.” He said scratching the back of his head with a little laugh.
“What does that even mean, who are you, get out GET OUT GET OUT.” I screamed. His hands shot up and forward like he was doing a half hearted surrender.
“Okay I’m sorry this is all kind of my fau- I mean, uh, look, I I’ll explain this over a meal. I got food waiting outside, When your ready just come talk.” He said. He hung his head and walked away closing the door.
While getting answers would have been nice I wasn’t talking to that man. I snuck out my window and ran. My parents weren’t in town but Tommy was. He volunteered at a church near by on Saturdays to satisfy a service requirement at his school. I ran full speed and didn’t look back. When I got there Tommy was washing the front door. He turned and looked at me stunned.
“What happened to your face? Are you okay? What happened?” He stammered nervously.
“Quick get inside.” I said and I dragged myself in Tommy slamming the doors closed behind me.
“Are you alone?” I asked.
“No to more men who I never say where here, they said the Priest was sick so they covered for him. They’re cleaning the altar” He said.
“Quick we need to hide.”
“Why?”
Just then the two men stopped cleaning the altar. They walked towards us. One pulled out a long slender blade and the other a bracelet made of beautiful blue glass beads. Tommy Say them and reacted fast. He grabbed me dragged me fast and burst out the door. We tripped, tumbled down the church steps and face planted on the floor. It hurt. A lot. Pushing the pain aside I stood up and say the man. He held his hands in his pocket.
“Upon further thought I should have had a further plan for this. Should have asked red hat to help me.” He said. He walked over to Tommy who lay on the floor bleeding and picked him up with both hand from the waist and plopped him on his feat. He had fallen right on his forehead that leaked an ocean.
The two men appeared at the door way. The knife one tossed it in the air and caught it a few time while the beads one fiddled with it in his left hand while on his right he held a pistol. The man walked up to them.
“Alright you angel bead bastards don’t make me have to--” BANG BANG BANG. The man was cut of by the fire of bead guys gun. It went of right into the man. But yet he stood there unfazed.
“If you would allow me to---” Once more the man was cut of when the other man tried to stab him. The knife went right towards his face but when it struck it did not stab the man, no the man’s skin stopped it and there they two ‘angel bead bastards’ stood dumbfounded.
“Didn’t you guys get the memo, the first time you tried I didn’t go down like the others, that’s why you put me in that cage.” The man said. The
“Oh you’re lucky you killed my companions all those years ago I only destroyed some stuff not all of it.” He said as he lit up a cigarette as one man reloaded the gun and the other took a break from stabbing.
“Sinkalip!” One of them cried
“I haven't been called that in centuries now, but then again I haven’t been called much of anything since I was ALONE in a MAGIC CELL for those CENTURIES because you shoved me in there when you sailed over with them Spaniard dudes. How did we lose the war to you bastards. I hear you and the Rowyols and some other fools be killing each other. Hopefully one of you can blast the other to hell so I have to deal with less of you clans.” He took a drag from his cigarette and breathed out a plume of smoke the began to strangle the men. With a cheeky grin on his face. He reached out his hand to shake.
“I remembered the name.” He said. “It’s Coyote.”