Image by [email protected] from Pixabay The four-hour drive home was deathly quiet. I ignored my dad and he ignored me, which suited me just fine. After two hours on the road, we stopped to get fuel.
“Stay in the car, Scar,” my dad barked at me, slamming the door as he exited. He hastily put gas in the car and we were off again. After arriving home, I went to see my mom. “Oh, you’re finally back, Scar,” she said. “Good! You can start on the dishes and then clean the rest of the house.” “Okay,” I said, sullen. This was the welcome I got from her? I don’t know why I’d expected more. I went into the kitchen and found a sink filled to the brim with dirty dishes and a few flies buzzing around. I sighed and picked up a sponge. Both my parents ignored me for the rest of the day, which was a relief. As long as I stayed on their good side, they would leave me alone. That evening, I went into my room, which was in the basement, and heard my mother lock the door. I was surprised they didn’t realize I knew how to pick locks by now. I shook my head silently and got in bed, then tried to fall asleep. I thought about my uncle, the scythe, and the responsibility of Guardian. Now that my dad had brought me back, I couldn’t be Guardian anymore. I had to wait a year until I turned 18. Then I’d be able to leave my parents’ house and become Guardian. I didn’t know what to do, and I wished there was a way to contact my uncle. * At night I dreamed of a glistening scythe. It was dark in the forest, and the moonlight reflected on the scythe’s blade. The staff felt cool and powerful in my hands. I was wearing a long red cloak, and I looked out into the foggy blackness. Then a shadowy figure came my way, wearing a dark cloak. I strained my eyes to see, but couldn’t make out the face. The person looked familiar. Finally, the figure halted in front of me. I raised the scythe, in case I had to defend myself. “Uncle?” I asked, “is that you?” “It’s me,” he said. “I think some of the scythe’s power brushed off on you. I could sense that you were trying to contact me. One of the gifts of being Guardian is that I can enter the dreamworld to some extent. So I was surprised when I saw that you had entered it too. I wanted to say how sorry I am that things didn’t work out. That I wasn’t able to protect you. I guess we’ll have to wait until you turn 18, but I must protect the scythe until then.” “I understand,” I said. “I’m very tempted to just give him what he wants. To give him the scythe,” Uncle said. “Then he’ll leave you alone.” “No,” I said. “Then he’d be able to open the portal at will. Who knows what chaos he would cause?” “You can’t become Guardian anymore,” Uncle said sadly. “Your father would come after you nonstop.” “No, I’ve decided,” I said. “I’ve thought about it, and I accept. I will be the next Guardian.” “But it’s too dangerous,” Uncle said. “I’ve already made my decision,” I said firmly. He needed to see that I meant what I said. Uncle showed me a vision of where the scythe was hidden. There was a secret compartment under the stairwell. It was concealed so well that nobody would ever find it unless they knew where to look. “There is a power that comes with the scythe,” Uncle said. “Some people, such as your father, can’t handle power. They abuse it and it makes them go mad. But, you, Scarlet, you are a responsible individual who cares for other people. I know you will use it in the right ways.” “Thanks, Uncle,” I said. I woke up and the dream faded away. * Days later, my father ordered me to get in the car. “Where are we going?” I was immediately suspicious. “Get in, Scar! Do as I say!” he snapped. “We’re going to Griswold’s place where I’m going to trade you for the scythe.” “What?!” “Lucky for me, he cares more about you than the scythe,” he said. I was upset. I could not let him get his hands on that scythe! After we arrived, I was left at Griswold’s house, while my father and uncle went into the forest. I called up Ruben. “I’m back,” I said, “and my uncle is going to give my father the scythe. We have to go stop him!” Ruben hurried over with his spy gear and we set off. He’d brought some camouflage suits, so we quickly put them on. * “Let’s find a place to hide,” I said. We hid near some bushes and hoped my dad wouldn’t see us. “Let’s hear what they’re saying,” Ruben set up his listening headphones and gave me one of them to put in my ear. The voices of my uncle and dad became as clear as day. The two men were standing in the middle of the clearing, Griswold holding the scythe, and my dad standing a few feet away from him. “Open the portal,” my father demanded. “I want to make sure it’s the real one.” Griswold used the scythe to slash the air and open the entrance to the other world. My dad’s eyes lit up and he reached for the scythe. “You’ll never have it!” Griswold said. “Scarlet will be the next Guardian. Not you! You would only misuse it!” “I’d be immortal!” my dad said. “I must have it!” He made a lunge for it. Griswold stepped out of the way, raised the scythe, and slashed in his direction. A dark mist swirled from the scythe and began to circle around my dad, finally engulfing him in darkness. “What are you doing to me?!” he shouted, flailing his arms. “Scarlet will be rid of you once and for all!” Griswold exclaimed. “You want to be immortal? Fine! Let’s go!” “What?” my dad asked, horrified. “I’m coming with you so that you don’t cause trouble there as well!” Griswold announced. He put his hand over the diamond and the jewel seemed to absorb his essence. Ruben and I watched, mesmerized and not knowing what to do. Finally, Griswold’s body collapsed to the ground, and I saw his soul come out of his body. My dad, on the other hand, was completely surrounded by darkness, as if in a cocoon, and the blackness dragged him into the other world. “Let’s help my uncle!” I called to Ruben. We ran over and I picked up the scythe. A spirit floated in the air in front of me. He looked like my uncle, but he was transparent. “Uncle?” I asked. “Are you dead?” “Yes, I’m freed from this world,” he said. “Now that your dad’s gone, you’re free to live your life, and I am leaving you the house. You are now the new Guardian. I pass it on to you.” “I accept the responsibility of Guardian,” I said. “I, Scarlet Darkness, am now the new Guardian of Souls.” “The power is safe with you,” said Griswold. “I am going now, but we will meet again one day. Farewell!” I waved back and watched his spirit drift into the portal. Then I swung the staff and sealed the entrance. “What just happened?” Ruben whispered. He was staring at me with eyes open wide. “It’s all right, Ruben,” I said. “I’ll tell you all about it soon. Let me look after my uncle’s body first.” I went over to Griswold’s body. How strange that I had just spoken to his spirit, and here I was staring at his dead body. * “Are you all right?” I asked Ruben, who was sitting next to me in the hospital waiting room, looking terrified. He was just staring off into space, barely moving. After Griswold had died, I had called the paramedics and they’d arrived and taken his body to the hospital. The doctor had told us that Griswold had died of old age. “Ruben?” I asked again. He snapped out of it and looked at me. “Sorry, Scarlet. I’m still in a daze. It was shocking seeing your uncle’s spirit come out of his body, and then his body just lay there useless. I guess that must be what death is like.” “I hope you’re not scared of me,” I said. “I won’t use my power to kill people. I will guard their souls until it’s time to send them to the Afterlife.” “This has been the best Halloween ever!” Ruben said, and I saw the hint of a smile. I reached out and took his hand and was glad to see that he didn’t pull away.
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