(Flashback: Continuation of contract signing)
“… there was nothing I could do or say to please him and in a fit of rage from feeling abandoned and betrayed he had banished me to Earth.”
Quiet for a moment, Lucifer quickly changes the topic, “Enough about that. Let’s talk about why you are here. As the contract you sign stated, you would get both your wife and daughter back with the agreement that you would work for me and a general idea of what the job entailed. Well it’s time now for you to get to work. Before I get to the details of the day-to-day tasks you are asked to perform I feel obligated to explain first what it will mean to have no soul. Until the quota of 1,000 souls is collected I own your identity. As you travel and interact with people, no one with recognize you from your past and few will remember you moments after you meet them. Also, with your soul comes all of your memories of your past life. You will not remember dates, names, and even faces of people from your past… including your wife and daughter. Once all your memories and identity have been stripped from you, you are left with vague images and a constant but fuzzy recollection of events but no details. What that means is every day you will remember you had a wife and daughter and that they died twice. You will be haunted with imagery of the car accident and also the brutal defiling and murder of your wife.”
I stood speechless; everything he’s saying is almost too much to handle. Having just watched the unthinkable happen to my wife and with all the things Lucifer is saying I grow wary and begin to question my decision. I begin an epic struggle with myself and the justification of the selfishness to take a life for my own personal gain. A gain that is no longer appealing or wanted; I accepted the original idea and still believe it worth it had I gotten a chance to touch and kiss my wife and daughter again. But Lucifer, the devil, is a cheating, conniving, evil little man who gets off on others pain and suffering.
“Hey, no spacing out, you need to know this stuff. I will not repeat myself and there is no training manual for this. So are you paying attention?” Lucifer yelled as he caught the wandering, thought filled eyes of his newest employee.
***
The daughter was as cute as could be. Her bond with her mother was like anything I had ever seen. She had but two passions in her short life before she was consumed with the thrills of school. First passion was that of being her mother. The little girl spent the first five years of her existence with her mother. She watched as her mother worked around the house and took care of her family with grace and a confidence that would become contagious. The daughter took pride in doing anything and everything mom did. She was like a little clone that cooked when mom cooked, cleaned when mom cleaned; all of her toys were props to mimic the taller, adult version of her, all the way down to the kitchen play set, the pretend steering wheel, and even the old deactivated cell phone from two years prior. Once school started she would even sit with mommy at the kitchen table and together they did their essay homework and practiced writing their alphabet.
The daughter had another passion that filled not only her heart but her room. This little girl loved anything and everything about elephants. The walls in her room were lined with a zoo like theme wallpaper. The shelves, sheets, bed spread, and every sticker that covered everything else clearly showed which animal was her favorite. Shelves on three of the four walls were stacked two and three high each filled with stuffed animals, snow globes, and what could have easily been a hundred other do-dahs, were all of elephants. This little girl’s bed sheets and blanket were also riddled with images of elephants. I’m confident that she had even dreamt every night of them.
So one could only imagine the excitement that filled this little girl when she was surprised with the plans of going to the circus. I was sitting in her room when her father came in after work and told about his new promotion. He explained how he would be home more and that he was given the opportunity to take some time off and take the family on a trip. Her face lite up as she jumped into her father’s arms, ecstatic at the news that daddy will be home more. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she hugged him and tightly squeezed. A tear fell from the cheek of her father as he is overwhelmed with emotion at the happiness he has given is daughter. Embracing the hug he took a minute to fully enjoy the purity of her happiness before he told her about the upcoming family trips.
Feeling her grip loosen he pulled her away from him and looked right into her eyes and began speaking about the few ideas thrown around for their upcoming family vacation. She listened intently as her smile grew and shrank ranging from ear-to-ear excited smiles when she liked to fake smiles when she wasn’t so enthused about one of the suggestions. Her father continued tossing out ideas and thoughts until his daughters face lit up and the biggest smile I’ve ever seen covered her face when her father tried to roll through the idea about the circus. Hearing that the circus was an option she busted at the seams with excitement and latched herself again to her father’s neck. Struggling to talk he gives details of when they are going and adds a surprise that causes her to squeeze even tighter and accompanied with a high pitched scream, he tells her how he has arranged for her to actually ride an elephant.
***
(Flashback: Continuation)
After I was yelled at to pay attention, Lucifer continued, “Now you can’t go all willy-nilly killing people. You will have powers but they are limited to only target someone that writes down something they truly want. It’s like a contract signing, in which you are fulfilling their wishes in return for their life. Now what this means is I have bestowed in you the power to manipulate fate.”
Intrigued at hearing this he has successfully grabbed all of my attention. I listened intently as he explains exactly how to manipulate someone’s fate. “That seems easy enough,” as I’m thinking of all the loopholes I’m about to exploit. Visions of me being a super hero fill my head as I could use this power to target bad people and better the world. Ideas surge with the thoughts of airplanes filled with bad, evil people suddenly crashing killing hundreds, or building that shields terrorist’s collapses claiming the lives of everyone inside. It would seem that there is a silver lining with this cursed new job and shouldn’t take long to claim the 1,000 souls I need.
“Now don’t go having any illusions of grandeur,” Lucifer stated. “Choosing which fate’s to manipulate isn’t as easy as you and straight forward as you might think” Worry is beginning to blanket me as I continue to listen, “You are tasked with one thing in mind… to create sorrow. You need to choose people that will evoke sadness and a feeling of lose. This means no criminals, no thugs. No one spills tears for scum. Also there is no collateral damage permitted; only the soul that creates the contract can be collected. Also I can at any time choose a soul for you to take, I have carte blanch, no questions asked.”
“What the hell do you mean? What does it matter who’s soul is collected or where it came from? A soul is a soul and shouldn’t matter,” I said pleadingly.
“You would be wise not to question me, there is more at work here than you know or could even comprehend. Also, I don’t have to answer shit or justify anything to you. I did not force you into this, if you recall originally it was you seeking my assistance. These are the rules and the faster you understand that the better off all of this will be for you,” he said with a frustrated tone.
Fully realizing the situation I’m in, I feel sadness comes over me as I quickly begin to comprehend exactly what it is he is asking me to do. What have I done? How can I possibly fulfill this task? Who am I to say my soul, my memories is worth all of this or more than someone else’s soul.”
I feel sick to my stomach and can’t seem to concentrate. But I need to focus; this is not the time or place to contemplate the moral ethics of this. I signed the contract and right now as much as I don’t like it, I’m fucked. Drawing my attention back to Lucifer I listen carefully as he continues to explain the rules. He also tells me about another power I have called Psyhops. It’s the ability to touch something or someone and instantaneously see and know their entire history. He explains that I will use this power to fully understand my target better so that I can manipulate their fate specific to them.
It seems as if hours have passed and he is still taking in great detail of my powers and how I should use them to my benefit. “Do you understand all your powers and what I’m asking from you?” Lucifer asked. Seeing me nod with understanding he adds one last thing, “you are not dead nor living, you exist to both realms. You are given the ability to choose to be seen by the living or you can “phase out” and wander amongst the living without being seen. Now you should know you aren’t the only Soul Collector working for me. The last thing I will leave you with…” He waves his hand around and touches me on my back. I feel a tight pressure building in my back where his hand is and slowly I can feel something growing. “…is this single black angel wing. It’s a symbol of your status and a constant reminder of your debt to me. No one on the living realm will see or notice the wing, but those roaming between the two worlds can see it. When they see you they will all know that you are a One-Winged Angel, an angel of death, the counterpart to the more traditional and true white-winged angel that serves god.”
***
I sat in the corner of her dark room and watched my next claim sleeping. Peaceful in her sleep I knew what was going to happen to her in the coming day and hated everything about me for what I was tasked to do. I tortured myself trying to think of a way to ok with what I was about to do. She was in school, her family received great news of a new job, and a new life was beginning to come together. Feeling a full fledge panic attack and complete metal breakdown coming I was suddenly visited by Lucifer. He looked at and I knew what he was going to say without him saying it, “It’s hard but you have to do it.” I returned a scared and worried look and began to beg, plead for him to change his mind and to let this collection go. But before I could say anything he vanished.
I heard a car door close and the mother beginning to drive away. Noticing the husband waving good-bye I knew it was time. Feeling responsible for what was soon to happen I phased myself into the back seat of the car and sat there offering what little comfort I could. Within a few minutes, I whisper a quiet apology and good-bye as I hung my head down in sorrow, shame and tightly closing my eyes. While bracing myself a single tear ran down my cheek and reflected the lights of an oncoming truck.
After the car accident I returned to my park, I sat here on the bench staring at the wing that I had. I couldn’t help but think about how much of a monster I was; the things that I was now asked to do as a job, the lives that I devastate, that’s something only a monster could do. After that car accident as I sat on the bench I laid my lead down in my hands. All I could do was think back to sitting in dark room the night before watching her sleep so peacefully. Then there was a different night I remembered. Thinking about this night caused tears to flow from my face as I began to sob wildly. It was the night mom was finishing her final paper for my class, the final paper that would ultimately seal her demise. But that same night the sweet little girl in her normal, adorable fashion and infinity to copy mom had also wrote a final paper that she conveniently placed in with mommy’s papers; the papers that would be turned in the next day.
Unable to control my sobs my hands quickly filled with tears, my nose ran all over, I began to shake and would occasionally a weeping bellow would escape. Falling apart and unsure I could continue with my new job I was interrupted with a tap on the shoulder. Lifting my head I wiped my nose on one of my sleeves and tried to clear the tears with the other sleeve. Slowly gaining my focus through the remaining tears I notice her. Standing in front of me stood the cute little girl, fascinated with elephants. Looking into her face I try not to break down even further when she whispers, “Don’t cry, everything will be ok,” and extends her arms and produces a stuffed-animal elephant. I grabbed the stuffed-animal and lost it; I gripped it tight and hard and began crying even harder. The little girl then stood on top of the bench next to me and wrapped her arms around me as tight as she could and we sat there in silence until the sun rose.
***
Lucifer stands in the distance watching the exchange with his Soul Collector and the little girl and remains stone faced. Slowly he turns and begins to walk away. As he is walking away a presence appears and accompanies Lucifer on his walk.
Without slowing down or turning his head he extends a greeting, “Nature, it’s good to see you. What do owe the honor?”
“I couldn’t help but notice your new employee, something different about that one,” said Nature. She continues, “So why haven’t you told him the truth about the realities of your situation with god or the true purpose of Soul Collectors and how they are actually saving man?”
Still never turning his head and continuing to walk he responds, “He’s not ready to know the truth, he’s not strong enough yet to handle.”
The two continued their conversation as they continued walking towards the horizon of the morning sunrise until they slowly phased out and vanished.
