Deliver us from Evil - Chapter 5

Deliver us from Evil - Chapter 5

"...Cassie?"




"...Cassie, what do you see?"


"...Nothing." Cassie's eyes were glued to the upper window of a light blue suburban house. She had a hand over her mouth, and her face was set in an almost pained, horrified expression, the gale of the storm all but forgotten. But she was telling the truth. She saw nothing. She felt everything. "It's definitely up there..." She whispered, never once peeling her eyes from that window. Her quiet voice was lost under the pounding rain and thunder. Despite the horrific storm, only after everyone else had made their way to the front door could she bring herself to even take another step.

Inside the house, the feeling of wrongness was intensified. She shuddered, and had to put a steadying hand out on the wall, her stomach churning. After a moment she felt a hand on her shoulder, and glanced up to see Raymond looking at her with a concerned expression.

"I'm okay." She said quickly, pulling her soaked hair away from her face. His eyes darkened a little, and he pulled his hand away.

"No you're not." Her eyes slowly came back up to him. His face was sad, but he gave a small nod of understanding. "It's okay. I feel it too." He gave her a tiny, rare smile and turned away again. Everyone else was waiting for them in the kitchen. Cassie took a moment to get herself together before entering.

Alan was already deep in conversation with a distressed-looking woman - the mother, Cassie presumed. She didn't feel like interrupting, and on top of that she didn't think she could handle talking to the poor woman right now. Instead she busied herself with peeling off her soaked raincoat and setting it with the others'. Maria was helping Kevin get his electronics dried and set up, her camera nowhere to be seen. Human possession was something better left unfilmed. After a few more minutes of tense conversation Cassie did her best not to listen to, Alan gave her a nod. Cassie's heart immediately began speeding in her chest. She did not want to do this...

"We can go up now." Alan spoke softly, having gathered the team around. The mother was gone, and no one bothered to ask about her absence. "She said he hasn't been violent, or made any attempt to leave the house." He frowned. Cassie knew as well as everyone else that it was unusual behavior for a demon, and it made them all nervous. "Cassie, Raymond and I will go in, Maria and Kevin, you hang outside in case there's any trouble. Alright?" After a round of nods and small words, Alan pulled his battered Bible from his pack, steeled himself, and went up.

Cassie's legs were shaking underneath her as she crossed the threshold into the boy's room. The sense of spiritual decay and putridity was staggering, and it hit her senses like a freight train. For a few moments her eyes refused to focus on the interior of the room, and she hung back by the door until she'd gotten things sorted out, and pushed back enough to function. Once she looked, what she saw was so normal it was laughable.

The room was like any other teenage room would be expected to look, with dirty clothes and electronics strewn around in a hurricane of slobiness, and posters covered the walls. A desktop sat glowing cheerfully in a corner, and the bed was small, rumpled. In a desk chair by a large open window sat a boy, caught in the awkward age of vertical growth spurts with no time to fill out. He was lanky and pale, with ruffled brown hair, and he didn't move a muscle, staring out the window in a dull trance, heedless of the raindrops and bits of hail that were pelting the floor and himself.

"Luke?" Alan's voice was loud, struggling to be heard over the sounds of thunder. Again the boy didn't move, but he let out a small laugh.

"Sure rains a lot here." Cassie flinched at his voice. She doubted the others could hear it. He would sound like a regular kid to them, but she heard the low, echoing voice of the thing. The boy turned his head to look at them, a knowing smirk on his face. "I might suggest building an ark." Another cold laugh.

Cassie glanced over at Alan, and his face was dark. He stepped forward a little more, within the reach of the raindrops, and his hair began to stick to his face. "Why are you here?" He demanded. Again the boy just laughed, and shook his head.

"Must there always be a reason? You meatbags never cease to amaze us with your attempts to know everything." He blinked, and then looked up sharply at the man. Alan quickly averted his gaze, refusing to look the demon in the eyes. "But... There may be a reason. Ask your friend over there." He nodded toward Raymond.

Both Cassie and Alan set their eyes on him, unsteadily, and he stared back with a shocked look on his face. He shook his head, his eyebrows creasing together, and then came forward, more into the room. "What the hell do you mean?" He growled angrily.

"Oh boo, I'm not going to ruin the punch line." The demon pulled a sick grin onto the kid's face, making him look twisted, and looked away, back toward the window, as if bored with them. "Who do you think I am?"

"I think you're a lying sack of shit." Raymond snarled, going even closer. "You're not here for a reason, you're here to cause pain, and that's it. You don't care about anything, you're here to ruin lives."

"Bravo, you read the job description... Too bad we're not hiring right now..."

"Raymond..." Cassie put a hand out on his arm, her fingers trembling lightly. He was letting that thing get him too deeply, and she was worried at how close he was getting... If they accidentally locked eyes, things would get bad... Demons tried to get into your head, it's what they did... "Don't listen to it, come on..." She said quietly. He didn't move, and Cassie looked up to Alan, pleadingly. He nodded, and crossed himself, his hands on his Bible, preparing the excorcism.

"God, by your name save me, and by your might defend my cause. God, hear my prayer; hearken to the words of my mouth..."

As soon as he began to speak, the boy's head snapped around, and an inhuman snarl came from his mouth. Cassie gasped, and her grip on Raymond's arm tightened. The kid rocketed out of his chair, and Cassie stumbled back with a scream. Raymond barely managed to catch him around the middle and force him back down, though by now the possessed boy was flailing and writhing, screaming in a tongue Cassie couldn't understand. Alan's voice rose over it.

"...Turn back the evil upon my foes; in your faithfulness destroy them. Freely will I offer you sacrifice; I will praise your name, Lord, for its goodness, Because from all distress you have rescued me..."

"I won't go back! I won't go back!" The demon's voice was a high-pitched wail, and Cassie pressed her hands to her ears, cowering in the corner against it, unable to help as she watched Raymond fighting to keep it under control. "Hell is a place for maggots and fire, and I won't go back! We're here to stay, we're here to stay, we're here to stay!!" His nails were ripping at the back of Raymond's shirt, tearing through to the skin, and suddenly Cassie forced herself up, stumbling over and grabbing his wrists. The strength the demon possessed was astonishing, and it ripped itself free in a matter of moments. The world exploded in bright light as a fist slammed into her face.

In the few long moments it took for Cassie to get the world in order again, the sounds of a struggle began to cease, while the screaming stayed as loud as before. However as she finally was able to sit back up, even that began to die down. Raising her eyes, Cassie saw that Raymond had managed to get the kid back into the chair, and was holding his wrists securely into place on the armrests. The kid's shoulders were twitching, and his eyes were closed, face serene. Raymond was all but glaring at him.

"Ray... Don't... look it in the eyes..." Cassie warned a second too late. The kid's eyes snapped open, and locked on her friend's. In an instant his back went rigid.

"No-!" Cassie forced herself to sit up, his vision spinning. The demon was already struggling free again, it's eyes never leaving Raymond. Cassie didn't even want to think about what horror it was putting him through. She glanced over at Alan just long enough to see the look on his face. He desperately wanted to help - but he couldn't stop the exorcism. If things were to get back under control, it would be up to Cassie. But her head was so muddled, standing was an issue.

"Raymond..! Ray, come on, don't listen to it..." Cassie panted hopelessly, beginning to drag herself to her feet. The demon was already pushing the man out of the way, a hand around his neck. Cassie leapt forward, but the demon swept out an arm, catching her and using her momentum to send her crashing into the wall. She let out a weak cry and was back on the ground, head spinning.

"K-Kevin..." Cassie couldn't get her voice any louder than a croak, and she began struggling once again to get to her feet. They couldn't mess this up... She wouldn't let them fail this poor kid... Her eyes went up again, only able to watch as the demon's hand tightened around Raymond's throat. No... Cassie let out a dry sob, and suddenly her friend blinked.

A look of pure rage came over Raymond's features, and he plunged a hand into the front of his shirt, pulling up the large crucifix he always wore. The chain snapped as he thrust it forward, pressing it into the kid's neck. The demon jerked back, slamming into the chair, and Raymond followed the movement, keeping the cross at the kid's throat with one large hand. The demon screamed and writhed, and the sound and smell of burning flesh began to fill the room, the bones of Raymond's hand clearly visible through his skin as the cross burst into white light. Cassie fell back, both the demon and Raymond's screams assaulting her ears, as well as Alan's voice coming through the din, fast and breathless.

"I cast you out, unclean spirit, along with every Satanic power of the enemy, every spectre from hell, and all your fell companions; in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! Begone and stay far from this creature of God! For it is He who commands you, He who flung you headlong from the heights of heaven into the depths of hell! Fear Him, who in Isaac was offered in sacrifice, in Joseph sold into bondage, slain as the paschal lamb, crucified as man, yet triumphed over the powers of hell! Begone, then, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit! Give place to the Holy Spirit by this sign of the holy cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever!"

Silence. Cassie lay there panting, slowly lowering her hands away from her ears, blinking in an almost dumb stupor. After a few moments, she looked up, and slowly raised herself into a sitting position. The kid was slumped in the chair, pale and shivering, but otherwise unscathed, eyes closed and face slack. Raymond was on his knees in front of him, hunched over, clutching his hand to himself, the chain that was dangling down still smoldering. The first person to move was Alan, who went immediately to the boy, kneeling down and trying to rouse him.

"Cassie? Are you alright?" The man's voice was ragged and tired sounding.

After a moments consideration, Cassie nodded and got herself up, staggering over. "Raymond?" She put a hand on his shoulder, trying to get close enough to take a look at his hand, but he flinched it away from her, letting out a low groan. Her grip on his shoulder tightened, but the sound of the boy waking up stole her attention momentarily.

Almost immediately after his eyes opened, the kid let out a frightened sob, flinching back away from them, his eyes wide and roaming about in a panic. Cassie held up her hands. "Easy, easy Luke. It's alright. It's gone..." She leaned toward him, and put a hand gently on his shoulder. He was still breathing fast, but he stared at her, looking ready to fall apart. "It's gone, okay? It's all over... You're safe now..."

He swallowed, and gave a small jerky nod. As Raymond stood up the kid's eyes went to him, and he let out a scream, jerking back in his seat so suddenly it almost tipped. Cassie let out a yelp and went to steady him, her heart pounding. The kid grabbed onto her hand, squeezing tightly, though was beginning to run out of energy, his head hanging. Alan came forward and began to read again as Cassie knelt, doing her best to reassure him.

"Almighty God, we beg you to keep the evil spirit from further molesting this servant of yours, and to keep him far away, never to return. At your command, 0 Lord, may the goodness and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, take possession of this man..."

Cassie's eyes went back up to Raymond, who was hovering, hand still clutched to his chest. The man's eyes were dark, and he didn't meet Cassie's gaze, instead turning away.

"...May we no longer fear any evil since the Lord is with us; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever."

A frown pulled itself onto Cassie's face as Raymond left the room, the door shutting quietly in his wake, and she barely put any sound into it as she repeated the final word of the exorcism with Alan.

"Amen."