The Tales of Calamity: Part I
Jane was a bastard child. She didn't know her real parents. She didn't know that her adopted parents weren't her true parents as is the way with most adopted children. After all she was seven years of age, she couldn't understand such a thing, no matter how precocious she may have been.
All that she knew was that she loved her mommy and daddy very much and was eager to please them. That trait was to be her downfall, the need to make those she loved happy was in no small part responsible for her becoming what she became. It was natural enough to her. She didn't know any better.
She was innocent, to a degree of ignorance, and sheltered from the evils of the world. Television, radio, magazines and books, all were banned from her home by her parents unless they were in some way Biblical or Evangelical for little Jane's mother and father loved the Lord and did their best to ingrain Jane with the same love and unwavering devotion.
Every Wednesday and Sunday they went to church. They sang songs and worshipped Jesus. Jane was bored by all of this. She would sit in the pews with an empty space between her and the other parishioners, off to herself, playing with her imaginary friends.
After noticing this her mother and father were convinced she was possessed by a demon because she had no interest in singing along and worshipping like all the other good children.
"Look at her, playing with her little devils," her mother hissed.
"That's not our daughter, Satan has her," her father would say.
Then one Sunday during service her parents took her up before the other parishioners and the Pastor started shouting at her, waving the bible and a cross. She was confused and afraid, she didn't know why the Pastor was calling her Satan. All she knew is she was embarrassed to be in front of everyone and guilty because she was evil. Why else would the preacher be calling her the Devil?
For hours it went on, the Pastor yelling and screaming at her, calling her evil, saying she was the Devil. Telling everyone he saw her playing with demons in the pew. She wanted to argue but she was too scared. She wept in terror and embarrassment and shame.
She wanted to run, to get away from the angry Pastor and the shouting parishioners and her parents that had forced her into such a horrible position.
Then it came. A hard blow to her forehead. She fell to the floor unconscious. The Pastor had struck her in his attempt to drive out the supposed demon with the power of the Bible and accidentally struck with more force than she could sustain. For several minutes she lay unconscious in the pulpit as the parishioners looked on in worry, fearing the Pastor had mistakenly killed little Jane.
Meanwhile Jane was away in her own world, not dead at all. There was no white light to welcome her, no darkness to swallow her. Instead she was in a vast field of grass and flowers with a great blue sky stretching out for miles. She could feel the breeze gently whipping at her dress, the waving grasses lightly scratching against her legs, she could smell the flowers.
She felt the urge to start walking across the field to investigate a strange monument that stood in the middle. It was crafted out of strange black stone and consisted of several pillars and a foundation with crumbled stone sitting upon it. The nearer she came to the ruins the colder she felt. Something inside of her seemed to resonate with the place with every step.
She felt a strange darkness emanating from the ruins as well as a similar feeling echoing inside of her. She felt pain, anger, horror, strife, terror, and confusion, so much so that it was overwhelming. She felt every desire to turn and run away from it all, from the feelings and the remains of monument but her legs and even her heart compelled her forward though her young mind was filled with worry.
Soon she found herself in the centre of the ruins. She stared up at the pillars, at the top strange figures were carved that she didn't understand. In the middle of it all were a pair of pistols, they were in poor condition and obviously no longer functioned.
Resting beneath the handguns was a folded sheet of paper.
Jane bent down and lifted the paper out from underneath the pistols and unfolded it. There was nothing written on either side of it. Frustrated she waved the paper around in the air, shouting. No answer came. Once again she looked at the paper and written on the folded side was a single word written in blood: Awaken.
Jane sat up suddenly with wide eyes, she found herself in Church again in the pulpit with the Pastor kneeling beside her on the abrasive blue carpet. She looked to him and he took her hand and she pulled away quickly.
"Don't you dare touch me!" She growled at him.
The congregation, the Pastor, even her own parents gasped in horror. They were sure the demon had been driven out although there was no demon at all.
Jane climbed to her feet and struck the pastor in the forehead as hard as she could with the heel of her hand and he toppled backwards.
"How does that feel?! Huh?! How do you like when I hit you?!" She asked, she walked over and began kicking him in the side.
Her parents swooped down upon her and she thrashed in their arms as they carried her away and down the aisle between the pews, screaming at the top of her lungs.
"You're all monsters!" She shrieked as loudly as she can. "You are the demons and he is the Devil!"
She pointed to the Pastor and her parents pulled her through the church doors.
Something had happened while she was unconscious, Jane had changed and she felt the change inside of her and knew that it had something to do with the ruins in the field.
Once the doors shut behind them Jane's father began spanking her as her mother shouted. She had been through this all before. It was nothing new. Any time she disobeyed this was her reward, any time she supposedly did wrong, even if it were through ignorance she would suffer such a punishment.
However this time was different. She felt her father's heavy hand and it 'caused no true pain. Her mother's words went ignored.
When it was all over with, her father stood her up and said, "Are you gonna be good now?"
Jane folded her arms and said, "Are you two finished?"
Jane's mother's hand came flying at her to slap her cheek for her impertinence and Jane deflected the swat.
She looked up at her mother and scowled, "You try that again and I'll kill you dead where you stand, mother. I've had enough of both of you. I'm serious. One more thing and I'm leaving and you'll never see me again."
"You little Jezebel, who do you think you're talking to?" Her father growled at her, obviously angry with her behaviour.
"A man and a woman that are nothing but obstacles in my life that I must overcome," she said frankly.
"You shut your mouth you little whore!" Her mother shrieked at her.
Another slap came and it caught little Jane's left cheek.
Jane stood their silently, her eyes shut and her fists clenched tightly. Too long had she suffered this.
She lifted her head and sniffled. She wiped a tear from her eye and with all her strength, threw her left fist and struck her mother in
the stomach.
Jane turned her back to both of them and pushed through the church doors and walked out without any intention of returning.
Things did not go according to her plans and she was quickly found by the police and returned to her parents. This action caused her
to develop an overwhelming hatred and resentment towards them that only grew with each passing day.
All that she knew was that she loved her mommy and daddy very much and was eager to please them. That trait was to be her downfall, the need to make those she loved happy was in no small part responsible for her becoming what she became. It was natural enough to her. She didn't know any better.
She was innocent, to a degree of ignorance, and sheltered from the evils of the world. Television, radio, magazines and books, all were banned from her home by her parents unless they were in some way Biblical or Evangelical for little Jane's mother and father loved the Lord and did their best to ingrain Jane with the same love and unwavering devotion.
Every Wednesday and Sunday they went to church. They sang songs and worshipped Jesus. Jane was bored by all of this. She would sit in the pews with an empty space between her and the other parishioners, off to herself, playing with her imaginary friends.
After noticing this her mother and father were convinced she was possessed by a demon because she had no interest in singing along and worshipping like all the other good children.
"Look at her, playing with her little devils," her mother hissed.
"That's not our daughter, Satan has her," her father would say.
Then one Sunday during service her parents took her up before the other parishioners and the Pastor started shouting at her, waving the bible and a cross. She was confused and afraid, she didn't know why the Pastor was calling her Satan. All she knew is she was embarrassed to be in front of everyone and guilty because she was evil. Why else would the preacher be calling her the Devil?
For hours it went on, the Pastor yelling and screaming at her, calling her evil, saying she was the Devil. Telling everyone he saw her playing with demons in the pew. She wanted to argue but she was too scared. She wept in terror and embarrassment and shame.
She wanted to run, to get away from the angry Pastor and the shouting parishioners and her parents that had forced her into such a horrible position.
Then it came. A hard blow to her forehead. She fell to the floor unconscious. The Pastor had struck her in his attempt to drive out the supposed demon with the power of the Bible and accidentally struck with more force than she could sustain. For several minutes she lay unconscious in the pulpit as the parishioners looked on in worry, fearing the Pastor had mistakenly killed little Jane.
Meanwhile Jane was away in her own world, not dead at all. There was no white light to welcome her, no darkness to swallow her. Instead she was in a vast field of grass and flowers with a great blue sky stretching out for miles. She could feel the breeze gently whipping at her dress, the waving grasses lightly scratching against her legs, she could smell the flowers.
She felt the urge to start walking across the field to investigate a strange monument that stood in the middle. It was crafted out of strange black stone and consisted of several pillars and a foundation with crumbled stone sitting upon it. The nearer she came to the ruins the colder she felt. Something inside of her seemed to resonate with the place with every step.
She felt a strange darkness emanating from the ruins as well as a similar feeling echoing inside of her. She felt pain, anger, horror, strife, terror, and confusion, so much so that it was overwhelming. She felt every desire to turn and run away from it all, from the feelings and the remains of monument but her legs and even her heart compelled her forward though her young mind was filled with worry.
Soon she found herself in the centre of the ruins. She stared up at the pillars, at the top strange figures were carved that she didn't understand. In the middle of it all were a pair of pistols, they were in poor condition and obviously no longer functioned.
Resting beneath the handguns was a folded sheet of paper.
Jane bent down and lifted the paper out from underneath the pistols and unfolded it. There was nothing written on either side of it. Frustrated she waved the paper around in the air, shouting. No answer came. Once again she looked at the paper and written on the folded side was a single word written in blood: Awaken.
Jane sat up suddenly with wide eyes, she found herself in Church again in the pulpit with the Pastor kneeling beside her on the abrasive blue carpet. She looked to him and he took her hand and she pulled away quickly.
"Don't you dare touch me!" She growled at him.
The congregation, the Pastor, even her own parents gasped in horror. They were sure the demon had been driven out although there was no demon at all.
Jane climbed to her feet and struck the pastor in the forehead as hard as she could with the heel of her hand and he toppled backwards.
"How does that feel?! Huh?! How do you like when I hit you?!" She asked, she walked over and began kicking him in the side.
Her parents swooped down upon her and she thrashed in their arms as they carried her away and down the aisle between the pews, screaming at the top of her lungs.
"You're all monsters!" She shrieked as loudly as she can. "You are the demons and he is the Devil!"
She pointed to the Pastor and her parents pulled her through the church doors.
Something had happened while she was unconscious, Jane had changed and she felt the change inside of her and knew that it had something to do with the ruins in the field.
Once the doors shut behind them Jane's father began spanking her as her mother shouted. She had been through this all before. It was nothing new. Any time she disobeyed this was her reward, any time she supposedly did wrong, even if it were through ignorance she would suffer such a punishment.
However this time was different. She felt her father's heavy hand and it 'caused no true pain. Her mother's words went ignored.
When it was all over with, her father stood her up and said, "Are you gonna be good now?"
Jane folded her arms and said, "Are you two finished?"
Jane's mother's hand came flying at her to slap her cheek for her impertinence and Jane deflected the swat.
She looked up at her mother and scowled, "You try that again and I'll kill you dead where you stand, mother. I've had enough of both of you. I'm serious. One more thing and I'm leaving and you'll never see me again."
"You little Jezebel, who do you think you're talking to?" Her father growled at her, obviously angry with her behaviour.
"A man and a woman that are nothing but obstacles in my life that I must overcome," she said frankly.
"You shut your mouth you little whore!" Her mother shrieked at her.
Another slap came and it caught little Jane's left cheek.
Jane stood their silently, her eyes shut and her fists clenched tightly. Too long had she suffered this.
She lifted her head and sniffled. She wiped a tear from her eye and with all her strength, threw her left fist and struck her mother in
the stomach.
Jane turned her back to both of them and pushed through the church doors and walked out without any intention of returning.
Things did not go according to her plans and she was quickly found by the police and returned to her parents. This action caused her
to develop an overwhelming hatred and resentment towards them that only grew with each passing day.