The Tales of Calamity: Part II
A few hours after Jane's departure from the Church and her parents she was found by the police and promptly returned, despite her resistance.
Soon after she her parents put her in a boarding school. She was no longer their daughter in their eyes. Instead she was some wicked child possessed by evil that could not be driven out. She was beyond salvation.
The first night that Jane spent in the boarding school, her new home for a period of time she could not determine, she dreamt.
In her dream she was in the field once again, facing the ruined monument that had changed her. Immediately she began running towards it. There was no longer any fear in her of the place. Instead it felt magical. It made her feel powerful and brave. She didn't know why but that was the effect of the place.
As she neared the ruins she saw a man standing in the centre where the pistols and letter had been before. She had never seen him before. He was a young man with long hair that was short in seemingly random spots as if someone simply attacked his head with clippers. Jane thought his hair looked absolutely ridiculous but she could feel something peculiar about the man.
She ran and ran through the grass as he stood motionless, watching her come closer.
As she came to the ruins he reached into his pocket and retrieved cigarettes and a lighter and lit two of them. He placed one between his lips and as Jane approached him, he handed her the other. She took a drag and coughed.
"You'll get used to it," he said in a monotone voice.
"I'll probably need too," she sighed.
He nodded.
"Who are you? Why are you here? What's this place?" She asked curiously.
"I'm here to help you, Calamity," he said. "This place . . . I don't know. I discovered it years ago, I still have no idea what it is. Some sort of temple I think. It is most definitely some source of strength and power for something or someone. I know you feel it. When you first came here you were afraid. When you left, you were changed. Now you've returned and you only feel fortified."
Jane took a drag from the cigarette, coughing a little still.
"Are we dead?" She asked curiously.
He glanced at her, "We? No. You're dreaming."
Her eyes snapped open and she discovered herself on the top bunk of a bunk bed in the boarding school. These dreams continued on a weekly basis for years.
In a very short period of time she became a thorn in the side of her teachers and the terror of many other students. She would argue with teachers and be prompted to violence at the slightest offense.
Time and time again she was punished for her violent outbursts, her assaults on the other children whom she felt were weak or those that had slighted her in some way.
The faculty did everything in their power to punish her for her outbursts and attacks but it had no effect. No punishment phased her whatsoever. She would insist that she would comply and immediately return to her previous ways.
When Jane turned 13 she rejected the name her parents had given her and refused to answer to anyone calling her by it. Instead she insisted on being called Calamity. About the school she became a sort of bully for hire. Other children would pay for her protection or pay for her to assault another student, this went very well for her but she soon ran out of work and the money was no longer as easily accessible.
Soon after she became a thief, stealing money and items from other students and this went quite well until she ran out of room to hoarde her stolen goods and considering she was not allowed to leave campus there was no way for her to sell the items. She quickly abandoned thievery when she realised the futility of it while she remained in her current situation.
Not long after this series of events Calamity left the boarding school for the real world once again, just as she had attempted to do while under the guardianship of her parents. However this time no missing child reports were filed. The faculty were quite happy to be rid of her considering she did little else than cause trouble and make their jobs unreasonably difficult.
She was single-handedly responsible for no less than 12 faculty members, including two janitors and a Headmistress leaving the school.
Calamity was now 15 and living on her own on the streets of the city. In the beginning she slept under underpasses and in parks and such, eating the dreadful food from homeless shelters. She became tired of this within several weeks.
Once again she resorted to crime, picking the pockets of strangers that were easy targets to her. She would keep the money and throw away the wallet since it was of no use to her. Then she would buy herself a nice meal and perhaps a few trinkets or items of clothing. If there was an exceptionally large amount of money, like that snatched from businessman downtown she would rent a hotel room for a bit.
One day as Calamity laid out on the roof of the dilapidated apartment building she now called home, gazing up at the sky, the door to the roof swung open and a young man with long blonde hair exited.
He wore somewhat baggy black carpenter pants and a ripped up white t-shirt that had something scrawled on it in black marker but she could not read what it said, on his feet her wore a pair of mis-matched tennis shoes.
She reached into her pocket for the packet of Lucky Strikes she'd purchased. She snatched one from the packet and placed it between her lips as she returned the pack to her right pocket. Then the boy noticed her lying on the rooftop.
"Hey, what's up?" He asked as Calamity lit her cigarette with a match.
"Oh nothing, lying here, being fucked by the invisible man," she said.
Her smirked, "Can I smack his ass?"
"Sure, he loves that," she said with a chuckle.
The boy quickly darted between her legs and swatted the air with his hand.
"Oh shit . . ." Calamity said with a look of shock on her face. "He came."
The boy laughed, "Oh fuck, you got knocked up by the invisible man. You'll have a half invisible kid. You'll see his insides and shit, it'll be gross as fuck."
Calamity took a drag of her cigarette and sat up.
She looked at him and asked, "So, what's your name and what are you doing on my property?"
"Your property eh? I'm Greed. What's your name? Miss Slumlord?" He asked, he was quite a cheeky and jocular young man but that didn't bother her at all.
"Calamity," she said. "And yes, my property. I own it. Nobody else lives here so then it must be mine."
"Works for me," he said with a shrug. "So how much for an apartment Miss Calamity? Will I have to service you? I don't have any money on me at the moment . . . and that servicing you thing sounds pretty fucking great. Wait . . . are you and the Invisible Man . . . a thing?"
She shrugged, "No, he just comes by every Tuesday. Do you know anybody? Anyone that could get us alcohol? 'Cause that would be great by me, they could all move in for all I care. I just wanna fucking get drunk and meet new people, maybe get in a few fights . . ."
Greed grinned widely, "Oh, I know plenty of people."
Soon after she her parents put her in a boarding school. She was no longer their daughter in their eyes. Instead she was some wicked child possessed by evil that could not be driven out. She was beyond salvation.
The first night that Jane spent in the boarding school, her new home for a period of time she could not determine, she dreamt.
In her dream she was in the field once again, facing the ruined monument that had changed her. Immediately she began running towards it. There was no longer any fear in her of the place. Instead it felt magical. It made her feel powerful and brave. She didn't know why but that was the effect of the place.
As she neared the ruins she saw a man standing in the centre where the pistols and letter had been before. She had never seen him before. He was a young man with long hair that was short in seemingly random spots as if someone simply attacked his head with clippers. Jane thought his hair looked absolutely ridiculous but she could feel something peculiar about the man.
She ran and ran through the grass as he stood motionless, watching her come closer.
As she came to the ruins he reached into his pocket and retrieved cigarettes and a lighter and lit two of them. He placed one between his lips and as Jane approached him, he handed her the other. She took a drag and coughed.
"You'll get used to it," he said in a monotone voice.
"I'll probably need too," she sighed.
He nodded.
"Who are you? Why are you here? What's this place?" She asked curiously.
"I'm here to help you, Calamity," he said. "This place . . . I don't know. I discovered it years ago, I still have no idea what it is. Some sort of temple I think. It is most definitely some source of strength and power for something or someone. I know you feel it. When you first came here you were afraid. When you left, you were changed. Now you've returned and you only feel fortified."
Jane took a drag from the cigarette, coughing a little still.
"Are we dead?" She asked curiously.
He glanced at her, "We? No. You're dreaming."
Her eyes snapped open and she discovered herself on the top bunk of a bunk bed in the boarding school. These dreams continued on a weekly basis for years.
In a very short period of time she became a thorn in the side of her teachers and the terror of many other students. She would argue with teachers and be prompted to violence at the slightest offense.
Time and time again she was punished for her violent outbursts, her assaults on the other children whom she felt were weak or those that had slighted her in some way.
The faculty did everything in their power to punish her for her outbursts and attacks but it had no effect. No punishment phased her whatsoever. She would insist that she would comply and immediately return to her previous ways.
When Jane turned 13 she rejected the name her parents had given her and refused to answer to anyone calling her by it. Instead she insisted on being called Calamity. About the school she became a sort of bully for hire. Other children would pay for her protection or pay for her to assault another student, this went very well for her but she soon ran out of work and the money was no longer as easily accessible.
Soon after she became a thief, stealing money and items from other students and this went quite well until she ran out of room to hoarde her stolen goods and considering she was not allowed to leave campus there was no way for her to sell the items. She quickly abandoned thievery when she realised the futility of it while she remained in her current situation.
Not long after this series of events Calamity left the boarding school for the real world once again, just as she had attempted to do while under the guardianship of her parents. However this time no missing child reports were filed. The faculty were quite happy to be rid of her considering she did little else than cause trouble and make their jobs unreasonably difficult.
She was single-handedly responsible for no less than 12 faculty members, including two janitors and a Headmistress leaving the school.
Calamity was now 15 and living on her own on the streets of the city. In the beginning she slept under underpasses and in parks and such, eating the dreadful food from homeless shelters. She became tired of this within several weeks.
Once again she resorted to crime, picking the pockets of strangers that were easy targets to her. She would keep the money and throw away the wallet since it was of no use to her. Then she would buy herself a nice meal and perhaps a few trinkets or items of clothing. If there was an exceptionally large amount of money, like that snatched from businessman downtown she would rent a hotel room for a bit.
One day as Calamity laid out on the roof of the dilapidated apartment building she now called home, gazing up at the sky, the door to the roof swung open and a young man with long blonde hair exited.
He wore somewhat baggy black carpenter pants and a ripped up white t-shirt that had something scrawled on it in black marker but she could not read what it said, on his feet her wore a pair of mis-matched tennis shoes.
She reached into her pocket for the packet of Lucky Strikes she'd purchased. She snatched one from the packet and placed it between her lips as she returned the pack to her right pocket. Then the boy noticed her lying on the rooftop.
"Hey, what's up?" He asked as Calamity lit her cigarette with a match.
"Oh nothing, lying here, being fucked by the invisible man," she said.
Her smirked, "Can I smack his ass?"
"Sure, he loves that," she said with a chuckle.
The boy quickly darted between her legs and swatted the air with his hand.
"Oh shit . . ." Calamity said with a look of shock on her face. "He came."
The boy laughed, "Oh fuck, you got knocked up by the invisible man. You'll have a half invisible kid. You'll see his insides and shit, it'll be gross as fuck."
Calamity took a drag of her cigarette and sat up.
She looked at him and asked, "So, what's your name and what are you doing on my property?"
"Your property eh? I'm Greed. What's your name? Miss Slumlord?" He asked, he was quite a cheeky and jocular young man but that didn't bother her at all.
"Calamity," she said. "And yes, my property. I own it. Nobody else lives here so then it must be mine."
"Works for me," he said with a shrug. "So how much for an apartment Miss Calamity? Will I have to service you? I don't have any money on me at the moment . . . and that servicing you thing sounds pretty fucking great. Wait . . . are you and the Invisible Man . . . a thing?"
She shrugged, "No, he just comes by every Tuesday. Do you know anybody? Anyone that could get us alcohol? 'Cause that would be great by me, they could all move in for all I care. I just wanna fucking get drunk and meet new people, maybe get in a few fights . . ."
Greed grinned widely, "Oh, I know plenty of people."