1:6
The old woman behind the counter watched Jack closely as he looked around the shop. It made him feel uneasy, the way she stared at him. Sure, he was the only person in the store, but why did her eyes follow his every move? Trying to ignore her, he walked slowly over to the bookshelf labeled WITCHCRAFT.
He hoped he could find a book with spells in it. Stacey would like that. She always read books about magic. The trick was, finding one she didn't already have.
�Are you interested in the occult?�
The old woman's raspy voice startled him, but he tried not to let it show.
�Um, no, not really.�
Jack turned around and saw that she wasn't behind the counter anymore.
�I'm looking for a present for my wife.�
She took two steps toward him and stopped.
�That�s nice. Do you have any children?� she asked smiling.
�Yes. We have a son,� he answered, looking over the top row of books.
The woman took another couple of steps toward him,
�How old is he?�
Jack pulled a hardbound book down, looking over its cover. A thick, silver design of a circle and star extended from one side to the other. The bold letters at the top read Wiccan Handbook in red ink.
He looked up, �Oh. Um, Chris just turned six.�
�What a wonderful age. Is that short for Christopher?�
Jack was getting annoyed with the old woman�s questions.
�Yes, Christopher,� he snapped off quickly. She could easily tell that she was getting on his nerves. It was quite obvious that he wanted to be left to alone to look around. She didn�t care, nor did it stop her questions.
�Do you and your family live in town?�
�We live in Penrose.�
He slid the book back onto the shelf.
�Oh,� she clasped her wrinkled fingers and took another step closer, �so it�s a present for your wife you�re looking for?�
He gritted his teeth, �Yes. My wife.�
She looked him straight in the eyes and smiled, �That�s nice.�
�Yeah, she's into all this magic stuff.�
�What kind of stuff are you interested in?� Her smile got bigger.
�Oh, I don't know. I guess my interests lean more towards reality.�
That was not the response she was looking for, and Jack knew it.
�Oh, but magic is real.� She turned and made her way back to the cash register. �Come here. Let me show you something.�
She disappeared under the counter.
Jack could hear her shuffling through papers, moving small boxes, and cursing under her breath. �It�s got to be here someplace�dammit�oh here we go!�
She reappeared from the clutter below holding a very large jewelry case. It was dark purple velvet. The edges were lined with a decorative flower and leaf design made from silver metal. It was big enough to hold two baseballs, side by side.
�This might change your mind.�
The look of excitement on her wrinkled face eliminated the uncomfortable feeling Jack got from her continuous staring just minutes before. He couldn�t help but be amused. He was reminded of Christmas day, the way his son cried out Neato! as he tore the wrapping off a GI Joe.
�This will definitely make you believe,� she said as she creaked the box open.
Inside was a necklace made of gray stone. What kind of stone Jack couldn�t tell. The centerpiece was a bird, a hawk, he thought, or maybe an eagle. Its wings were spread wide open, as if in flight. It was an amazing piece of work. The intricate detail was unbelievable, but the truly fascinating part wasn�t the realistically carved out feathers. It was what the bird had in its claws that was so striking. Underneath the talons, it was carrying an oval shaped crystal vial full of some kind of fluid. It was clear, with a thicker substance floating all through it, very much like a film of oil swimming through a bucket of water. It made him think of a lava lamp.
�Go ahead, take it out.�
Her vision was once again fixed on him. This time her staring went completely unnoticed by Jack. His eyes never left the necklace.
It looked very old, and more importantly, expensive, and he didn�t want to break it. But he had to get a closer look. Nervously, he took it in both hands and held it up so the light from the shop window showed through the vial. The oily lava substance was no longer dark and murky as it appeared in the case. With the sun standing behind it, the fluid was now sparkling red. Jack was amazed at its constant movement. He tried to hold the necklace perfectly still, but it circled and swam all through the vial, just as though he were gently shaking it up.
�How does it do that?� He couldn�t take his eyes off the liquid.
�It�s the power in the blood that stirs it.�
�Did you say blood?�
The old woman held out her hands and Jack handed her the necklace. She held it up between them so the front of the bird was facing her. Looking at the back, he noticed that it was as detailed as the other side. But that side was not carved to represent the shape of the bird. It was flat as if made to sit on a table or hang on a wall. The entire surface was covered with designs and some kind of lettering Jack did not recognize.
She laid it down on the table facing Jack. Pointing to the spiraling mixture in the vial she said,
�The blood is from the offspring of an angel.�
This lady is crazy.
Jack had to admit to himself that the constant movement was unbelievable. It seemed almost magical. But surely there was some explanation for it that he was not seeing. He must not have been holding it still. But as it lay on the counter it continued to move.
There must be some vibration in the counter.
He put both hands down on the glass, one on each side of the necklace. He felt no vibration.
She said, �Have you ever read the Bible?�
She placed her hands on the glass and leaned over close to him. He backed away from her and crossed his arms.
�Yes, I�ve read the Bible.�
That was not entirely true. Sure, he had attended Sunday school all throughout his childhood, and yes, he knew all of the popular stories taught in mainstream Bible study. But, had he read his Bible from one cover to the other? No, not even close. He supposed few people had.
�Then you know the story of David and Goliath.�
�Everyone knows that story.�
�Not many people know the full story. Would you like to hear it?� She ran her hands along the stone bird�s wings, caressing it.
Not knowing what the story could have to do with an old necklace, he started to wonder if the woman was totally off her rocker.
But, he thought, this should be interesting.
Before he could answer, she began to speak.
She told him a very strange tale that would be the beginning of a whole new belief system for Jack. He didn't believe in God, at least he didn't think he did. But that was the day it all changed for him. Of course, when he heard her words, he took it as a crazy story told by a crazy old woman.
But later that night, at 12:42 AM to be precise, his skepticism would be long forgotten.
At that moment, he would believe.
1:7
Sally puffed on her cigarette, holding the silver Zippo lighter up in front of her face. She stared through the wafting smoke at the television. Darth Vader stood forebodingly with his crimson sword, ready to strike. Luke was somewhere in the shadows of Cloud City.
Sally mouthed the words along with the actors on the screen. She knew every line. It was hard to say how many times she had seen The Empire Strikes Back. She had stopped counting at twenty-five.
Bobby, sitting down at the other end of the couch, blankly gazed up and the white painted ceiling. Cindy slurped a caffeine-free Pepsi, flipping through the latest issue of Cosmopolitan. John lay next to her, face down, snoring.
Bobby looked over, �Well Sal, it�s been fun but, I gotta go.�
She didn�t hear him.
He leaned closer, �Earth to Sally. Come in Sally.�
She managed a quick glance in his direction before the television sucked her back in.
�What?�
�I�m leaving.�
She exhaled a thick stream of smoke into the air and flicked the ash into the black tray on the table.
�Okay, Bob. See ya.�
Bobby didn�t say another word. He just stood up and walked out, shaking his head in disgust.
With her distraction gone, her world was once again filled with Vader�s heavy, mechanical breathing. Even after as many times as she had seen the movie, she was still amazed at how perfectly evil the lord of the Sith appeared. His huge silhouette through the steam in the carbon-freezing chamber looked as dark and menacing as any image she had ever seen. But, as she found out in the third movie, The Return of the Jedi, he was human after all. Underneath the armor and the cape, he was just a man who�d gone terribly wrong.
At thirteen-years-old Sally learned (whether she knew it at the time or not) that there was no ultimate evil in the universe threatening all that was good. It was only an illusion. Vader had shown his goodness and it was apparent that he loved his son. Even the dark side of the force itself was only one side of a power that kept balance in the universe. So it was in the real world.
It hadn�t been until very recently that she realized the lesson she�d learned at thirteen. Her own dark side had shown her that evil equated to nothing more than sadness, fear, anger and awful experience. Every person who�d ever taken a breath had experienced all of those things, in one degree or another. They could not be avoided or denied. They were just part of life.
As she watched the two light sabers clash together, she thought about the parallels between Star Wars and religion. The force was definitely the equivalent to God and the devil. The divine and the damned. She imagined that there was probably some good and bad in both sides. God�s Old Testament, wrathful nature showed the same true colors as any evil his adversary had ever shown. So, what goodness could be hiding somewhere within the devil? If he were as human as the creator was, then surely he had a divine side to him also. What did he care about? What was it that he held most dear?
Sally tried to picture what Satan�s face would look like inside Vader�s mask. She wondered what might cause him to risk everything and heave the emperor to his death.
Luke Skywalker�s pain and fear were on display as the shadowy figure leaned out to him, telling him to yield to the dark side. He tried to take advantage of his son�s most desperate moment.
Sally�s own alcoholic and abusive father had tried the same with her when she was eleven years old. The path to Sally�s dark side led her on a ten year quest before she had to choose her destiny. She very nearly made the wrong choice. But something inside her, that had been there all along, helped her break free of the pain of childhood.
It had been her innocence that had been denied for so long, that saved her. It was the same sense of goodness that lived inside everyone. It was the fear and pain that had nearly eaten her alive. Those too, lived inside everyone.
As she stared at the clenched, black-gloved fist on the screen, she realized that we were all just one choice away from going terribly wrong.
copyright �2002 Brian Holtz
All rights reserved