to the man. His eyes widened. He stopped walking and curled his fists.
“Mom!”
“Stop,” Gustav hissed. “Remember what I said. Is important. You say nothing, do nothing. Must control your power, not waste it.”
“Fuck that.”
Danny didn’t walk towards the teacher. He stormed. With every step he took, the anger inside of him grew brighter, a smoldering ember that soon blazed as bright as the lightning bugs all around them. Gustav reached for him, but Danny was quicker. Energy leaked from him, marking his path. Each footstep wilted the grass overtop the graves, or weakened the asphalt path as if a giant had stepped there. The leaves fell from the trees.
“Boy,” Gustav yelled, “Get back here. You must conserve your power.”
Ignoring him, Danny continued on his way, feeling the power swell inside of him with each step. His rage grew hotter, more focused with every breath he took. The sight of his mother lying naked and helpless on a stone crypt, the memories of Matt exploding, of the look in Val’s eyes—all of it was fuel for the fire. His fury was a blind, living thing inside of him, a monstrous, cancerous creature that knew no boundaries.
“Hello, Danny,” Bedrik called, his tone friendly. “You’re out awfully late for a school night.” he looked over the boy’s shoulder. “Gustav, you really should be more prudent with your young apprentice.”
Danny didn’t respond. Not because he remembered Gustav’s instructions, but because his rage had muted him. He stepped closer and saw a white circle of powder surrounding Bedrik, the other man, and his mother. Mystic sigils glowed in the firefly light. More lines were written into the trees, and the headstones that surrounded them. He noticed something else, too—and it filled him with dread. Danny knew where they were. He recognized this portion of the cemetery. Recognized the tombstone Mr. Bedrik was leaning against.
It was his father’s grave.
“Yes, Danny.” Bedrik smiled. “It’s a family reunion. You. Your mother. And even your dear, sweet, departed daddy. Come say hello.”
“Enough.” Gustav pushed past Danny and approached the edge of the circle. “Boy is not part of this. It is you and me, Bedrik.”
Bedrik laughed. “Oh, Gustav, you’ve watched too many American movies. Who do you think you are, Chuck Norris? Clint Eastwood? The boy is a part of this. His family, too. They all are.” He gestured towards the town. “All of them, every man, woman and child, alive or dead. They belong to me.”
“Nyet. I will not allow it.”
“You have no choice.”
While the two men faced off, the energies inside Danny built to a crescendo. He closed his eyes and pushed, visualizing Mr. Bedrik flying backwards through the air, as if he’d been struck by a giant, invisible hand. The magic leapt from his body and raced towards the teacher.
“No,” Gustav cried.
Bedrik did not move. He simply smiled.
The wave reached the circle, crashed against the barrier and flowed back to its source, knocking Danny to the ground. When he was younger, Danny had once licked a nine volt battery on a dare from Chuck. He remembered how the charge had tingled his tongue. That was his only run-in with an electrical shock until now. The sensation that now coursed through his body was like that, but a thousand times worse. It felt like ants were crawling under his skin and spreading through his muscles, eating everything inside of him as they advanced. He tried to scream but nothing came out. He struggled to his feet, and glanced at Gustav. The old man was chanting something. His eyes had rolled up into the back of his head.
“Stay,” Bedrik whispered, making a motion with his hand.
Danny tried to step towards Gustav and found that he couldn’t. He grabbed his leg with both hands and tried to move his foot but it was stuck firmly, as if he’d stepped in cement.
“Gustav,” he shouted. “Do something!”
His teacher didn’t respond. He seemed oblivious, lost in a trance.
Bedrik shook his head. “He can’t hear you, Danny. He won’t be able to for another thirty seconds or so. It’s a very old spell, one I have no defense against. However, I don’t intend to let him finish it.”
“Let me go!”
“Oh, I can’t do that Danny. I wish I could because I genuinely like you, but I have things to do and you’re the solution I’ve been looking for.”
“What do you mean?” His heart was racing; his eyes frightened.
“I can control this town on my own. But to expand my boundaries, I’ll need more power. I’m going to take it from you.” He made a slapping motion in the air, as if striking the boy. Danny’s feet finally left the ground as he was knocked backward.
The man standing over his mother laughed. Danny wondered again who he was. Another possessed person, like Matt? An empty shell inhabited by a dead person? He didn’t know, but that didn’t stop him from hating the stranger, too. Danny stood up, but once again his feet were paralyzed.
“Do you like being helpless, Danny?” Bedrik snarled. “Of course you don’t. No one does. That’s what all the markings are about, you know. I’ve seen what you’re capable of and I couldn’t take any risks. But enough of this. Your mentor is almost finished; just one more stanza to go. I can’t allow that.”
He raised his hands to the sky, palms upward, fingers splayed, and called to the dead. All around them, the shadows moved. The shades came forth, drawn by his summons. The darkness in the cemetery solidified as the shades broke free of their graves and rose through the earth and into the sky. The shadows floated for a second and then soared toward them, screaming.
“Don’t cry, Danny,” Bedrik said. “Your father is here, too, and he can’t wait to be reunited with you.”
A shadow rose from his father’s grave. Danny’s eyes widened.
“Mr. Bedrik,” Danny screamed. “I’m gonna kill you!”
His teacher laughed as if the threat was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “Oh, Danny, you’re a prize. All of that power and emotion just waiting to be used. I will drink you like a glass of water.”
Gustav’s eyes snapped open, flashing in the darkness.
“You’ll do no such thing.”
“Finished with your spell, old man? It won’t help you. It takes time for the charge to build, and you do not have time. You won’t breach the circle. The dead are coming. In a minute, you’ll belong to me, as will the boy.”
“No, he will not.”
The shades raced towards them. The night grew blacker. The shadows’ density muted the light from the fireflies. A dark shape hovered over Danny.
Danny gasped. “Dad? Daddy?”
“Danny,” Gustav shouted. “The salt. Use it.”
The shadow reached out with one hand and tried to force his mouth open. Still unable to move his feet, Danny clawed at it with his hands. His fingers slipped through the darkness. The shade was cold.
“Dad,” he cried out. “Please…”
Danny shoved his hand into his pocket and pulled out the salt shaker. She sprinkled some on his father’s shade, and the shadow immediately recoiled.
“Bedrik,” Gustav shouted, “leave him.”
“You are fond of Danny,” Bedrik gloated. “You see yourself as some type of surrogate father to him, don’t you? That’s your weakness, Gustav, and that’s why I lured the boy here. You were so eager to confront me that you never stopped to consider why I’d want your apprentice here, too. So listen up and listen well. Stand down and accept your fate. Allow yourself to be taken over. If you don’t, I’ll kill the boy and his mother, as well. And you know that will be just the beginning of their sufferings.”
The first group of shades reached Gustav and swirled around him. Blue energy flared across his body. The shades fell back. So did Danny’s father.
Gustav grinned. “I did not care why you wanted boy here. I wanted him here, too.”
