Projecting Evil
by John Grover

There was such peace, a feeling unlike anything in the world. There were no words to describe the sensation of utter harmony. Harmony with the soul, the world, the universe itself.

There was a feeling of floating, of weightlessness, then light, beautiful, white light that bathed everything in warmth and serenity and then everything became clear, vividly clear and crisp. Colors were brighter than before, sounds were sharper and thought alone was enough to propel thousands of miles, in an instant.

I never get tired of seeing things from up here, he thought as he looked down upon the room. It was all so dream-like, as if he could do anything, as if he could put his hand right through the wall if he wanted to. As a matter of fact, he did just that.

Graham gazed down at his body lying on the bed, how calm he looked, his eyes closed, a half smile upon his face. His body was totally relaxed in his alternate state. It still amazed him how easily he was able to do it, to leave his body without much labor at all.

Graham was able to project his essence out of his body with such ease that he took the liberty of doing it quite often.

Satisfied that his body was safe and sound, Graham glided to the top of the room and exited through the ceiling into the clear blue sky.

Graham Morgan sailed through the air like a baby bird that had just learned how to fly, whisking through clouds, gazing down upon neighborhoods.

He stared at every house as he glided, searching, examining, seeking the perfect one.

Every home seemed a carbon copy of the other, quaint, cute, ranch-style homes all lined up in rows. Graham lowered himself to one quiet little street and hovered there, floating down the street slowly as he scrutinized each and every yard.

A couple in their forties walked by, talking up a storm. On the other side of the street a jogger passed, wearing headphones. A teenage girl was walking her dog down her driveway and onto the sidewalk. None could even begin to comprehend Graham secretly observing them.

At last he came upon a house that tickled his fancy, a home that appealed to him in that special way. Approaching it, he stopped to relish the vivid gray color it was and how its black shutters finished it perfectly. Flower boxes filled with an array of rainbow-like color gave the house such a sweet and innocent look. His senses were incredibly heightened in this state that such simple things as flower boxes nearly took his breath away.

Gliding up to the front door, he passed into the house effortlessly. A man slept soundly on a couch, a slight snore escaping his open mouth. No, not him. Graham thought as he passed through the living room wall and into the kitchen.

He watched a woman washing dishes at the sink. She stared out the window and into her backyard as she dunked the dishes into the warm, soapy water. She watched a couple of squirrels playing there and daydreamed casually.

Yes! Yes her, perfect. Just perfect. He lifted himself above the woman, aligning himself exactly with her and with a slight quiver, invaded her body.

Sliding in like a parasite, a foreign entity, Graham took complete control of her body, plunging her soul into a temporary prison. She was unable to free herself from his control, for she was now possessed by his twisted spirit.

She turned the running water off and dropped the dishes into the sink. Turning, she took a knife from the strainer and walked into the living room.

She stepped up to the couch where her husband remained sleeping and raised the knife high above her. The sweat dampened her face, her eyes glimmered with fire and her mouth twisted into an insane grin.

She drove the knife down with swift fury stabbing him over and over. The shock woke him instantly, his eyes widened with disbelief as he struggled to escape but to no avail. His screams of agony filled the house as his own wife ripped, cut and shred him to pieces.

Saturated with his blood she watched as his arms stopped flailing, his voice went silent and his eyes froze. Stopping her attack, she stared at the lifeless body of her husband and laughed hysterically.

Gasping, the woman lost her breath and shut her eyes tightly as Graham raced out of her body. She opened her eyes again and shook her head as if coming out of a deep sleep. A salty taste hung in her mouth as she felt the knife still in her hand, soaked in blood.

Looking down a horrible scream escaped her, followed by frenzied wails as her eyes met those of her dead husband’s. Falling to her knees, she shook uncontrollably, flinging the knife out of her hand.

What a rush! He soared out of the house and into the air with glee, relishing in the perverse act he had just committed. Racing home, he looped and swirled in the air, like a mystical jet performing a show. With the excitement fueling him, he bobbed and sailed, playing in some trees before slipping back through the roof of his own home.

His eyes blinked for a moment before he was jolted back into his own body. Sitting straight up, refreshed, he laughed to himself and then screamed with victory. Jumping off the bed, he whirled himself around in giddy manner. "I am a god!" he bellowed. "Stupid people, unaware, unenlightened. If only they knew how easy it was. This makes the fourth. They’ll never figure it out, not in a lifetime. I am unstoppable!"

***

"Police have just taken into custody Mrs. Dorothy Valene for the murder of her husband Richard. Mrs. Valene claims to have no memory of the murder. Neighbors discovered Mrs. Valene huddled in the corner of her living room drenched in her husband’s blood. This makes the fourth murder to occur in Cottlewood within the last month."

With a click the TV went black as Jenny Gordon let the remote control drop onto the bed. "That’s enough gloom and doom for one day." she said. "What a world, well I suppose I should get out in it and make a living."

The shower ran hot as Jenny removed the crystal from around her neck, the opal ring, opal was her birthstone, from her finger and lit some incense.

Closing her eyes, she basked in the water as it massaged her skin and ran her fingers through her hair. As if ice had just been poured down her back a chill struck her, making her shiver, her eyes jutting open.

It was the strangest feeling, right in front of her eyes vision swirled in the shower’s mist, flashing scenes like a slide show. Images came to her, choppy, murky, unclear. People, twisted, contorted appeared to her. Voices joined the visions, calling to her, confused, desperate.

"Not again." she called frantically, unable to understand what she was seeing, just an overwhelming feeling of dread seemed to fill her. "What, what is it please? I can’t understand you."

As suddenly as it came it was gone, Jenny braced herself against the shower, slightly drained. Again the signs had come to her and still she was unable to interpret them.

***

After fighting her way through rush hour, Jenny turned down some deserted side roads until finally reaching her tiny shop nestled among other quaint shops that all seemed to look alike. The street bustled with tourists and shoppers as it did every morning.

She pulled into a space in the back of the shop conveniently located by the garbage bin and got out. Around to the front she walked, unlocking the door, a sign posted above it read: JENNY’S WORLD. It was a new age fortune telling shop and was no bigger than a hotel room.

Upon walking in, Jenny switched the coffee maker on for her customers before lighting some aroma therapy candles around the store. Next she got the incense started, streams of sweet smoke fumigating the reading table and the counter.

Crystals of all shapes and sizes littered the shop as well as pendulums and a variety of tarot cards. Sets of polished rune stones were stacked on the counter for a reasonable price as well as birthstones that she could make into rings, necklaces, whatever the customer wanted.

She was the most accurate psychic in town, perhaps the entire county but she still went unrecognized. There was no fame or fortune, no celebrity status, she was still a nobody, a two-bit fortune teller, but that was good enough for her, for now.

Finishing the formalities, Jenny returned to her door and flip the sign from closed to open.

A moment later the door opened as her first customer of the day stepped in.

The woman had been watching and waiting across the street, there was an air of excitement about her. She gazed around the shop with utter fascination and smiled.

"Hello, welcome. I’m Jenny." she said to the woman. "Would you like a reading?"

"Oh yes, please." the woman beamed, her chestnut hair tied back in a bun, her glasses perched on the end of her nose, her smiled slightly crooked. "I read my horoscope everyday and have been to two others but I heard that you are better."

"Why thank you-Marion is it?"

"Yes, wow you are good."

"Please sit down and we’ll do a crystal gazing. This is how it works, you may ask me any question you wish and I will try to answer it for you by the images that I see in the crystal."

"Okay, that sounds fine."

Jenny took an oblong, pointed crystal into both of her hands and sat down at the table with Marion. The scent of jasmine hung in the air. "Marion, you may ask your question now."

Marion seemed nervous, her cheek twitching as she blushed and finally spoke. "Well there is this man I work with...I’m really crazy about him. His name is Gary Massen. I just want to know if he’ll ever be interested in me and will we ever have a relationship?"

"Let’s see," Jenny said as she stared deep into the crystal, the layers of glitter seeming to shift and take shape.

A fog swirled in the crystal as images began to form in it.

Jenny continued to gaze intently as the scene unfolded. There she saw a man, positioning himself on his bed. "Does Gary have dark hair and a medium build?"

Marion was puzzled. "No, Gary is a tall blonde."

"Well I see another man then, perhaps this one is your true--what is he doing?" Jenny’s tone changed as she herself became a bit puzzled.

"What do you see?" Marion asked, concerned now.

"I don’t really know." Jenny answered as she watched the events unravel into something even stranger. She watched as the man’s essence left his physical body and slipped out of his house. The scene transformed as she watched the man’s soul float down the streets, through neighborhoods, down city blocks, into thick woods and across lakes. At last he found a set of train tracks and a rushing train roaring straight down it.

The man entered the train with ease and found a business man sitting in car, staring lazily out of his window, watching the scenery stream by. Jenny then watched as something incredible and frightening happened. The spirit rose above the daydreaming business man and entered his body, taking possession of him.

"No!" Jenny protested. "This is wrong."

"Jenny what’s wrong?" Marion called. "What do you see?"

She didn’t want to answer, she couldn’t answer. Terror had seized her as she continued to watch, helpless, as the train pulled into a station and the possessed man got off.

He drove home and got out of his car, entering his home. His wife greeted him as she always did, a peck on the cheek which the man ignored. His wife gave him a look of wonder before turning to leave.

In a flash the businessman ripped the tie from his shirt and wrapped it around his wife’s neck, choking the life from her, her eyes bugging out, all color draining from her face.

"My God no! NO!" Jenny screamed, horror etched on her face. "Stop it, God stop!"

"What’s wrong?" Marion demanded, rising out of her chair, her face twitching uncontrollably. "What’s happening?"

"Oh my God..." Jenny murmured as the images faded and her head began to feel fuzzy.

"Jenny?"

"Marion, I’m sorry you’ll have to leave now, I’m not feeling very well."

"What did you see?"

"Nothing, I saw nothing."

"Well what do I owe you."

"It’s free of charge, now please just leave!"

After Marion had fled the store, Jenny switched the sign back to closed and began gathering up her things.

She quickly left the shop and raced home.

The moment she reached her house, Jenny saw the room spin wildly and collapsing on the floor, she blacked out.

***

The body slumped to the floor as Ralph Nolan, businessman extraordinare, laughed outrageously at the fact that he had just murdered his wife Laura.

In a rush, Graham exited Ralph’s body and shot into the air, hovering above the confused business man as he began to come to and get his bearings. There was a horrible scream as poor Ralph discovered his wife’s lifeless body at his feet, his own tie around her throat.

Graham flew out of the house, cackling and giggling like a school boy.

***

Two days had passed and Jenny was finally able to sip some lukewarm coffee. She had been in bed sick for two days since she’d awakened from her black out.

She unfolded the newspaper she had just brought in off the front step and was shocked at what she found glaring at her from the front page. LOCAL RESIDENT TAKEN INTO CUSTODY FOR MURDER OF WIFE. Mr. Ralph Nolan was arrested this morning for...

A photograph accompanied the story, confirming the reality of it in Jenny’s mind. "No!" she screamed, throwing the paper onto the floor and burying her face in her hands.

"It’s him, from the crystal...what am I going to do? I could have stopped it, I should have done something. Why didn’t I do something!" she slammed her fists on the table, there was an anger swelling inside of her.

"I didn’t even know possession was possible in astral form. That sick twisted soul, he’s a mass murdered and he’s going to kill again. I have to stop him. I can let him get away with it. Can’t go to the police, they already think I’m a nut. Have to do it myself, I’ve got to meet him on his own ground."

Briefly she re-read some of the books she had stuffed in her closet on astral projection, she had read them years ago but had never actually tried it. Always seemed to bother her for some reason, as if it wasn’t right to be leaving one’s body before it was time.

She went to her bed after having lit a bounty of soothing candles about her room and lied down. She inhaled and exhaled steadily, breathing deeply and meditating. She was determined to stop this astral killer and as she slipped into a state of relaxation, she wondered if she was ready.

Her entire body tingled, waves of sensation washing over her as a light enveloped her. The light was warm and loving, it caressed her and bathed her, cleansing her mind and spirit.

Next she felt a weightlessness come over her and a strange feeling of floating whirled within her and moments later, in a rush of spiritual energy, she left her body.

She floated in the air effortlessly, staring down at her body as it appeared to be slumbering. "What an experience," her thoughts echoing loudly in her consciousness. "Simply amazing."

Slowly she eased herself up and out of the house, whisking through the roof and into the open air. "There’s nothing life this in the whole world." she thought. "Nothing." she sailed over the horizon.

Jenny soared through the town, searching streets and houses, buildings and parks, this was crazy. How was she supposed to find someone she didn’t know in a huge town? He could be any where, inside of anyone. But she had no choice. If it took forever she would search every corner, every nook until she found him. She couldn’t let him continued to kill, the guilt would tear apart and the visions would never stop, she just couldn’t let them flood her mind, she would go mad.

Flying through the air like a bird, Jenny was caught off guard by another vision. In this one, the clearest of them all, she saw a mother drowning her child in a bathtub, forcing the screaming child’s head underneath the water.

"No!" she screamed within, losing her balance and toppling out of the sky, spinning out of control as she plummeted through trees, cars, falling through them as if they weren’t there.

She was able to catch herself, feeling the death of the child beginning to tear her soul apart. She felt compelled to stop the murder and now!

She let the vision fill her with all its evil and dread and let it pull her along, the sickness and insanity of it leading her to a peaceful neighborhood miles away. She appeared over a house in an instant, materializing over a house where she could feel the dread invading her soul.

She knew she was hovering above the house where the murder of the child would happen, perhaps moments from now.

A terrible fear surged throughout her, right in the core of her she felt the horror building and a moment later she saw him. Saw him rise out of a nearby house, his evil energy spreading all around him, disrupting the currents, the flow of things. The darkness inside him preceded his arrival.

This was his neighborhood, he lived right here and was going to murder someone just doors away from his own home.

She was dumb struck, unable to move, frozen in mid-air. She was afraid, for the first time afraid for her very soul. She hesitated doing anything and then the face of the child in the house below her. The rage took over and like a bolt of lightning she shot right at Graham as he casually made his way down the street.

Focusing all the psychic energy inside of her, she outstretched her arms and dove right into Graham’s back, filling him with golden light.

Instantly his spirit lit up like a light bulb as golden energy surged through him.

He jerked and writhed, screaming in agony as if struck by a thousand volts of electricity.

Jenny released him, feeling her strength draining from her. Graham nearly fell out of the sky but kept his balanced, his vision blurred, his consciousness feeling fuzzy. Shaking the last bit of gold light from his astral body he turned, a fury filling him, to look upon the weapon that almost destroyed him.

"Just what did you think you were doing, you bitch!"

She heard that, oh yes she had! His anger had made contact with her mind and without hesitation he lunged for her.

Taking hold of her with all of his spiritual strength he hurled her across the sky. She flew through trees, over houses, unable to stop as if a flood was barreling into her, pushing her and pushing until she found herself miles away.

She came to a halt in mid-air and hovered there. She knew he planned to carry out his sick plan and still she would not allow it. It was not that easy to get rid of her.

With the speed of a jet she soared back to find him and then realized that all she needed was thought. His image came to her mind and in an instant she was there, looming before him again.

She watched as he floated above the house she’d been protecting and slowly descended.

"Get the hell away from them!" her thoughts screamed.

He looked up at her again, consumed with rage, his eyes glittering with slick, oily blackness. He lunged for her--

And she for him.

She raced right for him as he held out his fist, catching her in the pit of her stomach and unleashing a dark red energy into her.

Jenny twitched and flailed, feeling the darkness eating away at her, fiber by fiber, until she curled into a ball of defense. Graham raised both his legs and kicked her away from him.

A sickness seeded within her as she spun out of control. It had only stopped her for a moment, she felt a strength coming into her as she lifted a finger at him and again concentrated her energy at him.

A beam of white light shot out of her finger and nailed Graham dead on, encircling him like a serpent burrowing its way in.

Shrieking and screaming, Graham struggled to break free and then relaxed, calming himself and focusing. A wall of dark red light formed around him, growing larger and wider until it exploded, shattering the white light and nearly sending Jenny into oblivion.

Recovering, she managed to keep herself afloat as Graham laughed and gazed at her. "Okay, Jenny is it?" he mocked. "C’mon, take your best shot!"

"You bastard, I will not let you hurt anyone else!" She raced towards him, both of her arms reaching for him, ready to tear him apart.

Graham simply smiled and closed his eyes. The red wall of light encased him again and Jenny plowed into it at full force, bouncing off of it like a rubber ball.

She felt as if she’d hit a brick wall, her soul twisted and contorted as it slipped out of the sky and into the bowels of the earth.

Graham laughed maniacally, tossing himself about victoriously. "You can’t beat me little girl!" He bellowed. "I’ve been doing this for too long. You can’t win. I am stronger, smarter and much more experienced than you. Go crawl back to your body before I devour your soul and you cease to exist!"

Jenny rose back out of the earth and quickly darted away from Graham as fast as she could.

"Smart girl." he quipped before eyeing the quiet house below him.

Jenny skimmed down the street and out of Graham’s sight. Pondering for a moment, she brightened with thought and in the blink of an eye materialized in her new destination: Graham’s house.

She glided down the hall and through the rooms, settling on the one room that was of the utmost importance, his bedroom. She looked down upon his resting body, she hovered above it, staring at his silent shell and how different he looked from his soul. Physically inadequate, plain to look at, he looked as if he didn’t have the strength to squash a bug.

Slowly, she lowered herself into his body, taking complete control of it.

She rose from the bed and made her way to the kitchen, There she turned the gas of his oven on at full blast. She then went around and shut all doors and windows in the house. Walking from room to room, closet to closet she search, until at last finding what she needed, a candle.

Lighting the candle, she sat it down on the kitchen table and returned to the bedroom. Lying back down, she lifted out of his body once again and exited the house.

She got as far away from the house as possible but not too far that she couldn’t watch.

The minutes ticked away, Graham unaware of what was happening back at his house, unaware the his body, his link to this world was in grave danger.

As he began taking possession of the woman who was running the bath water for her child, a sick feeling filled him and a vision crossed his consciousness. He froze with terror for the first time and willed himself back to his home.

It was too late.

The gas fogged the house, the candle flickered and as Graham materialized into his bedroom the house exploded. The hollow scream thundered from the house as a smiled crossed Jenny’s face. "Enjoy your stay in hell." she uttered.

The house was engulfed in an array of red, orange and yellow as pieces of roof, wood, and glass showered the neighborhood.

Graham, having lost his link to the physical world split into thousands of atoms, streaming into a black light and vanishing into oblivion.

Jenny smiled as a feeling of triumph and satisfaction filled her. She decided to return to the safety of her own body, never to try astral projection again, though it was a fantastic experience, somehow she felt it was an ability better left untapped. Spending what little time she had in Graham’s body made her want to stay in her own for good.

©2002 John Grover