Chapter 5: Arc 1: Chapter 5: Reminder and Warning

"Trigon despises the Seven Lords of Hell. It thinks of them as weak and cowardly conspirators, trying to rule hell through political means and attempting to unite all worlds of darkness as one. But each of the Seven Lords of Hell has a mind of their own, and with the restraint from Heaven and other powers, unification is an impossible dream."

Phantom Stranger taps on Merlin's forehead with his finger, explaining things that mortals would not discover or understand.

He was like a madman, but his abilities were real.

Bound by the blue light, Merlin could not even blink, let alone move his fingers. He watches as red fog is stripped from within him, like an exorcism.

"But the arrogant Trigon also wishes to become the true King of Hell, although it commands several dimensions of hell, it's still lacking compared to the power of the King of Hell. So, many eons ago, he used a cruel method to increase his power."

"As you know, stronger power brings stronger limitations."

Phantom Stranger places his hand on Merlin's heart and draws outwards fiercely; with it, struggling crimson energy appears, like a wiggling maggot. But the Phantom Stranger crushes it easily, letting it dissipate into the air.

"Believe me when I say this, Merlin, you DO NOT want to become Trigon's 'son', and what future it holds."

Judas lets out a deep laugh; he turns to Merlin's back, and with three hard slaps, releases Merlin from his binds.

Merlin, who was freed, suddenly felt an urge to puke, and he ran to the bathroom to do so.

Moments later, he comes out with a pale face, seemingly fearful of what just occurred; he takes the napkin which the Phantom Stranger hands over and asks:

"Those bugs..."

"Soul worms, a worthless trick."

Judas looks at Merlin lightheartedly:

"Mortals think that demons and devils are omnipotent, but in truth, they are heavily limited by the human realm, and they become weaker the farther away from hell they are."

"And it's because of this that they like to play tricks like these, placing Soul Worms or something else in your body, and manipulates the worms from afar, making it look like they are omnipotent."

"But in reality, you can live peacefully in the human realm, as long as you don't look for trouble, those demons, including the powerful Trigon, can do nothing to you. Unless you crumple from the pressure within you, which is what those demons want to see."

"Manipulating a crumpled soul is often the easiest way."

The Phantom Stranger makes a puppeteer posture, but such an explanation is hard to put Merlin at ease.

Sensing his worries, the Phantom Stranger stops and changes the topic:

"I just cleansed the magic mark on your body; it can no longer 'see' you, so be at ease."

"But the contract..."

Merlin rubs his neck, saying:

"It said the contract would be able to take my soul away, is it true?"

"Err, in some way, it's true."

The Phantom Stranger takes out his pocket watch and looks at the time. He explains:

"Trigon acts savagely, like a brute, it seldom collects souls via contracts, your experience was merely due to a competition between Trigon and Mephisto. They're both very ambitious and are competing in all ways possible."

"Mephisto excels in making powerful warriors via contracts, and Trigon is an absolute amateur. So to put it, the contract Trigon made with you is incomplete, at least compared to Mephisto's devil's contract, there are loopholes you can take."

Judas presses his hat and sips on his coffee:

"But I cannot tell you how to use that loophole, for even if you know the method, you lack the ability to exercise it."

"As for your soul, you need not worry; as Trigon said, your soul is special, and you will make it through this unharmed, although you cannot pass the gates of hell without losing something."

The Phantom Stranger reaches out and taps Merlin on the shoulder; as if saying goodbye, he says:

"I will tell you this beforehand, be prepared to lose something."

"Be sure to be prepared, and ask no further questions. What you must know now, I've informed you of them. You probably won't be seeing me in the conceivable future, but rest assured, I will be there when it is necessary..."

Judas stands up and tidies himself:

"Now go see your father, spend some quality time with your family, for they have little time left for you."

"Also, tomorrow at midnight..."

Phantom Stranger slowly fades before Merlin, and before he disappears completely, he blinks at Merlin:

"When the contract is active, you best stay away from mortals if you don't wish to affect them."

"Woosh"

Just as he came, Judas left quietly, leaving Merlin alone in the cafe.

He stands in the empty room, with nothing but the two cups of coffee in front of him to show that it was not a hallucination.

It was like a dream, much like yesterday's dream; it felt so unreal, yet so unbearably realistic.

Merlin's mind was a mess; he knew not what to do. Before his very eyes, normal society had crumbled, showing the supernatural, and the very unlikable world beneath it.

Does he have a choice?

He doesn't!

He never did.

Not even a choice to flee.

Merlin takes out his wallet and places a bill on the table before noticing two cups and placing another bill down.

Welp, think of it as a treat.

A dozen minutes later, Merlin arrives at Madison hospital. As he enters James' room, his mother hugs him tightly and cries; Merlin looks at his father while comforting his mother.

James was lying there in the emergency room, behind the thick glass, with dozens of tubes inserted into his body, the medical machinery maintaining James' life, like a candle-in-the-wind.

James had survived, but that's it.

Phil Coulson sits beside him, his face full of hesitation and perplexity.

He has yet to accept this reality, with self-blame in his grey eyes. He anxiously stands up when he sees Merlin walk towards him and asks:

"Merlin...was it, really because I rejected the demon, that dad's..."

"No."

Merlin reaches out and comforts his fearful brother; he gently replies:

"It had nothing to do with you, Phil; forget about it all, as it was but a dream."

Merlin looks at his brother's languish face and places his hands on the shoulder of his 15-year-old brother:

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"You have to grow up in the fastest way possible; you must take care of mom and dad, can. Cando that?"

Phil grits his teeth and nods:

"Yes! I can."

"Good."

Merlin looks around and whispers to his brother:

"Calm mom down for me, don't let her go home, and wait for my return, alright?"

"Yeah, sure."

---

On the second day after Jame's car accident, Merlin had been working.

At 9 pm, a languish Merlin enters the hospital with a black briefcase.

Phil was still waiting outside James' room; as for Anna, Madam Coulson, she was lying on the chair napping; the past few days had been catastrophic to her.

"Come here, Phil."

Merlin does not disrupt his mother's rest; he calls Phil to the corner of the passageway and hands him the briefcase.

Phil took over the briefcase and opened it; what was inside made his eyes widen.

Inside the briefcase was money—about a few hundred grand worths of cash.

"Money! Where'd you get this from, Merlin?"

Phil lowers his voice and questions his brother.

"Did you take a loan?"

In the face of his brother's questions, Merlin takes out a pack of cigarettes, albeit he doesn't smoke.

He opens the nearby window and lights the cigarette; as the smoke rises, Merlin takes a deep breath and coughs; with his coarse voice, he says:

"No, I sold the farm."

After the death of his parents, Merlin had inheritance rights to the Reilly's Ancestral House, but that house was torn down; his foster father, James, used the money to buy a farm, which would become Merlin's inheritance in the future.

Merlin had total control over the farm, as he was 18 and had rights to the property.

Although the middleman company pressed down the price, Merlin disregarded it due to a sense of urgency.

He has to leave everything prepared as soon as possible, for he has not forgotten the Phantom Stranger's warnings; Judas had said that we were running out of time. And Merlin could feel something ominous from it.

He knows not of what's to come nor how it ends.

So he must do all in his power to settle everything, so his family can live a good life.

"You!"

Phil is shocked; he grabbed Merlin by the wrist and scolds:

"You're crazy! Dad left that for you!"

"I know, brother."

Merlin looks at Phil, saying:

"But I'm well off even without it, and James needs surgery, I've seen too many patients during my work here, and surgery needs a lot of expenses. You have to go to school, mom needs to take care of James, and dad's retirement funds and insurance money aren't going to cut."

"I don't want you guys to live poorly. This is just a deposit, and the rest will be wired into Jame's bank account; it should last until you've matured. At that time, with both of us working, everything will be fine."

"Anyways, just don't tell mom about this, okay?"

Phil looks down, feels the weight of the briefcase, and nods.

This childish teen appears to have suddenly matured.

Merlin looks at the time, coughs, and distinguishes the cigarette. He tells Phil:

"I need to go out tonight; I'll be back after midnight, so take care of them for me, okay?"

"Midnight?"

Phil looks at his brother:

"What're you gonna do?"

"Don't ask."

Merlin taps his brother on the shoulder and vaguely says:

"I have to deal with the middleman company; they pressed the price too much when I was selling the farm. Can't let them take advantage of us now, can we?"

Phil believes his words, but he doesn't notice the anxiousness and slight fear in Merlin's eyes as he turns around.

Merlin walks out of the hospital; usually, nighttime wouldn't be too cold in the summer, but Merlin still grasped on his coat upon seeing the ever-dark night.

He felt a chill down his spine; it was fear, fear about what was to come.

The third midnight will come, and Trigon's contract will activate.

Merlin wasn't going to deal with the middleman company.

He was going to face his unknown fate.

On this very night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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