Cruel World

Exorcism

A yellow cab pulls up outside a rundown apartment building in Los Angeles. A hand drops a cigarette out the window of the cab. The man steps out of the cab, a girl in her late teens follows him. That is John Constantine and I am his daughter, Mia Constantine. 

I follow my father through the small courtyard in the small beaten up foyer of the building, I watch as my father pulls out a cigarette lighting it. "Smoking is going to be the death of him."

"I Think I found you one." Says a familiar voice from behind a pillar, then the man walks out Father Hennessy. "Look I called you, right? Soon as I couldn't pull it out myself. I called you John." Without another word we begin walking down the crowded hall, ready to work another job. As soon as we enter the room I can tell, demon. Inside the room, a girl is tied down to a bed, snarling. There's a sheet covering the only window, I walk over ripping down the sheet. The girl hissing as she is exposed to the sun. Definitely possessed. I watch as my father takes out a ring of medallions, holding each one up to the window, until one makes the girl hiss again, falling back onto the bed. My father climbs onto the bed and whispers, "This is Constantine, John Constantine Asshole." The demon begins to speak in some hellish language. "Sure." My father says, then he pressed the medallion to the girls forehead, making her writhe in pain. I then begin speaking in Latin. The girl stops moving completely. I watch as my father moves his head down listening to hear if the girls still alive, the demon then try's to escape through the girls throat, my father punching it, knocking the girl back onto the bed. 

"I need a mirror. Now! At least three feet high." My father says but the tenants crowding the hall do nothing. "Move! Go, now!" I shout. A few of the men leave to find a mirror. 

I begin to unhook a wire from the wall as my father breaks the window with a chair. I step onto the fire escape with him, as we secure the wire, my father shouts. "Chas!" 

"What?" Chas says sticking his head out the driver side window of the cab. That is Chas Kramer, my best friend and a wannabe demon hunter. "Move the car!" 

"Why?" 

"Move the damn car!" The cab engine starts up as Chas backs up a little. We step back in the apartment, we then move the bed so its in front of the window, next a few men come back with the mirror. My father climbs on top of the bed, holding some of the wire, I hold the other end. The men then move the mirror over the bed, Father Hennessy following them in. 

"Tie that end off," My father instructs handing me a wire, I quickly tie it off. "Hennessy, over the top." Father Hennessy takes the excess wire, bringing it over the top of the mirror and standing at the head of the bed. I move beside the bed holding the girl down by her shoulders. "Close your eyes, and whatever happens don't look." I instruct the men as my father covers the possessed girls eyes, and we both begin an exorcism in Latin. But one of the men does not listen and he opens his eyes, his hair immediately turns grey, the man stumbling back, letting go of his side of the mirror. "No!" My father and I both move to catch the mirror, the girl uses this opportunity to break one arm out of her bindings, clawing at my fathers throat. I hold up the mirror, as he pushes the girl back down, covering her eyes again. "Show yourself." I watch as the demon moves underneath the girls skin. "Smile pretty, you vain prick. Mt father uncovers the girls eyes, her eyes opening the girls eyes looking demonic, then I hear a thud in the mirror, the demon is trapped. "For your boss." We both say, flipping off the demon. "Pull it!" Hennessy tugs on the wire, but the mirror catches on the trim, "Shit." The demon pounds on the mirror, as father takes the wire from Hennessy, tugging on it, and bracing himself on the bed. I help push on the mirror, as the demon continues pounding, putting cracks in the glass trying to escape. The mirror finally fly's out the window. Falling towards the ground, I hear it shatter, now the demons gone. The girl gasps her eyes returning to normal. My father stands up, exiting the room as I follow, processing the last few minutes, That wasn't normal, why was a soldier demon here? He reaches into his pocket, I assume for the pack of cigarettes, I'm about chastise him for smoking when I see a picture across the room, a detailed drawing of a spear. The spear of destiny. I grab the drawing before we exit the apartment.

As we walk down the hall Father Hennessy catches up with us. "I found you something didn't I, John? Didn't I? What happened in there?" We both don't answer, walking in silence down the stairs. We make it to the foyer, Father Hennessy pulling out a flask, taking a swig before putting it away. "Going to a lot of meetings, I see."

"Keeps the voices out so I can sleep, I have to sleep John." 

"I need some help, Father."

"You do? From me? What kind of-?" Then Hennessy glances at the necklace he's wearing. A protective necklace. "Hey, Listen I-"

"That exorcism wasn't right. Listen to the ether. Anything unusual you let me know." Dad says as he removes Hennessy's necklace. "Come on you don't need its protection. It'll be like back in the day. A few days."

"Okay, okay. For you, John. And Mia." We leave the building, walking to the cab, The hood is up, Chas is cleaning glass shards out from under the hood. He did not move the car back enough.

Chas slams the hood down. "John, why would you do that if you know its not my car?" 

"I told you to move it."

"Should've moved it further, Chas." 

"Yeah, thanks for the advice, Mia." Chas says sarcastically. "All right, John, you did tell me to move it. If you would've told me that it was a three hundred pound mirror you were dropping with a pissed off demon, I would've moved it further, John."  We all get in the cab. 

"Take Alvarado." 

"Yes, John, thank you. I know what to take." We pull away from the building, driving back to the apartment. I'm absorbed in my thoughts for a majority of the drive. What the hell was a soldier demon doing on earth? And what does the spear of destiny have to do with anything?

We finally get to the bowling alley we live above. Stepping out of the car, Chas says.

"You ever think if you told me more now, that maybe I could help out? Huh?" Chas wants to be a demon hunter and help as much as he can but my dad won't let him. Hell, the only reason he lets me help is because I successfully exorcised my babysitter at 10 years old. 

"Nope." Dad replies. 

"Nope. Of course its a nope. Mia?"

"He'll come around Chas." Chas makes a face at this.

"I'll talk to him okay,"

"Thanks."

Dad will come around and let Chas help, someday I hope.