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Chapter 25 - Fictitious Wings

Chapter 25 – Fictitious Wings

Weaver

I opened the door to the place I'd inhabited with my brothers since the day I was born in this mortal realm. Till the day I'd left after she had moved to another state.

It had been a decade since I'd returned to this dwelling. Our home looked fairly the same although the wall clock that covered the hole I'd caused years ago had been replaced by an oversized brass, pearl and ebony Nova clock that went with the contemporary atmosphere. The scent of chocolate chip cookies from an open jar wafted in the air.

Francis and his sweet tooth. The kid had an appetite for all mortal delicacies. He had adjusted so well to this world. He was now a freelance web designer. My young brother enjoyed creating web sites, having an outlet to channel all his concepts, and he had a relatively strong portfolio. His clients admired his surreal creativity.

Markus was a certified software engineer turned public interest lawyer. Predictable. He relished the attention he drew in the courtroom. But he also willingly took on matters pro bono. Not so predictable. But with Markus, I was certain there was an underlying motive. At the rate he was going with his growing list of clients and an even bigger following, I wouldn't be surprised if he became a goodwill ambassador or if he ran and won the next senatorial election.

Francis and Markus both thrived the past decade. I wagered they made Mother proud. I was yet to hear from her or Father since I'd moved out.

I had found the tunnel to Thanatos and Freud though. I was amazed to have stumbled upon the two having coffee together. Freud was having coffee and cigars.

Freud was wearing a three-piece suit, a tie and his iconic round, wire framed glasses. He also carried a pocket watch connected to a gold chain. Thanatos merely wore a dark robe that covered his entire body from his wide shoulders to his feet. I wasn't sure if he even had feet since he seemed to be floating.

Regardless of the fashion they favored, I owed them. They had helped me deal with my demons. It had been an interesting education—learning psychology from Freud and Thanatos.

**

They first let me undergo a modified Rorschach test. I initially balked at the thought of being subjected to an assessment devised for mental patients, but Freud intentionally spilled his cup of coffee at my feet, and I saw Selene's form enveloped in my fiery wings. The dark stain on the ground rose and I heard Selene cry in agony as she was engulfed in my flames.

"No!!!" I screamed. I dropped to my knees and tried to grab hold of the shadows, but they evaded my touch. Selene's cries continued and I could do nothing to save her. I could only claw at the asphalt as the inkblot grew into a harrowing illusion.

"You are dreaming, child," Freud consoled me as the shadows disappeared. He touched my forehead and closed his eyes, seemingly trying to get a hold of the visions that had plagued me. He opened his eyes again and elatedly said, "But dreams are the royal road to the unconscious."

I looked at the neurologist in confusion. He had a glimmer in his eyes that made me wary.

"His defenses are lowered in this sphere and all the emotions he had repressed are crossing over," Thanatos gruffly stated.

"Help me control these monstrosities so that I may not hurt anyone," I pleaded.

The father of psychoanalysis and the god of peaceful death looked at me and deliberated on their next project. Freud smiled and told me, "Follow us, child."

Thanatos had to remind me that I was a deity living among mortals and though it was at first difficult for me to perceive human sentiments or accept the reality that mortals were mortal—that they would eventually perish—I soon learned to acknowledge these facts.