Chapter 14: Toxic
As Zyxel sat over the fire cooking, Trinity sat at the edge of the cliff, trying to avoid looking in his direction. He was being pleasant for the first time in weeks and she didn't want to risk upsetting him by barraging him with questions. Plus, she found it awkward for him to act nice while he was still in his demon form.
She risked a peek in his direction, only to find him wafting his red taloned hand through the flames. This was something he did quite often whenever he built a fire. His body lay relaxed and sideways, as he kept himself propped up with his left hand. "You miss the fires down there, don't you?" she whispered softly. She hadn't intended for him to hear it, yet his ears picked up on the question nonetheless. Her body stiffened and she swiftly looked away, when he glanced up at her and she realized that he had heard her question.
"I don't know what you are talking about." he replied without much emotion.
'It's ok,' she thought. 'You don't have to admit it. I can tell you miss it.'
Zyxel stared at her for a minute before deciding to answer. He glanced back at the fire; his eyes reflected no emotions. No joy, no anger, no sadness; just empty void. "I miss the warmth. This world, I don't like it here. If it were up to me, I wouldn't even be here."
Trinity glanced back at him again. She wasn't expecting this reaction from him. Everything she had ever learned about demons from her faith, spoke about how they enjoyed toying with and manipulating humans. Tricking them to claim their souls for their own twisted pleasure. But seeing Zyxel now, she couldn't see him being this way. He seemed... depressed? She turned back away, not wanting to risk asking another question and upset him. He may have been in a good mood this morning, but she could tell that he was in no mood currently to try and start a conversation.
As Trinity was watching a pair of birds gliding over the trees down below, she was startled to see a dark tanned skinned boy sit down beside her. Eyes wide, she glanced at Zyxel. 'When did he shift back? I didn't even hear him move.'
"You don't have to act all shocked." Zyxel spoke with a half smile as he handed her a wooden skewer that contained several pieces of cut deer meat. "I know you don't like my other form."
Trinity accepted the food he was offering her. The tips of her fingers brushed against his as the skewer of meat exchanged possession into her hands. "Thank you!"
She ate the food slowly and silently as Zyxel stared at her with his head tilted to the side.
"This isn't like you," he observed.
"What's not like me?" she asked between mouthfuls.
"You're never this silent."
Chewing the meat, she swallowed before nodding slightly, avoiding looking in his direction. "Yes well, you have made it very clear how you feel about me asking you questions. And since you are currently in a good mood that you have rarely shown, I didn't want to ruin this moment."
Zyxel nodded and sighed in understanding. "Let me ask you something!"
Trinity stopped mid-chew and stared at him. This was new. Him asking her a question? After a few seconds, she swallowed and nodded. "I'm listening."
"What would you define is unique to you, as a human. Not necessarily something that you enjoy, or something that you might like. But rather something that is unavoidable. Something that is beyond your control."
Trinity sat there contemplating his words. "Something unique to humanity, that is beyond our control? Honestly, I wouldn't even know where to begin in regards to answering that! Why do you ask?"
"Ok then, let's try something you are more familiar with." He pointed at the meat she was eating. "How would you feel if you were told you couldn't eat something that is part of your dietary nutrition?"
Trinity raised an eyebrow at his question. "Myself, I love meat too much to give it up, but it's not necessarily uncommon to do so. There are humans who are vegetarians and vegans who choose to give up meat, without any issues. So I really don't understand how that would be something unique to humanity, and definitely not unavoidable."
"Hmmm..." Zyxel sat for a few minutes, deep in thought. Finally he nodded as he came to a decision. "Alright then. Let's forget for a moment that it would have to be something unique to humanity. Instead, let's go with something that is unavoidable to humans, in this present day and time."
"Ok?" Trinity spoke slowly, confused at where he was going with this.
Zyxel looked between Trinity, then nodded his head at the open sky and then looked back at Trinity again. "Air! You need the air to survive. Without it, you will die. Am I wrong?"
Trinity stiffened. She wasn't sure which direction he was going with this. Was he looking for weaknesses in humans that he might not already know about?
Zyxel laughed when he saw her tense up. "Relax, would ya! I'm trying to explain this in a way you will understand!"
Trinity tilted her head at Zyxel. He truly seemed to be in a good mood today. He even seemed almost happy.
Zyxel locked his eyes with hers and smiled.
"Yes," she answered back. "We need oxygen to breathe."
Zyxel nodded. "Now, let's pretend something here. Say you were sealed away in some place that provided exactly what you needed to live, only to later be released some place else in an environment that was toxic to you, with very little to almost no oxygen to breathe. How would you react in your attempts to survive? Would you calmly go about trying to find some way to provide the oxygen you needed? Or would you be aggressive, maybe even destructive even, in your search to find a means of survival."
Trinity opened her mouth, but was at a loss for words. She hated to admit it, but she was starting to understand how it must have been like for him when he came here. "I guess, I would end up getting aggressive, trying to find a way to breathe."
Zyxel nodded. "So you understand!"
"I think so. You're saying that our world is toxic to you?" She reflected back on the events that happened when she first met Zyxel as he flew into the church, demanding her father something in another language, right before he possessed her. "You possessed me, so you could live?" Her eyes widened in realization.
Zyxel nodded again. "It is one method of survival, but it's not without its risks. For one, most humans cannot contain the divine energy that our spirit consists of. If the person is unable to contain our energy, the effects on the human body aren't pleasant. There are a very rare few, like yourself, that their body and soul is strong enough to withstand our energy. But it's incredibly rare, and there is really no way to know if the human can contain our essence or not. Possession for us, is not something we like to do. It is a last resort option, that we prefer to avoid if at all possible."
Trinity looked down. "So, the reason you were so angry with my father, is you went to him for help, and he refused you."
Zyxel closed his eyes, sighed and nodded a confirmation. "The stone gargoyles stationed outside of your church is a marker for my species. It represents sanctuary. A place that we can go, to provide us with the means of surviving in your world."
Trinity shook her head. This was not even close to what they were taught in church! Was he trying to make up an elaborate story to trick her? But it all felt too detailed to not be real. Several pieces of the puzzle that didn't make sense before, was actually beginning to make sense to her now. But then, if this were true, why would the church teach the exact opposite?
Zyxel frowned. "You don't believe me?"
"It's not that I don't believe you." Trinity said slowly. "Rather, I'm finding it hard to wrap my head around the possibility that it just might be true. This isn't something we are taught. While your story makes some sense, it goes against everything that I grew up learning."
Zyxel stared off into the sky. "I think I understand now why your mind blocked out our initial encounter before."
Trinity looked at him in shock. "What do you mean?"
Zyxel turned back to Trinity. "Think about it! You were raised to believe one thing to be true. Believed it so strongly, that your mind was conflicted, and didn't want to accept what you learned!"
"What I learned?"
Sighing, Zyxel sat up straight. "Ok, you remember when I mentioned to you in your room before, that I liked you better when we shared one body and mind?"
Trinity nodded.
"When a demon possesses someone, we don't just gain access to your body and mind, but you gain access to my mind as well. My thoughts, my memories, my life. Everything I have ever experienced or lived through, would have been accessible to you, if only you were to concentrate on searching for it."
Trinity nodded slowly. "So, you think that I realized this, and went searching through your memories, and my mind blocked it out because it didn't want to accept what I had learned."
"That's exactly what I think!" Zyxel shifted uncomfortably. "When I realized that you didn't remember, I was quite frankly a bit annoyed. I took it to mean that your mind was weak for a human. You had surprised me with how strong your aura was when you performed the incantation that I taught you, and then to just forget everything, it didn't make any sense to me."
Trinity scowled at him. "That makes sense, but there is one detail that still doesn't make any sense."
Zyxel raised an eyebrow at her and tilted his head to the side.
Trinity waved her hand out wide, in the direction of the cave behind them. "This whole time that I've been here, all of this could have been answered if only you would have answered my questions! Instead, you growled and got aggressive or angry. Now suddenly you're willing to talk, and this whole thing could have been avoided! As I said before, you're acting very bi-polar!"
Zyxel was quiet for a moment. "I'm trying to understand what you mean by bi-polar."
Looking at him, she couldn't help but laugh. He seemed genuinely confused. "Bi-polar, it means when one switches back and forth between different mood swings. You are happy one moment, then can flip and be aggressive or hostile the next."
Understanding lit up in his eyes and he laughed. "Look at it from my point of view! I have not been to the earthly realm in about three thousand years, back before divine entities were sealed away and banished from your world. Some idiot then makes a deal and tears open a rift in that magic, allowing Amara to escape and coincidentally dragging me along with her, unintentionally.
"When I landed in your world unaware and unprepared, it was a huge shock to my system. I cannot survive here, not without assistance. So, my divine energy ran rampant and uncontrolled, causing the rain, and earthquakes, etc... And the one place that was marked to offer sanctuary, now only attempted to banish me as if I were a plague, after requesting help. Looking around, everyone in that church looked at me with fear in their eyes. Everyone, except you! I had assumed that was because you knew the truth. I didn't even think to check through your memories to realize that it wasn't true."
Zyxel nodded towards the city. "Your world has changed so much since I was last here. Humans have changed! People who once used to offer us protection from this toxic environment, now looked at me with hostility, anger, hatred, and fear. Structures, machines, sounds. Everything is so noisy, and it's too much to take in all at once. And it didn't help matters with your insistence to badger me with questions repeatedly. I do admit, I lost my temper." He sighed briefly. "There's still so much about your world now that I still do not understand, but I think I am finally ready to learn!"
"So you're three thousand years old?!" Trinity shrieked.
Zyxel burst out laughing! "That's the question that was heaviest on your mind from everything I just said?"
Trinity shifted nervously as she looked away from him to hide her blushing. "You don't look any older than eighteen or nineteen!" She closed her eyes and sighed, still avoiding his gaze. "So, I guess in the end, you have just as many questions as I do!"
Zyxel smiled as he stared at her. "I guess I do!" He replied, as he reached out and laid his hand over hers.
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