An uneventful week passed. The mundane reality of this world began to set in once again. Galloway spent much of his time sleeping during the day, and drinking the days away, in either his small studio apartment above another equally depressing residence, or at the Paradise Lounge. He didn't much feel like being lectured by Steve once again, so on the day of the second encounter, he took a stroll.
He left his small abode and traveled east, towards the waterfront. The streets were barren except for the occasional car, phasing in and out of sight in the dense fog. A lack of clear sight was normal for the residents of town, in fact, the clear days were far and few between lately. The smell of salt water laced the air as Galloway got closer to the ocean. Passing through the alleys, which of are harmless during the day, he remembered the night he had saved Helena. He hadn't checked up on her since.
I hope she is ok
He surprised himself. She had caught his eye for sure but he didn't put too much thought into it. The lull of the ocean waves were rhythmic, almost hypnotic. They seemed to overtake any sound. He closed his eyes. The wind died down the same instant and all he heard was the sound of-
CLACK CLACK CLACK CLA-
A hand grabbed his shoulder, joulting him out of the dream. Turning around, a familiar face filled with excitement met his gaze.
"What are you doing here??" cried Helena. She seemed fine. He looked into her eyes and once more found himself lost as to what to say.
"I wanted to take a walk. I could ask you the same." He smiled to the best of his abilities. The blanket of fog pulled them closer together while also making them seem far apart. He saw in her hands were some notes on scrap paper, but he couldn't make out what they said. She quickly shoved them into her coat pocket when she saw his eyes shifting toward them.
"I just wanted to get out of the motel. I'm actually in town on business but if I keep walled up in that little room staring at my notes I'll go crazy." Her chuckle at the end seemed genuine, but he sensed a lie in her statement.
"What business do you do?"
"I write for a small journal, we're doing an article on unknown towns of the east coast. You know, it's very strange that this town doesn't have a lighthouse." She turned to look at the coast, but from here they couldn't even see the shoreline.
"The townsfolk that settled here all those years ago actually left Boston because of the fishing industry. They didn't like the traffic in and out of the harbor, but they wanted a spot near the ocean to call their own. It's weird but growing up here has helped me appreciate that idea, a place to call your own."
"But don't you consider this town your home?" Her attention was turned back to him.
"Yes and no. I did grow up here that is true, but i've never been…centered here. I travel a lot. Just haven't found the one place yet that just seems to click." Now he was looking towards the shore.
"I always wanted to travel when I was younger. The rest always said it was too dangerou-" She stopped in her tracks and lifted her hand to her mouth.
His eyes turned back towards her. Her eyes were wide but then she regained her composure.
"Is something wrong?"
"No it's fine. Sometimes I just prattle on."
He sensed her tense up behind her response.
"Want to walk the beach with me?" He asked.
"S-sure." They began to walk towards the crashing waves, with the sidewalk fading behind them. Their steps kicked up sand, some of which was kicked up in clumps the closer to the shore they got. The jutting rocks that surrounded the cove seemed to surround and enclose the beach, as if it was its own world.
"Does the fog ever let up?" She asked in a half laugh sigh.
"Sometimes, but lately the fog has been rolling in from the bay more and more each week. Guess that means a great tragedy is about to befall us all." He turned to her with a sly smirk. She looked at him with a moment of curiosity but that fell away when she realized he was joking.
"Don't say that, something might happen you know. Bad things always happen when you least expect them to."
"You believe in that stuff? I never pegged you for the superstitious type."
She looked away and blushed.
"No it's not like that. Just from experience, bad things always seem to happen when you aren't prepared for it."
"From my experience, events that happen are random and have no meaning. I don't mean to be the glass half empty kind of guy but this place has never been the epitome of happiness." He was zoning out staring at the stretch of beach that lay beside them.
"Are you saying there is a story to be told about this place?"
"No. forget I said any-"
Pain. The sudden pain to his temple shot through him at an alarming rate. The shockwaves racketed through his nerves, bring his right hand up to his temple. He winced and let out a small cry of agony.
God damnit, why?!
"What's wrong?!" Cried Helena, shocked and confused. "Are you hurt, what happened?"
He was kneeling now, holding his right temple with his hand, wincing from the sudden rush of pain. This always happened after a dramatic exit from one of his slips but the pain usually went away by now. Helena kneeled next to him and, without thinking, placed her hand on his temples. A few moments later the pain started to fade away. His eyes remained close, relishing the relief of his agony. He stood up slowly, using his knee as a holding point to push himself up.
"Wow, that was intense. I'm sorry for freaking you out, sometimes I get sudden headaches." He lied. When he stood up, he saw the fear in her eyes. Her cheeks were blushed and she started to back up.
"Did I do something?"
"N-no, I just realized I have to go back to the motel to write up what I've learned about this town, thank you so much for the talk." She turned and walked away at a quick pace, kicking clumps of damp sand up behind her. He thought of how beautiful she was when embarrassed, but why was she embarrassed? Her silhouette disappeared into the fog.
"I wonder if it was something I did?" He wondered aloud, as the surf rolled in and out behind him. The crashing waves echoed off the rocks, letting him know that he was alone. Alone in the very place he did not want to be at.
Don't think about it.
He couldn't stop himself. Rowan's face, cold and lifeless, appeared in his mind once again, taunting him for his failure. This time he kneeled for a different reason.
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Hours passed. Galloway remained on the beach, sitting down with his knees facing upwards, staring out into the sea. The sun began to set and the golden hues of dusk began to phase through the dense fog of the cove. The wind had died down, leaving only him and the crashing waves. He closed his eyes, and now he was in darkness. The same darkness that he had come to know all these years in his dreams, surrounding him. The sound of pinchers clacking away grew louder and louder. He started to sweat, the beads were trailing down his face. Then, he opened his eyes. There was nothing there but him and the ocean.
"I need a fucking drink." He said aloud. When he tried to stand up, he noticed that his feet had sunk into the sand, as if he had been rocking back and forth. The sun was below the rocks now, the cold darkness was setting in. He looked at his phone, it was 8:30.
Guess the paradise lounge is calling.
As he began to walk towards the beginning of the beach, he felt daggers being stared into the back of his head. With a quick turn, his gaze was scanning the shoreline and the rocks. There was no one and nothing there. He lingered for a few moments and then chalked it up to plain old paranoia. He resumed his path to the bar, albeit with a quickened pace.
When he reached the bar, the feeling of being watched had subsided for a new feeling, familiarity. The bar was quiet tonight with a few patrons scattered about the booths, but none at the bar itself. He made his way to what he would say would be his designated stool.
"How's your day been you beautiful bald bastard?"
Steve turned around quickly, shocked at the sudden outburst behind him.
"How do you always just seem to appear? The usual?" Steve began to pour a glass of scotch.
"Thanks." The liquor in the glass reflected an amber mirrored version of himself. He had become numb to the burn having spent so many nights here.
"You look like someone died."
"Well, someone did. A long time ago." He threw back the rest of the brown liquid.
"I've noticed you got like this last year and the year before that around this time. Wanna talk about it?" Steve showed compassion and worry in his voice.
"No, I don't think I do."
The low chatter of the patrons became quiet. He turned from his spot on the stool and saw darkness. The back of the bar had completely disappeared.
"What the fuck?!" he turned back towards Steve, whose eyes were completely red, the color of crimson. Galloways hand holding the glass was quickly grabbed, sending the glass into the dark depths behind them.
"YOU NEVER HAD A CHANCE. YOUR DESTINY IS SET IN BLOOD." Said a booming voice, shaking Galloway to his core. The voice was smooth and mellow, but insidious intent lay underneath the silky tones. Steve's hand blackened and became scaly like a claw with needle like nails. They dug into Galloway's forearm. He yanked his arm back, sending him off his stool and into the darkness below. The bar lights and stools grew tinier by the second as he was enveloped in the black.
There was a strong vibration that reverberated throughout the dark. He couldn't tell if his eyes were closed or open.
"What the actual fuck is going on here?" He said aloud. Climbing to his feet, he scanned the entire surrounding area. Nothing but darkness filled his vision, except for a tiny light far off in the distance. He began to run. The closer he got, the more his fear increased. However, there was another feeling; excitement. As he got closer to the light, he lost all train of thought. The only thing that mattered was reaching the light. His muscles felt weak and ached, including some he had never felt before. When he came into view of the scale of the circle, his heart sank. The width from end to end had to have been over 25 feet. The circle itself was not white, but the other side of the circle was. He discovered it was an entrance, but he felt it to be more of an exit for his current situation.
It's a bridge between here...and there.
He didn't know where there was but he took a chance and stepped through. The barrier passed over his toes, then his feet, then his leg, and finally he was through. He felt the vibrations get stronger as he saw he was now in a huge prism like white chamber. Looking around he saw 4 metallic containers lining both walls, they seemed to be on. A stream of energy was connecting each container to the portal he just walked through. A group of 4 cloaked figures stood in a circle ten feet away from the portal, each one producing their own energy stream. The vibrations became unbearable as the entire room was ripped apart by savage winds and far off screams. Galloway gazed in awe at the sight before him. Billions of Earths littered the pitch black sky. He could tell some were different but they were consistent enough for him to know that they were Earth.
"Parallel Earths…"
"In fact, that is the multiverse laid out before you." The bold smooth voice said.
Turning around he saw the energy streams had stopped and the figure cloaked in crimson approached him.
"This is your destiny. Watch." The figure pointed his jagged fingertip towards the pitch black sky. Galloway turned around once again and his eyes became wide with horror. Every Earth began to implode upon itself, one after another. With each implosion, great seas of blood filled the void before him. He could hear the screams and the final cries for help as each soul was snuffed. Numbers so high that he didn't even know the word for it. He tried to scream but all that came out was a gurgle of sounds that were wet and ended with croaks. He closed his eyes.
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Galloway awoke suddenly on the beach. The tide had rolled in, licking the bottoms of his shoes. He was dizzy, but was able to climb to his feet well enough. The to and from the waves calmed him, as if letting him know that this was real. The fog was gone, but a sense of dread still filled the air. He looked all around in each direction illuminated by the silver moonlight.
"Just my luck to pass out here. I wasn't even drunk." He could still taste the scotch on his lips. As he looked around, he thought he saw a silhouette move on the tops of the rocks that surround the cove, but he couldn't be sure.