Dead Gardens - Chapter 3

We will bring that empire down. Literally.

Dominion’s human head spoke, “Son of man, your body is frail, thin, weak, sickly, and pathetic; it has no muscles, no strength. It has naught but magic flowing through it, but you’re devoid of nutrients. You’re on the brink of malnutrition. Are you sure you were once a nobility?”

“A hardworking one, yes. This is what happens when you actually do your job.” I then scanned the god’s bony torso and wounded body. “I can say the same to you. Are you really a god? Your bones are peeking out of your chest, your skin is paler than a ghost’s, and your wings could barely lift you higher from the ground.”

Dominion’s four heads chuckled. “Touch. But like you, I had worked hard. And like you, my peers failed me. I guess this is what one might otherwise call a non-pogchamp moment.”

“What?”

“What?”

“Did you just say pogchamp?”

“Isn’t it hip to younger people these days?”

“I…” I stuttered before shaking my head. “That’s not important right now. How am I ought to accept you?”

“I can’t.”

“What?”

“I can’t go in. It’s too cramp inside of you.”

“What are you talking about?”

Dominion sighed. “You’re too thin, Aleph. How am I supposed to fit my wholeass body inside this…” Dominion started pointing both at my body. “… this stick.”

“Then, what do you want me to do?”

“Maybe I can go back here after a week once you’ve gained a bit of weight.”

“THERE’S LITERALLY NOTHING AROUND ME TO EAT HERE!”

“Alright, alright, sheesh.” Dominion moved his heads all around us. He only stopped when his eagle head spotted something on the floor. “Who’s this white boy?”

“He’s uhh…” I looked at the person he’s referring to. It’s Gres’ corpse. “He’s an exiled knight.”

“Does he have a name?”

“Gres. We just met today.”

“And is he dead?”

“Uhh… well…” I tugged Gres’ body multiple times and shrugged when he didn’t respond. “Yeah. Yeah, he looks pretty dead to me.”

“Nice man, eh? Well-built, great muscles, tall.” Dominion’s ox head’s eyes then moved towards me. “Unlike someone I know.”

“Hey, fuck you!”

“You reckon we can fit inside him?”

“What?”

“I mean our souls. We’re both pretty thin. Since his soul is not there anymore, I’m sure it’s pretty spacious inside.”

“What are you talking about, Dominion?”

“I wonder if there’s enough space there for a kitchen. Oooh! He’s REALLY big! Maybe we can have separate rooms.”

“Can you explain what’s happening–”

But before I could continue what I was saying, Dominion had already interrupted me. He leaned forward with all of the eyes in his body shimmering into a macabre blood-like color. He placed his hand on my forehead and grabbed my skull tightly.

“I have decided.”

I felt something emerging from my chest, ascending like a kindle burning my insides. Before I could even understand what Dominion was doing to me, he suddenly grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked me upward, making me let out a deafening screech. I did that, but I actually didn’t feel pain at all. No. It was different. It felt like I had been slightly pushed at the ledge of a 7-story tower, and my body is falling midair. Dominion carried my entire body with just my hair, but I didn’t feel pain at all, only humiliation at the thought of being treated like meat. I looked down and saw two corpses on the ground.

Gres…

And me.

I checked myself and saw that my body turned into a translucent blue blob-like thing.

“You must understand, Aleph.” Dominion then moved his face closer to mine. “From here on out, you are no longer in control of your soul. This soul is not yours anymore. You are MY property, MY toy, MINE!”

When those words were spoken, I felt as if the world slowly stopped, swirled into million different fractals, and I swear to the Gods that I saw Gres’ and I floating within a bed of endless glowing stars in a dark violet sky. It felt so surreal, for I could feel my body and all of my senses, but I could see my bare body beside the lifeless soldier as countless stars orbited us. Dominion’s heads then appeared above our bodies as if he’s some kind of child playing with his newfound entertainment.

“You are MY property!”

Dominion’s voice rang throughout our surroundings as my body turned into dust, leaving Gres’ corpse alone. The dust that was once my body then turned into a shining blue ball that danced around Gres.

“…MY toy!”

Dominion’s arms appeared out of nowhere from a distance like he had just shoved them into his toy box. His wounded hand gripped Gres’ body tightly. Meanwhile, his other hand grabbed the shining blue ball that was once my body.

“MINE!”

The God of Death held the ball of light on his right hand while Gres’ body rested on the other. He laughed loudly, his voice echoing all among the endless array of stars. Still cackling, the god clapped; its sound boomed, sending tremors throughout the universe. He was tightly clasping his palms together, ensuring that he was squashing the ball and the body together.

And then… I could barely explain what happened next.

Something inside me, formless and robust energy, wrapped around my chest, like water and oil playing endlessly together. I felt a soft texture running all over my veins like a burning punch to my chest. My consciousness entered into a mystifying state of consciousness and unconsciousness, almost like I was wrapped in some kind of mind cage that hindered me from thinking. The heat in my heart bounced from one place to another. I closed my eyes, hoping that the torture would end. But I couldn’t be far from the truth. The light passed through my vision. I could see things, but my eyes were shut. I looked around and realized that I was falling into an endless pit in the middle of the universe, plunging me deeper towards a glowing black hole that burned my eyes.

Soon, a wall of mirrors surrounded me, but in the reflection, I saw not my body but Gres’, and it was imitating my every move. Then, everything changed shape and formed a dimension I could never understand. One time I felt like I was swimming in milk, but when I let my guard down, I saw myself eating my own body and puking it all up before eating the rest of my head off. A strange light with a color I had never seen before flushed out of my open mouth. Then, somehow, my own head flew right towards his mouth, and my body welcomed it, digesting myself until I could feel myself churning my insides. I could hardly feel my body touching the solid ground like I was soaring into an endless sky, but when I looked around, I saw that the clouds were all misshapen versions of my body, mashed together like cotton candy. Amid all of this laid Dominion’s human face, shining like the sun itself, laughing maniacally with a gaze that could kill the faint of heart. After a while, the heat in my heart vanished, and the light coming out of my eyes disappeared.

And then, I fled. I didn’t know where I was, but I was running. I couldn’t describe what I saw with mere words, but terrifying sights of absolute evil surrounded me. I could swear that I knew what I was seeing, but the more I looked, the more foreign it felt. I ran. Like a lion rushing through a crimson forest. I ran. A twinge of darkness prickled my heart and exploded into my veins, gradually extending its arms towards the flowing magnitude of unwavering magic contained in my mortal shell. Like two lovers destined to meet, my energy held the foreign power invading my body tightly with an embrace that will never, ever end. I breathed the cold air as I slowly opened my eyes, revealing a megalithic stone wall blocking my path. Above it was Dominion, looking ethereal as he hovered above the stone.

“Oh, and you can have this too!” He said as he plucked his right eye out and shoved it into my eye socket.

Then, I woke up. Panting and as I laid on the warm and rough ground of the Wasteland.

Well, no. I didn’t wake up. No, my corpse was lying lifeless beside me. I looked down and saw my new body clad in white armor.

<Don’t act so surprised.>

Dominion? What? Where are you?

<I’m in your head.>

So you’re talking in my brain.

<Yep. That also means I can hear all of your thoughts… and see your memories.>