The Vessel
Prologue
Where am I? More importantly, who am I?
“Ada Sato.” That didn’t sound right.
“That’s... Not my name... Is it?”
“From now on, that is who you are. That is the only name you will be called, and the only name you shall ever know.” Ada Sato... Well, I suppose it’s a pretty good name.
“Why am I-” I don’t know where I am. What is this place? “Why am I here?”
“We have a little errand for you, Ada.” An errand?
“What is it?”
“You will be our vessel.” Our? Who was this speaking to me? There was nobody around, and the voice seemed to be a singular male.
“A vessel? For what?”
“A vessel-” did I just hear the man laugh a little? “For death.” What?
“Did you say... For death?”
“Yes.”
“But how could I-”
“When you get back to the human world, you will know what to do. Make sure you are not discovered, though.” The human world? So I was in a sort of different universe?
“Why not?”
“When you get back, you won't be as human as you used to be.”
“What do you mean?”
“It seems that all you humans do is ask questions.” So this thing wasn’t human? Then what was it? And why is it laughing again? “When you get back, you will see.”
***
Was it all just a dream? It must’ve been... It was so vivid and believable, though. I got out of bed, seeing the events as nothing more but a dream.
I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. I feel and look the same as I always did. It was probably just a dream and nothing more. But... What’s this? Surely it can’t be...
I wiped the liquid that was coming out of my eye onto my finger.
This is blood? But how could I cry blood? And my eyes, they...
I looked closer into the mirror and gasped. My eyes are red? No, maybe I’m just a little tired still. Or maybe this is all another dream. That could be the only explanation.
“You’re finally awake.” That voice, I’ve heard it somewhere before.
“Where are you?” I looked around, “how did you get into my house?” It was that laugh again... Now I know where I’ve heard that voice.
“Why Ada, I’m all around you.” Ada... That was my name. The name that he gave me. I don’t remember having another name, but that’s what he told me. It wasn’t just a dream. It had all been real.
“Who are you?”
“Why is my name so important to you?”
“Just tell me, what is it?”
“Let’s just say that it’s Damon, shall we?”
“Damon... What do you want from me?”
“I don’t want a thing, but if you want to keep living your life, then you’ll have to complete a few errands for me.” Errands... That word couldn’t have meant anything good.
“Like what?”
“I need you to, let’s say, get rid of a few people for me.”
“You mean like... Kill?” Why did he keep laughing at me?
“Correct.”
“But I can’t kill anybody, I’m only human!”
“Are you, now? Red doesn’t seem like a very human colour for your eyes, does it?”
“But I can’t kill any-”
“If you value your life, you’ll kill all the people I tell you to.” What’s more important, the life of others or my own life? For all I knew, it would only be one person. That couldn’t be too bad. I’d only have to kill one person and then I could live my life like nothing ever happened, right?
“I guess I have to do it.” I might regret this later on, but I just want my life to myself, without anybody controlling it. “Who do I have to kill?”
“Excellent. Now, let’s see how you go on this little task. It’s nothing too difficult, this first one will be a trial. He’s only a menace and shouldn’t be hard to kill.” First one? What have I gotten myself into?
“Who is it?”
“Leonard Tafani.”
“I’ve heard of him. He’s only a menace to the local area though. Is this really all I’ll be doing?”
“Of course not. There will be more difficult tasks than just this. As I said, I’m only putting you on trial.” I sighed.
“Let me have some peace and get my head together, then I suppose I’ll do what I must.”
“Very well. I’ll be watching you, Ada.” And not another word was said by the mysterious being. I didn’t want to do what I was meant to, and I was hoping that this was just another dream or some voice inside my head, but I didn’t feel like putting my life on the line with some other worldly body.
More importantly, I was hoping I just wouldn’t get caught.
“Ada Sato.” That didn’t sound right.
“That’s... Not my name... Is it?”
“From now on, that is who you are. That is the only name you will be called, and the only name you shall ever know.” Ada Sato... Well, I suppose it’s a pretty good name.
“Why am I-” I don’t know where I am. What is this place? “Why am I here?”
“We have a little errand for you, Ada.” An errand?
“What is it?”
“You will be our vessel.” Our? Who was this speaking to me? There was nobody around, and the voice seemed to be a singular male.
“A vessel? For what?”
“A vessel-” did I just hear the man laugh a little? “For death.” What?
“Did you say... For death?”
“Yes.”
“But how could I-”
“When you get back to the human world, you will know what to do. Make sure you are not discovered, though.” The human world? So I was in a sort of different universe?
“Why not?”
“When you get back, you won't be as human as you used to be.”
“What do you mean?”
“It seems that all you humans do is ask questions.” So this thing wasn’t human? Then what was it? And why is it laughing again? “When you get back, you will see.”
***
Was it all just a dream? It must’ve been... It was so vivid and believable, though. I got out of bed, seeing the events as nothing more but a dream.
I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. I feel and look the same as I always did. It was probably just a dream and nothing more. But... What’s this? Surely it can’t be...
I wiped the liquid that was coming out of my eye onto my finger.
This is blood? But how could I cry blood? And my eyes, they...
I looked closer into the mirror and gasped. My eyes are red? No, maybe I’m just a little tired still. Or maybe this is all another dream. That could be the only explanation.
“You’re finally awake.” That voice, I’ve heard it somewhere before.
“Where are you?” I looked around, “how did you get into my house?” It was that laugh again... Now I know where I’ve heard that voice.
“Why Ada, I’m all around you.” Ada... That was my name. The name that he gave me. I don’t remember having another name, but that’s what he told me. It wasn’t just a dream. It had all been real.
“Who are you?”
“Why is my name so important to you?”
“Just tell me, what is it?”
“Let’s just say that it’s Damon, shall we?”
“Damon... What do you want from me?”
“I don’t want a thing, but if you want to keep living your life, then you’ll have to complete a few errands for me.” Errands... That word couldn’t have meant anything good.
“Like what?”
“I need you to, let’s say, get rid of a few people for me.”
“You mean like... Kill?” Why did he keep laughing at me?
“Correct.”
“But I can’t kill anybody, I’m only human!”
“Are you, now? Red doesn’t seem like a very human colour for your eyes, does it?”
“But I can’t kill any-”
“If you value your life, you’ll kill all the people I tell you to.” What’s more important, the life of others or my own life? For all I knew, it would only be one person. That couldn’t be too bad. I’d only have to kill one person and then I could live my life like nothing ever happened, right?
“I guess I have to do it.” I might regret this later on, but I just want my life to myself, without anybody controlling it. “Who do I have to kill?”
“Excellent. Now, let’s see how you go on this little task. It’s nothing too difficult, this first one will be a trial. He’s only a menace and shouldn’t be hard to kill.” First one? What have I gotten myself into?
“Who is it?”
“Leonard Tafani.”
“I’ve heard of him. He’s only a menace to the local area though. Is this really all I’ll be doing?”
“Of course not. There will be more difficult tasks than just this. As I said, I’m only putting you on trial.” I sighed.
“Let me have some peace and get my head together, then I suppose I’ll do what I must.”
“Very well. I’ll be watching you, Ada.” And not another word was said by the mysterious being. I didn’t want to do what I was meant to, and I was hoping that this was just another dream or some voice inside my head, but I didn’t feel like putting my life on the line with some other worldly body.
More importantly, I was hoping I just wouldn’t get caught.