Word: Revenant

 

revenant

[ rev-uh-nuhnt ]

noun

1. a person who returns.

2. a person who returns as a spirit after death; ghost.

 *************************

               It appeared again. Jim could see it out of the corner of his eye. Nobody else seemed to see it though, and even he could not tell exactly what it was. He could tell it was there though. Sometimes it looked like a man, and other times as a shapeless mass of something. But he always knew it was the same thing.

               As soon as he saw it, Jim turned, looking for the currently man-shaped thing. It was, of course, not there. It was never there when he tried to look directly at it. Jim was getting fed up with its appearances though, and he made sure it knew that.

               “I know you’re there!” He shouted to the empty room. “I know it. I’m not going crazy, like everyone says. I know you’re real, whatever you are.”

               Jim felt a chill run down his spine. It felt like a finger of ice moving down his back. Then he heard laughing. Faint, echoing laughter.

               “Yes, I’m here.” A hollow voice said behind him. Jim turned, seeing nothing but the room. “I’m always here. Watching. Waiting.”

               “Waiting? Waiting for what?”

               “For my chance. For my time.”

               “Your time to do what?”

               “To kill you.”

               Jim’s heart skipped a beat. The chill was not there, but he still felt cold. His hands shook and he clenched his fists to try and stop them.

               “Why do you want to kill me? What did I do to you?”

               “Oh, Jim, you don’t remember? I’m insulted. Ah, maybe it’s because it’s been so long. Here, let me help you.”

               A shape appeared. A gaseous ball of color that twisted and turned randomly. It began growing and lengthening into the shape of a man. One that Jim knew well.

               “Y-you. No, no you…you can’t be…” Jim said, backing away from the form.

               “There, see? You do remember. And you remember what you did to me, yes?” The spirit said, slowly floating towards Jim’s retreating form.

               “I…I…”

               “No? Well, let me refresh your memory. You stole my wife. My daughter. You took them from me.”

               “I…I took care of them after…after you died. I treat them well, I really do.” A bead of sweat began to drip down his forehead. That was soon chased by another.

               “I suppose you did. You did help them after it happened.” The spirit seemed to inflate, nearly taking up the whole room. “After you killed me!” It bellowed.

               “I, I…I didn’t! You, it was an accident!”

               “An accident? Is that what you told them?” The spirit shrank down to its original, human size. Mostly. The fingers were too long and too sharp. The teeth jutted out at odd angles. And the eyes seemed to burn.

               “I…yes.” Jim said. He was running out of room to retreat. “That’s all they need to know.”

               “Oh they’ll learn more. They’ll learn the truth. The truth of what you did to me. I’ll make sure of it. And then? Then I’ll have my revenge. Until then, have a nice day. You don’t have many of them left.”

               The spirit vanished without a trace. Jim stood, sweat dripping off his face and down his back. Was what he had just seen real? He did not want to believe it, but he knew deep down that it was. As unbelievable as it was, he was being haunted by his former friend. A friend who wanted him dead. Now he just had to figure out what to do about it.

*****************************

OoOoOo spooky ghost stuff...Halloween is right around the corner everyone! Try not to eat too much candy. And if you do, remember to brush your teeth really well afterwards. 

Word: Burgeon

 

burgeon

[ bur-juhn ]

verb (used without object)

1) to grow or develop quickly; flourish: The town burgeoned into a city. He burgeoned into a fine actor.

2) to begin to grow, as a bud; put forth buds, shoots, etc., as a plant (often followed by out, forth).

 

verb (used with object)

3) to put forth, as buds.

 

noun

4) a bud; sprout.

 ***********************************

               A group of men watched two children, one boy and one girl, performing a set of activities that were carefully coordinated for them. The men stood behind a one-way mirror and took nearly constant notes about the children’s behavior. They only took their eyes off the mirror when another man, dressed in a crisp business suit entered the room.

               “How are they doing?” The newcomer asked.

               “Better than we ever hoped.” One of the men said. He glanced over a computer readout. “They’re growing at an incredible rate. Every day they grow and develop at a noticeable rate. They’ve both improved by 7% in all metrics since yesterday.”

               The businessman went to the mirror, where he could see the children. The boy was looking at a screen filled with colorful images. His small hand moved over the screen almost too fast to follow.

               “What is Subject Y doing?”

               “Math. Currently he’s solving equations at a level equal to the average college junior, but with far more speed and accuracy. In ten minutes, he’s solved 150 questions, all correct.”

               “Good.” The businessman said with a small grin.

               He turned to the girl. She was in the process of stacking blocks, arranging them in elaborate patterns. She would occasionally look at a block, then move it to another stack. It looked like she was organizing them in some way, to be used for later use.

               “And Subject X?”

               “Using blocks weighing 115 kg—”

               “Pounds, doctor.” The businessman said.

               The doctor stifled his reaction. Yes, this was an American facility, but the man could stand to learn metric like the rest of the scientific community. “Sorry. The blocks weigh in at slightly more than 253 pounds. She’s been sorting them for several minutes but has otherwise not used them for any construction.”

               “They really are growing quickly, aren’t they?”

               “They are. We anticipate by the time they reach age 10, they’ll have roughly the combined capabilities of five adults. However, this is a rough estimate. The actual amount is most likely going to be higher.”

               “Good. Very good.” The businessman said. He leaned forward slightly, watching the two children perform their activities. “How many more like them can you produce?”

               “Right now? None. Finding individuals with the right genetics to allow for safe modification is currently difficult. I’m amazed we found four people so soon. These two children are all we can expect for now. At least, until we find a better way to identify appropriate genetic donors.”

               “I see.” The businessman said. He pulled a phone out of his pocket and tapped the screen, searching for something that was found quickly. “The budget for identifying such individuals has just been increased by 25%, doctor. Find people who will let you make more of those two.”

               “We’ll do our best, sir.” The doctor said.

               And he would. As long as the money kept flowing, the project would keep growing almost as fast as its first two successes. And once it really got rolling, there would be little the rest of the world could do to stop it.

**************************

Ah yes. Giving little kids enhanced strength and intelligence. I'm sure there's nothing that will ever go wrong with that.  Every story in which that happens has never had anything go wrong with such things.

Word: Empyrean

 

empyrean

[ em-puh-ree-uhn, -pahy-, em-pir-ee-uhn, -pahy-ree- ]

 

noun

1) the highest heaven, supposed by the ancients to contain the pure element of fire.

2) the visible heavens; the firmament.

adjective

3) empyreal.

 *******************

               Jack looked at the smoldering husk of flesh on the floor. Then he looked at his girlfriend, Amber, who was also looking at the corpse. Then he looked at the wings that were sprouting from her back.

               “So…angel, huh?” He asked.

               Amber turned from the creature she had roasted and looked at him. She looked almost embarrassed. “Uh, kind of.” She said. “I’m actually an empyrean. See, there’s a bunch of different kinds of angels, just like there’s a lot of different kinds of cats or dogs.”

               “Ah, got it.” He did not, in fact, get it. But it seemed like the thing to say. “And, that…” He pointed to the husk.

               “A demon, obviously. I mean, it’s a little more complicated than that. I could tell you the exact kind of demon if you want.”

               “No, just demon is fine.”

               Amber sat. Her wings folded up and disappeared. Her hair went from blazing gold to her normal platinum blonde. Her eyes changed from a literally flaming yellow to a cool blue. In short, she looked like Amber again.

               “Sorry from keeping it from you, but, well, you know.”

               “Yeah, I get it. Kind of hard to bring up in casual conversation, huh? I mean, how would that go? ‘Hey, by the way, Jack, I’m a divine being and fight demons.’”

               She gave a snorting laugh. “Probably could’ve dropped a few hints before I actually had to kill one of them right in front of you though.”

               “Probably.” He took a moment to collect the ever mounting number of questions. He opened his mouth to ask the first one, but Amber cut him off.

               “Okay, let’s get the obvious ones out the way, huh? First of all, I am not, nor have I ever been, dead. Angels are not the souls of departed humans. We’re a separate species, just as alive as you are. We do not serve any deity. Actually, we’re governed by a council of elders, but we can go into angelic society later. We’re not messengers, guardians, warriors, or anything else like that. We can be any of those things, of course, but so can humans, so take that how you will.”

               “And God?”

               “If he exists, I don’t know about it.”

               “Got it. So, empyreans?”

               “Yup. We’re actually pretty badass. We’ve got all kinds of awesome powers that other angels don’t get.” She seemed quite proud of that. “I’m basically a super angel.”

               “Sounds pretty cool. So, what kind of stuff can you do?”

               “Well, for one thing, all my physical abilities are over a hundred times greater than yours.”

               “Wait, really? So why do you always ask me to open jars?”

               “Really? That’s what you ask? It’s obvious. I wasn’t trying to show you I’m super strong. Anyway, just hitting stuff and running fast is the least of my powers.  The real good stuff is white fire.” She conjured a small ball of flame that shone with a pure white light and began twisting it around her fingers. “It’s pretty awesome. Other angels can do either light or fire. Some can even do both. But only us empyreans can combine them. Oh, I can do normal light and normal fire, but this is where the good stuff is.”

               “Got it. Sort of. I guess asking to see what kinds of tricks you can do inside the house is a bad idea huh?”

               “Oh yeah. Maybe later we’ll head somewhere empty where I can have some fun.”

               As he watched her playing with the small flame, a nagging worry entered his stomach. “Say, Amber, uh, I’m not going to have to worry about a heavenly assassin gunning for me am I? Like, you being here isn’t breaking any angel laws?”

               “Nope.”

               He blinked a few times. “Uh…no?”

               “Nope. Humans and angels of all types have been intermingling for millennia. We get along just fine, and there’s no laws about interspecies couples. Hell, even you knowing about me isn’t a big issue. A few of the older rule sticklers might not like it, but there’s no laws against it.”

               Jack let out a sigh of relief. “Oh good. I’d hate to be the cause of a huge battle or something.”

               “Hah, no. Also, I should mention something. You, sir, are just a normal person. No special powers, no grand prophesies, you’re not a lost angel child. Nothing of the sort. Just an average, ordinary human. I’m just here because I like you.”

               Jack nodded. “I can live with that. Actually, knowing you’re not going to give me a magic sword and ask me to save the world is kind of a relief. I don’t think I’d make a very good chosen hero.”

               “Oh god, you’d be terrible. You can’t even handle a fighting game. I’d never expect you to do the real thing.”

               “Hey! My gaming skills are top notch. I just let you win most of the time.”

               “Uh-huh. Sure you do.” Amber said with a grin. “I’m sure that’s the reason you haven’t beaten me once.”

               “Oh, that sounds like a challenge. Are you challenging me?”

               “I do believe I am.”

               “Well then, you’re on. Just no super angel powers, okay?”

               “Wouldn’t dream of it. You’d never shut up about cheating.”

               The two continued to banter playfully as Jack got everything set up. As the two played together, Jack put a hold on the mountains of questions he still had for her. For now, he was content to just be with her. And it was nice to know that that would not be changing anytime soon, no matter what Amber was.

*************************

 I think it'd be pretty cool to have a girlfriend with magical powers, don't you? Well, as long as she was an actually good person and stuff. Of course, that's the same with even normal women without magical abilities.