The Hero's Conundrum/Chapter 16

Sammael is on his way, one of the most mysterious man I have ever known and well he is apparently an angel I don’t know.

“Markus, let me go to Sammael and talk to him, you won’t be able to defeat him, believe me.”

“Do I have a choice?” he said while still coughing. “We have been planning this for years, don’t take this away from us”

“I’m just trying to help”

“If you want to help, let me at least do this my way” Then I just remembered that Sarah is here, Sammael is not going to do anything that can harm her. I also know that Marcus won’t be able to defeat Sammael and I can always go with him.

“Ok. Do it your way”

Marcus sent most his men to fight Sammael on the way so the town isn’t damaged by the fight. More than ten trucks full with heavily armored soldiers went to meet Sammael and his men, with the intent to destroy them. If Sammael is with them, Marcus doesn’t stand a chance. They were far away but I could still hear the gunshots and explosions. It has been two hours and the fight is still going, I don’t think Sammael is there or it would have ended real quickly. Suddenly everything went silent and there were two trucks coming our way. Marcus and his men stayed alert but no matter what they do or how they prepare, they won’t be able to defeat Sammael.

The truck arrived but to my surprise, Sammael was tied up in the back of the truck. How is this possible? They put a bag in his head and dragged him inside, this seems too familiar, something is about to happen. Then I remembered, the explosion I went running inside and started yelling, telling everyone to leave. But before anyone could react, Sammael was loose and taking Sarah to safety. I went after him but he quickly turned around and shot me and hit me in the shoulder. I kept following Sammael and started yelling to all others;

“Get it out of here, RUN!” but before anyone could move, a bomb detonated.

I did not die but I was badly injured, I walked outside the town limits as best as I could and saw Sammael with Sarah, but Sarah was unconscious.

“Hey you, Sammael, I now you don’t know me yet but we will meet in the future. I’m not the enemy I’m a friend.”

“I know who you are Bansao, or should I call you Marduk?”

“But how do you know that? We haven’t met yet.”

“Let’s just say that I don’t experience time as you do and if you want to end your conflict, you need to learn how to do that too. The funny thing is, that once you learn how to perceive time as I do, you’ll notice that you always knew”

“I don’t understand”

“You won’t and the more I try to explain it, the harder it will be for you to understand. Let’s concentrate on you’re here and now for now. I know you must have questions”

“Yeah, first of all, why did you shoot me?”

“Because I needed you alive, Marcus men were going to kill you and when I shot you in the shoulder, you missed a bullet aimed to your head.”

“Thanks I guess, but why did you let them capture you? You could have easily defeated all of them.”

“That was the option with the least casualties, which will result in me taking over this place with you as my lieutenant”

“Oh ok, I’m starting to understand, let’s do this”

Some time has passed, I have recovered from my injuries and I lead Sammael’s’ army. We started rebuilding and organizing, these people are desperate for leadership so most of them accepted the changes while some of them left. Marcus and Mathew died in the explosion. I don’t think the town will be restores as it was but I now remember this town from the future, where Sarah took me to interrogate me and Bansao. Sammael wants me to perceive time as he does but it gives me a headache thinking of the past, the present, the future, Marduk, me being Bansao now, etc. I was about to go on a mission then I started talking to Sammael again, I keep asking him questions.

“Sammael why did you leave me in the future? After you left I was poisoned and sent to the past, then I became Bansao, but I guess you already know that.”

“Yes I do, and that’s why I did it, this is the only way that we are going to be able to stop all this and leave. I have made many mistakes trying to change the outcome of this but no matter what I change it always ends up a disaster so I’m trying to let things run their natural course this time.”

“I starting to understand now. No matter what I do I end up doing the same things Bansao did.”

“Exactly and that is what I hate about it, because unless you start perceiving time the way I do, this will never end. I came here looking for you and now I understand that you are the only one that can get us out. .”

“How can I achieve that?”

“There is a way but I can’t tell you, you have to find out on your own but soon, someone will give you a hint. You need to understand something, you may encounter me in another place or time and I might fight you in order to let this run its curse.”

“Ok, but can you at least answer more questions that I have?”

“I’ll try! But like I told you before, I might know the answer but if by telling you the answer you can affect adversely the outcome of the future, then I won’t answer.”

“Fair enough”

“Who is Sarah?” He smiles and shook his head.

“Give me your hand”

Once he touched my hand I experienced something strange, like if I was experiencing someone else’s life.

Wait, I am inside Sarah’s mind and I can se what she sees and even hear her thoughts. I remember this day.

I saw Marduk’s men waiting outside the cave and signaled Sammael so he could leave. Then me and my men gassed all the others and entered the cave where Marduk was talking with Bansao as Sammael told me. I told my men to take them both and they put a bag in their heads, then took them. I was really nervous but I had to act tough, both of them are the most powerful men I have ever known. We took them to my old village which we are trying to rebuild, but until this Bansao thing is over, we can’t do shit. I took them to a room and Sammael stayed outside, we were dressed with the old uniforms that the local police used, to scare them. But before I entered the room I talked to Sammael about Bansao’s condition.

“Bansao doesn’t look good”

“I know, he is badly wounded, but is a risk we need to take. Try not to let him die, but act tough and remember all we need to figure out which one I’m supposed to take.”

“I understand Sir”

“Sarah please I’m your brother, call me sir only on front of people, it feels weird”

I smiled and entered the room with a knife in my hand to intimidate them then took the bags of their heads. And Marduk asked “What is going on Sarah?”

“I was about to ask you the same thing. I’ve been keeping an eye on you and you have been keeping some secrets from us”

We talked a while about Bansao and John, because John have been missing and whoever knows about John, is the one that Sammael needs to take back to his kingdom. I have no idea why but I trust Sammael. I think Bansao died, I failed, so I started teasing them about John;

“I’ve been keeping an eye on all your people and it seems you don’t really know any of them. Especially John, everyone seems to have a secret, except John, right? WRONG! In fact John never had a family John is. . .”

Suddenly Bansao woke up cut his rope with a strange knife, pushed me away from Marduk and said, “I am John” then stabbed Marduk in the heart and fell on the floor still tied to the chair. Bansao started attacking the guards, how could he stand with both knees shot is beyond me, but he is one tough motherfucker.

Suddenly the door burst open I thought it was Sammael but it was Marduk. How? I was going to stab him then he said;

“Stop Sarah, it’s me”

“What? How?”

“I’ll explain later, I need to take Bansao, please let me go.”

“No, I don’t believe you. You are not Marduk, who are you?”

Then Sammael entered the room and said:

“Yes Sarah that is Marduk”

“General! I wasn’t expecting you here today”

Then Marduk asked him “Sammael what the fuck is going on?”

“Relax Marduk, you are safe” Then he pulled a gun and killed Bansao I don’t know why. Did he get the information he needed? Marduk was mad.

“Why did you do that, I needed him”

“Don’t worry you will find them again, now let’s talk. Sarah please close the door and tell the guards not to interrupt us.”

I did as he told me and they started talking, about the village explosion, but I don’t remember Marduk being there? Well to be hones I don’t remember much. Sammael made up a story about Bansao being a lieutenant here. But then turned at me and said;

“Sarah I did not order you to capture Marduk and for that I am now in his debt. Prepare the men, we are going to join Marduk and his people in the fight against Bansao.”

“Yes sir.” He is an idiot, but I can act too.

“Permission to speak freely sir”

“Speak”

“I’m sorry for my insubordination”

“Don’t worry Sarah, after tomorrow everything will change.”

I left with a smile and let them talk, Sammael told me there is a big fight coming and I need to get ready and listen to Marduk. The fight arrived and I couldn’t believe my eyes Bansao and Marduk were too fast to follow with the eyes, then Marduk asked me to help him and shoot Bansao, but he was shot as well, he wanted to get rid of Bansao once and for all. Then he won, we celebrated and later I went to talk to him.

“Marduk, that fight was really impressive, are you sure you are ok?”

“Yeah I’m fine how about you?”

“I’m fine, I need to talk to you. I want to have my own place like I did before Bansao”

“You want to leave?”

“Is not that I want, is just that I think that it would be faster for the world to get back on track if those of us with leadership, goes their own way. Of course, we will be helping each other.”

“That is wise Sarah, there is much of Sammael in you”

“Yeah I know”

“Is ok Sarah, Joseph told me the same and John said that he wanted to talk to me, I guess is about the same.”

“Thanks Marduk”

“No Sarah, thank you. You have done a lot and you know what, you don’t have to act tough, you are the toughest woman I know”

“I know” and I smiled.

I left knowing that everything will be all right. Marduk announced that Joseph and I will be leaving to make our own camps but John was going to look for his family alone. I know that is not true, Sammael told me he doesn’t have a family at all. I left and some of the people came with me and we went to my old village and my plans are to rebuild it, I trust Marduk and we both can help each other. When I got to the village I saw Sammael waiting for us.

“Hey you”

“Hey! So you decided to come back, good choice, I knew you would.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s what I would have done and you have too much of me in you?

“Yes brother, you trained me well”

“About that, we need to talk”

“Hehe don’t worry I figured it out, you are not my brother, I know”

“You knew, for how long?”

“I have always know, but to me you have always been a brother and nothing will change that.”

“That is good to know, we are not brothers but we are connected in ways you can’t imagine. But first I needed to tell you that I found out who I need to take to my kingdom”

“Who?”

“Marduk and Bansao”

“I thought it was only one person”

“It is, Marduk and Bansao are one and the same”

“What? How can that be?”

“Well the king that banished Marduk and Bansao here, is really powerful and split him in two so he wouldn’t be able to come back. I wanted them to join forces to end the conflict and figure out which one of them I needed to bring back. During their final fight I noticed that they were one and the same and I need to join them but I don’t know how.”

“I have so many questions, why was he banished? Why are you trying to take him back? Why. . .”

“Wait Sarah! You need to find the truth on your own because if I tell you, you won’t believe me.”

“I trust you, I will believe anything you say”

“This is different, try to meditate and concentrate, try remember how you got here, who are your parents, where were you before the village explosion.”

“But. . .”

“You have a scar on your knee before the explosion, how did you get it? Try to remember that”

“Ok”

I know where I came from, or do I? Damn I really don’t remember anything before the explosion. Not even my parents, but why didn’t I think of this before? Ok I’ll concentrate I showed my people around and told them to look for places to stay and that I will be resting for a while in my room. I closed all doors and laid in bed. Then I started trying to remember my past. The first thing I remember is Sammael taking my hand and taking me away from the village after a big explosion, but it seems that there was nothing before that. I already had a scar, I fell on my knee, but why the scar is so big? It must have been from very high, yes I remember, I fell but from where? I remember now falling from the sky but I don’t feel like myself, was it from a plane? I have to think back. I remember something a fiery place, a portal, I entered the portal but it is not me I’m someone else and . . .

Whoa! Now I understand and I remember everything. I am Azrael.