CHAPTER 17: THE MARK OF THE BEAST

**4 hours earlier**



Hendricks slammed the dark mahogany door shut and frantically locked the door. His hands shook as he fumbled with the cords to pull his pale blue blinds shut. Outside, the wind began to pick up.



Hendricks slumped onto the floor and scratched his balding head furiously with both his hands. His mouth twitched nervously as he eyed his apartment.



“Harry? Harry, come here,” he called out in a whisper, afraid to be heard from outside the apartment walls.



A little tennis ball came bouncing towards him from the bedroom and stopped mid-air, just inches away from Hendrick’s face. With a weak smile, Hendricks gently patted the ball. The ball twirled around like a delighted child. It started to bounce again, happy that Hendricks had come home after having left the apartment for so many days. It wanted to play, but Hendricks wrapped his hand around the ball gently. His eyes started to water and he had to use his other hand to wipe away his tears.



“Harry my boy, all these years I’ve been selfish. I’m sorry son.”



Hendricks’ son had died more than two decades ago in an accident. The little boy was riding in his school bus when an oncoming truck lost control and smashed into the bus. It had gone up in flames in a matter of seconds and all that was left were charred bones and ashes of little children. Hendricks could not come to terms with losing his only son and had gone against the law of nature to keep his son’s spirit by his side, in the form of his son’s favourite ball. It had kept Hendricks company ever since.



The ageing man stood up from where he had been crouching. The ball tugged and swirled in his hands, sensing what Hendricks was about to do.



“It’s time to truly let you go. Heaven awaits you.”



The ball shook furiously in Hendricks’ grasp, unwilling to part with him. It wanted to stay by Hendricks’ side, but Hendricks would not have it. With all his might, he conjured the gateway to the rainbow bridge and hurried his son’s spirit to the other realm. He couldn’t even utter the words *goodbye*.



By the time he was done, 3 hours had passed and he was physically, mentally and emotionally drained. Outside, a blizzard began to form, Hendricks knew that his time was almost up and cursed himself for not seeing the black mark on Suzanne’s hand for what it was.



And now it was too late.



He dialled his apprentice’s number. It was an international call to Hans Lee who resided in Seoul, Korea.



Hans answered after the 5th call, “Hendricks! My old man! What’s up?”



Hendricks heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed that the dark matter had not gotten to him yet.



“Listen carefully, Hans. I am sending Suzanne to you, you must protect her at all cost. She is the key to our survival.”



Hans was understandably confused and Hendricks had to explain it to him in detail. Starting from the origin of the mark of the beast.



“Hans, guide her, be her beacon of light in the dark, let her know that not all is lost….and, take care, Hans. I’m proud of you, you've never let me down.”



With that, Hendricks ended the call and blocked Hans’ number. His door was rattling now. He quickly called Suzanne to warn her. There was no running away anymore. The window of opportunity had gone the moment he used up the last of his ailing strength to send his son to heaven’s gate. A tear slid down his cheek.



*At least Harry is alright*, he thought. *That’s what matters the most.*



**Current Timeline**



The black mist began to seep in from under the door as the wind continued to howl and the window panes rattled. Hendricks sat himself down cross-legged, bit into his wrinkly thumb, drew a bloody circle around him and whipped out his metal wand.



“I’m sorry to call you out of retirement, old friend,” he whispered.



Then, like Suzanne, he called upon an ancient spirit, hers, a phoenix, and his, an eagle. The eagle spread its wings and it soared across the room to attack the black mist, pecking and clawing at it with all its might. But at 89, Hendricks was no longer the clairvoyant he used to be, and the spirit of the eagle, which drew its strength from Hendricks was very much affected.



Like a python, the mist coiled itself around the eagle and a featureless face began to form at the tip of the black mist. It opened its mouth and swallowed the struggling eagle whole.



“No…..” Hendricks’ eye widened in horror as he watched his companion and protector of many decades fall before his very eyes. It was too much for the old man to take, but he would not give up. He would not go down without a fight.



As the black mist was consuming the eagle, Hendricks pulled out a silver dagger from his breast pocket and hid it in his palm. As the black mist charged into his protective barrier, he frantically recited an ancient verse. It was an age-old chant of purification. It would not take long for the black mist to break through his barrier. A dull blue glow began to emit from the tiny silver dagger as Hendricks continued to chant.



The moment the black mist broke through the barrier, it plunged straight into Hendricks’ eyes, nostrils, ears and mouth. Hendricks was consumed by an onslaught of pain and a bottomless pit of misery, but he could not scream. The black mist began eating away Hendricks’ soul, disintegrating every single memory he had of his times with his son but just as the black mist was about to devour the last bit of Hendricks’ consciousness, the old man plunged the dagger into his chest. In an instant, both man and mist exploded in a flash of blinding blue light.



Hours later, the authorities would arrive to see old man Hendricks’ body slumped in the middle of his living room. There would be some dried blood and the furniture would be in a disarray. The officers would rule out any external conflicts as his door had been locked tight and an autopsy would reveal internal bleeding from multiple organ failure from an ailing old man. But no one would know that a Hendricks had given up his life to protect the people around him. And no would know that another fellow clairvoyant had fallen.