Saint Justine
Saint Justine was the most beautiful woman Aiden had ever seen. With long platinum blonde hair cascading over her angelic shoulders, light gray irises that invited everyone to lose themselves, and soft pink lips, her visage was as soothing as intimidating. She sat on a rainbow-colored carpet, with the symbol of her church, a capital J emblazoned by dragon wings, inscribed on a pedestal behind her, and a porcelain tea set to her right. As he approached her, she started pouring a cup for herself and another for him.
“What brings you to my presence, child?” the enigmatic spiritual leader said with the voice of someone who had truly been blessed by the gods. She didn’t look a year older than twenty and yet her magnetic aura was charged with the weight of several centuries.
Aiden stumbled inside her majestic tent under the watchful eye of three guards clad in black and replied,
“Pain.”
“Pain comes in many forms, child. What is yours and how is it haunting you?”
“My family’s gone. “Aiden received the cup of tea from her perfect hands. “I lost everyone I cared about in the last bombings on our territories. I’ve got nothing to live for.”
“Those who claim such things are often the ones with more reasons to keep on existing than everyone else. Why did you choose to seek me out? What are you hoping to find in my temple?”
“Solace. Deliverance. Something new. I’ve seen your celebrations on TV and heard the words you preach to the meek and lost. I believe you can save me from my darkest impulses and I hope you do so.”
“Ah. If you truly heard my words, then you know that ‘salvation’ is something you must actively seek and not expect anyone to hand it to you. I feel your pain and I’m sorry for your loss but this is not how things work.”
“Please… I beg of you! The pain I’m in is unbearable! I can’t eat, I can’t sleep, I can’t feel a thing except for the call of death. She wants me to join my loved ones but I don’t want to go. I need something to hold on or the abyss will claim me sooner or later.”
Saint Justine parted a strand of hair from her eyes and said,
“Drink your tea, child, and please don’t stop until every drop is gone.”
Aiden followed her instructions, the warm liquid sliding down his throat. It had a delicious tangy flavor somewhat like a mandarin. When he was done, he lay down the cup and said,
“Thank you. It was very good.”
“I’m glad. Child, do you know what’s the greatest cause of pain in our kind?”
“Loss?” he mumbled.
“Memory. It’s not the things or the people we lose that break us from the inside out but the memories we keep of them. They hung over us like shadows and only Time can make them fade away. Normally, I would say to let Time do its work but we live in uncertain times and I don’t believe in coincidences. If our paths weren’t meant to cross, you wouldn’t have come all the way here. Your pain runs deep and so do the threats on your existence, which is why I just gave you a gift.”
“What gift?” he gently scratched the back of his neck.
“Oblivion. As long as you remember, you’ll always be in pain, but if we remove the memories from the equation, then you can become whole again. My flock grows every day. It is my pleasure to welcome you to your new home.”
“Thank…”
He never finished the sentence. Aiden’s eyes went completely blank, the same as his brain. He remained motionless, floating in a peaceful altered state of mind where everything was perfect. In his visions, he saw her on a gold throne far above him, cooing,
“Listen to my voice, child. Now you can thrive. Pledge your allegiance to me, your Goddess, and become who you were always meant to be. Do you wish to be free and productive once again?”
“Yes, Goddess,” he replied.
“Good. I’ll be in your heart and mind forever from now on and it is your duty to make me happy. Your life has meaning now, and that meaning is me. Obey.”
“Yes, Goddess.”
Strong hands lifted his body off the carpeted floor although he was too high to notice. The chief guard took a bow and asked,
“Where do you want this one to go, Saint Justine?”
“He’s strong and has good hands so take him to the copper mines. Make sure his water is spiked at all times during the seven next days so that his thoughts change permanently, and have the next future acolyte enter as you leave.”
“As you desire.”
Saint Justine smirked and prepared another cup of tea. She had hundreds of new souls to enslave before the end of the day.
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