Open Your Eyes and Gaze Upon Reality

Now is the time to tell the world the truth. Now is the time to open up the world’s eyes. Now is the time to take our fate back into our own hands. Now is the time to break free from their control. I will not back down from this confrontation. I will not fear for my life and take their cowardly offer. Today I will triumph or die!
Today, May 13, is the day when everything will change. Four heavily armed guards come to take me from my cell. One holds the key to my cell door and the others have their stun guns ready. Their hands tremble as I read the fear and disgust written over their faces. Nothing else about them matters to me, because they are fools who still do not see the truth. The first guard opens the door and I am led out of my cell. I am slowly escorted out of the jail walls to a waiting van. The guards are anxious and try to hurry me along.
“Stop moving so slowly, you piece of shit! Do you even realize what you have done? My sister went to that school and you killed her. Do you hear me? You killed her!” The words escaped rapidly from the first guard’s mouth. He started to tremble with rage. With every syllable spoken, his fury increased until he seemed to be possessed by the spirit of wrath itself.
“Perhaps I could move faster if you removed these chains,” I smugly replied.
“You think you’re funny; you think you’re funny! You monster, don’t you have an ounce of emotion left in you? How dare you make a joke when my sister is in her grave!” It is at this point that the guard lost all sense of discipline. He drops what he was holding and leaped on top of me. After bringing me to the ground, he went berserk. He kept on punching me repeatedly in my face screaming incoherently.
“Larry, stop. You’re going to kill him.”
“Yeah man, you are going to be in deep shit if you don’t stop.”  
“I don’t care. My sister is dead and this bastard killed her. I don’t care what happens to me. Just let me kill him! If I don’t then Sarah won’t ever lie in peace. Let me avenge her, I need to kill this demon now!”
While the guards fought among themselves, I slowly rose from the ground and analyzed my physical condition.  The damage to my body was minimal. The skin on my face received external damage only. The estimated effect on my combat performance is zero. The guard who attacked me, Larry kept on screaming about killing the demon. After ten seconds of his slander, I snapped and coldly said, “I am no demon. Don’t you dare call me a demon ever again! By the way, learn some self-control. Your lack of it only serves to make you even more pathetic than you already were.” Larry muttered under his breath and started panting like a diseased animal but when asked if he could control himself he grunted a yes. Then, we continued our journey to the waiting van. After another minute of walking, we reached our destination where a new set of guards rudely shoved me into the back. We then started our long drive to the courthouse where my enemies were attempting to commit a mockery of justice.
After an hour of driving, we arrived at the courthouse. It was a tall, imposing building with gothic pillars. The whole thing was a sickly white color. The building jutted into the sky and appeared a monstrosity, a defilement of nature. Even the sun would not shine down on this place. If a building could have expressions, this one would have a look of hunger in its eyes. I did not like that lean, hungry look in its eyes. A black fog oozed out of the cracks of the windows and doors. There was not a living creature in sight. People walking their dogs on the sidewalk looked surprised when the dogs ran in fear from the building. Perhaps they wouldn’t be so surprised if they actually used their eyes. No, I can’t get discouraged, that is what I am here for. I will make it so they see the truth.
I am led into the courtroom and listen to the attorneys argue. The defense lawyer is a public defender, I refused to hire a lawyer to represent me and I was denied my request to represent myself due to my “insanity.” Arguments were flown back and forth; legal precedents were invoked and gainsaid.
“Your honor, the defendant is clearly innocent of the charges of illegal possession of explosives and their use. Six crime labs, the best in the country analyzed the blast scene and not one could identify the type or source of explosives. The explosion was clearly an unforeseen accident that has nothing to do with my client.”
“I object,” the prosecutor loudly proclaimed.  Then after several hours of uninteresting legal procedures, the prosecuting attorney calls me to the stand. I am sworn in and I make sure to put emphasis that I will tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Then I pause for a moment to consider what words I can say to have them open their minds and realize the truth. With a deep breath I begin, the Rubicon is crossed and it is time to see if I am Caesar or if I am Pompey.

“Ever since I was born, they have been watching me. I am never alone; I can’t ever relax because if I do, they will strike. They hide their form from the eyes and they conceal their influence as they control our lives. But not me I see them and I won’t be controlled. I will have my revenge for what they have done to me.
I was born to a pair of loving parents who, unfortunately, were not able to understand me. When I was, around five years old I started to tell my parents about the creatures that visited me and conversed with me. Their attitude was condescending when they told me that I was only imagining things. I repeatedly tried to show them that they were wrong, but they would not listen.
Then the creatures that appeared to me no longer wanted to talk. They tried to kill me. Every night they would come and attempt to steal my life away. Every night I fought them off but it strained my health and I soon contracted pneumonia. After repeated telling the hospital staff about the root of my problems, I was brought to a psychiatric ward for testing. They said that I had at the age of seven, Childhood Onset Schizophrenia; that I was paranoid and hallucinated. That is a lie but I took the drugs given to me so to gain my parents trust and convince them of my sanity.
This plan backfired for the drugs only made the attacks worse. For three years, I was switched on and off medications with the same result for every single medicine taken. Soon I could barely move and the nightly assaults were barely warded off. It was soon apparent that the doctors were sided with the demons that appeared in the night. I tried to tell my parents but they cruelly refused to believe me and insisted that I stay on the medicine. I don’t blame them for that; they were blind, just as all of you are. I didn’t realize this but the next day would be the one that changed my life.
My parents were bringing me on a routine trip to the doctors. I was to be evaluated for possible use of yet another drug. I can remember everything about that trip. The sun shone furiously down on the world, the wind howled like the screams of the damned and behind every corner, I would see a shadow disappear when we came close. Soon I felt a blanket of fear descend over me. My body started to sweat, my breathing increased and I started to panic. My mind shut down and I couldn’t move; all I could do was watch what happened next.
A large oil tanker was coming down on the other side of the road. Just when my parents were about to pass it, the tanker swerved into us. Both vehicles flew off the road and I blacked out when the tanker exploded. When I awoke, I saw it; I saw it in the flames. A massive shape of maliciousness, fear incarnated, a demon. It stretched twenty-feet with glowing red eyes. A huge, vicious sword was in its right hand. Wings of pure night cloaked its form. The demon stood in the flames and laughed. It was then that I realized that I had a huge gash in my side that was pumping out blood. My vision grew dizzy, the world started spinning, and I saw no more.
I woke up a month later in the hospital. The doctors told me that I would never walk again. That was unacceptable! I realized while lying in that bed that my parents’ death was an accident. I was the true target and if I could not walk, then I might as well lie down and die. For months I practiced mind over body techniques, I refused to give up. After six months of struggling to master my body, my efforts finally bore fruit. At first all I could do was wiggle my toes, but after many hard months of physical therapy I could walk again. It took another eight months before I had fully regained my mobility and I felt confidence in my health. I decided on June 6, 1998 that I was ready for the next step in my plan to avenge my parents and destroy the aberration I saw that fateful day.
During the time that I was recovering use of my legs, acquaintances of my father sued the company that operated the truck that killed my parents in the “accident.” They won for me a small fortune in damages worth forty million dollars. This money was put in a special fund to pay for my living expenses and education. However, their “charity” did not extend very far. They were willing to sue someone for me, but not willing to shelter me. Since I had no living relatives and no one wanted to take me into their home, the state appointed a guardian to watch over me in my home. My guardian does not matter to my story. She never did anything for me and was an invisible mat in my house. I was able to carry out my plans without any interference from her.
The first thing I did was stop taking the poison the doctors were feeding me. Of course I hid this from them so that I didn’t draw their attention towards me. I then hired instructors to train me in the art of combat. I dedicated myself to the goal of avenging my parents. I did not care how long it would take; I swore an oath that I would kill the demon that slew my parents. I used the money from my lawsuit to pay for instruction in Tang Soo Do, swordplay, and firearms. Over the course of eight years I became a master marksman. My favorite weapon was my twelve-gauge Mossberg shotgun. I became a first rate swordsman with my specialty being the bastard sword. The swords name is Dubhlainn, it has a three foot blade, with a midnight black enamel coating it. Made of steel, the finest quality available, it was perfect. We bonded on first sight and I knew this was the weapon that would free me from my doom. I achieved the rank of third degree black belt in Tang Soo Do.
With my eyes relentlessly fixed on my goal, my years in school flew by. People did not matter, grades did not matter, and all that had value was my goal. However, as hard as I tried, I could not find my foe. For eight years I saw nothing, not even a shadow out of the corner of my eye. I became more and more frustrated. At the age of eighteen, my guardian departed and my training was complete but still I saw nothing. Then one day my enemy came to me.
That night I had a vision of what was to come. I saw a demon in my school. It was massacring everyone in sight. My body lay on the ground with my entrails trailing behind me. Then the vision quickened and the future flew by me in a blur. I saw the whole world consumed in fire with a sea of white corpses on the ground. I awoke covered in sweat, my heart was pounding and my skin was red where the flames had touched me. I knew that tomorrow, everything would change. I swore that I would not be defeated. I did not fear my own death; I only feared failure.
I meditated throughout the night, I purged my mind of extraneous thoughts, and I focused all my mental and physical energy towards my goal. When the sun rose above the sky, I was like water. My vision was clear and I would not veer away from my goal. I put my combat outfit on, consisting of dark blue pants and a dark green top. Functionality, not comfort, was what these clothes epitomized. I strapped my bastard sword, Dubhlainn, to my side. My shotgun was slung over my back, fully loaded. Combat daggers were hidden in my boots. A dark black cloak sat on my shoulders, concealing my weapons. I looked in the mirror and I saw myself not as I appeared to others but how I truly was. Others saw me as a young man who stood five feet and eight inches tall. They saw my jet-black hair and icy blue eyes. They saw my physical form but not my soul. If they truly looked they would see that a rage burned inside me. They would see hatred that required only a single spark to ignite and burn me away. They would see someone who sacrificed everything, so that he could get justice. If people could see me as I was, they would run because people simply can’t see each other’s true selves. They could only see the flesh, and that is why they were pawns of the demons. If they could not see who they really were, than how could they see the world as it truly is?
I walked to school that day. A dark cloud hung over the sky. The closer I came to my destination, the darker the sky became. Animals ran away from the direction I was going. Pets that were tied down made not a sound. They sat deathly still as if they were hiding from a great eye that looked down from the sky. When I finally reached my school not a soul stirred. The wind did not blow; there was an unearthly stillness in the air. The Sun was faint and looked away. The world waited and the next play was mine to make.
I felt once again the same inexplicable fear as the day my parents were murdered. My limbs trembled, I could not think, every cell in my body tried to run away. I was cold and soaked in sweat; I could not move forward. For one hour I waited, rooted to the spot where I stood. The buses came and students were dropped off and went to class. Yet still, I remained where I stood. Finally, I started to move forward. Every step was a battle and every foot was a war. A thousand Earths weighed down on my shoulders but I kept rolling on. I unleashed my rage. Who was I to stand here while my enemy waits? I trained eight years for this moment; will I just let it pass by? Will I let my parents’ murder go free? No! I couldn’t stop here; I had to keep moving. Step by step I inched closer to the building as the air was ominously still.
The halls of my school were empty and all the students were in class. I had no trouble knowing where to go. A dark mist drifted along the ground towards the place where the demon would surely be found. I followed the mist. My sword was loose in its scabbard; my shotgun was loaded and ready for use. I could do nothing more than what was already done. All I could do was believe in myself and fight.
I entered the courtyard and saw what at first appeared to be a normal human being. I quickly realized my error. The longer I stared at him, the less human he became. Skin was replaced with scales, teeth with fangs, nails with claws and it was constantly immolated in a black flame. The ground underneath him was scorched, the plants withered and air was full of the stench of death.
“I am glad you came Aidrian. I have been waiting for this moment for a long time. Are you ready to finish what we started eight years ago, or will you beg me for mercy?”
“I need no mercy from you, demon. Your mercy would require me to quote rather than think. Your mercy would have me supplicate myself onto you. I refuse! If anyone would put their hand on me to govern me, than they are a usurper and a tyrant. You seek to control me, therefore I declare you my enemy. I will have vengeance for what you have done to me! I will give you death so that my parents can sleep in peace. I will destroy you so that never again will anyone suffer.”
“Your confidence is misplaced if you think you can defeat me. You speak of killing me when it is you who wishes to die. You wish to join your parents’ slumber. I shall grant your wish, Aidrian, and bring you to them. Just stand still and it will all be over soon.”
“You lie demon; all that spews from your mouth is filth. I tire of your chatter, let’s end this now.”
“What you desire, I shall grant. Now prepare to embrace your doom. All you can do is die. I am faster than you, stronger than you, smarter than you. How can you even dare hope that you can win?”
“It is true, compared to you I am slow and compared to you my strength is feeble. You are the ocean and I am just a pebble, how can I hope to win? Is that your question? The answer is quite simple, as long as I draw breath, I will not give up. I will keep fighting with my heart, mind and soul. I will hold nothing back and it is because I am human that I shall be victorious. Revenge Aidrian, revenge; Revenge I shall have! Now die, demon!”
With those words I drew my shotgun from my back and the demon charged. I had passed the point of no return; there was no turning back, only one of us would survive this fight. Failure was not an option.
I charged forward toward my foe. Shot after shot I fired at him but for each and every shot I fired, he dodged to the side. After four shots, the demon and I were face to face. With his arm high in the air, he brought it down to rend my flesh with his claws. Sidestepping his attack, I moved behind him, flipped my shotgun over my shoulder and fired. Yet this too missed and we started spinning back to back in a circle, neither one of us able to face the other to strike. My clothes started smoking as his aura of flame started to blaze into an inferno of black fire. I put my shotgun in the holster on my back and drew my sword. Rapidly changing direction, I spun around and slashed downward towards the demon. I thought I caught him off guard but I proved sadly mistaken. He stepped under my attack and replied with a slash at my jugular. Only years of training saved my life as I sprung back, barely missing a mortal blow. Even so, I had a cruel gash on the side of my neck, which gushed out blood. I had to finish this now; with each and every minute my combat performance would go down fifteen percent. If this fight continued then I would die and all would be for naught.
“Now you see, Aidrian. Your struggle is hopeless. Give in and I might just kill you quickly and put you out of your misery.”
“I would rather die fighting than except your “compassion.” Give me not your pity; I shall not be mocked with your words of mercy! I shall accept nothing and bestow upon you death!”
“You might be ready to die, Aidrian, but what about those I have bound to this place? Two thousand human lives exist in this place and all are in my hands. If you refuse to die, I shall kill them one by one. You must learn your place; you are nothing but a filthy dog. There is nothing you can do to defeat me, a superior being. Face your fate and submit.”
“You only prove your own cowardice, demon. I shall not be swayed by your threats. Even if I surrendered, what guarantee would I have of their safety? I would be a fool to trust the word of a demon. I tire of your words, I’ll have your life, speak not against me; I have sworn an oath that your life will end here. I’ll not be made a soft and dull-eyed fool by a demon’s mercy. You called me a dog, then beware of my fangs. This day shall grant me justice.”
With Dubhlainn in hand, I leaped forward and brought my sword down through my foe. I cleaved him in half and watched him fall to the ground. But to my astonishment the demon laughed.
“Did you think I would die so easily? Did you honestly think it was over? Ha, you are more foolish than I gave you credit for. Now it is time for you to perish from this world”
That voice, full of malice, came from above me. The illusion of his form on the ground disappeared like mist and I gazed up to see him flying in the air. With his wings flapping, holding him twenty feet in the air, the demon began to focus. His aura condensed into a ball of flame, which he launched into the nearest building. He smiled as the place was consumed in a firestorm. I knew in my heart that no one survived the holocaust within. A burning anger filled my soul. A rage born of pain and suffering awoke from my mind. It had one desire, to kill what woke it from its slumber. Every second reminded the rage of what it was and that knowledge was a brand upon it. I screamed with the voice of a beast, sheathed my sword, drew my shotgun and fired. I ran sideways, forwards, backwards, never stopping my assault. The demon dodged every shell fired and counter attacked with his unholy powers. Each explosion was an agony, my skin started to melt but still I would not give up. I realized he was toying with me. I could die whenever the whim struck him. He could incinerate the whole plain I stood upon if he wished. This only infuriated me more. I did not sacrifice eight years of my life to be treated as a demon’s plaything. I stowed my shotgun and drew my sword. The demon mocked me but I heard not his words. I did not think about my actions, I just focused, my rage flew into the air and so did I. My body rocketed up as I assailed the demon. I could see the surprise in his face as I flew in for the kill. He blocked my strike but I could then see the dread in his eyes.
“How is this possible? It can’t be, it is impossible.”
“I already told you demon, nothing will stop me. My rage has taken wings, my soul is sundered and I am harvesting the hatred inside me to strike you down. I care not what happens to me in this life or the afterlife. All that matters is your demise!”
With these words, our final exchange of blows began. Each and every slash thrown was parried; every stab was dodged. Move for move we matched each other in a graceful dance of death. The demon then rocketed high into the air and then abruptly plummeted back down towards me. An inferno twisted around him, a tornado of dark fire wrapped around him. I couldn’t dodge, all I could do was hold my sword up high and block the best I could. He crashed into me as a meteor impacts the ground. My clothes burst into flame and I could not see. Faster and faster we fell, I knew his mind. He would hurtle me into the ground, breaking my bones and letting the explosion of flame consume my flesh. Nothing would remain, not even my ashes. I couldn’t die this way! With all my mental energies I summoned forth every ounce of rage, anger and hatred I could. I burnt away the years of my life for the strength I required. I felt for once in my life truly alive. My flesh was reborn, my vision restored and I knew what to do. I shoved my aura into his and our descent slowed. The demon redoubled his effort and started to push me back, just as I hoped. Abruptly I stopped my attempt and effortlessly shifted to the side. The demon made contact with the ground and destroyed all that was around him. I dove straight through the hellfire and cleaved him in two.
“Impossible! How could I lose to you, a mere human?”
“You lost because I am human. I fought without regard to my life; you sought to preserve yours. You fought not to lose and I fought to win. That is why I defeated you. Now I will give you the gift of nothingness. Tell your compatriots that I shall awaken this world and your reign shall end. You have wronged me and I will have justice for all the deaths you caused. I shall not show mercy, if this battle doesn’t end this war, then it is not a victory. Namarie, Demon!”
I slowly drew my shotgun and it burst alive in power. I shot and the demon was no more. The shell impacted its flesh and it melted away under the force of my power.
“Mom, Dad, you can rest in peace now. The demon that ruined our lives is dead. I hope that you can smile now and approve of what I have done. So much I have lost but I have finally found peace of mind.”  
I slumped to the ground and let the night overtake my mind. I woke up in a hospital bed, still alive. It was there that I heard that I was on trial for the murder of my fellow students. I know that is false, I know who is behind this. The demons’ hands are obvious in this whole affair. You have been commanded to turn me into another Dreyfus. I shall not have it! You must realize, even when your eyes are closed, there is a world out there that you fear. You must embrace this fear and move beyond it. Only then can you be free. I rest my case.”
The prosecutor stepped forward and made his closing arguments. He said I was mad, I used explosives to blow up the school, and I was having delusions of grandeur. He said that I should die for my sins; he said that the only demon was me. His slander continued as he destroyed my reputation. My reputation, oh, I have lost my reputation. I could see the black strings moving the demon’s puppet. How delicate their manipulation so even the pawns suspect not. I could see that the jury had decided long before I spoke. Their verdict was set in stone and written in blood. The prosecutor stopped his lies and asked the jury for justice. Justice, I see no justice. Justice, justice, and justice I pursued. Justice for my parents murder and I am put on trial for it. He dares mention the word justice!
“How do you find the defendant?”
“Innocent by reason of insanity.”
“I am sane; it is you who are insane. I dare to open my eyes and I see cowards and groveling slaves. I broke my chains and I shall break yours. I shall open your eyes and the truth shall be told. I will not rest until the world’s eyes have been open! You cannot stop me! I shall not give in even if the whole world sides against me!”
Two months have passed since that day. The world sleeps but I do not. I feel the fire burning in my veins. I hear my Dubhlainn’s call. The power I wielded that day the demon died returns to me. I shall continue to walk on the path I have chosen but no longer for revenge. No longer will I fight out of hatred or regret. I fight so that the innocent suffer not, even if they don’t believe me, I will protect them still. I swear that never again will I let a demon run free. I will destroy them all so that no one will die. The innocent will not be led onto trains and led into the furnaces; Never Again!