Harker's vision changed into that blank white world again. Endless snow everywhere. But this time, he wasn't overwhelmed by it. He coexisted with the silent chaos. Acquiesced to it.
He was back to sitting in that tea party, but there were only two chairs. There was no food, only black tea. The monster sits in front of him with its priest clothes, the face of a native boy, and the demeanor of a pretentious gentleman.
A monster that was made from his SS cells. It can take on any form because it does not have a body. It consumes and consumes, but in the end, it's just a bunch of living cells.
"I may be disappointed with your choice, but not with your will. In fact, I'd say I'm impressed. You recovered faster than I would have expected." He said, drinking from his cup with a raised pinky.
"How much of it was lies?" Harker gritted his teeth. "And how much of it….. Were their true memories?"
The man did not answer, more interested in looking fancy with his tea.
"Blank, Ahanu and the village….. They died a long time ago. Probably in the 1800s. The wendigos ate them. And the wendigos died too with nothing to eat."
The man chuckled. "They have perished, yes. But not because of hunger, no. In the late 19th century, a group of researchers found them barely 'alive' and hiding in caves. They would have died of starvation eventually, but these researchers simply made it faster. In the morning, their poor weak bodies were feasted on by wild rats, birds, wolves….. and of course, insects."
Harker frowned. "And these researchers were from Victoria's group, am I right? They kept the bones of both the wendigos and the villagers?"
He recalled that memory now. The memory of one of the researchers who was with her, and died of old age. His body too was preserved for experimentation.
Harker recounted the small details that don't match up:
"That means that Blank couldn't have learned about the Big Bang theory. His teacher Erik wouldn't have known that. And it doesn't make sense for him to have taxidermied the children either. Taxidermy takes months to finish, and yet he just kept on setting taxidermied children to their beds the day after he killed them?"
Harker rubbed his forehead. "I should have known by then."
"So why would Blank suspect that he had been eating the children's insides in the first place? How did he get chased by the wendigos?" The demonic priest asked.
Harker tried to rationalize it. "Blank hearing about the wife revealing Erik's past…. That's real. I'm sure of it. So Blank knew he was a wendigo even without the taxidermy, and….."
Eureka, it came to him. "He had always known that there were wendigos in the colonizer's army. Cannibals that gained strength after eating people. Erik was taken in by the army, and they must have been aware that this child became like them. Otherwise, why would they take in a child of their enemies?"
"You'd make a decent detective." The man chuckled. "Just like that man who learned about my case with Charlotte by getting into my head."
"You lied, you fucking bastard." Harker slammed his fist on the table. "You take the bodies of others and create creatures that don't really exist. You led us to a worthless journey, and it all began when you lied that we had been in comatose for more than 2 months. When really, it's only been 3 weeks."
"Time is relative, as Albert Einstein said." He simply said. "It is a construct made by how we humans perceive it."
Harker scoffed. "An insane priest that could not stop spouting God and the Bible, now quoting a scientist."
"But I'm not a priest." The man smiled. "Not anymore. Can't you see I have the face of Ahchuchwahauhhatohapit?"
"You're not him. Don't disrespect the dead by claiming their identity." Harker clenched his fist.
He knew that even if he punched or killed this man, there was no use. This was inside his mind.
Those worms had all entered his body, and he fell into this nightmare again. But at least the bodyguards would only be facing the danger of the cold blizzard, and not this... this parasite.
"I am him. I am also Ahanu. I am Josephine Jones. I am the wendigo that ate the two brothers. I am their mother. I am the tribal chief. I am a policeman that got lost in the woods." He smiled. "I am all of them, everything. Multiple. Not just a parasite."
"Parasites, then." Harker's eyes burn with pure hatred.
"I prefer Legion. And besides, why must you be so cross with me? I have fed on the bodies of others, and became them. Isn't that what you also do?" He tilted his head to the side. "You are technically my father, you know. And I am your child. So it is quite impolite of me to call you 'son' or 'lad', I apologize—"
"You may have been a part of my body once, nothing but a bunch of cells. But I would never consider you to be related to me." Harker said. "So don't go around calling me Daddy."
"But aren't you fascinated by my existence? I am a miracle, Harker Jones!" He spread his arms wide. "I wasn't born, I was created. By Victoria, using your divine abilities. I am a part of you, and now we have come together again. A new creature comes into existence all thanks to you. Just like how God created Man in His image."
"Where is Victoria?" Harker gritted his teeth. "Tell me now before I get rid of you forever."
Legion laughed, several voices layered on top of each other as he did. "I was expecting that already. You could easily destroy me, just from pure will. But I never came to kill you, Father. I am only keeping my Mother safe. I only wanted to distract you."
Harker was quite done with this bunch of corrupted SS cells' bullshit. "WHERE. IS. VICTORIA?! If you won't tell me, I'll prod your memory myself! You're in my head now, which means what memories you carry, no matter whose it was, was also mine."
"That is true, but it took you so much pain and effort just to take me out. You can't bear the prodding." Legion said confidently. "Like when you were a little baby in my arms, crying from being prodded by the doctors to check your reaction. You were so adorable back then—"
"51.5070° N, 0.0919° W." Harker said. "London, The Clink Prison. Thanks for nothing. I had actually been focusing on this ever since you went inside my headspace. I was just distracting you too."
Legion's smile faltered. "No, don't go yet! There is still so much to discuss on what was real and not, Father! Let's have some tea and get to know each other!"
He clung to Harker's arm desperately. "Reality could simply be one man's dream and he does not even realize that he is dreaming. So he dreams forever and ever. When will he wake up, Father? When will—"
Harker focused on returning to the real world, the black worms going out of all the holes in his body. His eyes, his ears, nose, mouth, even his skin pores…..
The black worms were now back out into the open, which caused concern to the humans that aimed their flamethrowers to incinerate them.
But they formed once again, this time as a giant serpent with a Blank's face.
"Fine, then." Legion's forked tongue slithered. "But I will still put up a fight, whether you are my Creator or not. Victoria is still the one who purposefully gave me existence."
Harker just grinned, grabbing a flamethrower from one of the surprised bodyguards who had no idea what was going on. He aimed it towards his 'child', this twisted and dark creature born from him.
"And I am the one who will purposefully destroy that existence."
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