Michael heard his wife coming before she called his name in a tonal mix of both excitement and condemnation. He hurriedly took a sip of his freshly brewed coffee, burning the tip of his tongue. It was too early in the morning for him to argue convincingly about whatever he was accused of. His charm alone wasn’t enough to prove his innocence, though he tried his best to use it advantageously.

“Have I told you how stunning you look in your Tweety pajamas?” He said, handing Maria her cup. “Two cubes of sugar, just the way you like it.”

“Oh, cut your sweet talk and just take a look at this,” she shoved a piece of paper in his free hand. On it, there was a scribbled black, angry blob with horns being stabbed by a smiling man with glasses and a long coat. On the other side of the blob was a woman doing the same thing, and next to her – a small girl dressed as a princess with a magic wand.

“Is that… us?” Michael looked surprised. “I don’t look that old, do I?”

“Do you know what that means?”

“It means that we have a young Picasso in our house,” he waved the drawing proudly. “I mean, look at this! The kid can only say a few words, yet her drawing skills are on a whole new level!”

“Be serious, darling,” Maria scolded him.

“I know, I know. We need to start watching what we say in front of her; otherwise, we’d have to explain to people what we actually do for a living.”

“Are we going to tell her when she grows up? I hate keeping secrets from the people I love, but what if that puts our sweet girl in danger?”

“We can’t protect her from everything. You’ll tell her when the time is right.”

“Me? You mean ‘us’, right?”

“Come on, Mari. We both know you’ll outlive me. You’re the more experienced exorcist. Me – give me ten years tops, and I’ll start writing my own eulogy.”

“You’re such an idiot,” she laughed, giving him a peck on the cheek. She was too used to his sense of humor to take him seriously.

“I wasn’t joking. This line of work isn’t particularly well known for its longevity. Last week, they found the body of this kid, freshly out of the training program. All of his teeth and fingers were missing. The evil spirit he was sent out to exorcise didn’t just murder him. It relished in his agony. They all do. When we go out there, the best we can hope for is either survival or a dignified death.”

Maria put her coffee on the counter, so she could have a firm grip of her husband’s face when she pulled him towards her. Her eyes were stern, yet possessed a hint of her playful nature.

“I’ve told you before. You’re not allowed to die, Michael. Not until we’re old, and wrinkled, and can’t remember where we put our dentures, and Kristen yells at us from across the living room to take our Alzheimers medicine. We’ll be sitting in our rocking chair, lying on the front porch, on a farm far away from here. Then and only then, I’ll let you pass away in your sleep. Peacefully.”

They locked lips in a kiss. That was a memory from almost two decades ago, one he had long forgotten. He wasn’t aware if he was dead or dreaming, but either way, he wished this moment would never end. But wishes came at a price. As soon as his eyes touched light, there lay the grim reality. Maria’s empty sockets were staring back at him, smoke pouring out of them like a raging furnace, the eerie grin ever present on her face.

Dark clouds swallowed the world around him, drowning every color until there was nothing. Michael knew it was the end. He couldn’t keep his promise to his wife, the sole thing giving him content being the notion that they would be reunited in this tragedy.

The afterlife didn’t turn out to be what he expected. There was an endless white corridor with countless doors facing each other. Was this another illusion conjured up by his dying mind? A woman dressed in a black tuxedo walked up to him. She had a questioning look in her eyes as she glanced at her files and then back at him.

“Not yet,” she said, pushing him.

He fell into yet another endless pit, with all of his senses suddenly flowing back to him – the heavy smell of firewood everywhere; the crackling; voices speaking over each other; the metallic taste of blood under his tongue; the sharp, throbbing pain engulfing him as he attempted to move.

“You’re awake,” he heard Nami say. She was sitting on a chair next to his bed, watching him as if she were ordered to observe him while he was unconscious. “Master, he’s awake.” She tilted her head toward Andrzej, who was slouched over the table with an ice pack pressed to his temple and a nearly burnt-out cigarette between his lips.

“Finally,” said the necromancer. He seemed glad, though through his tired expression it was hard to distinguish any sign of emotion. “Don’t make any sudden movements or the stitches might come apart. I would have asked you what happened, but the jinn already told us.”

“Did you… revive me?” Michael asked, hoping that the answer would be negative.

“Thank God, no. You have no idea how lucky you are. None of the cuts you had were deep enough to reach the organs, even the exorcist knife sticking from your chest didn’t make it to your heart or lungs because the costal cartilage prevented it from going further. I used what I had available in my car to treat your injuries. This stupid place doesn’t even have a proper hospital. Once we return to Denver, I strongly advise you to visit the ER to check if you have any strange pathogens entering your bloodstream. There is only so much I can do with a first aid kit and no mana.”

“Where are we?” Michael looked around, lifting his head slightly to avoid straining his damaged muscles. It was a regular bedroom, with family pictures hanging on the wall and piles of clothes leaking from the ironing board. The amount of dust on the shelves and children’s toys scattered on the floor suggested their host wasn’t expecting any guests.

“This is the house of the people who commissioned Dani to take care of the living dead. Apparently, after that little scoundrel did his little trick on us, he was no longer interested in reviving corpses and undid the necromancy. Undead started dropping like flies everywhere, causing panic to some and relief to others. At least that’s done with.”

“The huntress was right. That boy really was a fake sorcerer or whatever she called them.”

“Yes,” Andrzej sighed, gritting his teeth from the continuous headache. It was a type of pain even someone as sick as him couldn’t enjoy. “Of course, she wasted no time gloating, calling us budale for doubting her. As soon as she sobered up a bit, that moron drove out of town to the hunter’s headquarters. Supposedly, to convince them to send us backup. Part of me wished to see through their exchange and get a good laugh, but I had to stay here in case there were any complications regarding your health.”

“I appreciate your concern.”

“Nothing personal. I took a Hippocratic oath when I became a medical student. I’m obligated to save you even if you were my enemy.”

The exorcist considered that to be his way of expressing cordiality.

“Thank you nonetheless.”

“Don’t mention it. Once you get better, we should discuss how to proceed regarding the teenage trouble-maker,” Andrzej paced around as he searched his pocket for a pack of cigarettes. “You know I’m against killing. Even when he’s a dangerous, power-driven maniac with a proclivity for disaster. I’ve set my mind on prefrontal lobotomy. It’s not ideal, but it is by far the most humane way to neutralize him.”

“I’ve helped you find out who was behind the revivals. That’s what we agreed on. It’s time for you to hold your end of the deal. I have no intention to sink myself deeper into this rabbit hole.” Michael’s expression grew dim, his tone deep with aggravation.

“I don’t think you understand what we’re dealing with, “the necromancer leaned closer, furrowing his eyebrows as if he was interrogating him. “If we don’t deal with this kid now, he can cause the end of the world as we know it. Is that what you want?”

“What do I have to do with this? If you want anyone to help you with stopping the brat, why don’t you ask Daniella for help?”

“She’s just a human.”

“And so am I.”

“A human who has the power of an ancient being under his thumb. I believe that counts for something,” Andrzej smirked, tilting his head. “Besides, Dani has the IQ of a rabbit gorilla. I’d rather suffer from a deadly fungal infection than be on the same team as that psycho.”

The necromancer had a point, as much as Michael didn’t wish to admit it. He witnessed with his own eyes what Oliver was capable of, and the ease with which he took down both him and his partner. One could only imagine what would happen once he had gathered all of the fragments. He feared he would be inevitably pressed to remove more of the golden rings the way he was back at the hotel.

“Where is the jinn?” He asked, mustering the strength to get upright despite the warnings. The smell of nicotine was prevalent inside the room, so he couldn’t trust his sense of smell to figure out if his partner was near. “Are you allowed to smoke in here?”

Andrzej shrugged.

“It’s no problem,” someone said. Standing at the door was a man in his mid-fifties, with a friendly look on his face. His flour-stained apron and name tag suggested he was working as a baker. “You people helped us rid this town of the zombies. The least I can do is show you some hospitality, “he extended his hand to introduce himself. “My name is Kelvin, and I own the bakery downstairs. I’m so glad to see you are finally feeling better. Would you join us for dinner?”

“Dinner?” Michael hadn’t even noticed the sun was about to set. A full day has passed while he was out. His stomach rumbled, letting him know it’s been a long time since he ingested anything. ”With pleasure. Thank you.”

“I must thank you,” the man said, shaking his hand enthusiastically, causing his guest to grimace in pain. “Oh, my apologies. You’re still injured. I shouldn’t be so rough. Stay here and rest; I’ll bring your portion once the food is ready.”

A female silhouette appeared in Michael’s periphery. He could sense the familiarity before he shifted his attention to it.

“Don’t worry. I’ll bring it to him,” it was Maria’s voice, but this time it lacked the cold, apathetic undertone akin to the jinn. In her hand, there was a popsicle. She was dressed in a white pullover and jeans, just like the way she used to when off-duty, but what was most striking and unsettling was the fact that she had eyes. “What’s wrong with you, dear? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Leave us alone,” Michael requested sternly, waiting for the others to exit the bedroom. “What are you playing at? I thought you hated cold fare.”

“I disliked it at first,” the jinn admitted. “But I decided to give it a second chance. I wasn’t very fond of you the first time that we met either, but it turns out you’re not as useless as most humans are. You prove to be very resourceful at times. Did you know there were hundreds of ice cream flavors? Perhaps once I gain my freedom, I’ll try them all.”

“How come you have eyes?”

“Straight to the main question, I see,” the smile on its face was ever so sickeningly calm. “When you allowed me to remove another one of my rings, I was granted the ability to compose optical illusions. “A large green snake wriggled from behind the jinn’s back, twisting around its extended arm before disappearing into thin air. The demonstration was convincing enough to make the exorcist flinch. He was never a fan of reptiles. Something the nefarious being was quite aware of. “What else would you wish to see?” Michael was clever enough not to answer that question, which served the jinn’s amusement. “I’ll miss our silly interactions once we part ways, dear partner. This bond of ours has kept my sojourn in this vessel bearable. I’ve been starting to lack the patience to find a more suitable one. So, when shall the ritual commence?”

“There won’t be one. Not until we catch Oliver. That’s what the necromancer said.”

“That lying ghaddār! I was in my right to say we should threaten him,” the jinn fumed, its eyes once again being replaced by black smoke.

“He is right. We can’t allow that kid to cause more tragedies. I didn’t join the Order to serve my own self-interest. I wanted to help people. That’s what Maria would have wanted.”

“He’s a simple brat.”

“He defeated you with the flick of his wrist. If it weren’t for Andrzej, I could have been dead. So, now not only do I need to work with him because of our deal, I’m indebted to that deviant.”

“Why couldn’t I have been stuck with someone more ruthless? I take my words back about my lack of disdain towards you,” said the jinn with crossed arms, visibly angry. “You humans are all alike. Where is that tiny huntress? She didn’t even bother taking her sword back from me.”

“You still have it?”

“I was instructed to hand it over to the necromancer. She said she would take it from him next time they meet.”

“That’s odd. She seemed particularly distraught when I asked her to lend her weapon to us, and now she’s giving it to a person she despises?”

“Humans are strange indeed.”