Half Moon

From the kid’s point of view, the situation at hand could easily be solved using the traditional method of finger breaking. The young lad with a Diet Coke bottle in his hand, slouched on one leg and gently leaned against the cement cinder block in an all too-casual posture.
The kid, whose actual name was Lonnie Barn, stood directly facing him, arms tightly crossed against his chest to exaggerate muscle and frown curled across his lips. On either side of Lonnie was his back up pose which he labeled “The Pin-Down Boys;” two dopey young men that looked oddly similar without relation. Their shoulders slumped and their eyebrows drooped over glass green eyes. Each wore dusty brown leather jackets and tattered black jeans, with cigarettes nestled above their ears that they never smoked.
Kurt Baxter took a quick gulp from the bottle, ignored the streams of Coke that dribbled down his chin, then adjusted his cap that sat loosely on his hair.

“If you don’t pay, then it’s a no show. I told you already.” He said.

“Nothing doin. How bout you speak up or we’ll snap your knuckles and break your face.” Lonnie said. “Show me what you found and you’ll be able to walk home no problem. Otherwise there’s gonna be trouble.”

The Pin-Down Boys exchanged a quick glance then focused back on Kurt, who showed no obvious sign of intimidation.
He simply maintained his calm persona and adjusted his hat again, as if completely unconcerned to the fact that his hands might be a disjointed mess any minute.

“I told you, I’m not gonna give this thing a free show, its gonna cost ya. Besides, it’s powerful and even dangerous. You don’t know what you’re even asking for.” When he spoke this last sentence, his voice was twined with a sinister tone that made the three boys that loomed over him suddenly uncomfortable.
Kurt took a final swig before tossing the plastic bottle away.

“You can smack me around all you like fellas, but I won’t show it to you, coz only I know where it is and its all up here.” Kurt tapped his skull twice.

Lonnie uncrossed him arms and exhaled through his nostrils, looking around the park they were in as if looking for support. It was empty, except for his own two boys who weren’t proving to be anything special. The little shit with the Adidas cap on had called his bluff, and now it was gonna cost him.

“How much duckweed?” he mumbled, producing a shabby wallet form his back pocket.

“For you, Lonnie, ten bucks.” Smiled Kurt. He still kept the same posture.

Lonnie grunted what might have been an agreement then flipped out a ten dollar bill that he found in a car park on the way home from school, and then slapped it into the open palm of Kurt Baxter.

“You two assholes owe me” He said to his pose. “And this better be damn well worth it, or else I will make sure you’re in a lot of pain.”

Kurt shuffled the money in his pocket then removed his hat altogether, wiped his sweaty brow and replaced it again with the cap.

“It’s worth it. It’s well worth it.” He said, in that same dark voice that he barely recognized as his own. “Now follow me.”

***
Nick Roody felt around the top of his ear to make sure the cigarette hadn’t fallen out during their walk. He rolled back the sleeve of his jacket and flicked his eyes at his watch.
How long had they been walking for? And where were they even going? All he was sure of was that his legs were beginning to buckle and throb, and that was a sure sign of exhaustion.
He didn’t much like the new kid, Kurt or whatever his name was. He was someone that his father would no doubt call a “weird bean.” No one really knew what part of Baresly he was from, and when people asked he would just shrug his shoulders as if he didn’t know either. There was something else about the weird bean that Nick didn’t fancy all as well, and that was his limp. It seemed to go from one leg to the other every ten or fifteen minutes, as if he was messing around with people who noticed it.
And what’s up with this dude’s voice? Sounds like a pit of worms in his stomach or something. He thought, fiddling with his ear again.


They were approaching Nester Road through a steep hill of prickly bushes and webs of tangled vine that seemed to squirm under their feet. From what they could see, the road was lined with parked cars and gracious looking houses with windows that seemed to spy on their movements with dull, empty eyes.
Joe Lester stopped dead in his tracks when he became suddenly overwhelmed with the feeling of disorientation. His heart thumped loudly in his ribcage as a cloud of panic softly gripped him.


“You live out here?” He cried to Kurt, who was hobbling well in front of the rest of them. “Is this where that thing you’re going to show us is? All the way out here?”

“Yeah, all the way out here. Not far to go now.” Yelled Kurt without turning around.

Where exactly here was he was certain that Lonnie and Nick had no idea, and what was the big deal about this thing that Lonnie raved about? It had made a girl from class flip out and take a few days off school, or so the rumor had gone, and that gave Joe a hectic case of the creeps.
Knock it off scumbag, you’re just scaring yourself. He thought abruptly. What are you, a pussy rag or a man? At this thought Joe steadied himself, shrugged off that cloud of panic and continued up the hill.


***

The house at the end of Lester Road was a grim faced structure that was blanketed in what seemed to be a thin layer of grime and dust. Its color was a curdled bone cream that was so intense the group of teenagers who approached it could almost smell its texture.
As they walked, Joe and Nick, better known as the Pin-Down boys, patted down their jeans aggressively to shake off the green matter that had clung on during the climb up the hill.
Lonnie licked his lips repeatedly in anticipation as they halted outside the red door with a rusted gold bell in its centre. His face was puffed and red with greasy sweat.

“You can’t tell a soul about this, you do realize. If you do then I’ll know. It’s a secret that I wouldn’t want spread.” Kurt paused as his hand grasped the equally rusted door knob. His eyes bulged under the shadow of his visar. “Trust me; I’ll know if you don’t keep it to yourself.” He pushed open the door with slight force and stepped inside.

The interior of the house, Lonnie initially thought, was filled with a potent smell that could only be described as that of a brand new car; clean leather and polished dash boards without a single trace of dust. Why this was, Lonnie wasn’t sure or entirely interested. There were other factors about the room which they hustled into that were beginning to sink in. Nick’s face twitched as he entered, then his whole body seemed to shake quickly as if sparked with electricity. The cigarette rolled off his shoulder and fell to his feet without him noticing.

The furniture was out of order to begin with. There was a fridge, a mattress with ripped pillows scattered on it, a large overstuffed sofa and a clothesline all jumbled together in no specific fashion.
Next to a washing machine lay a dog kennel with the name BLED inscribed above the entry in bold red font.

Bled, Joe thought, what an unusual name for an octopus. And at that thought suddenly uttered a harsh shriek of laughter that made Nick and Lonnie give a startled jump.

Kurt, who was seemingly unfazed by the outburst (not to mention the bizarre assortment of furniture) simply sat heavily on the sofa and crossed his legs. As he did, a giant puff of what appeared to be ash blew into the air, swirled majestically for a while, then vanished into the atmosphere that turned crisp and clear again.

“Please, do sit.” He said.

While the others obliged their host’s offer, Joe remained standing with his head tilted to the right and jaw slagging down. His thoughts had become a crossroad of memory and dreams that resulted in a mental kaleidoscope. He could feel his hands tremble but was somehow unaware of it. Each breath he drew took tremendous effort, resulting in loud gasps and drawn out exhalations.

“Looks like your friend has already started to feel its power.” Kurt was saying in a voice that sounded like it was coming from behind a glass wall. “Strange, isn’t it?”

Joe didn’t respond, instead a wide sloppy grin formed on his lips and he nodded very slowly. His eyes were moist and had changed color from green to a dark brown.

“What in Christ’s name is going on here?” Lonnie shouted, alarmed to hear en element of fear in his voice.

“You paid, so I won’t disappoint you. Don’t be afraid, your friend is quite all right. His Liquid Element is just being tossed around a little. Here, let me show you.”

The color had completely drained from Nick’s face and he was beginning to feel pins and needles creep in all over his body. It felt as if his nose were bleeding, yet when he wiped above his upper lip, it was only damp with sweat.

“I dunno bout this anymore. I think I’ll just wait outside.”

“What’s the matter?” Kurt had lifted up one of the raggered pillows that spilled white clumps of cotton and was pulling out a large gray object that looked like a helmet of some description. “What are you, a pussy rag or a man?”

Nick made a desperate attempt to stand up and run, escape the blunder of this house, yet found himself totally paralyzed as if his body had melted into the floor and became part of it.

The item that Kurt had revealed to the three boys wasn’t a helmet at all. It was a half globe no bigger than a soccer ball that was riddled with small holes. He held it with both hands but his expression showed no strain of weight.

“This is it friends. It’s my gift! This is what little Jody Nichols was screaming about all the way home. Like I said it’s pretty powerful, as I’m sure you’re all aware by now.”


“A gift from who?” asked Lonnie. “What does it do?”


“It’s a gift from...” his thoughtful silence was long and empty. “It’s a gift from, let’s just say, downstairs. Hard to explain, harder to believe. Make sense?”

Lonnie tried to shake his head but instead just nodded rapidly.

“What it does is a little easier to understand. Too be honest I’m not fully sure, but from what I’ve been told it’s quite similar to the earth’s moon. If you’re familiar with the works of the solar system, you’ll know that the moon controls the earth’s tide. In fact, it has been said that it even controls the fluid in one’s brain, resulting in behaviour that would not normally be associated a person.” He looked at the object he held so gratefully in his hands with sweet awe. “This is called a “Half Moon.” Whilst no where near the size of the moon that orbits earth, it holds many of its functions.
‘The series of confused emotions you’re experiencing are because of this Half Moon, what its actually doing is pulling the Liquid Element of your thoughts and dragging them to the surface. It’s actually pulling in the tide of your very knowledge and sanity, to put it frankly.”

The room had now started to spin in a fluid rotation that made Lonnie and the Pin-Down Boys taste the essence of their previous meals.

“Why…Why do you have it?” Joe struggled to speak and felt drool dangle of his lips.


“Why? Because I do. That’s why. Like I said, I don’t fully know its capacity but I’m trying to work it out. I’m sure Lufica will use it in the best possible manner.”


Who is he? Nick’s mind screamed, pushing the wild agony of scrambled horrors that purged his thoughts. Lonnie was lying on his back with both with legs shaking violently on the floor while his upper body stayed perfectly still. His lips were smiling but his eyes were not. Joe was no where in sight.

“One thing I have learnt however since the gift of the Half Moon first arrived, is that it can puncture anyone’s chamber of secrets.”


“Why not yours?” screeched Lonnie, as if on his last gasps of breath.


Kurt glared at Lonnie with an expression of deep offense then rolled his eyes in typical teenage manner.


“You have a lot to learn, friend. But don’t be put off by the weight of knowledge. They’ll be plenty of time for all that. Plenty of time indeed.” With that, he squeezed his cap as tight as it would fit and placed the Half Moon beside him with careful ease. “You should be happy; you can have a meal with Lufica and discuss your Hidden Testament. Little Jody was a bit quick of the heel, but her reality will forever be scared by her meeting with the Master. I have to deliver you all to him now, sorry. A deals a deal.”


“How can we get there? Will be go by bus?” mumbled Nick as his final strands of sanity fell apart. Lonnie had also disappeared from the floor.


“Just close your mind and journey through yourself.”

They weren’t in a room any more; they had transferred to giant cage that was made of elephant tusks and eel spines. The brick wall that surrounded it was pink and breathed like thousands of small lungs. The smell of dry untouched leather had changed to a dank mould odour.
Nick’s hand fumbled around his ear frantically in search for the cigarette. He felt only wet hair and cold skin.

A frown creased his mouth and he shut his eyes.