The Legend Of The Saints - Chapter 1

Legend of the saints by Mescopaul 

MSSE©2014 - Mescopaul Short Stories Edition
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be
copied, reprinted, photocopied, re-sold or re-written without
prior permission from the author and MSSE.
All personalities, plays, events or actions are fictitious and
any resemblance to actual events, place, action or persons
are purely coincidence.

Introduction

This work (as regards to the tittle) has nothing whatsoever
in connection with the Biblical/religious SAINTS, hence has no relation to the Christian faith.

Chapter 1

THE clouds rumbled incessantly, as the lightening sent bright
flashes and the thunderclaps threatened the old family
house. Allen has just put off their supper plates and shut
down the window panes while outside the rain drizzled on
with its troop of thunder , lightening and harsh wind.

Grandpa feeling gay after the delicious supper squatted
easily on the floorboard beside the fire that was blazing on
furiously wedding off the stubborn cold that invaded the
area.

Athen sprawled happily beside grandpa , nothing left him in
good moods more than a delicious sufficient meal that
always left his tummy so tight.
Allen joined the only family he got on the floorboard enjoying
the sound of the rain on the roof top.

At fifteen he didn't find that too childish , so he listened
intently to the drumming of the rain, while Grandpa and
Athen looked on into the blazing fire in their midst, sleep
wasn't evident.
Athen broke the silence,
"Grandpa can you tell us a story?" he half pleaded, he half
enforced.
Grandpa brooded quickly, and coming up with no story said
"Go to sleep boy, its late, stories told at late nights could
evoke unwanted thoughts and spirits"
But the boy could not be fooled easily, "Grandpa that's not
true, nights are the best time for story telling."
Grandpa's reply wasn't reassuring, so Athen who was five
years younger than Allen gave up the plea, but Grandpa's
first reply about "evil spirits" had clicked on something in
Allen's mind and evoked a feeling instantly.
Allen took great liking in spirit related things, spiritual things,
things beyond the human thinking , he was a lover of psychic
related studies.
Allen knew next to nothing about his generation and
ancestors, but he knew that there was something unique and
special about his family history. If not why has so many
psychics of renown taken the pain to study the history of his
family and even the popular publishers of the Dailies called
or rather termed the stories "legend of the saints".
Allen had always wanted to know about the legend , but his
father won't hear of it. On several occasions him and Athen
has been warned severely to have nothing to do with the
legend. Allen thought all of it was just too fishy, but he dared
not talk about it to his father.
Now his parents were no more, it would be very odd if he
never knew a thing about his family history and famous
generation, as only the closest parent he had now was
Grandpa who of course wasn't sure of many more years.
So Allen sought for Grandpa's help.
The rain and lightening still bowled on outside and the fire
blazed on.
Now Allen broke the silence.
"Grandpa tell me about the legend of the saints".
The astonished old man jerked out his little nap or was it
reverie?
"What....the legend of the s..a.i...n.tss?, your dad would not
like to hear that from you if he were here"
"I know, i just ....actually dad said we were too tender then
to be bored by the legend , but am fifteen now, i think am
old enough".
Grandpa scratched his white beards. He himself found the
legend interesting and was ever ready and willing to tell it to
whoever wished to hear, but after the event of August 19 ,
he became afraid to utter the history to anyone.

.....
On August 19 , he had escorted his friend Michel to his
house and Michel had insisted on hearing the legend from
the "horses mouth" instead of picking up the Dailies and
read to his fill. He argued that the story of the legend in the
newspapers were pirated and too many additions and
inductions had turned the story into a mere surface-famous
story.

Michel had said he needed to hear the deeper aspect of the
story . Grandpa had readily told him the legend amidst
howlings, cries and bawlings from the neighbourhood.

The scenery suggested a spiritual presence and Grandpa
could feel the presence of a supernatural being after
unleashing the legend to his eager friend. Feeling very
uncomfortable afterwards, Grandpa had stoodup picked his
hat and left for his home in haste. The next morning the
cops was at his doorpost demanding endless answers about
the death of Michel the night before. When he got to
Michel's house later that morning, he was shocked beyond
words.

Outside the home was intact, but inside was in a big mess.
The Tv lay smashed on the floor , the curtains, window
panes, calendars, flower vases, watch, clocks, plates, and
tables where broken into pieces all over the house. The
floorboards were ripped off like a hungry scavenger
searching for human flesh, and there in the middle of all the
rubbish lay Michel's mangled body, mutilated all over, ....shirts torn to pieces, jaw-bones stood out of his flesh, his
chest, ribs and ankle bore long marks of a giant finger nails.

The incident made him reserved and his mind kept relating it
to the legend and then he remembered vividly the sensation
he had felt the night before when he told Michel the legend.

Although the cops withheld him, they found no evidence
against him and hence he was released. Something deep
in him as he was walking home that day told him the whole
truth, and like a vision he saw Michel on that night, climbing
into bed, stopped, heard shouts and cries of animals he had
never heard ever!

A pounding knock came from the sitting room. He walked
over opened it and found no one. The rain was falling and
blinding flashes of lightening made the scene fearful and as
he turned to go inside he saw a shadow like the figure of a
man. The pounding knock came back on the doors,
windows, floor and even the roof. Michel screamed terribly
then seemed to fight against the shadow who easily tore his
clothes and ripped his chest, ankle and jaws bones out of
his flesh.

Then the shadow appeared to have possessed Michel. He
raved and gnawed like scavenger, broke the flower vase,
ripped-up the floorboards , smashed the window panes,
clocks and everything in the room. On his mad raving he
stumbled against the upturned table and plunged headlong
into the torn floorboards, broke his neck and went cold.
The shadow came out of the cold body and went out
through the door that was tightly shut.

********************************************

The blaring horn from a truck jolted Grandpa to reality. This
was the events that happened the night before, he thought
and belonging to the Aragon family, visions and revelations
were natural gift he possessed. As he walked home on that
day , August 20, he knew too well who killed Michel, for the
shadow only bore the physical body features of one person
--- Aragon.

Since then he never told anyone the legend of the Saints,
and now his grandson, Allen wants to know about it.

The silence was unbecoming for Allen who had watched
Grandpa's face change and lost in thought at his request of
the legend story, a deep thinking had fell on Grandpa but
now Allen saw that Grandpa was back from his deep thought
and should be ready to talk.

"Grandpa?"
"Yes son"
"Tell me about the legend of our ancestors" Allen said
quietly.

"It would do you no good" was the reply.

"No, it would make me more informed about who i am, and
the type of people i originated from." Allen replied , already
getting irritated.

"Perhaps you could go and read it in the papers."

"I've done that severally, but i think there's more to it."

"You have read it? When?" Grandpa asked with raised brows.

"At school , my friends always wanted to know about one
thing or the other, so one day i bought the magazine and
took to school and we all read it together .....but there were
so many questions on my mind after reading it, and i thought
the questions would be cleared if you tell me the whole
story yourself".
Allen concluded , not sure what grandpa's
response would be.

"What kind of questions are bothering you son?"
He knew
where questions would arise from, but he never wanted to
loose his grandson to Aragon.

"Em...questions like...like..after the peace treaty was signed,
why did Aragon destroy the copy sent to him?"

Grandpa hesitated. The question could only be answered
with the full story told.

Reluctantly he said,
"Lets discuss this some other time, its
really cold now, and the night's far spent."

Resolving to go to sleep, he stood up and sighed briefly, he
would ask Grandpa later the next day Allen thought.

Pointing to Athen who had sprawled on the floor deep in
sleep Grandpa said,
"Put your brother to bed, and
goodnight".

He kissed him and walked out of the room feeling
exhausted.

Allen took up his brother and with light strides he went to the
bedroom that hoarded them both. First thing after school
tomorrow, he decided was to get Grandpa tell him about
THE LEGEND OF THE SAINTS.