~~
Trinity
~~
I was once again walking toward Odin. I was going to present as united of a front as I could to Orson and his band of merry maniacs. I needed them all to hear me, to understand the situation, and to know that they needed to give up.
Odin was still standing at his fifteen or so feet. He hadn’t shrunk back down yet, probably because he was still a little angry about what had happened earlier. And if he felt the need to defend or attack again, he wanted to be in his larger form. I could only contribute it to ego or something else along that line.
I chose to ignore it for the moment, moving on to the matter that truly needed my attention.
"It’s over, Orson." I called out to him. "You’ve lost. Your weapons are all gone. Your men are all trapped in a protective barrier. None of them can get away, and neither can you." I motioned for Glick and the other law enforcement officers to step forward. "We’ve had a dangerous standoff here already, but it’s over now.
You have to understand that. Do us all a favor and surrender with no more incidents."
"Yes, tiny human." Odin called out in a goading voice. "Give in and let them arrest you. That is what you deserve."
When I turned to look at Odin, possibly to reprimand him, I saw that his face looked to be the one that I saw in the celestial realm before. His features were shifting and it was hard to focus on what he looked like. He had that serious face and the mocking expression, that look of the jokester and the face of an enemy, all faces at once.
Just looking at him was hurting my head, I could just imagine what it was doing to Orson and the others that could see him.
"AHH! AHHH! GAHHH!" They were screaming. The DOE members that had seen his face were crying out in fear, screaming and shielding their eyes. They couldn’t handle what he looked like when he wasn’t settled on one face at a time. And while they screamed, Odin laughed.
I truly hoped that, no matter how long I lived, I never treated the mortals like that. That I never thought the mental suffering of people was something that was so funny. For a moment, I was truly disgusted by Odin and what he had done, but then I had other things to focus on.
"YOU ARE A MONSTER, THE SAME AS SHE IS!" Orson had started to yell at Odin, pointing at him with an accusatory finger. However, it was almost like something was stopping Orson from continuing his tirade against him.
There was a strange guttural, almost gagging like noise that came from Orson’s throat rather than words.
"Grruuuhhh rraagghh hhuuaahh rroogghh." He started to reach for his throat as if something was actually stuck there, like someone or something was choking him. For a moment, I looked at Odin with an angry and accusing glare.
"This is not me, Trinity." He shook his head and instantly shrank down. This time, he was the height that he had been when I saw him the first time, just about six feet tall. And I saw that he looked worried and confused about what was happening. I knew that he wasn’t the cause of what was happening.
"Orson?" I called out to him, taking a tentative step forward. I would save him, stop him from choking to death, but he wouldn’t be happy with me touching him. "Orson, are you alright?"
"Orson?" Glick called out behind me. "What is happening?"
"Harrison?" Dolan, who used to count Orson as a friend before the man had lost his mind, sounded worried about him.
"Orson?" I called again, and that was when there was an explosive sound that came from the man.
I am the one in charge. I am the General now, not you! I will be the King! I will rule them all! Me! Not you!"
"SILENCE, YOU INSOLENT LITTLE WORM!" Orson slapped himself across the face with so much force that he dropped to his hands and knees. "YOU ARE WORTHLESS! YOU ARE WEAK! YOU ARE PATHETIC! I DON’T NEED YOU ANYMORE, SOLDIER! I WILL LEAD THESE PEOPLE!
I WILL TAKE THIS ARMY TO VICTORY! AND I WILL BE THE ONE THAT KILLS THOSE MONSTERS!"
I gathered that ’the General’ was an alternate personality of Orson. Similar to how he had taken on the Colonel persona that enabled him to commit so many crimes even though he had been a man of the law. However, the General seemed to be a stronger, and much more violent personality. And at the moment, the Colonel and the General, both living inside of Orson, were fighting with each other.
We were all frozen in place as we watched Orson punching himself over and over. The right hand seemed to be controlled by the General while the Colonel controlled the left.
"I am not weak!" He countered as he punched his own face with his left hand.
"You are weak and pathetic." Another punch, this time from the right fist.
"You are shortsighted and idiotic. You have no idea how to lead an army!" Punch from the left.
"You are a spineless piece of shit and a sniveling little worm." Crack!
"I am the best leader these people could ask for! They wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for me!"
"You were a start, but I am the best." Back and forth they went arguing and fighting each other, and yet striking the same face with each punch. Orson’s nose was broken, both eyes were swollen, and his lips were bleeding. And still he didn’t stop.
"I don’t need you!" Orson yelled at himself. "I am the one that is in charge here. I am the one that will rise to the top. It has always been me."
"You are mistaken, Soldier. I am the one that doesn’t need you."
Before I knew what was happening, the side controlled by the General reached behind Orson’s body and grabbed something. It was at his throat and already sliding across his flesh before I processed the images that I was seeing.
The General had taken a knife and pressed it to Orson’s throat. He had just slit his own throat. Orson, the Colonel, and the General, all personas in the same body, were now dying right before me.
I rushed forward, along with several others. I needed to stop the bleeding and keep Orson alive. If he died like this, then I wouldn’t succeed in my mission. I wouldn’t be keeping everyone alive here today.
"Orson!?" I called out to him as I caught his body. He hadn’t even hit the ground yet, so I should still have time. Or so I had hoped.
The cut in Orson’s throat had been too deep. He had cut so far that he was dead before he was even done with the slice. It was almost as if he hadn’t even felt what was happening to him and was able to cause himself instant death.
"Orson!" I called his name again, but it was beyond too late.
I had failed. I hadn’t managed to save everyone here. Orson would never be tried for his crimes. He would never face justice. It was over, but I had failed.
What was I going to do now? What were the humans going to think of me now? How was I going to keep this from negatively affecting the others? There was just too much going through my mind at this very moment. And it was made worse by the fact that I was crying.