The Delivery of Goods

Nicholas Auberstein's training to serve as young Conrad's attendant had been an extensive affair. Cook, confidant, advisor, tutor, just a few of the functions that were expected of him. Bodyguard, too. Time had slowly taken its toll on Nicholas in the 18 years since he first laid eyes on Conrad, but he remained fully capable of protecting himself, and his charge, from any regular miscreant that may happen upon them. Conrad Walters was the son of a man worth an astonishing amount of wealth, and potential threats to his safety aside, the boy simply needed an attendant that would support him in ways his father felt too busy for.

Yet, in spite of his rigorous training, Nicholas Auberstein had simply never been prepared for the event that he would have to carry his charge's soulless body home. Simply wasn't in the curriculum. In some ways, it actually felt more unsettling than carrying a corpse. Partly because it was Conrad's body he was carrying, partly because Nicholas was carrying a husk that simply seemed to be asleep.

Nicholas had gone over Conrad's vitals immediately after he and Nana left through the portal in the library. Laying him down, he checked Conrad's carotid artery, and found a pulse immediately. Everything still appeared normal after he checked the boy's heartbeat. His body's involuntary functions were all working as per normal. From the perception of an ordinary man, Conrad was simply comatose.

Wasting no time, Nicholas had lifted Conrad into his arms and exited the library, laying him in the back seat of his dark sedan. He would transport Conrad home and begin looking into the situation surrounding Nana. The goddess had permitted him to retain his memories of the encounter, so perhaps similar events had occurred elsewhere in the world, and even with Nana herself. He understood he was grasping at straws, though. Odds were good that searching the internet for accounts of encounters with a living, breathing god would likely lead him to nothing productive. Perhaps, somewhere in the back of his mind, Nicholas knew that it was all an excuse to try and keep himself occupied.

What more could he do, though? Nicholas' fingers drummed on the steering wheel impatiently, before he mentally chastised himself. He had been trained not to let his nerves show like that. One encounter with the supernatural and a lifetime's worth of discipline was already showing cracks. He exhaled slowly, regaining full composure as he navigated his way through traffic.

Nicholas' phone rang. Glancing at the dashboard touch screen, he saw Conrad's father was attempting to get ahold of him. At that moment, he remembered Nana's promise that Conrad's father would understand the events of the library. Nicholas quickly pressed the accept button.

"My son, Nicholas." The voice of Deacon Walters came through, sharp and clear. Most people would think of it as a tone taken for very formal and serious circumstances, but in the case of Deacon Walters, it was simply the only tone he seemed to possess. "Where is he?"

"As absurd as it may be to tell you this, sir, the young master and I had an encounter with a supernatural entity of sorts, and his essence seems to have been robbed from him. I watched what I can only surmise was his actual soul being taken from his body. It was the work of what seemed to be an unspeakably powerful goddess. Either I was the influence of powerful hallucinogens, somehow, or we had an honest-to-goodness encounter with a mythological figure."

Deacon Walters was quiet, processing, preparing his response. Far be it from a man of his caliber to be struggling to communicate like this, generally. But this was the strangest predicament either Nicholas or Deacon had been faced with. After a moment, Nicholas got a reply.

"I believe you."

"Sir?"

"I'm not enthused about the idea of simply making a decision based on my instincts, Nicholas. But I'm choosing to trust you. Furthermore, this is you we're talking about. I have seen the lengths you have gone to in order to support my son. Besides, inspecting Conrad will lend credence to your report. I assume you are already headed back here with him?"

To say that Nicholas was surprised would be a severe understatement. Hearing an unprompted compliment from Deacon Walters was almost as rare as...well, meeting a goddess. Family, employees, strangers, anyone really, it made no difference. Deacon did not simply hand out words of this nature to people. To hear him acknowledge the quality of Nicholas' support towards Conrad was bizarre.

"Thank you, sir, and yes, I'll be arriving shortly. Your son's vitals are all normal. Heart and lungs functioning. I'm sure you intend to have his brain activity inspected immediately, so I'll bring him to the doctor's office on campus immediately upon arrival."

"Yes, do so. I'll contact the neurologist now. He'll either be present or his arrival will be imminent by the time you deliver him. I will be expecting further details about today shortly. Goodbye."

Deacon hung up. As Nana had assured, she had assisted the process. If someone had simply told Deacon that his son's soul had been whisked away be a goddess, they would have been incarcerated on a good day and disposed of on a bad day. Nicholas drove the rest of the way to the Walters estate in tension and silence.

Upon pulling into the driveway, Nicholas noted that additional attendants were already at the ready, waiting to help Nicholas bring Conrad inside. Nicholas smoothly pulled the sedan next to the entryway, putting the car into park and turning off the ignition. He stepped out of the car immediately to support the men, but he was interrupted. A familiar, curt voice spoke out to him.

"Let them take him, Nicholas."

Nicholas looked over and saw Deacon awaiting his arrival. The attendants pulled Conrad out of the sedan, holding him up as Deacon checked his son's vitals as well. Nodding, he gestured for them to leave with Conrad, and headed into the estate with Nicholas at his side. Their pace was brisk, focused. Deacon opened the door to the family's lounge and gestured Nicholas inside. Deacon took a seat in the lounge, and Nicholas began preparing tea for both himself and his employer without a word.

"Let's see how much sense we can make of the nonsensical. Tell me everything you recall, Nicholas. From the moment the two of you departed for the library until you arrived here with my son's body."