Chapter II

Fetid Spawn: A gift box with a trapped demon inside, who was imprisoned by a powerful member of the Vatican. The demon waits for its chance to take over a body in order to go back to the cult that summoned it. It has been advised not to let this package leave the Vatican. However, it has been missing for at least a few years. Only to be donated to a local church fundraiser where a mysterious individual left it out in the open to be found.

Axl groggily reached for his phone, that had been constantly ringing for the past hour. Squinting, he locked at the caller ID before answering the phone. "Hello?" Axl answered, clearing his throat so as to sound as awake as he could. "Is this Axl Parker?" the voice on the other end asked. He replied that it was and wondered what he could do for them.

The man on the other end began to explain that the Father of the church had gone missing. Missing? Where exactly could the man have gone? If Axl remembered correctly, Father Pesci was an older man who was close to retirement. That he couldn't have made a long trip by himself.

"That's the thing..." Seminarian Rossi continued. There was this package among the donations we received. A weathered gift box with baby blue polka dot wrapping paper and a white ribbon tied on top. The ribbon was frayed and flecked with dark brown spatter and felt heavier than it looked. "Did you ever open the box?" Axl questioned, curious if whatever was inside was what affected Father Pesci.

“No, I was too afraid to, but Pesci did," replied Rossi. The gift box was gone, and there was a red ooze on his desk. Symbols written in this red ooze were on the walls. A window was open, leading outside. When looking out the window, he could see that one of the hearses was gone.

Rossi wasn't sure where he went, but Axl knew the story behind the gift box. Getting up from his spot on the couch, he nudged Soren with his foot. Walking into the kitchen to set up the coffee machine, he placed the pot into the sink. "Don't worry, we'll find him, setting him free from the Fetid," Axl assured Rossi. This put the Seminarian at ease, ending the call to take care of the church in Pesci's stead.

"Another case?" Soren mumbled, sitting upright, his hair sticking in different directions. He stood up and stretched, then stumbled his way into the bathroom, shutting the door. "Yeah, this one is about a missing priest who’s gotten himself possessed by a fetid spawn." said Axl, cutting off the water and pouring it into the water tank of the coffee pot. "A fetid spawn?" Soren questioned as he finished up in the bathroom, walking out, drying his hands. "Our folks told us about them before. This one in particular was stolen from the Vatican." Axl replied.

Soren tried to rack his brain about what his father had told him about those types of demons. He had always wondered why they were mostly sealed in gift boxes. When it should have been in something that would alert security far more easily. "Do you think after this that they will seal those demons into something that will alert the guards?" Soren asked. Axl began pouring two cups of coffee, making one with milk and the other with cream and sugar.

"I hope so." Axl replied, handing Soren the cup with cream and sugar, taking a sip of his coffee, and let out a contented sigh. They would have to travel to the location where the origin of the box first began. That particular box Rossi spoke of was recovered from a cult house. The cult itself had offered the summoned demon the head of a man who was dressed as a clown. An innocent man who was just there to deliver a birthday cake to what he thought was a kid’s birthday party.

The possessed father Pesci was traveling to where it all began. Maybe the demon thought the cult who wronged him would still be there. Or that the portal he stepped out of was still open. Either way, they had to save Pesci from losing his life. Bringing his cup to his lips, Axl drank the last sip of his coffee and rinsed it out before setting it into the sink.

"I'm going to start loading the car up with the equipment we need. Can I have the keys to the weapons cabinet?" Axl held out his palm upright towards Soren. “Yeah, sure." Soren dug into the pocket of his sweatpants and handed over a paracentric key. Axl said a small thank you and headed to the cabinet, opening it up and turning on the light inside. In order to deal with this demon, they would have to perform an exorcism.

Therefore, the weapon they would use had to be something to hold the host in place without causing them harm. Axl smiled, spotting what he needed and pulled it out from the far back. It was heavy in his hands, made of connected links and curved. He packed it into Soren's bag along with some jars of salt, zipping it up. Now all that Axl had to do was get the grimoire from his room, and they would leave.

Axl and Soren arrived at an overgrown house that had clearly been abandoned for quite a few years. The front door was left ajar, and the stolen hearse was parked out front. "So how are we doing this?" Soren asked, turning off the car’s engine. "We lure him into an open ring of salt. Close it and wrap him in the holy chains. From there, I will read from the grimoire and send the demon back to hell." Axl replied. Soren nodded, he understood what had to be done but couldn't help but be nervous.

Axl stepped out of the car first, grabbing his bag from the boot of the car along with Soren's. Both stood outside of the looming house in front of them before stepping into the darkness inside. It didn't take long to pinpoint where exactly Pesci was, as the sound of mumbling came from one of the rooms. Soren got out one of the jars of salt and began to make a half circle, leaving an opening. Axl would be luring Pesci inside the room towards the trap.

"Father Pesci, we've been sent to bring you home. The church is worried about you." said Axl slowly, making his way towards the sound of the mumbling. The mumbling stopped and was soon followed by dragging footsteps walking towards Axl, who backed away slowly. He knew that they were there to take his host away before he had a chance to find the portal home. However, there wasn't a portal open here anymore; it had probably been closed by the members of the Vatican. The day that the demon was sealed in that ridiculously decorated gift box.

Soon Axl was running towards the middle of the salt circle, leading Pesci into its center. Once Axl was out, Soren completed the circle, and an inhuman scream released from Pesci’s mouth. Both Axl and Soren worked together, wrapping the holy chains around the man's body. With the man tightly wrapped, Axl got out his grimoire and began to read from it. The man hissed and snarled before his neck snapped backwards. A black swirling smoke began going upwards into a red portal above him.

Pesci's body soon hit the floor with a thud, and the red portal closed. Axl knelt, checking the man's pulse and felt its slow and steady thrum. Soren took out his phone, calling 911 and then Rossi right after. It didn't take too long for the ambulance to show up, and it gave Axl and Soren plenty of time to clean up and take the holy chains off of Pesci. Rossi made it just in time as well to talk with paramedics who were loading Pesci into the back of the ambulance.

Axl and Soren answered all of the questions that the police needed as well as the EMS. Before they got back into their car, Rossi called out to them. Thanking them for their help in saving Father Pesci. It wasn't a big deal after all; it was what they did. It was more than just a job passed down to them by their parents.

It was a way to ensure that people would stay safe from things out there that couldn't be explained. Axl took over driving for the ride home, jealous of the nap Soren was currently taking. A few times he really wanted to slam on the brake to jolt his partner awake, but he held back. When they arrived back at their base and the car was in the underground garage, Axl placed an order for takeout and rested on the couch as Soren put their tools away.

All they needed now was food and a good night’s rest.