Chapter 54 — A New Power
Hawkins National Laboratory.
Sublevel Three.
The floor was littered with bodies—white-coated researchers dispatched to investigate the recent incident with the Upside Down. All of them lay unconscious, strewn across the sterile corridor.
Samail stood silently before a wall.
A jagged crack split the concrete surface: the sealed scar of the former gateway to the other world.
He brushed his hand across it and whispered an incantation:
**"Aperiam hanc portam." — Open this gate.
The fissure bled. Thick, black ichor seeped from the wound in reality, sizzling as it corroded the concrete. The gap widened.
From within came a pulse of crimson light, drifting cinders, and the breath of something vast.
The gate reopened.
Samail stepped through.
At the threshold, charred husks of Demogorgons lay in twisted heaps. He spared them only a glance before moving on.
A long, scorched trail cut into the soil, leading deeper into the Upside Down. Vines lay blackened and brittle; even the grotesque "houses" of flesh had been reduced to ash. The place reeked of disaster.
Samail raised his head, inhaling. A trace lingered in the air—something alien to this world.
"Holy light," he muttered. "Pure and unyielding. It came from that way."
A blur of motion carried him across the wasteland. In the blink of an eye, he stood inside the room where Will had once been rescued.
"Only a hatching nest," he sighed, disappointed.
Outside, lightning split the sky, illuminating the shadow of a colossal form before vanishing again.
Samail arched an eyebrow, turning toward the window.
A guttural growl sounded behind him.
A Demogorgon lunged from the corridor.
The impact shattered the wall—stone and dust exploded outward. But when the rubble cleared, Samail still stood, gripping the creature by the throat with one hand.
"You think scraps like this can kill me?"
His fingers tightened. Bones cracked like dry twigs. The beast went limp.
"Seems that fire didn't burn quite hot enough."
The words rippled through the dark like an insult.
Suddenly, the air around him stirred. Skittering. Whispering.
From the forest, from drains, from shattered windows, they came.
Creatures poured forth, tearing at each other in frenzy. Flesh melded with bone, and soon a grotesque titan of blood and sinew began to rise, pulsing and writhing.
A grin tugged at Samail's lips. "Now this… has promise."
He murmured in a tongue no human ear was meant to hear. Removing his black glove, he revealed a palm split by a vertical wound—like a staring eye.
From it gushed streams of black liquid, thick as tar, splattering onto the ground.
---
Not long after, Samail pulled a black phone from his cloak.
The line clicked alive after a single ring.
"The Foot has been secured," he reported.
"Excellent. If you come across suitable children, bring them as well."
Samail shook his head. "The town is thick with relic-traces—old, consecrated power. The Church has roots here. You know what that means. We cannot afford exposure."
"Oh?" The voice on the other end was intrigued. "Then it is your call. Proceed as you see fit."
The call ended.
Samail turned to the abomination beside him. The mass of flesh was now entirely sheathed in the black fluid that streamed from his hand.
Far in the distance, the colossal shadow stirred again, moving toward him.
He didn't spare it a glance.
The next moment, his body dissolved—collapsing into a pool of viscous darkness. The monstrous corpse beside him melted as well, both seeping into the earth like ink.
---
Philadelphia. West Side.
In a run-down church at the edge of a poor district, Gideon closed his Bible, finishing the day's devotions.
It had been some time since his return from Hawkins. The days since had been quiet—too quiet.
Thus, Gideon devoted himself ever more deeply to theology and spiritual practice.
And in that time, the growth of his abilities progressed as follows—
[Psychological Counseling]
Current Rank: Tier 0 (95/100)
[Holy Water Purification]
Current Rank: Tier 1 (704/1000)
[Holy Water Blessing]
Current Rank: Tier 1 (325/1000)
[Scripture Reading]
Current Rank: Tier 1 (16/1000)
[Ignatian Exercises]
Current Rank: Tier 1 (32/1000)
---
Both [Scripture Reading] and [Ignatian Exercises] had successfully advanced.
And with them, Gideon unlocked new powers.
[Scripture Reading]
Unlocked Ability: Spiritual Sense — By prolonged study of Scripture's true essence, your growth in holy power is tripled.
Gideon discovered that his former gift of [Focus] had not disappeared—he could still resist the psychic interference of malevolent spirits. But layered atop it now was Spiritual Sense.
On paper, it seemed simple: an acceleration of spiritual progress.
But in practice, its weight was undeniable. He could now feel it. The forging of relics, the chanting of exorcism rites, every sacred ritual—each demanded holy power as its fuel. The greater the rite, the heavier the cost.
And thus, Spiritual Sense became invaluable. It multiplied not only his strength but the very pace of his path.
[Ignatian Exercises]
Unlocked Ability: Holy Step — You may move across short distances with preternatural speed. Each use consumes a measure of holy power.
At first, Gideon could hardly believe the description.
He rushed outside, standing in the churchyard, heart pounding.
Then, in a blink, he was at the chapel door.
The exhilaration made him laugh aloud. This was no minor trick—this was a divine escape art, a safeguard against death itself. Beyond the third protective circle, his odds of survival had just soared. Even should a monster ambush him like a sudden jumpscare, he would have time to react.
Not that he often gave such things the chance.
Still, the new power pleased him immensely.
He had searched the church's archives, but descriptions of supernatural abilities were rare. Only a few medieval exorcism records hinted at them—and even then, most historians dismissed such writings as quaint legends, not truth.
Beyond these abilities, his body itself was changing. Years of consecrated oil had slowly reshaped him. It was not written in words, nor displayed as progress bars, but he could feel it: his strength greater, his leaps higher, his reflexes sharper.
Little by little, he was becoming something more than human.
---
Rising from prayer, Gideon walked into the reception hall.
"Emma, bring me the—"
He stopped mid-sentence, staring at the empty space. A hollow smile crossed his lips.
"Strange. I'm still not used to her being gone."
The day after their return from Hawkins, Emma had reached out to David of her own accord, requesting to leave.
Gideon had tried to dissuade her, more than once.
"I won't be your tool any longer," Emma had said.
And indeed, over their time together, she had come to a realization: whatever sins she bore, the priest's battles were of a different, stranger order altogether. He went to great lengths to keep such horrors from the public eye.
She had no fear of betrayal.
And so, on one sunlit afternoon, Emma had run to David. To clean clothes, to safe meals without blood's taint, to a home that smelled of life and not death.
A normal life, restored.
David had wept with joy—his daughter was finally living again.
To thank Gideon, he left behind a generous donation.
Before their parting, Gideon gave Emma a handwritten manual: a beginner's guide to exorcism. Within it he had recorded methods of identifying and countering common manifestations of spirits and demons.
With it, she would be able to manage simple rites on her own. Their bargain, at last, was fulfilled.
---
Now, with his "assistant" gone, Gideon packed his satchel. Today was a community activity day—he was to visit families in need, offering pastoral care.
At the same time, on a street corner nearby, a car pulled up.
A woman stepped out, clutching the arm of the man beside her. Her face was drawn with worry.
"Bret… do you think I'm overreacting?"
The man—Bret—kissed her forehead gently. "No, Rebecca. I believe you."
Her shoulders eased, if only a little.
But in her mind, the memory returned: the shape of a figure, limbs twisted, standing in the doorway of her darkened home. And when the light came on, nothing there.
Her brother too afraid to come home.
Her mother, mind fraying further each day.
All of it gnawed at her.
Rebecca pulled a folded flyer from her pocket. The words glared up at her: "Find Sanctuary. Seek Blessing."
She clutched it tight.
"God, I hope this works…"
---
[Guess the movie name?]