"You guys hear from Nico? I can't get into contact with him at all," Davis said, holding his phone up.
"Nico? Nica? Nica."
Changing his pronunciation of that name, Aubrey said a word similar to the n-word in sound. Though, it didn't have much of a funny effect, everyone giving the laughs of an exhaled nose to not make him feel completely stupid.
Ah, that was a failure. Whatever, as long as I'm alive, I can always blend in eventually.
Aubrey, even now, did not have the ability to completely blend in. He got on his phone, shrugging his shoulders.
"Yeah, he's not saying anything to me either," Aubrey said with a monotone voice, completely standard.
After all, he wouldn't think anything of it.
He wasn't afraid of getting caught. The body was inside a new dimension, phone included. It couldn't be tracked, and since it had been done in a bathroom, there were no security cameras that caught him. It was a bloodless, DNA-less crime, the only thing present being his friend's fingerprints on the door, and that was it.
Though Aubrey's blood was on the ground from his nose bleeding after being kicked, if push came to shove, he could get the HPC involved to cover that up as well. Aubrey didn't even show himself leaving the bathroom on cameras; he entirely disappeared to another place in the college.
Without major evidence, he would not be convicted of murder. No witnesses, none of that.
The group of boys, now a group of four, as usual, decided he was just busy and didn't pry any further. It was a standard day, truly.
…
"Hop on," Aubrey gently spoke, getting his biker gear ready and giving a truly beautiful woman her own. Luckily for Aubrey, whose hands had gained mysterious cracks in them, biker gloves made it easy to cover that up.
The beautiful woman with short, messy light brown hair, and amazing black eyes—Sienna, put her pink helmet on and was given gloves, as the new couple rode off campus to get lunch.
They stopped at Chick Fil A, sitting down and eating. Aubrey was a light eater when it came to normal food, simply because it didn't actually satiate him. Sienna was a light eater as well, which Aubrey didn't mind.
She smiled a bit less, however.
Aubrey stared intently at her face, his heart being struck with intense fear.
Why isn't she smiling? Well, it's not like she has to smile all the time—that's bad, obviously. But it feels weird. Wait, is she losing interest? She's losing interest? Wait, what?
How? What did I do wrong? Does she somehow know I killed that guy? No, she shouldn't. She can't. Then, what is it? What did I do wrong? Why is she losing interest?
Fuck my life. No, no nononono, I can't lose her. I absolutely, resolutely, cannot lose her. Why is she losing interest? I took her out on a motorcycle, didn't I? I've been spending time with her, haven't I? Not every single moment, but still.
This doesn't make sense. It makes absolutely no sense. She hates me, doesn't she? Is she going to leave me? If she leaves me—
"—Hk."
Her eyes shot up from their dazed look at the food. "O-oh? Are you alright?" Sienna asked innocently, and the sweating Aubrey nodded his head. "Y-yeah, I'm good. I was just, uh…"
Do I bring it up or not? If I do, won't she panic and tell me everything's fine? Wait, I'll sniff the air, and see what she's really feeling!
"I'm fine, just groaning because of exams."
Aubrey sniffed the air to smell the emotions of the woman he loved oh-so dearly. What he found was not rejection nor dislike or disinterest. Rather—
Huh?
"Hey, uh, Sienna…?"
"Hm?" She responded quickly, her head perking up after having dropped just for a second.
"Is um, uh… is everything alright?"
"Hm? Oh, yeah, of course! I'm just also a bit off-my-game due to exams."
"..."
Liar. Liar, liar, liar liar liar.
"I gotta use the bathroom real quick."
He got up and went to the bathroom, washing his hands under cold water. He looked into the mirror, using the Hatman's Trait, obscuring his face in shadows.
She lied to me. She's feeling sad, but for some reason other than exams. Is it because she cheated on me? With who? If she cheated on me, I am going to…
"Hurt her." He wanted to finish his thought with those two words. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to say them. His fists curling up, he breathed heavily as he was torn between violence and love.
No. Two disappearances in such a short time? Can't have that. I'll leave her alone for a bit, let things cool down. I am absolutely going to beat the dog-shit out of whoever it was she chose instead, though.
Aubrey left the bathroom, sitting back down.
Then, let's gamble.
An all-or-nothing gamble, his bets placed entirely upon one question.
"Sienna, I know this will sound really out of left field, but is it alright if I ask you something?" Aubrey asked, putting on a friendly face. Yes, a deceptively friendly face, with a gentle smile which disarmed most people, not cluing them in on his true self.
"Hm? Oh, uh, sure, what is it?"
"—Have you ever cheated on me?" He asked, still putting up a friendly face, attempting to make his voice which echoed in his own head, as easy-going as possible.
Her eyebrows raised and she immediately shook her head.
"W-what? Where's that coming from? No, of course not!"
Aubrey sniffed the air. A warm fragrance entered his nostrils, as a sweet beauty engulfed his heart.
—Truth. She's telling the truth.
Man, I'm an idiot.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry for asking, that's my bad," Aubrey said. "Yeah, no, see, I'm pretty good at reading lies, so… ah, no, that's not the root of what I'm trying to get at."
"...Huh?"
"What I'm trying to say is," Aubrey said, resting his elbow on the table, and thus his cheek on his palm. "Is everything alright? You seem sad."
Sienna went silent. Her eyes avoiding Aubrey's, she looked down. Aubrey sniffed the air once more, sensing fear.
"It's fine if everything's not alright; I don't care about forcing you to be either alright or not-alright. What really matters to me, I suppose, is just being with you, regardless of how you feel. Unless you don't want me to, I will remain by your side, no matter what."
The woman's eyes stinging with pain, she rubbed their wetness.
"U-um, well… no, I'm fine, really."
—A lie.
"Alright. Well, if you ever need to talk to someone, I'm here for you. I do, truly, love you. Absolutely, I love you."
Doing his best to be supportive, Aubrey checked his watch and found that it was time to head back.
"I'll save your food so you can finish later, alright? Let's get going."
Sienna nodded her head, as they got their food and saved it. They rode back to the campus and Aubrey held her hand as she got off, before they continued with the rest of their day.
…
Aubrey, in his room studying for the upcoming exams, looked out of the window.
I got a new Trait. It's not a bad one; it gives me boosts of strength using the fast-twitch muscle fibers so prevalent in apes.
And yet—
Why am I still displeased? No, that's a dumb question. Isn't it obvious?
Aubrey leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.
I know it's wrong to be jealous of a friend, but seriously. Sam has a way cooler, way stronger ability than I do. It's like back in the day, when we shared those "Your month your Blank" videos, and he got something way, way cooler than I did.
I mean, yeah, I have more abilities, but what does it mean in the end? Oooh, I can make the air super cold and induce snowfall, which can make the victim weaker the longer the fight goes on. But that doesn't matter when Sam can practically slow down time and one-shot me.
Plus, don't speedsters have a lot more cool-points than other heroes? Being untouchable, able to play around with their opponents, and the thrill of zooming around; it must be great. All I have is a knife, some scissors, strength, cold-abilities and stealth.
Letting out a rough sigh, Aubrey's lips curled into a slight frown.
He just has everything, doesn't he? Hot, tall, with superpowers he was born with. Meanwhile, I'm over here getting my ass beat in every outright confrontation until I either run away and come back later, or manage to overcome it.
"I don't hate him for it. I really, absolutely cannot hate him for that. That's some bitch shit. Yet, even still…"
Even knowing envy—the hatred of someone for possessing what you desire—was not good, he felt a twinge of jealousy in his heart, even for his dearest friend.
I want more. There's no way I can be happy with just this much.
Aubrey Palmer was a man who did not wish to conquer the world. Aubrey Palmer was a man who wanted to simply blend in with society, to have an ordinary life without being hated or hurt.
Yet, Aubrey Palmer was also a liar.
A man in love with blending in, yet could not stand being average. It was something he himself was unaware of.
His craving for silent singularity. To know he was special, that he possessed that which others did not, yet be able to hide his talents from them, his true nature unseen.
Aubrey Palmer was such a man.
…
Lastly, though only related by name to the topic of the Wendigo, a monster betrothed to this word, there is an underestimated sin.
Gluttony, recognized as one of the Seven Deadly Sins within the church, has many definitions.
——Habitual greed or excess in eating.
This definition in itself is not wrong, but it shall not be the one used as the main topic.
——Overeating.
Again, not quite wrong. However, it mainly refers to the concept of eating, which while gluttony is typically associated with food and beverage, it is not the definition that shall be used.
——Forming the bodily desires into an idol which harms others, leaving little or the minimum for them.
Still, once more, not incorrect. That is the standard definition, and it can absolutely still refer to gluttony as a sin.
All of these are correct in their own ways. But even despite that, there is one definition which gets at the root of the sin most clearly.
——Insatiability.
That one word alone encapsulates gluttony as an affliction of the soul.
Gluttony is not the enjoyment of food, drink or the pleasures of the body. There are times and places for such occasions, and in themselves are not bad. Rather, it is the internal lack of satisfaction.
Gluttony is not just the sin of Greed, but referring to food and drink rather than money. To think so does not fully explain the danger behind them.
A man can have perfect temperance in reference to food, yet still be deemed guilty of the sin of gluttony by the nature of him not being satiated in regards to his own mind, continuously pursuing an idol which he has created and deemed as capable of granting him "satiation."
Then, if Greed and Gluttony are so different, what is that line between them? If a man desires money, then is he guilty of both Greed and Gluttony?
No. Or rather, it comes down to motive and application.
Greed comes from a place of desire. The desire stems from placing one's happiness in external factors; Greed is purely material. Not always for money or about money, but is always in reference to an idolization of material possessions, or even human beings.
Gluttony, too, comes from a place of desire. But rather than placing one's happiness in the external, material possessions, it is more focused inwards, which ties itself to the notion of satiation.
Gluttony desires satiation more than possession.
It drives the sinner to cling to whatever they believe will finally satisfy them. Not in the manner Greed does, where in which they cling to possessions for the status, power, or mere pride in owning more than others.
Ultimately, Gluttony is a habit.
A habit which can be defined purely and simply as not being full.
Not just in reference to food, but in all manner of things. Doing activities to finally find a satiation, continuing that habit day in and day out, endlessly clinging to a habit, doing whatever it takes to satisfy that craving, being a slave to that feeling—that is Gluttony.
The two greatest commandments are to love God with all your mind, strength, soul and body. The second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself.
The two sins of Greed and Gluttony violate both commandments. They are the reasons for which idols are created; the sin is not in the desire for money, or in the desire for food. The sin is in placing that desire over God and other people.
Chasing the phantom of wealth for power, chasing the image of possessions for the sake of merely owning them.
Chasing the phantom of the perfect person for the goal of love which they believe will satiate their loneliness, chasing the image of a perfect body to finally be satisfied with their self-image.
Both sins broke the first and second commandment in similar ways. Greed and Gluttony are close acquaintances.
And yet, Gluttony is perhaps a far more devious, sinister sin. For in its outstretched hand, it does not cling to fleeting attributes like Greed. Rather, it takes the pure desires of the body and heart—connection, meaning, rest, self-esteem, confidence—and perverts them whilst comforting the afflicted, telling them that its desire is the only way to be "satiated."
To be satiated and at peace within itself, it will do all manner of things. To finally feel at peace. To finally find happiness. To finally find itself "appeased." Yet, that satisfaction either arrives too late or not at all.
Gluttony. Truly, a state of craving.
Gluttony. Truly, the desires which cannot be satiated.
Gluttony. Truly, placing the value in an idol to finally feel at ease.
—Gluttony.
——Truly, insatiability itself.