Shadow Hunters

Playmaking

She sat them each across from her as she looked them with her still static eyes. Her children- Tommy and Wammy sat perplexed by her set up of tea table and pristine cups. For her own of course. The tea smelt refreshing after the tiring day and a budding Sun was soon to rise. The night for her could have been hectic but it didn't. She doesn't understand any of those. The rain did recede, it's life from the storm drained away but the comforting chill consoled shadows and humans alike. Nobody will mind if the rain stays for a couple of more days. There's a saying, every city needs its storm.

She drank from it without any illumination around. She commanded them to play but first of all that she needed to speak with her son-the eldest and the second for an account of his lost brother.

"I sense the cold will proceed today too. We will look for Sammy." Her voice stated.

"Where is he?"

Tommy looked aggraved, a permanent horror on his face as he wore hopelessness in his sulky face. His long neck trembled to reply. His words halting midway.

"...he is...he...is.."

He hung his head in shame. His mind filled with anger and fear. He thought he could be free. But she was waiting an answer. Her motionless eyes were more threatening.

"...dead..."

Her eyes blinked.

"Shocking" she commented. "Who could dare...how did he die?" Her words were suppose to uphold remorse, instead they flowed to command.

Tommy's eyes bulged out further, his wrinkled lips twisted away from view. He was speaking from utter hopelessness. A solid distress increasing on his eyes. He couldn't bear much.

"...killed.." His scratchy voice replied. The mother's eyes didn't move. Yet the grey eyes seemed to glow.

"Who?"

Shadow creatures are not known to lie. They only understand a select number of emotions, optimum of which were fear, fatigue and misery. Occasionally there is relief. Relief translates to joy for them- the absence of fear, fatigue and misery is like heaven and all in accordance to cold. Against humans they can not complicate themselves much. A simple mind with simple communication and they carry on living. They never defy or deny. They certainly don't lie.

"...I.."

The silence was nerving. The mother inquired. "how?"

"..I ...killed...by clutch..ing..the throat.."

"You shouldn't have" she said that like a child shouldn't have pushed another child in the field. The plainness of her tone didn't ease him. He recoiled away his head in defense.

"You shouldn't have Tommy." Her steel like voice continued. "Your brother loved you. He lost an arm to help me and save you."

She didn't change the pace of her tone. But even for the brief subtleness, Tommy can tell the beret will bring him terror. It's always terror with this lady.

"You ran away and he went after to bring you back. Is that why you killed him? Because you didn't want to come back?"

He didn't know at the moment.

"A mother should not go hard on her children so I decided to let you go."

She reflected during the tight pause in between.

"But a mother must not condone either. You need to learn your lesson." She got up and walked over to the drawer of the table and rummaged within it. Tommy shrieked when he recognised the object, his entire body melting away but not fast enough. The bony white beam shone on his waist and he screamed as black smoke hissed from where it shone, his skin evaporating away. Wammy watched horror struck, unable to move himself as his brother got perforated in several places by the demonic beam of light where ever it touched, each time his brother replying with a wrenching scream of agony. Tommy's eyes froze from the constant paranoia. His long snakey body twisted around itself to defend itself but to no avail.

The torture continued for a good two minutes, at the end of which Tommy gasped in pain as black smoke ushered from his limp body. His mother switched off the flash light and stood over them. Her eyes met Wammy next and said, "behave Wammy or there will be punishments..."

Wammy knew he must escape.