The Greater Good

“I quit!” 

“W-W-Wait, Bone,” Roger rushed to stop him from leaving the office, “Y-You can’t just quit.”

Bone didn’t turn to his, now former, boss who stumbled beside him, “I can and I did.”

“Okay, Okay j-just wait a minute,” Roger stepped in front of him, a hand on his chest, “Just wait, please, just–” he breathed in “–Just talk to me, c’mon Bone, it’s me… ”

Bone sighed then looked off to the side irritation prevalent in his eyes, “Fine… Fine, let’s talk then I guess.”

Roger nearly did a backflip when he heard this. He escorted Bone over to his office, failing to hide the skip in his step. The other exorcists peered over their cubicles and slid down whenever Bone gave them a spiteful glance. There were rumors going around that he was going to quit, they’d been hearing them for a few weeks now, but no one ever believed that day would come. They were exorcists, warriors in a constant battle against evil. Everyone talked about quitting, even the janitor threatened to quit nearly every week. It was their ritual, it was part of the job. No one believed it any more than they believed ghosts and demons would suddenly grow a conscience and stop invading the land of the living.

Even if they did believe someone would quit every so often, it could never be Bone. Bone, of all people? Bone The Living Demon? Bone, the man who banished Satan back to Hell? The world’s greatest exorcist? Why on God’s earth would he want to quit?

The two walked into the office, Roger sat and glanced at the pictures on his desk; two of him and his dog and one by himself in front of a pumpkin patch. The Living Demon chose to stand. This wouldn’t take long.

“Okay, so what’s on your mind?” Roger poured himself a cup of coffee, he didn’t intend on drinking it but he wanted to keep his hands busy, better to not let them shake at a time like this, “Door’s closed, they’re all nosy but you can be honest with me, no one’ll hear a thing.”

“I quit, I’m done, I’m finished, I resign,” Bone sighed, “I don’t know what other way to say it, I can recite it in Hellian too if that helps.”

“N-No, No, I got that part, what I’m asking is why?”

“What do you mean wh–”

“Dammit, Bone, you know what I mean, why? What is it? What do you need to stay, what’s missing?”

“Roger… Do we have to do this again? Do we have to do this right now?”

“Bo-Dennis,” Roger stood, “Dennis, we have known each other since we started at this damn place, we have watched each other rise and fall, we wer– we are are a team…,” he put a hand on Bone’s shoulder, “What is so bad that you can’t tell me of all people? Your friend, your partner in crime, your brother. Is it the hours? Do you want to work more? Less? Is it the cubicle? Do you think you’ve earned your own office, ‘cus you have and we can arrange that. Is it the mone–”

“No god dammit, Roger!” Bone shoved his hand off, “It isn’t the money, it isn’t the office, it isn’t even you or anyone else here.”

“Then wha–”

“It’s me, Roger… it’s me.”

He was lost for words, “I- I- I don’t understand, a-are you sick, er, o-or have you been cursed? Is something haunting you, something powerful? Wha–”

“Look at me, Roger,” Bone grabbed him by the shoulders, “Look at me and what do you see?”

“I-I see you,” he said, innocently, “I see Bone, Dennis, my friend, I see the Living Demon, the greatest–”

“No, look past all of that and what do you see?”

“Oh god dammit, Dennis! Don’t talk to me like I’m some kid who loves riddles, I dunno, I see a guy I guess!” he stopped himself to take a breath, “I’m sorry for yelling, It’s I just–”

“I’m just a guy, Roger,” Bone exhaled, “I’m not the greatest exorcist who ever lived, I’m not the living demon, I’m not the man who banished Satan, I’m just a man, an old man.”

“O-Old? The hell do you mean old?” confusion was on his face, “Don’t talk like you’re some ninety-year-old artifact, you forty-five years youn–”

“Don’t give me that ‘forty-five years young’ crap like I’m some senile geezer in a wheelchair, Roger,” Dennis stomped to the back end of the room then came back, “I’m old, I’m a goddamn old man! Stop, let me finish,” Dennis held a hand up, “And this old man has kids, did you know that, pal?” the stunned look on Roger’s face was answer enough, “You know the girl? The darling damsel in distress, the one every hero makes love to at the end of their big adventure? Well, she got old too and she has kids, two of them, Mayer and Adam.”

“I’m sorry, I-I didn’t reali–”

“Thirteen and nine, kids and a wife, and do you know what goes through their mind when they see me leave for work? To go exorcize demons and monsters all day? They’re not thinking about how cool it is that their dad is the Living Demon, or how awesome it is that her husband gets to fight evil creatures from hell all day; they’re thinking about the day I don’t come home, about the day I die fighting for the greater good,” rage was on Dennis’s face, years of pent up rage, “I want to be with my family, Roger, I want to see my kids grow up, I want to wake up and have breakfast with my wife, I want to go grocery shopping with my family and pick out what we're going to bake for dessert, god dammit didn’t I work enough for this? I don’t care if the devil himself comes back to take over the world, let someone else be the new Demon Heir!”

Roger’s face suddenly turned sour, “You don’t care? You don’t care? You have abilities, we have magic for christ’s sake! And with great po–”

“Oh damn it all,” Dennis scoffed, “Cut it with the ‘with the great power comes–”

“No! You had your turn and now it’s mine,” fuming, he slammed his hand on the desk, snapped his left hand, then stood, “I empathize with you Bone, I really do, and do you know why? You don’t think I have a wife too?” he snatched the frame of him and his pregnant wife in front of a pumpkin patch and held it in Dennis’s face, “Remember Lucy, yeah well we got married, and you know who ignored the invitation to my wedding? You!,” he tossed it onto the desk, “So sorry if I’m not weeping a river for your family trouble but I have one too, but you know what makes us different? I know what has to be done, I know the sacrifices some of us need to make,” green aura was emanating off Roger’s body, “I know that if we don’t go out and fight evil every day, then someone’s gonna suffer, or die, or go mad, or anything in between. You think I like doing this? You think I like what we do? Fighting every day, writing up casualty reports, going home in worse condition than I was the day before? Hell no! But we do it because not everyone can, we are all that stand between innocent people and the evils from hell,” Roger’s eyes started to glow green, “And you want to quit because you’re tired? Because you’re old? Fine then go, sleep well at night thinking about every life that’s on your hands, about every family that won’t be here anymore because they were waiting for the Living Demon to come rescue them!”

“Oh that’s rich, can’t convince me so you’re gonna guilt me into staying here and dying with the rest of you?” red aura surrounded Dennis, “And where were you the past five years? Sitting in your comfy office? Sending everyone else to die for the cause?! Must be horrible to go home with your wrist sprained from writing all day, or your poor back from sitting on your ass while we’re out there dying, you poor baby!”

“For your information, I’ve been sitting here fighting for our existence! You think the government is happy with what we do? You think they’re chipper to just let us run around throwing spells everywhere?! They want us gone or under control, and I’ve been fighting tooth and nail to keep us independent,” Roger stepped closer, “To keep us safe, like you should be doing!”

“You ever think that maybe,” Dennis stepped closer, “We shouldn’t exist?”

“Wanna say that again?” his eyes were flaming with anger, “Say it a little louder so everyone who’s been killed or tortured by a demon can hear you.”

“You work at a desk all day, I’m sure you read the analytics,” Dennis’s eyes narrowed, “It’s getting worse and it’s gonna keep getting worse, Roger even you, as hardheaded as you are, have to see it, they’re not getting stronger for the fun of it… the demons, ghosts, monsters, even the devil himself… they want to fight, they want to keep this war going… they want the challenge, it excites them.”

“Does that change anything? We keep getting stronger, we keep fighting, we keep-“

“We’re just people, Roger, we’re humans, we get old, we get slow, and we die, they live forever and one day they’ll win,” Dennis exhaled, “This is a war we’re destined to lose, one way or another.”

“If we give up, they’ll win,” Roger’s aura grew, overtaking the room, “You can’t believe that they’ll just give up when they realize that we want to stop fighting, you can’t be this naive after everything you’ve-“

“After everything I’ve done? And what have I done?” Dennis’s face turned somber, “Everyone talks about me like I’m this demon-killing saint, but what have I actually done since banishing Satan? Take that away and my career isn’t any more exciting that some average rookie’s, not only am I washed up, but I’ve been washed up for over twenty years,” Dennis’s aura receded, “I know you’re right, but I just… I just don’t care anymore, Roger, can you try and understand that? Please?”

He was silent, aura still booming.

“I can’t do this job when I can’t bring myself to put the victims first, I can’t do the bare minimum anymore,” Dennis put his hands on Roger’s shoulders and sobbed into his chest, “I’m sorry, old friend, I really am, b-but I can’t do it anymore, I don’t think about saving them anymore, all I think about is making sure I get home to my family… I-I’ve let them die, Roger,” Dennis looked up, “Do you know how it feels to know that I’ve let people die, just to save my own ass? It hurts! God dammit it hurts so much… but I’d do it again, and again, as many times as I had to if it meant I could go home to my Rosie again.”

“Then don’t do it for the victims, Bone, do it for your family,” Roger put a hand on Dennis’s head, “Think of it as making a safer place for your wife or your kids, think of it as making them proud, sure they won’t appreciate it now, they might even hate it, but one day they’ll look back and know that you did what was best, they’ll know you were a hero.”

“Y-Yeah…” Dennis pulled back, “Maybe you’re right, I-I just…”

“I am right, Bone, you just gotta trust me, like I’ve trusted you all these years,” he smiled, “Why would I lie to you? I’m your friend Bone, if you can’t trust me then what else do we have?”

“I know I should, it's just… I can’t get this thought out of my head about my family at my funeral, it haunts me,” Dennis wiped his eyes, “The demons know it too… they taunt me, they put nightmares into my head, they– th– they show me visions of Rosie seeing my mutilated body and screaming… of my k-kids crying because they’ll never see me again…”

“Trust me, Bone, it’s tough but one day they’ll understand, we need to do this, we can’t stop,” he rubbed the back of Dennis’s head gently, as a father would his son, “The greater good, Bone, that’s why we do this, would you rather worry about coming home to a demon ravaging your family? Doing unspeakable things to them? Does that thought make you feel any better?”

“I… N-No… it doesn’t…. I-I guess you’re right…”

“Of course I am, why would I do anything to hurt you? Why would I do that? You know me, Bone,” he smiled delicately, though it looked forced, “We’re together to the end, pal.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Bone smirked, “‘Till death do us…” the smirked faded as quickly as it came, “N-No, Roger I just can’t, I can’t do it, I need to go I need to be home, with my family,” Dennis pulled away, “I can’t keep doing this dance of death, wanting to leave but convincing myself to stay, I’m done, Roger, I’m sorry but I quit.”

Roger sighed into a chuckle, “Damn, that’s unfortunate, almost got ‘ya this time,” he waved his finger at him.

“What do you me-“

Roger rushed forward, his aura shrunk and focused around his left arm as he reached forward. Dennis ducked then laid a fist into his side, but he was unphased. His magic-infused hand grabbed Dennis’s face, index finger and thumb hard against his temples.

“Amesiana!” his aura raced from his arm into Dennis’s head, shifting his eyes to blue, “Memoria Revisio.”

Roger let go and Dennis Stumbled back, nearly falling. There was a blank moment where neither moved a muscle, only stared at the other. Bone looked around him, subtle confusion on his face, then his hand clutched his chest. 

“Demon must’ve done a number on me, don’t even remember coming in today,” Bone sent aura through his body, “I seem fine now, but I better check with medical first, nasty things like to leave traces.”

“Yeah, just glad I got the last of it out before you went home,” Roger laughed, “Gotta hit the grimoires buddy, maybe do a few pull-ups too, you’re getting old.”

“Will do,” Bone stretched, “Better head home then, Rosie’s got lasagna waiting for me.”

“Gotcha, if you feel strange just give me a call and I’ll fix you right up,” Roger snapped his fingers.

“No problem,” Dennis was about to close the door behind him when he stopped abruptly. Dennis didn’t move, he stared forward; lost in thought. Roger froze and nearly sent his aura out again, but Bone turned and smiled.

“Thanks again, don’t know what I’d do without you pal, together ‘till death do us part,” Bone left.

Roger gave it a moment, then fell into his chair, letting out a sigh of extreme relief, “God dammit… spell is starting to wear off faster and faster, almost didn’t catch him this time” he held his palm open and an orb of red aura appeared, though it looked weak and frail, “Don’t know how long I can keep this up, dammit…”

His phone rang. He let it ring a few times, the harsh sound relaxed him. In between its eigth ring, he answered. It was the local police station asking how many exorcists The Inquisition, their company, could send out on short notice. Three demons had attacked the local library and were holding hostages, twenty, mostly children. What could be going on in there was a thought he didn’t want right now, though whatever it was probably wouldn’t surprise him. Expecting the worst became second nature for most exorcists. 

Roger agreed to send over ten of his best, save for Bone, who could be there within ten minutes; the company was known for its teleporters. The phone call ended and he let out an even greater sigh. 

The frame he tossed earlier caught his eye. He held it, cracking a smile as he stared at the woman’s face. The smile faded and he snapped his fingers; it reverted back to him, alone, “The greater good, Roger… the greater good…”