Editor’s Note: This story is a work of fiction published in the fun spirit of Halloween. This story is on the opinion page and is a work of fiction, not a factual account of events in Cibola County.
The streets that once bustled with life now echoes with hushed whispers. The residents of Grants don’t dare speak of the death that has wreaked havoc at the beginning of the month; afraid that dark eyes watch them wherever they go, waiting for the moment they would slip up and Shivani would strike again.
But within Shivani’s dark heart was a strong urge for more power. The thrill of terror is intoxicating, but with each life she steals, she is reminded that she is still just a mere mortal in the eyes of Death- a fleeting encounter in his eternal game. She wants to be omnipotent and turn her twisted legacy into something that will last millennia as she torments the world.
She has concocted more elaborate plans to entice fear, each death crafted to evoke terror’s finest form. Yet, the more she stacks their bodies in her wake, the more elusive her satisfaction becomes, making her crueler with an insatiable hunger that can only be filled with something far darker.
Shivani turns to the one entity that can help her. So, on Mt Taylor, under the dark sky, she invokes him “I’ve been given what I requested, but I want more. I need more than this fleeting power, I need immortality!” She hisses frustratingly. ( The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:17) The air around her grows still, the temperature dropping and noises disappearing as an evil presence arrives, whispering harshly “You understand the cost of what you request.”
“And I’ve done everything, so give me what I want. You promised me my reign of terror!”
“You think you can mock eternity with your mortal games, but you cannot control what you cannot comprehend.”
“But you-” In that moment she feels an icy, terrifying grip wrapped around her soul. A ripple of horror surges within her, a dread she’s never felt and doesn’t understand. She made the agreement only recently, playing against her own spirit, knowing that this mortal life is quickly over. ( Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. James 4:14)
“No! I am to be the most powerful-” Her words are caught off when she feels her life ending in the same way she made others experience, yet worse. Because its her. Because she had a deal, she did as he wanted. ( You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. James 8:44)
Then as quickly as her power came, her life is taken upon the mountain not so far from Grants, her soul cast into the eternal fiery torment.
There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13:50.
She murdered knowing it was wrong. Chose power over what was right. Chose the dark side instead of the light. An earthly legacy over following the Creator. Selfishness over godliness. Sin over salvation. Eternal torment in hell over eternal life in heaven.
They will be tormented with burning sulfur… And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. Revelation 14:10-11.