'Those who know thy name put their trust in thee.'

You know, they say that life down here is just an illusion.

I

And so ... it begins. The first steps at the start of a brand-new journey. Of course, there are so many ways one can take or begin a journey and so many different types of journey that one can embark upon. There are personal journeys, journeys of endurance, journeys that become quests and journeys that encompass great distances. One of the most dangerous of journeys is and can be when the mind goes to places it shouldn't. Descending into darkness is never the wisest of manoeuvres.

There may be a multitude of reasons with choosing to descend into any sort of a dark place and you could possibly feel justified with any one of them for having to decide upon choosing such a fate ... but when such a journey is not one entirely of choice then strange things can really happen.

Would you dare choose darkness if you knew you would be putting your own life at risk? What if the life of someone you love was at risk, could you choose a darkness to ensure the safety of that loved one? What if such lines of choice are blurred? What if reasoning can only be assumed and not assured? What then?

It is indeed said that the mind can play tricks.

II

He sits alone front row in a large cathedral, at a complete loss for what is happening. How he came to be in such a place or why he is there is something that is way beyond him though one thing soon becomes apparent.

To his left are two closed caskets, one quite small and one regular size. They stand side by side at a slight slant, the smaller of which is positioned at a lower height. Up a number of marbled steps and behind an altar, there stands a priest who speaks while raising both his hands, one either side of his body and both with palms facing upward. A mass is taking place, a funeral mass. The words being spoken are mumbled or at least come across as sounding mumbled, far too difficult to make out, all but four that is, '... hallowed be thy name ...'

Realization hits, disbelief and panic set in. It is indeed a funeral, and it hits him hard when the realization comes as to whom it is for. He stands and lets out a cry of 'no....' for surely all this is not really happening. This cannot be happening; this cannot be a moment of reality.

III

The Albatross, a king of sea and sky, a bird of luck and superstition, to see one is often thought to bring good luck, to kill one brings the opposite which is of course bad luck. Such a bird is also thought to carry the souls of dead sailors. Can you imagine the sheer number of souls that may be carried by such a creature whose wingspan is as wide as the combined height of any two tall men?

1.

Making a move to a new town is never really such an easy thing for a young family, especially when where they are moving to is a heck of a distance away from where it is that they hail.

The 'M&M's' as they jokingly like to call themselves, Martin, Margret and seven-year-old Molly MacDonald have gone all in on a move of a lifetime as it has been put to them. Castletown is an exciting place, and it is an exciting time to be there ... apparently. Sure, they were leaving behind family and friends, but a new and strong promised future sits on the horizon.

Decades of almost non-stop growth had put this town on the map, this is what had been told and that was what was promised, to become part of a large community where everyone will thrive. What had not been told was the fact that a dark side has also put Castletown on an entirely different map, a map of paranormal hotspots to be exact. If either Martin or Margret had taken the time to do their homework thoroughly then they would have come across this fact, though at that ... it could be one thing to know and another thing entirely to act upon.

Hotspot may not be the correct term to use for such a place for people who are in the know, know to keep away. This place is more a central location more so than anything else. New blood coming to town is an extremely rare thing. The place hardly ever receives guests or visitors, the same can be said of those seeking to take up residence. Strangely enough, once you come within the town limits ... subsequent departure then becomes less and less likely.

Their drive into town within their jam-packed Station Wagon with roof packing being all inclusive on a bright pleasant day was indeed as pleasant as such a drive could be. Molly was awake and in fine form despite the length of time they had been together in their mode of transport up to this point and despite the lack of room she had to manoeuvre.

The people out and about all through town had nothing but smiles on their faces. These people, quite a lot of them in fact, were also quick to throw a wave or greeting the way of the MacDonald's especially at moments when they were moving slowly with the windows open.

These greetings continued as the drive came up the street of their new home. Martin felt good. He couldn't wait to get stuck into all that he was expecting to come his way. Margret also felt good but not quite as good as what Martin seemed to be feeling. To her there was something a little off about all those smiling faces. No town is this happy, no town is this clean, no town is this bright. Something is being hidden. Something most definitely is being hidden.

Flying overhead in a large circular movement is an Albatross, a rather large one at that. It is unusual to see a bird like this so far in land and it flies as if it is tracking the movements of the Station Wagon as the vehicle itself makes its way through town. A magnificent creature, a coastal equivalent of an Eagle though Castletown is not quite a coastal town though the coast is not at all a million miles away.

Perhaps luck is on the side of the MacDonald's with the proximity of this flawless sky creature, but then again luck may be a thing which is seriously lacking. Maybe it is the souls being carried on the wings of this large specimen that is directing its flight. As with regards to luck ... there is one saying in particular which states that if it weren't for bad luck there would be no luck at all.

Molly, despite her own good form, is somewhat more in tune with her mom than with her dad. It is often heard that children, especially young children, are more susceptible to viewing the unknown. They can have a kind of peripheral spiritual vision if you will. Molly is seven; she is still a child even if her age is on the upper edge of these childhood abilities. She can't help but watch that Albatross as it flies nearby. Is there something else that Molly sees that neither of her parents can see?

It wouldn't be so long before they would drive up the driveway of their new home. If Molly had been a teenager there may be cause for upset and disaster, anger and the likes with having to move so far away from where she had been, leaving behind friends and activities and so on, but coming up the driveway ... Molly had the largest of smiles on her face, she was super exited.

'This is it; this is our new home' declares dad.

'Let me out, let me see' says Molly with an eagerness that is very much so childlike. She is a child of course, though such eagerness in an adult would be thought of as childlike.

'We have to wait until the car stops honey, then I will let you out, alright?'

'Yes mom. I can't wait to show Polly-Anna our new room.'

Polly-Anna is, as it so happens, Molly's favourite doll. There is nowhere and no place that Molly goes without Polly-Anna. Martin got out of the car first and went to open the front door of the new home before returning back to the car to grab a few items to take inside with him. Margret got out her side of the car and went to open the back seat door for Molly to exit the Station Wagon.

'Be careful honey.'

Making sure she had her doll, Molly ran around the back of the car and ran right up to that open front door. Margret also grabbed a couple items to take inside. She and Martin had a little giggle at the fact that they almost collided with each other in their moment of retrieval, an accident had been averted with little to spare. The giggling didn't last very long for something would stop mum and dad in their tracks.

Molly had not gone into the house as both her parents had assumed she had. Instead, that little seven-year-old girl stood silently, frozen a few feet in front of that open door. It took a couple of seconds to take this in. Martin was closest to his daughter, so he placed a hand on her shoulder. Molly did not react to this. She just continued to stand quietly frozen, staring into the new home.

Margret more than being just a little bit worried, went down on her hunkers having moved in front of her little girl.

'What's wrong Molly? Do you see something that you don't like?'

A couple of seconds or so pass and Molly appears to come out of her strange almost trance like state. She turns her head to look at her mum and then smiles.

'There is nothing wrong mommy. Everything is fine.'

With that, Molly's excitement returns as if it had never left, and she quickly makes her way into the house. Margret stands as she shares a glance with Martin, a glance that suggests the question 'what was all that about?'