What the Mind Returns

By Abigail Roca

Calloway was a great orator with a powerful voice. His voice spoke louder than others, even sometimes louder than the calls of the gods. Calloway liked to preach his own ideas, his own views on the gods and why his word should be trusted above all. Calloway believed that his voice alone could compare to the gods. He had no strength or values, for he was far too prideful for his own good. Now, Calloway was on his usual grounds; an empty cave that was soon to be filled with hundreds of people waiting to hear his voice. Usually there would be a prayer or an offering to one of the gods in these caves, but Calloway never cared. He would kick any offering to the ground, stomp at it with his heel and make room for his own practice of clearing the room so his voice echoed for all to hear.

Today, Calloway stood tall in front of the crowd of people who were eager to hear what he had to say. His chest puffed out with pride, pleased at the selfish idea of having so much fame and followers just because of what he preaches, even if it is false. Calloway spoke loud in front of the people. “I welcome the crowd before me today. It is with immense pleasure that I tell you all about my views on life and how we should live. You all know that the words of the gods, their prophecies and messages are lies. These are mere natural causes from life, not divine beings,” he relaxedly said while putting out a candle lit for the god Everett. Everett was the god of human voice; she lurked as Calloway would spread his lies and ignorance around to other mortals. She gave him this voice; she gave all the mortals their ability to speak. As fast as this gift had been given, it could be taken. Her followers could understand to keep themselves in check with her bell. This bell could only chime once, a warning before her wrath struck, and it was taken very seriously. Calloway could hear that faint chime now. Nobody else could with the booming voice of his echoing off the walls of the cave. This is how he preferred things: no sounds other than his voice. Now finishing his speech, he added: "You all must realize that the gods do not speak with words because they have nothing to say. Do not fear small noises from nature, or even things such as bells! Hah, what a joke that is! The only voice that should be heard above all is my own voice, for I can guide you all better than the lies of any god.” With that, Calloway pushed through the crowd of people and started off to his home. The crowd followed behind like lost dogs, but he shut them all out as well.

Calloway lay in his bed contently, staring up at his ceiling in thought. He felt a deep sense of pretension that made him laugh to himself. “Those fools,” he snickered, “always believe in the stupidest ideas. No god can overpower the idea of man. No being is higher than that of a human.” Calloway spoke in the same loud, boastful manner that he would use when preaching his thoughts. As he continued to ramble to himself, he could hear the faint sound of a bell chime. His eyes instantly searched the room with confusion. He was sure that he was the only person in the house. “Who is out there? Reveal yourself, for I am not willing to have visitors come now.” He spoke cautiously, almost fearful of what would happen now that he was alone. Calloway looked to the door and his eyes widened in shock. With a shriek he leapt back and away from the entrance. A shining figure stood before him, quiet and unblinking. The entity had no mouth, but Calloway could hear its words clear as day: “I know you, Calloway. To deny the existence of any god is to deny help and safety. Must I watch your every move in hopes of change? You are abusing the power that I, Everett, have given you. For that, I shall make sure the only thing you are destined to hear is yourself.” The god Everett walked closer, gently touching Calloway’s shoulder. “You shall hear your ignorance and lies, your disgusting ideas, and allow them to roam in your head.” With this, Everett vanished and left Calloway with his own thoughts.

At first it was unbelievable; he found it too idiotic to trust. He would speak to his peers and try to explain his experience with this entity, but they would all look at him as if he had two heads. He could not understand what made him seem so otherworldly to these people-he could hear himself fine. He could hear their responses as well. Everyone mocked the unfathomable story he spewed; their responses rang in his head for days. It only grew louder, more difficult to drown out. Calloway decided to head to a doctor to figure out why it was so hard for him to sit and relax without the constant memories of other’s faces, their responses to his words. “Doctor! Please help me, there is something seriously wrong! Nobody takes me seriously when I talk. All I can hear is their mockery in my head. It rings like a bell and drives me mad! What is the cause of it?” he questioned the doctor frantically, almost pleading for an answer. But the doctor just looked at him the same way everyone else did, that same confused look. As soon as the doctor began to speak, Calloway’s ears rang. They rang so loud that he could only hear his thoughts, the reflection of his own voice pounding against his eardrums. Voices spoke to him in a mantra: “Your gift of preaching has gone in vain. You are damned, you are untrustworthy and deserve nothing of the gods.” The voice sounded exactly like the doctors, and it made him gasp. Calloway ran to a mirror in the office and investigated it. He realized that his mouth had not opened at all, for he was merely talking to himself. Was the presence of Everett really a curse? Had he truly been reflecting on his own actions this whole time? 

Calloway screamed. It was a loud screech that begged for disperse. Again, his mouth did not move, but his mind did. The scream echoed in his mind, and it made him drop to his knees. He began to panic. Scrambling up to his feet, he rushed over to the empty cave in which he would usually preach. His followers might be waiting for him there, he thought. Once he reached the sight, as he stomped down another offering, a boulder closed the entrance and locked him in. Again, he screamed, but his voice only sounded louder in the cave. Calloway now realized that he was paying for the false preaching, the disrespect for the gods, with these agonizing echoes that mocked him. He let the voices consume him, and as time passed, he drowned in them until death.