I stood there in the emptiness of my mind and summoned Grey. He appeared suddenly, a group of shadows coming together to take shape. He looked a lot like me, but in a more ideal fashion. He wore my trenchcoat and the skeleton shirt. He looked at me with his cold grey eyes.

“Hi,” I said.

“Greetings and salutations,” he said in response. His usual phrase. He gave me that wry, twisted smile.

“You know about Warlock I suppose.” I couldn’t think of anything to say, so I started with that comment.

“Yeah, he’s hanging up his helmet and leaving the Airliner. Too bad.” Grey looked at me suspiciously. We are close enough to read each other’s mo­tives.

“So he’s just Kreg now, right? I noticed that Kreg and Warlock are two very different people.” This was as close to subtle as I was going to get.

“Yeah, so what?”

“Warlock had to resign because Kreg’s life was getting too hectic. He realized that his real life took priority over his job on the Airliner. The two affect each other and…”

“I affect you,” finished Grey smoothly. “And you are confused about our relationship. Are you me or am I you or are we two different people? I really don’t know what to tell you, Andre. You created me; that should help us sort this out.”

Grey Death isn’t a bad person after all. He isn’t my dark side, he’s just… someone else. Maybe I’m ignoring the real problem.

“Who are you? What have I done in creating you?” I asked him.

“Who do you want me to be?”

“I don’t know…”

“You use me as a scapegoat for some of your problems, Andre. Do you want me to be a scapegoat for you?”

“No, I..I..don’t know. I don’t think that we have a problem here, Grey. I think it’s something else. Oh, Jodi wanted me to ask you something: Are the guys on the Airliner my friends or your friends?”

Grey was quick to answer. “I really think that they are your friends, Andre. When you are actually with them, it is your traits that show out, not mine. But I think she is really wondering if they aren’t my friends because our lifestyles are the same while you are a Christian and therefore different.”

“I don’t think she’s going to understand what you just said.”

“Sorry, man, I’ve never been one for vocabulary.” Then Grey went to a to­tally different subject, catching me off guard. “Do you love Jodi?”

“Yes, I do, very much.” This was a rather odd thing for him to ask.

“But are you sure that you just love her or are you in love with her?”

“Um, Grey, she’s reading this right now…”

“I know,” he said, somewhat irritated. “Answer the question.”

“Leave me alone, I’m done talking to you.”

With that, he faded.

This is interesting. In my mind, I actually interact with Grey. I have never done that until recently. It seems that my mind has become a stage and a battlefield. Satan wants revenge so badly, Jodi. His assaults are horrify­ing and I am literally terrified sometimes. But one of his most evil attacks has backfired. Because of the things he made you do in my mind, I seek to destroy his every plot with the aid of God. If he were a mortal creature, he would never be dead enough. I really want…revenge. No, then I would be just like Satan. Argh! Whatever you might call it, I want to see him pay.