Hurtling sideways through the ether of the Shadowland while holding onto the rear bumper of an F-150 Ford pick-up truck is not, by any stretch of the imagination, the easiest place to try and summon up the concentration needed to open a portal to the ‘normal’ world.
When you add in the complications of needing to open a portal large enough for a truck to go through and the concern for the safety of the occupants—and of any potential bystanders who might be nearby—the task only got harder.
But it was absolutely critical that I find a way to solve this problem in a way that left open the possibility for a safe landing.
My one advantage, other than sheer desperation, was that working with the Shadow was extremely easy in the Shadowland itself.
So, ignoring the precarious position that I found myself in, I began weaving the strands of Shadow together into a web-like bubble. I was careful not to seal it up completely until I had some idea of where we would land.
Before I could seal the bubble and activate the portal, I experimented by throwing out tendrils of Shadow to slow our momentum and orient the whole bubble in what I hoped would be the right direction. The sheer mass of the truck and its contents and the speed with which it was traveling, made the task nearly impossible to accomplish in the short time that we had.
After several fitful attempts at getting us oriented, I sealed the portal, closed my eyes, and prayed.
The jarring, crunching impact of the truck threw me into the air, spinning as I went flying.
The front end of the vehicle crumpled up, just as it was designed to do, as it plowed into the trunk of a thick tree. Before I landed myself, I did note that the airbags deployed before anyone’s head smashed through windshield.
My own first impact took place about twenty five feet away and fifteen feet above theirs. It also happened upside down and backwards as I slammed into the tree trunk ass first. Just as that impact registered with a loud cracking sound, I began the slide down through the spindly branches of the now-destroyed tree to land head first in a bush.
By the time I managed to get on my feet and look back to the truck, I saw the passenger door being pushed open by a grumpy looking black bear. Jim wrenched open the drivers door, pulling off his cap as he wiped away the trickle of blood oozing from his nose. Ravyn quickly followed him, bouncing out unscathed, but none too pleased at having a second near-death experience within 12 hours of her first…
Monday, August 20, 2007
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Sole Asylum...Part 3
Shuffling around like silent zombies, we loaded up Jim’s truck with a few overstuffed bags of clothing and personal items and several boxes of groceries from the Frau’s enormous pantry.
Ravyn and I piled into the narrow back seat of the truck while the Frau rode shotgun.
As we set off through the quiet, narrow back country road that would take us north to I-94, the winds began to kick up as the edge of a large, dark, bank of clouds rolled over us from the west.
By the time we reached the highway entrance ramp, enormous drops of water were splattering on the hood and windshield of the truck. Jim pushed up the bill of the second cap. “I didn’t think that rain was in the forecast for the next week.”
A flash of lightning was soon followed by the rolling booms of thunder, signaling for the real downpour to begin. Sheets of water sluiced down across the road.
The Frau chuckled, pushed up her own glass and pointed towards the clouds with her cane. “My bones are telling me that this is no ordinary storm. The hair on the back of my neck is standing up as well. Someone or something doesn’t want us to get where we’re going.”
Jim grunted and punched a button on his radio. He fumbled around with the knobs, adjusting them back and forth several times, only to come up with crackling static. “That’s strange. This radio is normally pretty good.”
Ravyn scanned the highway from her seat next to me. “Hey, I can’t ever remember seeing I-94 this empty. There isn’t another car or truck in sight in either direction.”
I leaned forward from my seat behind the Frau. “Jim, stop the truck. Pull over to the side of the road, but leave it running and in gear.”
Jim pulled over to a stop. As the vehicle stopped, so did the rain.
The tension in the truck was thick. Ravyn clenched and unclenched her fingers, clearly itching to start throwing fire at whatever was causing this weather weirdness. The Frau clutched her cane in white knuckled hands as she scanned the horizons. Jim’s hand gripped the steering wheel, his shoulders hunched and tense.
I patted the seatback in front of me. “Frau, I’ll need to get out of the truck.”
She nearly jumped at my words, but she nodded and started fumbling with the door handle.
The rain had now stopped completely, but a low rumbling sound could be heard coming from the west.
The Frau opened the door and stood on the running board of the truck still holding the door open as she looked back to the west. “Oh my! That looks like a tornado coming our way.”
I clambered out of the back seat and through the rear half-door to stand on the shoulder of the road. Looking back, I saw the huge black funnel cloud that was barreling its way down the highway right towards us.
I slammed the half-door shut and waved the Frau to get back in. Over the growing roar of the oncoming tornado, I called out to Jim. “We’ll never outrun this thing, someone is controlling it. I’m going to open up a portal through the Shadowland. When I wave at you, gun this thing and go through, I’ll follow along as soon as I can!”
Jim’s eyes grew wide for the briefest of moments before he set his jaw, clamped down even harder on his steering wheel, and nodded his agreement. Ravyn seemed to be yelling something, but whatever she said was lost to the howling wind and the shutting door.
I rambled forward to a spot about a hundred feet in front of the truck and turned to face the coming funnel cloud and the hopeful looks of my dear companions.
I had never before created a portal that could fit something as large as a pick-up truck. I was not entirely sure that it was even possible to transport a mechanical machine like and automobile through a magickal, spiritual place like the Shadowland, but we were clearly very short on options.
It was hard to take my eyes off of the looming, ever-closer tornado and the havoc that it was creating less than half a mile behind my friends, but it was necessary if they were going to have a chance at surviving.
Instead, I stared at a spot about twenty feet in front of me. I focused my Will as I called more of the Shadow to that spot than I had ever called upon before.
Darkness formed as the Shadow pooled into the spot I had chosen. It grew rapidly, but nearly as rapidly as the tornado bore down on us.
With my left hand I continued to pour as much Shadow as possible into a puddle on the ground that rippled with dark energies, while I raised my right hand and waved for the truck to come forward.
The winds were whipping, it was getting more and more difficult to stand tall in the face of blowing, churning air.
Jim released the brakes of the truck and punched the accelerator. The truck lurched forward as the engine strained to get up to speed. Jim turned the wheel ever so slightly to align the vehicle with the pool of darkness that now stretched across the entire right lane of the highway.
A tree branch crashed into me as I stood stock still. I maintained my concentration as the truck raced with the screaming tornado to reach the portal.
I began striding forward myself, using both hands now to direct the dark energies of the pool to rise up and form an arch that would be large enough for the truck to go through.
The truck, the tornado, and I all met just feet from the Shadow Gate.
The back of the truck was lifting from ground and sliding to the left as it was caught by the funnel cloud, but its momentum continued to carry it through the gate as it spun in the air. Still using most of my concentration on keeping the portal open, I leapt forward, grabbing onto the rear bumper as it swung into the portal first.
There was an immediate silence as I passed into the calmness of the Shadowland that almost immediately shattered by roaring of the truck engine as Jim continued to hold his foot to the pedal, despite the lack of any ground for the wheels to gain traction on.
As soon as I saw that the front of the truck was through, I closed off that portal and began working on another to get us close to the Asylum…
Ravyn and I piled into the narrow back seat of the truck while the Frau rode shotgun.
As we set off through the quiet, narrow back country road that would take us north to I-94, the winds began to kick up as the edge of a large, dark, bank of clouds rolled over us from the west.
By the time we reached the highway entrance ramp, enormous drops of water were splattering on the hood and windshield of the truck. Jim pushed up the bill of the second cap. “I didn’t think that rain was in the forecast for the next week.”
A flash of lightning was soon followed by the rolling booms of thunder, signaling for the real downpour to begin. Sheets of water sluiced down across the road.
The Frau chuckled, pushed up her own glass and pointed towards the clouds with her cane. “My bones are telling me that this is no ordinary storm. The hair on the back of my neck is standing up as well. Someone or something doesn’t want us to get where we’re going.”
Jim grunted and punched a button on his radio. He fumbled around with the knobs, adjusting them back and forth several times, only to come up with crackling static. “That’s strange. This radio is normally pretty good.”
Ravyn scanned the highway from her seat next to me. “Hey, I can’t ever remember seeing I-94 this empty. There isn’t another car or truck in sight in either direction.”
I leaned forward from my seat behind the Frau. “Jim, stop the truck. Pull over to the side of the road, but leave it running and in gear.”
Jim pulled over to a stop. As the vehicle stopped, so did the rain.
The tension in the truck was thick. Ravyn clenched and unclenched her fingers, clearly itching to start throwing fire at whatever was causing this weather weirdness. The Frau clutched her cane in white knuckled hands as she scanned the horizons. Jim’s hand gripped the steering wheel, his shoulders hunched and tense.
I patted the seatback in front of me. “Frau, I’ll need to get out of the truck.”
She nearly jumped at my words, but she nodded and started fumbling with the door handle.
The rain had now stopped completely, but a low rumbling sound could be heard coming from the west.
The Frau opened the door and stood on the running board of the truck still holding the door open as she looked back to the west. “Oh my! That looks like a tornado coming our way.”
I clambered out of the back seat and through the rear half-door to stand on the shoulder of the road. Looking back, I saw the huge black funnel cloud that was barreling its way down the highway right towards us.
I slammed the half-door shut and waved the Frau to get back in. Over the growing roar of the oncoming tornado, I called out to Jim. “We’ll never outrun this thing, someone is controlling it. I’m going to open up a portal through the Shadowland. When I wave at you, gun this thing and go through, I’ll follow along as soon as I can!”
Jim’s eyes grew wide for the briefest of moments before he set his jaw, clamped down even harder on his steering wheel, and nodded his agreement. Ravyn seemed to be yelling something, but whatever she said was lost to the howling wind and the shutting door.
I rambled forward to a spot about a hundred feet in front of the truck and turned to face the coming funnel cloud and the hopeful looks of my dear companions.
I had never before created a portal that could fit something as large as a pick-up truck. I was not entirely sure that it was even possible to transport a mechanical machine like and automobile through a magickal, spiritual place like the Shadowland, but we were clearly very short on options.
It was hard to take my eyes off of the looming, ever-closer tornado and the havoc that it was creating less than half a mile behind my friends, but it was necessary if they were going to have a chance at surviving.
Instead, I stared at a spot about twenty feet in front of me. I focused my Will as I called more of the Shadow to that spot than I had ever called upon before.
Darkness formed as the Shadow pooled into the spot I had chosen. It grew rapidly, but nearly as rapidly as the tornado bore down on us.
With my left hand I continued to pour as much Shadow as possible into a puddle on the ground that rippled with dark energies, while I raised my right hand and waved for the truck to come forward.
The winds were whipping, it was getting more and more difficult to stand tall in the face of blowing, churning air.
Jim released the brakes of the truck and punched the accelerator. The truck lurched forward as the engine strained to get up to speed. Jim turned the wheel ever so slightly to align the vehicle with the pool of darkness that now stretched across the entire right lane of the highway.
A tree branch crashed into me as I stood stock still. I maintained my concentration as the truck raced with the screaming tornado to reach the portal.
I began striding forward myself, using both hands now to direct the dark energies of the pool to rise up and form an arch that would be large enough for the truck to go through.
The truck, the tornado, and I all met just feet from the Shadow Gate.
The back of the truck was lifting from ground and sliding to the left as it was caught by the funnel cloud, but its momentum continued to carry it through the gate as it spun in the air. Still using most of my concentration on keeping the portal open, I leapt forward, grabbing onto the rear bumper as it swung into the portal first.
There was an immediate silence as I passed into the calmness of the Shadowland that almost immediately shattered by roaring of the truck engine as Jim continued to hold his foot to the pedal, despite the lack of any ground for the wheels to gain traction on.
As soon as I saw that the front of the truck was through, I closed off that portal and began working on another to get us close to the Asylum…
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Sole Asylum...Part 2
The goodbyes between the group heading towards Herne’s Lodge and those of us heading east towards Detroit looked like they were going to be short and sweet. Ravyn took the longest with Cerrydwen, taking the opportunity to give her a list of all of the folks from the Coop that she wanted Cerrydwen to check with Herne about.
I gave Naomi a quick hug and then picked up Alexa to give one as well.
She looked directly into my eyes as I did so, her expression suddenly very serious. “Daddy?”
“Yes, Darling?”
She brought her small brown hands up to rest on each of my cheeks. The tone of her voice changed from her normal high-pitch to the deeper, huskier voice that came when her older self spoke.
“The storm clouds of change, turmoil, conflict are gathering. I want you to know that there is no way to stop the coming storm, the winds must blow, the waters must rise, and the blood of many will be shed. My vision cannot penetrate through the fog of war that obscures the coming time of trouble, but I have a feeling that this will be the last time that we will be together for quite some time. Do not worry for me, Father, or for Mother. Others are watching over us as well. What will be, will be.”
“But, why…”
She moved her left hand from my right cheek to hush me by putting her finger gently to my lips.
“I cannot tarry long, so please listen to me now. You all will be sorely tested by both the enemies that you know and those that are not yet revealed to you.” She removed the hand from my mouth to touch my chest. “You will need to use all of the gifts of this body that you inhabit if you hope to prevail, but it is your humanity that will be your greatest asset. Follow the heart that yet beats within your Spirit and we will meet again. Don’t forget who you are, or your cause will be lost.”
She bent forward and kissed me and motioned for me to put her down, which I did. She walked over to stand in front of Ravyn, who knelt down to be on the same level.
Alexa reached out and took Ravyn’s left hand into both of her own. “Mistress Fyre, I have learned so much from you. Thank you.”
Ravyn’s breath caught in her chest, she looked like she was about to cry, as if she sensed the words that were coming next. “Oh, Alexa…”
Alexa reached up and touched Ravyn’s lips as she did mine. “Know that the Powers have smiled on this second life that you have been given. You are more than worthy of this honor. Betsy will come again in your dreams, if you allow her to. I cannot say for sure that we will meet again in this life because the gift that you have received obscures you from all future visions. I do not know what this means, but I don’t believe that you can be seen by any of your enemies in this way either. I know that you will use this knowledge and this extra time that you have been given wisely and that you will continue to give more of yourself than anyone could ever rightfully ask of you. I hope to feel your warm embrace again.” With that, Alexa grabbed the stunned Ravyn in a crushing bear hug that ended with a kiss on Ravyn’s forehead.
Alexa then moved to stand before Jim, who also knelt down to hear what she had to say. Even on his knees though, he towered over her diminutive frame. She reached up on her tip toes to take the well worn cap from his head, revealing a mass of tousled hair in the process.
“Uncle Jim, I will never forget the tenderness of your embrace when I was brought to you by Father from that terrible storm.”
“But you were just a baby…”
She smiled as she placed the cap on her own head and took his right hand in her left hand. Her tiny hand was dwarfed by his. “That love for others is what will sustain you through this storm. Please know that the work that you do, the knowledge that you impart on others, and the love that you freely give, all matter. Without these things, the world would be a much poorer place. Everything you have done, and will do, helps to lay the foundation for a better, more peaceful world.” She reached up and embraced him before planting a big, wet kiss on his cheek.
Jim’s cap still on her head, she moved to stand in front of the Frau. “Grandmother Bear, I am honored that you allowed me to ride on your shoulders all those nights when others thought we slept soundly. The lessons that you taught me under stars will be with me forever, and will guide all that I seek to accomplish.”
The Frau looked over to Naomi sheepishly, before chuckling and bending down to take Alexa into a bear hug. “I had as much fun as you did, Child.”
Alexa smiled. “Your quiet strength and your boundless patience will be of more use than your still sharp claws in the coming battles. Your healing skills will be in great demand, use them well and generously and the rewards will be greater than you can imagine.” With those final words, Alexa planted a kiss on the Frau’s puckered lips before disengaging and bouncing over to Naomi’s waiting arms.
She pulled Jim’s cap off of her head and waved it to us as her normal voice returned. “Bye, bye everyone! I love you!”
Grim faced, Cerrydwen joined Naomi and Alexa in the engraved pentagram on the floor of the main room and activated the Transit Point. With a bright flash of white light, they were gone.
The rest of us stood in silence as each of us contemplated the words of a powerful young girl who was wise beyond all human comprehension.
I gave Naomi a quick hug and then picked up Alexa to give one as well.
She looked directly into my eyes as I did so, her expression suddenly very serious. “Daddy?”
“Yes, Darling?”
She brought her small brown hands up to rest on each of my cheeks. The tone of her voice changed from her normal high-pitch to the deeper, huskier voice that came when her older self spoke.
“The storm clouds of change, turmoil, conflict are gathering. I want you to know that there is no way to stop the coming storm, the winds must blow, the waters must rise, and the blood of many will be shed. My vision cannot penetrate through the fog of war that obscures the coming time of trouble, but I have a feeling that this will be the last time that we will be together for quite some time. Do not worry for me, Father, or for Mother. Others are watching over us as well. What will be, will be.”
“But, why…”
She moved her left hand from my right cheek to hush me by putting her finger gently to my lips.
“I cannot tarry long, so please listen to me now. You all will be sorely tested by both the enemies that you know and those that are not yet revealed to you.” She removed the hand from my mouth to touch my chest. “You will need to use all of the gifts of this body that you inhabit if you hope to prevail, but it is your humanity that will be your greatest asset. Follow the heart that yet beats within your Spirit and we will meet again. Don’t forget who you are, or your cause will be lost.”
She bent forward and kissed me and motioned for me to put her down, which I did. She walked over to stand in front of Ravyn, who knelt down to be on the same level.
Alexa reached out and took Ravyn’s left hand into both of her own. “Mistress Fyre, I have learned so much from you. Thank you.”
Ravyn’s breath caught in her chest, she looked like she was about to cry, as if she sensed the words that were coming next. “Oh, Alexa…”
Alexa reached up and touched Ravyn’s lips as she did mine. “Know that the Powers have smiled on this second life that you have been given. You are more than worthy of this honor. Betsy will come again in your dreams, if you allow her to. I cannot say for sure that we will meet again in this life because the gift that you have received obscures you from all future visions. I do not know what this means, but I don’t believe that you can be seen by any of your enemies in this way either. I know that you will use this knowledge and this extra time that you have been given wisely and that you will continue to give more of yourself than anyone could ever rightfully ask of you. I hope to feel your warm embrace again.” With that, Alexa grabbed the stunned Ravyn in a crushing bear hug that ended with a kiss on Ravyn’s forehead.
Alexa then moved to stand before Jim, who also knelt down to hear what she had to say. Even on his knees though, he towered over her diminutive frame. She reached up on her tip toes to take the well worn cap from his head, revealing a mass of tousled hair in the process.
“Uncle Jim, I will never forget the tenderness of your embrace when I was brought to you by Father from that terrible storm.”
“But you were just a baby…”
She smiled as she placed the cap on her own head and took his right hand in her left hand. Her tiny hand was dwarfed by his. “That love for others is what will sustain you through this storm. Please know that the work that you do, the knowledge that you impart on others, and the love that you freely give, all matter. Without these things, the world would be a much poorer place. Everything you have done, and will do, helps to lay the foundation for a better, more peaceful world.” She reached up and embraced him before planting a big, wet kiss on his cheek.
Jim’s cap still on her head, she moved to stand in front of the Frau. “Grandmother Bear, I am honored that you allowed me to ride on your shoulders all those nights when others thought we slept soundly. The lessons that you taught me under stars will be with me forever, and will guide all that I seek to accomplish.”
The Frau looked over to Naomi sheepishly, before chuckling and bending down to take Alexa into a bear hug. “I had as much fun as you did, Child.”
Alexa smiled. “Your quiet strength and your boundless patience will be of more use than your still sharp claws in the coming battles. Your healing skills will be in great demand, use them well and generously and the rewards will be greater than you can imagine.” With those final words, Alexa planted a kiss on the Frau’s puckered lips before disengaging and bouncing over to Naomi’s waiting arms.
She pulled Jim’s cap off of her head and waved it to us as her normal voice returned. “Bye, bye everyone! I love you!”
Grim faced, Cerrydwen joined Naomi and Alexa in the engraved pentagram on the floor of the main room and activated the Transit Point. With a bright flash of white light, they were gone.
The rest of us stood in silence as each of us contemplated the words of a powerful young girl who was wise beyond all human comprehension.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Sole Asylum...Part 1
After some deliberation it was decided that our side trip to check out the stash left behind by Drake would come after we set up a base of operations at the Asylum.
While Naomi, Alexa, and Cerrydwen packed up for their journey through the Transit Point to Herne’s Lodge, Ravyn grabbed me by the shoulders. “I need some decent clothing, Zombie. This simply will not do.”
I nodded. “OK. What do you want me to do about it?”
She smiled. “You’re taking me shopping.”
I glanced down at my watch. “There’s not much open at this hour. It’s still too early for anything except those 24 hour supermarkets.”
Her grin was positively wicked. “That’s why I need you. Jim’s told me about a group of very high end boutiques in New York that is wholly owned by the Mercury Unlimited Group. This shopping trip is going to be courtesy of Dick Arnold and friends.”
“But why would they open just for us?”
She reached up and slapped her palm on my forehead. “You can be so dense. If I was going to wait for them to open for business, I’d ask Jim to go along so that he could pay. I need you to get me in and out without setting off any fire alarms. You can also carry a lot more than he can!”
The light switch in my head flipped on. “Oh. I get it, now. You know I spent most of my arresting petty criminals. Now I get to play one.”
She stood there watching me impatiently. “Well, what are you waiting for, let’s get going before they open up!”
I sighed and summoned the Shadow to take us to the Big Apple for our illicit shopping trip.
We returned less than an hour later, my arms loaded down with several bags containing most of Ravyn’s new stylish wardrobe.
Ravyn bounced off with a couple of smaller bags in hand in to change from her borrowed sweatpants and t-shirt into her chosen outfit as I took the rest of the bags to Jim’s truck.
Jim just shook his head as he surveyed the bags that I packed into the cargo area of the truck. “I don’t even want to know how much all of this would have cost.”
I shook my head. “Let’s just say that we can now add Grand Larceny and Breaking and Entering onto our RAP sheets.”
“Well, at least she’ll be well dressed for her mug shot.”
“I’ll say. Just wait until you see some of the things she got.”
I noted that a brief, wistful look flashed across his face before his serious demeanor returned as he coughed out his response. “Well, I’m sure it was all quite necessary.”
While Naomi, Alexa, and Cerrydwen packed up for their journey through the Transit Point to Herne’s Lodge, Ravyn grabbed me by the shoulders. “I need some decent clothing, Zombie. This simply will not do.”
I nodded. “OK. What do you want me to do about it?”
She smiled. “You’re taking me shopping.”
I glanced down at my watch. “There’s not much open at this hour. It’s still too early for anything except those 24 hour supermarkets.”
Her grin was positively wicked. “That’s why I need you. Jim’s told me about a group of very high end boutiques in New York that is wholly owned by the Mercury Unlimited Group. This shopping trip is going to be courtesy of Dick Arnold and friends.”
“But why would they open just for us?”
She reached up and slapped her palm on my forehead. “You can be so dense. If I was going to wait for them to open for business, I’d ask Jim to go along so that he could pay. I need you to get me in and out without setting off any fire alarms. You can also carry a lot more than he can!”
The light switch in my head flipped on. “Oh. I get it, now. You know I spent most of my arresting petty criminals. Now I get to play one.”
She stood there watching me impatiently. “Well, what are you waiting for, let’s get going before they open up!”
I sighed and summoned the Shadow to take us to the Big Apple for our illicit shopping trip.
We returned less than an hour later, my arms loaded down with several bags containing most of Ravyn’s new stylish wardrobe.
Ravyn bounced off with a couple of smaller bags in hand in to change from her borrowed sweatpants and t-shirt into her chosen outfit as I took the rest of the bags to Jim’s truck.
Jim just shook his head as he surveyed the bags that I packed into the cargo area of the truck. “I don’t even want to know how much all of this would have cost.”
I shook my head. “Let’s just say that we can now add Grand Larceny and Breaking and Entering onto our RAP sheets.”
“Well, at least she’ll be well dressed for her mug shot.”
“I’ll say. Just wait until you see some of the things she got.”
I noted that a brief, wistful look flashed across his face before his serious demeanor returned as he coughed out his response. “Well, I’m sure it was all quite necessary.”
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Playing Hardball...Part 3
Jim tossed his mangled, misshapen cap on the couch and stalked off towards the front door mumbling something unintelligible.
Everyone else began to mill around, gathering items that they might need and packing them into bags.
The slamming front door told us that Jim was back, a small black briefcase in hand. He moved to the bar counter between the kitchen and common room and opened the case to reveal a computer of some sort.
I moved to get a better look. “What’s this all about?”
He glanced sideways at me before pressing a button that began firing up the thing. “I need to make the alert goes out to all ORC facilities and independent operators out there. This computer represents the merging of magick and technology that we have been able to come up with. It has the capability to uplink to the net in a way that can’t be tracked or traced by anything the government has. I don’t want anyone else caught by surprise.”
The inside of the case was completely taken up by this computer. He had opened it like a laptop computer, and while the keyboard looked a little clumsier than those of modern computers, the screen looked completely normal. It didn’t look particularly ‘magickal’. I said as much.
He grunted. “We designed it to look as normal as possible to outsiders. It’s not the equipment on the outside that makes it special. It’s the power source and connections to the net that make this thing special. Well, the software is unique. We couldn’t exactly ask Bill Gates to come up with an operating system for this thing.”
I watched as the screen booted up in a flash of colors and 3-D graphics. “Who did all of this?”
“It was a group effort. The software was designed by one of our closest friends from the San Diego Circle, Alana Danae, she’s both a Shaman and computer whiz. I’m really hoping that she was able to make it out alive from that attack out there, we’re going to need her talents.”
Once the computer finished booting up, I watched as Jim’s hand flew over the keyboard and mouse as he toggled open a number of different applications, sent dozens of messages. After the messages had gone out, he surfed among several different bank accounts. He cursed violently as some of the sites appeared to be blocked, but for those that he could get in, he logged into each one, made several lightning quick moves and logged out of each them quicker than I could even note which banks or brokerages they belonged to. He was closing the machine down within minutes.
As he closed the shell of the briefcase, clicking it into place, he looked up again at me. “It looks like some government agency has already identified some of our accounts and has placed blocks on them.” He shook his head. “We are under a coordinated, full fledged attack. These guys are playing hardball with us.”
Ravyn moved in between us, grabbed each of us in one arm looked up at Jim. “Well, as I understand it, it takes two teams to play any game with a ball. We need to gather ourselves, figure out exactly who is attacking and why, and hit back with everything that we can. I know there’s one particular Bane out there that I want a rematch with!”
Jim nodded. “I’ve sent out a request for an emergency Convocation of the Clans to take place at the Asylum once everyone has safely seen their people to safety. We need to know who’s already been attacked, what resources we’ll have available to us, and to come up with a battle plan before this situation gets any worse.”
Cerrydwen came up. “Did you say that the Convocation is taking place at the Asylum?”
“Yes.”
She shook her head and raised her left hand for emphasis. “You can count me out. I’m not setting foot in that cursed place.”
Ravyn cocked her head. “Why? What’s wrong with the place?”
The Frau chuckled as she waded into the conversation. “The Asylum is in the basement of an old mental institution just outside of Detroit. It sits on a large, abandoned campus that affords us a lot more privacy because it is rumored to be haunted.”
Cerrydwen shuddered. “It’s not a rumor. That place is awash in tortured Spirits and echoes with their pained cries. I could feel the terror of that place just be driving by it. I won’t be going there with you.”
The Frau patted her on the shoulder. “That’s OK, Dear. I’m sure Herne could use some help getting everyone off to the safe houses. Besides, I don’t think Naomi and Alexa should go to the Asylum. It is not a pleasant place.”
Jim nodded. “That’s probably for the best then. Frau, Ravyn, Rusty and I will be heading to the Asylum-we can get there by driving in less than hour-and set up for the Convocation. Cerrydwen, Naomi and Alexa will use the Transit Point and head out to the Lodge and then off to whichever safe house Herne feels is the safest.”
I remembered something that had almost gotten lost in all of the excitement. “Hey, we might want to make a side trip, if we can. Drake gave me the location to his store of weapons and items.” I looked over at Jim. “And, with that computer, I think you’ll be able to access the accounts he gave me the passwords to. I seriously doubt that anyone has been able to put any blocks on those funds.”
Everyone else began to mill around, gathering items that they might need and packing them into bags.
The slamming front door told us that Jim was back, a small black briefcase in hand. He moved to the bar counter between the kitchen and common room and opened the case to reveal a computer of some sort.
I moved to get a better look. “What’s this all about?”
He glanced sideways at me before pressing a button that began firing up the thing. “I need to make the alert goes out to all ORC facilities and independent operators out there. This computer represents the merging of magick and technology that we have been able to come up with. It has the capability to uplink to the net in a way that can’t be tracked or traced by anything the government has. I don’t want anyone else caught by surprise.”
The inside of the case was completely taken up by this computer. He had opened it like a laptop computer, and while the keyboard looked a little clumsier than those of modern computers, the screen looked completely normal. It didn’t look particularly ‘magickal’. I said as much.
He grunted. “We designed it to look as normal as possible to outsiders. It’s not the equipment on the outside that makes it special. It’s the power source and connections to the net that make this thing special. Well, the software is unique. We couldn’t exactly ask Bill Gates to come up with an operating system for this thing.”
I watched as the screen booted up in a flash of colors and 3-D graphics. “Who did all of this?”
“It was a group effort. The software was designed by one of our closest friends from the San Diego Circle, Alana Danae, she’s both a Shaman and computer whiz. I’m really hoping that she was able to make it out alive from that attack out there, we’re going to need her talents.”
Once the computer finished booting up, I watched as Jim’s hand flew over the keyboard and mouse as he toggled open a number of different applications, sent dozens of messages. After the messages had gone out, he surfed among several different bank accounts. He cursed violently as some of the sites appeared to be blocked, but for those that he could get in, he logged into each one, made several lightning quick moves and logged out of each them quicker than I could even note which banks or brokerages they belonged to. He was closing the machine down within minutes.
As he closed the shell of the briefcase, clicking it into place, he looked up again at me. “It looks like some government agency has already identified some of our accounts and has placed blocks on them.” He shook his head. “We are under a coordinated, full fledged attack. These guys are playing hardball with us.”
Ravyn moved in between us, grabbed each of us in one arm looked up at Jim. “Well, as I understand it, it takes two teams to play any game with a ball. We need to gather ourselves, figure out exactly who is attacking and why, and hit back with everything that we can. I know there’s one particular Bane out there that I want a rematch with!”
Jim nodded. “I’ve sent out a request for an emergency Convocation of the Clans to take place at the Asylum once everyone has safely seen their people to safety. We need to know who’s already been attacked, what resources we’ll have available to us, and to come up with a battle plan before this situation gets any worse.”
Cerrydwen came up. “Did you say that the Convocation is taking place at the Asylum?”
“Yes.”
She shook her head and raised her left hand for emphasis. “You can count me out. I’m not setting foot in that cursed place.”
Ravyn cocked her head. “Why? What’s wrong with the place?”
The Frau chuckled as she waded into the conversation. “The Asylum is in the basement of an old mental institution just outside of Detroit. It sits on a large, abandoned campus that affords us a lot more privacy because it is rumored to be haunted.”
Cerrydwen shuddered. “It’s not a rumor. That place is awash in tortured Spirits and echoes with their pained cries. I could feel the terror of that place just be driving by it. I won’t be going there with you.”
The Frau patted her on the shoulder. “That’s OK, Dear. I’m sure Herne could use some help getting everyone off to the safe houses. Besides, I don’t think Naomi and Alexa should go to the Asylum. It is not a pleasant place.”
Jim nodded. “That’s probably for the best then. Frau, Ravyn, Rusty and I will be heading to the Asylum-we can get there by driving in less than hour-and set up for the Convocation. Cerrydwen, Naomi and Alexa will use the Transit Point and head out to the Lodge and then off to whichever safe house Herne feels is the safest.”
I remembered something that had almost gotten lost in all of the excitement. “Hey, we might want to make a side trip, if we can. Drake gave me the location to his store of weapons and items.” I looked over at Jim. “And, with that computer, I think you’ll be able to access the accounts he gave me the passwords to. I seriously doubt that anyone has been able to put any blocks on those funds.”
Friday, July 27, 2007
Playing Hardball...Part 2
I turned to face the Frau. “OK, we’ve seen what’s happened at the Coop. What else is going on?”
Frau scrunched up her face as she moved to take a seat on a comfortable looking sofa and waved for the rest of us to do the same. “You all might as well sit down. Things have gone from bad to worse in a hurry.”
Cerrydwen emerged from the kitchen to place a steaming platter of eggs, sausages and toast on the counter that separated the kitchen from the immense common room. “If anyone’s hungry, come and get it while it is still hot.”
Ravyn rushed to the bar stool nearest the food and began piling a plate high with servings of everything. She waved at the Frau to begin speaking. “Don’t wait on me. I’ve never been so hungry in my life. I’m listening!”
The Frau nodded, setting her cane to the side as Alexa came bouncing up into her lap with an energetic giggle.
“Herne did note that everyone that Ravyn and Betsy had sent out there had arrived safely, but the news was certainly not all good.” Her glasses slid down towards the end of her nose as she spoke. “He has already received a second group of refugees from the San Diego Circle and has heard reports of an attack on the Salem House in Boston, but he hasn’t been able to reach Tessa or any of the other principles of Salem House.”
Jim gave a low whistle and took off his hat in frustration. “That means that three of our largest teaching facilities have been hit on the same night!”
Ravyn looked up from her plate, her mouth half full of food. “No wonder he mentioned the Railroad.”
The Frau nodded. “Yes, he has activated the Railroad and has been sending out the refugees first.”
I looked around, everyone else seemed to know what the Hell the ‘Railroad’ was, so I had to ask. “What is this Railroad business and what does it have to do with these attacks?”
Jim stood up. He began twisting and wrenching his baseball cap in his large hands as he began to explain. “The Railroad is one of major contingency plans. It was actually something we came up with when we were dealing with Drake and his minions, when we thought that we might be pitted against the FBI and other federal agencies in trying to help you in those early days. It is based on the Underground Railroad that helped freed slaves escape the South before and during the Civil War. It is a way of moving our people around without too much notice.”
“I guessed as much, but where are these folks going and how are they getting there?”
He shuffled his feet and twisted his cap even tighter in his hands. “We have a network of transit points that link each major ORC facility to few select safe houses scattered around the country that are known only to select principals in each facility. It was one of those transit points that Ravyn activated to get most of the folks from the Coop to Herne’s Lodge in the Rockies.”
Frau cleared her throat. “Yes, as well as the dozen or so from San Diego. The Lodge is one of our primary rally points, but Herne is concerned of the possibility that it has been compromised as well. That was why he activating the Railroad to move out most of the refugees to even safer locations until we can get our bearings and come up with an appropriate response.”
Ravyn bounced up from her stool now that her plate was empty and stalked over to me. She stood facing me, hands on her hips. “I know one thing that we’re going to be doing! Bane hunting! I…”
My Bureau issued cell phone chose that moment to erupt in music, silencing Ravyn in mid-sentence. With more than a little trepidation, I reached into my pocket and pulled it out. I didn’t recognize the number, so I flipped the phone open. “Bones here.”
Agent Jennifer Wilson’s voice hissed through the crackling static of the ear piece, but she was clearly trying to mask it. “Damn it, don’t use any names. It’s about time you I found you. Look, I can’t talk long. The Bureau is shutting us down.”
“What? Why?”
“I just received a summons from very high in the Bureau. All work in our unit is to cease immediately and all agents and assets are to report for reassignment immediately. The scuttlebutt is also that you’ve been compromised and have gone rogue, but I don’t believe it. There is an all point’s bulletin out for you to be taken into custody by any means necessary. That’s why I had to use this disposable phone to call you. I recommend that you dump this phone immediately when we terminate this call and get rid of any other Bureau issued items that might be traceable.”
“Damn! What about you?”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me. Oh, two more quick things. First, that body that I was examining disappeared along with all of my notes and computer files, but I can tell you that I think they have an aversion to silver, the purer the silver the better. Second, your friend in DC, the one named after the African tribe, has been taken very ill and has been quarantined for the last week. No one except his doctor and the guards that have been assigned to his room is being allowed to see him for any reason.”
“Jesus…”
“I have to go. Remember, ditch your phone immediately and get away from wherever you are. There are serious resources being dedicated to finding you right now and they don’t have good intentions.”
The phone went silent and the squealed in protest as I crushed it in my hand.
I looked up in the questioning, concerned faces of my compatriots. “Well, it looks like we just moved from the frying pan to the fire. We need to pack up as quickly as possible and get the heck out of here, pronto.”
(To be continued…)
Frau scrunched up her face as she moved to take a seat on a comfortable looking sofa and waved for the rest of us to do the same. “You all might as well sit down. Things have gone from bad to worse in a hurry.”
Cerrydwen emerged from the kitchen to place a steaming platter of eggs, sausages and toast on the counter that separated the kitchen from the immense common room. “If anyone’s hungry, come and get it while it is still hot.”
Ravyn rushed to the bar stool nearest the food and began piling a plate high with servings of everything. She waved at the Frau to begin speaking. “Don’t wait on me. I’ve never been so hungry in my life. I’m listening!”
The Frau nodded, setting her cane to the side as Alexa came bouncing up into her lap with an energetic giggle.
“Herne did note that everyone that Ravyn and Betsy had sent out there had arrived safely, but the news was certainly not all good.” Her glasses slid down towards the end of her nose as she spoke. “He has already received a second group of refugees from the San Diego Circle and has heard reports of an attack on the Salem House in Boston, but he hasn’t been able to reach Tessa or any of the other principles of Salem House.”
Jim gave a low whistle and took off his hat in frustration. “That means that three of our largest teaching facilities have been hit on the same night!”
Ravyn looked up from her plate, her mouth half full of food. “No wonder he mentioned the Railroad.”
The Frau nodded. “Yes, he has activated the Railroad and has been sending out the refugees first.”
I looked around, everyone else seemed to know what the Hell the ‘Railroad’ was, so I had to ask. “What is this Railroad business and what does it have to do with these attacks?”
Jim stood up. He began twisting and wrenching his baseball cap in his large hands as he began to explain. “The Railroad is one of major contingency plans. It was actually something we came up with when we were dealing with Drake and his minions, when we thought that we might be pitted against the FBI and other federal agencies in trying to help you in those early days. It is based on the Underground Railroad that helped freed slaves escape the South before and during the Civil War. It is a way of moving our people around without too much notice.”
“I guessed as much, but where are these folks going and how are they getting there?”
He shuffled his feet and twisted his cap even tighter in his hands. “We have a network of transit points that link each major ORC facility to few select safe houses scattered around the country that are known only to select principals in each facility. It was one of those transit points that Ravyn activated to get most of the folks from the Coop to Herne’s Lodge in the Rockies.”
Frau cleared her throat. “Yes, as well as the dozen or so from San Diego. The Lodge is one of our primary rally points, but Herne is concerned of the possibility that it has been compromised as well. That was why he activating the Railroad to move out most of the refugees to even safer locations until we can get our bearings and come up with an appropriate response.”
Ravyn bounced up from her stool now that her plate was empty and stalked over to me. She stood facing me, hands on her hips. “I know one thing that we’re going to be doing! Bane hunting! I…”
My Bureau issued cell phone chose that moment to erupt in music, silencing Ravyn in mid-sentence. With more than a little trepidation, I reached into my pocket and pulled it out. I didn’t recognize the number, so I flipped the phone open. “Bones here.”
Agent Jennifer Wilson’s voice hissed through the crackling static of the ear piece, but she was clearly trying to mask it. “Damn it, don’t use any names. It’s about time you I found you. Look, I can’t talk long. The Bureau is shutting us down.”
“What? Why?”
“I just received a summons from very high in the Bureau. All work in our unit is to cease immediately and all agents and assets are to report for reassignment immediately. The scuttlebutt is also that you’ve been compromised and have gone rogue, but I don’t believe it. There is an all point’s bulletin out for you to be taken into custody by any means necessary. That’s why I had to use this disposable phone to call you. I recommend that you dump this phone immediately when we terminate this call and get rid of any other Bureau issued items that might be traceable.”
“Damn! What about you?”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me. Oh, two more quick things. First, that body that I was examining disappeared along with all of my notes and computer files, but I can tell you that I think they have an aversion to silver, the purer the silver the better. Second, your friend in DC, the one named after the African tribe, has been taken very ill and has been quarantined for the last week. No one except his doctor and the guards that have been assigned to his room is being allowed to see him for any reason.”
“Jesus…”
“I have to go. Remember, ditch your phone immediately and get away from wherever you are. There are serious resources being dedicated to finding you right now and they don’t have good intentions.”
The phone went silent and the squealed in protest as I crushed it in my hand.
I looked up in the questioning, concerned faces of my compatriots. “Well, it looks like we just moved from the frying pan to the fire. We need to pack up as quickly as possible and get the heck out of here, pronto.”
(To be continued…)
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Playing Hardball...Part 1
After an impromptu and emotional celebration, we returned to the house to find the phone ringing.
The Frau picked up the cordless phone while simultaneously offering instructions. “Naomi, you’re closest to Ravyn’s size, can you get some clothes for poor Ravyn? Rusty can you take care of this table? Cerry, would you be a dear and start some breakfast going?” After about the tenth ring, she fumbled with the buttons on the phone and answered that. “Hello?”
Her face lit up as she heard the voice on the other end of the line.
“Oh, Herne, I’m so glad you called. Ravyn’s back with us now!”
There was a pause as she listened to him respond. His voice was almost audible over the handset, but I couldn’t quite make out the words.
“What? Oh dear! Yes, by all means, activate the Railroad. I’ll let everyone here know about your concerns and start the ball rolling on our end.”
Jim’s face tightened considerably at the mention of ‘railroad’, he stood still as he tred to catch whatever was being said by Herne.
She paused again as he spoke for quite some time.
“Yes, we’ll turn it on now. Yes, we’ll notify the families. You guys take care. Let us know when everyone is safe!”
Frau’s demeanor had changed considerably by the time she punched the button to hang up the phone. She looked she wanted to slam the phone down, but thought better of it at the last moment. Instead, she turned to me. “Rusty, will you turn the television on to the Wolf Network News channel please.” Her teeth visibly grated as she spat those words out.
I nodded and went looking for the remote control. The WNN was not the first choice of anyone here, as it clearly had a hard line conservative bent to its coverage. By the time I found the remote, everyone had come back into the main room, gathering about the TV.
Ravyn was now wearing a pair of loose grey sweatpants and a plain black t-shirt that was clearly two sizes too large for her as she carried the bubbly Alexa in her arms. Naomi followed right behind.
The TV flickered on and we could immediately see why the Frau wanted to watch this channel. The screen was split into two main images and scrolling news banner beneath. The words ‘Breaking News’ were emblazoned across the top of both images. The screen on the right must showing earlier footage of the Coop lit up at night by the blazing fire that we had just barely escaped from. The left side of the screen was of a reporter talking with the smoldering ruins of the Coop as the backdrop.
The scrolling ‘news’ that rolled beneath the footage was supposedly encapsulating the highlights of the coverage to date. Just the first few snippets of it were enough to get Ravyn to gasp and Jim to clench his hands in anger.
“BIZZARE FIRE AT COLLEGE TOWN OCCULT HOUSE IN CHICAGO SUBURBS.”
“POLICE SUSPECT POSSIBLE SUICIDE PACT AMONG STRANGE CULT MEMBERS.”
“20 BODIES DISCOVERED IN OCCULT HOUSE FIRE NEAR CHICAGO.”
“NEIGHBORS CLAIM RESIDENTS OF OCCULT HOUSE WERE SATAN WORSHIPPERS AND THAT HOUSE SHOULD HAVE BEEN SHUT DOWN YEARS AGO.”
The reporter’s voice came across in response to a question from the studio. “Yes, Bill, I just finished speaking with a spokesperson for the East Napierville Fire Department and he has confirmed that fire appears to be very suspicious in nature and that they believe that accelerants were used, leading them to believe that the occupants of the house set it on fire themselves.”
The screen flashed over to a studio where a heavy set, balding man sat at an anchor desk and asked another question of the reporter. “Sam, I’ve seen some reports here that this house may have been used by a Satanic cult of some sort, can you give us any more information on that?”
The screen flipped back to the reporter, who listened to the question in his earpiece, nodding eagerly as the question ended. “Indeed, I can Bill. According to several neighbors that I spoke with, including one that we’ll roll the tape on here in a moment, this house was run by a wild woman known only as Ravyn Fyre. All of the witnesses agreed that this Ravyn Fyre was a well known witch and coven leader for a bizarre group that called themselves Trolls or Goblins, or some other name like that. She apparently used this house as a recruiting center and for strange night time rituals that often involved large fires and animal sacrifices. Let’s roll the tape of this interview.”
The screen flickered to show an older woman who looked an awful lot like Evelyn Olsen, a kindly neighbor that Ravyn had shared many a meal with over the years, but her mannerisms were not quite right. “Oh yes, I’ve always known that the people in this house weren’t to be trusted. When I tried to report on them though, they threatened me to keep me quiet. Ravyn Fyre even threatened to make my precious kitties disappear if I reported her to the authorities.”
The mike in front of the woman moved as the reporter asked another question. “Mrs. Olsen, do you think that the folks in this house were involved with occult activity in any way?”
She nodded vigorously. “Oh yes. I can’t remember all of the times I saw those young people dressed in strange robes-or even in nothing at all-dancing around fires at night.” She visibly shuddered. “I pray for the souls of those poor folk in the fire, I’m afraid that they will be heading in the wrong direction, if you know what I mean.”
The Frau snorted at that last statement before she spoke. “Rusty, turn that off. I’ve seen enough.”
(To be continued…)
The Frau picked up the cordless phone while simultaneously offering instructions. “Naomi, you’re closest to Ravyn’s size, can you get some clothes for poor Ravyn? Rusty can you take care of this table? Cerry, would you be a dear and start some breakfast going?” After about the tenth ring, she fumbled with the buttons on the phone and answered that. “Hello?”
Her face lit up as she heard the voice on the other end of the line.
“Oh, Herne, I’m so glad you called. Ravyn’s back with us now!”
There was a pause as she listened to him respond. His voice was almost audible over the handset, but I couldn’t quite make out the words.
“What? Oh dear! Yes, by all means, activate the Railroad. I’ll let everyone here know about your concerns and start the ball rolling on our end.”
Jim’s face tightened considerably at the mention of ‘railroad’, he stood still as he tred to catch whatever was being said by Herne.
She paused again as he spoke for quite some time.
“Yes, we’ll turn it on now. Yes, we’ll notify the families. You guys take care. Let us know when everyone is safe!”
Frau’s demeanor had changed considerably by the time she punched the button to hang up the phone. She looked she wanted to slam the phone down, but thought better of it at the last moment. Instead, she turned to me. “Rusty, will you turn the television on to the Wolf Network News channel please.” Her teeth visibly grated as she spat those words out.
I nodded and went looking for the remote control. The WNN was not the first choice of anyone here, as it clearly had a hard line conservative bent to its coverage. By the time I found the remote, everyone had come back into the main room, gathering about the TV.
Ravyn was now wearing a pair of loose grey sweatpants and a plain black t-shirt that was clearly two sizes too large for her as she carried the bubbly Alexa in her arms. Naomi followed right behind.
The TV flickered on and we could immediately see why the Frau wanted to watch this channel. The screen was split into two main images and scrolling news banner beneath. The words ‘Breaking News’ were emblazoned across the top of both images. The screen on the right must showing earlier footage of the Coop lit up at night by the blazing fire that we had just barely escaped from. The left side of the screen was of a reporter talking with the smoldering ruins of the Coop as the backdrop.
The scrolling ‘news’ that rolled beneath the footage was supposedly encapsulating the highlights of the coverage to date. Just the first few snippets of it were enough to get Ravyn to gasp and Jim to clench his hands in anger.
“BIZZARE FIRE AT COLLEGE TOWN OCCULT HOUSE IN CHICAGO SUBURBS.”
“POLICE SUSPECT POSSIBLE SUICIDE PACT AMONG STRANGE CULT MEMBERS.”
“20 BODIES DISCOVERED IN OCCULT HOUSE FIRE NEAR CHICAGO.”
“NEIGHBORS CLAIM RESIDENTS OF OCCULT HOUSE WERE SATAN WORSHIPPERS AND THAT HOUSE SHOULD HAVE BEEN SHUT DOWN YEARS AGO.”
The reporter’s voice came across in response to a question from the studio. “Yes, Bill, I just finished speaking with a spokesperson for the East Napierville Fire Department and he has confirmed that fire appears to be very suspicious in nature and that they believe that accelerants were used, leading them to believe that the occupants of the house set it on fire themselves.”
The screen flashed over to a studio where a heavy set, balding man sat at an anchor desk and asked another question of the reporter. “Sam, I’ve seen some reports here that this house may have been used by a Satanic cult of some sort, can you give us any more information on that?”
The screen flipped back to the reporter, who listened to the question in his earpiece, nodding eagerly as the question ended. “Indeed, I can Bill. According to several neighbors that I spoke with, including one that we’ll roll the tape on here in a moment, this house was run by a wild woman known only as Ravyn Fyre. All of the witnesses agreed that this Ravyn Fyre was a well known witch and coven leader for a bizarre group that called themselves Trolls or Goblins, or some other name like that. She apparently used this house as a recruiting center and for strange night time rituals that often involved large fires and animal sacrifices. Let’s roll the tape of this interview.”
The screen flickered to show an older woman who looked an awful lot like Evelyn Olsen, a kindly neighbor that Ravyn had shared many a meal with over the years, but her mannerisms were not quite right. “Oh yes, I’ve always known that the people in this house weren’t to be trusted. When I tried to report on them though, they threatened me to keep me quiet. Ravyn Fyre even threatened to make my precious kitties disappear if I reported her to the authorities.”
The mike in front of the woman moved as the reporter asked another question. “Mrs. Olsen, do you think that the folks in this house were involved with occult activity in any way?”
She nodded vigorously. “Oh yes. I can’t remember all of the times I saw those young people dressed in strange robes-or even in nothing at all-dancing around fires at night.” She visibly shuddered. “I pray for the souls of those poor folk in the fire, I’m afraid that they will be heading in the wrong direction, if you know what I mean.”
The Frau snorted at that last statement before she spoke. “Rusty, turn that off. I’ve seen enough.”
(To be continued…)
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Phoenix Rising...Part 3
I carried Ravyn’s body out to the clearing in the back of the house. The path to the clearing was barely visible through the thick undergrowth, but it was marked by small Celtic designs painted on tree trunks at eye level.
Once in the clearing, I set her body down in a nice grassy spot and set to building a pyre in the stone circle in the middle of the clearing out of the firewood that was stacked and ready to use nearby.
Jim, Naomi, and Cerrydwen joined in with the building of the pyre, each of them remaining silent as we worked.
The Frau brought a red gallon can of gasoline, which she set down in the grass near the stacked cords of firewood.
Alexa was kneeling in the grass next to Ravyn’s body, her small hands touching Ravyn’s forehead in a loving manner as she whispered unheard words to her.
Once the pyre was built, I moved to go get Ravyn’s body.
Alexa looked up at me as I approached. Her hands were now clasped around a small, brilliantly red, oval object that rested in her lap. Wet tears rolled down her cheeks. “I’m going to miss her, Daddy.”
“Alexa, we’ll all miss Lady Fyre. She was a really special person who was very much loved.”
Alexa shook her head vehemently, her hair bouncing as she did so. “No, Daddy, I’m not talking about Lady Fyre. She’ll be here as soon as we’re done.”
The Frau and the others had gathered around us now, listening to this very special child as she spoke.
“Then who are you talking about, Alexa?”
Her shoulders bounced up and down as she was wracked with sobbing tears as she held up the small, egg-shaped object in her two tiny hands. “Betsy! I’m going to miss Betsy so much!”
Naomi squatted down next to her daughter. “But Betsy is already gone. We all wish she could come back too, but we’ve got to help Lady Fyre right now. Are you sure this is going to bring Lady Fyre back to us?”
Alexa nodded, at first too broken up to speak. But she calmed down and looked up into each of our faces before finally speaking. As she spoke, she placed the red egg onto Ravyn’s chest and then gently brought up each of Ravyn’s hands over the egg to make it secure. As she spoke, we could clearly hear a more mature version of Alexa speaking, like she had on previous occasions.
“Lady Ravyn gave me this egg that Betsy had created and asked me to keep it safe. She told me that if something really bad were to happen to someone I love and they died, that I could place the egg with the body into a really big fire on the same day that the person died and that the person would be allowed to come back. But she also told me that if something happened to Betsy, that the egg could be used to bring her back, but it could only work once. If the egg were used to bring Betsy back, it would take 1 year and 1 day for her to make another. So I can’t bring both Ravyn and Betsy back with the same egg. If I used the egg to bring Betsy back, she wouldn’t be able to help Ravyn in time.”
She looked down at Ravyn’s peacefully composed face after she had finished placing Ravyn’s hands onto the egg before looking back up at us. Her eyes reflected the maturity that had come over her voice.
“I know that Betsy would want me to bring Ravyn back over her. That is why I mourn the loss of Betsy. She is a creature from a different place, a creature that I will no longer be able to communicate with once this egg is gone, and that is a terrible loss. I also mourn for Ravyn, for I know that she loves Betsy and that she will be heartbroken at the loss of her friend, her companion. Right now, they are both together, spending their last moments in union with one another as they soar with the stars. Once the fire is started, they will be torn from each other, never to be together again in this lifetime. Ravyn wants to be back among us, but she is also saddened by the thought of losing one of her dearest friends.”
She stood up and looked directly into my eyes.
“Father, we must act soon. If we wait much longer, the pain of her loss may be too much for her to overcome. Please bring Ravyn to the pyre and start the fire.”
With those words, Alexa turned and walked towards where the pyre had been built, stopping just beyond the stone circle and waiting for us to join her.
I looked to the others gathered around Ravyn’s body.
Jim nodded silently, his jaw set in determination. Cerrydwen nodded as well, tears streaking down her face in empathy at the loss that Ravyn was about to experience. The Frau cleared her throat and motioned with the cane that I should do as instructed. Naomi was watching her daughter with a look that spoke of awe and deep, motherly love.
I reached down and slid my hands under Ravyn’s body, careful not to disturb her now clasped hands. I picked her up and followed Alexa toward the pyre.
I stepped inside the stone circle and placed her body gently onto the pyre.
Jim stood next to me, holding the can of gasoline. By the look on his face, he was struggling with the idea of dousing the pyre with the gas. His hands trembled as he struggled with the cap on the can.
I reached out and took the can from him. “I’ll do it.”
He nodded and stepped back to join the others outside of the circle.
I emptied the can on the wood all around her body, saving just enough to douse the sheet that covered her entire body, except for her head and arms.
The Frau hobbled forward, a box of fireplace matches in her hand.
I took them from her and motioned for her to step back. Once she was safely back with the others, each of them holding the hands of two others, I pulled a single long match from the box and struck it and tossed it onto the wood next to her head.
There a tremendous FOOM as the gas saturated wood exploded in orange flames that mushroomed up towards the sky. Had I been living, I’m sure that I would have been in pain from the contact burns, but instead, I just calmly stepped back, noting that my leather jacket was smoking.
As we watched the flames calm down, we gasped to see that Ravyn’s body seemed oddly unarmed by the inferno that raged all around and even under her. Her hands, however, began to glow with an incandescent red light that grew brighter and brighter as we watched.
Slowly, the fire began to take its toll, at first on the sheet that covered her body, and then on her hair and skin, which blackened. Everyone but me sobbed as her body was simultaneously consumed by the fire and lit by the glow of the egg that was soon only covered by ashes.
Finally, her body was no longer solid enough to support the brightly glowing egg, and it fell down through the remains of her torso and into the burning embers beneath. For the briefest of moments, the glow of the egg disappeared completely. I felt a flash of despair that the magick had failed.
Just then, there was another brilliant explosion of energy that rose from the remains of the funeral pyre and formed itself into a giant Phoenix form. The Phoenix looked down at us with its defiant gaze and opened its beak. A piercing, keening cry came forth as the Phoenix began to dissipate. Half of its energy seemed to tear off and float upwards, soaring back towards the unseen stars, while the bottom half of the form collapsed in on itself and took the form of a naked woman.
Ravyn Fyre stood before us with her arms raised to the sky, crying out in pain at the loss of the union between soul mates before crumpling to the ground, her body giving off tendrils of smoke as she sobbed.
Jim was the first to reach her side, laying his own jacket across her bare shoulders as he knelt beside her.
Alexa was the second one there. As Jim helped Ravyn sit up, Alexa jumped into arms and gave her a great big bear hug as she sobbed. “I’ll miss her too, Lady Fyre!”
Once in the clearing, I set her body down in a nice grassy spot and set to building a pyre in the stone circle in the middle of the clearing out of the firewood that was stacked and ready to use nearby.
Jim, Naomi, and Cerrydwen joined in with the building of the pyre, each of them remaining silent as we worked.
The Frau brought a red gallon can of gasoline, which she set down in the grass near the stacked cords of firewood.
Alexa was kneeling in the grass next to Ravyn’s body, her small hands touching Ravyn’s forehead in a loving manner as she whispered unheard words to her.
Once the pyre was built, I moved to go get Ravyn’s body.
Alexa looked up at me as I approached. Her hands were now clasped around a small, brilliantly red, oval object that rested in her lap. Wet tears rolled down her cheeks. “I’m going to miss her, Daddy.”
“Alexa, we’ll all miss Lady Fyre. She was a really special person who was very much loved.”
Alexa shook her head vehemently, her hair bouncing as she did so. “No, Daddy, I’m not talking about Lady Fyre. She’ll be here as soon as we’re done.”
The Frau and the others had gathered around us now, listening to this very special child as she spoke.
“Then who are you talking about, Alexa?”
Her shoulders bounced up and down as she was wracked with sobbing tears as she held up the small, egg-shaped object in her two tiny hands. “Betsy! I’m going to miss Betsy so much!”
Naomi squatted down next to her daughter. “But Betsy is already gone. We all wish she could come back too, but we’ve got to help Lady Fyre right now. Are you sure this is going to bring Lady Fyre back to us?”
Alexa nodded, at first too broken up to speak. But she calmed down and looked up into each of our faces before finally speaking. As she spoke, she placed the red egg onto Ravyn’s chest and then gently brought up each of Ravyn’s hands over the egg to make it secure. As she spoke, we could clearly hear a more mature version of Alexa speaking, like she had on previous occasions.
“Lady Ravyn gave me this egg that Betsy had created and asked me to keep it safe. She told me that if something really bad were to happen to someone I love and they died, that I could place the egg with the body into a really big fire on the same day that the person died and that the person would be allowed to come back. But she also told me that if something happened to Betsy, that the egg could be used to bring her back, but it could only work once. If the egg were used to bring Betsy back, it would take 1 year and 1 day for her to make another. So I can’t bring both Ravyn and Betsy back with the same egg. If I used the egg to bring Betsy back, she wouldn’t be able to help Ravyn in time.”
She looked down at Ravyn’s peacefully composed face after she had finished placing Ravyn’s hands onto the egg before looking back up at us. Her eyes reflected the maturity that had come over her voice.
“I know that Betsy would want me to bring Ravyn back over her. That is why I mourn the loss of Betsy. She is a creature from a different place, a creature that I will no longer be able to communicate with once this egg is gone, and that is a terrible loss. I also mourn for Ravyn, for I know that she loves Betsy and that she will be heartbroken at the loss of her friend, her companion. Right now, they are both together, spending their last moments in union with one another as they soar with the stars. Once the fire is started, they will be torn from each other, never to be together again in this lifetime. Ravyn wants to be back among us, but she is also saddened by the thought of losing one of her dearest friends.”
She stood up and looked directly into my eyes.
“Father, we must act soon. If we wait much longer, the pain of her loss may be too much for her to overcome. Please bring Ravyn to the pyre and start the fire.”
With those words, Alexa turned and walked towards where the pyre had been built, stopping just beyond the stone circle and waiting for us to join her.
I looked to the others gathered around Ravyn’s body.
Jim nodded silently, his jaw set in determination. Cerrydwen nodded as well, tears streaking down her face in empathy at the loss that Ravyn was about to experience. The Frau cleared her throat and motioned with the cane that I should do as instructed. Naomi was watching her daughter with a look that spoke of awe and deep, motherly love.
I reached down and slid my hands under Ravyn’s body, careful not to disturb her now clasped hands. I picked her up and followed Alexa toward the pyre.
I stepped inside the stone circle and placed her body gently onto the pyre.
Jim stood next to me, holding the can of gasoline. By the look on his face, he was struggling with the idea of dousing the pyre with the gas. His hands trembled as he struggled with the cap on the can.
I reached out and took the can from him. “I’ll do it.”
He nodded and stepped back to join the others outside of the circle.
I emptied the can on the wood all around her body, saving just enough to douse the sheet that covered her entire body, except for her head and arms.
The Frau hobbled forward, a box of fireplace matches in her hand.
I took them from her and motioned for her to step back. Once she was safely back with the others, each of them holding the hands of two others, I pulled a single long match from the box and struck it and tossed it onto the wood next to her head.
There a tremendous FOOM as the gas saturated wood exploded in orange flames that mushroomed up towards the sky. Had I been living, I’m sure that I would have been in pain from the contact burns, but instead, I just calmly stepped back, noting that my leather jacket was smoking.
As we watched the flames calm down, we gasped to see that Ravyn’s body seemed oddly unarmed by the inferno that raged all around and even under her. Her hands, however, began to glow with an incandescent red light that grew brighter and brighter as we watched.
Slowly, the fire began to take its toll, at first on the sheet that covered her body, and then on her hair and skin, which blackened. Everyone but me sobbed as her body was simultaneously consumed by the fire and lit by the glow of the egg that was soon only covered by ashes.
Finally, her body was no longer solid enough to support the brightly glowing egg, and it fell down through the remains of her torso and into the burning embers beneath. For the briefest of moments, the glow of the egg disappeared completely. I felt a flash of despair that the magick had failed.
Just then, there was another brilliant explosion of energy that rose from the remains of the funeral pyre and formed itself into a giant Phoenix form. The Phoenix looked down at us with its defiant gaze and opened its beak. A piercing, keening cry came forth as the Phoenix began to dissipate. Half of its energy seemed to tear off and float upwards, soaring back towards the unseen stars, while the bottom half of the form collapsed in on itself and took the form of a naked woman.
Ravyn Fyre stood before us with her arms raised to the sky, crying out in pain at the loss of the union between soul mates before crumpling to the ground, her body giving off tendrils of smoke as she sobbed.
Jim was the first to reach her side, laying his own jacket across her bare shoulders as he knelt beside her.
Alexa was the second one there. As Jim helped Ravyn sit up, Alexa jumped into arms and gave her a great big bear hug as she sobbed. “I’ll miss her too, Lady Fyre!”
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Phoenix Rising...Part 2
The Frau joined Naomi in collecting the various bottles from Alexa. “Honey, why do you think that Lady Fyre needs to have a really big fire?”
Alexa threw up her now empty arms in exasperation. “I already told Daddy, because she told me so!”
“When was that, Sweetie?”
“She keeps telling me. I asked her if she was sure, because I know its wrong to play with fire, but she says ‘yes’ and we need to make it really soon.”
Naomi leaned down and picked Alexa up. “Did Lady Fyre say why we need the fire?”
Alexa nodded solemnly.
“Will you tell us?”
“Only if you promise to help me.”
Naomi rolled her eyes and looked at each of us in turn before turning her attention back to Alexa. “Alexa, we promise to help you to help Lady Fyre.”
“Lady Fyre says that we have to build a really big, really hot fire around her body. She also says that is really important to do as it soon as possible or she won’t be able to come back at all.” Tears began streaming down Alexa’s face. “I want to help bring Lady Fyre back.”
Naomi smothered her daughter in hugs and kisses, patting down her now wild hair with her spare hand. “Don’t worry, Alexa, we’ll help you to bring her back. Let’s get you something to eat while these others discuss how we’re going to do that, OK?”
The sniffling Alexa looked around at each of us, as if she were recording our nods as promises of support in her great quest. “OK, Mama.”
After they had left the room, I turned to face the Frau and Cerrydwen. “She wants us to build a funeral pyre and place Ravyn’s body in it? Can we even do that?”
The Frau shifted her weight and moved to sit down on one of the comfortable couches. She was looking at the seemingly sleeping face of Ravyn as she spoke. “If there is a chance that doing so might actually bring her back to us in some fashion, then yes, I think we have to try.”
Cerrydwen nodded. “Remember, her totem is the Phoenix and the Phoenix traditionally rises from its own ashes.”
Jim moved closer to Ravyn’s body. He reached down and brushed a stray strand of her hair from her face before looking up. “Can it really work?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “The Lady of the Lake brought back Naomi to us without even the benefit of having her body.” I moved closer to the table holding Ravyn’s body. Just as I got there, a stray thought occurred to me. “Hey, wait a minute! When I took Ravyn to the Lady of the Lake, she refused to help, but she did say something that I didn’t understand until just now—‘Return to your world and perform your rituals of loss and mourning. Only there will you find the solace you so desperately seek.’”
The Frau nodded, her eyes closed in contemplation. “Yes, that could be an obscure way of saying that the answer to our problem lies with a ritual of loss and mourning.”
Cerrydwen came up behind Jim and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “And given the nature of Ravyn’s powers, it would make sense to have her cremated as part of our ritual of mourning.”
“Yeah, but isn’t that illegal? We can’t just burn her body in broad daylight and expect no legal problems to come from it!”
Everyone turned to look at me, their incredulity showing on their faces.
“What? I am an FBI agent, you know. I figured I at least needed to make a pretense of worrying about the law!” I threw up my hands. “Ah, screw it! We have to try it. I can’t see Ravyn’s Spirit form around here, but I get the sense that Alexa really is able to talk to her, even now.”
Pointing towards the back of the house with her cane, the Frau stood back up. “Rusty, Jim, we have a very large pit out back, situated in a clearing about a hundred yards back in the woods. There are several cords of firewood already chopped back there. Rusty, if you can take Ravyn back there, the rest of us will bring the materials for the ceremony. Let’s get started.”
Alexa threw up her now empty arms in exasperation. “I already told Daddy, because she told me so!”
“When was that, Sweetie?”
“She keeps telling me. I asked her if she was sure, because I know its wrong to play with fire, but she says ‘yes’ and we need to make it really soon.”
Naomi leaned down and picked Alexa up. “Did Lady Fyre say why we need the fire?”
Alexa nodded solemnly.
“Will you tell us?”
“Only if you promise to help me.”
Naomi rolled her eyes and looked at each of us in turn before turning her attention back to Alexa. “Alexa, we promise to help you to help Lady Fyre.”
“Lady Fyre says that we have to build a really big, really hot fire around her body. She also says that is really important to do as it soon as possible or she won’t be able to come back at all.” Tears began streaming down Alexa’s face. “I want to help bring Lady Fyre back.”
Naomi smothered her daughter in hugs and kisses, patting down her now wild hair with her spare hand. “Don’t worry, Alexa, we’ll help you to bring her back. Let’s get you something to eat while these others discuss how we’re going to do that, OK?”
The sniffling Alexa looked around at each of us, as if she were recording our nods as promises of support in her great quest. “OK, Mama.”
After they had left the room, I turned to face the Frau and Cerrydwen. “She wants us to build a funeral pyre and place Ravyn’s body in it? Can we even do that?”
The Frau shifted her weight and moved to sit down on one of the comfortable couches. She was looking at the seemingly sleeping face of Ravyn as she spoke. “If there is a chance that doing so might actually bring her back to us in some fashion, then yes, I think we have to try.”
Cerrydwen nodded. “Remember, her totem is the Phoenix and the Phoenix traditionally rises from its own ashes.”
Jim moved closer to Ravyn’s body. He reached down and brushed a stray strand of her hair from her face before looking up. “Can it really work?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “The Lady of the Lake brought back Naomi to us without even the benefit of having her body.” I moved closer to the table holding Ravyn’s body. Just as I got there, a stray thought occurred to me. “Hey, wait a minute! When I took Ravyn to the Lady of the Lake, she refused to help, but she did say something that I didn’t understand until just now—‘Return to your world and perform your rituals of loss and mourning. Only there will you find the solace you so desperately seek.’”
The Frau nodded, her eyes closed in contemplation. “Yes, that could be an obscure way of saying that the answer to our problem lies with a ritual of loss and mourning.”
Cerrydwen came up behind Jim and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “And given the nature of Ravyn’s powers, it would make sense to have her cremated as part of our ritual of mourning.”
“Yeah, but isn’t that illegal? We can’t just burn her body in broad daylight and expect no legal problems to come from it!”
Everyone turned to look at me, their incredulity showing on their faces.
“What? I am an FBI agent, you know. I figured I at least needed to make a pretense of worrying about the law!” I threw up my hands. “Ah, screw it! We have to try it. I can’t see Ravyn’s Spirit form around here, but I get the sense that Alexa really is able to talk to her, even now.”
Pointing towards the back of the house with her cane, the Frau stood back up. “Rusty, Jim, we have a very large pit out back, situated in a clearing about a hundred yards back in the woods. There are several cords of firewood already chopped back there. Rusty, if you can take Ravyn back there, the rest of us will bring the materials for the ceremony. Let’s get started.”
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Phoenix Rising...Part 1
I emerged from the Shadow just outside of the small, cozy home that Cerrydwen and the Frau shared. The house itself was a single story affair that looked pretty rustic from the road, but that façade was by design. It looked like nothing more than nice country ranch home nestled into the backwoods country of the middle of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan.
The night was almost done, with a light glow illuminating the eastern horizon as night gave way to the dawn of a new day. I could make out Jim’s truck in the parking lot. He must have gotten word of the attack. His own home was less than half an hour away.
I was not looking forward to having to pass on Ravyn’s cryptic last words to him. I had no idea what question it was that Ravyn had answered and I wasn’t sure I even wanted to know. I had to admit to being more than a little jealous of the relationship that had appeared to blossom between them in the last year or so. My jealousy, however, was now tempered by the guilt and sorrow I felt at not returning in time to save her.
With a heavy heart and a sense of failure, I approached the door.
It opened before I was able to reach up and knock. The Frau clucked her tongue and whisked us inside so quickly that I didn’t even note the others gathered about the door until I was already inside.
“Oh dear, it looks as bad as I had feared.” She bustled through the gathered crowd, creating a path for me to follow. “Please bring her this way, Rusty.”
Cerrydwen followed closely behind me, her face a mask of concern and barely contained rage. “Who did this to her?”
Before I could answer, I was escorted by the Frau into a rather large, comfortably appointed living room with a humungous fireplace. With practiced ease, the Frau began barking directions out to everyone around her, but they were given in such a way as to instill willing obedience and a desire to help in all who heard them.
“Cerry, be a dear and get the healing mat and the massage table from the other room, would you?”
“Naomi, would you please get some fresh sheets from the linen closet in the hall?”
“Jim, could you please fill a basin with some warm water and bring me the disinfectant soap from the bathroom closet?”
“Alexa, could you please pick up your toys and put them away?”
As if the whole scene had been coordinated in advance, the Frau soon had me placing Ravyn’s ravaged body on the newly erected table for her examination. She was a whirlwind of action, carefully stripping the burned and torn clothing from her body, quickly cleansing the worst of the soot and dirt from her wounds, and then covering her with clean sheets.
Jim, Naomi, Cerrydwen all hovered nearby, instantly responding to any and all requests that the Frau made, each absorbing the shock of seeing Ravyn stricken in this manner in their own way.
Cerrydwen remained largely silent, her face a mask of intense agony, her eyes burning brighter than I could ever recall. Her movements were quick and choppy, as if she could barely control the rage that filled her.
Naomi was clearly shaken and seemed to almost be in shock at seeing the woman who had served as mentor and instructor laid low. Her face reflected the pain she felt, but also the uncertainty at having her whole upset yet again.
Jim moved slowly and deliberately whenever he was asked to help out in some way, as if he needed to be sure that he remained in control of his body. His jaw was clenched and his lips set into a determined frown as he opened and closed his fists whenever his hands weren’t otherwise occupied. More than once, I saw his hand slip down to Ravyn’s right hand to give a quick, hopeful squeeze to her fingers.
Alexa toddled about the room, just out of everyone’s way as they bustled back and forth. She seemed almost oblivious to the emergency taking place in the room, piling up wooden blocks and tinker toys into an impressive pile in front of me.
“Daddy, can you help me?”
Relieved to have a chance to turn my eyes away from the treatment table, I looked down at my smiling child and her rather large pile of wooden toys strewn in front of me. “What do you want help with, darling?”
“I need more! This is all I have.”
“What do you mean? It looks like you can build quite a big toy out of these.” I sat down on an ottoman that I hadn’t noticed before and scooted closer to the pile. “What do you want to build?”
She looked at me with her big brown eyes and smiled. “We need to build something really big for Lady Fyre. She needs us.”
I couldn’t help the sudden feeling of loss and pain that welled up within me at seeing the innocent hope in the eyes of my daughter. I reached out and pulled her into a big hug. “I’ll help you build something for Lady Fyre, darling. But we can’t do it in here, OK? They need all of the room they can get to try and help Lady Fyre out.”
“Oh, I know we can’t build it in here, daddy. I need your help taking these outside. We need to build a really big thing outside for Lady Fyre. We need to use as many sticks as possible. She really needs us to do it as quickly as possible!”
I was puzzled by her words, so I pulled back, leaving a hand on each of her shoulders and looked at her in the face. “How do you know what Lady Fyre needs, darling?”
She returned my gaze steadily. “She told me so.”
I was distracted briefly Alexa as I heard loud sobbing coming from Naomi. I looked up to see the Frau turn and face me, shaking her head, tears streaming down her face. Jim and Cerrydwen were locked in a sobbing hug, trying to give solace to each other.
The Frau spoke first. “She’s gone. There’s no power that I know of that can bring her Spirit back or restore this body. I’m sorry, Rusty. She was just too far gone.”
I nodded, knowing deep in my own non-existent heart that Ravyn had died. I had witnessed her passing on the dark precipice. “I thought so. I saw her Spirit form leave her body and depart as it if were pulled from the place. I tried to get the Lady of the Lake to bring her back, but she refused.”
Alexa broke free of my hold and walked off, humming to herself as she headed towards the kitchen.
I looked up at all of their tear-stained faces, seeing them mourn in ways that I no longer could. I felt hollow and empty inside.
I stood up, stepped over the pile of wooden toys and made my way to the table where Ravyn lay in now peaceful looking repose. Even dead, her face was a beautiful mask of dignity and determination. Her eyes were closed, but I could still picture them, vibrantly green and incredibly intense. Her dark red hair had been combed and lay fanned out above her head. The sheet covered her naked form up to her neck. It was very easy to imagine her laying in a spa, waiting for a massage.
I saw Jim across the table from me, looking down at Ravyn’s face. This seemed to be the moment to give her last words to him.
“Jim?”
He looked up at me slowly. His face was streaked with tears. “Yeah?”
“Ravyn did ask me to tell you something before she passed away.”
His reddened eyes narrowed, a lump seemed to form in his throat as he tried to gulp air before speaking. “Oh?”
I nodded, glanced back down at her face and then back up at his before I answered. “She said to tell you that her answer was ‘Yes’.”
His face changed, took on a more peaceful look at hearing that. He reached up with the back of his left hand and wiped away the wetness on his cheeks.
Somewhat relieved by his response, I took the chance to ask the question that had been burning in my own mind since I heard her last words. “If you don’t mind, I’d love to know what the question was.”
Before he could respond, Alexa barged into the room making all sorts of noise as she banged into furniture on her way towards us, her arms full of every bottle of cooking oil and flammable chemical in the Frau’s kitchen.
We all turned to look at this explosive mixture, but it was the Frau who got out the first questions Alexa.
“Alexa, where did you get all of that stuff and why are you bringing it in here?”
Naomi was already moving towards her daughter, reaching out to take some of the bottles from her.
Alexa stopped and looked up at all of us, clearly exasperated. “Lady Fyre needs a really, really big fire. Daddy won’t help, so it looks like I’m going to have to do it myself.”
The night was almost done, with a light glow illuminating the eastern horizon as night gave way to the dawn of a new day. I could make out Jim’s truck in the parking lot. He must have gotten word of the attack. His own home was less than half an hour away.
I was not looking forward to having to pass on Ravyn’s cryptic last words to him. I had no idea what question it was that Ravyn had answered and I wasn’t sure I even wanted to know. I had to admit to being more than a little jealous of the relationship that had appeared to blossom between them in the last year or so. My jealousy, however, was now tempered by the guilt and sorrow I felt at not returning in time to save her.
With a heavy heart and a sense of failure, I approached the door.
It opened before I was able to reach up and knock. The Frau clucked her tongue and whisked us inside so quickly that I didn’t even note the others gathered about the door until I was already inside.
“Oh dear, it looks as bad as I had feared.” She bustled through the gathered crowd, creating a path for me to follow. “Please bring her this way, Rusty.”
Cerrydwen followed closely behind me, her face a mask of concern and barely contained rage. “Who did this to her?”
Before I could answer, I was escorted by the Frau into a rather large, comfortably appointed living room with a humungous fireplace. With practiced ease, the Frau began barking directions out to everyone around her, but they were given in such a way as to instill willing obedience and a desire to help in all who heard them.
“Cerry, be a dear and get the healing mat and the massage table from the other room, would you?”
“Naomi, would you please get some fresh sheets from the linen closet in the hall?”
“Jim, could you please fill a basin with some warm water and bring me the disinfectant soap from the bathroom closet?”
“Alexa, could you please pick up your toys and put them away?”
As if the whole scene had been coordinated in advance, the Frau soon had me placing Ravyn’s ravaged body on the newly erected table for her examination. She was a whirlwind of action, carefully stripping the burned and torn clothing from her body, quickly cleansing the worst of the soot and dirt from her wounds, and then covering her with clean sheets.
Jim, Naomi, Cerrydwen all hovered nearby, instantly responding to any and all requests that the Frau made, each absorbing the shock of seeing Ravyn stricken in this manner in their own way.
Cerrydwen remained largely silent, her face a mask of intense agony, her eyes burning brighter than I could ever recall. Her movements were quick and choppy, as if she could barely control the rage that filled her.
Naomi was clearly shaken and seemed to almost be in shock at seeing the woman who had served as mentor and instructor laid low. Her face reflected the pain she felt, but also the uncertainty at having her whole upset yet again.
Jim moved slowly and deliberately whenever he was asked to help out in some way, as if he needed to be sure that he remained in control of his body. His jaw was clenched and his lips set into a determined frown as he opened and closed his fists whenever his hands weren’t otherwise occupied. More than once, I saw his hand slip down to Ravyn’s right hand to give a quick, hopeful squeeze to her fingers.
Alexa toddled about the room, just out of everyone’s way as they bustled back and forth. She seemed almost oblivious to the emergency taking place in the room, piling up wooden blocks and tinker toys into an impressive pile in front of me.
“Daddy, can you help me?”
Relieved to have a chance to turn my eyes away from the treatment table, I looked down at my smiling child and her rather large pile of wooden toys strewn in front of me. “What do you want help with, darling?”
“I need more! This is all I have.”
“What do you mean? It looks like you can build quite a big toy out of these.” I sat down on an ottoman that I hadn’t noticed before and scooted closer to the pile. “What do you want to build?”
She looked at me with her big brown eyes and smiled. “We need to build something really big for Lady Fyre. She needs us.”
I couldn’t help the sudden feeling of loss and pain that welled up within me at seeing the innocent hope in the eyes of my daughter. I reached out and pulled her into a big hug. “I’ll help you build something for Lady Fyre, darling. But we can’t do it in here, OK? They need all of the room they can get to try and help Lady Fyre out.”
“Oh, I know we can’t build it in here, daddy. I need your help taking these outside. We need to build a really big thing outside for Lady Fyre. We need to use as many sticks as possible. She really needs us to do it as quickly as possible!”
I was puzzled by her words, so I pulled back, leaving a hand on each of her shoulders and looked at her in the face. “How do you know what Lady Fyre needs, darling?”
She returned my gaze steadily. “She told me so.”
I was distracted briefly Alexa as I heard loud sobbing coming from Naomi. I looked up to see the Frau turn and face me, shaking her head, tears streaming down her face. Jim and Cerrydwen were locked in a sobbing hug, trying to give solace to each other.
The Frau spoke first. “She’s gone. There’s no power that I know of that can bring her Spirit back or restore this body. I’m sorry, Rusty. She was just too far gone.”
I nodded, knowing deep in my own non-existent heart that Ravyn had died. I had witnessed her passing on the dark precipice. “I thought so. I saw her Spirit form leave her body and depart as it if were pulled from the place. I tried to get the Lady of the Lake to bring her back, but she refused.”
Alexa broke free of my hold and walked off, humming to herself as she headed towards the kitchen.
I looked up at all of their tear-stained faces, seeing them mourn in ways that I no longer could. I felt hollow and empty inside.
I stood up, stepped over the pile of wooden toys and made my way to the table where Ravyn lay in now peaceful looking repose. Even dead, her face was a beautiful mask of dignity and determination. Her eyes were closed, but I could still picture them, vibrantly green and incredibly intense. Her dark red hair had been combed and lay fanned out above her head. The sheet covered her naked form up to her neck. It was very easy to imagine her laying in a spa, waiting for a massage.
I saw Jim across the table from me, looking down at Ravyn’s face. This seemed to be the moment to give her last words to him.
“Jim?”
He looked up at me slowly. His face was streaked with tears. “Yeah?”
“Ravyn did ask me to tell you something before she passed away.”
His reddened eyes narrowed, a lump seemed to form in his throat as he tried to gulp air before speaking. “Oh?”
I nodded, glanced back down at her face and then back up at his before I answered. “She said to tell you that her answer was ‘Yes’.”
His face changed, took on a more peaceful look at hearing that. He reached up with the back of his left hand and wiped away the wetness on his cheeks.
Somewhat relieved by his response, I took the chance to ask the question that had been burning in my own mind since I heard her last words. “If you don’t mind, I’d love to know what the question was.”
Before he could respond, Alexa barged into the room making all sorts of noise as she banged into furniture on her way towards us, her arms full of every bottle of cooking oil and flammable chemical in the Frau’s kitchen.
We all turned to look at this explosive mixture, but it was the Frau who got out the first questions Alexa.
“Alexa, where did you get all of that stuff and why are you bringing it in here?”
Naomi was already moving towards her daughter, reaching out to take some of the bottles from her.
Alexa stopped and looked up at all of us, clearly exasperated. “Lady Fyre needs a really, really big fire. Daddy won’t help, so it looks like I’m going to have to do it myself.”
Monday, July 16, 2007
A Desperate Gambit
I emerged from the Shadow to find myself standing in the shallow water of hidden lake in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where I had been once before with Cerrydwen and the Frau. I had Ravyn’s body cradled in my arms.
It was a desperate plan that was unlikely to succeed, but it was something I felt that I had to try. I hoped that the Lady of the Lake would bring Ravyn back to life the same way that she brought back Naomi.
The water lapped quietly around my boots as I set my shoulders and began to take the last few steps toward the shore.
I had tried to step through the Shadow directly onto the island itself, up by the stone altar where Cerrydwen had worked from the last time that I was here, but I had the hardest time even finding this place. It was almost as if the Lady had raised a barrier against anyone coming onto her island through that means.
As I tried to get closer to the island, a stream of the will-o-wisps streamed up from the water and began dancing directly in my way. I stepped to the left, but was stonewalled again as they shifted to block my way.
Finally, I got frustrated and tried to push my way past them. “Dammit, get out of my way! I have to see the Lady.”
At that last word, the wisps stopped their dancing and joined together. Hundreds of them took on the rough outline of a feminine form. Before I could move or say anything, the Lady spoke to me in a distant, dream-like voice.
“You have not been invited here, nor have you asked permission to come to my sacred space. You come bearing weapons and the body of a comrade. Why are you here?”
“Lady, please, I need your help. This is Ravyn Fyre. She was slain tonight by a Bane. Please, please bring her back!”
She looked at me with her eyes, formed out of the brightest of the wisps. The wisps that formed her mouth moved as she spoke, but like a badly dubbed foreign film, they didn’t seem to form the same words that she spoke in mind.
“You presume much. I do not meddle in the affairs of humans. There is always much sorrow and loss in your world.”
“I saw you bring back Naomi! Can’t you help Ravyn?”
She shook her head as she responded. “I cannot help this one.”
I took a step forward, unwilling to give up so easily. I held out Ravyn’s body in my arms for her to see. “Why not? You brought back Naomi without her body!”
The form glided back as I moved forward, keeping an even distance between us. She began to turn away, but stopped, looked back over her shoulder and spoke once again. “You demand for that which can only be given. Return to your world and perform your rituals of loss and mourning. Only there will you find the solace you so desperately seek.”
As her form began to dissolve into the hundreds of individual wisps again, I tried one last time. “I don’t want solace, dammit, I want Ravyn back!”
But my objections did not sway her or the wisps. They resumed their blocking dance as I stood there frustrated and angry.
It was a desperate plan that was unlikely to succeed, but it was something I felt that I had to try. I hoped that the Lady of the Lake would bring Ravyn back to life the same way that she brought back Naomi.
The water lapped quietly around my boots as I set my shoulders and began to take the last few steps toward the shore.
I had tried to step through the Shadow directly onto the island itself, up by the stone altar where Cerrydwen had worked from the last time that I was here, but I had the hardest time even finding this place. It was almost as if the Lady had raised a barrier against anyone coming onto her island through that means.
As I tried to get closer to the island, a stream of the will-o-wisps streamed up from the water and began dancing directly in my way. I stepped to the left, but was stonewalled again as they shifted to block my way.
Finally, I got frustrated and tried to push my way past them. “Dammit, get out of my way! I have to see the Lady.”
At that last word, the wisps stopped their dancing and joined together. Hundreds of them took on the rough outline of a feminine form. Before I could move or say anything, the Lady spoke to me in a distant, dream-like voice.
“You have not been invited here, nor have you asked permission to come to my sacred space. You come bearing weapons and the body of a comrade. Why are you here?”
“Lady, please, I need your help. This is Ravyn Fyre. She was slain tonight by a Bane. Please, please bring her back!”
She looked at me with her eyes, formed out of the brightest of the wisps. The wisps that formed her mouth moved as she spoke, but like a badly dubbed foreign film, they didn’t seem to form the same words that she spoke in mind.
“You presume much. I do not meddle in the affairs of humans. There is always much sorrow and loss in your world.”
“I saw you bring back Naomi! Can’t you help Ravyn?”
She shook her head as she responded. “I cannot help this one.”
I took a step forward, unwilling to give up so easily. I held out Ravyn’s body in my arms for her to see. “Why not? You brought back Naomi without her body!”
The form glided back as I moved forward, keeping an even distance between us. She began to turn away, but stopped, looked back over her shoulder and spoke once again. “You demand for that which can only be given. Return to your world and perform your rituals of loss and mourning. Only there will you find the solace you so desperately seek.”
As her form began to dissolve into the hundreds of individual wisps again, I tried one last time. “I don’t want solace, dammit, I want Ravyn back!”
But my objections did not sway her or the wisps. They resumed their blocking dance as I stood there frustrated and angry.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Phoenix Down
The scene I returned to was vastly different than the scene that I had left.
I emerged from the Shadow directly across the street form the Coop compound, just on the chance that a trap had been laid by the Dream Weavers. But there was no sign of them.
Instead I saw the flashing lights and heard the idling motors of several fire engines. Emergency personnel crowded the streets as firemen moved to hook up hoses, police officers were keeping the growing crowds of spectators back, and camera men moved to get clearer shots of the orange flames that were so greedily consuming the Phoenix Coop.
I didn’t see anybody I recognized from the Coop in the gathered crowds or being assisted in any way by emergency response crews, so I summoned the Shadow before I was noticed and slipped back into the Shadowland.
The normally dull and silent landscape of the Shadowland was a kaleidoscope of clashing colors formed by crowds of people, the chaos of the battle that had just been fought, and the physical destruction of the Coop itself by the fire. Instead of trying to slip through the crowds, I allowed myself to float over it, passing above the commotion below and through the perimeter of the Coop grounds.
The massive energy of the fires raging through the Coop made it difficult to sense anything else coming from inside, but I had the nagging sensation that Ravyn was still inside and in need of my help. I sped up.
On a hunch, I slipped around the back of the house and landed near the now gaping hole that led into the library. The fire raged all around, but I was able to pass through it unfazed, as the vast majority of the damaging energies were limited to the primary world. The afterimages that I saw here were the shadowy essence of the fire itself.
I pushed through the blaze and into the library, looking for any clues to the whereabouts of Ravyn, Katherine, Zenny Al Farhan, or any of the students of the Coop.
The floor of the library was normally crowded with tables and chairs and several comfy sofas for the small group of students who used the place for their studies, but it was quite evident that a battle of some sort had taken place here. Bits and pieces of the tables lay scattered about and the sofas had been pushed back and overturned. I stepped over one to come into a space that looked like it had been the epicenter of some sort of blast.
The haze cast by the raging fires in the real world obscured almost everything, but something moved, catching my eye.
I pushed forward. I was glad to not have to worry about getting toasted, but I was also worried as to what I might find.
I was right to be concerned.
Stepping over another overturned couch and over the debris of another table, I came to the center of the room and saw two figures.
The one laying still on the ground with her Spirit form growing dimmer by the second was obviously Ravyn. The second figure was leaning over her, face down toward her neck. It was a Bane. As her Spirit dimmed, his grew stronger, darker, and more vibrant.
I drew Excalibur and stepped from the Shadowland into the blazing heat of the real world as if it were one easy action.
If the noise of blaze was any indication, we were standing in the middle of a raging inferno. I had to yell to make myself heard, although I think the creature sensed my arrival more than he heard what I had to say to him. “Get off her, asshole!”
The creature rose to its full stature, which was considerable, although it was shorter and stockier than the form Anthraximander had used. Its face may once have been human, but it was extremely hard to see any resemblance. His skin was as black as ebony, so dark and shiny that it reflected the light of the raging fires around us. He had two horns sprouting from his forehead, which swept up and curled back so that the ends pointed backwards over his head. He had a snout that protruded from his face like that of a bat, but with much sharper and longer teeth than any bat I had ever seen. Blood dripped from his mouth. Enormous black wings were fold on its back, each tipped with a wicked looking claw. He had two enormously muscled arms tipped with large ebony claws.
The creature looked at me with feral yellow eyes and flicked a forked, snake-like tongue across its fangs.
It said something in response to me, but his words were lost in the loud crash as supporting beams of the second floor came crashing down behind me.
For once, I decided to take Drake’s advice and just attacked. I didn’t really care to engage in conversation with this thing.
I leaped forward, holding Excalibur back as I did until the last moment, figuring it would lash out with one of its huge claws.
It didn’t disappoint. As it swung up one arm to toss me aside, I brought the blade down in a huge overhand slicing motion right at the wrist joint, hoping to use my momentum and the power of the blade to sever the wrist.
It almost worked.
The blade smashed into his hand, driving it down easier than I expected, but the blade didn’t really penetrate his exoskeleton-like skin. That was a first.
I did, however, manage to exert more force than he expected me to, pushing him backwards. Luckily, he was large enough that his step back was big enough to avoid crushing Ravyn’s skull.
Despite my surprise at Excalibur not being able to penetrate his skin on that first blow, I rained down a series of blows. Each one making solid contact, each one bouncing off of the hard skin of his arms or legs, but each impact driving him backwards away from Ravyn.
It didn’t take long however, before he was able to deflect a blow with a blow of his own. That stopped the momentum of my attack and threw me into a defensive posture as he spread his wings and took a more aggressive posture, ready to attack.
Excalibur was no longer glowing like it normally did during confrontations with creatures of this ilk. For some reason, it no longer seemed interested in the battle, which was another first for me.
The creature seemed to sense the changing dynamics of the situation and licked its lips as it roared and pounced towards me.
Keeping in mind that Ravyn was laying on the ground behind me, I used every ounce of concentration that I possessed to land right next to her, shielding her body with mine and calling the Shadow to slip both of us through the Shadowland and to a world before the creature landed on us.
I half expected the creature to follow us into the Shadow, but was relieved to find just the two of us laying on the rocky precipice that I brought Bernstein to once before. I shuddered at the fact that my subconscious had decided to bring us to this place.
I laid Excalibur to the side, just in case the Bane decided to show up later, and looked down at the battered and bloody form of Ravyn Fyre.
She lay there almost completely still, barely breathing. Her face was blacked by soot and bruised, as if the creature had bashed her in the side of the face. Blood trickled from the gash that ran along her cheek and down the left side of her neck. Her clothing lay in smoking tatters loosely around her, revealing more bloody wounds and blackened skin. Her left arm splayed out at an odd angle that indicated that it was definitely broken in more than one place.
I had no idea how, but she still lived.
I reached down to touch her face. “I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, darling. I’m going to get you to someone who can help you.”
Remarkably, she stirred at my touch, calling out a name softly. “Jim?”
“It’s Rusty.” I had to keep my face close to hers in order to hear her.
She seemed to nod, it was almost imperceptible.
“Where are the others? Do I need to go back in there?”
She licked her cracked, blackened lips and seemed to shake her head slightly. “They’re gone.”
“Where to?”
She swallowed, it was painful to watch her do it, but I could tell she wanted to respond, so I waited. “Safe. I sent them away.” Her body shuddered as she heaved with pain, gasping for more breath. “Betsy gave herself up to make it happen.”
I could see that she was using vital energy to speak, using her nearly indomitable Will to keep her body conscious and functioning in the face of tremendous pain and physical trauma. Looking at her Spirit form, I could see that it was dangerously diminished, as if her very Spirit had been drained by that creature and her exertions.
“Hush now. I need to get you to the Frau and Cerrydwen. You are in dire need of medical attention.”
Her Spirit seemed to flicker briefly as she exerted herself one more time to speak. “Tell Jim that my answer is…yes.” The last word came out in a sigh as her body went limp.
I panicked as I saw her Spirit form separate from her physical form. I called out to her. “Ravyn, don’t you leave me! Your time is not up yet, dammit!”
She looked at me, at her body laying beside me, in a distant, dreamy manner. She smiled and waved as her Spirit form dimmed and then disappeared without saying anything, pulled by some unknown force from this dreary place.
I was left cradling her broken, battered body wishing for all the world that I could shed the tears and release the emotion that I was feeling at that moment…
I emerged from the Shadow directly across the street form the Coop compound, just on the chance that a trap had been laid by the Dream Weavers. But there was no sign of them.
Instead I saw the flashing lights and heard the idling motors of several fire engines. Emergency personnel crowded the streets as firemen moved to hook up hoses, police officers were keeping the growing crowds of spectators back, and camera men moved to get clearer shots of the orange flames that were so greedily consuming the Phoenix Coop.
I didn’t see anybody I recognized from the Coop in the gathered crowds or being assisted in any way by emergency response crews, so I summoned the Shadow before I was noticed and slipped back into the Shadowland.
The normally dull and silent landscape of the Shadowland was a kaleidoscope of clashing colors formed by crowds of people, the chaos of the battle that had just been fought, and the physical destruction of the Coop itself by the fire. Instead of trying to slip through the crowds, I allowed myself to float over it, passing above the commotion below and through the perimeter of the Coop grounds.
The massive energy of the fires raging through the Coop made it difficult to sense anything else coming from inside, but I had the nagging sensation that Ravyn was still inside and in need of my help. I sped up.
On a hunch, I slipped around the back of the house and landed near the now gaping hole that led into the library. The fire raged all around, but I was able to pass through it unfazed, as the vast majority of the damaging energies were limited to the primary world. The afterimages that I saw here were the shadowy essence of the fire itself.
I pushed through the blaze and into the library, looking for any clues to the whereabouts of Ravyn, Katherine, Zenny Al Farhan, or any of the students of the Coop.
The floor of the library was normally crowded with tables and chairs and several comfy sofas for the small group of students who used the place for their studies, but it was quite evident that a battle of some sort had taken place here. Bits and pieces of the tables lay scattered about and the sofas had been pushed back and overturned. I stepped over one to come into a space that looked like it had been the epicenter of some sort of blast.
The haze cast by the raging fires in the real world obscured almost everything, but something moved, catching my eye.
I pushed forward. I was glad to not have to worry about getting toasted, but I was also worried as to what I might find.
I was right to be concerned.
Stepping over another overturned couch and over the debris of another table, I came to the center of the room and saw two figures.
The one laying still on the ground with her Spirit form growing dimmer by the second was obviously Ravyn. The second figure was leaning over her, face down toward her neck. It was a Bane. As her Spirit dimmed, his grew stronger, darker, and more vibrant.
I drew Excalibur and stepped from the Shadowland into the blazing heat of the real world as if it were one easy action.
If the noise of blaze was any indication, we were standing in the middle of a raging inferno. I had to yell to make myself heard, although I think the creature sensed my arrival more than he heard what I had to say to him. “Get off her, asshole!”
The creature rose to its full stature, which was considerable, although it was shorter and stockier than the form Anthraximander had used. Its face may once have been human, but it was extremely hard to see any resemblance. His skin was as black as ebony, so dark and shiny that it reflected the light of the raging fires around us. He had two horns sprouting from his forehead, which swept up and curled back so that the ends pointed backwards over his head. He had a snout that protruded from his face like that of a bat, but with much sharper and longer teeth than any bat I had ever seen. Blood dripped from his mouth. Enormous black wings were fold on its back, each tipped with a wicked looking claw. He had two enormously muscled arms tipped with large ebony claws.
The creature looked at me with feral yellow eyes and flicked a forked, snake-like tongue across its fangs.
It said something in response to me, but his words were lost in the loud crash as supporting beams of the second floor came crashing down behind me.
For once, I decided to take Drake’s advice and just attacked. I didn’t really care to engage in conversation with this thing.
I leaped forward, holding Excalibur back as I did until the last moment, figuring it would lash out with one of its huge claws.
It didn’t disappoint. As it swung up one arm to toss me aside, I brought the blade down in a huge overhand slicing motion right at the wrist joint, hoping to use my momentum and the power of the blade to sever the wrist.
It almost worked.
The blade smashed into his hand, driving it down easier than I expected, but the blade didn’t really penetrate his exoskeleton-like skin. That was a first.
I did, however, manage to exert more force than he expected me to, pushing him backwards. Luckily, he was large enough that his step back was big enough to avoid crushing Ravyn’s skull.
Despite my surprise at Excalibur not being able to penetrate his skin on that first blow, I rained down a series of blows. Each one making solid contact, each one bouncing off of the hard skin of his arms or legs, but each impact driving him backwards away from Ravyn.
It didn’t take long however, before he was able to deflect a blow with a blow of his own. That stopped the momentum of my attack and threw me into a defensive posture as he spread his wings and took a more aggressive posture, ready to attack.
Excalibur was no longer glowing like it normally did during confrontations with creatures of this ilk. For some reason, it no longer seemed interested in the battle, which was another first for me.
The creature seemed to sense the changing dynamics of the situation and licked its lips as it roared and pounced towards me.
Keeping in mind that Ravyn was laying on the ground behind me, I used every ounce of concentration that I possessed to land right next to her, shielding her body with mine and calling the Shadow to slip both of us through the Shadowland and to a world before the creature landed on us.
I half expected the creature to follow us into the Shadow, but was relieved to find just the two of us laying on the rocky precipice that I brought Bernstein to once before. I shuddered at the fact that my subconscious had decided to bring us to this place.
I laid Excalibur to the side, just in case the Bane decided to show up later, and looked down at the battered and bloody form of Ravyn Fyre.
She lay there almost completely still, barely breathing. Her face was blacked by soot and bruised, as if the creature had bashed her in the side of the face. Blood trickled from the gash that ran along her cheek and down the left side of her neck. Her clothing lay in smoking tatters loosely around her, revealing more bloody wounds and blackened skin. Her left arm splayed out at an odd angle that indicated that it was definitely broken in more than one place.
I had no idea how, but she still lived.
I reached down to touch her face. “I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner, darling. I’m going to get you to someone who can help you.”
Remarkably, she stirred at my touch, calling out a name softly. “Jim?”
“It’s Rusty.” I had to keep my face close to hers in order to hear her.
She seemed to nod, it was almost imperceptible.
“Where are the others? Do I need to go back in there?”
She licked her cracked, blackened lips and seemed to shake her head slightly. “They’re gone.”
“Where to?”
She swallowed, it was painful to watch her do it, but I could tell she wanted to respond, so I waited. “Safe. I sent them away.” Her body shuddered as she heaved with pain, gasping for more breath. “Betsy gave herself up to make it happen.”
I could see that she was using vital energy to speak, using her nearly indomitable Will to keep her body conscious and functioning in the face of tremendous pain and physical trauma. Looking at her Spirit form, I could see that it was dangerously diminished, as if her very Spirit had been drained by that creature and her exertions.
“Hush now. I need to get you to the Frau and Cerrydwen. You are in dire need of medical attention.”
Her Spirit seemed to flicker briefly as she exerted herself one more time to speak. “Tell Jim that my answer is…yes.” The last word came out in a sigh as her body went limp.
I panicked as I saw her Spirit form separate from her physical form. I called out to her. “Ravyn, don’t you leave me! Your time is not up yet, dammit!”
She looked at me, at her body laying beside me, in a distant, dreamy manner. She smiled and waved as her Spirit form dimmed and then disappeared without saying anything, pulled by some unknown force from this dreary place.
I was left cradling her broken, battered body wishing for all the world that I could shed the tears and release the emotion that I was feeling at that moment…
Friday, July 06, 2007
Hell's Bells...Finale
I turned to Naomi. “We can’t leave until I do something about those creatures out there that are preventing us from leaving. Will you be OK here for a moment?”
She glanced out the window behind me and shook her head. “No, we’re coming with you.”
“What are talking about? It is quite a drop from here!”
Naomi reached out and touched my shoulder. “We’ll make it down there, you just worry about yourself.”
Alexa perked up as she looked from me to her mother. “Are we going to fly again, Mama?”
Naomi nodded and put both arms around Alexa again before smiling down at her daughter. “Yes, dear, we’re going to fly again, but not too much this time, OK?”
Alexa bobbed her head and pumped her tiny fist. “Yay!”
Naomi shifted her gaze back to me. “Go now, we’ll follow behind you at a safe distance.”
I shook my head and decided to trust her judgment. I knew that she would never do anything that she would endanger Alexa.
Using my gloved hands, I cleared all of the sharp shards of glass from the opening of the window, pulling the curtains off the wall in the process. Once it was clear, I stepped up onto the windowsill, hunching my shoulders down to fit into the square opening, if barely.
Another violent explosion rocked the house as I prepared to jump by glancing to the ground beneath me. Unearthly screams of pain and terror accompanied the blast, giving me the impetus I needed to get going. I pushed myself forward, kicking out with my legs in an attempt to land standing up.
It worked, almost.
I landed on my backside with a tremendous thud in one of Ravyn’s favorite flower beds. I let go of the rucksack that had unbalanced my fall and started scrambling up to my feet amid of a shower of dirt and ruined petals. My actions became more urgent as I noticed two wolf-like shadows emerge from the bushes near where I had seen the line of figures holding up the shield in the Shadowland. It was all I could do to get Excalibur out and my feet set before they were upon me.
Apparently, the blade decided that these creatures, were worthy of taking on and guided my hand as I lashed out at the first of the attacking beasts. I felt the blade sink into it, but its weight bore the blade downward as the second beast launched itself into my chest, knocking back to the ground.
The creature snarled and snapped at my face, held back only by my left hand on its throat. I tried to wrest Excalibur from the first creature’s chest, but I lacked the leverage to yank it free while lying on my back, pinned down by the second.
I was just about to give up on pulling the sword free and taking the thing on with my hands when the creature, much to our mutual surprise, began to float above me, its paws flailing helplessly in an attempt to regain traction.
Naomi’s voice rang out from the shadows to my left, obviously straining with effort. “Now, Rusty! I can’t hold it for long, it’s too heavy!”
Using only my left hand, I heaved upwards and yanked at Excalibur with my right. The blade slipped free and slashed upwards across the throat of the still struggling second creature. Its lifeless body fell to the ground as I stood up.
Naomi stepped from the shadows, pale and sweaty with exhaustion, Alexa standing beside her.
Alexa was straining against Naomi’s hand, reaching toward the first dead creature. “Poor wolfies!”
“Hush, girl. These aren’t real wolves.” Naomi pulled her back gently.
“Follow me.” I waved at them to get behind me. “We need to get to the perimeter so I can get you guys to safety.”
I reached down and grabbed the rucksack with my left hand and brandished the glowing blade of Excalibur with my right as I began moving towards where I had seen the figures standing in the Shadowland.
Nothing else moved to attack us as we moved forward, so I was able to take a glance back towards the Coop. The building behind us was glowing orange from the flames that were now eating at the place from several locations inside. Smoke billowed upwards, disappearing in the night sky.
I wondered how this could be happening without any response from the Fire Department, but I had to push that thought away as we approached the perimeter. I felt, more than saw, the field of energy that had been set up by the man-sized creatures that I had seen earlier. There was no sign of them with my normal sight, so I shifted my vision to the Shadowland.
As my vision shifted, I found myself staring in the vacant, nearly lifeless eyes of a pale, naked creature that stood, unmoving, spread-eagle. Its long, thin arms stretched outward towards the outstretched arms of others just like it.
Looking into its face, I now recognized them for what they were…Drake had called these creatures Dream Weavers. They were another servant race of the An’girasii. They worked in groups of thirteen, using their powers from the Shadowland to create powerful, complex illusions in the ‘real’ world.
They apparently also had the ability to shut off my access to the Shadowland.
I lashed out with Excalibur towards the Dream Weaver immediately in front of me.
There was a tremendous amount of resistance, as if the illusory shield created by the Weavers was resisting the power of the blade. Sparks of magickal energy erupted as the blade fought its way through the shield and into abdomen of the Weaver.
The shower of sparks turned into an eruption of energy that must have flashed into the real world as well. The entire illusion that had been created by the Weavers crumbled in an explosion of energy that threw me back into normal vision again.
Alexa called out in appreciate surprise. “Oooh, fireworks!”
I sheathed Excalibur in one motion and reached out to Naomi. “Hold on! This is going to be rough!”
I called the Shadow and stepped from this former place of safety to another, Naomi and Alexa in tow…
She glanced out the window behind me and shook her head. “No, we’re coming with you.”
“What are talking about? It is quite a drop from here!”
Naomi reached out and touched my shoulder. “We’ll make it down there, you just worry about yourself.”
Alexa perked up as she looked from me to her mother. “Are we going to fly again, Mama?”
Naomi nodded and put both arms around Alexa again before smiling down at her daughter. “Yes, dear, we’re going to fly again, but not too much this time, OK?”
Alexa bobbed her head and pumped her tiny fist. “Yay!”
Naomi shifted her gaze back to me. “Go now, we’ll follow behind you at a safe distance.”
I shook my head and decided to trust her judgment. I knew that she would never do anything that she would endanger Alexa.
Using my gloved hands, I cleared all of the sharp shards of glass from the opening of the window, pulling the curtains off the wall in the process. Once it was clear, I stepped up onto the windowsill, hunching my shoulders down to fit into the square opening, if barely.
Another violent explosion rocked the house as I prepared to jump by glancing to the ground beneath me. Unearthly screams of pain and terror accompanied the blast, giving me the impetus I needed to get going. I pushed myself forward, kicking out with my legs in an attempt to land standing up.
It worked, almost.
I landed on my backside with a tremendous thud in one of Ravyn’s favorite flower beds. I let go of the rucksack that had unbalanced my fall and started scrambling up to my feet amid of a shower of dirt and ruined petals. My actions became more urgent as I noticed two wolf-like shadows emerge from the bushes near where I had seen the line of figures holding up the shield in the Shadowland. It was all I could do to get Excalibur out and my feet set before they were upon me.
Apparently, the blade decided that these creatures, were worthy of taking on and guided my hand as I lashed out at the first of the attacking beasts. I felt the blade sink into it, but its weight bore the blade downward as the second beast launched itself into my chest, knocking back to the ground.
The creature snarled and snapped at my face, held back only by my left hand on its throat. I tried to wrest Excalibur from the first creature’s chest, but I lacked the leverage to yank it free while lying on my back, pinned down by the second.
I was just about to give up on pulling the sword free and taking the thing on with my hands when the creature, much to our mutual surprise, began to float above me, its paws flailing helplessly in an attempt to regain traction.
Naomi’s voice rang out from the shadows to my left, obviously straining with effort. “Now, Rusty! I can’t hold it for long, it’s too heavy!”
Using only my left hand, I heaved upwards and yanked at Excalibur with my right. The blade slipped free and slashed upwards across the throat of the still struggling second creature. Its lifeless body fell to the ground as I stood up.
Naomi stepped from the shadows, pale and sweaty with exhaustion, Alexa standing beside her.
Alexa was straining against Naomi’s hand, reaching toward the first dead creature. “Poor wolfies!”
“Hush, girl. These aren’t real wolves.” Naomi pulled her back gently.
“Follow me.” I waved at them to get behind me. “We need to get to the perimeter so I can get you guys to safety.”
I reached down and grabbed the rucksack with my left hand and brandished the glowing blade of Excalibur with my right as I began moving towards where I had seen the figures standing in the Shadowland.
Nothing else moved to attack us as we moved forward, so I was able to take a glance back towards the Coop. The building behind us was glowing orange from the flames that were now eating at the place from several locations inside. Smoke billowed upwards, disappearing in the night sky.
I wondered how this could be happening without any response from the Fire Department, but I had to push that thought away as we approached the perimeter. I felt, more than saw, the field of energy that had been set up by the man-sized creatures that I had seen earlier. There was no sign of them with my normal sight, so I shifted my vision to the Shadowland.
As my vision shifted, I found myself staring in the vacant, nearly lifeless eyes of a pale, naked creature that stood, unmoving, spread-eagle. Its long, thin arms stretched outward towards the outstretched arms of others just like it.
Looking into its face, I now recognized them for what they were…Drake had called these creatures Dream Weavers. They were another servant race of the An’girasii. They worked in groups of thirteen, using their powers from the Shadowland to create powerful, complex illusions in the ‘real’ world.
They apparently also had the ability to shut off my access to the Shadowland.
I lashed out with Excalibur towards the Dream Weaver immediately in front of me.
There was a tremendous amount of resistance, as if the illusory shield created by the Weavers was resisting the power of the blade. Sparks of magickal energy erupted as the blade fought its way through the shield and into abdomen of the Weaver.
The shower of sparks turned into an eruption of energy that must have flashed into the real world as well. The entire illusion that had been created by the Weavers crumbled in an explosion of energy that threw me back into normal vision again.
Alexa called out in appreciate surprise. “Oooh, fireworks!”
I sheathed Excalibur in one motion and reached out to Naomi. “Hold on! This is going to be rough!”
I called the Shadow and stepped from this former place of safety to another, Naomi and Alexa in tow…
Friday, June 29, 2007
Hell's Bells...Part 5
Ravyn turned to me, her rage burning brighter in her eyes than in her still flaming fist. “Rusty, take these two to Cerrydwen and come back as soon as you can.” She glanced back at Naomi, “You remember the emergency password don’t you, darling?”
Naomi nodded. “I do.”
“Good. When you get to Cerrydwen’s place, make sure you tell Rusty what they are, OK?”
Naomi nodded again as she stood up with Alexa before grabbing a small bag that she had managed to pack. “I’m ready.”
I turned back to Ravyn. “Are you going to be alright?”
She shrugged. “I’ll be alright so long as I know that these two are safe. If you hurry back, you can help me to save as many of the others as possible.” She glanced back down the hall before looking at me again. “Get these two to safety. We can’t let Alexa fall into the arms of these monsters.”
“I’ll be back.”
A tear rolled down Ravyn’s cheek as she turned away and stalked off to do battle. “Good.”
I sheathed Excalibur and picked up the rucksack that I had dropped earlier. I reached my left hand out toward Naomi. “Come on. Let’s get you two to Cerrydwen.”
As she and Alexa drew near, I focused my Will and summoned the Shadow.
Nothing happened.
“Shit.”
“What’s wrong, Daddy?”
I waved my free hand to silence the questions and tried again, this time though, I reached as deep inside of myself as possible, summoning all of Will. I would not, could not, be denied.
Except that I was. Again, nothing happened.
“What the fu…dge?” I looked at Naomi. “I think something is blocking me from calling the Shadow.”
Her eyes narrowed. “How can they do that?”
I shrugged. “I wish I knew…”
I was interrupted by an ear-piercing, unearthly scream of rage of fear that was itself interrupted by an explosion that rocked the foundations of the house. I held on to Naomi tightly as the floor buckled and lurched beneath us. For the briefest of moments there was a dead kind of silence, but that was soon shattered by the sounds of other battles being fought elsewhere in the house.
Once things stopped shaking, I slammed the door to the room shut and ran over to the shattered window to get a view of what was happening out there.
At first, I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, which was strange in itself. Sensing that all was not as it seemed, I shifted my sight into the Shadowland. That’s when everything became a hell of a lot clearer and I became a hell of a lot more concerned.
In the Shadowland, I could see the ring of man-sized figures that stood stock still, arms extended towards each of their neighbors. Extending between them was a web of crackling energy that seemed to form a dome over the entire Phoenix Coop. I had no idea who or what these creatures were and how they were doing it, but they seemed to have created some kind of bubble that was meant to keep anyone from leaving the place, especially through the Shadowland…
Naomi nodded. “I do.”
“Good. When you get to Cerrydwen’s place, make sure you tell Rusty what they are, OK?”
Naomi nodded again as she stood up with Alexa before grabbing a small bag that she had managed to pack. “I’m ready.”
I turned back to Ravyn. “Are you going to be alright?”
She shrugged. “I’ll be alright so long as I know that these two are safe. If you hurry back, you can help me to save as many of the others as possible.” She glanced back down the hall before looking at me again. “Get these two to safety. We can’t let Alexa fall into the arms of these monsters.”
“I’ll be back.”
A tear rolled down Ravyn’s cheek as she turned away and stalked off to do battle. “Good.”
I sheathed Excalibur and picked up the rucksack that I had dropped earlier. I reached my left hand out toward Naomi. “Come on. Let’s get you two to Cerrydwen.”
As she and Alexa drew near, I focused my Will and summoned the Shadow.
Nothing happened.
“Shit.”
“What’s wrong, Daddy?”
I waved my free hand to silence the questions and tried again, this time though, I reached as deep inside of myself as possible, summoning all of Will. I would not, could not, be denied.
Except that I was. Again, nothing happened.
“What the fu…dge?” I looked at Naomi. “I think something is blocking me from calling the Shadow.”
Her eyes narrowed. “How can they do that?”
I shrugged. “I wish I knew…”
I was interrupted by an ear-piercing, unearthly scream of rage of fear that was itself interrupted by an explosion that rocked the foundations of the house. I held on to Naomi tightly as the floor buckled and lurched beneath us. For the briefest of moments there was a dead kind of silence, but that was soon shattered by the sounds of other battles being fought elsewhere in the house.
Once things stopped shaking, I slammed the door to the room shut and ran over to the shattered window to get a view of what was happening out there.
At first, I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, which was strange in itself. Sensing that all was not as it seemed, I shifted my sight into the Shadowland. That’s when everything became a hell of a lot clearer and I became a hell of a lot more concerned.
In the Shadowland, I could see the ring of man-sized figures that stood stock still, arms extended towards each of their neighbors. Extending between them was a web of crackling energy that seemed to form a dome over the entire Phoenix Coop. I had no idea who or what these creatures were and how they were doing it, but they seemed to have created some kind of bubble that was meant to keep anyone from leaving the place, especially through the Shadowland…
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Hell's Bells...Part 4
I hefted the black rucksack over my left shoulder and drew Excalibur from its sheath. I then stepped into the hall, glancing back long enough to shout out to Ravyn. “Let’s get Naomi and move to the rally point!”
Clutching Alexa in her left arm and raising her now flaming right hand to shoulder height in front of her, she nodded, her jaw set in grim determination.
Most of the noise was coming from the first floor. It was an eclectic mix of screams, grunts, breaking glass and other clashing sounds. As I pushed past a door on my right to get towards Naomi’s room, the door was wrenched off its hinges by an implosion of some sort. I glanced back to see Ravyn staggered towards the gaping maw that was now the portal before she steadied herself and sent a bolt of a flame towards a target that I was too far away to see. The stream of curses that flew from her lips was only slightly less caustic than the flame bolt that she had hurled.
I stopped to see if she needed any help, but turned back around to press forward again when she waved me off with a resigned sigh. “Keep going. There’s no one to save in there.”
As I came to Naomi’s door, I paused long enough to hear the sounds of struggle coming from inside. I glanced back to Ravyn. “Trouble.” I took one half step back and kicked the door handle with my left boot and used the moment of coming down to slam my shoulder into it, splintering it into flying wooden shards.
I shrugged off the rucksack as I turned to face whatever it was that Naomi was struggling with, only find myself facing two identically dressed Naomi’s locked in a violent embrace that was causing them to crash into the battered furniture of the small room.
“Shit!”
The Naomi’s separated as I stood there cursing. The Naomi closest to me turned and moved towards me. “Oh, thank goodness you’re here Rusty! This creature came in took my shape! Kill it!”
The other Naomi sank back against the battered desk. She looked up at me and asked a simple question. “Is Alexa safe?”
The first Naomi turned her back to me, continuing to point at the second, shouting at me to kill the intruder, but it was too late.
I lashed out with Excalibur using all of my strength. The blade lashed out blindingly fast and sliced into the neck of the unsuspecting Doppelganger.
The head of the creature went spinning as a fountain of greenish black ichor leaped into the air, spraying all over me and the rucksack as the body collapsed in a heap next to me.
Naomi’s shoulders slumped. She was clearly exhausted from her struggle with the creature. She perked up though as Ravyn pushed into the room behind me, the wriggling Alexa still held to her left hip. “Alexa!”
“Mama!” Alexa slipped from Ravyn’s grasp and bounded over to her mother in three running steps, somehow avoiding all of the pooling ichor as she did so.
Naomi held our daughter tight for a single quiet moment before the reality of the situation caused Ravyn to clear her throat.
“We need to move. Others haven’t been as lucky as you, darling.”
Clutching Alexa in her left arm and raising her now flaming right hand to shoulder height in front of her, she nodded, her jaw set in grim determination.
Most of the noise was coming from the first floor. It was an eclectic mix of screams, grunts, breaking glass and other clashing sounds. As I pushed past a door on my right to get towards Naomi’s room, the door was wrenched off its hinges by an implosion of some sort. I glanced back to see Ravyn staggered towards the gaping maw that was now the portal before she steadied herself and sent a bolt of a flame towards a target that I was too far away to see. The stream of curses that flew from her lips was only slightly less caustic than the flame bolt that she had hurled.
I stopped to see if she needed any help, but turned back around to press forward again when she waved me off with a resigned sigh. “Keep going. There’s no one to save in there.”
As I came to Naomi’s door, I paused long enough to hear the sounds of struggle coming from inside. I glanced back to Ravyn. “Trouble.” I took one half step back and kicked the door handle with my left boot and used the moment of coming down to slam my shoulder into it, splintering it into flying wooden shards.
I shrugged off the rucksack as I turned to face whatever it was that Naomi was struggling with, only find myself facing two identically dressed Naomi’s locked in a violent embrace that was causing them to crash into the battered furniture of the small room.
“Shit!”
The Naomi’s separated as I stood there cursing. The Naomi closest to me turned and moved towards me. “Oh, thank goodness you’re here Rusty! This creature came in took my shape! Kill it!”
The other Naomi sank back against the battered desk. She looked up at me and asked a simple question. “Is Alexa safe?”
The first Naomi turned her back to me, continuing to point at the second, shouting at me to kill the intruder, but it was too late.
I lashed out with Excalibur using all of my strength. The blade lashed out blindingly fast and sliced into the neck of the unsuspecting Doppelganger.
The head of the creature went spinning as a fountain of greenish black ichor leaped into the air, spraying all over me and the rucksack as the body collapsed in a heap next to me.
Naomi’s shoulders slumped. She was clearly exhausted from her struggle with the creature. She perked up though as Ravyn pushed into the room behind me, the wriggling Alexa still held to her left hip. “Alexa!”
“Mama!” Alexa slipped from Ravyn’s grasp and bounded over to her mother in three running steps, somehow avoiding all of the pooling ichor as she did so.
Naomi held our daughter tight for a single quiet moment before the reality of the situation caused Ravyn to clear her throat.
“We need to move. Others haven’t been as lucky as you, darling.”
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Hell's Bells...Part 3
“Yes, Sweetie, you’ll get a chance to ride on Betsy.” Ravyn looked up from Alexa to the disheveled Naomi. “Go get the things you’ll need for the next day or so. We need to get you two to the safe house. Don’t worry about getting dressed, there’s a full wardrobe for you there. I’ll watch her until you get ready.”
Naomi nodded glumly and shuffled off back towards her room.
Alexa bounded into Ravyn’s outstretched arms with a giggle and a flop of the raggedy stuffed bear.
I shifted my balance and spoke up. “What do you need me to do?”
Ravyn hugged Alexa, inhaling deeply of her essence before responding. “Stick by close by me until we see the girls off. We don’t know what we are facing just yet, and I want to make sure Alexa is safe.”
She sat back down at her desk and reached out to the business phone. She punched a couple of buttons, activating the intercom for the Coop. Her voice came through loud and clear over the hidden speakers in every room of the large house. “Attention this is a Code 3 emergency. Secure all doors and windows. Rally point is the Library in zero-five minutes. I repeat, this is a Code 3 emergency, rally to the Library in 5 minutes. This is not a drill people.”
I arched my brown and nodded. “I’m impressed.”
She shot me a sarcastic look. “Hey there, some of us actually make contingency plans for when things to go wrong instead of winging it.” She stood back up and pointed to behind the door. “Grab the bag behind that door, would ya?”
I turned, moved the door enough to see the black rucksack that I had never noticed before and reached for it, just in time to hear the glass breaking in several places around the house and the screams of shock and fear that accompanied those sounds…
Alexa’s voice cut through the other sounds. “They’re here!”
Ravyn’s curses were far more colorful and imaginative than mine were…
Naomi nodded glumly and shuffled off back towards her room.
Alexa bounded into Ravyn’s outstretched arms with a giggle and a flop of the raggedy stuffed bear.
I shifted my balance and spoke up. “What do you need me to do?”
Ravyn hugged Alexa, inhaling deeply of her essence before responding. “Stick by close by me until we see the girls off. We don’t know what we are facing just yet, and I want to make sure Alexa is safe.”
She sat back down at her desk and reached out to the business phone. She punched a couple of buttons, activating the intercom for the Coop. Her voice came through loud and clear over the hidden speakers in every room of the large house. “Attention this is a Code 3 emergency. Secure all doors and windows. Rally point is the Library in zero-five minutes. I repeat, this is a Code 3 emergency, rally to the Library in 5 minutes. This is not a drill people.”
I arched my brown and nodded. “I’m impressed.”
She shot me a sarcastic look. “Hey there, some of us actually make contingency plans for when things to go wrong instead of winging it.” She stood back up and pointed to behind the door. “Grab the bag behind that door, would ya?”
I turned, moved the door enough to see the black rucksack that I had never noticed before and reached for it, just in time to hear the glass breaking in several places around the house and the screams of shock and fear that accompanied those sounds…
Alexa’s voice cut through the other sounds. “They’re here!”
Ravyn’s curses were far more colorful and imaginative than mine were…
Monday, June 18, 2007
Hell's Bells...Part 2
The reunion of mother and daughter was all tears and hugs from mom and giggling laughter and ticklish hugs from daughter. Alexa had come alive as we neared Naomi’s room and erupted from my arms with bubbly exclamation of “Mama!” as she bounded towards the huddled, still sleepy form of Naomi.
Naomi gave me a teary-eyed glare over Alexa’s pig tails.
I held up my hands as I backed out of the room. “I’m back in control, Naomi. I’m sorry!”
Between my protestations and Alexa’s energetic, giggling hugs, her glare softened. She nodded before hugging her daughter back.
Ravyn touched my shoulder. “Let’s leave them alone, they’ll need to get some rest.”
I followed her back out into the hall and towards the small office that she kept at the Coop.
“So did you receive that package from Drake?”
Ravyn nodded as she settled behind her desk and pulled out a large yellow and red DHL box that rattled as she moved it. “Yes. I haven’t seen keys like this since I was a child.” She reached in and pulled out a large ring of skeleton keys, each one slightly different than the others.
I shook my head. “You wouldn’t believe where this stuff is hidden…”
“The Angel-people are coming.”
We both turned to look down at the small, figure of Alexa standing in her nightgown and bunny slippers, a teddy bear dangling from her left hand.
Ravyn was the first to recover. “What was that, Sweetheart?”
“The Angel-people are coming, soon.”
Naomi padded in behind Alexa, her hair unkempt and her face stained with tears. “She keeps repeating this phrase. She also insisted on coming and telling you herself. She refused to go to bed.”
“Auntie Ravyn, the Angel-people are coming. Can I ride on Betsy?”
I leaned forward. “Alexa, do you mean that the An’girasii are coming here soon?”
She nodded.
“How soon are they coming?”
“They are almost here. We need to go bye-bye. Can I ride on Betsy?”
Naomi gave me a teary-eyed glare over Alexa’s pig tails.
I held up my hands as I backed out of the room. “I’m back in control, Naomi. I’m sorry!”
Between my protestations and Alexa’s energetic, giggling hugs, her glare softened. She nodded before hugging her daughter back.
Ravyn touched my shoulder. “Let’s leave them alone, they’ll need to get some rest.”
I followed her back out into the hall and towards the small office that she kept at the Coop.
“So did you receive that package from Drake?”
Ravyn nodded as she settled behind her desk and pulled out a large yellow and red DHL box that rattled as she moved it. “Yes. I haven’t seen keys like this since I was a child.” She reached in and pulled out a large ring of skeleton keys, each one slightly different than the others.
I shook my head. “You wouldn’t believe where this stuff is hidden…”
“The Angel-people are coming.”
We both turned to look down at the small, figure of Alexa standing in her nightgown and bunny slippers, a teddy bear dangling from her left hand.
Ravyn was the first to recover. “What was that, Sweetheart?”
“The Angel-people are coming, soon.”
Naomi padded in behind Alexa, her hair unkempt and her face stained with tears. “She keeps repeating this phrase. She also insisted on coming and telling you herself. She refused to go to bed.”
“Auntie Ravyn, the Angel-people are coming. Can I ride on Betsy?”
I leaned forward. “Alexa, do you mean that the An’girasii are coming here soon?”
She nodded.
“How soon are they coming?”
“They are almost here. We need to go bye-bye. Can I ride on Betsy?”
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Hell's Bells...Part 1
I emerged from the Shadow and stepped into the library at the Coop with Alexa cradled in my arms, dead-to-the-world asleep.
I was met by the stern glare of Ravyn, her right hand held high with a ball of red and orange fire swirling around her clenched fist. “Is that you, Rusty?”
Hugging Alexa close to my chest, I nodded. “Yeah, it’s me, finally.”
“Sorry, but I need to be sure you are who you appear to be, Rusty. Look directly into my eyes.”
I looked up from the cherubic brown face of Alexa to meet Ravyn’s steely gaze. “Drake’s gone for good now. He had his little chat with Alexa.”
Ravyn’s face softened as she realized that I was telling the truth. “Thank the Goddess, it is you!” The fireball surrounding her fist died with a fizzle as she brought it down, still smoking, and moved to take Alexa from my arms.
“How long has it been since he took control?” I let my arms fall to the side as Alexa settled into her arms and nuzzled up against her neck, still asleep.
Ravyn shook her head. “I’m not sure, but it must be close to two months now.” She shifted Alexa into her left arm, brushing back Alexa’s dark, curly bangs from her forehead. “Naomi is going to be so relieved to know that she’s back safe and sound. What did Drake do with her and why did he have to take her like he did?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Is Naomi OK?”
She nodded. “Yes, she’s been beside herself for days now, but she wasn’t harmed.”
“Good. Drake didn’t let me know what he was doing all of the time, so I’m not sure what happened when he came for Alexa, but he did let me experience his passing when he took her to the Tree.” I shook my head. “That was the weirdest thing to watch Drake bow down before my toddler of a daughter and pay his respects to her. It got even weirder when she acknowledged his respect and spoke to him in that same voice that she used back at Yule.”
“What did she say to him?”
“They spoke together for quite a while, but the main thing was that she thanked him for his service and then forgave him for everything that he had done to harm others.”
Ravyn looked incredulous. “She thanked Drake for his service? And she forgave him?”
I nodded. “Yep, and that’s what took the longest. He had left me in my body by that time and stood before her in pure Spirit form, looking almost exactly as he had when he was alive. She reached up with her little hands to his head bowed head and whispered name after name after name of all of the people that he hurt or killed throughout his miserable, long assed life and with each name, he became just a tiny bit lighter, more translucent. It must have taken days.”
She looked down into Alexa’s face before looking back up at me. “That must have been thousands of names…how did she know them all?”
“I have no idea. But I can tell you that it was a fucking who’s who of world history, that’s for sure. You have no idea how much of the history that we learn about in school was influenced by the people that Drake screwed with or outright killed.”
“I think I can believe it after all of the stuff he used your body to get stirred up. Rusty, you are not going to be able to show your face in public for quite some time—I’ve lost count of the number of different law enforcement agencies that have contacted me looking for you. I even had to send away the FBI students away from here after Agent Wilson called and told me that you had been declared a fugitive from justice and that you had made the Most Wanted list for a string of murders!”
“Shit! He let me see some of that stuff, but obviously not everything! He told me that he was taking down servants of the An’girasii.”
She pursed her lips and clucked her tongue. “That may well be what he was doing, but he has landed you in a lot of hot water in the process. Did you know that he took Dick Arnold?”
I stepped back at that. “No, I had no idea.”
She shook her head this time. “Well, you’ve got a lot of catching up to do, but not before we get this little girl back to her mot
I was met by the stern glare of Ravyn, her right hand held high with a ball of red and orange fire swirling around her clenched fist. “Is that you, Rusty?”
Hugging Alexa close to my chest, I nodded. “Yeah, it’s me, finally.”
“Sorry, but I need to be sure you are who you appear to be, Rusty. Look directly into my eyes.”
I looked up from the cherubic brown face of Alexa to meet Ravyn’s steely gaze. “Drake’s gone for good now. He had his little chat with Alexa.”
Ravyn’s face softened as she realized that I was telling the truth. “Thank the Goddess, it is you!” The fireball surrounding her fist died with a fizzle as she brought it down, still smoking, and moved to take Alexa from my arms.
“How long has it been since he took control?” I let my arms fall to the side as Alexa settled into her arms and nuzzled up against her neck, still asleep.
Ravyn shook her head. “I’m not sure, but it must be close to two months now.” She shifted Alexa into her left arm, brushing back Alexa’s dark, curly bangs from her forehead. “Naomi is going to be so relieved to know that she’s back safe and sound. What did Drake do with her and why did he have to take her like he did?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Is Naomi OK?”
She nodded. “Yes, she’s been beside herself for days now, but she wasn’t harmed.”
“Good. Drake didn’t let me know what he was doing all of the time, so I’m not sure what happened when he came for Alexa, but he did let me experience his passing when he took her to the Tree.” I shook my head. “That was the weirdest thing to watch Drake bow down before my toddler of a daughter and pay his respects to her. It got even weirder when she acknowledged his respect and spoke to him in that same voice that she used back at Yule.”
“What did she say to him?”
“They spoke together for quite a while, but the main thing was that she thanked him for his service and then forgave him for everything that he had done to harm others.”
Ravyn looked incredulous. “She thanked Drake for his service? And she forgave him?”
I nodded. “Yep, and that’s what took the longest. He had left me in my body by that time and stood before her in pure Spirit form, looking almost exactly as he had when he was alive. She reached up with her little hands to his head bowed head and whispered name after name after name of all of the people that he hurt or killed throughout his miserable, long assed life and with each name, he became just a tiny bit lighter, more translucent. It must have taken days.”
She looked down into Alexa’s face before looking back up at me. “That must have been thousands of names…how did she know them all?”
“I have no idea. But I can tell you that it was a fucking who’s who of world history, that’s for sure. You have no idea how much of the history that we learn about in school was influenced by the people that Drake screwed with or outright killed.”
“I think I can believe it after all of the stuff he used your body to get stirred up. Rusty, you are not going to be able to show your face in public for quite some time—I’ve lost count of the number of different law enforcement agencies that have contacted me looking for you. I even had to send away the FBI students away from here after Agent Wilson called and told me that you had been declared a fugitive from justice and that you had made the Most Wanted list for a string of murders!”
“Shit! He let me see some of that stuff, but obviously not everything! He told me that he was taking down servants of the An’girasii.”
She pursed her lips and clucked her tongue. “That may well be what he was doing, but he has landed you in a lot of hot water in the process. Did you know that he took Dick Arnold?”
I stepped back at that. “No, I had no idea.”
She shook her head this time. “Well, you’ve got a lot of catching up to do, but not before we get this little girl back to her mot
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Meditation
This post has been much harder to write than I ever envisioned that it would be.
I had been looking forward to writing about the final and permanent demise of Drake Kampmann for years now. Now that I faced with writing about that very thing, I am filled with a profound sense of sadness and loss that I haven’t felt since my own father passed away twenty years ago.
For the better part of a decade I have both feared and hated Drake Kampmann. At first he was the aloof, mysterious director of the Omega Project—someone who first recruited me and then oversaw my participation in that project—my fate was literally in his hands, in more ways than I cared to consider.
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Drake was a ruthless, cold-hearted, evil sociopath who wouldn’t hesitate to kill someone if he thought that there was any advantage to him or his plans by doing so. He used everyone that he ever came into contact with, manipulating them into doing what he wanted done by telling half truths and outright lies. If he ever knew what it was to love another person, he had long allowed the memory of such love to slip from his memory.
So, why do I feel as conflicted by his passing as I do now?
That is hard question to answer.
In part, I think it is because so long as Drake was around, I had a focal point for my own fears and insecurities. He was easy to blame for whatever hardship I faced. If I had never met Drake, I felt like my marriage would have been as strong as it was before, and that I could have sat back, fat and happy, as I watched my kids grow up. I would have advanced easily within the Dearborn Hills Police Department and been getting closer and closer to a nice middle class retirement of watching baseball games and fishing on the weekends.
It is like there is this alternate reality out there—that if Drake had never come looking for me, all of this weird freaky shit would never have happened. People like Papa Locks and El Diablito would have never even existed. Magick would have remained a figment of my wife’s imagination. Monsters like Grendel, Ma Grendel, Doppelgangers, and Banes would have stayed as characters in someone else’s books.
But then I remember all of the wonderful people that I have met because of Drake and I marvel at how the universe works. I would have never met Ravyn Fyre, Jim, Cerrydwen and the Frau. I would have never had the chance to learn about all of the different paths between the worlds that John Red Bear taught me to explore.
If Drake hadn’t found me, would another man, another officer, been able to become the creature that I am now? Would that person have been able to break free from the flawed prison of the Omega Project Chakra yet remained in this world to take on Drake and his cohorts? Would that person have embraced the immortality and been satisfied to exist in that cold, dead shell of his own body? Would that person have become a willing, but less than capable servant, that the Omega Project seemed designed to create?
So much has happened since that time that Drake came to find me—a whole universe of magick and monsters and strange new worlds has been opened up to me to explore—that I cannot even comprehend what it is to be that ‘normal’ guy anymore, living out a quiet, suburban life in ignorant bliss.
As much as I was dragged kicking and screaming into this (un)dead existence, I now can’t imagine things being any different.
There is so much to tell about Drake’s passing and the things that he did while he had use of this body—the messes he made that I am still trying to clear up, the enemies that he tracked down and eliminated, and the gifts he left for me and the ORC’s, but that stuff will have to wait just a little bit longer. I have needed to take this time to contemplate what his passing has meant to me.
There is little enough time for reflection, however, as events have continued to take place. My next series of posts will focus on what has most recently taken place while we tried to recover and safeguard those things that Drake left for us, and what is taking place right now in the Shadows all around as the An’girasii have begun to make moves against us.
The story of Drake’s passing will be a story for another time, since it is one that is worth taking the time to tell well. He deserves at least that, if not much else.
I had been looking forward to writing about the final and permanent demise of Drake Kampmann for years now. Now that I faced with writing about that very thing, I am filled with a profound sense of sadness and loss that I haven’t felt since my own father passed away twenty years ago.
For the better part of a decade I have both feared and hated Drake Kampmann. At first he was the aloof, mysterious director of the Omega Project—someone who first recruited me and then oversaw my participation in that project—my fate was literally in his hands, in more ways than I cared to consider.
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Drake was a ruthless, cold-hearted, evil sociopath who wouldn’t hesitate to kill someone if he thought that there was any advantage to him or his plans by doing so. He used everyone that he ever came into contact with, manipulating them into doing what he wanted done by telling half truths and outright lies. If he ever knew what it was to love another person, he had long allowed the memory of such love to slip from his memory.
So, why do I feel as conflicted by his passing as I do now?
That is hard question to answer.
In part, I think it is because so long as Drake was around, I had a focal point for my own fears and insecurities. He was easy to blame for whatever hardship I faced. If I had never met Drake, I felt like my marriage would have been as strong as it was before, and that I could have sat back, fat and happy, as I watched my kids grow up. I would have advanced easily within the Dearborn Hills Police Department and been getting closer and closer to a nice middle class retirement of watching baseball games and fishing on the weekends.
It is like there is this alternate reality out there—that if Drake had never come looking for me, all of this weird freaky shit would never have happened. People like Papa Locks and El Diablito would have never even existed. Magick would have remained a figment of my wife’s imagination. Monsters like Grendel, Ma Grendel, Doppelgangers, and Banes would have stayed as characters in someone else’s books.
But then I remember all of the wonderful people that I have met because of Drake and I marvel at how the universe works. I would have never met Ravyn Fyre, Jim, Cerrydwen and the Frau. I would have never had the chance to learn about all of the different paths between the worlds that John Red Bear taught me to explore.
If Drake hadn’t found me, would another man, another officer, been able to become the creature that I am now? Would that person have been able to break free from the flawed prison of the Omega Project Chakra yet remained in this world to take on Drake and his cohorts? Would that person have embraced the immortality and been satisfied to exist in that cold, dead shell of his own body? Would that person have become a willing, but less than capable servant, that the Omega Project seemed designed to create?
So much has happened since that time that Drake came to find me—a whole universe of magick and monsters and strange new worlds has been opened up to me to explore—that I cannot even comprehend what it is to be that ‘normal’ guy anymore, living out a quiet, suburban life in ignorant bliss.
As much as I was dragged kicking and screaming into this (un)dead existence, I now can’t imagine things being any different.
There is so much to tell about Drake’s passing and the things that he did while he had use of this body—the messes he made that I am still trying to clear up, the enemies that he tracked down and eliminated, and the gifts he left for me and the ORC’s, but that stuff will have to wait just a little bit longer. I have needed to take this time to contemplate what his passing has meant to me.
There is little enough time for reflection, however, as events have continued to take place. My next series of posts will focus on what has most recently taken place while we tried to recover and safeguard those things that Drake left for us, and what is taking place right now in the Shadows all around as the An’girasii have begun to make moves against us.
The story of Drake’s passing will be a story for another time, since it is one that is worth taking the time to tell well. He deserves at least that, if not much else.
Monday, June 04, 2007
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