The Mistress of Illusions
Page 22
“Mr. Raven and companion,” he said, coming to a stop and staring at them. “The betting was that we’d never see you at this location.”
“Then you know what we want,” said Raven.
“Of course.”
“And?”
“It’s quite ready for you.” The old man began hobbling off to his right. “Follow me, please.”
Raven and Lisa fell into step behind him. They soon reached a totally smooth, featureless wall. The old man ran his hand across a small section of it, and suddenly a door appeared.
“Have a safe trip,” he said.
Raven took hold of Lisa’s hand, and together they walked through the doorway—
28
—And found themselves in Raven’s living room.
“Sonofabitch!” he exclaimed. “We’re back!”
“Yes, we are, Eddie,” said Lisa.
“And even more startling, we’re still alive!”
“That’s because you used your skills,” she said.
“There were moments when I didn’t think we were going to make it.” He paused and stared at her. “Where the hell were we?”
She shrugged. “Elsewhere.”
“Let’s just hope to hell we never have to go back.”
“We won’t.”
“You’re sure?” he asked.
“You’ve beaten that world, Eddie. Now you’re as fully prepared for the Final Confrontation as you’ll ever be.”
“If I beat that world,” he said, staring at her, “it’s because I couldn’t leave you there.” Suddenly he smiled. “I think I deserve a prize for surviving it.”
“A prize?”
He nodded his head. “Right.”
“What kind of prize?” asked Lisa.
He stared into her eyes. “A wife.”
“I’m flattered,” she said.
“I love you, Lisa. I think I’ve loved you from the day we met.”
“I love you too, Eddie,” she replied. “But there’s a universe to be saved.” Suddenly she grimaced. “And if you don’t save it, neither we nor the world we know will be around long enough for the wedding.”
“I’ve read a lot of science fiction books about one man or one woman saving all of Creation,” replied Raven. “Maybe I can learn something from them.”
“You can try,” she said dubiously. “But I doubt it.”
“Oh?” he replied. “Why?”
“If they’re like most of the science fiction books I’ve seen on the stands or in the stores, they’re about one man, or one small group of men, fighting off military forces or reversing scientific cataclysms.” She smiled sadly. “Our universe isn’t under that kind of threat.”
“What kind are we under?” asked Raven.
“I think I’ll let Rofocale explain it to you,” said Lisa. “I get too emotional just thinking about a sudden end to it.”
“To it?” he repeated.
“To all of existence,” she said.
He made a face, then shrugged. “Okay, so maybe it’s not like the typical science fiction book, but really, how the hell different can it be?”
“It’s not only that, Eddie,” she replied. “It’s you, too.”
“How so?”
“You have very special skills, Eddie,” said Lisa. “A tiny handful of others may have had them in the past, but only you have mastered them to the fullest extent.”
“What about the four men who went ahead of me?” asked Raven.
She shook her head. “They didn’t have your abilities, Eddie.”
“You didn’t know them,” said Raven. “At least, I assume you didn’t.” At least, you’d better not have, since I assume they existed centuries or possibly even millennia ago. “So how could you possibly know that?”
“Because they had everything going for them,” answered Lisa. “They had advantages that you are lacking—and they are all dead, while you have survived.”
Suddenly Raven started feeling restless and constricted. “It’s warm and stuffy in here,” he said. “Care to go for a walk, and maybe grab some dinner, or breakfast, or whatever the hell it’s time for?”
“Why not?” she said with a shrug. She walked to the door, then stepped aside as he opened it for her.
It was a pleasant night, and both of them felt relaxed after the ordeal they had undergone. Raven headed toward Mako’s shop, and was surprised to see an Out of Business sign taped to a window, right next to a For Rent sign.
“You look puzzled, Eddie,” remarked Lisa.
“I just wanted to see it one more time, since it’s where everything started,” he said. “I’m surprised mere physical force could run a supernatural shop like this out of business.”
“The shop wasn’t supernatural,” Lisa replied. “Neither were Mako or his customers, as you well know. A few of the sales items were, but they were created elsewhere and elsewhen, then shipped here to be displayed.”
“Still,” said Raven, looking at the freshly replaced walls and windows, “this is where it all started. It should have something a little extraordinary about it.”
“Be grateful that it doesn’t, or it might still be attracting our enemies.”
“Your and Rofocale’s enemies,” replied Raven with a humorless smile.
“Who do you think you’ve been fighting for the past few weeks, Eddie?” said Lisa.
“Point taken,” he conceded. He stared into the shop for another few second. “Ah, well, there’s nothing else to see here. Ready for some dinner?”
“Sounds good,” replied Lisa.
“I agree,” said a familiar voice. “I’m famished.”
Raven looked to his left and saw that Rofocale had joined them.
“So we’re all one big happy family now?” he said.
Rofocale smiled at him. “Briefly,” he said as the smile vanished.
29
Raven frowned as the waiter seated them at a corner table and disappeared into the depths of the kitchen.
“What’s the matter, Eddie?” asked Lisa.
“I don’t understand,” said Raven.
“What don’t you understand?”
“Look at Rofocale. He’s built like a pair of Mr. Americas pushed together. He’s a brighter red than any fire truck you ever saw. He’s got pointed ears. He’s got to be over seven feet tall. And no one is looking at him—not the waiter, not the bartender, not even that couple two tables away.”
“They see what I want them to see,” said Rofocale. “You and the entity you know as Lisa see me as I really am.”
“She is Lisa,” insisted Raven.
Rofocale turned to Lisa with a smile. “Are you Lisa?”
“To Eddie I am,” she replied. “That’s all that matters.”
“Says the Mistress of Illusions,” added Rofocale. He smiled. “We are all very special creatures.”
Raven shook his head. “I’m nothing special. I’m certainly no hero. I didn’t win a duel to the death or anything like that. I used an old math trick that almost no one in the world cares about. I’m just a guy from Manhattan.”
“You are much more than that, Eddie,” said Rofocale.
“I don’t destroy bad guys,” insisted Raven. “I sell dresses.”
“A masterful disguise.”
“It’s no disguise, damn it!” snapped Raven. “It’s me!”
Lisa shook her head. “No, Eddie,” she said. “You must know by now that you are far more than that, far more than you can currently imagine or comprehend, or you would not have been chosen for the Final Confrontation.”
“Half of me wants to believe you, and the other half thinks I’ll be joining you two at the funny farm if I buy into it. I’m just Eddie Raven, damn it, and if I ever do anything of note it’ll be coming up with some knock-off that
outsells Oscar de la Renta or Miuccia Prada knock-offs.”
Rofocale chuckled deep in his massive throat. “You have far more potential than that—and the sooner you understand it the better, because the Master of Dreams, whom you defeated at the start of this ongoing adventure, and the world you just returned from were merely stalking horses for a far worse enemy who awaits you, who indeed awaits all of us if you cannot stop him. That is the one you must defeat if anyone on Earth or any other planet, not just in the solar system or the galaxy, but in the universe, is to survive.”
“To hell with it—and you!” growled Raven. “I’ve had it with Masters of Dreams and fantasy worlds and having the girl I love used for target practice.”
“It’s not as if you have a choice,” said Rofocale. “This is what you were born—created—for, Eddie.”
Lisa reached over and laid her hand on Raven’s. “You would not be the man I love if you could turn your back on a universe that is in such dire need of you. You must face this challenge, wherever it may lead you.”
“You must understand, Eddie,” said Rofocale, “that all ambiguity ends right here and right now.”
“Explain!” demanded Raven.
“What you must face and defeat if any living thing is to survive anywhere in the universe is the ultimate, unambiguous manifestation of evil incarnate—the Lord of Nightmares. All things, favorable and otherwise, follow from that.”
“The Lord of Nightmares?” repeated Raven. “It sounds like a bad joke.”
“Are we smiling?” asked Rofocale, and suddenly both he and Lisa faded into nothingness.
“And,” said Rofocale’s disembodied voice, becoming softer with each word, “you must defeat him on your own.”
And suddenly Eddie Raven was left alone with his memories, his challenges, and his doubts.
About the Author
Mike Resnick has won awards in the USA, Spain, France, Japan, Croatia, Poland, and China. He is the author of 76 novels and 280 short stories, and is, according to Locus, the all-time leading award winner, living or dead, for short science fiction, and is 4th on the all-time list when novels are added.
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