San Francisco Covens: Crucible

by Manuel Tiger

  “Ah, the victors return,” Miss Samantha said looking toward the back of the courtyard. Through the open gate came Eve followed by the other witches who marched a naked and blooded Luis who had deep lacerations across his body. He looked ready to collapse at any second. Beside him Carmen looked no better. She had a bruise around her right eye and her hands were tied behind her back while blood stained the front of her tank top. “I think we now have more than adequate offerings.”

  “Agreed,” Aadya said. “Take them to the plane.”

  “Carmen,” Sophia whispered as one of the Mercs grabbed her by the arm and shoved her forward along with myself and Daman.

  “Question,” Bryan said holding up a finger. “Do they have to arrive conscious to the plane?”

  “I do not care how they arrive on the plane. Only as long as they are on the plane,” Aadya replied with a smile.

  “Good.”

  A sudden blow to the side of my face had me seeing stars as another followed it in quick session which caused the stars to dance and swirl about. I heard Daman cry out my name right before another blow struck me squarely in the nose that sunk me into inky blackness.

  III

  “He’s coming around.”

  “He’s not badly hurt is he?”

  “Rest easy mother hen. He’s a vampire, not a porcelain doll.”

  Heather and Daman’s voice filtered through the haze of consciousness that was drawing me into awareness. And with awareness, the whispering hint of pain I was feeling went into full on horror queen screaming mode. I cried out and went to clutch at my head only to find out my hands were chained, preventing me from doing so.

  “I thought you said he wasn’t badly hurt!” Daman said from somewhere. I could hear the rattle of chains and a frustrated groan. “Henry? Henry can you hear me?”

  “Can’t you like communicate with him telepathically?” Heather asked.

  “Sires and fledgings rarely can,” Daman replied. “Henry? Can you hear me?”

  “Stop yelling,” I moaned rolling onto my back, tugging at my hands.

  “The chains are charmed, Henny,” Heather said. “The Bitch Squad’s custom made chains. Said to be woven with the hair of Samson and Hercules. I always thought it was a story. Apparently not.”

  “Bitch Squad?” I said blinking my eyes slowly.

  “The witches that betrayed us,” Daman said.

  I sat up and blinked to find that we were in what looked to be the massive cargo hold of a plane.

  “Where are we?”

  “In the belly of the beast,” Heather said. “We’re aboard a C-17 headed toward Nazca, Peru.”

  “Nazca?” I said as my sight stopped turning the room around me at angles. “As in the Nazca Lines of Peru?”

  “One and the same, Henny.”

  “Henny?” Daman said looking at her.

  “Henry mixed with honey. My personal term of endearment for him. Don’t go jocking it.”

  “Henry covered in honey and wearing a jockstrap,” Daman said thoughtfully. “Something we’re going have to try once we’re out of this mess.”

  “Honey is sticky,” I replied shaking my head, wincing with the action. Okay, not the smartest move I could have done.

  I looked over to Heather. She was dressed in a plain white shirt, jeans and hiking boots. Her hair was a wild mane of fire that looked like a strong wind had attacked it, but she looked okay. For that I was grateful.

  “How long have I been out?” I said blinking my eyes.

  “A day and a half,” Heather said. “We stopped to refuel in between Mexico and Peru. Then we waited for apparently whatever ceremony Aadya has in mind can only be done between night and morning.”

  “Welcome to the world of the living, for the moment,” Carmen said from her spot beside Daman. I noticed that she was chained to the wall beside him as was Heather, Sophia and a now clothed Luis. Scott ended out the row.

  “Scott?” I said as he smiled. He had a large bruise on the side of his face and his clothing was dirty and smeared in blood and dirt but seeing that smile relieved some fear I had. “Scott!”

  “Hey Henry,” he said waving his hands that were above his head. “We met your man.” He looked at Daman and frowned. “Can’t say he’s on my favorite list at the moment after he told us he abandoned you after changing you.”

  “I thought I should be forthcoming since we’re back together again,” Daman said. “That part of the story didn’t set well with them however.”

  Scott rolled his eyes.

  “It’s okay. We discussed it, made up, had amazing sex,” I said rolling my head on my shoulders till the pain in my head and stiffness in my neck subsided. “Where’s Aadya and the others?”

  “In the front of the plane,” Heather replied. “That bitch Samantha betrayed the witch council if you didn’t know.”

  “Yeah, saw that,” I said seeing that I was the only one chained to the floor. “But is everyone okay?”

  There came a round of grumbling voices but all were in agreement that they were in various states of being okay, or as okay as possibly could be.

  “Well, well, look at who decided to wake up finally?”

  I looked up to see Bryan coming down a set of metal stairs. He had changed out his shirt for a simple black V-neck one as well as having changed into jeans and hiking boots. He still looked like an off brand Ken doll.

  “Don’t touch him again,” Daman warned with a growl. “When I get these chains off…”

  “Those chains won’t be coming off of any of you for a while,” Bryan said. He walked over toward me and I scooted back, but due to the chains? I only moved a few inches. “Which means to pass the boredom of this trip? I could get very creative and you could do nothing to stop me Daman.”

  “You son of a bitch!” Daman shouted tugging at the chains.

  “Oh, you are just encouraging me further with torturing this piece of shit boy you seem so fond of!” He looked down at me and spat in my face before he squatted down in front of me, grabbing me by the chin. “Shame vampires can heal so quickly. I would love nothing more than to see that bland face of yours covered in bruises and blood.” He began to squeeze my chin to the point that I cried out.

  “Let. Him. Go.” Daman warned.

  “I’m touching him now,” Bryan said as he began slapping me in the head with his other hand. “Touching him there, there, and there,” he said slapping me all over the face. “Oh,” he grinned and dropped his hand between my legs, cupping me and squeezing painfully. “Touching him where you no doubt love to touch him the most.”

  “Stop it you fucker!” Daman yelled.

  “Fuck off!” I said trying to bring my legs up in an attempt to remove his hand, but Bryan gripped them and shoved them down with enough force I cried out.

  “Did you say that to the men that fucked you, Henry?” Bryan said leaning in close. “I don’t think you were really molested. I think you just bent over and took it like a bitch. You just made up that story for that is the only thing that could make you interesting.”

  I felt tears in my eyes as he kept his hand on my crotch squeezing me painfully. “I was raped at twelve against my will!” I hissed. “I didn’t want it! I didn’t want them touching me! I wished it was made up! I do!”

  “You sick son of a bitch!” Heather yelled. “Let him go!”

  “Stop agitating the hostages, Bryan.”

  I looked over his shoulder to see Aadya coming down the stairs.

  “Very well,” Bryan said releasing me. “For now,” he added striking me across the face. My head rocked to the side and I tasted blood in my mouth as I kept my head bowed, refusing to look up.

  “You’re going to get yours, Bryan!” Daman said his voice dripping with ice. “I’ll make fucking sure of that!” he shouted at him.

  “Hush,” Aadya said walking over. “Bryan, go back to the front of the plane eh? You’ve had your fun for the day.”

  “Fine,” I heard him say as he r
etreated. I only looked up when I heard him go back up the stairs to find Aadya looking down at me, an emptiness in her eyes. She surprised me by squatting down and wiping the spit and a few tears off my face.

  As we stared at each other I knew that look that briefly flashed across her face. I knew it all too well for it was the face that stared back at me from the mirror after what had been done to me, after each time with my father’s friend and then later after his friends had had me.

  “How did you do it, Bruja?” Carmen asked drawing her attention from me.

  “Do what Carmen?” she asked looking over at her.

  “The spell in the courtyard. You knew we were coming. How?”

  “It should all be obvious by now,” she said rising and walking away from me. “When I found your spy in my house? I sent the information to you from their phone about the Calling of the Moon ceremony. I knew you were just biting at the bit to get back at me and knew that if baited correctly? You would take it,” she smiled. “So stupid of you by the way. When have I ever left any survivors or not killed any prisoners? You should have known. All you saw in that courtyard was an illusion, what I wanted you to see. I killed every captive I took before I led the attack on the museum. I bathed the stone in their blood when I returned and threw their remains into the ocean for the sharks. All the stone needed next was the essence, the soul of your shapeshifters who you gave that old ancient power to. It was like a protein shake for it, so thank you,” she said and looked over at Daman. “Chico here? I did not expect.” She came to stand before them. “I still haven’t forgotten our last encounter Daman.”

  “Your brows grew back didn’t they?” he said.

  “And all those deaths? They fed the stone for what reason?” Sophia asked.

  “To charge it up,” Aadya replied. “Once it was it showed me the way to the shrine where it will be placed and unleash power that has not been seen in the world since the time of the Old Gods. Power older than the gods of the Aztecs, Greeks and Egyptians.”

  “And that shrine is in Nazca,” Carmen said.

  “Yes,” Aadya replied with a grin. “And that is where each of you will come into use. The shrine needs its baptism of blood. Don’t worry though,” she said stepping back. “Your deaths will be remembered in the new history that shall be made. You will be known as the ones that set in motion The Cleansing that brought about the new era.”

  “Who are your spies?” Carmen asked.

  “It should be obvious now that you know who my partners are.”

  With that she turned and left us alone in silence.

  I looked around to see that no guards were watching us which meant she was quite certain of the chains holding us in place.

  “Henry?” Heather said after some time had passed. I knew by her tone what she was wanting to ask.

  “I’m fine,” I said clearing my throat, refusing to look at her, to look at any of them really. Having your shame exposed to everyone makes it hard to face those same people you called friends. “It happened long ago. I should be over it by now, adjusted, all that other shit.”

  “No, you have every right to still hate what was done to you,” she said. “It was fucked up what was done to you.”

  I looked up. “I know,” I said meeting her gaze. “Did you know that back in the eighteen hundreds? I read this once,” I said looking back down to the floor knowing I probably sounded like I was rambling, but I wasn’t. “It was in some old diaries of a man named Avril I found in a used bookstore in Boston. Now, I don’t know if it was common thought, but no males would talk about being raped by another male, it was considered a shame, a great dishonor. Made you less than a man the diary writer said and the shame never went away, that it clung to you like a stain you couldn’t wash off.

  “That…that summed it up for me, how it made me feel even years later.” I sniffled and shrugged. “When I think I can forget it and move on from it?” I laughed softly. “Something or someone brings it back to the surface so easily. But I didn’t want you to know, or that version at least. I even worked out that I would say it was something that happened in college, just that one time. I didn’t want you to know that I was constantly raped, molested for three years by the friend of my father or that that same man shared me with his friends.”

  “Fuck,” she said. “Did you tell your parents?”

  “He beat me to it,” I replied. “The day I was going to tell my mother and father? To out him as my abuser?” I looked up and offered a sad smile. “He told them, only his version of events with it ended with me being the one to come onto him and my father believed it,” I whispered. “He…he already hated me for acting what he deemed a sissy boy, effeminate in his eyes. So this only confirmed it further and…and he beat me and kicked me out and I was disowned.”

  “I’m so sorry Henry,” she whispered. “Fuck them all. I hope something happens to them.”

  I said nothing. Just stared at the floor.

  “Henry?” Daman softly said.

  I looked over at him.

  “I love you.”

  I smiled and sniffled. “I love you too, Daman.”

  “Man Henry,” Scott said speaking up. “Even with what happened to you? You’ve still been a pretty strong person. It doesn’t change you in my eyes. You’ve been everything but weak. You’re a strong individual. You care for me like a brother, better than my own brothers. You are my brother.”

  I smiled and shook my head. “I think of you as a brother too, Scott but let’s not go overboard with the Hallmark moment okay? We have to figure out a way to stop this plane or stop Aadya from carrying out her plan of unleashing evil into the world.” I sighed deeply. “You know? Saying it aloud?”

  “It sounds like the plot to The Mystic Crystal Skull of Isle Horror right?” Scott said.

  I laughed. “Something like that,” I said noticing I still had on my backpack. “If I could only reach inside my backpack,” I said lifting my hands but the chains seemed to have gotten tighter to prevent further movement.

  “Well, unless you have a tank inside that backpack?” Carmen said looking out the port window by her. “You better pull it out for we’re here now.”

  “Here?”

  “The Nazca Lines,” she said as everyone turned to crane their head toward the port windows by them.

  “Great,” I said. “The one time I get to see them after years of hoping to see them? I’m coming here to die.”

  Chapter Ten

  Nazca Valley, Peru

  It was still night when we arrived at the valley, but the first blush of morning light was coloring the edges of the sky in varied shades of oranges and reds.

  Despite the current predicament I had hoped to have glimpsed the famous lines that covered the valley floor, just a hint of them, yet the plane had landed up in the hills which sloped downward toward the vast plain preventing a glimpse. The moment we landed we were quickly rounded up and marched out.

  I had to wonder how we managed to slip under notice with a plane this large flying into the valley. Then again, I’ve learned in these last few days that when magic was involved – and I felt it strongly was in regards to our rather undisturbed arrival – that anything was quite possible.

  Still in chains we were marched out of the cargo hold by the remaining soldiers that made up what was left of Aadya’s forces. They kept us in a single file till we were a few feet from the plane than forced us into a small clutch.

  “Bring out the statue!” Aadya ordered as she stood a few feet away with Miss Samantha. Beside them stood Eve and the other witches, each still stoic in expression and stance.

  “I’d keep a close eye and aim several more guns on that one,” Bryan said as he walked by us, his eyes zeroing in on me. “He’s prone to outrageous behavior.” He grinned and I could only but stare at him as Daman stepped closer to me which made him roll his eyes as he joined Aadya and Miss Samantha.

  We watched as the statue was rolled down the ramp with the utmost care, mov
ed along at a near snail’s pace with guiding hands.

  “I hate to think what part that plays in coming events,” Sophia whispered.

  “Nothing good,” Carmen replied. She looked at her brother who appeared ready to drop at any moment.

  Luis’ wounds had not healed and the ill-fitting garments that he had been put in were stained already with blood across the chest of the shirt and down one pants leg. “I’m fine,” he uttered, yet he looked anything but fine. He looked in serious need of medical help, but Carmen accepted the lie, nodding her head even if her eyes held worry.

  I looked around our small group. We were battered, tired and due to the chains incapable of doing anything. And of course there was our guards with their weapons trained on us. I was pretty sure as long as they left us with none life threatening wounds that did not spill too much of our blood they would not hesitate to shoot us.

  I hated this.

  I didn’t want anything further to happen to anyone here.

  Scott should be back at our office telling me about whatever schlocky horror movie he planned on us watching this weekend. Heather should be inviting me over for dinner so she could complain about some spell that hadn’t worked out as well as she thought it should. And Carmen, Sophia and Luis should be…rebelling as rebels do.

  None of them deserved this.

  And I possibly had the only option for us to get out of here residing in my backpack. I had to act as time was something that was swiftly trickling away from us.

  “Daman,” I whispered leaning back against him. “How skilled are you with your hands?”

  “Really? Was last night not an example? I know we haven’t had sex in a while, but even you have to admit that thing I did with my finger had you moaning like a –”

  “Mind above the belt!” I hissed while blushing. “I need you to unzip my backpack, retrieve my phone and pull up the contact list then select the only number listed. Just let it ring once and then end the call. Think you can do that?”