by M K Drake
The duo pass the first dune, and walk for about twenty minutes more.
Joseph grows curious as they finally reach a large piece of canvas mostly covered by the sand; they quickly unpin the edges to reveal an incredibly deep hole, with some rather worn-looking pulleys set up just outside the top of it, “Wei?”
“Yes Joseph?” she asks as she inspects the metal frame of the pulley system and the platform that looks like it used to be the method of transport down.
“Why are you helping me?
Dr. Wei pauses and looks at Joseph. “For the same reasons you are taking this journey: to protect Joyce. If there are items that exist that can enable us, as parents, to protect our children, how could I not help?”
Joseph’s curiosity is satisfied; he has finally found someone that understands why he is doing this, and he is glad. “Thank you.”
Dr. Wei tugs on what appears to be a lock for the makeshift lift. “You are most welcome, Joseph. Now, are you ready?”
Joseph nods and steps onto the lift with Dr. Wei.
“Great, now get the helmets out of the bag with the torches, we’ll be needing them.”
As the two lower themselves down, they miss the movements across the sand in the distance. Professor Snugglebottom is lurking in his humanoid form, watching; he pulls out a communications crystal and activates it to reveal Razakel on the other side. “It is done master, the pathway to the Amethyst has been dug and your plan is unravelling as intended.”
Razakel peers through the portal, looking at the barren landscape, “It will soon be mine, this realm, it is only the beginning. Be sure to inform the Horseman to tell Shezmu to proceed.”
“As you command my Lord, as you command,” Snugglebottom turns off the crystal, transforms into Scourge, and takes to the skies.
# # #
“Wei, come look at this,” Joseph feels the sides of the tunnel the pair now find themselves in, the smooth reddish surface betrays its age quite obviously. “This looks much fresher than five years, my dear; are you sure no one else has been down here?”
Dr. Wei joins him to examine the wall, she touches the surface and checks the ground for any fresh spillages, but sees none. “It’s odd, for sure, but the ground is clear of rubble, which is sometimes done to ensure the dig space is not contaminated. This clear-out would have taken a bit of time; I would guess the fact this area has not been touched – and has been kept sheltered – is why it is still so well-preserved.”
Joseph accepts Dr. Wei’s answer; after all, he thinks, she is the expert. Nonetheless, he decides to tread very carefully, and almost panics as his flashlight flickers for a moment.
The tunnel system begins to diverge, Joseph lays down some luminescent tubes to mark their path; he continues to follow Dr. Wei who appears to know instinctively where she is going. After what seems like an age they finally reach an open cavern.
“Strange,” says Dr. Wei as she shines her torch all around it, the dome-like ceiling is smoothed out completely, with a hole at the far side emanating a purple glow. “This chamber was not on any of the maps I saw, and that hole…, I wonder…” She approaches the opening where the purple light is coming from with care. “Joseph, over here, I think this is it.”
Joseph runs to where Dr. Wei is pointing. He peers inside and can see a purple, crystalline-like object, shaped almost like a starfish but incredibly opaque; the light is radiating from it so brightly as he removes it carefully from its resting place that the need for the torches is now non-existent. He holds it high above his head. “Finally, I can protect my boy!”
“Put it back, Joseph!”
Both Dr. Wei and Joseph are startled as they spin around and see Marcellus.
“Dr. Sparks, you aided him? You know how dangerous this item is, and you still led him here? Why?” Marcellus stands in the hue of the purple glow, he seems almost blinded by it as he raises an arm to shield his eyes.
“Leave her out of this, Marcellus; she has the same goal as I!” Joseph bellows. “You did not want to help because you wanted to hide your own secret. You always knew this location didn’t you? You had knowledge of this Amethyst, and you kept it from me, how could you? I could have protected Sophia with this! How dare you call me your friend!?”
“Yes, I knew of this, but, you…, you do not know the whole story. I hid this stone for the good of mankind. If it ever fell into the wrong hands, it would bring universal apocalypse upon us all. But what you have done now – by finding it, you court with The Angel of Death himself!”
“Bah! Marcellus, fairy tales! How can you be so sure?” Joseph demands more answers, frustrated that someone he regards as his brother would be so cagey about all of this.
Marcellus sighs, he turns his back to them, then removes his upper garments, dropping his light jacket and shirt to the floor to reveal two large stubs on his back, protruding from his shoulder blades, glowing the same purple colour as the Amethyst.
“These used to be my wings,” he said, his voice echoing in the cavern, “until Death took them from me and threw me into the abyss of time and space. Death needed a canvas to test this device on. He decided that my ward, a human who was in line to be one of the Eternals, one of the highest of Angels, had the correct type of soul to experiment on. I stole the Amethyst, and hid it to protect her. I loved her.”
Joseph lowers the Amethyst and continues to listen.
“You cannot bind yourself to this evil thing,” Marcellus continues, turning back to face Joseph and Dr. Wei. “Instead of power, Joseph, you will find torment. The stone will strip you of all that is you, nothing will be left. Death himself will be drawn to your soul and it will become his vessel, a custom-made conduit to suck in the energy of every living soul, past, present and future. It is his tool to aid in the Apocalypse! Do you not see? The power it gives is false! Every life you take, be it demon or human will take you closer not to redemption, because I know Joseph, I know you seek redemption for what happened to Sophia, but you will not get it dammnit! Not with this! This will bring you only demise. You can’t save Atticus from this, or his fate! Just like you couldn’t save Sophia!”
Dr. Wei and Joseph look at Marcellus in shock at his words. Joseph especially, as he feels his anger grow. “How dare you Marcellus? How dare you?”
Marcellus looks down, ashamed, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have… I couldn’t protect my love, and I blamed Death for everything that, as an Angel, I couldn’t hate. Without my wings I could not return. I was tainted with the dark magic of the Amethyst, of Death’s scythe when he took my wings, and of this endless hatred towards him, for what he took from me. I heard he was punished for his actions, and creating this Amethyst. But it doesn’t mean he does not still want it,” Marcellus puts his shirt and jacket back on; the silence within the chamber is uncomfortable for all of them.
Joseph ponders his friend’s words for a moment, wondering why he had not trusted him enough to share his secret. “We have been friends for almost twenty years, Marcellus, twenty years, and you tell me this now? You trust me now only because we are in this predicament. Would you have told me otherwise?”
“No – but only for your protection. Not even Elric knows all of this, but Kazmagus does. He knows, I could sense it from him. Ask yourself this: I left this Amethyst in the protection of some powerful Majjai, how is it you were able to find it so easily? Why is this chamber unsealed, unguarded? You are being led down this path my friend, do you not see?”
“The only thing I see Marcellus is someone I thought I knew, but who is really a stranger. I could have saved Sophia with this, I will not allow you to prevent me from saving Atticus, the one thing we both loved together.”
Marcellus tries to lunge forward and grab the Amethyst, but Dr. Wei trips him.
“Quickly, Joseph! Do it now!” orders the doctor.
Joseph looks at Marcellus who is pulling himself back up. “For Atticus!” he cries, plunging the Amethyst of Al Hammad hard onto his chest. The chamber explodes
in a blinding purple light as a wind swirls around it, whipping up the loose grains of sand on the floor. The sand creates whirls of dust, which encircle Joseph and knock Dr. Wei to the ground next to Marcellus.
Joseph screams in pain, but only for a few moments, until the light finally dims and the winds dissipate.
Atticus’s father drops to his knees, with his torso exposed. The Amethyst has buried itself into his chest, with the glow pulsing in time with his heartbeat.
“Joseph?” Marcellus whispers with concern. “Are you ok?”
His friend does not respond; but whilst his eyes stay closed, he tilts his head upwards then raises his arms into the air, and begins to smile. Joseph’s eyes finally open as his smile turns into a wide grin, which turns into a chuckle before exploding into maniacal laughter.
Dr. Wei grabs hold of Marcellus in fear, but as she looks at him, she does so with a gaze that appears apologetic, as if something is compelling her to not speak.
Marcellus stands up and shields her against the furthest wall from Joseph, and looks into her eyes. He looks again, for in the briefest of moments, he felt he recognised something there.
The laughter stops suddenly, and both Marcellus and the doctor turn to see Joseph standing right next to them.
“Atticus! He is in danger!”
Chapter 25
Never Trust a Demon
A tiny sand gecko moves quickly into the dark cave trying to escape the heat of the desert sands. It pitter-patters along the cold stone floor, pausing for a moment to take comfort in the cooler air before stopping abruptly. It senses the heavy movement of creatures much larger than itself, so decides to halt its progress, taking refuge in a small corner. It peers around from its shelter to peek at the other beings joining it in the shelter of the cave.
“Alvarez, do you have the crystal?” asks Scourge, with a harsh rasp in his voice.
“Of course, fool! Now give me a moment to open the portal.” Alvarez activates the tiny communications crystal, a quick dance of light exposes itself and projects upwards, showing the face of Razakel, his tightly braided hair falling to the rear of his crimson head.
Razakel looks around the cave, ensuring both Scourge and Alvarez are present, “Shadow Wolf is still continuing his task?” he asks, expecting an answer from Alvarez.
“Yes my Lord, he is. We have prepared the collector, but…”
“But what?”
“Kazmagus is powerful; how do we subdue him?”
Razakel chuckles. “The Horseman will help you; he has his own task, to take the Majjai’s soul.”
“Yes, yes, this could work, while distracted we can use the collector.”
Scourge yelps with glee, “Finally, we can destroy this filth, the first Majjai, it will be a great victory.”
Razakel turns to Scourge and smiles. “Yes, but I also want you to destroy the Horseman.”
Both Alvarez and Scourge go silent, it’s one thing to aid in Kazmagus’s destruction, but the Horseman is another problem entirely.
“But, my Lord,” Alvarez’s voice quivers, hoping his next statement will not be seen as a weakness. “He is too powerful, even weakened after his encounter with Kazmagus, he is a World Ender.”
“Do not doubt my foresight. I have planned this thoroughly. By planting the Amethyst of Al Hammad within the path of Atticus’s caregiver, its owner will be coaxed into this game. I’ve already ensured its activation. Believe me, the Horseman will be quite pre-occupied, and you may not even need to lift a finger to witness his destruction – just ensure that you do witness it.”
“Your cunning is truly masterful, Lord Razakel. Please, do tell us when the time will be right to strike,” says Scourge, snivelling away in complete devoutness.
Razakel laughs. “You would demonstrate immense stupidity if you are unable to determine for yourself the perfect moment to strike. Just observe, and the moment will be clear. Concentrate on utilizing the Collector; it is all important, perhaps more so than the Scrolls.”
“As you wish my Lord,” Alvarez bows his head and deactivates the communications crystal. He looks towards Scourge and they both exit the cave, almost stepping upon the little gecko, still lurking in the corner.
The gecko thinks itself lucky, and begins to make its own way to the exit, feeling sufficiently cooled, but after a few steps it is distracted by a slithering motion on the far side of the cave, it blinks to clear the built-up sand around its eyes to get a clearer view, when suddenly the creature is upon it.
The slug like creature shoots out a pair of tentacles from its mouth and begins to drag the gecko towards it. The small lizard tries in vain to escape, scrabbling against the dusty ground, but the slug is too strong, and it is not long before the gecko is consumed completely, and the only sound around the chamber is that of tiny bones crunching away.
Once the slug is satisfied that the cavern is clear of anything else, it lets out a tiny squeal into the air, as if it is calling out to something or someone; within seconds a portal opens up beside it and Vengeance steps through.
He bends down and lifts the slug to his ear, listening carefully at what his little pet has to say, and smiles. “These demons are less trustworthy than humans. They will all be destroyed in the coming of the end. With my newfound power, not even my brothers can stop me, nothing! This trinity of Majjai, Eternal, and Demon, it is limitless. It is mine!”
The Majjai Journals:
Damn this confusion in him. He is distracted by it. I’m almost tempted to just leave sometimes, as it is obvious that he needs to concentrate on his own abilities to become as powerful as we need him to be.
Elric persuaded me to stay and also told me to not mention the meeting or the dilemma. He told me that leaving would act as a greater distraction, but it is so hard being here and not being able to share my feelings for him… with him. He is so stubborn, although yes, I understand… oh, god… I’m more confused than he is. I just hope he still has feelings for me after we finally… hopefully… beat Razakel. I worry this war will tear him apart from the inside, every time someone loses somebody close… a part of their soul dies, it’s why he is so worried about Joseph. I don’t think he could come back whole if he lost his dad, too, in this conflict.
This Kazmagus is another distraction, is he friend or foe? He plays so many cards so close to his chest and refuses to be clear in his conversations, just ridiculous, really. But I sense his intentions, although brash and blunt to the extreme, are good-natured… when he is in control, that is.
I must also remember to speak to mother; someone said they saw her near the school library recently, but it couldn’t have been her, she was not even down south that day, she told me she had a conference in Liverpool. I will ask when I finally get back home.
Demon activity has meant we have barely had any rest recently. I had hoped that most of the demons were sucked back in through the portal or were slain at Aria, but it looks like we were wrong.
Safaya suspects that a large number of them that came through actually had another mission, to cause as much havoc across the Realm of Earth as possible, so they left – or possibly never joined –the battle to take up their own positions far and wide; Razakel was so confident in winning, that he already had the second part of his invasion in play.
We won by pure luck that night. I did ask Atticus once if he recalled how he utilized the white magic, but he was unaware. He said all he could feel was hate and the need for revenge, the anger swelled up through him, and he channelled that towards Razakel. This worries me more than anything else right now, it is as if he tapped into darkness to find that power, I just hope he learns how to control it before it rears its presence again, for all our sakes.
Joyce Sparks
Chapter 26
Faiyum
Atticus shields his eyes as a gust of wind blows up some sand across the runway; looking around him he sees some soldiers assist in offloading the Majjai supplies and luggage. Khan and Olof are helping with heavy items
that do not appear to be Majjai-related at all, but definitely more mechanical in nature.
“Those are mine! Please be careful, my techs would get very annoyed if they were damaged, and trust me, annoyed techs are probably more exasperating than your demons.”
Atticus spins around to see General Crawford running up towards them.
Elric shakes the General’s hand. “Thank you so much for your transportation arrangements, this was most satisfying. An SLRC17 Condor if I’m not mistaken?”
“Impressive, Elric, you know your planes?” replies General Crawford, raising an eyebrow. “The transportation was easy; this drop was scheduled for supplies anyway, I just asked them to delay things slightly. Now, you suspect Faiyum is the place we need to go?”
“Indeed it is, now come, there is much to discuss.”
Atticus looks towards General Crawford. “Excuse me General, did you manage to find anything about my dad?”
“Hello, Atticus. Yes, he arrived in Cairo late last night and took a tour jeep into the desert. We have tried to get in touch with the tour company, but they are unable to get hold of the driver. Don’t worry, I’ve sent some of my men to find him.”
“Thank you,” Atticus replies, appreciative that his dad at least arrived safely.
“Not a problem, least I could do after you saved my life. Now, we can discuss why he is here on the way to Faiyum. Our things will get there on a separate transport, but our bus is ready to leave,” General Crawford points to a converted school bus at the side of the runway. “I know it doesn’t look like much, but the shell is reinforced and should withstand a blast or two.”
“Why do we need something like that?” asks Safaya. “Egypt is friendly land.”
General Crawford turns back towards Safaya as he walks in the direction of the bus, “You don’t watch the news much do you?”
