by M K Drake
Ju Long looks towards the entrance of the cavern. “Uhm…, guys.”
“Quiet, Ju Long,” says Olof. “We need to get to the bottom of this.”
“Yeah, but…, uhm…, that person there looks just like Joyce’s mum, too,” he says, pointing to a woman standing far behind Marcellus.
They all spin round to see the imposter, and indeed, she is the spitting image of Dr. Wei Sparks.
Joyce, angry at this imposter for impersonating her mother shouts out. “Who are you? How dare you pretend to be my mother!?”
Atticus takes Joyce’s hand, trying to calm her, but he can sense she is fuming. “We don’t know who – or what – this person – or being – is, we need to be careful,” he whispers.
“I don’t care, whoever it is, they do not have the right!” Joyce pulls her hand away from Atticus and super speeds towards the imposter who is standing still, as if in some form of trance.
As Joyce approaches, a bright white light appears and shields the person who fooled Joseph. Joyce sees it just in time and manages to slow down, simply grazing herself slightly against the energy sphere that has formed.
The being inside the shield begins to glow. Atticus speeds himself towards Joyce and pulls her to safety.
The Majjai and General Crawford all look towards this now-glowing sphere and none know what to expect.
The light soon fades and the shield disappears revealing a tall, beautiful woman, with long, straight auburn hair, dressed in a pure white garment. Her eyes are closed, but from her back protrude a pair of black, angel-like wings.
Marcellus drops to his knees, recognising her instantly. “Meh-Jabeen!” he cries out. “Oh my, what have they done to you?” Marcellus gets back up and runs to her aid.
Meh-Jabeen’s eyes open slowly as she begins to collapse to the floor. Marcellus gets there just in time to catch her, and slowly lowers her to the ground, with his arms acting as a support and a cradle.
Atticus and Joseph come over to Marcellus, followed by the others, they gather round to catch a glimpse; for most of them, it is the first time they have ever laid eyes on a winged angel.
Ju Long looks at Meh-Jabeen’s wings. “Shouldn’t they be white?”
Marcellus looks at him as a tear rolls down his cheek. “Yes, they should be white. Whoever has done this has poisoned her mind; she has been possessed by something.”
“Who is she?” asks Joseph.
“This is Meh-Jabeen, my love. The Amethyst was supposed to be used on her as a test. That is why I took it from Death, to hide it, to keep her safe. But the Majjai of this world would not accept it without a trade. Those damn Scrolls.”
“What did you do, Marcellus?” asks Elric, placing a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “You told me none of this, all these thousands of years; you kept your true self hidden, even from me?”
“To protect you, to protect all of you,” Marcellus sighs. “This burden was mine. The only way to keep the Amethyst safe was to hide it away. I was already tainted by its power, so I could not do it myself. The Majjai of the timeline I fell into, after Death expelled me – it was the time of the Scrolls. The Scroll’s creators were afraid; they were unable to successfully hide them without Eternal protection. The one method they tried had already resulted in Barmak’s death, which I was unaware of until now.”
“So it was you that compelled Shezmu to undertake guardianship?” Professor Sprocking states. “Why didn’t you tell us before?”
Marcellus brushes back Meh-Jabeen’s hair, gazing upon her face with both happiness and sadness, willing for her to open her eyes, just for a moment. “I couldn’t, for fear of the Amethyst being exposed. The bond was tied within the agreement. If Shezmu relinquished his responsibility, then the protection over the Amethyst would also be nullified.”
Elric walks over to Joseph to examine the Amethyst embedded into his chest, “The power this holds is remarkable, I’ve not seen anything like it. Did Shezmu know of the bond?”
“No,” replies Marcellus. “He did not, but I fear Razakel may well have been aware. And Scourge, he has been around for many thousands of years. I learned from one of my contacts here in Egypt that there was tale of a Majjai found slaughtered, he was dead for weeks, but others swore that they had been in his company for several days just before the corpse was discovered. When they confronted this fake Majjai, they said he turned into a winged beast and flew away. The Majjai he was impersonating was one of the Amethyst guardians.”
“You should have told us, Marcellus,” Mage Callan says, shaking his head. “You should have trusted us as we trusted you. We have protected you from persecution from all sectors of the Majjai world. Many have wanted to imprison you for they could not understand what you are, they wanted to dissect you, to find out your secret of agelessness. We prevented that. You know all of this, and you still did not trust us?”
“I’m sorry Ian, but I couldn’t risk the Amethyst being found. Secrecy was all-important,” Marcellus elevates Meh-Jabeen slightly, hoping it will make her more comfortable. “You do not understand the power of this gem. Death himself created it, it was to be his conduit for souls, he did not care for the damage it did; he just wanted something strong enough to tear out as many souls as possible in preparation for the time of the apocalypse. It is a World Ender’s weapon! No being would be safe from it unless bonded to it, but the bond to a human is what would give it its power. The more life force it consumes, the more powerful it becomes, until the soul of the bearer is so corrupted that they will not see heaven or even hell, they will be lost to eternal pain. Experiencing over and over every life taken by Death throughout the cosmos. When he discovered that I had taken the Amethyst, he took my wings. I’ve lost contact with all corners of heaven since.”
Ju Long looks around him as everyone else stares sternly at Marcellus; knowing himself how it feels to be alone with a burden, Ju Long places a hand on the Fallen Angel’s shoulder. “See, well, when you put it like that… I think you deserve a hug, not a telling-off.”
Atticus smiles and turns to address the others. “Agreed, we can’t change the past, this has happened. We need to come up with a solution, a plan. Khan? Ideas?”
Khan looks around the cave, he spies one or two of Shezmu’s followers begin to awaken. “We need to find the Scent of Ra and take Shezmu’s head; these followers may know where and what it is.”
“Agreed, and we can take care of the Amethyst – as long as you don’t kill anything else Joseph,” Marcellus says, looking at his friend. Before he can say anything else, there is a movement in his arms, and he looks down.
Meh-Jabeen is stirring. She slowly opens her eyes and looks up at him. “Marcellus? Is it really you? But, how?”
“Easy, tell me, what happened?”
“I do not know, all I remember is being snatched by one of Razakel’s demons while I was carrying out some Earthly duties; they had some sort of crystal. And then it was as if I was under their control. Death is angry,” she points to Joseph. “He should not be here. Death has manipulated Time Infinite to fix the life span that was ended wrongly.”
Joseph, confused at what Meh-Jabeen is saying, looks to Elric. “Do you know what she means?”
“I do, Joseph, Myrddin came to us, he told us… it was not Sophia who was supposed to die… it was you.”
“But, how can fate be controlled like this?”
“It’s complicated Joseph, all we know is that by using the Orb of Time we caused a ripple, and one of the effects of that ripple is that Sophia passed away.”
“Then let Death fix it fully and return Sophia to us. I will gladly die to let her live,” Joseph grabs Marcellus. “Can you tell him, tell Death?”
Marcellus looks away from his friend, and back down to Meh-Jabeen, “It doesn’t work like that. For Death to relinquish a soul, it takes more than just an exchange, and too much time has passed. Sophia does not have a vessel for her soul anymore.”
“No! There must be a way, there must!”
Joseph crumbles to his knees, with his head in his hands. “If there is a way to bring her back, I will find it!”
“Dad,” Atticus kneels next to Joseph “You need to let her go. We need to get this thing off your chest and get you home safe.”
Joseph sighs, he looks back up to everyone in the chamber. “If I am now the vessel of Death, I want to send him a message. We can start with Shezmu,” he paces away in search of one of the followers of Shezmu returning to consciousness.
Joyce helps Atticus up. “It’s the Amethyst, it is affecting his mind, it wants to get back to Death, so we need to be careful. But before we can do anything, I need to try something here,” she walks over to Marcellus and Meh-Jabeen, this beautiful entity with tainted wings held by Atticus’s one-time protector. “Marcellus, please let me try something.”
Marcellus nods, and watches as Joyce sits next to them.
Joyce starts to channel her healing powers into her hands and places them on Meh-Jabeen’s forehead. As she closes her eyes, her healing energy begins to flow through the angel’s body. As the glow intensifies, her entire body lights up, and her wings again become white.
“You did it!” shouts Marcellus.
Meh-Jabeen smiles, “My mind is clear again, thank you, Joyce of Sparks.”
Joyce smiles back, “You’re welcome.”
Marcellus’s face returns to sadness, because he knows what this means. “I will always love you, the calling will be here soon to take you back.”
Meh-Jabeen stands, stretching her wings as far as she can. She rolls her neck back and sighs. “You could try to come with me. I have found you; surely, if you explain everything, they will allow you to return?”
“I still have work to do here; just knowing that you are safe again is all I need right now, Death’s work is done, and you are protected by the might of the Angels,” Marcellus hugs Meh-Jabeen tightly. “It’s time for you to go.”
“I don’t want to, not yet, it’s too soon,” she tries to hold on to Marcellus as tightly as possible, but she knows it is futile. Behind her, a shard of light appears, growing wider, as if cutting its way through space and time. Meh-Jabeen is pulled from Marcellus’s grasp and through the light; just as the doorway closes she can be seen blowing a final kiss downwards.
Marcellus stands, as another tear rolls down his cheek, he wipes it slowly before turning around to see everyone, staring at him, except Joseph, who is still busy searching the fallen Shezmu followers.
Khan quickly goes to aid Atticus’s father, who appears to be getting even more lost inside the powers of the Amethyst.
Marcellus looks to Atticus. “Do not worry, we will find a way to remove the gem from his chest. Even if we have to fight Death himself.”
Atticus nods and smiles. “Yes, there is no way I will let anything happen to him. He is the only family I have left.”
Khan rushes back with Joseph, after successfully interrogating several of Shezmu’s followers. “We have the location.”
Atticus, eager to get things moving gathers his sword and cloak, which were left in the middle of the cavern near where the crystal stood, “Let’s go.”
Khan waits as everyone prepares to leave the central area to seek out the Scent of Ra, he holds Atticus back, “I must speak with you.”
“What is it?”
Khan sighs. “It is ok to be a little scared Atticus. Fear can drive us to success. If it is the right type of fear.”
“I don’t understand, what are you trying to say?”
Khan turns to face Atticus. “It is not the demons that I fear, Atticus. That would be foolhardy. It is what they would do to the ones I love, the ones I care for. Protecting them is what drives me, protecting Safaya, you, Olof, Joyce and yes, even Ju Long. I am so proud to be by your side. For I see you as a brother, your courage surpasses my own, and I will follow you into any battle. But be warned, the Horseman is beyond anything we have faced before. He is a World Ender, born from Time Infinite. He has no motivation other than to bring about the end of days. The Apocalypse. Are you ready for this? Are you ready to risk not only your life but the life of every being that would be conquered if the Apocalypse commences?” Abd al-hakim Khan waits for his answer.
Atticus does not keep him wanting for long, the risk is something he has pondered; but without continuing on this journey, on this very path which may well be a trap, a catalyst for the end of days – they would leave humanity at the mercy of those that wish to end it, if they did not try to save it. The demons are on their doorstep, and they are not welcome. “Yes, I am ready.”
Khan smiles, hugs Atticus and begins to walk over to the others. “Then let us fight, and fight well.”
Chapter 30
The Scent of Ra
Atticus and Khan catch up with the others who have re-attired themselves with their armours and weapons.
General Crawford speaks briefly into his earpiece. “You’re here? Good, a little late for this fight, but I will need those things you have been working on. Just be careful on your way in, the staircase down to the cavern is steep.”
Professor Morgan, ever the gadget fan, steps over to General Crawford, eager to find out what the General could possibly need. “What things?” he asks gingerly.
The General smiles wryly. “You’ll see soon enough.”
“Sir! Sir, are you there?” Colin’s voice can be heard just beyond the cavern entrance, echoing down into the main chamber.
“Of course he is there you idiot, he just spoke to you over the earpiece!” Pavel scolds his lab partner. “Now, hurry up, this is good exercise for you. I should have given you more to carry!”
“Genes! Genes! I’ve told you before! I have a condition!” Colin lambasts back as the pair finally emerge into the main area.
They walk up to General Crawford and place two bags down in front of him.
Pavel opens his and pulls out what looks like some sort of futuristic machine gun. “This is the rapid-fire Plasma Repeater, unclassified fusion power core, it should be able to burn holes through most things you come across.”
“Pah! It’s a fire and forget toy, no fun,” Colin says as he opens his bag. “The sword sir, Plasma lined when activated, the core is powerful enough to provide enough energy to slice through steel. Fleshy demons should be a piece of cake.”
General Crawford chuckles. “Fantastic, I almost doubted you both pulling these off.”
“Doubt?” mocks Pavel. “I can understand why with this oaf helping me, but you should know I would never have failed at such a task.”
Colin lets out a feigned kick towards Pavel. “Liar, if it wasn’t for my Plasma regulator, your gun would blow up every time it was used.”
Pavel just snorts and folds his arms, not wanting to even bother with a reply.
“Behave you two. If you weren’t so good at your jobs I would have you both assigned to tech support in the Arctic.” The General sighs, but knows he needs the ability of this duo, even if they do cause much headache with their behaviour at times. “Right, you both better get back to the control room, I need to you track this zone with our satellites in the air!”
The Majjai and the General wait until Colin and Pavel climb back out safely, laughing as they continue to bicker all the way up,
Olof grins at Ju Long who retorts with a stare before asking. “What?”
“They remind me of you,” Olof replies, still grinning.
“Ok, Khan, dad, which way?” asks Atticus, growing restless. He wants to get this sorted quickly; the need to get his father safe and separated from the Amethyst is paramount in his mind.
Khan points to one of the escape holes used by the followers of Shezmu. “We need to go down. This tunnel here will lead us to what we seek. The Scent of Ra is actually a fountain, spring water that lies deep down beneath this cave system, with only a single opening exposing it to the sunlight. Ra gave it the power to weaken those that opposed him, but that is another story.”
Atticus leads the way,
stepping through the tunnel entrance. It is incredibly steep, so he uses his sword to cut through the rock, widening the tunnel. Atticus is always impressed at how the diamond and emerald infusion is able to slice through almost anything. After he makes it down a few meters he realises that it would be foolish for all of them to follow; he thinks who would be best suited to this task to aid him, and calls back up the tunnel. “It’s too narrow for all of us! Khan, Safaya, you guys come down, but the others should stay up on top, guard the entrance!”
Elric peers down, trying to catch a glimpse of Atticus. “Are you sure, dear boy? We could make the hole bigger perhaps?”
Atticus sighs, knowing that he would welcome more help, but also realising he needs to take more control over decisions, and this most definitely feels like the right one. “Yes sir! It’s fine, it will be quicker with fewer of us!”
“Very well,” replies Elric, stepping away from the tunnel opening.
Khan follows through first, shadowed closely by Safaya.
The trio venture down another twenty or so meters; Atticus sends a small fireball ahead to track how much further they have to go and is glad to see another floor just below them. Khan and Safaya make good use of the steps that Atticus creates with the Sword of Ages.
“We can drop down here,” calls up Atticus, as he lets go of the final part of the tunnel entrance and lowers himself onto the ground beneath him. The air here is cooler, and definitely welcome, compared to the more stifling nature of the upper chamber. He watches as Khan helps Safaya down, pondering his choices as he does so. Selecting Safaya was easy, her command of the elements would most definitely come in handy underground, and with water involved, her inclusion was almost given. Khan’s selection was more difficult, his main attribute is his immense strength, by far the strongest of the group. His slender frame is deceptive, and many opponents have underestimated him upon their first encounter; they rarely got the chance at a second. But, it wasn’t for his strength that Atticus picked him, it was his intellect. Atticus trusts Khan’s judgement, he is an expert tactician and is able to formulate a plan quickly in the most intense of situations, a skill he has proven time and time again. Khan is rarely wrong. Going in to the relatively unknown, Khan was an obvious choice. Atticus smiles, I reckon I’m beginning to get the hang of this leader thing… I hope, he thinks to himself. Almost sure of himself, but he still has that fear at the pit of his stomach, scared of the responsibility, worried of the faith put in him from all around. Then he remembers his dad, the one person that understands the same fear. It’s then Atticus gets it, realises why Joseph did what he did. Fear.
