“No!” Malice screamed and leapt at September. Malice’s arms closed around her as she tipped the contents of the flask into the bowl. The colourless drops of liquid disappeared into the swirling mixture. September felt Malice’s claw-like fingers on her shoulders as cold as liquid nitrogen, the cold of space. She dropped the flask and grabbed Malice around the waist. Malice’s chill spread from her shoulder into her arms and down her body. They were locked together over the churning, smoking bowl. A vortex of rainbow coloured light rose from the liquid, engulfing them, expanding, rising. September’s eyes were locked on Malice’s hate-twisted face.
“What have you done?” Malice said, her words stretching out as if time was slowing down.
“I don’t know,” September said, her feet no longer resting on firm ground. She was floating. “But I hope it will rid the world of the Malevolence.”
The light twisted around them and through them and seemed to turn in on itself through a dimension of space that wasn’t there. Forces pulled her in every direction, stretching and compressing her as if she was made of rubber. Still she kept hold of Malice.
“What is happening?” Malice cried in deep, ponderous tones. They were no longer in the desert. The stone bowl had disappeared and beneath their feet was the same whirling mixture of rainbow colours as was all around them. Breuddwyd and the whole of the Land had gone.
“I don’t know,” September repeated, feeling as though her voice came from outside of her. She was being turned inside out but there was nothing to see other than the writhing bands of orange, blue, red, green, violet, yellow, indigo and white. Then she noted black spots appearing in the light around them like the reverse of stars in the night sky. Their number grew, galaxies of them formed, swirled around them then winked out to be replaced by more.
“My spirits!” Malice’s cry dragged on and on.
“What’s happening to them?” September asked, her question taking an eon to express.
“I’m losing them!” Malice’s voice was an eternal sob but September was cheered. Were the spirits of the Malevolence being drawn from the Land and flung out into the darkness? She hoped that was what she was seeing, that the plan was working and the people would be freed from the terror of the Malevolence.
Malice’s cold grip on her shoulders weakened. September looked at her; she was fading to grey, losing her solidity, ceasing to be real, becoming a wraith. Malice looked at her, her face contorted in fear.
“No! I don’t want to go back to the dark,” her voice was that of a young child, “Save me! Please!”
September didn’t know what to do. She tightened her grip on what substance was left of her twin. This was what she wanted wasn’t it? Victory over Malice; if not to destroy her then force her back into exile beyond the stars; but, after all, she was her sister though they had never known each other. She remembered Mother’s continued love for her dead daughter, how she always referred to her by her given name, Mairwen, rather than the label she had taken for herself. She recalled the years of growing up feeling incomplete, only half there, as if she was missing something. She had thought she was stupid and careless but perhaps what she really lacked was her other half, her twin.
With the swirling streamers of light of the seven colours originating from the seven metals plus the Maengolauseren, the egwyddorpum, and the Cemegwr’s unifying Alkahest she felt all the emotions competing within her – fear, sorrow and joy, anger and love, hope and surprise, and compassion. She hugged the remnants of Malice to her.
“You will always be with me, Mairwen,” she said. Malice’s face took on an expression of calm as her form faded away but rather than being blown away by the vortex it seemed to September that she hadn’t gone but had merged with her. Now though she was alone, tossed by the maelstrom of light. There was no space, no time, just energy. Where was she? She was nowhere and everywhere. The flickering lights made her dizzy, her head was spinning on her neck. She closed her eyes. She was falling.
23
The floor hit her. It was reassuringly solid rather than painful. September sprawled, arms and legs flailing. Then there were hands on her.
“September! Are you alright?”
She opened her eyes to find herself cradled by her mother, kneeling on the floor of her bedroom.
“We’re home?” she said, almost unable to believe her own eyes.
“Yes, we’re back.”
“What happened? Where did you go?”
“I could ask you the same thing. When I stepped back from the bowl I flicked back here. That was just a moment ago. You fell into my arms.”
“But it seemed a … No I can’t say how long it was. It just was me and Malice and the light.” September described what had happened after Malice had appeared and she had dropped the starstone and the Alkahest into the cauldron of molten metal.
“So you think it worked as the Cemegwr described? The Malevolence was pushed back into space?”
“I think so, Mother. Malice certainly seemed to feel that the spirits were being pulled away from her and then she faded.”
“And she went with them.”
“I’m not sure. I think she may be here.” September tapped her head.
“Hmm. Well let us hope that the Malevolence is dealt with.”
“What about your piece of the Maengolauseren?”
Breuddwyd held up her hands to show that they were empty.
“Gone. Just like the last time. I presume it means that our task, your task, is complete.”
“Gone? We have no way of getting back, of finding out who has survived or how they are getting on?”
“No, my love. After my experience I began to wonder whether it had actually happened. I had no souvenirs to prove it and of course I had spent no time out of our own world.”
There was a tap on the door.
“Are you alright in there?” Julie called.
“Yes, we’re fine, love,” Breuddwyd replied, “Give us a moment. September’s a lot better.”
Footsteps retreated along the landing.
“There, you see, September, it’s still the night of your birthday. No one will have any idea that you’ve spent a quarter of a year on another world, fighting evil.”
September looked down at her nightie, examined her hands and arms, felt her face and hair. She was back to her old self – short hair, too much flab around her middle and her thighs; the silly, old September.
“No one will know that I’m not the stupid little girl that I used to be. They won’t see any difference.”
“Not at first, my love, but your experiences have changed you, will continue to change you. People will just think you’re growing up, but I know it’s because you are a hero.”
September felt a glow inside her. She smiled.
“I’m glad you were there too, Mum. I couldn’t have finished it without you.”
Her mother hugged her.
“And perhaps if Mairwen is part of you too she can at last feel at peace, away from the hateful Malevolence.”
The mention of the evil reminded September of the Cemegwr’s words. She felt a sudden fear grip her.
“Do you think the Cemegwr was right and the Malevolence is here too?”
“Who knows, love. Our universe is different isn’t it? I don’t know much about astronomy and all that but even I can see that our universe is a lot bigger and more complicated than Daear and its seven planets and stars.”
“Can we find out?”
“I don’t know. There is evil all around us; and good too. Perhaps a Cludydd will be called to protect us if the Malevolence becomes powerful, but I don’t think it will be us.”
September didn’t reply. She was wondering what form the powers of a Cludydd would take in her own world.
“Let’s pretend that nothing special and fantastic has happened,” Breuddwyd went on, “You know Julie and everyone else couldn’t understand what we’ve been through, what you’ve seen and done. Let’s just say you had a bad dr
eam and we can all settle down again now.”
September nodded and got up. She climbed into the bottom bunk and her mother tucked her in like she used to do.
“We’ll talk about it all again when Julie has gone. For now, sleep well my brave and resourceful daughter, the Cludydd o Maengolauseren.”
THE END
Although September will be back in
Volume 3 of Evil Above the Stars
Unity of Seven
Acknowledgement
Writing is largely a solo activity but being a writer requires support and assistance from a lot of people. I couldn’t cope without my wife, partner, best friend and chief critic, Alison, who encourages me with all my writing projects.
The idea for Evil Above the Stars grew out of a short assignment for Ludlow Writers’ Group and I must thank all the members, but particularly Sally, for encouraging me to go on to develop it. All the comments have been much appreciated.
Then there are the folk at Elsewhen Press. It is a joy to find a company as enthusiastic about their business as Peter and Alison are. Their mixture of astuteness, skill and excitement is both reassuring and invigorating. I was delighted when they took on EAtS and have been proud to become a part of their publishing family. Then there is Deirdre who had the unenviable job of finding all my typographic, punctuation and grammatical errors and make patient and sensible suggestions for improvements. Thank you Deirdre. Another thank you goes to Sofia for the proofreading. Any errors that remain are all mine.
Finally I would like to thank you the reader. Nothing gives me more pleasure than knowing people are reading my work (the royalties are useful but secondary). If you are reading this before launching into the novel, then I hope you enjoy it. If you have completed it then I hope it was a pleasurable experience and that you look forward to further tales of September Weekes.
Elsewhen Press
an independent publisher specialising in Speculative Fiction
Visit the Elsewhen Press website at elsewhen.co.uk for the latest information on all of our titles, authors and events; to read our blog; to find out where to buy our books and ebooks; or to place an order.
Elsewhen Press
Evil Above the Stars Volume 1
Seventh Child
Peter R. Ellis
September Weekes is accustomed to facing teasing and bullying because of her white hair, tubby figure and silly name, but the discovery of a clear, smooth stone at her home casts her into a struggle between good and evil that will present her with sterner challenges.
The stone takes her to Gwlad, the Land, where the people hail her as the Cludydd o Maengolauseren, the bearer of the starstone, with the power to defend them against the evil known as the Malevolence. September meets the leader of the people, the Mordeyrn Aurddolen, and the bearers of the seven metals linked to the seven ‘planets’. Each metal gives the bearer specialised powers to resist the manifestations of the Malevolence; manifestations formed from the four elements of earth, air, fire and water, such as the comets known as Draig tân, fire dragons.
She returns to her home, but she is drawn back to Gwlad a fortnight later to find that two years have passed and the villagers have experienced more destructive attacks by manifestations. September must now help defend Gwlad against the Malevolence.
Although ostensibly a fantasy for young adults, it can just as easily be considered science fiction, and will appeal to readers of all ages.
ebook, paperback
visit bit.ly/EvilAbove
Elsewhen Press
Evil Above the Stars Volume 3
Unity of Seven
Peter R. Ellis
September Weekes is back home and it is still the night of her birthday, despite her having spent over three months in Gwlad battling the Malevolence at the seventh conjunction of the planets. She no longer has the Maengolauseren nor the powers it gave her. It is back to facing the bullies at school and her struggles with her weight and studies, but she worries about how well the people of Gwlad have recovered from the terror of the Malevolence. She is also unsure what happened to Malice/Mairwen as the Cemegwr said that Toddfa penbaladr, the universal solvent, would join the twins together. Is Malice inside her? Could she turn to evil?.
She must discover a way to return to the universe of Gwlad and the answer seems to lie in her family history. The five Cludydds before September and her mother were her ancestors. The clues take her on a journey in time and space which reveals that while in great danger she is also the key to the survival of all the universes. September must overcome her own fears, accept an extraordinary future and, once again, face the evil above the stars.
Unity of Seven is the third volume in the thrilling Evil Above the Stars series.
Coming soon
visit bit.ly/EvilAbove
Elsewhen Press
Jacey’s Kingdom
Dave Weaver
Jacey’s Kingdom is an enthralling tale that revolves around a startlingly desperate reality: Jacey Jackson, a talented student destined for Cambridge, collapses with a brain tumour while sitting her final history exam at school. In her mind she struggles through a quasi-historical sixth century dreamscape whilst the surgeons fight to save her life.
Jacey is helped by a stranger called George, who finds himself trapped in her nightmare after a terrible car accident. There are quests, battles, and a love story ahead of them, before we find out if Jacey will awake from her coma or perish on the operating table. And who, or what, is George? In this book, Dave Weaver questions our perception of reality and the redemptive power of dreams; are our experiences of fear, conflict, friendship and love any less real or meaningful when they take place in the mind rather than the ‘real’ physical world?
ebook, paperback (272pp)
visit bit.ly/JaceysKingdom
About the author
Peter R. Ellis would like to say he’s been a writer all his life but it is only since retiring as a teacher in 2010 that he has been able to devote enough time to writing to call it a career. Brought up in Cardiff, he studied Chemical Physics at the University of Kent at Canterbury, then taught chemistry (and a bit of physics) in Norwich, the Isle of Wight and Thames Valley. His first experience of publishing was in writing educational materials, which he has continued to do since retiring. Of his fictional writing, Seventh Child is his first published speculative fiction novel.
Peter has been a fan of science fiction and fantasy since he was young, has an (almost) complete collection of classic SF by Asimov, Ballard, Clarke, Heinlein and Niven, among others, while also enjoying fantasy by Tolkien, Donaldson and Ursula Le Guin. Of more recent authors Iain M Banks, Alastair Reynolds and China Mieville have his greatest respect. His Welsh upbringing also engendered a love of the language (even though he can’t speak it) and of Welsh mythology like the Mabinogion. All these strands come together in the Evil Above the Stars series. He lives in Herefordshire with his wife, Alison, who is a great supporter.
The Power of Seven Page 27
