The Sin of Moloch

by Andrew Gordinier

  Chapter 16

  Radha sat up in bed, she felt dizzy and disorientated. Sitting at the edge of the bed, she gave the darkened room a moment to stop spinning. Slowly she realized she wasn’t home, not in her bed, and was unable to explain why. It was after all the last place she remembered being, wasn’t it? She saw a dim light from a window on the door, not very bright but enough to see shadowed objects in the room. She could vaguely see the bed she was sitting on, the outline of a chair and small table, and opened the door to what she assumed was a closet. Slowly standing up and testing her balance, Radha gave her self more time to adjust but could see little else.

  “Hello?” Radha was afraid that her voice betrayed the fear she felt slowly building to terror. “Hello?”

  “Is there someone there?! Hello, out there!” A woman’s voice called back.

  “Yes, why am I here? How did I get here?” Radha slowly walked towards the door and listened, hoping to hear this was all a terrible dream.

  “Can’t answer that, I don’t know either. Are you across the hall from me?”

  “What?” Radha examined the door and saw that the small window had a thin but solid steel mesh set across it. Outside the window was a wide hallway, on the other side was another door, a steel door with a similar mesh. Radha could just make out a pale face behind the mesh.

  “There you are! I was worried I was alone here. Do you have any idea what is going on?”

  “No.” Radha tried to look up and down the dimly lit hallway but couldn’t see much.

  “My name is Deanna, what’s yours?”

  “Deanna? You go to UIC with John?”

  “Yeah… Wait, are you John’s girlfriend, Radha?”

  “Yes.”

  There was a long pause where Radha thought she heard swearing from across the hall. “So, this is John’s fault! I’ll kill him for getting me involved in this. If this is some FBI black site, I will gut him!”

  “I don’t think-“ Radha was cut short by the lights coming on with a loud snapping noise, blinding her momentarily. Once she stopped blinking, Radha looked around and was horrified. She was clearly in a cell. The table and chair were metal, the mattress rested on a metal box that was clearly welded to the floor, and the partially open door was a small bathroom and shower. It was all painted in a way that Radha thought was some sort of sick joke. It was painted pink, bright bubble gum pink, with white trim that was shaded so that it looked like molding on the ceiling. There were bookcases intricately and carefully painted onto the wall, each title and author clearly visible on the books. There was a window with drapes painted over the desk, in the window was a skillfully painted beach with waves that never moved. The only thing not painted was the door. It was gleaming cold metal that stood seamless and imposing among the false kindness. There was no door handle on Radha’s side of the door.

  “Radha! Is your room a nasty shade of pink too?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Someone is a sick son of a-“

  “I wouldn’t suggest that you call him names.” Said a meek female voice in the hallway. “He gets very angry sometimes.”

  Radha looked out the window to see a very tall and attractive blond woman standing in the hallway. Her make up was done artfully and skillfully. Her clothing was fashionable but loose and made no attempt to cover her figure. She looked like she was about to walk the runway at a fashion show, not tour some sort of prison. Radha had never understood how some women were so comfortable putting themselves on display. She didn’t think it was wrong, just that it wasn’t her and not a way she expressed herself.

  “Hey! Nice outfit, now how about you walk your pretty self over here and… OPEN MY DAMN DOOR!!!” Radha could clearly hear Deanna pounding on her door as she yelled at the woman.

  “Please, calm down. I will let you out. I have been told to warn you, should you try to harm me or attempt to escape, you will be punished. He needs you alive, but that doesn't mean you need to be… complete.” The woman said the last word as if trying to hold it at arm's length, so she didn’t have to think about it.

  “Who said that? Who needs us alive?” Curiosity overcame Radha’s fear.

  “I’m not allowed to say his name, ever. He sent me to take you to him though, he wants to talk to you and explain your situation to you. Please, don’t upset him. He can be cruel.”

  “So, what is your name?” Asked Deanna.

  “I’m not allowed to have one.” Said the woman as she looked at the floor.

  “What-“

  “Please! Do you agree to behave and follow me? He will answer your questions, much better than I can.”

  “Yeah, I agree to play nice.” Clearly, Deanna did not intend to.

  “I agree.” Mumbled Radha.

  “Good. Please follow me and stay in the middle of the hallway or on the carpeted areas, it is one of his rules.” The unnamed woman unlocked Radha’s cell then Deanna’s.

  Once Deanna was out of her cell, she declared loudly with arms raised in triumph, “Nameless! Take us to your leader, who shall not be named!”

  Radha had never met Deanna before, but she had heard about her from John and was now at once pleased because it was clear he couldn’t like Deanna. Could he? Deanna’s constant sarcasm did little to distract her from the horrifying fact that she had been kidnapped, and she had almost no idea why. It was the ‘almost’ part that worried her, Finley had been creepy, and he was at the top of a shortlist.

  The nameless woman wordlessly walked them down a long hallway of rough stone walls and polished floors. There were other cell doors, but Radha could hear nothing within and saw no signs of life. Other entries were solid slabs of metal with no keyhole or door handle, one had streaks of rust and numerous small dents in it. It was the only door with a keyhole set in the middle, and it filled Radha with a sense of dread.

  “That door takes you to Silent Hill?” Deanna pointed at the door. Radha saw ever so briefly that Deanna’s finger quivered, she felt relieved that she was not the only one fighting her fear.

  “That is my cell.” Said the woman without a name, in a timid and shameful way.

  “Oh…” Deanna shot a meaningful glance at Radha.

  Past the stained door, there was a long stretch without doors, just rough stone walls, that ended in an old-style freight elevator. The woman lifted the door, opened the gate, and motioned for Deanna and Radha to step in. Once they were inside, and the doors closed, the woman pressed the single button next to the door, and the elevator started to silently rise. When it stopped, the woman opened the doors, and they stepped into a vast open room with high ceilings. The stone was no longer rough but polished to a mirror finish that reflected the light from several hanging chandeliers. The floor was polished wood with expensive-looking rugs laid out to form paths between the elevator and the numerous doorways. The woman wasted no time and lead them to a door on a far wall.

  As she entered the next room, the woman spoke while keeping her eyes on the floor. “I brought Radha and Deanna up as you asked. How may I serve now?”

  “Wait by the door till I need you.” Said a rich male voice with an accent Radha couldn’t place, it clearly wasn’t Finley.

  The woman stepped aside, and the two walked into a breathtaking room. It was big but not imposing, there were couches and stuffed chairs around the center of the room, and bookcases on the walls. But, nothing obstructed the view out of a window that dominated one wall of the room. A waterfall was tumbling past the left side of the window, a grand torrent of water rushing past with a dull, muffled roar though there seemed to be no glass. Beyond that was a vast green landscape with a silver river winding through it, all under a perfect blue sky with wisps of perfect clouds. There was not a building or road in sight.

  “Hello, I’m Censor Solomon Meza Segura. You may call me Censor Segura, welcome to my home.” The man stood from the chair he had been seated in and rose to his full imposing height. He was dressed simply in a white shirt and pants that accented his ol
ive complexion. “Please, have a seat. I would like to explain the rules that I expect you to follow while you are my guests.” He indicated the nearby chairs and couch with a simple gesture.

  “What if I chose to stand?” Deanna challenged.

  “I am hoping this will be a civilized talk, but if you wish to be defiant from the start… We can move directly to the part where I explain that I need you alive, but that says nothing about what state you might be in.” Censor Segura smiled gently and gestured again at the chairs and couch.

  Deanna and Radha sat as far as possible from the man, and despite the view, observed him.

  “Good. I imagine that you are hungry, I trust you both enjoy sushi? Girl!”

  “How may I serve you?” The nameless woman rushed to stand a respectful distance from Censor Segura.

  “Sushi for three, please, with iced tea.”

  “Mint or sweetened tea?”

  “The mint, of course.”

  “Right away.” The woman quietly hurried from the room.

  “There are rules in my home.” Censor Segura sat down in his chair again. “The first of which is that you may not address her with a name of any kind. Insulting, kind, or otherwise. If you do, there will be consequences for her, and you will watch. Am I clear?”

  “You will not take my name from me,” Radha said boldly, as she held her hands in her lap to control their trembling.

  “I have no intention of doing so, Radha. But I very seldom have house guests, so I feel it is important they don’t cause trouble while they are here. So the next point is leaving without permission. Take a good look out the window. That jungle stretches for hundreds of miles and is known for swallowing even the most seasoned outdoorsmen and hunters. You wouldn’t last long, even if you could find a way down there.”

  “If you got us and this furniture here, then there is a way out,” Deanna said as she looked out the window.

  “Oh, that’s right. I forgot that you don’t know about magic. John didn’t tell you everything did he?”

  “What? You magically abducted us and flew us here on the back of your pet dragon?” Radha wished for a moment that Deanna would shut up and not risk provoking Solomon. Now that she knew he was a Censor, she realized that she was in profound trouble, worse trouble than simply being abducted by an insane mage. She suddenly hated that thoughts like that played a role in her life without her bursting into laughter.

  “No. I teleported you both directly to your cells. There are no dragons, a pity, it would be fun to hunt one.” Censor Segura stood up and walked to the window and kept walking out into open air. Floating, he slowly turned back towards the window. “The only way out of my home is through magic. So that limits your options down to asking me for permission.”

  “It’s a damn trick.” Deanna got up and boldly marched towards the window.

  “Deanna, no!” Radha screamed and leaped after her but was too late.

  Deanna tumbled out the window, and all Censor Segura did was smile and float there as he watched her fall. A half-second later and Deanna appeared out of thin air over the chair she had been sitting in, screaming as she fell the short distance to land safely on the cushions. Radha rushed to her side and tried to calm her, but Deanna continued to cry with her eyes clenched shut.

  “You’re fine, you’re safe, you’re not falling.” It was all Radha could think to say, and she said it over and over again, even after Deanna stopped screaming.

  “The sushi and tea as you asked.” Said the unnamed woman as she skillfully navigated a tray laden with food and drinks to a small side table. She ignored Deanna’s state of panic and went about setting plates and drinks.

  “You see, ladies.” Said Censor Segura as he reclined in mid-air. “John is off on an errand for me or should be soon. To ensure that he does as I asked, I took the precaution of taking the two women he holds most dear. What man wouldn’t cross the universe to save the lives of the women he loves?”

  “How may I serve you?” Asked the woman once she had completed setting the table.

  “Wait by the door.”

  “As you wish.”

  “I have just one thing to say to you!” Snarled Deanna.

  “Please, be frank with me, my dear.” Segura was once again walking on solid ground and eyeing his sushi with pleasure.

  “I’m gonna need some clean clothes after that…I’m not above admitting that scared the crap out of me.” Said Deanna with only the slightest trace of shame. “And, oh yeah. You’re a god damn ass hole, so you and your rules can-“

  “Girl! Please, return them to their cells. They may take their sushi with them if they like, it looks delicious, and it would be a shame to waste it.”

  Chapter 17

  “Augustus!” John stood in the Outback, yelling into the hot air and feeling it was a waste of time. “Augustus!”

  John had always assumed that Augustus called the small fire pit and tiny tent home, he felt desperate and foolish. After all, why would Augustus actually live here? He couldn’t really take that hermit lifestyle so-

  “Will you stop shouting? It’s scaring every animal for a kilometer.” Augustus slowly sauntered up, spear over his shoulder, and carrying a sizeable dead lizard by the tail.

  “I need your help.”

  “I suppose things have finally started to get serious?”

  “My Primer was stolen. The guy who stole it is headed to deep space. A Censor wants me to catch him, or he is gonna kill Radha and Deanna.”

  Augustus paused for a moment and studied John in the harsh sunlight before speaking. “What makes you think I can help you?”

  “The Primers are linked, it’s how you found me and the others. I can follow Finley if I have a primer.”

  “Yeah, it’s also how I knew a Primer went off-world before you showed up. I honestly thought it was you doing something foolish.” Augustus sat by the fire pit and started preparing the lizard for cooking, the embers glowed and slowly came to life in the fire pit.

  “This isn’t politics, this is about Radha’s life, this about the lives of innocent people.”

  “While I like Radha, and think she is a civilizing influence on you… It’s always about politics, and no one is truly innocent.” Augustus tied the lizards head to the spit, he had cleaned it in the field, gutting it without cutting it open. He had taught John that cutting it open allowed precious moisture to escape when it was cooked.

  “Augustus, please, I am begging for the life of the woman I love.”

  “And the other woman?”

  “She is a friend that I kept ignorant of magic while having her research patterns.”

  Augustus stopped what he was doing and sat on his favorite rock. “John, what am I supposed to do? Give you another Primer so you can go chasing after this person? You know as well as I do, there is something out there. Something that scared every mage on this planet into making such trips the only sin they could all agree on.”

  “I also know, as well as you do, that at least one mage felt that those terrors would eventually come here. She created the Primers to protect her world, to give us a fighting chance against those evils and the death of magic.” John sat on the opposite side of the fire from Augustus.

  “That is what she planned, not us.”

  “Right. Plans change, it’s the first rule of strategy.”

  “I can’t just hand you a Primer and send you off. We can’t afford to lose them.”

  “You have already lost one.”

  “One that we never had. Besides that, how do you intend to survive out there? You know nothing of the dangers of space, and I am sure there are dangers that no one could be aware of.”

  “Conrad and the new government are helping me.”

  “They are helping you start a war.”

  “Things must change! Not everyone wants to sit in the outback and eat lizards while they wait for the world to end. Some people still have hope and love.”

  “Hope and love will not save this
world.”

  “They will, but only if we carry them in ourselves.”

  “You really think I don’t care what happens to this world?”

  “I really think you don’t care what happens to the children.”

  “What?” Augustus’s eyes narrowed. “I would never harm a child-“

  “You would let them burn, each and every one of them. You would do it so you and your drinking buddies could stand at the edge of the pit and feel justified in keeping power and knowledge to yourselves.” John stood up suddenly. “You would turn to them and shout: ‘Look! They couldn’t be trusted with what little knowledge they had!’ Never mind that you could have stopped it and saved them. You want it all to burn. You can’t share because when you come right down to it, you’re as greedy as any other mage.”

  “Sacrifices-“

  “Yeah, break some eggs, right?!” Shouted John across the fire.

  “Children die every day, I can’t stop it, I can only shore these fragments against the flames.”

  “So instead of getting your hands dirty, you step away and hide while good people die.”

  “For a killer, you are suddenly judgmental. “

  “Yeah, I’m a killer. I may have to kill again. I can’t turn away from that, but I can prevent the deaths of others, I can prevent others from becoming killers. I’m trying to make it happen with this new government. I don’t know if that is redemption, and I don’t think I care, I just want a better world.”

  “So said every dictator and visionary as they bathed in blood.”

  “Augie, are you going to help me or not?”

  “I should put it to a vote with the rest of the group.”

  “That is time I don’t have to waste.”

  “I’m not going to bother though, I know how they will vote in the end.” Augustus stood up and put his lizard over the fire to cook. “They would give you a Primer.”

  “Huh?”

  “They live in the world, they may be in hiding and live secret lives, but they live in the world. I have been out here, living as my teacher lived, as many of the early members of our group lived. Detached and distant from the concerns of the day to day world. Perhaps for the better, perhaps not.” Augustus sat down again, slowly and deliberately. “I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had tried to stay in London? What if I had tried to rebuild my life?”