The Sin of Moloch

by Andrew Gordinier

  “All Primers are linked, I borrowed one and used it to track you here. But, the thread locked to every planet you landed on, and that black hole was a damn pain in the ass.”

  “That thing was terrifying. I got lost there for a couple of days, took me forever to find what was left of the temple.”

  “Temple? I missed that one, the gravity of it messed up the threads, I almost lost you there.”

  “Did those spider things attack you?”

  “No, but I saved one's life. Did you destroy that satellite?”

  “Yeah. It shot at me, I blew it up, then the other satellites started shooting at me. I couldn’t get a moment to teleport away. There was a centralized point that seemed to be communicating with them all on the surface. I dropped down and destroyed it. Those creatures looked like something out of a Lovecraft story.” Finley was racked with a bout of coughing. “Where did you get that spacesuit, by the way? It wouldn’t happen to come in blue, would it?”

  “Custom build. We pulled strings and had some NASA scientists help us build it.”

  “Helps to know people.” Finley paused to catch his breath. “Why are you here, John? Did I make you that angry?”

  “A censor kidnapped Radha and Deanna. He said that if I didn’t come back with your head, he would kill them both.”

  “Cruel manipulating bastards, aren’t they?”

  John nodded his agreement.

  “You know, He will just kill you when you get back. You’ve committed the sin of Moloch… And, if you grant my dying request… You will know way too much to be allowed to live.”

  “What is your last request?”

  “I want to show you what I have found, I want you to give me credit for it, and I want you to tell the whole damn world about it. Or, at the very least, all the other mages.”

  John paused to consider it, he owed Finley nothing, but he had come all this way.

  “I doubt I will live much longer, let me explain it, then I will expire and you may take what proof you need back to that wretched Censor.” Finley sounded resigned to his fate.

  “What do you need?”

  “Just follow me, and I will show you.” Finley stood and slowly started walking away, carefully picking his way through the ruins.

  “Why don’t we teleport where ever we’re going, since you have so little time left.”

  “We can’t, the whole planet is locked somehow. You can teleport around it on the surface, but not into the underground, or any intact chambers. Something about this stone, I suspect it is also what creates that storm around the planet. But, I don’t have the time to unravel that mystery.”

  John followed in silence for a time. “Do you know about the fleet in orbit?”

  Finley paused. “No, I didn’t, but I’m not surprised. Are there different kinds of ships?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I think I made a mistake then.” Finley shook his head slowly. “You will have to take the news of what I’ve found back home to save them, all of them.”

  Chapter 36

  Deanna looked back down the trail they had been following and waited for Yvonne and Radha to come into view. She had noticed Radha moving slower and slower, and Yvonne was hanging back with her to make sure that she was all right. When they finally came into view, Deanna saw that Radha was stumbling and sweating profusely. They were in the jungle, so they were gonna sweat, but to Deanna, this was something more. The concerned look on Yvonne’s face was enough to drive home the point that something was very wrong.

  “Let’s take a break,” Deanna said as cheerfully as she could.

  “Thank you.” Gasped Radha as she all but collapsed against a tree.

  “How do you feel?”

  “Awful. Whispered Radha.

  “Let me check your wounds.” Yvonne said gently. They didn’t have anything that resembled clean bandages and had done the best they could with what they had.

  “Sure. Radha said as if she were already asleep.

  Yvonne gently undid the rags that made up the makeshift bandages and gently pulled away. Even from where she was sitting, Deanna could see that a couple of the wounds were swollen and draining puss. Yvonne replaced the bandages, poured some water into Radha’s hair, and rubbed some across the back of her neck and forehead.

  The word infection stood bold and dreadful in Deanna’s mind. She was shocked at how quickly it had started, but not surprised. They lacked clean water or bandages. Deanna cursed herself for not searching harder or longer till she found a better first aid kit, she should have known better. Years of playing video games and role-playing games had taught her to never pass up a heal or first aid kit, Now, when it mattered, she hadn’t taken the time to find one, or put one together.

  Yvonne looked at Deanna and started to say something but stopped. She simply wiped tears from her eyes and walked away. She stood at the edge of the trail, looking into the jungle. Deanna wanted to talk to her, but had at last run out of clever quips and one-liners. She wanted to instill hope but was finding that she didn’t have much herself. In place of hope, she only found cold and harsh facts; Radha was going to die, and they would have to bury her. Their odds of walking out of the jungle had not been good to start with. But to Deanna, they were getting worse by the moment.

  “We better get moving again.” Deanna said as much in defiance to the odds as to stir the others.

  “Please, I just want to sleep.” Mumbled Radha.

  “Soon, we just need to find a better spot to make camp.” Yvonne said as she choked back tears.

  “OK.” Radha said almost inaudibly as she stumbled to her feet.

  They hadn’t made much ground so far and didn’t go much further for the rest of the day. As far as Deanna could tell, they had gone nowhere. They were still walking the same direction, but for all, she knew they were walking in circles. There was still had plenty of daylight left when she suggested they make camp for the night. Yvonne agreed with a silent nod of her head, and Radha just leaned against a tree breathing heavily, Deanna wondered if she was already asleep.

  That night Radha woke up thirsty and covered in sweat. She wanted to go to the fridge and get a glass of juice. Instead she was startled by the sight of the small campfire with its glowing embers. She stood up and threw a couple of thin branches on the fire. As the fire slowly flickered to life, Radha could see that Yvonne and Deanna were sleeping soundly in the dirty bedding that had once been expensive sheets. She blinked as the light flickered and thought she saw them move, as if slowly waking, but they weren’t. Confused Radha sat close to the fire, despite the heat and humidity of the night she shivered and only wanted to be warmer. She yearned for a hot bath, steaming soapy water to soak in, to let the heat creep into her bones as the dirt and grim fell away,

  Her eyes caught movement on the edge of the firelight, and she stood up quickly, almost falling over. The jaguar was dead, wasn’t it? They had butchered it and eaten it, the only real meat they’d had in days. It couldn’t be back, perhaps it’s mate? Panicked, Radha looked around for a weapon, but none was in reach. She clutched the handle of the knife she had taken from the collection, the smooth wood of the handle was reassuring, but not enough. Leaves rustled, and a twig snapped in the shadows.

  “Who’s there?!” Radha challenged the darkness to give up its secrets.

  “Me.” Said a gentle female voice from the shadows.

  “Me?”

  “Yes.” Responded the voice with a gentle slur of laughter.

  “I’ve got a gun! Show yourself!”

  “Of course.” With a faint rustle of leaves, a young woman approached the campfire. To Radha’s surprise and relief, she was Indian. The woman wore only a multicolored skirt that hung low across her hips, and a garland of flowers almost obscured her breasts. Her dark hair seemed to cling to the night around her and hung loosely. She looked familiar to Radha.

  “Do I know you?” Asked Radha in Hindi.

  “I know you.” Answered the young woman in
a singing tone. “I’ve known you from the womb to the tomb.” The young woman raised her arms and started to dance slowly to music that Radha could not hear.

  “Stop playing games. Tell me who you are.” Radha was mesmerized by the young woman's movements and the gentle smile on her face.

  “You know me.” The woman said as she danced. She spun and raised a sword that had not been there before. Firelight flashed off the polished blade as the woman expertly swept through the moves of her silent dance.

  “No, I don’t.”

  “You lie to yourself.” The young woman changed the tempo of her steps, and her form changed in a flicker of shadows. She now had four arms. The top left arm held the sword aloft, ready for a swift and confident strike. The bottom left hand held a severed head cruelly by the hair, still fresh with tears and blood. The hand of the top right arm was held forward toward Radha, forming the mudra that meant “fear not.” The bottom right arm clutched a metallic golden book protectively, Radha sensed that it was a Primer like John’s. She was right. Radha knew her.

  “Kali…” Radha stepped back in fear and awe. Mages were one thing, goddesses were another.

  “Yes.” Purred the woman. Her feet turned her through the steps of the dance, and she was no longer a young woman. Emaciated flesh hung off iron bones, her eyes were large and discolored with blood, and her long red tongue hung bloody between fanged teeth. “Dance with me.” She hissed.

  “No.” Radha stepped back again and debated waking the others, they had saved her once, could they save her again?

  Kali laughed at her, and the dance brought her back again to being a beautiful young woman. “You already do, you have danced with me from your birth, and will dance with me till the end.”

  “I’m not ready.”

  “You don’t have a choice. You were born, you must die. The cycle is unalterable, be at peace in your place in it.”

  Radha could faintly hear the music now. Distantly, but clear. She could hear the thunderous steps of the goddesses as she moved through the eternal dance of destruction and creation. It was hypnotic and seductive, and Radha was so very tired, perhaps it was time to rest.

  “No!” Radha shouted as she turned and ran. Fleeing was all she could think of, the music clouded her mind, and the thunderous steps of the dance echoed in her ears. She ran headlong into the night, less afraid of what was ahead of her as what was behind her.

  Yvonne was startled awake by Radha’s screaming and sat up just in time to see her run frantically into the night for no apparent reason. She called after her, but Radha had already vanished. Swearing, she dragged Deanna to her feet. They grabbed their weapons and ran into the darkness after Radha, following her cries as she crashed headlong through the jungle.

  Chapter 37

  John followed Finley down the long spiral stairs, once away from the surface, the damage more or less ended, and everything seemed intact. When they finally reached the bottom of the stairs, John paused in the large doorway, the familiar shape of it, giving John pause.

  “What is it?” Asked Finley.

  “The doorway, it’s-“

  “The same shape as the ones back home.” Finley finished the thought for him.

  “Yeah.”

  “I haven’t found any skeletons or remains, I don’t think anyone will, I have found some statues, most of them are smashed, but… They looked remarkably human.” Finley had a somber tone to his voice.

  “You were right.”

  “Sort of.”

  “Sort of?”

  “Let me show you.” Finley led John to a large chamber with a curving wall that stretched out and circled back on to itself. In the stone of the wall were diamonds carefully set to form geometric patterns and shapes, exactly the same as those in the Primers. And just as in the Primers, John could see that the patterns held more information and were part of the language. He was not surprised to find that he could read it.

  “There are chambers like this one scattered all over the planet. Their builders took no chances, they wanted this to survive.”

  “What does it say?”

  “If you would be so kind as to run the video camera for me, I will explain it. I fear I don’t have long enough to explain it twice.”

  “Sure.”

  Finley walked over to a small pile of equipment and un-boxed an expensive video camera and handed it to John. After a quick how-to session with the camera, they were ready.

  “Let me know when to begin” Finley said as he positioned himself in front of the wall and its ancient writing.

  “Go ahead.”

  “I now have the help of Mr. Carter to film this last bit, so you can see clearly the toll that my adventures have taken on me. I have asked Mr. Carter to take this, and my other materials back to Earth, I won't survive to make the journey.” Finley paused to choke back his emotions. “It is important that you all know the truth, though, that you all know what I have found. Many of you already know my theory that magic was brought to humans by aliens. I was wrong, but not totally. This text behind me.” Finley stepped to the side and swept his arm to indicate the wall. “Tells a story that changes… everything. I will start with the obvious facts, and go from there, We ARE the aliens. All life on Earth is alien in nature. It was seeded there and on a dozen different worlds very deliberately. Our ability to do magic is tied to our DNA and tied to the story of our heritage.”

  John held the camera steady despite the shock of what Finley explained. He watched the dying man through the lens of the camera and remembered his bold and brash threats that were not so long ago. Now he stood here, completing what he had called his life's work, with John as his only audience. He saw the boldness was crushed, and there was now humility. With a somber tone, Finley related the shared story of humanity, the shared burden, and a curse. Once Finley was finished, John handed him the camera and put his pack down. Sitting on the hard case of his pack, John could only stare at the script set in the walls and fumble for the right feelings.

  “I had much the same reaction.” Finley said as he played back a short section of the video. “Perhaps worse, because I thought I would die out here and not be able to tell anyone what I had learned. Now, I feel a bit better, I suppose. At least everyone else will know, and perhaps have a chance.”

  “I… I never imagined…”

  “That this was the heritage of magic, of humanity?”

  “Yeah, I guess.” John still felt numb.

  “It will take a moment to adjust to, I’m sure. But, do you mind if I tape a short private message for my family?”

  “Do you want me to hold the camera?”

  “No, I’ll just go into the next chamber.”

  “Sure.”

  “Thank you.” Finley moved slowly and carefully through a doorway to the next chamber.

  John sat there for a long time, just staring at the wall, reading parts of the text for himself. He had come here not searching for the truth, simply as a mission to save Radha. Now, here he was, on the other side of the universe, staring at the cold, harsh truth. It was almost too much to bear.

  After a time, John opened his pack and took out some water. His supplies were all but gone. The water he could make almost at will, but making food out of nothing with magic took time and energy. It also never tasted right to John. It was not till he finished his water that John started to realize Finley had been gone a long time. Cautiously, John walked into the next chamber.

  Finley sat on the floor, the camera on a low stone table in front of him, still recording. John didn’t have to check for a pulse, he could see by his pattern that Finley was dead. John shut off the camera, and after a moment's thought, moved Finley’s body to the low table. He found a silver emergency blanket in the equipment Finley had piled in the main chamber and wrapped his body in it as respectfully as he could. Standing over Finley’s body, John felt he should say something, but was unsure what to say.

  “I don’t know what to think, I don’t know if there
is a god to hear this. And, if there is, I don’t know if my words matter.” John sighed and look down at Finley’s body. “This man was flawed and imperfect, and I will not pretend that he was my friend, or that I liked him. This is his grave, though, and we are so far from home. If there is any peace or comfort to be had for his soul here, be generous with it, because this will be a lonely tomb.” John hesitated and did not know what else to say, so he left Finley to his final peace.

  In the next chamber, John went through Finley’s equipment and provisions carefully. Taking all the flash drives, notebooks, and the hard drive from the laptop were easy choices. So was the video camera, it would come in handy when John encountered more aliens. After that, it got difficult. John didn’t need much in terms of equipment, and what he had was holding up well. What he was low on was food, but Finley had not provisioned himself with much more than granola bars, canned food, and the odd packet of dried soup. It wasn’t that the food wasn’t good, or that John didn’t need it, it was that it was much bulkier than the MRE’s he had been eating. John also suspected that it wouldn’t be as filling, or have enough calories. He had a long trip home though and took as much it as he could.

  Once back on the surface, John looked at the ruins and destruction around him differently. Knowing the history of these stones made them more than just curious ruins made out of alien stones. It transformed them into a monument, a place to keep the history of untold billions. It was difficult for him to leave, knowing he would never see it again. That he would never have all his questions answered.

  Teleporting well away from the planet, John turned to see that the alien fleet had grown. Knowing what he knew now made him hesitant to stay any but the briefest of moments, but John knew it was more important than ever to record as much as he could. Using Finley’s camera, he recorded the alien fleet for several minutes, zooming in on individual ships to get as much detail as he could. They were still trying to breach the storm that surrounded the planet. They might eventually, but they might not, John wasn’t going to wait around to find out. He teleported away and carried with him deep sadness and fear.