Thaumatology 02 - Demon's Moon

by Teasdale, Niall

  ‘Dane,’ Ceri said. ‘I’m glad to see you’re still standing.’

  The werewolf looked at Alec, who turned away, shifting back to wolf-form and moving out into the trees. ‘Not everyone was so lucky,’ Dane said.

  ‘Where’s Tabby?’ Lily said.

  ‘The tent,’ Dane replied. ‘Mary’s looking after her. She…’

  ‘Had her guts ripped open,’ Ceri said, heading for the tent.

  Lily gasped as she saw the woman lying on a bedroll in the little nylon tent. Both Mary and Tabitha were in human form, Tabitha looking very, very pale, and Mary looking very worried. Ceri hunched down and crawled in to kneel on the other side of Tabitha from the slight, mousy form of Mary. Small for a werewolf, Mary did have medical skills which were very useful to a pack of nomads, but apparently not enough to help Tabitha.

  ‘I’ve bandaged her,’ Mary said quietly, ‘stitched up the worst of her wounds, but she…’

  ‘When Kort went down she… gave up,’ Dane said from the tent’s door opening. That explained the werewolf Ceri had seen falling.

  ‘Did he die, or was he taken?’ Ceri asked.

  ‘We thought he was dead,’ Dane said. ‘I took Donny and Ben back to see if we could retrieve the bodies, but we only found Jake and Leon. He might have been alive and they took him. That’s not exactly better.’

  ‘It might be,’ Ceri replied. She leaned in close to Tabitha’s head and spoke quietly. ‘I’m here, Tabby. It’s Ceri. I heard your call.’

  ‘C-Ceri?’ Tabitha breathed. ‘You… you have to… save them. Don’t let… m-more die.’

  ‘I know, hun,’ Ceri said, ‘but right now I’m more concerned about saving you.’

  ‘Kort… Kort’s gone.’

  ‘He’s probably not dead, Tabby,’ Ceri replied.

  ‘Worse.’ Tabitha let out a groan.

  ‘Please don’t…’ Mary began, but Ceri waved her into silence.

  ‘They’re possessed, Tabby. I’ve seen them turn back when they die. If we can kill Remus, there’s a chance that we can turn him back.’ She waited, hoping for a response. ‘We can get him back, Tabby.’ She waited again, but all Tabitha did was turn her head away.

  Ceri sat up, her face twisted in anger. ‘Well, screw you. There’s no damn way Kort would want me to let you die.’ She placed her hand over the bandages on Tabitha’s stomach and light flared around her fingers. ‘By my power and in the name of the boyfriend you’ve given up on, you’ll fucking well live, you stubborn bitch!’ Tabitha let out a sharp cry and the light died around Ceri’s fingers. The sorceress looked up at Mary. ‘Get the bandages off and take the stitches out,’ she said. Then she scrabbled out of the tent taking a couple of strides before stopping and leaning on her staff.

  Lily’s hands were around her shoulders. ‘You okay, Ceri?’

  ‘Fine, fine,’ Ceri said. In truth she felt drained; not by the magic, but by the stupidity of what she was seeing around her. She looked around at Dane. ‘What happened? Don’t tell me you were stupid enough to attack Remus?’

  Dane picked up a blanket and draped it around his shoulders. ‘No,’ he said, ‘I vetoed that option after we found their camp. He’s got about fifty wolves down there, we would have been slaughtered.’ Ceri had a suspicion the she knew who had suggested the attack and Dane confirmed it a second later. ‘Even Alec had to admit it would have been suicide, so we backed off and kept watch. We were hoping we could figure out what he was up to, maybe catch him with a smaller guard group on a scouting mission or something.’

  He settled down in the grass, tucking his blanket under his backside. Ceri and Lily settled down facing him. ‘Last night,’ the Alpha went on, ‘they hit our camp. I’m not sure how they found us. We’ve seen some humans with them, which I don’t get because he hates humans. But some of them seem to be mages, wizards I think. Maybe they traced us somehow, or one of us was spotted and tracked back. It doesn’t really matter. Jake and Leon were on guard duty and they were taken down first. One of them got off a howl and we were warned, but they were on us before we could react properly. Kort went down. Tabitha tried to get to him and one of them cut her open.’ He closed his eyes. ‘She just shifted back to human and fell to her knees. Wayne got his arm cut open stopping the thing from finishing her. Alec gutted it and picked Tabby up, and we ran. I mean ran!’ He hung his head and swallowed hard.

  ‘They trashed the camp,’ Alec said from behind Ceri. She looked around to see him wrapping a blanket around his shoulders. He started around the two women to sit down a little way away from Dane. ‘What you see here is what we managed to salvage.’

  ‘And what’ve you managed to find out about them?’ Ceri asked.

  ‘Enough to know it’s dangerous and you two are getting out of here as soon as it’s light,’ Alec replied. ‘We can…’

  Ceri snapped. ‘You can what, Alec? Get the whole of the North Hills pack killed in your stupid vendetta? Die uselessly trying to kill something far more powerful then you, who you can’t kill anyway? Tell me, Alec. What in the name of all that’s widdershins do you think you can do?’

  Alec’s lips drew back in a snarl. ‘I’ve been fighting these things since…’

  ‘Before the Shattering,’ Ceri interrupted. ‘Yes, yes you have, and you seem to have been making the same mistakes all that time. They killed or converted your entire pack, probably the most powerful pre-Shattering pack in the world and they died to a wolf. So what do you do? You get another pack slaughtered trying to avenge their deaths. Why? Because if a pack composed of mainly black-furs dies at their hands, then obviously a smaller pack of grey-furs is going to be able to defeat them. Did you ever stop to think that maybe learning something about them might be a good idea? I know Dane did. Dane thought I’d be useful.’ She glared at the pack’s Alpha. ‘But you were dumb enough to let this bitter old bastard tell you it was a matter for wolves, weren’t you?’

  Alec’s eyes flashed angrily and Ceri saw the bloom of his change starting. ‘Shut… up,’ he growled.

  Ceri reached her hand out into the still growing bloom of energy. It was his anger making him shift and the gathering of power was slower than if he was willing the change. ‘That’s quite enough of that,’ Ceri said. She could feel the thaumic energy flowing and it took only moment’s concentration before it was being sucked away to gather in her palm instead.

  Alec let out a gasp and sagged forward. ‘Damn you, girl,’ he muttered under his breath.

  ‘What have you found out, Ceri?’ Dane said. ‘I know you wouldn’t have come empty-handed.’

  Ceri grimaced. ‘Yeah… first I need to be.’ She concentrated and the ball of glowing, bluish energy in her hand turned into a ball of bright light. She flicked it away toward the nearby ground where it drilled a smoking hole into the soil. She shook her hand; her fingers tingled. ‘Well,’ she said, ‘I spoke to Alexandra.’ She ignored the hot look Alec gave her and went on. ‘She’s… fucking enigmatic. God I hate that. Is there some rule somewhere says that people who know things have to be cryptic as the Times crossword?’

  Dane managed a slight smile. ‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘Pretty sure it’s Cosmic Law.’

  ‘She sort of indicated that I should help, somehow,’ Ceri went on, ‘and I’m basically a researcher, so I researched.’

  ‘She didn’t go to Alexandra looking for information about Remus,’ Lily said. ‘She wanted to know more about werewolves, from the inside if you like. She’s a sort of honorary member of the Battersea pack.’

  ‘Gets about a bit, your Mistress,’ Dane commented.

  ‘I’d have come to you guys,’ Ceri said, ‘but as Lily can attest, I don’t get on well with moving vehicles. That’s beside the point. I found various records from the SS group who found Remus during the Second Wold War, and the Thule Society guy who was directing them. There was a prophecy regarding what Remus was up to, unfortunately that was damaged and enigmatic, of course. So, finally, Alexandra helped me summon Luperca.’

 
Alec looked up, blinking. ‘You summoned the Goddess?’

  Ceri nodded. ‘She filled in a few blanks, but the most important thing she told me was what Remus is actually planning to do.’ Alec looked at her, frowning. ‘You don’t know, do you?’

  ‘He seems to be building an army,’ Dane said.

  ‘That’s what he’s always done,’ Alec said. ‘Gather up werewolves, convert them to his kind, kill others and humans.’

  ‘No,’ Ceri said, exasperated, ‘that’s not what he’s doing at all.’

  ‘The wolves he converts aren’t even the same as he is,’ Lily supplied.

  ‘He tortures them,’ Ceri said. ‘Twists them until they willingly accept a fragment of the spirit of a demon, an ancient wolf-creature.’

  ‘Fenrir?’ Alec said. ‘I thought that was just some… stupid religious basis for his war. Fenrir was slain millennia ago.’

  ‘He’s a demon,’ Ceri said. ‘Probably some sort of demon lord. They aren’t that easy to actually kill.’ Ceri snapped her fingers. ‘Of course! He puts fragments of the demon into werewolves and that changes them into his minions, but it also brings more and more of Fenrir into this world. So all he has to do at this ritual of his is to join them all together.’

  ‘So that’s why he’s camped near Stonehenge,’ Dane said.

  ‘And he’s waiting for Tuesday night,’ Ceri said, nodding.

  ‘Full moon and the Solstice,’ Alec said. He squeezed the bridge of his nose. ‘So he’s going to loose an ancient demon-wolf on the world? Great.’

  ‘Oh, that isn’t the best bit,’ Lily said.

  ‘If he succeeds,’ Ceri continued, ‘then he’ll have that army you mentioned. Every werewolf in the world will be under Fenrir’s sway. All of you become his slaves and he uses you to destroy the world.’

  ‘You left out the “year of winter” bit,’ Lily added helpfully.

  ‘Oh, right,’ Ceri said, nodding at her friend. ‘Yeah, to top it off we get a year of unending winter. Even assuming we defeat the werewolves, which would likely mean your extinction, millions will die from food shortages, cold, and werewolves gone mad.’ She frowned. ‘What I don’t get is these humans with him. One of them was in the attack, right? Threw a fireball into the camp?’

  Dane nodded. ‘I’ve no idea, but yes, mages of some sort.’ He looked at Alec.

  Alec grimaced. ‘Look, I know I’ve been a bit… reluctant about sharing information, but I don’t know who they are either. During the war he worked with the Nazis. Or for them.’

  ‘A bit of both,’ Ceri said. ‘I read the reports they filed, the Nazis that is.’

  ‘How?!’ Alec said, looking bemused and annoyed.

  ‘I asked for help,’ Ceri said. ‘Unlike you, if I can’t do something myself I ask the people I know what they know. Carter got me access to some records at the British Library. A man named Schuler was most responsible for finding Remus and his pack, but it took an SS archaeology unit to actually contact them. They were in the mountains in northern Italy. When the Nazis figured out what they were, the high command arranged for them to go to Bavaria where a certain pack of werewolves were causing trouble.’

  ‘So they were mercenaries?’ Alec said.

  ‘Except that Schuler worked out that Remus was planning something,’ Ceri said. ‘He called it Ragnarök. Remus killed Schuler and Lehrner, the SS commander, blew up the entire Remus pack against orders. He was dishonourably, and posthumously, discharged for saving the world.’

  ‘He blew them up?’ Alec said. ‘But Remus survived?’

  ‘I told you, Alec, you can’t kill him. He’s a ghost. You can discorporate him, but he’ll come back unless…’ Ceri paused. ‘It might be possible, okay. Maybe. I’m not sure I’m strong enough. We have to make stopping the ritual the prime objective.’

  ‘I want him dead,’ Alec said.

  ‘So do I,’ Ceri replied, ‘but I’m putting the safety of everyone else ahead of my personal feelings.’

  ‘You haven’t lost your entire pack to him,’ Alec snapped.

  ‘No,’ Ceri said, ‘he just tried to kill me and Lily, and if I stop him and he’s not dead, I’ll have a great big bull’s eye painted on my forehead for the rest of my, probably short, life. I think he’s got a prophecy saying I’m the only one who can stop him if I do something I haven’t been able to figure out yet.’

  ‘He tried to kill you?’ Dane said.

  ‘I doubt you’ve been listening to the news,’ Lily said. ‘He started a war between the packs in London. Joshua’s dead. We helped the Royals fight off an attempt to finish Catherine. Ceri put down two of his wolves. The night it started he sent a hit squad after us, but we made it inside the wards on the house and Ceri scared them off.’

  ‘You killed two Remus’ wolves?’ Alec said. ‘I mean, don’t get me wrong, I know it can be done, but…’

  ‘I used a lot of excessive force,’ Ceri said, smirking. ‘I agree, they’re hard to take down and they recover fast, but they were dead. They turn back into the wolves they were when they die. The Royals took out another one during the same attack.’

  Alec frowned and Dane looked like he had been slapped with a wet fish. ‘The Royals?’ Dane said. ‘The Royal Pack took out a Remus demon werewolf? Look, whatever Alec may think, I can believe you killed a couple, but Joshua’s pack? You’re stretching credulity.’

  ‘They’re Catherine’s pack now,’ Lily said, ‘and she’s a lot harder than Joshua was.’

  ‘Assuming we all live through this,’ Ceri said, ‘remind me to show you the results from my research. I actually found a way to judge the relative strength of a werewolf within the pack. Catherine’s the one who’s actually been holding that pack together. She’s stronger than she looks and I got Alexandra to give her a little pep talk.’

  Alec stabbed a finger in Ceri’s direction. ‘You, missy, are trouble. You’re changing the politics of the werewolves over the whole of central London.’

  Lily replied before Ceri could. ‘Uh-huh, the most powerful packs on both sides of the river will be run by women,’ she said. ‘Massive improvement.’

  Alec grunted and Dane chuckled softly. ‘Never knew Catherine had it in her,’ Alec said. Ceri was a little surprised that his tone did not really suggest he thought it a bad thing. Then again, Alec knew Alexandra had been running the Battersea pack for years. ‘So, if you know all about what’s going on, kid, what’s next?’

  Ceri looked at him. ‘I don’t know all about what’s going on, Alec,’ she said. ‘So how about we wait until it gets light and you take me over to where I can take a look at Remus’ camp? I don’t know what I’ll be able to see there, but the alternative is sitting around waiting for next Tuesday.’

  ‘You mind taking a shift at watch?’ Dane asked. ‘My wolves are getting a bit strung out, especially after last night.’

  ‘I will,’ Lily said. ‘She needs rest, she was up all of last night worrying about you lot.’

  ‘I’ll take a shift,’ Ceri said. ‘It’s a long night tonight, there’ll be plenty of time to sleep.’

  ~~~

  It was pitch black aside from a little starlight and Ceri was beginning to wish her jacket was thicker. Sitting at the far southern edge of the trees, she was fairly certain she would spot anything breaking the cover of the copse fifty yards away and she had her Sight active, which might help, but she was still nervous. She almost jumped when a sleek, grey shape dropped to the ground beside her.

  She looked at the she-wolf and frowned slightly. ‘You should be resting, Tabby.’ She returned to scanning the trees ahead, but saw the bloom of power expand out as Tabitha shifted.

  ‘I’m taking a short shift,’ she said. ‘Dane wouldn’t let me take a full one.’

  ‘Good on Dane.’

  ‘And I wanted to talk to you,’ Tabitha added.

  ‘Oh? What about?’ Ceri had a sinking feeling in her stomach.

  ‘You healed me,’ Tabitha said, and Ceri’s stomach sank further. ‘I wan
ted to die, Ceri. Kort’s gone. I don’t believe we can get him back. I just don’t.’

  ‘I’m not promising anything,’ Ceri replied.

  ‘Then why didn’t you let me die?’

  ‘Well that’s a totally widderwise question,’ Ceri replied. ‘What is it with you werewolves? Alec’s spent most of his life on a quest to kill a creature he can’t kill on his own, refusing to seek help because it’s “a matter for werewolves.” Dane knows he’s wrong, but won’t go against him. Catherine wouldn’t go against Joshua because “females don’t lead packs.” And you, you know Kort wouldn’t want you pining away over him. You were all worried about Dane doing the same over Aleena for God’s sake.’

  ‘You don’t understand…’ Tabitha began.

  ‘Too right I don’t!’ Ceri snapped. ‘I know your kind can think outside the box when they try.’

  ‘Tradition and sticking together is what kept us alive,’ Tabitha said. ‘You’re not a werewolf, you don’t know what it’s like.’

  ‘I took your advice. I spent a couple of nights with the Battersea pack,’ Ceri said. ‘I figured out how to shape shift and I went there as a lone female wanting to join. Well, it didn’t quite work as planned. Alexandra saw right through me, but she let me go on with the plan. One of the males took me as a… temporary mate, showed me the ropes, so to speak. He took me out by the river on the second night and we stood there and watched the people go past.’ She paused, swallowing. ‘I’ve never felt ashamed to be human before.’

  ‘Oh,’ Tabitha said.

  ‘Yeah. Thing is, the Shattering happened. Werewolves have the same rights as anyone else, and the same responsibilities.’ Ceri glanced at her. ‘If you keep yourselves to yourselves, stick to traditions that rely on pack hierarchy and mistrusting humans, nothing is ever going to change, but I think most of you are too stubborn to reach past your own prejudices.’