Heart of Stone

by Arwen Jayne

  “Mum! I have a job.” Tyra exclaimed. “I can’t just go traipsing up the highlands at a moment’s notice”.

  “I am afraid dear that this is your job now.” Annie explained firmly. “ You have a responsibility and destiny to fulfill”.

  “Destiny? What destiny?”.

  Annie just smiled.

  3

  Tyra followed the hand drawn map her mum had given her; some GPS co-ordinates would have been better. The turn-off from the highway, once she’d backtracked and found it, hadn’t been too bad but now, as the geriatric Subaru 4WD sedan she’d borrowed from her mum came over the brow of the hill, she saw that the road dipped into what must be some ancient crater. Recent rains had washed much of the surface gravel off the crown of the road leaving little more than a bullock track and she worried about the ground clearance for the car. She picked a careful path avoiding the worst of the ruts and only had to ‘go bush’ once to find some surface for the wheels. Getting back up the hill was going to be fun...not!

  At the bottom of the road Tyra could see a clearing with a small cabin off to one side, a heavily fortified small cabin half above ground and half seeming to disappear into the rock of the crater. The walls of the front of the cabin had been built from what looked to be the local rock but were covered with enough lichen to make her wonder how old the place really was. Two small windows were covered with a strong grid of security mesh. The front door looked like it was off a large bank vault. There was no chimney she could see and there was no obvious water or electricity supply. There was however a satellite dish on the corner of the roof of the house, whether it was for television or phone she wasn’t sure but at least that meant there must be a power supply somewhere.

  It had been a long drive so Tyra was keen to get inside and unpack before nightfall. She could go into the town of Boswell in the morning to get some supplies. She parked the car off to the side and took an arm load of stuff to the door where she found a keypad. The date given in her uncle’s letter did indeed open the locks. Nothing exploded, no alarms, a quick check that she was still in the land of the living. “Phew! Not so bad then”.

  Inside was not as forbidding. It was small but all the basic creature comforts seemed to be there: a reasonable modern kitchen, a table and chairs, a comfy chair, an entertainment unit, a small bedroom and bathroom adjoining. Not much but just about everything you’d need. In the bedroom a few pictures of Tyra’s family graced the walls including one of her grandfather who she only vaguely remembered as he’d died when she was seven. There was a built-in wardrobe that took up one wall and seemed to contain a good array of warm clothes, wet weather gear, fishing tackle, some equipment she couldn’t identify and a very large gun safe. “Hmm!” She might have to work out what to do with its contents or at least find a legal way to transfer the guns into her name, if that was even possible in these days of strict gun laws. She assumed the same code number would open the safe. She’d check later. On the other wall of the bedroom she gleefully discovered a large bookcase filled with a varied assortment of books on everything from ancient history, heretical theology, magick, weapons, self defence and the works of more than a few conspiracy theorists. There was a good array of novels too, mostly science fiction but also a complete set of Tolkien's works and what looked to be a first edition ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’. “Always meant to read that”, she muttered to herself. With a librarian’s respect for rare books she reverently carried the novel into the kitchen to read later after she made something to eat.

  The stove and everything else electrical worked okay, wherever the power was coming from she’d find out later. Tyra quickly cooked up a simple meal of red lentils with carrots and spices from the supplies she’d brought with her. Thirty odd years ago she’d realised that she had inherited her family’s tendency to glucose intolerance. Since then she’d fought an escalating battle to stay healthy and keep the weight off around her middle. Keeping to a low-gi, vegetarian diet helped and was now second nature.

  Tyra’s mother, had extracted a solid promise from her daughter that she would take extra care of herself, being up here on her own. So, feeling somewhat like an overly obedient child, she locked up the car for the night and bolted the front door before settling down to her meal and the book.

  It had gone past 11pm, she must have dozed off. Tyra then realized with a start what had woken her. Peering out the window she saw two Holden utes rumbling down her road, their hunter’s lights on top of their vehicles glaring brightly. The men on the back of the utes were shouting and carrying-on as if drunk. A few started shooting their rifles in the air.

  “Hey girlie, we know you’re in there, come out and play with us”, one of the guys yelled out.

  Tyra’s heart pounded, as she ducked out of sight of the window, probably too late as her shadow there and the fact the lights were on in the cabin made it unlikely they wouldn’t have seen her.

  It was then that Tyra realised that she hadn’t seen any phone in the cabin. If there’d been a satellite phone it was long gone. Pulling out her mobile phone she could see that it wasn’t going to be much help either. There was obviously no signal this far down in the crater. She wasn’t a particularly religious person but a quick “God help me” call to the almighty or whatever universal force might be out there didn’t seem to hurt.

  There was a loud bang as a bullet glanced off the window above her head. Okay, that’s good, must be some kind of super strength armour plated glass or something. Maybe she was safer in here than she thought. If she could just calm herself so as not to do anything stupid in a panic.

  A loud bashing sound against the door didn’t help Tyra’s nerves but the door did hold. “Come on girlie, we only want to fuck our new neighbour. It’s rude not to ask us in”, said the derisive voice from the other side.

  Just then she heard more shots and an exclamation of “fuck” from outside. “Let’s get out of here”.

  “Got to go girlie” said a receding voice, “but we’ll be back, don’t you worry about that”.

  Curious to see what had led to the quick turn of events she stood up to look out the window. A lone man was walking down the hill. Clothed from neck to ankle in a long dark coat and a black beanie on his head it was hard to make out any details except that he seemed to be of medium height and carrying some kind of rifle. He stood and waited while the utes left, apparently totally unsurprised that his presence alone sufficed to see them off. Why he thought himself bullet proof she could only imagine, arrogance or malignant optimism, she wasn’t sure.

  When all was once again quiet he strolled over to the cabin and knocked on the door. “They’ve gone Tyra, you going to invite me in or shall I just let myself in?”

  His arrogance was obviously the answer to her question.

  “Who are you?” Tyra was pretty sure she knew but the question still needed to be asked.

  “Simon Harris of course, who were you expecting at this time of night? Your fairy godmother?” He paused. “I suppose technically I am your godfather.”

  He seemed to be joking, with himself or her Tyra wasn’t sure.

  Having never met the man Tyra didn’t know what he looked like but the personality sure as hell fit what her family had described. She opened the door.

  4

  Tyra had always imagined that Uncle Jack's friend Simon would be an older man, older than her uncle anyway if they had known each other for so long. Grey haired, grizzled in appearance with perhaps a bit an old sea captain’s goatee beard. He’d carry a walking stick and his posture would be like some gnarly old oak tree, to suit his reputed personality.

  The thirty-something man standing in Tyra’s doorway was nothing like that. The pair of clear steel grey eyes piercing her very soul were the only grey things about him. He took off his beanie revealing short cropped coppery brown hair that looked almost metallic. He turned to close the door, took off his long wool felt coat, put his semi-automatic on the kitchen table, then turned to face her.
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  “Why the hell didn’t you or Annie call me to tell me you were coming here?” He growled.

  Definitely arrogant, Tyra thought as she calmed herself so as not to respond to his open hostility. “My uncle is dead, apparently mauled by some large animal. I got pulled out of bed in the middle of the night to see his grisly remains. I spent a day running around madly to arrange for some extended time off work, threw together some supplies and made a quick dash up here because my mother insisted I have some mysterious duty or destiny to fulfill and in the middle of all that I was supposed to ring you? A man I might add who is like some sort of family legend but who I’ve never met and appears to be way too young to be who he’s supposed to be”.

  Simon ground his teeth. “I’m the man who until last night kept your uncle alive and every other guardian before him. It is my job to protect you. I can’t do that if I have to wait until you shout your plea for help loud enough into the ether for me to know you need me”.

  Tyra was astounded and disbelieving that he’d heard her distress. “How is someone who is foolish enough to stand in the open when there were men out there with guns going to be of any help to me?”

  “Foolish!” Simon bristled. He strode into the bedroom, unlocked the gun safe using the pin number which he obviously knew, brought out a handgun and loaded it.

  I’m a dead woman, Tyra thought to herself.

  Simon walked right up to her, place the gun in her hand, putting her finger on the trigger. “Shoot me!”

  “I’m not going to shoot you. What, are you crazy?”

  Tyra lowered the weapon and was going to unload it when Simon grabbed her arm placed the gun at his chest and forced her to fire. The blast deafened her. There was a bullet buried in the wall behind him, but he was still standing.

  “What the hell!” Tyra screamed, tears streaming down her face as she dropped the gun in her hand to the carpet below.

  Simon calmly unbuttoned his shirt, grabbed Tyra’s hand again and placed it on his unmarred skin.

  Tyra started shaking in fear and wonder. “What are you?”

  “Ah, a very good question indeed?” But not one Simon was inclined to answer just yet.

  A myriad of questions raced through Tyra’s mind. “Where’s your car? How’d you know I was here and in trouble?”

  Just like that Simon vanished from in front of her. Tyra stared at where he’d been then suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. She swung around, terrified, ready to hit out but Simon swerved out of her way.

  Tyra’s heart pounded. “You’re scaring me” she yelled, her emotions now frayed into a million ribbons.

  “What I’m trying to show you”, Simon sighed as he calmly picked up the handgun from the floor and sat himself down into the one comfy chair in the room, “is that I am an immensely powerful being. Nothing”, he paused, “well almost nothing, can hurt me. I can be anywhere I choose in an instant. I don’t need transportation. I came when I heard your terror in the ether, I connected with it and followed it here. I could have spent half the night explaining all this to your no doubt disbelieving mind but I don’t like wasting time.”

  Tyra sat her still shaking self as far away from Simon as she could, on one of the kitchen chairs. “Well it’s not possible”.

  Simon casually unloaded the handgun. “What’s harder to believe is that your family would keep you in ignorance and away from your destiny for so many years. Do you know anything?”

  “I’ve been busy having a life for the last fifty years or so, a nice normal life and a good career. I have a loving mum who raised me on her own and had a pretty nice but somewhat eccentric uncle who told me nothing of mysterious enemies, destinies or arrogant indestructible beings. That’s what I know.” Tyra couldn’t believe she was having this discussion anyway.

  Simon, absent mindedly rubbed his chin with his thumb. Having made some decision he got up and walked over to her. “I think you’ve had enough for one night. I don’t need you in shock. Go to bed and we’ll talk more in the morning. I’ll keep watch”.

  “Sleep!” Tyra shook her head, “you’ve got to be joking, I’m buzzing with that much adrenalin I couldn’t sleep for a week if I tried”.

  “You will, I command it”. Simon raised his hand to her forehead and caught her in his arms as she collapsed into a deep dreamless sleep.

  5

  Tyra woke, startled to find herself naked in bed, she never slept naked. Rummaging through her half awake brain the last thing she remembered was an evening too strange to be true. However the male figment of her imagination from the evening before was ratting around her kitchen cupboards obviously making breakfast. Stretching she got up and found some clothes. Noticing two impressions in the bed she had a moment’s horrifying thought, had anything happened to her while she slept, she pressed a finger to the opening between her legs, phew!

  There was a hearty chuckle from the kitchen. “I assure you Tyra that if I’d had sex with you you’d have known about it.”

  Tyra didn’t know whether to be relieved or affronted, let alone worry that he had a sixth sense for just about everything she thought or did. She sighed. She was too old for him anyway.

  Simon had made them both some muesli out of the nuts and edible seeds Tyra had brought with her, a pot of her favourite Japanese green tea and there was a small jug of berry juice on the table. The food was more tempting than continuing to worry about the previous night’s sleeping arrangements. It was morning, she was alive and apparently reasonably safe, and had the dubious madman in her kitchen to thank for it. Life could be a lot worse.

  Simon sat down and poured some juice on his muesli. “You have questions”.

  That was an understatement. Tyra chewed her breakfast for a moment while she considered what to ask first. “How can bullets pass right through, not harm you, but I can touch you? You’re solid, you’re eating.”

  “I am not from your plane of existence. I do not exist as solid matter. My body is of a higher vibrational frequency than yours. I choose to manifest the appearance of a body capable of acting in this world. It’s a mental construct.” Simon paused to take a sip of his tea.

  A mental construct that obviously enjoys food. Tyra brushed a hair off her forehead as she considered this. Okay, going down the rabbit hole here. “What’s your true form?”

  Simon got up and rummaged through some cupboards until he found what he wanted. He brought over a pair of dark wraparound sunglasses and a set of earphones from near the entertainment unit. “Use these for a moment and don’t take them off until I say”.

  Curious but going along with his instructions Tyra put them on.

  Suddenly the room was impossibly bright and a high pitched sound nearly brought Tyra to her knees. Relief swamped her as it all stopped a few seconds later.

  “You can take them off now.” Simon sat back down. “What you just saw would blind unprotected eyes. Its not actually possible for you, as you are now, to perceive me at that frequency level.”

  “So what does that make me, some kind of demon from your underworld” Tyra grumbled.

  Simon laughed heartily. “Close but not quite, this plane is just a more slowly vibrating level of existence. All planes of existence look normal and solid to those that exist in them but none of them are truly real”.

  Okay, here comes the existential question of all time, Tyra thought to herself. “What then is real?”

  Simon seemed pleased. “That is an excellent question”.

  Tyra frowned. “And are you going to answer it?”

  “Not yet”.

  Frustrating man. Tyra decided to finish her breakfast rather than try and engage in further conversation, for a bit.

  After breakfast Tyra collected up the plates, put them in the sink of washing up water and handed Simon a tea towel to dry up with. There was something companionable about sharing the chore, she wondered if was it something she had missed out on by never having a man in her life. “One more thing you might (emphasising
the ‘might’) tell me. Where does the power and water for this place come from?”

  Simon’s piercing grey eyes considered her. “I’ll take you downstairs in a moment and show you. It’s time you met your destiny.”

  Tyra shook her head in amazement, again. Of course there’s a hidden door in the wardrobe! It was just another of many signs that her life had taken a strange turn. The door was another of those bank vault style doors like the one on the front of the cabin, this one accessed apparently by Simon’s hand print. Mental constructs have handprints?

  There was a platform on the other side of the door and a ladder that descended into an underground cave. It smelled of damp but the air was quite breathable. Electric lighting made the area seem quite pleasant and spacious. Tyra followed after Simon as they continued on down a narrow passageway that looked, by the chisel marks and amount of dust on some of the rocks, like it had been hewn by hand many years ago. Halfway along the passageway they came to a small pool that collected the rainwater dripping down the rocks. A pump obviously took a feed of water back up to the cabin before the water from the pools overflow disappeared down a crevice. One mystery solved.

  “The cabin's power comes from wind turbine up on the hill, it's mostly hidden from view but I'm looking to install a more secure backup electrical supply”.

  Tyra tensed for a moment, Simon's mind reading was going to take a bit of getting used to.

  At the end of the passage was a grotto and in its centre a large piece of crystal about two metres in height. Tyra had never seen a crystal of its like.

  Simon, sensing her curiosity decided an explanation was in order. “We believe the enemy call it sama crystal. It's formed when a beam of dark light from one of their weapons comes in contact with a carbon based life form. Our scientists have studied it and have determined that its dense crystalline structure is octahedral and that it’s a rare form of an element that contains no electrons or protons, only neutrons. Chemically it would be zero on the periodic table. Because it has no electrons we can't use our sonic technology to dissolve or change its molecular bonds. Don’t ask me to explain the physics of it as I’m not a scientist’s tail end. Our experts muttered something about how high energy quantum states operate at absolute zero temperatures and something to do with degenerate nuclear matter, none of which I have the foggiest notion of.