Council of Peacocks

by M Joseph Murphy

  “Why do you talk to me like that? The way you call me an Anomaly makes it sound like I’m not even human. I told you, I’m not a monster. I am just as human as you are. I can just do stuff.”

  Elaine sniffed and shook her head. “Whatever gets you through the night.”

  “Goddamn it! Why do you all think I’m not human? I’m not the spawn of Satan! I have a mother and a father, you know.”

  Again, Elaine shook her head. When she finally spoke again, it was the last thing he expected to hear. “When Wisdom gets back, ask him about your parents. You don’t know as much as you think.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  After they found the supplies, they settled into one of the abandoned houses. A cursory look at the provisions confirmed there was enough food and water to keep the four of them alive for months.

  David found a corner and ate a quick meal of dried fruit and canned beans. The silence and the sore muscles began to work on him. Despite the dirt floors and the stale air in the ancient underground city, he felt exhausted. He leaned his head back. The second he touched the wall, his mind went somewhere else.

  ***

  Once again he stood on the rooftop. He watched the Edimmu city burn, smoke rising to the stone ceiling. Inhuman screams rang out in all directions. A guttural whisper, both intangible and irresistible, filled the air. Something was in the shadows, swarming the city and killing Edimmu.

  With a jerky abruptness, the vision changed. The flames died out, revealing a different horror. Lines of Edimmu, shackled and yoked together, marched in tight formation through the streets toward turbulent ovals of darkness. The ovals swirled like black holes; stripes of bright blue light clearly defined eddies and ridges within them. The Edimmu walked, heads lowered, into the black portal. They didn’t reappear on the other side. They were simply gone. Soon the last of the Edimmu disappeared into the darkness.

  And the streets of the city were empty.

  David heard the whimper of the abandoned metropolis. It screamed for vengeance.

  Then he was flying. His mind pulled off the roof and into the darkness. He stood before a mirror, seeing not himself but the body of an Edimmu. Then he flew into the mirror, through it to the other side.

  He floated above cages and enclosed pens filled with Edimmu. All around the cages, vaguely-humanoid shapes moved. Many were masses of viscous pus, abscessed flesh and bleeding sores that bore no similarity at all to humans. Some had tentacles that flapped in the air. Others were hideously misshapen dwarves. At least one, in the distance appeared to be a mutated Tyrannosaurus Rex with vestigial wings. There were several thousands of them, hundreds of thousands stretching in every direction.

  And at the middle of the place, just on the horizon, was a large body of black water. A Black Sea.

  “It is called the Axeinus,” a voice nearby said. David whirled to see who was talking to him. He nearly screamed, but was stunned into silence when he saw the source. An Edimmu. Age sat heavy upon the reptoid who, although hairless, gave the impression of being gray. He was dressed in flowing red robes that hid most of his body.

  “This is where they held us,” the Edimmu said. “After the fall of Atlantis, they were gone from the world for a time. When they returned, they sought a new work force. They found us. We remained their slaves for three hundred years. Then Propates found us. He rescued us. He’s our savior. He could be your savior, too. If you stop fighting, we can teach you many things. If you continue to fight, you and the Anomalies will end up just as we did. Slaves to a dark power.”

  “I will not be a slave,” David said.

  The Edimmu reached out and touched David’s face. “Child, you already are one.”

  ***

  David woke, leaping away from the wall.

  ‘Was that real?’ He stood, moving silently to not wake the others. Jessica and Todd had nodded off nearby. ‘It felt stronger than last time. Clearer. If what I saw was real, maybe the Edimmu aren’t the real enemy. Maybe what we need to be worried about are the creatures on the other side of the mirror. The things that live in the Axeinus.’

  Elaine stood in the hallway looking out through a large open window. She scanned the empty streets, hands on the submachine gun. She didn’t turn around as he approached, but when she spoke it was apparent she knew exactly where he was.

  “You should still be sleeping. Your injuries are just as bad as the others'.”

  “I feel okay,” David stopped beside her and looked out the window. “Looks like I heal fast, too. Besides, I don’t sleep much. Never have. Too many bad dreams. Not the kind you talk about.”

  “Makes sense. Wisdom thinks one of your EFHBs is psychometry. It means you can feel things by touching them. This place must be wreaking havoc on you. Bad things happened here. What did you see?”

  David shifted on his feet. “Edimmu. They were taken away, enslaved by shadowy monsters. It felt so real.”

  Elaine looked at him briefly out of the corner of her eye. She let her eyes drop down the front of his body until they reached his abdomen. She smiled.

  David’s face turned completely red. Suddenly, it was very hard for him to breathe. In the dim light, he found her suddenly beautiful. Involuntarily, he took a step closer to her.

  Elaine went deathly pale. “Oh God.” She turned away from David quickly, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Goddamn you, Wisdom. Please tell me I didn’t...”

  David frowned. “Didn’t do what?” He wanted to tell her how beautiful she looked, how he envied her strength, but his instinct told him to stay quiet. He took another step toward her.

  Elaine leaned against the wall, a genuine sparkle in her eyes. “Nothing,” she said. “Forget I said anything. I should sleep.” She turned from the window and slid her back down the wall until she was sitting on the floor. “Do me a favor? Just stay awake for the next little bit. Wake me the second you see or feel anything strange.”

  David stared down at her. She raised her head, smiled and winked her left eye.

  ‘What the hell was that all about?’ He shook his head and left Elaine. He heard a cough and a curse from the nearby room. He walked briskly down the hall and arrived in time to see Todd help Jessica to her feet. There was blood on her lower lip.

  “I don’t know about this.” Todd looked at Jessica with wide wet eyes. His face was pale and, despite the cool air, he was sweating profusely.

  “You don’t have to ‘know’ anything. Besides, Ms. Ryerson put me in charge. That means you have to do what I say, right? So stop being a baby and just do it already.”

  “God! How did you get to be such a witch?” Todd grunted as he helped Jessica move to the center of the room. His voice, though still a sort of whisper, was much harsher now than it had been. “Ms. Ryerson put you in charge for like ten minutes. Elaine’s here now. As far as I am concerned, that means she’s in charge. Let’s run it by her before….”

  “We don’t have time for that. I told you. Twice. I’m bleeding inside. If I don’t stop it, all my blood is going to end up in my stomach or someplace like that. If I don’t have any in my veins, I’ll die, right? So you’ve got to close up my wounds with your PK. I’ll mind-link with you, tell you what to do. It’ll be that simple. I’d do it myself if I could, but you have way more control and finesse than me. Don’t smile like that. It doesn’t mean anything. Not really. And don’t even say what you are thinking because I can tell what you’re thinking and it’s not something you should ever say to me. Ever.”

  David felt his eyes go wide. Any second now he expected her to say ‘I’ll tell my mother on you.’

  “Don’t you start, Mr. Ross,” Jessica said. “I can hear your thoughts, too. Would you like me to tell Elaine you want to sleep with her?”

  “Hey! I never said that.”

  “Don’t worry,” she said. “I won’t say anything. Sadly, I think she wants to sleep with you, too. Adults are just ridiculous. Now if Todd here doesn’t stop being so Todd-like and do what I’m telling him
to do, I won’t be able to say much of anything much longer.”

  Todd frowned. “What does that mean, ‘so Todd-like’?”

  Jessica coughed. More blood came to her lips. Todd became even paler. “You know, you’re right, Todd,” she said. “Maybe if you just whine enough, my internal bleeding will stop. Now get over here and help me get this shirt off.”

  Todd hesitated a moment longer, then walked over to Jessica. He slipped the tattered shirt over her dislocated shoulder and off her body. Seeing such serious wounds on such a small body reminded him of made-for-TV movies about child abuse. What kind of person was Wisdom that he could put someone so young in a position like this?

  “Jesus,” Todd said. “You’re nothing but bruises. I’m afraid to touch you anywhere.” He handed the torn shirt back to Jessica. She grabbed it like a towel in her left hand and used it to wipe sweat from her forehead.

  “Is it the bruises or are you just afraid to get more blood on your delicate hands? Besides, who said anything about touching me? Keep your hands to yourself. Just hold them out. Yeah, that’s right. Point them at me. It will help direct the power.”

  “What if I use too much power? I could snap something by mistake. This is too dangerous.”

  “It’s not as dangerous as doing nothing. I’ll let you know how much to use. We’re mind-linking, remember?”

  “At least lie down. What if you slip?”

  “If I lie down you won’t be able to move the bones the way you need to. You could end up pushing a bone down into the floor instead of back into place.”

  “Fine. Just don’t blame me if this goes badly.”

  David felt a buzzing in his head, like a television turned on playing only static. He pressed the heels of his palms against his temples, trying to block out the sound. Black spots flew past his eyes and he felt nauseous.

  “Go,” Jessica, said. “Now just like in class, let me into your mental activity. Release that thought pattern. It’s creating interference.”

  A moment later, the buzzing in David’s head relaxed. He let his hands drop from his temples.

  “That’s better,” Jessica said. “Can you feel me in your head now? Don’t use words, just think, okay? You can feel my pain now, too, right? Let’s start with that rib that’s poking into something or other. No, I don’t know what that organ is called. Does it matter? Just grab hold of it with your PK and put it back into place. Let me guide you.”

  David held his breath. There was a long period of silence. Then Jessica moaned. David caught her before she had dropped more than a few inches.

  “Not. So. Hard.”

  Todd helped her back to her feet and they stared into each other’s eyes. The buzzing returned and grew progressively louder in David’s head. He felt like he was going to pass out soon, himself.

  “What the hell are you doing?” David moaned.

  “Not now.” Todd stood, arms outstretched, fingertips hovering a few inches away from Jessica’s skin.

  Jessica clamped her hands over her mouth, stifling the scream. She was crying freely now. When her hands fell away, her teeth were bared and covered with blood.

  “That hurt,” she said.

  “I did what you told me to,” Todd said. His voice had the tonal quality of a dog that has been whipped.

  “I know. It still hurt. Just one more. Please be quick. I think I’m going to pee my pants.”

  “I think you already did, sweetie. Hold on.”

  Jessica threw back her head, her mouth opened in a silent scream. Her eyes rolled back until all you could see was their whites. David grabbed her by the shoulders and helped keep her on her feet. The buzzing in his head was so loud now his vision blurred. He hoped, whatever Todd was doing, he got it finished quickly.

  As suddenly as it began, the buzzing stopped. It left behind a very sharp headache. All of his muscles felt sore, as if he had run a marathon.

  Jessica’s legs finally gave out underneath her. David lowered her gently to the floor. Her lower lip trembled and her tiny limbs shook as she sobbed silently.

  “What did you do to her?” David stroked Jessica’s forehead. Her skin was almost too hot to touch and she was covered in oily sweat.

  “I couldn’t have done it on my own. She used me in a way. Used my power to lift a couple of bones back into place. Then she, or we I guess, fused the torn flesh together. It was kind of like pushing pieces of wet dough together until they form a whole piece. I felt everything she felt. I don’t think, hell, I know there is no way I could have put up with it. Whatever I felt, she felt it a hundred times worse. But she never lost control of her power. Not once.”

  “That must be why Ms. Ryerson put her in charge.”

  They jumped at the voice. As David spun, lines of fire danced on his fingertips. Then he relaxed and the flames disappeared. She was only a few feet away, arms folded across her chest. The machine gun hung at her side. Her face seemed as cold and solid as the gun.

  “That was a stupid risk.” Elaine sighed, turned and walked back to wherever she had come from. “All that power you used, even I felt it. Any Edimmu within a few miles would have as well, let alone anything worse. Now get some sleep. I think we’ve all had enough excitement for one day.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Echo opened her eyes to the darkness. Surprisingly, she was still alive. It took her several moments to remember exactly what had happened. Memory hit her about the same time her eyes adjusted to the dark.

  “I’m back on the island,” she said aloud. She pushed herself up and looked around. “Damn you, Propates.”

  After sending Elaine away with the Anomalies, she had made her way to her bedroom. Propates was there, seated at her vanity, flipping through her most recent diary. When she entered the room, he looked up and smiled.

  “Really charming the way you describe me in here, Andromeda. Sorry, sorry, I forgot. Echo. I had no idea you still held a torch for me. I thought we quenched that flame in Jerusalem.”

  “We did. Chalk it up to too much wine.”

  Propates closed the book and stared at the cover. “It doesn’t have to end this way.”

  Echo flicked her wrist and her diary flew out of his hands. “You know there are about four hundred and fifty ways I hate you. Don’t you think you should stop while you’re ahead? You come in here, destroy another of my favorite homes, kill my servants and kidnap a bunch of kids I’m supposed to be taking care of, and now this? But reading my diary? You must have a death wish.”

  The shadows in the room swirled and collected in the corners with implications of something fluttering in their depths.

  “I’m starting to think you’re the one with the death wish.” He rose to his feet and the shadows stretched out toward him. “I warned you to stay out of this. You chose differently. I didn’t want to do this but I have no choice.”

  Echo prepared to respond but never got the chance. A bullet of shadow shot at her and sliced through her shoulder. Before she could scream in pain, another piece of darkness sliced through the air. Then another. And another. She turned in circles, trying to anticipate each new attack, failing each time. Within a minute, every inch of her skin was covered in blood. She opened a circle of light and prepared to jump.

  “Tsk tsk,” Propates said. “Not so fast. “ He blew a kiss at the portal. Shadows poured out of the corners and recesses of the room, filling the portal, blocking her exit. “Can’t let you get away this time, pet. Bad example and all. This should send the kind of message that even Wisdom can’t ignore.”

  The bullets of shadow were larger now, foot-long jagged shards. They sliced through her skin like shears through rose petals. The pain grew to a numbing heat.

  ‘Move quickly or die,’ she thought. Then she couldn’t think. In the end it was instinct and luck that saved her. A little trick, really. A simple thing. The underground tunnels were lined with a psycho-luminescent mineral that was the source of the ever-present light. It reacted to the presence of sentient l
ife and hummed with soft light. Echo understood the reaction, if not the chemistry behind it. Her will provided the energy for the light, so she funneled as much as she dared into the ceiling. Bright light flashed from corner to corner, melting the shadow weapons in mid-air. Propates took a step toward her, cockiness replaced by fury. Before he could react, she opened a second circle of light below her and let her body fall.

  Now on her island, Echo took several deep breaths and cleared her mind. Then, for the first time in a decade, she sobbed hysterically.

  ‘He would have killed me,’ she thought. After the fit passed, she walked to the bathroom, paying no attention to the bloody footprints she left behind her. She healed herself, closing the wounds. She didn’t feel clean, however, until she showered off the blood. She stayed under the spray until the water ran cold. Then she wrapped a robe around her trembling muscles and walked to the kitchen.

  The house was empty now. Annisa and Roma’s bodies lay somewhere in the rubble back in Turkey. She rummaged through the cupboards for canned goods, allowing herself a moment of fantasy. Maybe they really were all dead. Maybe Elaine had failed and the Anomalies had fallen to the Edimmu. Maybe even Wisdom had got himself killed. Then she would be free.

  As much as she would have liked to believe that, she knew it was not true. She felt it.

  She ate a sparse meal of mushroom soup and chocolate ice cream and turned her mind to other things. Even from literally the other side of the world, she could feel Propates back in his squalid little Grecian encampment.

  ‘Why didn’t he follow me?’ She scratched her chin and stared at the ceiling. ‘Maybe he’s giving me one last chance to stay out of this. If I was smart that’s exactly what I’d do. But Elaine and the Anomalies are waiting for me to rescue them. This is the last thing I’m doing. Then I’m done.’