Thaumatology 06 - Hammer of Witches

by Teasdale, Niall

  ‘Theologians tend to be old fashioned,’ Król said, amused. ‘Gadriel? Hmm… That one is something of a mystery. His nature depends on who you talk to. Some say he is one of the heavenly host, ruling angel of the fifth Heaven. Others say he was one of the Fallen, that he was the angel who seduced Eve and corrupted her. In either version, he is responsible for wars among men and nations. He’s coming here?’

  ‘I thought Satan was the one who corrupted Eve,’ Ceri asked.

  Król smiled slightly. ‘Satan is more of a title than a name. It’s a Hebrew word meaning “the opposer,” “the accuser,” or “the adversary.” Satan may have been more than one entity. Lucifer, Beelzebub, perhaps Gadriel, they have all fulfilled the role.’

  ‘I think he’s been here,’ Lily said. ‘Gadriel. I think he’s the one who attacked the house.’

  ‘Philip mentioned something attempted to break through your wards,’ Król said. ‘And that you saw it off.’

  ‘Tuned thaumic energy blast,’ Ceri said, ‘a big one, though not the biggest I could manage. I don’t like using full power. Keeping something in reserve always seems a good idea. Aside from anything, I wasn’t entirely sure I’d got the spell right.’

  The two priests looked at her; Philip’s eyes were wide again. ‘I’m not sure about the theological implications of talking to someone who blasts angels,’ the young vicar said.

  ‘It was self-defence,’ Lily pointed out.

  ‘Studying the history of our faith can be rather hard on it,’ Król said out of the blue. ‘We think of it as a line of worship stretching back to biblical times, but things have changed over and over again in those thousands of years. There have been schisms, changes of belief. There were the Tribes of Israel, the Jews, the Essenes, the Pharisees, the Christians, the Muslims. All looked to the same God, but with different points of view, different views on how He should be worshipped. I’m not willing to say whether any of them had it more right than the others. These days we have Anglicans here in Britain, and we have a fundamentalist Catholic church in South America. I’m not saying we have it more right than they do, though obviously I’m inclined to believe we do, but there is certainly a difference of opinion and perhaps our angels are reflecting that difference.’

  Ceri looked at the old man for a second. ‘Perhaps your gods are too.’

  Król nodded slightly. ‘Yahweh, the god of the Israelites, possibly started out as a tribal war god. One could argue that our God is a very different personality. Perhaps he grew up and became more of a father, more global, more beneficent. Perhaps the later version is a different god. And perhaps the deity being worshipped in Brazil now is the older one.’ His tone had become very abstract, musing. ‘Marcion, a philosopher or theologian in the mid second century, taught that the New and Old Testaments did, indeed, describe different gods. The world had been created by the God of the Old Testament, a judgemental, war-mongering, inconsistent deity, and this was why the world was full of pain and sorrow. Then Jesus had come along to reveal a different God, a mild, forgiving, good God. The Gnostics taught something similar. The creation of the world was an accident, a mistake, or done by a cruel, malign Creator. There was another God out there we should look to.’ Then he smiled. ‘All conjecture, of course. Marcion’s church was very popular in Rome for a while, the Gnostics were suppressed as heretics. I have no idea what that says about the entity we call God. We can no more know His mind than a gnat can understand quantum physics. It’s not our place to understand, just to play our part.’

  Lily giggled. ‘Yeah, asking Ceri to not try to understand something… not going to happen.’

  ‘I’ve been around for a… little longer than all of you, young lady,’ Król said. ‘After my wife died, I was lost for a while. It’s not uncommon. You wonder why. Why did this happen? There seems no reason for it. Eventually, I came to a conclusion. Well, two conclusions. Marriam would not have wanted me moping about her, and sometimes you just have to have faith.’

  Soho, December 10th

  Thick cloud blanketed the sky outside, but above it the moon was shining full. By now the werewolves had all figured out that whatever the deal was with the angels, it did not affect them, and it was full moon, and that meant it was party time.

  The Jade Dragon was full of happy wolves, some hangers on, two bemused looking vampires, and a small group of humans who Ceri could tell did not realise the reason for the bouncy atmosphere. Two couples, they were becoming more and more confused by the attention they were getting. At first the two men had looked a bit annoyed that their women were being chatted up by strangers who seemed to be oblivious to the circumstances. That had changed when a little group of she-wolves had started pawing at the men and complimenting the women on their partners’ muscles!

  ‘You’re from out of town?’ Ceri asked as she dropped off a new round of drinks.

  ‘We live in Norwich,’ one of the two men said. ‘We’re down for a martial arts tournament and a friend of ours mentioned this place for a night out. We were expecting something a little more…’

  ‘Quiet?’ Ceri suggested, smiling. ‘It’s full moon. Most of the people in here are werewolves.’ She saw the rising alarm on three out of four faces and added, ‘That’s the non-contagious variety. The only effect the moon has is to make them a bit hyper when it’s full. Werewolves have little idea of personal space and a rather different view of sex. They won’t run off with your partner without asking, but you might get propositioned. Please don’t take offence, it’s a genuine compliment.’

  ‘Uh… right,’ the man said.

  Ceri smiled and started to turn. She stopped. ‘Martial arts tournament? You don’t know a guy named Ray Downs, do you?’

  ‘That’s who recommended this place,’ one of the women replied. ‘You know him?’

  ‘He usually teaches me staff combat on a Saturday.’

  The man who had spoken earlier narrowed his eyes slightly. ‘You’re not the one with the big chest…’

  Ceri smirked. ‘That’s Lily, she lives with me. She’s over by the bar. Give my best to Ray and enjoy your drinks.’ She strutted back through the tables toward Lily, a slight smile on her face. ‘What’s the betting they end up in bed with some wolves?’ she asked as she closed the distance.

  ‘Low,’ Lily replied. ‘The woman you spoke to is interested, but the others are too provincial to go through with it. Ours are higher, I believe.’

  Ceri nodded. ‘Michael’s taking over from Anita today and tomorrow, so I said we’d go over to the park tonight.’ She gave a little half-grin. ‘Want to be turned, or stay furless?’

  ‘Hmmm… I’ll keep my skin. There’s something kind of kinky about having bare skin around all that fur.’

  ‘Well, you’re getting plenty of fur. Anita’s going to be back late Sunday afternoon. I told Twill we’d be back at the house in the evening and bringing Michael for dinner.’

  Lily pushed off from the bar. ‘I’m always happy to have Michael for dinner,’ she said as she started off across the floor, hips swinging seductively.

  Battersea, December 11th

  ‘What’s the angel situation?’ Ceri asked as she settled beside the oil drum fire with a mug of tea. Since they would be there for quite a while, and Michael had been busy dealing with some issue by the river when the two girls had arrived, Ceri was leaving her clothes on the island. It also gave her a little time to chat to Alexandra, which seemed to have been lacking recently.

  ‘They keep themselves to themselves,’ Alexandra replied. ‘They appear to have little interest in us, and I’m the only one here who can see them, so we ignore each other. I’ve noticed they pay attention to the humans walking in the park, quite considerable interest in some cases. I haven’t yet managed to work out what they’re looking for.’

  ‘I don’t suppose you’ve seen any undead…’

  ‘They don’t like undead,’ Alexandra said. ‘Nothing direct or overt, but I could tell the one on the boathouse was disturbed when
a vampire couple walked past last night.’

  ‘Interesting,’ Ceri said.

  ‘So maybe some of those old stories about the faithful fending off undead could have a bit of reality?’ Lily asked.

  ‘I suspect that someone able to speak to an angel could persuade them to attack a vampire,’ Alexandra agreed. ‘I don’t think angels will go after them without prompting, however.’

  ‘Not these ones anyway,’ Ceri said. A grey-furred arm wrapped around her shoulders and she giggled. ‘I think Michael has sorted out whatever it was.’

  Lily had her own arm to deal with. ‘Yeah, looks like.’

  Alexandra smiled. ‘He’s doing very well. I think Anita is thinking of taking a few months off to relax.’ Michael let out a whine of horror. ‘Only kidding, Michael. You know she’s wedded to the job.’

  Ceri patted Michael’s arm. ‘You have to admit, it’s nice to see her actually enjoying herself. Ray seems to be good for her.' Michael growled his agreement and gave Ceri a nuzzle. ‘Do you need anything from us?’ Ceri asked, her hand lifting to stroke Michael’s cheek.

  Alexandra shook her head. ‘No, dear, things should be quiet until at least dawn. Go and make some happy wolves. I may even join you for a while. Lily is difficult to resist.’

  Lily smiled and gave a little, embarrassed, glance at the Alpha. ‘Thank you, Alexandra. That means a lot coming from you.’

  ‘I’m just stating a fact, dear. You’re a great source of pleasure.’

  Lily lowered her eyes and did her best submissive pose. ‘Whenever you’re ready, Alpha.’

  Alexandra actually looked a little unsure of herself. ‘She’s… really good,’ the Alpha said.

  ‘The best,’ Ceri replied, grinning.

  ~~~

  It was getting close to dawn and the wolves had settled into small groups among the trees around the clearing to rest. They would probably be sleeping late into the morning, but Ceri and Michael were not quite ready to close their eyes. He had grabbed a blanket and changed back to human form to cuddle up with his mate.

  ‘There is one thing I don’t totally understand,’ he said, his voice low and drowsy.

  ‘Then ask,’ Ceri replied.

  ‘Well, I love Alexandra like a mother, and she really is attractive for an older woman, but I’m a werewolf and we have… different aesthetics…’

  ‘Aesthetics… long word.’ Ceri chuckled softly as he nudged her.

  ‘But Lily,’ Michael went on, ‘is a hot, young girl, and not a wolf, but she really seems to want to be with Alexandra.’

  ‘That’s Lily,’ Ceri said.

  ‘Huh?’

  ‘She has different aesthetics too. She’s attracted to power and Alexandra has that in spades. But Lil also lives for making people happy. She’s half-succubus. She really likes being appreciated for what she’s good at, sex.’

  The blanket moved and a naked half-succubus slid under it beside Ceri. The temperature under the blanket went up a little as Lily’s body, internally heated by thaumic reaction, warmed it. ‘I thought I’d join you,’ she said. ‘Alexandra’s sleeping.’

  Ceri turned slightly to kiss her pet’s cheek. ‘Also,’ Ceri added, ‘she makes a fantastic hot water bottle.’

  Lily cuddled up, wrapping her arm around Ceri’s waist. ‘Fantastically sexy hot water bottle,’ she mumbled. ‘Now get some sleep.’

  ‘Yes, Mum,’ Ceri said, giggling.

  ‘None of your sass, young lady.’

  Kennington

  Well-fed and content, and with Michael on his way back to the park, they settled in front of the TV in time for the nine o’clock news. Why Lily just had to watch the news was a mystery to Ceri. It had started out with a reason; Faran had been the main story. Now it just seemed to be an obsession with keeping up with current affairs. Except that they knew more about what was actually happening than the BBC did half the time. For once, Lily’s OCD paid off.

  ‘Tonight on the nine o’clock news…’ the presenter trailed in and the picture cut to a view of buildings burning ferociously in a distant shot. ‘Emergency services, assisted by the Army continue their attempts to enter the village of Mending near Shoreham. Eye witnesses state that winged figures were seen battling in the streets…’

  Ceri was already on her feet heading for the phone. It answered on the second ring and Kate said, ‘Nine o’clock news?’

  ‘Yeah,’ Ceri said. ‘Is there anything they’re not saying?’

  ‘Not a whole lot. We think they came off a freighter bound for Rotterdam. We’re having trouble identifying the source, but we’re pretty sure it was somewhere in South America. It looks like the angels in the village tried to fight them off, but it turned into total carnage. The Army have them pinned down with those rifles and some heavier versions mounted on armoured vehicles.’

  ‘None got out of the village?’

  ‘None we know of,’ Kate responded. ‘A Navy cruiser stopped the ship, but it had moved on quite a distance. The assault may have been a distraction. The crew were all dead, no information there.’

  ‘Killed? How?’

  ‘Burned to death. Most of them were found hiding, cowering under tables, in lockers. One of them was in the freezer in the galley. Frozen after he burned.’ The detective paused. ‘I’m glad I wasn’t on that detail.’

  ‘What’s being done?’ Ceri asked, her tone hushed.

  ‘Chief has the diviners trying to locate any weird spirit activity, but there’s not too much we can do until they show themselves.’

  Ceri frowned. She had no good ideas on anything to try either. ‘No. Thanks, Kate. If there’s anything we can do, call.’

  ‘Huh, yeah. People get me out of bed all the time. Don’t think I won’t do the same.’

  ‘Under the circumstances, I’ll forgive you.’ Ceri hit the disconnect button and looked up. The TV was still showing pictures of the burning village. The distance they were filming from suggested that the press were being kept well back. ‘It sounds like we’ve got trouble,’ Ceri said.

  ‘Yeah,’ Lily said, turning to look at Ceri, ‘I’d gathered that. If they weren’t lying their arses off in History, the Crusades didn’t go down too well in the Holy Land.’ She turned back to the screen. ‘And that wasn’t crusading angels.’

  December 12th

  ‘Ceri. Ceri, wake up.’ Ceri opened her eyes to see Twill hovering beside the bed, her wings beating more than usual. She was glowing enough to provide a little light in the room and there were hints of red in the light.

  ‘Twill? What is it?’

  ‘There’s something on the roof. A spirit of some sort. It feels a little like the thing that attacked the wards.’

  ‘The wards aren’t reacting,’ Ceri said.

  ‘No,’ Twill said. She sounded worried, even a little scared.

  ‘If it’s just walked, or floated, through the wards, then it means no ill intent.’ Ceri swung her legs out of bed. Crap, three in the morning. Why couldn’t angels keep normal hours? ‘I’ll get dressed and go talk to it.’

  ‘Not without me you won’t,’ Lily grumbled from behind her.

  ‘And me,’ Twill said. Her whole body shook as she pushed back whatever trepidation she was feeling.

  The angel was a pattern of cascading colours in the magical field at one end of the roof. Ceri stopped ten feet from it, Lily halting at her right shoulder, Twill hovering at her left. The spirit-form made no move, but Ceri could see the glowing pinpricks of its eyes watching her. ‘Show yourself,’ Ceri said. ‘I know you’re there, and you know I know.’

  It took the form of a woman, taller than Lily by an inch or so, narrow in the hips and ribs, with a beautiful face and long, blonde hair which moved in a breeze which was not blowing. The white robes it was wearing shone brightly in the darkness. ‘Your soldiers,’ it said, ‘their weapons wound us.’

  ‘Yes, they were designed to,’ Ceri replied.

  ‘We fight with them, but they harm us.’

  ‘You want
me to tell them to stop?’

  ‘To be more selective of those they fire upon.’

  ‘I’m not a soldier,’ Ceri said. ‘I’m not even a real policewoman.’

  ‘You can communicate with them.’ The voice was soft, vibrant but delicate.

  ‘Why don’t you tell them yourselves?’

  ‘You have been chosen.’

  ‘What does that mean?’

  ‘You have been chosen.’

  ‘Why?’ Stupid, enigmatic messengers.

  ‘You have been chosen.’ Ceri growled in frustration. ‘You are the only one of your kind. Dragon-blooded. Sorceress. You were chosen to pass on our message. He knows you were chosen.’

  ‘He?’ Ceri asked. ‘Gadriel again?’ The angel said nothing, which Ceri guessed was a yes. ‘And what’s he going to do about it?’

  ‘You must have faith, sorceress.’

  Ceri laughed. ‘I’m not exactly religious. Don’t you people persecute sorcerers?’

  The angel actually smiled. ‘One does not have to believe to have faith, child. We are watching.’ And then it was gone, wings spreading from nowhere and driving it upward in one, powerful stroke. By the time it was a body-length into the air, it had vanished to normal sight, but Ceri watched the disturbance in the world’s magic rise and arc away.

  ‘That was… enigmatic,’ Lily said.

  ‘Indeed,’ Twill agreed. ‘I believe I understand why it annoys you when I do it, Ceri.’

  ‘Does that mean you’re going to stop?’ Ceri asked, grinning a little.

  ‘Of course not.’

  Figures.’ Ceri turned and started for the roof hatch. ‘I guess I’d better make some phone calls.’

  Westminster

  The inside of Malcolm Charles’ office looked pretty much as Ceri remembered it. She felt a cabinet minister’s office should have wood panelling, like in Yes, Minister, and there should be a Parliamentary Secretary of some sort who actually ran the place. Actually, the Minister for Supernatural Affairs was damn good at his job and the civil service got on with doing their jobs rather than trying to run the country.