by Nancy Holder
He was in the process of replacing the bundle in the drawer when there was a knock on the door.
“Enter,” he said pleasantly.
“’Ere she is, Sir Richard,” the Cockney man announced as he opened the door.
Richard was startled. The Abo woman was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes upon, and never in his life had he considered that such a gentleman as he would think such a thing. She wore European clothing of fine material—a navy blue dress with a fichu of lace, and a mobcap such as any genteel lady might wear. As she swept a graceful curtsy, his blood was stirred, and he deigned to favor her with an incline of his head.
The Cockney backed out again, and Richard said, “Shut the door.”
The woman regarded him. He saw that her eyes were a very startling green.
“Your name.”
“You may call me Aliki,” she said, and grinned at him coquettishly. “It is the way we say ‘Alice’ in my language.”
“There is a joke in that,” he ventured, not following her meaning.
“There will be a famous story of Alice one day, a girl who enjoys adventures in magical places,” she said. “But not yet.”
He regarded her, still uncertain of his place in this conversation. “I see. And will the story be about you?”
She shrugged. “Perhaps. It will be of no import to me, however.”
Feeling a bit put off, he decided to get straight to the point. “I have heard of your powers of witchcraft.”
Saucily she put her hands on her hips. “And I have heard of your interest in such powers.”
He cocked his head. “Have you altered your appearance in order to be more appealing to me?”
She laughed but made no reply. Then she looked around the room and said to him pointedly, “I am tired and thirsty, Sir Richard.”
He summoned the Cockney, who brought a chair and a bottle of Portuguese and two goblets. Sir Richard poured, and he toasted Mistress Aliki.
She sipped in a most refined way, her gaze over the rim of her goblet quite warm and inviting. Then she settled the goblet against her fichu and said, “I can show you the mysteries of the Dreamtime.”
“Indeed?” He leaned forward, fascinated.
“Indeed,” she promised. “Tonight.”
Tri-Covenate, Seattle
Jer could hear his heart pounding. Whether it was caused by the presence of Holly or his participation in the Aboriginal blood rite, he wasn’t sure.
Standing together in the center of Dan’s main room, they were wearing simple leather loincloths and, in Holly’s case, a T-shirt. Both were barefooted. Kari had insisted that they dress as closely as they could to the Aboriginal custom.
Dan solemnly stepped forward and began to paint on Holly’s face. The patterns and lines and symbols were unfamiliar to Jer, but he knew they were Aboriginal in origin. Dan and Kari had spent a long time, each researching in their own way, discovering the secrets of Alcheringa, the Dreamtime. When he was finished with Holly, Dan began to paint the patterns on Jer’s face. Jer was acutely aware of how ugly he was, and that the paint only added to the macabre effect.
If he understood everything that Kari was so solemnly telling them, the Dreamtime was the time before history before the creation of the world and man. It was somehow, though, inexplicably tied to the land, and in specific places it resonated more strongly, as though the fabric between past and present was very thin. The Aborigines also claimed that the land told the stories of the early days of creation and that certain landmarks, such as Ayres Rock, were testimony to them.
“The native peoples believe that each place is connected to its history, and it has a physical being and a spiritual being,” Kari finished.
“So it’s like an astral plane?” Holly asked.
“Yes, but it is more than that. It’s like an astral plane for another dimension.”
“What do you mean?” Nicole asked.
Kari sighed in exaggerated frustration. “If you were simply astral traveling in this dimension, everything you see would be what is familiar to you. You would go outside this house and you would see your neighbor’s house, the cars parked on the street. Your spirit is just walking about without your body.
“In the Dreamtime you might see a few familiar landmarks, like the Bay, or a mountain, but it will exist in an entirely different environment. There won’t be houses, or if there are, certainly not like the ones we can see out the window. There might not even be people. It might be populated by creatures we are completely unfamiliar with.”
Holly shook her head impatiently. “Whatever. We’ll cope with whatever we come across. We’ll just find a way to free Barbara and we’ll get out.”
Kari nodded, though Jer recognized an angry spark in her eyes. “Fine. Do it fast—you don’t want to spend any more time there than you have to. There’s a reason places like this are only dreamed about. Remember, you have to exit where you enter.”
“And that will be somewhere in Australia?” Jer questioned.
Kari nodded. “We really should be in Australia to be trying this, but Barbara is here with us and somehow she’s been trapped there, so I figure with the help of a little magic we should be able to send you there too.”
“Anything else?”
“There is one other very important thing: Remember, the mind has power over the body in this arena. Whatever happens to you there, happens to you here. If you cut yourself there, your body will bleed here. If you die in the Dreamtime, you die for real.”
There was silence for a moment. Dan stepped back slowly, his work done.
“All right, let’s get this over with,” Holly muttered.
Armand stepped forward and solemnly made the sign of the cross over both of them. Jer felt intensely uncomfortable. He hadn’t yet adjusted to the beliefs of the Spanish Coven. Still, he dipped his head in a silent gesture of thanks. After all, they were going to need all the help they could get.
The others stepped away and formed a circle around them, hands joined. Jer and Holly both lay down in the center, their backs on the ground and their heads supported by small pillows. With a word, Nicole cut the lights and Philippe set the candles around them glowing. The smell of incense filled the air, sweet and light.
Jer closed his eyes and began to take long, deep breaths. The others began to chant softly, rhythmically. He willed his spirit to leave his body. His fingertips tingled where they brushed against Holly’s. Slowly his mind emptied.
He felt as though he were floating, hovering an inch, just an inch, above his body. He stretched out with his mind and his spirit. A great light rushed toward him, engulfing him, and he gave himself up to it wonderingly. The light started pure and soft and then expanded until it burned his eyes through his closed eyelids. Pain seared through his body, and he heard Holly cry out even as he did.
His eyes flew open. He was standing in the middle of a great desert. The sun burned down so hot that he flinched back, throwing his arm in front of his face. The Black Fire! He forced his heart to stop racing. It’s only the sun.
He turned to look at Holly. She was squinting into the light, her hand up to shield her eyes.
He turned slowly, wondering where exactly they were. He froze halfway around. “Look,” he pointed.
Before them rose a large, square mesa. It towered above the surrounding desert like some mighty giant.
“Uluru,” he said. “Ayres Rock.”
A movement caught the corner of his eye, and they turned together to see something loping toward them. “And, that, I believe, is Yowee.”
The creature was obsidian, shiny and evil-looking. Its eyes glowed like the fires of Hell. It scrabbled toward them on wickedly clawed feet that made no sound. A hot wind flew before it, blowing sand into Jer’s eyes. He blinked desperately.
Yowee was the spirit of death.
Holly conjured a fireball and threw it at the creature. It passed right through him as though he were a ghost. Jer threw up a powerful w
ard and it passed right through.
They turned and ran. Ayres Rock loomed before them. The desert air made it appear as though they were right at its base, but Jer quickly realized that was not the case. Behind him he could hear nothing, but he didn’t dare risk a look back.
Before him he could see the wind that preceded the creature whipping up the sand. The blast became stronger, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. He ducked just as a tentacle —Where the hell did that come from? —cracked through the air above his head.
He began to zigzag back and forth while still trying to head for the rock. He could hear Holly panting beside him. He couldn’t turn to look at her, though, because he was too busy driving his own body forward.
I shouldn’t be able to run like this, not with these burned, scarred legs, he thought. Maybe I’ll stay in this Dreamtime.
It’s not such a nightmare for me.
At last they made it to the rock and began scrambling upward, the Yowee following behind.
They reached a plateau and found themselves face-to-face with a beautiful dark-skinned woman dressed in colonial garb.
The woman’s eyes were ancient. Her hair was wild, flying about her like a lion’s mane. She reached out and touched them both.
Remember, here the mind holds sway over the body. Her lips had not moved, but her words sounded clear in Jer’s mind.
He twisted, looking down at the Yowee. He closed his eyes, and in his mind he pictured the creature losing its handholds and falling backward to the desert floor. Then he opened his eyes and saw it happen. Holly must have caught on as well, because the creature suddenly exploded in a shower of gore and body parts.
He felt his body slump. Mind over body. That must be how I was able to run. Slowly he and Holly turned back to the woman who had helped them.
“Thank you.”
She nodded gravely.
Jer realized that she was connecting with their minds so that they might understand her.
I’m Aliki. I taught Sir Richard Moore the secret of this place. And for my help, he exiled me here. Her smile was bitter. It is a just punishment, I suppose.
Holly swallowed. “Then if you’re trapped… .” She took a breath and glanced at Jer. “A creature sits on the chest of a friend of ours, squeezing her heart. She’s been trapped, and—”
The woman raised a hand. There are very few who know of this place, fewer still who know how to use it. I can help you.
“We would be very grateful,” Holly told her.
Describe her, please. If her spirit is held captive here, it will appear to us as her physical form.
Holly nodded and described Barbara in detail, both her physical appearance and her personality. Aliki closed her eyes and seemed to retreat inside herself. Time passed, and she did not move.
When her eyelids fluttered open, her eyes were blazing with green light. You are in luck. She is imprisoned inside one of the caves at the base of the rock.
“Then let’s go,” Holly said, turning.
Be careful. There are things much older and far more terrible than the Gate Guardian you just killed. I’ll go with you to help you find your path.
Holly nodded understanding and started back down. The woman followed her, and Jer brought up the rear. When they reached the bottom, Aliki led them around the side. They walked for nearly half an hour before reaching a small aperture in the rock. It looked too small to be the opening of a cave, but their guide ducked her head and squeezed inside. Holly followed, and Jer anxiously ducked down and entered as well. Once inside, his skin began to crawl in a way that he recognized well. His family had cast its spell here; their magic crackled in the walls and turned his stomach.
Every fiber of his being shouted out for him to turn and flee, but he doggedly followed the two women. The passageway was narrow, and his shoulders scraped painfully against the walls as they passed through. At last they rounded a corner and a cavern was revealed. Jer exited into it with a feeling of relief.
Blue flames leaped into life all around the perimeter of the cave. Pictographs graced the walls, standing out in stark relief and seeming to blaze with a life all their own. Several passageways led off the cavern into darkness, and once more Jer shuddered. The feeling of evil was overwhelming.
In a dark corner of the cavern a green light shimmered. Holly moved toward it slowly, as though something was pulling her. Jer hung back instinctively. When Holly drew close to it, she gasped. “Barbara!” Holly raced forward and fell to her knees before the light.
Cautiously, Jer crept forward. An old woman with tortured eyes looked up at him from the green mists of energy. She seemed half-spirit, half-flesh. Her mouth formed silent words, and her eyes pleaded with them.
Holly reached out a shaking hand as though to touch her.
The mists swirled and coalesced on top of her chest, becoming a hideous, dark shadow. The shadow was blurred, but Holly could trace the silhouette of the creature that tormented her.
Take care, Aliki warned as she glided up beside her. She has been here for some time. You must be very gentle and very precise or she will die.
Holly nodded slowly. “Tell me what to do.”
In the old days, leaders of my people came here to seek enlightenment and to commune with our gods. She frowned. I showed these secrets to Sir Richard in return for favor. We had a ritual for coming and a ritual for going. You have used the ritual for coming or you would not be here. You will have to do it for yourselves as well when you want to go. This is where she entered this land and so this is where she must leave. You must leave where you entered.
“Why haven’t you performed this ritual for yourself?” Jer asked.
She looked at him sadly. I have the House of Moore to thank for that. Someday, I’ll free myself. But for now, I’m trapped here.
She bent swiftly and drew a circle around Barbara. Watch carefully, she instructed.
She began murmuring a spell in a beautiful language. Jer struggled to hear the words, to remember them.
The image of Barbara shimmered once and then returned. Aliki nodded as if to herself.
Kulpunya still holds her here. He is a spirit-dingo. He was originally sent to Ayres Rock to kill the people who lived there by their enemies. He can be forced to obey with a chant. She narrowed her eyes and set her jaw, as if coming to some kind of decision. I will teach it to you.
Holly glanced at Jer apprehensively. “Two chants?”
Jer said to Holly, “You remember one, and I’ll remember the other.” He paused. “I’ll learn the one to tame Kulpunya.”
The woman held up a hand. If you mispronounce even a single word, you will free Kulpunya from his bondage, and he will try to rip you to pieces.
“Then I’m definitely the one learning the chant,” Jer said.
Holly looked alarmed. “Why can’t you say it for us?” she asked the woman.
I am of this place now, she replied. My magic won’t work on him.
Then she hesitated. After a moment, she drew Jer a distance away from Holly and stationed him so that her back was to Holly. She said to him in a quiet voice, not using her mind, “I need to warn you. Your spirit and hers, they are at war on another plane.” She touched his face, tracing his ruined flesh. “She did this to you.”
He licked his lips, felt the scarring on them with the tip of his tongue, and sighed heavily. “I know.”
And yet … you love each other. This passion … it can rip you apart as surely as Kulpunya. It can rip her apart too.
He cocked his head, aware that Holly was staring at them. He steadily returned her gaze.
“I know that, too.”
“Jer?” Holly called.
He said to the woman, “Teach me the chant.” He held a hand up to keep Holly at bay. Holly’s mouth dropped open and she stared at him, fuming.
“All right,” the woman said. “Let us begin.”
She began to chant. Jer listened carefully as her voice took on a strange, hypnoti
c drone, and soon the rhythmic syllables began to make sense to him, as if she were speaking English. Mental images of the nightmare creature stood out in sharp relief as she took his arm and led him back toward Barbara, still encased in green energy. It was hunched on top of her chest; and as Jer watched, it plunged its hand into Barbara’s chest and squeezed her heart.
He was not aware he was speaking until Kulpunya jerked up his head and drew back fangs in a rictus snarl. Jer continued the chant, aided by Aliki, his voice drawing strength from hers, until their voices took on a bizarre, humming quality like a didgeridoo.
The monster growled deep in its throat and squeezed harder. The form of the aged, weakened Barbara threw back its head and whimpered in pain.
“Jer,” Holly murmured. “Jer, are you doing it right?”
He ignored her, continuing the chant with Aliki. She steadied his arm, raising her voice with his.
Then she turned to Holly and said, “Get ready. When I tell you, say your chant.”
Jer’s voice continued to thrum, louder, louder still, as the monster’s eyes narrowed. Blood and saliva dripped from its jaw. Its shoulders rounded, and the muscles in its legs bunched as it shifted its weight on Barbara’s chest, preparing to spring.
Reflexive fear shot through Jer, but he kept his place in the chant.
Then it leaped at Jer.
Aliki shouted, “Now!”
Holly began her chant as Aliki bellowed at Jer, “Use your mind!”
As Kulpunya slammed into Jer and flung him to the floor of the cave, demons exploded from the dark passageways.
Seattle
Deep within his chamber of spells, Michael Deveraux looked up from his altar and smiled. “Well, well,” he said. “Someone’s released Kulpunya.” He picked up a scrying crystal and gazed into it.
He turned to the other two participants in the night’s ritual. “Care to make a journey with me?”
His son, Eli, and James Moore both nodded.
Amanda sat beside Tommy on the couch opposite Barbara Davis-Chin. Holly and Jer had been gone a while, and everyone had scattered around the room, resting and waiting and watching. Fear nibbled at the corners of her mind as she prayed protection spells for their absent comrades.
