The Maiden Medallions: Beastkeeper

by Edward Shawn

Having finished his business, Orion wandered back. Sitting by Sandra’s feet, he waited while she reattached the collar.

  “I have some information you’ll be interested to hear,” Sandra said as the women headed back to the mansion. “I can’t say if it’s true or not–I’ll leave that for you to decide. It’s about James, the boy you lost in the woods.”

  “What about him?” Evelynn had all but forgotten about her original target, her thoughts now preoccupied by the flying man.

  “I mentioned hearing Orion in my mind. While working on our nonverbal communication, he told me about something he witnessed in the woods.”

  Evelynn studied the dog walking by Sandra’s side. He was at the campsite and could have seen what happened to James. “What did he see?”

  “He told me–and these are his words, not mine...he saw two people step through a rip in the night behind a tower of many faces.”

  “What? What do you think it means?”

  “I’m not sure. I asked Orion to be more specific but he just repeated what I told you,” Sandra said. “He’s unaccustomed to our language.”

  Evelynn grinned. “Yeah, I suppose he is. Well, it’s something to go on.” She found the idea of a dog being unfamiliar with a language spoken by humans comical yet slightly terrifying. Yes, she knew it wasn’t actually a dog anymore, not in any real sense, but she still saw the humorous side of it. She had to otherwise she might as well scream until they came and escorted her off to the asylum. These were indeed very strange times, and Evelynn had this gnawing feeling in her insides that it wasn’t about to let up any time soon.

  Arriving back at the steps, the women entered the courtyard and then walked into the mansion.

  “I’m sure you’ll figure it out eventually. Good luck, Evelynn.” Shaking hands, the women went in separate directions.

  Deciding to pay the W.A.R. room a visit, Evelynn used the stairs to the labs, then rode the elevator to the second level of the vast underground complex. Exiting onto the W.A.R. room’s northern foyer, she confirmed her identity through the retinal scanner on the wall. As she entered the noisy chamber full of busy employees, she spotted Dr. Lee speaking with a woman sitting in front of a computer down in The Pit. The doctor noticed her and excused himself from his discussion.

  Climbing the steps, he stopped in front of her. “Miss Bone, this is a surprise. Can I help you with something?”

  “If I said to you, tower of many faces, what comes to mind?” Evelynn asked, getting right to the point.

  “Hmm, tower of many faces?” Dr. Lee’s eyes widened slightly and he glanced upwards as if the answer clung to the ceiling. “Do you have any other details?”

  “British Columbia. That’s the location of it, this tower.”

  Dr. Lee gazed at her. “You were just up there, right?”

  Evelynn stayed silent. She didn’t feel compelled to discuss it with him.

  The moment passed and Dr. Lee moved on. “Well, we’ve established the medallions are of Native American origin.”

  Evelynn watched the doctor mull things over as he tapped his lips with his left index finger and stared at nothing a long ways off. Pointing at her with the same finger, he wagged it up and down as he spoke. “I have the answer. It must be a reference to totem poles. They’re known to be in the region.” Dr. Lee walked over to a desk and touched the mouse to bring the monitor back to life. Evelynn followed, her curiosity pushing her along to see if his assertion was correct.

  Sitting down, the doctor activated the browser, then typed totem pole into the search field. Clicking on the images link, the screen filled with results. Evelynn saw the thumbnail pictures of the totem poles; they all had carved and painted faces along their entire length.

  “That has to be it. Good job, doctor.”

  “Glad to help, Miss Bone.” Dr. Lee shut the browser, then spun around in his chair.

  “Dalton’s at the site where James was last seen,” Evelynn said. “Can you contact him?”

  “I’ll give him a call right now.” Picking up the desk phone, he proceeded to dial. After a few moments, he turned to Evelynn. “He didn’t answer. Let me try the sat-com.”

  The doctor and Evelynn made their way to a glass enclosed room filled with computers and communication equipment. Once inside, he activated the transceiver and tried to contact Dalton again.

  “Dalton, are you there? Respond if you’re hearing this.” Dr. Lee looked at her and shrugged his shoulders.

  “Keep trying.” Evelynn knew Dalton well enough to know this was out of character for him to be unavailable. A voice in her head issued a warning as her stomach tensed up.

  “Still nothing. I spoke to him not more than an hour ago. We went over the checklist of what he was supposed to be doing up there.”

  “Try the others on his team.”

  Dr. Lee attempted to do so but was equally unsuccessful.

  “I’m going to call Jeremiah,” Evelynn said, taking out her phone.

  “You think something’s wrong!”

  Evelynn didn’t answer. She needed to contact her grandfather right away.

  27

  Riding his private elevator down to the W.A.R. room, Jeremiah was eager to see the video footage of Evelynn’s clash with the flying man. Stepping off, his phone hummed as he arrived at the security door.

  “Yes, Evey, what is it?” He listened to what she said about her inability to contact Dalton or any member of his team and agreed something had likely gone wrong. As to what, he could only speculate but was prepared for the worst. The stakes were high and he fully expected his opponents to retaliate with aggression.

  “I’ll be there momentarily.” Hanging up, he entered the W.A.R room from the south entrance and immediately saw Evelynn on the other side of the chamber. She pointed towards the sat-com station. Dr. Lee held the transceiver, clearly upset.

  The doctor set the device down as Jeremiah entered, followed by Evelynn.

  “An update on the situation, Steven.”

  “No one’s responded. It’s absolutely silent from everyone on Dalton’s team.”

  “Thank you. You can go now, and please, I want to see the video footage captured from a couple nights ago. Have someone upload it immediately.”

  Dr. Lee straightened his lab coat. “Yes, Mr. Bone.” Excusing himself, the doctor quickly left the room.

  Jeremiah turned and faced Evelynn. “What do you think, Evey?”

  “I don’t like it. Dalton is not the kind of man to disregard protocol. The fact no one from his team is responding...it’s concerning. We need to get eyes on the location, see what’s going on.”

  “Agreed.”

  “Can we use the satellite?” Evelynn asked.

  “It’s currently monitoring events elsewhere. It will be some time before it can be repositioned,” Jeremiah said. “We need to find out what happened and as soon as possible. We need someone to physically get out there.”

  “I’ll go. I want to go back up there anyway. I have business in Seattle.”

  “What business is that?”

  “I have a lead on the flying man.”

  Jeremiah was pleased to hear this. It showed Evelynn was now fully invested even though motivated by her own agenda.

  “He lives in Seattle?” he asked, heading for the door.

  “I believe so.”

  “You have a name?”

  “No, but his face is etched in my mind.”

  Jeremiah and Evelynn left the W.A.R. room through the south entrance. “My dear, Seattle is a big city. How do you expect to find him with so little to go on?”

  Evelynn placed an arm around his shoulder as they entered his private elevator. “I expect you’ll have all the information I need by the time I get there.”

  Entering his office, she excused herself in order to prepare for the upcoming mission. Exiting through the large wooden doors, Evelynn left Jeremiah alone in the gloom of his personal space.

  Sitting down at his desk, he rubbed his temple
s while collecting his thoughts. Things couldn’t have gone more awry. He never considered the possibility of his field team disappearing. Dalton had included security personnel but he may not have taken enough. Hitting redial on his desk phone, he waited for Carl to answer.

  “I need to meet with you,” he said after the called was received. “Can you come up to my office? Yes, yes there has been a change of plan. I need you to accompany Evelynn back up to British Columbia. Some of our people have gone missing.”

  ***

  Evelynn walked into the weapons lab half expecting to see Dalton smiling at her from the other side of the counter. Bypassing the barrier, she entered the storage bay just as a young man strolled into the lab through an adjacent door.

  “Can I help you?” he asked, barely looking at her before turning his attention towards a locker. Opening it up, he started counting the items inside.

  He looked to be in his twenties, perhaps a year or two younger than she was. Evelynn watched the man diligently count the devices stored within. He couldn’t have known who she was, for if he did, he would be giving her his full attention. “I’m Evelynn Bone, and yes, you can help me.”

  The man stopped his count and turned around. “My apologies, Miss Bone. How can I help you today?”

  Evelynn enjoyed the trace of panic gracing his features. “I haven’t seen you before. What’s your name?” she asked as she handed her coat to him.

  “Bryan. I’m new here. It’s my second week.” He glanced at the gun in her holster before taking the coat. Placing it on a vacant desk, he seated himself in front of a computer and pulled up the previous records on her coat specs.

  “I’ll need a few minutes,” Bryan informed her.

  “That’s fine. I’m heading down to the shooting range. If you have any questions, come find me there.” Leaving the weapons lab through the back door, she descended a flight of stairs. Swiping her key card through the reader, the door unlocked and granted her entry.

  The range was empty, which didn’t surprise her at all. She would occasionally find a security guard firing off a few rounds, but more often than not, she was the one making use of the range on a regular basis. Even though it had been over a year since she was down here, she still felt at home amongst the spent cartridges, bullet riddled targets and glaring lights.

  Pressing a switch on the wall, a new target swung into place. Her left hand supporting her gun hand, she fired rounds into the target hitting it multiple times in the left chest cavity before her last bullet penetrated its forehead. But shooting didn’t appease her mind; she continued pondering different scenarios regarding what could have happened to Dalton and his team.

  A soft knock on the door disrupted her thoughts. “Miss Bone? There’s a man upstairs that wants to speak with you,” Bryan said through the door.

  “Who is it?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t ask. Umm, but your coat is ready. There wasn’t much to do, just replace a couple items. Most of your inventory is still intact.”

  “Okay. I’m coming.” Opening the door, Evelynn found Bryan standing in her way. “Well, let’s not stand around blocking doorways.” Stepping by, she mounted the stairs two at a time in hopes the mission was about to get underway. Pushing the door open, she found Carl waiting for her. “What’s up?” she asked, entering the lab.

  Before he could answer, Bryan bounded up the stairs and stopped beside Evelynn. “Find something to do, Bryan,” she said without turning her head. The young man nodded before disappearing through a side door.

  “I’m coming with you,” Carl said.

  Evelynn nodded. “Jeremiah asked you to.”

  “He did.”

  “It’s a good idea. I don’t know what I’m heading into and could use some capable backup.”

  “I’ve been briefed on the situation. The field team is still out of contact. We should assume it a hostile act and go in accordingly.” Carl turned and headed for the exit. “I’m bringing a couple of my men with us,” he said, stopping at the door. “Safety in numbers.” His lips curled upward but his face remained grim. “The jet is being prepped. We leave for the airport in twenty minutes.”

  Evelynn grabbed her coat off the hanger Bryan placed it on. Slipping her arms through the sleeves, she checked it over and found everything was in order.

  ***

  Following the path to the cave, the familiar voice in his head had yet to make itself known. Losing track of one medallion only to discover the existence of another, Jeremiah wondered how many were created. He owned one, so did James, and the third one he knew of was hidden inside a temple his people were searching for within the depths of the Amazon rainforest.

  And now a fourth medallion owned by a man able to tap its power with ease had entered the fray.

  Before arriving on The Wayward, Jeremiah studied the shoddy video of Evelynn’s skirmish with the flying man. Some of it was rendered useless due to poor weather conditions, but they still acquired enough footage to confirm Evelynn’s version of events.

  Jeremiah left instructions with the W.A.R. room to isolate and enhance an image of the flying man’s face and then search through every Seattle database–starting with the Department of Licensing–until a match was found. It wouldn’t be long until they discovered his identity and where he lived. It was information Evelynn needed to make her visit to Seattle worthwhile.

  A swirling shadow shifted against the rear of the cave.

  You have returned.

  He regarded the low resonance of the intrusive voice a small price to pay in relation to what he got out of the Faustian bargain he entered into ages ago. If their current plans succeeded, he would receive nothing less than the entire world which could then be molded into something more to his liking before placing himself as absolute ruler of all. As far as he was concerned, the sooner this came about the better it would be for everyone, for the sorry state of the world needed a man with his vision to carry it forward before it crumbled under the weight of its own decadence.

  Jeremiah had long ago moved past the desires of most men. He already had everything he could ever want and wealth meant nothing to him. It was a tool he wielded to maintain control and to assert his power and influence in matters he considered important. And what was more important than ensuring the survival of the world before it spiraled further into unending chaos. To achieve this lofty goal, he needed to be the only voice resonating above the din of humanity; the man everyone turned to when faced with impending doom.

  “The package is in my possession. How should we proceed?” Jeremiah asked.

  You will need to bring the prisoner here.

  “Why?”

  We need to replace the soul with one we can manipulate.

  Jeremiah stayed quiet for a moment pondering what he heard. He didn’t know his partner had the ability to do such a thing. “Don’t you have another container I can take back with me like the one with the tracker? It would be easier than transporting the prisoner here.”

  That was for a lower life-form and the essence provided could only perform one function: tracking. The process is not as simple as unsealing a bottle when it comes to replacing a human’s soul. For that, we require a different procedure. We need the use of machines and bio-software that I have within my ship–devices only I can operate.

  “I see,” Jeremiah said as he watched the shadowy form change from a floating mass into a snake-like tendril. He braced himself for what came next. Although he’d been through it plenty of times before, that didn’t make the experience any easier.

  He stood motionless, his eyes fixed on the walls of the cave. A wisp of black dust and particulate matter weaved its way towards him. An almost inaudible sigh escaped Jeremiah’s lips and he opened his mouth as if ready to be prodded by a dentist. The stream of dark matter entered his gullet slowly at first, but the rate of entry steadily increased. Jeremiah’s head started convulsing, his upper body shuddering with spasms. Collapsing to the cave floor, he coughed and ret
ched as if at any moment, he would vomit up the blackness he just ingested. But soon, his spasms subsided and he rose to his feet. Running his fingers through his hair in an attempt to tidy his appearance, he straightened his suit and adjusted his tie until satisfied he was presentable again. Brushing away the dirt clinging to his pants, he picked up his cane lying on the cold stone.

  There would never be a time Jeremiah didn’t consider the sensation of swallowing something that vile as anything but utterly disgusting. He must be the only human being ever who knew what death tasted like on a regular basis.

  Stepping out of the cave, Jeremiah looked out over the desolate landscape of the asteroid ship his partner called home. Looking up, he noticed they were no longer within the asteroid field.

  “You going somewhere?”

  I’ve set the ship’s path towards your planet.

  He couldn’t help being surprised by this. “What for?”

  I am fully committed to what you want and believe it’s time to move my base of power closer to yours.

  Jeremiah considered what he heard and found it made sense. The creature he called Ebondust only wanted what was best for him and his world. They desired the same thing: to place Jeremiah in position as ruler of the Earth.

  28

  Under the bright sky of a new day, James ran with the wild horses galloping across the open field. Exhilaration shining in his eyes, his grin widened as he easily kept up with the fast moving herd of heavily muscled animals. Barely an hour into his training session, he found it easy utilizing the medallion’s power, far easier than he expected.

  He felt the weight of it in his pants pocket, the green light leaking through the fabric as he scanned the terrain ahead. Even though he found it all so absolutely thrilling, he needed to be careful and alert to the environment. One misstep could lead to a fall, and with the speed he was running, it could easily turn into a dangerous tumble.

  Completely surrounded by horses, James felt a kinship with the animals charging across the plain. They came in all colors and sizes: Solid black stallions, brown mares of various shades and tanned colts with white splotches made up the majority of the herd. None of these majestic beasts seemed bothered by his presence and he even picked up an impression of their feelings on occasion. There wasn’t a trace of fear emanating from any of them. They respected and accepted him as part of the group.