The Darkest Gateway

by Jeri Westerson

  “You’re citing history and cultures on my world. What about your world?”

  She didn’t say anything. If all demons were narcissists like she said, then it was easier to flee than to stand up for something and maybe get cut down. It could have been that there had been an insurrection…and this place was the result. Looking around at the desolation, perhaps I didn’t blame her or the others who lived here.

  We came to a flat spot. I took the canteen from off my shoulder and tipped it up to my lips. But there was only a trickle left. I was about to lower it when a shower of water poured from the canteen, soaking me. I stoppered it, wiped my face, and glanced sidelong at Shabiri. “You think that’s funny?”

  “I do, actually.” She was smiling and so was I, until her grin suddenly vanished. She froze. I was about to ask, but she shushed me with a flicking hand gesture.

  And then I heard it too. A low growl from…somewhere. The echoes made it impossible to know from where it came.

  We both searched, walking in a circle. “If that’s what I think it is,” she whispered, “we are in big trouble.”

  “What do you think it is?”

  She merely stared at me, looking suddenly pale. Okay, now I didn’t want to know.

  “What should we do?”

  “I don’t know if there’s anything we can do.” She sniffed the wind like Erasmus used to do and grabbed my arm. “Let’s keep going. Do you see that land bridge down there? We’re heading to the left.”

  I knew she told me this in case she couldn’t go with me. In case she was…

  I was too scared to speak, so I just hurried down the trail.

  I kept hearing the low growls. If it was something Shabiri wasn’t prepared to deal with, then what chance did we have? I had the spear—and I clutched it tight—but would it do any good against…whatever was stalking us?

  We hurried down the incline between shiny obsidian rock walls. When we were almost to that black marble land bridge, I saw a shadow cast against the glassy rock face. I turned and wished I hadn’t.

  It made no sense. “It has three heads,” was the stupid nonsense that came out of my mouth.

  “Very good, meat girl. Gold star for being able to count to three.”

  It was a very large black dog and it had three heads. Something tickled the back of my memory. Something from ancient mythology about a guardian of the underworld.

  “Cerberus,” I muttered.

  Chapter Twenty

  Jeff could feel, with his wolf senses, that the coven was as anxious and tense as could be. But of course, you didn’t need wolf senses to know that.

  Kylie had gone to the Netherworld with Shabiri two days ago, and he had used all the control he had not to shed his clothes, shift, and go bounding after her. Because this was it. Erasmus had gone to sacrifice himself for her and she was going to do the same thing for him. She was going to die and he didn’t know if he was prepared for that, even after all the danger they’d all been through.

  And now it was Halloween, D-day for the book to let all its beasties loose. As the sun got lower, Jeff alternated pacing and staring out the window. There was no trick-or-treating for Moody Bog kids this year. With all that had been going on, no kid wanted to go out at night, let alone masquerade as the very beasts that might just jump out of the darkness to devour them.

  Porches stayed dark. Pumpkins remained un-carved. Some people had even taken down what Halloween decorations they’d had from their lawns. Ghosts were removed and witches were banned from windows. Moody Bog felt like it was on lockdown. The only beasties prowling the streets this night would be the real thing.

  The Wiccans had been strategizing at Kylie’s shop for hours. Even Doug and Bob were offering ideas. Immediately after Kylie had left, it was decided that no one should go after her. Jeff had strenuously argued against that idea. He’d almost left in a huff, thinking of going alone, but when he thought it through—yeah, something he wasn’t used to doing—he realized the futility of it. She loved Erasmus. And he loved her. And only two people that connected would be willing to die for the other. It made him sick to his stomach, not just her sacrifice…but that he finally realized he had never been in love with her. Not like that.

  He sat alone in a corner, growing his nails into claws and retracting them again. He cast a glance at Ed, who was looking completely miserable. First Kylie and then Shabiri. That guy sure knew how to pick them.

  Finally, Jeff couldn’t stand it anymore. He jumped to his feet. “Look, Doc.” Everyone stopped talking and turned toward him. “It comes down to the basics. Can we use that crossbow?”

  Doc, who had aged plenty in the last few days, pondered it. “I should think we could use it, wound the creatures. But without Kylie’s abilities, we have no hope of defeating them completely.”

  “But we might slow them down,” said Doug. “Bob,” he said, turning to his fellow Ordo member, “do you want to see if you can find my flamethrower? It’s in the shed at my place. And I think it’s untouched.”

  “If I can borrow a car,” he said, rising.

  “I’ll take you,” said Nick, surprising Jeff for only a moment. He could tell that Nick was letting the wolf take over. The wolf had no fear. Jeff had been letting it do the thinking for him, too.

  They left and Jeff paced again. “We’re not on a rescue mission anymore,” said Jeff. “I get it. We have to stop talking about spells and enchantments that won’t do any good. We have to concentrate our efforts on this world. Because…” He took a breath. “Kylie and Erasmus…they aren’t coming back.”

  “No!” said Jolene, jumping to her feet. “They are! Kylie will find a way.”

  “Look, kid, I wanted to have hope as much as you, but the reality is, she isn’t coming back. She knew it all along. She told me as much days ago. Now it’s up to us. I think we have to call our auxiliary coven back here to get our defenses up. It’s Halloween and you know what that means. Just because the book isn’t physically here anymore doesn’t mean all hell won’t break loose.”

  Very slowly, Doc stood. “Jeff is right. We must accept the sorry fact of it.” He put a comforting arm around Jolene’s shoulders and gave her a squeeze before he released her. “And I’ve been thinking too. We’ve been ignoring something very important. Remember what Kylie’s grandpa said? He said we must ‘close the door.’ And he said the same thing in his writings. We’ve been thinking of the book all this time, and even if Kylie or Erasmus do end up destroying the book—and it will close in any case…” They all knew what he meant. “We’ve still got that rift on our hands.”

  “That’s right,” said Seraphina, tapping her purple lips. “The least we can do is close that rift. Who knows what might come through if Baphomet finds it.”

  Jolene was still standing in the middle of the room with old tear streaks on her face. She was really just a kid. Jeff thought it was horrible bringing her into these life or death decisions, but she was probably the smartest one there next to Doc, and they needed her.

  “Jolene,” he said as kindly as he could. He knew Human Jeff still had enough charisma to break through her defenses. It seemed to be working; she was looking at him with a little less confusion. “We need to start researching how to close the rift. That’s our next important task.”

  Slowly, she nodded. “Okay. You’re right.” With new purpose, she sat and clutched her tablet like her life depended on it, then dove in.

  Doc gave Jeff a grateful look. “I believe I have some books on the subject. I’ll have to go back home for them.”

  “I’ll take you,” said Ed. God knew how long Ed had stayed awake. He looked exhausted, but there was no telling him to rest. He’d rest when he could.

  That left only Seraphina, Doug, and Charise.

  “We’ve got two things to do,” said Jeff. He couldn’t believe he was actually taking charge. It wasn’t his thing. Not by a long shot. But desperate times, he guessed. “We’ve got to prepare for the next Baphomet attack. I don’t th
ink those colorful flutters are going to scare him away again. And we’ve got to be ready for the next things that come out of the book.”

  “I’ve been thinking about that,” said Doug. “When Bob brings back my flamethrower, I think we can add a few new enchantments to it. Fire is a pure element so it’s useful on these creatures. But enchanted fire is even better.”

  Charise tentatively raised her hand. They all looked at her. She had been pretty mouse-like since the Ordo had surrendered to the coven. “I had an idea. Jolene helped me research it,” she said as meekly as Jeff had ever heard her. “Since we can’t kill them without Kylie, maybe we can temporarily contain them with magic? You know, like a salt circle?”

  Doug looked at her askance. “You thought of that?”

  “Yeah. I mean, we should be able to. In something as simple as a ceramic jar. There are plenty of those here in the shop.”

  “Darlin’, you’re a genius!” Doug grabbed her and kissed her, but she shied away from it. She’d been trying to get his attention all this time, but she had finally discovered Bob. It had been a weird few days, Jeff decided.

  “Let’s do it!” said Doug. “What do we need, Charise?”

  She glanced toward the buffet where Kylie used a lot of decorative glass jars, but she also had shelves filled with ginger jars. “We’ll have to empty those.”

  “No problem,” said Jeff and walked over behind the counter. Kylie had stepped it up from Jeff’s shop and arranged the place just so, catering to a more upper-class clientele. Jeff’s place was at the beach, only a few blocks up from the strand. He targeted a more down-to-earth customer. It was more head shop than tea, but it worked.

  With a silent apology to Kylie, he grabbed the first jar, took off the lid, and dumped the contents into a large wooden bowl on the buffet. He set that jar aside and grabbed the next one.

  Charise picked it up and looked inside. “We’ve got to put salt in these. Just enough to cover the bottom.”

  Doug was on it. Jeff had really hated those guys, but in the last few days they’d all become one happy coven. Comrades in arms. It, too, had been weird.

  “And then,” Charise went on, “Jolene printed out this incantation. We say it when we’ve got a creature cornered or wounded or whatever, and then we bring an open jar. Once it disappears, we snap on the lid. She said duct tape would be good to keep it closed so we don’t accidentally knock it over.” She looked to Jolene to confirm, but the teen was already immersed in research.

  “I’m sure there’s some duct tape in the kitchen,” said Jeff, dumping more expensive herbs into the big bowl. It was too bad they hadn’t thought of this idea before. It might have saved Kylie a lot of trouble. He couldn’t stop the stinging in his eyes when he thought of her. He kept his head down and worked faster.

  A car pulled up outside. Looked like Doc had returned alone in his Rambler. Nick and Bob pulled up, too, and then more cars began showing up. The cavalry had arrived.

  The auxiliary coven came into the shop, two, three at a time, and as they crowded in, Doc had them settle where they could find a place. “We thank you all for coming when called. It’s important to let you know that things have changed. Kylie…well, Kylie went on a dangerous mission to destroy the book for good and…and she…” He stopped, choked up, and covered his eyes with his hand.

  Seraphina stepped up and put her arms around him. “Kylie’s making a sacrifice. And if we don’t want it to be in vain, we have to work extra hard and do what she would have done had she been able to stay.”

  The villagers exchanged worried looks with one another.

  “Some of you will have to help us the next time Baphomet comes back,” she went on. “But even though the Booke of the Hidden isn’t here, it’s going to cause trouble.”

  “That’s why we’re getting these jars ready,” said Jeff. “We can’t kill whatever creature comes out of the book like Kylie could’ve, but we can trap them in these jars. We’ll teach you the incantations and give them to you for your patrols.”

  “And then the rest of us have to close a dangerous singularity,” said Seraphina. “But we’ll leave that to the original coven. I’m sure now that Doug has his flamethrower, he’s anxious to get the book’s creatures.”

  “You’d better believe it!” he crowed, strapping the thing on.

  Jeff cringed, thinking he might set it off inside, but Doug wasn’t that stupid. The Ordo leader waved some of the heartier souls to him. “Come on, boys. I’ll give you a demo.”

  Some left to go outside with Doug, who sparked the flamethrower off. Still others followed Charise’s instructions to fill the empty jars with a thin layer of salt. They stuffed them into Strange Herbs & Teas shopping bags, divided into their patrol groups, and took off into different directions.

  Doug had taken several men with him to hunt. Jeff watched through the window as they disappeared into the woods. It was where all the trouble seemed to end up.

  Inside, Doc and Jolene conferred over ancient books and modern tablet on how to close a rift.

  Jeff leaned back against the buffet. With most of the coven and townsfolk working together, he had a moment to watch them all. He almost felt they could do it. There was the slimmest chance. But now that both demons were gone and Kylie too, he worried there wasn’t enough supernatural help. Even though he was part demon, he didn’t have the chops to understand the paranormal world. He could shift if necessary, but that was all he could do.

  The police interceptor rolled in and George got out. Nick rushed outside to greet him. There was no more hiding in the closet for the deputy, Jeff noted, since Nick had him in a full-on lip lock right outside in front of everyone. And no one had even noticed.

  Nick dragged him inside the shop, talking rapidly about their plans. When George slid his gaze toward Jeff, they exchanged chin tilt greetings.

  “So we have to go to that cave again?” George asked.

  “That’s where they’re keeping the rift,” said Jeff.

  “But…before we had Erasmus to help us through the caverns. How will we get through it now?”

  “I can do it,” said Nick and Jeff at the same time.

  “Jinx,” said Nick with a smile. “Anyway, Jeff and I have wolf powers. We can get in and out, no problem.”

  “Oh.” George looked worriedly toward Nick. “I suppose it’s dangerous.”

  “It’s very dangerous,” said Jolene, eyes still glued to her tablet. “If we do it wrong, we run the risk of opening it wider. But I know we can do it.”

  Nick ran his hand up through his already messed-up hair. “Oh. Good.”

  Two by two, the coven patrols left on their book creature rounds, ginger jars under their arms. So far, there had only been one report of someone getting killed by a book creature. Those seemed like better odds than before, but then again, Kylie had still been there.

  “What do you suppose—” Jeff began, but a flash outside interrupted him. They all ran to the window.

  It was a giant snake with wings and two little arms. It glowed with a fluctuating light, its long tail-like body squirming and coiling in the air.

  “That’s a thing from the book, right?” said Jeff. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of it.

  “A lindworm,” said Jolene. “Yeah, it’s a fair bet it’s from the book.”

  No one moved. Jeff felt his hairs stand up, like he wanted, needed to shift. “So now what?”

  Jolene pressed her face to the glass. “Someone’s still got to wound it, otherwise we can’t get it into the jar.”

  Still, no one moved. Jeff turned to Nick. They were really the best choice. “Should I?” he said to Nick, even as he could see hair sprouting on the back of Nick’s hands.

  Something flashed forward. A glint of steel as a figure rushed toward the lindworm. A sword? Sure, why not? Jeff mused. Try as he might, he couldn’t see their face under the hood, but it had to be a villager. The swordsman slashed at the lindworm, even as the beast snapped its jaws. It
tried to coil around the figure, but the assailant swung the sword around on their wrist with a swoop like a Ninja and slashed down. Quick as lightning, part of the creature’s tail spun away. The lindworm howled and coiled its injured tail inward. But now it looked angry. Its glow was a burnt red as it flicked its forked tongue and gathered itself to strike. The figure swung again, at the head this time, but only managed to nip off the tip of its nose.

  The lindworm struck, jaws wide, fangs bared. But the figure wasn’t there. They had managed to leap aside, and when the neck of the lindworm was extended to its fullest, the sword came down and cut through its spine like butter. The head rolled off, jaws still biting, as the rest of the body jerked into a tight loop of rope. Rays of light shot out in all directions from the beast. It slithered in its death agonies as more and more light shot out of it.

  Jolene stepped forward and opened the door. “We’ve got to do it, just in case!” She raised her hands and cried, “Ego te capere!”

  Nick stood ready beside her with a jar, his arm wrapped around it. The three pieces of lindworm squirmed, trying to get away. But even as it stretched in the opposite direction it began to elongate. Light burst forth from the ginger jar; the lindworm was sucked slowly toward it like a giant vacuum. All at once it snapped inside the jar and Nick slammed down the lid.

  The jar jumped in his arm once and settled down. He looked around. “I…I think we got it!” He kept his hand firmly on the lid. “Someone get me the duct tape.” Seraphina handed it over, but Nick urged her to do the honors. “What happens if we drop the jar and it breaks?”

  Jolene shook her head solemnly. “Don’t.”

  Jeff was slowly walking toward the door. “Who is that? Kylie?”

  It was a woman, for sure. Her back was still to the windows. And she was still in the posture of having cut off the lindworm’s head. Her legs in a lunge, elbows crooked, sword upward. She straightened and lowered the sword, black gunk dripping down the blade. She was wearing fatigue cargo pants and what looked like an army-issue olive sweater with a leather patch on one shoulder where one would rest a gun stock.