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However,thatholewasinthefloorofaroom.Inowregardedthisroomwith curiosity.IlookedforRosenberg,buthescurriedoffintoacornerbehindme.
Scurried?Yes,that’swhatitlookedlike,peripherally:likeascarytarantula scurryingoff.ButIthoughtthatitwasprobablyjusttheshadowofaspidercast onthewallbythelightofoneoftheseveraltorchesthatweresetintoholders alongtheperipheryneartheceiling.Isawnootherpeople,butallfourofthe cornersofthechamberweredark,soIcouldn’tbesure.Idecidedtocallfor Rosenberg.
“Mr.Rosenberg?Areyouhere?”
“NoPamela,”saidavoicefrombehindme.Itwasafamiliarone,yetunlikeany otherIhadheardwithmyearsbefore.Itwascomingfromthecornerbehindme whereRosenberghadscurried.
“No,Rosenbergisssssnotinh‐h‐h‐here.H‐h‐h‐h‐he’safraidtocomeinhere.I amnotyourjailer.Iamyourfriend.AndIamalsoinprison.Ih‐h‐h‐h‐havebeen h‐h‐h‐hereforcountlessaeonssssss.Oratleast,theyarecountlesssssstoyou.”
“Isawyourface,”Isaid,thoughIknewIwaswrong.“WhenIfirstcamedown.
IsawRosenberg.”
“Youfeelh‐h‐h‐h‐hispresencccccebecauseh‐h‐h‐h‐he’swatching.Andwhen
yousawmyface,itwasss‐s‐s‐soss‐s‐s‐s‐hockingthatyourmindimmediately pastedoveritwiththelastoneyouh‐h‐h‐hads‐s‐s‐s‐seen.”
Thevoicewassoodd.Itwaslikespeakingtosomeonewithatracheostomy.It wasatonal,gritty,andgasping,withthesoundofairbeingsuckedthroughahole thatwasbeingpluggedupeveryfewseconds.
“Soletmeseeyourrealface,”Isaid.
“Areyous‐s‐s‐s‐sure?”thevoicegaspedominously.
Awaveofrenewedfearwashedoverme.SuddenlyIwasfilledwith apprehension.
“Yeah,sure,”Isaid,clearlyunsure.
Still,Ihadagreed.Theproverbialfootwasinthedoor.
Iheardarustlingsound,likethesoundIrememberfrommychildhoodofthe animalsgettinguptogreetmewhenIfirstwalkedintothebarnatthecrackof dawn.
MyeyesnowwidenedwithterrorasIsawtwofeetstepoutoftheshadows towardsme,trailingbitsofstrawintheirwake.Theymovedinadisjointed manner,scrapingthestonefloorunderneathastheywent.Theywerewhitewith circularcutsmadearoundeachoftheankles.ButIsawthattheywereboth curvedontheright,likehumanleftfeetnormallyare,whichIfoundquite unnerving.Furthermore,theoneonmyrightlookedlikethatofanadultmale, withblackhaironthebigtoe.Theoneonmylefthadtheappearanceawoman’s foot,butwasunusuallylarge—adescriptionthatcouldhaveappliedtothefeetI hadoncepossessed,justadayandahalfprevious.
Butthenthecreaturerotateditsbodyaquarter‐turntowardsme,andanotherfoot emergedontheotherside,behindwhichIdetectedyetanother.Allfour,jutting outfromthesidesofthiscreature’sbody,boretheanklecuts,andIsawthatthey wereallattachedtolegsthatwereclearlynottheiroriginalpartners.Yetitwas whattheselegswereattachedtothatwasmostunthinkable.
ItwasnowonderthatmymindhadpastedoveritwithapictureofRosenberg whenmyabusedandbewilderedeyesfirstbeheldthisvisage.
WhatIwaslookingatwasn’texactlyatrinacria,likethepaintingwehadseenat OzPizza.Butofcoursethereweresimilarities.Theheadinthecenterhadthe pallor,leatherylipsandsunkeneyesocketofonehavingbeenpreservedafter lyingdeadforaday—notthatofayoungboyhappytobeofserviceasatable leg.
Isay“eyesocket”inthesingulartorefertothecasingaroundthelefteye,which waspreserved.Thelefteyesocketwascoveredwithablackeyepatch.
Likeapirate,Ithought,asIstareddowninhorroratthemonstrosity. Or the piratemascot,theJollyRoger.
ButitwasalsoreminiscentoftheEgyptiansymboloftheEyeofHorus,pierced inmythicbattlebyhisbrotherSeth.Alongredlineendinginaspiral,withthe curvatureandproportionsofaFibonaccispiral,butlookingsomethinglikea shepherd’scrook,wastrailingoutofthecorneroftheeye,havingbeencarved intotheflesh.
Asthecreature,clearlyartificialthoughorganic,shambledtherestofitsbody outtowardsme,Isawthefullnessofwhattheheadandlegs(actuallyfivein total)wereattachedto.
Themainbodywastoppedbyabulbousballoonoffleshstretchedouttothe pointofpartialtranslucency,likeafrogthat’sbeeninflatedbyasadisticlittle boywithastrawinsertedintoitsrectum.Anotherlivingcreaturecouldbeseen inside,redinappearancewhenviewedthroughtheveilofpinkskin.Ontop,I sawwhatatIatfirsttooktobeablowhole.Butthenwhenthecreaturetooka stepcloser,Ideterminedthatitwasn’treallyanopening—notanymore.Itwas theformerentry‐pointforafeedingtube:anavel.
WhatIwaslookingatwasawhitehumantorso,small,adolescent,yetfemale andpregnant,withthebellypointedupward,sothatitlookedabitlikethe abdomenofablood‐swollentick.Butthereweretwolumpsinthebelly,one slightlysmaller,sothatitalsoresembledatwo‐humpedcamel.Attachedtothis, withbarelyanyneck,wastheheadofamiddle‐agedwhitemanwithbrownhair, pointedforward.Onthebottomwerethefivelegs—yes,fiveactually—each connectedtofivefeettakenfromotherbodies.
Yousee,thereweretwolegsontheleft,andtwoontheright.ButnowIcould seethattherewasanotheroneinthebackthatactedasasortofkickstand,
allowingthemonstertokneeldownbackwardswithitsbuttpointingdownward.
Whenthecreatureturneditselfaroundagainintheprocessofwalkinguptoface me,Isawitspudendaandanusfromtheback,bothenlargedandmakinga schloppingsoundasitwalked.Theanus,ofcourse,wasalsoenlarged,through abuse.
ThisisPhilippine’swomb,Ithought. AndtheheadmustbethatofPindar, skullfuckedthroughthelefteye.
Thentherewasthematterofthefeet.Iwasn’tsurewhotheothersbelongedto, butIcertainlyrecognizedtheonesontherightasmine.
OhYes! Ithoughtasmymindfinallymadetheconnection. Myfeet!Maybe ifI getoutofherealivesomehow,Icanhavethemreattachedsomehow!
“Doyouh‐h‐h‐h‐h‐havethekeyssssstone?”thecreature’svoicehissed.
“Haveit?”Isaid.“No.IthinkIsawitinthedoorwaythough.”
“Whichdoorway?”itasked.
“Thearchmadewithtwelvestonebricksandareddiamondkeystoneontop,”I answered.
“TheArchKeeeria,”thehellishvoiceresponded.“TheOuterDoorway.
That’sssssit.”
Irecognizedthisterm.ItwassomethingIhadn’tthoughtofinmanyyears.
Butalmostfifteenyearsearlier,IhadpublishedabookaboutaFrenchsecret societycalledthePrioryofSion.“ArchKyria”wasthenameoftheirinnerorder, whichtheyalsocalledthe“Archofthe13Rose‐Croix.”Nobodyhasever determinedthesignificanceoftheterm.“Kyria”mightbeconnectedto“Kyrie,”
aGreekwordmeaning“Lord.”Butthisdoesn’tseemtoelucidatethemeaning much.
“Didits‐s‐s‐s‐s‐speaktoyou?”thethingasked.
“Yes,”Isaid.“Itaskedmesomequestions.Ittoldmetoputmyhandsupand identifymyself.”
“Good,”itresponded.“Thatmeansthatit’sclosssssse.”
“Whatdoyouwantwithit?”Iasked.
“Iwanttoberelievedofmyburden,”itsaid.“Iwanttogetoutfromunder thisssssweightwithouteverythingcollapsssssingontopofme.The keysssssstone’sjobistotakemyplacccce,sothatImayassssscendoncccce againtomyrightfulabode.”
“Andwhereareyounow?”Iasked.Isaid“you”becauseIhaddecidedIdidn’t reallybelievethatthiscreatureandIwereactuallyoccupyingthesamephysical roomatthesametime.
“InTartarusssss,”itreplied.“Inthec‐c‐c‐c‐centerofeverything,be
aringthe weightofitall.”
“SoisthatwhatyouwantRosenbergfor?”Isaid.“Areyoutryingtogethimto takeyourplace?Haveyoubeengroominghimforthatwithyourpsychic manipulations?Andme?”
IwasprettysureIwaslookingatthethingthathadbeentalkingtome psychicallyfortheprevioustwodays.Oratleast,Ifeltthatthepossessing intelligencewasthesame,andthattheheadinparticularhadbeenusedasits vesselortouchpointthiswholetime.Theadditionoftheotherbodypartswas clearlymorerecent.
“Weareallplayingourrole,”thecreaturesaid.“Nowyoudoyoursssss, Caducccccifer.”
Itturneditshideousbacksidetowardsmeandschluffedoffbackintoitsstraw bedinthecorner.
“Whendoyougivebirth?”Iasked.
“Eassssstermorning,”camethereply.
“Youmeantoday?”Isaid.“Now?”
“Almosssst,”itanswered.ThenIheardthelidofthechamberbehindmeopen.I felttheropesbeingtuggedonfromabove,andjustassuddenlyasIhadentered, Ifoundmyselfontheoutsideofthatroom.Orrather,ontheoutsideof some room.I’mstillnotsureifitwasreallythesameone.
Chapter24:OperaofthePhantom
There’savoidoutsideof
Existence,whichifenteredinto,
Englobesitselfandbecomesawomb;
suchwasAlbion’scouch.
—WilliamBlake, Jerusalem
Sointheblinkofaneye,Iwasbackinmywheelchair,attheverybottomofthe spiralramprunningthroughthemainbuildingofRosenbergPlaza,atleastone floorunderground.Rosenbergwasbehindmeagain.Thedigitalceilinglightwas onhere.Wewereinfrontofaroommarkedwiththenumber“27”andaplacard thatsaid“Rrecycling.”Beneaththiswasthetypicaltriquetrarecyclingsymbol, butwithapinkhappyfaceemojiinthecenter.Thedeliberateresemblancetothe trinacriawasobvious.
“What’sthis?”Iasked.
“WhatIcall‘theKitchen.’It’stheroomwhereweoperate‘theHellbroth Gradalis.’It’stheheartofthePlaza’salembicsystem,andtheplacewherewe makethingsintootherthings.Ofcourse,it’sconnectedtotheuniversalsystem.”
HetookDennis’keysetoutofmyhandsandselectedakeymarked“27,”
whichhetheninsertedintothedoor.Heopenedit,andwedescendeddowna simple,straightcementramppaintedbabyblue,intoahallway.Itwaslit brightly,notbythedigitalceiling,butbyregularwhitefluorescenttubelights, likeyouwouldfindinanynormalcommercialproperty.Theairwashumidand hot.Thesmellofsulphuricacidremindedmeofvisitingthehotgeysersat YellowstonePark.
Wereachedabendintherampandtookaright,thenanotherimmediately,togo downasecondcementramp.Itwasopenontheleftside,exceptforaniron railing,andyoucouldseearoombelow.Thewallsoftheroomweremadeof brickandpaintedwhite.Aseriesoflargemetalcontainerswrappedaroundthree oftheroom’sfourwalls(thespaceagainstthefourthwallbeingtakenupmostly bytheramp).
Comingfromnoscientificbackground,severalofthesecontainerslookedtome likelargewaterheaters,orthebigtanksI’dseenatbreweries.Theywereall connectedtoeachother,andtothewallsandceilings,withpipes.Therewas eithersmokeorsteamcomingoutsomeofthemthroughotherpipes,someof whichwereopen,andsomeofwhichwereconnectedtotheothervessels.I realizedthatthiswasthesourceofthesulphuricacidsmell.
Aswecontinueddowntheramp,IthoughtIalsorecognizedtheodorofpork beingboiled.ButthenIfiguredoutthateverythingIwassmellingwascoming fromassortedhumanbodypartsandfluidsbeingputthroughvariousprocesses ofputrefaction,rendering,anddistillation.IbecamecertainofthiswhenIsaw, justtotheleftofwheretherampended,thedoortoalargemeatfreezer.
Throughthewindowonthedoor,onecouldseethebodiesandseveredpartsof people,mostlychildren,hangingfromtheceilingonmeathooks.
Atthebottomoftheramp,onthewalltomyright,therewasaseriesofframed pagesfrommedievalilluminatedmanuscripts.Oneshowedawomanstanding overananvilwithababylayingonit,heranvilraisedhigh,readytostrike.
Aroundtheanvilwerescatteredhumanbodyparts.Nexttoherwasaflaming forgemadeoutofbrownbrickswithsomeofthesebodypartsstickinghalfway outofthefire,andabroomonthemantleforsweepingupashes.Itwas obviouslyasymbolicportrayalofrenewaloflifethroughdeath,beingusedhere asashorthanddepictionofwhatwasliterallygoingoninthatveryroom.
Theotherframedpagesshowed:amanhammeringoutastatue—
seemingly—ofanakedwoman;arealnakedwomanlyingonthegroundbeing evisceratedwithaknifebyamanwhileanotherholdsherdown,infrontof severalmenthatlooklikepriestsorpotentatesofsomesort;asmallenclosed rosegarden,fromwhichariverissuedforth,andforkedoffintotwostreams;an
oldbeardedmanlyingonabed,beingcastratedwithasicklebyayounger beardedman;and,acrownedwomanfallingontoaswordthatpiercedherchest, inamanneridenticaltothewayinwhichMarciaMartinahaddied.
Irecognizedthestatue‐chiselingimageasbelongingtoabizarremedieval allegorycalled TheRomanceoftheRose,whichIhadneverreadorlookedat much.Ihadlearnedaboutthatoneimageonlybyreadingabouttheinfluences forJeanCocteau’s1930film BloodofaPoet,inwhichanartistmakesastatue ofawomanthatcomestolife,justlikeintheGreekmythofPygmalionand Galatea.I
havesincedeterminedthatallofthepicturesonthatwallwerefromthesame book.Theseweretheonlythingsmountedonthewalls,exceptforafewsigns listingsafetyrulesandprocedures.
ItwasonlywhenIgotpastthewallhangingsandturnedaroundthatIgotagood viewofallofthestuffintheroom.Thesizesandshapesofthemetaltanks varied,asdidthemetalsthattheywereconstructedfrom.IamprettysurethatI canidentifythesemetals.Thelargestone,placedagainstthewalltotheleftof thefreezerdoor,wasencasedinadull‐graylead.Thenext‐largest,totheleftof thepreviousone,againstthewalloppositetheramp,wasatincylinderalmostas tallastheceiling.
Totheleftofthiswasanlarge,squareironforgeencasedinredbricksthathad beenputtogethertolooklikealittlecastle.Thisthenpipedsmokeintoalarge copperretorttotheleftofit,againstthenextwall,oppositethelead-covered tank.Theretortwasalsoconnectedontheotherside,viaanotherpipethatran diagonallyfromthecorner,totwoball‐shapedchambers—onesilverandone gold.Thesewereconnectedbyclearglasstubestothelargegreenglassvessel thatdominatedtheroom,soontobedescribedindetail.
Inadditiontotheseitems,anemergencyeyewashandshowerstationwas situatedinthecornerbetweentheleadandtintanks,beneaththepipethatran alongthewallconnectingthetwo.Itwasayellowboxwithawindow,slightly largerthanaphonebooth.Thenbetweenthetinandcoppervessels,again beneaththeconnectingpipeonthewall,werethreealuminumshelves,which wererightinfrontofmyfaceasIturnedofftherampintotheroom.Thesewere mountedtothewallfromwaist‐heighttoshoulder‐height.Thereweredozensof smallglassvasesandbottlesontheseshelves,filledwithvariousfluids.Some hadpastesorpowderswithinthem.Beneaththiswasthedoorofasmall refrigeratorwithoneshelf.Onthebottom,ahumanhandandforearmwas visible.OntheshelfwereTupperware‐typeboxes.Onewaslabeled“Peepee-roni,”andtheother,“SlicedPeepee‐roni.”
Millingabouttheseapplianceswereacoupledozenpeople,performinga numberoftaskswithscientificequipmentmountedonmetalrollingtrays (amongwhichIidentifiedacentrifugeforspinningtesttubes,andtwo electrolysismachines).Irecognizedmanyofthepeoplefromeitherthepost-ritualgathering
atthePlazathepreviousnight,orfromRosenberg’sspeechatthe mithraeum openingthedaybefore.Atthecenteroftheroomwasanotherdissectiontable, withdismemberedhumanbodypartsonitand,ofallt
hings,asewingmachine.
Seatedatthistable,onametalstoolwitharedleatherseat,wasnoneotherthan Consivia,wearingcleanwhiteclericalvestments,similartowhatshehadworn thenightbefore,butwithoutthecorkhat.Shewasusingthesewingmachineto dosomethingtothelumpsoffleshinfrontofher.AtfirstIcouldonlyseeher backandthesewingmachine.Icouldn’tseethebodypartsclearly.
“What’sgoingonhere?”Isaid.
“NatureatherForge,”saidRosenberg.
“Seemsartificialtome,”Isaid.
“Natureisanartificer,”hereplied.“Andnowweknowherrecipe.”
WhateverConsiviawasdoing,shewaswrappingitup—literally,inablackcloth
—andhandingittoamaninawhitejacketbythetimeIgotcloseenoughtosee thetableinfrontofher.Butbythen,myfocushadturnedtoobjectnearthewall thatwasnowfurthestawayfromme,whichappearedtobethemainvessel withinthewholesystem.Itwasmadeofclearglass,vase‐shaped,withalong neckontopthatreachedtotheceiling,whichsealeditontop,andabigbulbous bowlatthebottom.Itwasfullofclearliquiduptothebaseoftheneck.
Ontherightandleftsides,hookah‐liketubeswithnozzlesonthemwerehanging downacoupleoffeetlowerthanthebottomofthevessel,whichwasitselfabout fourfeetofftheground.Iknewthatthiswasthe“Gradalis”thatRosenberghad mentioned,aLatinwordforadishthatwasusedtoservemulti-coursedmealsin medievaltimes(alsocalleda satura,interestingly).Manyetymologiststhought thatthiswordmightberelatedtothegenesisoftheterm
“Grail”(asin“HolyGrail”).ThetubesremindedmeofancientMesopotamian depictionsoftheTreeofLife,whichdepictgodscollectingnectarfromthe
“tree”
throughsimilarhoses.
AnotherinterestingaspectoftheGradaliswashowitwasbeingheldupright.