by Richard Hein
Kate and Daniel froze, like their batteries had both run out simultaneously. Both heads turned toward the fountain, toward the slender figure leaning against the dry stone. Sanctuary straightened and offered a bow, one arm sweeping out wide to the side, opposite foot sliding back.
“It’s a pleasure to make proper introductions,” it said. “Given how you’ve been wandering around inside my dream.”
“Proves nothing,” Daniel said, sounding rather surly. “You’re just the demon in Samuel’s mind.”
Sanctuary straightened its sleeves and hung its hands on its lapels. “Have you ever, in your entire tenure, seen a possession project itself? You’re inside my mind, my waking slumber. You can see me because I will it to be so.”
Sanctuary walked a slow circuit around Daniel. “Now. Let’s get on to some proof, shall we? Things that Samuel couldn’t possibly know, but I naturally would as I’m here at all times. Tell me, Daniel. Do you recall the time that Kseniya returned from her mission to Germany, and in your haste to impress her you dumped coffee all over her?
“Followed by the dinner you tried to bring her,” Sanctuary continued. “Dumped right into her lap.” Its footsteps echoed on the cobble that made up the courtyard as he wove a little circle around Daniel and then stopped to lean against a street lamp that looked like a giant child had twisted it up in anger. “To be fair, a stale bagel and half a donut hardly counts as dinner, but the fact remains that cream cheese…”
“Stop,” Daniel said darkly. “I don’t know how you could know that, Samuel, but you can’t…”
“Wait, no, keep going,” Kate said, grinning. She leaned her elbows on the encasing crystal and watched with sparkling blue eyes, apparently unconcerned at being trapped from the waist down. “I want to hear this.”
“Let’s see,” Sanctuary said. It stuffed hands into the pockets of its suit and let its head drift back, watching the spinning crystals above. “There’s a book in Samuel’s office, a journal of sorts kept by Christina and Frederick and all those that came before since we teamed up to give the OFC a new home. It chronicles my involvement and little, delicious secrets that aren’t appropriate for the general rank and file.”
I stared at Sanctuary. “What? Why haven’t I seen that?”
Sanctuary sniffed. “It’s a privilege to enter words in that tome, Samuel. You have yet to prove yourself worthy. Being the eldest surviving member a leader does not make. Also you didn’t say ‘please’.”
Kate clucked her tongue. “No, that’s inadmissible evidence. I’m still poring through all the handbooks, but I’m sure that someone possessed is immune to the problems with magic.”
“That’s kinda why we’re having this conversation,” I growled.
Kate waved a dismissive hand. “There’s nothing to say this book isn’t a complete fabrication. Infinite universes, and in one there could be a billion planets all with a billion libraries stuffed with copies of this made up book.” She wiggled her fingers. “A little magic, merge that book into our reality.”
She tapped a finger thoughtfully against a cheek. “Now I kinda want to see these alternate realities where the Dune series didn’t go off the rails.”
“Screw you,” I said. “God Emperor of Dune rocks.”
Sanctuary sighed and straightened, smoothing its impeccable suit as it spun and lifted hands high above its head. Though the streets of Sanctuary were perpetually dark, the blackness crowded in. Twisted buildings faded as the night pressed in all around us until it looked as if we stood on an island of stone amid a sea of nothingness. Kate twisted, eyes wide.
Sanctuary gestured. Fingers blurred as the slumbering Entity gestured at the blackened sky above. With each twitch, each subtle movement of a digit, the amethyst crystals tumbling through the void suddenly glowed, their haunting hum changing to a series of thunderous notes. Sanctuary played a symphony in the sky, building-sized hunks of crystal flaring to life and singing out their notes. The three of us fell silent as the concert waged on, every gaze caught with enrapt awe at the spectacle. My breath caught and hissed out as I forgot to breathe. It was beautiful in a way no other music had ever been though it was both haunting and familiar at the same time.
Finally the Entity lowered its hands, the last notes hammering through my chest. The night above returned to normal, a ring of twisting crystal humming just at the edge of hearing. I pulled in a shuddering breath and ripped my gaze away. Kate’s eyes were wet. Daniel’s gaze was downcast, eyes wide and unseeing.
“What was that?” Daniel asked. “It was, ah, transcendent.”
I grinned. “The greatest song ever. Don’t Stop Believing by Journey.”
“The greatest song would be Thunderstruck,” Kate said.
“What? That's absurd.”
“No more absurd than your fixation with hair metal.”
Sanctuary coughed pointedly and gave a little bow. The darkness billowed away, leaving us once more standing in the demented streets of a faux-London. “Something I found rattling around in your mind. Now. The point of this little demonstration is that I am Sanctuary, and this little realm is my cozy little dream, of which I am allowing to you to use.” It rocked up onto its toes, hands on lapels, looking as smug as I’d ever seen it.
“I’m not saying I’m convinced,” Kate said, “but maybe losing the crystal pants here would help a little.”
Sanctuary blushed. Between blinks the encasing material vanished. Kate gave an approving nod.
“Okay, time to put all the cards on the table,” I said, crossing my arms and leveling my most serious gaze onto Daniel. “If you’re going to kill me, let’s get it over with. If you still think I’m under the thrall of some nasty outsider, well, I won’t convince you after all that.” I hooked a thumb at Sanctuary. “And as soon as you’ve put the bullet in my head, you’re going to find out just how wrong you were when that hangs around in your noggin.”
Daniel’s head came up slowly. He regarded me for a few moments, devoid of emotion. Apparently deciding something, he strode up to me, shoulders squared, looking me dead in the eyes. My heart thundered. No matter what happened, Daniel was no longer the kid I’d known those years ago. He’d grown up into a man I’d have been glad to call my friend and coworker.
Had he not been planning my demise, anyway.
“I don’t like it,” Daniel said. “I don’t care if you have an excuse, Samuel. It doesn’t matter that the creature of this realm lives in your head, even if it did the same to Christina. You use magic. It’s wrong. I don’t care if you can use it in what you feel is a safe way, it goes against what we fight for. To stand against the darkness. To be apart from it.”
Shame washed through me. I knew he was right, but it was that or death, and I didn’t relish the latter option. It wasn’t something I was using to open my sodas or anything. Without it I would have died, and as long as I had a modicum of protection it wasn’t a sin to use in the most dire of circumstances. If I could figure out whether Norman Lockyer’s little trick was without risk, I’d soon be free of Lauren and it’d all become moot.
“Fair enough,” I said with a nod. “Which kinda leads into the next topic of conversation which has nothing to do with putting bullets anywhere near or in my head — the future of the organization.”
Sanctuary stretched. “I’ll take my cue here and make myself scarce. You humans go about with your cute little machinations and scheming without me.”
It vanished, leaving us alone in the courtyard. We all stared at the spot now vacated.
“I need you guys,” I said, not daring to look at either of them. “Daniel, that’s you too. I get you don’t like what I’ve done, and I understand that. But I need you on my team here.”
“That must have cost you a lot to say,” Kate said. “Samuel Walker doesn’t admit he can’t do it all solo.”
“Hey, this is the new and improved model,” I said. “Now that I’m in charge I’ve had to reassess a lot of things.” I glanced at Daniel. “Ar
e we going to have a problem?”
Daniel rubbed a finger beside his nose. “I’m still a member of this organization. Whatever it is now, anyway. I’m devoted to the OFC.”
I grinned and clapped him on a shoulder.
He shrugged me off. “Just… stop using magic. I don’t care how you excuse it in your mind. It’s wrong. You’ll note that in her decades of running this place, Christina resorted to magic once, Samuel. And that was just allowing… that thing, Sanctuary, to do it. Magic comes with a price.”
“Yeah, I get that,” I said, nodding. Hell, I even agreed with it. I wouldn’t have used it if my life hadn’t been in danger.
Twice. In one day.
“Come on,” I said, striding toward the large and twisted building that made up the main hall. “I need to put something in my stomach after facing down a gun. I said we would talk like rational adults, and I’m not at all rational without food and coffee.”
I picked at my bagel, crumbling away bits and tossing them in my mouth every so often as I laid out my meeting with Norman Lockyer and his whole little circus attraction, flavored with a side of financial backing. Kate looked more surprised than anything else; Daniel had a thoughtful expression as he sipped at tepid coffee.
“That’s, ah, fascinating,” Daniel said after I’d lapsed into silence. He tossed his cup into a nearby garbage can with practiced ease. I noted he kept throwing guarded glances my way when he didn’t think I was looking. “I mean, I can kind of get my head around it. You’re sure there wasn’t any magic involved?”
“Not entirely, but pretty sure,” I said. “I’m planning on learning more, though. It’s too good of a thing to pass up if it’s all on the up and up. Plus there’s the offer of a partnership. Think of it. Rebuilding the ranks here.”
Daniel shook his head. “I disagree, Samuel. The OFC has always had stringent hiring practices. You said Norman’s father had unorthodox ideas, and it got him killed. I have a vague recollection of reading about him and I’m concerned that the son takes after the father here.”
“We’re not talking about letting them in though, right?” Kate asked. She leaned forward, palms squeaking on the lunchroom-style table as she let her gaze drift between us. “They’re not going to get bound to Sanctuary and have free reign. So what’s the harm in a little team-up action? We give them tips, they give us sweet, sweet money.”
“The Ordo needs to grow again,” Daniel said. I finished my bagel and tossed my plate at the trash can like Daniel had. It caught air, spun, and fluttered to the ground. “It’s been six months. I don’t understand why we haven’t bolstered our ranks. We need to be building ourselves back up, and taking money from someone with heretical ideas means they have leverage on us. In time you know they’ll put pressure on us to do this or that or look the other way on something, and then where are we?”
“Our own private tropical island?” I mused. “You didn’t see this guy’s house. He probably has accountants for his accountants. Lockyer has money to spare.”
“This is no time to be joking, Samuel,” Daniel said, grimacing. “We’re hanging on by a thread here and you’re in charge. How about you do something, then?”
“I’m working on it,” I snapped, voice taut.
Daniel’s face darkened into a glower, but he gave a short nod.
“Besides,” I continued, “we’ve got plenty to do in the short-term. Figure out what Lockyer’s game is. This missing demon I’m working for the Twins.” I snapped my fingers. “I need to look up a book. Daniel, what do you know about… what was it? Vitae Superno? By some guy named Isaac Day.”
Daniel considered. “I recall the title, though not its contents.”
“Well, add that to your list. I need a copy. Maybe I can get Sanctuary to Xerox me one.”
“Don’t forget about figuring how Clayface out there knew where Sanctuary is,” Kate added. “And who sent it.”
“Oh. Oh, I like that.”
“Will you two please stop,” Daniel groaned.
“You’re the boss,” I said, kicking up from the table. “I’m going to go talk to the Twins, see if they can shed any light on Lockyer’s pest control methods and let them know what we found at The Odyssey.”
Daniel made a face. “I don’t like you working with Entities,” he said. “I’m still not convinced that you aren’t a threat yourself.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not a fan of them either, but they have information we don’t, and at this point we can use a leg up. Besides, Christina gave them a pass and we all know you won’t speak up against anything the old boss ever did.”
Daniel flushed.
“I’ll take Kate,” I said. “She can play babysitter and make sure I’m not going to grow a mirror universe goatee.”
“Joy,” Kate muttered as we rose.
“Hey, you’ve got to earn your non-existent pay somehow. Besides, I need a ride. My car got jacked up by a demon.”
“Again,” Daniel smirked.
Chapter 11
It was becoming habit, these awkward rides in silence. Kate drove, not once attempting to engage me in conversation as we wove through afternoon traffic. I watched her out of the corner of my eye the entire time. I’d just dropped a bomb on her and Daniel, and I wasn’t sure how she’d react. Daniel was forged in the traditions of the OFC. The ink that penned the stupid little rules and regulations books likely flowed in his veins, and he was well above the legal limit. Kate, though, had only visited the Ordo once before it had fallen apart, and she herself had a particularly bad experience with things poking around in her head.
She might understand.
Every few minutes she’d rake a finger through her black, short cropped hair and tuck it behind an ear where it wasn’t long enough to hold for long. It was a nervous habit of hers, absentminded and still prevalent despite her new shorter hair.
“You know,” Kate said, shattering the silence, “after what just happened I should ban you from using a phone in a car, even if you’re not driving.”
I frowned. “What?”
She waved a hand at my lap. I glanced down and saw my old flip phone open in one hand.
“Oh,” I said, snapping it shut and stuffing it away. “Sorry. Nervous habit, I guess.”
“Good reason to be nervous.”
I glanced at her. “Yeah?”
“The whole magic thing.”
“Okay, so, lay it on me,” I said. “If you have something to say, just go for it…”
Her fingers tightened on the wheel. “What makes you think I have anything to add to that conversation?”
I dropped an elbow on the door beside me and began to pick at the roof. “Because you’re Kate and the stars will burn out before you don’t have a thought or opinion. Especially for what I’m doing.”
“Maybe I believe you.”
“Well, good. But that’s never stopped you from having something to say.”
The silence twisted back around us. I suppressed a sigh and settled lower in my chair. A few minutes later we’d negotiated the sea of people swirling through the road just before Pike Place Market, turned toward the water, and found a parking spot a few blocks away. Kate killed the engine, but made no move to unbuckle.
“What’s it like?” she asked, turning toward me. “I couldn’t even notice Michael’s touch on my mind. You’re not possessed, but you still have something touching your soul. I’m curious.” Beneath her dark and heavy glasses her blue eyes watched me with a hint of something. Curiosity, maybe.
I took in a slow breath. Of all the things Kate could have tossed at me, I hadn’t expected that. It wasn’t something I wanted to think about too much. Not Sanctuary, and its claims darker days were ahead, and that we had to be ready. Certainly not Lauren and all the crazy crammed into my life when it had crawled into my head.
“I feel like me,” I said at last. I shifted in my chair and leaned against the passenger door, watching Kate. “I don’t feel different. I’m still Samuel, only
there’s something in my head that talks to me. My life feels the same as it always has. If I don’t think about it, it’s almost like everything is normal.”
“Are you worried that it might try to take control? That when you least expect it you could turn on your friends or become a threat?”
“Yes,” I admitted, a sickly feeling twisting in my stomach at the thought. In the back of my mind something cold and alien stirred. “I can’t not worry about it.”
Kate unbuckled and yanked her keys from the ignition. “Well, when we get in there, we’ll have Dieter take a look in your head.”
Shit. The icy fingers around my heart tightened, and for a second I couldn’t breathe. Dieter was gifted and could tell if someone was possessed pretty readily. “What, you don’t trust me?”
She regarded me for a second. “Not really, no.”
“Awesome,” I said, kicking open the door and climbing out into the parking lot. “Way to kick a man when he’s infested by brain aliens, Kate.”
She joined me in the lot and gestured toward the walkway that would take us to the Market proper. “Samuel, I’ve had something messing with my brain. I almost killed you once, remember?”
I snorted. “Tiny hands, Kate. You’d have never choked me to death.”
“The point is I had no idea. Sure, I wasn’t possessed, but it was still awful. You? You’ve got something chewing on the wires in the attic. It’d be stupid to just run around with full trust right now, you know?”
The scowl I leveled at her was legendary. “So you think you’ll just drag me in there and have Dieter root around?”
“Frankly, yes. You did the same thing to me six months ago, Samuel, and gave me no say. Turn about is fair play, and this is important.”
Shit. This could be a problem. I had little doubt that Dieter could figure out Lauren had carved my melon into a duplex. This would be bad, but I couldn’t think of a good excuse to get out of it. I needed to talk to the Twins about Lockyer’s little trick, and that meant I’d have to suffer turning my head and coughing with one of them too.
Try as I did, I couldn’t think of a way to get out of that. My shoulders and neck ached with tension. I needed to figure something out, and fast.