Goddess's Saga 1: Touch of the Goddess

by Maria Hammarblad

Good point.

  Pits looking like the mouths of volcanoes gaped open filled with molten lava. The air was thick with fumes and sulphur, and to make the illusion complete, steam formed figures that could easily be mistaken for horned monsters.

  She shuddered in spite of the heat, and mumbled, “Lovely.”

  “Yeah, it’s a vacation paradise, if you’re a demon. Let’s go and get this over with.”

  The path they’d followed continued in front of them, curving around pits of lava and pillars of steam.

  *****

  Stephan took the lead again, trying to keep his attention in all directions at once.

  I wish I listened when she said she wanted to leave. If I get out of this alive, I will always listen to advice from deities, because they know best.

  His clothes stuck to his body, pearls of sweat dripped into his eyes, and the sulphurous fumes made him want to cough.

  “Damn this place stinks. The next time I don’t listen to you, hit me over the head with something hard and make me go with you.”

  Maria made a face and shook her head.

  “No, you were right. No matter what we might face down here, we have to try. It’s the right thing to do.”

  Well I was right about one thing. Developing a conscience was a bad idea.

  He moved forward again, but stopped after just a few steps.

  “Maria?”

  She stood frozen with a blank expression on her face, staring at a lava pit.

  “This is where he threw her in. He ate her heart, and threw the rest of her body into the lava.”

  There were tears in her eyes, but as tragic as the story was, he still expected a woman made of red-hot molten rock to rise up from the underground, pointing at them with a scorching arm dripping flames, claiming her revenge on them in the place of her long lost lover.

  This place is too creepy. Nothing good can come from hanging around here.

  He put a hand on her back and urged her forward.

  “Come, it’s time to go.”

  They made little progress. They didn’t have any water, she usually just created whatever they needed, and the heat and toxic air kept their speed down. He would have been able to move faster on his own, but she coughed and moved slowly.

  “I think we’ve walked forever.”

  They had only gone a mile or so when he once more realized she wasn’t right behind him. When he looked back, she sat on the hot ground between two smouldering pits.

  If anything happens to her down here you won’t just lose her, which is unthinkable, you’ll also have to live with it being your fault. Can you do that?

  The answer was easy: he could not.

  He jogged back and hunched down in front of her.

  “Babe? Babe, are you okay?”

  The distant look on her face faded somewhat when she heard his voice, and she reached out a hand to grab his arm.

  “There was once a mighty civilization here. They flourished for millennia, but were led to their downfall by a tyrant ruler. He knew these rooms held a secret, one he couldn’t get to, and he sacrificed most of his people trying. He would torture his people here. He’d string them up over the lava and lower them down, just a little bit at the time.”

  This is a much more elaborate and less obvious trap than I would ever have expected. I don’t see or feel anything, but I’m not a telepath.

  She moaned as if in great pain.

  “The entrance isn’t far now, but it’s hidden in plain sight. It shouldn’t be difficult to find for someone with the right eyes. Ooow, that really hurts!”

  He was so entranced with listening to her, and a bit dazed by the heat and the fumes, that he thought the new odour was something from her vision somehow drifting over to him. When he snapped back to reality, smoke rose from her shoes.

  Oh crap.

  Their time together had taught him anything not only could, but also should, be expected at any time. If his theory of a trap for telepaths was right, she might very well be re-living the fate of one of those tortured and sacrificed to the lava.

  Maria seemed to be in a place far away, hardly even aware of what was happening, and he cursed under his breath and burned his fingers as he ripped her shoes off.

  It can’t be the ground. It’s hot, but not that hot, and she was fine walking on it earlier.

  As the shoes came off and he waved his fingers in the air, trying to cool them off, her small feet turned red and blistered. Then, they disappeared. They somehow winked out of reality for a moment, and reappeared.

  “Okay, that’s it, we’re leaving.”

  He scooped her up in his arms and tried not to notice how her feet disappeared and reappeared once more as she moaned with pain, leaning her head against his shoulder.

  She wasn’t heavy to him, and he hurried down the path, feeling helpless and useless.

  Please, if I have any favours left to ask in this life, let putting some distance between her and that pit of hellfire make this stop.

  Every time he glanced towards her legs more of them seemed burned, and more of them flashed in and out of existence. They turned into charred pieces of coal, and the smell of burned flesh grew even stronger than the stench of sulphur.

  She must be unconscious by now, and that’s a good thing.

  She opened her eyes for a moment and mumbled, “He burned her. He sacrificed the Queen to get through the door, and without her, there was nothing to save the people. They’re all dead.”

  Stephan didn’t realize he started to run, not until he broke into a cough-fit and almost dropped her. The air wasn’t good enough for running, not even for him, and he forced himself to slow down. He almost dropped her again, as her legs suddenly disappeared all the way up to the knees, only to reappear a second later.

  Fuck!

  He stopped and took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm down.

  I wish we were somewhere else. Anywhere would do, I’d prefer a gruesome death in space to this.

  “What door?”

  If there was a door, he needed to find it.

  The desperation in his own voice made him cringe, but she was dying, and it was his fault.

  Maybe she still was immortal, maybe she’d just reappear somewhere else if this body perished, but he couldn’t be sure of that, and he didn’t want to take the risk.

  For all he knew she might not even die.

  Maybe she would be a prisoner in the cave for eternity, re-living the demise of other creatures over and over again.

  Standing still for a couple of seconds, he convinced himself she had drifted off again, into a hopefully merciful oblivion.

  “That door. The one right there.”

  She even lifted a hand, pointing into nothingness.

  Maybe she’s hallucinating. That wouldn’t be strange at all.

  Thinking was difficult. His head pounded from the fumes, and the lack of oxygen in the air made him want to sink to his knees. If he had been alone he might have given up right then, but failing her wasn’t an option. What was it she said earlier? The door would be easily visible to the right eyes.

  Maybe she could see it, but he couldn’t.

  Nothing could get worse from trying, so he set off to the side, in between a geyser and some bubbling tar. He wasn’t even surprised when a new path materialized under his feet.

  “I’ll be damned.”

  There had been nothing to see in this direction, nothing at all except the same red-hot hell that stretched out as far as they eye could see. He had acted on blind faith, and now, a door blocked the path.

  It seemed to have been carved out of a large slab of dark rock, and it had Gargoyles on the sides. It stood right in front of him, and he could swear it hadn’t been there a second earlier.

  It couldn’t have been; he would have looked right at it.

  Maria moved a little in his arms, and that reminded him to hurry. A couple of long steps closed the distance, and it seemed even more impossible he hadn’t spotted the d
oor as soon as he climbed down the hole. It was huge. Maybe it hadn’t been there earlier. Maybe it just appeared, but Maria had seen it, hadn’t she? Or, had she just known where it would show up?

  Despite the circumstances, he was tempted to go around it, just to see if there was anything on the other side. Maybe he’d only see more red-hot lava, or maybe it would look exactly the same?

  He refrained from the experiment. The way this day was going, the door would disappear to never be found again. He didn’t have a hand free either, didn’t see a way to open the darned thing.

  He kicked it.

  ~ 22 ~

  Stephan doubted the heavy door would budge.

  He half expected to be kicking a mirage, and was more than surprised when his foot hit a solid surface. The door swung open, revealing a clinically clean room with metal walls.

  An artificial sounding voice said, “Come in, what are you waiting for? You’re letting the dreadful heat in.”

  He stepped over the threshold, and a creature ran around him, prodding and poking, examining him from all sides.

  I’m probably unconscious in the blazing hot hell outside, hallucinating. There wasn’t a door, I only wanted to see it, and now we’re both dying.

  He was still trying to make heads or tails of what he saw when the little being spoke, confusing him even more.

  “Aaah, two heads but only one pair of legs, just like prophesied. But you’re early. I was scheduled to get to sleep at least another couple of hundred years or so. Sit down.”

  A plush armchair appeared behind Stephan, and he obeyed, still holding Maria in his arms. He was too surprised to object.

  His host appeared to be a combination of a robot and some form of furry toy, and it ran around in an extremely energetic fashion. Its bizarre appearance convinced him it was real. No matter how drunk he might get, he’d never be able to make it up.

  The unlikely being chattered on.

  “Can I get you some refreshments? Oh, where are my manners, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  It paused and read from a note in its paw.

  “Stephan Forks, that’s you, right? I’m the Watchman. You can call me W.”

  Stephan shook his head, struggling to get his thoughts together.

  “Stop running around. You’ve got to help her. Can you help her?”

  The Watchman paused his erratic scampering and twitched its little nose.

  “Oh, she’ll be fine. She is fine. Cratus loves her, he wouldn’t really hurt her. But, you see, she won’t wake up just yet. We know everything about her already, and this is a test of you.”

  Enough already. I don’t care about watchmen or cousins that are surely as crazy as Frank, or anything else, for that matter.

  He got up from the chair and put Maria down in it, making sure she was comfortable. Then, he grabbed the Watchman by the long furry ears. He moved faster than anyone would expect from a man his size, and definitely quicker than W could anticipate.

  Holding the peculiar creature up in the air, he rumbled, “No, that’s not gonna fly. You’re going to wake her up and make sure she’s okay right now.”

  W surprised him by looking at the note again and checking something off, completely untroubled by being held high in the air by his ears.

  “It says here you have strong will and character, and you do seem to love her, right.”

  He glanced over to meet Stephan’s eyes as if double-checking the assumption was correct.

  Stephan glared.

  W snickered, “Let me down, you need to bring her where we’re going. She’ll be fine, I promise.”

  A promise from this being could mean everything or nothing.

  He put W down fairly gently and lifted Maria back up in his arms, but when his host scurried away towards an inner door he didn’t follow. He just sat back down, making sure she rested comfortably with her head against his chest, and caressed her hair away from her sooty cheeks.

  W stopped a split second too late and almost went head first into the door.

  Probably wouldn’t even hurt him. I think he’s got cotton wool up there.

  “You’re supposed to come with me. Why aren’t you coming?”

  W seemed taken aback, not knowing how to handle the situation, and Stephan shrugged.

  “I don’t care what’s behind your door, and I don’t care about this little game of yours. You asked if I love her, well, all I care about is right here. You run along and do whatever you have to. I’m not hauling her into any more dangers. We’re staying.”

  He could have sworn he heard another voice laugh softly; maybe her cousin watched them. He forgot all about it as his girl’s long eyelashes fluttered and she woke from the forced slumber.

  She looked at him, her green gaze unfocused at first.

  “Hi, sweetheart. Welcome back.”

  Recognition came to her eyes and she mumbled, “Lover…”

  He brushed his fingers against her cheek, oblivious of their peculiar surroundings.

  “Where are we? And where are my shoes? We went into the hole, didn’t we?”

  “Yes, we went into the hole, and you showed me to the door. Are you okay?”

  Maybe he was still being tested.

  Maybe he acted exactly according to Cratus’s plan.

  It didn’t matter, he didn’t care.

  W chattered, “Alright, she’s awake, she’s fine, now are you coming?”

  “No. You seem to have waited for a long time, and you said we were early. You can wait a little longer. Get us some water.”

  Maria recuperated quickly, and he was soon convinced everything was as well as it could be. When they were ready to leave the room, W took her hand and led the way.

  Some things are completely predictable.

  Animals, computers, and robots all seemed to adore her, and this little creature wasn’t an exception.

  It was a short walk through a cool corridor with bluish metal walls and a thick rug on the floor. Going through the door from the lava landscape seemed to have teleported them to a completely different world, or maybe to another dimension where nothing even resembled Beta IV. It could be possible. The lake might even be gone if he went back to look for it.

  As intriguing as the idea was, he wouldn’t act on it. He wasn’t keen on going back there himself, and he certainly wouldn’t bring her back; that would only happen over his dead body.

  When they reached the other end of the corridor, their guide let go of Maria’s hand.

  “This is it. I can’t go with you in there, and when you take it, you must do it the same way as you entered.”

  What?

  Maria’s blank face gave no help; she seemed to understand even less than he did. Then he got it.

  “Aah, come here, babe.”

  He scooped her up in his arms, quite content with having her so close.

  “When we entered, he said we had two heads but just one pair of legs. I’m guessing you’re supposed to take whatever it is while I hold you.”

  Their guide nodded several times, pleased with the deduction.

  “I don’t know, babe, should we really bother with this? Maybe we should just go home.”

  She met his eyes.

  “Yes. I think it sounds like a good idea. I’d like that.”

  W seemed close to panic. His little mechanical snout twitched, and he whimpered.

  “No, no, you have to continue, you can’t quit now.”

  Dammit, now I’m feeling sorry for the little thing.

  “Calm down, W, we were just joking.”

  Their host still looked worried.

  Why was all this so important?

  Had it been just a coincidence that they were in exactly the right part of space to pick Olga’s transmission up, or had some other powers been in play there too?

  Maybe someone controlled their every step since they met.

  Stop thinking about it. You’ll drive yourself crazy.

  *****

  Maria’s
eyes widened when Stephan stepped over the threshold.

  Oh wow, that’s cool. I want one.

  They stood next to a narrow, contained waterfall that seemed to fall forever. The water smelled vaguely of almonds, and each drop shone with a soft blue light. It was utterly beautiful, even to her who had seen so much during her long life. Behind the curtain of water, a large wooden box stood propped up on a shelf.

  “That must be it.”

  Stephan walked up to the water and she reached out to take the box. The drops that fell on her skin were soft as flower petals.

  As soon as she pulled the little crate out and held it in her arms, their surroundings changed.

  They were at home, on the ship, in their own bedroom.

  “What? Did you do that?”

  She shook her head.

  “No. I think Cratus did.”

  “This is a little too peculiar, even for us. Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine. Never been better. You can put me down now, if you want to. I mean, no hurry…”

  He made a little face, set her down on the bed, and said with forced cheeriness, “Well, that wasn’t too difficult.”

  I don’t remember anything between you almost falling into the hole and waking up in W’s office, but I’m sure it wasn’t easy.

  “You are a poor liar.”

  Getting to the box wouldn’t have been possible if at least one of them weren’t chosen, probably both. Neither of them could have gone all the way on their own.

  If that was true, had Cratus known about them since before she was born?

  No, seeing this far into the future, predicting that Stephan would ram her and she would fall in love was preposterous.

  Unless it was supposed to happen, or Cratus made it happen.

  Stop thinking about this before you entangle yourself too much and draw any more outrageous conclusions.

  Stephan sat down next to her, wrapped one arm around her waist, and touched the box with his other hand. The moment they were both in contact with it, the wooden lid opened up, showing an intricate mechanism of numbered moving gears and counterweights. It made a low ticking noise.

  Yay, we have a thingymabob. Just what I always wanted.

  “It’s a map. A star map. I’ve never seen one quite like it.”