by Peter Hartz
The gaze she turned on Ariana almost made her shiver with its intensity as she coolly assessed the young lawyer. Then she nodded once, and spoke. “I am called Zestrilla, Mistress. I shall be by your side always, to protect you and keep you in the Goddess’s cause. I am greatly honored to serve you, Human Paladin. What shall I call you?”
Ariana blinked. An old story about rabbit holes came to mind, and a hysterical laugh threatened to escape her control. When she was under as much control as she thought she was going to get, she spoke up, her voice more level than she thought it would be.
“I am Ariana Wilmington. You can call me Ariana or Ari, whichever you prefer.”
Zestrilla bowed her head briefly, her strange eyes never leaving Ariana’s face. “I shall call you Ari then, mistress. When it is appropriate.” She looked around, her eyes taking in the strangeness of a world she which had never seen before, and frowned slightly.
“You must tell me of this plane, Ari, and what you do. I must learn what I need to know to protect you.”
Diana turned back to the sprawled figure on the floor in front of her. Collins was still shaking his head slightly, trying to clear the last of the cobwebs from it from the single punch that had knocked him down so easily.
“And now, I come to you. What shall I do with you, worm? You are an evil, poisonous, lower being, much akin to a pig that would eat anything it finds under its snout. The father of that poor soul at least had a motive that was easily understood even in its wrongness: the need to protect his progeny. You jest and jape about the pain you cause others. You find joy in others’ suffering. These are not the traits of an honorable man. I have gazed into your soul, and found only decay, rot, and evil. Truth and honor matter not at all to you. You only wish to attain fame and fortune, and will sacrifice anyone and anything that gets in your way. What have you to say of your sins?”
Donald Collins, an eloquent, very intelligent, highly educated man, found something to say.
“Fuck you!” Then he grimaced as the stupidity of what he just did and said registered, as her eyes narrowed. Then she lifted her left hand, and he rose off the floor with it, in the grip of the same unseen force that had moved the police officers earlier. But while they had only squirmed in discomfort, he writhed in agony as the vice-like grip tightened around him, squeezing the breath and life out of him, making it impossible to breathe, let alone speak.
“I would expect no less from an evil-doer of your black-hearted ilk.” The words came out cold enough to freeze fire, and more than one person, including the judge and the public defender, gasped out loud at the overpowering tone in Diana’s voice.
“I must find a punishment suitable to your evil. Since you are so hateful towards those whose skin color does not match yours, I condemn you to be what you hate. And to suffer for it greatly. My children, attend to my will!”
The four remaining wolves sprang up, and leaped one at a time at the dangling man, vanishing inside him. Diana loosened her invisible grip slightly, and his ability to breathe suddenly returned. A shriek escaped his mouth, then another, and as the people in the court room watched in an almost horrified fascination, his skin slowly darkened to a nearly black hue as he struggled against the torture he was being subjected to.
Then it was over, as quickly as it began. The wolves exited his form, as they landed lightly on the floor and padded silently over to the Goddess, sitting at her feet. And they all seemed to have the same satisfied smirk on their wolfish faces.
Collins became aware that everyone in the room was staring at him like he was an alien from another planet. He looked down at his hands, and an anguished cry escaped him as he fell to his knees. He started rubbing his hands together franticly, as if to wipe away the dark color his hands had changed to. Tears began to flow down his face as he realized that his worst nightmare fell far short of what had happened to him here. Then he looked up at the angry Goddess, and held both hands out to her in a desperate plea.
“Please! Change me back! Change me back!”
“I will not. You must learn the value of all your fellow humans, not just those that you share the color of your skin. You will remain this way until I am satisfied that you have learned the lessons you must know to help your fellow mortals. This is my judgment. Summon me if you wish, and I will consider whether or not you have grown beyond your ignorance and childishness. Lie to me, and I shall make your torment complete. And never-ending. You will learn, and you will grow. Or you will remain this way until the end of your days, however many or few you might have left in front of you.”
She stared down at him as the horror of his existence washed over him, and he collapsed to the floor weeping uncontrollably while trying to rub every part of his exposed skin in hopes that the darkness put there by the deity would wipe away; a forlorn, impossible hope that was rapidly becoming an unfulfillable, futile wish. The unthinkable had happened: he became what he despised and hated the most, and his mind was collapsing inwards on itself as it tried to process what was happening to him.
She turned to where Belinda and Tristan were on the floor, and inclined her head towards the young woman.
“Have you considered your choice?”
“Yes, Goddess. I choose this. He needs me, and I miss my family.”
“I must take something from you, then.”
Belinda smiled. “I don’t need much, just my family. I will be ok without it.”
The Goddess nodded in approval, and returned the smile more widely. “You are indeed a most cherished child, Belinda Nancy McCrae. Keep it. You may have need of it. And you have shown that you deserve it. It is my gift to you, for the pain you have endured this time away from your loved ones.”
The room suddenly seemed slightly warmer as the blessing registered in the minds of the watching mortals in the courtroom gallery.
Diana turned to the mortals in the room, and seemed to stand up straighter. While she didn’t seem to actually grow any taller, everything around her seemed suddenly smaller, and less significant as she revealed her presence fully in the presence of those watching the extraordinary events unfolding in front of them.
“I return to Belinda Nancy McCrae her life on this mortal plane.”
A gasping sob was heard from Belinda’s mother, and her father staggered backwards to sit heavily down into the seat behind him, overwhelmed at what he was hearing. Belinda didn’t even look up at the pronouncement. The glowing white robe she wore abruptly changed into jeans and a shirt, and sandals appeared on her feet.
But the Goddess Diana was not finished.
“Do you wish for this mortal to be punished for what he has done to you?” The gallery seemed to almost hold its breath to see what the response would be.
“No! I love him! And I know now that this is destroying him inside. I think he has been punishing himself enough. I will work to bring him back to me, to help him heal. And when he has recovered, I will teach him everything I have learned from The House Between Worlds.” She looked down as she gently caressed his head and hair, a look of pure love on her face.
Diana nodded her approval, then turned and looked at Judge Hastings once more. “I will leave him in her care alone. This is the judgment of Diana. Should he be healed enough to resume his life, he shall have my leave to do so. Should he pass beyond, I will carry him to The House Between Worlds myself, where he shall finish his recovery, and go on to another life, just like any other mortal.
“Belinda Nancy McCrae will call upon me to ensure that my will and judgment holds sway amongst you and your kind.” The tone of the Goddess’s voice, and the odd ringing tone that seemed to penetrate into the minds of everyone listening to the pronouncement, made any argument seem less than pointless. No one wanted to stand against this extraordinary being; this...Goddess.
Belinda’s mother and father, now weeping with joy, joined their daughter, kneeling on the floor next to the young man that had taken her from him once before.
Belinda looked up at he
r parents, tears falling from her own eyes.
“I’m home, Momma and Daddy! I missed you so much! I have so much to tell you! Together we will help Tristan heal. I know we can do it. He didn’t mean to hurt me. He is off the drugs now. I can see that inside him. He will never touch them again. He will recover.” The tears flowed harder from all three as they embraced over the nearly comatose young man, accepting any price that brought their only child, their beloved Belinda back to them.
Nancy and David McCrae turned to Diana, and she spoke once more, her voice almost obscured by the tears that fell now like rain.
“Thank you for bringing my daughter back, Goddess. We can never repay this. Thank you!”
Diana seemed to shrug. “The call of justice must be answered. You own me nothing whatsoever for doing that which is right. Be well, parents of Belinda. I must be elsewhere.”
With that, her four wolves still in lupine form threw their heads back and howled in a wild and woodsy chorus, then one by one they vanished, until the Goddess herself disappeared in a rustle of wind and the scent of the forest and the earth, leaving behind a completely silent room except for the sounds of the prosecutor’s sobbing, and the moans of the near-catatonic young man with his head in the lap of the only person that he ever truly loved, and that he was certain, back then in better times at least, was the only person that had ever truly loved him for who he was.
Chapter 23
“Daddy! Daddy!” Derrick turned at the sound of his four year old daughter’s happy voice and thumping footsteps as she ran into the kitchen from the back yard. Katie had a huge smile on her face as she ran at him and jumped, expecting her father, as he had so many times in the past, to catch her and sweep her up into a big hug.
“What is it, Katie McGee?”
“Daddy! That’s not my name!”
“Oh? What’s your name then, my little girl?”
With a big grin, she leaned back in his arms and said, “My name is Kathleen Corinne Hanson.”
“Well, Kathleen Corinne Hanson, what’s up?” His smile was nearly big enough to reach from ear to ear at his wonderful daughter’s sparkling personality. He was certain she got it from his wife.
“Daddy, there’s a new big white horsey with a funny pointy thing on his head in with the other horses. And he’s really pretty!” Her eyes gleamed like it was Christmas morning. “Is he for me?”
Derrick Hanson had no idea what she was talking about. A new horse?
“Are you sure, honey? A new horse?”
“Yes, Daddy, yes! Come see!” She scrambled down from his arms and grabbed his hand with both of hers, pulling him towards the back yard and the paddock and the barn.
He was still wondering what was going on when his daughter pulled him by the hand around the corner. The sight in front of him nearly caused him to trip, but he caught his balance and allowed himself to be pulled further along towards the fenced in corral where the riding horses were out in the sun and breeze. He was certain that his mouth was gaping wide open in shock.
His first thought was that one of the neighbors was playing a trick on him in some way. The thing he was seeing couldn’t be real. Unicorns didn’t exist, right?
It – he – was good sized, with delicate features, fine musculature, and a head and face that was almost like an Arabian, but there was something different about his eyes as he stood still, looking over the other occupants of the paddock. And he was the brightest white Derrick had ever seen. Then the newcomer turned to look at him, and the intelligence in its eyes was a stunning thing.
Kathleen pulled him up to the fence, and said, “See? Isn’t he pretty? Can I ride him? Please?”
Derrick stood there leaning on the fence for a moment as he and the newcomer looked at each other. Then the pure white creature walked over to the two humans, and the strangest thing happened. He heard a voice coming from the huge white creature in front of him.
He shook his head as the strange words coming from the unicorn came to him. The lips and mouth moved in time with the sounds he was making, but Derrick didn’t understand a thing the big creature was saying. He shook his head again as it cocked its head at him, then a shuffling sigh seemed to escape that deep chest. It walked over to the fence where he was standing, then stopped, in arms reach. The unicorn chanted something, and then seemed to glow a delicate blue for a moment. Then, quicker than he could react, it swung its head towards him, coming in contact with his face for the briefest of moments, before he backed away again.
Then the day got even stranger.
“Do you understand me now, human?”
His vision swam for a moment, and his grip on the top rail of the fence tightened for a moment as he tried to keep his balance.
“Daddy! The horsey talked!” Katie’s voice was filled with wonder and glee, as her eyes stared wide open at the huge white form in front of her.
“Daddy! I can talk! I can talk! HEE HAW!!!” The white horse capered around in front of him as he made his shocked-sounding declaration, then he stuck his head down and forward as he bellowed out the braying sound of a donkey at full volume. It was an impressive imitation. “I just love human children. Don’t you? Of course you do; you had her. Wait, you didn’t steal her from anyone, did you? She doesn’t really look all that much like you…”
“You be nice to my daddy! He didn’t steal me from anyone! He’s my daddy!” Katie’s indignation came through loud and clear as she wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tight.
“It’s ok, Katie. It’s ok. He didn’t mean it. Did you?” He glared at the unicorn in front of him with an edge of anger, but still with that underlying disbelief that this was really happening. He reached down and pulled her arms away from the lock they had around his waist and picked her up. She turned her head into him, burying her face into his neck for a moment, then turned to look at the white figure in front of her, her face mashed up against his as she held on to his neck tightly.
“There it is. I see the resemblance now. My sorrow for having upset you both.” The unicorn turned his head down and away slightly, looking at them from his left eye. It was, Derrick decided, a pose devoid of any real remorse.
“Wow. You’re a real piece of work.” Disgust flooded through him as he realized that the unicorn was mocking him and his daughter both.
“Oh, cast your anger elsewhere, human. I am above such petty emotions.” He snorted, then turned to look at the horses behind him. Then he turned back as Derrick spoke.
“Where did you come from? What are you doing here? Do you have a name I should call you?” His brain started working again, barely, as he sought to figure out the conundrum he was confronted with.
“Where did I come from? Most unicorns have a father unicorn and a mother unicorn. Do I need to explain that part of it to you? You had her, after all. I think. I only have your word for it, I suppose, but you look quite honest. I guess I can take your word for it that you understand such things.” The tone of voice was gently mocking and slightly derisive, but with an edge of true humor in it. Derrick began to understand that the being in front of him enjoyed the verbal fencing he was trying to engage Derrick in.
He turned to his daughter, and said, “Will you run and get mommy, and tell her to bring the camcorder out?”
“Ok, Daddy! You wait right here, mister white pointy headed horsey. I’m going to get my mommy!”
She scampered down out of his arms, and ran off towards the house as fast as she could.
Derrick turned back to the unicorn as it came closer to the fence. He started to open his mouth again, but the beast beat him to it.
“I scented the odor of fine mares. It is intoxicating to me. It called me from across the planes. Are any of them in season, perhaps? Might I have some time to express my appreciation for their form, grace, and beauty?” The eager look in his eye reminded Derrick of a teenager full of lust for his first girlfriend, and he almost laughed. Then he remembered what the unicorn wanted to do, and ground his me
ntal heel down on the sensation before it escaped.
“I would really prefer that you not… indulge yourself in that sort of thing. Most of these horses are not mine. I board them here for others who don’t have a place of their own to keep them. That would be against the agreement I have with their owners, and besides, I don’t want my family to see that.”
“Ah yes, your little Katie is a sweet child, but much too young to be observing the finer points of my techniques. I understand. Perhaps, though, we might be able to work something out for a later date, after you have had a chance to discuss my… needs and desires… with the owners you mentioned? Please?”
The yearning in the unicorn’s eyes was a palpable thing, and he sighed internally. Deciding to redirect the entire conversation in a different direction, he thought of a different question to ask.
“We have never seen anything like you before. We certainly have never heard of an animal such as yourself being able to talk. Where do you come from, and how did you get here? What should I call you, anyways? Do you have a name for yourself?”
The unicorn drew himself up to his full height, and proudly arched his neck as he spoke. “I am known far and wide as Llellondryn! Mares of all species tremble at the mere sight of me! But never in fear!” He reared up and bellowed an equine call at the sky, then his front hooves came down to the ground with a loud thud.
“As to how I got here, I opened a gate across the planes and walked through. Where are we, by the way? What plane is this? Which God holds sway over this place?” Llellondryn looked around for the first time, and took in the farm implements and vehicles that dotted the grounds of Derrick’s horse farm operation. “And what are those things?”