Father Griffith rose abruptly and began to pace hurriedly by the French doors. “I cannot believe my ears! Perhaps that woman was right,” he rounded on Orion. “She said you were evil. I can almost, no, definitely not almost, I can absolutely see what she meant!” The priest shook with rage.
“Calm down, darling,” Cat soothed. “Ranting and raving like that isn’t going to get us anywhere. You and Orion are like two peas in a pod. The slightest problem, and out with the hatchet! Overreacting, both of you,” she added, smiling serenely. “Now, sit down, dear,” she insisted as she led Father Griffith to a chair. “Coffee? No, very well. Now, if I may say so, I think your plans, insofar as you have any, lack finesse. That’s a bridge term, darling, which you may not be familiar with–” she smiled mischievously, “having played chess for your life, but Roland and I are, of course, quite familiar with the term,” she beamed at Father Griffith.
“It would seem that what is needed here is a bit of finesse. Not charging about killing people,” Cat continued, with an expression of distaste. “Do you know what I think?” She looked up brightly, “I think I would like to tackle these islanders. With Roland’s help, of course. What do you say?”
“Pardon?” Father Griffith looked at her, at a loss. “What do you mean? What are we supposed to do?”
“Eliminate the threat, darling! Do try to keep up.”
“What threat? Orion’s the one threatening them!”
“Yes, he is,” Cat said slowly, “but only because he wants to keep them from harming Pera. His intentions are… for lack of a better word, sound.”
Father Griffith snorted derisively.
“And there is also the matter of the Cypress girls,” Cat continued, ignoring him. “I have very little confidence in that poor man – that Mr. Mayor someone or other – knowing what to do. Before long those islanders will be throwing another child off the rocks to be drowned if we’re not careful. So yes, there is absolutely a threat from the islanders. It’s just that we don’t know the exact parameters just yet. I’m sure if we pool our resources we can accomplish a great deal, don’t you, darling?” She squeezed Father Griffith’s arm affectionately.
“What exactly are you suggesting?” Bruce asked with growing apprehension. Father Griffith, too, gave her a stern look filled with incomprehension.
Cat smiled sweetly at those assembled. She spread her hands wide. “My suggestion is to delegate; to allocate our talents.”
“Right. How? That’s what worries me.”
“Well, as far as I can see, dear Roland and I are the best suited to deal with this so called threat from the islanders. Yes, dear–” she added firmly, giving the priest’s arm another short squeeze. “We will work together. I don’t know what we’ll do, but I’m sure together we’re bound to come up with some winners!” She smiled genially at him.
“And Orion, darling, you must make your way across the Veil and see to it that whatever plans and stratagems are being made are thwarted as soon as practicable. We rely on you to make the right decisions there.
“But just to make sure–” she nodded encouragingly at Bruce, “I suggest you take advantage of Bruce’s sober lawyerly wisdom. He’s really very good, and will help keep you out of trouble.”
Bruce sighed with resignation. “I knew it. I knew it would come to this. Unfortunately, much as I hate to admit it, I think Cat is right. And believe me, I mean no offense when I say this, Orion, but the thought of spending an extended amount of time in your company does not inspire confidence.”
“None taken,” Orion replied and shook his head without rancor.
“Besides, Shadow all but told me to do so…” Bruce added softly. “Back at the Cistern. Shadow said The Hunter hunts alone, but two hunters hunt better than one...”
“Shadow told us all that we’re not alone,” Cat said. “And Peter?” She gave Orion a questioning glance.
“Peter will stay in Pera,” Orion declared. “There is no need for him on the other side right now, and with me gone, I’d like to leave someone behind who can… well, someone like Peter. He has work to do here.”
“Peter is very useful,” Cat said primly. “This man he’s looking for – doesn’t he have a name, darling? I assume you mean Carl’s assistant. Surely he has a name. Everyone does, you know.”
Orion said carelessly, “I understand he goes by the title Jaluban, which curiously enough means the nameless one a.k.a. the messenger.”
“Well there you are. Peter’s going after Jaluban and that Elder person,” Cat said brightly. “And the rest of us, meaning me and Roland will be relying on dearest Shady’s extensive knowledge of Pera.”
“Of course. I wouldn’t dream of leaving,” Shady declared loyally. “This is my home now. I don’t know that much though,” he warned. “Pera has an ancient, rich history. What I know could, literally, fill a thimble.”
“Well, we also have Shadow, don’t we?” Cat smiled mischievously. “The living, breathing soul of Pera. What better tour guide could there be?”
“Very well,” Orion said in agreement. “I give you leave to try to do something with the islanders. While I’m away. But remember that I have a connection to Shadow–”
“We all do, darling,” Cat reminded him.
“Yes, and just as it called me before, it will do so again, if there is a problem. If such is the case, and on my return I find that there is indeed an islander problem – with respect to the Veil – which has not been neutralized, I will deal with it,” he paused and gave a smile full of pure feral pleasure. “Incidentally, Bruce, we will have to be back well before the New Year,” he added in a more businesslike tone.
“Oh? The New Year? Haven’t we just had the new year?” Bruce asked, sounding surprised.
“The True New Year,” Orion explained. “In Pera we celebrate New Year during the Spring equinox. And when I say ‘celebrate’, I mean big, weeks’ long celebrations. And that’s when the Games of Pera are held.”
Shady sighed with exasperation. “Orion, even at a time like this, how can you consider the Games of Pera?”
Cat clapped happily. “Tell me more!” she demanded eagerly.
Orion gave her a sly look. “No, that would be unfair. Everyone’s first time is supposed to be a surprise. Just like the First Blossom celebration is a surprise each year: only the tree knows when she will let her blossom open to the world.”
Cat sighed. “It sounds divine…”
“You are hardly being realistic!” Bruce interjected. “We are already sometime in January. The Spring equinox is barely two months away. I don’t think you are treating this matter as seriously as you claim,” he added, raising a meaningful brow.
“Speak for yourself. Two months is more than enough time for me to do my job,” Orion replied levelly.
Give me patience, Bruce thought through gritted teeth.
“Now boys, no fighting,” Cat said, flapping her hands. “Orion, darling, I have one more teeny, tiny question. What is to be done about Fiona?” she continued, the picture of innocence. “What will happen to her?”
“Fiona will be no more,” Orion replied in a voice devoid of emotion. He might have been ordering a cup of coffee.
“What do you mean?” Father Griffith asked uneasily.
“As Xavier said, we have all forsaken the possibility of dying peacefully in our sleep, of old age,” Shady said. “Yes, I agree…”
“I don’t think it’s up to you, darling,” Cat commented as she turned to Father Griffith. “I don’t think it’s up to any of us, really. Xavier is right: we have all forsaken the luxury of a natural death. It’s part of being an immortal.”
“But… on what basis? What for?” Father Griffith looked around the table. “We have no more than conjectures… possibilities, at best… Surely, you agree with me? Bruce?” He turned imploringly towards the lawyer.
“Personally, my vote would be turn her in to the police,” Bruce said.
“That’s right,” Father Griffith
nodded vehemently. “The police. That’s a good idea. I’m not suggesting she is not a bad actor, but we cannot take the law into our hands. We cannot simply … judge.”
“You said you felt her acknowledge that she knew about the Cypress Ritual and giving the order for Carl’s death,” Cat pointed out.
“But still– that was a feeling. We cannot make decisions based on feelings. I– well, she must be brought to justice, of course. And it should be decided on the evidence… and not on my feelings! Surely–” he said with emphasis.
“I’m sure the police will look into it,” Shady said. “After all, Orion said he’s provided the Rooster with all the evidence he has uncovered.”
“Yes, yes,” Father Griffith breathed a sigh of relief. “The police would be best.”
Orion yawned loudly and stretched. “I didn’t get any sleep last night,” he laughed. “Need to take a cat nap. See you later.” He rose and walked briskly out of the room.
“That’s quite an afternoon!” Bruce laughed. “Wholesale massacre planned and averted before dinner! Not bad. And I get to have that for company for the foreseeable future,” he jerked his thumb towards the door. “Imagine the excitement!”
“I am sure you’ll make the most of it,” Cat said serenely. “And while you’re off gallivanting around the world with our hunter, Roland and I will have to be involved in some pretty tricky diplomacy here,” she nodded sagely.
“Really–” Father Griffith began. “I don’t know where to begin.”
“You found yourself a library now. Why don’t you plant yourself there for a week or two? That should help you begin at least!” She laughed happily at her own joke, undeterred by the injured look directed at her by the priest. “Alternatively, you could look in on Shadow,” she added slyly. “Unless that would constitute blasphemy or something…
“I am rather glad our Orion has decided to take a nap. I’d like to have a word with that mayor without any interference. Shady, darling, can you take me to the mayor? I need to discuss a few matters with him regarding this distressing Cypress matter.”
“Of course.”
“I’d better take Sofia for another run,” Bruce sighed. “Otherwise there will be no furniture left in my rooms, and it all looked pretty expensive. I’d hate to have to replace it. Good luck with the mayor, Cat. Roland? What about you? Want to go for a run?”
“No thank you,” Father Griffith said politely. He watched them all leave. Alone, now, he stood at the French windows and gazed unseeingly at the flickering water. What causes the water to quiver so? There are things underwater, hidden things that are reflected on the surface. A few hours ago, I was looking out at this same view, and I was in peace. I saw only the sparkle of the waves. My heart was not heavy with dread. And yet … all that I know now, existed then…
For it is knowledge of what is below that makes the water flicker so.
* * *
I am Jaluban
I am the Messenger
I come from Nowhere
But my path is Everywhere
I am the knowing
And in knowing is growing
For I am Jaluban
I am the Nameless One
I am
Everyone
(From the Book of Shadow)
Epilogue 1
“Good morning,” Peter said, opening the shutters to let in the early morning sun.
Barely awake, she shielded her eyes from the sun’s glare. It was going to be a beautiful day. There was not a cloud in the sky and the only sound, other than the insistent, terrifying drumming of her heart, was the distant squawk of seabirds. She darted a glance at the door. If she was quick, she should be able to reach it before he did… The door was closer to her than Peter who was standing by the window.
Peter brandished a small key. “It’s locked,” he said.
She lay back in bed and watched him. Warily. She watched him walk back around the bed to stand over her. He looked around for a moment and pulled the stool in front of the dresser close to the bed, and sat down. From his pocket, he withdrew a small bottle full of a clear, glittering liquid. The essence of the lightberry was lit from within. It had already consumed a tiny piece of the never-ending heart of the Sun.
Carefully, he unscrewed the top with his bare hands and poured the contents of the bottle into a glass on the bedside table.
Peter pushed the glass towards her.
“What if I refuse?” Fiona attempted a feeble smile. Her lower lip trembled.
Peter took off his glasses. His eyes, greyish green, looked at her without emotion. Without care. He carefully removed the lenses from their slots. In his hand, two round pieces of glass with razor-sharp edges glinted in the sunlight.
“Deathmate.”
Epilogue 2
“Shadow…”
He waited patiently, listening to drops of water and their echo off the ancient walls and columns receding into the damp, airless dark above.
Immortal… The pale form appeared amid the swirl of water. One sky blue eye fixed him with an inexorable stare.
“They leave this morning,” he said. “But I expect you know that.”
The hunters are on their way…
“Yes… the hunters.” Not the Hunter alone, but two. Orion and Bruce.
Across the Veil they travel
To unveil a foe…
But what is it that troubles you, immortal?
What is the reason for your woe?
“I think another has been killed,” Father Griffith said uncomfortably. “One of the immortals… Fiona Manx.”
Silence.
“I don’t know…” Father Griffith shook his head disconsolately. “Should I have done more to stop it? What could I have done? I fear I did not do what was necessary.”
Silence.
“It is wrong. I was wrong…” Wrong… the word reverberated without remorse, growing, it seemed to him, in strength. A towering thing was this Wrong, and it enveloped him in the semi-darkness of the Cistern.
There is no comfort in the dark.
There is no forgiveness at the edge of a knife…
There is never recompense for blood.
But the House of Light is a layered place.
It is a space
Of many wrongs and rights.
It is a place
Of all shades of light.
All in the House of Day and Night.
Dwell not too long in the uneasy dark
For you will miss the breaking dawn.
Handle with care the sharpened knife:
It will cut.
Seek not forgiveness for a thing irretrievably lost
You will never find it, and in seeking you will lose your way.
This is the way of things.
It is the way of things
In the House of Light and Dark.
*
(From the Book of Shadow)
Elsewhen Press
an independent publisher specialising in Speculative Fiction
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Elsewhen Press
LiGa™
Sanem Ozdural
Have YOU had your invitation yet?
Literary science fiction, LiGa™ tells of a game in which the players are, literally, gambling with their lives. Sanem Ozdural’s debut novel is set in a near-future where a secretive organisation has developed technology to transfer the regenerative power of a body’s cells from one person to another, conferring extended or even indefinite life expectancy. Access is limited to those invited to play.
At once fantastic, yet credible, the familiarity of the contemporary setting gives a definite slipstream feel to Sanem’s debut novel, providing a fascinating insight into the motivation of those characters who win the possibility of virtual immortality and of those who will lose some o
f their life expectancy.
ebook, paperback (400pp)
visit bit.ly/BookLiGa
Elsewhen Press
Future Perfect
Book 1 of the Blueprint trilogy
Katrina Mountfort
A future in which men and women are almost identical, relationships forbidden. The BodyPerfect cult means looks are everything. A young woman, Caia becomes attracted to co-worker Mac, a rebel questioning their ‘utopian society’. Slowly drawn into a forbidden world, her life changes irreversibly when they are both sent on an outdoor research mission.
ebook, paperback (288pp)
visit bit.ly/FuturePerfect
Elsewhen Press
The Mind’s Eye
Christopher Nuttall
For centuries, men have been dreaming of telepathy, the power to read and influence the minds of others. Now, all around the world, telepaths are finally starting to appear. Men and women are developing awesome powers with the potential to dramatically change society. Governments are soon starting to become aware of them, even recruiting them, while striving to keep knowledge of their abilities hidden from the general public. Academic researchers too are discovering telepaths and it isn’t long before awareness of their existence starts to spread. But non-telepaths, ordinary people, don’t want to have their minds read or controlled; the telepaths soon find themselves widely regarded with fear and hatred. Inevitably, some of them want to fight back.
ebook, paperback (352pp)
visit bit.ly/MindsEye-Nuttall
Elsewhen Press
The Janus Cycle
Tej Turner
The Janus Cycle can best be described as gritty, surreal, urban fantasy. The over-arching story revolves around a nightclub called Janus, which is not merely a location but virtually a character in its own right. On the surface it appears to be a subcultural hub where the strange and disillusioned who feel alienated and oppressed by society escape to be free from convention; but underneath that façade is a surreal space in time where the very foundations of reality are twisted and distorted. But the special unique vibe of Janus is hijacked by a bandwagon of people who choose to conform to alternative lifestyles simply because it has become fashionable to be “different”, and this causes many of its original occupants to feel lost and disenchanted. We see the story of Janus unfold through the eyes of seven narrators, each with their own perspective and their own personal journey. A story in which the nightclub itself goes on a journey. But throughout, one character, a strange girl, briefly appears and reappears warning the narrators that their individual journeys are going to collide in a cataclysmic event. Is she just another one of the nightclub’s denizens, a cynical mischief-maker out to create havoc or a time-traveller trying to prevent an impending disaster?
the Dark shall do what Light cannot Page 46