Ishtar Bound

by Natalie Gibson

  When she spoke it was in a hushed tone, “Something dark has tainted the pure energy collected by our Capacitors.”

  There was a collective gasp, but no one spoke. The Abbess continued, “I don't know what or who, but we'll find out. Please go back to what you were doing as best you can and I'll call ya'll to my office once we figure it out. No one, under any circumstances, is to use collected power. Maeve, Libby, will you come with Camilla and I?”

  Chapter 4

  Camilla was quite possibly the tiniest woman ever to graduate to the rank of Primo, definitely the smallest living Daughter. She was petite to say the least and at 4' 10 1/2” was only technically not a midget. Whenever people would ask how tall she was, she always added the 'half'. She never wore any makeup and her medium length blond hair was always in a pony tail. She had more important things to do than fret over her appearance, but most people agreed that attitude added to her beauty more than artificial additions could have.

  Camilla paced the Abbess' office. It took a lot of her tiny steps to make the length of the room. She rubbed her temples fervently like she thought if she stopped her brain might explode. She was almost a blur during the time they waited for the Renuntio Primo. Libby was on her way back from the library, but she couldn't get here fast enough for Camilla.

  Nathalia had been with Camilla in the storage room when it happened. At first they weren't sure, but then the murky fog in the center of the capacitor circle had turned dark and ominous. Camilla did what she always did and tried to heal it. When she pulled power from the capacitors it had actually hurt her. The whole of the stockpile was tainted with whatever that was and it hurt them to use it.

  It was not uncommon for Camilla to feel discomfort when she healed. She was removing something that did not belong and channeling it through herself and then out. She was accustomed to that discomfort. This had been worse; far worse. She hadn't even gotten to the healing stage of her spell, just the siphoning of energy. The energy itself had hurt her. She could still feel the darkness in her head.

  Nathalia and Maeve exchanged worried glances across the room. Neither had ever seen Camilla like this; she was normally a woman of few words or movements. Was she even aware that she was speaking aloud as she paced?

  “Fix it...much more important...what happened.” Camilla mumbled, “finding out's not my job.”

  The tears were streaming down her face and the circles under her eyes were getting darker by the minute. She stiffened and headed toward the door. “I need to get back to them.”

  Nathalia blocked her way physically. “You are not to pull from the tainted power even to heal the darkness. I'll not risk you.” The Abbess word was law and she had spoken. Normally she would have given a telepathic push to her order and Camilla would have found it impossible to disobey. But she was following her own orders; the power was tainted and not to be used. Her job was to protect the active members of this sect and she intended to be successful. “If you have to get back to work, then you'll have to find an alternative source of power.”

  The pain was mixed with disgust before it was painted across Camilla's face. The thought was repugnant to her. “I can't have sex when those I love most are hurting!”

  “There's no other way I know to garner the energy to perform your miracles.” Nathalia was distraught at giving this order, for what woman could relax enough to climax when such pressure was on her.

  “Call the Voice; her Guardian will provide the power.” Maeve heard her own outburst but was unsure that she had ever decided to speak. It just popped out.

  “I've never even met the Guardian; I can't take a new lover at a time like this!” Camilla exclaimed.

  “No, that's not what I meant. He can transfer power.”

  Nathalia had already left a message for Margaux. There was no telling where they were right now nor how long it could be before the council could get back with them. She simply expected some advice from Margaux and now Maeve was telling her to invite them here. Nathalia needed to hear more. “I've witnessed that he has some knowledge of magic in general, but that's to be expected when he must live in such close proximity to the council. But are you saying this man has the knowledge only known to our Primos?”

  Maeve knew this subject was a touchy one with Nathalia. No man in any of the books had power of their own; their magic was spent providing the spark of life. No man would ever be allowed to learn the ways to pull power from the capacitors; it just wasn't safe. She wanted to put her Abbess' anger to bed, but felt uneasy talking about this man. Maeve told it, plain and simple without embellishments just as she knew, “The Guardian can transfer power. He does it for me just as he did for my mentor. I don't know where he pulls from, but the energy feels similar to what I pull from the capacitors to do my small magics. Even though I'm incapable of retaining power and must use our power immediately, his, I can retain for a number of days. I add his power to my own generated power to do the next couple of matches and they come out stronger.”

  There was a knock at the door that startled all four of them. “Come in, Sister.”

  It was not a sister that opened that door, but the Guardian himself. Impossible! There had been no call from the gate warning Nathalia of his arrival. She was going to have a serious talk with them. Even if they had met him a hundred times, she was to be notified every time.

  He bowed deeply to them, meeting only Maeve's eyes as he did. A feeling of propriety flooded over her; she'd been right to tell them. He was not upset with her.

  The phone on Nathalia's desk rang and she angrily stabbed at the speaker phone button and proceeded to yell, “It's about time Mark! I expect a warning BEFORE a nonmember walks through my office door.”

  “This is not Mark. Je suis Margaux. S'il vous plaît do not be mad at your warning guard; Le ce n'est pas son défaut. Le Gardien has way of...evading security measures, but rest assured they are not necessary. He is completely trustworthy.

  “Your message I received but am too far to quick reach you, so I send him. It is imperative that none girls use tainted power. Magie noire, no matter the source, can be very damaging. He can provide untainted power for your Panacea to use for remove the magie noir from storage room.”

  “How? Where does a man get power and the knowledge to transfer it?” Nathalia demanded, glaring at the giant across the room.

  The guardian was careful to avoid looking directly at any of them, save the reassurance he had sent to Maeve upon entering. His head was down and he seemed to be trying to make himself appear smaller or less threatening.

  “You are Abbess there, Nathalia, and your attitudes shape your congregation, but there are other sects who feel not the same about men. He has a source of power and the gift of transfer. Be glad of it, because without that man your capacitors would be in great danger.”

  Maeve thought the way Margaux said 'man' was intended to sound the same as Nathalia's, but to her it sounded wrong, like Margaux was implying that the guardian was not a man. She looked at his broad shoulders and the massive bare chest and washboard abs peaking out from beneath his robes and knew that was crazy; there was no way this guardian wasn't 'all man'.

  Margaux hung up without waiting for any response from Nathalia. The guardian held out his hand to Camilla and gestured that she should lead the way.

  “Oh, no you don't,” Nathalia exclaimed, “Other sects may have let you in to their storage rooms, but you will not view our capacitors. Whatever you do will have to take place in these quarters.”

  Seemingly not put out at all, the guardian bowed deeply to the Abbess and backed away from the door and into a corner. He held out his hand to Camilla again and she took it. Maeve knew what was coming and was slightly jealous that she had to share this experience with another sister. The twang of jealousy was followed closely by shame, her jealousy be damned; the capacitors were in pain. He pressed his lips to the healer’s wrist and Maeve knew it had started.

  A few silent minutes passed before the guardian
released Camilla's hand. Immediately her thoughts cleared and her will coagulated. She had only touched the darkness for a split second and it was painful. She could only imagine how it felt to be immersed in that evil. She could not stand the thought any longer. She nodded a thanks to the giant and headed to the door.

  Nathalia's hand was on her shoulder before Camilla reached it. “You have to heal yourself first.”

  “I'm a Panacea and our holy ones are experiencing great pain. I know; I feel it. I have to go to them.”

  “You're no good to them like this.”

  She knew the Abbess was right, but thought about arguing for a moment before beginning the healing spell on herself. She stood very still, muttering the healing words under her breath. She examined every part of herself, giving special attention to her brain, and removed every trace of the blackness.

  Camilla was back with the guardian getting refilled when Libby rushed back into the room and closed the door behind her. She went around behind Nathalia's desk and laid out the large black book she had gone to get. Her finger was keeping a place in the record book. She pointed to a passage and waited as Nathalia read it.

  “What? What is it?” Maeve implored.

  Nathalia just shook her head as she stared in disbelief at the book of horrors before her. The guardian answered the question Nathalia could not. He said but one word, “Murder”.

  ***

  “Thank you for getting here so quickly. We wouldn't have called you if it wasn't important.”

  Maeve sat in a metal chair whose seat padding had seen better days. It was completely compressed and she could feel the screws holding it all together pressing into her backside. Her gianormous purse lay on the floor beside her. Chief Edward Goodwin offered her an almost empty box of apple fritters. She held up her hand, “No thanks. How's the wife?”

  The police chief smiled. He looked 10 years younger that way. “She's great. We're celebrating our 4th year this year. Going to Hawaii – traditional gift for the 4th is flowers and fruit. Where better to get both than Hawaii? She's teaching 1st grade now, like she's always wanted. She says they're better at that age when they're still excited about learning.” His smile faded. “She'd be none too happy to know you're here.”

  Eddie had been Maeve's first match. He was old enough to be her father, had grown kids her same age from his first marriage and Sue thought it was shameful that before her Eddie had dated Maeve. It had turned out to be very valuable to have a police chief as a familiar friend. Maeve had thought, on more than one occasion, that Peggy, the Vinculum Primo before her, had put them together for a reason. He could protect Maeve after Peggy was gone. She had joined the ranks of the Capacitors shortly after Maeve's success.

  Maeve didn't want to start any trouble at home for him. She also didn't care for the way other policemen were looking at her through the window. “What's going on, Eddie?”

  “Do you know a man named John Stoker?” She nodded. “Did you know he got married yesterday?” Again, she nodded and let him go on. “How well did you know his bride?”

  “Mary? Only barely. In name only, really. They had a wedding website that John told me about, but I wasn't invited to the wedding.” She shrugged. She didn't need to explain that phenomenon to him. Some women just can't stomach their men's old flames, especially ones that looked like Maeve. Here in the bible belt it didn't help her cause that she was a witch. Outsiders didn't know what she was capable of, but she never hid the fact that she belonged to the Daughters of Women. “Why?” Only then did his use of the past tense register with her. “Oh, Great Mother, she's dead?”

  It was Eddie's turn to nod. His eyes were intensely focused on Maeve's reactions. “Murdered.”

  Maeve covered her mouth. This woman had a connection to the Capacitors. Maeve had bridged the path from the couple to the holy ones. It was Mary's murder that had caused the dark spot. Who could have done this? Was it done to intentionally hurt the capacitors or was that just a side effect?

  “Do you think John could have done it?”

  Maeve dropped her hand and crossed her arms. “God, no.” It was not possible for a pair Maeve or any other Vinculum made to hurt one another. “Why would you think that?”

  “We don't.” Eddie went back around and sat in his chair behind the desk. He opened a drawer and pulled out a manila file, plopping it down between them. “Maeve, you're not under arrest but before we go on, I feel I should tell you that you're free to have a lawyer here.”

  “Wait. I'm a suspect? You know me, Eddie. I couldn't hurt a fly. No. I don't need a lawyer. I didn't do anything.”

  “No, I know, Maeve. I was adamant that you had nothing to do with this but your body language tells me you're hiding something.”

  Maeve uncrossed her arms and laid them in her lap. “I don't have anything to do with this, but there are parts of my life that are secret.”

  “The Daughters of Women?” Maeve nodded and he went on. “That's why I suggested a lawyer. I need to ask you some things about them. This is a murder investigation so I need you to be completely honest with me.” He flipped open the folder to reveal a glossy 8X10. He jabbed his finger at the image. “Virgin sacrifice.” Then he turned it over showing her the next one. It was a design drawn in the dust on something wood. Maeve recognized it. “Witchcraft.”

  Now she knew what this was all about. Eddie knew just enough about the Daughters to implicate them with anything having to do with magic but not enough to know what she could tell him. “The Daughters don't deal in blood magic. We can't. That kind of violence is the opposite of our magic and would sever our ties with the source. That symbol is a protection sign. Ancient. It's something a witch would draw if she were scared, almost like a nervous tick. Not us. We don't use pentacles and talismans. You're looking for the SOFE.”

  Eddie took out his tiny pad and began writing. Maeve expanded on her statement. “It stands for Sorcerers of the Five Elements. They are completely separate from normal elemental witches.”

  “I only know of four elements.”

  Maeve picked up a pencil and drew on a blank pad sitting near her. She ignored the fact that it was probably put there for her to write down her confession. “A pentagram, not a satanic symbol no matter what they told you in Sunday school, has five points. One for each of the four elements – Earth, Air, Fire and Water and one more for the Spirit. But, SOFE don't believe in the spirit. They claim the fifth element is blood. They work in blood magic combined with elemental magic in a way no one else does.”

  “Where can we find a SOFE?”

  “I don't know. They're very secretive, usually practicing only on the New Moon. Where were these taken?” She couldn't bring herself to ask where Mary had been murdered.

  “I can't tell you that. Can you tell me anything else?”

  “Well, I can guess that all of this blood isn't Mary's.” Before he could ask how she knew, Maeve continued. “SOFE don't usually kill to get the blood for their rituals. They use their own. You said 'virginal sacrifice' so I assume Mary was saving herself for marriage. SOFE must have been doing something big to need blood from a virgin's death.”

  ***

  Come in.

  Maeve pushed open the door to Nathalia's private quarters. Jolie and Libby were already there. Libby was seated at the Abbess' desk, writing in Jolie's accomplishment book. Nathalia was standing over her making sure the details were recorded accurately. Jolie sat in the window seat; no doubt her thoughts were on JD. Matched couples have a hard time being apart, especially after just finding each other. The relationship was all magic right at first, to enable them time to develop a real love connection.

  Everything alright? Nathalia's voice was a gentle touch in Maeve's mind, but even a gentle penetration of one's most inner self is painful. Maeve's face, already pale from her meeting, blanched further with Nathalia's intrusion. “Come in. We can speak about your meeting after this.” Maeve came in and closed the door behind her. “Jolie's been telling us about
how thrilled she is with the match you made for her.”

  Maeve went to sit in the window seat next to Jolie and Nathalia sat in the chair next to them. Libby spoke up, “These mark the first in a new chapter in Jolie's book. Her first visions using the power given to her by her mate. Very exciting.”

  As she reached over and took her latest accomplishment's hand, Maeve asked, “So, what did we dream about last night? Anything good?” She knew that could not be the case from Jolie's mood, but hoped she was wrong.

  Jolie finally spoke, “My visions aren't literal. I can tell you what they were, but not what they mean.”

  “That's why we always write them down. So that we can compare them and what actually happened. It won't be too long before we have a legend, an interpretive guide to what Jolie's dreams mean.” Libby flipped back a few pages in Jolie's book. “She was just telling us one about you, Maeve.”

  “I thought your dreams were all symbols and metaphors open to interpretation.” Maeve had never actually been present during a recounting of Jolie's dream. This was going to be fun.

  “You're always a black cat. Every dream I've had that came true about you revolved around the same black cat. Now when I'm dreaming I don't even see the cat, I just recognize it as Maeve.” Jolie explained about her power. “The cat represents an independent spirit, feminine sexuality, power and creativity – it's a great symbol.”

  “Naw, a great symbol is an Owl. That's mine.” Libby interjected excitedly. “They represent wisdom and insight.”

  “So what's Nathalia?” Maeve asked her friend, seeing that this line of conversation was relaxing to Jolie.

  “A one eyed camel.”

  Maeve burst into laughter and no one in the room could help but smile. “Sorry, Nathalia, it just sounded funny, I'm sure the camel's a very noble creature.” Maeve apologized but didn't stop laughing. “But why a one eyed camel?”