by JD Lovil
Sacrifice
The lower priests let loose the last of the bindings, and then they all turned their backs upon her, and walked away. She is relieved by surviving the ritual, when she expected to die, but there is something wrong. She is free, but now she feels a demonic presence in her womb. Her terror resurges as the world fades.
*****
Tom is on a road of cobblestone, hidden in the now familiar mists that seems to come with this spirit quest stuff. In the distance, he sees movement. In the next few moments, he finds Veritasia, who kisses him with a hungry urgency, then they meet Vera, then Markus, and finally Charla. There is no sign of George or of Sally. Tom had no doubt that they had perished in the vision quest.
They walk in silence for a while. The foot falls resound as though the mists form a solid wall, reflecting back the sound redoubled. There are hints of sound and movement in the places beyond the mists, but the group is not inclined to leave the road to investigate. They all wish to go back to the world they know, with all of its flaws.
As they walk, they see another identical road running along the road on their right. Markus does deviate just long enough to verify that it is a real structure, not just some sort of reflection of their own road. After a time, they see their doubles walking that road. They know them to be real, for sometimes they include George and/or Sally, and sometimes, one of their group was absent.
They walk along in silence, keeping company with their doppelgangers on their right. After a time, they are gone, and the group can see other forms that walk that road, creatures that have the form of men, and some that do not, almost human creatures with antlers, or cloven hoofs as feet. Forms walked that could have been men in form, but the power that surged within them defined them as gods. Tom suspected that he saw Odin there, and some of the others would have passed as the gods of Egypt, and of Sumer, and some of even earlier times.
Tom came to feel that some of them were fading, century by century thinning as the attention of man fell away from their worship. Not all gods drink at the fount of worship, but those who do will spread themselves upon the wind and fade away without it.
After a time, they emerged from the mists. They thought that they might have emerged entirely from the world of the vision quest, but soon Tom realized that the giant Oak tree that they stood before was a bigger tree than he had ever seen, save perhaps the redwoods on the west coast.
Below the tree, on the other side of the great oak, they saw a man sitting beside a campfire. Tom immediately realized that the man he saw before him, he had seen before, in a dream. This was Tyr, and everything that Tom knew pointed to him being a god.
Tyr met Tom’s eyes, and nodded. “I have been called that by some.” He said. “I also answer to friend. I am supposed to show you a glimpse of the worlds of man, and then I must go.”
With those words Tyr threw something into the fire, and the flames flared up. As though this were a trigger, Tom was caught in a sort of mental review of memories that were not his, of worlds and places that matched almost anything that Tom had ever imagined. The sheer mass of the visions was staggering, and when his head threatened to blow, the visions suddenly were over.”
Tyr got up and dusted off his trousers. “I did what they asked me to do. Now I have to go to complete my part in this. You will meet me once again before this is done.” As he said this, the mists rolled in from his far side, and he stepped forward, and into them.
There was a flickering, and an obscuring of movement. The mists washed over him, and when they cleared, Tyr was nowhere to be seen. As this happened, the grassy knoll of the oak faded away, and the five of them found themselves in their seats facing Charlie in the café as though they had never left.
******
13 Big Foot, Bad Smell
The RV rolled down the rutted dirt road under the shading trees. The bird song in the underbrush was almost deafeningly loud. The sunlight was bright, but the limbs and leaves that obscured it gave it that delightful mottled look. They were rolling toward a cabin that they had been offered for the night. The town of Fouke was about three miles back the way they had come.
Charla had been very quiet ever since the vision quest. Veritasia seemed about the same, other than being slightly more clingy than usual, but with a body like hers, no straight man in his right mind was going to mind. Vera seemed to be trying to fit into the feminine stereotype more than she usually did, also since the quest. Tom noticed that Markus was sitting quietly simply observing the behaviors of the women, doubtless trying to divine what precisely was going on in those pretty little pointed heads.
“Welcome to the mythic town of Fouke, home of the Fouke Monster.” Tom quipped. “In our typical counterproductive way, we are taking up Charlie’s offer of the use of the cabin for the night, right here in the middle of monster central, instead of fleeing like any nominally sane person would.”
As he said this, they rolled up the driveway to the little cabin in the woods. A small creek ran less than five hundred feet from the cabin, and it looked to have a couple of likely fishing spots on it, if one didn’t mind fishing for the little creek fish that it likely contained. Tom didn’t mind, as long as the beer cooler stayed well stocked.
The five of them got out and started the process of transferring the overnight necessities into the cabin. The cabin had three small bedrooms, so Tom and Veritasia got the first one, Markus and Vera took the second, and it looked as if Charla planned to use the third to store her stuff, while she seemed intent on camping out in the small living room. Once the necessary vices of life, those being tobacco products and liquors, were distributed, it was shaping up to be livable accommodations.
Over the next hour, they all settled back to relax, and one by one, they recounted the events that happened to them on their vision quests. Tom told his tale, and with some coaxing and a few messy tears, Veritasia went next. Markus told his tale, and seemed a little frustrated that he could not convey to his satisfaction the significance of the experience. Vera had almost totally worked through her own experience, and so she related her vision quest with a minimal number of tears.
It was finally Charla’s turn. She started off stumbling over the description of the events after she established the altar bondage scene, before the sex. Once she finally got past the beginning of the sexual violation, the words flooded out. She told the group of her fear that she was pregnant, and her sensation that whatever was in her womb was not human, but instead, some form of monstrous creature.
Charla apparently did not want to have a monster-baby. She was not the one among the girls who hailed from a 1950’sesque town, but she was choosing to act like a 1950s potential Mom, and live hearty with her fair share of smoking and drinking. While they might not have been healthy habits, they certainly helped to steady her nerves.
They were all sitting out on the veranda (which was actually just an old wooden porch with swing) smoking Pall Malls and Rollies, and drinking Scotch whiskey from pint Mason jars and beer from cans, when a pickup truck came trundling up the driveway. It contained a medium sized guy in black jeans and shirt, who introduced himself as Rafe.
Tom asked Rafe what he could do for him. Rafe said that he had come on behalf of the Sage, who had been in touch with one of his friends called the Seer, who had sent Rafe to Charlie, to find out where to find the group.
“The Sage says that I must take Veritasia into shadow to train for an upcoming event.” Rafe said. “I will take good care of her, and she will return safely to you after a short while. She needs to visit the Seer in his cave, and see what he would show her.”
He turned to Veritasia. “Will you come with me?” He asked. “It is vital that you do so.” She looked questioningly to Tom, who nodded.
“I guess that I will go.” She agreed. “But you have to spring for all meals, and buy me suitable luxuries along the way.” She grinned.
They spent a few more minutes establishing the logistics of the trip for Veritasia. After a wh
ile, they had discussed every nuance of the subject that they could come up with, and had plied Rafe with suitable quantities of whiskey and cigarettes. It was finally time for Veritasia and Rafe to leave on their little trip, and they got into the pickup. It rolled back down the driveway, returning the way whence it came.
Tom, Markus, Charla and Vera continued to sit on the porch, drinking and smoking, and enjoying the cool shading of the surrounding trees, the faint scent of the creek water in the distance, the sounds of the birds in the thickets, and the quiet moments in which they were not pressed to do something important.
It was just becoming dark, and they were starting to consider whether to move the party indoors, or to continue the festivities in the semidarkness of the porch. In that time that the Scots would call the gloaming, they saw it moving near in the brush. At first Tom thought it to be a man, checking out the surplus of womanly flesh on display, but he was to consider in a few moments that he may have been only half right.
At his nearest approach to the group, he rushed out of the brush directly at Charla. She shrieked and lunged backwards to avoid the beastly figure that was reaching for her. Tom noted with a certain sensation of irony that the primate (for that was what it surely was) exuded a stench not unlike a watered down skunk smell. He guessed that if it had appeared anywhere else, it would have been called a Big Foot. He also noted two other relevant facts; it is true what they say about big feet equaling big sex organs, and he was obviously intent on Charla becoming his sex monkey.
The animal was almost in contact with Charla when he suddenly stopped and started to back away. He looked scared of her, and desperate to get away. He stepped to one side, and tried to grab Vera. Tom had to give the beast props for not giving up easily, but he still pulled the revolver clear and fired off a couple of rounds, hitting the beast at least once in the shoulder, and causing equal amounts fear in both the beast and in Vera. The animal let go of the woman, and ran off back toward the brush. As the creature approached cover, mists started to suddenly appear. He dived into the midst of the mist, which promptly vanished. Where the creature was, was still a ways from the cover, but the creature was nowhere to be seen.
Markus goes to comfort Vera, leaving Charla for Tom to relax. He led Charla into the bedroom, and talked to her in hushed tones while massaging her body, edging in to massage her tits and her pussy after a time. Once she was suitably aroused, he allowed her the pleasure of giving him some oral service. He was somewhat leery of going the whole route, since she had told him the recent history of where her vagina had been, and he was not entirely certain that it would be safe to penetrate her there, with some unknown monster growing in her womb.
She confided in him that the Beast looked like it was afraid of her because of the pregnancy, and she was afraid that she was going to give birth to a true monster. She said that there was something unnatural about this fetus, since it had already just begun to show, and it had only been a day.
Tom suggested to Charla that they should take her to a doctor to make sure that she was okay. He got on the phone to Charlie to get some contact information, and got the address of the local doctor. The next morning, they were rolling down the drive, headed into town to talk to Dr. Feenie.
A few moments later, after being temporarily lost on Butler Street, where they got directions from some old geezer who used the ' past two Oak trees and the pink house, turn right' directives to get them onto Clarke Street, they found the old colonial house that they were assured was the business location of the good doctor. They went in and was greeted by a man who was somewhere between retirement age and the grave.
The doctor pulled his stethoscope out and proceeded to give Charla a good going over. He gave out several abortive 'a hems' and other noises as he examined her. Finally, he wrapped up the examination.
"There is nothing wrong with you." The doctor said. "You're perfectly fine for a woman just starting into her second trimester."
Charla looked shocked, and a little afraid. "I have only been pregnant for less than two days!" She said.
"You must be mistaken. You are classic for about four months along." The doctor reported. "And the sonogram confirms that the fetus is normal, and the size is right for that period. You are fine, little lady!"
A couple minutes later, they were standing outside. Charla was horrified and scared shitless. Tom was starting to think that he might have to let her give him another blowjob right then and there to take her mind off of things, but the next thing that happens derails that train of thought.
As he looked over longingly to where the RV was parked half obstructing the residential standard street, he saw a lady walking toward him that rang bells of recognition in his head. Red hair, green eyes, and a deep and abiding mental picture matching her description confirmed for him that she was the One he awaits in his dreams. A moment passed, and she stopped in front of him. It was obvious that she recognized him as well by the way her eyes widened.
"It is you!" She said. "I was starting to think that you were imaginary!" She reached out and hugged him tightly.
"I know you, too!" Tom said. "I am Tom. Tell me all about you. Don't leave anything out."
Over the next two hours, and at the nearby cafe, they talked. They talked so much about the mystery of them knowing each other, and of the same dreams that they had both had, that Charla forgot to be scared as she listened. The new girl was named Karla, and she had grown up in Shreveport before moving to this town in pursuit of the mysteries it held. She was just like Tom. She saw the monsters that were behind the events these last few years. She had no family, and no lovers, which relieved Tom no end.
The last few minutes of their conversation at the Cafe involved plans for you to come with Tom wherever he would next go. They all piled into the RV and drove to her apartment, where she gathered up her sparse belonging, and returned with them to the cabin.
******
14 Where Time grows Younger
The group had spent the night in varying emotional states. Charla was extremely frightened at what the future would bring to her. Markus and Vera were taking everything in stride, more or less, and were looking more and more like a couple. As to Tom and Karla, they were ecstatic at having found each other. In their memories, they had been seeking each other for centuries. Neither of them knew how that was possible, but it certainly felt true.
They had already got to the naked wrestling stage. Their clothes fell off of them virtually as soon as they found themselves behind a lockable door. Tom wasn’t sure how to handle the whole Veritasia thing, but he thought that he could figure something out that did not end with a view of her dead body. Even with the single-minded obsession that he was feeling regarding Karla, he would still consider it a shame to waste a prime piece like Veritasia. If he was lucky, she would have a go at Rafe on their little mission, and he wouldn’t have any problems.
The morning was bright, and the birds were singing. Bailey had already found and brought a sulled possum to Tom. He looked startled when Tom put the possum into the corner where it had no idea of nearby activities, and the possum started to move like a zombie coming back to life. Tom went in for another cup of coffee when the possum and the dog was face to face, with the possum doing its warning hiss, and the dog sitting with his head on its feet, barking low and continuously.
When he got inside, the phone was ringing. Tom knew that it had to be Charlie, because no one else had received the information for this burner phone except him. It was indeed Charlie, and he had some information.
The group was to go to Magnolia to see the Sage. Charlie gave Tom the address, and they discussed the reasons for the meeting. The group was expected to set things right, to move the world from its fragmenting and fluctuating nature to a more stable reality.
Tom wanted to question him as to what there was about their group that made them the chosen group? Why didn’t Charlie and the Sage fix things, and let the group get to the serious business of personal debauchery.
Charlie said something to the effect of he and the Sage not belonging to the world’s chess board, and only native pieces could make the needed moves. Tom was pretty sure that was a crock, but how do you argue with it?
He received the full set of instructions from the Cherokee/Caddo bastard and hung up. They were expected in Magnolia in about six hours, where the Sage would give them further instructions, and send them on the first task. It was maybe a hundred miles to Magnolia from Fouke, so if they hurried, they should just make it in six hours.
He went to the others and filled them in. Everyone was secretly happy to have something positive to do, instead of just stewing in their own juices. Everyone had their stuff packed and ready to load in the RV within thirty minutes, and they were ready. While the others were finding places to put their gear, Tom went out to fetch the dog. Bailey appeared from the edge of the woods with the first whistle, and trotted confidently to the RV. In his mouth he had the possum that he had previously confronted. It looked to be properly sulled again, and it was obvious by the proud bearing of the dog that he considered the possum to be a cherished pet. Tom considered the pros and the cons of having a wild possum on board the RV, and then he opened the door to the RV so that the dog could enter with his pet.
A few moments later, they were jostling down the driveway of the cabin, headed for the open road, and the ultimate destination of Magnolia, Arkansas. Tom thought that it was good to be in the country with actual trees, not the sage brush of Arizona, or the puny saplings of Texas, but actual solid trees. He thought that, if events and the human population allowed, he might well consider settling down somewhere in this area. He would propose that to Karla, after the trials were over.