“Fine, I think we should do a full check on the ship before we push on to the Great Rim, who knows what we shall encounter,” said Corky.
“Then set a course. I think we should bear to the east, the fog is so thick that we have to rely on maps,” said Arthur.
“I’ll get us there, you go and attend to your beloved,” he said.
“Aye aye navigator,” said Arthur, who closed the door on his way out.
Jo was looking for something new to wear, but nothing felt right. Arthur then walked in, and Jo turned around expecting something horrible to walk through the door. “Oh it’s you, what’s happening?” she asked.
“We’re on course for Danis Hall and it’s nearly dinner time, so get something nice” said Arthur.
“I can’t find anything that looks right,” she replied.
“I’m sorry, but I’m no expert in this situation,” he said.
“I thought that you were,” she replied.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked.
“I’m going to be your wife, so I think I should know everything about you,” she said.
“Hold on a second, now that were bringing this subject up I want to ask you something, I have never actually heard about your mother,” said Arthur.
“I don’t like to talk about it” said Jo.
“The first time I met you your mother wasn’t in sight, but I didn’t notice anything because my mother was comatose in bed from the night before so I thought that was normal,” said Arthur.
“She just wasn’t around,” said Jo.
“Is your mother dead?” asked Arthur.
“She died when I was 185,” said Jo.
“Then where was she when I saw you first?” he asked.
“The same place as your Uncle Phillip, that’s why he recognised me but I said he was mistaken,” she said.
“Your mother was in Hemlock Asylum? I’m so sorry,” said Arthur.
“She tried to slit Alexandra’s throat and sacrifice her to Persus, she belonged in there,” said Jo, in a voice of anger that thinly veiled her sorrow.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked.
“I don’t think that you would find me much of a future wife when I had screwy relatives,” said Jo.
“Mine are worse than yours,” he replied.
“We both have chequered pasts, but let’s hope that we can make our family more of a beacon of happiness,” said Jo.
“I think we will, learning from the past and all that,” said Arthur.
The ship stopped, and they both went to the deck to see where they had landed. They were next to a large house, and they could see that the lights were on inside, and they looked quite warming in the fog.
Arthur was waiting downstairs and Jo joined him in an elegant and refined dress from Discoucia’s ‘Neo Firmanian’ period of fashion. “Your mother had excellent taste, this would suit anybody perfectly,” she said.
“Huh? Oh that wasn’t my mother who owned that, it’s a backup for the blue one that I bought in Neo Firmania,” he said.
“This is yours?!” asked Jo.
“Can you please not look at me like that?” he asked.
“I’m not surprised really, and you don’t have to be ashamed about having a feminine side,” she said, sitting next to him and leaning her head on his shoulder.
“Come on; let’s go introduce ourselves to Sir Edward and see if he can put us up for the night,” said Arthur.
“Maybe he can tell us more about the monster out there,” said Jo.
Just as she said it, there was a howling but it was far off in the distance, but it was enough to make Jo run out the door and over to the banister, climb down and bang on the front door. “Hold on, you’re not making a good first impression,” said Arthur, following Jo down to the front door.
The Ghoul at the Hall
The door was opened by a smartly dressed woman who was about 250, and wore a plain maid dress. “Good evening sir, how may I help you?” she asked.
“Sir Arthur Pageon and Princess Josephine Olandine to see Sir Edward,” he said.
“On what business shall I say you are here on?” asked the maid.
“Monster removal ad royal business,” said Jo. At this the maid’s eyes widened, but her general expression didn’t change.
“Very well I’ll tell him you’ve arrived, please wait in here,” she said.
The inside of the hall was beautifully ornate, with shields and sword decorating the wooden panelled walls. There were also paintings and tapestries with people and scenes from battles long ago. There was a large solid oak table in the centre with three large silver candelabras, with red candles flickering in a cross breeze that could have been coming from one of the many ornate leaded windows. There was a crest on each of them in stained glass with a lion and a mermaid, and as Arthur was looking at it, Jo was looking at a painting that seemed to transfix her. It was a painting of a man, who had long grey hair and a horrific expression on his face and an angry look with blazing eyes. It was the dog by his side that Jo was staring at; it was a brown hound with pricked up ears, eyes that matched its master and fangs dripping with blood. Beneath its blood stained paws was a lamb that had been slaughtered.
“That is my great, great grandfather Sir Daniel, the Mad Sir Daniel” said a booming voice that shattered the tension of the room. At the end of the hall was a staircase, a straight one, and it led to a landing that looked out over the hall.
“Cheery bloke,” said Jo.
“Yes you could call him that, do I have the honour of addressing Princess Josephine Olandine?” he asked.
“Yes, it’s nice to meet you Sir Edward,” she said.
“And you must be Sir Arthur, are you expecting to see something out there?” he asked.
“You tell me,” replied Arthur.
“So you’ve heard our little ghoul out there on the moorland?” he asked.
“It seems a little bit of a cliché, a monster out on the moorland and you only hear it and not see it,” said Arthur.
“I have seen it, and I never want to see such a thing again,” said Edward.
“If you could explain yourself what you saw, then hopefully I can build up an answer to your problem,” said Arthur.
“What problem is that?” he asked.
“The problem of a ghoulish hound terrorising you,” said Arthur.
“I’m not worried, it doesn’t come into my house so why should I be worried?” asked Edward.
“I wasn’t really prepared for that, you don’t want us to solve the mystery?” asked Arthur.
“It would be a waste of time, plus it seems to be adding a bit of mystery and suspense to the place,” he said.
“In that case, would you be able to put us up for the night?” asked Arthur.
“Of course, dinner will be served in an hour and I can show you around the estate while we wait,” said Edward.
“I would be delighted, come on Jo,” said Arthur, who took Jo’s arm and followed Edward through a door beneath the landing.
They walked through a corridor as ornate as the hall, and it seemed to be full of antique memorabilia from past wars and past occupants. There were paintings of different kings and queens and at the end, the way split in two. There was a large painting of an elegant woman, who wore a shimmering blue dress and had short wavy hair.
“Who is this?” asked Jo.
“That is one of my ancestors, her name has been long forgotten so she is only know as ‘The Danis Girl’, and she bears the likeness of my father,” said Edward. As Edward walked down to the right, Jo and Arthur looked at it a second longer and Arthur noticed something in the picture that Jo didn’t.
“I don’t think Edward knows that this ‘girl’ has an Adam’s apple” said Arthur.
“Don’t you think it’s strange that we think that the first Discoucian was called Adam, how would you possibly know that,” said Jo.
“I think it’s best not to think about it, and do
n’t mention to Edward that his father may have had an interesting private life,” said Arthur, who followed Jo to where Edward was waiting.
There was a red door that was very ornate, and when Edward opened it, it led to a strangely designed room that didn’t seem to fit in with rest of the architecture of the house, but it was decorated the same. It was built like a cellar, so that the glass ceiling was at the same level as the ground. It wasn’t a flat ceiling and seemed to be more like a conservatory. There was a large table in the middle, and the diners could sit below the glass roof.
“This is a new way to eat,” said Arthur.
“Yes it is a modern arrangement but I like it, now we can have a talk about what is going on in Discoucia these days,” said Edward.
They sat down and a simple dinner was served, a steak of questionable origin. “What is in this?” asked Jo.
“It’s a speciality of my cook, it’s a swordfish steak,” he said.
“I don’t think those two words should be put together” said Arthur.
There was a puff of blue smoke, and a piece of paper flew into Jo’s hand. “’Tell me about it’,” she said. “It looks like Archie agrees with you.”
“So, on another topic, what is the land around here like?” asked Arthur.
“There are a number of farms and there’s another stately home west of the Astral Castle, but it’s been in a state of ruin for years and no one lives there. On a clear night you can see it from the tower room, and fortunately enough the fog looks like it’s just about to clear,” said Edward. He was right, the fog had cleared and the sky was now full of tiny stars everywhere.
“I would like to go and have a look, if you don’t mind,” asked Arthur.
“Of course, it looks extra creepy at night, and with the moon out it should be as light as day,” he replied.
Arthur and Jo followed Edward down the corridor past the now slightly comical picture of The Danis Girl and up a set of stairs. They then went down a dark corridor and up a spiral staircase. This led to the tower room, which was a circular room with a large closed window. Edward opened it and the cold air blew in, but it didn’t affect Arthur as he had three layers on. Jo shivered but tried to hide it, however Arthur took off his jacket and put it around her and she was silently thankful. Edward pointed out across the landscape, with its rivers, and random trees that bordered roads and fields. They saw farmhouses, all dark, since it was late at night. The whole scene took on a blue and grey hue, and the starry sky made it look beautifully lonely.
“There is the farm at Marsh End and if you go up from there, is the next farm at Earthydown,” explained Edward. Then Arthur and Jo’s attention was focused on a clump of old trees, and the black dome and many chimneys of a large old house. “That’s it, the old Tenebra place, empty for years,” said Edward.
“Forgive me for the silly question, but why is there smoke coming from the chimney,” said Jo.
“By Authos, that’s strange, strange indeed,” said Edward.
They heard the howling again and this time it came from the direction of the Tenebra house. “I wouldn’t mind going to have a look, tomorrow at least, investigation and all that,” said Arthur.
“I will too, I own the land from the borders of the Sersitio Forest to the sea and if someone is squatting I want to know,” said Edward.
“Then that’s our plan for tomorrow, but I’m afraid we can’t take my ship as it’s being prepared for the journey ahead,” said Arthur.
“The farmers around here don’t like flying ships so we’ll walk; it’s only about a mile away. And Princess, could you please do me a favour and entertain my wife, she gets so bored in the autumn when there is nothing to do,” said Edward.
“No problem but I hope you two will be careful, that place looks a bit freaky,” said Jo.
“It’s probably haunted or bewitched or some such fiddle faddle,” said Arthur. There was another puff of smoke, and Arthur read the note aloud.
“’I think now is the time to say it but this was my favourite part of One Hundred and One Dalmatians, and I wished it was longer so you are living my wish, have fun. All credit to Dodie Smith and the good people at Disney’,” read Arthur.
“She’s getting worse,” said Jo.
“I’m not in the mood for her nonsense, I just want it to get light before we go and explore that place,” said Arthur.
They left the tower room and retired for the night. Arthur slept in one room and Jo in another. This was not an arrangement that they had decided, but they had no other choice since it was in the huge and walled house that they felt safe. Jo dreamt of that old house and the horrors within. Arthur dreamt that the Danis Girl was throwing oranges at him, and Edward dreamt of dalmatians, loads of them.
The morning came, and Jo went in to wake Arthur up. “Did you sleep well?” asked Jo.
“Not really, I don’t know if I like it here,” said Arthur.
“Me neither, just get your little pleasure jaunt over and we can leave. I don’t want to be separated from you again,” said Jo. Arthur tussled Jo’s hair, and got up to look out of the window. The morning had not improved the look of the landscape. Arthur could see the tracks of many carts that had churned up the roads leaving gouges that were now filled with rain water. There was smoke rising from the chimneys of the farmhouses they saw last night but the Tenebra place looked quiet, and as ominous as it had done the night before.
“I’ll get dressed and meet Sir Edward for breakfast, will you join me?” asked Arthur.
“Do you mean will I eat food? What do you think the answer to that is?” asked Jo.
“Point taken,” replied Arthur.
“Are you sure you want to go?” asked Jo.
“I have to but there is something I want you to do, if I don’t come back then don’t come after me,” said Arthur.
“What are you talking about?” she said.
“I don’t want you to get into any unnecessary harm,” said Arthur.
“Aww, you’re concerned about me,” she said. Arthur put his hand on Jo’s arm, and looked really concerned. “I’m serious, go to the Astral Castle and then go with Corky to the Twilight Vale, you’ll be safe there and I’ll join you as soon as I can,” he said.
“Don’t be serious, I don’t like it,” said Jo.
After a hearty breakfast Arthur and Edward were ready to leave. They left Jo and Lady Lucy; the wife of Edward in the hall and walked down the track to the gate. Edward didn’t seem to be very talkative, and as they passed through a clump of trees, they caught sight of the Tenebra house sitting like a silent creature within a ring of trees. They followed the muddy track but stayed on the side of the road because the verge was much firmer. After a quarter of a mile they reached the first farm, which Edward identified as Marsh End. At this time of year there wasn’t much activity, but some animals could be heard behind the high walls.
“Come on, we get about six hours of light in the autumn,” said Edward.
“OK, you lead,” replied Arthur, and they continued to make their way along the sodden path. After about half a mile they reached the second and last farm on their way to the old house. “This is Earthydown Farm, a little bigger than the one down at Marsh End, but they both have large and high walls as much as each-other,” said Edward.
“Is that to keep someone out?” asked Arthur.
“Someone or something,” said Edward.
“We’re nearly there I assume,” said Arthur.
“See for yourself,” said Edward.
The road went uphill, and there were several dead trees at the top blocking the view but now they saw the Tenebra house in much more detail. It looked half like a ruined castle, and seemed to have many smashed windows and crumbling fixtures. They were about a hundred yards from the trees that surrounded it, and through the trees Arthur caught a glimpse of the decaying walls with wrought iron spikes. The whole place didn’t look inviting at all. They walked through a field which had been recently ploughed to a
llow the frost to kill the weeds, and had a fence bordering the perimeter. They entered the copse of trees, and they were all gnarled and weather worn. Nothing seemed to grow here, apart from the clumps of mushrooms at the base of several trees.
The walls were about seven foot high, and had ornate stone bowls on the top of pillars that partitioned each section of the wall. The trees looked like long bony fingers ready to snatch a passing sparrow, and the calling of a crow could be heard somewhere above them.
“This makes a change from the usual settings I’ve encountered,” said Arthur.
“Be careful where you step, there are a lot of holes around here, the cellar was rather extensive but the masonry wasn’t so keep an eye out,” said Edward. They walked along the old track and finally came to the gate, and Arthur caught his first sight of the old house.
It was built just like a fortified manor house, and in the garden in front of it was a stone banister with pillars at the end of it. There were plant pots on the pillars, and the roses that were planted there had grown wild over time and now sought to choke the stone that contained them. There was a kind of dense fog carpeting the floor, about half a foot deep, and this made the idea of pot holes a much more intimidating concept. They stared at the hulking mass of decaying brickwork, crumbling turrets and smashed windows for a while, and it suddenly seemed to get dark. The whole scene just seemed to become dull and lifeless, even more so than before.
“What time is it?” asked Edward. Arthur looked at his watch and it was only half past noon, so the change in light couldn’t be accounted for.
“Do you think we should go in and check out where the smoke was coming from,” said Arthur.
“Of course, we don’t want our women folk to find out we ran away scared do we?” asked Edward.
“My fiancée doesn’t care about me being scared, since we’ve come up against so many terrifying creatures and adventures in the past,” said Arthur.
“Is Princess Josephine your fiancée?” he asked.
Discoucia Page 30