by J M Hart
“What is the beginning and the division?” Kevin asked.
Father McDonald was flicking through his Bible and stopped. “In the Book of Numbers, Chapter Two talks about how the twelve tribe were broken into four groups of three from the center of the tabernacle into the east towards the rising sun; south, west and north.”
Rachel ran her fingers over the lines and said, “The twelve tribes, the twelve houses of the zodiac, the four angels. Like the tablet, if this is a puzzle to be solved there are hundreds of combinations.”
“What I see,” said Jade, “is the squaring of the circle.”
“There is no circle, Jade,” Rachel said.
“If you put a compass in the center of the maze,” she said, drawing it with her finger, “and line it up with the east, you can draw a circle touching each of these markings.” She tapped the points. “Imagine all the lines are removed, leaving the four points. You have a circle inside a square. Sacred geometry, the drawing of the squaring of the circle, fits within this maze.”
“Why is it significant?” Kevin asked.
“She isn’t really talking to us, she is thinking out loud,” Father McDonald said.
Jade ran her fingers along a line, out from the center square to the east. “Down to the south-east corner and followed back into the center, and out to the west and up to the north-west corner. Back into the center and out along the eastern line and up to the north corner, and back into the center out along the western line and down to the south. Now draw the outer line from the south to the east up to the north and around to the west, ending in the south, completing twelve movements,” she said.
The rock face of the maze grinded like giant teeth as the stones started to move. It was coming to life. Inner sections moved back into the wall, and the lines Jade had drawn along scraped forward, and began to spin in a clockwise direction. The center point protruded about four inches from the rest of the structure. Jade reached out and pushed it back in. After the passing of the centuries, the long rectangular stone slab under their feet, as if on a spring, recoiled into life just like its designers intended on the day it had been created long ago.
Suddenly, like a rug pulled from under them, the stones parted and they tumbled into the dark shaft, screaming. The stone slab sprang back into position, silencing the sounds of their descent. Rachel dragged her nails along the stone wall, trying to slow her fall. They were jumbled together as they fell, hitting one another. Rachel felt her head connect with someone’s shoe and was knocked unconscious just before she hit the bottom of the shaft.
10
Tomb of Thoth.
Kevin couldn’t catch his breath, his lungs wouldn’t expand. Finally, he drew in a breath and dirt filled his nostrils. Kevin coughed. The dirt went down into his throat; he started coughing harder, and then spitting. Not a stream of moonlight or starlight above; the darkness was absolute. Jade coughed in his face and Kevin reactively raised his hand. He sat still and listened. He could hear her coughing, and smelt her sweet odor. He reached out, and there she was. He let loose a sigh of relief. He felt her leg and left his hand upon it to comfort her. A hand gently lay upon his. At first he thought it was Jade, as it was soft, but also a little too big. It was Tim. “Tim, are you okay?”
“I’ll be right. Look after Jade.”
“Jade?” Kevin whispered. He thought it was best not to talk too loud. He could hear someone or something start to move.
“Sophia? Casey?” They didn’t answer.
He reached for the strap of his backpack and lifted one side off. Please don’t be smashed, please don’t be smashed, he thought, as he slowly reached into the bag. The tablet was cold and rough around the edges, but it seemed to be intact. He tightened the straps again and opened up the front pocket, looking for a torch. It was gone, then suddenly a blue light lit up the area and it was Shaun with his little blue LED light. He was sitting against the opposite wall about four yards away. Next to him, Rachel lay unconscious and partly hidden underneath Father McDonald, who was himself bent at odd and hideous angles. Casey and Sophia tried to stand, wobbling as they did. Sophia’s hair, which usually looked like golden silk, was matted with dirt and blood. Kevin watched as Jade strained to catch her breath. He put his hand on her shoulder and she held up her finger for a minute, reassuring him she would be okay while she continued to control her wheezing. Over her shoulder he saw that Tim, washed by the glow of blue light, had crawled over to Rachel. Together with Shaun, Tim gently moved Father McDonald off her. Father McDonald screamed in pain, then passed out. Rachel still wasn’t moving. Shaun squeezed her shoulders gently, quietly saying her name.
Kevin went to Father McDonald’s side. Rachel coughed. Kevin looked up and noticed Tim had left Rachel in Shaun’s care as soon as she started to talk. He was by Sophia and Casey, trying to help them. Tim was moving from one person to another, quickly and deliberately, caring for everyone. He was totally in his element. He reminded Kevin of his dad. Tim ripped off his shoe and a sock and then put his shoe back on. What’s he doing, Kevin wondered. Tim tied the sock around Sophia’s head to stop the bleeding. If the bleeding didn’t kill her, the smell would, he thought.
They were all a mess. Father McDonald’s leg was twisted at the hip and his head was slumped to the side. His ear was bleeding, the blood dripping off his shoulder and onto the dirt floor. His hip and leg were broken.
Kevin scanned around for a doorway, an exit. It seemed they were in an alcove no bigger than a small shipping container, but beyond the entrance to their small space was a vast chamber that Shaun shone his pocket torch into.
Tim crouched on one leg beside Sophia, making sure the sock was doing its job and softly spoke to Casey. He pushed himself up and headed in Kevin’s direction. Who is this guy? Kevin thought, watching Tim make his way over. “Need some help, K?”
“You can tell me where my mate Tim’s gone for starters?”
Tim didn’t answer. He scanned Father McDonald’s body. “His leg is definitely broken. I know that angle,” Tim said. “His hip reminds me of my grandma’s when she missed the chair and fell. He is going to be in a lot of pain when he comes around.”
A scream echoed through the chamber; Father McDonald was conscious. Jade squeezed her hands over her ears. The sound reverberated in the small space and the outer chamber erupted into life. Kevin felt his stomach churn. He began to sweat profusely and his breath became rapid. A three-tiered ancient platform, each level protected by a ring of molten flames, filled the chamber and his eyes. The sudden heat was scorching, and they tried to back away. Orange and yellow flames guarded the first set of twelve ancient steps that led to the first platform. The second level glowed with purple and blue flames, protecting the next set of twelve stairs that led to the third tier. At the top of the thirty-two steps, on the third tier, was a platform surrounded by white molten flames. Upon the platform four cubed columns stood in each corner, like centurions guarding an altar where a golden statue lay. The statue’s head was odd and had a pointy, long arched nose like a beak. At the chest was a cavity. Something had been removed; a breastplate, the Emerald Tablet.
“It’s a statue of Thoth,” Jade said. She stood beside Kevin, each of them breathing shallow and rapid. “It’s a bit like a sarcophagus.”
Over on the far side of the chamber, a black whirlpool of expanding dark matter began to zap away Kevin’s energy. He felt he was looking into the emptiness of the universe and felt overwhelming sadness. He could see something within the swirling darkness accelerating towards them. It started as a dense shape and broke free into the light of the cave. Translucent, it flapped and fluttered like a giant butterfly. As it got closer, Kevin thought, that’s no butterfly. The translucent entity had razor-sharp teeth, the head of a bat and the tail of a scorpion. It flew over the flames, straight for them.
“Come to me!” Father McDonald yelled with sudden strength. The entity separated into hundreds of micro parts and went straight up Father McDonald’s nose and
in through his mouth. His eyes pooled with black tar and he gagged and choked. How he was even conscious Kevin didn’t know, but the old man was fighting to stay in control of his body and soul.
Kevin couldn’t help him. The dense whirlpool of negative matter had accelerated, drawing everything in towards it. Everything that contained a spark of light was being pulled into the stream of blackness. Kevin could feel the drag. The first and second set of flames violently stretched up to the ceiling. The orange and yellow flames seared the ancient stone without yielding to the strength of the dark force.
He was pulled up onto his toes, but he resisted the compulsion to step forward. The blue-white flames atop the third tier were hypnotic. They too rose into the air, ascending and concealing the statue. A few seconds passed before the flames parted, upon the altar stood a beast made from the blistering flames. The monster was six feet high, six feet wide, and six feet long. The pull of the vortex stabilized, but there was no way they could get the Emerald Tablet to the statue. The beast covered it, owned it. How can we fix the Emerald Tablet upon the chest of Thoth? Kevin thought. The fiery beast was blocking the gate to the underworld, preventing the world of darkness from being closed. It pulled back its mouth, snarling, exposing its sharp teeth, daring anyone to move. Fiery wings extended from its back and flapped, fanning the white flames.
Casey moved closer and it growled. Orange flames danced upon its jagged teeth and its scorpion tail slithered back and forth behind it, ready to play. But nothing is impossible, Kevin thought. He remembered his bike, his grandmother, the crash, and the day he saw Casey drown. Nothing is impossible, nothing.
Rachel was moving forward and started fiddling with Kevin’s backpack, feeling for the tablet. He thought she was going to take it out, but she was making sure it was secure. She scrunched her hair into a bun, patted him on the back and walked past him into the open, resisting the pull of the black hole. She turned and looked back at him and said, “It needs a sacrifice and I will be it, for my father. The flames won’t hurt if you are of pure heart; you will feel no heat. Remember, mind over matter. Don’t give up, we can do this.”
Shaun grabbed Rachel by the wrist. “No, I will go!” He stepped in front of her, blocking her way. They stood face to face. Shaun loosened his grip and picked up her other hand, and gently said, “It was my father, he was the cause. I won’t lose you again.”
Kevin was seeing another person. Shaun was different from the one he had known; he was actually showing concern for another human being. He had been kind to Alex too. Kevin had forgotten Alex was gone; the shocking memory kicked him in the stomach and he doubled over in pain and swallowed back the emotions. As if from underwater, he could just make out Shaun’s voice pleading with Rachel not to go. Kevin moved his hands from his knees to his hips and regained control.
“I’ll go,” Tim said.
“What the hell, has everyone gone mad? This is all a dream, it has to be a dream. I have to wake up. I have too,” Kevin said.
Instantly, Kevin felt calm. Sophia had placed her delicate hand on his arm. He could feel her peaceful energy rush through him. “Rachel has to be the one, she has the heart. This is for her soul,” Sophia said, still not removing her hand. “We shouldn’t take this away from her. Through all her lives she has waited for this moment. Her children and the world will be blessed.”
Shaun stormed at Sophia. “Shut up, you’re a fucked-up psycho,” he screamed. “How can her children, that she doesn’t have, be blessed if she’s dead?” he yelled in Sophia’s face.
Sophia, without flinching, said, “She is a gift to her children.”
Casey stepped up, trying to calm Shaun and said, “It might seem like a load of crap, but you seriously have to listen to her.”
Father McDonald’s eyes changed continuously from normal to black pools as he dragged himself towards the flames. Knowing he was witnessing an internal demonic battle, Kevin felt scared and sorry for the priest. Everyone was totally freaking out. Father McDonald had very little strength left; the entity had just about consumed every drop of his light. But he didn’t stop fighting. He was trying to speak. Kevin moved closer.
“I must go,” he said. “I am the only holy man here. I must be the sacrifice. Stop her.”
Kevin had no time to react, because while they argued, Rachel stepped into the flames. She looked calm, as if held in suspended animation, unaffected by the fire or the swirling dark matter.
Shaun stopped yelling at Sophia and turned towards Rachel; she was gone. He ran after her, but the flames drove him back. He couldn’t get close enough to reach her. He shielded his face from the flames and screamed Rachel’s name. Rachel didn’t flinch, or make a sound, just walked on through the orange-yellow flames. She emerged unscathed and climbed up the first twelve steps. Without turning back, she entered the purple-blue flames untouched, and walked up the next set of steps and into the white molten flames. The cave was filled with a sweet smell as if fresh flowers had suddenly bloomed. Kevin moved as close as he dared and saw Rachel exit the blue-white flames. She is unharmed, not a hair out of place, Kevin thought. He had expected to see her clothes smoldering at least. She stopped in front of the huge snarling hound, its fiery wings fanning a heatwave, and its tail moved as if it was a separate entity.
It sniffed at her boldness, perhaps intrigued that she dared to enter the flames and stare into its evil eyes. It stepped forward to the edge of the sarcophagus. She didn’t flinch. The beast looked behind itself and suddenly two more heads appeared from the rear and faced forward fixing on Rachel. The two heads had been enjoying sniffing its own filth, and were angry at the interruption and the sickening stench of Rachel’s unwavering beauty that now filled the cave. The three snouts dripped fiery white mucus. She looks so small. Why didn’t she take the tablet with her? Kevin thought. How the hell is she going to get out? The heads moved inquisitively, seeming to find Rachel of interest and no threat. The beast maintained its stance on top of the statue. The vortex was growing, the cave wall behind the vast ancient steps was collapsing into the black hole. Rachel took another step closer. Saliva the color of coffee dripped from three mouths.
“Do something,” Shaun shouted and wrestled with Kevin for the backpack. He took out the Emerald Tablet and ran towards the flames. The intensity of the heat pushed him back again. He tripped forward. Kevin ran to help him, Tim right beside him. The heat of the flames scorched Kevin’s face. It was like nothing he had ever experienced. He was worried Shaun was hurt. Tim got to Shaun and started pulling him to safety.
“Get the tablet,” Tim yelled.
Kevin snatched up the tablet and turned his back on the flames.
The flames sucked the air from the cave. Kevin had started to feel drowsy, he was slow to think and that’s when it happened. A paw surrounded with fire, the size of Rachel’s whole body, was extended to her as its claws sprung out and in one swoop sliced the air in front of her. The middle head lifted up and roared. The one on the left bent down and in one motion licked Rachel from her feet to her head. She was covered in brown-black goo that looked like black oil.
We have to do something. Kevin was desperate. We can’t just stand here and watch. Shaun and Tim were trying to find another way to get to Rachel. Shaun started to scale the side wall, climbing up and over the flames, but he wasn’t going to make it in time.
Just like the day he saw Casey drown, he felt impotent and worthless and didn’t understand why God gave him gifts if he couldn’t save people from dying. But he had: he had saved Tim, he had saved his dad and Ellen. The hound’s wings flapped faster and faster, its paw sliced the air and connected with Rachel. She fell to the ground. Shaun screamed from above, as the beast stomped its paw on her stomach. A second set of claws sprang free and pierced into her abdomen. The monster’s massive wings lifted it up and off the sarcophagus. It shoveled Rachel up into its mouth, where she dangled like a puppet with broken strings. Kevin could do nothing but watch in horror.
Sha
un pulled himself up onto a ledge, threw rocks at the back of the beast’s head screaming, “Rachel, Rachel.”
A beacon of light, a prism of color, filled the chamber. Rachel was illuminated from the inside out, her entire being glowed. The light travelled from her into the hound’s mouth and down into its gut. The beast drew back its snout in disgust and spat her out as if she was diseased. She went flying through the air, over the top of the three sets of flame. The ground cracked open and the orange flames dropped into the belly of the Earth. Rachel hit and bounced off the fallen rocks like a pebble across a still lake. The dirt puffed up around her as she hit the ground for the final time at the bottom of the stairs and slid to a stop. The beast let out a terrifying howl. The heatwave and stench from its mouth was cyclonic, driving everyone back. Kevin sailed backwards and held the Emerald Tablet tight to his chest. He watched as one of its heads desperately snapped blindly at the air. The light went up its snout and surrounded its torso; it roared in agony. Its pain magnified; the heads bubbled and boiled. Rachel’s light swamped the hound’s entire being, squeezing out the darkness and turning it into falling effervescent lights that fell from the air into the first row of flames. Explosions erupted from deep in the crevasse, rising up into a massive fiery ball and the first row of flames died. The black hole expanded, more of the cave turned to rubble, and fell away into the nothingness. What seemed to Kevin to be an eternity was over in minutes. Rachel lay limp on the dirt, her visible light diminishing; shadows danced on the walls. The vortex was growing and they were all closer to the edge of extinction. The ledge broke from under Shaun.
“Hang on,” Kevin yelled.
Shaun struggled to hold on to the rock face; he searched for a foothold and slipped. He fell down to the stone steps and landed on his back.