by Zandria West
The words are out of my mouth before I even realise I said them. I see Gabriel look away, and Alex’s hold on my hand tightens.
‘That is true,’ Graciela says, bowing her head. ‘But I would like to know you, in time.’
‘Tell me what I have to do. How is the spell activated?’ I frown. She must know. That’s why we’re here, after all. If anyone is going to be able to tell me anything, it will be her.
‘To activate the Key will require great energy,’ she says carefully.
I feel a sudden foreboding fill me. I have to die. Just like the demons said, I have to die to complete the spell. I’m not ready. I swallow.
‘Look at this,’ Graciela says lightly, passing a small booklet across to me. I blink at the sudden change of subject matter, and stare down. It takes a moment for me to even read the title, which says: Temple of Izushi: A Guidebook. On the front page, a photograph of a painting from what looks to be a cave wall stares back at me. In the centre, there is the figure of a woman with brilliant blue hair. On one side of her is a snake and on the other a wolf, behind her a man and an angel. Around them, drawn with intricate care, is the symbol that we saw painted in the temple, the symbol that we saw glowing around us when we completed the binding.
I stare at the image for a long time. ‘I don’t understand,’ I say finally.
‘That is a picture of the Goddess Izushi and her consorts. Archaeologists suggest that it dates from at least three thousand years ago, though it has been touched up and repainted over the years.’
‘But how is that possible?’ I look up Graciela. I can’t make sense of what I’m seeing.
To my surprise, it’s not Graciela but Gabriel who answers me. ‘Throughout history there are people known as psychics. Mystics, oracles, fortune-tellers, spirit-walkers. Through the power of the Goddess, they see further than others. It is as if, for them, sometimes time bends, and they perceive what lies far ahead as clearly as if it were the present. I would guess this is the product of one such person. They saw you – saw us – and drew us as you see. It is very rare, but not unknown.’
‘And the people here have been worshipping this as the image of their Goddess for millennia,’ Graciela adds. ‘They knew you for Izushi as soon as they saw you. To have Reuben turn to a wolf at your side only cemented what they already believed.’
I swallow. Even just hearing the word Goddess makes me feel uncomfortable. The idea that people might think I am one just about makes my head explode. I scowl and look more closely at the image.
‘But it’s crazy. It’s wrong to let them think that. I mean, I’m not –‘
‘Listen to me, Lana,’ my mother speaks slowly and patiently, as though to a child who’s just not understanding some simple, common-sense thing. ‘To complete the spell will require a massive amount of energy, all released at just the right time. The sort of energy that could only be harnessed from a very significant sacrifice. So it is fortunate, don’t you think, that there are people here who worship you as a Goddess, who’d be willing, with a little encouragement, to sacrifice themselves to you...?’
I stand up, ‘No,’ I shake my head. ‘No way. You’re not tricking all those people into killing themselves for me. That’s like the fucking Jonestown massacre all over again.’
Graciela frowns and her expression hardens. ‘No, Lana, it’s not. Jonestown was one egotistical maniac deluding hundreds of followers for no good reason but to make himself feel like a God. Their deaths were meaningless. This is completely different. Do you know what will happen if the Barrier fails? Chaos and bloodshed on a scale you cannot even imagine. Already, it is beginning…’
I shake my head again. ‘I can’t agree to it. I won’t,’ I turn to find Gabriel, hoping for his support, but when I meet his eyes his expression is dark and distant. He looks away through the window down at the temple below.
I look to Reuben, Alex, Grayson, but none of them show any sign of the outrage that I feel.
‘Is it just because they’re humans? Is that why you don’t care?’ I say. The viciousness of my words hangs in the air.
Reuben growls low. ‘You accuse us of not caring, Lana? We risked our lives for your people, over and over again. We’ve lost everything because of the duty that we felt to protect the human race, and prevent this conflict from growing. The end was never going to be pretty. But whatever needs to be done, we’ll do it. It is what we are bound to.’
I swallow and flush, breaking his gaze.
What he’s said is true. Now I feel like a petulant idiot. I have only the faintest sense of what each of them have suffered and sacrificed to protect humanity – to protect me.
‘I’m sorry,’ I say. ‘I just can’t... The thought of lying to all those people, letting them kill themselves on the basis of some delusion…’
‘But is it a delusion, angel? Really?’ Alex says gently. ‘You saw the image in the book. You spoke to the Guardian. You came from another realm. You recognise the glowing symbol from when we –’
‘Yes, right, I know what you’re trying to say,’ I interrupt quickly, flushing beetroot red and looking at the floor.
‘Please at least consider it, Lana,’ Gabriel finishes. ‘Your mother is right. If the Barrier crumbles, this world will descend into chaos and bloodshed. The deaths of a few to provide the power needed to rebuild it would be a worthy sacrifice…’
I wince and shake my head. It’s too much. I can’t bear to think about it.
‘I have something that might help you understand,’ Graciela sighs. ‘I have asked you to take much on trust today, Lana. Will you trust me one more time?’
I look to Gabriel. I have faith in his judgement even when I no longer have faith in my own. He nods.
‘Alright,’ I say, swallowing down the lump in my throat. ‘I’ll trust you one last time.’
32
LANA
After some argument, Grayson, Alex and Reuben remain at the house while Gabriel and I follow Graciela out the back door and down a winding path into the jungle. It’s late in the afternoon now and the birds are calling from the high tree-tops, dark clouds blooming like bruises in the sky, ready for a storm to break.
‘It rains most nights,’ Graciela says. ‘One of the reasons I love it here. The sound of the rain on the roof helps me sleep. For years, I couldn’t…’
I narrow my eyes and focus my vision down the path. She’s asked me to trust her so I’m going where she leads me, but I’m not ready to soften my heart to her just yet. Her bad dreams are not my problem.
‘We’re almost there now,’ she says.
At the bottom of gentle slope, I see a small pool of water, and beside it a pile of rocks that form what looks like the opening of a cave. I stop.
‘I’m not going into another cave,’ I say. ‘Seriously.’
‘It’s just a rock shelter. It doesn’t lead anywhere. Don’t worry, you can stay outside.’
Just as she says the words a few heavy drops of rain begin to pelt around us. Perfect.
Gabriel places an arm around my shoulder and hurries me down the path to the shelter. I slow as we get closer, taking in the strange assortment of objects decorating it.
‘The locals call it the Place of Dreaming. It is an auspicious location for those seeking wisdom, needing to contact the dead, or wanting visions of what the future might hold.’
A row of bleached-white skulls hang from what makes up the ceiling. An altar sits just within the shelter, covered with candles and flowers of every shade and hue. A huge bowl of water takes centre stage.
‘Come,’ my mother says, and as I follow her the final steps towards the shelter, I feel the uncanny presence of some deep magic. My skin prickles, all the little hairs on my arms stand up. A kind of fizzing excitement fills my chest, and I feel suddenly very alert, very aware of everything around us, everything for miles around, as though I’m suddenly wired into an intense, living network of consciousness.
‘You feel it?’ I see Graciela’s smil
e. I nod, and glance at Gabriel who is watching me closely.
‘I hoped not to have to share this with you, but I believe that it is time.’ Graciela reaches into the pocket of her pants and pulls out a small bottle. I start and take a step back. It looks just like the bottle Garenda had spelled for my brother, so when he broke it the spell was released and he magically imprisoned us.
‘What’s that?’ I ask warily.
‘Something that I have kept safe for many years. It contains a vision of Vraxmaa Garaveyni, the Great Seer, whose insights have guided the actions of the Circle for generations. Her prophecies have never yet been proven wrong. This, however, is different to many of them.’ She shows me the small bottle, which is constructed of deep blue glass and has a strange symbol scrawled on it. ‘The forked path,’ Graciela explains, tracing the shape with her fingers. It almost looks like a bolt of lightning. ‘This represents choice. And the vision that it contains shows what will occur should the Barrier not be re-made. The choice is before you, Lana. I’m sorry. It is terrible. This is what I saw when I made my vows. It has given me strength and certainty, and guided my steps every day since then.’
I swallow, my mouth feeling suddenly dry.
‘I… what do I do?’
‘I will put a few drops into the water on the altar, and all you need do is look. The magic of this place will make the enchantment work more easily.’
I turn and stare at her. ‘And how do I know it’s not a trick? How do I know what you’re showing me means anything at all?’
‘I will add a drop of my own blood to bind my oath to your vision.’
I look to Gabriel, and he nods. He looks more serious than I’ve ever seen him before so I guess whatever Graciela is offering to do must be a big deal.
‘Okay,’ I say.
‘You’re ready?’ she asks.
‘May as well do it now. I don’t want to leave the others waiting too long, they’ll be worrying.’
Graciela takes my arms and guides me a few steps forward, until I’m standing within the circle which is formed by three tall stones and gives the impression of a cave entrance. Above me, a rising wind rattles the bones and they move and bang together, making an eerie sound.
Graciela draws a small knife from her belt, cuts her palm, mutters a few low words then drops a trickle of blood into the crystal-clear water of the bowl. I feel a pull drawing me closer. I want to see. I need to see.
‘It will feel very real, but remember, nothing you see can harm you,’ are the final words my mother says to me before she unstoppers the bottle and tips a drop into the water.
It isn’t like seeing a scene but like tumbling headlong into another body.
The first thing I notice is the smell. An acrid smoke fills the air and coats the back of my throat, making me choke. Around me, people are running. I turn to look to get some sense of where I am. A city street. Cars and buildings, a chaos of people screaming, sirens blaring.
Then I spot the first body. A woman has been impaled on a long spike. It passes through the very centre of her chest and she clutches at it, as though still trying to free herself. In death, the pain and terror frozen on her face are horrifying. I feel my stomach turning and I try not to retch. The air is thick with the smell of death.
Somewhere in the distance, I hear a sound I’ve never heard before. A tremendous thumping, followed by shrill yells and gleeful cries. Around me, people are fleeing. Desperate fear is written on their faces, and a few times I’m almost knocked over as people rush to try and pass me. Then I see what they’re running from. An army of terror. Darkness descending, rising from the ground, falling from the skies, crawling and writhing along the earth. Demons are coming. At their front are a few of the hugest, horned and red-eyed. They carry enormous drums and are using human heads and limbs that they’ve torn from the bodies of those they’ve killed to beat them.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The sound echoes in my chest, vibrating in my belly as they come closer. I’m frozen, unable to move, unable even to sob although I feel tears flowing down my cheeks.
Buildings are burning, the whole world seems to be ablaze. I see a man, he’s old and hobbled, hardly able to walk. He wasn’t quick enough to escape them and now he stands and watches, the simple act of not running in terror demonstrating tremendous courage.
The demons’ voices are harsh. They seem to be making fun of him, though I can’t make out their words. Finally, one of the front-runners takes a massive axe and swings it casually, and even as I watch the head of the axe connects with the side of the old man’s head. Flesh explodes into a shower of dark red and pale grey and fragments of white bone.
I sob, and feel my legs give way beneath me. I fall to my knees.
The demons laugh and fall on what remains of the body, tearing it to pieces, throwing some to the hellhounds that run beside them, and tossing others into the street like so much garbage.
A moment later, one of them looks up and sees me. Our eyes connect.
I didn’t think they could see me. This is just a vision, surely? I’m not really here.
Graciela said I was safe. She said nothing could harm me.
The demon smiles, then laughs, then begins to stalk towards me. I’m on my knees scrabbling backwards, trying to get away, but it’s hopeless. There’s nowhere to run, no way of hiding. I look up and wait for him to reach me, and hope that whatever end is waiting for me it will be quick…
A moment later, darkness descends. I feel like I’ve tripped and fallen. My heart pounds as I land heavily. I open my eyes, confused to see the rainforest around me again, though it’s darker now, and a heavy rain is pouring all around me.
‘Are you alright, Lana?’ Gabriel asks urgently, then looks up at Graciela angrily. ‘You did not say she would be unconscious for so long. Anything could have happened.’
I blink a few times and try to swallow. I can’t believe I’m not dead. If that demon had reached me, I’m sure I would have been. And it felt so damn real.
‘The magic took hold more deeply than I expected,’ my mother’s voice sounds distant and strange. ‘You didn’t tell me she was so talented Gabriel…’
I groan. A sudden cold sweat washes over me and a moment later I puke, throwing up tea and cookies all over the stones beside the altar.
‘You’re alright, Lana, you’re safe now,’ Gabriel murmurs, rubbing my back and holding my hair back away from my face so I don’t get vomit in it. If that’s not true love, I don’t know what is, part of me somehow manages to think. ‘We must get her back to the house,’ he says angrily. ‘She’s exhausted. I understand what you meant to do, Graciela, but it was too much.’
He lifts me up and despite my attempts to move I find I have no energy left in my body. I hang limply as he carries me away from the altar and the cavern, the clear water of the basin now broken by the falling rain. I feel heavy, so very heavy, I can barely keep my eyelids open. Just for a moment, before I drift into unconsciousness, I think I see shadowy images moving through the trees, but I have no time to say anything or even to make out who or what they are. A second later, I’ve melted into the dark.
****
BOOK FOUR
TO DARKNESS BOUND
Dream of the Goddess
1
LANA
‘Angel?’
The voice sounds faint, like it’s coming from a long way away. Something tickles my cheek. I groan and roll over. Whoever it is can wait. I’ve been having such a peaceful dream. Lying on a bed of leaves in the sunshine, birds twittering nearby, my cat Meow-Meow curled up purring beside me. Everything is warm and soft and comfortable. I don’t want to budge.
‘Leave her,’ a second voice says.
I know these voices. My thoughts stir. There’s something I’m supposed to be doing – something important – but right now I just can’t remember what it is, and I can’t find it in me to care.
‘Did you do something to her, Gabe? A spell or something?’
I feel a strong arm scoop around me and pull me close. The body I’m pressed into is warm and solid and real. I nestle in and take a deep, contented breath. Mmmm. I recognise that smell. It’s like spices and fresh-cut grass and rain falling on hot stones…
‘Alex,’ I murmur, his name heavy on my tongue.
‘I’m here, my angel…’ The words are whispered into my ear. His breath tickles my skin. ‘You’ve slept for such a long time,’ he says. ‘I was starting to get worried.’
I take another deep breath, and it’s like I’m floating up from deep under water. Everything feels so easy. My eyes flicker open and I see a pair of gorgeous blue eyes gazing back at me, and then Alex’s face comes into focus. ‘Fuck, you’re beautiful,’ I murmur. That jawline, those lips that I’m desperate to kiss, his hair all mussed up from sleeping…
‘Is she drunk or something?’ Alex turns away from me, frowning.
‘How could she be? She’s only had tea, the same as we had, and that was hours ago…’
I wriggle a bit and smile across at Gabriel, who’s sitting up beside me in the bed. He’s bare-chested and the sight of his naked, muscular torso makes me feel like, despite my initial reluctance, waking up was definitely the right thing to do.
Alex tenses as he holds me. ‘If that witch has done something to her –’
‘It wasn’t Graciela, it was Grayson,’ I murmur. ‘He took away my nightmare, helped me relax.’ I have the faintest memory of his presence, his touch, and then everything bad, all worry and fear and discomfort, just slipped away. ‘Where is he?’ I smile loosely, sitting up. ‘I should tell him thanks.’
Alex rubs my back. ‘It’s okay, angel. Grayson and Reuben are out on reconnaissance. I’m sure they won’t be long though. You can tell him thanks when he gets back.’ Alex’s words are soothing, but he still sounds worried.