“Rest awhile Moira, you will soon feel your strength returning.” Hamlin reassured Moira.
**********
Parkston arrived back at the manor house just twenty minutes later, Towers carried Cassie down into the temple beneath the Great Hall and tied her to one of the marble pillars that supported the high ceiling.
It was cold down there, especially if you happened to be laying down upon a marble floor, and it was mostly this that woke Cassie, and into yet another nightmare situation. She heard footsteps walking down a flight of stairs, and then she was Moira. Cassie lay there stunned as Moira looked down at her and smiled, but it was not a friendly smile, it was full of evil.
“Hello Cassie, I hope you are not too uncomfortable, unfortunately all the guest quarters are taken.” Moira quipped, and knelt down and looked straight into Cassie`s blue eyes, which were now filled with fear.
Oh my god, Cassie thought, once again I am the prisoner of a group of Satanists, and one of them is the mad bitch Moira Bourbon.
“Now Cassie do not fret so, as long as the handsome Rob does as he is told then no harm will come to you, you will be released to run back home, there you can hide beneath the bed clothes.” Moira sneered as she pushed a stray lock of Cassie`s short blond hair back in place.
Cassie pulled her head away from the young Satanist and smiled in a show of bravado, but that is mostly all that it was. She lay there and shivered; from both the cold and her fear of the evil woman standing over her, but her spirit was not altogether dampened.
“You do not look well Moira, too many late nights, too many demon boyfriends.” Cassie said contemptuously. “You would be advised to set me free Moira, for Rob will find me, and when he does it will be you that hides away, under some rock probably, like the loathsome creature that we both know you to be.” Cassie advised the Satanist in an icy voice that should have chilled Moira.
However, Moira laughed again at Cassie, and then she set a heavy pewter goblet full of Rakiremanin upon the marble top of the altar. Then she relit the four black candles and finally she set the green frothing drink alight. A green smoke slowly curled up into the air before finally reaching the ceiling of the temple and spreading quickly around the room, then Moira stepped inside her fully charged pentagram. Moira now called upon Lord Asbaritch for the second time that day, and this time she felt a little more confident in her abilities. “Lord Asbaritch, I call upon you to show yourself to me. Moira Bourbon, Satanic Master, demands this of you.” Moira called out, still a little fearful, while once again looking around for a sign that her order was about to be obeyed by one of the powerful demons from the realms of hell.
As the temperature in the room dropped, a deep voice spoke out from the rear of the temple, although the demon had not yet bothered to materialise, he preferred to make Satanists wait a while before showing himself, it added to the fear they always felt at the sound of his voice.
“What is that you require of me this time Mon Chérie?” The silence that followed this deep voice was again just as scary as the voice itself, and once again, Moira had to force the words from her throat, even more fearful of this amorous demon than of the normal demon lord.
“Great Lord Asbaritch, please slake your thirst before we get down to business, drink some more of the special preparation that I have made for you.” Moira said, almost pleading with the powerful demon.
Just then, the room became icy cold and Moira knew that the demon had finally materialised. Across from her, Cassie almost fainted in fear, and then the two young women saw the dark lord; he was, as before, olive green in colour, well over six foot tall and very well muscled. His eyes were large brilliant yellow glowing orbs. However, he was quite humanoid otherwise. The demon walked towards Moira, who once again shrank before him, Lord Asbaritch picked up the pewter goblet and took in its sweet heady aroma, and then he greedily gulped down the contents.
“Ok, Moira, tell me what do you require of me this time?” Lord Asbaritch demanded of the young Satanist.
“At midnight Rob Hinds will be at his home, in the name of the terrible Lord Lucifer, I demand that you to take him to your domain and entertain him, but please do not kill him as in the near future I will have a use for him. I have a young virgin female here.” Moira said waving her hand over towards Cassie. “Her sweet blood will be more than ample payment to recompense you for your trouble.” Moira demanded.
Lord Asbaritch now sneered at Moira. “Just what are you planning Moira, first you have me take his wife to act as bait, and then Rob Hinds himself, just what are you planning, and why do I feel that it will once again involve my discomfort. Tell me Moira, or maybe I will take you instead.” The demon lord demanded.
“Not tonight, my Lord Asbaritch, tonight I am protected by a charged pentagram, and while there is no doubt that one such as you could find a way to penetrate my shield, there are few real followers of Lord Lucifer. He might be rather annoyed if I, a true believer, was taken from him while I am still so very young, and with so much untapped potential.” Moira said in her syrupy voice.
“Now my Lord please do as I ask, or suffer whatever consequences Lord Lucifer decides to send your way.” The young Satanist demanded looking and sounding more confident than she felt, even when standing within a pentagram
“Ok little human, what you say is true, there are so few true believers in this modern age, and fewer with your potential. But know this Mon Chérie, because of Rob Hinds, I now have your father as my play thing, I eagerly await your arrival, when you find that Rob Hinds has once again got the better of you.” Lord Asbaritch said, and then he laughed, loudly, and full of evil intent, the sound ringing through Moira`s mind and making her cringe. The demon could smell the fear upon the human, he had enjoyed playing Casanova to the young Satanist, but this made him laugh all the louder.
He then turned to look upon Cassie who was desperately trying to force her body through the marble pillar and away from the terrible demon looking down upon her.
“I know you, you were offered to me by Ulysses Bourbon, still alive are you, Rob Hinds saved you that time did he, well tonight I get to taste your blood, but do not fret little one I will leave you alive.” Lord Asbaritch said almost gently, before kneeling down and taking his fill of her blood. Thankfully, Cassie had now fainted, and so she did not see the great demon lord take his leave.
“Goodbye for now Moira.” Lord Asbaritch said as he departed leaving a very troubled Satanist behind.
“Moira, I really hope you know what you are doing.” Simon Parkston said from the doorway into the temple. Where he had cowered as Moira Bourbon and Lord Asbaritch had argued. Moira looked across at the other Satanist and smiled.
“Demons are no problem, as long as you know how to handle them, and take the necessary precautions of course.” Moira said with a show of bravado.
**********
Rob rushed home where he found the still form of Christina slumped down upon the kitchen floor. He knelt down to check to see if she was still alive, and sighed with relief when he found that she was indeed alive. It was now that he saw where the teeth of the dark lord had given Christina a vampire kiss, he swore, anger rising within him he threatened revenge on Moira Bourbon. Then he picked her light form up and carried her into their bedroom; here he laid her upon their bed, so as to make her more comfortable. He smiled as he looked down into the sleeping face, and he pushed an unruly lock of her long blond hair back into place. However, looking down upon her still form, fear entered his heart, what if he could not get the better of Lord Asbaritch this time. He pushed this thought aside, as the fight would be lost if he allowed fear to consume him before the fight had even begun. Instead, he called his office to tell them that he had found the unconscious body of his wife, and then he began to strip the front room of all of its furniture and carpets in preparation for Father Pritchard arrival. He put them into a small third bedroom, which was empty; thankfully, Christina favoured the minimalist style, so it did not take too l
ong. Father Pritchard could now draw the pentagram upon the wood floor. However, Rob would be unconscious by then, and his friend would have to carry on without him.
Chapter Three
The Domain of Lord Asbaritch
The church clock struck midnight just as the temperature in Rob`s bedroom dropped suddenly, he was lying on his bed next to a still Christina, but apart from noting the fall in temperature, that is all he was able to do, for then he slumped down unconscious. Lord Asbaritch looked down upon his still form, a smile playing upon his face, as he anticipated the fun that was about to commence, then he took Rob back to the Dreamscape.
Rob awoke to find that he was lying atop a small hill, and once more he saw that he was in a hot, arid, and dusty world, and he knew that he had returned to the domain of Lord Asbaritch. Rob quickly scanned the land all around him, he seemed to be alone for the moment, but he reckoned that the dark lord would not permit him to approach the fortress unopposed, nor would he be allowed use the same method as he had used before, to escape the Dreamscape. Rob also reckoned that Lord Asbaritch had probably set him down on the far side of his domain, so as to make his life a little more interesting.
An angry thought occurred to Rob, about his present situation. ‘It was all right for Moira Bourbon to tell me to get myself back home, but Lord Asbaritch is a demon with demon powers, and I have no idea just what he can do to ensure that I stay here.’ Rob thought unhappily.
**********
Father Pritchard must have exceeded the speed limit all the way to Rob`s apartment, because he managed to arrive at 12.30. He rang the doorbell to check if Rob was still conscious, but no one answered, so he picked up the key that Rob had left for him under the doormat. Father Pritchard now entered Rob`s apartment, and went straight into the main bedroom, here he found the still forms of Rob and Christina, both seemingly asleep on their bed. As he looked down at their unconscious forms, he prayed for their safety, as well as that of Cassandra. He now went about his work, which was to draw a large Pentagram, using chalk, on the polished wood floor in the front room, first he pushed a long pin into the floorboards, and then he tied a length of string to it and drew a circle. Then within this circle he drew a five pointed star, which tested his artistic skill, for the star had to be perfect. The next thing he did was to cover his chalk circle with salt, which was a useful tool against the supernatural creatures of hell. In each valley of the star, he put a silver cup, and finally he set five white candles at each apex of the star. In the middle of the pentagram, he set three sleeping bags and a pillow each for their heads. To one side of these items he put a large flask of water and three glass beakers. He then poured water that he had blessed into each of the silver cups. Then he drew signs at each of the points, denoting the five elements, four of matter, fire, air, water and earth. The fifth element was not of matter, it was spirit, and the pentagram was now ready to be used. Following their last fight against evil he had already purchased a number of small bottles, he filled half of them with blessed salt and the other half with blessed water; they were for their personal protection against evil. He also purchased some dried mandrake, some large strings of garlic, and three small phials of mercury, all of which were useful items when you need to be protected against evil demons and their lesser minions.
Just as he finished, someone knocked at the front door, it was a doctor and a nurse, who had been sent over by Sir Willoughby Brown.
“I am Doctor Wilson and this is Nurse Simpson, I believe that you are expecting us?” The doctor asked.
“Yes and thank you for coming over, your two patients are in need of as much help that they can get at the moment.” Father Pritchard replied, grateful to have their expertise.
Both the doctor and the nurse were used to working for the SIS, so they did not pester Father Pritchard with pointless questions; however, the sight that confronted them here was far stranger than their usual cases.
With them was Gerry Handley, a colleague of Rob`s. “Father Pritchard, I am Gerry Handley, we met in France a couple of years ago, you were on a strange case with Rob and another friend.” Gerry said by way of an introduction. “Sir Richard thought you might need some human protection, if I remember correctly, not all your enemy were of the super natural kind.” Gerry remarked casually.
“You are right Gerry, oh and I am David to my friends.” Father Pritchard replied; glad to have someone to share the load.
The doctor and the nurse immediately got to work; they set up IV drips for Rob and Christina. These would ensure that they both had all the protein and liquids that their bodies required to keep them healthy, until their spirits returned to their bodies; this was just in case they were away from them for an extended period of time.
“We should take it in turns to watch for Rob or Christina to return to their bodies, you will know when they are back as they should wake up immediately, and they may well bring an old oil lamp with them, do not touch it, it is of satanic origin. Just call me immediately, I will deal with it.” Father Pritchard instructed them.
“David, how will they bring a material object back with them, I thought only the spirit travelled to this Dreamworld?” Gerry asked quizzically.
“I am not sure Gerry, I also wondered about that, I suppose we will just have to wait and see. One thing though, it will prove something, if an oil lamp materialises out of thin air, won`t it?” Father Pritchard said with a smile.
The doctor and nurse looked at one another quizzically, but they still said nothing, they had been ordered by Sir Willoughby Brown to obey the priest, no matter how strange or mysterious his instructions or deeds.
**********
Rob knew that he did not need to worry unduly about his health this time around, but even so he was anxious to find Christina, and of course the Key of Tartarus . Rob recalled that the last time he had been here, a large mountain range acted as a backdrop to the demon`s fortress, and Rob could see a mountain range on the far horizon, and so he set off towards it. A plan was forming in his head, as to how to get the better of the demon lord, whether it was possible only time would tell. His plan to overcome Lord Asbaritch, used holy water, that seemed the best option, as it had the previous time, however, he needed to use it from a distance, or risk the demon either keeping his distance this time, or even initiating his own attack, so Rob decided that maybe a bow would suffice.
Rob came to abrupt halt, for walking towards him was a giant of a man, he stood fully thirty foot tall, had a single eye in the middle of its forehead, and more importantly, he was armed with a large wooden club. On catching sight of Rob, the giant let out such a loud roar that it sent a shiver down Rob`s spine. Rob knew the man to be a Cyclops from Greek mythology, and for it to be alive and well in the Dreamscape meant only one thing, Lord Asbaritch had only recently brought the giant to his realm. The Cyclops was obviously there for one reason only, to fight Rob; otherwise, Lord Asbaritch would already have drained such a creature of its life-force, as would the other inhabitants of this terrible domain. The giant was loping towards Rob, with small puffs of dust and a loud booming noise echoing the giant`s footsteps. The giant was moving at a speed that Rob knew he could not match, such were the length of the giant`s stride, so he did not waste the energy trying to escape from the massive creature.
From the vantage point of his fortress, Lord Asbaritch laughed as he witnessed the scene, he could have taken Rob on himself and won, easily, however, this offered him the chance of some entertainment, something lacking in his life. Maybe after this fight was over, and the Cyclops was victorious, he would take a leaf out of the roman emperors` books, and build himself a Colosseum, and hold games there. Rob would make a fine gladiator, fighting to save the life of his woman, he would have to ensure that the Cyclops did not kill him, just brought him back to the fortress, tied and bound for safekeeping.
Rob now brought to mind what one of the local inhabitants had told him when last he had been in the Dreamscape. ‘As far as you are concerned you
are fast asleep, only your spirit is in this dreamland, you can imagine anything you want and it will appear. Imagine a nice long Pike, one with a nice sharp point that will at least keep the demon beast away from your body, for be warned, if you die within this domain then your body will also die.’ The local had cackled after saying this last part, for the idea of the mortal`s death had humoured him.
Rob knew that any sort of nuclear weapon was a definite no-no, but what about a Javelin anti-tank missile, unfortunately nothing appeared before him, either Lord Asbaritch had stopped a dreamer`s imagination from working in his realm, or, he would have to imagine something more basic, like the South American Bolas. Instantly a Bolas appeared on the ground and Rob picked it up, it had three balls on the end of ropes that were tied together at the other end. Rob had used this model before; there were two heavy wooden balls and one lighter ball. Holding the lighter ball he whirled the bolas around his head, when he had sufficient speed he launched his weapon, the Cyclops was only thirty feet away now and getting nearer with every second. The weapon flew through the air and wrapped around the giant`s legs, the heavier balls cracking against the giant`s legs and the tight ropes wound around his legs tripping the Cyclops, who fell heavily to the ground, his head striking the ground with a loud whack. Rob ran towards the grounded giant but found that the Cyclops was still conscious, and beginning to sit up, he also appeared to be a mite angry.
“You hurt me little man, for that I will kill you.” The Cyclops roared out in anger.
It grabbed a hold of the ropes connecting the three balls and sharply pulled at them, they instantly came apart, making Rob back up a step, the Cyclops then got to its feet and roared again at Rob, it then picked up its club and swung at him. The club swung over the top of Rob`s head brushing against his hair, luckily Rob had ducked or he would have been minus a head now. Rob performed a judo shoulder roll through the giant`s legs, hoping to put some space between them, however, the Cyclops whirled around instantly, its speed surprising Rob, the Cyclops` arm striking Rob and sending flying to the ground. Rob came to his feet fast and backed away from the giant, to give him the time and the space to think. Unfortunately the Cyclops had other ideas, and he quickly closed the gap and then swung his club at Rob, Rob tried to move back out of range but the giant had moved even closer, and the club struck Rob`s body sending him flying through the air once again. Rob landed hard upon the ground in a cloud of dust, and as he made to get to his feet, he felt pain rip through his chest. He knelt on his knees and cried out in pain, he assumed that one or more of his ribs had been cracked, or broken, by the force of the blow. Rob knew that if he did not want to condemn those that he loved to death or slavery, he would have to use lethal force against the giant, but what weapon would be most suitable. He immediately imagined a spear, which instantly appeared in his hand, however, the effort taken to stand up sent another bout of pain through his body, somehow he managed to fight through the pain to pull back his arm and throw the spear with as much strength as he could find within his body. The Cyclops had just begun to run at him, his speed coupled to that of the spear served to drive the spearhead through the chest of the giant, stopping it dead, literally. Rob sank to the ground and cried out in agony as pain once again ripped through his body, had he failed to kill the giant then he would now be dead himself, for at this moment in time he was quite incapable of defending himself.