Monstrous Races (17 page)

'For this purpose you can refer to me as
Doctor,
and you are beginning to jabber,' he answered calmly. 'We've got plenty of time, just take a minute to calm down. Breathe slowly, that's it.' She lay on her back with her eyes closed, the warm sun enveloping her body in its soothing rays and the ground beneath her warm and soft. He spoke softly and clearly with an aged old voice matured like good whisky.

'As I said, you are inside the stone. Or rather, in a reality that exists thanks to the stone. It's complicated. We are away from that fire now, existing in a place that doesn't exist in your time. This means that when you do go back it will be to exactly the same time and place as when you left. I thought now might be a good time to get to know one another a little more.'

'Yes,' she said, her eyes still closed. 'Probably quite a good time. So I know who you are Doctor, but not what.' Her words felt heavy as her body rested on the ground.

He paused and sighed, feeling the warm sun on his face. 'I am the stone I suppose, you could say, I'm bound up with its fate. I was like you once, but now I'm like me. The other half of the stone has been found by Lord Lansdown as you already know. He's full of plans for what he'll do when he's in power. I'm inside that half of the stone as well, and he's working hard to unite them.' Elli looked up at him; his green eyes seemed to flash with specks of gold as he spoke, and his clothes were old, once reds and yellows but now
faded to memories of their former selves. 

'Why tell me this?' she asked simply.

He laughed and scratched his stubbly chin. 'Why not? He won't see reason, I've tried. I'm not really supposed to interfere at all, but I can't pass all this onto someone like that.'

Elli heard the words washing over
her,
and behind them the hum of a fat bumblebee in the distance.

The Doctor gestured loosely around him. 'I've lost all track of time for how long I've been here; I've travelled through every recess of my mind, some not so good when I brought both halves together in my time. Lord Lansdown thinks it's some magical weapon that will give him what he wants. Too busy planning his revenge on the world to question what it really does.'

He sat down next to her and crossed his legs, pulling at the blades of grass beneath him. 'We are one, your stone and I, we're wrapped around each other like tree roots or ivy growing up a church. And now both halves have been found, it's only a matter of time before I fade away and one of you grow like saplings around this consciousness.' He looked away now, reminding Elli of a mourner at his own funeral. She sat up and brushed herself down, the open sky clear and blue above her.

'Does the stone choose a wearer?' she asked, looking into the clear waters of the brook and seeing small fish darting through it. 'I just wondered, if it's conscious does it have a choice?' He smiled, the lines around his eyes and mouth pooling into ridges.

'It tries to, but we don't always have a choice. When I'm gone I'll merge with the soul of the stone as many have done before me, and a new consciousness will exist here, creating new worlds if they want to. We can spend an eternity dreaming, influencing the world around us when needs be.' She moved toward him and held his hand, dry and large in hers as she absorbed the sheer beauty of the place.

'I have to go back. I need to stop him then.' Her words were simple and sure, and she knew now what she had to do. He nodded and placed his hand on her shoulder, the smoke filling the room and the hard fist travelling towards her.

She stopped it dead with her open hand, coughing as she felt it crunch into her palm, buckling through the solid wall of her bones and sinew and muscle. The tall shape carried on towards her with its momentum, and she felt herself tumbling backwards as it sprawled out over her. They hit the ground with a thump and she pushed him off her as they landed, the thrashing around now a minor irritation in the surg
ing, pulsing room. The
swirling
smoke clung low and flames glittered like knives through the boards of the floor, sneaking up on them and lunging at feet, legs, hair.

Elli walked through blindly, retching and stinging, peering through squinting eyes for Rufus. She heard screams and saw bodies hanging from small, distant windows. She
held the stone tightly in her fist and breathed slowly, smoke dancing around her body and whispering into her lungs. Standing still amongst the debris and chaos she pictured the fire not being there, the room blackened and changed by its presence but abandoned now, its energy sucked away from the building and up into the night sky where it broke down into tinier and tinier fragments. She felt neither heat nor pain nor malice, standing still in the room like the eye of a storm.

She heard the coughing first, a heavy wheezing noise, and opened her eyes a fraction to see the lack of smoke, the lack of movement. Chairs were upturned, there was the distant sound of sobbing and different shapes and faces and features were blackened and confused.

She looked up to see Norman standing on stage, his eyes wide with fright and his body limp, unmoved since he'd uttered that decisive word. Glass crunched beneath feet as people moved slowly around, hands tentatively removing themselves from mouths and strangers still cling
ing to one another
. She saw Whaler sitting up from the floor, his arms pulled tight around him, and everywhere eyes open with fear and disbelief.

'Rufus,' she called, unable to make him out in the twisted sea of flotsam and jetsam. As though a floodgate had opened she heard whimpers and tear-soaked reunions, Elvis running to Billy and laughter, hysterical and high-pitched. 'Rufus!' she called again, scanning across the heaving bodies for a sign.

She saw him near to a window, nose gently touching Josie's and arms wrapped tightly around her. He raised one thumb into the air behind her. Elli began to sway, feeling as though the room was spinning unnaturally around her; she sat down on the charred floor and cried.

'I'm not wearing it,' she said, her fists clenched into tight balls at her side. Rufus held up the suit in front of her, sniffing it precariously.

'You heard
Max,
he was very clear about it. Wonder where they got all this hair from? There must be a yak wondering where it's all got to.' Elli arched her eyebrows, staring at the fur suit in front of her. Effi and Maud had obviously gone to a lot of trouble making it, but really, who would it fool? She could no more pass for a gorgadon that Rufus could pass for a poodle.

'So aside from the fact that I'll boil alive inside it and that it smells like a yak's undergarments, who on earth is going to believe that I'm a gorgadon? Unless you want them to die of heart failure laughing at me, it's not funny Rufus!' she spluttered as he threw his head back, his muzzle high in the air.

'Are you joking? It's hilarious!' he said, clearly enjoying himself. 'And I'm afraid it's very necessary. That fire tipped the balance, you know that. Now just try it on and come downstairs, Max wants to check it's a good fit.'

She sighed, looking closely at the mottled sandy suit and putting her hand out to touch it. They really had gone to a lot of trouble, and the pink pinafore dress and countless bows
tied through the hair were skil
fully done. Still, it was bad enough wearing a fur suit without looking like a hairy dolly as well. 'Honestly, if I was a male gorgadon...,' said Rufus, smirking and pulling at his whiskers. She tutted and picked up the hair suit, glancing sadly at her reflection in the mirror opposite.

'Right, I'll try it on so get out. But that does not mean that I am agreeing to wear it outside, or ever again Rufus. And if you laugh then we'll see what this stone can do to a corpulent dog-head.' He winked and turned away, hearing the door slam behind him.

She shuffled slowly down the stairs to make her entrance, avoiding her reflection in mirrors and windows as she went. They really had thought of everything, from air-holes in the material to seamless joins that were easy to clasp and unhook.
I'd be impressed if I wasn't so embarrassed
she thought, looking down at the furry toes poking beneath her sandals. She paused before going into the room, sure she could hear voices whispering and stopped still, pressing her warm ear to the cool surface of the door. She tumbled onto her side as it was pulled open, just managing to right herself by clinging onto a table. There was silence and several intakes of breath.

Elvis stood before her, his black hair flattened down and his brown eyes squinting
at her from beneath his thick fringe. He gave her a winning smile and grabbed her hand, manoeuvring expertly into a kiss on the cheek which she could hardly feel. 'Elvis,' he mumbled, and she was not entirely sure she liked the way he looked her up and down admiringly. 'Nice pinafore,' he whispered, and she withdrew her hand quickly, looking around the room and ignoring the poorly disguised coughing fit that Rufus was having.

Max stood to her side, his huge bulk casting a large shadow over her. He was nodding his head very slightly, his arms folded in front of him. Billy stood next to him grinning openly, his arm outstretched.

'Nice to meet you Miss,' he said, shaking her vigorously by the hand. And you've met my boy here. He's in a band you know. I don't suppose you can sing? Only he needs a backing singer, and somebody as attractive as yourself...' She felt herself blush beneath the suit, shaking her head very clearly as her hair swished around her. 'Shame, but no matter. Max here was just saying that you'd be visiting for a few days, you let us know if there's anything you need now,' he said merrily, putting his hand on Elvis' shoulder. 'My boy would be glad to show you around,' he added with a grin. Elvis nodded and shook hands with Max and Rufus on his way out, turning around to give Elli a surreptitious wink as he left.

They stood in silence as they waited for the front door to close, and as soon as they'd gone Rufus went to speak but Max held up his hand and gestured for him to stop. He walked over to the window, his large eyes watching them walk away from the house. When he turned around he was smiling openly with large, even teeth.

'Rufus, I know he's left the building so you can remain silent. Well, what do you think of that? If even gorgadons can't tell then nobody else will be able to either. Those two ladies really are the best, the very best.' Elli tried to remove the hairy head gracefully whilst pulling some remaining fur out of her mouth. 'You don't have to thank me, I know how pleased you must be to have your freedom back. Please sit down now and have a bite to eat. With the head on, you'll need to practice eating and drinking with it on after all. Rufus, fetch us something please, and wipe that grin off of your face while you're doing it.'

When they could hear water being poured and crashing
noises in the kitchen Max leant
in towards her and
whispered,
one eye on the door of the kitchen. 'So Josie's made a comeback has she? He'll need keeping an eye on himself, he's an all or nothing boy just like his father, but I had the good sense to t
hrow my all into unattached females.
Eventually. I don't want him becoming distracted, he's here for one reason, and that's you. That boy really does never learn,' he said, shaking his head sadly. 'If you offered him a plate of biscuits he'd still want the meringue the other male was eating. And the other male is usually twice his size and reluctant to have Rufus dribbling all over it.' He kept his voice lower still and his ears pricked up.

'You tell me if he gets himself into trouble, preferably before it
happens,
a
nd certainly if he gets any femal
es into trouble.' he added, pressing his fingertips together and sitting back. Elli chewed on her lip, finding her fur suit surprisingly comfortable and
smoothing out some faint wrinkles in her pinafore dress.

Rufus appeared in the doorway, the tray he was holding balanced high with scones and cake, as well as bowls of yoghurt and large juicy strawberries.
'Tea's on,' he said merrily, the crockery tinkling as he shuffled over and placed it down on the table. 'We'll start with crumbs, then slop, then juice. You never know when there's a garden party you simply have to go to, and you can't get this lot around your chops in fashionable society. Trust me, this is one area that I can guarantee we're experts in,' he said, cutting himself a large piece of cake and flinging strawberries in the air simultaneously to catch them in his open jaws.

The sun was setting when Elli had finally finished eating. Her gorgadon head sat to her side, small rivulets of strawberry juice still clinging to the golden hair around the mouth. She sat slumped, hoping she'd never have to see another vat of yoghurt in her life. Rufus meanwhile was popping curried gnatflakes into his mouth and picking them out noisily when they stuck to his teeth. 'Where did Max say he was going?' she finally managed, looking at the heap of food debris on the table.

'He didn't, just that he had a little surprise for us. Frankly, prepare to be underwhelmed. Your mothball suit was his last little surprise after all, although I have to admit you didn't do too badly. It's taken me a lifetime to learn to eat this daintily after all,' he said, fishing out a troublesome blob of curried gnatflake nestled between two molars. Elli grimaced, slowly building up the energy to wipe around the mouth of her gorgadon head.