Circle of Nine: Circle of Nine Trilogy 1 (23 page)

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

‘W
hy did the toll-keeper call me Bindisore?’ I suddenly asked aloud. At the time I had no thought but to distract Rosedark’s mind from the loss of her hair. ‘And why, come to think of it, “accursed one” as well as Bindisore?’

We had stopped for a break by an overgrown endi and were sharing esteo and nutbread while the ilkamas rested. Khartyn and Rosedark exchanged glances. There was a loaded pause.

‘Because of your heritage,’ Khartyn said.

‘What’s a Bindisore?’ I asked, suspicious of that look they had shared.

‘A Bindisore is an offspring of an eagle’s egg. Often the egg is a result of a forbidden union between Faiaite and Azephim. Azephim children are hatched in eggs and the germination period is very brief. Faiaite and Bluite women often die when the egg is being hatched from their bodies; their wombs sometimes cannot expel the egg. The large Eronth eagles in service often take over the hatching.’

A slight trickle of fear ran down my back. A hidden whisper lurched within me.

‘Well, how can he call
me
a Bindisore when I have a human mother?’ I demanded.

Khartyn surveyed the forbidding dark-grey horizon of the Wastelands where the Azephim turrets grew ever nearer.

‘How indeed?’ she murmured. ‘Unless of course your egg was hatched in Faia and you were carried by a Crossa into Earth, where, with the help of your selected Earth mother, you lived what appeared to be a normal life on the Blue Planet without conscious memory of your Bindisore beginnings.’

‘Like an alien abduction in reverse?’ I suggested, unsure of whether to feel amused or indignant.

Khartyn continued to sip her esteo and her unblinking eyes regarded me coldly.

‘What if I told you that I was present at your hatching?’ she remarked calmly. ‘Or what if I let slip that one of our most valued Crossas, your Aunt Johanna, carried you to the Blue Planet where she empowered a thought pattern that became your mother and you lived happily ever after until the evil Queen of the story allowed her Solumbi to enter the Blue Planet and kill Johanna?’

In a different world, in a different time, a different me would have roared with laughter at the thought of being hatched from a bird’s egg. Not to mention being carried lovingly to Earth by my dear Aunt Johanna, who just happened to be a respected Crossa of worlds and a powerful political agent for the Faiaites, instead of the eccentric artist aunt I had loved and related to so strongly as a child. However, the me who was listening to the fantastic tale that Khartyn was telling me was now ready to believe that anything and everything was possible. My rational mind was being shot to pieces as my higher mind pulsated and opened slowly. Nervously I patted Jabi’s mane to give myself time to think.

‘Why did Johanna not just bring me up herself?’ I asked, my familiar childhood fantasy breaking to the surface. ‘And why couldn’t I have grown up in Eronth? Also, why was Johanna regarded as such a threat to Sati that she set her Solumbi after her?’

I shuddered with revulsion, remembering the odour and the claws of the beast that had attacked me.

‘If you had been brought up under Johanna’s guidance you might have awoken too quickly and madness would have been the result. We couldn’t take the risk. Johanna’s death was Sati’s way of attracting your attention. She wanted to lure you to cross.’

‘But why?’ I persisted. ‘Why would she possibly have any interest in me?’

Khartyn smiled one of her enigmatic smiles. ‘No interest in you particularly. Sati’s main obsession is with that child you are carrying.’

I flushed as I became aware that Khartyn and Rosedark were obviously fully aware of my Belthane escapade. An uncontrollable rush of longing for the Stag Man surged through my body. I felt a weird sense of shame sweep over me. The disturbing vision returned to me, of the Stag Man and myself, inside unfamiliar bodies, fire blazing from our wings.
So much blood.
Rain falling upon us, drops of burning silver rain, while we laughed and held each other. The sound of a child crying, dying slowly in pain.

Khartyn unlaced one of her boots, wincing at the blisters that covered her feet. I watched as she took a jar of green healing cream from her bag and smeared it onto her feet. The blisters vanished instantly. Rosedark went behind some bushes to relieve herself. I felt excluded from their company, unbearably lonely, and terrified of what the future was going to bring. I placed my hand over my stomach. What sort of being had I conceived at Belthane? Was I going to be able to carry and deliver this child? I had never been a maternal person before, let alone a single mother in an alien world with a being that wasn’t even human! A feeling of horror flooded through me. A pulse beat in my head.
Who am I really? What am I doing here? Who am I really? What am I doing here?

Rosedark had returned, and she began packing up our lunch leftovers into Khartyn’s bag. I found my voice. ‘Please, Khartyn. I need to know something of what is going on here. Don’t you understand that it’s worse if I don’t know anything? My imagination is in overdrive!’ I attempted to smile, but I heard my voice break as tears threatened to flow. ‘I just don’t feel prepared to face this Sati and Ishran if I don’t know anything. Why are you keeping things from me? Please, can’t you tell me something? Anything?’ I was disgusted at myself for my begging tone, but I felt almost sick with worry and anxiety about what was ahead.

Rosedark looked at Khartyn, who shrugged, and poured herself another cup of esteo.

‘Perhaps sometimes people are better left in ignorance,’ she said unsmilingly. ‘You have had so much revealed to you of late, and there is only so much a nervous system can stand. I don’t say this lightly. We have to be careful. I have seen many Crossas fall into the spirals of madness, their bodies and minds too frail to cope with what is happening.’ She paused, and seemed to be listening to an inner voice. ‘Very well, child. If you want some information so much, here is a little story for you. It began in another world, many Turns of the Wheel ago . . .’

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

No words spoken can describe
The angel’s home, that empty deadly space;
Many who have crossed, have not returned.
Yea, inside the stone men lives the memory on
Of the abduction of Eom — the unholy night that split the worlds;
The angoli Charmonzhla clenches tiny teeth
Calling to the Ghormho for blood.
Blood will cover every stone, the winged ones will destroy the worlds;
Blessed — Blessed are you who escape the angoli’s killing eyes;
May the Goddess give peace to the ones who did not return.

— Condensed from the
Tremite Book of Life
, Column XIXCII

‘T
he Web was so named because it consisted of rays of light intermeshed like a spider’s web. It was rumoured that, like spiders, the Azephim used the strands of their home to trap foolhardy Crossas and also to communicate with other Dark Angels. Kondoell was the heartbeat of their country within the known worlds, the spindle from which they wove around themselves hundreds and thousands of the light rays. The rays became an extrasensory faculty for the Azephim, forming their outer eyes, ears, nose, voice and fingers. The angels spun the protective web themselves, from spinnerets, seven of which lay in tiny glands inside each chakra centre of the angel. The chakra, as we have already discussed, is an energy centre in the body, located in the physical and first energy layer of the aura. There are seven major chakras.

‘The Azephim, as one of the killing races in the known worlds, favoured using their spinnerets when subduing their prey. Their victims were enveloped in the deadly rays, rendering them dazed and helpless. Then the angels would drink the blood of their prey held fast in this prison of light. It would take only minutes for an Azephim to feed, leaving behind only the sparrow of the victim. The sparrow is the soul of the being, imprisoned in the light rays until Hecate arrived to collect the trapped birds. The web killings had been outlawed by the Dreamers; even Seleza had attempted to outlaw the practice in Kondoell but it was whispered throughout the known worlds that the killing ritual still continued.

‘The few Crossas who had been fortunate or unfortunate enough to have witnessed the interior of the Web always returned filled with awe and horror. All foliage, all mountains and even the oceans of Kondoell were draped in the silver-white rays of web, creating a highly surreal effect. It was a world like a ghostly negative, where every whisper contained shadows and even the blood that was spilt would turn to grey. It was a world of fear, of silence, of whispered prayer and slow, white, painful death. Many legends grew in Eronth concerning the Web, and Eronthite children were threatened with banishment to the grim home of the Azephim. But for centuries, no-one had been foolhardy enough to cross.

‘Then the Nine Wizards altered the history of Eronth when they were reckless enough to use their magical powers to access the Web in their lust for the Eom. Nobody knows how the nine were able to access the light rays, although it was rumoured that light beings from the Heztarra Galaxy provided them with energy to transmute their light bodies and enter. However they achieved their entrance to the Azephim world, their arrival was not unexpected. Seleza, the High Priestess of the angels, was waiting. She must have watched them as they penetrated the deadly rays and saw the landscape that very few outsiders had seen. The ancient, white, cobbled stone streets. The boulevards, shining with light, lined with the white statues of fellow angels worshipped by the Azephim. In this pristine world, the odour of blood would have assaulted their senses, for at the heart of Kondoell lay Uluree, the killing centre, which had witnessed countless killings of innocents. Centuries of deaths had been held there for public enjoyment.

‘Ornate fountains and temples would have surrounded them, for the Azephim were great connoisseurs of bone architecture. The opaque streets would have been filled with angels, watching the Wizards in silence. They must have allowed the strangers to pass by unharmed, watching in silent amusement the fear in their eyes that threatened to burst into flower at the sight of this nightmare, twilight world.

‘Through the streets of this city of death, they would have walked. Past the sinister Uluree, past the Hatching Grounds, onward toward the silent heartbeat of the Eom. In their hearts, they must have already known that they were doomed.

‘Seleza, Queen of the Azephim, surveyed Bwani, the leader of the Nine Wizards, through slitted eyes. His magic was indeed powerful, for he and his men had managed to penetrate the Web but she distrusted the reek of blood emanating from the Wizards’ bodies. However, she was careful to retain a mask of inscrutability as she offered them refreshments and accommodation. Better to receive the unexpected visitors where she could monitor their every move; better that than they roam the Web at will.

‘As a Faiaite Santal served them blackberry wine and maug, Seleza allowed her mind to touch Bwani’s briefly. Instantly the Eom flashed into her consciousness and her eyes narrowed again. So, it was the Eom these strangers were seeking! She stored every minute detail of the Wizards’ appearance in her mind as she sat apparently relaxed, conversing with them freely. Bitter experience had shown the Azephim Queen that it was advantageous to know every possible detail of your enemy.

‘The Nine Wizards were all dressed in a similar fashion. Animal furs adorned their torsos, and Seleza was surprised to note that many of the animals were from the Blue Planet. Their hair was woven into intricate plaits and rainbow coloured.

‘What universe were they from? Seleza knew better than to ask. Their faces seemed to be Bluite, but their chakra systems were openly displayed, with the coloured vortices spinning. The hands of the Wizards were extremely small for such large-bodied men, and in place of fingers they had tiny claws. They reminded Seleza of exotic tropical birds from the island of Papua New Guinea on the Blue Planet. She wondered if their origin was the obscure Bird Planet she had studied as a small Azephim.

‘She felt Bwani probing her mind and she allowed him access. It was of no consequence to Seleza if the Wizard read her concerns about his motives in crossing into the Web. If they had crossed in search of the Eom they would be killed just like the few who had attempted this before. Seleza smiled widely at Bwani, realising the startling vision that she must present to these Crossas. Today she had elected to have no physical form. She disliked the stifling feeling that the Azephim body gave to her when she was not mating or eating. To placate the demands of her unexpected visitors, however, she had elected to have her head brought to the Wizards on a crystal altar with her sparrow and etheric floating in close orbit. It was obvious they were attempting to conceal the impact her appearance was having on them. They had been disconcerted from the start. This was ideal for her purposes: she would weaken their united front, plumb the depths of their weaknesses and fears and then move in for the kill. She smiled again as she witnessed Bwani’s dry throat gulp slightly in response to her thoughts. After she had mated with them and fully satisfied herself with them and probed their workings, of course.

‘The conversation in the room between the Wizards and Seleza fell silent as the Webx people’s nightly keening ritual for their captured Elders began to fill the air with its mournful sounds. Seleza held her breath slightly as she felt the Wizards’ probes attempting to decipher the mournful mass. Damn the Web’s tribal rituals! Ever since the Webx Elders had been abducted to the Web by the Azephim, the survivors of the Day of Ashes had not ceased their feeble attempts to recapture their leaders. The Elders were lost to the Eom. Seleza thought in rage, when would the Webx recognise the fact that their tree race had been honoured in their sacrifice? Then she watched through her ancient angel eyes as Bwani shifted in his seat, receiving her mental rage. The Wizards had been inside the Web less than an eyston and already Seleza had revealed to them her weakness. Her sparrow flew slightly faster circling her head but her smile remained.

‘Later that night she prepared for her routine of honouring the Eom. In her physical form she bathed herself in myrrh and orange oil. She applied her Glamour slowly and steadily, just as her teacher had taught her. Too many of the Azephim women misused their Glamour and as a consequence the sensuality behind the ritual was lost. For Seleza, Glamour was never about attracting a mate, for she mated whenever and with whoever she wanted. The Glamour was to honour the Eom. She frowned, remembering the Wizard Elders’ reflection when the keening had begun. She had divulged her displeasure over the Webx keening. She had displayed a vulnerability, a weakness. Azephim had been destroyed for less. Seleza sighed as she carefully adjusted her large angel wings. It was deadly to display unbridled emotion to visitors as menacing as the Wizards. Bwani had already gauged a connection between the Eom and the Webx tribe. She shook her head as she studied her reflection in the looking glass. Even after all these Turns of the Wheel the Webx persisted in attempting to reclaim the Eom and their Elders! Their keening could be heard amplified through the Web every night despite the fact that Eronth was galaxies away.

‘A picture of Bwani with light pulsating from his head revealed itself in the mirror’s reflection and Seleza smiled. The Wizard was performing some rite. She knew the Wizards to be pillagers of worlds, not just mere explorers. There was nothing else that could explain the smell of blood around them. These Wizards had murdered many and now they had managed to penetrate the Web. Seleza started as the song of the Eom began coursing through her flesh. It was nearly time to begin.

‘As she proceeded to the inner chamber of her private quarters where the Eom was enclosed, she checked with her inner vision on her sleeping children. In keeping with Azephim tradition, close contact with the children was not permitted for fear of a return to the old custom of Azephim parents eating all their children following the first. The Azephim had observed for centuries how on planets ruled by the heart chakra the races were weaker and quicker to physically leave their bodies. They concluded the heart was a dangerous and untrustworthy organ, and therefore from an early age the angels dictated to their hearts and not the contrary. Seleza was aware that her daily checking into her children’s progress would be frowned upon by the Azephim High Council, the Amew. Nevertheless she persisted, offering silent prayers that her transgressions would not be recorded. To her relief the six tiny Azephim she had mothered by nursing their black eggs within her were peacefully asleep, watched closely by the winged Amew mothers. Her wings held erect and proud about her, Seleza entered the world of the Eom.

‘Buttons were pressed and rays swished over her, rays that would kill anything not encoded with the password. There was a black space, void, a mewing of the eternal black mother sphinx, acid rain falling, her skin dropping to the ground, a light, a candle in the eternal night, the eyes of a thousand stars, the tears of a million martyrs.
Eom.

‘As the Eom pounded and encoded her cells, Seleza could only dimly make out the Webx elders in the darkness of the room. Attached to the enormous crystal stone that was Eom they lived in eternal half-death, their energy source feeding the great mystery that had once charged their planet in the Heztarra Galaxy. As the familiar ripples of orgasm flowed through the Azephim Queen, her eyes beheld the fallen Elders with no compassion. The Webx race was a dying race, for without Eom, their life source was gradually bleeding away. But the Elders had refused to cooperate with Seleza when they had first been brought to the Web. Instead they had clung together like the one soul that the Webx truly were. They had resisted torture, and despite the Azephim’s best efforts to uncover the workings of the Eom they had appeared content to die rather than reveal its secrets. Yet to Seleza’s eternal amazement the Eom had charged itself when the Elders were on the point of death and had continued to provide an energy source for the Azephim ever since. Truthfully, the Azephim were only just beginning to understand the myriad of mysteries contained within the crystal but there was no denying the increase in strength and psychic ability that had permeated the angel colony ever since the Eom had begun to charge itself. Recognising the bond that existed between the Eom and the crystal’s original guardians, the Elders, Seleza had ordered them bound to the crystal as an offering to Eom. And so there the guardians hung, suspended in living death. They needed no food or fluid for substance. The Eom daily renewed them.

‘Suspended against the Eom the Elders looked on helplessly as Seleza completed her nightly communion. The Webx shared one brain, one heart and one soul between two. They were also multi-incarnational and were living simultaneous lives in many parallel worlds. The Eom had blessed them with the gift of viewing these lives as they hung miserably in living death. There was not an incident that occurred in the Web that missed their attention. They appeared wasted and broken, with trunks unhealthy and scarred and legs mere dangling roots, no longer planted in the Webx soil that they needed for their unique nourishment. However, their minds were fully functional and even their pathetic bodies were more active than any of the Azephim realised. At night they called to the Wizards who were away plundering nearby galaxies. They were not aligned with Webx philosophies, but the Eom had assured the Elders that the combined energies of the Wizards would enable the Elders to deactivate the Eom on the parallel neutral goddess-worshipping planet of Eronth. There, freed from the Azephim, the Elders could recuperate in a comparatively neutral soil and, with the blessing of the Dreamers, could one day return to the Heztarra Galaxy. This was the vision that sustained the Elders through the long days of their confinement. They watched as Seleza finally departed for the evening, her long black wings sweeping behind her. Then they began to call the Wizards again.

‘When Bwani finally received the summons from the Eom he knew immediately what to do. All night he had prayed and called to his Masters for guidance on how to penetrate the chambers to claim the legendary Eom. But he had not foreseen how terrifying the Beautiful Ones could be. As the elected head of the Nine Wizards, Bwani had encountered many strange and terrible beings on a myriad of worlds. Serpents that encircled entire galaxies, microscopic alien life forms that devoured flesh in seconds, mermaids with Glamour so intense it could kill you when you looked upon their faces. In other places atomic, chemical and bacteriological warfare had wiped entire worlds from the Dreamers’ memories in seconds.