The Green Lama: Unbound (The Green Lama Legacy Book 3) (40 page)

A sweaty, gruff looking man in tweed pushed his way down the gangway, knocking past Jethro and Tsarong, before shoving aside the young mother and children. The mother shouted after him, but the man in tweed ignored her as he stumbled toward the dock holding his suitcases shoulder high in a vain effort to quicken his pace. As the man reached the dock, Dumont heard the once familiar sound of squealing tires as a car came speeding down the shipyard, knocking over luggage and machinery as it raced toward the ship.

“There’s that dirty rat now!” Dumont heard the driver shout. “He did come on that ship! Let him have it!”

“No! No! They found me! How did they find me?!” the man in tweed screamed. He stumbled backwards up the gangplank as the car drove up. A machine gun appeared in the passenger window.

“Get down!” Dumont shouted, throwing himself over Tsarong and the young mother as the machine gun sang its song of death.

As they tumbled down, Tsarong heard something whisper by his ear, quickly followed by an odd, hollow
THUNK!
as something warm splattered across his face.

“That got him! Step on it, Slug!” the shooter said as the car peeled away.

“Is everyone okay?!” Dumont said as he stood up, flecks of blood covering his white safari suit. He moved to help the woman back to her feet when he saw the bullet hole in her temple, and the brain matter spilling out the other side. Dumont’s hand jerked away in shock, his fingers shaking uncontrollably. The man in tweed lay on his back in a growing pool of blood, his eyes stared vacantly up into the sky, a black and red bullet hole between them. Then Dumont saw the three children, facedown on the ground.

“Tulku…” Tsarong breathed as Dumont stumbled over to the little girl’s limp form, blood staining her golden locks. “They have killed the little ones!”

“What manner of men are these who make war upon children?” Dumont asked mournfully as he carefully cradled the girl’s body in his arms, when he caught something in the corner of his eye. Shifting his gaze he saw the Jade Tablet glowing subtly in the sunlight, and Jethro Dumont at last realized his destiny.

• • •

Jethro was standing in a seamless white room. There was no singular source of light; it was as if he were in the center of a cold sun. He took a tentative step forward and realized he was barefoot. He felt he should be cold, but he was warm, content and at peace. He glanced down and found himself dressed in familiar green robes; the chest stained a sickening maroon, though he was at a loss as to how they had come to be like that. He had no shadow. He instinctually looked at his right hand and found a glowing red scar where the Jade Tablet had once been. He blinked. He didn’t remember taking it off.

“
Tashi shog,
Tulku,” a familiar voice said.

Jethro turned to find a being of pure green flames standing behind him, its face constantly shifting, always beautiful and serene, but never human. Even so, Jethro recognize her instantly.

“Hello, O Magga,” Jethro said with a calm smile, bowing his head in reverence. “I was wondering when I would see you again.”

Magga bowed her luminescent head. She held a lotus flower in her hand. “But now you see me as I truly am. Do you understand?”

“Yes. And no.” He looked over Magga’s glowing form, finally piecing together all the mysteries surrounding her. “Are you an angel?”

Magga smiled. “Oh, Jethro…After all your time in Tibet, after all your studies, you still cling to so many Western notions.” She held up the lotus flower in her hand, which shimmered into a jewel. Jethro peered into the center of the gem and thought he could see the swirl of galaxies. “Once, I was Yeshe Dawa, though I have been given many names since, some remembered, some forgotten, some truer than others. I am a Bodhisattva, much like you, but I am not of your realm. You may consider me a guardian, a guide, and, as always, the Revealer of the Secret Paths.”

“Is this Nirvana?” he asked, gazing over the white expanse.

“It is…” she hesitated, searching for the word, “a gateway, a bridge between worlds.”

Jethro blinked, he could feel his memories slowly reform, like a fog burning up in the sun. His hand went unconsciously to his neck. “Heydrich.”

Magga nodded.

“And where are Jean and the others?”

She tilted her head to the side, trying to read his expression. “They are still in R’lyeh. Cthulhu has risen.”

Jethro’s face fell. “Then I have failed. Heydrich has won,” he said mournfully. He looked to Magga
.
“Was that truly my destiny? To bring about the rebirth of Cthulhu?”

Magga smiled and shook her head. “No.
Your
destiny is far greater.”

“But what of the Tablets?”

“The Tablets give access to one of the greatest powers in the universe. When the Great Old Ones came to this world they thought they could pervert it and use it for their own purposes. And for a time they did. But they quickly came to realize that even
they
could not control the Tablets, going so far as to try and break the Third Tablet in hopes of finding a way to mitigate their power.”

“That was how Prometheus and his kind first obtained it,” Jethro said. “And how they were able to defeat the Great Old Ones.”

Magga nodded. “The Fire from Olympus. The Tablets were the source of the Great Old Ones’ power, as well as their downfall.”

He glanced down at the scar on his right middle finger. The Jade Tablet was still there, just not in this realm, he could still feel its echo across the divide. “Nyarlathotep said that Tsarong knew this day would come,” he said; this was not a question. “That he has been training me for this…”

“Nyarlathotep is the Father of Lies, but in this instance,” Magga added mournfully, she had hoped to avoid this conversation, “he speaks the truth.”

Jethro scowled, biting back his anger. “Why didn’t Tsarong tell me? There was so much we could have done to prevent this. “

“To know one’s destiny is to void it. Tsarong knew, as I knew, that were you conscious of the path laid before you, you would do all you could to prevent it, allowing you to fall prey to those hoping to alter your decisions, leading, ultimately, to this world’s destruction.” She took a step toward Jethro as bright light appeared beside them. “But now, Tulku, it is time for you to make one final choice, between this life and the next.”

Jethro looked toward the light, then at Magga. “I need to go back,” he said simply.

Magga touched his face. “So brave. Even now, you turn down Nirvana for Earth.”

“I can’t leave her there.”

She smiled sadly. “I always knew you two would work out.”

Jethro smiled.

“Go, Tulku, back to one you love. Be prepared, for the final battle has only just begun,” Magga said as the light began to fade. “And remember to thank Tsarong for stacking the deck.”

• • •

“
Om! Ma-ni Pad-me Hum!
”

Heydrich’s eyes went wide. “No,” he whispered. He turned toward the voice to find the Green Lama forcing himself to his feet, the gaping hole in his neck healing before Heydrich’s eyes. “No! No! No! It’s not possible!” Heydrich screeched. “You’re dead! You’re dead!”

• • •

“Jean!” Ken screamed, tugging at her sleeve. “Jean, look!”

Jean struggled to stand. Her vision blurred with tears, she looked down at the Temple floor in amazement as the Green Lama stood.

“Jethro!” Her eyes shot to Ken. “We don’t have much time!”

• • •

Flashing forward, the Green Lama grabbed Heydrich by the throat and lifted him off the ground. “I’ve already killed you once, Karl,” the Green Lama said quietly; “hopefully
the Dharma
will forgive me for repeating the offense.
Om! Vajrasattva Hum!
” He raised his ringed hand to Heydrich’s jaw and wordlessly unleashed a torrent of energy, disintegrating most of Heydrich’s head in a tremendous flash. The Green Lama dropped the partially decapitated body, along with the Shard, into the abyss. Black ooze poured out from the wound as it tumbled down.

His eyes a luminescent green, the Green Lama turned to Nyarlathotep. The creature’s face had completely shattered, revealing the obsidian horror beneath. “You have not won, Green Lama.” The tongue-like cranium wagged as it spoke. “Like you, I had a card up
my
sleeve.” It pointed a gnarled finger toward the balcony above them, where the Green Lama saw a possessed Vasili viciously attacking Caraway. “One to rise. Three to sleep. Unfortunately for you, the count is still in my favor.”

The Green Lama grimaced angrily. He held his hands out, a ball of energy forming between them. “No matter the measure, Nyarlathotep, you shall not succeed.”

“I believe there is a deity who would disagree with you,” Nyarlathotep laughed, bowing slightly. “He is all yours, my Lord.”

The Green Lama’s robes rippled as the air shifted around him, the beating of tremendous wing drumming in his ears.

“I
SEE YOU
, J
ETHRO
D
UMONT
,” Cthulhu roared, its voice echoing into the Green Lama’s very core. “I
SEE YOU
, G
REEN
L
AMA
.”

“And I see you, Cthulhu,” the Green Lama said as he turned to face the towering alien god. “
Om! Ma-ni Pad-me Hum!
” he shouted, letting loose a powerful beam of electricity, filling the temple with an explosion of green light.

• • •

Gottschalk grabbed at Gan’s uniform, pleading, his mind no longer his own. “We have to stop them!” he howled, spit flying form his mouth. “We cannot let them defeat the great Cthulhu! The time of darkness is at hand!”

“No, sir,” Gan said, “It is not.” He pressed his Lüger against Gottschalk’s stomach and fired two quick shots, dropping the Obergruppenführer to the ground. “Not if I have anything to say about it.”

Gazing up at the balcony, Gan wiped the sweat off his brow with the back of his sleeve. It was time to face his fate.

“
Ewetwjk gx lzw yjwwf dses uomt—ywl slgesf!
” Vasili hissed, his Cheshire grin threatening to rip apart his face. His eyes were black as coal; inky tears ran down his cheeks as he clawed at Caraway’s throat.

“Get off me!” Caraway growled, punching Vasili in the face. But the blows did nothing to deter him. Even when Caraway shattered Vasili’s jaw, it only seemed to goad him on. Reaching for his pistol, Caraway hoped to incapacitate Vasili long enough to get him to put the stone Tablet in place, though it was doubtful a bullet would be enough to stop him. “I’m sorry, boy-o, I know it ain’t you doin’ this,” he said as he shot Vasili in the thigh.

Vasili grunted in pain, but was undeterred. Attacking Caraway with renewed ferocity, he struck him with a powerful backhand. Caraway flew back, his pistol falling from his hand. Before Caraway could find his way to his feet, Vasili was on him again, pinning him the ground.

“
Yog-Soggoth! Hast’r! Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah’nagl fhtagn
,” Vasili laughed, placing a hand on either side of Caraway’s head.

Caraway screamed as his eyes pushed out against his skull as Vasili began to squeeze.

• • •

“Go! Go! Go!” Jean exclaimed as they tried to make their way toward the Third Tablet’s shrine. Deep Ones began to pour in all around them, appearing out of every shadow.

“Where the hell are they coming from?” Ken shouted as he shot down two fish men.

“Doesn’t really matter right now!” she said as she kicked out a Deep One’s knees. Out of bullets, she had no option but to fight the creatures hand-to-hand. “Come on, this is just like the factory, just keep shootin’ them ’til they stop! Just don’t get bitten like last time!”

Ken glanced at her quizzically. “What factory? What are you talking about?” he asked, shooting another creature in the eye.

Jean’s stomach twisted. “Just don’t stop shooting!”

• • •

“Y
OU ARE NOTHING
, G
REEN
L
AMA
!” Cthulhu shrieked telepathically. The Green Lama screamed, clutching his head as Cthulhu’s metaphysical voice threatened to shatter his human mind. He felt knives slice beneath his skin and tear it away from his muscles, endured the torment of having every bone broken, swallowing hot coals, and experienced the agony of drowning all with the blink of an eye.

He plunged to the ground and was caught mid-air in Cthulhu’s colossal hand. Bringing the Green Lama close to its tentacled face, the Great Old One laughed. “W
E RULED THIS WORLD FOR A MILLENNIA
,
BILLIONS OF YEARS BEFORE YOUR KIND EVEN DARED CRAWL OUT FROM THE MUCK
. Y
OU THINK YOU CAN WIELD THE POWER OF THE GODS
? Y
OU ARE A BUG
.” It slammed the Green Lama into the side of the Temple, giant chunks of coral crashing down onto the assemblage below. “A
ND YOU ARE CRUSHED LIKE ONE
,” Cthulhu scoffed when the Green Lama didn’t resurface.