Sherlock Holmes: The Shadow From Beyond (22 page)

Lebda’s countenance grew more agitated by the arguments posed by Holmes, but answered confidently; “These rituals are not part of a religion but a science! These are arcane recipes that use phonetics, astrology and cosmology to gain their results, and although the entities involved are sometimes worshipped as Gods, to me they are simply weapons of infinite power and mass destruction waiting to be unleashed. And just in case you still doubt Mr. Holmes, let me point out that the Necronomicon was compiled by an Arab like myself, the great Abdul Alhazred!”

“Yes it is true that you share that common trait with the ancient poet, two if you include that you are both insane! Not to worry though, I have closed the doors forever on your personal experiments, ones in violation of naturalistic law brought about via the black arts. Your demon servant is probably no more, and all your precious personal belongings destroyed. I made sure to leave a sizable signal fire on the hill, one could say, a message to all those who dwell in the region that the mansion of horror is no more, and that they no longer need live in fear of the madman who once dwelt there. All is now simply ash in the wind.”

Lebda shook with rage at that statement realizing that all he had collected, all his books, notes and artifacts were gone forever. But the rage washed over him in a moment, and he was composed once again as he spoke. “No matter Mr. Holmes, earthly possessions will be of little use to us when we enter the paradise of the afterlife or are asked to serve our new masters in recreating this world in their image.” He paused for a moment as he looked me over. “You are truly quite a foe Mr. Holmes, and at any other instance you may have posed an actual threat to my plans, but not this time I am afraid. In fact you have come so far to accomplish absolutely nothing. You have failed.”

On that note Lebda turned from me and walked back to his earlier position before the dais, then raised the Eye of the Watcher in his outstretched hands and spoke aloud to the cultist crowd in a voice almost alien.

“IA ! IA ! ZI AZAG !

IA ! IA ! ZI AZKAK !

IA ! IA ! KUTULU ZI KUR !

IA!

Lebda thrust the Eye of the Watcher into the opening on the statue’s face, it slipped perfectly into the gaping niche with a loud sucking sound. Suddenly there was a violent, deep resonating boom, a green light shone all around the edge of the Eye and a swirling radiance shot forth from its center. At once the polished wall of black stone behind Lebda began to lose substance, its once solid mass now rippled as if turning to liquid. This was the dimensional gateway taking form, opening a portal, a doorway to another world of unparalleled horror from which its occupants were ready to spill forth.

Then with a countenance of pure evil and malignancy, Lebda turned his pointed face toward me and ordered in his sinister tone; “Take him away and lock him up! He will be dead soon, and no longer of concern to anyone. Ha Ha Ha!”

The cultists at my sides then spun me around and dragged me from the chamber and away from the ongoing occult ceremony. The entire time I struggled and screamed aloud for Lebda to rethink his rash actions, to end this madness before it was too late but my voice echoed down empty tunnels to fall upon deaf ears.”

Rats in a Cage

“They dragged me here, to this alcove that must have been a prisoner’s dock of some kind in the past. After picking myself of the cell floor I brushed off the dirt from my trousers, came over to the occupied bunk and found you my dear friend, very much alive and not so worse for wear. A huge weight was lifted from my shoulders in knowing that you had escaped death, I felt like there was still hope for us.” He smiled again. “The cell doors as I expected have been locked shut, and the iron bars will not budge, I have tested them. We are definitely trapped, like rats in a cage” Watson’s shoulders slumped in defeat on that note.

It was just as the detective finished his tale that the drumming that had echoed towards them rose greatly in volume. The chanting became hysteric, the phonetics of which were utterly strange and guttural. The mantra was repeated over and over in a language insidious and altogether unknown;

“MER SIDI !

MER KURRA !

MER URULI !

MER MARTU !

ZI DINGIR ANNA KANPA !

ZI DINGIR KIA KANPA !

UTUK XUL, TA ARDATA !

KUTULU, TA ATTALAKLA !

AZAG-TOTH, TA KALLA !

IA ANU ! IA ENLIL ! IA NNGI !

ZABOA !”

“My God Holmes! What’s next for us?”

“Well Watson, the end is near for sure. The ceremony will come to its climax, the horrors of the unknown unleashed, and our fates most probably sealed. But if Professor Harper’s notes hold some element of truth we may have one last chance. I can only hope that some of the wards he noted in his journal will work against these dark powers. I have mesmerized certain symbols, glyphs and diagrams that suggested of protective powers, and while you were passed out I have attempted to reproduce them as closely as possible here on the cell floor with this piece of ancient charcoal I took from Harper’s study. It was hidden within the seam of my overcoat along with the Elder Sign, so the cultists did not notice when they quickly searched me. I was only just finishing up the diagram when you came around out of your slumber. Now we must pray that it works, as it is our only true remaining option. Watson, quickly come join me here in the center of the diagram, our time is short!”

Watson rose from the cot, checked his balance and hustled over to where Holmes stood within a crudely drawn circle that had six points radiating outward from its center. Scrawled in charcoal along its radius were numerous symbols, none familiar to the doctor save for what looked like primitive renderings of fish. “Stand closer, Watson, keep within the borders at all cost!”

The drumming had grown beyond any structured rhythm by now, a pounding blur driven on in a fever of hysteria. The chanting was a cacophony of howls and shrieks. Then the Earth began to shake, a light trembling that increased until a deep vibrating sensation assailed them. It felt as if cracks in the very core of the strata were parting to allow some immense object to pass through the rocky subterranean layers. The floor became unsteady, and the duo stumbled about. Holmes grabbed Watson by the jacket and pulled him close.

The mad resonance was at its apex now, a blend of unrecognizable chaotic noise. Suddenly there was a distinct sound, like the release of vacuum. A fierce gust of wind then blew down the passage and into their cell. It was hot and humid and smelt of the ocean. The temperature increased by the second, the degrees rose steadily and within moments it had reached levels of physical discomfort. Watson noticed as sweat broke out under his collar and trickled down his neck.

Holmes withdrew from a small inside coat pocket the strange star shaped relic he had pilfered from Professor Harper’s study. Watson remembered the item, described in the journal as the Elder Sign; it was a relic that offered protection from certain arcane powers. He observed as Holmes carefully placed it within the center of the diagram the two stood within and on doing so immediately noticed the sudden drop in the temperature about him. Holmes then began to softly whisper some obscure chant of his own, the words of which Watson had never heard spoken before;

“ISA YA ! ISA YA ! RI EGA ! RI EGA !

BI ESHA BI ESHA ! XIYILQA ! XIYILQA !

DUPPIRA ATLAKA ISA YA U RI EGA

LIMUTTIKUNU KIMA QUTRI LITILLI SHAM YE

INA ZUMRI YA ISA YA

INA ZUMRI YA RI EGA

INA ZUMRI YA BI ESHA

INA ZUMRI YA XIYILQA

INA ZUMRI YA DUPPIRA”

The effect of the incantation was immediate.

The two adventurers became surrounded by what seemed like an invisible barrier inside of which all of their physical sensations were reduced to a minimum. The temperature was bearable again and although the wind could be seen blowing dirt and debris violently around the alcove, they felt only the slightest sensation of it upon themselves. The chanting and drumming could be heard, but more faintly, muffled, and the ground shook with less agitation. It was as if they were within a void in the fabric of space, a dimension within yet apart from their own.

Suddenly the psychotic thrumming tattoo ceased altogether. The winds settled down, the dust and detritus fell back to the ground and all became very still. It remained so for moments on end. There was no sound, no movement, even the shaking of the earth had ended. Time itself seemed to have stopped. Holmes and Watson stood in stunned silence.

The calm was suddenly broken by the loud insane piping of high pitched music, followed immediately by a bright yellow and orange glow that streamed into the cell area. It illuminated everything in a brilliant rich amber glare. Then a frenzy of wild screaming arose from the direction of the ceremony cavern beyond. Deathly wails of horror and pain assailed the duo trapped within their cell. These sounds were so utterly beyond imagination and scope that chills were sent racing up their spines. They were sounds that left them shaken and pale with fear. Then a sudden blast of kinetic energy passed through the solid rock walls about and through their very bodies. A concussive force of emotion, like pain and suffering materialized, overwhelmed them. Its origin had radiated outwards from the ceremonial cavern beyond.

Holmes and Watson felt the continuing blasts of sonic energy upon their forms, saw only swirling colors before their eyes and smelt the overpowering reek of sulphur and burnt flesh that almost sent them gagging. All this even while within the protective powers of the diagram that surrounded them.

Throughout the experience no direct physical harm came to them. They had experienced all these sensations in a dull, muted fashion, on a minor level in comparison as to what was occurring in the reality just outside their ward. These impressions would have normally overwhelmed them, reduced them to babbling insane idiots had they had not remained within the safety of the protective circle.

Then, as quickly as it had arrived, the sensory overload suddenly ceased. The cavern lay still and all was quiet about them once more.

Watson straightened himself beside Holmes and looked about but could see no noticeable changes in the environment as from before. The cell doors of iron were still locked shut, the air and temperature in the room seemed normal, and Watson and Holmes were still alive and unharmed. The only apparent difference was in the complete lack of any sound. All was eerily silent. The beating of drums and the chanting of verse had ceased.

Watson was about to speak, but Holmes held up his hand. He cocked his head as if straining to hear.

They listened attentively, and soon, out of the uncanny silence, a sound became lightly audible. It was an awkward slithering noise, as if something heavy moved down the cavern towards them. A deep electronic hum escorted by a crackling of what seemed like embers from a fire accompanied the advance of what approached.

Then the smell assailed them.

Indescribable in its other worldliness the fetor could only be summed up as death incarnate; ancient and dry, yet organic with rot and degeneration. It reeked of illness, petrifaction, and decay and set them both to cover their noses with coat sleeves. Watson could only imagine the full level of the stench that must have existed beyond the ward.

A bright shimmering reddish orange glow now moved towards them from down the passage, like a radiant star that had fallen from the skies.

Holmes noticed the wisps of white and blue lightning that crackled about the cavern before they grounded and dissipated. Electricity he surmised.

As the entity edged ever closer, items in the cell area about them briefly caught fire before they vaporized. Bits of paper on the table that was set outside the cell went up in a spark of light, then the wooden furniture itself flashed alight and became ash within seconds. The solid rock walls began to crack and smoke with the immense heat. The very air bristled with the static of electron voltage.

Then it was in the cavern with them, this thing of unknown origin, this horror from beyond.

Cthuga

Like a viscous liquid the living nightmare poured into the area before them. It was immense and occupied almost the entire cavern from floor to ceiling. Its shimmering mass was in a constant state of flux between organic and nuclear composition, a massive pulsating energy that randomly morphed from one shape to another continuously.

Holmes clutched Watson close.

Gripped with primal fear neither moved, yet neither could tear their eyes from the unbelievable sight that confronted them, this impossible marvel.

The furniture within the cell flashed alight. The table, chair, cot and bedding became completely burnt and blackened, and then simply no more. The heat the entity gave off could only be read in degrees Kelvin, Watson thought as he watched the stone walls around him blister and crack, it was that intense. Thankfully the protective ward reduced the temperature to a minimum or surely Death would have embraced them.