Tablet of Destinies (51 page)

‘But I've already nabbed everyone who's on the planet and not otherwise occupied … and they're not familiar with many of the destinations,' Brian whined.

‘We don't plan to be long,' Maelgwn said briefly, vanishing with Tory and the Devas, who waved in parting.

‘Does the word authority mean anything to anyone in my family?' Brian was left talking to himself.

‘Gov!' Floyd spotted Brian and hurried over with a printout. ‘I thought you might find it interesting to know that DJ Nova has put out an SOS, calling everyone to help with this project. Many rebels and outlaws are returning from exile in deep space to aid with Lahmu's construction.'

Brian grabbed the missive and read it quickly. ‘Right, that proves it, it has to be Micah,' he mumbled to himself, before glancing at Floyd. ‘Take over here, will you? I'll be right back.'

 

Governor, what a pleasant surprise.
Micah greeted Brian warmly when he joined him in the private lounge of the Lord's deep space vessel, currently stationed just beyond Kila's atmosphere.
To what do I owe this great honour?

‘How is it that DJ Nova knows of our construction already?' Brian handed the Nefilim Lord the printout.

Well, actually, I passed the information on,
Micah confessed.
I thought it would aid the cause,
he explained.

‘It has.' Brian tried not to sound annoyed. ‘But why
did you withhold information from me, when you know I've been seeking the DJ?'

DJ Nova has only been able to aid your cause because of anonymity. It is not important for you or anybody else to know
—

‘Not important!' Brian strongly disagreed. ‘We should be working together!'

But you have been.
Micah didn't understand the problem.
Has she
— Micah suddenly clammed up.

‘Ah-huh!' Brian's eyes narrowed as he guessed the identity of the female that Micah was protecting. ‘Shala … of course.' Brian hit himself in the head for being so stupid. ‘Can I meet with her? Is she on board?'

Micah nodded, deciding it was time to introduce Lahmu to his phantom ally, for Shala had done a mighty job.
Follow me, Governor.

The large studio where Brian found himself was equivalent in technology, data storage and communications equipment to Floyd's department back on Kila. ‘Holy shit.' Brian was rather impressed with the arrangement as he watched Shala work. She was under a headset at present, screening incoming data and recording it for transmission — the Goddess appeared completely unaware of his presence.

Word just in from Nibiru is that the Lord Nergal has officially freed all human slaves. Yes, you heard me right, trouble seekers. Rumour has it that our fearless leader overdosed on Orme and accidentally enlightened himself. Mmm mmm … I wish I could be a fly on the wall when Nergal's little woman hears about that blunder. There is to be a general meeting on Kila of all the key officials from each
planet and tribe. This meeting will be chaired by, wait for it … Lahmu himself. I'll be sure and keep you all posted as further details come to hand. News from Numan now …

Brian looked at Micah, horrified at what he heard. ‘You bugged my office, didn't you?' He knew the Lord must have, as Maelgwn and himself were the only ones who knew about the meeting.

No, no. We bugged your weapons belt, before you left the Pantheon meeting on Nibiru.

Brian's jaw was dropping in amazement. ‘You sneaky …' He shook his head, thankful it had been Micah who'd thought of this and not Nergal. ‘So, how long have you had this set-up?' he asked, shaking off his alarm.

Shala was doing this hundreds of years before the Gathering even took place,
Micah informed Brian, sounding proud of her.
Like me, she was unable to stand by and watch the senseless abuse of the human races in order for a handful of our kind to indulge themselves forever. This was Shala's solution to the problem, her way of undermining the culprits and exposing them. The Pantheon have always been under the impression that we only conducted charity work from this vessel.
Micah had a little chuckle.
I suppose this could qualify as a community service.

I've been waiting a long time to do an in-house interview with you, Lahmu.
Shala drew their attention — the headset was now rested around her neck.

‘I'm your biggest fan,' Brian responded, overawed by her devotion.

Ditto, warrior,
she said.
Thanks to you, the great prophecy is now legend and all our hard work has not been wasted.

‘Aw, no. It is you two who've kept the prophecy alive and given the oppressed masses a glimmer of hope through the centuries. Without you two,' Brian only realised it as he said it, ‘the fall of the Pantheon would not have been possible.'

We all have our reason for being,
Shala granted.
Me … I had to prove to my relatives that the word is mightier than the sword.

‘And you have succeeded.' Brian felt the praise was due. ‘I feel beholden to you, Shala, and to Micah. I wish there was some way I could repay your huge efforts on my behalf and on behalf of all mankind.'

You can rule this galaxy fairly,
Micah suggested.
That is all the thanks we'll ever need.

‘But there must be something?' the Governor insisted.

There is a favour you could do for me
, Shala replied.

‘Anything.' Brian spread his arms wide, appealing to her to ask away.

Well … as this DJ is about to disappear into obscurity, never to be heard of again,
she sounded very calm, considering the hundreds of years she'd spent in the hot seat,
I was wondering if you would like to record an address to the listeners. I've been telling them about Lahmu for so long, that it would be a good finish to have Lahmu on my final transmission.

The Governor saw this as the perfect opportunity to fill the masses in on what was truly going on. ‘DJ Nova,' Brian smiled, pleased to accept her invitation. ‘That would be my very great honour … but, instead of just any old address, for your final broadcast why not give our supporters
the
address?'

Are you talking about the speech you are preparing for the high court of the planetary chain, re the formation of your new intergalactic Senate, Lahmu?

Brian nodded. ‘That I am … how better to show the masses that I have nothing to hide. I don't want to show favouritism to those in power. All should be informed of what I have in mind, so that every individual can make an informed decision about their future.'

Micah gasped and smiled at once.
You mean to go
live
with your address?

‘Sure.' Brian was keen on the idea. ‘DJ Nova can be the Master of Ceremonies and we'll beam audio and visual to the four corners of the galaxy … what do you say?'

I say …
Shala smiled, deeply touched by Brian's sentiment.
Let's do it!

T
his was not the first time Tory and Maelgwn had been to the Otherworldly prison on Gaia's moon. It had been Narnar who had been banished here on their last visit and they'd aided the Lord to redeem himself. Today, they were there in the hope of doing the same for Shamash.

Tory stood staring up at the cold, bleak ziggurat, wondering where all the stony gargoyles that had once adorned the exterior had gone. Torches still burnt brightly up either side of the entrance stairs, although the bleak appearance of the ancient fortress did nothing
to beckon hither. ‘Why do we always end up with these assignments?'

‘Because our life is being dictated by our children,' Maelgwn stated, motioning back to Sacha and Psyche.

‘Any more excursions like this one and you two are definitely grounded.' Tory played along with the banter as she scaled the stairs, eager to have the confrontation over, when suddenly she backed up. ‘Whoa!'

‘What is it?' Maelgwn stopped still.

Tory looked back to note that the Devas had not followed them up the stairs of the ziggurat. ‘There's intense evil here … can't you feel it?'

Maelgwn shuddered suddenly as the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. ‘A cold, forbidding presence … aye, I feel it. And I've felt it before.'

‘No, it couldn't be,' Tory insisted, regretting that her recollections did not associate the presence with Shamash. The disgraced Nefilim God was a conniving tyrant, yes, but he'd never radiated such a foul energy as that which Tory perceived at present. There was only one entity with whom she was familiar whose aura alone was enough to make even a hardened immortal's stomach churn. ‘It's Mahaud,' she whispered, mortified to be so sure about it. ‘How? I don't know, but it's her. In which case, we cannot risk the Devas being damaged by the presence of such a low-grade entity. Not if we ever want to see the twins again.'

‘We shall bring Shamash to you on Kila.' Maelgwn turned back to the Devas to dismiss them at once.

Sorry Father.
Sacha was clearly disappointed that he
could not assist.
This place is fortified by energies with which we cannot get involved.

We are stretching our endurance in the physical world as it is. The more sub-planes we descend, the more susceptible to low-grade stimuli we must become in order to endure.
Psyche was beginning to fret.

‘Go quickly,' Tory told them, in a mother's tone. ‘And fear not, if your father and I could defeat this crone ninety years ago, we can sure as hell kick her butt now.' She manifested a saxophone in her hand, as a tune her father, Myrddin, had taught her, had driven the crone away on a couple of occasions in the past.

Once the Devas had departed, Tory winced at having made the claim so loud. ‘You don't think she heard me, do you?'

‘It won't matter if she did, she's bound to be disturbed to see us.' Maelgwn took hold of Tory's hand and began to scale the stairs.

Of course, they could have willed themselves directly to Shamash, but neither one of them was in much of a hurry to see the Lord, or his forbidding companion.

 

Aya had undergone most of the trip back to Kila in stasis, as she was now required to do so as a mortal. Her father had been driving her insane with his preaching about goodness, repenting and selfless service to others, so Aya was rather grateful for some time away from him.

‘I would gladly rot in oblivion before I would serve a human being,' she grumbled to herself. She was sitting alone in her recovery room, waiting for the drowsy aftereffects of the stasis sleep to wear off. ‘Unless, of course,
that human was Lahmu.' She grinned for the first time in her mortal life. ‘What I wouldn't do to have him service me.' She chuckled mischievously a moment, and then snarled, frustrated that she no longer had the power to pursue her desires.

She pulled her cloak around her, feeling the temperature in the recovery room to be rather chilly. ‘Doesn't this ship have heating!' She thumped the wall so hard she hurt her hand. ‘I'll bloody well freeze to death before we even get to Kila!' Then Aya noticed the putrid smell. ‘What am I in, a garbage tanker?' She hollered even louder. When her eyes began registering a shadowy patch of mist in the middle of the room, Aya's first thought was that she was suffering some side-effect from stasis-sleep.

As the mist grew darker and thicker it began to take the form of an ugly demon spirit, which remained only vaguely present.

I have a gift for you
— it spoke, whereby Aya nearly jumped out of her skin, she was so startled.

‘From whom?' She composed herself and attempted to sound unperturbed and disinterested.

Your ex understands your current situation better than any, and despite your differences in the past, my Lord Shamash cannot bear to see his kindred belittled so.

‘So what's he going to do, give me back my immortality?' she scoffed. Shamash had failed at everything he'd ever attempted — their marriage included.

YES!
the demon spirit emphasised.
And in its darkest aspect. No more having to feel good after Orme injections
until your naturally nasty deeds make things normal. Now you can feel free to become the dark and debauched being you always aspired to be, without fear of ever being cut off from your life source.

Aya was sceptical of course. ‘The promise is enough to make a sadist weep for joy … but how could it be possible?'

Charichalum Orme.
The spectre grinned.

The idea intrigued Aya, until the creature held out a hand and manifested a small, sleek dart gun.
My Lord requested that you shoot yourself.

‘Like hell I will!' She backed away. ‘This mortal body doesn't withstand much. Shamash never held me in high regard. He's out to kill me.'

Would that be worse than where you're at right now?
the demon said.
And if it were my Lord's aim to do you harm, I could simply shoot you myself.
Again the demon offered her the weapon and this time Aya took it.

‘I know Shamash.' Aya was still wary. ‘There must be something in this for him.'

All he wants is for you to destroy Lahmu,
the demon stated, already knowing that the notion would be pleasing to the Nefilim female.

It was difficult to repress her grin, but Aya managed to do so. ‘Tell Shamash that I shall do all within my power to grant his wish.'

My Lord Shamash already knows that you will.
The demon withdrew into the mist that billowed and faded away.

Aya turned the weapon on herself and took aim at her heart.
To that all-powerful dark force in nature, I beg deliverance from the righteous, so that I might pursue your
designs.
With a deep breath she found her nerve and pulled the trigger.

 

On the first level of the ziggurat, a long, wide stone passage led into the structure. Torches lined the walls, but the winged, spindly-limbed devils of stone that once featured atop the pillars, in between each torch, were absent.

‘I wonder where Tobit and his devilish friends have got to?' Maelgwn voiced Tory's very thought.

‘Maybe they couldn't abide Mahaud either?' Tory attempted humour, hoping that the crone had not bewitched the stony earth spirits into her service.

Before they entered the main chamber of the ominous stone dwelling, Maelgwn turned to his wife and took up both her hands. ‘Mahaud is a trickster beyond compare, as we both well know. But no matter what happens in her presence, no matter how she contorts the truth to her own end, remember that I love you, now, then and always.'

With a kiss, Tory showed she understood. ‘And I love you tenfold as much,' she assured. Maelgwn shook his head in amusement.

‘We are one …' he said, surely, ‘… in a reality not too distant from where we stand now.'

Tory tipped her head to one side, having an instinctive understanding of his statement. ‘I, too, feel that the time is fast approaching to be rid of this hindrance … this separateness.'

‘Something I greatly look forward to.' Maelgwn returned his eyes to their path. ‘It will be a well-earned rest from this place, that's for sure.'

Tory nodded. ‘Thank heavens Brian turned out to be Lahmu, that's all I can say.'

This made Maelgwn laugh, as he heartily agreed.

The temperature plummeted as they moved towards the heart of the complex — the huge main chamber of the fortress was as cold as a meat locker. Shamash was slouched on a throne, seemingly unaffected by the cold. In his left hand was a goblet and in his right, a metal object that neither Tory nor Maelgwn could identify.

Is that a weapon?
Tory bethought her husband, whose hand she was still clutching tightly.

Hard to say
—

I've been waiting for you, Dragon, Lamamu.
Shamash's voice was saturated with Mahuad's unmistakable tones, resonating with the harsh, gravelly echo of many unearthly spirits. The pupils of the Nefilim Lord's eyes glowed deep red and his personal appearance had degenerated somewhat since he had last been seen.
I knew that you would come for me before long … but you will not pacify me as easily as you have the rest of my kind.

‘Been following the progress of your kin, have you?' Tory queried, wondering about the source of his information.

I've had visions.
He grinned in a devilish manner.

‘No need to ask where Mahaud is hiding out then,' Tory commented aside to her husband, and Shamash gave a snarl as he noted the instrument in Tory's hands.

I cannot allow you to shield Anu,
Shamash advised, cocking a leg to break wind in a loud, prolonged and satisfying fashion — the resulting stench was putrid.

‘What makes you think we plan to shield Anu?' Maelgwn played down his surprise that Shamash was aware of their plans.

The dominions of nature are vast, even in the sub-planes. As above, then so below,
he growled, placing aside his drink.
I know all about Orme charichalum.
He chuckled at their astonished expressions, stroking the unknown object he held.
As there are devas above who would grant immortality, so are their demons below who shall do the same … a shadow self that we all have at our disposal. A whole hierarchy of chaotic and negative principles lie in wait to empower the adept student of the dark arts.

‘Am I talking to Shamash right now, or Mahaud?' Maelgwn sought clarification.

Ah … Dragon, I was afraid you didn't recognise me.
Shamash stuck out his tongue and began waving it around in Maelgwn's direction, then sank back into the seat.
The crone and the God are one now, then and always.

‘So, how did you and Mahaud strike up this lovely friendship,' Tory ventured to ask, ‘or do you consider that a personal question?'

What goes around comes around.
Shamash relaxed, seemingly relaxed by the query.
I know the incantation that invokes her demon spirit. I perfected and penned the dark invocation, to tempt mankind with promises of unlimited power. It was I who first summoned forth Mahaud from the sub-planes to wreak chaos on human history. In exchange for playing midwife to the demon's birth into the plane of matter, Mahaud pledged to me life service. The crone is bound to answer my call and do my bidding until the day that I cease to exist in the physical world.

‘Then the reverse is true, right? And you shall be bound to do her bidding,' Tory posed, as she knew a bit about demonology from dealing with Mahaud in the past.

I'm immortal!
Shamash protested, making out he'd got the better end of the deal.
And my accomplice needs me thus, to remain in the realms of matter where her skills achieve maximum impact.

‘But unlike we human beings you need Orme to remain so,' Maelgwn reminded him.

Oh, I don't know … Orme charichalum works just as well,
he taunted with a sly grin.
In my case, the outward spiral is simply reversed to an inward one to achieve an immortal state of being. This, of course, promotes contact with the demon, instead of the deva, within.
He raised his brow a couple of times.
It's really a far more suitable solution for one of my ilk … instead of radiating energy, I suck it. And the coldness within that once threatened to end my days, now grants me life everlasting.

Tory and Maelgwn glanced at each other, alarmed by his boast. It did make perfect sense that the dark matter could reverse the inward spiral known as kundalini, which was a channel for the vital life force of the cosmos, into the subtle body of living beings.

So with that said …
Shamash raised the weapon and took aim at the couple.
I'll bet you can imagine what this might be?

Tory raised the saxophone to her lips, to call Shamash's bluff, but he only laughed.

It's been a long time since you've played your instrument. Are you sure you remember the sequence of notes that summon
the aid of the Lord of the Otherworld?
He waved about the fingers of his free hand in Tory's general direction.

‘Of course I remember it,' Tory stated, when suddenly the four-note sequence known as the Pan call, slipped right out of her head.

Don't waste your breath, your tune will not work here. You have walked into a circle that I have cast and fortified.

‘Oh damn.' Maelgwn now noted that the main chamber in which they stood was circular and that torches were burning at the four cardinal points. Such a circle harnessed and magnified the power of the caster and protected Shamash from all undesirable elements. In this case, it protected him from positive stimuli that might weaken his position. Anyone who entered this space could not draw upon outside forces for assistance and thus all psychic power was effectively rendered useless.