AN: This chapter contains aspects from both Wiccan and Catholic religion. The information I have referred to is all canon material from Marvel Comics, and I apologise if it offends any readers.
Chapter Seven
The Ancient One took several deep steadying breaths as she placed the candles around her, at the cardinal points, North, South, East and West, clearing her mind of thought as she knelt, waiting for the exact moment of midnight, to begin her summoning spell.
It was Samhain, the night in which the veil between worlds was at its thinnest, several weeks after Vicki and Wong's 'adventure' into Agamotto's realm, and the Ancient One's concern for the young girl had only grown when she had been unable to commune with Thoth for more information. The avian god simply had not responded at all. Vicki herself had many questions that the Ancient One could not answer, to the frustration of them both, and the child's visceral and violent reaction to Agamotto, as described by Wong and later acknowledged by Vicki herself, had caused the Ancient One no small amount of alarm. Added to the fact that Vicki could not only open portals with no aid, but could replicate any spell she had seen performed with no invocations or practice, and her continuing dreams of the Elder Gods, from eons ago, were cause for true fear. The Ancient One's growing unease about Victoria had led her to this place, a secluded valley in the mountains, to call on a being who might be able to provide some answers.
The moon was full and bright overhead, casting a silvery light over the whole clearing. It was time. Sinking her hands into the moist Earth, the Ancient One closed her eyes and began the invocation, calling on all four elements, before speaking the name of the Goddess. Gaea was Mother to all who dwelled on Earth. If anyone could tell her more about Victoria's origin, it would be the Mother Goddess. Provided She answered this call and she was willing to reveal what She might know.
The Ancient One finished the summoning, feeling power seeping into the Earth, praying her call had been heeded. She 'felt' a caress against her mind even as an enormous power rose from within the Earth, and knew she had succeeded. Opening her eyes, she saw the ageless, beautiful face of Gaea as the Goddess knelt opposite her, surrounded by now-blooming flowers. The Ancient One inclined her head in a show of respect.
"Gaea."
A smile spread across the Goddess' face. "What do you wish of me, child?"
Wong tossed and turned in annoyance. It was nearly midnight, but for some reason he just couldn't sleep! He'd tried everything- reading, just lying there with his eyes shut, and even counting sheep, but his mind just would not drift into sleep. It was Vicki's eleventh birthday, and they'd had a special day out, to Disneyland, which had been awesome - he and Vicki had gone on every single ride, though Mordo hadn't joined in as much. He'd said he was 'too old' for such 'silly' stuff. Wong and Vicki had agreed that was just dumb. Wong had especially loved the rollercoasters, but now he couldn't relax enough to sleep! Sighing loudly, he threw the covers off and climbed from his bed. Maybe if he went to get some tea, that would help. Pulling on his robe, he slipped from his room barefoot. As he headed for the kitchen, he heard footsteps heading the other way, and blinked. Was someone else awake at this hour? Why? Shrugging, he went to investigate. Walking into the hallway that led to the stairs, he saw Vicki ahead of him, walking downstairs, not making any noise at all that Wong could hear. An icy shiver went down his spine- something was wrong about how Vicki was moving, too gracefully, too fast- but he pushed the feeling away and went after her, nearly having to run to keep up.
"Vicki?" He whispered, not wanting to wake any of the adults.
She didn't turn. Catching up to her, he caught her shoulder. "Vicki! What are you doing?"
She slowly turned to face him, and he nearly leaped away from her. Her eyes were open, but weirdly glazed, as if she couldn't see him, and her face was totally blank. He frowned. Was she sleepwalking?
After she 'watched' him for a minute, she turned back around and continued walking, in the same too-smooth way, like she was gliding. Wong bit his lip. Should he follow her and wake her up, or go get one of the grown ups? Vicki was moving fast, heading for the door to the courtyard. If she went outside, Wong realised with horror, and she really was sleepwalking, she could easily misjudge what she was doing and get hurt! He raced after her. I can get help once I've made sure she's OK.
Vicki paused at the closed door, which Wong knew should be locked, then, to his amazement, it swung open, and Vicki simply walked through as if she'd expected that. His heart began to pound- this was getting creepy- but he couldn't leave his best friend alone! Trying not to shiver, telling himself it was just the cold from outdoors (he was not scared!), he went after her into the courtyard.
Vicki had paused, looking around robotically, as if getting her bearings, then resumed her gliding walk towards... the library? Well, Wong reasoned, at least she couldn't get hurt in there, and once they were inside, he could try and wake her up.
Gaea's flawless face was troubled as the Ancient One finished explaining what little she knew of Vicki's past before she'd come to Kamar-Taj. Keeping her eyes low, head bowed respectfully, the Sorceress Supreme continued.
"Thoth told me only that the child needed to be kept anonymous and her abilities kept in check, but I believe that would be an easier task if I understood why Victoria has such gifts. Is there anything further you could tell me of her, Goddess?"
Silence. The Ancient One kept her head lowered, waiting. Eventually, Gaea sighed, making all the foliage ripple in unison.
"What if I were to tell you that you do not truly want to know the answers you seek? That the truth may affect your views of the child, even though she is innocent in this matter?"
That only made the Ancient One's curiousity flare even more. She chose her next words carefully. "I assure you, I would not let anything prejudice me against a child as young as Victoria. And I believe I will be able to better facilitate her training if I understand her origin." She finally looked up, meeting Gaea's fathomless eyes, hoping the Goddess could see her sincerity.
There was a lengthy pause, but then Gaea shook her head. "It is not yet time for the whole truth to be revealed. And despite your words, I fear you would not be able to treat the child as you do now if you knew the truth. This matter, for now, is best kept hidden." She stood, and the Ancient One knew She meant to leave. Fighting the urge to clench her fists in frustration, she bowed her head once more.
"As you wish, Goddess." There were other, darker forces she could contact for information, after all. Gaea's words had only proved that there was a secret here, and she was determined to find out what it was, for Victoria's sake if not her own.
As the Goddess disappeared from view, she kept her gaze on the Ancient One, letting out another sigh as her form faded from sight. Her voice echoed as she slowly departed.
"I see you will not simply heed my advice. If you insist on uncovering answers, look to the Malachy Prophecy. But remember: no matter what you discover, the child must be kept safe."
With that, Gaea was gone, leaving the Ancient One somewhat puzzled. The Malachy Prophecy? She knew of it, of course; it was a long series of apocalyptic foretellings, passed down among the priests of the Vatican. Some of the prophecies were believed to have occult significance, but what did that have to do with Victoria? Which particular prophecy had Gaea meant? Her eyes narrowed suddenly. Vittorio Montesi, Victoria's deceased father, had been one of the priests of the Vatican, and the Montesi family had long been rumoured to guard one of the copies of the infamous Darkhold, written by the accursed demonic Elder God Chthon, one of Gaea's siblings. Was the demon god somehow connected to this? The Ancient One frowned. She was looking for answers, but only finding more questions!
Resolving to look through the Malachy Prophecies when she returned to Kamar-Taj, she began to walk from the sacred grove, her mind whirling with questions. What exactly had she- and Victoria- been caught up in? This matter was starting to appear far bigger in scale than she had ever imagined... More determined now than ever to solve this riddle, she quickly made use of her Sling Ring to return home. Her first stop would be the library.
Vicki had walked swiftly through the library, to the very back, to the restricted area, despite Wong's numerous efforts to snap her out of it- he'd shaken her, called her name, stepped into her path, and had even tried slapping her (gently). But she hadn't woken up. Now she was moving towards the door that was chained shut and covered in dazzling white protective runes.
Wong's heart began to pound as Vicki walked right up to the sigils, her head tilted to one side as if scrutinising them. They shouldn't be here! Why wouldn't Vicki wake up? What was going on?
He stared in fascinated horror as Vicki's lips curled in a smirk that was nothing like her smile, then blood began to pour from her nose for no apparent reason. She raised a hand to her face, waiting until her palm and fingers were coated in her own blood, then moved to the painted runes, writing something over the top of them.
The air in the room suddenly felt warmer, then hot, and Wong could smell something weird, like burning pitch, mixed with something rotting. He fought the urge to retch.
Vicki was still drawing over the runes, and as she continued, the white glow faded to grey, and the runes now looked years old. Having finished that, Vicki moved- still in that eerie gliding way, to the chained shut door, and placing a hand on the chains, said something in a language that hurt Wong's ears, even though he had no idea what she was saying.
A chilling thought occurred to him. It was Samhain, a time in which magic was stronger and creatures could reach across worlds. Was something doing this to Vicki? Why?
Run! Part of his mind yelled, as the chains rusted unnaturally fast then crumbled to the floor. But he couldn't, wouldn't leave his friend. Especially not if something bad was controlling her. He just wished he knew a way to help!
Vicki moved slowly to the door, pulling it open and reaching for the single item inside. Her movements were slow, deliberate, as she pulled the white cloth aside and let it fall to the ground, picking up the large black book with raised letters on the cover, and opened it to a certain page as if she knew exactly what she was looking for. Wong squinted at the raised letters on the book's cover. Darkhold? Was that what it said? It was written weirdly, so it spelled the same thing both ways... His eyes shot back to Vicki as she went rigid, then her eyes began darting back and forth, her body now trembling. The blank look had left her face, and now she was pale and looked terrified, but from the way she was staring ahead, Wong knew she still couldn't see him, or where she was. What was she seeing?
The air was still searing hot and the stench of rotting death had only gotten worse. Vicki's mouth was open as if she were silently screaming. Wong rushed towards her, having no idea what to do, but unable to do nothing. As soon as he grabbed her arm, she turned to face him, and he froze, too afraid to speak now. Her eyes were glowing red again, like they had when they'd faced Agamotto in caterpillar form, but this time, when Vicki spoke, the voice wasn't hers!
"Puello cum nullus quem severat pater; imbuta sceleribus peperit mater; In numero filia fuerit matrum; Reduci incipiet Saeculum Atrum!"
The voice was loud as thunder, deep as oceans, and scared Wong down to his very bones. He stood, frozen, unable to move closer or run, until the book fell from Vicki's hands, her eyes rolled back into her head and she crumpled to the floor.
He'd just rushed to her side when a hand caught his arm. He nearly screamed with fright until he realised it was the Ancient One. He began to splutter out an explanation. "V-Vicki was s-sleepwalking, I tried to wake her, but she came in here, and her blood d-did s-something to the r-runes, and she opened the b-book then s-something started ta-talking-" He stopped when he realised the Ancient One barely seemed to be listening as she hastily slammed the book shut, re-covered it in the sheer white fabric and returned it to the pedestal before closing the vault door and kneeling at Vicki's side. Only then did Wong notice how pale she was. He didn't dare ask why.
"I-is she OK?" His voice shook, but Vicki was stirring even as he asked. She sat bolt upright, eyes wide, clawing the air, screaming out loud this time.
"Get away!" Her voice was hysterical, her breathing ragged. The Ancient One caught her hands, holding Vicki still until she realised where she was.
Trembling, she shrank nearer to her teacher. "W-what happened? I don't... I saw something..." Her trembling became full on convulsions and she leaned over, retching with fear.
"You were sleepwalking." The Ancient One said softly. "It often happens during a nightmare. There's nothing to worry about." Lifting Vicki so she was half carrying her, she wiped the blood from the girl's face and hands with a handkerchief, and shot Wong a warning glance so he knew to stay quiet. "You two should get back to bed. Come on."
Wong opened his mouth to ask something, but her eyes met his again. "We will talk in the morning. Come." She took both children back to their own rooms, using magic to urge them both into a restorative sleep before going to her study. She knew she would get no sleep tonight. The wards on the vault that contained the Darkhold would have to be repaired, but more disturbing was the Latin she'd heard being spoken though Vicki. She knew the words, chilling though they were. They were part of the Malachy Prophecy, which could not be a coincidence after Gaea's words. She ran through the words, translating them to English in her mind:
'A child born of no man, and a woman marked by sin: Daughter becomes mother: Then will the Dark Return begin.'
She knew that some mystics believed the words prophesied the return of Chthon himself to Earth. The sequence of events conerning Vicki began to coalesce into a horrible pattern, one she wished she could not see.
Vittorio, her father, had died when she had been four, in a mysterious fire.
Varcolac, the Wolf-demon, one of Chthon's deadliest creations, had slaughtered her mother six years later.
Thoth, a god who rarely if ever involved himself in mortal affairs, had intervened to keep Vicki safe and had ensured she would be kept in a safe place while revealing nothing of why Chthon had wanted Isabel Montesi dead. He had also altered Vicki's memories in some manner; she had sensed that when probing Vicki's mind at their first meeting.
Vicki's dreams of the Elder Gods and their history, her unnatural skill with magic, the violence with which she and Agamotto had faced each other down when they met, Agamotto hinting there was something different about Vicki, Gaea suggesting the same but refusing to explain, and now this, being drawn to the Darkhold, presumably under the command of Chthon itself, and using her own blood to shatter the wards set by Agamotto himself, and reciting the words of the Saeculum Atrum in Chthon's voice... It all pointed in a horrifying direction.
The Ancient One didn't want to believe it- Vicki was a child- innocent, mischievous, as eager to learn and to please as any other eleven-year-old... She'd been so thrilled and excited with her surprise day out earlier, and so grateful... How could that guileless small girl be Chthon's daughter? But no other explanation made sense. Even if the girl herself had no idea, most likely courtesy of Thoth's tampering, she knew something was unusual about her.
Most worrying were the words of the prophecy spoken earlier.
"Daughter becomes mother, then will the Dark Return begin." The Ancient One repeated softly, then shook her head. Vicki was only eleven now, but in a few short years, she would be old enough for those words to come true. Was there any way to prevent it, to stop Chthon returning? There was a glaringly obvious answer, (Chthon could not be reborn if he had no daughter) but she would not resort to that unless she had no other choice. Gaea had said Vicki was innocent in this and to be protected. And the child was eleven. Kill- harming her was not an option.
But what if the prophecy did come to pass? Was it not the right thing to do, trade one innocent life for all on Earth?
The Ancient One buried her head in her hands. There had to be a way around this!
She just had no idea what it might be.
To be continued...