Dark Moon Brother
Part Eighteen
Absolution and Abduction
"But I don't want to be dead! What's happening to me?" she asked, a little fear creeping into her mind now as she stood in the strange place.
"Don't you remember, Virginia?" said the old woman who no longer lived. "Look at yourself, child. What you see is a reflection of your physical self. You have been here before, girl". Virginia stared long and hard at the wound running down her body. Yes, Elias had done this, but when? She stiffened as a barely detectable whisper floated through the place.
"Beloved, wait for me" it said. Wolf's voice, full of sadness and determination. She spun round, trying to locate the source of the whisper, but she knew in her heart that he was not there. The pain of this separation from him far outweighed any bodily pain she had ever known. Was this why ghosts always seemed so sad?
"Wolf" she sighed.
"He cannot come to you yet, child, but you may be given the chance to return to him"
"I can? How can this be?"
"Let us wait, and see what happens. Events are in motion, Virginia. But we are only spectators here"
Frederick shifted restlessly from one foot to another. He really didn't know why he persisted with this. He was supposed to be doing something great and meaningful with this second life of his. He had considered the past year to be the start of a new life. He had stared death in the face, or rather, it had taken a good look at him and decided to pass him by. It didn't matter to him that death had taken the form of a monstrous beast rather than a beautiful angelic being. The end result was the same for all men. He ran his fingers through his hair and subconciously tugged at his priestly collar to loosen it. Not that it needed much. He had lost weight this year, becoming a shadow of his former self, a young man still but with the haunted eyes of the very old. No one stayed much in his company anymore. But at least he still had his brethren around him, unlike Connor, who knelt in mute rapture on the grass in front of him.
He gazed at his former brother, the ex priest who had by all accounts, finally slipped over the border into madness. Frederick had received a phone call from the hospital a few weeks ago, an appologetic nurse explaining that his was the only phone number that a certain young man had had on him. Frederick had guessed straight away who it was and a visit to the ward had confirmed it, although the drugged and sedated Connor had looked on him with no recognition whatsoever. He had asked for, and been granted, care of the man, but just a day after his release from hospital, Connor had escaped Frederick's small apartment. It hadn't been hard to track him. He had come here. Now, he knelt night and day, staring endlessly at dry patch of earth. Frederick thanked the heavens that Connor was shielded somewhat by thick shrubs and trees, or else he would have come to the further attention of park authorities. He had been bringing the man food and water every day since, which were received well enough, but not another word had Connor spoken to him.
Frederick had considered many alternatives, but, in the end, he found that he had to respect that what was going on was the doing of Connor's own mind, and perhaps it was God's will that that mind be fractured. Frederick did not like to think that God would stoop to inflict such punishment. After all, was he not as equally guilty? It was true, Frederick had not wielded the implements to cause pain and suffering to the creature, but he had endured it being done for far too long that day. He had thought only of himself, fearful of being rejected and thrown out of the church for daring to speak out of turn against his elders. Now, he was the only one of that gathering who remained alive and sane. Or was he? He had to admit, standing here keeping watch over Connor, in this place, on this dark night in Central Park, would not be considered by most to be a sensible thing to do.
He was still standing there, lost in thought, and, he had to admit it, guilt over his failings, when a most unusual thing happened. There came to him a faint buzzing sound, and his skin prickled with gooseflesh. There was a tang of ozone in the air and a hissing like steam coming out of a kettle. He felt a sudden urge to look somewhere else. It was undeniable, and he turned his face back to the trees. There was nothing there, and he wondered why he had felt the need to look there. He turned back now to Connor and jumped back in astonishment. A strange rippling rectangle hovered in mid air, and in front of it, a figure now stood. Though it was a dark night, the doorway (how did he know it was a doorway?) gave off enough light for Frederick to identify who stood there. It was the demon, the man-wolf. He recognized it within seconds, and his body reacted well before his mind had time to absorb the information, backing off slowly, his muscles tensed to run for his life. With all his will he fought to stand his ground, some part of him wishing for this whole thing to be finished, done with. He had always imagined that the demon would come back for him, rip him to shreds like it had wanted to do a year ago. The demon reached down and grabbed up Connor, hauling him to his feet.
"You! Fool of a boy who waits! You will help me now" it said forcefully, but Connor just dangled, gaping. The boy started to laugh, giggling madly as the monster shook him to and fro. The demon dropped him with a snort of disgust, but Frederick saw something else played out in it's face. Despair, and grief. The most universal of emotions, those two. Frederick watched as it put it's hands up to it's face, looking this way and that as if it didn't know what to do next. He saw the glint of tears on it's face and was stunned. Did demons feel sadness and loss? Did they grieve as human's did? Evidently, they did. It made as if to move off and Frederick found his voice at last.
"Wait" he said, and the demon turned at once to stare at him. "What has happened to you?" he added, wondering at his own bravery. Or stupidity, he thought belatedly as it came towards him.
"I did not see you there, man. I know you, don't I?"
"Yes, you do. I am Frederick. I was with, the others, when we, they, ah..." he trailed off, seeing the demon nod in recognition.
"Frederick, I need help, now, this very minute. My mate, my woman, lies injured. We have no medicine there that can help her now. She, she will die this night if I cannot get help for her. I need one of your doctors, someone who can make good a great wound. Do you know the sort I need? Can you help me find one?" it rushed out breathlessly, hopping from foot to foot as if it was about to dash off. The priest stared at it, wanting to disbelieve, but unable to.
"Where is she? Have you called an ambulance?" he asked.
"No, no, you don't understand. She's through there" it said, pointing back at the shimmering doorway. "She's in my world. No one there can help her, I told you!" it added, then, horribly, it collapsed, weeping. Frederick hesitated only a moment, then reached out tentatively to put a gentle hand on the demon's head. He fully expected the touch to be loathsome, or for the demon to react in some other way than it did. It peered back up at him.
"I am not a demon. I am not this thing of evil that you think I am" it whispered brokenly.
"I know". Frederick was amazed at the ring of truth to his words, almost as if someone had rapped him over the head with the obviousness of the whole situation. Absolution was being dangled in front of him this night, he knew. He reached down to pull the man-wolf to it's feet. "Now, Wolf, if you still call yourself that, let us go find what you need"
"You are a good man"
"I hope to be, I hope to be. Now, where shall we start?"
"We were here just a few weeks ago. We met a nice lady doctor then. It wasn't far away"
"Then lets go there, and hope that she is still there and remembers you. But, what will you say? How will you explain it to her?" Frederick asked as the man-wolf started off a run, heading for the street. He puffed after him. Neither of them looked back. Connor was forgotten for the moment.
She really must get a new watch, Natalie thought, tapping impatiently on the glass dial. Damn thing never ran on time, and the last fifteen minutes of anyone's shift always went the slowest. She yawned mightily and started packing away her text books. Five years of medical school and still studying! It was enough to drive anyone mad. But at least it had been a quiet evening at the community centre. Now, all she needed was it to continue that way for the next quarter of an hour. Wow, she might even get off on time! She lifted her head to look over the partition into the waiting room. Blessedly empty. She continued to pack away her things, when she heard the telltale swish of the automatic doors. Oh no. Didn't people ever sleep here? Who would think to come visit a doctor at this time of night? She peeped back over the barrier. A man stood there, a strangely familiar man. A tall, dark, very handsome man. Ah yes, she remembered him now. The slightly oddball father with the baby who had a tail. He was wearing what looked like a very formal black suit and when he turned now, the bright fluorescent lights caught his white shirt underneath the jacket. It was drenched in blood. Now, the doors opened again and a very puffed looking young priest came in. The men looked at each other in recognition and the priest placed a calming hand on the tall man's shoulder. Great. A priest and a man covered in blood. Lord only knew what they had been up to, thought Natalie. She sighed. They weren't going away. The nurse on duty had come to the desk, but she looked as dumbfounded at the pair as Natalie felt. The nurse looked back over her shoulder at Natalie, a silent plea for support on her face. Well, they were work mates, so Natalie left her cubicle and made her way to the front desk. The man's eyes lit up at the sight of her.
"Oh, it's you! Dr. Greene, yes? I came here, a few weeks ago, do you remember me. I had the, um, unusual baby" he gushed, and Natalie could see that he was quite distraught about something. Was he injured?
"Yes, I remember you. Are you hurt, sir?" she asked.
"Me, no. This is my mates, I mean, my wife's blood. She's hurt, bad, doctor. Can you help us?" Natalie was silenced for a moment. In the corner of her eye, she saw the nurse move her hand slightly towards the emergency call button under the desk. She shook her head minutely at the nurse. Something else was going on here.
"Why aren't you at the hospital then? Surely you've called the paramedics for her?" The man squirmed uncomfortably.
"Ah, um, no, you see..."
"No? Why not, for heavens sake?" she almost shouted at the man, cutting off his explainations.
"An, ambulance, do you call it? It can't come to her, not where she is. Please, can you come with me, now?" he pleaded with her and she saw tears start in his green eyes. The priest, who had been standing behind the whole time, came forward now.
"Good doctor, I understand that this is an unusual situation for you, even in this city. But, I beg you, please help this man. I can vouch for him personally. He's a good man, just a bit different from you and I. I can assure you, you'll be in no danger". Natalie looked back and forth between them; the young priest, earnest, and the tall man, distraught and bloodstained. If the girl had lost that much blood already, judging by his shirt, then Natalie could hardly stand around debating the finer details with them. She took a deep breath. Oh, well, it was knock off time anyway. It wouldn't hurt just to see what the situation was, at least. Plus, she believed the word of the priest, although many would not, given the battering their reputations had taken in recent years.
"Very well, very well. I'll go with you. But, if she needs one, I will call an ambulance, do you understand me? The tall man stared at her as if she had personally granted him a reprieve from the executioner. She turned back to gather up a portable emergency field kit, adding a few extra items. She also grabbed up her handbag with it's cell phone and can of mace, just to be sure. The two men were waiting by the door. The nurse looked at her as if she'd gone mad, but she avoided the woman's gaze as she hurried forward. She was in the mood for a little adventure, she realised. All those hours spent locked away with only a text book for company had finally found an outlet tonight. The man, who's name she didn't even know, looked her up and down, before reaching for her arm to hustle her out the door.
"Oh no, hands off fella! I'll go willingly with you, as I said. What's your name anyway?"
"My parents called me Lucian, but most people call me Wolf nowadays" he said, backing away. "Please, forgive me, but my woman means more to me than anything else in the Kingdoms and I fear she may die before we get to her. Please, we must hurry now!" he added, leading the way along the street. They hurried in single file for a few blocks, and Natalie was surprised when he crossed over to the Park. The girl was in there? Natalie hesitated and looked back to the priest, who's name she had learned was Frederick. He nodded and smiled at her reassuringly.
"It's all right. She's not far in now. You'll be safe. I promise" he said, and Natalie, fervently praying that she wasn't about to make a fatal mistake, crossed over to follow the rapidly running figure ahead of her. He slowed to allow them to catch up, before making his way confidently forward in the dark. After a minute or two they came to a small stand of shrubs and trees. Lucian turned to her, his eyes glinting in the night.
"Doctor, I must ask you now, to trust me. I'm about to take you somewhere, in a very unusual way. It might frighten you" he said, and he reached out and took her hand now, pulling her forward a few feet. She half resisted him, but he was too strong, and just as she was about to open her mouth to scream, she saw him step through a shimmering rectangle of light, his body morphing and bending out of shape. He still had hold of her hand, and she turned now to grab hold of the priest who stood gaping at them. She became aware of a strange, pulling sensation, and all of a sudden she was yanked hard through the opening, inadvertently dragging the priest behind her. What followed was the weirdest thing she had ever experienced, weirder even than those college parties she used to attend. Large framed mirrors rose to meet her, and she smashed through them one after another till she lost count. Then, just as she was beginning to study the whole odd situation, she found herself tipping forward and felt someone catch her about the shoulders to break the fall. She heard a thud right next to her and sensed that Frederick had joined her somehow, in wherever the hell they were. Someone was speaking to her. She managed to get her eyes to focus, seeing Lucian's face swim into view.
"Doctor, doctor! Are you alright? Please, we must go, quickly! There's no time to lose. A werewolf has attacked my love, rent her flesh from shoulder to hip..."
"Whoa, did you say, a 'werewolf'?" she asked, hazy still. "Where on earth am I?" she added, taking in the great gilded room with it's covered mirrors. New York rippled below the surface on the one directly behind her.
"Why, you're in the 4th Kingdom of course! I'd give you the scenic tour, but..."
"Of course, of course. I'm sure this will all make sense, eventually. Lets go then". Natalie turned to help the equally disorientated priest to his feet. The strange man loped towards some huge doors, flinging them open, turning to beckon them both.
"That's the spirit! I knew I could rely on you, Dr Natalie" he said, leading the way down a long corridor. Natalie sighed and clutched at her still spinning head.
"Oh, I think you should call me Dorothy for a while" she said, seeing him look back, puzzled, but beside her Frederick laughed suddenly.
"Oh indeed! But don't go calling me Toto!"