Earth's Grand Healer

Part 7: A Tale of Mordecai Wayne (Part 1)

10th of September, 1693 in the year of our Lord

I have been here for six days, and my brother has not acknowledged me once since the incident. Each day there are new arrivals to Gotham colony. I should return to Boston, but I am finding it difficult to do so. My brother is becoming increasingly erratic. He speaks with a fervor that causes others to listen. Once again, my brother berates the unmarried and the widowed, as if they are a curse upon Gotham colony. I see no fault in these women other than they have left their homes to begin anew in a place that is different from the way of life they used to know.

"Nathanial, is it wise to call sister Mary Lane a witch?" Mordecai asked his brother. "She was recently widowed, her husband dying from the recent plague."

"She may have caused her husband's death," Nathanial stated with disdain. "What has happened to ye, Brother Mordecai. Ye do not seem to be yourself. Tis ye who agreed to come, to help fight witches."

"Aye, I had, but there were many who lost their lives during the plague, including children."

"What are children, but a product of sin whom God himself has proclaimed."

"Children are not the product of sin,". Mordecai argued. "Our father . . . "

"Our father sinned with another woman and refused to acknowledge me as well as that sin. He had not asked for God's forgiveness, and the plague took him, as his punishment."

"Is that the fault of these women?" Mordecai pointed to the group of young and old women wo were caged and awaiting their fate. "Sister Margaret has since turned 16 and is allowed to be wed. These other women have come to Gotham seeking to marry, should they be caged and tried just because they have not found husbands? You also may seek a wife among them."

"Go back to Boston," Nathanial sneered. "Your council is no longer needed here."

Fifteenth of September, 1693 in the year of our Lord.

My wife Mary and our young Son, Silas have arrived unexpectedly in Gotham Colony. I tried to appease her suspicions about me, that I had seen things that have opened my eyes, but there was nothing I could do to calm her fearful soul. She came because of a dream. A dream that she said was a nightmare and a possible curse on our house, the house of Wayne.

"I have seen that woman in my dreams," Mary pointed to a woman in the street. "Oh, please Mordecai, do not go near her."

"Please, my heart, it was just a dream."

"She is dangerous, the look in her eyes haunted and strange."

"I will do my best, " Mordecai tried to appease his wife. "Gotham Colony is small. It is difficult to avoid people you do not wish to meet."

"Please, I fear she will cause you great harm."

Eighteenth of September, 1693 in the year of our Lord.

Nathanael has become increasingly suspicious of the woman that Mary pointed out to in the street. I have inquired about her identity. Her name is Annie, and she lives alone in the woods, not far from Colony Hill. I do not find that particularly alarming, but the people of Gotham Colony are frightened that witches are the cause of their suffering. This woman may become a scapegoat.

"She is more than what she seems."

"Please, Brother Nath-"

"Do not call me that," answered Nathanial. "I am, Brother Malleus. And you will address me as such. I will attend to the witch of Colony Hill. She must be responsible for the suffering that Gotham Colony has endured since she came among us."

"I do not believe there are witches, Brother Malleus," Mordecai addressed his brother, his teeth clenched. He was incensed that his brother refused to acknowledge him.

"Your opinion is not wanted. I will protect this town, as it is my duty to God. Ye will not challenge my authority. They say an eclipse of the sun will come tomorrow and this time, we will be ready!"

"An eclipse?" Mordecai questioned. 'There was something about an eclipse, but I paid it little attention, my mind on other things. Such things I have found have little to do with what my brother is espousing.'

"The devil's false night in day. The old dragon walks by night, they say. But he will find us waiting, and we shall put an end to this witch."

22nd of September 1693 in the year of our Lord

Nathaniel was right. There was a full moon last night, and the woman was found in the square, shedding her blood. She raved about a creature in the caves that told her to do it. How he knew I cannot say. Several of us went to the caves and discovered there was something within the caves of Colony Hill, a creature and Anne must have summoned it. She is truly a witch. I did not want to believe it and now I must fight this thing, this creature, while my brother deals with the witch. May God, protect him, and may God protect my soul.

That was the last entry in Mordecai's diary. Bruce closed the diary not learning very much. He only hinted at something terrible and frightening beyond reason. He didn't mention a demon, but a creature. Though the woman Anne, had performed a ritual of some kind that sounded like the one Samantha would perform each month. Had Mordecai found a way to lock away a demon? It seemed unlikely, but Mordecai Wayne had disappeared. His diary entries ended with the one on September 22. He left behind a wife with a son. As for Nathaniel Wayne, after Mordecai disappeared, Nathanial returned to England and never used the name of Wayne, again.

Bruce rested his head on the back of the chair letting his eyelids close in thought. The diary that was resting in his lap slipped to the floor. A piece of paper was dislodged. Bruce reached down and picked up the paper. It was yellowed with age. He carefully unfolded it. What he read surprised him.

Continues with Part 8