"Behind!" Jolie screamed.
Parry jumped aside, so that whatever was coming at him would miss, and held the cross toward the wolf in front that was already tensing for a leap. The tactic worked; the bat spun by his ear, only its wingtip touching. But the wolf was unable to halt its coordinated action; it sprang, and its body struck Parry's hip.
Parry chopped downward with the cross. It rammed against the wolf's back. There was a kind of flash.
Now the creature made a sound of pure anguish, as the demon within felt the power of that enchanted talisman. It twisted to the ground, shuddering and stiffening. Ordinary folk were affected primarily by their own belief, but truly possessed creatures were literally smitten, being animated by the humors of Hell.
But the others were closing in from every point of the compass. Parry saw there was no way to thwart them all physically. He had to have some more effective measure against them. But what was there?
"Sing, Parry!" Jolie cried.
Then he knew what to do. He drew upon his lifelong ability to sing and improvise, and he set aside his inhibitions and unbound his voice. He sang to the wolves and the bats:
"Creatures of the wild, hark unto me! I am not your enemy! Your enemy is the demon inside each one of you, Who leads your soul to damnation!"
His voice reached out into the gloom of the forest, gaining authority and conviction. He saw the children staring raptly, and the nun with eyes and mouth open in astonishment. The Dominican friars did not sing, only the Franciscans!
The wolves stood at bay, and the bats hovered uncertainly. They were listening, but not in a position to respond. They were waiting for their chance to charge again.
"Creatures of the wild, hark unto me! I am not your enemy! Rise, throw out the evil spirit within your body! Cast it out, and be free! God forgives the worst human sinner who is penitent; Even so will God forgive you. Cast out the unnatural thing that possesses you Cast it out, and be natural!"
He was pleading to the hosts that the demons were using. He doubted that the animals could understand his words, but they understood his message, for the song was imbued with it. Possession of this nature was thought to have no cure, but now he was going to try to change that.
"If your demon is too strong, If it strangles you rather than be evicted, Come to me, and I will banish it With the touch of the Holy Cross."
The song was having its impact! The possessed creatures were struggling to banish their demons, and could not; but neither could the demons make them attack the singer.
"If you cannot come to me, Wait where you are. I will come to you; I will touch you and heal you."
But when he approached the nearest wolf, it shied away.
Still the demon was too strong, or the faith of the wild creatures too weak. More was required.
"Be like them!" Jolie cried. "Show them, Parry!" Parry nodded. As always, Jolie's advice was good.
"Creatures of the wild! I am your friend! I know your natures! I am one of you!"
Then he stopped singing and transformed himself into the form of a wolf. The cross remained in his right paw; he lowered his head and took it between his teeth.
He approached the nearest wolf, and this time the creature stood its ground. The silver cross touched its nose. There was another exclamation of anguish—but this time the demon spirit fled. The wolf collapsed, but it was free.
Parry approached the second wolf, and touched it similarly. Then the third. Now all three lay panting, exhausted by the terrible animation they had suffered, but restored to their natural states.
Parry changed to bat form. He was a huge bat, because the cross was too heavy for a small one. He flew slowly up, approaching one of the hovering bats, and touched it with the cross. It screamed silently and fell to the ground, but the other two did not flee. They hovered where they were, able to balk the demons to this extent. He approached and touched each, and each fell to the ground.
Now Parry returned to his human form. "Rise!" he cried to the wild creatures. "Go your ways, and suffer no demon spirits again! Live your lives as they are meant to be, far from the human kind!"
The creatures stirred. The wolves climbed to their feet and walked unsteadily into the darkness. The bats paused, then launched themselves one by one into the air, and flew away.
All that remained was the group of staring children, and the staring nun.
"I think you have some explaining to do, love," Jolie said, fading out with an impish grin.
Surely so! Parry turned to face the small audience. "What did you see?" he inquired, as if this were routine.
For a long moment there was silence. Then the smallest child piped, "Wolves!"
The next smallest added "Bats!"
"Demons!" several chorused.
"An angel!" another breathed.
"That was the Madonna!" the oldest corrected her. "And she warned you when things were behind you!"
"And she told you what to do!"
The others nodded. They had seen it too. They turned to the nun inquiringly.
The nun spoke with difficulty. "I saw—a vision," she said. "Perhaps Father Grief will clarify for us its nature."
So she hadn't seen Jolie, but realized that the children had seen something. She surely had seen Parry change form, but hesitated to proffer an explanation for that, in case the others had not seen the same.
He would put them all at ease. "It was a vision," he agreed. "Evil stalked us in the form of possessed wild creatures, but it was put to rout by the power of Jesus." He held aloft his cross. "That is all that happened, but the manner the struggle between good and evil manifests is subject to individual perceptions."
The younger girls looked blank.
"Each person sees it her own way," Parry said quickly, and the blank looks cleared. "No way is wrong; each is suited exactly to the person. So some of you may have seen wolves and bats, while others saw infernal creatures animating them. Some may have seen and heard an angel helping me, while others saw the Madonna. It does not matter; the important thing is that God saw the need, and extended His help by advising me and enabling me to drive off the creatures." He smiled. "Some may even have seen me change form, to carry the cross to the creatures in their own semblance. This too is fair."
Now the nun nodded. It seemed that that was the form of the vision she had seen. The girls, being more innocent, had seen the angel. Jolie was seldom apparent to adults, who were inevitably corrupted by life and cynicism, but children retained the openness to see spiritual doings.
"And you sang, Father!" a girl exclaimed. "When the demons were closing, you sang the evil from them!"
"Song is a wonderful force for good," Parry agreed. "Remember that, when it is time to sing in a service at the nunnery."
Again the nun nodded; she approved of that. These children should be model students, because of their experience here. But there seemed to be a certain reservation about her, and Parry understood that too. He had demonstrated too much magic for comfort.
They completed the trek through the Black Forest without further event, and delivered the girls to the nunnery. Parry wished there was more he could do for them; he knew that they faced a life of only slightly diminished privation, for the nuns had little to offer in the way of material things. But the face of each child shone with an inner joy and wonder that had not been there at the start of the journey. The vision evidently remained with them, and perhaps that was enough. Jolie manifested as he resumed his donkey ride alone. "Parry, I'm worried," she said.
"I had not realized that spirits were capable of worry," he remarked.
"I'm serious! Lucifer never went after you directly before."
"True. Obviously he knows my mission. That must be a good sign."
"A good sign? Parry, you have done well all these years because you have never taken proper credit for your accomplishments. Lucifer never realized that you were the one responsible for all that good. But now, if he knows, he'll be out to get you. The
demons in the forest may be only the beginning!"
"It is good, because it means I am at last getting close to the truth," Parry explained. "Lucifer does not want me to interview this particular heretic."
"But it's dangerous! Who knows what horror will menace you next?"
"Accomplishment is seldom without risk. I trust you will keep watch over me, as you have these thirty years."
"I have no choice," she grumbled. "You hold my blood hostage."
He glanced at the stain on his wrist. Her soul was still housed there. "Certainly it has been good to have you always with me, always as pretty as you were in life."
"I think you like me better as a spirit than as a living woman!" That stung him. "I would give anything to have you alive, Jolie! But since even the semblance of that poses horrendous complications, I must be satisfied with that aspect of you that is available. Yet if I could release your spirit to go to Heaven where it belongs, I would do so."
"Oh, it's not so bad being a ghost," she said, mollified. "Though I do wonder what the great evil can be that keeps me fixed in perfect balance. I have seen no evil in your life since my death, and it is true that I would be old and fat by now if I had lived."
"And I would not be in the Church," he added. "I agree: it was terrible to have you die, but I perceive no evil apart from that. I can only presume that it has not yet manifested."
"But now Lucifer knows you. Oh, Parry—I fear that evil is close upon us!"
"We shall oppose it together," he said with conviction.
"Together," she agreed, and floated close for an ethereal kiss. Then she faded out.
There were no further episodes with evil as he completed his journey. Parry concluded that Lucifer was not truly aware of him, just of the fact that a friar had been dispatched to handle this case. So a contingent of demons had been sent to eliminate that friar. The fact that no others had come meant either that the Lord of Evil had not been paying close attention, this being a minor matter, or that he lacked other forces at the moment in this vicinity. Probably the former. Still, if this heretic did have critical information, and Parry were able to get it, then Lucifer would certainly pay attention. Then things could become difficult.
The heretic was an old man, gray of beard and frail. He was not comfortable when Parry saw him; he was in a dank dungeon, naked on the floor on his back. His wrists and ankles were roped to stakes so that he could not move them. There was a flat board on his front, and on this were set metal weights. The man was breathing only in shallow gasps, unable to inhale properly because of the pressure on his chest.
"What is this?" Parry demanded, outraged.
"It is the peine forte etdure, Father," the gaoler said. "The strong and hard pain."
"I know what it is!" Parry snapped. "What I mean is, why is this punishment being practiced on this person? I was told he has not made a plea."
"This is not punishment, Father. It is merely an inducement to cause him to make his plea."
"An inducement? It looks like torture to me!"
"By no means, Father. He is not being cut, his bones are not being dislocated, he is not being burned or starved. He is merely being encouraged to plead."
"Because if he does not plead guilty or innocent, you cannot try him," Parry said, disgusted.
"True, Father. Criminals are becoming obstinate; they dally forever, clogging the processes of justice. They must be made to plead."
"But under such duress, any man would plead, even if he had no guilt!"
"No, Father. Some die rather than plead."
"So most plead guilty? What happens to them?"
"They forfeit all their goods, and are let go."
"And what of those who plead innocent?"
"They are found guilty, and punished for their intransigence, and their property is forfeit."
"I can see why they try to avoid making pleas," Parry said dryly. "Their alternatives are starvation or torture and starvation. Did it ever occur to you that a man might be innocent, undeserving of any punishment?"
"No, Father," the gaoler said, surprised by his naivete. "We have only guilty here."
Jolie appeared. "Stop talking and get him out of this!" she exclaimed. "The poor man!"
Parry agreed. "Release the prisoner," he said.
"But he has not yet made his plea!"
"I wish to talk to him. That would be hard to do if he can't breathe."
"Oh. In that case I will lessen the weights just enough to enable him to answer."
"No. Remove them all, and unbind him. I want him free of fetters."
"But Father, this is most irregular!"
Parry delivered a steely stare. "Gaoler, do you value your soul?" The man gave way, grudgingly. In due course the prisoner was free. But he was unable to rise; he lay where he was, his gasps diminishing.
Parry tried to help him, but the man groaned. He had been bound so long that the circulation had suffered in his hands and feet, and his joints hardly functioned. Parry had to let him be; it was the kindest thing he could do.
"I have come to talk to you," Parry said gently. "I regret that you were put under such duress; I did not know of it until I saw you. I will do what I can to help you escape this situation, if you will return to the bosom of our Lord and tell me what I wish to know."
"I cannot!" the man gasped.
"Surely you can," Parry said gently. "God is forgiving, for the truly penitent."
"No, I cannot, for I dare not make a plea!"
Parry nodded. If the man confided that he had dealings with Lucifer, that would be confirmation of his guilt, and the savage retribution of the law would wipe him out. If he denied it, and in so doing swore falsely, there would be no salvation for him. It was certainly a difficult situation.
But the order thought there was evidence that this was a true heretic, and Lucifer had tried to prevent Parry's arrival to interview him. This could be the source of the information Parry had to ferret out. He could not let it go without making his utmost effort.
"Let me speak candidly," he said. "It is my desire to save your soul from the eternal fires of damnation if at all possible. It is also my desire to learn certain information. I am not without influence. Cooperate with me, and perhaps your situation will ameliorate."
The man's eyes nicked to the gaoler. He looked like a hunted animal. He did not speak.
That was enough for Parry. The suspect did know something!
Parry addressed the gaoler. "Allow me to interview this man alone, if you please."
The goaler's look was crafty. "I do not please, Father. This criminal is dangerous! I must remain here to protect you from possible harm."
"This man can hardly breathe, let alone stand," Parry pointed out. "He represents no threat to me. He is alarmed by your presence; I believe he will talk more freely in private with me."
The canny look intensified. The goaler thought there might be revelation of hidden money. "I cannot—"
Parry fixed him with an imperial glare. "Leave us!"
Reluctantly, the man retreated. He exited the cell, but stood just beyond it, well within hearing range.
"Go elsewhere," Parry said, his patience fraying.
"But I cannot leave the cell unlocked!"
"Lock it, then!"
The man hauled the heavy door shut, and barred it from outside. Parry knew he was standing just beyond it, his ear straining, but was assured that low voices would not carry sufficiently to satisfy the man.
"Now the gaoler is gone," he told the suspect. "You may speak freely to me, and I will keep your confidence."
"I—wish I could," the man said.
Parry realized that the man needed help. "I understand the situation you are in. You cannot plead, because no matter what you plead, they will deprive you of your property and perhaps your life." He saw the agreement in the haunted eyes. "You have perhaps a family, who would suffer privation, and you do not wish that." Again the muted agreement. "But if there were only some way y
ou could get out of this without hurting those you love, you would take that course."
"Yes!" the man breathed. Now he was recovered enough to struggle to sit up, and Parry assisted him.
"Therefore your problem may be material rather than spiritual. Suppose you were to be found innocent of the charge against you?"
For a moment the man brightened; then he slumped. Parry continued to read the signals. This man had dealt with Lucifer! But now regretted it.
"You were in need—your family was in need—so you did what you thought you had to do, to deliver them from grief. What did you offer Lucifer? Surely not your soul!"
"Not my soul!" the man agreed.
"But what else would the Lord of Evil desire of you?"
The man struggled. "My—my silence."
Parry concealed his mounting excitement, and spoke calmly.
"Your silence about what?"
"I—" But the man balked, hesitant to convict himself.
"And for your silence on this score, Lucifer paid in gold," Parry said, as if there had been no balk. "It came as if by accident; you found buried coins—" The man was nodding as he spoke; he was hitting close enough to the mark.
"And when you spent them, the neighbors became suspicious, or rapacious, and turned you in, hoping to gain those coins for themselves."
"Yes!"
"And now if you confess to dealing with Lucifer, you are lost, and if you do not confess, you will be tortured until you do confess. In either case you will lose the money, and your family will be worse off than before you started."
"Yes, Father."
Parry fixed him with a gentle variant of his stare. "Did it not occur to you that Lucifer broke his bargain with you? He gave you the money—then alerted the neighbors so that you would lose it and be worse off than before."
The man's mouth fell open.
"Lucifer reneged," Parry continued relentlessly. "You owe the Lord of Evil nothing!"