The Dragon Queens (The Mystique Trilogy)

  This proved time enough for Taejax’s demon to stretch out and snatch the sword from our possession. I was quick to will it back to us before it reached our opponent’s grasp, stretching out my astral arm to grip its hilt. The sword was suspended mid-flight, but then the demon lunged forth and bit into the extended wrist of my subtle form. Its teeth burned into me upon contact and a blistering welt erupted on my wrist. Despite the torture I hung on and tugged the demon from its host, who was racing towards us with his needle-device held high.

  With my free hand, I willed the pendant bearing the winged-serpent insignia into my possession. The chain slipped over Taejax’s head and flew into my grasp. The reptilian immediately dropped to the floor at my feet, where he squirmed in sonic agony.

  Now that I held the pendant that shielded Taejax from the high frequencies of this chamber, the demon vanished, unwilling to share the physical pain Taejax was experiencing.

  ‘No! We had a deal!’ Taejax wailed as his last shot at redemption dissolved into thin air.

  Thoth came to stand over the reptilian. ‘Surely you did not expect loyalty from a demon! All your relationships are destined to end thus, Taejax, so long as you remain faithful to the Old World order.’

  The scribe removed the warrior’s weapons and, fiddling with the switches on the side of the pulse gun, fired upon my associates and myself, releasing us from our confinement. I regained control just as Albray stepped out of my body and left me tottering.

  The lizard creatures lay on the ground vomiting black muck, their blood turning the floor a new shade of slime green. The sight and the smell was horrendous.

  ‘Just leave,’ I appealed to the reptile in charge. I could not bear to watch his men suffer any longer.

  ‘I cannot,’ Taejax forced out, his sharp teeth gritted together. ‘I need the pendant.’

  It is a trick, Albray advised me. The pendant could have other functions, and besides, the death of this lot could only be beneficial.

  ‘That is precisely the attitude that has fuelled the age-old conflict on this planet,’ the scribe pointed out, clearly aware of Albray’s presence. He leaned over the reptilian to ensure he had his attention. ‘I too was once led to believe that I was beyond redemption and bound to employ the dark arts to survive. But I am here to tell you, Taejax, it was just a control tactic based on a huge web of lies.’

  Taejax managed to take a swing at Thoth, who was quick to step out of range. ‘Go serve the Sovereign Integral and be with your angels, but you will never convince me to join their cause!’ He began vomiting up the same black muck as his associates.

  ‘Their cause is every soul’s cause,’ Thoth lectured his fallen opponent. ‘I thought you would have worked that out by now.’

  ‘As though I would believe any of your theories, traitor!’ Taejax hissed.

  ‘Such is my lot: whichever path I choose, I must betray someone,’ the demi-god said, glancing between Miss Koriche and the reptilian. ‘But if betraying your physical being means that I can ultimately save your immortal soul, then one day you will thank me for that betrayal.’

  The reptilian appeared more hurt by these words than the physical torture he was feeling. ‘I have no soul, half-breed, and well you know it!’

  The scribe did not seem to agree. ‘That would be convenient, wouldn’t it? That would justify all the torture and murder of innocents! But suppressed as it is, and despite what you have been led to believe, I can assure you that you do have a soul—and the willpower to free it from its fated fragmentation.’

  The lizard attempted to block its small ears. ‘Your words are poison!’

  ‘A poison taken in small quantities may prove extremely beneficial, old friend,’ the scribe concluded.

  As I gazed at the hapless creature, wondering what was to be done with him, I was blinded by a vision of a beautiful young human girl under Dracon attack, and Taejax leaping to her rescue. The vision passed instantly, but in that moment I realised this was our opportunity to secure a future ally.

  I walked towards the ailing warrior and, crouching at his feet, I reached out and touched his boot.

  ‘Mrs Devere…’ My husband made it clear that he was not comfortable with my being in such close proximity to a creature that had just attempted to damn me to hell.

  But the old saying that one can never judge a person until you have walked a mile in his shoes sprang to mind, and upon making contact with the creature I sampled the pain of being exposed to a frequency that was way beyond my capacity to process. The atomic structure of my entire body was being violently shaken apart, whilst all my fear and hatred imploded inside me, manifesting as a dark liquid slime that burned a path through my interior as it was expelled from me via my mouth, nose and ears. But all that physical pain was nothing compared with the underlying spiritual anguish this being felt at knowing that one day he would cease to exist on every level of awareness.

  ‘Save yourself and your men,’ I said and, the protests of my companions ringing in my ears, handed Taejax his pendant.

  The creature immediately regained his equilibrium and spat the remaining black gunk in his mouth into my face.

  He was weak, however, and the foul-smelling bile dripped onto my clothes instead. ‘Like all females, you are a weak fool.’

  I was tempted to withdraw yet I did not. ‘Is there not a female among your kind whom you deem worthy of respect?’ I asked.

  ‘There are no females of my kind,’ he informed me bluntly.

  No wonder the Dracon had a problem feeling love. ‘Well, you may count on the fact that I shall not flee at the first sign of danger,’ I said.

  ‘If you think you are going to incite my gratitude, you are even more deluded,’ he snarled. ‘Show me mercy and I shall hunt you down and all those dearest to you. I will drain their vital fluids and scatter their souls to oblivion, until your entire line has been wiped from the evolutionary blueprint.’

  ‘Ashlee, no!’ My husband implored me to reclaim the pendant before it was too late.

  Was I prepared to bet the lives of all my kindred that Taejax was bluffing? I glanced around those gathered in the chamber and in a split second appraised the consensus: my husband, Miss Koriche and Albray were clearly against trusting the reptilian. Then I looked to Levi, who was shaking his head, urging me not to reclaim the gift. Whose side was Thoth really on? It seemed to me that he wanted to be on everyone’s side, and so did I.

  I stood and backed away from Taejax. ‘You do what you feel you must. I shall be waiting.’

  The four warriors under his command were beginning to lose consciousness and yet Taejax was hesitant to use the escape route I had provided for them all. He had one last stab at inducing fear in me. ‘I mean what I say.’

  ‘So do I.’ I smiled warmly, whereupon he snarled in frustration. He returned the missing limbs to his fallen comrades and the intruders vanished from our midst.

  ‘Why?’ both my husband and Albray implored me at once.

  Miss Koriche spoke up, having rethought her position on the matter. ‘Because the healing has to start somewhere.’

  My husband embraced me, having feared for my soul during my duel with Taejax. His eyes turned to Albray, whom he again had to thank for saving our lives. You have my sincerest gratitude.

  I don’t want your gratitude, I want your trust! Albray was furious that he had been left out of contact during our recent perils.

  I swear I shall never doubt you again, my lord promised. I realise my jealousy is a curse, but I am only human after all.

  I am your wife’s servant, Albray insisted, then saw fit to humble himself a little. Although it seems I have steered you both wrong in the past with regard to ORME consumption.

  Thoth held up his palm to intervene. ‘That would be my fault. It was I who presented the secrets of ORME to the priesthoods as a means of speeding up the genetic blueprint of mankind’s angelic races, thus causing them to unwittingly damn the very souls that could save all humanity.’
r />   Albray was utterly bewildered by the news. Then all those teachers I respected and served without question were wrong?

  ‘Something we have in common, warrior.’ Miss Koriche stepped forward to reassure the ghostly knight and let us all know that she was also aware of his presence.

  Thoth attempted to ease the knight’s remorse. ‘In choosing to serve the Ladies of the Elohim, however, at least in death you have been in the service of the righteous.’ He turned to the rest of us. ‘And it is to the service of the Elohim that I must go now. This antechamber has been violated and we must all depart before Taejax has the opportunity to send forth a larger force to ambush us.’

  I got the distinct impression that this would be as far as we would be permitted to accompany Levi’s vessel; indeed, it was now plainly obvious to me, and to all in my company, I suspected, that we were a liability to Levi’s cause. I had always thought myself well versed in the psychic arts and their dominions, but plainly I knew nothing in comparison to all there was to know, learn and practise. And the sad truth was, if I was so very ignorant, then how much more ignorant was the rest of humanity?

  Thoth wandered towards where the necklace Miss Koriche had given to Levi had been cast to the ground by Taejax. Retrieving it, he rose and approached Miss Koriche. ‘This has served its purpose so far as my quest is concerned, and I believe Levi wants you to have this, to give to your child.’

  Miss Koriche was rather moved by the gesture, and accepted the gift graciously. ‘Thank you, lord,’ she spoke reverently to the being, having borne witness to his true character. ‘My child will wear it with pride.’

  ‘There shall be no threat to my mission beyond this point,’ Thoth said, stepping away from Miss Koriche to address us all, ‘provided you agree to accompany me no further. I will give you one of my light orbs to lead you back to the surface. The passage I must take is of a frequency that is agony to the uninitiated. Not even a demon can breach the outer defences of the Amenti complex.’

  This moment was a test; a test I had failed several times during my search for Levi. I had to trust in my son’s choices and let him go so that he may be of aid in the great conflict I was only just realising existed. I had always assumed that humanity was its own worst enemy, but it seemed we had far greater obstacles to overcome than just our own selfish desires and ignorance.

  I left my husband’s side and approached the body of our son, my heart welling to bursting point at the thought of never seeing him again. ‘I believe I understand your treachery now,’ I told the entity within him; for I had returned Taejax’s pendant, which could be considered treachery in the eyes of my kindred, despite the possible benefits to the greater cause of humankind.

  I looked back to Miss Koriche, whose eyes were full of tears as she nodded to confirm that she believed it was time to let Levi go so he could fulfil his destiny. She too was struggling to maintain her composure, for she finally had to face the fact that she would not be seeing her beloved again.

  Although I knew that my son’s soul was no longer attached to his physical form, I had to hold him close one last time. My gesture perplexed the demi-god, but he made some attempt to return my sentiment. Then my Lord Devere gently eased me away from our son’s vessel. Despite the fact that they would never see their loved one again, neither Lord Devere or Miss Koriche felt compelled to embrace Levi’s physical remains.

  ‘Give our boy our love,’ Lord Devere told the entity. ‘Apologise on our behalf for not trusting that he knew full well what he was doing when he joined with you.’

  My lord’s little compliment made me smile; we would not part with this being on a sour note.

  ‘Peace go with you both,’ Lord Devere concluded, his voice hoarse. The emotion of the moment was choking us all. He put his free arm around Miss Koriche to comfort her too.

  The scribe nodded that he would pass on our tidings. ‘Now, follow the orb,’ he instructed, then waited for us to take our leave.

  The sphere of light was hovering by an arched passageway on ground level, which I could have sworn was not there when we entered. Beyond it rose a stone staircase for as far as the eye could see.

  REVELATION 15

  HARMONIC ACTIVATION

  As I sit here in our hotel suite in grand Cairo, several days after the events I have recorded above, it is hard to believe our adventures in the Holy Land were not a fabulous hallucination. But the large welts on my wrist, where the demon fastened its teeth around me, serve as proof that it did actually happen—I did not imagine it, I did not dream it. The elation that the journey inspired in me has been swallowed up by a gaping void of sorrow that has opened in my chest—I will never revel in Levi’s company again. My only hope lies in my experience in Ta-She-Ra El Amun: I can now aspire towards perfecting genetic structure naturally, through Miss Koriche’s photosonics. Perhaps one day I will be adept enough to make contact with my son.

  I have to wonder if Lord Malory knew about Levi’s hidden agenda when he sent us off on this eye-opening quest. It is my intent to seek out the Sangreal brotherhood’s Grand Master immediately upon my return to London—which may not be for a little while yet.

  Our exit from the antechamber of the Amenti complex beneath Giza was a similar experience to our arrival in Hebron from Ta-She-Ra El Amun. The light sphere led us to a door and then dissipated, leaving us in utter darkness. Upon opening the door we found ourselves in a backstreet of Cairo in the middle of the day. When we looked back, we saw that our passage had transformed into an earthen wall, so we could not retrace our steps to the underworld complex.

  We sought accommodation in a hotel, but despite the fact that we had not slept in days, we were all so shell-shocked from our adventures that sleep would not come. Instead, Lord Devere, Miss Koriche, Albray and myself loitered in the sitting room of the private suite that my Lord Devere had secured for the two of us, and for a long time we were each borne away on our own silent reflection.

  We had all lost someone dear to us during our flight from Persia; we mourned Levi and marvelled at the reckless abandon of Mr Taylor’s heroic deed.

  ‘I should never have agreed to this assignment,’ I said, breaking a long silence.

  You are right, Albray retorted, our continued ignorance would have served the world far better.

  ‘But what good are these insights?’ I felt the cost I had paid was too high. ‘Even if I knew the whole truth, who would ever believe it? Who would want to? I have witnessed some of the dark hidden history of this planet and even I do not want to believe what I have seen.’

  ‘Everything happens for a reason, my love.’ My lord entered the debate. ‘There is good to be drawn from every adversity.’

  This was my own philosophy being quoted to me and I realised I was not being very constructive. ‘But if all doctrine, ancient or otherwise, is corrupted, how can we as human beings ever hope to discover the whole truth?’ I mused.

  Miss Koriche voiced her view. ‘If there is adversity in our lives, it is an energy we have projected there, for evil, goodness and every attribute in between are but a matter of frequency and it is only we who can transform that sonic vibration to resonate more positively.’

  Perhaps that is the only truth worth knowing, Albray pondered, and whatever truth or reason we hope to extract from our lives, and beyond, is dependent on that one simple premise.

  ‘Hear, hear,’ Lord Devere agreed. ‘And judging from recent events, it would seem that we all have our work cut out for us in that regard.’

  ‘An exhausting thought, my lord.’ I smothered a yawn as my need for rest finally overwhelmed me.

  Well, if you have no further need of me, I think it time I took my leave, Albray suggested.

  We thanked the knight for his aid during our journey, and he made us vow to summon him the moment we had need of him again.

  I may not be as all-knowing as I once thought, but I am committed to your safety and wellbeing, he told me.

  ‘I never doubted that,’ I assur
ed him; for in my heart, I never had—and I never would.

  For many days, Miss Koriche locked herself away in her hotel room, writing and painting her translations of the data passed on to her via The Emerald Book of Thoth. I was offered a glimpse of her illustration of the Ec-ka-sha code, which appeared exact in every detail, so far as I can recall; she has been meticulous in keeping the colours true to their depiction in the Hall of Time Codes. Her written work is equally inspiring and I can hardly wait to begin a serious study of her data.

  Lord Devere and myself are not the lady scribe’s only eager pupils.

  It took less than a day for Miss Koriche’s order to learn of her return to Cairo. Three veiled women came to visit her, dressed in white from head to toe bar a small slit in their head-cover that allowed them to see. I was with Miss Koriche when the party was announced, and although I offered to stay by her during the visit, she graciously declined, assuring me that she was no longer threatened by her past.

  Miss Koriche was not the only one whose presence in the city had been noted. Whilst she was in conference with her sisterhood, Lord Devere and I received an invitation cum summons from the representative of the Holy See in Cairo, Cardinal Guarino Antonazzi—the very same Church dignitary who had left my husband to rot in a hole at Ur. As the invitation was addressed to both my husband and myself, it appeared that his Holiness knew of Lord Devere’s deliverance. There was little point in attempting to evade the audience, as the Church of Rome was far too widespread to hide from for long; better to allow the cardinal to air whatever was on his mind. We took the precaution of making our presence in the city known to the British consulate in Cairo before proceeding, just in case we mysteriously disappeared. It wasn’t much of a safety net, for as we well knew, when the church wanted information to go missing, it was as if it had never existed.

  Our audience with the cardinal was to be conducted in a church dedicated to Saint Mercurius. This was the largest church in the district known as the Abu Sayfayn Cloister, just to the north of the Fortress of Babylon in Old Cairo.