CHAPTER 4

 

            As I watched the horrifying sight below, I felt a great surge of fear and uncertainty, that maybe I should not have come here.  But I had come this far, and I realized the importance of the situation.  Whoever these people were, if they were allowed to possess the essence of Chattur’gha, it would only mean a matter of time before Chattur’gha himself would use them to breach the bonds that kept him from our world.  It was a perilous situation, and I was one of the few people who knew it had to be stopped, although whether or not I would be able to still remained to be seen.

            One of the cultists walked up to the man in the robe, obviously their leader, and spoke with him.  I was able to make out what they were saying, even from my distance, as they were speaking loudly.  “The preparations are nearly complete, Ireseth, my lord.”

            “I am most pleased,” Ireseth replied, studying the bell jar in his hands.  “Soon, we can begin the ritual to unlock Chattur’gha’s powers.  No longer will we exist only in shadow, in fear of the non-believers.  The dawn of the Cabal’s rule is at hand…all will bend to our will, and the world will learn to fear us instead.”

            The cultist nodded, “It will be glorious.”

            Ireseth moved to a small pedestal near the back of the room and set down the bell jar, then turned to the other cultist to ask, “What news of the others?”

            “The essences of Xel’lotath and Ulyaoth are still unaccounted for,” the cultist replied.  “We believed we were certain of their locations, yet neither were recovered.  We could not have been far, though, for we encountered beasts of their calling…”

            “I see,” Ireseth said, rubbing his chin.  “And Mantorok?”

            Shaking his head, the cultist said, “Our lead turned out to be a false one.  There was nothing at the temple.”

            Ireseth clenched his teeth slightly, then said, “It is no concern.  Once our rituals are complete, we will be able to track them down readily enough.”  He glanced at the pit and ordered, “That should be enough.  Gather everyone together in the great hall for the focus.  We will return for the final ceremony once that is complete.”

            The cultist nodded and started moving around to the other cult members, leading them to a wide set of double doors on the opposite end of the room.  Ireseth joined them, and as the last of the cries died down from the pit, the only sound in the room was the low moan of the walking dead within it.  This wasn’t what grabbed my attention, though; it was the pedestal.  Ireseth had left the essence of Chattur’gha behind, unguarded.

            My chance was now, while they were gone.  I quickly found a ladder by the ledge I was on and climbed it down to the bottom of the room.  I had to cover my nose and mouth…the stench that rose from the pit was almost unbearable, especially this close to it.  I couldn’t understand how the Cabal members could bear it.  The zombies must have sensed my presence, because some of them started clawing at the sides of the pit, trying to climb out even though it was impossible.

            Still, there were no obstacles.  The bell jar sat there, on the pedestal, mine for the taking.  Without hesitation, I scooped it up…the moment I did, the zombies in the pit started to moan louder, and even the ones that were busy eating had stood up.  It was as though they could sense the power, or that it was going to be taken from them…

            I made haste back to the ladder and, tucking the bell jar into my backpack, started climbing.  About halfway up, I heard a slam, and looked down to see that the double doors had opened.  The Cabal was back already, with Ireseth at the lead.  He spotted me and shouted, “A non-believer!  Stop him!”  I resumed climbing, faster now, as several gunshots rang out, the bullets striking the wall next to me.

            Doubling my efforts, I made it to the top as fast as I could.  The moment I reached the ledge, I ran for the stairs.  I knew I was going to make it; I had too much of a lead on them.  Thanks to the back outfit I was wearing, they wouldn’t be able to identify me, so I knew if I escaped, the essence would be out of their hands.  Once up, I headed for the window I had entered the building through.

            I was free.  I’m sure they looked, but they couldn’t find me.  The essence was safe once again, and I took the trip back home to rejoin it with the others.  They were all in my possession now…Ulyoth, Xel’lotath, and Chattur’gha…all of them.  And nobody knew I had them.  It was perfect…I would be able to keep them safe, for as long as I was able.

            [“Whew…” Blossom said.  “That was a close call.”

            “Yeah,” Buttercup agreed.  “Man, this is actually kind of cool…the professor fought evil way before we ever did!”

            Nodding, Blossom said, “Yes, but there’s more to the journal, I think we should finish it…”  She trailed off as she noticed Bubbles, with her eyes clenched shut.  “Bubbles?”

            “This…this is just…” Bubbles managed to say, then opened her eyes again.  “I don’t know…I-I just have a bad feeling…l-like it’s not over yet…”

            “Hang in there, Bubbles,” Blossom reassured her.  “There isn’t too much left…”]

            I thought it would be over, that I could keep the artifacts in secrecy.  But I had difficulty sleeping after that…sometimes, I could hear their voices in my dreams, haunting me.  Voices, and images of pain and death…they wanted to be freed, and so help me, I actually considered it a few times.  Anything to stop the dreams.  I was always bound in them, trapped in their clutches, being forced to watch as mankind was enslaved, tortured, killed…I couldn’t bear it much longer.  Even moving them to my office at the university didn’t seem to help.  But I didn’t give in…I knew that I could never let them fall into the wrong hands.  Never.

            That wasn’t the last I saw of the Cabal, either.  Sometimes, I saw others wearing the pin with their symbol, near my home, and I knew they were looking for me.  They didn’t know who I was, but they had a vague idea where I was.  I didn’t see how this was possible.  Perhaps they traced me through Ruth, or perhaps through some other source, but if so, why didn’t they approach me directly?  No, they were lead here by something else.  Once they left, I decided the essences would be safer at home than my office, since it is more secure.

            Then I saw them around the university, too, and that’s when it hit me.  They had some way of finding the essences.  Perhaps it was the power they possessed…perhaps there was some ritual that helped the Cabal zero in on them.  It was lucky that I had moved them, or they would have found them for certain.  I kept moving them after that, sometimes once a week.

            One terrifying encounter came when I encounter Ireseth himself.  He actually came into my office at the university one day for information.  Though he was dressed in a suit instead of the robes I saw him in previously, there was still no mistaking him.  Despite the fact that I recognized him, I did my best to hide it and asked, “Is there something I can do for you?”

            “Yes, Professor…Utonium, is it?” he said.  “I’m looking for someone who would know a lot about archeology…someone who could help me identify the value of a piece in my personal collection.”

            “I’m afraid you’ve come to the wrong professor, then,” I told him.  “I’m a professor of chemistry, not archeology.”

            Ireseth nodded and said, “But you know the faculty better than I.  Perhaps you can recommend someone?  I’m particularly looking for anyone who favors rare and unusual objects…”

            “Nobody in particular,” I said.  “Professor Adams would be your best shot, but nobody here has any kind of extensive collection, not since Dr. Langston…”  I mentally cringed.  The last thing I wanted to do was draw attention to this, but I also didn’t want to look like I was avoiding it, because that would have drawn suspicion as well.

            “Ah,” he said.  He glared at me for a moment, and I was worried…did he recognize me, even now?  But if he did, he didn’t show it…he got up and said, “I’m sorry to have taken your time, then.  I’ll check with Professor Adams anyway and see if he can help.”

            “Good luck,” I said as Ireseth left the office.  As soon as he was gone, I breathed a brief sigh of relief, glancing down at the drawer to my desk…the drawer that currently contained the essences.  I had not had time to move them, but thankfully he did not find them.  It made me realize how close this would be, though.

            I figured he’d probably have someone watching me just in case, so I left them there.  It wouldn’t be until a few days before I moved them back to my house.  I also wasn’t directly approached by Ireseth or any more of the Cabal members, even though I still occasionally spotted one.

            Four years passed since I had recovered the essence of Chattur’gha, and I tried to gather as much lore as I could, without being obvious about it.  Finding information about the Cabal was easier than this, but the little scraps of info I found told me what I needed to know.  They were indeed using an ancient ritual to find the essences…each time, it would tell them the general area, and each time, they would conduct a search.  Thanks to covering my tracks, though, they didn’t make the connection to me.  Yet.  Every day, though, I grew more fearful that they would find me, if only by dumb luck.

            That’s when I started examining the essences themselves.  Their power was great, but I knew there had to be a way to mask it, so much that even the rituals would not give away their whereabouts.  Through the lore and my own observation, I discovered a great many thing about the old ones.  The three were vastly different from each other.  Chattur’gha relied on raw strength and might.  Ulyaoth focused on the force of the spirit, the energy of life.  Xel’lotath’s power stemmed from the mind, from one’s own sanity and thought.

            Their differences made them enemies…Chattur’gha’s strength could not stand against the intelligence and magic of Ulyaoth.  Ulayoth, on the other hand, was powerless against Xel’lotath’s control of the mind.  Yet Xel’lotath’s control would be crushed before Chattur’gha’s awesome might.  It thus formed a circle of hatred between them, but I noticed that beyond their differences, they were still forces of pure evil, all of them.

            I came up with a theory at that moment.  It might be possible to mask their essences if they were encased in their opposites.  Perhaps a pure, blessed shell of good would do it, if such a thing existed.  But I knew I needed more, because their powers would still crack the shell easily.  The answer lay in their feud, and the way their powers struggled against one another.  If the shell contained those wards, maybe even placed upon them through the magic of the opposing essences…it would take time to figure out, either way.

            Researching and experimenting for the next two years, I knew I was almost out of time.  The dreams grew worse, almost as though the essences were calling out, the poison tendrils of their wills snaking out further each day.  They wanted to be found, that much was certain.  But I would not yield…I would let my mind, my very sanity be destroyed, before I would let this happen.  Nothing, I knew, could truly overcome the strength and dedication of a single person.

            That’s when it struck me.  It all fell into place.  A single person could act as a guardian, and endure that which even a shell of pure good could not.  And if the person themselves was a force of purity and good…it was perfect.  My next theory was a long shot, but if it worked, the essences would be safe, possibly forever.  I dug out one of my old theories, one that I had been working on for many years, since before this mess, since I had begun science.  Looking it over, I realized that this might just work.

            After some final preparation and experimentation, it was time.  That night, I made some last minute calculations, and in the early hours of the morning, after obtaining the last of the necessary components, I put the plan into effect.  Carefully removing the essences from their containers using a pair of tongs, to make sure they didn’t come in contact with me, I placed them together in a bowl, and then gathered together the components of the formula that would produce the pure goodness I had hoped for.  I put them in one by one: sugar, spice, and everything nice…

            [The girls froze, staring at the book.  Blossom read the previous line aloud just to be sure she read it correctly.  The other girls just stared in shock, and after a moment, all three of them continued reading…]

            I would never have predicted that the accidental dose of Chemical X would give you powers.  I was still amazed at that.  But even despite this, it worked better than I had ever hoped.  Please forgive me…I’m so sorry I never told you this before, but I feared your reaction to the truth.  You see, girls, the essences are contained within each of you, beneath the shield that is your own goodness, and forever beyond the reach of any mortal…

 

TO BE CONTINUED…