The Altar (28 page)

Then he felt an odd tightening in his chest; he stopped and dropped to his knees. He suddenly couldn’t breathe, couldn’t continue. He wondered if he were having a heart attack.

“What’s wrong?” Dovecrest was at his side.

“I...I don’t know...I think something’s...happened.”

He closed his eyes and relaxed his breathing. That’s when he felt Todd’s presence close to him and he knew something had gone terribly wrong. He could hear Todd calling out to him over the vast sands, calling that he needed him, that they needed him. He felt three spirits calling to him now, not just Todd, but Vickie as well. Somehow, she knew he was near. And a third one, someone he didn’t know....

The baby. The baby had been born, and even though he didn’t know her, he could feel her presence calling out to him as well.

They were in serious trouble, and although he didn’t know how to save them, he and Dovecrest were their only hope. And he knew that there was more at stake than just his wife and children. If the demon succeeded here, he knew it would return to the earth again to cause more doom and misery. He couldn’t let that happen. But most of all, he couldn’t let his family be taken.

Erik swallowed hard and straightened up. “Come on!” he said. “This thing is coming to a head right now!”

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

-1-

The demon had never been so furious in its life. It was wrath in the flesh, and now its own wrath was stronger than it had ever been, all because of this brat who had bested him once again. But it wouldn’t last. This one would pay. He would wish that he had never, ever clashed with the demon called Wrath.

First the brat had gotten away from the altar stone when he’d hit the rock with his foolish little hammer. And now he had stolen the baby away from it just when it was about to pluck its prize and hold it inside hell’s hottest flames until it was scorched alive. It couldn’t believe the kid had the nerve, the audacity to cross it like this.

At first it had been too surprised and shocked to even react, and had simply stood there and watched the boy run away with the baby. The mother had been screaming as if she were the one being tortured, and the boy had just reacted, so quickly that even it didn’t know what he was going to do.

He was most angry that he had timed the spell so perfectly, so it would work best when the baby was first born, only seconds old. Now he’d have to redo the whole thing, and it wouldn’t be as effective—or as much fun. The newborn had already lost so much of her innocence. That pure innocence—that was what it had longed to destroy most of all, in a long, terrifying and agonizing torture of its own devising. It would have been so perfect....

Staying in human form had been a mistake. That’s why the boy had challenged it. If it had still been made of fiery lava, or of rock-hard stone, then the boy wouldn’t have dared do anything but comply. It had let its guard down. He had seen it as a fellow human being, mortal and weak, not as the powerful supernatural being that it was. That was going to change. It would not let the boy be fooled into thinking that he could win.

It also knew that the boy’s father and the meddling ancient had escaped and were on their way. The hordes of doomed souls had stopped their swarm towards the pair and were now going about their regular routine of restless misery. It wasn’t sure how they had escaped, but it wouldn’t help them. If they found him before he’d completed his plans, he would destroy them. If not, they were of no consequence; once he made his return, he would trap them here in hell where they could wait with the damned until judgment day.

It looked into the distance and could still see the boy running away. He wouldn’t get very far. It looked at the mother, who was huddled in a ball crying so hard that she shook all over. It felt no pity, only loathing. Only contempt and disgust. It sneered at the woman and turned away. She had reason enough to cry. And very soon, she’d have even more reason to weep.

The demon closed its eyes and slowly began to transform once again. First it had been fire. Then it had been rock. Now, for something different. It thought for a moment.

“And there were stings in their tails,” it said out loud.

Yes, stings in its tail. What a perfect, exquisite creature to inhabit this desolate, empty world. A perfect, cold-blooded, terrifying creature.

Even as it imagined the shape, the transformation began. A hard black shell, as hard as when it had been formed of stone. Razor-sharp pincers to tear and ruin flesh. Multiple legs that could scuttle along the sand. A tail with a sting of fire, a sting that would paralyze the nerves and the body, keeping the mind—and the pain receptors—intact. It was perfect, with one small modification: a human head between its shoulders so it could hear and see and speak. A human head on a giant scorpion. The dichotomy alone would inspire terror and repugnance. Just the sight of this monstrosity would be enough to stop the boy—and the meddling pair who were coming for him.

Sure enough, the woman saw what it had become and was screaming, shielding her eyes with her arms.

“Don’t worry, my dear,” it said. “I’m not going to eat you. At least not yet!”

Then it scuttled off in pursuit of her obnoxious brat and his newborn sister.

-2-

Erik saw the boy up ahead and began to run. He recognized Todd immediately, of course. His son was holding something close to his chest, which slowed his running, but it looked like what he lacked in technique he more than made up for in adrenaline. It was difficult to run in the sand, but Erik now had some adrenaline of his own. Todd was carrying his newborn baby.

He wondered what had happened to Vickie, but somehow he felt reassured that she was all right. Weak, hurt, and terrified, but otherwise ok. He heard Dovecrest running just behind him, and was filled with awe for the old man’s stamina. He was a good ally.

“Dad!” Todd’s call carried across the open space.

“I’m coming!” Erik replied, closing the distance quickly.

They met in a heap at the half-way point as they both collapsed on the sand. Erik hugged his son, and then his daughter. He took a moment to hold her up so he could look into her face.

“She’s beautiful,” he said.

“Actually, she’s kind of a mess,” Todd said. “I didn’t know babies were so gross.”

Erik forced a laugh and showed the baby to Dovecrest.

“I think she’s beautiful too,” the Indian said.

“The demon was gonna kill her but I stole her away. I wasn’t gonna let it have her.”

“Todd....” Erik couldn’t even begin to say what was on his mind. This young boy had shown so much courage and tenacity. He’d risked his life to try to save his mother, and had even delivered his baby sister. He’d stood up to this demon and rescued his baby sister.... No, words couldn’t come close.

“You’re a very brave man,” Dovecrest said.

“I’m not a man,” Todd said. “I’m still a boy.”

“No,” Dovecrest corrected. “You are a man.”

Todd shrugged. “It made the demon mad. I know he’s coming after me. He wants the baby. He wants to do bad things to her.”

“I know,” Erik said. “And we’re going to stop it.”

Todd looked at his father for a moment. “Mom’s ok, at least for now. I don’t know what it’ll do to her later, though.”

“We’re not going to let it hurt Mom, or the baby, or you.”

“Good. What do you want me to do?”

“You are going to look after your baby sister,” Erik said, and handed the infant back to his son. “Do you know how to hold her?”

“Hey, I’ve done ok so far, haven’t I?”

“Yes. Yes, you have. Just make sure you support her head.”

“She’ll be ok, Dad. Trust me.”

Erik nodded. Then he stood up beside Dovecrest and looked in the direction Todd had come. Sure enough, something was coming towards them, but it didn’t look like anything he had ever seen before.

“It may have taken on a new shape,” Dovecrest said. “Or maybe this is something different.”

“No, it’s Wrath. I can tell. Let’s go meet it.”

“I’m ready,” Dovecrest said, and they both took a step forward. Todd followed with the baby.

“Todd, you wait here,” Erik said.

“No way, Dad. I’m coming. Besides, if you don’t kill it, it’s gonna find me anyway. You don’t really think I can get away on my own, do you?”

“I don’t know what to think anymore. I really don’t.”

The boy shrugged. “Good. Then I’m coming. Don’t worry. I’ll stay out of the way, just so I can keep the baby away from that thing.”

Once the monster spotted them and saw they were coming towards it, it stopped and waited. Apparently, it wasn’t in any hurry now that the baby had been born.

“I think I screwed up its plans,” Todd said. “It’s gonna be mad.”

Erik quickly saw that it wasn’t shaped anything like a man any more. This thing really was a monster, a scorpion the size of a horse but with a completely human face and head where the scorpion eyes and mouth should have been. The thing had a thick, hard shell of deepest black that shined with an eerie red glow from the light. Its pincers were the size of his writing desk. They clacked open and closed menacingly and could easily cleave a man in two. Its legs twitched in anticipation and its stinger, the size of a knitting needle, was poised and ready.

But as terrifying and repugnant as the arachnid body was, the human face was even worse. Vaguely reminiscent of the cult leader that the demon had taken over, this creature had long, tangled brown hair, brown eyes with thick brows, a long, sharp nose, and a grin that was so horrible it defied description. The thing stopped and stared at them, mostly allowing them to stare at it, Erik suspected, so that they might have the opportunity to completely experience the full effect of its horrible new shape.

Whatever terror it was supposed to inspire certainly worked. Erik felt his insides turn to jelly. It was as if the thing knew that his worst fear was spiders and scorpions. Especially large ones with stingers. He swallowed hard and tried to look relaxed. But he realized he was failing miserably. His body trembled despite his best efforts to control it, and he knew if he spoke his voice would be cracked and weak. His mouth was so dry that he couldn’t even swallow.

He looked over at Dovecrest and realized the Indian was probably just as afraid as he was. He wasn’t sure if that were a comforting thought or not. While it made him feel better about himself, he wished that one of them would be able to look this thing in the eyes with defiance.

Then, horribly, the thing spoke. Its voice was so incongruous with its shape that Erik didn’t even hear what it said at first. He’d expected the thing to sound like a monster. But instead the voice was smooth and female, like the voice of a Hollywood starlet trying out for a sexy role.

“Ah, what a quaint reunion,” it said. “It’s so nice to see you all here together at last.”

Erik just gaped at the monster, speechless.

“Oh, I see my voice doesn’t match my form,” it said. “How silly of me. Hold on while I change into something more comfortable. Maybe you’ll like this better....”

The demon’s face dissolved into a smoky mist and Erik wondered if it was going to shed the scorpion shape. No such luck, though. The massive terrifying body remained firm, but the face slowly metamorphosised into the face of a female. He could just see the edges at first, as the long, silken blond hair appeared and framed a delicate face. The mist dissipated and the transformation was complete: gorgeous blue eyes like swimming pools to drown in, sensuous lips, a small, perfect nose, and silky, delicate skin designed to make a man melt. All this on the body of a stinging, pinching arachnid.

“Is that more to your liking?” it said. Then it stretched out one of its jointed, exoskeleton limbs. “All the guys say I have great legs. Don’t you agree?”

Erik threw up suddenly and fiercely, which only made the monster laugh. “Come here and give me a kiss,” it said. “I’ll make you forget all of your troubles.”

Erik knelt down and wiped his face with a handkerchief. “Why don’t you just let us go,” he said. “Haven’t you caused us enough grief?”

The monster laughed. “I just want to be a part of your happy family,” it said. “Come, let’s go join your wife. Then we can have a real reunion. Or would you rather I just kill you now and get it over with?”

The thing turned and scuttled off a few feet in the direction from where it had come, then turned and looked back at Erik again. The contrast revolted him: it was the face of the most beautiful, most exquisite woman he had even seen pasted onto the body of a hideous invertebrate monster. He almost threw up again. When the thing had been a grotesque-looking male, it had been bad enough. But this beautiful female transposed onto this body—it was just more than he could stand.

Still, he had no choice than to follow along. His wife was waiting for him. And to Erik, she was the most beautiful, perfect creature in existence. He’d do anything to save her—even be devoured by this awful thing, if that’s what it took.

Everyone was looking at him: the demon, Todd, Dovecrest...even the baby seemed to be watching to see what he’d do. He wanted to run and hide. He’d rather die than get any closer to this thing. But he couldn’t just think about himself. Whatever happened, he suspected it would all be determined very soon, and would end either one way or the other. There wasn’t any use putting off the inevitable. Todd was right. There was no place left to run.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s get this thing over with.”

They all turned and followed the demon back to where it had left Vickie.

-3-

Todd didn’t think he could be any more shocked until he saw the demon appear as a scorpion, and then change his face into that of a woman. As much as he was repelled by the thing, he was also fascinated, and he couldn’t really explain why. The woman was so beautiful that he made his head spin. But then when he looked at the hard, scaly body with pincers and a sting, it made him cringe just at the thought of being anywhere near it.

He knew this was the worst shape it had taken on yet. When it was a mass of burning lava it had been frightening—but instinctively people stayed away from fire and knew what it was. When it had taken on the rock shape it had been little more than a beast, almost like something out of a comic book or a bad horror movie. And as a man it hadn’t been anything, really, except a very bad person. Todd knew there were enough of them running around in the real world, so this was nothing new. He’d been taught to watch out for and avoid bad people all of his life.

But this was different. The body was so hideous. But the face was so beautiful—and so human. It almost looked friendly, affectionate, welcoming. He knew it was still the demon, of course, but this was...different. He was afraid that if the thing had completely transformed into a woman he would have just followed after it like a lovesick puppy and done whatever it wanted just to be near it.

But he couldn’t let himself think that way, and he was grateful that the monster still looked like a monster to remind him of what it really was.

He cradled his baby sister close to his chest and followed his Dad and the Indian, staying just behind them in case the demon should turn and launch an attack. He didn’t even fear for himself much anymore—he’d almost become immune to shock and pain and the fear of death—but he didn’t want anything to happen to this tiny, innocent baby that he had helped to bring into the world.