Keene Brian - A Gathering of Crows

The figure closest to Levi smiled. “Very good, little magus. This was unexpected.”

“Thank you. I like to think on my feet.”

“Of course, it is a futile gesture. There is one thing you didn’t consider, Levi, son of Amos. There is one crucial flaw in this pitiful attempt to defeat us.”

“Oh? And what’s that?”

“You are trapped in the circle with us.”

“No.” Levi’s smile vanished. “It’s you who are trapped in here with me .”

Levi sprang to his feet as they charged toward him. Everything now came down to timing and placement. He had to be exact, had to make it look natural, or all of his efforts would be for naught. He would die here, in this broken circle, and Meeble’s minions would win.

He darted to the left and ran toward the slightly open door, seemingly attempting to evade his attackers and get behind them. The ruse worked. They slammed into him in front of the pantry. Their talons and teeth slashed at him, ripping and tearing. Levi howled in pain as his blood began to flow. The creatures howled with him, shouting angry curses in a language not their own. Levi let his knees go weak, allowing their combined weight and the force of their attack to drive him backward. He prayed they’d come with him, and his prayer was answered. They clung tightly, their claws sinking deeper into his flesh. Half-blind from pain, Levi crashed into the pantry door and tumbled through to the other side. The revenants fell with him. They toppled to the ground together, but his opponents were too enraged to notice that their surroundings had changed. Biting his lip to stifle his screams, Levi lashed out with his foot and kicked the door shut.

Esther’s pantry vanished, taking the rest of the world with it.

Slowly, their attack ceased. One by one, they withdrew from him and stood, staring speechless at their new surroundings. Levi did the same. The overcast sky was filled with grayish-yellow clouds of mist so impressive in size that they almost appeared to be floating landmasses. The soft ground was spongy and slick. White, fibrous strands of what looked like peach fuzz sprouted from the surface. Moisture seeped through Levi’s clothing and when he pulled his hands away, his palms were wet. His skin felt slimy, as if he’d been grasping earthworms or slugs. The landscape was featureless, save for a variety of sickly gray and white toadstools, mushrooms and other fungi. Some were miniscule. Others were as tall as redwood trees. The air was thick with the smell of mildew. Far off in the distance, a black river of what looked like tar wound its way through the fungus. It was spanned by a cyclopean bridge made entirely of mold. Beyond that, on the horizon, great gray mountains towered into the poison sky. They were dreary looking and somehow obscene, and the sight of their peaks filled Levi with dread. A city composed of windowless black towers stood in their shadow. Atop the tallest mountain sat a giant geometric sculpture, a shining trapezoid that spilled light onto the valley below. Despite his immediate danger, Levi was awestruck by its size. He’d read of the monolith before, but to see it like this, to actually view the shining trapezoid… No written account did it justice.

The shadows stirred.

“What trickery is this, little magus?”

Groaning, Levi stumbled to his feet. Blood ran from both of his arms as well as his back, chest and face. He’d broken the index finger of his right hand, and he was pretty sure that his right wrist was sprained, too. The flesh was already beginning to swell, and the pain made him nauseous.

“No trickery. I promised you that I wouldn’t harm you in Esther’s place, and I have honored my word. I have brought you elsewhere.”

“You speak in riddles.”

“No, I don’t. Welcome to your new home, gentlemen.”

They turned on him, growling. Their elongated talons had shrunk back into their fingers, and their clothes and faces weren’t so dark anymore.

“Don’t bother trying to shape-shift,” Levi continued. “You can’t anymore. In fact, if I’m correct—and I suspect that I am—you’ll find that you’re all quite powerless here.”

“Meeble’s strength follows us wherever we go. It is within us.”

“Back on Earth, perhaps, but not here. Not in this place. You see, this is not your master’s domain.”

Grunting, the tallest of the five made a dismissive gesture with his hand and pulled himself up to his full height. “After all your boasts, you have merely delayed the inevitable, Levi, son of Amos. You may be able to walk the paths of the Labyrinth, but bringing us here will not save you. What do my brothers and I care for worlds? We will lay waste to this one, just as we laid waste to your own. This world’s populace shall know of our master’s power, and we will feed here just as well.”

“Go ahead, then. Leave your mark. Carve Croatoan in the trunk of one of those great mushrooms. Carve your master’s name here, in the domain of Behemoth!”

They gaped at him. The fear on their faces was palpable, and Levi couldn’t help but laugh. After all of the terror they’d caused the people of Brinkley Springs, not to mention countless other human beings going all the way back to the original Roanoke settlement, it felt good to see them scared and to know that he was the source of their fear. He forced himself to ignore the twinge of pride.

“I see by your expressions that you understand now. That’s correct. We stand beneath the noxious skies of Yuggoth, home of Behemoth, the Great Worm and one of the Thirteen, who is the equal of your master.”

“You lie.”

Levi shook his head. “You know that I don’t. According to the Law, you are forbidden to do your working here, lest you risk a war between the Great Worm and your master—a conflict which would ultimately anger He Who Shall Not Be Named. I don’t think Meeble would appreciate such insolence.”

His opponents began to tremble. Whether from fear or rage, Levi couldn’t be certain. Perhaps both. Either way, they were still dangerous, even without their powers.

“Open the door,” the shortest one said. “Return us to our world and we will let you live. On this you have our word.”

Levi shook his head. “Not a chance.”

“Then you have doomed yourself, as well, little magus.” The tallest of the five stepped closer. “If you know of Yuggoth, then you know what grows here. Even as we speak, you are breathing the poisoned spores into your lungs. You are inhaling Behemoth’s seeds. They will take root in your body and begin to grow, ultimately transforming you—if the wounds we inflicted do not kill you first.”

“I’ve had worse,” Levi bluffed. In truth, his legs felt wobbly and he was growing weaker with every moment. He needed to stop the bleeding and attend to his injuries. His wrist continued to swell, and the skin around it felt hot to the touch and had turned an angry shade of red. His finger, bent and swollen, throbbed painfully with each beat of his heart. He took a deep breath. The air was sweltering and thick, and coated his tongue. Levi grimaced. It was like breathing hot soup. He smacked his lips and tasted mildew in the back of his throat.

“This will be the end of you, bearded one.”

“Perhaps,” Levi said, “but I’d rather succumb to the white fuzz than return you to my world. Better to turn into a mushroom than to allow you to continue your work.”

As he talked, Levi pressed his left hand to the wound on his chest. It was bleeding profusely. He cupped his palm and his hand filled with warmth.

“Open the door,” the shortest one repeated. This time, his voice had a pleading tone. “We promise to return to our place of rest and bother you and those under your protection no more. Again, you have our word.”