Sherif Guirguis's Blog, page 10

It’s Alive!

Last post about download links, then back to some flash fiction

Another book baking in the oven

-1-

Many beginnings; but none sufficient.

 

 

It was a Friday afternoon; I just made plans to meet some friends as is my habit for the past year. I called my fiancée (number four if I do recall correctly) to arrange herself and not to wear black again, John felt spooked by her attire and make-up last time.

 

This is when I got the phone call.

I work as a sales supervisor in an international insurance company, and one of my sales agents was trying to seal the deal of a life time with this millionaire for the last 6 weeks.

He called him today to come, only that the man asked my presence as well. Even though I never met him and I just talked to him once on the phone (I do this sometimes to press hesitant customers with hanging promises).

 

So, even though I was off the clock, I knew that this policy could make me and push my career on the fast track; I just called my fiancée and my friends and cancelled.

Oh, How Miriam doubted me!! .. Well, she did have some rights to it.

That is because I’m what you might call a ladies man, not that I try, really… they just flock towards me. I once had a theory about that (now defunct of course) it states that women are flocks and I’m a predator, and nature mandates for them to come my way (oh how foolish and arrogant was I!!)

 

Anyway, I went out to pick up Aziz my sales agent, headed out of the city to one the new suburbs in the middle of nowhere.

Nice looking villa, nice bunch of German made cars, even nice looking security cams.

I parked my local car besides all those foreign ladies, I always thought of my car as a masculine one, it is dishevelled, harsh to manoeuvre, and has a moustache (although I can be reminded by quite a number of moustached ladies).

 

We were welcomed by an elegantly dressed woman of mid-thirties. She had this aura of rejection (one of my many nicks, I can feel rejection in other people) about her, even though she welcomed us in a festive fashion.

Upon entering the threshold, I realized that there was some kind of a party or a gathering of some sort. I was immediately annoyed at Aziz for not proof readying his meeting with the customer.

“This is not the right place or time for signing life insurance forms Aziz!!” I hissed at the diminutive form of Aziz.

“Mr. Lotfy, I assure you, the man called me, set the date and place and insisted I bring you to the signing of the forms” complained Aziz.

“Still, I give this meeting a 90% chance of getting blown and 10% chance of actually closing the sale!” I smiled condescendingly at him.

We passed a wall sized mirror, I looked at it briefly. What an odd team we make.

We both wore professional grey suits, but I stood at 6 feet, heavily built from the days of amateur boxing, dark with grey hair while Aziz stood at only 5 feet 2, was a matchstick of a man, severely fair and blond.

 

We entered what looked as a modified reception area that was converted into some kind of ballroom, around twenty or so people wearing designer evening clothes filled the vast area with chatter.

 

Our client and host stood at one corner. With a dark man in a turban and the starkest blue eyes I ever saw.

We were assured by the lady towards where they were standing.

 

“Hello Mr. Fadhl and Mr. Lotfy, I’m glad you could make it on such short notice” smiled the man in the five thousand dollars suit standing at 6 feet 3 and looking to the entire world as if he owned the universe.

“We are honoured by your invitation Mr. McDermott, although I assumed we came for a different kind of setting” I answered with a jovial smile.

“ha ha ha A meeting of interest it is, but as you can see I can’t take any decision of importance unless I take the advice of my friend Sheikh Mahmoud here.” He roars in laughter while assuring the so called Sheikh to salute us.

“Alsalam aliekom Sheikh Mahmoud” I saluted with a bow of the head.

“Wa aliekom alsalam ya Sayed Haress” the man answered back, even though I couldn’t understand the calling of my name and followed by the word that means guard in Arabic (my parents were part Egyptian, I had to attend Arabic school after school for most of childhood; which I absolutely loathed) .

“I assume you are both Arabs Mr. Lotfy?” asked Mr. McDermott.

“Well, Aziz is mostly Turkish, and I’m mostly Egyptian, and as far as I know Egyptians pre-date Arabs” I answered with a tactful smile.

“Mostly Mr. Lotfy??” asked the sheikh

“Well, part Italian, part Austrian, 3 parts Egyptian” I kept my most professional smile while keeping my anger at the lineage interrogation at bay.

“Well, well, well that makes a full cocktail Mr. Lotfy, should we retire to my office??” asked Mr. McDermott in an appraising manner.

“Gladly” I jumped at the chance to get the deal done.

 

The office was as grand as I expected it to be. Big Mahogany desk, large leather arm chairs, a styled mahogany bar and the ever present library, with no less than a thousand volumes, all appeared to be quite old, a collector’s heaven.

After we sat McDermott pressed a hidden button and a man servant rushed in, he ordered Turkish coffee for all of us and asked for a certain bag to be brought from the sheikh’s room.

While we waited for the coffee, Aziz started his sales pitch about our newest programs, only to be interrupted by the sheikh “Why wouldn’t Mr. Lotfy tell us more about your life insurance programs?? Does it really insure your life?”

“Well, Aziz is just as good as I for tailoring your insurance needs, but I’m willing to detail you sheikh. Are you interested?” I asked.

“If you really insure life and prevent death. Of course!” said the sheikh in a very serious manner

“But, we don’t, we can’t. Nobody can of course, we just insure that your loved ones and your worldly affairs will be taken care of” I laughed dismissing the obvious joke.

“So I’m not interested then, but I might give Charles my approval if you let me read your fortunes” he smiled a sly smile.

“Fortune? I don’t really believe in this stuff, but I’m always game for new stuff” I smiled offhandedly

“After I read your Quhwa and your palm, I assure you I will make a believer out of you Sayed Haress” he looked intently into my eyes and held his hand out

I shake my shoulders and put my hand in his.

“Would like to learn of your past, present or future??” he asked me

“Well, the future is unknown, the present is just a moment, so how about you tell me of my past” I answered sarcastically.

“You were born in winter, you had a brother who died, and you were ill most of your childhood” he had a distant look in his eyes.

“I am sure Mr. Lotfy has only one living sibling, a sister” jumped Aziz,

“Not true, he had a twin brother who was not meant to be born” The sheikh answered in a matter of fact tone.

I pulled my hand back in shock. “How did you come about this information??” I demanded

“Your brother left his mark on your thumb Mr. Lotfy” he smiled and reached back for my hand.

He said the truth, it was a medical rarity, I had a twin who was aborted at the end of the first trimester, I continued. I didn’t comment or rise to answer his looks. But I felt disturbed, even dizzy. It was after all, a family secret.

Then, the manservant entered with the coffee.

“Can we rest a little please Mr. McDermott?? “ I implored our host.

“Yes of course my dear Mr. Lotfy, You are our most important guest of course for tonight” he assured us back to the party.

 

Aziz stood with a tall blonde while I sipped my drink in a corner.

I couldn’t fathom why were we invited, and why the freak side show directed only for our eyes.

I pondered the gift of the Sheikh, I cannot dismiss it out of hand, it was too weird to be a trick.

Maybe it was an elaborate prank, a one where even my closest friend and family members would participate in

But that part about my dead twin was too much. Only my immediate family and fiancée knew of it.

Suddenly I found a hand holding my hand with the drink, pulling it away.

It was McDermott “You should not drink spirits today my friend”

“Why is that??” I asked sincerely

“Not to cloud the reading of course!”

 

We went back to the office, and sat in our same chairs. The coffee went cold by the passing of time and McDermott ordered three more cups.

I started to gaze at the books trying to decipher their contents from their titles.

McDermott stood pointing at his library “interested in the occult Mr. Lotfy?”

“Not really, specially that I don’t have the faintest idea what do you mean by the occult” I laughed quietly.

“The occult is many things, divination, demonology, magic or … gates” he added the last word with a pause and a cryptic smile.

“Well, I don’t really believe or understand most of what you mentioned; But what did you mean by gates” I asked slowly and with an unknown sense of trepidation.

“Gates, they are why we thrive to understand the occult, to practice some of its arts, to even sacrifice parts of our lives and memories for” answered the Sheikh in a mild manner as if he stated in his sentence the secret of all creation.

“I know from religion classes of gates of hell and paradise; are these Gates you are talking about?” asked Aziz after being silent for most of the evening as if he found some footing in this treacherous river of an evening.

“they are but a few of the gates, you see Aziz, the important ones though are never mentioned in religious scriptures” McDermott pulled a book and opened it to show us a drawing of a lovecaraftian creature standing behind what looks like a round hole with four men doing something to the sides of the hole and one man raising both his arms while kneeling in the middle of the drawing.

“What is in the drawing?” Aziz asked

“A misinformed babbling at most, but yet one of the oldest written sources to mention interdimensional ports joining our world to others” answered McDermott

The coffee arrived and we were served.

I started to sip my coffee while having the distinctive feeling that we will not sell any insurance policies and something seriously fishy is involving me and I felt really alarmed.

“Should I be alarmed by the night’s events Mr. McDermott?” I asked

“Not at all, like I said, I need your policy, only you have to prove yourself worthy and trustworthy in the eyes of my dear friend the Sheikh” McDermott had a very serious tone to his voice

My greed won over.

I reached three quarters of the cup when the Sheikh asked to have my cup. He turned it in its plate after circling the remains around and gazed long into it.

And he started “I see three paths, in the first you will acknowledge your heritage and assume your responsibilities. In this one you lead a hard life with little repose; in the second you will acknowledge your heritage but not the responsibility. This one will wed the whore of Babylon and father twin boys, who will place their hands over the world, eat from every feast and assure the coming of the dark; the third you will renounce what you are and what you could have been to favour your wife whom you will marry at 32 years of age. With this you break the black wing and seal the great seal forever and all will be lost”

He then gave me horrible look of accusation and fell back in his chair.

“You are totally wrong! I will marry in 6 months. And I’m just twenty seven.” I asserted smugly.

The Sheikh looked at me and his eyes rolled up, and in a harsh voice said “The keeper in the cold castle died”, then he bent over and passed out. I ran to check his pulse, it was fine.

McDermott stood up, looked in a horrified manner at me and said “Gentlemen, I think I should tend to my friend, I will call you Aziz for a second date, Thank you for honouring us this evening”

We were rushed out in such a fast manner that poor Aziz couldn’t even stop to take the number of that blonde.

 

Good start for the story, I think. I got suspense, mystery and even some background, right?

I think there could be another start, twelve years earlier than this one. Well, should I start at the earlier start or make a flashback scene where I appear to be reminiscent of my childhood or what??

I think I should go back nine years first.

 

I was 18 years old at the time. It was the Christmas Eve and most of my extended family was gathered in the house of one of my cousins.

One of the far off cousins who claimed an intimate relation with hidden forces and the nether world, suggested as a parlour trick to hypnotize any one and I of course volunteered. (There was this stunning blonde girl, friend of my second cousin, whom I really wanted to impress)

As it goes my dear seven degrees removed cousin held a silver trinket in the shape of an eagle hanging from a chain. He started to talk in soft tones to me while I watched the trinket sway back and forth. ”Relax, just loosen up and let go of your fears, leave all the logic behind. Close your eyes, let go of your preconceptions. Sleep” And I think I went out, total black.

 

I found myself racing through what looked like a huge ant hill, holding the hand of a girl about my same age.

She had short curly hair, big eyes, a noble nose and rosebud lips. She wore sometimes a flowing dress and at others puffy pants and a leather sweater.

My guide motioned me to keep quite while we ran past the rooms of the ant hill. In most of the rooms there was a huge body lying through the whole ant hill. The body glistened and breathed in a very organic matter, I thought it looked like an enormous earth worm.

We raced faster and moved deeper; the worm seemed to be stirring.

Eventually we were about to enter the end of the tunnel, in a room that exploded in light, warm and powerful, as if a star sat in that room.

But, I woke up, everybody was in laughs and my cousin whispered in my ears “This was just a small proof of my powers”

 

This was not the strange event I mentioned as a beginning, for during the whole night I was seeing the same girl appearing in front of my eyes as solid as anybody.

I was totally freaked out; I prayed and prayed for the apparition to disappear.

And she just stood there reaching her hand to me, asking me to open the gate.

Finally, at 8 AM, she stood and said one word “Apsus” and she was just gone.

 

Yet another beginning, if I may add another, should be the one when I was 9 years old

 

At the time I just had passed the major event of my grandmother’s death, one of my uncles just decided to go underground for reasons I never could understand.

This is when another uncle decided the best way to find his lost brother is to seek dark magic. For some kind of unfathomable reasons, all the adults at the time thought it was a pretty sane and logical move. Well, now you know where I’m coming from.

So, our apartment was a 3 bedroom, living room, dining room nice cosy place in a quiet area yet near the down town and a rock’s throw from everywhere. And, it was the logical choice for the interested parties to join with the so called magician/witch/wizard guy in his pursuits.

Coffee, tea and biscuits were offered. Everybody was still wearing the black of mourning; the drapes were loosened to cover the apartment in yellow electrical light. The spot where my grandma used to sit was vacant, as was the thing these times.

The guy looked pretty normal to me, just had this air of any other stranger about him.

My mother said “My mother passed away three months ago, and she was in coma at the time. My brother John was angry I think, on my mother’s last week on this realm he had  huge fight with all of us. I’m not going into details, but he left afterwards. He even transferred his job to an unknown location, we can’t find  clue to his whereabouts, and three months already passed” She sipped from her cup of tea “Peter talks well of you, he trusts you have the power to find our brother John, and I trust peter and his judgment.”  She takes another sip of tea “We are afraid for our brother, he didn’t even attend the funeral” and she started to have tears falling from her eyes. (My mother had her quirks, i.e. religious séance, fortune reading  … the works)

All during this monologue of my mother, the man just sat there then he said “Peter told me, I feel your pain. Trust me I will do my best” he clasped his hands together and knelt as if praying. It was kind of boring in a very sad way, I heard her tell this story dozens of times, I could even repeat it letter by letter. Heck, I could even imitate her vocals, head nods, hand wave; in a very convincing manner.

Anyway, the guy asked for a bowel of water (later on in life I understood why water is bound to scrying magic, but this is another story to tell later on) he also asked for a piece of paper.

After having some other items (I don’t really recall all of them, but, they included an item of cloth and an item of value to my disappeared uncle) he laid out his terms.

“So, kind people, you are Christians, right?” he asked

“Yes we are, orthodox Christians” my mother answered.

“OK, I need of you not to mention the name of God, not to ask aid or help from saints, not hold any religious relic or move unless told to, and I need a medium; I’ll take the boy” and he pointed at me.

Again for no fathomable reason, the adults volunteered me, and being a very curious soul, I was exited like a cat in heat!

He started invocation of time and hours, and then he read a part of the 50th psalm, followed by gibberish, followed by invocations.

Then, he placed his hand on my head and I found myself drifting between wakefulness and sleep.

He moved his hand over the water which started to boil (it was in a plastic bowel, that was quiet the feat!)

Then he brought the paper, put a pen in my hand and started again his invocations about time and space.

My hand started to move of its own; my eyes were closed so I couldn’t really know what I wrote.

Then he took the paper, folded it five times and dropped it in the water.

At this moment, the lights of the entire house trembled as if we were about to lose power, then settled.

And the bowl of water caught fire. At this point my eyes sprang open to weird smoke coming from behind the shoulder of the man. Apparently, I was the only one to see it, because all the eyes were on the boiling bowel.

Then he fished out the paper which unfolded in the water, to show a map of sorts, drawing of a face that also had scribbling on it, then he burned the paper promising that my uncle would be back within 40 days (he did by the way!)

Then the guy received some money and left with my uncle.

Eventually we all went to sleep

Then the interesting events started.

At around 3 AM I found that my eyes are opened in my bed, but I couldn’t move, not even blink.

My head was turned towards my window, which for some kind of meteorological mystery was deep in mist.

It was a greenish grey mist that swirled around, nonstop.

But something was flashing across it every now and then.

Then it appeared in its full glory, it was a dragon, gold and red but the size of a poodle, looking exactly as the Chinese dragons’ drawings.

Suddenly the window and most of the wall was gone replaced by a roundish black hole and the dragon was racing towards me. I realized that it came towards me, because it grew in size dramatically.

I didn’t know from where is this shrilling whistle was coming from, it rose to a scream, it was rising and rising.

It was me!

My parents barged into the room, turned the light on and everything but a few wisps of mist remained.

My window was wide open and cracked.

 

I told them the story of my dream/vision. My mother brought holy oil and anointed me and they sealed the windows and the shutters.

Yet I knew the thing is gone not to come back.

 

I have another background story then I will enter into the fleshy parts. (Whoever reads this, hopefully will understand, because I know you passed through similar conditions, including the babbling I’m now writing)

Ever as I could remember as a child, I used to think in the plural, and I assumed this is the normal of everybody.

I used to be afraid of the space above the cupboard in the dark of my room because I saw creatures there.

They didn’t just live there, they fought every weekend over who took the spot nearest to the door and the light coming from outside, this is what scared me most.

When I was about six, I remember that I was asked to tell a story and I told a story of a boy and his four friends who lived in his head.

They were a dragon or a fire worm, a wolf, the mother of worms which was a tiny girl with sharp teeth, and the shadow was also known to the group as the shapeless one.

You can imagine how concerned my parents were, first visit to the psychiatrist.

He insured my normalcy, just that I had an over-active imagination.

Funny thing was, the mother of worms thought of him as ridiculous and with an over active imagination.

 

So, here are the beginnings, I’m allowed to mention, too many yet none catches the glow right??

Well, all are true anyway.

 

First Chapter of my next book

 

-Prologue-

 

East

 

In a circular hall swimming in light of tens of floating globes, concentring semi circles of raised marble surrounded by columns a dark material that seemed to shimmer and fade. Soft smell of incense wafted and swirled round the entire space.

“Time never was a factor in human existence, instead human existence is defining time as it is perceived” Said the elderly teacher to his rapt audience of 14 listeners, “We, as a species grow old because we wish it, entropy is a manifestation of intelligent life as of course the 50 immortals proved to us eons ago” he continued in a calm raspy voice.

“Death on the other hand, is another matter altogether. We know that death is a real and ferocious entity, one that the immortals defeated at some point or another, as in the case of Kare the immortal, 30 times he faced death and bested him at his own devious ploys”

“In our course of studying the feats of the 50, we learn Th…” he was interrupted by a shrill call resounding all through the walls of the huge temple complex “The Dark horde! Brace The Faith! Hold Fast!”

The elderly teacher stood up from his sitting podium, he moved with an agility defying his looks, he peered into the monitor sitting at the middle of the spacious hall “Children, They come, the moment of fulfilment is upon us, you cannot fight it, each one of you will take his codex of knowledge and travel to one of the nations of the world, let your Ka choose the direction for you. MOVE!” he started immediately to cast the portal spell by the last word, the portal opened wide in front of his scrambling students.

The students started to gather in a line each holding a bundle made of the same dark shimmering material like the columns, known to them as Cranias, and heading to the portal. The last student stood looking in question to the teacher “Father, I’m not ready yet to take the burden of humanity. Spare me, let me stay and fight!” she implored the old teacher quietly.

“Aida, my dear student and daughter, your burden is light; just remember what we sacrifice today to ease your mission. Go” he answered in calm yet urgent voice ushering her towards the portal.

“But, Father  … I never believed in the salvation-destruction cycle like the others! I’m not my mother!” she halted his urging and held his arm while standing at the edge of the portal.

“Daughter, we choose not our destiny, our destiny chooses us. Go, by The LIGHT! GO!” he was on the verge of pushing her, yet he knew the fragility of the portal would shatter; negative thoughts had this effect on most mind magic. “Please, leave! ….. They are here!”

Suddenly the enforced doors crash and a spark hit the podium. The Darklings stood at the threshold sniffing the air and hesitating. Aida started to cast the soul cage spell when she noticed that her master was falling slowly to the ground. “FATHER!” she screamed as she knelt by his side. “Aida, they have a Shabil with them, he is already breaking my soul barriers, and he will take me within the moment…” The teacher twisted in agony, she reached to him only to jump back from the heat of his body, and it was like holding the sun. “HAHAHAHA, FUTILE HUMAN. SURRENDER YOUR FALSE CODEX AND WE WILL SPARE YOU” the twisted figure of the teacher growled in an unearthly voice at Aida. She fell back in horror, the monstrosity reached at her violently; she stumbled and fell in the almost closing vortex. A loud clap and smoke was all that was left of Aida and the portal.

 

North

 

Ashgan stood totally still; she was one with the river, one with rocks that scattered in the river bed. Water flowed all around her, she moved her right hand slowly as if caressing a secret lover, she twisted her arm slowly and the river slowed down. She moved her left hand even slower still, her arm twisted and the world changed. Time stood still, she stood up slowly and stepped on top of the now hard surface of the river. She took 7 steps, and time started rushing back knocking her out of the river and into the bank violently.

“You moved your left foot in concordance with the stream, you are not focusing Ashgan!” screamed the older woman sitting on a cushion of ferns by the far bank “I’m starting to doubt that you will ever be capable of Using time streams any efficiently ever!” she shook her head in disdain.

“But, Mistress Lida … I did not move my foot in the direction of the stream! You, pushed time at me!” stood the indignant Ashgan facing her mentor while nursing the bruises on her back and thighs. “You are a rebellious child, I think you are the worst student I ever TOOK!” shouted Lida back, yet secretly she was admiring the determination and the growing sense of time weaves her student is developing. Of course, Ashgan didn’t make a wrong move, and yes she did push time at her. It was all part of the tradition of the honourable Guild of Users. You can’t be a real user unless you can counter pushed time. To the outsiders, the Guild is just another of the magical and mythical guilds that provides services for wealthy (for a hefty sum of gold). A wealthy farmer would like to ripen his crops earlier, or prolong the rain some days. Or a playful lord to prolong his “playfulness”. But, mostly it was ladies, buying youth time to prolong the beauty some more years.

In reality, the Guild was one of the Dark Bay Guilds. The Dark Bay Guilds were formed 10 centuries ago to face the threat of the rising of the Dark in the West and the fall of the old civilization of mankind to the onslaught of the Dark forces and the growing army of Darklings. Hence, the name Dark Bay, because they were created after the grand priest Amous shown the world the prophecies of the mad monk Theovar. She remembers when she was picked from her village to join the guild, great honour and all glory. She realized the truth after her initiation

Into an adapt, this is when she was allowed to read the Incomplete Codex. Which in reality was only 4 pages from the original Prophecies, and she was terrified and she worked hard and long to achieve the rank of master, just to be able to protect her loved ones. This was one hundred and some years ago, the curse of the longevity and youthfulness comes with the trade of using and storing and archiving time. Ashgan disappeared, she flicked her fingers and was in extended time, amazing thought Lida; her student was a few paces away she started to move her arm to push time at her student when she noticed the black shape flying above. A Shade! Only Shades can move freely in extended time. She ran forward shouting to her student and wove her hands as if washing them and a ripple ran through reality. Ashgan stood in mid stride, the shade looked as if it was in stop motion. Lida rushed towards them flicked her arm as if saluting and a flash moved upwards from her hand towards the shade. Sparks cascaded over the shade, which looked like it was losing substance. Amid the rolling vapour that was the shade stood a short grim looking man, he started moving faster yet far slower than her and he suddenly had a sword of Cranias in his hand. Lida swore under her breath, she stood almost as if embracing her student. She wove her hands as if knitting and a bubble started to form around her and her student. The dark shade snarled then rushed towards them. Lida wove her hand again and bubble transformed into a shield. By the time the crania sword was hitting the shield, Lida was waving her both arms. The sword and its bearer suddenly were sucked into the shield. She threw her assailant 50 years into the future and fainted. Ashgan was pushed out of time and felt that her head was buzzing. She looked at the body of her mistress that laid still next to her in puzzlement. Then she noticed the black mark that looked like an imprinted hand that covered her mistress arm, and screamed.

 

 

 

 

South

 

Radhy was moving as if carrying the weight of the world, slowly, shuffling his feet with hanging arms. He hated doing errands for his mother, it was humiliating. It was two days to his naming day; he would finally reach the age of manhood. He moved long the tortious alleys, sand always pushing in his sandals and the constant scorching sun casting long shadows to his strides. Two hot, long, and boring days. Then, he would join the Guild of Travelling merchants, and see the world. He would travel beyond the deserts of Kasah, his nation’s home.

He wanted to be of renown like Imam Abou Khatwa his hero, he was a pedlar who went further than any other human, the man who went past the Sahara, crossed the great Sea of Turmoil, and even went to the fortress of the Guardians far in the West, he even ventured into the Dark lands past the fortress. His mother mocked him and told him that his hero is just a children’s tale spawn by the Guild of pedlars, who had no life or income, to enrich their vaults by tuition gold payed by foolish dreamers who wanted to follow the steps of Abou Khatwa.

He, on the other hand knew that she is saying this to keep him from fulfilling his dream, she wanted him to join the Guild of Glass-makers like his late father. His father died because his Cranias furnace lost essence and exploded in his face. Another reason for why to join the Guild of Pedlars is to face the makers of Cranias in the North and punish the idiot who made his father’s furnace.

Now he had to go to Rakheem the herbalist to buy rodent repellent herbs, his mother complains of a rodent problem in her grain store. He shuffled his legs forward muttering curses under his breath.

Arriving in the thriving ever crowded Zohour plaza, where all the florists, herbalists and apothecaries held shop, in cacophony of colour, smells and deafening noise of the ongoing bartering and selling, He noticed weird commotion, a larger mass of crowd, only standing still not waving their arms and shouting at lungs end in the ancient proud process of “Trading”. The crowd was gathered towards the south end of the huge plaza.

He went towards the commotion, as only curiosity would lead a boy, fast. A man in strange robes with dishevelled hair stood on a wooden box holding a gnarled staff and shouted at the crowds waving his arms in erratic movements. “And, Lo and Behold, the prince of night shall ride his green stead upon thy lands. He weaves the air to blister the skin of the infidels, he looks upon the land and fire burns your crops. He sets the false prophets and their false tomes to fire, he Saunders the land he visits, he will bring doom to the worshippers of the false Light God.” He shouted in a deep voice “Thus, spoke the mad monk Theovar declaring the end of Light and the rein of Darkness. But, the Prophecies of Zonn tells of a saviour, the one born of no man and a master of power. He, shall come forward at the hour of our dire need, he will break the world not to fall under the dark. Seven shall follow him, and 7 will stand against. He shall rule the 14 nations and unite them. He shall face the prince of dark and on the last dying sun, and he will conquer the dark hordes. From his eyes the new sun shall be born, his blood shall be water to parched earth, his liver will bring new life upon your scorched earth and the light will prevail.”

 

Radhy shook his head as if coming out of a trance, another omen of doom and harbinger of death. The fifth, just this month in the city of Karkara. He moved slowly towards the shop of Rakheem.

Suddenly the earth erupted in fire, Radhy jumped back. Something came out of the earth and leapt past him, he felt as if a thousand furnaces exploded at his side and he fell in pain. Through the haze of pain he saw the Shoukrat, a creature from the horror tales often told by his grandmother to keep her grandchildren from mischief, charge towards the old man, who turned around in a violent manner and stroke his staff on the ground for water to rise from where it stroke and arise as a wall facing the enemy. The robes fell, so as the years that the older man carried, his face changed and his hair looked like a hollow of light. It was Harod the immortal, Radhy couldn’t believe his eyes, and Harod started twirling his staff faster than the eye could see. The wall of water engulfed the enemy and started to darken then Harod pointed his staff to touch the ball of water and a strange flash passed through it to the water. Radhy, screamed, he felt as if the flash went out of his body as well. Harod turned, looked at Radhy, then the water became a ball of light and exploded into a million sparks. “Child, you have the gift of light casting, come to my home in the wilderness, follow the light flies” Harod knelt over him, spoke these words and disappeared. Radhy fainted from his pains.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

West

 

Chan moved fast and gracefully in his forms, the order of the Guardians is not one to accept anything below perfect, he was 18 yet he was already a sword, lance and earth magic master. He trained all his life; his parents gave him to the order at the age of 3 years, as was the custom among the lords of the west to give the eldest son to the order. His father was not any lord; he was lord protector, lord over the 30 fortresses and their lords on the West wall.

The West Wall is the last of the four defending walls created after the dark horde the halls of the Codex over millennia ago. This side of the wall was filed with mountains and green forests, on the other side it is like rotted mirror image, ferns and swamps and desolate peaks.

He moved into the stance of the mantis, better suited for lance fighting yet his prowess can adapt any of the stances of sword play, lance dancing and earth calling to the others. 50 stances to the sword, 30 to the lance and 20 of earth. He learnt from his master, that of old earth calling had more than 100 stances or spells as the common people call them. But, since the darkness destroyed the great civilization of the west, most of the stances were lost to time.

His commander, stood by the corner of the field watching in silence, he was not the only rook training in the field, there was 300 rooks in all, at least 70 of them were training in the field today.

He moved to the waiting bear stance in a fluid motion, the basic stance of calling for rock skin, part of the advanced earth calling art. He shifted his weight to the balls of his feet, danced around his own axis and entered into the praying monk stance.

It was a sad sight, only 70 rooks where 700 could train, only 300 rooks were 4000 should have joined. Most of the lords are having less male offspring, generation after generation, when his father was a rook, they were 2000.

The low moaning call of tower of silence resounded; all the rooks formed ranks and ran towards the westernmost tower. They call it the tower of silence, because it is the last place most of the guardians see, the tower most attacked by the dark.

They arrived to the sound of swords; the shrill screams of the dark mooks, foot soldiers of the dark prince, yet as powerful as 4 men each. He entered silently into the fray. Moving in circles, this is how they were trained to cover more space and spread the swords in perfect spacing, also perfect for taking bigger Darklings, such as the Shomen. Shomen were beings tall as two men and having tree bark instead of skin and their touch was mind shattering. Called Shomen, because of the whooshing sound they make while moving.

His sword was turning heavy and black from the black blood of the mooks. He didn’t know how many mooks he cut through. He felt burning at his ear, and in his left shoulder, the mooks carried poisoned weapons, he knew that right after the fight he should call for earth’s salve to stop the poison until the resident healer could have the time for him. Poor Leah, she was the most overworked healer, since she dedicated herself for the rooks and their ailments.

The shrill call for retreat came to the mooks. And as they came they went.

Chan slumped to the ground taking the stance of the humbled son and called for salve, and he waited in his place to be healed. It is going to be a long winter.

 

“Knowledge is not treasure, nor is it a weapon, knowledge is a burden, and its bearer should decide which parts to impart unto others and which should be hidden, or else mankind suffers the consequence”

Teachings of the Great Prophet to his Disciple Akonokh

 

 

A Moment in time.

He smiled in comfortable silence while he watched his four years old son playing with his peers.

His wife sat to a side with two other mothers; all packing bags with the usual necessities for small children.

He turned his head slowly, surveying the perimeter of the children’s playground.

His senses from long hours working as a policeman were matching those of a guarding dog’s.

He might look human to the unsuspecting eyes; but the terrors he learned to accept on daily basis dropped him down the primal food chain.

He is rough, prone to violence and always sleeps with half open eyes.

His child jumped around him happily demanding his attention.

He carried his child and stood laughing.

Just for a moment, he loses his roughness and regains a minuscule bit of humanity ; he hugs his child and turns in circles to let the child fly in the air.

The child squeals as only those possessed of total innocence can do.

While turning around, he saw him; a man standing silently at the far corner of the playground.

The senses of the guarding dogs took precedence over his humane moment.

This man doesn’t belong in the picture.

He registered him as a snapping wolf watching the playful sheep.

He started to lower down his protesting child, and he noticed what the wolf is pulling from his pocket; a cylinder that he knows all too well, pointing towards his child.

He turned to face his wife with a silent scream in his eyes.

He drops his child down, turning to cover the child’s body by his own, his back now is facing the pouncing wolf.

He moved, but his feet were nothing more than discarded old tools.

The first bullet hits his thigh.

He knelt down on his child.

The second bullet hits his back in the middle.

He looks at face of his child with the same smile that comes to him whenever he sees him smiling.

Far away screams that should pull his attention just fade to silence.

He falls.

A moment in time to memorize the smile of his child before the light dies in his eyes.

The White City

-1-

General Terror Umar gazed upon his troops covering the hills and valleys surrounding the White City in amusement. They were monsters, killers and savages, and he knew it.

Yet, they were unstoppable, when one falls; he poisons the land where he fell. Where one will succumb, ten will rise. And they had the ability to turn their environment to their advantage.

They ate anything and bred like rabbits. His troops were unbeatable and he was proud of them.

His aid rushed to his lair, an unidentified roundish hell of rotting flesh of the dead and dying people of the plains, the general liked to call it home.

“The white City guards are receiving enforcement soon, the outer perimeter trenches are under vicious attack, new magic, new enemy” he looked at the general in attention.

“Rays or fog?” asked the general. “Fog my general, but it also destroyed the dying city of REN, the allies of the White city are getting desperate.”

The aid took a chunk of flesh from his satchel and started salivating and munching on it.

This was the real cause of the war, hunger. The tribes of T. Umar were ravenous beings, and they marched on, eating everything in sight; until nothing is left. And they never stood hungry for long.

“Send the weak, injured and crippled units to the fog front. This will slow it down, and pile their dead bodies behind the trenches to further slow the fogs advancement.” The general ordered while walking towards the wall of his lair and plucking a mound of flesh to munch on.

“I will dispatch the order immediately my general.”

Then the aid severs one of his fingers on the spot letting his blood run to the ground. The blood pooled and as if it were sentient, it bubbled and raced out of the lair in the direction of the outer perimeter.

The severed finger was then replaced in its place and attached itself back as if it was never cut.

“How goes our dormant cells? And our hidden infiltrators?” the general stopped munching on his squirming meal to ask.

“New report arrives within 80 cycles my general, yet the last report from our hidden infiltrator zeta has great promise for the problem of princess Anima. Should fruit within 600-1000 cycles at most.” The aid idly licked his finger between sentences.

“Good, we wait, and we will feed.” The general opened his mouth at an impossible angle and swallowed the mound of flesh whole.

-2-

Princess Anima paced in her chambers restlessly. Her hand maiden Ocultata watched her through down cast eyes.

Ocultata’s fingers twined and curled as she stood waiting for the princess to speak.

“But are you sure the war stops if I do it?” the distraught princess asked.

“Commander Prodito is about to take over the Umar tribes, and I believe he can end this war” answered Ocultata while her fingers untwined and her hands moved in a sinuous fashion through her attire.

“But, what about the White City guard, they would notice my absence.” Anima’s voice trembled.

“Not necessarily, one of the shifter Umar would replace you for the day you will be gone.” A tinge of hunger passed over the face of Ocultata for a moment then disappeared before Anima could notice. “

Anima knew she could not be harmed by the Umar, not directly. Death of her citizens on the other hand could end her; she would go to the great unknown if all defenses of the realm fell.

This is why she entertained the proposition of her maid. A quick journey to meet with Prodito, an aspiring usurper according to the information supplied by her maid, to receive a portion of her light would end the war.

She understood the ramifications; too much light taken from her would threaten the forces of the White City, as she weakens so would the forces.

Prodito would gain enough power to taken on T. Umar, but he could just use it to crack the walls of the White City.

The light, the gift that identifies and grants the force of rulership, it is her birth right and identity.

“I will go Ocultata; I need to end this war even if it means it weakens me for the rest of my existence.” Anima looked at her maid in the eyes.

“I will smuggle the shifter tonight your highness, I will make preparations for the journey right away.” As Ocultata turned, a smile crossed her face.

-3-

“How fair Hepar?” the leader of the white guards raised his head from the visor to address his second.

“The city of Hepar is on the brink, not from the barbarians, but rather collateral damage from the recent three ray enforcement from the Outside allies.” The second bent a little as he answered.

“And Cardium?” the leader stood up to look at his second.

“For the time being, alright”

“How many Phages survived the last assault?”

“Around a hundred thousand”

“We lost a lot my friend, we have to change strategy.”

“I agree, but what can we do?”

“You know what we can do friend, it is our last resort.”

“I don’t like that plan leader, not at all” the second was fully aware of the desperate plan the leader was talking about. The princess would gather all the forces and move on to Cerebra.

The High City of Cerebra had the strongest walls in the entire realm, they were impervious to attack.

It was desperate because it would dim the light of the princess over the rest of the realm. And it would force the people of Cerebra into seclusion.

They would have to shut the city to the rest of the realm. The High City of cerebra would lose its main function as the main communicator with the other realms.

This might mean the loss of the war or the realm. The Outside communicated through the High City of their enforcements. This meant either the enforcements would stop or be increased unhindered.

Either way, the realm would die.

-4-

“We have been walking for a long time Ocultata, and we are moving towards the center of the camps of the Umar” Terror seeped through the words of Anima.

“We are not far your highness, soon we will be there.” Hunger unhindered was tinging the voice of Ocultata.

Anima was feeling a change in Ocultata, and she was terrified of it. She no longer had a down cast demeanor on her, and she seemed to be growing bigger.

“I can see the lair of T. Umar up ahead, are you sure we are in the right direction?”

“Sure princess, this is where we will find Prodito”

Anima walked in silence. All around her the fires of the Umar were heating everything to an inferno.

Yet, Anima was shivering.

-5-

“Mom, my head hurts a lot” the small boy lying in his bed complained.

“Peter my love, Nurse Mary just gave you the injection; it takes some time to get the fever down.” His mother caressed his head and smiled wanly.

“I know mom, but it is different from any other time. I feel like my head is falling.”

“It will pass honey, it will pass” She leans down to kiss him.

-6-

“Welcome princess Anima, welcome to my humble abode.” General T. Umar beamed at Anima upon her entrance into his lair.

Anima turn to flee, to find the entrance sealed. “Calm down princess, I control my home by my mere presence in it. There is no way out.” The general sat down on a mound of quivering flesh.

“Ocultata, you miserable retch! You betrayed me.” Shouted Anima to her maid. “How could you betray our people, how could you!”

“I never betrayed your people princess” Ocultata seemed to change, she looks more like of the Umar than one of the people of the realm. “I am an Umar, always was, always will be”

“But you were with me since the beginning, how could you have been one of them?” Anima held her head in anguish, she felt as if her head is going to fall off her shoulders.

“I am a shifter, the shifter if I may for I am the mother of all the other shifters.” Ocultata answered in defiance.

General T and his aid Prodito watched in silence. Amusement crossed the face of the general, his triumph was at hand. Just one more push.

“Princess Anima, if you would be so kind and surrender some of your light, I would be obliged to let you go unharmed” General T. started at Anima.

“Never! I would never surrender my light to you” Anima cowered away from the general.

“You and I know you can’t be harmed directly, but your subjects can and would. Bring the prisoner”

The lair unsealed and two Umar grunts drag in a child, Anima recognized his features, he is a REN.

“Start with the legs, do it slowly” smiled the general to Anima.

-7-

A resounding scream rolled over the camp, never to be noticed or acknowledged.

Screams of the dying was an everyday duty to the Umar.

Most of it was caused by them.

Princess Anima cried “Stop, please kill him and stop this, this is too much”

“We prefer our food fresh princess; we only eat the dead not to waste.” The general emphasized his point by grabbing a chunk of the extremities of the boy and swallowing it.

-8-

Two men in white coats stand in front of a door marked by the number 14.

The older man holds a sheet of paper “Peter Richards, aged 7 suffering of ALA, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, we started chemotherapy for him 2 months ago. He was misdiagnosed by the family doctor, and his treatment was delayed around one year. His prognosis is not that good; he is your responsibility from now on. His mother rarely leaves him though, so you will have to council her as well.”

“Why a psychiatrist was not demanded from the start?” asked the younger man.

“The mother refused, you will have to deal with that as well.”

“Ok, I understand”

The younger man knocks on the door, after being invited in, he enters. “Hi Peter, Mrs. Richards, I am Doctor Yassin Adnan. I am a psychiatrist; I am here to help both of you.

“Sorry Doctor, I don’t believe much in psychiatrists, never trusted them” said Mrs. Richards.

“I will just do my best, and hope to change your mind about psychiatrists” smiled Yassin.

“Are you here to give me more injections?” Asked peter.

“Not at all, in fact, I am here to tell you a story”

“What kind of story?”

“The Story of Princess Anima and The white City”

“Anima! I know this word, my father taught me some Latin, it means soul!” peter started excitedly.

“Well, this soul is very special, and her city is magical. And it is all inside of your body”

“In my body? How come?”

“It sure is, they are so tiny. In fact the white city is made up of cells. Which is at war with General T. Umar, you know him simply as ALA. It is what makes you sick.”

“His name sounds like tumor, is this right?”

“Sure is, and I am here to tell you the story, so that you can help princess Anima”

“I can help her?”

“Yes of course, if you think of her and keep fighting, her light grows strong and finishes the forces of Tumor.”

“Light, what light?”

“Princess Anima has light that can destroy the ALA, all you need to do is be strong, have happy thoughts, and send them to her”

“How do I send them to her?”

“Just think of sending your strength, thoughts, and happy memories to her. She will fight for you then.”

“And the leukemia will go away?”

“I believe that you can do this, you can make the leukemia go away”

-9-

The music wafted through the plains, and for once, since months ago, there was sun shining over the valley.

Even though the plains were devastated, child laughter could be heard in the distance.

Anima was chained in the lair of the General. Yet she felt the music, heard the laughter and felt the warmth of the sun.

For days this was what kept her from succumbing to the horrors exacted by the General.

Then, came the voice. “I can do this, I can win this war. Princess Anima, I need you to heal me. I need your light.” The voice was but a whisper, yet she heard it as if shouted by giants.

She felt it in her core. And with it she felt another thing that left the plains, she felt hope. She felt the light growing inside of her.

She felt her chains chaffing her hands, but she knew, she will not be chained for long.

From the lair came a low moan, and light was breaking through.

Delivery

He stood looking at his hope in puzzlement. It didn’t have the correct dimensions to wrap in a cardboard box, it couldn’t be wrapped in gift wrapper because of the edges and it was to too big for a plastic bag.

He went through the house to search for a suitable conduit.

His search led him to the attic, where he found a trunk of expired dreams, he felt nostalgic and went through some of them.

He pondered with a smile at his naive dream of recognition, it used to be so bright and big, it sat now all dusty and shriveled, he polished it a little it then put it down again.

He picked next his dream of fortune, the thing was dead, it was oozing all over the place.

He grabbed a dropped page from his childhood memories to grab the thing without totally soiling his hands and he threw it out of the window to his garbage yard.

He noticed a flattened dream at the bottom of the trunk, it was his dream of happiness.

He pulled it out and tried to fill it with air, he blew into it repeatedly to no avail. he almost threw it away when he noticed that it was clinging to his arm, taking on its contours.

He grabbed it and ran to the living room where he left his hope to gather dust.

he wrapped his dream of happiness and it fit perfectly.

He stood admiring his handy work for a moment, then he grabbed the hope wrapped in the dream of happiness and left the apartment.

he reached the post office and sent it via land mail to a charity organization he watched advertising of on his mail junk box, they said they needed your discarded hopes for poor billionaires without any.

He felt good about himself and his charitable spirit.

Hopeless he felt light and went home with no worries.[image error]

The Trinity’s Dream

The dreamer stirs awake, if he wakes he dies, and his death would bring forth the end of the world.

Scientists and analysts from all over the world report that all life on earth would parish in six months.

International efforts to save a portion of humanity are going on slowly despite the imminent danger.

John a Catholic priest with a faith crisis, Adam an Atheist with a secret guilt that is consuming him and Ramy an online Jihadi with a death wish are on a forced path towards the dreamer.

A secret order have the only knowledge of the event, they dealt with it in the past.

Every one has his personal nightmare and his own dreams, but only the Dreamer keeps the nightmares at bay.

An urban fantasy with supernatural elements.

 

 

The Trinity’s Dream my first published dark fantasy

The story of Fluffy the bunny

One day, fluffy the bunny went out to play.

“Playing needs a license; you should know better.”

So, one day, Fluffy the bunny went out.

“I’m not sure I can allow this; I mean, where is his permit to go out?”

To start again, one day Fluffy the bunny stood in his hole underground.

But he will not stay underground forever.

And he will not stay a fluffy bunny forever.

One day he will rise to be a wrathful lion.

Nonsense

I sat with her just like we do every day, and like every day we roasted our hopes on hot coals then we eat it for dinner to pass the night.

The last week she had a hope of salvation, sadly we started roasting that night too late, it was not totally cooked when we ate it. I thought it would have been excellent with white wine.

Today, I offered my hope for a better future, it was too small to feed us both, so I prepared a large bowel of salad to go with it.

she told me that she was afread of running out of hope, I hope this never happens.

We deliberated whether we can use other people’s hopes, but we decided working as a prostitute or as a politician was not becoming.

Tomorrow she would cook a surprise hope, but I think I know what it is.

Tomorrow would be her hope for us to stay together.[image error]

I want to die

How joyful, a baby boy is born.

He screamed “I don’t like this, i want the black rest”

Entropy heard him and said “Not yet, you are the joy of your parents, you will live.

The baby grew and one day he fell hurting his head with a large wound.

He cried out “It hurts do much, make it stop, i want to close my eyes for ever.”

Entropy was still around “Not yet, you are growing and you will discover the world, you will live.”

He grew more and he tasted the bitterness of being left behind, the pain of loneliness amidst the crowd.

He mumbled between waking and sleep “I don’t feel but pain, i wish i would die.”

Entropy approached and said “You didn’t yet experience love or the satisfaction of a doing a job well or earning the respect of others, you will live.”

He reached the age of 16, his hormones were raging, his mind was confused and most of his efforts only garnered ridicule.

He sat in the darkness and scribbled on the walls “I hate my existence, i am less than a mote of dust, my life means nothing and my death will be the same, i just want to die.”

Entropy descended from the rooftop where she was gazing at the stars “Life has yet a lot to give, you will know reason, fulfillment and will get your praise, you will live.”

He grew into an adult, had a career and goals, but he was rejected and failed to find a companion to share his nights, over a glass of scotch he thought “Life is bitter when a man is alone, on most night i think only of dying.”

Entropy drank the rest of his bottle and said “You will find your match, then you will know the joy of sharing everything, you will live.”

He now has a wife, two kids and a cat, but he always had bitter discussions with his wife, and most of the time they turned into fights, he sat in his car and thought “If i just turn left, the car would turn over and i will die, this is not a life when all your time is spent fighting.”

Entropy killed the radiator, causing him to stop the car and she said “You still have to enjoy releasing your kids as adults to the world, your fulfillment would be unmatched, you will live.”

He saw his first grandchild, he felt the reality of life in her eyes, he held the baby and said “I have never expected that bliss comes in such tiny packages, i really want to live to see you an adult small one.”

Entropy took off her mask and surgery gown and said “I just finished building your death, it comes for you this night, you had  full life, hope you treasured it.”[image error]