The Hypogeum Ch. 08-09

"Wh... Wh... What must I do?"

"What must I do, Milord!"

"What must I do... Milord?"

"That is better. You must do, exactly as I tell you."

Baphomet could feel the effects of the blood energy wearing off, he weakened and felt unable to continue holding on to his physical form. He shimmered and then vanished back through the stone tablet and into the ley node.

Alma blinked and was back to herself again.

Taika still sat opposite her and looked exhausted. A quick glance through the window let Alma know that it was getting late as she could see the sky darkening to a deep inky blue. "How long have I been sitting here?"

Taika yawned, "Most of the day. Time for sleep now. Dreamless sleep tonight I think,"

She stood up and stretched her old spine, "We can continue your lessons in the morning."

With that, both women retired to the sleeping area upstairs and fell into a deep, dreamless slumber.

* * *

Once the kitchen had been cleaned to Ranulf's satisfaction, and Aloysius had disposed of the bodies, all three activated their travel stones and disappeared from the house.

One by one the three men popped back into existence in the grounds of a small house set deep in the woods of the New Forest. Well away from the beaten track and surrounded on all four sides by the native Cicada trees, there was very little possibility of the house ever being discovered, in fact none of the men could remember seeing any living thing in this place apart from each other, a few muntjacs and the occasional wild pony, for which the region was famous.

The house itself, although small, was comfortable, airy and rather modern in look. It was built of red brick and the slated roof held a number of solar panels. The water was taken directly from an underground stream and filtered before it pumped into the large storage tank to be used for drinking and washing. No one knew of the existence of the house outside the three men and Taika. All the materials used to build it had been stolen from various businesses and shops around the country. None of the group was entirely comfortable with theft, except Loki, but all could see the necessity. If they were to be able to operate safely from here, then its existence needed to remain a secret. It had taken several weeks to appropriate all the materials even with the help of the travel stones and it had taken several more months to build the house. Ranulf, Aloysius and Loki made their way inside as Loki asked, "Whose turn is it to cook? I'm starving."

Aloysius hooked a thumb toward Ranulf, "His."

Loki groaned, "Great! Sausage and beans again."

CHAPTER NINE

"To escape evil isn't the same thing as to overcome it." - Kerttu Wanne

Alma's eyes glazed over and once again she felt herself slipping away.

The Norman motte and bailey castle on the hill was impressive to say the least. With a commanding view of the surrounding countryside and high stone walls inside the huge trough that travelled the circumference of the castle, it seemed like an impregnable fortress. Around the outside of the trough were many houses and business premises that made up the town of Sarisburia. This was where William the Conqueror had convened the prelates, sheriffs and knights together to pay homage and also where, years earlier, King Edgar had organised the defence of the realm against invading Danes.

But Baphomet cared little for these trivialities. He was busy working his evil, searching always for new minds that could be bent to his will. He had managed to establish a secret society of agents throughout the world and it was through one of these agents that he became aware of the prophecy.

The chieftain of a small tribe in the southern portion of the Americas had been turned to Baphomet's cause and had joined him with abandon. The sacrifices were numerous and often and Baphomet revelled in the surge that arrived through the ley lines with each tortured death when a still beating heart was ripped from a supplicant's body.

In the village amongst the trees of the rainforest lived an old man, he had no issue and made his living by supplying arrowheads for the hunters. One day, he had been busily working when he suddenly stopped and his hands fell limply to his sides, he had a faraway look in his eye and then began speaking. For three days and three nights, he spoke, repeating the same story over and over again.

This strange occurrence came to the ears of the Chieftain and he came to see for himself the old man who had apparently been possessed by spirits. As the Chieftain looked on, the old man began again with his speech, "Evil walks amongst us and he is strong and powerful. Guard your hearts against lust and avarice and greed. He shall grow ever stronger and should he be freed from his constraints, then devastation shall fall upon us. No may stand before him, lest they be destroyed or turned to his evil cause. None except the few. The Magician, the Shield, the Warrior, the Trickster. These be our hope and these be our salvation. Mighty they shall be and pure of purpose. And still they shall not prevail, unless they come forth to battle with the Mother. The Mother shall face down the Evil and there shall be the mightiest battle. From their names shall they be known and in the place of the river of the wily shall they go forth to battle."

The chieftain watched the old man repeat the phrase a few more times and then retired to his hut to commune with the Lord in his fire. As he reported, the face in the flames grew angry and ordered the old man killed so that the words he spoke were stopped. The chieftain carried out his orders, but it was too late. Many people had heard the old man's words... And remembered them.

Baphomet was stunned at the news his disciple had brought him. He had no idea where the words had come from and was more than a little angry. What power dared to challenge him in his quest to be free? Who had brought it upon themselves to make him their enemy?

Whilst the old man had been speaking his prophetic words, Baphomet had attempted to enter his mind, and found that he could not. Someone or something had raised barriers that he could not breech. The demon thought long and hard on the words that the old man had spoken. There was a river nearby that was named the Wylye, so it was obvious that the reference was aimed at Sarisburia, as the locals called it. He was at the same time heartened by the admission that the group could not beat him without the aid of someone called the Mother. Well he was ready and he would be ever watchful against the appearance of this creature, and he would make sure that she died and her life force would be joined to his to make him even more powerful. Even in the midst of his conviction that he, Baphomet was destined to rule over this world, he could not erase the sliver of doubt that had entered his mind.

He was distracted from his thoughts when he sensed movement in his stone vault above.

Several brown clad disciples had entered the room dragging a young girl with them; she was bound hand and foot and was wearing a gag. Wide eyed with fear, she was stretched out over the stone tablet by two of the men, whilst the others stood at various points around the circle. The last thing she saw was the flash of a knife in a disciple's upraised hand that suddenly plunged down into her heart. Baphomet felt the familiar rush as the life force entered his being and he roared in satisfaction. Feeding always put him in a better mood.

Meanwhile, far away in a small village hidden deep in the forests of a country called Suomi, a baby girl was born. Her mother named her Taika, she didn't know why, she just liked the name and it meant magic spell.

As she grew, Taika became aware that she was not like other little girls. She had no interest in playing with dolls or gossiping about boys. She preferred to spend her time in the forest, walking for miles through the densely packed Montane birch trees. She imagined that she could talk to them and they in turn could talk to her. One day, she was out as usual roaming far and wide, when she became sleepy and decided to rest in the shade of a large birch that she considered one of her best friends. And as she slept, she dreamt.

She dreamt of the magical power that the trees could give her, she dreamt of the knowledge that could be given to her, should she only open her mind and let the Forest in.

Taika woke up and gazed around her. The only sound was of birds whistling and calling as they flew from branch to branch and the soft breeze that made the boughs sway and caused the leaves to rustle. She closed her eyes and whispered, "Yes." For the first time in her life, Taika heard the voices of the Forest and she was deeply interested in what they had to say.

Baphomet sent out tendrils of though in all directions as the years rolled by, every so often he found a mind that was of distinct interest to him, one that he knew could be used to spread the death and destruction he loved so much.

One such mind was that of a small boy called Temujin who lived near the city of Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia, Baphomet followed this boy to adulthood, offering words of wisdom in his dreams and using his powers to assist Temujin winning battle after battle across the Russian Steppe and even as far as Europe. The demon helped Temujin raise an army the like of which had not been seen before and cause mayhem, destruction and death on a vast scale. As the conflagration raged, the boy became the man and gained the title that history remembered him by.

He became Ghengis Khan.

Later, Baphomet planted seeds in the minds of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and his queen, Isabelle I of Castile. Seeds that would lead to the torture and death of thousands of people across the world, in what became known as the Spanish Inquisition.

A young man by the name of Napoleone di Buonoparte from the Mediterranean island of Corsica began his education in warfare at the Ecole Militaire in Paris. Initially only an average student, he soon displayed a will to succeed, a new found talent for warfare and a personal need for power that spurred him on to become one of the greatest military leaders of his age.

Baphomet was well pleased with himself, as it had only taken one or two minor changes of the boy's nature in order to cause strife across Europe and Africa. Each death in battle sang out and emitted energy along the ley lines that ended up at Sarum, where Baphomet eagerly drank of it.

Gavrilo Princip steeled himself as he gripped the pistol in his hand ever more tightly. He was trying to calm his nerves with deep breathing as he waited for the motorcade to arrive. The voice in his head told him yet again of the glory that awaited him, Hero of Bosnia they would call him as he was paraded through the streets of Sarajevo. The car he was waiting for had taken a wrong turn and by happy chance that placed it almost directly in front of the young member of the group calling itself Young Bosnia.

He strode forward and fired.

The first bullet struck the male passenger in the neck, and the second hit his wife in the abdomen. Both were to die by his hand. Before he could make his escape, Gavrilo was wrestled to the ground by other members of the motorcade and arrested. He was horrified to discover that not only had the voice in his mind deserted him, but he would never be lauded as the Hero of Bosnia and could look forward to nothing except spending the rest of his short life in prison. Baphomet rejoiced deep in his dark retreat. He had set in motion a series of events that would change the face of the world forever and also send many millions to their deaths. The demon had initiated the First World War.

It was during what Baphomet considered his greatest success so far, that he discovered the key to his freedom.

In the year 1933, a young man sat in a Munich beer hall and was noticed by Baphomet, a failed painter from Austria, he had drives and needs that were just what Baphomet required. He also had such a charisma about him, that Baphomet knew this one was something special. This one could be the agent of death on a truly massive scale. Baphomet used his powers to assist Adolph Hitler in his rise to power. Agents of the Hypogeum as he had named his organisation were sent to Berlin where they instigated the burning of the Reichstag and so began one of the darkest chapters in the whole of human history.

The demon was awash with energy as the accumulated deaths on the battlefields of the Earth and in the concentration camps of Nazi Germany fed to him via the network of ley lines.

But that was set aside when something new appeared in his consciousness, he felt a shockwave roll across the ley node that imprisoned him here at Old Sarum, he felt the forces holding him in place waver for a moment before returning to full strength. This was a new power, something that he knew he could use to his advantage.

Baphomet followed the course of the shockwave back along the ley lines from where he felt it arrive and it led him to a place in the Americas called Los Alamos, New Mexico.

Reaching out to the minds of those nearby he discovered something called the Manhattan Project. Baphomet watched in awe. This power of the atoms could free him. Baphomet now knew what he needed to do. This place was too far from his prison to be useful, what he needed was the power of the atom to be released much closer to his ley node.

Finally! There existed a weapon that could breach the walls of his prison. Old Sarum needed to be attacked with the power of the nuclear weapons and he could be free. But still he had a nagging doubt. In all his searching throughout the world, he had found no clue, no trace of the group of people fated to oppose him. And of special consideration was the fact that he still knew nothing of the Mother.

Just as the power of the atom ended the war, in Cardiff, a baby was born. He weighed in at 10lb 7 oz and the midwife was sure she had never seen a baby so big. His parents decided on the name of Aloysius, although neither could remember suggesting it, both agreed it was a fine, if unusual, name for their son.

As he grew, Aloysius found himself the butt of many jokes and comments. As he continued to grow, the jokes stopped, but the comments continued. A succession of young men, all eager to prove their fighting prowess, had shown Aloysius that he was destined to fight, however much distaste he might have for it. He also discovered that in addition to his size, he was 6'6" at the age of thirteen and topped seven feet by the time he was eighteen, he had a natural aptitude for fighting. His frequent fights brought him into almost constant contact with the police, and as it was usually the word of one brutal looking giant against those of much smaller men, it was normally Aloysius who ended up in the dock.

At his latest appearance in court, the judge gave him a choice; go to prison or join the army.

Aloysius chose Her Majesty's Armed Forces. Here was a world that not only didn't prejudge him by his criminal record, but actually embraced his natural fighting abilities. He had wanted to join the Parachute Regiment, but his massive frame was both too large and far too heavy for the normal military parachute, so he joined the Cheshire Regiment, as his sheer physical size precluded him from joining the Welsh Guards.

"You just won't fit in," said the officer from the Welsh Guards who was looking over the latest recruits being put through their paces in basic training.

The Cheshire's on the other hand, knew they had a diamond. Especially when he showed his fighting spirit and natural skills in the boxing ring. Aloysius also discovered unarmed combat from other countries, being especially adept at the Wing Chun and Wu Shu forms of Kung Fu. Alice, as he was affectionately called within the Regiment, soon became known as the man you wanted at your back when things got tough. He saw active service all over the world and took part in more than his fair share of fighting, both armed and unarmed.

One day, his time in the army came to an end when he was forty years old. After twenty-two years, he was retired from colour service. No longer a soldier and at a total loss what to do with the rest of his life. He was sitting in the garden of a pub playing with his pint rather than drinking it. There was an oak tree nearby. His eyes glazed over and the voices spoke to him. Aloysius listened to what they had to say. After a brief pause, he nodded and disappeared.

Baphomet watched the arms race through the fifties, sixties and seventies with great interest. The Cold War between the two superpowers was the nearest he came to watching the atomic war he so desperately wanted. Sadly for him, the Cuban Missile Crisis came to a tense, but peaceful end. The two leaders involved had been impervious to his blandishments; the American leader especially had seemed untouchable, as with the prophetic old man from centuries ago, Baphomet found his way into the man's mind blocked by some unknown power. His wrath at this outrage almost overwhelmed him, but somehow, he struggled to regain his composure and continued questing for the foreordained woman who was destined to meet with him in battle, and still he could find no trace.

In Scotland a child was born. His parents decided to veer from the family tradition of naming the first-born son Richard, after the father and instead opted for Ranulf. Unusual as it was for a Scot, they liked it and so he was named Ranulf McNab. Although he never sought leadership as a child, it always seemed to fall to him to organise teams and invent the games for the local children to play. All of them automatically deferred to him when a decision was required.

As a young man he enlisted into the army, but found that it was too rigid and set in its ways for his liking. He drifted from one place to another with no real direction in his life. The only constant was his love of the countryside. Sometimes he would stop off at a farm to work the fields. Usually finding that he was elected as the mouthpiece when the workers felt a discussion was required with the current employer. Unlike most young men of the time, he wore his dark hair long and tied back in a pony tail, almost as though he was showing his defiance of the rules.

Whilst he was walking back from the local village to the bunkroom where he currently slept at the potato farm, he paused near a grove of trees that grew at the junction where the farm road met the main thoroughfare. He could hear something that no one else would have been able to had they been with him. His eyes were wide in wonder as he nodded his agreement.

Ranulf vanished.

The years rolled forward, Baphomet had an army of willing volunteers at his disposal; all of them were men and women in positions of power. In the military, business, banking, as well as in the lower echelons of society, where a strong back and a willingness to ignore the laws of man was required. Well placed as all his people were and powerful as he was, still there was no sign of the Mother. And still his plans for world domination seemed no nearer than they had been when the power of the atom was revealed to him. It was 1982. Baphomet was reaching out with his mind along the lines of power that had become as much a part of him as his body and mind. He was reaching out toward a small group of islands just off the coast of the southern point of Argentina. A flotilla of ships was heading there on the orders of the British Prime Minister in response to an illegal occupation by Argentine military forces. More strife, more needless death and more destruction lay in the immediate future and Baphomet wanted to taste it.

A child was born in a hospital in Swindon.