 
The Satanists

A Story By

Philip R Benge

Smashwords Edition

***************

Published by

Philip R Benge on Smashwords

The Satanists

Copyright Philip R Benge 2016

Cover Art Copyright Philip R Benge 2016

Thank you for downloading this eBook. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form, with the exception of quotes used in reviews.

Your support and respect for the property of this author is appreciated.

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author`s imagination and used fictitiously.

The Satanists

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One: Moira Bourbon

Chapter Two: Assembling the Essentials

Chapter Three: The Domain of Lord Asbaritch

Chapter Four: Fratricide

Chapter Five: Halloween

Chapter Six: Rescue

Chapter Seven: The Hell Dimension of Tartarus

Chapter Eight: Return to France

About the Author

Other Books by the Author

Prologue

They had been imprisoned within a hell dimension many thousands of years ago, and ever since then they had been trying to escape, but without any success whatsoever. Just recently though, within the last three years, they had created a chink in the energy barrier that prevented their escape. Now the most powerful of the gods and demons were standing upon a circular gallery, it looked down upon a large central pool of water, and upon the surface of the water a mystical oil had been poured, and it was through the mirror that the oil created that they were able to see the universe. This was their chink, for within the pool, they saw the many people of Earth, and if the gods wanted, they could even listen in to their conversations. This chink did not allow them to escape from their prison, however, with their minds they eagerly delved into this wondrous pool, searching for someone who might be able to assist them in their one desire, to return to Earth. Above the drone of so many human minds, they were able to find those who were Satanists, and amongst these few, they found one who they could use, a mind not as powerful as many, but one that would not allow danger to stand in its way. They then used all the power of their twisted and evil minds to try to reach her mind and to influence this one young woman, a Satanist, but one with a fierce desire to resurrect her father. The problem was that her father was condemned to spend eternity within another of the many hell dimensions, and she needed a much greater knowledge of her chosen path, Satanism, than she possessed, and a great deal more satanic power, if she was to get him back. They did reach her mind, but unknown to them their message had to be boosted by the powers of another, before it could reach the young Satanist, by a powerful being who felt their minds straining to break out of Tartarus, one with an agenda that differed from their one.

Chapter One

Moira Bourbon

Moira Bourbon had been a patient at a psychiatric hospital for the last two years, and the psychiatrist in charge of her case expected her to be one for a very long time, although Moira had other plans. Her psychiatrist attempted to channel Moira`s restless mind into something creative, and she actively encouraged Moira to spend time tending a herb garden, to give her an interest in life, and to ease the pain caused by the loss of her father. Ulysses Bourbon, her father, had been a Satanist, he had died when Special Intelligence Service agent Rob Hinds had shot him to prevent him from killing Christina Ryman, Rob`s fiancée, during a satanic black mass. To the delight of her psychiatrist, Moira had agreed to start up a herb garden. Moira did this as a way to obtain the herbs necessary to allow her to attain her own goal. For unknown to her psychiatrist, Moira spent her free time practicing the art of Satanism, she did not have a coven of course; however, this did not stop her.

She used the herbs to create potions, and these she used to conjure up minor demons during the early morning, when all the staff were asleep, even those on night duty. One task she gave to one of the demons was to fetch some of her dead father`s satanic books to her, these she hid in plain sight, casting a minor spell to ensure that anyone looking at them only saw an innocent copy of a Charles Dickens` book.

She practised her art upon the patients of the hospital, conjuring up minor entities to terrorise this or that patient. One such occurrence happened when a patient had annoyed Moira, she sent a poltergeist to visit him after midnight, it flicked pellets of a very disgusting goo at the patient, making his victim seek shelter beneath his blankets while whimpering in fear.

This was but a minor event, however, limited as she was by her confinement within a psychiatric hospital, still, her satanic powers were growing, and she soon came to the attention of Lucifer himself, who appeared to her in one of her dreams.

The scene Moira saw before her was of a blasted landscape, a red sun beat down upon her, and it was here that Lucifer appeared before her. She saw him as a giant of a man, ten foot tall, dark red in colour and naked, he had horns growing from the top of his head and a long tail. She should have been petrified, but although frightened by his sudden appearance, she was in fact a little amused by how he had chosen to appear before her, however, she did not let this show, for she knew that it must be the portent of greater things to come.

"Little Satanist, I was sorry to hear of your father`s death, he was developing into a Satanist of the first order. This future could be yours, your powers are growing, however, if you want your satanic powers to develop to those of your late father, then you will have to agree to bow down to me and to sacrifice humans on my altar, and to promise me your soul when you die." The dark lord said grimly. "In return I will allow you to call upon those demons of a much higher order than mere poltergeists and the like, and you can use my name should any refuse any reasonable request you make of them. Of the great demons, only Lord Asbaritch has decided to obey your summons, he too sees greatness in you. As a bonus in gratitude to your late father, I will also make you blossom as a woman, even gods will fall at your feet."

Moira dropped to her knees and looked up at the dark lord. "I swear my lord to follow only you, to sacrifice many humans on your altar, and to make you more than welcome whenever you choose to visit me." Moira swore. "I offer you my heart and my soul, when I die, but beware my Lord; I intend that event to be in the far distant future."

The dream ended here with a burst of laughter coming from the dark lord, the audience was now at an end, and she decided that the next creature of hell that she used would be of a much higher calibre than a poltergeist.

One month later, during an April evening, when the sun still set comparatively early, she called on the demon, Skargel. He normally appeared in the form of a huge olive green man, with bulging eyes and a large nose, and when in the company of a human strange hissing sounds came from the demon`s enormous teeth filled mouth. He had an enormous tongue that was forked, just like the tongue of a serpent, and it flicked in and out of his massive mouth tasting the nearby scents. This time however, Skargel took the form of a demonic chimera, a creature that had the front of a lion, a goat`s middle and a snake for a tail, and he chased a normally patient screaming along the corridors of the hospital, until the man was reduced to a gibbering wreck. Unfortunately, only the patient could see the demon, who reverted to his normal self and drank his victim`s blood, after the staff had put the poor man into a straightjacket, the subsequent inquiry into his death had yet to be held; for the hospital hushed up the matter.

The next time that she used Skargel, exactly one week later, she sent him to visit one of the more obnoxious nurses, one who had humiliated Moira in front of the other patients. Nurse Reynolds was quite tall for a woman, being over six foot tall, and she was very heavily built with muscles upon her muscles, so no little lady. It was her time for night duty, and she was feeling a little tired and rather bored, when she noticed a sudden drop in temperature, but this meant nothing to her, she merely turned up the heat setting on the radiator behind her. Skargel now appeared in all his finery and he walked towards the astonished nurse snarling. On the nurse`s face the demon saw astonishment that quickly turned into fear, the nurse had backed up to the wall behind her, her eyes wide in terror, but not a sound came from her mouth, such was her apparent fear of this monster. Then an amazing thing happened, Nurse Reynolds burst into laughter, for her fear had been feigned, and she aimed to enjoy herself now, hurting whoever was in the fancy dress costume, and she walked towards her mystery caller.

"Whoever is behind that mask had better pray, because I am going to make you wish...." Reynolds broke off here, because Skargel had rushed forward, his hand grabbing the nurse by the throat and lifting the heavy woman off the floor and then he begun to shake her like a doll. Reynolds beat frantically at her attacker, but to no avail, Skargel merely shrugged off the attack and bit into the nurse`s neck. Skargel now drunk his victim`s warm blood, for once again he had been instructed to take his payment from his victim, which he did while she was still alive, in fact he took all of his victims blood to make up for the fact that it lacked the satanic energy found within the blood of a Satanist. It had taken a minute or so for the nurse to die, in that short period of time Reynolds managed to make a strange gurgling noise, but that was all, no one heard her. With the nurse now dead, Skargel squeezed his victim throat until it was crushed by the force of his grip, when found the next morning, not one of the staff mourned her passing, and not one of the patients cared.

Demons enjoyed drinking the blood of humans, but thankfully, they could only come into this dimension when summoned by a Satanist, and they had to depart when their task was completed, or when ordered to do so by the Satanist, otherwise they would never choose to leave.

The police had investigated the case of course, and the stronger of the patients at the hospital had been questioned, but none of them had been strong enough to commit such a crime. In any case, at the time of the attack all of them had been found to be safely in bed behind the locked doors of their rooms. The police had instigated a search of the countryside around the hospital for the attacker, but of course, they never discovered one.

It was now that the ancient gods and demons dwelling in Tartarus initiated contact with Moira, and it just a few weeks later that Moira began to visit Simon Parkston, while he was asleep. He was a fellow Satanist, and she installed in him a desire to gain entrance to a particular hell dimension, one where ancient gods and demons, mostly forgotten by Man in the mists of time, were imprisoned.

"Once you have gained access to this particular dimension, you will be able to steal an ancient device which will make you the most powerful Satanist on Earth. And with this power you will then be able to conjure up the darkest magic, magic not seen on Earth since before the creation of Man, and then you will possess powers beyond even your imagination." Moira told his sub conscious in the softest of voices. "There is one problem; you must enter and leave this dimension without allowing the inhabitants of this dimension to escape from it, for to allow them entrance into our dimension would bring about the destruction of all Mankind." Moira warned him. "You will need assistance that even your coven cannot give you, but have no fear; help will always come to those who deserve it."

She visited Parkston every night to give him this same message, and more; finally, half of his every waking hour was spent in researching these ancient gods and demons, and their terrible hell dimension. Moira had found the information that she passed on to Parkston in some of her dead father`s very old books, books brought to her by a minor demon, some of the books that she had added to her list on a sudden whim, one that had been conceived in her own dreams. Some of the information she kept back, so that she could tell him personally, for she did not want him excluding her from the quest, and in this way, she ensured that he would need her to fulfil his new desire.

**********

It was the month of August, and a strong wind was howling around the house where Evelyn Parkston, the niece of Simon Parkston, slept peacefully. The church clock struck two in the morning and all hell broke loose, for it was now that she awoke into a nightmare of epic proportions. She found herself stretched out naked upon an altar, her hands and feet bound and strange symbols had been painted upon her body. Although fear numbed her mind, she did retain enough will power to struggle in an attempt to free herself, but it was useless, the chains binding her were too tight. She watched horrified as naked men and women danced wildly around a large bonfire set thirty feet away from her, they were all screaming out the name of their dark lord, Lucifer. Then she noticed a woman, her face hidden behind a mask, she was approaching Evelyn, and in her hand, she held a long ornate looking dagger. Evelyn screamed out in terror as she watched the dagger descending towards her. However, the blade did not sink into her soft body, instead the Satanist ran the dagger from between the young girl's breasts to her navel, not cutting, merely tracing a line, the eyes behind the mask revelling in the terror that she was creating within the heart of the young girl. Evelyn attempted to move away from the Satanist, however, the chains binding her to the cold stone altar would not allow her to, then she saw the Satanist`s eyes behind the mask harden, taking on an evil glint, and she let lose a long piercing scream. Moira burst into laughter, shutting off the young girl's cries.

"Please do not kill me; I have done nothing to you, please let me live." Evelyn now begged.

"Oh but it`s time for you to die Evelyn." The Satanist hissed and plunged the dagger towards the young girl`s heart.

Evelyn`s parents and her younger sister had been awoken by Evelyn`s fearful screams, all three of them rushed to her room to be met by an icy coldness that filled the room, and chilled their very souls. They found their oldest daughter sitting bolt upright, her eyes wide-open in terror. Evelyn was staring madly at someone or something beyond them, someone unseen by her parents and sister. As they attempted to comfort her, two eyes looked down upon poor Evelyn, glinting maliciously, and then laughter filled the room in an evil backdrop that froze the blood of the four people within the room. Only now did Moira call an end to her night`s entertainment, and she decided to sleep away the rest of the night, after she had paid the minor demon Mughasar for his help.

Within the bedroom of the young woman, the parents of Evelyn Parkston looked around for a sign of where the wild laughter had come from, but failing to find any sign of person or technology, they all huddled together, with their eyes wide-open in fear. Evelyn heard the words spoken by her nightmare assailant many more times before they finally faded from her memory, and she was able to sleep peacefully in her bed.

**********

It was a bright sunny morning, Moira opened her eyes, yawned and stretched, and then she got out of bed, for once she was in quite a good mood, for she had enjoyed her nocturnal visit to Evelyn Parkston. However, this was not the only reason for her good mood, for she had now acquired the necessary ingredients to ensure that her plan to escape was successful, the time for her to leave this place had arrived. She could not leave it any later, for there was much to do before Halloween, the date of her visit into her chosen hell dimension. She washed, and then quickly dressed, and finally had her breakfast, a hearty one today, no matter that it was lacking in taste, for she was unsure as to when she would be able to eat her next meal. She now settled down to await the arrival of her psychiatrist, one Alice Kempton, she would come to her room, her cell, within the psychiatric hospital, where she had been deposited by agents of the SIS.

Moira had acquired the necessary ingredients in numerous ways, ones that would allow her to escape, she stole some of them from within the hospital, on a day when she had complained that she felt sick, and she had grown some within her small herb garden. The last ingredient was her own mystical energy, which grew a little each time she used black magic, either by tormenting her fellow patients, or trying out her growing powers upon the staff of the hospital.

Alice Kempton was a psychiatrist, she had worked at the hospital for two years now, having chosen her career because she enjoyed helping people in trouble, whatever the problem. Once a week, Kempton visited her patients in their rooms, just to talk, it was not supposed to professional call, although of course it was. She found that in this way, her patients were better able to open up to her, then when they came to her office for their usual psychiatric appointments.

This morning she was to visit Moira, she always felt ill at ease around Moira, even a little scared. Her records stated that Moira had been sent to the mental hospital after attempting to kill a number of people while holding a black mass, so maybe this was why she always felt creeped out when she was around the young woman. Putting on her best smile, she entered the small private room that was home to her charge.

"Good morning Moira, how are you today, feeling a little better?" Kempton asked, feigning a friendship she knew she could never offer to Moira Bourbon.

"Yes thank you, Doctor Kempton, I feel as if things are going to change for the better, what do you think Doctor?" Moira asked with the sweetest of smiles upon her face.

"I really could not say Moira, but if you reach out to the other patients, and to the staff in the hospital, then I am sure that your life will improve." Kempton replied.

Just then, a member of the hospital staff brought a pot of tea and two cups to the room; she laid the tray on the small table by the door, although she seemed less than pleased to be playing the part of maid. It was a week ago that Kempton had made these arrangements, for tea to be delivered to certain of her charges on each of her visits; it was an attempt to do some reaching out herself. Little did she know that Moira had sent a demon to manipulate her mind, just to ensure that this happened. That time the demon had taken blood from Moira, and in doing so had weakened her, which is why Alice Kempton asked after her health.

"I will be mother." Moira said and moved across to the table, before she poured the milk into the cups, she called over her shoulder. "Milk and sugar Doctor?"

"Milk and one sugar lump please." Kempton replied while looking through her handbag for a small packet of biscuits that she and Moira would share, they were chocolate, for Moira preferred them.

Moira pulled an envelope out of her pocket, and then she poured the contents into one of the cups before pouring the tea. Moira had stolen a small number of sleeping tablets from the clinic; she had ground them down into a fine powder and slipped them into the envelope, along with some of her own herbs, that she had grown for just this occasion. However, she would also use her growing satanic powers upon the psychiatrist. Kempton had drunk half of her tea when suddenly she rose and walked over to the door, closing it, something that she never did on her visits to patients' rooms, but then she was now feeling a little drowsy and Moira was controlling her thoughts.

The psychiatrist finished her tea before it got cold, and then she closed her eyes, only for a second, she told herself. Outside, it was a warm summer`s day, and Kempton felt a little sleepy already as she listened to Moira, who was telling her about her childhood, and slowly she drifted off into a deep sleep. Moira undressed Kempton, hurrying before someone interrupted her, and then she put on the clothes of the psychiatrist, she then pulled out a dark wig from her small chest of drawers, a wig that she acquired from the drama class that she has been attending, again for just this reason.

Moira now pulled out a small glass bowl that was filled with the numerous ingredients that she had acquired, including a small flask of whisky that she had stolen from the director of the hospital. She had entered his office while he was busy elsewhere, looking into a report of an intruder, a demon sent by Moira. This she now added, stirring the ingredients together caused a curious interaction, and it gave off a slight smell. She now lit the brew before her, using the cigarette lighter that she had taken from Kempton`s pocket.

"You know you really should try to give up your cigarettes Ms Kempton, they will kill you." Moira said, successfully containing a fit of the giggles.

A sickly smelling green plume of smoke began to rise from the bowl, however, Moira had anticipated this, and she had already opened the small window in her room. She now turned on a small fan that she had purchased to alleviate the summer heat, and hoped that most of the smell would disappear through the window, and not bring a member of the staff to investigate. Now she was leaving the hospital this did not worry her unduly, it would just mean yet another task to accomplish before she walked free.

She now summoned the deception demon Malikate. "Malikate, hear me now, I order you in the name of the great Lord Lucifer to appear before me." Moira said quietly so as not to draw attention to her room.

"Malikate, hear me, appear now or suffer the consequences." Moira ordered impatiently.

The room cooled noticeably and a column of black smoke began to rise from the floor, soon it took on density, and Moira could see that Malikate had obeyed her summons, a terrible smell had accompanied his arrival making Moira gasp, and she put a scented handkerchief to her nose.

"Who is it that wakes me from my sleep?" The small green demon asked grumpily.

"It is I, Moira Bourbon, obey me Malikate or I will punish you in so many ways." The Satanist demanded. "When I leave this room, I want the people of this hospital to see this woman here." Moira ordered, pointing across at the sleeping psychiatrist. "They are to see her dressed in the clothes that I am wearing now, they will not be able to see me. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Oh Master, all will be as you say." The demon replied rather testily.

"At least she had some fashion sense." Moira said, mostly to herself as she looked at her new outfit. She wore the psychiatrist`s clothes to reinforce the spell that the demon would put upon the people in the hospital.

"Oh, and Malikate, take your usual fee from her this time, take as much as you want, she will not mind." Moira said, while grinning across at Kempton.

She now watched as the sharp teeth of the demon sank into the neck of the psychiatrist, and then it began to drink her blood. This was its official fee for its services, normally it liked to drink the blood of the Satanist, which was filled with satanic energy, however, Moira had decided for the demon, that it take its fee from the unconscious woman. Malikate was yet another demon who never argued who paid the fee, as long as it came from a living human, so he did not complain. This time he almost drained the payee of her blood, because of the lack of satanic energy, the psychiatrist`s colour slowly faded, and then she died.

Moira picked up her small collection of satanic books, and then Kempton`s handbag, and then she walked out of the hospital, and with the aid of the demon no one challenged her. Outside, in the driveway of the hospital, she dug around inside the handbag until she found the keys to Kempton`s small Citroen. Moira quickly opened the door and got in, and then she drove off. As for the demon, he disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, and if anyone had been there, he or she would have noticed a terrible smell.

The sun was warming her, so she opened the window a little, to cool her, she laughed in delight at her new freedom, it was acting almost like a drug, and she cried out in joy. Moira now came to a decision; she would never see the inside of a prison again, to be under the command of others. Moira decided to use the small country roads to make her escape, less traffic cameras to track her, and allow Rob Hinds to find her a second time, that would never do. The lanes would eventually take her to Yorkshire, some fifty miles further down the road, until then she enjoyed the freedom of the road. The fifty miles soon passed and finally Moira saw a sign indicating the hamlet of Parkston, it pointed to her left. She followed the sign, for she wanted to meet up with the local squire of Parkston, one who would be very delighted to see her. She would tell him how she had made her escape from the hospital, and just to look him up, the details would make him laugh, something that she also needed, a good laugh.

**********

Simon Parkston looked out of the windows of his bedroom, he appeared to be looking at the small hamlet that belonged to the Parkston estate, but he was not seeing it, he was in fact lost in thought. Parkston was a dark brooding man, standing just over six foot tall, with greying hair, and he had just celebrated his fiftieth birthday. He hid a dark secret from most of those with whom he normally did business; he was a powerful Satanist, one who wanted to increase his power by way of an idea that had come to him in his sleep. His idea was to enter the hell dimension into which the ancient gods and demons had been banished by God, and once there, to steal some of their ancient power in the form of the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith. The golden Ark was capable of giving its master an enormous amount of satanic power; it would make Parkston the most powerful Satanist in the world. Frankly, the idea still scared him, however, the idea filled his dreams; it would not allow him to put it aside for another day. The tricky part, the part that scared him the most, was acquiring this knowledge without releasing the ancient gods and demons from their eternal prison, for to do so would bring about apocalyptic consequences, and what if the idea had been given to him by these very same imprisoned demons in their bid for freedom. To do this he knew that he would need more help than his coven could provide, to ensure his quest was a complete success. He was pondering on whom to call upon, for there were at least a dozen Satanists in Europe to choose from, although not all of these were of the first rank. The problem was, which one would be the most suitable, the most stable, for many of his contemporaries were none too stable. His ponderings were interrupted by his wife calling him to lunch.

He lived in his family home, Parkston Manor, in Yorkshire, a fortified manor house, that had once been much in need of restoration. Thanks to his powers, he had acquired the necessary funds, and the work was finally progressing and completion was only a month away. This was following the house coming into his hands after the death of his elder brother, ten years ago, and who had lived there all alone, allowing the listed building to deteriorate even further that it had already done under their father. Living here with Parkston was his wife Marjorie; no one else, for the couple had no children. The members of staff, Mrs Joanna Knightly, who was the housekeeper, Agnes Parsons, who was the maid, and Jonathan Towers, a handyman, lived in the small hamlet to one side of house.

**********

Parkston had just finished lunch when Moira drove over the now empty moat, crossing a drawbridge that told everyone of her arrival, and once inside she parked in the large courtyard. She had always thought the manor house beautiful, with its Great Hall attached to the Solar Block, which in turn was attached to the North Tower, with a matching Tower on the other side of the Great Hall. To the East was the Gatehouse, and an old barn, finally three high curtain walls to the North, South and east of the Great Hall ensured his privacy. Parkston walked out of the Great Hall to see who had arrived.

"My god, surely its Moira Bourbon, but how you have changed since the last time that I saw you, you`re a young lady now." Parkston said in surprise at seeing the change in her appearance. Moira had been a gawky teenager when last he had seen her, now she was a beautiful young woman with red flowing locks, beautiful green eyes and a marvellous figure, enough to increase the pulse rate in any red blooded Satanist. "Moira, I thought that you were a guest of her Majesty?" Parkston said quizzically.

Moira opened the window of the Citroen fully, so as to speak to her friend. "I was Simon, but I decided that the place was stifling me, so here I am, welcome I hope?" Moira replied and then laughed. "I need somewhere to stash the motor; the owner might want it back." Moira added with a smile.

"Yes, of course Moira, park it in the small barn to your right, we do not use it at the moment." Parkston said. "Hang on while I open the doors." Parkston then crossed the courtyard, unlocked the padlock, and took off the chain, he then opened the old wooden doors and Moira drove the small Citroen inside.

Parkston looked at Moira, and he smiled, for the thought came to him that she was just the person that he required to help him in his work, but then Moira had seen to that, during her nocturnal visits. Although he thought of her as not much more than a novice, her father had spoken highly of her and if she had kept up her studies then she could well be the one to assist him in his quest. Most importantly, she would surely have access to her father`s magnificent library, and he could use the information stored in the books to lessen the dangers of his proposed journey.

She might well have been just a novice when Parkston had last seen her, however, she had learnt a lot since then from her father, it was only his death, and her confinement, that had prevented her rise amongst the satanic ranks. Now two years later, she had acquired a little more power, and such experience that she could, that had been limited only by her imprisonment.

"Moira, your arrival here at this time is a stroke of luck, I have need for someone with your talents." Parkston then told her of his idea of stealing powers away from the ancient demons, and Moira had to try hard not to laugh. "There are still some details that need some work on, but I am hoping that you might have learnt a thing or two from your father that have, as yet, not occurred to me." Parkston said.

"Well, Simon, the first thing on your list is to find someone with the right birth date, and if my memory serves me correctly, wasn`t Evelyn, your brother`s daughter, born at midnight on Halloween?" Moira declared brightly.

"My niece?" Parkston replied hesitantly, initially appalled at the suggestion.

"Yes, your niece, we would need to kill your brother Mark, and his snotty wife Susan, of course, but surely you are not that close to either of them." Moira replied lightly, but with an evil gleam in her green eyes while watching to see how he took this suggestion, when he did not instantly complain she carried on.

"Then you could take both Evelyn and her sister Stephanie into your care. Think about it, we could throw a Halloween party to celebrate her birthday and then use it for our black mass." Moira said in a cold voice.

"Even if I agree to that Moira, we still have to find the Key of Tartarus, without it we cannot enter into the hell dimension of Tartarus and steal the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith away from the demons, and as far as I know, the exact location of the key has been lost for millennia." Parkston said despondently. "I have been searching my library for even a mention of it, but so far without any luck whatsoever.

"Oh have no fear Simon, for I know exactly where it is." Moira said triumphantly, and watched as Parkston grew more impatient as he waited for her to tell him the location of the key. "The key is hidden within the fortress of Asbaritch, which, of course, is within the Dreamscape of Lord Asbaritch.

"Then we are indeed lost Moira, for no one has ever entered his realm and escaped from it, it is impossible, and to expect someone to succeed after they have first found and stolen something hidden within his fortress is ludicrous in the extreme." Parkston lamented loudly.

"Oh there you are wrong Simon, I know of one man who has got the better of Lord Asbaritch and escaped from the Dreamscape, all we need to do is make it worth his while to enter into the Dreamscape once again, and I know of two real good reasons that will make him enter it." Moira said ecstatically.

"Then all we need is the Mist of Glairmore, so that we can enter into the hell dimension unseen by the demons, steal the golden Ark, and then return to our own dimension, still unseen, and in this way ensuring that we do not bring death and destruction to our own world." Parkston declared optimistically, and his eyes locked on those of Moira to see if she knew how to locate this last item, for that would make the impossible quest possible.

"My sources tell me that the Mist of Glairmore was last seen in St. Mary`s church in Edwinstowe, near to the legendary Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire. It was hidden in the grave of one Sir Edward Glairmore, a relative of its supposed creator, Sir Richard Glairmore, perhaps, so we should be able to find it without too much trouble. Although as I understand it, while the artefact was indeed built by Sir Richard, it was in fact designed by the goddess Hekate." Moira told her bemused listener. "As you no doubt know Simon, Glairmore was an ancient Satanist, and completely unknown to anyone living in modern times, and he died a violent and painful death after embarking upon a perilous quest, no prizes for guessing what he was after." Moira laughed now as she watched as Parkston`s smile disappeared.

Parkston had indeed paled after hearing the latter part of Moira`s revelation, but quickly recovered. "Moira, you seem to know the location of everything to do with our quest, even the most impossible of items. Now perhaps you had better come clean, Moira, have you been tampering with my dreams?" Parkston asked rather angrily.

"And what if I have Simon; is the prize not worth a little dream tampering?" Moira replied enthusiastically.

Parkston looked at the young woman and a smile appeared on his face as he slowly shook his head in amazement. "Maybe this once Moira, however, I would not want you to do it again, be warned my young friend, I like my brain the way it is, not manipulated to suit your ends. I also hope that you have thought everything through, because I do not want to end up as Sir Richard did, very dead and long forgotten." Parkston roared out the last part, his eyes now bore into Moira`s eyes, holding them by the power of his mind, until he finally released her and made to walk away in search of his wife, so that he could tell her all that Moira Bourbon had said, however Moira stopped him.

"Oh, Simon, I almost forgot, we shall require a suitable human sacrifice when we perform the initial ceremony on the Glairmore device. Anyone will do as long as they will not be missed." Moira added and then laughed.

"I just hope that there is nothing else you may have forgotten Moira, something important, such as another sacrifice." Parkston roared and strode off looking for his wife.

Moira looked after him, a little annoyed at having to act subservient to one who needed her help to make this quest happen. However, she would put up with it for now, while she had need of him to help her bring her father back from the grave.

Chapter Two

Assembling the Essentials

The Satanists decided that their first task would be to seek out and locate the Mist of Glairmore, as this was in the Church of St. Mary`s in Edwinstowe, it should not provide them with any problems or dangers, as long as they took care not to be seen. Once they had acquired the device, they could then proceed with the rest of the plan, which was more problematical.

Mrs Knightly was given the task of securing a suitable sacrifice, for no respectable black mass was ever conducted without one. She and the other members of the coven were in luck, she came across a young man walking wearily along the road to Parkston.

"You look tired young man, and too young to be tramping the roads of England, your family will be worried about you." Mrs Knightly said in a kindly voice that hid her motives for approaching the young man.

"I am old enough, and there is no one to worry about me, I do what I want and go where I want, I certainly do not want to be tied down to some boring 9 till 5 job. However, I could do with a bit of work at the moment, my funds are disappearing fast, and I could also do with somewhere to sleep tonight, do you know of any temporary work going locally." The young man replied in a very surly manner.

"You are in luck young man, we need someone to help us in the manor house, it will be for two days work only I`m afraid, just a few odd jobs, but you will get a bed for the two night, your meals, and one hundred pounds, do you want the job or not?" Mrs Knightly asked brusquely.

"Yes, please, lead on." The young man replied hurriedly, his monetary worries taken care of for the moment.

He then did whatever manual labour was asked of him, and after an evening meal; he fell asleep, partly due to his exhaustion following his travelling by foot across Yorkshire, and then his honest labour, and partly due to a weak sleeping draught slipped into his third pint of free beer.

Accompanying Parkston on his trip to Edwinstowe was his wife Marjorie, Moira and Johnathan Towers. Towers, a giant of a man, was a member of the coven, and one who would provide the necessary muscle for the task ahead. They drove down to Edwinstowe in Parkston`s Mercedes GL SUV, a spacious and very luxurious vehicle. Marjorie and Simon Parkston sat in front, with Moira and Towers sitting behind them. Moira had cut her hair short and dyed it a dark shade of black, to this she had added the full Goth look in both clothes and makeup. Black lipstick, black eye shadow on her eyelids, dark eyeliner both beneath and above her eyes, a dark mascara, and finally a pale face powder to highlight her new Goth look. For fun she added a facial pattern below and to the outside of both her eyes, again to enhance her new look. All of this, together with a black dress, a tight black blouse, and a hooded jacket, hid her quite adequately from the forces of law and order, who she knew must be looking for her, especially after the death of Alice Kempton. She acquired the clothing from the members of the coven, the dress from one, the blouse from another and the hoodie from yet another.

They arrived at the church just a few minutes after 6pm, and leaving their vehicle they walked slowly around the small cemetery in search of the grave of Sir Edward Glairmore, it took them just five minutes to locate its weather beaten gravestone; it lay beneath a large Yew tree. They then spent the remainder of the day resting in and around Sherwood Forest. They spent part of the evening dining at a nearby public house, and then they moved on to listen to a local band playing folk music at another public house.

It was 2 am on a cool morning that saw them return to St. Mary`s Church, a northerly wind was gusting strongly, and helping them for once, as it meant that they were alone on this moonless night. They clambered over a low wall, and then they headed directly over to the grave of Sir Edward Glairmore. Towers was set to digging up the old grave, while the others kept watch for any late night walkers, it took Towers just five minutes to unearth a wooden chest. He reached down and pulled the heavy chest up from the grave.

"Put it down over here Johnathan, let`s make sure it is what we are looking for." Parkston said pointing to a fallen gravestone.

Towers just nodded and following orders, put the heavy wooden chest on the gravestone beside the grave of Sir Edward Glairmore, they all stood there looking down upon it in awe, for despite its age, the wooden chest seemed to be in perfect condition. Parkston was the first to move, and he soon had the lid open, inside the old wooden chest they saw a heavy bronze artefact that resembled a large soup tureen, but one with a row of coloured gem stones on the side with which to activate it, and alternative settings could be selected dependent upon which stone was pressed. They felt a strange power emanating from it, even though it must have been hidden in the wooden chest and then buried for a century or more. The power ran through their bodies rather like a light electrical current, touching their brains and making the excitement they felt all the more intense. Parkston looked at his wife; his eyes open wide in wonder. "I have read about it, but never did I dream to actually possess it." He said in amazement. Parkston then made to reach down and take the artefact out of the chest, however; Moira stopped him.

"Hang on there Simon, the book that I read states that whosoever wants to own the Mist of Glairmore must first perform a mass to Hekate, to touch it otherwise is supposed to be highly dangerous." Moira warned. "We should take it back to Parkston in the wooden chest; there we can perform the ceremony at our leisure, and the coven must be present, for only those at the ceremony will be unaffected by it when we use it."

Parkston looked at her and nodded. "Okay, Moira." Then he turned to Towers. "Johnathan if you would carry the chest to the car please, while I fill in the grave." Parkston asked his friend.

He then picked up the spade and quickly pushed the soil back into the grave, only then did he make for the low wall by which they had entered the graveyard. The others were already there, Towers had handed the chest across the wall to Moira, who carried it part of the way back to their vehicle, until Towers caught up with her and took the heavy chest back. Simon Parkston likewise soon caught up to his wife and friends, and then the four Satanists quickly got back into their vehicle, and returned to Parkston manor house with their loot.

**********

Morning was upon them by the time they reached home, so they decided to leave the ceremony of the Mist of Glairmore until midnight; instead, they all went to bed to get some much-needed sleep. When they finally awoke, it was time for lunch, which they had in lieu of a missed breakfast. The day soon passed; the sun seemed to whizz across the sky to set, leaving the moon to rise slowly into the darkening sky. The members of the coven had been warned to gather in the underground temple at midnight, when a special black mass would be conducted. Midnight came and the thirteen members of the coven, plus Moira were gathered near to the altar. Upon the altar black candles had been lit, they were set in golden candlesticks at either end of the altar, and incenses were burning in a bronze bowl in each corner of the altar. Lying unconscious upon the altar was the body of the young traveller, once again drugged, but this time with a stronger potion. The old chest was set on the floor by the altar, under a spout carved into the stone lid, and Parkston now re-opened the wooden lid of the chest. A murmur went up from the members of the coven as they felt the small amount of power running through them, in the dull light given off by the many candles burning within the temple, they could actually see it, it was emanating from the artefact like a silver thread that raced between them and touched each of the Satanists. A soft light now covered each of them, making this event a memorable one for each of them.

Simon Parkston then cut the throat of the young workman while reading from a note that Moira had given him, for Moira thought that if she visibly deferred to him, then it would dispel any latent fears held by Simon Parkston as to why she had visited him in his dreams.

"Hear my request oh great Goddess Hekate, Thee who sits at the left side of our Lord Lucifer; please listen favourably to our request to use the Mist of Glairmore." His voice boomed out, echoing within the walls of the small temple.

As the blood of the young man flowed down onto the artefact, the blood seemed to permeate through the metal of the device, then the light within the hall seemed to dim, and a cold breeze blew down the stairs and in through the open door of the temple. Then a grim voice spoke to them from out of the very walls of the manor house.

"It is centuries since anyone has asked this of me, tell me, who is it that makes this request to use the Mist of Glairmore." The voice asked, however, no demon appeared before them, although the room was even cooler than at other times when a demon had appeared before them.

"Simon Parkston, follower of the Lord of Earth and the Underworld, our most magnificent Lord Lucifer." Parkston replied in ringing tones.

"Use my device Simon Parkston, to confound your enemies, whoever they may be, but remember Satanist, each time you wish to use the device, you must sacrifice a person in my name." The voice declared loudly, and now, for just a moment, Hekate did appear, amidst a swirl of bright orange lights, she stood just behind the altar stone and locked the eyes of Simon Parkston with her own, Parkston stood fearfully under her powerful gaze, and when she finally departed, he sank exhausted to the floor of the temple.

The light now returned to the temple, and the breeze was now warm and not the cold one of seconds earlier. His wife looked fearfully at her husband. "Simon, are you all right?"

"I will be fine thank you Marjorie, just give me a minute." Parkston replied, although he certainly did not look it, he looked pale and exhausted.

Moira could now feel her satanic powers growing, the energy from the Mist of Glairmore had kick started them. Feeling even more confident of herself, she now approached Parkston and his wife.

"Simon, this was just a ceremony to transfer the right to use the device to us, as the goddess Hekate has just advised us, the device must be powered up by a human sacrifice to her. At Halloween, Stephanie will make a suitable offering to it, to ensure that it sees us through our quest, for she is a virgin, and as you know, the blood of a virgin is beloved by all the denizens of hell, be they goddesses or just minor demons." Moira said softly.

"Yes, Moira, the energy provided by a virgin`s blood will power the device up nicely, it will ensure that the Mist will hide us from the ancient gods and demons during our time in their dimension, and not begin to fade before we are safely back home." Parkston was no longer squeamish about sacrificing his two nieces at Halloween, the lust for the power that he was after had corrupted whatever had been left of his immortal soul.

"Yes, Simon, we have the first of our artefacts, now it is time for us to acquire the second and most important of them, the Key of Tartarus." Moira said jubilantly.

"Yes, you are right Moira, but tomorrow morning will be soon enough, when we have all rested. I will set off for London to kidnap Cassandra Ryder while you remain here and send her sister to the domain of Lord Asbaritch." Parkston said. "Tell me, will you be able to summon one such as he?"

"Yes, Simon, Lucifer himself has told me that Lord Asbaritch will obey my summons." Moira replied.

"Then one thing remains, we need to know the address Rob Hinds." Parkston said while looking at one so young but already possessing the permission to call upon the great demon lords Lucifer and Asbaritch, and his feeling of respect for Moira grew ever greater.

"I already have it Simon, great thing the internet; you can find out so many things." Moira said calmly.

**********

There certainly was not much time to sleep for Parkston and his wife, who together with Johnathan Towers, set off during the early hours of the morning for London; they aimed to arrive early enough to stake out the Hinds` apartment in Reigate. They also had to conjure up a demon, and Mrs Knightly had already prepared the necessary ingredients of the potion needed to conjure one up, she did this while the others were in Edwinstowe. Marjorie Parkston now put these ingredients into a deep glass tray and mixed them together, a yellow plume of smoke began to rise from the potion as she stirred. It soon reached the roof of the vehicle, it spread around it, thinning out as it went, and when it could travel no further, it crept down the walls of the vehicle and then began to disappear into the air around them. However, Simon Parkston called upon the demon Veigel before too much of the smoke could disappear, for otherwise this would have meant starting all over again.

"Veigel obey my call, Parkston ordered in a voice that rang loudly within the confines of the vehicle. Moments later a thin veil of smoke began to rise from the rear of the vehicle, and he now spoke again.

"Veigel come to me, I command you." Parkston ordered the demon.

The vehicle quickly cooled, Veigel, a minor demon that he used on such occasions as this, appeared within the veil of smoke, his stunted body bent and his face terribly misshapen.

The Satanists within the vehicle were almost sick as the stench of the beast reached them, but they did their best not to show any outward sign of it.

"I am here Master, what is it that you desire of me?" The minor demon asked.

"We wish to look upon the faces of the three people who live on the third floor of this building, in the apartment at the front, make it happen now." Parkston ordered the demon.

The demon disappeared for a minute, then within the thin veil of smoke three faces appeared. A man, a young woman, and another even younger woman. Moira had described them to Parkston, and he immediately recognised them.

"Okay everyone, take a good look, we do not want to screw it up later on by kidnapping the wrong girl, or to have Lord Asbaritch turn up at an empty apartment." Parkston told the others within the vehicle. When they were all satisfied that they would recognise them, Simon Parkston turned to the demon.

"Veigel, I now want you to place a demonic marker in the apartment where these three humans live, so that Lord Asbaritch will be able to locate it later today." Parkston ordered. A demonic marker was usually put on people by Satanists, usually because they wanted the person to die at the hand of a demon that they then called, but demonic markers did have other uses.

Veigel disappeared from view, but again only for a moment, then he returned to confirm that he had carried out his task.

"If that is all Master, then I need paying." Veigel`s voice now sounding much happier than before, and much less servile.

"Here take it and be gone." Parkston commanded as the demon rushed at him and took his payment. When sufficiently satisfied with his payment he disappeared from view, leaving behind him the foul stench of hell. Parkston sat still for a moment, weakened by the lesser demon; Marjorie quickly opened all the windows to let out the stench of the demon, and before someone was violently sick.

"We now know what they look like, nothing can stop us now." Marjorie Parkston cried out jubilantly.

They saw Rob drive off for the SIS headquarters, and later they saw Christina and Cassie leave the apartment block. The sun was hidden by the roofs of the houses by the time Christina Hinds returned home. The watchers were now rather bored; they were waiting for Cassie to make her next appearance, when she returned from college.

**********

While Parkston and the others were in London, Moira and Mrs Knightly set about making two large kegs of Rakiremanin for Lord Asbaritch.

"These must be the most important potion ever created Joanna, otherwise demons, powerful or otherwise, might decide to be awkward rather than assist us. When Lord Asbaritch smells the Rakiremanin he will do exactly as we ask, especially if we promise more when the time is right for him to take Hinds into his domain." Moira said.

The next hour was spent in preparing the green liquid Rakiremanin, a drink that Lord Asbaritch, and many of the other demons, relished so much. Most Satanists kept the ingredients to hand if they regularly invoked the higher order of demons, and Parkston always kept a ready supply. Soon the barn that held the stolen Citroen was filled with the sweet smell of the strong alcoholic drink. Its main ingredient was white wine, and Parkston kept large casks of them in a cellar beneath the barn, then a generous mixture of molasses, herbs and spices was added to give it its exotic flavour and colour. The next batch of ingredients came under the heading of slugs and snails and puppy dog's tails, enough to say that it took a strong stomach to drink such a concoction knowing just what was in it. Finally, a special preparation of wood alcohol was added to the concoction, it gave it strength and a certain something extra.

**********

Simon Parkston spotted Cassie as she walked along the quiet street towards the apartment block where she lived with her sister and her brother-in-law. He and his wife got out of their vehicle as Cassie walked ever nearer to them, Parkston checked to see if there was anyone else around, but the street was empty save for Cassie. Cassie saw them, but took no notice of the tall middle-aged man and a woman, who Cassie thought must be man and wife. They both smiled pleasantly at her as they made to pass her. As she passed the man, he grabbed her, and then quickly covered mouth with a rag that had been saturated in chloroform. Cassie wanted to scream, but by opening her mouth she took more of the chloroform in, she would have fallen to the floor unconscious, but Parkston held her upright. Johnathan Towers now left the vehicle and took her limp form off Parkston, who immediately looked around to check if the street was still empty. Unfortunately, for Cassie, it was a quiet neighbourhood and the coast was clear for Towers to carry Cassie to the waiting Mercedes Suv. He lay her on her side in the back of the vehicle and then covered her with a carpet that they had brought along, and then he joined her in the back of the vehicle. Then Simon and Marjorie Parkston got into the front of their vehicle, and they set off for Parkston manor house, Towers calling ahead to Moira to confirm that this part of the plan had been successfully completed.

**********

Night was approaching and Cassie had still not returned home, Christina knew it was pointless to call the police, for Cassie was only two hours late, but she could not help but worry, especially as Rob had told her that Moira had escaped from the psychiatric hospital. Could she be the reason why Cassie was late, the mad bitch was capable of anything? If only Rob was there, but he was working late at the office, and she did not want to bother him about a thoughtless missing teenager, especially since Cassie had forgotten her mobile phone that morning, and had obviously not bothered to borrow one with which to call home.

The mad bitch in question, Moira Bourbon, was standing within the satanic temple, which was beneath the Grand Hall; Moira had just finished preparing a charged pentagram. This is a five-pointed star drawn upon the floor and enclosed by a circle, which in a satanic pentagram is always drawn in human blood, and the correct mystical signs have been painted at the apexes of the star. To finish charging the pentagram, five black candles are set at the apexes of the star and are set alight, and finally five goblets are set in the valleys of the star and are filled with red wine. Once a year the circle around the pentagram must be painted with fresh human blood. Moira used the pentagram because she was new to the satanic game, and having to call Lord Asbaritch twice in a day frayed even her nerves.

Everything was now set so she walked into a small laboratory set behind the altar and collected a heavy pewter goblet full of Rakiremanin and took it into the temple and set it upon the altar. She now lit four black candles that she had already placed at each of the four corners of the marble top of the altar, and then she set the drink alight. A green smoke slowly curled up into the air before finally reaching the ceiling of the temple and spreading quickly around the room. In the goblet was a green frothing liquid that would certainly not be touched, let alone drunk by any normal person.

Moira felt a little apprehensive, for she was about to call upon the great demon lord, something she had never done before. Taking a deep breath, she now summoned up her first major demon.

"Lord Asbaritch, I call upon you, show yourself, Moira Bourbon, satanic Master, demands this of you." Moira called out while fearfully looking around for a sign that her order was about to be obeyed by one of the powerful demons from the realms of hell.

The room did not cool, it froze, and a deep voice spoke out from the rear of the temple, although the demon had not yet bothered to materialise.

"What is that you require of me human, speak quickly for I grow bored of you already." The silence that followed this deep voice was almost as scary as the voice itself, and Moira had to force the words from her throat before the demon departed, as it had threatened to do.

"First of all, great Lord Asbaritch, I humbly beg of you to drink this special preparation that I have made for you." Moira said in a quiet pleading voice.

The temperature in the room dropped even more, and Moira knew that the demon lord had finally materialised. Moira now saw the dark lord; he was olive green in colour, well over six foot tall and very well muscled. His eyes were large brilliant yellow glowing orbs. However, he was quite humanoid otherwise. The demon walked towards Moira, who shrank before it, Lord Asbaritch picked up the pewter goblet and greedily gulped down the contents.

"As I have said before, it has always amazed me that a race such as yours can make the most delicious of drinks; but enough of these pleasantries, tell me what you desire of me." Asbaritch ordered.

"I want you to take Christina Hinds back to your fortress and to imprison her there, you have already met her husband, Rob Hinds, and you will find her at his house now." Moira said in a slightly more confident voice. "If you will do as I ask of you, I offer these two casks of Rakiremanin to you as a gift." Moira said indicating the two casks with her hand. "Plus, you can feed on Christina Hinds by way of your usual fee, but please do not kill her, as I have other plans that include her." Moira said in the syrupy voice that she used with most men.

Lord Asbaritch looked deeply into the eyes of Moira, holding her eyes captive while he spoke to her, however, even the demon lord had noticed her beauty, and was captivated by the sweet tone of her voice.

"Your father tried to best Rob Hinds, and you know how he fared, I hope that you have made a better plan Mon Chérie. Very well, Moira, I will visit her and introduce her to what you humans might term my Dreamscape. In reality, if I might use the term in relation to my domain, it is something much more terrible. It is realm of hell where humans are given to me to feed upon, to sustain me. Christina Hinds though will be my guest at my fortress, as per your wishes. I wait with baited breath to see just what else you have planned for the Hinds." Lord Asbaritch said eyeing Moira greedily and making her squirm in embarrassment mixed with a generous portion of fear.

"There is one small problem Moira, I do not know where Rob Hinds lives, and there are so many humans in your domain?" The demon lord said casually.

"No problem my Lord. His house lies to the south of the road that encircles the city that we mere mortal humans call London; the demon Veigel has marked his home with a demonic marker. Its scent will stand out brightly for one as great as you are, my Lord."

"You are correct Moira, I will find the home of Rob Hinds quicker than you could ever imagine." Lord Asbaritch said.

With that the demon lord disappeared in a cloud of smelly red smoke and a peal of laughter that threatened Moira`s hearing. If the Satanists were successful in getting the better of the human Rob Hinds, then it would not be too unpleasant, for the demon lord was still a little irked at the way that the human had departed his realm the last time that they had met.

**********

Christina Hinds was just about to make a cup of coffee when the temperature in the kitchen dropped very sharply. Before she could so much as wonder what was happening, or respond to this harbinger of evil, she fell to the floor unconscious. Lord Asbaritch now fed upon her, but not enough to kill her. Three hours later, she awoke exhausted and with a splitting headache, she found herself in a small round room, it had a ceiling that rose to meet in a point at the centre of the room, and it looked to be the upper turret room within a fortress, but that was so obviously quite ridiculous. Christina got to her feet and hurried to the small window, from the top of the fortress tower she looked down upon a dry withered landscape.

"Where on Earth am I?" In some weird dream from which she would soon awaken, Christina asked silently. She pinched herself, but only the once, for it hurt, and then she began to worry.

She walked slowly over to the door, but found it locked.

"Hey, you out there, whoever you are, let me out." She cried out in a mixture of fear and anger, but no one answered her cries.

She then realised that her neck was sore, and put a hand to it, and found it was sticky, looking at her fingers she saw that there was blood on them, and then Christina shrank into herself, fear flooding her mind and body. The day slowly moved on, but she saw no one, she was all alone. She shivered as this thought struck home; she was all alone, and without any food or water. This thought made her feel both hungry and thirsty, so she walked back to the door.

"Hey, when is dinner served around here and what about some water?"

Feeling and sounding a little braver after her action, however, no one returned her call.

"At least I don`t need to use the little girl`s room, because this room certainly done not come with an en-suite." Christina said to herself, and then hoped that someone might come by when she did need to use those facilities.

Finally, one thought raised her spirits, 'Rob will find me, wherever I am.'

**********

Moira was standing within the small temple beneath the Great Hall of Parkston manor house; she was preparing the necessary ingredients for yet another potion. The ingredients were in a deep glass tray and as she mixed them together, a yellow plume of smoke began to rise from the potion, and when it reached the roof of the temple, it spread around it, thinning out as it went, before finally disappearing.

However, Moira called upon the demon Veigel just as the plume of smoke had begun to rise. "Veigel obey my call." Moira ordered in a voice that rang loudly within the confines of the small laboratory. Moments later a thin veil of smoke began to rise from the corner of the room, and she now spoke again.

"Veigel come to me I command you." Moira commanded.

As was usual, the temperature in the room fell and Veigel, a minor demon that many Satanists used on such occasions as this, appeared within the veil of smoke, his stunted body bent and his face terribly misshapen. Moira was almost sick as the stench of the beast reached her, but she fought to show no outward sign of it.

"Veigel, show me where Rob Hinds is at the moment, you know of him already, for you sought him out for my father." Moira commanded the small demon.

"Of course, Master." Veigel replied in a thin rasping voice that Moira always had trouble understanding.

It took Veigel a few minutes to locate Rob, but when he found him, and an image of Rob appeared in the veil of smoke before Moira, Rob was sitting at his desk in the SIS headquarters.

Moira now mixed together another potion in another small glass bowl, she then lit it and a sickly smelling green plume of smoke began to rise from the bowl. She now summoned another demon. "Mughasar, I command you to appear before me now." Moira`s voice roared.

Frost began to form on the floor around her feet, and seconds later another lesser demon appeared before her in a thick veil of black evil smelling smoke.

"I am here oh Master, what is it that you would command of me?" The minor demon asked.

This demon looked more humanoid than monster, although his head was quite large and it had horns growing out of the top of it; the demon was jet black in colour with huge red eyes that seemed to glow, and it had large sharp teeth within its cavernous mouth. Moira now showed Mughasar the image of Rob in the veil of smoke.

"I want you to travel to the location that you see in the veil of smoke, and then seek out and find this human, he is named Rob Hinds. I then want you to appear before him in my form and repeat these words to him using my voice." Moira now told the demon what to say. "Then you are to stay for a minute, but hidden from sight, to witness his reaction. Do you understand Mughasar?" Moira asked.

"Yes, Master, I will go now, and return to you after I have delivered the message and after I have stayed hidden from sight so as to witness his reaction to your words."

Mughasar then disappeared in another veil of evil smelling smoke.

**********

Rob was sitting at his desk when he noticed a rapid drop in temperature, frost began to form on the floor around his feet and then an apparition appeared before him in a thick veil of evil smelling smoke.

"Good evening Rob Hinds, you will be pleased to know that I am arranging for you to journey to domain of Lord Asbaritch again, to his Dreamscape. So be ready to go at midnight tonight. To ensure that you fully comply with my wishes Rob, I must inform you that you will find that your lovely wife Christina is already there. While you are in the Dreamscape, you will seek out and locate the Key of Tartarus, it is hidden somewhere within the fortress of Lord Asbaritch. If you do not return with it then Cassie Ryder, who we have already borrowed, will be sacrificed by me, Moira Bourbon, in revenge for the death of my father. Of course, you will have to overcome Lord Asbaritch yet again to find your way out, and quickly, for I am not known for my patience. Oh, by the way Rob, the key is in the shape of an old oil lamp, the sort that you rub if you are after a genie, yes I know, shades of Aladdin and all that, but that is just the way with many of the ancient satanic artefacts. If there happens to be more than one oil lamp within the fortress, then you will know which one to take by the large ornate letter T set in a dragon motif, it is painted upon both sides of the lamp."

Rob sat there stunned, but even as the apparition faded, he was writing down all that Moira Bourbon had told him about the oil lamp, he then looked across at his two colleagues who were also working late. He saw that they too were equally stunned by what they had all witnessed. They still had their automatic pistols out, aimed at the place where the apparition had been, although they would have proved ineffective against a veil of smoke.

Sir Willoughby Brown moved across the office to Rob` desk, he had witnessed the end of the apparition`s message, having been called in by one of the agents as soon as the apparition had appeared. He too seemed as shocked as the others in the room did, but he soon pushed this aside.

"Rob, what on Earth was that thing, and how the hell did it appear and disappear inside one of the most secure offices in England." Willoughby Brown demanded to know.

"That was Moira Bourbon, the Satanist whom we took prisoner in France two years ago, and she managed the whole thing using black magic." Rob replied, receiving a room full of astonished gasps of disbelief, which he brushed aside.

All the time he spoke, Rob was using his mobile to call Christina; unfortunately, she was in no state to answer his call, as she was lying unconscious upon the hard floor of his apartment.

"Oh, I am not joking Sir Richard, black magic does exist, and Moira`s father was one of the more dangerous practitioners of the ancient art, it seems that Moira has come on some since we last saw her." Rob said to Sir Richard, although the two other agents were also listening to what he was saying.

"If black magic is a reality, then how could she become a powerful Satanist, she has been in a secure psychiatric hospital since then; there is no way that she could have learnt the art, as you call it Rob?" Sir Willoughby Brown asked of his top agent.

"Sir Richard, a couple of days ago she managed to walk out of that secure hospital, and right passed the front desk and into the car of a dead psychiatrist. I thought that maybe she had some help, but from her performance today, I now think she managed the escape all by herself." Rob replied grimly.

For a moment Sir Willoughby Brown did not know what to say in answer to what he had just heard, he wanted to laugh at his best agent, but something within him told him that what he had just heard was the truth. Instead of trying to laugh off the visit of a Satanist, well her form anyway, or to try to explain it away rationally, he offered Rob the department`s assistance.

"Well in that case Rob, you had better take whatever help you think appropriate, when you visit this Dreamscape." Sir Willoughby Brown declared in an equally grim tone. "Because, you will undoubtedly need it."

"The Dreamscape is a domain ruled over by the demon Lord Asbaritch; it is in another dimension, one of the many hell dimensions, it is not in our own one Sir Richard. Unfortunately, although I would welcome company, I must travel alone, as only the spirits of myself and any other of the agents who accompanied me would actually travel into the Dreamscape. However, any one who accompanies me could appear anywhere within that domain, and I might never find them, so you see I have no other option than to do this alone." Rob explained to a very quiet office. "However, I could do with some help, in the form of the company doctor, and his nurse. While my spirit is away, I will need medical help to keep my body alive, they can fit an IV drip up to Christina and myself, assuming that Christina was at our apartment when her spirit was taken by the demon lord." Rob asked of Sir Willoughby Brown.

The other agents had been all willing to join him in his quest, even if they were worried about the state of Rob`s mind, but they now seemed just a little relieved not to be joining him on his strange journey.

"Rob, how on Earth do you know all of this?" Sir Willoughby Brown asked in amazement.

"Although I never put it into my report regarding Ulysses Bourbon, he had myself, Father Pritchard and John Ryman sent to the Dreamscape, Sir Richard. You might recall that Father Pritchard was the priest who helped me, in both England and France, when Ulysses Bourbon kidnapped my fiancée and her sister for what was our first black magic affair. John Ryman was my wife`s brother, and he died in France saving all of our lives, he was a true hero. It was only because I spoke sympathetically to one of the local inhabitants in the Dreamscape, that he helped me in turn, he gave me enough information to allow me to turn the tables on the demon lord, and make him return us back to this dimension." Rob explained. "I decided to omit that part of my trip for obvious reasons." Rob added wryly.

It was about now that Mughasar returned to Parkston manor, leaving behind another terrible smell in the SIS office, that went unnoticed because of the first one that the demon had brought with it.

Sir Willoughby Brown had slumped down into an empty chair, looking as if he had been told that the pope was not a catholic, and then he looked up at Rob. "Okay Rob, I will leave this weird case in your hands, it appears that, for the time being, I will not be able to help you. Let me know if you find the body of your wife in your apartment, if not then I will organise a nationwide search, while you do what you have to do to get your wife and sister in law back safely." Sir Willoughby Brown decided.

"It might be best Sir Richard, but before I return to my apartment, I will give Father David Pritchard a call." Rob said and immediately phoned his friend. Luckily, Father Pritchard was in, and Rob quickly explained what had happened, he then asked his friend for his assistance.

"If you are willing David, I really need you to set up a pentagon, just as you did before, to guard us from evil. Then when Christina and I return to our bodies, we can all move into the pentagram to protect us from the ungodly, should Moira decide to renege on her promise to free Cassie, and attempt to kill Christina and myself. She is just as likely to try to get hold of the Key of Tartarus without actually living up to her side of the bargain." Rob said grimly.

"I am on my way Rob, and I will bring everything that we shall require to fight the good fight, see you soon." Father Pritchard promised. "Rob, Tartarus was the part of the ancient Greek hell where only the most evil people, or ancient gods, were sent. Once there, the souls of the people were made to endure eternal torture, I hope that this key you are to bring back is not a key that unlocks a door into Hell, particularly that part of Hell."

**********

At the Parkston manor house, Moira was feeling decidedly chilly, for the demon Mughasar had returned to the temple after completing its task. Before she dealt with that demon though, she had to send another demon back to its hell dimension. She looked down at the demon Veigel contemptuously. "Be gone foul one until I need you again." Moira commanded. But the demon didn`t go immediately, instead it looked up at Moira, its red eyes radiating with the evil that oozed like water from the demon, infecting anyone near enough to it, although Moira seemed unaffected by its presence here on Earth.

"I need paying Master." Veigel`s voice once again sounding much happier than before, and much less servile.

"Here take it and be gone." Moira commanded, and the demon rushed at her and took his payment. When sufficiently satisfied with his payment, he disappeared from view, leaving behind him the foul stench of hell. Moira stood for a moment, gripping the small work surface to steady herself, for she had been weakened by the blood taken by the lesser demon.

The demon Mughasar now told Moira everything that he had witnessed after passing on his message; thankfully, he had left before Rob had spoken to Father Pritchard, and so Moira knew nothing of his appearance in the game. Mughasar now demanded his payment of blood, and after paying his fee, Moira felt very weak, so she then returned to the Great Hall to meet another member of the coven, Doctor Hamlin, who was waiting there for her. Moira lay down on a settee while Hamlin gave her a blood transfusion to replace the blood that the demons had taken.

"Rest awhile Moira, you will soon feel your strength returning." Hamlin reassured Moira.

**********

Parkston arrived back at the manor house just twenty minutes later, Towers carried Cassie down into the temple beneath the Great Hall and tied her to one of the marble pillars that supported the high ceiling.

It was cold down there, especially if you happened to be laying down upon a marble floor, and it was mostly this that woke Cassie, and into yet another nightmare situation. She heard footsteps walking down a flight of stairs, and then she was Moira. Cassie lay there stunned as Moira looked down at her and smiled, but it was not a friendly smile, it was full of evil.

"Hello Cassie, I hope you are not too uncomfortable, unfortunately all the guest quarters are taken." Moira quipped, and knelt down and looked straight into Cassie`s blue eyes, which were now filled with fear.

Oh my god, Cassie thought, once again I am the prisoner of a group of Satanists, and one of them is the mad bitch Moira Bourbon.

"Now Cassie do not fret so, as long as the handsome Rob does as he is told then no harm will come to you, you will be released to run back home, there you can hide beneath the bed clothes." Moira sneered as she pushed a stray lock of Cassie`s short blond hair back in place.

Cassie pulled her head away from the young Satanist and smiled in a show of bravado, but that is mostly all that it was. She lay there and shivered; from both the cold and her fear of the evil woman standing over her, but her spirit was not altogether dampened.

"You do not look well Moira, too many late nights, too many demon boyfriends." Cassie said contemptuously. "You would be advised to set me free Moira, for Rob will find me, and when he does it will be you that hides away, under some rock probably, like the loathsome creature that we both know you to be." Cassie advised the Satanist in an icy voice that should have chilled Moira.

However, Moira laughed again at Cassie, and then she set a heavy pewter goblet full of Rakiremanin upon the marble top of the altar. Then she relit the four black candles and finally she set the green frothing drink alight. A green smoke slowly curled up into the air before finally reaching the ceiling of the temple and spreading quickly around the room, then Moira stepped inside her fully charged pentagram. Moira now called upon Lord Asbaritch for the second time that day, and this time she felt a little more confident in her abilities. "Lord Asbaritch, I call upon you to show yourself to me. Moira Bourbon, satanic Master, demands this of you." Moira called out, still a little fearful, while once again looking around for a sign that her order was about to be obeyed by one of the powerful demons from the realms of hell.

As the temperature in the room dropped, a deep voice spoke out from the rear of the temple, although the demon had not yet bothered to materialise, he preferred to make Satanists wait a while before showing himself, it added to the fear they always felt at the sound of his voice.

"What is that you require of me this time Mon Chérie?" The silence that followed this deep voice was again just as scary as the voice itself, and once again, Moira had to force the words from her throat, even more fearful of this amorous demon than of the normal demon lord.

"Great Lord Asbaritch, please slake your thirst before we get down to business, drink some more of the special preparation that I have made for you." Moira said, almost pleading with the powerful demon.

Just then, the room became icy cold and Moira knew that the demon had finally materialised. Across from her, Cassie almost fainted in fear, and then the two young women saw the dark lord; he was, as before, olive green in colour, well over six foot tall and very well muscled. His eyes were large brilliant yellow glowing orbs. However, he was quite humanoid otherwise. The demon walked towards Moira, who once again shrank before him, Lord Asbaritch picked up the pewter goblet and took in its sweet heady aroma, and then he greedily gulped down the contents.

"Okay, Moira, tell me what do you require of me this time?" Lord Asbaritch demanded of the young Satanist.

"At midnight, Rob Hinds will be at his home, in the name of the terrible Lord Lucifer, I demand that you to take him to your domain and entertain him, but please do not kill him, as in the near future I will have a use for him. I have a young virgin female here." Moira said waving her hand over towards Cassie. "Her sweet blood will be more than ample payment to recompense you for your trouble." Moira demanded.

Lord Asbaritch now sneered at Moira. "Just what are you planning Moira, first you have me take his wife to act as bait, and then Rob Hinds himself, just what are you planning, and why do I feel that it will once again involve my discomfort. Tell me Moira, or maybe I will take you instead." The demon lord demanded.

"Not tonight, my Lord Asbaritch, tonight I am protected by a charged pentagram, and while there is no doubt that one such as you could find a way to penetrate my shield, there are few real followers of Lord Lucifer. He might be rather annoyed if I, a true believer, was taken from him while I am still so very young, and with so much untapped potential." Moira said in her syrupy voice.

"Now my Lord, please do as I ask, or suffer whatever consequences Lord Lucifer decides to send your way." The young Satanist demanded looking and sounding more confident than she felt, even when standing within a pentagram

"Okay little human, what you say is true, there are so few true believers in this modern age, and fewer with your potential. But know this Mon Chérie, because of Rob Hinds, I now have your father as my play thing, I eagerly await your arrival, when you find that Rob Hinds has once again got the better of you." Lord Asbaritch said, and then he laughed, loudly, and full of evil intent, the sound ringing through Moira`s mind and making her cringe. The demon could smell the fear upon the human, he had enjoyed playing Casanova to the young Satanist, but this made him laugh all the louder.

He then turned to look upon Cassie who was desperately trying to force her body through the marble pillar and away from the terrible demon looking down upon her.

"I know you, you were offered to me by Ulysses Bourbon, still alive are you, Rob Hinds saved you that time did he, well tonight I get to taste your blood, but do not fret little one I will leave you alive." Lord Asbaritch said almost gently, before kneeling down and taking his fill of her blood. Thankfully, Cassie had now fainted, and so she did not see the great demon lord take his leave.

"Goodbye for now Moira." Lord Asbaritch said as he departed leaving a very troubled Satanist behind.

"Moira, I really hope you know what you are doing." Simon Parkston said from the doorway into the temple. Where he had cowered as Moira Bourbon and Lord Asbaritch had argued. Moira looked across at the other Satanist and smiled.

"Demons are no problem, as long as you know how to handle them, and take the necessary precautions of course." Moira said with a show of bravado.

**********

Rob rushed home where he found the still form of Christina slumped down upon the kitchen floor. He knelt down to check to see if she was still alive, and sighed with relief when he found that she was indeed alive. It was now that he saw where the teeth of the dark lord had given Christina a vampire kiss, he swore, anger rising within him he threatened revenge on Moira Bourbon. Then he picked her light form up and carried her into their bedroom; here he laid her upon their bed, so as to make her more comfortable. He smiled as he looked down into the sleeping face, and he pushed an unruly lock of her long blond hair back into place. However, looking down upon her still form, fear entered his heart, what if he could not get the better of Lord Asbaritch this time. He pushed this thought aside, as the fight would be lost if he allowed fear to consume him before the fight had even begun. Instead, he called his office to tell them that he had found the unconscious body of his wife, and then he began to strip the front room of all of its furniture and carpets in preparation for Father Pritchard arrival. He put them into a small third bedroom, which was empty; thankfully, Christina favoured the minimalist style, so it did not take too long. Father Pritchard could now draw the pentagram upon the wood floor. However, Rob would be unconscious by then, and his friend would have to carry on without him.

Chapter Three

The Domain of Lord Asbaritch

The church clock struck midnight just as the temperature in Rob`s bedroom dropped suddenly, he was lying on his bed next to a still Christina, but apart from noting the fall in temperature, that is all he was able to do, for then he slumped down unconscious. Lord Asbaritch looked down upon his still form, a smile playing upon his face, as he anticipated the fun that was about to commence, then he took Rob back to the Dreamscape.

Rob awoke to find that he was lying atop a small hill, and once more he saw that he was in a hot, arid, and dusty world, and he knew that he had returned to the domain of Lord Asbaritch. Rob quickly scanned the land all around him, he seemed to be alone for the moment, but he reckoned that the dark lord would not permit him to approach the fortress unopposed, nor would he be allowed use the same method as he had used before, to escape the Dreamscape. Rob also reckoned that Lord Asbaritch had probably set him down on the far side of his domain, so as to make his life a little more interesting.

An angry thought occurred to Rob, about his present situation. 'It was all right for Moira Bourbon to tell me to get myself back home, but Lord Asbaritch is a major demon with major demon powers, and I have no idea just what he can do to ensure that I stay here.' Rob thought unhappily.

**********

Father Pritchard must have exceeded the speed limit all the way to Rob`s apartment, because he managed to arrive at 12.30. He rang the doorbell to check if Rob was still conscious, but no one answered, so he picked up the key that Rob had left for him under the doormat. Father Pritchard now entered Rob`s apartment, and went straight into the main bedroom, here he found the still forms of Rob and Christina, both seemingly asleep on their bed. As he looked down at their unconscious forms, he prayed for their safety, as well as that of Cassandra. He now went about his work, which was to draw a large Pentagram, using chalk, on the polished wood floor in the front room, first he pushed a long pin into the floorboards, and then he tied a length of string to it and drew a circle. Then within this circle he drew a five pointed star, which tested his artistic skill, for the star had to be perfect. The next thing he did was to cover his chalk circle with salt, which was a useful tool against the supernatural creatures of hell. In each valley of the star, he put a silver cup, and finally he set five white candles at each apex of the star. In the middle of the pentagram, he set three sleeping bags and a pillow each for their heads. To one side of these items he put a large flask of water and three glass beakers. He then poured water that he had blessed into each of the silver cups. Then he drew signs at each of the points, denoting the five elements, four of matter, fire, air, water and earth. The fifth element was not of matter, it was spirit, and the pentagram was now ready to be used. Following their last fight against evil, he had already purchased a number of small bottles, he filled half of them with blessed salt and the other half with blessed water; they were for their personal protection against evil. He also purchased some dried mandrake, some large strings of garlic, and three small phials of mercury, all of which were useful items when you need to be protected against evil demons and their lesser minions.

Just as he finished, someone knocked at the front door, it was a doctor and a nurse, who had been sent over by Sir Willoughby Brown.

"I am Doctor Wilson and this is Nurse Simpson, I believe that you are expecting us?" The doctor asked.

"Yes, and thank you for coming over, your two patients are in need of as much help that they can get at the moment." Father Pritchard replied, grateful to have their expertise.

Both the doctor and the nurse were used to working for the SIS, so they did not pester Father Pritchard with pointless questions; however, the sight that confronted them here was far stranger than their usual cases.

With them was Gerry Handley, a colleague of Rob`s. "Father Pritchard, I am Gerry Handley, we met in France a couple of years ago, you were on a strange case with Rob and another friend." Gerry said by way of an introduction. "Sir Richard thought you might need some human protection, if I remember correctly, not all your enemy were of the super natural kind." Gerry remarked casually.

"You are right Gerry, oh, and I am David to my friends." Father Pritchard replied; glad to have someone to share the load.

The doctor and the nurse immediately got to work; they set up IV drips for Rob and Christina. These would ensure that they both had all the protein and liquids that their bodies required to keep them healthy, until their spirits returned to their bodies; this was just in case they were away from them for an extended period of time.

"We should take it in turns to watch for Rob or Christina to return to their bodies, you will know when they are back as they should wake up immediately, and they may well bring an old oil lamp with them, do not touch it, it is of satanic origin. Just call me immediately, I will deal with it." Father Pritchard instructed them.

"David, how will they bring a material object back with them, I thought only the spirit travelled to this Dreamworld?" Gerry asked quizzically.

"I am not sure Gerry, I also wondered about that, I suppose we will just have to wait and see. One thing though, it will prove something, if an oil lamp materialises out of thin air, won`t it?" Father Pritchard said with a smile.

The doctor and nurse looked at one another quizzically, but they still said nothing, they had been ordered by Sir Willoughby Brown to obey the priest, no matter how strange or mysterious his instructions or deeds.

**********

Rob knew that he did not need to worry unduly about his health this time around, but even so he was anxious to find Christina, and of course the Key of Tartarus. Rob recalled that the last time he had been here, a large mountain range acted as a backdrop to the demon`s fortress, and Rob could see a mountain range on the far horizon, and so he set off towards it. A plan was forming in his head, as to how to get the better of the demon lord, whether it was possible only time would tell. His plan to overcome Lord Asbaritch, used holy water, that seemed the best option, as it had the previous time, however, he needed to use it from a distance, or risk the demon either keeping his distance this time, or even initiating his own attack, so Rob decided that maybe a bow would suffice.

Rob came to abrupt halt, for walking towards him was a giant of a man, he stood fully thirty foot tall, had a single eye in the middle of its forehead, and more importantly, he was armed with a large wooden club. On catching sight of Rob, the giant let out such a loud roar that it sent a shiver down Rob`s spine. Rob knew the man to be a Cyclops from Greek mythology, and for it to be alive and well in the Dreamscape meant only one thing, Lord Asbaritch had only recently brought the giant to his realm. The Cyclops was obviously there for one reason only, to fight Rob; otherwise, Lord Asbaritch would already have drained such a creature of its life-force, as would the other inhabitants of this terrible domain. The giant was loping towards Rob, with small puffs of dust and a loud booming noise echoing the giant`s footsteps. The giant was moving at a speed that Rob knew he could not match, such were the length of the giant`s stride, so he did not waste the energy trying to escape from the massive creature.

From the vantage point of his fortress, Lord Asbaritch laughed as he witnessed the scene, he could have taken Rob on himself and won, easily, however, this offered him the chance of some entertainment, something lacking in his life. Maybe after this fight was over, and the Cyclops was victorious, he would take a leaf out of the roman emperors` books, and build himself a Colosseum, and hold games there. Rob would make a fine gladiator, fighting to save the life of his woman, he would have to ensure that the Cyclops did not kill him, just brought him back to the fortress, tied and bound for safekeeping.

Rob now brought to mind what one of the local inhabitants had told him when last he had been in the Dreamscape. 'As far as you are concerned you are fast asleep, only your spirit is in this dreamland, you can imagine anything you want and it will appear. Imagine a nice long Pike, one with a nice sharp point that will at least keep the demon beast away from your body, for be warned, if you die within this domain then your body will also die.' The local had cackled after saying this last part, for the idea of the mortal`s death had humoured him.

Rob knew that any sort of nuclear weapon was a definite no-no, but what about a Javelin anti-tank missile, unfortunately nothing appeared before him, either Lord Asbaritch had stopped a dreamer`s imagination from working in his realm, or, he would have to imagine something more basic, like the South American Bolas. Instantly a Bolas appeared on the ground and Rob picked it up, it had three balls on the end of ropes that were tied together at the other end. Rob had used this model before; there were two heavy wooden balls and one lighter ball. Holding the lighter ball, he whirled the bolas around his head, when he had sufficient speed, he launched his weapon, the Cyclops was only thirty feet away now and getting nearer with every second. The weapon flew through the air and wrapped around the giant`s legs, the heavier balls cracking against the giant`s legs and the tight ropes wound around his legs tripping the Cyclops, who fell heavily to the ground, his head striking the ground with a loud whack. Rob ran towards the grounded giant but found that the Cyclops was still conscious, and beginning to sit up, he also appeared to be a mite angry.

"You hurt me little man, for that I will kill you." The Cyclops roared out in anger.

It grabbed a hold of the ropes connecting the three balls and sharply pulled at them, they instantly came apart, making Rob back up a step, the Cyclops then got to its feet and roared again at Rob, it then picked up its club and swung at him. The club swung over the top of Rob`s head brushing against his hair, luckily Rob had ducked or he would have been minus a head now. Rob performed a judo shoulder roll through the giant`s legs, hoping to put some space between them, however, the Cyclops whirled around instantly, its speed surprising Rob, the Cyclops` arm striking Rob and sending flying to the ground. Rob came to his feet fast and backed away from the giant, to give him the time and the space to think. Unfortunately, the Cyclops had other ideas, and he quickly closed the gap and then swung his club at Rob, Rob tried to move back out of range but the giant had moved even closer, and the club struck Rob`s body sending him flying through the air once again. Rob landed hard upon the ground in a cloud of dust, and as he made to get to his feet, he felt pain rip through his chest. He knelt on his knees and cried out in pain, he assumed that one or more of his ribs had been cracked, or broken, by the force of the blow. Rob knew that if he did not want to condemn those that he loved to death or slavery, he would have to use lethal force against the giant, but what weapon would be most suitable. He immediately imagined a spear, which instantly appeared in his hand, however, the effort taken to stand up sent another bout of pain through his body, somehow, he managed to fight through the pain to pull back his arm and throw the spear with as much strength as he could find within his body. The Cyclops had just begun to run at him, his speed coupled to that of the spear served to drive the spearhead through the chest of the giant, stopping it dead, literally. Rob sank to the ground and cried out in agony as pain once again ripped through his body, had he failed to kill the giant then he would now be dead himself, for at this moment in time he was quite incapable of defending himself. From above him, Rob heard a loud groan, looking up he called out. "What is the matter my Lord, did you bet on the wrong contestant."

With a look of contempt at the sky, and ignoring the pain and his injuries, Rob left the fallen giant, and, constantly on his guard against another attack, headed towards the mountain range. No further attack was made against him, and after an hour of walking, with every step reminding him of his wound, he heard a loud noise coming from behind him. Unnoticed until now, a large sand storm had been creeping up on him, Rob let out a groan on seeing it, and he increased his speed, fighting against the increase in pain caused by the additional strain he was now putting on his injured ribs.

The outer edges of the storm finally reached him just as he in turn reached the edge of a high cliff, and there on the ground below he could see the fortress, about thirty minutes' walk away, after the stiff climb down the cliff face. Because of his injuries Rob did not relish the climb down just now, however, he knew that to delay his descent any longer meant death by sand storm. It was now that he sighted an extremely old and partially destroyed fortress showing through the stinging sand, and it was sitting on the very edge of the cliff, and it was only a few hundred feet away from him, and further along the cliff top. With his head buried within his jacket, Rob hastened towards the fortress, the pain in his body no longer noticeable quite so much because of that caused by the stinging sand. He finally reached the fortress wall; here he was able to shelter behind it, out of the stinging sand that felt as if it had found its way into every crevice of his clothes and body. Rob looked down the length of the wall of the crumbling edifice, seeking sanctuary within the fortress, and there, just a few feet further on, was an open doorway. Rushing inside he found the ceiling was still intact, only the roaring of the storm now told him of its malevolent presence.

Walking further into the crumbling fortress, Rob saw that the walls still held a number of fading pictures that told stories of the long distant past. The first related undoubtedly to the Dreamscape, it showed a man standing before an altar, undoubtedly a Satanist, or maybe a doctor, he was mixing a potion of some kind. Further along the wall the painting showed the man crouching down, his face showing fear, and then it portrayed the same man as a shade, still dressed as before. In the final part of the picture, the shade had all but disappeared, when all his life-force had been drained by Lord Asbaritch, who also appeared in this part of the picture.

The picture on the second wall showed dead souls being led through one of the many doors painted upon the wall. Each person, when alive, had committed a different crime, and each was to receive an appropriate punishment.

The last picture in the Great Hall showed what Rob thought could only be Tartarus, it showed the most malignant of souls, their forms twisted and distorted, being led through another door, and they were greeted by the most terrifying demons that Rob could only hope not to meet.

Rob sank down to rest his weary body, and for half an hour was able to doze, he suddenly woke up with a start, then he realised why, all was so very quiet, the sand storm had finally abated. Rob left the shelter of the old fortress and hurried, as quickly as his ribs would allow him, to the cliff top, for to delay would invite another of the local denizens to launch an attack upon him. In his current state of health, he could not afford to encounter too many of them without the creatures weakening him so much as to endanger his quest, which was of course, to rescue Christina, and to secure the Key of Tartarus.

The rock face that Rob had to climb down was in no better state than the rest of this terrible land, some of the rocks crumbling at his touch, but with no other option, he started down. The rock beneath his feet crumbled now, it was as he put all of his weight upon it, and he slid painfully down before coming to a stop on a wide ledge. He cried out in agony but forced himself to continue the climb down the hill, sliding down the hill yet again, and coming to a rest upon a second ledge, this time he stopped for ten minutes, while his body stopped torturing him. Finally, though, he made it to the bottom, scratched, dirty, and almost exhausted, he wondered how, in spirit form, his corporeal body could, and did, hurt so much, but he was too tired to ponder the problem, and so he gave it up. Instead, he sat on a large rock and rested for a full five minutes before standing up, but even this simple action hurt his chest, and stopped him from moving off until the pain abated. When his pulse rate came back down to normal levels, and his strength back up to somewhere near to its normal level, he walked towards the fortress, although whether his body would permit him to use it to defend himself was another thing. Now the going was easy, over flat ground that seemed drained of anything living, he could have done with a cool drink of water, however, this was something that the Dreamscape lacked, and no amount of imagination could produce even a drop. The way forward was devoid of any living or undead being, not even a Shade or two to cause him a problem, and this surprised him.

The first time that Rob had seen the vaporous creatures, Rob had named them Shades, a name he took out of Greek mythology, what their exact terminology was he did not know. They were not comical or piteous figures though, if they once caught a hold of him, such a massive number of Shades that lived in this land would soon drain him of his life force, and he would quickly die, for the Shades were vampires, albeit ones with little or no prey to feed upon.

Shades had once been human beings, but evil ones such as the Satanists who were currently causing him so much trouble. They had all lived a grand life on Earth, but with their deaths, they had been sent to this land to be preyed upon by Lord Asbaritch, who fed upon their life-force. As Lord Asbaritch did so, the bodies of the Shades dimmed, becoming more transparent the longer they lived in this terrible land, although of course they were not alive, no, they just existed to be tortured, and as nothing more than pale tragic looking ghosts.

With his body aching, he finally approached the massive fortress of Lord Asbaritch, however, this time the fortress was guarded, and by a great many guards. He heard a low murmuring sound coming from them well before he reached the walls of the fortress; it was the inhabitants of this land. The Shades were moaning about their lack of energy, for the land supplied them with absolutely nothing to live off, to feed off, and Lord Asbaritch had positioned them all around the fortress. Upon catching sight of him, they began to hobble towards him, and a bestial cry came from their vaporous forms as they sighted something to feed off at last. Rob came to a halt, this attempt by Lord Asbaritch, to keep Rob out, was pathetic, as Rob knew of a way to get through the vampire Shades without any risk to himself. His friend Father Pritchard had used the Lord's Prayer last time to great effect, and Rob decided to try it before using a more violent means, and perhaps more painful to his body, to get passed them.

"Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed is thy name." Immediately the creatures began to look fearfully at him, their progress faltering. Rob seeing the reaction of the Shades carried on with the prayer, only now he belted it out.

"Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us."

The creatures now came to a stop en masse, and then they covered their tiny ears against the words of the prayer that seemed to scare them so much. Rob continued with his prayer, feeling more confident with every word, it was as if God himself was taking sides in this opening skirmish.

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen."

However, instead of running away, as he had hoped they would do, they simply moved back against the walls of the fortress, finally coming to a halt when they could no longer retreat any further. Rob sank down to the floor and looked at them as they, emboldened by his inactivity, began to edge towards him again. Rob could see that he had only seconds to come up with a new plan.

'Okay, let`s imagine something that will take these creatures away from me, and away from the fortress.' Rob said quietly to himself.

He then imagined a flock of sheep far to his left, and all moving slowly away from him. The flock of sheep began to form to the far side of the Shades, the bodies of the animals materialising into a stable form as Rob concentrated even more on them, and this took more than a moment because of the number of sheep that he needed to make his plan work. Their bleating came to the ears of the Shades, who now stopped edging towards Rob and began to hobble towards the sheep, as they in turn began to move away from the Shades.

As soon as all of the Shades had moved far enough away from the closed gates, Rob hurried towards the fortress as fast as his pain-wracked body would allow, and once again reciting the lord`s prayer, just in case any more Shades appeared. He had to be through the gates before the Shades returned, or Lord Asbaritch made an appearance, however, on reaching them he found that the gates to the fortress were closed. Therefore, he tried to imagine an open door set within the gates, but still to no avail, for some reason his imagination did not work on things that already existed. He then imagined a long ladder set up against the walls of the fortress, and this did work, and he was soon sitting on top of the fortress wall, although the repeated exercise was causing his cracked ribs to complain by sending fresh bouts of pain through his body. There before him was a stone flight of stairs leading down into a large empty courtyard. He hobbled down the stairs, now knowing how the Shades felt, and crossed the courtyard, he then passed through the ever-open door set within the cyclopean walls of the inner fortress, to find himself in a large entrance hall. It resembled the scene from a Hollywood picture, stairs led up to the upper levels and a pair of large doors led further into the fortress on the ground level. It was much cooler within the walls of the fortress; thankfully, about the same temperature as his apartment, and at the moment no further enemy had appeared.

'What I need is a light to show me the way to Christina, and then to the Key of Tartarus.' Rob said wistfully. Instantly a small firefly appeared and hurried off in front of him. 'Surely not.' Rob said as he hurried after the firefly.

**********

Lord Asbaritch had been covertly following Rob, and now he had discovered why the Satanists had sent Rob to the Dreamscape. 'The fools want to enter the dimension that imprisons the first gods and demons; obviously one of them has read the ancient book full of fairy tales telling them of the Key of Tartarus, and how it would take them to Tartarus.' Lord Asbaritch said to himself. 'What could be of such interest to them in such a deadly dimension? Of course, the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith.'

**********

The firefly led Rob down a staircase that descended down into the depths of the fortress; he slowly followed it until he came to a large cavernous room. Here, ghostly figures were appearing out of thin air, they crossed the room, moans following their progress, until they came to a large archway set in to the wall on the far side of the room. They walked through the archway and down a long tunnel that led away from it; the tunnel was illuminated by a dim red light emanating from the far end of the tunnel, which flickered, making weird shadows along it walls. Screams came from the other end of the tunnel, and a terrible smell of sulphur drifted out of it filling the large room in which he stood, but strangely not moving upwards to the remainder of the fortress. 'Surely Christina could not be imprisoned in there, is it the Key of Tartarus that is somewhere inside the tunnel?' Rob wondered anxiously. 'This is where the firefly has led me.'

He stood there for a moment looking at the continuous line of spectres walking towards the tunnel, unsure what he should do. Before he could come to a decision, a pillar of red evil smelling smoke appeared before Rob, it was between him and the tunnel, and Rob shivered as the temperature within the room dropped rapidly, and he watched fearfully as an apparition of Lord Asbaritch slowly formed before him.

"Good morning Rob Hinds, you and I need to talk, well actually I need to give you some very important information, and it is important Rob Hinds, to your very soul." Lord Asbaritch began.

"And why do you think that I would ever believe anything that you told me?" Rob replied quizzically. "All I need to do is to enter the tunnel and the Key is mine for the taking." Rob boasted, although he was unsure if it would be that easy.

"That is entirely up to you; however, if all you wish to do is to experience torment for eternity, then why not remain here in my dimension." Lord Asbaritch sneered. "Human, I could strike you down where you stand, finish what the Cyclops began, do not think that because I have not done so, that I could not do it, and so very easily." Lord Asbaritch roared angrily. "However, I have grown fond of you Human, so listen while I tell you what the Satanist Moira has planned, and how she intended to use the Key of Tartarus." Lord Asbaritch said, angry that a mere mortal should doubt the words of one so powerful as he, and Rob noting what had been said decided to hear the demon lord out, as if he had much of a choice anyway.

"She needs the Key to enter a dimension set aside by the most powerful of all the lords, the one that you call God. Within the dimension, the first gods and demons were imprisoned for all time, thankfully, for they were so evil that even the most terrible Lord Lucifer is terrified of them." Lord Asbaritch said, his voice for once showing signs of dread.

"The Key of Tartarus was created by your god as a lure to tempt the first gods and demons into a trap, and it was in the form of an old oil lamp, the same as the one in the Satanist`s book. They followed it thinking that they could acquire even more power, if they could possess the Key, in that they were very mistaken. Its scent drew them to Tartarus, and when they entered, it activated the field of energy that keeps them there to this day. This scent was made from the very essence of the first gods and demons, the total of all their evil emanated from it, and it is still the most evil artefact in existence." Lord Asbaritch said in awe of the Key.

"The Key still emits this evil scent, and it has the power to influence anyone who remains in its vicinity, its power is so strong that your God could not keep it within his own domain, for your God feared that the very souls of those within his domain would be contaminated by it. Therefore, he put the entrance to Tartarus in my domain, and the Key is the entrance. It is not a small satanic artefact but a massive doorway. Moira and her friends are very mistaken in that, as other Satanists have been so many times before them." Lord Asbaritch sneered.

"You have a hard choice human, take as long as you need to come to a decision, the longer the better, either you can enter the tunnel or stay here with me, but beware, for once you are inside of the tunnel you must continue on to Tartarus." The apparition of Lord Asbaritch now faded away leaving a very troubled Rob to ponder on everything that he had just heard.

Someone had once said that there is always a solution to any problem, Rob just wished that the jerk was here with him to prove it, or to keep him company in hell. However, an answer sprang into his mind almost instantly, and this disturbed him, however, he had no choice other than to try it.

"Lord Asbaritch, I have another solution to our problem, hear me out." Rob called loudly, his voice echoing within the small room.

"I am seated upon my throne, come up and join me Rob Hinds, for I dislike being so near to Tartarus." Lord Asbaritch replied and shivered at the very thought of the hell dimension.

Rob hobbled up the stone flight of stairs, through the huge double doors, which were now open, and into a massive central hall. Rob was reminded of Hollywood as he looked at the faded grandeur around him. There in front of him, sitting on a massive throne, was the great beast, Lord Asbaritch. Rob walked forward and gave his counter proposal.

"Could you not release Christina and myself, allow us to return to our dimension with a fake Key of Tartarus, one that would allow me to save young Cassie, and send Moira to hell, which is where she desires to go?"

"Why would I want to aid you, Human, even if I could. Alas I am forbidden to willingly release ones from within the Dreamscape, by Lord Lucifer no less, unless they find a way to coerce me, as you did the last time that you enjoyed a visit to my domain." Lord Asbaritch said. "For while I have a power of my own, which allows me to rule within my domain, and to travel into your one, I draw some of my powers from a pulsating mass of matter put here by Lord Lucifer himself. Unfortunately, it has grown into a sentient life-force, one that I find it ever more difficult to control. This is partly why you were able to overcome me so easily on your last trip, it has a developed a mind of its own that we must both be mindful of, for it is possible that its true purpose might not coincide with either of our own." Lord Asbaritch warned, now almost human.

Rob instantly imagined a crossbow and pointed the weapon at the demon lord. "The bolts are all coated in holy water so I suggest you do as I say." Rob said threatening the demon lord. "Bring Christina here, now, and I will not kill you."

Rob had an idea that the demon could instantly move out of reach of his weapon, if he so wished, but Rob thought that the demon`s remark regarding needing to be coerced was his way of saying okay, without actually using the word and breaking the rules of his domain.

Christina appeared by his side in a bright flash of light that dazzled both Christina and Rob, but Christina was the first to realise that she was free from the small tower room.

"Rob, thank god you`re here!" Christina exclaimed joyfully. "But what on Earth is going on, who is after us this time?" She asked fearfully, moving to Rob`s side and putting an arm around him.

Rob groaned as pain once again ripped through his injured body, and Christina looked anxiously at her husband. "Rob you are injured." She cried out.

"It is nothing darling, a cracked rib or two from an angry Cyclops, once we get back, I will get it attended to, until then I will have to live with a little pain." Rob replied, smiling weakly as the pain slowly subsided. "Moira Bourbon is behind it all, we finally know the reason why she escaped from the hospital." Rob replied and quickly updated her about the problems facing them.

It was now that an old oil lamp appeared out of thin air, and it had a dragon motif on either side together with a letter T set in the middle of the motif, it was sitting on the floor by Rob`s feet.

Rob noticed that the dark lord looked a little surprised by the appearance of the oil lamp, and a little uneasy, even though Lord Asbaritch did his best to hide it from his two guests.

"Have no fear Rob Hinds, that is not the original, we would have instantly felt the evil pouring off it had it been that one, however, if you attempt to pick it up, then I will crush you like a bug, and without moving." Lord Asbaritch said feeling even more unsettled by the appearance of the oil lamp, and just a little fearful of its possible implications. "And do put that crossbow down, I have created an impenetrable energy field all around me, just in case you tried anything, this time there is no escape for you." Lord Asbaritch said and sounding very bored, but then he brightened up.

"Rob Hinds, I find that I am able to offer you a deal, agree to stay here as my guest and I will promise not to drain you dry of the life-force that is so tempting to me and my other guests. In return for this I will send your wife back to her own world, what do you say, it is a good deal and you know it?" The dark lord asked affably.

Christina jumped in before her husband could get out a single syllable. "No way buster, either we leave together or we stay together, no deal." Christina roared.

"And what of Cassie, she is in the hands of Moira Bourbon, and will die unless I can return to our world with a Key of some sort?" Rob added, however, he did lower the crossbow.

"There is no way out for the young girl, I told you that already Rob Hinds, forget her." Lord Asbaritch said sorrowfully.

As Rob struggled to come up with a solution to his problem, he and Christina suddenly disappeared from the fortress, the last words he heard were from the dark lord exclaiming. "No! Not again."

**********

Moments later Christina opened her eyes to find a relieved Father Pritchard looking down at her, she was on her own bed, and back in her own dimension. Rob woke next and finding Christina and himself back home, breathed a sigh of relief, and then realising just what had happened felt extremely alarmed. He made to sit up and groaned in pain when his cracked ribs told him that his injury had also crossed dimensions.

"Are you okay, Rob?" Father Pritchard enquired anxiously.

"I tangled with a Cyclops, and cracked some ribs Dave. Look what the hell happened, was it you David, did you bring us both back?" Rob asked and then called for the doctor to unhook him from the IV drip.

"No, not me Rob, I am not a warlock, or a Satanist, why do you ask?" Father Pritchard enquired anxiously.

Doctor Wilson and Nurse Simpson rushed into the room, and after checking Rob and Christina over, they began to unhook them from the drips.

"First David, how long were we away?" Rob asked.

"Just two hours Rob." David replied.

"In that case, time on the other side must move at a different speed to our own, I was there for longer than that, for a start, I had to sit out a sand storm." Rob said.

When the doctor and nurse had returned to the front room, Rob answered his friend`s earlier question.

"Regarding my earlier question David, as to who brought us back, Lord Asbaritch had just finished saying that we were to be his eternal guests, then suddenly we woke up here. As you were not responsible David, then someone else was responsible, and there are a number of other possibilities. Maybe it was Moira Bourbon; somehow, she saw the Key at my feet and brought us both back, although that possibility does not sound all that likely." Rob said.

"What about the Key, David, did the Key come with us, without it Cassie may be lost to us?" Christina cried out in anguish and interrupting Rob and Father Pritchard.

"No, Christina, sorry no oil lamp, you mean you had it with you?" Father Pritchard replied and then turned back to Rob. "Rob, did you just say that you tangled with a Cyclops?" Father Pritchard asked when he realised just what Rob had said.

"Yes, David, one straight out of Greek mythology. As for the Key of Tartarus, it appeared by my feet as if by magic, I suppose Moira could have made that happen too, but I don`t think she has that sort of power, not yet." Rob replied and held Christina`s hand, for she looked very worried, she was thinking about Cassie and wondering if she would ever see her again.

"One thing is certain; whoever made the Key appear also brought us back home." Rob said grimly.

"Who else could have brought you back Rob, because as you say, it is very unlikely that Moira Bourbon has that ability." Father Pritchard asked.

"Maybe the good guys rescued us, however unlikely that is. A more likely answer, and the worst scenario, is that the pulsating mass of matter made the Key appear and sent us back. This pulsating mass has grown into a sentient life-force, and one that provides Lord Asbaritch with some of his power, and sometimes it acts according to its own reasons. If this is the case then we can probably expect the Key to appear here soon." Rob said.

"But why is that the worst scenario Rob, personally, I think it is great?" Christina interposed.

"Because, it means that the Key might really be a mechanism for creating a portal within the energy barrier of Tartarus, either that or the pulsating mass is actually a good guy, and that is also very unlikely." Rob replied.

"Oh, my head is spinning Rob, any of your possibilities could be true, the trouble is finding out which one it is." Christina said not knowing whether to be happy or worried now.

"For the moment let us forget which scenario brought us back, let us just thank god that we are back, and we should move into the pentagram, before Moira Bourbon finds out that we are back." Rob said looking anxiously for an antique oil lamp.

The three friends now walked, or to be correct, Rob hobbled, into the front room where they found the doctor and his nurse packing up their equipment. "Well Mr Hinds, we will leave you to your strange case, and from the pentagram on the floor I imagine it is a very dangerous one, good bye." The doctor said as he and his nurse walked to the front door of the apartment, however, Rob stopped them from leaving.

"Not so soon Doctor, I think that I may have damaged my ribs while I was away, I need you to sort me out until I can get to the company clinic and get an X-ray."

It was now that Gerry Handley made his presence known. "Rob, I knew that there was something that you were not telling me in France, but I would never have guessed that it was so weird, or so very dangerous." Gerry said and walked forward to greet his friend and his wife.

"Christina, I am Gerry Handley, we met briefly in France, and I am glad to see that you are okay." Gerry said with a smile.

"Yes, Gerry, yes thank you, we are fine now, but I should warn you, the danger is far from over, as Rob said a moment ago, we should enter the pentagram." Christina replied.

Gerry looked distinctly worried by what Christina had told him, and hurriedly followed her and the others into the pentagram; Father Pritchard now lit the candles, and charged the pentagram. Looking extremely puzzled, Doctor Wilson with the assistance of Nurse Simpson now checked Rob out.

"You may have cracked a couple of ribs Mr Hinds, but I do not think that they are broken, however, from the colour of the bruising I am a little surprised that they were not broken. As you say, you will need to have an X-ray, until then I will lightly bind your chest, but only for rest of this night, it should help and you should also take two of these extra strength painkillers." Doctor Wilson said taking out a box of paracetamol. "Your ribs will heal of their own accord, in fact binding the chest is no longer considered necessary, it could even hamper your recovery in the long term, simply take it easy for the next six to eight weeks. Try to remember to take a deep breath at the end of each hour; it will help prevent pneumonia setting in. Nurse Simpson and I will stay the night and then we can drive you over to the clinic and get you checked out." Doctor Wilson said and got to work wrapping bandages around Rob`s chest.

"Rob, it could have been the vast distance between the Dreamscape and here that saved your ribs from really serious damage." Father Pritchard ventured.

Doctor Wilson and Nurse Simpson both looked a little sceptical on hearing Father Pritchard`s words, but neither of them laughed at the suggestion, the appearance of the oil lamp at the edge of the pentagram, while Father Pritchard spoke, had unsettled them both. Now they would not even think of scoffing at his words, their minds were in too much of a turmoil. On seeing the lamp, Rob hurriedly picked it up and checked it over for any possible inter-dimensional damage, not knowing quite how to feel about its appearance.

"Mr Hinds, you will have to sleep sitting up, or risk getting an infection on your lungs, it will not be comfortable, but it is necessary, and during all of the recovery period. You will also find it beneficial if you take some pain killers, they should reduce the pain and allow you to sleep." Doctor Wilson advised Rob after forcibly pushing all thoughts of the oil lamp from his mind.

"Whatever you say Doctor." Rob replied, resigned to the problems he would have to cope with on his way back to recovery, he would just have to nap during the daytime, when the need for the use of a pentagram was reduced.

The hours dragged by, thankfully without any satanic visitations, and during this time Rob told Father Pritchard and a worried Gerry Handley all that they had learned from Lord Asbaritch about the Key of Tartarus. How in reality, it was the entrance between the Dreamscape and Tartarus, one that he had actually seen, and how he had felt the evil given off by it, how he had watched the line of damned souls walk past him in to a tunnel that led to Tartarus.

"According to the Dark Lord, the Satanists are mistaken in their belief that the oil lamp shown in the ancient books is the genuine article. No, this lamp is definitely not the original and is, I hope, just a fake. Because if it was real, and things went badly wrong for Moira, by giving it to her we could be guilty of releasing the ancient gods and demons from their eternal prison." Rob explained.

"Just how do you know that the oil lamp in your hands is not the genuine Key of Tartarus? We only have a demon`s word on that, and they are not known to be all that truthful." Gerry asked anxiously, edging nearer to the edge of the pentagram and away from Rob, who had decided that either he or Father Pritchard would safeguard the Key until they had secured the release of Cassie.

"Lord Asbaritch would have followed us home to retrieve it; if he had thought that we had the genuine article, he would be far too scared of the consequences should he allow us to keep it. In any case, he told us that the original Key reeked of evil, David would have noticed the odour of evil the moment that the oil lamp appeared." Rob replied.

"You are quite right Rob, it is definitely not the genuine article; I should have felt it otherwise, from what Lord Asbaritch said, we would have noticed that amount of evil pervading the apartment." Father Pritchard agreed.

"If it is that easy to tell the difference, then we may not be able to get Cassie back, surely Moira will know immediately that we only have a copy of the Key." Christina said anxiously.

"I do not think so Christina, if the real Key is now a gateway to a hell dimension, she obviously knows very little about it. The fact that Moira heard about it at all, and knew where to find it, when I had never heard even a rumour about its existence, well it baffles me." Father Pritchard assured Christina and the others.

"She must have read about it in one of her father`s books David, he did possess a large library of ancient books dealing with the paranormal. Many of them were first editions, some probably were the original book." Rob said and then turned to his wife. "Christina, if Moira knew everything that we now know about the Key in its original form, she would never have contemplated stealing it, the amount of evil that it is said to emit would have turned her into a satanic monster. She might be a Satanist, but she is not that insane, even if we did send her to a psychiatric hospital for treatment."

While the four friends talked about black magic and Satanism, the doctor and his nurse listened, fear striking into their hearts as they realised that what they had thought of as fiction, might just be fact.

**********

It was still dark at the Parkston manor house, although there was a full moon shining down upon them, lighting up the house and the courtyard, but it was now that Moira knocked at the bedroom door of Simon and Marjorie Parkston. Grumbling a little, Simon Parkston called out for her to enter; she opened the door and leant against the doorframe.

"Simon, we need to power up the device, and we need to conduct the sacrifice while it is still dark, so that we will have the Mist of Glairmore when we need it tonight." Moira said coolly.

"Okay Moira, the tramp must have rested enough by now, time for him to meet his maker." Parkston replied wearily.

"I am looking forward to seeing the device in action Simon; to see if it as good as we are led to believe." Moira said.

"Yes, you are right Moira; I would not like to be in Tartarus only to find that the device is nothing more than a damp squib."

Simon Parkston got out of bed and dressed, then he collected a small case from his bathroom, before following his wife and Moira to the barn, they found the old tramp fast asleep and snoring loudly. They were joined there by Johnathon Towers; Simon Parkston had phoned him to request that he join them at the barn to help them with the mass. Parkston now opened the small case and took out a hypodermic; he then uploaded a clear liquid into it.

"This will ensure that the old tramp does not cause any trouble when we move him down into the temple." Parkston said quietly so as not to awaken the tramp, and then injected the tramp with the liquid.

"Well he certainly will not wake up now, with the two drugs in his system." Moira said laughing quietly.

The four Satanists then carried the tramp out of the barn, and over to the Great Hall, from there they struggled with the weight of the tramp down the narrow staircase to the temple beneath the Great Hall. The tramp was no lightweight, and so they had a little trouble placing him upon the altar, but finally his was lying flat out on it, and still snoring. Simon Parkston pulled out the Mist of Glairmore from its hiding place and placed it beneath a spout carved into the top of the granite altar; he then picked up his sacrificial dagger and called out to the creator of the satanic device.

"Oh glorious Goddess Hekate, please accept this humble offering to your most illustrious being, and power up your magnificent device." Parkston then put the dagger against the throat of the tramp, cut it.

A stream of blood poured out of the neck of the tramp and down the spout into the bronze device that had opened just as the first drops of blood touched it. The device began to vibrate, a whirling ball of energy rose from the artefact and circled around every person within the small temple, a small thread breaking of the main ball of energy to enter into each person it touched. The Satanists groaned in ecstasy when they felt the energy touch them, taking away their tiredness and leaving each of them feeling refreshed. The temperature in the temple dropped, but the goddess did not make an appearance this time, not for the blood of a tramp.

"We are now ready to take delivery of the Key of Tartarus." Moira declared amid the loud laughter and rejoicing of the other Satanists.

**********

It was still dark outside of Rob`s apartment when the temperature in the room dropped, and caused them all to shiver.

"Doctor Wilson, Nurse Simpson, Gerry, we are about to have a visit from a demon, please ensure that you stay within the pentagram. Rob hurriedly warned them.

The doctor and the nurse looked anxiously around the room, and Gerry pulled his pistol out. Frost began to form on the floor around the pentagram, and seconds later that the minor demon Mughasar appeared before them in a thick veil of black evil smelling smoke, Gerry unsure as to what to do looked to Rob for instructions, and just then the telephone rang.

"You may safely answer the telephone Rob Hinds, I want to talk to you, and it is so much easier using the telephone." The demon said in a perfect imitation of Moira.

As the demon was on the other side of the room Rob felt safe to reach out a hand for the telephone, which was outside of the pentagram.

"Good morning Rob, it`s good to hear your voice, I can see that as well as rescuing the lovely Christina, that you also have my oil lamp." Moira said in a syrupy voice, and then laughed. "This is almost as good as Skype, better because you cannot see me, or trace this telephone call."

"Yes, Moira I have the lamp, now tell me, where and when do we make the exchange, and if Cassie has been hurt in any way, I will make you wish..."

Moira interrupted Rob`s threat. "Save your list of threats Rob, young Cassie is fine, and as soon as you give me the Key of Tartarus, you can have her back, untouched. Please do not fret for Cassie, I have nothing against her, she was my friend." Moira said in her syrupy voice.

"You do not know anything about friendship Moira, now tell me when and where." Rob demanded.

"Hmm, when and where? Let's us say tonight at midnight, and on the Waterloo bridge over the River Thames, see you then Rob, bye." Moira then put the telephone down and looked over at Simon Parkston with a huge smile.

"It is all set Simon, later this morning, let's take little Cassie for a ride on the river." Moira said.

**********

Later that morning, Rob spoke to Sir Willoughby Brown, who had been waiting anxiously to hear from Rob to know if all had gone well, Rob now gave Sir Willoughby Brown a full update on the situation.

"Rob, have you tried to trace her phone call?" Sir Willoughby Brown asked.

"I do not think that she actually phoned us, she probably had a demon connect the two telephones so as to be able to speak to me, Sir Richard, as according to the telephone company we never even received a call. When you think about the satanic powers that she possesses, of what she can do, and what else she might be capable of doing, it is scary." Rob replied.

"It makes her one of the most dangerous opponents that you have ever tangled with. Okay then Rob, you had better come in, you will need help on this job and you can have six more of our agents to help you. It sounds as if you will need them to do the more strenuous work, you will only set your recovery back otherwise. Rob tell me, how did the injury you incurred in the hell dimension, appear on your body, when your physical self was still here on Earth during the whole episode that your spirit was away from it?"

"I do not know the specifics, only that if I was to have died in the hell dimension, then my earthbound body would also have died. This 'law' also seems to apply to injuries." Rob explained and then went on to confess to a nagging thought that would not go away.

"Sir Richard, there is one thing that troubles me, it has to do with what Lord Asbaritch said, about the sentient life-force, one that even Lord Asbaritch finds ever more difficult to control. It has gone against his wishes before, what if it has done so again, what if it gave the device the same power as the original, but without the overwhelming evil influence."

"I doubt that, surely this dark lord would have detected such a thing and taken the Key into his safe keeping, that or destroyed it. Let us both think on it, we can then exchange thoughts before you are due to leave for the rendezvous tonight." Sir Willoughby Brown replied anxiously.

Here the discussion regarding the Key was left, and after finally getting a couple of hours of sleep, Doctor Wilson took Rob to the clinic, who x-rayed his chest and then confirmed that his ribs were not broken. Then Gerry Handley chauffeured Rob over to the headquarters of the Special Intelligence Service.

Rob was extremely grateful for the use of the men given to him by Sir Willoughby Brown, and on the drive to headquarters, he went over in his mind how best to use them. On arrival, he spent even more time going over his plan on how to save Cassie, and then catch Moira Bourbon. Three men would be on either side of the bridge, Gerry Handley had opted to wait on the South side of the river. Father Pritchard would accompany Rob on his meeting with Moira Bourbon, to forestall any possible violence from Moira Bourbon, as Rob`s body needed rest, not an attack from an insane Satanist.

While a team of scientists performed every test known to man on the oil lamp, without having any success whatsoever, Rob returned home where he managed to catch up on his sleep, propped up in bed. Christina did not wake him until the sun began to sink behind the rooftops of Reigate. Then after enjoying a good home cooked meal, Christina drove Rob back to London and the SIS headquarters. Here they met up with Father Pritchard, who had the Key packed safely away in a holdall; also, there was Gerry Handley, along with Sir Willoughby Brown, who was looking very troubled.

"Rob, this Key, I have been thinking the matter over all day and I am not sure whether we should risk handing it over to Moira Bourbon, if it is a working copy, then there is no knowing what she might accomplish." Sir Willoughby Brown said.

"If we do not hand the Key over, then Cassie will most certainly die, Sir, once she is safe then we can take Moira Bourbon and retrieve the Key, with CCTV and six more agents she will not escape, she is hardly a professional." Rob declared vehemently.

"Yes, Rob in that you are correct, and to sacrifice a young girl for an object that according to our scientists is probably just an old oil lamp, well it would make us just as bad as the Satanists whom we are up against." Sir Willoughby Brown replied and then took a moment to reconsider the problem. "Okay then Rob, go ahead with your plan, and I will arrange for the CCTV cameras to be manned by our chaps."

Sir Willoughby Brown then turned to Gerry, who had been quiet during the discussion regarding the Key. "Gerry, as Rob is in no shape to run this mission, you are in command, when the girl is safe, arrest Moira Bourbon for murder and kidnapping, please ensure that she does not escape, and bring me the satanic artefact back." Sir Willoughby Brown ordered.

"I will not fail you Sir Richard; both the Satanist and the Key will be brought back here twenty minutes after midnight." Gerry promised.

It was five minutes before midnight, and it was now that Rob and Father Pritchard walked out to the middle of Waterloo Bridge, and even at this hour, it was busy with both foot and motor traffic. It was a clear night with a full moon high in the sky, with the cold breeze that was blowing from the North it made for a cool night.

They only had to wait for five minutes for Moira to join them. For this occasion, she now sported a blond wig with long flowing hair, and her new Goth look had been washed off, but only for today, she did not want to make it too easy for Rob to trace her.

"Hi there Rob, on time I see, and you have the popist with you, how nice for you." Moira sneered.

Rob was surprised to see how Moira had grown into such a beautiful young woman, but he could see the evil within her eyes that marred her looks. Moira did not bother with further small talk, she immediately got down to business, she handed Rob a pair of binoculars, and then she pointed in the direction of the Royal Festival Hall on the south side of the river. Rob found that he was looking through a pair of night vision binoculars, and he could plainly see Cassie, she was standing in front of the building, she appeared to be scared but unharmed.

"The Key please Rob, please do not try anything, or else my friend will kill the girl, and please remember that guns are not our only weapon." Moira said reaching out a hand for the Key.

Rob knew this, and had already decided to do nothing other than to hand over the old oil lamp, which he now did. He hoped that Moira Bourbon would not be able to tell that it was only a copy, if she did then he would signal his troops to move in on Cassie, otherwise he would play it straight, for the moment.

Moira took the Key off him, and after closing her eyes and moving her hands over the satanic device and she seemed satisfied. "Okay then Rob, please do not take it to heart when I say that I hope that I never see you again, bye."

Moira then walked in the direction of the Victoria embankment, while Rob hurried, as fast as his broken body would allow, in the other direction, towards the south side of the river, and Cassie.

Rob immediately put a call in to Gerry Handley, who was watching the exchange through his own night vision binoculars on the south bank of the Thames, and he was much nearer to Cassie.

"Gerry, Cassie is in front of the Royal Festival Hall; get someone to her fast, I will be with her as soon as I can hobble over there." Rob said. He had been ordered to leave Moira Bourbon to the rest of the team, for he was not fit enough to tangle with Moira or her team.

Gerry had SIS agents John Agers and Simon Markman ensure that Cassie was safe while he quickly drove over the bridge. He meant to secure Moira Bourbon the second that word came through that Cassie was back in friendly hands. Meanwhile Father Pritchard had followed Moira Bourbon at a discrete distance, ready to assist the three men on that side of the river, the moment someone called to say that Cassie was safe. Moira now slipped down the stairs that led from the bridge down to the embankment, and just after a thick fog had suddenly enveloped the whole area, hiding her from his view. She now hurried towards Cleopatra`s needle, but this was not her destination, arriving at the Savoy Pier she hurried along it to a small motor cruiser and Simon Parkston.

"The Mist of Glairmore worked superbly Simon, those poor jerks cannot see their own noses, it`s so foggy here." Moira giggled.

"I hope it works just as well, when we use it against the demons." Parkston said stonily as he engaged the engine and they sped down river to a waiting automobile at the Kingston Bridge over the Thames. "Moira, you realise that they had men on both sides of the river, and that they were closing in on you, they were only waiting for the signal to pounce."

Moira laughed aloud as they passed under a bridge, the wind blowing her long hair and swirling it behind her.

"Simon, they never stood a chance, we are unbeatable now."

**********

On the other side of the river, Rob comforted a weeping Cassie, as she told him of her ordeal, of how two demons had taken some of her blood as payment for tasks carried out for Moira Bourbon. On hearing this, Rob vowed to hurt Moira Bourbon, and badly, but for now he had to settle for leading Cassie to a waiting vehicle, and with SIS agent Malcolm Palmer at the wheel, she was whisked back to the SIS headquarters and her waiting sister.

Rob and Gerry, who had just returned looking very downcast, were soon sitting in Sir Willoughby Brown`s office, and reporting on the partial success of the operation. Rob had left Cassie in the safe hands of Christina, who had been forced to wait in the offices of the SIS until the successful completion of the operation.

"I am sorry Sir Richard, but somehow Moira Bourbon was able to conjure up the thickest of fogs, there is no way that it was natural, as it only affected that part of London, and for such a short time." Gerry reported sadly.

"There is one other thing for us to worry about Sir, Moira Bourbon checked the Key out, and she went away happy, what if she can now enter a dimension of hell and do whatever it is she has planned?" Rob said fearfully.

"Then you had better track her down Rob, Gerry can assist you in the field, and you can have the use of our research team, find her and get the Key back, destroy it, and kill or detain Moira Bourbon, I do not mind which, just succeed. As for her checking out the Key, I should not worry about that Rob, it was probably all show, done to impress you, nothing more." Sir Willoughby Brown said with more confidence than he felt.

He too was feeling a little fearful after listening to Rob, and part of this fear centred on the fact that up until recently he had scoffed at the idea of Satanists, now he was beginning to be a believer, and this belief brought with it so many other thoughts, ones of the spiritual kind.

"I will start first thing tomorrow morning Sir Richard; tonight, I have to concentrate on getting my wife and her sister safely back to my apartment." Rob replied grimly.

"Would they not be safer in one of our safe houses, while you take care of Moira Bourbon?" Sir Willoughby Brown asked.

"No, Sir Richard, I fear that Moira Bourbon could find them wherever we hid them, no I want them somewhere that I, or some of our men, can defend at a moment`s notice, and with a ready to use pentagram, especially at night when they can safely sleep within its protective circle." Rob replied grimly.

"What is so special about the night, surely Moira Bourbon is a danger at any time during the day or night?" Sir Willoughby Brown asked.

"No, Sir Richard, since becoming involved with Father Pritchard, I have learned many a thing about demons and the like. While Moira will be able to use minor demons during the daylight hours, she cannot use a demon that is able to cause us any real harm. The mid-level and the major demons, such as Lord Asbaritch can only use the more powerful forms of their powers during the hours of darkness, Hollywood got that right at least." Rob explained.

"You are quite correct Rob; I should have thought of that myself, having watched my fair share of horror movies." Sir Willoughby Brown said wearily. "Unfortunately, I am use to fighting mortals, not Satanists and their minions. Rob, bear in mind that Ulysses Bourbon ran as soon as we identified him as a Satanist, the only difference between him and his daughter is that we do not know her base of operations. Tomorrow you and Gerry, along with your friend Father Pritchard, must get started, find Moira Bourbon and remove the problem." Sir Willoughby Brown ordered.

Chapter Four

Fratricide

The Satanists` slept in late the next morning, near to Kingston bridge, for they had felt too tired to return home after their late night`s work, so they had made use of their motor cruiser, borrowed from a friend of Moira`s dead father. After a late breakfast, they had some minor errands to run, and then they drove back to the manor house, and on the way, they talked over their plans for the future.

"We can now go ahead with the next part of our plan Simon, that is to kill Susan, your dear sister in-law, and although we have time to spare, once she is out of the way we can get on to the next part of our plan, that is to kill your younger brother Mark. Only then can we get our hands on their two young virginal daughters, and they are essential to our plan." Moira said icily.

"I have given the matter some thought Moira, and I believe that the best way would be for Susan to have an accident, of the hit and run variety perhaps." Parkston said, and immediately smiled, for the impossible was beginning to happen, and all because of this young woman sitting next to him.

"Yes, Simon, an accident will be perfect, for we do not want the police, or your brother, thinking about possible motives behind her untimely death, do we?" Moira said after thinking about the matter for a minute.

"Simon, I assume that your brother and his family know nothing about your being a Satanist?" Moira asked.

"No, of course not, I have always kept them at arm's length so that they do not learn about my real interest, they just think of me as a boring business man, one who knows how to make a fortune selling commodities on the stock market. Funny enough Moira, it was at the London Stock Exchange that I met your father for the first time, and although we never worked together, either in commerce or as Satanist`s, we did become good friends, as you know of course." Parkston replied, giving Moira a small but sad smile at the mention of her father.

"He always said how much he liked you Simon, he even talked of inviting you down to Lower Boulding, or even over to France, so that you could team up on a quest he had in mind. "Moira replied, looking just a little sad as thoughts of her father filled her mind.

For a moment they seemed like two normal people who were reminiscing over someone dear to one and liked by the other, however, the moment soon passed.

"Simon, as your brother is in the dark about your extra curriculum activities, perhaps we should make use of an assassin demon, I know of one who is normally quite capable?" Moira remarked. "Skargel has not let me down so far, and he is quite cheap to use, if a little smelly." She suggested.

"Yes, I have used Skargel myself, and you are right, he is a little smelly, but then all demons come with that baggage." Parkston replied.

Therefore, with the decision made to use the demon Skargel to rid themselves of Susan Parkston, they then decided to delay her death until the next day, for tonight they would celebrate the success of their venture, so far, by dining out at the Tavern on the Green, the local public house come restaurant in the hamlet of Parkston. For with the acquisition of the two satanic artefacts, the way ahead was clear, only a few relatives stood in the way, and they were all very expendable.

**********

The next day dawned, after a late lunch, they called the demon Skargel, and after the usual proceedings, he appeared in the small temple beneath the Great Hall of the manor house.

"Skargel, we need for you to kill a young woman, you should be able to find her at her home." Moira told the demon, giving him the address and a recent photograph, taken yesterday morning, this being one of the errands they had to do.

"Of course, Master, how would you like her to meet her death, torn asunder, I have not torn anyone asunder in such a while?" Skargel asked in hope.

"No, Skargel, she is to have a traffic accident, and as soon as is possible, do you understand, she is to die as a result of a traffic accident." Moira commanded.

"Of course, Master, an accident." Skargel agreed, just a little disconsolately.

With the details of his new contract agreed, the demon left them, but he would be back to receive his fee, when the contract was completed, of that the Satanists were sure.

Later that evening, Skargel visited his new victim within her own house, and as usual with his visitations, the temperature within the house fell and they noticed a very unpleaseant odour which made them open all the windows and doors. This time he was invisible to the Parkston family, standing behind his new victim, he gave Susan Parkston a sudden craving for a bar of dark chocolat. Such was her craving that she decided to walk along to the local corner shop that stayed open until quite late, leaving her husband to search for the cause of the stench, which was blown away by the breeze now blowing in through the open doors and windows, and did not return. The sun had slipped beneath the horizon an hour before, so it was dark now, as she returned from the shop with the chocolate held in her hand. Around the corner, an early evening drunk sat thinking in his vehicle; he was wondering whether he could drive home without coming a cropper with the law. It was now that Skargel slipped invisibly into the passenger seat and made the drunk start his vehicle; soon he was moving along the dark streets at speed. Susan saw him approaching, but as she had reached a set of traffic lights that had just turned to red, she began to cross the road. Skargel now pressed down on the accelerator, the driver screamed out in panic as the vehicle surged forward, he pressed down on the brake pedal, and the car accelerated, right into Susan Parkston, and she died instantly. Fear ran through the heart of the driver, for he now saw that his foot was not on the brake pedal, but on the accelerator, drink had turned him into a murderer.

The demon Skargel returned to Parkston manor house, his bulging eyes bright as he thought of his fee, and a strange hissing sound came from his mouth. His enormous forked tongue flicking in and out of his wide mouth, tasting the scent of Moira Bourbon, and making him feel a little light headed.

"I have done as you ordered Master, now I need my payment, unfortunately, this time my victim died instantly, so I could not drink her blood." Skargel almost hissed his words as a smile came upon his grotesque face.

"Take it Skargel, all that you are due, and no more." Moira did not even mind the demon taking its fee, for it meant that they had moved another step forward in their quest for power.

Skargel moved forward, and taking her in his arms he gave her a vampire kiss, while drinking her blood, its fee, his eyes lit up as the blood of the Satanist slipped down its throat. Soon the demon had taken its agreed fee, feeling very disconsolate at leaving such a delicious nectar behind, he left scowling, leaving a weakened Satanist who dropped into a nearby chair and rested, then a smile began to play on her young face, as she planned the death of Mark Parkston.

"Mark must commit suicide, driven to it while the state of his mind is temporarily unhinged, following the death of the lovely Susan, his beloved wife." Moira decided. "They had been such a loving couple, and his suicide is believable, just." Moira concluded.

"Yes, Moira, they were a loving couple, and such bores, always went on about their bridge nights, their amateur dramatics, made me want to retch." Parkston agreed with a scowl scarring his normal good looks.

"As he lives at Kingston, maybe he could make use of the river, its lovely at this time of year." Moira decided, and then smiled so sweetly.

"Yes, a drowning, we have not had one of those in the family for simply ages." Parkston agreed with a smile.

Skargel was once again employed to carry out the task, this time one of the coven, Johnathan Towers, had called on the demon to commit the murder. Towers had had a run in with Mark Parkston when Mark Parkston had visited the manor house, on one of the rare occasions that he did so, and Towers had sworn to get even with the man at the first opportunity.

The demon Skargel arrived outside the Parkston home with the usual cold chill that forebode ill for those within the house. He watched the human as he tended to his two young daughters, trying to comfort them after the premature death of their mother. As soon as the two girls had retired for the night, Skargel got to work on Mark Parkston. Standing outside the front room window, Skargel put the desire for Parkston to visit the river into the man`s head, it was two days after the inquest into the death of his wife, and the moon was just rising, lighting up the dark night. Walking down to the nearby river, Parkston looked and felt like an automaton. As soon as he reached it, he walked along the riverside walk until he reached the bridge, he then walked out to the centre of the bridge, and here Parkston stopped to look down at the dark water. He remembered the last time he and his wife had stood there, looking down at the water, then to his consternation, he felt invisible hands grab him and pick him up, and then he was thrown into the river, his cries drowned out by the loud splash as he hit the water. The demon followed Parkston into the water; however, although a passer-by would have heard the demon enter the water, they would not have seen him. Skargel reached out for Parkston, who was swimming for the river bank, and grabbing his victim`s ankle, holding it tight in an iron grip, he dragged him down to the river`s muddy bed. No one seemed to notice the death of Mark Parkston, for no one called out, or searched the surface of the river for a sign of a drowning person. Once again, Skargel took his fee from the Satanist, this time from Towers, once again Skargel left with a smile.

Parkston`s body was found the next morning by a jogger, the inquest decided that Parkston had committed suicide while the balance of his mind was disturbed, because of the recent death of his wife. Simon Parkston was there at the cremation of Mark and Susan Parkston, and he walked forward to comfort his two nieces, Stephanie and Evelyn, who were weeping at the sudden loss of both of their parents.

"Evelyn, Stephanie, the deaths of your parents are such a tragedy, and so unfair." Parkston said softly.

"Why, Uncle Simon, you hardly ever visited us while our father was alive, why the sudden interest in our family now that our parents are dead?" Evelyn asked rather sceptically as tears slid down her young face.

"Why, because the death of your parents has brought home to me how stupid I have been, a misunderstanding on my part, one lost in the mists of time, separated us, and now it is too late to apologise to them. You are the only family I have left to me, as Marjorie and I are to you two girls. Please accept my heart felt apologises on their behalf." Simon Parkston pleaded, tears now visible in his eyes, one even trickling down his face.

"You must come to the manor house, live there with us, let us share your lives, I will ensure that you do not live to regret it." Parkston begged.

So earnest were his pleas that the two young girls agreed, the alternative being to stay in the council run children's` home where they had been staying for the last few nights, and then Simon Parkston enfolded them in his arms to welcome and comfort them. He drove them back to the children`s home where Parkston used his satanic power to coerce the officials into agreeing that he could have the guardianship of his two nieces. The girls then packed their clothes and personal possessions, and the Simon Parkston took them back to their old home for a last look at it. They left their old home in tears, taking with them many memories, mostly good, but a small part of them was glad to leave these memories behind them, just for the moment.

They were soon passing through the small hamlet of Parkston, which encircled the manor house; the other members of the coven lived here, the original tenants having been evicted over the period that Parkston had been in residence. Then they passed through the gatehouse of the manor house and into the large courtyard. The two sisters were immediately taken to their suite of rooms. Their two bedrooms and a private bathroom were within the North Tower, and they had the whole of the tower set aside for their personal use. This large amount of space meant they could spend time alone, when their emotions became too much for them to want company.

Moira had the use of the rooms above the gatehouse, and Simon and Marjorie`s bedroom was in the Solar Block, with their bathroom and dressing room within the South Tower. The lower part of this tower had been converted for use as a library and reading room, although anything satanic had been moved to the gatehouse while the two sisters were guests at the manor house. The Great Hall was used as a living and dining area, where they were to spend most of their time, this then was the manor house.

**********

Rob`s initial investigation into the whereabouts of Moira Bourbon had got them nowhere, Moira Bourbon had disappeared into the woodwork. Rob went through the address book that they had found at the home of the now dead Ulysses Bourbon in Lower Boulding. They kept it in the SIS archives, for use if required in the future, but after another extensive investigation into the names in the book, they were no nearer to finding a clue that would lead them to another Satanist. Therefore, Rob, Gerry and Father Pritchard decided to pay a call on the former home of the dead Satanist, so they contacted Inspector Davies of the local Lower Boulding police force, and he met them at the house.

"It is nice to see you again Rob." Davies said after being introduced to the other two men.

"Unfortunately Inspector, the same problem has arisen, as you have no doubt read in the newspapers. Moira Bourbon killed her psychiatrist and escaped from the psychiatric hospital where she was confined following her escapades both here and in France. This is why we want to search the house again, to ensure that Moira Bourbon is not living here, and if she is not here, then I want to search through the house, especially the library, hopefully we can find a clue there as to her current whereabouts." Rob explained.

"Okay then, we had better get started." Inspector Davies replied, and unlocked the door to the house.

"Oh, before we search the main part of the house Inspector, can we check on the temple in the cellar, and the secret room, just to ensure that neither of them has been used since our last visit here?" Rob asked

Inspector Davies looked at Rob, Rob could see a flash of fear appear in the policeman`s eyes, the same fear that he too felt at the thought of returning to the temple, but he wanted to be sure that the house was not being used by Moira Bourbon.

Rob led the way down to the cellar, thankfully, although it was cool and a little damp, the icy touch that would signify the presence of evil was not present there. As they approached the door to the temple, Rob felt rather apprehensive, as too did Inspector Davies, thankfully, though it was inhabited by nothing more than the odd spider.

They then looked into the concealed room at the other end of the cellar, the one where Christina, Cassie, and their mother had been confined by Ulysses Bourbon at the beginning of the last satanic investigation by Rob, but it too looked unlived in. They then searched the remainder of the house; however, it provided no clues to help them. Although, on entering the library, Rob did notice a number of the bookshelves were now empty of books. Dust on some of the shelves told Rob that the books that had stood here had been taken away when Ulysses Bourbon had fled to France, but there were a number of dust free spaces. Of course, Rob did not know who had moved the books, in fact, some had been taken by a demon on the instructions of Moira, and Jonathan Towers had collected some others to assist them in their plans to enter the demon dimension of Tartarus. With nothing to show for their time, Rob checked out the pictures hanging on the wall, for one of these had given them their lead the last time the Satanists had come into the lives of Rob and the Ryman family. However, he found nothing here to assist them, and so they took their leave of Inspector Davies and returned to London.

Their investigation had brought no clues to light that pointed the way to Moira Bourbon`s whereabouts, even with every police force in the country looking for her. Sir Willoughby Brown was beginning to become a little impatient about their lack of progress, he had even hinted that they might soon have to return to their normal jobs, as he was in need of two good agents for a particularly tricky job that had just come up.

One good thing was that Rob`s body repaired itself during this time, and he and Christina got back to enjoying a normal married life, and even Cassie felt more at ease, no longer afraid to go out alone, and no longer fretting when a stranger stopped her to ask directions.

**********

During these two months, the two Parkston sisters were settling nicely into their new home, and their new school, life for them was slowly getting back to normal. It was late October and the courtyard of the manor house was being readied for a Halloween party, plastic witches on plastic broomsticks rode the walls of the courtyard, plastic vampires stalked the courtyard itself. All this was meant to put the two young sisters at their ease, which it did. At the far end of the courtyard was a sacrificial altar, newly reinstalled after Parkston had ordered its removal so as not to alarm the two girls. The altar was more for the Satanists than for the two sisters, even though it had been decorated with a plastic skeleton and a guillotine to conceal its real use. However, Stephanie and Evelyn Parkston were not really in the party mood, even though Halloween was the day of Evelyn`s sixteenth birthday, the death of their parents was still too fresh in their minds, still, they decided to play along, for their uncle and his wife had gone to so much effort to please them.

**********

A storm was raging outside of the room that Father David Pritchard was making use of, he was lying awake in his makeshift bed in Rob`s small apartment, trying to get comfortable, something quite difficult in a foldaway camp bed. They had given up on sleeping within the pentagram, as Moira Bourbon had made no new attempts on their lives or wellbeing, and anyway why would the Satanist recommence hostilities, now she had what she wanted? He decided that he would return home to his own house in Salisbury, in the morning, it would certainly be more comfortable sleeping in his own bed. He would only return when a lead was discovered that would take them to the Satanist, and he could carry on his own research into this matter just as well at home. With this decision made, he smiled, just as a bright flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed by a loud crash of thunder. Anyone else might have thought that his decision had angered the gods, but he dismissed it as an act of Mother Nature, and he turned over and within minutes was asleep. However, he fell into a fitful sleep, and just as the church clock struck two o`clock, in the early morning, he sat bolt up in bed, he realised two things, one that he was sweating, profusely, and two, there was someone standing at the foot of his bed. Even before Father Pritchard could turn on the light, the figure spoke.

"David, listen to me, I only have moments to tell you this. Moira Bourbon is going to sacrifice two more young girls, it will be at midnight on Halloween, you must stop her or Hell itself might be let loose on Earth, find her before it is too late. I do not know the exact location of the black mass, but she is somewhere in the vicinity of a ruined church in Yorkshire, maybe near to the small village of Parkston..." The rest of what the ghostly figure was going to say was cut off.

Father Pritchard saw the ghostly figure turn around, and then he heard his visitor cry out in fear, an arm raised to protect himself from an unknown assailant. His makeshift bedroom was lit up by a bright flash, and then it was if a thunderclap had exploded in the room, and the figure of the man was no longer there. Father Pritchard was almost deafened; he certainly did not hear Rob, Christina, or Cassie, run into his makeshift bedroom.

"David, are you all right, what on Earth caused that noise and the bright light?" Rob asked.

Father Pritchard looked up at his friend with a mixture of fear and puzzlement upon his face; no, he was not all right.

"I think that I just had a visit from John Ryman, your brother Christina, Cassie, he came to me to warn me about Moira Bourbon. He just had time to tell me whereabouts we will find her when he was cut off by something that he was terribly afraid of, which is when the lightning bolt and the thunderclap occurred, inside your front room." Father Pritchard said in a shaky voice. "Rob they are near to a ruined church in Yorkshire, maybe in the vicinity of a small village name Parkston. He said that the Satanist bitch is going to sacrifice two more young girls."

Christina and Cassie both hugged one another, as visions of their own run in with Moira Bourbon and her father flashed into their now frightened minds.

"Rob, you must do something, stop her from murdering the two girls." Christina cried out in alarm, with Cassie nodding violently in agreement. Christina felt a little guilty that she and Cassie had been saved, when the lives of two other girls might not be, and to save them, Rob and David would have to put their own lives at risk.

"I will Christina, Cassie, that mad bitch is not going to sacrifice anymore innocents for her depraved beliefs." Rob said earnestly. Rob immediately went into the front room, to a small bureau, on opening it pulled out a road map of the UK, and he found only one village listed under the name Parkstone, and it was near to Poole in Dorset.

"That cannot be the only one; John definitely said Moira Bourbon was in Yorkshire." Father Pritchard declared, and a little steadier this time as he went through in his mind everything that he had been told by his dead friend.

"In that case it must be too small to warrant a mention on a road map of this scale, what we need to use is Google Earth. Turning on his laptop, they soon found the small hamlet of Parkston, and Father Pritchard cancelled his trip back home, for they would soon be travelling north, in to danger.

"We do not have much time to find her, Halloween is tomorrow, and that gives us less than 24 hours to stop her and to save the two girls." Christina exclaimed anxiously looking across at her husband.

"David, Gerry and me will find her, you and Cassie are staying here Christina, and when the sun sets, you must stay inside of the pentagram." Rob ordered his wife who immediately scowled at him. "I will have the office send over a couple of our guys to stand guard, just in case this was all a trick to get us out of the way while they kidnap you and Cassie." Rob declared, and both Christina and Cassie nodded their agreement, for they knew that if they joined in the hunt, it would only make things more difficult for Rob and the others.

Rob walked over to the phone and dialled Gerry Handley`s mobile, and was answered by a very sleepy voice. "Hello, I just hope that you have a good reason for waking me." Gerry moaned.

"Gerry, we know where they are, and also when they intend to act, we will meet you at the office, have a fast car ready, we are off to Yorkshire and have only 21 hours to stop her, and the clock is already ticking." Rob ordered his colleague.

"Okay, Rob I will be there." Gerry replied, instantly awake.

As soon as they were on the way to SIS headquarters in London, Rob put a call into Sir Willoughby Brown to tell him the news, although grumpy at being woken at such an early point in the new day, he was instantly alert on hearing the news.

"Okay then Rob, keep me informed on your progress, if this revelation turns up the Satanist then shoot first and ask questions later, I want this satanic problem dealt with, I do not want you sent off to some other dimension because you attempted to take her alive. When you have something concrete, call the local police and have them on hand to arrest the other members of the coven. I will call the local chief constable and put him in the picture, and do not worry about your wife and her sister; I will ensure that no harm comes to them."

**********

As the sun rose that same morning, Marjorie Parkston was looking out of the window of their bedroom at the countryside beyond the walls of the manor house; she looked across at her husband and she smiled sadly.

"Poor little Evelyn, she will be just sixteen when she dies, I feel so sorry for her Simon, and even more so for Stephanie, she will be only fourteen. Simon, how will we explain their disappearance from school; I for one do not want a cell next to Moira. Are you sure about her, she scares me, so sure about everything, and so cold, why don`t we put it off until next year, give the girls a little longer to live, and us a little more time to go over everything?"

"Marjorie, everything will be fine, I will make up a potion, that and a little magic will ensure that no one queries their disappearance, they have no other family, and I will take care of any friends who might come looking for them, have faith in me my darling." Simon Parkston replied dousing his wife`s fears.

"I do my darling, it is Moira who frightens me, well okay, though it is a shame about the girls, I have become quite fond of them, but needs must I suppose, when Lord Lucifer drives." Marjorie Parkston said, and then laughed at her twist of the well-known phrase.

"I too feel for them, but Evelyn was not only born at midnight on Halloween, she is our own niece, this gift will help to open the psychic lock to the gateway, and allow us to enter in to the dimension in which the ancient demons were banished. As for Stephanie, we need her virgin blood; it will provide the Mist of Glairmore with the power that we require to enable us to return home from Tartarus, and unnoticed by the creatures of that terrible dimension. With the help of Moira, you and I will acquire the power of the ancient gods, and we will be away before they even know that we were there, have no fear my darling, there is no way that they will escape from their eternal prison." Parkston replied with more certainty than he actually felt, for he knew that there was always a chance that things could go wrong, but then that is why he had chosen Moira to assist him, to ensure that at least he got home safely.

Chapter Five

Halloween

The two girls, Evelyn and Stephanie, awoke late that morning, to find that the preparations for the Halloween celebrations were all completed, so they decided to spend the day walking in the local countryside, it was a beautiful day and the sun was warm.

Moira had gone on a shopping visit to the nearest town, Johnathan Towers had been happy to drive the pretty Satanist when she had complained of being too tired to drive. They had collected a package of herbs from a local health shop, herbs that were vital to the coming black mass, along with these they also needed to replace their normal stock of herbs. Although they grew many of the herbs that they used, either in the gardens of the manor house or the nearby cottages, they had consumed many of them due to the number of potions they had made lately, when summoning up the demons. They also needed to replace the glass bowl they used to mix the potions in; it had developed a crack in it due to the heat created in the powerful potions they used when they summoned Lord Asbaritch.

Now they were just about to set off back to the manor house, they were waiting for the line of traffic to pass so that they could pull out. Moira in her Gothic style and her hoodie pulled over her head was unrecognisable to anyone passing by; she sat there yawning, it had been a tiring forty-eight hours. She looking at the passing vehicles, impatient for the passing traffic to end, however, when it did, she saw the last vehicle in the line contained Rob Hinds.

As Towers pulled out after the vehicle, Moira ordered him to follow it, the main flow of traffic had kept to the main road, while they had both turned off down a narrow side road, Rob also appeared to be travelling towards the small hamlet of Parkston, and this made her worried.

"Drop back a little Jonathan, we do not want them to notice us, I especially do not want them catching sight of me, that would be very inconvenient at the moment."

Moira began to make use of the new glass bowl and some of the ingredients that she had just purchased, soon they had travelled far enough away from civilisation, as she termed the towns and larger villages, and she was now ready to launch her attack.

"Skargel, come to me, I, Moira Bourbon, Master Satanist command you." Moira`s voice sounding all the louder within the confines of the vehicle.
Quicker than usual, a black plume of smoke began to rise out of the floor of the vehicle, and thanks to some foresight, flow out of the now open windows. Then a form began to appear, it was the demon.

"I am here Master; how may I be of service to you." The demon asked.

"The vehicle in front of this one Skargel; I want you to stop it, and ensure that it is not able to proceed without substantial repairs, then short out their mobile phones." Moira instructed the demon.

"Of course, Master." Skargel said. His face took on what could be mistaken for a smile, except that on him it looked very scary.

"Skargel, we have a nice young virgin for you to feast on, just before midnight, not before, to earn this tasty treat you must report back to me every quarter of an hour regarding the whereabouts of the three men. I will also throw in a gallon of Rakiremanin if you do a good job." Moira instructed.

"Turn the car around Jonathan; we will have to take the roundabout route back to the manor house." Moira said after the demon had left to carry out its task.

It was not dark yet, but the tasks set the demon were not so very black, the demon did not need the night to carry out its minor missions. In fact, Skargel did not need to use black magic to stop the car with Rob Hinds inside; he merely needed to push a recently fallen tree into the path of the fast approaching vehicle, and at a point in the road where it turned sharply. Gerry Handley never even saw the tree until the last second, for Skargel had used a little light magic to conceal it. Gerry turned the wheel sharply, but struck the fallen tree hard, and their vehicle went off the road and into a ditch.

"Are you both okay, David, Gerry?" Rob asked his two friends. They had all had their seat belts on, and this had saved them from a serious injury, even so, they were a little shaken by the crash.

"I am sorry Rob, David, but I did not see the bloody thing, not until the very last second, and then it was too late to do much other than crash." Gerry complained bitterly.

"I do not think you were meant to see it Gerry, it was not there two seconds before the crash, which I will testify to on a stack of bibles." Father Pritchard said and then he swore, for he had just moved, and now felt a pain in his side where the seat belt had dug in when he had been thrown forward by the crash.

"Maybe the ungodly were in that vehicle that followed after us, after we passed through that last small town; if they were then they were damned quick in sending a demon after us." Rob said grimly.

"I thought they needed darkness to operate in?" Gerry said quizzically.

"Not for a minor piece of magic, such as moving a tree onto the road and then concealing it until the last moment." Father Pritchard explained.

Rob got out of the vehicle and pulled his mobile phone out, but it immediately began to crackle and sparks leapt from it. Rob hurriedly threw it to the ground; his phone was joined by the mobile phones of the other two men, for their phones had also started to crackle. Finally, the car phone exploded, and Rob had to get the small fire extinguisher out to extinguish the flames that sprang from it.

"The Satanists are working hard today, we must be too close for their comfort." Rob said with a weary sigh.

"We will have to walk, which way do you want to go Rob?" Father Pritchard asked.

"The only possible way is back to the small town that we just passed through, it will be an eight miles hike, unless we are lucky enough to get a lift, but first we had better try to move the tree trunk before someone else runs over it, and our vehicle too."

The three friends found that together, they were able to roll the tree trunk to the side of the road; however, they could do nothing about their vehicle, apart from put their warning triangle down on the road just around the bend to warn oncoming traffic. Then they set off along the road, in hope of securing a lift to take them somewhere where they would be able to hire a replacement vehicle. Unfortunately, no one came along to offer them a lift, although they were able to hire a replacement vehicle, after they arrived at the small town, and just thirty minutes before the local car hire garage shut. Therefore, with a new vehicle they decided to return to the scene of the accident and pick up their gear. Before they left the village, Rob called in, the telephones were working here, and he reported the 'accident' saying that the signs looked good for an early end to their search. They also arranged for their own vehicle to be collected and repaired, then they drove off towards the small hamlet of Parkston, and once there they meant to ask the locals if they had seen Moira Bourbon.

The moon was just rising above the manor house when they arrived at the hamlet of Parkston. The lights were on at the Tavern on the Green, a small public house come restaurant that served the local community and any passing motorist, however, no noise was coming from the building, only from the nearby manor house. Rob led the way into the public house, glad to be out of the strong wind that had sprung up ahead of an approaching storm, to find that the public house was empty save for the landlord.

"Too early is it for the locals?" Rob enquired of the landlord.

"No, sir, but as it is Halloween today, they are all at the manor house getting ready for the private party there, it is going to be a big affair with dancing and games. I suppose some will drop in here on the way to the party, to have a drink before the party properly kicks off." The landlord replied with a smile for his three customers. "Now what can I get you three gentlemen?"

"Three pints of your finest please Landlord." Gerry Handley said walking up to the bar.

The landlord soon poured three pints of a locally brewed ale and set it on the counter. "That will be £11.40 please sir." The landlord said.

After paying the landlord, Gerry smiled at him and said. "We are meeting a friend here, Moira Bourbon, has she been by tonight?"

"I cannot say that I recognise the name sir, she certainly is not a local, for I know every one of them personally." The landlord replied, and began polishing a glass that to Gerry seemed clean and polished enough already.

"Why don`t we sit down?" Rob suggested and led the way to a table against the sidewall. The other two followed him and sat down with their backs to the landlord.

"I think that our friendly landlord is lying, there was certainly a hint of recognition in his eyes when you asked about dear Moira." Father Pritchard ventured.

"I suggest that we gate-crash the local Halloween party, because the area within ten miles of this hamlet of Parkston is devoid of civilisation, with the exception of this small hamlet and the manor house, and a private Halloween party would make a suitable charade to conceal the true theme of the party, a black mass." Rob said by way of agreeing with his friend.

"So, how do we get in unnoticed, Rob, Gerry, you two are the experts in this sort of escapade?" Father Pritchard asked.

"I am not sure that we can use the method we employed in France, David. Ulysses Bourbon had already shown his colours that time, but something will occur to us, first though we will have to hide the car, for we can hardly leave it parked outside while we gate-crash a black mass." Rob replied. "Especially if the landlord is one of the coven."

"I will see if they have a telephone here that is working." Gerry said and stood up and walked across to the bar.

"Landlord, is there a telephone that I can use?" Gerry asked.

"I am sorry sir, but there is something odd going on, neither my landline nor my mobile telephone seems to be working, it is very strange, it must be the atmospherics." The landlord replied with a sad shake of his head.

Gerry Handley returned to his two friends who had heard the landlord`s reply. "Rob, Gerry, I am a little worried by our luck with the telephones, maybe we should get out of here pronto, before our luck gets even worse." Father Pritchard advised.

Unseen by the three friends, Moira watched from the rear room of the public house. Skargel had given her an update every fifteen minutes regarding their whereabouts. He had also put out of action their three new mobile telephones, just minutes after they had activated them, that was seconds after she had heard about their new acquisitions. His last report was that her enemies were approaching the hamlet, and she had assumed correctly that they would stop off at the Tavern on the Green. She smiled ever so sweetly as she listened to the three friends talking, this time making used of a little black magic that did not require a demon. She pulled out her mobile telephone and called Simon Parkston.

"Simon, we have a minor problem inside the bar of the Tavern on the Green, Rob Hinds, together with the popist, and another man are here, they are planning on gate-crashing the party, have four men all armed with shotguns meet me out front of the place, we will have to take them prisoner." Moira ordered.

"I am not sure that that is a good idea Moira, their superiors must know where they are." Parkston said in full panic mode.

"They may know that they are in this part of Yorkshire, but not where they actually are, I told you that I prevented them from phoning home, now do as I say, and hurry before they decide to leave." Moira ordered.

"Okay, if you think that it is for the best Moira, I will have Towers bring three men along and meet you in front of the public house." Parkston agreed, feeling a little angry at the way Moira Bourbon bullied him.

The three friends were just leaving the public house when the four men appeared from around the side of the building, and they were all armed with shotguns that were pointed directly at them. Moira now made her presence known, moving out from behind the four Satanists. Rob saw her this time without her blond wig; instead, she was made up in her full Goth style, and he cursed himself for a fool in underestimating his opponent.

"Rob, you really should have stayed away, now you and your two little friends will have to pay the price of your meddlesome snooping. Obey my orders quickly and you all get to live, for a while at least. First you Rob, pull out your gun, slowly, and throw it away, then your friend can do likewise." Moira said in her sickly syrupy voice. "Do it Rob, or my friends will fire, and with four shotguns aimed at you, and at this range, they will not miss." Moira demanded in a much louder and very angry voice.

Rob pulled out his pistol, using just his fingertips, as he did not want to be on the receiving end of four shotgun blasts, Gerry followed suit, and both men tossed their weapons to the side and then waited.

"Okay, Jonathan, give me your weapon while you check them all for other concealed weapons, I am sure that they all have some sort of knife about their persons." Moira instructed her Satanist friend.

Towers handed Moira his shotgun and then ensuring that he kept clear of the ground between the Satanists and the three friends, he took a long elliptical route until he was behind the Rob and the others. He then searched them for weapons, he found that each of the men carried a knife, which he threw over to the ground that already held the two guns, but neither of the agents carried a backup gun, he then walked back and stood behind Moira.

"Okay, you three, walk towards the manor house, we have a nice dark cellar in which to hold you in, while we consider what we are going to do with you." Moira said acidly.

The three men walked towards the gatehouse, and upon reaching it, they found an open wooden door within the archway.

"Okay, Rob, lead the way downstairs." Moira ordered.

Rob walked down a flight of wooden stairs, lit by a single ceiling light that was swaying in the strong wind that blew them down the stairs. At the bottom of the stairs was another door, Rob went through it followed by Gerry and Father Pritchard. When all three men were in the pitch-black cellar, the door behind them shut with a loud bang, they turned in the darkness, but could see nothing but the blackness that engulfed them.

"This is not good Rob, they must know that they will have to kill us, to ensure their own safety, we have to get out of here somehow, and soon." Gerry Handley declared grimly.

"And we will, they searched us, but the big guy was an amateur, I still have my small pen torch and a lock pick, we will soon be away from here. When we are out, we need to find and rescue the two girls, and without their human sacrifices, we will have stopped the Satanists` plans, at least for the moment. Tomorrow we can return here with the local police and arrest the lot of them, and I will ensure that Moira Bourbon has no access to anything that she can use to conjure up any more demons." Rob promised his two friends.

Rob and the others listened at the door for any sign that a sentry had been posted, but only silence greeted their efforts. "We appear to be alone down here, but even so, I think that it might be more prudent to wait until the Halloween party is in full swing before attempting to escape, the better to hide us from the Satanists." Rob said and his thoughts were shared by his friends, and midnight was still some time away so they had time to spare.

Therefore, they waited until the noise of the partygoers reaching new heights, only then did Rob attack the lock, while Father Pritchard directed a thin beam of light upon it from the pen torch. The ancient lock took Rob all of two minutes to open, its old workings delaying him longer than he had expected. When the lock finally clicked open, Rob gently pushed the old wooden door open, to the accompaniment of a loud squeak. Father Pritchard immediately swung the beam of light from the small pen torch towards the new blackness, that was the empty space that stood at the bottom of the wooden staircase, but it was not empty, for standing at the foot of the stairs was a nasty looking demon sentry, one who moved towards them threateningly. Father Pritchard immediately slammed the door shut.

"Quickly Gerry hold the door shut, Rob, you must relock the door immediately." Father Pritchard ordered.

The two agents quickly followed orders, none too soon, for the demon crashed against the door, and it took all three of them to hold the door shut while Rob relocked the door. When they were safely locked up again, Father Pritchard turned away from the door and walked along the near sidewall of the room, he was searching for something that he had seen earlier, it had been caught in a stray beam of light just as they had been pushed into the underground room. The beam of light from the pen torch giving off sufficient light to show him that the room was not entirely empty. A large ceramic sink was fixed to the wall in the far corner, beneath it was an old plastic bucket, which he picked up and placed in the sink beneath a tap, turning the tap on he filled the bucket, then he called over to his two friends.

"Rob, Gerry come over here please." He called across to his two friends quietly, so as not to alert their enemy that they were about to try something.

When they were with him, he told them why he wanted them. "Gerry, please take hold of the bucket, and do not spill it, our lives are at stake, Rob you take the torch and shine it on the bucket." Father Pritchard instructed.

Gerry took the bucket of water from his friend, but looked quizzically at him; however, Rob guessed what his friend had in mind.

Father Pritchard then pulled from his pockets two slim packets. "These are packets of blessed salt, the minions of the devil missed them in their search for weapons, forgetting in their haste just how powerful simple things can be." He then sprinkled the salt into the water.

" **Blessed are you, Lord, Almighty God, and blessed is your only son Jesus Christ. As you blessed this salt may you use its holy powers to cleanse and bless this water. This we beseech of you oh Almighty God, so that we may use it in the eternal fight against evil." Father Pritchard then made the sign of the cross above the water.**

**" We** **really should use fresh spring water, but needs must when one of the devil`s minions is just outside the door." Father Pritchard said with a weak smile.**

**Just then the room was filled with a b** **right white light that blinded them, then it slowly faded away, leaving them once more in total blackness.**

**" Err,** **David, does that normally happen when you bless water, because if so, you might have warned me, I nearly dropped the bucket." Gerry said in wonder at what had happened.**

**" No, Ge** **rry, it never happens, the fact that it did scares me silly, and the reason behind it could be good or bad." Father Pritchard said hesitantly.**

**" You are right** **David, whether it was caused by the good, the bad, or the ugly, the reason behind it tells me that the Key of Tartarus that I brought back from the Dreamscape might just be a working copy." Rob said fearfully.**

**********

In the courtyard above the dark cellar, Simon Parkston looked briefly at his oldest niece Evelyn, who had turned sixteen this very day, then he glanced at his youngest niece Stephanie, she was just fourteen years old. Both of the young girls were dancing to the modern music that filled the courtyard, and neither of them realised the true reason behind their being at the manor house. Parkston now looked at Jonathan Towers who was standing by the Great Hall, with him were three other members of the coven, he nodded at Towers who returned the signal.

"It is time, let`s collect the sacrifices." Towers said to his three friends.

They walked over to the two young sisters who were dancing with two men, who were both older than the sisters were by at least ten years, but there was a distinct lack of young people at the party, which Evelyn thought strange. As Towers and the other men approached the girls, their two dancing partners stopped dancing and waited. Evelyn and Stephanie gasped as the four men grabbed them roughly from behind and pulled them both towards the stone altar.

"What the hell, hey you are hurting me you jerk." Evelyn cried out in anger.

Towers stopped for a moment and shook the struggling girl violently, then a woman appeared and she slapped the young girl violently across the face. "Shut it girl, or I promise you that I will take great pleasure in stopping your girly squeals."

"Uncle Simon, tell these people to cut it out." Stephanie begged, but when the help failed to materialise, she began to scream, as too did her sister.

Simon Parkston smiled and followed after the struggling group, with him were his wife Marjorie, and Moira Bourbon.

"Quiet bitches." Moira ordered. However, the two sisters continued to scream out in fear, and as the two sisters came to a halt before the altar, Moira struck both of them hard across the face, silencing the two girls who were now in total shock at what was happening to them. Evelyn grabbed a hold of her younger sister`s hand and looked up at Simon Parkston.

"You bastard, you planned all of this at our parents` funeral." Evelyn sobbed. "Stephanie and I, we are both virgins, do not do this to us, please." She begged.

"You were born for this, born to serve us as sacrifices, you should be happy to die in the service of our Lord Lucifer." Moira declared loudly and moving threateningly towards the two girls. "Now shut up, our Halloween party is just about to begin."

Evelyn was picked up and put on top of the cold stone altar, and chained to it, and then Stephanie was lifted up and chained by her side, the key being put onto a hook fitted to the side of the altar. Fear of their uncertain future almost made the two girls faint, but thankfully, they were then left alone.

Mrs Knightly had a question for Parkston, one that had been troubling her for some time, in fact ever since she had been told of the quest for the golden Ark.

"Simon, when we enter the realm of Tartarus, how will we locate the Ark, for speed will be of the utmost importance, considering the inhabitants who are supposed to dwell there?" She asked quizzically.

"We know from the book that Moira provided, that the Ark is kept within the Fortress of Kronos, it is guarded by one of the Cyclops, however, we shall be hidden from it by the Mist of Glairmore. When Moira activates the Key of Tartarus she will be concentrating upon the fortress, and this should ensure that the portal that we create will be created near to the fortress." Parkston explained.

"However, Joanna, enough of that, it is now time to invite a guest to our party." Parkston said, and he moved forward and called out in ringing terms.

"Hekate, long have we offered tribute to you, now we ask you to join our celebrations so yet another tribute can be offered to you."

A dark form began to appear in a swirl of bright orange lights in front of the Great Hall, soon they saw it was a woman, but one fully eight foot tall. She was dressed all in white, her long black hair flowing down her shoulders and contrasting with her attire. Evelyn on seeing her felt oddly safe, that is until the woman spoke.

"Satanist, I honour your celebrations with my visit, and I remember your tokens of tribute well, what is it that you have for me this time, surely not yet another pair of virgins." Hekate scoffed on seeing the two young girls.

"No, my Goddess, nothing so mundane, what I have is a tribute to your beauty my Goddess." Parkston said bowing before Hekate. He now moved over to the Great Hall where a meter high statue stood.

"This is a statue of you my Goddess, carved from the Yew tree that is held sacred to you, and us, your followers." Parkston said bowing once again before Hekate.

Hekate smiled at Parkston and took the tribute that he offered, and then she turned and sat on the throne that had been placed there prior to the commencements of the party.

The members of the coven now began to gather around the fire, soon they were dancing, some were singing along with the song coming from the speakers, but when Evelyn listened to the words, she realised that they were all about satanic rites and black masses, and her fear increased.

"Evelyn, are you awake?" Stephanie whispered.

"Yes, Stephanie, but I sure wish that I was not." Evelyn replied,

"Evelyn, who is that giant woman, and why are they doing this to us, why?" Stephanie cried out in terror.

"I do not know Stephanie; I just hope that it is a dream." Evelyn replied anxiously.

Moira Bourbon may have been a black hearted Satanist, but she was still a young woman who liked to dance, and she soon attracted the attention of the youngest male member of the coven, Mark Chambers. Forgetting the other Satanists their dancing became ever more erotic as the night progressed.

Simon Parkston and his wife Marjorie kept away from the dancers, until just after eleven o`clock, and time enough before midnight for the preceding events. He first unveiled the 'punch bowl' it was filled with a smoking brew right out of the Adams Family, and the Satanists went wild when they saw it, and the action really began to hot up now, for after the Satanists drunk from the 'punch bowl' they began to strip off, it was orgy time. Now Simon Parkston and his wife joined in the action, Marjorie had long had her eye on young Mark Chambers, and as he had drunk deeply from the 'punch bowl', she easily untwined him from Moira. Moira was taken by Simon Parkston; however, he found that Moira had ensured that she had retained full control of her faculties for the main event. Even so, Moira allowed him to lead him clear of the dancers, to a less crowded spot within the courtyard.

As the clock on the Great Hall struck the quarter hour, Simon Parkston walked across to the altar and looked down upon Stephanie Parkston, his youngest niece, then he pulled out an ornate looking dagger, both Evelyn and Stephanie screamed and went into a faint. His wife joined him as he cut the clothes off Stephanie, and then Evelyn, then Marjorie Parkston painted satanic symbols upon their naked bodies.

"Simon, they do have such lovely bodies, it is a pity that we cannot play with them before they are sacrificed." Marjorie Parkston lamented.

"These two girls must die as virgins Marjorie, the prize that we are seeking is far too important to risk losing it." Simon Parkston replied firmly.

It was now that the clock on the Great Hall struck the half hour, Simon Parkston called a halt to the proceedings; it was time to charge the Mist of Glairmore.

"Oh magnificent Goddess Hekate, we have in our possession an ancient artefact, designed by you and created by Sir Richard Glairmore so many centuries ago. It came to be known by the name Mist of Glairmore, but its original name is the Veil of Hekate. We call upon you to charge it as we fill it with the blood of a female virgin."

Evelyn and Stephanie had both just awakened, and saw that they were both naked, and that someone had painted strange symbols upon their bodies.

"My god Stephanie, this is exactly like my nightmare, except you were not with me." Evelyn gasped out.

"Do you mean that I was already dead? Stephanie gasped in horror.

Evelyn caught sight of Moira, she was speaking with her uncle, she was wearing a mask, and in her hand, she held the same ornate dagger that Evelyn had seen in her nightmare. Evelyn told her sister, who then looked across at Moira and then she began to cry, the two girls looked at one another in dread, for they knew what their fate was to be, death, and now they learned how, from a sharp knife.

Chapter Six

Rescue

**Whi** **le the situation in the courtyard of the manor house had gone from bad to worse for the two girls, down in the cellar below the gatehouse, and ten minutes prior, the three friends were just about ready to repeat their escape attempt, and hopefully with a better result this time.**

**" Rob please unlock t** **he door again, and then pull the door wide open, I will shine the torch on our friend outside of the door, and you Gerry, you will throw the whole bucket of water at the demon. I suggest that you then close the door again Rob, and quickly, just in case."**

**T** **he three men now returned to the wooden door, Rob handed the slim torch back to Father Pritchard, and Gerry put the bucket of water down onto the floor until Rob had finished unlocking the door. This time Rob unlocked the door in under half a minute, then he looked up at the dim figure of Gerry." Tell me when you are ready Gerry, and I will open the door, okay?" Rob asked of his friend.**

**Gerry** **picked up the bucket and positioned it for throwing. "Okay, Rob, I am ready, open the door." Gerry said in a whisper.**

**Rob opened th** **e wooden door, which squeaked loudly yet again, and Father Pritchard aimed the slim torch into the inky blackness beyond. Caught in the beam of light was one ugly looking demon, it growled savagely and made to move towards them again. Gerry was ready for his part in the escape bid, he threw the entire contents of the bucket into the face of the demon, who screamed out in pain and stepped back three paces. Rob immediately closed the door on the demon, and the three men each put their weight against the door.** The screaming outside of the door died away almost instantaneously, however, this time the demon did not launch an assault on the door. Ever so cautiously, they reopened the door, but the demon was gone, and all that was left at the foot of the stairs was the terrible stench of hell.

Rob led the way up the stairs, and after the few seconds that it took him to open the door at the top of the stairs, they stood and listened to the voice of Simon Parkston. Rob now chanced a quick look into the courtyard, he saw the two young girls chained to the altar, saw the bright shiny key set down at its base, and he saw just one chance to prevail against the terrible odds that opposed them.

"Come on, from the sound of that madman we do not have a moment to spare." Rob whispered and then led the others out of the manor house and over to their vehicle, that was still parked before the public house, which of course was now closed.

They jumped into the vehicle and Rob drove it around to the other side of the manor house, here the others caught their first sight of a wooden door that was set into the curtain wall. Rob leapt from the vehicle and rushed to the door, in just moments he had picked the lock and opened the door. With everyone's attention upon Hekate and Simon Parkston, Rob moved swiftly to the altar, which was only ten feet from the wooden door, and taking the key, he quickly unlocked the padlocks holding the chains in place.

Evelyn and Stephanie gasped in surprise as they saw that they were to be rescued at the last moment, and as soon as they were free of their chains, they leapt down from the altar and raced to the open door, with Rob close behind them.

As they sped through the open door, they were finally seen by Simon Parkston, who screamed in anger. "Quick, they are escaping, stop them."

The Satanists charged after Rob and the two girls, but when the Satanists were through the doorway set in the curtain wall, all they saw was the rear of a departing vehicle; Gerry Handley was once again at the wheel. The night was already overcast, now thunder threatened, and as they made their escape a rain storm suddenly exploded all around them, making their drive along the dark country roads all the more difficult. Rob and Father Pritchard hastily took off their jackets and handed them to the two young girls, who being naked were thankful for even this scant attire. Father Pritchard then went through their gear in the back and pulled out two large blankets, there in case of an emergency, and with these covering their bodies the two girls felt a little better. Evelyn then told their rescuers how she and her sister happened to be living at the manor house, and how they never imagined for one second that their uncle was a Satanist.

**********

Angry eyes looked down upon the manor house, these eyes had been full of excitement just one minute earlier, now they saw yet another failure looming ever nearer, and yet they could do nothing to influence the outcome.

**********

Simon Parkston and Moira had hurried from the courtyard, leaving an angry goddess to stalk around the courtyard wondering whether to kill all of the pathetic Satanists, or to help them. However, she too disappeared when the rain began to fall in sheets upon her, drenching her to the skin. The two Satanists were now standing in a small room that led off the small inner temple beneath the manor house; with them was Jonathan Towers and Mrs Knightly. Parkston now began to put the ingredients of a potion in a deep glass tray, and when ready he moved back into the small temple. Here he mixed the ingredients together and almost immediately a yellow plume of smoke began to rise from the glass tray, and when it reached the ceiling of the temple, it spread around it, thinning out as it went, before finally disappearing.

Jonathan Towers called upon the demon Veigel as the plume of smoke had begun to rise. "Veigel, obey my call so that I might punish the man who ruined our Halloween celebrations, and who kidnapped our sacrifices to the terrible but most magnificent Lord Lucifer and the wondrous Goddess Hekate." Towers commanded angrily. Moments later a thin veil of smoke began to rise from the corner of the temple, and the temple itself cooled, but as the situation was drastic, he now repeated his command.

"Veigel come to me I command you." Towers screamed out in anger, not wishing to appear useless to the other three Satanists.

Veigel, a minor demon that they used on such occasions as this, appeared amid the veil of smoke, his stunted body bent and his face terribly misshapen. Parkston and Moira were almost sick, as the stench of the beast reached them, but as usual, they showed no outward sign of it. Parkston now added a piece of hair belonging to his oldest niece, which was quickly consumed by the smoking brew.

"Veigel, show me where Evelyn Parkston is currently located, so that I might reclaim her and her sister, and then kill those who defiled the ceremony." Johnathan Towers commanded the small demon.

"Of course, Master." Veigel replied in a thin rasping voice that Simon Parkston always thought had a touch of Cornish within it.

Within the thin veil of smoke, they saw a car speeding along a narrow lane that led away from the small hamlet of Parkston.

"Joanna, you must now conjure up the demon Mughasar, tell him to transport your spirit to a spot further along that road, you must jump in front of the car and make them crash, it is the only way." Moira commanded.

Mrs Knightly nodded and then called upon the demon Mughasar. "Mughasar, come to me immediately, I command you to assist me, make your presence known to me now." Mrs Knightly ordered.

The temple cooled rapidly once again, and frost appeared around her feet; and in the corner of the temple, a demon began to form. "I am here oh Master, what is it that you would command of me?" Mughasar asked of the Satanist.

"The road in the view that the demon Veigel has conjured up, take me to a point further along that stretch of road Mughasar, so that I might surprise them." Mrs Knightly ordered.

**********

Although Mrs Knightly's body was not transported, her mind was, and an image of her appeared in the road just as the vehicle, with Gerry Handley at the wheel, appeared around a bend, and the image of Mrs Knightly leapt in front of it.

Gerry Handley saw the woman appear in front of him through the driving rain and swerved to avoid her, unfortunately, a ditch ran alongside this stretch of the road and their car came to a shuddering stop as the two passenger side wheels of the car buried themselves deep within the ditch, now filled with rainwater.

"That woman who appeared in front of us, it was Mrs Knightly, the housekeeper, she is one of the Satanists, where is she, where has she gone?" Stephanie sobbed.

"She was never there Stephanie, it was a hallucination sent by your uncle." Father Pritchard said gently. "They wanted to stop us from escaping." He added.

"Well they have succeeded then, haven`t they?" Stephanie sobbed as Evelyn moved over to her and threw a comforting arm around her.

"Let`s try to get the car back on the road." Gerry Handley suggested. However, their attempts to push the car back onto the road failed dismally, and when they saw the oil that had begun to leak out of a broken oil line somewhere beneath the car, they stopped what they were doing and looked about for another way to escape from the Satanists.

"We should probably move inside of that old church there, at least it is out of the rain, we can consider our options in the dry, and hopefully such a place will offer us some safety." Rob said, indicating the small ruined church.

Father Pritchard looked at Rob and saw that he too was worried that they were now out of options, so he decided to make the best out of the only option they seemed to have. "Well before we leave the second wrecked vehicle in as many days, you can all help me by carrying our essential supplies from the car and into the church; we shall need them to protect us against any demons that the Satanists send our way." Father Pritchard ordered.

The five stranded travellers each took a bag or a box and carried it to the church, much to their surprise they found a pair of new solid wood doors, which were locked and barring their way. However, Rob soon had the lock open, and once inside Father Pritchard wasted no time in drawing their protective pentagram onto the floor of the nave of the church.

They were all soaking wet, water dripping from each of them, forming small puddles around them, and making them feel very despondent. Evelyn looked desperately around her, for she knew what fate awaited her and her sister, should the Satanists catch up with them. With the three men up for the idea of staying in the church, Evelyn panicked. "We cannot stay here, my uncle and his mad friends will find us, we must run, hide from them, anywhere but here." Evelyn begged in fear.

"Gerry, the nearest village is some ten miles further along the road, why don`t you try and get help, and a phone, we will stay in the church and pray for divine help." Rob suggested.

"No, I disagree Rob, we did not come across anyone earlier on and at this time of night and in this storm the chances are even worse. In any case, while there is a chance that David will be able to protect you from any demons sent against you, the Satanists are not going to leave it there. From what you and David have told me about them, they will be able to locate us in minutes, in fact that vanishing lady was obviously sent by them, so you will need me here to help you when they launch a physical assault upon us." Gerry Handley argued.

"He is right, Rob, we need him here, not trudging along a lonely road looking for some non-existent help. In any case, the Satanists will pick any one of us off who tries to go for help, they will simply send a demon after them; they are not going to give up now, not after forcing us off the road." Father Pritchard said.

"I hope that you two are right, but remember, Gerry and I have both lost our weapons, while our opponents have at least four shotguns." Rob said grimly.

"God will provide us with a way of defending ourselves, if we are worthy." Father Pritchard declared.

Rob looked at his friend and wondered where this extra gush of faith had come from, he had always preferred the one that read, god helps those who are better armed, unfortunately this time the other side enjoyed that advantage. "Okay then, but do not blame me David, Gerry, when all hell breaks out here." Rob said smiling rather doubtfully at his two friends.

"We won`t Rob, in any case, I do not have the right to complain." Gerry Handley said, and then he turned to the others in the group. "I am sorry everyone, for not getting us away, it is just that the woman appeared out of the blue." Gerry said desperately searching for a reasonable excuse to exonerate himself, and failing.

Everyone was quiet for a moment before Gerry Handley asked a question that the two young sisters also wanted answered.

"David, they called that thing the Goddess Hekate, was she for real or what?" Gerry Handley asked quizzically.

"I do not know Gerry, she may have been Hekate or she may just have been a minor demon impersonating the goddess, sent to impress the troops." Father Pritchard replied. What he did not say was if she was the real thing, and she now agreed to assist the Satanists, then they were all in real trouble.

"Now listen carefully Evelyn, Stephanie, there is a chance that your uncle might send a demon after us, this is why David is drawing a pentagram upon the floor. Once we are within the pentagram you must not leave it, no matter what you might see outside of the pentagram, anyone caught outside of it by a demon will be killed and their soul taken down to a realm of hell. Do you understand?" Rob asked.

His answer was two pair of frightened eyes and two nods of the girls' heads and one from Gerry Handley too.

"David, how long have you been fighting the forces of evil, and how on Earth have you survived?" Gerry Handley asked, for he wanted to know just what the chances were of their surviving the night, but without actually asking.

"I have been fighting the good fight for some thirty years Gerry, but I have only come across the likes of the Bourbons since John Ryman called on me two years ago. Even then it was only when Rob entered the scene that Ryman and myself dared to fight so powerful a Satanist, I would never have been so foolish as to do such a thing before then." Father Pritchard replied grimly.

Gerry Handley looked from Father Pritchard to Rob, as too did the two young girls. "So, you are saying that it is going to get a might dangerous around here, and quite soon?" Gerry Handley said just a little fearfully.

Father Pritchard looked at the others, he saw the fear in the young girls` eyes and in Gerry`s too, and so he lied. "We have won through before; I see no reason to think that we shall not do so again."

In fact, he now thought that the three men would likely die trying to protect the girls, and that they would then die as satanic sacrifices. Doubts about the outcome had now filled his heart, and his belief that good always prevailed had suddenly crashed through the floor.

Rob had found some weapons within the ruined vehicle, a wheel wrench and a small fire extinguisher, not much to set against four shotguns. 'If only MacGyver was here.' Rob thought.

***********

The old ruined church that they have chosen to hideaway in was just five miles away from Parkston manor house, and as Gerry said, the Satanists knew their exact location.

Towers now ordered Veigel to let them see inside of the church, and through the veil of smoke they first saw the entrance of the ruined church of St. Martin`s in Lower Keston. Then the view changed, and now the Satanists could see into the nave of the church, and sitting there within the nave they saw the two girls, and the three men who had rescued them. Parkston swore loudly and turned to the other minor demon, Mughasar.

"Be gone foul one until we need you again." Parkston commanded. But the demon didn`t go immediately, instead it looked up at Parkston, its red eyes radiating with the evil that oozed like water from the demon`s presence here on Earth.

"I need paying Master." Mughasar`s voice now sounding much happier than before, much less servile.

"Here take it and be gone." Mrs Knightly commanded wondering why she could not be called Mistress rather than Master; would it kill them.

The demon rushed at her and took his payment, when sufficiently satisfied with his payment he disappeared from view, leaving behind him the foul stench of hell, and a very tired Satanist.

Moira already knew who had ruined their Halloween celebration and black mass, however, on seeing them through the veil of smoke she screamed out in anger, and she now called upon the demon Skargel, who had appeared to take his fee for his work earlier that day.

"Demon, the three men must die, and within the hour, but be sure to leave the two girls unharmed, we need them as sacrifices in tonight`s mass to our Lord Lucifer and the Goddess Hekate." Moira ordered.

**********

The small ruined church began to cool rapidly, on the edge of the nave of the church, a large figure had taken shape in the corner, and it now moved forward towards them. It was in the form of a huge man, but it had bulging eyes and a strange hissing sound came from it. Its tongue was enormous, but forked like the tongue of a serpent and it flicked in and out of its wide mouth. The two young girls screamed out in fear at the sight of the demon and moved over to hold onto the three men, who also felt fear rising up inside of them.

The demon before them smiled grotesquely; and on this creature, the smile looked almost surreal. Its eyes then began to grow, bulging even more than before, Rob turned his eyes away from the demon, but even so, inside his head Rob could hear something compelling him to walk forward, to leave the circle of blessed salt and to journey with the demon to paradise. However, Rob and Father Pritchard had been through this before and they each instantly pulled out a small laminated card from their jackets and then began to read from them, very loudly.

"Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed is thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us."

The demon`s concentration was broken as the words echoed around the church, and Gerry and the two sisters, who had been about to leave the protective circle of salt, on realising what was happened, immediately retreated back to the centre of the pentagram and held on to one another.

Rob and Father Pritchard though continued reading the prayer. "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen."

Father Pritchard then pulled out a bottle of holy water and threw it at the demon, the bottle smashed against Skargel`s head, covering his head and face with the water. Skargel screamed in pain and immediately disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, leaving nothing behind but the terrible stench of hell.

"Although that demon is a nasty brute, he is still only a middle of the road demon; if they have the time, they may well send one of the major demons, although Lord Asbaritch may well refuse to answer their summons, there are plenty who will obey it. If so then we can expect to receive a visit from one of the more ferocious of his kind, so all of you, keep on your toes." Father Pritchard said grimly.

**********

Simon Parkston and Moira Bourbon were dismayed when the demon Skargel returned unsuccessful, they had hoped that the three men would now be dead, or had at last taken the hint and ran off, leaving the two girls behind. Instead, they obviously intended to fight on to the very end, well that was okay, for the two Satanists were more than happy to kill the three men themselves. The demon Skargel, although unsuccessful, hung around and Parkston knew that it still wanted paying for its services, not only for now, but also for earlier that day.

"Follow me Skargel, you failed us miserably this time, so you do not get the blood of she who commanded you, no, however, one of our coven has consented to give you your fee." Parkston led Skargel outside to where a middle-aged woman, Agnes Parsons who was his maid, was sitting on a wooden bench, and it was her who Skargel was to feed upon, the woman closed her eyes and paled, she attempted to think of the power that her coven would acquire, anything but the rather annoyed demon feeding upon her blood.

As he left the demon to take his fee, Parkston could feel the demon`s large hypnotic eyes upon him, until finally, he was back inside the manor house.

"Moira, we do not have the time to call upon a major demon, we will have to have our black mass at the church. Collect anything we may need and then follow me, quickly though for time is already short." Parkston said and he immediately began to pick up those items that may be of use to them at the ruined church, he did this while speaking to Towers.

"Assemble the troops Jonathan, make sure they are armed with the shotguns and plenty of ammunition, we are declaring war upon Rob Hinds and his friends." Parkston ordered.

Towers and Mrs Knightly immediately headed for the stairs, and they were almost immediately followed by Parkston and Moira Bourbon. He took a quick look around the rain-drenched courtyard, for Hekate, but there was no sign of her, she had obviously departed, angry and disgusted by their feeble attempt to open the gates of Tartarus. Annoyed at himself, he rounded up four of their followers who were still within the Great Hall and sheltered from the rainstorm. They were now fully clothed and using the time to pack up the satanic regalia that had been taken down from the altar when the storm had first exploded above the manor house, for it would be needed when the black mass was held. They all now headed en-masse for the gatehouse, determined to make those who had disrupted their black masse pay in the most painful of ways. Walking through the arch under the gatehouse outside they found Towers and the remaining Satanists waiting for them, four of them were carrying their shotguns.

"Come my friends, we have to punish those who disrupted our devotions to our master, and make amends to Hekate, this I swear to Lord Lucifer himself is going to happen, for I will brook no further delays to our celebrations." Parkston said to the members of his coven, and he immediately got into his Mercedes SUV, his wife sat beside him while, Moira Bourbon and Mrs Knightly took the rear seats. The other Satanists got into the other the waiting vehicles and the convoy sped off to the small ruined church.

**********

Rob found that there was not much left in the church to build a barricade with, so he and Gerry Handley braved the weather and went in search of something to use. They found that the builders who had installed the new doors had also been recently carrying out some other badly needed repairs upon the walls and roof of the building. The church dated back to the Norman Conquest, this of course made it of historical value, and after the National Trust had taken over responsibility for the building, they had allocated funds to pay for some much-needed repairs.

They soon found and requisitioned six scaffolding boards, and a small quantity of discarded nails left alongside the church, these they took inside the church. Their next task, after relocking the doors, was to use three of the boards on the front door, and the other three on the newly installed rear door, using a heavy stone found just outside as a hammer. Unfortunately, they could do nothing with the windows, which had been freshly glazed just two days prior.

The Satanists arrived soon after, and those inside of the church heard the screech of brakes as the Satanists pulled onto the area in front of the church, freshly cleared by the builders for use as a place to park their own vehicles. Luckily, for the Satanists, the rain now stopped, and they leapt from their vehicles and ran to the pair of new installed wooden doors without getting wet; and found them locked. Towers attempted to break it down; however, after hurting his shoulders by using them as a battering ram, he stopped trying to gain admittance that way and looked to Simon Parkston for a lead. Parkston decided against summoning up yet another demon when a quicker and easier alternative was at hand.

"Park the vehicles under the windows; we will smash our way in." Parkston ordered angrily.

He wanted the black mass to start as soon as was physically possible, and the fact that the three men inside were delaying the mass enraged him as never before. The four vehicles were soon in position, with eight of the fitter Satanists scrambling up their sides. When all were in position the four windows on the eastern side exploded inwards as the Satanists smashed the stocks of their shotguns against them. Those inside groaned, for with four shotguns aimed at them, and with nothing to defend themselves with, they could only surrender.

Parkston looked down into the church, and he smiled when he saw Evelyn and Stephanie both faint; obviously, their fear of what they knew was in store for them being far too much for their young minds to cope with. He then looked at Rob and Gerry, who stood over the fallen girls, and Parkston thought that never did the two men look so impotent, Parkston laughed his humour returning now that all was going their way.

"Hinds open the front doors now, or we start shooting, and that will mean death for you and your two friends, then we will only have to ram one of the vehicles into the locked doors and enter." Parkston ordered angrily.

Rob could see no way of resisting the Satanist, no matter what the future held, he had to obey, or see the others shot one by one until only the two girls survived. At least this way there was always the hope of something happening to reverse the situation. Rob walked back to the pair of doors at the entrance to the church and began to pull the scaffold boards away from the wooden doorframes. Gerry Handley and Father Pritchard followed him, and they too helped to pull apart their barricade, none of them said a word as defeat ate bitterly into their very souls, his two friends looked even more despondent that Rob. They soon had the barricade down, and then the doors were opened, and they moved back as two armed men entered the church, closely followed by most of the other Satanists. There was an air of excitement amongst the Satanists as they contemplated the coming black mass, after the earlier disappointment it was really about to commence.

Towers and two other heavily built Satanists moved quickly across the ruined church towards the three friends. As Towers grabbed a hold of Rob`s arms, to turn him around so that he could tie his hands together, Rob suddenly came to life, he hit Towers so hard that the Satanist collapsed to the ground unconscious. With the attention on Rob and Towers, Gerry snatched one of the shotguns out of the hands of its owner and struck the Satanist with the weapon`s solid stock, pole axing the man. Father Pritchard threw himself at another of the Satanists, knocking him to the floor, and turned to attack another of the Satanists. Evelyn and Stephanie Parkston leapt from the floor to attack two of the female Satanists, for they had feigned their act of fainting. All seemed to be going well until a heavy rock struck Gerry Handley on the back of his head, and just before he was about to fire upon Simon Parkston. Moira had stayed with two of the other Satanists at the windows of the church, both men armed with shotguns, she had armed herself with her missile, just in case the handsome Rob tried something, and her aim had been perfect. For one second only, Father Pritchard stopped to look down at his fallen friend, and then he too was struck from behind, by the second Satanist armed with a shotgun; he groaned in pain and collapsed to the floor. With these two out of the fight Evelyn and Stephanie were easily contained, and Rob surrendered when two shotguns were shoved painfully into his stomach.

Towers slowly regained his feet, then he walked across to Rob and struck him, but Rob just stood there looking at the heavily built Satanist with contempt.

"Enough, Jonathan, tie his hands behind his back and then deal with the other two men, remember to gag them, we do not want them interrupting the service." Parkston ordered.

Minutes later the three men were pulled into the east transept of the church, bound and gagged, and forgotten, for the moment.

"Right, we have no time to spare, we must power up the Mist of Glairmore, put the younger girl upon the altar." Parkston ordered. He refrained from using her name, that would make this too personal, guilt at what they were about to do to his two nieces was beginning to surface.

Marjorie Parkston and Moira Bourbon walked to the altar and quickly cleared it of the items left there by the builders, and then Towers appeared carrying Stephanie Parkston. She was naked again and thankfully unconscious, having fainted for real this time; too ensure that it was not another trick Mrs Knightly had given her a powerful sedative, this would also make Stephanie`s last moments a little easier, Towers now laid the limp girl upon the altar. Simon Parkston now brought the Mist of Glairmore across to the altar and placed it on the floor beneath the neck of the young girl.

Rob and his two friends, who had now awakened, could only look on in disgust, both at their inability to stop this obscenity from happening, and at the Satanists who had sank so low as to sacrifice a human being on an altar to the dark goddess.

"Gather around followers of Lord Lucifer, for we are about to take a great leap forward in our glorious quest for power." Parkston called to the Satanists who all moved eagerly towards the altar.

"Oh glorious Goddess Hekate, receive this sacrifice from your devoted followers, we dedicate the blood of a virgin girl to you alone, please look upon us favourably and provide your glorious power to the Mist of Glairmore, known by followers as the Veil of Hekate." Parkston cried out in exaltation.

Hekate had not abandoned her faithful followers; a swirl of bright orange lights first appeared, and then a body took form within the lights as the form of Hekate began to appear. This time it was before the altar upon which Stephanie Parkston lay unconscious, and finally they saw that once again Hekate had chosen to honour their mass with a personal visit. She looked at the still body of the offering, her face bore a manic smile, although she was here for a reason of her own, the anticipation she felt for the imminent sacrifice, and in her honour, filled her with an erotic rapture.

"Wondrous and Powerful Goddess, accept this offering." Parkston cried out to Hekate.

Rob turned away, unable to look on as Parkston pulled out an ornate knife and slit the throat of the unconscious girl, he would have uttered a groan, if he was not gagged, but his heart sank further than ever before, and he prayed to god to save Evelyn from a similar fate. When Christina and Cassie had been about to suffer a similar fate, at least he had been free, and had been actively doing something in an attempt to save them, this time he was bound, gagged, and had almost given up hope of ever seeing his young wife again.

Simon Parkston watched enthralled as the blood drained out of the young girl to fill the Mist of Glairmore, as the last few drops fell, he was actually having an orgasm. A whirling ball of energy rose from the artefact and circled around every person within the ruined church, a small thread breaking of the main ball of energy to enter into each person it touched, even Rob and his two friends felt the energy surge through them.

"Thank you most magnificent of goddesses, thank you for this protection you extend to us, for we are about to travel to a dangerous world to win a marvellous and powerful prize. This we do in your honour." Parkston cried out to Hekate.

Hekate looked at the Satanists and smiled, for she had plans of her own, and they differed in one crucial aspect from those of the Satanists kneeling before her in adoration, she wanted the Ark for herself. She had learned of the Satanists plans from one of her most devoted followers, a member of the coven who had long been a priestess in the service of Hekate. However, she would not be going with the Satanists to Tartarus, the dangers in that hell dimension were far too great, even for a goddess.

**********

In the hell dimension of Tartarus, the ancient gods looked on in wondrous anticipation of their release, all was proceeding along a path that would create an opening in their prison walls, and allow them to return to Earth. Once there, they would resume their rightful place as the lords of Earth, Heaven and Hell, a position that another god had usurped thousands of years in the past.

"The Key might open a portal anywhere along the energy barrier oh mighty Kronos, how will we know that they have entered Tartarus?" A Titan cried out in despair.

"It matters not, you dolt of a Titan, for we only have to guard the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, and they will come to us." Kronos replied and he sent such a look of contempt at the Titan that it almost made it shrivel up.

**********

In the ruined church, the Satanists were ready to proceed with the next step, to use Evelyn Parkston to charge up the Key of Tartarus. At the height of this part of the black mass, Moira would use the Key of Tartarus to open a portal within the energy barrier that kept all the inmates of the hell dimension Tartarus securely locked away.

Rob struggled with the tight ropes that bound his wrists, but to no avail, he could only look on in painful agony as another young girl was laid upon the altar, she was also naked, and thankfully, Evelyn too was unconscious. Parkston approached the young girl and poured a liquid between her lips, it was a drug that would ensure that she did not awaken during the ceremony, something of humanity still resided within the Satanist`s dark heart.

The Satanists now began to pour a powerful brew from a large glass jug into the pewter goblets that they had brought along with them, the brew came from the punch bowl in the courtyard of the manor house. The jug had been airtight, but now the brew was open to the air, a thin yellow plume began to rise from it, and this was the signal for the Satanists to drink their exotic concoction. They downed the smoking brew in one go, then throwing the pewter goblets to the floor with a clatter, they once again began to tear off their clothes, and then to dance before the altar, what followed was a bacchanalian orgy that finished only when Simon Parkston uttered a loud chant that rang around the old church.

"There is only one ruler of Earth, Hell and Heaven. Lord Lucifer, Lord Lucifer, Lord Lucifer."

The chant ended here, normally they would have dedicated the sacrifice to their dark lord now, but this time they were using the young girl to power up the Key of Tartarus.

"Oh, wondrous Hekate, goddess of witchcraft, accept this sacrifice that we your people offer up to you, fill this device with the energy only a goddess possesses so that we might use it to honour you again." Simon Parkston cried out.

Hekate now moved forward to the altar where the Key of Tartarus lay, and she laid her hands upon it; the Satanists gasped in awe when the Key now began to glow, brighter and brighter. Hekate was growing visibly weaker as the device drew more and more power from her. Finally, she wrenched her hands away from the Key and sank to the floor of the church looking very pale and exhausted.

The Satanists gasped in fear, however, Moira now picked up the Key of Tartarus, for it was now her turn in the drama. However, even she could not hold back a gasp of wonder when she felt the power running through the device. She now held the device high above her head and called out in a loud voice.

"Key of Tartarus, create a portal in the eternal walls of the world that you helped to create, and let us walk through it into your realm, take us to the Fortress of Kronos." Her cries ending in a slightly hesitant voice, but all the time she concentrated upon one thing only, the Fortress of Kronos.

Moira was feeling a little unsure, as were the other Satanists, now the time was upon them. Not only because of the danger posed by their actions, should any other god or demon get wind of what they were doing, but also to enter a high security hell dimension of one's own accord, well it seemed just ludicrous in the extreme.

However, Moira could feel the energy pulsating through the device created by god himself; and then a beam of light leapt forth from the Key, striking the very rear of the old church. A new pair of doors suddenly appeared at the rear of the church, they slowly opened, and as the Satanists looked out through them, they saw a dark and forbidding land waiting for them, one lit up by a red sun slowly climbing up through the alien sky. Its glow lighting up a large and rather forbidding fortress that dominated the land before them, although a long line of smoke partially obscured their view of its walls.

Jonathan Towers looked in awe at the scene before him, until Moira shook him violently, recovering his composure, he now switched on the Mist of Glairmore, and a fog instantly appeared around all of them.

Rob looked more worried than ever, for from her words it now appeared that Moira Bourbon knew more about the Key of Tartarus than even Lord Asbaritch suspected. Rob desperately hoped that the young Satanist still possessed some smidgen of sanity; otherwise, the world that he knew would be truly in danger.

Chapter Seven

The Hell Dimension of Tartarus

Simon Parkston led the way into the hell dimension, a hot and rather humid world, with an all-pervading smell of sulphur and something else, it was burning flesh, the evil mixture making them all want to retch. Marjorie Parkston followed on behind him, she was holding on to him as if her life depended upon it, which it might, and fear plainly the only emotion she was capable of feeling right now, and no longer filled with a desire to steal this world`s mystical powers.

Rob, Gerry and Father Pritchard were dragged to their feet and pulled through the pair of doors into hell, and each of them worried about the sort of fate they could expect in such a place. Moira was the last to leave the safety of the ruined church, but it was not fear that held her back, she just wanted to experience the moment without anyone getting in her way. After walking just twenty feet into Tartarus she stopped and turned to face the ruined church, she stopped for a moment, surprised to see that almost the whole of old church had entered the hell dimension, and not just the new doorway at the rear of the church, as she had surmised would happen. Only the front of the church was missing, the building tapering off within a diaphanous veil that was wrapped about the far end, she could even see the ground of this world through it. Moira`s reason for turning back to the old church was to ensure that the dimension they returned to was the same one that they had just left, one without any of the ancient gods rampaging through it.

"Wondrous Key of Tartarus, I order these doors to be closed shut and locked." Moira cried out solemnly. Then she threw a small glass phial at the door, it smashed against it spewing out a red liquid, she had concocted the potion before leaving the ancient manor house. Moira Bourbon looked every part the Hollywood screen adventurer, with the Key of Tartarus hung around her neck, for earlier she had tied a short length of rope to it so as to free her hands, she wore a safari style hat upon her head, and had a sharp dagger slipped into her belt.

The other Satanists turned at her loud words, and a terrible fear ran through them when they realised that the way back was closed to them without the Key. However, their looks of hatred, aimed at Moira Bourbon, were brushed aside by the young Satanist, who despised them for this act of cowardice.

To their left, not more than two miles away from them, they could see an active volcano; it reached far up to the dark red sky above, belching out smoke and ash that hung across this world, dimming the light and making this terrible world seem very much like the one of Dante`s book. A stream of red hot lava could be seen running down the volcano`s flanks, and flames now erupted from its massive crater, adding a definite reddish tint to the Satanists` skin and clothing.

Behind the old ruined church, a line of volcanoes was also belching out smoke and ash, thankfully for the moment the wind was blowing it away from them, although none of these volcanoes appeared to be throwing out rivers of lava. It appeared that the Key of Tartarus had placed them exactly where they had expressed a desire to be, in the middle of the most terrible of all the hell dimensions.

In front of them lay the way to the fortress, but the ground on either side of the track was pockmarked with vents, and a sulphurous smoke slowly leaked out of them. The land that stretched all the way to the fiery volcano was filled with more of these vents, all adding to the terrible smell, and the sulphurous air coming from all of this volcanic action making it hard to breathe.

To their right was a range of hills that hid the land beyond, however, screams and groans were reaching them from this direction, and it had the effect of making Simon Parkston feel rather fearful, trepidation now filled his heart, his resolution was disappearing fast. He came to a sudden halt upon the narrow track that led from the old ruined church, and led straight towards the fortress before them. He looked back at the young Satanist who had instigated this perilous quest, and who was second only to him in satanic powers amongst his coven. His face showed the fear that was now pounding away within his heart, for the sight before them, that he had only just seen, was truly terrifying. A wide track led from the hills to their right, straight through a long ragged line of smoke that slowly rose up to the sky above, and then the track continued until it finally disappeared amongst some low hills on the far horizon. On the other side of the smoke, they could see a pair of massive wooden doors; they were firmly set into the cyclopean walls of the fortress, which was now only a minute away. However, the wind now chose to change direction, it blew the smoke clear of the road, and what Simon Parkston saw stopped him in his tracks. Like a scene straight out of a movie about ancient Rome, crucified people stretched for as far as the eye could see. They were all still conscious, and all crying out in agony, this was their punishment for the crimes committed by them during their mortal lives. Of course, they were dead, however, they were still capable of feeling pain, feeling thirsty, which was a constant desire in this hot dimension of hell, one that would never be satisfied.

Marjorie Parkston almost fainted when she saw the crucified citizens of hell, she would have turned and fled, except her husband now had a firm grip upon her arm, she turned to him and silently begged to be allowed to return to the ruined church, however, he ignored her while he struggled with his own fear. Agnes Parsons did not allow his treatment of his wife to forestall her though; she walked up to him and gave vent to her fears.

"Simon, look about us, surely we should leave this terrible world while we still can, to venture further on would be the height of madness."

Parkston heard the other Satanists whispering similar thoughts, and he too shared many of the thoughts voiced by his friends, but he did not have to time to speak. Moira had appeared at his side, up until now she too had been busy scanning the vista before them, not only taking in the view but also looking for any signs that showed that they had come to the notice of the rulers of this hell dimension. When she had seen the crucified people she too had stopped for a moment, but only for a moment, she felt no compassion for the tortured souls before her, she assumed that they deserved all that was happening to them. She had the whole of her life before her, and soon she would have the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, so she would be able come to a much better deal with her dark lord. Dismissing the suffering, she first turned to Simon Parkston to look into his eyes, into his very soul, or so Parkston felt when those hard green eyes met his own. Then she turned to the others, who were mostly still in various states of shock and fear.

"What did you jerks expect when you agreed to join Simon and me on this glorious quest? You`re too old to have a nanny powder your little bottoms, so grow up now, and be damned quick about it." Moira screamed. Then she turned back to Simon Parkston.

"Simon, the fortress is there before us, unguarded, and we appear to have entered Tartarus unseen, thanks to the Mist of Glairmore. Let`s quickly move on, get the Ark and then skedaddle out of this prison before we too are invited to stay." Moira said and walked past the others, moving towards the Fortress of Kronos. The forbidding aura it was giving off was lost upon her; she simply saw a building that held her Ark.

The Satanists looked after her, stunned by her harsh words, however, when Parkston was shamed into following her; they too hesitantly followed on behind, not wanting to be left behind, alone, especially as Moira had the Key. They moved forward in a single line, towards the road, now the citizens of hell finally noticed the thick fog moving towards them, and they guessed that it concealed someone or something. Immediately the noise of their cries grew even louder, and all of them were now crying out for help. Some were asking whoever was in the mist to aid them, while others conversely, wanted help to save them from these mist covered beings. The Satanists stopped and looked nervously about them for danger, for they had thought to be hidden from sight, yet these dead creatures apparently saw them through the fog. One other thought occupied the minds of the Satanists, some day in the future, would the fate of these poor tortured souls be their own fate.

"What are you stopping for, move your sorry butts." Moira cried back at the wavering line of Satanists.

Her words got them moving again, the four Satanists carrying the shotguns hugging their weapons to their breasts, the feel of the cold metal comforting them, a little. They were spread amongst this small group, although none of them knew if the weapons would prove effective against the gods and demons of this terrible domain, but their presence did provide some comfort, even to those who were unarmed. As the walls of the fortress came ever nearer, they could now see that they were indeed unmanned, or maybe the term should be undemoned, luck was still with them.

Rob too looked away from the line of tortured beings; to do anything for them risked death from so many ways, not the least from the tortured beings themselves, for he thought that if they were released, there was a real chance that they would then turn upon their rescuers. Instead, he looked at the unmanned walls of the fortress, and he wondered if this was the norm in demon land, if so, why were the massive structures built, maybe they were the result of the powerful black magic possessed by the rulers of this terrible land. If so, the massive undertaking was not massive after all, merely impressive. He also searched the surrounding hills for signs of life, but all he saw here was cruelty and death, he then looked at the Satanists, and for a moment, he felt a certain sympathy for them, until he remembered the two girls whose lives had been cut so short.

The Satanists were soon standing within the wall of smoke; and finding it even harder to breathe, they had all covered their mouths, but even so, within the smoke they were all coughing. To their trepidation, they found that it was given off by a river of lava, an unending river of extremely hot melted rock that flowed endlessly past them, and the fortress, from the nearby volcano. However, the builders of the road had not let it prevent them from entering the fortress; standing before them was an ancient stone bridge. Somehow, magically, the bridge had not been affected by the tremendous heat that came off the lava.

"This must be the Phlegethon, the river of fire, and now we can see how it got its name, it is a river of burning rock." Moira said while coughing.

The others had crowded around her and Parkston to see how they would cross the impossibly hot barrier. The bravest of the coven now took it upon herself to say what all the others felt.

"We have come to our journeys end, Moira, there is no way that we will be able to cross the bridge, I can see and feel the heat coming off it from here." Mrs Knightly proclaimed.

"This hardly presents us with a problem, Joanna, you see I have been busy ever since I thought of this audacious quest, so please do not fret, for I will soon provide us with a little air conditioning to cool the bridge, and us, while we cross it." Moira promised.

Moira now looked in the direction of the volcano, and in ringing cries called out. "Oh Boreas, God of the North wind, please cool this hot lava and allow us to cross over the stone bridge without being scorched by its heat or that of the lava. If you would do this small act then I promise to build an altar to you when we return home, and each month I will provide a sacrifice as an offering to you." Moira cried out.

For a moment nothing happened, and the Satanists, who were gathered behind her, began to voice their feelings about the young Satanist. Then, from along the long road, a cold gale sprang up, and it was so icy that the Satanists began to complain yet again, this time about the cold. Two minutes later and the lava around the bridge, and for a long stretch to the right of the bridge, had turned to stone, and a thick layer of frost sparkled upon the stone bridge itself. Moira knew that the river had not been frozen solid for all time, merely cooled for a short while by a powerful magic, soon enough the river Phlegethon would shrug off the spell and return to its normal molten condition.

"Cease your cowardly cackling and follow me to glory." Moira roared at the Satanists.

"Here you are Simon, it must be your turn to carry the Key of Tartarus, it`s getting rather heavy." Moira complained handing the artefact over to Parkston, then she walked across the now cold bridge and set off towards the massive wooden gates.

Feeling the power within the device made Parkston gasp in wonder as he hung the Key of Tartarus around his neck and then he hurried after her, he now found himself feeling an admiration for her bravery, her leadership, and he was a little ashamed for not leading the way forward himself. The other Satanists were even more ashamed than Parkston, for verbally assaulting the young Satanist, as well as for their own cowardice. As for Rob and his friends, they too felt a certain admiration for the young woman who had brought them to this terrible land.

They all soon reached the massive pair of wooden gates, and they were not surprised to find that they were closed, however on testing one of the gates they found that they were not locked. The men amongst the coven put their shoulders against one of the gates, however, the tremendous weight of just this one gate took all their strength to push it far enough away from its twin to allow them to enter into the forbidding fortress.

Once Rob had passed through the massive gates, he saw that the inside of this fortress differed from that of Lord Asbaritch; for one thing, the inside of this fortress resembled the Tower of London in so many ways. It also differed in one massive way; they could now hear screams coming from within the walls of the immense central tower. The intense smell of burning sulphur was the next thing that he noticed, which was much greater than before, but then they were in the depths of Hell. Ahead of them was another pair of doors, these not as massive as the pair they had just entered through, but still large. These new doors led into the immense central tower, and it was to these that Moira headed, with Jonathan Towers in tow.

"Put your shoulders against the door Jonathan, and push." Moira ordered.

Towers immediately obeyed, and another of the Satanists moved forward to assist him, but they both stepped away from the door, crying out in fear, for the face of a man appeared within the wood of the door, and they heard a soft whispering voice coming from him, he seemed to be warning them to go back. Moira looked at them with distain, and moved forward and put her shoulder to the door, the face within the wooden door looked at her with surprise, however, the door opened quite easily, and the face disappeared back into the wood.

Through this door, they saw a large entrance hall, on either side of this entrance hall, there were two narrow arches, and within them, they could see stone staircases that wound their way up to the next floor. In front of the Satanists, there was yet another pair of doors, and these opened as easily as the last pair, and without a face appearing, inside was the Great Hall. Unnoticed by all except Rob, all of the doors that they had entered through were fitted with very intricate looking locks, for the moment they were not in use.

On both sides of the hall were ranks of ancient weapons, the floors were covered in mosaic tiles that portrayed mythological figures, and the ceiling was made up of massive wooden beams supporting a wooden roof. In front of them, at the other end of the hall, was a large throne, it stood three feet above the normal floor level, and wide steps led up to it. Directly in front of the throne was a foot high dais, for those who had displeased Kronos, they could beg for mercy while kneeling upon the dais, although not many of the prisoners of Tartarus ever received mercy. Set within the hall were three massive dining tables, arranged in a U-shape, with the bottom of the U nearer to them than the throne Around the tables were huge wooden benches, strong enough to support the weight of the demon diners.

"Jonathan, take the handsome Rob and his friends and deposit them somewhere prominent, but please ensure that they do not get loose. Everyone else, quickly search the room for the Ark, we need to find it quickly, and before the lord of the fortress makes an appearance." Moira ordered. "But quietly please, lest we alert the Lord of Tartarus to our presence."

Towers and his two comrades pulled Rob, Gerry Handley and Father Pritchard over to a part of the right-hand sidewall that was comparatively empty of Bronze Age weaponry, then they were each tied around a large supporting pillar and left to be found by the demons of this hell dimension.

Moira stood watching as the members of the coven spread out and began to search for the Ark, all signs of their recent fears had dissipated now, now that they were safely inside the Great Hall, and seemingly alone. Moira strode over to where Rob now lay, and stood in front of him, looking down upon his bound figure she laughed.

"You see Rob; I have found the perfect way to dispose of your body, and those of your two friends too. The authorities of our world will never find your remains here, not unless they want to travel to hell." Moira said laughing. "However, you and your two friends will be found, and then tortured." Moira said, delighted by the thought. "The inmates of this hell house will be as mad as hell, pun intended, when they find that their precious Ark has been stolen, and they will take their loss out on you, and for all the time that you are a guest here, you will slowly die of thirst. Mind you, can you die in hell, maybe you will live for ever, and you might even join those people we passed by on the road out front, and be crucified along with you friends, to suffer an eternity of torment." Moira gloated.

She let out a quiet peal of laughter, and then turning, left Rob and walked further into the Great Hall and towards the massive throne.

A Cyclops, the guardian of the Ark, saw the mist appear at the entrance of the Great Hall, and watched in amazement as it slowly enveloped the whole of the Hall, he then heard the low tones of the Satanists as they called to one another, and it realised that the humans had arrived. He rushed down a nearby stone staircase and into the dungeons where Kronos and the other ancient gods and demons were enjoying themselves, torturing a number of people who had committed various evil acts during their mortal lives.

"My Lord, the humans have arrived, they are in the Great Hall searching for the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, the time of your release has finally arrived, you shall soon be set free from your prison, oh mighty Lord." The Cyclops exclaimed in joy.

Kronos cried out in joy and ran towards the stone staircase, minor gods and demons following him.

Oblivious of this turn of events, Moira had reached the halfway mark of this enormous room, and there, to one side, she came to a waist high cabinet, and upon it was a richly decorated wooden chest, it was two foot long, one foot wide and one and a half foot high, and covered in gold leaf. The decorations were made of solid gold, showing mythological scenes, fashioned by a master goldsmith, and precious jewels were set around the scenes. Something resembling a glass dome covered the chest, but it was no ordinary dust cover.

"Simon, it`s over here, and it is beautiful." Moira called out softly.

Simon Parkston has just finished laying a shaped explosive charge against the sidewall, not too far from Rob, it was to provide them with an emergency exit, should it become necessary. Looking across at Moira, he smiled and then strode quickly across to the young Satanist, the other Satanists also converging upon her, all anxious to see the wondrous satanic object. On seeing the Ark, triumph filled the face of Simon Parkston, and he immediately reached out and attempted to move the glass dome, but it resisted his attempt to remove it.

"Jonathan, use the stock of your shotgun to break the glass, gently though, we do not want to damage the Ark." Parkston said.

Towers first gave the glass dome a gentle tap with the stock of his weapon, then he gave it a slightly more violent one, and finally he used all his might, but the glass dome, if that is what it was, resisted even the tremendous amount of brute force that Towers brought against it.

Parkston had just time enough to swear a rather blasphemous oath when the doors through which they had entered the Great Hall slammed shut, and the intricate locks clicked loudly, locking them all in. He looked back at the doors, fearful that Kronos had found them, which he had, but Kronos came into the hall via a massive arch set to one side and behind the giant throne.

Kronos waved his hands and the Mist created by the Mist of Glairmore quickly dissipated, leaving the Satanists without their cloak of invisibility. The Satanists screamed in terror at the sight of the giant ruler of Tartarus, Kronos, father of the ancient Greek gods, for he stood fully twenty foot tall, and he played the part of a god with ease. They stood, frozen, until the other ancient gods came through the giant arch, closely followed by three Cyclops. The Satanists who were armed with the shotguns opened fire upon the terrible gods and demons, an assortment of various monstrous creatures. A Cyclops was hit by multiple 9mm buckshot, and it caused him to stagger and then to fall to the floor, but he was not dead, merely wounded, and now he was very angry. One of the Satanists fired upon Kronos himself; however, although it stopped him, momentarily, and he shrieked in pain, he then made straight for the Satanist who had fired upon him. The Satanist fired again, this time at point blank range, and Kronos cried out in pain again, but now he was upon the Satanist, and Kronos pulled the shotgun out of his hands and broke it in two. The Satanist made to run, however he did not get very far, for Kronos picked him up and threw him across the Great Hall. The Satanist hit the far wall, near to where Rob was bound, and landed upon the floor looking very broken.

The other gods and demons were then amongst the Satanists, those who were armed were to the front, however, the unarmed Satanists were not looking to fight, rather to find a way out, and failing. Therefore, they grabbed the bronze weapons from the walls and turned towards the gods and demons, and began to defend themselves.

Kronos noticed Moira standing by the Ark, and he remembered that she was the Satanist that he had used to provide a doorway out of Tartarus. Knowing that she was the most able of the creatures fleeing from them, he hurled an energy bolt at her, it screamed through the air but missed her, it did however strike the dome protecting the Ark. The effect was magnificent for it created a truly wonderful light show that lit up the room and then slowly faded.

Moira openly laughed at the god, and as she picked up the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, while she cried with joy, Kronos snarled in anger and strode towards her.

"Simon, I have it, take out the wall now." She called across to the leader of the coven.

Simon Parkston took a moment out of the mayhem exploding all around him to look across at the young Satanist, seeing her holding the Ark, he pulled a device out of his pocket, he did not warn the other Satanists, no he merely detonated the sharped charge that was fixed to the wall of the Great Hall. It exploded, taking out a small section of the wall, and stunning both the Satanists and their antagonists. Moira immediately rushed for the newly made portal, crouching as she did so, for Simon Parkston had ensured that it was barely human sized, not god or demon sized. Mrs Knightly and Jonathan Towers followed her seconds later. Simon Parkston paused for just a moment to look for his wife, but when he saw her in the grasp of a Cyclops, he too bolted through the hole in the wall, all he cared about now was his own safety, and the power that Moira now had in her hands. The others must manage as best they can, or be taken prisoner and tortured. From outside the walls of the Great Hall another explosion was heard, Parkston had created another hole, this time in the outer wall of the fortress.

The other Satanists in question were dying, the ancient weapons had never been very effective when used against the demons, and one Satanist knew that he was about to die, the pain he felt with every breath that he took told him so. He caught sight of Rob and his two friends, and he knew he had to do something to save them, something that might even save his soul from the horrors of Tartarus. He crawled across the mosaic floor, every movement sending a new wave of pain through his broken body, until he reached Rob, who could not believe that he was about to be given the chance to live. The Satanist pulled out a knife and cut the rope tying Rob`s hands, and then he died, the knife falling from his hands to clatter on the mosaic floor.

Rob quickly cut the rope binding his feet and then cut the ropes restraining his two friends.

"We have got to get out of here before the inhabitants of this hell dimension notice us, come on." Rob said and immediately ran for the hole in the wall created by Parkston.

All around them they heard the screams of the dying Satanists, but even Father Pritchard found it difficult to feel sorry for them, not after their last few hours of hell, both here and in their world, that they had all endured. Just before they passed through the hole in the wall each of the men grabbed a bronze weapon from the floor where they had fallen following the explosion, they knew that they had proved ineffective in the hands of the Satanists, but they were the only weapons to hand.

Moira Bourbon, Mrs Knightly, Jonathan Towers, and Simon Parkston were all away from the fortress, they had escaped the final stages of the bloody carnage within the Great Hall. Now they were fleeing as fast as their legs would carry them, straight for the old ruined church, leaving the others behind them, all of them now dead or dying.

The way back was longer, and over rougher ground than the rough track along which they had journeyed to the fortress. Jonathan Towers leapt across a ditch, his friends close behind him, his heart was racing madly and he was winded, so he stopped for a second to look back, fear was never far away now. In the distance, in the skies just above the fortress, he saw three figures flying towards him, Furies from Greek mythology, and so he took off again after the others who had passed him by. He knew that the safety of the small ruined church was not far away, but would he be given the minute or two at most, to reach it, for the first time in his adult life he now prayed for help. Towers was weighed down, for he was carrying the Mist of Glairmore, but he did not attempt to make use of it, for it simply did not work all that well in Tartarus. However, he kept a hold on it for use back in England, if he was lucky enough to see it again.

Mark Chambers, the youngest male member of the coven, did manage to reach the hole in the outer wall of the fortress; it was only shortly after Rob and his friends passed through it, relief appearing on his face for a moment. However, it was only for a moment, for he was grabbed by two large and powerful hands and he was dragged back inside, seconds later his screams were heard by anyone left alive within the Fortress. It had not been much of a victory, his victim being puny compared to the heroes of ancient times, but Kronos still enjoyed the feeling, then he was running for the huge doors to chase after those who had escaped his trap.

**********

Rob and his two friends had made good their escape from the walls of the fortress because the ancient demons had gone berserk with a blood lust that they had all but forgotten, for it had been eons since they had enjoyed such a feeling of savagery. This had delayed them from pursuing those few who had escaped, however, now they found the supply of humans still alive had dried up, and so they chased after the few fleeing survivors.

Rob and his friends reached the frozen Phlegethon, the river of lava, and to their horror they saw smoke beginning to rise from it, it was about to return to its natural state. The bridge too was steaming, however, they found that the lava to the right-hand side of the bridge, though warming up, was still cool enough to walk across in safety, cool being a relative term as regards to the temperature of the lava. They clambered down its bank and rushed across its now rapidly warming rocks, Father Pritchard only just making it, his shoes were already beginning to smoke as he clambered up the far side bank of the river. He pulled his shoes off and slammed them against the ground, then he rubbed them in the sandy soil to ensure that they did not ignite when he put them back on, when sure that they were not about to be engulfed in flames, he put his rather warm shoes back on and smiled at his two friends.

"There were times during an English winter that I have longed for a pair of heated shoes, but not quite that hot." He said laughing.

With everyone safely across the now hot river of lava, Rob and his two friends sped off after the four surviving Satanists, who could be seen in the distance, fleeing for their lives. Their hope of living through this nightmare were growing as the seconds ticked by, however, it was now that two spears the size of lances flashed by them to plunge into the ground ahead of them. Father Pritchard veered sharply to one side so as not to make the group an easy target; Gerry Handley did likewise, leaving Rob to run in a zigzag pattern in the ever-widening gap between the three men. They could now hear a sound much like base drums, Rob knew it was the Cyclops racing after them, followed by the demons and gods of Tartarus, and he immediately increased his speed.

Far to one side of Rob, Gerry Handley ran as if the very hounds of hell were behind him, as they were now. He swerved around the many volcanic vents that filled the ground between the fortress and the small ruined church, oblivious to the fact that above him a winged Fury had now caught up with him, it swooped down silently and raked his shoulders with its talons, making him stumble and fall to the ground badly shaken. The terrible creature seeing him lying flat out on the ground, dropped down onto his back, and it continued its attack upon him, using its talons, which raked his back bringing forth screams of agony, and its teeth, which were biting into the back of his neck. Rob had that moment turned to check on his friend, seeing the creature attacking Gerry Handley he stopped his own flight and threw the spear that he had taken from the fortress. His aim was not brilliant but it ruffled the feathers of the Fury, who quickly lifted off and circled above them.

"Come on Gerry, this is no time for resting." Rob quipped as he ran over and offered his hand to his friend.

Gerry had just got to his feet when he leapt at Rob, roughly pushing him to one side, a massive spear sped through the space that Rob had just occupied, and it buried itself into Gerry Handley`s chest. He fell to ground dead, for the spear had gone through his heart, killing him instantly. Rob stood there, stunned, before the screech of the Fury woke him from his state of absolute shock. Looking up at the winged creature, and then back at the charging Titans, Rob picked up the sword that Gerry Handley had taken from the fortress and then ran, leaving the dead body of his friend in Tartarus, the worst of all the hell dimensions. Rob now prayed for his friend`s soul, and then, after a few moments thinking about the matter, for those of Father Pritchard and himself.

Rob looked around for his other friend, Father Pritchard, but he was nowhere to be seen, he was long gone, as he had not noticed the attack on his friend. A minute later Rob rounded a low hill, and here he came upon the body of Jonathan Towers, he lay dead upon the ground killed by a massive rock thrown at the fleeing Satanists by a Cyclops. Laying upon the floor by his still body was the Mist of Glairmore, forgotten by Moira and the other Satanists. Rob spared the dead man only one second`s thought as he retrieved his own automatic pistol from the dead man`s waist band, then he took off after the others.

The Cyclops could have ended this one sided battle quite easily, but they liked the chase, so instead of merely outrunning the humans and then tearing them in two, they preferred to give the humans a sporting chance. The Cyclops would get within throwing distance and then stop and throw a massive rock at their quarry, once their quarry was killed in this way then they looked for another human to hunt.

The skies were now filled with black thunderclouds, reflecting the anger that Kronos was feeling, and evil flashes of lightning struck ever closer to the fleeing body of Rob, the light seemed to be disappearing fast in this terrible land. Ahead of him he saw a dim light in the distance, hoping to find help there he hurried towards it. Above him, winged Furies were chasing after him, and then one of them darted down towards him, screeching out in anger at this human who had dared to trespass upon the realm of the dead. Rob stopped his dash for safety, turned, and fired his automatic pistol, three times the pistol fired but still the Fury sped towards him. At the last moment Rob flung himself to one side, he felt the wind caused by the wings of the evil monster freeze him as the Fury sped past him. Then he saw a second Fury, and it was already upon him, no time to throw himself away from its outstretched hands, instead he jabbed the sword grasped in his left hand, and then gasped in relief as the Fury threw its speeding body to one side and sped away squealing its anger at missing its meal.

Far ahead of him, Simon Parkston was attacked by the third Fury, and just after he had called upon magic to unlock the doors to the old ruined church, however, the Fury did not attack his body; instead, it snatched the Key of Tartarus out of his hands. Parkston stood there stunned for a moment, just as Moira, who still carried the heavy golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, reached the newly opened portal. Then another massive boulder crashed down out of the sky, thrown by a Cyclops, and it struck Simon Parkston full in the middle of his back, he collapsed to the ground. He was already dying when Moira ran back to him to look down at his fallen body, she stopped for a second to mourn his passing, then she looked after the departing Fury in fear, for the ancient gods would now be able to follow her through to her own dimension.

Rob heard the Fury as it neared his position, screeching in triumph at having snatched the Key of Tartarus from the humans. Rob gasped in fear when he saw the old oil lamp grasped in the talons of the creature, he knew that the Fury could not be allowed to return to the fortress with its prize. He raised his pistol and emptied it into the body of the Fury, which to his surprise crashed down upon the ground beside him, badly stunned. Rob reached down and retrieved the Key of Tartarus, and he too was taken by surprise when he felt the power surging within it. With no time to waste wondering about it, he set off for the old ruined church which he prayed was nearby, a minute later and he came upon a second dead Satanist, it was Simon Parkston.

Rob raced on past it, as fast as he could in the growing darkness, constantly looking around for his friend Father Pritchard, it was this that made him trip up. Rob hauled his weary body up, he could see two Cyclops searching for fresh prey, and luckily, they did not see him in the gloom. Then he saw a dim light appear ahead of him, it was quite near to him, he ran towards it. However, he now heard the sound of heavy footsteps approaching him from the left, he veered to one side, and a wall appeared out of the darkness, he ran to it hoping to put his back up against something solid to help defend his back. He rested for a second to get his breath back, constantly on the lookout for an enemy, then his luck changed, to one side of him he saw a door, it looked exactly like the new door into the small church and Rob ran to it just as one of the Furies sped squealing towards him. Rob tugged on the door and it opened, he quickly entered into a dimly lit room and turning he slammed the door shut on the Fury, which flew away screeching in anger.

"Rob, you`re back, thank god." Father Pritchard gasped out.

He had been injured during the escape, fleeing from one of the Titans who had been imprisoned in Tartarus thousands of years ago. An arrow had buried itself in his shoulder. However, he had still managed to reach the ruined church, just moments before Moira had burst into it, followed by Mrs Knightly, and he had hidden from the two Satanists, fearful that one of them would kill him if they caught sight of him. Moira had screamed out in anger at the ancient gods, and had thrown one of the candlesticks at the wall in a rage fit for a goddess, the candlestick falling unseen upon his still form. When the two Satanists had fled through the earthly exit, he had risen from his hiding place, holding onto the wall to support himself, and he looked and felt exhausted and just moments away from collapse.

"David, you made it back, thank god, Gerry died back there, saving my life. I just hope that his eternal soul gets safely away." Rob said desolately.

Frankly, he was amazed to find himself back in the church; he thought that his own number had finally come up.

Father Pritchard now noticed the Key of Tartarus in Rob`s hands. "Rob you must use the Key to close the dimensional door, before one of the gods or demons' gains entrance and takes it off you." Father Pritchard exclaimed.

"I will try David, but I am no Satanist."

As he said these words a pale figure drifted into the old church, it came from the hell dimension, the two friends gasped, for it was the soul of their friend, Gerry Handley, escaping from Tartarus. It stopped to look at them, the two men felt a warm glow emanating from it, then it left by the doors that led to their own dimension, and there it would be able to find a way to a dimension fit for heroes. Stunned for a moment, Rob was brought back to life by the bestial sounds of a creature approaching the church from Tartarus. He held the old oil lamp up to the roof of the old ruined church and cried out in a loud voice.

"Oh powerful Key of Tartarus, close this portal now to prevent your prisoners from escaping and terrorising the people of Earth." Rob cried out, trying to sound as Moira Bourbon would have, had she been there.

"Look!" Father Pritchard exclaimed.

Rob looked at where his friend was pointing, expecting to see a demon appear, however, instead of a demon he saw the scene through the broken windows at the rear of the church changing from the hell dimension back to their own more people friendly one. The satanic device in his hands felt cold now, all of its power had been drained by its last action, the sealing up of the hell dimension of Tartarus.

Elsewhere in the hell dimension of Tartarus, the souls of the dead Satanists began to leave their bodies, to be snared by the lesser minions of Tartarus and taken to their place of torment.

"Rob, we must leave immediately for France, Moira is heading back to her chateau, and the insane bitch wants to bring her dead father back to life. That is what this has all been about, resurrecting Ulysses Bourbon. She only has Mrs Knightly with her now; they were the only ones to escape from Tartarus." Father Pritchard groaned, his strength failing him now.

Rob had other priorities though, for he had seen the broken arrow sticking in his friend`s shoulder. "First we will get you to a hospital to get your shoulder fixed." Rob said. "Hopefully, one of the vehicles outside will still have its keys in the ignition."

Luckily, the keys had been left in an old Ford Fiesta, because of the need for haste when the Satanists had arrived at the ruined church. Rob and Father Pritchard were soon heading south towards the nearest A&E hospital in Nottingham. Arriving early in the morning, just as the sun began to show over the rooftops. Father Pritchard sighed with relief, and he was soon lying on a bed, being attended to by an exhausted young doctor who seemed delighted to have an arrow wound to attend to, rather than his normal cases.

Rob called Sir Willoughby Brown from here, and he told him everything that had occurred over the last twelve hours, including the death of Gerry Handley.

"I will arrange for an all ports watch for her, although I seem to recollect that her father had a private aircraft that was never found, it disappeared along with the pilot." Sir Willoughby Brown said grimly. "You get yourself down here as soon as you have rested, I do not want to hear that you fell asleep at the wheel of your stolen vehicle and crashed, killing yourself and creating miles of paperwork for me."

Rob laughed and agreed to book into the nearest hotel. "Oh, Sir Richard, Moira has changed her looks again, this time she has gone for the full Goth make up."

Rob then returned to Father Pritchard`s bedside, and after saying goodnight to his tired friend he booked into a local Best Western hotel, it was from the privacy of his hotel room that he called Christina.

"Rob, are you all right, why didn`t you call me earlier?" Christina cried out, frightened that something terrible had happened to Rob

Behind her a sleepy Cassie was wondering the same thing, and she too was fearful of hearing Rob`s answer.

"I am fine darling, I cannot go into details over the telephone, suffice to say that I am unhurt. I am in Nottingham at the moment; I am staying the night here in a hotel because I am too tired to drive. Darling, I am with David, and we will be with you sometime tomorrow, I don`t know when, it depends on when I wake up. I will tell you everything tomorrow, okay?" Rob explained.

"Okay, Rob, you get some rest, Cassie and I will see you tomorrow, I missed you darling, goodnight." Christina replied and hesitantly put the telephone down and turned to Cassie, who put her arms around her elder sister to comfort her.

"I knew that bitch couldn`t get the better of my Rob." Christina said and then burst into tears, which caused Cassie to start.

**********

Father Pritchard checked himself out of the hospital the following morning, much against the doctor`s wishes, and he and Rob returned to London to drop into the SIS headquarters, and Sir Willoughby Brown. His wound was checked again by the service`s own doctor, who advised him to rest up, but Father Pritchard was adamant, he would travel to France with Rob, and as the only specialist available, he would be invaluable there. Sir Willoughby Brown was not so sure.

"Father Pritchard, I see the coming confrontation between our forces and Moira Bourbon as one where our brute force and violence will win the day, and before Moira Bourbon even realises that Rob has even arrived.

"Hopefully you are correct Sir Richard; of course, Moira Bourbon is critically short of personnel this time, having only one other Satanist with her, she is also out of muscle. However, there is the chance that she can pick some up when she arrives in France, her father was able to call on some muscle the last time we were in France, and they caused us a great deal of trouble." Rob said

"Which is why you will be met by John Agers and Simon Markman when you arrive in France. They will supply you with a weapon and anything else that you might require; they will also stay with you as your muscle." Sir Willoughby Brown replied. "You are to fly out tomorrow morning from Redhill Aerodrome, you are to arrive at the airport no later than eight o`clock, Michael Parsons will be your pilot, and he will fly you to France in that small aircraft of his. So, go home now and put your wife`s mind at rest, and then tomorrow morning meet up with Parsons and fly to Guéret Aerodrome, it is near to Montluçon." Sir Willoughby Brown explained. "And Rob, do try to stay out of any more hell dimensions." Sir Willoughby Brown added as an afterthought.

"I will do my best Sir Richard, at least Moira Bourbon has no idea that anyone else survived Tartarus, she must feel very safe at the moment." Rob replied.

Rob picked up his own car at the SIS headquarters building, left there at the very start of this terrible adventure, and headed for home. He and Father Pritchard were soon sitting in Rob`s front room, explaining to two very relieved young women all that had happened, and all that had gone dreadfully wrong while Rob and Father Pritchard had been away. Rob told how Gerry Handley had met a hero`s death saving Rob`s life, and of Tartarus, a truly hell dimension. It was another tearful goodbye when the two men left for France early the next morning, Father Pritchard insisted on accompanying Rob, Christina drove them to the aerodrome in Rob`s car. She held back her tears as she said goodbye to them, knowing that they were going to rid the world of Moira Bourbon, and her fellow Satanist. Rob`s orders were to try to take Moira Bourbon out with a Czech made Pax-22 tranquillizer rifle which fires a drugged dart, however, he was also authorised to you deadly force if this option proved impossible or even too dangerous to attempt. He mission was to stop Moira Bourbon before she became even more powerful than she already was. Father Pritchard did not bother to argue the rights or wrongs of this order, not this time, for he agreed with it.

Chapter Eight

Return to France

After fleeing from Tartarus, Moira Bourbon and Mrs Knightly had returned to Mrs Knightly`s small house to get some rest. Mrs Knightly had said that it was safer, should anyone come looking for any of the residents of the manor house, as they were unlikely to search the now empty hamlet of Parkston, they would go immediately to the manor house. As for the chances of agents from the SIS turning up, the two Satanists had dismissed this as something unlikely to happen. Rob Hinds had not been able to contact his office for the last twelve hours or more, so his last location was unknown to anyone, even so, staying away from the manor house seemed the safer option.

"You take my bed Moira, and I will crash on the couch." Mrs Knightly said kindly to the visibly exhausted young Satanist.

"Thank you, Joanna, I am feeling a little shattered." Moira said not realising that her friend simply wanted to be nearer to the Ark.

Moira placed the heavy golden Ark of Ba'al Berith on a stout looking table in the small kitchen of the house, and she studied it carefully while Mrs Knightly washed and then collecting some spare bedding and her nightclothes. Exhaustion finally forced Moira to leave the Ark and to walk up the narrow staircase and into the only bedroom in the house, a smile upon her face. She stripped off her clothes and slipped between the cool sheets, too tired to bother washing, and she fell asleep almost instantly.

Mrs Knightly did not retire though, she also studied the Ark, and making mental notes on what she saw engraved upon it. After looking at the mythological scenes, she finally came to a mystical scene, it showed the Ark placed within a fully charged satanic pentagram. She immediately opened a door that led off the kitchen, then she picked up the heavy Ark and carried it through the open door and down into her personal temple.

A pentagram was already drawn upon the floor, the goblets and black candles set in brass candlesticks were in place, she had only to fill the goblets with red wine and light the candles, and the satanic pentagram would be charged. Temporarily placing the Ark down, she placed a chair in the middle of the pentagram, then she placed the Ark upon the chair, so that the lid would open back against the back of the chair. She then filled the goblets with red wine, but she did not light the candles, not yet. First, she drew a second pentagram; this took her thirty minutes, using some of her own blood to paint the circle that enclosed the star. Finally, it was fully charged, although she had to make do with china cups and no candlesticks.

Tired but excited, she now lit the candles around both pentagrams. Mrs Knightly now looked up at the ceiling and smiled, but her smile was one of triumph.

"Sleep tight Moira, I expect you will feel a little drained by the morning."

Then she collected her bedding and went to sleep in the second charged pentagram, this one would protect her from the Ark while it was drawing power from any living or satanic object near to it.

**********

The next morning Mrs Knightly woke first, and breakfast was not the first thought to come to her mind. She smiled, and then she went to her altar, lit two more black candles, and poured red wine into a bowl, to this she added a liquid from a small glass bottle that was kept on a small wall side table. She now refilled the goblets around the Ark with fresh red wine and she had a lit match in her hand to light fresh candles, the previous candles having burned down; however, it was now that Moira staggered into the small temple.

"What the hell do you think you are doing Joanna?" Moira demanded to know, her anger clearly visible to the other Satanist.

She had woken a minute earlier feeling exhausted, and had gone in search of Mrs Knightly, as she passed by the cellar door, she heard sounds coming from it, she also saw that the Ark was missing, cursing herself for a fool, she descended the wooden stairs, and to her surprise found herself within a small satanic temple.

Mrs Knightly looked up, startled by the sudden arrival of the young Satanist, with Moira in the room the remainder of the ceremony would have to wait, instead she pulled out an automatic pistol.

"Stop right there Moira, I am about to open the Ark, it will then charge me with its tremendous power, some of which you kindly donated." Mrs Knightly said throwing a contemptuous look at the young Satanist. "After that I will call upon Hekate, for I am her most devoted follower, a priestess, and she has told me that she will make me the most powerful Satanist on Earth, but only if I give her the Ark." Mrs Knightly said gloatingly. "Now step back against the wall or I will pull the trigger and rid myself of your overbearing presence."

"You bitch Joanna, I vow that you will pay for your betrayal of me and my father." Moira cried out in anger as she backed up against the rear wall of the temple.

"Your father is dead you silly bitch, and do shut up Moira, just watch as I bathe in the light of the gods."

With no chance of Moira attempting anything for the moment, Mrs Knightly pushed the pistol back into her belt and lit the fresh candles, and then she turned the chair so that the front of the Ark was towards her. The anger that Moira felt at this betrayal, was not the only emotion that she now felt, she also felt contempt. Moira looked on, fighting to hold back her laughter, as Mrs Knightly raised the lid away from herself. Even though Moira knew what was about to happen, she was still shocked when Mrs Knightly was sucked into the Ark, and then the lid slammed shut with a loud bang. Mrs Knightly did not have time to scream, only to die a short, but terribly painful death, as her body disintegrated and then vanished. One of the ancient books belonging to her dead father had made a cryptic comment regarding an Ark of great power. However, it was not until she had looked carefully at this Ark yesterday evening, that it began to make sense, and she knew which Ark the book was referring to, for up until then she had assumed that it had referred to a more famous Ark.

"Told you so Joanna, not so smug now, are you."

Moira walked into the pentagram and put her two hands on either side of the Ark, and fully upon the two identical engravings that were hidden amongst larger, more intricate ones on either side of the Ark. The careful study she had made last night had showed her that these small engravings were of a god, and he was touching the two sides of the Ark at these exact points. Instantly her body was surrounded by a bright glowing light, when she had touched the Ark before, she had felt nothing, this time she felt the new energy that it now possessed, for she could feel it invigorating her body.

With this feeling of strength, she looked about the temple, and she saw that the pistol that Mrs Knightly had held was now lying upon the floor; Moira picked it up and put it in on the altar. Later, she would take it upstairs, to use against any human enemies that came her way, although their numbers had been reduced over the last twenty four hours, she thought with a smile.

From the rear of the small satanic temple a dark form began to appear in a swirl of bright orange lights, it was Hekate coming to claim her prize. Fear grabbed at the heart of Moira, she quickly turned the Ark towards the orange lights, and put her hands on to its golden lid.

"Where is my priestess, Satanist? I felt her mind calling to me in pain; I also saw a vision of my prize, the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, amongst her screams." The goddess demanded to know. "The very Ark that I see you standing behind." Hekate said accusingly, with a hint of fear now in her voice.

"She was here a moment ago." Moira replied sweetly. "Maybe she popped in here."

With that, Moira opened the Ark, the last thing that the goddess felt was this tremendous pain all over her body, then she was sucked into the Ark, and then the lid slammed firmly shut. The beautiful young Satanists laughed so much she almost collapsed onto the floor, but finally she regained her composure, and now she looked at the Ark in awe. She touched the two sides of the Ark again, and this time the power that shot up her arms and into her body was so much that she almost fainted. She did sink to her knees, her eyes closed in ecstasy, and on her face a look of a woman who had experienced the most terrific orgasm in her entire existence. It took her a full minute to regain control of her mind and her body, she then opened her eyes and smiled, a glow emanated from her face, and her eyes sparkled with such energy.

"Oh my, but that was one bloody good trip." Moira cried out in pleasure. "I must do that again, and soon. I can certainly see why Kronos had a mystical energy field around it; if one of the prisoners had got a hold of it, they could have wiped all the wardens in Tartarus off the map."

She slowly stood up, rejoicing in the extra energy that was coursing through her young body, and the quickness of her mind. She picked up the Ark and carried it back up to the main part of the house. Even though she did not need to rush, she did, she wanted to return to her chateau in France, and then bring her father back to her. Lifting up the telephone in the front room of the house she called Miles Lawson, her father`s pilot.

"Miles, it`s Moira, you have the helicopter ready?" Is all she asked.

"Yes, Mademoiselle Bourbon, we can leave for France whenever you are ready." Lawson replied.

"Right, I will leave here after I have grabbed something to eat, I should be there in one hour, maybe an hour and a half, but I should be no later than that, see you then."

With that she put the telephone down and returned to the small temple to collect the automatic pistol, only now did she return to the kitchen to look for something to eat, she found a box of Cheerios and settled for them, together with a cup of coffee. Ten minutes later and she had finished her breakfast, she stood up and went into the front room to look out of its windows, to ensure that no one had arrived, but the hamlet was still deserted. Therefore, free to act, she searched for and found a suitable container for the Ark. It was an old blanket box, she carried this out to the car that she had driven from the old ruined church in, she then put the box into the boot of the car. She then returned to the house and collected the Ark, this she put into the blanket box; finally, she found a long length of rope in the small garden shed in the back garden of the house. She used this the secure the blanket box to ensure that none of her staff in France would see, and be tempted to steal the Ark, for it was a very beautiful chest, one looking to be of immense value.

She now drove over to the gatehouse of the manor house, her things were already packed, waiting there for her, she had done this on the afternoon of Halloween. The items that she had packed were not all personal items, a good many were for use in black magic ceremonies, also her father`s books, and she would make good use of them in the coming days. She took one other item, her handbag, a large black affair, and into this, she put the automatic pistol. Five minutes later and she was on the road heading west, travelling towards a small airfield where her ride to France waited.

The trip was to be in two hops, first to the south of England, and this was quiet and uneventful. As they neared their first stop on the way to France, Lawson turned to his new employer. "We must fill up the tanks here Mademoiselle Bourbon, to ensure we reach your chateau without having to touch down at one of the French aerodromes. Tell me Mademoiselle, if the local gendarmes do come by the chateau, do you have a passport to show them?" Lawson asked.

"Yes, Miles, Simon Pritchard knew someone who was able to procure a nice new French one in the name of Michelle Blanchett." Moira replied.

She turned and smiled at her pilot, he was tall, good looking, and a real man she thought, maybe not with the power that she had felt radiating off Simon Parkston, but still quite desirable.

The helicopter, an Augusta- Bell 206B, arrived in the area of Lower Boulding, and landed within the grounds of her property near to the small village, one she would be unlikely to reclaim, not without a visit from the local police followed by her imprisonment. Lawson had secretly transported 400 litres of Jet-A fuel to the house, and it had been waiting there, hidden in one of the more remote outhouses, ever since his former employer`s daughter had spoken to him following her escape from the hospital. He had acquired the funds to purchase the second hand helicopter by selling his former employer`s aircraft to a business man who had decided that he needed a good aircraft, but at a cheap price. Moira thought that a helicopter would be a little more clandestine, as she had informed Lawson, feeling that she would need to travel under cover until she finally returned to the family home in France. Lawson had already put out feelers for a buyer for the aircraft, hoping to pocket the money; however, with another employer willing to pay his usual salary, he was happy to use the money to purchase a helicopter.

It did not take long to top up the fuel tank of the helicopter, and then they were on their way to France. The journey took three hours, flying below the radar, then Moira finally caught sight of the family chateau, and tears came to her eyes as she thought once again about her father. The staff of the chateau had been kept on during the two years of her confinement, good staff being hard to find anywhere. They helped to park the helicopter within an old barn that was no longer in use, to ensure that it was not seen by any nosey neighbour or gendarme.

"Alain, would you take this box to the chateau and put it in the study, be careful with it though, it contains things that are of immense sentimental value to me." Moira instructed one of the younger male members of her staff. Other members of her staff had already picked up her suitcases and bags, and these they had taken to her bedroom.

Moira now turned to Lawson. "I am starved Miles, thankfully the staff have prepared a meal for us, that with a little wine will help us recover from the long journey." Moira said.

She led Lawson over to the chateau where he too would be staying, as was usual whenever he had flown Ulysses Bourbon to France. Dinner was soon served in the large dining room of the chateau, and over dinner they spoke of places they had visited, and of places where they would like to visit in the future. After dinner, she led him through to her study, where coffee was served. When the servants had left to clear away the dinner plates and such things, she brought the conversation around to her father.

"Miles, in that chest is a satanic device of incredible power, to get it I risked my life and my immortal soul, thirteen other people perished in the quest, along with a few other unimportant individuals along the way. I put my own life in such terrible danger so that I could bring my father back from beyond the grave, will you help me to realise my greatest wish? I would be extremely grateful to you, if you agreed, and would show it to you in many ways." Moira asked seductively.

She had fancied the tall good-looking pilot ever since she had met him over two years ago, when her father had been forced to return to their French estate prematurely, and all because of Rob Hinds she thought, well she had finally ensured that he would not meddle in her affairs again.

Lawson had known that the Bourbons were Satanists, but had been happy to work for them, as the pay was so good. However, he was a little surprised by what Moira Bourbon had said to him, and he did wonder just how grateful she would be.

"I don`t know Moira, perhaps you tell me how you would accomplish such an impossible sounding task, so that I can see just what I would be letting myself in for, and maybe I can look at your new toy Moira, to see how it will help accomplish such a task?" Lawson asked feeling both eager to get to know her a lot better, and a little scared at the idea of becoming involved in black magic.

His use of her Christian name was his way of reacting to her promise to be extremely grateful, and this was not lost upon the young Satanist.

"Yes, I will tell you of my plans for the immediate future Miles. This evening I will mix together a potion that we will need during the ceremony, I will then make up a green cocktail, a drink loved by the demons. Finally, I will go over the details of the various incantations that I will recite tomorrow during the ceremony. That should take me up to midnight when I shall retire to my bed." Moira said the last in a very beguiling voice that made Lawson`s head spin.

"Tomorrow evening, Miles, you and I will take my new toy, as you call it, to my family crypt, you have probably never even seen the crypt on your previous visits here, it is in a very private location, hidden by the trees of the woods that we flew over on our approach." Moira told him.

"I will then use an enormous amount of black magic to bring my father back, power that I have obtained through my new satanic toy." Moira said.

She then stood up and walked across to the blanket box and untied the string with which she had secured it, she then opened the lid of the blanket box.

"Here you are Miles, this is my new toy." She said. "However, do not touch it, it would prove fatal to someone who does not already possess a large amount of satanic power." She warned.

Lawson walked across and looked into the blanket box, when he saw the golden Ark, he was almost struck dumb. "Is that pure gold Moira?" He managed to ask.

"Well mostly, Miles, that and a few other precious stones and metals, but do not get it into your head to try to steal it, your head would explode if you so much as laid a finger on it." Moira said.

She had overstated what would happen to him, so as to kill off any larcenous desires that might have sprang into his mind, what would happen is that she would put a bullet into his brain. However, if he were to open the lid of the Ark, then he would certainly die a very painful death, being sucked into the same fate that Hekate and Joanna Knightly had suffered. Lawson looked up at the beautiful Satanist, and decided that touching the box could indeed prove dangerous; however, the thought about stealing the box and selling it on to a rich Arab did not fully disappear.

"Come on Miles, pick up the blanket box and follow me, with that Moira walked over to a small table and took a remote control device from out of a secret drawer that was concealed beneath the ornate top of the table. She first slipped in two fresh batteries; she now aimed the device at a picture of Notre Dame, pressing the only button on the device. A small panel within the interior wall slid back, and then sideways revealing a wooden staircase that went down to a concealed cellar.

"This way Miles." Moira ordered.

She led the way down the stairs to the main room of the cellar, and through to a small satanic temple.

"Put the blanket box down please Miles." Moira said.

Miles did as he was asked, and after he watched as the young Satanist took the Ark out of its container and put it into the centre of the pentagram that decorated part of the floor of the temple.

Moira then turned to Lawson and looked into his eyes, seconds later he fell into a deep sleep. Moira then walked into a small laboratory that was behind the altar; here she took a medical kit out of one of the cupboards. It came complete with a blood bag, a needle, a clamp and a length of tubing. She soon had the needle inserted into his arm and then the bag began to fill. When she had enough blood, she disconnected the kit from Lawson`s arm and wiped it with an antiseptic wipe.

Moira now repainted the circle around the pentagram with the blood, and when satisfied she also set up the pentagram in the study and her bedroom, repainting both of the circles. Then she returned to the laboratory and disposed of the items of the medical kit, she would purchase a new kit for next year. Walking back into the small temple she took five silver goblets from a cupboard and put them into the valleys of the pentagram, these she filled with red wine. Then she took five black candles out of the same cupboard and set them into five silver candlesticks, these she put at the five apexes of the pentagram, and then she lit them. She did not need to draw the five mystical symbols for they were already painted upon the floor. The Ark would slowly draw energy from the world around it, some of it of greater value, while some of it would only come from the normal human world, and this would be of a lesser value.

"Okay, Miles, when you wake you will not notice the mark on your arm, nor will you ever notice it. Now awaken from your sleep." Moira said and then she shook him roughly. "Miles wake up, we are done down here, let`s return to my study so that I can finish off the preparations for tomorrow evening.

Lawson woke up with a headache and feeling a little tired. "Sorry Moira, I guess the flight took more out of me than usual, did I miss anything?"

"No Miles, nothing of importance, come on, I still have work to do in my study."

On their return to the study, Moira gave Lawson two paracetamols for his headache, and then he went to sleep. Moira looked across at him and in a whisper told him to stay asleep until ordered to awaken. Moira now went over the incantations that she would make use of the next day.

Later, on being told to awake, Lawson noticed that he was sleeping within another charged pentagram. "Moira, you sure like to decorate your floors with pentagrams." Miles remarked on noticing the large one painted on the floor of the study, one that totally encompassed the part of the room where their two armchairs stood. He was also a little surprised that Moira had also charged this pentagram.

"Miles, you will also see that I have one around my bed, they are there for many reasons, but tonight they will stop the Ark, that we just took down to the temple, from draining us of our energy. Now that it is within a charged pentagram it will continue to draw energy to it until we extinguish the candles, or they go out." Moira explained to a very sceptical man.

That night, after completing all of her preparations for the coming day, Moira showed Lawson just how grateful she could be to him. As for Lawson, he decided to put the plan to steal the Ark on the back burner, at least until the beautiful young Satanist had tried and failed in her ludicrous attempt to bring her father back from the grave. Failure might then make her more amenable to listen to his plans to convert the chest into a small fortune.

Moira and Miles Lawson slept in late the next morning, but after breakfast, the young Satanist had Lawson drive her over to the nearest town. She dragged a bored Lawson around the shops, where she purchased a number of new outfits for herself, having left some of her clothing behind when she left the manor house. On coming upon a small bar, she took him inside for a light meal and a drink. She had just finished her meal when she suddenly stood up.

"I need to visit the little girl's room." Was all she said.

Having made use of the facilities offered by the small toilet, she washed her hands; standing next to her was a young French woman. Moira looked up into the wall length mirror and locked her eyes upon those of the woman. Initially the woman had been annoyed by this strange young woman staring at her, but her face quickly went blank.

"Follow me when I leave the bar, I have need of you." Moira commanded.

The woman merely nodded and followed the Satanist when she left the toilets. The young woman felt strange as she returned to her husband, who was sitting at a small table against the wall, and he immediately noticed that something was wrong with his wife.

"Darling, you look terrible, what is wrong?"

His wife did not get the chance to reply, for Moira appeared at their table and looked down at the young man, who had looked up, annoyed by this interruption, for he could see that his young wife was troubled. Moira now held his eyes, and no matter how hard he tried to turn away from the stranger`s eyes and back to his wife, he found that he could not do this simple act.

"You and your wife will follow me, pay your bill now and then collect your things, for I am about to leave." Moira ordered. Both the man and the woman nodded, and then they stood up and put their coats on.

"Come on Miles, we are returning to the chateau with my two new friends." Moira announced and leaving a few Euro notes behind to more than cover the bill.

She too grabbed her coat and put it on as a baffled Lawson hastily stood up and donned his own coat, and then he rushed after the departing back of the young Satanist.

Moira got into the large MPV that they had driven to the town in, followed by the two strangers and a very mystified Lawson.

"Okay, Miles, home please." Moira ordered.

The drive home was quiet, the two strangers were under a spell, and Lawson, after asking about their two new friends, had been told that all would be explained later, and although he wanted to speak about it sooner rather later, he found that he could not ask the question, no matter how hard he tried. Arriving at the estate Moira had new instructions for Lawson.

"Take the side road around to the back of the chateau, Miles, and then take the small track into the woods." Moira said.

The way took them along a narrow track that wound through the woods that were to the south of the chateau, finally they arrived at a small clearing. The only structures were the family crypt, built in the early eighteenth century, and across the other side of the clearing a small woodcutters hut.

"Okay you two, out." Moira ordered the two strangers.

The man and the woman slowly got out of the MPV, and then just stood there.

"Walk over to the small hut; it is your new home." The young Satanist ordered.

Once inside the hut, Moira pulled out a hypodermic needle, which she filled with a clear liquid, she then injected the liquid into the arms of the two strangers.

"Now sit down before you fall down." Moira instructed.

With her two new guests settled, she had Lawson drive her back to the chateau, and although he wondered what the hell was going on, he just could not manage to ask the question.

They spent the remainder of the day lazing around, for no one endangered the coming ceremony, for no one knew where she was, or what she intended to do on that November night. She did wonder why the ancient gods had not followed her through the open portal between the two dimensions; however, she now assumed that the Key had closed the portal.

Moira and Lawson dined early that night, the world belonged to Moira, and as the sun sunk slowly down until it touched the treetops around the estate, Moira decided that it was time to leave for the family crypt. She asked Lawson to carry the heavy blanket box up from the small temple, with the satanic device once more safely stored within it, and hidden from the eyes of the staff. Moira was waiting outside, dressed in a heavy coat as a cold wind had sprung up, having driven one of her late father`s vehicles around to the back of the chateau. Lawson put the blanket box into the vehicle; Moira had already put everything she needed to conduct the coming ceremony onto the back seat.

She once again allowed Lawson to drive the vehicle to the crypt, liking the feeling of having a chauffeur. They soon arrived at the family crypt, and as a cold wind had sprung up, they hurriedly took all of the satanic ceremonial items inside the equally cold building. Moira shivered for a moment while laying out the satanic items upon the sarcophagus of one of her ancestors, and she decided to warm the cold crypt. She sprinkled a powder on the ground and then she lit two black candles.

"Malianta, I command you to appear before me, Moira Bourbon commands this of you."

The room cooled noticeably, then a burning flame appeared in the floor in front of Moira, and then a small imp appeared.

"I am here Master, most favoured human of Lord Lucifer, all Hell speaks your name in awe of your power, I am honoured that you have called upon me to complete a small task for your most honoured person." The demon whispered.

"I need warmth to work in Malianta, quickly now, for I have a flask of Rakiremanin in payment, but ensure that you warm this house of the dead for the rest of the night." Moira commanded.

"Of course, Master." Malianta replied and began to wave his arms around the crypt.

The stones now began to take on a reddish hue, and Moira smiled as the heat from the stones reached her and began to warm her cold body.

"Thank you Malianta, you have done well. Here is your payment, take it and leave, for I have much to do this night." The young Satanist commanded.

Malianta beamed with delight at the unexpected compliment from the Satanist, he then turned back into a bright red flame and disappeared, just as Lawson brought in the last of the satanic ceremonial items.

"Has this place got central heating Moira, it`s suddenly got quite warm in here?" Lawson asked quizzically.

"Yes, something like that that Miles, I just do not like to work in the cold." Moira replied were a smile. She then stepped over to the Ark and touched its sides, and smiled as a huge amount of power coursed through her veins, and she now drained it of its remaining mystical energy. She now had the necessary power, and more, to bring her father back from the dead.

**********

Rob Hinds and Father Pritchard arrived in France at midday; they were met at the aerodrome by two SIS agents, Simon Markman and John Agers. His colleagues were the two agents who had been present when a demon posing as Moira Bourbon had materialised in the SIS headquarters, the demon had given Rob travel instructions to a hell dimension. Now two months later they had both rationalised the event away, blaming it on a mind-bending gas. Sir Willoughby Brown wished that he could do the same, for he must now ensure that this Key of Tartarus was stored securely, for all time. As for the two agents however, he reasoned that after this initial baptism in this small example of black magic, they would be more willing to accept the impossible when they reached Montluçon in France, and the most powerful Satanist on Earth. They made good time from Guéret Aerodrome, arriving at the Bourbon chateau just before the sun went down behind the low hills in the southwest.

Rob led the way through the woods, Father Pritchard followed behind him, and the two SIS agents brought up the rear. The sun was sinking down towards the horizon, and in the woods, the light was now very dim, making finding the way all the harder, finally Rob saw a landmark he remembered from his last visit.

"I believe that the crypt is this way David, I remember it from our last visit to France, my memories of that visit are deeply etched within my brain cells." Rob said and headed off along an even narrower track.

The other three men followed on behind him, no one spoke, it was not necessary, yet. Within two minutes, they saw a single storey structure, it was just a little further along the narrow track, it was the crypt, and in front of it was a parked vehicle. Lawson was just walking into the building; they had not seen the two strangers for they had preceded him, Moira had used her immense power to awaken them temporarily from their drugged state.

"She seems to have recruited some local help Rob; I wonder how many more of them are inside the crypt?" Father Pritchard said.

"Most of the Satanists we have met so far have been poor specimens of Mankind, or Womankind come to that." Rob replied. "They should be docile enough, once they catch sight of our weapons. It`s Moira Bourbon who scares me, she has lost all the humanity that she was born with." Rob said grimly.

"Sir Willoughby Brown told us to go in with guns blazing, if we just take her out rather than first give her a warning, then we should be okay, shouldn`t we?" Agers declared bravely.

He for one was not about to allow a few Satanists to stop him doing his job, and Markman obviously concurred with his point, for he nodded his head in agreement. Rob looked at his two fellow agents, and knew that he would have been of the same mind, three years ago, since then he had learned that black magic was a real force to be reckoned with, and a very dangerous one in the powerful hands of a satanic master.

"Our orders, John, are to try to take Moira Bourbon out with the tranquillizer gun, only if that proves impossible, are we authorised to use deadly force. However, after the last couple of days, I do agree that we should not take any chances with Moira Bourbon. If we find it impossible to use the rifle then we shoot to kill, I would not dare do anything less." Rob replied grimly.

Father Pritchard was a little disconcerted by the thought of killing a fellow human being without giving them a chance to surrender, but he held his tongue this time, for he agreed that Moira Bourbon was too dangerous an opponent to treat in a civilised way.

**********

At that exact moment Moira Bourbon was calling upon another of the minor demons that obeyed her summons, she was just mixing together a potion in a deep glass tray, and as she stirred the potion, a yellow plume of smoke began to rise from the glass tray.

"Veigel, obey my summons and appear before me." The young Satanist commanded.

Veigel was minor demon that she had used on many occasions, and the crypt cooled rapidly as he appeared within a veil of smoke, his stunted body bent and his face terribly misshapen. Moira swore under her breath at the coolness of the crypt, which she had only just warmed up.

"How can I be of service to you Master?" The demon asked.

"You are to stand guard around this crypt Veigel, should anyone approach it you are to inform me immediately." Moira commanded. "Do you understand?"

"Of course, Master." Veigel said even as he was departing, leaving behind the usual stench of hell.

The smell even made their two guests react, and Moira agreed with them so she turned to Lawson, who was in a state of temporary shock, not knowing whether the demon was real or not.

"Miles, would you please open the door to the crypt, to allow the smell to dissipate a little?" The beautiful Satanist asked.

As he did so, the demon returned in his usual veil of smoke. "Master, four men are approaching the crypt, they will be here in only a few moments more, be warned, they are armed, and one of them is your enemy Rob Hinds." Veigel hurriedly informed his master.

Moira was stunned, but only for a second, however, she now knew the real reason why the ancient gods had not escaped from Tartarus, it was because of Rob, he had somehow got hold of the Key and saved the world, always the Hero. She hurried to the door of the crypt and then stepped out, surprising the four men who in turn had been about to surprise, and kill, her. Her eyes took in the four men, holding them rigid against their will, their weapons still not even clear of their holsters.

"Stand over there gentlemen, by the vehicle, say nothing, do nothing, hear nothing."

Rob tried to act, but found his muscles obeying Moira rather than his own brain, and no matter how hard he tried to draw his weapon, he just could not do it. Meanwhile, Moira had returned to the crypt, leaving the four docile warriors of the light outside in the cold of the night. Lawson was amazed that this young woman could control so many people, but even so, he put it down to hypnotism, nothing more, having dismissed the appearance of the demon from his mind as another mind trick.

Moira looked across at the waiting demon while pondering the new situation, the demon, and too afraid of the Satanist to utter even a single word. With Rob Hinds and Father Pritchard still alive and standing outside of her family crypt, it meant that the forces of law and order not only knew that she was alive, but where she was and what she was about to do. This changed everything, and she quickly thought out a new plan of action.

"Veigel, go back outside and resume your sentry duty, tell me if anyone else approaches this house of the dead, otherwise, come to me when my enemies have left my family estate and I will pay you well." Moira commanded.

"Yes, Master." Veigel replied and then vanished in a veil of foul smelling smoke.

Moira now turned to Lawson. "It is time Miles, you will assist me." She commanded. "Take the lid off my father`s coffin please, and lay it upside down upon the floor."

Lawson looked across at her and wondered what she was about, but he said nothing, he just obeyed the young Satanist. As soon as the lid was on the floor, Moira knelt down, took out the bones of her father, and set them out exactly as they had been, but upon the upturned lid of the coffin.

To one side of them was a stone sarcophagus, it belonged to her grandfather who had died just four months before her father, she moved over to it and took hold of the lid.

"We need to move this lid to one side, but be careful not to let it fall and break." Moira instructed.

Once again, Lawson refrained from commenting, he merely leant over and pushed the lid, it moved slowly, grating upon the stone coffin.

"You, come here." She called.

The male stranger walked over and stopped before her, she looked into his mind and then smiled, for the stranger was a permanent deacon of the church, a good and godly man.

"Get inside the sarcophagus and take out every single bone and hand them to me, make sure that you do it in the correct order." Moira ordered the male stranger, and soon Moira had laid out an identical skeleton to that of her father.

"I will hand you over my father`s bones, be sure that you put them into this sarcophagus in their correct order." She ordered the male stranger.

Soon that part of her plan was completed, and Moira then checked that her father`s skeleton was laid out correctly before she continued.

"Lay down upon my father`s skeleton, with your head upon his skull." Moira ordered the stranger.

What struggles were going on inside of the man`s brain she did not know, or care, but the man obeyed her instantly. He was now laying down upon the bones of her father, his head resting upon the skull of the dead man. She now held her dagger aloft.

"Great Lord Lucifer, ruler of Hell and this Earth, accept this offering of a truly righteous man, in return for the soul of my dead father, a man who was always your trusted follower."

Moira now slit the man`s throat, his blood gushing out over the bones of Ulysses Bourbon.

Lawson looked on appalled by what he had seen, however, Moira was not done yet.

"Now Miles, we must close the lid, help me push it back into place."

"What!" Lawson gasped out.

"Do it." The young Satanist cried out angrily.

Lawson flinched, but he obeyed her, a new and far greater fear just beginning to make itself felt within his brain.

Moira now placed her grandfather`s skeleton into the coffin that bore her father`s name, and then she replaced the lid. Anyone looking for the coffin of Ulysses Bourbon would easily find it, but would not know that it did not now contain his bones.

Moira now turned to the woman. "Lay down upon this stone sarcophagus, you are about to be part of a great piece of black magic." Moira ordered sweetly.

The young woman obeyed just as her husband had done, and she lay upon the lid, under which her husband lay dying. The young Satanist now moved the satanic regalia from the ancient sarcophagus over to that which her father now lay in; she then lit four black candles.

"This is it Miles, please say or do nothing in any way until the ceremony is complete." Moira ordered politely.

"All powerful Lord Lucifer, ruler of both Hell and the Earth, I, Moira Bourbon, your most devoted follower, and the most powerful of your followers here on Earth, ask you to grant a wish, give me back my father, alive and whole." Moira cried out.

Lawson standing to one side, and acting as her acolyte, held back his laughter, his fears forgotten as he watched what he thought of as a crazy display of religious piffle. Although he thought that Moira Bourbon was undoubtedly beautiful, he now also thought that she was undoubtedly a little cracked for believing such mumbo jumbo, and very dangerous to boot. Then he saw the ornate dagger in her hand and he knew that things had gone too far. He made to move forward to stop her murdering the young woman, but Moira noticed his initial movement and now focussed on him as well as the other people under her control. Lawson now found that his body refused to work, and the fear in his heart quadrupled.

"Oh mighty and terrible Lord Lucifer, please accept this humble offering that I now dedicate to you alone."

Moira now cut the wrists of the young woman, and her blood began to gush from the wounds and pool onto the stone lid, then it slowly trickled down the sides of the stone coffin. The body of the young woman shook in a violent spasm as her lifeblood quickly drained away, her eyes opened to look up at her murderer, and hate blazed out of them, but then the woman fainted from her blood loss. Moira then cut the young woman`s legs and feet, and her sides and stomach, for she wanted to drain the blood from the body while she still controlled Rob Hinds and his three friends. Moira put both of her hands on the stone lid and sent a massive amount of power through the blood and into the sarcophagus, power that she had taken from Hekate. The inside of the crypt was lit up by the power being emitted by Moira, and Lawson was temporarily blinded as the inside of the crypt was illuminated by the satanic energy flowing from Moira`s hands. As the light dimmed his sight returned and he watched as the blood mysteriously never reached the floor; instead it disappeared into the cold stone of the sarcophagus, even that blood that had already reached the floor, or spurted onto another surface ran back to the stone sarcophagus, and then seeped into its solid stone surface. The remaining blood in the now dead body quickly drained from the body, drawn only by the power of the Satanist. Lawson looked down upon the pale body of the woman, and he would have fainted if Moira had not used her power to keep him conscious.

When the woman was completely drained of blood, Moira had one last order for Lawson.

"Carry her body to the back of the crypt, we will hide her body in one of the oldest sarcophagi, quickly now."

Moira had felt the men outside struggling to break free of their forced confinement, the energy that she had used in the ceremony, together with the energy she had been forced to use while she held those within the crypt, and those outside of the crypt, under her spell, was beginning to tell on the young Satanist. With the ceremony completed, she knew that she could not continue to stop Rob Hinds and his friends for much longer.

She walked in front of Lawson, and when she found a suitable stone coffin, she turned to Lawson.

"Put the body down and help me move the lid."

Soon they had enough of it open to dump the body inside, then they closed the stone lid, all her new plans were now completed.

With a sad and very weary heart, she did the only thing that she could do. She walked back to the Ark and stood behind it, Lawson followed her but he stood in front of the Ark, then the young Satanist opened its lid. Lawson screamed in agony as he was dragged within the satanic device. With her hands firmly holding on to the golden Ark of Ba'al Berith, for she was not giving the powerful satanic device up without a fight she first summoned up the deception demon Mughasar, and explained to it what she required, then she used the small amount of satanic energy remaining within her to call to Lucifer.

"Oh Lord Lucifer, hear my pleas, allow me your most faithful disciple to become invisible to everyone for a period of one week, so that I can help to restore my father back to full health. Once we are both back to normal, I promise to sacrifice a virgin girl in your honour. Oh great lord of all the Hell dimensions and of the Earth too, please grant this request, this I beg of you." Moira cried out.

Outside of the crypt, Rob finally shook off the spell holding him, just as a second bright flash of light lit up the open doorway of the crypt, a shaft of light illuminating the ground outside, and then he heard Moira Bourbon`s cries for help. Rob rushed inside, closely followed by his three friends, only to see the form of Moira Bourbon slowly fading away, a giant of a demon snarled at Rob when it saw him; its arm was around her waist, and the figure of the demon was also slowly fading away. Father Pritchard threw a bottle of holy water at the demon, who screamed out in pain, and Rob now rushed forward to try to save Moira Bourbon, but she had now faded away completely, and so too had the Ark, and thankfully the demon.

"We were ordered to kill her; it seems that someone, or something, saved us the bother." Agers cried out triumphantly.

"It looks as if you might be right John, however, when you have fought against the forces of hell for more than an hour or so, you will not be so quick to make such a statement." Rob replied grimly. "Come on, we first have to check on the coffin of Ulysses Bourbon, and then search the house and its satanic temple, and all before the staff arrive to ask some rather awkward questions regarding the whereabouts of the mistress of the manor."

"That demon might well have been Lucifer himself, we were lucky to escape with our lives, never mind our eternal souls." Father Pritchard said grimly as he checked inside of the coffin, and he proclaimed that it did not show any signs of its host coming back to life. Unfortunately, the coffin he checked, now only housed the remains of Moira Bourbon`s grandfather. A search of the chateau was also fruitless, and so the four men returned to England.

In London, along with Agers and Markman, Rob Hinds went reported on their mission to Sir Willoughby Brown, afterwards he planned to take a fortnight`s leave to recover from his ordeals. Having updated Sir Willoughby Brown, Agers and Markman stated that in their opinion, the matter was closed, and they left Rob alone with Sir Willoughby Brown to talk about a private matter. After asking for and receiving permission to take the two weeks leave that owed him, Rob spoke about a much more pressing matter.

"Sir Richard, I do not agree with my two colleagues, it was all rather theatrical the way that Moira Bourbon died, I simply do not believe it, however, I refrained from mentioning it in front of Agers and Markman as I prefer to talk cold blooded assassination in private." Rob declared.

"But you said that Father Pritchard checked the coffin of Ulysses Bourbon, and that he declared that there was not a chance in hell of the skeleton within the coffin coming to life?" Sir Willoughby Brown asked quizzically.

"He did Sir Richard, but on thinking the matter through, I now believe that Moira Bourbon had more than enough time to switch the skeleton of her father with that of another one. A Satanist that possessed the power that Moira did, would not be so easily beaten, I firmly believe that we only overcame her because she was shorthanded and needed to use too much energy keeping us at bay. There is also the fact that she needed to convince you Sir Richard, that she and her father were no more, to stop you sending more agents after her." Rob argued.

"Yes, Rob, I can see your reasoning now, okay, what do you want to do? You certainly are not going to use your leave to go after her; you need a rest after all that you have been through." Sir Willoughby Brown replied.

"No, Sir Richard, Christina and I need to spend some ordinary time together, anyway I believe that we need to allow Moira Bourbon those two weeks to make her believe that she and her father are now safe from further attempts on her freedom. However, in two weeks' time I will need to take along with me two marksman, snipers of the top rank, to take out both of the Bourbons. I propose that the three of us lay low in the woods to the south of the chateau, and when the two of them are together during the late evening, when the servants have all returned home, that we take them out without ever showing ourselves. I will then search the temple beneath the chateau and bring back the Ark that Moira stole from Tartarus, we need to put that somewhere very secure to prevent any more Satanists from using it." Rob explained.

"You have ruled out using the tranquillizer rifle this time Rob." Sir Willoughby Brown said calmly.

"Yes, Sir Richard, the time for playing the gentleman is passed, it nearly got us killed the last time, if we are caught a second time, and against both of the Bourbons, then they will kill the people sent against them and maybe even send a demon to finish you off." Rob replied grimly.

"And that would never do, I have only just bought a couple of crates of Cabernet Sauvignon, and I mean to finish them off before I die." Sir Willoughby Brown replied with a grim smile upon his face.

**********

Within the new sarcophagus of Ulysses Bourbon, the body of the young stranger slowly merged into the remains of the dead Satanist, the blood of the dead woman flowing into this new body, until finally, they were one. Ulysses Bourbon lay there for a day before he woke up to find himself laying beneath a heavy stone lid of a sarcophagus. The terrible tortures he had endured while in the Dreamscape flashed into his mind and he cried out in fear, then he heard his daughter`s voice, for she had heard his fearful cry and knew that he was now conscious.

"Father, you are no longer in a hell dimension, I freed you using a powerful device I stole from the gods. You will be feeling a little groggy at the moment, however, when you are ready to leave your sarcophagus, rap on the lid and I will help you to push the heavy stone lid aside. You will not be able to see me, for I used my last remaining mystical energy to turn myself invisible, it was to make Rob Hinds believe that we are both dead. I will return to my normal self in one week`s time, by then the British agents will have returned to London to report how successful they have been. I must leave you now Father, to rest, but I will be back in the morning, when your new body will be ready to rise from the ashes of the old one, goodnight Father."

A heavy silence followed his daughter`s words, but he soon gathered his wits and went to sleep. The following day he woke and rapped on the stone lid.

"I am here father; I will help you push the lid of the sarcophagus aside so that you will be able to resume your normal place in this unworthy world."

Moira was feeling much refreshed after the Ark had restored her strength, she had moved the Ark back to the small temple beneath the chateau and recharged the pentagram, and in doing so had charged up the satanic device, and all the while she had rested in her bed. Her father had been safe from the Ark`s power as he was too far away from it.

Together they pushed the stone lid, and it slowly slid sideways, to crash onto the stone floor. The Satanist slowly got to his feet; he now had the form of his younger self, now appearing to be in his early twenties, although his looks had altered following the mixture of bloods and the DNA of the strangers.

**********

Far away, in Tartarus, the ancient gods and demons looked down upon Moira Bourbon, and they screamed out in anger, unfortunately for them, nobody outside of their dimension heard their cries.

**********

Two weeks later Rob and another of the SIS agents, Malcolm Palmer, met up with two members of an elite company of the British armed forces. These two officers had driven down from the Paris, having first visited the British Embassy and collected two sniper rifles and a long range listening device that had been sent to France via the Embassy`s diplomatic bags. The four men then drove from the Guéret Aerodrome to the Bourbon chateau near to Montluçon, here Palmer dropped the other three men off and drove away, he would return to collect them as soon as Rob contacted him. Rob had thought it would be safer this way, rather than leave their car to be seen by a passing gendarme, or even a neighbour of the Bourbons.

The three-man assassination team slipped quietly through the woods, it was mid-afternoon, and they arrived at the meadow around the chateau and lay down within the undergrowth, biding their time.

Moira Bourbon and her father were sitting outside their chateau enjoying a glass of wine after a lazy lunch, and Rob immediately recognised her, despite another change in makeup and hairstyle, this time she went for the pixie cut. Looking at the young man sitting next to her, it took Rob a while to finally realise that this was Ulysses Bourbon, use of the long range listening device confirmed this when he heard Moira Bourbon refer to the man as father. Rob had wanted to be certain that the two people he was about to murder were in fact the two Satanists and this fact was now confirmed.

Later, Moira and her father retired to the chateau, as a cold breeze had sprung up, and the assassins waited for darkness, and for the staff at the chateau to leave for home after a long day attending to the master and mistress. The three men outside moved forward, careful to not make a sound that would alert two very dangerous opponents. Rob knew that the Bourbons kept a number of guard dogs, so he did not want to get too close to the house, lest the dogs catch their scent and alarm their targets; thankfully the wind was blowing towards Rob and the two marksmen. Rob had chosen a large oak tree; some fifty feet away from the house, as the place to make the hit, and thirty minutes later the two Satanists walked into a well-lit room, the study, and stood within sight of the two officers. They had a clear shot, and two pops broke the silence of the night, Rob watched as the windows broke and the two Satanists fell to the floor and out of their view.

"Come on we need to ensure that they are dead." Rob ordered and led the two officers at a trot to the chateau.

From around the corner of the building three large mastiffs appeared, however, these killing machines were no match for the two marksman who quickly shot the dogs. Rob and the two officers rushed inside the chateau, and were soon looking down upon the still bodies of the two Satanists. Rob took out his automatic pistol and put a bullet through each of their heads, just to ensure that this time they would not return from the grave, and then he used the remote control to open the secret panel.

"Okay, we need to take these two bodies down into the temple; this will ensure that they are not found for a while, maybe ever, the bodies of the three guard dogs will also need to be carried down there." Rob ordered.

The two officers each dragged a body to the hidden doorway, and then down the stairs, Rob leading the way into the small temple. There within a pentagram was the Ark; however, Rob did not touch it, unsure of what might happen if he did so, he also warned the two officers against doing so. Instead, he looked for something to put it in, and he found the blanket box, this he upturned, and carrying it over to the satanic device, dropped it over the Ark, and in this way, he was able to carry the satanic device back up to the study. Rob also collected all of the satanic books he could find in the chateau, not only for Father Pritchard to study, should he wish to, but to keep them from falling into unfriendly hands. Then, after a call to Palmer, the three men left the chateau and six hours later Rob was sitting opposite Sir Willoughby Brown who was looking down upon the lid of the golden Ark.

"Many more missions like the last two Rob, and we will need a bigger store room for your growing collection of satanic devices." Sir Willoughby Brown joked. "I will have all of the sides of the Ark photographed, including the top and the bottom, and then maybe your priest, Father Pritchard, will agree to go over the photographs with a fine tooth comb. When he is done, he can then wade through all of those books that you brought back, to see if he can find any mention of the device. Only then will I even speak about opening the device, I remember what happened to the Nazis in the Indiana Jones Film, and I would not like the same thing to happen here in London."

"I am sure that David will agree to help us, as for me, with the Parkstons and Bourbons out of the game, hopefully I can now get back to an easier foe, such as Russian spies and Al-Qaeda terrorists." Rob replied with a grin.

The End

If you enjoyed this story then please leave a positive revue, your support really does make a difference.

Also, why not visit my author page by clicking on the link. Smashwords Books.

About the Author

I was born in London, England. Like most of the world, I had to work hard to pay my mortgage and all the other bills, so I only had the time and the energy to write some short stories. My wife and I have a son who is now married to a lovely wife and they have five children of their own. Since retiring to the Greek island of Crete, I have finally found the time and the energy to write some full-length Science Fiction stories.

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Other Books by the Author

Colonies of Earth Series in order

Galaxy Spies

Time Storm

Rebirth

Trial by Ordeal

The Colonies of Earth Collection

Horror Stories

Strange tales; three short mild horror stories

Rob Hinds black magic stories

Kidnapped and Bound for Hell

The Satanists

Dreamscape

The Return of the Bitch from Hell

David Charlton stories, a science fiction series

Rescue Mission to the Stars

The Treasure of Altaraus

Return to Mazere

Other science fiction stories

Quasar

The Venetou

Invasion Earth

Lost and Far from Home

Journey to the Stars

Rebellion is in the Air

Short children`s stories

Three Journeys of the Scary Kind

