Nathan’s Diary part 13:
Julian Drops The Knife
In The Doom that Came to
Amber
1st Snake 3658
I
walk into the room. It’s dark. Moving around slowly, I bump into deckchairs. I
use the pattern to find some matches. Striking a match I see faint light up and
to the right. I must be in a cellar.
I
bump into a hard object on the floor. When I bend down to touch it I see that
there are oil paintings stacked on top of each other. I move the painting on
top to reveal the one underneath. It depicts a grisly scene, the inside of an
abattoir, meat on meat-hooks, some going green. A whole host of livestock is
represented, some human. The painting is in luminescent colours. There is a
drain in the centre of the room to collect blood. The circular draincover has lifted a few inches. An appendage is coming
out. Light comes from fiery eyes.
It
is an excellent painting. Real menace comes from the eyes. I pick up the
painting and use it for light. I realise that my shapeshifted
form has eyes useful for low light.
When
I’m putting down the painting I feel a bristly and slimy touch on my right
hand. Instinctively I use the light strobe power word to light up the room. A
sinuous tentacle pulls back into the painting!
I'm
in a wine cellar. There are racks of half full bottles. At my feet and to the
left are the paintings. To the far left is the painting of a woman. From the
quick glance it looks like Fiona.
Ahead
of me is the stairs. Taking a half pace to the right my right hand finds the
banister. I move up the stairs. A voice comes from the other side of the door.
It says…
“Are
you coming up? Father Paul is coming for lunch.”
“Please
open the door”, I reply.
“Have
you got a cold? You know you shouldn’t go down there.”
The
door opens and light floods in.
A
woman screams.
His
voice sounds strange. Never mind, I better open the door. He should not stay in
that dusty old cellar with those disturbing paintings. It’s his duty to
entertain Father Paul. Opening the door, instead of my husband is the dark
figure of a man. He is clothed in dark colours and a cold light shines from his
eyes. A sword hangs from his belt and a nasty looking dagger. His hair is dark
and he has a menacing beard. It must be to hide his facial expressions. What
could have become of my poor husband? He is probably lying dead on the cellar
floor. He moves lightning fast in my direction, I must be next! I scream and
instinctively recoil from the killer. Two servants in the hall move to my aid.
He slams the door behind him. It’s like the slamming of a coffin lid. Oh poor
Richard! He draws his sword and cries out in a strange tongue, causing one
servant to twitch and fall to the floor. He speaks, the menace and power in his
tone is evident.
“Servant
back off.”
There
are footsteps of someone from above. The other servant moves to protect me,
taking a halberd from the wall. The devilish figure takes a dagger in his left
hand. Lord save me, I’m to be next!
The
lady of the house wears a rose red and cream dress. She has auburn hair and her
dress pushes up her cleavage. No threat there. She retreats from me as I close
the door. I slow down one servant with a powerword.
Drawing sword and dagger, the woman faints.
I
hear fast urgent footsteps coming down the hall. The servant with the halberd
steps forward. The door to my right opens revealing a priest who looks like the
man I saw with Alaric. He clutches a crucifix in his right hand.
Stepping
back, I use the power-word neural disrupt to deal with the servant with the
halberd. The man on the floor is getting up. I move forward, keeping an eye on
the priest. Kicking the pistol from his reach, I hear the crunching sound of
breaking bones.
I
step back and to the side. The servant with the halberd is getting unsteadily
to his feet. The priest moves forward a pace brandishing his crucifix. He
shouts, “Avaunt thee Satan! Begone foul fiend!”
It
seemed like a powerword. It causes me to shake.
The
voice of Alaric shouts out “Drop your weapons!” At the same time the guy with
the halberd lunges and its point goes through my left thigh. Light flashes at
the priest as I use a power-word. He steps back, half blinded.
Alaric
speaks, “You appear to have startled my servant, can I
help bind your wound?”
I
reply, “I came out of your cellar. Call off your priest.”
The
priest continues to threaten me with his crucifix. He looks like he’s preparing
for a proper spell. So I knock the crucifix out of his hand, cutting the top
joint off of his thumb.
Alaric
and I talk and we smooth over the problems. He is discussing going down to the
cellar when suddenly, out of the blue, his armour is on. I thought I had a
moment to strike but thought ‘why should I be the one to face the pattern curse’?
We retire to his study and chat over a bottle of whisky.
I
leave for the beach by trump. After a few hours I’m trumped by Asmark who says a meeting has been called by Julian and all
available family members are to attend.
I
go through to the OOGC. After hiding the Jewel of Judgement in Gerard's room, I
rest in my room until the