Lying Dormant: Part IV - And So Came a Demon
And So Came a Demon
Kafaketai shook intensely. The walls crumbled and the ground split. There was chaos all along the inner tunnels of Kafakormalo. Shouts and screams of fear and sorrow bounced along its snaking passages and debris littered each nook and cranny. Byron and Rex ran, not sure where they were heading. They passed some of the tribe as they went, but the sheer sight of Byron caused them to cower and howl in terror, but he didn’t even notice them as they pursued an exit from the death trap.
They eventually found their way into the throne room. The throne itself had collapsed from the tremors; its shattered remains illuminated in the cylinder of light from above. Byron knew where they were now. He looked to the tunnel that they had taken when they had first entered. Byron stared at it for a moment, and Rex then realized what it was and clasped his shoulder.
"That way and we’re out of this fucking place!" Rex shouted over another explosive reverberation. Byron smiled weakly, and then gripped his friends’ hand firmly.
"Rex. You've done more than I could ever ask. I can't go. You know why. But, please, for me, for Rose, get out of here. Save yourself." Byron spoke as tears welled in his eyes. Rex regarded him in sadness. For the first time in nearly a year, he saw his friend come to the surface once more. Rex wiped his eyes and returned the firm grip. Byron nodded, and then ran off towards another tunnel. Rex watched him leave before beginning to walk to the tunnel that lead outside.
Byron had a plan. He ran swiftly, towards any sounds of people. He wanted to find anyone from the tribe. He heard voices dart in from a direction in front of him. Byron couldn't detect any recognizable words; they were speaking their native tongue now. The voices grew in volume, and despite the darkness, Byron managed to follow the sounds quite well. He found himself in a connection point of a few tunnels. He waited for a minute in the shadows of the tunnel he had taken, and his patience was rewarded.
Two tribal women entered from an adjacent tunnel. One was speaking very quickly, clearly giving directions or commands to the other. She pointed and shouted, and the other woman jogged away down another dark tunnel. The commanding woman stood in the junction point for a moment, clearly overwhelmed. She took a deep breath and turned toward the tunnel Byron was in. There was one torch on the ground, barely smoldering, but it gave enough light to show Byron who stood before him.
Pasha's shocked face was coated in the dim orange glow from the torch. She could only see a pair of evil eyes regarding her from the darkness. She took two steps back and turned to flee, but before she could she was pulled back by the hair. She struggled for a moment, until she felt the prick of a sharp blade laid on her throat. Pasha became still, save for her heart's thunderous pounding.
Byron leaned close to her ear. His breath was hot, and carried a few simple words with them.
"Take me to him. Now." Byron added slightly more pressure on the blade before Pasha took the first steps of a slow guiding walk.
************************************************************************************
Ulakura's voice could be heard emanating from a room deep within the mountain's vast maze. He spoke to two other elders, and he spoke fast and with conviction. Fear had not made Ulakura revert back to his old language. Byron could understand everything as they approached.
"We must stop Kafaketai's hunger by any way. Get the children. Youngest first. A quick blessing and then into the lower pits. We may not make it to the peak but we can feed him regardless..." Ulakura's voice trailed off as he heard movement from the entrance of the room. He turned and inhaled sharply at the sight of his lover in peril.
Pasha moved in slowly, tears evident on her cheeks. The blade was still firmly on her neck, trickles of blood spoke of the intent of its wielder. Byron moved just slightly, still maintaining his hold on Pasha, but making himself known to Ulakura.
"No more games. No more lies. This is a dire situation, Ulakura. You know what I am capable of, yes?" Byron said calmly. Ulakura simply gulped and nodded, his hands now extended to Pasha to try to keep her as calm as could be.
"Where is my wife? I know she was here. Tell me everything. Everything, Ulakura, everything." Byron shot Ulakura a look that spelled out his intent, and Ulakura nodded once more and began. His voice wavered as he spoke.
"Yes, yes, your wife, she did come here. With others. They wanted to study Kafaketai. We thought them to be rude and arrogant, but not your beloved. She seemed to know what Kafaketai was. She spoke to him, I swear it. She would spend so much time with him, watching him and writing. Kafaketai, he speaks to me, and he speaks through me. All that came with her, they were offered to Kafaketai for his hunger..." Ulakura explained until Byron interjected.
"Is that what you did to her! What you tried to do to me?!" Byron lashed out with his outburst. In his rage, he shook Pasha slightly, the blade cutting a little deeper. She whined in pain and Ulakura shook his arms and pleaded with Byron.
"Please! Please! No! No, she was not offered for his hunger. Kafaketai saw her beauty. Saw her soul. He spoke to me. He wanted her as his bride." Ulakura said. Byron became a near statue, as the information began to unnerve him to his core. Ulakura continued.
"We had a ceremony. She was blessed, and adorned in our bridal robes. The union was perfect, and Kafaketai was pleased." Ulakura spoke carefully, slowly. Byron noticed, and called him on it.
"What are you not saying? She will die! Understand? Die! Tell me everything, I will not ask again!" Byron had grabbed Pasha's hair once more and forcefully tilted her head up, exposing her already bruised and nicked throat.
"No! There, there was the ceremony, and, and afterwards Kafaketai wished to, consummate the union." Ulakura said nervously.
"Consummate..." Byron said as his body and soul went numb. He knew what it meant, but he had to hear the words. Ulakura, hands now shaking, delved further into the intimacy of Kafaketai.
"Yes, Kafaketai uses his vessel to, to join with his bride. After it was all done, she was laid in a special chamber, and given a drink for forever sleep. Her soul then left her body, and joined Kafaketai within the mountain." Ulakura was still trembling, yet clasped his hands together and bowed forward. Byron's face had become a blank slate. All emotion had left him, he could truly feel nothing.
"Who is the vessel?" Byron rasped, his grip tightening on Pasha's hair. Her face conveyed distress, but Ulakura could do nothing but speak the truth.
"I am the vessel of Kafaketai," Ulakura said. The words seared the heart of Byron, his brow furrowed and a deathly frown fell upon his face. He did not even feel the blade as it ran across Pasha's throat. He did not notice the warm cascade of her blood as it poured over his hands. He stared deeply into Ulakura's face, watching his pain as he fell to his knees as his lover perished. Pasha had become deadweight, and Byron let her fall forward into a bloody heap.
The two elders in the room sprung at Byron. He heard no sound, and the atmosphere felt thick and heavy. He saw one coming at him, and time felt like it was at a near standstill. Byron moved out of the way of a club strike from the first elder, swinging the obsidian blade upwards and connecting with the elder's throat. The blood washed over Byron, who did not blink as it hit his face. The other elder was almost upon him, and Byron managed to pull the blade up and put it in front of him. The elder's momentum threw him into Byron, knocking him to the ground. Byron had got the blade up in time. It had lodged through the eye and into the brain of the now dead elder that pinned Byron to the floor.
Ulakura had crawled to the body of Pasha as the elders had attacked Byron. He paid no heed to the scrum, and only wept as he held Pasha's lifeless body. The commotion in the background came to a sudden halt, and Ulakura broke his eyes from Pasha to see Byron struggling to get the dead elder off of him. Ulakura set Pasha down gently, and then stood up with rage.
Byron managed to get the elder off of him. He tried to pry the knife free, but it was lodged deep and would not budge.
"Demon!" Ulakura screamed. Byron stood up, but refused to face him. His end had come. He had not found Rose, and for that he deserved this death. He awaited the killing blow. The mountain had begun to shake once more, as if in anticipation of Byron's demise.
An explosion seemed to stop the tremors. Byron's head snapped sharply to where the explosion had come from. Standing at the entrance of the room was Rex, and in his hand the smoking barrel of a gun. Ulakura had spun and fallen on his back, gripping his shoulder as it bled profusely.
Byron looked at Rex, and some of the numbness that had taken hold faded. Rex smiled and lowered the gun. He turned to show a fully stuffed backpack he had on him as well.
"I found our shit. Then I figured we came all this way, might as well see it through." Rex moved to Ulakura and pointed the gun at him. Byron ran to him and grabbed his arm.
"No. Bind his hands. He is going to take me to Rose." Ulakura panted in pain as he held his shoulder. Byron and Rex moved quickly to bind his hands behind his back. Ulakura moaned and yelped at the pain it gave him, but it all fell on deaf ears. Byron took the gun from Rex and placed it to the back of Ulakura's head.
"Take me to her. Now." Byron cocked the hammer on the revolver. Ulakura sighed and began to walk. In a room just a short distance past where they had been, they found an entrance covered by a large white cloth with strange red symbols on it. There were flowers, grain, and small carved figures all at the base of the entrance. Ulakura gestured with his head.
"She was placed there after she fell into the forever sleep." Ulakura said with great sadness and defeat. The mountain convulsed once more, and Byron looked to Rex. He handed him the gun.
"Did you have the emergency radio?" Byron asked
"Yeah, we can get out of here and..." Rex began to say, but Byron raised his hand to silence him.
"We found her, Rex. But I am not going anywhere. I came here to find her, and to be with her once more. I need you to go now. Go knowing we found each other. Please." Tears now streamed down Byron's face. Rex was about to give a rebuttal, but the mountain roared once more. Rex paused for a moment, then embraced Byron roughly. He turned and headed back into the tunnels. Byron watched him go then faced Ulakura.
"Listen! Can you not hear and feel it?! Kafaketai will destroy everything here unless we..." Ulakura was cut off as Byron turned him around and slammed him into a wall. Ulakura tried to squirm away, and suddenly, he felt his hands become free of the binding. He turned to see Byron standing there, fists clenched. Byron's face had become hate in the flesh. His eyes were dark, and he did not seem human at all.
Byron reached out and grabbed Ulakura by the throat. His other hand found the bullet wound in Ulakura's should and his finger jabbed into the wound. Ulakura howled in agony and fell to his back on the floor. Byron mounted him and then began to rain down punches. They connected with high velocity and power. Some missed Ulakura entirely, Byron not caring of the pain of his hand striking the stone floor. He punched again and again, as Kafaketai bellowed in anguish. Ulakura's face had caved in, his life had left him, and Byron still landed blow after blow. The shattered remnants of Ulakura's skull began to slice and cut Byron's now mangled hands, but he did not relent. Then, Kafaketai went silent. Byron finally ceased his assault and sat back. His hands were shattered, and he could barely use them. He stood back up, and managed to pull put something he had tucked into the ceremony robe he still had on.
It was a silver pendant with an obsidian heart.
Byron walked slowly through the curtain and the tombs entrance, and began to weep. Lying on a stone slab was a skeleton covered in flowers and a bridal gown. Rose.
Byron managed with his nearly useless hands to place the pendant over Rose's skull. He then laid next to his wife, and sobbed uncontrollably. He did not hear or feel the mountain as it began to erupt. The tomb's wall exploded, rubble shooting across the room. Byron embraced what was left of Rose as lava rushed into the room, engulfing them both.
He found himself holding Rose, who smiled back at him, as a bright light shone all around.
"You found me." Rose said. And Byron wept once more.
************************************************************************************
Rex had managed to get out of the cave system and radio Cheryl, who was circling the volcano as it was erupting. She had extracted him just before the lava began to flow. They were circling over the volcano as the eruption began in full force.
“Holy shit! What happened Rex? You look like hell…where’s your friend?” Cheryl fearfully asked. Rex didn’t answer instead gazing out the window speechless.
From the crater of the volcano, an enormous creature was climbing out. Its body was made of molten rock and it had three arm-like appendages gripping the craters edge, trying to lift it from the core of the volcano. It had a clear head, with a gaping maw that let out a roar like an atomic bomb.
Kafaketai.
Rex had to cover his ears as the deafening roar persisted. The creature’s body then shimmered, and whatever force that had kept the lava formed like a beast gave way. Tons of lava then fell onto the mountainside, causing it to collapse. It rushed like an infernal tidal wave, down into the valley, consuming the entirety of the village of the Mai-Ukau.
"What the fuck did I just see?" Cheryl asked with a shaky voice.
Rex just shook his head and smiled, for he knew then that his friends had found each other once more.
Don’t want to miss anything on the site? Sign up for our newsletter HERE
Want more original short stories? Just search below:
