Even on Earth thought processes can be incredibly rapid, so that the human brain is capable of covering an enormous amount of ground in the space of a few seconds, yet this is slow compared with the speed with which an intelligence on the astral, being entirely free of matter, can carry out it’s mental functions. In a split second de Richleau was conscious of many things.
The acquisition of occult power requires study, training, and regular practice, like any other art, and no art can be mastered to a considerable degree in one short lifetime. It takes many incarnations of devotion to any subject to achieve the status of genius in it, and that is why it is by no means unusual for very young children to astonish their parents by showing an extraordinary aptitude for music, drawing or certain languages. In their last incarnations they have already reached an outstanding proficiency in these particular things and so, when born again, appear as child prodigies. Then, having in that incarnation gone as far in their special subject as is possible for any human, in their next incarnation they take up some other subject for a number of Earth lives until they have mastered that; so that over a period of many milleniums we each graduate in every art and acquire all knowledge in our true selves, of which we are conscious only when we are either dead or sleeping.
As the occult is the one art which extends beyond Earth only the fringe of it can be studied while a spirit is still going through the process of earthly incarnations; yet even here the knowledge acquired in life after life gradually piles up, so that once an individual has been an adept, although the mysteries may be obscured from him for whole incarnations, each time the spark is rekindled the re-acquisition of the previous knowledge he has gained is an infinitely easier process. No one while in the physical body can hope to become fully conscious of his true astral life without having spent many previous incarnations in training to accomplish that end; yet Earth is now so old that there are few of us who have not done so at one period or another, which makes the re-acquisition of this knowledge by no means impossible providing that we work for it with real determination.
But it must not be forgotten that the whole vast scheme of things is planned like some great university. If a man having spent six terms studying history at Oxford then decided to go in for ‘maths’ and spent a further two years immersed in the study of higher mathematics, should he at the end of that time suddenly be called upon to do a paper on history it would not be surprising if his history proved distinctly rusty. The same applies in the cosmic university where each life on Earth is no more than a term and life itself in its true, astral sense is everlasting.
It was many incarnations since de Richleau had devoted several Earth lives in succession to the serious study of the occult, finally achieving almost to the limits of such occult knowledge as is ever permitted to humans. In more recent Earth lives he had turned his attention to various other paths of progress, although during a number of them and the present he had retained a knowledge of the great truths and the power to follow his unbroken astral existence. Consequently, although he could still perform minor feats of Magic, it was many centuries since he had practised as a powerful White Magician and he had temporarily forgotten much that he had originally learnt in connection with the higher mysteries.
He now realised that the present was literally a case of having rushed in where angels fear to tread. His belief that the Nazis were using the occult was proved beyond all shadow of doubt; but he had visualised them as employing an occultist with only limited powers such as his own or working through a trance medium; whereas it was now clear that they had in their service some great Master of the Left-Hand Path. He blamed himself most bitterly for not having foreseen such a possibility, as he knew that he should have done, in view of the fact that Hitler himself took care to plan each of his moves when the stars were propitious and that the very symbol of the Nazi Party showed them to be fundamentally allied to the powers of Darkness. With a nation of eighty million Germans, all the Black elements in which would automatically be in sympathy with the Nazis, it was only natural that they should employ a number of adepts of the first rank.
As the Satanic host rose up from the dark, sea-washed shore the Duke knew that to summon such a force his opponent must be a Magister Templi at the very least, and he marvelled now that with only Marie Lou and Simon to aid him he should have been able to drive back, harry and almost overcome such a mighty adversary. He knew, too, that only their instant determination to give battle, and the force with which they had pressed home their attack, had enabled them to do so.
Their astral action had, in fact, been a perfect parallel to that of the light cruisers Ajax and Exeter, outgunned and under-armoured, going in against the infinitely more powerful Graf Spee. But if, instead of seeking refuge in Montevideo harbour, the Graf Spee had been able to retire on Kiel and emerge again with a score of light cruisers and half a hundred destroyers, Ajax and Exeter would have stood no earthly chance against the hell of fire that could then have been brought to bear upon them; and that was the present case as regards Marie Lou and himself; their slender chance of saving themselves lay in instant flight.
‘Back to your body!’ he called to her with all his will, and turning together they fled with every ounce of speed of which they were capable.
A great roar of triumph went up from the emissaries of Hell as they streaked through the middle-air in furious pursuit, and the seconds that followed seemed years of nightmare battling to the pursued. The forces of Evil brought all their powers to bear, seeking to strike them down with astral missiles, striving to drag them back by the exertion of malignant will and casting up in front of them every form of astral barrier which might terrify and check them.
Instead of the effortless flight to which they were accustomed they felt as though their astral bodies were weighted with lead. A frightful storm arose in which they were tossed about like thistledown in a gale. Forked lightning streaked the sky while incessant peals of thunder vibrated through the air like an intensive bombardment.
Both the fugitives knew that these were only manifestations which could not harm them providing they remained unafraid and kept their faith and purpose. Yet the great jagged streaks of lightning which were directed at them would have daunted the most fearless, and as they fled they instinctively swerved from side to side in an endeavour to evade them.
Suddenly the whole scene changed and instead of swirling black clouds pierced by the terrifying flashes they were faced by a great wall of fire which had neither top nor bottom. The wall was not composed of flames alone; it was like the interior of a furnace and one vast mass of solid, white-hot matter which glowed, bubbled and hissed, giving out a blinding light and a heat so intense that it seemed to shrivel up their astral bodies.
With a wail of fear Marie Lou faltered and stopped, but de Richleau knew that if they did not succeed in getting back to their bodies they would die in their sleep. That was part of the price they would have to pay for having gone out against Evil powers stronger than themselves. By their own rash act they would have brought their present incarnations to an untimely end—in fact, they would have committed a form of suicide—and that would mean for both of them a setback on the great journey—a setback of perhaps several lives.
Seizing her by the arm he dragged her with him straight into the glowing mass. For a second the pain was practically unendurable, then the fiery wall dissolved; the roaring of the flames gave place to a quietness which could almost be felt. Gasping with relief they both threw back the bedclothes and sat up to find Richard, Rex and Simon kneeling beside them in the pentacle with their heads bowed in prayer.
At the sound of their waking Richard opened his eyes and grabbed Marie Lou to him. ‘Thank God,’ he murmured, ‘thank God you’re back. Simon told us, and I’ve been half crazy with fear for you ever since he woke up.’
Simon looked shamefacedly at the Duke. ‘I’ll never forgive myself for having had to leave you in a muddle, but— well, I just couldn’t keep asleep.’
De Richleau mopped his perspiring face then laid a hand on Simon’s arm. ‘My dear fellow, don’t be absurd; I thought you put up a marvellous performance in sticking it so long. I’ll wager you can’t remember when you last managed to sleep for eleven and a half hours in one stretch; and you saved me from that brute when in the form of a crab he had me by the nose.’
‘By Jove!’ Simon exclaimed, ‘I remember now; I had the luck to get in under his guard and sting him in the belly.’
‘It wasn’t luck, Simon; it was sheer courage. You always say that you’re a coward, but when it comes to a pinch you’re the bravest of us all. With one swipe of its free claw that filthy beast could have damaged your astral so badly that you could never have returned to your body.’
‘What happened?’ asked Rex. ‘When Simon got back he told us that he’d had to run out on you while you were mixed up in some sort of set-to but he couldn’t recall the details, and there was just nothing that we could do but pray.’
‘You couldn’t have done anything better,’ the Duke replied, ‘and it’s quite certain that your prayers must have helped us to win through. But next time you pray you should stand up to do it—as the Ancients did—and hold your hands out to the Infinite. The kneeling position is one of false humility, which was only introduced by the Christians, and since each one of us carries God within ourselves, it is not fitting that we should stoop before anything in Earth or Heaven.’
Richard had put a little bed-jacket about Marie Lou’s shoulders, but in spite of that and the warmth of the room, in which a bright fire was still burning, she shivered slightly as she said:
‘Although we’ve just come through the fiery furnace I’m still desperately cold.’
‘We’ll soon remedy that,’ smiled the Duke. ‘What we both want is a good meal; and we’re going to have it.’
‘Holy snakes!’ exclaimed Rex. ‘I’ve gotten so used to living on steamed fish and rabbit’s food that I hardly remember how it feels to eat like a Christian. But surely you’re not chucking your hand in?’
‘No, I’m not doing that,’ de Richleau said soberly, ‘but I’m not going out again until I’ve had a chance to re-learn certain of the more powerful methods of protection. In the meantime it will do us all good to live like normal human beings for a spell.’
‘D’you mean we’ll be able to have civilised drinks?’ asked Richard.
De Richleau nodded. ‘Yes—in moderation.’
‘Oh boy!’ Rex laughed. ‘What a cocktail I’ll shake for you all this evening!’
‘I’ve still got some pretty good hocks in London,’ Simon murmured, ‘Steinberg Cabinets and Schloss Johannesburgs of the rarer vintages; I must get some down. But tell us what happened to you after I had to quit.’
‘What’s the time?’ asked the Duke.
‘Just after midnight,’ replied Richard.
De Richleau glanced at Marie Lou. ‘The servants will be in bed, then, but I’m sure you won’t mind, Princess, if we raid your larder and cook ourselves some supper.’
‘Of course not, Greyeyes darling. The servants came to the conclusion that we’d all gone mad within twenty-four hours of your arrival. Our sudden change to a vegetarian diet, the banning of all drinks and the way in which this room’s always kept locked, while some of us spend hours at a stretch in it, soon convinced them that we ought all to be put in the loony bin, so it won’t make the least difference if we hold an orgy in their quarters.’
‘Cook positively loathes anyone going into her kitchen,’ said Richard dubiously.
But de Richleau laughed. ‘I don’t doubt a word from me in the morning will put matters right. Cook and I have always been on the most friendly terms. From the day I showed her how to produce poached eggs which had not gone hard in the middle of a cheese soufflé she recognised me as a fellow artist.’
‘A word from you means a pound-note,’ said Marie Lou quickly, ‘and you over-tip the servants as it is. It’s not the least necessary, Greyeyes. I am the mistress of this house, and I shall do what I like in my own kitchen.’
‘Hurrah!’ shouted Rex. ‘That’s the spirit! Come on, now; let’s think of all the good things that we can possibly manage to eat one on top of the other.’
When they reached the kitchen, however, they all discovered that it was not the delicacies in Marie Lou’s store-cupboard that they really wanted. Their recent abstinence from rich food had simplified their tastes, and as they were in the fortunate position of having plentiful supplies from the Home Farm they unanimously agreed that the best of all meals at the moment would be an unlimited supply of ham and eggs, to be followed by pancakes.
While Rex and Simon laid the kitchen table, Marie Lou cooked the ham and eggs, de Richleau prepared the batter for the pancakes, which he proposed to make himself, and Richard disappeared down to the cellar to return a few minutes later with a couple of magnums of champagne.
‘Krug ‘26,’ muttered Simon appreciatively as he saw the dusty labels. ‘By Jove, it’s a while since I saw any of that!’
Richard grinned. ‘I thought at the time it came out that it was one of the wines of the century so I laid down quite a bit of it, and I reckon we’ll still be able to knock off a magnum or two together long after Hitler’s drunk his last glass of orange-juice.’
‘Talking of which,’ cut in Rex, ‘we’re all mighty anxious to hear the latest from the astral front.’
‘Marie Lou shall tell you all about it when we’ve eaten,’ said the Duke, and three-quarters of an hour later she gave them a graphic account of the desperate encounter which she and de Richleau had had with the enemy.
‘What’s the drill now?’ Rex asked when she had done.
‘My theory that the Nazis are using the occult having proved correct,’ said the Duke, ‘our next problem is to find in the flesh the Black occultist who is working for them. We must then kill him.’
‘How d’you propose to set about the job of finding him?’ asked Richard.
‘We know that he’s a Negro—a black Witch Doctor— and there can’t be a great many people of that kind in Germany,’ said Marie Lou.
‘Maybe,’ Rex cut in. ‘And you can travel to Germany in your astrals, but as long as you’re on the astral plane yourselves you can’t kill a human. So what’s the big idea? D’you figure on our trying to get into Germany in the flesh?’
‘It looks as if we may have to,’ replied the Duke, ‘and with Sir Pellinore’s assistance I don’t doubt that some of us could get through. I think, though, that Marie Lou is wrong in assuming that the person we are after is necessarily a Negro. The probability is that he only assumed that form when we saw him; it’s much more likely that in the flesh he is a fair-haired, blue-eyed Hun.’
‘That makes the proposition more tricky than ever,’ said Richard glumly, ‘since in Germany fair-haired, blue-eyed Huns are two a penny. Besides, for all you know, he might be a dark-haired Rhinelander or even a red-headed woman—in fact, it seems to me that up to date you’ve got no evidence at all to go upon.’
‘Oh, yes, we have,’ countered the Duke. ‘There’s one thing we know quite definitely: he comes from an island in which part of the coast is shaped rather like a lobster’s claw with blunt ends. That was unquestionably a portion of this Earth and if I saw it again, or even the outline of it on a map, I should recognise it.’
‘Are you quite sure that it was an island?’ asked Marie Lou.
‘I wouldn’t swear to it, as the place covered a very considerable area and the further distances were indistinct, merging into the sea and sky; but that was the impression I got.’
‘I didn’t,’ she shook her head. ‘It seemed to me that we were just over the coast-line of a great peninsula, but I agree that it would be easy to recognise that bit of coast on seeing it again.’
‘You’re probably right about its having been a peninsula. It couldn’t have been one of the Frisian Islands; they’re too small and flat; yet it’s almost certain to be a portion of the Continent of Europe. Still, as the Germans now control Denmark and Norway our enemy may quite well be operating from one of the islands in the Baltic or on the Norwegian coast.’
‘That’s it!’ exclaimed Marie Lou. ‘I remember that away from the shore the country was very mountainous, so it was probably a great cape jutting out between two of the Norwegian fjords.’
When they had finished their meal they went back to the library and, getting out Richard’s Times atlas, began to study very carefully the coast-line of Northern Europe, but they could see no stretch of coast tallying with that over which their astrals had been poised earlier in the night.
‘This atlas is the best of its kind in existence,’ remarked the Duke, ‘but to find what we want we really need a set of large-scale maps, so tomorrow I’ll go up to the Admiralty. In any case I want to visit the British Museum to read up certain old key works on Magic, which they are bound to have there, in order to renew my knowledge of protection.’
It was now well past four in the morning so they decided to go up to bed, Richard and Rex to sleep, the others to lie down, but the Duke warned Marie Lou and Simon that if they fell asleep again, in spite of the long hours that they had slept during the day, they were to remain very close to their bodies because now that the adversary had seen them and, having followed them back to Cardinals Folly, knew where they lived he might still be lurking in the neighbourhood, waiting for a chance to attack them immediately they returned to the astral plane.
When they met again the following morning Simon reported that he had only dozed and had had no trouble, but Marie Lou came down the stairs looking pale and ill. She said that she had dropped off to sleep at about five o’clock and—certainly not through any exercise of her own will—had suddenly found herself in a maze like that at Hampton Court, except that the whole place positively reeked of evil, and, strive as she would, she could not find her way out. It had seemed to her that for hours on end she had fled in uncontrollable terror up and down countless paths flanked by tall box-hedges without being able to discover the exit, and all the time she was horribly aware that something intensely evil was stalking her from corridor to corridor of the maze, though it never actually got round each corner until she had put another one between herself and it.
She had been utterly dead-beat and was beginning to despair when Richard, in the uniform of a park-keeper, had suddenly appeared on the stand in the centre of the maze, from which he could look down into all the paths and so direct her out of it; upon which she had wakened up still sweating with cold fear.
De Richleau regarded her gravely. ‘I’m so sorry, Princess. This is my fault, and if I hadn’t been so shaken after what occurred last night I should have realised it sooner. From now on none of you must sleep anywhere, even for an hour, except within the pentacle, and when you’re asleep your astrals must not go outside it. Only so will you be safe from similar and perhaps even more terrible experiences.’
‘Did you not experience anything?’ she asked.
He shook his head. ‘No. I was entirely unmolested. That may have been because I am the most powerful amongst us, and they would naturally seek to wear down and destroy the weaker of us two first; or it may be because you were still thinking of this business when you went to sleep, which would enable them to reach you more easily, whereas I took the precaution of cleansing my mind of the whole matter before I slept. I blame myself a lot for having forgotten to suggest these things to you.’
She shrugged a little wearily. ‘It doesn’t matter, Greyeyes dear, as long as the pentacle will give us adequate protection tonight.’
‘It will, if you construct it correctly. I shall be in London and I can look after myself, but you’ve seen me make it so frequently in the past fortnight that you should be able to do it for yourself without any mistakes. Do you think you can?’
‘Yes. In any case the others will be here to help me and see that I don’t slip up in any of the details. It’s rather surprising, though, that nothing happened to Simon—don’t you think?’
‘No. Apparently he only dozed; and, anyhow, our adversary only saw him as a hornet, whereas he saw you and me face to face. But now that the battle is on I shouldn’t be surprised if the astral of everybody in this house is attacked systematically—even those of the servants.’
‘Oh heavens!’ Marie Lou made a face. ‘What can we do to protect them?’
De Richleau laughed rather mirthlessly. ‘Nothing, I’m afraid; unless we make them all sleep in pentacles. But, quite frankly, I rather shrink from the task of endeavouring to explain warfare on the astral plane, and its possible consequences, to Malin and your maids; it would only confirm them in their view that we’re off our heads and they would probably give notice in a body.’
‘It looks as though they may do that anyhow,’ said Richard glumly, ‘but the main point is—can any harm come to them? If so, it’s only right that I should send them away at once.’
‘That’s hardly necessary,’ de Richleau replied. ‘The forces against us will very soon discover which of the people in this house is giving active assistance to Marie Lou and myself. In consequence they’ll concentrate their malice against them and leave the servants alone after giving them a few exceptionally unpleasant nightmares.’
‘Nightmares don’t actually hurt anyone, so if that’s the case we’re justified in saying nothing to them,’ Richard declared, ‘but while you’re away the rest of us will definitely stick to the pentacle.’
‘Definitely,’ de Richleau agreed. ‘This is a much more desperate business than I bargained for, but without asking I feel certain that you’re all game to see it through.’
A murmur of assent went up and he continued. ‘I shall probably be away for three or four days, reading up this stuff in the Museum. While I am absent for goodness’ sake don’t try anything on your own; as far as you can manage it you had better take turns to sleep two at a time. You’ll each then have a companion while you’re out of your bodies and two guardians who’re awake to watch that no attempt is made by the forces of Evil to disturb or break the defences of the pentacle while the other two are sleeping. By the time I return I hope to be much better equipped to face the enemy than I was when I so rashly undertook this incredible campaign.’
After lunch the Duke left them to motor to London, and he dined that night with Sir Pellinore. In the simplest language that he could formulate, and omitting all those details which made the whole affair seem so preposterously unreal, he told the elderly Baronet what had happened and asked for arrangements to be made at the Admiralty so that he could examine the large-scale charts of the coast of Northern Europe.
Sir Pellinore now treated the question with the utmost gravity. Having had some time to think over what de Richleau had told him of the occult, and having since taken the opportunity to hold several long conversations with other people who were interested in the subject, he had formed the conclusion that de Richleau’s theory was by no means as wildly improbable as it had at first sounded. The more he went into the matter the more logical it became, as although he had asked question after question of an old friend of his who was a convinced believer in reincarnation, every question had been satisfactorily answered, leaving no loose ends, and while Sir Pellinore always declared that he had no brain at all, he certainly possessed an extraordinarily fine sense of logic. It was, in fact, this extraordinary facility for directness in thought, and complete confidence in his own judgments, that had given him his immense success in life. De Richleau therefore found him very much more subdued, interested and willing to consider further possible developments than he had expected, and the visit to the Admiralty was arranged for the following morning without any trouble.
Next day the Duke spent over three hours with a lieutenant-commander, who was a map expert, in one of the chart rooms at the Admiralty, but although he surveyed the coast of Norway from the Arctic to the Kattegat, a good part of the Baltic, the whole of Denmark, and the coasts of Germany, Holland, Belgium and France, he could not discover any island or promontory which had the same coastal formation as that which he and Marie Lou had seen in their hour of peril.
Having exhausted this avenue he obtained permission from one of the curators of the British Museum, who was a friend of his, to study certain priceless old manuscripts; which were removed, specially for him, from the vaults in which they had been placed to protect them from destruction in air-raids. For the best part of three days he devoted himself to these ancient screeds, making copious notes from them. He then paid a visit to Culpeper House, in Bruton Street, and purchased a strange assortment of items from the famous herbalists. On the fourth day he lunched with Sir Pellinore.
When he had reported his lack of success at the Admiralty the Baronet asked him what he intended to do.
‘I must go out again,’ replied the Duke, ‘and utilise every means in my power to discover the identity of this person who is acting for the Nazis on the astral plane. Whoever he is, and wherever he is, we’ve got to find him and kill him.’
Sir Pellinore nodded. ‘You’re setting yourself no small task, and I imagine that the danger you’ll have to run is considerable. I wish I could thank you officially, on behalf of the Government, but, quite honestly, they’d think that I’d gone off my rocker if I attempted to tell them of the extraordinary work you’re doing. However, I’m sure it will be a great satisfaction to you to know that I heard this morning that the convoy, the start of which you witnessed, has so far remained immune from attack and is now outside the danger area.’
De Richleau smiled. ‘Then we’ve done something at least. We evidently succeeded in disturbing the astral agent before he could memorise the full particulars of the route. But I must tell you frankly that the battle is only just beginning and I’m pretty anxious as to what may have happened at Cardinals Folly in my absence.’
‘What do you fear?’
‘I don’t quite know, but it’s hardly to be expected that the enemy will leave my friends alone having once located the spot from which we’re working. It was a great misfortune that they were able to follow Mrs. Eaton and myself back that night. There’s another thing, too. Since they can use the astral to communicate it will have been known in Berlin for some days now that we’re on to what they’re up to. In consequence, the Gestapo will almost certainly instruct their agents here to attack us on the physical plane, and a little matter like murder has never stopped the Nazis yet.’
‘Good God! D’you mean to say you think that they’ll send some of their people in this country gunning for you?’
‘Yes. Just as my objective is to kill the occultist who is communicating, their objective will now be to kill myself and my friends so that we cannot operate further against them.’
Sir Pellinore let out a long whistle and quickly poured himself out another ration of old brandy before he said: ‘I think I’d better secure police protection for you.’
De Richleau shook his head. ‘That would require all sorts of difficult explanations, and the fewer of us that are involved in this business the better. It will take some time for Berlin to communicate with their agents here and set them on to us, so I don’t fear anything of that kind for some days yet and I’d rather that you didn’t get police protection for us unless it becomes absolutely necessary. At the moment my anxieties for my friends are confined to some form of astral attack that may be launched against them.’
When the Duke got back to Cardinals Folly that night he found that he had real reason for his anxiety. His four friends were seated in glum silence in the drawing-room, but immediately he entered it they all started to talk at once.
From the night of his departure to London the house had been rendered almost untenable by what Richard described as a whole company of poltergeists. They smashed china, tore the curtains, threw water upon the beds, slammed doors until the sound had driven nearly everybody crazy, and performed innumerable other acts of mischief each night while darkness lasted. On the second day the servants had left in a body, with the exception of Richard’s faithful butler-valet, Malin, who had refused to be scared and, with his usual smiling urbanity, had just let the Duke into the house.
‘I was afraid of something of this sort,’ confessed de Richleau, and he looked at Marie Lou contritely. ‘I can’t say how sorry I am to have brought such trouble to your house, Princess.’
She gave him a forlorn smile. ‘Don’t worry, Greyeyes dear. At least it gives us the feeling that we’re doing our bit. It’s a little frightening at times and the inconvenience is absolutely infuriating, but it’s nothing to the flak that our airmen must go through when they bomb Germany, or what our sailors have to put up with.’
‘That’s true,’ the Duke nodded. ‘I take it they haven’t started on the physical plane? None of you have been attacked while walking in the grounds or seen any suspicious-looking strangers about, eh?’
‘There were a couple of men this morning …’ Richard began, but he left his sentence unfinished.
At that instant there was a sound, of crashing glass as something hurtled through the window. Next second there rolled from underneath the curtains a large, round, black object. One glance at it was enough; with a horrid sinking feeling they all recognised it to be a high-explosive bomb.