THE CULT LEADER

 

Tuesday January 14 - 1345 CST

One day until Turbocharger activates

 

"Sweet Mary and Joseph! That's gotta be the biggest crawdad's ever crawled out of the muck." The warehouse manager stared at my docile pet.

I'd been against bringing it out in public like this, but Lisa had assured me that as part of the parade people wouldn't realize what it really was. As it turned out she was right. The human mind was strange in a way. It could frame something frightening and strange into something more comforting to keep from facing reality. In this case the warehouse manager saw an otherworldy horror but didn't want to believe it because that was stressful. So instead he made it into a harmless and tasty crawdad.

The Spawn of Forneus could easily be mistaken for one though. Just like a crawdad it had a hard shell, insect like legs, and a huge lobster claw. Only the Spawn was about as big as a pony and black as a politician's heart. But then again, so was the mascot for Port Moreau's Deliverance Days. It all fit together nicely.

I smiled like I actually cared for the warehouse manager. "Yes, sir. We spared no expense for the parade. This only happens once a year so we threw everything in the pot."

The radio station's float sat in line with all the others awaiting the start of the parade. It would only be a few more hours and really our only chance to complete the ritual. I thought it was a bad idea, but now I see the wisdom in it. If we need the Spawn then where better to have it than right there in the middle of everything? All it took was making it look like it was supposed to be there, then the human mind took care of the rest. They would complete the illusion without any need for the black arts.

"How do you get it to sit still like that?" the warehouse manager asked.

I really wished he would shut up and leave, but telling him to do so would only arouse suspicion. So I smiled again, and gave a slight nod to Lisa. "I can't give away all my secrets…would you like to see a trick?"

The warehouse manage nodded eagerly. So I held up a hand and then brought It down like I was pulling a long lever. "Sit. Sit."

Lisa discretely massaged the talisman in her palm and mouthed a few words in a long dead language. Then slowly, shakily the Spawn folded its spidery legs and lowered its hard carapace to the deck of the float, just like it had listened to my words.

The beasts were incredibly aggressive and left on their own would tear people apart like a dog with a newspaper. That was where the book came in. Lisa deciphered a spell to control the monster, and a talisman to store it. As much as I hated to admit it that witch was worth her weight in gold. It gave me confidence that tonight's ritual would work and I could bring the power behind the Voice to Port Moreau.

"If that'll be all, sir" I smiled again at the manager. "We have a lot of prep work still to do."

Then we bid farewell to the old codger and stepped outside. Port Moreau only had one main street running its length. It was far too small to have more. But that didn't matter. This evening, those narrow few sidewalks would be lined with locals. Everyone and their uncle in the country would be there. And bodies we would need. The Voice said so. He would be hungry after making the crossing and if we didn't provide for him he might just take it out of our own hides.

The center of town was unusually quiet for this time of day. People were busy at home preparing special meals for dinner or tidying up workplaces for the few businesses that chose to remain open on the holiday. More interestingly there was a lack of the sounds of nature. When you went far enough away from Port Moreau's city center you were awash in the sounds of Louisiana's wilderness. Bullfrogs croaking, cicadas chirping, and birds singing all provided a symphony of sound that was conspicuously absent where we were standing. It was as though the animals knew to stay away.

"This is it. This is where the book says all the ley lines intersect." Lisa cradled the big, leather bound tome against her chest like it was a newborn. She had no children of her own, so the book was her most valuable possession. "When the time comes this is the place we need to gather all the…sacrifices."

She practically whispered the last word as though she feared someone would overhear. But the streets were empty. All that stood there in the little grassy area at the center of the town's lone traffic circle was an odd little structure. Of course it made sense now that Lisa pointed it out. I'd seen it there for years. All my life I thought it was something some eccentric builder had put together in my parents' generation, but I knew. It was far older than that.

The circle of stone had five pillars that rose up out of the earth like tall pines. They were connected by a flat plate of identical stone, black as crude oil and decorated with the same arcane patterns we used on our summoning devices. All this was easy to overlook because at some point, someone had built a wooden roof on it and installed benches and railings. In the end it looked like a quaint, small town gazebo with a rustic flair to it. Only someone with an eye for the arcane would see it for what it really was.

I planted a hand on one of the black pillars. Today it was a might nippy out and that stone was cold. But even in the moist summer heat of a Lousiana afternoon I remembered it was always remarkably cool to the touch. Now I understood why it had this seemingly magical property. Because it was magical. "I can't believe this ritual circle has been here my entire life and I never knew."

Lisa adjusted the thick frames of her glasses and grinned like an imp. "That's the power of illusion magic."

"Or just the quirks of a human mind that didn't want to believe magic was real."

I patted the chilly stone again and then continued walking. In a few hours this place would be brimming with innocent souls eager to watch a country parade. That was good.

Because the Voice loved innocent souls.