Out Of Lips Of The Sinner

[ILLYRIAN]

THE MISSING

Happy that she would finally be able to leave the city behind her Catherine hugged her friends a last farewell. She drove to her new home far from the city limits, as she drove further away she noticed in her rear view mirror that the city lights she knew were slowly fading from sight. Catherine had grown up a part of the busy life of the city. Now was glad she had left there and was able to move to a quieter life in the country.

Her friends who lived in the city kept trying to drag her to the beach to be with them even though she kept telling them she was a country girl at heart. Yet even now she did not know exactly where she was going, just that it was eight kilometers from where they had turned off the main road. At last she saw a sign on the side of the lane that indicated a right turn to the Cliff Cottages.

Turning onto the lane Catherine continued as far as she could before she confronted a large wooden gate that signified the boundary of the property. At last she knew that it was only another five kilometers to the actual property. Eventually she was parked in front of the pair of cottages, though she thought it might be described as one cottage. Getting out of the car Catherine looked at the cottages.

It was at that point she realised she was dressed completely wrong for the environment. Her stiletto shoes, her pleated short skirt and tight T shirt had felt good in the city though the small rocks about the garden beds seemed to invite another code of clothes to wear. Catherine wandered to a solid wooden door then opening it she went into the cottage to see the size of room she would need to furnish.

She was surprised to see the look of each room as each one was tastefully decorated with individual items of furniture. Catherine remembered the readout from the real estate agent, it said that the cottage was situated near the edge of a forest and only a short distance from the cliffs edge. About to walk into the kitchen there was a knock at the door it was the neighbor. Catherine opened the cottage door to a woman of about the same age as her who introduced herself as Wenders.

Feeling somewhat conscious of herself Catherine apologized to Wenders for her clothes, “These clothes made me fit in with my friends in the city back there though I do feel out of place here.” Catherine couldn’t take her eyes off the long flowing robes that Wenders wore and remarked she liked her clothes. Going into the cottage Wenders remarked that Catherine’s cottages and hers were the same to look at although they were opposites.

Catherine invited Wenders to wander into what would become her bedroom. As they walked to the window Wenders said she had always thought it was an odd place for a mirror. At the bottom of the mirror were the words MIND THE STEP. Wenders noted that the words appeared to have been reflected from what was written on the floor. Catherine inspected them and discovered that the mirror would open like a door, leaving the words on the floor to be a warning.

Wenders fetched two Dolphin torches that were on top of the chest of drawers then stopped as she remarked that even the ornaments were in the same place as at her cottages. About to see what lay behind the mirror they heard someone knock at the front door. A man stood beside his horse, he introduced himself as Mortimer their neighbor. Mortimer wandered back a few paces and tied up his horse.

Catherine faced him and asked him if he was from the house over the valley he smiled and said it was a pleasant ride. He said he lived there with his wife and daughter who was judging by appearances about the same age as her. They stared at each other for a few minutes in silence. “I just thought I’d pop over and introduce myself, I’ll see you later when my wife and daughter pops over,” said Mortimer.

Catherine looked to Wenders then had her look to the painting on the end wall, Catherine told Wenders to concentrate at the family on horseback. To look closely at the father figure. Deciding to get something for them all to eat Catherine went into the kitchen. She had been there for a few minutes before Wenders asked her how long she had been in the cottage.

Catherine thought about what she had done before replying it was only a few minutes, why?” asked Catherine. Wenders said to Catherine that all the furniture in the cottage had been dusted. They stared to each other. After some time passed Wenders said she would go outside to see Mortimer though she returned declaring there was no evidence that he had been there. Feeling out of sorts Catherine invited Wenders to look closely,

"The people in this painting, the man bears a strong likeness to Mortimer."


To Be Continued

 

[ILLYRIAN]

Out Of The Lips Of The Sinner Part 2

Wenders shrugged her shoulders and reluctantly agreed. She turned to the side and stepped into the bedroom. She had only just begun to open the mirror when she heard someone at the front door. Expecting Mortimer’s daughter Catherine went to it then smiled at the young woman. She introduced herself as Philippa saying she was Mortimer’s daughter.

Catherine stepped outside to see where Philippa had tied up her horse, not seeing it she asked how she had got to the cottage. “Problems, problems, problems, just because we can travel without transport people think we are ghosts. Our family learnt long ago how to render the elements as useful to each of us, should we decide to use them.”

As Catherine invited her into the cottage Wenders greeted her and asked her if she had ever been in either of the cottages, “I used to come to Catherine’s cottage and sometimes I went to the cottage you live in; they are both the same.” “So tell me what is behind the mirror in the corner of the bedroom?” Philippa grinned to her. “Best you find out for yourself.”

Philippa’s eyes lit up as she said that, she liked anything that was an adventure and Catherine and Wenders going down the spiral steps would be a wonderful adventure for them. Wenders led the way into the bedroom, around the end of the bed then straight to the mirror. She turned to face Philippa and Catherine, “You had best wait there while I pull open the mirror.”

Wenders pulled on the Mirrors wooden frame, stepping back as she did. Catherine picked up on of the six volt torches and shone its light down the steps, she led the way down the forty steps until they reached the cobblestone floor at the bottom. Catherine shone the torch light around them, one way was only a few paces. “That way must be where the cliff is.”

Facing the opposite way she wandered along the cobblestone floor to where a side room lay open for them. “What do you think this room is?” Philippa wandered to the middle of the circular room, “If you look at the wall around us you will see small shelves at various places, Wenders looked at each of the gaps carefully. “There is a coffin in each gap but these coffins are not like others I have seen, each one has a row of small holes at the end,” said Philippa.

Catherine wandered back into the tunnel and looked at the direction they were walking in. “What do you suppose is further along that way.” Wenders went to stand next to her. “If you look into the darkness somewhere along there is a spiral staircase not unlike the one we just came down,” said Wenders. “Why?” asked Philippa.

“That spiral staircase goes up into the spare bedroom in my cottage but you still have coffins to explore,” said Wenders. Catherine faced the room they had just come from, “I was hoping there was more to the domed room.” Philippa stood in the middle of the room with Catherine and Wenders. “Watch this,” said Wenders as she pushed a stainless steel trolley to where the first coffin was and lifted the top up on its hinges.

Inside the coffin a young woman lay, Philippa remarked that her skin was in remarkably good condition. “There are good conditions for that, one being the holes in the end of the coffin so when the witch is returning to life she can start to breathe. Just so you know her name is Carissa and her gift is the use of Astral Projection, she can project her self or her mind into another’s mind.

Wenders grinned to Philippa as Carissa began to sit up. Wenders pushed the trolley until it was by the end of the next shelf. Pressing the little levers by the wheels that caused the brakes to be. Pulling the coffin out of its resting place Wenders angled the stainless top so that the coffin could slide onto it. When all of the coffin was on the top Wenders tilted the end back down so that it was all horizontal.

She opened the coffin for Philippa and Catherine to see the young woman in the coffin. “Why was she put in a coffin in the first place?” asked Catherine. “This woman is Marnie, she was accused of doing witchcraft to a person of the town’s church, she had cured the illness of another woman there. Even though nothing but good was done the vicar accused her of working with the devil.

In court the vicar said that she should be hung then burnt. The magistrate told the vicar “As far as I remember it is God who sits in judgement on people, as she did use what many people here know as witchcraft I will have her hung, although as I am unwilling to refuse God the right to sit in judgement on her so I will not burn her.”

Catherine questioned how the woman could be alive after she had been hung. Wenders smiled and asked Catherine, “How the woman could be alive after being dead for three hundred and twenty five years or how she was able to control the weather.” Catherine was unable to form a reply. Looking to the next coffin, “That is where Brayleigh lies, even now her body is capable of Automatic Writing.”

Catherine moves the next coffin from its place of rest within the hole in the wall, as she opened the top of the coffin Niamh raised her head up in the coffin. Catherine thanked Niamh for not having her body elsewhere. The next two witches were Christi she could alter the course of a curse while Angharad could change the strength of any curse.

Victoria had given herself the ability to heal. Marrisa was able to influence the movement of any form of electrical energy. Kim had given herself the ability be invisible. Christina installed in her mind the power to levitate an item, to cause it to float or fly. Mallory could cause any object to materialize or vanish. Gwen was able to control flames or the size of a fire.

Revenar brought shapeshifting to the fore. Maria had the gift of telekinesis; moving any object at will. As soon as Maria wandered to the middle of the room she began to sweep the floor clear of any sand that had accumulated there, she revealed a pentacle in the center. Philippa said they should put the first coffin there. The woman said her name was Victoria, she asked why they were putting the coffin in the circle?

Wenders was unsure of what they were doing. “Finding this passage from Catherine’s cottage to mine, does it mean the passage will lead to the field.” Wenders asked about the possibility of another house across the valley. Philippa explained that sometimes the house was there while sometimes it is not. That the home itself is said to be a ghost. Philippa grinned, “That was said by an uninformed church goer no doubt as the house is a chapel.”

“Do you know anything of who lives in the house in the valley?” asked Wenders. Victoria laughed then explained she wasn’t laughing at her. Philippa stated that it had never been a house, “It was and had always has been a chapel.”

Victoria continued, “The chapel is only visible when one of the coven is inside, now though that would include either of you two as the entity has been told of your existence.” “If either of them had wondered about the painting of the family on horses.” Wenders suggested they go to the end of the passage then across the field to the School of the Elements,

where each of the girls would be taught about todays world and how to improve her talent. Upon entering the school Catherine spoke to Christi, “It seems an odd place to teach witches,” Christi replied to Catherine telling her, “Neither she nor the other girls are witches for what we will do although we are women of the countryside. There are many who long to be here.”


To Be Continued

 

[ILLYRIAN]

Out Of The Lips Of The Sinner Part 3

Christi stood on the top step and looked out over the green grounds of the school towards the outer edges of the field of dead grass. Her attention was drawn away from the field back into the hall of the school upon hearing the creaking of a floorboard behind her; she turned to see a man. Christi concentrated her gaze to him. “I do know you, don’t I?” asked Christi.

“Possibly yes, I do take care of the day to day running of the school, at times I watch those who are newcomers to the school,” said Malcolm. “I thought I recognized you, although I’m not exactly sure where from,” added Christi. Christi looked about, she was intent on saying something else when Malcolm interrupted her.

“There was a few young women in their first year here who wondered up the limestone steps I directed them along the wooden hallway and into the library. “Hopefully, once there they will all find they can settle down. Thinking about what he had just said then adding they will be taught various ways to get the most out of their gifts,” stated Malcolm.

Agreeing to the teaching methods of the school Wenders held open the door as many other young women entered the library, she directed the stragglers to sit at their pre destined seat. On the desk in front of each of those seats were several books, one of the books was about their gifts, how to obtain and promote each of their gifts.

One of the books contained a pamphlet describing how to promote increasing the strength of their gift. Standing at the front of the library, the fireplace behind her stood Christi. “The first one that I will explain to you is how to promote Maria’s gift of Telekinesis, while some of you might see her gift as a somewhat minor ability to move objects at will let me tell you her gift may well be most beneficial to help people.

If she is wandering along the side of a road during a storm and a strong gust of wind blows over a tree, a tree that have touched the electricity power lines stopping the power supply to hundreds of homes. Because she has come here she can get taught how to increase the strength of her gift enough to make the tree fall back against the wind, to a place where no danger can be brought to bear,” said Christi

By looking at each woman’s ability in turn, we can help her to help a great many people. Then, taking a book from the bookshelf above the fireplace Christi read the titles of each of the books. She found a way to improve Angharad’s concentration was to lead her into the garden to where many facets of the grounds would enable her to picture a thought.

That thought would be elevated far beyond what any of the girls thought their power would normally be able to do. Being led to step onto the first flagstone and told to look at the rocks in the wall that surrounded the garden, the wall of rock stood to each side and to the far end of the garden. Behind her was one of the walls of the house.

Angharad stepped a pace forward, knowing as she did to look and make note of the positions of the rocks in the rock walls both sides of her, within the base of the wall was the glorious shrub of multi colours then inside that were two rows of plants without coloured flowers. Inside them were two rows of blue flowers, then white flowers then red.

In the center of which was the gardens footpath section was bounded by more plants that did not flower, the flower garden was bordered by four colours of flagstones that sizes that had been placed beside the pathway of concrete flagstones that were stood on with both feet. There was four rows of varied colours of flagstones ready to take her from the house to the end wall.

Each of the young women would need to walk to the wall, to concentrate on each leaf and petal of each flower. Not that there would be a test but it was in each persons best interest to test her ability to be able to concentrate without any distraction. Each time she had to walk the pathway the greater her powers of concentration and memory became.

Throughout the next two days the rest of the young women ventured into the school’s library from the field and began to test their control of their abilities Christi arranged for the rest of the young women to gather in the library. Telling them she had been told that a small group of witches had created several people to be vampires while a few were created to be werewolves.

In order to catch the witches creations Marnie and Victoria had to combine the properties of the two healers, Christi had them join their natural gifts so that a form of death could be introduced, like the seeds of a plant in winter they had to wait until the correct weather and heat could be introduced. That being so Marnie and Victoria introduced the likelihood of spring.

With them Christi had to develop her gift of giving a curse along with Angharad’s gift of increasing the power of the curse to remove both werewolves. Carissa was called upon to promote her gift of Astral Projection to promote her ability to end the werewolves reign amongst the trees of the forest. Marnie was called upon to increase the rain so that the rivers that mosquito’s grew their larva grew in strength.

While the attention of the young women was directed onto the development of the werewolves and the vampires Kim, Mallory and Marnie developed Kim’s ways that she could develop her ability to track a thing below the surface of water. Revenar took it upon herself to promote within her the ability of becoming an eagle so she could soar to great heights and gain the possibility of seeking an increased amount of prey.


To Be Continued

 

[ILLYRIAN]

Out Of The Lips Of The Sinner Part 4

Kim, Gwen and Maria stood on a group of boulders not far from the edge of the forest, they kept an eye on the field in case there were more witches coming in. Gwen signaled for Kim and Maria to keep quiet and for them to look at the path behind them in the forest. Two witches were walking towards them, when they were alongside them Kim, Gwen and Maria stepped out to confront them.

Not feeling threatened the witches offered the hand of friendship. Gwen stepped towards them, smiled and accepted the offered friendship. Seeing that Gwen and the witch had responded to each other Kim and Maria joined them and made the five persons become friends. Gwen spoke to the witch she had befriended as she wanted to know what had brought them together?

“Well it was your people did not seem to want us as friends given the chance behaved as we should. When you first saw us and reacted to us you did not treat us as an enemy so now we can return that offering though we have offered the touch of friendship,” said a witch. “Thank you it makes sense that we should be friends I see no evidence of otherwise.

You offer your praise the Gods of nature and offer your gifts to help people of the country while we do the same although none of us offer praise to the Gods of nature,” replied Maria. “Just because you fail to worship any of the Gods who we believe in is no reason for us to dislike you,” said the witch. “Thank you,” stated Kim. “Though I do have one question about you, what are you here for?” asked a witch.

“A descendant of one of us, Niamh, was attacked by someone unknown. The people in charge of security in this time failed her so those of us who could help were called from their time to attend and be of help,” said Gwen. Puzzled the witches looked to each other, “When you say were called from their time to help what was it that you meant?”

Kim explained, “The first one chosen of us after Niamh was Angharad she had been caught dancing on a Sabbath with eighteen others and punished by the leaders of that chapel, with them she was turned into a block of stone to make complete the stone circle names the Merry Maidens not far from Penzance in Cornwall.

Once Niamh had been called to attend and she accepted others through time were called to help the one who had been taken. Together they drew closer to the one we sought though we were too late to help her,” said Maria. Once again one of the witches questioned Gwen to find out why they were there. “We gathered here so we could go to the school here, to increase the strength of our abilities.

Although we spent to long and were unable to capture the one we wanted, now a chosen few of us will go forward in time to get the one we want and with the one from that time we will help her gain revenge,” said Gwen. Both of the witches stared at each other, “What time are you going to?” asked one of them.

“There are a few of us in the early 2000’s, a few of us will travel to there as members of the Stone Circle. At the designated time the chosen ones will join the coven of witches and be sent to where they can fulfill the mission,” said Kim. Maria smiled to the witches, “You should know that Marnie, Christi and Victoria will be sent into the future to fulfill what we need to do,” stated Maria.

A few years after the year 2000 had passed Marnie, Christi and Victoria presented themselves to those of the coven and after stating why they were there one of the witches coven said the members of the coven were helping one who knew of her. Those of the coven knew the girl would be needed to return to where she came from, Sunnydale.

Going back Willow was worried about meeting her friends again, not seeing her friends Willow presented Maria Christi and Victoria with a witch- want-to-be who was a one time best friend of Amy.

Christi developed a curse and with the deaths created by the healers Marnie and Victoria could promote that their intended was destroyed. Hearing how Buffy had planned to battle the First the young women suggested to Willow how they could help her and the potential slayers.



The End