fungus bungus by Lorna Heartston

The darkness felt cold and had a scent of foreboding to it. The king had his wife, of which he was only fond of, and her sister, whom he had come to feel for, and all the children with them. The soldiers would be of no protection but they too were there. One was named Sir Andrew. The king had him as the guard for his wife, to protect in the event of something was to happen. At just after the sun went below the mountain tops, the Retsam came and went through the walls with ethereal sight and came down upon the king and his family. His wife fell to the ground and he knew that she was gone. Her soul had been removed and she was dead. For the next several days the funeral took up so much of the kings time that he did not remember to punish the knight who failed to protect his wife. Sir Andrew was in deep thought when the king did come to him. The king could see the distress that he was feeling. The knight stood before the king and was ready to pay the price of his failure. The king was to give him a task to complete to keep his life. When Sir Andrew heard the task he fell to a knee in disbelief. The king had told Sir Andrew to find the soul of his wife. He had been married to her for 18 years and their ora was still connected. He could feel her still. The next morning, after yet another peasant was taken and the burial was underway, Sir Andrew set forth to find the lost souls taken by the retsam. He had heard that in the mountains there is a sacred place that no one has been able to enter due to the powerful magic that surrounded it. He headed to this place, praying to the God in heaven that the safety of his prayer will be the reason he is alive and to help guide him to the lost.
Days had past and he still had not come to any place of magic. He was being drawn to somewhere that he felt he would never leave. But the fate he had left behind was a death that would not befit a knight like him. He had been in the service of the king for longer than he had been married. The queen was his friend and she was very kind to him. They would talk often even though the king had not allowed her to talk to any other man. He would be the guard of choice for the king and that made it easier for her to talk with him without the king knowing. They would be very close, and speak in secrets and whispers. Her dying was very hard on him but he was not going to show his pain in the open. He had felt a love for her that would harm his life if anyone would find out. So now on the task given, he too felt the connection of her soul and his. She was calling out to him and between the help of the God and the love of his life, he would go to her and be with her in death.
As he came closer to the mountains, he could feel her voice inside of him, calling him to her. She was telling him she was there and waiting for him. he continued for the several days to the mountains without the comfort of sleep. He knew he was close and he could see the fire streaks night after night glowing overhead as the Retsam would take up another soul and lead it back to the soul gates. As the light of the 7th day came, he found himself at a strange doorway in the mountain. He could feel that God was there and telling him he had found the opening and that is was where he must lead himself alone. With a deep breath he entered knowing that this was the last time he would breathe the air of the outside world.
The opening was small and had a gate shape to it. There was a very odd feeling inside the cavern and he didn't let himself feel the fear that was starting to come into his soul. He walked on for what seemed hours and he knew it would be dark soon and the retsam would be leaving and bringing back a soul. More hours passed and the cave was getting larger and there seemed to be a fog growing in the distance and he quickened his steps to get to the end faster. When he got to the fog, he seemed to get a little disoriented and had to stop and look around for a few seconds before he made his next step. He could see a larger, more brightly lit area and he headed for that. He stepped through the fog and entered the large chamber that was lit up with the oddest of light. It was a greenish glowing from several floating pots and he could not see where they were hanging from. He knew there was a magic that he could not explain. He walked past several of such pots and the glow changed from the green to a red. After he passed they went back to the green again. They must sense the heat of ones blood he thought.
He went on for a few more minutes and only saw the lights and nothing more. Suddenly all the lights went to red in one single second. He stopped and stood very still, trying not to breathe. He could not see anything but he could feel the coldness that comes when the Retsam is near. The coldness left as quickly as it came and the lights once again glowed the greenish ember. He knew the Retsam would be gone for a while and that this was the time for him to search and to finish his quest. This was a stoic adventure and he was going to finish it no matter what it took. He walked farther into the cavern and began to feel prescient of the events to come, he summed it up as the soul of the kings wife that was leading him to her. He pushed farther into the fog that seemed to be growing heavier. I can hear you ,he said to himself. I can feel you. You are close and I am near. Turning a corner he came to a large room of sorts that contained a large orb of fire. At first, Sir Andrew pulled back and felt a streak of fear run through him. Then he felt the sadness of the souls that were part of the fire. There was no heat being thrown from the orb, it was a very strange feeling to be that close to fire and not feel it. He reached out to touch it and the queen touched him from inside the fire. He spoke to her as if she was with him still. He told her he was here to release her soul to the heavens. She felt the happiness that she would feel when they would speak in secret, the love that was growing inside of her. She felt the sadness of the future she would never see again with him and the power she felt had been taken from her. He removed his hand and he suddenly felt the coldness that he felt when the Retsam had passed him in the cave. He hid behind the orb and waited for what ever would befall him this night. He could feel the queen, he could feel her tears, he could feel the love she was passing to him through her heart. Her feelings and her soul were together and it was very clear what she wanted of him. Te could feel the same for her. the Retsam drew nearer and he could see the lights change to the red and he stood very still. The Retsam entered the room and it became the solid shape of the evil it was. It was as large as two men. It had a blood red body with the veins on the outside of his skin. Sir Andrew could see the blood pumping through the thick tubes and it ran as red as its eyes were. They were large and came to points at both ends. when it smiled, Sir Andrew could see the fangs and the jagged teeth that came to points and stuck into the bottom of its face. The claws were long and had bits of flesh hanging off them. It smelled of death. The death that has been forgotten and left to rot. Sir Andrew knew that this was pure evil he was looking at. A incarnation of the devil himself. It pulled out the soul of the one whom he had taken this night. He pushed it towards the fire orb and a flame licked out and took the soul inside of it. The soul screamed out and the Retsam smiled. He was collecting them for the power it gave him. He would live forever as long as he removed one soul a night at the time of the hunger of the fire demons. The demons would give him the power of invisibility and flight. He was able to go through walls and through bodies and to make the soul come to him and be a part of him until he came to the fire orb. The demons would take in the soul and slowly take over the feelings and memories it held. It would live off the happiness and the sadness that would drift from deep inside. The soul holds many secrets and many lies and the truth was the strongest of the emotions that would cause the demons to be unable to hold on to the soul and drain it of all knowledge. The truth was in the queens soul. It was that she was in love with another and she had always been and now she would not be able to tell. The king had known she did not love him, but she was taken as his. She became his wife in all the meanings except for the love. She would not tell him ever she loved him and he realized that she would never come to it on her own. He did love her and he was just happy for her company. So the truth she held was an equal truth for all. She knew that Sir Andrew loved her and that he was aware of her feelings for him. So the truth was there and the demons could not touch her soul. That is why the king and Sir Andrew could feel her. They both held her in their hearts and that is where truth grows the strongest. The latest soul was devoured in less than a minute. His screams seemed to disappear as soon as the glow from his soul had gone. The Retsam felt satisfied with his choice and was happy for one more night. He did not feel the soul that was in the same room as himself because the room was filled with so many others that he could not tell them apart in such a small place. He stomped away and was off to make himself the meal of celebration for his good deeds.
sir Andrew was very pleased he was not found and he slowly came out from behind the orb. He looked at it again and saw that the queen was there and she was calling to him, but the silence was stronger than her words. He had to think of what to do. He knew that the heavens were not welcomed in this place and yet he knew that he would need to pray for the help he needed. He closed his eyes and began to pray in the words he knew were the right ones to bring the help he required. In his mind he could feel the answer. He knew what he must do. With a thankful heart he turned and looked at the queen once more and she knew from reading into his own soul what he was to do. She smiled to him and she was silent. She loved him and he her and they would soon be together.
Sir Andrew looked for the Retsam and was soon to find him through the sound of his breathing and his ragged voice singing to himself. He took in heavy breaths to fill his lungs with the air to push out the horrid songs he sung. He sang of the torture that he cause the people of the kingdom, he sang of the pain and anguish he caused. He sang of the souls that had been delivered to the fire demons and to the forever they will be in torment with no purgatory to help them on their way. The souls had not the chance to answer for their sins, so they will never be placed into the home they belonged. The Retsam was too loud to hear Sir Andrew coming into the space. Sir Andrew came up behind him and he took out his sword very slowly and he plunged it into the back of the Retsam. The Retsam stood up with the sword still it it. sir Andrew was clinging to the end of the sword and then he jumped down to get some distance from the creature to keep from the long claws. The Retsam looked down at the shinny metal sword sticking out of the area Sir Andrew knew to be the heart of the creature. It was lower down in the body than a normal heart, but nothing about this animal was normal. The heavens told Sir Andrew where to place his sword and to what he might cause doing so. The Retsam pulled on the sword and was able to remove it. Its blood was dripping from the large vein that was cut upon the entrance of the sword. The Retsam became a putrid shade of purple. It growled, its teeth and the jagged points coming together to form a demonic smile as the life was leaving it. Sir Andrew grabbed the sword and plunged it into the Retsam again. This time cutting several large veins on its skin to insure the quick death of the creature. The lights became an eerie shade of deep purple and the Retsam was making a strange almost moaning sound and it sent a chill through Sir Andrew. the air became thick and smoke filled the empty space between Sir Andrew and the Retsam. He could no longer see the Retsam and yet he could feel the presents of it. With his sword out in front of him, he poked out several times to see if he hit any flesh. He found the
queen was there and she had not changed. Her dire situation was still at the peak and Sir Andrew thought he had changed all that which was happening by killing the Retsam.
Suddenly Sir Andrew turned around because he sensed the cold and sadness felt with the soul redeemer. He looked around and could see nothing. He knew it was there. He swung his sword around in the air and he hit something hard and invisible. The Retsam was injured but still very much capable of the soul stealing it was called to do. The demons needed a strong soul to live off of. The Retsam would be able to leave the service and to go to the Depths of the underworld to live in the evil heat of his home. The Retsam went to the space next to the orb that was hidden in the dark. Sir Andrew could no longer feel the coldness and he thought he was safe. He walked over to the fire orb and he looked at the queen but she had a look on her face that he knew meant fear. She could not say anything because of the power the demons did have over her and she had no choice but to stay silent and to warn him not. He knew her looks and he had seen fear in her eyes before and so now the look was not hidden the way the demons wanted. He moved closer to the place the Retsam was hiding and it jumped out and Sir Andrew could feel his soul being pulled. He had a strong will and that was what the demons needed to live forever. He fought back with his mind. He had the heavens inside of him now. The Retsam felt this and had to let go. It cowered into the corner and whimpered. The demons were growing very displeased with the Retsam. They began to boil. The fire orb was the holding tank for the demons. They were kept in to prevent the end of time. But now the demons were forcing their way out of the fire orb. Sir Andrew began to pray. The Retsam was still afraid in the corner. the demons were coming out and there was no way Sir Andrew could keep them in. The orb became a shade of blue. The coolness will prevent the scorching of the demons and keep them so they can return. One at a time they came out and floated out around Sir Andrew. He had a small foreboding feeling about this. The Retsam became stronger now. The muscles were growing and the power he felt was getting more intense. He rose and came at Sir Andrew with the feral of the animal he was. He clawed at Sir Andrew and he could feel the flesh tear away from his side and his arms. He fell to the ground and he groaned in pain. The world between the soul keep and the real world was open now and the queen could feel that she was able to move about the room as the demons did. She came to Sir Andrew, but he could not see her. She was just a spirit and with no place to combine her soul into one, she would have to let him know she was there in some other way. She came down close to him and she reached out her hand. She went into Sir Andrew. He felt her. He looked up expecting to see her, but did not. She knew that she would be able to become one with him. She slowly put piece by piece of her into him. The more she became one with him, the stronger he became.. he rose up to face the Retsam. He was no longer in pain, no longer in fear. He had two souls to fight with. The love between them was bonding again and they would conquer the evil that lay deep within this cave in the mountains of fire.
The demons realizing that by them coming out of the orb, they released the queens soul, they were screaming in sadistic tones. They were losing the power that they have saved. The other souls had already been absorbed so there was no others to lose or to drain. She queen and sir Andrew were the ones that they could not take. They knew that these were the souls that would change their future. They were angry for not seeing that they would lose. Sir Andrew was facing the retsam with the force of heaven. He drew up his sword and struck out at the Retsam. Again and again he hit the creature and blood flew around in a circular motion as he lifted the sword up and around for another swing. The Retsam came back with swipes of his long claws and they struck Sir Andrew with the force of a explosion. Sir Andrew only fell back into the cave wall and then stood for more swings of his own sword. The Retsam was bleeding from all over its body. Sir Andrew could see all the veins he severed. He thought that it would be enough for the demise of the creature, but the creature kept up the strength it had with the demons help. They were feeding him their power and he was as strong as them. Suddenly the Retsam turned around and ran out of the large cavern they were in and disappeared. Sir Andrew followed to finish his job. He saw the creature run towards the opening of the cave and Sir Andrew knew he had to stop it from ever leaving the cave again. He caught up with the Retsam and with a prayer on the tip of his sword, he plunged it deeply into the back of the Retsam. The Retsam was mortally injured. The sword had cut into the dark heart of it. The Retsam’s eyes turned black and it fell to the ground. The demons were not there. They could not travel. They had passed too much of their power to the Retsam for the fight and they sent him out to retrieve them another soul to continue the power. The Retsam had only enough power to change to invisible and was in the process when the sword stuck into it. The demons were fading and the fire in the orb was getting uncontrolled. It was growing outside of the orb. Sir Andrew unknowing of the danger went back to the cavern and when doing so, he realized too late he could not make it out again. The fire became a blinding light. Sir Andrew closed his eyes and began to pray. The light was a flash of heat and it was over. The cavern and the whole cave imploded and the evil was gone. Sir Andrew opened his eyes and he was there. He was in the place of peace. He turned and he smiled. There stood the queen. She was dressed all in white. The God in heaven had protected him and now he will live forever in the light of the clouds. He will be with the one he loved. The king could feel that the end of the terror had come and that his queen was safe and Sir Andrew was then the hero of the world and the love of his queen for the forever that they would now share.
And so dear reader, the story has now been passed on. Sir Andrew the brave and heroic will never be forgotten. Do not fret...the fire in the mountains is gone but the heavens will show you that the evil is still there, still in the minds of every soul......look out at the evening sun and see the light of the fire peaking though the clouds. It will shine colors of orange, red, pink and purple. All the colors of good and evil, stirred together by the heavens to remind us all. Keep the mind and soul clean of hate and evil, and you too will be in the heavens with Sir Andrew and his queen.

BY Heidi Kelley copyrighted 2005