Abby - The Serpent's Den 4 TG

The Serpent's Den of Buried Secrets (cont.)

----

Abby slipped on a pair of gray gloves from her pocket and consulted the campus map. She considered saving a picture of it but worried about Vivian's "tracking". So she just took a long look. She noted sections B-10 through B-12 were "indefinitely-closed".

The central hub of the campus had wide, carpeted stairways. Abby was terrified of them when she was younger. They would vibrate with every step she took. She climbed one with some of her old caution and surveyed the area. She was the only person in sight.

According to the map, there were several possible routes. The second main floor had a large central heating and cooling area. Unfortunately, she doubted that the ducts were human-sized and probably hadn't been cleaned in months. The elevators were the obvious route. Same with the stairs. Abby frowned and tried to think of other options. No sub-levels to crawl around this time.

Abby also pondered whether to leave anything she had behind. But she had no idea what Vivian was using to track her. She took a breath and looked down the long hallway which led to the central stairs.

She knew there was no tricky way out of this. But she could at least take the service stairs.

It meant a long, roundabout, and dimly-lit route. Abby took the steps slowly to keep her footfalls from echoing. She counted them on the way down. As she got lower, so did the stairs above her. She crouched a little but was in no danger of bumping her head.

Staring at the door marked, "B-4", Abby tested the handle slowly. It creaked but turned without making too much noise. The door opened with much resistance but she was able to get through. It clicked roughly when it closed behind her.

She crouched immediately and looked around. Vivian sat in an office chair a little ways down the hall. She looked right at Abby. Abby straightened and sighed.

Vivian noted, "Glad you could make it."

Abby folded her arms. Vivian's legs crossed. Abby asked, "Where are the Aiborae?"

Vivian gestured a bit to her left. "Their names are Dora and Cora… I gave them some paper and pens to play with while we talk. Not quite crayons but they're happy…I'm surprised you didn't go with your male form, try to fake me out."

Leaning on her heels, Abby asked, "So…what are you using to track me?"

With a faint grin, Vivian remarked, "Not going to take a guess? Alright. The one thing you can never part with." She gestured to Abby's head for emphasis.

Abby looked at her goggles as Vivian continued, "It was quite easy actually. A small, hidden relay unit which duplicates whatever information the system fetches. So small that Demetrius never considered it. Since it was always with you…in a way…I feel like I was always with you too."

Taking a single step back, Abby asked, "So…you saw everything?"

Putting a finger to her chin, Vivian turned her head slightly. "Enough. And, yes, I learned about the Aiborae from following you. Creating a formula which worked in this world took longer…with many of my own travels."

Abby noticed that Vivian's sleeve was moving slightly on its own. She took another step away. Vivian raised her eyebrows and asked, "What's wrong, my dear? Afraid of me? You shouldn't be…" She reached into her sleeve and pulled out a long, green snake. Zoe. Vivian brushed a gloved finger across the snake's sleek body. "Nor should you be afraid of Zoe here."

She didn't take a step back this time but Abby watched the snake in Vivian's hands. She had no idea how far it might be able to strike. Abby also watched Vivian pockets.

Abby asked, "What's your plan?"

Vivian leaned back in her chair. "Quite clear to me. How's yours?"

Abby frowned. "What do you mean?"

As Zoe crawled across the back of Vivian's hand, she explained, "I knew the schedules of guards and who was working where in the labs. And I knew exactly what I needed to do to get here. And I know what I'm doing next. Can you say the same, Abby?"

The soft giggles of young girls reflected from an area behind Abby. She whirled around. The Aiborae weren't there but she could tell they were close.

Vivian continued, "As I said…I've followed you. Do you honestly expect to find Demetrius the way you're going? Explore on random and hope some phenomena will lead you to him? Do you realize how long it's been? You've been out there for years. He's been gone for over a decade…what do you think he looks like now? Probably old, gray, and frailer than Marcus. If he's alive at all."

Abby could see herself running at Vivian and tackling her to the floor. She could see her hand pressed against Vivian's throat. She clenched tight to the visual. Then she took a long breath out. Her body relaxed. Her mind cleared. She looked at Vivian with quiet eyes and said, "You're wrong. I know my dad. I know he has a plan. No matter how long it takes."

Vivian looked just as calm as she faintly shook her head. "Oh Abby…He's not even your real father. He adopted you."

Abby didn't flinch and said only, "It doesn't matter. He's my dad. And you…will never be my mom." At that, Abby turned and bolted. She knew that the service stairwell door probably wouldn't open but the main one…probably…would. Unfortunately, that was on the other side of the floor. And she could see the Aiborae playing in a small lab right in front of her.

It didn't take long for them to notice Abby. They left their drawings quickly and yelled, "Mommy said you wanna play tag! We'll getcha!"

Abby reached into her pocket and dropped the candy along the way. It worked just like she expected. The Aiborae stopped and grabbed as much as they could.

It was far too simple after that to get to the main stairs. And the door was easily opened.

Panting, Abby started down the steps. She was a few floors down when she heard the sound of an upper door opening. She picked up her pace until she got to B-9 and pushed open the door on this level.

This area was storage. With old filing cabinets and large pipes overhead. It still had the same hexagonal tile floor as B-4. Abby moved quickly, ducking around stacks of boxes and shielding her mouth from coughing as whirls of dust kicked up.

At the end of the room, she saw a door sealed up with long, heavy boards. She gave a tug on them but they were securely attached. Keeping low, Abby crept around the door and tried to find another way in. She listened for other footsteps.

Eventually, she found a narrow area which looked like it had been eaten through by mold. It was soft but she knew breaking through would make a lot of noise. Bending near the wall, Abby listened. She was sure there were footsteps. Like a far-off tick of a clock. But everything in the room seemed to muffle the noise. She hoped the same would be true of what she was about to do.

Kicking quickly, Abby slammed her boot through the wall. It took three hits before an opening broke through. The cloud of material was foul. She suppressed a cough and pushed headfirst through the opening. Her goggles nearly got caught but she ducked down and made it the rest of the way. Scampering feet rushed closely behind her.

This room was dark. She felt around quickly and found a pile of old boxes nearby. Rushing, Abby pushed the boxes right in front of the hole.

She stacked more and more boxes against the opening as hands scraped against them. When she finally had a small mountain, Abby took a breath. The little hands were persistent and she knew they were making progress. But it would buy her time.

Using the light on her scanner, Abby looked around the room till she found a way lower.

The steps were towards the middle of the floor. The area was dim with only the faintest lights. Much of this area was also used for storage. It didn't look like anything had been touched in years. Abby took the stairs down slowly, shining the light ahead as far as she could.

It was so quiet that Abby's ears began to ring. She scuffed her feet a little louder and hummed gently. The darkness felt close in every area her scanner's light didn't touch. Swinging the light around, long tendrils of dark stretched off from the railing and the edges of steps. Abby felt a chill that started in her arm and radiated through her body. She buttoned up her light-blue jacket but still shivered.

B-10 was more storage but some of the floor boards had been removed and roped off with hazard tape. The areas showing through were perfectly black. Abby soon knew why, as B-11 had no light at all. The floor was undisturbed, despite even more warning signs and tape she discovered in the beam of her light.

At the end of the area, she found a reddish door. Bits had flaked away to show black underneath. Abby clutched the door knob in her hands. It refused to turn. She looked at the end. No keyhole. It should open. She tried again but it didn't budge.

Abby shook her head. She felt so close. This was it. In a soft voice, almost a whimper, she begged, "Please open…"

She clutched the knob in her grip. She felt at the verge of tears.

Then, the knob gave the faintest creak. It budged. Carefully, she turned it and the door opened inch by inch until Abby had enough space to get through. She sealed the door behind her and looked ahead. There were more steps.

Taking them slowly, Abby came to a room with a few lights. The green, hexagonal tiles were very worn. Papers were strewn about. Reddish boxes were stacked here and there. Strange, black cords spread across the floor like vines.

Turning a corner, Abby shined her scanner high and looked.

Her eyes widened. It took her a moment to walk closer. Abby's mouth hung open.

Before Abby was what looked like a giant, obsidian bug. It was as tall as her. And it looked exactly like the image in Demetrius's secret notebook. The same hair-thin lines. They looked like ebony, cell-like cilia projections all over its body. Its legs were just as skeletal but they lay out at its sides.

It sat on a raised area. Abby noticed that its eyes weren't quite the same as the drawing. These looked like they had been removed, leaving a rough indentation like cracked glass.   

As Abby quietly marveled, a voice came from somewhere. It was soft but also deep, flowing throughout the room like a vibration.  

It said, "I am the monster you were warned about, Abby."

Abby stopped and watched. The creature remained perfectly still. It looked like a monster out of a nightmare. And the drawing she'd seen in her father's secret notebook made her feel a deep coldness. But, for some reason, when Abby looked at this one the coldness wasn't there. She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why are you here?"

The voice raised a little, almost echoing. "I am here by choice. But you are not meant to be here. I am dangerous."

A slight shiver slid along Abby's back. She pushed one foot back but the other stayed where it was. She knew it was very easy to back away. But she had a feeling. She watched the strangely-broken eyes of the creature and said, "I was told…that Demetrius Longbloom said…my mother was down here."

Even this deep, the walls quaked a little as the voice spoke, "Your mother is not…..here. Because of me…And if you don't leave…you'll find out what I do…"

The little girl in Abby wanted to run away. She wanted to hide and be safe. But that little girl had seen her father vanish, screaming, before her. She'd journeyed to countless worlds and faced so many things that made her want to run away. Abby knew this was not a time to run away. Besides, she had a feeling and a hope.

Casting aside hesitation, she stepped forward. She tried to feel and speak strongly before the monster but slow, heavy tears slipped from around her eyes as she spoke, "Then so be it… I am not leaving." She shut her eyes.

And silence. For several moments. Abby considered opening an eye but she kept her resolve.

Then, she heard the voice again. Although she wasn't sure at first if it was the same voice. It seemed to be right beside her, speaking gently, "Oh, Abby…how I wish you had just turned away."

Slowly, Abby opened her eyes. One of the projections moved towards her, so very close. It stretched and bent down. Softly, it dabbed at her face, brushing at her tears before settling to stroke her cheek. The sensation was like the velvety feel of a stingray she'd once joyously stretched out to touch at another world's aquarium.  

The voice said, "When you cry, Abby, I always feel like I might break in pieces..."

Abby clutched at the projection, gently hugging it. A faint smile returned to her face as she said, "I knew you were a good monster! But why are you down here? Why did my father do this? What are all these secrets? What's really going on?..." There were still so many more questions quivering in Abby's head but she knew not to ask them all yet.

The projection almost tickled Abby on the cheek and then slipped across her shoulder. The voice answered, "I knew there would be so many questions. It would take so very long to answer. If you're willing…I can show you the answers to them."

Abby's vigorous nodding nearly tossed the creature's projection off her shoulder. It didn't seem to mind. It bent up and moved towards Abby's goggles.

It told her, "Put them on. See…through my eyes…"

Sliding the goggles on, Abby felt the projection press against them. The display in the goggles seemed to shift, surrounding her vision and reaching in to her temple.

Within a breath, Abby was somewhere else.

----

Your name is Moira. You erase gender transformation anomalies. You have work to do.

Only these first words are so clearly heard. The rest are like an atmosphere. They are spoken in darkness and cold places. And so Moira exists.

Moira is not alone. Her dark, insect-like body looks so much like the others but she knows each is different and each has a different thing it must do.

They scurry but can move instantly. The darkness lies as a sea above. The cold is the never-ending everywhere throughout. Far below, like specks, are the universes. Moira knows this because this is her work.

She selects the first and descends. She has to push. It hurts the first time. It will keep hurting. But it will get easier.

Moira knows what she is looking for. It blasts in her senses. Bright and harsh, she knows much about what it is. A teen boy has gone to what everyone claims is a gender transformation store. He's skeptical as he holds a strange, silvery token. Moira approaches as the boy wishes, eyes closed, "Transform me into a cute girl…so I can go to the dance with my friend, Mark!"

Swiftly, Moira slips a projection between his hands. When he looks, the token is gone, simply erased. He looks and looks but can't find it anywhere. Hope that this is part of the magic wanes to quiet sadness. Moira watches his face even after her work is done.

She finishes by eliminating the remaining tokens. She erases the store's lease. She removes everything she is supposed to.

The work continues. She removes the malfunction of a strange invention. She stops a gender plague. She causes a magic wand to break. She holds back the will of those whose minds wish upon fantastical changes of the human form.

She diligently works. And she also watches as a girl binds her breasts, prays every night, and sobs in her sleep. She sees those that die with quiet words hoping for something else in another life. She watches them all. This is not part of her work, but she does it anyway.

There is always work. Sometimes there is more work than she can do. She erases these anomalies. Others erase others. But there are always more.

When at rest the others talk amongst themselves. Some have ideas from what they've seen. Above them all stands Iao.

Iao looks like all the rest but his front is shaped like a scoured, human skull. His projections are always framed above his head like a crown. And his voice seems to carry forever.

He speaks before the others.

"We erase time after time and there are always more. There will always be more because there are creatures out there working against us. They make these anomalies. They dare to shake the order of reality we work so hard to maintain!"

There are whispers.

"Sure, there are dreamers here and there. I know that. But they are few among the rest. I speak instead…of what are called the creators. And one universe in particular fights against our duties. The brightest of all where the humans…with their ideas, thoughts, dreams, and creations have the ability to rewrite the fabric of reality. They are the ones responsible for the erasures we must continually make!"

There are small cries of indignation. Even Moira is annoyed that these creatures would try to undo so much of their work.

"There is no other way to bring order to reality. We must erase them. That is the only way! Stand with me! Remove this pestilence!"

A fury breaks in the darkness. They all cry out.

Erase them all! Bring order!

She follows the swell as they swarm that brightest of forms reaching into their darkness.

Screams surround everything. The others press their projections into the humans. They fade with their faces curled in terror. Their worlds wink out, like ashes.

Moira reaches through an old man holding a kit of living pictures close to his chest. She watches as his glow becomes a cold emptiness and his pictures fade away. She softly touches through a man hugging his books. She knows each book will unleash a nanite swarm to change reality to what he writes inside but her projections stand on end. She can vividly remember a girl sobbing as she sleeps.

She moves through empty neighborhoods till she sees Iao again. His crown looks taller. He moves briskly and tells her, "We're almost through. Almost there."

They enter a small house. The lights are out. But they can sense the glow of them hiding behind colonnaded columns in a hallway. Two adults, Moira feels. One is tall with wide, craftsman hands and bright eyes. The other has long, brilliant red hair and hands perfect for detailed arts. The man yells, "Please! Leave my wife and child! I'll do anything!"

Iao stretches out his projections. "Die for me…" The man tries to bat away the projections but Iao can erase anything he throws. Iao laughs. He envelops a small dog that leaps to defend his master and wraps around a screeching kitten. Both vanish instantly as Iao adds, "…but not too quickly. I want to enjoy every last one left…"

Moira can see the wife in the darkness as she huddles over something. She tries to quiet it with frightened whispers. It whimpers softly. Iao lunges at them both and pushes them to the ground. She loses the small something on the ground. A child. A baby. So very young.

Iao advances and presses the man and wife away. The wife screams, "ABBY! DON'T HURT MY LITTLE GIRL! PLEASE! TAKE ME BUT LEAVE HER! LEAVE HER!"

Moira looks down. Little Abby rests to one side where she fell. Her little hands are balled up helplessly. She wails and kicks her legs.

Iao growls and glances back to Moira. "Destroy it. I want them."

Moira bends closer as little Abby fusses. Tears stream down her face. Moira's projection hovers above her. Iao growls again. "Silence it!"

Huddling over Abby, Moira traces her projections around her. She knows it would be so easy to do. She's done it countless times already. There have been so many other tears. This is just one more.

But her projections tighten. She brings Abby close. She lifts her to her body. She can't hear the screams of the man and wife. Iao is turning. He looks shocked.

Before he asks, she yells, "No! I will not!" She brings a projection wide around and cracks Iao across the front, splitting the skull. It only makes him angry. But it gives her an instant. An instant to wrap her body around little Abby and focus on a world so far away. Somewhere safe.

She lands on papers and files, deep underground. The infant cries. She tries her best to console it but she knows it needs another human to care for it. It doesn't take long to find one.

He is a young professor distracting himself after the dissolution of his marriage with the esoteric oldest files of Covaley University. Demetrius gasps at Moira and nearly runs. But he sees the child and waits.

She holds it out to him. "Please, I beg of you. Take care of her. She is special… Name her 'Abby'."

Despite his indifference to Vivian's fantasies of endless children, he looks down at the little one in his arms as she looks up at him and smiles in a way to be soon so familiar.

"Hello there, Abby."

She quiets and coos a little.

Moira stays because she knows she must. She spreads herself across this entire realm. She must be gentle. She doesn't want to interfere so much she brings the sorrow of little lost inspirations but she knows she must be a cloak to protect the light of little Abby from the others and Iao.

She works with Demetrius and he visits often, arranging for her to have a safe place here. But the cloak is not strong enough to protect Abby forever. After much talk, she knows what she must do.

"Take my eyes", she tells Demetrius. "So Abby may always be protected, no matter where she goes."

The procedure is pure suffering. But she refuses to cry out. That night, she knows two small pieces of her rest on little Abby's head, as a pair of goggles.

For a time, it is enough. But the others are close. Even hiding Abby cannot completely hide her influence. It spreads to Demetrius, like light spilling over. They both know something must be done.

He speaks to Moira one last time, his eyes heavy. "I know Abby will probably hate me for this. But I would rather she hate me and live."

Moira cannot watch the day it happens. The others get through. It is not Iao but they are persistent. She cannot fight them, lest they realize what she's done. She lets them take Demetrius, alive and screaming, into their embrace.

The sorrow and loss through Abby's arm is enough to convince the others they have what they want. But Moira knows Abby will not be the same. Her brightness is dulled. At least she can stay with Marcus for longer than Demetrius.

Moira is content to keep Abby safe in this place for as long as she lives. But her light turns. Her passion and feeling is focused towards her lost father and Moira knows that spirit cannot be stopped. Still, she tries.

Select universes. Ones safe and far away from any where there might be others to see her. But far from where her father might ever be.

That is, till Abby finds just the right book in a library.

----

Abby staggered a little as the projection pulled away from her goggles. She lifted them up and panted.

Moira lingered. "Breathe, Abby. It is okay. I hope I didn't give you too much…"

Abby looked up. "I'm okay. I…just don't know what to say…"

Moira's projections lowered. "You may curse me. You may hate me. You may wish to destroy me. That is fine."

Immediately, Abby rushed at Moira and wrapped her arms around her in as wide a hug as she could and said, "Thank you so much for protecting me." Moira was silent but she curled her projections close to Abby.

After the hug, Abby gave a soft sigh. "There's a lot but I think I understand…a bit of it. Also, I guess the nanite-spewing book in the Library was….creator-made too."

"And I reached out to erase what would hurt you."

Abby nodded. "I owe you my life. But…"

Moira answered for her. "You are a creator of great potential. An explorer. And you want to find your father."

Abby bowed her head. "And so much more now. It looked like my other parents died but…I couldn't see for sure. They may have survived."

"That is a very faint hope, Abby."

Smiling at Moira, Abby said, "It's something. Just like with Demetrius. But you have to let me go in those places you didn't before. Please. I have to find what I've lost."

Moira's voice was low. "You will face dangers I won't be able to fully protect you from. And you may not like what you find."

Abby took a long breath. "I have to try."

A projection lightly touched Abby on the cheek. "And I will be with you as much as I can…" The projection bent up.

Abby frowned. "What is it?"

"Vivian is coming."