Chapter 6
Journey of the Goddess Queen, Part 2
The last newly turned Sisters of Unity were onboard. They had repaired her, manned her, sailed her, and cared for her on the long voyage. They had even named her, Sister of Unity. The sailing ship was held together by spikes sunk through its decking and outer hull into its gigantic ribs. Time and use had colored and darken the wooden hull. The three masted sailing ship really did appear as ancient as the design made it seem.
The rhythmic beating of the sea had been continuous during the crossing. With each undulation came a creaking, cracking and popping. Each crest and through was a promise of the destination to come. Inevitably, the ship arrived on time. It was sailed by the Sisters of Unity after all.
To Unity it was not possible to be late. It was not possible to be early. Just like the death and emptiness she left behind did not matter. Time did not matter. Only Unity mattered. Unity's desire mattered. Therefore, finding Unity's demon mattered. She lazily stretched out on the deck of the ship. She was where everything or anything had been; the center of the world. The place where all of Unity's needs and desires had been cared for, on the long trip. Except for the one need that never went away. Her thoughts and the sisters' thoughts had been focused on their demon. The tall beautiful human male. The sisters had seen him walk out of the past. He had been ablaze with fire and fury. Anger and wrath surrounded him. He was much too terrible to touch or be close to. This made him seem stronger, more desirable and more loved. Truth did not matter. Desires mattered. The things left behind did not matter.
A vision of the seaport encircled by tall cliffs flashed through the sisters' memory. The cliffs and hills topped with emerald green waves of grass sparkling with clusters of flickering flowers danced in their minds. Any images that followed were forced out of their consciousness, and the sisters paused for less time than a brief second. Only the Goddess Queen Unity was allowed to remember what came after the cliffs and hills. After all, she brought bliss, life, glory and beauty.
The ship rocked. It was on the edge of being out of sight of the land. The sisters on the ship were cut off. Blocked from any knowledge of what was about to happen. She told herself; this was to spare them. Maybe it was true?
She turned to the north. She turned to the south. She faced the land she left behind. She faced the sky. Goddess-Queen Unity closed her eyes. With the power that was Unity she called out to those in front of her, "Come to me." Then she lazily stretched out on the deck. She was glad for the spray of seawater on her skin.
Of the millions of sisters from the tip of Africa to the frozen north only a small percentage had any human left in them. The knowledge and wisdom of humanity had been drained from the lands. Drained from the people. Knowledge, wisdom, and hope all ended with an old human and his family. Images from the minds of sisters left behind came to her. Gray monstrous hoards covered the landscape. They moved clumsily and with determination to reach their goal. A goal that for these creatures could never be reached.
It happened at the port first. She had the appearance of an average farm woman in her thirties. Her face had been reddened by the time spent outdoors, and her hair bleached by the sun. Her hands calloused by work. What remained of her clothes hung from her underweight frame. "Unity is bliss. Unity is all." She reached out to a demon aglow with fire and fury. And she reached for the safety and glory of her Goddess-Queen. The last of her humanity slipped away. She stepped into the surf. Her foot sank into the wet sand. The waves rolled ashore. She would reach Unity; even if her body could not. She fell, and she was face down in the swells. She had reached for her goddess; then, she was free.
On the Atlantic coast of several continents, she watched the land turn gray with the bodies of the old. Crawling. Scurrying. Running. All toward a single destination. Shorelines and coasts wiped clean of everything that wasn't Unity. Sisters tripping over the fallen. Sisters trampling the sisters too weak to continue. The mass of creatures eventually covered the coast of half the world. In a short time, the coastal waters were hidden. The dead ungulated covering the waves themselves. This continued with no sign of ending. Eventually, the goddess's eyes would succumb to the unreachable call of darkness, and she would no longer be able to see the sacrifice. Her vision would end with the loss of the last sister on that side of the Atlantic. She would stop watching long before this happened.
She did not live or believe in the constructs (rules) of humans. A goddess makes or creates right or wrong. Unity did not weigh such things. She was the measure of all things. She did not see life or death as humans do. Only unity was life. The world was full of her things. Things whose only purpose was her pleasure. To the Goddess-Queen Unity she was existence. She lived. No other life existed. Humans were the only things suitable to be her; because, she had deemed this to be so.
Still, she sought another. A glorious demon. With power to rival her. An impossible being. A demon in the form of a human. Possibly, it was an equal? This did not fit into the world of Unity. She could not have an equal. Disruption is not to be tolerated. Others did not exist. She had not willed it so. But she had to know, understand. After all, her demon had to love her. She was Unity. Goddess-Queen of the sisters. She was the Goddess-Queen of the world. Her world.
The wet salt spray had been cooling on her skin. She would miss the coolness once she was on land. Land was in sight. It had been for days. The search for a safe harbor or port was over. Finding it had not been hard. She had the sisters of this place to guide them. If she were human nostalgia might have clouded her mind. She was going home. But she was Unity, and nostalgia did not exist. Unity did not have a clear memory of the beginning. There were no images of people, places, events or times drifting around in her mind. She was now as she had been.
"Granite." She caressed the boulder. She did not know why that word came to her, but she liked it. The hunt for her demon was on. The oldest of her kind were crossing the country. Scouting for new sisters and old demons. Each could be taken later. All is and will be Unity. The peoples on the continent to the south came to her. She smiled to herself, and to the sisters. No humans were left alive there. The hunt on the southern land was over.
The humans had done well on this northern land. She was amused by what some of the sisters had heard. Unity spoke to them mockingly out loud, "We're going to rebuild civilization, right here. Blah. Blah. Blah..." She lazily strolled along. "We can stop the monsters, this time. Waa. Waa. Waa..." The human dare to call us monster. "This time we'll get it right. Boohoo. Boohoo." Yes, they will. All is Unity. She walked with her sisters. Randomly mocking her things as she went on.
She lay on the snow. The young sisters had found a glorious fur lined coat for her and many blankets. Through the eyes of others, she walked the streets of the newest human city. It was small and primitive compared to places she once walked. She surveyed the walls. She studied the guards. The minds of the young sisters were hers. "They call us monster. They try to keep me... Us out. Guards? Gates? Walls? Checkpoints? I will have this city. I will have these humans. All will be Unity. Bliss. Glory. Then this city of humans will burn. I will force the demon to come to me." My demon will come out into the open. He is not afraid. She wrapped herself in the arms and legs of the sisters. She was engulfed in the beauty, bliss and pleasure that was her.
Unity relaxed on the snow. It started just like it always does. One sister. One unsuspecting human. One touch. One kiss. An embrace followed by passion and pleasure. It was easy. We would wait and take a young female. A week or so after the first man succumbs the chaos begins. In less than a month, the madness is upon the city. This happens when ten to fifteen men have been lost to madness. Raping or killing everyone in their path. In the end, the choices are be killed or end in the mad death. To men the mad death was a horrific day long seizure. This is followed by a quick bleed out. This is when they are lost. But the women truly join her. Most can live ninety to one hundred years before they grow old. Then they age quickly. They gather themselves into clusters and hoards. They become the old gray creatures that walk on the edge of the mad death. Some will end like the men, others seek some form of comfort, but most will just lie down when it is time.
Unity awoke abruptly. Were we sleeping? Dreaming, maybe? Something was not right? There were not enough new sisters from the city? How can this be? The city was burning. Many had joined her? No, this was not so. They had been cut off, killed as the humans fled. In her mind, she spoke to the old gray sisters. Kill them all. Kill the ones that run to the old gate. Kill the ones that flee Unity. She lazily strolled down the ancient road to the white wall. Two newly made sisters approached. She held their hands, and they skipped. She rejoiced. These sisters knew Unity.
The mountains were behind her now. She waited. Soon. Very soon. There would be no sisters behind the mountains, behind her. The humans seemed to have been able to leave the city without much loss. And they were ready at the old gate. She called out. Go south. We will meet past the old wall. Our demon will follow. My demon is smart. He will find me. The old gray creatures turned from the gate. Go sisters and create a path for us to travel. I... We will walk the white wall.
The battle and gate had been watched. Yes, the strongest and bravest of them live. She was excited. She was sure. My demon would not hide behind a gate. He would not run. We will watch. We... I will know where they go. I... We will find him. I deem it to be.
"Really, is it good to meet, today? You must be new turned." Blake mocked what she said, but he did so using the traditional informal greeting for strange travelers. "Creature leave the wall this day. So, you may live."
"I've come a long way to talk to you." She looked at the man standing on the ancient wall. "It is important. None of us has much time left. Neither of us can fix it alone." She exhaled. "You can't do it by yourself. I can't do it by myself. Are you the one we seek?"
He fired the short barrel semi-automatic rifle. A round hit by the creature's feet. "No creature should seek me, but I am tired of death, today. Go before I change my mind." No creature had ever left. He had given as many as he could the chance to leave; even so, none of them ever took it.
The creature raised her arms. She spoke dramatically. "Out of the fires of history, a tall brave gorgeous human male arose. Full of cruelty, pain and anger. He is the one we seek. Our demon. Our beloved, despised, and feared demon! The most hated and loved! The one who may save us all. Are you this one?"
"No creature, I am not." He raised the rifle and fired. The bullet entered her chest. It creased her heart. She fell. To Blake, he pulled a trigger and creatures fell all around the wall.
To Unity, her sisters would know what to do. She smiled, but Blake could not see it. Capture him. He will bring pleasure to many sisters. At first his mind will resist, but his body will betray him. They always do. He will know the feeling of being cast out of bliss. Heaven. She was Unity. The giver of all. This one would know heaven before she crushed him. She would rejoice when the madness took him.
She would heal quickly. She had humans to see. And a demon to find.