Under A Velvet Cloak (21 page)

There was a swirl of mist. Kerena extended one hand to touch it. There was a faint shock of recognition.

“Renal It’s you! But what happened to you?”

“I became a vampire. That has its liabilities, but on the whole is a benefit, because I retain my youth.” Actually she had in effect jumped thirty years, but that was more complicated than she cared to get into at present.

“You are lovely! You have filled out since we were companions. But why are you here?”

“I believe I have a deal to make. I will help you if you will help me.”

“We don’t need to make a deal, Rena; we’re friends. But there’s not a lot I can do as a ghost.”

“I think there is. I want to learn how to use the powers of Night. I need a test subject I can trust.”

“A test subject? I don’t understand.”

“I am studying magic, but lack access to the secrets of Night. I think a ghost could find them more readily. More than that, I want to learn to transform a ghost to something more solid, and not have her turn on me.”

Molly was interested. “Can you give me back my body?”

“I don’t think so. Not your living body. But maybe I could give you some solidity, so you might emulate the living state. I don’t know whether there would be danger for you.”

“What danger could there be for one already dead?”

“Dabbling in such arts is thought to be evil. You might get sent to Hell.”

“I am in Hell already, foully murdered and unable to seek vengeance. No risk there.”

“I might be able to help you achieve vengeance. I don’t know.”

“No, it’s too late for that.”

“I can lend you my body for some renewed experience of living.”

“That would be wonderful! But I will help you regardless. You’re my friend.”

“Then come with me, and we shall see what we can accomplish.”

“Gladly! But I must bid farewell to those I know here.”

“You can do it in physical form, though me. But when I need my body back, I expect you to yield it.”

“Of course.” The ghost nodded. “Suddenly I appreciate why you want a friend. You can’t trust just any ghost.”

“So I found. Do you know Lilah?”

“Don’t mess with her! She’s dangerous.”

“So I found,” Kerena repeated. “I think we understand each other. But there is one other thing: I already have a ghost. Ignore her.”

“But maybe I know her.”

“No. She needs to be ignored. Trust me.”

The timelines didn’t waver. Kerena knew what was what. Molly and Jolie were friends in T1, but Jolie did not yet exist in T2.

Molly joined them. Kerena gave her the body, and she walked to the mirror, adjusting herself. Molly did not look at all like Kerena, apart from being of a similar age, but as she fixed the hair and assumed an expression, the image in the mirror came to resemble the ghost to a remarkable extent. “I am ready,” she said.

Molly went to the madam. “I appreciate what you and your mother have done for me,” she said. “Now I am departing with a friend, for a special mission, so my room can be used by another girl.”

The woman stared. “Molly! Can it be?”

“I am still a ghost, merely with a temporary host. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. Thank you for accepting me, after my death.”

The women looked bemused. “Congratulations. You well be welcome back when your mission is done.”

“That is kind of you. Tell the girls I wish them well.” She departed.

Outside, Molly relinquished the body. “That felt wonderful! It’s so nice to be alive again, even if only in surrogate. Thank you so much.”

“Welcome,” Kerena said, resuming control. “Now I must travel north, but we can talk meanwhile. Please tell me your history. You never mentioned your curse when I knew you alive.”

“I preferred that it be unknown, as nothing could be done about it. It started with my mother. She was a beautiful woman. She was courted by a sorceress, but she was not of that persuasion, so declined and married a man. The man was one the sorceress desired also, which made it worse. The sorceress was angry, so retaliated by cursing the child of that union: me. This was calculated to hurt my mother worse than anything else, and indeed she wept, but could not change it. So I was destined to die young and violently.”

“Young and violently,” Kerena repeated, remembering something. “Who was the sorceress?”

“The king’s sister, the Fey.”

That was what Morgan le Fey hadn’t told her: that she was responsible for the curse that killed Molly. Kerena’s anger surged; indeed, they would be enemies. “I worked with the Fey,” Kerena said. “I was with her when you died. She never said.”

“The curse was from fifteen years before. Maybe she forgot about it.”

“No, she mentioned it to me. The bitch.”

“I wanted vengeance, but now she is dead or gone, so it’s too late. That really irks me. Not that I ever had any way to accomplish it.”

“I had to turn vampire to accomplish my desire, yet today I am satisfied to be so. Maybe you can find some satisfaction in your ghostly status, in time. We never know where fate will lead us.”

How very true, Jolie thought. Kerena had as yet no idea of the phenomenal course she was destined to follow, just as Molly had no notion of her own.

“What’s that?” Molly asked. “What phenomenal course?” And the lines blurred.

Jolie jumped back to stifle her own thought, and the lines clarified. She would have to be more careful; the other ghost could tune in on her otherwise, especially when her thoughts were on that ghost.

“I hope my fate has something more interesting in mind than stasis.”

“Oh? What is it that ghosts do, when not interacting with the living?”

“Nothing. We simply settle in place and tune out of minutes, years, or decades. I would love to have things interesting enough so that I don’t have to tune out much.”

“I hope to have far more interesting things,” Kerena said.

They arrived at the warren. Kerena solidified and went to Morely’s chamber. He was there, asleep, embracing Vanja, who lay naked on top of him.

“This is already interesting,” Molly said, observing detail knowledge-ably. “He is in her, but asleep. She must be pretty dull.”

“Not at all. But they practice sex an enormous amount here. They must have felt more comfortable sleeping together, as it were.”

“This is your man? He evidently doesn’t miss you much.”

“He’s with his wife. I’m his mistress. I’ve been busy elsewhere.” Kerena nudged Vanja’s pert rear with a foot. “Wake up, sleepy bottom,” she said aloud.

Vanja did. She lifted her head. “Oh, hello Rena. Did you find her?”

“Yes. Molly is with me now. She says you must be pretty dull if Morely fell asleep at the helm.”

Vanja laughed. That woke Morely. He made as it to disengage, but Vanja refused to let him. “Finish your business first, lover.
Then
you can see to her.”

Morely did not require further urging. He completed the act with style, while Kerena and the ghosts observed. It was surprising how many nuance variants there could be for a straightforward act.

“I think I like these people,” Molly said internally. “They truly appreciate sex.”

In due course Kerena formally introduced Molly, and lent her the body briefly. Then it was time to explore the ghostly aspects. “Lilah said she knew everything, but I’m not sure she did,” Kerena said. “How much do ghosts know of Night?”

“Depends on the ghost,” Molly said. “I tried to learn things in order to pursue vengeance, but found mostly interesting by-paths like the Carnival of Ghosts. I could introduce you to more knowledgeable ghosts, I suppose.”

“That may help. But I’d rather start without them, because of the trust issue.”

“Lilah was one of the worst choices, but any ghost will try to take your body,” Molly agreed. “I would be tempted, if I weren’t your friend.”

“Which is why I sought you. But I’ll try to make it worth your while. What
do
you want, apart from vengeance?”

“To have a living body, of course. But-”

“What about someone else’s body? If we could find a girl who doesn’t want to live, so you could take over?”

“Depends on the body, but yes, I’d like that.”

“Now what’s this carnival you mentioned?”

“The Carnival of Ghosts. That’s a regular event, where we all get together for fun. We dance, have contests, make love, see sideshows, tour time-”

“Tour time?”

“Ghosts aren’t limited the way mortals are. We can
go
where we want.”

“To the future?”

“Yes, but I don’t do that; it makes me dizzy. There are so many alternates, I’m afraid I’ll get lost. The future really isn’t fixed, so what you see there may not actually happen if you don’t stay on the right timeline. I prefer to visit the past, which is fixed.”

Jolie found this interesting. She knew it, of course, but had thought such awareness was a more recent thing. Evidently not. And of course even the past was malleable, if touched by a visitor from a divergent timeline. She had not said anything about this to Kerena, lest that make the lines diverge, but now that a person of this timeline had done so, it was all right.

“I want two things,” Kerena said. “To save my son, now my grandson, from the taint I inadvertently put on him, and to have vengeance against all the Incarnations of Day for not helping me accomplish that. Maybe a visit to the future could show me weaknesses they will have, that I could exploit. But if I can’t be sure that what I see will really happen, that won’t help. Still, if the past can’t be changed, that doesn’t help either.”

“Vengeance against the Incarnations! I think that’s impossible. I didn’t even know of them until after I died, but now I know they are untouchable. They wield powers beyond those of any mortal magician, and can destroy mortals at whim. If Fate cuts your thread, or Death takes your soul-”

“I’ll risk it,” Kerena said grimly. “They are arrogant and uncaring, and deserve to be dispatched.”

“Maybe so. Still, how can you hope to accomplish any such thing?”

“I was able to locate them using powers I have developed as a mortal and as a vampire. If I can tame the powers of Night, I should be able to do much more. Those powers should match all those of Day. But there seems to be resistance; something prevents me from approaching those powers. I need to find a way to get around that resistance.”

“Well, its inherent,” Molly said. “Things don’t like to be handled. A boulder doesn’t like to be moved; the wind doesn’t like to be balked. Night doesn’t like to be exposed.”

Kerena paused, surprised. Could it be that simple? The inertia of forces long left alone? That had never occurred to her. “Could a ghost locate and define those powers, even if they are resistive to exposure?”

“I don’t know. It’s not something I ever thought of doing.”

“This carnival-there are many ghosts there? Could I talk with them? To learn if any know what I need?”

“Oh, sure, I could take you there. But they won’t necessarily tell you the truth. Not unless you pay more than you want.”

“Would they tell
you
the truth?”

“Maybe. I have nothing to be cheated out of.”

“I want to go to the carnival. Can I go?”

“Yes, as my guest. But you would be the only part-mortal there; it could be uncomfortable. They would notice, and maybe tease you cruelly.”

“I’ll risk it,” Kerena said again.

The Carnival of Ghosts was a wondrous thing. It was set up like a pitched camp, with assorted tents of various sizes, barkers at each entrance, and throngs of ordinary looking folk. Kerena saw the top of some kind of wooden mountain with tracks on it, an oddity.

A roller coaster,
Jolie thought.
They will be invented a thousand years or so hence. Evidently the ghosts are truly timeless, and take their pleasures wherever they find them.

“They are all ghosts,” Molly assured Kerena, “All but you. Don’t let them get to you.”

They approached the main entrance. “What’s this dung?” the ticket man demanded. “We don’t let her kind in here.”

“Well, make an exception, pinhead,” Molly snapped, floating out from Kerena to assume her full ghost form. “She’s with me.”

“And how is she going to pay for the ticket, cutie?”

“I’ll buy the ticket.”

“No you won’t. She has to buy her own.”

“That’s not in the rules, you lecherous leech.”

Kerena caught on to what the ghost wanted: sex with a live woman. This was hardly a burden, considering her history, and she had been without sex for several hours, so was getting hungry for it. “I’ll
do i
t. Tell me how.”

“Just stand there,” the male ghost said. He stepped up to her and embraced her, his outline barely touching. He kissed her, and she felt the tenuous impact of his lips on hers. Then she felt a similarly tenuous penetration below. Her clothing made no difference; he ignored it. He worked his way into the spot, evidently feeling as much contact as he needed. She would not have felt anything, had she not been alert for it. Had she moved, what faint interaction there was would have been lost, as there was no physical component. That was why he needed her acquiescence.

He thrust and panted, and she felt the motion, like a feather made of bubbles, faintly tickling her interior. He climaxed, and it was like a driblet of thin mist. Maybe it was her own moisture, stirred by her awareness of sex. It was enough to get her interested, but not enough to allow her a climax.

He finished and withdrew, leaving her unsatisfied. “Here’s your ticket,” he said, presenting a ghostly piece of paper.

So she had just had sex with a ghost. It wasn’t much, but at least she had seen his figure and felt a little. Maybe if she practiced she would be able to get more from it. “Thank you.”

“It’s not as much for him as with another ghost,” Molly confided as they entered the Carnival. “A lady ghost is on the same plane, so the sensation is real. But they’re all thrilled by the notion of doing it with a real live body. Lady ghosts like doing it with living men, too, though they have to move carefully to keep the anatomy in place.”

So it turned out to be. Every side show had its ticket taker, and the price was the same for her: stand and be addressed. So she stood and felt their faint ardors. As sex went, it was puny. But neither did it bother her, because as sex went, it was also about as convenient as it could be. She didn’t have to do anything but stand for a moment for the barely-felt plumbing. Then she encountered a female ghost barker, and had to stand still for kissing, breast stroking, and genital rubbing. Well, she had had experience with that, too, before and after turning vampire.