Sisterhood

Neko followed me outside after my morning ritual and did her business in the bushes. She proceeded to pounce several snow drifts before retreating to my shoulder and a place she could strategically spy the human world. I looked at my watch and saw the date and my heart sank. I had been so caught up with the damn cottage I had forgotten to get Christmas gifts. I headed to the bus stop when I spotted my mother and sister walking towards the cottage. I stopped and worked on a story for why I hadn't visited with their gifts yet. It had to be slick and yet believable. I didn't want them to think I was being a thoughtless ass. I drew a fucking blank. If I tried to lie mom would know, she always knew.

"He looks guilty." Mom announced to the world. "Guilty as sin."

"I..." I began but sis cut me off like usual.

"Where the hell have you been?" Karen scolded me.

"I am a college student; besides I have other duties." I tried and failed.

"You can't find one night to sneak in and rape me like the dirty little slut I am?" Sis said right in front of our mother and I looked at mom and she was laughing. "Got ya."

"Shit. How about breakfast? I am starved and Neko here needs feeding."

"Ooh... what a cute kitty!" Sis fell in love and Neko ate it up.

We headed for a local diner and Neko was on Karen's shoulder and rubbing her face against sis'. Did I tell them or let sis find out the fun way? Let nature take its course I say. I had a visual of Karen falling asleep naked around Neko and being woken up by the cat girl eating her out. Now that was sexy!

"He's smiling." Mom snickered. "He's up to something. Watch your ass kiddo."

"Yes mom."

Luckily the diner was owned by a member of the sisterhood. As we ate breakfast, I apologized for not getting them Christmas gifts yet. Mom laughed as she refilled her coffee. I learned that Rowena had picked out two nice winter coats and sent them as gifts with my name attached. They were far too nice for casual wear but perfect for date night. It sounded like a trap to me an unavoidable one at that. I conceded to dinner and a meal.

"Hey mom," I said leaning in close since we were in a public place.

"What?" She replied leaning in as well.

"Who's your sisterhood pledged to?"

"Lilith of course. I thought you knew that." She whispered. "Why do you ask?"

"I've met the Sisterhood of the Nameless." I said and understanding dawned in my mom's eyes. "I left none standing."

Mom busted out laughing and Karen looked confused. She asked about the other sisters and who the Nameless was. I explained as best as I could, but the entire concept of world hopping seemed to go over her head. I gave up after my third attempt to explain and even though I had experienced it I was overwhelmed. It would be easy enough to lay it at the feet of a seizure or hallucination. I knew better of course, or did I?

"You look troubled." Mom noticed and voiced her concerns.

"I am feeling a bit confused and overwhelmed." I admitted.

We spent the afternoon together. I took comfort from their presence and it was good to see them again. I caught up with how well Karen was doing in school. My absence had impacted her grades. Without my help they had sharply declined. I was too busy with school and the cottage to help. I wanted to, but she had to want it herself. I feared she was too spoiled to work hard enough to pull out of the tailspin she was in.

"I don't want to fail." Karen said but there was no conviction in her voice.

"I can't help you." I said and for the first time in my life my mom supported me. "You have to help yourself first. If you graduate, I will reward you. Let that inspire you or not."

We went our separate ways and while I felt like crap leaving her it was for her own good. She would or wouldn't graduate on her own. Karen had to learn discipline. Maybe my offer would kindle some measure of desire to succeed or in her case suck seed. I spent the day just walking around the campus and the surrounding streets. I was tireless, and the cold didn't seem to affect me much. The sun was dipping into the west and it was time for dinner. I returned to the cottage for the night. It was getting late and suddenly I felt worn out. I crossed the campus on foot and stopped short when I saw a flickering light coming from one of the windows of the cottage. Were Serenity's lights acting up tonight? I took out my keys and unlocked the front door. I stepped in and saw the hearth alive with a large fire. The interior had changed and was vastly smaller. The floor was cobblestone and the furniture that from a century or more past. A single figure sat by the fire warming himself against the winter chill.

"Are you the latest one?" He asked his speech slightly stilted and slurred.

"I am the Keeper of this place." I replied as he gestured for me to sit in the only other chair available.

"My name is Alexander Constantine and I am the tenth master of this house. I bid you welcome." He took a decanter of wine and filled a second glass that was on the table between us. "You have questions."

"So many, too many to count. I feel like I am going crazy." I said as I picked up the wine glass.

"I understand completely." Alexander said and chuckled softly over the crackle of the fire. "I still feel the pull of insanity late at night."

Alexander was in his late 50's early 60's but wore his age well. His hair was that silver that men seem to earn and women lust after. I guessed he was a native New Englander by his distinctive accent. The cottage interior placed him back to near the founding of the college. He said he was the tenth master. I wonder how long the average Keeper lasted? If it were forty or fifty years and he was the tenth, no that's not possible! Four or five hundred years put it in the hands of Native Americans. It would mean the first Keepers were members of the Miskatonic tribe. I returned to the present.

"The sisterhoods." I said and then took a sip of the wine.

"They serve their individual patrons, but they also serve you after a fashion. The sisters are as ancient as the oldest stones of ancient Babylon. Their patrons are gods and demons out of myth and legend. The Keepers strike a balance between the light and the dark. We walk the cloven path of shadow."

"I have seen a world with two moons and spent time with the Sisters of the Nameless." I told him, and he smiled. "That is my first and only world so far."

"I remember my first time. It is like when I lost my virginity." He chuckled. "It was a realm of the fae and the sisters were the daughters of Titania. Gods what a night of lust and debauchery! I never looked back after that. I have overthrown governments and gods and held up the righteous as well as the wicked. We are the balancing point on which the multiverse pivots and shifts. If anyone were to offer me advice it would be this. Trust your instincts and never suffer regret."

"What if I fail? What if I make the wrong decision?" I asked, and he smiled.

"Failure leads to wisdom. How can we not learn from falling? We dust ourselves off and stand up again do we not? We are not perfect nor are we gods. We are mortal. We take the stage and leave it when our time is up. Listen to me on this one point most important, we lie, and we deceive because we must."

"The sentinels?" I asked.

"Extra weights for the cosmic balance my friend. They are lost but give them comfort when you can. That bond is beyond time and death and do not disgrace them or yourself. Be a good lad and fetch another bottle of wine so that we can celebrate our fortunate meeting."

I left the living room and its stone hearth. The cottage was a bit bigger than before and I found the basement stairs easy enough. I had to climb down them backwards as they were more of an angled ladder than actual stairs. The floor was loose earth and had a rich scent of loam and lavender. The stone walls were the same as I remembered. I went to the room that had once been empty but was now a fully stocked wine cellar. I was drawn to two bottles and retrieved them. I took on the challenge of the steps and like a tightrope walker navigated them slowly but successfully.

"Tada!"

The cottage had changed, again. The wood paneling was new, and the kitchen had a middle to late nineteenth century feel to it. I returned to the living room and the fire was built up and was now a small blaze. The chairs were in same spot but were now larger and looked more comfortable. The pocket doors to the dining room opened of their own accord revealing the ladies awaiting my arrival. I nearly dropped the bottles when I recognized the Lady Lilith in the flesh.

"Lilith!" I cried out and moved towards her.

"Lady Lilith." She corrected me. "Let me do introductions around. The planes have aligned and only these fine bitches were able to manifest tonight. Bast. Kali. Athena. White Buffalo Calf Woman. Inanna. Isis. Oh, and She Who Must Not Be Named. Be a dear and pour the wine."

"Yes, Lady Lilith." I said feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.

The first bottle lasted long enough to fill the combined glasses of these fine ladies three times. I attended them as they spoke of events that were unfolding. Some worlds were doing well, and others struggled. I listened and learned that the assembled patrons each had their own sisterhood on different versions of Earth.

"Congratulations!" Bast praised me on finding Neko again.

"It is our first meeting for me." I explained, and she laughed. "What?"

"I trained her from a kitten to be a helpful companion." Bast laughed again. "Keep her on a short leash."

"Leash, ooh that's a good one coming from you." Kali chuckled while sticking out her long blue tongue.

"Screw you ice queen." Bast fired back playfully.

"Here we go again." The White Buffalo warned. "This is burning man all over again. See." She pointed to a tongue lock between Athena and Inanna. The two patrons were deep in an intimate embrace. "This is going to get out of hand."

"No, it won't." Lilith said with little confidence. "Fill my glass pet."

I opened the second bottle of wine and filled her glass first. The others held out their glasses and the miracle of the second bottle lasted twice as long as the first. Once the bottle was empty, they were proper tipsy and horny as hell. While I had dreamt of making love to Lilith this would be my first time touching her in the flesh. The patrons formed a circle around Lilith and I and there was a familiarity to it.

"I surrender." I added at the last moment.

"You are going to need that gift of stamina I gave you." Lilith warned as she approached me.

She cupped my chin in her hand and the sense of euphoria overwhelmed me. My last coherent thought was Bast hollering of all things, puppy pile. I awoke in my bed. I felt pleasantly drained and freshly fucked right proper. I got up, took a righteous piss, and went back to bed. I never got there. A noise from the kitchen alarmed me. Baseball bat in hand I investigated. The fridge door was open, and I saw someone bent over rummaging around.

"Pizza!" A male voice cried out. "God damn... I haven't had pizza for fucking ages!"

"Help yourself." I said and settled the bat on my shoulder.

"Thanks mate." He replied. "Hello Keeper!" He said as he stood and faced me.

"Aw... fuck me!" I cursed when I saw his face.

"Yeah, it's me or should I say it's you." The other Keeper said with a smile. "Other worlds... other versions of us."

"This is really too much." I said as the bat slipped from my fingers and crashed with a metallic twang to the floor.

"Master!" Neko yowled as she raced into the kitchen. "Master?" She said looking at me. "Master?" She repeated when she spied the Keeper by the fridge. "Neow!" She hissed as she sniffed the air. "Master?" She growled as she moved close and sniffed me. Neko repeated the process and wrinkled her nose up at the other version of me. "Neow Master. My Master!" She bounded to me and pressed her naked form against me.

"Who knew." The other Keeper chuckled. "I am glad you have a friend."

"A world without pizza, perish the thought." I replied. "Eat up. I could throw one those frozen pies into the oven for you."

"Nah. I'm cool. How are you coping?" He asked, and I felt like my reflection should be ten years younger and far less scarred. "Rough life?"

"It is a bitch at times, but the benefits are pretty good."

"Which sisterhood?" I asked.

"Ratri. Patron of Shadows." He said and pulled up his shirt revealing the Sanskrit characters below his belly button. "You?"

"Lilith." I replied and removed my shirt as well.

"Damn boyo, you've been busy."

"HUH?" I said and looked down. "Holy shit! Where did all those come from?"

"You look like a NASCAR driver with all those patrons. Must have impressed the ladies something fierce." He chuckled.

"I just wished I remembered."

"Don't. Mortals cannot hold onto those sorts of experiences. I've tried. Don't beat yourself over it." He said and suddenly dropped to one knee. "Duty... aw fuck... duty calls. Maybe next time."

He was just gone. It was just like the sentinels. That Keeper had returned to his own dimension or more like yanked back. It looked mildly painful. Would I meet more versions of myself? It seemed likely and how different would they be. I cleaned up his mess and offered Neko my arm. She snuggled close and purred. She muttered 'My Master' repeatedly as we returned to bed. I stripped and lie down with Neko snuggling close. She pressed her ear to my chest and made a tut-tut sound.

"Your heart is greatly troubled." She said and continued her diagnosis. "Your eyes hold sorrow and pain. Neow! What ails you Master?"

"You. This place. Hell, the last few months. I don't recognize my life anymore." I said fearing she would take my words hurtfully. I couldn't have misjudged her more.

"I understand. The life of the Keeper is very hard. For you we have just met. For me it has been a long time. Do you trust me, or do I earn your trust? Tomorrow I will earn it. I will show you the library. It is... will be your favorite room in the cottage. Neow we go to sleep?"

I pulled the covers up and she settled in. I closed my eyes. What kind of library? Were they books? Perhaps it was something alien with crystals that passed for entire volumes of books. My mind raced and Neko sat up and caterwauled.

"Neow! Neow! Neow!" She yelled. "Your heart races like some great engine. It is Neko's fault. I spoke of the library and you think only of it and not naughty lewd Neko. Bad Master!" She laughed and naked left the bed. "Follow Neow! See the library and then maybe reward clever Neko with pounding of sweaty bodies. Yes?"

"Lead the way naughty Neko." I said watching her ass and tail move quite erotically.

We went to the second floor and Neko appeared to be looking for a particular door. After several loops through the hallways we found it. It wasn't until I stood before the blue door that I noticed the hall hadn't grown or shrunk but the doors had changed in color and composition. The blue door was marked with an odd sword like sigil.

"Neow must use old key and must think Library before you enter kind Master else it is empty." Neko explained taking my arm in her hands. I found my keys in my hand and slid the skeleton key into the lock and turned it. "Remember, think library."

"Library." I whispered and grabbed the silver doorknob.

Even now it is hard to describe the confines of the Library. It was as if someone took an Escher painting and 3D printed it in four dimensions. It moved and shifted like a living thing struggling to be free of the confines of the cottage. I later learned it was a direct manifestation of the ley line nexus below us. Raw power made physical in the form of books, scrolls, tablets, and yes even data crystals. The Library was represented by a hundred thousand languages from a myriad of alternate earths. It took patience and an incredible will to use the great index.

"Engineering." I said, and the stacks moved around me instead of me having to search out the vast engineering section. "Whoa! Perhaps I should be more specific. Let's see... um..." Before I could utter the words, my surrounds changed again. "Structural Engineering."

"Ask for something really interesting." Neko suggested.

"Such as?"

"You always... you might find technomancy fascinating. It is a blending of science and sorcery." She purred.

"Techno..." I began and once again the Library tapped into my desire and displayed a huge section on the subject. "This is overwhelming. I wish there was an easier way of..." The air filled with the smell of ozone and everything went blinding bright before it went pitch black.

"Master?" I heard Neko calling me back from the abyss. "That was very foolish or very brave."

"What the hell hit me?" I asked, and the Great Interface responded.

"Several terabytes of data that you requested." The authoritative voice of the interface explained. "It is unwise to request such a large amount of data in the future. It could burn out your synapses and leave you a drooling idiot like the Keeper of Earth 1211. He always was a greedy sod. Welcome to the Library, Keeper."

"Thanks. Will I survive?" I asked, and a shimmering curtain of light surrounded me for a moment.

"Fit as a fiddle." The interface announced. "Earth 101." The interface laughed. "You wanted to know which dimension you come from." It paused and continued. "No. The cottage and thus the Library exist in a kind of state of temporal and spatial grace. It isn't called the Nexus for nothing."

"Sounds like something out of Doctor Who. Temporal and Spatial Grace. Welcome to the Nexus bitches!" I rambled as my brain recovered from the shock of being downloaded to. "Listen. Interface. I... um... I just want to be a good Keeper. I want to help people if I can. What I am trying to say is... I need your help." There was a long silence and I continued. "Why didn't you fill in the blanks that time? Why did you let me go on like that?"

"You needed to ask." The Great Interface said softly and compassionately. "Each Keeper is different. Each man or woman their own. Some want power for power's sake. Others like you just want to help. I can't direct your actions you must ask for what you believe you need. In this case I will pass on a lovely little book for you to read. I hope you enjoy it. Perhaps you can come back, and we will discuss it."

I held a copy of the Tao Te Ching in my hands. It was a white silk scroll and the text was written in the original Chinese. I opened the scroll and to my surprise the ancient characters were as clear and concise to me as my native English. I would be doing some reading over the holiday. Leaving the Library was as exciting an experience as interacting with the interface. I was floating in a zero g environment and to move to any exit I had to will myself forward. What kid doesn't want at some time to be an astronaut? I reached the blue door and left the Library. Neko was right. It was my favorite room in the cottage besides the bedroom of course.

Neko and I returned to the hallway. It was time to sleep. My encounter with the Interface and the download were quickly stealing away my strength. I reached the bottom of the steps and drunkenly stumbled forward. If not for Neko I probably would have taken to the couch and slept there. She tucked me in and crawled under the covers afterwards. I fell asleep almost instantly. The weariness was simply overwhelming.

9.Wrong Turn Right Destination

I awoke between Neko and Jarael. I felt great! My mind was clear and sharp the moment I opened my eyes. Ideas, so many ideas swirling around in my mind wanting to get out. But first I had to take a piss, shower, and cook breakfast. I was so eager to be up and moving I woke both of them and they laughed seeing my naked ass heading for the bathroom. They joined me in the shower and after a little romp I headed naked to the kitchen forgetting to get dressed. Jarael sent me back when I started frying bacon. She feared splattering grease might burn me. I was surprised that I was naked, I was sure I had gotten dressed. The constant barrage of thoughts and ideas was becoming overwhelming. My hands needed to be busy. I almost left half naked this time if it weren't for the watchful Neko. She helped me dress and soothed me with light touches against my cheek and calming words.