THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, MAY 17, 1958.
Page
NECROMANCY
by Anthony Fuller
the whisky
Gregory divided equally among us.
Had I but listened to Gregory! Up to the moment he opened his bottle, each man was free to go his own way. It was as it he sfood at the cross roads, of de- cision. He could tell his jokes or not tell them; he could go to bed or stay; he could drink or not drink, but having quaffed from Gregory's cup, lie was bound by Invisible chains forged a by some dark agent.
UR Writers' Conference finished on
note of reciprocal admiration. The
0
Chairman, a publisher, congratulated Undead
our
us on being the best writers in the world; our spokesman replied by saying publishers were the most generous publishers in the universe.
"Well gentlemen," he said, sit ting crossed legged on the car- pel, "subject nommal, I suppose?"
He poured himself out half a glass of gin, and sprinkled it with water, swallowed it in two gulps, refilled his glass, and tolik us about the old maid who turn ed her tom cat fato a prince.
There was a knock at the door and the right porter entered. Ha smiled a ghostly smile as he stood in the midst of the writh- ing, cigarette fumes. "Porter," sald Gregory, "bring me at once a stout oak stake, a handful of guille, and, the sharpest kölfa we have in the kitchen."
"My guwd," replied the parler, what a night. Well sir, I don't know about the steak, but I'll try and fix a few sandwiches, and if I might suggest it, a jug of strong bläck coffee.
Gregory, pointed majestically to the door. "Go! You know not with what powers you dabtic."
For after a sip or two of Greporter's slippers shuffled away The three of us listened as the gory's whisky, strange things be-
We sat gan to happen. Every man was down the corridor. longue tied as a weird
alpping our unfolt
whisky, but still Smythe aat
His transfixed. breeze wove. The cigarette fumes> into uncanny shapes around us. terrible grin, and we could see mouth had opened into a Smythe was leaning, forward he was wrestling with some un- he tried to from the bed staring B us with known power as
reach his mouth with his whisicy.. We watched in clupled glazed
silence as he poured the whisky into his car.
<yca. Browne had a quired an uncanny skill that en- bottle on a gin bottle on another a whisky abled him to balance whisky bottle, and walk about the room with them.
Hating to see so much cordiality wasted, I invited
Science Smythe,
Fiction writer; and Browne, Modern Romance writer, to come and finish off a bottle of whisky I had in my room. Browne and I lounged in easy chairs while Smythe sgt on my bed, and after talking about this and that for a while, we began a 'have you heard?' 'session,
About half-past eleven, my ,whisky ran out, but Smythe saved the situation by fetching
We finished the gin while I watched the carpet began to a bottle of gin from his soon, told one, Smythe told another, smoulder between Gregory's and we really settled down to Brown capped it with the story If Ai a quarter to twelve, the
of the porter who swept, the reception clerk rang my room
wrong platform, but Gregory asking us to quieten down asools the trick with a story about cur noise was keeping the other Saten and the chorus girl. guests awake. · Atif a quarter past twelve, Gregory looked in, eyed us with that awful leer of his and asked if he might join the némiori.
The laughter which greeted this set the telephone ringing
But the supernatural had ac- again; also an outraged patron quired more personal unnerving knocked on our door offering to qualities, One had but to light a knock the head off anyone who cigarette to find that one already dared to open the door to him. We elected Gregory, and the o.p. seemed to vanish in a cloud of
Art
sinoke,
Browne began to weep softly, mooning, Poor Smythe, poor Smythe.* Then having sald that, he fell fat on his face on the carpet.
I looked across at Gregory. He had o cigarette in coe's mouth. A was grinning a fixed glassy grin. spent match flung carelessly "You fiend," I said, "It mortal over one's shoulder Immediately hands can kill you, mine shall burst into flames and set the cure perform that happy task, end tains alight. And even as I
feat.
.I
The little travelling clock on the dressing table began to play strange tricks. So lang watched it, the hands stood still, but let me but blink my eyes, and the hands would leap len minutes, thirty minutes time.
at
#
There came that pause in the proceedings that occurs during alt auch sessions round about one o'clock, when common sense says 'you've had enough' but the liquor replies, “what the hell,”
"Gregory." my bande shook, We looked thirstly at Gregory, "what foul potion have we For a while, he sat contemplat drunk?" He drew himself up ing his bottle, then said: I to his full height, and as he would be very unfadr to open stood there, I was easy to BLE Now Gregory"you would this without-Art-warning-you-he-was-in-league with-the-devil.. know him under his nom-de- that in spite of the fact that "My friend, do not say I did not
warn you." plume) is the prosperous author this bottle carries the label of a of at least three best selling brand of whisky that is known every English speaking novels that have scared the day- light out
of his readers from household, it is by no Aberdeen to Los Angeles. Some the usual dis:lliation.
means
evli minded people have sald
ald, "Gregory, we are not that his literary success is due of your reading public, so you to some Faustian pact that he don't have to give us any super- has made with the devil, and natural bull. Likewis -you think there is something in that have drunk our grog, so now we because his most popular novels will drink yours."
are talk about - Necromancy and Black Magic.
om warning you that this is from
"But poor Smythe," I said.
We locked at Smythe, but he was still frozen in that ghastly pose
animation. of suspended His eyes goggled tragically, as he gazed with a fixed stare at his halt emptied glass held at arm's length from his mouth. "I am Afraid he my Joined the vast company of the undeed. "So be it," he replied, “but i I fear we must get an cak stake le vot the directors keep for and some garlic." Gregory. themselves. In it is all the an- pushed the service bell, clent lone of Scotland,
The in- god," said Browne, thuddering, spiration of Burns and Barrie, steak and garlic now, are you?" "you are not suggesting we eat the ferocity of Bruce and Mac. beth, I am told," he whispered, "this is the frightful brew weired sisters prepared against supernatural lore. "Gregory the reception of Macbeth."
means we've got to drive a stake through Smythe's heart. and stuff his mouth with garlic. Personally, I am of the opinion we have to cut his head off as In a ring around the bottle, and well. Has anyone got a knife?"
the
The truth is, 1 was not parti cularly pleased to sop Gregory as he stood in the doorway of my room, his long cara twitch Ing, his slanted eyebrows raised In cynical amusement, but as he had a large bottle in his hand, I invited him in cordially enough. He was in the centre of the room in one long stride, and he' placed his botile on the floor, I was quite firm. "You are not and stood leering like a great talking us out of that bottle of black bat walking on its hind whisky." We pushed our glasses lego.
"My
"Don't be a fool." I know my
the world will be free of your carpet no longer anoulaṛred. evil.”
and all the fumes of the even- ing's orgy were gone,
"You want a fight?” he asked. "Yes," I replied, "and if ton thousand devils were on your side, I should stul night you."
"Right
But let's Onish our drinks first, these chops don't, seem to want them."
And
me.
He took the glass from Smythe's hand and gave it to helped himself to Brownc's, for by some uncanny face without spilling a drop. skill, Browne had fallen on his
We drained our glasses. "Fight," wald Gregory, "You want to fight. Outside."
We crept down the staircase, through the hall, and into the night. Gregory raised his arms to the
It was of course, necromancy. That devil Gregory.
I washed, shaved, even ate n small breakfast, and made for. the train. 1 found Browne and Smythe waiting for me on the platform. We secured a carriage for ourselves, when up walked Gregory, uninvited.
"Well, well," he said, "what n night," he said. " do not re- member such a night for a long time."
light. "There you have FOTRC- "I see," said Gregory, "and as thing." Ho the devil, I do not get my due, pocket a fat ginas tube in which look from his
I came into your του π last reposed some moon shaped night, and you had already lozenges that
liko glowed and drifted Snow. "Now, al-
drunk a bottle of whisky, were well into a battle of gin. though you see on the label After I had knocked you, bụi # well known proprietáry last night. (I hope your chin is brand of pick-me-up, these. talk of not sore, by the way.) it sounded silly to
I put tablets, allow me to tell you, are 10 bed. likewise these made especially for the direc- necromancy in broad daylight, you nevertheless I said, "Look, we gentlemen. The porter and tors." He lowered his
up your room, and As a matter of fact they are
ani
an anclent recipe
what succ¢&s
ere three hard working scribes, cleaned
we achieve, we exchanged your curtains achieve by our own efforts. We carpet for the curtains and car
the pet in the next room." don't like... well.. sort of thing that happened last night."
"What <to
you
mean?" Gregory seemed genuinely be-
moon, "Power of wildered. darkness, come to my nid,” he called. The · next moment, I saw the moon leap across the sky, and heard the hall porter say, "Pretty, oh, preity:""
*
..
We gazed at him gralefully.. "14 cost me Live pounds" "Why," I said,
GA "everything Gregory continued, "but was going ane until you walk am willing to pay my there, along. We start a quiet night that will be twenty-five shilings with a few drinks, but what each." The next morning I woke up happens when you join us? The to find myself comfortably clad curtains catch alight, the carpet Io my pyjamas, Also, apart
starts to burn, and poor Smythe from a slight bruise on my jaw, is sitting half dead under some What spell. All right. But when we I did not feel too bad. was more, all traces of the night wake up this morning, all trace before had gone. The curtains of last night is gone. And I were hanging unscorched; the
even cat some breakfast.
We handed over the money. "But what about us?" I asked ka should feel him. "We
death this morning."
"Ah!" Gregory's face seemed lighted with a strange inner
made from
volee.
that was once the secret of Nero. And he needed them, I can tell you. I slipped two ot each into your last drinks."
} looked at Smythe. Ila ruddy face beurned, as the train ran through the pleasant fields of England.
looked at. Browne. A flo shaky, but otherwise all right."
I looked at Gregory, Even he seemed well disposed to all men. "It's stili necromancy," I said,
End
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