The Ghastly Exchange – Episode 5
We’ve all had times when it feels like the rug’s been pulled out from under our feet, and nothing makes sense.
This was one such time.
Or was my mental sluggishness a side effect of the potion that numbed my body from neck to toe?
I didn’t know. All I was sure of was that Countess Virrellenta and her assistant, Igor, didn’t have my best interests at heart.
With the room half in shadow, lit only by the fading daylight seeping through the window, I watched dry-mouthed as Igor came into my field of vision and placed a side table on the floor between me and the countess. He left and returned a moment later carrying a head-sized contraption consisting of a short, thick cylinder of glass filled with green liquid surrounded by brass tubes, pipes, and wires. He put it on the table, adjusted a dial on its base, then hurried away.
Virrellenta leaned forward, her face bathed in the green glow emanating from the glass cylinder.
“Behold Igor’s masterpiece,” she said. “This beautiful machine will bring about the next step in ushering my plan to fruition.” She ran a finger down its side. “It will transfer Igor’s mind into your body, and your mind into his body.”
Sweat broke out on my forehead. Gagged and paralysed I could do little more than moan in protest.
“You seem concerned.” Virrellenta chuckled. “But rest assured, the machine will work fine.”
While she’d been talking, Igor had returned and was plugging the wires leading from the bowl on my head into the loathsome contraption squatting on the tabletop like a mechanical one-eyed frog from hell.
Virrellenta leaned back and continued talking while Igor dragged another armchair close to the table. “I’ve noticed you haven’t enquired about your uncle Grimmon’s well being.”
If I’d been able to talk, I would have pointed out that I had more pressing matters to be concerned about. She was right, though. I hadn’t spared Grimmon a thought since I’d last seen him in the carriage.
“I imagine that’s because he isn’t your uncle at all,” she said. “How could he be, when he’s a goblin?”
My eyes must have widened, for she said, “Oh, come now. I saw instantly he wasn’t who you said he was. I didn’t even need Igor’s mind-reading device to do so. We don’t have goblins – or any other fairy-folk – in our world, but their memory lives on in folklore, so I had no trouble recognising his real nature. However, you needn’t be concerned about him. He’s an important part of my plan.” She wagged her finger at me. “You gave me the idea yourself when you pretended he was sick.”
My gaze flicked to Igor who was busy connecting a second brass bowl – identical to the one strapped on my head – to the device on the table. Apparently satisfied, he went over to the empty armchair and picked up a small bottle I hadn’t noticed before on the seat. He sat in the chair, placed the bowl on his head and did up the strap. With meticulous movements, he pulled a wooden wedge from his pocket and put it on the arm of his chair.
Finally, he leered in my direction and took a swig from the bottle,
“Ready, my Lady,” he said.
I turned my attention back to Virrellenta as she got to her feet and sauntered over to Igor.
“Can you move your arms? Your legs?” she said.
“No, my Lady. The potion has taken effect,” said Igor.
“Good.” She picked up the wedge and put it in his mouth. “It’s time to begin.”
Turning to me, she said, “I’m sure you understand the need for Igor to take the same potion I gave you. I can’t have you roaming free once your mind is in his body.”
The full impact of what was about to happen hit me. I thrashed my head about and sobbed in helpless rage.
“Oh, don’t fret,” said Virrellenta. “It’s quite unbecoming.” She strolled up to the glowing device. “You must be curious concerning what I said earlier about the idea you gave me. You see, thanks to another of Igor’s potions, your goblin is sleeping peacefully upstairs. Once Igor’s mind is in your body, we’ll take Grimmon to your castle where we’ll tell everyone he’s fallen ill. I’ll pretend to be a doctor and say I have to stay at his bedside constantly to care for him until he recovers. Your friends will be completely taken in because Igor will be there, in your body, vouching for me every step of the way.” She rubbed her hands together. “Poor Grimmon won’t do well. In fact his recovery will be so slow I’ll still be there when your castle moves to another world.”
I moaned.
“What’s that you’re asking?” she said, theatrically cupping a hand behind her ear. “What about you? Oh, you’ll be staying in this world. Your body won’t of course. But, your mind will, what with it being in Igor’s body. You’ll gradually gain the use of his body – or should I say, your new body? – as the potion wears off over the next fortnight. By which time, I’ll be satisfying my appetite on fresh, unsuspecting people in a new world.” She clapped her hands in delight. “The simplest plans are always the best, don’t you agree?”
Ignoring my wails, she pressed down a lever on the machine.
An intense burst of green light streaked from the glass cylinder. The brass bowl on my head pulsed with energy.
I closed my eyes and screamed as pain flooded every inch of my being. My brain vibrated like a plucked violin string. For a breathtaking moment it felt like the entire universe was crammed into my skull.
A yawning vortex filled with swirling green mist, opened beneath me.
For a heartbeat, I dangled like a gnat hovering over bathwater spiralling down a plughole. With a soul-shattering howl, I plummeted like a stone into the whirling emerald morass.
*** Continued in Episode 6 ***
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