The Homunculus.

The Homunculus.

I was so depressed, my business was outdated.

Cars used to be covered in lashings of chrome. In the 90’s the plastic arrived. Business became the Hot Rod and Street Machine fans, who used to get engine parts covered in Chrome. However slowly, over time, that market had disappeared. It became more popular to paint engine parts in Candy apple and holographic paints. it didn't help my Chrome shop. I was in debt to my eyeballs.

I pleaded with my dad to bail me out.

His response was to simply liquidate the company and file for bankruptcy. Although my dad was the smartest man I ever knew, I had explained that I had proceeded with the proper channels.

Dad's Alzheimer's was ramping up he just didn't get it. One creditor who is owed $20,000 was not giving up, he had sent some guys to rough me up.

I remember as a boy hanging out down the back of the land, where the massive Gardens had finished. Out there was an old fence and on the other side of it a small graveyard, and a cave with a rusty old door. I used to sit outside that cave and read books. Often I would hear strange sounds coming from the cave, and wondered what was going on inside.

As I approached The Cave the door appeared to be rusted further, it's probably been a good 20 years. I proceeded to grab the old rusty iron door, flakes of rust fell on my head as it creaked and groaned.

It was a creepy afternoon the cloudy sky and cool air sent a shiver down my spine as I recall the feelings of reading horror stories at the back of the graveyard as a boy. The sun was passed Midway in the sky this gloomy afternoon as mist started to form around the Tombstones of the graveyard. It would have made it an awesome photograph for an album cover for a Goth band I thought to myself.

I picked up a rock and bashed at the latch. At last, I would know what was hidden inside this cave, would I find treasure?

Old dry sticks and rocks crumbled under my feet as I crunched my way into the entrance. It was interesting to note that nothing was apparently strange for the First 5 or so minutes of walking, but then I had noticed upon the walls were shelves with candles and glass shield around them to protect them from the soft breeze blowing through this catacomb. Inside the cave, it had opened out to a large flat slab of stone. There were strange markings drawn in chalk on the floor around a large chalk circle with what appeared to be religious markings. There were some old wooden benches and a bookshelf containing strange books with mystical drawings and characters within them many of them contained writings in Latin.

There was also an old wooden chest, containing even more strange items including a small box that contained what appeared to be small chicken eggs, and book on alchemy that was written in old English.

"If ye wysh to create a human type creature that is part bird and part man, thoust will obtain eggs from a black chicken off wych has never been trod by a cock. Collect the eggs upon the nyt of the new moon when Mars is in Sagitta. The eggs must be placed in a box of Hazelwood and laid to rest for a minimum of 3 years but not more than 200 years"

Well, this was interesting reading, also in that old crate was a bunch of jars with weird things in them. Accompanying them was a small black book. The small black book was full of formulas and notes and results of experiments of many of which had appeared to have been successful.

The formula also called for human blood, bat blood, grave dirt, sulfur, and green tutia (after consulting a search engine on my phone I determined that this was sulphate of iron).

In referring back to the book on Alchemy, the Homunculus would be matured within a period of 7 days.

It could Grant the power to walk on water, to speak and converse with the Dead, and produce luck to win money.

Well, it looks like everything was here, except bat blood.

The strangest thing happened outside I could see the light was dwindling, several bats had flown into the cave. I think I startled them as one slammed itself into the wall and collapsed twitching on the ground.

I had to ask to myself if some Dark Force had heard my plea for obtaining wealth to get myself out of trouble. It was like everything had manifested and was falling into place. I had the instructions, I had the ingredients, I would have to use some of my own blood, but it was all here.

Inside the little black book, all the instructions were laid out, basically grind up the ingredients make a hole in the top of the egg and insert the contents of the ground-up mixtures.

The egg had to be placed in a cave in soft dirt of fertile soil.

" Well fuck me, there's plenty of batshit there in that corner."

The second part of the instructions was a bit more sinister, it required putting candles around a chalk circle, with lots of strange sigils and markings. With a few twigs I was able to brush away the dirt from on top of the diagram that was on the stone slab. It seems like someone had performed this ritual before, everything was in its place.

The ritual involved calling up a spirit, and demanding it enters the egg to grow and bring it life.

I began to follow the instructions to the letter...

I stood inside the circle and placed the egg on, a pile of dirt inside the diagram of a triangle, around the outsides of the triangle were the words Michael, Tetragrammaton, Anpheneton.

" I call and conjure spirit, MAGULOIU,  by all the seventy-two holy names of God, that Thou appears before me and fulfill my desire, as truly in and through the name Emanuel, which

the three youths Shadrach, Mijsach, and Abednego sung in the fiery furnace from which they were released. Come now and give life to this seed. cite Thee, Spirit Yhaij, by El, Yvaij, by Elohim, Ileh, by Elho Kijlij, by Zebaoth, Taijn Iseij, by Tetragrammaton, Jeha...

Come now bring life to the egg"

All of a sudden a light had of the Light condensed into a ball the size of a pea and quickly descended upon the egg, it was like a tornado was whipped up, Dust and papers were whirling around everywhere, then total blackness.

I ran, wild dogs were howling as I made it back to my father's place to the guest house where I was staying. I was totally drained of energy and went straight to sleep having strange dreams.

I took a couple of days to spend by the pool, in Father's mansion, if he wasn't going to help me out at least I could drink him out of his fine liquor collection by the pool. 

On the 7th day I had a  phone call. 

"Hello"

"Hi, my name is Ronnie Diggs, how is your day going?"

" Yeah, not too bad," I said. Who the hell was this bloke?

"Try not to get sunburnt while you're hanging out by the pool" Ronnie replied with a kind of English gangster accent.

" Who the fuck is this" I exclaimed.

" I think you have a fair idea of who we are and what we are after, we are very selective on who we choose as clients, when our client is upset, we are upset and we will stop at nothing to recover what is owed, not a penny more and not a penny less. We take cash, credit card money transfer, fine art, or gold and silver coin. We do however operate ethically and we won't involve family if we don't have to."

"But I don't have any money I am bankrupt in the company has been liquidated there's nothing to give you."

"You just keep telling yourself that buddy, You have my number it's in your phone now. I leave you a couple of days to have a think about it."

'Click' the call was terminated.

I was really scared for my life. I don't think they would get in the house, with all the security and all. But if I could hide out somewhere.

I shoved a few things in a backpack and headed to the cave.

I've forgotten somehow my subconscious had blocked it out of my mind, perhaps I was suffering from being in a state of shock. I thought that it was part of my dreams and nightmares. Going through the trauma with the lawyers and the court stuff, and accountants, and liquidators, and threats on my life. I was numb with fear. In fact, I was starting to doubt my own sanity.

Now that strange-looking plant was fully grown it had a strange caricature green alien hybrid human face.

Then it spoke to me, my blood turned to ice every hair on my body stood on its end.

"That FUCKING thing is talking" I squeaked out of my voiceless throat.

"Release me from this prison, wizard!", the strange-looking plant shrieked at me.

"How do I release you?" I squeaked, is a tiny bit of urine came out of me. I quickly squeeze my pelvic floor muscles and tried to harden up and not show fear in front of this abomination of nature.

I felt a slap on the back of my head, that little black notebook had launched itself across the room striking me on the head.

" I will be released back to the spirit world when you announce your desire, if you tell me what you want I will grant it. if you do so now we will never meet again, delay any longer and I will destroy you."

' Great someone else wants to fuck me over now' I thought to myself.

I had to think on my feet, all I wanted was these gangsters to go away.

"There are people chasing me for money all I want is for them to go away and leave me alone and never interfere with my life again"

"Your wish is granted, I am released and we will never meet again", the plant said, as it quickly lit up making the hall room glow green, then a bright light leaving its form, starting from the size of a pea to lighting up a whole cave and leaving through the entrance!

There was nothing left of the strange tree, a small withered vine the thickness of a shoelace, and a few fragments of eggshell.

I went back up to the house. The maid had said that there was a man waiting for me in the library, My father had died in his sleep.

The maid handed me a box, I opened the box and inside blocks of gold bullion, as she did so I turned around to see a mountain of a man in a suit looking at me. 

" I see you have come to your senses" 

The man ushered me over to the coffee table, he proceeded to count out 8 of the little ounce blocks, although quite heavily there was probably about 40 left in it. He handed me a receipt for 20 grand can you write on the bottom, paid in gold bullion, and everything final.

"Thank you for fixing that up, here's my business card, if ever you need us to collect money owed to you just give us a call. Otherwise, you'll never hear from us or our client ever again".

I was the sole beneficiary of all my father's assets.

Author Guy Glas 19th Feb 2021