Strange Paradise:  Episode 94
Episode 94:  Slideshow
Raxl: "The long night lengthens. The struggling forces of evil at Desmond Hall still strive for the tortured soul of Jean Paul Desmond. The people who surround him especially those that love him seemed doomed to share his fate. For Emily the woman he now loves has returned his love with her announcement of her dedication to the wicked Serpent Spirit. And Agatha who loves Jean Paul is now at the mercy of a coven of witches."
 
"And in these flames we see our souls burning with zeal for the evil one. Consumed with hatred against all humans who stand in our way." Irene says as she Mr. and Mrs. Pruett and Waldo stand around the altar. In the center is the candelabra of black candles. "Are we prepared for the ceremony?" Irene asks.
"We are prepared." They all say as a group. The members of the coven are all in robes.  "Our circle of fire will be completed tonight." Irene says, then she turns to the fireplace. "All darkness, light and searing flame combined. Enslave us to his name." Irene lights the fireplace. "Beelzebub King Ruler of all." The candles dim the room goes dark.  The coven members huddle together in fear. Irene turns. "Who is it?"  Laslo walks in. "Greetings."  "You're late servant Laslo." Irene tells him.  "I was involved in a task Mistress. To rid our little sister of the last obstacle which stands between us. Her friend serpent." he says showing them the box. "The task has been accomplished. The girl will be ours."  "Bring forth the girl; she will become one with us.' Irene says.  "It shall be done." Laslo says as he leaves the room.  "Dear friends our new servant is not unfamiliar to you." Irene tells them.  "We've met her then?" asks Waldo.  "Often. Especially you Mr. and Mrs. Pruett. This evening one of your life long dreams will come true."  "We ask for no such reward." Mr. Pruett tells Irene.  "We serve humbly dear Priestess." says Mrs. Pruett. "Dear Pruetts that's why you deserve a reward."  "And I am not?" asks Waldo.  "All witches know dear Waldo that our lot is to be treated very shabbily by the very powers we serve. This is not a moment for complaints. It is a time for rejoicing."  Waldo bows his head.  Irene walks across the room. "She comes. Bow your heads."  They bow their heads as Laslo brings Agatha into the room.  "You have entered do you know my name?" Irene asks.  "Yes you are the one to be obeyed." Agatha replies.  "And the others raise your heads."  "My mother and my father." Agatha stutters looking at the Pruetts.  "Agatha!" Mrs. Pruett says reaching out her hand to her daughter.  "And I despise them. I hate them." Agatha says.
 
Emily sits in the Drawing Room reading a book. There is a knock at the door.
"Who's in there?" Raxl asks.  "Come in." Emily tells her.  Raxl walks in. "What are you doing?"  "Working Raxl."  "You must go to your room now."  "Oh no, I can't sleep. And besides these books are so interesting. The more I read about Jean Paul's family the more intrigued I get."  Raxl takes the book from her. "You will learn nothing more of the Desmond history." Raxl says as she walks away with the book.  "But Raxl why are you doing this to me?" Emily asks as she stands.
Raxl turns towards her. "You should be in your room. My Master and I brought you there hours ago. Must we lock the door?"  "Well why, what have I done?"
"You know what you have done."  "No I don't Raxl."  "You stood out there and spoke the ritual of the Serpent God! Challenging me to a conflict! Displaying your powers!"  Emily glances at Raxl. "Raxl you must be mistaken. Perhaps I quoted something I read in an old book."  Raxl shakes her head. "You are possessed by the Serpent."  "No! Where's Jean Paul?"  "Sleeping and you must not disturb him. This would not have happened if he listened to me. You would never have invaded the secret books of this house."  "But all I'm doing is studying. Just writing a paper of the history of this valley."  "You have dabbled in an area, a dark area you know nothing about. You have entered secret rooms in which you did not belong. And now you will suffer for it. But my Master will not suffer for it! Your powers mean nothing! I have powers of my own! Older and stronger!"
"I don't have any powers. I don't understand."  "You have no powers?" Raxl looks at her in disbelief.  Emily shakes her head no.  "No recollection of being crushed by the coils of the Serpent who then spoke to you!"  Emily covers her ears and looks away from Raxl. "No I must forget everything."  "I do not forget and you cannot." Raxl tells her.  "Oh I must, I must." Emily says lowering her head.
"When ever the Spirit of the dark Serpent hisses you will answer!"  "No!"  "And do his bidding!"  "No!"  "I know this believe me I know. For centuries man has worshipped the Serpent for good and evil. And just as the first woman was kept by the Serpent in the Garden and chose to follow evil so you have chosen to follow the wicked one."  "No, I haven't chosen anything. Evil can't take control of anyone unless they..." Emily says to Raxl.  "Unless what Miss Blair? Have you never played with evil? Have you never taken action concrete to the goodness that is in you?"  "I've always tried to." Emily looks at Raxl.  "Sometimes. At one point in your life you committed an act that opened your soul to wickedness."
Emily shakes her head. "No I can't remember."  "So you are innocent? You have no powers? We shall see." Raxl raises her hands in front of Emily. "Serpent Servant hear my plea. Powers of goodness here shall be! Venom writhing wickedness from hell! Never more in this house dwell!" Raxl walks towards Emily as Emily backs away. She bumps into the wall. "Serpent Servant save her soul."
Emily cuts in on the chant. "Serpent servant here I am! Let all powers against me die!" Emily has her hands extended as Raxl backs away from her. "Serpent Servant dark and here!"  Raxl grabs her arms. "Hear yourself! Hear your own words and know!"  Emily shakes her head. "No, no please!" Emily starts to sob and throws herself into Raxl's arms. "Oh Raxl help me. Help me." 
 
 
Agatha sits in a chair as Laslo swings a pendant in front of her. "Better, better. Your will has been shriveled. Your thoughts have retreated. Your mind and its functions have become mine."  "Yours." Agatha says staring straight ahead.
"She is completely under the persuasion. Laslo and I will strip away the final remnants of her powers." Irene says. She looks at Waldo. "You better leave the room. Dear mama and papa the coven will be called when she has been prepared."  The Pruetts bow to Irene then leave the room following Waldo.
Laslo grabs the pendant. "She is prepared."  "Agatha little friend. Do you hear me?"  "Yes."  "Then come with me. I have something to show you." Irene says as she takes Agatha's hand and Agatha stands. "A sadness. You must prepare yourself for a sadness. We your friends can alleviate it." Irene says as she reaches for the box that Laslo brought with him. She sets it on the table and opens it. "Look Agatha, look."  Agatha glances down. "Peter? Peter." she says.
"He is dead. Your little friend is dead." Irene tells her.  "No. He's sleeping. He is sleeping."  "His head is crushed. Your serpent friend is dead." Laslo says.
"No he's asleep. He was tired and he was lost and now he's come back to me. Peter."  Agatha says as she reaches towards the box.  Laslo and Irene grab her arms. "No Agatha." Irene tells her.  "I want him. He is my friend. Peter."  "Peter is gone and so are your powers." Laslo says to her.  "I never had any powers. I only had a friend."  "We know about your friend. The all powerful Serpent." Laslo says to her.  "No I only had a friend. And now he's gone." Agatha says.  Irene glances at Laslo. "But we are your friends. And you must now rely upon us and we will take care of you. Peter is gone but now you are one of us. And we are your only friends."  Agatha pulls her arms away. "No!" She kneels next to the box and hugs it. "Who ever killed him, I curse them! May they be choked. May they suffer as I am suffering. Peter curse them! Curse them!" she sobs.
 
Cort walks up to the front door of the mansion. A hissing sound surrounds him. "Help, help. Someone help." he says pulling on his coat as he struggles against something that is attacking him. He starts knocking on the door. "Help me, help me."  Raxl rushes to the door and opens it. "Master Cort!"  Cort stumbles into the foyer. "Raxl help me. I'm being strangled." He cries out collapsing next to the staircase. He clutches his neck.  "Cort what is it! Cort answer me!" Raxl says as she grabs his shoulder.  Emily steps out of the Drawing Room. "What's happening?" she asks.  "Nothing, go back to the Drawing Room and close the door." Raxl tells Emily.  Emily does as she is told.  "I'm dying." Cort cries out.
"Cort tell me what's in the sack?"  "Creatures from the caves."  "They must be released." Raxl says to Cort as she pulls the bag from his shoulder. She walks outside and opens the bag and empties it. "They're gone." Raxl says as she walks back inside the mansion and closes the door. After hanging up Cort's bag she walks over to Cort and kneels next to him. "They have been released."  "I can. I can breath." He says as Raxl helps him to his feet.  "Why did you go to the caves? No one delves into the earth beneath Desmond Hall."  "They were harmless creatures." Cort says.  "You brought those creatures from the secret river caves? How did you enter?"  "I couldn't enter. There's a crevice, an opening in the ground. It was like a gaping wound and it was no place that any flying creature could dwell in. So I put a baby sparrow down. A tiny bird and the creatures came from out of the opening and started to devour it."  "Why did you do it?" Raxl asks.  "To use against the Serpent. He was about to crush me up there, up in Philip's secret room." Cort says walking away from Raxl and leaning against the wall. "And I promised, I promised if he set me free I would bring him food. You see I've always been fond of birds and creatures that could fly. I've always wanted to be free and be able to fly from here. Away from here but I've never been able to do it. Now I know their nests and their hunts along the river and the rocks where their nests are among the cliffs. They were my friends. So I promised the Serpent that I would fetch them and bring them for his sustenance, his food. And I promised I would fly. Move as quickly as I could to betray the most innocent of living things so that the giant Serpent could feed on them."
Emily opens the Drawing room door and listens to Cort.  "I couldn't do it. I'm selfish I know but not against the innocent. So I was going to bring instead his own kind of creatures. The kind that bites and sting."  Emily backs away from the Drawing Room door as she closes it.  "I didn't know how to destroy it. See I just didn't know how to destroy. So he tried to destroy me."  "You have tampered with a danger you know nothing about." Raxl says to Cort.  Cort pulls away from the wall and walks across the room. "I had to free myself from the coils of the Serpent. But I couldn't keep my promise and kill." Cort glances up at Raxl. "I hate to kill." He looks away. "I don't wish for anything to be killed. Neither man nor creature. And my life would be unhaunted. And Philip and Jean Paul would..."
Raxl rushes over to Cort. "Philip and Jean Paul? What are you saying? Where is Philip Desmond? Tell me!"  "I don't know anything!" Cort cries out. "It's not that I'm glad I'm not Philip or Jean Paul and I'm really regretting I was ever born a Desmond!"  "Cort, you must never say that. The tradition of the Desmonds, the kindness that they've done. The battles they have waged against evil. There are some families whose generations have been chosen to bear the burden for all men so that while they suffer others will survive."  Emily walks out of the Drawing room and rushes for the stairs.  Raxl looks up. "Where are you going Miss Blair?" She asks as she walks over to Emily.  "To my room."  "No your not. You're going to stay here with me both of you." Raxl says glancing back at Cort. "Until we can find out what powers you have stirred up. Or what curses may befall you."  Cort lowers his head.
 
Irene puts her hand on Agatha's shoulder after Agatha sits down. "Agatha it's all right now. You must believe me."  Agatha is sobbing. "No."  "You have made new friends. You are restored to your mother and father." Irene says kneeling next to Agatha's chair.  "Keep them away from me please. I don't want to see them again ever." Agatha says with tears and sobs.  "They love you Agatha."  "They never did."  "You have brought them great happiness by coming here tonight." Irene tells her as she stands. She reaches for a glass on her alter. "Drink. This will refresh you. You shed too many tears."  Agatha raises the glass to her mouth.
"Now drink and let us comfort you."  Agatha drinks until the glass is empty then touches her mouth. "What, what was that? What did you give me?"  "Our blood my dear. The mingled blood of your new friends including that of your mother and father that born you."  Laslo walks into the room followed by the others.  "But they are witches."  "And now my dear so are you." Irene tells her.  "Daughter." Agatha's father says stepping closer to her.  "My child." says her mother.
Agatha stands. "No! I will not. I will not join all of you!"  "You already have dear Agatha. The deed has been done." Laslo says to her.  "No! Not unless I will it." Agatha tells him. "No one can be made a witch without making their own free choice."  Laslo walks towards her. "You will choose my dear. You will choose."
"I won't choose. No matter what you do to me. No matter what potion you make me drink." Agatha says walking over to the fireplace.  Laslo walks over to Irene. The Pruetts look at each other. "Temperamental." Agatha's mother says.  "Yes." says her father.  Agatha turns and looks at her parents. "I learned too much you see from the two of you. I learned too much about evil from my own parents. My own mother and father.' Agatha says as she walks up to them. "How I wanted to change you, all my life since I was a little girl. I prayed to whatever Gods that be. I said please make them be good. Change their ways because I love them.   That's what I said because I did once. I did love you."  Her mother looks at her. "Love is not important."  "Service is." adds her father.  "Service to whom? Or what? I saw your kind of service; I saw the hatred that bound you together. And when you tried to force me even as a child to join you I gritted my teeth and turned my will to iron. I learned to hate too, the two of you." Agatha turns away from them. "As soon as I grew old enough I left you."  "To worship at the shrine of the Serpent God." Laslo says.  "It's none of your business where I worship." She glances back at her parents. "I left you alone why can't you do the same for me? Have I ever hurt you? Have I ever worked against you? All I did was to let you live your lives! Can't you do the same for me!”?  She should go." Waldo tells them.  "Agreed. Let her go." Mr. Pruett adds.  "Agatha I tell you." her mother starts to say.  "And I tell you, all of you. The coven must not be broken. The numbers must be filled and this is the child." Laslo tells them.  "Your choice of course, the ideal candidate, nurtured in our ways since babyhood. Well, look at her. She despises all of us." Irene says walking away from Laslo.  "Irene we have not yet reached the limit of our powers."  "Then use them. You use them; I wash my hands of your methods. Before you happened on the scene wandering into Desmondton and conniving your way into the Desmond family with its fortune I headed this coven." Irene says walking over to Laslo.  "Hear, hear. Yes." The other members add.  "And we functioned together all of us. With our little schemes, our blessings and our curses until you joined us with your wild ambitions. You will be very rich Irene you said."  "And it has come about." Laslo tells her.  "Anyone can become rich robbing the poor as you have done. And as you made me do. But you had loftier ambitions. The Desmond fortune, one of the greatest in the world. It would belong to you, it would belong to me, it would belong to all of us. All we had to do was use our powers together. First against Philip and then."  "Silence!" Laslo tells her. "She's listening." He says looking at Agatha...  "Which shows us the decision you have left us Laslo. You brought her here; she has refused our offer of membership. But she has heard too much and therefore she must die." Irene says.  "I don't see any other choice. Do you?" Agatha walks over to her parents. "Well Mother? Father?"
 
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Summaries written by Debby Graham .  The slide presentation is the work of Ron Janick.
~Ron/Bella~
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Episode 95