Mistress of Black Magic by Thomas M. Malafarina

As the two young men approached the theater, Brad Seltzer, the taller of the two, said, “Jeeze, Dwayne. I can’t believe you conned me into going to this stupid magic show. I hate cheesy crap like this.” Brad was a handsome, well-built twenty-year-old with styled blond hair and deep blue eyes. Brad was the favorite of all the local ladies and never had trouble finding female companionship. He worked as a carpenter’s apprentice for a few bucks above minimum wage and still lived at home with his parents. He and Dwayne Coombs had been best friends since nursery school and lived only a few streets apart. Dwayne also still lived with his parents. The two young men had plans to eventually move into an apartment together once they could afford it.

Dwayne said, “I’m telling you, Brad. This babe is the real deal.” Dwayne was not the chick magnet that Brad was, but occasionally, he could snag one of Brad’s cast-offs. Dwayne’s appearance was more “natural,” leaning toward “unkempt,” with a head of dark brown hair that seemed to have a mind of its own. Neither was his choice in fashion on par with Brad’s, but that was perfectly okay with Dwayne.

Brad said, “Dude, she’s not the ‘real deal.’ Nobody is the ‘real deal.’ It’s all about tricks and illusion. None of it even comes close to being real. And no matter what you might want to believe, your ‘Mistress of Black Magic’ is as phony balonie as any other sidewalk magician out there. But, I am curious to see if she’s as hot as you’ve claimed.”

“She is, Brad; maybe hotter. She’s got a set of humongous mockatushkies that won’t quit. Look, up on the front of the theater; there’s a poster with a bunch of her pictures.”

Brad approached the poster, expecting to see some cheap, less-than-attractive Elvira wannabe dressed like a vampiress with dyed black hair, dark eye makeup, and matching long black fingernails. But he was pleasantly surprised by what he saw. The poster displayed seven photos of a lovely blonde magician with blood red lipstick, who appeared to be close to six feet tall, performing various magic tricks. In each picture, she was dressed in the same stage costume. She wore shiny red thigh-high boots with four-inch elevated heels. Black fishnet stockings were held up by gold garters attached to a black and gold bustier with gold frills used to accent her abundant cleavage. She wore a red half-top with short sleeves, allowing plenty of the aforementioned cleavage to be seen. Gold and black armbands covered her elbows.

The first picture showed her holding a black stuffed bunny with white feet and a white “X” bandage on its forehead. The second picture showed her pulling the same stuffed bunny from a black top hat. In the next picture the lovely magician held a glowing turquoise crystal ball. The fourth photo was of the magician striking a provocative pose on the floor with the black top hat. She held a magic wand pointed skyward, which shot a stream of glitter. In the next picture, the magician stood before a large red and black target with the knives sticking out. She was holding her own knife. In the sixth picture she held the black top hat in her right hand and the black stuffed bunny in the other. In the seventh and final photo, she held out a card, the ace of spades, while various other cards floated around her.

“Holy crap, Dwayne! You weren’t kidding. She is one smoking hot babe. Suddenly, stupid magic doesn’t seem as cheesy as I thought. Did you come to the show before?”

Dwayne said, “No, I didn’t. But I saw this poster and figured, what the hell. Even if her act is bogus, she is hot enough to make up for it. Did you see those magic rib balloons?”

“Oh yeah. How could I miss those abundant crumb catchers?”

“Yeah, luscious lung lumps.”

“Bodacious tatas!”

Dwayne said, “Well, we better get in there before the show starts.”

“I hope these are good tickets, Dwayne.”

“Bradley, my boy. Have I ever let you down? These babies are front and center.”

Brad said, “Excellent. I’ll spend the entire show praying for a wardrobe malfunction, aka Janet Jackson.”

“You bet. Now that would be real sweet magic!”

***

The theater was much smaller than Brad had thought it would be, but it still looked like it might seat more than one hundred souls. Not that mattered since the show was just minutes from starting, and only about one-third of the seats were occupied.

Brad said, “Looks like a light crowd tonight.”

“Excellent! With us in the front center spots, the magic babe might focus on us and maybe even show us some skin.” Dwayne replied, hopefully.

“Honestly, Dwayne. You are such a hopeless horndog.”

“Excuse me, but some of us don’t have girls tripping over each other to get close to us.”

The house lights flickered and darkened as soon as the two took their seats, signaling the show’s start. A scatter of lukewarm applause echoed in the mostly empty theater. Then, a man dressed in a dark suit stepped out from behind the curtain, and the applause gradually diminished.

He didn’t smile but looked seriously at the audience and said, “Few know what evil mysteries exist in the realm of Black Magic. One such person is here tonight to take you on a journey into the darkest known region of this and any other world. She is the woman who has no name, the woman who needs none. She is known only as the Mistress of Black Magic, and she’s here to thrill and chill you this evening. So, without any further ado, ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Mistress of Black Magic.

A puff of black smoke shot up from the stage, engulfing the master of ceremonies. A moment later, a similar cloud of smoke, this time white, bellowed upward from the stage. When it dissipated, A spotlight trained on the stage, and the gorgeous blonde Mistress stood in the same sexy outfit Brad and Dwayne saw on the poster.

“Wow!” That was all Brad could say.

“I think I’m in love.” Was Dwayne’s response.

To his surprise, Brad initially enjoyed the show, primarily because the lovely Mistress had smiled at him and made alluring eye contact several times. He was genuinely impressed with her skill. Although he knew everything he saw was an illusion and not magic, Brad had to admit that each act and trick was almost believable. The most impressive part of the show was she never spoke a single word during any of her tricks.

But as the show progressed, it began to bore him. Brad sat nonplussed while the magician moved from one trick to the next. He became unimpressed with her array of cliche magic tricks. On the other hand, Dwayne sat staring at the stage, his mouth agape as if hypnotized by the performance. After one particularly impressive trick, the magician disappeared in another puff of smoke, and the master of ceremonies reappeared.

He stared into the audience and said, “The Mistress of Black Magic is preparing to show you her greatest trick. This trick is called The Box of Nargroth. It is one of the oldest and most difficult and potentially dangerous tricks to perform.”

The curtain opened, and the Mistress stood next to a tall black box resembling an oversized phone booth with no windows. It was covered with bright gold stars and crescent moons. With a typical flourish, the Mistress opened the front of the box, revealing its empty, dark purple, felt-lined interior.

The emcee said, “The Mistress of Black Magic will select a lucky candidate from the audience to enter the box and travel to the mysterious land of Nargroth. Do I have any willing volunteers?”

Before the words had left the emcee’s mouth, Dwayne’s hand was raised high in the air in a pick-me gesture. Brad was slightly embarrassed by his friend’s actions but tried not to show his displeasure. The Mistress walked to the front of the stage and pointed, not at Dwayne, but at Brad. Brad pointed to himself and mouthed the question, “Me?” Before he realized what was happening, Brad felt the emcee grip his arm and lead him onto the stage. Brad turned to see Dwayne’s disappointment and found himself standing on stage before the mysterious Box of Nargroth.

The Mistress of Black Magic gestured for Brad to enter the box. He stood only a few feet away from the magician now, and although she still appeared quite beautiful, there was something a bit “off” about her. Was it her eyes? Perhaps her smile? And what was that strange earthy aroma? Was it her cologne, or maybe perspiration? It was a scent Brad had never smelled before, making him feel odd, a little nauseous, and frightened.

Brad stepped into the box without resisting and stood with his hands pressed against the velvet sides. The magician began closing the door, and the last thing Brad saw was her eyes staring at him through the final remaining sliver of light. Her eyes expressed some evil knowledge that chilled Brad to the bone. Then, he was in complete darkness.

On stage, The Mistress of Black Magic spun the box around on its swivel in a clockwise direction for two revolutions to show there were no trap doors or any way for Brad to have gotten out. Then she tapped the front with her magic wand and opened the door to reveal the interior chamber empty. Brad was gone.

***

Brad opened his eyes to discover he was no longer inside the claustrophobic darkness of the box but was outside in a strange, unfamiliar landscape. It appeared to be a tropical rainforest, a feeling accentuated by the thick, humid air. An earthy smell filled his nostrils, which he immediately recognized as the same strange scent he had gotten from the Mistress. He couldn’t believe it; he had somehow been transported to a tropical forest.

He felt the moisture in the air collecting on his flesh and realized his clothing was gone, and he had been rendered naked in this strange place. Brad saw he was surrounded by high-growing bushes and tall trees. However, these trees were unlike any trees Brad had ever seen. Although they initially appeared to be an unusual type of palm tree, their color was all wrong. The long trunks of the trees were red, gold, and purple, and their fronds were various shades of tan. Brad reached out to touch one of the fronds and was repulsed to discover it felt like human flesh. As soon as his fingers made contact with the leaf, it pulled away as if it was equally disgusted by Brad’s touch. Above the trees, Brad saw a dark green and burnt orange sky with two brightly glowing lavender moons. He suddenly realized this land must be the place the emcee spoke of, the land of Nargroth.

Brad heard leaves rustling behind nearby high-growing blood-red and gold bushes. He feared some wild animal might be approaching, and he was naked and defenseless in this bizarre world. As he stood, paralyzed with fear, a strange humanoid being stepped from behind the bushes. The creature was light green in color and stood as tall as Brad. Although it had a rudimentary head, two arms, and two legs, that was where the similarities to any human ended.

The being was naked and hairless but appeared to be neither male nor female, having no organs or physical features to distinguish its gender. The place where the creature’s face should have been was flat and featureless, like a blank canvas awaiting a brush. As Brad looked on in shocked silence, the being’s face began to change, forming eyes, a nose, and a mouth that Brad immediately recognized since it was his own face.

Brad realized he was unable to move or cry out. As he watched in helpless horror, the strange creature continued to change, eventually becoming an exact duplicate of himself. He had no idea what was happening or what would happen next. Unfortunately, he didn’t have long to wait. Brad felt a disturbing sensation as something was crawling up his legs. It felt serpentine as if a cluster of snakes had begun encircling his body. The feeling moved from his legs to his torso and to his head. That was when Brad saw the nature of the things creeping up his helpless body.

The things were not snakes, although they may as well have been. They were some type of vines, but unlike any Brad had ever seen, these were the exact color of his flesh but with dark blue spots. With growing horror, Brad saw the strange creature had become his doppelganger, mimicking every detail of his physical appearance. As if that was not disturbing enough, the strange creature was wearing his clothes. That was the last thing Brad saw before the vines covered his head, and he was absorbed, becoming one with the bizarre foliage.

***

The emcee announced, “And now, The Mistress of Black Magic will bring our brave volunteer back from the land of Nargroth to the safety of the magical box.” The Mistress turned the box counterclockwise for two revolutions, tapped the front with her wand, and opened the door to reveal Brad, apparently unharmed. The audience cheered as the creature posing as Brad stepped clumsily from the box as if unsure of his footing. The Brad-thing heard a female voice in his mind saying, “Go and take your place among the humans. Now, we are few, but soon we will be many. You know what to do. Assimilate,  be patient, and await the call to action.”

As the applause died and the curtain closed, the emcee said, “Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for attending this evening’s show. Remember, The Mistress will be here every night, and we hope to see you again. The creature, who had become a version of Brad Seltzer, sat beside his apparent friend, Dwayne.

Dwayne looked at his friend excitedly and asked, ” Dude! What was it like? Where did you go?”

Brad turned and said in a voice that was struggling to sound like an uninterested human, “I didn’t go anywhere, Dwayne. It’s all a trick … You know, an illusion.”

Apparently too excited to notice the change in his friend’s mannerisms, Dwayne said, “Leave it up to you to put the dampers on something cool, Brad. I wish she would have picked me.”

The Brad replicant said, “I’ll bet if we come back tomorrow night, she will.”

This story is featured in...

Twisted Pulp Magazine Issue #42