divide between the Demi-Monde and the Real World. Your presence here is proof of that. Admittedly, my daughter’s excursion into your world was Crowley’s first and, thus far, only successful attempt to manifest a Demi-Mondian in the Real World. And although the experiment highlighted certain limitations, it did enable us to lure you here to the Demi-Monde.’
‘But why?’
‘Initially to prevent your masters from destroying the DemiMonde. When I took power in the ForthRight my first task was to preserve the Demi-Monde from the threat you so eloquently describe as “pulling the plug”, and to do this I had to have a hostage, one of such importance that the Real Worlders would be deterred from closing the Demi-Monde. You are that hostage, Miss Williams. But having accomplished this, I then identified other opportunities arising from your presence amongst us.’
‘Other opportunities?’
‘Indeed. It came to me in a moment of inspiration,’ said Heydrich with a triumphant little smile. ‘All Demi- Mondians are exact replicas of persons in the Real World and that means that not only do people in the Real World have doppelgangers here in the Demi-Monde but Demi-Mondians have doppelgangers in the Real World. It’s a sort of digital quid pro quo. And as you Real Worlders, in your arrogance, imposed your personalities on the people of the Demi-Monde, I wondered whether it would be possible to reverse this process and have Demi-Mondians impose their personalities on their Real World doppelgangers.’
Norma gawped and then an awful, chilling realisation dawned. ‘You want to swap your daughter for me!’
‘That is the intention,’ said Heydrich blithely. ‘Aaliz here is to be my Trojan Horse. Of course, this Rite of Transference, as Crowley rather melodramatically calls it, is as yet unproven, but he is very confident that it can be made to work. We DemiMondians might not have the faculty of the Real Worlders in the manipulating of the digital universe but we are very adept at manipulating the psychic one. And once Aaliz is in the Real World – posing as the daughter of the most powerful man in the world – she will be able to lobby very effectively for the preservation of the Demi-Monde… amongst other things.’
‘I think you overestimate the influence I have.’
Now it was Aaliz’s turn to laugh. ‘And I think you underestimate how capable I am. I am my father’s daughter, Norma. Whilst you squander your intelligence and your time cultivating your image of anti-establishment emo, losing yourself to self-pity and self-loathing, I have applied my will to shaping this world. Here, in the Demi- Monde, I am leader of the Party’s youth wing: the RightNix.’
‘Oh, bully for you: I stopped being a Girl Guide years ago.’
‘More fool you. The work of the RightNix is vital in forming the attitudes and the beliefs of the young people of the ForthRight. I am alive to the fact that the youngster of today is the Party member of tomorrow. As leader of the RightNix I am responsible for inculcating a belief in the ForthRight’s children that to be true Aryans they must display an unquestioning obedience to the Leader. They are taught that denying the doctrine of UnFunDaMentalism as set out in the nuCommandments is a Betrayal of their FatherLand. They are taught that the Strong have command over the Weak, and that the Aryan Race is the Master Race. When my RightNixes come of age they will show no mercy to the ForthRight’s enemies: whoever blocks the ForthRight’s path to Purity and Oneness with ABBA will be destroyed.’ Aaliz stretched over and took Heydrich’s hand in hers. ‘My father has taught me well. And I think your father, Norma, will be delighted to have a daughter suddenly willing to take a more active, a more committed role in the running of America. He must be sick of your selfishness and your glowering introspection. Having an emo for a daughter is hardly an electoral asset, especially with your father struggling for support in the more conservative Midwest.’
It was a nightmare. It was bad enough for Norma to be stuck in the Demi-Monde, but to have a Dupe talking about taking over her body – taking over her life – was mind-blowingly awful.
‘You’ll never be able to pull off a stunt like that. You might look like me, you might talk like me, but you know squat about me and my life. It’s impossible. You don’t know anything about the Real World apart from what you learned serving behind the counter of a clothes shop. They’ll spot you as a fraud straight away.’
Heydrich gave Norma a crooked smile. ‘Unfortunately, Miss Williams, there is much in what you say: even someone as intelligent and as diligent as Aaliz will have difficulty in performing in a manner that does not arouse at least some suspicion. That is why, Miss Williams, we have had you kept here at Dashwood Manor in the hope that Comrade Commissar Dashwood’s daughter would be able to persuade you to speak about your life in the Real World.’
He paused to take another draw on his cigarette. ‘Unfortunately your intransigence defeated Trixiebell Dash -wood. I am not surprised: Comrade Commissar Dashwood is a Royalist recidivist and hence an Enemy of the People and as for his daughter…’ Heydrich laughed. ‘She is nothing more than a stupid, idle, vacuous non-entity. It will be better when the pair of them have been arrested and shot. I will have Beria purge the Dashwoods immediately after this evening’s seance is complete. He will enjoy that: Trixie Dashwood is a trim little piece.’
Heydrich stubbed out his cigarette. ‘Happily for us, Miss Williams, Fate has presented us with another, more certain means of unpicking your memories. Crowley has located a clairvoyant of immense power who will be able to delve into the deepest and most private recesses of your mind. Tonight, Miss Williams, we will drain you dry.’ He glanced at the grandfather clock ticking in the corner of the room. ‘Look at the time. I have other matters to attend to. You, Miss Williams, will spend the afternoon with Aaliz getting to know one another. After all, soon the pair of you will be inseparable.’
23
The Demi-Monde: 55th Day of Winter, 1004
Operation Barbarossa: Case White
Case White will be undertaken by the SS-Ordo Templi Aryanis under the command of SS Colonel Archie Clement. Commencing on the 59th day of Winter 1004, two divisions of SS-Ordo Templi Aryanis StormTroops will surround and seal the Warsaw Ghetto. Once this is achieved, the SS will enter the Ghetto and systematically exterminate all UnderMentionables (approximately three million subhumans) living within the walls of the city. The legal basis for this extermination is given by the Racial Classification and Control Law which removed the protection of ForthRight Law from UnderMentionables, nonNixes and those demonstrating hereditary physical and mental disabilities. Case White is to be completed by the 90th day of Winter 1004.
– minutes of the PolitBuro meeting held under the guidance of the Great Leader on the 39th day of Winter, 1004
Immediately Captain Dabrowski heard the door of the study shut behind Heydrich, he very carefully replaced the steel fire screen across the fireplace and swept up the small fall of soot that had collected on the hearth. When he was finished there was nothing to show that anything had ever been disturbed.
Not that Trixie took much notice of the Captain’s housekeeping: all she had the energy to do was sit slumped on one of the armchairs scattered around the room desperately trying to make sense of what she had heard. Her head was spinning.
Of course, much of it had been gibberish, especially the discussion between Heydrich and the Daemon about this man Hitler. And the part about Demi-Mondians being replicas of Real Worlders and Aaliz Heydrich being sent to the Real World as a replacement for the Daemon sounded like the stuff of trashy scientific romance.
But some of what she had heard couldn’t be dismissed so easily, especially the part when Heydrich had stated his intent to destroy the poor people living in Warsaw.
Or that tonight she and her father were to be arrested and executed. That was a cold-blooded observation she couldn’t ignore. Tonight she and her father were to be purged, just like her friend Lillibeth Marlborough and her family. It seemed hardly believable that she was going to be touched by the terror that had taken so many of her friends.
‘He’s going to kill us,’ she breathed, hardly able to understand the horror of what was happening.
It seemed unreal.
Dabrowski nodded and then added, ‘Yes. He means to exterminate my people.’
My people?
