Yesterday brought an entirely singular experience. Without warning, I found myself aboard a vessel, a ship, beyond the moon. I was entirely surrounded by spider-like creatures and their human associates--the so-called Shadows.

Admittedly, I have little evidence to verify the location of the rooms I was in--I looked out a viewing port and saw the earth at a great remove, but that could have been false. Yet, the strangeness off the creatures around me, their equipment and furnishings, my sense of dislocation, and the statements of the Mystics who scried to find me, all make the ship-beyond-the-moon story the simplest explanation.

How I came to that unlikely situation is another example of why staying at home with the babies is not any safer than pursuing villains in the streets. I had just finished feeding the babies and tucking them into their beds--Tuesday evening, this would be. I was standing near the window of our sitting room when I heard the approach of a conveyance at the front of No.12. Peter, the junior footman, answered a knock, and I heard Mr Oliphant at the door asking to see me. Peter informed him that the household was not at home to visitors, but he was interrupted by a smack-thud-slide sound.

I instantly secured Violet and the babies in the protected nursery, then opened the window, thinking to climb out and run to No. 18 to alert Lady Cowperthwaite and Mr Salmalin. Alas, one of Mr Oliphant's servants stood below my window looking up at me. I drew my gun and aimed, warning him to stand fast, then I called out for Mr Salmalin with a warning of intruders.

Before I could do more, I heard Mr Oliphant's voice behind me--he had arrived swiftly and near silently--in my own sitting room, without any leave or invitation. He made some ridiculously saccharine comment that the night air could not be good for one in my condition--I don't suppose he meant the condition of being extremely angry, which was all that really applied at the moment. As I turned to answer his pretence of civility with pretence of my own, I heard a series of noises below my window. I felt perfectly satisfied that Mr Salmalin was dealing with the fellow below with suitable alacrity.

As for Mr Oliphant, I was disappointed when my first bullet stopped in mid-air, whirling and humming for a moment before falling softly into the carpet. Still playing the gentleman, Mr Oliphant made a passing remark about it, then proceeded to make an extraordinary offer.

He said that I was highly gifted, and that I could offer my gifts to improve future generations of the human race. His "Associates" wanted to harvest my ova! I was at once flattered and horrified. And profoundly curious as to how the Associates proposed to bear and raise a thousand of my children. Mr Oliphant, hopeful of my cooperation, continued to answer my questions. I pretended to be oblivious to the signs of near-silent fighting in the corridor.

When Mr Salmalin finally attacked Mr Oliphant, he was repelled by the same invisible barrier that had halted my bullet. I still couldn't see Mr Salmalin, I just heard a sort of sizzle, and a thump, as if he had fallen to the floor. I tried another shot, which Mr Oliphant continued to ignore. Complacent idiot!

At this point, I proceeded to tell Mr Oliphant, who continued to insist on his "Associates'" benevolent intentions, just how I felt about the interference of both the "Shadows" and the "Cosh," that I wanted them all to go away, and that his Associates couldn't possibly be equal to the task of raising my children.

About this time, Mr Oliphant's head jerked sharply to his right, to the sound of cracking vertebrae. He slumped to the floor, revealing Mr Salmalin, who had somehow worked his way inside the barrier. I perceived a blur of vague violet light and motion, and a chitinous skittering sound, leaving the room, out into the hallway. I pointed the way to Mr Salmalin, who pursued.

Mr Oliphant lay at my feet, dead--again. I called to Violet to stay put, and proceeded to bind Mr Oliphant's lifeless body. I found a bracelet on his wrist. I thought this might be the mechanism of "possession" by the Shadows, and removed it from his wrist in hopes of freeing him (provided he could be revived).

I heard the report of one of the large guns below, and Lady Cowperthwaite's voice complaining that she'd missed her target. I heard Mr Frazer arrive, and Turgenov with him. I hadn't heard a conveyance, so I supposed he had run by foot--no doubt from the instant my late father in law had alerted him to our danger. As I finished the binding, I heard the approach of the carriage. The group that had gone to the Observatory was returning at speed.

I went into the yard behind the house, where Mr Frazer and Mr Salmalin were searching for the escaped "Shadow," which had suddenly blown out through the wall. The approaching Mystics had used an exorcism, which seems to be effective against these intangible creatures. I had scarcely arrived and assured all (particularly my husband) that I was unharmed, when I was suffused with a blue light, then suddenly I was elsewhere.

The 2 oriental servants lay prone at my feet, but Mr Oliphant was not to be seen. I realised that the bracelet, forgotten in my pocket, was probably the agency of this displacement. It was plain to see that the entities I was facing now were surprised and probably dismayed at my arrival. The spidery creatures (perfectly solid-looking, unlike the leggy violet blur that had emerged from the fallen Mr Oliphant) chittered in apparent agitation. A human-seeming man there with them seemed to collect himself, and asked where Mr Oliphant was. I explained that he had met with an accident, and asked for an explanation as to where I was.

The Human greeted me with civility and promised to send me back. I asked, instead, to be shown about the place, hoping that their interest in me (and my ova) would result in useful intelligence. It seemed that I had little to lose. If they wished to hold me against my will, they could attack me at any time, and I could hardly put up a significant resistance. If instead I could keep matters on a recruitment footing, I could win time and knowledge for escape.

My human guide seemed very earnest in his belief that the spidery creatures were friends to humanity, offering progress and free choice. The Cosh, he said, were oppressors; he called them "the Dark Ones." As our discussion progressed, it became increasingly apparent that this man had been raised from infancy among the "Associates" and had never questioned their veracity or intentions. I felt very sorry for him and his kind.

I was quite relieved when Sgt Frazer found me. I pretended to do exercises while I communicated with the Sgt in semaphore--while he could speak to me without my guide hearing, I could not reply verbally.

I knew the rest of the League would find their way to me before long, and then there would be A Reckoning. I certainly did not wish to be found sitting about idly awaiting rescue. I also felt oddly protective of my guide and others like him. I was sure this vessel would not survive an all-out attack by the League, and all the misguided but relatively innocent people would perish. With a growing urgency, I insisted on being returned to where I had come from as quickly as possible.

As we walked, I outlined my objections regarding the "Associates'" agenda to my guide--detailing the wanton destructiveness I had seen in the past 24 hours. I conceded that the Cosh were not much better. I suppose it was hopeless to imagine that he would start to think for himself after a lifetime of mental dependence, but I had to try.

When we arrived at the transport room, the spidery technicians chittered, and my guide told me they couldn't transport me, as the device was being interfered with. I had no way of knowing if that was true, or merely a stalling tactic. The question was moot shortly, as the lights changed to a deeper bluish colour, pulsing, and the "Associates" erupted into activity. My guide said that the ship was under attack, and I must be escorted to a safe place. He did not seem to believe me when I countered that these were my friends, and the only way to save the ship was to take me to them immediately, transport all of us back, and leave the vicinity of the moon and earth.

When Sgt Frazer said "Duck!", I dropped to the floor and rolled. The Shadow creature which had just come up behind me made a sweeping lunge for my head, but found its sharp-edged pincer leg whistling above me. I rolled under it and fired into the underside of its cephalo-thorax with 3 of my remaining bullets. I ignored the rain of ichor and rolled back to my feet. I grasped the arm of my guide, dragging him toward the door, insisting that he open it. Sgt Frazer told me my companions were very close beyond, and indeed, I could hear them. Lady Cowperthwaite's gun was distinctive, even through these strange walls.

At last the door opened, and my dear husband stood before me. Before I turned and fled into the corridor with him, I turned and exhorted my guide to think for himself...a useless gesture, no doubt, but one must try.

I followed Benton and a few of the others--Sir Spencer, Lt Wooster, Lady Cowperthwaite, retracing their steps. Mrs Salmalin was guarding the door to a transport room with a ring platform.

Our partisans were holding the corridor against the spidery Shadows so far, but I knew that our hosts would quickly muster a much greater force than we could meet. I had a bad moment when most of those fighting around me stopped, seeming to slump, looking empty. I heard Mrs Cuthbert invoke her saint, and they shook themselves and carried on.

I was amazed to see not only Sir Cosmo but also Mr O'Flaherty operating controls at a console amid the scrambled legs of fallen Shadows. Mr O'Flaherty, with the advice of his part of the Cosh Semkhet, was opening and closing doors in our behalf. It took several rounds of transport to return us all to the Earth. I was firmly taken in the first round by my still anxious husband.

I was relieved to see Edward when I arrived--I had an understandable fear that he was running amok in the Shadows' ship. Instead, he was operating the controls in the terrestrial transport room, with Mrs Wooster glowering beside him. We removed ourselves from the ring quickly to allow the rest to be brought down. Sir Cosmo remained a minute more--he had contrived to sabotage the ship before leaving. To be doubly sure, Edward transported a cluster of those accursed explosive batteries. Why he would have them with him remains unanswered. At the last moment, I remembered the bracelet, still in my pocket, and dropped it into the rings as well. I'm sure Edward would have liked to examine it, but the thought of having it about, just waiting to be activated by some future Shadow ship, was too much for me.

The room I now found myself in, along with my husband and colleagues, was unfamiliar to me. The ring platform was in the centre of an octagonal room--a sort of clipped rhomboid shape. I saw images in bas-relief on most of the walls, but I could see no door. There were several of the same sort of pedestals or consoles as we had found in the room under Doverton Abbey. Edward was conversing with a glowing form--a construct made to resemble the man who called himself Merlin. The construct seemed to be projecting an intangible yet human-looking image. It spoke and seemed to reason, but it said it was not actually Merlin. It could also sense and project a representation of what was happening out beyond the moon. Thus we we assured of the destruction of the Shadow ship. I was also introduced to two women--the younger being the long-sought Miss Botley (who seemed far more competent than I had been led to expect), and the older being her confederate "Mad" Hettie.

I assured everyone that I was unharmed, and gave a very abbreviated summary of my findings. I explained that the Shadows seemed to have transported me by accident, and that they had treated me civilly enough, until one of them tried to ambush and behead me. Before long, Edward and Sir Cosmo returned to their animated discussion with the Merlin image. I turned to Mr Frazer and declared my need to go home and see to the babies. He and Mr and Mrs Salmalin accompanied me. Our way was not direct. We first had to be transported to a room eerily similar to the one we had just left, only without all our friends, and with a doorway. We threaded our way out and through a dank passage lined in algae-skimmed stones, through crypts and catacombs in varying states of disrepair. At last we emerged through the chapel at the foot of the Tower of London.

We travelled home quickly; the relief and joy I felt upon seeing my babies safe and sound washed through me, leaving me weak and trembling. I realised that he urgency I felt to see my babies had less to do with the need to feed them (it had been only a few hours, really) than with being more frightened than I could admit to myself. Here in the cosy nursery with my husband and children, I felt nearly faint with the postponed effects of fatigue, fear, and anger.

Next I knew, I could smell eggs and bacon. I pried myself out of the chair in the nursery, where someone had tucked a blanket around me. I found Benton as he was finishing dressing. I changed out of my ichor-spattered dress, and into one of the last spare skirts in my wardrobe. Many of my things are still somewhere in Worcestershire--this business has us outrunning our luggage.

When we went downstairs, we found that Mrs Salmalin had fallen asleep in a chair in the parlour. I was certainly concerned that we might have missed something of importance, but we soon learned that nearly everyone still at the second hidden room had also slept, bundled into assorted coats, slumped into uncomfortable corners. We asked Mr Humphries and Mrs Murphy to gather foodstuffs for a hamper. How like the League to be having a picnic in a secret room accessible only through a crypt.

Mrs Salmalin begged our indulgence to stop at the offices of the LHW, as they were so near our way. Earlier, she had unceremoniously left an iron-bound trunk containing Mr Oliphant's remains with them (hoping that they could contain him in case he regenerated), before she went down to join in my rescue. She thought it wise, or at least courteous, to explain the circumstances now. I explained to her that the Shadow human had told me they could regenerate Mr Oliphant if they could retrieve him in time--that I had seen their machinery restoring the two servants. Since it seemed unlikely that any of them would retrieve Mr Oliphant now, I thought he might stay dead this time.

Despite our good intentions, we were diverted. When our carriage brought us to the Tower, Mrs Salmalin declared that something was going on nearby, and that the Comte de Brabant was involved. We went as quickly as we could through the Chapel. Fortunately, no one else was about to see us slip through the secret passage. I was quite amazed that Mr O'Flaherty had managed to fit through some of the tight turns in this passageway. We made it to the first rhomboid room. Here last night, our compatriots had solved a set of riddles before the speaking image of Merlin had allowed them to enter the deeper chamber.

As we entered, I was instantly put on guard by the presence of the Comtesse de Brabant. But she was bereft of her usual air of superiority and assurance. She was arguing dejectedly with the Merlin image. I gathered that although she answered the riddles, she was not admitted. Her husband had gone ahead without her. Perhaps the guardian of this portal had learned of her ruthless pursuit of "Atlantean" artefacts. I'm sure I wouldn't want her in My secret vault.

Mrs Salmalin positioned us at a particular set of markings inlaid in the floor. She then answered 4 riddles posed by the guardian image, just as the group had done yesterday. As we were transported, I heard a wordless cry of frustration from the Comtesse, left behind again.

When we arrived in the further room, I took a closer look, but I still could find no door. How was the room built, before the installation of the rings or transport device? I had little sense of where the room actually was. The range of the ring device must be considerable, since it brought us to and from the Shadow ship on the far side of the moon, so this room could be buried anywhere on earth, or even under the surface of the moon as far as that goes. Still, I reasoned that it must be somewhat near the Tower, because Mrs Salmalin had sensed something that the Comte was doing from inside this room as we approached the Tower.

My attention returned to the room's occupants. Our partisans had been joined not only by the Comte de Brabant, but also by the Cosh Semkhet--that portion using the mechanical container, which had been exiled to its orbiting ship until found by Wilhelmina and Mrs Wooster. Now, I am finding this plethora of Semkhets confusing, so I shall designate that part as "Semkhet A", the portion carried by Miss Botley as "B" and that carried by Mr O'Flaherty as "C."

Before our arrival, the Comte, using his particular abilities, had been able to transport Semkhet "A" down from his ship without using the ring system--the rings being subject to monitoring and interference by the other, unfriendly, Coshes. Mrs Salmalin was quite agog at this feat, accomplished not by scientific equipment but by Mystical power and will.

Miss Botley with Semkhet "B" and Mr O'Flaherty with Semkhet "C" had had a sort of conference with Semkhet "A," all three parts mingling and exchanging knowledge. This recombination meant that all three parts were now essentially equal in information, at least until the three parted ways again and learned further different things.

Miss Botley was far more coherent and intelligent than I had expected. She was able to provide considerable insight as to her recent actions and the activities of all the Cosh. At the moment, we were all concentrating on the task at hand--contacting the other 3 Coshes and convincing them to stop rampaging around London. This room had equipment that could contact the Coshes' orbiting ships. We sent a message to the effect that all the parts of the Cosh Semkhet had been found and brought together, and would they kindly help us repair the persons injured in their search.

Instead of gratitude and cooperation, we received a response laden with ultimatum and hostility. The other Coshes seemed to think we were still holding Semkhet against its will. They threatened war with our world! Not the behaviour I would hope for from our self-appointed shepherds. We quickly responded that Semkhet was not captive, and that we would be willing to meet with them in an hour at Bunhill Fields. They agreed.

We all made our way out of the chamber into the Tower chapel, collecting the Comtesse on the way. I was concerned about Semkhet "A" and his ungainly covering, but he simply emerged from his shell, collapsed it, and towed it behind him through the narrow passages. I wondered why he bothered with the contraption at all, until I glanced at some of my companions, who looked dazzled by the sight of the glowing creature, even though they'd seen him before. I suppose seraphic glory can be distracting, and the covering shell protects us "lesser" beings.

Once we emerged from the Chapel, Mrs Salmalin quickly ran up to the LHW offices. Due to our pressing circumstances, she again deferred explanation of the body in the iron-bound trunk. She instead warned of the hazard of the irate Coshes, should our efforts to placate them fail. We loaded into our various carriages and drove to Bunhill fields.

When the Coshes arrived, each with a human assistant, the three portions of Semkhet emerged and mingled. The three unfriendly Coshes also emerged from their shells--the light was almost painfully bright, but I refused to avert my eyes lest they imagine I was cowering. The commingled Semkhet mingled further with the light of the three others. In the enveloping effulgence, I heard that perennial Cosh question--"Who Are You?" The Coshes proceeded to question me (and I later learned, all of us were questioned within our own minds). I struggled to control my temper as they demanded to know why they should trust me, and then to know if they should trust Wilhelmina-- That one was certainly tricky.

I was not at all pleased with this high-handed interrogation. It reminded me of being interviewed for a Situation--one must make a good impression on those with the power of decision, while making it perfectly clear that one has standards and requirements of one's own.

Eventually, the Coshes seemed satisfied. I understand they even offered Mrs Cuthbert a Situation working with them. She had been enthusiastic at the prospect of the knowledge she could gain and the good works she could accomplish, but once they made it clear to her that she would be leaving the Earth and might not return, she regretfully declined.

As things stand now, Semkhet "C" has left Mr O'Flaherty and rejoined Semkhet "A", and those two parts have returned to their orbiting ship. Semkhet "B" remains with Miss Botley to continue the work of restoring those people harmed by the 3 hostile Coshes. I suspect that Semkhet "B" may remain on Earth with her indefinitely. At this moment, they are at Bethlehem Hospital, along with Mrs Salmalin and Mrs Cuthbert. There are plans afoot for a trip to Edenfield to try to restore Col Dunbar, then a return to Worcestershire to tidy matters up with the Plank family. Mr John Plank will now be inheriting Doverton Abbey. We will probably be able to persuade him to allow us to catalogue its collection and we will find way to study and secure the ring room beneath it.

Miss Botley has expressed her intention of returning to Worcestershire to take up the cottage she was promised by Sir Robert. Mrs Salmalin has made it plain that she must be supported in this, as she is the heiress of her grandmother's position as witch of the Doverton Abbey area. It is, I am told, an area of great magical potency, and must be guarded and used appropriately.

We have learned more of Miss Botley's story now that she can speak to us, and it is a chilling tale indeed. She was apparently mute, and some thought her mentally deficient, from a child. She was under the care of her Grandmother. At the Grandmother's recent death, Sir Robert took Miss Botley as his ward, to all appearances out of the goodness of his heart, but actually for unsavoury reasons.

He had long been a student of the practices of that insane Milo Rambaldi. He had found a Rambaldi artefact: the mechanical "man" with the peridot crystal cross within it. In the 15th Century, Rambaldi had somehow found and captured the person who was then hosting Semkhet "B." He somehow forced Semkhet "B" to leave the human and he captured it in the peridot crystal within the mechanical man (the human host is believed to have been killed by this process). The crystal and the mechanical man kept Semkhet "B" captive, unable to communicate with the part remaining in the ship.

Sir Robert had also found the ring room beneath Doverton Abbey, and was experimenting with the equipment there to find a way to prolong his life. He thought that he could use that equipment and the mechanical man to draw the living energy out of one living thing and into himself. He chose the "idiot" Miss Botley to draw energy from. His experiment had the unforeseen effect of pulling Semkhet "B" out of the crystal and into Miss Botley. This was alarming and disorienting for them both, and caused profound change in Miss Botley's behaviour. Sir Robert, perplexed by the failure of his experiment and not at all realising what he had released from the crystal, asked his friend Dr Kenyon to examine Miss Botley. Dr Kenyon, as we know, took her to London to his consulting rooms.

Meanwhile, the release of Semkhet "B" allowed it to send a kind of distress signal to Semkhet "A", and other Coshes in the area came to investigate. Those other Coshes looked all over to find anyone who might know of the whereabouts of Semkhet "B" and ransacked the mind of each person with little regard to the damage they might cause. Semkhet "B" and Miss Botley were gradually learning to understand one another, but communication between them was still not clear. When one of the other Coshes came to Dr Kenyon's rooms, Semkhet "B" was concerned that the Cosh would harm Miss Botley, not understanding her innocence or her current importance to Semkhet "B", and so she --they-- fled.

By the time we found Miss Botley, she had come under the protection of "Mad" Hettie, also a witch, who had helped her hide herself and survive. During these few days, Miss Botley and Semkhet "B" gradually learned to communicate more clearly and form a more functional symbiosis. Now Miss Botley is a confident and articulate young woman, and one can scarcely believe that a perverse tinkerer such as Sir Robert had ever had power over her. I wonder if she would revert to her dumb state if Semkhet "B" were to leave her? I hope that their association may have permanently repaired her previous deficiencies, but I have no way of knowing that. For the present, they seem content together.

Now I must set down an official report of what I learned today, while it is still fresh in my mind. The Shadows and the Cosh are still out there in the cosmos, and might return at any time. It took us a great deal of precious time to determine the most fundamental facts about the conflict in our midst. I shouldn't like our descendants to have to start all over again if that return is beyond my lifetime. I will write everything we learned about the Cosh, the Shadows, and even the Atlanteans (whose remaining scientific artefacts were so crucial to our efforts), and deliver copies to the Foreign Office, the Home Office, the St Jerome Chapter house, and the LHW, and keep some secure so my own descendants can take any necessary action. I rather dread the idea that someday someone will read all this and laugh at my delusional fancies, and consider me a "crackpot," much as I have derided others. But, there is no help for it, all I can do is write as clearly and present as much evidence as I can, and hope that this will keep the information useful.

I have learned that extraordinary clear sight and knowledge often looks exactly like insanity.

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