Darkness

An evil entity has hidden the sun, and the world becomes a dark and dreadful place. Biegolmai Davvii, a Saami shaman and one of the eight Guardians of the Four Winds, sends the Lone Ranger, a former US Army Ranger, and Jon Fish, a Marine Drill Instructor, to Machu Picchu to find the evil sorcerer who sacrifices women to acquire the power to control the sun. Jon is the reincarnation of the bodhisattva Akashagarbha, and he has the power to cross time and space. The Ranger is the reincarnation of the bodhisattva Vajrapani and he has the power to control winds and rain, thunder and lightning. But as long as an evil entity controls the vortex at the peak of Machu Picchu, neither man may access their bodhisattva powers and they must climb the mountain as mortals. After a fight with Elman's minions, they are able to halt the sacrifices, but they are unable to capture Yam Elman, the twin brother of Guardian Hadad Elman. Elman escapes and attempts to take control of one of the other vortexes of power. Elman thrives on chaos, and the darkness that encompasses the world sends people into panic. Weird religions spring up overnight, among them Elman's Ministry of Light which promises eternal life and eternal light in return for blind obedience and personal sacrifice. Jon, the Ranger, and two other Guardians--Bryn Helgasdottir, a Valkyrie, and Kisikil Lalake, a wood nymph--attack Elman's church headquarters north of St. Louis at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. Elman double-whammies Jon, Bryn, and the Ranger with Vril magic. Kisi turns Vril magic against Elman and frees her companions, but the Ranger hits his head against a tree and loses all memory of Vajrapani. In order to heal the Ranger, restore his memory, and reunite him with Vajrapani, Biegolmai sends the Ranger, Kisi, Bryn, and Kiyari--the reincarnation of an Incan moon priestess who is also the reincarnation of Persephone and Inanna--into the underworlds on a healing journey. Yam Elman has also gone into the underworlds to recruit demons to help him take over the world. In order to find Elman, force him to return the sun and keep him from ascending the world tree with a demon army, the Ranger and his companions must search through all nine underworlds and return their spirits to their mortal bodies within twelve days or remain trapped in the underworlds forever. Guided through the underworlds by Hecate, they encounter demons, serpents, Queen Ereshkegal, King Aidoneus Haides, Snow Queen Hel, and demon Udug Hul. Each of the four companions faces his or her own personal demons in the underworlds. They emerge from the underworlds with greater knowledge and they manage to recover the silver mask of the Moon Goddess, but Elman escapes them.