Europa Conspiracy (Babylon Rising 3) (6 page)

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"What about the Stone?" Bartholomew broke in.

Talon moved slightly. His hands were cold, and he could feel the gargoyles under his fingertips. He knew that the Seven would not be happy with what he was going to say. "The formula for the Philosopher's Stone is written on three bronze metal plates," he explained. "I put them in a backpack along with some curious crystals, a dagger that may have been made of tungsten steel, and other items from the ark. I had them with me when I boarded the ship sailing from Istanbul to Romania."

"Had
them!" Sir William Merton exclaimed.

Talon controlled himself and smiled slightly He could feel perspiration forming on his forehead, and his underarms were damp. "I had an encounter with Professor Murphy on the ship, and we got into a fight. The backpack slipped off and was lost."

"What!" General Li slammed his fist onto the table. "I thought you killed Murphy when you caused the avalanche to bury the ark under thousands of tons of snow and ice!"

"He somehow escaped."

"We don't pay you to make mistakes, Talon," said Jakoba Werner, a fleshy German woman with blond hair.
"We
pay you a vast amount of money to destroy our enemies."

John Bartholomew's tone was chilling. "Maybe we need to find someone else who can do the job."

"I can do it," Talon replied. "I have my own personal scores to settle with Murphy."

"Talk is cheap," Viorica Enesco, an angular woman

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with a Romanian accent, said. "It is time for action. Show us what you can do."

Bartholomew again spoke. "Is there any way you can recover the backpack?"

"I think so. But it will take time to search the area where I went over into the Black Sea."

"We
don't want a geography lesson or excuses, we want the plates," Barrington ground out. "But right now something has come to our attention that needs an immediate response. We have many operatives. One of them monitors all of the newspapers printed by the Barrington Network News. She ran across a small article about an elderly man who talks about the end of the world and a leader who will arise to rule the world. That man must be eliminated."

"What harm can an old man... ?" Talon began.

"Enough!" General Li shouted.
"We
don't pay you to question! Just do it--now! Your very life may depend on it."

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ELEVEN

MURPHY PLACED his briefcase on the desk, took out his notes, and surveyed the crowd. His attention was caught by Paul Wallach. He was sitting far back in the lecture hall.
Not in his usual spot. He and Shari must still be at odds.

Shari was on the other side of the room passing out graded book reports. She didn't notice that Paul was watching her.

Murphy sighed.

"Good morning, class. Let's get under way. You will recall we were talking about the ancient city of Babylon. The Babylonian Empire was very advanced. The Babylonians excelled in the theoretical mathematics of geometry and algebra. They measured time with water and sun clocks. They also measured degrees of angles precisely. Their numerical system was based on sixty. That's why we have

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sixty minutes in an hour and 360 degrees in a circle. They also utilized a decimal system and knew about square roots and the value of pi. Their calendar was based on lunar cycles with twelve lunar months. Weights and measures were regulated across the empire, using metal or stone weights in the shape of ducks."

Don 'west raised his hand. Murphy could always count on Don to add some unique detail. He was the most well-read student in the class.

"Dr. Murphy," Don said, "I was looking up Babylon on the Internet last night. I read that the Babylonians were quite sophisticated in the area of medicine too. It's believed that they had a superb knowledge of human and animal anatomy and physiology. Also, they understood the circulation of blood and the importance of the pulse. The article indicated they even did delicate operations on the eye."

"That's correct, Don. They were very scientific on one hand and very superstitious on the other. The Babylonians were well steeped in divination and witchcraft. They used magic formulae to attempt to read the future. They used drops of water on oil, noting the direction of the wind and the influence of storms. They also made predictions based on which way smoke blew in the air, the way a fire burned, and the position of the stars. To the Babylonians, even abnormal births held some significance for the future. Archaeologists have found stones shaped like sheep livers with incantations inscribed on them. The Babylonians specialized in the observation of animal entrails. They believed that the gods communicated through signs, natural phenomena, and worldly events. For example, the

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sudden appearance of a lion, the eclipse of the moon, or an unusual dream might portend the future."

Stephanie Kovacs stepped into the lecture hall through a side door.
Curious
, Murphy thought.
Perhaps she really is interested in ancient Babylon.

"The Babylonians made systematic recordings of the planets and named most of the signs of the zodiac," Murphy continued. "There was a flourishing business of selling charms and amulets to protect people from evil. Almost like how we use a rabbit's foot for good luck today.

"The city of Babylon is very important when it comes to archaeology and Bible prophecy. It is the second most-mentioned city in the Bible. The first is Jerusalem, which is referred to 811 times. Babylon is mentioned 286 times. Both of these cities have great historical importance."

By now Kovacs had found a seat in the back and was looking attentively at Murphy.

"The Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation both talk a great deal about Babylon. The events of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace, Daniel in the lions' den, and the 'Handwriting on the Wall' at Belshazzar's feast all took place in Babylon."

Murphy paused and casually leaned back against the desk. "You will recall from previous lectures that the Bible talked about Noah's Flood as a judgment against the wickedness. Men could be saved from the judgment of God only by entering the ark of safety. Well, the 'Handwriting on the Wall' at Belshazzar's feast is similar. It was a judgment against King Belshazzar and his

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wickedness and pride. His kingdom was destroyed, just as the world was destroyed in the Flood. The people of Noah's day were given warnings to turn from their evil ways, and they would not listen. Belshazzar didn't heed the warnings of God when his grandfather was punished by going insane. You'll recall that his grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar, became like a beast and went around on all fours for seven years."

Murphy paused for a moment to let it sink in. "Isn't it strange that we do the same thing today? God gives us warnings. He pleads with us and confronts us. You may ask, 'How does He do this?' He does this through the still small voice of our conscience. Our conscience tells us what is right and what is wrong. If we listen to our conscience and do right, happiness follows. However, if we ignore it, we will face destruction and unhappiness like the people of Noah's day or like Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar. Have you heard the still small voice of your conscience speaking? Have you been obeying it or ignoring it?"

Murphy stopped talking, to let his students reflect. Finally the silence was broken by the ringing of the bell, which startled everyone. There was not a lot of talking as the students filed out of the lecture hall. Stephanie Kovacs remained in her seat.

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TWELVE

"GOOD MORNING, STEPHANIE," Murphy called up to her. The two of them were alone in the lecture hall. "I didn't see your cameraman."

"I didn't think it would be necessary. I was still in town and thought I'd catch your lecture. Do you have time between classes to talk?"

"Sure. Let's go over to the pond by the student center. There are some benches there and we won't be disturbed. There'll be another class in this room in about fifteen minutes. It will be anything but quiet."

Kovacs turned to Murphy, her face serious. "I need to apologize to you," she said. Her tone lacked its usual cutting edge.

Murphy was caught off guard. "For what?"

"For coming on too strong. As an investigative reporter, I've always approached any story with skepticism. I use my aggression, hoping that it will make the other person nervous and reveal something that would incriminate

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them. I've tried that with you in the past and you've always answered truthfully. I've watched you under different stressful situations and have come to realize that you aren't some religious nut."

Murphy laughed. "Maybe a little strange ... but not crazy."

The humor eased the tension a little. Kovacs began to relax and open up. "I've been thinking about what you said in your first lecture. You know, the part about being happy and finding purpose in life. Is it really possible for anyone to be truly happy?"

"Well, I guess that would depend on what you mean by happiness, Stephanie. If you think happiness means having freedom from any conflict with people, I don't think that will ever happen. We'll always encounter disappointments, hurts, and rubs with our family, friends, and fellow workers. That's part of living. Happiness doesn't mean that we'll never get sick or have any financial concerns. There are many ill people who seem to be cheerful, while a lot of healthy people are pessimistic. The same can be said about rich people and poor people. I know some people who have very little when it comes to earthly goods and yet they are content. And there are many rich people who are angry and depressed. We've all heard stories of rich people committing suicide."

Kovacs nodded. She couldn't identify with the suicide part, but she did understand those who are angry and dissatisfied. She was living with one such man.

"Happiness has more to do with attitude," Murphy told her. "Actually, I think happiness is the end result of having a positive attitude toward life, even in the midst of

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struggles. Someone has said that happiness is like a butterfly. When we chase it, it seems to always elude us. But when we busy ourselves with our responsibilities, the butterfly of happiness lands on our shoulders."

"Well, my butterfly must be taking a vacation," Kovacs said with a wry smile.

Murphy could tell that there was more behind her quick retort. He knew it would be best to let her talk.

"Today, when you mentioned Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace and Daniel in the lions' den, it brought back memories. My grandfather used to tell me stories about them. He was a very religious man. He was warm, caring, and funny. I guess as I think about it now, he was probably a happy man."

"Did you go to church in your younger years?"

"Yes, back in Michigan."

"Do you still go?"

Kovacs paused, then explained, "No. I stopped in junior high school. My father was killed by a drunk driver, and I couldn't understand why a loving God would do such a thing. I guess I got angry with God and stopped going."

"That happens to a lot of people."

"You mentioned judgment and conscience today. That was really heavy. I haven't thought about God using our conscience."

"You sound discouraged."

"More like disillusioned. I don't think it's possible to be happy--at least for me."

"I think that God may be trying to talk to you."

"I'm sorry, Dr. Murphy, but now you
are
beginning to

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sound like one of those religious nuts. I don't hear voices. It's always bothered me when people say they hear God talking to them. It sounds like they need to be in an insane asylum somewhere."

"Well, let me try to help you understand. Did you ever fly a kite with your father?"

"Yes, many times."

"Do you remember when you would let out the string, how the kite would rise? You could hear the paper rattling in the wind. Sometimes it would rise so high that it almost disappeared out of sight."

"I remember that."

"When the kite was out of sight, how could you tell that it was still there?"

Kovacs looked a little puzzled for a moment. Then she said slowly, "I guess by the pull of the string. It meant the wind was still blowing the kite."

"Right. That's sort of how it is when God speaks to you," Murphy explained with a smile. "You can't see Him. He is out of sight. And you can't audibly hear His voice because He is too far away. But you can feel His loving tug on the strings of your heart. He does this when you read the Bible. He also does this when you listen to the still small voice of your conscience. That's how God speaks to you."

"That's a different concept from hearing voices."

"Yes, it is. Let me ask you a question. Do you feel the tug of God on the strings of your heart today?"

Stephanie Kovacs's blue eyes began to fill with tears. She turned away from Murphy quickly, but he knew he had given her food for thought.