The Apocalypse Script (9 page)

“
The servants will see to our
bags,” Lilian said as they emerged from the car. She walked around
the vehicle and slipped her hand inside the crook of Ben’s arm.
“May I?”

Arm-in-arm, they proceeded down
the cobblestone walk toward the hotel’s entrance. As they did so
the doors swung outward and an old man stepped onto the stone
porch. Ben assumed the figure was Ridley.

Their greeter was a sight to
behold. He wore an untethered red silk robe that flapped lazily
over a gray sweat suit, and his shuffling feet were adorned in
sandals and socks. The man’s gray hair was cut so short that the
flesh of his scalp shown through it, though his silver goatee and
eyebrows were disproportionately full. The whites of his eyes had
been replaced with something approaching the color of parchment.
With his pronounced stoop, he stood just over five feet tall. Ben
guessed his age at ninety years, minimum.

“
Greetings, Ben,” the ancient man
said as he clasped the researcher’s outstretched hand in both of
his own. The grip was firm. “I’m delighted to meet you.”

“
It’s a pleasure meeting you,
sir.”

“
Lilian,” said Ridley pivoting,
and the woman bent over so that the old man could hug
her.

“
Good afternoon,
Scriptus.”

“
How are you both?” the host
asked.

“
I am well,” said the woman, “but
Ben is recovering from a chance encounter with Fiela last
evening.”

Observing the stitches, the old man mumbled, “That
was unfortunate.”

“
It’s just a scratch, really,”
said Ben. “She returned this morning and apologized. She even
cooked me breakfast.”

Ridley perked up immediately. “I
am glad to hear it. She is somewhat impetuous, you see, but she is
a treasure. You’ll agree with me once you get to know her better, I
promise.”

“
I’m sure. We’ll she be joining
us, then?”

“
Later,” said Ridley. “She has
some cleaning up to do, first.”

“
Ah.”

“
Well, well,” the man said,
slapping Ben on the back. “Enough of this. Let’s go
inside.”

The first room they entered from
outside was what Lilian had referred to as the Great Hall, and as
she had promised, Ben was stunned by its size. Clearly designed to
impress arrivals to Steepleguard, the cavernous room was, he
figured, at least as large as the Sistine Chapel, and probably
larger when the four stories of room balconies overlooking the hall
were factored in.

Above the highest balcony,
two-dozen stained glass windows poured colorful, diffused light
into the hall. Two rows of marble columns the size of those found
at the Parthenon segregated the hall into three distinct regions,
the center leading to a distant check-in counter, on either side of
which were a set of wide staircases that curved steeply up and away
from the counter and to the second floor balcony.

The areas to the left and right of
the columns were lounges, each harboring stone fireplaces so large
a man could walk into them without crouching. The entire hall was
devoid of furniture or rugs and their footsteps echoed loudly as
they entered the room.

“
Home sweet home,” announced
Ridley. “How was your trip up?”

“
Wonderful,” said Lilian. “It’s so
nice to get away from the city.”

“
I’m glad to hear it.” He gave the
woman a purposeful look and added, “Lilian, why don’t you go and
situate yourself while I speak to Ben.”

“
As you
wish,
Scriptus
,” she said. The woman stepped toward Ben and startled him by
brushing her lips against his. “Thank you, Ben.”

“
For what?”

“
A leap of faith.”

When she was gone, Ridley said.
“What has she told you?”

Ben scratched the back of his
neck, still thinking about the kiss. “Not much, really. I only got
a few hours sleep last night so I napped most of the way here. I
know, of course, that you have some allegedly ancient stone tablets
that you want me to study. I’ve got the photographs. Lilian told me
the legend regarding how they were found and ended up in your
possession and also mentioned that you and she are members of a
society called the Delphic Order of the Nisirtu.”

“
Yes. In fact, the tablets are the
property of our organization but I am their caretaker.”

“
What is the origin of the name,
‘Nisirtu?’ Akkadian, maybe?”

Ridley nodded and said, “That’s
very astute. Yes, Akkadian. It can be interpreted several ways but
most correctly it is ‘Secret Council.’ Nisirtu is both singular and
plural. One can be
a Nisirtu
and part of
the
Nisirtu
. It’s an artifact of the language.
We do not have singular and plural tenses, exactly.”

Ben’s surprise showed. “You still
speak it?
Akkadian? It had plural forms,
though.
”

“
Yes, but
languages evolve. It would be more precise to say we speak its
descendent, which we call
Agati.
Truth be told, we’ve borrowed
so much from other languages over the millennia that it bears
little resemblance to its source. Even our sentence structure
differs from that used in the classical form of the
language.”

“
Rather an odd choice for a secret
language, isn’t it? Why not just use Latin? It is appropriately
esoteric.”

Ridley chuckled. “I’m afraid we
didn’t have much choice in the matter. It was the language
originally spoken by our founders.”

“
When was that?”

The man’s eyes twinkled. “A very
long time ago. We trace our lineage back to ancient
Mesopotamia.”

Ben knew that had to be a
fabricated legend but raised his eyebrows and whistled,
nonetheless. “You’re talking four millennia or so ago. That’s some
pedigree, sir.”

“
Yes, and you’ll find that we can
get a bit carried away with the whole conceit. From time to time
we’ll even dress up in silly costumes and perform pointless but
colorful rituals.” Ridley shrugged as if embarrassed. “We can be
just as self-centered and pompous as any other secret
society.”

“
How large is the Order of the
Nisirtu?”

“
Very large. We
have chapters - which we call
Kingdoms
- everywhere in the world.
I hold the position of ‘scribe’ and am usually referred to as
‘Scriptus.’”

“
Yes, I heard Lilian address you
as such. So, you keep records of meetings, that kind of
thing?”

“
Not exactly.”

“
Ah.” There was an awkward
silence. The researcher put his hands in his pockets and said,
“Well, I’d like to look at the tablets if you don’t mind. That is
what you’re paying me for.”

The old man looked suddenly
uneasy. He crossed his arms and toyed with his lower lip. “Ben, I
want to show you the tablets, but before I can I’ll need you to
indulge me on one matter.”

“
Sure, what?”

The scribe said, “I will show you
the tablets this day so that you may verify they are authentic and
that the inscriptions are, in fact, unknown in your field. That is
only fair after what you have been through. You will have then done
what you have been paid to do. However, if you decide the tablets
are legitimate and you wish to study them further, you must become
a member of our society.”

Caught off guard, Ben said, “Why should I do
that?”

“
Because the tablets are the
property of the Nisirtu. It is forbidden for anyone other than the
Nisirtu to study them.”

“
That sounds like an unnecessary
impediment, Ridley. I’m not taking them home with me. I am merely
inspecting them at your request.”

The man looked apologetic. “I
know. Nevertheless, you’ll find that you will have more unfettered
access if you become, well,
one of
us.
”

“
How would I become a member?” the
other man asked cautiously.

“
You’d need two sponsors - in this
case, Lilian and Fiela - and you’d sign a contract that essentially
prohibits you from disclosing what you learn about the Nisirtu with
others outside our little club.”

Ben said, “But the tablets - what
if they are legitimate and I am successful in deciphering them?
Surely you don’t plan to keep them a secret. They may be
historically significant. I’d want to publish my
findings.”

“
If you can do that without
revealing their location or the existence of the Nisirtu, you are
free to publish. In fact, I will allow you to keep one tablet to
share with your peers for additional study.”

The linguist chewed on the offer.
“You’re telling me that all I have to do is to get two sponsors and
not reveal the secret handshake?”

Ridley nodded. “You understand me
exactly.”

“
And you’ll give me your word that
I can publish my findings?”

“
Yes. I’ll put it in writing.
Also, you will be paid handsomely. You may name whatever figure you
think is reasonable. I would suggest one hundred million as a
starting point? Our society has unlimited assets and I’m sure
you’re a fair man.”

Ben couldn’t help but laugh. “One
hundred million dollars?”

“
If you can decipher the
tablets.”

“
You can’t be serious.”

“
But I am. In fact, I will ensure
the first twenty-five million are deposited into your account the
moment you become a member. A gesture of good faith.”

Ben didn’t hesitate. “Show me the tablets.”

His host led him through a huge
kitchen at the back of the old hotel that was surprisingly modern.
It appeared completely new, in fact, with the manufacturer’s tags
and stickers still attached to the appliances. There were a half
dozen stainless steel gas and electric ranges, four deep sinks,
numerous refrigerators and freezers, and rows of metal cabinets on
each wall. Each of the appliances was top-of-the-line and
commercial grade. Hundreds of cooking utensils were attached to
hooks above granite-topped islands.

Ben whistled admiringly. “You must
like to entertain.”

“
Me? Oh, never. I am a recluse,
you see. However, I thought it a good idea to have the kitchen
upgraded for - well, for whoever lives here next. I’ve made other
improvements. There is an underground storage tank in the back with
fuel for the generators and several aboveground storage tanks of
propane, in addition to some very scary-looking batteries powered
by solar arrays and geothermal sources. There are also some good
wood burning stoves and ice boxes in the other kitchen.”

“
Other kitchen?”

“
One kitchen won’t do with four
hundred guests,” said the scribe over his shoulder.

“
You’re thinking of selling,
then.”

“
Selling? No, no. I have no use
for money, Ben.”

The two men left the kitchen and walked through a
maze of paneled corridors, making so many turns at nondescript
corners that Ben was certain that he’d never be able to find his
way back on his own.

“
Here we are,” Ridley said at
last, stopping in front of a faded white wooden door that looked to
be original to the house.

A reproduction of an old painting,
a foot wide and perhaps half as tall, had been affixed to the wall
two feet above and to the right of the doorknob. Ben was familiar
with the original painting but couldn’t remember where he had seen
it before. It showed the erection of a giant stone building that
was shaped like an inverted cone, with a masonry walk spiraling up
its exterior like threads on a screw. Dozens of shadowy, arched
portals checkered the building’s surface. At the top of the
building, which was unfinished, workers toiled to make the building
taller still. An ancient city was in the background, its buildings
dwarfed by the new edifice.

Ridley gave him a mischievous
look. “An old family photo.” He placed his palm on the print. As he
removed his hand there was a whir and click. “This is a proprietary
bio-identification plate, or ‘bioplate.’ Normally it’s just a slab
of black porcelain. I thought the painting was a nice touch,
though.” He gestured toward the open door. “If you would do the
honors?”

Ben reached down and turned the
handle, which was surprisingly firm in his grip, and as the door
opened he saw why. The door was six-inch thick steel. The wooden
surface visible in the hallway was merely a façade.

In front of him was a stone
staircase that spiraled into the earth, each step illuminated by
red LED lights. A cool breeze rose from the depths and swept over
the two men, filling the air with a dank, musty smell.

“
Remind me to turn on the
ventilators,” said Ridley as he ambled slowly down the steps.
“There is an elevator on the far end of the house but I need some
exercise.”

Ben was amazed at how long it took
the men to reach the bottom of the stairs. When they finally
completed their descent there was nothing in front of them but
darkness. He heard switches being flipped. Massive lights blinked
to life overhead and Ben found himself standing at the entrance to
a large cavern, complete with stalactites, perhaps fifty yards in
diameter and four stories tall.