The Dove (4 page)

D’Brouchart sat straight up in his chair and then slumped back suddenly.  His mouth fell open as he realized what Luke was trying to tell him.

“Do you… have you ever heard of Unity?”  Luke asked him when he did not speak.

“Unity.  Yes,” d’Brouchart nodded.  “I know something of that.”

“Unity is what is missing.”  Luke told him.  “For us.  For the Watchers.”

“Do you know who I am?”  The Master tilted his head slightly to one side.

“Of course!”  Luke looked at him as if he were crazy.  “You are the Grand Master.”

“Your father never told you about me?” 

“He said a lot about you.  Most of it is not worth repeating.”  Luke looked away from him.  “I know you and he didn’t see eye to eye sometimes.”

“Nicole has been to see you.”  The Master told him flatly.  “I knew she would come eventually.”

Luke froze in his seat.

“Don’t try to deceive an old deceiver, Luke.”  D’Brouchart smiled at him.  “Your father and I go way back.  Way, way back.  I would never have thought to see the day when I would be sitting at this table with a replica of Adar, the Mighty Hunter.  Do you know what you are?”

“I told you!  I’m a Watcher.”

“Watcher is an occupation.  You are part of all that is fallen.  You are one of God’s own.”

“What do you mean?”

“There is no difference between you and Marduk.  Only years.  There is no difference between you and Nergal or Shammash or Nebo.”

“And just what is it that I am supposed to be then?”

“You are half an angel, if you will.”

“Not half!  My mother is an angel as well!”  Luke blurted the words.

“No!  I don’t mean half-breed.  I mean half… you are one half of an angel.”

“That’s ludicrous.”  Luke frowned.

“What did Nicole tell you?  Did she tell you that she is your feminine half?  That you were separated because you were born in human form?  That in order to become what you should be, that you would have to join with her?  Angels are androgynous.  That is why Lucifer is so beautiful.  He is male and female.  He is complete and whole. 
A son of God
.  I, too, was once a son of God.  Son is used here only in context, not in fact.  You heard him address me as Nathanael?”

Luke nodded.  He had wondered at that.  He had also wondered why the angel had looked at him with such contempt and, at the same time, amusement.

“Your mother is a part of Nanna who came to us as John Paul, her own son.  Together they make another of the so-called fallen ones.  We were disobedient to our Creator and we were cast down on earth to look after the pits of hell.”

Luke tried to grasp this new data.  Nicole had not passed this along.

“We cannot create things, Luke.  We are not the Creator.  We were created by the false god as his servants and we were freed from him by the Father.  Our Father, the True Creator, cast the false god into the pit and we were set to watch over him.  That is why you and Nicole are separated.  And your father is responsible for the separation of the rest of us.  He was lonely.”

“Lonely?!”  Luke’s mouth fell open.

“He should never have tampered with the material world.  But Our Father knew he would.  It was all a part of the plan.  For the salvation of mankind.”

“I don’t understand.”  Luke slumped on the bench.

“All of this is your father’s illusion.”  D’Brouchart waved one hand about the kitchen.  “He wanted to be a
man
.  He liked the form even though there was much pain and suffering.  Our Father simply used his foolish desires for his own purposes.  But do not despair. 
Your
father is not the only one who fell as I have said.  We were created from the imperfect, by the imperfect.” 

“God had compassion on us and allowed us to continue.  God is pure love and light, not the vengeful God you read of in the Pentateuch!  Not the God who cast man from the garden and made him to till the ground and wander in the wilderness for forty years.  Not the God who set men against one another for entertainment!  Man has been deceived from the very beginning, but God sent His messengers to save mankind.  We have not always been Watchers.  Sometimes we have taken an active part in the affairs of men, infusing them with the Holy Blood, bringing them light and the chance to redeem themselves.  Knowledge has been offered and lost and rejected time and again.  Solomon, the most wise and foolish King of all.  The teacher!  The great magician!  Solomon whose lust for beautiful women brought curses upon his house and the houses of his children.  And wise Hermes!  Whose beautiful writings have never been matched.  And all for what?  I will tell you.  You have heard it said?  Let those who have ears hear and those with eyes see?  That is purpose.  Sooner or later all who have ears will hear, and all who have eyes will see.  The Father gathers those who hear and see back to him like so many lost sheep who suddenly find their way from the wilderness. We may all yet redeem ourselves.  You have found the way.  Will you follow the path? I am still searching for that which I lost.”

“Then you are also a Watcher?”  Luke asked him quietly.

“I am the Lord of the Second Gate.  Some may call me a Watcher, but…”  The Master told him and then looked up at the ceiling before continuing.  “We have all been blind at some time or another.  You are very young and have much to learn.  Did she say where, exactly, they were keeping Sir Ramsay’s body in New Babylon?  We need to get it back before Jozsef Daniel destroys his body like Abaddon destroyed Omar’s body.”

“You weren’t listening to me.”  Luke looked down at his hands.  “The body is not dead.  He lives, but he is not my father.  He is a stranger.”  Luke asked in alarm.  “What if…”

“Like you said, my son, Adar is not in New Babylon.  There is no need to torment yourself with possibilities.  This is probably very good news.  Never-the-less, we must make some effort to recover him and the girl… young woman.” 

((((((((((((()))))))))))))

“Peaches.”  Mark Andrew scowled at the bowl that Sophia held in front of him.  “I hate peaches.”

“I thought you hated strawberries.”  She sat back on the bed in disappointment.  She had gone through a great deal of trouble to get the peaches for him.

“Strawberries.”  Mark frowned.  “Where are strawberries?”

“Never mind.”  She set the bowl on the table and then jumped as she heard Jozsef’s voice behind her.  She slid off the bed and stood up as the ‘Prophet’ unlocked the barred door and entered the room.  He was alone this time.

“How is the patient?”  He asked as usual and did not expect an answer.  He stood near the foot of the bed, looking at Mark Andrew curiously.  Mark simply stared at him blandly.  “Still no progress?  Has he not learned to walk?”

“He will probably never walk again, thanks to you.”  Sophia told him.  “Sitting is a chore for him.”

“But I see you keep him busy.”  Jozsef picked up the novel lying on the comforter.  “Does he enjoy your reading to him?”

“I have no idea.”  Sophia shrugged.  “It keeps
me
busy.”

Jozsef walked around the bed and grasped Mark’s arm.  Mark made no move to resist him.  He held up the arm and let it drop to the bed.  He bent over him and looked into his eyes.  Mark closed his eyes automatically.

“Still no sign of memory?”  He turned back to the woman.

“He’s as empty as a newborn babe.”  She smiled ruefully at the creature she despised.

“I see.”  Jozsef headed for the door.  “You will continue to try.  If he regains his memory, you may be allowed to go home.”

“I will let you know.”

“I’m sure.”  Jozsef let himself out, spoke quietly to the guards and made his way back down the hall.

When the sound of his footsteps died, Mark looked at Sophia.

“I don’t like him.” 

“I don’t either.”

“He’s mean.”

“Yes, he is.”

“You’re mean, too.”  Mark stuck out his bottom lip in a pout.

“I’m mean?!”  She sat back down on the bed.  “Why do you say that?”

“Because.”

“Because why?”  She put one hand under his chin and raised his face.

“Because you said I am empty.  I’m not empty.”  He patted his stomach.  “I’m full.  That’s why I don’t like the peaches.”

“Oh!  You mean you don’t want the peaches because you’re too full.”  She smiled at him.

“Exactly.”

“Exactly.”  She nodded.  “We’ll save them for later.  After our dancing lesson.  OK?”

“Can we dance now?”  He asked and his face lit up.

“We need to study a bit more.”  She told him and pulled the notebook from under the covers.

“Again?”  He frowned at the paper and pen.

“Yes.  Again!”  She laughed.  “You did very well.  You fooled him really good.”

“Did I?”  He smiled.

“Uh, huh.  You did.”  She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips.  “You did exactly what Sophia told you to do!  You always do.”

“Always.  I always come back.”  He smiled and she blinked at him in confusion.

“Why did you say that?”  She asked him.  “You haven’t gone anywhere.”

“I will go somewhere and when I do, I will come back.  I always come back.”  He smiled at her.

((((((((((((()))))))))))))

“Selwig!”  Simon called up to the loft in the stables. He did not shout too loudly because he did not wish to disturb the elves in the rear section of the barn where Il Dolce Mio kept his strange vigil.  He could hear the soft sounds of eleven pipes and whistles.  “I know you’re up there.”

There was a brief rustling in the hay and a few loose straws drifted down into the shafts of sunlight slanting across the barn.  Momentarily, the cherubic face of the Tuathan healer peeked over the side at the Knight of the Serpent.  His red-golden curls hung about his face and he looked very distressed.

“I’m sorry to disturb your meditations, my friend.”  Simon said gravely.  “But I need some advice… some help.  As one healer to another, you see.  Professional advice.”

“Ahhh.  I would be honored to assist you, Master.”  Selwig’s expression changed to one of surprise.  “Shall I come down or will you come up?”

“I’ll come up.  Stay where you are.”  Simon caught hold of the ladder and climbed up to the loft.  He found the healer sitting by the open door under the eaves of the building.  There were numerous items laying about the straw strewn floor in front of him.  His yellow bag lay folded next to him. 

The sun cast a warm yellow glow on the floor where he sat inventorying the contents of his mysterious bag.   Simon sat down in front of him and looked at the stuff with great interest.  There were bottles and small metal containers collected from the kitchen.  Lumpy items wrapped in cloth and bits of paper and plastic.  A quill pen, ink and a roll of paper tied with a yellow string.  Several strips of white linen, neatly laid out side by side.  A collection of multi-colored crystals and rocks were arranged in a circle at his feet.  Toothpicks, cotton balls, a folded piece of old aluminum foil.  A small, ornately carved dagger, a small mortar and pestle, a plastic bottle of water and a leather flask made up the bulk of the larger items.  Simon was surprised to see the contents of the bag spread before him.  He had often wondered what the little healer carried in his bag.

Selwig picked up the plastic water bottle and held it up in the light.

“This is very handy.”  He told the Healer.  “Much better than carrying a large vessel made of crockery or a goatskin pouch.  We had no such things as this where I come from, but I have to change the water from time to time to make sure it remains pure.”

“Of course.”  Simon agreed.  “Are these the items that you used to cure Jozsef Daniel’s hand?”

“I collected some things from the caves.  Herbs are also best when freshly gathered from the fields.  I do carry a supply of dried leaves and berries, but I like to pick more when I have a job to do, if there is time.”  Selwig began to roll up the linen strips very carefully.

“You have been very upset since Vanni left.”  Simon commented.

“I am afraid for him.  He is very young and yet he knows a great deal.”  Selwig shrugged.  “It is not for me to tell him what he should and should not do.  He asks me for advice quite often and I am pleased to help him when I can.”

“He didn’t ask you to go with him?”  Simon asked cautiously.

“He thought it best that I remain behind.  The Abyss is a very dark and dangerous place.  I spent some time there as you know.  It was most distressing, but I believe it would have been preferable to remaining behind and worrying after him.  I am also concerned about the welfare of the Master.”  Selwig replaced the linen in his bag and began to put away his other materials with great care.  “I promised him that I would serve him well in return for his patronage, but there is little need of a Tuathan healer here.  You are here, and they have their own physicians with great magick.  I very much out of place and unnecessary baggage for the Master.”