The Nostradamus Scrolls

by Preston William Child

  “Is this really how you want to do this, Mr. Purdue?”

  “It is,” Purdue said. “You haven't given me much of a choice. If you had just stuck to the terms of our truce, we could have walked out of here together with the scrolls. But you just had to take the chance to try and hurt me again. That's the problem with sadistic bastards like you. You will try to hurt others even when it's not beneficial for you to do so. You just can't help yourself, can you? It's why you even left me alive for so long. You wanted to see how hurt I would be. Your need to inflict pain is going to be your downfall, Julian.”

  “Noted,” Julian said through clenched teeth. “I'll end you quick then.”

  Julian took a step forward but immediately halted when Purdue held the flame closer to the parchment.

  “You wouldn't do that,” Julian said.

  “No?” Purdue gave an awkward laugh. He still wasn't even sure about that himself. Destroying something so valuable didn't feel right, but in this situation, it had to be done. “And here I thought you knew me so well, Julian. You want to know the future so bad...you didn't see this coming, did you?”

  Purdue held the parchment to flame and it caught, spreading quickly across the written words of Nostradamus.

  “NO!”

  Julian watched his future burn away. The prophecies of Michel de Nostradame melted away before his eyes like they had never existed at all. Those predictions had been buried for a long time and now they would truly never see the light of day again. No one would have any idea of what was coming, and that was exactly how it should be. Purdue might be killed for it, but at least he had made the right choice. He knew he had. As horrible as it was to destroy something so priceless, the unknowable future was unknowable again.

  Julian was more than livid—he looked downright wrathful. Any of the moments of understanding or even respect that Julian seemed to have developed for Purdue throughout this Nostradamus ordeal evaporated. Purdue doubted that those moments were ever real at all. He hadn't helped Purdue for Purdue's sake. It had all been to bring down the Old Lady, and especially so that Julian could use the Nostradamus scrolls for his own ends—and now all of that was burnt and gone forever.

  Julian bit his lip hard, and his veins were practically bursting through his forehead. “You...” He straightened his posture, seeming to try and keep his fury contained. “You...you...oh, you are an annoying little thing, Mr. Purdue.”

  Purdue recalled the first time that he and Julian had met. Julian had referred to him in a similar way even back then. His opinion hadn't changed all that much.

  “The fly that keeps on buzzing...” Purdue recited with a smile.

  “Exactly,” Julian said with his own smile, though his was sharp and sinister. “You just have to ruin everything. Everything I work for. You gnat.”

  Julian suddenly lashed out, striking Purdue hard in the face and sending him rolling onto the floor. Julian wasn't savoring his victory anymore now that his real prize was destroyed. Now it was purely about satisfying his rage. He threw his leg out hard into Purdue's stomach. Air poured out of Purdue as he struggled to find it again.

  “I hate you,” Julian spat, looming over him. “I hate you more than I have hated anything before...and I have hated a great many things.”

  Julian started kicking him over and over. Purdue tried his best to endure the barrage. He couldn't get up. All he could do was wait for whatever kick would end it all. Occasionally, Julian would punch him in the face, which hurt even more, but Purdue appreciated adding some variety to his beating. He wouldn't be able to take much more of it though.

  All of Julian's anger, resentment, and hate was pouring onto Purdue, and soon he would drown in that malice. He waited for the end when his body couldn't take any more trauma, but that violent end didn't come for him. Instead, Julian stopped his assault, leaned down, and grabbed Purdue by his swollen face.

  “I might not able able to see the future now thanks to your actions here, Mr. Purdue, but I know that I am going to be there. Always. The Spear of Destiny made sure of that. Your future, though, is looking more and more brief, I'm afraid. There is no way that you're getting out of here. Your friends won't find you. I want you to spend your last moments here alone, in the dark and trapped forever. Just so you can experience a portion of what you were planning to do to me in that display case.”

  Purdue wanted to give a witty retort but the damage to his body wouldn't let him. All he could do was watch as Julian dropped him, gave one last smile, and walked into the darkness. He flashed Purdue a final glance and those icy shards in his eye sockets shone brightly in the dark before disappearing into the shadows.

  There was a laugh from the blackness, and then Julian Corvus's voice echoed. “The fly finally stops buzzing. Enjoy the future that you have left.”

  18

  ASCENSION

  Nina gasped, indicating the Third Triumvirate on the floor. “But what took you so long? They've been trying to kill me for like ten minutes! These bastards even got close a few times!”

  “I think I took a wrong turn or two,” Sam said. “This place isn't exactly easy to navigate.”

  Nina still looked irritated because if they had just stuck together, none of this would have happened. “What about Purdue?”

  “What about him?”

  “They have been gone too long. Something must have happened.”

  “What would you want us to do about that exactly? If we try to go after them without a guide.”

  Footsteps echoed down the tunnel in front of them. Julian Corvus appeared from the bowels of the catacombs—and he was alone.

  “Where the hell is Purdue?” Sam said, ready for another fight. “Where is he?”

  “Calm yourselves,” Julian said. “Mr. Purdue was alive the last time I saw him.”

  “Then where is he!?”

  Julian shrugged. “We had an inevitable disagreement that has brought an end to this truce of ours. We exchanged words, he tried to shoot me, and he burned Nostradamus's scrolls right in front of me.”

  Nina couldn't believe what she was hearing and was even more annoyed that Purdue hadn't taken her with him. He made a stupid mistake thinking that he could be left practically alone with Julian, and now Nostradamus's scroll was gone too. The worst part was Purdue could be dead, and they had no way of knowing outside of whatever answers Julian gave them.

  Nina and Sam turned to Gerald, who still stood there with his camera equipment. He gave an awkward shrug of his shoulders.

  “Really?” Nina asked.

  “What?” Gerald said. “I barely know you guys. Why lose with a bunch of strangers when I can win right now? I'll stick with the guy that I know is going to pay me in the end...the guy that is impossible to kill.”

  She didn't want to let Julian leave, especially since Gerald was evidence of how quickly Julian could gain his power back. It probably wouldn't take him long to regain the deranged followers he had before. He might even be able to sweep up the violent people that Purdue kicked out of the Order of the Black Sun when he took charge—the Julian loyalists as Nina had liked to call them. Julian might even be able to turn some of the current members of the order over to his side. Nina seriously hoped not, but Julian, despite his sadism, had something of a magnetism about him that always drew people to his brand of lunacy. His being back out in the world unchecked was a huge risk, but it wasn't like they could stop him from leaving. They could shoot him with a cannon and he would still get up and keep walking.

  “You're welcome to try to stop me, Dr. Gould, but I think it would end up being pretty bad. Very bad. Mr. Purdue gave a valiant effort, as always. But why go through all of that trouble now? Look at us...we all made such a great team surprisingly. I didn't think we would be nearly as effective together as we were. Such progress. It's a shame that we just can't move past our old animosities.”

  “You were the one that decided to break the truce,” Sam said.

  “That's true,” Julian laughed. �
�I am guilty of holding grudges, I suppose. With this power, I could probably kill you one by one with my bare hands if I was in the mood...but I've gotten enough blood on my hands today...and with Purdue turning Nostradamus's work into kindling...well...what's the point of fighting over it now? Would seem like a waste at this point. Too much time and energy that I don't feel like sparing.”

  “What are you saying?” Nina asked.

  “I'm saying that I am going to walk out of here, and you are going to stay out of my way. I am going to go about my life and decide if I ever want to cross paths with you again. If not, then you can enjoy the rest of your lives in peace. If I do decide I'm not through with you, well, you will certainly see me at some time in the future. Either way, you won't know what I have decided until it happens. Enjoy trying to sleep at night. But who knows what the future holds now?” Julian tapped at the burnt pages with his foot. “Certainly not us.”

  “You're just going to leave?” Nina asked, shocked.

  “Precisely,” Julian said. “I've seen far too much of you all lately. I want to go enjoy my freedom while I have it...and that will hopefully be for the rest of the time. Now, pick your jaws up off the floor and get out of my way before I change my mind.”

  Purdue lay in blackness. It was hard to tell if it was from the catacombs around him or just his consciousness starting to fade away from the beating he received. He should never have let it get to this point. He should have listened to the warnings of his friends, and he should have listened to his common sense. If he had, at least then Julian would still be stuck in a tiny box and not roaming around. At least he didn't let Julian read more of the scrolls. The world was much better off without Julian knowing everything and anything that could happen in the years to come.

  Purdue craned his head, which felt so heavy and was pounding. The last tiny scorched black shreds of parchment were dissipating on the floor beside him on his left. To his right, through his blurry vision, he could make out the shapes of the Old Lady and Remy's bodies. They were both completely motionless, casualties of this brief war between the Order of the Black Sun and the Old Lady. Soon enough, Purdue would be joining them. They would all become the latest additions to the collection of forsaken bones down in the catacombs, just more bodies to add to the mass grave beneath Paris. These tunnels would become Purdue's tomb, and this musty darkness would be all he would ever see again.

  Those dark thoughts that the catacombs planted in his mind were returning, louder than ever. There was no escaping this horrible fate now. Even if he could get up and get himself moving again, he wouldn't be able to navigate his way out of the tunnels in the state that he was in; it would be especially difficult to do it without having Remy to lead the way. He was blind enough down there with Remy and would be far worse without him.

  All he could do was lay there and try to stop himself from passing out. It was taking all of his energy just to stay aware. He was terrified that if he let himself slip into unconsciousness, he may never wake up again.

  He should have listened to Nina and Sam. He should have listened to everyone that gave him any bit of warning about his plan to let Julian out.

  “Purdue!”

  The voice calling his name was faint, echoing through the narrow space of the catacomb tunnels. It was impossible to tell where exactly it was coming from or how far away it was. For all he knew, it was the devil himself calling to him from below since they were deep enough to be close to Hell. He waited a moment that felt like hours, focused on his ears, hoping to hear another call of his name. It better not have been his imagination; it would have been cruel to have a fleeting moment of false hope before the end.

  “Purdue!”

  It was still so quiet, probably so far. The calls became more frequent, reverberating through the bony walls of the catacombs. Even down at the lowest depths where he lay, he could hear those shouts pushing through the darkness. He clung to the cries of his name, using them as an anchor to help keep his body from slipping into the dangers of unconsciousness. If he passed out, those calls wouldn't reach him, and whoever was shouting might never find him.

  “Purdue!” There it was again. “Purdue!”

  A different voice this time. “Purdue!”

  It might have just been his imagination, but the voices seemed to be growing closer and closer. He hoped so; he wanted that more than anything at this point.

  “Purdue! Purdue! Purdue!”

  Purdue tried to find his body there in the dark. It wasn't easy. His brain and senses were still so discombobulated after the beating that Julian gave him. He needed to get some of his bearings back. It took so much of his energy, but he could finally feel his limbs and climbed up into a sitting position. The tunnel was spinning on its axis all around him. He almost passed out immediately from the effort but managed to hang on.

  “Purdue!”

  The shouts were loud now.

  “I'm...” He could barely speak. It was even hard to find the right words. Hopefully Julian's fists hadn't done any permanent damage. “I'm...I'm...I'm here! Here!” He choked out some of the words with his hoarse voice, but he was finding his voice with each passing moment. “Here! Here! I'm here! Hey!” He yelled as loudly as he could, and the volume of his voice sent a wave of pain through his throbbing skull.

  He waited for whoever was out there to arrive. It felt like an eternity of waiting before he heard footsteps moving through the rocks down the hall. He saw two shapes moving in the darkness toward him and when they got closer, he saw the familiar faces of his friends.

  “Purdue!” Nina cried out with a smile. It was was one of the voices that had been shouting his name. “Thank god. We thought we lost you down here.”

  “You look like hell,” Sam said. “Julian do this to you?”

  “Aye,” Purdue groaned as they tried to help him up to his feet. “That bastard was playing us the whole time. He was just trying to get the scrolls for himself, but I didn't let him.”

  “I hate being the one to say I told you so,” Nina said. “But we told you so. So, so, so many times, remember? We warned you that he was just using us to get out of the display case. You didn't listen to a damn thing we said, did you?”

  “Believe me,” Purdue said. “I am very aware of how stupid I've been. I just wanted the Old Lady to be brought down...”

  “She is now,” Sam said, looking at the old woman's corpse. “Was it worth it?”

  That was an interesting question that he would have to give some thought to. On the one hand, he no longer had to be afraid and obsessed with the Old Lady coming after him. On the other hand, he had brought back an arguably greater enemy to do it. He wouldn't have been able to win without Julian probably; he had protected them from gunfire in the park, helped them get out of quite a few binds, and even been the one to send the Old Lady to Hell. In that respect, Purdue felt like it was worth it but deeper than that, none of those things were for Purdue's sake. None of those things were for the mission's sake. Julian Corvus only ever did anything for himself, and this was no different. Was Julian's help worth the fact that all of it was to help Julian betray him in the end? Probably not. He would have preferred never having Julian's help at all since it came at such a cost.

  “Remy didn't make it?”

  “No?”

  “Neither did Gerald,” Nina said solemnly. “Though he's not dead. He took off with Julian on Julian's way out. But we can talk about that on the way out of this place. Let's get back up there as soon as possible.”

  They began their ascent through the darkness of the catacombs. Purdue limped beside Nina, using her to help keep him balanced. He was still unsteady from the beatdown he received and appreciated her help in getting him moving. Sam threw the young Remy's body over his shoulder and lugged him around beside them. With Purdue and Remy, they were moving more slowly than usual, as Purdue was almost just as much of dead weight as Remy was at that point.

  Nina and Sam told Purdue all about what happened while he w
as deeper down. They told him about Donatello Amaro and the sudden appearance of the Third Triumvirate. It had been a while since Purdue gave them any thought. He still had yet to meet them in person but was relieved that Nina was able to overcome those thieves yet again. The fact that the Third Triumvirate was working with the Old Lady, though, was just more of a testament to how dangerous she was. Her influence stretched far and wide, but now she wouldn't be able to weave any more webs ever again.

  Purdue considered trying to get her body out of the catacombs too, but there was something fitting about letting her rest there.

  The Old Lady's followers were still searching the tunnels for the scrolls. They had no idea about anything that had just transpired beneath them. They didn't have a clue that their elderly leader was in a pool of her own blood. Hopefully, they wouldn't take the news too hard. They were almost out of the godforsaken catacombs. They just needed to get by this one last obstacle. It seemed like Julian must have slipped past on his way out without any incidents. He would have surely left a trail of bodies in his wake if the Old Lady's men tried to stop him, but Purdue didn't notice any fresh corpses around him.

  Unfortunately, they weren't able to sneak out as successfully. One of the Old Lady's men noticed them come around the curve of the tunnel. It was the same man that tried to take the Mayan totem from Purdue in the jungle. The last time Purdue saw him, the man was on the ground, shrinking as Purdue ascended into the air in that biplane. Purdue hoped he wouldn't have to see that man again, but of course, he would. That was just his luck.

  “You!” the man snapped, approaching them. His yell carried through the narrow tunnels, alerting all of his accomplices as well. Within a moment, there were people on either side of them. “Where do you think you're going?”