The Celestial Gate

by Avital Dicker

  “You’ll be safe here. Give me an hour and I’ll be back with answers,” she said, instructing Sual to lock the door behind her.

  They sat down and waited in silence. Time is not on our side, Sual thought. Every passing minute lessens our chances of finding the children. She looked around. The office looked exactly the same as it had ten years ago – full of crates and dust. “The women here know exactly what goes on in every corner of the quarter,” she said, trying to raise Theo and Amalia’s spirits, as well as her own. But the atmosphere remained tense and heavy.

  The tiny creature grabbed Enochio’s trousers with its teeth and pulled hard. “Ouch!” yelled the angel as he stubbed his foot on a rock. “What do you want?” he grumbled, pulling his trousers up, but the bogo didn’t give up. Both tails pointed insistently toward the sea.

  “Absolutely not,” said the angel in a fierce tone, continuing his climb. This time, the bogo bit his ankle.

  “Ouch! Stop biting me,” the angel said crossly. “They are no longer my responsibility. Leave me alone. Besides, I’m not getting involved with the gray monsters.” He tried to retrieve his trousers and, just to be sure, lifted his wings to keep them as far as possible from the bogo’s teeth.

  “Listen, I can’t fly. It makes me nauseous,” he said angrily.

  Without letting go of Enochio’s ankle, the bogo barked something in reply.

  “All right, they came in during my shift. I know,” Enochio acknowledged with a sulk. Nonetheless, he turned to look at the sea below. “If I weren’t an angel, I’d really hate you right now,” he said to the stubborn little critter. “Too bad that angels can only love because right around now I would really enjoy a good session of hating.” The bogo answered him with a series of barks.

  “Fine, I get it. Responsibility, shmesonsibility,” said Enochio furiously, giving up the argument. He trod heavily down the mountainside and back to the sea.

  Mor kicked the water lightly and watched, fascinated, as the ripple spread into a circle, immediately forming a wave.

  “Stop, you’re making the water shake,” Anise called from afar.

  Mor was too far away to hear her. He kicked the water again, this time harder, and shouted out, “I remember everything now! People never change. They’re always evil.” The next kick was particularly ferocious. Anise anxiously watched as an enormous wave rose and rapidly approached them.

  “I’m not going back to the war, and I’m not going back to my father.” Mor lifted his arms to his sides and started to run.

  “Stop,” Anise screamed. More and more waves were rising around her and Yam, and she was starting to swallow water.

  “I told you not to trust the sea,” said Rae who was sitting on the white horse Mor had ridden. She lifted her wings and tried to rise in the air, but a wave tossed her off the horse and cast her into the water.

  Enormous waves topped by white spume were rising all around. Anise, Mor, and Yam were thrown ahead, flung about and sucked deep into the sea. The horses whinnied in panic. The bogo on the shore barked madly and Enochio looked at the spectacle with distress.

  There was a knock at the office door. Sual’s heart skipped a beat, but it was only Aisha. She entered smiling, with an eight-year-old boy in tow, and introduced him. “This is Ibrahim.”

  Amalia looked at the sunglasses on the child’s head. The right edge of one of the lenses was cracked in the exact same place as Yam’s. That’s not possible, she thought. “Those are Yam’s sunglasses. What are you doing with my son’s sunglasses?” said Amalia, snatching them off the child’s head.

  “He gave them to me,” said Ibrahim. Insulted, he took a step back.

  Amalia was embarrassed. He’s only a child, she thought. “I’m sorry. I apologize,” she murmured, “it’s just that we’re worried sick about our children.”

  Ibrahim wasn’t mollified and continued retreating. Before he could make it to the door, Sual strode briskly to his side and held one of his arms. Her voice quavered. “Please, Ibrahim, where did you see them?” she asked in Arabic. She opened her wallet, took out all the bills she had, and placed the money in the boy’s palm. “Are they alive?”

  The child nodded yes, and Sual embraced him fiercely.

  “They wanted to go to the Muslim cemetery next to the Temple Mount and I showed them the way,” he said, wiggling out of Sual’s arms.

  “Why on earth would they want to go to the cemetery?” Theo wondered. Ibrahim only shrugged.

  “Thank you, Ibrahim,” said Sual, gladly bending down to embrace him again. This time he managed to evade her altogether and, before anyone had a chance to stop him, he opened the door and disappeared.

  A bent-over figure emerged from the dark alley to meet the child. Ibrahim smiled happily. Old Ali placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Did you remember to return the watch and the earrings?” The boy shrugged, and Ali laughed with acceptance. “Are you hungry?” he asked fondly, ruffling the boy’s hair. Ibrahim nodded and the two were quickly swallowed by the narrow alleyways of the Old City.

  In the small restaurant office, Amalia hurried to put her coat on. “Let’s go,” she said.

  “You can’t go to the cemetery! It’s being bombed from the air,” Aisha exclaimed.

  “We’ll find a way. I’m not leaving them alone in the battle zone,” Theo pledged, and turned to the door.

  “Wait. I have a better idea,” Aisha broke in and started to roll up the room’s old Jerusalem rug, revealing a rusty square trapdoor set into the floor. Aisha lifted it up on screeching hinges. “This leads to a system of underground tunnels,” she said, adding, “and it goes all the way to the Temple Mount.”

  Sual looked at her mother with amazement. “You said there’s nothing under the city, Mother.”

  “You were just a little girl, Sual binti; the tunnels are a dangerous place. I was protecting you just as you are now protecting Anise,” said Aisha. Sual knew her mother was right.

  “In my army unit, there were always legends about an underground city beneath the Old City, but nobody believed it really existed,” said Amalia.

  “What unit did you serve in?” Theo asked.

  “Oh, it was a long time ago,” Amalia avoided answering.

  “Mind you, there are many tunnels,” Aisha warned. “Be careful not to get lost.”

  “You’ll find night vision goggles in your backpacks. They’re better than flashlights,” said Amalia. Theo and Sual looked at one another as if saying, This one never fails to surprise.

  Aisha embraced Sual warmly. “Bring my granddaughter back,” she whispered in Sual’s ear.

  Amalia was the first down the hatch into the dark, Theo and Sual close behind her. Aisha closed the trapdoor from above and rolled the old rug over it, hiding its existence once again.

  Chapter 24

  Mor slowly regained consciousness and looked around. The crystalline water was not stinging his eyes. “I think we may be breathing underwater,” he said dumbfounded.

  “We’re tied up in a room, you idiot,” Anise answered him angrily; she had awakened just minutes before. “And if you hadn’t gone nuts and kicked the water, none of this would have happened and we wouldn’t be tied up underwater right now.”

  “Ah,” Mor sighed, looking around. They were in a cabin that looked like a submarine control room. Through the porthole, they could see fish of every shape and size darting in and out of the coral reefs. “How did we get here? I don’t understand…” he muttered.

  “I have no idea how we got here, but we’re deep in the sea inside this thing. And at least I know whose fault it is,” Anise was furious. “Apparently, somebody found us, or we’d have drowned.”

  “How was I supposed to know what would happen because of a few kicks? Tell me, how could I have known there’d be a storm at sea?” Now it was Mor’s turn to get angry. “Leave me alone. I’m so do
ne with your outbursts.”

  “Both of you – stop it!” Yam interjected, examining the space they were in. The equipment looked outdated. The dials on the control board had hands, like in the olden days; the steering wheel was made of wood, and the periscope in the center looked as if it had borrowed from some science museum. “Listen,” he whispered, flabbergasted, “you see the plaque above the dials? It reads Dakar. Whoa. This is way too nutty. Like, I can’t believe it… Could it really be the submarine Dakar? That would be the weirdest thing ever.”

  “What submarine?” asked Mor.

  “The Dakar,” Yam repeated. “It disappeared in 1968. Nobody knows what really happened to it or why. I did a school project on it. I even went to Jerusalem, to Mt. Herzl, to see the monument honoring the submarine and the men who were lost.”

  “Wait a minute… Are you saying that this submarine is about to suffer another catastrophe?” Anise asked.

  “I have no idea,” said Yam. “I don’t know where we are or even if this is the submarine, but I do know that the Dakar went down near Crete. In any case, I think it’s a good idea to get out of here on the double because I can’t wrap my head around what’s happening.”

  Rae nodded in agreement and continued to chew away at the rope binding her hands.

  Suddenly, the door to the cabin opened, and all of them fell silent. A man in a black wetsuit entered. He removed his mask and went over to fiddle with the controls. They could hear the squeaks and blips of the communications device. “This is the captain speaking. Over. We’re deep. We’ve encountered a hostile force of three intruders and an unidentified marine creature; we’ve taken them in and have secured them,” the man spoke in Hebrew.

  “Hey, he’s speaking Hebrew,” Yam whispered. “Now I know it’s the Dakar.”

  “Excuse me!” Anise politely tried to draw the man’s attention, but he ignored her.

  “Hello?” Anise tried again, this time louder. “We’re not a hostile force.”

  “Look,” now it was Mor’s turn to try, “I really think the ropes are unnecessary. We can explain everything. We’re here by mistake. Would you mind untying us?”

  The man looked at him for an intense minute and then burst out laughing. Three more frogmen walked in, unloading their oxygen tanks and wiggling out of their wetsuits. “Did you hear that, Ra’anan?” he asked one of them.

  “Pay no attention, Roy, We found them a hundred meters under the water without oxygen. They’ve probably suffered brain damage,” answered Ra’anan, taking off his mask. “C’mon, I’m starving,” he said, tossing his wetsuit into a corner of the cabin.

  “You’re right. Let’s eat. They’re going nowhere,” answered Roy.

  “Thanks, commander,” Ra’anan grinned, showing off his white teeth, and threw him a salute. The four men left, locking the door behind them.

  “Whoever said that everything in paradise is paradise?” Anise cried out in frustration. “And where the hell are we? It’s starting to remind me of planet Earth.”

  “I don’t have a clue. But, based on what I remember, the Dakar sank at two hundred meters and collided with a reef,” said Yam, “and that’s how they all drowned.” His eyes were checking the control panel for the fathometer. “I can’t tell from here, but how deep are we now?”

  Mor, who was closest to the control panel, stretched the rope to its full length to get a look. “According to the panel, we’re at a hundred and eighty meters down,” he said, worried. The three looked at one another.

  “This is really bad news,” said Yam. “We’re at one-eighty, and if we’re actually near Crete, the submarine is about to sink. And we’re tied up. This is turning nasty.”

  Anise, surprised, was looking at Rae who gleefully rubbed her unbound wrists. “How did you do that?” she asked.

  “With my teeth,” she answered nonchalantly, not understanding why Anise was so worked up. “I’d love to go for a swim,” she added.

  “I love you, Rae!” Anise laughed with relief.

  “Uh… what’s love?” Rae asked, suddenly looking puzzled.

  “We’ll explain later,” said Yam impatiently. “Untie us first. They’ll be back soon.”

  Rae gave Yam an insulted look but went over to Anise and untied her first. Within a few moments, all four moved freely about the cabin, looking for a way out.

  Mor tried to open the porthole. “What’s wrong with you?!” Yam yelled, grabbing his arm. “We’re deep underwater; if water comes in, we’re dead.” He then checked the oxygen tanks. “There are four wetsuits here,” he said with relief.

  But now the key again turned in the lock. All hurried back to their seats, making sure to wrap the ropes around their wrists. Except Rae.

  “Rae,” Yam mouthed, furiously signaling her to sit. Too late. The door opened.

  “Grab her!” Roy commanded the three soldiers, but Rae was quicker.

  “Grab me! Grab me!” Rae was having a good time mimicking him as she flitted through the air on her beautiful wings.

  Yam’s eyes were glued to the open door. Right away, Anise saw what he was thinking. “There’s no point leaving without the suits and oxygen,” she whispered. “We’ll never make it to the surface without them.”

  Roy had just managed to get his hands on Rae and had her pinned to the floor.

  “Roy,” said Yam, but Roy didn’t respond, intent on retying Rae to the chair.

  “Roy!” Yam tried again. “Listen to me. We’re from the year 2016. This submarine is going to sink any minute. Please believe me. The Dakar disappeared in 1968. They looked for you for years without any luck.”

  Roy looked at Yam and let out a mocking laugh. “What are you talking about? We’re already next to Crete. Another few hours and we’re in Haifa,” he said. “Anyway, this is the most state-of-the-art submarine Israel has,” he added with pride.

  “We’re near Crete?” Yam asked, worried. Roy nodded.

  “This is exactly where the Dakar went down! We’re running out of time,” Yam said as seriously as he could. But Roy only guffawed in response.

  “I’ll prove it to you,” Yam insisted. “I have a cellphone my pocket.”

  “You have a what in your pocket?” Roy looked confused.

  “A cellphone. It’s a device that gets invented long after 1968. You use it like a regular telephone, except you can call from anywhere. Plus it does many other things,” Yam explained.

  Roy looked at him with suspicion, but still went and took the device out of Yam’s pocket.

  “There’s no reception here. You can’t actually call anyone,” said Yam, “but you can see pictures I took and listen to music if you want.”

  Roy handled the device for a few minutes, which to Yam felt like an eternity. “This device is more sophisticated than anything we have here on board,” Roy mumbled, stunned.

  “Because we’re from the twenty-first century. From your future,” Mor answered.

  “How’s that even possible?” Roy was still struggling to comprehend.

  “Look, we’re not exactly on planet Earth,” Mor tried to break it gently.

  “What exactly do you mean we’re not on planet Earth?” Roy shot him a piercing look. “I’m twenty-two. I have a girlfriend, a family.”

  “The truth is that, here, it may be a little peculiar, but it’s a whole lot nicer,” Mor smiled. “Were it up to me, I’d never go back.”

  Roy looked at them more confused than ever and then left the cabin.

  “What do we do now?” Anise asked, shaking the ropes off.

  “Hey, untie me,” Rae piped up from the corner.

  Yam shot her an angry look. “Untying you may be a really bad idea,” he grumbled, but nonetheless went to free her.

  Amalia looked at the tunnel walls, freshly chipped by bullets, silent evidence of the violence that had raged here over the last
few days. Whole parts of the tunnels had collapsed and large boulders impeded progress for extensive sections. “Stay very alert. We may not be alone,” she whispered.

  A few steps later, Sual noticed a piece of cloth on the ground and picked it up. “This is from Mor’s shirt,” she mumbled in terror.

  Theo looked at the fabric. Maybe they’ve been kidnapped and Mor’s wounded, he fretted.

  Amalia gently took the fabric out of Sual’s hand and examined it closely. “See the cut?” she said, pointing to the edge of the cloth. “The edge is clean. It’s been cut, most probably with a penknife. They may have cut the cloth to make a bandage. And,” she added, pointing at the damp ground, “look, there are shoeprints leading to the exit over there.”

  They counted the prints. There were definitely three sets of feet. Theo, somewhat relieved, let out his pent breath. The three started following the footsteps that led them to the tunnel exit.

  To their astonishment, the exit was blocked by rocks. Sual couldn’t stop asking herself if the children had managed to leave before the blast blocked the exit.

  They started moving the rocks. It was almost an impossible mission, but after a few hours of intensive labor, they’d succeeded in creating a narrow opening.

  Amalia was the first to exit. She barely managed to squeeze herself through and crawled out. Bullets whistled overhead and rockets flared in the sky. “Stay low,” she yelled to Sual and Theo, trying to make herself heard over the din and ducking to avoid stray bullets.

  Amalia and Theo drew their guns and all three crouch-walked between cars toward the cemetery, using the chaos to cover their progress.

  “Stop,” Sual suddenly heard a voice in Arabic. She froze in place. “Put your weapons on the ground,” it continued. Sual raised her arms in surrender, while Theo slowly lowered his gun.

  Chapter 25

  “I hate you,” an irritated Enochio said to the bogo, who seemed indifferent to the angry angel, calmly continuing to lick his leg. “I told you I’m afraid of heights,” Enochio went on irately, giving his wings another flutter. “Something always happens when I’m in the air. Look what happened the last time I tried to fly.” He pulled up his trouser leg, revealing a long scar down one thigh. “I prefer to walk on two legs. Much safer than flying,” he muttered. “I’m simply not built for this. Plus, I don’t really know how to swim.”