‘You must know that I require no gratitude for my actions,’ I stated very definitely. ‘I have been rewarded beyond my wildest expectations, and at your expense, I fear.’
‘No,’ Lillet corrected. ‘The goddess has granted to each of us what we desired the most in life. You have acquired many insights, Albray has found his Grail princess and I shall finally have my union with the creator of all there is. I am to assume my rightful place amongst our foremothers, until such time as I am once again called to take up a physical world incarnation.’
‘I promise I shall do all within my power to ensure that it is a better, more aware world for you to return to.’ I was carried away by the emotion of the moment, but I did mean what I said. Just how I expected to achieve such a promise was quite beyond my comprehension at present. ‘I cannot thank you enough for all your aid.’
Lillet kissed both my cheeks in turn and stepping away she let go of my hands. ‘You take good care of our knight.’
I awoke to turbulence and Albray gripping my arm—the violent, bone-rattling jolts our plane was undergoing understandably made him nervous.
‘Just a few air pockets,’ I explained, which didn’t clarify the problem for him, but my lack of panic set him at ease.
The seatbelt sign was on and I fastened my seatbelt, Albray following suit. ‘A good read?’ He motioned to the large journal that had slid down beside me on the seat.
‘Better than any fantasy fiction novel ever,’ I jested, although I didn’t really read the genre. My eyes drifted across the aisle to find that the man who had been watching us earlier was now absent. Everyone had been instructed to return to their seats for landing, so where was he?
‘Surely you still don’t believe it was a work of fiction?’ Albray challenged lightly. Noting my distraction he touched my cheek and drew my focus back to him.
‘Oh, I believe,’ I admitted freely. ‘But no one else would.’ I removed my seatbelt and rose to look for one of our hostesses.
‘Is something the matter?’ Albray quizzed.
‘I’m not too sure.’ I looked for the hostess who came over when I beckoned to her. ‘There was a gentleman seated here earlier.’ I referred her to the vacant seat across the aisle.
The hostess shook her head. ‘The seat was unoccupied,’ she assured me. ‘Please be seated. We’ll be landing in just a few minutes.’
‘My apologies.’ I sat and fastened my seatbelt.
‘You just said that no one would believe your story, but you suspect we are being spied on?’ My knight cocked an eye, confused. ‘So what do you believe?’
‘People move about in aircraft all the time.’ I waved off the mystery. ‘Or perhaps I was dreaming?’ I considered this likely, as I’d certainly been very tired. ‘I am quite sure there is no one following my family line any more.’
‘You think Molier hiring you was an accident then?’ Albray raised a very good point. If Molier had known I was of the blood, then perhaps other persons knew it too? ‘I can tell you that the brothers kept a close eye on the Deveres and all their descendants,’ Albray said.
‘How could you know that, if you never saw Ashlee again after the Sinai adventure?’
‘I never said that I never saw Lady Granville-Devere after that,’ Albray defended.
‘But Ashlee said so, in the epilogue of her journal.’ I raised the mighty book to show him.
Albray placed a hand upon the book, unable to cope with the thought of reading while enduring the erratic motion of the aircraft. ‘I suspect you’ll find other journals written by Ashlee later in life in that big old chest you inherited.’
‘More tales featuring my favourite hero!’ I held his hand in both my own and squeezed, delighted at the prospect of reading more of my great-great-grandmother’s adventures. ‘Did she make any other esoterically groundbreaking discoveries?’
‘Many,’ Albray teased. ‘Perhaps you shall be the one to compile a thesis based on your family history and shed light on some of the most ancient of mysteries.’ Albray made this sound like a dare.
The idea was so shocking that I choked on a laugh. ‘Write about this little episode?’ I was horrified by the notion and yet I had already found several interesting avenues to research in the field of modern science. Born in the computer age, I had access to far greater amounts of information than any of my foremothers. What had been merely theory to them, science could now confirm as fact.
‘You do come from a long line of prolific writers,’ Albray encouraged. ‘Both Lillet and Ashlee were always hunched over a blank page, chronicling the events of their life and times. And if they had not made the effort, I doubt you would have survived your recent peril.’
‘I shall certainly consider adding to the accounts in my family inheritance.’ I felt comfortable committing to that.
‘You would not have to publish under your own name,’ Albray continued. ‘And, as you say, it would make a great work of fiction.’ He raised both eyebrows in challenge.
I loved his smile, having so seldom seen it. ‘Perhaps.’
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Baigent, Michael, Leigh, Richard & Lincoln, Henry, The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, Arrow Books, UK 1996
Bell, Gail, The Poison Principle, Pan Macmillan, Australia 2001
Dolan, Brian, Ladies of the Grand Tour, HarperCollins, London 2001
Fraser, Angus, The Gypsies, Blackwell Publishers, Oxford, UK 1992
Gardner, Laurence, Lost Secrets of the Sacred Ark, HarperCollins, London 2003
Bloodline of the Holy Grail, Multi mediaQuest International, UK 2001
Realm of the Ring Lords, Multi mediaQuest International, UK 2000
Genesis of the Grail Kings, Bantam Press, UK 1999
Melton, J. Gordon, The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead, Visible Ink Press, US 1999
Pool, Daniel, What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew, Simon & Schuster, New York 1993
Stephens, John Lloyd, Incidents of Travel in Egypt, Arabia, Peatrea and the Holy Land, Dover Publications, New York 1970
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Albigensian Crusade (1209AD): this crusade was directed against Christian heretics in southern France—the Cathars—by the Church of Rome. It was a bitter conflict that was partly a civil war, partly persecution, partly an invasion and possibly a treasure hunt as well. The crusade lasted for twenty years.
Amrita (science): is an enzyme produced in part by the urethral Skene glands (the female prostate). 350BC Aristotle recorded that some women, when sexually excited, produce the Amrita fluid. In Tantric tradition Amrita is called ‘the ambrosia of immortality’ and ‘the fountain of youth’.
The Cathars: were the supporters of Albi-gens (see Elven Bloodline), and were the last actively visible Gnostic school in the West. Branded heretics by the Roman Catholic Church, armies descended upon Languedoc and thus began the Albigensian Crusade. Their name Cathari means ‘pure’ in Greek, and it was rumoured that the Cathars were hiding many of the secret treasures relating to the Grail.
Consolamentum (Cathar faith): was a spiritual baptism by fire, executed by the laying on of hands.
The most significant ceremony in Cathar theology, it marked the transition from an ordinary believer or credenti to a Parfait—one of the elect Perfecti. Only a Parfait could administer the rite, so that every new Parfait was linked to a chain of Perfecti that stretched all the way back to the apostles and to Jesus himself. During the ceremony the Holy Spirit would descend to the Parfait who was administering the rite and part of the Holy Spirit would then pass into the new Parfait’s physical body and permanently inhabit it. This was why Parfaits were expected and willing to lead such austere ascetic lives, and why ordinary believers were prepared to adore them.
Convenenza (Cathar faith): was not consolamentum, but it fulfilled the parts of the consolamentum that required the candidate to respond and make undertakings. The consolamentum could then be administered in the event that the candidate was wounded and could not sp
eak. Thus, convenenza was common before battles and during sieges.
Density (esoteric): the eighth sphere—the lowest rate of vibration of the atoms. Inhabited by souls too new in the evolutionary scale to understand physical life whilst in a physical body. They desire to take an unrighteous path and create their own hell plane to inhabit.
Elohim (esoteric & Grail lore): the Shining Ones—the ET beings that created modern humans from earlier human forms by genetic manipulation. Some of the Elohim mated with humans to produce the hybrid races of the Anunnaki and the Nefilim. (Hebrew): the plural reference to the god of Israel—Yahweh.
Elven Bloodline (Grail lore): in the language of old Provence, a female elf was an albi and Albi was the name given to the main Cathar stronghold in Languedoc (southern France). Descendants of El and the Elohim (the Shining Ones).
Etheric Double (esoteric): an invisible electromagnetic field that interpenetrates everything in the universe, from the atom to the great central sun. This field absorbs emanations from each thing, forming a pattern for its future existence.
Etheric World (esoteric): the overall picture of invisible space. The atmosphere that contains all seven levels of energies (Seven planes), with their functions and life forms. The Otherworld.
Gnomes (fairy lore): nature spirits made of pure elemental substance, who live underground in mines, hoarding treasure, that are able to shift dimensions. (Grail lore): gnomes and goblins were attendants in the sacred dwellings. They were the custodians of the wealth and wisdom of the ages—the champions of ‘gnosis’.
Grail (Messianic) Bloodline (Grail lore): in medieval times, was the line of Messianic descent that was defined by the French word Sangreal—deriving from the two words Sang Réal, meaning ‘Blood Royal’. This was the Blood Royal of Judah: the kingly line of David which progressed through Jesus and his heirs.
Light-body or Aura (esoteric): an invisible, electromagnetic energy field completely surrounding an entity, acting as a blueprint for that entity, adjusting the vibrational frequency of the atomic structure in accord to that entity’s level of awareness.
Light Centres or Chakra System (esoteric): an invisible, interdimensional system which has seven concentrated centres of energy that are located in the light-body between the base of the spine and the tip of the head. These are called the root, spleen, solar plexus, heart, throat, third eye and crown chakra. Each of these centres is perceived clairvoyantly as a colourful wheel or flower. These centres convert cosmic energy into body energy and vice versa.
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA): is DNA which is not located in the nucleus of the cell but in the mitochondria. MtDNA is typically passed on only from the mother during sexual reproduction and there is little change in the mtDNA from generation to generation, making it a powerful tool for tracking family lineage.
Nature Elemental or Nature Spirit (esoteric/fairy lore): Etheric world beings akin to the four elements of nature, Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Ranging from a very high to a low level of intelligence, they keep themselves occupied with the development of the natural world and are, understandably, wary of human beings.
ORME (alchemy): also known as The Philosopher’s Stone, the Bread of Life (also Light), the White Powder of Gold, shem or manna. Is also an acronym for ‘Orbitally Rearranged Monatomic Elements’ (David Hudson, internet references). ORME is the Highward Fire-Stone, which is also related to Star-Fire—the Fire-Stone—see the books and research of Laurence Gardner.
PGMs—Platinum Group Metals: These eight metals include: ruthenium, rhodium, palladium and silver (light platinum group), and osmium, iridium, platinum and gold (heavy platinum group). These precious metals can, in a monatomic high-spin state, lose their chemical reactivity and metallic nature, resulting in a state of superconductivity—a resonant condition complete with Meissner magnetic fields, Cooper Pairs, and electrons which have literally changed into light (photons). These precious metals have the unique ability to remain stable in an ORME form, resulting in levitation (weight losses), fundamental biological and human physiological effects and beyond to applications in Zero-Point Energy exploration.
Prieurè de Sion (Grail lore): the Prieurè du Notre Dame du Sion or Priory of Zion is said to have had its earliest roots in Hermetic and Gnostic thought. In 1070, a group of crusading knights are said to have formed the basis for the Order de Sion, into which they were pledged in 1099 by Godfroi de Bouillion. For a century the Knights Templar and Sion were unified under one leadership, though they publicly separated at the ‘cutting of the elm’ at Gisors in 1188. The Templar order was eventually destroyed by King Phillipe Le Bel of France in 1307. Sion are also linked to numerous other underground schools of thought—Rosicrucians, Freemasonry, Arthurian and Grail legends, Catharism, etc.
Sangreal (Grail lore): In English translation, the term Sangreal became ‘San Graal’. When written more fully it was ‘Saint Grail’—the word ‘saint’ related to ‘holy’, thus came the familiar term ‘Holy Grail’—see the books and research of Laurence Gardner.
Sangreal knighthood (Grail lore): the Sovereign Order of the Sangreal or the Knights of the Holy Grail—was a dynastic Order of Scotland’s Royal House of Stewart.
Seven Bodies of Man (esoteric): the Physical body, Astral body, Mental body, Causal body, the Spirit, Monadic essence and god consciousness.
Seven (higher) Planes of Existence Physical, Astral, Mental, Causal, Spiritual, Monadic and god consciousness.
Star-Fire (Grail lore): the organic equivalent of ORME, given to select kings prior to the human use of the ORME—essentially the menstrual blood of the ‘goddesses’ of the Anunnaki (see Elohim).
Shade (esoteric): an astral corpse of a disincarnate entity left behind to disintegrate after the soul-mind (spirit) has withdrawn to higher realms of existence taking with it all higher wisdom. Not to be confused with a ghost whose spirit is trapped in the physical realm—usually due to tragic death, or some unfinished business in the world that must be realised and resolved before the soul-mind can progress to higher planes of existence.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I can hardly believe that this is my tenth book! And I must state for the record that I feel that this is my best offering to date. For those of you who loved The Ancient Future, I feel you will fall in love with this trilogy—just as I have. As always, I had much support in the writing of this epic.
On the home front: as the dedication states, my husband, David, and daughter, Sarah, have been wonderful. I could not have finished this book if they had not done everything they could to make me comfortable and keep me sane during the ten months it took to write—the last four months of which I was pregnant and irritable. So thanks to my little family for putting up with me.
As you can see, the jackets for this trilogy have a distinctly different look to my past trilogies. My thanks to the artistic team down at HarperCollins, especially Jenny Grigg. I must thank our very talented photographers, Gay Campbell and Dennis Montalbetti and their wonderful team. Thanks also to our makeup guys, Zenga and Matt, and to the three lovely ladies whose faces are the women of Mystique on the covers—Aysha, Katania and Maren.
On the research front—I must thank Chez and John for putting me onto the works of Laurence Gardner, whose books have proven to be a huge inspiration for this tale (see the Bibliography). Thanks to that wonderfully talented mistress of the Dark Fairytale, Kim Wilkins, for sharing references on nineteenth century England and Europe—I’ll get your book back to you one of these days! Also, many thanks to my clairvoyant, Michael, who made me aware that this story was much more extensive than I had originally imagined.
On the business front—this book, and all those that have been and will be, would not have been possible without the constant support and guidance of my wonderful agent, Selwa Anthony; my commissioning editor and publisher, Linda Funnell; my editor at HarperCollins, Stephanie Smith; and my personal editor, Susan Moran. Many, many thanks, ladies, for being my guiding light…a better support team I could
not want.
On the publicity front—my gratitude to Fiona for maintaining my website and message board, and my admiration and thanks to all the members of the THC (Traci Harding Community) for truly making it a sanctuary, a fantastic support base, a hive of knowledge and new ideas for all who frequent our community. My congratulations and utmost appreciation to Chez for updating my newsletter, organising theme nights, and for maintaining and monitoring my 3D-Castle, Trazling, a site where many of my readers have become active citizens and regular contributors to our 3D fantasy world. Many thanks also to Shilyn and Lotus, the proprietors of Trazling’s inn, where residents gather to chat and party on a regular basis. And to all the moderators on the Trazling site my heartfelt thanks for giving your time and energy to make our realm the successful and peaceful abode that it is.
I would also like to send my love and appreciation to all those people who support me in little ways every day…my Mum and Dad, Gillybean, Mum and Dad Harding, Karen, Claire, Lisa, Mo and Ken, Shane and Wendy, my brothers, Steven and Kyle, and all my family and friends. Thanks for reminding me what I’m living and working for.
About the Author
Traci Harding lives on the Hawkesbury River, with her husband David and their two beautiful children, Sarah and John.
Traci has written two best-selling trilogies—The Ancient Future Trilogy and The Celestial Triad—as well as three standalone novels, The Alchemist‘s Key, Ghostwriting, and Book of Dreams. Traci is currently working on the second book of the Mystique trilogy, to be released in 2006.
Thanks to the web team at HarperCollins, Traci has a very lively website and she visits the message board in the community section daily to discuss the greater mysteries with her readers. At the website there are glossaries of the terms used in Traci‘s books and there are author notes for those interested in delving deeper into all aspects of this author‘s work.
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