The Crimson Z

by Robert Cloud, Lee Rush, Richard Savage

  Lilith helped Rachel prepare the meal and they were talking together when a small accident occurred. Lilith was using a knife and for a moment was distracted in her thoughts. She cut the tip of her finger. It was not a bad cut, but it bled.

  She ran out of the kitchen area and jumped into Zachariah's arms weeping like a little child. Rachel was right behind her with her basket of bandages.

  "What is wrong?” Zachariah asked.

  Lilith looked at him and cried, “It won't stop bleeding.” She held up her finger and he saw a small drop of blood form at the tip.

  Zachariah wanted to laugh, it was such a small cut and for Lilith to be reacting this way was so overblown it was almost ludicrous but he knew better for there was something in Lilith that had changed greatly since he had first met her. Her emotions had become very intense and poignant. It was like she did not know how to handle having emotions at all.

  Rachel sat down beside them and began to bandage the finger, “Sweetie, it will stop. It is a small cut. It will just take a moment to clot."

  Lilith looked at it and said, “But it should have stopped already."

  Zachariah hugged her tight, “It will be okay, Lilith. It will be okay."

  Burying her head in Zachariah's shoulder Lilith wept and said, “Nothing is okay."

  Rachel looked at Zachariah and shook her head, “It could be that some of her memories are fighting to come back. Dinner is almost done. We were just slicing some cheese, so I will bring everything out. Lilith can stay with you."

  As Rachel served the meal Lilith climbed out of Zachariah's lap and sat beside him. The four laughed and joked together. Yet every once in a while when Zachariah looked over at Lilith he would see her staring at the bandage upon her finger like it was some kind of plague. He truly did not know what to make of her reaction but he tried his best to keep her happy and get her mind off of it by talking about things around the shop.

  "Lilith,” he suddenly said, “you know how the shop needs a new table for smelting and forging?"

  She nodded.

  "Well of course, wood is out of the question, it would burn from the heat. So, I was wondering if you might know of a special round stone that was almost flat that with just a little work could be made into a good table."

  The smile on her face was so bright he knew that she had immediately forgotten about the bandage upon her finger, “Yes, the stone that you proposed to me by."

  "Do you really think it is good enough?” He said jokingly.

  She placed her hands on her hips and looked at him, “Good enough, why let me tell you Zachariah, if it was good enough for you to propose to me at it is definitely good enough for you to use as a table in your shop."

  Neither man could hold back their laughter as both of them burst out and began rolling. Lilith began to get red in the face and said, “Zachariah!"

  "Lilith, my wife, it is already in the back of the shop,” he said. “I am only teasing you. Of course it is perfect."

  She leapt from her kneeling position and wrapped her arms around him hugging him and kissing his face. After a moment Rachel chimed in, “Now you two, save that for when you are back at your house."

  Zakarias added, “I don't know, Rachel, they are kind of giving me a few ideas."

  "Oh Papa!” Rachel blushed indignantly then she too was in her husband's arms hugging him.

  After another moment Zakarias called a halt to the affection however, then said, “Zachariah, there is a second reason I invited you here tonight."

  He turned and looked at his father, “Yes?"

  "You have not been to any of the elders’ meetings so you do not know the news about what has been happening.

  "There have been more attacks and more of those bone remains found. In each case they have been from villages near us but not in any way connected to us. Not one cousin or relative of anyone from Tobith has been killed.

  "The other villages are beginning to suspect that the Monster does exist and is somehow connected to our village. They want to come and do a search. They also want the elders to let them know of any new people that have come to the camp within the last year. Since Lilith is the only new person in this camp the elders have asked me to talk to you. They will not tell them about Lilith because she is now of the camp and she is protected by the camp, but they want you to know in case someone else in the village tells them."

  Lilith and Zachariah looked at each other then Zachariah said, “How could they suspect Lilith of being a monster. She is the gentlest of people I know. Besides, did not the legends say that the Wampyr cannot go out in the sun?"

  Zakarias nodded, “That is correct, but they say there are other ways to tell if someone is a Wampyr. That maybe that part of the legend was not true."

  "Father, if one part of the legend is not true then how do they know which parts to believe and which not?” Zachariah queried.

  "That is a good question, my son, and the next time they come before the elders I will ask them that. Better yet, it would be good if you were there."

  "I will be.” Zachariah pulled Lilith into his arms and looked at her, “There is no way that my wife is a monster, and I will protect her with my very life if I have to."

  "My son, it will not come to that, I am certain."

  It was two weeks until the next elders meeting and when it came Zachariah was there waiting for the people from the other villages to show up. He was not surprised to see Coboth amongst the group of ten men that came to the meeting to address the elders. He remembered him from the day he had stood before the elders to ask for permission to marry Lilith earlier than was customary. However, his other son was not with him and he wondered about that.

  It was not Coboth that stood to talk to the assembly. The man who rose was younger. He stood and turned to the villagers. “Since the first set of bones were found it has become almost a regular event that just shy of four weeks another body is found. Based upon that another body should have been found ten days ago but it has not been, and no one in any of the surrounding villages has gone missing."

  Coboth grumbled and the two men sitting beside him held him down in his seat and tried to get him to quiet down. Zachariah could tell it was grudging but eventually he did quiet and the younger man continued.

  "We have come to the decision to wait on continuing with our request of this village to see if the murders start back up. Some of the elders in the other villages believe that the Monster has either moved on or has been killed. Others think it has gotten word of our plan to flush it out and is just hiding, but eventually it will reveal itself again."

  Coboth jumped up and pulled his sword and slammed the point into the floor at the front of the room, “I lost two sons, my only sons to that Monster. If it shows up, I know it will be in this village. This village refused to believe and it is cursed. I will be watching and when it comes back I will be here to take revenge."

  The two men that had held him back came up and guided him away. The younger man added, “As you can see, some have lost a lot and their emotions are high.

  "I do not blame Coboth. I lost a brother. If I was certain that monster existed and was here I would hunt it down too, but I am still not certain what it is. One Priest told me he thinks it is the wrath of God upon the sins of those men and their lust. I know my brother, and I do know he was full of lust. I know he would seek out a whore from time to time, so perhaps the Priest is right.” The man turned and walked out with the nine men following him.

  Tobyas stood and addressed the village saying, “We were spared whatever it was that harmed those other villages. Let each of us give thanks to the Lord this night for our fortune."

  Then the meeting was concluded and everyone went back to their homes, Zachariah nearly ran to his house and to the arms of Lilith to let her know that the other villages had called off their demands. They held each other long after they had finished their love making, falling to sleep in each others arms.

  The next morning Zachariah
began construction on the table. He first paid a visit to the blacksmith who brought out a heavy hide and shaped it to the top, which was the side that Zachariah had prayed upon, and the side that was visible when he had proposed to Lilith. Zach did not want to do anything at all to that side so he was going to protect it. When the blacksmith was done with the hide, he took the hide back to his shop and began to fashion a plate that was molded to match the underside of the hide perfectly.

  There was nothing more that Zachariah could do to the table until the base was done so he worked on setting up the other major items of the shop. The furnaces, the bellows, the smelting pots, but while he was doing this he kept wondering how he was going to get a perfectly smooth top on the other side of the stone. His mind was so involved on the shop and the stone table that he did not notice what Lilith was doing with her day, but when he came home at night she always seemed to be happy and they were very comfortable and loving in each others arms. To him, nothing seemed to have changed at all.

  One day while he was using a jeweler's saw to cut a gemstone an idea struck him. He was not certain how he would go about doing it but if he could somehow rig a saw blade that would rotate on a pulley system and do so continually, then use its own weight on a pivot he would get a perfectly smooth surface. The idea would not leave his mind so he went and spoke to his father and then a few other villagers about it. Some thought he was crazy, but a couple thought the idea could work. A thin wire coated with an adhesive dipped in gem dust could cut through the stone, which meant he needed to make the wire continuous, a single loop. He realized the blacksmith could do that.

  Two wheels that were grooved and lined with fur could guide the wire. If they were pulled tight apart the wire would be strong and a good cutting tool. The only problem would be how to make it move constantly. That was solved easily because the baker had already dug a canal from the river to his mill and it ran right by the shop as well. A wheel like at the baker's mill could keep the wire turning, and after the cutting was done the wheel could be used to power other things like the bellows in the shop.

  The stone would have to be turned on its edge and steadied for the cutting. So several of the villagers came and helped. Logs were set in place to lock the stone into place and the saw was set to begin cutting. Zachariah did not want to risk breaking the blade so he let the weight of the device itself do the cutting and did not add any weight to it.

  At first everyone thought it was not working but after an hour the blade had cut into the stone about a half inch. As the stone got wider, the cutting would get even slower so it was going to be a long and slow process. Yet Zachariah was pleased to see that the cut was not much thicker than a finger nail. That meant that even when the cut was all the way through, if no one was present the stone would not collapse and shatter. There would be too little room for it to move.

  Zachariah thanked his friends for their help and paid them all for their contributions with a ring of gold that he had made, each one had a circular disk upon it to represent the stone and a ‘Z’ upon the disk to remind them that they had helped him and his father at this time in building this shop. The villagers all tried to refuse but Zachariah insisted and said, “It is true I have helped you in the past but I want you to know how much I appreciated the fact you were each willing to stand up and protect Lilith and me from the other villages when they came to seek a monster. Keep this ring as a reminder of my gratitude for the time you may have saved my wife's life."

  Each nodded and shook his hand as they left. In turn as they left they fingered their rings and admired the craftsmanship of the piece. Zakarias came to his son and said, “My boy, that was more gold than most of them will see in a year."

  "I know father, but I also know that each of them will brag about that ring wherever they go and the business it will bring us will more than make up for the amount of gold that I gave away this day."

  Zakarias smiled and patted his son on the back, “Not only are you a man with a good heart, but you have a good sense of business too. My boy will go very far and be a very rich man."

  They both turned to the saw and the stone and his father asked, “How long do you think we will have to listen to this screech of the blade as it cuts through the stone?"

  He turned to his father with a smile, “It is ear piercing, isn't it? In truth I have no idea. I can only hazard a guess, but my best guess would be a week."

  "I hope that is all it is. For in a week that noise is likely to drive me insane.” Zakarias said, then he patted his son on the shoulder again and added, “I knew you had talent to be a jeweler, I did not know you would be an inventor too. This saw of yours could come in handy in other trades."

  "Perhaps, but I doubt anyone will want to put up with the noise."

  "That is true,” Zakarias added. “Maybe once the table is cut then we should dismantle it."

  "I think that would be best."

  The two men looked at it a little longer and then they parted each heading to his own home. The sound faded behind him as Zachariah walked to his house but he could still faintly hear it as he stepped under the hide at his door. Inside he was greeted by his wife running toward him and throwing herself into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him tightly and embraced him. It all happened so quickly that it shocked him and nearly knocked him off his feet.

  "OOOFF,” the air gushed from his lungs as he caught her and returned her hug, then when he regained his breath he asked, “What is up, my wife?"

  Lilith let go of his neck and slid to the floor where she took his hands and led him to the pillows upon the floor and said, “Sit my husband, let us eat our meal and then I will tell you my news."

  Zachariah sat but he pulled her down into his lap and both rolled laughing, “No, my love, you can share your news now. Our meal can wait. I am more anxious to hear what has you so happy."

  Lilith sat up, and then rose to kneel upon her knees, lowering her head she laid her head upon his lap and said, “I pray you will not be angry with me, but I have been leaving the house during the day."

  Zachariah's intake of air startled her and she rose to look at him with frightened eyes, “No, my husband! I am not cheating on you. I have been seeking information only."

  As he exhaled he could see her relax as well, then she continued, “A woman in the camp told me of a prophetess that lives in the hills beneath Mount Zaboath. Even when I heard the name of the mountain it seemed like an omen to me, the very initial of my husband upon the name of the mountain. So I knew I had to seek her out."

  Lilith paused and looked at her husband. Zachariah saw that she was trying to see how he was taking her story but so far there was nothing for him to be upset or happy about so he listened. “It took me a few days to learn the proper path to her home, especially since I wanted to be here each night when you got back. Then last night you said you would not be in because setting up the saw would keep you up all night and if you made a mistake it might damage the stone.

  "So I took the chance and went to see her. I found her right where they said she would be."

  Zachariah stopped her, “Lilith that is impossible, the trip to Mount Zaboath is a three day journey with a wagon in just one direction. You could not have made it in one day there and back."

  "Husband, please believe me. There are things about me you do not know, and I cannot yet tell you. I told the prophetess you would not believe I was there so she gave me this,” Lilith reached behind her and pulled a feather from under the pillow. It was a large colored feather of a bird that only dwelled within the region of the Mountain. She handed it to Zachariah, “The prophetess said that this feather would help you believe until the time that I could reveal all to you."

  His eyes got hard as he looked at her, “When you could reveal all to me? Do you mean to tell me that some of your past memories have returned and you have not told me about them?"

  Lilith lowered her eyes, “Husband, please forgive my lie, but I never lost my memories."
<
br />   Zachariah leapt to his feet and looked down at Lilith, “Woman, how dare you lie to me all this time! How do I know you even love me enough to be my wife?"

  "Zachariah, my husband, please listen. Please forgive me.” For the first time since Lilith had been made she truly felt shame. The emotions welling up inside her were like nothing she had ever felt before. She realized she was about to lose the man that loved her and her heart was ripping apart. There was no hesitancy upon her part as she knelt and crawled to his feet and wrapped her arms around his ankles saying, “My husband, if I told you all you would never have loved me. I am not worthy of your love. Please forgive me. Even the prophetess said it is not time to reveal my past to you."

  As he looked down at her and felt her tears upon his calves he could not stay mad at the woman he loved. Slowly he lowered himself beside her and lifted her lips to his. He kissed them softly and said, “All the elders have said that this prophetess is a woman of God and I have no reason to doubt them. If she says there is a reason for you not to tell me your past yet then who am I to second guess a prophet of God?"

  "There was one thing she asked of us.” Lilith then added.

  "A payment?"

  "No.

  "She asked me to tell her all about you and me. She wanted to know everything. When I told her about the stone you had prayed on, and then proposed to me beside she was very interested in it.

  "Later I told her how you had brought it to the shop to use as a table for your work, and that the side that the prayer had been done on you were protecting. She then asked if the stone was good and thick.

  "I showed her roughly how thick.

  "She asked that when you are done cutting the piece away, that you cut a second piece about the thickness of the end of your middle finger to the first joint. She said she would need the stone for the magic that would heal me."