The Dark Temple

by The Dark Temple (retail) (epub)

  ‘David, you’re not making any sense. Sebastian has never mentioned any of this before.’

  ‘And why would he? This stuff was all put to bed twenty-five years ago,’ Carter replied and a deep frown appeared on Harker’s forehead. ‘From what I’ve read, this Mithras group were at war with the Templars for years and it was your father – as Templar Jarl – who was largely instrumental in shutting them down altogether. A lot of lives were lost, so it says in his journals, and Avi Legrundy was a major player. Until they were all wiped out… apparently.’

  Harker remained silent, not knowing what to make of any of it, as Carter continued.

  ‘This storeroom I mentioned is full of Mithraic artefacts that must go back to the days of ancient Rome. And, Alex, if I’m being honest, they seem to consist less of antiquities being stored and more likely trophies of some kind.’

  ‘Trophies!’ Harker looked troubled. ‘How?’

  ‘Well, I even found a sealed package containing some kind of ceremonial garb covered in bloodstains, which to anyone knowing their history is very similar to those described in Mithraic texts. Couple that with the fact that there is no mention of the Mithras cult in the Templars’ vault database and, if it wasn’t for the name you gave us, I doubt we’d have found it at all. Not any time soon, anyway.’

  Carter’s breathing was now sounding nervously intermittent and his tone hesitant. ‘If I didn’t know better, I would say that someone wanted their very existence hidden away, and as for all the stuff we found… well, it wasn’t exactly hidden but it wasn’t really out in plain sight either, if you know what I mean.’

  Harker remained silent as he considered what all this meant. But, if he wanted a few moments to think it through, Stefani was not about to allow that.

  ‘If someone doesn’t tell me who the cult of Mithras are right now, then, my friends… there’s going to be trouble!’

  Harker looked over and noticed that apart, from gritted teeth and glaring expression, she also had one of her hands clenched in a fist, and he had no doubt she meant what she had just said. ‘The followers of Mithras, or Mithraism, are one of the oldest cults on the planet. They are also one of the most mysterious, and even today we know very little about them. That particular cult was said to have originated in Persia, maybe a few thousand years BC and long before Christianity had been born. When Rome expanded its rule across the globe their legionaries brought it back with them, and it grew and spread throughout the empire, mainly amongst the less reputable classes, not among the elite, and of course it became embedded within the army and legions.’

  ‘Nero was hardly middle-class.’ Carter protested, keen to set the record straight.

  ‘That’s true,’ Harker replied, keeping his attention on Stefani who still looked unimpressed. ‘Emperor Nero was himself inducted into the cult of Mithraism and soon afterwards he set about imprisoning and murdering as many Christians as he could get his hands on, but most of the cult’s followers were middle-of-the-road in social standing.’

  Stefani’s expression softened and her shoulders began to loosen up. ‘Why?’

  ‘Because the early Christian faith was in direct competition with that of Mithraism at the time and amidst much scholarly debate on the subject, there’s an argument that many of the Mithras practices were literally absorbed by the early Church itself.’

  ‘What!’

  Harker was surprised at Stefani’s lack of knowledge on this subject but, given what Carter had suggested earlier, perhaps it was not a topic that the Templars were encouraged to learn about. Perhaps it was even taboo. ‘There were certain similarities still debated today but the devotees of that cult worshipped Mithras, the sun god, who was born from his mother, the rock of Earth, without the need of a father. Some say it’s another take on the virgin birth. There are other similarities with their god being able to create water out of soil and an ability to walk upon it. Furthermore the date of his birth was 25th of December by our calendar, which perhaps is enough said.’

  ‘And don’t forget the banquets where they would eat food symbolising the body of Mithras himself, just like is done with wafers during communion.’ Carter interjected so loudly that his voice crackled in the receiver.

  ‘That’s merely a matter of conjecture, David,’ Harker replied before turning to whisper to Stefani, ‘He loves a good conspiracy theory.’

  ‘I heard that.’ Carter’s objected in a deep tone.

  ‘Nevertheless, what has become regarded as the mystery of Mithraism arose because in the first century while Christianity was becoming ever more popular, all the cult’s devotees disappeared into history. Some say they were overwhelmed by the Christians and forced to convert, while others say they were slaughtered by their highly pious rivals. But one thing is fact: they pretty much disappeared without trace except for their temples being discovered in almost every country in Europe that had once belonged to the Roman Empire. They were constructed underground with the one distinct similarity of decorative symbols – the god Mithras slaughtering a bull with his knife while a snake, a dog and a raven attack it and, even worse, a large scorpion attacking the victim’s testicles.’

  Harker winced at the thought but Stefani remained expressionless as he elaborated on the subject further. ‘There are many that think the bull represented Jesus and the sacrifice as Mithras’s wish to destroy his competitor. But that’s only conjecture because no one knows for sure, and we likely never will.’

  ‘Maybe so,’ Carter still sounded stern, ‘but if what we’ve found is anything to go by, the Mithraic cult never disappeared – it did so from public view only.’

  The notion had Harker shaking his head, even though it might explain much of what he had witnessed over the past few days. ‘David, I honestly doubt that such a once potent force could have survived in absolute secrecy for over two thousand years, and anyway, what has it got to do with an apocalyptic prophecy – and a Catholic prophecy at that?’

  There was a short silence before Carter began speaking again in that same deeply serious tone. He was clearly getting excited by the mystery he had uncovered. ‘I don’t know, Alex, but if your father’s journals are anything to go by, the Mithraic cult managed it and, given they were apparently suppressed by the Templars in recent years, they appear to have a habit of making a comeback again and again.’

  ‘This all sounds crazy,’ Stefani exploded, and completely unconvinced. ‘I have been a Templar all my life and I’ve never heard anything about that or any kind of rivalry except with the Magi. They were always our only adversaries and, believe me, if these Mithras people had been such a threat, and as destructive as you claim, then there is no way it could have been kept such a secret. More importantly, the Templar high guard would never have kept such an important secret from their members.’

  ‘Maybe you’re right, Stefani,’ Carter conceded while privately becoming even more convinced of the possibility, ‘but everything I’m telling you derives directly from the words of Alex’s father. Remember, he was the Jarl and this is exactly the type of thing he himself would have dealt with.’

  This time there was no response from her and she gave Harker an uncertain look. Whatever the truth, they were unlikely to find a consensus amongst themselves, and Harker knew it, but that aside, his position of Jarl now began to take on a more potent significance to him. If the Mithras were truly behind all this, and as powerful as Carter believed them to be, then he was now not only at the front of the charge but would soon become the tip of the spearhead in opposing them.

  The realisation had him gulping nervously and Harker immediately pushed the idea to the back of his mind, not quite ready to confront the realities that his accepted role might soon entail. ‘Let’s all just focus on where we’re going next. David, there’s an orphanage in Venice, Ospedale del Santo, that could tie into all this.’ He glanced over at Stefani and found her already nodding in agreement. ‘We’re going to take a look and see if it’s connected in any way.’

&
nbsp; ‘An orphanage? How?’ Carter now sounded extremely interested.

  ‘Not sure yet but I let you know when I do. In the meantime, could you contact Sebastian and see if he can shed some light on all this stuff please; if anyone knows anything it will be him.’

  ‘Will do,’ Carter agreed. ‘Oh, and Tom is on his way back to the UK right now and he promised to speak with Chloe, so all good there.’

  ‘Thanks, David. Be sure to let me know the moment you hear from Sebastian.’

  The call ended abruptly and Harker placed his iPhone on the table and settled back in his seat with a look of puzzlement. ‘If these people do belong to the Mithras cult and, apart from it being amazing that it’s survived for this long without being detected, we still know absolutely nothing about them.

  ‘What concerns me more is that if the Templars had dealings with them, then why doesn’t anyone know about it?’

  It was a concern that was not lost on Harker either, and frankly it was what worried him most. If Carter was correct about all this and his father had indeed been instrumental in it all, then why the hell had Sebastian never mentioned this? Was it because his father – and the Templars – had done something terrible? Something so dreadful that they had kept it from the younger initiates rising up in its ranks? It was a troubling thought and he was just about to raise it with Stefani, when his phone rang again.

  ‘It’s probably David again.’ Then he noticed there was no name on the call tag. ‘It’s a video call,’ he announced before he swiped the accept bar to one side, which illuminated the screen to display the face of a white-haired man with a fraught expression.

  ‘Alex… can you see me?’ Henri Berger offered a lacklustre smile.

  ‘I can see you, Henri,’ Harker replied, not certain if this man knew about the death of Dr Marceau. ‘Are you OK?’

  ‘Yes.’ The caller offered a light nod. ‘How did you get on?’

  No, clearly he didn’t know and Harker elected to keep it that way for the time being. ‘Long story short, we managed to get hold of it and we’re in the air at the moment.’

  ‘Good. That’s good,’ Henri replied and with a genuine hint of relief. ‘Have you managed to read it?’

  ‘Yes… but it wasn’t very helpful. Not in the way you may have hoped. But there’s good news, too, because we just discov—’

  ‘We’ve heard about Gérald Marceau. It’s horrible,’ the man interrupted, and Harker could tell from the look in his eyes that he was extremely upset about it. ‘Were you present?’

  ‘Sadly yes, and am sorry to say it wasn’t pretty. It was the doing of the Red Death, and her real name is Avi Legrundy. She’s as vicious as anyone I’ve ever met.’

  The caller gave another slow nod of his head before he gazed back at Harker with a tear forming in his eye, due to him not blinking once since this call had begun. ‘Yes… I know.’

  A thin blade, held in a black hand, crept around Henri’s throat like a steel serpent which slithered into place beneath the man’s left ear. Then another hand pulled his head back, allowing a better view of the knife’s owner.

  Avi Legrundy flashed those white teeth of hers and grinned towards the camera, whilst revealing that the entire left side of her face was covered by a white bandage patch peppered with red stains.

  ‘Hello, Alex,’ Legrundy said and, as she pulled Henri back further, Harker could see the limp bodies of both Pierre and Monique lying on the floor, face down. ‘I’ve been getting to know your friends.’

  With the blade still held tightly at Henri’s throat, Legrundy slowly peeled back the bandage to reveal a deep burn mark extending from her jaw up to one side of her forehead. Her burnt dreadlocks had been roughly hacked off and, after displaying the nasty wound, she pressed the bandage back in place. ‘You owe me a debt, Alex, and I intend to collect.’

  ‘Oh, my God,’ Stefani gasped as she moved closer to the small screen and was immediately noticed by Legrundy.

  ‘Stefani Mitchell. I’m glad you’re there… Hold on.’ With dull eyes Legrundy sliced the knife across Henri’s neck and dropped him to the floor in a convulsing heap, before stepping over his twitching body and moving so close to the camera that her face filled the screen. ‘It’s a pleasure to see you again.’

  ‘Jesus, you’re sick,’ Harker growled and, although feeling absolutely helpless, he wanted nothing more than to reach through the display and choke the life out of her.

  ‘Sickness got nothing to do with it,’ Legrundy answered with a smile that revealed how much she was enjoying his disgust, ‘but getting this has everything to do with it.’

  Legrundy reached somewhere out of sight and her hand reappeared holding the familiar red ‘blessed candle’ the Order had been protecting for centuries – until now. ‘You’re snivelling fat friend Marceau gave up his hiding place long before I cut his tongue out.’

  ‘You’ve got nothing, Legrundy,’ Stefani yelled. ‘You may now have one of them but you’ll never get the other.’

  Legrundy shook her head and chuckled before again ducking out of view only to reappear, this time with the other ‘blessed candle’ they had retrieved back in Athens. ‘You mean this one?’

  Stefani’s mouth dropped open and her look of complete surprise elicited a victorious grunt from the killer.

  ‘You thought you were so clever in getting away from me at the Acropolis Museum dat it never occurred to you I might be following you?’

  Stefani remained silent, frankly ashamed that she had made such an obvious mistake in not better covering their tracks.

  ‘I trailed you to the airport, and then on to the nice man you gave this to for safekeeping.’ She began juggling them both in her hands before drawing them close to her chest. ‘I want you to know that he died pissing himself as he begged for his life.’

  This goading insult proved too much for Stefani and she grabbed the phone from Harker’s hands and began to rant at its screen. ‘Wherever you go, I’ll find you, Legrundy. I swear it.’

  The Red Death looked unmoved by this outburst and once more moved closer to the screen. ‘Swear it on what… your oath as a Templar?’

  It was the first time, since crossing paths, that any knowledge of their both belonging to the Templars had been voiced, and it not only shocked Stefani but Harker as well.

  He calmly took the phone back from her. ‘You seem to know more about us than you’ve let on,’ he said, now taking the opportunity to test out Carter’s theory for himself. ‘I thought we’d destroyed the pathetic cult of Mithras years ago.’

  Legrundy’s eyes widened in surprise but that chilling smile persisted. ‘So now we both know who we are,’ she replied, tilting her head forward. ‘That’s crucial if friendships are to flourish.’

  This reply was bizarre and Harker now glared back at her with a steely look. ‘There was no friendship to flourish in the first place, Legrundy, but I’m getting to know better what you are, and we’ll be paying you a visit soon.’

  This was of course just angry bravado on his part but, given he had just watched a new acquaintance callously murdered before his eyes, he wanted the killer to realise this wasn’t the end, but just the beginning of any lengths the Templars would go to in order to get her.

  ‘Oh, I know far more about you, Alex – which isn’t saying much. You don’t know who I am, you don’t know what dat stupid note you managed to get is, and especially…’ She raised the two blessed candles in to view momentarily… ‘you don’t have a clue what these are for, do you?’

  Harker gulped in frustration because everything she said was absolutely true, and he couldn’t help but now feel that she had been playing them both all along. ‘It’s not over yet,’ he growled sternly but this only brought forth a deep laugh from her.

  ‘Not over! You don’t even know what it was to begin with.’ Legrundy placed both the blessed candles down on the floor and pressed her face up towards the screen. ‘In mere hours it ain’t going to matter anyway because all that exists of y
our world will wither away and disappear, and then you will realise a truth that you never even understood in the first place.’

  The assassin scowled at them, then reached towards the side of the screen and she repeated the ominous line that Father Davies had written in his own blood and which appeared in the Prophecy. ‘“You are I and I am you. When he is myth and we are reality. This grand deception will be repaid in blood.” and I will always be one step ahead of you,’ she hissed, clearly taunting him with knowing exactly what he had already managed to discover, before the screen went black.

  ‘That bitch is dead,’ Stefani now raged and she slammed her fist down on the table hard, as Harker slipped the phone slowly back in his pocket. At any other moment he would have tried to calm her, but in truth he was just as livid. The deaths this woman had on her hands amounted to nothing short of a bloodbath, but she was right in saying that she was always one step ahead even when it seemed they had left her scowling in the rear-view mirror.

  ‘You couldn’t have known,’ he reassured Stefani, as her clenched fists continued thumping lightly on the table top.

  ‘It’s my job to know, Alex, and, as a result of my failure, someone else has died needlessly. And your contact, Henri… disgusting.’

  ‘I myself am to blame for them, if anyone,’ Harker said despondently. ‘I led her straight to them. Marceau said so himself.’

  ‘Maybe, but this Legrundy woman is a tracker, and a damn good one.’

  ‘Same then goes for you,’ he replied, still trying to soothe her anger.

  But Stefani was already shaking her head. ‘I’ve trained for this type of work all my life only to fail those poor people, the Templars – and myself.’

  There was little Harker could say to that, but there was an unanswered question still niggling him, and possibly the reason for her increased anger. ‘Who exactly was it you left the blessed candle with?’ he asked, sensing that this lay at the true core of her feeling of guilt.’