Bridgeworlds: Rise of the Magi

by Randy Blackwell

  Once there was a decision, Ischus sent for Omar and Myles, asking that they return to Pneuma Karpos immediately. Since their plan to meet Ragal had gone so terribly wrong, they had no reason to stay in Sarx-Ergon. The streets were filled with angry Kalat, and Myles and Omar feared they could become the scapegoat for the fire. They hurried back into the tunnels to head for "home". They wore out the subject of the note from Nekar, without figuring out if it was friendly or ominous. Either way, their anticipation of meeting with another person from Earth was destroyed. Why had Nekar interfered? What was his interest in Ragal?

  The message from Ischus hadn’t told them the decision of the council, so they didn’t expect the fanfare they received in Pneuma Karpos. Hundreds of Musterlings lined the streets begging to join the Order of the Magi. Probably because of Omar’s present form, many of the potential candidates were Akana.

  As tempting as it was to begin interviewing recruits, but they decided to press on to meet with Ischus. Myles and Omar made their way to the town hall through the crowd, curious to know why Ischus' message had sounded so urgent.

  Ischus met them in his library. Though he seemed anxious, he insisted that they sit down and have a servant bring tea before discussing any serious matters.

  Once the servant was finally out of the room, Myles leaned forward in his chair. “So? I mean…uh... Sir, why did you summon us here?” Myles’ impulsive ways rose to the surface. He was not about to finish his tea.

  Ischus stifled his initial anger, and instead burst into laughter. He reached over and patted Omar on the back.

  “Omar warned me that you might be rude and oafish, but he said it only comes from your ignorance of the royal etiquette. He was so right about you!”

  Myles tolerated the laugh at his expense for just a moment. “The truth is I’m just impatient to a fault.” A sober look came over his face. “Now, sir, can we get to it?”

  “Indeed.” Ischus cleared his throat. “I have good news, and I have bad news, so which would you like to hear first?”

  Omar and Myles said in unison, “The bad news.”

  Ischus quietly said, “I’ve already heard about the fire and how Ragal disappeared. More importantly, I know Moluno. I’m sure that he’s going to try to pin Ragal’s disappearance on you, Myles.”

  Myles was caught off guard. “What? Why me?”

  “Quite honestly,” Ischus replied, “it’s because the two of you made him look like a complete idiot in front of both councils and all the Musterlings who were there. When we met, he kept trying to turn the discussion back to the murder to see if he could stir them up against you. You bested him, and his pride will not let him accept that without retaliation.”

  “Great! Well that was definitely the bad news,” said Myles. “So how about some good news, your Majesty?”

  Ischus sat up straight. “I’m delighted to inform you that the councils have approved the Order of the Magi!”

  Omar had already been fairly certain of that from the way the crowds had pressed in on them when they arrived. It was still nice to hear it formally from Ischus. His plan had really worked. Myles fretted about the potential threat from Moluno. He’d already gone toe to toe with a Kalat and absolutely did not want to do that again.

  Ischus reached across the table and slapped him with one of his gloves. “Don’t just sit there pouting like some insolent child! Go and rescue the damsel!”

  “Do you mean Ragal? You’ve got to be kidding! From what I've seen and heard, she's hardly a damsel.”

  “I really want you for a jester," Ischus chuckled. "You could be the brunt of all my jokes.” He turned serious. “Go find Nekar. Speak to him and ask him to return Ragal. He might listen to another Adam.”

  “Didn’t you say he’s crazy? He’s more likely to deny Ragal’s existence than hand her over to me.”

  “Would you prefer to deal with another murder accusation?”

  “No I definitely don’t want that! I really don’t mind saving Ragal, but I think she might mind me saving her. She strikes me as ... stubborn.”

  “Omar told me that you’re looking to begin a new life, to do some good. Well, this would be a way to start. Saving a friend is easy; saving an enemy ...well, that takes a special kind of person. I believe that’s in the Book.”

  “Do we even know if Ragal is an enemy?”

  Ischus put his hands on Myles' shoulders. “All the more reason for you to agree. I'm glad that's all settled. You’ll leave first thing tomorrow!”

  “I guess I’ve been volun-told.”

  “Ha, ha! Volun-told, I like that.” Ischus slapped Myles on the back. “You might make a decent court jester yet!” Ischus departed, rehearsing in an undertone what he might have Myles do for him as the court jester. Omar smirked at Myles.

  Myles glared at Omar. “Yeah, thanks. You were no help. What have I gotten myself into?”

  Omar put an arm around Myles. “Let’s talk about recruiting methods.” But Myles wasn’t smiling.

  ~*~

  As Nekar and Kasey walked along through the tunnels, Kasey kept asking more questions of Nekar.

  “So, how did you get here?” was her next one.

  Nekar continued to be tolerant of her inquisition. “I and the twelve others your people called elders were all in the death camps together. One day it was our turn to be killed, and we were taken from our homes. I still had it in my head that I would be able to escape somehow, despite the older ones telling me to forget about it. As smoke filled the barn, I frantically crawled around, trying to find a weak spot in the flooring in the barn they had locked us in. Finally I found a loose plank. Under it was a hidden passageway that led me to the tunnels of Musterion.”

  Kasey’s questions kept coming as fast as Nekar answered them.

  “Are you saying you came here straight from the Holo -- I mean the genocide?”

  “Yes, that’s correct. So how did you get here?”

  “You may not like this, but I was attempting to assassinate the prime minister of Israel when I stumbled into the tunnels.”

  Nekar just laughed.

  Kasey shook her head, thinking that he didn’t believe her. “I’m not joking.”

  Nekar laughed even harder.

  “No, really I did. It’s the truth.”

  “I believe you, Kasey, and now I know why the Master has held you here so long.” Nekar just kept on laughing.

  “Did you just call me Kasey?”

  “Uh-oh.”

  “You did! You just called me Kasey!”

  “Yes, I did."

  "How did you learn my real name? No one in Musterion knows my name. I’ve never told a soul!”

  “Ah, but it was my Master who told me your name.”

  Who is this Master of his that knows my real name? He must also be from Earth.

  “What about Alicia? What did you do with her? And why did you take her from me?”

  “Alicia was put in good hands. She has gone on to fulfill her own destiny in Soterion with her new parents. I took her from you because I was following orders.”

  Following orders? Who was it that ordered him to kidnap Alicia? “Who is this Master you keep speaking about?”

  “He’s the same person who will heal you. You’re going to die from that poison soon.”

  Kasey had forgotten about that and shuddered. “How do you know he’ll be able to heal me?”

  “It’s all up to you.”

  “What does that mean? Stop talking in riddles!”

  “If you’ll accept Him as your Master, He’ll save you. At that point all you need to do is turn from your evil past, ask for forgiveness, and follow Him as your Master.”

  “I ought to kill you right here,” Kasey shouted. “How dare you trick me? You said that you were taking me to someone who could heal me. You didn’t say anything about selling me into slavery. I bow my knee to no man! I’d rather die.”

  “Then you die. After all, pride does come before a fall.”

  Ka
sey pushed Nekar away from her. “You idiot! How dare you call me proud just because I want to live and be free? You’re just some Jew who’s gone mad because all the other Jews left you here! I bet this Master of yours doesn’t even exist! You’ve wasted enough of my time, you crazy old man! I’m off to find that assassin and get my revenge before I die!”

  “And die you will, Kasey.” Nekar shook his head as Kasey stormed off.

  ~*~

  Myles, Omar, and Sebastian waited until after it turned dark and carefully made their way through the city. In the middle of the night they found the place where they’d originally dropped down into the city, and Sebastian helped Omar carry Myles as they flew up through the hole.

  Myles landed on his knees and kissed the floor. “You couldn’t pay me to do that again. You guys fly like drunken astronauts!”

  Sebastian walked along the hallway and peered back to where the motorcycle was. “What I want to know is, how could both Ragal and Nekar move that thing, first out of here and then back again. It’s quite large isn’t it? Is that some form of chariot?”

  Myles sat down on the cold brick floor and peacefully sparked up his pipe. “Yeah, you could say that. It's just that all the horses this chariot has are built-in.” Sebastian has no idea what it is. He'll be shocked when Omar starts it up. It’s almost as good as flying, and probably faster too.

  Omar joined in the laughter. Sebastian said, “I’ve been patient up to this point, but I begin to believe that you’ve only shown me a small portion of the knowledge you could share, and —”

  Omar broke in to reassure him. “Sebastian, it’s not that we’re hiding anything from you. It’s just that there’s so much to tell you that we don’t even know where to begin. You have more than earned our trust by now so we’ll try to do a better job.”

  Myles could appreciate Sebastian’s frustration as he remembered when he had first met Omar in the tunnels. Omar could likely still spring some surprises on him with all his weird science. So he stood up, brushed off his long coat, and said, “I think I know a way to show you just how much we’d have to explain to you. Watch this.”

  Myles pulled his silenced 9mm from the inner lining of his coat. He brandished a piece of fruit. Myles threw the fruit in the air and fired off three rounds.

  Sebastian at first stared at the gun in Myles’ hand because he didn’t understand what had just happened. He walked over to where the fruit had fallen and picked it up. He found three holes in it, arranged in the shape of a triangle. He turned to Myles. “That was dangerous.”

  “I agree,” said Omar.

  “Maybe if I hadn’t grown up on a farm and handled a gun since I was eight, it could’ve been dangerous. Experience and skill always trump danger. Anyway, now go look at the brick wall in the other room over there.”

  Sebastian went over and looked more closely where he found three holes in the brick. Omar saw the bewildered look on Sebastian’s face and took the opportunity to enlighten him on the point of Myles’ demonstration. “To explain how that was possible would take at least a full day. But you’ll start to understand more quickly as I gradually teach you the secrets of science.”

  By the end of the night, Sebastian was beginning to grasp the vast differences between their world and his. When they eventually overloaded Sebastian’s brain, he began to doze off, unable to take in any more information.

  After Sebastian had fallen asleep, Omar and Myles moved out into the hallway again and spoke quietly with each other.

  “I know what you’re up to, Omar, and I won’t allow it.”

  “Excuse me? What are you talking about?”

  “You told him that the Earth was billions of years old. You plan on teaching him evolution don’t you?”

  “Of course I do, Myles. Why wouldn’t I? I’m going to teach him science, aren’t I?”

  “But it’s religion that you’re really teaching him. You’re trying to defeat his beliefs from within.”

  “No, Myles, I’m just trying to open his eyes to the world of science.”

  “Let me put it this way,” Myles insisted. “If you teach him that trash, I’ll have no part in the Order of the Magi.’”

  “That is utterly ridiculous! Why are you so upset about this?”

  “I’m a former con-man, and I’ve always had a knack for knowing a lie when I hear it. What’s funny to me is that the way you teach it reveals to me that you don’t even believe it.”

  Omar reddened. “What? You watch your words!”

  “Sorry to insult your religion…wait, that’s right, aren’t you a Jew?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  Myles threw his hands up, “Then why would you abandon what the religion of the Jews teaches?”

  “Because, Myles, those are just stories to teach lessons.”

  “Aren’t the Jews God’s chosen people?”

  “Yes they are, and a chosen people who you would say crucified the Messiah.”

  “No, I wouldn’t! Christ would not have gone to the cross if it hadn’t been His will. He could’ve called a thousand angels from heaven if He’d wanted to. But He didn’t! He chose instead to give His life for us. No one made that choice for Him.”

  Myles' anger subsided a little. Taking a deep breath he continued, “Besides, it would be more true to say that we all crucified Him. You and I would’ve been no better than the Romans or Jews of that time. For your information, my great, great grandmother was a Jew who disappeared in a Nazi concentration camp. So I’m not inclined to make accusations against Jews.”

  “But aren’t you Irish?”

  “Yeah…mostly. But I’m a small part Jewish too.” His adrenaline was subsiding so he adopted a more conciliatory tone. “Look, I know that there’s no reason for you to believe what I’m saying. It’s probably strange to hear me argue so intensely in favor of Christianity since I’m not a Christian.”

  “Aren’t you, though? You clearly believe in Jesus. Didn’t you say that was all that’s required?”

  “No, I’m afraid not. He has to be my Lord and Savior. As it stands now, I don’t follow any of the directions He gave in the Bible. Even the demons believe in Jesus, the Bible says, but they aren’t saved.”

  “You sound just like a preacher.”

  “I’ve heard about Jesus for sixteen years of my life. Thanks to my grandmother, it’s ingrained in me.”

  “Ah yes, you were indoctrinated as a youth. Ignorance is usually taught that way.”

  “I would hardly describe it as indoctrinated. Maybe inoculated is a more accurate description. I can’t deny the truth and power behind it all, but that Christian lifestyle just wasn’t something I could ever manage to follow.”

  “Well, on to a different topic then. In order to clear our names, I think you should take Ischus’ advice and go find Ragal. You have to admit, she’s a much larger piece of the puzzle for us than we first realized. If she’s from Earth like we think she is, she may be able to explain how we all got here and, more importantly, how we can leave.”

  “I agree.”

  “I agree too,” said Sebastian.

  Myles and Omar glanced over to where Sebastian had been lying, and Myles commented, “I thought you went to sleep a long time ago.”

  “What, and miss the buffoonery of your earlier conversation? Never!”

  Omar glared at Sebastian. “Excuse me, what did you say?” Myles just folded his arms and stared at him with disapproval.

  Sebastian got up. “If either of you think that my faith is going to be swayed because the Book says that the Earth you come from is one age and you think science proves it’s another age, then you’re wrong. Omar, you sound just like those who are of the Council of Six. And Myles, you sound like a reject from the Council of Seven.”

  Omar tried to speak, but Sebastian cut him off. Looking directly at Omar he said, “I can see that your pride is welling up within you. I don’t mean to insult your intelligence, but if your statements beg for your intelligence to be insulted,
there’s no way I can stop that. The Book says to taste and see that the Lord is good. Well, I’ve tasted and I’ve seen. Things have happened in my life that transformed me into something I would have never been able to become by myself. You’ll never convince me those events didn’t happen.

  “You don’t see it, either of you. You haven’t tasted or seen, so you speak of things you know nothing about. Myles, you obviously know the truth about faith in Jesus. You know that if you don’t accept Christ as Lord, you’re as good as a stranger to Him. Yet you won’t turn to Him because you don’t like the lifestyle. This makes you a complete fool. And Omar, you don’t believe either, but you’ve made a half-hearted attempt to convince Myles that he’s wrong. I ask you, what kind of man would willingly watch his friend walk into a burning fire and try to convince him that there’s really no fire?”

  Sebastian could see the struggle on their faces and sighed. “I know that my words were hard. But the wounds of a friend are faithful. So let’s all go to sleep now, knowing that tomorrow is a new and challenging day.”

  Sebastian put his hand on Myles’ shoulder. “I’m sorry that I’ve offended you, my friend. I owe you my life, and I just hate to see that you’ve chosen to throw yours away.”

  Myles nodded. “Let’s just go to bed. We’ll go look for Ragal tomorrow morning and see if we can at least solve one problem. The rest we’ll have to work on later.”

  The next day Myles woke before the others and began to plan his search. He knew that there must be some form of secret passage nearby or Ragal and Nekar couldn’t have gotten the motorcycle in and out of this upper chamber. So he quickly ate some breakfast from their provisions and began to examine the walls of the room and the hallway. He didn’t look long before he found a brick that stuck out a few more centimeters than the others. When Myles pushed on it, the wall opened up. Myles laughed quietly at his success. Back on Earth things just weren’t that mentally stimulating for him, but here he really enjoyed these puzzles and secret passages.