by L. M. Roth
Here Wangdakene took another sip of thaelan.
“But come, young friends,” he said, rising slowly from his chair, “and I will show you our great treasure: our stairway to the sky.”
Chapter XIII
The Temple of the Starry Hosts
They followed Wangdakene out of the chamber and down a narrow corridor. This path through the mountain continued unchanging for at least a mile by Marcus’ calculation before it gradually rose in steepness until at last they faced the rock wall.
In another cave this would have signified the end of the road. But the Khalaman, clever people that they were, had carved steps into the rock wall itself. Fifty steps of stone they counted as they climbed, up into yet another chamber they had not known the existence of.
Within the chamber were gathered about half a dozen men and women whom the little group of friends had not seen at any of the communal meals. The reason for that, Wangdakene explained, was due to the special status of this small group.
For they were the Yeshui, the star gazers, and they lived in this chamber that was set apart from all others. They took all of their meals within its confines, and slept in adjoining small chambers that branched off the larger one.
Among this elite group, Marcus noted uneasily, was Kunchena, the mother of Tashima and Chodena, of whom he had heard but never seen. At the precise same moment she spied the presence of Marcus and his friends, and not with pleasure.
Her dark eyes flashed malevolently before she quickly shuttered them like draperies shutting out the noon day sun. She said nothing, yet Marcus was aware that she missed nothing of their movements. This one, he thought, bears watching.
Wangdakene paused in the center of the chamber until all present fixed their attention on him. Then he smiled slightly and bowed to those whom he had called the Yeshui.
“O wise and learned ones, who search the secrets of the stars,” he began, “I have given our honored guests the privilege we have extended to none before them: I have told them our history and our purpose for our dwelling in this place, high above the world. I wish them to see what none other than ourselves have ever beheld. Let us show them the heavens in all their glory!”
After Wangdakene uttered these words, a young man rose and walked to a far corner of the chamber. Wangdakene motioned for the little band of Alexandrians to follow, and to their utter surprise they beheld another set of stairs carved into the stone. They followed him up this flight of steps, thirty in all, and at the head of them the young man reached upward for a handle of some wrought metal set into the roof of the chamber.
He pushed upward, and a small door opened outward. They trooped up after him, and found themselves in a small courtyard, of about forty feet square on the very top of the tallest mountain.
From here the panorama was dramatic. The night had fallen and the sky glittered with what seemed like a myriad of stars; hundreds and hundreds of them. A full moon had risen, and by its iridescent glow the peaks of the surrounding mountain range was clearly visible as if illuminated with a light of their own.
The air was somewhat chilly, it being only the first week of May. But already the hint of balmier weather to come was conveyed on the soft breezes that carried a delightful whiff of fresh spring flowers to their appreciative nostrils. Kyrene inhaled hungrily, as did Elena, so starved were they for the scents of the season, after being confined in the stone halls of the mountains for several days.
The Khalamans, however, seemed oblivious to the sweetness of the scent, their whole desire being fixated on the dazzling sky above them. They had, Marcus realized with a sense of shock, lost all touch with the earth and its beauties long ago…
The Yeshui had followed along in their wake. They eyed them warily, not being accustomed to admitting strangers into their sacred temple. For it was evident that this was exactly what the courtyard was: a temple open to the sky, that these people might worship the heavens and all its starry host.
Wangdakene strode to the center of the courtyard.
“Kunchena,” he summoned the older woman, “tell our young friends where we are.”
Kunchena bowed gravely to Wangdakene. She refused to look at Marcus and his friends where they stood just behind Wangdakene. Marcus felt his skin begin to prickle and a feeling of uneasiness crept over him.
He glanced at Kyrene, whose gaze was fixed on the older woman. He saw her lips move silently and knew she felt the same disturbance by this woman that he felt. Was it because of her hostility, or was she demonically empowered, and he felt the presence of the Astra?
Kunchena, however, had begun a strange ritual. She took a wooden rod and dipped it into a small clay jar filled with an ointment that emitted a sweet, heavy fragrance. It seemed to be floral in nature, but not of any flower of Marcus’ acquaintance. He turned to Wangdakene and looked a question.
Wangdakene whispered that it was the essence of the malanka flower, which grew abundantly in their native land. It was a pale blue star-shaped flower, symbolic of their identity.
Marcus realized it must be this very flower that adorned the hair of all of the Khalaman women. But now Kunchena was proceeding with the ceremony, and she smeared the ointment on the stones of the courtyard. Marcus realized they must use the ointment as a kind of incense to sanctify the place where they stood.
Then Kunchena lifted her arms heavenward to the place where the full moon hung suspended in the sky.
“Dawana!” she called out. “Shamere!” she cried, whirling in a circle as she pointed to the stars. “Wangchuken ek mu posone en kun sashine!”
Wangdakene translated this phrase for the little band of friends: “Moon! Stars! Mighty is your glory in all the world!”
Felix managed to catch the eye of Marcus. Usually the first to see the ludicrous in the beliefs of another culture, Marcus was faintly surprised to see that Felix looked distinctly uncomfortable.
Marcus felt it also, and noticed that Dag was shifting from one foot to another while Kyrene paled. She clutched small Cort’s hand and put one hand on his shoulder. Elena alone remained impassive; if anything Marcus thought, she appeared to be stifling a yawn.
But Wangdakene was speaking to him and clearly was waiting for a response.
“I am sorry,” Marcus blinked and stammered. “I did not hear what you said.”
Wangdakene smiled benevolently.
“I said,” he repeated in the sweetest of tones, “it is your turn now.”
Marcus looked at him blankly.
“Turn?” he repeated. “Turn for what?”
A snort of impatience issued from the lips of Kunchena. She spoke rapidly in the older language to Wangdakene.
“Imbecile!” she huffed. “Why do you have them join us? It is sacrilege, I warn you, sacrilege!”
Wangdakene turned back to Marcus and the others, and bowed graciously as if unfazed by the ire of Kunchena. Once again he smiled and bowed.
“It is your turn to partake in the worship,” he stated simply. “You must declare the glory of the heavenly host or they will be angry.”
A gasp of astonished outrage exploded from Marcus. Cries of surprise erupted from the other Alexandrians as well. They could not, simply could not, participate in a pagan rite, for their allegiance was to Dominio and Him alone. Not even to placate their hosts could they take part in the ritual being acted out before them.
For a moment he hesitated. He did not want to offend this gracious people who had welcomed them so warmly and extended that hospitality for more than a week. But they could not blaspheme against Dominio.
Marcus steadied himself and glanced at his friends. Kyrene’s hazel eyes widened as she looked at Marcus; then she dropped her lids for just a moment. Marcus understood that she also felt as he; and she was silently encouraging him to speak. Dag and Felix were also gazing at him intently; then Felix inclined his head slightly. There was nothing to be done, except to speak.
Marcus cleared his throat and prayed that Dominio would put the ri
ght words in his mouth.
Chapter XIV
Night of the Star Showers
“Good Wangdakene,” he began, “you have honored my friends and me by welcoming us into your abode. We have been truly blessed, and we most sincerely thank you.”
Wangdakene seemed to sense something was wrong, for his body tensed suddenly, a look of wariness came into his eyes, and they never left the face of Marcus.
“My friends and I must decline to participate in your ritual, however, for we do not serve your gods.”
Wangdakene seemed taken aback, and murmuring broke out among the Yeshui.
Marcus plunged into the fray he sensed was on the way. He told them in the simplest terms possible, and with gentle courtesy, that he and his friends could not believe as the Khalaman.
“My good Wangdakene,” he continued, “we serve and worship the One who created the sun, the moon, and the stars. You see, there is One greater than all the starry hosts. His name is Dominio, the Lord of all.”
An exclamation of protest burst from Kunchena, but Wangdakene waved her to silence.
“Proceed,” he ordered Marcus, his attention riveted on him.
“You told me, Wangdakene,” Marcus continued, a surge of boldness suddenly rising within him, “that the stars have ordained your course; it is set and cannot be changed.
“But that is not true! For Dominio made Man in His own image, and gave us free will, to choose whether to love and serve Him, or to go our own way. Man in his folly chose his own way, and to follow the path of Leon, a traitor to Dominio who led a rebellion against him and was cast out of his home in Dominio’s Heaven. This rejection on our part grieved Dominio greatly, for He created us with no other purpose than to love us. How His heart ached when that love was spurned!
“Yet, He refused to give up on us. As stubbornly as a lover woos his beloved, He tried to win our love. He sent His own Son, Alexandros, to tell us of the great love with which we are loved by Dominio. Because our rejection of Him cost us our place with Him in His eternal Heaven, a price had to be paid for our admittance to His home.
“And so Alexandros, who alone among us was pure and spotless as an innocent lamb, took our punishment for rejecting God and joining forces with Leon. For we had chosen to believe that we were gods ourselves, deciding right from wrong, setting our own course to destruction. Our sentence was to be separated from Dominio, for why should we be permitted entry to His Heaven when we spurned the God who ruled it?
“Alexandros took the punishment that was rightly ours. He died that we might live. And Dominio raised Him from the dead; and any who wish to be reconciled with Dominio may count the atonement of Alexandros as his own. He may ask forgiveness for his rebellion and enmity with God, and so live at peace with Him, and enjoy Heaven with Him forever.”
Marcus stopped speaking and looked at the faces around him. Kyrene’s eyes shone at him; she nodded her head and smiled, and he felt a thrill of elation. Yes, it was the Spirit within him that testified of the Truth, and he was tremendously relieved that Dominio had not failed him when the need arose.
The faces of the Yeshui, however, ranged from blank incomprehension to awestruck wonderment to furious indignation. Wangdakene himself appeared dazed, but Kunchena rustled forth angrily, and spat at the feet of Marcus.
“Bah!” she shouted. “You are deceived, and you lead us astray from the truth!”
She stepped back and with a swirl of her robes she shook a fist at the sky.
“Dawana! Shamere! Wangchuken ek mu posone en kun sashine!”
The other Yeshui raised their voices and joined Kunchena in her worship. Marcus felt, for a moment only, utter despair. How to make these people understand! Heartily he wished he could consult Logos, but he could not reach for the Sword now without the action being interpreted as hostile.
Suddenly, however, words popped into his mind and out of his mouth.
“Praise the Lord from the heavens; Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, sun and moon; praise Him, all stars of light!”
And just as suddenly, Marcus knew what his answer was to be.
“Yeshui!” he thundered in a voice of authority he didn’t know he possessed, “you worship the sun, and moon, and stars. You believe they guide you and set your course. Yet I say to you that they worship Dominio, and they praise His glory!”
He was met with howls of laughter led by Kunchena. Wangdakene looked around him uneasily, looking from one jeering face to another. His withered lips creased in an uncertain smile, and creaky laughter sounded from his mouth.
This mockery of Dominio angered Marcus. Who were these people to laugh at the One who gave them breath!
“Cease!” he roared, one hand upraised.
The Yeshui were so surprised that they obeyed at once. The sudden stillness was fraught with tension as they waited to see what the young stranger would do.
Marcus strode to the center of the courtyard. He stood with his legs akimbo, and both arms lifted to the sky.
“Dominio!” he exulted. “I praise Your holy name. I give thanks for the glories of Your creation. It is You who made the Heavens and the Earth, and all they contain! You alone are to be worshiped!”
He suddenly and with one arm outstretched to the sky, turned in a slow circle.
“And now, O you stars, give praise to the One who gave you being! Praise Dominio! Praise the Lord of Heaven!”
Even while Marcus spoke the last few words, without warning the sky erupted. One after another and another and another the stars suddenly gleamed brighter and appeared to grow larger. Then they began to shoot across the sky in a virtual shower of falling stars. What appeared to be tails of glowing light blazed behind them. As all gathered watched in awe, they raced across the expanse by the hundreds, so many that they could not be counted.
A whoop of joy erupted from Felix, and Kyrene and Cort leaped where they stood. Dag laughed aloud with the thrill of it, while Elena caught her breath and watched with eyes shining with wonder.
The Yeshui, however, were not so elated. After their first startled exclamations died down, they murmured among themselves. As the star shower went on and on, they turned with indignation upon Marcus.
“Trickster! Magician!” they roared. “Stop defiling this sacred temple!”
Their reaction stunned Marcus. Could they not see? How, with such a demonstration of the sovereignty of Dominio that even His own creation praised Him, could they stubbornly cling to their own belief?
“Go!” Wangdakene ordered, a finger pointing with accusation at Marcus. “All of you! At once!”
Marcus and his friends fled from their presence.
Chapter XV
Song of the Siren
They scrambled down the stairs, through the chamber, down the second set of stairs and back to their chambers, the Yeshui hot in their pursuit. They scurried to assemble their possessions and ran from the abode where they had spent so many pleasant days.
Not until they were out of the cave and back on the path in the plateau did the Yeshui leave them alone. Then they slammed the door of the cave with a resounding thud. The little band of Alexandrians stared at it, with heavy hearts as despair threatened to engulf them.
“We had no chance to bid farewell to Tashima and Chodena,” Kyrene mourned, tears brimming in her hazel eyes like a flooded pool filled with fallen autumn leaves after a hard rain.
“Nor say goodbye to Kipui and Pembui,” Felix sighed. “How I shall miss Kipui’s feeble attempts at humor!”
He looked at Marcus, then at Dag, and the three of them laughed through their tears, remembering a few of the pathetic jokes Kipui had invented.
“If only they would have received the truth!” Marcus groaned. “Then we should not have had to leave our dear friends. What more could I have said or done?”
“But, Marcus,” Kyrene consoled, “they are a people who think they have reasoned everything. Such become proud, and pride does not admit when it is mistaken.”
This observation cheered Marcus somewhat, but not much. The others sighed or groaned in mourning the friends they had to leave so hastily. Around them the night was still raining stars.
Their attention was captured by a star that was falling quite close. Suddenly there was a dazzling flash of light that turned the night around them to day, and the earth beneath them shook. Just beyond the far side of the lake a plume of smoke rose in the air. The sky darkened and night descended once more.
They quickly ran as fast as they could to the place where they had seen the plume of smoke. As they rounded the edge of the lake they saw that the smoke was not confined to one spot, but several. The smoke gradually cleared, and where it had billowed they now saw several lumps of some gray metallic objects. Out of curiosity Felix put out a hand to touch one, cried out and drew his hand back again.
“It is burning hot!” he exclaimed.
“What is it?” Cort asked. “Where did it come from?”
Marcus looked at the sky exploding with the cascading lights, then at the alien objects on the ground.
“It is a star from the heavens,” he smiled at Cort. “And it was sent by Dominio Himself.”
They were once again on the River Zoe. The days grew longer and warmer as spring advanced. The May days showcased a variety of wildflowers on the riverbanks that bordered their course, delicate flowers that none of them had ever seen before; a type of bluebell but smaller and more dainty than those in Valerium, a coral spray with fragile fern-like leaves, a button-like flower that shaded from bright yellow into a deep golden brown. These signs of life renewing itself cheered their spirits, and reminded them that sadness, like winter, does not last forever. The rain stops, the clouds part and dissipate to reveal the sun which was there all along.
They continued along, and the land became wilder and stranger. They passed tall conical hills that seemed to consist entirely of moss and grass, and they seemed enveloped in a steaming mist as the days grew warmer. They saw tall stalks of greenish yellow that looked like reeds growing on the banks.