Eetoo

by Robby Charters

  Kefa wandered slowly over to warm himself. He looked strung out, ready to run from his own shadow.

  Tsaphar was aware of movement near the passage to the meeting room.

  The girl looked at Kefa. 'Weren't you one of the Nazarene man's followers?'

  'Oh! No! Not me! I don't even know the man! I swear it!' Kefa almost shouted.

  A couple of the men sitting nearby looked their way, chuckling.

  A cock crowed, and almost made Kefa jump out of his skin. It was the second crowing of the cock, which meant day was dawning.

  Kefa glanced towards the porch, and his face froze, as though he saw a ghost. He abruptly arose and ran to the service entrance.

  Tsaphar looked towards where Kefa had looked. There stood Reb Yeshuah, looking sadly after Kefa.

  At that moment, one of the men jerked the rope binding his hands, and they were off along the porch to the other door.

  Tsaphar's attention was distracted again.

  'Now listen up men!' it was Mordecai! 'Here's the scoop. There's a bag of cash at the door for each of you for service rendered so far. But you're not finished. There's more where that came from. You are to go out and gather as many of your mates as you can. Bring them to the Pretorium. Each of you bring at least fifty men, tell them to bring all their mates. We'll pay any of them that brings ten or more. Use what you have in your bags to pay the ones you contact, and you'll get double before the day's out, and we'll pay the others as well. We need a crowd, a big one. And keep your eyes and ears on me. I'll be coming around telling you what to say, you repeat it to the men you bring and so on. Have them shouting and chanting the same thing. We have to make an impression. Make Ponius Pilate shit in his toga if he doesn't nail up the Nazarene. You got that?'

  'Yes sir!' 'Righty-ho!' 'Hear, hear!' etc.

  'Right then! Go to it!'

  He started handing out bags to each man as they passed through the service entrance.

  Tsaphar remained huddled in the corner next to her friend. She no longer cared if Mordecai saw her or not. Nothing really mattered any more.

  She had seen what the Romans did to terrorists and bandits. They nailed them up, and left them hanging on stakes until they died slowly.

  And they'll try Reb Yeshua as a terrorist! What a horrible way for such a gentle loving person to die.

  'Tsaphar!'

  Eetoo and Yohannan were there.

  'Oh, hi, Zipporah, -- er -- where's Kefa?' asked Yohannan.

  'He ran off -- that way -- just a while ago,' said Tsaphar.

  'That was one of you then,' said Zipporah. 'Have you talked to your uncle yet?'

  'I don't wanna see him right now. I can't believe he did this!'

  'I think he's looking for you.'

  Tsaphar looked up. There was a well dressed man walking towards them.

  'Yohannan?'

  'Yes sir,' said Yohannan, weakly.

  'It's good to see you! How's your father? Is he here for Passover?'

  'I donno.'

  'Come! Aren't you glad to see your Uncle Kayafah?'

  'You just condemned my rabbi to death, didn't you!'

  'He was your rabbi?'

  'And the Messiah of Yisrael!'

  'Come! There are issues here that are too deep for your young mind to understand!'

  'Oh, I understand it all right!'

  'And besides, it was out of my hands. I had no choice.

  'No choice? You're the High Priest, dammit!'

  'Yohannan! That's no way to talk to your uncle -- nor to the High Priest for that matter. Now you and your friends stay here. This city is no place for you to be running about, especially on a day like this.'

  He turned and called the guard. 'Zakkai, make sure my nephew and his friends don't leave the premises.'

  'Yes sir.'

  As Reb Kayafah left, he said, 'You have nothing to worry about. If he is, indeed, Messiah, he can take care of himself. Neither the High Priest nor the Roman army will stand in his way.'

  He was off.

  21

  breakfast on a palace roof - with a view of the city

  the Temple reflects the sunlight, adding to it it's golden sheen

  while Herod's palace competes for glory

  between the two, the beautiful parts of the city

  a curtain hides the ugly places:

  the Lower City - and the Vale of Gei Hinnom

  Great! Now we're prisoners in this place.

  I was right last night. The place is breathtakingly beautiful in light of day. It's a lot bigger than just the two courtyards too. They've served us breakfast on the rooftop above the fourth floor, where we can see all of Yarushalayim. We can't eat much, though.

  There are two reasons I can't enjoy this. First, they've condemned the King. How can I enjoy nice things from the man who's intent on taking away the hope of humanity? The second reason -- sitting here, looking down at parts of the Lower City reminds me of it -- the way the rest of the people live. How can anyone stuff themselves with such fancy food while people down there are starving? They run water through these fountains and the hot bath as though there were a lake nearby, while people in the city are fighting over a few drops!

  I get up and pull back the curtain, so we can see the rest of the Lower City and Gei Hinnom.

  Now, we can see some people out scrounging for food on the rubbish heaps. They even look like cockroaches!

  There's plenty of nice food on this table. If only I could throw it far enough...

  An attendant brings more food. He looks at the curtain, and puts it back. He suggests we enjoy a hot bath.

  That reminds me of the palace where we were prisoners in Teknesh -- still no less a prison.

  I hope -- I dearly hope the High Priest is right, that Reb Yeshua can take care of himself. Otherwise, the planet is finished. The Groki will simply decimate all of humanity from the universe.

  I even wonder if Reb Yeshua even knows that. I mean, like he knows everything else except the things that should matter to him. He even gave them their accusation back there when all the others didn't work. He outright told them, 'You'll see me at the right hand of my Father.' It's as though he felt sorry for them that they couldn't find an accusation that could stick, so he gave them one.

  Does he even know the world's going to end if he doesn't finish up as the king?

  We go downstairs to one of the guest bedrooms.

  I really need the sleep, but my head's too full of things. These are the softest cushions I've ever rested on, but, like everything else here, I can't enjoy it.

  Reb Yeshua was right again, we'd need the rest before going down that hole. We're certainly not getting it now.

  Yohannan even refuses to sit on the soft couch. He says, 'How can I lie in a soft bed while my rabbi is all beaten to a pulp, sitting in a bare cold cell?'

  We just sit on the floor, looking at the wall.

  Yohannan whispers, 'I'm going to try to find a way out of here and see what's going on.'

  'We'll go with you,' I say.

  Yohannan thinks a while.

  'It might be hard for the three of us to get past Zakkai.'

  'I could wait here,' says Tsaphar. 'Zipporah can keep me company.'

  That's the maid she made friends with last night. She's been bringing us things all morning.

  So, the two of us go downstairs.

  Zakkai is at the door. He doesn't see us yet, because there's someone coming -- it's Mordecai!

  He does see us. He looks at me for a while.

  'I've seen you somewhere...why! You're -- Hyrcanah's pupil! Whatever are you doing here? Have you got the wrong High Priest or what?'

  'I was with the right one until you killed him.' I'm not afraid of him any more.

  'What? Come now! Isn't he here in Yerushalayim?'

  'Don't you play stupid with me!'

  Now, that gets a rise out of him -- but we're interrupted by someone who's just barged past past Zakkai. Zakkai's scuffling to catch him.
>
  'Hey!' says the man to Mordecai. 'You didn't tell me you were going to have him condemned!'

  I've seen this man before too.

  'What's it got to do with me?' says Mordecai. 'If you don't like it, go talk to the boss.'

  'Where is he?'

  'Where do you think he is? He's got duties. It's time for the morning sacrifice, isn't it!'

  Just as the man's shouting more profanities, Yohannan grabs my arm and we slip past Zakkai, who's holding the man by one arm.

  I can still hear Mordecai saying, 'Hey! You got your wad. Buy a piece of land and settle down! Do some farming …'

  I can't hear the rest. We're walking fast.

  'That was Yehudah!' says Yohannan.

  That's where I've seen him! He was one of his own pupils!

  Suddenly he walks right past us, almost pushing us over. 'I'll buy some land, I will!' he's muttering. I think he's so worked up he doesn't even recognise Yohannan.

  We'll go to Reb Yakov's house first to tell them what's going on, and then to Lazar's place to tell the rest.

  * * *

  We're at this place they call the Pretorium. It's a part of Antonia Castle, which we saw when we first arrived in Yerushalayim, next to the Temple. It's so crowded we can't get anywhere close. The people near us are only trying to see what's going on. The ones in the front are doing the shouting.

  We're both short so we can't see. There's a low wall over there where some people are standing.

  Yohannan says, 'Let's go there.'

  The wall is full. One of the men on the wall loses his balance, so Yohannan scrambles up. There's actually room for two our size, so he pulls me up.

  I can see some people standing on a balcony. One man is dressed in a fine toga, who looks pretty important. The one next to him looks like he's interpreting. There are some people behind them. Two are armed guards, and the other -- someone wearing a purple cloth draped over his shoulders. He looks beaten up -- badly! And what's that funny thing he's wearing on his head?

  Is it Reb Yeshua? It must be! What have they done to him?

  He's just standing there quietly, like in Kayafah's house, as though he were playing their game in spite of the pain he must be in.

  The man in the toga looks as though he's having a hard time. He's taking a deep breath.

  He says something, and the man next to him translates: 'Okay then, I understand that it is the custom to release to you one prisoner on your special holiday. I have two people in custody as of now, Yeshua of Natseret, and Bar Abba. Who shall I release to you?'

  The people near us start saying, 'Yeshua, of course!' 'Yeshua!'

  Yohannan and I are shouting as well.

  The noise of the people in front drowns us out: 'Bar Abba! Bar Abba!'

  The man on the balcony shouts, and the interpreter says, 'Okay, Bar Abba it is. What shall I do with Yeshua of Natseret, who's called King of the Jews?'

  The people near us are saying, 'You gotta be kidding!' and 'No way!' 'Yeshua, not a terrorist!'

  People further in front of us start turning and giving us such threatening looks that we all quiet down, but the shouts from the front are, 'Nail him up! Nail him up!'

  It's so catching that even some of the people near us are saying it, even one I noticed saying 'No way'.

  They just keep chanting that over and over. They say some other things, and finally, the man on the balcony throws his hands up. Someone brings him a basin of water and he washes his hands.

  Now, they're taking him inside. People in the front are cheering.

  They bring him down to the front, a sort of courtyard, near where the people are, and there's this post in the middle. They're lifting him up so he's hanging from a nail in the post by the rope tying his hands. They tear his coat off so his back is bare. There's someone with a mean looking whip -- he starts whipping. Blood splatters all over the place. The ends of the whip are digging into his skin.

  With every whip the people all cheer like they would for each punch in a boxing match.

  They just keep it up and keep it up. When will they stop?

  I look away. I see Yohannan's covering his eyes, gritting his teeth. Tears are coming out both of our eyes.

  It's over, finally. They take him down. He can hardly stand up any more.

  Now they've taken him inside. People are still standing about.

  Now, it looks like people are making way for someone.

  I'm glad we're not on the ground. We'd be getting squeezed pretty badly now.

  It's the group of them that held the trial at Yohannan's uncle's house. There's Hanan ben Shet up front with Kayafah, a group of the others, the P'rushim, the other big wigs, and finally there's Mordecai.

  Yohannan sits down and covers his face. I think he doesn't want his uncle to see him.

  They all have satisfied looks on their faces -- all except for Kayafah. He's looking a bit worried.

  Hanan seems to notice it. He nudges him, and right as they pass close to us, I can hear him say, 'Hey! What's the problem? We've got it in the bag!'

  'I don't know. It's just that …'

  Mordecai is looking especially pleased with himself.

  I know exactly what happened now. Reb Yeshua and Reb Hyrcanah were both part of what was supposed to be the new kingdom: Hyrcanah as the righteous High Priest, and Yeshua as King Messiah. Mordecai went to Alexandria just to find Hyrcanah because he heard from the Sons of Light that he would be their High Priest, and he murdered him. Now, he's helping them do the same with Yeshuah.

  Doesn't he know he's dooming the human race?

  He's coming past now.

  'Murderers!' I shout.

  He looks about and sees me.

  'You!'

  Some of the others start shouting at them too.

  They're gone now.

  22

  like pupils playing truant from a school master, they wander the city

  in fact it's the master who's absent

  We don't know what to do with ourselves. I don't want to go back to Yakov's house without Tsaphar. Yohannan doesn't want to go to his uncle's house, so we sit on a wall beside a street talking about things.

  Yohannan's telling me about the things Reb Yeshua did, and some of the things he said.

  He was a pretty amazing bloke! He healed people just by putting his hands on them. He even taught Yohannan and the other pupils to do it too, and sent them out places to tell everyone that the Kingdom of Adonai had come, and to get ready. The fact that they could heal people, and get rid of evil spirits proved to everyone that they were telling the truth. It's like the kingdom of good was taking over from the kingdom of evil, where bad things happening to people.

  As he's telling me all this, I think about all the poor people we saw on the way here, and all the beggars here in Yerushalayim. He was even healing the lepers! People's lives were getting better because of him, and that was the Kingdom of Adonai already proving itself by pushing all the things from the kingdom of evil out of the way wherever he went.

  I wonder what he could have done on Thevsos, on the ground?

  We get tired of waiting in one place, so we walk to another. People all over are talking about what happened.

  He's telling me more stories. It cheers him up a bit to be telling them.

  'There's one thing he started saying that we couldn't figure out. It didn't make sense, and it still doesn't make sense.'

  'What?'

  'He said that when we got to Yerushalayim for the yom tov, the elders and the Priests would take him and hand him to the gentiles. He'd die, but on the third day, he'd rise again.'

  'They've done that now, haven't they.'

  'I guess they have, but it still doesn't make sense.'

  'I know.'

  'Where's that place they said you and the girl came from?' he asks, suddenly.

  'Er -- I lived in Tok for a while, and that's where I met Tsaphar. She's from there, but I lived on Kalodzu-Famta.'

  'That's like -- fa
r away, isn't it?'

  'Yeah.'

  'What's it near?'

  'Er -- you might not be able to believe it if I told you.'

  'I don't know. I've seen some pretty amazing things -- you know -- with my rabbi and all.'

  'Okay -- you know the Zodiac, that you can see from here?'

  'Yeah?'

  'Some of the stars in Capricorn, that are the faintest from here? We can see one of them on Kalodzu-Famta.'

  'That far?'

  'You can't even see our star from here.'

  'Your -- what?'

  'Like -- our sun. The star our planet revolves around. Like this planet revolves around this star.'

  'That's not a star, that's the sun!'

  'Yeah, but all the stars are like that. It's just that they're so far away. If you're on a planet that revolves around any star, it'll look just like this one.'

  'Oh.'

  We're quiet for a while. I think he's given up trying to understand it.

  'Maybe I'll come visit you sometime,' he says, finally.

  Someone's shouting, 'They're taking him off to be nailed! Skull Hill!'

  People start talking, and some start going.

  Yohannan says, 'Let's go!'

  We're walking along in the same direction as everyone else. The farther we go, the more crowded it gets.

  Now, we can't hardly walk any more.

  We're coming to a gate. It's really slow here because of the bottleneck.

  People are saying all sorts of things.

  'He's gonna call fire down from heaven! I know it!' 'Good riddance!' 'This is it!' 'Just watch! He'll defeat the Romans and the corrupt system all in one go!' 'I just wanna watch him hang!'

  We're up to the gate. Now we're walking faster.

  I see the hill I think must be what they call 'Skull Hill'. It does look like a skull. A couple of caves look like eye sockets. There are stakes with people hanging naked from them, just like we saw on the way to here. Some of them look as though they're dead already. The one's who aren't dead yet look like they're suffering horribly. They can hardly breath.

  There's three vacant stakes stuck in the ground near the top of the hill. The middle one, I see they're hoisting a crossbar up with a pulley. It's got someone hanging from it -- literally nailed, from what I can tell.