The Sword
Page 43
“I don’t mind.”
Teo sipped the tea, then handed it back to Ana. His thoughts were jumbled. He had some difficult things to tell her, but he didn’t want to speak them. After the trauma of yesterday, it was nice to relax in the warm sun and pretend that nothing mattered. For a while, they drank tea together in silence.
“How long can we stay here?” Ana asked at last.
He shrugged. “Does it matter? Eventually we have to go back down.”
“If we wait, the soldiers might leave. We could sneak back to Edgeton, keep a low profile, see what happens.”
“A low profile? Is there anyone in the realm who doesn’t know us? A thousand franks is a lot of money. We would face the decision to deny Deu immediately. And besides, guardsmen don’t leave their posts.”
Ana stared at her feet, shaking her head slowly. “I just don’t understand. I can’t believe we’re here! Why didn’t Deu reveal himself at the duel?”
“Maybe he did.”
Ana glanced at Teo with questions in her eyes.
“What I mean is, maybe Deu is leading us, but we’ve been unwilling to see it. I’m afraid we tried to manipulate him at the duel—force his hand, make him show up. He doesn’t work like that.”
“He’s the All-Creator! Why wouldn’t he want to come to the people of Chiveis?”
“I’m sure he does, but when? On our schedule or his? Chiveis was around for hundreds of years before Deu led us to this.” Teo held up the Sacred Writing from his morning meditations.
“That’s exactly my point! Deu led us to the book so our people could know him. We have to bring them the truth.”
“We already did. Clear as day. They didn’t want it.”
“They need another chance! We could go down there, and you could explain things again. They respect you. They would listen and turn!”
Teo didn’t respond, and his silence made Ana grow more insistent. “What about the king?” she demanded. “He would turn if he knew about Habiloho. Look, we have her last wishes right here!” Ana removed the princess’s note from the Sacred Writing and showed it to Teo.
He shook his head. “Before we could get that note to the king, we would face the choice to deny or be killed.”
“Not if we showed them the letter first! Maybe they would let us appeal our case.”
“That’s not what would happen. The soldiers of Chiveis don’t ask questions—they follow orders. We would be executed.”
“Are you saying our only choices are to starve up here or go down to martyrdom?” Ana’s voice had a desperate edge. “I thought you’d have a better plan than that! You’re supposed to! You always do!”
It’s time to tell her.
Teo faced Ana, wrapped tight in her woolen cloak. Despite all she had been through the past few days—or perhaps because of it—she was the most beautiful woman Teo had ever seen. He heaved a sigh and took the plunge.
“Ana, there is one other choice.”
She searched his face, seeking an answer. “What is it?”
He turned his head and gazed into the distance. Ana followed Teo’s gaze, then swung her head back to him with a look of horror. “No! Not the Beyond!”
He nodded gently. “It’s either that or death.”
“No!” She pounded her fist against Teo’s chest. “There must be another way! You can give a great speech. The king will be moved with pity at our heroic testimony. Chiveis will turn to Deu!”
“Chiveis has made its decision. There’s no place for us here anymore.”
Ana was frantic. “I can’t leave my parents! You have to think of something else!” She hammered Teo’s body again and again, crumpling Habiloho’s note in her fingers. Suddenly she lost her grip on it, and the wind snatched the slip of paper. “Grab it!” she cried, but it was too late. The note swirled away over the glacier and disappeared against the white landscape.
“Let it go, Ana. It’s a false hope for us.” Teo spoke as tenderly as he could. “Deu is calling us into the Beyond. Who can imagine what he has planned? There’s a lot we don’t know. What does the rest of his book say? Why is his symbol the cross? Who else might be out there, hungering for knowledge of the true God?” He paused. “Ana? Let’s step into the future Deu has for us—not the future of our own creation.”
Ana’s face was distraught, and she breathed hard as she battled her conflicting emotions. She paced back and forth, looking north toward home, then south into the Beyond. Finally she returned to Teo and nodded weakly. “I’ll go,” she whispered. “But it’s so hard.”
Teo leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “I know. But you won’t be alone. I came to you before, and I’ll stay with you now. I promise. I always will.”
The world became green again as Teo and Ana descended from the glacier, heading south into the Beyond. Ice gave way to rock, rock to tundra, tundra to meadow, and meadow to forest. Under a late-afternoon sun, they paused to drink at a sparkling stream.
Teo cupped cold water to his mouth, then rose to his feet, wiping his chin. Ana stood apart, looking uphill to the north. Everything she loved lay on the other side of a glacier. Her head fell to her chest, and she covered her face with her hands. Teo’s heart broke. He approached her, and she turned to him, allowing him to take her into his arms. For a long time she wept against his chest, until at last her shuddering ceased and she simply rested on his shoulder.
“Can I show you something?” he asked.
Ana separated from Teo and looked into his face with her blue-green eyes. Even though they were reddened by tears, they were deep and bright and lovely. She nodded. “Show me.”
Teo retrieved the Sacred Writing from his pack. “I was reading Deu’s words this morning before you awoke. He showed me this passage. I think it’ll give you hope.”
He led Ana to a flat rock, and they sat beside each other as the stream flowed beneath their feet. He found the text and translated it: “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Eternal One, ‘plans for peace and not misfortune, in order to give you a future and a hope. You will invoke me, and you will go away. You will pray to me, and I will grant your request. You will seek me, and you will find me, if you seek me with all of your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the Eternal One, ‘and I will bring back your captives. I will gather you out of all the lands, out of all the places where I have driven you away,’ declares the Eternal One, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from which I have made you go.’”
When Teo finished reading, Ana didn’t respond right away but stared at the tumbling water as if mesmerized. He waited silently, letting her sift her thoughts until she was ready to speak. Her words were confident when they finally came. “I’m going to accept that promise as my own. Even when Deu’s plans are different from mine, I know he’s faithful. I can walk whatever path he lays before me.”
Ana raised her head and looked directly at Teo with a radiant smile on her lips. A sudden wave of admiration and love overpowered him, a feeling so intense he could neither move nor speak. All he could do was return Ana’s joy with a smile of his own.
Downstream in the forest, a branch snapped. Ana inhaled sharply, and Teo bolted from the rock.
A short distance away, two men stood in the dappled sunlight, looking at Teo and Ana. Their clothing was foreign. They were outsiders from an unknown tribe.
Teo raised his hand in greeting. The men raised theirs in return.
Glancing down at Ana he asked, “Are you ready for this?” She nodded and stood up.
Deep in the woods of the Beyond, Teo approached the two strangers with the words of life in his hand. As he walked forward, Ana took his free hand in hers.
“Lead the way, Captain,” she said.
STUDY QUESTIONS
1. The central character in the novel is Teofil. In what ways does he change from the beginning of the story to the end?
2. Compare and contrast Anastasia and the High Priestess as two types of women. In what ways do eac
h of them relate to the men in their lives?
3. Why does Teo pursue Ana into the Beyond?
4. Is Anastasia a “damsel in distress” character?
5. What events create a “bond” between Teo and Ana? What is the nature of that bond?
6. Imagine being in the characters’ shoes as you discover Scripture and its God for the first time. What things about the Bible stand out to the characters? What do you think would stand out to you?
7. Shaphan obviously wants a close relationship with Teo as a mentor. Why is Teo reluctant to provide this for him?
8. What does the bearskin cloak symbolize?
9. Why does Maurice call Teo his “son”?
10. What aspects of Ana’s relationship to Teo make her cautious about him?
11. In what ways does Chiveis mirror today’s society?
12. Why do Ana’s parents have such a hard time taking an ultimate stand for Deu? What would you do in their situation?
13. Describe Princess Habiloho’s character arc. How does she change and develop over the course of the story? What emotions does she awaken in you?
14. What is the bravest thing Teo does in the book? What about Ana? What is her most noble moment?
15. Considering the story as a whole, what does it convey about the way God works in the world?