Architecture & Adversity

by Jeremy Dwyer

  “No. The decision has been made. Amaltheia will leave and her daughter will stay, to be raised and educated by us,” Danielle said.

  “I can’t believe it. That’s just not right. That’s not what a real mother does,” Katinka said. She then stood up and left the Garden Room, disgusted with Amaltheia’s irresponsible attitude.

  “Follow me,” Danielle said. She then led Amaltheia out of the Garden Room, through the temple hallways and towards an exit. They were escorted by several women who drank the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean, using its powers of darkness to shield Amaltheia’s eyes from seeing the temple’s location. She was taken under a shroud of darkness and placed on a small boat, heading north across the Ikkith Tar Ocean toward Javanda.

  ~~~

  Amaltheia found herself sailing upon the dark waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean. The small boat – perhaps forty-two (42) feet long with a single double-masted pivoting sail – was headed somewhere. She saw that the sailing stones in the sails were brightly shining, and the ship moved forward briskly. When she looked into the wheelhouse, she saw another woman steering the ship according to a large chart on a table. She could see that the course marked on the chart headed north toward the continent of Javanda, which was renowned for its master shipbuilders working all along the coastline. Amaltheia looked forward to meeting a handsome man who was wealthy from his work there.

  ~~~

  Tanith Orenda was disappointed in the failure of the experiments to manipulate the Dead Waters. This was the greater loss in her valuation. Permitting Amaltheia to leave was a calculated strategy: the young woman would eventually have regrets, although it could take a while, given her selfish personality. Tanith Orenda knew that it was very likely that Amaltheia would have been a bad influence on her own daughter, who needed a real woman’s guidance. It was unfortunate that the daughter had known her up to age two (2), because the bond would be stronger, so the girl would eventually have questions about her mother.

  CHAPTER 16: Preachers of Suffering and Salvation

  Borislav looked out upon the ten (10) other Pilgrims of the Burning Road who surrounded him and knew that the time of judgment was at hand, and that he would have to work to expedite it. While judgment was from a divine source, it was his responsibility to serve by spreading the pain and suffering, for only through pain and suffering would the world come to recognize its sins and repent.

  In order to make a greater impact and be noticed by the multitudes, they would need to act in greater numbers: the eleven (11) of them would not be enough, despite the powers of the waters they drank. Borislav drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his vial and was energized. He reached out into the spirit world and spoke both with his spiritual voice and his physical voice, so that those around him in the physical world – and someone in particular within the spirit world – would hear his message.

  “I call to thee, Lekradorel, Angel of Divine Wrath, that we may have the strength to bring the deserved suffering upon the sinners. The judgment is at hand, so it is our duty to march them along the burning road of atonement and purification leading into the Kingdom of God,” Borislav said while speaking into both worlds.

  A voice from beyond spoke into Borislav’s spirit, but so that only he could hear, and said: “Did you not know that judgment has already begun?! There are many plagues meant for the sinners. The plagues which have already come to pass are the inferno, the tempest, the darkness and the false king of old. Those which must now afflict them are poison and famine. Poison the lakes and the rivers. Destroy the fields and strike dead the farmers and even their livestock.”

  “We will work to bring theses plagues of poison and famine. Still, the world is vast, yet we number only eleven (11) at this time. This is our sacred number, and so we must grow in accordance with it, to fulfill our duties,” Borislav said, so that both those around him and the spirit known as Lekradorel could hear him.

  The voice from beyond spoke into Borislav’s spirit, still in such a way that only he could hear, and said: “Travel to the east and south. Head toward the Dark Platinum Road, and then across northern Baradaxa, toward the Solkidian Trail. Make your way south across the Dead Waters Ocean, and then into the jungles of Volaraden. Journey further south and east, across the Gradaken Ocean, towards the farmlands of western Meridianus. Preach your message along the way, calling the righteous people to join you as Pilgrims of the Burning Road. Lay waste to the fields and streams of the sinners when you arrive as a warning, so they know that the wrath is coming for the unrepentant.”

  “And this we shall do,” Borislav said, so that both those around him and the spirit known as Lekradorel could hear him.

  “We have a journey ahead of us, to make Pilgrims of the righteous, and they will join us in burning the fields and poisoning the streams of the sinners, so that they know the judgment plagues are upon them, demanding their repentance,” Borislav said.

  “They shall be purified by their suffering, as suffering builds character,” another of the Pilgrims said.

  “We must embark on our journey at once,” Borislav said.

  Borislav then headed south, and the other ten (10) Pilgrims followed him. They made their way on foot, then on hired transport using a riverboat, traveling southeastward across the continent of Javanda, until reaching the mountainous Dark Platinum Road land bridge.

  The Dark Platinum Road extended from the southeastern corner of the continent of Javanda toward the northern coast of the continent of Baradaxa, and separated the Elanatin Ocean on the east from the Ikkith Tar Ocean on the west. It was a busy trade route, and the Pilgrims of the Burning Road traveled through its valleys on riverboats heading south, occasionally stopping at ports to preach their message.

  Borislav and the Pilgrims stopped in several of the towns along the way, entered their town squares and said: “We bring warning of judgment upon this world! Already, there was the inferno which burned the flesh with fire from the many suns of the sky. Then, there was the tempest which brought devastation to your shores and your ships. Next came the darkness to slow your travels and conceal your destinations. Then came the false king of old to enslave your minds, bodies and spirits. Why would all these things happen? Is it by chance that so many plagues would be visited upon you so quickly? No, I tell you it is the Wrath of God that inflicted all of this suffering to warn you! You know what I say is true. Still, you sin against the Laws of God and refuse to change your ways, so that you cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.”

  “How do we sin? Who is this God? Where is his Kingdom? Who are you to judge us?” many of the people asked, some sincerely and others mockingly.

  “You sin by your love for material wealth. You are traders in diamonds and platinum, and all your most precious gems and metals, yet you value only the things you trade and care only for yourselves. You do not give thanks, nor do you even believe, that these are gifts from God. You place your hope in treasures, and oppress the poor by your dealings. The farmers are paid little, while the stonecutters are paid more, but the bankers are paid the most by far. We know your ways, for you cannot hide your thievery from us. When the plagues came, you thought you could shield yourselves from them, and avoid the divine punishment you deserve,” Borislav said.

  “We do business by the laws of the world. You cannot judge us. Our ways lead to prosperity, and make all people of the world better off. A wealthy trader hires many, giving them good jobs by which to live. A poor trader hires few or none. If the poor wish to be wealthy, they must find better work, and apply themselves,” some of the people said.

  “The water one drinks sets their course in life and in work. Yet, who can change his water once chosen? No, they cannot find better work. Those you hire are paid less than their fair share, and you teach them your love of material wealth, damaging their souls. Now, their souls must be purified, like yours, through the fire that brings suffering, and suffering that builds character. We are the Pilgrims of the Burning Road, the pathway through
fire that leads to the Kingdom of God. Each of you will travel along that burning road, and we will guide the way,” Borislav said.

  This message did win for them a few new followers in the smaller towns along the Dark Platinum Road, and their numbers slowly grew to twenty-two (22). However, when the Pilgrims reached the largest town along that land bridge – a very wealthy town known as the Port of Bryziklad – some of the traders in that town became angry at the message and ordered their hired guards to attack. Several of those guards drank of the waters of the Nabavodel Ocean from their vials to be energized with the power of strength and speed, and brandished swords, daggers and even crossbows. Several other guards drank of the waters of the Ikkith Tar Ocean from their vials to be energized with the power of darkness. Other guards drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from their vials to be energized with the power of telepathy. These lashed out at Borislav and the other Pilgrims of the Burning Road.

  Borislav expected resistance, both verbally and physically. He prepared himself by drinking anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his own vial to become energized. Thus, he called out to the spirit known as Lekradorel, who came to assist him and the other Pilgrims of the Burning Road, creating a shield of spiritual energy around them all. Many of the hired guards struck at the Pilgrims: some tried to telepathically control their minds and silence them; others hid in the magic darkness for stealth or tried to use the darkness to create a wave of dangerous cold to assault them; others used their blades and their arrows to attempt to draw blood. Yet, none of these attacks harmed or affected the Pilgrims, because of the shield of spiritual energy around them.

  The confrontation in the Port of Bryziklad claimed no lives on either side. Still, it meant to Borislav that he could not lead many of the hard-hearted traders to spiritual conversion by his arguments. Instead, he led the Pilgrims of the Burning Road away from the town.

  Three (3) of the less wealthy traders who had witnessed the battle joined them, saying: “Your message of fairness and justice is true. We would rather join with you than be cheated by these wealthier traders, who gives us scant rewards for our hard work. May the Wrath of God find them, and may we be protected from attacks, as were you.”

  “I cannot promise you that life will be without suffering. Instead, I can promise you that there will be suffering. We must endure pains in this life – and bring pain to others – so that we can speak the truth and be sure they hear it. Suffering only ends when you have been purified. Only God decides how much suffering that will be,” Borislav said.

  “By joining you, will we have a good outcome?” the three (3) less wealthy traders asked.

  “If you obey God, you will prosper, whereas those who disobey will not,” Borislav said.

  “Then we will obey. We bring with us money to serve the cause,” the three (3) less wealthy traders said, each handing over to Borislav pouches filled with coins.

  Borislav counted the coins and said: “These coins would have afforded you material wealth, which only lasts for a short while. Now, by giving them over to the cause of our Pilgrimage, they will afford you spiritual wealth, which is far greater and lasts eternally. Watch, now, as their material wealth is destroyed by the burning light of truth and wrath.”

  Next, Borislav gestured to another man among the original eleven (11) leading Pilgrims and said: “Kresimir, call down the fire of Divine Wrath.”

  That man, Kresimir, who was in appearance like all the leading Pilgrims – dressed in a hooded robe with splotches of black and red, and having a bald head – drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from his vial and was energized. He created a powerful beam of light and set ablaze a wooden building in the port town. Within minutes, the fire spread and the Port of Bryziklad was ablaze. The townspeople struggled to extinguish it, using their own powers of darkness and light.

  While the town continued burning, the Pilgrims of the Burning Road – who now numbered twenty-five (25) – hired transport on another riverboat to travel further south along a river that ran between the mountains of the Dark Platinum Road land bridge, eventually arriving at the northern coast of Baradaxa, in the Port of Pestakerin.

  Borislav and the other Pilgrims walked through the Port of Pestakerin and watched as laborers were hard at work, loading their crops onto sailing ships. He observed as the laborers received payments – single copper coins, not even worth storing in pouches, but placed directly into the laborer’s hands by merchants who stood otherwise idle, or exerted themselves very little.

  “You are paid little, yet you work hard. Your employers are thieves, and they do not value your lives. You suffer much in your labors, while they prosper. They will be judged for their theft from you, which makes them rich. Even more will the bankers be judged, who are the richest of all, higher than even the merchants. Yet, you will be judged along with them, for enabling this,” Borislav said.

  Several of the merchants looked toward Borislav and scowled at him. Others spoke up and said: “Honest work earns them honest pay. Who are you to interfere or judge?”

  “God judges according to His Laws. You have broken these laws – overworking and underpaying the poor, giving money to the bankers who you know are the greatest thieves. You value material wealth over spiritual wealth, and in doing so, you forget that God gives material wealth as a gift. You are empty, and that is why the world has faced Divine Wrath, and you will face it again for your sins. It plagues you with suffering as a warning to repent from your sins. The inferno came to burn your skin as a warning, yet you did not listen. The tempest raged to flood your cities and crash your ships as a warning, yet you did not listen! The darkness came to confuse your ways and slow your travels as a warning, yet you did not listen! The false king came to enslave your bodies, minds and spirits – this was a great warning, yet you did not listen! Another plague is at hand, and more plagues will follow, until you listen and heed God’s message, repenting from your sins,” Borislav said.

  Many of the laborers heard this message and came to believe in Borislav’s words, and soon the number of the Pilgrims grew to three hundred fifty-nine (359), as the Port of Pestakerin was very busy, and the laborers felt oppressed, resentful of their employer’s low pay for hard work.

  Borislav watched as these laborers joined him, and he fully expected resistance from their wealthy employers. He drank anew of the waters of the Zovvin Ocean from his vial and was energized. He called into the spirit world to ask the spirit known as Lekradorel to protect them. The spirit known as Lekradorel created a shield of spiritual energy around the Pilgrims of the Burning Road, protecting them all from the anticipated onslaught.

  Several men who worked as guards for the merchants prepared themselves to strike. They drank anew of the waters of the Nabavodel Ocean from their vials and were energized with the powers of speed and strength. Other guards drank anew of the waters of the Lujladia Ocean from their vials and were energized with the power of light. More guards drank anew of the waters of the Elanatin Ocean from their vials and were energized with the power of telepathy. The attacks began – some guards were wielding daggers, swords and crossbows with strength and speed; others created burning beams of light; still others used telepathic persuasion, hoping to subdue the renegade laborers and compel them to return to their commercial duties.

  Because of the shield of spiritual energy, none of these attacks had any effect on any of the Pilgrims of the Burning Road, and the telepathic persuasion did not reach the newly recruited laborers to convince them to change their positions.

  “You have failed, because the Will of God and the Truth of God is greater than your lies or even your powers. No, you will face the Wrath of God soon enough – and it will strike you much more fiercely than it will these laborers who joined us today. They were willing to renounce their former way of life upon being warned, but you were not,” Borislav said.

  “You are a liar! You have no understanding of reality, and your twisted religion is rotting the minds of
these workers. They had a future with us. With you, they can only look forward to failure. Then, they’ll come crawling back to us, begging for their jobs back. They need real money to pay their way in life, not your fairytale God who gives nothing to anyone,” one of the merchants said.

  Borislav looked at the merchant, estimating him to be a man in his fifties, and saw that the merchant was standing by the loading ramp to his ship. Borislav then called into the spirit world to the spirit known as Lekradorel, but in a voice that only the spirit could hear.

  That same merchant – the one who called Borislav a liar and said: “They need real money to pay their way in life, not your fairytale God who gives nothing to anyone” – suddenly felt an unseen hand on his neck, then felt his neck jerk backwards, then felt his neck snap and then there was darkness and silence and fear. Moments later, he felt and thought no more.

  The merchants around them became frightened and stepped away, saying: “It’s not an assassin hiding in the darkness, or I could see it! It must be spirit magic!”

  Borislav then led the other three hundred fifty-eight (358) Pilgrims of the Burning Road up the loading ramp of the dead merchant’s ship – a one hundred eight-seven (187) foot long cargo ship with three (3) pairs of double-masted, pivoting sails. As they walked up the ramp, Borislav noticed that the hull of the ship was marked with its name: Bronze Harvester.

  Once on board the Bronze Harvester, Borislav turned to face a man from among the original eleven (11) leading Pilgrims and said: “Tikhon, plot a course for the Solkidian Trail.”

  The other man, Tikhon, then drank anew of the waters of the Atrejan Ocean from his vial and was energized. He listened for the sounds of the stars to learn their positions and movements. Among these, he heard a strange, painful but faint sound. He spoke up, saying: “I hear a strange sound, Borislav. It is faint, but it is a sound of cries of pain. It seems to come from three (3) other stars, different from the ordinary seventy (70) suns.”