by G. P. Taylor
Thomas let go of the sword and put both hands on the table, trying to cover the coins with his sleeve. The man pulled a chair from another table and sat between Kate and Thomas.
‘I’m not here to steal. I just thought I would come over and share breakfast. I hate eating alone and the company has been so …’ he nodded to the old men who sat in the cloud of tobacco smoke, ‘aromatic.’ He grimaced and laughed.
‘We are travellers,’ Raphah said, ‘and we are seeking a boat to take us from here. Do you know of such a ship?’
‘Travellers? That is such an interesting term. I was a traveller once, saw many things and many different people. I even went to the land where you are from; but that was a long time ago. Now I just go where I really have to. I like to spend my time thinking. Remembering the past is such a wonderful thing. In remembering you can often see the things you missed at the time. It’s as if the mind can contain everything you have ever seen, smelt, tasted, or even thought, and in the business of our lives so much of what we are is forgotten.’ He paused and looked around. ‘I wonder, if we had several lifetimes to live, would we be able to find out the truth, the vitae veritas of why we are all here, or can that be achieved in just one chance meeting?’
‘You appear to know so much about us and we so little about you,’ Raphah said, tightening his grip on the Keruvim hidden under his coat.
‘I am sorry, the thought of good conversation and sharing your breakfast has taken away every ounce of manners. I am …’ He paused, his mind searching for a name, his eyes flickering around the room. ‘Abram Rickards,’ he said as he read the name from the sign above the door. ‘But you can call me Abram.’
‘Well, Abram, please join us. We have money for breakfast and have not had the pleasure of sensible company for some time,’ Raphah said sensing that the man would not go away until he had eaten. Kate and Thomas looked at him, unsure of what to say. They both knew that somehow this man had an insight into their lives. They did not know if he was from Riathamus, or was yet another adversary who sought to intrude on their company and then forsake them to Demurral or Pyratheon.
Abram Rickards looked every inch a gentleman, but Thomas knew that this was no guarantee of integrity. Demurral looked every inch a priest but he was as far away from goodness as one man could possibly be. Abram took off his hat and placed it on the table. The woman came from the kitchen and placed the food in front of them, not looking at them as she did so, keeping her gaze to the floor.
Abram took the bread in his hands and broke it and gave each of them a small piece.
‘In France,’ he said, ‘the latest fashion is to dip your bread in the chocolate and allow it to soak.’
‘How do you know so much about us, Abram?’ Thomas asked.
‘I know little really. Meeting you is such a coincidence.’
‘Your friend who lost his goatskin bag, did he know who found it?’ Thomas asked.
‘All he told me was if I ever saw one similar I was to enquire of the keeper as to where they were going and to help them in all that they had to do,’ he said quietly.
‘Did your friend say where those who had the bag were to be found?’ Raphah asked.
‘No. He told me to look out for them where they would need help, help in finding a boat, help in protecting them from certain things,’ Abram replied.
‘Does your friend have a name?’ Kate asked him trying to catch him out.
‘He has many names, some are known to the world, others are secret only to him. His name is really important; but knowing him is all that really matters.’
‘So what do you call this friend?’ Kate asked again.
‘I call to him every day and have called upon his name since long before you were born. I AM, Riathamus, or just the longing of the heart are names for him.’ He stopped. ‘We have played enough games for the morning. I know you don’t trust me and only time will prove to you who I am. He sent me to find you and now I am here. I have secured a place for you on a ship to France. You must all leave. It will not be safe for you to stay.’ He reached into his coat pocket and leaned forward. ‘If I can show you one thing to prove to you who I am then look at this.’ He opened his hand. Inside was a crystal egg just like the ones they had found in the bag. ‘I know that you will now understand everything I have said. We must leave, I have been staying at a house nearby and you must come with me.’
He threw five pennies on to the table as they all got to their feet. Kate put the golden coins back in the bag and threw it across her shoulders. None had noticed the growing fragrance of smoke in the room. It had gusted around their feet like a winter fog and now filled the room to the height of their waist. As they turned it wafted up like a rising cloud. The old men could not be seen in the thick mist of the smoke. They saw the look on Abram’s face.
‘Quick! Out of the door – this is dragon’s breath. The Glashan are nearby. Quickly, run.’
Abram took a chair and struck out into the fog at waist height. They heard the first scream come from the mist and then saw the figure rise up like a serpent from the deep, blocking their way to the door. Two other heads sprang quickly from the smog, each staring through cat-like eyes.
‘You go nowhere, Raphael, they belong to us,’ said the first creature.
‘They belong to Riathamus,’ Abram replied
‘Then let him come for them himself if he dare, or does he still send you to do his work for him?’ the creature sneered.
The mist grew deeper and thicker like a blanket of black fog. Soon Kate could not see. She grabbed hold of Thomas by the arm.
‘Kate, the crystals,’ Abram shouted. ‘Throw one at the wall.’
She quickly reached into the bag, took hold of the smooth crystal and hurled it as hard as she could at the wall. There was an ear-splitting crack followed by a blinding flash of light and a thunderous roar. Everything in the room shuddered with the blast. The three were blown from their feet and landed on the other side of the room in a heap. The mist had completely vanished and the creatures had gone. Abram was unaffected by the blast and stood by the door with a smile on his face.
‘It worked well, my dear girl. The Abaris crystal has many uses and it is up to you to find them out.’ He looked at Raphah. ‘Soon you will be able to see Glashan even when they come in disguise. Now you see how important it is for you three to be out of this land. Pyratheon will want you dead, because then he will have even more power.’
‘He called you Raphael – I heard him call you by that name,’ Raphah said.
‘What’s in a name? All you have to know is that I am here to help you. There are things I must do. Quickly, get to your feet, there may be others after you and I have to get you to the safe house.’
‘Why can’t Riathamus just come and stop all this?’ Kate asked as she struggled to her feet.
‘His ways are not your ways, his thoughts are not your thoughts. Sometimes we can never understand why he is or what he does. I have known him for so long and even I don’t understand him sometimes. All I can say is that he is in control no matter how dark or hard life may become. His word says that you in this world look at life as if through a clouded mirror, you see but a vague reflection of what life is really like. This is all you know and you put all your hope in this life, but there is a greater life to come for those who follow him. Now quickly, we must go,’ Abram said as he helped Thomas to his feet and looked around the room. From behind the counter a fearful face peered out. The fat woman looked terrified as she looked at the scene of destruction that had fallen on the Inn.
Kate reached into the bag and brought out the two gold coins and put them on the counter in front of her.
‘For all that has happened and for your silence. Tell no one of what you have seen: they would never believe you anyway,’ she said.
The woman reached out for the gold coins and bit each one to check if they were real. She smiled a worried smile, hoping that her guests would leave soon.
In the street t
hey were overcome by the noise of children running, people shouting and wooden carts clattering over the stone cobbles. Shouts rang out from the quayside where the tall masts of ships and their rigging towered over the cottages. Several women carrying baskets of fish bustled past swearing about the night before and their scoundrel husbands who had come home drunk having spent all they had caught. Children in rags, shorn and shoeless, sat at the feet of a fisherman arguing with a tangled net as they played with cast-off pieces of twine and rope. A priest in pious black passed by and stared into Kate’s eyes and smiled. She did not know who to trust any more. Life had become so unpredictable, surreal, sinister.
Abram ushered them along the street, past the windows of busy shops and through the crowds of people gathered to buy and sell whatever they could.
‘It’s not too far – by the bottom of the church steps. There is the house of a follower, a good man, one who you can trust. I have been staying with him for some time. You will be safe there.’ Abram spoke in a confident way. The three felt the warmth of his voice touch their hearts and give them hope.
Kate looked at him and noticed that he had no lines on his face, he was old yet looked so young, so wise and yet had something childlike about his voice. She followed him through the crowded street unaware of anyone else. She kept her eyes fixed upon him, as if she knew that as long as she gazed upon him she would be safe.
‘The Abaris crystal, what did it do?’ she asked as she followed on behind with Thomas and Raphah.
‘It is something that humans know little about. Riathamus has given all things to the world. A cure for every disease in the plants and trees. The sweetness of honey to lift the sadness of winter, bitter nuts to take away incurable growths and Abaris crystal to send fallen Seruvim back to where they belong,’ he replied as he pushed his way through the noisy crowds with the three following.
‘So will they return?’ Raphah asked.
‘They will be summoned back by some fool. Since Demurral used the old magic, things have not been right in the two worlds. There was a time when Seruvim and man seldom mixed, now the worlds are being slowly drawn together.’ Abram pointed to the lustrous cloud. ‘That cloud is like a gateway between the heavens and the earth. There are dark creatures that have found their way into this world and need to be stopped. Riathamus is preparing for a battle and I must keep you three safe.’
They came to a blue door set up three steps in a large brick house. It had two upper floors and a cellar. Above the door was a sign that read - Joab Mulberry, Notary Public. The cellar of the house was a shoemaker’s shop. Opposite, built on the harbour side, was an alehouse, down the side of which a narrow alleyway ran into the lapping seawater.
Abram turned to them as he stood on the bottom step. ‘You can trust old Mulberry; he has a good soul.’
They went into the house. The front room, with a wide bay window overlooking the street, was full of files and papers, scattered around the large desk that dominated it.
Joab Mulberry sat at the desk and looked up over a pair of small, round, spectacles on the end of his nose. As they entered, he got to his feet. Thomas noticed how tall and thin he was as he stood in his immaculate black suit with yellow waistcoat. The neatly trimmed grey beard that clung to the sides of his thin face could not hide his infectious smile. He gave a boisterous laugh as he greeted them.
‘So you three are what all the fuss is about. Oh my soul, to think half the angels in heaven have been searching the land for you and you turn up here at my house with my good friend …’ He paused and looked at Abram waiting for a name.
‘Abram brought them here for you, Mr Mulberry, just as I said I would,’ Abram said quickly.
‘Safe and sound, Abram, safe and sound?’ Mulberry asked.
‘Just one little problem, but the lass has some Abaris crystal that soon put a stop to that,’ Abram replied.
‘And our friend here all the way from Africa. Always something new comes out of Africa, and we find him here in Whitby.’ He smiled as he welcomed Raphah. ‘So what’s it to be? There’ll be a bit of a wait until the ship sails tonight. You can all rest upstairs and then tonight you’ll be on your way. A sacred cargo, Mr Abram, sacred cargo. I trust that you’ll go with them?’ he asked in his warm, polite voice.
‘It is a long time until midnight, I think they should rest,’ Abram said as he turned to the three. ‘You will be safe here. It would be foolish for the Glashan or the Varrigal to come here. Joab has fought against these creatures before and is a man of great valour.’
‘You flatter me, Abram. I am just a follower of the Way like our young friends here. Can I see what you carry, my lad?’ Mulberry asked Raphah.
Raphah looked surprised. He glanced at Thomas and then Kate and wondered how this man knew about the Keruvim. Reluctantly he pulled the golden statue from his coat and held it out before him. Mulberry stared at the Keruvim, his eyes wide open.
‘It is a thing of beauty.’ he said, ‘I can see why they want to take it from you.’
‘It’s not the beauty that men want, it is the power,’ Raphah replied. ‘They think it will bring them money, wealth and happiness. All that it will bring is an outpouring of what is in their hearts. If a man is wicked he will reap wickedness, if he is good then he will find goodness. My people have protected this since the time of Moses. We thought we were far enough away from the world to keep it safe but greed has a way of finding all things of worth.’ Raphah looked at Mulberry. ‘Many people have died for this creature, they have searched the ends of the earth and it was one of our own that finally betrayed us.’
The door to the house opened and footsteps could be heard in the hallway. Raphah quickly covered the Keruvim with his coat. A middle-aged man dressed in a ragged coat came into the room. He was unshaven and dirty with short stubby fingers that gripped tightly to a rolled-up cap.
‘Sorry, Mr Mulberry, I came about the stealing. I’m sure they’re going to get me for it and I don’t fancy my chances against the rope,’ the man blurted out as his eyes searched each face in the room.
Mulberry looked at Abram as if to ask him to take them out of sight. This was an unexpected visitor and not one that Mulberry wished to welcome in this company. Abram ushered the three from the room.
‘Come, my friends, we have taken too much of Mr Mulberry’s time. Let us refresh ourselves and talk later,’ Abram said as he stood with his back to the man, trying to protect the three from him.
‘I know you,’ the man said as Thomas walked past. ‘You’re the sin-eater, Thomas Barrick of Baytown. I saw your mother not an hour ago in the infirmary. What a state she was in, dying I would say, calling out your name and wanting you to go to her, crying like a baby. Here you are with no cares in the world keeping the company of gentlemen. Some son you are.’
‘Whatever he is, it is none of your business. Now state your case to Mulberry or be gone.’ Abram’s voice had changed. His anger was almost visible as his hand reached out to push the man out.
‘Leave him to me, Abram. I will take the case,’ Mulberry said. ‘It may be more than the gallows that he is running from.’
The upstairs room overlooked the harbour. The words of the man echoed around Thomas’s head. He could not get his mother from his mind. He paced the floor from window to door biting at his fingernails. He was so close to her; in ten minutes he could be with her, holding her hand, listening to her voice, being there when she needed him the most. Now he felt like a prisoner, trapped in some room and not knowing the reason for his imprisonment. At midnight he would leave this land, as if washed away from his old life by a tidal wave of change. It had all happened so fast. He felt he was a reluctant participant in a strange battle that raged around him and had changed his life for ever.
In the fading light of the afternoon he looked at Raphah and Kate as they sat on the bed quietly talking to each other and occasionally laughing. Thomas felt separated from them by the nagging words of the man. He did not know if his mother was stil
l alive and he felt the tug of love pulling at his heart overwhelming all of his thoughts.
He heard Kate asking Raphah what Africa was like. She seemed to accept all the changes so easily. Thomas felt angry that she was prepared to leave for good and had never even mentioned her father. He was jealous of Raphah, someone who could bring healing to many lives yet hadn’t even offered to heal his mother.
Thomas looked at the Keruvim that had been placed on the candle stand by the door. In his resentment it looked to him like an arrogant little idol boasting of its power through silent lips. Thomas looked out of the window to the street below. The thief was there, looking up. Their eyes met. The man beckoned and started to walk to the steps. He turned and waved for Thomas to come with him.
It was dark when Abram came into the room holding a candlestick and a tray of tea. He gave a warm smile to Kate and Raphah. His eyes searched the room. Thomas and the Keruvim were gone.
The Sword of Mayence
THE cold night air stung his face as Raphah stepped from the warmth of Mulberry’s house into the near dark of Church Street. He looked to his left, where a flight of a hundred and ninety-nine stone stairs ran up to the church high above, now etched out against the sky in the silver of the full moon. There was no one else in the street. All was quiet except for the lapping of gentle waves up the alleyway by the alehouse.
He pulled up the collar of his coat and turned down the cuffs to cover his hands, then turned and signalled to Abram and Kate to follow. They slipped from the house into the shadows of the long, high wall that ran up the hill at the side of the church stairs. It was a broken cobble road that in winter ran like a small stream from the abbey to the harbour, but tonight the stones broke from the dry earth like the skulls of the dead woken from their slumber. The steepness of the hill forced them to walk slowly to the infirmary that formed part of the walls of the ruined abbey. They stalked the shadows not knowing if they were being watched or what would await them. Thomas had gone and taken the Keruvim with him. The infirmary was the only place where Kate thought he might be and now they followed her hunch in the hope they would find them both safely.
