Chapter 38: "Plural?"

"This is amazing," breathed Haley, looking down at the ancient map. "There is no way Eratosthenes could have known the Americas existed, or Antarctica. Not without help. These places he has marked: they look familiar. It's a pity we can't move the continents into their exact places…"

Cal looked at Juliet, then at Haley. "Actually, we might be able to do that. We have a computer program…"

"Really?" Haley cut in, looking up. "You can do that now? There are so many ancient maps that might help unlock!"

"It already has," shrugged Juliet with a smile. "That was what we designed it for."

Cal scanned and loaded up the map into the computer. "This part takes a while, so you might want to go catch up on other things," he told them. "We'll call you when we've got something."

Nikko caught a glance from Maggie. "Yeah, c'mon Mom: Maggie and I have something to show you upstairs."

Haley watched the pair suspiciously all the way up the ride in the elevator. They had persuaded her to leave Vincent with Solomon so that she and Maggie could catch up, and so that they could bring her up to speed with their current undertaking. Beyond the map, she had seen the parts of the Ring of Truth the team had found, and some of the boxes they found them in, several papers and parchments, and a sketch drawn by her son of the completed Ring. As far as she was aware, that was all they had.

The elevator doors hissed open and Haley followed them out and through the double doors straight ahead. Then she stopped, looking around her open mouthed. The room stretched out around her, far larger than those below. From one end to the other, it was filled with shelves and display cases, showing her life's work. Everything she had ever worked on, it seemed, was here.

"Oh, Solomon," she sighed.

"Come take a look at this, Haley," called Maggie. "It was Nikko who spotted the similarities."

She walked to the table the pair flanked and looked down. "My map!" Haley grinned in delight. "I remember making this."

"Do you remember writing this?" Nikko asked, handing a folded piece of paper to his mother.

She unfolded the paper and looked down. "This is the Sagittarius legend: the one I told you as a child." She looked up at her son. "I don't remember teaching you to read this code though."

"You didn't. Dad was going to. He translated it though," explained her son. "He said it was the whole story. Is it?"

Haley nodded. "As far as I recall, yes. Just as my mother told it to me."

"Haley, the places in that story are the places on this map," Maggie pointed out.

"That's no surprise," shrugged Haley. "I used the story as a guide in my research. These places came from there."

"They also match closely with places we've visited for one reason or another in the past three years," added Maggie.

Haley looked at the map again, her head on one side. "Closely, but not exactly?"

"Some were almost exact," shrugged Nikko. "Some were out a bit, but not much. Nothing that we've visited has been remarkably distant."

"That you've visited," echoed Haley. "Okay. So, what ones haven't you visited yet?"

"Quite a few," admitted Maggie. "We've been trying to match up the places mentioned in the story with the items we've found to see if there is any pattern, but so far no such luck. As far as we can make out, each site could have one of the Ring's circular units, a spacer, information, or something that confers some sort of impossible benefit on the finder, but there's no way of knowing which until we get there."

"The temple gave me some sort of power," said Nikko, pointing out the tags as he spoke. "The pyramid in Antarctica healed Cal. The spring in Siberia saved me. We found parts of the Ring in Alaska, Tibet, southern France, Nova Scotia. There was a kid who could speak and write every language in history over in Russia, but we got him and his mom over here and safe. We found glyphs in the temple, Paris, Dashur, Antarctica, and now these scrolls in Damascus and that templar labyrinth in Syria. There's a weird box we can't open with glyphs on it too, from Wissembourg, but they're Middle Egyptian and we can read them. We just can't open the box. The box in the Alaskan pyramid led us to that."

"Sounds complicated," mused Haley, looking over the map with a keen eye. "I saw your sketch. Five discs and five spacers and you have what? Two of each?"

"Three spacers," Nikko corrected. "We found one in Costa Rica the summer after I started college. We thought, maybe, there might be another piece in the temple, behind the door, or that it might lead us to the city. We even thought, maybe, it was where the star landed: the star that Sagittarius shot down."

"I thought so too at first," his mother nodded, "but it's not that. It's where he finally became human. He went through all sorts of trials, some say to prove himself to the gods, but at each trial he stripped a piece of his power." She pointed at the pin in Siberia. "His immortality." Antarctica. "His ability to heal, though some say that was passed on to his closest followers, leaving only the machine he used and what residual energy there was in it." Egypt. "His knowledge of all things." Russia "His knowledge of all tongues."

"Could that have been passed on too?" Nikko asked.

"Or triggered in the boy you found, just as the psychokinesis has been in you," suggested Maggie. "But if the ability to heal has been passed on, and we know to whom, doesn't that mean…"

"I can't heal Dad," finished Nikko, frowning down at the map.

XXXX

"Do you ever wonder what you'll do when we find all this?" Juliet mused looking down at a map of her own.

"Look for the next thing," replied Cal, watching the shifting copy of Eratosthenes' map on the screen. "Why? What do you want to do?"

"I don't know," shrugged Juliet. "I never really thought about it until when we were getting off the plane. Haley said something that got me thinking."

"What?" Cal looked round.

"She said I'm the new her," replied Juliet, looking round to him. "I'm the new her and you're the new Professor Zond. I think she thought maybe Nikko was the new Maggie too."

"And you don't wanna be?" Cal rose and joined her at the table.

"Doctor Cayce is awesome, don't get me wrong, but her entire life was chasing down mysteries and bringing up Nikko. I don't know if I want that for me."

There was a pause and, when Cal spoke, his voice was quiet and careful. "The chase bit or the mom bit?"

Juliet looked round and studied his face. "The chase bit. At least… I don't want that to be everything."

"So, what do you want to do?" Cal asked, still watching her.

"I want to teach," she shrugged. "I want to share all this amazing knowledge with people. I want to inspire another generation to pick up from wherever we leave off, like Professor Zond inspired me."

"Okay," nodded Cal, placing his hand over hers, "So Doctor Cayce got it wrong. You're not the new her, and I'm not the new Professor. It's the other way around. Because I do want to focus on the chase. And I do want kids one day."

"Kids, plural?" Juliet laughed. She caught the way he winced and raised her free hand to his cheek. "Let's just hope they don't turn out as much trouble as Nikko!"

Cal turned his head to kiss her palm. "You okay with that? You sure?"

Juliet smiled. "Yeah, I'm okay with that. Maybe not right now, but once things settle down a little."

The computer dinged behind them. Cal turned and hurried over. "It's done."

Juliet caught the printout as the machine spat it out. She looked from it to the map she'd been working on and back again. "Will you call them, or shall I?"

"They're still upstairs," Cal pointed out. "Quicker just to go to them."

The three were still gathered round the map table amongst Haley's catalogue, but Nikko was lowering his phone. He looked up at the sound of the door.

"Dad's waking up," he reported, heading towards them. "We gotta go."

"Just thirty seconds," Juliet told him, hurrying past him to Haley. She showed her the printout of the rearranged map and pointed. "What's this point? I have a more up to date map downstairs that I've been plotting our digs on like you have up here. This point isn't on ours, but it is on yours, or something very close to it. What is it?"

Haley took the map, then looked from it to her own. "On my map, it's the face of Viracocha at Ollantaytambo in Peru. This looks as though it's a point just south of that. Why? What does this label mean?"

Juliet took the map back and glanced over at Cal, who nodded. "As far as we can make out," she said, matching Haley's steady gaze. "It means Sacred."

Both Maggie and Haley's eyes went wide. "You've found it!" Haley laughed. "After all this time, you've found it!"

"We're not there yet," warned Maggie. "Lots of things get called sacred."

"But it's the only label like that on the map, and too many of the other points match up with our map too," pointed out Cal.

"Whatever it is," said Haley, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder, "it's a lead. Come on: let's go tell Solomon!"

XXXX

Nikko was understandably first through the door of Solomon's room, hurrying ahead of the more sedate pace set by the reunited best friends, and well ahead of the lovers, who dawdled, hand in hand, some distance behind.

"Dad!"

"Easy!" Vincent chided, as his pupil clattered into the room like a baby giraffe learning to run. "He's conscious. Just resting."

"Dad?" Nikko persisted, hastening to his father's side and taking hold of his hand. "Dad, are you awake?" Nikko looked over his shoulder to Vincent. "Does he know?"

"Are you kidding me?" Vincent replied. "Some things have to be seen to be believed. Besides: this is your triumph to tell."

"Nikko?" Solomon's voice was as welcome as a cool breeze on a hot day, parched and weakened though it was.

"Dad!" Nikko yelped, all his attention flooding back to his father. "Dad, are you okay? Can you sit up? Do you want some water?"

"One at a time," groaned Solomon, chuckling despite the way it made him wince. "Help me sit up, then we'll see about the water."

Obedient, for once, Nikko helped Solomon up, resettling the pillows behind him and handing the hospital bed controller to him. He poured a glass of water and passed it to his father, returning to his initial question as he did so.

"Apart from the worst headache of my life, I feel fine," said Solomon. Then he froze staring past his son to the doorway. "I think I might be hallucinating a little bit though."

Nikko didn't need to look round to know what his father saw. "I found her, Dad. I found Mom. We all did."

The glass of water shook in Solomon's hands. He held it out to Vincent, never taking his eyes off the vision in the doorway. If he even blinked, he thought, she might disappear. He couldn't lose her again. "Haley?"

"It's me, Solomon," smiled Haley. She stepped into the room and Vincent stepped out, closing the door behind him.

"Am I… Are you…" Solomon stammered, lost for words. Finally, he settled on a phrase. "Is this real?"

Haley sat on the bed by his other side, taking his hand and resting it over her heart. "It's real, my love. It's all real. I'm here. I'm alive. You're alive. And our son… Solomon if you only knew what he can do!"

"You haven't changed," breathed Solomon, tracing his fingertips over his wife's features. "How?"

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic," replied Haley.

"Arthur C. Clarke, Profiles of the Future," returned her husband. "So, you don't know?"

"All I know is, it kept me alive until our son could find the means to free me," smiled Haley.

"That's not all, Dad!" Nikko added. "Cal and Juliet: they decrypted the map! We've found it, Dad! We found the city!"

"Wait, what now?" Solomon wrenched his eyes away from his wife to look at his son.

"We have, at least, found a very likely location," corrected Haley prudently. She smiled at Nikko. "He is so like you, Solomon."

"That hasn't always been a good thing," quipped Solomon, looking back to his wife.

"I can imagine!" Haley grinned back.

"You guys, I'm right here!" Nikko complained.

"When can I get out of here?" Solomon enquired, smiling at Haley.

"Nikko, would you go ask the doctor when we can take your father home, please?" Haley requested, smiling innocently at her son.

Nikko glared at them both. "Should I go grab a coffee too? Maybe take the team for lunch?"

"Just the doctor for now, I think," breezed Solomon. "We'll have plenty of time to get reacquainted when we get home."

"And I'm out of here," announced Nikko, rolling his eyes. "I will be back soon with the doctor. Please do not embarrass me!"

"What are parents for?" Solomon called after him as he left. Before the door swung shut, Nikko heard Solomon's next question for his wife. "So, how do you feel about dating older men?"

His mother laughed, and it was a laugh he had longed to hear for so many years. "Why? Did you have one in mind?"

XXXX

Juliet stepped out into the cool night air. Below them, Vincent and Nikko were hanging decorations and a welcome home banner with more than one meaning. There was a banquet of food on the way from their favourite restaurant, and Maggie was organising a collection of music that would help bring her friend up to speed with what she had missed, at least in that area. Technically, she and Cal should be helping, but he had asked her to meet him up on the roof first. The building itself was small compared to some of the skyscrapers in New York, but in their neighbourhood it was still tall enough to offer up a majestic view of the city at night. Cal was standing looking out at the city, waiting for her.

"I decided this would do for the party tonight," she called out. "What do you think?"

"You are the most beautiful woman I ever have or ever will know," Cal replied, before turning round.

"That's sweet, but you didn't even look at the dress," she teased.

"I don't need to look at what you're wearing to know that you're beautiful," he murmured, meeting her halfway across the roof. "Come on: I want to show you something."

Juliet let Cal lead her over to the edge of the roof, where the city lights sparkled and the view was unbroken. She looked up at him. "What are we doing here, Cal? Everyone will be waiting on us downstairs."

"Let them wait," he said, shifting uneasily. "I know you want more than this, but this is what I want, right here. I'm here for the long haul. That doesn't mean you have to be. If you wanna teach, you should do that…"

"Cal?" Juliet frowned, but he held up a hand.

"Just let me finish, 'cause I only plan on doing this once." A little shakily, he dropped to one knee. "I can't give you the world, but I can give you this." He waved a hand at the view. When she looked back he had a ring in his hand. "And I can give you this, and with it, me."

"Isn't there supposed to be a question in there?" Juliet smiled. If he was only going to do this once, she was going to make him say the words.

Cal laughed nervously then looked up at her again. "Juliet Droil, will you marry me?"

Juliet watched him, smiling. This was a moment she wanted to remember forever.

"You're making me nervous here," Cal laughed. "Well? What do you think?"

"I think the way our lives have been going recently," she laughed back, "we oughta elope!"

"Is that a yes?" Cal enquired. "Can I get up now?"

"Yes, it's a yes!" Juliet laughed, dragging him to his feet and kissing him. "Of course it's a yes!"

By the time they made it downstairs, ring ready to show off on her finger, the food had arrived and the small party was in full swing. That didn't stop Vincent being the first to notice the addition and congratulate them. He certainly wasn't the last.

~Fin~

Acknowledgements:

I would like to thank the wonderful people in my life and on Facebook who have helped me with this story, either as proof-readers or translators, or regarding other items of research. They know who they are, and I am grateful to every single one of them for the time they have taken from their lives to help me in mine.

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Notes:

Inscription on interior of the Wissembourg Box:

"O Sanctissima Trinitate; cum Beata Virgine Maria, Dei Matre, et cum Beato Ioseph, suo Sponsu; cum beatis Apostolis et omnibus Sanctis; et cum omnibus caelestibus archangelis ac angelis: custodi hoc vas a Maligni arcificiis et ab omnibus famulis suis; anulus in mundi maxima necessitate inveniatur a quibus voluntatem tuam facere affectant.

Ego, Iesse, Nostri Domini Iesu Christi humilissimus et fidelissimus servus, Papae Iulio, Nostri Sancti Patris ministro, hoc peto."

Translation:

"Oh, Holy Trinity; with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and the blessed Joseph, her Spouse; with the blessed Apostles and all the Saints; with all the heavenly angels and the archangels: guard this vessel, from the power of the evil one, and from all his servants; that it may be the link/ring that is found in the greatest need of the world, by those who only wish to do thy will.

I, Jesse, faithful and humble servant of Jesus Christ Our Lord, I ask that at the behest of our Holy Father, Pope Julius."