Chapter Three
To Understand
The moment ended too soon.
Hazel led the way out of the temple, through an opening which she created in the side of the chamber. The trick was still as awe-inspiring as it was when she had first performed it in the alley during our encounter with the Aeternae.
As the earth spewed outwards, and opened up to the outside, I was blinded, (I don't know about Hazel though.) by the bright beams of the setting sun. The world was aflame, and it was beautiful. And then, as briefly as the lives of the children whose screams I had often heard would flash into my mind, the sun drew its golden rays behind the curtain of the horizon.
In the distance, by the light of the moon I could see a line of buildings, some nearer than others to where we stood. The air was beginning to chill, and we wrapped our arms around ourselves for warmth. The ground before us sloped downward quickly, but steadily, the grass blowing softly in the cold night wind. Hazel's steps beside me were the only things keeping me awake as we walked down the hill.
Voices drifted from the direction of the buildings. Laughter, talking, and singing, rose in choruses, and shouts.
Sparks ignited into fire, cords of unseen rope entangled me to them, similarities jumped out at me as their essence flooded my mind. Life, bright and full as the moon, welled up within me, and I could almost touch it. The cords that connected me to them seemed to pull, and tug at my soul, and I felt that I could reach out and grasp them in my hands. Freedom of mind exploded outwards, and it was not until then that I realized how restrained my mind had been around Hazel.
Names etched themselves into my head,
Claudia
Logan
Gwendolyn
Caden
Their essence poured into my thoughts, and I sucked in a deep breath, letting it flood over me. Even though it was only four people it still felt as if I stood directly under a waterfall.
Claudia
Logan
Gwendolyn
Caden
Mistakes, victories, moments of no importance attached themselves to me, and I strained against my conscience which told me to add these names to my list of dead children. But I reminded myself: These kids won't be dying anytime soon.
Just then Hazel whispered, "We're here."
The moon was full on high, and now by the light of it, I could see that the small line of buildings were much larger than I had originally thought. Some were squat and rectangular, in long rows, and others were breathtaking Romanesque pillar flanked edifices, with ornate triangular roofs with magnificent reliefs of mythical battles. It looked like a city, rather than a camp. Stretching as far as the eye could see were towering aqueducts, domed buildings, stone arches, spraying fountains, and endless buttresses. Torches, and lamps gleamed out into the night, casting shadows onto the cobblestone streets.
I gasped. Hazel smiled. And a statue popped into existence in front of my face.
Yelping, I jumped back. Hazel groaned and kicked the statue on its pedestal base. It was a bust of a rather displeased looking man with a mess of curly marble hair. He really did not look happy. Suddenly, to much greater surprise, it spoke.
"Hazel Levesque, what have we here? A young boy, unregistered in this camp, I might add, attempting to trespass on Roman property!"
My head suddenly did a triple backflip, and the previous feeling of standing under a waterfall was quadrupled, and raised to the millionth power. My eyes danced with bright lights, and my head ached as it had never ached before. Flames seemed to engulf the edges of my vision, and seared strange patterns into my mind. Thousands upon thousands of lifetimes poured into my thoughts, good deeds, and acts so terrible that I could barely grasp their enormity, assaulted my head, grappling for dominance. Screaming, I plunged to my knees, shaking.
"STOP. STOP. STOP!"
Hazel's voice was barely a whisper,
"Jason?" The statue was even more angry,
"Get OUT of my MIND, boy!"
Suddenly, with the finality of a guillotine, the connection was severed. I gasped, inhaling the deepest breath I'd ever had. I had never felt so much relief in my life. Rolling onto my back, I sucked in air, my chest heaving. I stood up, shakily, and after a moment, threw up. The statue wrinkled its aquiline nose, and sniffed in disdain.
"What are you?" I asked, dazed.
"Do you not know me? The god all of western civilization cowers before? The god of borders, and boundaries? Terminus the great? Foolish boy, you have provoked me to the most extreme measures! Poking around in my mind like that, you should be executed!"
"Shut up statue man." Hazel cut in, grabbing my hand and lifting me to my feet.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"Yeah, just a bit of a headache." I lied. Hazel's eyes were wide, "You⎯⎯ I mean, you just read a god!"
"Apparently." I said, not exactly knowing how to react.
Terminus seemed none too happy about it. Hazel was amazed. And my head really hurt. After a moment, the statue mumbled some threat under his breath, and vanished into a cloud of smoke. Hazel sighed and told me to follow her into camp.
After what seemed like hours of walking, and utter silence, I became acutely aware of something that changed everything.
After the incident with Terminus, I felt different. I felt power. It was not the power I might have expected, but a power just the same. It was the power of knowledge. Terminus was a god, and I had somehow learned from his memories something that I couldn't learn from anyone else. A surge of energy had come over me, linked inseparably with the mind of Terminus. I realized with a start, that being inside the statue's head had taught me something. I could control my ability.