Stolen Dreams (36 page)

 

The numbers of
men and boys required to become
soldiers multiplied again and again as Saturn altered the purpose of
the army from one of protection to one of waging war on their
neighbors. His attitude had been, why trade for goods that could be
taken by force just as easily?

 

He demanded that Poseidon's
Temple be
enlarged and gilded with metals that shone and sparkled, even when no
light was on them. Simultaneously, he ordered that another enormous
monument be constructed in his own honor. Before it was finished,
however, he disappeared and his son, Jupiter, became king. Though some
said Rhea killed her brother in his sleep, most suspected that Jupiter
murdered his father to gain the power before it was due him. No body
was ever found, however, and no one dared accuse the new king.

 

Jupiter's
reign began when Ester and Jarad were children. None of the people
believed their fate could worsen, but it did. Jupiter was even more
twisted than his father. As if Rhea had not withstood enough, her son
continued to keep her a captive, which endorsed the theory that she had
killed Saturn; Jupiter appeared to be just punishing his mother for her
wickedness. Though he did not use her publicly, she was required to
sleep in his bed each night, even when he ordered other women to come
to pleasure him. He was also known to keep a number of female animals
in his court for variety whenever he grew bored with his human slaves.

 

Under
his rule, perversions were added to the royal ceremonies as well. He
claimed that God had demanded human torture and sacrifices. A
ceremonial meal often included cooked body organs of his enemies so
that he and his princes might ingest the victims'
strengths.                  
 

 

The
war to conquer all the neighbors to the east escalated, and though he
now controlled Libya, rumors were spreading that Athens was not so
easily defeated. At each new moon another vessel carrying Atlantean
soldiers left for the lands beyond the great rocks and none had
returned in a long time. Most of the men remaining on Atlantis were
descendants of God or slaves captured in raids on other lands. Those
poor souls were forced to work on the monument Saturn had begun and
Jupiter now claimed as his own. They were beaten, abused, and often
worked to death, because it was assumed that Athenian replacements
would be coming on the vessels returning in victory anytime now.

 

Only
the poppy-field workers were free of mistreatment. Each field was
maintained by the family that had been its caretaker before Poseidon
arrived. The families survived by keeping the secret of how the potion
was prepared and convincing the rulers that sorcery was involved.

 

"We
have passed our middle age," Ester explained. "And Rebekah is the last
of our family line. If she passes on without having the chance to find
a spouse and bear children to inherit our field, it will be given to a
child of another caretaker family. Then we will be lowered into the
fire pit like all the old ones who are no longer useful."

 

"It
is time to return to the shelter," Jarad said, rising and making one
last trip to the collection basket with the buckets.

 

Gabriel
helped Jarad lift the load of raw opium and Shara and Ester each
carried a bucket away from the field.

 

"Where is Rebekah now?"
Shara asked as they walked.

 

The
mere mention of her daughter's name brought tears to Esters eyes. "She
was taken to stay in the temple so that her purity could be protected
until the final ceremony. We have been told she is being kept in the
female slaves' quarters, but we have not been permitted to see her
since the meetings began."

 

"How well guarded are the quarters?"

 

Forget
it, Shara, Gabriel silently warned.

 

"Extremely well," Jarad
said. "The women are used for too many purposes to be allowed any
freedoms."

 

Shara had an idea brewing. "Do any of them serve
the nobility's meals?"

 

"Yes, there are those assigned to the
cookfires and meal service."

 

Shara
cut off Gabriel's automatic objection before he could transmit it. I
have to get inside the temple and, since they're at war with the entire
civilized world, visitors might be suspected of being enemies. Better
that I pose as a household slave.

 

"What about male slaves?"
Gabriel asked Jarad.

 

"There are a few in the temple, but most
healthy males are put to work on the monument."

 

Gabriel
was torn between wanting to see and record everything he could no
matter what the risk and wanting to keep Shara out of harm's way. When
they reached a small wooden shelter with a thatched roof, he helped
Jarad dump the contents of the basket onto a large stone slab and
spread the tiny chunks out for further drying under the next day's sun.

 

"We
will share some food and drink with you," Jarad said. "Then we must
make our delivery to the temple, but you are welcome to rest here."

 

"That's
very kind of you," Shara said as they all went
inside the shelter. While Ester rekindled the fire under the cookpot,
Shara communicated with Gabriel. Do you agree with me or not? She felt
his concern for her safety. We'll keep the channel between us open at
all times.

 

What if you're in danger, and I'm too far away to
help?

 

I
have my powers to protect me. I know you're dying to get a look at
Poseidon's Temple and Jupiter's monument. I'll be fine. And I promise
to keep our stay here as brief as possible.

 

Gabriel
reluctantly
agreed and asked Jarad if he could help them get into the temple. "We
need to observe more before we can be of any assistance to anyone."

 

Without
hesitation, Jarad nodded. "We are well known and are familiar with the
design of the temple. But I believe the easiest plan would be to take
you both inside to the cookery, where we must deliver the potion. There
are other slaves as fair-skinned as you, but you will need to be
clothed as they are."

 

Shara glanced at Ester's nearly nude
body and inwardly cringed.

 

Ester
walked over to a chest in the corner and took out some folded
copper-colored garments. "We have been ordered to serve in the temple
on occasion. These robes must be worn by all servants so that they will
blend in with the walls of the temple."

 

Shara breathed a sigh
of
relief as she noted that the robes were full length, with long sleeves
and hoods. They would be somewhat short on her and Gabriel, but it was
much better than the wrapper Ester was wearing. Immediately she saw
another advantage to the robe. It was large and loose enough for
her to wear the tempometer belt and conceal her microputer and supplies
beneath it instead of leaving them behind in her bag. While a large pot
of lamb and vegetable stew was reheated over the fire, she excused
herself to fetch her equipment.

 

Gabriel felt somewhat better
knowing
she would have the tempometer on her so that they could make an instant
escape if it became necessary.

 

Suddenly the tin cups on the
table
rattled. Jarad put his hands over them to stop them from tipping over,
while Ester guarded a row of vibrating clay crocks on a shelf above the
fire. A thunderous rumble sounded in the distance and grew louder as it
seemed to be rolling toward them.

 

Gabriel felt the floor
beneath his
feet begin to quiver, and lurched out of his chair. Sharal We're out of
time! Run for the raft and program the tempometer. Ill be right there.

 

 

Jarad! Ester! You've got to get away from here now," Gabriel exclaimed, throwing open the door. The entire shelter
trembled as if a giant had reached down and given it a mighty shake,
then everything was calm again.

 

The couple was completely
bewildered
by Gabriel's actions. In a polite tone, Ester said, "We find it best to
stay in one place until the shaking passes."

 

Only a minor
earthquake, Gabriel thought with relief.

 

Or the heal volcano
trying to clear its throat.

 

Are you all right?

 

Just a
bit shaken.

 

He
felt her laughing at her own joke and smiled in spite of the
seriousness of the situation. "Jarad, how often is that happening?"

 

"A
few times a day. That one was mild. Sometimes it is so violent the
ground cracks wide open. Noe says it is God's warning that the end is
near."

 

"Have you made preparations to leave ... in case the
warnings are true?"

 

Jarad glanced at Ester. "We have a small
vessel hidden. But if Rebekah is lost to us, we have no reason to flee."

 

Gabriel
suddenly realized he had automatically tried
to warn them when he thought disaster was about to strike. Drek! He
didn't want to feel anything for these people. Whatever happened was
done ten thousand years ago. The girl and her family either survived or
they didn't. It was wrong to interfere, even if it felt immoral to
ignore their need for help. It was definitely unethical to lead them to
believe he and Shara might be their salvation.

 

Interesting
dilemma,
isn't it? Shara reentered the shelter with the tempometer belt around
her waist and a soft black bag tied to the side of the belt. Ester and
Jarad looked at her curiously, but they didn't ask about the items and
she didn't offer any explanations.

 

During their meal, Gabriel
asked
Jarad for another favor. "Please contact Noe and tell him that if he
hears from God again, to let Him know that two others are here from, uh
. . . the Otherworld. Describe us and where we can be found, then have
Noe ask God to contact us. It's vital that we have a talk with Him."

 

Professor!
You're not planning to interfere, are you?

 

Of
course not, but I can't think of any faster way to get to the truth of
what happened here than a personal interview with the one who may have
been responsible.

 

A loud trumpetlike noise outside the shelter
caught everyone's attention.

 

"Aah," said Jarad. "He's right on
time to take us to the temple."

 

"He?" Shara inquired as he and
Ester both rose from the table and swiftly cleared the dishes away.

 

"Yes.
Elo has been visiting us since he was a calf. Jarad trained him to come
to the shelter each day at sunset." Ester took a crock off the shelf
and peeked inside it. With a shake of her head, she emptied a quantity
of light brown powder from another crock into the first, then put a lid
on it. "That should do it. Put the robes on before we go, in case we
are stopped on the way to the temple."

 

Shara was more than
pleased
with the garment. With the hood up and her head and shoulders bent, she
could be mistaken for a man. The last thing she wanted to do was
attract attention to herself as a female slave in Jupiter's court.

 

At
least we agree on one thing.

 

Her
self-confidence faltered the moment she stepped out the door and saw
Elo. Shara had never in her life seen a creature so enormous. She knew
it was an elephant only because she had seen its image in a children's
book on Terran animals that her mother had given her when she was
learning her alphabet. It had two dangerous-looking ivory tusks that
were longer than Gabriel was tall, and gigantic ear flaps that it
fanned in warning upon seeing the strangers.

 

Shara froze in
place as
the elephant gracefully extended its long trunk up to her face, made a
noise that could have been a sniff or a snort, then pushed the hood off
her head. The animal gave a mournful squeal, then withdrew its trunk
and rocked its great head back and forth.

 

"He thought perhaps
you
were Rebekah in disguise," Ester explained. "Elo misses her, too. Elo,
this is Shara and Gabriel. They would like to ride with us today, if
that is all right with you."

 

The beast took another whiff of
Shara,
inspected Gabriel, then folded its two front legs beneath its body.
Though less intimidating like that, it was still frightfully large.
Shara was wondering how one actually got on an elephant to ride, even
with its permission,
when it bowed its head with the underside of its trunk on the ground
and its nostrils curved upward. Jarad sat down on the trunk as if it
were a swing.

 

"Up," Jarad commanded, and Elo raised his trunk
high
in the air, tipping back his head at the same time. Jarad stood up on
the forehead, walked to the hindquarters, and straddled the hump with
his knees bent.

 

Gabriel went next and looked just as relaxed
about the matter as Jarad had.

 

"Go on, Shara. I should sit in
front," Ester said.

 

Shara thought the animal seemed friendly
enough, but it was so big. "We really shouldn't put Elo out like this.
I can walk."

 

Don't be a coward.

 

I am not a coward!
I'm cautious.

 

Then get your cautious behind wp here.

 

"Elo
does not mind, and it is much too far to walk," Ester told her.

 

Shara
stroked Elo's trunk and murmured, "I've never been very good at
physical things, so don't be insulted if I fall off." Elo's big eye
blinked at her as if he understood, and Shara sat down as the men had.
Seconds later she was wondering why she was so worried about something
that was such fun.

 

As the elephant lumbered its way north
along the
coast at a faster pace than one would expect from such a huge creature,
Gabriel recorded the beauty of the land. There were steep mountains not
far away that were partially covered with deep green forests. The
barren peaks had a lavender cast in the twilight. Throughout a good
deal of the trip, they were in a meadow with thick grass where herds of
animals grazed, unconcerned by the humans passing by.