Book 3. The Long Journey. Chapter 98. The Grand Prophecy.
“Did you stage that?” Elder Sophie asked through her teeth, glaring at Samuel out of the corner of her eye. She was absolutely shocked to see that almost everyone, if not everyone in the Grand Camp was willing to follow this crazy delusion to their unavoidable deaths. She would have still given them a glimmer of a chance for survival had they only wanted to pass through the Ikarian-controlled lands, but to attack the Capital City of the former Guode Federation with their strength? She could only see that as crazy. One unit of thirty-six elites would be more than enough to slaughter all those people, of whom the strongest were at the third or fourth mortal realms, much less the might of Ikarian army that was currently gathered in the Guode Yimarate.
“I wish I had,” Elder Samuel replied with a quiet laugh and ignored the furious glare Sophie sent him in response. “Controlling the desperate masses isn’t all that hard if you have enough insiders and I admit I had intended to create a few factions that supported the idea of relocating to a different part of the world within those refugees, but they all ended up being instantly swallowed up by that man,” he said with a calm, intrigued smile. “I also need to admit, in the beginning, I was wary of that man’s growing influence, but just keep listening to him… this little talk that he is giving now is just a prelude,” he added and chuckled ever so slightly. He had only read and listened to brief reports about that man’s sermons… so truth to be told, he was quite excited to see the main deed with his own eyes.
Elder Sophie revealed a bitter expression, but since it was true that the current situation was far beyond her help, she could only grit her teeth and bear with Samuel’s pompous attitude. “He’s right about one thing though. Just what that man is saying now wouldn’t be enough to sway the masses to the extent we are seeing. There must be more to those sermons of that Prophet,” she mused, waiting for the inspirational talk about the great struggle that would finally lead to success to end.
“Wow,” Laien said with a quiet laugh and exchanged a glance with Yin. The two of them were rather amazed; Samuel’s words of showing them how irrational people can become weren’t overexaggerated. The plans of attacking a country with an army of regular citizens… the craziness of the idea alone was enough to make them rather speechless. However, what was the most impressive about this whole situation was definitely the person who seemed to have made this madness into reality. Going by what Samuel told Sophie just now, they would soon have an opportunity to see for themselves just what was so special about the Grand Camp’s Prophet.
“Julien, please restrain yourself,” Elder Simon mentioned calmly. Although the young general wasn’t yet leaking killing intent, the look in his eyes was absolutely murderous. “It looks like his hatred isn’t limited to just Ikarians alone… but it stretches to everything that can be ascribed to them, religious fanaticism included. Still, I hope he will give up once he sees the futility of trying to save those people, just like Samuel wished to happen when bringing him here,” he thought in silence. Losing Julien and all the experts who had come under his banners would be a huge blow to their country, so he very much hoped for the outcome of this internal conflict to be amicable.
“I am calm,” Julien responded after a few seconds, but the look in his eyes didn’t change regardless. As he saw it, that self-proclaimed Prophet was only using those people in the Grand Camp to achieve some kind of his own ambition; he was deceiving them with lies and promises of good life for his own benefit! Charlatans like that deserved to be returned to the earth before they caused untold amounts of suffering to those gullible enough to follow them.
“… be sure to remember that without a question, the Great Prophecy of Karta’s will come true!” The Prophet’s tone changed slightly as the first part of his sermon came to an end, thus once again grabbing people’s attention and allowing him to transition smoothly to the second and main part. “I do trust that all of you who listened to me before believe the Great Prophecy Karta sent me… but today, we have been blessed with the presence of those who had never listened, never trusted, never seen…! Just like Karta told me, the disbelieving Ruishians have come!” he exclaimed and turned around unhurriedly, his gaze locking onto the certain roof in the high part of the Grand Camp, the same roof on top of which was Julien and the rest of their group.
“Do not be alert,” the Prophet said with a smile a breath’s worth of time later, sensing how restless the people have become. “They’ve come distrusting, but they will leave believing, just like every skeptic in the past. Such are Karta’s words… and his words are always true,” he stated with calm confidence and with a smile on his face, his gaze seemingly locking onto Julien’s face despite the distance separating the two of them. “I know not your name, but I have seen that you will challenge me with your words. Speak, young man. On the behalf of Karta, I will answer your questions and clear away the doubts within your heart,” he urged gently, displaying not a hint of nervousness at all.
“Hmph,” Julien stood up and snorted without holding back, making all those who heard him do so a little angry. Yet, due to the Prophet’s words from a moment ago, no one made any comments nor displayed any obvious contempt for Julien’s behavior. “You are a spiritual master, so seeing that I’m a young man from a few kilometers away isn’t impressive… nor is you guessing that some of us, Ruishians, will come down here after the Grand Council has concluded. It’s not like we were secretive about it being over, so it was simplicity in itself for someone to deliver the news to you beforehand… I do not know what you are trying to achieve with your lies about those Prophecies, but you should stop before you cause a disaster to befall those people,” Julien spoke with apparent anger and frustration, using his Qi to carry his voice far and wide.
“You have a good heart,” the Prophet responded with a smile and with a little sigh, displaying the attitude of a doting parent rather than of a person whose credibility was being challenged. “But you haven’t seen what I have. When I prayed to him, Karta came to me and showed me the future! It is the truth that the malevolent Ikarians who occupied the lands of the Guode Federation shall perish under the eight million of us. This is an undeniable future… and it has already been foretold. Nothing anyone does can change it!” he spoke energetically, partway through starting to direct his words to his many followers rather than to Julien and thus enacting an enthusiastic response from them.
“What proof do you even have of what you are saying?” Julien asked angrily. The foolishness of the people around him who were allowing themselves to be deceived so easily was causing him to feel irritated. “Which one of all you here really think that swarming martial masters with mere numbers will lead to a victory? I alone would be able to kill all of you within a few weeks and if I had a few dozen men, then I could do so within a day! What makes you think the whole Ikarian army in the Guode Yimarate won’t be able to slaughter you all within hours? You must be dreaming if you think that’s the way to win! I don’t know if you hate Ikarians or Euleanians, but you won’t accomplish anything!” he shouted at the faraway Prophet and the people of the Grand Camp alike, making a fair number of people grow restless, then added a few more words as a finishing touch.
“What can all of you do against martial masters? If you wish to go and die just because that man said you will win if you attack the Guode Yimarate, then feel free to do so! But at the very least, don’t sentence your own children to death too! How many of them do I see here? Almost a million? How much innocent blood do you want to have on your hands?!”
The blunt and provocative words spoken by Julien stirred up many of those in the Grand Camp and caused an omnipresent aura of nervousness to spread, just as Julien himself expected…. but to his amazement, the Prophet didn’t take any action to calm everyone down. The seconds continued to pass and as they did, Julien’s bewilderment only increased since contrary to what he thought, none of the people voiced their doubts or worries and instead, the nervous atmosphere gradually disappeared until about half a minute later, it was completely gone.
“Young man, you spoke of hatred,” the Prophet spoke compassionately. “However, you are one of the two people in your group who are filled with a great amount of hatred… yet, you are the only one whose every day is filled with hatred and whose every action is driven by hatred,” he said in a pained voice and shook his head slightly, appearing to be pitying Julien and feeling sorry for him.
“Hmph, who in this country doesn’t know that I, General Julien of the Eagle Pass, hate Ikarians?” Julien asked contemptuously. Were the insights this so-called Prophet provided supposed to amaze him? Were those the means by which he operated? Investigating people and speaking shallow truths about their character and past to them? No… it was too cheap of a method for it to be all that this so-called Prophet to be able to do. However, if so, then he wasn’t quite able to figure out where to was this man trying to bring this conversation and for what reason was he trying to do so.
“…”
“…”
Without Julien’s knowledge, Laien and Yin looked at each other, both of them feeling perturbed by the Prophet’s words. They couldn’t be sure since they didn’t know the past of those Grand Elders and they weren’t absolutely certain about the past of the four White Guards, but Luca, Lea and Daniel should have no reason to feel great hatred for anyone or anything. Had the matter with Patrick not been resolved in a way it had, Luca might have qualified, but as the matters stood now, it didn’t make any sense. On the other hand… if they assumed those three Grand Elders had no particular hatred inside their hearts, then the description that man gave would fit Yin all too well. The part about the hatred being there and yet no longer controlling Yin’s thoughts and actions… it was relatable to Yin so much that Yin himself was beginning to have doubts. Could it have been a random guess on the Prophet’s part or was there something more to that man?
“So you are General Julien,” the Prophet said with a nod of his head, then raised his hand to calm down the clamor this revelation was beginning to cause amongst his followers. Just any Ruishian challenging their Prophet wouldn’t mean much to them, but Julien was well-liked and boasted a considerable amount of respect in their community as one of those who aided them when they arrived in the country and as the one who had personally saved tens of thousands of people during the Bloody Dusk in the early spring. They weren’t able to simply dismiss him in their minds anymore.
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“I have seen why you hate Ikarians, General Julien,” the Prophet spoke with a mixture of understanding and compassion, and with an addition of a teacher-like mannerism in the tone of his voice. “I trust this story ought to be learned by everyone here too, so would you mind if I told it?” he asked calmly, without any hurry or agitation in his voice or mannerism.
“Do what you want,” Julien said a snort, then smiled secretly. There were very few people in the upper echelons of the army who knew about his past as he had told them while being screened for the position of the General… but what he had told them was mostly lies. He had decided against sharing the true extent of his hatred for Ikarians for the fear of being denied the position of a General, but by the current point in time, his spot was secure. Thus, he would use whatever this so-called Prophet learned about him through his spies or whoever against him and reveal the truth. Those people of the Grand Camp might not believe his words regardless … but at the very least, he would know for sure that this Prophet was nothing but a fraud after all, contrary to what Elder Samuel claimed.
“Thank you,” the Prophet thanked Julien and followed up soon thereafter. “I’m very grateful that you agreed, General Julien. Not many people would be at peace with revealing that in their early youth, when they were no longer children but not yet young men, they had been held in captivity with their whole family by an Ikarian noble for almost three years,” he stated with a slight groan and pursed his lips slightly, revealing a pained expression on his face, his eyes half-closed, as if he was recalling a series of terrible scenes he had seen before.
As the Prophet’s words fell, the originally confident look on Julien’s face turned into one of shock. His skin drained of color and he started feeling cold. The official version he had told during the screening was that his village had been raised by a group of Ikarian brigands and everyone but him had been killed; he had told them that he had watched it all happen from where he had been hiding and had somehow managed to survive. What had really happened, however… he had never told to anyone. He had also already killed all the Ikarians responsible for those events, so he was the only person who could possibly know the truth. Yet, this man… this Prophet… three years, no… was he just guessing? He couldn’t possibly know!
“There is barbarity within all people, within all races and within all nations,” the Prophet shook his head again. “However, the belief that those who don’t follow their God, their Rala, aren’t even people is what makes Malazans so scary. I’m filled with admiration for your tenacity, General Julien. I do not doubt I would have been able to stand the physical pain… but the wicked mental torture you suffered when you were but a youth, all for the pleasure and entertainment of your kidnapper… no human would be able to bear this hatred without acting on it, not without the help of Karta,” he spoke slowly and without a break while looking at the more and more disturbed Julien.
“Do you not also believe that those who follow that wicked God should be eradicated, General Julien? Didn’t you promise that to your older sister while you were made to lay on top of her repeatedly, for the amusement of those who watched? Didn’t you swear almost a year later that you would kill all Malazans until not one of them is left when you were ordered to step on the little-…”
“Enough!” Julien roared with the aid of the full force of his Qi, his body shaking and his eyes glistering slightly, both from the tears and the boundless fury that burned within him. “Do not say another word,” he ordered through his teeth, his powerful aura mixed with unrestrained killing intent flowing out of his body and pulsing restlessly in accordance with his heartbeat. “I do not how you learned of that… and I do not care. You know about my past, but how does it make you think that leading those weak people against the Ikarian army will lead you to a victory?” he asked in a shaky voice, one filled with many emotions, amongst which the strongest ones were resentment and helplessness born from the renewed memories… the same ones he had thought he had permanently suppressed after claiming the first part of his revenge.
Instead of being agitated, the Prophet responded with calmness and compassion. “I am but a man who had been chosen by Karta to deliver his message, it is not up to me to question what Karta shows me, but to act upon it. Karta showed me the way… just like he is showing it to all of the people gathered here, you and your companions included, General Julien. Karta has a role for you and your subordinates to play out… but I don’t need to say anything. You will follow Karta’s wishes out of your own free will,” he stated without a shadow of a doubt, displaying an unwavering level of confidence.
“So you are relying on others coming to your aid?” Julien asked with a helpless laugh. Did the Prophet expect the Ruishi Federation’s army to assist him? If so, then it was nothing short of dreams. The Grand Council would never agree to that even if they did see a chance of obtaining a victory, and that was because the bulk of Ikarian forces was in Arkaria! Victory in the southern Eulene would mean nothing and it would break the neutrality of the Ruishi Federation. This Prophet… he might have seen the past of some people, but he didn’t understand politics at all.
“No, that is wrong,” the Prophet denied Julien’s guess straightforwardly. “We alone shall march on the Capital of the Guode Federation. We shall fight and we shall defeat the Ikarians with our own hands. That’s what Karta foretold and that’s what’s going to happen… just like the two claps of thunder from the clear sky that are going to sound right now,” he said with a smile and just like he said, a mere half a second later, the rare phenomena of two consecutive strikes of lightning and the following thunders happened in the clear sky above the Grand Camp.
“Karta…!”
“Karta’s will!”
“Karta!”
The people of the Grand Camp began raising their voices, some of them even started prostrating themselves before the skies. Julien, Laien, Yin and the rest of their group were similarly startled and amazed. That long-haired man… could he truly see glimpses of both past and future? Was he a real Prophet sent by Karta? It was so amazing that all but Elder Samuel took it as inconvincible.
Julien opened his mouth, then closed it and groaned inwardly. He sat down, knowing not what else to say. If there was a point he could argue with, then he would do so… but trying to discuss with the Prophet was like throwing stones into the sea and expecting to see any significant change. He could keep repeating his point that those people would march to their deaths, but it would keep falling deaf on their ears… and admittedly, he himself had been a little shaken by this Prophet.
“Thank you for speaking with me, General Julien,” the Prophet said amiably, thus making the clamor die down very quickly as everyone returned to listening to his words. “Just like the orders of the Grand Council are going to be, we shall leave this place in the morning, six days from now on,” he declared with a meaningful smile, throwing Julien, the three Grand Elders and the rest of those on the roof into a state of heavy confusion. Six days…?
“That’s wrong,” Elder Sophie said with the aid of her Qi, then stood up. “The Grand Council decided for you to leave within three days, not six days from now!” she said with an ill-hidden hint of excitement, which arose from her hope of finding means to prevent those people from committing a mass-suicide, but was mistaken by most of the people as a sign of her bad will toward the Prophet.
“The words of Karta are never wrong,” the Prophet restated amiably. “It shall happen as Karta said, just like with everything he had shown me,” he assured confidently and from the looks of it, the people of the Grand Camp were trusting his words over Sophie’s. They all trusted that even if the Grand Council had originally decided on a three-day deadline, it would end up being six-day long.
“So,” Elder Sophie picked up. “If you are truly going to be told to leave in three days, you will admit that your visions aren’t always right and you will reconsider leading those people to attack the Guode Yimarate’s Capital?” she asked straightforwardly. Given the inner workings of the Grand Council, the decision to overrule the Grand Eviction plan in any way required ten out of thirteen votes. She refused to believe the two Grand Elders who had chosen to remain neutral in face of this conflict would agree to the changes for the sake of urging the refugees to their deaths; they would keep abstaining. This way, it would be impossible to obtain ten ‘for’ votes and thus, nothing would change!
The Prophet laughed in response to Sophie’s question and said with calm confidence. “If that happens, I will personally step down and no longer name myself Karta’s Prophet. However, it will happen. The Prophecies Karta shows me are always true.”
“I will keep you to that word,” Elder Sophie said with satisfaction and sat back down, what was followed by the Prophet chuckling and returning to his sermon, expecting no other disruptions to appear. And, as the Prophet had perhaps seen, the following ten minutes passed without anyone attempting to speak up to discuss anything with him and the sermon ended without any accidents.
When the people began dispersing, Laien, Yin, Arslan and everyone else couldn’t help but remain where they were for a moment longer. This experience certainly was a unique one for them. Despite being young, the three of them usually tried to rationalize the decisions they and the people around them made. While it was possible for them to discern when a particular individual acted on emotion rather than reason, it was the first to actually see millions of people trust a Prophecy and the Prophet so much they were willing to blindly set forth onto a suicidal journey.
Yet, that story about Julien the Prophet mentioned, then those thunders he foretold… and the claim the Grand Camp would be emptied in six instead of three days. Those weren’t things they could fight with logic and reason; just like Julien, they were left with no way to rebuke the Prophet’s claims. As long as his Prophecies kept proving themselves to be true, the Prophet’s influence would remain unchallenged.
“Was that enough, Julien?” Elder Samuel asked with a slight smile. “Are you still planning to save those ‘poor people’ against their own will?” he asked with a laugh, by the looks of it not doubting that the six-day Prophecy of the Prophet would in the end happen, just like the Prophet said it would.
“…” Julien took a deep breath, thanked Samuel for not mentioning the matter of his past within his heart, then said. “I still think it’s wrong for them to go. At the very least, I would want to spare the children from this cruel fate, but… eh, there’s nothing to be done. If I was allowed to, I would forcefully tear the kids away from their parents and keep them here. However, I promise not to act without the Grand Council orders.”
“Good,” Elder Samuel nodded contentedly. The trip was worthwhile if it allowed them to restrain Julien’s temper enough for the man to properly obey orders, so he was happy with this result. “Let us go back to the fort. We need to decide on your punishment for acting up, then start making preparations for the Grand Eviction,” he suggested, thinking that it would be a waste of time for them to remain here, on this random roof, any longer.
“Are we proceeding as planned?” Elder Simon inquired. He was sure Samuel would propose waiting for the six-day Prophecy to unfold a little more before doing anything, but it looked like Samuel wasn’t planning anything of this kind? It was surprising, to say the least.
“No need to delay anything,” Elder Samuel said with a cheerful laugh. “Whatever we do, the Prophecy of that man will happen as he said. We might as well occupy ourselves with something productive as the events develop,” he stated without much of a worry. It would have been greatly troublesome if the Prophet was involving himself in the affairs of their Ruishi Federation, but that wasn’t the case; thus, he was able to keep his usual calm despite having one foreign man wield so much power just through his words, through those Prophecies of his.
“We will see what happens,” Elder Sophie said and smiled at Samuel. She had unexpectedly been given a way out and this time, she would make sure to make use of the opportunity. First, she would go and personally talk with those two Grand Elders who insisted on being neutral and fill them into the whole situation. Then, she would wait for the three-day deadline and prepare to overthrow that evil man who called himself a Prophet.
“Yes, we will,” Elder Samuel agreed. Much to Sophie’s annoyance, he smiled back at her, then took the initiative to lead their group out of the Grand Camp.