Lucullus found himself in a familiar place. A dream. Instead of a complete void, the blackness round him was peppered with stars. Looking down, or in the direction he thought was down, still made him feel slightly dizzy. Not that he was able to stumble or fall. It seemed that he was simply floating in the heavens, so high that could not see the ground below… wherever it was. Is this simply another spiritual visit? Hopefully it isn’t an evil one.
Suddenly, one of the stars in front of him began to shine brightly. The bright light nearly engulfed him when it began to dim. A man walked in front of him. He was dressed just like those Dayiran women, except without the same head covering. His was a simple hood from the same material as his robe. The man held up his hand. “Be not afraid, Lucullus. For you already know who I am.”
“Kamil?”
“I am.”
Lucullus struggled to find the words, stammering for a minute before composing his thoughts. “What could be the meaning of this visit?”
“You will be taken to the House of Hikma. Within you shall find all that you need to bring the lost ones back into the fold.”
“What house?”
“Remember the prayer. Say it. Open not just your mind, but your heart also. Do not reject Hikma’s graces. Without them, you will be in darkness. But if you accept them, understanding will be freely given to you.”
“What kind of understanding?”
“Do not concern yourself with unnecessary things. All will be revealed to you when it is time. In all things, keep your thoughts fixed on Hikma. All other things are distractions.”
They stopped for a moment at the bottom of the stairs that led to the temple courtyard. On either side of the stairs was a large statue of winged figure with face unlike any creature in the world. Each statue held a different weapon. One had a sword, and the other held a spear and shield.
“Impressive, but remind me why we stopped at this temple?” Lucullus asked Aurelian. “Shouldn’t we make haste to the east? If the eastern clans have a growing blood lust, perhaps we should settle it as soon as we can.”
Aurelian shook his head. “A great sacrifice is being held in the temple today, among other things, and it is the obligation of everyone to attend. Regular sacrifices happen weekly, but this is a Shahid sacrifice.”
“I hope you don’t expect me to know what that means.”
“It’s a sacrifice held in honor of one of the twenty-one martyrs. Master Elijah will be the one performing the sacrifice, and he will comment on some of the writings of today’s martyr. It would be a grievous offense to miss it.”
“Is this the House of Hikma?”
Aurelian scratched the back of his head. “What prompted such a question?”
“I was visited by Kamil in my dreams last night. He mentioned that I would be taken to it. I just wondered if this was that place.”
He nodded. “In Mahjur, any temple is considered a House of Hikma, but the one we’re entering is considered the House of Hikma. And there are certain things, certain sacrifices and ceremonies, that can only happen here because of its special status.”
As they ascended the steps to the courtyard, they found themselves in the midst of a great crowd. Following the lead of Laylaa and Aurelian, they entered the temple. The area they entered had an open roof, and an altar in the center big enough to fit three cows on. On the altar were just two large candles, already lit. Laylaa motioned for Aela and Olivia to follow her as they departed from the group, filing in with the women on the left side of the altar. Aurelian led Johannes and Lucullus to the right with the men.
Two men in black robes emerged from the temple entrance and sauntered in, each with a thurible swinging like a pendulum. Smoke from the burning incense puffed out, filling the room as it lifted up toward the sky. Behind them came a man dressed in an elaborate red robe, with many precious jewels lining the center all the way down to the sash at his waist. The moment he entered, all the multitude knelt down into a profound bow, almost prostrated on the floor. Lucullus, as well as the rest of his friends, did likewise.
Behind the man in red came four men leading a camel. As the man in red joined the two in black robes at the altar, the camel with the four escorts moved across toward a large veil on the other side of the room, and disappeared into the mysterious other room.
The man in red knelt down in front of the altar, laying his hands on it, and keeping his head bowed. The two men with the incense remained standing as their thuribles puffed more smoke. Lucullus felt his eyes start to water, and he vigorously blinked, hoping in vain to give them relief.
Remember the prayer.
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He looked around, but there was absolute silence, aside from the rattling of the thuribles.
Through it, you shall gain understanding.
As quiet as he could, he began, “O Hikma, source of all grace, protect me from the snares of my enemies, and lead me always on the path of Thy holy light.” Though he was drowned out by the sound of the thuribles, the otherwise silent temple made his silent prayers seem loud. No one else seemed to notice, so he continued. He closed his eyes to keep the smoke from irritating them.
It seemed like hardly any time had passed when those four men emerged from the veil with gold plates loaded down with meat. Two of them also carried small buckets with charcoal. Lucullus had opened his eyes to see what was going on, and saw the meat being laid out on the altar with charcoal over it. At last the man in red stood up as he was handed a torch. And touching it to the coals, he lit the offering and passed the torch to one of the servers. The two men in black, and the rest of the servers, knelt down and bowed profoundly. The man in red dropped down on one knee, and held his hands up toward the sky, silently saying something. Everyone bowed their heads for a moment, and as they lifted their heads, a great column of flame appeared over the altar.
Lucullus was stunned, unable to move. No spell could make a flame that reaches the stars. There’s nothing but ashes left on that altar.
The reading room of the temple was far less spacious than the altar room. Lucullus and Aurelian stood out among the crowd, being at least a head above everyone else. The complete silence that once filled the altar room did not carry over to this one. Though it was not noisy like a market, it certainly seemed like it when compared to the stillness of before. The chatter died down quickly when that man in red from earlier entered.
Lucullus, remembering what Aurelian said earlier, figured that man must be Master Elijah.
Elijah unrolled an old scroll on his lectern, and cleared his throat. “In honor of the martyr, Zafar, today’s reading will be from his letter to the Princes of Bol.”
Lucullus almost audibly gasped. There’s no chance he is speaking in Dasosan nor in my tongue.
“In his final warning to these unholy princes of darkness, speaks thus:
I have come to you previously, speaking in all things with charity and patience, but no more. Four times have I warned you against taking up the sword, and many more times have you ignored all reason. I have preached nothing but the truth in your land, yet you treat me as a criminal. I have given to the poor in your land, yet your guards watch me as if I were a thief. Your fathers forsook Hikma’s precepts, and they were cursed by his Desert Star. I say to you now: if you continue to provoke Him, a greater curse shall fall upon all of your brethren.
“And thus concludes the reading.” He rolled the scroll back up, and set it aside. “Sons and daughters of Mahjur, I tell you that the Princes of Bol are once again persecuting the people of Hikma. They have been scattered throughout the world, and now seek to enslave all nations. Our brethren in the east have forsaken the unity our people once enjoyed. The influence of Chaodis has spread, and his servants have brought disorder in every place they dwell. The heretics to the north, the east, and the west, all of them remain in their errors. The times are troubling, just as Kamil the Great Prophet had so often predicted. It is why I now call upon all of you to offer many prayers in the temples. Any sacrifice, large or small, I encourage you to make. And tell everyone you meet, especially those who have not heard my words, to do the same. Do all of these things in the hope of true peace, and for the glory of Hikma’s name. For that greater curse of the Desert Star may fall upon us if we do not act as a beacon of light for the world amid the darkness. Now, go in peace.”
All bowed toward Elijah, and filed out into the temple courtyard. Some stayed at the temple, and others descended the steps back to the street. Laylaa was the first of the group to return to the altar room of the temple and pray. Upon Aurelian’s request, the rest of the group did in like manner to Laylaa.
“I don’t think these people realize just how bad things are in the other nations,” Lucullus remarked. “Master Elijah’s warning can hardly begin to convey the true horrors that await just beyond this desert.”
Olivia looked at him, confused. “How did you know what he said?”
He glanced back at the temple. “When that tower of flame appeared over the altar, I felt something. It was as if someone had touched my tongue. My ears felt rather hot. When I heard him read that letter, all I could think about was me understanding him. All the times I’ve heard Laylaa speak, I could only recognize some names. Any other words were lost on me. Now, it seems I can perfectly understand Dayiran.”
“Can you speak any Dayiran?” Aurelian asked doubtfully.
As they reached the street, Lucullus turned to Laylaa and approached her. “By Hikma’s grace, I may now communicate with your people.”
Laylaa took a step back, her mouth slightly trembling. “I have seen more miracles happen to you than I have all the other days of my life.”
“It is through saying that prayer, which Kamil taught me, that so many such miracles have come about.”
“This must surely be a sign from Hikma.”
“A sign of what, exactly?” Lucullus responded.
“That our deliverance is nigh.”
He turned to Aurelian. “What does she mean by such words? Deliverance?”
“She refers to the prophecy of the last of the twenty-one martyrs. Let her explain it.”
“The martyr, Akhir, who died a few years after the great split in the Aerasite sect. He foretold many signs that would precede a great deliverance from the powers of darkness. ‘Out of pestilence shall come a stranger into this holy land. And there shall be many tumults to follow this stranger. The land shall be made whole, and its light shall shine to the most obscure dwellings of the heathens and heretics. The wicked, down to the last spot, shall be driven out of the desert.’ That is the prophecy of which I refer to.”
“It sounds familiar,” he admitted. “When I first arrived in Immergrun, many told me that I was the prophesied unifier of all Savronites. I think they had a similar prophecy.”
Laylaa turned to Aurelian. “I need you to stay here with these other three.”
“Where are you going, milady?”
“I must take this man to see Master Elijah immediately.”
Aurelian sighed. “I disagree with the timing of this decision, but I know I can’t stop you. Just be careful.”