The Apocalypse Script (27 page)

At last Lilian stirred. She sat
up, bleary eyed, and when she saw Ridley she pulled the sheets up
to her neck. “What’s going on?” she asked in a throaty morning
voice.

“
Gifts, Sister!” Fiela exclaimed.
“Thank you, uncle!” She put her arms around the escaping man’s neck
and kissed the back of his head. “You do not need to summon the
fetches. I will prepare our breakfast. I know what Ben
likes.”

Ben couldn’t remember ever having
been asked what he liked and knew that another plate of fried eggs
and toast were in his future. He said, “Maybe you’d rather shower
and let the cooks take care of that?”

“
No, it’s okay,” she said, heading
toward the hallway. “I’ll shower later.”

When she and Ridley were gone,
Lilian looked at Ben and said, uncomprehendingly,
“Trucks?”

Ben updated the woozy woman. She
smiled weakly when she at last understood. “That was nice of
him.”

“
Are you okay?”

“
Yes,” she said, running her
fingers through her hair. “A little bit of a hangover.”

“
From the drugs?”

“
Herbs,” she said, holding up a
finger to correct him. “But yes.”

Walking over to the bed he said, “How was your
mystic voyage?”

The woman searched his expression.
She hadn’t exactly deceived him but she hadn’t been forthcoming
either, and both knew it. Not sensing a confrontation, she said, “I
really don’t remember anything.”

He sat down on the bed.
“Anything?”

“
Oh,” she said,
“I remember everything
before
, if that’s what you’re
asking.” She let the covers fall to her waist as she
stretched.

“
Are those permanent?” Ben asked,
nodding at the tattoos on her breasts.

The woman dropped her hands into
her lap. “They might be. Or they might wash away with water. I
can’t recall. Must be the herbs impeding my memory. But I do need a
bath and have no fetches to bathe me.”

“
You have
others
bathe
you?”

“
Only young, beautiful
women.”

“
Oh,” said Ben, his eyes wide.
“Well, I guess that’s okay, then.”

“
Yes, but since my fetches are not
here, that duty falls to Fiela. So your options, Mutu, are to
summon your serretu to join me in the tub or to perform the
required duties yourself.”

“
Huh,” Ben said, finding his voice
and outlining one set of tattoos with a finger. After harsh
deliberation he said, “Fiela is determined to make breakfast. I
think I can handle you.”

“
I’m glad to hear it.”

“
Perhaps as you bathe we can
discuss education reform?”

“
It is a very important topic,”
said the woman agreeably. “Or, it was.”

“
I admit I’ve got no experience in
bathing women. I’ll need to hit a few areas two or three times,
being the novice that I am.”

The woman jerked away the sheets.
“Then I shall lead you by the hand.”

Nizrok was aghast. “The whore has
orchestrated a wedding reception to celebrate her marriage to an
Ardoon?”

“
It is true,”
said Moros. “The marriage contract was distributed yesterday to all
the Houses. She actually
boasts
of her pathetic marriage to a
slave and formally invites others to witness her self-degradation
at the keep of Scriptus Ridley.”

The bald Peth with the evil
eyebrows stared out the floor-to-ceiling windows of Moros’s top
floor suite. Denver bustled below and the Rocky Mountains glimmered
serenely in the distance. “I agree it is outrageous,” he said, “but
as we discussed, the marriage is of no real consequence given our
timeline. Why should the reception bother you so?”

Moros was tapping his fingers on
the table that separated him from the other Peth. “It bothers me
because I do not understand it.”

“
She is the daughter of a madman
and disenfranchised. Her behavior has always been scandalous and
erratic.”

“
No,” said the
silver-eyed man, “it has always
appeared
erratic. Yet she managed to
summon the ghost of her father to bless a marriage that should have
never taken place. A womb that should be collecting dust is this
morning sticky with the residue of Ardoon seed and someday that
seed may become a child.”

“
Again,” said Nizrok, “we have
discussed this. The whore bears a slave child - what is that to us?
The Seven Houses control the world. She has no power
whatsoever.”

“
She has Ridley.”

“
Granted, but he
may only write
Infraviters,
scripts internal to his own House, and only out
to, what, four degrees? The Seven have kept a tight leash on him,
cognizant of his past associations. There is nothing that can be
accomplished with so little latitude.”

Lightly tapping the table with a
fist, Moros grimaced. “Yes, but this reception smells too much like
a coronation. Lilitu would not invite other Nisirtu if it did not
serve her purposes. It is clear to me that she wants to show the
Seven and any who would sympathize with her that she is now capable
of legally renewing her father’s bloodline and has every intention
of doing so. I would not be surprised if Ridley placed a crown on
her head and asked the attendees bow down before her.”

Nizrok studied the lord before
saying, “She is a member of the Seven.
You
must not harm her, Moros.
Do not damage
your standing with the Houses or the citizenry. This is a
precarious time.”

“
I know that,” the other man said
dismissively.

“
Everyone at Ridley’s abode is
Seven, as are presumably those invited to the
reception.”

“
Yes, yes, I know that,
also.”

“
They do not war against us. An
attack against any of them would be-”

“
Yes, Nizrok, I know!” exclaimed
Moros. Regaining control, he said, “Still, I shall petition my king
and request that something be done. I despise this feeling of
impotence.”

“
You, the destroyer of the Ardoon,
impotent?”

“
I am but a tool. We both know
that.”

Nizrok opted not make the remark
that first came to mind. “What shall you petition for?”

“
Action. Of any
kind.
Soon.
”

They stood on a balcony
overlooking Steepleguard’s courtyard and adjacent cobblestone
parking area. Below them were five semi trucks in the former
hotel’s parking lot, the trailers painted a glossy black. The
trailers were being set up by men and women who were dressed,
ridiculously in Ben’s opinion, in evening formal wear.

Ridley moved close to Ben and said
in a hushed voice, “Nephew, I know you think this is too lavish,
but in days anything not taken from these trucks by your family
will be worthless. Silk dresses and rubies will be far less
valuable than a loaf of bread or a glass of clean water. There is
no harm in a little indulgence.”

The doors to the trailers were
open and mobile, carpeted stairs were put in place. A pickup truck
had towed a generator to the top of the mountain and five men were
connecting power cables to the trailers while another fired up the
engine. Lights within the trailers flickered to life.

“
Sister,” said Fiela, tugging at
Lilian’s elbow, “they are ready. Shall you require I go
alone?”

“
Coming,” said Lilian pulling Ben
gently forward, her arm still interlocked with his.

As they walked, Ben pulled out his
phone and checked the latest headlines. The headline story
was
Flash Crashes Worsen - No Culprit
Identified.

It read:

The Securities and Exchange
Commission yesterday reported little progress in its investigation
of a series of so-called ‘flash crashes’ that have spooked
investors in the United States and abroad. In the past two months
there have been five such crashes, the last and most severe
resulting in a 19% plummet in the Dow Jones Industrial Average in
the course of just two minutes.

Since the crashes first began in
March, the Wilshire 5000, which represents the broadest index of
U.S. equities, has dropped a precipitous 63% as rattled investors
reallocate money to lower-yielding but less volatile investments.
The SEC has refused to comment on whether high-speed traders,
software glitches, or computer viruses may be responsible for the
crashes, but has suggested trading at U.S. exchanges may be
‘indefinitely halted’ if the crashes cannot be stopped.

The Chairman of the SEC is under
pressure by an increasingly frustrated Congress to resolve the
issue quickly. Experts warn that a continuance of such crashes will
further destabilize international markets and could ultimately
result in a second global economic Depression.

He clicked off the phone. Why did
he start his days like this?

“
Everything okay?” asked Lilian,
looking at him.

“
What do you think?”

“
I
think
not
.
But never mind, here we are.”

The first two trailers were, to
Ben at least, disappointments. In the first were nothing but a half
dozen smiling men and women standing next to sewing machines and
cutting tables, a hundred or more spools of fabric on racks behind
them. The second was obviously a mobile beauty parlor, replete with
sinks, tubs, reclining chairs, mirrors, and a bewildering array of
bottles, tubes, and canisters. Five women stood at the ready, all
smiles and deference.

The third trailer was closer to
what he had expected. It was lined with oak panels and carpeted,
and mini-chandeliers dangled from the arched, foam ceiling. On one
side was row after row of women’s shoes in one of two sizes –
Lilian’s or Fiela’s. On the other side was a counter with three
catalogues of clothing designs, a display case of fabric samples,
and a collection of buttons, zippers, bows, and hats. Four women
were in this trailer, one of whom Ben was certain was a
professional model he had seen on television.

The fourth trailer was finished
the same as the first three and contained a large collection of
purses, wallets, scarves, and, at the back, women’s underwear and
lingerie compartment, which no amount of cajoling by Lilian could
induce Ben to enter.

The fifth trailer was the most
mesmerizing. Two armed security guards stood on either side of the
entrance. The trailer’s walls were lined with red and white silk
tapestries, and on both sides were glass cabinets whose contents
gleamed like a thousand brilliant, multicolored stars against a
purple velvet sky.

The interior of the trailer
glowed.
Stones of every
color and cut in almost every conceivable configuration littered
the displays like gold doubloons spilling out from an overturned
pirate’s chest. Diamonds, rubies, sapphires, pearls, emeralds, and
stones Ben didn’t recognize, far larger than any he had seen in his
lifetime. Most were fashioned into rings, bracelets, necklaces, and
earrings, but some stones were loose and he thought the little man
at the table in the far corner was there to set them, if
needed.

“
This may take awhile,” said
Lilian, not unhappily. Ben checked his watch. It was almost
noon.

“
Do not hurry,” said Ridley.
“Whatever you do not need tonight can be provided to you tomorrow.
If you and Fiela can amuse yourselves here, I’d like to steal my
new nephew.”

“
Most assuredly,” Lilian said with
gravity. She kissed and released Ben and walked toward Fiela, who
was thumbing through a catalogue as an attendant doted over
her.

At the same moment a rotund man in
a three-piece suit with a well-oiled goatee and thinning hair
appeared, a clipboard in one hand. “Mr. Benzira?” he
inquired.

Ridley said, “This is your man,” patting Ben on the
back.

“
Very good. Sir, can you please
sign this form, stating that we have provided the services agreed
to?”

“
I’m sorry,” said Ben, taking the
clipboard, “but I didn’t catch your name.”

Looking anxious, the other man replied, “Mr. Fetch,
sir.”

“
Ah, of course it is.”

“
Ridley,” said
Ben, when they were alone and walking toward the hotel, “why do you
and some others call me
Benzira?
”

“‘
Benzira’ is an
ancient Nisirtu name with certain mystical connotations. Lilian
used it in lieu of Benjamin when notifying the other Houses of your
status as her husband-to-be, presumably because it was the closest
thing we have to
Ben
.
Ben
and
Benjamin
are Ardoon names and
Nisirtu consider them demeaning. I realize it doesn’t bother you,
but most Nisirtu you interact with will instinctively address you
by a respectable Nisirtu name rather than ‘insult’ you by
addressing you by your Ardoon name. Even I struggle with
this.”