Chapter 21 “ Another Piece of the Puzzle
“Months? You didn’t talk for months. You’re mental, that’s what you are.” Peter stood, waving his hands and gesturing at the old man. “You said I could go home after you told me the story. I’m going home.”
“Peter, I haven’t finished the story, you are free to go anywhere you like in this world until the story is complete.”
Seeing that he was getting nowhere, Peter walked a few meters and sat on the grass, his back to the man. He did not know what to feel now, he was angry, he was scared, (though he did not want to admit it to himself,) he was beginning to feel lonely and concerned for Percy. Most of all, however, Peter was intrigued by the man who he had just met a few minutes ago and said that it was really months. His father used to tell him, when he became angry, “count to ten, slowly, when you finish the anger will be gone.” The advice seemed silly but Peter was willing to try anything.
Ten seconds later Peter was no longer angry, but he was still scared and lonely. Don’t have a cure for those, do you, dad? Eventually Peter calmed himself and wondered if he had just lost another few months of his life. He stood and looked at the old man. “What’s the date?”
“December 3rd. Would you care to hear more of my story now?”
“Why does time pass faster here?”
“Time passes at the rate needed.”
“What do you mean by that?” Peter spat back, again, becoming annoyed with the man.
“Peter, where do you think you are?”
“Percy said I was in his memory.”
The old man rose and walked toward Peter. He could have been any old man on the street, but there were no streets and no other people. “Peter, you are in more than a memory, you are in my world.”
“Yeah, you said that, but it looks like my world. Those rocks over there, I’ve seen them lots of times. Are you sure I’m not dead or in a dream?”
Smiling, the old man motioned to the ground at Peter’s feet. “Peter, you are not dead, you are in my world and you are certainly not in a dream. Please sit and listen to my story, it may help you understand.”
Remaining seated, Peter continued questioning the man called “Merlin.” “If I’ve been here for months, why didn’t I get hungry or have to pee or see the sun rise and set a bunch of times?”
“You are thinking in terms of your world, Peter. It may look like yours, but it is very different. Please, sit and listen. You asked to hear the story.”
Peter looked at the man, just two meters away. He really did not have any choices that he could see, but he did not want to just give up. He tried one more time to bargain with the old man.
“Ok, I’ll listen to your bloody story, but does it have to take so long? I don’t want to spend my life here.”
“Peter, sit. The story will take as long as it takes. When it is finished you will understand.”
Peter glared at the old man, but finally resigned himself. “Well, get started.”
“Good. Now, listen.”
“I had been in this land for forty-two years and seen the Romans invade, but they didn’t stay. I talked with many of the soldiers that the people here captured and they told me of the ways of Rome. I remember having visited the city many years before, but now it sounded like so much more and I resolved to travel one last time. Over the next three years I wandered through Gaul, seeing the advancements the Romans had brought with them and I marveled at their resourcefulness. When I eventually arrived in Rome I found a magnificent city, one like no other. I spoke with the citizens and slaves to find out all I could about the empire. The Roman emperor Tiberius Claudius Nero had been in power for a number of years and I learned that the Romans had taken over my old land of Egypt. I thought seeing my homeland one more time might be nice so I set out. My trip went quickly; the roads and protection the empire provided were nothing like any other empire I had seen.”
“When I reached Egypt I saw that the Romans had done nothing more than paint a corpse. The living conditions were almost as bad as they had been four thousand years earlier. Some of the larger cities enjoyed improvements but otherwise the empire was bleeding the country to death. I discontinued my journey to the south and left as quickly as I could, heartbroken.”
“A few weeks later I arrived in the city of Jerusalem, one of the few cities in the area that I had never visited. The Romans had occupied the area and the indigenous people, known as Jews, were being harshly oppressed. Still looking young I was able to fit in well with the squalid masses that flowed in and out of the city each day. I became familiar with a few of the outlying towns and found the spirit of these Jews refreshing. I decided to remain for a while and learn about their history and their unique religion.”
“Monotheism was unheard of in every place I had visited, but in the land of the Jews it had been practiced for centuries. I was impressed with the awe and respect the people had for their God and I enjoyed learning about their prophets. The stories amazed me and I found here something I had never found in all my journeys: true faith. Though subjugated by the harsh Romans, the people believed that their God would send a savior, or messiah, as they called him, to free the people and rule over the earth.”
“I ended up spending a number of years in or near Jerusalem but eventually had to leave, again due to my never changing appearance. Before my departure I was determined to see if the rumors about this messiah were true; there had been more talk among the Jews recently of his appearance. I mentioned this to one of my friends in the palace and he laughed. Walking me over to a local temple, pushing aside the protesting priests, he showed me a number of scrolls saying that each one had proclaimed a ‘messiah.’ I understood his skepticism but resolved to meet this man, the latest messiah, before leaving the area. My only problem was how to find him.”
“Weeks went by as I traveled into the nearby towns and listened for word of the man. Finally, I heard a small group of men speaking about ‘Joshua’s miracles’ and I lingered to hear more. The excitement with which these men spoke of Joshua reminded me of many Jewish stories dealing with their ancient heroes. Following the group, which soon turned into a small crowd, I detected many levels of belief in this man, Joshua. As we walked through the village, other men, women, and children joined that initial small knot of men who were going to meet the miracle worker outside of the village.”
“I was becoming excited by the possibility of meeting this Joshua who could attract so many people so easily; I recall wishing that I might be able to do the same some day. Not paying careful attention to where I was walking, as I thought about meeting Joshua, I ran into the back of one of the young men I first saw in the village. He tried to send me away but a voice stopped the man.”
“I can’t explain what it was about Joshua’s voice that startled me most, that first time I heard it; his sincerity or the way his voice touched my soul. As the man moved away, allowing me to approach Joshua along with the other children, I felt something I had never felt before: belonging. Over the course of the past four millennia I had experiences a range of emotions, but never the feeling that I belonged with someone. As Joshua spoke with the other children “ there were about fifteen or twenty “ I could tell that they gained strength from each other. Standing behind the other children I hoped to observe this ‘Messiah’ but not interact with him. If I were honest with my feelings I would have to say that I was worried he would see something in me that would change my life. How? I had no idea.”
“When Joshua finished speaking with the children and some of their parents he stood up to leave; I did not expect him to notice me, though I should have. He turned and stared at me; and he knew me. The eyes of this man singled me out, for just a few seconds, but I had no explanation for this. I had sensed others in my own experiences with people, but never in return. When he turned away I was left with two distinct impressions upon my mind. The first was that this man was indeed the Jew’s Messiah. I could not explain this for He had none of the mannerisms of a great warrior, but I KNEW it.”
“The second realization was far more disturbing and required me to do a good amount of self-discovery to understand it. Joshua knew not only who I was, he knew what I was.”
“Since my earliest recollections, four thousand years ago, I knew only that I was different from those around me. I bled when cut; I cried when hurt; I ran when afraid; but I never changed from the child’s body in which I dwelt. Joshua had, in the instant we met, given me an answer I would never have found on my own. He also gave me something in that revelation that shook me deeply. By showing me what I was, he had shown me what I was not.”
“My place in the world in which I found myself was not an act of God, neither was it an act of the evil one whom the Jews called Satan. I was of the earth, created by nature, and as such I was bound to my place of origin or risk evaporating into eternity like a drop of water spilt from a jug on parched soil. I had powers others had not, but these powers had to conform to the laws of the universe. I was not a god and I was certainly not God. I could not create life, but as I later learned, I could change life.”
“I tested this the next day, as I was running from what Joshua had shown me. I passed a dead donkey on the side of the road and commanded it to come back to life. Nothing happened. Surely a being with as much power as I could bring back a simple mule, but it was not so. I had heard of the story of Joshua bringing his dead friend to life; I wanted to be able to do that but I could not.”
“I ran for two days until I reached the Middle Sea. Stopping and forcing myself to think had never been easy to me. My mind would never be still and the lack of control frightened me; but I had to think. For many days I sat near the sea thinking of Joshua and out brief encounter. By the sixth day I found something wonderful had happened to me. The voices in my head and the barrage of thoughts that assaulted me endlessly had stopped. In an instant I realized that the four thousand years in which I had been conscious were nothing but waste and rubble under my feet. Even my powers, which I had seldom used, no longer seemed important. All that mattered now was the answers that Joshua provided and the peace it gave my mind.”
“Another part of myself that I had to deal with, as I came to follow the ways of Joshua, was: How could I use my powers to help Him? Was I expected to, as I had heard him teach, leave everything to follow him? Surely, as a unique creature, I was expected to do more with my powers rather than less. So I resolved to return to the Jerusalem area, find Joshua, and ask him what I could do with him. If he needed weapons, I could provide them. If he needed soldiers, I could draw them in. If he needed to confuse the enemy, I had many ways to do that. The idea of fighting for something good had consumed me and I soon envisioned myself as Joshua’s lieutenant. I stayed near the shore for a few more days, planning and practicing the skills I might need in battle, but it was difficult for a person of my size to wield a sword. I had to find other ways to fight for Joshua.”
“I left the coast thirteen days after arriving. The trip back to Jerusalem was interesting, and I passed many people talking about Joshua and his miracles. On the second night of my journey I stopped at an inn for shelter against the cold. While at dinner, I heard two men talking about Joshua; he was dead, killed by the same Jews that had loved him so much. I was devastated, my entire plan for working with Joshua was gone and I had no idea what I should do.”
Merlin stopped here and took a drink of water from a bladder he carried over his shoulder, then offered one to Peter. Accepting hesitantly, Peter took a drink and asked, “Did you REALLY meet Jesus?”
“Yes, Peter, but his name translated to Joshua at the time.”
“Did you see him again?”
“Yes. A few days later I reached Jerusalem and started asking about the man Joshua. I eventually came across another group of people who seemed to know him. Speaking with them I learned that Joshua had come back to life, so I went to search for him. After another week of searching I gave up and left the city; that is when I saw him again.”
“To this day I’m not certain if I had seen him as a dream or as a real person. However, I do remember him approaching me and standing a few meters away. This is what I recall of the conversation:”
“Joshua?”
”Yes, my brother.”
“Are you the ‘Messiah,’ the one to set the Jews free?”
“Yes, I am.”
“What should I do now? I was going to go to battle with you.”
“My place on earth was never to fight wars, it was to change the hearts of those who would listen to me. Have I succeeded with you?”
“I knew and I sensed and I felt he had asked this question with full knowledge of my answer. When I told Him ‘Yes’ He looked into my soul again and I felt ashamed. He knew I wanted to fight, not to bring peace.”
“You can’t change the world by force, you must live a life that shows by example. You are unique in my Father’s creation, therefore much more is expected of you. The power that each person has, including you, must be pointed in the correct direction or it is wasted.”
“I had so many questions to ask him, but I was speechless, and as soon as he finished speaking he vanished. I have not, since that day, seen Joshua; all I had were a few comments and one conversation to remember him by. With a feeling of abandonment I started out on my trip home, hoping I would some day understand the meaning of his words.”
“Peter, this part of my life, everything you have heard me talk about was recorded in this book.” Merlin pointed to a book in his hand, the same one Percy had pointed out to him a few days (months?) ago.
“You were so committed to Jesus, I mean Joshua. Why did you change?”
“That is coming up next, Peter. It was a long and complicated story to put in writing. But I finally managed to give it a fair description. For now, to answer your next question, it is January 14, 1999 in your world, and I believe someone is looking for you.”
Merlin pointed to a spot behind Peter. Jumping up, hoping to see Percy, Peter was disappointed to see that it was another man, older and with a severe scowl on his face.