17: SIR CHESTER

But that was all to unfold in the future. On the Fourth of June, St Croix and Marcano set sail for Marseilles and then trained northward to Paris. They had received a request to enlighten the Authentic on the workings of Constantinople.

“Jonathan, it is wonderful to see you again so soon. And you, Orlan, it is always interesting. I was disappointed to hear of your failure with the Russians. Well, I apologize. It was not your failure as much as that of the intransigent fools in St Petersburg. We are without any presence there, or not one of value. Last winter, there was a food riot and several attacks on merchants and the gentry. Three Devi were lost, and we have not been able to adequately employ new individuals with credentials to associate with those close to the throne. You two are exempt from consideration as you are now known entities there.”

“My Authentic, could it be that we stand back for this soon-to-be conflict and allow the fates to dictate the outcome?”

“Why, Marcano, do you think that would be a course of action? We have always observed war and wars from the field and given sway and influence. This is one of our traditions.”

“Begging your Grace’s pardon, the world as we know it is not the world we knew. Countries and kingdoms undergo less change; Monarchs live longer. The world is getting smaller with railways, and the seas are smaller with steam-powered iron ships. Telegraphs in countries like America spread news in minutes, not days. And even the breach between the new world and the old may soon be closed as I hear that interests in England and North America think that a cable for telegraphy could quickly be in place.

The world could be joined, and news and information could be shared momentarily, the length of a thought.

 It is more difficult for Devi to travel between locations. Perhaps, and I only say this as your servant, maybe the age of hiding we have had for so long to be ourselves is coming to a close. There are very few places like the land of the Ottomans where we still have universal safety; perhaps we should involve ourselves more in making nations than we already do?”

“Brave words, Orlan, brave words indeed. If this were 1200 or even 1500, I would have you flayed. What you said would be treasonous against who we are and, more importantly, what we are.

But I understand what you are saying. The times they are changing. I have seen this and felt it being exclaimed by others. Some, by some, I mean a few, have expressed similar sentiments. In the last century, we have seen the Standards change science, religion, thought and the world more than they did in the previous thousand years. We may need to change, and how that will happen and where it will lead. I do not know, but now is not the time.

I have seen much—perhaps too much—but I am not too old to keep our ways.

Perhaps in the next few years, I should call for a conclave of the Colettes to hear their opinions and views. Although I am the Authentic, I can listen. But that will be then and without any bother from you two.

As for you two, Orlan, I wish for you to go to goods in their southern states. We will provide you with the means. Jonathan, you desire I would gather to continue to England and reunite with your lovely wife, rescue her from her father, and return to Philadelphia. Europe may be at an age where she is tired. America is a nascent dream.”

If you two wish to stay the evening, I can have Isabel arrange your meal and set your accommodations.”

Both men agreed, and at the meal, they were joined by no one but their thoughts.

“Oh my God, my darling, I have missed you so much. I love you. It has been almost six months, and I think I have grown to love you more over your absence.”

“I love you too, my sweetheart; let us get you into the manor.”

Jonathan had forgotten how deceptive Harwood’s estate, ‘Elmvale’ was. It had a narrow profile, and trees flanked that facade. Behind those trees, two long wings ran away from the observer, and then, on the far end, the two wings joined again. It was like a long elongated “O.” It was very much unlike other manors and estates across England and Europe, which always present an imposing width.

“Jonathan, I am so glad you are here and have not been delayed. Further, Father’s health has taken a turn for the worse. He was out doing spring riding when the horse slipped, and he took a dreadful fall and rolled down an embankment into a small creek. Fortunately, he had a riding partner who could assist and return him to Elmvale.

He asked me to bring you to him as soon as you arrived. I believe he fears he does not have much time.”

Sir Chester lay in a massive canopied bed. The large posts were carved with cherubs, dragons, and birds, all intertwined in long leaves vines. The room itself was heavily draped in purple velvets and white silks. The floor recreated a Roman mosaic, and light entered the room through a massive stained glass window depicting scenes of knights slaying dragons and castles with jousting pageantries.

“St Croix, my son, I have always loved to sleep. I even believe that both sleep and dreams are the finest state a man can reach, so I have indulged myself in a sleeping chamber worthy of that highest of endeavours.

Come here, sit beside me. I have willed myself to remain on this Earth until I can speak to you again.”

“Yes, Sir Chester, I am here; do you have some wisdom to impart, or are you seeking an answer?”

“Questions, not one but a few. My daughter, your wife, Evelyn, has told me a lot about you and your kindness. As well as how the O.T.I.D. served you and how, in turn, you support us and our Earthly goals. I wish to know how and what you have granted my daughter. How it works and what she can expect.”

Jonathan recounted a brief commentary on the Devi's origins to his father-in-law. Then, he discussed being sustained in life by the emotional joys and grief of others.

“When a man dies, there is a power that both leaves the body and remains present. Some may think of this as a soul or as a form of life energy.

We can see this: a faint yellow or white glow. If someone is ill, that glow appears flickering. And when an individual dies, that energy fills the room and beyond.

This, we believe, is a life force that is not used. Using the Christian Bible as a guide, Psalms 90:10 says, ‘seventy years; and if because of strength, they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.’

 If a man is destined by fate, nature, or the grace of the gods to live to reach the age between 70 and 80, and illness, accident, or war cuts him down beforehand, that energy, those unlived years, must go somewhere, and it is we, the Devi who can use those years. If a man were to die in my arms at age fifty, I would, in all cases, gain a few of those years, but perhaps 7 or 9 or even up to twenty. And if I keep myself in good health and avoid accidents and war, I will live out those years. 

We do not seek the death of others, nor do we kill out of malice, spite or self-service. We can see life's energies and use the years that others lose.

The same is true for joy, but we use it differently. Joy heals us. It removes illness and plague from us. If Evelyn were to have a distemper or a fever, she would recover quickly if I brought her to a joyous event.”

“Well, young man, you will not gain any vigour from me when I pass. I have lived longer than my allotted time. But I thank you, in a way I cannot understand, for this unusual gift you gave my child.”

Within a week, Sir Chester passed. His death was attributed to consumption. His lungs and breathing were weakened by his fall from the horse into the cold waters, and then it spread to take over his body.

Having only one child, Evelyn, the estate passed into her name. Before returning to America after a brief grieving period, she, adhering to legal form, sold the estate to a purchaser. However, that was a ruse to cover her offering it to Devi, to be used as another waystation in Devi's cycling worldwide through the ages. 

The “purchaser” was the son of a Swedish business magnate in the shipping industry and his wife.