Gene of Isis

Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise, And apply thine heart unto my knowledge.

Molier began quoting from the Proverbs of Solomon in an attempt to strengthen his courage and make the decision we all knew he wanted to. Still, his hand was poised before the great ring of power and he had to exercise restraint not to take it.

Remove not the old landmark; And enter not into the fields of the Fatherless.

His fingers recoiled from the temptation.

Better is little with the fear of the Lord, Than great treasure and trouble therewith.

Molier looked to Albray resolutely and held wide his arms.

Albray nodded to assure Molier that his decision was sound.

For riches certainly make themselves wings; They fly away as an eagle toward Heaven.

As my knight completed the verse, Molier allowed himself to plummet backwards into the flaming liquid and his life was extinguished in an instant.

My attention was snatched from the gruesome scene by a throbbing pain in my chest. I placed my hands to my heart to calm my intense emotions. On discovering my shirt was moist and sticky, I looked to find my hands covered in blood. ‘I am dying?’ With that revelation the ground rushed up to meet me.

‘Miss Montrose?’ I heard a voice calling to me, although it sounded far away.

I was so peaceful. I wanted for nothing as I held no conscious thought—except to ignore the summons.

‘Mia!’ I was being shaken from my focused-inward bliss and, despite my unwillingness to wake, I recognised the voice calling me. A sharp pang of yearning in my heart spurred me to surface from the sanctuary of my unconscious state.

As I stretched out, I became aware that I was propped up in a seated position against someone and my eyes came to focus on the face of my knight.

‘Albray.’ I turned toward him and held him close. ‘I have died and gone to heaven.’

‘No.’ He pried me from his body and holding my face in his hands he brushed my hair aside and kissed me.

Perhaps this was just a brief interlude on the astral plane, while my fate was being decided. I didn’t care, as long as it lasted.

It took some time for me to exhaust my delight in having my dream lover close and tangible, but as this reality didn’t seem to be going anywhere, I drew away. My hands and shirt were still blood-spattered, but my wounds were mysteriously absent. ‘This is a dream. You have come to say goodbye.’ My heart jumped into my throat and the swelling pressure it caused nearly choked me. ‘You are free.’ I forced a smile, only to set tears rolling down my face.

‘Yes I am,’ he confirmed, ‘but I rather thought I might hang around for a while.’

I shook my head. ‘You’ve done your time as a guardian spirit and although I shall miss you every time I sleep, I cannot condemn you to that purgatory any longer. You must move on,’ I urged, bravely denying my own feelings on the matter.

The look on Albray’s face was not gratitude or regret, but a rather odd look that I didn’t know how to intepret. ‘Well, if that is what you want.’ He sat me up, placed the two vials in my hands and stood to depart. ‘I was rather hoping that you would show me the ropes of living in the twenty-first century, but if you have other plans then I guess…’ He shrugged and then waved to me as he moved toward the exit tunnel.

The vials. I looked to the items in my hand, then to the dark chamber around me. The door to the Ark chamber was closed. I stood up and noted the flat sack lying nearby; the bones were no longer in it. Albray used the Star substance on me! It had miraculously healed before, and that was why my wounds had vanished. My consciousness hadn’t shifted to Albray’s realm of existence, his consciousness had somehow returned to mine! ‘The goddess,’ I uttered under my breath and an inner voice told me: I am only complying with the wishes of all involved.

Albray heard me running after him. He turned to catch me as I overpowered him with a hug. ‘I suppose, as I did draw you into this era, the least I can do is make you feel at home.’

‘I have never had a home before.’ Albray considered the notion, well disposed toward the concept. ‘You make me feel like I have finally found one.’

For the first time we kissed and there was no urgency attached—no time, dimension or alternative existence waiting to pry us apart.

‘Mia!’

The sound of Andre’s voice sent shockwaves through my system. I had forgotten about Molier’s three partners in crime.

‘What the hell is going on?’ he asked as he was accompanied down the path into the Star-Fire Temple at the tip of Akbar’s sword. They both looked badly beaten about and rather the worse for wear.

‘Thank heavens you’re all right.’ I conveyed my relief to the Arab. The Frenchman was not happy about this development.

‘You’re on his side!’ Andre protested, genuinely surprised. ‘What about me?’

I was about to tell Andre exactly what I thought of him, when it clicked that his subtle body was quite free of darkness.

‘He doesn’t remember a thing,’ Akbar advised. ‘Neither do the other two.’ He motioned with his head back toward the daylight, where Tusca and Conally were being held by other members of the Melchi brotherhood. ‘We had a little trouble bringing them under control, but then all three lost consciousness.’ Akbar shrugged.