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Back to Chapter 35
Chapter 36 - A summer of Public Penance
Jason and Cecilia spent their first summer in Upper Danubia with their
days divided between learning the Danubian language, their household
duties, and relaxing. The first priority, of course, was learning how to
communicate in a city where very few people spoke English. The daily
routine included six hours of intensive language instruction that
started at 9:00 and ended at 4:00 with an hour for lunch. As the summer
progressed, the couple realized that Prime Minister Dukov had enlisted
the best language instructors in the country to pursue a single goal: to
try to have them ready to attend university classes in the fall. They
wrote endless exercises, memorized lists of words, were put through
conversation drills, and studied grammar. They read everything ranging
from children�s stories to simple newspaper articles, in addition to
their preparing exercises and doing endless speech drills.
By the end of August they had a working knowledge of Danubian, although
they knew that taking regular classes at the university level still
would be a struggle. Cecilia actually found herself at a slight
advantage over Jason because she was bilingual. Her mind, already
accustomed to the differences between Spanish and English, was able to
grasp some of the grammatical concepts of Danubian faster than Jason. As
for reading and writing, they seemed to progress about the same, but by
the middle of the summer, Cecilia was slightly better at conversing in
Danubian than was Jason.
During that first summer there was much more to their lives than
language classes during the day and the Socrates Club during the
evenings. Their activities included traveling and getting into better
physical shape.
Sightseeing in the provinces surrounding Danube City became an important
part of the adjustment to life in Upper Danubia and vital for relieving
the intense stress from the couple�s other responsibilities. They began
traveling around Upper Danubia on the weekends with Cynthia Lee and her
boyfriend. They made it as far east as Rika Chorna and spent two very
pleasant weekends at the famous reservoir. They even went hiking in the
mountains overlooking the lake, exploring the thick forests that had
been the object of so many corporate ambitions over the past several
years.
All of their explorations over that summer were in the nude. While
traveling they obtained a permit from the Temple to wear orange courier
shoes at railroad stations and wear hiking boots when in the forests.
However, shoes, shampoo, toothbrushes, small towels, and cameras were
the only items they took with them on their trips. As long as they wore
collars, Jason and Cecilia had to comply with their vow not to cover
their bodies, so they traveled completely naked. Very quickly their
inhibitions vanished, and to them it felt like the most natural thing in
the world to jump on a train wearing nothing but a pair of shoes and
jump off an hour or so later to explore a new town.
Exercising became a regular part of their routine, because they were
officially enrolled as students in the university and subject to
participating in the institution�s fitness program. Each morning before
seeing their language instructors they had to perform rigorous
calisthenics and run 5 kilometers in groups that were segregated by sex.
The exercise program was the one time each day that Jason and Cecilia�s
nudity did not set them apart from anyone else, because at the
university, gymnastics classes meant just that, exercising in the nude.
Along with swimsuits, most athletic clothing was prohibited, the only
exception being clothing specifically designed to prevent injury. The
only items the students wore during their fitness sessions were track
shoes during the runs. A few of the larger-breasted women were permitted
to wear sports bras while running, but to do so they had to obtain a
doctor�s waiver. As soon as the daily run ended the bras had to be taken
off immediately.
Rigorous exercising was nothing new to Jason, who was used to keeping
fit. He loved the runs, because running nude on a regular basis had been
a lifelong dream for him and finally he was living that dream. His
ability caught the attention of his fitness instructor, and soon he
found himself committed to joining the North Danube City track team and
practicing to run for inter-provincial marathons to be held in the fall.
Towards the end of the summer he began practicing with the track team
instead of the regular fitness group, which opened up new friendships
with Danubians who were athletes instead of people who either were
criminals or associated with the Lee sisters. The old self-confidence
Jason enjoyed when competing in high school came back to him after a
two-year absence. As he prepared to compete in long distance running,
his thoughts began to move past the trial, his parents� deaths, and the
tumultuous events that brought him to the country.
In contrast, for Cecilia running five kilometers was a struggle. For
several weeks she always trailed the other naked, sweaty, college-age
women of her group. When she started out she despaired over ever
improving, but slowly she did get better over time. She was fortunate
that Tiffany and Cynthia were part of her group and gave her
encouragement. Cynthia began the summer somewhat overweight, so in the
beginning she ran at the rear of the group with Cecilia. However, within
a couple of weeks constant physical activity put Kim�s sister in much
better shape, which in turn allowed her to improve on the runs.
Once Cynthia improved with her running and could stay with the main
group, Tiffany�s encouragement became even more important to Cecilia. If
Tiffany noticed Cecilia falling behind the others, she dropped back to
run alongside her fellow American. Once that happened, Cecilia knew she
had to catch up to the others very quickly. If she didn�t, Tiffany
started landing hard slaps on her bare bottom to make her pick up her
pace. As strange as it seemed, Tiffany was actually doing Cecilia a
favor by spanking her if she ran too slowly. It was customary at the
university that during a group run, the slowest member of the class was
subject to discipline from the instructor. By running with her, Tiffany
spared Cecilia the indignity of having her bottom smacked by the fitness
teacher. However, by the end of August Cecilia was running as well as
the other women in the group and no longer faced the threat of in-class
discipline.
Another improvement in Cecilia�s life was that, at age 20, she finally
began to enjoy swimming. It was in the pool at the National University
where Cecilia finally learned how to swim properly. With Jason still
watching over her, Cecilia began swimming more and more on her own and
learning various strokes. By the end of August she no longer needed
Jason�s help and could even go under water for short distances.
Cecilia�s ability to swim meant she and her partner could go to the
river with their friends and swim at the beach just like anyone else.
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There was a big surprise waiting for Cynthia Lee at the end of August.
Just two days before classes were due to start, Cynthia and Kim went to
the Temple with Tiffany and several members of Kim�s band. Upon seeing
her, the Priest who had collared Cindy immediately approached her and
took her outside. He prayed and then talked to her at length about her
Path in Life. When the interview ended he told her that she needed to
conclude her public penance. He unlocked her collar and handed her a
prayer robe. Her face still reflecting surprise and bewilderment, she
quietly got dressed and returned to the main chamber of the Temple as a
normal citizen.
When she returned to her sister�s house that evening, she found out why
her penance had ended. There was a letter from the National University
offering Cynthia a position of Academic Apprentice, which was the
Danubian equivalent of a non-tenured instructor. She had not finished
her doctorate, but her knowledge of the United States and its political
system far surpassed that of anyone else in Danube City. While she
finished researching the relationship between the Danubian government
and Mega-Town Associates for her dissertation, the university wanted her
to teach undergraduates about U.S. political history and social
development. It was an opportunity for Danubian students to find out
about the United States from an American who had proven herself
intellectually and was well-respected by everyone in the capitol. She
knew more about the U.S. than anyone else in Danube City, so it made
sense for the university to put her knowledge to good use in the
classroom.
It had been the rector of the university who contacted Cynthia�s Priest
and asked him to end her penance so she could accept her new position.
The job offer was the sign from the Ancients that both she and the
Priest had been waiting for. The path of her life had been determined by
the Ancients and they had spoken to her. She was destined to be an
instructor at the National University in Danube City and was on her way
to becoming a Professor in full standing.
The following week Cynthia Lee�s life changed dramatically. Like her
sister, she started braiding her hair to better fit in, one detail out
of several that reflected the change in her appearance and her outlook
on life. She assumed the formal title of �Apprentice� when sworn in at
the university. To her students she had become a Danubian Public
Official. They had to address her as Apprentice Lee in class, and any
collared criminals among them had to kneel when speaking to her.
Like her younger sister, Cynthia Lee�s Path in Life was to become a full
member of Danubian society. That path was confirmed by another event
towards the end of September. Her boyfriend concluded his public penance
the day after the Day of the Dead Ceremonies and left the Temple wearing
a prayer robe. The following evening he proposed to her. From that point
forward Cynthia Lee wore her engagement jewelry whenever she appeared in
public.
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September started without any sign that Jason and Cecilia should end
their public penance. As a result when classes began, they remained
collared and restricted from wearing any clothing. The fall semester
started and the two Americans, along with fellow American Tiffany
Walker, went to the university completely uncovered. It became apparent
that the earliest the couple might take off their collars would be
towards the end of September, after the Fall Equinox and the Day of the
Dead ceremony. It was obvious that they would have to participate in the
march along with Tiffany.
At first their situation made them feel very uneasy, but there were some
big advantages to living without any clothing. They discovered that
their lives were simplified in many ways, because in the mornings there
was nothing they needed to do to get ready to go out apart from brushing
their teeth. There was no getting dressed, and for Cecilia, no putting
on any makeup. The only permitted concession to vanity was their hair.
During the weekends the only item they had to wash was their bed sheets,
so their nude lifestyle eliminated one time consuming task in life,
having to keep a bunch of clothing clean.
When classes started in the fall Cecilia decided to take a semester of
first-year economics classes. She calculated that she already had
learned most of the course material from Ruth Burnside. However, she
reasoned that by studying concepts she already had learned in English,
she could much more quickly become proficient in the Danubian language
and learn the vocabulary of her field. After the first semester she
could by-pass the second year courses and go straight to third-year
classes, but she needed to know how to speak and conduct research in
Danubian before making such a leap.
Jason, on the other hand, simply enrolled in a mixture of classes that
came closest to what he would have had to take during his sophomore year
had he stayed in Chicago. His strategy differed from Cecilia�s. While
she would drop her language tutoring and concentrate on learning
vocabulary in class, he would keep language tutoring and get outside
help on a daily basis. On top of the formal tutoring, he could rely on
help from Tiffany Walker because he shared two classes with her.
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The first weeks of September passed uneventfully as Cecilia and Jason
struggled with a full load of classes in a difficult foreign language.
Both were drawn into informal study groups of Danubian students and both
faced the harsh pressure of being held accountable to their peers.
During the first month of classes the reality of Danubian social values
dominated the lives of Jason and Cecilia. The country may have been
grateful over what they had done to save the government, but the way
that gratitude was expressed was for their peers to accept them as
equals, no better and no worse than anyone else. Their classmates and
professors did not grant them any special treatment apart from trying to
make sure that they understood what was needed from them. The Danubians
were convinced they would be rewarded for what they had done, but
whatever reward they were due would come from the Creator in the
Afterlife. In the meantime, life had to be lived day-to-day and it was
the obligation of the two Americans to work hard and make themselves
useful within the society. It was for that reason, in spite of her
notoriety, that Cecilia�s fitness instructor had shown her no sympathy
as she struggled to keep up with the other women in her running group.
For Jason the pressure was nothing new, because it was very similar to
what Cecilia had put him through the previous year. He actually was
very happy, enjoying his study group and his new friendships with the
fellow runners in the North Danube City Track Team. He worked hard
during the day and treasured the hour or so he could spend with Cecilia
each night.
As the semester began Cecilia struggled to come to terms with her
situation. She had to humble herself somewhat, because she no longer was
an RA in charge of a floor full of freshmen and no longer in charge of
Jason�s studies. He still struggled in his classes, but now it was up to
his Danubian classmates, not her, to push him to succeed. Cecilia found
herself drawn into study groups of her own and pressured by Danubian
women to perform well. Tiffany Walker was a member of one of Cecilia�s
groups, and put pressure onto her to do well in her studies. Cecilia
actually found herself taking directions from Tiffany, because her lack
of experience and limited language ability made her dependent on her
housemate.
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During the days leading up to the autumn equinox and the Day of the
Dead, the country began its preparations for the most important holiday
of the year. The 36-hour vigil was celebrated with special foods and
recipes, all of which were red to represent blood, or black to represent
death. Nearly every stove in every kitchen was occupied by pots of
boiling blackberries, which would be used to make the special blood-red
punch and other unique foods that were mandatory for the ceremonies.
Other recipes included a type of fruitcake that was dark red on the
inside and covered with blackberry frosting, dark-red tomato stew, and
plates of black noodles in red sauce.
Before the cooking began, any cooking utensils to be used in food
preparation had to be blessed. Two days before the ceremonies, Cecilia
and Tiffany lugged several pots to a nearby Temple along with hundreds
of their neighbors for the official permission to use the utensils as
part of the preparation. Once the pots were blessed (something Cecilia
thought was rather stupid), they returned to Victor Dukov�s house to
help with cooking. Cecilia�s stomach turned upon seeing the black
noodles, especially after they were covered with blood-red sauce.
In the middle of the afternoon before the first night, Tiffany led Jason
and Cecilia to the Plaza of the Ancients. Because all three were wearing
collars, they would be participating in a two-day march around the
capitol. Waiting for them in the Plaza was a fourth member of their
group, Vladik Dukov. Vladik was standing out in the open as naked as
anyone else in the Plaza, wearing a Temple collar so he could march
alongside his fianc�.
Cecilia already was familiar with the importance of the march, having
read about it when she was helping Kim with her band�s website. How
strange�she had read so much about this ceremony, and now here she was,
right in the middle of it, standing naked in the open air and about to
be covered in body paint just like 2,400 others. Just like any Danubian
criminal, she and Jason would spend two nights walking along silent
country roads as part of the yearly national quest for atonement.
The group went through a Temple assembly line set up in the Plaza, first
getting covered in white body paint, then getting painted with black
highlights. They received their torches and shoulder slings, and finally
were given instructions how to carry the torches safely and minimize the
strain on their arms. As the sun went down there was a rather lengthy
worship service in the Plaza. When the service was over it was dark.
Completely dark. There was not a single light illuminating Danube City,
because all electrical power had been shut off. Nothing, with the sole
exception of the Emergency Services at the National Hospital, was
operating. The silence of Death had descended over the entire country.
The marchers slowly moved out of the Plaza, in single file towards the
river. Vladik moved in front of Tiffany, who was followed by Jason and
finally Cecilia. For the next two nights the only thing any of them
would see would be the painted backside of the person in front, and the
long line of flames extending out in either direction as far as the eye
could see. Everything else was pitch black.
As they moved inland away from the water, the only reality in the lives
of the marchers was what they could see: the line of fiery dots
stretching off into the distance and the illuminated back of the marcher
in front. As they moved through the darkness, everything else from the
world seemed to disappear from existence. They moved in a trance, through
a world of dreams and spirits, through the darkness of an Underworld
that suddenly seemed all too real. The throngs of kneeling worshipers
along the sides of the roads, reduced to shapeless black figures by
their prayer robes and barely visible in the darkness, seemed only to
add to the feeling that the marchers had left Earth and now were moving
through the Underworld of the Dead.
Every two hours there were breaks, as the marchers stopped to drink
blackberry punch, go to the bathroom, and exchange their spent torches
for new ones. Vladik dribbled some of the punch down his painted chest
to make it look like it was covered in blood. He then dribbled some more
punch on his three companions, adding to their already ghoulish
appearance. The breaks were very short, just enough to recharge for the
next portion of the march. It was as though the marchers were surfacing
from the Underworld, only very briefly, before plunging down even
deeper.
They couldn�t have explained why, but after each break Cecilia and Jason
were becoming ever more apprehensive as they plunged back into the
darkness. Soon they even forgot about their physical sensations as their
only reality became the line of lights they had to follow. They had the
feeling that if they got separated from the trail, they would be forever
lost in darkness and despair.
Both of them breathed a huge sigh of relief when they noticed the sky
lightening in the east. They approached the campground where they would
get a meal and sleep during the day as the torches from the second group
of marchers became visible in the distance. The marchers had resurfaced
from the darkness, hugely relieved to be back on Earth and blessed by
the sun. They ate some black noodles and hot stew, went to the latrine,
and collapsed on cots set up under several large Army tents. The
marchers were exhausted and most of them went to sleep immediately.
Jason briefly slept, but woke up after just a couple of hours. He got up
quietly to not disturb his companions and worked his way through the
rows of cots to get to the exit. He stepped outside. The day was dreary
and overcast, but there was a hint the sky might clear up before sunset.
Jason wandered around the silent tents for a few minutes. Then he
noticed the Priestess who had collared Cecilia, the one member of the
Danubian Clergy who spoke some English.
He approached her. She looked hard at him, for a moment not recognizing
him because of his body paint. Then she realized that standing in front
of her was Jason Schmidt, the unlikely hero of the coup and the
boyfriend of the young woman she had collared at the beginning of the
summer. Jason was not sure what to do. He needed to talk�talk to someone
about the weird feeling he had experienced during the first night�s
march. The Priestess, astute at reading other people�s emotions, picked
up on the needs of the young man standing in front of her.
�You want say me?�
�Uh�yes�I kinda want to talk��
�We talk, yes. You kneel, I salute, and we talk.�
Jason went to his knees and touched his head to the ground. The
Priestess told him to get up and she saluted him. He saluted back, in
the ancient exchange between a member of the Danubian Clergy and an
average citizen. Slowly, very haltingly, he talked about what had
happened during the march and his strange feeling of anxiety. He began
to ramble, but the Priestess cut him off.
�So, you afraid. No?�
�I guess�kinda��
�You no guess, Jason Schmidt. You say me if you afraid.�
�Yes. I got scared last night. And Cecilia did too.�
�So you scared. Why you scared?�
�I don�t know. Maybe �cause�you know, it kinda felt like we weren�t
here..like we were somewhere else. It just didn�t feel right��
The Priestess thought about Jason�s statement for a moment.
�Maybe you say me truth, Jason Schmidt. Maybe you no here. Maybe you
some other place.�
The Priestess told him to stick out his hands. When he complied, she
grabbed them, held them very tightly, and closed her eyes. Not knowing
what else to do, Jason closed his eyes as well. Jason felt the
Priestess�s hands shake as they continued to hold his in a painful
vice-like grip. Then she said �Doc-doc� and released him. Jason opened
and closed his hands to restore the circulation, surprised that a woman
could have squeezed them so hard. The Priestess then looked him hard in
the eye.
�You say me truth. Last night you afraid.�
�Yes, Priestess. I just told you that. I wasn�t lying.�
�Tonight you more afraid. Tonight you see truth. You see truth, and you
find me in Temple tomorrow.�
�But��
�No �but�, Jason Schmidt. Tonight you scared. Tomorrow you see me.�
The Priestess abruptly turned away; making it very clear she had nothing
more to say to him. He was not reassured in the least. If what she was
saying was true, a very unpleasant night awaited him. He returned to his
cot, glanced at Cecilia�s sleeping body, and lay down. For a while his
eyes watched the tent�s canvas as it slowly moved with the wind, but
finally managed to fall asleep.
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A few hours later a Priest woke everyone up with a shrill whistle. The
sun was low in the horizon and there was a lot for the marchers to take
care of in the next two hours. They had to drink, go to the bathroom,
get their body paint touched up, and finally attend a worship service
before collecting their torches and setting out. Jason reluctantly took
his torch, glancing with increasing anxiety at the ever-darkening sky
and the black ribbon of road that led back into Danube City. Tonight you
more scared, Jason Schmidt. Tonight you more scared.
The darkness descended on him as ominous feelings surged through his
body. Perhaps he was just imagining things, but he thought could
actually feel the dead entering and leaving his body. It was at that
point that he began having visions. The first he had was not frightening
at all. It simply was an image of Cecilia, standing in an American-style
kitchen, cooking a pot of rice and beans. She was somewhat older, her
face thin and lines beginning around her eyes and mouth. The beginnings
of gray already were forming in her jet-black hair, which was cut much
shorter. The vision ended when Cecilia turned around, smiled at him, and
handed him a plate. There was a final detail he noticed before the
vision faded to blackness, that she was wearing a Danubian engagement
necklace. Jason realized he had seen a moment from his own future, a
future he was destined to share with her.
The marchers stopped for their first break, two hours after walking
through the throngs of silent worshipers. With a new torch and his
stomach full of blackberry punch, Jason descended into the darkness
again. His mental wanderings took him through the lives of his parents
and the slow deterioration of their marriage over the years. His
thoughts jumped back and forth through time as he saw his parents�
house, first for sale and unoccupied when they first bought it, then for
sale and unoccupied as it sat following his parents� deaths. He saw his
father as he worked in his office and his mother at the country club. He
saw Amanda Galloway�s face morph into the face of Heather Jones, and
then the face of Heather Jones morph into a crushed skull. He relived
the accident that killed her, seeing it in intimate detail from the
perspective of someone watching from the outside. Then he saw himself,
scrubbing toilets in the state hospital while several mental patients
stared at him.
The visions continued as Jason saw the world from the perspective of
Cassie�s boyfriend. The world swirled around in a pot and
ecstasy-induced stupor. He listened to his father�s insults and
experienced the breakdown that led to the final drug-induced rage in
May. He watched his mother blow-drying her hair in the bathroom and the
horrified expression on her face just before her head blew apart. Then
he exchanged places with his father, lying helpless but still defiant in
the last moment of his life.
His mind then shifted to the world from Cassie�s point of view. He saw
in vivid detail her boyfriend�s body tumbling down the stairs and the
horror of his mangled face. He relived her flight to the neighbor�s
house, and watched her crouch in terror in her neighbors� bedroom as the
shotgun went off downstairs. He watched as the street filled with police
cars, ambulances, and reporters. He watched as his sister came
completely undone, as horror and panic took over and she began screaming
incoherently. Finally, he saw her in the state hospital, in a catatonic
state curled up under a table, with the psychiatrists and his
grandmother trying to coax her out. His grandmother was holding an old
stuffed rabbit, Cassie�s favorite toy when she was little.
�I brought Bee-Bop, Cassie. I brought him, just for you. Don�t you want
to come out and hold Bee-Bop? You can come out, Cassie, no one�s gonna
hurt you��
There was a final vision, of Cassie sitting curled up in an armchair in
the guestroom of his grandmother�s condominium. The curtains were closed
and the room was dark. In the darkness Cassie was holding Bee-Bop the
rabbit.
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That night Cecilia experienced three visions. The first was of Jason.
She was cooking dinner in her kitchen, an old Dominican recipe of rice
and beans. She had endured several years of life in college without rice
and beans, but now that she had her own kitchen, she would cook rice and
beans, whether Jason and the kids liked it or not. Fortunately Jason was
flexible when it came to food, so he gladly took the plate she had given
him. He was somewhat older, but very wiry because he had not given up
running. Even now he was still running marathons so he always had a
healthy appetite. As for the kids, well�maybe they wanted junk food, but
that wasn�t going to happen. Jason was even more of a heath nut than
Cecilia, so the kids had to eat healthy as well. That�s just the way it
was, rice and beans and lots of exercise to work it off. She had a
comment for Jason Junior, or J.J. as he was called in the house. Don�t
you argue with your father about the beans, J.J., �cause you know that
isn�t gettin� you anywhere.
Cecilia took her first break very relieved, thinking, if that�s the
future; that�s what I want. She smiled at Jason as she picked up her
replacement torch. The next part of her journey was not nearly as
pleasant.
Her mind traveled to the penitentiary in Camden, where Raul Sanchez was
exiting the facility with a bunch of other released prisoners. Raul had
been let out on parole, but he had no intention of complying with the
conditions of his release. He had some scores to settle and then he�d
pick up where he had left off. Vicente Torres and Cecilia's younger
brother were there to pick him up, along with Raul�s girlfriend. Vicente
passed Raul a cell phone and Raul immediately started making calls to
let everyone know he was back on the street and ready to roll. He called
his supplier and then stopped off at the bank to get some cash that the
girlfriend had been keeping for him in her safety deposit box. He
counted $ 20,000 and the group headed across the river to pick up two
kilos. The $ 20,000 was a down payment; but the supplier knew Raul was
good for the rest and fronted him the kilos. Hey, no problem�
As they went down the stairs, Vicente suddenly had a feeling something
was not right. He had this feeling; something wasn�t right. He told his
companions to get in the car right away and passed Raul his pistol.
As they opened the doors to get in the vehicle, the young woman dropped
her purse. She bent down to pick it up, but suddenly dropped to the
ground. A burst of automatic gunfire shattered the car�s windows and
sprayed glass around the car. The young woman lay flat on the ground
until the glass stopped flying. The Sanchez brothers and Vicente Torres
were slumped in their seats, still alive, but not for long. They were
bleeding heavily and gasping for breath. The young woman pulled her own
gun from her purse and quickly pumped a finishing round into each of
their heads. She reached under the seat and grabbed the two kilos. Then
she jumped into another car and the driver sped off.
Raul�s gang had dominated the project for several years, but now it was
time for another group to come in and take over. Raul�s girlfriend had
been smart enough to see it coming and had teamed up with the winning
side. Over the next month there would be a total of 14 additional
shootings in the project. By the end of the year control of the area
would change hands and a new set of faces would be passing out bags of
crack on the sidewalks.
Cecilia was shaking badly when the marchers got to their next break
station. She was stunned, unable to think or react. Was it possible?
Were her brothers and her ex-boyfriend really dead?
She wanted to talk, to find out the truth, but at that moment there was
no one to turn to. Jason had a completely stunned, vacant look in his
face. Obviously he was dealing with his own terror, and was in no
condition to help Cecilia with hers. As for Vladik and Tiffany, she was
in his arms, shaking violently and crying. Suddenly Cecilia heard the voice
of that Priestess echoing in her head.
�Now you see truth. Now you see real truth.�
The marchers set off again, for the final stretch of walking through the
streets of Danube City. There was only one vision remaining for Cecilia
that night. She saw a four-year old boy, wandering among the needles
strewn about a bunch of dumpsters in her housing project. She called out
to him, and recognized him as her cousin�s son. The boy lifted up his
arms and the vision faded to black.
Slowly Cecilia�s conscience returned to the real world, the long line of
fires extending as far as the eye could see in either direction. The
throngs of kneeling worshipers began chanting out loud, after having
prayed in silence for two full nights. Suddenly every church bell
started ringing and the crowds began singing the ancient hymn that
marked the end of the Day of the Dead. Cecilia noticed the sky was
getting light and realized that she already had passed into the Plaza of
the Ancients. As she and her companions walked around the Temple she
could see the glare of the huge bonfire near the river that was
consuming the torches, all 2,400 of them, that had been carried by the
marchers during the final leg of their journey. A Priest directed the
marchers to move up-wind from the fire so they could get close enough to
throw their torches onto the massive pile of burning wood. With a grunt
Cecilia threw hers as hard as she could and it landed about halfway up
the side of the pile. Jason and Vladik managed to get theirs clear to
the top. The marchers now had just two more obligations, to wash off
Death in the River and to gather for a final hymn in the Plaza. Cecilia
forced herself into the cold river, trying as best she could to get the
paint off the lower part of her body and her face. She was about to step
out when Tiffany admonished her.
�You gotta do your back too. They want you to get all the paint off
before you go to the Plaza.�
Cecilia sighed and forced herself to drop into the water. Jason helped
her wipe off what was left on her back. Shivering in the pre-dawn cold,
Cecilia and the others stepped out of the water and made their way back
to the Plaza. The criminals gathered, pressing their bodies together for
warmth as they sang the final hymn of the ceremony. Afterwards they
quickly dispersed to get cleaned up and then go to the Central Police
Station to pick up their winter capes and boots.
Vladik led the others into the Temple. He had to go back on duty shortly
and needed to get his collar off so he could go to the police station,
shower, and put on his uniform. A Priest quickly unlocked his collar and
the naked couple departed the Temple.
Cecilia was dead silent, too stunned by what she had just seen to speak
or react. She stood in the main chamber of the Temple, shivering from
cold and fright. She did not have a clue what she should do about her
visions. Had she seen something that already had happened? Had she seen
the unavoidable future? Had she seen something she could prevent?
Jason was every bit as badly shaken as Cecilia. However, he did know
what they needed to do: find that Priestess and talk to her. Without
saying a word, he grabbed Cecilia�s hand and led her around the Temple.
The Priestess was waiting for them, standing elegantly in her severe
black dress and wearing an equally severe expression. Jason immediately
knelt and touched his head to the floor, with Cecilia following his
lead.
�Now you stand up.�
Jason stood up and saluted, with Cecilia once again following his lead.
The Priestess saluted back.
�Now you say me what you saw. You say me truth, and I ask Creator what
you do.�
Jason went first. He briefly mentioned the visions of his parents,
suspecting that the visions that really mattered were the ones of
Cassie. He took it for granted that if the Priestess thought the stuff
about his parents was important, she�d interrupt him, which she didn�t.
When he finished, all she said was.
�Your father dead. Your sister not dead. You remember, that your path in
life. Your sister not dead.�
Jason was bewildered by that statement, but stayed silent as Cecilia
talked about her own vision. The Priestess made her concentrate on her
first vision, the one with Jason, and her final vision, the one about
her cousin�s child. She seemed not at all interested in the middle
vision, the one of her brothers getting double-crossed and killed.
Cecilia wanted to return to that middle vision, but the Priestess kept
cutting her off. Finally Cecilia became exasperated:
�Priestess, how come you aren�t worried about what happened to my
brothers? I just saw them fuckin� get killed and you��
The Priestess drew her fist across her chest, the impolite Danubian way
of saying �shut up!�
�You say me, what you do about brothers? How you help dead brothers?
That not your path in life!�
�But are they dead?�
�Yes. They dead, and they dead with broken soul, no?�
�I �spose. I �spose you could put it that way. I �spose all of their
souls are broken. All of �em. The whole fuckin� project.�
�No. No all soul broken, Cecilia. Your brothers dead. But little boy no
dead. He no broken. That your path in life.�
The Priestess gave that thought a chance to sink in. It was true that
when Cecilia left her family, the one thing that filled her with guilt
was having left her cousin�s son in that dysfunctional environment. She
was the only one in the household who had given him any care at all, and
fortunately he was off the bottle just before she left. She was the one
who had gotten him to the point where he could walk and feed himself,
because her cousin was never around to take care of him. She had to
abandon him to save herself. Now, with her family decimated by the local
gang war, perhaps it was her destiny to go back and extract him from the
dying neighborhood. As badly as she wanted to ask the Priestess that
question, Cecilia realized she already knew the answer.
The Priestess grabbed a hand from each of them and clamped down in a
painful vice-like grip. She closed her eyes and her arms started to
shake. Cecilia and Jason gave each other frightened looks, but then the
Priestess opened her eyes and quickly released them. She pulled out a
key from a pocket in her dress and unlocked both of their collars.
�Now you go on path. Your sister and your little boy. Creator give you
power fix soul. You go and you come. When you go, you say me and I say
professor. You go and you come.�
Jason interjected:
�Priestess, are you saying we�re supposed to bring them here? To Danube
City?�
�You go and you come. That your path in life.�
The Priestess handed them two prayer robes to wear home, a clear sign
their penance had ended. Their days of wearing the Temple collar had
passed, and now it was time for them to fulfill an obligation they had
towards two other people. Two trips, to journeys into the past, and two
lives to save. They quickly went to their homes, got cleaned up, and for
the first time in nearly four months, got dressed.
The
Freshman - Chapter 37 |