Read Online There Comes A Prophet by David Litwack - Free Book Online
Authors: David Litwack
Tags: Science-Fiction
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path. The excursion would give him something to do, take him far from the village and let his mind clear. When he returned, he could claim he'd forgotten the vicar's visit and gone off to the mountains to celebrate his first spring since coming of age. The elders would chastise him but might believe the young, absent-minded romantic. But there was something more. This path-if the stories were true-was the beginning of the voyage across the ocean. In his uncertainty, he hoped such a place could provide answers.
As usual, his mind wandered, this time to younger days on the trail with his friends. As they hiked, his father would make up games to reinforce their schooling and keep them from getting bored. He'd start with geography, giving them five seconds to answer.
"How many ponds in this region?"
"Five."
"And their names?"
"Little Pond, Great Pond, Middle Pond."
"The easy ones, Thomas. Nathaniel, you must know the rest."
"Beaver Pond and East Pond."
"And how far to Temple City?"
"Three days."
Then, when the children began to fidget, he'd switch to numbers.
"How much is seven and nine?"
"Sixteen," Orah called out.
"I knew it," Thomas would protest, "but Orah always shouts it out first."
"I understand. This next one's just for the boys. It's the year 1132 of the age of light. I was born in 1101. How old am I?"
Nathaniel would glare at Orah, daring her to speak out of turn, and then answer, "Thirty one."
"And a hard one, again for the boys. Nathaniel's grandfather was born in 1073. How old is he?"
Thomas would look to Nathaniel, who could only stammer until the time had passed.
"Five seconds is up. Orah?"
The question was unnecessary. Her hand was already in the air.
"Fifty nine, sir. I knew it right away."
Nathaniel and Thomas would make faces at her until his father reprimanded them.
"You'll learn as well, if you work hard. It'll just take more time." And then, suddenly, as if he were surprised, "Look up. We've arrived."
***
As Nathaniel approached, the mountains loomed. No wonder teachers brought students here-an experience to impress. He'd been right about the day. The ground fog had burned off, revealing a clear sky. The morning sun, now stronger in the east, bounced its rays off the white cliffs and made them shine.
Nathaniel had kept a steady pace for two hours. Now that he had an unobstructed view of the edge of the world, he took a moment to rest. He plopped down on the spongy moss, settling against a rock and took a draw from his water skin. Then he tilted his head back and stared at the massive rocks, a scene from a storybook.
This far from the village, he could defy the vicars and imagine his knight, fresh from defeating the darkness, coming to take on his next quest. Perhaps the knight had scaled the mountains after all and built a boat on the far side to cross the great sea. And to this day, his descendants lived on the other side of the world, where there were no vicars, no Temple and no teachings.
Exhausted from a restless night, with the sun on his face and visions of knights in his head, Nathaniel drifted off to sleep.
***
He awoke with a crick in his neck from the hard rock and took a moment to recall why he'd come. As sleep cleared from his mind, he decided he'd made a good choice. He'd avoided the vicar and saved himself for the great deeds that lay in his future, while also rediscovering this spot from his youth. He resolved to bring his friends back as soon as possible.
As he stared at the craggy hilltop, seeing the mountains anew, he noticed a dark patch a third of the way up the rock face. At first, he wondered why it failed to reflect the light. Dense bushes? Moss on rocks? But the more he looked, the more he saw no rock at all, but a pass through the mountains. And he thought he could make out a trail leading up to it. A foolish notion, his father would say, but he needed to know.
He began to work his way up, fighting at first through knee-high undergrowth, some of it thick
As usual, his mind wandered, this time to younger days on the trail with his friends. As they hiked, his father would make up games to reinforce their schooling and keep them from getting bored. He'd start with geography, giving them five seconds to answer.
"How many ponds in this region?"
"Five."
"And their names?"
"Little Pond, Great Pond, Middle Pond."
"The easy ones, Thomas. Nathaniel, you must know the rest."
"Beaver Pond and East Pond."
"And how far to Temple City?"
"Three days."
Then, when the children began to fidget, he'd switch to numbers.
"How much is seven and nine?"
"Sixteen," Orah called out.
"I knew it," Thomas would protest, "but Orah always shouts it out first."
"I understand. This next one's just for the boys. It's the year 1132 of the age of light. I was born in 1101. How old am I?"
Nathaniel would glare at Orah, daring her to speak out of turn, and then answer, "Thirty one."
"And a hard one, again for the boys. Nathaniel's grandfather was born in 1073. How old is he?"
Thomas would look to Nathaniel, who could only stammer until the time had passed.
"Five seconds is up. Orah?"
The question was unnecessary. Her hand was already in the air.
"Fifty nine, sir. I knew it right away."
Nathaniel and Thomas would make faces at her until his father reprimanded them.
"You'll learn as well, if you work hard. It'll just take more time." And then, suddenly, as if he were surprised, "Look up. We've arrived."
***
As Nathaniel approached, the mountains loomed. No wonder teachers brought students here-an experience to impress. He'd been right about the day. The ground fog had burned off, revealing a clear sky. The morning sun, now stronger in the east, bounced its rays off the white cliffs and made them shine.
Nathaniel had kept a steady pace for two hours. Now that he had an unobstructed view of the edge of the world, he took a moment to rest. He plopped down on the spongy moss, settling against a rock and took a draw from his water skin. Then he tilted his head back and stared at the massive rocks, a scene from a storybook.
This far from the village, he could defy the vicars and imagine his knight, fresh from defeating the darkness, coming to take on his next quest. Perhaps the knight had scaled the mountains after all and built a boat on the far side to cross the great sea. And to this day, his descendants lived on the other side of the world, where there were no vicars, no Temple and no teachings.
Exhausted from a restless night, with the sun on his face and visions of knights in his head, Nathaniel drifted off to sleep.
***
He awoke with a crick in his neck from the hard rock and took a moment to recall why he'd come. As sleep cleared from his mind, he decided he'd made a good choice. He'd avoided the vicar and saved himself for the great deeds that lay in his future, while also rediscovering this spot from his youth. He resolved to bring his friends back as soon as possible.
As he stared at the craggy hilltop, seeing the mountains anew, he noticed a dark patch a third of the way up the rock face. At first, he wondered why it failed to reflect the light. Dense bushes? Moss on rocks? But the more he looked, the more he saw no rock at all, but a pass through the mountains. And he thought he could make out a trail leading up to it. A foolish notion, his father would say, but he needed to know.
He began to work his way up, fighting at first through knee-high undergrowth, some of it thick
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