Scorched Earth: A Future History of Planet EarthPetrovic, Walter D.
Science
Scorched Earth: A Future History of Planet Earth
Petrovic, Walter D.
Science fiction
The next day that ArchBishop and Cardinal Orren confided to one another
about their dreams and about the interpretations that came to them
thereof.
Manguino told Orren that he heard the prophet's chant repeating itself
through his mind and peaking in clarity and volume at certain lines.
Orren had said the same thing to the ArchBishop and they discussed
their dreams, and what they thought their dreams meant, over the span
of several hours since they woke.
Both men were eager to strip clean the text of the prophesy in order
to reveal, to themselves, the long awaited answer.
"I understand the Mons, Your Grace!" Orren blurted out to the
ArchBishop. "It was the night before the two strange Bestenese entered
Pomperaque. I saw the Mons."
Orren paced about the ArchBishop's office, and Manguino sat at his desk
in his respective garb, listening to the great Cardinal Orren.
He walked back to the desk, from the window, lifted his palms before
him as if weighing the air that he passed through.
"The Mons were four, each on a horse, and each rider was clad in armour
and was the same colour as the horses. They were in the sky. So I
believe now that our Seer's predictions may be true. The Mons are
these four elements that ride on high."
Manguino sighed and rocked back and forth in his chair. He was pleased
to have made some head-way in answering the puzzling prophesy. Yet,
somehow he felt that there wasn't enough proof to be able to point to
Boyce and Lloyd and say that they were involved.
" 'Black feathers from his shoulders jut' ..." said the ArchBishop. "
... is strangely similar to that Boyce Loebh and his dirty crow. There
is one point, however, that has me question if that is so."
He stood up and moved around to the front of the desk and sat on it.
He motioned with his hands as he spoke to Orren, giving him his
explanation and other questions concerning it.
"That odd crow rides on Boyce Loebh's shoulder, it doesn't just from
it. Shoulders are mentioned instead on of shoulder -- this may be
misleading! It may be making us seek the reality of the forecast by
invoking within us our own dislikes for these men." he said to Orren.
Orren nodded and then shrugged while the chair on which he sat gently
swivelled to and fro. He looked right into the ArchBishop's eyes as he
thought that the ArchBishop may actually be right.
"I understand your thoughts. We don't want to make it a habit of
unjustly accusing those people that we do not trust only in order to
quell our own fright. Both of these Bestenese are popular with the
people as being great teachers. My men have reported to me no
treasonous news about them."
Orren raised himself from the chair and went over to the chiffonnier
behind Manguino and poured himself some wine.
"The Mons just rode across the Phoridene sky. They never rode in the
streets. Whatever happens will be minor." he said to Manguino before
he gulped the glass of wine into his gut.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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