Theodicy

Ancient
Aged
The sky sepia
The wind thin, cutting,
blowing through
Instead of around
Oh time

There on the Great Bridge
The Dark City spreads before them
Empty streets
Empty buildings
Empty windows
Empty eyes
Watching

Somewhere out there
is The Street of Books
The Great Library
The Keeper of The Key
Behind blind panes
Pains
Shelf upon shelf
Row upon row
Spine after spine
Folio
Duo
Quarto
Octavo
Dry and dusty
Like the Great City

The Wind

The Darkness

Her eyes are flaming
When she speaks
Her breath glows like embers
Flying
Sparks from the fire
Of the house where Eldest sleeps

“Who is Anti Christ?”

“Who is not?”

The wind sighs and whispers about them
The Bridge
The City
There is the sound of great hammers pounding
Upon heavy anvils
Far away
Far below
Forging the links of the endless chain
The binding

“There is a problem when you have but one god, who is all good.”

“What is that?”

“The need for a Theodicy.”

“Theodicy?”

“If god is all good, how do you explain evil.”

“Free will.”

“Doesn’t work. No matter what you do, all evil returns to gods door, ultimately god must be responsible.”

“And?”

“In dualist thought there is no need for a theodicy.”

“Dualist?”

“A system where there are two opposed forces, good, and evil.”

“Separate?”

“Yes.”

“So god can be all good. Not responsible for the evil in the world.”

“Yes.”

“And The Other?”

“Is solely responsible for evil.’

“People can choose freely?”

“Yes.”


Her cloak moves in the wind
like the wings of a raptor
circling high
Eyes of flame
watching the ground below
for any sign of prey.

She closes her eyes
slowly
Turns her head
Opens them again
To gaze directly into his eyes
Her words float like embers
On the dark wind.

“Then there can be no certainty that good will win.”

"Yes."

Legion

Our name is Legion
for we are many

Spinning like a top
or the world
running down
Down
Down
Radiating away
all our goodness
Shining in the dark

Beneath The Temple
is a chamber walled with lead
Within which dwells
The Raging Darkness
Bound by chains of word
Spells If you will
Incantations
Enchantments
Chains wrought of air
and thought

Brehmstrahlung
When we move curving
towards the good
We radiate into The Darkness
Giving our light
to the Abyss

She is the Great Sea
She is the water of life
She is waves breaking
on the cliffs of death
Granite rocks
Black basalt
Dikes and sills
In the crack
An Iris blooms

Let us say
She was torn asunder
And from her was made
All that is
From whom was made
All that is not?

If you drive us from here
Will we not move there?
If we are driven from there
Will we not return here?

Truly
What is made
Cannot be unmade
What is done
Cannot be undone
The world is not a bed
Nor dirty dishes
To lather rinse repeat

Our name is Legion
For we are many.

Jerusalem

In the eternal twilight, looking out across The Dark City, the ceaseless voice of The Wind of Emptiness rolls across the Eternal Plain.

What is it about Jerusalem?

Jerusalem?

Jerusalem.

What about it?

What good comes from there?

I don't understand.

What good comes from there? What good has ever come from Jerusalem? It's as if the City itself drives men mad. Thousands of years of fighting over that damn Temple on the Rock.

It's a Holy Place.

What the hell does that mean?  It was where animals were slaughtered as offerings to YHWH. Blood poured out, spattered on the horns of the Altar. Blood and burnt fat.
YHWH loves his blood and burned fat... Haven't you ever thought about it? How Jerusalem must have smelled? Burning flesh, all day and night? And what about all the blood? There's a lot of blood in an Ox, or a Sheep, a Lamb. Where did all the blood go?

Silence

I don't get it.

Why did the Babylonians destroy the Temple, the Romans... What was it about the Temple? Did they fear the Temple? or did they not understand the Temple?

I don't know. From a political point of view it would destroy a sense of national identity. and that makes sense. But if they didn't understand the purpose of the Temple, I mean the Romans tried to... manage... the Temple, to control whatever it was about the Temple that seemed to make the Jews so difficult to deal with.

And they failed.

Yes, failed totally, diaspora and destruction of the Temple was their final solution because they didn't know what they were doing. And because the thing is still there...

What thing, what the hell are you talking about?

Hell... Yes... that's it exactly. Here we are, 2,000 years later, 2,000 fucking years, fighting over this rock, wanting to rebuild the Temple. Hoping, believing, that if they build a New Temple YHWH will finally keep his promises. But maybe that's not it at all.
People claiming religions of peace ready and able to slaughter each other for... over this... this... what is it about Jerusalem? It's as if some dark force was captured there, and has infected the entire world.

Wind and Dust

Sometimes I wonder...

Yes?

What if the Jews were, I don't know, Jailers? Keepers?

What?

What if they were protecting us. All of us? What if they had captured... something.  Found a way to bottle it up. Keep it occupied. Prevent it from doing what it wanted to do. Trapped it in the Ark. What if, Moses and Aaron caught it, there in Egypt, and took it somewhere they thought would be safe? Away from where most people lived.

I think you have finally lost it.

No. Hear me out. Why is the Temple where it is? Why is the shape so important? Why be so obsessed with who and what is permitted inside the perimeter? What if ONLY the High Priest knew what it was really all about? And he could only pass that knowledge on to someone with the right training, the right bloodline?

I still don't understand why...

Control. As long as the Temple stands and the perimeter is guarded they could control it. The sacrifices, the Gates, it was all designed to keep YHWH occupied, to keep him IN.

Hence all the fighting over who had the right to be a, to be the High Priest?

Exactly

And why several factions wanted to city to be inhabited solely by Priests?

Yes.

And when the Romans appointed the High Priests for political purposes?

Yes

It fucked everything up

Yes. They had NO IDEA what they were doing.

And then the War and the siege and destruction of Jerusalem....

They may have killed the only man who KNEW. I don't think YHWH could... can... escape... but he could, can... his thoughts can spread....

So why...

Do the Jews suffer so much?

Revenge.

Within the Hall

Eldest sleeps
within the Hall

dreams there
waiting.
At his feet

eternal,
burns first fire

embers
spark bright

light the dawn,
bring forth
each day

new life.

Silence, and The Wind.

It never rains here

Never?

Never.

Never is a very long time.

Here? Yes and No.

If there's no water, then there's no life here?

We're here.

I don't know about you, but I'm still not certain I'm not dead and this is Hell or Purgatory or Limbo.

I thought they got rid of Purgatory and Limbo.

No. They just expanded the Pales of Hope.

Ah.

Silence, and the wind.

The water is the life.

No, the blood is the life.

Yes. But blood is mostly water.

But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.

Genesis?

And Deuteronomy... The New Testament. Old YHWH has a thing about blood.

silence, and the wind.

If there's no water, what do we drink?

We don't.

If we get thirsty?

Doesn't happen.

Hungry?

Not here.

So, we appear to have bodies, but we don't really have bodies?

Good question.

Silence, and the wind.

Huh. It moves doesn't it?

What?

The Cathedral, Temple, whatever the hell it is. It moves.

I'm not sure if it moves, or if it's the one fixed point here, and The City moves around it.

And the Bridge?

It... is....

Silence, and the wind.

I lost my watch somewhere.

No. Time doesn't... I... You can't bring a watch here,  I tried,  nothing that measures time.  Was it a wristwatch? 

Yes.

You'll have it when you go back.

You're sure I'll go back.

Yes.

What am I supposed to do then?

I don't know.

Silence, and

The Wind.

Number Six

Beat me here this time. She stiff?

Not yet. 

We're gettin closer....

Dream on.... 

Huh. So... if I'm countin' right, this makes what... six?

Yeah, she's number six.

Six. 

Got any idea how long ago.

Not long. Still warm, no rigor. 
  So just before sunrise.

Looks like it.

He doesn't seem to like the light.

Most of 'em don't.

Yeah, well this guy ain't like most of 'em no matter what way you look at it.

No shit.

You guys just document  the scene and tag an bag her?

Pretty much.

Just to confirm, no eyes?

No eyes.

No other apparent trauma?

Nothin. 

Huh.

You guys seen this before?

Yeah, that's why we're here. We're special.

I gathered. I wonder how he did it.

Did what?

Removed her eyes so clean, I mean look, no bruising, no lacerations or damage to the eyelids, no blood, no apparent damage at all to the orbits, usually when you get an eye gouged out it's a mess... but see? The sockets look clean, almost, I don't know, not cauterized, there's no evidence of heat... it's just... like they just disappeared, it's fucking weird.

No shit.

You doing the autopsy?

Nah, I'm not a pathologist,

Know who'll get this one?

Uh, whoever's on rotation for today, if they get to it.

Oh they'll get to it today. I'll guarantee that.

Uh... OK.

Tell ya what, I'm gonna follow these guys in and talk to whoever's in charge here.

Hah! That would be you.

True, true. Anyway, I want you to hang out here.  Does she have the mark?

 Not that I could see, but it might be under her clothes, won't know till they get her on the table. But I haven't seen anything.
 
If there's no mark that means our friend hasn't put in an appearance yet , so maybe you can keep an eye out for him while I get things moving officially.

Oh man, this call got me outta bed! I haven't had any breakfast yet.

Life's a bitch.

Then ya die.

Hungry, in your case.

I'll bring ya somethin when I come back. I shouldn't be too long.

Sausage Mcwhatever. 

Those things'll kill ya, ya know.

Says the man who smokes cigars. 

laughs

Coffee?

Coffee.

Ok guys. I'm following you, so don't be runnin any red lights, or I'm gonna be pissed.

No sir.

Hey, before we go I got another question.

Yeah?

Any 'a you guys seen a cat?

A cat?

Yeah, a white cat. Real pretty, kinda seems to glow.

Don't think so. Any of you see a cat?

Donnoh. I think I mighta seen something as we pulled up. But I wouldn't swear to it.  

Who called it in? 

It was a jogger found her.

You got info?

Yeah we got her name and a number. Who was it... Kowalski? yeah, she was the patrol officer, took her statement, she was pretty shook up. Probably won't be runnin on this trail again any time soon.   

Good. 
When you get my Bona Fides, I get that info from ya.
Won't ask for it now, since you don't know me from Adam. Cept of course for the Badge and the ID, but I could be anybody.

Uh, right.  

'K, let's get this started. The sooner we catch this bastard the sooner we all go home.  

Don't forget my coffee!

  

Sonnet 17: Proof

The fear within fears not the fear without
the confines of my thought, my thought unbounded
by certainty, corrodes beneath my doubt
the stone on which I thought my thought was founded.
The coursers coursing course my hare of thought
fast fleeing through green fields beneath a sun
which gives what is and also what is ought
an equal weight how'er the race is run.
"Upon this stone I build my church" He said.
Yet on shifting sands his rock was founded
and by his words was I uncertain led 
to find myself by endless doubt surrounded.
The Pillars of The Temple weigh the roof
yet fear and doubt demand a better proof.