Stealing Sacred Fire (25 page)

He paused before entering the
settlement, gazing upon the sparking central fire and the people
who danced wildly around it. Their music had conjured him and he
had answered their summons. His eyes searched the gathering, until
he caught sight of Shem, who stood near the back of the circle of
dancers, watching them with a contemplative expression on his
face.

I am equal to you now, Daniel
thought, in some ways.

He was absorbed into the
spiralling complexity of the dance. The music became more frantic,
the dancing more riotous. Skirts and scarves spun out, metallic
threads catching the fire-light. It was almost as if the Yarasadi
had been expecting Daniel to come, dressed in his angel robe, or
else perhaps they thought he was someone else, a vision of one of
their avatars invoked by the dance.

As he danced, Daniel was
acutely aware of Shem’s motionless presence nearby. Was he aware of
what had happened to his vizier? For a brief moment, Daniel met
Shemyaza’s eyes. Shem nodded slightly, a secret smile upon his
face. Then, the chain of dancers broke up and scattered into a
whirling saltation of individual human motes, hiding Shem from
Daniel’s view. Daniel spread out his arms, and in the centre of the
gathering, danced the dance of the vulture kings, led by the wail
of the tambura, the charm of the zurna. Though most of the dancers
around him could barely speak a word of English, Daniel felt a
strong communion with them, beyond words. He was kin to them now,
aware that within each of them, the secret of their heritage lay
like a protected seed in winter darkness, awaiting the light and
warmth of spring. They had waited so long.

He danced perhaps for hours, as the
stars arced overhead, and the fire-smoke rose up in writhing coils.
He did not tire. Dimly, he was aware of people moving around him;
talking, eating. Then he was dancing alone and the tribe were
sitting around him in a circle. Women lolled against their men,
fanning themselves with plucked leafy twigs. Their eyes were dark,
yet bright with starlight. Eventually, Daniel fell into a swoon.
There was silence now, but for the crackling of the dying fire.
Between the eastern mountains, the first pale rays of dawn cast an
ephemeral road of light down from heaven. Daniel lay on his back,
breathing deeply. He saw Shemyaza standing over him, his hair
catching the pale morning light. ‘Daniel, can you stand?’

Daniel barely had the energy to
speak. He shook his head slowly from side to side.

Shem knelt down and lifted him
in his arms. Daniel’s head hung backwards; he saw faces upside-down
that watched him as Shem carried him to their temporary home. Then,
the entrance flaps to the tent were closed behind them and Shem
laid him down on the musky furs. There was little light. Whatever
had made Daniel’s flesh shine had faded away. His feet and calves
were aching severely.

‘How did it happen?’ Shem
asked, then shook his head. ‘No, that is your business.’ He took
Daniel’s hands in his own. ‘This is the greatest gift to me. You
know how I have mourned the fact you were born as human in this
life.’

‘Shem,’ Daniel murmured. ‘How
do you know I am Grigori now?’

Shem knelt beside him, his face
almost invisible in the gloom. ‘I saw you walk down into the
valley, Daniel, and your face was shining. Maybe only I saw it, but
for a moment, I seemed to be looking at myself — not as I am now,
but when I first went down to the lowlands and took Ishtahar as my
lover. It shocked me, but it seemed so right.’

‘There is a sacred cave,’
Daniel said. ‘It happened there.’

Shem stroked his hair. ‘I
believed that you were shutting me out of your life, but perhaps I
am as guilty as you of preferring isolation. Our path is hard,
Daniel. We should not choose to walk it alone. You are my
light.’

Daniel held out his arms and
pulled Shem into his embrace. Shem’s voice was muffled against his
neck. ‘When I saw you there, with a shining countenance, it seemed
to me as if something shattered within my mind.’ He pulled away
from Daniel’s arms and looked into his eyes. ‘I understand my
purpose now, and I understand what love really is.’

They lay down together in the
furs, and Salamiel, for the next few hours, elected to keep his
distance from the tent.

Later in the
morning, Daniel woke up alone. He sensed excitement outside and
rose from the goat-skins. His feet shrieked in pain, and he had to
limp outside, although the rest of his body throbbed to a more
languorous tide. Shem and he had been united in love once more.
Shem had spoken of his doubts in the furry warmth of their bed and
Daniel had been able to soothe him. ‘We will find the answers.
Gadreel will come.’ He had also told Shem what Mani had revealed to
him about the Elders and the Chambers of Light.

‘The Elders were Anu’s
ancestors,’ Shem said thoughtfully. ‘I think we are beginning to
touch upon knowledge that was forbidden even to the Anannage.’

Now, as he walked between the
towering stone chimneys, Daniel felt taller. The camp was a flurry
of activity; people were shouting to one another; quick, eager
voices. Daniel saw Shem and Salamiel standing with Qimir at the
centre of the camp. They appeared to be waiting for something, or
someone. Daniel hobbled over to them. Shem smiled warmly at him as
he approached, but Daniel could sense his tension.

Salamiel uttered a cry of
surprise when he saw Daniel. ‘I hate to say this, but whatever you
two were doing last night has done wonders for your appearance! You
look remarkably healthy, Daniel, and rather smug about it too.’

Shem put his arm around
Daniel’s shoulders. ‘Flattering though it would be to think I’m
responsible for the change, there’s more to it than that.’

‘I’ll tell you later,’ Daniel
said. He did not want to discuss his experiences in Mani’s cave in
front of Qimir. ‘Do I take it the Yarasadi are expecting
visitors?’

Shem nodded. ‘Qimir summoned me
a short while ago. I didn’t want to wake you. I thought you needed
the sleep, but looking at you now, perhaps not.’

‘Is Gadreel coming now?’

‘I haven’t been told that in so
many words, but I suspect that’s who’s on their way.’

Daniel asked no further
questions but, like everyone else, fixed his eyes on the steep pass
down from the mountains. He expected a convoy of trucks, armoured
vehicles of some kind.

They heard it first; a
thunderous sound amplified by the towering cliffs. Then it was the
dust thrown up from the rough road. Finally, a band of horseman
came galloping crazily into the valley; the riders clad in black
and red, the horses adorned with multi-coloured tassels and
ribbons. At the sight of them, the whole camp uttered a joyous roar
of welcome and surged into a knot of bodies. The horsemen urged
their beasts right into the centre of the welcoming throng. Horses
reared and screamed, exciting the animals corralled among the
tents, who began cantering up and down, snorting and wickering.
Dogs barked and goats ran in panic in all directions.

One horse leapt free of the
crowd and its rider directed it to where Qimir stood. The animal
stopped just in front of them, prancing and rearing. Its rider was
clothed in the traditional costume, face covered.

Qimir bowed. ‘Gadreel, you are
welcome.’

For a few moments, the rider
made no sound or sign of welcome, then jumped down from the horse,
allowing it to skitter away. Its dragging reins were grabbed by one
of the children, who had gathered expectantly to perform this duty
for the Yarasadi peshmergas. Gadreel was tall, and the commanding
stance spoke strongly to Daniel of Grigori blood.

‘Gadreel,’ Qimir began in a
careful voice. ‘This is Shemyaza, your brother.’ He made a sweeping
gesture with his hands which included Shem in their orbit.

Shem inclined his head. ‘I have
been waiting for this moment,’ he said.

The figure in front of them did
not move, but stood with hands on hips, head thrown back. Only the
eyes were visible, and even from a few yards away, Daniel could see
their intense blue.

Shem seemed rather non-plussed
that Gadreel had not responded to his greeting. ‘Perhaps we could
talk somewhere,’ he began.

The figure raised a single,
admonitory hand as if to silence him.

‘Gadreel,’ said Qimir. ‘You
must not keep your brother in suspense like this. He has waited
long to meet you… man to man.’ Here, Qimir uttered a delighted
laugh.

Gadreel shifted from foot to
foot, and then, with slow, deliberate movements, began to unwind
the concealing face-scarf. Yards and yards of it, there seemed.
Daniel could not help but be held in suspense, wondering what would
be revealed.

Finally, Gadreel threw the
scarf onto the floor and stared defiantly ahead.

‘Great Anu!’ Shem
exclaimed.

Gadreel laughed coldly. ‘Yes,
my brother. Great Anu.’

‘Shemyaza,’ Qimir said, still
laughing. ‘There is no brother for you to meet, but I am delighted
to introduce you to your sister.’

Gadreel shook out her thick red
hair. She was a stunningly beautiful woman, which perhaps indicated
one of the reasons why she chose to hide her gender. For a moment,
she still stood arrogantly before them, then took a few steps
forward. ‘Do you not remember me, Shem?’

He nodded. ‘Yes. How could I
not? I simply did not expect to find you female.’

Gadreel laughed again. ‘I do
hope you are not disappointed!’

He shook his head. ‘How could I
be? But why the disguise?’

‘It is easier for me if people
believe me to be male. You have to remember we are in a part of the
world where prejudice and injustice against women is high. Only the
Kurds of the ancient beliefs think otherwise.’ She looked Shem up
and down. ‘Well, you are as fine as I remember you, and Salamiel,
you have hardly changed at all.’ Then she glanced at Daniel. ‘But
who is this? I feel I should know you.’

‘It is Daniel,’ Shem said, ‘my
vizier.’

Gadreel narrowed her eyes and smiled.
‘Of course. You are different, Daniel, but then this is a changed
world to the one where we once walked as friends.’

Daniel had an inkling then that
there was perhaps a history between Gadreel and himself, perhaps at
a time in the distant past, when the young vizier had felt wounded
by Shem’s obsession with the human woman, Ishtahar. How would
Gadreel react if she knew that until the previous night Daniel had
been as human as Ishtahar? He did not have clear memories of the
past as Shem and his companions did. He felt it best not to say
anything, in case he betrayed himself, and merely inclined his head
and smiled.

Gadreel walked past him,
touching his shoulder briefly as she did so. She gestured at Qimir.
‘Is there no welcome feast? I have a hunger like the sky, and a
thirst of the desert.’

Qimir embraced her warmly. ‘We
shall retire to my dwelling, where you may refresh yourself and
speak with your brethren.’

The rest of Gadreel’s followers
had dismounted and were now being dragged off by their families and
lovers to separate homesteads. Shem exchanged a glance with Daniel
and Salamiel, then the three of them followed Gadreel to Qimir’s
dwelling.

Qimir left Gadreel alone with
his visitors for a while, perhaps sensing Shemyaza wanted to speak
in private, although Daniel was sure that listening ears were
concealed within the labyrinthine chambers of the tent.

Gadreel sat down on the floor
cushions in a careless, less than demure sprawl. She scratched at
her hair and stretched her limbs with a groan; a woman who oozed
power and confidence. She seemed insouciant about meeting Shem, but
Daniel sensed she was not quite as relaxed as she appeared. ‘I feel
we should make small talk,’ she said, ‘catch up on old times, but
the truth is I have much to tell you. When I have spoken, we can
take wine together, but first I must tell you my story. I have
waited long for this moment.’

Shemyaza nodded. ‘I understand.
But first I must ask you one thing. Do Qimir’s people know what you
are?’

Gadreel smiled, resting back on
her elbows, her long legs crossed at the ankles. ‘Oh yes. The
Yarasadi are quite aware of the Grigori. I, and Qimir’s vizier,
Mani, have made sure of it! When we first received news that you
were looking for me, Qimir would not believe you were the original
Shemyaza, but Mani and I both thought you would be of my blood. I
cannot believe you came looking for me. I always knew we would be
reunited one day, but I thought I would have to search long and
hard to find you, perhaps even wake you from a tomb.’

Shem shifted uncomfortably on
his cushions. ‘I am glad that was not necessary! Where do the
Grigori live around here? Is there a settlement?’

Gadreel shook her head. ‘No,
not locally. As far as I know, our people have avoided settling in
this area since the great wars after the Deluge. I was born in
Egypt, into the Re-akim, the Grigori clan that lives in Cairo. My
name then was Sofiriel. A few years ago, I underwent a strange…
change. I had dreams, which seemed like memories, of the time of
The Fall.’ She grimaced. ‘I remembered another life, being male. In
my dreams, people called me Gadreel. Also, my life became haunted
by portents and omens. It was as if the universe was trying to tell
me something, but I did not know what it was. I told no-one,
neither family nor friends, about what was troubling me, for in
some way, the experiences made me feel unwholesome. But gradually,
I accepted the knowledge that in some way, I was Gadreel, reborn
into this time.’

‘So what urged you to take on
the role of a prophet?’ Shem asked. ‘To essentially create the
Yarasadi?’

Gadreel wrinkled her perfect, straight
nose. ‘It is hard to explain. I knew I had a purpose, and once I
assumed the name Gadreel, my dreams changed. I saw visions of the
Elders, when they lived upon this earth, in Egypt. I knew that
other brethren of mine would also be born into this time, and the
approaching epoch was important. The Elders implied to me that the
time was approaching when the Chambers of Light could be opened
again, and all that was lost through our Fall could be
regained.’