As Rafe neared the entrance to the temple, apprehension welled up inside him. It was like nothing he had ever felt before. He stopped walking. Why am I feeling this way? Am I afraid I will find out the truth of what has happened to Clare? What if she is gone? What if they killed her? He could taste the fear but soon started walking again slowly, not sure if he wanted to enter or not. And he felt cold, very cold and completely vulnerable. Rafe started shivering. He neared the entrance to the Mythraim, hesitated, and then turned to face the chamber carved into the earth.
The temple was built similar to all of the others he had seen in the last few weeks. There was the same table and the same bench facing each side of the elongated space. The roof was curved into an arch. At the far end of the temple stood an altar with the now familiar image of the soldier slaying the bull with a spear while riding him. But Rafe was not looking at how the temple was constructed or the now familiar accoutrements. Rafe was staring into the face of the man from the market he had seen weeks before in Barcelona and whom he had seen kidnapping Cecilia.
“Hello, Rafe,” said the man happily. He was very well dressed and elegant, seemed to be about sixty with salt-and-pepper hair. He was trim and confident and sported a slight beard. He wore a long, dark, leather jacket. There was a quiet power emanating from him.
Rafe was unable to speak. He should have been raging at this person and pummeling him to the ground with his fists to force him to tell him about Clare. But the only thing Rafe felt was fear and extreme evil. Rafe started to shiver.
“Don’t you want to say hello?” the man said.
Rafe finally was able to get out in a hushed tone, “Who are you?”
The man stared at him for a while and then replied, “You know who I am.” He paused for effect. “Don’t you Rafe?”
“I don’t know…,” Rafe stammered. He was unsure, but he felt as if he knew this person somehow. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
“Well let me tell you. I’ve been in your dreams, your fears, your horrors. I’ve prodded you to make decisions in a certain way. Yes, you know me.” He paused again. “I’ve been called many things, Iblis, Baphomet, Beelzebub, Mephistopheles. But you would know me as Lucifer.”
Rafe struggled to understand what the man was saying and was at a loss for words. Standing in front of him was just a man, not a god, not a spirit. But Rafe could feel the danger, the evil. The being was who he said he was, and Rafe was even more afraid.
“I don’t understand,” said Rafe softly.
“No, you don’t yet, but you will.”
“Where is my daughter?”
“She is safe, for the time being. You needn’t worry about Clare.” Rafe felt a wave of relief and then fear, for he was not sure he could trust this man or whatever it was.
“What do you want with me?”
“You will know shortly. I want your help in a little project of mine.”
“Why did you have to kill Cecilia?” asked Rafe.
“I’m not dead, I’m here, Rafe,” a familiar female voice said behind him. Turning, he saw Cecilia, or what he thought was Cecilia, standing in the opening to the temple. She looked the same but different, more beautiful but also more dangerous. She smiled seductively. “Nice to see you again. Don’t be scared. It’s still me. I won’t hurt you.” Rafe wasn’t so sure. She leaned against the entranceway in a strikingly sexy, almost glowing pose. Too sexy for that matter, almost evil. Her skin seemed to glow with an unnatural radiance. Her hair flowed around her face although there was no wind. She seemed magical.
“Yes it’s Cecilia, as you know her,” said the man. Rafe turned back to face him. “Her real name is Lilith. She was Adam's first wife! Not that hag, Eve. Adam had great taste don't you think? And yes, she is with me. She has been with me and done my bidding for thousands and thousands of years. I hope you enjoyed your time with her. She’s spectacular! Isn't she? She did her job very well, I think you would agree? Bringing you to me? You should feel very lucky to have made love to a demon.”
Rafe felt as if he were spinning. He felt the world around him disappear. The arched roof of the temple was now open to the stars. Things slowly were becoming clear to him, but his mind wouldn’t accept what he was being told. Finally Rafe gathered enough courage to speak. “My father always did tell me to try and find beauty on the inside as well as on the outside.”
“Ahh, good advice from your father,” said the man. "In fact, all of the people that have been pointing you in my direction recently work for me in one way or another. Whether they know it or not. Did you find what I wanted you to look for?”
“I think so." Rafe paused. "You wanted me to discover why societies fail.”
“Very good, Rafe! I’m proud of you! You get a gold star for that answer! And why do they fail?”
“From corruption and greed. From removing the need for hard work. It seems there are many ways. If a society has nothing to work for, if everything is given to it, then it dies.”
“Very good. You have learned from your little journey, as I had hoped.”
“When can I see Clare?” asked Rafe.
“Yes, I understood your weakness very well, didn’t I? Taking Clare was all I needed to do in order to make you come my way. You can see her when we come to an agreement.”
“About what?”
“Strange as it may seem, I need your help. You do have free will you know.”
“To do what?”
“Again, I’ll get to that in a minute.”
“And if I don’t do as you ask?”
“Then of course your daughter will have to be sacrificed. And, I will make you watch.” Rafe felt his knees go weak, and he reached out to the stone table for support. The limestone felt as cold as ice.
“Don’t worry, baby,” said Cecilia as she put her arms around his waist and kissed his neck. Her hand went slowly to his crotch. Rafe felt her electricity flow through him. "I’m sure you’ll make the right decision.” He tried to ignore her.
“Tell me what you want,” said Rafe determinedly.
“Okay, Rafe, I’ll tell you my request and then you can give me your answer. You see, I don’t like it when societies do well and flourish. They tend to start achieving prosperity; they work hard, build self-confidence, and accomplishing great feats. I like to make things much more interesting.” Lucifer smiled. “So since you humans have started to create civilizations, I have been trying to destroy them. And I’ve worked up a pretty good formula. Works just about every time.”
“And what formula is that?”
“Why it’s very simple, Rafe. I promise them everything they think they want!’’
“That’s it?”
“Yes, it is. Well, it’s not quite that simple. There is a little more work involved, but that is it in a nutshell. You see I am the one who turned the Roman Empire into a corrupt entity. I am the one who helped concentrate power in one individual who was treated like a god and doled out favors only to those that were loyal to him. And, I made sure he gave the people just enough to keep them happy, happy enough to stop working. I killed their self-reliance, their freedom of choice. This destroyed the republic and their rule of law. It corrupted the military and weakened their defenses. The barbarians did the rest.”
“That seems so easy.”
“Yes, it is quite easy. You humans are very easy to manipulate. I made sure the Byzantine Empire fell as well, although it took a while longer. And when Russia started to become enlightened and powerful, well that was my coup de grace. You see, I made a similar deal with Lenin. He turned out to be such a wonderful protégé. It was so easy, the Russian people were so ready to be promised everything they’d ever dreamed of. It was a wonderful achievement, don’t you think?”
“I guess for you, yes it was. Although tens of millions of people died in the end and it didn’t last.”
“Well, of course it never lasts. I have to let you people win sometime, don’t I? I have to keep it interesting!”
“So that begs the first question I asked. What do you want me to do for you?”
“Oh, Rafe, isn’t it obvious? I want you to promise the people of your country everything they want. I want to destroy the United States of America. I want you to help me turn her communist. I can’t let America become the fourth Holy Roman Empire. I want you to help me kill it!”
“Why me?”
“Who better than a famous writer. The pen is so much mightier than the sword. You can change minds, change hearts with your words. People respect you. You are famous. They will listen to every little word you say. Plus you are a descendant of the Old Believers. Where could I find a better pedigree? Yes, you are my guy. I can’t think of a more powerful messenger to destroy any talk of a future Holy Roman Empire than a son of the original Russian Orthodox Church. “So now, Rafe, I need your answer. Will you help me or not?”