"A Wizard's Companion" -Chapter 14: Law of Interfaces
CHAPTER 14: LAW OF INTERFACES
“Power exists in the interfaces of things. These are the between places that are not entirely one thing or another.”
“Only what you’re willing to give,” a new voice filled the empty church.
Carl jumped. The voice was familiar. It belonged to...
“Jacob?”
Jacob emerged from the front of the church, walking past the rows of pews until he could sit down next to a still kneeling Carl.
There was silence between them as Carl moved into a more comfortable sitting position beside Jacob.
“What did you think of the sermon?” Jacob asked at last.
Carl squints at him. “That was your doing?”
Jacob shakes his head. “No, that was purely Divine Inspiration. I’m not from the Divine... well, not directly that is.”
“So...that means you’re not an angel or something, right?” Carl shifted slightly.
“Well, I am something...” Jacob corrects.
“What?”
Jacob shrugs. “I am what you made me to be.”
“What?!” Carl looks at him askance.
Jacob smiles, but it never quite reaches his eyes.
“How about I tell you a story? But first you have to swear to me in return that you will tell no one anything in the short period you will remember it.” Jacob’s expression is unnerving as he stares Carl down.
“I promise,” affirms Carl, who narrows his eyes back at Jacob. “And what do you mean by ‘the short period I’ll remember’?”
“Because if we don’t act soon, this will be your reality.”
Carl was, once again, confused.
“I’m not necessarily saying this is a bad Life that Tom created for you...” Jacob continues with a shrug.
“Who’s Tom?” Carl cuts him off, finally demanding an answer. This was the secret that had preoccupied his thoughts ever since he had heard the name; a puzzle he couldn’t find the pieces to, much less solve.
“Do you ever dream at night Carl?” Jacob asks, ignoring him.
Carl’s lips purse into thin lines which threaten to turn into a frown.
“Everybody dreams,” Carl snaps, “Now what about...”
“Do you remember your dreams though?”
This time Carl does frown as he contemplates.
“I used to I think... but lately? No, no I haven’t remembered my dreams for a long time now.” Carl blinks at this revelation.
Jacob doesn’t bat an eye.
Carl looks again to the crucifix at the front of the church and whispers, “Tell me. Tell me everything.”
Jacob glances to where Carl’s attention is focused and replies, just as quietly, “Not everything, never everything.”
“Then at least tell me something! Give me something to go by!”
“Are you ready to hear the story now?”
With effort Carl calms down and nods.
“Once upon a time there were two men: friends, brothers, comrades in every sense of the word. Only there was a secret between them...
“See, one Loved the other...
“...in an entirely different way.”
Carl’s eyes widened at the implication.
“There came a day when they were separated. The One Who Was Loved never knew the reason why but The One Who Loved did. And instead of trying to regain what was lost, the Lover gave the Beloved a gift...”
“What was it? Life? Love?”
“All those things, but the greatest was this: the ability-indeed the blessing-to Love another, unhampered by any feelings for the Lover. To live a Life without regret. And to do that required...”
Jacob shook his head before continuing.
“I had mistakenly thought that the Lone One’s intervening had been a curse. But the Lover obviously had other plans. See, the Lover knew the Lone Power would be jealous, never having such a gift Itself...
Can you imagine it, Carl? What it would mean for the Lone Power to have such a gift?
The ability to forgive Itself for creating Death after so long...
The ability to forget Its own Love for the One’s Champion...”
“Wait, what?!” Carl interjected at this point.
Jacob shook his head. “That’s another story for another time.”
“Then tell me this: what happens to the Lover?”
“What happens to the Lover? Why, the Lover ceases to be. No one knows him. This world no longer needs him. So he simply vanishes.”
“How?”
Jacob ignores the question.
“But there is something that neither the Lover nor the Beloved ever counted on. That is their Love manifested into physical form, granted by the One.”
“And...?” Carl prods after a long silence.
“And I think that’s it for today’s lesson.” Jacob stands up and looks at Carl. “You did feel it today, didn’t you? The power here, there, everywhere...”
“Yeah, I felt it,” Carl conceded. “Just tell me one thing. Was the Lover and the Beloved Tom and me?”
Jacob appears thoughtful and for a second Carl thinks he’s going to answer. But then...
“I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. For now at least.”
Carl glances down at his hands.
When he looks up again, Jacob is gone.
“Think it over.” Jacob’s voice echoes throughout the empty church.
“Wow.” Nita said, just the one word.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought too,” Carl agreed.
“Is it true...?” Nita asked uncertainly. Then something else occurred to her, “What about the Lone Power and the One’s Champion? You can’t really say that...”
“That they were Lovers?”
Nita nodded.
“Well, no one regrets his ‘Fall’ more than the One’s Champion...” Carl began.
“And somehow they’re always in a tug of war over human’s lives. And so they took a vested interest in both Carl’s and mine.” Tom finished.
“When He read my mind,” Carl added in, “He saw something there that reminded Him. He remembered that Love, he’s never forgotten it. And the thought that there could be another like Him, with a similar Love...
That’s why he took ‘pity’ on me.”
Carl inhaled, exhaled, and went on...
A few days later found him pacing his room.
His wedding was fast approaching.
And he’d found this out the hard way...
A few days after Mass, Cecelia had approached him in their room.
“Carl,” Cecelia had thrown her arms around him, asking half-teasingly, “When are you going to go out and buy a tuxedo?”
He had blinked, looking down at her in bewilderment.
“Whatever for?”
It was obviously the wrong thing to say.
Disbelief dawned in her eyes as she pulled away slowly. Shaking her head she backed up and, with a tiny sob, turned and fled the room.
A few minutes later, Carl’s mother and father made an appearance.
They had to explain to him the situation. How he was betrothed. Did he remember proposing? Did he still want to marry her?
Carl knew the answer to the last question was “yes.”
He knew he loved her, that wasn’t the problem. He had loved her ever since they were kids. They’d grown up together. They’d laughed and cried and made love. He had wonderful memories with her.
So yes, he did love her.
But there was only one thing looming over their happiness...
What about Tom?
Tom who, to all intents and purposes, did not exist...
...never had.
And for what? What did Tom gain by disappearing?
Carl had long debated this as he stared at the ceiling of his room at night, unable to sleep with Cecelia draped over him.
What kind of guy was Tom? What kind of person could do something like that? To just vanish from the world to ensure the one he Loved most moved on?
And that one he Loved most was Carl?
Carl was uncomfortable with that, to say the least...
But he also had to find answers.
So where to begin?
Jacob hadn’t given him any clear cut instructions; just “think it over.”
If he was right-and he was fairly sure he was-Tom had Loved him.
Had Carl Loved him in return? And if so, in what way?
If it was what he thought it was... his thoughts shied away from that.
He couldn’t imagine it.
He couldn’t...
Carl shook his head, this was getting him nowhere ...or was it?
What was he deliberating exactly?
Whether or not to marry Cecelia? Whether or not he should save Tom if he could?
He found himself not so certain of option A anymore. But he was sure about option B.
“What have you decided then Carl?”
Carl spun around.
There was Jacob, sitting on the corner of his bed.
“How did you get in here?” Carl demanded, shaken.
Jacob just shook his head sadly. “I thought you understood.”
“Explain it to me,” Carl growled.
“Since when have I ever done that? You must come to your own conclusions...”
“You’re not human!” Carl complained, rubbing his eyes and collapsing on the bed next to Jacob, frustrated.
“Well, not entirely...”
Carl froze.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Carl’s voice is deceptively even.
“It means we’re out of time. Choose Carl.”
“Choose? Choose what? Between Tom and Cecelia?”
Jacob nodded, “Essentially, yes.”
Then Jacob hesitates, “You have to know Carl... you have the right to know... I don’t care what He says...” Jacob stops himself again and clears his throat before going on. “I’m not supposed to be telling you this, but there is another reason that Tom did what he did...”
“You mean it wasn’t just to stop me from getting hurt?”
Jacob shook his head. “No Carl, it was exactly to stop you from getting hurt... and another as well.”
“Then who...?”
“Go to sleep, Carl.” Jacob stands up. “I promise it all will become much clearer.”
Carl wanted to argue more but then sees the look in Jacob’s eyes.
Carefully he positions himself better on the bed, resting his head on a pillow and closing his eyes.
“I’m not going to be able to just...” ‘Fall asleep,’ is what Carl means to say but Jacob had run a finger over his eyes and it was as though a weight had been put there. It was impossible to open them.
Carl wasn’t scared though, he was determined.
He loved Cecelia but he had to save Tom...
“Power exists in the interfaces of things. These are the between places that are not entirely one thing or another.”
“Only what you’re willing to give,” a new voice filled the empty church.
Carl jumped. The voice was familiar. It belonged to...
“Jacob?”
Jacob emerged from the front of the church, walking past the rows of pews until he could sit down next to a still kneeling Carl.
There was silence between them as Carl moved into a more comfortable sitting position beside Jacob.
“What did you think of the sermon?” Jacob asked at last.
Carl squints at him. “That was your doing?”
Jacob shakes his head. “No, that was purely Divine Inspiration. I’m not from the Divine... well, not directly that is.”
“So...that means you’re not an angel or something, right?” Carl shifted slightly.
“Well, I am something...” Jacob corrects.
“What?”
Jacob shrugs. “I am what you made me to be.”
“What?!” Carl looks at him askance.
Jacob smiles, but it never quite reaches his eyes.
“How about I tell you a story? But first you have to swear to me in return that you will tell no one anything in the short period you will remember it.” Jacob’s expression is unnerving as he stares Carl down.
“I promise,” affirms Carl, who narrows his eyes back at Jacob. “And what do you mean by ‘the short period I’ll remember’?”
“Because if we don’t act soon, this will be your reality.”
Carl was, once again, confused.
“I’m not necessarily saying this is a bad Life that Tom created for you...” Jacob continues with a shrug.
“Who’s Tom?” Carl cuts him off, finally demanding an answer. This was the secret that had preoccupied his thoughts ever since he had heard the name; a puzzle he couldn’t find the pieces to, much less solve.
“Do you ever dream at night Carl?” Jacob asks, ignoring him.
Carl’s lips purse into thin lines which threaten to turn into a frown.
“Everybody dreams,” Carl snaps, “Now what about...”
“Do you remember your dreams though?”
This time Carl does frown as he contemplates.
“I used to I think... but lately? No, no I haven’t remembered my dreams for a long time now.” Carl blinks at this revelation.
Jacob doesn’t bat an eye.
Carl looks again to the crucifix at the front of the church and whispers, “Tell me. Tell me everything.”
Jacob glances to where Carl’s attention is focused and replies, just as quietly, “Not everything, never everything.”
“Then at least tell me something! Give me something to go by!”
“Are you ready to hear the story now?”
With effort Carl calms down and nods.
“Once upon a time there were two men: friends, brothers, comrades in every sense of the word. Only there was a secret between them...
“See, one Loved the other...
“...in an entirely different way.”
Carl’s eyes widened at the implication.
“There came a day when they were separated. The One Who Was Loved never knew the reason why but The One Who Loved did. And instead of trying to regain what was lost, the Lover gave the Beloved a gift...”
“What was it? Life? Love?”
“All those things, but the greatest was this: the ability-indeed the blessing-to Love another, unhampered by any feelings for the Lover. To live a Life without regret. And to do that required...”
Jacob shook his head before continuing.
“I had mistakenly thought that the Lone One’s intervening had been a curse. But the Lover obviously had other plans. See, the Lover knew the Lone Power would be jealous, never having such a gift Itself...
Can you imagine it, Carl? What it would mean for the Lone Power to have such a gift?
The ability to forgive Itself for creating Death after so long...
The ability to forget Its own Love for the One’s Champion...”
“Wait, what?!” Carl interjected at this point.
Jacob shook his head. “That’s another story for another time.”
“Then tell me this: what happens to the Lover?”
“What happens to the Lover? Why, the Lover ceases to be. No one knows him. This world no longer needs him. So he simply vanishes.”
“How?”
Jacob ignores the question.
“But there is something that neither the Lover nor the Beloved ever counted on. That is their Love manifested into physical form, granted by the One.”
“And...?” Carl prods after a long silence.
“And I think that’s it for today’s lesson.” Jacob stands up and looks at Carl. “You did feel it today, didn’t you? The power here, there, everywhere...”
“Yeah, I felt it,” Carl conceded. “Just tell me one thing. Was the Lover and the Beloved Tom and me?”
Jacob appears thoughtful and for a second Carl thinks he’s going to answer. But then...
“I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. For now at least.”
Carl glances down at his hands.
When he looks up again, Jacob is gone.
“Think it over.” Jacob’s voice echoes throughout the empty church.
“Wow.” Nita said, just the one word.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought too,” Carl agreed.
“Is it true...?” Nita asked uncertainly. Then something else occurred to her, “What about the Lone Power and the One’s Champion? You can’t really say that...”
“That they were Lovers?”
Nita nodded.
“Well, no one regrets his ‘Fall’ more than the One’s Champion...” Carl began.
“And somehow they’re always in a tug of war over human’s lives. And so they took a vested interest in both Carl’s and mine.” Tom finished.
“When He read my mind,” Carl added in, “He saw something there that reminded Him. He remembered that Love, he’s never forgotten it. And the thought that there could be another like Him, with a similar Love...
That’s why he took ‘pity’ on me.”
Carl inhaled, exhaled, and went on...
A few days later found him pacing his room.
His wedding was fast approaching.
And he’d found this out the hard way...
A few days after Mass, Cecelia had approached him in their room.
“Carl,” Cecelia had thrown her arms around him, asking half-teasingly, “When are you going to go out and buy a tuxedo?”
He had blinked, looking down at her in bewilderment.
“Whatever for?”
It was obviously the wrong thing to say.
Disbelief dawned in her eyes as she pulled away slowly. Shaking her head she backed up and, with a tiny sob, turned and fled the room.
A few minutes later, Carl’s mother and father made an appearance.
They had to explain to him the situation. How he was betrothed. Did he remember proposing? Did he still want to marry her?
Carl knew the answer to the last question was “yes.”
He knew he loved her, that wasn’t the problem. He had loved her ever since they were kids. They’d grown up together. They’d laughed and cried and made love. He had wonderful memories with her.
So yes, he did love her.
But there was only one thing looming over their happiness...
What about Tom?
Tom who, to all intents and purposes, did not exist...
...never had.
And for what? What did Tom gain by disappearing?
Carl had long debated this as he stared at the ceiling of his room at night, unable to sleep with Cecelia draped over him.
What kind of guy was Tom? What kind of person could do something like that? To just vanish from the world to ensure the one he Loved most moved on?
And that one he Loved most was Carl?
Carl was uncomfortable with that, to say the least...
But he also had to find answers.
So where to begin?
Jacob hadn’t given him any clear cut instructions; just “think it over.”
If he was right-and he was fairly sure he was-Tom had Loved him.
Had Carl Loved him in return? And if so, in what way?
If it was what he thought it was... his thoughts shied away from that.
He couldn’t imagine it.
He couldn’t...
Carl shook his head, this was getting him nowhere ...or was it?
What was he deliberating exactly?
Whether or not to marry Cecelia? Whether or not he should save Tom if he could?
He found himself not so certain of option A anymore. But he was sure about option B.
“What have you decided then Carl?”
Carl spun around.
There was Jacob, sitting on the corner of his bed.
“How did you get in here?” Carl demanded, shaken.
Jacob just shook his head sadly. “I thought you understood.”
“Explain it to me,” Carl growled.
“Since when have I ever done that? You must come to your own conclusions...”
“You’re not human!” Carl complained, rubbing his eyes and collapsing on the bed next to Jacob, frustrated.
“Well, not entirely...”
Carl froze.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Carl’s voice is deceptively even.
“It means we’re out of time. Choose Carl.”
“Choose? Choose what? Between Tom and Cecelia?”
Jacob nodded, “Essentially, yes.”
Then Jacob hesitates, “You have to know Carl... you have the right to know... I don’t care what He says...” Jacob stops himself again and clears his throat before going on. “I’m not supposed to be telling you this, but there is another reason that Tom did what he did...”
“You mean it wasn’t just to stop me from getting hurt?”
Jacob shook his head. “No Carl, it was exactly to stop you from getting hurt... and another as well.”
“Then who...?”
“Go to sleep, Carl.” Jacob stands up. “I promise it all will become much clearer.”
Carl wanted to argue more but then sees the look in Jacob’s eyes.
Carefully he positions himself better on the bed, resting his head on a pillow and closing his eyes.
“I’m not going to be able to just...” ‘Fall asleep,’ is what Carl means to say but Jacob had run a finger over his eyes and it was as though a weight had been put there. It was impossible to open them.
Carl wasn’t scared though, he was determined.
He loved Cecelia but he had to save Tom...