Finding Answers: Chapter Ten
The Book Of Truth
"And their understanding were opened"
The walk home was quiet and gentle, like the evening wind rustling through the Cedars of Bottle Alley, a quiet road that led from the Archives to Ruth's clan lands. The atmosphere was solemn, which was scarcely unusual.
It had been only a day, yet so much had happened that it felt as if centuries had passed. Discovering the narrow path, the stairway leading to heaven and taking a ride in the chariot of silver fire; was more than any average teenager could wrap their head around.
Ruth, too, was shaken from their last trial in the Valley of Desires. The image of her father's face kept flashing into her mind; his voice and the look in his eyes.
The twins couldn't help but notice her sudden change in countenance after the encounter at the Valley and decided to walk her home. Since Ruth's house was also on the outskirts like the Archives, they arrived there quickly. Mary, Ruth's mother, had never been so happy to see her daughter. Andrew helped explain to Ruth's mom that their studying had taken a little more time than expected.
The last thing the twins saw of Ruth was her sticking close to her mother's side. She gave a quick wave before Mary shut the door behind them.
"Poor Ruth" Deborah said aloud as she stood with her brother on Ruth's porch, staring at the door. "I can't help but wonder what she saw in the Valley of Desires that shook her up so much."
"Yeah," Andrew replied, standing with his arms crossed.
"But we have an urgent task at hand," Deborah continued quietly. It didn't take long for the twins to head back home. In their clan, it was an honor to ignore the normal activities of life and devote oneself to study and learning; a mantra that suited Deborah well, but not so much Andrew.
Now, Deborah and Andrew were in the Historical Archives. Their mother had made them snacks, and the leftovers sat on the floor between them.
Deborah sat with the Book of Truth sprawled in front of her, surrounded by several other texts, some ancient, some modern.
Andrew, on the other hand, felt it was a good time to sharpen his axe. The room was quiet except for the occasional "skra skra" of the sharpening stone against the metal.
The sound couldn't help but irritate Deborah, whose eye twitched each time the stone rolled through the sharp edge of his axe.
Skrrr
Skrrrrrrr
"Can you stop that?" Deborah yelled finally.
"Why?"
"Because it's distracting. I've been trying to read this book, and I can't seem to figure it out. I'm deciding a matter of life and death, the fate of our town and if you don't want to help out, the least you can do is not distract me with your axe!" Deborah said, not thinking she needed to explain further.
"Well," Andrew replied nonchalantly, "what do we do now? 'Cause your reading is also distracting me." He completed the sentence with a sly smile as he rolled the stone through the blade of his axe once more.
Deborah stared at her brother with a burning gaze. Sometimes, she wished she could just deck him, but he was bigger and never failed to rub it in her face. So, she rolled her eyes, folded her arms, and pouted.
Andrew didn't back down. Instead, he poked her with the handle of his axe. Deborah turned her head the other way. She didn't have time for her brother's annoying pranks right now.
Andrew eventually gave up when he saw his sister wasn't interested. He put his arm around her shoulders and said, "What's up, berry cake? What's bugging you?"
"Like I said, I can't seem to read the book..."
"Wait" Andrew interrupted, "I thought you once said you could understand all ancient writings if you just—"
"Not helping, ANDREW!" Deborah said firmly, interrupting him.
"Oh, sorry."
"There are different scripts and encrypted writings recorded through history. I've gone through every one of them," Deborah said, motioning to the books spread before them. "But none of them match the writings in this book."
"Maybe you need to rest..."
"What?"
"It's been a long day, Deborah. You may need to rest so you can refresh your smart brain and come back tomorrow to solve all the mysteries."
Deborah looked up at her brother as he cracked his shoulder muscles. She did feel really tired. "Yeah, you're right. I'll rest for the night."
"That's my girl."
"But no sharpening of weapons."
"Alright, your wish is my command, my lady." Andrew winked.
Deborah simply rolled her eyes and turned aside to sleep on the cold marble floor, letting her muscles relax and slowly shutting her eyelids. But the next second, she snapped them open and sat up.
Andrew, who was now staring into the distance, turned his face to his sister. "Now what?" he asked with a smirk.
"I think I got it" Deborah replied slowly, turning to face her brother.
"Think?"
"You know how we couldn't find the key to the Veiled Archives until there were three of us?" Deborah said, ignoring her brother.
"So, we need three of us to be together for the book to be opened to us, so we can understand it," Andrew concluded.
"Yes!"
"So, do we call Ruth over tomorrow?"
"No," Deborah said. "We go to her. At first light tomorrow," she concluded, locking eyes with her brother.
It was a cool evening. The birds were singing, and Ruth lay on her bed, lost in her thoughts as usual. Her head was propped on a pillow, and she lay perfectly still.
Meeting the fake version of her father the previous day had stirred a longing within her, deep down she wished it had been real. Maybe she'd meet him again someday. Perhaps he would be so old by then, and she would tell him stories of her own adventures, just as he had told her stories of his.
Then, she heard a knock. "Come in!" she called. But the last thing she expected was to see, Deborah and Andrew waltzing into her space. She sat up suddenly.
"Nice space," Andrew said, nodding toward her, hands in his pockets.
"Hi" Deborah said, rubbing her hands together.
Ruth quickly sat on the edge of the bed and motioned to the space beside her, inviting the twins to sit. Deborah sat on her right, and Andrew sat on her left.
"So, how's it going, cream cake?" Andrew asked, placing his hand on her shoulder, as he always did with his sister.
"I'm good" Ruth replied quietly, she was a little uncomfortable being sandwiched between them.
"You seemed a little out of sorts yesterday," Deborah said, placing her hand on Ruth's right hand, which rested on her dress.
"I'm fine," Ruth replied, fiddling with her hair.
"We know this journey has been really hard on you, and it's okay if you want to back out."
"I love going on adventures with you all," Ruth said sharply, looking at Deborah.
"Well, if you say so" Deborah replied, startled at Ruth's sudden change in tone. "We actually really need your help with something." Andrew passed the book to Ruth carefully after retrieving it from his strap bag, as Deborah continued, "It's written in ancient script, and I can't seem to decipher it, no matter how hard I try or which manuals I use, which is pretty unusual, as I am well-versed in all the..."
While Deborah went on and on, Ruth opened the first page of the ancient book and said, "But the text looks easy to read to me."
Deborah stopped in her tracks and looked down at the book. The seemingly hard script she had been trying so hard to read now appeared as clear as day, and suddenly, it began to beam with a strange light.
"Andy, are you seeing this?" She asked feeling more scared than relieved.
"Yeah, I am," Andrew replied in awe.
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