The Fifth Mountain Part 3

She succeeded in erecting an altar to Baal, before which the old priests now kneel."

"Everything will happen as was written by the Lord," replied the prophet.

"There are moments when tribulations occur in our lives, and we cannot avoid them. But they are there for some reason.""What reason?"

"That is a question we cannot answer before, or even during, the trials.

Only when we have overcome them do we understand why they were there."

AS SOON AS ELIJAH had departed, the high priest called the delegation of citizens who had sought him out that morning.

"Do not concern yourselves about this," said the high priest. "Custom mandates that we offer hospitality to foreigners. Besides that, here he is under our control and we can observe his steps. The best way to know and destroy an enemy is to pretend to become his friend. When the time comes, he will be handed over to Jezebel, and our city will receive gold and other recompense. By then, we shall have learned how to destroy his ideas; for now, we know only how to destroy his body."

Although Elijah was a wors.h.i.+per of the One G.o.d and a potential enemy of the princess, the high priest demanded that the right of asylum be honored. Everyone knew of the ancient custom: if a city were to deny shelter to a traveler, the sons of its inhabitants would later face the same difficulty. Since the greater part of Akbar had descendants scattered among the country's gigantic merchant fleet, no one dared challenge the law of hospitality.

Furthermore, it cost nothing to await the day when the Jewish prophet's head would be exchanged for large amounts of gold.

That night, Elijah supped with the widow and her son. As the Israelite prophet was now a valuable commodity to be bargained for in the future, several traders sent provisions enough to feed the three of them for a week.

"It appears the G.o.d of Israel is keeping His word," said the widow. "Not since my husband died has my table been as full as today."

LITTLE BY LITTLE ELIJAH BECAME PART OF THE LIFE OF Zarephath and, like all its inhabitants, came to call it Akbar. He met the governor, the commander of the garrison, the high priest, and the master gla.s.smakers, who were admired throughout the region. When asked his reason for being there, he would tell the truth: Jezebel was slaying all the prophets in Israel."You're a traitor to your country, and an enemy of Phoenicia," they said.

"But we are a nation of traders and know that the more dangerous a man is, the higher the price on his head."

And so pa.s.sed several months.

AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE VALLEY, A FEW a.s.sYRIAN patrols had encamped, apparently intending to remain. The small group of soldiers represented no threat. But even so, the commander asked the governor to take steps.

"They have done nothing to us," said the governor. "They must be on a mission of trade, in search of a better route for their products. If they decide to make use of our roads, they will pay taxesand we shall become even richer. Why provoke them?"

To complicate matters further, the widow's son fell ill for no apparent reason. Neighbors attributed the fact to the presence of the foreigner in her house, and the widow asked Elijah to leave. But he did not leavethe Lord had not yet called. Rumors began to spread that the foreigner had brought with him the wrath of the G.o.ds of the Fifth Mountain.

It was possible to control the army and calm the population about the foreign patrols. But, with the illness of the widow's son, the governor began having difficulty easing the people's minds about Elijah.

A DELEGATION of the inhabitants of Akbar went to speak with the governor.

"We can build the Israelite a house outside the walls," they said. "In that way we will not violate the law of hospitality but will still be protected from divine wrath. The G.o.ds are displeased with this man's presence."

"Leave him where he is," replied the governor. "I do not wish political problems with Israel."

"What?" the townspeople asked. "Jezebel is pursuing all the prophets who wors.h.i.+p the One G.o.d, and would slay them."

"Our princess is a courageous woman, and faithful to the G.o.ds of the Fifth Mountain. But, however much power she may have now, she is not an Israelite. Tomorrow she may fall into disfavor, and we shall have to face the anger of our neighbors; if we demonstrate that we have treated one of their prophets well, they will be kind to us."

The delegation left unsatisfied, for the high priest had said that one day Elijah would be traded for gold and other rewards. Nevertheless, even if the governor were in error, they could do nothing. Custom said that the ruling family must be respected.

IN THE DISTANCE, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE VALLEY, THE tents of the a.s.syrian warriors began to multiply.

The commander was concerned, but he had the support of neither the governor nor the high priest. He attempted to keep his warriors constantly trained, though he knew that none of themnor even their grandfathershad experience in combat. War was a thing of the past for Akbar, and all the strategies he had learned had been superseded by the new techniques and new weapons that other countries used.

"Akbar has always negotiated its peace," said the governor. "It will not be this time that we are invaded. Let the other countries fight among themselves: we have a weapon much more powerful than theirsmoney.

When they have finished destroying one another, we shall enter their citiesand sell our products."

The governor succeeded in calming the population about the a.s.syrians.

But rumors were rife that the Israelite had brought the curse of the G.o.ds to Akbar. Elijah was becoming an ever greater problem.

ONE AFTERNOON, the boy's condition worsened severely; he could no longer stand, nor could he recognize those who came to visit him. Before the sun descended to the horizon, Elijah and the widow kneeled at the child's bedside.

"Almighty Lord, who led the soldier's arrow astray and who brought me here, make this child whole again. He has done nothing, he is innocent of my sins and the sins of his fathers; save him, O Lord."

The boy barely moved; his lips were white, and his eyes were rapidly losing their glow.

"Pray to your One G.o.d," the woman asked. "For only a mother can know when her son's soul is departing."

Elijah felt the desire to take her hand, to tell her she was not alone and that Almighty G.o.d would attend him. He was a prophet; he had accepted that truth on the banks of the Cherith, and now the angels were at his side.

"I have no more tears," she continued. "If He has no compa.s.sion, if He needs a life, then ask Him to take me, and leave my son to walk through the valley and the streets of Akbar."

Elijah did all in his power to concentrate on his prayer; but that mother's suffering was so intense that it seemed to engulf the room, penetrating the walls, the door, everywhere.

He touched the boy's body; his temperature was not as high as in earlier days, and that was a bad sign.

THE HIGH PRIEST had come by the house that morning and, as he had done for two weeks, applied herbal poultices to the boy's face and chest.

In the preceding days, the women of Akbar had brought recipes for remedies that had been handed down for generations and whose curative powers had been proved on numerous occasions. Every afternoon, they gathered at the foot of the Fifth Mountain and made sacrifices so the boy's soul would not leave his body.

Moved by what was happening in the city, an Egyptian trader who was pa.s.sing through Akbar gave, without charge, an extremely dear red powder to be mixed with the boy's food. According to legend, the technique of manufacturing the powder had been granted to Egyptian doctors by the G.o.ds themselves.

Elijah had prayed unceasingly for all this time.

But nothing, nothing whatsoever, had availed.

"I KNOW WHY they have allowed you to remain here," the woman said, her voice softer each time she spoke, for she had gone many days without sleep. "I know there is a price on your head, and that one day you will be handed over to Israel in exchange for gold. If you save my son, I swear by Baal and the G.o.ds of the Fifth Mountain that you will never be captured. I know escape routes that have been forgotten for generations, and I will teach you how to leave Akbar without being seen."

Elijah did not reply.

"Pray to your One G.o.d," the woman asked again. "If He saves my son, I swear I will renounce Baal and believe in Him. Explain to your Lord that I gave you shelter when you were in need; I did exactly as He had ordered."

Elijah prayed again, imploring with all his strength. At that instant, the boy stirred.

"I want to leave here," the boy said in a weak voice.

His mother's eyes shone with happiness; tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Come, my son. We'll go wherever you like, do whatever you wish."

Elijah tried to pick him up, but the boy pushed his hand away.

"I want to do it by myself," he said.

He rose slowly and began to walk toward the outer room. After a few steps, he dropped to the floor, as if felled by a bolt of lightning.

Elijah and the widow ran to him; the boy was dead.

For an instant, neither spoke. Suddenly, the woman began to scream with all her strength.

"Cursed be the G.o.ds, cursed be they who have taken away my son!

Cursed be the man who brought such misfortune to my home! My only child!" she screamed. "Because I respected the will of heaven, because I was generous with a foreigner, my son is dead!"

The neighbors heard the widow's lamentations and saw her son laid out on the floor of the house. The woman was still screaming, her fists pounding against the chest of the Israelite prophet beside her; he seemed to have lost any ability to react and did nothing to defend himself. While the women tried to comfort the widow, the men immediately seized Elijah by the arms and took him to the governor.

"This man has repaid generosity with hatred. He put a spell on the widow's house and her son died. We are sheltering someone who is cursed by the G.o.ds."

The Israelite wept, asking himself, "O my Lord and G.o.d, even this widow, who has been so generous to me, hast Thou chosen to afflict? If Thou hast slain her son, it can only be because I am failing the mission that has been entrusted to me, and it is I who deserve to die."

That evening, the council of the city of Akbar was convened, under the direction of the high priest and the governor. Elijah was brought to judgment.

"You chose to return hatred for love. For that reason, I condemn you to death," said the governor.

"EVEN THOUGH YOUR HEAD is worth a satchel of gold, we cannot invite the wrath of the G.o.ds of the Fifth Mountain," the high priest said. "For later not all the gold in the world will bring peace back to this city."

Elijah lowered his head. He deserved all the suffering he could bear, for the Lord had abandoned him.

"You shall climb the Fifth Mountain," said the high priest. "You shall ask forgiveness from the G.o.ds you have offended. They will cause fire to descend from the heavens to slay you. If they do not, it is because they desire justice to be carried out at our hands; we shall be waiting for you at the descent from the mountain, and in accordance with ritual you will be executed the next morning."

Elijah knew all too well about sacred executions: they tore the heart from the breast and cut off the head. According to ancient beliefs, a man without a heart could not enter paradise.

"Why hast Thou chosen me for this, Lord?" he cried out, knowing that the men about him knew nothing of the choice the Lord had made for him.

"Dost Thou not see that I am incapable of carrying out what Thou hast demanded of me?"

He heard no reply.

SHOUTING INSULTS AND HURLING STONES, THE MEN and women of Akbar followed in procession the group of guards conducting the Israelite to the face of the Fifth Mountain. Only with great effort were the soldiers able to contain the crowd's fury. After walking for half an hour, they came to the foot of the sacred mountain.

The group stopped before the stone altars, where people were wont to leave their offerings and sacrifices, their pet.i.tions and prayers. They all knew the stories of giants who lived in the area, and they remembered some who had challenged the prohibition only to be claimed by the fire from heaven. Travelers pa.s.sing through the valley at night swore they could hear the laughter of the G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses amusing themselves from above.Even if no one was certain of all this, none dared challenge the G.o.ds.

"Let's go," said a soldier, prodding Elijah with the tip of his spear.

"Whoever kills a child deserves the worst punishment there is."

ELIJAH STEPPED ONTO the forbidden terrain and began to climb the slope. After walking for some time, until he could no longer hear the shouts of the people of Akbar, he sat on a rock and wept; since that day in the carpentry shop when he saw the darkness dotted with brilliant points of light, he had succeeded only in bringing misfortune to others.

The Lord had lost His voices in Israel, and the wors.h.i.+p of Phoenician G.o.ds must now be stronger than before. His first night beside the Cherith, Elijah had thought that G.o.d had chosen him to be a martyr, as He had done with so many others.

Instead, the Lord had sent a crowa portentous birdwhich had fed him until the Cherith ran dry. Why a crow and not a dove, or an angel? Could it all be merely the delirium of a man trying to hide his fear, or whose head has been too long exposed to the sun? Elijah was no longer certain of anything: perhaps Evil had found its instrument, and he was that instrument. Why had G.o.d sent him to Akbar, instead of returning him to put an end to the princess who had inflicted such evil on his people?

He had felt like a coward but had done as ordered. He had struggled to adapt to that strange, gracious people and their completely different way of life. Just when he thought he was fulfilling his destiny, the widow's son had died.

"Why me?"

HE ROSE, walked a bit farther until he entered the mist covering the mountaintop. He could take advantage of the lack of visibility to flee from his persecutors, but what would it matter? He was weary of fleeing, and he knew that nowhere would he find his place in the world. Even if he succeeded in escaping now, he would bear the curse with him to another city, and other tragedies would come to pa.s.s. Wherever he went, he would take with him the shadow of those deaths. He preferred to have his heart ripped from his chest and his head cut off.

He sat down again, amid the fog. He had decided to wait a bit, so that those below would think he had climbed to the top of the mountain; then he would return to Akbar, surrendering to his captors."The fire of heaven." Many before had been killed by it, though Elijah doubted that it was sent by the Lord. On moonless nights its glow crossed the firmament, appearing suddenly and disappearing just as abruptly.

Perhaps it burned. Perhaps it killed instantly, with no suffering.

AS NIGHT FELL, the fog dissipated. He could see the valley below, the lights of Akbar, and the fires of the a.s.syrian encampment. He heard the barking of their dogs and the war chants of their soldiers.

"I am ready," he said to himself. "I accepted that I was a prophet, and did everything I did as best I could. But I failed, and now G.o.d needs someone else."

At that moment, a light descended upon him.

"The fire of heaven!"

The light, however, remained before him. And a voice said: "I am an angel of the Lord."

Elijah kneeled and placed his face against the ground.