Crusdae, p.25
Crusdae, page 25
“Tell me about them. All this is of the greatest interest to me; but first have one of these delicious sherbets, a drink unknown in our countries although refreshing.”
Brother Joubert, known to be something of a glutton, eagerly accepted one of the delicacies; then, sipping and licking his lips like a sensuous cat, he continued, “When a plain gold or silver wire of the kind used to embroider materials is attached to the red and black terminals inside the Baphomet effigy, it incandesces. The smaller the diameter of the metal thread, the more rapidly this occurs.”
“Such unnatural fire is amazing!”
“There’s more: when the wires are plunged into chalybeate liver of sulphur in aqueous solution, they produce evanescent bubbles. And, in a solution of Armenian stone, commonly called verdigris, one of the silver threads takes on a beautiful yellow color...
“Transmutation to gold!”
“No, venerable Master, only ordinary copper. However, this clearly proves that each knob on the energy box has properties that are completely different . . .”
“A remarkable deduction. By my faith, I never would have thought of that Congratulations on your perception, Brother Joubert.”
The learned Templar smirked complacently and continued with calculated humility, “These discoveries are especially important because they will help us to determine the laws governing the fluid coming from the box; and, once I am certain what it is, I haven’t the slightest doubt that the transmuter can be made to operate again.”
“Perfect. But hurry it up for we cannot stay in Baghdad forever and I can understand very well that such research is not easily done in a wagon. Is that all?”
“I also delved into the mechanism contained in the Baphomet effigies and made a strange discovery: I would have told you sooner but—you were always so busy with the management of this vast state....”
“That should not have prevented you, Brother; you must know that to you I am always available.”
“You honor me, venerable Master. Briefly, this is what I found. ... Do you mind if I have another of those delicious sherbets? My throat dries up when I talk. . . .” “Of course not. And also try one of these Turkish delights.”
“Um-mmm! Excellent These countries indubitably possess a multitude of charms. I have been told of curious substances with stranger properties which are found, so rumor has it, on the road to Cathay. One of them is similar to that substance called salamander: even the hottest fire cannot destroy it. But to return to the Baphomet effigies; inside there is a kind of metal grid with plates that slide between one another. When I changed their position in one, I could hear Baphomet’s voice, although no sound came from the others.”
“What was he saying?”
“Nothing understandable, since he spoke in his own language. However, because the same phrase was repeated continuously, I am convinced that it was a message meant for his kinsmen, stating his whereabouts and asking for help. Working on this assumption, a Turcopole who is expert in many languages was able to isolate several words. This will enable us to know—from now on— whether his fellow beings have heard him and are coming to his assistance.”
“This is a priceless discovery! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I wanted to make one final experiment, noble Master. There is also a short lever connected to this device. When I moved it and modified the position of the plates I mentioned before, by using two of the effigies, placed at a distance from one another, it was possible to hold a conversation without any interference from Baphomet’s voice.”
“Come here and let me embrace you, Brother Joubert: you have just given me the means I lacked. Now the several divisions of my army will be able to exchange information, even when they are several days’ march distant from one another!"
After kissing the Templar seer on both cheeks, the delighted Grand Master bestowed the title of Commander of the Order on him, together with full ownership of the city of Mosul—as soon as the army had taken it. He also begged him to devote some research to the oil that burned. Then the two men went their separate ways, each greatly pleased with the other.
While John of Grailly pursued his passion for the beauteous princess, other knights carried on the continued pacification procedures at the head of the Christian army.
Otto of Granson reached Basra and a Templar bearing a Baphomet image joined him so that he was able to give immediate notification of his occupation of the port with its enormous riches and boundless supplies. In accordance with his orders, the Mongol ships were taken but vessels of other nations were left free to ply their, trade.
Peter of Sevry, the Templar Marshal, was sent north to annex the Mosul region, completing occupation of the Khanate of the deceased Abaka. His troops met no opposition. The garrison abandoned the City without pretense of fighting and fled toward the Khanate of Kaidu, traveling along the shores of the Caspian Sea. They destroyed nothing before leaving because the inhabitants took up arms to resist looting and the Templars were greeted as liberators. News of this, thanks to Baphomet’s transmitter, was instantaneously made known to William of Beaujeu, who ordered his Marshal to make a clear proclamation that the princess, Abaka’s widow, still held sovereignty over the Khanate. In this way the transfer of power was accomplished without incident.
Moreover, numerous reinforcements were arriving in Mesopotamia: troops of French, English, Italian, Spanish and German knights who had heard of the resounding victory at Baghdad and rushed to join this new Crusade.
They almost doubled the effective force of the army, but William of Beaujeu, thinking of the long distances they would have to travel to reach Peking, did little rejoicing. Feeding a large army posed serious problems, particularly when crossing arid deserts like the one which slashed Kaidu’s Khanate in half. He resolved the difficulty by forming Mesopotamian garrisons from the newcomers. This retained the seasoned knights in. his invasion force, and backed that with large reserve detachments. Keeping his men on the move would prevent them from growing soft as a result of lingering in the seductive oriental cities where the availability of obliging women and rich food threatened to rob them of any desire to push on with the great Crusade.
Two months had elapsed since Abaka’s death and it was now too late in the year to initiate a full-scale offensive in countries extremely forbidding in winter, if one accepted the report made by Nicolo and Matteo Polo. William, therefore, restricted himself to a limited operation, leading his army to Sava, south of the Caspian Sea. He kept the Dasht-I-Kavir, the great salt marsh, on his right and crossed the rugged Kurdistan Mountains. Squires and knights alike showed little enthusiasm for the long journey through such rough terrain and loudly lamented the comforts of life in Baghdad.
To fire their lagging spirits, the Grand Master had his chaplains tell them the history of the area. Not far from there, in the Caucasus Mountains, was Mount Ararat, where Noah’s ark had beached after the Flood. From the city of Avah had come the three Wise Men, making their way to worship the Child Jesus. With them they brought offerings of gold, incense and myrrh for the Child and in exchange they were given a plain box.
On their return journey, curious as to its contents, they opened it. To their great disappointment they found only a stone, which they contemptuously threw into a well. Instantly, a huge flame sprang from the shaft, which the greatly astonished magi cupped and carried home with them. There, their descendents carefully guarded it in Galasia Castle, only a three-day march from Sava.
Was not this proof positive that the celestial lightning had always been a sign from the Lord God, and that the Crusaders were duty-bound to free these Sacred Places?
These tales spurred the Crusaders on and the army finally reached its destination at the end of October. William set up his winter quarters there and threw himself into the business of working out the details of his spring offensive.
Chapter VI
☆
The winter proved to be comparatively mild and the knights had little time to be bored. Besides the strenuous exercises ordered by the Grand Master, they spent long hours hunting with magnificently deft falcons. The abundant game lent a pleasing variety to their usual fare. In fact, they learned to appreciate a great many things unknown in their native lands.
South of Sava there was a route frequented by caravans carrying all kinds of strange merchandise from the port of Hormuz. Spices, rare fabrics, precious stones, elephant tusks, everything captivated the Crusaders and fired them with a compulsive longing to travel to those regions where such riches could be found.
They discovered strange trees, snow-white oxen with a hump on their backs and—a valuable asset for future operations—mules with unbelievable stamina. Splendid horses were also sent to them from the province of Tunocaim, just in time to replace the ones brought from Cyprus.
They learned to enjoy the taste of dates, pistachios and paradise apples, which were called naranges by the Persians and which had the reputation of restoring the strength of warriors after a long day’s march. Naturally they began storing up all these treasures.
The Grand Marshal, who was in charge of provisioning, began assembling a great number of camels whose resistance to thirst would be of enormous value when crossing the great desert. The war machines, always dismounted during difficult stages, could be carried by these robust animals as well.
Near the end of winter, several Hospitalers arrived from the Holy Land bringing a message from their Grand Master, who congratulated William on his resounding successes and inquired as to his future intentions. It seemed clear that John of Villiers was more than a little alarmed by his rival’s colossal authority. The occupation of Mesopotamia did not disturb him overmuch as long as he had the upper hand in Syria, but he feared any move by the Templars to invade Cathay, the acquisition of which would give them immeasurable power.
William of Beaujeu made as reassuring a reply as possible, leaving it tacitly understood that he was satisfied with his present conquests and had no ambition other than the peaceful administration of Mesopotamia.
One day in the month of April, however, the Tholon brothers—who were always charged with secret missions to one or another of the garrisons-—captured a Venetian making for the Khanate of Kaidu. He tried to pass himself off as a merchant on his way to buy silk but, during the examination of his baggage, a coat of mail and a mantle were discovered that left no doubt as to his identity: he was unquestionably an emissary of the Hospitalers. Then, considerably more serious, a message was found hidden in his saddle. When William of Beaujeu learned its contents, he was infuriated: John of Villiers proposed a secret alliance with the Mongol Khans, promising to cut off all communications between Europe and the Templars in the event the latter attacked Kaidu and Kubla. . . .
The Hospitalers’ observers were immediately thrown into the deepest dungeon, along with the messenger, and the Grand Master summoned his Council to advise them of the situation.
Unavoidably, it took, a certain time for the Council members to reach Sava, so that the meeting could not take place until the tenth of May. This delay was put to good use by mustering the troops and loading the supply wagons.
So it was that all the knights who had taken part in the conquest of the Khanate of Abaka found themselves together, ready to plunge into a new adventure, though ignorant of its nature or purpose. There was the Swiss knight, Otto of Granson, John of Grailly, and all the other Templar Commanders. By then, William of Beaujeu had completed the plan of action for this new campaign and lost no time in revealing it to his staunch friends.
“Nobles, knights, my Brothers. You underwent the severest of trials before accomplishing our first task; that of lifting the Mongol yoke from all Mesopotamia. Since then we have secured the peace and have rooted out those dogs who defiled this beauteous region—endowed with every enticement. Some among you, I regret to say, have succumbed to its sensuous charms, almost forgetting our mission, the propagation of the True Faith. I am more than willing to excuse such ones: human nature is weak. Did not the Apostle Peter, himself, thrice deny our Lord Jesus Christ? Think on your transgressions, my Brothers, and say to yourselves that paradise shall be gained by leaving this instant to storm die empire of Cathay.”
The craggy face of Otto of Granson, scarred by who knows how many saber cuts, was transformed by a broad grin. “Well, now, that’s more like it! I was beginning to get rusty. . . . I’m ready! Down with the infidels!”
John of Grailly, on the contrary, did not like the news at all: the months spent at the court of the beautiful Princess Paleologue inspired no wish in him to return to the interminable riding and the rigors of camp life. Secretly, he hoped to persuade the princess to marry him and counted on ending his days in opulent Baghdad. And so he objected weakly:
“This is an enormous task, venerable Master. May it not be one beyond our capabilities?”
“Nothing in this world is impossible to courageous defenders of the True Faith!” William retorted contemptuously. “Kubla Khan has disparaged our Holy Father, the Pope, and I intend to make him regret his words. He had the insolence to say to the brothers Polo that Christians neither had knowledge of, nor the ability, to do anything supernatural; whereas, so he pretends with the help of their pagan gods, his priests have the power to change the weather whenever they wish, to foretell the future, to transport objects remarkable distances without the aid of human hands. ’Ask your Pope,’ he told them jokingly, “to send me one hundred seers, well-versed in your religion. I will match them with my own priests and we shall see who will perform the greatest number of miracles. . . .’ Very well, noble Sires, one hundred thousand men are going to teach this blasphemer the powers of our Savior. We shall see if he still feels like making jokes then.”
His speech touched off the wildest enthusiasm. These rough men all had a profound faith which could tolerate no hint of insult. Even the elegant John of Grailly was ashamed of his thought of remaining safely in a sumptuous palace while his Pope was being mocked by the Mongol Khan, and his voice could be heard above all the others.
“I expected no less of you,” the Grand Master assured them. “Here is my plan. We shall invade the Khanate of Kaidu from the north, following the caravan track, which will provide us with many useful commodities. Samarkand, where the most beautiful carpets in the world are woven, is our first objective. From there, we move on to Kashgar, but to reach that city we shall have to cross the cold, arid heights of the Pamirs. Do I have to say that our route has been carefully planned? Passing through Kashgar and Yarkand by the way of Khotan, we arrive in Kenya. From there we press on to Tunhwang but—in order to reach that city—we shall have to cross the great desert. Have no fears, our excellent guides are used to leading caravans and will take us by the shortest way. There will be many rough days, but we shall arrive safe and sound. However, a new test awaits us there, the most serious of all for, when we leave the Khanate of Kaidu, Kubla’s army will be lying in wait for us somewhere beyond the great desert; the most likely place is in the vicinity of Tunhwang.”
The Templar Marshal could no longer contain his dismay. “Venerable Master, we run the greatest risk of arriving there with an army severely diminished by the perils of this interminable journey. When you had the noble Otto of Granson occupy Basra, I thought you had decided to enter Cambaluc by sea.”
“I did have that intention at the time, Brother, but several considerations led me to reject such a project First, the wildest storms often sweep the southern waters, disabling the sturdiest ships and, further, none of us are sailors. Consequently, even with favorable weather, many might be violently ill and incapable of handling our vessels properly. What decided the matter was Kubla’s powerful navy, which could easily attack us during the night when the lack of visibility, together with the heavy loads in our ships, would prevent defensive maneuvers. That is why I finally chose the land route.”
“All this should be self-evident,” Commander Thibaud Gaudin averred loudly. He never missed a chance to echo the Grand Master with the hope of gaining special favors. “We suffered enough only a little while ago when we sailed from Sicily to Acre. I’m sure none of us want to repeat that experience.”
“Besides, I have some good news for you,” William of Beaujeu continued. “First of all, a new sign of favor from our Lord: it will now be possible for me to talk with all the Commanders of our Order, even though they are many a day's march away. I shall also be able to keep in touch with Baghdad to ask for anything we need. Secondly, I want you to know that valiant warriors have joined our ranks, men who know the regions where we are going like the palms of their hands. They are the loyal followers of the Old One of the Mountains, all of whom survived a massacre. But I’ll let our Seneschal tell you about them, since it was he who discovered these former allies.”
“They are indeed rediscovered friends,” declared the giant Templar. “A long time ago, our Order was in close contact with their leader. I’m sine you all know that the Khan of the Persian Tartars, the same one that conquered Baghdad, besieged the stronghold of the Old One of the Mountains. For three years he stayed in the vicinity of Kasvin before taking it This should give you some idea of the noble knights. Most of them were slaughtered with their master but, luckily, some were not in the castle when it fell; they survived. And they hate all Mongols with such a burning passion, they will dare anything to be revenged.
“What you may not know is that the Old One was a powerful magician who enslaved his followers with a dream of blood and carnal ecstasy. He knew the secret of a wondrous elixir: the warrior who drank of it saw the gates of paradise open to him. With the sweetest embraces, wanton houris satisfied his never-ending desires and, during his lustful dream, he sensed strange harmonies, colors, musical sounds and perfumes, all mingled with one another in dazzling convolutions. Unhappily for the dreamer, the vision disappeared all too soon. . . . The wretched warrior had only one desire: to drink this brew again. But, in order to merit another taste of it, the hashshashin must kill a specified enemy, selected by the Old One. From that moment, the success of his mission was the warrior’s only thought: if he survived, he would be rewarded with a draft of the magic beverage and, if he died in pursuit of his mission, he believed Allah himself would open the gates to that paradise which he had only glimpsed, where he would live for all eternity. I possess the secret of this elixir and have already used it to send some of the hashshashins into the Mongol empire: they traveled unrecognized with caravans and obtained priceless information on the preparations being made by both Kaidu and Kubla.”
