"02 - Birth of an Age" - читать интересную книгу автора (BeauSeigneur James)

"Some things we must assign to fate," Robert Milner said, breaking the silence. It was as though he had been listening to Decker's thoughts.

"Uh . . . yeah, I guess so," Decker answered. The days leading up to Decker's return to Israel to find Christopher had been the most anxious of his life. At times it had been nearly impossible to concentrate on his work as he counted the days until Christopher's return and anticipated what would follow. Milner had talked about a time so dark and bleak that the destruction of the Russian Federation and the Disaster would seem mild by comparison. Somehow the horror which might otherwise have consumed Decker at such a thought was mitigated by the hope which Milner also foresaw. Certainly, to this point, nothing of a cataclysmic nature had occurred Ч though what was taking place in India and Pakistan might well foreshadow such events. Decker realized he might have to accept the bad which Milner foresaw

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along with the good. He just didn't want to dwell on it, especially if, as Milner indicated, such events were inevitable.

Ahead on the trail, a shapeless form began to take on definition. Had Decker noticed it before, he would have thought it was a bush or a tree stump or perhaps an animal, but until this moment it had blended so well into the background that it seemed an inseparable part of its surroundings. "There he is," said Milner.

Decker pressed a little harder on the gas pedal. As they got closer, he began to wonder again in what condition they would find Christopher. When he had last seen him, Christopher had told Decker that he was beginning to wonder whether in the final analysis, his life had been a mistake. Now, forty days later, he was Ч according to Milner Ч the man who would lead mankind into 'the final and most glorious step in its evolution.'

In just another moment they could see him clearly. His coat and clothes were dirty and tattered. He looked thin but strong. Over the forty days his hair had grown over his ears and he now had a full beard. Then Decker saw his face, and for a moment was startled by the astounding resemblance to the face on the Shroud. There was, however, one thing that was very obviously different. The face on the Shroud was peaceful and accepting in death: on Christopher's face was the look of a man driven to achieve his mission.

Milner was the first one out of the jeep. Quickly, he went to Christopher and embraced him. Patting Christopher on the back raised a small cloud of dust from his clothes. Christopher then went to Decker, who reached out his hand but Christopher refused it, and instead hugged him as well. He smelled awful, but Decker held him for a long time anyway.

"Are you all right?" Decker asked. "I've been worried about you."

"Yes, yes. I'm fine." Then turning slightly to address both Decker and Milner together, he continued. "It's all clear now. It was all part of the plan."

"What plan?" asked Decker.

"I've spoken with him. He wants me to finish the task."

"You're talking in riddles, Christopher. What plan? Who did you talk to?"

"Don't you see? I've talked with my father."

4 Birth of an Age

"What do you mean?" Decker asked. By now he knew that he shouldn't be surprised by anything, but nothing could have prepared him for what Christopher was saying.

"Just that," Christopher answered.

"You mean . . . God? You talked with God?!"

Christopher nodded. "Yes," he said quietly. "He wants me to complete the mission I began 2,000 years ago. And I need your help; both of you."

Decker felt as though he was standing on the crest of a tidal wave. Suddenly his life had more meaning than he had ever imagined possible. He believed what Milner told him forty days earlier; if he hadn't he would have never left Christopher alone in the desert. But then it had all been cerebral. Now he was hearing it from Christopher's own lips. This was a turning point, not only in the lives of these three men, but of time itself. Just as the coming of Christ had divided time between B.C. and A.D., this too, would be a line of demarcation from which all else would be measured. This undoubtedly was the birth of a New Age. Decker wished that Elizabeth were alive to share it with him. For a moment he just stared at Christopher. Then he managed to ask, "What can we do?"

"We must return to New York immediately," Christopher answered. "Millions of lives are at stake."

Before leaving New York, Decker had contacted David Bragford and arranged for the loan of a private jet, which he told Bragford was for Milner. As planned, the jet and crew were waiting at Ben Gurion airport when Decker, Christopher, and Milner arrived. Decker had brought clothes and a shaving kit from home for Christopher, but though he eagerly took advantage of the shower on Bragford's plane and welcomed the clean clothes, Christopher decided to forego the razor and keep the beard.

As Christopher ate his first meal in forty days, Decker briefed him on events at the U.N. When they were done, Christopher began to pour over the reams of documents Decker had brought for him to review.

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Three hours into the flight, one of the crew members came into the cabin where Christopher, Decker, and Milner were talking. He was obviously very concerned about something. "What is it?" Decker asked.