The fountain of truth
Jacob’s mind is a paradox of crippled activity. The baritone bellows of the Carrier’s unhurried breathing, punctuated with lumbering heartbeats, composes a daunting symphony throughout the chamber. The droning tempo is contrasted only by the accented panic in his lungs, chorused by that of the other two individuals trapped within. Thoughts are drowned in this tide of sound, its flotsam of confusion eroding conventions. Unchallenged ‘sur-reality’ grows increasingly tangible as sanity scrambles precariously for footing along fracturing pillars of denial.
Endorphins race frantically into the soupy cocktail of systematic reactions that are affecting Jacob’s body, vibrating his stomach towards nausea and purging his hopeful ideal that adrenalin might inspire or elicit some bold reaction in him. There are no straws to clutch there. A fleeting self-pity is permitted followed by a renewed determination not to be distracted from the analysis of his peers, the difficulty of which increases exponentially with his waxing paranoia. Steadying himself with a mental slap, Jacob assigns his threadbare energy to the review of his accumulated summations, probing for faults and confirming certainties.
Lionel wears his anxiety with the least disguise, probably owing to his youth. (A typical child of ten bares less of the scars which inevitably fortify adult emotions). His constant fidgeting echoes his mental state and a haunted expression swivels with his listless eyes as they search David and Jacob for something to relate to. However, upon keen observation it is apparent that although Lionel is afraid, it is by no means rooted in self-preservation. His concern, curiously, falls on the well-being of David. Perhaps he is not fully aware of the implications and pending consequences of their predicament. Regardless, it proves to be a key factor in the outcome of events to follow knowing that the boy is not to be underestimated. A selfless attitude is seldom predictable and in this situation, it moulds a complex dynamic into an otherwise effortless decision, providing that guilt-plated morals do not interfere (and every building moment leans toward that probability knowing that mortality is the ante).
Physically, David is no match for Jacob’s toned brute strength, having favoured culinary indulgence over speed and dexterity at every opportunity. It can not be ignored that David could land some heavy blows with his fattened limbs, opportunity permitting. Jacob has no disillusions about this which closes the loop back on Lionel. There is no doubt that young Lionel could supply just such an advantage for his uncle if aptly motivated in an ensuing fray.
It is not lost on Jacob that David's dark gaze is fixed unerringly on him, leaving no acknowledgement of or consideration for his nephew’s anxiety and similarly displaying no expectations for any threat from Lionel. This urges the question of whether Lionel is potentially aware of his affection being unrequited (if not disregarded) and more importantly, whether his standing views could be impacted as a result, thus removing any aces in David’s deal.
The looming question arising is that since Lionel himself would be next in line for elimination in either adult’s victory, will he get involved or hold instinctively back despite his obvious alliance?
Rest assured that neither man entertains any folly to initiate an attack on the lad, fearing momentary vulnerability to the other while engaged.
Not surprisingly, as freshly shell-shocked “humanitarians” of social upstanding, having endured years of assault from the spiky mace of societies law-driven restrictions, this flirting with uninhibited murderous aspirations brought with it a cascade of unsettling conflictions (whether as executioner or victim, the hesitations are surprisingly alike) since it is doubtless that all actions favoured in this sacred place, are destined to reverberate through their Karma’s until time’s end, should they prevail thereby absorbing the essence of those fallen. The poisoned sting of this is proving significant, the sour residue of which clogs any illusions of free will. Hence the stand-off until now, but patience is wearing thin…
Either way, only one of them is destined to see the outside of this chamber, bestowed with the reward of eternal life and a broader sense of values. It was not meant to end like this.
“…the purpose of one prevails and enlightenment follows...”, “…a unified soul will emerge anew…”
It was a natural oversight which steered the assumption that the inscription, however roughly translated, was a specific reference to the purifying transition of but a single entity - permitted in, finding truth, emerging as a ‘super-being’ on the other side. There seemed no need for any fine-tuned analysis of its meaning. No digression of the portal accepting multiple candidates was called for or taken into account.
The irony that, as a team David and Jacob were vigorously pursuing a prize in which only one of them could indulge, had been increasingly ignored by both men, who through repeated disappointment, battled even to rationalise their faith in its existence. As a result, upon finally unveiling its mysteries, the shared elation which swelled over securing the much-coveted wonder was short-lived, being promptly overwhelmed by jealous trivialities. They were lost in fruitless debate, oblivious to the urgent pleas of Lionel, when the moment came and the portal opened to take all three of them.
No flash, no sound, no drama. Like sitting through a chair that is not there, they were naked and displaced. A cynic would have laughed at their instant fellowship, the leap from “I” and “me” to “we”. Text-book examples of mind versus trauma were observed. Debates and theories had been exhausted. Eventually, there is only silence and a powerful sense of isolation.
Neither can be certain of how much time has passed or decided if it is of relevance to know. Each is sure that their incarceration can only be undone by being the last one standing. They have no choice and it is to be a test of superiority.
Whilst the adults size one another up, Lionel is spending the better part of this quiet time pondering the individual values governed by each man, most of which can typically denote strength. He idly tries to justify the intervention which brought him here, without doubting that he was right to try cooling their argument. There seems to be little else to mull over.
David and Jacob carry their loads of unsatisfied goals and unsettled regrets, autobiographic testaments to justify their fight. It is not lost on either of them that Lionel is singularly innocent in this matter, since his accidental involvement was via an attempt to calm flaring tempers.
Sadly, the youth has the least to gain in all this, since he has not felt the sting of age or the pressing need to staunch its implications. But when survival is in question, it is just as easy to conclude that he therefore also has less to lose. After all, he has not committed his life to the pursuit of the fountain, such as both men have. The prize was how this started and how this will end. There can only be one and so much has been sacrificed for this.
Suddenly as one, it is decided that the boy does not factor in winning.
With each added self-addressed reason to succeed, each confidence grows, until the atmosphere is choked with intimidation. Mental fingers twitch over metaphorical pistols, locked and loaded with the safety disengaged.
Lionel, though gripped by the intensity of the moment, is the only one to notice that the heart of the carrier skips a beat…
Breakpoint like a snapping twig sets all three in motion.
“Let either of them win”, is Lionel’s final thought as once again he steps in between the two adults in a last desperate attempt to save them from themselves…
The sensation of being caught in the last inches of a backwards fall is all that marks his return to the previous reality, which feels unfamiliar after the long absence. For a while there is no reaction, feelings are too complex. Inside his head, like the stirring of slippery toads after a drenching rain, he can feel the consciousness of the men, squirming in growing awareness that the battle is now over. Already he can feel the burden of their guilt welling up in his chest, flowing like an echo underneath his emotions. Then Lionel can do little else but cry…
It was the surrender of self that was the key to the fountain of youth.
Endorphins race frantically into the soupy cocktail of systematic reactions that are affecting Jacob’s body, vibrating his stomach towards nausea and purging his hopeful ideal that adrenalin might inspire or elicit some bold reaction in him. There are no straws to clutch there. A fleeting self-pity is permitted followed by a renewed determination not to be distracted from the analysis of his peers, the difficulty of which increases exponentially with his waxing paranoia. Steadying himself with a mental slap, Jacob assigns his threadbare energy to the review of his accumulated summations, probing for faults and confirming certainties.
Lionel wears his anxiety with the least disguise, probably owing to his youth. (A typical child of ten bares less of the scars which inevitably fortify adult emotions). His constant fidgeting echoes his mental state and a haunted expression swivels with his listless eyes as they search David and Jacob for something to relate to. However, upon keen observation it is apparent that although Lionel is afraid, it is by no means rooted in self-preservation. His concern, curiously, falls on the well-being of David. Perhaps he is not fully aware of the implications and pending consequences of their predicament. Regardless, it proves to be a key factor in the outcome of events to follow knowing that the boy is not to be underestimated. A selfless attitude is seldom predictable and in this situation, it moulds a complex dynamic into an otherwise effortless decision, providing that guilt-plated morals do not interfere (and every building moment leans toward that probability knowing that mortality is the ante).
Physically, David is no match for Jacob’s toned brute strength, having favoured culinary indulgence over speed and dexterity at every opportunity. It can not be ignored that David could land some heavy blows with his fattened limbs, opportunity permitting. Jacob has no disillusions about this which closes the loop back on Lionel. There is no doubt that young Lionel could supply just such an advantage for his uncle if aptly motivated in an ensuing fray.
It is not lost on Jacob that David's dark gaze is fixed unerringly on him, leaving no acknowledgement of or consideration for his nephew’s anxiety and similarly displaying no expectations for any threat from Lionel. This urges the question of whether Lionel is potentially aware of his affection being unrequited (if not disregarded) and more importantly, whether his standing views could be impacted as a result, thus removing any aces in David’s deal.
The looming question arising is that since Lionel himself would be next in line for elimination in either adult’s victory, will he get involved or hold instinctively back despite his obvious alliance?
Rest assured that neither man entertains any folly to initiate an attack on the lad, fearing momentary vulnerability to the other while engaged.
Not surprisingly, as freshly shell-shocked “humanitarians” of social upstanding, having endured years of assault from the spiky mace of societies law-driven restrictions, this flirting with uninhibited murderous aspirations brought with it a cascade of unsettling conflictions (whether as executioner or victim, the hesitations are surprisingly alike) since it is doubtless that all actions favoured in this sacred place, are destined to reverberate through their Karma’s until time’s end, should they prevail thereby absorbing the essence of those fallen. The poisoned sting of this is proving significant, the sour residue of which clogs any illusions of free will. Hence the stand-off until now, but patience is wearing thin…
Either way, only one of them is destined to see the outside of this chamber, bestowed with the reward of eternal life and a broader sense of values. It was not meant to end like this.
“…the purpose of one prevails and enlightenment follows...”, “…a unified soul will emerge anew…”
It was a natural oversight which steered the assumption that the inscription, however roughly translated, was a specific reference to the purifying transition of but a single entity - permitted in, finding truth, emerging as a ‘super-being’ on the other side. There seemed no need for any fine-tuned analysis of its meaning. No digression of the portal accepting multiple candidates was called for or taken into account.
The irony that, as a team David and Jacob were vigorously pursuing a prize in which only one of them could indulge, had been increasingly ignored by both men, who through repeated disappointment, battled even to rationalise their faith in its existence. As a result, upon finally unveiling its mysteries, the shared elation which swelled over securing the much-coveted wonder was short-lived, being promptly overwhelmed by jealous trivialities. They were lost in fruitless debate, oblivious to the urgent pleas of Lionel, when the moment came and the portal opened to take all three of them.
No flash, no sound, no drama. Like sitting through a chair that is not there, they were naked and displaced. A cynic would have laughed at their instant fellowship, the leap from “I” and “me” to “we”. Text-book examples of mind versus trauma were observed. Debates and theories had been exhausted. Eventually, there is only silence and a powerful sense of isolation.
Neither can be certain of how much time has passed or decided if it is of relevance to know. Each is sure that their incarceration can only be undone by being the last one standing. They have no choice and it is to be a test of superiority.
Whilst the adults size one another up, Lionel is spending the better part of this quiet time pondering the individual values governed by each man, most of which can typically denote strength. He idly tries to justify the intervention which brought him here, without doubting that he was right to try cooling their argument. There seems to be little else to mull over.
David and Jacob carry their loads of unsatisfied goals and unsettled regrets, autobiographic testaments to justify their fight. It is not lost on either of them that Lionel is singularly innocent in this matter, since his accidental involvement was via an attempt to calm flaring tempers.
Sadly, the youth has the least to gain in all this, since he has not felt the sting of age or the pressing need to staunch its implications. But when survival is in question, it is just as easy to conclude that he therefore also has less to lose. After all, he has not committed his life to the pursuit of the fountain, such as both men have. The prize was how this started and how this will end. There can only be one and so much has been sacrificed for this.
Suddenly as one, it is decided that the boy does not factor in winning.
With each added self-addressed reason to succeed, each confidence grows, until the atmosphere is choked with intimidation. Mental fingers twitch over metaphorical pistols, locked and loaded with the safety disengaged.
Lionel, though gripped by the intensity of the moment, is the only one to notice that the heart of the carrier skips a beat…
Breakpoint like a snapping twig sets all three in motion.
“Let either of them win”, is Lionel’s final thought as once again he steps in between the two adults in a last desperate attempt to save them from themselves…
The sensation of being caught in the last inches of a backwards fall is all that marks his return to the previous reality, which feels unfamiliar after the long absence. For a while there is no reaction, feelings are too complex. Inside his head, like the stirring of slippery toads after a drenching rain, he can feel the consciousness of the men, squirming in growing awareness that the battle is now over. Already he can feel the burden of their guilt welling up in his chest, flowing like an echo underneath his emotions. Then Lionel can do little else but cry…
It was the surrender of self that was the key to the fountain of youth.