The story of the FALLEN

18.Research

Simon and Tammy went to Oxford in search of old London maps and city history books. Simon knows a historian who specialises on this topic. Layla and Nakir have classes to teach, so that Leaves Zack to babysit Garry. The detective is restless. He is not good at staying still for a day. He is pacing up and down the living room and driving Zack mad. Can they risk a field trip? If it is safe for Simon, it could be safe for Garry as well. The demons are nocturnal, the witches are hiding…probably.

Zack would really like to go back to the rare books shop and pick the shelves. Maybe there is an old history book that they could use for this? Maybe Tom knows something? But that would mean introducing a new person to Tom. He did promise to bring Nakir with him on one of his next visits, but for now it’s just a detective. He hopes that Tom doesn’t resent him bringing the police to his store. Antiques dealers are a bit wary of them. Sometimes deals don’t exactly go the legit way.

He can call ahead and ask, he thinks. It’s never a bad idea to have all the facts. But Tom doesn’t answer and Zack hopes the guy is in his store and busy. It would be a terrible waste of good human material if something happened to Tom. He kind of likes the book nerd.

“Oh well.” Zack shrugs. “Let’s go see the bookstore anyway. I’m sure he will be there.”

“You want me to go with you? What will I do in a bookstore?” Garry inquires.

“You don’t have to do anything. If you don’t want to go, you can stay here. I just thought you might get bored all alone.” Zack answers. He can go alone, it doesn't make any difference to him.

“Where is this bookstore?” Garry inquires. Zack pegged him right, the guy is bored already.

“In Greenwich. We can drive. I won’t stuff you in the subway.” Zack chuckles.

“Oh. You can't just teleport somewhere?” Garry wonders.

“No. That’s not real. We walk or drive.” Zack laughs. “Simon asked that same question. It might seem that way. We are faster than humans, you blink and you miss me make a move.”

“That must be useful for quick getaways.” Garry nods. Then he points to Zack’s car and frowns. “We’re going in that?”

“Do you have a problem with German cars? It’s just a Mercedes.” He shrugs. What’s there not to like about that sedan? It’s a classic.

He drives them to Greenwich. It’s not in vain, the lights are on and he can see Tom through the window. There are no customers that he can see, so they are in luck. Getting a parking spot in Greenwich is not even close to hard. In Kensington you can’t even park right outside your own building. So he wonders why Tammy skipped over Greenwich when she searched for their home? Was nothing available? Or is it too close to the Ley lines? He must ask her this later.

“Mind your hands in there. Tom is very particular about the books.” Zack warns Garry. “Gloves are required for most of the antiques.”

“That kind of a store? No wonder I never heard about it.” Garry responds quietly. “The security here is almost as impressive as at your place.”

“I know. Some things in there cost a fortune.” He nods. “I hope he has what we need. He did surprise me the other day.”

“After you, then...” Garry trails off.

Tom greets him like an old friend. With a bright smile and a handshake: “So good of you to come again. I have a few new books if you want to take a look?”

“I’d love to. I hope you don’t mind that I brought a friend?” Zack smiles back at the man. “This is Garry.”

“Hello. A specialist in old books?” Tom inquires.

“No. I have no knowledge in that field. I’m just tagging along for the day.” Garry shakes his head. “I promise I won’t touch anything.”

“All right.” Tom nods. He locks up and pulls the metal grate over the closed door. “Let’s go upstairs.”

“I was wondering if you have a book or maybe a map about Londinium?” Zack inquires. “I have a friend in Oxford that promised to look, but I like to have more options than that one.”

“Hm?” Tom murmurs. “I think I have a map. Zack? Can you help me? This thing is old and not in a good shape.”

“Sure. What are we looking for?” Zack nods. He takes a pair of gloves out of the drawer Tom showed him the other day.

“This thing over here in the corner. It might look like a tapestry, but it’s a map. It only survived this long, because it’s done on canvas.” Tom tells them. The guy pulls the canvas scroll out and Zack can see the thing is as tall as he is.

Helping Tom spread the canvas over the floor, Zack takes notice of the brittle corners and he hopes the thing doesn’t fall apart right here and then. He looks at the inscription in the lower corner. It says Lundenwic AD 854. It’s not much of a help. That was the dark period of the city. Nothing is known about it and it burned down. Who knows what this map shows them, but he might as well take pictures.

“Since this thing is so large and brittle, I would like to take pictures.” Zack says. “Of course, I will pay you for the right.”

“How do I even set a price for taking pictures?” Tom wonders.

“Well…” Zack murmurs. “How much do you value the map? Make it a half of that and we’re both happy.”

“I can’t. That’s way too much.” Tom shakes his head. “Just give me a twenty for every picture you take.”

“If you say so.” Zack chuckles. “I guess I owe you sixty quid.”

Zack helps Tom roll up the map again. It’s not exactly what they are looking for, but it’s better than nothing. It’s the other side of the city walls of what once was Londinium. It gives them an idea where to look. The landmarks are great to go by. Maybe Tammy can narrow the search area a little bit? If Simon can get her more material then they can actually piece this city together. There is not much hope that they can get a map of the Roman time city.

The two new books are a different kind of revelation. Literally. Zack can’t help but chuckle silently at the two transcripts he has before him.

“It’s Greek, that much I can see.” Tom looks at him sharply.

“Yeah. Early Hellenistic period. These are transcripts of the Book of Revelation. Some say these are a part of the Bible, some will argue that they're just apocalyptic warnings of a scholar. Maybe John of Patmos, who is believed to be John the Apostle. He was in exile on the Isle of Patmos. That’s the connection.” Zack explains. “But nobody is really sure about it. In any case, it’s a great find.”

“Wonderful!” Tom exclaims. “If I find something on Londinium, I will let you know.”

“That would be great.” Zack answers. He lays the money on the counter and beckons for Garry that it’s time to go. “We have to go. I appreciate the pictures.”

“You are always welcome to come back.” Tom tells him when he unlocks the door to let them out.

Garry didn’t comment on anything. That makes Zack a tad suspicious. A detective that has nothing to say? That is just not normal. But Zack waits till they get back to the penthouse to ask what is wrong.

“Something on your mind?” He inquires.

“You would be a good detective.” Garry nods. “You listen, you are always calm and you ask really good questions. Not to mention your extensive knowledge of old books. Where did you learn all that?”

“That last one is easy. I was there for most of it. Maybe not directly when it happened, but I heard of it in real time. Does that make sense?” Zack tells the detective.

“Yeah. I know what you mean.” Garry responds. “What is so important about Londinium?”

“Ley lines are Tammy’s specialty. She thinks that Londinium was built here for a reason. We have to find out the somewhat exact location of the city. The pictures I took will help narrow it down. We know that Lundenwic was built outside of the old walls. It was like a substitute settlement.” Zack explains.

“You say Ley lines and I think of witchcraft. I might be watching too much television.” Garry chuckles.

“You’re right. It could be witchcraft. We just don’t know. That is one of the reasons Tammy is searching for Londinium. There might be another Ley line that she missed. Or maybe some other power source.” Zack says. “But we’ll see when she gets back. Maybe Simon’s friend really had something that could help us.”

The things Simon brought back from Oxford are amazing. Most of them are copies, but who cares. They have old town maps. And they can cross reference that with archaeological sites. Piecing the history of London together to find what is so damn important here. Why are the demons more active here and not in Paris or Berlin? What else could draw them here? The Ley lines are more powerful on mergers, but that same thing occurs in Italy as well. Rome is not even half as popular with the demons as London is.

“I like this puzzle. Solving a mystery is so much better than solving a murder case.” Garry exclaims over the maps strewn all over the penthouse floor.

“There is something here. I know it.” Tammy murmurs to herself. “But what is it? It’s driving me crazy. It should be obvious to us. No spell can hide anything so well that we can’t find it.”

“If we can’t see the thing, we can see the magic. There should be a dome that hides something from view.” Nakir scoffs. “It’s impossible to hide magic. A cloaking spell should show up blank.”

“Can you see any kind of magic?” Simon inquires. “Angel, witch, warlock? What is the difference?”

“Angel magic is the closest to us, so it’s easier to see. We are fairly limited in what we can do. We don’t cast spells as such. It’s just an ability and every angel can do something else.” Zack explains. “Witches and warlocks are spellcasters. That always leaves something behind. It also requires items, animals, or herbs.”

“What about that demon in the park? You said blood magic. What is that?” Garry asks. The topic is getting offhand, but it might be important for the search.

“Blood magic is frowned upon by witches. It’s dirty. Sacrifice is sacred to them and only done in extreme measures.” Tammy answers this question. “Demons have no souls, no moral limitations. And the spell is easy to perform. Since they are part magic, it’s probably the easiest spell for them. Demons don’t normally cast spells. Arch demons, on the other hand, are like warlocks with a bad case of envy. If we ever get faced with one of those, it will be a bloodbath.”

“Take a look at this.” Simon beckons them to the table. He has a large map of modern London and he started to overlay that with the old maps. Colour coded for different centuries.

“Do you see what I do?” Zack asks.

“The Tower of London is right in the middle of it all.” Nakir smirks. “I never liked that building. There is something dark about it.”

“What kind of darkness? Magic?” Zack wants to know.

“No. I don’t sense any magic from it. It’s just like a pit of perpetual darkness. I won’t say it scares me, but I definitely don’t want to go look for it.” Nakir shakes his head.

It’s a huge thing for Nakir to openly admit that he doesn’t like something. A building should be harmless, but is it hiding? What is there, besides the museum, the old dungeons, and a few off limits areas that are private vaults and the Queen's personal property that nobody has access to?

“Could this darkness be beneath the Tower?” Garry asks.

“It could be. But what is it?” Zack shrugs.

“We need to find a witch. We have more questions than answers.” Layla sighs. “I wouldn’t want to go snooping around the Tower. It could get us killed.”

“Where do we find a witch?” Simon looks over at Zack. What does he think? Zack doesn’t have all the answers. He sure as hell doesn’t know any witches that would be willing to help.

The evening gets even more eventful with the ringing of Garry’s phone. He looks at them all and blanches white as a sheet of paper: “It’s my boss. I asked for a few days off like you instructed.”

“Well, answer it.” Zack responds. “How bad can it be?”