Greek Series 02 - Dark Prince Read Online Free PDF Page B

answered. 'First we must talk of the many futures. Has it occurred to you that there is a contradiction in our travels through time?'
    'If you mean that the futures we see can change, of course it has.'
    He smiled and shook his head. 'But do they change? That is the question.'
    'Of course they do. I remember old Tamis telling me she saw her own deaths in many futures. In one, she said, she fell from a horse, even though riding was abhorrent to her.'
    'Exactly my point,' said Aristotle. 'Now, let me explain: Tamis saw herself falling from a horse. But that is not how she died. So then - who fell from the horse?'
    Derae sat down on a cushioned chair, her spirit eyes locked to the magus ' face. 'Tamis,' she answered. 'But the futures were changed by events in the past.'
    'But that is where the contradiction lies,' he told her. 'We are not talking of prophetic visions here, Derae. You and I -
    and Tamis once -can travel to the many futures, observing them. What we are seeing is happening . . . somewhere.
    All the futures are real .'
    'How can they all be real?' she mocked. 'Tamis died but once - as will I.'
    'I do not have all the answers, my dear, but I know this: there are many worlds, thousands, all akin to ours. Perhaps every time a man makes a decision he creates a new world. I don't know. What I do know is that it is folly to examine all these alternate worlds and base our actions upon events in them. I too have seen Alexander drag the world down into blood and chaos. I have seen him kill Philip and seize the throne. I have seen him dead as a child, from plague, from a dog-bite, from an assassin's blade. But, do you not see, none of it matters? None of the futures are ours. They are merely echoes, reflections, indications of what might be.'
    Derae was silent, considering his words. 'It is an interesting concept. I will think on it. Now, to the point of your visit?'
    Aristotle lay back on the bed, his eyes watching the flickering shadows on the low ceiling. 'The point - as always -
    concerns the boy in this world. You and I took Parmenion into Hades, where the child's soul merged with the Spirit of Chaos. We took it to be a defeat. But it may not prove to be so.'
    'A curious kind of victory,' sneered Derae. 'The boy carries a great evil. It is growing within him worse than any cancer, and he does not have the strength to fight it.'
    'He had the strength to stop it destroying Parmenion in the Void,' Aristotle pointed out. 'But let us not argue; let us instead think of ways of helping the child.'
    Derae shook her head. 'I long ago learned the folly of seeking to change the future. Had I known then what I know now, there would have been no Demon Prince.'
    'I think that there would, lady,' said Aristotle softly, 'but it does not matter. The child is no different from the many who are brought to you each day - only he is not crippled in the flesh, he is tormented in the spirit. Neither of us has the power to cast out the demon. But together -and with the boy's help - we might yet return the Dark God to the Underworld.'
    Derae laughed then, the sound full of bitterness. 'I heal wounds, magus . I am not equipped to battle Kadmilos. Nor do I wish to.'
    'What do you wish, lady?'
    'I wish to be left alone,' she said.
    'No!' he thundered, rising to his feet. 'I will not accept that from a woman of Sparta! What has happened to you, Derae? You are no lamb waiting for the slaughter. You are from a race of warriors. You fought the Dark Lady on Samothrace. Where is your spirit?'
    Derae sighed. 'You seek to make me angry,' she whispered. 'You will not succeed. Look at me, Aristotle. I am getting old. I live here, and I heal the sick. I will do that until I die. Once I had a dream. I have it no longer. Now leave me in peace.'
    'I can give you back your youth,' he said, his voice coaxing, his eyes bright with promise.

    For a moment she stood silently, observing him without expression. 'So,' she said, at last, 'it was you. When I healed