The Great Detective at the Crucible of Life by Thomas Kent Miller

Author:Thomas Kent Miller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: sherlock holmes, mystery, crime, british crime, sherlock holmes fiction, sherlock holmes novel
ISBN: 9781787051614
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited 2018
Published: 2018-02-12T00:00:00+00:00

VIII. The Parchment

(Being the Third Digression)

THE WRITING ON THE BLACK-LETTER PARCHMENT

Duke Stephen is dead, as are Count Albert of Clermont, William of Saint-Giles, and Fulcher of Tyre. So too 5 and 40 other fine and noble knights. By God’s grace, I live. I am the last of the 50 brave men chosen by God to carry out His will. For by following his signs, Duke Stephen led us and we found the sacred vessel that was touched by the lips of our Lord Jesus Christ. We knew this was so for the archangel Gabriel, in the form of St. Andrew, came to Stephen in his sleep and made known this fact. Now this holy relic is truly safe, no longer soiled by any that is not also holy. So now I can die in peace.

This is my story: I am Bors, Count of Mainz. Following the Christmas fest of 1096 and taking to heart the spirited words of His Holiness Pope Urban, I and my comrades in arms joined Godfrey of Bouillon on the Danube at Worms, and by ways small and great passed through Hungary and Bulgaria to Constantinople at the bidding of Emperor Alexius. Here we joined with Raymond of Toulouse, Prince Bohemond of Tarentum, Hugh of Vermandois and others.

Soon we crossed the Bosphorus and laid siege for 7 weeks on Nicaea, a capital of the enemies of Christ. Our army was 600,000 strong and we marched in God’s name. Following the surrender of Nicaea, we set out toward distant Antioch. Soon we who were with Godfrey heard that Bohemond’s men were in need of succor, so we came to their aid and slew the Saracens all the whole day long.

Then came 500 miles of blistering, terrible desert, but finally we of Godfrey came to Antioch and laid siege for 7 months, nearly starving ourselves, but in the end, Emir Firuz betrayed his city and opened the gates. However, no sooner had our force entered the city, then we were surrounded by Keborgn of Mosul and 200,000 heathens. So we the besiegers were suddenly the besieged and what little food we found was soon consumed. After a month we despaired, and all may have been lost but for the dream of young Peter Bartholomew in which St. Bartholomew came to him and revealed the sacred, secret spot in which was buried the Lance that pierced our Lord’s side, and Lo! It was Duke Stephen himself who recovered the holy blade, inspiring us with new hope. The lance was carried aloft by our mighty host and we left the city gate and vanquished the foe. It was a great and divine victory.

But I must now tell of the dream of Duke Stephen. This day alone Stephen had slew a score of Saracens in his own right. In the night, St. Andrew came to him, he who was exhausted and sleeping deeply, and said that it was he, Stephen, who was chosen by the Lord our God to recover the Holy Vessel and then revealed its location.

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