Chapter 34. Theophany
Nov. 18th, 2022 07:33 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lloigorThe Theophany of Yhoundeh didn’t really last all that long. At first, Ginnie was annoyed that James had immediately come up with that phrase, it seemed somehow belittling, but then James had explained. “Ginnie, I grew up with nuns teaching me catechism every Wednesday for 12 straight years. What we just had was the very definition of theophany.”
“Well, not all of us know what it means,” griped Walt. “We aren’t wanna-be college boys.”
James looked genuinely flustered. “I’m sorry,” he said, he kept seeing the woman come out of nowhere and the incredible realization that what he was seeing was the barest hint on the power behind that camouflage. It had literally been everything that he could do not to fall on his knees. Looking at the stunned people around him he realized that he wasn’t alone in that. Looking at Walt and Ginnie, he realized that their irritation was from that feeling of relative powerlessness.
“It was just a flash of memory from when I was in high school, it wasn’t me trying to be smart.” He paused, “my favorite priest at the Catholic school was sick and one of the folks was there from the Jesuit Province and he came in to teach. I remembered because he talked about how few times people had actually talked to God. The word stuck in my mind.”
“So it is just a fancy word for talking to God?” Walt followed on actually interested, if nothing else, just to calm down.
“Pretty much, Father Murphy said that in orthodox christianity, they have a feast day and everything.”
Evan had been sitting and listening this whole time. “I think I have heard the word too, you guys have to remember, I was raised in a splinter group of a splinter group of Mormonism, and one of the things we are taught is that to be really careful not to mention Joseph Smith talking directly to God around gentiles.” He paused with a wry look, “They called it theophany there too.”
The rest of them just sat for a couple of minutes. Walt and Betty did some meditation, Ginnie did some deep breathing and relaxation, Carl had his eyes closed and was murmuring under his breath. James and Evan both sat straight in their chairs and just breathed.
“Theophany.” Betty said out loud after several minutes, “Well, that gave us some direction, though not very much” All the rest looked at her, looking like they would be grateful for some direction.
“What do you think we should be doing then, because I don’t think that she told us what exactly to do.” Said Walt, obviously deferring to Betty.
“Well, Ginnie and I were told what to do,” Betty said with a wry smile. “We get to go down to the Hell House and go check out the vault.”
“Are you sure?” said Walt. “No one goes there still, no one wants to.”
“I think that Yhoundeh was pretty specific about the one thing that she wanted Ginnie and I to do,” Betty said, and looked at the young men and Walt with a grin. “But I think that she also gave you four things to do as well.”
“What is that Ma’am?” Evan said.
“Well” said Betty. “Like I said, Ginnie and I get to check out the vault”. She smiled at the four men again, “But she did call you gentlemen ‘strong right’ arms’ if my memory serves me correctly.”
Silence from the young men was palpable.
“I think what Yhoundeh meant is that while you do have responsibility for our defense here, you are also available as the strong young men that you are.”
“I’m not certain that I like where this is going,” Carl said warily.
“I think that Yhoundeh wanted us to be ready to take on the threat,” Said Evan with assurance, “I think that Walt and we three need to go and plan what we are doing next down by the bridge.”
“Actually Evan,” Said Walt “Yhoundeh told us that we have some time.”
“Really?” said Evan, the look on his face displaying betrayal . He looked over at Ginnie and then appeared to think. “Well, I suppose that it might be best to go and see what is down there that is important.”
“Hesco’s” said James glumly.
“What are you talking about” said Betty, Studying Carl’s glum visage, ‘All we are talking about today is walking down to the Van Der Heyl place and see what needs to be done. How can that be so bad”. She looked up at him. “And what do you mean ‘Hescos?”
Evan and James actually burst out laughing. Walt just looked puzzled.
“Hesco’s,” James said, ‘are chain link cubes that you use for field fortifications in the desert.” He reached over and poked Carl who was still glum. “Carl here was famous for being able to tell when there was physical work that needed to be done and being somewhere else when the details came out.”
“You have to fill Hesco’s with rock and dirt and whatever you can find,” said Evan. “It is really, really one of the sweatiest, nastiest details that you can ever draw.”
“So what does that have to do with going down today to look at the old vault.,” Walt asked, “We are just going down to look.”
“You really have to realize just how good Carl is at sensing upcoming physical work and avoiding it,” said James.
“Carl?” Asked Walt.
“Have you been down there lately,” Carl looked sad enough that Betty was briefly tempted to go over and hug him. “I was down around there about a month or so ago and the trench and vault opening look to be completely filled in.”
Ginnie, obviously confused, simply asked “so, it is filled in, we can deal with that.”
Carl just looked at her helplessly, “That is the trouble Ginnie, we will all be down there with you, and you will see all the digging that you will need to do, and you will bat your eyelashes at Sir Galahad here,” he motioned his head at Evan, “and the next thing you know I will be down there with a shovel sweating in the rain next to him because he will oh-so-gallantly offer any and all assistance when we all go down to see.”
Walt, Betty, and James started laughing. It didn’t stop for quite some time.
Evan and Ginnie both blushed furiously.
Carl got up and filled his plate with the remainder of the breakfast bacon. It was an impressive pile. He glared at Walt as he came back to the table, as if daring him to say something. He sat at the table glaring and eating bacon.
Betty laughed so hard she snorted.
Hescos?
Date: 2022-11-18 04:08 pm (UTC)OLfromNC
Re: Hescos?
Date: 2022-11-18 05:52 pm (UTC)See above
Date: 2022-11-18 06:23 pm (UTC)OL
Nice!
Date: 2022-11-19 06:15 am (UTC)...nice II...
Date: 2022-11-19 06:58 am (UTC)I wonder if indeed they will be filling Hescos with the mud and if they do, what the other side will think about that...
Also: the poor guys: in my imagination Yhoundeh slept in a high ceiling room, so probably Evan will have several days (weeks?!) of hearty breakfasts to "enjoy". Glorious...the poor boys!