"A long and wide rectangular hall. The walls straight and tall, reaching until disappearing into the dark ceiling. Bricks carved into the walls, like a wallpaper indistinguishable from the real thing. The floor smooth as polished stone. The silence so absolute, the sound of quiet tiptoeing feels like sacrilege. The entrance stands on one end of the hall. Pervue's slate, a long slab, sits on the opposite end. There are no runes anywhere on the walls or the floor. Only on the slate."
I was looking at the temple in Sasha's code as I began. Halfway through, I was in the temple in my head. Temple of Pervue in all of its glory. I was one of the Vikari. A student. On a pilgrimage to the holiest of seats for knowledge. I was standing in front of Pervue's slate. Watching it glow in Pervue's halo, born from the unquestioning worship of the thousands of students. And in the runes on the slate, in the words of Pervue, I heard his voice. His call.
"Done," Lulu said, breaking me out.
"Now, the Faery temple."
I held the drawing of the temple of Pervue, as Lulu began drawing the Faery temple. She didn't need me this time.
"What are you doing?"
Dia asked me quietly. I couldn't keep from smiling. Lulu wasn't here an hour and already she had everyone singing to her tune.
"Lulu made me realise something," I answered.
Before I could finish, Lulu was done. We put the two drawings next to each other.
"See it?" I asked.
Lulu needed a minute before answering.
"Yeah. I think. I see the similarities. But it's not actually like they're alike. Instead, they seem to be alike to something else. Another temple, maybe, that both of these are similar to."
"Exactly."
I truly wouldn't have seen it, if not for Lulu. Leaning over, I put the drawing of the Faery temple over that of the temple of Pervue. With the light underneath, the papers turned translucent. And we could see the drawings align. I didn't miss the flicker of surprise in everyone's eyes. Pleased, I explained.
"I was at the temple. Since we've got more temples now, let's call this one the Faery temple. I was at the Faery temple, when Lulu told me I was probably confusing it with the temple of Pervue. That gave me the idea."
"I can see why the pillars," Lulu said, picking up where we left off. "The tablets in the front are similar to Pervue's slate. But the walls? They couldn't be more different."
She was right. The rather plain walls of the temple of Pervue were the opposite of the walls of the Faery temple inscribed with many stories.
"We know what the walls of the temple of Pervue express. According to Pervue's sermons, all knowledge is simple and all evident. The walls we build around our world only serve to cut off the knowledge and keep it out. The walls of the temple stand for just this. The bricks are the same with which we build the walls around us. Each brick representing an idea that blocks out true knowledge. As we stack more and more bricks, we lose sight of just how high the wall is. And we become uncaring and unseeing of the outside. Still, if we look closely, the seed of Pervue, of true knowledge rests buried within, like Pervue's slate stands in the temple."
"That's the temple of Pervue. What about the Faery temple?"
"The tablets tell the story of the heavenly war. Of the fall of the heavenly court and a new beginning. The walls tell other stories, all of them in some way related to the heavenly war."
"I think that's it."
I understood. The others didn't. They had been silenced this long by Lulu. Now, their curiosity overwhelmed all else.
"What's it?" Arav asked.
Lulu stared at him for long, before asking a question of her own.
"Are there other Faery temples like this one?"
Arav had the answer ready. But he wasn't as fast as Jessie. No one was.
"No," Jessie answered. "There are other temples. But not like this one. There's no confusion about the other temples. About them being temples. They sing praises of the old and new gods. They have a simple and characteristic design. They have a hall for the devotees to gather and offer prayers at. The hall for the gods is a much smaller room on the other side of the larger hall, with just enough room for a small group of priests. The gods themselves have no form. Rather, tablets are enthroned on short columns. The tablets tell the story of the gods, and are considered the doorway with direct access."
Arav was waiting for the opportunity. The moment Jessie paused, he continued.
"This temple is, however, very different. There is only one hall. The tablets tell the story of the heavenly war. It is not clear which god the temple is for. It's nothing like any other Faery temple."
"Which is also a lot like the temple of Pervue," Lulu said finally. "Don't you see? It's destined."
I pulled Lulu close, and explained to the twins.
"Lulu has great faith in fate. Believes there's a grand design in everyone's destiny."
They wanted to laugh. I could see that clearly. But they didn't. And I couldn't understand why.
"But she does have a point," I continued. "I think we've found our topic for study."
The twins were quiet before nodding.
"The comparative study of the temple of the heavenly war and the temple of Pervue," they said together.
"The temple of the heavenly war sounds apt," Jessie praised.
"And the topic sounds very much like a topic for a paper worthy of submission to CUSARR," Arav added.
"Not everyone wants to be listed with CUSARR," Ashu said, throwing up her eyes.
"She's right," the twins said, silencing Arav who seemed to have something to say.
"I like the temple of heavenly war too," Lulu said. "It's much better than the Faery temple. Leaves no room for confusion either."
And that settled it.
"We'll take the smaller table, since we're more targeted in our study," Pratt offered.
"Yeah," Dia agreed. "You can keep the bigger table to your more encompassing study of the Faery."
Lulu was nodding like she liked the smaller table too. The twins didn't bother looking at me.
I poured over the two drawings as everyone went back to what they were doing. Lulu began drawing. I didn't need to ask or look to know what she was drawing.