11-05-2013, 09:22 PM
It was immediately clear to John that Armande was not what he seemed to the casual observer. Diplomacy, dissemination, and intrigue must have been bred into the man. Armande knew what the fifth language was. But how? John had no delusions as to who was the master here when it came to ancient languages. Armande was better educated and far more experienced. The man was in perfect control of his emotions and body language. He gave no sign of recognizing the language nor of his keen interest in the forth tablet.
No sign unless you could smell his scent of satisfaction and confirmation both at the first sight of the fifth language. Confirmation of what? Armande's heart rate increased fractionally at the fourth tablet. Just as quickly as it spiked it was back under control. The smelled like a cat who had just caught a mouse and trying to decide if he should let it go so he could catch it again or just kill it. Shitty part was there was no malice. It reminded John of a time when in mid-thesis he had an epiphany and completely changed the direction of his paper. Do I edit this one or scrap it and start over? The man wasn't evil. He just didn't seem to hold human life in very high esteem. Not a very endearing thought.
Then Armande displayed the mind of a true tactician. He asked John's opinion on the findings. he also worded the question in such a way that John knew that Armande had recognized the inconsistencies and still believed them to be authentic. He also worded it in a way that was reminiscent of classic Greek by using a negative statement to mean a positive acceptance of said statement. John wasn't just intrigued, he was impressed. So he gave Armande his head.
"One would assume them to be fraudulent, but I seriously doubt that is the case here. At first glance it would appear to be an elaborate hoax. Too much effort was put into these tablets. So much so that it screams forgery. I have concluded that each tablet has was made at roughly the same time and that all the writing on each tablet was done together. None of the inscriptions were added at a later date."
"I authenticated the date of the tablets to be just over 5000 years old. Which as you know should be impossible. Hebrew and Greek are thought to be only 3000 years old. But my findings are conclusive. I did not oversee the discovery, but I was intimately involved in the recovery of the tablets. I am confident that more of such writing are onboard, but the weather has hindered our recovery efforts."
Since Armande so graciously accepted John's invitation and although not treating John as an equal he didn't treat John as the inferior even though that was obviously how the man saw things, John gave him a bone.
"The fifth language is peculiar in many ways. The text appears to be very repetitive with no obvious punctuation. The lettering resembles many European alphabets and it appears to be an actual language and not a cypher. By using the other four languages on the first two tablets, I have began translating the fourth tablet."
John locked eyes with Armande. He wanted to make sure that the man herd and understood what he was about to say with complete clarity. "I believe that the first two tablets are about Nikolai Brandon. They state that the Ascendency is Harbinger of Doom, The Man of Perdition. He is, in the Biblical sense, the Anti Christ."
"All this I believe, by both your reaction and lack thereof, is common knowledge to you."
John sat back and waited. He couldn't help but feel as there was either a bullet from a rooftop or a knife in the dark waiting for him.
No sign unless you could smell his scent of satisfaction and confirmation both at the first sight of the fifth language. Confirmation of what? Armande's heart rate increased fractionally at the fourth tablet. Just as quickly as it spiked it was back under control. The smelled like a cat who had just caught a mouse and trying to decide if he should let it go so he could catch it again or just kill it. Shitty part was there was no malice. It reminded John of a time when in mid-thesis he had an epiphany and completely changed the direction of his paper. Do I edit this one or scrap it and start over? The man wasn't evil. He just didn't seem to hold human life in very high esteem. Not a very endearing thought.
Then Armande displayed the mind of a true tactician. He asked John's opinion on the findings. he also worded the question in such a way that John knew that Armande had recognized the inconsistencies and still believed them to be authentic. He also worded it in a way that was reminiscent of classic Greek by using a negative statement to mean a positive acceptance of said statement. John wasn't just intrigued, he was impressed. So he gave Armande his head.
"One would assume them to be fraudulent, but I seriously doubt that is the case here. At first glance it would appear to be an elaborate hoax. Too much effort was put into these tablets. So much so that it screams forgery. I have concluded that each tablet has was made at roughly the same time and that all the writing on each tablet was done together. None of the inscriptions were added at a later date."
"I authenticated the date of the tablets to be just over 5000 years old. Which as you know should be impossible. Hebrew and Greek are thought to be only 3000 years old. But my findings are conclusive. I did not oversee the discovery, but I was intimately involved in the recovery of the tablets. I am confident that more of such writing are onboard, but the weather has hindered our recovery efforts."
Since Armande so graciously accepted John's invitation and although not treating John as an equal he didn't treat John as the inferior even though that was obviously how the man saw things, John gave him a bone.
"The fifth language is peculiar in many ways. The text appears to be very repetitive with no obvious punctuation. The lettering resembles many European alphabets and it appears to be an actual language and not a cypher. By using the other four languages on the first two tablets, I have began translating the fourth tablet."
John locked eyes with Armande. He wanted to make sure that the man herd and understood what he was about to say with complete clarity. "I believe that the first two tablets are about Nikolai Brandon. They state that the Ascendency is Harbinger of Doom, The Man of Perdition. He is, in the Biblical sense, the Anti Christ."
"All this I believe, by both your reaction and lack thereof, is common knowledge to you."
John sat back and waited. He couldn't help but feel as there was either a bullet from a rooftop or a knife in the dark waiting for him.