Praetorian Series [3] A Hunter and His Legion (62 page)

“Another tale for another day, Jacob.  But don’t take the name
too
literally.  However, the point is that because there was only one choice in one dimension that brought that power into existence, the origination of the power was secluded to one reality, and one reality alone.  This one.”

“But…” I said, trying to think,
“…once this “power” came into existence, shouldn’t other realities begin popping up from there on out with the…
old god’s
power?”

“You really are catching on,” Merlin commented, “but again, you are incorrect through no fault
of your own.  With the old god, well before the time of Romulus and Remus, came an ultimate timeline, a prime dimension, one that could not be splintered, one in which choices did not create new realities.”

“So I really am special?”  I asked.

“No more special than all the other trillions of people who came before or will come after you in this reality.”

“But are there other versions of me out there
in other timelines?”

He shrugged.  “
Of course, although none with access to the orb.”

“That doesn’t make any sense!”  I cried, not caring that the eyes of other patrons were being turned on me as I raved at Merlin.  “How can there be any timelines even remotely like mine if this ‘old god’ asshole only showed up in one, and no others?  All those other timelines without him and the orb in them would be
so
different!”

“Just accept it, Jacob,” Merlin said unhelpfully.  “You must realize that this story is far deeper than what even I have showed you.  Perhaps you will come to understand in the future, but for now… you need
not know.”

I growled in frustration but knew it would be fruitless trying to extract more from him now.  “So the orb doesn’t exist in any other timeline then?  Not a single one?”

“That was the case once,” Merlin said.  “Except…”

He trailed off
again.

“
Goddamned it,” I exclaimed, “just tell me!  Except what??”

He took in a breath.  “Except for the timelines
you’ve created when you used the orb with someone else.  By using the orb with Artie and Varus, you have
created
new timelines with the orb in them, although like this one, those universes cannot naturally breed into the Multiverse.  Only were someone to use the orbs in those timelines could new ones be created from them.”

I blinked
, only vaguely understanding what he was talking about.  “This is a lot to take in, Merlin.  Like… a lot a lot.  How are my readers going to understand this if I can’t even?”

“
Write a lot of sequels,” he suggested.

A slight chuckle escaped me
, but I pushed on.  “So all this means that Artie… that Artie
2.0’s
timeline didn’t even exist until I connected with Varus and came back to Rome.  You’re saying that I…
created
her?”

“Again, technically
, it was you and Marcus in tandem that began the process.”

“But… that means I’m responsible for everything that happened in her timeline!  All the death and suffering!
  That means that I really did use the orb improperly and that I
am
responsible for fucking up
everything
!”

“You are also responsible for a
ll the life and joy, as well, Jacob,” Merlin said in a calm voice.

I shook my head, refusing to accept that
, but my continued curiosity kept me from losing a handle on my emotions.  “But how do you explain how different my timeline is from Artie 2.0’s, yet Jacob 2.0 was almost exactly the same guy I am?  Not to mention how so many other things, including my friends and family, are nearly the same as well, even though the course of world history skewed so differently.”

Merlin shrugged. 
“I cannot explain it, Jacob, for I have never experienced the result of how you used the orbs.  Perhaps time is a fickle thing and required you to exist in these new timelines so that time could repeat itself, therefore avoiding what you would call grandfather paradoxes from occurring.  Events were manipulated so that at the very least, another
you
was created as similarly to you,” he tapped a finger against my chest, “as you, yourself are.  Or it may have been a simple coincidence, something some might call synchronicity, but unfortunately I do not have a clear answer to your conundrum.”

“But what could control s
omething like that?  Fate?  God?  And I mean,
my
God, not your stupid
old god
bullshit?”

Merlin shrugged again but didn’t say anything.

“Do you really believe any of that?”

“I believe anything is possible.”

“Must be nice,” I muttered, and suddenly thought about Jacob 2.0 again, the one who had gone back in time in her timeline that had sparked a rescue effort that only resulted in them finding the Other Me’s body and journal.  I wondered what had happened to Jacob 2.0.  Had he connected with some alternate version of Varus?  Varus 3.0?  If he had, he probably wouldn’t have lasted very long since it was clear that Artie 2.0’s timeline had been completely unaware of the orb at all until they’d found the Other Me’s body.

Or he may have become an emperor.

Actually, is more likely that he had found nothing in Syria and had simply died there.  Just another casualty of war whose body had simply disappeared, much like what had happened to Archer in my own timeline.  That, at least, would explain why he and I hadn’t connected.

“
There is no point speculating on that, Jacob,” Merlin advised, “but enough about alternate realties and the Multiverse for now.  I could draw timelines with pieces of silverware for days on end, and it would leave you no less confused.  Such things are simply not important for your story to continue.”

I coughed out a laugh.  “Nice
Looper
reference.”

Merlin smiled.  “I appreciate that you ha
ve seen so many movies from which I can draw references.  It makes all this much easier.  Now… what else are you curious about?”

I kneaded my brow with a hand as I thought, finally remembering where the story had left off. 
“So what happened when Romulus returned?  Could you have given him access to use the blue orb like he asked?”

Merlin nodded slowly.  “I could have, but didn’t.  Looking down at
him in that moment, I’d learned my lesson, realizing that they hadn’t been ready.  With Remus lost somewhere in time or space, alive or dead, alone and unable to use the red orb, and Romulus back in Rome with the blue orb, also unable to use it, the status quo had resumed.  Neither boy could operate their orbs.

“I’d thought Romulus would kill me
, to be quite honest, but instead he banished me for treason.  He was devastated at his brother’s loss, not upset or angry, but saddened beyond description.  He was very emotional, as were their troops, and when I tried to take the blue orb back from him, his men struck me down.  They thought me dead, but Romulus knew I was not so easily dispatched, and had me taken here, to Britain.  When I awoke months later, I chose to remain in self-imposed exile.”

“
But why didn’t you go back with an army and take it back?  Obviously you still have power and resources at your disposal or I wouldn’t be here.”

“Because I could do neither.  I was alone, and physically unable to return to Rome.”

“What do you mean?”

“
Rome is forever lost to me, a place I shall never return to.”

By now, I understood that Merlin would have clarified had he had any intention
of doing so, but since he hadn’t, I knew it was a moot point, so I reluctantly moved on, once again placing my face in my hands as I tried to process everything I was learning.  “But if Romulus could only control the red orb, how did he even return with the blue one?”

“An excellent question, and one I do not have an answer to, but one I am certain you
will discover on your own.”

I shook my head within my hands, once again realizing such a vague answer
was going to be left as such.

My next question came out
very softly.  “How could you let all of this happen, Merlin?”

“I believe I already told you that the orbs muddy things. 
The powers of the old god are not one to be trifled with.  They make things unclear to me.  Disrupt things.  They are, to use another of your wonderful sayings, a huge pain in my ass.”

I smirked
and lowered my hands.  “Mine too, and theirs as well, it seems.  You know, this is all kind of funny in a sick and twisted sort of way, because I always assumed Romulus would be the violent dickhead of the two.  History remembers Remus as the victim in all this, but now I know it wasn’t so black and white.”

“They were twins,
” Merlin said.  “Two sides of the same coin.  They had their faults, but one always compensated for the other.  They were perfect compliments, and very nearly the last of a generation that was so inherently… special.  It’s why I gave them joint access to the old god’s power.  I had no reason to suspect one would grow jealous of the other, and it was unfortunate that Remus never really had the opportunity to understand just how powerful his orb was, even on its own.”

I nodded.  “Seriously
, although it’s a shame that it’s also a double edged sword, more likely to drive someone insane than help…”

I purposefully trailed off, hoping Merlin would get the hint for once.

“I was always planning to elaborate on that, Jacob,” he said.  “I assure you.”

I didn’t answer, letting my look of impatience do my speaking for me.

“I’m sorry, Jacob, I truly am,” Merlin said.  “The orbs were never meant to be wielded alone, and certainly not by anyone other than Romulus or Remus.  When I separated its power, I separated its safeguards as well.  The blue orb, as it is, affects the mind.  The red, the body.  Had you for some reason found the red orb, your body would have suffered instead.  It may have seemed much like intense radiation sickness or, even worse, you could have developed extreme mutations, and no, not like the kind in comic books.”

I flicked my eyes in the air.  “I guess I got lucky then.”

“No, I do not believe so,” Merlin said.  “The red orb may have killed you by now, but the blue orb will continue to warp your mind, worse and worse, day by day, but keep you alive.”

“Like with Caligula and Claudius,” I said, finally coming to a point in ou
r discussions where I already understood the context.

“Exactly.”

“But why didn’t it happen to Varus?  And why the four of us and no one else?”

“Pat yourself on the back, Jacob
,” Merlin said with the first bit of humor I’d heard in a while, “because you did get one thing right.  You, Varus, Caligula, and Claudius all share a genetic link to Romulus and Remus, although only you and Varus share a direct lineage with Remus, hence your ability to use the orb.  It’s all in the eyes…”

“
So Remus had children then before he disappeared?”  I asked, cutting him off.

“Only
one,” Merlin answered.

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Wow,” I said, feeling giddy at the confirmation.  “That’s pretty
cool.”

Merlin smiled like a father enjoying his son’s own enjoyment of something well beneath him
.  “I suppose it is.”

“But, wait,” I said, thinking
out load.  “Then that means Agrippina is in the same boat.  So why hasn’t it affected her?  Or Varus, like I asked earlier?”

“Varus was a kindred spirit, Jacob,” Merlin answered immediately.  “He was a gentle man and one who was very focused
and driven.  He didn’t let his mind wander into a quagmire of ‘what ifs’ and ‘how comes’ and he didn’t let it grind him down through fear, pride, avarice, seduction, indecision, or conspiracy.  The orb would have affected him eventually, but his mind was well defended against outside influences.  The likes of Caligula and Claudius, while perhaps good men at heart, were not so capable.  The orb is simply too powerful for a human mind to handle.  Some are just more capable of handling it than others.”

“But what about Agrippina?
”  I asked, not quite understanding.  “She’s the worst kind of person, always looking out for what’s best for herself, no matter the cost.”

“It’s not about being good or
bad, Jacob.  It’s about how capable the mind is.  Agrippina is many things, but unlike her brothers, she is not plagued by things that weigh on her mind.  She is a determined, mindful person.  She achieves her goals and is completely confident in the manner in which she accomplishes them.  Her mind is well guarded, perhaps even more than Varus’ was.”

“But…” I started to say, the implications of
his words saddening me.

“But,” Merlin said, h
is voice just as dour, “what does that mean for your own mind?