The Gospel of the Font

Chapter 5

"What do you mean, once was?" I ask.

The mysterious woman raises her hands up to chest level, her palms down but her wrists bent slightly upward. "We don't have much time," she says calmly. "There are some things I must tell you before we have to part again."

"How did I get back here?" I ask as I continue to enjoy the warmth of the fire.

"This is simply a vision," the woman explains. Oh, well that's good to know. If I'm dreaming, then I don't have to worry about asphyxiation from this strange fire. Wait, that means I'm probably still in that hotel room! I could be dying! I place my hands on my forehead and hunch over to a crouching position. Wake up, Faith, wake up!

"I assure you, you're safe," the woman says calmly. She's moved closer to me now. I'm still looking down at the floor, but I can hear her voice coming from directly above me to the left. "I would not have summoned you here were your life in danger."

I place my hands on my knees and slowly rise back up again. For some reason, this woman's words are making me feel better. Am I trusting her? Why the fuck am I trusting her? I don't know who she is, and she doesn't seem to want to tell me, yet I'm just going along with what she says like she's my mother or something. I feel her hand rest on my shoulder. It sends a shiver up my spine. This is the third time I've seen this crazy chick, but she's never actually touched me until now. Illusions can't touch you, so this isn't doing wonders for my ever-deteriorating sanity.

"Why am I here?" I ask meekly, not expecting a straight answer to this question either.

"I brought you here to let you know that I admire your vigilance," she says. Wow, I guess I did get a pretty straightforward answer. The glow of the fire is illuminating her features brightly. She's is very pretty. Her skin is pale but not in that malnourished vampire sort of way. Her long, black hair cascades down her shoulders in beautiful waves. I should get the number of her hairdresser. Mine just lays there like a dead thing. Sorry, my mind is wandering again. I should push her for more information before this 'vision' is over.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

The woman smiles. "I knew you were strong-willed, Faith, but I was still quite impressed with how you stood up to Allustar."

"How did you know about that?" I ask.

"You held your ground and didn't give in even in the presence of such a powerful being," she says, ignoring my question. "I knew you were the perfect one to entrust with the Book." I'm not too upset because now she seems to want to talk about the biggest enigma of them all.

"What the hell is that book anyway?!" I shout. I want her to see my determination to get this information out of her just in case she decides to change the subject again.

The woman smiles, even giggles a little bit. Is she just toying with me? "Calm yourself, Faith," she says. "That is the very thing I brought you here to tell you."

I exhale after she tells me that. Maybe I'll learn something from all of this after all. Let's start with the biggest questions. "How did I wind up with the Book?" I ask. "I never touched the thing, but it just disappeared and wound up in my bag."

"The text is my living word," she says like it's not weird at all. "The Book became yours when I chose you to receive it."

"Is it actually real?" I ask. "No one else can see it. Tim couldn't even touch it."

"Since you were chosen, the text became a part of you," she says. I have no idea what that means. I think she can see my confusion because she smiles again before continuing. "It is there when you call upon it and is gone when you have no need for it. It can only be seen, held and read by those you wish to allow. None can take it from you unless you give it to them."