Ulrika recounted her experience in Shalamandar, the meditation that had revealed the crystal pools, the visit from Gaia, while Sebastianus listened in interest. "I think now that I was never meant to reach my father's people in time to warn them of Vatinius's attack, for I see now the futility of such a plan. My journey to the Rhineland was the Goddess's way of setting me free. I had felt bound by invisible ties to a land that was not part of my destiny."
She stroked his stubble-covered jaw. "Gaia also told me that it is my destiny to find the Venerable Ones. But I have been searching for five years and have yet to even know who they are."
Sebastianus laid a hand on her cheek. "I must depart as soon as possible for Rome. Can you search for them there?"
"I will search the world if I must."
He smiled. "Then I will help you, for I too am destined to travel the world."
Sebastianus cradled her in his arms then, drawing her to his warmth, while Ulrika relished the feel of his skin against hers, marveling at the power of the masculine body that held her and made her feel safe. As she listened to the reassuring beating of his heart, she listened to an amazing story of brave men crossing deserts and mountains, fighting for their lives, meeting a whole new race for the first time. He filled her mind with beautiful images as she tried to imagine Chinese women, whom she thought must be like butterflies.
"My dream to open a safe route to China route was indeed a success," he murmured as his fingers explored her curved back and delicate shoulder blades. "In Rome I will start planning the next phases of the Gallus caravan trade, sign contracts with importers and exporters, and expand the family business. I will make the name of Gallus known to the far-flung ends of the earth." He paused to kiss her hair, and inhale its fragrance. And then he said, "And you will be at my side. Together we will find Gaia's Venerable Ones."
"Will you not go home to your beloved Galicia, to your sisters and their families?"
"Perhaps, but my success in reaching China has only made me hunger for more. My heart is divided, Ulrika, except when I am with you, for never have I felt so complete as I do now."
When she trembled in his arms, from excitement, he knew, and desire, he recalled a ceramic he had found in China, manufactured only there. The clay was fired at extremely high temperatures, creating the formation of glass and other shiny minerals. Sebastianus could not pronounce the Chinese name, so he called it porcellana, as it resembled the translucent surface of cowrie shell. And he thought now: it is like Ulrika—strong, shining, beautiful.
She lifted her face and said softly, "And what about the astrologers in China?"
He stroked her hair, her neck, ran his hand down her bare arm, and drew her more tightly to himself. Ulrika was strong and confident, yet she seemed so vulnerable in his arms. He shook with desire. "I met with them and learned from them. Ulrika, there are many gods and spirits in China, every pond, every tree, even every kitchen has its own god. I cannot begin to name even a few. But the one thing that is the same from Rome to Luoyang is the cosmos. The same stars that shine down on the Tiber River, that shine here over the Euphrates, glitter upon the surface of the Luo. This brought me great comfort while I was in a strange land. And because they are the same everywhere, they are the one constant in the universe, I believe more than ever that the stars guide our lives. They advise us and warn us. They bring us good fortune and keep us from harm. The stars hold messages from the gods. Never have I had such faith in the heavens as I do now.
"Chinese astrologers are men of keen intelligence and insight. I spent many hours conferring with them, and I have brought back charts, instruments, devices for observation and calculation, ancient and arcane equations. I am going to take it all to the observatory in Alexandria, where the greatest astronomers in the world study the heavens, and I know they can put it all together and uncover the secrets to the meaning of life."
Night had fallen but Sebastianus did not light more lamps. There was food in the tent—dates and nuts, pomegranates and rice wine—but the lovers were not hungry. Sebastianus cradled Ulrika in his arms as they lay beneath silken sheets. If the ordinary world outside continued to exist, if Babylon was still there, they neither knew nor cared. Sebastianus placed his hand on her breast, felt her heart beating beneath the silken skin. "Ulrika, you are my horizon in the morning, my oasis at sunset. You are the moon glow that lights my way, the sweet dawn that ends my troubled sleep."
They reached for each other again, and this time the embrace went beyond physical. It was the entwining of two souls. Ulrika held tightly to Sebastianus and felt his spirit engulf her in perfection and joy. She inhaled his masculine scent, buried her face in the hard muscles of his shoulder and neck, delivered herself into his power and wanted to stay there forever. He could not have held her more tightly. She could hardly breathe except to whisper "Sebastianus," with a sigh that came from her heart.
Sebastianus nearly wept with happiness when he heard his name whispered on her warm breath. He tightened his embrace, fearful he might break her, but he felt her strong muscles and bones, as strong as her indomitable spirit. She wrapped her thighs around him as he penetrated deeper, wishing he could send his entire body into her, to be held safely and in love by this astonishing woman.
"I love you," they murmured to each other, inadequate words barely expressing the depth of their mutual devotion.
Finally they slept, intertwined in each other's arms, comforted by the warmth and feel of each other's nakedness.
"WHERE IS SEBASTIANUS GALLUS?" Quintus Publius barked when Primo came into the atrium. The hour was late. Publius had just sent off the last of his dinner guests.
Primo did not want to face this man with a thunderous expression on his face, his white toga with a purple border a reminder of his power. Publius was the Roman ambassador to the Persian province of Babylon, and a personal friend of Nero Caesar. Primo had put off reporting to Publius in the hope that Sebastianus would come to his senses and pay a visit to the ambassador at his villa west of the city.
But Sebastianus had returned to the caravan with the girl in tow, they had gone into his tent and now, hours later, had yet to emerge.
This was Primo's second summons to the ambassador's residence this week. Primo knew it was about a special dispatch Publius had received by imperial courier directly from Nero himself, demanding a report on the progress of the much-awaited caravan from China.
Primo mustered a civil attitude as he said, "My master was detained in the city on urgent business, sire, and he should be—"
"Never mind that!" Quintus Publius barked, his face red with fury. "I gave him specific orders to leave Babylon three weeks ago! Why is he still here?"
Primo thought quickly and came up with a plausible lie. "There was sickness among the women," he said, referring to a group of Chinese concubines in the caravan, a gift from Emperor Ming of Han to the emperor of Rome. They were as pretty as a garden filled with flowers, their faces white with rice powder. Primo wondered what Nero would think of them.
It was well known that Nero Caesar needed the financial capital to keep his empire going. Primo had heard tales from travelers of unrest cropping up in the many provinces. Judea, for example, where restless young Israelites were said to be fomenting revolution to gain back their autonomy. In response, Caesar was sending more legions. The Jews called it oppression, the Romans called it restoring order. But Primo had also heard that Nero's extravagant spending was not only on the army but on new buildings in the city of Rome, fabulous homes and palaces and fountains and avenues, all unnecessary and all very costly to build. Nero was bankrupting the Imperial Treasury, it was rumored, and he was desperate for sources of revenue.