The Adamantine Adventure: The Last Librarian, #2

By John C De Groot

The Royal Alexandrian Library faces threats in the twenty first century, from both the Soulless Brethren who want to make a fortune from the Libraries secrets using the power of two mystical objects they've discovered and Omar Gamel a billionaire who simply wants it for himself.

 

Amanishakete and Sabine must brave the perils of travelling back in time to 6th century BC Lydia in Asia Minor to change history and then to the Hoggar Mountains in the Sahara for an audience with Tin Hanan, the 4th century AD Queen of the Tuareg.

 

With new Adamantine weapons, made from an ancient mythological formula found in the Royal Library, Amanishakete and Sabine must confront the challenge of an inheritance from the now deceased Gamel and an attack from the Soulless Brethren.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John C De Groot
• Release date: Jan 2, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215800935

John C De Groot

Albert Einstein said that ‘it is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge’. That was certainly the case with my high school history teacher, who brought history alive and started my fascination in Ancient and Early Modern history. There are countless mysteries that still remain unsolved and I have a real suspicion that we have lost or forgotten more knowledge than we have ever gained. After a career in business, business support and as a trainer for Dale Carnegie, I did some consulting. It was a client who once said to me that ‘I was a useful man to have around’, based to some degree on my ability with the written word. When retirement loomed his words, my interest in history and a very patient and supportive wife encouraged me to ‘put pen to paper’ and with heart in hand resulted in my first book ‘The Quest for Eternal Life', the first in the ‘Last Librarian’ Series. That was several books ago in a growing portfolio.

Book preview

Introduction

This is the second adventure in ‘The Last Librarian’ series.

In the first we were introduced to Amanishakete a Nubian Princess of Meroë from the Kushite Kingdom of Queen Amanirenas and to Sabine Malik the daughter of a wise man living in the wastes of the Sahara desert.

The year before Alexandria fell to the Romans in 30 BC Aurelius, the Chief Librarian of the Royal Library of Alexandria, had entrusted Amanishakete with the future of the Library. To do this he’d given her the secret of eternal life.

This is the authorisation from Pharaoh Queen Cleopatra  he’d said to her  for me to take whatever measures I see fit to preserve the Library and authorises me to transfer guardianship. This.....  he’d handed Amani a piece of parchment  is my authorisation to you to be the new Guardian of the Library and its new Chief Librarian; the Last Librarian. Keep them both safe. 

Since then the Library of Alexandria has become the stuff of legends. Theories still abound  about its possible destruction by fire and earthquake and no trace of it has ever been found, but to this day Amanishakete, Sabine and their Guardians of Knowledge have kept the promise made to Aurelius and the Library still exists and grows.

There have been many threats to its existence over the centuries the most dangerous have not been war regime change, or even natural disasters, but rather from those individuals whose greed and desire for power and knowledge have caused them to seek out the Library and the destruction of those who protect it. The most dangerous and persistent of these antagonists has been the Soulless Brethren, but for several decades there has been no open aggression between the Guardians of Knowledge and the Soulless Brethren.

That was about to change and the discovery of two mythical objects were to be the catalyst.

Part One – Atil Asdan’s Treasure

Chapter 1 –  London 2017

The small brass plate beside the glossy black door stated simply  ‘The Batalimus Company’. The Georgian door stood solidly in its black frame at the top of a short flight of stone steps set between black iron railings with gold painted spear shaped tops rising up either side of the steps. The door was flanked by four large windows two on either side. Above these were three more brick faced storeys. London’s Mayfair was one of the city’s most prestigious and expensive areas and similar buildings stretched away in the terrace both to right and left, housing discreet businesses, professionals or very private residences.

The sleek dark blue Bentley Flying Spur swept up to the front of the building. On cue a smart young man in a dark grey executive suit opened the front door of the Batalimus office building descended the steps and opened the drivers door. Behind him a glimpse of the luxurious interior beyond the front door. Dark panelled wood, gold sconce wall lamps, oil paintings and deep blue carpets.

The driver got out of the car leaving the door open and the young man slid behind the wheel engaged drive and the car pulled silently away from the kerb.

The driver was left standing on the pavement facing the building. She was very tall her height accentuated by Christian Louboutin high heels. Long black braided African hair looped down over the back of the claret tailored jacket. She looked briefly up at the elegant building before advancing confidently up the steps. The black door swung closed behind her.

Inside she was greeted by another smartly suited man a gold badge on his lapel declaring him as  ‘Guardian’.

Guten Tag  Chief Librarian. he said, accompanied by a smart nod of his head.

Guten Tag  Hermann  she responded.

An elegant spiral staircase rose three storeys around a central void down the centre of which a crystal chandelier hung from the highest point. The top storey, originally servants quarters, was accessed by back stairs that also served what had been the kitchens below ground and now housed a sophisticated communication centre. She strode purposefully up to the first floor where four anonymous but elegant mahogany panelled doors led off the landing, two to the front of the building and two to the rear. 

Taking one leading to the front it opened onto an executive office. Directly ahead was one of the large windows with a view to the street below. The room was beautifully furnished with a deep red wool carpet dark oak panelling and matching furniture. There were two framed pictures. One an engraving in the classic style of what the artist imagined the Great Library of Alexandria would have looked like. The second an oil painting of a man in his thirties dressed in clothes from the mid-nineteenth century. Double breasted rich blue high collar tailcoat over a cream waistcoat a white stock wound elegantly and pinned around his throat. His light brown hair was short for the period and brushed forward, curls framing his alert oval face, a smile playing at the corners of his generous mouth. The small brass plate at the bottom of the frame declared, ‘Percival Henry Waddington’. She looked at the picture of her husband as she always did on arriving at her office and smiled. He’d died in the Egyptian desert in 1884.

A large teak desk was to the left many of the papers on it addressed to Mrs Amani Waddington. Her real name of course was Amanishakete Nubian Princess of Meroë. Born over two thousand years before. 

On the wall immediately opposite her desk  the framed Principles of the Royal Library of Alexandria.

THE KNOWLEDGE CONTAINED IN THE ROYAL LIBRARY

- will be preserved for all time.

- will be used to generate resources for its own conservation and protection by the Guardians of Knowledge. Such resources will be obtained using knowledge that will not endanger the existence of mankind.

- will be made available to and added to by those who are considered worthy and trustworthy.

- will be maintained by Librarian / Scholars in a hierarchy  led by a Chief Librarian.

- will be under the sole control of the Chief Librarian  who will be the final arbiter in all   things. 

Amanishakete hung her jacket carefully on a wooden stand in the corner. The cream silk blouse with pearl buttons complimented the blue undertones of her dark African skin. Her tall athletic figure was striking, but it was her eyes that made the greatest impact to those she met, dark hazel brown with flecks of pale gold. Anyone under their gaze would feel their inner being open to her reflection. There were few who could hold eye contact for long. Her age was impossible to determine, somewhere perhaps between thirty and fifty, whatever it was it had been frozen at that age for over two thousand years.

Walking to the window she looked out at the street below and it was as she was silhouetted against the daylight that Sabine came in from her office next door.

Good morning Sabine. Amanishakete said, not turning. Her voice deep and resonant. 

Good morning Amani. Sabine said brightly.

Sabine was still the same slim young woman in her mid twenties as she was when they’d first met when Amani was on her quest to find the ingredients for the potion of eternal youth. Her conservative grey skirt suit white blouse and black patent leather court shoes were a contrast to the white tunic and tooled leather belt of her first meeting in the central Saharan town of Bilma. Her light brown hair now short in a modern fashionable style, but her pale clear creamy skin and ice blue eyes were still her most striking features.

They’d both experienced the time arresting process of the potion which they’d assembled in their first adventure together using the instructions in the translated Chinese scroll given to Amani by Aurelius in 30BC, just before the Royal Library of Alexandria was sealed against the threat of the Roman invasion.

Their eyes met and they were immediately connected.

What news of Bruno Kaufmann and his sister Alexandra? Amani asked.

They were booked on a flight to Athens two days ago.

Amani's expression didn’t change. Only a slight exhale reflecting her annoyance.

So he will have taken the scrolls he stole from us to the Soulless Brethren.

Yes but we know now that our plan to uncover the traitor in our organisation worked. The scrolls they have are descriptions of things that have since been discovered by the scientific community so they are of relatively little value except for their antiquity.

I am still intrigued to know what turned him against us. Amani said with a slight frown as she sat at her desk.

Two things have come to light  Sabine answered. He was in serious debt, he’d developed a gambling problem about a year ago.

How did we miss that?

He had a bank account in a different name. It would have come to light during our annual audit, but he left before that was due, and I don't think that was the key reason for him going across to the Soulless Brethren.

Amani inclined her head in an unasked question.

We've gone through his personal email accounts and what records he left behind in his haste to leave. His uncle was SS Colonel Carl von Wolfstein who was a close associate of Georgious Diamandes and the Soulless Brethren during World War Two. Bruno had been communicating with his uncle in California for a long time before he died recently. There is a lot of correspondence about the Soulless Brethren. You could almost call it propaganda.

We've had some turncoats in our time Sabine but Bruno Kaufmann is amongst the worst. Amani said bitterly. What about Alexandra, her leaving is a surprise, is her brother more important to her than her loyalty to her fellow Guardians  Amani paused seeing the expression on Sabine’s face  but I think you know the answer to that too. she said with narrowed eyes and a knowing look at Sabine.

Sabine handed Amani a small piece of folded paper.

It is from Alexandra. Sabine explained. It was found in her rooms.

Amani unfolded the paper. There in Alexandra’s hurried handwriting it said;

My loyalty remains with the Guardians of Knowledge. AR

Later that day they’d decided to not only appoint Jean-Paul Picard to replace Bruno Kaufmann, but to also upgrade the position to that of International Head of Security and Defence. Amani and Sabine knew they needed a third person in their inner circle they could trust implicitly. Jean-Paul was an obvious choice. He’d taken point when Bruno Kaufmann had been shown to have gone rogue and joined the Soulless Brethren. Six years of faultless and on more than one occasion selflessly brave service as a Guardian of Knowledge marked Jean-Paul out. He was destined to rise to the challenge.

Chapter 2 – The Soulless Brethren - Athens 2017

Draco Diamandes paced the same circular terrace atop the thirty metre tower his great grandfather Alphonse Diamandes had more than a century before.

Alphonse Diamandes had changed his name to Atil Asdan to hide his previous membership of the Guardians of Knowledge. He’d been the founder of the then resurrected Soulless Brethren and of the sprawling AA estate on the Greek Peloponnese peninsular.

If you looked closely the evidence of Draco’s ancestry was clear in his face. A dark beard and moustache, much shorter and more contemporary than his great grandfather, but the devilish features could not be mistaken.

Gone were the black clad Oriental warriors who’d protected his great grandfather. Instead heavy set men with sunglasses automatic weapons and dark suits patrolled the estate.

Inside the AA Estate many things remained the same, but one of the most obvious changes were the large satellite dishes on the roofs at odds with the traditional style of the villa. They were the outward sign of the high-tech security and communication systems monitored from a control room in what had once been an underground wine cellar that extended almost the full footprint of the house. The control room was also the hub of the vast criminal empire connected by the internet. From here Draco could monitor the activities of the Soulless Brethren across the globe, meet on-line with local Syndicate Controllers and give out instructions and judgements.

Draco peered over the balustrade of the tower into the garden far below. A small area of the extensive garden was boxed off by a tall hedge and inside was the graveyard of his family. The original small stone memorial to his grandfather and father who’d died together in 1884 at the hands of the Guardians of Knowledge had been replaced by a more elaborate and celebratory sarcophagus. Alongside was a similarly large memorial to his grandmother Angel Diamandes who had died of natural causes. He’d obviously never met his grandmother, but his mother had often told elaborate and often unbelievable stories about her. His mother had died only seven years ago  at the grand age of ninety one. After his father Georgious Diamandes had died she’d run the Soulless Brethren organisation until Draco had come of age himself.

Draco suddenly had an uninvited flashback to the years before his mother died. She was a tough ruthless unbending woman, who’d kept an iron control on the organisation, exerting her will at every turn and taking the business to increased returns on its criminal activities. But she had despaired at Draco and what she termed his soft ways telling him he’d never make a success of running the business. Her rantings at him and her contempt of him grew until she died. He resolved to prove that he was every bit a Diamandes as she and his father had been before him, but in reality he suffered huge inner self-doubt. Whether based on reality or generated by his mother’s contempt they none the less conspired to consume him.

Those self-doubts had given him an inferiority complex that materialised in many ways. He over reacted if he felt he was being criticised often dismissing or terminating the offender. He would never admit he was wrong and if he did make a mistake he’d go to extreme lengths to destroy or cover up any evidence. He had a Dunhill briefcase that he’d inherited from his father in which he kept such evidence and any other documents he didn’t want anyone to see. For him knowledge was power, so the more secrets he could amass the more powerful he felt. The Dunhill briefcase, always locked, went with him everywhere. 

Before him the family had not only survived through two World Wars and a Great Depression they had prospered. His father had experienced the fall of the Greek Royal family, the occupation in World War Two of Greece by the Italians, then the Germans the Communists and finally the British. He had learned two important lessons that in turn he’d passed on to his son  Draco. Firstly that people will pay good money for the illicit things they desired and secondly  everyone had their price. He’d also tried to pass on to his son Draco his obsession to find the Library of Alexandria and to destroy the Guardians of Knowledge who protected it and had killed his grandfather and great grandfather. To Draco these events were so far in the past as to have little or no impact upon his feelings or a desire for revenge.

Now in his fifty third year Draco knew that he had to plan for the future. He had no heir his first wife Anastasia and their son having died in childbirth many years before. After several years he’d married again this time to Helen, a much younger woman, but there were no children. Accusations between them over the lack of children grew into estrangement and ultimately the end of their relationship. Divorce was not an option, not only on religious grounds, but because Helen knew too much about the Diamandes business. It was a question of murder or maintenance and Draco chose the latter. Helen now lived separately in a house on the estate, but they rarely met or spoke.

He’d gone on to have several lovers only to prove that it was he who was unable to father children. By that time it was far too late to resurrect his relationship with Helen even if he were inclined to make amends, which he wasn’t.

Now he had to decide about the future of the Diamandes empire. If he were to die and there was no succession the organisation would implode with the violent conflicting ambitions  of his Lieutenants and perhaps even Helen who was no shrinking violet. He’d suspected for some time that she had plans of her own for the future of the Soulless Brethren. It was a thorny problem that could in his view best be resolved by appointing a successor from outside the organisation, preferably well before he died. He already had in mind the person whom he thought would be best suited.

Right now as the bright Greek sunshine illuminated the fields and building around the estate he sat on a cushioned bench on the terrace crossed his legs and stretching his arm along the back. This was the same bench on which his father had sat with SS Colonel Carl von Wolfstein in World War II drinking the estates best white wine while they made an agreement to exchange information about the Greek underground movement in return for the safe passage of contraband through the Greek port of Piraeus and of course a handsome payment to the Colonel.

That deal had almost cost his father his life. The Peloponnese had been invaded by the Italians and was under their control from 1941, but the Germans had to intervene to rescue the Italians failed occupation and Greece was then divided between them. The Germans subsequently occupying the Italian zone when the Italians surrendered to the Allies in September 1943.

When the Germans pulled out of Greece in 1944. The communist resistance group ELAS took control of Athens and started taking reprisals against collaborators. If it hadn’t been for the arrival of the British in October that year and the restoration of some order ELAS would probably have got to Georgious and there may never have been a Draco.

A heavy set dark suited man came on to the terrace leaned down and said something quietly to Draco.

Show them up. Draco said.

A few minutes later a serious looking man  and a drab looking woman  were shown onto the terrace. The man was a compact clean cut European of average height in his mid thirties. The squareness of his pale face emphasised by the military style crew cut of his light brown hair. Pale grey expressionless eyes above high cheekbones a straight nose, wide mouth and dimpled chin  made him a traditionally handsome man. Dressed almost entirely in black; shoes slacks and polo necked sweater, there was a vibrant tension about him. He looked a dangerous man which he was.

The woman was the complete opposite of him in almost every respect. She could have been anything from twenty five to thirty five of average height average build with plain mousy hair over a plain face. In fact there was nothing remarkable about her at all.

Draco rose to greet them walking towards them with an outstretched hand.

Bruno welcome. He shook hands smartly. And this must be your sister  Alexandra. Welcome. He kissed her on both cheeks in the European style. She didn’t smile.

Alexandra was in fact  Bruno’s half sister. She and Bruno shared the same mother, but her father was Albert Renaud a Guardian of Knowledge,  who’d died when she was only a year old. Her mother’s second husband Emil Kaufmann was Bruno’s father. So her real name was actually Alexandra Renaud which matched the initials she’d left on her note for Amani and Sabine. Bruno had never been told of his sisters heritage as they had always been treated as sister and brother. Her loyalties though hidden still remained with the Guardians of Knowledge.

And this,  Draco said, pointing to the battered Victorian travelling trunk Bruno carried, must be the scrolls. You will be a worthy successor Bruno Kaufmann! he exclaimed clasping Bruno on each shoulder. There is a lot to do, but let us start in the morning.

With refreshments served  they spoke of the theft of the scrolls and Bruno’s future.

I am sorry to hear of your father’s death  Draco said.

Yes thank you. He was ninety nine so he had a long life. My uncle also passed. He knew your father well I believe.

Indeed he and my father worked together in the war years. Was he still in Argentina when he passed?

No he’d moved to Palm Springs in California more than ten years ago. The hunt for ex SS officers had eased in recent years so he felt quite safe and there was a small community of old German comrades nearby. He’d dropped the ‘von’ title and had changed his name from Carl von Wolfstein  and was known simply as Charles Wolfstone. The climate was very good for his health which is probably one of the reasons he lived to the great age of one hundred and even had ex US Presidents as neighbours. Bruno smiled coldly.

After supper Alexandra left the men and returned to the room she had been given. She didn’t know that it was the same room that Draco’s grandmother Angel  had occupied more than a century before. The tiled sunken bath in the floor was still there as were the comfortable couches and rich loose carpets. The large windows with soft pale curtains moving with the breeze from the garden they overlooked let in the scent of flowers.

There were no hand maidens now, as there had been in Angel’s time, only Sofia an older lady who was head of the household. Alexander was to learn that it was under her eagle eye that the housekeeping and catering worked so efficiently. Always dressed in a black suit jacket white blouse and black skirt, dark stockings and solid lace up black shoes, she presented a formidable figure. Rarely would her thin lips break into a smile on her pale oval face.

There was a knock on the door.

Come in! Alexandra said.

Sofia entered with some towels over her arm.

I am Sofia Miss Kaufmann I run the house for Mister Diamandes. I have brought towels. she said stiffly. There was a slight German accent in her excellent English.

Thank you Sofia. This is a beautiful room. Alexandra replied in German. Her use of German was rewarded with a rare smile from Sofia.

It is. All of the ladies who have lived here at the villa have lived in this room. There is a lot of history here,  she replied in a friendlier tone. Alexandra smiled.

Perhaps you would be kind enough to show me around the house tomorrow?

It would be a pleasure Miss Kaufmann.

Alexandra was not to know what dire consequences her simple request would bring.

Chapter 3 – An Accidental Discovery

After breakfast the following morning Bruno’s induction into the Soulless Brethren began. He sat with Draco in his study on the ground floor where Draco eased himself back in his chair as he prepared to launch into his favourite subject the history of the Soulless Brethren. He was much more comfortable with the history than he was with the present or prospects for the future.

"It all started with my great grandfather Atil Asdan. He bought this estate here in the Peloponnese in the middle of the nineteenth century for almost nothing. It was badly run down and the area was very depressed at that timebut with his help and investment local farmers found new opportunities and the area rapidly became productive again. Prosperity increased during that century with the growing interest in Greek history and archaeology and of course the Peloponnese was home to many ancient Greek sites not the least of which are the ancient cities of Corinth  Sparta and the site of Olympia.

What had the family done before he bought the estate Draco? Bruno asked.

A dark cloud passed across Draco’s face.

We don't know, was his abrupt reply, before he carried on as if he’d not been interrupted.

Draco droned on and Bruno was losing interest, but what he was not relating was Atil Asdan’s dark and murky past, mercurial character and evil mind or that this had been replicated in his son, the original Draco Diamandes who caught and butchered innocent beggars as a past time in the back streets of Athens. Their blood lust was one of the reasons for their success and they were feared for their reprisals. All Diamandes since that time had inherited the cruelty and delight in the inhumane treatment of others. Today’s Draco was the first male not inherit that gene.

Meanwhile Alexandra was being shown around the house and grounds by Sofia.

Alexandra was keen to get to know her surroundings in great detail knowing that at some stage the knowledge would be useful. They had just returned from a tour of the gardens and were walking across the cobbled yard, bordering which were the garages for the small fleet of vehicles and various store rooms, when suddenly a large BMW came careering through the entry archway and across the yard. It didn’t slow down and seemed to be out of control. Alexandra pushed Sofia out of the path of the car and then dived out of the way herself as the driver tried to swerve to avoid them. The car crashed into the side of the house its front end burying itself in the wall.

The dust started to clear. Alexandra got up and rushed across to the car. The driver was still inside and the entire front of the car was buried under masonry from the collapsed wall. Wrenching open the passenger door she saw that the steering column airbag had deployed, but the driver was unconscious with blood flowing down from his scalp. She released his seatbelt and started to pull him from the car. She’d just pulled him out and clear of the car when a shower of heavy masonry fell crushing the cars roof above the drivers side.

A tall heavily built man of middle eastern appearance was suddenly at her side.

I can take him now. he said softly as their eyes met and others rushed to join them. Alexandra looked around for Sofia who was brushing herself off.

Are you OK  Sofia? she asked.

Thanks to you, Miss Kaufmann. Perhaps just a bruise or two. she smiled. They both sat on a low wall to one side of the yard and recovered their breath. Across the yard the driver of the car was being carried into the house by members of the house staff.

The tall man walked across to them. His light grey double breasted suit with a crisp white shirt, deep red tie and polished black lace up shoes didn’t hide the strong wide shouldered strength of the man, but only served to accentuate his military bearing. Short dark tight curling hair was cut close to his scalp and square across his high forehead. Watchful wide spaced eyes under bristling dark eyebrows combined with a large hawkish nose and a square chin combined to give him a no nonsense appearance. He looked like someone you’d want on your side when there was trouble. Alexandra looked at him with interest.

Is the driver OK? she asked.

He is alive and the wound to his head is not as bad as it seemed. His voice was soft measured and resonant. His English almost perfect. Scalp wounds do bleed a lot  he continued  but a doctor will be called to examine him. I am Mustafa Hussain head of security and transport. He said this with a formal dip of his head. You acted swiftly and bravely Miss Kaufmann I thank you. The driver would probably be dead or at least seriously injured from the second fall of masonry if you had not taken action.

I think that applies to me too Mustafa! Sofia said. Thank you Miss Kaufmann.

A little later the doctor reported that the driver didn’t have any serious injuries and would make a full recovery. Apparently the accelerator on the powerful car had stuck and the driver had not been able to stop it.

The delicate work of extracting the car from the wall had started carefully to avoid causing more damage to the building, when there was a cry from one of Mustafa’s men. He went across and climbed onto the pile of rubble looking to where the man was pointing towards the hole in the wall. Mustafa immediately stopped the work and called for Draco Diamandes. The collapsed wall had revealed a hidden room.

In his study Draco was still laboriously explaining the history when there was a furious banging on the study door. Draco jumped up and threw open the door. A breathless messenger stood there.

Come quickly Mister Diamandes! Mustafa says come quickly. To the yard  sir!

Draco followed by Bruno rushed into the yard to be confronted with the pile of rubble and mangled car.

Over here! called Mustafa from the other side of the pile of rubble.

Draco and Bruno scrambled up the pile. On the other side stood Mustafa and Alexandra. In front of the ruined car a room had been opened up. They stumbled down the rubble and peered inside. The room measured about five metres square, but there were neither doors nor windows. It was lined with shelves holding wooden boxes of various sizes and packages of what looked like tarred paper. Everywhere there was dust and cobwebs. Those shelves that had been against the collapsed wall together with what they had once carried were now scattered across the ancient flagstone floor.

Draco picked