the Jerusalem Detail

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Sgt. Howard
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the Jerusalem Detail

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Gaius Cornelius Antonius, retired Centurion of the Italian Cohort, had been the better part of a week in Jerusalem researching anything to do with the Greek historian Herodotus on the early morning that the Prefect's runner found him-
"Ave Caesar- Sir, are you the one called Cornelius?" the lad asked the older commander.
"Ave...I am he- and you are...?"
"John Marcus Benitcius Sir, servant of Pontius Pilate- I have a request for you from him," he stated as he thrust out the scroll.
"Hmph- Pilate doesn't issue requests, he issues commands... what is this anyway?" he opened the scroll having broken the Prefect's seal. Reading down, he noted a mention of a 'small detail' that needed to occur that morning that required a commander from far enough away to avoid reprisals. Well, yes- Caesarea was enough distance, assuming anyone even knew to look there. He was promised a full month's wages at his highest rank for a day's work. Doubtless something to do with the local Jewish population... there was always trouble with that lot. Why Rome bothered with such people...
"I assume I am to be there post haste?" he asked the boy.
"Yes Sir- allow me to lead the way,"
"Stand aside there, pup, you will slow me down- I know the way..."
Off he went at a military stride... and indeed, the younger fellow had a hard enough time keeping up.

At the Palace of the Prefect-
"Ave, Pilate," Cornelius hailed as he strode through the doorway, "what is this detail you have to summon an old warhorse to preform that your younger stallions can't take the bit to their mouths?"
Pontius Pilate stood at a basin stand, laboriously washing his hands- a quick glance told Cornelius he had been doing it for a while, as the caustic lye soap had created some remarkably raw spots.
"What's all this?" he motioned at the Prefect's hands, " what can possibly soil your hands so thoroughly?"
Pilate stopped as if suddenly aware of his actions- shaking the water off his hands and taking a towel, he commented, "Nothing... it's... nothing... look here, Commander-"
"I've not held that title in over three years, your eminence- "
"Well, you hold it now. By my order. There is an execution to take place- three men, all to be crucified. It needs to happen immediately or there will be riots in this city... as it is, they are ready to tear down this palace with their bare hands. I will never understand this tribe, as long as I live... and what I did to irritate Tiberius into giving me this duty... well, that is neither here nor there... see to it, Gaius Severus here will show you your detail and give you the information... move sharply now, or there will be trouble,"
They left- and once more, the Prefect was washing his hands...
Gaius Severus, a Signus, led the old Centurion to a small room where eight men awaited- he was introduced, but didn't bother to remember their names. At a glance, he saw that these were given this task as punishment for some infraction of the rules... the sooner he got done with this, the better.
"Who are we showing such a great courtesy to?" he asked sarcastically.
"A Dismas Ben Hamid, Gestas Ben Armand and Yeshua Ben Youseph,"
Cornelius paled- "Yeshua Ben Youseph, did you say? Yeshua the Nazarene?"
"You know him?" Severus asked nonchalantly.
"Yes... he preached peace and love.. he did more than a few miracles... he actually raised a man back from the dead, he cured lepers, gave sight to the blind..."
"Yea, well, the local Rabbis want him dead... I guess they don't like competition- we got our orders here... "
"WHAT IS HE CHARGED WITH?" demanded Cornelius.
The Signus looked up into Cornelius' eyes from the scroll he had been reading- "What does it matter? We HAVE our Orders, Centurion... and unless you feel you have the authority to over-ride the orders of the Prefect, I suggest you get this detail in motion- the prisoners are in this chamber here... well, two of them are. The third is getting... ready... for his big show."
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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---

"So who in the world was it that made Pilate call you, of all people, to Jerusalem... for that?" I asked - even as I shot a nervous glance back up at the shelf where the thirty pieces of silver sat behind a glass.

"I have yet to figure that out myself, Joseph," Neil said with a sigh. "Regardless..."
"Character is what you are in the dark." - D.L. Moody
"You should never run from the voices in your head. That's how you give them power." - Jin
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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The Signus led Cornelius to the back room where the two other prisoners awaited their fate- one he recognized right away.
"YOU! I've hunted every cesspool and brothel for you, and you're handed to me as a present? The Gods have a funny sense of humor,"
"Your false gods, you mean- " replied the one named Gestas Ben Armand, "... shame I couldn't do you more damage,"
"You know this miscreant?" Severus asked Cornelius.
"He murdered many of my men while they were on duty protecting the people..." Cornelius started.
"CONTROLLING AND ABUSING THE PEOPLE YOU DESPOT!" shouted the prisoner. The back of Cornelius' hand crossed the man's face with enough force to knock him down. Sputtering and spitting blood, he looked up at his tormentor and growled, "Pretty brave against a manacled prisoner, aren't you?"
"Take this man's cuffs off- give him a gladius- then give us room," Cornelius barked.
"You are unarmed," Severus commented.
"I am not concerned," Cornelius replied. The guards had the irons off, and a short sword was thrust into his hand. Everyone backed off- Gestas looked at the sword, looked at Cornelius, trembled, then dropped the sword. The cuffs went back on.
"Delightfully foolish," Cornelius commented, "and cowardly- did I mention stupid? I would have killed you much quicker than what awaits you now... I believe I shall enjoy your death, for it will take several hours and be very entertaining." He turned to the Signus- "Where is the other fellow?"
"Right this way,"
Rule 17 of the Bombay Golf Course- "You shall play the ball where the monkey drops it,"
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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Cornelius turned a corner to an extended hallway that led to several rooms... rooms with barred entrances. Each room was about 12' square and most had some unfortunate inside sitting on the floor or aimlessly wandering about. There was some form of laughter and scuffle coming from one room in particular, where Cornelius distinctly heard a voice say, "Now prophet- name the one who strikes you," There was a loud SMACK and more laughter. The iron bar door was open to the cell- inside were six burly soldiers and a horribly beaten, flayed and blindfolded man, splattered in his own blood and barely able to stand.
"WHAT MANNER OF COWARDICE IS THIS?!?" demanded the old Centurion.
The six snapped to attention, while the prisoner turned his head in the direction of the voice.
"Cornelius? Gaius Cornelius? I was wondering when you would show up..." his voice was reflecting the injuries to his mouth.
Cornelius took off the blindfold- Yeshua was barely recognizable for the injuries to his face.
"What crime has this man committed?" demanded Cornelius.

there was no reply.

"I ASKED A QUESTION, AND BY VENUS' LEFT.... "
"Be still... they cannot hear you right now... you cannot intervene with this, you must follow your orders."

He looked at the man- battered, bleeding, one eye wasn't tracking with the other... a circle of thorns had been forcibly pressed upon his head.
"If I follow my orders, I will see to your execution- they intend to nail you to a cross, to crucify you. I... I cannot do this. I won't do this,"
"You must do this- I cannot explain right now- I've seen you listening from a distance. You have a witnessing to preform, it is essential."
"What am I to witness? Your death? What purpose..."
"Centurion- follow your orders! You shall live to see my word spread across the world, you shall live to see the conversion of billions in my name. You... you alone in this era... shall live to see my triumphant return when the final battle is won. Do your duty... go back to she who loves you... I will send one of my disciples to explain everything, but right now there is no time-
Follow your orders,'
And with that, the blindfold once again was over his eyes and he noticed the nervous breathing of the guards.
"What are the charges against this man?" Cornelius demanded once more.
"Sedition- leading the people to revolt- the Jews accuse him of blasphemy, but don't have the authority to kill him," replied one of the guards, clearly a senior Legionnaire.
"For how many deaths is he responsible?"
There was an uneasy quite among the guards.
"I see- he is an expedient political target- easy pickings- and of course, that leaves him fair prey for jackals and vultures, right? Except- I DON'T RECALL THAT JACKALS AND VULTURES WEAR THE UNIFORM OF ROME! Conduct yourselves as professionals... some day you might be politically expedient... think about how you might be treated..."
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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The six soldiers then marched the prisoner to where the others waited- Dismas and Gestas were shocked to see the condition of the Nazarene. The six fell in with the other eight- fourteen soldiers and one Centurion, to see to the gruesome death of two murdering thieves and one innocent man. Each prisoner was given an eight-foot crossbeam of approximately two hundred pounds- they had to carry this lumber to Golgotha, where it was secured to the much heavier shaft that would be the implement of their deaths. Walking through the courtyard, Cornelius noticed the blood around the pillory- and realized that this was in fact Yeshua's blood!
"At least, he won't last long," he thought to himself, "After loosing that much blood, there can't be much strength left in him,"
The parade to the 'place of the skull' was lined with trouble- some jeering, some crying, all focused on the one beaten, bloody figure that struggled with his load. Several times, Yeshua stumbled with his load- finally, Cornelius fingered a man in the crowd, having the guards pull him into the center of the storm.
"What is your name?" he demanded of the fellow.
"I am Simon, of Cyrene- I have done nothing here,"
"You WILL do something here- pick up that man's crossbeam and carry it for him, otherwise we will be all day getting this done,"
"But why me? I have nothing to do with this,"
"I CHOSE YOU! THAT IS ENOUGH!"
Again, the awkward procession continued to the place of death. After they approached the city gate, Simon was released and Yeshua again shouldered his crossbeam.
Amongst the guards, a silent assessment was taking place- they had enough experience with this sort of thing that they knew their trade. Gestas was the most surly of the three- also the biggest. Dismas could offer some resistance, but not as much. Yeshua... well, at most he might cry out. Gestas, seeing the fate awaiting him, would be emboldened to fight to the end rather than submit to his fate.

Gestas would not see the others nailed first- he needed to be the first one nailed.

Once at the site, each prisoner dropped his crossbeam on the ground. Four soldiers awaiting the procession proceeded to affix the crossbeams to the uprights with heavy cords- each crossbeam was notched square at mid-point to about one-third it'd depth. The uprights had a matching notch about two feet from the top. When mated, the crossbeam protruded about one-third it's thickness... assuring that the pressure of the nails through the wrists left the victim with the feeling of falling forward.
Once all three crosses were secured, one of the guards called out, "Yeshua of Nazareth,"
Expectantly, Yeshua looked up- and the other two prisoners looked his way as well. As one, ten soldiers jumped Gestas and forced him onto the nearest cross before he understood what was happening. A large blunted nail with a wire-wrapped wooden gusset was placed about one inch up from the fold of his wrist into the far end of his forearm- the heavy hammer drove it through the flesh, between the bones, in one stroke. Getsas screamed out in pain and horror as three soldiers wrestled his legs while four others pulled his other arm into position. One soldier braced his foot against the upright beam and pulled the arm as tight as he could manage. A second nail was placed and driven with the same, heartless efficiency while Gestas screamed a litany of oaths and curses against his executioners. From there, nailing his legs to the lower beam was a minor effort by comparison. Each cross had been placed at the base that would hold it upright- once secured to his cross, Gestas rode up as the soldiers gathered at the top to lift high enough that other soldiers with ropes could pull the cross fully upright- once there, the locking beam was hammered into place and the cross stood freely.
Dismas was next. He had seen the whole process. He had wet himself as the first nail was driven. He screamed for mercy the whole time they laid him out and drove the nails, then became quite silent as he was lifted- just as Gestas did. Exhaling required one to stand on his legs against the painful nails to allow his ribs to contract slightly. He found he could not manage to empty his lungs completely because of the spread of his arms. Speaking was a luxury now- it required painful effort.
Yeshua was next.
He did not struggle. He did cry out when the nails were driven, but he said nothing. A placard proclaiming him as "King of the Jews" in Latin, Greek and Aramaic was nailed to the top of the upright on Pilate's orders. As his cross was raised, the sky turned dark, unseasonably so. A fairly evil wind picked up. His garments had been stripped of him leaving a strip of cloth wrapped around his waist- his robe, woven without seam, was seen as a prize amongst the soldiers.
Once his cross was up and secured, they threw dice to see who would get to keep it. Once that was settled, they gathered to mock him, saying how he couldn't even save himself-
At great personal effort, Yeshua cried out, "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do,"

The soldiers fell silent.
Rule 17 of the Bombay Golf Course- "You shall play the ball where the monkey drops it,"
I speak fluent Limrick-
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

Post by jwhouk »

---

"I... always wondered how you did it with the nails," I said quietly. "Wires and planks around the arms must have made it even more torturous."

"Truth is, Joseph, I fully expected that he would be dead before we even raised the cross up into its base."

Neil had a distinctly unfocused look on his face as he continued his tale.
Last edited by jwhouk on Tue Mar 29, 2016 2:39 am, edited 1 time in total.
"Character is what you are in the dark." - D.L. Moody
"You should never run from the voices in your head. That's how you give them power." - Jin
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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At great effort and pain to himself, Gestas took it upon himself to mock Yeshua. Between laborious efforts - "You seek their ... forgiveness?!?... are you mad?!? ... you're supposedly... the Messiah... yet you cannot... save yourself?!?"
Dismas turned on his fellow deathmate with distain- "What is... wrong with you?... You're about to... face judgment... as am I... and we deserve this... but he has... done nothing wrong... (he turned to Yeshua) Yeshua... I know not... what you have... in store for your believers... but I ask that ... you remember me... in your Kingdom..."
"I speak the truth... today you will be with me.... in paradise,"
He was offered the opiated wine... which he refused. There were women and one of his followers he allowed to approach the dying Yeshua- Cornelius was not privy to the conversation, but it was obviously intense. At one point he cried out in Aramaic, "My God my God why have you forsaken me?"

Then about three hours after the noon- the sky became thickly dark, oppressively dark- the ground trembled and shook. Yeshua called out, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!"...
then, almost as a whisper, "It is done,"
Cornelius looked at the lifeless body, stunned by all he had seen. He remembered the cries of the Jewish leaders as Yeshua stumbled towards his death with the beam across his flayed shoulders, proclaiming his 'blasphemy' that he claimed himself 'the son of God'.

"Truly," he stated in a voice of command, "This man was the Son of God... and we have murdered him who was innocent."

Looking around, Cornelius saw that most of the crowd were hurrying away as fast as they could go. Only the soldiers, a few of Yeshua's followers, and the two criminals remained alive at the scene.
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I speak fluent Limrick-
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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"This storm is a bit much... as is the earthquake," yelled Severus over the now howling wind.
"Agreed- break the legs of the other two," Cornelius ordered the soldiers near the crosses.
"What about the Nazarene?" Severus asked.
Cornelius took a pilum from one of the (now unoccupied) guards and walked over to the central cross where the body of Yeshua hung limply.
"If there is any life left in you, I now do you the greatest courtesy," he spoke as he thrust the spear up through his liver and into the lungs. Water and blood spilled out onto the old Centurion as he withdrew the javelin- "I truly wish you could forgive me- for I will never forgive myself for what I have done. May you find this eternity you spoke of, and may it meet your finest expectations."

"And... you have this same remembrance... this same dream... every Easter?" I asked him. Neil looked for all the world like a man defeated-
"Yes... always the same... every detail exactly as it occurred... right up to that point."
"But... there was more, right? Joseph of Arimathea came and..."
"Severus handled that- after that, I went back to my villa in Caesarea and hid from the world... until Peter came, and spoke to me. From there, I went looking for Herodotus... well, you know the rest from there. I gathered up all of the memorabilia from the event- that pilum over the Bust of Tiberius is the one that pierced his side- the robe, the nails... there were four originally, but I could only be sure of those three... I tried to get the shroud, but his Mother was presented with it by either Peter or James, I'm not sure which... how it wound up in Turin, I have no idea..."
I started- "The 'Shroud of Turin? It's real?!?"
He smiled and nodded- "Would have looked good across that wall, don't you think? No, I have built quite a dedication to his memory out of my sanctuary... and there is no empirical evidence that any of this is what I say it is."
"But... you know it is," I interjected.
"Yes... and that is enough... at least for me it is,"
I had nothing to say. How do you comfort someone who carries such a memory? I sat there staring at my cup for the longest time...
"Joe, you need to get home," Neil offered, "And I have things to do besides dredging up old stupidities. I appreciate your stopping to listen, but I think this can only settle of it's own,"
It hasn't settled in over two thousand years, I thought to myself- but he was right- I offered no solution, and he felt no better for speaking it. I said my goodbye and went back to the portal for home...


Neil sat back down in his chair and contemplated the history surrounding him by these relics. He found himself nodding off...

"Cornelius... I have forgiven you many times over... please ... forgive yourself!"

Neil awoke with a start, sweat running down his face- what was THAT?!? Was that... no, it couldn't be... what? Something on my lap... Looking down, Neil saw something fall off his leg and onto the floor. He reached down to pick it up and examine it.

It was the fourth nail
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

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Yeshua is a forgiving man.

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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

Post by jwhouk »

Always has been.
"Character is what you are in the dark." - D.L. Moody
"You should never run from the voices in your head. That's how you give them power." - Jin
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Re: the Jerusalem Detail

Post by lake_wrangler »

Thank you for writing this beautiful piece of fic. It was well written, respectful of the original material, and still was relevant and tied in to the rest of the fanfics, by virtue of involving Neil.

A truly enjoyable chapter.
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