tinhuviel | Entries tagged with augury of gideon

There is not one person on this planet who has not experienced some kind of surreal moment at one time or another in their lives. Then there are the Fox Mulders of the world, and last night's Event was the final straw that made me certain I fall into the latter category. I got an email from Carl Marsh, a founding and current member of Shriekback, that included a picture of him taking a holiday break in Venice, and reading...

If the image is too small, click it to see the original size.
Picture was posted with permission.

Take a look at his choice of reading material. This obviously makes him a dubious individual of questionable character, which is exactly why he's one of my few Muses. It's like someone took my core influences, and divided them by 0, resulting in a photograph of an individual holding a book that would not exist had it not in part been for him. Even his name - Carl Marsh - is important, being the inspiration for the name of the trilogy's main character. Indeed, it is an image worthy of Schrödinger's Cat.

**EDIT** (7 March, 2015)
For reference purposes, in the event anyone is not sure of who Carl Marsh is, he's the one singing Recessive Jean in the latest Shriekback video.

If I tried to tell anyone about this, there would be no way they'd believe me. Since I have a picture, though, that should be proof; however, in this age of Photoshop, I wonder if there will still be people who think it's fake. Suffice it to say, if you'd been in my physical presence last night, you would have no doubt that the image is real. Besides, my Photoshop skills are shite.

Considering the other unbelievable goings on that I've attempted to document on the Cliffs of Insanity over the years, is it any wonder I feel like I'm being stalked by Rod Serling?

Mood: indescribable
Where? the house
Music: Bea Miller - Dracula

This isn't showing on Amazon, yet, so I'm sharing it here as well.

I've long held the opinion that oral traditions were not entirely dependent on repeatedly telling the tale and memorizing every nuance that the story contained. I am of a mind that there comes a point where spoken and written communication becomes embedded in cultural and racial consciousness. Even if you've never heard a song or a tale before, sometimes you still recognise it. Something within you resonates with an ineffable sense of truth that, to quote Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars, "surrounds and binds" you. More often than not, such transcendental familiarity can be associated with a person's ancestry. You are experiencing a kind of sacred sentience that scientists, particularly in the field of genetics, are only now coming to understand.

This expansive consciousness is not limited to humanity. It involves everything we think we know, and emanates far beyond the boundaries we have yet to imagine. Our fellow Earthlings perceive existence in ways so alien to us, we can't even grasp the enormity of such a concept. The more we learn about the world around us, the more obvious it becomes that our knowledge and understanding don't even skim the surface of the mysteries of creation. One thing we have begun to accept, though, is the power of DNA. Within DNA rest infinite spirals of information that can be accessed as needed and enhanced by the epiphanies their current vessels' experience in their lifetime. Looking at it from this perspective gives rise to the idea that sentience doesn't reside within us; rather, we reside in sentience. Everything we know, or think we know, has been discovered countless times before, and will continue to do so as the universe, or multiverse, seeks its own definition.

What does all of this have to do with The Augury of Gideon? Everything.

First, the definition of "augury" as found on Dictionary.com:

A great deal of the books of Daniel and Revelation are auguries in the Abrahamic religions. Many Shamans, from the ancient past to the present, are augers, their knowledge, often acquired by rote, are auguries. Some auguries are so old, their wisdom have become organic, inscribed upon the very atoms that comprise the spirals of DNA. An augury can be quantum graffiti, the wall upon which it is written, creation's tabula rasa, eternally craving the to be filled with poetry, whale song, the repetitive patterns drafted in the path of stars and the whispered constructs of a virus. It is known and understood on innumerable levels and in dimensions that may never be proven by humanity.

That said, an augury can be anything, not just a spoken tale or a series of letters chiseled into stone. Pull away the veils that conceal its stories, and it will be revealed in an infinity of forms. It can be the symphony of what will come, encrypted and replicated in every tiny cell that makes you you.

I first encountered the word "augury" when I watched Earth: Final Conflict in 1997. One of the main characters, played by the brilliant Richard Chevolleau, had the nickname "Augur," which he acquired because of his almost supernatural computer skills, which included hacking and virtual linguistic gymnastics that helped the resistance better understand the true intentions of the alien Taelons. Being a student of the prophecy, omens, and various forms of divination, I instantly loved the word and mentally bookmarked it for possible use in the future. I got my chance two years later while I was writing Cadmus Pariah's biography, Sui Generis, which became one of the chapters in the first Relics book, The Chalice. I started the story out with a strange little phrase that had been looping in my mind for days: "The desert shakes with the footsteps of the Jinn, ascending for the perishing sun, owl and serpent alike." After completing the bio, I attributed what looked to be a prophecy to one of the Original Ten Vampires, a Tarmian wood-worker, who became known as Gideon. The name was based on a bit of confusion on my part, at the age of 9. In 1978, I watched an old Jack Benny movie called The Horn Blows at Midnight. Mr. Benny played an avenging angel whose duty was to sound his trumpet to herald Armageddon. I don't know how or why it happened, but up until I gave the Tarmian-turned-Upyr the name, I had always thought Jack Benny's name in the film was Gideon. Even though I discovered I was mistaken, I still kept the name.

During the time I was writing Sui Generis, I was learning more about Shamanism and the use of hallucinogens in various Shamanic rituals around the world. Ever since I'd learned Syd Barrett's tragic story, I became resolute in the opinion that by way of LSD, Syd became hyper-aware of how vast and incomprehensible reality truly is and, because he apparently had little or no training in Shamanism, he was unable to process that which had manifested, and it drove him mad.

I could easily see that as a possibility, considering the presence of the archetypal mad man or fool making itself known in cultures throughout the world over the span of millennia. Two modern examples of this would be the character of Gabby Johnson in Blazing Saddles, and Matthew Silver, who is a performance artist in New York. He's the perfect modern example of the archetypal mad shaman. Watch him in action, and you'll see what I mean.

So, taking the components of a Gene Roddenberry sci-fi show, a case of mistaken identity involving an old B&W film from the 40s, the tragic story of Syd Barrett, the theories of cellular and racial memory, combined with cosmic consciousness, I added the Fool archetype, and anchored the character to Dean Haglund in his role as Ringo in The Lone Gunmen to further flesh Gideon out.

Gideon was the mad Vampire shaman, and his prophecies were known to exist by the entire Hive, but no one knew what all of them were. No one could say if they came in the form of scrolls or were passed on in oral traditions. His foretellings were collectively called The Augury, and it is this that became the third Relic, which was actually seen and held by at least two characters in the first Relics book, The Chalice. Even though Gideon is seen only in retrospect throughout the series, he and his message became two of the most important factors in resolving the arc story.

About half of the book was influenced by a song called 'Planet' by Shriekback, a bonus track on the now impossible-to-find "Cormorant" egg. I don't know what the true meaning of the song is; rather, I wrote a large portion of The Augury of Gideon based on my interpretation of the lyrics. It certainly triggered thoughts of martyrdom and sacrifice in my mind, with some unexpected results.

As is expected, the final book of the trilogy brings a few storylines to close, and says goodbye to some of the Vampires at its end. Given that The Augury is firmly based in the cyclic nature of existence, the immortality of genetic memory, and the indestructibility of sentience, I would suggest you compare the last story to one of Cadmus' favourite things: a black hole. Going into a black hole may very well seal your doom, based on what we think we know about how the universe works, but it could also be a tool of cosmic transformation, giving credence to the Pagan concept of the Goddess' womb to tomb aspect. Who knows what may happen when you come out the other side of the black hole?

Perhaps we can find out together. Until then, I hope you enjoy this book and the characters that told the story. If anything in any of the three books inspires you to learn more about some of the concepts, traditions, cultures, music, and philosophies that helped inspire them, then I'd say my work is done. You have the secrets of The Augury now. It's time to pass it on to others.

Mood: tired
Where? Home
Music: Syntax - Thorns and Roses

Book Tweeter has made a splash page for The Augury of Gideon. Click the image to check it out!

Mood: optimistic
Where? home
Music: Excision - Ohhh Nooo!

Trying to gain a Mac version of Semagic was a monumental failure. So, now, I’m trying out MarsEdit. We’ll see how it turns out. Not really much to report at the mo. I may be using Flickr a bit more, since this application is more friendly with that image-sharer than it is with Photobucket. I’d never been comfortable.

( Cut because I try to be polite. )

Mood: okay
Where? Home
Music: Shriekback - My Spine (Is the Bassline)

acook finished the cover for the third and final installment of The Vampire Relics. I am astounded by it, and in awe of her talent. I'm cutting it because the file is rather large.

( Click to behold the wonder! )

Mood: impressed
Where? home
Music: Dune on telly

Unfortunately.

My beloved Alpaca Lips did not follow through as I was so desperately hoping.

Obviously. Since I'm making an update here.

There's a lot I'd like to write about, but I just don't feel ready for that right now. Honestly, the only thing holding me together at the moment is my unending and apparent desperate quest for laughter. I've actually found that for now in a show I've been watching since late 2011 when it debuted, but have only really come to appreciate and cling to like a freckle in the past couple of months. It's called Impractical Jokers and may well be the funniest show in the history of television, I shit you not. It was developed by the Staten Island Comedy Troupe called The Tenderloins. I would marry every one of these guys at once, if given half the chance. No ifs, ands, or buts. Of course, I do have a favourite, but I'm not really getting into that right now.

Just wanted to touch base and let any readers I may have left know that I am still here, still alive and kicking (myself and anyone in close proximity). I'm still struggling with editing, writing, and getting The Augury of Gideon ready for publishing, which I hope will happen this year. We'll see. I'm still working on music videos for Shriekback, Barry, and hopefully future related projects. I'm still making the Tim Roth Tutorials, of which there are 150 as of today.

I'm taking things one day at a time, although I think now more than ever, it's an uphill battle, and the only way I'm ever going to be able to move forward is to move away from this place. But I don't want to even think about all that right now.

All I want to do is laugh, and forget everything else.

Mood: apathetic
Where? home
Music: silencia

I'm trying to get my ducks in a row, gathering up various pictures

acook will need for reference, as well as writing up what I envision for the cover of The Augury of Gideon. Then I'm going to tackle some other publishing mountains before me. That aside, though, I found this picture, and it perfectly represents the innocence that defines Faust/Kallum. Scottles is the other half of the Faust/Kallum character, but the picture that best defines that is not published and I'm not gonna be responsible for doing that now. Anyways, here's the James McAvoy picture.

Gotta get this, the Scottles picture, and the picture of B that best represents Cadmus in the third book (I have the perfect one), along with a picture of the actual Augury, and a written description of what I'm seeing, and we'll be good to go. ::crosses fingers::

Mood: blah
Where? home
Music: 'The Universe' on H2

I've been trawling through 'The Augury of Gideon,' checking to see if everything fit together okay. It seems to be, but there were parts of it that make me extreeeeeemely uncomfortable. I'm not certain how I can change this, but change it must. This part, though, I'm kind of proud of.

Thiyennen continued. “The mighty Cadmus Pariah, how you’ve come down in the world. What once was great is now a vessel of pain stretched across my sense of purity and vengeance. I will never go so low as to call you my son. You are the mutated afterbirth of my nighttime issue. That is all you ever were and all you shall ever be. Kelat might call you son, but I call you a demon sent straight from Hell.”
Cadmus raised his head and looked Thiyennen in the eye. “You’ve never tasted Hell, O King.” And with that, he spit dragon fire right into Thiyennen’s face. Thiyennen didn’t even get a chance to scream before his head was eaten completely away by the acidic dragon fire. Cadmus remembered the day in the desert when that almost happened to him, and how his biological mother Kelat had nursed him back to health in spite of his vow to destroy her. Now he wished she would find him and save him again. Then Cadmus laughed, truly laughed. When all is said and the day is done, the only thing a person wants when it boils right down to it is his mother. Cadmus couldn’t believe what he was thinking and feeling, and he soon found himself in hysterics, laughing and crying all at once, succumbing to the tsunami of emotions that he’d long abandoned in a field of unmentionable abuses. There he was, naked and strapped to a wheel-shaped rack, staring down at his headless father while the dragon fire continued to sputter and spit around the corpse’s shoulders, and all he wanted was his mother. Cadmus’ sense of absurdity had reached a breaking point and he screamed with the emotions that it unleashed. The scream ended with his merry laughter filling the torture chamber.

Yes, Cadmus begins feeling true emotions. He has to for the story to progress, and he finds himself in situations that demand an emotional reaction. This is where I have the problem. I've never had to worry about Cadmus and intimacy. It was only a means to an end whenever it happened, and I always skirted the subject just enough to make the point, but not go there. I have to this time, and I did. But when I reread it, I can hardly look at the words.

This is bloody frustrating, and I don't know how to fix it. Or if I even should. I just can't imagine anyone reading this and...liking it. It's so wrong on so many levels, I babble incoherently to my computer screen and the animals about how horrid the predicament is. I'm about ready to trash the whole damned book and start from scratch. I don't really want to do that, though.

FIE.

Mood: frustrated
Where? home
Music: The Care Takers - Dark Horses

This is the song that pretty much defined the a large chunk of The Augury of Gideon, posted here in the event I lose the lyrics.

(Feels Like a) Planet ~ Shriekback
I tried to walk with the mudmen
But it wasn’t allowed
I wept as my golden bones were ground to dust
By a screaming crowd
They took me up to the tree line
By the mysterious pines
I stayed out for 7 nights as they hunted me down
For my holy crimes

Electronic eyeballs scoop me up
Even as I carve my name
Pound that mutton and pour me out a glass of sublime decay

There’s no rest in the galaxy
No escape in the life to come –
People gasp in my atmosphere
I’m on a turning wheel and I swear
I feel like a planet
I ache with the sun
I feel like a planet
And I wonder the night till this terrible year is done

I staggered out to the firebreak
I saw the orchard in flames
I dumped my ruined clothes in a plastic bag by an open drain
I blacked out under the archway
Came ‘round immediately
And everything I knew was broken
Just like they said it would be

Spinning through the darkness burns me up
Isn't what I can’t contain
Understanding this don’t help at all:
Lacerates you just the same

I don’t care for astronomy
It’s too hard on the weakened brain
I’m a stricken bird in winter
I’m blind and raw with a molten core like a planet…

I ache with the sun
I feel like a planet
I contain all there is and I carry it as I run

Mood: awake
Where? home
Music: Shriekback - Planet

Heed ye this.

He who defileth All Things with a bitter tongue that rests sweetly upon the ears of the Tree Child shall take a portion and portions thereof into his service. The rites of Illumination shall be abandoned for a salvation promised only by eternal enslavement. I behold the passing of the Old Ways, that they fall into disarray by way of Dark Magicks and the dividing power of the Tuthalidon! I see a priest of these dread arcana, the mark of Tuthalidon carved and secreted away deep within a heart that exists only to devour. I behold a moon drenched in the blood of martyrs…the Blood of monsters. Blood spilt upon the altars of the Wise. The devastation of oblivion shall encompass all lands and twist all language. In the night shall the lost ones wander, pulling into their fold the immortal and doomed. I see the depth of his endless eyes, searching searching forever searching, seeking out the damned, cleansing Eterah and dressing her in the raiment of abominations.

~From ‘Prophecies of the Augury – Gideon and the Veil of Ages,’
written and compiled by Cadmus Pariah

Mood: okay
Where? home
Music: tv noise

An entry from Cadmus' journal, as featured in The Augury of Gideon.

CHAPTER 18

CADMUS’ JOURNAL: THE SCIENCE OF CONTROL

“Very little fruit is forbidden. Sometimes we wobble, sometimes we’re strong. But you know evil is an exact science, being carefully correctly wrong..” ~ Shriekback “Nemesis”

Kelat is napping. Her incessant badgering about my emotions, or lack thereof, was driving me to distraction. Only around her do I feel like I’m losing control.

Control is everything. Without it misery is sure to follow. This is a truth I learned at a very early age, when Nissius began his litany of nightly abuses upon my young and nearly ageless body. If you are beaten mercilessly for crying because of some special torment, you learn to hold your breath, hold in everything you possibly can to avoid further punishment. You’re taking on enough as it is, don’t add to the agony of it.

There were some nights I would cry and take the beating because the beating would take away the pain of the other perverse acts Nissius had performed upon his apprentice. I took it as a lesson and allowed my body to release during the flogging, understanding how the flagellants might get the idea that their deeds brought them closer to their god. Ritual beating can create altered states of consciousness. I am almost certain that I saw the face of god on certain nights. That face was a leering, angry figure, hellbent on the punishment of the living simply for having lived at all.

It has been centuries since I cried, but it has been almost as long since I was subject to the whims of Nissius Sanguinus. His abuses were all aimed toward the goal of perfect, emotionless control. He molded me well, very well indeed.

Kelat is so very different from Nissius. She seems a sad figure, but is also a vessel of such chaotic power, it’s hard to believe that, when you look at her, you’re looking at what is almost a Goddess made manifest. And, indeed, she has been mentioned in more than one holy book as a deity or a semi-divine being. The Hebrews in particular became obsessed with her early on. Some revere her

as wise Goddess of the wisdom of the night, others view her as the night demon who steals away children and the sexual control of men.

Again, it’s all about control. She is hated by many for her innate ability to make one lose control. Perhaps the Hebrews have twigged onto something when it comes to Kelat. Take away the owls and lions who repose beside her, and all you have is a woeful figure lost in the desert of dreams.

I hate Kelat. I do not speak of the philosophical apex that mirrors hatred. I am talking about the actual emotion. Yes, I do feel that. It means that I have relinquished some of my control because only a neutral being can achieve perfect control, which is what I once had. Anger and hatred come to me easily, especially when I am in the presence of my mother. No matter what I do or say, she accepts me for all that I am and she loves me unconditionally. I know this because I tap into her psyche and see it there, swirling in magnificence, a bright and shining beacon calling to me to let go and fall under her sway.

I will not let her do it to me. She has taken away enough of my control.

When the time comes for me to achieve my apotheosis, she shall she see her error. I will crucify her and drive spikes through her eyes so I will never have

to look upon her silver-blue gaze of affection again. She will perish on a cross of her own making and her utterances of agony shall be as music to my ears.

I will crucify them all. When the relics are reunited and the final prophecies are revealed, then shall they know that their demise is nigh. I will hunt Kelat and her lapdogs down like the vermin they are and I will drive iron spikes into the bodies and raise their crosses in the deepest deserts of the Earth. There shall I behold them when the sun arises and takes away their sanity with the pain of fire and purification. My strength gained by walking the sun trials will allow me this luxury and will also allow me to see Kelat’s prolonged pain since she, also, has walked the sun trial throughout her life. It only means that I can toy with her longer. I will immerse myself in the philosophical apex of joy when I tell her that her beloved Dmitri’s head is resting on a pole beside her cross, his eyes upturned and blank as they stare at her with no hint of meaning. To listen to her weep from the knowing of this, but be blind to its reality, will gratify me and make all these times of misery in her presence worthwhile.

And when they are dead and the Vampire plague is but a memory to me, I will set myself above the world on a throne of bones and blood, and humanity will cry out with a great lamentation. I will punish them in every way conceivable for their weakness. Only the strongest amongst them will be allowed to remain in my presence and live, and they shall administer the torture I decree on their lesser man.

In Blood shall I bathe, my chalice forever full. The Blood Crown shall rest upon my brow and I shall be the only god of the Earth. This is what Gideon saw and this is what drove him mad. When the Augury is retrieved, the Truth of things shall be revealed and I shall afford myself the luxury of one more emotion; the feeling of utter triumph.

Until then, I must tap into my deepest reservoirs to find that silent void that is the seed of my control. I must practice the science of control and embrace what it seems I have always known. I am not that babe in the woods so sorely abused by his master. Not anymore. I am the master now and I will do everything it takes to maintain my control in the face of Kelat’s chaos of emotion.

Mood: creative
Where? home
Music: Ozzy Osbourne - Hellraiser

I can't remember if I made a list of these or not so, if this is a repeat, sorry. Just skip over. The Augury of Gideon depended more heavily on chapters than the other two books, being episodic in nature. Here's the list of chapters in the book as it stands now. I doubt it will change, but I'm not saying that's a definite thing since I am doing to pretty hefty rewrites on this manuscript.

Prologue

The Haunted Angel

The Shroud and the Jewel

The Dhampir

The Dreams of Madness

Remembrance

The Persistent Spirit

Kids These Days

Prophecies and Pariah

The Angel and the Vampire

The Swan and the Writer

Cadmus' Journal: Divine Intervention

The Dreams of Angels

The Road Trip

The Art of Emotion

Digging in the Dirt

In League with Beasts

The Well of Memories

Cadmus' Journal: The Science of Control

The Waiting and the Hare Moon

The Reunion

The Resurrections

Ishtar and Kallum

The Way of the Darkblood

Cadmus' Journal: The Smile

Flying into the Sun

The Canopy Ruins

Dreadful Absolution

The Prophet

The Stricken Bird in Winter

Return to Asheville

The Construct

Mysteries of the Augury, Ishtar and Kallum

Requiem and Congregation

Brown Mountain

Epilogue

Mood: accomplished
Where? home
Music: Thomas Dolby - Close But No Cigar

It has been prophesied throughout time that an End to All Things is inevitable and that a redeemer will be instrumental in bringing about a new beginning for those whose hearts follow in that soul’s footsteps. Humans throughout time have long held these beliefs and take hope and comfort in these prophecies and take heart that the cycle of all things will bring about a renewed and better world. Vampires, too, hold these hopes close to their own secret faiths and collections of foretellings, as revealed to them by the mad Tarmian turned Upyr by the name of Gideon.

His utterances were treasured and passed on by rote by those who heard them until there came a time when he went silent and appeared only rarely to those he felt worthy of his secrets and insanity.

Two he graced with his madness, two and two alone. Both were murdered by the monster Gideon often foretold, the one with whom he seemed so obsessed in his later years. Looking back upon them, one guardian of Gideon’s Augury was to keep it hidden until the time of its revealing. The other, the one destined to redeem and bring about a new age for Upyr kind, knew the Augury’s song and held it as a precious melody until once more his soul was reunited with the collection of prophecies, complete and ready for revelation.

One prophecy, known only to the Queen Upyr, was that mortal kind would save the Vampires and that the redeemed was to bring forth the true redeemer of Vampire kind, through Blood, suffering and, eventually a kind of personal redemption that may kill or cure.

But who was the redeemer and who was the redeemed only Gideon knew and this was the only thing he never told a soul.

Mood: depressed
Where? home
Music: The Divine Comedy - Gin-Soaked Boy

Okay, I've compiled what prophecies I already know. I'll have to go mad to summon up more, so that'll be fun. Good ole Gideon. Based on Syd Barrett in spirit, but not in looks, he said such wonderful things before he set himself on fire at the Woodstock Festival. Good times, man. Good times...

( the prophecies )

Thank again to

booraven22 for the moleskin journal. You are a beautiful soul!

Mood: creative
Where? home
Music: Dead Can Dance - The Host Of Seraphim

I saw the truth of their existence in the eyes of an actor who played a vampire when he was a child. He grew to exhibit all the wonderment and beauty one should look for when dealing with the Immortal Cursed. He haunted my dreams this morning, staring out at me from my own mind, waiting for a new story to be told.

So we have the three-leaved floret that establishes the root of Empirical power and existence in our otherwise mundane world. We have the chalice forged by the living Goddess Kelat in ancient alien magick and the blood of her own body. We have the blood crown, made by the Roman Apostate and charged with the blood of the last of the human Magi as he is forced to walk the station of his death at the command of the Apostate. And we have the Augury of Gideon, proof positive that memory can be held in biological cells.

The chalice is in possession of Cadmus Pariah, but there's an unspoken knowledge that, someday, Kelat will attempt to take the chalice back from her son.

The blood crown is still in possession of the Apostate. It was the final blow of magick with this item the drew the trap around the Original Ten and the Apostate himself. He's compelled to wear the wreath of thorns and allow the points to sap him of his strength as much as they fortify his powers in the forgotten halls of ancient Rome.

The Augury of Gideon is in possession of the mortal Agatha Crawford, who inherited it from her companion Paine before Paine was murdered by Cadmus. No one knows that this marbled petrified Vampire Blood has any semblance of power or destiny.

Given the characters tied in with the relics, it stands to reason we'll be seeing more of Cadmus Pariah (of course), Kelat, Agatha Crawford, and Gideon. A much earlier incarnation of Gideon. I see Gideon in the eyes of Joshua John Miller. There's a soft, mad, intelligence there. Like song. And Jesus. Jesus will be making a very important appearance.