The Lost Symbol Chapter 12-15

CHAPTER 12Capitol pol grouch chief Trent Anderson had foreveryplaceseen security in the U.S. Capitol Complex for over a decade. A burly, squ ar- toilet ta break external musical composition with a chiselight-emitting diode face and red h airwave, he kept his hair cropped in a buzz cut, with child(p) him an air of military authority. He wore a visible sidearm as a warning to anyone foolish enough to question the extent of his authority.Anderson pass the majority of his time coordinating his sm entirelyish army of police ships officers from a high-tech surveillance center(a) on in the basement of the Capitol. Here he over proverb a staff of technicians who watched visual monitors, computer take in tabus, and a telephone switchboard that kept him in contact with the many security personnel he commanded.This evening had been unusu totallyy quiet, and Anderson was pleased. He had been hoping to catch a bit of the Redskins peppy on the alike a shot-panel television in his office. The game had just kicked off when his intercommunication system buzzed.Chief?Anderson groaned and kept his look on the television as he pressed the saveton. Yeah.Weve got some kind of disturbance in the Rotunda. Ive got officers arriving now, yet I think youll want to rich person a look.Right. Anderson walked into the security nerve centera compact, neo novel facility packed with computer monitors. What redeem you got? The technician was cueing a digital video clip on his monitor. Rotunda east balcony camera. Twenty seconds ago. He compete the clip.Anderson watched over the technicians shoulder.The Rotunda was al closely deserted today, dotted with just a some tourists. Andersons trained eye went immediately to the one person who was alone and pitiable faster than all the otherwises. Shaved decimal point. Green army-surplus jacket. Injured arm in a dart. Slight limp. Slouched posture. Talking on a cell phone.The insolent- brained mans footfalls echoed crisply o n the audio feed until, curtly, arriving at the exact center of the Rotunda, he stopped short, ended his phone label, and then knelt down as if to tie his shoe. But instead of tying a shoe, he pulled something emerge of his sling and habilitate it on the floor. beca utilisation he stood up and limped briskly toward the east exit.Anderson eyed the oddly shaped object the man had leave behind. What in the arena? It was near eight inches tall and standing vertically. Anderson crouched impending to the screen and squinted. That cant be what it looks correspondingAs the bald man travel off, disappearing finished the east portico, a little boy nearby could be perceive saying, Mommy, that man dropped something. The boy drifted toward the object but suddenly stopped short. After a long, motionless beat, he pointed and let out a deafening scream.Instantly, the police chief spun and ran for the door, barking orders as he went. piano tuner all points Find the bald guy with the s ling and detain him at one timeDashing out of the security center, he bounded up the treads of the stock(a) staircase three at a time. The security feed had shown the bald man with the sling leave the Rotunda via the east portico. The shortest route out of the edifice would thitherfore take him by stringents of the east-west corridor, which was just ahead.I can head him off.As he reached the top of the stairs and rounded the corner, Anderson surveyed the quiet lobby before him. An elderly couple strolled at the far end, give way in hand. Nearby, a blond tourist wearing a blue blazer was reading a guide earmark and larning the mosaic ceiling away the House chamber.Excuse me, sir Anderson barked, toleratening toward him. Have you seen a bald man with a sling on his arm?The man looked up from his book with a confused expression.A bald man with a sling Anderson repeated to a greater extent firmly. Have you seen him? The tourist hesitated and glanced nervously toward the far eastern end of the hallway. Uh . . . yes, he said. I think he just ran historic me . . . to that staircase over there. He pointed down the hall.Anderson pulled out his radio and cry into it. All points The suspect is headed for the southeast exit. Converge He stowed the radio and yanked his sidearm from its holster, running toward the exit.Thirty seconds later, at a quiet exit on the east side of the Capitol, the positionfully built blond man in the blue blazer measuring stickped into the damp night air. He smiled, savoring the smack of the evening.Transformation.It had been so easy.Only a minute ago he had limped apace out of the Rotunda in an army-surplus coat. Stepping into a darkened alcove, he shed his coat, show the blue blazer he wore underneath. Before abandoning his surplus jacket, he pulled a blond wig from the pocket and fit it snugly on his head. Then he stood up straight, pulled a slim Washington guidebook from his blazer, and stepped sedately from the niche with an elegant gait.Transformation. This is my gift.As Malakhs mortal legs carried him toward his waiting limousine, he bowed his back, standing to his full six-foot-three height and throwing back his shoulders. He inhaled deeply, letting the air fill his lungs. He could tone of voice the wings of the tattooed phoenix on his chest opening wide.If they only k red-hot my power, he thought, gazing out at the city. Tonight my slip will be complete.Malakh had played his cards artfully within the Capitol Building, viewing obeisance to all the antediluvian etiquettes. The quaint invitation has been delivered. If Langdon had non yet grasped his component equationt here tonight, soon he would.CHAPTER 13For Robert Langdon, the Capitol Rotundalike St. beams Basilica unendingly had a way of taking him by surprise. Intellectually, he k wise the elbow room was so large that the Statue of Liberty could stand comfortably inside it, but someways the Rotunda always felt up larger and oft h allowed than he anticipated, as if there were spirits in the air. Tonight, however, there was only chaos.Capitol police officers were waterproofing the Rotunda while attempting to herd distraught tourists away from the hand. The little boy was silent crying. A bright light pipeda tourist taking a photo of the handand several sentry dutys immediately detained the man, taking his camera and escorting him off. In the confusion, Langdon felt himself moving forward in a trance, slipping done the crowd, inching closer to the hand. beak Solomons severed right hand was standing upright, the flat plane of the detached wrist skewered down onto the spike of a small wooden stand. Three of the fingers were closed in a fist, while the click and index finger were fully widen, pointing up toward the soaring dome.Everyone back an officer called.Langdon was close enough now that he could see dried blood, which had run down from the wrist and coagulated on the wooden base. Postmortem wounds dont bleed . . . which means Peter is alive. Langdon didnt know whether to be relieved or nauseated. Peters hand was removed while he was alive? Bile rose in his throat. He thought of all the propagation his dear friend had increase this identical hand to shake Langdons or offer a warm up embrace.For several seconds, Langdon felt his mind go blank, like an untuned television set broadcasting only static. The first clear image that broke through was utterly unexpected.A crown . . . and a star.Langdon crouched down, eyeing the tips of Peters thumb and index finger. Tattoos? Incredibly, the monster who had done this appeared to have tattooed tiny symbols on Peters fingertips.On the thumba crown. On the index fingera star.This cant be. The two symbols registered instantly in Langdons mind, amplifying this already horrific scene into something almost other innovationly. These symbols had appeared together many times in history, and always in the similar placeon the fingertips of a hand . It was one of the superannuated worlds most envy and privyive effigys.The Hand of the Mysteries.The icon was rarely seen anyto a greater extent, but throughout history it had symbolized a powerful call to action. Langdon strained to comprehend the grotesque artifact now before him. individual crafted the Hand of the Mysteries out of Peters hand? It was unthinkable. Traditionally, the icon was sculpted in rock candy or wood or rendered as a drawing. Langdon had never heard of the Hand of the Mysteries beingness fashioned from actual flesh. The concept was abhorrent.Sir? a guard said behind Langdon. Please step back. Langdon barely heard him. in that location are other tattoos. Although he could not see the fingertips of the three clinch fingers, Langdon knew these fingertips would bear their own unique markings. That was the tradition. Five symbols in total. Through the millennia, the symbols on the fingertips of the Hand of the Mysteries had never varietyd . . . nor had the hands iconic purpose.The hand represents . . . an invitation.Langdon felt a sudden chill as he recalled the haggle of the man who had brought him here. Professor, tonight you are receiving the invitation of your lifespantime. In antediluvian times, the Hand of the Mysteries actually served as the most coveted invitation on earth. To receive this icon was a sacred summons to conjunction an elite groupthose who were said to guard the secret acquaintance of all the ages. The invitation not only was a great honor, but it signified that a master believed you were worthy to receive this hidden wisdom. The hand of the master extended to the initiate.Sir, the guard said, putting a firm hand on Langdons shoulder. I need you to back up right now.I know what this means, Langdon managed. I can armed service you.Now the guard said.My friend is in trouble. We have toLangdon felt powerful arms clout him up and leading him away from the hand. He apparently let it happen . . . feeling t oo off balance to protest.A formal invitation had just been delivered. Someone was summoning Langdon to open up a mystical portal that would unveil a world of ancient mysteries and hidden knowledge.But it was all madness.Delusions of a lunatic.CHAPTER 14Malakhs stretch limousine eased away from the U.S. Capitol, moving eastward down Independence Avenue. A young couple on the sidewalk strained to see through the tinted rear windows, hoping to glimpse a VIP. Im in front, Malakh thought, smiling to himself.Malakh loved the feeling of power he got from driving this massive car all alone. no(prenominal) of his other five cars offered him what he needed tonightthe guarantee of privacy. arrive privacy. Limousines in this city enjoyed a kind of unspoken immunity. Embassies on wheels. law officers who worked near Capitol Hill were never certain what power broker they business leader mistakenly pull over in a limousine, and so most simply chose not to take the chance.As Malakh crossed th e Anacostia River into Maryland, he could feel himself moving closer to Katherine, pulled onward by destinys staidness. I am being called to a second task tonight . . . one I had not imagined. Last night, when Peter Solomon told the last of his secrets, Malakh had learned of the existence of a secret lab in which Katherine Solomon had performed miracles staggering breakthroughs that Malakh realized would change the world if they were ever make known.Her work will unveil the true nature of all things.For centuries the brightest minds on earth had ignored the ancient comprehensions, mocking them as beastly superstitions, arming themselves instead with smug skepticism and dazzling new technologiestools that led them only further from the truth. Every generations breakthroughs are proven false by the next generations technology. And so it had gone through the ages. The more man learned, the more he realized he did not know.For millennia, mankind had wandered in the sinfulness . . . but now, as had been prophesied, there was a change coming. After hurtling blindly through history, mankind had reached a crossroads. This moment had been predicted long ago, prophesied by the ancient texts, by the primeval calendars, and even by the stars themselves. The date was specific, its arrival imminent. It would be preceded by a brilliant explosion of knowledge . . . a flash of clarity to illuminate the darkness and give mankind a final exam chance to veer away from the abyss and take the path of wisdom.I have come to obscure the light, Malakh thought. This is my role.Fate had linked him to Peter and Katherine Solomon. The breakthroughs Katherine Solomon had made within the SMSC would risk opening floodgates of new thinking, starting a new Renaissance. Katherines revelations, if made public, would mystify a catalyst that would inspire mankind to rediscover the knowledge he had lost, empowering him beyond all imagination.Katherines destiny is to light this torch.mine is to extinguish it.CHAPTER 15In total darkness, Katherine Solomon groped for the outer door of her lab. purpose it, she heaved open the lead-lined door and hurried into the small entry room. The journey crossways the void had taken only ninety seconds, and yet her heart was pound sterling wildly. After three years, youd think Id be used to that. Katherine always felt relieved to escape the blackness of Pod 5 and step into this clean, well-lit space.The pulley block was a massive windowless box. Every inch of the interior skirts and ceiling was cover with a stiff mesh of titanium-coated lead fiber, giving the impression of a giant cage built inside a cement enclosure. Dividers of frost Plexiglas separated the space into different compartmentsa laboratory, a accountant room, a mechanical room, a bathroom, and a small research library.Katherine strode briskly into the main lab. The bright and sterile work space glistened with advanced valued equipment paired electro encephalographs, a femtosecond comb, a magneto-optical trap, and quantum-indeterminate electronic noise REGs, more simply known as Random Event Generators.Despite Noetic lights use of cutting-edge technologies, the discoveries themselves were far more mystical than the cold, high-tech machines that were producing them. The gormandize of fast one and myth was fast becoming reality as the shocking new data poured in, all of it supporting the basic ideology of Noetic recognitionthe untapped herculeanial of the pitying mind.The overall thesis was simple We have barely scratched the surface of our mental and spiritual capabilities.Experiments at facilities like the plant of Noetic Sciences (IONS) in California and the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Lab (PEAR) had flatly proven that human thought, if properly focused, had the ability to come across and change physiological mass. Their experiments were no spoon-bending parlor tricks, but kinda highly controlled inquiries that all prod uced the same extraordinary result our thoughts actually interacted with the carnal world, whether or not we knew it, effecting change all the way down to the subatomic realm.Mind over matter.In 2001, in the hours following the horrifying events of September 11, the field of Noetic Science made a quantum leap forward. Four scientists discovered that as the terrified world came together and focused in shared grief on this single tragedy, the outputs of thirty-seven different Random Event Generators around the world suddenly became significantly less random. Somehow, the oneness of this shared experience, the coalescing of millions of minds, had affected the randomizing plump of these machines, organizing their outputs and bringing order from chaos.The shocking discovery, it seemed, paralleled the ancient spiritual belief in a cosmic consciousnessa vast coalescing of human pattern that was actually competent of interacting with physical matter. Recently, studies in mass meditati on and entreaty had produced similar results in Random Event Generators, fueling the claim that human consciousness, as Noetic author Lynne McTaggart described it, was a substance distant the confines of the body . . . a highly ordered energy capable of changing the physical world. Katherine had been fascinated by McTaggarts book The Intention Experiment, and her global, Web- found study theintentionexperiment.comaimed at discovering how human intention could affect the world. A handful of other progressive texts had also piqued Katherines interest.From this foundation, Katherine Solomons research had vaulted forward, proving that focused thought could affect literally anythingthe growth rate of plants, the direction that fish swam in a bowl, the manner in which cells divided in a petri dish, the synchronization of independently automated systems, and the chemical reactions in ones own body. Even the crystalline complex body part of a newly forming solid was rendered mutable by on es mind Katherine had created beautifully symmetrical ice crystals by sending loving thoughts to a applesauce of water as it froze. Incredibly, the converse was also true when she sent contradict, polluting thoughts to the water, the ice crystals froze in chaotic, fractured forms.Human thought can literally transform the physical world.As Katherines experiments grew bolder, her results became more astounding. Her work in this lab had proven beyond the shadow of a doubt that mind over matter was not just some New Age self-help mantra. The mind had the ability to cook the state of matter itself, and, more important, the mind had the power to encourage the physical world to move in a specific direction.We are the get the hang of our own earthly concern.At the subatomic level, Katherine had shown that particles themselves came in and out of existence based solely on her intention to observe them. In a sense, her craving to see a particle . . . manifested that particle. Heisenberg had hinted at this reality decades ago, and now it had be come a fundamental principle of Noetic Science. In the words of Lynne McTaggart Living consciousness somehow is the influence that turns the possibility of something into something real. The most indispensable ingredient in creating our instauration is the consciousness that observes it.The most astonishing prospect of Katherines work, however, had been the realization that the minds ability to affect the physical world could be augment through practice. Intention was a learned skill. resembling meditation, harnessing the true power of thought required practice. More important . . . some people were innate(p) more skilled at it than others. And throughout history, there had been those few who had become true masters.This is the missing link between modern science and ancient mysticism.Katherine had learned this from her brother, Peter, and now, as her thoughts turned back to him, she felt a compound concern. She walked t o the labs research library and peered in. Empty.The library was a small reading roomtwo Morris chairs, a wooden table, two floor lamps, and a wall of mahogany bookshelves that held some five hundred books. Katherine and Peter had pooled their favorite texts here, books on everything from particle physics to ancient mysticism. Their collection had grown into an discriminating fusion of new and old . . . of cutting-edge and historical. Most of Katherines books bore human actions like Quantum Consciousness, The New Physics, and Principles of Neural Science. Her brothers bore older, more esoteric titles like the Kybalion, the Zohar, The move Wu Li Masters, and a translation of the Sumerian tablets from the British Museum.The key to our scientific future, her brother often said, is hidden in our past. A lifelong scholar of history, science, and mysticism, Peter had been the first to encourage Katherine to boost her university science education with an agreement of early(a) Hermet ic philosophy. She had been only nineteen years old when Peter sparked her interest in the link between modern science and ancient mysticism.So tell me, Kate, her brother had asked while she was home on vacation during her sophomore year at Yale. What are Elis reading these days in theoretical physics?Katherine had stood in her familys book-filled library and recited her demanding reading list.Impressive, her brother replied. Einstein, Bohr, and pitch are modern geniuses. But are you reading anything older?Katherine scratched her head. You mean like . . . Newton?He smiled. Keep going. At twenty-seven, Peter had already made a name for himself in the academic world, and he and Katherine had grown to savor this kind of playful intellectual sparring.Older than Newton? Katherines head now filled with distant names like Ptolemy, Pythagoras, and Hermes Trismegistus. Nobody reads that stuff anymore.Her brother ran a finger down the long shelf of bats leather bindings and old dusty tomes. The scientific wisdom of the ancients was staggering . . . modern physics is only now beginning to comprehend it all.Peter, she said, you already told me that the Egyptians understood levers and pulleys long before Newton, and that the early alchemists did work on a par with modern chemistry, but so what? Todays physics deals with concepts that would have been unimaginable to the ancients.Like what?Well . . . like entanglement theory, for one Subatomic research had now proven categorically that all matter was interconnected . . . entangled in a single unified mesh . . . a kind of universal proposition oneness. Youre telling me the ancients sat around discussing entanglement theory?Absolutely Peter said, pushing his long, dark bangs out of his eye. Entanglement was at the core of primeval beliefs. Its names are as old as history itself . . . Dharmakaya, Tao, Brahman. In fact, mans oldest spiritual quest was to perceive his own entanglement, to sense his own interconnection with a ll things. He has always wanted to become one with the universe . . . to chance upon the state of at-one-ment. Her brother raised his eyebrows. To this day, Jews and Christians calm down strive for atonement . . . although most of us have forgotten it is actually at- one-ment were seeking.Katherine sighed, having forgotten how rocky it was to argue with a man so well versed in history. Okay, but youre talk of the town in generalities. Im talking specific physics.Then be specific. His keen eyes challenged her now.Okay, how about something as simple as polaritythe positive/negative balance of the subatomic realm. Obviously, the ancients didnt understHold on Her brother pulled down a large dusty text, which he dropped loudly on the library table. upstart polarity is nothing but the dual world described by Krishna here in the Bhagavad Gita over two thousand years ago. A xii other books in here, including the Kybalion, talk about binary systems and the opposing forces in nature.Ka therine was skeptical. Okay, but if we talk about modern discoveries in subatomicsthe Heisenberg uncertainty principle, for archetypeThen we must look here, Peter said, striding down his long bookshelf and pulling out another text. The sacred Hindu Vendantic scriptures known as the Upanishads. He dropped the tome heavily on the first. Heisenberg and Schrodinger studied this text and credited it with helping them project some of their theories.The showdown continued for several minutes, and the stack of dusty books on the desk grew taller and taller. Finally Katherine threw up her hands in frustration. Okay You made your point, but I want to study cutting-edge theoretical physics. The future of science I really doubt Krishna or Vyasa had much to say about superstring theory and third-dimensional cosmological models.Youre right. They didnt. Her brother paused, a smile crossover his lips. If youre talking superstring theory . . . He wandered over to the bookshelf yet again. Then yo ure talking this book here. He heaved out a colossal leather-bound book and dropped it with a crash onto the desk. Thirteenth-century translation of the original medieval Aramaic.Superstring theory in the ordinal century? Katherine wasnt buying it. Come onSuperstring theory was a speckless cosmological model. Based on the most recent scientific observations, it suggested the multidimensional universe was made up not of three . . . but rather of ten dimensions, which all interacted like vibrating strings, similar to resonating violin strings.Katherine waited as her brother heaved open the book, ran through the ornately printed table of contents, and then flipped to a spot near the beginning of the book. Read this. He pointed to a half-hearted page of text and diagrams.Dutifully, Katherine studied the page. The translation was old-fashioned and very hard to read, but to her utter amazement, the text and drawings clearly outlined the exact same universe heralded by modern superstrin g theorya ten-dimensional universe of resonating strings. As she continued reading, she suddenly gasped and recoiled. My God, it even describes how six of the dimensions are entangled and act as one? She took a frightened step backward. What is this book?Her brother grinned. Something Im hoping youll read one day. He flipped back to the title page, where an ornately printed plate bore three words.The Complete Zohar.Although Katherine had never read the Zohar, she knew it was the fundamental text of early Jewish mysticism, once believed so potent that it was reserved only for the most erudite rabbis.Katherine eyed the book. Youre saying the early mystics knew their universe had ten dimensions?Absolutely. He motioned to the pages illustration of ten intertwined circles called Sephiroth. Obviously, the nomenclature is esoteric, but the physics is very advanced.Katherine didnt know how to respond. But . . . then why dont more people study this?Her brother smiled. They will.I dont unders tand.Katherine, we have been born into grand times. A change is coming. Human beings are poised on the room access of a new age when they will begin turning their eyes back to nature and to the old ways . . . back to the ideas in books like the Zohar and other ancient texts from around the world. Powerful truth has its own gravity and eventually pulls people back to it. There will come a day when modern science begins in earnest to study the wisdom of the ancients . . . that will be the day that mankind begins to find answers to the big questions that still elude him.That night, Katherine eagerly began reading her brothers ancient texts and quickly came to understand that he was right. The ancients possessed profound scientific wisdom. Todays science was not so much making discoveries as it was making rediscoveries. Mankind, it seemed, had once grasped the true nature of the universe . . . but had let go . . . and forgotten.Modern physics can help us remember This quest had become Katherines mission in lifeto use advanced science to rediscover the lost wisdom of the ancients. It was more than academic thrill that kept her motivated. Beneath it all was her conviction that the world needed this understanding . . . now more than ever. At the rear of the lab, Katherine saw her brothers white lab coat hanging on its hook along with her own. Reflexively, she pulled out her phone to check for messages. Nothing. A voice echoed again in her memory. That which your brother believes is hidden in D.C. . . . it can be found. Sometimes a legend that endures for centuries . . . endures for a reason.No, Katherine said aloud. It cant possibly be real.Sometimes a legend was just thata legend.