Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 558 Damascus (First Update)

If there is a paradise on earth, Damascus must be one of them.

If paradise is in the sky, Damascus is its equal.

This place witnessed the rise and fall of the Roman and Byzantine Empires, the Arab Empire of the Omahavn dynasty, and lingered on the historical edge of Saladin's decisive victory over the Western Crusaders. It has had many masters, experiencing invasions by the Babylonians, Egyptians, Hittites, Assyrians, and Persians, and becoming a treasure of Alexander the Great. Pompey's Roman legions once passed through here, and a temple dedicated to Jupiter was built on the site of the Haddad Temple. This ancient city was fortified with high walls; the Thomas Gate on the east side still stands today. St. Paul entered Damascus through the Caesar Gate to preach, and the city's most magnificent St. Paul's Church still stands there.

Laura Crawford had visited this place before the outbreak of war. She visited the Damascus National Museum, St. Paul's Church, the ancient city of Palmyra, and strolled through the Umayyad Mosque. Sir Richard Crawford had been invited by the Damascus National Museum to study Seleucid artifacts. The young Laura Crawford also visited with her father and had conversations with the renowned Syrian historian Khaled al-Assad. However, with the outbreak of war and the rise of terrorist organizations, these places were never the same again, and could never be restored. The city known as "The Silk" was destroyed by fire, the museum was forced to relocate its collection, and then closed indefinitely. This completely shattered Laura's hopes of finding clues in the local museum; she could only try to return to Europe and search for clues among the artifacts stolen by terrorist organizations.

She had never seen any religious painting depicting angels in golden armor, but she happened to know a European art historian. This art historian was extremely knowledgeable about ancient Greek and medieval art history, and was particularly well-versed in Baroque and Gothic architecture. Laura Crawford only hoped that Salomon could help her identify the golden angels in those murals from the copied paintings and photographs. After all, it was almost impossible for angels in Gothic patterned armor to appear in 10th-century Byzantine murals; it simply didn't conform to history.

There's also the term "Divine Source," which nobody knows. Laura thinks the magician Salomon might have heard of it.

Fortunately, she was traveling on a private plane; otherwise, she would not have been able to leave Syria at all.

Due to the war, most international airlines have suspended this route. Several airlines, including Emirates and EgyptAir, have cancelled flights to Damascus. British Airways stopped flying to Damascus in May 2012, and Royal Jordanian Airlines suspended flights in July 2012. As she sat on the plane taking off, she could see the paved aircraft shelters and artillery embankments to the south of the airport. Exhausted, she felt the sound of artillery fire coming from the blurred horizon like rumbling thunder, but upon closer listening, she heard nothing.

She feared the Trinity she had encountered at the Prophet's Tomb would come after her. The weapons Salomon had prepared for her came in handy, but she carried only a few and couldn't mount a significant counterattack against the Trinity. The expensively hired captain listened indifferently to Laura's description, then took off from Damascus airport, skillfully changing course repeatedly with the help of some program, concealing the aircraft among the chaotic short-haul routes of Europe.

Laura, who had slept on the plane, endured the pain and asked the captain. "I used to be a member of the SAS," the captain replied casually. "I guarantee those people will never be able to track you down, because this plane has a different registration number now; it's a ghost plane that doesn't even exist."

It took her three days to finally fly to New York.

Salomon had long since left London, and he was no longer in America. It was said he had gone to outer space, and no one knew when he would return. The beautiful witch directed her to Mount Athena to seek the help of a Greco-Roman historian, whom Bayonetta said was Salomon's foster mother, who ran an orphanage and had published a book. Salomon's profound knowledge of ancient Greek art and history stemmed from the extremely strict upbringing he received from his foster mother.

“Men with marble dust on their hands are the sexiest,” Bayonetta said with a laugh. “He picked up a hammer and chisel before he was even an adult, and this apartment is full of his work. Whether it’s plaster casts or marble statues, oil paintings or sketches, they’re all his work. You’re sure to find what you’re looking for there, Laura Crawford.”

Laura Crawford, full of hope, was dampened by Minerva's enthusiasm, as the beautiful owner of the orphanage didn't know the origin of the patterns on her armor either. Even so, Minerva still treated her warmly, never mentioning Salomon in their conversation, and shifting the topic from art history to modern clothing, even taking Laura shopping at the drop of a hat. There, Laura saw many artifacts from ancient Greece and Rome, but her eagerness to investigate prevented her from lingering in New York for long.

With her trail trail broken, Laura could only return to Croft Manor in Surrey to reorganize her father's records and shift the focus of her investigation elsewhere—if Laura found the Immortal City and Stephanie, she would discover a startling truth. Deep within the heavily guarded basement of the Immortal City lay a hundred suits of golden armor, each equipped with various high-tech devices, the patterns on their surfaces identical to those she had seen in the murals.

She eventually found a clue.

She discovered a strange cross in a book called the Codex Cigelian, identical to the one she had seen at the Prophet's Tomb, appearing to be a combination of Celtic, Jerusalem, and Maltese crosses. Laura was familiar with 450 types of crosses, but had never seen one like this before.

It resembles neither the Orthodox cross of the Eastern Orthodox Church nor the Presbyterian cross.

The legend of Kitezh is even more enigmatic. It is said that after the Mongols conquered part of Russia, Batu heard tales of Kitezh and ordered his army to advance on it. The Mongols quickly captured Little Kitezh, forcing Grand Prince Yuri to retreat to a forest extending towards Great Kitezh. One of the captured prisoners revealed a secret passage to Lake Svetloyal to Batu, and the Kipchak Khanate army, following the prisoner's directions, pursued them to the walls of Kitezh. To their astonishment, the city was completely undefended, and the inhabitants showed no intention of resistance.

They prayed fervently, begging God for salvation. Seeing this, the Mongols immediately launched an attack, but then saw large springs gushing from the ground around their army. The Mongols were forced to retreat, watching helplessly as the city sank into the water. Their last sight was the glittering dome of the city's cathedral, and the cross atop it. Soon the city was completely submerged, leaving only the ceaseless ripples of the lake.

Laura Crawford, already quite obsessed with finding historical sites, decides to search for the legendary city of Kit, believing it will hold the clues she seeks. Of course, this idea is met with strong opposition from her companion Jonah, who sees the legend as utterly absurd and believes Laura Crawford is in the same predicament as her father.

Jonah left in anger, but soon Laura no longer had to feel sad about her friend's departure.

Because the Holy Trinity has come.

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)