6. The Lost Soul
Phillip treasured Calder Evans's diary from the Great War. Calder chronicles his start/stop with dope.
Calder fought at the Battle of Saint-Mihiel in France. That's where he first took morph.
German artillery injured him. He snapped this after capturing one in the Forest of Argonne.
Calder claims he was too hopped up to move when Germans overtook his trench. He climbed a glowing ladder to safety 5 miles away.
After Armistice Day, Calder enrolls in the American Expeditionary Force's University in Beaune. But, his dependence on morph. leads him to dropout.
He almost gets busted looting a druggist in Lyon, France. Then he flees to Nice and beyond.
Calder winds up in the city of Tunis
Calder finds himself on a dark path of dope dependency and a neverending cycle of thievery.
Calder stays a long time in Tunis, falling deeper into trouble with smugglers.
Tunis is adjacent to the ancient ruins of Carthage.
Carthage is nearly three thousand years old.
Calder finds himself wandering Carthage's ruined amphitheater one night alone...or so he thought. I think Nige also saw this place in his dream.
The amphitheater is the site of the ancient Christian martyrdom of Perpetua and her companions. The bull didn't kill her either!
Roman soldiers run swords through Perpetua and her crew.
Calder winds up in the city of Tunis.
Christians later erected this cross at the spot of Perpetua's martyrdom. Calder claims that's where he encountered Perpetua's ghost—still fresh with an upper chest wound.
Calder claims Perpetua scared him straight off dope. He quit on the spot. She seems like a heck of a gal. Lots of folks seem to agree.
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Part III - The Judge's Daughter
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Part V - The Lover