Krespal, known as The Peacock, just has time to visit a small church before he begins the journey back to Germany. From the outside it is an unremarkable building situated in a quiet village some way out of the city. Krespal enters the gloomy interior with a weary demeanour, but as he closes the door upon the world, the confines of the quiet space work upon him, setting him at his ease. As his eyes adjust to the light, Krespal notices an unexpected exhibition of surrealist paintings. The paintings are evidently rendered in an untutored local style. Krespal surmises they are the work of peasant-savants. One painting shows a rolling, meadowy, landscape dominated by a totem that is bursting with many eyes. But even in this place, the outside seeps in. Krespal gets anxious about the time. The suspension of the world is itself suspended. He decides to leave, but on an impulse stops in the vestry and opens the door to one of the lockers. Inside is a uniform for martial arts – the fabric is decorated with oriental pictograms. The Peacock picks up on disturbances in the church-space which emanate from Carlo, an adept martial arts practitioner - Carlo is a Death in June fan. The Peacock perceives an image of Carlo with glowing visage. Backing away from the apparition, Krespal inadvertently triggers a hidden multimedia mechanism the size and shape of a micro-tape dictaphone. It projects flickering images of a Nazi rally onto every white surface. The projector’s screen is 2 inches by 2 inches. It is before digital. Carlo is a Knight of the Endura, he proclaims that The Peacock is on The Ambivalents’ hit list. Krespal leaves the church immediately. His eyes are narrowed against the light. He sits on a bench beside the road. He must remain in the village until the bus arrives. A surface of dust rises up to accompany the smallest movement. But a group of tourists appear before Krespal without any warning. They crowd round to comfort him, as if they know the object of his anxiety. They agree amongst themselves that he should not worry, and that no harm will come to him. He thanks them for their well-meaning attention. Their hair shines. Their faces glow with a healthy complexion. They carry cameras strung round their necks. They might act as witnesses should anything happen. Krespal cannot ask them directly for their protection but he tells them his name, ‘remember, The Peacock,’ he says. They do not understand him. He wishes they would stay nearby until the bus arrives. He would like them to see him safely on his way, he rehearses how they would wave good naturedly to him as he takes his seat on the bus. In their disinterest is found his safety. But they are visiting notable places on a tight schedule. The church is Ivor Gurney.
