The Chronicles of the 8th Dimension - Limited Edition Box Set (4 Books): A Supernatural Thriller Box Set

by Carissa Andrews

  “Call it whatever you like, dear, but I'm pretty sure without you, the rest of us would be floundering. In my eyes, that makes you one of us,” Bea says, smiling.

  Thea gets up from her pew and wanders over to the altar. She hops up, letting her legs dangle off the side like a kid as she watches us. “Well, that would make a whole heck of a lot of sense, actually.”

  “No, it doesn’t. I’ve been at this a long time. I’ve worked with angels since I was twenty. I’ve seen what you all can do. I’m not capable of any of that.”

  Bea shrugs, “Okay, okay. Don’t get your panties in a bunch. It was just a thought.”

  I take a deep breath, trying to settle my pulse.

  Me? An angel? That’s absurd.

  For starters, Gabe would have felt it. He would have known, and he would have told me.

  I shift my gaze from the floor to Thea. She quirks an eyebrow in return.

  “Look, let’s focus on the plan. That’s something a bit more concrete, don’t you think?” I finally say.

  “Whatever floats your boat,” Thea says.

  “Good. So I’m thinking we’ll need to be pretty flamboyant. Our angels aren’t nearly as in-your-face as the ones in the Bible, but I don’t think it would take much to make it happen,” I say, grabbing the tome.

  “Wanna elaborate, dear?” Bea says.

  Suddenly a flash of light bursts into the sanctuary. I bury my face in the crook of my arm to keep the blinding luminescence at bay. As quickly as it enters, it dissipates.

  When I pull my arm back, Braham is in the middle of the room, but he crumples to the floor.

  “Braham, are you okay? What happened?” I say, rushing to his side. “Where’s Gabe?”

  He raises a hand, shaking his head.

  Seconds later, Gabe materializes into the room. His bright-blue eyes are wide with worry, but when his gaze lands on Braham, he exhales a clear sigh of relief.

  “Braham, thank goodness—you made it. I thought I’d lost you,” he says.

  “Yeah, I don’t know what…” he says, letting his words peter out.

  “Where did you go? One minute you were in my hand, the next minute you had vanished. I couldn’t locate you,” Gabe says.

  I look between the two men, trying to piece together what’s going on. Thea hops down from the altar, making her way to the rest of us. A look of worry flits across her features.

  “I thought you dropped me. I dunno, I guess I lost connection with you, and the next thing I knew, I was nowhere, and then…”

  “Then?” Gabe urges.

  Braham’s eyes widen. “Well, then I was, uh, here. I guess I must have earned my wings.”

  “Well, we’re glad you made it. And we’re lucky you still have the device,” Gabe says, pointing to the machine in his arms.

  “Hang on—where's Mike?” I ask, my eyes flitting between Braham and Gabe.

  Gabe’s face falls. “The demons infiltrated the laboratory. I don't know if they followed our energy signature or if they've become that strong to be in so many different places at once. But they—”

  “We were trying to escape when Mike dropped his machine. And, well…” Braham swallows hard, his forehead crumpling.

  “No,” I say, raising my fingertips to my mouth.

  Bea takes a deep breath and stands up. “Well, that’s definitely a shitter.”

  “Yeah, it really is.” Braham nods in agreement.

  My heart constricts on itself. We’ve lost one of us, one of our five. In every fiber of my being I can sense his mission wasn’t completed; he had more to do, but it was stopped short. How are we ever going to win this battle now?

  “Damn,” Thea mutters. “That really sucks. He was way too nice to end like that.”

  “On the other side, if we don't get our collective asses in gear, we’ll all end up like poor Michael. So how about we pull our lips out of our drawers and take some action. We can't let his death be for nothin’,” Bea says adamantly.

  “How on earth are we going to go back in time if Mike’s not here to program his damn machine?” Thea laments.

  I shrug. “I don’t know. He was the only one who knew how it worked. We might have to scrap this whole plan.”

  “I’m sorry, Morgan. This is all my fault. Everything happened so fast. One minute we were waiting for Mike to disconnect it; the next, the demons had infiltrated the building. It’s like they knew we were there,” Gabe says, tugging his lips downward.

  Braham pulls his knees in tight, lowering his head down and wrapping his arms around them.

  “How can this be happening? Mike was our only chance of being able to go back in time. Without him, we can pretty much kiss this whole plan good-bye,” I say, pacing back and forth.

  “Maybe Thea and Braham can help?” Bea offers.

  “Thea and Braham?” Gabe says, raising an eyebrow.

  “You know, by putting their collective heads together. They both have a strong foundation and interest in science. Would it hurt to have them take a look?” she says, shrugging.

  “Yeah but I’m not a physicist,” Thea mutters. “Maybe Braham would have a better time, what with the machines he has to use for—you know.” She raises her eyebrows suggestively.

  “I can already tell you they are nothing like the ones I use,” Braham says without looking up. His voice is muffled into his knees.

  “We can't give up now. There's too much at stake. The two of you have seen what's coming for us. We can't let the darkness win. And we can't allow our reality—our entire universe—to fall into nothingness. Not on my watch,” I say, determination settling in. “Besides, like Bea said, we can’t let Mike’s sacrifice be in vain.”

  “Especially now that we have a plan that needs to be implemented.” Bea says.

  “You do?” Braham says, glancing up.

  “Melissa told us we have to start an origin story, right?” I say, looking at Braham. “Well, I understand the story we’re missing, and you have the tools and knowledge necessary to give the illusion of an immaculate conception. It’s a huge part of Jesus’s origin story. If we can go back in time, we should be able to—”

  “Wait a minute. You think we’re going to go back in time and impregnate some woman without her consent?” Braham says with a frown.

  “We’ll just be following the original origin story,” I begin.

  “Yeah, but it’s still ridiculously shady. Besides, there's a whole big process behind what I do. It's not like we wave a magic wand and, voilà, a woman is pregnant. Everything happens in the lab, for the most part. Besides, I would need her viable eggs and her husband's genetic material in order to fertilize the egg. That all takes time. Then there's the whole implementation process…” Braham says, rattling off his workflow.

  “So what you're saying is you need to implant an egg that’s already been fertilized? You know, to cut down on the production time?” Thea says, her eyes narrowing in contemplation.

  Braham’s forehead wrinkles and he frowns.

  “Didn't you say you and your wife have been trying to have a baby, but now she’s pregnant? What if we use one of your fertilized eggs?” I say, going pragmatically through scenarios.

  “Hold up. That is highly unethical, not to mention insane,” Braham says.

  “But can it be done?” Thea pushes.

  “Well sure, if she's asleep for the procedure, I suppose she wouldn't understand how she managed to get pregnant. But that's not the point—”

  “No, no, she’d need to know. It needs to be an elaborate production that will go viral. One the entire region won’t be able to miss. We need to explain how she was chosen by God to carry his son,” I say, reciting the story in the Bible.

  “Besides, the point is if we don't get this done, there will be no more points. All points lead to the darkness consuming everything,” Thea points out. “I’m all for morality and ethics, but when needs must—at the end of the day, they’re still human concepts. And we’re no longer bound by h
uman concepts, so far as I can tell. You and Gabe materialized outta nowhere; Melissa vanished before my eyes. I’d say human constraints have left the building.”

  Gabe swallows hard. “Guys, let's give everyone a moment to think and let the gravity of this settle. We just lost Mike to the demons, and we're not even sure we'll be able to get his device to work. We may not be able to go back in time if we can’t find a way to raise our vibration high enough to reach the higher dimensions. I think we need to take a beat. Regroup in a half hour. Sound good?”

  Thea nods, but her eyes flit to the clock on the wall.

  I’m sure she’s thinking the same thing I am—we’re running out of time.

  The six of us sit in silence for a moment, each wrapped up in our own thoughts. I stand against the cold, stone wall, allowing it to send its chill through my spine. My mind swirls on possible scenarios and how we can continue our mission in the spirit of Mike. If we can initiate Jesus’s origin story—maybe this future will never exist. I mean, I suppose to an extent that’s the point. And if that’s the case, maybe Mike will still be alive.

  The more I think about it, the more it feels like someone is stabbing me in the heart and then ripping it apart with pork pullers. As much as I try to push aside our loss, I can’t help but feel like this is all wrong. It should never have gone down this way, and I’m completely helpless and so sorry this happened to him.

  I already miss his kind heart and brilliant smile.

  Kicking away from the wall, I pick up the Bible from the steps of the podium and make my way into the study. While everyone else feels sorry for themselves, I need to do some research and get ready for what comes next. I have to believe we’ll find a way. I don’t know how or what it will look like, but I have to believe it’ll come to us.

  Flipping open the book, I scan the pages, trying to locate the place where it talks about the angel coming to Mary. If I can get the details straight in my head, then it shouldn’t be too hard for us to recreate it.

  As I skim over the Book of Luke, I come to a passage with Mary’s name. Backing up, I whisper the verse out loud, “God sent the angel Gabriel…” I look up, a tingle racing up my spine. Gabriel.

  If that isn’t a good sign, I don’t know what is.

  I continue reading the full passage of the account of Gabriel’s visit to Mary, my fingertip following each word as I go along. When I finish, I look up to their confused gazes.

  “That was a strange story. Was that the story you were telling us about?” Thea asks from the doorway. She crosses her arms, but her face is open and curious.

  I nod. “Yes. It’s been a while since I read it, so I wanted to go back and refresh my memory.”

  “How is it you’re able to keep relics from a religion that doesn’t exist here?” she asks.

  “I have relics from all the things I’ve found interesting about humanity. It’s something I’ve always done,” I say, shrugging. “I never meant for it to have a usefulness, necessarily. I just always felt a calling to it all, you know? Like there are hidden links between philosophies, religions, myths—everything.”

  Thea sighs. “I get that.” She drops her arms and walks over to the small table, taking a seat in the chair opposite me.

  Setting the Bible down, I meet her expectant gaze.

  “Is there something else?” I ask.

  Thea’s eyes flit again to the Bible. “I guess I’m a little worried. I’m feeling this urge to do more. To, I don’t know, fulfill my purpose, maybe. It’s like it’s clawing at me from inside my gut, but I’m not sure what my part of it is. I’m not Mike. If you want to know the ins and outs of cognitive behavioral therapy, I could give you an earful. But with this, I don’t know. I feel like someone has made a mistake.”

  Thea’s aura pulsates with a light-pink energy, and I can tell she desperately wants to help, but she needs to know it will matter. And whatever it is, it needs to heal her heart center.

  “You care a lot more than you let on, don’t you?” I blurt out.

  Her eyes narrow, and she tilts her head to the side. “Okay, I’ll bite. What makes you say that?”

  “Well, when I first met you, you were kind of abrasive. But I dunno. The more I see of you, of your aura, I realize first impressions with you are deceiving,” I say.

  “Well, I learned early on getting too close to people hurts,” she says, making a face. “I suppose that’s why I wanted to understand people better. It helps me heal. I guess I sorta hope it will help others do the same.” She shoots me a sideways glance. “Obviously, I’m still a work in progress.”

  I can’t help but chuckle. “Aren’t we all?”

  “I don’t know. Gabe seems pretty reasonable,” Thea laughs.

  “He’s also been at this a long time,” I point out.

  Thea’s eyebrows pull in. “You’ve known him the whole time? After he realized he was an angel, I mean?”

  “Not exactly. We met after both of us had awakened to more… He was learning what it meant to be an angel. I was learning what it meant to be a bridge. It’s been something we’ve helped each other with over the years,” I say, remembering back to those first few years together.

  Neither one of us knew how to handle the inundation of new information coming at us. It was like going through your whole life to realize you weren’t even seeing the half of it. And we weren’t, I suppose. Shit, none of them have been.

  “Maybe Bea’s right. Maybe you’re meant to help decode Mike’s device,” I offer. “Would your background in thinking help at all?”

  “I help people retrain the way they think, not decode how they already think, as much as I wish I could. Unfortunately, understanding how people come up with their dysfunctional thought processes is way more complex than you might think. It stems all the way back to early childhood—and unless you’re there, it may not make complete sense,” Thea says.

  “Can you at least try? I mean, it’s not just our human backgrounds that make the difference. You haven’t really stepped into your own as an angel yet. Maybe you need to experiment a bit more? Who knows? Maybe following his train of thought might come easier than you think,” I suggest, raising my palm upward.

  “I can give it a try, but I can’t make any promises.”

  “Fair enough. It’s all I’m asking,” I say, grinning. “In the meantime, I’ll continue going over the story so we’re prepared.”

  “Do you really think we’re going to figure this all out?” Thea asks, her blue eyes narrowing.

  Shrugging, I say, “I have to believe we can. Otherwise, what’s this all for?”

  “What if it’s just a big test? You know?” Thea says.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Like… what if we’re really just part of a simulation? The programming behind the scenes is just running through all its various outcomes. What if there’s really no winning or losing. Not really. What if it’s just a pass-fail situation?” she says, chewing on the inside of her cheek.

  “Is that what you really believe? Or are you just being cynical?” I ask.

  “I don’t know. A little of both?” She laughs.

  I cast my gaze back to the monolithic book on the table in front of me. “Well, I’m not sure the reasons for the universe, but I do know we all have the power to change things. Every moment. Every day. Every choice. And if it comes right down to our decisions here and now, I choose to believe we have all we need—like Melissa said—to make an impact.

  “I wish I had your positive outlook. We clearly had vastly different life experiences,” Thea mutters, getting up and heading toward the door.

  “That’s okay, Thea. We don’t all have to be on the same page. In fact, I’d wager it’s better if we’re not. It means we can see things from more than one angle all at the same time. In real time.”

  She raises her eyebrows in acknowledgment. “Fair enough. Let’s hope you’re right.”

  “Time will tell. I guess in the meantime, it means we have to have a
little faith,” I say, smirking.

  16

  Gabe

  On my watch, I have never had a soul overcome by a demon before. I’ve always been able to focus my energy and shift the veils, or whatever was necessary to keep us from being caught.

  To lose Mike—to witness how demons can extinguish an angelic presence like that—it’s more unnerving than I anticipated.

  “It wasn’t your fault, you know,” Braham says. I shift my gaze to him, and he frowns. “If anything, it was mine.”

  “Braham—you did the right thing. You put distance between you and the demons. If anything, you were what saved us all from being overtaken,” I say. “What happened to Mike was unfortunate. But I don’t think it was anyone’s fault. It was simply poor timing with it all.”

  “Yeah, but if I had told you sooner what I was feeling,” he says, his voice trailing off, “maybe we would have gotten out of there in time.”

  “You were sensing them before you told us?” I say, surprised.

  “Yeah,” he says nodding.

  “How long before?”

  “Damn near as soon as we got there. I just figured it was the chill from the AC, like Mike was saying. But it just wouldn’t go away and kept getting more persistent, until—well, you know,” he says, drawing his lips in tight.

  I stand up, walking over to where he sits on the floor.

  “Braham, you’re more powerful than you realize. If you can sense the demons like that, your senses are even more advanced than my own. And I’ve been doing this a while,” I say.

  “It was nothing, really. Besides, maybe at first it was just the AC—”

  I scratch my forehead. “They were on us far too quickly. Had I been more aware—I should have noticed them sooner as well. For whatever reason, they didn’t hit my radar. How are you feeling beyond this? Have you had any flashes of insight? Any sudden moments of clarity?”

  “Like an ‘ah-ha’ moment?” Braham chuckles.

  “Sure,” I laugh softly.

  “I think the moment we phased in and out of reality, my entire world view shifted. I understood I’m a part of this far bigger system. But I can’t say I had any further clarity about where I fit into all of it, if that’s what you’re asking,” Braham offers. “I just know I do.”