by Nathan Parks
“Fantastic!” There was Eve’s sarcasm again.
“Do you have anything to drink?” It was all Isaiah could think to ask.
Eve slapped him across the back of the head. “Really?”
“I meant non-alcoholic, of course.” He shrugged his shoulders at her. “Hey, I got habits, you know.”
“Yes, I do know.”
◆◆◆
Eve and Isaiah were in awe as they stepped into the old library. Neither knew what to say at the stacks and rows of things that were everywhere.
“No one better ever knock my housekeeping again!” Isaiah said as he looked at Eve.
“Well, if you had old things stacked everywhere, I would take that over the used takeout boxes and empty bottles of liquor.”
“Ok, that is fair.”
Tanisha sat down at the desk and offered a place for each of them to sit, although space was limited. “What are you willing to share with me?” she asked.
They both looked at each other, and Eve shrugged her shoulders. She had given up on the whole secrecy thing a few years ago and figured that if you were breathing, you should know the truth. She didn’t buy into this whole thought pattern of keeping the two worlds separate, unless things required you to expose mortals to the immortals.
“Ok, so the way I look at it is this: people like you already believe in the freaky, horror movie stuff; and I have no idea why it is that everyone is so fascinated with it but you are. So, let’s jump in.”
She couldn’t understand why Tanisha looked so amused at her statement, but she didn’t care. “So, neither Isaiah nor I am really human. I mean, we kind of are . . . but not. We are what you call . . .”
“Vapors?”
Eve stopped. “Come again?”
“Vapors? You are Vapors?”
They both looked at each other, confused.
“Vapors? Um . . . what is that?”
Tanisha thought for a moment at their reaction and then guessed again. “Well, if neither of you is aware of what a Vapor is, then you must be Nephelium.”
Again, both were speechless. There was obviously more to this lady than either of them originally suspected. She knew about the Watchers—and even the Nephelium—and of something called Vapors, which neither of them had a clue was.
“Maybe I should start. Since you brought me a Watcher’s Journal and you both are claiming to be Nephelium, . . .”
“I didn’t claim to be anything,” Isaiah said quickly. “You said that.”
“Am I wrong?”
“Well . . . no, but I didn’t claim it.”
“What I was saying is that I am a part of your world. Don’t get me wrong; there is nothing supernatural about me, and I don’t profess to know a lot; but on the other hand, I am married to one who is known as a Vapor.”
“And again . . . what is that?” Eve questioned.
“Ages ago, you may be aware, that within the world of Eternals there was a war, a rebellion?”
They both nodded, so she continued. “My husband was one of those who fought in that rebellion.”
They both looked at each other, and Eve slowly began to move her hand toward a knife that she had hidden in her waistband. “So, your husband is a Fallen?”
“He was, and . . .” she said, looking at Eve, “he taught me many things, including how to hold my ground in a fight. So, you can relax and stop reaching for a weapon until I am done with what I have to share. Then if you so choose to pick that battle, you can try me.”
Eve stopped and held her hands in her lap.
“Yes, he is what we call a Fallen. He never aligned with a Clan, though. After the rebellion, from what he tells me, he realized he had followed a deceitful path. He took responsibility for his actions but still realized he had blindly and faithfully followed those who sought out power and, in doing so, had deceived himself and many others. He could not continue forward. He found himself stuck between all the worlds. He was not a Fallen, per se—no longer a part of the world he had always known—nor was he human.
“What I am sharing with you needs to stay with you; he is believed to be dead. He chose to vanish into nothingness.”
“Like a vapor,” Isaiah stated. “That is where the name came from.”
“It is. There are ancient texts that briefly mention them.”
He rubbed his forehead as a light bulb went on. “Wow . . . again, things that we have so misunderstood.”
“Zarius, my husband, says that frequently.”
“So, what does all of this have to do with anything?” Eve asked.
“So, Zarius didn’t fully vanish right away. For a while, he made a vow to protect what he could here on earth from the destruction of the Fallen, his kind. He knew that he couldn’t reveal himself to the Alliance.”
“Why? Because of his role in the rebellion?”
“Let’s just say, for now, it is because he knew too much about a lot of things that have been hidden.”
“And, obviously, seeks for it all to remain that way.”
“Yes, Eve, for now . . . not for any other reason than each of us have a story to tell that is our own, and it should be the story’s owner who shares it.”
“Fair enough.”
Tanisha continued, “So, he became the guardian of Etz Chaim, which is one name it is called by; but you would know it as the Tree of Life or the Eternal Tree.”
“Wait . . . it is real . . . the tree?” Isaiah asked.
“From my understanding. I have never seen it, but my husband was its guardian for ages . . . not only the guardian for it but for all of Eden.”
“Eden?”
“Not the Eden of mortal man. Again, that is a misunderstood writing. Eden is not necessarily a designated place. It is wherever the tree is . . . the tree and its planter.”
“The planter?” Isaiah was sitting on the edge of his seat. Eve held back a smile. She did not want him to see how happy it was making her as she watched the flicker of the old Isaiah he once was start growing within him.
“No one knows where he came from or much about him. He was at the beginning of mankind, although he is not mortal himself. From my understanding, many believe that he is the very energy of life itself, embodied in a human form. He planted the tree and, in doing so, it became the life energy source that created all we know today within our world.”
He sat back with his jaw open. None of this made any sense when dressed within the closet of religion, yet it all spoke deeply into the depths of his soul. He felt as if he had just found the outlet that he had been trying to plug into while searching in the dark.
“So, you said he used to guard it . . . your husband?”
“Yes. He became lonely, though. Time became his enemy. Ages passed; and he, a wandering warrior at heart, could no longer stay in one place. He chose to step away from his position and dove deeper into this evolving world of a Vapor. It was rumored that as ages moved throughout time, there were others, mostly Alliance members, who chose to step away from it all. They were not exiled but could no longer walk the path that they felt was full of just as much power-starving leadership as those within the Clans. So, they stepped out and became Vapors, also.
“My husband began to travel the world, searching for each of them. He, of course, had to reveal to them he was alive; but he spent time focused on building a network behind the scenes that would allow them the opportunity to become part of a world that neither wanted them or could understand them . . . in essence, allowing them to vanish into the world of mortal man.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“How did you two meet?” Eve inquired.
“I am an archaeologist,” Tanisha began. “I was working at the site of what we believed to be an ancient temple. We uncovered what we thought to be an altar room. It was like a round auditorium with seats surrounding the outside and a black onyx pillar in the middle.
"There were inscriptions on the pillar and throughout the room that we had never seen before. I am usual
ly very good at translating ancient text; but this . . . this was something different. There was not even one of us who had seen it before.
“Gerault, the priest you came to see, came to the site at my request. As soon as he saw what we discovered, he turned as white as a sheet. I had never seen that man scared of anything in my life, but he was truly scared. He told me not to allow anyone back into the dig, and he was going to notify a friend to come and see if he could provide more information.”
“Why? What scared him?”
“I didn’t know at the time. A day or so later, this amazingly handsome and strong stranger, whom I had never seen on any of our sites before, showed up.”
“Your future husband?”
She blushed a little bit as she nodded. “He and Gerault spoke for a long time alone, and together they went down into the dig. Shortly after that, the country we were in banned us from returning to the site . . . or so we were told. Even to this day, it is closed off. I found out later that it was a site that had been used for a large gathering, a council meeting of mortal and immortal. There were Fallen and Alliance, as well as mortals, who had been there.”
“So, why the secrecy?”
“Again, without sharing more of my husband’s story, what I can say is that the council meeting did not go as hoped; and the rift between each faction grew. In fact, that is where it is believed by most that my husband was killed.
“I discovered later that the land is protected by Guardians and not a government now.”
Both of the Nepheliums sat without speaking. Their world seemed to continuously be growing before them, and they each wondered if there was ever an end to this rabbit hole.
“So, here we are now. Why?”
“Good question, Eve. I do know that Gerault—without anyone else knowing, including my husband—took things from that site. What all he took, I do not know; but he has been studying for years old manuscripts, text, and even artifacts. He also was a Watcher; and this week he messaged me saying he believed he had found something, but he needed some help with some translations. He believed that whatever it was he needed help with may unlock a whole different interpretation to all we have known.”
“Well, that seems to be happening a lot,” Isaiah laughed. “I have no idea what to believe anymore.”
“That is the beauty of existence, though. When our world of knowledge is challenged and we open our minds to the understanding that others, most of the time, have dictated our beliefs, then we are free to re-establish who we are. We become free to see the truth in its raw form and not through the prism of someone else's interpretation.”
Isaiah saw a pitcher of water sitting on the desk, along with a glass. He helped himself to it and then downed the water. His mouth felt like cotton, and he could feel a tightening in his chest. He felt shaky. It took him a moment to realize that he had not had a drink of alcohol for over 24 hours, and most likely he was having some withdrawals. “This would be a great time for three fingers of whiskey,” he thought to himself, but he also was excited that he had taken at least one step forward in leaving that version of himself behind and embracing a new version of his old self.
“So,” he said out loud, “here we are . . . all of us here.”
“Took you awhile to figure that one out?” Eve jabbed at him.
He rolled his eyes. “What I mean is, that we are here. We each have some puzzle pieces; and maybe together . . . along with what Gerault has here . . . we can figure out what it is he thought he stumbled on.”
“That is what I was thinking, also,” Tanisha said very simply and straightforward.
“Yeah, me too!” Eve rattled off. “Well . . . ok . . . not really, but it sure felt good to say it.”
Isaiah just shook his head. He sure was glad she had pushed him out of his free fall. She had given him a parachute without even knowing it. Sure, she probably felt as if she had jumped out of the same airplane without one, but he saw a pathway now in front of him . . . and a purpose.
◆◆◆
“Metatron! I have been looking for you!”
Metatron turned and saw Michael walking his way. “Well, not very hard, I assume. There is not a lot of places I tend to go.”
“Funny that you say that.” Michael caught up with the other Council member. “I looked in the Council Hall; you were not there. I stopped by your residence; you were not there. I looked out by the water, and guess what?”
“Well, let me see . . . I was not there. I only guess that because I wasn’t.”
“So, that is why I said that I have been looking for you.”
Metatron stopped and turned toward Michael. “Here I am, Michael. What do you want? What is it that makes you need to find me so badly, and what makes me feel like there is a point that you are trying to make? The reason I am where I am is because of its seclusion . . . because I wanted to be alone.”
“We haven’t really talked since the Council meeting over Leah.”
“And I would say that is probably a good thing. I have nothing more to say. What I said in there is on the record, and I got everything out that I needed to get out. In the end, she made her choice, although my personal opinion, if you want it, . . .”
“Sure.”
“She saw the writing on the wall, and she just ensured the ending was in her control and not yours.”
“Hmm . . .” Michael’s arms were crossed as he listened. “So, her choosing to leave . . . you still blame me?”
“I do and I am not the only one; then again, it doesn’t matter now, does it? She is gone, and she made that choice.”
“You see, that is the key! You stated that SHE made the choice, and she did. I did not.”
“Shut up, Michael! It has been so clear . . .”
“What has been clear Metatron?”
He wanted to just unleash on the Council leader, but he maintained his composure. “As I said, it is probably good that we have not talked since then; and honestly, it may be best we don’t talk for a while.”
Metatron turned and started to walk away. He was done with Michael. He knew that there was something going on, but he didn’t know what. Until that time, he would just keep his distance.
“Oh, one more thing . . .”
He turned back around. “What?”
“How did you come to get your hands on the Watcher’s Journal on Leah?”
“It was given to me.”
“I understand that but by whom?”
“Why does that concern you, Michael?”
“Well, there are a few reasons, not to mention the number one reason: that it is forbidden for you to have it.”
“That has already been discussed; so, what are the other reasons?”
“I’m glad you asked.” He walked up next to Metatron. “You see, I really was concerned that we have been getting away from the foundations and laws that govern us. If we do that, then we lose everything . . . we lose our very selves. Would you agree?”
Metatron felt like punching him hard in that smug face of his. If there was anyone that should have that speech given to him, it would be Michael himself.
“Get to your point so that I can disappear again; and hopefully, the next time you go looking for me, it will take you a lot longer to find me.”
“You see, what you may have forgotten, My Friend, is that as the leader of the Council, I have access to many different things. I also have the liberty to make decisions when it comes to our kind.”
“Ok?”
“Well, what you would not have known is that some time ago, after the death of Joan when Leah refused to obey our orders, I had her records destroyed.”
Metatron felt his stomach turn. Michael was right; there was no way he would have known that. In fact, he was pretty sure there was no one that was still alive that knew that.
“What are you saying, Michael? Of course, her Watcher would have them.”
Michael looked up at the sky for a moment as he enjoyed the look of shock and even sligh
t panic on the face of his counterpart. “Ah, true! Sadly . . . because no one could know that I had them destroyed. Let’s say that another reason Leah looked so shocked when you pulled that little stunt of yours is that, for years, Leah was certain she no longer had a Watcher documenting her world.”
“Because she didn’t, did she?”
Michael shook his head. “Nope. Sadly, her Watcher couldn’t stand the thought of his actions that betrayed poor Joan and crushed Leah. Shortly after the young witch was burned at the stake, he hung himself. Sad.”