Awakening: The Elder Chronicles, Volume 1

by Scott Wieczorek

  Aden interrupted, "But humans corrupted the understanding from Daimon history. Sheol was the Daimon name for our home city. It was the place where our kind were once born, raised, and for those of us unfortunate enough to die, buried. It was the Elder's home before the Opposition revolted. Since then, the memory of this place has been lost to our kind except in legend. A few of the surviving older generations remember this place. I think I am probably the sole third-generation Daimon to ever have been here."

  "So then how the hell did I know what it said?" Despite her best efforts to change the subject, she couldn't fight the question creeping into her head. "It wasn't like I was guessing, or like I think those letters look like English. Those symbols should be completely unintelligible to me. Yet, I can read them and understand their meaning." She looked to Alec and Aden imploringly and asked, "How is this possible?"

  "I don't know," Aden replied. "It is beyond my understanding. I can't blame it on you absorbing Felicia's abilities because she didn't know Malachim either. Even for our own kind, this has been considered a dead language," Aden explained.

  "Well, then maybe I am a reincarnated Daimon or something." She shook her head. "This whole thing keeps getting crazier and crazier. I really hope the Elder has some answers for me."

  They crossed the threshold into a long hallway. All along the walls were images portraying Daimones working alongside humans to build all manner of things, helping build Egypt's pyramids and temples, erect statues in South America, teach humans written language, and even how to make fire. The story told by the pictograms detailed thousands of years of shared history and cooperation. It ended, though, during the rise of Egypt. The last image depicted the legend of Moses parting the Red Sea——the part of Moses taken by a Daimon.

  "This is amazing," Elena said. "It's a full chronicle of your history!"

  "Our combined history with humanity," replied Alec.

  Aden continued, "Well, everything up to the war. It has not been added to since then. You see that section there?" He pointed to an area at the far end of the corridor.

  "The empty section?" she asked

  "Nobody has been around to update it. Neither this section, nor the Hall of Record." Aden sighed. "I remember it. My father brought me in there when I was here and told me some of the tales of our kind. It is one of my most cherished memories."

  As the words left his mouth, two large stone doors came crashing down at either end of the corridor, sealing them off from the natural glow of the lake's bioluminescence and plunging them into perfect darkness. A new sound filled the room.

  They all switched on their headlamps and could see the tunnel fill with water.

  "Okay, Aden," Elena asked addressed him in a panic. "Do you remember how your parents made it through this?"

  Aden shook his head. "No," he said shakily. "We were never trapped. We simply continued through to the other side."

  Elena scanned the walls for any sign of some kind of a switch or button which could disable the trap. However, the walls seemed to be as smooth as the water-worn shaft. Giving up the fruitless task, she decided to study the murals painted on the walls for any clues. But the already waist deep water, began to flow a little faster into the space. Dammit! she shouted mentally.

  Elena, that's it! Aden replied. My telepathy had not yet developed when I came here. Maybe they had some kind of telepathic way to stop the trap.

  Elena scanned the walls again in search of clues but could not see anything useful depicted on them. Given the tunnel consisted of a complete arch down its entire length, she couldn't see anything useful there either. There were no indentations, no protrusions, nothing.

  Oh, the hell with it! She wound her mental force into a thick, powerful cord the size of a mighty oak's trunk as she had when she had battled Camael earlier. She thrust it at the nearest stone door with all of her might. The door shattered instantaneously, and all three of them were washed through the tunnel by the force of the water.

  They were inside Sheol.

  Elena picked herself up off the floor. The water from the trap had mixed with the floor's dust and coated their clothing with thick, dark mud.

  She took a few minutes to examine their surroundings. She didn't think it would be possible, but the ceiling here stood even loftier than in the lake cavern where they'd been moments before. It must have been at least a hundred feet higher. The floor had been carved into a cobblestone pattern. She flew up toward the ceiling in order to get a better perspective on the layout of the vast city, which lay before her, surprised natural light flooded into the cavern from high above.

  In the dim light could be seen literally hundreds of buildings of many different sizes stretching throughout the city, separated by small streets and alleys. The streets on the outskirts of the city were laid out in a rough grid pattern. The heart of the city radiated outward from a stepped pyramid. She could see a small temple located at the top of the pyramid.

  The surrounding cavern walls contained a veritable beehive of openings, each of which had been cut and surrounded with ornately carved motifs. A wide but shallow river, flowing to one side of the pyramid, bisected the city.

  As she approached the ceiling, she could see dozens of openings cut in it through which dawn's dim light filtered to the city below. On closer inspection, the interiors of these openings bent and twisted and as she peered inside, she noticed the light reflecting along a series of mirrors.

  She looked back, Aden and Alec had both followed her up above the city.

  So, Aden, she asked, where do we go now?

  I don't know for sure, he replied. Why don't we look around a little?

  Alec and Elena glanced at each other, then at Aden, their collective curiosity piqued. They wanted to explore the amazing time capsule which had laid untouched by intelligent life, save for the Elder and whatever caretakers he had, for millennia. They all three floated down to the floor below.

  The pyramid's great height obscured much of the city beyond it, but Elena took a few moments to study its architecture. The buildings were monumental in height, on a par with the skyscrapers of the world's most populous cities. She assumed there were no elevators, and there were no ladders visible on the exteriors. But then again, Elena rationalized, when the inhabitants were capable of independent flight, such implements were not necessary. The buildings were like tall multistory birdhouses.

  There must have been thousands of residences within the city. Choosing at random, they entered one of the closer apartments and found it had been vacated on short notice. Must and spores permeated the air. Motes, kicked up by their feet, danced in the beams of light. Clay pots and bowls were still resting upon worm-ridden tables. Moth-eaten cloth hung near the windows and doors, and half-rotted baskets littered the floor. If people had moved out thoughtfully, she reasoned, then there would not have been such litter lying about. She could see, deeper into the residence, metal implements like knives and spoons, fasteners for disintegrated clothing, and even wash basins and water cans still lying about on the floor. Everything had been abandoned as though the trappings of life merely awaited their inhabitants to return and resume life as usual. It amazed her none of it had ever been touched in all this time. The mystery intrigued Elena, but it also disturbed her to consider what had made the thousands of Daimon inhabitants to up and leave.

  "Aden," Elena called to him as they walked from one apartment to another, "what happened here? Why did everyone leave?" She couldn't keep the note of fascination from her voice.

  The story my father told me, he explained to her mentally, was there was a major uprising against the Elder. In his rage, the Elder cast all Daimones from the city and forbade them ever return.

  Wow, she replied. It certainly explains why everything is so pristine. To her, it seemed like stepping into a time machine and viewing the past. She could see Daimon men, women, and children sitting at the tables, eating from the bowls, and flying from apartment to apartment. The city captivated her, its arra
y of abandoned belongings spoke of a rich, vibrant life within. However, the life had been long ago, and all its relics were the ghosts of times past.

  I think we should check out the temple, Elena said, pointing to the stepped pyramid near the heart of the city. I think it's a good candidate for where the Elder may be.

  Aden nodded in agreement.

  Sounds good to me, Alec said. I'm out of my element here and open to any suggestions.

  Chapter Twenty

  The journey to the pyramid seemed awkward and eerie. They could have flown, but Elena had insisted on walking in order to be able to search for any clues suggesting the location of the Elder's resting place. Not a footprint or the track of a scurrying rodent could be seen in the thick dust coating the cobblestones. Artifacts and relics left on the ground were coated in the same thick layer.

  Despite the time elapsed since Sheol's abandonment, there had been no cave-ins or signs of structural damage to the cavern. None of the buildings had fallen into ruin. The pristine condition of the site stunned her.

  The only sounds which broke the death-like silence of Sheol came from the soft tinkling of the gently flowing river as it coursed through the city and their footfalls. The sharp stench of must and mold permeated the cavern. The glinting sunlight cast strange shadows and patterns across the walls of the buildings as they passed. There were no other Daimones around. Alone, they could explore as they wished. But one building in particular drew their attention more than the others.

  As they approached, it became evident the massive stepped pyramid measured more than a thousand feet on each of its sides, and stood nearly two-hundred feet in height. It consisted of four tiers, roughly fifty-feet tall each. The tiers were made of packed earth faced with expertly cut granite blocks adorned with images of Daimones and humans, similar to those they'd seen in the corridor before. A central staircase of 240 granite steps connected the ground below with all four tiers and the temple at the top.

  As they walked up the steps, Elena examined the granite carvings, noting something strange about them. The humans portrayed were dramatically different from anatomically modern humans. They more closely resembled Neanderthals, or even earlier types of proto-human ancestors.

  "My God!" Elena exclaimed. "These carvings are wonderful."

  Aden responded, "Yes. But I don't understand what these human-like creatures depicted on them are."

  "I do," Elena replied. "These depictions show early human ancestors." She began pointing out specific examples. "Over here," she said pointing to one, "this one is Australopithecus afarensis. And over here," she said pointing to another, "this one is Homo habilis."

  "Fascinating," Aden said in a sarcastic tone while trying to stifle a yawn.

  "Don't you understand what this means?" she continued. "Daimones have been around for millions of years. Australopithecus alone went extinct nearly three-million years ago. And here we have carvings depicting them co-existing with Daimones. This is astounding!"

  Distracted by the carvings on the steps, she nearly slipped and fell twice on her way to the temple at the pyramid's zenith. At the top, they found this tier different from the others as it had been carved from blocks of what appeared to be obsidian, instead of the packed earth of the layers below. The blocks were massive, but fit together so well she could almost see no seams between them. It gave the appearance the entire structure was carved from a solid piece of black glass.

  Something glinted brightly out of the corner of her eye, drawing her attention down to her right. Scanning the place, however, the light moved quickly away and she noticed a small puddle of water fed by drops of water falling from one of the light tunnels above. Probably the light reflecting off a water drop as it made its descent from high above, she couldn't help but think it moved oddly—almost like it moved with purpose.

  Casting the distraction aside, her attention turned back to the temple. Aden and Alec were already searching the structure for evidence of where the Elder might rest.

  "Elena," Aden called, "you need to come and see this." Elena trotted over to where they were standing.

  As she approached, she could see the temple itself appeared to be made from obsidian. There were carvings all over the surface similar to those she'd seen on the steps. Awestruck, she knew if this place were ever discovered by humans, it would be an archaeological find to potentially rewrite much of human history. The carvings documented how angels had helped humans along in their development for millions of years. She shuddered considering what the world's religions would do with such information.

  So, Alec asked, interrupting her, how do we get in? I do not see any doors, openings, or indications this is anything more than a large, carved block of volcanic glass. Elena could see his mental thread shimmer in the air. But she also noticed his voice sounded muffled, almost as though the obsidian somehow had an effect on his telepathic abilities.

  "I don't know," she replied. Aden turned, the expression on his face conveying his agitation at not being included in the conversation.

  Elena turned to Aden and explained, "Alec was asking if there was a way for us to enter the temple. It looks like solid obsidian."

  Aden shrugged his shoulders, a minor note of frustration in his voice. "I am not sure," he replied. "I have no recollection of the temple. To borrow Alec's earlier comment, I am out of my element."

  Elena examined the structure closely. It differed from pictures of Meso-American temples she'd seen in school as there were no openings to be found. The surface was smooth and flat, save for the images of Daimones and early hominids carved into it.

  There must have been some way inside. Elena floated upward to the roof of the structure. From the temple roof, she commanded a tremendous view of the city below them. Back the way they came, she could see the vast city grid with its numerous residences. The same view greeted her to the left and the right. To the left the river interrupted the city's grid.

  She turned her back toward the way they had entered Sheol, and gasped at the sight before her, previously obscured by the great pyramid on which she now stood.

  Beyond the great pyramid, a vast avenue as broad as the pyramid stretched toward the far cavern wall. Occupying the center of the avenue was an immense reflecting pool of clear water emitting the same bioluminescent glow as the lake in the cavern where they had previously been. The pool was somehow fed by the nearby river, but within it Elena could not see so much as a single ripple upon its surface. It was almost as though the glowing fish swimming within were passing ghost-like through the pool's waters.

  The pool's eerie glow illuminated the cavern before her with such efficiency she could make out a broad plaza, roughly the size of the temple's own base, at the far end of the reflecting pool. Within the plaza she could see all manner of statuary rising from the cobblestone floor. And beyond the plaza stood a gargantuan archway connecting to what appeared to be another chamber beyond.

  Gazing out upon Sheol, she welled with emotion. This amazing discovery was part of her, part of her history—where she ultimately originated from. She belonged to the race who had built and once thrived in this vast and ancient subterranean city and who had been humanity's protectors and great benefactors for time immemorial. A tear rolled down her cheek as the light of Alec's headlamp crest the rooftop's edge.

  She quickly put her emotional moment aside as he approached. "Are you okay?" he asked softly as he put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to his bare chest. She nodded as she felt the warmth of his body through her clothing.

  "This is who you are, Elena," he said to her. "Who we are."

  Had he sensed what ran through her mind? Despite her efforts to keep the emotion from spilling out, another tear rolled down her cheek. He captured it with one finger and threw his arms around her body, drawing her closer to him. She could feel his warmth and let out a gasp.

  Reflexively, her own arms snaked themselves upward and wrapped around his neck. His head bowed slowly down toward hers
. She could feel herself slipping away into his alluring eyes.

  Their lips were touching and fire spread throughout her. She tingled in places she'd never imagined possible. Her heart hammered hard against her chest. Their tongues danced against one another and she had a yearning for more. She wanted him, needed him. Her desire had never been stronger.

  "Ahem," came Aden's deep baritone. "I, uh, hate to interrupt, but we have more important things to be doing right now." Her face and ears burned with embarrassment. Aden's impeccable timing had smothered the whole moment. Elena focused on curtailing her passions, reminding herself they were here to meet the Elder.

  Elena crushed herself against Alec, burying her face into his chest, happy with the confirmation Alec shared her own desires.

  She pushed herself gently out of Alec's embrace and turned away from both men. After a brief moment to gather her thoughts, she focused her energies on ascertaining a means of entering the temple. The obsidian temple's roof appeared to be seamless and solid save for one piece of five-foot square granite near its center.

  "What do you make of this?" she asked both men, indicating the granite block.

  Alec responded, "It looks like either a plug or some kind of cap for an opening."

  Elena examined the obsidian around the granite and could barely discern faint traces of what appeared to be a frame surrounding the block. "I think you're right," she replied. "This may be our way in."

  Aden nodded in agreement. He stepped over to the block, knelt down, and tried to find some way to slip his fingers into the nearly imperceptible joint between the granite and obsidian. His efforts were fruitless as he could find no way in budging the heavy stone block.

  "Dammit," he cursed under his breath.

  Watching his attempts, Elena had a thought. "Aden," she said, waving him away from the block, "step back, please."

  Aden laughed ruefully. "Very well. I bow to the lady."

  She turned away from him and conjured her mental thread. With tremendous effort she directed the iridescent manifestation of thought to slip around the edges of the granite block and lift it from its resting place. The block lifted easily into the air, floated twenty feet away, and then settled gently onto the smooth black surface. She looked at Aden's face, now painted with a mask of stunned amazement, and merely grinned.