by Leena Maria
I saw amazing formations of rock and flat expanses of sand. The journey took so long I understood that the great land of Kemet was actually a very small place under the huge sky.
And then, one day, we arrived. Ragged rocks reached for the sky all around us. The men walked into a small valley between them. And suddenly the silence of the desert was broken.
Every step we took, echoed back many times to us. We sounded like a whole army on the march. The cacophony made me cover my ears with my hands.
They kept on walking and then I heard other steps as well. I thought a hundred men had come to meet us, but when I peeked from under my covering, I only saw two figures approaching us.
My mouth fell open by surprise. They were dwarves! Very short, with bent legs, but amazingly fluid in their movements. A man and a woman. They stood in the middle of the valley, and smiled widely at us.
The said something that must have been a welcome, for we stopped, and the men and Mut-Bity bowed with their right hand over their heart. The dwarves did the same.
The someone else stepped into my field of vision.
Now I knew we had arrived to the abode of the gods. For this woman had wings. Beautiful, many-colored, see-through... wings. They could be nothing else. Not like a bird's wings. Not like a butterfly's. More like silvery ovals that pulsed with reddish light. She was wearing a dark red dress.
"Aset..." I breathed.
Mut-Bity smiled at me and then stepped to the goddess. I expected her to bow at the goddess's feet, but to my surprise they both laughed, and spread their arms and hugged each other and laughed out loud like long lost sisters, who had found each other again.
"Now we are safe," Mut-Bity said to me, "come and meet your kind."
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FOUR
84. Elijah and Merit
"So Elijah had a wife," I could not pretend this was news to me. "Diana told me about her once, when she thought... I should know."
"Yes, I figured Diana might tell you after we came back from the desert," Daniel looked at me inquiringly but did not ask more. "He met her when he was traveling in the Nordic Countries, checking on adopted Nephilim children there."
"She was a Nephilim, then?"
"Yes, adopted by a Finnish family. We do check on these children, discreetly, every once in a while, so that we can be near, when the time comes to gain their power. We need to explain things to them then."
"And they have no idea what they are, just like I never did? That can be hard..."
"Yes... But these children, our kind, have always felt somewhat different. They know they are not ordinary. Some of them accept the truth quite joyfully, because all young people seem to dream about being special, different. And the ones that don't cannot deny their heritage, when the wings develop. Also the ones telling them are people they already know. Each Nephilim child has their own Guardians nearby, who are ordinary people."
"I'm just trying to imagine the resources that go into organising a vast network to adopt and then protect Nephilim children! It must be immense..."
"It is. But we have done it for over a century now, so we have plenty of experience. We keep an eye on them, and fetch them to safety before the dark Nephilim find out they are Nephilim in the first place. Keeping them safe until then is not so much of a problem - they look and behave like ordinary children and youngsters until the fever starts. It is only then they can be recognised as Nephilim. And that is when we step in. We use different kind of scholarships in schools and universities as one way to get them away from their homes so their change won't be so obvious."
I considered what Daniel told me, stirring my coffee. We were sitting at the Centre's cafeteria again.
"But... how close were they? Elijah and his wife."
"Merit. They were one. They were in perfect harmony. Twin souls."
"But how did he keep sane, then? I understood it is not possible to remain sane, if your other half dies..."
"It is possible, but a horrible road to take. Longing for someone forever. Elijah went mad for about ten years. We tended to him, never leaving his side so he could not kill himself, and finally he climbed up from the deepest depths of his sorrow. The cheerful personality you see is just a facade, built with pain. Though you seem to make it easier for him to be happy. I haven't seen him laugh so much in many many years..."
I remembered the sadness in Elijah's eyes before he kissed me in the desert. Should I have chosen him? Would I have chosen him, had I known of Merit, out of pity? Could I have given his life a new meaning? But also... why did he kiss me, if Merit had been his twin soul? Could it be that there was a chance of recovery, and of finding new love, even to those who had lost their twin soul?
"Elijah has always been interested in ancient Egypt. He has a degree in Egyptology from an English university, did you know that?" Daniel's voice interrupted me.
No, I had had no idea.
"Egyptology was also Merit's hobby, so it was easy for them to begin talking. Then Merit got her wings, and they fell in love. Elijah did keep his distance until Merit had passed the emotional turmoil of her change, and then returned. She loved him still, and they gave their promises at the medieval cathedral in her hometown, Turku, in the presence of witnesses. I was there too."
"He went to say his goodbyes to Merit there. They made a unique promise to one another, that if one of them died, or was infected, the one who remained was not to kill themselves, but to go on living. That is the only thing that kept him from killing himself after Merit was pronounced dead. He wanted to die, but a promise given to a twin soul is binding. He intended to leave a lily at the cathedral, at a specific spot, on their wedding anniversary as the agreed sign that the one who was living was ready to move on. Lilies had a special meaning for Merit."
My heart ached for Elijah. He was not at all the funny eternal teenager I had thought he was.
"So he tried to... leave her behind?"
"I don't think he will ever leave her behind... When you feel total love, and are bound body and soul, you cannot have that again with someone else. I think Elijah went to the cathedral more to prove to himself that he is now out of danger. He no longer wants to kill himself, and is ready to keep on living. And that is your doing. You showed him he could have affectionate feelings towards another Nephilim woman." Daniel answered my unspoken question.
I finished my coffee and rose. I just could not come up with anything to say about Elijah.
"When are we leaving, then?"
I did not mention Aketaten. Our group had been working on convincing everyone we were going to Alexandria, to the time just before the battle of Actium, in case the word slipped out and reached Cain or Angel. The last thing we wanted was to have them appear in Aketaten. We could not rule that out, though. We would have to stay on the alert all the time.
"Soon," Daniel said, tracing my hand with his finger.
I smiled at him, and he smiled back. We would be going together. That was all I needed to know to be happy.
"There is one thing I would like to do, though." I remembered my plan. "I think we need to fetch Lilith."
"OK..." We walked out of the cafeteria, past the guards, into the lobby and up the stairs.
The gate was still hidden behind the large painting now, a decision that had had been made for security reasons. If for any reason Cain's Nephilim managed to gain access to the Centre, they would not see the gate.
Lilith was not in her office, but we went to the library in the buffer zone and found her there, making notes. The book she was reading seemed to be from the Middle Ages.
"Ah, Daniel and Dana!" she greeted us, "we are about to send a team to Cordoba, at the start of June 1236. Ferdinand III of Castile is going to capture the city on 29th June, and we need to bring some manuscripts to safety. Also we have been researching the history of the era, and there seems to be a definite dark Nephilim activity there just before the conquest. They are probably in search of any writings about..." she did not finish the sentence
as there were other people around.
"I would like to ask something of you," I said.
"But of course. What is it?"
"Could we go to your office?"
Lilith was much like Grandma. She did not start insisting why, she just rose from her chair, and took Daniel's arm.
"OK, let's go."
We left the library behind and went to Lilith's office.
"Now, tell me what it is you want." Lilith looked at me inquiringly.
"I would like to see the Nephilim who kidnapped me," I said.
Daniel and Lilith looked at each other.
"Why?" Lilith wanted to know.
"Because I need to ask them something," I did not elaborate more.
"Well, I suppose you could meet them." Lilith looked at me curiously and opened the door of her office.
We walked down the stairs, and then another flight of steps to the basement.
The Nephilim were not in the same rooms where Mr. Donnelly had been. They were in glass-walled cubicles on one side of a corridor, which were comfortably furnished. The familiar sound of brass bowls was playing from loudspeakers.
There were six of them, and when we entered, they rose to their feet. To my surprise they all bowed to me.
"What's this?" I asked.
"You are a Silver Nephilim, the like of which our kind has not seen in in over two thousand years," the man with a scar on his cheek said, "and you healed my son."
The healed Nephilim in question was staring at me.
"Thank you... I have never experienced anything like that..." he said, "and I heard you almost died. I am sorry to have caused this. I am forever in your debt."
"We all are," the red-haired woman said. There was no trace of the aggressive behavior I had witnessed in her before.
Daniel was standing next to me, and his expression was angry.
"You may have hurt her permanently with your actions." His voice was cold. "How do you expect to pay for something like that?"
"We don't know," the mother of the healed Nephilim said, "but we are ready to do whatever you ask."
Daniel opened his mouth, but I beat him to it.
"This is why I asked to see you. I want you to protect my parents from Angel and Cain. Angel knows where my parents live. I want them to stay safe. There are six of you. You will take turns, to guard my parents around the clock, and fight for them, if the need arises. As long as it takes, even if it is years."
Lilith looked surprised; Daniel's face was hard to read.
The six looked at each other, and came to an agreement without words.
"To pay for our debt we shall do this. From now on your parents will have six Nephilim Guardians," the scar-faced man said.
"You'll swear this to me? All of you?"
One by one they each voiced their promise.
"I think you can let them go now," I said to Lilith.
Daniel still looked angry, but nodded.
"A Nephilim's promise is binding," he said. "They will never break it. Not until they turn dark."
Lilith left the corridor, and after a few minutes the brass bowls stopped singing. The Nephilim breathed deeply, relieved. The doors opened with a click, and they stepped out of their prison.
We stood there facing each other. The man I had healed stepped closest, and bowed.
"I owe you my life. Whatever you command, I shall obey," he said.
I nodded, not knowing how I should react.
"I would like to know your names..." I said.
"I am Jonathan," the healed man said, and bowed again.
The red-haired woman was Carol, the olive-skinned woman was Ester. The man who had kidnapped me, was Oliver. The father of Jonathan was Edward, and his mother was Joann.
"Well, then. We need to take you to Dana's parents' house," Lilith said. "Daniel will escort you there. You are now bound by your promise."
"I have to say I am relieved," Lilith said, as we left their prison. "I had always dreaded the day when we would have to imprison a Nephilim for... years, let alone six of them. You found a solution, Dana. I am glad of that."
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE
85. Mr. Donnelly's Surprise
"Now remember – if anything happens to any of you, if you get lost, or lose contact with us, recall the places where we can reach you," Lilith said when everything seemed to be packed and we were finally just standing there. Our final preparations had been made in haste as we needed to get away as soon as possible. We even had rolls of papyrus explaining who we were, all carefully written by Reggie.
"What are those places?" I asked.
"Right, you have not been told yet," Layla observed. She began to explain. "However, you do already know that it is possible for someone to get lost in time. Their Weaver may die, or they get separated from one another. Also weaving sometimes goes wrong – the anchor used might have a strong connection to another time instead of the one it was made in. That is particularly likely to happen when very strong emotions are felt around the chosen object - like jewelry, or religious items. That's why we prefer ordinary everyday objects – spoons, cups and such. They usually don't raise strong emotions in anyone."
"Except historians," Jason grinned in the general direction of Reggie and Mr Donnelly.
Ripples of laughter filled the room.
"Yes, except historians," Lilith smiled. "But the point is: if you get lost or find yourselves in the wrong time, go to a place that you know exists even today, and leave a message for us there."
"Leave a message? How?" I did not understand.
"Carving it on wood or scratching it in stone are preferable methods. It is a long shot, but it means our researchers have the chance to find a reference to an odd writing on the wall. If you use the code words we recognize that it is you, and can come and find you."
"Code words?"
"Yes, write about walking and time, and add a name of one of your time walker group. Any sentence will do. Like 'We walked together in our time, Jason and I' – something like that. And the year, if you know it. If not, try to find out a name of a prominent person of that time and write it in your message. We prefer churches and monasteries and temples, if possible. They are often taken good care of – the Reformation and Henry VIII excluded, of course. Monasteries and many churches did not survive that."
I happened to be looking at Mr Donnelly, who suddenly began to look as if he had forgotten something.
"Our researchers visit historic monuments all the time, and know the museum people well, so if some new inscription is suddenly found on a monastery wall, or mentioned in a book when our researchers know it wasn't there before, we take a closer look. And with luck they'll find your message, written and preserved through time so we could come and find you."
Mr Donnelly let out a strange sound.
"What is it? Are you feeling ill?" Reggie turned to his colleague with a concerned look.
"I do not know... I am not sure... but one of us is called Elijah, yes?"
That was an odd question as Mr Donnelly was standing in the same room with Elijah.
"May I ask you, and please do not take offense..." Mr Donnelly searched for words and Elijah waited patiently.
"As you know I was the head librarian at the City of Immortals. Thousands of books traveled through my hands on their way to the shelves... sometimes they were put in the wrong place, and I spent a lot of time searching for misplaced books so I could take them back to their proper location. Not all people respect order, you see..."
We waited for Mr Donnelly to form his thoughts.
"So, one day I happened to find... my question is... did you have a wife called Merit by any chance?"
The proverbial dropped pin would have made our ears ring. Everyone turned to look at Elijah. And then back at Mr Donnelly, and again at Elijah and yet again to the aging scholar. It was almost like watching a tennis game.
"Yes - I did," Elijah finally said, his face set.
"And did you go to the Nabta s
tones together? And she was... lost there?"
Elijah moved so fast no one had time to react. He grabbed Mr. Donnelly by his shirt and almost lifted the poor man into the air.
"What do you know about her?" he said in a low, threatening voice.
"Elijah," Daniel was by his side in an instant, "I am sure Mr. Donnelly is not dangerous. You are making it impossible for him to speak. Put him down."
There was a deep rumble from within Elijah, and with considerable effort he stopped his wings from opening.
"Speak," he said to Mr Donnelly, with gritted teeth.
"I... I... I am so sorry... I did not think of it before. Suddenly I thought your name matched the name of someone I read about in a notebook I happened to find in the library... It was hidden behind a book..."
"An Enquiry into the Morals of the Ancients by George England?" Daniel asked.
"Yes, how did you know?" a look of disbelief passed over Mr. Donnelly's face.
"Elijah, tell them," Daniel said.
And so we heard of Elijah's visit to the Turku Cathedral, the lily, the notebook page, and the message.
"So she is there, right there where we're going?" Grandma asked.
"Yes, if she is still alive," Elijah said.
"But can't we just go to the time when she had just arrived and was still alive? I mean if she is now dead. I mean..." I wish I had not opened my mouth when I saw Elijah's face.
"But we don't know exactly to which year she went," Grandma said.
"The notebook, where is it? Is it in the City of Immortals?" Elijah asked almost brusquely.
"No. It's not there. In fact - I have it right here!" To our surprise Mr. Donnelly pulled a little velvet pouch out of his big pocket.
This time Layla was faster than Elijah and carefully took the pouch.
"You are too agitated right now, Elijah, and may harm the book. Everyone, into my room."
Lilith turned on her heels and walked out of the room and we all followed right behind her, Daniel grasping his brother's arm tightly.