by Bill Myers
Elijah glanced away. He could feel himself being drawn into the man’s powers.
A clawlike hand reached out and turned Elijah’s face back to him. “But I underssstand. I underssstand you have powersss greater than even you are aware. And if you will join forcesss with my master, there isss nothing we cannot accomplisssh together.”
Elijah tried turning his head, but Shadow Man held it firmly. “Propheccciesss can be changed. You need not oppossse usss. Combine your powersss with mine. Join me in ssserving the master, and together we can defeat the enemy.”
Elijah tried closing his eyes, to push the thoughts away. But the man’s words slithered into his brain. They made such sense. Why fight? It would be so much easier to simply deny God and to give in.
Chapter Twelve
The Battle Rages
“Zach, you’ve got to pray!”
But her brother did not answer. He didn’t even bother looking up.
“Zachary!”
The blackness continued pouring out of the cave and surrounding him — so thick that he could no longer see her. Or hear.
“Zachary!”
She gasped as more of the blackness began taking shape. Besides the wings, she now caught glimpses of faces. But not human faces. More like the creepy, inhuman faces of gargoyles on old cathedrals.
She looked back down to the cave. Was it her imagination or could she see eyes deep inside it? A pair of them. Red and glowing.
She gave an involuntary shudder.
She turned around to Cody. He was pressed against the wall, cowering with his old fear. She could tell that it had returned.
Piper closed her eyes. She just wanted to leave — get away from all this pain and despair. It would be so easy to turn away and leave all of this darkness. None of it was her fault. She hadn’t caused any of these problems. It didn’t make sense to stay here and suffer.
Stop it! she ordered herself. This isn’t right! I will not give in! But talking to herself wasn’t the solution, and she knew it. So, once again, she closed her eyes and began to pray.
Dear Jesus, I need your help. We’ve prayed. We’ve quoted your Word. But there’s another weapon. What was it? What did Mom and Dad say? What —
Suddenly, singing filled the air.
Jesus loves me, this I know …
Her parents! She spun around. They were approaching. And they were singing!
For the Bible tells me so.
She raced toward them. “Mom! Dad!”
They fell into an embrace as tears filled her eyes. It felt so good to be in their arms, she could stay there forever.
No! She caught herself. It was another form of selfishness. Her brother needed her help, and he needed it now.
She pulled away, motioning to the cavern. “It’s Zach! He’s down there in some sort of pit. And there are these awful, evil things attacking him and — ”
“We know,” Dad said. “We could feel something was going on.”
“That’s why we started singing,” Mom explained. “That’s why we started worshiping.”
“Well, don’t stop!” Piper grabbed both of their hands and pulled them toward the cliff. “Whatever you do, don’t stop!”
When Mom saw her son surrounded by the evil blackness she cried out, “Zach! Zachary!”
“He can’t hear you!” Piper said. “Those things are stopping him.”
“What can we do?”
“It’s a battle,” Piper said. “Just like you taught us. A spiritual battle. I’ve been praying, I’ve been quoting Scripture but I forgot to — ”
“Worship,” Dad completed her thought. “We have to keep singing.”
“Right,” Piper nodded, “We have to keep worshiping and singing!”
Mom looked down to Zach. She was at a loss for words.
But not Dad. Taking a deep breath, he started singing again:
Jesus loves me this I know …
Piper joined in.
For the Bible tells me so.
Mom turned back to them. They nodded for her to join in. And slowly, haltingly, she did:
Little ones to him belong.
We are weak, but he is strong.
Piper paused a moment. Was it her imagination or were those faint screams coming from the cavern? She peered down at the darkness surrounding Zach. The misty faces seemed to be twisting as if in pain, as if something were hurting them. Not only hurting them, but making them grow fainter.
Dad must have seen it too, because he shouted, “Louder. Sing louder!”
And they did:
Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me…
The screams grew worse, the cloud thinner.
Suddenly, the air crackled with a roar or a voice or a thought … it was hard to tell which. But Piper knew exactly where it came from. She looked down into the black tunnel. The red eyes glowed with rage as the sound roared in her ears:
YOU HAVE NO AUTHORITY HERE!
THIS IS MY DOMAIN!
“Keep singing,” Dad shouted. “Keep singing!”
Yes, Jesus loves me, The Bible tells me so.
“Again!” Dad shouted. “Again!”
And so they repeated the song, singing with more and more confidence, watching as the blackness around Zach’s head grew fainter and fainter.
“Join usss,” Shadow Man repeated as Elijah continued looking deep into his eyes. He tried looking away but could not help himself.
“No more battlesss. No more fighting. The massster will give you all that you desssire.”
Shadow Man had him. It was over. Until … ever so faintly, he began to hear singing. At first it was barely discernable. But it grew louder and louder. Soon, a tiny smile appeared on his lips.
“What?” Shadow Man demanded. “What are you thinking?”
And then, softly, Elijah began to hum.
“Ssstop that.”
The humming grew stronger.
“Ssstop that thisss inssstant!”
Finally, Elijah joined in the song:
Jesus loves me, this I know…
Piper was the first to see him … the old man they had run across so many times since they’d begun their journey. He stood on a ledge across the cavern from them. How he got there, she had no idea. His eyes caught hers and seemed to twinkle.
There was a flash of light, and suddenly he held a giant broadsword. But not a sword of steel. This was a sword of words. The very words she and Cody had quoted from the Bible. Amazing! She could actually see them, right there in the shiny blade of light.
The remaining creatures that circled Zach must have seen them too, because they began shrieking and howling. Then, as if desperate, they rose from Zach and raced toward the man. He swung his sword, effortlessly swatting them away. The creatures screamed as they sailed across the cavern and slammed into the wall, finally sliding to the ground.
The next arrived, and the man swung again, repeating the process … with the same results.
And then the next … and the next …
They came faster and he swung faster until everything was a blur … the swarming mists of darkness racing at him, the glowing blur of the sword swatting them aside.
“Dear God …”
Piper looked over to her father, who had once again begun to pray.
“We take authority over this darkness, in the name of Jesus.”
At the sound of the name, the man with the sword looked up. For a moment, he seemed to smile. Then, suddenly, he leapt into the air, floating toward the cavern floor. For the briefest of seconds Piper thought she saw wings, but she couldn’t be certain.
As he landed, the few dark mists still surrounding Zach pulled away.
“Cody!” Dad motioned to the boy who was still curled up against the wall. “Join us.”
Cody hesitated.
“We’re not the ones who have to be afraid. Come on!”
He rose to his feet, cautiously glancing from side to side. Finally, he moved to join them as Dad reached out fo
r Piper’s and Mom’s hands. They were forming a circle. A prayer circle.
But they were one short.
“Zach!” Dad shouted.
Piper looked down into the cavern. The clouds had left Zach and were retreating back to the cave where the red eyes glowed. Already, she could see a difference in her brother’s face. It was clearer. Brighter.
“Zach!” Dad repeated.
Zach looked up, for the first time hearing his father’s voice. “Dad!”
“We’re going to pray. Join us.”
“I don’t think there’s a way to climb up there.”
“You don’t have to; just pray where you are!”
“Got it!” he shouted.
Piper couldn’t tell if Zach could see the man with the sword or not. But she could. And she watched with amazement as he started toward the clouds of blackness that had retreated to the cave’s entrance. Their little mouths snarled and snapped as he continued his approach.
“Dear Lord.” Dad’s voice echoed against the stone walls with authority. “We order the enemy to leave. In your name we command him to go and — ”
As Dad continued praying, the man raised his sword. He began swinging it into the clouds. Screams of pain and howls of agony filled the cavern as he continued forward — driving them into the tunnel.
Dad squeezed Piper’s hand, and she looked at him. “Don’t get distracted,” he said. “Our job is to pray.”
She nodded and lowered her head as he continued to pray as the creatures continued to scream.
“What’s that shrieking sound?” Silas asked.
“Ghosts?” Bruno trembled.
“Demons!” Monica shuddered.
“Us getting out of here?” Silas cried.
“YES!” all three screamed as they turned and raced back to the elevator.
The screaming slowly faded into faint echoes, which finally ended altogether.
Piper opened her eyes and peeked down into the cavern. The clouds of blackness had disappeared. She knew they had escaped deeper into the cave along with the glowing red eyes. She also knew they were defeated.
At least for now.
And the man with the sword?
He’d also disappeared. Big surprise. But she knew they would see him again. At least when he was needed.
In the silence, she heard someone crying, whimpering. Zach heard it too. She watched as her brother slowly walked over behind a boulder and found Willard curled up in a ball, sobbing.
Zach gently put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Willard,” he said. “It’s over. It’s all over.”
Epilogue
Now that his mind was clear, it didn’t take Zach long to start searching for footholds and begin climbing up the steep cliff. Of course he did plenty of slipping and sliding, but eventually he reached the top and joined his family.
It was a little harder for Willard (actually, a lot harder), which was why everybody tied their shirts and coats together to make a type of rope with a sling to help pull him up.
Of course there were more than enough hugs to go around, and Mom cried. To be honest, Zach felt his own eyes burning a little, though he was careful to keep it hidden from everyone. After all, he did have his reputation to keep up.
Eventually, they turned and started out of the cave. It was still just as cold and dark, but definitely not as scary. They traveled for what seemed forever but finally, after a few wrong turns, they found themselves at the elevator. The good news was it still worked and the doors opened for them. The better news was it carried them back up to the creepy office. The best news was they were able to quickly get out of the office and back outside.
“Weird,” Zach said as they looked around. “There’s still nobody here.”
“There was.” Willard pointed to some fresh tire tracks. “But they must have left. And by these skid marks, I’d say they were in a major hurry.”
Piper smiled. It was nice to hear Willard talking normally again. Granted, he could be kind of odd sometimes. Okay, lots of times. But, let’s face it, that oddness was part of what made him so fun.
She turned to her parents and asked, “So what do we do?”
Dad gave a heavy sigh. “I guess we head back through the woods to the RV.”
“And then?” Zach asked.
“And then we find Elijah. Come on.” He started forward.
But he’d only taken a couple steps before Zach called, “Dad?”
His father stopped. “Yes, son.”
“Shouldn’t we, you know, like pray or something?”
Dad broke into a smile. “You’re right,” he chuckled. “You’re absolutely right.” He turned and headed back to the group. “So … do you want to lead us?”
“Sounds good to me,” Zach said.
Piper couldn’t believe her ears. Zach wanting to pray? Amazing.
Then again, maybe it wasn’t so amazing. After all, everyone seemed to have gone through some positive changes. Who knows, maybe even Zach was changed a little for the better. All right, very little. But, hey, a little change was better than no change.
Once again the family gathered for prayer
“You okay?” Piper asked as Cody joined her side. “You haven’t said a word since we left the cavern.”
He shrugged. “Guess I’m kind of embarrassed. I mean, nobody likes cowards.”
Piper’s heart melted a little for him. “It wasn’t just you, Cody.” She pointed to herself. “Nobody likes self-centered brats either.” Then motioning to Willard she added, “Or know-it-all bullies or,” she motioned to Zach, “big-time doubters.”
“Yeah, but still …” He dropped off, unsure how to answer.
“We’ve all got weaknesses,” she said. “Whatever was down there was just trying to use them against us. But the important thing is, we discovered how to fight back, how to beat it.” She stopped. But when she stole a peek at Cody, she was grateful to see him nodding as if she actually made sense.
“Okay,” Zach said, “everybody grab a hand.”
Without a word, Cody reached out to take her hand and squeezed it. Suddenly she forgot what she was embarrassed about.
Zach continued. “We’re going to pray that we beat these bad guys once and for all.”
Cody squeezed her hand a little tighter. She returned it.
“And we’re going to pray that we find my little brother.
Everyone nodded. Then the group bowed their heads and began.
Elijah heard the flutter of something pass his ears. He opened his eyes to see the butterfly circling his head. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been asleep, or how long he had been traveling with Shadow Man. All he knew was that he had needed the rest. Another battle was about to begin, and it would call for all of his strength.
Funny thing about battles. It seemed like every one pushed them to their limits. And just when they were sure they couldn’t go another step, they somehow found the strength to take it. And then take another. It was almost like someone was giving them extra strength. Like someone was training them, making them stronger and stronger.
Elijah smiled quietly. Because he knew who that Someone was. And he knew that that Someone would never let them slip through his fingers. Because he loved them. Loved them more than they would ever know.
The butterfly made one last circle before landing on Elijah’s shoulder.
The boy smiled just a little bigger and then he started to hum. It was another song of worship.
The Adventure continues in
The Chamber of Lies
Chapter One
To the Rescue
“That’s impossible!”
Willard looked up from the computer in the back of the rattling RV. “What is?” he asked.
“How can Elijah send us a message?” Thirteen-year-old Piper blew the hair out of her eyes. “He doesn’t even know how to turn on a computer.” She scowled back at the message on the monitor.
Don’t try to save me!
&nbs
p; Shadow Man has weapons you don’t understand.