by Night, H. T.
“Go on, Josiah. What happened that night?”
“We lost a few men to Krull. He was here.”
“He was here. Here?!”
“Yep.”
“Josiah, this isn’t good.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” I said. “I would never let anything happen to you and the kids. I haven’t left by myself since. I have always made sure you and the boys were safe.”
“You were keeping me safe from something you left me in the dark about.”
“Lena, I had to. Things are different now. Not only are you the mother of my children and my fiancée. But... you’re also capable of dying a lot easier than either one of us had known. I want you nowhere near danger from here on out.”
“But you left us here? It’s not safe for the boys to be here.”
“It’s safe as long as I am here,” I said.
“But you won’t always be able to be here.”
“I understand that. I’ll come up with something. For now, all I can do is trust fate.” I looked at Lena and did my best to give her a comforting look. I needed to trust that this wasn’t how this was going to happen where Krull did something as atrocious as hurting my family. That couldn’t be in the Triat’s script.
Suddenly, I heard a commotion in the living room.
I stood up immediately and said sternly, “Stay here, Lena. Stay with the boys.” I locked the door and closed it behind me. I went into the living room, and all of my crew was staring out of the window. “What the hell is happening?” I called out.
“We don’t know!” Yari said. “There are at least three hundred Mani out there.”
“Are you fucking serious?” I hurried over to a window in the kitchen.
“There is no sign of Krull.” Tommy was looking through the kitchen window. “Josiah, check it out. I don’t recognize any of these guys. They don’t look that intimidating.”
I went over to where Tommy was staring out the window. I looked out and saw enough Mani to start a war. At the very front of this mob of vampires was a blonde-haired woman... that I recognized. It was Helen. “Everybody relax!” I yelled out. “I know who it is.” I went over to the front door and opened it.
The second I went outside, Helen called out to me, “Josiah!”
“Helen!” I yelled back. “I see you brought some friends with you.”
Helen walked over to me. She looked incredible. She was dressed in tight body suit with a tank top. She had been sweating. So I knew something was up.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Krull ambushed my group,” Helen said.
“Define ambush,” I said.
“We were staying up in Northern California at a vineyard I own. Somehow, Krull found out about what I was putting together.”
“What were you putting together?” I hadn’t a clue what she was talking about.
“An army to defeat him,” Helen answered.
“We seriously need to start communicating better,” I said. By the time those words came out of my mouth, my guys had barreled through the bunker and stood facing Helen’s group, ready to defend their turf.
“Stand down, soldiers,” I said loudly and they nodded in unison, but still looked ready, if need be.
Wow, it took them fifteen minutes to realize there was an army up here. We had a response-time problem. I definitely needed to train them harder. My guys were a motley crew compared to Helen’s prima donnas that she brought over. She had more men, but she also had women in her group. Yari and Yomaida were the only women in my group.
Helen had at least a hundred.
“Where did you recruit these guys?” I asked.
“I didn’t have to,” Helen said. “They all came to me. They each had a vision to find me in Napa Valley. About six months ago, twenty Mani just showed up at my vineyard.”
“They just came out of nowhere?” I asked.
“Yep, each of them had their very own distinct vision to come find me. After the first day, about five to ten kept showing up each day until our numbers hit 500 men and women.”
I looked out and didn’t see 500 Mani. “Where are the rest of them?”
“Like I said, we just got ambushed by Krull. He came into our vineyard and attacked us when we were sleeping.”
“Sleeping? Seriously?” This was rough. Krull wasn’t playing fair. What did I expect from a sociopath? “You are all welcome to stay here. We have an enormous bunker. We might need to pack six in a room. But something tells me something is going down real fast.” I looked over at my guys and told Sion to show everyone to the bunkers.
I yelled out, “I want you guys to make sure our guests feel the same hospitality I gave you when you first showed up. Now we are strong enough to fight Krull.” I looked out at all the Mani and few Carni. I was pleased that this had happened. Not because Mani lost their lives, because that was tragic, but I now had a strong four-hundred person army, and that wasn’t too shabby. I watched as Helen motioned to her army to proceed to the bunkers.
I turned to Wyatt, Hector, and Yari. “Could you organize this and increase the blood order for the mess hall? I need to get Lena and the kids out of here. Wyatt, can you come with me?”
I turned around, and Helen and I made our way back to the house. “You have a lot of property around the world, correct?” I asked Helen as we walked.
“Of course,” Helen said.
“I need for you to allow my future wife and our two children to stay in the most obscure place you have, preferably one in another country.”
“I have a place in Amsterdam that is off in the countryside that no one is staying in. It should be perfect. No one even knows we own the property. It’s not even on the tax rolls.”
“Sounds perfect.”
I went into the house and told Lena that everything was okay, as of now. I told her to pack her stuff. That she, Linda and the boys were moving to Amsterdam. I needed a man to go with her. It needed to be someone I trusted; someone who was tough. Most of all, it needed to be someone that was asexual.
Wyatt was the perfect candidate. He’d sowed his wild oats a long time ago, and he was as tough as anyone I knew. I should know. He kicked my ass on the first night I met him. But, then again, I was human when he did that to me.
Things were getting frightfully real, extremely fast. I took Lena, Linda, Wyatt and my boys to LAX. I waited with them until they got on the fourteen-hour flight to Amsterdam. When the boys were born, Hector had arranged to get them U.S. passports and had them ready. His foresight stunned me.
When the airline called their row for my family to board the plane, I walked them to the tarmac. I held my fiancée’s hand. Then I gave her a giant hug and kiss.
“The last time, it was you who was going away,” she said, her eyes misted with unshed tears.
“You guys need to be far away from what is going to go down. Wyatt is going to take amazing care of you. Just do me a favor and not fall in love while I’m gone,” I said, only half kidding.
“I’ll do my best,” Lena said, as she grabbed my hands with hers.
I leaned down and kissed her. I looked at Linda, our supernanny, and said, “Take care of my family over there.”
“I always do, Mr. Josiah.”
“I know you do. I trust you and I’m grateful that you would serve us without question, here or anywhere.”
“Of course.”
I gave Wyatt a hug and told him to contact me if he ran into any problems. The last thing I did was kiss my two boys goodbye. I took both their hands and told them individually that I loved them. It was time for them to leave, and I waved until I couldn’t see them anymore.
Once the door shut, I turned around inside LAX and knew I needed to make one last visit to the Deity.
That is exactly what I did.
Chapter Twenty-four
I stepped into The Deity’s room from the bunker hallway. Her Holiness was sitting in her rocking chair. She looked up at me and smiled as I entered the ro
om. She had a welcoming look on her face that showed she knew I was coming. “Hello, Josiah.”
“How are you on this evening?” I asked, standing by the door.
“Please come in and have a seat next to me.”
I stepped in and walked over to her and sat criss-cross next to her chair. I wasn’t sure why, but something didn’t feel right at this moment. Nonetheless, I had a lot on my mind and just sighed deeply. There is an anxiety and a burden that always seemed to pour out of me whenever I am in her presence. She brought out my truth. It was the only place where I could be transparent. I know she wouldn’t judge me, and her unconditional love swarmed her aura like a fog.
“You did well, Josiah,” the Deity said to me.
“In regard to which detail?” I asked “A lot has happened since I’ve seen you.”
“Josiah, I am aware of all you do. Each time you are given a task, you not only succeed, but you surpass what is intended.”
I was quiet. I hadn’t quite come here for praise, although, it was gratifying to be appreciated by someone of such outstanding stature. “In regard to Donya. That was a no-brainier in my book. If I didn’t go get her, it would have weighed on me until I did. It’s hard for me to be aware of such atrocities and not want to do something about it. I think you knew that and that it why you told me.”
The Deity smiled at me and said, “I told you because I was led to tell you. What you did with that information was entirely up to you.”
“Sometimes, I wonder if I’m making the right decision. One of these days, I’m bound to make a wrong one.”
The Deity did something out of the ordinary. She laughed out loud. “Oh, Josiah…”
“Why are you laughing?”
“I’m laughing because most of your decisions have been the wrong ones. You’re like a golfer who shanks his first putt, but manages to get par with some lucky strokes by the time the hole is done.”
“Did you just give me a sports analogy?” I asked, mightily surprised.
“I used to love to play golf before my eyesight left me. I knew Bobby Jones. I played with him a couple of times.”
“Bobby Jones? You’re serious?”
“I’m not going to start lying now.”
“So, what you’re saying is that I have steered off my path of destiny, but still manage to climb back on when all is said and done?”
“Yes. That is why you have been chosen to do this task for our people. It was based on merit or knowledge. The Triat saw your heart and attention to detail. You trust your instincts. And your instincts usually find a way of getting the job done.”
Something had been bothering me, and I knew now was a good as time as any to ask. “Did I do the right thing in regard to Cyrus?”
“Why do you question yourself?”
“It is my belief that some Mani left with Krull because they felt at the end of the day I am no better than he is, that I would kill my own, without any regret.”
“Even still, you have regret. What did you see when you touched him?”
“I saw all of us dying. Even you. That was when I knew the Triat had given me the insight.”
“Do you think killing him was the wrong decision?”
“I don’t know if I would have talked with him and told him what I saw, that maybe I could have changed his destiny. That’s the one part about the whole ordeal that bothers me. I didn’t give him a chance. Maybe instead of killing him, I could have changed his mind.”
“But, when a man has deceit in his heart, that is something not even you can change. It is a character flaw that is engraved in a person’s DNA. It is the same as being a sociopath.”
I nodded my head and said, “I’m sure I did the right thing.”
“Then I never want you ever to question it again. It will only eat you up inside.” The Deity leaned back and took in the room. “How are the boys?”
“You tell me,” I joked. “You seem to know exactly what I’m doing.”
“Does that bother you?”
I looked at the Deity and smiled. “No, it gives me peace. Knowing you’re watching over me is better than any guardian angel.”
“Okay, I’ll ask you again. How are your boys?”
“The boys are terrific. It’s early to tell, but one thing is clear. Jason has a supernatural touch on his life.”
“Yes, he does. How do you feel about that?” The Deity took my hand because she knew this bothered me. She read me so well.
“It scares me. I want to understand it better.”
“That is why you’re his father. Fatherhood isn’t necessarily just given by blood. It’s given by responsibility. As Jason gets older, it will be something only he will fully understand. Healing will be one of his many gifts.”
“Is he going to be like me?”
“Not at all. He is nothing like you. He is nothing like any of us.”
“That’s not that comforting.”
“Why?”
“Because I understand what I am and I could help him to be all he can be.”
“You will, but in your own way. Josiah, you are a fighter. A born solider. It is at the core of your heart. Jason won’t have any of those characteristics. He will be mild and tender hearted. He will have knowledge and insight. He will win battles with his words, not with his fists.”
“I have another question. Jason needed to heal Lena, seconds after he was born. I had tried to do it, but I couldn’t. Why not?”
“When someone has the power of healing as a gift, it serves no purpose if they can heal themselves. Healing is a selfless act and needs to be looked upon as such.”
“But I was trying to heal Lena? The mother of my two little boys. It doesn’t get more selfless than that.”
“Josiah, you and Lena are bonded beyond this world. In many ways you already are ‘one.’ The Triat works in mysterious ways and apparently one of them is this: When two people are connected as you two are in the spiritual realm, then it will be treated as if you two are one. Therefore, the power of healing was obsolete.”
I nodded my head. I couldn’t really question a gift I had no business having in the first place. I had other thoughts on my mind. “It’s close, isn’t it? The battle against Krull?” I reached my other hand out for the Deity to hold it. She took both my hands and placed both her hands inside them.
“Is that why I have become a werewolf, too?”
“Josiah, the werewolf transformation surprised me, as well. Then again, nothing should surprise me in regard to you. Josiah I have something else extremely pertinent to share with you.”
I looked at The Deity and knew this was going to be extremely serious. “What is it?”
“Josiah, I am going away.”
“Where? Why?”
“Because it is not safe for any of us. Krull has hit his crossroads, and he is ready.”
“Where will you go?”
“Somewhere safe. You need not to worry about me.”
“I need to worry only about Krull.”
“You’re about to experience a Mani bloodbath of epic proportions. Many of our people will die in the battle. But, sadly, it needs to be done. Otherwise, Krull will do the unthinkable.”
“Which is what?”
“Reveal us to mankind. He is only looking at you as an obstacle. His real mission is to turn hundreds of thousands of Tandra into Mani and kill the rest of the human race, except for the few who are kept only for food, in captivity, to be selectively bred and milked for their blood, like human dairy cows. He aims to take over the world and make it one race, one power. Him.”
“And it is up to me to stop this madman?”
“Yes, That is why you are ‘The Chosen.’ Your heart is for the survival and quality of life of all people, regardless of whether they are human, Mani or Carni. You see the value of life.”
I wanted to stay with her longer, but I know I needed to get back. I stood up and kissed the Deity on the top of her head. I looked down on her and said, “I’m not
sure what my end result in all of this is. And I don’t want you to tell me. If this is the last I see you in this form, I want you to know that ‘in you’ has been my hiding place. This room has been my temple. Thank you for that.”
“Josiah, no matter how dismal a situation feels to be, never quit, and remember always, to look up.”
I smiled, and I left the room.
Chapter Twenty-five
I left the orphanage compound and decided to transition into my eagle form, so I could fly and get home a little more stress free. When I flew in my human form, I was always afraid someone might snap my photo on a cell phone camera. Before I knew it, there could be a viral video on YouTube of a man flying through the night sky.
As I flew back, something didn’t feel right. It was a feeling that I couldn’t shake. I felt something awful was in the midst. I pressed forward, however. I flew over Temecula. Temecula is a city in California that has one of the biggest Indian casinos in the United States. It also has a lot of vineyards along Highway 79. I was flying over Highway 79 when I heard a loud, screeching sound in the distance.
I halted my flight, and I decided to ascend higher in the sky. That was not a pleasant sound. I decided to transition back to my Mani form. As I glided upwards, my worst nightmare had just occurred. There were hundreds of ravens coming at me from every direction.
At first, I held out a glimpse of hope that they were my own crew. I wasn’t so lucky. One by one, these birds drilled into my flesh first. I fought them off to the best of my ability. But it was impossible to fight so many different creatures coming at me from so many different directions.
I flew to the ground and landed in a desert area off the Highway 79 deep into a private vineyard. I was by myself, so I began calling out to Tommy and Helen in my mind for help. But I had no luck. Neither one of them responded. Tommy was obviously not in his werewolf form and for whatever reason, Helen wasn’t responding.
“Helen,” I yelled out in my mind.
Nothing.
I was about to transition to my werewolf form and call on Lena, but I didn’t have time. Within seconds, all the ravens that were once in the sky had surrounded me. Then in unison, they all transitioned into their Mani forms. I was surrounded by at least a thousand Mani men, on the enemy’s team. It was an incredible sight to behold. Then like the Red Sea, they parted to each side. Out from the middle, Krull appeared, and he walked up to the center yelling. “No one touch him! At least... not yet!”