– Methuselah 9:2 –
Late that evening Timur sat at the Master Terminal in his penthouse. Pulling up his own profile, he shaved off another five years from his date of birth.
Time for another facelift.
Every few years he updated his profile to avoid suspicion. He chuckled to himself knowing that if anyone learned that his actual birth year was 1336 A.D. they wouldn’t believe it. It wouldn’t be long before he reached his 700th birthday, though he didn’t look a year older than thirty.
Prior to Allan’s Awakening, he was led to the false presumption that he was the last of the Seraphim. The fact that Allan had recently Awakened was causing him a serious amount of anxiety. Months prior to his encounter this morning with Allan he could feel his powers weakening and he couldn’t figure out why.
I have to kill him.
The sun fell below the horizon as the lights of the city began to illuminate. Timur sat on his porch and held a seer stone in each palm and stared at them intently. He summoned the aura from his core and expected some type of reaction or vision. To his dismay however, no such event occurred. The stones still lay there unfazed.
He then tried holding them up to his eyes and tried to peer through them as if they were a pair of binoculars. He still didn’t see anything significant.
I wish these things had come with instructions.
As the night dragged on, Timur continued to fail every attempt at divination through the so-called ‘seer stones’ he had obtained. He even went so far as to draw a pentagram on the ground with chalk and stood in the center of it while holding the stones high in the air as if he were summoning spirits from the underworld to guide him in his quest. Despite all of his efforts, he couldn’t help but feel utterly ridiculous. It seemed as though he were trying to make conversation with a couple of shiny rocks.
It was approaching midnight when he finally got impatient and began knocking the stones violently together as if he were attempting to ignite a spark from flint and steel. And then, one of the stones unexpectedly shattered. He let out a roar of inhuman rage, and chucked the remains of the stones off of his penthouse balcony and into the night air.
In the early hours of the following morning, Timur took the elevator down to the subterranean parking garage. While dreaming, he had stumbled across the solution to his problem. Instead of trying to find Allan’s Amulet, he would make Allan bring it to him.
Having summoned the Creed of Nephilim, he passed through a shadow to meet them. He was greeted by nearly fifty hooded men who bowed as he entered the main chamber.
“Your holiness.” they all chanted in unison.
“Thank you for assembling on such short notice.” he passed a can of black spray-paint and a small note to one of the creed members, “Please write this message on the wall.”
The creed member bowed and obeyed his instructions.
He turned to another, “Bring in our prisoner.”
A few minutes later, screams could be heard as several creed members carried Lily’s thrashing body into the room.
“Silence her.” Timur commanded.
One of the creed members took a small slab of wood and throttled her on the back of the head. Her body fell limp, unconscious.
“Lay her on the altar, and gather around.”
The creed member who had been spray-painting the message quickly finished and joined the circle of brotherhood around the altar. Together they all began chanting in a foreign tongue. He joined hands with them and summoned the powers from his core. Timur pulled out his sack of ashes, and slowly poured them on the altar next to Lily’s body. The sickly green light soared out of his eyes, and with a flash of brilliant green light they were gone.
Chapter Seventeen: Revelation
And they took wives for themselves from the sons of man. Wherefore, each of their wives became heavy with child; insomuch that they travailed much and didst lay down their lives whilst bearing their children…
– Methuselah 9:3 –
It was just past midnight when John was rudely awoken by a sudden punch to the gut. He stirred wildly, throwing his hands up in the air to fight off his attacker. It wouldn’t be the first time he was left beaten and bloodied on the side of the street. His eyes flashed open in confusion as his fists whirled in the empty air above him. There was not a soul in sight.
He sat up and looked around.
Did I dream the attack?
His hand rubbed his sore stomach, and he knew there was no way the pain was imagined. Suddenly, his eyes fell upon a faintly glowing object off in the corner of the dark alleyway. He crawled toward it slowly, and then stopped short in shock.
It can’t be.
There, amidst a scattering of garbage and dirt, lay one of the most precious objects ever to exist. It was the Urim, one of the Seer Stones described in the eighth chapter of Leviticus. He carefully lifted it in his palm, and stared at it in awe. Long ago he had held this very stone in his left palm, with its counterpart in the other. With them, he had obtained the divination of his greatest prophecy. He looked around at his feet. The Thummim, the Urim’s counterpart, couldn’t be far. Never in the history of time had the stones been separated from each other.
He slowly scanned the ground along the alleyway, seeking its similar faint glow. To his consternation, no glow could be seen. And then, his eyes fell upon a disturbing sight. To his horror, he recognized the fragment of the stone laying inches from his left foot. He reached down and picked it up with trembling fingers. Tears formed in his eyes as he recognized the shattered fracture of the Thummim. His eyes took in the alley around him, and saw small glints of glass-like pieces glittering with the faint reflection of moonlight.
He dropped to his knees as the tears flowed freely. The sacred objects had been entrusted to him by his dearest friend. This friend he had loved, adored, and even worshiped. It was only a few short days before his friend’s untimely death that the stones came into his possession. He took a sacred vow to return them to the tomb of Elijah in the other world after he fulfilled his sacred calling. His friend bequeathed to him many sacred mysteries that day, all of which he vowed to protect with his life. On that same day his friend laid his hands upon his head, and granted unto him the most precious gift of all.
“Ye shall never taste of death.” he spoke, his red robe billowing in the wind, “And I charge thee to safeguard these precious things until my return.”
He sobbed in despair. He had sworn to his beloved friend that he would protect the sacred stones with his life. His mind filled with memories of the days that followed. Judas’ betrayal with a kiss, the soldier’s ear his beloved friend healed before they arrested him, Peter’s denial three times of affiliation with them... The memories attacked with a brutal force.
Though it was over two thousand years ago, it still feels like it happened yesterday.
He reasoned that obviously Timur had attempted to use the seer stones to his advantage, but must not have understood that only the truly worthy and humble of God’s servants have access to its powers of divination. John surely knew this from his own experience. Almost two whole centuries had passed before he was worthy enough to use the stones. On the run, he had been hunted by Roman Soldiers on a daily basis. All of his friends had been tortured and killed long ago, and he remained the lone survivor. Each time they attempted to kill him, he miraculously survived. Finally they caught up with him and exiled him on a lonely island off the coast of Italy.
While exiled upon the island of Patmos, he finally found peace and solitude. With his bow slung over his shoulder, it was there that he was able to muster a white aura of light around him while holding out the two stones in each palm. As pure light streamed from his eyes, his mind filled with many visions and prophecies about both worlds. All of the visions were symbolic, and consisted of horsemen and dragons. Very little did he comprehend, but he remembered the charge he had received from his beloved friend to make a record of everything he saw and to publish it for the w
orld.
When he awoke from this vision he found himself in a strange land. No longer was he on the barren island, but was surrounded by a lush forest. At his feet was a well-tread pathway. Overcome with emotion, he felt as though he had finally passed into the afterlife where he would find his friends. As he explored his surroundings, he ultimately rounded a corner to behold a vast and glorious city.
He entered the city gates and saw that it was filled with many people dressed in strange clothing. As he attempted to listen to their whisperings, he realized they were in a foreign tongue. When he tried to ask for help in his native Hebrew, he was looked upon with awe. Many dropped to their knees with their hands pressed together in the universal symbol of prayer. He tried to stop them, feeling their actions were sacrilegious.
Maybe I am in heaven after all!
Ultimately he was led to the center of the city where a glorious cathedral-like building stood out majestically. He was led up the grand staircase, where several men and women flanked in beautiful apparel bowed before him. At the top stood a man with a white beard holding his arms open in a welcoming gesture. Though the man was very handsome, he was the furthest thing from what he expected to be ‘God’. What happened next completely threw him off guard.
“Welcome to Atlantis,” the man cheered in his native Hebrew, “the Holy City of Enoch!”
Chapter Eighteen: New World
And the Watchers mourned much for the loss of their wives, and didst curse God for their sorrows; for their wives begat Nephilim, a race of large giants. But behold, God was wroth that these Watchers had corrupted the daughters of Eve…
– Methuselah 9:4 –
Lily woke up dizzy. As she opened her eyes, she realized she was lying on her side. The room slowly came into focus and she was vaguely aware that her arms were twisted behind her back. When she tried to move them, she found that they were bound together at the wrists. She attempted to roll over, but felt an uncomfortable tingling sensation in her left arm.
An orange glow from the setting sun was streaming into the enormous room, and Lily was appalled by the elegant beauty of the ornate details. Even the rugs had delicate carvings that had been shaved and the marble floor looked very expensive. The chandeliers that hung from the ceiling were breathtaking, and the unique woodcarvings in the pillars and the awnings were awe inspiring.
“Mfft!” she tried to call for help, but the only sound that came out was muffled.
She became aware of the distinct smell of duct tape, and could taste it in her mouth. Even more alarming was the faint taste of dried blood on her lips.
Her mind was reeling. The last thing she could remember was driving to Allan’s house with the intent to leave the note she had written for him on the doorstep. She was surprised to find Timur inside without any signs of a forced entry.
Though the agency had assigned her to get close to Timur and Allan three years ago due to the NSA’s inability to maintain active GFID Nano-chips to monitor them, she was absolutely certain that Timur had never uncovered this secret.
But why else would he be ransacking Allan’s home?
She could painfully remember the resounding crack as her head collided with the hardwood floor. After that there was a blur of memory. She remembered waking up in a cold damp room trapped inside a cage made of barbed wire. She screamed for help for several hours, but nobody came to her rescue. She didn’t realize she had fallen asleep until she was roughly dragged to her feet in the middle of the night. She remembered screaming in terror as several cloaked figures dragged her down a damp corridor just before she was knocked unconscious again.
How long was I unconscious? If it’s evening now… that must mean I’ve been knocked out for over eighteen hours?!
She heard voices enter the room. Fearing for her life, she held as still as possible and squinted her eyes. In the distance she could make out two men coming toward her. One of them was wearing a black cloak just like the men who had dragged her out of the barbed-wire cage. The other was wearing a fine robe with a medieval-looking tunic underneath. As they got closer, she could make out what they were saying.
“Verily, thou doth misunderstand.” the older man in the fine robe sounded frustrated, “What say ye, perchance the villagers learn his Holiness has brought hither a woman from Earth? Methinks they shall be wroth!”
A woman from earth? What are these strange men talking about?
“His Holiness has given his final word.” the cloaked figure’s voice escaped from somewhere beneath the dark hood, “And as you are well aware, betrayal of his command is punishable by immediate death.”
“Lest ye return this woman thither, we shall be doomed unto death!” the older man stammered angrily, “Anon we shall be infected!”
“Your paranoia is unfounded.” the cloaked figure sounded frustrated.
“Unfounded, pray tell?!” he seethed, “Mayhaps thy Creed had not desecrated our Holy Lands with thine disease and filth?! Our world ‘twas pure!”
Their world? Holy Lands? Is this some kind of sick joke?
“Watch your words, old man.” he warned, “They may be among your last.”
“Old man, say ye?” the older man shook his head in astonishment, “Before thine Creed hath come hither to our world with thine diseases, our life expectancy hath remained prolonged like unto thine biblical ancestors.”
“Oh?” he asked intrigued, “How long exactly?”
“Thirty score, ‘twas common.” the older man explained.
“I don’t understand.”
“In thine dialect,” he clarified, “six-hundred years.”
“You’re kidding.” the cloaked individual scoffed, “That’s impossible.”
Where am I? Is this some crazed medieval theme park?
“Verily, I assure thee of this possibility. Hence, now our life expectancy doth dwindle.” he sighed, “Ten score ‘tis now common.”
“Again, I don’t know what ‘score’ means.”
“Two hundred years ‘tis now most common.” the old man sighed.
“Whatever.”
“Pray tell,” an idea struck the old man, “perchance we exile the woman hither to the northern lands?”
“I’m afraid the winters there are so unbearable that nobody can survive the cold.”
“Verily, ‘tis so.” the older man smiled.
“If you’re not careful,” the cloaked individual warned, “I’ll make sure you’re the one who gets exiled there instead.”
The older man huffed angrily, and then stormed off. She held her body rigid and closed her eyes fully as the cloaked individual came closer. She could sense his close proximity, and it made her uneasy. She heard a slight splash of water near her head. She cringed unexpectantly when she felt water run down her face.
“Miss Thatcher,” the cloaked individual spoke, “are you awake?”
She let out a soft moan to convince him she was just barely waking up.
“This may sting a little.” he warned as he applied the damp cloth to the side of her head again.
The searing paid was excruciating, and her eyes flew wide open. She tried to scream, but it was muffled by the duct tape. She was then aware of another cloaked individual standing in the distance.
“Brother!” the one attending to her wounds yelled, “Please tell His Holiness that our prisoner is awake.”
The other cloaked individual hurried away at the command.
Lily stopped squirming and forced herself to endure the pain. As he continued to clean the wound, she maneuvered her tied-up hands so that her fingers could feel along her vertebrae. Once she found the familiar bulge of her surgically-installed locator beacon, she pressed down on it firmly.
She could then hear the echo of footsteps approaching behind her.
“Comfortable, sweetheart?”
She tried to yell angrily at the familiar voice but her words were muted by the duct tape.
“I know this isn’t ideal,” Timur carefully removed the duct t
ape, “but I need your ‘kidnapping’ to be convincing.”
My what?!
“How are you feeling?”
She ignored him.
“Oh, come on now.” he smiled as he ran his fingers through her brilliant red hair, “Don’t give me the cold shoulder!”
She turned her head his direction, locked eyes with him, and then forcefully spat in his face.
He jolted backward and wiped his face on his sleeve, “That was so uncalled for!”
Lily glared at him, “I hate you.”
“Don’t worry.” he sighed, “You will like me soon enough. In fact, I dare say you will even come to love me.”
“Never.” she seethed in rage.
Timur shook his head chidefully, “You leave me little choice.”
Lily felt her concentration waning. Her thoughts were muddled as she felt like she was about to lose consciousness. She was still vaguely aware of her surroundings, but almost felt as though a cage was enclosing around her. She fidgeted against the straps holding her arms down as she felt her mind being buried deeper and deeper into her subconsciousness. She tried to scream out in terror, but nothing could escape her lips.
“There, now.” Timur seemed pleased, “That’s better.”
She watched from the back of her mind in horror as he proceeded to caress her hair again.
“My darling Lily,” he cooed, “how could you say such mean words to me?”
“I’m sorry, my lord.” she heard her voice speak.
“Now,” he paused, “What did you really mean to say?”
“I love you, my lord.”
“Yes, yes.” he smiled, “That’s much better. Now kiss me.”
He leaned down, and she felt her lips pucker in anticipation. As their lips met, she screamed with rage in the back of her mind. No matter how hard she struggled to protest, she couldn’t force herself to make it stop. She felt her tongue dancing with his, and desired nothing more than to vomit. After what seemed to last forever, he finally extracted his tongue and they parted lips.
Conquest: Rise of the Fifth Horseman (The Fifth Horseman Series Book 1) Page 7