03 Reckoning - Guardian

by Laury Falter

“Vengeance,” I mumbled. “Sarai was after vengeance.”

  “Vengeance against messengers, against guardians, against men.”

  Unfortunately, remembering back, it was easy to recognize in Sarai.

  “Eran, he took an innocent young girl and taught her to be a monster.”

  I shuddered again, understanding the depths Abaddon would go to secure what he wanted. He wanted an army of his own. He’d started it with Sarai and was continuing to build it to this day.

  Having heard this all before and having gone through his own path of realization, he patiently brushed a strand of hair from my forehead, allowing time for me to absorb the reality of what he revealed.

  “But she wasn’t forced from the afterlife. She fell as an Alterum,” I said, bewildered. “How did she end up that way?”

  “Abaddon,” he replied simply.

  I nodded. “Abaddon,” I repeated, though my voice was thicker with anger. “He sealed her fate, teaching her hatred and destruction, changing her from an Alterum to a Fallen One and ensuring her death would be eternal.”

  I scoffed with revulsion.

  “Knowing this,” Eran said, “can you think of any clues you might have picked up while watching through Sarai’s eyes?”

  I thought, hard. The conversation had not mentioned any particular location and the home in France had been too stuffy, too cold in its décor to have allowed for any possessions that might be deemed too personal, removing any possibility of giving me insight towards their tendencies as a family. In the end I had to release my pent up breath and admit defeat. “I-I can’t…”

  “You’re observant, Magdalene. If you didn’t see a clue, it’s because one wasn’t there.”

  “I’ll try again,” I said, curling up against Eran, intent on trying to fall asleep again.

  “Oh no you don’t,” said Eran, lifting me up to an uncomfortable position.

  I sighed irritably.

  “It’s almost sunrise. You can’t go back to sleep.”

  Thinking about it, I replied, “No, I-I really think I can.”

  He laughed lightly, his chest quivering against my shoulder. “I mean that I won’t be here when you wake. Ms. Beedinwigg and I have initiated early morning trainings.”

  I groaned.

  “That is pretty much the same response we received from everyone else,” he said, a little amused.

  Shifting, he slipped out of bed and stood up.

  The sun’s light, already beginning to come through the window, cast shadows across his body, accentuating the contours of his muscles. I openly stared at him, taking in every detail before he could dress.

  “Careful, Magdalene,” he said, bending to pick his clothes from the chair. “You’ll make me blush.”

  He said this with his signature smirk that literally took my breath away.

  Then he took his time slipping his clothes on.

  Whether intentional or not, the result was a strong urge to get out of bed and wrap my limbs around him. Regrettably, I couldn’t do it. My wound was still recovering and my efforts would simply end with an escort back to bed and a scolding from Evelyn.

  Instead, Eran left the room, returning a few minutes later with a tray of oatmeal and bacon and the confirmation that Felix had been purposefully led to believe he was needed far more in the courtyard for training than in the kitchen.

  Eran kissed me lightly on the lips then, a considerable tease to me, and left the room to join the others already causing a ruckus in the courtyard below.

  That was when the irritation began. I still hadn’t found anything we could use to find Abaddon. Each passing day meant Abaddon grew more prepared, posing a greater threat than the day before.

  For most of the morning, I studied my way through the stack of books Ezra left while trying to ignore the nagging irritation. But it was like trying to ignore a splinter stuck in your skin. To try and take my mind off it, I would occasionally step out of bed and cross the room to watch Eran tutor the Alterums.

  I’d only seen Eran train once, having interrupted him during a sparring session, and it had ended quickly after. This time I was able to enjoy it, sitting on the windowsill, taking in the fluidity of his movements and the strength of his attacks. The beauty of him took my breath away.

  He noticed I was watching during the afternoon on the third day, hesitating so that he was caught off guard. It was the only time I saw Eran struck. Laughing it off, he’d returned to practicing but every once in a while took fleeting looks to see if I was still there.

  The truth was I wished I was down there with him, working on getting my body back to the level it needed to be. The Fallen Ones were preparing too and I needed to be at my peak when they returned.

  Time, at that point, was my enemy.

  Then, on my fifth return to bed, I found an exam in between two textbooks, clearly hidden there by Ezra. I scoffed but nonetheless took the pencil mischievously slipped in a book spine and began to scribble my answers.

  I’m not sure when it happened but the next thing I knew my body was laying straight against a hard stone bench.

  Bewildered, I sat up and looked around at the pocket of scrolls. That irritation stayed with me, even in a place of absolute peace and tranquility. That told me something, which was…I needed to address it.

  I ignored the concern that Eran was not beside me back on earth, ready to comfort me when I returned and headed for the scroll that listed those who died last in Paris, France.

  I could almost see the frown Eran would have when he found out.

  Still, I pulled the scroll from its pocket and allowed it to unroll. As expected, it was very long, taking several minutes until it was fully open.

  “Elam Philocrates.”

  As the scroll slid through my hand, fingers came in to view and wrapped around on my wrist.

  “You don’t want to do that,” said a voice directly behind me.

  Rotating at the waist, I found Dominick staring back at me, concerned. He withdrew his hand and, because we were floating, he flapped his wings, almost indistinguishably, and shifted to face me.

  “Trust me…” Something in his tone made me question my impulse so I glanced down at the scroll and Elam’s name, deciding for myself.

  I knew what Dominick was warning me against. Elam’s lives would not be easy to revisit. Still, I had been through others, including Abaddon’s who was the most malevolent of them all.

  Elam’s lifetimes were listed as most others, I noticed, but when my scanning of them reached the end my head jolted back. Something I hadn’t expected stood out to me.

  “He’s-He’s still alive,” I muttered to myself.

  “He is,” said Dominick plainly as if everyone knew but me.

  “But he was in the cave…the prison…with Abaddon. He was involved in the fight, wasn’t he? He couldn’t have survived…” But I already began to question it. Thinking back, I hadn’t sent him to eternal death. I would have noticed it.

  Dominick smiled patiently. “Abaddon survived, didn’t he?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then what makes you think Elam didn’t?”

  I thought for a moment but had no answer and Dominick explained further.

  “Elam is not only elusive, appearing when needed and disappearing when he is not, but he also is very difficult to kill.”

  That I knew.

  “Then he’s helping Abaddon…” I ventured.

  Dominick nodded quietly in agreement.

  “So I do need to visit his past lives.” My resolution had returned.

  “For what reason?” Dominick challenged, curiously resistant to the idea.

  I didn’t immediately respond, not wanting to say the words. Somehow voicing them would make them more real here and I wanted to retain some small measure of surreal ignorance in this place of tranquility.

  “Maggie?” Dominick persisted and I went ahead to blurt the answer.

  “Abaddon is building an army to attack us.”

&nbs
p; “Us?” Dominick asked, needing more information.

  “The Alterums, Eran, me…everyone.”

  Dominick considered this news with amazing peace and self-assurance. He’d been through this before, or so he thought. To help him understand the potential impact, I added, “I believe this is Abaddon’s final attempt to take control.”

  “Of what?” Dominick’s eyebrows furled, showing an ounce more concern.

  “The world.” I waited for that announcement to sink in before adding, “His plan is to dominate the other dimension entirely.”

  Dominick’s head dropped in contemplation. It seemed to me that he was finally coming to a level of awareness that Eran and I had been at all along, but then I was proven wrong. Dominick knew more than he let on. I learned this when he said quietly, “It always has been.”

  He stared back with concern. “You expect this to be more than a battle,” he stated, grasping the significance of what I was telling him.

  I shook my head. “Dominick…I expect this to be the war.”

  I watched him as concern, of the same magnitude we’d been dealing with back on earth, crossed his face.

  “So it is finally coming to pass…” he muttered.

  “Yes…it is.”

  “He’s using you, Maggie, as a reason to gather the Fallen Ones, to motivate them to becoming a single, unified force. But his goal is incongruous…it differs from theirs. While they will be bent on murdering you, he will be focused on total destruction of all Alterums, opening the way to dominating that dimension.”

  “How do you know that?” I asked, astounded now. “How do you know so much, Dominick? How do you know about Elam…about Abaddon? I don’t understand…”

  He reached out and laid his hand on my shoulder briefly. “You can believe what I am saying. Elam told me himself.” His arm fell then and his eyes glazed over as memories returned to him. “When I participated in Eran’s army, long ago, Elam was my focal point, my initiative. My mission was to remove him…entirely.”

  “Send him to eternal death, you mean.”

  “Yes, I was to locate and deliver him to a messenger for the final strike…and I came close. After finding Elam administering the Russian gulag, performing experiments on its inmates, I incapacitated him…or so I thought. He demonstrated his resilience somewhere over Germany, debilitating me instead. While restricted, he took his time with me, motivating me to remain alert with each slice by feeding me information on Abaddon’s plan, the same plan I just mentioned to you.” When he was finished, his expression showed no anger, no animosity, no fear. He had recovered from his ordeal, with only Elam’s words leaving an impact…thankfully.

  “That is all you will find in Elam’s scroll, that and the substance of nightmares,” he warned, tipping his head towards my hands that still held it.

  My mind did not comprehend the warning, though. It was centered on one overwhelming fact. Elam confirmed that all Abaddon was waiting for was a single unifying reason.

  “I gave him that reason, Dominick. The Fallen Ones are rallying because of my hunts, my executions of their kind.”

  I exhaled, the reality of the destruction I had caused, will cause, caving in my chest. It felt as if sand had filled my lungs but it was only me…the realization of the destruction I had created coming at me with full force.

  With one last glimmer of hope, I challenged Dominick’s assertion.

  “But Dominick, how could Abaddon possibly think he would ever be able to destroy the Alterums completely? Once killed, they can just return to earth in whole again.”

  Dominick lifted his eyebrows, allowing me time to figure it out for myself. As it came to me, I sucked in a deep breath of air.

  “Elsics…He’s going to use the Elsics…”

  Dominick nodded again, this time a sadness floating across his face.

  That epiphany spurred something in me that I hadn’t felt for some time, a deep sense of urgent drive.

  “Dominick? Could you do me a favor?” I asked, trying to contain my emotions.

  “Anything, Maggie.”

  “Could you alert the others here, specifically the rest of Eran’s army? Tell them to get ready…We are going to need them.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN: ACHAN

  I never did get the chance to visit Elam’s past life. The nervousness created during my discussion with Dominick sent me back to earth, waking me from my nap, the memory of Dominick’s message running through my mind.

  …gathering the Fallen Ones…

  …going to use the Elsics…

  …dominating that dimension…

  No, no. This dimension.

  Eran came through the door of our room then, disturbing my line of thought.

  Before he could close it, I was already sitting up.

  “Eran, I need to train with you.”

  He halted in the middle of the room with a tray of food in his hands to stare back suspiciously. Then he verified just how well he knew me. “Did you fall asleep?”

  My shoulders dropped. This was urgent, couldn’t he see that? There was no time for questions.

  “Help me. I need to get dressed,” I said, already trying to stand.

  “Oh…no you don’t,” he said, rushing to the edge of my bed and stopping me, which made me groan.

  “Magdalene, do you see any Fallen Ones?” he asked, using his seductive sense of reason.

  When I refused to answer, he did it for me. “No, you don’t. Until you do, you will remain in recovery.” He sighed in irritation, bending to sit on the bed next to me. “You did, didn’t you? Picked out another scroll…”

  “I didn’t go through it though,” I said allowing myself the credit. “Dominick stopped me.”

  Eran’s face relaxed then. “Thank you, Dominick,” he said out loud, his face slightly tilted to the sky, and then he turned to me. “This isn’t healthy, Magdalene. You’re…unraveled.”

  That was when it happened. I felt them coming and fought them back but in the end they won. Tears spilled over my lids and down to the cover.

  “It’s all my fault, Eran,” I said through my weeping. “I brought this war on…I gave the Fallen Ones a rallying cry. All of you are in danger…again…because of me.”

  Eran remained still, no movement, no speaking, letting me release the guilt that had built up over so long. Then, when my body had relieved itself of the shudders and tears, I lifted my head.

  He was gazing at me, his lips puckered in disapproval.

  “First, you don’t put us in danger. We put ourselves in danger. It’s not your choice. Second, this is not my wife. She would not resort to self-pity when she is needed most. Now wipe off the tears and go find her…because I love her and I want her back.”

  Sniffling, I nodded. Then it was him who reached up and with a few soft brushes of his thumb my face was cleared of its streaks. Then he slipped his fingers below the rim of my jaw and drew me towards him until our lips met, brushing against one another, soothing my upset.

  “He’s going to use Elsics,” I said in a whisper, unintentionally, my mind betraying me and reverting back to my conversation with Dominick.

  That caused Eran to pull back. “Abaddon is going to use Elsics?”

  “Yes, I don’t know how or when but…but Dominick confirmed it.”

  “Then we can be certain that’s accurate information.” His expression was firm for only a few seconds and then relaxed. “I’ll inform the others. We’ll need to modify our training.” I could see he was already contemplating it.

  Elsics would pose a greater threat and a stronger defense. Knowing this, Eran was already formulating a plan. As he did, I watched him, taken by his focus, determination, and the spirit in his eyes.

  “In the meantime,” he said, his attention returning to me. “I see that you haven’t finished your exam.” It was his attempt to redirect my thoughts away from Fallen Ones.

  He pointed to the piece of paper that had been so dull I’d fallen asleep while filling it ou
t.

  I groaned.

  “Ezra wouldn’t be too impressed to hear you right now,” he cautioned.

  “Then let her take the test.”

  He laughed at my retort and then leaned towards me, stopping just an inch away. “Welcome back, wife.”

  I smiled back, loving the sound of that name.

  “No more dozing,” he commanded then with a wag of his finger. “If you do, deliver messages. Give yourself a break from reviewing past lives. You need it, sweetheart.”

  There was something in his tone or removed from it actually that made me reconsider falling back asleep. As I watched him, I knew what it was. His lack of insistence told me that he was cautioning me but not enforcing it. He couldn’t. He had no way of stopping me once I was back in the afterlife. Therefore, he was relying on my judgment, even though it hadn’t proven to be so good lately. For this very reason alone, I silently promised to follow his advice, or more precisely, consider it.

  “Don’t forget your lunch,” he motioned towards the tray he’d brought with him, which he had set next to me. “It’ll help you get your strength back…even if it was prepared by Felix.”

  A quick glance validated it. The plate had three mounds, each of varying degrees of brown hues.

  “What is this?” I asked.

  Eran was at the door by then. “Mush.” As I inspected them from afar, he added wistfully, “Don’t worry, they’re edible. He made me try them.”

  “I’m sorry,” I called out.

  “So was I,” Eran replied as the door closed.

  The remainder of the day was taken up with studying, visits by my housemates in the evening, and taking messages for Alterums before Eran advised them it was time for my rest. That night, after landing in the Hall of Records, I purposefully ignored the P’s, or more precisely the scroll for Paris, France, and headed for the scrolls that would take me to the loved ones of those I was delivering messages to.

  While there were quite a few messages, I was able to deliver them efficiently and by the end of my mental list of names I was back sitting in the Hall of Records, waiting for the morning to arrive.

  The hall was resoundingly quiet with not a single soul there but me as I took a seat on my stone bench. After a few minutes I began to tap my feet, then I started to hum, and then my fingers began drumming my thighs.