The Journey

by Jennifer Ensley

  “We are completely surrounded by several monasteries of the Orthodox Church, right?”

  I looked at him a moment before my eyes widened with realization. “Ahh… The Garden of Eden.”

  He smiled. “The Tree of Life that grew in the center… a shadow of the cross of Christ. The symbol of life… the union of heaven and earth… of spirit and matter.”

  “Just like us,” I barely whispered.

  He kissed the side of my head and pulled me against him. “Yes, Pooh… just like us.”

  *****

  For the next five months I bounced from one place to the next. I didn’t have to use the Nether a single time. Uriel came when I whispered his name, and then dropped me off wherever I needed to go. I never even had to stick him with my thumbnail. Traveling with the elegant, golden-haired Archangel doesn’t deplete the fuel in my stone. It yet remains completely red with Azazel’s blood I acquired at our last meeting.

  “I love to see a woman lost in thought, especially you. The way your lovely jaw clenches and relaxes as you write… the tiny creases between your brow as you try to think of just the right word.”

  I looked up at Drella, smiling and relieved. “It’s so good to see you, Babe. I’ve missed you like crazy. Where have you been hiding?”

  “Not hiding, Pooh—busy.”

  “Busy? For six whole weeks? What item is causing you that much trouble?”

  “It’s not a particular item that’s had me rushing from this place to that. There’s something strange going on around Oharaimachi.”

  “Strange? Like how?”

  “An Other Realm is partially settling over that area not too far from that portal bridge I took you to.”

  “An Other Realm?”

  “I’m not really supposed to talk to you about stuff like that.” He took a quick glance around. “There are different realms and layers to this universe. It’s nothing for you to worry about, nothing that’s cause for concern. That’s just the way it is. No layer or realm knows or interferes with the other, so the whole thing is of no consequence really.”

  “…Until now.”

  “Well, I’m just not sure. You see, people aren’t even acting like there’s anything strange or different going on. Apparently, they either haven’t noticed the Otherworldly inhabitants, or they can’t see them.”

  “So… what’s the problem then?”

  “The people of Earth may not be able to see them… but the people of Gokula can definitely see you guys.”

  “Are they hostile?”

  “Not as a rule, no. The powers that be are a bit concerned, though. If the people of Gokula begin to interact with the people of Earth—even though you guys don’t see or realize it—serious problems could arise.”

  “Problems for whom? Us? Earthlings?”

  “I hope not. No, I was speaking of problems for the Angels… and the Guardians.”

  “…Oh.”

  “Anyway, nothing for you to worry your pretty little head over.” He looked then to my journal. “What were you writing? You seemed completely lost in thought.”

  “I was.” I glanced down at the dark ink scratched across the honey-beige pages. “I’m keeping a meticulous journal concerning my adventures.”

  Drella smiled. “Is it an epic?”

  “You know it is.”

  “Am I in it?”

  “The main hero—my Knight in Shining Armor.”

  He quickly kissed my cheek. “I love you too much, Pooh.”

  “Yes, I fear we have been stricken with the same illness.”

  “Lovesickness?”

  I chuckled. “As good a diagnosis as I’ve ever heard.”

  “Are you gonna be in Norway for a while?”

  “Several days, yeah.”

  “I don’t know if I can stay that long, but I want to spend as much time with you as I can. Have you gotten a room yet?”

  “Yep.”

  “Eaten dinner?”

  “Nope.”

  “Dinner it is then. What would you like?”

  “Can you get cheeseburgers in Norway?”

  He smiled with only one corner of his mouth. “I’m not sure. Let’s go see.”

  *****

  “I’m full as a tick.”

  Drella chuckled softly and kissed the side of my head. “You’re beautiful as a butterfly.”

  “You’re prejudiced in my regard.”

  “Sure am.” He kissed me again. “I don’t like it when I look at this.” He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed my finger. “It makes me queasy and uncomfortable every time I notice it.”

  “What? My tattoo?”

  “Yeah. I don’t like seeing another man’s ring on your finger. Even if it isn’t a real ring… or a real man.”

  I snickered. “You don’t consider Uriel a real man?”

  “He’s an Angel. It’s not the same.” He sighed. “Still… I don’t really like it.”

  “No need to worry, my love. There’s no chance of me falling for anyone save you. Got it?”

  “Got it.”

  “But I better never see a ring, a manacle, or even a tattoo on your finger. You got that, too?”

  He lightly tapped the tip of my nose and smiled. “Got it, Pooh. So, how’s your job as Witness going?”

  “Well, I’m not really sure, Drell.” I looked up into his beautiful eyes. “I’m not even sure why I was given this task to start with. I’m not complaining, mind you.” I squeezed him a little tighter. “Anything that will let me spend even one evening cuddled up with you like this, is a chance I wouldn’t pass up for the world.”

  He tenderly kissed my forehead and began gently playing with my hair. “What’s the problem, Pooh?”

  “It’s not really a problem. It’s just… I haven’t really done anything—not myself. I’m just merely recording what all the amazingly knowledgeable scholars who came before me have already figured out.”

  “Well then, perhaps that’s your purpose—writing all those revelations down in one place.”

  “I guess… but at this rate, I’ll be done before you know it.”

  “And how is that a problem?”

  “If I’m no longer needed as a Witness, then I won’t get to spend time like this with you.”

  He smiled. Dang… I love it when he does that.

  “Now that your eyes have been opened, Pooh, now that you can actually see me… I won’t be leaving you alone. Witness or no.”

  “You mean… I’ll still be able to see all those things I couldn’t see before?”

  “Once you are given the sight, you keep it. Gift or curse—you are forever changed.”

  I didn’t speak for a few silent heartbeats. “That kind of makes my tummy hurt. In a good way, and a bad way.”

  “Yes… I’m certain it does.” He snuggled me closer to him. “Tell me how far you have come with the prophesy.”

  “I’m nearly at the end. The seven seals were all opened during the reign of the Roman Empire. When the seventh seal was opened, seven Angels came before God and were each given a trumpet. Each trumpet represented a particular thing that would happen upon Earth when the horn was blown.”

  “And have those trumpets been blown?”

  “Yeah. You see… there’s a design to the prophesy.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Meaning… first there are seven seals, then seven trumpets, then seven vials. The first four of each of these things worked in correlation with each other. The first four seals were the Four Horsemen. The first four trumpets were the four Angels loosed upon the Earth—destroying one-third of the then-known world. Also, within the seventh of each of these things… there was the next thing. Within the seventh seal were the seven trumpets, and within the seventh trumpet were the seven vials.”

  “Yeah… I see what you mean by design. Tell me. What did the first four Angels do that destroyed a third of the world?”

  “Tons of stuff. When the first Angel sounded, fire and hail—mingled with bl
ood—was cast down upon the Earth and burned up everything green. Second Angel—great mountains were caught on fire and cast into the sea, turning a third of it to blood, destroying a third of the sea creatures and ships. Then the third Angel came along and caused a great star to fall from the heavens, burning. It fell upon the rivers and springs. The star bloodied a third of the waters and made them bitter, killing people.”

  “And the fourth Angel’s trumpet?”

  “It caused a third of the sun, the moon, and the stars to go dark.”

  “What’s all that even mean?”

  “Well, just like in the previous parts of the prophesy… every time great things—like the sun and the moon and whatnot—are affected, it’s refers to the powers that be, here on Earth. Like the established government, rulers, leaders, the systematic hierarchy—rocking them, destroying them, shaking the very foundation of civilization.”

  “And that’s what you believe it refers to here as well?”

  I nodded. “The four trumpets, the four Angels… following along with the design, they will be interrelated. I believe these were the four barbarian invasions that happened in Rome. First the Goths, then the Vandals, the Huns, and finally Ostrogoth—from whom all historians date the beginning of the Dark Ages. This was when the first third of the Roman Empire fell.”

  “…Wow…”

  “I know, right? The Dark Ages.” I shivered. “When Rome fell, all real culture and religion and education… it was destroyed.”

  “I remember reading about the invasion of the Goths back in Ancient History class. The… Battle of Adrianople?”

  “Wow… A plus, Babe.”

  When I quickly kissed his cheek, he blushed.

  “Yeah, well, I didn’t play videogames and bail on schoolwork.”

  “Hey, watch it now.”

  He tickled me then. When my giggles slowly died away, I sighed happily and just kept smiling.

  “Ahhh… Where were we now? Oh yeah… the Battle of Adrianople—or Hadrianopolis, as some might say.”

  Drella rolled his eyes. I giggled again.

  “That was one of those pivotal battles that altered the course of history for the entire planet. It was the very first time the Roman Army had been decisively and completely defeated inside the boundaries of the Roman Empire.”

  “And… wasn’t the Emperor killed as well?”

  “Yep—Valens. Ding. Ding. Ding. Gold star for the gorgeous man with the breathtakingly blue eyes.”

  He yanked on my hair, then kissed the side of my head.

  “When Valens was killed in battle, Gratian succeeded him. Gratian immediately gathered up an army to go out and meet the Goths… and try to rescue any remaining troops.”

  “He drew up a peace treaty with the Goths, right?”

  I smiled. “Wow… More top marks for the handsome head of the class.”

  “I’m gonna bite you if you don’t stop teasing me.” He playfully growled out his words against my neck as his tickling began anew.

  It took a little while for me to catch my breath that time. “Whew… Ahhh… Okay, then. Back to today’s lecture.” I snuggled against him again. “The Goths… their big thing was to burn orchards and vineyards on their way through—fill up garden plots with stones, and pretty much destroy all agriculture.”

  “Like the first trumpet… everything green was burned up.”

  “Yeah… So sad.”

  “And stupid. Why would you want to conquer a land you had just destroyed? Where’s the good in that? If you’re gonna take something that belongs to someone else, wouldn’t you want to see gain from it?”

  “I know, right? I always thought the same thing. Why burn a perfectly good castle to the ground? If you’re the stronger man, just kick the current occupants out and live there yourself.”

  “True… but, we aren’t barbarians.”

  “Yeah… Only uneducated, pagan superstitions could defile civilization and help bring on the Dark Ages.”

  “You were right, Pooh… it is sad.”

  I nodded. “The Vandals attacked by sea—sacking and pillaging Rome, before loading up their boats and carrying all their recently-claimed booty away with them.”

  “The second trumpet.”

  “That’s right. And the third trumpet… the third invasion—Attila the Hun. All of his major battles were fought on the rivers. His war strategy was to attack, then feign retreat across the river—tricking the Roman armies into crossing as well.”

  “And then attack them while they were at their weakest.”

  “Exactly.”

  “What was that thing about Attila’s horse getting bloodied?”

  “Oh, that’s one of my favorite stories.”

  Drella chuckled when my eyes lit up.

  “That’s how Attila claimed to be the son of Mars. His horse injured its foot—poor thing. When Attila retraced his steps, he found the point of a sword sticking out of the ground. He dug it up and declared it was the sword of Mars—cast down from the heavens. Then he claimed to be the son of Mars.”

  “Just like the star that fell with the third trumpet. Attila warring on the rivers… bloodying them and making them bitter.”

  I giggled. “No wonder I love you so much. You’re the smartest person I know.”

  “Is that… sarcasm?”

  “No, Drell. I meant it. Really.”

  He smiled and hugged me closer. “What eventually happened to Attila, smarty pants?”

  “A supremely ironic ending. He marched into the city of Rome, kidnapped a princess, and took her back to his mountain palace to marry her. But… he died on his wedding night before he could consummate their union. Then… the Huns just sort of disappeared from history.”

  “How did he die?”

  “A nosebleed.”

  “Oh yeah, I remember now… He feasted so hard after his marriage to the beautiful Goth princess that he choked to death in his drunken stupor. His warriors mourned him by cutting themselves with their own swords.”

  “Because they thought the greatest of all warriors shouldn’t be mourned with something as feminine as tears.”

  “Yep. Only the blood of men could suffice for mourning Attila. And if I remember correctly… he was buried in a three-layer casket made of gold, silver, and iron. Then his entire funeral party was killed so that no one would know where he was buried.”

  “And you do—remember correctly, that is. So… with no one to blame for Attila’s death, there was no one to take revenge out on. They just… disappeared.”

  “Then what of the fourth trumpet?”

  “The sun and the moon and the stars were darkened—the leaders. Pan the spotlight over to stage left and you have… dun da da dun… Odoacer the Ostrogoth. In 476 he marched into the city and claimed the Imperial Throne. An illiterate barbarian was now the King of Rome.”

  “And thus the Dark Ages.”

  “So true. The great Roman Empire fell… never to rise again. Thus the end of civilization in the West. That was it. No more schools, no more roads, no more banks or centralized commerce. The light of culture was completely snuffed out. And gone with it… was all progress and systematic learning—not to be rediscovered until the Renaissance Era.”

  “Over a thousand years later.”

  “It never ceases to amaze me, and it’s just sooo hard to believe… one man can alter the entire fate of humanity to such a degree.”

  “As was prophesied.”

  “Yes… as was prophesied.”

  Chapter

  7

  “Everything going well with you, little one?”

  “Yes, Uriel. Thank you. I’m doing fine. How about you? Any major problems on the Angel front?”

  “Nothing we are not used to… and nothing you should worry your tender heart over.”

  “I’ve been surprised—you showing up every single time I call you. Wait… No,” I quickly added. “I didn’t mean that like it sounded. I mean… I knew you would come when I called you. Y
ou said you would. I just never thought you’d escort me everywhere I needed to go.”

  “I said I would if I had the time. You have caused me no unnecessary hardships thus far.”

  “Hmm… Is it that?” I smiled to myself. “Or is the truth really that you’re just afraid for me to stick you?”

  “Do you believe that I fear you?”

  I glanced up at his flawless face, checking to see if he was being serious. When he narrowed his heavenly eyes, mine went impossibly wide. I quickly ducked my head, scrunched up my shoulders, and looked the opposite way.

  “Tell me, Witness. Do you truly think I come to you out of fear?”

  My head started hurting then—like my brain was desperately hammering against both sides of my skull—and suddenly it was a struggle just to breathe properly.

  When I thought for certain my eyes were going to pop right out of their sockets, I forced myself to glance back up at the infuriated Angel.

  His golden gaze went wide, matching my own. Then, the world began to fade.

  Uriel scooped me up just as I swooned.

  *****

  “Apologies, little one.”

  The Angel was gently wiping my nose with a blood-stained rag when I finally regained consciousness.

  “I was… I was only teasing,” I barely rasped.

  “Yes… I gathered that. Once again, apologies. I am not used to mortals. Well, not ones quite as fragile as you.”

  I tried to smile. “You calling me a weakling?”

  “Not at all. You are strong of will—of that there is no doubt. Yet, the only human girl I have ever been associated with… she handles my anger, my essence, much better than I realized.”

  “What human girl?”

  “She is human no more.” He carefully tucked my hair back behind my ear. “When first we spoke, Naga was no longer mortal.”

  “Naga?”

  He nodded.

  “What kind of name is Naga?”

  “An angelic one—Kagi Naga.”

  “I thought all Angels ended with el… meaning you were from God.”

  He smiled softly. “There are many kinds of Angels. Naga’s job… it is a bloody one.”

  “Oh… well… okay then. But thankfully, Uriel, I still am mortal. And other than the Angel-sticking part, my job’s anything but bloody.”