Insight

by Tina Engel

  I had heard rocks falling from far away. Was it the wall where the door that I thought I had closed for good, had been? Has it been opened, the door separating the Dark One’s world into ours? I wondered.

  Suddenly, I felt him, Brett, and I turned around as he came rushing into the room with panic across his face. Then it was replaced with relief as we met each other in the middle of the room holding each other in an embrace that had the feeling of safety and calm. Soon it turned to passion and we separated just enough so I could see his face, his eyes staring at me, a dark green, showing his need.

  Our lips touched softly at first but then more aggressively, Brett’s arms tightened around me as if he couldn’t get close enough to me. I didn’t want him to let go though, I needed him and knew he needed me.

  My wings, which had retreated into their proper place earlier when I had approached the tunnel, now spread out wide and then came around Brett, wrapping us both in a type of cocoon. I wanted him, his blood, his essence, everything he had, body, mind and soul. He did too, I could read him, our minds connected.

  Then I heard her, and Brett did too, “Not yet. Come home.”

  Our lips parted, but we still were in an embrace, my wings holding us captive, as we heard her say again, very calmly with a bit of amusement in her voice, “Not yet.”

  My wings released us and disappeared into my back as Brett’s eyes changed from the green of passion, to the calm blue that I so enjoyed getting lost in. “You heard it too, didn’t you?” I said, as I tried to compose myself, still feeling the desire to sink my teeth into his skin, anywhere on his body, and drink.

  “Yes, I did.” Brett said with a look of longing which then changed to understanding. “We can’t let that happen again. No matter what, we must stay strong, he is close.”

  I looked up into his eyes as he said this and realized the fear he had experienced, when the earth shook. I was in his mind and the fear was so strong, all consuming.

  Brett took my hands in his and said, “Are you alright? When the ground started to shake, I heard her voice telling me to find you. From a short distance away, I saw a great white shark looking at me. Then it turned, and somehow I knew I was to follow it. It led me here to this room and then disappeared along with the water.”

  I smiled and reassured him that I was shaken a bit but not hurt and then Brett said, “He will not have you, I will die before that happens!” His tone was full of bitterness.

  I realized that when our minds were connected, he saw my meeting with Proteus and heard our conversation. He wasn’t talking about the Dark One either, but Stephan.

  I smiled, squeezed his hands slightly and told him that I trusted in our strength and was confident we would be triumphant in our task at hand. I had no intentions of him dying to save me.

  Brett had a strange look then, which crossed his face briefly, a sadness. He smiled then, brought my hands up to his mouth, and kissed them delicately before releasing them.

  “What is it?” I asked. “What’s wrong?”

  I tried to connect with his mind, but he shut me out. I was shocked and I realized, frustrated, not hurt this time. He was keeping something hidden, down deep inside, and didn’t want me to see it. The ring should have let me see what it was that he was hiding, but I couldn’t see.

  Brett ran a finger across my cheek and the tingling sensation that I got was a calming one, but I still had a look of impatience on my face, wanting to know what he was hiding.

  “Let’s just go see what’s in this tunnel,” He said as he pointed in the direction of the opening, “Since I know that you are intent on doing so.” Brett said with a bit of a smirk on his face, trying to change the subject.

  “I know something is wrong, you are worried about something but don’t want me to be worried too but…” I said, as Brett put a finger to my lips, cutting me off, and just shook his head from side to side. With his lips pursed shut, I knew I would get no more information from him, at this time.

  Chapter 12

  Deception is all around,

  We can’t escape it.

  They don’t play fair,

  But we will adjust,

  We will prevail.

  The tunnel was dark and damp; green algae clung to the walls. It was not a part of the city, built with brick and stone, gems and gold. There were shimmering specks in the solid dirt walls that glowed just enough to allow us to go forward, guiding us to wherever the tunnel led.

  Soon the walls started to change, gradually, from earth to stone. The stones were all symmetrical, placed side by side, creating a wall. The stones were different colors; gold, blue, purple and orange. They were laid out in patterns, as if an artist created these abstract, beautiful pictures.

  There were indents in the stone wall, where lights were glowing softly. The lights were round balls floating in the indents, not attached to anything, just floating and glowing a soft white light.

  I saw it then, at the end of the tunnel, a golden door, with a silver border. As we approached the door, there in the center, was a symbol, a star, and in the middle of the star, was an indentation and I knew what it was.

  I reached out my hand to place my finger in it, but Brett took my hand to stop me. “We don’t know what this is.” He said. “I don’t think you should touch it.”

  I took my hand from his, giving him a slight look of annoyance. Reaching up with both of my hands, I removed my cameo pin from my dress. Brett’s eyes, showed understanding then and he didn’t object as I reached out to place the cameo into the middle of the star. It fit just like it did in the doorway to Gehenna.

  Brett had his knife out the entire time we were walking in the tunnel, but now he extended it to be his sword. He looked around to make sure no one was there, and then focused on the cameo as I slid it into the space.

  As I brought my hand back away from the door, we waited for something to happen. Suddenly, on both sides of the star, indents started to appear. When they were done, they resembled hand prints, small, like a woman’s hands.

  I looked to Brett as he turned his head to look at me, and letting out a deep breath, as if holding it, he whispered, “Be careful.”

  I touched his shoulder in an affectionate way, and approached the wall again. I felt Brett behind me, close enough to feel the warmth of his body. I realized that I was chilled all of a sudden, maybe a bit frightened. I reached up and placed my hands into the handprints. They fit perfectly.

  The area under my hands started to glow, as did the cameo, then suddenly, a strange pulsing sound started. The sound seemed to be coming from the star symbol. My hands tingled and I felt Brett’s hands go onto my waist, just above my hips. He didn’t pull me away, but was ready to if need be.

  I knew somehow it was time to remove my hands. As I did, the cameo fell, and without thinking, I reached out to catch it before it hit the ground. As I stood and backed away just a bit, Brett stayed firmly behind me, hands gripping a bit firmer, as a split appeared down the middle of the door, and it swung open, as if someone on both sides was opening it slowly.

  I turned my head to look up at Brett and he had a look of curiosity, but also wariness on his face. I turned back to face the open doorway. It was dimly lit but looked like a large room of sorts, from what I could see.

  I turned towards Brett and in doing so, removed his hands from my waist. I said in a somewhat silly way, “Do you want to go first or shall I?”

  Brett of course, saying nothing, stepped forward towards the door. I didn’t move, just watched as he approached the opening, but when he attempted to enter, it appeared that he ran into something. He was stopped abruptly and a vibrating sound came from the entrance.

  Brett turned towards me with a perplexed expression and then turning back, put his hand up in the doorway. His hand stopped and the strange vibrating sound happened again.

  “Well it looks like I’m not welcome inside.” Brett said.

  I came up beside him, and asked if it hurt and he informed me th
at it didn’t. Whatever it was that had stopped him, didn’t want to hurt him. I reached my hand up, assuming that I would be blocked too, by the invisible barrier, but my hand went right through. I took a step forward, intending to enter but Brett stopped me.

  “We don’t know what’s in there and you are not going in alone.” He said adamantly.

  I took his hand in mine and reached up, interlocking our fingers. We put our hands in front of us and they went right through the doorway. I gave Brett a triumphant look and walked forward, through the doorway, bringing him with me.

  As we crossed the threshold of the doorway, the room brightened to where I was blinded for a few seconds and I felt behind me a rush of wind, and then stillness.

  My eyes adjusted and I turned around to see what had caused the feeling of air movement. I could see through the door, but as I put my hand up, I couldn’t go through it. The barrier was stopping me from leaving. Brett had turned his head to see. He put his hand up and was also unable to leave. The door suddenly closed behind us.

  “Well now, I guess, we are here for a while.” I said, with as much humor as I could muster, feeling a bit leery now, of my former confidence, that this was what I was supposed to do.

  I turned back, looking around the room and Brett did the same. He took my hand in his, the one closest to him and was holding his sword out in front of him in the other. The room was white, and I do mean white, sterile, as if in an operating room just before a surgery.

  The room was empty except for a strange circular table with what looked like chairs around it, and in the middle of the table was a sphere, a half rounded object protruding up from the table about a foot high. It was humming and the color was that of clouds, white with wisps of grey swirling inside.

  Suddenly a voice came from somewhere in the room, but I couldn’t tell what direction, “We don’t need that.” And Brett’s sword turned into the knife, on its own, as Brett sucked in a large breath, shocked at what had just happened.

  From the right side of the room, closest to me, came a figure. I say figure because I couldn’t tell if it was male or female, person or animal. It was a shape, shifting and changing, iridescent, but at times I could see through it.

  “There is nothing in this room that will require that piece of weaponry, I assure you,” the voice said, as it continued to move to the middle of the room, towards the table.

  The closer to the table it got, the more solid it became and suddenly it stopped changing. It was a male, similar to the type of fey that Brett was, but his skin was white, albino white. His hair was white with streaks of silver and when he turned his head to look at us, his eyes were the color of silver. He was dressed in a robe, similar to what a monk might wear, but it was a shimmery aquamarine color. His facial features where somewhat feminine but his voice was definitely masculine.

  He smiled a very kind and genuine smile but I could tell he was serious and business like as he continued, “I have been waiting a long time for this meeting. I wondered if you would make it this far. They reassured me that you would, and she was very confident, but then, there are so many paths one can choose and so many obstacles that can distract one, I was not as optimistic as she.”

  I realized that as he spoke, his mouth wasn’t moving, he was thinking, and we could hear him. My puzzled look caused him to smile again as he said, with his mouth this time, “It is not necessary to verbalize with the mouth, that is such an ancient way to communicate, but if you are more comfortable with speaking from the mouth, then that is what we will do.”

  He held his hand out towards the table in a gesture for us to sit as he settled himself in one of the chairs. The chair he sat in was different from the others. His was larger, and had strange symbols on the arm rests, and an indent in the back of the seat. As he sat, the back came up and seemed to connect to his body and head.

  The chairs that Brett and I took had shorter backs and the arm rests were just smooth and cold. As I sat though, I felt as if the chair was attempting to link with me. I could feel its pulse, searching, winding its way through my body and finally to my mind. It was a strange sensation but not threatening in the least. When it connected completely, there was just calm.

  I looked over at Brett and could see he was not having the same experience as I. He was not finding this union, if you could call it that, a pleasant experience and I decided to join his mind, become one with him. I saw that he definitely wasn’t cooperating and the chair was getting a bit more forceful with him.

  “Brett” I said, “look at me.” He did so and I reassured him that it was safe, they were not here to harm us.

  “They?” Brett questioned out loud and I realized that I felt that she was in the room, too, whoever she was, and maybe others.

  As Brett and I were with one mind, he relaxed and when the connection was complete, calmness came over his face.

  As I turned to look at our host, if you could call him that, I said, “She, you said she? Who is she and for that matter who are you? What does this room have to do with the Dark One and who is he? Do you know?”

  “So many questions and so little time.” He said with a slight hint of humor in his voice.

  “I don’t find any of this funny!” I fumed, slightly.

  “No it is not, but I find it difficult to not find humor in humans and fey, for that matter, such young species.”

  I looked at Brett, thinking, fey, young species? And Brett, understanding my thoughts, looked at this individual and commented, “Fey are not a young species.” In a very defensive tone. I could sense that Brett didn’t like this being very much.

  Our host held up his hand in a truce fashion and reassured us that he meant no disrespect. He shared with us the fact that there are many other species from many different worlds, as well as dimensions on this planet, much older than our kind and he informed us that his name was Biton.

  He continued then, “She is in charge of overseeing the dimensions on this small speck of land the humans call earth, and that fey call Terrafirma. There are other dimensions, one of them is where certain water creatures call home, Atlantis.

  “The doorway to that dimension, and yes a doorway, was near the Island of Goza. The lost city of Atlantis as the humans called it, was a great city, the gateway to the Atlantians home, another part of Terrafirma.

  “Terrafirma is much larger than what you know of. There are doorways one must find to enter these mysterious sections of Terrafirma. Some are much older than the Terrafirma that you know, Brett, and others are much younger, earth being one of them.

  “Unfortunately when humans appeared on the planet, the Atlantians became too curious, wanting to take them in as pets, so to speak, and she couldn’t let that happen. So the great city was destroyed, closing the doorway between dimensions until the time that humans could understand the vast expanse around them without fear.

  “There are some Atlantians still in the part of Terrafirma that you come from,” as he looked to Brett, “who can travel between earth and Terrafirma but stay hidden, deep in the darkest waters. They became stuck when the city was destroyed, not heeding her warning to go home.”

  “This isn’t the dimension that I am to learn about though, is it?” I interrupted, when Biton took a moment to gather his next thoughts.

  “No my child, it isn’t. I just wanted you to understand that there are many living creatures who are depending on you to close the doorway to his prison for good.” Biton said with a determined look in his eyes.

  “Was the creature that put its venom in my leg, from this place, Atlantis?” I asked, even though I was certain I already knew the answer.

  “Yes, she is, and has now gone back to her home, her job here being completed.” Biton answered.

  “Why are you here in this place and why you, to tell me about that world?” I continued. “Why is she not here, whoever she is?” I paused then and continued, “My Grandmother?”

  Biton smiled and then with a look of longing in his silver e
yes, told us that he was chosen from many, to watch over and guard this area, until the day that I would come. He told me that she would come when the time was right. Before I could ask again about my grandmother, he continued with the information he felt we needed to know.

  “Gehenna is a realm, the Dark One’s land, full of greyness, in the dimension of Hades. This dimension, and so many others, share this planet. This planet is also the spot in this vast universe where doorways to other planets exist. This is the one spot where all can meet and travel to other worlds.

  “She keeps it safe, watches for trouble but the greyness, those who are sent to Hades when they die, he is recruiting. He brings them to his realm, Gehenna, to be a part of his army of sorts, to take over all that is. For some reason the one who truly rules Hades, is allowing this.

  “She sent him there a long time ago not realizing that his strength would join the creatures there, becoming a stronger mass of life. She didn’t know until recently that he was the Dark One.

  “The balance is now in jeopardy and if he is able to take Earth and your Terrafirma, he will have no problem opening the doorway to Atlantis and then he will take them all, one at a time, the other realms of Terrafirma as well as the other worlds, until he has control of all the doorways to this part of the universe.

  “There are doorways out there that she keeps closed, locked and protected from all, keeping their whereabouts secret from all but a few. The hostile and violent beings there, have not evolved enough to travel and learn from others.

  “The Dark One wants those doorways open, to take over and create a larger more evil army. His anger is great due to the treachery and betrayal that he believes happened to him.

  “Would you please put your hands on the sphere now, so we can get started? There is much to discuss before you leave here.”

  Biton was quiet then, and so were we as I put my hands on the sphere. As I looked towards Brett, he seemed to be deep in thought as he stared at Biton while putting his hands on the sphere also. It seemed that they were having a stare down. Were they communicating to each other without speaking? I tried to penetrate Brett’s thoughts but was blocked, whether by Brett or Biton, I didn’t know.