Beyond Amber_A Visionary Fantasy

by Lucia Ashta

Thom looked toward the storm and to the golden twins of prophecy. The outcome of their quest was written upon fluorescent stars long ago. All the light warriors had to do was step onto the footpath destiny had already laid out for them.

  As if in confirmation of his conclusion, Asara and Anak began to change, and Thom took this as validation that everything they were encountering was as it should be. In the end, any challenge could truly be a blessing if it led to soul growth and, without understanding the full scope of any situation, it was difficult to determine what effect it would have.

  Asara and Anak—the golden children of another of Dann’s important prophecies, the twins of now and of other times, the divinely destined beloveds entrusted with the care of light in this human world—changed as swiftly as the storm brewing overhead. With each step they took, their inner light expanded outward. They walked, their minds stilled by the overarching simplicity of life.

  They no longer noticed the threat of storm or darkness. They connected to the heavens and to the Creator of everything, of both the light and the dark, and pulled light down through the crowns of their heads. The basic spark of light fueled all life; it ran even within the darkness at some level. The light was always there.

  As Asara and Anak pulled more light into their bodies, the light filled their physical shells and overflowed into their energetic fields. Each time, the light grew brighter, and the twins’ glow grew stronger, until they were saturated with light. They became beings of light while still within human bodies.

  If the twins had wanted anyone to know they were angels walking the earth for a lifetime, this would have been the time to suggest the seemingly far-fetched notion. Even the nonbelievers would have accepted what was undeniable to the bare eye.

  The twins’ pace was steady. They were within reach of the water’s edge and, with their next step, they touched it. The crisp water saturated the twins’ leather moccasins the moment they stepped into the Haakal River. The ruby still glowed a vivid, bright red at Asara’s chest. It pulsed insistently, announcing that she and her twin hadn’t arrived at their final destination yet.

  Even so, the ruby was calmer now. She knew where she was going, and knew exactly what to do next.

  The storm above them flexed its muscles. It announced its intentions with the loudest shake of thunder yet. The booming clap startled the animals around them, causing them to become skittish, but neither Asara nor Anak flinched. The twins were already somewhere else. Nothing of this earth could threaten them any longer.

  Thom and Kaanra came up behind them. When the twins turned to look at the gentle master, there were tears in his eyes. He’d never seen Asara or Anak like this before, and he believed then that he’d never seen anything more beautiful in his long life.

  When the twins reached out to embrace Thom and Kaanra, Kaanra knew what it meant. None of them could anticipate what would happen next, or if any of them would survive this. But Kaanra also knew in his heart that, in the end, it didn’t matter. They were beings of love, and that was one of the main reasons Creator breathed life into each of them. Whatever happened to them next would be perfect, no matter what it looked like to rational minds.

  Kaanra placed one arm on Asara and the other on Anak’s shoulder. He faced them squarely. The twins stood before the master with their arms touching; they were forever each other’s main source of support. With tears Kaanra could no longer hold back, he said, “Remember, I vowed before Creator to assist each of you in any way I could, until Creator gives me my last breath.”

  Kaanra spoke aloud in the language of Arnaka despite Thom’s presence. The sound and frequency of Kaanra’s voice gave his words more power, and this was important to the old man as he stared into their eyes, knowing he may never see them again in these bodies. He didn’t remember if he’d ever cried with this much emotion before. He couldn’t hold any of it back. Creator may not have given him children of the flesh, but Creator had blessed him with children all the same.

  “I’ll do anything I can to help you. Anything. As long as I live, you can call on me. Even if it means giving my life, I’ll do it. What you’re about to do is more important than any one human life.” He looked at them with tenacity. “I’ve already fulfilled my divine destiny.”

  Asara and Anak weren’t just going into an underwater pyramid for another light emission. The light warriors all understood that the twins might travel to another dimension, possibly to the same plane that Baldub and Carn had disappeared to, with the objective to right the wrongs the dark extraterrestrials orchestrated.

  Baldub and Carn had made a heroic choice. They sought to preserve the integrity of the cousins’ souls and to return them to their rightful places in the cycle of life and death so the cousins could again reincarnate into human bodies. Baldub and Carn wanted to correct the injustice perpetrated by the dark extraterrestrials and, by doing so, contribute toward rectifying the imbalance between light and dark. And so they’d grabbed each other by the hand and jumped through the portal into the dark unknown. It swallowed them instants before it closed to this world forever.

  Now it was Asara and Anak’s turn. They embraced Kaanra like children who might not see their father again. But they didn’t shed tears like he did. They were connected to something mighty and, in that moment, in that space, there was no sadness. There was only perfection.

  The twins embraced Thom next. He’d become their brother and they loved him. Thom shared in what coursed through the twins so distinctly that he didn’t experience sadness at their parting either. The glow that surrounded them, on its own, spoke of a great force.

  When the twins pulled away from the arms of their spirit family, they instinctively turned their gazes to the sky. Beyond the storm that blotted out the midday sunshine, they were able to make out the faintest outline of a raven flying toward them at startling speed. It was as if a demonic fury were pumping the raven’s wings. The light warriors were shocked that Brazzon was already this close to them.

  Still, it was possible. The path back to Arnaka from the fairies’ forest took several days to travel by foot. Arnaka was an island and the road to and from it was circuitous. As the dark raven flew, he cut the most direct path to Arnaka, reducing his travel time exponentially.

  The dark raven was still too far away to cause harm. But even though distance obscured the details of the flying creature, only a speck in the skies, the light warriors knew it was Brazzon. He made his way to them with a purpose and focus that knew no relief, and he’d make it to the underwater pyramid as quickly as his agile flight would allow. It was time to move.

  Thom turned his back to the incoming raven and transferred the care of the doman to Anak. Namana is yours to protect now. It will allow you to open the pyramid to unknown worlds. Then Thom tenderly extended the doman to Anak, who received it while bowing his head.

  Anak didn’t wear a cloak to conceal the doman, so he slipped it beneath his shirt. It wasn’t much of a deception, but it was something. The twins left their satchels in Kaanra’s care, only carrying a canteen slung across one shoulder, swords fastened at their waists, and the doman and the ruby.

  There wasn’t a moment to spare. The twins turned as one and walked into the water.

  Chapter 36

  Lena and Paolo tired of calling to Sitting Bear with no reply. The silence within the pyramid had a life all its own, and it blanketed them. They couldn’t ignore the dense silence any more than they could the surrounding darkness. There was no escaping it.

  The twins resigned themselves to being seemingly trapped inside the pyramid, without understanding how they got there or what they were meant to do. Any entrance the pyramid once had was closed long ago. The pyramid was a tool for energy amplification and emission that could be used for the purposes of the dark as much as for the light. For that reason, Thunder Gods sealed the pyramid to protect the world from the spreading darkness of his time.

  Thunder Gods was the last human being to enter the pyramid. It was now another
version of Thunder Gods’ brother and sister, Swift Horse and Sky Elk, who were entrusted with the duty to correct the imbalance of light and dark in the world.

  “Paolo, what are we supposed to do now?” Lena asked in a small voice.

  To be suddenly thrust through impenetrable stone, inside a dark and ancient pyramid, was a lot to handle. Still, she wouldn’t begin doubting any of it now. She wouldn’t. She was already too far down the rabbit hole to try to climb out of it. She had no choice.

  Her only real choice was to embrace the magic all around her as if this were an everyday occurrence. What else could she do?

  Paolo sounded much calmer than she felt. “Remember, amore, I was meant to find the pyramid. But you are the key to it.”

  That wasn’t at all reassuring to Lena. “But I have no idea what to do!” She blew her hair out of her face in frustration.

  No sooner had she said this than something pulled her attention away from her seeming helplessness. It was the berry the juniper tree had gifted her, and Paolo had wrapped with a cord so she could wear it around her neck. Already accustomed to its presence, Lena had forgotten about it entirely.

  Now, it made her remember. The berry was suddenly warm at her chest, and she swore the pulsing of her heart ran through it. How could that be? The heartbeat of the juniper berry was so strong that it disrupted her thoughts. What could it mean?

  The juniper berry throbbed above Lena’s heart just as the ruby pulsed with the rhythm of Asara’s heart.

  Hurry! You must hurry. We need you!

  From within one pyramid to another, across boundaries of space and time, Asara reached through to Lena.

  Lena closed her eyes to connect to Asara fully. If it was urgent that she and Paolo act quickly, she must know precisely what they needed to do. There could be no delay or missteps, and this was the best tool Lena had to understand what was happening in this other world.

  Neither Thom nor Kaanra could follow Asara and Anak into the water. They hadn’t learned how to breathe water instead of air. Just as Asara had suspected, Anak’s guides had also led him to the water to become one with it early on. Always connected and learning synchronistic lessons, Asara and Anak were equally prepared to enter this underwater world.

  The Haakal River circled the island of Arnaka, until it eventually merged with the sweet waters of the Hosuul Sea. The twins serenely walked into the familiar water, all earthly waters uniting with them in that moment. At their core, all waters of the world carried the same substance, and the twins connected with that essence as if it were their own.

  Glowing radiantly, they walked, hand in hand, into the Haakal River until their heads dipped beneath the surface, their yellow hair trailing behind them like strands of seaweed. As Kaanra saw his children give themselves over to the water completely, a sob broke through his fragile veneer of composure. He’d become more emotional as he entered old age.

  Thom placed his arm around Kaanra and pulled the older man close. Kaanra leaned his head on Thom’s shoulder and cried. Kaanra seemed smaller than Thom remembered; they appeared to be the same height. Emotion pushed down on Kaanra. He became a fluid shape against Thom’s shoulder, as if no bone supported his frame, and he let it all go.

  Thom alone stared forward to where the twins had vanished. The water churned, ensuring it wouldn’t be ignored. The storm was still loud and oppressive above them. Thom turned his head to look over his shoulder. The dark raven was closer.

  Hurry, Asara and Anak. Hurry.

  Lena’s eyes popped open. She stared into the darkness. “Paolo,” she gasped in disbelief, “we have to send out light from the pyramid, and we have to do it right now.”

  Paolo’s eyebrows arched in surprise, and he turned to look at her, even though he could barely see her.

  “If we don’t, all will be lost,” she said. “If we don’t project light through this pyramid, Asara and Anak can’t go through to the other dimension. The light we emit will connect to the light they emit, and a bridge of light will form, which will somehow allow for space and time to open for them. And then they can travel through this opening.”

  It was an incredible notion. “This was all I could tell from what I saw,” Lena said. “I wish I understood more! And it’s urgent. We have to do it now. They’re waiting for us.”

  “What do we need to do?” Paolo asked, and Lena respected him for accepting what she said for what it was and getting straight to the important part.

  “I’m not really sure. We’ve seen ourselves transmitting light as Asara and Anak many times. Maybe it’s as simple as doing the same thing we have seen them do?” Lena really hoped it was that easy, because it was her only idea, and Asara and Anak were counting on them.

  “All right, amore. Let’s try it,” Paolo said as he stood. He searched for Lena’s hands and, when he found them, he helped her up. She was grateful to be steady on her feet. The nausea and spinning sensation were gone, just in time.

  Lena held the hand of her beloved as he led her toward the center of the pyramid. Even in the pitch-dark, they knew which spot was directly beneath the capstone. They were beginning to awaken to their innate power. They surrendered to it now, and it took over, guiding them precisely.

  The journey down the pyramid was treacherous for Sitting Bear. The storm had become violent, and lightning struck aggressively while rain and scattered hail pelted him. He made his way down the pyramid as swiftly as he could and made it to the bottom without a second to spare. The moment his back foot lifted from the base of the pyramid, the sky unleashed its worst upon him.

  Sitting Bear didn’t mind. He stood in the soaking rain, smiling toward the sky and the pyramid. It wasn’t every day that he had the privilege of seeing destiny unfold.

  A hand landed on his shoulder, but he didn’t startle. Sitting Bear had anticipated the man’s arrival. Even though they hadn’t properly met, Sitting Bear believed Kel was one of the good guys. “I’m glad you’re here, brother.”

  Kel moved to stand next to Sitting Bear. He watched the storm dazzle the darkened sky with a flash of brilliant light and then send the bolt to the cusp of the pyramid. The earth beneath their feet moved with the crashing thunder that immediately followed.

  Kel’s short red hair was plastered to his forehead and water slid down his shaven face. Like Sitting Bear, it didn’t bother him. The excitement of the storm was irresistible.

  “Darkness is coming, bro,” Kel told Sitting Bear. “I can see the darkness, ya know? And a wicked man is heading to the pyramid right now.”

  Sitting Bear nodded, but was silent. He’d expected this unholy man to come. It was likely he was the leader who’d ordered his minion to attack them.

  The two men stood next to each other. Their shoulders were broad and their stance was strong. They were committed to doing whatever they needed to do to secure the propagation of light across the earth.

  Before the day was over, they would need to call on the inner power that had lain dormant within them. They stood stoically, mimicking the juniper trees that defied the tempest that brewed and bubbled.

  From atop a neighboring hill, Coyote watched the villain approach. Coyote’s ears were pulled back against his head, and his eyes were as keen as ever. He surveilled the man’s every move. And when the man neared Sitting Bear and Kel, Coyote began to move. He drew closer to the pyramid where it seemed that everything would converge.

  Chapter 37

  The twins made their way to the underwater pyramid as quickly as they could. They swam through the Haakal River and entered the Hosuul Sea.

  When they finally arrived at the underwater pyramid, Asara was again amazed at the jewels that encrusted its sandstone surface, scattered all around, adorning the pyramid with the beauty of sparkling color. Just as when she first discovered it, the jewels were undisturbed by the corrosion and lackluster that affected most shiny objects that plummeted to the ocean floor. She now understood; natural phenomena were suspended here.

  The ruby
drummed happily against her chest, pleased to return to its home. When she looked at Anak, she realized he hadn’t been there before. His eyes were alight with delighted surprise, just as hers had been when Vilu first brought her here.

  Regardless, the twins allotted scant time for appreciation and reflection. They remembered that Brazzon flew closer with every flap of his wings. Baldub and Carn were somewhere in the unknown with dark extraterrestrials, potentially in life-threatening danger. So much depended on what they’d do next. After only moments, they swam inside the pyramid.

  Asara hadn’t entered the pyramid last time. Now, the entrance was open for them, and the ruby urged them to go in. So they did. Quickly, the twins swam to the pyramid’s center. They didn’t have to look for the capstone to line up with it. Many years of repeating the same movements made them seasoned experts. They stood precisely beneath the pyramid’s crowning center.

  Then, Anak removed Namana from beneath his shirt. He and Asara stared at it. The time when Namana would reveal its secrets was nearly upon them.

  Kaanra still leaned his head on Thom’s shoulder, although he was now composed. Tears stained his face, but they no longer fell from his eyes. Instead, Kaanra turned his thoughts to what he and Thom could do to protect the twins from Brazzon. He had an idea, and he closed his eyes to feel into it. Once he was certain it was the right thing to do, he stood up straight and began immediately.

  From within his mind, he reached out to their community at the Temple of Laresu’u Kal. The masters and pupils felt Master Kaanra’s call for help right away. The pupils were in training then in the main courtyard, and they looked to the master leading their practice for guidance. Master Payu gave a silent nod, and the pupils stopped what they were doing and assembled.

  By the time all able masters and pupils met at the temple’s front gate, they were loosely gathered in organized lines that would make their travel across the island efficient. Masters Payu and Shixou headed the formation, and Masters Quon and Yako brought up the rear. Master Sina was still unfit for travel, but her condition was improved. She’d be able to care for her basic needs while the others were away.