This was all a little much for me. I needed time to absorb all of this.
“Take all the time you need,” I heard Peter say with his thoughts.
“Thanks.” Despite all of the crazy madness I had landed in, I still thought the idea of communicating telepathically was pretty amazing. It was like having a secret code or language, or it would be if my mind wasn’t an open book for all Shepherds to read.
“Not all Shepherds,” Peter remarked telepathically while he chuckled out loud. “Just the ones up here in the Archives.”
“Great. That makes me feel much better.” I hoped my thoughts still dripped with the intended sarcasm. “So just how many Shepherds are up here?” I asked.
“Right now? Maybe thirty or so—not including the Council, of course.”
“The Council? What’s that?” I was so curious, I forgot to think my question rather than verbalize it.
“Our governing body,” Peter responded, also aloud. “The Shepherd’s Council is made up of a group of twelve of our elders, who ensure our Rules and our purpose are being carried out consistently by all Shepherds. In fact, the Shepherds’ Council developed our Rules. The Council is also called upon to determine if a Shepherd has broken a Rule, and if so, what consequences should be handed down.”
“So members of the Council are the Rule makers, the Rule enforcers, the judges, and the jury? That seems like a lot of power to be given to one group, don’t you think?” I asked skeptically.
“I wouldn’t necessarily look at it that way. The Council is here to guide us and to remind us of our mission. Camouflaging ourselves as humans, working alongside them day in and day out, year-after-year, is more complicated and messier than you could possibly imagine. Trust me. We may not have the memories of our lives as humans, but we still have our personalities, our idiosyncrasies, our emotions, and our desires. The human side of us can wreak havoc on even the strongest and most self-disciplined Shepherd while on assignment.”
“Well, when do I get to meet them?” I asked innocently.
“Who? The Council members?” Peter chuckled. “You don’t. I mean, hopefully, you will never have to meet them. Typically, the Council only calls on a Shepherd when his or her actions or intentions are called into question and must be investigated further.”
“So the Council only meets with Shepherds when they get in trouble?”
“Basically, yes,” he replied.
* * *
Back in the Archives, Peter led me to a reading table to the left of the enormous sundial. I looked up at the ceiling; red, purple, and blue hues streaked across it as the evening stars were fading. It looked to be nearing dawn. I glanced at my watch and confirmed the same. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a small scroll rolled up at the far end of the table. I wanted to examine it more closely, but I knew better than to be so presumptuous as to walk over and pick it up. I would have to be patient and hope that Peter would let me see it eventually.
“Eve, in addition to your acute human senses, you also have several immortal skills, or talents, each of which will help you become an adept guardian. You’ve already experienced one of these immortal abilities—our communal mind. Any time you’re up here, that is any time you’re not on Earth, you will telepathically communicate all of your thoughts to every other Shepherd up here unless you shield a particular thought or the other Shepherds block your thoughts from entering their minds.
“For new Shepherds, thought-sharing can seem like a burden rather than a blessing. While human, you were used to keeping your private thoughts private, but that simply is not the case any longer. To be sure, it takes time for new Shepherds to adjust to the absence of privacy as the default state of mind. The benefit of our communal mind, however, is what you gain from other Shepherds’ experiences through their thoughts while you learn how to successfully navigate the unfamiliar terrain of immortality.”
I tried to focus and listen for the other voices in my head, but I could hear only my own thoughts mulling about. Maybe the communal mind needed to be activated somehow … like I had to flip a mental switch or something.
“I can’t hear any other Shepherds now.”
“Hearing a constant stream of others’ thoughts running through your mind can be quite distracting at first, especially during your training. I need you to focus solely on what I’m teaching you. Therefore, I temporarily blocked out other Shepherds’ thoughts from your mind. I also took the liberty of shielding your thoughts from the others while you get used to the idea that we are all capable of hearing what you think, thereby giving you more time to adapt accordingly.”
“You can do that?” I was intrigued and mortified at the same time. The thought of Peter—of anyone—manipulating my mind was downright creepy, and it made me uncomfortable.
“Yes. Because of our mentor-mentee relationship, we have a special connection—a unique bond that will last for eternity. And with that special connection, I have been given the power to shield and block thoughts for you so that I can better assist you through your training. It’s very much like when I interfered with your thoughts before—”
“Before?” I interrupted, confused. I had no idea what he was talking about.
“Ah, yes, you probably don’t remember.”
“No, I don’t.” I looked at Peter, feeling even more uneasy now that I knew he already had controlled my mind once before and I had no memory of it.
“Well, then, I’ll just have to show you again,” he said, smiling. “Eve, think of an animal, any animal—picture it in your head.”
I flashed him a lukewarm smile. I really didn’t want to be part of this silly little exercise, but I knew there was no point in protesting. If Peter could influence my thoughts whenever he so desired, he would find some way to do whatever he had planned regardless of whether I was a willing participant.
I closed my eyes and focused on an animal. The first one that popped into my head was a cat. More specifically, a Siamese cat with bright blue eyes stretched out on a white windowsill basking in the sun. It seemed fitting enough—cats supposedly had nine lives. And in some strange way I had been given a second chance. I wondered how many “lives” I now had. My thoughts were interrupted when the image of the cat I just conjured began transforming into some large wild animal. My sweet little feline was now a white tiger with sapphire blue eyes moving stealthily through tall prairie grass.
“Whoa!”
Peter threw his head back and started to laugh out loud. He seemed very satisfied with himself.
“You … You did that?” I looked at him wide-eyed. Peter was barely able to contain himself, he was laughing so hard.
“I didn’t realize you had that much control over my mind!” I exclaimed in awe. And, quite frankly, even though I didn’t know Peter all that well, I didn’t think he had it in him to turn my docile kitty into some ferocious predator.
“That was not very angelic of you,” I said, feigning disappointment.
“Make no mistake, Eve,” Peter declared after regaining his composure. “We are not angels. We are Shepherds. And we are hunters when we need to be.”
I wanted to ask Peter what he meant by that, but there was something about the severity of his voice that made me hold back. Besides, my mind was buzzing with other questions.
“Can I do that? Can I interfere with others’ thoughts?” I asked eagerly.
“Yes, but only under certain conditions, such as when a Shepherd isn’t blocking out your thoughts or shielding his or her own from you. Humans are susceptible to such thought manipulation as well, but the Rules forbid us from interfering in their lives, which means that we can’t use our mind tricks on them unless extreme circumstances warrant it.
“As I mentioned before, you also have the power to prevent a Shepherd from interfering with your thoughts,” Peter continued. “You just haven’t learned how to harness that ability yet. And, until you do, I’ll watch over and guard your thoughts on your behalf.
“I should in
form you, however,” Peter threw in, “that even though I will always possess the power to shield your thoughts and block others’ thoughts from entering your mind, I can and will only exercise my power to do so during your training. Mentors are limited to using this power of persuasion only while their mentees are adjusting to their new roles as Shepherds. For me to continue to shield and block thoughts for you after your training is complete would be highly inappropriate, not to mention a violation of our ethics. So once your training concludes, you’ll experience our communal mind in full force.
“But, until then, I will make sure your thoughts remain private and others’ thoughts are kept at bay.” Peter smiled at me, and I couldn’t help but return the gesture.
“Thanks.” I liked Peter; and I hoped that my training would last for a while as I was in no rush to end our time together. I felt like I could trust him. Besides, he was the only one helping me make sense of all of this madness. I would be utterly lost without him.
“What is it?” Peter asked.
“Can’t you read my mind?” I dared to ask.
“Eve, I’m trying to be respectful and let you maintain some semblance of privacy while you still can.” Peter reached out towards my face and tucked some loose tresses of my hair behind my ear. His gaze grew more intense and his eyes darkened a bit. He abruptly turned away from me and cleared his throat. Despite Peter’s assurances to the contrary, I suspected he had heard my thoughts. I felt my face getting warmer.
Please let me be fortunate enough to have lost the ability to blush, I desperately hoped. But when I saw Peter grinning, I knew I wasn’t that lucky.
12. One Big Happy Family ... and Cousin Eli
“Is this guy giving you any trouble there, missy?” asked the booming voice coming from behind me. Startled, I spun around, but I could see no one. Then I heard a roar of laughter to my left. I turned my head just in time to see someone materializing next to me.
“Hi, Eve. Nice to meet ya. I’m Theodore, but everyone calls me Teddy.” He extended his hand out towards me.
“Hi … Teddy. It’s nice to meet you too.” I shook his hand. Teddy looked like he was well into his sixties. His light, silver-blue eyes were framed by the deep lines of his weathered skin. He had a full head of thick white hair and a bushy white mustache that extended around the corners of his mouth and down both sides to his jawbone.
“Hey there, Petey. Long time, no see. Goodness, what’s it been? Ten, maybe twenty Mora years?” Teddy extended his hand to offer Peter a handshake.
“Something like that. Whatever the period, it’s been far too long.” Peter accepted Teddy’s hand only to be pulled forward into Teddy’s arms and bear-hugged. Peter chuckled.
“Well, it’s good to see you, my old friend.” Teddy released Peter and slapped him on the back. “Still looking as good as ever, I see.”
“And you’re still a sight for sore eyes,” Peter teased.
And he did. Teddy wore an obnoxiously loud, short-sleeved Hawaiian shirt that fit snugly over his bulging belly. A pair of thin legs peeked out from the end of his khaki cargo shorts. His outfit was complete with green Adidas sandals that he wore over white tube socks pulled up over his shins.
A perfect candidate for the fashion police, I mentally critiqued.
Peter shot me a glance that said “be nice.” He obviously wasn’t shielding my thoughts from himself at the moment.
“Well look at the guy? Who is he, anyway?” I asked Peter telepathically. But, before he could answer me, Teddy offered his own two cents worth about me.
“Well, she’s a pretty little thing, isn’t she? … And so young.” Teddy glanced over at Peter and, with raised eyebrows, shot him a curious look that I couldn’t understand, followed by an impish little grin. Not surprisingly, Peter blocked Teddy’s thoughts from my mind. Whatever the exchange, Peter must have not been too pleased because he was looking more and more uncomfortable—almost embarrassed.
“A penny for your thoughts,” I chimed in. I didn’t like being the odd man out of their private joke.
“And, apparently, a bit of a pistol too!” Teddy exclaimed with a crooked smile. He looked at me, thoroughly pleased.
“Eve,” Peter cleared his throat, “I’ve known Teddy since the day I first became a Shepherd. I have asked him to teach you the arts of materialization and teleportation.”
“Excuse me?” I asked, confused.
“Teleportation, sweetheart,” Teddy repeated enthusiastically. “You know, how we travel from here to down there and vicey-versey.”
Vicey-versey? I just glared at Peter. Did he really trust this guy to teach me anything about being a Shepherd?
“You’re in good company, Eve. Teddy taught me almost everything I know, and I trust him implicitly,” Peter said reassuringly. He glanced at Teddy and then added, “There is no one better when it comes to teaching new Shepherds how to phase in and out of sight and how to travel from one place to another by way of thought.
“So,” Peter nodded at Teddy, “without further ado, I will leave Eve in your capable hands.” Then Peter turned towards me and smiled.
“You have nothing to worry about,” Peter said to me telepathically.“And, to put your mind at ease, I won’t stray too far. If you need me, just call out my name and I’ll be there.” With that Peter phased out of view.
“Huh,” I remarked.
“What’s wrong, kitten?” Teddy asked.
“Nothing, really. It’s just that I had yet to see Peter do that.”
“Phase in and out? Oh, that’s easy. I’ll have you doing that in your sleep by the end of the day,” Teddy declared with the utmost of confidence.
“I thought we didn’t sleep,” I said distrustfully.
Teddy roared with laughter. “You are a feisty one, aren’t you? Anyone ever tell you that? Oh, right, you haven’t been around long enough to develop new relationships and memories,” Teddy continued in between chuckles. “Don’t you fret, little missy. In a couple of decades, you’ll have more memories than you’ll know what to do with.”
“Wonderful.” My sarcasm sent Teddy reeling with laughter again. I hadn’t realized I was so funny.
“I can see why he’s drawn to you,” Teddy said.
“Why who is drawn to me?” I asked, bewildered.
“Oh come now, darlin.’ Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.”
“I guess there’s been so much to learn and process that I haven’t really noticed much of anything,” I replied naively, which made Teddy throw his head back and laugh again.
“Well then, honey, we better hop to it. We don’t have much time, and it sounds like we may need every minute,” Teddy joked as he looked at his watch.
I was a little shocked by Teddy’s extensive knowledge of sexist names for females—and even more surprised that he felt comfortable enough to use his expansive vocabulary on me considering we had just met.
“Let’s start with materializing in and out of our human forms. Phasing is the number one tool in our arsenal for protecting ourselves and our sheep.”
“Our sheep?”
“Yes, our sheep—you know—our charges … our humans. We’re Shepherds—get it?” Teddy chuckled, clearly amused by his own little play on words.
“Okay, cupcake,” he continued, “so the first thing you need to know is that most of our time on Earth is spent in our ethereal state. Humans don’t know about us, and they can’t know about us—plain and simple. In order to keep our identities a secret, we need to carry out our assignments in a clandestine fashion. So the more time you spend in your invisible state in the company of mortals, the more likely you will stay out of trouble. Got it?
“And remember,” Teddy continued without giving me a chance to respond to his question, “in your physical form you still look the same as you did when you were alive. And while you might not have any memories of your past, others still do. All you need is to start walking around in the open and be recognized by someone who knew you and knew t
hat you died. Holy moly, the Council surely would have a field day with that one!” Teddy chuckled to himself and slapped me on the back, jolting me forward a little.
“Oh, I forgot you haven’t had your strength training yet. My sincerest apologies,” Teddy said repentantly. Even though Teddy’s personality was overwhelming, and arguably offensive at times, he was slowly growing on me. He was like a big, overeager puppy that meant no harm when it lovingly licked your hand while peeing on your leg.
“Apology accepted.” I smiled at Teddy, at which point he bent backwards to stretch out his back while he rubbed his round belly with both hands.
“Okay, so where were we … Oh yeah, don’t be seen by anyone down there if you can help it. Of course, the Council members will do their best to take all the necessary precautions when giving you an assignment. They’ll always try to pair you with a human who has no connection to you in a town you were never in while you were alive. That way you won’t likely run into someone who knew you. But people move around a lot these days, and with the Internet and YouTube and the like, there’s always a chance that someone from your past will cross paths with you in the future. And that would be bad.”
“Bad. Right.”
“Absolutely,” Teddy confirmed. “If humans knew we existed, our entire operation would be jeopardized. I mean, just think about the repercussions. How would you feel if, while you were alive, you ran into someone you knew had died? Imagine the questions something like that would have triggered in your head?”
I tried to envision some of the questions that would have sprung to mind if I had found myself in such a situation. I’m sure I would have freaked.
“Besides,” Teddy continued, “what good would it do if humans believed they had guardian angels?”
“I thought humans did have guardian angels,” I corrected.
“Well of course they do—but they don’t know it! And that’s the way it has to be. For goodness sakes, if humans truly believed they had angels looking out for them, they would never watch their step! They would walk around assuming they could put themselves in all kinds of danger because their angels would swoop in and save the day. It’d be complete chaos down there.” Teddy tried to hide a smirk, but I could tell he was clearly entertained at the thought of what the world he’d just described would look like.
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