I Am Adam

by J.T. Twerell

  ***

  Adam Fish sat in the dark shadow of the woods and quietly watched the open clearing. Tonight he would make things right and put an end to the evil infecting his family. For some time he had been suspicious about Fire and his nighttime wanderings. Fish knew that Fire was meeting someone from the village, but he had never been able to catch them together. Tonight he had a plan to fool them, which would end this problem permanently. He looked out from the forest and saw Fire sitting looking at the darkened sky. Fish knew that whoever this woman was would soon show and then he would confront them both and keep Fire from doing further harm to himself.

  Adam Fish smiled as he thought about how he had fooled everyone into thinking he was down river fishing. He had left with the boys and told Day to stay in her tent until he got back. She and the girls would wait for him, and not come out until he told them. He left Fire to watch over the camp, knowing Fire would go find his woman as soon as Fish was gone. Fish had sent the boys down to the lower fishing catch, and then had come back secretly and followed Fire to the clearing. Day was in her tent with the girls, and he knew she would not cause problems—Day always did what he said. But since the last baby she had refused to open up to him, and he had to force himself into her. He grew to dislike this and now left her alone in her tent with the other girls. He could not understand why she refused him, and even when he had beaten her, she still refused to let him in and enjoy. He knew that the oldest girl would soon be able to open up to him, so he was not concerned about Day. They all belonged to him, and he would take what he wanted. He was Adam Fish, and these were his things to use as he desired.

  He looked far up the hillside and saw the faint glow of the village fires as they filled the night sky. While he could not hear anything, he knew the people would all be gathered and having their nightly time together. What stupid people. He could have taught them so much and made them a great people who could move far from this valley and find other Adams. Nevertheless, the evil light-haired woman had made them all women, and now they were stupid just like the animals in the forest. Why they could not see Eve was evil and bringing them all down was something he did not understand. He was just happy to know that her spell did not work on him.

  A movement on the far side of the clearing interrupted his thoughts. A figure emerged and began to move toward Fire. As she came out of the shadow, the moonlight caught her figure and Adam Fish almost let out a scream of rage. At first he thought the woman was Eve, but then realized she was much younger. As she came closer to Fire, Fish saw the light-haired woman was the daughter of Adam and Eve. He could feel the heat of rage build in him as Fire stood and they embraced each other and kissed. He could not believe the betrayal of Fire to his own family. Not only did he have a woman from the village, but he was with the daughter of the source of evil herself. He tried to remember her name and it finally came to him; “Sunna,” he whispered quietly. That was her name and now she must pay.

  Sunna came into the clearing and saw Fire sitting in the moonlight. He rose as she came near, and they held each other closely.

  "I miss you when we are forced apart," he said softly. "Adam Fish and the other boys have gone down river tonight, so we have all night together if you can stay."

  "I told Eve I would be with you, but Adam is still silent on our togetherness," Sunna replied as she sat on the sheep coverings Fire had placed on the ground. "They both caution me about Adam Fish, but it is you I come to see and not him."

  Fire sat beside her and pulled her close as they watched the moon move slowly through the night sky. Since they met long ago, they had developed a deep caring for each other, but Fire was not anxious to tell Adam Fish he was in love with a member of the village. Adam Fish had become more dark as the time went on, and he especially hated Eve, for he believed that she was the principal cause of his being separated from the village. No one could understand where his thinking came from, and Eve was one of the few in the village who believed that Adam Fish should still be part of the group. Fire knew that Eve met with Day at times, and that she saw Day was lonely and often frightened of Adam Fish and his tirades. Sunna told Fire that Eve desired him to live in the village with she and the others, but Fire was hesitant to abandon his family, and was sure Adam Fish would make trouble if Fire left.

  Sunna kissed Fire and rested her back on his legs. "I do not want to spend all night talking about Adam Fish," she said, "but I no longer wish to live apart and fear his anger. I love you, and I want us to be together, but for that to happen, we must face Adam Fish and settle this problem."

  Fish sighed deeply and finally said, "I have talked to Day about you and me."

  "Really," Sunna said as she sat up quickly. "What did she say?"

  "I think Day would come with us if I move with you to the village. She has put up with Adam Fish, and while she still cares for him, he has become impossible to reason with on any subject. She fears the children will be influenced by him and I think she fears he may continue to hurt her or the children when his anger is so high."

  "I hope she knows we would all love to have her back," replied Sunna. "Maybe that is what it would take to bring Adam Fish back to the Light. Can we set up a meeting of all of us to discuss this?"

  "I am almost ready to take that step. Day's reaction gave me encouragement, and we all cannot keep living as we do, or we will face more problems."

  He reached over, brushed the hair from her face and pulled her close. "Enough of the problem. Let us enjoy the time together, for soon it will be daylight, and we have to separate."

  They kissed and fell back on the sheep covering, allowing their love and passion free expression. As the night passed, they enjoyed the peace and love that they so deeply shared together. Adam Fish would return early in the morning, but for now, they were alone in their own space, far from the concerns of the day.

  Adam Fish watched them as they sat together talking. While he could not hear them, he could see that they spoke easily to each other and obviously had spent much time together. As he watched them in the moonlight, he saw Sunna lay back and Fire enter her. He watched as they enjoyed each other and thought about the lifeless times he now had with Day. The feeling of rage and betrayal grew as the passion of the couple increased, and Adam Fish was about to charge at them and confront them when he had another thought. If he captured the Sunna and killed her for being on his property, then he would also cause deep pain to the evil Eve. He would be able to strike a blow against the woman and her dark ways of deception. As the couple settled into a place of deep peace, Adam Fish quietly left the forest edge and headed back to camp.

  He entered his tent and found what he needed. The fishing spear he had made was just the right tool. He smiled to himself as he remembered making the spear from the sharp stones that Eve's Adam fashioned. Tonight that stone would find a place in the man's own child. It was a perfect way to hurt all of them.

  He exited his tent and turned to look at the river. The sun was now above the horizon and he must hurry to catch the evil child. His eyes saw movement on the far side of the river and he looked to see what was happening. For a moment, he could not believe what he saw. There on the other shore stood Eve and some other male Adam who he did not recognize. What was she doing on the other side of the river? As he watched, she pointed toward his camp and began to follow the fishing line into the river. Adam Fish could not believe it. Eve was going to come into his camp. She must believe he is away and is coming to take his things. He stood for a moment, trying to decide between attacking the daughter of Eve or waiting to confront the evil woman herself. At last, he moved quietly into the woods near the camp and settled into the shadows to wait for Eve to cross. "I will rid myself of you and your curse this day," he quietly pledged to the woman as he watched her enter the river and begin the journey toward her death. "Today, the God of All Things has given me the opportunity to be free. I will celebrate that with great joy. I am Adam Fish."