As they joined together, their minds, bodies, and memories merged together into one. When the fire hit, there was no panic. The welcoming was so profound from both of them; they were unaware of the future. There was no awareness of each individual touch or even each individual body. It took Emily to places she could have invented. The fire burnt brighter, and she knew he would be gone in a moment. She held onto his naked body with desperation, love, grief, and joy. The moment happened. Geoffrey’s body went from its perfect human form to an outline of blue fire. And then he was gone.
She was alone. Nothing was left of Geoffrey.
Chapter 17
TJ56823
Journal 1
The pain struck Tristan all at once, and it was so much worse than he could imagine. It was not only the fall but the healing. Mending each broken bone was unbearable. He could feel bones growing back together. He could hear muscles creaking under his skin. He screamed and kept on screaming, unaware of anything but the agony. It felt eternal. He waited for it to pass and felt panic when it didn't abate. Death had to be better than this. It was terrible. He begged whatever god was out there to take him out of his misery.
Tristan knew it would take them a while to get to him. He had planned it this way. Tristan wondered if he had chopped his head off accidentally if it would grow back. Red filled his vision, and he felt like fire eating away at his skin. Oddly enough, screaming helped. He didn't want to stop screaming in case he had to focus more on the damage of his body. At last, he felt his head whip around with a rather spectacular crack and land the right way up.
He opened his eyes and saw in a gap in the walls, the sun coming through. The pain was gone. He moved one finger carefully, and it moved. He moved a foot, and it was fine. Tristan sat up, shaking his head from one side to the other, and everything worked. He stood up. The dizziness passed pretty quickly. He jumped a bit on his feet and realized he was almost better than he was before the fall. A smile filled his face.
He heard a scream and turned to face the sound. Kaitlin was running with desperation towards him, followed by several park rangers and some additional hikers. She had done an impressive job. Tristan felt her arms come around him, and then let go instantly.
“Oh my God, how are you standing? Did I hurt you? Do you have broken bones? You should go to the hospital. Maybe they should check you out. You should sit down. I saw you fall, I heard you scream, and then you stopped. I thought you were dead.” She said all that in one breath and burst into tears.
Tristan pulled her into his arms, “I’m okay, silly. The most incredible thing happened.”
Tristan waited until he had an audience. The park rangers were checking him over unbelieving.
"I felt myself fall, and as I was falling, I heard a voice saying that I would be okay. Something happened. I hit the ground, and it felt like every bone in my body was broken. I was screaming, and then I felt a hand on my shoulder. The pain went away. I felt every bone in my body, healing itself falling back into place. I opened my eyes, and I saw him. I saw God looking down at me, and say-
"Tristan, it is not your time to die. You have work to do." He said that and extended his hand. It felt like the most beautiful being I had ever experienced. As I stood up, he kissed my forehead and said, "Son, I will be with you forever.""
Tristan saw the audience taking it in. Kaitlin was openly crying, holding onto his hand. Even the park rangers were in awe. It was the impossible made possible. Tristan knew his future had begun.
“I saw God,” he said quietly and allowed a few tears to escape. “And I am his son.”
EB26392
Journal 1
The darkness in AA001 felt appropriate. The Sentinels stood in a circle around the giant dome. Emily stood with them dressed in one of their robes with Agandana was at her side. Throughout the circle, other ones like her stood. It was time to say goodbye to one of their own. The universe floated within then.
Emily felt the Sentinels’ words in her mind. “It is time.”
Geoffrey walked her through the ceremony. She thought of him. The universe twirled around them until it landed on the Milky Way. It then moved tighter towards the solar system and finally upon Earth. The Earth glowed for a moment, replaced by Geoffrey's face. That disappeared behind a hundred images of his mind, his life, and his experience on Earth. When it finished, the image of Geoffrey turned into thousands of specks and dispersed into the galaxy. The room went dark, and they filed out one by one. As she stepped into the atrium of the building, she felt a set of arms come around her. Cassandra Alexander held her gently. Drew Montenegro stood next to Cassandra. When Cassandra was done with the hug, Drew held her as well.
Agandana came up to her and put her arms around her. She kissed Emily’s forehead and then her lips very gently. “Come see me once the dust settles. We should talk, my love.”
Emily’s eyes filled with tears, but she held them back. The different minor Sentinels held her for a moment, touching their lips to her forehead and stepped away. This was her family.
When they had dispersed, the young girl she’d seen before walked up to her. “I’m Scout.”
"Nice to meet you, Scout," Emily replied, smiling at the musical silences on her cheeks, and the duct tape in her hair.
The girl grabbed her hand and kept on holding it as many more people came up to her. Manaii and Saai gave her an enormous hug and also begged her to come to stay with them. Majuto and his wife gave her a hug and went to chat with Drew and Cassandra. After a while, it became too much for Emily. All she wanted to do is be home and try to figure out life without Geoffrey.
Agandana saw her struggle and walked towards her. Scout still held her other hand.
“Maybe it is time to go home,” Agandana said.
She felt the voice of the Sentinels saying goodbye. Emily nodded to Agandana.
Scout hugged her, “Please come see me soon in New York. My dad needs to meet you.”
"I promise I will, Scout," Emily said.
Scout went off with another boy about her age with freckles Emily remembered it was Cassandra's son, Darcy. Agandana took hold of her hand with her gloved hands. Her whole body was swathed in the beautiful cloth. They walked alone back to the gate. Emily took off her clothes in preparation for the crossing into the Anica city. Agandana walked through the gate, holding on to Emily's hand.
Emily saw images of Agandana's thousand years. She saw her with Geoffrey, and it hurt to see him so much. There was no jealousy, but grief. The tears finally came. Agandana stopped in the middle of the gate and held on to Emily as if she was a child. Emily sobbed through grief more profound that life itself. She allowed herself to be rocked. It felt like hours when the tears finally stopped. Emily looked at Agandana's blue eyes and saw she had also cried. They had lost someone very dear to both of them. As the tears stopped, Emily stood again and held her hand out. Agandana took her hand. Together they moved through the gate and into the water.
Agandana took her a bit into the ocean, and then let go of Emily's hand. Emily began to panic and then realized she didn't need oxygen. Her body floated above the tunnels of the Anica in perfect peace. Emily looked around and knew nothing could happen to her. She was as immortal as Geoffrey had been. When she stepped into the tunnel with Agandana, every fear she held was gone.
“You are now one of us,” Agandana said as she stepped out of the water.
She returned to the farm. It felt empty without Geoffrey. She walked into the cabin and down to the vault filled with hundreds of empty bookshelves. The Sentinels had taken everything to their library. Emily had protested until she realized Geoffrey had digital copies made of everything. She still had every journal and every story of his life at her fingertips. She touched the empty shelves knowing it was now her turn.
There was so much to do, and everyone had asked her to go visit. She just needed a little time to be alone. She needed time to feel the last of Geoffrey within his sanctuary. Emily walked back out to the sunlight
and took the time to look through all of the property. By late afternoon, she returned to the house.
Emily sat on the deck with music playing in the background. She let the tears fall freely. In its own way, his little planet was grieving as well. She worked hard on a painting. By the evening, it was finished. She walked towards an empty wall and hung it up. It was a portrait of Geoffrey, and she wanted to remember him with the devilish smile.
That night, she sat at his desk in the living room and took out a blank journal and began to write. It was time to write her own journey that would last for thousands of years to come.
About the Author
Tatiana Beller is a writer and filmmaker born in Texas and adopted into Mexico City by a German father and Mexican mother and into a wonderfully eccentric artistic Mexican family. She grew up in Mexico City and has lived between the United States and Mexico all of her adult life. Five years ago, she connected with her birth father and has added a wonderful family from the United States to the mix. Tatiana sees herself primarily as a storyteller using different media to tell the story. She has an MFA in film and an MFA in VFX/3D Animation. She is passionate about cross cultural experiences, bicultural experiences, and transnational adoption. She feels herself part of two cultures and constantly navigating the complicated dynamics that those bring. Her passion for writing began in her grandmother’s study as a child watching her work. It has followed her throughout her life. Her first novel is Recruitment: The Alexander Chronicles Book One. This is the second novel, Dance of Life: The Belief Chronicles: Book One. They are both part of a world called Chronicles of a Planet’s End.
Find out more about the author at http://www.tatianabeller.com
Follow on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/tatiana.beller/
or on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TatianaBeller
Gentle reviews of the book on Amazon are always appreciated. You can also reach the author at [email protected].
Dance of Life: The Belief Chronicles: Book One (Chronicles of a Planet's End) Page 26