Heaven's Eyes

by Jason A Anderson

  “He’s so different now than he was when we were alive. I’d forgotten how much he enjoyed the science of life,” Morgan said.

  Kenah didn’t reply immediately, but let Morgan bask in her own memories. After several moments, she said, “What I’m asking you to do could get you into your own bit of trouble.”

  As if she hadn’t heard, Morgan said with her voice full of nostalgia, “I don’t think of Trent as much as I thought I would. Of course, time works differently here than where he is. He could be an old man by now.”

  “Maybe, but somehow I doubt it. Either way, it would be nice to see him again, wouldn’t it? See how he’s doing?”

  An unconscious smile touched Morgan’s lips and she looked over at Kenah. “You’re a big sneak, you know that?” she accused.

  Kenah shrugged and said, “You’ve met my husband. You be married to someone like him for any length of time and then tell me you don’t learn a few creative ways to get what you want.”

  Morgan went back to watching Bridger and the kids. The silence stretched on long enough that Kenah began to worry that the silence was Morgan’s answer.

  At last, Morgan said, “Okay, I’ll do it.”

  The rain hadn’t let up for over two days and didn’t show any signs of doing so tonight. Heavy storm clouds squatted over Shadow Valley, blocking out the moon and starlight, turning the entire sky varying shades of lightning hued black. Thunder echoed from one end of the valley and back again, sounding much like an ethereal drumroll.

  Trent Massey lay curled up on his bed. His small studio apartment was swathed in shadows, broken only by flashes of lightning from the storm now battering his small refuge.

  As a child, he had loved storms like this one... the angrier the better. He passed many innocent hours in the bay window of the family home, trying in his mind to connect the lines of flashing light, listening to the cadence of the rolling thunder and counting the seconds between a lightning flash and the resulting thunderclap.

  Now, the storm merely served to intensify his pain. Instead of thrilling from the charge in the air, it drilled into his psyche, relentless in its attempts to drive him insane.

  Sighing heavily, he pulled his comforter up around his neck and tried in vain to sleep. His mind played tricks on him as he struggled with the insomnia. More than once, he thought he saw movement across the room, chased away by the flashes from outside. It had him edgy from the constant adrenaline surges such that he doubted he’d sleep at all tonight.

  Frustrated when he again sensed movement in the room, he rolled over to face the southeast window, turning his back on the rest of the apartment.

  “Trent?”

  Her soft voice jarred him so much he sat bolt upright, the comforter flying off the foot of the bed.

  Eyes wide with fear, Trent stared into the gloom of the room. In the back of his mind he noticed not only the soft glow that seemed to emanate from the room itself, but the sounds of the violent storm outside had ceased.

  “It’s me, Trent. It’s Morgan,” the voice said and from the gloom, she emerged. Dressed in a pale blue gown, with her hair pulled up and back and adorned with small silver and blue blossoms. Blue slippers protected her feet as she crossed the room to him.

  Trent had never understood the euphemism, “his heart was in his throat”, until right now... so stunned that he couldn’t speak, couldn’t even breathe. After a few heartbeats, the need to say something overpowered his surprise. “Morgan?” It came out as a croak in the thick silence.

  An easy smile rushed onto her face and Morgan replied, “It’s good to see you, too. How long has it been?”

  “Three years,” Trent replied.

  “Wow, that long? It doesn’t seem that long for me, but...” She let the unspoken observation linger between them.

  Trent looked around him, taking stock of his surroundings. “Am I dead?”

  Morgan almost laughed, caught herself when she saw the seriousness on his face, then composed herself. “No, my love. You’re not dead. I’m here to ask you a favor.”

  Stunned, Trent motioned to the messy condition of the apartment. “You didn’t come to comfort me or tell me everything was going to be okay? Three years gone and you show up to ask a favor?” It impressed him that he could muster an emotion like anger through his depressed haze.

  Morgan swept her gaze from one side of the studio pad to the other. Then her attention returned to Trent’s harrowed face. “Had I known how hard things had become for you, I would have tried to come sooner,” she told him sincerely.

  Feeling like a rat, Trent waved her apology away, not taking his eyes off her beautiful face. “It’s enough that you’re here, now.” He hoped his voice held more sincerity than anger.

  “Kenah’s brother Levahn has come to Earth and Kiah’s come after him. We think they’re in Shadow Valley. Please help Kiah find Levahn before he does something terrible.” The explanation came out in a rush.

  Trent couldn’t breathe again. Kiah and Kenah were names he never wanted to hear again. They had turned his life into chaotic ruin and left him alone to try and pick up the scattered pieces... which he had failed at miserably.

  Morgan’s expression of hope, tinged with anxiety, turned to one of sad longing. “I can’t stay. I have to go.” She began backing into the room’s deep shadows.

  “Wait!” Trent exclaimed, holding out a hand to her. “Don’t go! Please!”

  “I have to, Trent. I can’t stay. Remember, I will always love you...” Her voice echoed into a whisper, then silence.

  “Wait!” Trent howled into the thunderclap that rattled the apartment. “Don’t go...” Lightning a moment later revealed his solitary presence in the room.

  “How am I supposed to find them?” he demanded of the darkness.

  Nearly as loud as the thunder from outside, the banging on his front door stole Trent’s attention. Feeling muddled from Morgan’s visit, and still not convinced it wasn’t some sort of insomnia-induced hallucination, he shuffled across to the front door and opened it enough to peek out.

  Against the stark light from the storm, a dark shadow loomed on Trent’s doorstep.

  “Trent Massey?” the shadow’s deep voice demanded.

  “Uh... maybe...”

  “It’s me, Trent, Kiah,” the shadow said.

  Trent’s jaw dropped and without meaning to he let the door blow open. The shadow stepped in out of the torrential rain. It turned out to be a man, dark skinned and well-toned.

  Once inside, Kiah shut the door behind him and shook the rain water from his head.

  “Hey!” Trent stepped back from the sudden indoor rain shower.

  “Where’s Noah when you need him?” Kiah grumbled, shaking off his jacket.

  Unable to take his eyes off the newcomer, Trent reached over and felt along the doorjamb until his fingers found the light switch. His entry light did little to illuminate the entire space, but it gave him enough to take in the sight of his visitor.

  Satisfied he wasn’t completely saturated, Kiah turned his attention to Trent. “I need your help.”

  Unfazed at this announcement, Trent replied, “So I’ve been told.”

  Kenah stood up from the bench that surrounded her garden’s central fountain. She tried not to fidget as she watched Morgan approach from the estate house.

  Morgan looked troubled as she stopped and said, “I’ve done what you asked. Trent’s a real mess. I had no idea... but I’ve done what I can.”

  Kenah smiled and embraced Morgan. “I’m sure it’ll be enough,” she whispered.

  Morgan nodded, but the haunted look on her face remained.

  From where he sat at the beat up folding table that passed for his dining table, Trent watched Kiah stare out the window at the storm. Light had begun to illuminate the eastern m
ountains. Trent was glad to see the sun beginning to rise.

  “So,” Trent called, “You say you need my help. And I’ve got it on good authority that’s true.”

  Kiah turned back to Trent. He gave the man the once-over, then their gazes met. “You’ve looked better.”

  Trent chuckled to himself without any humor. “No kidding. Having everyone you cared about die around you has an effect on a person. The last time you were here, you destroyed my life. I should put a gun to my head and pull the trigger. It’s gonna end the same way.”

  Kiah crossed over to Trent, but didn’t sit at the rickety table. He looked down at the Seer and studied his face. “I can’t guarantee that what I need to do won’t have its risks.”

  Trent shook his head and replied, “No shit. What is it this time?”

  “Kenah’s brother has gone rogue.”

  Cursing again, Trent stood up and retrieved a box of breakfast cereal from a cupboard. He placed it and a bowl and spoon on the table, then added a carton of milk from the fridge.

  “As a Seer, you possess the ability to sense where a rogue might be.”

  Thumping back into the folding chair, Trent shook his head. “You don’t have one of those damn SoulStars with you?”

  Kiah hesitated, then replied, “I’m not a SoulChaser any longer. I was promoted to Guardian. Even if I had a SoulStar, I wouldn’t be able to use it.”

  To himself, Trent muttered, “Well, that’s a comfort, at least.” Then he mulled over what Kiah had said, turning his attention back to the taller man. “Wait a minute, you’re not a SoulChaser anymore?”

  “No.”

  “Then why are you here?”

  Kiah inhaled deeply, then explained the situation as concisely as he could.

  Trent sat back and listened, stunned by what he heard. When the story ended, he asked, “So, you’re a rogue now, too?”

  “No, I’m a Guardian. I can appear in Mortality whenever I want without needing a host body.”

  Raising his eyebrows in approval, Trent nodded.

  “However, I haven’t been granted the authority of a Guardian, as Kenah and I have recently had a child and I’m supposed to be taking time off.”

  “A kid? That’s great!” Trent exclaimed, wondering how he could still be surprised after the night he’s had.

  Nodding, Kiah smiled.

  “So, you’re basically here to find Levahn and keep him safe until a SoulChaser can send him home?”

  Kiah nodded in agreement.

  Taking a bite of cereal, Trent pondered something that had just occurred to him.

  Kiah paced the room through the long pause, before Trent finally said, “Here’s something I hadn’t thought of...”

  “What?” Kiah asked, turning to him.

  Trent set down his spoon and looked up at Kiah. “Jake and Taya were here a few days ago... showed up without any warning. From what I’ve heard, the only way they could be together again is if something seriously weird is going on.”

  Kiah didn’t take long to think this revelation over. “Then we need to go see them,” he decided, then looked Trent’s appearance over again. “But, first, I think you need to bathe.”

  Trent cocked his head to the side, peering at Kiah. Then he nodded and spooned another bite of cereal into his mouth.

  Chapter 31

  “Tea and Flowers”

  Eldress Idell knelt in the damp earth, her gloved hands kneading the soft soil around the bright yellow tulip stem. The garden before her grew healthy with riotous color. Here in Paradise, there was no need to weed or water the garden, no need to maintain and nurture the soil. The flowers would grow as she desired indefinitely. But that was not Idell’s idea of Paradise. Nurturing, weeding, cultivating, these were the activities that she drew enjoyment from. It didn’t matter if the garden was “perfect” or not. For her, the satisfaction came from getting her hands into the soil and getting them dirty. Having lived in Paradise for long enough that Earthly time held no meaning for her any longer, she knew that the garden and lawn that surrounded her small egg white cottage grew and flourished based on her ministrations, not by simple virtue of “being in Paradise”. If she quit investing the energy into her small piece of Paradise, it would wither and brown and remain that way until she willed it otherwise. Rarely had she done so. Even at the garden or yard’s worst, she still preferred to work the land back to full bloom.

  Her flower-patterned gloves contrasted against the dark brown soil as she worked. When her senses told her someone had entered her little spot of Paradise, she continued to work, not looking up even as the man approached from the pale mists beyond her estate.

  “You’re a long way from home, Joshua,” Idell’s voice sounded feminine and delicate without being harsh or shrill. Even the slightly chastising lilt didn’t grate on one’s nerves.

  “I’ve been hearing strange things concerning those escaping the Abyss,” Joshua said from where he halted on the path to Idell’s left.

  Still not looking at the SoulChaser Mentor, Idell said, “You should know better than to listen to idle gossip from liars and deceivers.”

  Nodding, Joshua agreed.

  “If it was only one, that wouldn’t concern me so much.”

  This news gave Idell pause. For several heartbeats she looked down at the tulip garden without seeing it. She sat back on her legs, then stood up. She didn’t have to brush off her hands or clothing, since none of the soil stuck to them. She turned and looked up at the tall man now standing beside her.

  “Come inside,” she said and turned away. “I’ve got a few things to explain to you.”

  Joshua followed her up the path in silence.

  At the white picket gate, Joshua stepped up and held it open for Idell, who smiled graciously and led the Mentor into the home’s windowed solarium.

  “You sit here,” the woman said, gesturing to a white wrought iron chair sitting beneath a precariously positioned hanging plant.

  Joshua did, despite not trusting the plant now gently swaying back and forth only a couple feet overhead.

  “I’ll make tea,” Joshua’s host offered, then stepped through the open door into the bungalow’s small kitchen. A moment later, he could hear the clunk and tink of a teapot being retrieved from a cupboard; then the water running as she filled the small container.

  Why is she going to the effort of making tea, when delicious tea and a tea-set to serve it in fit for kings was a mere thought away for someone of her ability. But Joshua didn’t voice his thought, simply sat quietly until she returned a few moments later, wiping her hands on the apron she wore to work in the garden.

  “There, that should be ready shortly,” she said and pulled out a white iron chair. Sitting in it had her straight across the patio table from Joshua. “Now, what is it that brought you here? Your request was cryptic, at best.”

  Her directness caught Joshua off-guard and he stammered, “Information, mostly.”

  Tilting her head slightly, she asked, “What kind of information?”

  She should know this! But again he kept his thoughts to himself.

  Suddenly feeling unsure of his figurative footing, Joshua decided to dive in head first. “There are rumours among the Soul Lost that an army is being prepared specifically to expand the Realm.”

  If he expected a reaction from her, Joshua was disappointed. The woman sat and watched him, not letting her face twitch even a tiny bit.

  “We all know they’ve tried this in the past, but they’ve never been this organized. They also have a common goal; something they can all focus on.”

  This time she spoke. “And what would that common focus be, Joshua?”

  Now he felt a touch nervous at her using his name, rather than rank. “From what we’ve heard, they want Eden.”

&nb
sp; One heartbeat... another heartbeat...

  With fluid motion, the woman stood and walked back into the kitchen, leaving Joshua wondering if the news had rattled her at all. Before he could finish speculating, she returned with a silver tea tray and white teapot with matching cups and saucers. As she spoke she set him up with the refreshment and sat down again.

  “This news is worrisome, but not unexpected. The Realm has tried this before; their last attempt came closer to succeeding than they ever had before. There’ve always been attempts by those within the Realm to push its boundaries. They rage and struggle and occasionally break loose.” She levelled a pointed gaze at Joshua. “If they didn’t, you and your SoulChasers wouldn’t have Callings.”

  Despite the seriousness of the conversation, Joshua couldn’t help smiling.

  “However, the fact that you and the SoulChasers have heard of their latest effort and that Eden is the target, leads me to believe there is more to this than just rumour.” She paused to consider the implications of this new information. “I feel it necessary to share a few things with you that under normal circumstances I wouldn’t....”

  “Alright,” Joshua prompted her, the eagerness edging into his voice.

  “For the last several years, certain members of the Order of Angels have been preparing for a rise in conflict from the Realm of Lost Souls, and even from the elements within the Great Void.”

  Joshua sat back in his seat, the shock of the announcement shattering the moment.

  “The Realm and the Void?” he asked.

  With a nod, the Eldress continued. “Yes, and no small incursion into the Mortal realm, either. There is the possibility of a wide-spread war throughout the Eternities, the kind of war that would lay waste to countless mortal worlds, destroying not only the land and those that live upon it, but with the potential to rend the Void and decimate the Afterlife, as well.”

  Now Joshua felt sick. The bile churned inside his guts, threatening to rise into his throat.