“Caleb,” Dad said gently. “Caleb, Daddy’s here. You’re safe now son.” Tears fell from his face as he edged forward. Caleb stopped slashing his hands at us. Coming in for the cuddle, the three of us wept. Caleb cried, finally letting himself go.
“Dad!” he exclaimed. “Taylor!”
“Caleb!” we both said, smiling through the tears. “You’re okay now, he can’t hurt you anymore.”
“But he...” Caleb said, backing off into the corner. Scratching at his own arms with human hands and fingers once again.
“No, Caleb,” I said. “He’s dead, he’s not inside you anymore. He’s gone, you’re safe.”
“Promise?”
“Pinkie promise, kid,” I said, smiling through my tear-stained face.
Holding Caleb made me feel warm again, whole again. It was the missing part of my fragmented family that I needed to see returned. He was everything to me, and to be taken so young, so tragically. It was something I’d never forgive myself for. No matter what Adam said, if I wasn’t in their lives, Lilith and the Beast would never have found them, found me. It was my fault they died, and there was no taking that back.
Letting go, I shuffled backwards. Dad's eyes were red raw from crying. Caleb was clinging to him like a koala to a tree. They would heal together. Live again, perhaps, but this time they would have to live without me. I couldn’t put them through my pain again. I knew they loved me, knew they’d do anything for me, but that was exactly the problem. They loved me. If Lilith wanted to hurt me she could do this time and time again; torturing my little brother, siphoning the life from my withering father. I couldn’t let them go through that again. Not again. It wouldn’t be fair. They needed time here, just the two of them. Time together to heal, to let go. Then, when they were reborn, I could watch them through the pool of tears, just like Adam had watched me. I could see them smile, watch them thrive. Just by knowing they could live again, knowing they could be free of the darkness once and for all. That was the greatest gift I could ever give them, to let them go.
“Dad,” I said, placing my hand on his shoulder. “Caleb.” I paused. “I need to go.”
“Go where, sis?”
“I have to clean up the mess I’ve caused. Dad can explain.”
“You won’t go near that monster, though?” Caleb asked, lip quivering.
“No, he’s dead now. Don’t you ever worry about him again, kid,” I said, ruffling his hair. “Nothing can hurt you here, and in this amazing place, you can be anything you want to be.”
“Really!” he exclaimed. “Can I be a geologist?” he asked with the biggest grin.
Dad laughed.
“Yes, of course you can, and I bet Gabriel and Michael can show you so many wondrous sites here. It’s the perfect place for any geologist to be!” I said as I gripped him tight, kissed his forehead, and walked away with tears in my eyes.
“Taylor, you're not giving your old man a hug?” Dad shouted after me.
“Of course!” I said, running back into his arms.
He squeezed me tight, holding on longer than normal. “Be safe, angel. Be strong and remember.... no matter who you are, you’ll always be my baby girl.” Letting go, he kissed my forehead and then I walked out of the room, leaving my family behind.
CHAPTER 33: TAYLOR
“It feels very strange when you call me Eve, Adam,” I said as we walked down the corridor.
“I expect so, would you prefer Taylor instead?”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll get used to it.” I smiled.
“That must have been a very hard thing to do.” He smiled, interlinking his arm with mine. “We will keep them safe.”
“I know. Caleb’s always wanted to study rocks, the light is the perfect place for him to start.”
“Indeed.”
“What about my mum?”
“Taylor's mum has moved on. She was reborn into the body of a child, just over one Earth year ago. I had Michael find out for you.”
“I’m glad she was able to move on.”
“But you miss her, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“You can see her anytime in the pool of tears.” He smiled “But if you’re feeling really brave, you could venture into the room under the stars. Just ask and the room will guide you, showing you any place, you want to go to. But, bear in mind, your mum is only a toddler, so she won’t look like your mother for many mortal years yet.”
“Oh, okay. But what did you mean about the room under the stars?”
“Ah yes, I meant the room where I first saw you.” He placed his arm around my shoulders as we walked. “It’s the gateway to the cosmos. We designed it to see into all the worlds in the universe. They exist because we gifted them our light. The light created life where there was none.”
“Really? But, how does it do that?”
“I have absolutely no idea. But we ask the light, and the light creates it.”
“Can it see our parents’ home in Elveador?”
“Sadly, no, as mother and father are no longer corporal beings.”
“What do you mean?”
“They follow a linear path now.”
“So, we can only see their structure of life?”
“Yes, the past, present, and future.”
“This is confusing.”
“Indeed.”
“What you’re saying is, I can choose to see any time I like as long as it has happened?”
“Yes.”
“I can only visit the past or present? Why can’t I ask to see the future?”
“Because it hasn’t happened yet. You’re full of questions, as usual, Eve.” He grinned.
I smiled. “Yes, it’s just so much to take in. What I don’t understand is how Lawrence and Eliza can see the future?”
“Who?”
“Friends on Earth.”
“Ah, there are some that are gifted to glimpse moments in the future, they analyse the likely outcomes of such an event happening. I believe they connect with the guardians of the watchtowers, who live outside of the universe, protecting it in its neutral form.”
“I heard you mention the guardians. Who are they?
“Well, there’s four of them. I believe father connected with them when he arrived on this plane. They are neutral and hold back the light and dark from colliding. Thus, the universe in the centre is neutral, capable of both good and evil.”
“Okay, why are there four of them?”
“I’m not sure. Father was always sketchy on the details. I do know, though, that their main purpose is to control time.”
“How?”
“They believe in balance. In the scriptures it says that the guardians trust that without light, there is no dark, and without dark there can be no light. One must exist for the other to breathe. They are opposing forces but complement each other. Quite like the Chinese philosophy of yin and yang.”
“So, we can never end the darkness?”
“No, just as it can never end our light. For should it do so, our father's universe would be out of balance.”
“It’s confusing.”
“Maybe this will help.” He said, conjuring a stream of light before my eyes. The particles melded together to form a map of our solar system. “This map shows how our fathers hands created the universe, with the spiral of Hell below and Elysium above.”
“THANK YOU.” I SAID, taking in the beauty before me. “What do you call all of this?” I asked, pointing at the whole picture before me.
“We call it home,” he smiled. “But father called it Hope.”
I smiled. “But what are the other planets?”
“They contain our other creations, civilisations built on freewill with a marvellous ability to survive against all odds.”
“Which one is Elveador?”
“None of them. All I know is that Elveador lives outside of the knowledge we share.”
“Can’t I see anything from mother and father?”
“O
h yes, don’t worry.” He smiled pulling me close. “There are some lovely memories of when mother and father first arrived here; the love they shared and the beauty in their innocence. Their adoration for one another is what pushed them to find a new home, escaping the serpent before it came.”
“It sounds like a fairy tale.”
“But without the fairy tale ending. Come, lets introduce you to the other Angels.” He said as we reached a turn in the corridor.
It felt as though we had walked for such a long time, lost in the memories of life before our own. As the corridor turned, the realm opened to an enchantment of glorious opportunities. Thousands of extra-terrestrial faces in the hustle and bustle of their everyday working lives. Creatures of all kinds assisted with the building of astrological machinery of some kind, built on a plateau of adventure and intrigue.
“What are all these creatures?”
“Why, you didn’t think it was only humanity that exists did you?” He laughed. “That’s a naïve human trait, if I ever saw one.”
My cheeks flushed. “Well, no, I just presumed this place was for humans.”
“Again, Heaven is the human term. If you need to consider a name when thinking of here, then call it Elysium, that’s what we call it.” He smiled. “We offer a peaceful ending here, a place of solace where the soul can rebuild itself, learn the lessons from that life, and move forward onto the next.”
“Wouldn’t it get crowded?” I asked. “I mean, with every creature from every planet coming here after death?”
“No, not at all. The space is infinite. We are as big or as small as we need to be. You are still thinking like a mortal, Eve. Size and matter are human constructs.” He smiled, gripping my shoulder.
The vast space before me accumulated the plans for the defence of the next great war; should Lilith’s army succeed and penetrate such a place of wonder. Adam showed me around as I walked by celestial workers in the metropolitan of Elysium's own sociological system. There were beautiful winged beasts who shifted the larger machinery from one area to another, harnessing the light to shoot out beams of glory like cannons on a battlefield. Hooved creatures strove to configure the wondrous apparatus one delicate piece at a time. The twinkling of light flashed before my eyes as the flapping of miniscule wings buzzed past my ear.
“Sorry, coming through,” a tiny voice squeaked.
“Mind your heads,” a deep voice boomed, as a large-stomached creature with grotesque breath swooped a mighty shard of crystallised matter cross the landscape. Adam pulled me down, laughing.
“They’re what your humans would call ogres.”
“I thought they were nasty?”
“Only the mean ones go to Hell, Eve. Did you forget that?”
“I don’t remember any of this. What is it all for?”
“It has changed a bit since you were last here. The townsfolk on this plateau have been tasked with creating equipment to harness our light and destroy the darkness once and for all.”
“But you said the darkness cannot be destroyed.”
“No, that’s what father believed. I think we’d be better off without it. After all, our parents home planet lived in purity for many lifetimes before the serpent came along.”
“How did they not see the serpent coming?”
“That is one question that remains unanswered. I’ve often wondered that, too.”
“Do you really think war is the best answer?”
“No, but what chance do we have if the darkness takes over the rose?”
“We don’t.”
“Exactly, and as we believe Lilith wants to destroy us then we must be ready. We cannot let the darkness consume this world as it did our parents'.”
“True, it’s just wrong that it’s come to this; a war between light and dark.”
“Hasn’t there always been a war?”
“No, I don’t believe there needs to be. Can’t light and dark co-exist?”
“I don’t see how.”
“Then what hope do I have when I embody both?”
“That is one thing that concerns me.” He frowned.
“Look, I believe in balance. You have both good and evil on the mortal plane. They co-exist. Granted, sometimes the scales tip to one side or the other, but they’ve managed to keep on surviving through everything for this long. Can’t we?”
“We have. If Lilith comes, we may not have that choice.”
“I’m not disputing that, Adam, but she’s our sister. There has to be a way to reason with her.”
“She wouldn’t listen. Our sister, as we know her, is gone.”
“Didn’t you say that you can feel her when she smiles and feel pain when she cries?”
“Yes.”
“Then you both still have a bond as twins. To have that bond, she must still have light left within her.”
“You were always the optimist, Eve. I hope you’re right, otherwise it may all come to a formidable ending, just like your witch foretold.”
“I hope not, but we have to try,” I said. “I need to go back, Adam.”
“Where?”
“Earth. I need to be back in my mortal body, see Lucian again, work with the Darkwaters.”
“But why? I’ve only just got you back.”
“Because if I don’t try and reason with Lilith, then a great war is coming. I must try everything in my power to stop it, to keep everyone safe, to keep this place safe.”
“I think I understand. It doesn’t mean I like it, though. I just hope you are successful. If it comes to war, I’m not sure that we could win.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
“But you cannot remember enough to wield the light yet. How will you protect yourself, Eve?”
“Lucian will keep me safe, he managed it for the two years I walked alone.” I smiled. “Plus, I miss him.”
“Well, at least take Michael with you for support.”
“Really? Michael?”
“Okay, good point. Gabriel would be better suited.”
“I’ll be okay alone. Gabriel needs to be with you, keeping you and the rose safe.”
“No, I’d feel happier if he was with you. I need to concentrate on the war efforts, and not be worrying about your fragile body.” He laughed.
“Fair enough.” I smiled. “So when can I go?”
“When do you want to?”
“Well, is my body still there?”
“Yes, we can transport you back into it. It’ll need fixing, though. Gabriel will fall down after you and find you when he lands, make sure you’re in one piece.” He smirked.
“Okay, then beam me up Scottie, or down, actually, down.” I smirked at Adam's clear bewilderment. “I’ll miss you, Adam.”
“As will I, little sister, as will I.”
CHAPTER 34: LUCIAN
I couldn't stay, seeing her there as Elisha dressed her in the dress I bought her for the Yuletide ball. It was a silky, long ivory gown with exquisite crystal beading that tapered across the bosom. It hid her bruising and concealed her gaping wound. There was no amount of blood that could bring life back to her glazed eyes.
Shit, I missed her. She'd look at me in astonishment if she ever heard me cursing like that. Come to think of it, I didn't think I had ever swore in front of her before. I had kept my true darkness well hidden, even with something as small as vulgar language. I didn't want to scare her off. The anger I felt was immense, and she had never seen my true anger. I wondered that if she had, would she still have loved me? We would find out when I battled Demons trying to pull her out of Hell. I think she would love me, no matter what. We were two of a kind, her and I. We both come from complicated backgrounds and both felt the pain of life and death together. She was the light in my darkness. I never wanted her to see the cruel Dark One that craved the taste of innocence. I couldn't live without her, though. She was my only reason to keep living. If only I'd met her centuries ago, we could have reigned through immortality together.
Why did she have to give me her blood? Why couldn't she have just let me die? I can't cope with this torment. Every time I closed my eyes I would see her fractured body screaming in agony, burning with regret, and dying from her own grief. The darkness took over, masked her beautiful light as it warped her existence into nothing. She was mine and I was hers. If Lilith didn't grant me access to Hell, then I was certain she would put an end to my pitiful existence. She must. I couldn't go through the nightmare of reality any longer.
Shit. How do I leave her? I knew she wasn't really in there anymore, but she looked sound asleep. Maybe she will wake with a true love's kiss. Who was I kidding? Fairy tales were for the weak. This shit is life and it was messed up, chaotic, and bloody vile. I had to leave whether I liked it or not. The longer I stayed there, the more she would suffer in the claws of the nightmarish creatures that resided down below.
Look at them all running around, accepting her death as if it was nothing to them. She was the reason they died, but they forget. Just as they forget that she was the reason they lived. She brought purpose to our lives when we had none. Yet they go on with the funeral like it was normal, nothing new. Even Julian was going ahead with it all, trying to perfect an ice casket and present Taylor like an offering of meat on a tray. She was dead, damn it, that’s just a rotting corpse! She isn’t home anymore, she’s gone. Bloody gone. I know they meant well, keeping themselves busy to ease the pain of loss. But who was it helping, really? Damn it, the humans would be here soon with their questions. How was I supposed to explain why she died and why they lived? How could I explain their frozen faces as they quivered in her grief? I couldn't explain any of it. How did I not realise how powerful she really was? She took out the whole of humanity, for fuck's sake! Shit, I couldn’t deal with their pain too, crying their tears of sorrow. I had heard Rowena wanted to say a few words, why though? Did she even know her? No-one knew her like I did, yet they’ll all hitched a ride on the roller-coaster of grief as they cried their shallow tears and pretended they felt as bad as I did. I couldn't stand it, the fake, fucked up world we lived in. Since when did her relatives give a shit? I never even met her aunties and uncles that were coming. Hell, I didn’t even know they existed. But they’d turn up. Some relative I’ve never met will shake my hand, pat my back, and apologise for my loss. If they didn’t apologise then it’d be because they were too busy sobbing into a handkerchief, pretending that her death meant something to them. They were the leeches, those that plead for sympathy as though their life hung in the balance. I couldn't do that, couldn't be there to watch that shit. I’d take their damn heads off if they pretended for one minute they were sorry for my loss. They didn’t know me, they didn’t know us. I didn't need their sympathy. I need my girl back.
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