by Lucia Ashta
“I’ve never had any red in my hair,” Elena said as she walked toward the bathroom. When she got to the mirror, she put her head underneath the light. “No way,” she said more to herself than to Marco.
Marco moved behind her. He smiled.
Elena was flabbergasted. “How can that be?” she asked. “My hair has never had red in it! What is going on?”
Elena looked at Marco behind her in the mirror. He grinned back at her.
“What?” she asked him. “What is the grin about?”
“It is nothing, amore. It is just time. It is time for you to awaken and remember who you are and what you are here to do. Just like Victor said.”
Marco walked back toward the bed. Over his shoulder he said, “Mary Magdalene had red hair.” Elena did not see the brilliant smile that spread across his face.
17 A United Force
The twins had grown into the understanding that they were angels. They were light warriors descended to earth as bringers of light. The twins heralded better times when life would not weigh as heavily on the hearts of their people. The twins’ purpose was to support the victory of light in the epic and ongoing battle between light and dark that waged behind the surface of the three-dimensional reality that was human daily life.
Ashta and Anak were warriors of the light. As such, it was important that they keep their hearts buoyant and avoid heavy thoughts brought on by fear and darkness. So the twins learned to keep their thoughts focused on those beliefs that would further their ability to shine light for the world. They instilled an automatic response within themselves to dismiss any negative thought.
They were now mature enough to understand that Creator supplied for humanity’s earthly needs. All that was required of the person was that she have unquestioning faith that Creator would provide. There needed to be a complete surrender of the human desire to control the outcome of life—an illusory goal—for Creator could always provide a better result. When left in Divine hands, life flowed effortlessly and perfectly. When human control was attempted, inevitable struggle and confusion ensued.
Nevertheless, as was the way with human beings, there was a natural tendency to succumb to fear. Humans fell into the grip of fear—of lack, of pain, and of rejection. It was only through a conscious awakening and understanding of the bigger picture of life that a person broke free of these limitations. Fear, ultimately, was a mutation of faith. Fear was faith in negative outcomes in life. A person had to release fear from her habitual patterns of consciousness to flow within Creator’s abundance. Only then could she experience all that she needed as freely given.
Deep within, all human beings wanted to be loved for who they were. It was simple. They wanted to love themselves deeply, to love even those parts of themselves that lurked in shadow. Humans were created to be imperfect beings.
So the twins trained their thoughts, and, as with all forms of reprogramming, it was progressively easier to have the thoughts they desired. Soon, positive thoughts born in full faith in Creator became automatic. Life then became even more amazing for them.
Kaanra continued to guide the twins. He encouraged them to seek their training outside of the structure of temple life. The twins learned from nature. They listened to Creator and to their spirit guides. The more they were left to their own ways, the more they developed a strong love and affection for each other and for all life. All living things, big and small, held importance for them. Their teachers were the air and its birds, the water and its animals, the land and its creatures, and the heavens and its guidance.
The connection between Ashta and Anak continued to grow in strength until it was time for them to come together in the most powerful way that Creator had given man and woman to unite. Since that destined day in the pyramid when the twins had experienced their first light emission and shared their first kiss, they knew that one day they would become lovers. There was no other way on their path but deeper bonding. Ashta and Anak were strong as individuals. With their strengths combined, they became a united force that could stand against the surging powers of darkness.
The more they understood the power of the light, the more actively the dark forces targeted them. Just as the light forces were aware of the life purposes and potentials of all human beings on the earth at any given time, so were the dark forces. The dark forces concentrated their efforts on those humans that were destined for greatness. This was why lightworkers often experienced great challenges; the dark forces aimed their determined efforts at thwarting the expression of light.
The dark forces monitored the earth plane and used different beings to influence human souls toward darkness. The most powerful envoys of darkness were demons whose sole purpose was to cause confusion and despair within human souls. Demons were different from spirits. Spirits were not inherently malevolent but were human souls that had not yet found their way back to the heavens. However, even though spirits did not necessarily have bad intent, they could negatively influence a person regardless. The spirit could affect a person by imposing its fears and unhealthy patterns, those that the spirit had wrestled with in its most recent earthly life.
Demons operated on a different level. They worked to destroy a person’s life. Their purpose was to interfere with the lightness of a human being to such an extent that she would completely lose sight of that ubiquitous connection to Creator. Demons succeeded when they confused a person to such an extent that they sent her spiraling into darkness. If someone did not rescue the person from the dark, then that human incarnation would be wasted. The person would be unable to fulfill the life purpose she had come to earth to complete.
Once a demon ensnared a human soul, it would not yield of its own will. It was only through targeted intervention that another could force the demon to release its hold. When commanded with the power of Creator, the demon obeyed the authority of universal law and left, giving the afflicted person a chance at free will. The person recovered her innate ability to make a decision that would benefit the evolution of her soul.
In rare situations, a soul could free itself from the hold of darkness imposed by a demon. There were times when a person could be so strong and connected to his source of light that he would realize the forces of darkness were holding him down. The strength would grow within him to the point that he could break free of the will of the demon. He could reclaim sovereignty over his own soul. But the person who was strong enough to realize that a demon possessed him and make efforts to remedy the situation was uncommon, and the threat of possession was ever-present.
Individuals like Ashta and Anak had to keep their light strong and safe as their souls were of great value to the demons. The dark forces would consider the conquering of a soul such as Ashta or Anak’s a great victory. The more harmonized the twins became with their mission, the more they were affected by the presence of darkness. It became difficult for the twins to be in tainted environments.
They could feel the slimy, slithery sensations of long-reaching fingers trying to lure them. The feeling was palpable, even though it was occurring in a different dimension of reality. It was like a snake slithering up their legs, attempting to wrap itself around them and pull them down to lower levels of consciousness. The faint echoing of a snake’s “ssssss” warning sounded on the etheric plane. It was unnerving. The twins had to learn how to bring awareness to the strength of their light and to stand strongly in it. They could not allow themselves to falter to the impulse of fear, not even for a moment, because fear itself led to darkness.
The twins learned to protect themselves so they could assist persons afflicted with darkness while remaining safe from its influence. It was not enough to intend simply to interact only with the light. The shadow world could not be ignored. Regardless of whether the darkness was acknowledged or not, it still existed. Creator had birthed both light and dark in a dualistic system where each was an essential part of life and of the cosmic world.
As Ashta and Anak matured, the civilization that
surrounded the Temple of Laresu’u Kal began to place expectations on them. Though the people were unaware of the twins’ actual purpose on earth, they assumed that since they were the golden children of prophecy that they must be able to help them in some way. The community was eager to put the twins into the role of saviors.
To meet with the increasing demands on their energy, the twins found ways to keep their light strong. They requested the assistance of Creator, the archangels, the angels, and the ascended masters. This was the etheric team they called on for help and guidance. As the twins grew comfortable in the protection of their light bodies and in the preservation of their personal life force energy, they were able to direct their attention toward helping others.
The twins learned to work with Archangel Michael in particular. This proved to be a very important step for them. Archangel Michael was the great protector, and he would always take away the elements of darkness for transformation when they called on him. But the way in which Archangel Michael would help the twins the most was to teach them further about their life purpose.
Ashta and Anak were able to hear Archangel Michael clearly when he spoke to them, and he called them his sister and brother. Confused at first, bewildered next, the twins finally arrived at acceptance of Archangel Michael’s explanation. The twins were part of a team of angels under Archangel Michael’s direction whose job was to fight using light as their weapon.
Just as Ashta and Anak were twins, so Archangel Michael had a twin brother. This was largely unknown due to the confusion that darkness wrought. Most people lacked the understanding that darkness possessed its own form of beauty; after all, it was an essential component of human growth. Archangel Michael’s twin brother was Archangel Lucifer.
Humanity had misunderstood and maligned Archangel Lucifer for longer than anyone alive had memory. It had attributed great darkness to Archangel Lucifer, but there was no darkness within his being. Only light lived within him. He was the same as the other archangels, but the job appointed to him by Creator was to ensure that darkness lived on and played its role in human development.
Archangel Lucifer’s duty was to orchestrate darkness at a general level. He was to guarantee its existence. He supervised the appointing of darkness to human souls and blessed the souls on their journeys, that they might find the strength to outshine the dark.
Archangel Lucifer held no love for the darkness. He glowed with a brilliant light. Human beings could ask for his assistance just as they could his twin brother. The first time Ashta saw him, he glowed so brightly that she could barely discern his face.
These same forces of darkness that Archangel Lucifer organized had watched Ashta and Anak as babies. The dark forces knew the destiny of the twins so they awaited the chance to seize them. The dark plotted to enter the twins as quickly as possible to affect their ability to grow into their innate power of light. The demons knew the twins would quickly become too powerful for them to possess their souls. Therefore, envoys of the dark, along with the masters of the Temple of Laresu’u Kal and the Temple of Na’anesh Kal, witnessed the birth of the twins.
Demons watched Ashta’s mother birth her into the world. The darkness heard the cry of Anak’s mother as her child drew his first worldly breath. But because it was known in the ethers that the light bringers would be born on that destined night, there were also forces of great light that surrounded the children at the moment of their births. Powerful angels who knew how important the twins were to the world safeguarded them.
With the support of the angels, the light and love in the infants’ hearts held strong and forced the demons to leave in frustration. Brilliantly glowing stars, shining brighter than ever, announced the moment of the twins’ births—the exact same moment in time shared across the expanse of Arnaka—just as the great Dann’s prophecy had foretold. Then, the sun broke into dawn.
18 Liberty
Elena needed some time to think. She stood by herself at the top of Sugarloaf Mountain, a short walk away. The innkeeper told her it was the heart center of Sedona. Marco and Victor’s words competed for attention as she took in a 360-degree view of Sedona’s red mountains. Elena was trying to wrap her mind around everything she had learned in the last few days.
She had felt lost for as long as she could remember. She would take one step after another thinking if she just kept moving forward, someday it would all begin to make sense. Elena thought that this might be the time when it would all begin to come together for her. She couldn’t deny that unusual things had started to happen to her, things that were inexplicable except in the supernatural world Marco had described.
Movement at the corner of Elena’s vision caught her attention. She turned and saw a rabbit to her right. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she had not noticed the rabbit’s approach.
“Hello,” Elena said to the rabbit.
Hello, Ashta, Elena heard the rabbit say inside her head. Elena smiled at the rabbit and turned back to look at the view of West Sedona. It took a full three seconds for Elena to register that she had just heard this cottontail rabbit speak. When she turned back, the rabbit was gone.
Elena ran down the mountain as fast as she could. The shock of hearing the rabbit speak to her had subsided; she ran because she felt more vibrant than she had ever felt before and walking would not suffice. Her feet pounded on the red rock in spellbinding motion. The adrenaline pumped, and the blood pulsed through her veins. She felt spectacularly alive.
She ran all the way back to the room, flung the door open, and bounded in. Her smile fell away. Something was wrong. She went to Marco immediately.
“Marco, what is it?” she asked.
“My mother called the front desk. It is my other sister, Carla. She is dying. I must go to her. I have not seen her in many years. I should not have stayed away this long.”
“Oh no,” Elena said. “What happened?”
“She was hit by a car.” Marco barely managed to get the words out. That cars should strike two sisters and take their lives didn’t seem possible.
“Mi amor, lo siento tanto,” Elena said in her native tongue. My love, I am so sorry. “Will you leave right away?” she asked.
He nodded. He looked up at her. “I don’t want to leave you.”
“But you must,” Elena said. “You will come back. Now that we have found each other, we will be together. We will not lose each other again.”
Elena had hit the mark. Marco feared losing her. After a lifetime of yearning and searching for this twin of his soul, Marco had finally found Elena. He did not want to take any chances.
“You know my phone number. Okay, I guess you don’t know my phone number yet, but I will give it to you. You know where I live: at the Javelina Inn. You will find me again. I promise,” Elena assured Marco.
“You promise that I will find you again?” Marco asked.
Marco couldn’t tell what it was, but something felt strange. He didn’t want to leave Elena when he felt unsettled about things. It was nothing he could identify, but it was enough for him to be uneasy. He didn’t know what to do about it though. He had to go see his sister.
“I do,” Elena said.
Elena sat next to Marco while he pulled out his laptop and booked his flight. He had to leave for the airport in two hours and insisted on booking a shuttle to take him there. When Elena protested his intention to leave the car for her, he insisted. When she offered to drive him to the airport, he asked her to stay and enjoy Sedona instead. Marco was adamant about the shuttle and Elena finally stopped trying to talk him out of it.
Elena helped Marco gather his things into his small suitcase. Marco left a few things behind to help him feel that he would return shortly. When he had zipped the bag and Elena had programmed her phone number into Marco’s cell phone, there was nothing left to do but wait for the shuttle pick-up time to approach. Marco was apprehensive, but Elena assumed it was because of his sister’s condition.
“You’re all ready to go,�
� Elena said. She was surprised at how sad she was to see him depart. She didn’t want to have to be without him.
“How long do you think you will be gone?” she asked.
“I don’t know. It depends on how Carla is and what is really happening. I have to be there with my family, but I don’t want to leave you. I can’t explain it, but my resistance to leaving you is strong,” Marco said.
Elena nodded. She understood. She guided Marco onto the bed next to her, and there they lay, limbs entwined, hearts connected, comforting each other. The love that radiated from them calmed Marco’s worried heart. His heartbeat slowed, his breathing grew deep, and he nestled into Elena.
In that lover’s embrace, they agreed that if Marco needed to stay in Rome for long, Elena would fly out to join him. They would be apart for only a few days. Either Marco would return to Sedona, or Elena would meet him in Rome. It would be okay, they told each other and shared a final kiss.
As Elena watched Marco ride away on the shuttle, Marco assured himself repeatedly that everything was fine. With the shuttle pointed toward Phoenix, he tried to make himself comfortable for the ride.
* * *
It was mid-morning and Ashta had been walking along the riverbank since sunrise. Her mind was not particularly preoccupied, but she felt the need to pace beside the flowing water. She moved slowly, occasionally allowing the water to lap upon her feet. Her walk was rhythmic and peaceful. She smiled. It was a bright, emerald green by the water’s edge, which stood in sharp contrast to the barren, arid land away from the setting of the river.
Ashta loved the water. She was powerfully connected to it, though she did not understand the full extent of this connection yet. The water not only brought her peace, but it made her feel that anything was possible.
After a long time of walking in complete serenity and quietude of mind, Ashta heard a clear instruction. Her angel guides told her that it was time to learn true freedom. They were insistent and before she knew it, Ashta was running away from the water toward firm land.
