“When the first parents were expelled from the Garden, the Mighty Lord of All spoke a prophecy to the serpent: ‘I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed.’ Before long, the fallen angel, Lucifer, who had taken the form of the serpent in the Garden, began to corrupt the minds and bodies of mankind. He and the rest of the angels who had followed him in rebellion, began to prey upon men. Being bigger and stronger then the seed of Adam and Eve, they set themselves up as gods.”
A chill wind seemed to blow through the room. Rebecca couldn’t tell whether it was from the open shaft above them or from the direction in which Noah’s narrative had taken. Crossing her arms in front of her, she hugged herself to try to ward off the uncomfortable feeling.
The dark tale had a chilling effect as well on the mood of the rest of the listeners. Everyone in the room remained still, including Goliath. Even Noah himself ceased his pacing and stared out the window of the door that led toward the animal enclosures.
“Great wars were fought between the self-proclaimed gods and their armies as they sought dominance and control of the humans,” Noah explained further. “Eventually, boundaries were established and most of the fighting ceased. Great cities, temples, and palaces were built in honor of these false gods. Often, many of the sons of God ruled a territory together, using their combined power to influence the people. These pantheons of gods molded the humans into their own likenesses, developing their own forms of worship, philosophies, and religions.”
Jerome’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Did he just say, ‘sons of God’? Is that another name for these…demon-gods?”
After Mack translated the question, Noah nodded his head. “We call all of the heavenly host ‘sons of God’ because they were created directly by the Maker Himself. Even our forefather Adam was called a ‘son of God’ for the same reason.”
Noah paused and placed his hand upon his head, as if this particular part of the story caused him great pain to divulge. “Once they had established their power, the sons of God began to…to…take…our women. Our mothers, our daughters, and…and our sisters.” Standing to her feet, Eema crossed over to where Noah stood and placed a comforting arm around his waist. After a moment, he allowed her to guide him back to where the others sat. When he and Eema were settled onto their cushions, Noah turned his attention back to his guests.
“Forgive my emotion. It has been a long time now, but I will never forget what they did.”
“Please, noble Patriarch, we don’t want to cause you further pain,” Rebecca said gently, “but we don’t understand. What did they do?”
His face burned with a righteous anger such as Rebecca had never before seen. “They took our women for their ‘wives.’ They seduced them, used them, and then discarded them. Furthermore, they impregnated our women and created abominations. They were giants—perverse, half-humans. Many of the women, including my sister, died giving birth to these monstrosities.”
“The Nephilim,” Jerome stated quietly.
Noah nodded in acknowledgement as he recognized the word.
“That gives me the willies!” Mack said, shivering. “It almost reminds me of some of those alien abduction stories you hear about.”
When Mack did not translate his own comment, Noah continued. “Many who trusted in the True God believed that by breeding with our women, Lucifer was attempting to pollute the ‘seed’ of man and create his own ‘seed,’ thus preventing the prophecy from being fulfilled. If there were no ‘seed’ of mankind left, then there could be no Redeemer.”
Japheth leaned forward. “If that was truly his aim, then he is close to achieving his goal. As far as we know, we may be the only eight yet alive that are of pure blood. The rest have either been polluted by normal procreation, or they have had their bodies altered before birth through the evil technology of the sons of God.”
“What kind of technology?” Goliath asked.
“The sons of God, and all of the other heavenly hosts, whom the Creator made before mankind, dwelt with Him in the heavens,” Noah explained. “As such, they were not bound by mortal bodies and had access to knowledge and understanding that is beyond what man has been able to obtain in the past sixteen centuries.”
Shem, who had remained silent through most of the discussion, took over the thread of explanation from his father, his youthful, tenor voice a contrast to his father’s more mature baritone. “They understand how to manipulate the very laws of nature. They make machines that can lift massive stones, as if by sorcery, which they use to build great temples and palaces. Their knowledge of the healing arts is unsurpassed, for they seem to know the inner workings of the human body even to the point where they can…pervert life before it is born!” Shem exclaimed, his voice trembling and his face reflecting his revulsion. At his side, tears began to fall silently from the light green eyes of his wife. Taking her hand in his, he paused a moment before continuing. “They can alter the invisible structures that our Maker, blessed be His name, placed in each living being at the Creation of the world. As if to mock our loving Creator, they twisted life, mixing the seed of one animal with the seed of another to create horrible…abominations. But worst of all, they perverted mankind, who bears the very image of God! Through their wickedness, they formed terrible, half-human…soul-less monstrosities! And some men even willingly volunteered to have these horrors visited upon them, solely for the sake of the power and strength it brought them!”
As he spoke, Shem’s voice became louder and louder as his indignation and anger rose. Leaning over, Noah placed a hand on his son’s shoulder and whispered in his ear. Closing his eyes momentarily, Shem visibly relaxed as his father’s words drained the anger from his body.
“It sounds like these ‘gods’ know about genetic manipulation,” Jeffrey said quietly as he looked around at the others. “I bet those vampire-like things were some of these genetically altered creatures.”
Rebecca shivered involuntarily as the image of the pale, tight-skinned faces appeared in her thoughts. Next to her, Mack sat motionless, a sickened look on his face. Glancing at Goliath, she noticed that even he wore a disturbed expression.
Shem, still shaking slightly, put his arm around his wife and drew her close. Noah leaned back and returned his attention to his visitors once more. “My son has been given a love of nature and animals that rivals any I have ever seen. It grieves him deeply to see what the enemy has done. It is for this reason that my family and I were disturbed by your description of the beings you found with the pyramid. If they were Nephilim or altered abominations, it would mean that the false gods continued to corrupt mankind after the Deluge.”
Rebecca and the others remained silent, each lost in his or her own thoughts. After a moment, Noah resumed his narration.
“Many of these abominations were set loose in the wild, often killing off other animals,” Noah said. “Some were so ruined by these experiments that they fled to live in caves, or deep in the forests in lairs, cursed to live out the rest of their days in pitiful solitude. Other, more intelligent creatures formed packs, such as the Blood Drinkers that attacked the Ark tonight.” Shaking his head in sorrow, Noah spoke softly. “So many were seduced into service by the lure of the power that the Fallen Ones offered.”
Goliath shifted his weight as he grew more and more restless. “This is all quite fascinating,” he snarled, “but we are still no closer to getting a straight answer to our question! Who is it that can fix the pyramid, and why doesn’t he think they will help us?”
As Mack translated the question, Noah gave Goliath a quizzical look, as if he guessed that there was more to this tall human than his outward appearance indicated. “I know that you are eager to find answers to your questions, but it is imperative that you understand what it is that you will face.”
Mack listened intently as the Patriarch continued to speak. Suddenly, all the color drained out of Mack’s face. Seeing her friend’s obvious distress, Rebecca placed a hand on
his forearm. “What did he say?”
Mack slowly tore his gaze away from Noah to look at her. Staring into his eyes, Rebecca was stunned by the depth of fear reflected in his greenish-blue orbs. Mack swallowed hard and he licked his lips in a vain attempt to bring moisture back to his dry mouth.
“He…he said that…um,” Mack stuttered, “that the only beings who have the knowledge we need to…to fix the pyramid are…are the Fallen Ones themselves!”
A deep sense of foreboding settled on the group at Mack’s statement. Jerome began to shake slightly as he began wringing his hands in his lap. Taking a shallow breath, he spoke, his voice coming out in a slow, raspy whisper. “Are you telling me that the only way we can fix the ship is if we can get some…demon ‘god-wannabes’ to agree to help us?”
From the expression on his face, Rebecca thought for a moment that Mack was going to be sick. Not knowing what else to say, the language specialist simply nodded weakly in affirmation.
Noah began speaking again, snapping Mack out of his feeling of nausea by forcing him to serve as translator once more. “Do you see now why I urge you to make peace with the One True God? It is only with His help that you have any hope of succeeding.”
“Isn’t there anyone else who can help us?” Jeffrey asked, desperation beginning to take hold of him.
After a moment of silence, Ham turned toward his father and began speaking. The two exchanged words briefly. Although a frown creased Noah’s features, he seemed to agree with his son. “There may be one who could help you, but it would be very dangerous to seek his help. His name is Arngrim. He is a…a friend of mine who is very knowledgeable about technology. For many years, he was a servant of the sons of God and learned some of their secrets. He is one of the most brilliant men in the world. In fact, it was for that reason that I hired him to help us build the Ark.
“However, many years ago, he began working on a special project,” Noah said. “We have not seen him since, but his business is still operating. Perhaps if you go there, they may be able to locate him. But, as I said, it will be dangerous. For his business is located near the ‘World Tree,’ as they call it; where the borders of the realm of the false gods, the realm of the Nephilim, and the middle enclosure all meet. You must beware. The streets are deadly, even during the day, and especially for strangers. Gangs roam about everywhere, and Odin’s soldiers and servants are corrupt, always willing to turn and face the other way for the right price.”
A look of astonishment lit up Jeffrey’s face as Mack finished translating this last statement. “Wait a second. Did you just say, ‘Odin’s soldiers’?”
Mack nodded, confused by the shocked look on Jeffrey’s face.
“Oh no,” Jerome replied, his expression indicating that he had reached the same disturbing conclusion. “Please tell me that you’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“What?” Mack asked, suddenly worried. “What are you two talking about? What are you thinking?”
Jeffrey looked at the others solemnly. “We appear to have landed next to the dwelling place of Odin, king of the gods from Norse mythology!”
“Whoa…Norse mythology? As in, Thor and Loki?” Mack exclaimed in with a mixture of excitement and apprehension.
Jeffrey nodded. “Thor and Loki were the children of Odin.”
“But what makes you think this has anything to do with Norse mythology, besides the reference to Odin?” Rebecca asked.
“According to Norse cosmology, there were nine realms, each connected to the ‘World Tree,’” Jeffrey explained. “The realm of the Aesir, or the war-like gods, was called Asgard; Midgard, which means ‘middle enclosure,’ or ‘middle earth,’ was the home of humans; and another realm was called Jotunheim, which means ‘Giant’s Home.’”
“The home of the Nephilim,” Rebecca breathed softly.
“But, how could it possibly be referring to the same legends?” Jerome added. “After all, those Norse myths were so goofy, they didn’t even make any sense. I mean, it talks about a giant who gives birth to a six-headed son who receives nourishment from a cosmic cow! Or that a giant serpent Nidhogg is always chewing on the root of the World Tree until it eventually collapses!”
Jeffrey shrugged. “I didn’t say I believed in any of that stuff. All I’m saying is that it sounds like someone here is using the same kind of imagery.”
Rebecca frowned, then turned to Mack. “Ask Noah if there are any other realms besides the three he named.” Her friend did as requested, and responded a moment later. “Yep! He confirmed that there are nine total!”
“But, do those nine realms refer to the whole earth?” Rebecca asked, a sudden thought striking her. “Or do they just refer to this country?”
After Mack translated the question, Noah confirmed her suspicions. “The nine realms refer to the areas directly under the control of the sons of God in this country. They call themselves the Aesir and Vanir. As I mentioned previously, the false gods fought for many years for the territories they now hold. Their armies still fight to this day, but for the most part, they seem content to merely control those unfortunate enough to live in their domain. Each country is ruled by a different pantheon of false gods.”
“What are the names of some of these other gods?” Goliath asked, intrigued.
Before Noah could reply, Ham answered for him. “Directly to our north, Zeus, Poseidon, Apollos, Aphrodite, Hera, and the rest hold court. To the west, there is Ra, Sekhmet, Anubis, and others. The gods Marduk, Tiamat and Apsu, plus several more, reign in the south. These are the closest to our home. There are many more in other distant lands.”
“The only place left undefiled by their evil is the east, wherein lies the great rivers—Pishon, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates—and Eden, the birthplace of mankind,” Shem added.
Silence fell over the visitors as their minds attempted to digest the implications of Ham’s statements. “Greek, Egyptian, and Babylonian,” Jerome said at last.
“Yeah,” Mack said, a frown darkening his face. “But…I don’t get it. How does it all fit with everything else we’ve seen?” he asked, looking at Rebecca.
Caught up in trying to solve this riddle, Rebecca was oblivious to Mack’s attention. A moment later, however, the blank look on her face suddenly dissolved as the pieces fell into place in her mind. “Wait a second! Do you remember the paintings that were hanging in the library within the Tower of Babel? They were paintings of many different gods.”
She paused as the others retrieved the mental images from the recesses of their memories. “Dr. Eisenberg mentioned that they were pictures of Zeus, Baal, and Odin!” she said with excitement. “It makes perfect sense! All of the stories and legends of ancient gods from around the world were based on the truth. They all stem from real beings that lived prior to the Flood!”
Jerome raised an eyebrow. “So, you think that all that stuff from Norse mythology about a six-headed man getting nourishment from a cosmic cow was real? That’s crazy.”
Rebecca shot Jerome a frustrated look. “I’m not saying that everything contained in the legends was true. Many of them were no doubt embellished over time. But what I am saying is that it makes sense that, like the dragon legends, the stories of these ancient gods have a basis in reality.”
Sensing the intensity of the discussion, Noah and his family exchanged glances, but remained otherwise patiently silent as Rebecca continued. “Think about it; after the Flood, future generations would have asked Noah and his family what the pre-Flood world was like. They told them about these powerful beings who called themselves gods and ruled mankind. As time passed, the stories…evolved. Then, as they dispersed from the Tower of Babel, some of the different people groups based their new civilizations and religions on the pre-Flood legends.”
Jeffrey still looked unconvinced. However, wanting to finish their conversation with Noah, he let the matter drop. “Whatever the case, it looks like we’ll need whatever information Noah can give us about how to
find…whatever-his-name-was.”
“Arngrim,” Mack offered. Next to him, he could see that Rebecca was frustrated by Jeffrey’s blatant disregard of her theory.
“Right,” Jeffrey continued. “I think it’s time you stop playing translator. That way, you can get things done more quickly. See if Noah has a map of the city. Find out everything you can about what kinds of problems we could encounter. The more we know, the better our chances of success will be. Meanwhile, I suggest the rest of us turn in early. We’ve got a busy day ahead of us, and we need to start as early as possible.”
Rebecca practically bit her lip to keep her from saying something she would regret. Why does he continually turn away from the truth, despite all of the proof right in front of him? she wondered. Lord, what’s it going to take to get him to accept You? He’s so blasted stubborn!
Jeffrey stood and thanked Noah and his family for the meal. Mack translated and explained to their confused hosts Jeffrey’s intention to retire for the evening. Noah immediately stood and stepped closer to Jeffrey, a pleading look on his face. “Please, you must listen. Without the protection of the Lord, who can be a shield to protect you, I do not believe you will live! Only He can save you from the snare. Only He can rescue you from the pit.”
For a moment, Rebecca thought her husband might reconsider. Then, he reached out and placed a hand on Noah’s shoulder. “Thank you for your concern and your help. It’s greatly appreciated.” Turning away from the Patriarch, he began heading toward the room on the left side of the common room that Noah had indicated had been prepared for them. Jerome quickly bade them goodnight and followed after Jeffrey. Without saying a word, Goliath nodded his thanks and moved off to join the other men.
Escaping the Cataclysm Page 11
