Origin: Eternity's End

by Uneeb Qureshi

  Without the army of technicians milling around the area the scene would have seemed a cold and desolate metallic opera.

  They turned their heads toward the passenger platform and saw it bustling with activity. At least forty passengers milled about in preparation for take-off.

  Before Monica could make anything else out Mekias grabbed her by the arm and shook her.

  “Monica! It’s freaking Avraham Brownstein! He was the Israeli gold medalist in swimming at the last Olympics. He’s got records in almost everything!”

  She took a glance at him and recognized him immediately.

  “He’s cuter in person.” She said biting her lip in embarrassment as her heart pounded like a school girl meeting her celebrity idol.

  Avraham Brownstein’s world records had given him near mythic status over the years. Although preternaturally young, his legendary performances proved he was a natural athlete.

  After consistently shattering his own records at every subsequent Olympic Games, rumors arose in many circles that his exemplary athletic abilities exempted him from service in the Israeli army.

  Overhead speakers were blaring announcements in the Immortal language, all the technicians on the ground dispersed immediately. The ship engaged and hovered to the ground.

  The pilot jumped on board as the rear bay opened.

  Avraham Brownstein boarded and eyed Monica across the ship. She was new. He glanced at her periodically until she sat down.

  “Watch your step honey, you don’t wanna fall and hit your head, believe me it hurts.”

  Monica jumped as she recognized the voice. She turned around and looked into his alluring hazel eyes.

  “Hello Mr. Brownstein!” She was nervous, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  “Oh my, you know who I am! The pleasure is all mine,” he smiled, “please, call me Avi.”

  She bit her lip and tried to stop her nervous twitching.

  Calm down Monica! He’s just like any other guy. She peered behind and saw Mekias. Well…maybe not.

  “What’s a pretty little thing like you doing this far from Earth?”

  Monica played with her hair as they talked. She noted his curly brown hair underneath the hood of his shirt. Both his heavy breathing and the sweat on his head told her he came from a brutal workout.

  His loose shirt bore the mark of the Nasu, Jo’s legion.

  “So you’re in Jo’s legion?” Monica stuttered.

  His eyes opened a little bit, “Most people around here don’t call the commanders by their first name.”

  “R-right.”

  Avi laughed he figured she was a mortal, “It’s okay with me. I met the Commander when she found me on the Earth not too long ago.” He pointed at the animal insignia on his chest, his tone biceps made Monica lose track of the conversation. “Most people identify each other with our legion’s animal if that’s easier.”

  “Okay, B-b-” She forgot the name Sheppard had told her earlier.

  “Nasu,” Avi corrected with a sly grin.

  Mekias finally mustered some seriousness to enter the conversation, “Hey it’s an honor to meet you, I’m Mekias, and I’ve been a big fan of yours.”

  Avi extended his hand in acknowledgment and smiled, “It’s nice to meet both of you,” he glanced at Monica. “What brings you two this way?”

  “Well,” they both looked at each other, “We kind of just ended up here.”

  There was silence for a moment.

  “Okay.” He responded, he looked down at the tabards in their hands and jumped, “Wait you’re Phoenix legionnaires? You both must be extremely talented,” he was flustered, “what the hell do you guys do?”

  “Well this guy named Sheppard Artanis brought us here and—“

  “You know the High Commander?”

  “I think he’s a Commander?” Monica responded.

  Avi laughed harder, “He’s the highest ranked Commander of all the Legions. He’s like the progenitor of the immortal bloodline.”

  The automatic restraint systems immediately activated as the ship began its operations. The pilot relayed flight precautions over the PA in the immortal language as passengers sat in their seats.

  The pilot veered toward Earth and shut down its primary turbines, a secondary fuel system propelled it to Earth though the acceleration was much more gradual.

  As the ship basked in the sun’s light the inside temperature rose slightly forcing the internal cooling systems to maintain a stable pressure and temperature.

  After a certain distance from the moon the passengers jolted forward into weightlessness. Monica shrieked at the sudden change but calmed down as the restraints pressed harder. Her hair however shot in every direction as the artificial gravity set in, Avi closed his eyes as the strands struck him.

  “Oh my God I’m so sorry!” She said as she collected her hair.

  “Smells nice, trust me swimmers know their shampoo,” he smiled and leaned over to whisper coolly in her ear, “Next time that happens, it better be in bed.”

  Monica face flushed as she turned to the unaware Mekias.

  “Man knows his shampoo I guess.” Mekias told her, unaware of what Monica just heard.

  The three conversed for nearly an hour while en route to Earth. Avi kept the two archaeologists pre-occupied with stories of the Commanders and his initiation. As a young Jewish boy growing up in New York he was welcomed back to Israel for his birthright.

  While in Israel he was recruited into the Immortal Legions and his life had been different ever since.

  Monica begged for questions to be answered while Mekias observed casually, Avi had a hard time keeping up with her.

  “Wow Monica.” He tried to get her to slow down, “how about you come over to my place when you have questions like this. I’d be glad to talk to you about it in depth.” His innuendo was dry, but Monica did not care.

  “Okay well how about you answer me this.” She bit her lip, “Who is Commander Sheppard?”

  “I don’t know.” He responded softly.

  “What? You’re immortal and you don’t know?”

  “Look I’m about as old as you guys.” He looked around, “Nobody really knows. As far as we know, immortals can only inherit immortality from someone else in their bloodline, and that’s the only real theory.”

  Is that why he wouldn’t take me? Because I don’t have an immortal in my family tree…

  He thought for a moment, “…But I do know about how he met my Commander, it’s a very common tale in our Legion’s circles.”

  Circa Eighty Thousand BCE

  The Nile Delta

  After centuries of wandering from settlement to settlement, Sheppard, Solb and Arnael had grown restless. They searched endlessly for others like them, undying and eternal.

  After many months of travel they had finally reached the crossroads of the Nile Delta, they stood together and gazed into the sea. They had yet to understand what lay beyond the blue waters that bordered their homelands.

  They travelled into the east seeking their people abroad. They came to realize that the primitive nomadic tribes that wandered the Sahara were not their kin, and though the more sophisticated people of the Nile resembled them by skin they neither spoke the same dialect nor bore the mysterious traits their people inherited.

  For days they travelled under the watchful gaze of the fiery eastern sun. The rays of warm light beat down on their bare backs relentlessly.

  The three wore little but tattered sheets that wrapped from shoulder to hip. They covered their heads in cowls with the remaining scraps to veil from the blinding light from the sun.

  As dusk settled they saw the rocky mounts of a peninsula in the distance. They hastened, hoping to find shelter for the night underneath the cliff overlooks.

  A dark, narrow ravine looked as if it was going to swallow them, but traversing into the unknown was nothing new to them. The shallow caverns that lined the cliffs provided ample shelter for the night, while the
pale sand reflected sunlight illuminating the ridges. Spring water drained into the valley through narrow crags and ravines that wound through the region.

  The three set up camp and rested for the night, wearily anticipating their travels for the upcoming days. For centuries they wandered the continent, savoring the pleasant and peaceful nomadic lifestyle.

  Sheppard stepped forward, volunteering to act as a sentry for the first half of the night. As the other two slept through the failing sunlight Sheppard kindled a flame for the night.

  The winds blew well in the steep ravine, coolly kissing the sweat on their necks and back. It was not long before the sun gave its last dying breath over the dry, arid region.

  Sheppard scouted the cliffs around him to pass the rather dull night. Decades of travel had given him the strength of a lion, his body was molded by centuries of hardship and labor.

  After reaching the summit of the ravine he could see the dark violet sky glistening off the surface of the sea in the distance.

  One day, he told himself, he would master the water and traverse the edges of the planet. His heart beat faster at the mere thought of it.

  One day I’ll see the ends of the world.

  He glanced down periodically to check on his companions below. The windy ravine provided the perfect cover for the night.

  Sheppard looked around him before striding wearily toward a quiet stream that drained from the summit of the mountain. The water formed into a small reservoir that further drained below to their campsite.

  He removed his clothing and savored the breeze that blew through the valley. His aching muscles were relieved by the sun-heated waters.

  The salted sweat from his skin rinsed off of him as water trickled down the cliff face. He paused, almost lifeless, as his mind wandered.

  Like the seers of old the winds continued to whisper nature’s secrets to him. They warned him of what lay ahead.

  Despite his nigh eternal existence, this was the first time Sheppard crossed into the eastern lands. The prospect of adventure kept him going. The anticipation of the wonders that lay ahead emboldened him.

  And though the western lands had been his home for nearly a thousand years he knew he would never find peace there.

  Every night of his immortal existence had made him weep bitterly at his fate. He was alive another day. Alive another night to be plagued by the memories of his ravaged homeland.

  He sat down in the mountain spring and gazed up into the heavens that twinkled brightly above him.

  In his mind he was an eternal child of the stars, for they had been his only source of solace for millenia. Their radiant and vibrant glow bathed him in hope every night, telling him that there would be another day.

  “I know what it is you seek.” Whispered the winds to him.

  He jumped from the spring and reached for the stone dagger underneath his clothing. He waved it in front of himself as if taunting the voice to confront him.

  “Your people were just like any others in this world, bound to the same laws of life and death,” the voice continued, “until your people ate of the eternal garden and became bound to the earth, immortal like the spirits themselves.”

  He tracked the voice to an echo from higher in the ravine. He peered over the cliff once more to make certain his companions were safe.

  “I still walk, talk and breathe like you, so I don’t think I am an Earth spirit just yet.” He responded.

  He realized it was a woman’s voice drowned in echoes.

  “I’ve waited a long time for you.” She said. “We shall meet face-to-face soon enough.”

  The voice trailed off but Sheppard suddenly felt a familiar presence about him, he looked up the mountain toward his left and saw a woman robed in sheepskin. She was glaring down at him with eyes radiating an essence similar to his.

  Sheppard rushed to collect his belongings but she was gone by the time he looked back at the cliffs. He donned his clothes and climbed down the ravine at breakneck speed, rushing to wake his friends.

  He laid a hand on Solb’s shoulder and informed him. “We’ve found another.”

  “Another what?” Solb asked groggily.

  “One of us.”

  His friends quickly dispelled their fatigue and followed Sheppard up the mountain side with renewed energy. They reached the ledge where Sheppard had seen the woman but found no trace of her, and few clues to guide them.

  “Someone was here,” Arnael affirmed, “she is near.”

  They treaded the numerous paths that littered the mountain for nearly an hour before they retired. It was too dark for them to notice anything clearly out of the ordinary.

  “We can search again in the morning light.” They all nodded.

  The trek back to the camp was fraught with distress. None of them felt like they could return to sleep anytime soon.

  The night fell deathly silent as they rekindled their campfire. The insects of the night had stopped their nocturnal sonata, something was amiss. They sat still, attempting to sleep, but the unusual silence was distracting. It spoke the truth.

  Sheppard took the time to pack his belongings and dry off before the cold night winds chilled him to the bone. He sat by the fire to ponder endlessly as he always did.

  The others wearily gazed into the ravine, too tired to make sense of anything—

  A shadow moved.

  Sheppard’s heart panicked, he had lost track of the shadow. It was fast and human-like.

  His heart slowed, Maybe my imagination? Out of the corner of his eye another large shadow mobilized. He could not tell if it was beast or man this time.

  He stepped back to warn his companions but was too late.

  The dark cliffs all around them moved. Out of the darkness the shadows turned into men. Their stalkers’ faces were hidden by helms of animal skulls.

  The strange men waved their primitive stone clubs and yelled at Sheppard, taunting him forward.

  The remainder of their company circled around Sheppard and the others. One man jumped down the ravine in surprise and knocked Solb clean in the temple, incapacitating him.

  Sheppard fought his way to his friend’s side as he struggled against the unending onslaught. Arnael joined the fight with Sheppard.

  With their super-human strength they could easily pick up their ram-headed foes and throw them into the cliff, shattering their animal helms and skulls in the process.

  The feats of strength dismayed other foes from encroaching into the camp.

  With the momentum gained, Sheppard eventually fought his way to Solb’s side. Arnael kept the rest of the attackers at bay while Sheppard tended to Solb’s wounds.

  Over a dozen lay dead, their blood slowly trickling across the sandy ledge.

  Solb eventually came to but the three were clearly outnumbered. They formed back-to-back in preparation for another attack.

  A burly man with a red beard entered the scene causing all the other barbarians to stop their assault and let him through.

  The mysterious woman Sheppard had met earlier appeared from behind and whispered into the bearded man’s ear, her eyes fixed on Sheppard the entire time. Their leader let out a hearty laugh and spoke, although poorly, in Sheppard’s native tongue.

  “The goddess demanded that you be tested before you entered the village, she foretold of your warrior prowess,” He looked back at her for a moment, “and so it is. Come warriors, follow me.” He motioned them to follow and they hesitantly obliged.

  Sheppard and the others were led around snaking ravines previously hidden by the darkness. A number of natural bridges and windy overpasses met them on their twilight journey. The trek was long but interesting, they had never seen these lands before.

  In the distance appeared a dimly lit settlement which became clearer with each ravine they crossed.

  The entire time the raven-haired woman periodically glanced at the three, as if doubting them. Her face was emotionless, despondent. She walked ahead of them toward the village
and disappeared amidst the crowd.

  “The Goddess proclaimed that the spirits of the lost kingdom be lavished generously! Take anyone you please for the night.” The chieftain grabbed a young girl that passed by. She struggled vehemently until the chieftain hit her to the ground commanding her to obey, “This is a feisty young one,” he handed her to Arnael who accepted humbly, “and she deserves an even feistier warrior.”

  The chieftain turned back to the hut and picked up his pace.

  Arnael waited for the chieftain to leave before looking down at the frightened girl. He motioned for her to be silent and guided her back to her worried mother.

  Sheppard and Solb exchanged worried stares attempting to fix their surroundings, they had never heard of these people before leaving the western lands.

  Inside the main tent several seers lined a small bonfire. Around them men feasted and harassed the female servants in a drunken stupor, the seers ordered men to burn leaves of herbs in the fire to fuel the debauchery.

  Sheppard and his companions seated themselves by the fire and enjoyed the hospitality, they feasted heartily. They had not eaten decent meals for days.

  Arnael caught his companions attention and motioned toward the raven-haired woman Sheppard had found earlier. She was sitting by the tent entrance ready to leave.

  Sheppard volunteered to continue the investigation as she left the tent, the others awaited his answers. Their host, the chieftain, was too preoccupied with the festivities to notice his departure.

  Sheppard made haste through the settlement after the woman. She knew more about Sheppard than he wanted her to know. But stranger still, her face and demeanor reminded him of someone once important to him.

  He paused in the middle of the settlement looking around in every direction for signs of her. He wiped the water dripping from his mouth and rubbed his forehead, the fighting earlier had sapped his strength.

  Fingers brushed across his back. Before he could react, the priestess from earlier walked by him toward the village’s central pyre.