Eden (Eden Saga) Page 12

His eyes brightened. “I think so.”

  She rose and said, “Good, follow us.”

  Father Callahan fell into step next to Alexandra as she walked back to the truck. “You think we can trust him?” he asked.

  She looked over her shoulder at Marco and said, “I think he made a desperate mistake. I won’t fault him for that after what he just witnessed.”

  Before Alexandra and Father Callahan reached the rig, Koneh appeared. “Leave him here,” he said, “I don’t trust him.”

  “I won’t abandon him like we did the people of Tampico,” she said. “I believe-”

  Alexandra’s words trailed off when she heard the flapping of wings overhead. An instant later, several forms descended from the inky blackness of the sky and landed on the ground around the vehicle. Though it was dark, Alexandra noticed their bat-like wings and goat legs. These were demons. Standing slightly shorter than Erzulie, their black-red skin almost matched the sky.

  One of the demons charged forward, but Koneh was in front of Alexandra before she could raise her hands to her face. In one smooth motion, he drew his sword from beneath his rags and sliced through the chest of the horned beast. The creature’s unearthly cries died in its throat as it crumpled to the ground.

  “Ziel-henel!” A female voice boomed from above the truck.

  Two new figures emerged from the sky and landed on the top of the cab. One of them looked like Erzulie – ashen skin, black wings and all-white eyes – but this fallen angel was a male. The new angel’s eyes focused upon Alexandra with an unnerving intensity. The female was a demon, but her form was slighter than the other demons. Though dressed in a hooded robe, her remaining features were clearly demonic.

  “I swear,” the female demon said in a voice as grating as Erzulie’s was melodious. “These demons grow duller and duller as the years roll on.”

  The remaining invaders folded their wings to their backs and drew all manner of slashing weapons from their belts. The creatures didn’t advance, however. The fallen angel atop the truck remained fixated on Alexandra. Her skin crawled as his eyes penetrated her.

  “My, oh my, I had to see it with my own eyes,” the female demon said, taking her time with her words. “Koneh, it is you.”

  Alexandra leaned closer to him and whispered, “You know her?” Perhaps Marco was right. Was Koneh a demon? Was he just with her for his reward?

  Koneh ignored her question and said to the newcomer, “Don’t come any closer, Lilev.”

  The female demon, Lilev, smiled. “Fear not, I have no desire to lose more of my host on this little errand. That bitch Erzulie killed four of my minions before we had to put her down. I ordered the rest of them to keep their distance, but there’s always some minor duke of Hell looking to challenge the legendary Koneh in battle. Pity.”

  Alexandra’s heart plummeted in her chest. Was Erzulie dead?

  “What do you want?” Koneh asked through narrowed eyes.

  “Oh, just to understand what it is you think you are doing,” Lilev said. “Why do you walk with the Mih’darl? Do you really think she is going to forgive you?”

  Koneh said, “You couldn’t possibly understand-”

  As if she was continuing her thought, Lilev said, “The reward is substantial. The entirety of the Earth - all to the demon who delivers her safely to Iblis. Of course, I’m sure he would make an exception for you, my dear Koneh.”

  “Apparently,” Koneh said, “age has not gifted you with wisdom. Do you really think he will share Earth with another?”

  “Iblis is not interested in the wasteland that is the Earth,” Lilev said. “His eyes are set upon another dominion to rule.”

  “Eden.” As Koneh spoke, Alexandra formed the word in her mind.

  Lilev stomped one of her cloven feet. “Tell me your intentions! Will you give the Mih’darl to me?”

  “No,” Koneh said.

  Smiling, Lilev said, “Surely you wouldn’t raise your sword against your own mother, would you?”

  Father Callahan, Alexandra and Santino turned their heads to him.

  Koneh gritted his teeth and tightened his hands on the grip of his weapon. “You are not my mother. You insult her memory with such pretensions.”

  “This is going nowhere,” Lilev said as she spread her wings. “My master, Derechi, will know that the Mih’darl is protected by Koneh. That may stay his hand for a time, but not indefinitely. Reconsider your allegiance, my dear son. I would be most displeased to watch you suffer any further.”

  After her speech, Lilev lifted into the sky and disappeared. Moments later, the remaining demons followed. The fallen angel remained a few seconds longer. The corner of his mouth curled into a grin as he examined Alexandra. Then, he re-joined his companions in the canopy of darkness. Silence roared across the wasteland and between the people gathered at the truck.

  “What just happened?” Alexandra asked.

  “Marco led them to us,” Koneh said.

  As if she was just pinched, she said, “Marco!”

  The group ran to where they left Marco. The injured man from Tampico was curled in a ball next to his motorcycle.

  “I’m sorry,” he said with his head still buried under his arms. “I saw the demons… and I just froze.”

  Alexandra eyed the motorcycle. The vehicle looked like it was operable. Though glad Marco was unharmed, her attention was elsewhere. Where was Erzulie? Was she injured? Questions needed answers. Alexandra lifted the motorcycle from the ground and straddled the seat.

  “What do you think you are doing?” Koneh asked.

  After a brief glance at the controls, Alexandra turned the ignition and sped into the wasteland.

  When she was an intern for a local public defender, she worked on a case for a raped teen in a wooded park. Alexandra recalled the investigator’s description of how he searched the entire area for evidence - alone. He started from the scene of the crime and spiraled outwards until he covered a large enough area. Alexandra mocked his technique as she searched for Erzulie.

  After a few minutes, she found her.

  Erzulie rested in a pool of silvery liquid. Streaks of black marred her otherwise perfect ashen skin. One wing twisted under the angel’s body. The other lay tattered at her side. As Alexandra approached the scene, Erzulie opened her luminous eyes and smiled.

  “I am overjoyed to see you safe, my Lady.”

  Alexandra bit her lower lip and knelt next to her. “I’m so sorry.”

  “No need for apologies,” Erzulie said. “They did not wish to destroy me, only incapacitate me for a time. I will be okay with time.”

  Alexandra heard the rumble of Santino’s truck and then the area was flooded with light. Koneh jumped from the vehicle before it came to a stop.

  “Is she-” Koneh said. “Good, her eyes are open.”

  “I tried to escape them to warn you,” Erzulie said, “but there were too many.”

  Koneh brushed Erzulie’s hair from her face and said, “You did well, Erzulie. Alexandra is safe.”

  With tenderness Alexandra didn’t realize possible from her scarred companion, Koneh lifted Erzulie from the ground and carried her to the truck. A part of Alexandra wished she was the wounded angel, carried off to safety by her protector. Her eyes lingered on Koneh until something else caught her attention. She dipped her fingers into the pool of silvery liquid and was intrigued to discover the substance roll off like water, leaving no stains. Was this angel blood?

  “How are you doing there?” Father Callahan asked.

  Alexandra jumped. “Father, I didn’t hear you. Me?” She exhaled. “I’ll be fine. I’m more concerned with Erzulie at the moment.”

  “Koneh told me she’ll be fine,” Father Callahan said. “I guess angels are made from different stuff than us, eh?”

  “Apparently,” she said, only half-hearing the priest’s words.

  “Well, I think you need to stay out here for a few more minutes.”

  “Why?” she asked.

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nbsp; He fidgeted with the straps on his backpack and said, “I think Santino figured out what is going on. He’s cleaning his cab for you.”

  She looked beyond Father Callahan and watched Santino throw empty cans, debris and calendar pages of nude women from his truck.

  Returning her gaze to Father Callahan, she said, “There’s nothing going on. You and Koneh are wrong about me, about my mother.”

  “And the female demon who called herself Lilev?” Father Callahan asked, “Is she wrong too?”

  Something Lilev said popped back into Alexandra’s mind. “Who is Iblis?” she asked.

  Father Callahan nodded. “Yes, I heard that name too. I may be mistaken, but I believe Iblis was the Babylonian Satan or Devil.” Scratching his new beard, Father Callahan continued, “However, I guess he could have been Sumerian. I forget.”

  “Yeshua. Elah. Iblis.” Alexandra said. “Good ole King James isn’t helping us much now that we’re face to face with all of this.”

  “Yeah, he would’ve done us a favor by keeping the original names from Hebrew, Babylonian or wherever,” Father Callahan said. “At least then we’d know who we’re talking to, fighting, befriending, etcetera, etcetera.”

  Koneh approached and said, “We need to get moving. Everything’s changed. Somehow they know.”

  “How’s Erzulie?” Alexandra asked.

  “She will recover,” Koneh said. “Though, Marco made a quick exit from the truck when I put her in there. Santino is a bit nervous as well. Can you check on him, Father? Keep him from driving off?”

  Father Callahan nodded. “Good idea.”

  As Father Callahan walked away, Alexandra worked through the questions in her mind. Was she really the daughter of Elah? Of God? No, she again returned to her conclusion that Koneh must be wrong. Though she was awestruck when Erzulie announced the news, she didn’t accept or believe the outlandish assertion.

  “There’s just no way-” she whispered.

  “What was that?”

  Alexandra glanced at Koneh as more questions formed in her mind. Questions, questions. Always questions.

  “Why did Lilev say she was your mother?” That question leapt from her lips before her lawyer’s brain could phrase it into proper direct examination form.

  Koneh paused for a long time, even for him. The cold wind whipped like a train on tracks between them. “I think it past time we start your lessons,” he said. He allowed the wind to subside. “After dinner tonight, we will discuss demons.”

  “That wasn’t my question.”

  “We should get moving.”

  She rose and grasped his arm. “What about that other fallen angel?” She asked. “If that’s what he was-”

  Koneh nodded. “Yes. His name is Ael,” he said.

  “You know him?” More doubts about Koneh’s allegiance swirled through her mind.

  Though he was speaking to her, Koneh seemed to be in a different place. His eyes wandered to the dark horizon and he said, “An old enemy.”

  Indication that the conversation had ended, Koneh wandered back towards the group. Alexandra mulled over the strange encounter and shivered. Ael’s eyes, though similar to Erzulie’s, frighteningly devoured her. Ael wanted her. And the unknown reasons why gnawed at her nerves. Shaking her head, she followed Koneh.

  Alexandra sat in the back of the rig with Erzulie while Santino put some distance between them and the scene where they encountered Lilev.

  “Would you be more comfortable with your armor off?” Alexandra asked.

  Erzulie opened her eyes and said, “That may help, yes.”

  Following Erzulie’s instruction, Alexandra unbuckled the straps at the side of the breastplate and removed the glossy, black armor. The dress underneath clung to the fallen angel’s breasts and Alexandra wondered how far the similarities between humans and angels went.

  “Thank you, my Lady,” Erzulie said. “You show me too much kindness.”

  Alexandra decided her questions for Erzulie could wait. “Save your energy,” she said. “Get some rest, if that is what you need.”

  After a few hours, Santino pulled the rig to the side of the road and the group made a small camp.

  True to his word, Koneh waited for everyone to finish their dinners. Then, he approached Alexandra and asked, “Ready?”

  In-between sips of her water bottle, she responded, “Sure. Marco and Father Callahan were interested as well.”

  “If they wish,” Koneh said.

  As Santino slept on the other side of the camp, Koneh began his lesson. Alexandra sat cross-legged against her bedroll and pack. Next to Alexandra, Father Callahan lounged against a flat rock and scanned his Bible. Marco rested across from Alexandra, half inside his sleeping bag.

  After taking in a long, wheezy breath, Koneh began. “Okay,” he said, “as you all probably know by now, Erzulie is an angel and she’s not built like we are.”

  Alexandra and Marco nodded.

  “Angels were fashioned to serve the deity you know as ‘God’ in His heaven,” Koneh said.

  “Just curious,” Father Callahan said, “how did you come by this knowledge you claim to be truth?”

  Koneh cocked his head, as if listening to something in the distance. Then, he leveled his gaze at the priest and said, “Mostly from Erzulie, some of it from firsthand experience.”

  “Wait one second,” Father Callahan said. “Do you mean to say you’ve been to Heaven?”

  Koneh laughed, though the sound more resembled a throaty sneeze.

  “No,” Koneh said. “It is my understanding that humans cannot enter Heaven.”

  “Right,” Father Callahan said, “Eden is our paradise – according to you.”

  Marco formed a “T” with his two hands, mimicking a basketball player’s signal. “Time-out,” he said. “What are you guys talking about?”

  Alexandra explained. “Koneh believes Eden is now accessible and that is where we’re headed… for now.”

  “Eden?” Marco said with a look of utter incomprehension on his face.

  “Details aside,” Koneh said, “rest easy, priest, that I have my information on good authority.”

  Shrugging, Father Callahan said, “I just like to know my source, that’s all.”

  Marco seemed to be stuck on Eden, as he repeated the word as a question to nobody in particular.

  “Do not worry,” Koneh said. “We will drop you off at the nearest city – if there is one. Only Alexandra and myself need to make the journey. We are getting off-track anyway. The purpose of this discussion is to teach Alexandra about demons. She may find the information useful someday soon.”

  “Hrmph,” Father Callahan said through his nose. “I think we’ll all find this information useful, provided it’s based in truth.”

  Alexandra smiled. This priest was different than the unapproachable padres from her childhood. “Okay,” she said, “objection noted. Please continue, Koneh.”

  Koneh peered at everyone’s faces in turn from under his hood, as if he expected more chatter. After a moment of silence, he continued. “Very well,” he said, “Angels were constructed by Elah to serve him in Heaven. For several millennia, these angels performed whatever duties were appointed to them. Elah watched over the Earth through the eyes of his angels. However, Elah felt He could perfect the angelic design after observing the behavior of these crafty thinking creatures with souls – humans.”

  Koneh paused to look into everyone’s eyes. “I cannot stress this enough,” he said, “a soul is the fabric from which we are all spun. I do not know any more than this. The Earth provides the power necessary to maintain souls in all living creatures. This sort of power is incomprehensible to us and almost beyond a divine being such as Elah. Almost.”

  Father Callahan shook his head and said, “Our souls come from Him. If you dispute this point, I don’t think I can consider your assertions to be more than wild fantasy.”

  “I can only tell you what I have heard from a divine being,” Kon
eh said as he jabbed his thumb in the direction of Santino’s rig, where Erzulie rested. “I tend to believe her over two-thousand year old passages written by men who wished to selfishly twist a simple thought into a complex one.”

  Sighing, Father Callahan waved his hand and said, “Feel free to continue.”

  Koneh shook his head. “So, the reality of souls gets interesting when we start talking about demons.”

  Alexandra’s heart quickened. At last, he was delivering some of his secrets. Though everything he said could have been the ramblings of an insane man, she listened like a kindergartner at story time.

  “So, Elah designed a more perfect angel. One that possessed a soul,” Koneh said. “However after countless failed experiments, Elah found He would need to expend a tremendous amount of energy to create a soul. Resigning Himself to this fact, Elah nearly destroyed Himself and all of Heaven in His creation of an angel with a soul – Iblis.”

  “Satan?” Alexandra asked, still trying to get a handle on all the names.

  “Or whatever your local culture calls him. Yes. I won’t bore you with the story of the fall of Iblis, but while Elah slept after His divine miracle, Iblis was placed in control of Heaven. After several millennia, Elah awakened and Iblis did not want to relinquish control of Heaven. So a war ensued.”

  “Emotions,” Alexandra said.

  “Right. Since Iblis had a soul, he was also prone to that most precious human weakness – emotion. During Elah’s slumber, Iblis had swayed many of the angels to serve his command, rather than Elah’s. So, after a long and bloody battle in Heaven, Iblis and his remaining angels were cast down in defeat.”

  “It’s amazing how much of the story was actually true!” Alexandra said.

  “Truth is usually the simplest answer,” Koneh said.

  “If you believe that to be truth,” Father Callahan said. “You make some outlandish leaps there, friend.”

  Koneh shrugged. “Look where you are, priest. Tell me if the outlandish makes sense to you now.”

  Alexandra finished her water bottle and pulled a blanket over her legs and stomach. This was good stuff.

  “So,” Koneh said, “Iblis somehow formed his own realm.”

  “Hell?” Marco asked, joining the conversation.