Eva was still resting upon her knees, glowing with the light of God. Her thoughts were once again becoming coherent. They emerged like shapes emerging from the morning fog. She had become lost in the rapture of her revelation.

Her face was still hot with the shame of her sins. Even though god had the mercy to wash them away, still she felt that. Another failing on her part. If god, in his infinite wisdom had forgiven her, who was she to not do the same?

Of course, that train of thought was more of the same folly that had led her to this place. She had believed she had known the will of god. She had been willing to sacrifice the man they had come across to further God’s glory.

He had known not to look directly upon God's glory though. He had covered his head and his face in obeisance to God. When she had removed his mask he had been wise enough to look away. She understood now the error she, they, had made.

God had taken their eyes as punishment. Or rather, she had lost her eyes and her mind in gazing upon God. He had returned her mind so that she may continue to serve him but not her eyes. God had imparted new understandings into her, but not why he had restored one but not the other.

Perhaps even this was a gift? Something that she may consider and pray upon, and in the process of learning and understanding on her own become more holy?

She chastised herself for her arrogance. To understand the wisdom of the lord mere moment’s after considering it? Near blasphemy.

No, she would focus on what she had been given. A task to focus on had been provided. She, they all, were to serve. Not just the members of the Church that were with her, but all of the members of the church.

Not just that but all must come to recognize the righteousness of their cause. She would work towards this goal, she would serve.

To that end, God had empowered her, as well as her fellows.

Servant of the Harbinger

Increased Focus

Passive: Amplify and resonate the power of the Harbinger, Grant Walsh.

Skill: Create, stabilize, or destroy pathways unto the realm of the Lord.

Drink of my blood and have life eternal

As she read the message in her mind she considered the text at the bottom. A misquotation of the biblical verse, she thought. Once again she chastised herself though.

This was the word of God brought directly into her mind. Translated into a form she could understand of course, but the process by which she received this message was surely more perfect than the centuries of copying and translation that had written what they knew today as the Bible.

She had a long path ahead of her.

For now, she knew what she must do. She began to sing the hymn.

“Take, drink this cup, His blood,

Redemption of our God.

The peace which Christ has made,

Is in this cup displayed.

We fellowship now with the Son:

On Calvary the work was done:

The way is clear, now all can come!”

As she started to sing, the others joined in. Jacob, and Isaac, had deep resonant voices. Hannah carried the high harmony. She smiled, they sounded beautiful.

The police had arrived. She heard a few of them exclaim in surprised tones, remarking on the miracle that they were alive and moving. This brought her joy, perhaps they would repent their ways.

She crawled forward, partly out of weakness and partly out of obeisance. They continued singing.

“Take, drink this cup, each one,

His death show till He come.

Eat, drink, display this feast:

God in the Lamb released!

Around the table, sup and dine;

We eat the bread and drink the wine.

All blessing in this cup we find.”

Her eyes were gone, but she could still see two things: The opening in the world, revealing god to all. It was even more awesome and humbling without her eyes. There was also the light of the Harbinger. It was weaker, but all the more precious for it.

Beyond Sight

Increased Perception.

Passive: Sense pathways unto the realm of the Lord.

Behold a new light shines upon your world

They had reached him and formed a circle around him, two kneeling on each side of him. Hannah with Jacob and her with Isaac, as the Father had organized them.

They reached out and took him in their arms. They handled him with the care and deference he was due. Like loving parents with a child, they flipped him over and set him back down onto his back.

He groaned and began to stir. He was waking from a revelation far greater than they had received. As he woke she could see and feel that his wakefulness would close the opening, shutting them off from the lord.

She understood though, that this was okay. They were not yet strong enough to hold this open. God had given them power yes, but they had to foster that power before they were worthy of such a thing. Instead they carried on with the ritual.

“No blood of cow or goat

Could give us any hope.

Our sins would all remain

Still year by year the same.

A God-man, sinless, He must find

No other offering of His kind,

A spotless lamb for all mankind.”

She heard the police, they were still afraid to approach, cowed by the presence of God. They seemed worried, afraid even of what they might be doing. Some were even crass enough to curse with the eyes of God upon them.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

God would forgive them this. God was love and his mercy knew no bounds.

“Come! Now enjoy His blood.

What access this to God!

Here wondrous cleansing power

Flows to us, hour by hour.

One sacrifice for all was made,

And peace our conscience does pervade.

Redemption’s price is fully paid!”

They had not brought knives. Only those weapons which the Father had seen fit to outfit them with, pepper spray and tasers. The Harbinger had a knife. She was once again awed by the subtle perfection of God’s plan.

She reached down and took the knife from his pocket. It folded open easily and locked into place with a click.

“Weapon!” The call came up from the police first one and then echoed by each of them.

She ignored them and lifted Grant's hand between herself and her fellows. She drew the blade across his hand as they sang. The Harbinger stirred further but was still not fully awake.

“Redeemer! Savior! King!

Of Thy dear blood we sing,

For in it now we see

Thy mercy, boundless, free.

This cup, our portion blessed of God,

Is of the covenant in Thy blood—

Dear, precious, precious, priceless blood!”

As they sang the police called out. Screaming for her to drop the weapon. She did, but not at their command, she answered only to the Lord.

She leaned in and drank from the Harbinger’s blood. The cut was already healed, miracles upon miracles. She was followed each in turn by her fellows. The police continued to scream but they dared not trespass on this holy work. Even if they did, she need not fear their weapons.

Inheritor of the Flesh

Increased Regeneration.

Passive: When you suffer damage, you will heal equal to the damage over time (requires abundant raw material).

Rejoice in your remaking!

This final gift of power was delivered to them through Grant, through his blood.

“Amen!” They said as one.

The Harbinger woke at this word. The path to the lord shuddered and closed.

—

Grant woke to the sight of the cultists directly above him. Their eyes were hollowed out pits ringed in blood. All the same, the gazed at him. It was not as before, no murderous intent now. Now they seemed to be filled with the same adoration they had had for the anomaly.

He rose to his feet.

The anomaly was gone.

Pairs of police stood aiming weapons at him and the cultists were still kneeling below him.

They shouted but he could not understand. He was still dazed. Still recovering from…

What had that dream been? The Other was still there. Still behind him. He could feel its gaze upon him.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He tried to center himself. His new sense reached out into the world. He could feel the minds of the cultists near him.

Resonant Mind initiated a link with the woman who had spoken in his ear. He hadn’t made that decision consciously, the power almost acted of its own accord. It was like a dog at the end of a leash, eager to explore the world.

Her emotions came through to him; primarily reverence, joy, and righteousness. He saw what she saw, a man made of light. He felt the sensation of being in her body. The dull pain of her empty eye sockets was.

The connection lasted for only a moment though. It felt like trying to hold something that was heavy and shaking violently. The weight of it had been far too much for his nascent appendage to grasp.

“Sir, this is your last warning get down on your knees with your hands above your head!”

One of the officers had approached closer than the others. His voice was a shouted rasp. His partner trailed behind him by about ten feet. Both of them held shotguns and were pointing them at him. Both of them wore masks.

All of the police wore masks, of course. Looking around Grant saw there were maybe a dozen officers surrounding him and the cultists. They had been waiting for the anomaly to clear up before they moved in.

He dropped down to his knees and placed his hands on the back of his head. As he did so the cultists got up to their feet.

“Rejoice! Lower your weapons. Judgment is upon us, but behold God has given us a savior! A champion that we might withstand the trials!”

The one whose mind he had linked to was shouting back at the police. There was no fear in her voice. Grant just kept his hands over his head. He felt so weak and tired. He looked down on the ground and saw that his knife was lying there, open, covered in blood.

“Get the fuck down on the ground!” The further away officer shouted.

Grant recognized that voice he was sure of it. His mind reached out to try and touch that guy’s mind. It was too far to feel anything except for a very faint sensation. Even in that though he recognized that there was something weightier there, something that would prove even more of a challenge than forming a link with the cultist had.

More and more of the police were approaching now. The cultists all stood their ground, holding their arms out to their sides.

“Lower your weapons. You stand before a weapon of God, the Harbinger. It is he who will fight the tribulations to come!” The cultist who had tried and failed to taser Grant said.

The police were done issuing warnings. Shots rang out. Grant closed his eyes. The moments that followed were a blurry mess in his mind.

He heard four bodies drop to the ground. The gunfire ceased. Pounding footsteps approached him. Handcuffs slipped onto his arms. He was lifted to his feet and half drug half marched forward.

Another new sensation made the hair on Grant’s neck stand up. He felt something forming. This was another new power, Harbinger of the Beyond.

“The trials are upon you blasphemers!” The cultist whose mind he had touched spoke up.

Apparently she was not dead. Her outcry was met by a chorus of stop resisting. Grant could not see, he was being pointed away from where they still struggled. He was taken to a waiting police car.

Grant felt the anomalies more clearly now. They were coming into being. These ones were of both places. They formed in the spaces between the reality he knew, and the beyond. He could feel them there like a splinter under his skin.

They tingled in that space between like a static charge. There were so many of them. He realized that with some effort he could destabilize them. Cause them not to come fully into being but, instead dissipate.

He reached out to one with Harbinger of the Beyond, destabilizing the connection. It broke, but there were still more, dozens.

“Listen to me, she’s right, they’re coming, they’ll be here soon, you- you have to get everyone ready.” Grant said.

He had lost his voice and it came out croaky and tired.

“Shut the fuck and keep moving Grant.” Eric said.

“Eric?” Grant’s voice was cracking and barely there.

The other officer, Eric’s partner Grant assumed, spoke up in his rasping voice. “You know this guy?”

They had reached the car. Eric opened the door and, in a practiced motion, threw him into the back of the car.

“I used to.” He said, before he closed the door.

Grant tried to ignore the fact that Eric was the guy who had just cuffed him. Instead he reached out with Harbinger of the Beyond and kept breaking links. Each one was like lifting a hundred pounds clear over his head.

His body was weaker with every one beyond even that though. He began to realize why. He was so very hungry. He kept pushing though. He had one, maybe two minutes to do what he could, then dozens of sentient anomalies would be here.

—

“What’s the fucking deal?” Rick asked him.

“You know what Rick, you don’t get to not say shit to me for the last two months and the play twenty questions when I know a guy.” Eric said.

He hadn’t really confronted Rick about that before. It felt kinda good though. He certainly wasn’t going to open up about how Grant Walsh had killed his little brother.

“Listen you little shit, I don’t give a fuck about what’s gone on between you. Just tell me if he’s crazy or not? Is something coming?”

Eric hadn’t put that together. He had simply ignored Grant out of a gut instinct, out of his hatred.

He looked back into the car. Grant was straining furiously. Was he trying to get out of his cuffs?

“No… he isn’t crazy.”

As soon as Erick said the word ‘no’ Rick rushed to the trunk of their car. He opened it and produced two drum magazines.

The M4s were usually fed by a tubular magazine that ran the length of the barrel. This could be circumvented with an aftermarket magazine. These were loaded with 12 gauge buckshot, not the less lethal bean bag shells.

Rick loaded his up and nodded at Eric, indicating that Eric should do the same. After Rick had the new shells loaded and chambered he got on the radio.

“Expect sentient anomalies.” He said.

All around the other officers heard that and perked up looking over at them. Rick had been around for a while and garnered a lot of respect. Others stopped what they were doing and went to their own trunks.

“How many and how soon.” Rick shouted into the car through the glass.

He didn’t look in at Grant though. He just scanned all around them.

Grant spoke but his voice was far gone. He couldn’t be heard through the closed doors.

Eric opened the door.

“How many Grant-” Eric began.

Grant cut him off. “At least a dozen, right now. In th-”

A shotgun blast cut him off. Eric wheeled around. Rick continued shooting. Other officers opened up. Hanging in the sky were multiple anomaly 4.