Lily shivered as Tiamat sent another roar of hot breath at the base of the Tower of Babel. When Lily first attempted to dig out the entrance over an hour ago, a small avalanche of snow had buried it further. Tiamat had been by her side and had shielded Lily with her wings, or else Lily might have gotten buried alive.
By the time they had removed all the snow earlier, they were faced with a thick barrier of ice. When Tiamat originally explained to Lily that breathing fire was a myth, she couldn’t hide her disappointment. Lily was quickly pacified however when the thick ice began to melt away with Tiamat’s first roar.
The last of the ice wall had caved in, revealing a hollow entryway. Together they passed through into the darkness. Far in the distance, a strange blue light danced against the pillars. It seemed to call to her. After several minutes, they stopped before a swirling whirlpool of shimmering water – only it was standing vertical against a wall. A humming sound echoed off the walls and pillars that surrounded them.
“What is that?”
Verily, ‘tis the open portal back to Earth.
“Is it safe?”
I know not what lies on the other side. ‘Tis been hundreds of years since my kind hath made use of this portal. Humans upon Earth didst hunt my kind for sport, so thus my ancestors didst make an exodus unto Zion. We have not returned hither since.
Lily approached the swirling whirlpool with caution. Sparks of electricity lit up the water-like substance, spreading from the center and swirling outward in the form of a spiral.
She took a deep breath. “I’m going in.”
She held her breath and closed her eyes as she passed through the vortex. She half expected to feel water, but instead she felt warmth as her body lurched forward. Her head spun violently and she forced herself to open her eyes. Streaks of light filled her view as she spun down what seemed to be an invisible tunnel. The streaks accumulated in quantity and velocity until the cluster formed into a single brilliant flash.
She stumbled forward as her feet met the ground inside a dark, cramped space. Claustrophobia quickly set in when she realized she was surrounded on all four sides by walls dimly lit by the swirling blue vortex. Seconds later, she had to duck for cover as Tiamat’s massive body exited the portal and smashed into the opposite wall. With a loud crash, an orange light seeped into the cramped space as the dust settled. Bricks lay crumbled into dust at her feet.
Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
When she stepped out into the glow, she was shocked to see at least a hundred people dressed in Hindu attire staring at her in awe. They had all been kneeling in prayer inside a large room adorned with gold and jewels on every wall. Tiamat’s neck and head protruded from the opening, draped unconscious over what appeared to be a throne with a stone statue sitting on it. The head of the statue had broken off and had fallen to the floor among the bricks and dust.
Considering their dramatic entrance, she half-expected everyone to be screaming in terror. Instead, they all bowed in reverence and began chanting in unison. They all chanted in multiple languages, but she was able to recognize bits and pieces of Bengali. She realized in horror that they all seemed to think that she was the ancient goddess Shiva, having returned to Earth in a pillar of light accompanied by the resurrected Vritra, the dragon of drought.
She placed her hand on Tiamat’s massive head. “Wake up. We have to get out of here. “These people think we’re Hindu Gods.”
Tiamat snorted in reply and opened her eyes. She raised her head and drew herself up to her full stature, causing several more bricks to crumble to the ground. The people continued to gawk at them as Tiamat forced herself through the narrow opening. Behind them, the blue vortex swirled brilliantly.
A new chant began as they all bowed again. Lily mounted the dusty saddle, and was able to decipher from the man speaking Bengali that they were now worshipping the portal as the fiery column of light from which the half-woman god Shiva had long ago appeared.
“Let me guess.” Lily whispered. “One of the Seraphim was named Shiva.”
Verily, ‘tis true. Yea, I hath been told that he was a beautiful man, for he was often confused as a woman.
She rolled her eyes. “Great, now I’m a Hindu goddess. Let’s get out of here.”
The people cleared a path for Tiamat as she approached the open archway on the far wall. Lily cringed at the sight of the crumbled throne, which she recognized from her college studies. They were inside the Somnath Temple, the oldest and most sacred of Hindu Temples.
Many more people bowed in reverence as they passed through the main hall. Lily exhaled in relief when they finally reached the exterior of the building, whereupon Tiamat kicked off into the air. An ocean wave slapped against the containment wall and sprayed saltwater onto Lily’s face.
They flew high into the early morning sky. Lily had to fight off a mild sense of disorientation. It had been approaching nightfall by the time they had cleared the entrance to the Tower of Babel. But here on Earth, dawn was breaking.
She cast a glance behind her at the Somnath Temple shrinking in the distance. She remembered reading that the Temple had been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times, but nobody knew when it had been originally built. Now, she knew. Clearly, these were the remains of the missing half of the Tower of Babel.
Where shall we go, my child?
“Chicago,” Lily said. “Unfortunately, that’s on the other side of the world. It will probably take us a few days to get there. We need to find food and supplies somewhere. I’m famished.”
I shall take thee to fulfill thine destiny, young Oracle.
----------------------------------------
© Copyright 2022 R.M. Mulder. All rights reserved.