“Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight

Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”

-Dylan Thomas.

For hours he sat and watched the water rise and then fall back down from where it came. Every once and a while he would peek into the tent and see if she was okay. Alianna lay almost perfectly still. Her eyes were still closed and her breathing even. He really hoped that she was sleeping. He also kept hoping that she would just wake up and be okay in the morning.

He woke up on the cot inside the Tent. He must have fallen asleep the last time he checked on her. He sat up and looked over. Alianna wasn't there. Panic flooded him. He grabbed his sword and rushed outside the tent. He scanned the area ahead of him but didn't see her. Then he looked behind and saw her standing near the edge of the Chasam staring straight ahead. A small wind blew her cloak and hair slightly to the side. He walked over to her and stood next to her. He looked in her face and saw her eyes staring forward barely blinking just watching. “Ali” he said quietly. She didn't respond. “Ali” he said more loudly. “Are you okay?” She didn't even flinch she just kept staring straight ahead. Jaius sighed and placed his hand in her's. She closed hers slightly around his, but it was barely a motion at all. “Come back to me Ali.” She let her hand open and didn't move it again. He took that as a “No!” He sighed and went back to the tent and began to tear it down. The cots broke down into slats of wood and cloth that had spaces for one on each side of the backpack. He put them in and then broke the rest of the tent down and put it inside the pack. He then went over carrying everything and took Alianna's hand again. “It's time to go Ali. Not sure how long we have to walk, but its not close.” She allowed herself to be turned away from the fountain and followed him a few steps behind him. Jaius felt the ache inside him as she walked in silence, her being there but not there. He would look back at her over his shoulder from time to time to make sure she was still with him. She was there, always. Forever staring straight ahead but making him feel like she didn't see him. It was almost more than he could bear at some points. There came moments when he wanted to scream at her and shake her, anything to end this deafening quiet. He didn't though, he remembered what Nisa had said about what that whip had done. He stopped suddenly. “Whip.” he whispered. Suddenly that night terror he had had came back to him. Looking through the window of that strange house at the woman whipping that blond girl with that glowing red stone and that girl turned out to be Alianna. He turned to face her. She had stopped too and just started blankly at him. He took her hand in his and looked into those eyes that would only blink slightly every once and a while. “Ali, I'm so sorry I didn't get there sooner, we lost her trail many times and had to double back often before we found her place. I'm not going to give up on you Ali, I'll find a way to help you. I love you Ali.” He said simply but with the full weight of sincerity. He felt the slightest pressure on his hand from her and then nothing. He smiled that little pressure reminding him that she was still inside there somewhere. He couldn't imagine what kind of pain had driven her into herself this deep. They had both endured the bullies and traps at the Dungeon and the constant threat to their lives since coming here, but whatever that evil witch had done to her seemed to eclipse all of that. His anger turned toward that woman. Maleric had been vile and Jiaus had thought he was the worst person he had ever met, but he had at least not seemed to overtly enjoy the evil he did. This woman must have loved what she did to be this mean.

He started walking again. The land here was so flat and void of trees that he could still see that massive fountain everytime he looked back to check on Alianna. In a way it was comforting because it was something he knew, but at the same time it made him feel like he wasn't making any progress. As the first night began to fall they were on a trail through the mountains that surrounded the woman’s valley.

That night he set up the cots and the tent and pulled out some dried fruit and water and fed them to Alianna. She ate them mechanically and then just sat there looking at the wall. Jaius sighed. He helped her lay down and placed the sheet over her and then closed her eyes and held her hand for a while. “I miss you Ali. I keep thinking back to the time by the creek, when it was just you and I, and how we had watched out for each other and helped each other. Then we got seperated and I didn't see you for months. Now we're back together and we are still separated, except that I can't come up with some strategy to fix this. I just can't draw my sword and make it better. I feel like the Avengers when after killing Thanos and avenging the world, they still had to deal with the fact that half the life in the universe had disappeared. I rescued you, yet you're as far away from me now as you were a month ago.” He looked at her eyes for any sign of movement, but there was none. “Maybe even farther now.” He heaved a heavy sigh and placed her hand on the cot and then went out of the tent and sat just outside the door and stared out across the wide flat plain of the Hearald’s valley below. Late in the night he went back in and laid down on the opposite cot and fell asleep.

The next day they descended the other side of the mountains and were met with a flat grassland as far as the eye could see. They walked all day in silence, save for the birds that flew overhead from time to time. The set up camp that night and he went to bed as soon as the tent was up, the weight of the silence beginning to drive him into a depression.

He was woken up by a loud rumbling. The light was bright outside as it came in under the tent flap. The rumbling grew disturbingly louder. The tent poles began to shake. He got up and slung the sword over one shoulder and the satchel over the other. He placed both packs on his back and then he moved outside the tent and looked off to the left. He saw a cloud of dust moving toward them and every so often he saw pairs of large black horns popping up through the top of the dust then disappearing back down. The dust storm was getting closer and was heading right toward them.

“Stampede!” The realization hit him that it was some herd of animals charging across the plain toward them. They would be here in a minute or less. He couldn't fight them and would not be able to stop them, so the only course left was to run. He ran inside, ripped the sheet off Alianna's cot and pulled her up by her hand. He got her standing and then yelled. “Ali, we have to run.” She just stood there. Unsure if she would run or would be able to he bent down, placed his shoulder against her midsection and lifted her up onto his shoulder and turned and ran as fast as he could through the tent flap. He looked left and the cloud of dust seemed to be almost on top of him. He bolted away from the tent as fast as he could. Four months ago he wouldn't have made it but ten steps carrying her, but the rigors and benefits of life on Paltophern had given him a strength and speed he didn't think possible.

He ran and ran until he heard the noise pass him. He slowed and stopped and turned around. He saw the dust storm heading away from them toward the west and sighed with relief. Then he saw the pile of splintered wood and torn fabric that used to be their tent. He kicked the ground with his foot. “Stuppid animals! Great, now we have nowhere to sleep.” As his anger seemed to be increasing , it suddenly fell as soon as it began to boil. He remembered again how He and Alianna survived just fine when they first got here, without a tent or anything. “I've gotten soft.” He chided himself.

He put Alianna down, back on her feet, and she stood there staring again, seeming to be completely unaware of what just happened. He took her hand and started walking back toward the tent. She followed him without a word. When they got there he stared down at the ruined structure. The fabric was shredded in too many places to count, and there weren't many pieces of wood left bigger than a popsicle stick. “Looks like we're sleeping outside tonight Ali.” He'd learned a while ago on Paltophern that if you worried too much about what you didn't have you would lose the chance to get what you needed. He kicked some of the rubble and then sighed and took her hand again and began walking. She gripped his hand and walked next to him, but didn't look at him or say anything. He liked this better though, it felt more like old times when they would hold hands and run up to the Hole.

They walked through the day stopping only to have some fruit and water. As the day drew on the grass seemed to get taller. At first he thought it was just his mind playing tricks on him, but after an hour he couldn't mistake that the grass was getting taller. Soon it was up to his waist. The light of day faded, but since they didn't have a tent anymore and he didn't feel tired he kept walking. One of those openings in the clouds appeared overhead and through it he could see a myriad of stars. They looked like they did on earth, which gave him some reassurance. He kept walking for a few hours but finally felt like he needed to sit down and rest. Off to his left he saw a shadow raising up from the grass. He drew his sword and walked over to it. Ready for some hidden threat he found it to be just a large rock that was sitting in the middle of the grassland. He smiled slightly.

“At least it should keep us safe from the mist.” He climbed up on top and then pulled Alianna up next to him. He sat her down with her back up straight and then sat down with his back against hers. He then took a deep breath and let himself rest and look out over the plain for a while. “God, please help us, please help Ali.” He wasn't sure that God would listen to him, but he was running out of ideas.

With no tent set up, or anything else to worry about he just let his thoughts drift. He looked up again at the stars and the wind began to blow and it stirred the grass in rhythmic waves as it gusted across the plain. A memory came to his mind of a similar starry night one spring when they had visited his uncle Rick in Kansas. They didn't visit him much as he and his mom had not been on good terms after he left the Catholic church. He had joined a non-Catholic church and moved out west. He remembered his mom talking to his dad and saying Uncle Frank had gotten “Saved”. She had said at that time with such disdain. Jaius had not understood why His mom had been so against her brother and his faith. From what Jaius could tell he believed in Jesus and his death and resurrection and so did they. They had traveled out to Kansas to help his uncle with Jaius's grandfather while he had had a procedure and would need help while recovering. One night while they were out there Uncle Rick had built a fire in his fire pit, but only Jaius and Anne had gone out to join him. They had made smores and looked up at the stars as they ate. Jaius remembered the moon being full and the light from it illuminating the flat plains around them and the wind gusting through the grass making it roll like the waves of the ocean. While he had been enthralled with the peacefulness of that scene Uncle Rick had begun to sing. He sang a song that seemed to fit that moment, talking of precious memories of family and how they always seemed to come up most in the late hours, when the world was quiet.

Jaius's mind came back to where he was. The light of this world illuminating the flat plain around them with the wind rolling through the grass like the waves at the ocean. It was the most quiet, still and peaceful moment he can remember ever having. The way the wind rippled across the top of the grass was mesmerizing. Then the song his uncle sang came flooding to his mind. Jaius heard every word in his uncle's rich baritone like he was sitting right next to him. From somewhere deep inside him came that song, the one his Uncle had sung.

“Precious memories, unseen angels

Sent from somewhere to my soul

How they linger, ever near me

And the sacred past unfolds.

He wasn't as proficient as his Uncle when it came to singing, in fact he avoided it because he thought he couldn't do it. For some reason, in this moment he didn't care about any of that, he just wanted to sing this song.

Precious memories, how they linger

How they ever flood my soul

In the stillness, of the midnight

Precious sacred scenes unfold.

A peace began to fill him. The quiet rustle of the wind through the high grass, the starlit night, brought that peace from his Uncle’s place to the present, just like the song was saying. How precious was the peace of that night, of this one quiet night, and so it became crystal clear how much he needed this right now..

Precious father, loving mother

Fly across the lonely years

And old home scenes, of my childhood

In fond memory appears

Deep inside her head, deep beyond the locked bedroom door that had since calcified into solid stone, Alianna lay curled up under the covers of the bedroom in her mind, clutching Mr. Bear and crying what seemed endless tears. She knew on some level that Jaius was with her and they were traveling alone, but it was just the bassist of awareness. All of who she was was wrapped up in a blanket of shame and loathing of what had happened. Slowly, ever so slowly, she let her ears open to a sound that had been coming through the wall. Soon she was able to tell what it was, it was singing. It was a boy's voice. It was Jaius. She opened one eye and saw Mr Bear staring back at her. It was the words of the song that pricked deep at her heart and roused her. “Precious memories...Precious father, loving Mother...Old home scenes of my childhood.”

“Daddy, Momma...” She whispered. She opened the other eye and sat upright. Jaius's voice was resounding through the room.

Precious memories, how they linger

How they ever flood my soul

In the stillness, of the midnight

Precious sacred scenes unfold

I remember, mother prayin'

Father too, on bended knee

The sun is sinkin', shadows fallin'

But their prayers still follow me

The words hit her like a soft blanket, a warm hug. Images began to form in her mind. Of her running into her parents bedroom one night because she was sure a monster had just emerged from her closet and she found them both on their knees beside the bed praying. She had heard them praying for her right as she walked in.

She looked over at her book case and the small library that it held. Most girls her age had closets and dressers full of clothes, but Alianna's had a room full of books. Her eyes lighted on one large book. It was the family photo album that she kept in her room. She loved her family and loved remembering the times they had shared together. She got out of the bed and went over to the shelf and picked up the photo album. She took it back to her bed and set Mr Bear next to her. She opened the album and smiled. The first picture was of Her Dad and Mom and her at her Baptism. She was 6 months old and was smiling and so were they. She smiled a little too. She turned the page and saw her and her parents in many different places and events. As she progressed through the pages Simon and Sarah appeared, and as she saw her family complete and smiling back at her in the last picture that was taken just last year while they were at Rickets Glenn State park, her smile widened as her heart embraced these precious memories. As she swam in this sea of memories something dawned on her. These memories were part of who she was, and they were still here, that meant that she was still here, that the Herald couldn’t steal these memories from her. Then there was a thundering crack and the calcified stone on the wall broke and crumpled to the floor revealing her bedroom door. From the other side of the door came Jaius's clear voice.

Precious memories, how they linger,

how they ever flood my soul

In the stillness, of the midnight

Precious sacred scenes unfold

Precious memories fill my soul

She grabbed onto each word and held it close. Those pictures, those precious memories filled her eyes, filled her soul. Peace and love started to well up in her heart, replacing the shame and loathing. “I'm not who she made me become. She tried to control me through that crown, feeding all her hatred and evil into me through it. Then she tried to take everything from me, by taking away my will, but she couldn’t take my memories. I am the Daughter of Jonathan, and Emily. I am the Sister of Simon and Sarah, and I am the best friend of Jaius. I am Alianna.” She said softly. She closed the book, set it next to Mr Bear and kissed the stuffed animal on the head. She then stood and reached for the door handle. She turned it and stepped out of herself.

A tear ran down Jaius's cheek as he finished the song. “Please come back to me Ali”. He said softly. There was a long pause of stillness, as if something had happened that everything around him was holding its breath, waiting to see. Then a voice split the silence. “I...Im here Jaius.” His head shot up and he turned around. Slowly Alianna's head and then body turned to look at him. She smiled slightly. “I'm so sorry Jaius...” She started to say, but before she could finish he had flung his arms around her. “Ali, your back, its you, I missed you so much Ali, thank God your back.” Joy filled her and she returned the hug and started to cry softly. “Oh Jaius. Thank you for coming for me. You saved me from something...well, something worse than death. I'm sorry I've been such a burden to you.” They stayed that way for long minutes reveling in this reunion.

Eventually she pulled back and looked at him and could see tears in his eyes too. He turned his head and swiped at his eyes. “Sorry Ali, I am just so glad you are okay, and you were definitely not a burden...” She turned his head back toward her. “Jaius James McFarland, you have nothing to be sorry for. You really were my Knight in shining armor back there. The way you leapt through that window with your sword drawn and picked me up...” She didn't continue. She began to blush, and when she did so did he. There was an odd silence between them for a few moments. Then not able to stand the silence anymore Alianna looked up and then around. “Jaius, where...” She looked around once more as if seeing her surroundings for the first time. “Where are we?” He looked at her. “We're about two or three days west of the Herald's house, that is about all I know. It's been nothing but flat plain after we crossed the mountains that surrounded her house.” Alianna nodded and looked behind him as if looking for someone. “Where...Where is Nisa, and the other's?” Her eyes began to look sad as a realization began to dawn on her. Jaius sighed. He was hoping she had somehow been aware of what had happened. “They went back, back to the Catha-Dral. A man named Enoch appeared after we rescued you both. He knew us Ali, even though we'd never met him before. He knew things about us that someone who hadn't been with us couldn't have known. He called me Son of Maleric all the time. He told me that you and I needed to head west, it was the only way we would find healing for you and find what we are seeking. He said the other's had to go back with him to the Catha-Dral. “Nisa, Levin, Alise, Lorna, all went back with him.” A dark cloud seemed to pass over Alianna's face when he mentioned the two sisters, but it passed quickly. “But...why did you listen to him Jaius, I mean he was a complete stranger, why would you believe anything he told you?” “There was a peace coming from him that I had never felt before, except maybe with my Uncle Frank. It wasn't just that though, remember when I told you Maleric could tell when you were lying to him?” Alianna nodded. “He had a device that fit in your ear like a hearing aid and it would vibrate if someone lied to him. He had a whole vest full of these devices, I'm not sure where he got them from, but they all use crystals and wire and they all have a slight hum. Anyway, I was wearing it when Enoch spoke and there was no lie in what he said.”

“I know where he got it from. The Herald made them, all of them. She had caves cut into the wall of that Chasm below her house. Each one was a specific workshop to manufacture items based off of the crystals and the song. She explained some of how it worked. There is an energy in the air around us. It comes up from the ground, from deep inside Paltophern. Remember when we would sit at the edge of the hole and there would be a shimmering that would seem to rise up through the layers of copper, silver and gold?” He nodded. “Well, those large deposits of metals in the ground apparently conduct the energy from deep inside the planet and then it spreads out in the air. The crystals that we use are highly susceptible to harmonics and the vibrations from the songs allow the energy to flow through the very complex structure of the crystals which compresses the energy into the form of super heated energy. The compressions of the energy produces an indescribable amount of power which then produces an effect. She said the effect is determined by the desire of the person. What we are thinking somehow affects the way we are singing which triggers different effects in the crystals. The subtle change in harmonics in your voice that follows your thought changes the structure of the crystal as you sing, which in turn causes you he different effects.” “It sounds like a fusion reaction and some kind of deep subatomic entanglement thing.” Said Jaius as if what he was saying was common knowledge. Alianna looked at him mouthing some of these unfamiliar words. He shrugged. “I’ve watched a lot of Sci-Fi.”

“She has been able to create a mechanism that once she sing's the device would continue the vibration of the same type as what she sang. As long as that little nub at the end of the crystal there stays closed up, the vibration will continue for about two months. She learned all this from that thing that followed her around, what she called the Eternal. I had equated this Eternal with God, but there is no way that thing was God. It was pure evil. I felt pure terror every time it was there.” She shivered at the thought of it. Jaius shook his head. “It wasn't the Eternal, and it definitely wasn't God. Enoch said that it was a creature that previously served the Eternal, but had turned away from that service into darkness. Enoch said that the True Eternal walked with him, was his constant companion.” Alianna's mouth opened and it looked like she was going to protest. But she looked over Jaius's face and slowly shut her mouth and nodded. “I trust you Jaius. If you believe him, then.” She took a deep breath. “So do I.” She had placed her hands in her pockets as she spoke. Suddenly her eyes opened wide and she pulled out the sash that Nisa had left there in her pocket. She drew the purple fabric up and held it out before her. Tears began to come down her cheek as she realized what it was. She pulled the cloth in and rested it against her cheek. Her shoulder's began to shake softly as all the memories of her dear friend filled her mind. Jaius put his arm around her and she fell into it. “I didn't get to say good bye to her.” She said softly. “It's okay Ali. She got to see you and whispered her goodby to you. She loves you Ali and she will always be your friend.” Alianna nodded but the tears and sorrow still came flooding out. She did pirk. up at one point and looked at him. “Emily, I..I remember her being there too, she nuzzled me, where is she, is she with us?” Jaius shook his head and looked at her, the hope crumpled from her face and she buried her head in his shoulder. This lasted a while but slowly she wiped at her eyes and pulled her legs up to her chest and looked around. The wind was blowing through the high grass like waves rising and falling in the sea. The stars showed through the window in the clouds and then an even brighter light. It was Paltophern's moon. They both stared in wonder at the shining silver disk that hung in the sky, it was crisscrossed with gray blotches that seemed to make recognizable shapes on its surface. “Ali, it looks...looks like our moon on earth. I mean, it isn't exactly the same, but so close to ours.” She nodded, still staring up at it. “I know Jaius, there is so much about this world that is like ours, but then so much that isn't.” She smiled as she looked out over the plain. Jaius looked at her. “What is it, what made you smile?” She turned to him and spread her arm out toward the grassy plain. “This is probably the most beautiful, peaceful place I could imagine. The soft rustle of the wind through the grass. The light from the moon and stars lighting everything in soft shadows. There is a gentle stillness in this place that is giving such a peace to my soul right now.” He smiled too as he looked out on the scene before them. There they stayed through the night talking softly from time to time about their different experiences while they were separated all these months.

At one point she looked at him. “Jaius, I've been thinking of something.” He tilted his head in towards hers. “I remembered the one story you told me about that Star Journey movie, where the crew went down to that planet and found people who lived for hundreds of years and had amazing abilities., and it was a special radiation on that planet that was giving them long life and abilities.” He laughed a little. “Star Trek.” She blushed slightly, shook her head and laughed a little also. “Sorry, I was never a big fan, not to many books on that series that I saw. Anyway, with what I learned from the herald I wonder if that is similar to what is happening here. That energy that comes up from below, maybe it is a radiation like from that movie. Maybe that is why people here a living hundreds of years and seem to have unique abilities, and also why Crystals can do what they do.” He stopped and looked at her, eyes wide. “Ali you could be right, wow how cool is that. That must be why we are so healthy and strong here. That radiation must have started to affect us, help us. I wonder if that was why we both got so sick when we first got here? Maybe the radiation was either changing or healing our bodies.” She shuddered a little as he mentioned that terrible week. “It could be, I just hope we don't have to go through that again. I guess if we are trapped here though, it doesn't seem like we will get old anytime soon.” He nodded and then looked out over the sea of grass. “I wonder what is going on back home. I mean, has it been four months back home, or is it like that Narnia you always talked about where the children were there for fifteen years, and yet only a little bit of time had passed at home.” His voice got a bit quieter as he continued. “I mean, what if it isn't like that and we live here for hundreds of years, find our way back, only to come back and find that everyone we knew is long dead.” He looked at her and her eyes were filling up with tears. “Why do I always have to say what I'm thinking before thinking about what I am saying?” He said as he began to think about what he had just said. “Ali, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking when I spoke.” She wiped at her eyes and shook her head. “No Jaius, remember, no secrets with us, I'm sorry I don't want to cry at everything that happens from now on, It was just the reality of what you said and how true it might be. We could be here for centuries. Maybe in that time we can find a way to build a spacecraft using the crystals and finally find a way home, only to come to earth hundreds of years after everyone we knew was dead. It just hit me real hard, but it also brings up the question. I mean, if we can't find a way home in the next few years, or at least come up with a plan, maybe we should think about how we are to spend very long lives here, make plans for our future.” He didn't want to nod his head in agreement, he felt like doing so would make what she said happen, but he had also learned that denying reality in this place could get you killed very quickly. They talked more along these lines, about their plan for their future here, until the morning came and the mist slowly rose from the ground and covered the grass with moisture, but thankfully the rock they were on was tall enough to keep them out of the mist.

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They watched it rise and then they both laughed with delight at not being drenched like the grass. Then Alianna laughed even harder. Jaius looked at her and laughed too because her's was infectious. “What are we laughing at?” he said finally. She smiled, “I was just realizing that even though we spared ourselves from getting soaked by staying above the mist, we're going to get soaked as we travel through that grass, unless we wait most of the day for it to dry.” Jaius looked around at all the dripping wet grass as the Mist was disappearing. He then began to laugh too. “Wow, you're so right Ali. I guess we don't have much choice but to get wet.” He reached out his hand to her and gestured off the rock toward the grass. “Shall we away my lady? It will be just like the days when we were by the creek.” She smiled and took his hand. He slid off first and landed on the wet ground. He then held his arms up to her and she let herself fall into them. He caught her effortlessly and she marveled at how they had both changed so much in just four months. He set her feet on the ground and then took her hand and they walked through the high grass getting wet, but feeling like a massively heavy weight was falling off of them.

By the time the daylight was fading they came to the end of the grasslands and stood facing a dense forest. They could hear the sounds of the birds chirping and the noises made by the evening bugs as the sun set. This forest seemed different then the one they had found themselves in when they first got here. Alianna looked back across the broad plain behind them and watched as the wind made waves across the sea of grass. She sighed a little. Jaius turned and looked at her. “Everything okay?” She smiled slightly and looked at him. “Yes, it's just I feel like we're leaving something. Like if we had just stayed on that rock, we could have just lived out our days surfing on waves of peace, I just feel like we're about to step away from that. I know its silly and doesn't make much sense, but it is what I feel.” “It's not silly Ali, I feel it too. Enoch was right though, I took you west and you came back, and that place behind us is where you came back to me, but I'm not sure he was talking about that rock where we would find what we seek. So...So I believe if we keep heading west we will find what we are looking for. I've been thinking about what that might be and it must be a way home. Maybe some type of worm hole... I mean Teseract.” He said with a laugh. She looked at him puzzled for a moment and then the memory of their argument about what the name of the space tunnel should be and a smile split her lips, and then all out laughter. They both laughed very hard eachones laughter spurring the other on to more. After a minute though they calmed down and just stood smiling at eachother. “Wow. I really needed that.” Said Alianna. “I'm not sure the last time I laughed like that.” Jaius shook his head. “I'm not sure I ever did. I'm pretty sure I needed that too.” He looked away from her and back toward the forest. He saw her looking at his back smiling. “You brought my pack.” She said, He smiled and took it off and handed it to her. She placed her arm through the straps and then held it and opened the side pouch and smiled as she pulled out the small shard that looked like a knife. The one from the clearing that had broken off of the larger crystal when they tried to light the fire. She smiled and then put her other arm through the second strap. Once the pack was secure on her back she looked back at him. “What is in that bag you’ve been carrying?” He looked down at the satchel. “That man, Enoch gave it to me along with the jars inside.” He took the satchel off and handed it to her. She took it looking at him quizzically. “He said you would need what’s inside in the days ahead.” She opened the flap and looked inside she saw the jar of water and also the other jar that held the shard that went with the Thron. She looked up at him in disbelief . “Jaius, how...how did you get that?” “I was leaving the main hall and saw it on the floor by where you and…”. He stopped realizing what he had been about to say. The lone tear that leaked from her eye told him that he had still said too much. “I’m sorry Ali, I didn’t mean to…” He didn't say anything more, but just closed his mouth “It is okay Jaius.” She said her voice was soft and heavy with emotion. She squeezed her eyes closed tightly but then opened them and looked at him. “Jaius, I...I never got the chance to mourn for him. Do..Do you think...” Her lip was trembling. Jaius quickly took her hand and helped her sit on a nearby rock. He sat next to her and just placed his hand on her's. She cried, softly at times, and at times not so softly, but all through it he just held her hand. At some points she would tell him something that Ye'Tul had done, or how he had saved her or protected her, at other times she was just silent, staring off across the grassy plain.

After a couple of hours she sighed and wiped at her eyes and then stood. “I'm sorry Jaius, I shouldn't have wasted our time with all of that.” Jaius stood and moved in front of her. “Don't be sorry Ali, he was a good man. I could tell that almost right away, and I wish I could have known him better, but with everything you just said about him I feel I do. I am very grateful to him for how he kept you safe. I'm sorry about just handing you the bag with the crystal, I didn't think about what bad memories it might bring up.” She shook her head. “No Jaius, I'm glad you did. I needed to let that out. He was a good man, and I would definitely not be here right now with you without him. I just...I didn't get a chance to tell him that.” Jaius looked her in the eyes. “He knew Ali. I could see it in the way he protected you and gave his life for you. You don't get that kind of loyalty from someone if they think you don't think highly of them. “ She nodded, and seemed a bit comforted by his words, but he knew there was still a hole there, a regret that she held onto. She took a deep breath and changed the topic. “How did you escape the Hearald’s trap? I still can’t believe I didn’t suspect the bodysuits as dangerous , especially after I found out she had cursed that crown somehow.” Jaius shook his head. “I don’t know about any crown, but you won’t believe how we got free.” He then toold her the story of how he was sure they would die of dehydration and how they spent the whole night dangling there. Then, how in the morning, Jekk came and was able to cut him out of the suit. She was amazed at how he was able to do that when he was blind and how crazy it was that the boy who wanted to kill him months earlier now saved his life.

“ Do you feel up to walking some? I know it’s dark but I'm not tired. I didn't want to keep going, though, if you needed rest.” She looked into the forest and shook her head. “I'm not tired either. I want to get to where we are going, if it is a way home, then we need to get there as soon as possible.” He nodded, took her hand and led the way forward into the woods. “Jaius wait, look, there in the distance, lights near the horizon. Many lights, almost like…a city.” Her eyes brightened up as she gazed towards the lights in the distance. She began to walk forward towards the lights. Jaius looked in that direction and when he heard her say city, Enoch’s words came back to him. “One more thing, Son of Maleric. As you head west you may come across a city. Under no circumstances are you to enter that city.” He reached out quickly and grabbed her arm. “Ali, no, we can’t go there.” She turned and looked at him, confusion and disappointment clear on her face. “Enoch warned me that if we come across a city we are under no circumstances to go there.” “But Jaius, maybe they are nice people, maybe they will help us. I can’t believe that every city in this world is ruled by a bully, or tyrant, or despot. There has to be a Cair Paravel somewhere.”

“ Alas, Hyress, the Son of Maleric, speaks the truth. That place is ruled by the worst tyrant in the world. The Son of Maleric is wise to heed the council that I gave him.” They both turned and approaching from the woods was a tall man with wavy dark hair and a slight beard. In the dimmer light of the Paltopheran night they couldn’t tell who it was, but Jaius thought it sounded like Enoch. Alianna looked at the man and then at Jaius, shock and confusion plain in her eyes. “Who’s there?” Shouted Jaius, drawing his sword and placing himself between Alianna and the man. “Have you forgotten me, Enoch, already Jaius, Son of Maleric?” The man had stopped ten feet from them, he was still too covered by shadow to be seen clearly, but his voice definitely sounded like Enoch. “If you are the Enoch that I met at the Heralds house, why are you here and not leading the people east as you swore?” The shadows seemed to deepen around the man and made him even harder to see but when he spoke he definitely sounded closer. “The Knights of the White Rose are leading them back to the Catha-Dral. I had to find you as I will be needing the purple shard that you carry, the one kept from the Thron during its shaping.” The voice was definitely closer now. Something stirred in Jaius’s mind, a memory of a warning, he could almost feel the man’s breath but still couldn’t see him. “If you are the Enoch that I met at the Heralds, then what was question you asked me before I left you and went back to the other’s?” “I asked you if you had the Thron shard with you.” Said the man’s voice from right in front of him. That false answer gave Jaius the split seconds warning of danger that he needed. Knowing that he was not Enoch allowed Jaius to catch the slight noise of a blade sweeping downward through the air. He raised his sword and parried the man’s blow. He heard metal hit his crystal sword. The shadows now completely engulfed him and he could feel a cold terror sweep over him and the darkness enveloped him. He was able to hear the slight sound of the man’s blade moving through the air, but only in enough time to parry it, not to repost, and he felt that he would not be able to keep this up for long, especially as the terror of the shadow seeped into him, weakening his confidence. Then he heard her voice. That rich beautiful voice singing Amazing Grace. A flicker of light appeared in the center of his crystal sword and swiftly became a coruscation of brilliance that shattered the shadows and sent them fleeing to the south toward the city just as Jaius parried the man’s latest blow. With the searing light energy now emanating from Jaius’s sword, however, the man’s metal blade slid over Jaius’s and was severed in two. Jaius’s sword continued upward, now unhindered and sliced into the man’s left cheek. The man cried out in pain and anger as he dropped the remaining half of his sword and raised his hand to cover his cheek. His eyes flashed with anger as he stared at Jaius, blood seeping through his fingers. “You may have won this duel and kept the shard Son of Maleric but I am patient. One day, I will possess the Thron and all its might and on that day, I will break the foundations of the world and remake it in my own fashion. You both will be the first ones to feel my wrath on that day.” Said the man as the shadows engulfed him again and the shadows along with the man sped away to the south, toward the city faster than a man should be able to run, even here on Paltophern. Jaius let out a sigh of relief and sheathed his sword. He then turned to make sure Alianna was okay. She looked at him trembling with fear and confusion.

“Who…who was that Jaius?”

“I’m not sure, but Enoch told me that we might run into someone bearing his name, but to remember it wasn’t him and not to trust him. This must have been that man.”

Alianna looked at him, her face still a turmoil of worry and fear. “Is there nowhere safe for us Jaius, is everything and everyone in the universe a trap waiting to snare and destroy us.” She placed her hands over her face and he could see tears leak out from between her fingers. He went over and put his arms around her. After a few minutes she stopped and he let go. She looked up and wiped the tears from her eyes. “Again, I’m Sorry Jaius, it just seems like there is death and danger around every turn, not just here, but in our own world too. There has to be somewhere that is safe.” He looked at her and smiled reassuringly, knowing she needed a hope, something to grasp onto. “Then let’s find it together.” He said, holding out his hand. She looked at it then at him and then gave him a small smile and took his hand and let him lead her back toward the woods.

“Jaius?” She asked after a few minutes. “Yes my lady.” He said over his shoulder looking at her with a twinkle in his eye. “What was it?” “What was what? “ What was the question that the real Enoch asked you before you went back to the others ?” He stopped and turned and looked at her with both his eyes. “He asked me if I loved you, and I told him that I did, that I’d die for you.” He said simply, but in that simplicity she felt the weight and truth of his words and they stamped a mark on her heart that she knew would always be there. She smiled at him and moved closer and he stopped and she looked him in the eyes and could see the truth of what he said. “I love you to Jaius.” A peace filled silence surrounded them as those words left her mouth. Both their professions seemed to hang suspended in that beautiful silence.

Usually in her books this was the moment that the knight and princess would kiss, but as she had learned from Paltophern that the scenes in the books rarely play out in reality. The peaceful silence of that moment was shattered by a faint cry. They both turned their heads to listen. It sounded like a child and it was coming from off to their left, from deep in the woods. Jaius turned around and looked at Alianna, and could see by her face she had heard it too. “Come on.” He said as he drew his sword and ran in the direction of the cry. Within moments she was shoulder to shoulder with him, the clear crystal in her right hand. They ran through the trees and underbrush spurred on by the child's screams as they became louder. They came out into a clearing and stopped. There, in the middle of the clearing was a large portion of a tree. It looked like the tree had been cut down. The remnants of the tree still stood a good 6 feet off the ground. On top of the stump stood a child that looked like she was about 6 years old. She had long dark hair and wore animal skins. Circling the tree were a pack of six of the large cat like creatures with large incisors sticking up from their mouths. It was the same animal that had attacked them in the clearing when Maleric found them. Neither one of them seemed to lose control of themselves at this moment, Jaius noted with a grin. He looked at Alianna and nodded. She nodded back and waited. Jaius stepped forward and shouted. “Hey.” The noise alerted the animals and they all turned to gaze at the newcomers. They began to snarl and roar at Jaius. Behind him Alianna began to sing. She sang the same song from just minutes before, the one Jaius had taught the people from Maleric's camp, Amazing Grace.

His sword began to glow once more as she sang. Once it did he rushed forward, dodging one cat as it lunged at him and driving his sword into the neck of the one behind it. He then turned and sliced through the one he had dodged. He charged at another and cut it across the rib cage as it leapt at him. Seeing a ray of energy out of the corner of his eye he ducked as another creature who had snuck around behind him exploded as the beam hit it. He rolled out of the path of the gore and charred flesh and sprung at the next one. He sliced through its neck and the creature fell to his side. The remaining animal began to back slowly out of the clearing, growling and snarling at Jaius and Alianna as it went.

Jaius made threatening noises at it and pointed his sword at it. The creature snarled once more, and then turned and ran away. He wiped his sword on the grass and then sheethed it. He went back to Alianna. “Thanks for the help.” She smiled. “Anytime. We both seemed to handle seeing those creatures a lot better than the last time we met one. I wonder what changed?” She said quizzically. He looked at her and smiled. “We have.” It took a moment for that to work through her brain but as she looked at him and then herself she nodded and smiled. “I guess we have. I just hope it is a good change.” Jaius looked up at the little girl who was hugging her knees and crying softly and then back to Alianna. “I think it is.” He said with a smile. “How do we get her down? I can climb up there, but not sure if I can get us both down.” Alianna looked up at the girl and her heart broke at the fear that had overwhelmed the poor child and what she had had to go through. “I can get her.” She began to sing again, it sounded like a lullaby. The golden sphere that had entrapped both of them in the past appeared around the girl. This time however, the intent wasn't to capture the occupant, just to bring them to safety. The sphere floated slowly above the tree stump and then glided silently toward Alianna. By the time the girl even knew something had changed the sphere disappeared and Alianna wrapped her arms around the girl. Big brown eyes started up at her from where she held the girl in her arms. The girl began to squirm and cry again. “Shh..shh. It is okay, you're safe now. We won't hurt you.” Alianna said in a very gentle voice. After a few moments of these sayings the girl began to stop squirming. She looked deep into Alianna's eyes and then threw her arms around her neck and began to cry softly. Alianna rubbed the girls back and whispered encouraging words to her. Jaius smiled and when Alianna looked up she smiled back at him. “I wonder where she came from?” Jaius said, looking around. He saw a path leading away from the way they had entered the clearing. “Maybe she came from that direction.” Alianna looked at where he was pointing and then said something to the girl. The girl lifted her head from Alianna's shoulder and looked past Jaius. After a moment or two she began to nod her head and point down that path. Jaius nodded and then drew his sword and led the way. They wound their way through the forest for about Twenty minutes before Jaius noticed that the trees had begun to become further apart and more sparse. Within a few more minutes they came out of the forest and were faced with sheer cliffs rising before them hundreds of feet into the air. The wall of rock extended as far as they could see north or south.

“Maliea!” “Maliea, where are you?” Jaius heard voices shouting off to his right. He turned and could see two figures off in the distance near the rock face. “Jaius.” Alianna whispered behind him. He turned and saw that the girl had picked her head up and was looking in the direction the call had come from, her eyes widening with recognition. “Momma, Daddy.” The girl said. Alianna smiled and so did Jaius. Jaius put his sword away and they both walked toward the people calling out the name. “Is that your name, Maliea?” Alianna asked the girl. The girl smiled and nodded and pointed to herself “Maliea.” Alianna smiled too. “It is nice to meet you Maliea. I am Alianna and this is Jaius.” She said as she gave the girl an eskimo kiss which made her giggle. Soon the two figures stopped calling her name and began moving toward them quickly. Jaius stopped and Alianna stopped next to him. As they got closer they could make out a man and a woman. Each had black hair. The man had a beard and the woman wore a veil over her dark hair. They were not very tall and didn't look much older than Elder Dorn from the Catha-Dral. “Maliea'' the woman shouted and ran toward Alianna. Jaius instinctively placed his hand on his sword hilt but didn't draw it. Alianna smiled at the woman as she held the girl out to her. The woman wrapped her arms around Maliea and began to cry tears of joy. The man came up behind them and placed his strong arms around the woman and the girl. “Oh Maliea we are very glad you are safe.” Said the man in a gentle voice. Jaius moved over and stood next to Alianna joining her in the happy moment.

After a minute the man let go of the woman and looked up at Jaius and Alianna. “Thank you so much for finding our daughter Maliea. She wandered off and we didn't find her missing till just a little while ago. I am Seth, and this is my wife Kalima. Meliea you have already met.” They both looked at him and then Jaius stepped forward. “Hello Seth, I am Jaius, Son of Maleric.” “I am Alianna.” She said, stepping up next to him. Seth's expression became serious as they spoke. “The Hyress?” She was taken aback when he mentioned her title, as she had sought not to use it after the fake Enoch had tried to take the Thron crystal from them. “We have been expecting you both. Enoch said we would meet you within the month. He gave us instructions for you. You must spend the night with us and then at first light you must go up that path. I am to tell you nothing about what lies up the path, just to give you provisions.” Jaius looked at him as he spoke. “You..You know Enoch? He spoke to you about us?” Seth nodded. “Yes, Enoch is the son of my son's son's son's son.” Jaius shook his head in confusion at that. Alianna bent in and whispered “He's his great, great grandson.” Jaius's eyes widened and then he nodded in understanding. “So, Enoch told you about us, before he met us?” How is that possible?”

“Since he was a small boy Enoch has talked about the Eternal one. We have begun to call on this Eternsl with the name of Elohim. Enoch speaks to Him and he speaks back. He tells Enoch things that have not happened yet. This is how Enoch knew you would come and where to find you.” Seth then went and moved to stand next to his wife and child. “Please come and have a meal with us.” He said as he placed his arm around his wife and picked Maliea up and began walking back toward the wall of rock. Meliea looked back at them and waved and smiled. Alianna smiled and covered her mouth with her hand. She then turned slightly to Jaius and removed her hand partly from her mouth and he could see her mousy smile. “She is so cute!” Jaius laughed and took her hand and walked after them.

After about twenty minutes Jaius saw a structure come into view It was set against the rock wall. It looked like a long ranch house. Single storiy with a hole in the roof for smoke to come out of it. The was a steady stream of smoke coming ut of it as they approached. Next to the house there was a split in the rock wall. It opened onto a vally between the wall. It seemed to slant upward like a ramp. The inside of the house was not fancy, but it was comfortable. Animal skins lay over the wooden floor. There was a black tar like substance coating the wood and filling in the cracks of the wooden floor and walls and celing. There were about five children of ages ranging from new born to what looked like ten years old scattered around the room. A fire burned in a kiln-like structure with a small chimney at the top. Smoke from the fire wafted up and out a hole in the roof. As they entered the house they both felt a wave of peace wash over them. They sat down to eat dinner and Seth asked them how they came to meet Enoch.

So they recounted the tale of their four months here starting with how they came from another world. Seth's mouth dropped open at that statement. “We have seen the stars at night but did not know there were other worlds out there. Perhaps one day our people will go to the stars.” “With the power of these crystals that day might be closer then you think.” Said Jaius. “Ah yes, the singing stones.” Seth said as he ran his hand through his hair. “Enoch warned me to keep our life here as simple as possible, the power of the crystals can be used for good, but also for great evil. From your story it sounds like Enoch was right. Such terrible uses of their power and abuses of people.” He looked at Jaius, his eyes locking Jaius’s eyes to him

“Remember, Son of Maleric, a son does not have to follow in the sinful way of his father. Learn of the eternal as Enoch has and your life will be one of peace and prosperity. My Father told me of my brother Able, who was killed before I was born. He also found favor with the Eternal by offering a sacrifice that was pleasing to him. I learned much from the stories my father told about him, I want to find favor in the eyes of the Eternal, Elohim, aslo as my brother did and Enoch.” Jaius had stopped eating and dropped his fork, Alianna almost choked.

“Did you say you had a brother named Able?” She said as she tried to clear her throat. Seth noded. “Yes he was killed before I was born.” His wife was looking at Seth with worry in her eyes slowly shaking her head no. His eyes widened when he saw her movement. “I am sorry, I have said too much, I was not supposed to talk about what lay above, and not really about my family. I...I can say no more.” He said as he stood up. “The fire is warm and will last through the night. You may use this room to sleep in. We will prepare food for you when the light comes and then walk you as far as the passage. Good night Son of Maleric, goodnight Hyress.” “Goodnight, and thank you so much for bringing Maliea back to us.” Said Kalima as she bowed to both of them. Maliea tora away from her mother and ran and hugged Jaius and then ran over and hugged Alianna. “Thank you.” the young girl said shyly. Jaius smiled at them all. “Your welcome and have a good night.” Alianna hugged Maliea back but Jaius felt waves of unease coming from her.

In a minute they were alone. Alianna collapsed onto the floor sitting on the floor with her mouth open staring at the fire. Jaius became concerned he moved quickly over to her and sat down. “Ali, what's wrong.” She turned to look at him with her mouth still hangin open. She shut it abruptly and shook her head. “Jaius, didn't you hear him? He said he had a brother named Abel who was killed.” Jaius looked confused. “So. What does that mean?” Alianna looked at him in shock.

“Don't you remember Religion class at school? Abel, you know, Cain killed Abel because Able gave the right sacrifice to God and Cain didn't? Jaius, I think the Bible goes on to say that Adam and Eve had another son, and that his name was Seth. And a descendant of Seth's was named Enoch. That's where I had heard his name before, he is in the Bible.” Jaius still looked very confused as he tried to process what she was saying. “So, what you are saying is that this man who we just met is the Seth that is mentioned in the Bible and that he is the son of Adam and Eve?” She nodded her head. “Ali come on. That can't be. If that were true then this world would look like our world, with a blue sky and not a perpetual cloud cover. There would be normal animals, not large toothed tigers, and we definitely don't have crystals powered by song and radiation that heals you.” His words seemed to shake her out of her fear a bit. She looked down as if thinking about what he was saying. She looked back up at him. “You're probably right, Jaius, but it just seemed so weird that they kept talking about this Eternal like He is God, and Enoch was so close to Him like the Enoch in the Bible. But you are right, this world is definitely really different from ours. I mean our world could have been different before the flood, but not this different.” She said becoming a bit more calm. Jaius nodded to encourage this line of thinking. “Yeah, and anyway the priest in our religion class said that Genesis was more of a story, to teach us the right way to live and not sin, and that it wasn't any form of History book and that Science had shown that the story of Genesis couldn't have happened the way it says.” She nodded her head slowly and turned to look into the fire. “What if it isn't a story though?” Jaius sighed. “Ali, we've been through a lot, and I would love to think that somehow we are still on Earth, at least that would be familiar, instead we are lightyears away on some alien world, I would love for what you are saying to be true, but everything seems to point to the Alien world theory. Look, once we get to wherever we are going we will research the crystals as much as we can and try to find a way to create a ship or even a Tesseract to get home.” He smiled as he said Tesseract. She turned to him and smiled slightly. “Your right of course, Jaius, and I am tired. Lets get some sleep.” She said feigning a yawn. He nodded and lay down on the fur covered floor. She lay down and turned to look into the fire. She knew sleep would not come anytime soon. She let the thoughts flow through her head as she watched the flames dancing in the fireplace. “Could this be Earth, in the past? Could the Bible be more true than we've been told?”