Dirty Eden (29 page)

Tsaeb was crouched on the other side of me now. He whispered, “She put them back in. I saw when she did it, while Samyaza was crushing you. She put the eyes in their sockets and Samyaza fell. Right on his face! You should’ve seen it! It was like she pulled the plug on him or something and he went crashing to the ground! Just like that!” He snapped his fingers.

I felt disoriented. Between the excruciating pain and the changing scenes, it was nearly impossible to keep up. I looked up into the trees as they swayed and doubled and tripled. I blinked several times trying to shake my sight right.

I was lifted into the air.

Still partially on my back and side, I floated through the air toward somewhere. It took longer to realize what was happening at all.

“The Serpent was defeated by the Man,” said Paschar sitting on an old stone bench in the forest clearing. “But will the Man be defeated by the Serpent?”

The Angel set my injured body softly onto the ground near her. I was bewildered by the fact that my mind thought I should moan in pain, but my body did not respond in that way.

“Please don’t tell me,” I began, “he’s still after me?”

Paschar smiled a close-lipped smile. Maybe that smile of hers was supposed to be some kind of answer.

“He can’t be after you,” Tsaeb said. “He’s the snake!”

I shifted my eyes to better see the snake around her neck and then to see the Angel. Her smile was the same.

“But how could I have defeated him?” I said. “By tricking him?”

Paschar nodded slowly, her gentle fingertips stroking the black snake that was Samyaza.

The snake’s head swayed near Paschar’s shoulder, staring in my direction, its forked tongue slithering in and out of its mouth.

“Samyaza, the great Serpent, shall braid my hair no more.”

Paschar motioned for me to stand, her palm out. I thought about it first, but then lifted myself to my feet easily and without pain.

“But
—
”

“Samyaza’s lies go with him,” Paschar explained, stroking the snake on its thick head. “Into his belly go the deceptions, and out of mine will come the Truth.”

I had an uneasy feeling all of a sudden. A memory of the Tree of Life crowded my thoughts, how she gave no warning before she sent the tower crashing down. I knew from lessons already learned that if I had questions I had better ask them quickly.

“But what do I do next?” I said. “Where do I go now?”

“There is only one place left to go,” Paschar began. “Find the Center of Eden and undo what was once done.”

“But where’s the Center,” I urged.

Paschar’s serene, dream-like face began to falter. First, her smile faded and then she shut her eyes and opened them again, but to open them seemed an effort as if all she wanted to do was sleep.

“If you met the Tree of Life,” she began, “she would have shown you the way.”

I looked behind me at the woman who had possession of Vanity’s Mirror and she stepped up beside me. Pulling the mirror from her cloak, she held it up to show Paschar.

“It’s mine now,” said the young woman, “but I’ll go with him until he doesn’t need it anymore.”

Paschar nodded and shut her eyes again. Her discomfort was becoming more noticeable with every breath. With Samyaza wrapped around her petite white neck, she placed both hands on her rounded belly.

It was growing.

“The mirror will take you there,” said Paschar, “but its power is tricky and deceptive.”

“Yes,” I said, “I learned that already. Honestly, if I hadn’t been shown how to use it, I never would’ve figured it out on my own.”

“You would do better not to use it at all, but if it is your only way....”

“It is, but why?”

The Angel’s voice labored. “Do what you must,” she said, “but I know the Center of Eden to be somewhere where things began. That is all I know.”

I saw that the forest and everything around it was like how the rest of Creation always looked. Dead trees, gloomy sky, uncomfortable air. I longed for the illusion of what it had looked like before. As I watched the Angel, studying her quickly advancing changes and remembering the Tree of Life, I knew what was going to happen next. It was the ‘how’ that worried me.

“I think we should go,” said Tsaeb.

“Me too,” Sophia agreed, stepping back further. “She don’t look too good.”

Paschar looked ill, her skin no longer white and pristine, but pale and sickly. Samyaza slithered away from her and into the nearest tree.

Everything unfolded in slow motion. The way Paschar stood, so graceful and steady despite her discomfort. How her silky hair blew magically behind her like something out of a fairytale. How her delicate hands and arms raised high toward the sky and the way the sunlight broke through the grayness of Creation.

And then there was a silence so dead and so deafening that it made the world stand completely still. Two seconds. Three. A burst of light shot from Paschar’s eyes and from her mouth. Her body arched backward, her hands high in the air, her hair blowing wildly. And then her stomach burst open with light and for twelve long seconds her body was suspended in mid-air, blinding rays devouring her and everything around her.

The sound of trees breaking and a great rush of water filled the forest around us. The sky went dark and then light again as the black clouds broke apart as if God Himself pursed his lips and blew.

We were already near the lake again, running as fast as we could as the forest took shape all around us. Black turned to green, covering the trees like a thick blanket. The soft dark green moss that had once only been an illusion covered the ground. Like the new growth of vines, it crawled over everything in its path, claiming it. The growth was quickly on my heels. Sophia fell once and left Tsaeb scrambling to rip the vines from her ankles, fighting to keep more vines and moss from claiming him, too. The woman and I jerked Tsaeb and Sophia both from the ground and helped them toward the lake.

“Hurry!” I shouted, now with Sophia in my arms.

But that great rush of water we heard before was faster than we were and it took us all off our feet, barreling through the trees from behind; an angry rogue river to drown and destroy everything in its path. The last thing I saw just before it struck was our boat drifting far toward the center of the lake. The lake suddenly turned violent as the river joined it. My companions and I were swept away in an instant.

I COULDN’T REMEMBER WHAT I dreamt while I was unconscious, or even if I dreamt at all. When I awoke, I thought I might be dead. Truly dead this time. But as my memories slowly came together again, I had to be disappointed that I was not so lucky.

The water in my lungs came up first, followed by a burning sensation in my nostrils and throat. My eyes stung from the water and I couldn’t immediately open them. I could hear sounds all around me fading in and out: chirping birds and cool breezes gently stirring leaves. I could hear water, now tranquil and constant.

I opened my eyes and saw that I was on my stomach in a bed of that heavenly moss, the side of my face pressed against the dampness. My clothes were soaked and I had lost a sandal, but no bones were broken and that was the greatest relief of all. I raised myself carefully to my feet and gently kicked off the other sandal. My body was sore and my mind still foggy. I noticed too that my watch was gone, only the outline from where it had been protecting the skin from the sun was left.

As I started to investigate what else had washed ashore with me, I heard a snorting sound somewhere to my left. My guard was up instantly, but I wasn’t afraid. Nothing could scare me anymore, except the Hermit and even he would have to work at it harder...probably.

“I can hear you,” I said to whomever or whatever might be listening.

I began to wonder where Tsaeb and the others were. Maybe they were dead.

Then I heard a low moan and the thick of bushes moved beside me. I walked straight over, ready to face it and when I leaned around the bush, I was surprised to see my friend, Taurus, lying in a pile of washed up branches and debris.

“Taurus!” I leaned over and offered a hand.

Taurus grunted and took it, nearly bringing me down with him. We both must’ve forgotten how much larger and stronger he was than me.

“I see you freed the Angel.” Taurus laughed.

“I guess I did!” I kept smiling, until Taurus started looking around for the others and my smile turned to concern.

“I hope the little one is alright,” he said, referring to Sophia.

It was just about that time when Tsaeb came running up, breathing so hard he had to stop and rest his hands upon his knees.

He could hardly get the words out. “Hurry...this way,” he said, motioning one hand. “You’ve got to see this!”

This was serious. I knew Tsaeb well enough by now, and for him to be so persistent, whatever it was had to be significant.

“Have you seen the others?” I said, following.

Tsaeb urged us along, five paces in front, as he explained. “They’re there. Me and the brat...washed up not far from...each other. I was more concerned about finding you, but of course...Sophia only cares about that damn mirror.” He looked back once, but kept walking faster, out of breath. “I mean sure...we could’ve found either of you first, but you should’ve seen Sophia’s face when the girl...came walking up along the path. She took out after her
—
her name’s Diana, by the way
—
and I thought Sophia was gonna...kill her! She started screaming about Vanity’s Mirror...blah, blah, blah. Long story short, Diana easily kept Sophia off her and since Diana lost the mirror, Sophia is fuming pissed!”

I grabbed Tsaeb’s shoulder from behind and stopped him dead in his tracks. Taurus almost ran us over before he could stop in time.

“
What
did you say?”

Tsaeb winced and it was pointless to pretend he didn’t know what I was referring to.

“Yeah,” he said solemnly, “but she didn’t do it on purpose. I mean shit, we were swept away by a river for cryin’ out loud!”

“She
lost
the mirror!” I tried to believe I had heard wrong. I could feel my insides twisting and my lungs hardening like cement.
Oh God, no this can’t be happening.

“Look,” said Tsaeb, “we can find another way. Even the Angel said herself you’d be better off without it. She’s one of the good guys, right? Maybe she knew what she was talking about and maybe you should think about that.”

I pulled the inside of my bottom lip from my teeth. I had been biting it harshly for the past straight minute. “But one of the ‘good guys’ also
gave
it to me, Tsaeb, and she wouldn’t have if I didn’t need it!”

“I think it’s a matter of opinion,” argued Tsaeb.

“
Opinion
?” I argued back. “What other way did I have? It’s not like I had two options before
—
no I only had one and that was Vanity’s Mirror!”

“But we can find a way!”

“We don’t have
time
!”

We stood there with our fists balled at our sides. If Tsaeb were as tall as I was, we would have been chest to chest.

Taurus wedged his giant arm carefully between us.

“Look you two,” he said, “this is pointless.” He turned to me then. “I hate to take sides against you, but Tsaeb’s right. You can find another way. And you can’t bring the mirror back; what’s done is done. You have no other choice.”

“What did the Angel say to you?” said Tsaeb. “She said something about the Center being in the beginning, or some shit like that.”

I was too upset to think right now. I couldn’t focus, or function.

“We’ll figure it out,” said Tsaeb, “but first you have to see this. I don’t know whether to be awed by it, or afraid of it.”

I followed.

The scenery along the way was unbelievable. I couldn’t imagine anything more fascinating than what was already all around me. If I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought I was already in the Garden of Eden. A plethora of flower species crawled the scaling lush trees and bushes and sprouted from the ground. The moss seemed to replace any evidence of soil. Soon we were walking uphill. As far as I could see, there was nothing but blue sky and a rising mound of glittering green moss. We walked higher and higher until I was the one out of breath.

As we approached the top of the hill the moss turned to grass with thousands of three-leaf clovers and the tiniest purple and white flowers. Birds soared overhead. When I looked back over the land behind me, I was surprised to see how much had changed. I could see the river and what was once the lake. It wound a giant path through the forest and the mountain.

I stopped to rest and let Tsaeb and Taurus walk further ahead. I gazed past the great river and toward the mountain that the river hugged, but nothing was recognizable. This was no Creation that I knew. It was too wonderful to be a place I remembered as so dark and surreal and untouched by beauty.

“Norman,” shouted Tsaeb. “Look!” He was standing on the edge of a grassy cliff.

When I made it to the edge, I gasped. “My God....”

It was an ocean of green. There was a city from the Outside. Vines, moss and soil covered each structure. I saw the mental hospital and its sign out front where crawling vines obscured most of its letters. Further, toward the east I saw the building where I worked and could even spot the window I would look out of every day when I passed to go to lunch. And just a few moss-covered blocks away was the coffee house. But what surprised me the most was seeing my burned apartment building and the park where I met the Devil. The city where I once lived was not itself. It appeared abandoned for hundreds of years. The buildings were not all there. It was as though I was looking at a 2-D picture and where the back of the buildings should have been there was more of Creation instead. The city had been cut off.

“Is that
—
” I began.

“Yes,” Tsaeb answered, “That’s the Outside.” He pointed, looking out. “See, right over there is the alley I stood in forever! You’ve gotten farther than anyone. Creation and the Outside are converging.”

Taurus looked out at the sight wide-eyed but was then distracted. “Where’s the little one?” he asked Tsaeb.

Tsaeb sneered. “You got a thing for that brat or something?”

Taurus reached out his massive hand and picked Tsaeb up by the waist with ease. He walked closer to the edge of the green cliff and dangled Tsaeb over the side. No words were needed. Taurus had made his point clear.

“Alright!” said Tsaeb, “I’m sorry!”

Taurus gently tossed him back on the ground.

“Wait, what is that?” I said, not interested in their disagreement. “Out there.”

I pointed toward a clear difference in the landscape. An enormous section had been carved right through the fantastical greenery, beginning a mile from the edge of the river and stretching so far that it had no visible end. It was barren and yellow like grass that the rain refused a thousand times over.

“Doesn’t it look familiar?” said Tsaeb.

Everything clicked right then. I knew exactly what that place was and I knew the answer to Paschar’s riddle.

“The Field of Yesterday,” I said looking out at it as though the only thing that existed. “Tsaeb, that’s where things began.”

“Well, no shit, Sherlock.”

“No,” I turned around abruptly, “you asked what the Angel said and that’s the answer to both questions. The Center of Eden is somewhere in the Field of Yesterday.”

So many things were coming back to me now. I could hear the creature in the Forest of the Cursed, her sweet words in my head:
‘
Many years ago, my kin and I once lived in that field when it was beautiful, full of flowers and trees, even wonderful streams of water. But then something happened, something dark, evil. That darkness consumed us, everything that once lived there, and we were cursed by its evil.’

I couldn’t imagine how we were going to get through the field without a carriage, much less find the Center of Eden somewhere hidden in its
deadly vastness. Already I felt defeated. I could feel the last few grains of sand slipping through the hourglass.

And then I could feel that I was dying....

“Norman, what is it?” said Taurus, taking me by the elbow.

I had not noticed that I almost lost consciousness for a moment. I stumbled into Taurus’ hand, shaking my mind to remember what had happened and to recall who these two strange beings were.

“You alright?” Taurus leaned over to see my eyes, studying me.

“Oh great,” grunted Tsaeb, “this close and he’s starting to lose it. I bet he’s dead before we make it to the Center.”

“Hush,” Taurus demanded. He sat down on the grass and helped me to sit as well. “Maybe you need to rest for a bit.”

I looked awkwardly at the giant with great curved horns and for a moment did not recognize him.

“What’s happening to me?”

“You’re getting ready to kick the bucket,” Tsaeb answered.

I stiffened. “Oh no...no, I’m not ready!”

“Obviously,” said Tsaeb, “and I don’t want to be stuck waiting around another few hundred years, here and there, in alleys, public restrooms and other stinking dumps just so that the next idiot can get my hopes up and fail, too.”

Tsaeb took a hold of my elbow this time and tried to bring me back to my feet, roughly. “Let’s go,” he said, “there’s a shortcut to the Field not far from here. I left Sophia and Diana on the trail. We can meet up with them on the way.”

“Wait, I think he needs to rest,” Taurus objected. “Look at him, he’s disoriented.”

“This can’t wait,” said Tsaeb, still holding onto my arm.

Before Taurus could say anything else, I stopped them both and carefully stood. “Tsaeb’s right. I didn’t come all this way and go through all this crap to fail because I ran out of time.”