Chronicle of Ages (26 page)

Although Maelgwn had thought to explore his twentieth century and Atlantean incarnations, it had not occurred to him to investigate his past life as Durak.

Open your inner eye,
another of his selves, who was tall, lean and attired in long white robes, advised.
And you might, for example, learn that the credit for the creation of the chariot is ours.

I knew it,
Maelgwn conceded.

Only because we blinded you with hints,
Maelgwn's tall counterpart said.
Your apathy is unacceptable.

Apathy!
With all that the universe had put him
through since stealing him from his home and loved ones, it dared accuse him of being apathetic?

Yes, we accuse you!

Maelgwn stood and turned to confront the most primordial-looking incarnation of all his Homo sapiens selves.
In a mental, spiritual and physical sense you must find wholeness within yourself, Maelgwn. That is what the current plight of the Chosen is all about.
He frowned and smiled at once as he posed the suggestion:
Two strong pillars, side by side, does a strong basis for a doorway make.

Maelgwn considered the saying to be rather beautiful, knowing the entity referred to the doorway to the next level of consciousness, and he nodded to concede he could relate to what he was being told. Still, Maelgwn failed to see where their advice was leading.

The Nefilim evolved along a path completely distinct from humanity, and were not meant to reside in the physical plane of existence for as long as they have. By continuing to lust after the desires of physical existence, the Nefilim who remain in the Middle Kingdoms are exceeding their Logos' threshold for endurance. With physical existence came mental, emotional and physical duress, the pleasure of reproduction and its associated desires, as well as Nefilim offspring that proved beyond their forefather's control. Much damage has been done to and by the soul-minds of the Nefilim breed who ventured into a physical state to aid with the evolution of the human breeds; damage that has to be repaired on a physical level.

The Chosen's karmic debt to the Nefilim?
Maelgwn expressed his belief.

His primitive self nodded in response
. A Karmic deal
was struck between the Nefilim Logos, Anu, and the members of the allied Logi systems, including your own Apsu. For if Anu's Nefilim race were to brave the physical realms to contribute to the development of the human and superhuman breeds of the Allied Systems, then the Nefilim had to be compensated for the hardships and confusion they would ultimately endure there … lacking emotional understanding as they did. They did not evolve on the physical plane as we did, but on the mental or third plane of existence. However, the know-how and vision of their kind made the Nefilim the perfect candidates for the job. And for a long time they lived up to the expectation of the Allied Logoi. But, as was inevitable, those Nefilim who decided to stick it out in the physical plane for as long as possible, instead of ascending back towards their Logos once their work in the Middle Kingdoms was complete, lost the plot completely.

Enter the Chosen Ones,
Maelgwn put forward.

It was decided that the dormant immortal gene in those Homo sapiens set apart as Chosen would be activated … so that, equal in capability and with superior emotional understanding, the Chosen Ones could guide their fallen carers back to their soul source. It is the destiny of the Chosen to challenge the Nefilim's interstellar rule on this plane of existence, and you, Dragon, are destined to prepare the way for that rebellion.

Maelgwn was overwhelmed a moment, as the directive was clearly seditious.
You seem very knowledgeable about the Chosen Ones?

I was the personal assistant to the Nefilim Master, prophet and scientist known as Enki … or Bedi, as your tribe knew him,
he explained
. Homo sapiens were his
brainchild, but our perfection was not reached overnight. I was the first Homo sapiens to be born in the likeness of the Gods in that I was free of body hair when I was born. My birthplace was the genetic labs of Ninharsag, or Keridwen, as you know her. The Lord Enki was so pleased with the child that had been born of his genes that he adopted me as a son. Adama, he called me, meaning the model man of Ninharsag.

As in the Adam from Christian religious texts, who ate of the forbidden fruit?
With this announcement, Maelgwn sank into his seat, too stunned for words.

All of our species who were created before me were but slaves to the Nefilim and laborers in the fields of Eden. These souls had a certain amount of intelligence and cleverness to be of good service to their Lords, but I showed extraordinary skills of comprehension and Enki, as a scientist, couldn't help but develop these. His brother, Enlil, took the view that Homo sapiens were not yet ready to evolve to the level of learning that Enki was subjecting me to, and maintained that my education would only come to grief. But, unbeknownst to Enlil, Enki was also instructing me in a secret doctrine that had been revealed to him by his Logos, Anu. This doctrine related to the nature of the cosmos and advised of the true role of the Nefilim as our minders not our Masters. Once I had obtained this knowledge, the plight of my fellow Homo sapiens became unacceptable, and I set about tutoring those of my kind, born after me, about our true destiny. My first prize pupil being a maidservant of my father's house whom I had become rather fond of.

Eve,
Maelgwn assumed.

Adama nodded.
The soul you now know as —

Tory,
Maelgwn concluded surely.

Together we began a revolution that got many of our kind booted out of Eden, into the harsh wilderness. Still, we did not perish as expected, but flourished and prospered.

Maelgwn's head was spinning and he felt as if he might throw up.

We have led humankind to greatness before, Dragon, and now you must do it again … only this time you are fully equipped to finish the job.

But I am a mere novice in the interstellar world … I wouldn't know where to start.
Maelgwn's first reaction was to reject the responsibility.

You will know, and you will have aid.
Adama assured.
There is a short period of darkness ahead of you, but take heart, for unseen forces will be at work with you. What seems to you unfortunate shall, in the end, be to our favour. From injustice, justice will be done. Endure and overcome, Dragon, then you shall find the paradise you seek.

In a flash of etheric light Maelgwn found himself kneeling on the rooftop. His world had stabilised, and up ahead the wormhole parted to reveal the darkened, star-sprinkled depths of deep space.

 

In the central control chamber above his lab Gibal hovered about on his throne, which psychokinetically connected him with all the command systems of the massive ship.

Ah, Dragon, there you are,
the Lord commented without looking at Maelgwn as he entered.
You weren't too badly affected by our passage, I trust.

‘No, no,' Maelgwn commented casually. ‘It was
rather enlightening really.'

Very good.
The Lord lowered his control seat to the ground and disembarked.
I am tracking the
Aten
at present, but as it will be some time before we catch up, I am going to my quarters to refresh myself before our arrival.

Before he went, Gibal showed Maelgwn the device to alter Aquilla's memory. The Lord was about to instruct the Dragon on the operational procedure, when Maelgwn realised that he was already familiar with the memory modification function of the apparatus.

Excellent. My brother has prepared you well,
Gibal appeared pleased to concede, for the mental effort of moving Mazua had obviously exhausted him and he needed to rest and regenerate.
I have set Aquilla's stasis to end presently, but I have left you ample time to make your way to her chamber before she awakens. I shall revive the remaining city occupants upon your instruction.

Maelgwn nodded in appreciation, and although he hated to detain the Lord from his much needed rest, he had to inquire. ‘Before you go, could you tell me how Aquilla's husband died?'

The Lord frowned, concerned as to why the Dragon should be interested in Aquilla's private affairs.

‘I believe it may have some bearing on this case,' Maelgwn clarified his reasons for asking.

I don't see how … Durak died shortly after Aquilla and I became associated, many years ago now.
Gibal raised both brows — although none of the Nefilim had any facial hair that defined the exact line of their eyebrows.
However, I believe he died when an underwater archaeological site collapsed … he was an archaeologist,
you see.

‘And they found his body?' Maelgwn queried him further.

A mountain collapsed on the man, Dragon, so there was precious little point.

‘Are you aware of what Durak's archaeological interest in the site was?' Maelgwn questioned as an afterthought.

I have no idea.
Gibal tired of the subject.
Why don't you ask Aquilla?

‘I shall,' Maelgwn granted, thankful for his patience.

 

Maelgwn accompanied Gibal to the outer security doors of the lab, where they parted ways. The Lord went to his rest and Maelgwn to Aquilla.

The chamber door departed in time for Maelgwn to observe the charichalum tube open and expose the sleeping beauty it harboured within.

The sight of Aquilla captivated Maelgwn as he waited for her to emerge from her slumber. He thought it interesting that his higher self had not warned him away from this woman as everybody else had. Or had Adama's spiel about finding wholeness within himself been intended to set his mind at rest on the issue? The thing was, his mind was already committed to the fact that any intimate association with her would be deemed unlawful. It was his body and his spirit that craved her and his obsession was beginning to exceed his desire to maintain his good reputation or his loyalty to his Nefilim Lords — at least those Nefilim still residing in the physical plane of existence. What was worse, his
preoccupation with Aquilla was preventing him from fully concentrating on his mission here on Lura. But if Adama's directive, that the Chosen were to challenge the Nefilim's interstellar rule and persuade them to return to the etheric realms, was Maelgwn's true life quest, then should he be adhering to the word of the Nefilim's fallen souls? Deep inside he suspected that he was just looking for an excuse to pursue his desire. If his union with Aquilla was meant to be, then why would his higher self have enlightened him with the knowledge that Durak was still living and breathing? Still, Tory was presently having Maelgwn's child via the relationship she'd had with his twentieth century incarnation. Why then should Maelgwn feel that this situation was any different — because Aquilla was of a different human tribe to himself?

Great Goddess, advise me, for I have never been so confused.
His instinct was so clouded by desire, fear and guilt it was hard to cut through the thoughts that others had impressed on him to perceive his own true feelings on the matter.

As the sleeper began to awaken, Maelgwn ceased to stare and moved to the window in the hope of quelling his desire. There was still some inner force compelling him to abstain, but this instinctual hesitation could have been part of his pre-programming, which was yet another reason why he hesitated to trust his own instincts.

Aquilla's eyes parted and on sighting the Dragon beside the window, she breathed deeply and had a stretch.

‘Did you sleep well?' Maelgwn asked, without
looking to her.

‘Mmm …' she moaned with satisfaction, ‘erotic dreams.'

This comment served to get Maelgwn's attention instantly.

‘Oh, don't worry.' She raised herself to a seated position. ‘They were about you.'

When Maelgwn realised that she'd said ‘were' instead of ‘weren't' as expected, he couldn't contain his smile.

‘I saw that,' she teased, as he quickly suppressed his delight.

As Maelgwn broke into a huge smile again, he wondered why he even bothered trying to deny how he felt, as Aquilla obviously wasn't being fooled. ‘You are making my life impossible,' he confessed.

‘Good.' She climbed from the stasis tube and began to dress. ‘So long as I make an impression.'

He nodded to assure her that she did.

 

Back in the city's central control chamber, Maelgwn fed the information that needed to be wiped from Aquilla's memory into the modification system. Once this was done, he removed the headset recorder and handed it to Aquilla, but she refrained from setting it in place on her head.

‘You didn't cut out any of the warm, fuzzy bits, did you?'

Maelgwn understood that she referred to their kiss. ‘I thought about it,' he admitted, ‘but no, I did not.'

Aquilla bit her lip and appeared to be gathering her
courage. ‘Look, I have to have this out with you now, while I still remember everything. Not that I don't trust you,' she clarified, and took a deep breath, whilst she figured out how to proceed. ‘Our feelings for each other are fairly plain and so I was wondering what it is that is not permitted about us? Is it our racial differences or our life expectancy differences?'

‘A little of both, I'm afraid.' Maelgwn was more than happy to be frank, having wanted to explain his reluctance anyway.

‘Therefore, am I right to assume that the event of offspring is what is forbidden rather than the actual relationship itself?'

When Maelgwn nodded to concede that her statement was true enough, he noticed Aquilla's pale blue skin flush to a deeper shade of blue as she smiled mischievously.