Noah (28 page)

“And that birthright is now passed to you, our grandchildren. This will be
your
work. Your responsibility.”

The snakeskin that was wrapped around his arm,
still glowing, still writhing sinuously, seemed to mimic Noah’s actions, flickering out to touch the forehead of first one twin, and then the other.

Noah looked around at his family, their faces glowing with firelight, and then he looked up into the heavens.

His voice became stronger, richer, more confident. He returned his gaze to them.

“And so I say to you… Be fruitful. And multiply. And replenish the world.”

Ila suddenly stiffened.

She had seen something. Something up in the sky.

Following her gaze, Noah looked up again.

They all looked up.

There was a golden shimmer. A light flowing down like sand from the heavens.

The light formed an arc—and then suddenly the arc was blazing with color. Red and yellow and green and purple. Bands of brilliant color. Each laid above the other.

Noah gasped.

“What is it?” he whispered.

Ila’s eyes shone. Her face was radiant.

“It is His blessing.”

THE END

M
ark Morris has written tie-in novels for
Hellboy, Spartacus, Doctor Who
and
Torchwood
, and novelizations for
Vampire Circus
and the game
Dead Island
. He has published 10 critically acclaimed novels, and in 2007 he won the British Fantasy Award for his anthology
Cinema Macabre
. In 2014, Titan Books will publish
The Obsidian Heart
, the first novel in Morris’s new dark fantasy trilogy.

www.markmorriswriter.com