One Great Year (58 page)

Elijah's lips moved, but his words could not be heard. He had grown too weak from his injury and the room too loud.

“I choose the Light,” he had said.

With Quinn protectively overtop of her, Eden shifted one of her bloody hands from the wound of her son and placed it on the Tablet, which was pressed to his chest. The beast struck, using its razor-sharp tail like a spear, and pierced Quinn's back, pushing easily through him and then through Eden and Elijah. Still sandwiched against the Emerald Tablet, the three became One. One energy. One destiny. And like the strands of a whip, their impact was more formidable and fierce when combined. The trinity of their souls joined and exploded, splintered by the powerful resonation into the Universe.

Marcus and Theron's spirits lifted through the layers of the King's Chamber, their bodies left behind, and they soared freely. Blinding green light burst from the coffer. Zahn was thrown back as the Pyramid was finally fully ignited by the Emerald Tablet, magnifying the consciousness of all of the world's people into the Universe beyond.

A shift in the world's consciousness had occurred—as it had many times before and as it would many times to come. Around the world it was felt, seen, and heard.

Back at the bunker in Chile, at that very same moment, with his arms shielding his eyes from the brilliance around him, the commander had shouted, “Open fire! Open fire! Take them down!”

The shouts had not affected the circle of Emissaries in the bunker. The fear and panic of their captors had done nothing to dispel their unified hope and compassion.

The guards had rushed in as ordered. Some had simply dropped their guns and fallen to their knees—they had been helpless, mesmerized by the sparkling orbs of light that were reflected around the space. Those who had been unmoved and unable to see the orbs had blasted round after round of bone-splitting ammunition.

Ravaged by gunfire, one by one the Emissaries' souls had been released and the last ties to their bodies had been severed. The Emissaries had felt no pain as their human shells collapsed, useless and abandoned, in bloody ruin, to the floor.

The bodies were now obscured by the brilliant celestial bloom that filled the room. Their Oneness, now untethered, resembled a starburst. It was like a newborn child pushing forth in a fit of blinding, glorious color and emotion. The beauty, the vision, was nothing compared to the
feeling
! Every molecule resonated with overwhelming, perfect, and unconditional love.

Their Oneness, the Unity Grid, lifted out of the bunker, passing through the copper ceiling. The Emissaries were free of their prison. Floating and bursting into the sky, their bubble expanded and grew enormous. It lifted into the heavens. Their rainbow bridge became visible around the world, connecting with similar blooms that had been simultaneously unleashed in the moment that the Emerald Tablet had revived the Great Pyramid of Giza.

The Emerald Tablet connected the energy of the world's people and echoed their compassion and love. The miracle that was occurring was obvious, and around the planet people watched in awe. The waters, the mountains, the stones, and the sacred Earth glowed, trembled, and vibrated. The Grid appeared in the sky like an office tower, with multicolored lights turning on—three, five, eight, thirteen windows at a time—as the web became visible and dazzling in the sky.

The loving and compassionate people cried out with joy and answered, raising their hands and their hearts to the sky. It mattered not whether they had or had not been marked. The vaccinations had been no more than a scheme by Grey Elder to divide people and to incite fear among them. It mattered only what was in their hearts. All fear, doubt, and human need were forgotten. The Source was revealed to all, if they would only choose to see it. Many gave themselves up to the Oneness and felt their human bonds release. Winds howled and trumpeted in celebration. Millions of souls traveled upward, regardless of their religion or color. They were sucked like jewels through the hose of a vacuum.

To those left behind, staring in awe and terror, it looked like a million lightning strikes punishing the Earth, and fire erupted where each strike had hit. They were stunned and blinded by the brilliance and implication of it. Innumerable electric branches touched the planet and were gone, sweeping up the people who had renounced the Darkness and who had sought virtue, leaving fire in their stead. There were blank spaces and burning earth where people had stood seconds before.

Those who remained on the Earth didn't understand. Their consciousness was not able to comprehend anything but the destruction and the lightning that continued to pummel the planet. Across the globe, those lingering gawked in disbelief and fear. They did not recognize the all consuming
feeling
of love that was pouring forth, so they were frightened. They understood only the destruction and chaos around them. It was what they had expected. It was what their consciousness was ready to accept.

This was the moment, the last possibility of redemption. The people left behind had one last chance to accept the Universal Truth of the Grid—to choose to see, or to turn away and deny it. Those who were not ready, and the dark souls, did not see.

The Emerald Tablet had read the collective consciousness of humanity—despite Grey Elder's best efforts, there was enough goodness, and the Great Pyramid had exploded with light and color. The prism had projected a brilliant rainbow far into the Universe. A higher dimension had opened up as the spiritual world above had become connected by a rainbow bridge to the material world below.

Marcus and Theron had left their ruined bodies and had come together in a burst of blinding light and color as they ascended to the new world above the old. Free of their human shells, they flew, twisting and blending with one another, their energies uniting in their new form. The love! The love that had never left them, even as they were separated and torn apart, was realized once more. It was powerful and exhilarating, and their energies connected in rapture.

She looked like a shimmering ghost of herself as she had been in Atitala, the same tiny green eyes and freckled nose, with translucent auburn hair flowing behind her. Marcus shimmered, muscular and brown, his dark curls shining. The soulmates embraced in a cosmic kiss surrounded by shimmering flecks of light and shining orbs, as the stars around them joined in celebration. At last reunited, their joy was immeasurable.

They joined the Grid above and were deposited in the higher world. The dimension hovered magically above the lower and was lush and full of life. The glorious population vibrated with song as they greeted one another.

“I promised I'd never leave you,” Marcus said to Theron.

“Nor I you,” Theron replied lovingly.

Nearby the energy of Amnut pulsed familiarly through the assemblage. Amnut had ascended, and Marcus and Theron felt him and were glad.
But where is Helghul?
Marcus and Theron wondered.
Where is Helghul? Where is Grey Elder?

The dark beast had been banished back to the dimension below, rejected by its host. It was resealed into a dark chasm until a time when it would be called upon again by those wishing to harness its power.

On Earth, there were so many people missing. The world continued on without them. For those left behind, there was no explanation or rationalization. Those remaining mourned and struggled to go on as normal, but so much of the goodness was gone. It was what their collective consciousness had manifested for them, and they suffered and learned from it.

In the heavens above hovered the Higher Earth, the home to those who had ascended. It was an elevated, parallel dimension. The Great Year continued its eternal cycle, above as it was below, and they were now free to learn greater lessons.

White Elder made her way through the Emissaries, and Theron rushed into her waiting embrace. Her hands, the hands Theron had known so well as a child, lovingly stroked her hair.

“I have been waiting for you. I am so pleased,” her mother whispered in her ear. Theron was happy to once again be in her arms.

“I am so grateful that I didn't always have the memory to miss you as I know I would have!” Theron said.

Marcus reflected on his own years of longing.

“I am always with you,” White Elder assured and, still holding her daughter, she turned to Marcus. “Even through the harshest circumstances, you have endured and have continued learning. We were right to choose you.”

An Emissary by mistake? No, an Emissary by choice
, Marcus thought.

“I never doubted you. If only you could see yourself through my eyes,” Theron added, smiling, and reaching out to him.

“An interesting prospect Theron, and now a choice must again be made. This Great Year continues. Will you return as Emissaries to the world below and continue to guide humanity to a new Golden Age?” White Elder asked.

All around them Emissaries were being reunited with their loved ones, their soul groups reconnecting. Marcus and Theron looked into one another's eyes and saw love and understanding. They both knew what they would do, and together, they made their choice.