53. The Legend of Earth
Dawn had barely cut its way through the window in Edward's room when he
awoke the next morning. He got up slowly and moved over to the curtains, pushed
them apart and stared into the lush courtyard of Paradis Perdu. Golden-brown
leaves abandoned by their tall wooden hosts adorned the stone pathways snaking through
the garden. The rectangular bushes lining the paths had been pruned to perfection,
and in the center sat a stone fountain. On its edge, facing inward, stood a gleaming
statue of a one-winged angel with cupped hands pointing upward. Two small streams
of water trickled downward from the corners of its eyes, and runic symbols
wound around its androgynous body. Edward watched as the water fell into a raised
saucer, spilling over the sides into the dark basin beneath.
He closed the curtains abruptly, shutting out everything except the soft
chirping of birds in the distance. Edward moved over to an oak wardrobe and swung
its heavy doors open, revealing a plethora of multicolored clothes that were all
free for the taking. He decided on a conservative brown jacket and a white
collared shirt with dark maroon pants. The material felt comfortable, although
the clothes themselves looked a bit too fancy for his tastes. He noticed that
there was an optional cape attachment for the jacket, but was less than eager to
try it on.
The hallway outside Edward's room was short, and eventually led him
into a dining room. At the end of a long cedar table sat Nord Phileas, poking at
the remainder of an omelet. Frank was not far from the doctor, and had just begun
to dig into his breakfast. A multitude of candles decorated the table, some of
them lit, others burned right down to the wick. Ornate rugs and wall-hangings
filled the rest of the chamber, topped off with a vault-shaped fireplace directly
behind the doctor. Despite its size, the space felt quite cozy.
"Good morning!" Phileas spotted Edward and waved him over to
the table. "Nice of you to join us for breakfast, Edward. I was afraid you’d
perished in that bed."
"What?" he asked, a bit confused as he stumbled across the
floor.
"A joke, Mr. Darcouver, just a joke!" The doctor laughed as
Edward slowly lowered himself into a thick oak chair. "It seems that
Earthlings don't value humor the same way us Belmarcians do, eh?"
"Well, hmm..." Edward attempted to join in with the doctor's
merry-making. "Maybe your joke just wasn’t very funny."
"Blasphemy!" Phileas shouted in mock anger. "Such a rude
Earthling!"
Edward forced a smile, then helped himself to a slice of a cured red
meat. As he filled his plate, he crossed eyes with Frank, who still seemed a
bit drowsy. Edward felt rather lethargic himself, so he simply gave his friend a
weak glance and began to eat.
"I'm sure you both have many questions to ask me," Phileas
said. "So please, begin. I do not want to leave you in the dark any longer
about the ways of the universe. I'll save my own questions for afterwards, so
please, please – indulge yourselves."
"Well..." Edward started, as he watched Frank start to eat.
"Unless Frank has any pressing questions, I'd like to hear more about that
psynergy stuff."
"Ah, yes, psynergy." Nord nodded his head happily. "A
fine topic with which to begin."
"What is it, exactly?" Edward asked. "You touched on it
earlier. Is it like our life force? Or...something more than that?'
"It is that and so much more," Nord began. "Mind you, we
spell the word with a 'p' here. The normal synergy, without the 'p,' is simply
defined as the combination of two or more forces working diligently together to
accomplish a task. Our psynergy is the mind and body working together through
psychic and physical means in order to create material energy. Psynergy exists
within all of us, no matter size, shape, or ethnicity. Some use it to control
the elements, such as water and wind, while others can use it to hurt and heal.
Furthermore, everyone has a unique ability they can unlock through soul-searching
and extensive training. The possibilities are endless."
"If I may ask, Dr. Phileas," Edward said, "what is your ability?"
"How kind of you to ask!" Nord smiled. "If there is one
thing I love, it’s talking about myself – but I will attempt to be brief and to
the point. I can connect my psynergy to other human bodies and their functions.
It helps me out a lot, considering my trade. The funny part is, I had decided
to become a doctor long before my power actually developed. In a way, one could
even surmise that my long and laborious hours of medical study influenced my powers
somehow."
Edward shrunk back. "That sounds frightening. Could you kill someone
if you wanted to?"
"My level of control varies based on my subject's mental state and
willingness," Phileas explained. "It'd be impossible for me to force
myself on someone. And besides, my powers aren't combat-oriented in the least. I
can't just turn someone's body functions off at the drop of a hat."
"But there must be some real monsters out there, right?"
Edward asked. "Just how far do these psynergy powers go?"
"Oh, there are some very frightening individuals out there,
indeed." Phileas nodded. "There are some assassins out there that can
knock down buildings simply by flexing their psynergy auras."
"I wonder..." Frank murmured, looking down. "I wonder if
we've met some people like that before."
"Hm?" Dr. Phileas leaned closer. "What exactly do you mean?"
Frank looked up. "Ed, you know what I'm talking about, don't you?"
"It's impossible." Phileas shook his head. "From what I’ve
learned, the psynergy vacuum that exists on earth is enough to knock a low-level
psynergy user unconscious. Staying on Earth for an extended period of time
would be nearly impossible. It'd take a true genius – a virtual superman – to
withstand the vacuum for that long, let alone use their own abilities!"
"That's what I'm afraid of." Frank turned to the doctor.
"Someone was chasing me, and his car got caught up in an explosion. I
watched his car burn with my own eyes. He was right in the middle of it, he should
have been incinerated. And yet, the very next day, there he was..."
"Amazing." Phileas listened to Frank's words intently.
"It seems as if there is more to this than meets the eye. And yet now it
makes perfect sense as to how both of you were able to transcend the barrier
between our worlds. But who could have done it?"
"Before we start speculating, maybe we should learn more about
these worlds," Edward said, trying to calm down Frank. "How does it all
work?"
"Yes, I understand," Phileas said. "I will educate you
as best I can, and that way, hopefully we can work together to cast some light
on these strange occurrences. It will be a long story, though, so I must make
sure you are both ready to listen to it."
Edward and Frank nodded attentively.
"I want you to imagine a big book...millions of pages long, sitting
on a table. This book represents our world. Each individual page of the book has
its own unique content. All pages are part of the same book, so they resemble each
other, but no two pages are the same. That’s our universe. Just like the pages
of that book, our world, or this planet that we inhabit, sits at a specific
point in the universe. But it has many layers.
"Let me take the analogy even further. A book's overall purpose cannot
be discerned unless one either reads the entire thing or skips to the end of
the book. No matter which of the two options you choose, the last page, or the
final dimension, is still the 'end.' Reading to the end of the book represents
traveling through every dimension until you find the final one – a tall order for
anyone. The other option, skipping to the end, represents finding that gate
that leads to the Space-Time Continuum, the mainframe of the universe.
"The End of the World – a pet name given to it by many scientists
who use this similar analogy – has shown up numerous times in legends and other
myths in all sorts of civilizations throughout the universe. This leads us to
believe that there must have been a moment when it opened once before in the
past. Eventually, this curiosity evolved into a race to find the Space-Time
Continuum and unlock the secrets of the universe.
"The Church of Holy Truths claims to possess an ancient text that speaks
of one man and his twelve followers, and how they entered the Space-Time
Continuum. According to the legend, the man sacrificed his life to open the gate.
His disciples prayed to a God to ensure his safety, and due to their efforts,
he came back to life.
"You see, he had been a holy man all his life, and tried to spread
the news about a righteous, single God that reigned over the world and loved
everyone. His followers believed him to be the Son of this God. As if to prove
this, he performed miraculous feats on a variety of people. I think it's safe
to say he had a potent grasp over his psynergy. When this man sacrificed
himself, the End of the World opened up, and everyone could see inside. They
could hear the voice of God and realized what they had done. The barriers between
dimensions were shattered, and rifts began opening all throughout the universe.
It was collapsing.
"Something had to be done to restore balance to the universe, so the
twelve disciples decided to seal up the Space-Time Continuum once and for all. Not
much is known about how they did it, but it’s said that twelve vessels fashioned
as clocks are what currently support the seal. The legend goes further to say that
someday, God will bear another child – a daughter this time – who will be able
to herald in the end of the world if she wishes it to come."
Phileas finished his tale with a satisfied look on his face, returning
the table to silence. Frank and Edward sat on the edge of their seats, mouths
agape.
After a lengthy lull, Edward spoke. "Dr. Phileas, we've heard that
story before."
Dr. Phileas raised an eyebrow, but he didn't look completely surprised.
"Continue."
Religion had been the furthest thing from Edward's mind ten minutes
ago, and now it had zoomed up and smacked him in the face. He took a deep breath,
then attempted to explain.
"In our world, there was a man named Jesus Christ. All of his disciples
had names, too. The religion known as Christianity believes that he was truly
was the Son of God, and that when he died, he took the blame for the sins of the
entire human race on his shoulders so that the gates of Heaven could open to us
when we die."
The doctor listened to Edward's explanation intently, looked at Frank
for confirmation, then sat back in his chair and thought for a moment.
"Fascinating...so he exists in your culture as well. I've never
heard the name Jesus Christ before, but do you see? Even in your isolated dimension,
the legend exists. That man's death led to the opening of some type of gate, no
matter what you want to call it. In your story, though, you say he bore the
sins of mankind. As intriguing as it is, I’ve never heard anything about that
part. Could you elaborate?"
Edward nodded. "Apparently, the human race was so sinful that no
one's soul was worthy of entering Heaven, God's realm, when they died. God
realized this, and sacrificed his son so that we would be forgiven for all eternity.
It depends on what sect of Christianity, though. Some people believe you can't
get to Heaven if you do exceptionally bad things, while other people believe that
as long as you trust in God and do your best, you'll be admitted."
"And you two, you believe in this...Christianity?" Dr. Phileas
asked, watching as Edward and Frank nodded their heads. "So it's a dominant
religion where you live?"
"Oh, it's a very widespread religion," Edward replied.
"But many other religions exist beside it."
"I see..." Phileas pondered. "I have one more question before
moving on, my friends. Do you know how long ago your Jesus Christ was crucified?"
"Two thousand years ago," Edward and Frank spoke in perfect
unison.
"The same as the legend...it's uncanny. Come now," Phileas
stood up from his chair excitedly and motioned for the two to follow. "We
have much to speak of, and not enough time. In my studies, I've uncovered many
artifacts from different dimensions that I believe have much to do with the legend
of the Son of God and the Space-Time Continuum. Hopefully, you can shine some
light on them."
"We'll do what we can..." Edward stammered, then turned to
his friend. "Are you still Christian, Frank?"
"Well..." Frank wiped sweat from his brow. "Yeah, I used
to be."
"That makes two of us," Edward sighed, as the two followed
the doctor deeper into his estate.
*
By all appearances, a middle-aged man with a fuzzy ginger beard
sauntered down the main commercial district of Enmetropolis. A large top hat masked
his head, and his body was encased in a deep maroon cloak. Madeleine felt that
as long as her guise could carry her to the edge of the city, she would be
alright.
The crowd began to thin out ahead of her, and she turned into a nearby alley
to stop and make sure she was going in the right direction. She slid her hand into
the inner pocket of her suit jacket and pulled out a small smart device that
had a detailed map of the city.
As she studied the diagram, she failed to notice a tall, dark shadow drop
into the alley behind her. It wasn't until the figure had completely blocked
out all of the light in the passageway that Madeleine realized she wasn't alone.
She swerved around suddenly, keeping a stern expression on the face of the man who
masked her.
"What do you–" she began, but was stifled immediately.
Standing mere inches from her, completely suppressing the afternoon sunlight,
was none other than Averyl. The twin black orbs in his eyes emitted an eerie
purple glow.
His lips parted, revealing sharp white teeth. "Madeleine, I presume?"
Madeleine's heart nearly flew out of her disguise’s throat. "How...how
did you know?"
"Your aura, of course..." Averyl chuckled, piercing the girl
with his eyes.
"But I masked it..."
"Yes, you did..." Averyl smirked. "But it only took me a
few moments to find your frequency. Besides, I knew fun things would happen
either way if I approached someone like that, whether it was you or not."
"Creep," the man's lips spat. "What do you want?"
Averyl laughed. "Nothing in particular. I just enjoy traveling."
"You won't tell them, will you?" Madeleine begged.
"Oh." Averyl frowned. "But that's so tempting. It'll
involve me utilizing a painstaking amount of self-control..."
"Please!" the man shouted. "I'll do anything!"
"Anything?" Averyl's eyes lit up, and he bent over,
dropping his pale face to McCarthy's level. "In that case, listen carefully."
Averyl bent closer to Madeleine and began whispering in a very low
voice. She could feel his breath on McCarthy's cheek, and it stung as it spilled
into her ear. He smelled of blood.
"What?" Madeleine drew her head back in shock. "Why
would you want me to do that? It just seems like it'll cause more trouble."
Averyl licked his lips. "Exactly."
Next: Horror Business
