Incarnation | Wandering Stars Volume One

Chapter 15

FAR NORTH OF HARAGDEH

Enoch leaned against a tree, breathing heavily after cresting a hill. It was now late in the afternoon, but the shade of the forest kept the air cool. As his heart slowed to a comfortable pace, he began to look around him and take in the view. The ridge on which he stood looked to be the southernmost of a chain of peaks that grew in height as they extended to the north. Each peak protruded from the low-lying mist like islands from water.

After leaving Haragdeh, the Fields of Slaughter as he would remember them, Enoch reverted to the habit that had been formed during his long journey from Sedekiyr. He awoke, gathered food, ate, and looked for shelter. Every day, he asked the Holy One for guidance and listened carefully. And day after day, he received some sign or message that confirmed his purpose—to find the Myndarym. But direction continued to be a source of confusion.

Weeks later, he reached a narrow strip of land between two bodies of water. After crossing this, he spent the next week and a half exploring a parcel of land that was surrounded by water and attached to the mainland on three sides by land bridges. This place, he named Sahveyim. After crossing the western land bridge, Enoch wandered along the shore of what he called the Great Waters, for they seemed to have no end. Eventually leaving the shore, he continued north as it passed from sight into the east. Gradually, the flat terrain began to steepen until he reached the chain of mountain peaks where he now stood.

Throughout his journey, with plenty of time to meditate on the events he witnessed at Mudena Del-Edha, Enoch realized that Semjaza and his soldiers were not Myndarym. They never changed their forms. They moved and even spoke with more confidence. Perhaps pride or arrogance. But they seemed altogether graceless and inelegant compared to the Myndarym. Enoch could still hear the complexity of Ananel's voice and see the way he moved across the land. He was agile even when not in his animal form.

If Enoch's message was only for the Myndarym, then the Holy One would deal separately with Semjaza. This realization lifted a weight from Enoch's shoulders and focused his thoughts once again on the ones who shape creation. Though the Myndarym weren't part of Semjaza's open defiance, they still held themselves partially responsible for what happened to the Speaker and his escorts.

Wait. That's not true. They don't hold themselves responsible at all. They believe that the armies of Heaven will hold them responsible. And that is not repentance. That's fear of judgment.

 

Now Enoch saw the challenge in his mission. These magnificent creatures were still in defiance, but theirs was different from Semjaza's. Theirs was inward. The kind that causes them to lie to themselves.

Denial!

This kind of defiance was far more difficult to correct. Enoch was sure of this, for it was the same problem that he'd been battling among his own tribe for years. The Shayeth were a stubborn people who had lost their knowledge of the Holy One. After years of concerning themselves with only what they could see and touch and taste, their willful ignorance of the unseen had become their way of life. Now Enoch realized why he had been chosen to speak to the Myndarym.

Holy One. Your thoughts are high above mine. After all this time, I finally see a glimpse of what You have been preparing me for. And may You also use this task to teach me something that I can carry back to my people. Show me how to open their stubborn hearts.