City of Night

Garden of Eden

GARDEN OF EDEN 

The rolling hills morphed into a sea of flesh, massed together in curiosity. I surged forwards only to be pitched back again, grabbing the arm of a woman to my left in order to avoid hurting the people who had appeared behind me. 

'What's going on?' I said. 

She shrugged her shoulders. Her long yellow hair tickled my hip. 'A banishment, I think.' 

The woman caught my blank expression. 'I know, I've never seen one either.' 

The crowd tipped forwards again, and her voice was lost to me. Her long fingers clutched around my wrist as I went, trying to pull me back, but a thousand bodies pressed me out of her grip. 

'A banishment?' I continued, turning to a man on my right. 

'Yes,' he said, pulling me against him so we didn't become separated. He wound his long hair around the back of my head, encasing the two of us in a world of brown and pink.  

'Someone has committed a great sin, and is to be placed outside the garden without protection.' 

'Outside!' I said, horrified, and he nodded. 'But what was their sin?' 

'I don't know, and I don't want to.' 

I nodded my agreement. 'You're right. I don't want to know either.' 

He smiled and released me back amongst the people. Bit by bit I endeavoured to move forwards. My bare feet slid on the dew of the grass; but with a final, burning push I found myself projected into the middle of a cleared path between two lines of people. A crowd milled behind each line, wanting a glimpse of whatever was to happen on the path.  

An orange haired woman at the front of the opposing crowd waved me over. 

'There's space here!' she cried. I took her hand gratefully, and she pulled me into her line. 'I'm Ursula.' 

'Thank you, Ursula. I'm Lilian,' I said, turning to face the opposite line.  

The wiggles of movement and the swelling behind my back told me that the crowds still hadn't settled down. 

Loud caws split the air as three giant, winged creatures dipped along the cleared path. Air flicked off the tips of their feathers, ruffling the grass and drying the dew from my ankles. 

'Oh!' 

Ursula gave a quiet huff and fell onto her knees as the people behind her pushed forwards. I leaned down to help her up. 

'Hey, tell them to keep still back there! Something's coming down the path!' shouted a bearded fellow opposite.  

His message spread in ripples throughout both crowds, and eventually the movement behind us died down. As soon as this happened, more noises echoed down the path. A few people, myself included, bent down to hear the sound better. 

The noise was less organic than the squawks of the winged animals--more like two dry objects scraping along one another. I stood on my tip toes, as high as I could go without hurting my feet, to see what was coming down the path. 

It was just a dark shape, rattling towards us at high speeds.  

'It's carrier is cut from the trees!' I heard a faint voice cry from the line stretching right. 

'What?' I shouted back, uncomprehending, but a louder ripple was spreading amongst us. 

Orange haired Ursula grabbed me.  

'Turn, turn, we have to turn,' she told me. She didn't let go of my hand, but I was glad. The rattling sounds made me nervous when I couldn't see what was coming.