The Descent of the Gods

Captive

Caleb and his companions had requested a guide to bring them the rest of the way to Nod. With the rumors of the Herabites massing for an attack on the Cainites, Caleb did not want to risk not reaching their destination. Seth agreed, but no one from the village was interested in being their guide.
So as they left the village, disappearing into the thick forest down a narrow dirt path, Enoch stood at the edge of the village, staff in hand. Seth stood with him.
"I will lead them to the road as you asked and no further," Enoch insisted.
"You are the seventh generation from Adam, Enoch," Seth said earnestly. "Remember that in six days God labored to make this world. But for the seventh he ceased his work and took joy in the good he had made. I believe it is no mistake that this prophecy comes now, when you can hear it with your own ears."
Enoch hesitated. Seth had clung to his faith for centuries now. Enoch's heart went out for him. But then he remembered his father's torn body.
"I'm sorry," he said, turning down the trail after Caleb. "I can't risk losing any more to Cain."

Enoch led Caleb and his men through the wooded hills towards Nod, using hidden trails that wound through the rough terrain. Initially formed by wildlife roaming the region, the local tribes used them to stay away from the roads in the valleys used by the Cainite soldiers.

They rounded a corner where the trees dropped away down the hillside steeply, leaving a wide view of the land before them. They were near the Euphrates now, and the large rocky island of Nod filled their view. As the men gazed on the city that looked like a mangled carcase of some massive creature that had long since died and rotted away, Enoch felt his chest draw tight. Never had he been so close to the hated place. From this distance, he could see the small figures of people moving around the streets.

"Finally, answers lie within reach," Caleb said. He turned to Enoch.

"Come with us!" Caleb said. Enoch just stared at the city.

"My father needs me," Enoch said. "So that is God's will for me." Caleb looked like he wanted to say more, but then simply nodded and extended his hand to Enoch.

"Thank you for bringing us this far," he said. "Remember, sometimes hope can be found where we least expect it." He signaled to his companions, and they descended the trail, which led down into the valley below.

Enoch watched as they disappeared far below him. As he turned to leave, a glint of light caught his eye from the forests between himself and Nod. He squinted, but couldn't make out what the cause could be. Reluctantly, he started down the trail warily, and keeping his eyes trained far ahead for any gap in the forest that would reveal the source of the flashing light.

All too soon, the answer was revealed. Cainite soldiers, more than he had ever imagined could be contained in Nod, were on the march, practically running along the road - the road leading to his village.

Terrified that he would not arrive to warn his village in time, he scrambled back up the trail and tore down the path, leaping across the mountain trail switchbacks at breakneck speed.

A moment before Enoch burst out of the forest, he heard the first screams of terror emanating from his village. The Cainites had gotten there first.

Enoch ducked behind the shrubbery rimming the village. He could see flames leaping up from some of the huts already while soldiers spread through the village, apprehending everyone in their way, killing those who resisted.
Enoch stayed low, and ran toward his own hut. His father sat outside, blankly staring at the horrors before him. The hut next to theirs was already in flames. With a quick glance around, Enoch ran forward, lifted his father up and carried him into the woods, setting him down in a hollow of an ancient oak.

"There! We'll be safe here, father!" Enoch tried to whisper over his heaving breaths. His heart pounded as adrenalin pounded through him. His father only shook his head.

"What?" Enoch pleaded. Jared's eyes flicked in the direction of Seth's altar outside the village. Enoch followed his gaze with a sinking heart. Through the foliage, he saw Tubal marching up the hill toward an old man kneeling next to the altar in prayer.

"Father, what can I do?" Enoch cried.

"Go!" Jared coughed out. "Do not let them defile our faith!"
"I must protect you!" Enoch begged.

"Go!" Jared said simply. Enoch drew a deep breath, picked up his staff with trembling hands, and stumbled away.

He saw Tubal approaching Seth, sword drawn. Enoch was filled with a terrible rage, and he began to run up the hill, staying behind the cover of the trees. As he ran, the fear faded. All he could think about was cracking the arrogant Cainite's skull wide open with all the force in his being.

Seth opened his eyes to see Tubal standing in front of him, while soldiers stood close by. Tubal raised his sword toward him.

"Now the metal meets the fire," Tubal said. Seth responded by standing to his feet. Tubal pointed at the mark on his shield.
"Bow the knee old man," he said. Seth only looked at him.

"Very well," Tubal said, gripping his sword and swinging it back. Just as the sword began to descend, a stone screamed through the air, knocking the blade out of Tubal's grasp and sending it end over end twenty paces away.

Before Tubal could react, Enoch crashed into him, his momentum enough to knock Tubal off his feet.

"Take care of my father!" Enoch shouted at Seth. Tubal's companions immediately leaped forward to fight, but Enoch had the element of surprise and rage. He knocked the first one flat with a swing of his staff, then parried a premature sword swipe and punched the next attacker in the face with the short end of his weapon.

"Please grandfather!" Enoch shouted again. Seth turned and stumbled away down the hill toward the forest line..

The third attacker then arrived and Enoch had no advantage left. They fought viciously, the Cainite swinging and thrusting with his heavy bronze sword, while Enoch parried and struck back with his staff. The sword cut chunks out of the staff, and after one particularly hard clash, the sword stuck in the staff. Enoch pulled hard, and the jerking motion threw his enemy off balance just long enough for Enoch to land a firm blow to the man's head.

But Tubal returned just then. He was a warrior, tall and powerful, and Enoch desperately tried to parry the blows Tubal rained down on him. A vicious swipe knocked Enoch's staff down the hillside and Tubal then knocked him out with a blow to the head.

On another hillside, within sight of Enoch's village, Herab peered out of the shadows of the forest, watching the raid unfold. A young warrior stood next to him.

"They're defenseless!" The young man said. "Shouldn't we..."

"No!" Herab snapped. "We wait for now. When they begin celebrating their victory, then we attack." The young man nodded, and returned to the depths of the forest. The forest floor was covered with prostrate warriors, waiting.

Enoch woke feeling weightless. Then slammed down. He jerked upright. He was in a Cainite prison wagon, and it was hurtling down the rough forest road, bouncing dangerously high.

"What's going on?" He gasped. A fellow captive just nodded to the barred window. Enoch crawled to the light and looked out.

All around the wagon, Cainite soldiers were fleeing desperately in the same direction, many of them wounded.

"Herab took them completely by surprise. The wagon drivers fled first."
"My father... Seth!" Enoch breathed.

"They escaped, I saw them."

Just then, Tubal galloped by the wagon. He clutched his head with a bloody hand, but Enoch also saw his lower abdomen was wet with blood also. As Tubal disappeared around a bend in the road, suddenly Nod filled Enoch's vision. The wagon was approaching the river, and the whole city lay before him.