The Pan rose to its full height and roared, “Very well! If you will not come out of there or send the young girl out, I will kill these men before your very eyes!”
The threat horrified them into terrified silence, as the massive beast-man turned to see both Jeremiah and I standing and his guard satyrs lying dead at our feet.
Enraged, he began to lunge forward, then stopped short, seeing the large and imposing mountain of a man standing just behind us.
The creature roared in frustration, its veins standing out upon its brow, its arms flexed and powerfully throbbing with its pulse-pounding rage.
“Uncle! Why are you here?!”
I turned and stared at Hanokh in shock, but the man was unfazed by the kinship reference.
“Pan, son of Lamech, you are standing against the will of The Almighty. These men and their calling will not be stopped by the likes of you or your kind. If you strike the Lord’s anointed, you will be recompensed blow for blow. Now stand aside and let these men through to the chariot.”
“NO!” he raged, raising both of its clenched fists to the sky, and the ground below trembled with the sound.
“I am cursed already! What more can be done to me?! I defy The One, and all who would follow in His name or His call!”
And with that bellowed declaration, he grabbed one of the dryads standing next to him and lifted her bodily up and strode forward towards the enflamed brush twisting and roaring with crackling fire. He slung her screaming, head and hair into the flames, igniting the top half of her writhing body and brandished her defiantly before us like a blazing torch.
He tore up some dried brush and pushed a mound of fallen leaves towards us igniting them with the burning, writhing dryad.
The leaves burst into roaring flames creating a wall of fire between us and The Pan, further separating us from The Faerie Fade covering my friends.
I had heard that The Faerie Fade offered some kind of supernatural protection. That it was rumored to be a portal and housed some unseen gateway within, and I hoped the stories had been true for now the lives of my dear friends depended on it.
For some reason, neither The Pan or his followers were rushing in to snatch them and drag them out from under the strange covering.
Over the rumbling of the flames, I heard Miray wailing and the others shouting to us, and I shouted back.
“Go in!” I yelled to them, “Go on without me! Save yourselves!”
“No! We are not going without you, Mister O’Brian! We’re not leaving!”
The Pan turned and directed the satyrs and the troll, barking commands I could not clearly make out.
The satyrs scattered all around the canopy, but it was growing more difficult seeing them clearly through the rising wall of fire and shimmering heat vapors. They were up to something terrible and then the Honor Sword flashed with light in my hand.
Words of the Ancient Text arose from the blade, shining in brilliance.
10 Who among you fears the LORD and listens to his servant? Who among you walks in darkness, and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the LORD; let him lean on his God. 11 Look, all you who kindle a fire, who encircle yourselves with torches; walk in the light of your fire and of the torches you have lit! This is what you’ll get from my hand: you will lie down in a place of torment. [Isaiah 50:10-11 CSB]
Hanokh clapped his hands on Jeremiah’s and my shoulders, turning us away from the fire to face him.
“Why are you both here in the Mid-World? What is your mission here?”
“We were called here. To find and bring the keys to the gate in the far mountains. To allow the kingdom of Excavatia to flow into the Mid-World,” Jeremiah answered.
“And why is that important? What do you hope for in pursuing such a dangerous quest? Why is what happens here in the Mid-World of the Soul so important in the Surface World of the flesh? Why is the Kingdom of Excavatia so important that it must be opened, by bearing Faith, walking in Love, towards Hope to bring forth the Light and Life of The One into and through each of you.”
Sudden clarity illuminated my heart and I answered him, “Because our world has grown so dark. It has become harder to find the Light of Hope. We’ve allowed so many other things to preoccupy our lives that we lost sight of the most important things, and all our dreams are dying and turning into nightmares. Our stories are being put out because the Flame no longer reaches us. The Word comes through so many other filters that it only reaches us in a diluted glow.”
Hanokh stood and smiled, “So then, Brian, I will ask you as The One asked Moses as he stood before the flames of a burning bush. What do you have in your hands? What possessions do you carry?”
I unwrapped and pulled the cinched bag from my waistband and held it up.
“I have this stone and this sword. Nothing more.”
“In those two things you have symbolized everything that is required of you to lead this mission and fulfill your calling.”
“I do not understand.”
“Show me the sword.”
I began to unwrap the bloodline sash from my forearm, but he stayed my hand.
“Keep that secure. You do not wish to remove that. Do you not understand why this crimson material is joined to the blade and to be joined to you?”
The red sash was wrapped and crossed at the nexus of the hilt and the crossguard and left to hang and flow loosely until it was fastened to the hand of the bearer.
“I thought it was to symbolize my commitment to the quest and to keep me from dropping it in a protracted fight.”
“It is much more than that. Every time you take up this Sword, you may wield it in a fight, but when you join yourself to it, by wrapping this Bloodline around your arm you are acknowledging that you have become identified with the family and the purpose for which this blade was forged. You are grafted into the family line by blood. You are a part of it, even as it becomes a part of you. When you say you follow The One, you do well, but when you show that you are of the Family and Bloodline of The One, you are identifying as something much more. You identify with His Sufferings, His Scorn, and the world’s rejection of Him, but you will also identify with His Ultimate Victory. Now show me the blade.”
I held it up for him to see and he pointed me to the center of the blade shining in the firelight.
“Do you know the metal of the blade in your sword there has a deep groove down the center? Do you understand its purpose and the reason it was forged and hammered there?”
“I have heard it called the Blood gutter. That it channels the blood of an enemy down to the end of the blade to be slung away when it is withdrawn from the wounding.”
“That is not the reason, nor does it do what you have assumed it does. The groove is there to both strengthen the blade and keep it lightweight enough for the swordsman to wield it. A swordsman cannot do battle if the blade is too heavy to bear. That is why the metal is reduced in the center, and the weight is made lighter so you can bear it and it extends downward from the crossguard. Your weight, your calling is made lighter to bear because it extends outward from the cross. The Pearl you carry–the Fidelis gate stone–all that you value, belongs in the fuller of the blade. The weight of your burdens, your failings, your feelings of loss, were handled at The Cross. Your Faith, your Fidelis, and Fealty begin at The Cross where the Eternal Covenant was brokered. The weight of your life debt and the burden of your calling has been taken out of The Honor Sword and in the cavity of the groove, you will find the Living Word written there giving you the direction you need for the moments in which you need them. If you want to find a way to save those you claim to love, to lead them, you will find The Way to them written there.
“Now show me the stone you carry.”
I let the sword dangle from my hand, affixed to the Bloodline, and together with my other hand, I pulled out the Fidelis Stone from the leather pouch.
“What have you been told of this stone–this pearl of great price?”
“That it has no power in and of itself. That the power of The One comes through it, in service to the calling.”
“You have been told the truth. But there is more to it. What is this stone called and why do you think it is here in the form of a pearl?”
“We were told it is called the Fidelis Stone or the Faith stone. I do not know why it is in the form of a pearl.”
“It takes the form of a pearl because it is forged in trial and adversity. In the Surface World, a pearl is formed around a single grain of sand which irritates the soft tender part of a mollusk. The sea creature struggles to eject the thing that is causing it such discomfort. Through its struggle, the grain of sand repeatedly scrapes the interior shell of the mollusk, as the tender muscle strives to push it away from its tender lining. Eventually, with time, the grain is coated with the smooth inner polish of the shell that was used to guard the most tender parts of its being. It is the same thing with mankind. Faith is born in adversity, its gloss, and unique opalescent shine comes within the difficulties that make us uncomfortable. We keep our struggles within, under the exterior of an outward shell meant to protect us. Each covering of the irritant, each layer smoothed through difficulty adds dimension and increases the diameter of the pearl that is formed around a simple grain of sand. And, by degree, it also increases its value. The layers covering over a man who learns to deal with adversity which takes a part of his outer shell away to make its way smooth is his story meant to be shared to encourage others, harboring their own pain. That is why a pearl is its most appropriate representation in the Mid-World. It is important, for you, and for those you lead to feel the liberty of sharing and owning their own stories. As they join you in this seeking of the hidden kingdom, their lives, their contributions, and the importance of their stories will be made more clear before the journey’s end. You will grow to love them more as each of you are more willing to share these gifts with each other.”
Tears fell from my eyes as I nodded in understanding at last.
“And what do you place your faith in? How do you propose to use this stone for the quest?”
“I carry it in this,” I said raising the bag and starting to pick at the thread along the edge intending to show him the hidden map inside.
“I do not mean that,” Hanokh said, placing his massive hand over mine.
“I asked you in what you place your faith,” he said looking directly and intensely into my eyes, “The stone is a symbol and a lesson. Here in the Mid-World, the concept and the form are made into one to teach you to see the truth of your own condition. A person may put their faith into many things, but only one pursuit and one way matters enough to make a difference for seeking the promised realm of Excavatia. You bear two symbols of your quest and your calling in your hands. Think about how you will join them. What did you do with the Pearl thus far that has shone you how to use it.”
“I do not know how to make it work. I only released it into the waters of the Trathorn, and there it moved and froze the surface of the waters.”
“And that is exactly how meaningful faith is to be applied. It is not possessed but must release to accomplish its work. You do not own faith. You give it for a purpose. You set it free in the direction of hope. That is how you place your faith.”
“So should the sword and the pearl be used together?”
“Yes. Kneel before the rising flames ahead, and set your sword flat on the ground before you. Take the Fidelis stone in your other hand and set it along the fuller groove of the Honor Sword, beginning at the Crossguard of the weapon.”
***
The Pan and satyrs scurried about collecting brush from the woods where the fires had not yet reached. With their sickle and scythe weapons, they tore up brambles and cut dried brush and swiftly carried and dragged their kindling to the sides of the Faerie Fade.
“What are they doing?!” Laura asked, terrified.
Tiernan answered, “They’re building a bonfire around us. If they cannot come in, they will either smoke us or burn us out.”
Matthew responded, “We’re gonna die if we don’t go on like Mister O’Brian said.”
Miray was weeping into Nell’s neck, “No, no, no! We can’t leave him. We can’t!”
Mason patted her back, unable to offer her any words, but his hand was reassuring.
“He’s right,” Maeven said, “Much as I hate to admit it, we have no choice, but to go on without them.”
Begglar’s jaw was set as he squinted out beyond the fire to the sight of Hanokh standing above the heightening wall of fire.
“Ah, Lad,” he muttered, “I so wish it hanna come ta this! Nellus, is there any way your grandfather might be able to get them through to us?”
“Dear, I do not know. He is ancient and wise, but this is beyond human help.”
***
I approached the rising inferno as instructed, as close as I could, without standing directly in the fire. The hair of my head and beard curled in the intense waves of heal pushing me back farther away from my friends as the burning swath widened the gap between me and The Pan and The Faerie Fade. I knelt before the crawling flames, surrendering my safety and trusting only in the words that stirred my heart to action.
From behind me, I heard Hanokh say, “Now raise the Cross and release the Pearl of Faith from your hand and you will see what you must do.”
As I raised the hilt of the Honor Sword, effusive light pulsed from my arm, through the Bloodline and the Pearl rolled down the Fuller groove of the Honor Sword towards the bare ground. As soon as it touched the ground, clearing the tip of the blade, it ignited in a blinding light. From the glare, I could not tell by sight if the Pearl continued to roll forward, but in my spirit I sensed that it did, moving on up the hill and into the wall of fire towards The Pan and The Faerie Fade beyond him.
***
The flash of light leaping up from the ground startled the satyrs and The Pan from their furious labors. They turned to face the firewall, but with The Pan’s newly restored sight, the blinding corona moving toward him was unbearable and burned retinal ghosts in his vision flaring pain that caused him to dive away. From all sides, the satyrs scattered, turning away, the dryads curl in on themselves, twisting and torquing away from the rod of light extending towards them through the fire.
Much as The Pan wanted to it could no longer stand in its path. It stumbled and fell to its knees before the light as four large glowing orbs descended from the top of the forest above, vibrating with energy and light.
The guardians of The Faerie Fade had returned to the gate within the forest of Kilrane.
***
I could not see. The white light was too intense.
“Now walk forward, following your faith,” Hanokh said.
“But I cannot see,” I protested, “How will I…?”
“You do not have to. Close your eyes. Walk in the light. Do not turn to the left or the right. Move forward.”
I stepped forward and felt a calming and the grasp of the Honor Sword in my hand.
A resonance of the Word spoke in my heart, and I spoke those words aloud as I walked blindly through the rising flames.
105 Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path. [Psalms 119:105 CSB]
I thought of The Pan waiting to grab me on the other side of the wall of fire, building an inferno around the Faerie Fade sacrificing my friends to himself upon an altar he built for himself. And the Word arose again in my heart.
20 “If I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 21 “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his estate, his possessions are secure. [Luke 11:20-21 CSB]
A strong man, fully armed. Those words stuck in my throat and I could barely breathe. I was carrying a Sword of Honor, in which The Words of Truth moved mysteriously in and through my mind and my heart. I was shielded from the surrounding flames of a raging forest fire, walking under the protection of faith quenching those flames from destroying me. Strong man. I had always believed myself to be weak, but I was being reforged and lifted up to the meaning of the name by which I was called. Brian. A name meaning–Strong.
This quest, this journey, this walk by faith was changing me in ways I never would have believed were possible. This call by The One was making me into who I was always meant to be.
My name is Brian. My name means Strong.
***
Whirling and dangerous flashes of light hovered at the four corner posts of the Faerie Fade waiting as I emerged blindly from the light caring the Honor Sword before me the mysterious Pearl at my feet.
“Hurry! There is no time to waste! Hold hands quickly!” Nell admonished, her breaths coming shallow and fast.
“You might not want to look through the door. It is… Well, just hold tight to each other and make sure the kids close their eyes. That means you too, sweet Miray! Trust me. Laura, Christopher, Tiernan, you too.”
“Just what exactly could be behind there?! There’s nothing beyond this flimsy wall!”
“There is, but it is for us and not against us,” Begglar said, “Grown men–battle-hardened warriors–quake in fear of it. If you are squeamish at all, you might just close your eyes until we’re through the portal. If we open this door, there is no going back, no matter what you see and are tempted to do.”
I caught Begglar’s eye and we exchanged a knowing look. We’d seen what was on the other side in a different context and place than in this arboreal setting. We know what it was capable of, and the terror it could bring to enemies of The Most High.
It wasn’t easy to describe even by modern standards, and its descriptions in the Ancient Text were confusing at best, though the Surface World prophets Ezekial and Elisha had done a good job of what they had observed, as had John the Revelator. Elijah had been probably one of the few to ever encounter it directly and survived to tell the tale, but he was so shaken by the experience that he was silent for a good many days afterward.
Begglar put his hand shakily on the door handle and took in a deep breath. Nell and Dominick embraced him under his large free arm and Maeven held Laura and Miray against her, feeling Nell’s arm encircling her as well. Matthew, Mason, Tiernan, and Christopher were encircled by James who also held fast to the back of Begglar’s arm. Lindsey pressed in among the gathering, enclosing the circle of Maeven’s arms around the others but still struggling with whether or not to close her eyes or try to keep them open. She so wanted to be brave enough, but Begglar’s statement about “battle-hardened men”, had made her doubt the wisdom of her choice. Christie thrust her arm into the circle, hooked her elbow around Jame’s tense bicep and held out her hand to me. The look in her eyes was a mix of fear and bravery swirling within a brothy stew of courage and determination. A look I had come to call her “She-Bear” look.
That was my cue.
I turned back to the wall of a man standing between myself and Jeremiah. The area in which I had walked through the fire was cleared of debris and only bare ground separated me from them.
“Don’t worry,” he rumbled, “I will ensure he gets back to Azragoth safely, and I will find the boy and the others.”
The firelights rose and vibrated in a strobing flash of white light that caused everything around us to dim in its intensity. The Pan and his crew of halflings covered and bowed low, covering their head and face with their arms and hands trying to hide from its piercing light. The way was open. A path between the cowering creature abominations and the front of the Faery Fade canopy. So I ran as Begglar turned the handle on the inner door portal. I bounded and leaped across the threshold, catching Christie’s hand as I skidded under the covering. As the door opened, those of us facing it, daring to look at what lay beyond gasped collectively as the gap widened. We saw through the portal as if strangely peering into our own fragmented reflections.
Beyond was a virtual sea of wide-opened-eyes, moving, floating, fluttering…
As we were swept into the portal, I could see that these were not eyes at all.
They were oculus.
*** End of Part 2 ***
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you.” ISAIAH 43:2 AMP
Author’s Note:
The canopy of the Faerie Fade represents the shift from a committed relationship into a covenant relationship which has greater roots than hills and mountain and will endure.
“For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, Nor will My covenant of peace be shaken,” Says the LORD who has compassion on you.” ISAIAH 54:10 AMP
Commitment is based on our efforts and will.
Covenant is the enjoining of those under God’s holding and empowerment making Him central to the relationship.
Join us to see how that unfolds in Excavatia Book 3: Walls of Stone.
Excavatia 