Creator, Friend or Foe? Draft 6 (final) ch 18

Chapter 18. Home Comings
“Hold me tightly, gently
…
Tell me that all will be well”
-from “The Book Of Hayat”
As the two women rode, they were intermittently chased, then preceded by the dog, happy to be off of
his rope, and apparently considering himself the lead scout for his suddenly all female pack, since even
the horse was female. The riders of Janoj preferred mares to stallions, finding mares to be more
biddable
“What should we call him, my La... Artemis?” asked Naamah.
“How do you like the name Umut for him?” suggested Artemis.
“Hope,” she translated. “An auspicious name, for an auspicious beginning.” Using signals to call the
dog, who was off ahead chasing a small animal, she bent down when he arrived panting and wagging
his tail, saying “Good Sir, would you like to be called Umut?”
Apparently unused to being asked anything, the poor beast sat down at her feet, looking confused.
“Would you like to be called Umut?” Naamah repeated. He pricked his ears up, as if in agreement.
“Done! Then Umut you shall be!” clapped Naamah.
“I think,” said Artemis, “that they never gave most of the perros names because they were expendable,
unlike dear Gris, here.” She patted the gray mare on the neck, who nickered with pleasure. “He is the
lead male now,” as she observed Umut, feeling nostalgia for her brother's old perro.
“You mean he is the only male, now,” Naamah, laughed, a smirk on her suddenly more youthful face.
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“Yes, this must make him feel very secure!” laughed Artemis.
Naamah turned to the older woman, lips pursed, “Where shall we go, really, to start this new
community?”
“We will go west and north, as I told my son Janoj, so that he will be able to find us, should he ever
wish to do so. First, though, we follow the setting sun, to find my parents.”
“Do the first man and woman still live?” asked Naamah in awe.
“That,” replied Artemis, “is what we shall find out. Then we will go north.”
“But how will we find them, Artemis? Many years have passed. They could be anywhere.”
“No, I will know. As I leave a trail for my son to follow, so my mother, Hayat, will have done for me.
She told me when I was a small girl, that if you are ever lost, always follow the river, any river, south.
That, she said, is where you will find me. And so we shall.”
“But which river, Artemis?” quailed the younger woman.
Not to worry, my girl, there is really but one river, back west. Great, but smaller than our two rivers
between which sits the city of Janoj. The river back west is smaller, mother told me, based on her
conversations with the Creatrix. So I hope that we may approach it from about the middle of its course,
but ...”
“But we must still,” interrupted Naamah anxiously, “cross a great river and dessert before that. I have
heard my brothers talk of the dessert as a great barrier between east and west.”
“Fear not, my daughter, we will cross many barriers as we come to building our community.” Artemis
replied soothingly.
After many days of travel, crossing unexpected mountains and much fruitful discussion between the
woman and among all of the guardians, they reached the river Yarden. Traveling south down the river
valley, they avoided contact with other people, facilitated by the fact that everyone fled when Umut
appeared.
“Everyone seems to be afraid.” commented Naamah,
“Dog and horse together mean royal power here, too, I suppose.” sighed Artemis.
“Is it true that the humans here have not yet domesticated these animals?” asked one guardian. No
reply came.
Trees began to extend toward them as they walked, forcing them to dismount and lead both animals.
They took care, moving date palm branches and grape vines out of the way as they walked. Both
women respected the plants, and also feared being tracked. The plantings seemed to use all of the
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vertical space, leaving only narrow corridors for walking, as if someone had intended to drive would be
visitors in one direction. But there was no settlement in sight. At last entering a valley which was drier
than up north, they saw a settlement in the distance which seemed different from any other set of
dwellings or city they had ever seen. They could just make out a central compound, with several
buildings clustered together and paths or roads laid out. Radiating out around the center were various
hedged, tree-lined or otherwise bordered fields, evenly spaced around the central compound. Some of
these fields contained what appeared to be booths, others small houses. The buildings were difficult to
see because they appeared to be no more than entrances sticking out of the earth, as if they had been
built into the earth and covered over except for the entrances sloping down below what appeared to be
gaps in the earth. The entire settlement appeared to be under cultivation, with food plants atop the
dwellings, and fruit trees surrounding the inner and outer perimeters of the communal compound and
the individually bounded fields.
“This is it!” exclaimed Artemis.
“Yes,” agreed her guardian, transmitting to the other guardians, who were picking up transmissions
from around the area as well.
“But how do you know?” asked a bewildered Naamah.
“Because,” explained Artemis, “this is exactly the kind of community layout that my mother described
wanting to build once we were all ready to start building permanent houses. We were still
experimenting with different materials for bricks when...”
The older woman's lips began to quiver, eyes filling with tears.
“It´s OK,” whispered Naamah, hugging the older woman as tears began rolling down her cheeks.
During their travels, she had found Artemis to be a very light sleeper alert to the slightest sounds,
movements and smells around them. More than once her ability to smell smoke very far off had saved
them from harm. Who knew, though, what effects returning West could have as old memories of what
had provoked that sensitivity now rose up, demanding their due.
“No,” Artemis´ guardian replied to the unasked question. “We went,” she transmitted, “by a different
route, to the south.”
A query transmitted by the guardian of an unseen person, asked “Do you come in peace?”
The guardians each replied by transmitting “Yes, Friend.”
As they made their way down into the valley, a man came out from behind a tree, stepping in front of
them with hands upheld, to show that he was unarmed.
“Hello, Strangers. May I ask your business here, please?”
The man looked mature, strongly built, hands rough from planting, and tanned with a dark bronze
complexion. As Artemis caught sight of him, a look passed between them. Time would give its
meaning.
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“Hello,” began Artemis, “I am the first daughter of Hayat, twin sister of Evren, who killed my beloved
younger brother ...”
“Vacío,” he finished. “By the blood of Vacío, it is you, Aclima.” He blushed suddenly, his face nearly
the color of a red grape.“ A thousand pardons, honored Aclima, I should not have interrupted you.”
“Not to worry, Friend, though I now prefer to be called Artemis, as my adult name. Aclima died long
ago.”
“My apologies again, honored Artemis.” He made a slow and graceful bow.
She inclined her head in acknowledgment.
“We all heard that Vacío, may his memory bring peace, was killed, and maybe you as well, no one
knew. Messengers were sent to ask after you, but...” he looked up the river, then to the west, sadness
clouding his eyes.
“Never returned,” whispered Naamah. “I heard my father boasting of killing two men from back
West.”
“Yes,” he confirmed, “they were two cousins, both dear to me and my departed wife, may her memory
be a blessing.”
Both women bowed slowly. “We are very sorry for your losses. Who are you, please?” asked Artemis.
“I,” bowing again while keeping his head up, “am Janoj, son of Persona, son of your brother Fijo,
honored lady.” he replied. Both women blanched momentarily. He turned, gesturing gracefully toward
the younger woman. “And yourself?”
“She is Naamah, and under my protection.” quickly asserted Artemis.
“Of course,” accepted Janoj. “Please let me take you both inside, where it is safer, and you may bathe,
drink and eat while I inform everyone of your arrival.”
“But tell me first, please,” interjected Artemis, “Is my anne, Hayat, still alive?”
“She is, honored lady, and will be overjoyed to see you before the end. She has seen 92 winters,” he
added, answering Naamah´s quizzical look. He deftly picked several pistachios, offering them with his
food hand as he held the low-hanging branch aloft in his left. “Please follow me.” Artemis led Gris
while Naamah tied and led Umut so that no one would be alarmed. There appeared to be no animals
other than sheep and a few cows in the settlement as far as they could see. As they walked, surrounded
by date palms, olive and fig trees, Janoj asked “you will not inquire after your father, honored lady?”
“Yes,” replied Artemis, “I will ask my anne.”
As they entered the settlement, all were silent, respectfully offering them water, but containing their
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curiosity. Janoj first led them to the pasture, leaving Gris and Umut in one end to themselves. He then
led the ladies to the women´s half of the central compound, where a young girl took them in to the bath
house, giving them clean sandals and robes, explaining the different sections of the bath.
Upon exiting the bath house, they found an older woman, flanked by two younger women, surrounded
by what looked to be every woman in the settlement. Artemis, recognizing her immediately, flew into
her arms:
“Anne!! Seni, yani, I have missed you so much, oh, Anne!!”
Hayat folded her oldest daughter into her arms as both women broke down, weeping years worth of
sorrow. Every woman in the settlement, from youngest to oldest, came as close as they could,
surrounding the reunited mother and daughter, a supportive embrace.
“Before you, my daughter, stand your younger sisters, nieces and great nieces, six generations.” Each
set gracefully bowed in turn as mentioned. “Come my daughter, let Naamah go with the younger
women. Will you please come with me to my space, so that we may speak privately?”
“Of course, Annecem.”
Walking through the women´s half of the central compound, the two women walked through the tree
lined pathway to the very first private dwelling in the settlement, that of Hayat. After offering her
daughter warm tea, the women ate a stew of red adashim together with a soft baked grain resembling
that which Artemis had learned to make, but much lighter and tastier.
“Anne,what is this? It is not like the matzah we used to eat.”
“No, it is not matzah. We discovered that if you leave matzah out long enough, it will begin to rise, and
when you bake it, you get this. We have been refining it for some time now, and it is what we call
jametz, another type of what your brother has categorized as lejem, to include both matzah and jametz,
since they differ only in the processing.”
“I see. So he enjoys finding categories and names for things, my younger brother, Fijo?”
“Yes, he does, rather a lot.” She took a bite, savoring the texture of the jametz. ”We moved up here to
the river valley just after...” Hayat pointed toward the river, “We call it Yarden. About ten years later
your brother Fijo was born. He and your father spend a great deal of time together puzzling out the
sayings of the Ancient Warrior, and deciding how they think those sayings ought to be applied. He is
content to spin theories, while we find the occasional application for them here all together.”
“And my sisters? How did they ...” she left the question hanging, not wanting to upset her aging
mother.
“Azura married your brother Fijo when he was old enough. She died in childbirth.”
“And...”
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“She died not long after, during that winter.” Hayat wiped away a tear, still mourning the loss of her
third daughter, who never recovered from her brother's murder.
“Oh, Anne,” Artemis cried, hugging her mother, “I am so sorry...”
“No, my daughter, you must not be sorry for anything It is I who owe you all of the apologies. I never
came after you, never tried to find you, to rescue you,” she moaned, her voice breaking as the tears
erupted once more.
“No, Anne, no, he hated you. Had you found me he would only have killed you, too, I am sure of it.
You taught me well, Anne. When I finally had the opportunity, I was able to escape and find you. As I
hope perhaps one day my son may find me. But tell me, Anne, who are the others I have seen today,
the young man Janoj, for instance. Is he the guard of the settlement? I saw no weapons.”
“No my daughter, we do not have weapons. We wish to live peacefully, although that seems to be
becoming more difficult by the day. We all take turns keeping watch, with the shift supervisor always
in a booth hidden from view, while the perimeter watchers are the youngest here, staying in the trees
and running to advise if someone approaches.”
“Surely you and father no longer take turns, Anne?”
“No, not any more. Making contact with visitors is always the task of a mature adult, usually one of
the men who looks more hefty. Fijo´s son Persona, your nephew, is the father of Janoj, and both are
good men. Janoj particularly tries to be kind, fair and to share with everyone. He is a very hard
worker. He also has a son, Methuselah, whose son Lamej is another nice young man. Unfortunately
Lamej´s brother was one of the messengers we sent out east.”
Artemis wondered whether Naamah´s cruel father had learned that detail, before executing him.
…
“So you,” intuited Naamah, “are the cousin of my father, whose name was also Lamej, but I am certain
shared no other traits with your grandson, may his memory bring us blessings.”
“Yes.” replied Janoj. He was showing her the perimeters where watchers were stationed to look out
for visitors, since she had requested some task to help with.
“So what do you plan to do,” he asked, “Now that you have escaped?”
“Artemis and I plan to go north, then west, and start a community for women and men who wish to live
peacefully, without oppression or coercion.”
“In these days that seems a wonderful but elusive dream. We here have managed to do that here,
thanks to the Mother of Us All. Once she is gone, many of us fear for our safety and the survival of
this settlement, different as it is from those around us. Why not stay and help here?”
He almost missed it. The young woman's lip had trembled for a fleeting moment. Was that fear in her
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eyes? “if...”
She held up a hand, drawing a deep breath. “Because we are bound by oath not to remain here, nor to
allow word of our presence to reach others, especially back in the City of Janoj. They were about to
send an army here to force all of you to pay tribute, and indeed may still do so if they find that we are
here. So we must leave, and fairly soon.”
Janoj quirked an eyebrow, face set in a mask of impartiality. The breeze rustling through the valley
suddenly felt chilly.
“And how do you plan to create this community?”
“We will gather those who are rejected from other places, those who want to live as equals. We plan to
build a mobile settlement with containers for growing food that can be carried behind dogs or horses,
and take our shelters with us, learning to live in lands that no one else wants. And we will teach those
who come to us how to fight, not with weapons, but with thoughts, and words, and deeds. We refuse to
be oppressed, but we shall never impose oppression upon others.” Naamah still did not quite
understand how Artemis planned to accomplish all of this, but she spoke with a conviction which
impressed Janoj greatly.
“Very interesting,” said Janoj, “I would like to ask you more, later, if you do not mind, as you have
given me much to consider. With my son Lamej now independent, about to have another son of his
own, I have often considered the possibility of traveling, seeing what lies beyond this plain, but any
person traveling alone these days is foolhardy. Perhaps, with the prospect of a new kind of society, I
will find a way to contribute beyond what I feel is the limited good I can do here. Once our Mother,
Hayat, is gone, I do not believe things will remain the same here.”
“I am always,” respectfully replied Naamah, “at your service.” Her shawl slipped as she inclined,
revealing part of the bright red scar on her arm. She glanced at him, worry in her eyes. He chose to let
her tell the story in her own time, if she decided to do so.
As Janoj left Naamah securely in the tree with provisions to keep the next watch cycle, he walked back
toward the opposite side of the settlement, where his private space was, deep in thought. Perhaps if I
can convince them that I have gone, that the Ancient Warrior has taken me away to be with Him,
rededicated myself to my quest to know his role as the Great Creator, perhaps. Will she have me?
After the first ones are gone, perhaps...
…
“Great Creator” transmitted the head supervising guardian, “we have very strange reports of a renegade
guardian, one we reported on earlier.”
“Yes, what is the final report?” These distractions with loose guardians were becoming more and more
draining for the Ancient Warrior. More guardians had been delegated the task of detaining them,
requiring him to permit direct transmissions to his Audience Chamber.
“Great One, we have tried to discover the final disposition of the guardian, but have too little data,
since her reports have nearly all be lost. It appears that she was feeding energy to another unrecorded
guardian, but that guardian cannot be located for deinstantiation.”
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“Some lower level guardians must have noted an effect of some kind on the environment. Any
guardian will have to be leaving some electromagnetic trace if it is functioning at all. Find it.”
“But my Great Creator,” a tremor of static came through, “No other guardians report any effects that
will lead us to it, not even the smallest soil and dust mote guardians. We detect no unaccounted for
transmissions. It seems to have deinstantiated itself somehow.”
This would clearly have to be dealt with personally, or with the help of the young Light Bearer,
unfortunately. The odd entity which appeared at the death of the first human male born in the
experimental universe seemed to have survived the death of Evren, since no final report had been
received. If it could not be found, then it might be lying dormant, possibly a stray piece, essence of
another being like himself, left over from the War. That would explain much. Too much. It must be
found. If it survived and gained corporeal form, it could use the human beings against him. That
would necessitate the immediate destruction of this multiverse. Most disturbing.
...
A young niece left, leaving a tray with two bowls, covered by slices of what looked to Artemis like a
baked grain, similar to but smoother than the barley she had been accustomed baking into flat cakes.
The fragrance of tea encircled the newly reunited women. “Anne, how did you get the shelters to
stand, inside the holes? I tried to build such a shelter once and the walls collapsed within a few days.”
“We figured out how to dig a sloping ramp to the house level and catch excess water in a deep drainage
trench in front of the door, which also acts as a moat to slow down intruders.”
“And there is only one way out?”
“No, my daughter, of course not. There is an escape hatch beside the smoke outlet. That is hidden
above the loft of each dwelling by the grass on the techo. We also found that terracing the ramps make
them easier to climb and more absorbent.”
“I see. I will enjoy helping to build one of these homes for the next young person to be acknowledged
as an adult. I see the physical structures you spoke of, circles within circles, and with each independent
as he or she prefers to be. But what of the social structures you spoke of, Anne? How has that process
gone?”
“Well my daughter,” Hayat replied, “we have tried to build this community in the way that was
envisioned before you were born. I have taught your sisters to write their stories, drawing syllables in
the wet clay. I have also tried to teach them to think, and to swim, as I told the Light Bearer some years
ago, my dear daughter, but now we find we must add self-defense, riding, and escape and evasion skills
to that preliminaries list. We have also had to change the final challenge from one of endurance to one
which requires the candidate to teach another person some critical skill, such as swimming.
Hayat frowned, letting the question hang in the air as she picked at her remaining adashim.
“It has become too dangerous to send the children out on long journeys alone.”
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Artemis pursed her lips into a small frown, leaning forward, resting her chin in her right hand.
“Swimming I believe, is most important. Self defense and sword work, if possible. The girls must be
taught to swim from birth. In the city of Janoj girls are forbidden to swim, and I fear that idea
spreading here to the West.”
“But we have so little contact with the east, especially since...” Hayat trailed off, a heavy silence in the
air.
“Yes, Anne, your Janoj told us about them. It must have been just after he killed the messengers that
Evren decided. But they may still go through with it.”
“Go through with what, my daughter?” Worry began to cloud Hayat´s eyes.
“They are sending an army back west, Annecem, or at least that was what he ordered before...”
“But now …?”
“I do not know, Annecem. I do not know what my son will do.”
“Well, let us not borrow trouble from the future. We have done as much as we can here to protect
ourselves and to be an example to others. I would not have more of my children killing one another for
my sake. I am only glad to have been able to see you before my time ends on this earth.” Hayat sighed
a long weak sigh, her head drooping slightly before she caught herself and sat up straighter.
“Anne, I would like to rest,” Artemis lied diplomatically, “if you do not mind. We have been traveling
long, and I still do not yet know where I will sleep.”
“Of course, my daughter, I will also rest. I have a spare hamaca if you would like to sleep here in my
space. We also have smaller guest spaces available in the central area. Stay where you will feel most
comfortable.”
“I will take a separate space, Anne, not to worry. I would like some privacy to gather my thoughts.”
“Yes, of course my dear. One of your nieces will see to your accommodation, and I will see you at the
next mealtime. Rest well, my daughter, and to you, the unseen Guardian of my dear daughter, I give
my thanks as well, for the Light Bearer has told me how you have been with her, helping my daughter
to survive those dark times. Peaceful rest to you both.”
A gesture stopped Artemis as she reached for her mother's hand. “Yes, Anne?”
Hayat removed the covering from a gourd, withdrawing a scroll. She unrolled the palm frond,
impressed and filled in with lines of charcoal in her mothers neat curving script. She extended it with
an air of solemnity. “Remember, my daughter,” glancing at the book, “you are a catalyst. Work change
in the others. Be their light, their illumination.”
“Your book.” Artemis accepted the scroll, then kissed and touched her mother´s hand to her forehead,
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tears in both women's eyes. Her guardian reported the awe felt by her charge, and a strange cooling of
her mother's hand, as Artemis held it to her another moment before easing the door open.
...
As Artemis left, the first woman felt relieved. At last she was nearly content. She had seen her oldest
daughter, alive and well. Or as well as could be, considering what she had been through. That,
however, was for her daughter to bring up, if she so chose, and to work through in her own way. Now
all she lacked was the company of her Beloved One, whose physical touch she had missed for so long.
Now that her duty to bear, raise, and teach her children was completed, Hayat longed for the
comforting arms of the Light Bearer. She reclined in her hamaca, tired yet alert, willing her mind to be
still, and listen.
“I know you would like to see the sea, my Dear One,” whispered the Light Bearer, as she materialized
just far enough away from Hayat not to shock the aging woman's now delicate system. In her upturned
palm was the starfish, now whole.
“Shall I show it to you from here, My Love?” she asked, looking tenderly into the eyes of her lover, the
mortal woman who would soon be returning to the earth from whence she came.
“If you will be there with me, My Kind One, then yes. Much as I would prefer to walk all the way with
you down to the great sea, I fear I am now past that point. But if I can hold you, I will have missed
nothing.”
“Come with me, then,” purred the Light Bearer, “and we shall walk the shores of the Great Sea
together, one last time.”
Reaching to take the woman´s extended hand, as she touched her finger, the inside of the dwelling
slowly changed to a deep blue sea lapping at pale sand, below a perfectly clear blue sky. As Hayat
stood gazing at the sea and sky, then turned to see the plain, the mountains shimmering in the distance,
the Light Bearer took her hand, striding beside her. The woman´s body now appeared as it had years
before, when she was in the prime of her strength. Hayat stopped, turned, facing her Beloved, and
flung herself into the waiting honey-colored arms, searching gingerly, lightly nuzzling the tip of her
nose, then more insistently kissing first the corners, then the center of her soft full lips, probing the
warmth of her soft palate, caressing her tongue, slowly, longingly, firmly exploring the length and
breadth of the immortal clothed in soft yet supple flesh.
Please unclothe me. Slowly, smoothly, her clothes melted away, as her body slowly came in to contact,
bit by bit, with downy skin. They pulled one another into a tight embrace, breasts fitting snugly
between one another. Their legs entwined, smooth belly caressing soft down, swaddled in a pale blue
cocoon. Their joined bodies lifted into the air, settling softly on the warm sand below, squeezing all of
their soft places snugly together, a symphony of sensations. Each felt the ecstasy of the other, joined at
every intersection, welded together as one. Hayat gradually felt every muscle in her body tense,
building to a vast crescendo, tearing the breath out of her, gasp by gasp. Trembling, unaware of
anything but a beautiful solid light, her body lost itself to all thought. Four arms squeezing her waist
and back, cradling her head as she released one last gasp of air, moaning as she curled in upon the
strong and soft honey-colored body, holding her close. Every muscle in her body convulsed, drinking
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in that honey-colored light. Her song concluded, Hayat gasped for air, trembling, locking two downy
arms firmly in hers. Six more hands, glowing with a soft blue light caressed Hayat's body in every
place at once. Sighing contentedly, Hayat snuggled against the warm downy breasts, gazing south, at
the sea. The Light Bearer's gaze remained fixed upon the woman in her arms. In the distance, a delfin
beckoned, jumping playfully in the waves, calling Hayat home.
...
As Artemis walked from her temporary space in the women´s area, she wondered how long she could
stay before her son's spies reported her presence here. She also wondered at the odd way her mother's
hand had suddenly begun to cool, just as she had taken her leave. Dear Creatrix, please tell me, what
is to become of my anne, Hayat. She wondered if her thoughts could be heard, as she crossed the
common area toward the kitchens. Her ruminations were interrupted by a commotion from, near what
she recalled was her mother's private dwelling space.
One of her young nieces ran to her, stopping to bow gracefully before stating gravely:
“Honored Artemis, you are needed in the women's private area, if you will follow me, please?”
“What is going on?”
“Honored Lady. I regret to bring you this bad news. Our mother, the mother of us all, has died. She
will be buried by our father, in Dilmun Cave. We would be honored if you will help with the
preparations for her burial.”
“Yes, of course I will,” replied Artemis, stunned that her anne had passed on so quickly after her
arrival. “Please lead the way.”
The women, Artemis taking the lead along with her younger sisters, lovingly washed the body of their
mother, tenderly cleaning under her fingernails, then bathed, dried and dressed Hayat, in her simplest
white robes. Although she had wanted Artemis to have it, they used her favorite fringed cloak as her
burial shroud. No one, including Artemis, could bear the thought of wearing Hayat's mantle. Placing
her in a simple box, as she had wanted, they covered her body in the soft sand she so loved. Artemis,
as the leader of the preparation team, went to find her father, to inform him that all was prepared for the
burial.
“Baba, we are ready to carry our beloved Anne to the cave.”
“Would you allow your brothers to carry her body? After all, they have had no hand in the
preparations, and they would like to help, too. Particularly your brother Fijo.”
“Yes, of course, many hands will lighten the load of both work and of grief. We will meet at the
women's entrance to the center.”
“Very well, my daughter.” The first man tenderly touched the hand of his daughter, as she took his to
kiss and touch to her forehead, leaving to finish preparations. Messengers had been sent to the other
bands of settlements within one day's walk, via runners who could cover the distances in half the time
that aged walkers could make, to ensure that travelers could reach home before dark after the burial.
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The sons of Hayat were led by Fijo, her third born son. He was the first, born ten years after the
terrible murder of Vacío by Evren. As they carried her body from the settlement to the cave they called
Dilmun Cave, whispered rumors abounded. Some said that this cave was where the first couple had
met, others said that the cave was originally the garden where they had lived. Still others speculated
that the cave had a hidden tunnel leading to the island garden. One even claimed that if they dug far
enough in the cave, they could reach that originally lush garden on what was reputed to have been an
island full of fruit trees and a river that watered all of the plants.
Fijo and Artemis raised their hands, looking about. Silence fell as their father stepped forward:
“For ninety two winters your mother and I were on this earth. We learned much together, and have
tried to share that with all of you, each in our own way. As I enter my ninety third winter, I feel as if I
have really seen nine hundred thirty winters on this earth. And I believe that Hayat felt the same. I
believe that she was ready to depart, as am I, to leave this world in your hands. She wanted to build a
just and compassionate world. Now is will be up to you all to create that world, as best you can, and to
be a light and example to all of your brothers and sisters. We welcome young Naamah,” the young
woman bowed as he looked in her direction, “returned with our oldest daughter Aclima, now called
Artemis.” He turned toward her, nodding in acknowledgment of her graceful bow, “into our midst, and
hope that they will both feel at home here. For the sake of the spilled blood of our son Vacíο, who is
buried here, just below his mother, I hope that you will all, my children, find a way to live in harmony.”
The first man then took a spade, just shaped using the newest techniques of water-drip boring to drill
holes in rocks which Persona and his great grandsons Methuselah and young Lamej had spent years
developing. He began to dig into the side of the cave as high up as he could still reach, where the roots
stuck out of the clay, softer than the other parts of the cave, and farthest to the back. As the second
interment, Hayat's niche would be nearly the farthest back chronologically, and the most protected. He
dug until he was too tired, and then Fijo, Persona, Kenan and Mahalalel took over, followed in the next
shift by Jared, Janoj, Methuselah and Lamej. By the time they took over digging, those who did not
live in the settlement had begun to leave, worried about traveling in the darkness. By the time Hayat's
box was lifted up and placed into her niche in the side of the cave, the sun had begun to descend in the
sky, and all were anxious to return to the safety of the settlement.
As they walked back to the settlement, Janoj joined Artemis, hoping to learn more about her proposed
new community in the north west.
“Honored Lady, if I may ask, unless you wish to be alone with your thoughts, might I trouble you to
learn more about your plans, please?”
“Certainly,” replied Artemis, still somewhat lost in her thoughts.
“Did you know you share the name of my son, Janoj?”
Janoj was somewhat taken aback, surprised that they not mentioned this earlier. “No, Honored Lady, I
did not.”
“Please call me Artemis. I apologize at the abruptness of my comment. It is...” she sighed.
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“It is a hard time, yes. Your presence here is a mercy, for us all, Artemis.” He gave her a graceful half
bow, to emphasize his respect. “Our dear honored grandmother Hayat was so overjoyed to see you
before she died that we are all happy for her, and for you. But perhaps this is not the time to speak of
plans. I merely wished you to know that I had some small hope, if it would be possible, of traveling
with you and Naamah some time in the future, if you both would allow it. I have long wanted to see
what lies beyond our river valley, but with the growing lawlessness it has not been possible. I hope
perhaps we can be of help to each other?”
“Yes, of course this is possible,” replied Artemis, “let us speak again in the morning, if you do not
mind?”
“Certainly, Honored Artemis,” bowed Janoj, as he parted to walk alone, leaving Artemis again to her
thoughts.
Arriving in the settlement after the burial, everyone had gone to the central compound. The first man
and his children had been offered a meal of mourning by the grandchildren and great grandchildren of
Hayat. They had eaten cold dry hard boiled eggs with round red legumes. Round and cold, like the
cycle of life. Her father and brothers were still in the central compound, sitting on the floor in
mourning for Hayat. She and her sisters had excused themselves, each wanting her privacy.
As she reached her assigned room in the women's half of the central compound and sat balanced crosslegged
in her hamaca, Artemis quietly called out:
“Unseen friend, my dear Guardian, is it possible for me to speak with the Light Bearer, our Creatrix, as
my mother Hayat did during her lifetime?”
She sighed as she heard no response, wondering if the answer was unknown, or was simply No.
Composing herself to go to sleep, a soft sizzling sound brought all of her senses to attention.
In a shimmering blue shell, a honey-colored woman, slender with long dark curly hair, almond shaped
hazel eyes, and a thin face with high forehead, slender nose, and full lips appeared. Artemis nearly fell
out of her hamaca. “Who?!”
“Do not fear. I am the Light Bearer, Co-Creatrix, of this universe. First, let me offer you this,” holding
out a warm softly boiled egg to Artemis. Artemis gave as graceful a bow as she could, numbly
accepting the proffered egg.
“Thank you, My Creatrix.” Her emotion made it difficult to eat the egg, delicious though it was.
“I have watched your mother, and watch her children, as I keep watch over all of this universe. Of
what do you wish to speak, oldest daughter of my beloved Hayat?”
“My Creatrix, thank you. Thank you for coming to me. I am troubled by what I have done, by killing
my brother Evren. And I do not know ...” Artemis trailed off, lost for words.
“No, Artemis, you have done no wrong. You have defended yourself and many others. For this
courage,” the Light Bearer said, gently, “your name will long be remembered. With honor.”
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“And my son?”
“I am sorry. He was killed after returning to the city, during the execution ceremony of Naamah's
family.”
As the Creatrix spoke these words, a knock came at the door, and she bowed, taking her leave and
disappearing with a muffled thunderclap, before Artemis, coming back to herself, carefully swung out
of her hamaca, shook out her cramped legs, and answered the door.
“Honored Artemis,” began the girl, a stricken look on her face, “your father, the father of us all, has
fallen gravely ill, and the healers believe...” the girl left off speaking as another messenger arrived.
The second girl bowed slowly, stifled a tremor at the corner of her mouth, while a tear rolled down her
cheek.
“The Father of Us All has just died, and his sons are leading the preparation of his body already for
burial in the Dilmun Cave tomorrow morning.”
“Thank you both, my dear nieces. I will join you at breakfast for the walk, tomorrow morning,”
Artemis replied. Both girls bowed slowly, then departed, as she shut her door, whispering urgently:
“My dear unseen friend, my guardian, is it possible for you to get a message to the guardian of Janoj, to
have him meet me in the central kitchen right now, please?”
She hoped that with the men all preparing the body of her father, the central compound would be
mostly empty by this time If this Janoj, whom she intuited wanted to leave unseen, was to go with
them, it would have to be after the burial, and they could not be seen planning together. After waiting
some time with no hint of a response, she decided that he would just have to be clever enough to take
the opportunity himself, or find a way to catch up with them as they traveled. She hoped he would.
...20 Years Later...
Reposo's face fell in incredulity. This man claimed to be the Janoj whom all knew to have been taken
away by the Great Creator, shortly after the death of the first woman and man.
“Young Reposo! I have heard so much about you! Please be sure not to tell anyone back home that
you saw me. It is good to have you here for the funeral of our foundress, my beloved Artemis.”
Reposo stood, too shocked to reply. Though he had passed his adulthood testing earlier than most, his
nineteen short winters had not prepared him for this. Janoj lived, and here, on the earth.
“They believe I have been taken away by the Creators, and so I have, but not as they think. Ah, here
comes the new leader of our community.”
Janoj, seeing the leader who would take up the mantle of Artemis, nodded in her direction. Reposo was
seeing the most beautiful woman on whom he had ever laid eyes.
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