Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh (I am that I am) 20.1/34 Julio Cesar divad72@prodigy.net.mx Vi Moreau vmoreau@directvinternet.com "Yes, it is time," Zarach agreed. "To understand fully the menace presented by Lilitu, we must delve into the darkest secrets of the mythical tome known as the Kabbalah. There, hidden in a language so obscure that only the most dedicated scholars can unravel it, are many of the so-called basic truths about our world and its creation." An odd look passed across Methos' features. His eyes widened, as if seeing something not visible to anyone else in the aircraft. He gazed at Myrddin. Aylon, sensitive as the most, saw Heru-sa-aset tilt his head as if answering an unspoken question. Zarach continued. "According to tradition, these fragments once formed part of the Book of Enoch. But those sections had been lost for thousands of years. Unfortunately, they were recovered by Lilitu." "Well? What did they say?" Methos inquired. Zarach grumbled, the tone of his voice indicating that he was anything but happy. "Supposedly, in the beginning, God said 'Let there be light' and there was light. Afterward, he created the heavens and the earth. However, if there was a need for light, originally there must have been darkness. Why darkness? The answer is simple. Before our world there were other worlds. Our universe was not the first created by God. There have been other spheres. How many, I have no idea. The text said others existed, but they were destroyed, either by God or by their inhabitants." "Inhabitants?" asked Myrddin. "People existed before our world?" "Inhabitants, yes," said Zarach. "People, no. God created the denizens of each sphere in his image. However, as God was all encompassing, the forms of those beings were not the same as ours. Not even the substance." "The substance?" repeated Methos. "They were wraiths?" "Those beings who inhabit this plane of existence, this other dimension, have form and shape," said Zarach. "Human and Immortals, we are creatures of flesh and blood. Some say that demons and faeries when they manifest themselves take on physical form as well. Burt the inhabitants of the Dream, creations of psychic energies, and wraiths, spirits of the dead, just have tangible presences on our world. According with the Book of Enoch, this fact was not always true for those spheres of reality that existed before our own." "You are talking about the broken spheres," Aylon said softly. "That is the name given to those earlier universes," said Zarach. "For though they were destroyed, nothing created by God and thus touched by his presence can be totally annihilated. Fragments of those other realities still exist outside our universe. And dwelling on them are creatures totally alien to our dimension." "I am beginning to have a very bad feeling about this story," said Methos. "The news," Zarach answered, his features drawn, "is worse than you can image. If we are going to believe the Book of Enoch, our reality and those broken spheres just intersect by way of the Dream. The universes have no points in common, if not through the Dream. Travel between this world and those that existed, is nearly impossible. But using the proper ritual, an inhabitant from one plane can be transported to another." "I see," Myrddin affirmed sadly. "Lilitu is walking inside the Dream! She is using some kind of tunnels-so to speak-inside the other world. These passages allow her to appear in determinate places at will-or almost." Everybody remained in silence, pondering the weight of the facts. "The fate of the world depends upon us stopping Lilitu," said Methos. "How much time do we have left? If the facts weren't so grim, I think I'd find them amusing." "These beings of the Dream," said Myrddin. "Do they have a name?" "They are the dwellers in the outermost dark," answered Zarach. "They are called the Sheddim." Resting his massive arms on his lap, Aylon leaned forward, his gaze sweeping across those present. "Lilitu will try to bring them into our reality. I don't see where we have much choice. She must be destroyed before she succeeds. And we're the only ones who have any chance of victory." "The odds," said Myrddin dryly, "appear heavily weighed in her favor." "Our position does seem quite desperate," added Methos. "I agree," Aylon spoke again. "Still, we either sit back and wait for the apocalypse, or try our best to prevent it. I'm not the waiting type, never have been, never will be. I plan to kill Lilitu or perish trying." "I always considered terrible odds a challenge," said Myrddin. "I feel the exact same way about desperate situations," said Heru-sa-aset. "Now, what do we know for sure about the Dream?" Myrddin tapped his computer. "As far as I know, the other world is not always open-according to Quetzalcohuatl-not for him, not even for Lilitu," he said after a while. "So, she must retain her physical form somewhere." "In the so-called island of Nod," Methos said. "The Hunters' main stronghold." "Exactly," the Druid agreed. "And how are we going to find such place?" Aylon asked. His gaze was fiery. Obviously, he was eager again to step into the battlefield. Myrddin tapped on his computer again. His fingers flew over the keyboard. "There could be certain places where the Dream is almost constantly open. Over the last five hundred years, as you all know, strange events had occurred in the 'Bermuda or Devil's Triangle'," he said seriously. "It is an imaginary area located off the southeastern Atlantic coast of the United States, which is noted for a high incidence of unexplained losses of ships." "This is great!" Methos said with mocking suspicion. "Are you serious? Now you're going to tell us that we Immortals are aliens, cast away from our original planet as punishment?" "No, I don't know from where you got that bizarre idea," Myrddin said grinning. "What I want to say is that the Dream manifests itself toward certain places in this earth. Countless theories attempting to explain the many disappearances in such spot like the Bermuda Triangle have been offered throughout the history of the area. The most practical seem to be environmental and those citing human error. The majority of disappearances can be attributed to the area's unique environmental features. First, the 'Devil's Triangle' is one of the two places on earth that a magnetic compass does point towards true north. Normally it points toward magnetic north. The difference between the two is known as compass variation. The amount of variation changes by as much as 20 degrees as one circumnavigates the earth. If this compass variation or error is not compensated for, a navigator could find himself far off course and in deep trouble. Miami's Coast Guard is not impressed with supernatural explanations of disasters at sea. It has been their experience that the combined forces of nature and unpredictability of mankind outdo even the most far fetched science fiction scenarios many times each year." "Well, now you're making sense," Methos granted him. "You know what? On second thought, just an idiot would imagine we Immortals came from out-space, I must admit," he added smiling openly this time. Zarach looked at Myrddin. "As always with you, that's not all, right?" Myrddin nodded toward the two-colored eyes Immortal. "The Bermuda Triangle is not the only place on earth that shows these characteristics. An area called the 'Devil's Sea' by Japanese and Filipino seamen, located off the east coast of Japan, also exhibits the same magnetic characteristics. It is also known for its mysterious disappearances. Within this area, say the ancient tales, dragons dwell in undersea palaces, their movements churning up waves even on windless days. Sailors say they have heard strange noises here, while at night, eerie red lights as bright as the sun could be seen shining over the water from hundreds of miles away. Most powerful of all is the dragon king of the Western Sea, Li-Lung, whose underwater palace is splendidly furnished with treasures from ships he has sunk. Legend aside, in the last decades the Dragon's Triangle has continued to claim victims. There are no survivors to tell tales and no identifiable wreckage to examine." "How convenient," Methos said in low tones. "But now you're talking about Godzilla." "Well, yes, it sounds like that, but no," Myrddin said. "My point is, gentlemen, that I think the Dream manifested itself through such places. And that's not all. There are in total twelve 'vertices'-or 'centers' if you will-of magnetic anomalies scattered throughout the world, all of them placed between 36 degrees in both north and south parallels." Myrddin turned his computer and showed them. A detail map showed the twelve points he had referred scattered throughout the earth. "As you can see, one of these vertices is placed very near Eastern Island, in the Pacific Ocean. I have the feeling that the island of Nod is around the area." "That's very near where Corazon Negro and the others will be!" Methos exclaimed in a high tone this time. "I know, but it makes sense," Myrddin affirmed. "Remember the words of Corazon Negro when he felt Lilitu's presence at Connor's house, after the Berserkers attack? He said that Lilitu was in the south." "We can't worry about the others right now," Zarach said closing his eyes. Obviously this wasn't easy for him. "Our main goal is to destroy Lilitu. Let's not forget that. We can only hope that Elena and the MacLeods are skilled warriors and they will defend the Dreamer in his sleep." "What exactly is what Corazon Negro is going to attempt?" Methos asked, his voice unsure. He eyed his companions. "Anyone?" Myrddin deeply sighed. "The way I see it, he is going to open a gate toward the Dream. His soul-I mean his essence, so to speak-is going to enter the other world in order to find Lilitu's fundamental nature, the part of hers that controls the far beyond. I cannot say if the Dreamer is going to destroy her in there, or if he is merely to cast her away from it. But either way, I suspect that afterwards, he is going to close the Dream somehow. That way, Lilitu will be just like us. Without the power of the other world, her own powers will be diminished." "That is if Corazon Negro managed to eradicate her out of the Dream. What if not?" Methos prompted. "In that case, is after us," Zarach declared. His voice was tired. His face was worried. "What if we find the island of Nod and nuke it?" Methos inquired again, his gaze flying over his partners. "Is not as simple as that," Heru-sa-aset announced. "We are carrying six nukes with us. However, we cannot risk that the possibility Lilitu escapes. She could manage to enter the Dream somehow, even with the interference of the Dreamer. As I see it, the only way to be absolutely sure about her death is in the traditional way. We must behead her in person. Nuking the island should be our last resort." "Well, I never planned to get that close," Methos stated grinning. "First things first," Heru-sa-aset finished. "Myrddin, find that clandestine airstrip in Mexico. After we leave the pilot, we should go after Lilitu. In the mean time," he said eyeing his comrades-in arms, "I strongly suggest you, my friends, try to sleep a while. You look like a bunch of old fossils." "Excuse me," Methos answered. "But that's exactly what we are!" ========