Shocked right out of her grief, Tory became preoccupied with trying to recall how to decipher the images the ancient tool had provided. ‘It’s been so long,’ she sniffled and sat forward in her seat to focus on the triangle featured in the centre of the arrangement. The image of her two beautiful newborns, just as she’d left them this morning, brought the tears back to her eyes. ‘The cause of my concern,’ Tory wheezed, recalling what this segment of the Tablet pertained to.
She turned her sights on the lower-left segment of the Tablet where she saw the two angelic beings so radiant and beautiful that they defied imagination. Gathered around the angelic souls were all the human tribes in existence. The various races stood side by side in harmony and unity — Tory got a distinct sense of peace and liberty from the scene. ‘The best that can result of my concern,’ she nodded, sure that that was what this segment decreed. ‘But who are these two divine beings, and what have they to do with my missing babes?’
Perhaps the answer lay in one of the two remaining segments and so Tory looked at the bottom-right section of the Tablet, recalling its meaning. The worst that can result from my concern. In this triangle was an image of the two beasts that had replaced her babes in the nursery, but in the vision the creatures were fully-grown. Hideous and hostile in appearance they hovered over a pile of bloody corpses composed of human mortals of every tribe. From this image Tory perceived feelings of resentment, hatred and fear.
Wishing to escape the dreadful vibration, she raised her sights to divine the meaning of the triangle that crowned the other three at the top of the pyramid. This segment decreed the outcome of Tory’s concern, should no action be taken, and it was a desolate vision that the Tablet foretold. Their beautiful city was being laid to waste by an air and sea attack. Tory gasped, rocketed by the scale of the destruction she beheld, when suddenly the vision overtook her and she was no longer viewing the image, she was zooming down through it.
The streets of the city were littered with the dead and dying remains of the Delphinus, Leonine, Centaur and Falcon breeds, but it was not alien creatures to blame for the carnage this time. All at once, Tory’s perception became stationary. She was in Central Park walking through the fresh kill from the recent battle. Around her were her fellow Chosen Ones, blood-splattered, exhausted and bewildered from the fight. Then looking down at herself, Tory saw that her clothes were stained deep red and the blood of the dying was dripping from her hands.
‘No!’ she cried in anguish. ‘It was my purpose to protect them!’
‘My ignorance shall not be the ruin of mortal man.’ Tory charged out of her bedroom and down the winding hall towards the nursery. She had never run away from a challenge in her life and she was not prepared to crumble in the face of this one. There was some connection between the disappearance of her babes and the fate of the human tribes and she intended to find out what that was. Her children’s souls depended on her solving this conundrum and she would not rest until she had. ‘Focus,’ she instructed herself, mentally mustering her scattered sensibilities.
‘Nin!’ Cadfan, who was outside the nursery consulting with his wife, was obviously surprised and concerned to see the frantic mother heading his way, looking very determined. ‘I think you should be resting,’ he advised.
‘I don’t need rest, Cadfan. What I need is comprehension.’ She did not pause from her course, even though the physician blocked the doorway. Open door. She gave the mental instruction and ducking down she avoided Cadfan and went straight into the nursery, the door manifesting behind her.
The squawking of the creatures that had been constant since Tory had left the room, subsided into whimpers as she entered their line of sight once more. The soft sound the aliens were making caused Tory’s swollen breasts to begin to exude milk, just as they did when her babies were crying to be fed.
‘Goddess no,’ she uttered, crossing her arms across her chest, as she realised what it was they were calling for. She perished the thought of cuddling one of these little beasts to her breast. Everything about them was repulsive, except for their large soulful eyes, which seemed to appeal to one’s compassion. Tory was a bit hard-pressed to be well disposed towards the creatures at present, but she would learn nothing by being hostile.
Obediently, the aliens had stayed inside the cage where they’d been put, but the claws of their arms reached out towards Tory through the glass of their prison.
With a deep inhalation, Tory retreated inside herself to adjust her attitude. She imagined that her children were watching and learning from behind the eyes of the alien creatures, and what she did to these beasts, she did to her own children. Instantly, it was easy to conjure a warm tender smile as she crouched down beside the incubator to get to know the aliens better.
The two creatures responded by smiling also, their extraordinarily small mouths expanding wide to expose their tiny, pointed, razor-sharp teeth.
Tory was a little startled by the discovery and backed away a little: the creatures became immediately saddened, beckoning for her to come closer. Their manner was so cute that Tory felt compelled to oblige. ‘You’re really rather sweet,’ she said reaching out to make contact with their extended claws.
‘Nin?’
The magic of the moment was broken and the alien babes withdrew into the incubator, hissing and snarling.
‘Damn it.’ She turned to confront Noah.
‘I am so sorry, Nin.’ He bowed his head in apology. ‘But I think I have discovered some information that could be useful.’
Tory could never remain mad with anyone — Noah least of all. ‘Come and sit down then.’ Tory moved to a couple of comfortable chairs that she usually used for feeding the babies. ‘Shh!’ she instructed the two squawking beasts, amazing herself and Noah when the infants fell quiet. ‘Good babies.’ She let them know she was pleased, whereby they started making a sweet contented sound, which was not unlike the cooing of a pigeon.
‘You’ve worked it out already,’ Noah assumed from Tory’s exchange with the creatures.
‘To what do you refer?’ Tory frowned; she’d been too upset to do much reasoning yet.
‘That the Deva youngsters are responding directly to exterior stimuli, not only in an emotional and mental sense, but in a physical sense also.’
‘So you believe they are Devas?’ Tory was most curious to note his choice of words.
‘At first, I was doubtful,’ admitted Noah. ‘As was everyone due to their unsightly appearance … one expects celestial beings to be beautiful beyond compare, right?’
Tory nodded to agree but said nothing to put Noah off his train of thought.
‘But when talking about Devas, one must understand that they have no prior knowledge of any negative concepts or stimuli. They don’t understand anger, fear, ugly! These are human concepts. They would never have experienced anything as dramatic as cold or physical discomfort and because their physical body is so attuned to their mental and emotional bodies, when their mind and feelings react to their scary new physical environment, their physical bodies merely reflect their discomfort and horror.’
Both of Tory’s hands had come to cover her mouth. She was so awestruck and petrified by the implications of the theory, that she barely knew where to begin to repair the damage already done to the Deva babes. ‘If what you say is true, Noah, these infants have to be kept in a completely negative-free environment and not even I have the discipline to be so perfect all the time.’
Noah leant across and embraced both Tory’s hands with his own. ‘The Logos obviously believes that you do, or it would never have left these very special Changelings in your care.’
‘Changelings you say?’ Tory was filled with hope by the suggestion. ‘So you think that my babes are safe and well … where?’
Noah was no spiritual leader, but his scholarly mind could suggest only one possible place. ‘If human babes exchanged for fairy Changelings were raised in Annwn or fairyland, then I would suspect human babes exchanged fo
r Deva babes must be residing in —’
‘Devachan,’ Tory concluded surely. ‘And how does one acquire access to this realm?’
‘Humans cannot,’ Noah advised, his sights turning to the devas. ‘But they might be adept enough to help.’
Tory looked to the two terrified infants who needed loads of tender loving care, comfort and warmth. ‘Stay with me and see me through this?’ Tory conscripted Noah to her cause.
Noah nodded and gave her a reassuring smile. ‘Alien nappies, what a treat!’
The comment actually brought a smile to Tory’s face. ‘They’re not aliens, they are beautiful Devas.’ Tory turned to the babes to pay them the compliment. ‘And they shall be referred to as thus from now on.’
Obviously the creatures greatly approved as their purring increased to a sweet little song that completely delighted their two human carers.
Bathed, and changed into nappies and suits modified to accommodate their tails, Tory settled down to feed one of the baby Devas with breast milk she’d extracted and bottled — as spiritually advanced as she wished to be, she could not bring herself to feed the beings from her breast. She had bundled up the little male in her son’s blanket and cuddled him close as she fed him, paying him compliments and reassuring him that he was wanted and appreciated.
Noah was holding the little female, who was awaiting her mother’s attention. Tory threw a compliment her way now and then, which incited the female Deva to song every time.
‘Is it just me, or are they getting cuter?’
Tory smiled at Noah, thinking that he was joining in on her positive reinforcement exercise.
‘I’m serious … just look at that little guy.’ Noah noted that the boy child Tory was feeding had begun to radiate with light. ‘A bit of warmth, comfort and affection goes a long way it would seem.’
When Tory looked down at the Devas she saw a vague image of one of the beautiful beings who had stood united with the human tribes in one of the Tablet’s visions. ‘The Devas are the saviours and the destroyers.’ she gasped. ‘The potential to be either is within them, and which side of their nature dominates their adult years hinges on their early experiences and education.’
‘That would be the case with all babies, just more so with these two because of their super psychic attributes.’ Noah offered more information. ‘Some esoteric texts suggest that a baby’s soul is only loosely attached to its body when born, and floats in and out of its physical vehicle as it desires. If the child is not nurtured with a loving life experience and the soul is not fully integrated into the body by the age of five or so, then there is little chance that it will ever fully enter its earthly body … unless drawn into it by some cathartic experience later in life.’
‘But the human personification of such a lost soul would have to go through life in a zombie-like state, not questioning its existence, its circumstance or the universal scheme of things,’ Tory theorised, sounding horrified.
‘That explains twenty-first century Gaia,’ commented Noah. ‘I was just as you describe before I met you.’
Tory was vaguely amused by his claim, but did not waver from the topic. ‘So, if nurtured and their soul then becomes fully present in the body, they will take the path of the righteous. They will have contact with the divine within and therefore a greater chance of discovering and following their soul quest.’
‘That’s the theory. As for these two, if each soul remains distanced then only the Goddess knows how that would affect them.’ Noah shuddered to think.
‘I know what effect it would have,’ said Tory. Now, all the segments of the Tablet’s prophecy began to make perfect sense.
This was the connection between the Devas and the mortal tribes that she’d been seeking. If Tory developed all that was good and compassionate in these two beings then they would aid with her soul quest: to liberate the other human tribes from Nefilim domination. But if she ignored their needs, they would turn against all humans and become her greatest adversaries. If the fate of the mortal tribes did not change dramatically for the better, it was not hard to imagine that the tribes might soon rise up against the Nefilim and the Chosen. This would result in the fourth and final vision the Tablet had disclosed.
The awe inspired by the revelations taking place in Tory’s head bordered on fright. The image of the angel disappeared from the little Deva’s face as he picked up on Tory’s erratic emotions, but the being continued to radiate light.
‘Wow, did you see that?’ Noah was very excited by the changes in the Deva.
‘What is going on in here?’
Tory and Noah snapped to attention at the sound of Maelgwn’s voice and the Deva babes took to the air, sensing panic and ill will in the vicinity.
‘Please tell me you’re not nourishing these creatures?’ Maelgwn appealed to his wife.
Tory could tell by the look of disgust on her husband’s face that he would not be well disposed to consider their theory. ‘Maelgwn, we need to talk … elsewhere,’ she appealed calmly, aware that the Devas were perceiving the emotions of all in the room and perhaps beyond.
‘There is nothing to talk about. Those two creatures are going into bio-containment for observation,’ Maelgwn stated firmly.
‘I’m afraid that’s out of the question. They must stay with me.’ Tory’s tone was not harsh and yet not to be reckoned with either. ‘I assume full responsibility for this investigation and these two beings.’
‘Tory!’ Maelgwn was surprised and deeply hurt that she would side against him in this affair. Then her source of inspiration dawned on him and he looked to Noah. ‘What have you been telling her?’
Noah opened his mouth to answer, rather pleased that he’d been asked, but was not given a chance to get a word in. The female Deva that Noah had been holding came to float over the scholar’s head and began snarling at Maelgwn.
‘Those things are out of control and should be contained,’ Maelgwn insisted.
‘It is you who is out of control,’ Tory informed him, on the verge of losing her temper as she had noted that both the Devas had ceased to glow. ‘Our children will do and say things that seem incredible, but despite how outrageous their acts and claims, my advice is that you endeavour to be patient and give them the benefit of the doubt … is that not what Cleo said?’
‘She also told us that there was no cause to fear for our babes!’ He drove home his view. ‘These are no longer our children, Tory. You could well be aiding Avery and Lirathea’s murderers!’
‘They may also be our only means to find the twins.’ she persisted, which frustrated her husband all the more.
‘You should always trust your first instinct, that’s what you always say,’ Maelgwn lectured. ‘Well, your first instinct about our children’s destiny was one of foreboding and that instinct has proven spot on.’
‘It was my own ignorance I feared. That I would not understand their destiny when it came to the crunch, and I damn near didn’t!’ She let her passion run away with her a moment. ‘You were the one who said that whatever is to become of Avery and Lirathea will have been devised by their higher selves to aid their divine purpose!’
Tory’s argument disturbed Maelgwn, for he understood where she was coming from. His wife had become rather adamant about their ability to create their own destiny, and would never concede that this situation could be a case of the Logos enforcing its will upon them to serve its own hidden agenda. ‘What if these creatures are nothing but huge viral parasites? Are you prepared to explain to the parents of the next children they consume why you saw fit to nourish them and keep them at liberty, when you had absolutely no idea what you were dealing with?’
Tory saw the sense of his argument and knew that her defiance would seem like arrogance, but every instinct told her that Maelgwn was wrong and that if he had his way the destructive potential of the Devas would be activated. ‘Please maintain a civil tone, or I must ask you to leave.’ Tory avoided his question and yet her unsaid message
was delivered loud and clear.
Maelgwn fixed his wife with a look of challenge. ‘I will not support you in this, Tory. Even if you’re right, to take the risk with the lives of other people’s children is —’
‘I cannot do as you suggest,’ Tory bellowed out to cut him short. ‘And that is final! I cannot and I will not.’
‘I see.’ Maelgwn reached boiling point and thought it best to take his leave before he said something he’d regret. ‘Well then, as my opinion is obviously of no consequence here, I have a flight I should catch.’ He looked at Noah briefly, showing his disappointment in him, and then back to Tory. ‘You had better pray you are right, my love. I sincerely hope that you are.’ He vanished with no kiss, no fond farewell.
Tory stood dazed and shattered in the wake of his leaving. ‘We’ve never parted on an argument, not for as long as I can remember.’ Tory looked at Noah, who was cowering away in the wake of the confrontation.
‘I never imagined that you two argued, period!’ Noah shook his head in disbelief.
‘We don’t have disagreements often and we’ve never ever slept on one.’ Tory wanted to cry suddenly. ‘I can’t believe he’s going to Nibiru!’
As her tears fell, so the Deva babes began to howl, like wolves at the moon.
‘I feel sure he’ll change his mind.’ Noah, feeling compelled to do something, awkwardly embraced Tory. ‘Come on, Nin, you’re causing your beautiful Devas to make an awful din.’
‘Goddess-damn that man.’ She broke away, suddenly annoyed. ‘He never listens!’
The Devas began to growl with the intensity of a large wildcat.
‘No, I lie,’ Tory confessed and, by so doing, regained control of her sensibilities. She then confronted the two Devas who were learning from the intent of her emotions. ‘He is normally very understanding and fair, and has only acted adversely out of concern for us,’ she informed them. ‘However, by the time he returns we shall have all the answers he craves so desperately. Because we love him above all men and want only to please him and see him happy.’