Crazed Jedi Wannabe

Jason Blaire slouched lower into an aged rocker, lost in the lethargic motion of the chair. Apathy was his faithful companion during those dreary costal days. Only Jason and his chair occupied the dim room, yet both seemed constrained by the bare walls that held them. A window looking out before him and a trapdoor leading down behind him, these were the only breaks in the room’s bland symmetry.

Water flowed down the cracked windowpane. If Jason had bothered to look up, he might have watched rain wash across the stretch of roof visible just beyond the loft window. The interlocking slats almost resembled scales of a decrepit reptile. The entire house—a two-story shack would be closer to the truth—sat on the ocean shore, set on stilts so an exceptionally high tide would not sneak in and dampen the kitchen.

Rain splashed against the roof, yet the steady clatter failed to drown out the irritating creak in the old chair. The young man slumped farther down the skeletal frame and glared at the textbook propped in his lap. The musty loft of his family’s beach house was certainly not where Jason wanted to spend spring break alone. An ill-kept shanty stuck on a barren strip of the North Pacific coastline was far from the ideal vacation retreat.

Repressing a groan, Jason snapped the weighty text closed, then dropped it to the floor with a satisfying ‘whomp’ that sent dust fleeing in all directions. As far as he was concerned, homework was the worst possible thing a person could do with vacation time, but the house had little else to offer. It was amazing this shack had running water. Jason loathed it all.

Yet here he sat, as if he had no choice in the matter. For weeks Jason had stood by helplessly while his emotions raged in turmoil beyond his control. Feeling detached from his own soul, he watched as dear friends were pushed away and family shut out by a relentless, unbridled anger. This rage acted of its own accord, leaving Jason feeling like a bystander, passively observing his own breakdown. Even his college sweetheart, Jamie, had left him.

Just three days ago it was, but it may as well have been three decades. He remembered feeling paralyzed as she walked away, the image of violent sobs wracking her shoulders burned into his mind as she faded into the shadows of dusk. A small part of Jason screamed in anguish, knowing he had caused Jamie such sorrow. The rest of him, however, did not care in the least. Yet as lost as he was in the black fog of grief, the quite prompting of his soul had been strong enough to move him. Take the trip, it said. Honor Mom’s wishes.

Jason rose stiffly and moved to the window. He stood silently, wearing the same jeans and grey sweatshirt from yesterday, his unkempt mop of wavy copper hair much more unruly than usual. Stare as he might, there was no ocean to be seen this day, only the hazy grey of sea-clouds and rain. Jason did not mind; any beauty would only aggravate him, a reminder of what was forever lost.

Weeks before the disease struck, plans were made to visit Mom’s childhood retreat, a lonely beach house that had been in the family for decades. As spring break approached, Jason had wanted nothing more than to party until his brains and guts were both indiscernible puddles on a bar room floor. Yet the small voice of his conscious railed against those cowardly thoughts. A sense of honor being the sole survivor of his tattered humanity, Jason instead packed up his homework and drove hard for two days until he arrived at the little shack.

Days crept by, and yet Jason’s demeanor did not improve. Still confused by his own determination in coming he resolved to at least be productive. Thus grey days were filled in study, and meals comprised of canned soup found in the pantry. As long as he ignored the fact that the slugde in those cans was older than he, it was not really that terrible.

Gripping the splintered wood of the windowsill, Jason willed the dark emotions to flow out of his soul, but to no avail. The injustice of death refused to allow him peace.

One day healthy, the next day a lifeless corpse. Jason mulled over the last image he had of his mother, cold as the metal table she laid on, only the crusted soles of her feet visible from under the white sheet.

Turning from the window, Jason ambled back to the rocker. He scooped the book up, then thought better of it and returned it to the floor. Grey shadows crept into his soul and sapped away his strength. Jason exhaled slowly, as if breathing was a chore.

 

In another realm, massive black wings stirred.

Back and forth the chair rocked, propelled by Jason’s foot moving to an internal rhythm both slow and mournful.

 

White eyes swam through a sea of black, leaving a luminous glow in their wake.

Jason’s rage—always lurking inside—suddenly roared to life, engulfing all other emotions. Nothing would have saved her, and that helpless, panicked void he felt the night she died still lingered, but now it only fed his anger.

 

A sword was loosed, freeing a blade older than the world.

Jaw clenched, Jason sat rigidly and allowed the torrents of emotion to burn within him. His mother was dead. The woman who had selflessly given him life and love had been taken away. Death did more than sting, death stabbed his heart repeatedly, until there was nothing left. Jason recalled the pain he saw in his father’s eyes the day they scattered her ashes to the wind, pain that was mirrored in his heart, but so intense it clawed out through his eyes and stained his tears with blood. He knew intimately the injustice of—

In the instant of that memory, Jason Blaire suddenly vanished.

 

Jason opened his eyes to see the same drafty room he had been sitting in for hours.

Except now it was completely different.

The atmosphere was darker, blotted by a hazy smog wherever Jason looked. Even more unnerving was the color or—as Jason realized—the complete lack thereof. It was not quite a world of grayscale, but the colors were painfully muted, as if afraid to show themselves for fear of total extinction.

This is a seriously disturbing dream, thought Jason. I just wish I could remember falling asleep. He rose and peered out the window. The rain had ceased, giving Jason a clear view. Not even the coastal clouds remained, which was especially odd as the sun seemed to be obscured. It still hung there, but so dim Jason could stare directly into it. Returning his gaze downward, Jason froze as he realized something was dreadfully missing from this picture.

The ocean was gone.

Scrambling down from the loft, Jason wondered at his own movements. I hate running in dreams, it always feels like treading jell-O. But here I am moving faster than I ever could while awake. Feels like I might be able to fly if I jumped high enough.

Clumps of saw grass poking through the sand whipped past as Jason burst from the shack and sprinted for the shore. A magnificent canyon of rock and sand stretched before him, spanning countless miles. Jason stood limply, overcome with awe. He knew waves should be caressing his feet as the blue ocean churned far as the eye could see, but while all else was in place, the water was quite missing.

“Quite wonderful, is it not?” asked rich voice from behind. Jason spun to face it and would have fled from what he saw, but ended up cursing his legs for refusing to do anything but quiver slightly. On a small rise not 20 feet away stood a huge figure. While clearly humanoid, it was easily twice Jason’s height and at least three times as thick. Pure ivory armor covered its torso, arms, and legs, seeming to be sprouting from the creature instead of simply adorning it. Plates overlapped and curled outward into ornate spikes at every joint. The head was hairless and resembled a man’s, yet the features were elongated and sharpened beyond any human form.

Jason barely noticed these details, captivated as he was with the creature’s more prominent features. The eyes watching Jason were glowing black orbs that cast a dark azure hue over the pale skin surrounding them. It never blinked, or even had eyelids for that matter. Yet before Jason could become lost in the dark tide of the creatures gaze, he perceived an even more remarkable quality. Draped around the strange being like a royal cape were a set of enormous metallic wings. Fashioned after those of a bird of prey yet shimmering like some organic metal, Jason could hardly image how the creature stood upright with such a weight on its back. The titan looked quizzically at Jason.

“Your kind does not often come here, human.” It glanced back to the beach house. “You belong on the other side of the veil, safe from the dangers of this place. You are most unsafe here.”

Jason finally managed to snap his jaw shut and breathed deeply, calming his racing heart. He had never experienced a dream like this, so solid and terrifying he wondered if he had been hit on the head and this was the hallucinated twitching of an injured mind. Then a comforting thought came to him. He recalled that whenever he discovered he was dreaming in the past, he gained control of that dream. Jason determined that as long as he knew this to be a dream, it could not frighten him. If this was a hallucination, it could not hurt him. Might as well play along, he decided.

Yet with all these reassurances, Jason could not dispel a nagging doubt that something was wrong.

Collecting himself and turned confidently to fully face the creature, Jason spoke. “Who are you, and what is this place, and what is going on?”

Jason winced inwardly as his words tumbled out in a rush. So much for presenting a smooth front. Dream or no, Jason had not felt this alive and jittery since…before. As much as he wanted to face this monster from his psyche with cool indifference, apathy no longer chained his emotions down. This excitement was going to take some getting used to.

A low hum rumbled from the winged being. It seemed amused. “You know not what you ask, and even if I did have all the answers, the telling would take many cycles. What I will tell you is that I am Allion, and I am of the Nephilim. My brothers and I inhabit this realm that overlooks your own and although we cannot directly influence your world, we do assist mankind when they allow us.

“As for your presence here, I am myself curious. The most powerful Nephilim can cross to your world briefly, although I have never known of a human crossing into this place. I suggest you go back by whatever way you came. You have no power here, and will surely fall if the Seraphim find you.”

Jason backed up a pace. This dream seemed determined to terrify him, but his curiosity overcame fear. “Who are these Seraphim, and why would they hurt me? And besides the fact that you haven’t so far, how do I know you won’t hurt me?” The fact that he was seriously considering getting hurt disturbed Jason more than a little. He knew no one was ever truly hurt in their dreams, but he was not convinced those rules applied here. Jason only hoped that wherever ‘here’ was ended up being in his head.

“Seraphim are the brothers of Nephilim.” Allion flexed his wings, sending a current of air rippling past Jason. “They are also our enemy. They want to enslave humans; we want humans to be free to do what they will. That is why I will not hurt you. However, Seraphim are like me in stature. They would crush you.”

Allion abruptly stopped, as if struck by an unexpected thought. Before Jason fully realized it had moved, Allion suddenly hovered above Jason, massive wings slowly undulating, sending sand swirling all around. It stretched out its hand— a hand Jason noticed was very thin and delicate—and offered it to Jason. “Come with me, Son of Earth, and I will take you to the Nameless One. He can show you the way to be free.”

“Hold on. Where are we going?” Jason stepped back. He was not sure why he hesitated, except his inability to shake an uneasy quaver in the back of his mind was making him wary. Then again, outrunning this thing towering over him was not an option.

“Can you at least tell me who this ‘Nameless One’ is? Trusting a guy with no name is not something I generally do.” Jason could hardly believe how flippant he was, but it was either that or screaming like a little girl.

“You are right to be wary, True Son,” a new voice rolled across the shore with the strength of the waves that should have been.

Allion shot upwards as Jason turned in search of the source. He did not have to search long.

Down from the north flew a new figure traveling with fantastic speed. Straight into Allion the intruder soared; a blast of energy announced the titans’ clash. As the glare from the explosion faded, Jason watched a flurry of wings and blades spun through the sky.

The intruder was similar in stature to Allion, but wore armor the color of spilled blood. No plates or horns but instead one flowing piece of red metal that melded with its wearer’s movements encased it. Jason could not tell which had the upper hand, when as suddenly as it started, the battle was over as both creatures crashed down, landing heavily on their feet, with Jason in between them.

Jason quickly decided moving was not the best course of action. The newcomer was even taller than Allion, towering almost 10 feet above Jason’s head. He watched apprehensively as the giants glared at each other, straining as if some invisible force was holding them back.

“You thought to defeat me?” Allion growled to intruder. “You should know the rules do not allow for that.”

The creature in red shook its head. “I did not need to defeat you, only to stop you so I could get to the boy. The rules allow for that, I believe.”

Turning to Allion, Jason shouted, “Hey, down here for a moment, please.” Again with the smart mouth, but at least he could talk without stuttering in terror. “Allion, is this a Seraphim?”

“Yes, Son of Earth, it seeks to destroy you.” Allion relaxed and slid a serrated broadsword into a slot in its armor Jason had not noticed. “Only my presence here forestalls this.”

“Silence, Fallen One,” the Seraphim commanded. “You have lied enough for one day.” When it moved towards him, Jason realized the Seraphim’s wings were formed, not of matter, but instead waves of shimmering, golden light. Its face resembled Allion’s, with the exception of the eyes. The Seraphim’s eyes were pure white stars burning fiercely outward, illuminating the very air around them.

As those blazing orbs met his own eyes, Jason’s stomach froze into a block of icy fear. Those eyes spoke of a million sunsets come and gone, countless battles won and lost, and a single purpose beyond anything Jason could fathom. Within it was intelligence, power, a life so alien Jason knew his own feeble mind was incapable of creating such a wonder.

Just as the fear had nearly consumed him, an angry flame awoke in his heart. Several hours before, Jason would have been happy to die, overwhelmed with the hopelessness of life. Yet now the anger at the injustice of death flared again, and Jason realized he did not want to die. His family waited for his return; they needed him, and he had a responsibility to them now that their mother was gone. Whatever this nightmare was, he was not going to cower and tremble until a monster obliterated him.

Jason looked up into the blinding eyes of the Seraphim, matching their intensity with the heat of his own anger.

“What do you want with me?” he asked with quiet determination.

The Seraphim bowed its head. “I wish to guide you toward your path, and aid you in walking it, if you will let me. My name is Talahas, and I serve El. He brought you to this place because a rule was broken, and you are to be his instrument for justice.

“What did I tell you, my friend?” Allion gave a regal shake of his head. “The Seraphim pretends to seek your aid, but beware, he only desires your servitude, same as he does for your whole race. I see you long to make a difference, to have a purpose and fight injustice. How can you do this as the slave to another? Find your own true nature, define your truth, and fight your battles with hesitation or dependence on another.”

Jason sneered at Talahas. “He’s right. I have no reason to trust either of you. I don’t belong here, and I certainly don’t want to be here. If this is to be my grave, bring it on, but I will be no one’s pawn.”

Jason wished he felt as bold as his words. Then again, he was too angry to care. If some higher power had brought him here, Jason had no intension of rolling over and playing nice. He would not accept ‘help’ from either of these monsters; he was truly on his own.

Talahas stretched out his hand towards Jason—much as Allion had—sending ripples running through the armor. “Do you know why there is no water here? Water is El’s gift to mankind, and is found nowhere else in the universe. That is fine with the Nephilim, for they are the Fallen, and El’s wings were stripped from them when they rejected Him. When our kind still walked with man, the great floods came. The Seraphim left earth, and El sent us here to watch mankind from this mirror dimension and guard them against the Nephilim powerful enough to construct their own wings. Nephilim without the strength to fly perished in the waters.

“Now we wage war against each other until the First Son returns to earth at the end of time. The rules of El forbid direct conflict between our kind and men; only from this shadow realm can we battle over the souls of men. However, rules can be broken. For instance, you were born with a special purpose. The Nephilim did no understand the purpose, nor did they care. You were a threat, but they could not touch you, as El decreed that you and your mother be untouched by their evil until your time had come. The Nephilim defied El. Allow me to show you the truth of her death.

At Talahas’ mention of his mother, Jason’s anger drained from him, leaving him standing numbly, eyes wide as Talahas touched his forehead with a delicate golden finger. In Jason’s mind a vision blossomed. He saw his mother, chopping carrots in the kitchen, unaware of three red-clad Seraphim surrounding her. Catching movement in the corner of his vision, Jason spun to see a creature in ebony plate armor and wings blacker than death pass fully through the wall, an ornate and wicked-looking lance held high. Faster than thought the Seraphim rushed in, blazing weapons scything towards the intruder. Before they could reach it, the dark warrior deftly banked and side-armed the spear through a gap in their ranks.

Jason screamed silently as the lance pierced his mother’s head. The lance left no mark, ethereally passing through her just as the demon had slid through the wall. Looking back at her assailant, he beheld black eyes set in a scaled, reptilian face. Its triumphant smile displayed rows of bloodied fangs. This was the truth of the Nephilim.

Suddenly the monster vanished, cut into smoking ribbons by the enraged Seraphim. Their fury was fueled by the knowledge the woman was lost; in a day she would be dead as the Nephilim disease ravaged her body.

The images faded, and Jason found himself kneeling in front of a puddle of vomit. His vomit. Talahas looked upon him, and Jason wondered if it was compassion written on the creature’s face. Gracefully, the great being knelt beside the young man. Allion started forward, but a menacing flash from Talahas’ eyes stopped the Nephilim short.

“Thus the Nephilim broke the command of El,” Talahas said. “They thought themselves victorious, overcoming El’s edict. Always have they been short-sighted. By breaking a rule, they have invoked the consequences.

“Vengeance is El’s, and He has granted it to you. You were brought here to see the truth and understand your gift. You are a True Son, bought by the same blood that runs through my armor. In your world, you have been given authority over this realm to call on the Seraphim for aid, and to attack the Nephilim directly.

“Nephilim move in the shadows, hiding in deceit. Their master—who lost his name when he was cast down in the beginning of things—is the prince of all untruths. But shadows can no longer conceal him from you.”

Jason sensed Allion before he saw the Nephilim charging. Diving sideways, he felt the frozen heat of the creature’s sword pass over him. Landing several feet away, Jason heard the impact of the sword ringing off Talahas’ armor. The force must have been tremendous, for when Jason looked up, he saw Talahas’ body spiraling raggedly down the oceanic chasm and out of sight.

Scrambling up, Jason watched Allion’s fair features melt away to revealed a black-scaled horror. The ivory armor shimmered, burning and cracking; a black-charred remnant of the white plates remained, now all harsh angles and gruesome spikes. The Nephilim hung in the air a dozen yards from Jason, taunting him.

“You may have power in your world,” the demon shrieked, “but here I can destroy you before you ever return. I had thought to take you to the Nameless One so that he might convince you about the truth of El and the bondage He demands. It would have been delicious, using El’s own instrument against him, after we claim your soul for our cause.

“But now I see no chance for that, so I will finish what my brothers started the night they destroyed your pitiful mother. She was such a slave to El, we knew if we wanted to take you, she would interfere. So we removed her, leaving you quite vulnerable. Of course, I did not think El stupid enough to deliver you into our waiting arms. He must hate you, and yet I see in your mind that you would serve him. So strange.

“Now die!”

With that, Allion dove towards Jason, broadsword extended to split the young man in two. In the second before he would be cleaved apart, Jason had a decision to make.

Looks like I either die now or serve this ‘El’ and fight, he thought grimly. Suddenly the anger ignited in his heart again, so intense that all apathy, indifference, and fear were incinerated. I will not die quietly by the hands of the beasts that killed my mother. If I have given authority, I will use it to avenge her sevenfold against them!

El, I accept! Oh, and a rescue now would be just great, by the way! Jason wondered if screaming like a girl was preferable to being flippant with a higher power. He should not have worried. Before his last thought had fully formed, a sword forged of lightning more than metal shot out to intercept Allion’s strike.

Talahas stood before Jason, a living red wall between the boy and Allion’s evil. The Seraphim’s blade twirled through an infinity loop, leaving its opponent no hope of gauging the angle of attack. Allion heaved his serrated sword with terrifying power, but Talahas caught the great blade with his own, turning it aside without losing momentum.

Then lightning struck back as Talahas’ blade flashed out. Allion suddenly realized he had no sword—and no arm. Howling in anguish, he cast off for the sky without a backward glance.

Talahas did not pursue. “You have seen what you were meant to see, Jason Blaire. You will return to your world now. Use your gift well, as there has never been one like it.

“Thank you.” Jason was breathing heavily, adrenaline still pumping madly through him. “Will I see you again?”

A smile crossed Talahas’ face, the light of his eyes growing brighter for a moment. “I expect you will see me quite often.”

“Now, farewell.”

 

Jason’s body returned to his world with a jolt. He sat in the rocker with closed eyes, relieved to hear the sound of rain still pouring down. Perhaps it really had been a dream, he thought. Nothing felt different.

Jason opened his eyes.

He saw the truth. The world around him was darker, colors less defined, the air felt heavier. Outside the window waves crashed, the brilliant blue of the water shone like a beacon in the night to Jason’s new eyes. Earth was the same, but his vision existed in two realms now.

Jason jumped out of his chair when he realized he could see Talahas standing in the room with him. The Seraphim nodded in response to Jason’s wide-eyed gaze, and then pointed to a corner of the loft. Jason surveyed the shadows in that corner, and was hardly surprised to see a dark form looming there. Anger flared as Jason strode right up to the creature. His head barely reached its chest.

Jason looked back at Talahas, revelation dawning. The Seraphim was joined with him now; Jason could feel Talahas in his mind. He understood the gift and embraced it, letting it merge with his anger.

Nephilim, Jason spoke in his mind, look at me. The Nephilim did indeed look down, shock etched on its reptilian countenance. Yes, I can see you, hiding. I can see all of you, and I am not afraid. I am a True Son, and authority has been given to me by El. Now be gone!

The effect was far beyond what Jason could have hoped. It was as if a passing tornado had caught the Nephilim and refused to let go. It was blown back through the wall, struck by a force beyond anything it could rival. It was miles above the surface of Saturn before the beast could arrest its own tumbling flight.

Jason offered a small grin to Talahas.

“It has begun.”