Book One.
Along a mountain's edge, in a vast stretch of Arizona desert, a lone figure stood silently in the darkness. She had come out here early to watch the sun rise. Dawn was always her favorite time of day, and she could hear the song of the sun as its light touched the dark landscape.
The wind blew in strong gusts against her face but she did not turn away or close her eyes to the new morning. She was listening, awaiting the message that would soon come.
Her name was Mary, and she was a woman apart.
Apart from her family, apart from her tribe, apart from the rest of the world. She was a child of this land, her mother being a descendent of the first human beings to live among these hills, but her loyalty and love of the earth and its creatures extended far past the Reservation's borders. Something drove her to look further and this set her apart.
Her mother had died many years before, but had left her with an understanding of the land. They would often listen together to the earth, and learn its joys and pains. And, always when they were listening, her mother would be holding onto the cross of her faith, her connection to the next world as much as Mary was her connection to this one.
They had been happy, their little family completed with her father and grandmother, but Mary had always felt she was different from them. She was their daughter, and they loved her, but at times, she felt as if she belonged more to the heavens than the earth.
After her parents died and her grandmother had grown ill, Mary's fascination with the other world had waned, her interests moving quickly to other things, as a child's will. She had been only eleven when the angels found her, but it would be another ten years before she truly understood how she was different, how she was apart.
Now, listening to the dawn, she waited for the voices of the dawn to speak.
Something was wrong, she could feel it in her mind…and in her soul.
Mary… the wind whispered, Mary…
She did not respond, simply listened for the words. The air began to stir, and shadows rolled over the morning sky. The light of the dawn became hidden, but Mary could still feel its light beyond the dark clouds.
Help them...they need you…
Who
Listen…they're crying out…
Who
Everyone…everyone is suffering…
Why
He hates…there is so much hate
He does not know what he's doing…
The time is coming…
One will fall…and rise again…
Mary gasped out of the vision, her sight suddenly filled with an endless flame. It swooped, dropping once to the earth before exploding again into the sky.
She will destroy them all…
As the last words of the vision faded away, Mary fell to her knees in pain. She clutched her head, and realized it was not her own pain she was feeling. It was the cries of others. Cries of the whole world…
After a moment, the pain passed, and before Mary could get to her feet, a second wave hit her harder than the first. Still, she felt no pain of her own, but sensed the pain of the rest of the world. It was different this time, but she could not say why. She simply listened to the suffering of millions…billions, until something caused it to stop abruptly.
Charles woke up, she though then, having no idea who Charles was, He didn't know what he was doing…but she will…
Mary clenched her fists in frustration and ground them into the rough soil.
What did it mean? Why would she have felt the suffering of others? The vision had not been clear, and she listened for some explanation, but received nothing.
Standing slowly, she dusted the dirt off of her jeans and sighed as she walked back to her car. She sat inside for a moment silently before starting the engine. She would have to meditate on the vision tonight. She just wished they would have shown her a little more.
As she drove away, she absently turned on the radio, and was startled to hear the harsh ringing of the Emergency Broadcast signal. She pulled over quickly and waited to hear what was happening. The thoughts of her vision gave way to more immediate concerns as a voice suddenly broke in over the harsh signal.
"This is the National Emergency Broadcast System," a man's voice said calmly, "This is not a test. Repeat, this is not a test…"
Could there have been an earthquake? She wondered, digging in her bag for her cell phone, I hope there's nothing wrong at the dam. I'll call Eli in town, he'll know…
"Due to the sudden and unexplained phenomenon that incapacitated much of the country just a few minutes ago, all state and government offices have declared a state of emergency. I repeat, due to the sudden attacks that seem to have affected most of the population, the United States of America has been placed on high alert. Officials are insisting that everyone stay in their homes until the source of the attacks is identified…"
Mary sat in cold silence as she listened to the man's urgent voice.
Attacks? she thought, with a shiver, remembering the pain she had heard less than ten minutes before, But, it was a vision, they're never real…
She will destroy them all…
The voice rang clearly in her head. She had not heard a calling so clear since…since the angels had spoken to her.
Ten years earlier, the angels had come to her town looking for something, something she had been given to hide, and their voices had rung in her mind like songs. Now, the songs had changed from hopeful…to fearful…
"It wasn't a vision," she said finally, "It wasn't a vision at all, was it?"
Without another thought, she slammed her car into gear and drove quickly into town. Whatever had happened to the world, she had felt it, watched it happened.
But, for some reason...it had not happened to her.