Chapter 15
Egon was awakened by someone playing with his ponytail. He smiled as he opened his eyes. Before him were the embers of the dying fire. He had fallen asleep and had forgotten to douse it.
Sighing he sat up. He had been dreaming about Eden. She had always woken him up by running her hands through his shoulder length hair.
When Egon had married Eden he had long hair in the front which he wore jelled up but the back had been short. Eden had mentioned to him one day that he might look more distinguished with long hair, all one length, that he could place into a ponytail.
"If you don't like it," she had told him, "you can always go and get it cut. But give it a few months first before you do."
Egon smiled. He had taken Eden up on her suggestion and by the time his daughter was born his hair was just at the top of his shoulders if he let it out of his ponytail. He had been sure that he was going to hate it. He was sure it would get in his way at the University teaching or when he was out on the job with Ray, Peter, and Winston. But surprisingly Egon found it hadn't been a bother. If he placed his hair into a ponytail about one third of the way before the nape of his neck he had found it stayed out of his way. He had attempted to grow his hair longer than his shoulders and found that he didn't like it. It would bother him, or get in his way and away to the barber shop he had gone to have it trimmed back to right above his shoulders.
Again he felt someone going through his hair and turned around. Shocked at who was before him Egon didn't move.
"Hello Sweetheart," the woman dressed in white said to him.
"Eden?!" Egon finally spilled out. "What are you doing here? I released you. Echo released you. What's wrong? Is there something more you need from me?"
"Yes," Eden replied as she squatted down in front of her husband, "there is something that I need from you."
"Anything Eden," Egon replied, "I want for you to be happy where you are. I don't want to have to worry about you hanging about here on earth because of me."
Eden nodded her head. After her death Egon had blamed himself for her untimely passing and had refused to let her soul go. Even Eden's own daughter had held onto her mother in her own way. She had been caught between Earth and Heaven until her family would one day release her. For ten long earth years Eden had sat in limbo not being able to progress but that all changed when her daughter had momentarily died one day in September.
Echo had been sent to her and Eden had explained in the short time that she had what had to be done so that she could move on with her afterlife. Echo had been given a choice that day. She could stay with her mother, or go back with her father on Earth. Eden had explained this to Echo and after understanding what needed to be done Echo had chosen to go back to her father and live. In doing so Echo had been able to set Eden free.
Echo and Egon had released Eden's soul and she had been able to go on to the next level, so to speak, where she had been welcomed by Edison, Egon's father.
"Welcome daughter," Edison told her as he hugged her to his chest.
Eden had been confused.
"Shouldn't I be with my own family, the Parnell's?" she had asked when Edison had released her.
"You can go to them if you want," an older gentleman had told her, "but we really need your help with Egon and Echo right now."
Eden had found out that this gentleman was Eli Spengler. He was Egon's fourth great-grandfather and he seemed to be in charge of the Spengler family here. After Eli had shown Eden what was going to happen in Egon's and Echo's future she had agreed to help in anyway possible. That was why she was here.
"Egon," Eden said taking her hand and placing it on Egon's face, "remember this, I love you."
Egon placed his hand on top of his wife's hand before replying, "Eden, I love you too. What can I do for you?"
"I've been sent to give you a warning," Eden replied as she slowly slid her hand out from under Egon's grasp.
Eli had told her that once she delivered her message she would be called back. There was much work that needed to be done and very little time in which to do it in.
"What is the warning?" Egon asked.
Egon could see that something was troubling his wife. She had that same look in her face the night before she had died. Eden had a secret and it looked as if she was only going to be able to share part of it.
"Egon…," Eden said trailing off and looking around her. She saw that no one was around and turned to lock her eyes upon her husband.
"Egon, they are coming," Eden said in a very serious voice.
A shiver ran down Egon's spine. Eden's voice was low, barely a whisper as she leaned into his ear.
"Professor Tseng has the answer," she said as she started to fade from his view.
Egon saw his wife disappear with only her voice remaining, resonating in the night sky.
"Nokomis' new friend can save us all," Eden's voice said.
Egon woke with a start. It took him a moment to realize that he was in his sleeping bag and not outside by the fire. It was just starting to get light outside as he heard his daughter's voice muttering to herself. Sitting up he strained to listen to Echo.
"Yes, Mother," Echo muttered softly, "I'll tell Father. They are returning from years ago. I love you too."
Egon watched as his daughter rolled over and fell back asleep. So it was a dream he had had about Eden, but it seemed so real to him as he felt his hair longing for his wife's touch. Egon quietly unzipped his sleeping bag and got dressed, placing his hair back into his standard ponytail.
Today was the day that Kane was going to spread his wife's ashes. Unzippering the tent flap Egon slipped through the opening and silently zippered it shut behind him before he headed towards the campfire from last night.
Kane sat before the fire fixing breakfast for his family and Egon knew that he would need help.
"Morning Kane," Egon said as he came up to the older man, "need any help?"
"Morning Son," Kane replied, "and yes, I could always use extra help. You can start with the eggs."
Egon sat down next to Kane and pulled the black Dutch Oven over to him. As he poured the powered egg mixture into the large cast iron pot he struck up a conversation with Kane.
"So," Egon replied as he finished dumping the dry mixture into the pot, "did you sleep well?"
"No," Kane replied as he turned the bacon that was on the upside down lid of the Dutch Oven that sat in the coals of the fire. "I had a strange dream about Lizzie."
"Yeah," Egon said surprised, "I had one about Eden also."
Kane turned to watch Egon pour water into the pot until the egg mixture was moist. As Egon mixed the eggs and water together Kane decided that he could trust him. After all Lizzie didn't say to keep it a secret.
"Egon," Kane said turning his attention back to the bacon he was cooking.
"Yes Kane," Egon replied as he stood up, lifting the Dutch Oven up off the ground to place it into the coals of the fire.
"What do you know about the Book of Revelation?"
"Are you talking about the Bible?"
"Yes."
"Some," Egon replied. "Why?"
Kane sat quietly gathering his thoughts before he spoke again. He knew that Egon wasn't a very religious person and he didn't want to come off sounding like a bible preaching man.
"Lizzie came to me in a dream," Kane finally said. "She said that she had been called back from Earth because she had to help "The Master"."
"Help "The Master"?" Egon questioned as he sat back down on the ground and started to stir the egg mixture. "What did she have to do?"
"Lizzie told me to look up Revelation chapter six and nine. The answers would be there for me."
"And did you?"
"I didn't need to Egon," Kane replied suddenly becoming very quiet.
When Kane spoke again it was barely a whisper, "It talks about the sixth and seventh seals being opened."
Egon stopped stirring the eggs, suddenly very alert. The sixth and seventh seals being opened had to do with the end of the world. Egon knew that the Book of Revelation had a wide variety of interpretations, ranging from good overcoming evil, to complex end of time as we know it scenarios. Turning to Kane he saw that the man's face was rigid. He truly was scared about what Lizzie had said to him in his dream.
"Kane," Egon said quietly, "you know that I'm not a very religious man. The end of the world scenarios have been going on for years. Nothing has happened. I'm the kind of man that looks for scientific explanations first. They explain a lot about life here."
"But what about the life after this one?" Kane questioned. "I know you've been there. So has Echo. What do you consider that?"
Egon fell quiet and returned to stirring the eggs again. He hadn't put much thought into his own death experience. Ray had called it an out of body experience but Egon didn't think that was correct and had told Ray so.
"I truly don't know Kane," Egon finally replied.
"Don't you believe that we all have a soul?" Kane asked turning his face towards his son-in-law.
Egon sighed, "My father would say no, while my mother would say yes. She was the one who was most religious in our family. Katherine was of the Jewish faith, but we never really celebrated any kind of holiday in her faith, only Christmas because that's what everyone else did."
"As for me personally," Egon said as he stopped stirring the eggs, "I didn't really stop and ponder about it until after Eden had died."
"But you work with capturing souls all the time," Kane pointed out, "and placing them…where again?"
"A containment unit," Egon said, "but Kane I don't consider those souls in the containment unit. They are spirits."
"Spirits?" Kane asked, "They are one and the same to me."
"No, there's a big difference to me," Egon replied. "A spirit doesn't inhabit a physical body and as such can influence the will of those around them. Spirits can be loving, helping, and harmless. Or in my case; dangerous, fleeting, hurting, and very powerful. They can be discreet in their haunting often inhabiting places, books, or people."
"A soul on the other hand is the subject of human consciousness and freedom with each one being an individual. This accounts for all the different types of people on earth. For me its another word for self-awareness. Like a concept imagined by human beings to suit their desire to live closer to what some people call a "God"."
"So you don't believe that a soul does not die with the human body?" Kane asked.
"I didn't say that," Egon retorted back, "If that is what you believe in, then I'm not stopping you. Look, just because a concept has been imagined doesn't mean it isn't real. Before gravity was ever confirmed by statistics as a natural law it was imagined in the mind of Isaac Newton first. For me, personally, I need physical proof."
Kane returned to his bacon taking the pieces off of the lid and placing them onto a paper plate while Egon fell back to working with the eggs. After a long moment of silence Kane finally spoke again.
"Egon," Kane said as he rose up from the ground picking up the plate of bacon, "you have had physical proof of a soul twice and still you don't believe."
Egon looked up at Kane and narrowed his eyes at him. What was Kane talking about? He didn't believe that he had ever come into contact with any physical proof of a soul.
"When?" Egon asked Kane as he watched the man walk away from him.
"When you met your father and Eden after they had died," Kane replied.
Egon watched Kane walk over to the pile of blankets that he had set up for the families to eat on. Turning his attention back to the now cooked eggs he heard Kane calling to him.
"Come on Egon," Kane hollowed at him, "you had better get a move on. There are hungry bellies to feed."
Egon smiled. Kane had given him something to think about and just like Lizzie, Kane wouldn't judge Egon about what his final decision would be. Kane had supported his daughter Eden when she had wanted to keep the baby from Ben. Kane may not have liked the circumstances surrounding the baby's conception, but unlike Lizzie's parents, he never disregarded anyone's plea for help. Truly Kane's home was a place of refuge, peace, and immense joy in the people who passed through its doors. Kane may not like Egon's final decision about the difference between a soul and a spirit but Kane would never tell him so to his face, Egon was sure of that.
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Kane's family was gathered in a circle on the top of Survey Peak. A slight breeze was blowing and Echo turned her head so that her hair was billowing off to her left, into the circle. By doing this she was facing her beloved Daniel.
Daniel. What words could she use to describe what he meant to her? Friend? Companion? Soul Mate? "Soon to be her husband," she thought smiling.
Studying Daniel's tanned triangular shaped face, with his warm pale blue eyes and strong jaw line, staring out into the center of the circle Echo knew that she loved him. She had grown to love him over the years that they were together and just like her mother, she was planning on asking Daniel to marry her next month.
Echo reached out and took Daniel's hand into hers. Feeling her hand in his, Daniel turned his face her way. The wind was playing havoc with her hair as she tried to tuck it behind her head with her left hand.
Elbowing Egon, who was standing next to his right side, Daniel took his right hand and reached up and took Echo's hair into his hand. Egon saw what was happening and came behind Daniel to place Echo's hair into a pony tail with a hair band. As he went back to his spot Daniel noticed that Egon's hair was loose now and moving about the man's face. Egon had given up his comfort for his daughter's and Daniel knew that if Egon could move mountains he would do so to make his daughter happy.
Echo silently thanked her father as she turned her attention back to the center of the circle. Manny was standing there. He was the last of the Parnell children to offer his mother their own special farewell. Manny had chosen a poem to read before his mother's ashes were spread to the wind.
Manny had just finished telling everyone gathered there about the last poem that Lizzie had been given. It had been at a dear friend's funeral and the poem had been on the back of the program. Lizzie had tucked it away into her bible where she often kept precious things.
Manny took a deep breath and recited the poem.
Don't think of her as gone away-
Her journey's just begun,
Life holds so many facets-
This earth is only one.
Just think of her as resting
From the sorrows and the tears
In a place of warmth and comfort
Where there are no days and years.
Echo felt Daniel release her hand and place his arm across her shoulders, pulling her close to him. She knew that he was trying to help her through the most difficult part of her life and silently thanked him for being there for her.
Think how she must be wishing
That we could know today
How nothing but our sadness
Can really pass away.
Manny dropped his voice down a notch and finished reciting the poem. His heart was aching at the loss of the only mother he had ever known. This woman who had wanted him when no one else did. It didn't matter what his skin color was or that she was way to old to be raising a child, seeing how his sister Eden was eighteen years older than him at the time. All Lizzie saw was a baby that needed her and she needed him. Lizzie loved him unconditionally and after all wasn't that what a family was all about?
And think of her as living
In the hearts of those she touched…
For nothing loved is ever lost-
And she was loved so much.
Manny finished speaking and slowly made his way back to Sarah who was holding baby Lizzie. Carefully Manny took the baby from Sarah and buried his face into the sweet child's belly as tears fell from his eyes. Sarah couldn't hear her brothers weeping, but put her arm around him nonetheless, pulling him towards her.
"We all loved her," Joseph said standing next to Sarah, "don't forget that Manny."
"Yes," Sarah spoke out for the first time since they had arrived at Survey Peak, "and we love you too," Sarah's voice stuttered.
Kane let his three adoptive children take some personal time before he cleared his throat. After he had everyone's attention he bent down and picked up the medium sized Tupperware at his feet. Before he had left Flagg Ranch Resort he had poured Lizzie's ashes into the bin. Kane had then poured Ruth's ashes on top. Placing the lid on top Kane had been impressed to stop before he sealed it up for the trip up the mountain. Looking up he saw the mason jar sitting on top of the mantle of the fireplace in their home with a picture of Eden next to it.
Kane walked over and picked up the jar filled with dirt. Kane knew that this wasn't just any dirt. It was dirt from the World Trade Center Site. Lizzie had gone everyday to the site when she had been staying with Egon after Eden was killed. Silently, carefully, so that no one saw her, Lizzie had scooped up a handful of dirt and brought it home. She had asked Egon for the pint sized mason jar and he had given it to her without any questions asked. Lizzie had transferred the dirt to the jar and had continued until the jar was filled. When it was time to leave Lizzie had offered the jar to Egon.
"No," Egon told Lizzie pushing the jar that she held out to him back to her chest, "you need this more than I do right now."
Kane rolled the jar around in his hands. How right Egon had been in his statement. Egon had Echo and they had been each other's hope and courage for the lonely days that followed. Lizzie had Kane, but in her heart she had lost another child and it hurt. The jar of dirt had been Lizzie's only tangible thing of her daughter. Kane walked the jar back over to the Tupperware bin nodding his head as he did so. Slowly he had taken the lid off of the jar and poured the contents into the bin. Now the bin held Lizzie, Ruth, and some remains of Eden. Kane couldn't think of a better way to send the three women off that he loved.
Taking the lid off and setting it aside Kane placed his hand into the bin and slowly stirred the ashes and dirt together one last time before he went around the circle offering each of his family a chance, if they wanted, to take and release the ashes into the air. Benjamin's family was first. While Ben silently placed his hand into the bin and gathered a handful of ashes to release them to the wind, some of Ben's children and grandchildren did not. Kane acknowledged them with a nod of his head. It was their choice if they wanted to take part and release the ashes and Kane wasn't going to force anyone if they felt uncomfortable doing so.
Kane silently went to Tommy next as both he and his son took a handful of ashes and held them up to the wind. Slowly releasing the ash as the wind picked it up and carried it east Kane could see a tear in Tommy's eye. Holding the bin tightly with one hand Kane placed his left hand on Tommy's shoulder. Tommy looked into Kane's face and nodded his thanks placing his own left hand onto Kane's before Kane released his grip and continued on.
Sarah was next as Marcus reached into the bin with his wife. Holding her hand above her head Sarah muttered "I love you" as she released the ashes to be caught by the wind.
Joseph's wife helped him reach into the bin for his mother's ashes as all five of his children did the same. Even the three great-grandchildren didn't want to be left out of holding their great-grandmother one last time.
Kane slowly turned towards Egon, Echo, and Daniel. He knew that Egon and Echo would take some of the ashes but he didn't know Daniel well enough to know if he would do the same. Kane had been talking to Daniel late at night after everyone had gone to bed about religion and how it played a role in his life. Daniel had told him that he had been brought up Presbyterian but he was looking for something different. Kane had told him what he believed in and Daniel had come back for more, asking questions that got deeper and deeper into the teachings of the bible.
Egon and Echo reached inside the bin for some ashes. Kane turned to offer Daniel the chance to say no and was surprised when he reached inside and tentatively took a small handful. Opening his palm up so that the wind took a hold of the ashes Daniel could be heard muttering in his native language.
"Adhraim thu," Daniel said as the wind picked up the ashes and sent them into the air.
Egon turned his head Daniel's way and smiled. Daniel had said "I adore you". He wasn't family and as such didn't want to put his feelings out in the open for everyone to see. By saying his feelings in Gaelic Daniel was able to express what he felt for Echo's Grandmother. Egon knew that Kane had mixed the dirt from the World Trade Center Site in with Lizzie's and Ruth's ashes. He also knew that Eden spoke some Gaelic and replied in kind.
"Eden, Graim thu," Egon said as he slowly released the ashes from his fist.
Echo looked across to her father and said to him, "Ni neart go cur le cheile."
Daniel nodded his agreement. "There's strength in unity," Echo had said and how true that statement was. As a team, with a common goal, more could be accomplished than as an individual. Daniel watched as Echo whispered into her fist before she opened it up to the wind. Soon the ash was taken up into the air from Echo's opened palm and Daniel watched as Kane moved onto Manny.
Manny carefully helped the baby reach inside and together they sent some of Lizzie's ashes into the air. Now only Kane was left. Tilting the bin on its side Kane took into his hand the last of the ashes. Setting the bin down onto the ground Kane stood up and raised his hand above his head. Kane waited until the wind started blowing again before he opened his fist and sent the last of his wife and daughter's ashes into the blue of the sky. As the wind carried the last of the ash from his hand Kane said, "I love you Lizzie, Ruth, and Eden."
The wind picked up the ash and carried it up higher and higher into the troposphere where eventually it met the stratosphere. A young woman watched as the ash slowly combined back together to form two personages. Smiling at each other the two personages took a hold of each other's hands and disappeared from the young woman's view.
"There you are," Jack Hardemeyer said.
The young woman turned away from the void as the scene below her misted over. She was angry that Jack had interrupted her time. When she looked into the void it showed her what she desired most and that was a family. Jack wasn't what she considered her family. She didn't like the man the moment that she had met him. She kept to herself and stayed as far away from Lord Vigo and Gozer as she could.
Lord Vigo was known to keep concubines and as a young desirable woman he had taken her before. She had seen those that went against the orders of Lord Vigo murdered before her eyes. Everyone here was enslaved by Lord Vigo and Gozer and they all wanted to be free, but Jack seemed to be working with them.
"What do you want?" she spat at him.
"Lord Vigo has a mission for us," Jack replied stopping before her.
She turned her face away from Jack and slowly stood up. Each time was getting harder and harder for her to do so.
Jack watched as she stood up and faced him, a frown upon her face.
"When are you due?" he questioned her pointing to her round belly.
"What do you care!" she spat back at him and walked away.
Jack silently cursed to himself and turned to follow her. He had forgotten that Lord Vigo kept concubines and that she was probably one of Vigo's "chosen" girls. He knew that not everyone here liked Lord Vigo or Gozer and kept as far away from the two Gods as possible. He had seen one young woman who was pregnant with Vigo's child kill herself. Could this young woman who was walking ahead of him be in the same predicament? Was she pregnant with Lord Vigo's child or had one of the many men that lived here had had their way with her? Did she also want to kill herself?
Living here was hard enough, but to be a girl was even harder. The women usually stuck together so that when they went to take a bath there was someone always on guard. He had only seen her around twice since he had been here. She seemed to stay to herself and Jack had had to search a long time to find her.
Lord Vigo had summoned Jack and told him to find her. They were needed to help Vigo start the revenge on the men that Jack hated the most. Jack followed her back towards Lord Vigo's living quarters. She seemed to know that there was no way out of this and her shoulders slumped forward the further they went. Suddenly Jack felt sorry for the girl but he knew that there was no way out of the orders that Lord Vigo had given him save one. He stopped and his body twitched as he thought about the only way out of the mission. Closing his eyes he pushed the grim image from his mind. He couldn't do that, not until he had his revenge on Doctor Peter Venkman and his friends. Opening his eyes Jack quickly hurried to catch up to the girl and complete the mission.