Eclipse: the Beginning
Epilogue

In the Ancient Forest, Samuel, Seraph, and Celestial came bearing a bundle carried gingerly in the god’s arms. Their faces were solemn as they walked among the trees. This was yet another one of Samuel’s wishes they were following. This time, all of them had agreed on it from the beginning.

Seraph and Alma had explained the customary burial of Western Wind. It was a ritual of releasing the spirit and light back to the elements, so they could be reborn. Celestial had mentioned that each province had their own ritual to protect the spirit from being consumed by Darkness. Before Heaven’s army destroyed the Hive, Winds would bring their dead to the temple to perform the ceremonial burial, but the practice had become less formal in the last twenty years. Samuel felt this added to the injuries that weakened Western morale, and he aimed to change that now.

“Here,” the young man spoke up at last. The trio paused in front of a tree. The roots were so large that there was space for someone small to hide from view beneath them. Seraph walked up to that particular spot and set the bundle down gently.

“Alma said we had to lay the body under the roots, right?”

“Yes,” Celestial answered, “apparently, the sacred tree had several places where the dead could lie under the roots in the earth without digging into it.” S~ᴇaʀᴄh the FɪndNovᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Well,” Seraph stood to back up toward them again, “Avan was an old tree. I have yet to see anything like that in the forest, but that is close. Let’s hope this works.”

“It will,” Samuel breathed as he walked past Seraph, raising a hand to touch the trunk of the tree. “These trees came from the same place as Avon. They’re just a bit younger.”

“You looked into this more than you let on,” the former captain said with suspicion. “Why did you really want to have the rite done here, Samuel? There are plenty of trees around Mt. Aion, and these days they bury the dead under the roots of ordinary trees.”

“These trees are the only ones that talk back.”

Celestial and Seraph stared at one another. What did that mean? Did Samuel’s powers let him talk to trees now? They had originally agreed to this because they believed Grandmother Wingie deserved to be buried as her ancestors. They thought Samuel had been like-minded, but now, it seemed he had alternative motives for using this specific forest.

“Hello again,” Samuel said with a sad smile. He was talking to the tree, making the Light and Wind gape with concern. Was he losing his mind? “I have a favor to ask of you and your family here in this forest. The woman we have laid at your roots was a dear person to us. Though she passed peacefully, I need to know she will be taken care of on the way to her next life or however it works here. That’s why we came to you.

“I know of the Wind burial ritual. Your ancestor, Avan, used to carry it out. Any tree has been acceptable since she perished, but I need to see with my eyes if I am worthy of saving this world. You can help me with that. I need you to begin the sacred Wind burial in the place of your predecessor. Return not only people of Wind to the elements, but I want you to take anyone who comes to this forest seeking that rite. Keep them safe and guide them to wherever Destiny takes them. Can you do that for me?”

There was silence for a while. No one moved. Samuel had thanked the trees before. Maybe there was a method to the strange behavior. If these trees were the same as Avan from the Hive, they should be able to do the ritual just fine. Why was Samuel asking them to take anyone, though? He was confusing his companions. Wind burials were for people of Wind, right?

The roots near the bundled form moved. The trio watched them lift, letting the body slip into the earth, and then replacing themselves back where they had been. Samuel leaned his forehead against the trunk, gripping the bark with both hands.

“Please … work ….”

“Samuel, what are you hoping will happen?” Seraph asked with concern. “It worked perfectly. They accepted the task. What are you worried about?”

“I have to know,” he said in a sad voice. “I have to know her spirit will go somewhere … I have to know!”

“Of course, she will. We told you the spirits return to the elements,” Celestial groaned. That was why they came out here? Had he stopped listening again?

“You don’t understand!” Seraph and Celestial flinched as the young man barked back at them. He had never used that tone with them, and it shocked them that he could hold such authority in his voice. “In my world, we don’t know for sure what happens when we die! Some believe there are places set aside for the good and the bad in an afterlife. Others say all go to the same place. Still more think there is a cycle of rebirth until a spirit has learned enough to attain a higher existence. The rest believe when you die there is nothing … you cease to exist!

“When I first came to Aurora, I thought this was an afterlife,” his voice cracked as he thought back to that day over a month ago. “After that bullet struck me, I faded away. I thought, ‘This is it, like sleeping and never waking up.’ Then, I woke in Grandmother Wingie’s home and I panicked! I didn’t understand how I could fade away and not at the same time! That’s why I have to know if the tree will release the spirit through it or not! I … need to know!”

Of all the things Seraph and Celestial had heard Samuel tell them about his world, nothing crushed them as much this. He came from a world plagued with strife and struggle. All the conflict seemed to boil down to differing ideas and opinions. The more they heard about it, the more they appreciated Aurora – even in her current state. At least their fight was for balance, not justifying themselves. None of them wanted to take this quest in the beginning, but now they saw how much it would better themselves and their world.

Seraph, once searching for his lost father, was now seeking answers to who he was and the unknown legacy left to him.

Celestial, once searching for the owner to the blade that captivated her mind and spirit, was now learning where her goals lay for herself.

Samuel, once searching for a place to belong, was now a symbol of hope in a world that was so simple yet so complex. It forced him to question everything he had ever known about the world, and it opened his mind enough to see there was more to him than his odd eyes. It was a terrifying experience, but if he were to proceed, he had to learn to let go of the laws of his Earth.

Samuel felt two forms beside him, touching the tree trunk. Seraph and Celestial were trying to support him, but how could they? Celestial hummed softly and a breeze kicked up around them. Just when Samuel was about to question their actions, he felt that presence from Boaz’ room. It was heavy and light, thick and thin, dominate and gentle. His eyes rolled back inside his head as a vision came to him.

Everything was black in the nothingness. Instead of standing though, Samuel felt as if he were floating. What was going on? That was when he sensed other presences around him. It reminded him of when he could feel that Seraph or Celestial were around, only there were many, many more. They were all floating with him. He thought about trying to look around, but why should he do that? It was always dark in these visions – if he could even call them that.

It is dark, isn’t it?

The idea came to him almost as if something were leaving thoughts in his head, not verbal speech or words. He thought about how tranquil it was here. No pain, no suffering, no fears, just peace. Why peace, though?

Feel the embrace, don’t you?

Again the thought dropped in his mind. He felt as if something was holding him. He felt safe. It was like an infant within their mother’s womb, waiting to be born. Wait, was this where the spirits were in Aurora? Was this what the mystics had meant by the waiting to be reborn? Now that he thought about it, it was like his dreams of Mother back on Earth. If this was the afterlife or limbo of Aurora, he could rest easier, knowing Grandmother Wingie would experience this.

“Sleep well,” he whispered, “all of you.”

“Samuel?” Seraph’s voice echoed as the young man returned to them. “Are you all right?”

“I am now.” He had to wipe a few tears away from his cheeks. He must have been crying during the vision.

“What happened?” Celestial frowned at the tears. What had he experienced this time?

“It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever felt. They truly are waiting to be born, and it seems someone or something looks over them. If that is where we go, I don’t mind moving forward. There is a point.”

The two smiled back at him. It seemed this was less about closure for their fallen friend than knowing if there were such a thing as a rebirth. They wondered if Samuel had been one of those individuals on Earth who believed there was nothing after death. If so, the relief in his smile told them he did not believe that anymore. A smile suited the sage better than a frown.

“Well then, thank you again, tree. I must be off, though. I promised to train after we rescued Grandmother Wingie and I don’t plan on cutting class. See you next time, my friends!” He turned to head back the way they had come.

“W-Wait for us, Samuel! Warn us when you’re going to do something!” Seraph called for Cherub to scoop the Nomad up off the ground. Samuel laughed, holding on tightly to the staff.

“You two are hopeless. I hope you know that.” Celestial mumbled as she crossed her arms and walked at her own pace behind them. She had a feeling she would pass them at some point, though. “I’ll keep them out of trouble as best I can, Grandmother Wingie.”

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