Compass Call: Survival & Awakening (The Gatekeeper Book 3) (5 page)

“John, we had nowhere else to go. I’m glad you’re prepared. I’m glad you followed whatever impulse you had to prepare, but your actions were unique . . .
you
are unique,” said Pete, and after a short silent pause he added in a whisper, “After reading your journal I think you might be more unique than you realize.”

“You already finished reading my journal?” asked John.

“I did. I finished it last night. It’s quite an interesting story, especially the part about you being in the spirit world, and talking to God,” answered Pete, “but I think there’s more to it, isn’t there?” he asked.

John studied Pete’s face as his friend’s words sank in. He knew Pete well enough to know that his friend wasn’t being skeptical, but he could tell he was curious and interested to hear more. Still, John hesitated to answer because he didn’t know what else to say, or if Pete expected him to say something profound and put everything into context. So much had happened to him during his trip to the spirit world that he needed Pete to be a bit more specific. John decided to wait and see what Pete would say next, so he studied his friend’s face earnestly. Finally, after more than a minute of silence, Pete smiled and said, “I can tell by your look that you don’t know how to reply, but let me say just one more thing, I believe you, John. I believe every word you said in your journal. It’s fantastic, unbelievable and amazing. It’s out of this world insane, but I absolutely believe you.”

“Thanks Pete. And please don’t take offense to what I’m about to say, but I don’t need anyone’s validation. If I lived the rest of my life as the only one believing what I saw and experienced was real, then . . .
well, I’d be fine with it,” whispered John. “I know it’s extreme, but it was real. I know I’m not going crazy. I saw what I saw, and I did what I did. It’s that plain and simple. But I do appreciate your support.”

“Fair enough,” replied Pete, and he turned to look out the window.

John felt stupid for attacking Pete over an insecurity he felt about his experiences and rested a hand on his friends shoulder. “I’m sorry, Pete. It’s just that I . . . well, I guess I do need some validation after all. I’m just tired of having all this information in my head, and not having anyone to talk to about it.” He noticed Pete was about to comment, but then John continued before he could speak. “And yes, I’ve tried talking to Jenna about it, but she’s not interested. She thinks it’s all a bunch of war related stress. But knowing what I know, having no one to talk to about it,
will
drive me crazy. I want to share my story, Pete. I want to talk about it, but Jenna isn’t ready to hear me, or at least she wasn’t,” replied John.

“Why? What happened last night?” asked Pete.

John shared his recent experience and contact with Eli, namely about his dropping in on the biker gang, and seeing the nuclear detonations, before telling him about his spiritual contact with Jenna. The account lacked John’s usual detail, but it was still too fresh, too intimate to share all the details with his friend at the moment. Besides, he would rather write it down and let him read it later.

When John finished talking, it was Pete’s turn to silently study him. After another long moment of silence, Pete said, “Eli came to me too. That must mean something.”

John nodded and said, “Yes, I’m sure it does.”

“John, I want to be a part of it,” said Pete, in an intense whisper as he leaned even closer to John, and tapped his knee with a closed fist. “I want to be a part of what you’re doing. For me, it goes back to realizing that you had a . . . I don’t know what to call it, really . . . an inside source on the disaster. You had access to information that no one else had. Then I’m visited by your grandson and told to prepare for a fight at the overpass. And then I read your incredible journal. I know it’s
no accident that I made it up here. I know I was meant to be here . . . with you, to help you. And I want to help. I want to be a part of your work, whatever that work is. The meeting with Eli changed my life, and reading your journal changed it even more. I’m not the same man I was, John. I’ve been awakened to something new and exciting, and I want to be a part of it,” finished Pete, as he sat up in the chair. He ran a hand over his close-cropped scalp and turned back to the window. After lifting the curtain flap and taking another quick look outside, he sighed and said, while looking out the window, “Sorry. Guess that was a little intense.”

Sunlight streamed in through the window at a sharp angle, blasting the wall behind Pete with a splash of brilliant light. It seemed brighter than usual given their recent days of gray darkness. Pete squinted and said, “I need my sunglasses . . . didn’t think that would be a problem this soon after the eruption.”

“I know where you should start,” replied John.

Pete asked, “What?” as he dropped the flap and turned to face John.

“Where you should start. I know how to start you on your road to spiritual awakening,” answered John. He looked at Pete and asked, “Do you remember the part in my journal where I wrote about traveling through eight gates?”

“Yes.”

“That’s where we should begin . . . with the gates,” said John.

“I understand what you’re saying, but I don’t know how to do that. Do you mean I have to go through what you went through?” asked Pete.

“In a way, yes, but not the same. I think the gates will be enough to get you going. You won’t have to go to hell, but I think . . . no, I know the gates are the way for you to begin your awakening. I can take you through the gates,” said John, excitedly, as he brought his hands together, “And I will be your gatekeeper.”

The two men fell into a relatively lengthy conversation about the gates. During the discussion, John was able to devise a plan for Pete
to travel through the gates as a way for him to begin his awakening process. As John began to deconstruct the gates, he made an interesting realization and went to fetch a copy of the King James Bible. It had been a long time since he opened his Bible, and he wiped dust off the cover as he walked. He remembered the creation story in the Book of Genesis, but he wanted a more accurate reference as it related to his personal experience with the gates. Something about the story and the gates meshed for him.

As John began to highlight the key elements of the creation, he realized the story did align with the gates. The first gate represented the earth as it was first formed, followed by water, or the dividing of the seas from the land. Gate three was fire, which represented the volcanic creation of lands and the prelude to atmosphere, or air, which was gate four. Gate five was life, all life, not just man, but every living thing on the face of the earth. Life, as expressed through man and woman, brought forth an awakening of the physical senses, as in sound, gate six, and sight, or light, gate seven. John knew that sound and light represented more than man’s physical abilities, they also represented intelligence, or a desire for knowledge and self-awareness. Lastly, the eighth gate, the stars, represented man’s interest in God and the heavens.

With the eight gates more easily defined, John used his journal entry to better detail the positive and negative of each gate. He found that each gate had at least one recognizable strength and weakness, or positive and negative attribute. The negative was a distraction to self-mastery and limited growth or hindered the path to enlightenment. The positive, when leveraged against the negative, offered the strength to overcome the distraction and allow progress through the particular gate.

John discovered that the earth gate was about survival and fear; water, was passion and guilt; fire, agency and shame; air, love and grief; life, joy and anger; sound, truth and lies; light, insight and illusion; and the stars, heavenly energy and earthly attachment. The patterns were clear and easy to recognize once he filtered out the visuals,
and he was surprised at their simultaneous simplicity and complexity. They were, in essence, finely balanced steps of mental and emotional progression; a literal gateway to awakening.

They discussed the differences between the traveler’s and the gatekeeper’s roles in the journey through the gates, and both men realized that many of the associative feelings and descriptors needed to successfully pass the gates required a script, or a narrative, as a reference. Though John himself had traveled the gates, he wasn’t entirely confident that he could take Pete through them without the use of notes, so he spent the next hour and a half writing out a rough narrative for each of the eight gates.

While John wrote, Pete left to wake Bonnie for breakfast and said he’d relieve John as soon as he was done. The smell of Marissa’s fresh tortillas filled the house, and John’s mouth watered at the thought of chewing on a fresh, hot, flour tortilla that was slathered with melted butter. Paul’s wife had proven her value to the group many times over. She was not only a great cook, but she was hard working, organized, and entirely selfless. Given Paul’s quirky personality, he wondered how he managed to end up with Marissa. They seemed so different, but he knew that sometimes different just worked. They had been through a lot lately, and John knew their relationship was as special to them as his was with Jenna.

John’s momentary distraction was a pleasant break, but he ignored his impulse to visit the kitchen and returned to his notes. He committed himself to complete the gate narrative before he climbed down from the alcove. He was, and always had been, a man with a mission, but now he was motivated by an overwhelming desire to bring Pete into the work. John was tired of working alone, and he relished the idea of sharing and doing spiritual work with Pete.

John completed the gates narrative and called to Adam from the Alcove. Adam appeared at the top of the stairs while rubbing his eyes. “I need you to keep watch for a little while,” said John.

“But my watch isn’t until twelve, dad,” moaned Adam in reply.

“Adam, I wouldn’t ask you to sit a watch early if I didn’t have a reason. Now quit complaining and hop to it. There’s something I need to do and I can’t do it from up here.” Without another word, Adam turned and went back to his bedroom to dress.

John took a peek out the window and saw a man and a woman standing in the road at the head of John’s walkway. The man was carrying an orange, plastic, five-gallon bucket, and he appeared to be arguing with his wife about something. Curious, John watched their exchange until he heard Adam climb the ladder.

“I’m here, dad,” Adam moaned, when John didn’t turn around to greet him.

“Look out front and tell me what you see,” said John.

Adam approached the curtain flap and raised it slowly. “I see the sun,” he quipped.

John refrained from bopping his son on the head, and asked, “Good, but what else do you see?”

“Oh, there’s two people standing in front of our house by the road,” answered Adam.

“Close the flap,” said John.

Adam did as he was told and turned to face his dad. “What’s up?”

“Tell me what you saw . . . everything.”

Adam knew what his dad was doing. John played the “observation game” with Adam and Abby all the time, supposedly in an effort to teach Adam the value of always being aware of his surroundings. “Two people, a man and a woman. They looked old, like in their thirties.” John narrowed his eyes at his son’s attempt at humor, but he didn’t respond, so Adam continued his report. “They’re both wearing jeans and light jackets, the man’s is dark blue, and the woman’s is green. The man is carrying an orange bucket, the woman wasn’t carrying anything. They look interested in our house. They want something from us,” said Adam, and after a quick breath he asked, “Can I go out and talk to them?”

“No!” replied John, “I’ll go talk to them, but I want you to stand ready. I’ll go get Pete. I want you up and ready, understand?” Adam nodded and John said, “And good job with the description.”

“Can I have my rifle?” asked Adam.

“I’ll bring it to you. And I’ll have mom bring you some breakfast,” said John, as he descended the ladder. When he reached the entryway floor he looked up at Adam and said, “Corbin and Marcus can join you up there, but I don’t want you gawking out the window when I’m talking. I just want you to provide some over-watch.” John studied his son’s face and asked, “Can you handle it?”

“Yes, sir,” replied Adam, as he turned away to watch the two strangers.

“Good. Now lace your shoes.” Adam closed the flap and quickly tied his shoelaces. When he returned to the window, John asked, “Any change?”

“Nope, they’re still standing there. Oh, wait. The woman just took the bucket from the man and she’s coming to the front door,” reported Adam.

“OK, I’ll be right back,” said John. He quickly checked his pistol and walked to the kitchen. Pete was sitting at the breakfast table with a cup of coffee in his hand. When he saw John’s demeanor he immediately stood up and asked, “Is everything alright?”

“Someone’s coming to the door, non-threatening, but can you cover me?” asked John.

Pete set his coffee on the table and immediately checked his own pistol. “You bet. Where do you want me?”

“Entryway, but let me grab Adam’s rifle first. I’ll be right back,” replied John as he passed through the kitchen and into the garage. He quickly opened the gun safe and retrieved Adam’s AR-15, as well as his range bag that held magazines, ammo, lubrication, eye and ear protection, and other essential range firing equipment and supplies. Adam didn’t have a range bag of his own, and John realized he would have to remedy that. Now that every day was a potential range day, Adam
would need a quick go-to bag of his own. But for the time being, John’s range bag would have to do. It held six, loaded, 30-round magazines in external pouches, which was more than enough ready ammo for any reactionary cause.