The Sounds of War (The Genesis Series Book 2) (6 page)

And no wonder! For Satan, himself, transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore, it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. 2 Corinthians 11:14-15

H
am entered the perpetual darkness that formed just past the outer boundary of the camp. Seeking a place of privacy he realized the further he moved from the light of the campfire and the eyes of those who sat there, the less sure he was of his footing. Stars blinked brightly overhead in a cloudless, but moonless night sky. However, the light of the stars wasn’t sufficient to offer any true assistance in viewing the ground under his feet. He didn’t see the small boulder until it was too late. Tripping, he lost his balance and fell face first to the earth. Grabbing at injured toes and swearing as tears smarted behind his eyes, he rolled in agony. Suddenly a hand touched his shoulder. Jumping while releasing a yelp of unbridled surprise, Ham demanded, “Who are you?”

“My name is unimportant. Let me get right to the point of why I’m here
. I need the animal skins of Adam and Eve. Give them to me, and in exchange, I will enlarge your boundaries and increase your lifespan so your offspring becomes a great company. Your brothers will envy you. You will exceed Japheth, the elder son and Shem, who is the favored son.” As the stranger spoke, he bent toward Ham and extended a hand.

Examining the offered hand as if it held a scorpion, Ham
reluctantly placed his hand to mate against the tendered one, and gave to the pull that helped him achieve a standing position. As he rose, his eyes moved upward to meet the face of the one who had so mysteriously appeared from nowhere. Ham’s mind raced with all the possibilities and then he concluded the only logical explanation,
this man is not human.

“
Are you an Elohim?” Ham asked as he limped to a nearby tree. The answer was mumbled and vague. Staring outright, Ham studied the stranger intently, as he mentally reviewed all options. There was still only one possibility,
Malakhim
.

Never having conversed with a Malakhim
, Ham was unsure of what to expect, but he knew something wasn’t right about this unexpected encounter. The Malakhim always came in pairs and normally only appeared to the Melek. Why was this one not going straight to his father? Folding his arms across his chest Ham asked, “Why do you not just go to my father’s tent and take the skins?”

The stranger stepping
deeper into the night shadows answered, “Do you take me for a thief. Permission must be granted! Noah would curse me if I stole what he believes to be his birthright.”

Peering into the dark
to the one who spoke, Ham reasoned behind the request was an ulterior motive,
else why not ask my father himself?
Just as he started to ask the shrouded stranger this question, the intruder spoke again, “Do you remember El Elyon’s pronouncement to mankind before the flood. The edict that man would no longer live past one hundred and twenty years?”

Nodding his head slowly, Ham answered, “I think I
know of what you speak, but that’s not exactly what I remember my grandfather saying was God’s decree, nevertheless, what of it?”

“El Elyon pronounced he was removing his Spirit from man
. You understand what that means?” Remaining in the shadows, the visitor did not wait for an answer but continued, “It means neither the light of El Elyon’s presence nor the sound of his voice can be envisaged by mortal man any longer. The glory, which gave long life to humanity, retreated permanently, to the stars.

“When the crystal canopy fell from the sky it not only expedited the deluge, it forever changed the way light and sound enter Earth. Dimensions changed, the Supreme God changed
. Changes occurred in what you cannot see as well as what you can. In a way, you could say that God poured himself out into his created sons, the Elohim.

“
Oh, it is true we had to leave Earth when the floodwaters came. But we went to guard the cosmos. You were on the ark and did not see the meteors as they broke and fell into the earth. We had to save the cosmos when El Elyon abandoned Earth, mankind, and all of the terrestrial. Now the stars are our homes.”

Ham shifted from one foot to the other as he nodded his head again, not because he understood, but because he was perplexed, “But…”

“Directions have changed and shifted, the forces that rule gravity and other such matters within the atmosphere of Earth are now different than they were before the great flood, is that not so? Did not the judgment of El Elyon make it so?”

Again, Ham slowly nodded.

“Then it is also true man will no longer live six hundred years. Without a great year, how can men ever subdue Earth? It takes at least six hundred years to see the cycle of the heavens. The marking of one’s great year has always meant a celebration of immense achievement, but how will that be possible for you or your brothers? When Adam disobeyed, El Elyon removed immortality. With the flood, he removed long life. Do you not see?” Again, not waiting for a reply the invader moved a few paces closer as he continued to speak, “Because of El Elyon, the elements no longer work for you, but against you. The green valleys and the great fields, which before the flood produced large harvests, have become deserts of sand. Extremes of swamps and dry places have formed where they did not exist before, the land continues to rupture and divide as the earth continues to quake and spew fire. Oceans of water have swallowed land, and ice freezes the far north and extreme south.

“
It is not only the physical changes of Earth; there are other things you and your children will now be deprived of. Such as, who will rebuild cities, will you? I think not. In order to dominate Earth you must learn new laws regarding the geophysical processes of Earth. Can you do this? Will you or your sons live enough years to conquer the dynamics of this new Earth? Don’t forget it was they, the fathers of the giants, who gave much understanding to men. It was they who taught humans how to utilize and advance Earth’s resources, did they not?

“The Celestials who
oversaw Earth went to a place that humans are not allowed, the stars. I urge you to request that they and their wisdom return, but in order to do so they need new portals to gain entrance. To find new portals it becomes important they possess the mysteries of the Melek’s knowledge.

“Th
e knowledge they seek is hidden in the skins your father so treasures. I ask that you obtain the skins for us. Noah is the strongest among you, yet he is past his six hundredth year, but how much longer can he live? We must have the skins before he gives them either to Japheth or Shem, and they disappear from our reach. You know Japheth would never give up the skins, he would never share his power, and Shem would not give us the skins, he is committed to the memory of El Elyon. You are our only hope.”

Ham did not answer immediately
. Instead, he sat down on the nearest boulder. His head was spinning as he had tried to follow the line of reasoning of the stranger, but there seemed to be inconsistencies in the Celestial’s logic. At that moment, Ham wasn’t sure of anything, except he knew instinctively not to give the garments to this stranger. The implications of this stranger’s long discourse were most puzzling, “Are you saying that the garments somehow give long life because they belong to the Melek?”

The dark one, reading the thoughts of Ham, avoided the question and instead decided on a new tactic of reasoning
. “You have been taught in error. Not all of those who fathered the Nephilim are filled with ra.”

Ham raised an eyebrow, “All right,” putting a han
d to his mouth he thought aloud. “I suppose not all the Watcher’s taught was evil, but back to my question, are you saying no one will live past six hundred years again unless they possess the garments or unless they are a Melek?”

“Mmm,” the dark one shifted his weight as he continued, “it is highly unlikely, but there is something else, the flood did not destroy the one who deceived Eve
, water cannot destroy m...him, he escaped. He too is hiding among the stars. He stands at the portals over Earth and he will have offspring, but there is only one, the Promised Seed, who will be able to stand against him and his offspring. The Promised Seed will put an end to deception. He will become a great Deity and he will restore immortality, but until the Promised Seed arrives, we must have the garments to help man achieve long life.

“The skins of Adam have the imprint of El Elyon
. The holder of the skins becomes the melek for many reasons, but mainly because he possesses the mark of the divine when he wears the skins. I must take possession of the skins so we can make ready for the Promised Seed. If you go to your father’s tent, remove the skins, and give them to me, I will reward you. You will live to see the birth of many generations. In fact, we shall make sure the Promised One is of your seed. You and your sons will be princes in his kingdom.”

Having listened without inter
rupting, Ham had many questions. Not moving for several moments, he contemplated all the Celestial had said then finally asked, “My brothers will praise me?”

“Yes, your name will be remembered throughout eternity as the one who helped me.” The messenger arched his back, placed both hands upon his hips and spat a terse, “Well?”

Ham adjusted his robes, “If you promise no harm will come to either my mother or father.”

Upon receiving such assurances, Ham stepped away, took care of his personal need, and then made his way back to the camp. Every
one had retired during his absence except for Shem and Japheth. They both sat in front of the campfire quietly discussing some matter of little or no importance and took no note of Ham or the one who followed him.

Making his way around the backside of the encampment, a plan began to form in
Ham’s mind. Knowing Celestials possessed telepathic abilities Ham began to mask his thoughts and by the time they reached his father’s tent, Ham had hidden his plan under the sounds of nonchalant humming. Motioning for the visitor to wait in the shadows he whispered, “I’ll go in and make sure all is well, do not follow me, I’ll return. Keep in mind, I don’t know exactly where the garments are kept, this may take a few moments.”

Lifting the curtain that served as the tent door, Ham slipped under it and for a few seconds stood in the stillness of the temporary shelter. Recognizing the dim outline of his mother asleep on a couch on the far side of the large tented room, he tiptoed past her to gain entrance into the smaller adjacent quarters.

Noah, snoring raucously, did not flinch when Ham removed the animal skins from his body. The image of his father’s nude body shocked him, he quickly turned his head, but time was of the essence and spending it to find a blanket with which to cover his father’s nakedness was just not feasible. He knew to see his father’s uncovered body was a great humiliation, both to himself and his father, but in his mind, the greater humiliation would be if his father’s treasured possessions fell in the hands of the one who stood outside the tent. It was far more imperative he finish his task and complete the plan before the angel suspected anything was amiss.

Determined not to relinquish any valuable time, Ham slid under the tent’s drapes and ran for the shadows praying that neither his brothers nor the waiting angel would take note of him. Staying within the shadows,
Ham adroitly maneuvered the distance between the tents, not stopping until he approached the tent where his young sons and wife slept. Once inside, he moved speedily with intent and purpose knowing the exact location of the basket he sought. He knelt, picked up the reed-woven container with both hands, turned it upside-down and shook it until it was empty. Then placing both lambskins inside the empty basket, he repacked it with its original contents and hid the basket behind all of the others. Satisfied, he smiled, shook his robes, and then ran posthaste back to his father’s tent.

Sensing the urgency of time, he glided quickly
under the tent’s hemming, pausing to take in a deep breath he regained his composure. Lifting the rear curtain, he whispered to the one who waited, “I did not find the garments. They are not here.”

Obviously agitated, Ham’s angel said nothing, only pushed him aside. Ham merely responded by pointing to the tented room where his father slept
. In his nervousness, Ham had forgotten his father’s naked and exposed body, but as he recalled the fact, he knew not to call attention to it. Instead, he thought of what the angel might do when the absence of the lambskins were confirmed. Believing his immediate safety was in numbers, Ham ran toward his brothers who were still at the campfire.

Rejoining Japheth and Shem as quickly as possible,
and doing his best to appear carefree, Ham walked across their line of vision and sat down. Deliberately remaining silent, knowing he could not rely on his voice to conceal the apprehension he felt, he sat still and listened half-heartedly to his brothers’ cordial banter. Suddenly, a loud shrill filled the air with terror!

Recognizing their mother’s voice, all three sons jumped. Nonetheless, shock and fear overwhelmed Ham
, he stuttered, “Th…the angel…he…he must have done something!” Guilt churning in his stomach, he gasped, “I left Father uncovered!”