The Seventh dimension. It surrounds
the universe like a thin, crispy layer. Few are they that know of its
existence; fewer still know how to find it. Did you know that when you drop a
shiny steel hammer into water it doesn’t get wet? The steel is protected by a
tightly bonded layer of ferrous-cobalt-oxide, rust. The water cannot attack the
steel further because of the protective oxide layer. That is the Seventh
dimension.
Without the protection of the
boundary layer Eternity would collapse and consume Creation. Just as nature
cannot abide a vacuum, perfection cannot abide imperfection. Just as stainless
steel will endure longer than bare iron it will eventually fall to rust. The
difference is time.
Aricel’s ship sat at the very “bottom”
of the Third Heaven. All around him stretched infinite Eternity; below him
swelled the expanding universe of his birth. Now if you want to do some mind
blowing Math you could calculate the rate of expansion rate of the universe to
the constant expansion of infinity – cubed. Where that ratio equals 1:1 you
will find the Seventh dimension.
That is where Aricel stood at the
current moment. His bridge crew served with unwavering loyalty yet disliked his
forays into “7D”. It was the one place they could not escort him. Beings that
could literally walk into Hell cannot enter the Seventh dimension for the same
reason water cannot slip through that rust layer on steel; it simply won’t
admit them.
“Sir, you realize if you go in
there again we cannot support you.” His favorite bridge officer stated
unnecessarily. “I desire for you to reconsider.”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry
yourself. Given the protection of this,”
Aricel lifted his jewel of authority which knew no bounds. “There is no place
in any form of reality that I am in danger. I cannot be harmed, only delayed
and that only by my own curiosity.”
“Well I do wish you would at least
take your armor with you.”
“Sorry, but that’s not going to happen either. The Big
Guy hates the laws of physics in
there; it messes with his sensors.”
“That alone should tell you that
you should not go in there unaccompanied.”
Aricel smiled. “I won’t be alone.”
He whistled and immediately a large brown
dog appeared at his side, swishing his
white-tipped tail in anticipation. “Now if you are finished losing this debate
I will dial the machine to the right setting.”
The bridge officer knelt beside the
dog, “Do me a favor, Kody; keep an eye on the boss for us, okay?”
Kodiak nodded his head and pulled
his ears back in a canine affirmative gesture. In a moment both Eternal and his
favorite companion flattened into two dimensional shades of themselves. They
side-stepped and disappeared like a cartoon character leaving a frame of film.
The bridge officer said to no one
in particular, “I wish we had a clock around here that actually measured time.”
***1***
Aricel felt perfectly normal when
he arrived in the seventh dimension. He perceived himself and Kody as true
solids and the area was perfectly normal, too – for the inside of Salvador
Dali’s dreams that is.
Describing the “land” around them
would take far too long and not make much sense unless a person could perceive
more than five dimensions. Basically, it was mostly dark, lots of deep purple hues;
semi-familiar shapes appeared in unexpected places. And everywhere lightning flashed
out in sheets from a single point or folded into one like brilliant origami.
None of the animal life on this
plane could survive on Earth any more than Aricel could live more than a
femtosecond in a human body there. The grotesque, asymmetrical bodies favored
by life here seemed well suited for their environment.
The native intelligences might be
frightening the first time one meets them. On subsequent meetings, however, all
doubt would vanish; they are truly horrid! The Black
wings provided both flight and a comfortably dark place to sleep. Long,
powerful talons looked dangerous but were really necessary for clinging to
outcrops in a place with no definite gravitic orientation.
All of these perfectly natural
adaptations plus many more combined to make a large surreal creature to haunt
the nightmares of virtually any human. Indeed the few times humans did set eyes
on one of these gentle natives produced unpleasant results. Some went insane;
some injured themselves attempting to flee. All of these encounters invariably prompted
intense fears that spawned legends of winged daemons guilty of everything from
eating children to raping cattle. The true nature of the creatures that
inspired the “gargoyle” myth was far different.
Kody spotted the approaching giant
long before Aricel. Even in Eternity dogs possessed senses beyond human
abilities. GOD saw to it that man’s favorite companion and protector always had
what he needed to fulfill the role for which they were born. Kody stood by his
pack leader’s side with his eyes fixed on a distant, unseen object. Aricel felt
the thump of Kody’s tail on the back of his leg and turned to face in the same
direction,
Soon a long black arm extended from
a crack in a boulder not far away—distance is a hard thing to judge in that
place. Three fingers and a thumb ended in sharp, black talons. The left arm
connected to a strong shoulder, a left wing sprung out like the main sail of a
pirate ship. A right hand pushed the opening wider just as the left reached
Kody.
Few things please a dog more than
being scratch in the right spot by someone who knows how to properly do it.
Aricel smile as the long craggy face came into view. The red eyes seemed to
flash with lightning all their own. The being bent both front legs and knelt
down on the single back leg so he could reach Kody.
Aricel grew to a larger size and
Kody followed suit without a conscious command. Now more equal in size, Aricel
embraced the person. He said into the top ears (behind the horns), “You are
without a doubt the strangest friend I have ever had.”
His friend chuckled. “I missed you
too, despite your horrendous appearance.”
[NOTE] This is perhaps a good time
to pause and tell you a few things. First, this creature is female though not
recognizably so to human eyes. Second, she has a name but this display does not
have the characters to display it properly, and you could never pronounce it
anyway. Aric knows it and of course can pronounce it. For our convenience I
will substitute a name that approximates it to our ears. We’ll call her
“Chelle.”
Chelle stood now that Kody was
waist high to her. She was still taller than Aricel with the joints of her
folded wings towering over all. Aricel noted for the first time that the
bat-like wings were not topped with claws. He still carried a racial memory of
gargoyles from his previous existence and sometimes allowed those to color his
reactions to things in Eternity.
“In all fairness,” Chelle added, “I
would not have contacted you at all except I find this creature fascinating.”
Aricel placed a hand on Kody’s
shoulder. “If we’re being honest, I would have reacted to you quite differently
if I had been alone when I first saw you. You know humans see beings in your
general shape as a ‘threat’ and generally evil. Kody’s immediate response to
you told me you are the friendly sort.”
“So this dog creature is the real
reason we are friends?”
“I learned long ago, in another
lifetime that my own judgment might be deceived, but anyone a dog trusts is
worthy of consideration; no matter what they look like.”
“I had the same reaction to you but
decided to trust you for the same reason; Kody.”
The two friends, well three counting Kody strolled along the
odd landscape. Direction has no real meaning in this place. North, west – south
of what? There are no stars to steer by, no Sun to divide day from night. This
place just “is” and wherever you are,
you are there. They talked about changes and observations since they were last
together.
At last Chelle said, “As much as I
enjoy our time together I did call you here for a reason.”
Aricel nodded. “I assumed as much.
I also guessed I was due to face ‘Mother’ again. Did she ask for me by name or
just say, ‘bring that ugly kid to me’?”
Booming laughter shook the ground
causing bright yellow flowers (in this spectrum) to fold and retreat into the
safety of their stalks. “Not quite in those exact words but close enough. She
really likes you, you know that right?”
“She must like me to put up with this face!” They both laughed at that
one. When they passed an outcrop of stone they faced two towering black
columns. Not really columns; these were legs, very similar to Chelle’s only so
long that neither could reach the knee while standing on the ground. Both
spread their wings preparing to fly up to the audience platform. A now smaller
Kody rode on Aricel’s shoulders between the single pair of wings Aricel chose
to use.
The Mother looked like Chelle in
every respect except much bigger. Thicker armor plates protected her torso
since she could no longer tuck herself in crevasses against the storms. Her
horns were longer, and more handsome, too, having lived longer.
Chelle bowed deeply to her Mother as
soon as the landed. Aricel saluted (Eternals only bow to ONE sovereign) and
received a raised eyebrow in acknowledgement. Of course he said nothing as the
Mother always speaks first and last. He could certainly respect that protocol.
“You smell of time travel,
human-person of male lineage.” She said without inflection. Aricel did not know
if she approved or not and it was not a question, so he remained silent. The
Mother continued. “I would say 1800’s America. What do you find interesting in
such a time?”
That was a question. “As in all
things I seek answers, oh most handsome of Creation.” He said.
That made the Mother break into a
wide smile. She said, “You do me honor with your manners my friend. Well I know
how I look to your eyes. I have tasted human fear for a very long time. Even
now so few of your kind come to visit despite your transformation into Eternal
beings.”
“Be patient, Sacred Queen. Eternity
is a very long time. Eventually everyone will come to see you at least once.
Having met you they will become as fond of you as I and then you will have no
peace from all the visitors.”
“So tell me, Aricel; why is it you
are so comfortable here when others of your kind call this place madness?”
“I have never told anyone about
this one thing. Back before, when I was a human, I used to ‘see’ sounds in my
head. It’s as if I converted sound to light. I understand it now but back then
it scared me a little – especially when I listened to music.
“Each instrument had a certain
shape and color. Additionally they had a ‘place’ I perceived relative to other
instruments. I watched the movement of light and color in my mind every time I
listened to music. That sounded crazy to me so I kept it to myself. This place,
this Seventh dimension looks exactly like what I thought of when listening to
music. Watching the shifting patterns reminded me of certain songs I loved.”
The Mother studied the Eternal
before her. In all the long ages of her existence she had never encountered
such a creature. Not just him, but those like him. These Eternals went about
with great power yet with humility. Creatures born of power that are given great power tend to see lesser life forms
as mere steps to their ambition. ‘Born to
rule’ they often said, to the detriment of many lives under them and their
rivals. These Eternals use their power in the service of the weak – perhaps
because they were once weak and vulnerable.
She said, “It is possible the
reason you find this place familiar is because you have seen it before. We observe lower dimensions the way you read
books. Perhaps you perceived us unconsciously. Your world came to our attention
when the Ancient Adversary fell from Heaven. He passed through here,” she
indicated a shattered mountain near to her left side. “He was here briefly but
I looked into his eyes and he looked at me. I have never seen such anger.”
Aricel smiled at that. “That is precisely the reason why I time
travel!”
She said, “Explain yourself, my
friend.”
Aricel continued. “I have always
sought out the ‘why’ of things.
Before, as a human I discovered that much of the information I was taught was
false. And those teaching it knew it was false. I continued to dig into
whatever I could until I learned what the teachers knew. But then I discovered
that the teachers were lied to as well! It seemed education on Earth was ‘lies
being taught by liars who were also the recipient of lies.’”
He walked over to Chelle who stood
silently by listening. “The reason I had a fear reaction to Chelle here was
because those who controlled knowledge in my world built an elaborate fable
around this face and planted it in many cultures. The Adversary you saw that
particular day probably took your image with him for his own purposes. Whatever
the reason, I will discover the truth soon.”
“Is that what you seek; the reason
behind the vilification on my race?”
Aricel said, “Not only that; I seek
the reasons behind everything.”
Mother’s eyes narrowed. “That is an
awful lot to search for. Can you not just go to the Creator for all the answers
you need?”
“I could do that, but I really am
not in a hurry. Since my translation into Eternity I have corrected my
knowledge of everything that came before. I know the ‘whats’ and ‘whens’ of all
of recorded time. Now I am looking at the thought processes that made History
what it was.
“For instance, I may know that
Alexander defeated Xerxes III in a given battle. Now I can look into the
thinking that any given soldier on either side made at critical points; not
just the leaders but those swinging the swords. This is just a hobby but I do
enjoy it.”
That seemed to please the Great
Mother. “Will you do me a favor? Once you discover the reason for the hatred of
my daughters, tell me.”
Aricel nodded. “I certainly will.
You know, I believe that you are very much like me in that you value knowledge
for its own sake.”
The Mother nodded and closed her
eyes. “That is the purpose of our existence. We are among the multitude of
witnesses the Creator has in place. We watch and know. And when called upon, we
testify before the Great Throne. That is our purpose …”
She lay back in her seat, great
wings closing about her involuntarily. Aricel noticed her breathing slowing and
long-taloned hands flex then relax. He enjoyed his time with her and hated to
just leave without a fare thee well but he could see Mother was already asleep.
He scooped up Kody from her lap were he had curled into a ball. The three of
them glided silently away.
They landed and walked when they
were far enough away. Aricel looked back. He was amazed how well the giant
creature blended into the rock face. One might scale her wings and never know
she was a living stone, older than Time.
Chelle asked. “Can you stay much
longer? I have more to discuss with you.”
Aricel shook his head. “No, I have
tried the patience of my crew long enough. But I will return, I promise you. It
always seems we are parting mid-conversation, but then, we never exhaust our
topics, do we?”
Chelle embraced Aricel and then
hugged Kody longer still. “No we don’t and I hope we never will. I would miss
this hairy companion. Do you think you could leave him with me?”
Kody may love the sharp talons
scratching his back but being parted from Aricel and the rest of the pack was
out of the question. Dogs didn’t really understand the concept of “eternity’;
they live in the now. Not being able
to see Aricel for an extended length period of time was not going to happen!
Aricel did not answer, he didn’t
have to. Chelle sensed Kody’s reaction and stood up, after a final hug. Aricel
squeezed her hand. “Don’t take it personally, dogs have a strong sense of
family. His loyalty to me is beyond description. But I’ll promise you this; I
will find a dog for you. There were millions of mistreated, orphaned dogs on
Earth that would love to have an forever home.”
With a parting smile they went
their separate ways; Chelle went into a rock crevasse, Aricel took one step to
the side and he was back on his bridge. It looked to him that no one on the
bridge had drawn a breath since his departure.
“Welcome back captain.” The bridge
officer smiled.
Aricel balked on his reply. “Bridge
officer, why are you smiling? You never smile.”
“It is because I am keeping a
secret from you. That is something I have never done before—ever. I think I
like it.” His smile broadened.
Aricel was even more puzzled. This
secrecy is out of character for any Host. It had to come from a very high
level. Questioning him would avail nothing so Aricel eased around him heading
for his cabin with Kody. “Very well, break orbit and take this ship home.”
Now the bridge officer laughed. He
actually laughed! “How convenient we
are going that way. At once, sir!”
Aricel closed the cabin door behind
him. Kody trotted over to the armor, which was curled up on the bed trying to
sleep. Kody turned once on the armor and flopped down to rest. The armor began
to growl. He would never harm Kody or any of the others but he was displeased.
“Kody, get down from there. You
know that bed is big enough for you both.”
Kody got up with as much reluctance
as he could express. He went around to the armor’s face and began to wash it.
All trespasses forgiven everyone got comfortable for the short trip home. It
would take however long Aric felt like taking. The moment he got bored or
restless, they would dock at his home base. Rather convenient that.
Aricel reclined on his armor and
tried to read a book. He could not get into it, though. The bridge officer’s
secret bothered him. He had always been patient, waiting for the truth to
reveal itself at the right time. He opened a window into ancient Hattusa, the
capitol of the Hittite Empire. He had discovered that golden burial masks were
also used in stage performances. For now he would watch a craftsman make one
that was mistakenly labeled “the Mask of Agamemnon” by historians. He smiled
when he thought of how wrong those scholars
were about everything! Yes, Aricel
would be patient.
***End***
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