The stars in the night’s sky were mesmerizing swirls like the Van Gogh painting. Picturesque scenery blurred as the strokes of a brush due to the faint moonlight, periodically tainted by the instruments and participants of war around them. The smell of old burning wood and the crackle of embers from the nearby fires filled the senses. There would be no war tonight, nor tomorrow for that matter, but it was most certainly approaching. His eyes methodically moved from the stars to the equally mesmerizing fires. Lost in thought, the man felt the pang of anxiety in his stomach as one approached the peak of a roller coaster before the descent. Kai was not old but his mind carried the weight of more experiences than many lifetimes combined. The sorrow his heart carried was far beyond anything any man should have to bear, and yet it seemed it had become commonplace. He slowly walked towards one of the nearby fires, peculiarly occupied by only one man, the rest being completely surrounded by soldiers. Kai had always been a naturally curious person, with an innate ability to detect things that did not seem to be in their proper place. This seemed to be one of those moments.
He sat on the cool earth across the fire from the man. As he looked at the man sitting across from him and he felt oddly comforted, not a comfort in the finer details of future events but comfort in the final result. Kai did not even know him and yet a meek calmness seemed to radiate from him. Kai found himself staring at the man. His large hood was drawn over his face obscuring his facial features, and his brown, wool-blend cloak hung loosely over an obviously muscular stature. The hilt of a sword protruded slightly from the cloak, an odd weapon in a world full of far more modern weaponry, yet the ravages of war had created certain pockets where older weaponry was not unheard of. In the flickering firelight it appeared the man may have some type of armor on, though Kai could not be certain, and more interestingly if it was, it did not appear to be any type of body armor he had ever seen. He was taller than any man he had met but not quite so tall that he would be thought of as a “giant”, since there was obviously no such thing.
Kai struggled with the uncomfortable emotion of deciding whether or not to interact with the man or to leave him to his thoughts, as one might struggle with their toes on the edge of a cold pool, courage rising and falling with the ripples of the water. At last, Kai rode the peak of a ripple and introduced himself to the cloaked man stating, “Hello, the name’s Kai.” The cloaked man slowly, yet deliberately looked up, and removed his hood. The face beneath was the face of a 30 something year-old man, contemplation radiating from his gaze, with piercing blue eyes that seemed to see far more than the tangible physical form in front of him. His brown hair pulled into a tight ponytail behind his head spoke of one devout to some type of sacred, ancient art. The man’s searching eyes, full of gentleness, yet pain, inquiry and yet understanding, met Kai’s gaze. Nodding, he responded, “They call me Mik.” Kai responded, “It’s a pleasure Mik, how long you been involved?”
Mik peered thoughtfully as a loving grandfather might at a young grandson. After a pause long enough to make him shift his weight in an awkward, self-conscious motion, while causing him to divert his eyes back towards the fire, the man identified as Mik responded, “Always.” As the man responded, Kai could not help but feel as if this man already knew him, as if this man somehow knew far more about Kai than Kai knew of him. The man was a complete stranger, so this was obviously not possible, but, what was this feeling then? He could not help notice the man had the incredibly mild yet confident demeanor only a truly dangerous man was capable of possessing. The man radiated calm, yet observant, and even more so, terribly dangerous. Kai hadn’t met many men like this, yet the ones he had met, always carried themselves the same. A true gunfighter from the Wild West type, or a tactical operator, capable of the highest level of violence, yet far more capable of controlling it. Kai’s mind, as a vacuum rolling over a piece of cereal left on the ground, sucked back to the present. Confused by the answer, however, understanding the war had certainly felt terribly long, Kai asked Mik to clarify what he meant by “always”, to which Mik, as if speaking to nobody in particular, responded, “Since the beginning.”
Kai, taken aback, having only watched the beginning of the war on television, wondered out loud what being part of the war for so long had been like. While there was no way of truly knowing the actual date the war began, most estimated it to be in its seventh year. The things Mik must have seen, the things Mik must have been forced to do. If true, Kai was humbled to even be speaking with this man. In that loving grandfather way, he began chuckling, and Mik replied he had been part of the war for a period far longer than seven years. Catching the man’s emphasis on the, Kai asked for clarification. Perhaps Mik had been a soldier for longer and was alluding to involvement in wars for a longer period of time, though his appearance seemed to indicate he could not be much older than 30 or 35 years old. Perhaps he had been part of a resistance or some other facet of the “war before the war” as so many called it. Either way, the pressure building in Kai’s internal human barometer was detecting there was far more to this storm than the brown cloak and contemplative gaze. Mik, reading Kai’s heart-sleeve emotions, stated, “There is far more to the war than what meets the eyes or finds itself printed in intelligence briefs.”
Kai felt certain something was definitely different about Mik, and though Kai had participated in this war a long time, he had always felt the causes of the war ran much deeper than what was shared with the people. While Kai had always been suspicious of the true motives of the war, he needed to suppress that thought, as he had a more pressing thought in his mind. He could not help but feel like Mik was referencing something completely outside of the conversation, or even the current war they were both a part of. A part of him wondered if this stranger could offer or would be willing to offer clarity to these feelings. Sensing his patience or perhaps having a moment of boldness, Kai asked Mik if he would be willing to share his story as opposed to Kai trying to decipher Mik’s cryptic responses. Stroking his beard with his index finger and thumb, Mik, again peered thoughtfully at him. After a length of stare capable of making a mirror envious, Mik agreed, the corners of his mouth curling upward as he did. There was that smirk or smile again. Mik’s body language was a display of a well-seasoned poker player, refusing to divulge feeling or true emotion, while leaving the observer agonizing over the last emotion they may or may not have seen. Kai’s normally natural talent of reading a person felt as if not only could it not find the correct direction, but there was not even a magnet in the compass.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Truly intrigued by this strange man, Kai was unsure where to begin. Did he ask how many men he had killed, no that was far to direct, and likely would be considered rude. How about what secret missions he had been part of, no, he likely wouldn’t share, and may even shut down. How about what he thought the war was truly about, maybe, but doubtful. Perhaps, what memories replayed the most in his mind? On second thought, maybe he should ask how old he was, where he was from, and if he had a family. While each question had a certain element of value, none seemed to satisfy the child-like curiosity brewing in his mind. Kai, as a fan having the opportunity to ask one question to their favorite celebrity and certainly not wanting to ask the wrong question, settled on, “If longer than seven years, how long exactly have you been part of the war?”
Mik, clearly bemused, responded this was a very good question, though it was not a tale that could be spoken in a matter of hours. He advised if Kai was that interested and was willing to listen, he would perhaps be willing to share. After the response, while Kai could not be certain, he could have sworn he heard him say under his breath, “The time has come.” Kai asked if Mik had said something. Mik ignored the question, or maybe didn’t even notice the question and asked, “If I am to share the whole tale, I would present one request. Would you share your story with me?” This was certainly an odd request, and not entirely sure what, if anything, Mik would find of interest in his story, Kai agreed. It was somewhat confusing why a man claiming to have participated in the war for so long would have any interest in Kai, yet it seemed a small price to pay to hear this peculiar man’s story. While Mik certainly appeared relatively young, his demeanor forced Kai to envision an ancient Greek philosopher, thoughtful while ensuring intentionality.
Mik, peacefully staring up towards the brilliant masterpiece painted across the night sky, fingers stroking his beard, suddenly formal, eloquently stated, “Let it be so Kai, son of the earth, let us share our stories.”
As the two men quietly gazed into the fire, one lost in his own thoughts, one formulating thoughts for dialogue, the silence was broken by Mik, “When we, the Twelve, were spoken, we did not begin as an infant, as your people do, nor an egg like some of your animals. We were spoken to the very form you see seated before you. We were the original twelve, the Malakh. While Malakh do not require sleep, the feeling would best be described as the mental fog when awakening from a deep sleep. We found ourselves standing before a being and a man we later learned was his son. They do have names, however, your language does not allow for it, and without understanding the true power of names, you could not comprehend it. Perhaps another time we could discuss this, but for now, we shall not as this is an entirely different topic. For the sake of the tale, let us call him Speaker.”
Perplexed, possibly slightly amused, it was now Kai with the corners of his lips curling upward. Mik had intrigued him, oh, he had even momentarily captivated him, but whatever Mik had just said was a poorly rehearsed story, or the word vomit of an unstable person. Mik’s piercing blue eyes met Kai’s. As Mik had already proven multiple times, he did not feel any measure of self-consciousness or awkwardness in prolonged eye contact or silence. Kai, being the first to blink in the staring contest, thanked Mik for the wildly fascinating open to a story, but expressed no desire to hear anything fictitious, embellished, or outright false. Mik, seeing the disbelief in Kai’s face and irritation in his voice, not only appeared not bothered, but almost seemed expectant of the reaction. Mik stated, “You asked how long I had been part of this war. The war transcends any conflict we may be witness to at this moment. In order to understand the war, you must understand the origin and proper manner of things.”
Kai, seeing Mik did not feel any of this was a joke, nor did he seem surprised by Kai’s initial reaction, now felt the walls of curiosity and logic closing in on each other. Mik, ever so perceptive, seeing the internal struggle and rationalizing the disbelief Kai was battling, slowly pulled down his brown cloak at the neckline to reveal a piece of armor beneath the cloak. The armor, while undoubtedly solid, appeared to be, well, almost alive, but this certainly couldn’t be. It wasn’t metal, leather, or gemstone. It was not any type of ballistic armor, soft or hard, that Kai had ever seen. The material was in many ways translucent; however, was also a pale electrifying blue. Was it merely reflecting light, or was the material itself actually moving? Were Kai’s eyes playing tricks on him as a stranded wanderer and a desert oasis? Was this armor simply reflecting the firelight, or did it possess some type of life-source itself?
As a rising sun peaks over a mountain ridge in the distance, a symbol of some type was just beginning to peek over the neckline of the pulled down cloak. Only a small portion of the symbol could be seen but it was not painted, stamped or even carved. It was as if the symbol hovered within the plate. What was the symbol? Without seeing more of it, there was no way for Kai to determine if he had seen anything like it, and regardless, he most certainly had never seen armor of such unique elegance. This armor did not provide clarity to Mik’s statement, if anything it cast further doubt, however, Kai now had many very real questions. For more than a century there had been rumors of other-worldly technologies utilized by special forces from various countries, however, they always ended up proven to be developed by some top secret government organization. This armor, at least the brief glimpse Kai had, certainly seemed intriguing, dare he say, suspicious.
Kai looked into the other man’s eyes and couldn’t help but feel a measure of sincerity in them. As always, Mik eloquently allowed for time to process. Kai finally, very hesitantly responded, “Ok Mik, you began telling me what sounded like an origin story out of an ancient mythology textbook, then showed me armor that appears to have a life of its own, and now I only have more questions. If you come from some ancient bloodline, or have some other mythological story of beginning, how about you start with why you are here?” Mik, ever patient, gave a soft smile, and told Kai this would be far easier to explain after he told his story, not before. Kai was filled with so many doubts, but after glimpsing that armor, he knew Mik had him, and knew there was no possibility he could walk away. Kai, knowing his soul had come to the conclusion even before his mind had, agreed to listen to Mik. Kai said he would do his best to not interrupt, but he had so many questions, so he could not make any promises. Mik said that was a sufficient promise and he would do his best to clarify as much as he could, but many parts of the story would not make sense until the end. Mik stated, “For now Kai, let me share with you the tale from the beginning.”
