into unconsciousness.
Chapter 3
The Big Breakdown
At a time when sleep was crucial to me, my mind would not allow it. As quickly as I lost consciousness, I was thrown back into the vortex of a profound dream that seemed to be spiraling out of control. It was a doozy.
I was alone in the forest with Samael, silently watching him live in his broken world. He sat shaded underneath an apple tree next to a pile of books. He scanned each one but grew exceedingly impatient as he failed to locate the answers he was searching for. That’s when he heard the rustling of the tree branches above him.
He lifted his head and nervously called out into the darkness, “Who’s there?”
A slithering creature scaled down the trunk of the tree. “I can help you with what you desire.”
“You know nothing of what I desire.” Samael responded to the insidious creature.
The snake slithered in between the branches and then hung its upper body down to Samael and hissed in his ear, “Her name is Eve and she will soon exit the gates.”
Samael jumped to his feet and grabbed the snake in a forceful grip. “Has my Father sent you?” He reached for his dagger and put it up to the snake’s belly. “I shall slice you open now and skin you for dinner, if you do not reveal your true form.”
“Very well.” The snake complied.
Samael let go of his terse grip and stepped back. He saw a cloud of black smoke and when it cleared, a tiny dark man appeared in its mist with a mouth full of more gaps than teeth.
“Samjaza. I should have known it was you.”
Everyone in the Garden knew him as the Snake because of the form he so often took, but his given name was Samjaza. He lived in a tiny, mud hut along the forest line and filled his hut with the carcasses of dead animals and decaying tree roots. He did not keep these beings for their meats and furs like most hunters, but instead collected them to be used in séances, magical potions and other sacrilegious activities. Most of the people in the Garden believed Samjaza to be an old man who had simply gone mad. But there were still a few who believed that the wizard practiced the dark arts and was truly to be feared.
Under normal conditions, Samael stayed clear of Samjaza, and avoided the possible evil that he possessed. But at this moment in time, Samael had hoped that just maybe he harbored a bit of magic in his old mind, and an ability to bring the woman he loved back to him. Samael was desperate and willing to try anything to be reunited with his lady.
“Tell me, Samjaza, did my father send you after me?”
“I work for no one,” replied the spiritually dark man, “’Twas not your father who sent me here. I came because I knew you to be in trouble.”
Samael looked away and turned his attention back to his studies. The two weeks were almost up and Samael was no closer to finding a way out of the Garden than he was the night his father brought down his verdict. He did not have time to entertain the enigmatic riddles of this loopy old man.
“The books you study will not give you the answers you seek.”
Samael bristled. “You know nothing of what I seek.”
“You need a way out of the gates. The answer is not in a book, but in the dagger you carry on your belt loop.”
Samael gripped his large knife and looked into the eyes of the wicked man. “How do you know so much?”
“’Tis my job. I search for those who need my help, and I offer it. Shall I offer the same to you?”
Samael was well aware of the help the Snake offered people. If the rumors of his magic were true, then this man was not a creation of God but rather the opposite. Samjaza was pure evil, but how could Samael refuse what he was offering? He was running out of time and Eve was to be wed in less than three days. He could not afford to turn the Snake away now.
“What price shall it cost?” Samael nervously inquired.
“For now, it shall cost the love of
Chapter 3
The Big Breakdown
At a time when sleep was crucial to me, my mind would not allow it. As quickly as I lost consciousness, I was thrown back into the vortex of a profound dream that seemed to be spiraling out of control. It was a doozy.
I was alone in the forest with Samael, silently watching him live in his broken world. He sat shaded underneath an apple tree next to a pile of books. He scanned each one but grew exceedingly impatient as he failed to locate the answers he was searching for. That’s when he heard the rustling of the tree branches above him.
He lifted his head and nervously called out into the darkness, “Who’s there?”
A slithering creature scaled down the trunk of the tree. “I can help you with what you desire.”
“You know nothing of what I desire.” Samael responded to the insidious creature.
The snake slithered in between the branches and then hung its upper body down to Samael and hissed in his ear, “Her name is Eve and she will soon exit the gates.”
Samael jumped to his feet and grabbed the snake in a forceful grip. “Has my Father sent you?” He reached for his dagger and put it up to the snake’s belly. “I shall slice you open now and skin you for dinner, if you do not reveal your true form.”
“Very well.” The snake complied.
Samael let go of his terse grip and stepped back. He saw a cloud of black smoke and when it cleared, a tiny dark man appeared in its mist with a mouth full of more gaps than teeth.
“Samjaza. I should have known it was you.”
Everyone in the Garden knew him as the Snake because of the form he so often took, but his given name was Samjaza. He lived in a tiny, mud hut along the forest line and filled his hut with the carcasses of dead animals and decaying tree roots. He did not keep these beings for their meats and furs like most hunters, but instead collected them to be used in séances, magical potions and other sacrilegious activities. Most of the people in the Garden believed Samjaza to be an old man who had simply gone mad. But there were still a few who believed that the wizard practiced the dark arts and was truly to be feared.
Under normal conditions, Samael stayed clear of Samjaza, and avoided the possible evil that he possessed. But at this moment in time, Samael had hoped that just maybe he harbored a bit of magic in his old mind, and an ability to bring the woman he loved back to him. Samael was desperate and willing to try anything to be reunited with his lady.
“Tell me, Samjaza, did my father send you after me?”
“I work for no one,” replied the spiritually dark man, “’Twas not your father who sent me here. I came because I knew you to be in trouble.”
Samael looked away and turned his attention back to his studies. The two weeks were almost up and Samael was no closer to finding a way out of the Garden than he was the night his father brought down his verdict. He did not have time to entertain the enigmatic riddles of this loopy old man.
“The books you study will not give you the answers you seek.”
Samael bristled. “You know nothing of what I seek.”
“You need a way out of the gates. The answer is not in a book, but in the dagger you carry on your belt loop.”
Samael gripped his large knife and looked into the eyes of the wicked man. “How do you know so much?”
“’Tis my job. I search for those who need my help, and I offer it. Shall I offer the same to you?”
Samael was well aware of the help the Snake offered people. If the rumors of his magic were true, then this man was not a creation of God but rather the opposite. Samjaza was pure evil, but how could Samael refuse what he was offering? He was running out of time and Eve was to be wed in less than three days. He could not afford to turn the Snake away now.
“What price shall it cost?” Samael nervously inquired.
“For now, it shall cost the love of
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