The Diamond Arrow Read online

  A moment later, thunder resonated in a cloudless sky over the sleeping city of Lystra. The chosen angel was descending from the heavens with power and swift flight. He appeared in the room where Silas and Lydia were asleep. He did not wake them up; rather, he talked to them in their sleep. Both were having the same dream. Both saw themselves at the seashore, looking at a rising sun and talking to an angel of the Lord of Hosts.

  The angel told Silas: “Fear not, Silas, the Alpha and the Omega is with you. You have found favor in His sight. You and your sister have been called to become golden warriors of the Lord of Hosts. When you awake, prepare yourself for a journey. Two white purebred horses will await you in front of your house. One is for you and the other one is for your sister. Ride to the South as your destination is Sinayor, the Mountain-Of-Daily-Thunder. When you reach there, declare the word that your father will tell you in the morning. Where there is no way, a way will be made for you.”

  At the same time, the angel was talking to Lydia: “Fear not, Lydia, the Alpha and the Omega is with you. You have found favor in His sight. You and your brother have been called to become golden warriors of the Lord of Hosts. When you awake, prepare yourself for a journey. Two white purebred horses will await you in front of your house. One is for you and the other one is for your brother. Ride to the South as your destination is Sinayor, the Mountain-of-Daily-Thunder. When you reach there, declare the word that your mother will tell you in the morning. Where there is no way, a way will be made for you.” After that, the angel left, and they went into a deeper sleep.

  CHAPTER 4

  Majestic Horses

  As the shadows of the night began to dissipate thus announcing the imminence of dawn, Silas and Lydia awoke from the deep sleep into which they had fallen. They quickly went to their parents and told them about their visions.

  “Praise to the Lord of Hosts” declared Riya. “When I was asleep, there was one sentence that kept on coming to my mind.”

  “Oh! Me too!” announced Paul, “I had a sentence that kept coming to me in my sleep.”

  “What was it?” asked Silas.

  “I heard repeatedly ‘The Alpha and The Omega is the One who opens and no one shall shut’”, responded Paul, staring at his son.

  Riya gasped and smiled. Then she said, looking at Lydia, “And I heard ‘The Alpha and The Omega is the One who shuts and no one shall open.’”

  Paul responded, “These two are complements of the same sentence. The two of you, my children, have been chosen for the same purpose. In your quest, you shall help one another to overcome difficulties and win over the obstacles on your path.”

  They started to pray, knowing that the departure time was near. After prayer, preparations started. By the time the sun was high in the sky, they were ready. Riya had stuffed their bags with various foods: fruits, vegetables, dried leaves and bread. Their gourds were full of a beverage which Riya estimated would last at least a whole day. As Riya was giving instructions on the precautions they should take with their food, the ground started to shake. The intensity increased as the earthquake grew stronger. Then, as hastily as it came, the earthquake stopped.

  Suddenly, there was a commotion in front of their home. They overheard people gathering on the street by their gate. The crowd started to shout while others were running in many directions. All four turned their sights to the gate and started to walk towards it. Haman, the youngest servant of the house, was near the gate and began to run toward them. Paul gave him a sign to move to the side, as they walked to the gate, behind which the tumultuous crowd was growing louder. Paul stretched out his hands and pushed strongly against the doors of the gate which opened out toward the street. The double doors ricocheted on the outside walls of the house with a harsh noise. The crowd gasped and moved back.

  In the middle of the half circle formed by the crowd that had gathered in front of their house were standing two magnificent horses. Their coats were a pure and radiant white and their brown hooves contrasted sharply against their brilliant coats. As a facial marking, they had a blue star between their eyes. From the crowd, most of horse enthusiasts who were looking at them, could not figure out what breed they were.

  “Did anybody see what happened?” asked a man in the crowd, pointing at the horses.

  “The ground shook and all of a sudden, they just appeared!” replied another man who had witnessed the appearance of the horses.

  At the time Paul smashed the gates against the walls, the two horses reared onto their hind legs and whinnied powerfully together. They pedaled in the air for a short while. The crowd gasped again and moved back even more. When the horses finally rested their front legs on the ground, they bowed their heads in reverence in front of Silas and Lydia. The twins approached the horses and stretched out one of their hands to pet their magnificent heads. At that moment, the horses raised their heads causing the star markings to touch the palms of the twins’ hands. Right then and there, they felt connected to the horses. Immediately, the horses began to sense an imminent danger and this caused the twins to feel it too.

  Silas and Lydia turned to bid their parents farewell who blessed them in return. Looking east, they noticed a dust cloud that was forming behind some horsemen riding down the eastern hill which overlooked the city. Behind the frantic riders, one could easily imagine that the city’s ruler was looking down from his castle with interest at the crowd which had formed in front of Paul’s house. The horsemen continued to gallop down, heading to Paul’s house. Seeing horsemen coming down the hill, the crowd understood that trouble was coming and started to scatter.

  At the same time, a woman rushed to Riya and, pointing at the dust cloud, she said “Look Riya! Mernid, the town’s ruler, is sending his guards to get a hold of these horses! You know how covetous he is. He would want these horses for himself. His soldiers are already on their way….” She was not done talking when Riya told her children “Quick, jump on the horses and go!”

  “Go now, go!” hastened Paul to the children as they stepped toward the horses, while strapping their respective bags on their back.

  “And be safe… ” added Riya who wiped a tear from her eye. The majestic animals bowed their heads and went down on their front knees to allow the two young future warriors to mount them. Silas and Lydia sat on the horses which started to gallop immediately. With the wind in their backs, pushing them further, the long ride ahead got off to a good start. Lydia looked back and saw her parents waving at them. The crowd scattered even more as Mernid’s horsemen soon passed in front of Paul and Riya’s house, chasing the white horses that had already gained a fair distance.

  CHAPTER 5

  Double Escape

  As the white horses galloped South, Mernid’s horsemen were following them, leaving behind a great cloud of dust. The distance between the horses kept increasing since the white horses were faster. After a while, one of Mernid’s horsemen let out a wry laugh.

  “What is it?” asked the leader, continuing to gallop.

  “They are headed toward a great pit, the Pit of Gulfur,” he replied.

  “They will have to stop, and we will catch them then,” smiled the leader.

  But, they became more and more surprised as they noticed that the white horses were not slowing down. On the contrary, they sped up. Silas and Lydia were not sure of what was going to happen as the enormous cavity was becoming more and more noticeable to them. They held on tightly to the mane of their mounts, as the horses seemed more powerful in their run. As they drew nearer to the edge of the precipice, they jumped in tandem, remained suspended in the air, all legs completely outstretched, and landed on the other side of the crater. The ground shook as they touched down. Unstoppable, the horses did not even look back but continued running, propelled toward their destination. The teenagers riding them took a look at their followers and could only imagine their distress.

  As the white horses jumped over the crater, Mernid’s horsemen understood that their horses could not do the same feat. They slowed down and at the last moment, they stopped at the edge of the Pit of Gulfur. Recognizing that going around the enormous precipice in an effort to catch them would be a major waste of time, they started to wonder what they would tell their master as an excuse for not having captured the white horses.

  On the other side of the enormous crater, the journey continued for Paul and Riya’s children. The horses galloped at great speed, dashing through the countryside. A feeling of freedom filled the hearts of the youngsters. Empowered by the prevailing animals they were riding, they felt the lungs of the horses expanding and contracting as they breathed powerfully. Soon enough the scenery changed, as a canyon with two prominent peaks on either side of it became more visible. The canyon, called Nayi Dibor, separating the peaks seemed to spread endlessly across the landscape. At first glance, the twins perceived this as a huge obstacle on their journey. They thought of riding around the canyon. However, the majestic horses did not seem to want to bypass it. Instead, they continued their run side by side through it. Soon, Silas and Lydia understood the reason why the horses did not want to circumvent the canyon: the two sharp elevations covered with bushes and a few lonely trees had a riding path cutting through them.

  “This narrow trail could be ideal for an ambush!” suspected Silas, lost in his thoughts. He recalled childhood stories where Nayi Dibor was said to be located beyond the great pit of Gulfur and he was thrilled to see the canyon. Glancing back at his sister, he said,

  “Look, Lydia, Nayi Dibor!”

  “I know, and I can hardly believe what I’m seeing,” she responded as the white horses kept on galloping toward the renowned canyon.

  As they approached the
pathway between the peaks, the horses sensed a forthcoming danger. They slowed down and, without hesitation, entered the canyon in a single file with Silas’ horse leading. Shortly after, a rock detached from the left-side peak and rolled down with a rumbling sound in the direction of the horses. The first horse increased his speed while the second one decreased his. Soon enough, the rock landed down between the horses, causing the dust to billow off the ground. When the dust settled, Silas and Lydia lifted up their heads and saw a large group of wild dogs all around the peaks drooling, growling and looking down at the horses and their riders. As the wild dogs began to push against rocks, causing them to roll down one by one, the horses picked up speed and zoomed forward. They jumped over the rocks, evaded some, and avoided others always running forward. The youngsters held on tightly to the mane of the horses, admiring their courage in that difficult time.

  Soon enough the end of the pathway was near. Silas, still riding up front, saw in the middle of the path a wild dog that appeared bigger than the other ones. Its drool was disgusting and it growled with fury. That one was surely their leader. Suddenly, the big dog started racing toward the horses, determined to bite them and their riders. At that sight, the other wild dogs ran down from the peaks, closing in on the horses and the teenagers. As distance sharply decreased between the parties, the leading dog jumped, muzzle wide open, aiming for the neck of the front running horse on which Silas was riding. The horse jumped too but went higher than the attacker. Up in the air, the horse pedaled quickly, knocked the head of the dog with its hooves and touched down. Lydia’s horse passed the beaten dog which rolled on the side of the pathway. When the other savage mutts saw what had happened to their leader, they stopped running downward recognizing their defeat. Continuing their run, the two horses were victorious once again and the cheerful youngsters were thrilled by their adventure.

  A few hours later, as they reached the top of a sandy hill, Sinayor, the Mountain-Of-Daily-Thunder appeared in the distance. The summit of the mountain was covered with dark clouds, and they did not hear thunder nor did they see lightning. The horses began to slow down. Moments later, they arrived at the base of the mountain.

  The white horses slowed down and stopped. Then at the same time, they bowed their heads allowing their riders to slide off and land on their feet. While the horses still had their heads down, Silas and Lydia felt compelled to touch each horse’s forehead star once more. They did so and instantaneously felt disconnected from the horses. The latter saluted Silas and Lydia and rode east of Sinayor. Soon enough, they went down a hill and disappeared from sight.

  CHAPTER 6

  Sinayor

  Silas and Lydia turned around from looking at the spot where the horses disappeared and faced Sinayor, their hearts filled with uncertainty. Silas took a deep breath and, before he could question his sister, he recalled what his father told him a few hours back. Taking a step forward, he declared:

  “The Alpha and The Omega is the One who opens and no one shall shut.” Unexpectedly, the mountain and the ground began to rumble. The rumbling grew louder. Suddenly, a crack appeared on the exterior face of the mountain, right in front of them, revealing a bright light that was coming from within the mountain. The crack expanded on each side and a gate made up of two panels appeared. The gate opened showing a path illuminated by fire torches arranged in a zigzag pattern.

  “A secret entrance in a special mountain!” exclaimed Silas.

  “This adventure is exciting!” replied Lydia, with the same enthusiasm.

  The twins felt grateful that the horses had led them in front of the hidden entrance to the mountain. They looked at each other briefly as to confirm the stride they were about to take. Then as one, they stepped forward to get inside the Mountain-of-Daily-Thunder. Once they were within, Lydia turned back and declared the words her mother had spoken to her earlier.

  “The Alpha and The Omega is the One who closes and no one shall open.”

  Once again, the loud rumbling resonated and the gates of Sinayor closed. Looking forward, they saw a path in front of them. It was narrow and on each side was a big void.

  Lydia remembered the words of the angel and reassured her brother: “Silas, the Alpha and the Omega is with us, remember? We have found favor in His sight. Let’s move forward on this path.”

  Taking her brother’s hand, Lydia took a step forward. They walked side by side as the narrow path was just wide enough for the two of them. As they began walking warily on the narrow path that was before them, an unusual sense of courage started to move them. The torches that were lit on each side of the path guided them in walking ahead. Advancing cautiously, one step at a time, they soon reached the end of the path.

  They did not think they would see anyone inside the mountain. However, there at the end of the path, they saw an old man. He seemed to have been there for a while. Standing up behind a high table, his upper body was visible but his arms were not. As they approached, Silas and Lydia noticed that his grey hair and beard gave him the appearance of a very old man. “Blessed are you, visitors of Sinayor! You are welcome in this place!” he announced. “Come, come closer.” he continued.

  The teenagers moved near the table.

  “You are Lydia, and you are Silas, children of Paul and Riya.”

  Astonished, Silas and Lydia’s jaws dropped open. The old man smiled and continued.

  “Don’t be surprised. The Alpha and the Omega granted me a vision. In this vision, I saw both of you right where you are now standing as He informed me of your coming. He revealed your names and told me of your mission; I am here to guide you through the path of your mission.”

  “Come, put your belongings down here,” he added by pointing to a place at a nearby wall.

  “I need… we need to understand the meaning of all this,” said Silas while putting his bag down.

  “And we have so many questions.” added Lydia, doing the same with her bag.

  “There is a time for everything. You will know what you need to know, in due time,” replied the old man.

  “First, let’s have a seat,” he added. He walked them to a nearby room where a smaller red table was set along with purple chairs arranged around it. The youngsters reacted with surprise as the luxury of this room contrasted with the austerity of the other room where they had been standing. “Do not be surprised. Come and have a seat. There is a lot that you must learn to continue your journey,” added the old man.

  They walked over to the offered seating and noticed the old man’s outfit. He was dressed in fine and clean, white linen which went down to his feet hiding his shoes. A golden linen belt was around his waist, and arrow themes were embroidered in the edges of his sleeves which were made of a golden band. The old man sat down first and waited for Silas and Lydia to sit. As they were sitting down, he announced:

  “My name is Remnar.”

  “Greetings to you Remnar,” replied the youngsters.

  “Peace be unto you, Silas and peace be unto you Lydia. I have been appointed to teach you the ways of the invisible arrow.”

  “What is that?”

  “It is a tool to build and to destroy.”

  “Is it a weapon?”

  “In a way, it is. However, it is more than a weapon.”

  “How come?”

  “That is why I said, it is a tool.”

  “Can we see it?”

  “Normally people do not see it, as it is invisible.”

  “So, we cannot see it then?”

  “You will be granted the privilege to see it.”

  “When will that be?”

  “When you master what is to come.”

  “What is coming?”