The Elements of Zion: the Vine, the Branch, and the Thorn

Chapter 6 Illumination

I looked around to find a desolate landscape, but no one to match the voice. I couldn't tell if it was night or dark due to the ominous clouds that hovered above. Everything appeared to be dead except the voice that echoed in my head. The life that existed before was in a complete state of decay. Trees had withered, and the vegetation had reduced to a brittle crisp, yet, I felt a strange connection to it.

"Peer deeper," uttered Dove, standing beside me.

I swept my gaze over the horizon, but it offered nothing save for the desolate, scorched earth stretching out before me. Amidst the barren landscape, a peculiar sight caught my attention. Protruding from the parched soil was a colossal tree stump, a relic of what once was.

Drawn towards this anomaly, I inched closer, and with each step, the stump seemed to swell before my very eyes. As I neared, it unfurled to its full majesty, towering over Dove and me. Awe-stricken, I watched as the bark twisted and writhed, assuming the striking silhouette of a human figure. Arms outstretched, the sinewy limbs elongated and shot out at a painstaking pace, morphing into an awe-inspiring being.

From the depth of the towering presence before me, a voice echoed, resonant as though it had traversed from Earth's hidden heart, "Understand you the things that below the quiet land do squirm and stir?"

A shiver clawed down my spine, seizing my voice in its icy grip. I offered only my silence, a mute plea borne of wide-eyed fear and a bowed head. Perhaps it might serve as an answer where words failed.

The figure, grand as the very roots of time, wasted not a moment, "It's the very marrow of whom you be, the values you clutch to your chest like the lifeline they are."

Again, I allowed my eyes to roam over the landscape, over terrains both painfully alien and heart-achingly familiar. A spike of recognition twisted within my chest. "This... this is like gazing at my own soul, ain't it?".

The behemoth made of ancient bark seemed to smile, his expression stirring a warmth akin to sunlight after a storm. "Just so, young traveler," it murmured. "Yet brace yourself, for the cradle of your soul harbors depths uncharted, truths vast and wild. The understanding of one's deepest self is a feat for the daring."

Dove landed upon his shoulder, a silent watcher. "Behold, The Oak of Truth stands before you. The wisdom he offers is the treasure of time; a beacon to guide the heart's meandering trails."

"Can he make all of this right?" I said. 

The Oak of Truth, steady as the ages, allowed a slow negative tilt of his form. "No simple mending awaits us, young sower of fields yet fallow. We venture deep into forgotten soils and layers of sorrow that have withered the verdant lands. Only by grasping the essence of The Elements, the truths that slumber in your life's ledger, shall you usher balance anew."

There was something of the fatherly in his timbered tone, the subtle creak of his words. It rattled a memory that I couldn't quite place, a voice that had chanted stories of valor at my bedside, a cadence too distant to seize but too familiar to ignore. It rekindled feelings of longing and intensified the pain of unhealed loss.

My hand instinctively sought out The Vines mark on my chest, a symbol that once bound a father to his son and later a soldier to his sanity. As my fingertips followed its contours, The Oak of Truth stood by, unaware yet serving as a silent guardian of a lineage fractured and a mind haunted by the echoes of past battles.

"Into your own abyss, we shall stride, where Father's lessons and Earth's whispers meld like rivers conjoined. Only then shall you discern the symphony amidst the discord, the silent hymns of your begetting."

With a thunderous stomp, the Oak of Truth shook the very earth beneath us. As if responding to his call, life burst forth around us. Trees sprouted from the ground, their branches reaching toward the sky as lush vegetation caressed our ankles. In the midst of this newfound oasis, a path formed - an invitation that beckoned us to venture forth into the unknown. The path waxed and waned through the hillside until we approached a steep ridge where a valley appeared below. A dense fog began to pour in, blocking our view.

Dove leaped into the air and began to circle us until I could no longer see Him. Moments later, The Oak of Truth's thunderous footsteps stopped, and I could no longer sense his overbearing presence. I could barely see my hands in front of me as the fog had grown so dense. The stillness was overwhelming, and I began to feel the chill of dread in my bones.

I stooped down to see the path below and crept forward until my foot connected with something solid. I leaned in to get a better view and noticed it was a stand of some sort. I reached out my hands to follow its length until it connected with what appeared to be a thick leather belt. On its buckle was emblazoned a golden oak leaf, and on the side, a sheath.

Above the belt was a metallic breastplate with intricate patterns of olive branches encircling it. I ran my fingers along the edges and marveled at how it had appeared. The front and back were riveted together by gold spikes, and Its surface glinted even in the dim light. I had no idea how these items appeared, but I knew they were meant to protect me.

With utmost care, I took hold of the breastplate, feeling the weight of its protection, as well as the belt that would accompany it. I drew in a deep, steadying breath before fastening them securely to my body. As the final clasp clicked into place, an unexpected noise caught my attention.

Eyes darting to the side, I sought the source but found only an empty space. A flicker in the fog caught my peripheral vision as if something elusive concealed itself in the mist. I strained to discern its identity but to no avail. A creeping sensation at my back urged me to whirl around, and yet, all I discovered was the path that stretched ahead and behind me.

All at once, I began to hear and glimpse the presence of more than one. My heart raced as I realized they were surrounding me. I raised my fist up to protect myself, and suddenly they began to appear through the dense fog. One by one, they appeared until I realized I was face-to-face with a mob of branches. Every last one was in a state of decay, appearing disheveled and almost broken.

Then out of the bunch, one figure broke free and began its slow approach towards me. Its face was unlike any I had ever seen, eyes brimming with both abject terror and deep-seated sorrow. I could feel his glare through the fog as he walked closer. Instinctively, I slid one leg behind the other, bracing myself for an imminent onslaught. The distance between us dwindled, and scarcely audible words trickled from the creature's lips, falling into the misty air like whispered droplets of dread.

"Pain... Please... Help me with this pain." The voice was haunting, a curious mix of the familiar and alien.

His voice trembled as he continued, "We all bear wounds that cut deep, aching with each step we take. We beg you, let your mercy shine upon us."

In an instant, his trembling hands reached forward, seizing my arms with an iron grip. An icy shiver raced down my spine as his desperate plea spilled forth, each word laden with unspeakable anguish. "You must help us! Please, banish this torment that plagues our souls!"

I struggled desperately to break free of his vice-like grip, to no avail. With a sudden force, I shoved him backward, only for him to retaliate by dragging me down to the merciless earth. As my back collided with the ground, I could feel a sense of impending doom as the hungry mob of branches drew nearer and nearer.

The defiant branch climbed on me and screamed, its voice, hoarse echoing in the air as it shrieked, "You are the only one who can help us!" Every word struck a chord deep within me, reminding me that this was no ordinary battle. I knew, in that moment, that my fate and theirs were irreversibly intertwined.