Mona (Conclusion)

“Joseph, maybe we should just leave here and do what you did for Jago --- let her come to grips with her destiny in her own time.” Eve addressed these concerns for Monalora to me as we sat trying to relax late at night while waiting to see if the young woman would recover from this morning’s revelation.

I looked into her eyes and took her hand as we sat at the table in the large room. “Each of us adjusts to this new idea of never dying and never growing old in different ways.  Monalora will have her awaking as we all have.  I believe the medicine changes not only our bodies, but our minds as well.  That’s why Jago went insane and why Monalora is hysterical.  You on the other hand, my love, merely shaved your head and sat in ashes naked for three days without eating or sleeping.”  I said this jokingly to invoke Eve’s memory of her transition. “Monalora will recover.”

The night darkness began to fade as the red morning sunrise seeped into the house through the windows and arches.  In the quiet of the morning, Jago and Monalora startled us as they entered the room without a sound.  They both sat down across from us at the table and pulled the bowl of fresh fruit closer and took some grapes and figs.  The four of us sat in silence staring at the each other, wandering who should speak first. 

Monalora spoke. “Eve, I am sorry about yesterday.  I don’t know what came over me.  It all became overwhelming when I realized the truth – this is forever.  Joseph, I want to thank you for this wonderful gift.  I will use it as wisely as I can.”

We were amazed at the difference in the young woman from yesterday.  Monalora was twisted and shivering when we last saw her, but now she is calm and aware and sensitive to her surroundings.  Her long wild black hair was combed back and held by a strand of blue clothe (no doubt the servants assisted in her grooming). Her dark almond shaped eyes were piercing and added to her beauty.  We realized Jago saw through the palsy – he saw her beauty although she was diseased – this is what made him fall in love with the woman he took care of since she was ten years old.  He saw a frail but beautiful woman with a strong will to hang onto life and live as much as she could in the state she was in.

“You look beautiful.” Eve complimented. “I am sorry that I was not more comforting to you.  I felt that no matter what I could have said, it wouldn’t make a difference until you rationalized your own circumstances. Joseph and I hope to answer all of your questions.”

“I have told her as much as I know.” Jago stated. “I also have some questions about things I should have asked the day this was given to me.”

As morning turned into afternoon we left the comfort of the large room and walked the paths on the outskirts of the village, conversing and enjoying each other.  There were many questions posed regarding our lives as the ‘deathless ones’.  Monalora asked the same questions as Jago; “Are we demons?”; “Will this allow any peace in our lives?”; “Do Eve and I regret never having children?”; And the biggest question – “Where do we go from here?”

Jago seemed very happy – especially when he talked of their marriage in the village for all to see.  He wanted to have the largest gathering and celebration his house could afford. In Thrace, wedding celebrations were the biggest gatherings outside of military victory celebrations and Jago wanted to celebrate for as long as the wine and food would last.

“Jago, you can’t have a wedding in this village.” I said.

“What? Why?” he asked with Monalora looking on.

“How would you explain Monalora’s miraculous healing? There are people here that would possibly call you demons and kill you both or much worse, they will want to know how she was healed.  We can’t allow ourselves to be discovered.  That would be bad for us and the entire world.” 

“But Joseph, these are all the people we have grown to know and love.  They would never harm us.” Jago said.

“I know these are good people, but there are others outside of this village that would cause great harm to us, and remember we can’t die, but we can feel the pain of death.  I don’t want this for any of us.”  I put my arm around Jago’s shoulder as we walked, like a father counseling a son.  “Jago, you must leave here and pay your servants not to tell where we have gone.”

Monalora interrupted, “Joseph is right. We must leave here.  It would be good to see the world and to learn wonderful new things.  I was in that old diseased body and now I am healthy and have so much energy . . . I want to go, Jago.”

After a time of persuading, Monalora got her way. He agreed to leave and travel with us for a time and to be married in Rome in the temple.  We went back to the house and while Eve and I were bathing, we heard Monalora and Jago consummating their love in their private chambers.  Their ecstasy was so loud that it made the horses in the stables nervous and made us also aroused.  Eve smiled at me and said, “I think I know where we are going from here.”

Mona and Jago are together today in the twenty-first century.  They have had over two thousand years to get to know each other and their story continues toward the future. And to this day Eve has killed Jago about ten times over the centuries --- he still gets under her skin.

This ends the story of Mona’s translation into immortality.

-JA-

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