Chester (Part One)

Hello reader, I hope your holiday went by slowly enough for you to enjoy your family and friends.  We usually have a huge spread of food on Thanksgiving.  Not just turkey and the all the great sides that go with it, but also roasted pork, beef fillets marinated for weeks and many great deserts.  Now, none of us will die from over eating (we’re immortal) so we indulge until we can’t stand it!  Jago is prone to consuming more alcohol than food, so we watch him closely on days where celebrations become a great excuse of becoming blind drunk.  He has a tendency to rip off his clothes and go running about wherever he is drinking. The funny thing about our metabolic rate is that we can become obese and sleep it off.  To put it more clearly, the medicine will shut us down for maintenance if we over indulge and become obese…our body chemistry will always conform to our top genetic makeup …we are always in shape unless we are forced to hibernate via the potion due to obesity.

That brings Chester to mind.  We met him around 80 AD in Rome.  He came from a rich family that over indulged every chance they would get.  In the large cities like Rome there were many obese people because of the abundance of food and drink at their beckoning.  Now, my dear reader, keep in mind that back in that time the number of food and sex orgies going on was grossly exaggerated by historian and record keepers.  These ‘events’ started out as parties that grew into drunken raves by the middle and lower class groups.  The ruling class was much more discreet and would keep such gatherings secret because they didn’t want the lower class people associating with them while they were in such a vulnerable state…the lower class would always try to take advantage if they could ... could you blame them?

Chester, (which is his given name about two thousand years ago), was from a prominent political family in the ruling class.  As a boy he was pampered and fed whatever he desired.  Although Chester was spoiled rotten as a child and young adult, he maintained a compassionate disposition for the poor and downtrodden.  You would almost think he was psychic because he had a keen empathy for everyone around him  -- he would tell us later that he could feel what others felt, sometimes leading him into a false state of depression, which caused him to eat until he felt totally full to the point of nausea.  Food made him feel better and gave him a feeling of control …. most situations were out of his control, so food only gave him a false compensation for lacking the ability to make decisions.

His parents took ill when he was nineteen years old --- they succumbed to a bacterial infection and died.  He had no siblings so he was left alone and unsure what to do with his life and inheritance.  Due to his gift of empathy and his good nature, he began to give away most of his wealth.  People took advantage of him because he was overweight and needing to fit in --- the money allowed him to buy some temporary friends.  When we met him, he had just enough funds to continue to eat heavily and maintain his parents’ villa.  Chester was almost a head taller than me and must have weighed about thirty stone or over 410 pounds.  He was enormous and he waddled when he walked - due to lack of exercise his hip and leg muscles atrophied, making mobility quite a chore for him.

 

We purchased a house in the hills just across the way from where Chester lived.  After a few weeks in our new residence, we heard someone calling in a panic on a peaceful mid-summer’s day.  “Can someone help us?” A woman’s voice pleaded in the distance.  Eve and I ran out to see what the problem was and found an elderly woman running up the road to our home.

“Please master and mistress,” she addressed us, “the young master has fallen and is bleeding and I cannot pick him up because I am too frail and he is too large.”

With our curiosity blazing, we followed the woman to the nearest house.  Upon arriving, she led us to the courtyard and we found Chester bleeding from his forehead, attempting to raise himself to his feet, falling back down each time he tried.

 

(To be continued . . . .)

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My Wife

What exactly is a “wife”.  She is not someone we get used to and have sex with when the weekend comes around.  She is not the person that holds down a full-time job and keeps the household in order while the husband does “man things” and has the guys over for “the game” on Sunday night.  My wife has always been above and beyond this.  She knows what I need before I ask and she smiles when she knows that I will scratch my head wondering how she knew what to do to make something work that I had been puzzling over.

Although we have been together for many centuries, we have established a bond that goes beyond the husband / wife relationship.  We are truly kinfolk and we are truly one flesh and one mind and one soul.  Now please dear reader --- please, let it be known that we have our moments of disagreement, but we always make amends after talking things over (or Eve gives me a swift kick to the gonads to make me realize I am at fault). Eve is not an ordinary woman by any means --- she has timeless beauty and a keen awareness of everyone and everything around her coupled with an intuition that is almost psychic and all seeing.  The other ladies in our family of immortals were somewhat jealous at first, but grew to love her as I do and would go to her for motherly (or sisterly) advice when a situation prompted them to seek assistance.  My wife is my best friend and I am confident that anything I tell her or give to her will remain a secret until I say it wasn’t necessary to hold it inside any longer. 

Over the centuries she has given me sound advice and wisdom when I have needed it -- or helped me when my own emotions and thoughts clouded my judgment.  The others will never know if I had made a mistake because Eve is always there to fix things when I falter.  What a great friend she is!

On a different note, she is very playful and she is often able to surprise me when I least expect it. Whether it’s out to dinner and all she is wearing under her long coat is panties or surprising me in the hot tub by being the aggressive lover.  She always laughs at my jokes even when they are stupid and she fixes a joke if I get it wrong in front of friends. She has a contagious personality that people cling to and they walk away feeling positive after being around her.

One thing about Eve --- do not make her mad or get on her bad side.  She will descend on an enemy like trapped prey, either humiliating them into submission or taking the knife she conceals out of its hiding place and slicing them into little pieces.  (Of course it has been many years since she’s had to fight in such a manner, but Jago has coerced her into a rage so often that she has stabbed him through the heart at least 10 times in 2000 years).  Yes, such a dangerous beauty and yet so frail and tender at times.

None of us can have children – this has weighed heavy on her, more so than the other women in our group.  She is a mentor, sister, best friend and mother to all of the people we have given the gift to – we are time walkers now (a phrase created by Adam many years ago), and we support one another the best we can, but Eve would give up her life (if it were possible) to protect any of us from capture or recognition. Since none of us have any living family,  she has been appointed the unofficial Mother of the group.   

We tried very hard to have children and even tried to use science to assist, but the potion or medicine (as we call it) will not allow this.  We are unchangeable and a child in one of our ladies’ bodies will not take because it is “change”. So, my five foot five, auburn hair wife with the body that launched a thousand ships (I joke about that with her since history said her face launched the ships) is truly loyal to our family of friends and we are blessed to be able to walk through time together like a family.  But Billy has changed the pattern of things thanks to the meteor residue on the ancient coins….that is another story to be told soon.

So men who read this … love your wives and woman who read this be patient with your husbands . . .  whether we men are 25 years old or 3000 years old, we are still boys at heart.

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday.

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Billy (Interlude Number Two)

Billy was growing tired of watching his neighbor’s bizarre group of friends (or family?) from afar, and concocted a plan to get closer.  These people seemed technologically astute, so Billy thought that offering his services as an electrician and home network installer would get their attention. He printed out a hundred flyers and circulated some to about 20 houses around the block. He paid two twelve year old kids twenty-dollars to put them in mailboxes and in doorways, and then he had them repeat this three times over two weeks. He wanted to make sure someone in the household looked at one of cheap promo’s he was offering, hoping he would get a call.

Two weeks went by and several neighbors called inquiring about his service, but Billy put them off by saying their setup would be a thousand dollars more than he was offering in the promo because of wiring.  After two more weeks of waiting, Billy decided to help matters along by calling on the Ancient’s regarding his services.  He knew they must have received at least three flyers with his name and phone number enclosed, and he could prove he was a legitimate technician due to his certifications (if they asked for them).   He worked up the nerve to walk down to their house, knock on their door and introduce himself.  Eve answered the door and Billy tried as hard as he could not to stare at her or work his eyes downward to her breast and legs.  He had never seen someone so beautiful and sensual in his life.  Even in jeans and a tee shirt she appeared to be flawless and had a certain command about her, as if she were someone to worship.

“May I help you?” she asked with the partially opened door chained from the inside.

“Yes ma’am,” he answered politely, “I’m a neighbor from across the way and I sent out some fliers to the neighborhood --- now I am following up on those.” He smiled with a charming grin at the end of his introduction.

“Oh, are you the one that works on the home networks?” Eve asked

“Yes, that’s me. I . . . .”

Eve interrupted, “Hold on,” she said as she unchained the door, “Joseph, that guy that does the home network stuff is here.” She called out and Billy’s surprise. He wondered if they could read minds, too.

Eve lead Billy to Joseph’s home office.  Billy looked over everything he passed with laser like attention, remembering as many things as he could as he passed them.  He wanted to save any bit of information he could for analysis later.  He was taken directly to Joseph’s home office and introduced by Eve.

“So”, Joseph said, “you’re timing is excellent.  I don’t have time myself to hook up what I want so I think I will rely on you.  What’s your name, again?” he asked extending his hand to shake.

“Billy, Billy Hollander.” He said as he took Joseph's hand. “What do you need?”  Billy asked as he sat in a chair in front of Joseph’s desk.

While Joseph was explaining how he wanted his network to work, Billy’s eye shifted back and forth looking for information on the desk, on the book shelves and every where he could -- to learn more about the Ancients.  His eyes moved to a table sitting to the left of Joseph’s desk.  There was a microscopic device in the center of the table surrounded by hundreds of old coins … ancient coins.  He wondered what all that was about and made certain to remember what he saw.

“So that’s what I need, Mr. Hollander.”

“Call me Billy.” The younger man said. “No problem, Mr. Ancient.  I will get an estimate together and bring it by tomorrow afternoon.

“Please.  We’re neighbors, call me Joseph.”

Billy smiled and got up from the chair and Joseph walked him back to the front door.  They exchanged a farewell and Billy headed back to his house, barely containing the excitement he was feeling.  At last he could find out first hand what was going on in the Ancient’s household.

(End of Interlude Number Two as told was told to and written by RJ Perry)

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Leneeca (Conclusion)

We ran up behind Leneeca and watch her immerse her naked body into a lake.  She let out a scream of delight as the water swallowed up her body to the tip of her chin.  She turned and looked at us and went under water, disappearing completely from our sight which caused Eve to panic, forgetting that the young woman cannot die.

“Joseph!” Eve punched my arm to go after her. “We’ll lose her the same way we lost Jago.”

“Wait!  I’m not going to freeze in this cold morning air --- in the cold water!”  Eve saw that I was serious and that I wanted to wait on the shore because I knew Leneeca was in no danger of drowning.

Without hesitating, she ripped off her clothes straight down to her skin and ran into the water.

I could only stand there with my mouth opened wondering how I was going to explain my two naked companions.  I watched on with a very small smile on my face as Eve and Leneeca came to dry land with skin glistening and their hair drenched and stuck flat to their heads.  Eve went to kick me in the groin again as she helped the younger woman to a seat in the grass, but I was too fast this time and dodged the attack.  I guess I shouldn’t have been laughing at this because she swung around with a left hook and caught me square in the jaw.  (I have to say --- that really sobered up my attitude).

The young woman stared out at the water as Eve covered them both with one of Eve’s robes.  Leneeca sat shivering with the clothing around her shoulders and both hands clenched over her mouth just underneath her nose.  Eve wrapped her arm around Leneeca to warm them both as well as to comfort her --- I looked on rubbing my jaw, daring not to interrupt the moment.  After a long silence, Leneeca spoke.

“I’m sorry for the way I have been behaving,” we waited for her to continue, “I don’t know why I cried so much.  I suppose that all of the pain and suffering I have seen has finally caught up with me.  I hate the Romans and I forgive both for associating with them.  I know you are ‘not them’ and I have grown to love you like family.” She sat in thought for a moment, “I am immortal?  How?”

We told her our complete story up until the present – right up to Eve and her sitting naked on the shore of the lake.  She shook her head and said, “I guess I will have to leave this place.  I am so tired and need a different life.  After all I would have died anyway and my story would have ended here.”

The ladies split what clothing they had and we headed back to the village.  The three of us agreed to depart from the village and the Romans in the middle of the night, traveling together the Arabic territories where no one knew us.  There were many Christian groups migrating away from the persecution in the Roman territories so we could mingle among them and hopefully not be noticed. Last we heard, Mona and Jago were moving about in tents and tending sheep, so we were going to join them for a while.  It’s been many years since we have seen them.

Leneeca’s immortality didn’t seem to intimidate her as much as we thought it would.  She‘d ask questions and experience the heeling when the normal aches and pains of the life would surprise us, but she seemed to adapt well to her new situation.

“Where are we going again?” she asked as we traveled.

“We’re going to Egypt,” Eve responded.

“I’ve heard of it. Is it as old as people say?”

“Yes,” I replied, “very old -- older than Eve.” I joked.

“Be careful baldy,” she returned, “I have very fast feet and fists.”

Leneeca smiled as we bantered on.  She seemed to enjoy our company and she loved to sit and watch Eve and me carry on about things. At first I thought she just found us to be entertaining, but later she revealed that we reminded her of her family and this made her feel good – to know she had family that could share in her very long life.  We were grateful that our journey to find Jago and Mona was uneventful and we found our friends happy and just as loving as we left them.  Mona was tan and very beautiful from all of the hard outdoor work she was finally able to experience – she was far removed from her former physical state.  Being able to walk and run and climb filled her with such happiness that we knew we did the right thing when we gave her the potion.  Jago was still very blunt and just as juvenile as we left him, but he and Mona complimented each other and created a perfect balance in their relationship.

We sat around the open fire drinking wine and laughing about the ‘crazy time’ each of them experienced.  The subject once again came up – “Joseph, what did you do during your time of insanity?” They asked.  Eve smiled and looked up at me from where she was seated because only she knew what  I did many hundreds of years before we met.  I smiled and replied the usual prepared statement, “I didn’t have a crazy time”.

When we finally settled down to relax for the night, Leneeca asked us all a question.  “Could any of you survive without the other --- to have your mate, lover, best friend  --- walking through time with you?”

We all just looked at her. “I only love one man, and he was murder before my eyes.  I miss him so much . . . .” A tear rolled down her cheek as she continued. “I wanted to have his children.  I wanted to grow old with him and watch our babies become adults who would also have children.  I only know one thing --- that as long as I live, I will never take a mate.  I’d rather be alone and help those around me that need to be cared for and loved.”  She stopped talking, wiped her tears away, and got up and went to her tent for the rest of the night.

“She doesn’t understand, Joseph.  Forever is a very long time to be alone.”

I looked at our solemn group seated around the fire and said, “She’s one of us and we will love her through many things.”

End of this story (for now) . . . .

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Leneeca (Part Three)

The mist residue from consuming the “medicine” was slowly dissipating off of Leneeca.  We hadn’t noticed before, but the ghostly vapor lifted the young woman off of the mat she was resting on and made her hover about five inches from its surface.  In ancient times that would have deep spiritual meaning, but in today’s science we know that the mist is displacing the oxygen around her causing the flotation effect.

The pain inflicted on me by my beautiful, but short tempered wife, subsided and my “genitalia” healed nicely.  After she cooled down from her moment of rage, she came back to where I sat recovering. “Why did you lie to me?” she asked with noticeable anger in her voice. “Why did you tell me the medicine was dried up?  Couldn’t you have trusted me and discussed your thoughts about hiding the potion?” She threw up her arms in frustration questioning why I hid the truth.

“I lied because you keep influencing me to make more people like us.  Now there are five of us.  We are not like the others and it’s wrong to put others through this for all eternity.”  I felt my throat 'lump up' as I spoke. “We have no right to disperse this abominable gift.”

Eve drew closer to me and put her arms around my neck, then squeezed, tightly . . . lovingly.

“We are all the same. We just can’t be touched by death or other human beings.  Jago, Mona and Leneeca are special.  They are like family to us and I don’t regret giving them the gift.  I understand your need to control this, but please include me.  We are in this together.  But I do have one question – how did you know Leneeca wouldn’t drown in her own fluids when given the medicine?”

“I didn’t.  She was moments away from death, so I decided to take the risk.  I am happy she is alive.  She deserves life and she will make the world a better place.”

When the mist disappeared, Eve and I bathed Leneeca and made her as comfortable as possible – we knew she would be asleep for a while – maybe days.  The village people that she tended to and healed were paying vigil outside the shelter she used as a “hospital” for the sick.  They sat praying to the gods that she would be made well.  They felt that she deserved life and  quite simply, everyone loved her and said they would gladly take place in death.

Six days passed and Leneeca finally awoke, feeling hungry and very thirsty.  Eve and several other women from the community helped her get cleaned and dressed and eventually fed.  When the three of us were finally alone, I manipulated the conversation to explain her miraculous recovery.

“We are so glad you are well.” I said.

“I don’t know how this can be.  I am sure I was dying.” She replied.

Eve smiled and kissed Leneeca’s cheek, “You were moments from death but we saved you.”

“I was dying. How?” she asked.

Eve and I both explained how we have this medicine that I made many years ago, that when given to someone will make them immortal and untouchable by death.  We also explained about the body fluids and how we can only have one mate for all eternity because our bodies will adapt to the first immortal person we have sex with.  We encouraged her to consider love before sex at all cost, because she will be with that person for all eternity.

“So if I spit on someone it will burn them like fire?  If a man puts his flesh inside of me it will burn up and only one immortal may be my mate for eternity?”  She repeated all she learned. “My husband was murdered by the Romans.  I would have wanted him to be with me forever.“ 

She began to laugh hysterically and then she wept.  We knew what was to follow – the “crazy time” as we called it.  Just after the potion heals it causes an emotional breakdown that could last for hours or weeks.  (We found out later that this was due to the drastic change in the body’s chemistry. The hormones and physical  / chemical changes it brought were extreme.)

Leneeca cried for three days.  We tried to comfort her as much as we could, but she kept dwelling on her husband’s murder and how there can be no one else but him in this world as her love.  The village women began to talk among themselves suggesting that the sickness had driven the young woman mad --- we quelled the muttering and told them that she will recover if left alone.  From that point on we kept everyone away until the crazy time passed.

One late afternoon we heard laughter then a loud crash coming from where Leneeca had her bed.  We ran to see what had happened and found her table over turned and bed ripped apart.  Eve glanced out of a doorway and saw Leneeca running to the woods, ripping her clothes off as she ran.  We immediately chased after her, hoping that no one was seeing her running through the trees like a mad woman.

“Here we go again.” I said to Eve as we stopped to gain our bearings.

(To Be Continued . . . .)

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Leneeca (Part Two)

Our time in the Celtic community was filled with the constant stress of working with the Romans as well as attempting to convince Leneeca and the village chiefs that we wanted to help them.  We couldn’t lift the oppression they were under, but we were able to convince the Roman liaisons to spare lives wherever and whenever possible.  Eve spent many days assisting Leneeca with her work of healing and comforting the families who passed through the village and were attempting to migrate away from the battles being fought in their homeland.  Eve’s actions are what convinced the young woman that we were not filthy Romans, but compassionate people, wanting to make the world a better place.  Thanks to Eve’s persistence, Leneeca finally decided to let her guard down and speak openly.

“Why do you help me day after day?  You’re a Roman, not slave – yet you aren’t afraid to touch the sick or get the blood of my people on your hands and clothes when binding their wounds. And Joseph plays with the children and teaches them when he should not. Isn’t educating Roman enemies against your laws?”

Eve thought for a moment and then smiled at Leneeca. “We are not Romans.  I’ve told you this many times before.  I am Greek and Joseph … Joseph is from a faraway place.  We are with the Romans because we live in Rome and the senate asked us to record the events in York and the surrounding areas to send them news of all the events here.”

Leneeca moved closer to Eve to speak.  Eve was amazed at how much taller this young woman was than she.  When they both stood up straight, the younger woman was at least a head and a half taller than Eve.  Her height gave her the respect she needed when dealing with the men on the village council. 

Eve spoke, “Joseph loves children and would give his life to protect them (all his lives she thought to herself), and he was against the conquering of your people and openly spoke of what could be done to make offers to the Celts instead of coming into your lands with swords drawn ready to kill anything that moved in order for the Romans to press forward to own the whole of the world. Joseph is a good man and I agree with everything he believes in.”

Leneeca looked away from Eve with tears of shame in her eyes.  “I am sorry I judged you to be filthy and full of greed as the Romans are . . . Let’s begin a new day today and start fresh, as though we are first meeting.”

Eve agreed and from that moment on, she and Leneeca became like sisters.  It was in the eighth month of the occupation of the village when Leneeca took ill.  While working with the sick, she had caught a respiratory bacterium that quickly turned into pneumonia.  The young woman was distraught and in agony because she could not tend to the sick and injured as she did every day.  Eve’s heart was torn to watch such a beautiful and caring young woman quickly wasting away from the unseen killer ravaging her body.  I held Eve tightly in my arms and tried to comfort her while she was mourning for the young woman who was dying after she helped so many to get well.

We both sat by her side as she lay helpless and unmoving and then I thought of the medicine. Years before I had told Eve that the medicine had dried up, that we couldn’t make anyone else like us.  I couldn’t see a whole army of immortals running about trying to rule the world like the Greeks and the Romans, so I made the medicine disappear.  But I lied to my wife and she was the only person I should have trusted with the potion.  I looked down at Leceena and thought that the world would be such an ugly place without her warmth and compassion.  The young woman broke my thoughts as she struggled to speak.  “I can’t die.  Eve, Joseph, who will take care of them.” She wept. “I love them and they need me to get through all of this.”

Eve wept with her and leaned down to hug her tightly in her arms. “My dear sweet sister, I have grown to love you so much.  Please know that I will take your place and take care of everyone in your name and in your honor.”

Leneeca gasped and coughed --- Eve laid her down gently to make her more comfortable.  I looked at my wife and saw the agony in her eyes and there was only one thing I could do.  I reached into a secret pocket in my robes and pulled out the clay jar.

“Joseph, you lied!” Eve yelled.

“We’ll talk about it later.  Right now, just sit Leneeca up and help me so we don’t spill any medicine.”

Eve had a scowl and a hint of a smile on her lips (something I will see many times in the future when I screw up). She helped me drop a sip of potion into the young woman’s mouth and Leneeca swallowed, then gasped and then went rigid as we all did.

Eve looked up at me, “You really are going to have to explain this to me.” She said with anger in her voice. “You never lie to me, why now?”

“Okay, so this is going to hurt, isn’t it?” I asked, knowing her bad her temper may escalate. After all she killed Jago twice.

She smiled and faster than a flash of lightening, kicked me with all her might, straight between my legs.  I fell to my knees in excruciating pain.  I gasped for air and looked up at her and asked, “I guess you’re a little upset.”

(To Be Continued . . . .)

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Leneeca (Part One)

Neecie’s heart is as big as she is tall.  She stands about six foot, but when she wears heels and has her thick brown hair piled up on top of her head she stands tall at a firm six foot five.  She is the tallest one in our little family and she will always take care of others before she does anything for herself.  That is her nature and that is how we found her in a small Celt community 30 miles south of York.  It was around 77 AD, a few years after the Romans conquered the north of England.  Neecie (or Leneeca) was the only person in her village that had the knowledge to treat illness and injury and she was kept busy from day to day treating her people due to the unrest in her region and the Roman conquest.  When we met her she was twenty years old (middle aged for that time period) and bore heavy responsibilities regarding her duties to the to the chiefs and elders.  Her people were conquered and beaten down by the Romans, and the wounded rebels that remained were hidden in her village around the outer areas within the hills and caves.  Eve and I happened upon the village when traveling with the Roman legions to record the events for the senate back in Rome.  We were privileged while with the Roman’s and were treated well by their leaders and generals.  Although we walked freely among the conquerors, we felt very badly for this proud conquered people.  We had been among them for two months when we met Leneeca and instantly took a liking to her.

Leneeca had an intense concentration and focused on what was in front of her with all of her attention, listening keenly to every word spoken to her, as though if she misunderstood what someone was saying it would cause the end of the world.  Eve befriended Leneeca soon after they met and would help her with the wounded and the sick whenever she could.  One day, after a long childbirth and acting as midwives, they sat before an evening fire to converse.

“So Leneeca, how did you come about tending to the sick?  Do you have formal training as a physician? “  Eve asked as they relaxed after the delivery of a baby.

Leneeca changed her posture and turned her full attention to the conversation, “My father was one of the King’s physicians. He taught me everything I know and encouraged me to continue helping our people.”

“Where is he now?” Eve inquired.

“He was murdered by the Romans, along with my mother, brothers and husband during the conquest --- murdered by you and your kind --- filthy and uncaring Roman people.”  She said this without emotion in a beaten down monotone voice. 

Although spoken emotionless, there was a tinge of challenge in the words she said to Eve.  Eve sensed this and replied, “I am not Roman.  I am Greek, and I can’t really say what Joseph is.  We are not here to conquer but to record history for those that requested it.  I am so sorry for your losses and I wish you could feel relief from the silent grieving you must be bearing.”

Leneeca stared blankly at Eve.  She had the perfect “poker face” and Eve could not read what she may have been thinking. After a moment of silence Leneeca broke in, “You are guilty just by being with them.”  She got up and went to her quarters for the night without saying anything else to Eve.

“Did the baby come without any problems?” I asked Eve as she came into our tent and laid down beside.  She pulled my arms around her for me to hold her as she nestled into a comfortable position.

“The baby was fine, but Leneeca has a problem with us.  She thinks we are filthy Romans.”

I gently moved her auburn hair to the side and looked at her face. “We are not Romans.  She is a complex young woman that has the entire world on her shoulders.  We can spend more time with her and show her that we are different.  She needs to know not everyone is evil and we can help her as long as we are here. Isn't that our eternal purpose?”

“I suppose you’re right.  I just hate to see people wasting away because time slowly consumes them.  She is such a good and caring person with a great passion for making people well.  She is very unique to our time.”

“Well, my love, I said, “I think this will be an interesting chapter in our ongoing story.”

(CONTINUED . . . .)

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Billy (Interlude Number One)

“Here is a story within the stories.”  -Joseph-

Billy sat viewing a video on his computer laptop that he had taken three weeks ago of a neighbor’s backyard gathering.  A beautiful woman spewed fire into the sky from her mouth as he hid in a tree secluded from site with his camera about five houses away from where the Ancient’s lived.  He shivered as he watched the scene over again and again.  This isn’t the only strange event he has witnessed from this neighborhood home – he saw a man floating in the air in the middle of the night in the same backyard.  He had heard that the group of people who frequented this house was different, but he never dreamed they were like this – more than human.

He began to watch the house about six weeks ago and found that ten people (or five couples) were constantly coming and going at all hours of the day and night.  They were quiet and no one seemed to complain about any strange things happening at this location, but Billy’s gut told him that he should wait and watch.  He played the video of the beautiful woman (whom he discovered was Eve Ancient) sending a huge cloud of fire into the sky with one breath.  What is this?  He kept asking himself if this was a trick of some sort, that maybe he would see an apparatus or chemicals being handed to her to allow such a huge fire ball to come out of her mouth.  But there was nothing – just a coin someone threw to her before she heaved the fire.

In his research he found that the house belonged to Joseph and Eve Ancient.  They both owned several web sites and one of the websites sold coins, curios and artifacts.  He went to the site and found “Joseph Ancient’s House of Ancient Coins and Curios” (http://www.ancientscoin.com). He had to admire the strangeness of some of the curios as well as the detail and authenticity of the ancient coins.  So the wife was tossed a coin and then came the fire?  He pondered the series of moves that led to the fire breathing of Mrs. Ancient.

“What about the others?” he asked himself.  How are these people related?  We have the two red heads that stand out in the crowd along with the beautiful wife and tall girl that has a shorter husband.  There’s that scruffy “John the Baptist” looking guy and his wife that always seemed to be standing instead of sitting. And then there is the ordinary girl and boy next door couple that seemed to be the “quiet ones” in the group.  These are ten people with different styles and personalities that look like they would have nothing in common.  Who are they?  Where did they come from? Why care?  Billy was curious and needed to know more.  Since his divorce he has been bored and lonely, but at thirty-two years old he was making great money as an electrician and “wiring guy” – there are plenty of companies needing to run category 5 an 6 wiring for their network systems and he always had contract work from other companies that had more work than they could handle  He made enough money to take two weeks off a month to spy on his neighbors and still have plenty of time to party and meet new ladies until the next booked job.

In all, the entire group down the street consisted of young twenty-something’s -- except for Joseph Ancient, who was noticeably older, bald and had a different demeanor about him --- almost like he was always on his guard with his eyes shifting like he was looking for something or waiting for something to happen.  Billy felt uncomfortable just thinking about having to talk to him face to face.  “How could such a homely, scary looking guy as this get such a hot gorgeous wife as her,” he thought, “must be lots of money in those pockets.”

“I guess I will have to take a closer look at these people and hope they don’t see me,” Billy said aloud to himself.

He began to type on his laptop keyboard looking for clues.  His screen brought him to the Missouri Public Records website.  He thought this would be a good place to start his new

hobby . . . .

(End of Interlude Number One)

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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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