since they’d been back here. But everything had been such a blur, non-stop traveling, searching. She promised herself that when she returned, she’d devote more time to their relationship. And she hoped that as soon as she finished her mission, then she and Caleb would have all the uninterrupted time in the world to be together.
Caitlin burst out of the villa and found herself running, then sprinting, to the top of the Mount of Olives. Dawn was breaking, she had to meet Aden at mountaintop, and she couldn’t be late. She considered flying, but she thought it best if she warmed up her muscles first, on foot. She ran past ancient headstones, past rows and rows of trees, their silver branches glistening in the early morning light. It looked as if the entire mountain was alive, shimmering. It felt surreal, as if she were ascending to the very peak of heaven.
Caitlin soon reached the top, and as she did, she saw two things that took her breath away: one was the dawn, breaking over the horizon, filling the entire universe, lighting the valleys below in every direction, the mountain peaks on the horizon, and even the sprawling city of Jerusalem in the distance. It was magical.
The other was Aiden. He stood there waiting on the small plateau, his back to her, wearing his long white robe and holding a long, golden staff.
Aiden stood there, with his back to her, gazing out at the horizon. He didn’t turn, yet she was sure he sensed her presence.
She stood there, waiting, for several minutes, listening only to the sound of the wind in the early morning light. She knew it was best to wait until he was ready.
“Are you ready to complete your training?” he finally asked, still gazing out at the horizon, his back to her.
Caitlin swallowed, nervous, not sure how to respond.
“Yes,” she finally said.
“Are you sure?” came a voice from behind her.
Caitlin wheeled and was shocked to see, standing just a few feet behind her, was Aiden, staring at her with his intense blue eyes, lit up by the early morning sun.
How did he do that?
“In this time and place,” he began, “there exist stronger spiritual energies available to us. We are in less of a material world now, and more of a spiritual one. In future generations, the fights will occur mostly in the external world, with physical people and weapons and objects. But in this time and place, the greatest battles are unseen and unknown to us. They happen in the spiritual dimension. The good angels versus the bad ones. The forces of light versus the forces of darkness. They are battling all around us: we just can’t see them. This is what you have left to learn.”
He breathed deeply.
“Close your eyes,” he said, as he reached out his hand.
Caitlin closed her eyes, and moments later, felt his fingertips on her eyelids.
“What do you see?” he asked.
She tried to clear her mind, to see something. But nothing came to her. Was she supposed to be seeing something special? She felt embarrassed.
“I’m sorry,” she said finally. “I don’t see anything.”
“Your problem,” he began, “is that you’re still stuck in the physical world. You still see battle as between person and person, object and object. You’re missing the unknown. The unseen.”
He breathed deeply.
“Where do people come from? Where do our kind come from? How did it all begin? There is a deeper level. This is what you are missing. You are not at this level yet.”
After several moments of silence, Caitlin finally opened her eyes. She saw nothing. And Aiden was gone.
Caitlin spun in every direction, looking for any sign of him. But there was no trace whatsoever. For a moment, Caitlin couldn’t help but wonder if she’d imagined the whole thing, if he had never been there at all.
“You still can’t find me, can you?” came the voice.
Caitlin spun in the other direction, but she still couldn’t see him.
“Find me,” came the voice again.
Caitlin broke off into a sprint, running amidst the trees, looking on every side of the plateau, looking down every slope of the mountain. She even looked up. But she still saw no sign of him.
“That is your problem,” came the voice.
Caitlin spun, but the voice was not behind her.
“You’re still looking with your eyes.”
Caitlin spun again, but there was no voice there, either.
“You must close your eyes,” came the voice. “And look inside.”
Finally, Caitlin closed her eyes. She tried, again, to focus.
“Don’t concentrate with your