Chapter 2
Journey of the Goddess Queen, Part 1
Sometime before Mercy became herself; there was someone else. Maybe, she was someone else. Her evolution began with a single idea. Could there be someone else, another? Someone who would be worthy of her?
In the distance, the earth's uniformity gave way to an eerie haziness. A small group of tents, similar to yurts, was encircled by the haze. The few humans that remained here were the descendants of a once proud and nomadic people. In the darkness, the remoteness kept the mountains hidden from view, and this made the rocky snow-covered ground seem flat. This illusion of openness brought no comfort to the people that lived here. They knew the creatures.
She glided out of the dawn. A young slim woman with short dark hair. Her dress was a dark brilliant blood red with streams of gold flowing over it and lining its edges. It was in the style of the last evolution of the traditional Chinese dress, a cheongsam. The fur lined tan animal skin coat, a fur ushanka (ear flap hat) and matching boots made her costume appear quite Russian when her coat was closed. Unity spoke, "I've come a long way to talk to you." Her words were in Mongolian. "Are you the human we seek? It may be that you do not have much time left. Many people of this land are no more." She stared blankly at the emerging sky. "All peoples are ending. You may be the one we need. The grand glorious demon born of fire and hate. The impossible one. The teacher of things grand and miniscule. The one who knows what is not known?"
The old man's body shook as he pointed at Unity with a crooked finger and replied in Mongolian, "You? You! Stay away from me!" He held the tent pole in front of him defensively. "You are one of them?! Demon!"
She did not hear the rest of his words. Unity spoke, "I've come a long way to talk to you. Are you the one I am looking for? The tall, beautiful human male of our dreams and nightmares? The one who can give what we have lost?"
"You! Stay away from me!" The tent pole jerked around in front of him defensively. "You are a demon!"
"You may be the last? The strongest? The bravest? The one we seek? Can you teach me what we no longer know? Did you know, you may be the last? Demon? What do you know of demons?" Her gaze turned to the sky as she unbuttoned her coat.
He used the pole to gesture for her to leave. He watched the gray, boney hallow eyed creatures' approach, in the distance. "You leave!" he said. He backed up toward the tent. "You leave!"
"That is silly. We have come a long way to talk to you." Her gaze drifted across the sky. "China. India. Russia. You may be the one we search for. We come to offer you a gift." She opened her coat. "We believe you may be the last. Give me... Us what we seek. If it is not given, it is taken. All is Unity."
"You go, or we fight." The man fidgeted nervously.
The dress front shimmered in the light of the coming day. Her eyes abruptly found the man. Her voice was even with a hint of annoyance, "We do not come here to fight. We have no wish, no desire to harm you. We do not come to hurt your people behind there." Her hand loosely waved at the tent.
"Then you go, or we fight." The man replied.
Her smile was evil. "Please, listen to me. I've come a long way to talk to you. You may be the last one. The one who can teach us what we no longer know. Please accept our gift. Look upon the face of unity and be comforted."
"Crazy demon. You go away. Bring your evil gifts somewhere else." He blurted out. He watched the gray boney one's crawl closer.
"I have traveled the world." Her gaze shifted to the old man's feet. A hint of anger seeped from her words. "I... We have asked many, many humans. We... I seek a demon. Can a human understand such things? Humans run from us? Humans join us. We... Unity is bliss, glory and life. Human, do you recoil from life? I bring you these gifts? Look upon us... Me and rejoice." Her anger went away.
The old man watched as several young human appearing demons surrounded the tent. An old woman exited the tent behind him. She had a long knife in her hand. The old woman spoke, "My husband needs no gifts from crazy demons. You go away and bring them with you." She swung the knife while pointing at the creatures around them.
"Humans, you are all so..." She took a very long pause between each word, "Fragmented... frail... fragile... fidgety... that's not it? Yes, small. Humans are small and weak. Alone, even as a group. Yes, alone that was the word I was looking for. Alone. The knife cannot help. Many of me are here. We are here. I am here now. Our gift is for all. Look upon us and feel the joy and bliss that is Unity. But for now, our business is not with you." Unity raised her hand to strike the old woman. A young demon approached her from the right. A young demon approached her from the left. They spoke in unison, "We are one. All is Unity. Accept the gift that is offered."
He spoke with a bravery born out of desperation. "No, demon. We will speak. Do not hurt anyone." He pulled his wife back. "Go in the tent."
The old woman fought back tears. She went into the tent. The only thing left to her was desperation and fear. She would let her husband have his last moment of courage. He would die as he lived. It was the only thing she had left to give him.
"I've come a long way to talk to you. You may be the last male on this continent. The last one in China, India, Russia, or anywhere around. Maybe even Africa? You may be the one we search for. The one we fear. The one we hate. The great powerful Demon we desire. The one we love. The tall beautiful one who once walked the world only to destroy us? The one who made not war? No, those words are wrong..." She rambled on to herself as she stared at the clouds in the sky. "I seek... We seek the one who makes peace from not peace?"
"Crazy demon, tell me what you want here?" He asked with all the courage he could find.
"Are you the tall beautiful one who will save everyone?" She said looking like a cobra preparing to strike. "Will you bring not war – peace to this place?"
"Yes. Peace. Yes, I will save everyone. You go away. Take all the scary ones with you." He gestured in agreement. "Yes, you are a good demon. No one has to fight. You go away and take the others with you. We save the people? Yes, demon?"
Unity stepped back. She raised her arms outward. Her palms faced the old man. She appeared as a dark angel preparing for an enormous embrace. Her cold stare fixed on the man. "I hope this is true. But I fear that you have lied." Her head drifted sideways. It came to rest on her left shoulder. She closed her eyes. Her coat opened in the wind, and her sleeves hung down.
"Oh, yes, we will save everyone. You can go away." he agreed nervously. Hopelessness rose in him as the gray boney beasts surrounded him and his family.
Unity's head popped upright, and her silvery-black eyes opened. "Gaze upon that which is the beauty and glory of Unity. Bathe in the joy and wonder Unity brings. Accept our gift and look upon us." She stood before him. She hurriedly stepped toward the old man.
He stepped back; then he had nowhere to go.
She smiled like a serpent, and she spoke gently, "We have not come to bring harm to anyone. Why do you recoil? I only wish to know. I wish to be sure. I seek my tall, beautiful man. I need my... Our Demon. I... We work toward saving the peoples of this world?"
The old man quivered and attempted to speak. The suppressed cries from the tent made it harder for the words to come. His body pressed against the tent. He couldn't find any words. With all of his remaining strength, he stood against the inevitable.
Unity drew in breath deeply through her nose. She was so close to the old man that she appeared to be trying to inhale him. "We have decided. Once, you may have been tall, strong, beautiful and feared. You are not these things now. Still, you are brave. You could be the one we seek. We must be sure. I... We will place our hand on your face; then we... I will know." Both of her hands cupped the old man's face. Unity leaned her head back. She closed her eyes. A humming-moaning sound filled the air.
The man's eyes darted about. His breath was shallow and fast. They were surrounded now. He had no hope that this crazy demon brought any good.
She released his face, "Nothing. You must understand, I need my demon. You are not my tall, beautiful man. Feared and desired. Hated and loved. You can teach us nothing we do not know. Rejoice in knowing that you are worthy."
"Stay away, crazy demon." he replied.
Unity spoke to herself more then to the man, "Human, you must be broken. We are not the demon. I... We seek the demon. Did you not understand? We will fix you. You will be repaired. I do not think, I like being called demon? No, we... I do not like being called demon."
The old man shouted as he tried to block the entrance to his tent. "Stay away, crazy demon. You leave."
This human did not have what she... they needed. Still, they could take what they wanted from him. All men succumb to the pleasures of the flesh. Some willingly. Some not so willingly. But their bodies always betray them. This was especially true when there were young sisters involved. And all the sisters were young, until they were not. She spoke loudly as she walked away. "All will become Unity. You have the honor of being the last man between the two big oceans." Unity spoke to the others who were her. Take all that will join. Kill any that resist, if you must. Young sisters you may have the man and any in the tent. We are Unity. All is one. All is Unity. Rejoice. Feel our love. Feed.
Unity went to her horse drawn carriage. She would have to search elsewhere. Home? It was the only place left. She would seek her demon there. She had time. She was Unity the Eternal, Goddess-Queen of all the sisters. First, she would sit and revel in the pleasures of the flesh. She smiled as the young sisters approached the tent. All would experience the pleasure through them. The feel, the touch of a human captured; brought to Unity. A touch, a kiss, an embrace... The rapture, elation, euphoria...
All was Unity. Then, they would return to the places once called the Emerald Isles. Next, they would find or build a way to cross the ocean. Go back the way they came so long ago. After crossing the ocean; it was only a short walk across a continent. Home. Home, the only place to find a demon.
It had taken a very long time before humans understood. Some never did, until they became Unity. She was not a bacterium or a virus. She was not a disease to be fought off. No human could kill her. At first, they treated her like a plague. Well, that is over now. All had become Unity. And like all goddesses, she could forgive their past.
Still, having everything was not enough. What good was a world if you couldn't find your demon? She had decided. This demon was the only creature worthy of walking beside a goddess. She had tried all of the humans; none of them would do. They were worthy to be unity, but.... They were not worthy of walking beside her.
The snow cooled her body. It is always good to let go of the things that one does not want. She paused to watch some of the old gray ones pass into their next life. Her right hand gently caressed the horse as it began to recall in fear. Her mind drifted to vague images of her demon. Oh, to feel his embrace. The touch. The warmth. With the breath of our demon upon her. Unity and her sisters faded off into the euphoria of their dreams.