TIME IS MEASURED BY WHAT TRANSPIRES WHEN MEASURED TIME IS UNAVAILABLE (2)
Widening his eyes, Evan allowed the scene to saturate his mind, like a camera shutter opened far longer than it should be. Sure, it was an image generated by the Parent and those stupid colleagues, but why then did they act afraid? He could see what seemed a bright star leading the forward motion of a large structure that existed behind the star.
But wait.
Arriving closer, details sharpening, refining, the bright star actually looked more as a human-like figure consisting of light, standing at the bow of a massive ship. Behind this light figure were other lighted structures and an odd dome-shaped area containing numerous sphere or oval shapes.
Dad, Kyleigh, and the others said quiet, anxious words.
Evan turned back, wondering about the Parent and its colleagues. They still hovered together, by those seven ugly piles of crap. He looked forward. The light figure heading the ship was getting closer. “Dad. Should we get back there with them? Why are they doing that?”
“I don’t know. But I really don’t want to be near them.”
“Lang!” Kyleigh was frantic. “What is this light…this light cord, coming out of me?”
Evan looked where she pointed, by her heart. Dad looked too. A faintly visible white light beam, about nickel-size in diameter, streamed out of her, passing right through her hull. It headed far across the silver floor at the same height as her heart level. How weird! But, even weirder, Dad had it also. “What is this? It’s coming out of both of you!” Evan looked down at himself, and jolted. “And I have it too!” He followed the beam’s path once outside the hull around him. Just like Dad and Kyleigh, the light beam headed across the floor and into the darkness, in a straight-line path right to the light figure and that ship.
“Now what’s happening?” Nahas asked.
Evan turned until seeing him. A similar light beam streamed out of Nahas. With his hull-covered hand, Nahas sliced through it several times, but the light beam wouldn’t break apart in the least.
Akina had one too.
But Robert and Alan didn’t.
“It’s not hurting me,” Akina said. “I don’t feel anything.”
“Yeah, me too.” Evan noticed it caused no discomfort at all. He tried whipping his hands through it many times, but as with Nahas, it wouldn’t break or disappear. He turned back to the Parent, Child One, and Limati. “What did you do to us?” He made sure to speak loud enough. “Why do we have this light coming out of us?”
“Yeah,” Robert said. “What the hell is happening now? And why are all of you hiding in the corner there? Isn’t this your ship, or whatever it is?”
“And why is there a light being on it?” Dad asked, bolder than usual. “Why can’t you just leave us alone?”
The Parent walked a few steps away from Child One and the others, getting closer to the I-arn Cimpengenstin. “We have nothing to do with this. You will soon have all your answers.” The Parent turned and headed back to its colleagues.
Limati stood near Child One and those ugly colleagues, and for some reason, was giving an intense, direct stare, right towards Evan again. But why?
“Something is…huh?” Alan sounded confused. “Something is coming out of that thing. And it’s approaching closer. You see that?”
Evan turned back. Dad and the others began talking about it. They were right. Some sort of golden, lighted path, or road, was sliding its way ahead of the light figure and heading toward all of them. Evan squinted, to see better; definitely some sort of complicated, futuristic structure was behind the light figure and golden road. “Is that part of a spaceship, even though we’re not really in space?”
“I’m checking this out.” Alan lunged forward and jogged away.
“Alan!” Robert yelled. “Get back here!”
But Alan ignored him. Alan sure could be a bold, unconcerned guy at times. He tried avoiding the five light trails but passed right through a few, though they remained completely intact. He got close to the outer edge of the silver floor. “You’re right, Evan. Come here, check this out.”
“Just wait.” Dad spoke immediately, before Evan could even consider it. “Robert, you too, stay here. We should all stay here.”
Robert was about to leave, but halted. He shook his head. “I feel like his father, forever scolding him and chasing him around.”
Evan released a tense, shaky breath. It was probably best to stay put. “Tell me what you see,” he shouted out to Alan.
Kyleigh gazed up into Dad’s face. “Lang. I feel something…good, amazing.” She stared back at the Parent. “They lied to us. Why else would only the Christians have light cords heading out there?”
Dad flashed a quick, nervous smile at her. “I hope you’re right.”
Alan turned back, his expression startled and confused. He then rushed back over to everyone. “Okay. Don’t know…if you all see it,” he said, breathing hard, “but there’s this…this huge alien being, made out of light…strolling down that gold road.” He pointed back at the whole scene. “The road is moving ahead, the light guy is right behind it. Behind him…a massive, massive ship, with swirling light loops all around it and thousands of these bright orbs…floating in a sky setting or something.”
“Is that ship following along behind the road?” Dad asked.
“Yeah, it looks that way.” Alan focused his eyes at the Parent and his colleagues. “I don’t get…what they’re afraid of. I thought they owned this place.”
“Not sure,” Dad said, “but I think Kyleigh is right. Maybe we’ve been fooled all along by them.”
This needed to be checked out, and soon, Evan realized. “Should we go over there and see for ourselves?”
But after some worried wrangling, they all finally agreed to just stay put and not go over to the floor’s outer edge. If that being was something friendly, then let it approach. If it was not friendly, well, then, they were all quite screwed.
Oh no. Not again. Sneaking up unexpectedly, Evan felt his body tremble. This was getting so old. Why couldn’t all of this just end? He wanted to pray, to ask for help, but for some reason just couldn’t.
“It’s getting closer,” Nahas said. “All of it - that light being, the light road, and the ship behind it, whatever that is.”
Dad looked down at his chest. “And these light beams, whatever they are. They’re getting brighter. You see that?”
“Yes,” Nahas answered.
Evan looked down at his own light beam and at the others. Yes. Brighter. It was true.
Kyleigh stared at the light being, her face relaxed, her eyes calm, fixated. “Lang. Everyone. It is…it has to be him. I just know it.”
“If by him you mean a giant light being,” Robert said, “then yeah, that’s him.”
Nahas let out a quick, soft chuckle. “I don’t think that’s what she means, Robert.”
“It is simple,” Akina said, her eyes mesmerized like Kyleigh’s. “He is the Collector, like Limati said.”
“Yeah,” Robert said. “But the collector of what?”
Evan kept his eyes locked on the light being’s approach, blocking out the continuing discussion between the others.
Moments passed, feeling like days, minutes, seconds.
And then the light being arrived at the silver floor’s edge, and abruptly stepped upon it. The being stood there, motionless. What an enormous being, several feet taller than the Parent, nearly touching the silver ceiling. Power emanated from this being, with its tall, broad size and thick limbs, all of light.
The being began walking toward them, down the slight incline of the silver floor, its feet not even making a sound upon the surface.
Evan couldn’t speak. No one else spoke.
The light being kept shortening the distance between all of them and itself, revealing details. It was human-like, but different from the Parent and those colleagues. Each part, the being’s head, neck, shoulders, arms, torso, and legs, consisted of various white light sections that appeared to be solid geometric, glass-like shapes, yet blurred wispily into the background at their edges. No, that’s not right. Actually, each shape was solid internally, but wispy, pure-light at the surface. No, wait – the internal sections, at times, were see-through too! Confusing, and amazing.
But its face, its eyes! Sun-like colored irises existed not against the whites of eyes but a blue-sky color, resembling viewing the sun on a cloudless, summer sky, yet without the severe, blinding intensity of the real sun. Actually, none of the light given off by the being was blinding, but easy, like just viewing a bright computer screen. Those amazing eyes were surrounded by a rugged, chiseled face, with a nose, mouth, but no visible ears, all consisting of the same white light sections.
The being drew closer still. Wait, what are those? More light trails? Wow, it was true; thin light trails came from the being’s head, both hands, and the heel end of both feet. The trails were very long, and continuous, heading right back to enormous circling light bands around the closely looming ship. And again he could see Dad was right; the light trails coming from their heart areas were getting brighter, and heading directly into the center of this being. “Kyleigh.” Evan felt his fear slowly draining away and utter awe becoming the welcoming replacement. “I think you’re right. I think this is the Savior.”
The light being stopped about ten feet from where they stood, the top of its head still nearly brushing against the silver ceiling. The being then stared beyond Evan and the others, at the Parent. “I see you have lost our challenge.”
Evan turned, adjusting his body’s position so he could keep his eyes on both beings.
The Parent walked closer to the I-arn Cimpengenstin, though the other colleagues stayed back, still cowering. “But you must admit. It was a gallant attempt, and that more than our meager challenge was accomplished. And, of course, we still possess the universe engine.”
The light being stared longingly at the I-arn Cimpengenstin.
Dad, mesmerized as Kyleigh was earlier, walked closer to the light being. He looked way up to the being’s face. “Excuse me, but…are you the Savior?”
The light being stared down with those amazing eyes in full view now; they were truly suns against a blue sky. “Yes, I am.”
“I knew it.” Kyleigh dropped down to her knees and bowed her head down.
“Savior.” Dad bowed down in the same manner, until his face nearly touched the floor. “Savior, I’ve felt you all along.”
Evan bowed down, but didn’t know what to say. From his eye’s corner he could see Nahas and Akina silently doing the same. Surprisingly, Alan and Robert copied the bowing too. Evan continued to lower himself, until he faced the floor, his hull-covered hands and jean-covered knees blaring contrasts against the bright, silver floor.
“Collector. You know you have overstepped your boundaries here,” he could hear the Parent say, its voice insinuating anger and irritation. “Take your ridiculous admirers and be gone.”
“And so we will leave,” the Savior said.
The silver floor suddenly changed; glowing gold now surrounded Evan’s hands and knees. But that wasn’t all. The hull had vanished from around his hands and knees. Yet kneeling, he raised up his upper body and looked all over himself. The hull was gone from around his entire body!
He scrambled up to a standing position, and quickly realized he and the other hull people, minus their hulls too, had been instantly transferred to the Savior’s golden road. He turned back, to make certain; the silver floor, ceiling and the I-arn Cimpengenstin were now behind him and Dad, about twenty feet away from the golden road’s edge. The Parent, Child One, Limati and some of those colleagues were slowly moving around to the near side of the I-arn Cimpengenstin, getting closer. But dark space, in increasing width and length, kept both the silver floor’s edge and the golden road’s edge safely separated.
Phew. What a relief. The more space between both places the better.
“Please,” the Savior said. “Do not bow before me. Stand up.”
Evan turned back, and a flood of startling visuals knocked into his sight. The Savior now stood only about six and a half feet tall. And a magnificent, surreal scene, of which the details were just beginning to register in his mind emanated from beyond the Savior, by the light bands.
“Did we grow taller?” Nahas asked, slowly rising up.
Dad, Kyleigh and the others were getting up too, all with shock in their eyes.
“No,” the Savior answered. “I can alter my size, and particle numbers and locations, at will.” He looked at each hull person. “It is I who should bow before you.” The Savior then knelt down, nearly right in front of Dad.
Dad gave Evan a puzzled, wide-eyed glance. Evan gently shrugged, unsure what to say or think.
Once the light-entrenched Savior bowed down, a clear view of the back of his head appeared. Evan couldn’t help but follow the light line’s path from his head and the other light lines from his hands and feet. The light lines traversed from the Savior and then flowed across the golden road, for about four to five hundred feet, until they arrived at a mind-blowing scene; the light lines entered and wove in and out of thousands of other tightly-packed light lines. The packed light lines together formed a strange, bent band or thick loop that circled underneath the road and above it, maybe a hundred feet up from the road, around a gated entrance to a wide area, filled with many beings moving about beyond the gate.
Okay. That’s certainly unique.
“Please,” Dad said. “What do you mean? How could I…we…be worthy of you bowing before us?”
The Savior arose. Nahas, Dad, Robert, and Kyleigh still had shocked, and now confused expressions covering their faces. Alan just stared blankly.
“All of you chose to end the prospect of eternal life, before you would harm your fellow Earth residents,” the Savior said. “And you, Lang, led the others to follow your decision, by deciding first.” The Savior knelt down again, and then looked up at them. “And now, I have seven before me, who could possible change the course of the future.” He stood up. “It is a very good moment, for all of us.”
“Savior.” Dad held his hands together and bowed down. He looked up at the Savior, just like the Savior had done to him seconds earlier. “Savior, I can’t believe I’m before you.” Dad shook his head in disbelief. “This all seems…so unreal.”
“I understand. But I assure you, I am real. And all that you see behind me is real.”
Nahas, mouth dropped open, walked closer. “What happened to the hull around us?” He stared beyond the Savior, at the amazing, circling light scene. “And what is that behind you? Heaven?”
“All of you still have an external protective environment around you, but it is invisible, and cannot be felt. And yes, what you see behind me is what you know as Heaven.”
Evan stared at the large opening formed by the light band. The gate was open, and figures - no, people actually, it seemed - were walking on the golden road toward the direction of where he and Dad stood. He focused his eyes better and looked beyond the people and gate, to the wide-open area, noticing it too had a golden floor. A football’s length away from the gate was another gate, with tall golden doors, taller than some beings walking around, and a tall golden border spreading out on either side of the gate, indicating that the border made a fenced-in court area. But beyond this border was a blue sky, and a hilly landscape, of green plants, trees, and some futuristic golden buildings, of various shapes and sizes. But that wasn’t the coolest. High above the landscape were numerous floating globes or oval orbs, so numerous that many were tiny dots far off in the distance. From the closer ones he could see clearly, their fronts were transparent, like made of glass. They glowed bright light rays on either side, and long, winding trails came from front entrances out of the globes, on down to the landscape below.
“And what are those creatures?” Robert pointed at the Parent, Child One, and Limati, standing in front of the universe engine and staring at the Savior. Those seven other, ugly colleagues now huddled together on the far side of the universe engine.
“Consider them Causalitors,” the Savior said. “Dark Causalitors.”
“Causalitors?” Nahas asked. “You mean, like from causality, cause and effect?”
“Yes. They accumulate great quantities of cause and effect, and other data, and especially relish ueluxhra, the change to fear.”
“Yes,” Nahas said. “As they have told us.”
“Lang!” Kyleigh grasped hold of Dad’s arm. She pointed at a kid coming down the golden road. “I think it’s…it’s Brayden, but he’s taller. Brayden!” She released Dad’s arm and ran off, passing closely to the Savior’s left side, nearly knocking into him. She stopped and looked up a moment. “I’m sorry, dear Savior. I…I don’t mean to be rude, but my--”
The Savior gave a slight head nod, so human-like. “Please. Go to him. I want you to see Brayden again. And do not worry of the soul connector. It will not impede any of your motion or behavior.”
“Thank you, Savior” she said, sincerity and gratefulness gushing from her, “thank you so much.”
She ran toward Brayden, completely ignoring the light connector trailing after her between herself and the Savior. Her son, a blond-haired boy, was walking, but then took off running too, heading right for her. When she reached him, she immediately embraced him in a close hug, and he hugged her back.
But activity by that light-banded gate shifted Evan’s eyes away from Kyleigh and her son. Good thing the golden road was spacious, maybe fifty to seventy feet wide, since many people and other beings were slowly streaming out of the gate and heading their way. But, wait, that wasn’t all – the distance between the gate and where he, Dad, and the others stood was decreasing. He turned around. The dark space between the end edge of the golden road and the edge of the Causalitors’ silver floor was increasing, but in a slighter manner. So maybe the light-band area was drawing closer to him and the others, since the golden road was shrinking?
“It’s a Mobius strip,” Nahas said, stepping closer to Evan. Nahas was staring at the amazing light band around the gate. “Beautiful. It is often used to represent infinity. What a sight.”
“I know. It really is.” Evan turned around, his eyes fixing on the Parent and other Causalitors once more. And eerily, Limati, moving closer to the silver floor’s edge, was staring right at Evan yet again.
He wanted to tell Dad about this, but Dad, Robert, Alan, and Akina were intermittently speaking with the Savior.
“No, that can’t be!” Nahas said. “Of course, all of our deceased loved ones must be coming to see us! Evan. I see my twin brother, Manu.” He rushed off in a straight line path to a tall, dark-skinned man, much like himself. “Manu! Is that really you?”
Evan kept his eyes on both men, but couldn’t help noticing that more people were walking beneath the Mobius light band and heading toward them. Men. Women. But one woman, coming closer, was so familiar. He squinted, the image quickly becoming clearer. Could it be, really? “Dad. Dad!”
Dad rushed over. “What’s wrong.”
Evan pointed at the woman. “Is that Mom?”
His eyes widening, mouth dropping open, Dad stared. “Oh my gosh. Savior. Thank you. Is that really her?”
The Savior nodded like earlier, the light trail from his head moving only slightly, surreally. “Yes, that is Deidra.” He glanced at the other hull people. “All your loved ones want to visit with you now.”
Robert caught eye of someone. “My cousin, Todd! Oh man, this can’t be happening. I got to see him.” He promptly rushed away.
“Rokurou!” Akina said. “My husband!”
“Lang!”
Evan stared in the direction of the voice. Mom was running, out-pacing everyone else, her eyes locked on Dad.
“Aunt Sally?” Alan watched an older woman approaching. “Aunt Sally? I’ll be right there.” He shot off to get to her.
As Mom was getting closer, her appearance stunned; she looked younger, healthier. She had this glow about her, and was more beautiful than Evan had ever remembered her to be. And oddly, she was wearing jeans and a maroon long sleeve shirt, similar to clothes she wore at home. No white gowns, or robes? He glanced at Nahas’s twin brother and Akina’s husband; they too were in regular clothing.
Dad stepped closer, to meet her. But she stopped near Dad, and then stared up at Evan.
She doesn’t remember me? “Mom, it’s me. Evan.”
She smiled. “I didn’t recognize you at first. Now I know how you will look, older. Please, come let me hug you. I have missed you so much.”
Evan wanted to rush forward, but felt awkward - Mom was so much shorter than him now!
But he pushed the awkward discomfort away and went to her. He wrapped his arms around her, but didn’t feel the light connector’s presence in his chest whatsoever. Sudden joy and heart-wrenching disbelief struck him at once, forcing tears from his eyes. But he kept blinking hard, to get any remaining tears to dry up quickly, and concentrated instead on the new hull surrounding him. Whatever it was, he couldn’t feel its presence at all, as if there was nothing around him, like the way he couldn’t sense the light connector’s presence. He was able to hug Mom as he had always done. And oddly, she felt as she always had, except somehow stronger, more alive.
After some moments, he released her. She stepped back, but took hold of his hands, and gazed up at him, her eyes warm, loving. “I can’t believe I am seeing you now, at sixteen. Imagine that. You look…wonderful.”
“No, mom. You’re the one looking great. You look like a teenager.”
Dad walked closer to Mom. “Evan is right. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so beautiful. You look truly amazing.”
Mom released Evan’s hands and stared up at Dad.
She just seemed to be brighter somehow; her eyes, her skin, her hair glowed and radiated with beauty and color.
“I have missed you…like I cannot even describe,” Dad said, and he moved forward and embraced her, resting his head on her shoulder and wrapping her up so closely in his arms. He wiped his eyes, obviously crying again, though it was hard to say for certain. But it showed how this new invisible hull was truly remarkable, like it didn’t exist at all.
They hugged and spoke softly to each other for some time.
Finally they loosened their embrace and only stared into each other’s eyes.
Mom glanced over at the Savior and then looked at Dad again. “Lang. He IS Heaven. The light that extends from him connects to everything here and makes it work.”
“Wow, cool,” Evan said, though noticing Mom didn’t have a light connector. Actually, none of the beings living here did. “Why don’t any of you have the light connectors too, like we do?”
“Because we are here, with the Savior. Those still in the universe need that lifeline to him.”
Dad smiled. “I guess that makes sense.”
“Wow, amazing.” Evan watched Alan with his Aunt Sally for a moment, and thought more about what Mom had just said.
“Yes, it is amazing,” Mom said. “And the Savior, his angels, and the Causalitors you met first…they exist everywhere, at once.”
“Everywhere at once?” Dad asked.
Mom nodded. “Like those crystal shapes you saw. Those were only parts of some Causalitors.”
“Yeah, interesting.” Dad slowly nodded. “Does the Savior exist in the same way?”
“I think so. Just like you experienced, we see what they allow us to see, because everything is so different here. And we need to stay in the Heaven realm, because we are not able to exist like they do, everywhere at once.” Mom turned, and looked back at the Heaven realm. “In there, beyond the entrance, there is a portal entrance to an Earth-like world. And the aliens, or non-human intelligent beings, each have portal entrances to worlds like their planets.”
Evan eyed those glass-like globes, with their paths winding on down to the land below. “You mean, there really are other intelligent beings in the universe?”
“Yes, dear.” Mom’s gaze was now on the wide area before the entrance. “See. Some with blue skin. Some tall. Some short with big eyes. Some with more arms and legs. But they are all intelligent, and can easily communicate, like us. They’re just different.”
Mom was right; watching all of them more carefully, Evan could see the many varieties of forms they all took. Fascinating. And absolutely mind-blowing.
Dad was shaking his head in disbelief and beaming a broad smile. “That’s incredible, Deidra. Amazing. But…what’s it like, living here now? I mean, as you probably know, we haven’t eaten, drank anything, or used the bathroom in a very long time. Is it anything like that?”
“Yes, the Savior told us what all of you have been through.” Mom gave Dad a warm smile. “And I am so proud of you too, Lang, that you encouraged the others to sacrifice what you believed was eternal life to prevent people from being harmed.” She gently grasped his hands. “Lang. All I can say is…I was never really alive before. You and Evan, you haven’t really been alive. None of us have ever truly been alive. The Savior takes us from the universe, and transforms us somehow, into these new bodies. We can eat and drink if we want here, and then use the bathroom. Or we can choose not to eat and drink. We can sleep if we want, or not sleep. I’m just…I am really, truly alive now. It is hard to describe, but feels amazing. It is truly being alive and healthy and having a mind that never fails, never forgets.”
“Can you learn here?” Evan asked. “Are there things to do?”
“Oh, absolutely!” she said excitedly. “There are zillions of books, and amazing libraries, and even a type of computer system for accessing even more information. And there are billions of other worlds to visit, to learn all about their intelligent beings, and their cultures and languages. But most importantly, the Savior wants us to learn preparation methods for when the universe will be restored to its original purpose, an eternal paradise. There is so much to do here.”
“An eternal paradise?” Dad asked.
“Yes. The Savior will tell you more soon.”
Mom seemed different – she used to have some trouble in choosing the right words to say, but not now, really – she sounded more intelligent, more articulate. Evan wanted to ask her more questions, especially about the eternal paradise, but for some reason he felt the need to look up and around. Strangely, wherever he looked into the dark, away from the Heaven realm, he could see a deep, faraway light image, like dark clouds breaking away to show a very distant star or sun, almost similar to the sun’s distant view on Titan. But his peripheral view showed just darkness. Only when he stared straight ahead, anywhere he pointed his sightline, did he see this. He also sensed it was like the infinity effect of two mirrors reflecting each other. “Dad, you see that, when you look around? We couldn’t see it before. The Causalitors must have kept it hidden from us.”
“Yes, I do,” Dad said, looking up. “Why is that, Deidra?”
“This universe, or place Heaven resides within, is truly infinite,” Mom answered.
For some reason, Dad then looked at Kyleigh, talking with her son. Kyleigh glanced back at Dad and smiled.
“Lang.” Mom stared up at Dad. “I want you to be happy. Go to her. Be with her.”
This suddenly felt very uncomfortable.
And Dad showed it. He got that embarrassed face. “No. I…I always think about you. It’s just that…it’s just that, with everything that happened, I needed to be with someone, I just--”
“Lang,” Mom said. “I understand completely, and I feel no negative emotions from this. You don’t have to explain. I love you, as I always have, but Evan needs a mother, and I need you to be happy.”
“I don’t…I don’t want to forget what we had.”
“And you won’t. But you need to be okay. Everything has changed now. All of you can change the future.”
“Yeah.” Evan looked back at the Parent, Child One, and Limati. Fortunately, they were all standing closer to the universe engine now, instead of near the silver floor’s edge. “Not according to those losers over there.”
“Ignore them, Evan,” Mom said. “And they will not live forever, like they said. They are very dishonest.”
“I believe it, Mom.” Evan noticed that the distance between the rounded edge of the golden road, so similar to the edge of a gold CD disk, and the silver floor edge was getting lengthier. Good. He, Dad, and Mom needed all the distance they could get, since they stood only about ten feet from the road’s edge.
Sudden swift motion near the universe engine caught Evan’s eye. He focused there - Limati was sprinting away from the Parent and Child One and heading up the silver floor at an impossibly fast rate. At the silver floor’s edge, Limati dove off into the wide dark expanse. The being flew a short moment until suddenly clanking down hard on an edge of the golden road, and then quickly clumping together a bent section of the road within its tightly folded arms.
“Evan!” Mom grabbed his hand and pulled him back. “We need to leave right now!”
The Savior instantly arrived by Limati and reached down, readying to take care of the stupid creature.
“Why did Limati do that?” Dad asked, seizing Evan’s shoulder and tugging him away too.
Screams and cries of panic exploded out from many of the beings nearby and from farther away, on that wide, open area.
Confusion gushed through Evan’s mind. “Why is everyone so afraid?”
“The Causalitors never come to our domain,” Mom said. “It is forbidden.”