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Book: The Sons Of God - Page 5

Finally they reached the pedal birds. Here there were no shadows except under the wings of the parked birds. He left Leah in the shadow of a tree, then walked to his father's favorite bird and pulled the rocks away from the wheels. He put his hand out in the moonlight and motioned to Leah, then waited while she climbed into the back of the bird. Onam climbed into the front and moved the staff from side to side, then forward and back as he watched the surfaces respond. He had just started to pedal the wind creator when Leah screamed. He jerked his head
around to see why she had screamed, and heard her try to say something. A dark form jerked something from the side of the bird, and Onam saw a sword reflect the bright moon light. When Leah fell forward against his back, pure terror gripped him and his whole body turned cold. His father grabbed his arm and dragged him from the bird to the ground. As Onam got up, he saw that Assefa's sword had pierced the side of the bird where Leah sat dying. His father had run the sword completely through the bird and Leah. He raised his sword as he screamed at Onam.

"My own flesh a thief!" Assefa's angry voice echoed back from the shadows of the
sleeping village. "Why would you steal one of my virgins? Why does the son of the chief spend time around the park after dark? Why do you toss and turn instead of sleeping, then slip out before the moon goes down? Did you think I was stupid? Well, answer me !"


FLIGHT FROM DANGER

Onam knew his only chance at life was to outrun his fathers sword. He backed slowly away as he answered, "She was not from the village you burned. She had family still ...." As he backed away, his father had to move forward to keep within striking distance. Now Assefa was almost under the wing and could not swing his sword without hitting it first. Onam turned to run and heard the thud of the sword hit the wing as his father screamed in rage. This was the
opportunity he had hoped for. He was several steps out front before the short chase started. He knew he could outrun his father and did so easily, but he kept running until his lungs were screaming for air and he felt his legs would not carry him any further before he slowed to a fast walk. Assefa would send young warriors after him at first light, and he did not want to be found.

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The moon was almost touching the western horizon when Onam circled a small hill and climbed just high enough to look over the top, then sat down to rest. From this position he could rest and watch for the trackers he knew would be following him. They would be moving slowly, so he could be far away before they found this place. He kept his eyes trained in the direction he came from as the thoughts and emotions began to overtake him. Leah had died a violent death
because of him and his father. Yes, she knew the chance she was taking, but in her place he would have done the same thing. He had not been wrong trying to help her. Because that left his murderous father responsible for Leah's death, he would never be able to live in his father's house again.

He knew even if he kept running, the warriors would just track him until they caught him. He had seen the warriors track wild game. They would find him. His only possessions were his hunters pouch and knife, not much help. He had to think of a better way than running. Fly! That was the answer. If he had one of the big birds he would leave no trail for them to follow. But how could he take one in the light of day. He decided to do what they least expected, go back now in broad daylight and steal a bird. If there were warriors trying to track him they would be intent on the trail he left, not on who might be passing in the opposite direction just out of sight. As tired as he was, he knew he had to start back now, because when they saw that his trail turned back, they would move as fast as possible to overtake him.

Onam moved away from the trail he had left and started back. He moved quickly making as little noise as possible. He watched in the direction of his outward trail for birds rising or game running toward him, sure signs of other humans close by. When he came in sight of the grass path he dropped down to crawl in the lowest places, hiding his movement in the tall grass to sneak as close as possible. He was just across the come-to-earth path, getting his nerve up to run for the nearest bird, when he heard voices, especially his father's. Onam froze hugging the
ground. After several moments of quiet, he carefully raised his head to look in the direction of the voices. His father and five warriors were walking slowly in the direction Onam had first run, looking at the ground intently and pointing at his tracks.

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When he looked back at the pedal birds, he saw his father had stationed a guard. He watched impatiently and wondered what to do next. The guard stood for a time, then sat down with his back to Onam and leaned against a tree. Onam waited in the cool grass with the morning sun heating his back, remembering other days when this was a pleasant way to pass time.

Children played and laughed in the village. Bees buzzed close, working the few blooms in the tall grass, but reality jerked him back. This was no time to be day dreaming. He raised his head slowly to see the guard's head nod to the side, then he walked quietly across the grass path. He picked the bird most distant from the guard and pulled the rocks away from the wheels, freezing in fear every time the guard moved. Slowly he picked up the tail of the bird and walked toward the come-to-earth path. He watched in all directions to see if he had been detected and saw Leah's lifeless form still lying under the other bird. He paused for a moment wishing he could hold her and tell how sorry he was. When he reached the end of the path he looked back at his village and the warrior dozing in the early morning sun, then climbed into the bird. As he moved the staff between his knees, his eyes followed each leather thong all the way to the small area at the back edge of the wings and tail to make sure they were tight and not tangled anywhere. When his eyes reached the moving surface, he continued to move the staff as he checked it for full movement. Satisfied, he began to pedal.

The bird began to move, but the whisper of the wind creator turning was enough to wake the sleeping warrior. Onam was pedaling hard, but he could see the guard running in fast from his right side. It was going to be a race, and he had to win. He pedaled with all his strength and guided the bird to the left edge of the path. He could see the guard's face clearly when he made a desperate dive for the wing brace and pulled the right wing down till it touched the ground. The bird turned hard to the right digging into the grass until its momentum caused it to roll. Most of the sticks broke with the sound of a hunted deer running through dead underbrush. Both wings snapped free of the body of the pedal bird. Onam was thrown out on top of the left wing, dazed and disoriented, but angry and scared. He glanced to see if anyone was coming to help the guard and pulled his hunting knife. The guard was yelling, "Assefa. Assefa. He's here!" as he crawled out from under the wing he had pulled down.

Onam started stabbing the guard while he was still on his hands and knees and didn't stop until the man was silent. Again he looked to see if anyone had seen what happened, then looked back at the dead guard and threw up. Some children stood at the edge of the path watching as he ran in their direction for another bird. They ran back into the village screaming. He climbed into the nearest one and pedaled with the breeze to the end of the grass strip and turned till the
breeze was in his face, then pedaled furiously. He prayed the controls were all right because there was no time to check. As he slowly left the ground most of the women and children of the village appeared and watched in wonder until he disappeared beyond the tree tops.

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For the first time in his life, Onam was feeling intense anger. He had been unhappy with his father since he could remember, but he could never forgive him for Leah's death or his attack under the wing. Onam held the staff so tight his hand cramped. He hated his father. He hated the sick feeling he had because he had killed another human being. He hated everything about this place. When he had gained enough crest for safety, he turned to look back at the village that had been his home since before he could remember. Someday he would return to get
even with his father, but the anger he felt would be with him the rest of his life.

He tried to tell himself it didn't matter any longer, but his whole life had taken a drastic irreversible change. The things he remembered of the last few hours were like his ancient grandfathers stories of conquest. Some of the word memories he brought back didn't go with the story he was telling. They fit in another time and place and were as confusing as the old man himself. He kept going over the details trying to put them together in an order that would convince him he was really alone, cut off from any human being he had ever known. He looked back once more but his village was hidden in the trees. He wanted to put today in the back of his memory, so he watched as the earth passed slowly below.
Onam passed through some fleecy clouds, then looked down to see he was passing slowly away from the small strip of ocean toward the land. His direction was away from the cold and ice and slightly in the direction of the rising sun. There were high mountains ahead that he knew he should keep on his left. He didn't really have a destination in mind. His father had brought him this way once looking for coastal villages to loot and pillage, so he was just wandering in the only
familiar direction he knew.

Onam looked down to judge how high he was and saw beautiful green rolling hills with trees along the banks of the streams. He could see the high mountains growing closer, so he changed direction slightly to make sure he stayed safely away. Father had warned him when he taught him to fly about dangerous winds close to mountains that blow straight down taking small pedal birds down with them. The sun had risen half way to midday and warmed his enclosure so
that he was perspiring with the effort of keeping the wind creator turning. He untied the thongs on his fur wrap and continued to breathe deep and fast.

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The fresh air flowing through his enclosure smelled good, but there was omething, the faint smell of wood smoke. He tipped his bird slightly left, slowed his pedaling, and searched the ground intently. The wood smoke reminded him of his home and Leah, and the bitter memories came flooding back again. Not far below he saw humans roasting meat on sticks over an open camp fire. They had animal hides stretched between the trees for shelter. Suddenly they scattered like scared animals to hide under the trees.

Onam pedaled just fast enough to keep his crest and satisfy his curiosity about these humans with no permanent dwelling. He decided they probably hid because they had never seen a bird as big as his. While he watched, a face would peer out to look at him, then hide again. He thought this amusing until one of them stepped out from his cover and released an arrow that rose toward him. Onam watched it slow in the air just below him, then fall back, but it brought him back to reality. These humans were killers just like his father. Then he said to himself in
afterthought, "Just like me." He turned away and continued his journey in painful thought.
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The sun was getting low, so Onam started looking for a place to come-to-earth. When he found a flat path, he flew low around the area to make sure no one was close enough to bother him. When once again he touched earth, Onam climbed out to stretch. He had been flying most of the day and his legs were as wobbly as a new fawn's. He was tired, stiff, and hungry, but at least it was warm. He found some long grass and carried arm loads to make a mat under the wing, then lay for a long while listening to the sounds of the night. He wondered what it would have been like to hold someone as soft and warm as Leah in his arms. He finally fell asleep dreaming of red hair and soft warm skin. As the bright, full moon passed the center of the sky he was awakened by the flutter of startled birds flying toward him. When one hit the wing and fell stunned and flopping about, he followed the sound quickly to grab it and snap its head off. Food! He listened quietly for a while, wondering what might have startled the birds, but the night remained quiet.
******************************************************************** He was up looking for firewood as soon as it was light enough to see. When he had collected a small arm load he returned to the bird, took his flint from his pouch, and after several tries, started a small fire. He added larger and larger sticks to the fire, and as it burned, he pulled the feathers from the bird. When the feathers were gone, he cleaned the inside, forced a stick through it, and held it over the fire. He was starved, and the roasting bird smelled good. He had to make himself wait until he was sure it was done. When he was through eating, he stood, picked up the tail of his pedal bird, and with the breeze at his back, followed his tracks back through the grass. As he walked, Onam looked for holes and rocks that he might have just missed when he came to earth the day before. He didn't want any surprises while he was trying to rise above the earth. When he reached the other end of his track, he stood for a moment to rest, and look at the sky. Puffs of cloud hung here and there like sheep's wool, and he said to himself,
"It's going to be bumpy up there." A long roll into the wind and he was in the air again, still fleeing the cold he had known all his life, and following the coastline south.
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For many days, the country side along the coast was the same. He flew over rocky shorelines with flat plains stretching into the distance, and on clear days, snow-capped peaks could be seen rising beyond the plains. When he stopped to rest, or make camp for the night, he always stayed close to one of the many rivers that flowed into the sea. Many times he located deer or wild boar from the air, then stalked and took them on the ground. If there was no game to be seen, he always found fish in plentiful supply in the rivers and the sea. Some days when he had to look long for a place to come-to-earth, Onam's legs would be almost too weak for him to stand. Then he would stay four or five days in a place and rest until he was strong again. When the full moon came again, he was in a far warmer place than he had ever known. He knew he must be far from his old home, but didn't feel lost because he could follow the coast line back when he thought of a way to avenge Leah's death.

Now the earth passing below began to change from plains, to mountains and valleys, but the high snow capped peaks were still in the background. It was hot now, and Onam changed the way he spent his day. He was no longer running from his past. He flew now for the enjoyment of seeing a new world stretch to the horizon before him. He flew in the cool of the morning, and late afternoon, and rested and ate during the heat of the day. He found a new kind of game good to eat. It was like a small deer, but had curved horns. In the small streams, his spear now brought him a new fish, whose sides looked like the colored bow in the sky after a rain. As the land flattened below him, he began to see a peak in the far distance with a tip that touched the sky. Through the day, the shoreline continued to lead him toward it, and as he got closer, it appeared to be separated from any of the snow-capped peaks he had been seeing since the last full moon. All through the second day he watched this great peak rise higher into the sky as he approached, but at nightfall it still seemed a great distance. As he lay on his mat of grass, and looked at his little fire, he wondered about the great peak with no snow.

Page 5 God Sons Book

The next morning, as soon as he flew above the trees, he could see this strange mountain by the sea. It was still a long way off , but getting closer. By the time the sun was half way to the middle of it's daily travel, he could see green grass and trees climbing the slopes of the mountain. Onam's curiosity kept him pedaling much longer than usual. He wanted to see this mountain by the sea. As he got closer, he realized there was no land on the other side of the mountain, just ocean. Finally, even though he was too tired, he flew out over the ocean and looked back at a mighty stone face, rising to the sky, and falling to the sea below. With the greater part of his curiosity satisfied, he passed back to the sloping side, and came to earth half way up the mountain. He was so tired he just lay down under the wing and went to sleep hungry, so food was his first thought when the sun wakened him. He didn't hunt long. Wild birds were plentiful here.

While he ate, he kept hearing a chattering noise somewhere up the slope. By the time he finished eating, his curiosity had the best of him. He walked quietly up the slope and found a group of little animals with long tails, and front feet shaped like his own hands, feeding in the trees. When they saw him, they scattered through the tree tops, swinging by both hands and tail, until they disappeared. He was so near the top now, he kept climbing to see what the world looked like from this high place. Tired from the climb, he sat and looked back at the land he had passed, the coast he had flown down, and then turned to look out to sea. To his surprise, a mountain shaped like the one he was on rose out of the sea just a days flight away. He decided to rest here a few days, then fly across the sea to the other mountain, to see what wonders might be found there.
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BREATHING SAND

A few days later, rested and fed, Onam's powerful legs turned the wind creator as he rose above the earth. When the sun came up over the ocean, he turned toward the twin mountain across the sea. As he approached, he could see the same kind of rock face, but the land behind the mountain was dry and desolate. As he turned to go back, his little pedal bird shuddered, and bounced violently. He had been so intent on the mountain, he had not seen the brown cloud towering above him. In moments he was surrounded by blowing dust and sand. He had sand in his eyes making it painful to see, and sand filled his nose until he had to open his mouth to breath. He couldn't see sky above, or earth below, so he didn't have any idea whether he was right side up or not. When the sandy wind finally released him, he was higher than he had ever been, and the yellow sun was low. Far below him was the sea, and in the distance he could see land and a big river. There were no trees, or grass, just land. He had no idea where he was, or what sea he was looking down on. Parts of his wind creator were covered with sand making it impossible to turn.

He knew to survive he had to get down to water and get the sand out of his eyes, nose, and mouth. Onam pushed the staff forward to bring the bird down. Time passed, and the sun continued down, but he couldn't tell he was any lower. He pushed his staff for a right turn, and with his left hand pulled the tail thong in the opposite direction. Everything looked the same, his bird stayed upright, but the light feeling in his stomach told him he was falling, just as his father had taught him. The earth came up to meet him, and when he was low enough, he moved the staff back, and let go of the tail thong, then looked for a place to come-to-earth.

He touched earth close to the rivers edge just after the sun slipped below the distant hills of sand. Onam walked to the river, and in the fading light, fell face down in the water, opening and closing his eyes under water to wash away the sand. The water tasted bad, but he rinsed his mouth, and splashed more in his eyes, then took off his raiments, and washed the sand out. There were reeds at the edge of the water, but they were too moist to make a mat with, so he walked
back to the bird carrying his wet raiments, hung them on the wing brace, and stretched naked on the sand under the wing to sleep, thinking tomorrow he would try to find his way back.
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Onam woke cold and hungry. He brushed the sand from his body and put on his worn animal skin raiments, then carefully cleaned the sand off the wind creator. He was in the air as soon as it was light enough to rise, wondering how he could find his way back to the mountain that fell to the sea. All the sea shores he had ever seen were crossed by the sun. This shore ran to the sun. He sense of direction was gone. He could never return to his home land, even if he
wanted to. He decided to look for a place to stay until he found something better. When he had gained enough crest, he saw through the dusty haze two silver-gold suns. One rising, and one reflecting off a river, the distance of several days walk ahead of him.

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As he flew closer, the sun rose higher through strange tall trees that had no leaves, only curved fronds at the very top. He began to see long rows of plants in big fields with water running between the rows. There were wide trails, and dwellings in the fields along both sides of the biggest river he had ever seen. Days walk after days walk he followed it, flying over people and animals working in the fields.

As Onam flew on, he came to the edge of a place with so many dwellings, so close
together, he could just see the outer edge. He watched several hundred people pulling ropes to move a large stone. Off to his left several men were kicking a round ball back and forth across a field of evenly spaced lines, while a crowd of noisy people watched. Directly beneath him, more people than he had ever seen at once gathered around rows of carts filled with fruit of the field. Children's laughter and the sound of a dog barking, drifted up to him. Men were moving herds of sheep and goats. There was activity everywhere. It was all very interesting, but so many people made him fearful. He didn't know anything about them, and he didn't want to be near so many. He was seeing mountains in the distance now and took the left division of the river toward higher ground.



TERROR

After flying a distance it would take two days to walk, he found what he was looking for. He slowed his pedaling to come closer to the earth and circled a long wide valley with a stream for water, animals for food, trees for shelter, and room between the trees for landing his bird. He knew people were not far away if he wanted them for some reason. He watched for the direction of the wind in the grass and came to earth. Realizing he was going to call this strange place home
brought a feeling of loneliness and loss. He busied himself carrying stones to block the wheels, and tie the wings to.

While he was taking care of the pedal bird, he was looking around for food. He hadn't seen any large game as he came to earth, so he found a short, heavy, stick and started quietly for the stream, intent on
finding anything that looked like food. Something jumped and ran away through the grass, but disappeared without Onam ever seeing what it was. When he got close to the stream, he got down on his hands and knees and crawled to the very edge of the water to peer through the tall grass. A large flock of birds was feeding on the water. He stood quickly to throw the heavy stick as the birds rose in fright, then waded into the stream and picked up a floating bird. With the club under his arm and the bird in one hand, Onam cupped his other hand and brought water to his mouth to drink. When he finished, he threw the bird up on the bank. Then he climbed up to pick up the bird, thinking that hunting would be easier as soon as he could make a bow and some arrows.

He spent the rest of the day building a lean-to with a sod roof, and plenty of grass on the floor for a mat. He carried stones to hold the warmth of his fires, and built a trap on an animal trail. Sundown found him tired, and lonely, but comfortable His mind wandered back over the events that brought him here to this strange place, and he began to resolve some matters that would change his life forever.
Since he didn't like hunting, or cooking his food, he would find a way to get someone else to do it for him. Killing had seemed a waste to him as he was growing up, but it certainly was a very powerful way to control other people. He would use killing or the threat of death whenever it would get him what he wanted. He would have all the gold and silver because with gold and silver came power. He would never let anyone control him as his father had. He would
always find a way to be the one in control. When he took women in battle he would share them immediately, and eliminate any arguments over who got which female.

Still deep in thought, he got up to put more wood on the fire, then sat back in his lean-to looking at the stars twinkling in a black sky. Alone in the stillness, he let his mind wander back to Leah, and where they might be now if his father hadn't caught them. Would her father have accepted him? Would Leah be his now?
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He was far away in the world of his past, feeling very sorry for himself, when in the blink of an eye, the sky overhead turned a paler color, then dark again. In a few moments it paled again. The earth around him glowed like it was almost sunrise. Onam jumped to his feet, turning to see what the source of the light was. The sky above the hills was as light as day, but the few clouds in the sky had a blue lining instead of gold. Every rock and tree on the skyline was clearly
outlined.

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At first he was terrified of the unknown. But as the moments passed, nothing threatened him, so his fear mixed slowly with curiosity. "What?" and "how?" were questions he would like answered. He instinctively knew it must be something much bigger, and more powerful, than he had ever imagined. The sky went black again, but he remained standing to watch for the light to return. After a while the cold, and the dark, got the best of his curiosity so he laid back down and returned to imagining himself with Leah. He was drifting toward the edge of sleep, when he became conscious of a very faint popping sound. He started to get up, but the sound faded. While he was wondering if the light in the night sky had anything to do with the popping sound, he heard it again. It was a little louder now. Once again he got up. It was coming from the same direction the light came from, but as he listened, the breeze that brought the strange sound died, and let it fade once more to silence. Onam cupped his hand to his ear, but the only sound to be heard was the water of the stream gurgling over the rocks.

He stood by his lean-to in the pre-dawn dark and wondered and waited. He didn't wait long. The noise was suddenly very loud, and getting louder. As he watched, several pale blue lights rose from behind a nearby hill into the night sky. The noise became very loud as the lights approached him. He heard a deep, low, sound mixed with a high pitched whine and a continuous wop, wop, wop. His curiosity quickly returned to fear. His father had told him of many gods, but none like this. He tried to run, but his legs wouldn't move. All he could do was stand, and watch, as the noisy group of lights came closer and started to descend in front of him.
Several small, intense, blue-white lights appeared, lighting the earth directly below them. As the lights came closer to the ground, dust, leaves and small sticks blew away in all directions, then rose, and floated back to the center, to be blown violently down and away again.

Onam was finally stirred to action when movement caught his eye. His little pedal bird was bouncing up and down in this terrible wind, pulling at it's earth ties. He ran and grabbed a wing brace, and held on as the lights slowly turned a half turn and began to come even lower. When it touched the earth, the mighty wind didn't slow until the noise began to die. Onam knew it would do no good to run. This god with the lights was too fast, so he stood under the wing holding to the brace, shaking, and shivering, and waiting his fate. A handle turned. A strip of bright light glowed into the darkness, then the strip became a large opening, and he could see human-like shapes. The light inside the door cast the shadows of the moving shapes out through the lingering dust making them look larger than any man. One
shape jumped to the ground, turned, and pulled steps out of the opening, and placed them on the earth. Two forms stepped to the earth, and walked in his direction, stopping when they could almost touch him. One raised an arm just above its shoulder, and a small bright light blinded Onam. The form inspected Onam from his head to his feet, going through his pouch looking at his fire-making equipment and knife, while the second form walked around the little pedal bird
touching the wing.

It pushed on the movable surfaces, and watched the hand and foot controls with interest, then turned the wind creator to see the effect on the pedals. When it came back to face the first form, the light went out, and he could hear what sounded like human voices, but they were very faint. When the two forms turned and walked back toward their open door, Onam could see their lights reflecting off the large dark shiny area where a head should be. He watched as the forms climbed back up the steps and disappeared into the opening. Then an arm extended down from the opening to pull the steps in, the opening closed behind them, and a low roar started that soon mixed with a high pitched whine. Then the
popping began, slow at first, but each pop getting closer and closer together. When the thing was very loud again, and his little bird was trying to blow away, it lifted from the earth, and was soon out of sight behind a hill.

Onam stood holding on to the wing brace until he couldn't hear the popping noise at all. He had seen gods. His father had never seen the gods he feared, but he had been close enough to touch one, and he was still alive! It was not until the still peace of the night returned that he realized his left leg was wet, and much colder, than his right. His heart was still pounding so hard he could hear it beating, and his throat was dry. He stood for a time holding onto the wing brace until his legs stopped shaking, then walked back to his lean-to. Only the poles were left.
Everything else had blown away. He sat on the ground and leaned against a pole, looking at the stars, wondering, and waiting for daylight to come.
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When the sun finally cast its warmth on the earth, Onam woke, realizing he had finally slept a little. He was too uncomfortable in this place to spend time eating, but he knew he had to, to be strong enough to fly. When he had found food and felt like pedaling the bird again, the sun was half way to the center of the sky. When he rose from the earth again, he had no idea where to hide from the night beings, so he flew back the way he came, away from last night's light. He wanted to distance himself from the strange beings that had visited him. The sun was straight over-head when he began to relax and watch the earth below, looking for a place to live in peace.

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He was following a stream watching for animals he could eat, intent on finding another good location when a chill ran down his back. He just had time to suck in a startled breath, and feel last nights fear again. Before he blinked his eyes again, he heard a high pitch whine, and jerked his head in the direction of the noise as the whine turned to a scream, then erupted into a thunderous, sustained roar. Something passed very close, so fast he only saw a flash the color of sunlight reflecting off water. Suddenly Onam was fighting for his life. He was tossed like a stick on an ocean wave, end over end, then wing over wing. For a moment he wondered if some giant hand was going to throw him to the earth. But as suddenly as it started, it stopped, and he began to pedal again as the roar went away. Without thinking, his eyes followed the direction of the sound, and saw
nothing but a thin trail of smoke that extended ahead of him, then curved up, and up, until he could no longer see it. As his eyes followed the trail of smoke, a tiny flash of light caught his eye and was gone. It was the same light as before, a bright, white flash, like sunlight reflecting off the water, but way up there?

Onam felt terror grip his insides. He was sure it was the beings again, and they had come back to get him. It was a great effort just to breathe, and his legs wouldn't work the pedals fast enough. He bird was sinking closer to the earth when again he heard the roar and looked in the direction of the sound. A silver shape was hovering in the air a stones throw off his right wing. It had wings and tail, similar to his, but his bird was made with sticks, and animal bladders covered the wings. This bird looked hard and solid. At the front, on top of the bird, was a clear bubble. A being with human shoulders and a large shiny black ball instead of a head stuck his arm straight up, moved it in a circular motion, then motioned back in the direction the light came from.

Onam panicked. He pushed forward on his staff, pointing his little bird at the earth below, stopping his dive just above the earth. He was in level flight, going away from the light, but the being was still hovering out beyond his right wing, circling his arm and motioning for Onam to go back the other way. Onam was almost touching the tree tops when he instinctively began to pedal hard to get back up. He couldn't get away from the beings no matter what he tried. He wiped the perspiration from his eyes and looked again at the hard, shiny, bird with the being inside, and decided this must be his day to die.

With this realization, a sudden change came over him. All his life he had been taught not to be afraid. Every time his father led warriors into battle, he told them, "Do not die in fear, or you will die many times." A deep calm came over him. He would not die in fear, so he resigned himself to his fate, pedaled even harder, and made a climbing turn. He crossed two ranges of hills with the silver bird still beside him. In the next valley he saw a long dark path cut in the earth with more hard looking birds parked along the edge. The being moved his wings up and down to get Onam's attention, pointed down at the path, then flew up and away to the right. The meaning was clear, but as he turned his bird to come to earth on the path, he could see two beings walking toward the birds on the ground.

As he pedaled toward them, the birds on the ground rolled down the path almost side by side, then tipped their wings in a climbing turn to come up behind him. He tried to keep them in sight, but they were moving faster than anything he had ever seen, and he lost them until they went by him with the sound of thunder. He was turned lightly to his right side, then rolled violently to the left, then end over end until he lost his feeling for earth and sky. He was hanging by his seat strap when the violence finally stopped, and he began to fight to regain control of his bird, but he did see that their tails were blowing white fire before they went out of sight almost straight up.

He had no idea where to look for them next, but he wasn't startled when he found one slowly moving toward his left wing. He looked further back and saw nothing, so he instinctively looked to his right. Another hard bird was hovering off his right wing. The form was pointing first at him, then at the path in front of him. He slowed his pedaling, and when he touched earth, he rolled to the area where other birds were parked, and stopped.

CAPTURED
The two big birds that finally forced him down were on the come-to-earth path now, making the sound of continuous thunder as they rolled through the gathering darkness to their places. His little bird looked like he felt, very small and weak. He stood alone in a strange place, with strange birds and the beings that flew them. The thunder stopped, became a whine, then a whisper of rushing air, and finally silence. The clear wind armor, that protected the beings in flight, opened to reflect the gold and red sunset as they climbed down and pulled off their shiny head covers to reveal normal heads just like his. Onam felt his mouth fall open in surprise. He could see the light from the setting sun filtering through one side of the head cover. Next they pulled the covers off the ends of their arms to reveal human hands and unfastened the neck of their clothing. These were just men! Men with strange smooth clothing instead of animal skins. He stood in awe of such men and their hard looking birds. His eyes were open wide, his mouth was still open, and he realized he could hear his heartbeat thumping in his ears again. Onam couldn't believe his eyes, and said aloud in disbelief, and awe, "You"re just men! You"re not gods at all."

Book Sons God The Bible Revealed - Page 5

One of the men looked at Onam but said nothing. The other pointed toward a door and said something Onam didn't understand. When he didn't move, the man pushed him firmly toward the open door. Onam got the message and moved toward the door with the two men. One man opened the door and led the way. The other followed to see that Onam kept moving. When his eyes adjusted to the dimmer inside light he could see he was in an enormous room cut from a hillside of solid rock. Two wind-creator birds were parked close to the door. Two men were shining a strange glowing light through a square hole in the side of one like the ones he had just left on the come-to-earth path. Back in a corner was another bird such as he had never seen before. It had wooden sled runners instead of wheels. It had a tail like his, except where his moveable surfaces were, this strange bird had a small wind creator mounted on the end, and instead of a wing, it had a big wind creator at the top of a pole rising from behind the seat.

The three men wound their way toward the back of the storage to a small door that opened into a smaller room. Two people were watching glowing bubbles with a line that moved in a continuous circle growing brighter at different points. Others were working on strange boxes changing the crystals that glowed bright orange inside. Around the walls were glowing boxes with continuously moving lines that looked like mountains and valleys on their glowing faces. One of the flyers crossed the room and touched a man with his back to Onam. When he turned, Onam could see he was older than the other two. He had a little white hair over his ears, but the top of his head was just skin. He was large around the middle and wore the same raiments as the flyers, except his were light blue and even smoother than the flyers. He turned toward Onam, and the two spoke quietly in a language Onam didn't understand. They were both watching him intently as they spoke, making him even more uneasy. He moved his eyes slowly around the room searching for a way out, but the second flyer was guarding the only two doors. He slowly moved his hand down to feel for the knife he carried, wondering if he could get past the guard. The old man looked at the guard until their eyes met, then nodded slightly in Onam's direction, and before he could move, his arm was twisted up behind his back and the knife was gone.

Now, as the three looked at him, the old one spoke directly to Onam in a language he didn't understand. After a moment the old one spoke again. This time Onam thought it sounded like he was being asked a question, but he still didn't understand, so he said nothing. Then with his arm still twisted behind him he was pushed through a door into a passage way. After a few steps down the passage he was pushed through an opening into the dark. He looked back to see the dim light of the passage disappear and heard a faint screech, then there was a heavy bump against the door, and silence. After a moment footsteps faded back down the passage, leaving him standing in the dark. Because he had no idea where he was, Onam was afraid to move. He stood until he realized he couldn't stand forever, then bent over feeling the floor around him. He felt nothing but empty floor, so he sat down. He sat still for a long while. When his eyes adjusted to the dark he could see stars through a small opening high above him, but there was not enough light to see his surroundings, so he just sat in the dark afraid to move.
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When the guard returned from the passage way the old grey haired one said, "I"ve had a long day. Let's go where it's more comfortable. He looked around the room to see that everything was in order, then turned and walked along the passage to a room full of soft furniture, pillows and low tables with animal skin rugs on the floor. There was fruit and bread on one of the tables. "Tigist" the old man called. A woman appeared. "Would you bring us some wine and cups." She disappeared and returned a few moments later with the wine. She poured the cups full, put the container on the table and disappeared again. The older man spoke first. "I spoke in Geez and Berber but he didn't act like he understood. Where do you think he came from?"

One of the fliers drank from his cup. "Maybe he speaks the language of the shepherds, or maybe he was too scared to talk." After a long thoughtful pause the second flier said, "He comes from a land where they still wear animal skins, but he flies?" The old one spoke again. "That's the only reason I brought him here. I had to know where he came from and how he learned to fly. Yes, yes, I know letting him see this place could be dangerous, so watch him closely. If he tries to escape, kill him."