Enoch Primordial (Chronicles of the Nephilim) by Brian Godawa

sparse, their cave drawings almost childlike, but they were socially integrated and communally connected like no other people he had ever seen. They carried a spiritual quality about them that Enoch could relate to, something he knew his clan could not understand. He had a strange connection to them. He understood why Adam had chosen to live with the cave dwellers. His original bias against them had proven false. It had been based on false legends he should not have listened to.
    This was the time to feast and celebrate the marriage of his son. He saw Methuselah and Edna dancing out on the floor. Adam had officiated the ceremony with his ever-present Havah by his side. It made Enoch cry like a baby. He had been concerned about this insignificant little temple virgin, but had come to realize that she too had overcome his expectations. He was beginning to think that for a wisdom sage, he was not proving very wise of late.
    In the midst of the music, Enoch glanced at Adam and Havah at the table. They smiled and pretended to enjoy the festivities. But even now, they could not escape the pall of sadness that haunted them.
    Suddenly, the floor cleared, and everyone moved to the tables to watch the entertainment. Methuselah and Edna sat down at the head table with Enoch and the others. Adam leaned toward Enoch and said, “You have been wondering what the Karabu can do? Sit back and get ready. You are about to find out.”
     
    The Karabu took their places on the floor. There were ten of them. They were dressed as warriors with armaments of animals. Lion heads and manes, vulture winged robes, and heavenly weapons Enoch had never seen before. Strange blades, shields, and javelins.
    They engaged in battle exercises that seemed more like a dance of acrobatics than about brute strength or power. They ebbed and flowed like a river of water, their movements fluid, not forceful. They moved through the air as if they were fish floating in water. Flipping, twisting, they attacked and defended with such precision and poise as to transform the act of fighting into a ballet of grace.
    Adam could not see the dance, but he could feel it. He knew it well. He said to Enoch, “They were trained by the archangel Gabriel. The original giant killer.”
    Enoch caught himself with his mouth open again and quickly shut it. He now knew that Elohim had provided for his calling.
    Methuselah was entranced by the javelins and how they glided like birds in the air and spun in the hands of the heavenly skilled Karabu. He thought to himself that this was the weapon for him.
    Edna wanted to dance like the wind as these fighters did. She found it a haunting vision of terrifying beauty.
    Adam touched Enoch’s arm and said softly, “What do you say we go up top and get some fresh air?”
    It surprised Enoch. So far as he knew, this stooped-over old man had not been out of the caves since he arrived here ages before.
    “Anything you ask, f orefather,” said Enoch.
    “Walk me, then,” said Adam.
    Havah moved to help as she had always done, but Adam gestured to her to stay. He would be all right. Just the men.
     
    As they walked up to the surface through the winding tunnels, Enoch asked Adam about the name he had uttered earlier, Yahweh Elohim.
    Adam apologized , “It slips out too often. It is the covenant name of Elohim. It is reserved for only the most sacred of relationships. It expresses his essence as the foundation of existence itself. The divine council of heavenly host uses it.” He paused for a moment. “We used it in the Garden, but now with the Edenic exile…” his voice cracked for a moment. “It is a name that should remain secret until latter days. For what purpose, I do not know. Perhaps it has to do with the seed of the Woman.”
    They stepped out in the evening breeze under the stars. Adam stopped and took a deep breath. “Ah,” he proclaimed, “I do believe I miss this sweet taste in my lungs.”
    Enoch helped him carefully so Adam