"Abad… what?" Shawn asked, voicing my own question.
"Abbadon is the name we call all evil men that have walked the earth's surface. Abbadon means destruction, ruination. Those that receive this name are out to destroy and ruin others. They are able to gather forgotten souls to do their bidding. Guides are sent to rescue these souls before they are lost forever. I'm here to teach you how."
I looked around at the others trying to process the information he had just given us. Was he trying to tell us that men like Stalin and Hitler had been Abbadon's and Guides had intervened in those situations? Hitler was responsible for millions of deaths, so had the Guides failed?
"They did not fail. They were merely greatly outnumbered. Many Guides and Protectors were killed trying to save forgotten souls and bring them back to the right side," he replied, picking my thoughts out of my head again. "Most times, the Guides are successful, thus the reason these occurrences have been sporadic over the years. The Light instructs me to send you in to intervene at the most opportune time."
"What about my dad?" Mark asked quietly.
Haniel shook his head. "The Dark Angel will have his Judgment Day, but now is not the time for him. That situation is being monitored as we speak."
"Well, teach us how to go in and kick some ass," Sam said in her usual exuberant way. After a brief pause, she clamped her hand over her mouth. "Oops, sorry about that. I guess it's some kind of biblical law against cussing around you right?" she asked, trying unsuccessfully to look abashed.
"Perhaps, in the future you could find a better way to express your assessments," he said, making himself clear.
I flashed a smile at Sam. Obviously swearing was out. "Ooh, you're in trouble," I mouthed silently to her.
Sam clapped a hand over her lips, nodding her head solemnly, although her bright shining eyes gave away her merriment.
"Let's begin," Haniel said, ignoring my and Sam's silent antics. "I want my Guides to stand here," he said, indicating the space behind a line he had made in the sand with his foot. "Protectors, you can stand over there," he continued, indicating the sidelines.
Sam, Lynn, and I faced Haniel apprehensively, not sure what to expect.
"Now, close your eyes, and instead of casting my emotions away, you must filter them. Your emotions will work like a blanket, smothering what I cast your way and replacing it with your own," he said.
Obediently, we closed our eyes, nervously awaiting his next move.
I felt the familiar nausea from the foreign emotions Haniel sent our way. All of my instincts pushed me to shy away from them like I had done for years, but instead I faced them head on as Haniel instructed. I was unprepared for the heartbreaking pictures that flashed in my mind. The pictures consisted of starving children, passing before me at lightening fast speed, yet each one seemed to burn through my very soul. The despair was tangible, and my head spun as I tried to help tamper the emotion as it tried to consume me.
The emotional stress became more than I could bear, sending me to my knees, as I vomited the contents of my mall lunch. I put my hands on the sand trying to control the waves of nausea that continued to swirl around in me even after my stomach was empty. My head swam and my body continued to protest as I tried to recover from the foreign assault. I had suffered from the emotions of others for years, but I had never felt them try to smother mine like that before.
Mark was at my side in an instant. "Are you okay?" he asked. I nodded my head, not yet ready to open my eyes. This was different than my normal emotional sickness which I had learned to fight, this was an emotional assault.
I opened my eyes as the nausea slowly seeped away from my body. I was mildly surprised to see both Sam and Lynn in similar positions on the ground. They usually had much better control over their emotions than I did, and I was a little relieved that I wasn’t the only weak one.
"What was that?" Sam asked in a shaky voice.
"That was a touch of despair," Haniel said.
"Just a touch?" I asked incredulously. "And what the heck were those pictures?" I asked, still shaken from what I had seen.
"When you accept someone's emotions, you will get a look into why they are feeling that emotion. Each individual will be different. For example, some may have mental pictures of a difficult home situation, while others may harbor pictures of things they've done that they are ashamed of. I chose the images that you just witnessed to convey despair."
"They made me feel awful," Sam said quietly.
"The mental pictures are a great asset, they will give you crucial insight into the individuals you are sent in to save. Eventually, when you are well-trained, you will use these images to your advantage."
"Well, I guess let's go again," Lynn said with the same reluctance I felt. I wasn't overly anxious to repeat that exercise.
"No, it is time for rest. Tonight was just a test to give you a taste of embracing the emotions of others. Soon you will learn to use your own purity to filter out the negative emotions and replenish what has been taken from the forgotten souls," he said, turning away from us. "I will now train with the Protectors," he continued in his formal way which I was getting used to.
I was relieved by his words. I didn't want to be a wimp, but I wasn't going to argue. I felt like a freight train had hit me, leaving behind a tattered mess. Mark helped me to my feet while Shawn and Robert did the same for Lynn and Sam. Walking like gimps, we hobbled to the side of a sand dune and sank back down gratefully next to each other.
"Well, that sucked big time," Sam muttered as the guys walked away.
"No kidding. I feel like I lost an arm or something," Lynn said, rubbing the tender part of her chest, where mine also ached.
"I sure hope Haniel is right and the next time doesn't suck so much or he might be getting a few more choice words to report to his boss," Sam said, sounding more like herself.