After a long time in the shower I finally get dressed and open the door to the rest of the house. On the top floor there seems to be the bathroom, the bedroom I came from, and one more room on the other side of the hallway. I notice that the hallway connecting the bathroom and the bedroom is covered in photographs and portraits. Light enters from the floor below and the wood underneath my feet creaks quietly as I walk across.
One photo in particular shows what I assume is Mary, Jeb, and a young man standing outside an old farmhouse. Based on the rustic style of the bedroom and the bathroom, this must be the house in the photograph. The young man stands proudly in a uniform and towers over the both of them, showcasing a piece of paper in his hands. Another photo shows a baby wrapped in blankets and holding a rattle. While another has the same child blowing out candles on a large cake while a younger version of Mary smiles in the background.
The rest of the hallway continues forward and leads to a staircase descending down onto the first floor. I can hear small indistinct chatter and noise as I slowly go down the stairwell. As I enter the bottom floor I see Mary and Jeb situated to the left in a kitchen, murmuring amongst themselves. Mary notices me entering and quickly shushes Jeb to be quiet and turns to the food on the stove. Jeb gives a small grunt in agreement and comes over to me. "James! Are you feeling better after washing up? I see those clothes fit you fairly well. Oh, and I guess your hand is all better now?!" Mary turns back around and looks at me in the doorway. She rushes over and grabs my hand, turning it around and inspecting every part of it. She looks me in the eyes and says, "Well that's something isn't Jeb…I guess we don't need the first aid kit anymore huh." I cautiously remove my hand from hers and rub it in my other hand. I look towards the both of them and say, "Yeah, I guess I'm a fast healer…is that normal around here?" Mary and Jeb look at each other and quickly look back at me. Mary evades my gaze and says, "Um, who knows? I'm sure miracles happen here and there... I'm just glad you're ok. How about we eat while the food's hot, huh?" Mary quickly rushes back over and grabs plates of food for everyone. Jeb also awkwardly gestures for me to come and sit at the table.
He sits in the same spot as he did in the dream, and pretends to be reading the paper, just as he did before. Before I could say anything else Mary places a plate of food in front of me. This time the plate is filled with regular food like eggs, bread, and meat. She pauses before eating and says, "James honey, I hope you don't mind but we usually pray before eating. Is that ok with you?" Jeb nods in agreement and gestures for everyone to lock hands. Jeb grabs my left hand and Mary tries to grab my right, the same one in the dream.
I instinctively pull back my hand and say, "Sorry…I guess I still have some small pain in that hand. Could we not hold hands for this?" Mary looks confused yet disappointed, and reaches for Jeb's hand instead. She says, "Of course sweetie, just let us know if it gets any worse…Jeb, are you ready dear?" Jeb nods and they both close their eyes and begin.
Mary starts and says, "Oh holy one, grant us thine blessing today–" she continues on with a similar prayer as she said in the dream, "I thank you for the safe recovery of our new friend James. May he regain his memories and find his place in this world. Give peace to all those who have suffered, and guide them towards salvation." Before she spoke the final line I stopped her from finishing. "Sorry Mary, um, could we actually not continue? This is sort of embarrassing…I mean, I don't even know you two. You don't have to waste your prayers on me." Mary looks at me wide-eyed and decides to stop. Jeb lets go of her hand and says, "James, you're not a burden, but if it really bothers you we don't have to. Sorry if we offended you." Jeb looks back at Mary and motions to her.
Mary breathed deeply and said, "Of course James, please let us know in the future if you don't feel comfortable. I mean, you did fall out of the sky today, I'm sure you are dealing with a lot right now. Let's just continue eating shall we?" Mary looks as if she is holding back tears underneath her smile. Jeb also looks saddened by my comment but continues to eat in unison with Mary.
After a moment of eating I decide to break the awkward silence and say, "So um, I saw some photos upstairs of a young man. Is that your son's bedroom upstairs?" Mary stops mid-bite and places her utensils back onto the plate. She starts off slowly, "Yes James, that was our son Camron. That used to be his room before he left for the rebellion…"
Jeb places down his utensils as well and says, "Mary… you don't have to–" Before he could finish Mary continues, "He died in the war James, a few years ago. But before then he would always be off traveling around the world, trying to help whomever he came across. He um–"
Small tears started to fall from Mary's face and she gently wiped them away. She takes another deep breath and says, "His body was never recovered from the battlefield. We had to bury one of his old photographs alongside some of his clothes from before he left. But…life goes on and I am very proud of the man he grew up to be. I pray that you never have to fight in this awful war James." As she finished Jeb grabbed Mary's hand and consoled her. She wiped away one final tear and Jeb looked towards me, "James, this war has been going on for a very long time. Do you have any memories of it all?"
I stare at Jeb in confusion and say, "No, I don't have any memory of any war. What kind of war could last for so long?"
Jeb looks at me straight in the eyes and says, "A war for the world itself. A battle for life and death. A battle for the souls of all human-kind."