THE EQUINOX
storm of lightning. The least of their spears is like a great
water-spout. On their shields are the eyes of Tetragrammaton,
winged with flame,—white, red, black, yellow and blue. On
their flanks are vast squadrons of elephants, and behind them
is their meteor-artillery. They that sit upon the elephants are
armed with the thunderbolt of Zeus.
Now in all that host there is no motion. Yet they are not
resting upon their arms, but tense and vigilant. And between
them and me is the God Shu, whom before I did not see,
because his force filleth the whole Aethyr. And indeed he is
not visible in his form. Nor does he come to the seer through
any of the senses; he is understood, rather than expressed.
I perceive that all this army is defended by fortresses, nine
mighty towers of iron upon the frontier of the Aethyr. Each
tower is filled with warriors in silver armour. It is impossible
to describe the feeling of tension; they are like oarsmen waiting
for the gun.
I perceive that an Angel is standing on either side of
me; nay, I am in the midst of a company of armed angels, and
their captain is standing in front of me. He too is clad in
silver armour; and about him, closely wrapped to his body,
is a whirling wind, so swift that any blow struck against him
would be broken.
And he speaketh unto me these words:
Behold, a mighty guard against the terror of things, the
fastness of the Most High, the legions of eternal vigilance;
these are they that keep watch and ward day and night
throughout the aeons. Set in them is all the force of the
Mighty One, yet there stirreth not one plume of the wings of
their helmets.
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