Pitch black darkness, motionless. Adam’s senses awaken, one at a time. He first feels the cold rush of water flow underneath his prone body, the frigid temperature making him aware of his nakedness. He feels the hardness of the smooth river rocks under him, the weight of his body pressing the stones into his head, his back, his butt, his legs, and his feet. He hears the water gurgling deep into the crevices of his eardrums. His eyes open and sees a night sky of deep purples mixed with navy, the stars of the Milky Way painting a speckled banner across the heavens. Adam sits up, his head flushed with waves of awareness. His skin glows a pale blue reflecting the light of the crescent moon. His eyes follow the path of the shallow creek and sees the water gushing out of a giant tree in the middle of a desert. The branches of the tree shake in the heavy wind of an oncoming storm, the bright green leaves shaking violently. As Adam continues to stare in amazement of the tree he sees an eye forming in the shadows of the leaves. He hears a voice booming “Behold! Mercury is born!” Adam stands up. Water begins pouring out of the tree at a faster rate. The creek bed disappears and water rises to Adam’s waste. Suddenly a bright yellow shooting star lights up the sky and spears into the center core of the tree. Adam slips on the smooth stones under his feet falling into the river.
From the tangled roots of the tree a serpent with orange scales emerges. The snake gently glides into the river towards Adam, its eyes glowing with a red light that gets brighter the closer it gets. A hot warm flash lashes at Adam’s face as the tree bursts into flames. The water level rises completely covering the desert. Adam barely treds with his head above water. The tree burns with an intense white heat. A raven flies out of the tree. The snake lunges toward Adam. The raven grabs the serpent and carry it to the tree, dropping it into the heart of the flame. Now completely submerged underwater Adam can only see the light of the tree in a bent distorted refraction