Chapter One: Leaving the Palace

It is maddening business, creeping through your own homeland like a thief in the night. But the comforters of my diamond-studded palace could not contain me no longer. I had slept in those silken sheets for too many nights. I had gorged on meaty delicacies for too many meals. And my throne! My throne! That tangled mess of tarnished gold—it had finally proved to be an inadequate seat to judge the world from. If ever there were an ill-made king, his crafted crown would have fit my head perfectly. My royal subjects knew me by made names…

Savior!

Immortal!

Messiah!

They only saw my divinity, never my humanity. So when I donned my old seamless white robe, I became unrecognizable to them. I circled around my bedchamber one final time. In the dying firelight I wondered if this was truly the right decision. The tiny orange flames sung out to me…

"For a Son of Man in your unique position, it is the only choice to make!"

Those flames were right. I could not disagree. I looked above the fireplace to the weapons at my disposal. So many swords I had to choose from to accompany me on my travels. There was the one by which King Saul had demolished the Amalekites but wrongly spared their King Agag. Then the one by which David had beheaded the giant Goliath after knocking him out with one stone. Then the ceremonial one that King Solomon hung off his belt, even though he lived in a time of peace.

I gripped each one and swung. Their were all grand, but far too heavy and sharp for my taste. None of these would be suitable for my adventure. There was only one word I needed, and it resided in the Holy Temple. As the King of Yisrael I had my own private passageway. I opened the stone door behind my bed and walked down the busty hall. There were no torches on the walls, but I knew every curve and dip perfectly. It was only a short walk to the end.

As I walked I thought about my reasons for abandoning my throne. Yisrael's enemies were all crucified long ago. For the past three hundred years Yisrael had enjoyed a state of unparalleled, unbroken peace. All that was left for this immortal soul to do was sit on my throne, judge of a few cases, participate in Temple worship, and eat fine food.

There are many words that might have described my pain, but I could think of none of them. Boredom was not be the right word. Boredom alludes to the idea of fearlessness and neutrality. I had plenty to be afraid of. Beyond the veil of my well-crafted dream, a harsh reality awaited me. So no, I was not bored.

Loneliness might be a bit more accurate, though loneliness did not play a major role in my decision. After ruling Yisrael for three hundred years, I had seen men rise and fall like wheat. Everyone I had known in my generation had died within the first fifty years of my reign. But I had kept most of these at arms' length, so their absence was not too much of a burden. There were a few I missed, but I knew the place where their souls dwelt. It was not a particularly pleasant place, but it was not an evil place either. They were not feeling any pain. In fact, they were hardly feeling anything at all.

Curiosity might be a strong choice of wording. I was an immortal soul in a mortal body, and I had plenty to wonder at. So places on earth I had not explored. So many ideas I had left unturned. There were so many journeys I had not yet taken. With, every hour I stayed on my throne, the greater chance I had of remaining there forever. My wretched throne would be cemented firmly cemented in reality. I did not know what would happen to me then, but I did not want to find out through experience.

I left no notice. No leave of absence. No official declaration of an heir. Trying any of these things would only result in public outcry and my people forcing me to stay. My royal guard would turn on me, making sure I did not escape. There would be no malice in any of this, of course. It would all be done in love and devotion. But the curse of being the most loved man in the world is that sometimes people can smother you to death while insisting that you remain their king.