If you could have a conversation with God, what would you say? What would you ask? I think a lot of us ask some pressing questions and are met with answers such as "Because it's in the Bible". And then we ask: how do we know the Bible is right? We might get an answer like: "Because the Bible is the Word of God". And how do we know it's the Word of God? "Because the Bible says so," and on and on and on we go in circles.

Well, can't say I have all the answers, but all I know is that so far, every time I seriously research a pressing faith-based question, I eventually find a surprisingly satisfying answer. Yup, this is one of those more unusual chapters – a battle of tongues between two supernatural figures. Yes, this is fiction, but through fiction I attempt to share a few things with real-life ramifications. Although I try, I won't do a perfect job in my writing, but I hope you find it interesting and thought-provoking at least.

Chapter 25

Shadow of Death Part 2

Unseen came to the unsettling realization of what was happening. It was as plain as the colossal shadow of the web-winged creature that fell over her. She couldn't see the beast, but she knew it was there – the beast of her bizarre nightmare. It had her in its clutches. Once again, she was caught in a dream that somehow felt more real than a dream.

Unseen took a few tentative steps forward and the creature's claws that were embedded in her flesh fluidly moved with her … no … they were not moving with her. She was moving with them.

The seven heads of the beast chuckled. "Why are you trying to walk away from me? I have been with you throughout your life. I am the master of your nature: the death in your teeth; the kill in your claws; the venom in your heart that enlivens your instincts. You are a creature of destruction, and that is perfectly natural. Isn't what is natural also what is good?"

Her eyes flit about the unfamiliar forest that now surrounded her. She was expecting to see the creature's Enemy, the all-powerful Unknown, but He was nowhere to be found.

"He's dead," the monster purred in response to her body language. "You watched me kill Him, remember? He rests within the grave. No longer will you fear life under His shadow, with His rules and regulations. You're free, and He is history."

The beast gave a satisfied laugh before adding: "To think, the immortal One who claims to be 'the Way, the Truth and the Life' couldn't even preserve His own life. It would seem He has broken His Word."

Suddenly, the earth tore apart ahead of her and massive slabs of stone and soil erupted into the air. An unimaginable light began to rise from the ground, and from that light came a voice like rushing waters.

"I CANNOT BREAK MY WORD, BECAUSE I AM MY WORD."

When she heard that voice, she felt like a speck of dust compared to the universe. When she saw the source of the voice, the universe felt like the speck of dust. His eyes were akin to fire – the most intense flame she had ever seen. Her awestruck stare drifted from His wool-white hair, down His robe and its golden sash until she reached His feet. Even His feet had their own radiance. Is she knew about such things, she would have compared them to some kind of metal alit in a furnace. Though His face was like the Sun, His form remained that of a man – the same Man she had seen in her previous dream. His attributes were beyond her wildest imagination, yet they seemed more natural than anything she had ever seen. No, not "natural". They were higher than nature. "Supernatural" was the more viable description.

The beast's claws quivered. Was he trembling? It seemed to be the case. She felt his strength falter like that of a petrified utahraptor chick. Now seemed like a good time to wriggle free of his grip. She tried, but to no avail. It seemed that even at his weakest, the beast's power hopelessly dwarfed hers.

"So, You cannot break Your own Word?" the monster reasoned, almost stammered. "That sounds like a weakness, wouldn't you say, Unseen? Isn't it strange that an 'all-powerful' Being would have a weakness? One could even say that such a Being was never all-powerful at all."

"HOW CAN BREAKING YOUR OWN WORD BE A STRENGTH?" Unknown countered. "DOING THIS DOES NOT INDICATE STRENGTH. IT INDICATES WEAKNESS."

"And what if You make a mistake?" asked the beast. "In that case, wouldn't you have to go back on your Word?"

"I NEVER NEED TO GO BACK ON MY WORD BECAUSE MY WORD IS PERFECT," Unknown explained. "WHEN I SPEAK, I SPEAK WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OF PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE. THEREFORE, I CANNOT ERR."

"But doesn't that make free will impossible?" the monster inquired. "After all, You know what everyone will do, and You can respond accordingly to bring about every outcome You desire."

"IT IS TRUE THAT MY CREATIONS PLAN THEIR PATHS, BUT I DIRECT THEIR STEPS AND BRING ABOUT THE ULTIMATE OUTCOME," Unknown stated. "THEIR WILL IS THEIRS AND THEIRS ALONE, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEIR ACTIONS WILL ALWAYS REAP THE RESULTS THEY INTEND. OTHERWISE, EVIL COULD HAVE THE FINAL SAY. STILL, I GIVE EVERYONE THE CHANCES TO MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICES. I KNOCK ON THEIR DOORS. I LEAVE ALL THE NECESSARY CLUES FOR THEM TO FIND ME AND BE REUNITED WITH ME. DO THEY FOLLOW THE CLUES? THAT IS UP TO THEM. I KNOW EVERYONE WHO WILL CHOOSE ME OVER YOU BEFORE THEY EVEN DO IT, BECAUSE I TRANSCEND TIME."

The monster grinned. "Well said. Some choose me, some choose You. You have Your followers, I have my own. We've been competing for eons, neither besting the other. We may be doing this for all time."

"YOU IMPLY THAT WE ARE RIVAL GODS AT WAR," Unknown stated. "YOU SPEAK AS IF WE ARE EQUAL AND OPPOSITE FORCES, GOOD AND EVIL, NEITHER GREATER THAN THE OTHER. HOWEVER, YOU ARE NOT A GOD. GOOD CAN EXIST ON ITS OWN, BUT EVIL IS NOTHING MORE THAN A BETRAYAL OF GOOD. MORAL LAWS CAN EXIST ON THEIR OWN, BUT ALL EVIL DOES IS BREAK THOSE LAWS THAT ALREADY EXISTED. I AM THE CREATOR. YOU ARE A REBEL CREATION. WE WON'T BE FIGHTING EACH OTHER FOREVER. WHEN YOUR END COMES, IT WILL BE FINAL, UNDENIABLE AND UNSTOPPABLE."

The monster gnashed his teeth in indignation. "So, You intend to destroy me? How could You do such a thing to me, Your precious creation? You died for all humanity, but what about me? You claim to be the very nature of love. Does your love extend to me?"

"YOU WERE MY PRECIOUS CREATION," Unknown declared. "THE INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH LIVE IN A BROKEN WORLD WHERE MY LOVE AND NATURE ARE LESS OBVIOUS, BUT YOU LIVED IN FULL EXPOSURE TO MY LOVE. REGARDLESS, YOU REBELLED AGAINST ME AND TRIED TO MAKE YOURSELF GOD. YOU ARE FILLED WITH EVIL, AND YOU CHOSE THAT EVIL. YOU HAVE NO DESIRE TO CHANGE. WE BOTH KNOW THAT, BUT YOU ARE ASKING THESE QUESTIONS TO SOW SEEDS OF DOUBT IN UNSEEN'S HEART."

Unseen felt herself slide across the soil as the beast possessively pulled her towards himself.

"You came for the humans, and she is not human," the monster declared. "What does a utahraptor mean to you?"

"WHEN A SPARROW DROPS, I SEE IT," Unknown went on. "WHEN A DEER GIVES BIRTH, I AM THERE. SHE IS NOT A HUMAN, AND I SEE HER FOR WHAT SHE IS, BUT I CARE FOR ALL CREATURES, AND MY LOVE FOR HER IS UNIMAGINABLE."

The beast tightened his grip, claws sinking deeper into Unseen's soul. She was numb to the pain of the claws, but she could feel the desperation in his actions.

"So far, Unseen has not seen any raptors running around with metaphorical crosses on their backs," the monster argued. "If You really care about Unseen's kind, where are Your followers? Surely, there must be at least a few."

"SHE WILL MEET THEM IN GOOD TIME," Unknown declared.

The beast grinned triumphantly. "She doesn't have time. She sits in the shadow of death, ensnared in a flesh-eating plant. Even if she somehow managed to free herself from the plant's embrace, she wouldn't have the strength to drag herself and Taberah out of the danger zone."

The monster's face contorted with horror as Unknown's lips lifted in a victorious smile. Then He marched towards Unseen and her captor, who froze in fear. Taking hold of utahraptor's forelimb, Unknown pulled her seemingly gently. The winged beast staggered, gasped and tried to yank her in the opposite direction but his entire body was dragged along with Unknown and Unseen. His size meant nothing. His might was meaningless – meaningless to the Being who hauled him like a ragdoll. Unseen could see that despite the beast's boasts, Unknown was right.

Against Him, the monster never really had a chance.

Consciousness returned to Unseen, but she could feel herself being carried just as in her dream. Her muscles were limp and helpless. Even her eyes refused to open. The plant's paralysing fumes still swam within her system.

Who or what was carrying her?

The scent wafting into her nostrils quickly told her that it was a utahraptor. A male. What kind of utahraptor? Pack member or rogue? That was the hard part. Rogues tended to bear a distinctive, intimidating scent. His scent was … firm but meek; approachable but somehow unmovable. How that made sense, she did not understand, but one thing was certain:

Rogue or pack member, he was likely a foe.

At least he hadn't done her harm. Yet. She could already feel her mobility returning to her muscles. She only hoped she would be able to defend herself when this raptor finally decided to attack. She could already tell that he was strong, given that he could carry her against the force of the sticky plant beneath him. She would have to remember to beware his strength when she made her move.

Unseen was placed on her side and felt jaws tearing the pieces of stinging plant from her body. She wasn't going to give those jaws a chance to reach her. When the final major piece of plant had been removed, her eyes shot open as she prepared to spring to her feet.

At the sight of the utahraptor standing above her, she hesitated.

His scales were a profusion of camouflage colour that somehow took her breath away. She wondered why. After all, it only bore the earthy browns she expected of many a male. Upon closer inspection, she realised that those earthy browns were actually a rich combination of burgundies. There was a fiery intensity in those muted colours, but their fire conveyed warmth rather than destructive wrath. In a strange way, it was as if the hues of his hide told a story, and she could read its shapes, shades and tones as one would read words in a book. The meaning of those "words" niggled at her mind, but somehow lay just beyond her understanding.

If this utahraptor's skin was a curiosity, his eyes were a wonder: red like rubies, they defied the drabness of the valley, twinkling, blazing. Once those eyes set their sights on something, she felt that the raptor would never, ever, ever relent until he had attained his desire. There was borderline ruthlessness in his gaze, yet simultaneous gentleness. His eyes stirred within her conflicted urges: to never look away, to hide from the sight of them and to weep all at the same time, even though she lacked the ability to weep.

He greeted her with a purr, then asked her if she was alright. Hurting? Fine? Somewhere in between? He wanted to know.

Several thoughts flashed through her head as she evaluated the situation. Who was he? Why was her safety his concern? Though he showed no signs of aggression, she doubted the workability of introducing herself to him. After all, she still bore the unfinished mark of leadership. Seeing it on her temple, he would immediately know her status as a failed alpha candidate. If he were part of a pack, he would likely regard her as an abomination better destroyed. Even if he didn't care about her mark, the unusual splendour of his utahraptorian features strongly implied that he was a rogue. Most rogues would kill her just for sport.

She couldn't take any chances.

Unseen spotted Taberah soundlessly climbing to his feet at the side of her eye. It seemed he had been briefly knocked out by the plant's gasses just as she had … or he was pretending to be unconscious all along. Now, he stared at her as if waiting for her to tell him whether to attack or to stand down.

She knew human body language, but chances were this raptor didn't. That meant that when she gave Taberah a discrete nod, the raptor had no idea that she was signaling his demise.

In a flash of silent motion, Taberah prepared his bow and fired.

What happened next peppered Unseen's thoughts with astonishment.

The raptor sidestepped the arrow swiftly yet leisurely, as if he were expecting it.

Scarcely had the raptor turned to face Taberah before the human had reached him with ravenous speed. After drawing the brachiosaurus bone sword, Taberah unleashed melee but the raptor fluidly maneuvered out of reach again and again with razor-sharp reflexes. Though Taberah could not land a strike, he calculated his movements so that the raptor couldn't quite make a move on him.

No question about it. Clearly, this was a rogue.

Unseen stepped forth to enter the fray when she felt something warm press against her side, cooing. She looked down to find the most beautiful female utahraptor she had ever seen. That raptor was greeting her with affectionate physical contact. With scales of gleaming amber, marmalade, pink, magenta and so on, the utahraptor was like a living sunrise. It was as if her skin were forged from the ore of precious gemstones. The flecks and streaks of colour seemed to skip across her in leaps and bounds of boundless joy. This little raptor's skin alone proclaimed that she was a rogue, but she was so young. She didn't even have her feathers yet. To top it off, she was short for her age. How could a rogue be this young?

Unseen was so bowled over by this raptor's sudden appearance and friendly gestures that her fight or flight instincts didn't kick in. However, her motherly instincts came into play. She jumped away from the young raptor, realising that her obsidian armour made her dangerous to touch.

The little raptor blinked in surprise, staring up at Unseen with bright, iridescent eyes. Unseen was surprised to see that the utahraptor's skin was unharmed by the armour. With a closer look, Unseen realized that the scales appeared to be literally encrusted with rough gemstone, giving them their colour. Of course, that was not possible. This raptor couldn't have jewels for skin. However, Unseen had to admit that the young one's hide looked surprisingly thick and tough.

The utahraptor uttered a quick twitter, asking for Unseen's name.

Unseen found herself answering without thinking.

Upon hearing the unusual name, the colourful raptor's eyes shone with interest. Then the raptor introduced herself.

Her title could be translated as "Unbroken".

Unseen was intrigued. Unbroken was a name similar to her own: one with a hidden meaning.

Unbroken glanced at Taberah and the male raptor with concern, then asked if Unseen could get her monkey-like friend to cease his attack.

Unseen neither obliged nor refused.

Understanding this, Unbroken opened her mouth towards the fighters as if she were about to communicate. Instead of sound, a bioluminescent glow rose in her maw. The glow sharply grew to a glare. A flash. Even though it hit her indirectly, Unseen was dazed by the brightness.

Once her vision cleared, Unseen saw the male raptor standing on top of Taberah, one foot on the human's sword arm and a killing claw to his neck. Then the rogue removed Taberah's sword with his jaws, threw it aside and stepped off of the human with a non-threatening coo. Taberah smoothly rose to his feet and the two duelers locked eyes.

Unbroken asked Unseen if there was any efficient to communicate with the human.

Taberah responded with a twittering, utahraptorian whistle. He gave her a positive answer: Yes.

Unbroken's eyes alit with delight upon learning that the human could communicate with them.

Both the human and the male utahraptor were looking at Unbroken, which allowed Unseen to see both of their pairs of eyes at once. She cocked her head in puzzlement, noting how Taberah's eyes were fierce but self-controlled. The utahraptor's were also fierce and calm … but differently so. Despite similarities, the two creatures' personalities seemed to be in stark juxtaposition. They were like opposites. How? It was a puzzle that boggled her mind.

The red rogue gave a coo of approval to her and the human before stating that Taberah was clearly a formidable fighter. He went on to say that Unseen could also look after herself no doubt. Still, this was a dangerous place where they were vulnerable, even with combined power. Night would fall before they reached the valley's end, and the dark would bring entirely new challenges. He suggested that they all travel together to increase their chances of survival.

Unseen and Taberah exchanged glances. These rogues may have seemed sociable enough, but could they be trusted?

Seeing their reluctance, the red rogue began to walk away and Unbroken followed him. He told them that if they changed their minds, they could join the three travelers. Since their senses of smell and sight were impaired in the valley, they could locate each other with an "answer me" call. He suggested that they not raise their voices too much if they called. After all, they wouldn't want to attract the wrong attention.

Taberah raised an eyebrow and Unseen knew why. The red rogue had said that his group consisted of "three" travelers. Weren't there only two? Unseen dismissed it as a slip of the tongue.

Before the rogues could disappear into the mist, Unseen and Taberah stepped up beside them. Unbroken bounced and chirped in excitement to have the company. Meanwhile, Unseen glanced the red rogue's face. His cheeks lifted. It reminded her of a smile, but she knew that it couldn't have been. Utahraptors simply didn't have the ability to smile. It was a human thing, but whatever he was doing with his face, it seemed perfectly natural. Wait a minute … was he actually smiling?

Unseen stopped to stare at the rogue.

His face returned to normal and he blinked at her, wondering what had caused her to stare.

Feeling slightly awkward, she continued to walk and mentioned that she never quite caught the male's name.

He explained that he was named after something that could grow, but in its purest form never changed. Something strong yet humble. Something that never failed.

Something Unconditional.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for reading.