(Start of Part 3)
(Disclaimer) The following section has references and ideas of the Christian (Not quite Catholic) religion. I once again ask that if you are easily offended by or sensitive to either the mentioning or concept of such beliefs and views, I kindly ask you to leave this story, as there will be quite a few allusions and discussions henceforward. Any objective reviews given to me will be given the same measure of respect that is shown towards me. So, if they are utterly demeaning and scornful, it will be viewed as such and ignored altogether, but if it tries to provide insight or constructive criticism as well as correcting any ideas presented in the story, then it will be acknowledged as such. I wish you all a fruitful course in life, and I wish you enjoy. (Disclaimer-End)
I remember waking up to bright light, and I was worried that I was blinded again. Then I realized I was facing down and slowly stood up.
As I got up, I realized that I wasn't standing on anything, but I wasn't necessarily bobbing up and down from floating or levitating. It was like I was standing on a completely transparent field of, well, nothing. I also took note that the semi-torn clothing that I once had, had now devolved into filthy rags that barely covered any semblance of my dignity I may have had left. Perhaps this was a result of my previous encounter with the Ark, but I wasn't quite sure.
I looked back down and realized that the white that I had seen before was a completely flat blanket of fluffy clouds below me by a gap of hundreds of feet!
Though, before I could think of anything else, I heard the sound of several people laughing behind me and quickly turned around only to discover a sight that I would never have expected to see in my wildest dreams. 'Though perhaps it is something I could only have expected to find in death …wait a second…no, I couldn't be dead, could I?...' I thought.
However, I decided I could wait for that answer, and decided to turn my attention to the three figures that stood before me. They all seemed to be humanoid, though it was their features that distinguished that they were anything but ordinary.
On my right (or their left) was an opaque figure. They seemed to be nearly see-through, though their body had a slight shimmer to it; not unlike water. What was interesting though was that despite being able to see the figure perfectly fine, their outlined silhouette showed that they were indeed coated in a shimmering light, perhaps that was their membrane/skin? Their face was featureless, and they seemed to be the average height for a man in his' prime. They had two arms and two legs like any ordinary person, but besides the features mentioned previously, there wasn't much else about the figure worth noting.
On my left (or their right) was a figure that I seemed to be at least somewhat familiar with. The figure that I saw, a man, was adorned in a pure-white robe that seemed to be finer than anything that could ever be made in the world. The man seemed to be entirely human, but he gave off the distinct feeling that he may have been so much more. Despite this, his' appearance was fairly average. He seemed to have had a light-tan tone to his' skin, and on his' face was a fairly tame beard, which was the same color of brown as his' hair. Speaking of his' hair, it was let loose into a wavy and flowing trail that reached the back of his' neck, but it also looked to be well-kept. His' face held a tone of utter calm and tranquility; looking like he hadn't a single worry all his' life. Besides that, he seemed fairly ordinary.
Finally there was the last figure, who if I could describe with one word, it would be: divine. As I gazed at the figure, I took note of several things: He seemed as if he were the Sun given human form, radiating a brilliant glow, yet was much, MUCH more divine than any celestial object yet retained a look as human as any other person. His' appearance portrayed what many would consider a frail, if well-statured, old man. However, the sheer presence he gave off was immense, even overwhelming.
All three of these men, if I were to count these individuals as men, all had a mirth in their eyes once they finished chuckling over the curious nature of my arrival. As they had finished their bout of laughter, during which I had been taking note of their appearances at the time, they all shared a knowing look before glancing back at me and fixing me with an appraising look.
I soon realized who these people were, and just where I must have been. So, with but the slightest bit of hesitation, I decided to show the grandest gesture of humility and submission that I could, and knelt down on my knees, sitting on the back of my folded legs as I bowed my head with my forehead touching the ground, resigning myself to the greatest conceivable power in existence.
The Trinity.
(FYI Segment, Can be skipped.)
For those of you who may not know, the trinity is a set of beings, each one separate in their role, but united in identity The first person being known as the Holy Spirit, was what could only be described as the spiritual presence and essence of divinity that flows into chosen individuals in Christianity and blesses them with anything from spiritual serenity to even bestowing divine gifts, such as the famed talent of 'speaking in tongues'. The second figure, known both as the messiah as well as 'The Son' or Jesus the Christ, is a renowned individual that was said to have been born through a virgin birth, as well as being the direct son of God. He was a renowned figure known for being wholly dedicated to his' commitment to the will of his' father. After leaving behind numerous teachings that would continue to be followed years after his' demise, his' last and greatest feat was his' crucifixion on the cross. Through his' suffering and eventual death, being the most righteous human being in existence, he himself chose to follow his' father's request for the last time: Becoming a blood-sacrifice himself in order to finally cleanse the sins of man, allowing humanity to be saved through their belief in his' sacrifice to them. Believing that people were still worth dying over despite their shortcomings and mistakes, thus becoming a figure of ultimate righteousness that all acknowledged, even Satan himself being cast away from him with but a single rebuking statement (being written as: "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only' and the devil left him) when trying to tempt him with the whole world. Finally, the last figure, known as 'The Father', is the greatest of the three, being the creator of the universe, the world, and humanity itself. Being the all-knowing and all-powerful God, he orchestrated all the events in the bible, both good and bad, and bestowed the key to salvation through the sacrifice of his' only, begotten son. As such, it was not an easy task, but through his' son and his' teachings, humanity then gained a means to salvation, belief in his' sacrifice. But it is told in the waning chapters of the bible, that God has a final grand scheme to carry out the final verdict against all evil in the world, and the induction of all of his' believers into a new kingdom that is to be established on both the earth and in heaven, forever. But, the conditions for such a plan have yet to be met, but will happen, soon.
God does not play with dice, but rather has dominoes fall.
(FYI Segment-End)
As I awaited judgment from 3 of the most powerful and benign beings in existence, I only hoped that my presence in itself did not offend them, saying to them "Please forgive me for offending you with my presence! I meant no offense, please have mercy on me!" I was nearly crying at the end, only slightly bawling, both in happiness for finally meeting 3 figures that I revered above all others, and in fear for if they decided to sentence me to damnation for my past sins and imperfect nature.
After a few moments of waiting, I was addressed by a booming, regal voice saying, "Why do you bow, you have prayed in the name of my son have you not? If your words were true, then your sins are forgiven, and I see no reason as to punish you for them now."
I was starting to cry now, though it was in relief. I couldn't believe it! I was forgiven, just like that?! I knew that I meant those words, as I always did when I said a prayer, so I tried to gather myself and stood up from kneeling. I then looked forward, and all three of the figures were giving me proud smiles, then God once again chuckled and made a gesture requesting for somebody to come, but it was not directed at me. A moment later another being appeared, which I recognized to be an angel! It came to God and leant towards him as he whispered something to the servant before materializing what looked to be a set of white robes not unlike those worn by everyone else in attendance. After receiving the bundle of cloth, the angel glided over towards me and presented the robes towards me. I quickly took them and put them on after realizing my state of dress.
Once I was properly dressed, I decided to address the issues at hand, "If I'm here with all of you, does this mean that I'm dead, Lord?"
He gave me a curious look, before smiling at me and saying, "No, you are still very much alive, despite all that you have went through to get here."
I nodded, and decided to ask, "God, if I'm not dead, then there must be a reason I'm here, in what I guess to be heaven. So, what is the reason you brought me here, if I may be so bold as to ask, my lord?"
He grinned and nodded at me; I took notice that the two figures on the sidelines just decided to sit the conversation out, not that I particularly had anything in mind to ask either of them; the angel left at some point while I was getting dressed. God then said unto me, "I brought you here because I have a mission for you to fulfill. You may choose to accept or deny it. I will not lie to you, as I have never done so before, it will be a treacherous journey and the road ahead will be full of hardship if you decide to undertake it, but the results it will generate will provide a means as to allow great change to the world. Only you can do this, no other. However, if you decide to decline, then you may return to your home and live the rest of your life in blithe ignorance. You will only be informed of the details concerning the journey ahead only if you choose to accept it. So, what will you choose?" All three of the figures fixed me with intense stares, making sure that whatever choice I made was done with absolute certainty, as there would be no turning back if I chose either.
I took a moment to collect my thoughts. I remembered things that I heard about God back when I was younger from friends and family. One of the chief things they told me was, God would not give you a life that you could not handle, and I asked myself 'Why would this be any different. If he thought I was ready to undertake this cause, whatever it may be, who was I to deny him?' I thought.
Then, I pondered the other end of the decision. I could go back home and live my life in a way I was familiar with. It wouldn't be quite as interesting as whatever God may have had in store for me, but I could still make a living from it, even find true happiness and love. But, if I went with the decision to decline the offer, I knew this opportunity would be gone forever. This was perhaps the only time in human history where such a choice was presented to them by a figure of this magnitude, besides some of those made within the bible.
However, a daunting thought crossed my mind, and I couldn't help but ask it aloud.
"All those men, my friends, who were on that ship, they're all dead, aren't they? Was it really necessary for them to all die just to bring me here?" I asked him.
He gazed at me, a hard expression etching itself on his' face as the other two figures beside him grew just as serious.
"As unfortunate as it was, this was all instrumental to bring you here to make this decision. I cannot force you to make this choice, but it was the only way to bring you here other than death."
I looked back at him, incredulous over the reasoning of his' decision to bring me here. "So that's it?! They were just in the way of me getting here? Those who suffered and died to get me here, do their lives mean nothing to you!?"
He heaved a great sigh, a great wind blowing through the area as he did so, before speaking again. "No, any human life is not something so easily taken. Such potential and spirit was wasted in that one calamity, but I was certain that the weight of their sacrifice was much lighter than the weight that your fate now carries. But, you need not worry about their fates. Those men, even your friend Rufus, were given mercy in the end and were accepted into my kingdom, except for a couple who would still not repent for their own sinful lives, now they exist in a hell of their own making." He paused a moment in thought, before continuing. "Though their passing was quite a heavy weight on my heart, like so many others who passed before them, their souls now exist in paradise, forever. Now, knowing all of this, have you reached a verdict, my child?"
Once again mulling over the reasoning he gave, understanding why he allowed this to happen, though not entirely liking it, I reasoned that he went through this much to bring me here, I might as well see what awaited me on the other end of this decision. "I accept, dear Lord." I said, bowing my head slightly towards him.
All three of them gazed at me for a short while longer, then the father of the Trinity broke the intense atmosphere with, once again, a pleased smile. "Well done" he said, "you have made a wise choice, as I always knew you would."
God then gave me a pleased smirk before beckoning me forward and pressing a finger to my forehead once I was in front of him. I then felt a rush of energy flow throughout my body, warming me like a pleasant fire, yet providing a relief like that of cool water, it was a confusing, if comfortable, sensation to say the least. And as suddenly as it occurred, it disappeared and I once again felt normal, if a bit rejuvenated.
He then fixed me with a stern gaze that seemed to pierce through me and into my soul, before saying:
"Now, through the nature of the world and my plans to rectify its mistakes, you understand that any work you do here, though beneficial, would ultimately be inconsequential. Do not misunderstand my meaning, by my followers spreading my word across the world, they bring me great joy in knowing they continue to do my son's work and live by his' ways. However, you are an anomaly, as seen from when you dwelled in the twilight between life and death and were not changed by it. I have seen this and know that you are destined for things far greater than this world and its follies. I cannot change the lives in places where there is no representation of my will in it. And that is what I want you to do, to continue to bring about benevolence in any capacity you see fit, whether it is through protecting those who cannot protect themselves, or through the vanquishing of great and terrible evils. As you already know, this world's fate is already underway, however, there are realms that do not know my works but can benefit from my will regardless. This is where your task comes into place, my child. So, I ask unto you: If you could go anywhere you wanted, somewhere you can initiate your journey to bring about change, where would it be?" He asked.
I was astonished. Anywhere at all? I barely heard the question before my mind started to go into overdrive. Where would I go? What would I do when I got there? All these questions and more were racing through my mind almost as constantly as I comprehended them. Nevertheless, I eventually thought up of a place that I thought was fairly outrageous, but one that I wanted to see so that I could get experience and learn from it.
I then told him of the destination I had in mind, and he didn't even seem to be bothered by it, though I thought it was a bit of a stretch in my opinion. Before letting me go onto the journey, he said that he had several favors he wanted to bestow upon me for my long journey ahead, and that for each destination I entered, all I would have to do in order for him to bring me back here or anywhere else would be to beseech him, and he would make it so.
The first gift that he summoned forth was a very interesting weapon, one that I thought I recognized from somewhere but was unsure of. At first glance I noticed that it seemed to resemble a spine of sorts but was much larger. There seemed to be a mechanism of sorts on the top that had a slot engraved into it, and that whatever was supposed to fit into it was then able, with the use of this mechanism, to move and face pointing upwards along the length of the weapon, functioning as a spear if need be. However, in its default position, the face of the mechanism was pointing away perpendicularly from the weapon at a right angle. When I asked what the slot was for, he simply told me to activate it, and with a flourish, something protruded out from the slot. At around 3-4 feet (1-1 1/3 meters) in length, it seemed to be a type of glowing energy projection that shared the shape of a curving blade, glowing white as it gave off waves of intense heat yet looked nothing like fire. In that instant I recognized that the weapon I held in front of me went from being a modest staff into a vicious scythe, the blade of the weapon itself seemed to be made not of fire, but of a superheated form of gases known as plasma, which was found in only a few places, one of which was our sun, Sol! After asking where the weapon came from, he told the story of a determined man known as Dante and his' journey through his' own personal hell.
In this story, the weapon first belonged to the mythical being known as The Grim Reaper. However, at one point, when faced with an individual from the Crusades to reclaim the Holy land and had fallen in battle, the mythical being known as the Grim Reaper fell prey to the very same fate that he himself carried out, death. Dante, with the weapon amongst other tools of vengeance, set out across the Nine Rings of hell: Limbo, lust, gluttony, greed, anger, heresy, violence, fraud and treachery, each of which was worse than the last, in order to save the love of his' life after losing her when he forfeited her fate when he broke his' vows to her. After slaying many mythical, fallen figures of early human history, he made it to the last ring where he met none other than Satan himself, Lucifer.
As the two engaged in fierce combat, Dante was eventually able to detain and sentence Lucifer to his' fate, with the help of all those who he saved along the way, but at the sacrifice of the scythe. In the end, he was absolved of his' sins by God, and was reunited with his' lover, who was taken from the inferno by a servant of God, and to this day they spend their existence together in paradise.
After this, the fate of the weapon remained unknown, and was assumed to be destroyed. Until now that is, in which it was reformed and revised in a new and stronger form, and has now been issued to me; though its design is largely the same as it was before. After I was told this story by him, I thanked him profusely, almost obsessing over the fact that I now had a legendary tool to which would enable me to achieve the tasks ahead of me. Then, I wondered if since it was a new form of an old weapon, that it should have a new name to symbolize its rebirth. I went ahead with the idea, and after some serious thinking, I finally decided on the name of the weapon, The Crescent Eclipse.
The second gift granted to me was a bundle of stark white robes and silver metal brought to me by one of the angels of God. After donning the gear, I took a look over myself and noted its details. At the bottom of the robes, which reached my feet, was the hem which was colored a tasteful gold and rimmed around the bottom of the garb; It also had that design around the opening of the cowl of the robe as well. Under the robes themselves though was an intricately engraved set of armor, which seemed to be enchanted, and fit well enough under the garbs without drawing attention. However, one fact with the armor and robes was that the sleeves of the clothing were missing, exposing the pair of armored gauntlets that ran along my arms. After donning the suit, I was then told that the armor itself did in fact have one special enchantment to it, known as Divine Armor, which in fact was also used by Dante in his' journey through the inferno, though this version of the armor altered that ability slightly. After being told how to activate the magical effect, I took note of the several additional features that presented themselves. First of all was the brilliant light which was exuded from the armor, to which I learned I could dim with but a thought if necessary, giving me the appearance of a divine figure. On the other hand, the term divinity for me could have also been attributed to the several sets of wings on my back…yep you heard right, several. While there were angels who were known to have the standard set of wings to travel around with, my situation was different. In my case, I had a total of 3 pairs of wings, or 6 wings in total, though they themselves did seem to possess an ethereal quality to them. And as you guessed, they functioned pretty much as one could expect. Subconsciously, I brought myself into the air, and after several failed and embarrassing attempts, as well as getting some guidance from the present angel who initially gave me my equipment, I promptly got the hang of flying- though more advanced maneuvers could wait until later. But, for now, I returned back to the group whom were seemingly content watching the aerial display I had been unintentionally presenting.
Huh, funny enough, the gear also included my Kukri-knife in a sheath on my chest as well as the silver cross that I picked up on the island. Glad to know there was still some piece of my old life with me, even now.
The Final gift I received was an ability I named Oblivion. Ultimately, its full potential was still unknown to me at the moment, but from what I could gather, it allowed me to become intangible in both sight and touch, as well as allowing me to eradicate all aspects of matter around me, from the faintest of gases to the densest of solid matter, hence the name. Though, just to what extent this could actually work was all speculation at this point and I could only hope that, in time, I could learn to master and harness its full potential.
So, with the last of my tools added to my repertoire, I quickly remembered that before I was ready to undertake the journey ahead of me, that there was one last question plaguing my mind, "What happened to the Knights Templar?" I asked the lord, my God.
He answered me with a somber look, and told me their story as well as the series of event leading up to their final fate.
Well, as I figured out, they somehow survived in hiding for two-hundred years, waiting to find a suitable hiding place in the world, of course that being the desolate islands of the Caribbean, and chose a particularly desolate one among them, to which I myself find that I am just as clueless as the rest of the world in where exactly it may have been, despite seeing the ark with my own two eyes. I suppose it came as a surprise that technically, the Knights Templar were in fact disbanded as everyone believed, however, during one of their crusades they found the ark of the covenant in a hidden tomb deep in the confines of the deserts wilds some miles/kilometers away from Jerusalem, perhaps initially kept hidden there during the fall of the city years before. Once the ark was found and taken back by the Crusaders, with the Knights Templar order being formed somewhere around that time, they took it upon themselves to take it back to safer lands, to which it would be handed down through the order under the discreet supervision of the papacy, hidden in the Vatican vaults for an unknown amount of time. But, the time came that with the loss of the crusades, the order was essentially "dissolved". However, a select few of the elite in the order took it upon themselves to seize the Ark, believing the Papacy that they so unconditionally obeyed and followed, had turned their backs on both the order as well as seeing that the Papacy itself became too large of a target to keep the item safe indefinitely.
So, after successfully seizing the item and its contents, the remains of the order took it upon themselves to keep it hidden until a time where the order could safely store the item away, permanently. Then, their patience was finally rewarded after waiting more than a century, with the discovery of the new world, the Americas (though it wouldn't actually be called that for some time). So, with a renewed drive in their hearts, they took the opportunity to discover a location suitable enough to keep the artifact intact until further notice. So, after hearing of the islands found in this particular section of the new world, they found to have a location suitable to be the vanguard to which to temporarily keep the artifact at, until a more suitable location could be found in the mainlands to store it at. After a great amount of preparation, and under an even greater amount of discretion, the artifact, along with the order, went to the designated island and set up a small, obscure compound to act as their base of operations in the region while they set out to scout out the surrounding lands.
However, it was at this time that fortune would not be in their favor, and those who went ashore along the mainland to search for a suitable location died at the hands of exotic diseases, illnesses, indigenous peoples and other dangers. Weather itself finally claiming the last remnants of any of the search parties and vessels, and with it a significant portion of the order was lost, forever.
As time went on, and the facility housing the relic was expanded upon, the settled group at the island soon realized that something must have went awry with their brethren out at sea and assumed the worse; So, with the compound and vault finally built, and the remnants of the order stranded with nowhere left to go, they stood guard, trying to survive in the forested island for as long as their lives would allow, and guarded the relic from any external forces that would find them. But, none ever did, and none ever would and the order of The Knights Templar died how they lived: guarding the holy relics they held dear. With that, nature took its course and claimed all but the walls and underground complex of the stronghold.
Then one day, a man washed ashore, and the rest became history.
I thanked him for telling me the story, and I felt that much more unique in knowing that I was now the sole witness of the last resting place of the Knights Templar as well as The Ark of the Covenant; though I knew that I couldn't even find it again, even if I tried. However, that was all behind me, and through it the next stage of my life began. So, with my mind resolved, I told him that I was ready to progress onto my journey.
He nodded, and then beckoned me to stand beside him and waved casually in front of us; And with that, a portal appeared. Looking into the portal, I noticed it looked like I was glancing into the night sky, a void filled with specs of light. After momentarily looking over the portal, he bade me farewell, and good luck on my journey ahead. I nodded my head towards him and said, "Thank you for all that you have done for me, I couldn't have asked for anything more. I'll do my best, Lord." I said, bowing my head towards the divine figure, a gesture which he returned as well before waving me towards the portal.
Once I was in front of the portal, I stuck my arm towards it and made contact with it. Immediately, my body started to be pulled into it, and I gave up on any reluctance I may have had and moved forward, pressing the rest of my body into the portal.
Then, I was gone.
(End of Part 3)