Prologue – Training for the Role
There is a place, a theatre, that
everyone visits more than once in their life. Most don’t remember it and even
fewer remember it as nothing more than a dream or nightmare. It is a place of
learning and understanding, happiness and delight, fear and dread, but most
importantly, it is a place of pure persuasive truth to challenge how a person
views the world so that they can see it in the correct light and improve their
lives. Of the few who remember the theatre as it was, even fewer want to help
in its mission. That small minority of helpers is a special lot, one of whom is
about to face a challenge of his own today.
The young man’s name is Dario, the
son of a couple who manages a charity for the homeless who cannot care for
themselves. His mother handles the business and office side of things while his
father is a doctor and cook. Dario is responsible for running around the
building to deliver mail and news, helping with stock, and caring for the
patients. It’s what his parents did in their youth, so he does the same, except
he doesn’t know which of his parent’s positions he’ll take over and prays that
he knows in due time. As he runs in and out of rooms, he unexpectedly finds
himself in the theatre.
“Woah! How did I get here?” Dario
wonders out loud.
The part of the theatre that Dario
finds himself in is the guest hall, a large spiraling room whose ceiling cannot
be seen filled with lights of all colors, stagehands going about their
business, and a seemingly infinite amount of halls and rooms each decorated
differently to suit every purpose. An usher with a smile that spirals around
his face takes Dario to the auditorium he is meant to go to where his questions
will be answered. Along the way, Dario sees other strange people who have
abnormalities such as one person having wings for arms, feet, and a head with
eyes on their body, another person who has the face of a lion, lamb, and human
all in one, and another who manifests from the shadows and turns into many
kinds of birds to carry all kinds of luggage around.
Once they get to Dario’s
auditorium, the usher bows his head and says, “Please, enjoy your stay.”
Dario tepidly walks into the
auditorium whose doors close behind him. The lights turn on and focus on a
figure that manifests itself out of the light and dark on the stage. This
figure turns into an image of a man with white skin and whose clothes and hat
are colored red, grey, and gold just like the circles in his eyes. He wears a
long coat and outfit that looks similar to that of a circus master.
“Who are you?” Dario asks.
“I am the Stage Master, and you, my
dear Dario, are here for the opportunity of a lifetime,” I say with a smile.
“What do you mean?”
I explain to him what this place is
and then elaborate on his purpose here. “You are here to help yourself so you
can better help others. On this stage, how you view reality will manifest and
your troubles and woes will be laid bare so you can deal with them.”
“You can help me help others
better? You’re an answer to my prayers then.”
“My boy, I answer all prayers. Now,
let me reveal your troubles and view on reality, so you may become the man you
are meant to be.”
The walls, ceiling, and floor
disappear into particulars of light, and each corner of the room contains each
part of the building where Dario works. In each part, he sees a familiar face.
“Mom! Dad!” he says to them.
“They can’t hear you. These are
merely projections of them. I know your parents are great role models in your
life and fulfill the role I’ve given them well. They are servants after my own
heart, serving others while expecting nothing in return as all who work for
others should,” I say.
“My only worry in life is not
living up to their expectations of me.”
Versions of Dario appear in each
room, messing up, and causing people pain in the worst scenarios. The lighting
in the room distorts and changes as Dario’s parents harshly scold him in an
out-of-character way causing the real Dario to become upset.
“Stop doing that!” I say to one of
the lighting technicians far above us.
This technician’s head is the only
thing visible. He looks down at us with his gold and grey eyes. His golden
hair, though long, hardly hides his face and mischievous smile.
“Haha, sorry. I just thought he
should see that,” the technician says dishonestly.
“Watch out for people like him,” I
say to Dario while pointing up at the lights. “Even if they appear to make
sense or be like angels, don’t listen to them if they tell you something that
goes against what is true and right. Now, focus on this reflection of yourself.
What do you see?”
Dario looks at himself in the
mirror on the wall and is astonished. Half of him is his usual green-eyed, brown-haired
self while the other wears a mask and whose body is made of disjointed lines of
color. His mask mirrors Dario’s strong face, has golden eyes, has and a star on
its forehead. As for the rest of his body, it’s all various kinds of colors and
frilly like the outfit of a fat circus clown.
“What is that? Why does part of me
look like that?” Dario asks.
“You are divided between the true
idea of yourself and your view of yourself. One part sees you as you truly are
while the other sees you as nothing more than a strong-faced clown that
pretends to be a great helper,” I say.
“Well…I do act like a clown that’s
only pretending to be a shoulder to lean on sometimes.”
“But that’s only sometimes. You
pick yourself up after you fall every time. Don’t let the failures of your past
define your future.”
“If you answer all prayers, could
you answer one that I’ve been praying for so long and every night?”
“No, I cannot make you perfect. You
will only receive that at the end of your life.”
“Why? I thought I was supposed to
be someone to rely on, not someone who messes up and gets things wrong.”
“Your mistakes keep you humble, relatable,
and human. They push you to become better than you are, keep you praying, and
close to me. That is why you can never be perfect in this life.”
Dario looks around at his view of reality
around him. He focuses on his many faults until waving away at them as if he
could push them away with his hand. He then looks at the times he made people
smile and when he made his parents proud. One moment in particular catches his
attention. It was when his dad accidentally broke two family heirlooms by
knocking them to the ground. After he picked up the pieces and got yelled at, he
began constructing something new piece by piece every night since then.
Dario approached his dad and asked,
“Are you and mom going to be okay?”
“Yes, we are. Why?”
“She asked really talked to you for
days.”
“I don’t blame her. This is a
special family heirloom that’s been passed down for generations, but she just
needs time to get over it and I need to make up for what I did.”
“How can you do that? The two glass
birds are beyond repair.”
“Beyond repair, yes, but not completely
useless. See?”
Dario’s dad reveals to him the finished
results of his month-long project, a glass statue of a family of birds made
from the shattered remains of what he broke.
“Wow! That’s amazing!” Dario said.
“It is. Always remember this statue
when you feel like your life is broken or that you’ve messed up and can never
recover because the worst mistakes can become the start of a beautiful end.”
Once the finishing touches were
done, Dario and his dad presented the statue to his mom who was overjoyed at
the reconstructed statue. Dario pulls his mind out of the memory and smiles.
“Okay. I accept that,” he confidently
says.
“I am overjoyed to hear that!” I
say as I hug Dario then present to him a new image on his stage. “Many of the people
who work here are people like you who want others to accept the truth about
reality and make their lives better as a result. You could be doing what I was
just doing for you, but only if you accept.”
Dario thinks it over for a second
before accepting.
Again, I hug Dario and then say, “Thank
you, so much! I knew you wouldn’t disappoint me.”
“So, when do I start?”
“You can start tomorrow. For now,
rest up and return to your responsibilities at the charity. You have a big day
ahead of you.”
The floor opens up like a door. After
he falls through it, Dario finds himself exiting the room he was once in at the
charity as if everything he went through happened in the blink of an eye. He
looks around in disbelief and starts to wonder if what he just went through was
actually real until he sees a card in his hand that he was unknowingly holding.
It says, “See you again soon!” in colorful letters and has my face on it. Comforted
with proof of past events, Dario smiles, puts the card in his pocket, and runs
off to continue in his duties with a lighter heart and a happy hope for the
next day and what may come next.
.jpg)
Morticia kisses me and then asks for the
hundredth time, “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I am,” I say with the most relaxed
expression on my face that I can muster. I just witnessed the damnation of many
souls including those of my lifelong friends. How can I be anything less than
unnerved or upset? It’s been an hour since it happened, yet it feels like it was
seconds ago.
Eddie has been hungrily watching the news
with a grin on his face and anxious to get back outside to fight.
On the calmer side of things, Angelo is
quietly praying in front of the statue of the Sufferer for those who are alive
today and that no more souls are damned, but I know better than anyone that prayer
won’t be fulfilled completely.
Jessica is telling our allies what happened.
Some are excited while others are nervous as a turning point in our fight could
be happening soon.
Meanwhile, Morticia simply rests her head on my
shoulder while holding my hand as we try to figure out what to do next.
A slight movement in the statue of the
Sufferer catches my eye as I see it come to life. “Today is a day of retribution,”
He says. “This part of the world will be returned to its natural state. Go out
to the tower where the king resides and bring down the traitor who waits at the
very top of it. Then, judgment will come to the rest of the city.”
“You heard what He said. It’s time to move
and take back the world. Do we still have that keycard from the time Adler and
Morticia went to the tower?”
“We do!” Jessica says with the keycard in her
hand.
“Then let’s get out there and take back the
world!”
Everyone, but me cheers and I hide my worried
expression by transforming. No, I shouldn’t be afraid of more people being
damned. It’s not my fault that they are since it’s their choice and I’m doing
what I’m supposed to. Come on, Adler. Stay focused. Your friends and truth and
love itself are depending on you. Once we defeat the traitor, perhaps my family,
including my brother, will turn on the Light and be saved. I haven’t heard the
verdict on their souls yet so there’s still time for them though the state of
the city worries me. The black mist has destroyed much of it, judged many souls,
and is blocking out the sun by forming clouds to reduce the effects of the Light’s
influence on us.
When we come to the tower, we see that it’s
being defended by what looks to be a hundred or so guards. “It looks like they
brought out every guard to try to stop us. That’s good. It’s a fair fight this
way,” Eddie says with a chuckle.
Since the black mist isn’t coming out of my
hands, Angelo and Eddie lead the charge. Because the Light’s influence is
fading, it’s easier for them and Jessica to influence the guards to fight each
other and Morticia to give the finishing blow.
Inside the tower, there seem to be even more
guards that keep pouring into the entranceway to try to stop us. “Perhaps, we
should split up. I’ll keep their attention on us,” Jessica says before turning
to me. “Morticia and you should head to the top in the meantime.”
“Are you sure? Look around you. With the
Sufferer’s influence stronger than ever, death exists without me doing
anything, so there’s a real possibility you could die.”
“We were all meant to eventually die. We may
as well do it honorably for our friends.”
“It is our duty to suffer and die for our
loved ones.”
“Don’t mind what they’re saying. I’ll keep
them as safe as I can. No one is dying without me going down first.”
“Thank you, my friends...” As we enter the
elevator, Morticia and I catch one final glimpse of our friends fighting the
guards who are also fighting among themselves. Their words were full of
bravery, but they didn’t fill me with the hope that I’d see them again. Focus,
focus, focus. I’m about to say something to Morticia until our elevator stops
at the floor we’re meant to get off. It’s filled with guards as I expected, which
forces us to fight through them. Morticia does most of the heavy lifting as I can
only stun the guards by making them feel the pains of the Sufferer, but this
only slows them some of them for so long. By the time we reach the elevator we
need to, we still find ourselves surrounded.
We use the keycard to unlock the elevator,
but once it’s open, Morticia pushes me in. She says, “Go! I’ll keep them busy!”
“Morticia, wait, please!”
Morticia turns the guards in front of her to
ash while the rest behind her lose most of their skin or limbs. Despite what
happened, they still keep coming with their guns firing at us and swords and
shields in hand. “I love you,” Morticia says before kissing me and pressing a
button inside the elevator to make me go to the top floor.
The elevator door in front of me closes soon
after and the elevator quickly ascends to the top floor. I…I can’t keep losing
people today…Please, Sufferer. Please, no one else. As soon as the elevator
reaches the top floor, I shake off my sorrow and quickly start searching around
for the traitor. Perhaps, if I’m quick enough, I can save my friends. The black
mist comes out of my hand and feels as if it is pulling me in the direction I need
to go. Yes! Make this quicker so I can save everyone! The black mist reaches a
dead end at the end of the hallway and reveals a hidden door to a staircase
after eating at the wallpaper. I run up the staircase and enter a luxurious
room that looks like my brother’s with many TVs that show pretty much every
area and important room in the city.
The only man or thing in the room is dressed
in white, has white skin, and has eyes in his mouth and fingertips, but not
where a person should have them. “You must be Mikheil’s brother.”
“And you must be the traitor the Sufferer
told me about. It’s time to face judgment.” The black mist starts to come out
of my hands and make its way towards the traitor.
“I looked like you once, but I abandoned that
horrible path long ago. Now, I suffer so that everyone else in the world can be
eternally happy. Can you say the same about your suffering?”
“There’s more to life than wanting to live
happily.”
“That’s an answer that seems right, but do
you truly believe it? I know there’s part of you that doubts it. You want to be
happy just like everyone else in the world. The Light can make that happen.”
“Shut up! My friends and I didn’t sacrifice
so much and work so hard for nothing!” I focus on the truth of the Sufferer and
this makes the black mist quickly attack the traitor. It acts as a blender,
cutting him up until there’s nothing left by blood. In my head, I hear that his
verdict is damnation. An explosion happens outside soon after, as I see that
the orange, night sun has exploded and turned into what I was told is the moon.
The sky is black and dark except for the moon that shines down the reflected light
of the sun upon the city which is now just as dark as the sky. It’s over…it’s
over! I quickly run down the stairs and head into the elevator.
When I reach the floor Morticia was on…no.
No! She’s dead on the ground with all manner of cuts and gunshots on every part
of her body and face and surrounded by hundreds of dead guards. I hold her
close to me and kiss her forehead. “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry.” The thought then
immediately strikes me to head downstairs to see if the rest of my friends are
okay, so I gently lay down Morticia and go down there.
No…I’m too late to save them as well. Just
like Morticia, they are all dead, riddled with bullets, slashed at with swords,
and surrounded by hundreds of dead guards. Eddie is holding Jessica in his arms,
who is resting her head on his chest. Angelo is standing above them, immovable
like a statue and acting as a shield despite being dead. “I’m sorry, Angelo,
Jessica, Eddie. I’m sorry I couldn’t get back to you in time and that you had
to die so we could succeed.” I want to stay, gather their bodies, and take them
somewhere safe, but I know I can’t while I’m still in danger, so I wander out
of the tower. Just as I expected, I found danger and not the kind I wanted to
find. It’s my brother and the Light who is standing by his side along with our
parents.
“Adler, my brother, what kind of trouble have
you been getting into?”
“You know exactly what kind of trouble I’ve
been getting into. Don’t believe in the Light’s lies, Mikheil. You can resist
him and fight with me for true goodness and love and not this false one that he
offers!”
“Why would I do that when he’s made humanity
happy and prosperous for hundreds of years while your Sufferer only inflicts
pain and death? It’s time to stop this. I’ll forgive you for everything you’ve
done if you join me.”
“Come on, Adler. You know you can trust your
brother. You’re a smart boy as well, in your own way. I didn’t raise a fool who
would fall for some false god who obviously doesn’t have our best interest in
mind.”
“Please, Adler. Look at what you’ve done so
far, the misery you’ve caused, and the people who were killed. Your dad,
brother, and I love you very much and want what’s right for you, so please,
stop.”
“Stop? How can I stop now?”
“You’ll take the place of the man you killed,
suffering for the sake of the city, and the world. You’ll be given every luxury
and pleasure you could ever want in your room and your family can visit you
whenever. I can even find as many friends as you want to replace the ones you
lost.”
“It’s a more than generous deal. Think about
it. You and me, brothers in arms, keeping the world happy and free from all
conflict. What do you say?”
I’m at another point where an impossible
decision must be made. I already know what’s the right choice, but it’s one I don’t
entirely believe in nor the one I want to make. Still, the pain within me pulls
me towards making it, and a part of me knows it would be wrong not to.
Because I’m too weak to do this on my own, I
reach out to the Sufferer in prayer who immediately takes my hand as if His
hand was always reaching out towards me.
“Real truth and true love will prevail today!
Repent and be saved! Refuse and be damned!”
A storm of black mist comes out of my hands,
feet, and side and envelops the city and everyone in it while pronouncing judgment
on all of them. Even while being convinced of the truth in a way tailored to
each of them, few repent. My parents are among the damned for their own
reasons. My father refused because he didn’t want to believe he made his son
the tool of an evil mastermind while my mom didn’t want to believe for the same
reason and because of how fractured our family has become. Just like at the
school, many are damned while few are saved. When the storm clears, I’m surprised
to see that the Light and my brother still remain standing and unaffected by
the black mist.
“What a wonderful display of power! I’m
almost jealous that I can’t look as cool as you do. It’s no wonder why you’re
so loyal to the Sufferer.”
“The power isn’t the reason why I’m loyal. I’m
loyal because it’s the right thing to do. How are you not even affected by what
has just happened when the city is in even further ruin than it was before?”
“The Sufferer destroys and judges those in due
time when He allows it. I thought you’d figure that out by now. Regardless, we
will continue on, as we always have, but will now have you as our enemy until
you eventually break and accept our offer.”
“The offer still stands and will until the
day of our final confrontation. Until then, I do hope you are happy with the
path you have chosen.”
“Wait, how are you not the least upset about
what has happened? Don’t you know our parents are damned for all eternity?”
“They are in the realm of the gods, a place
where every man is a king and woman is a queen of their soul. As far as I know,
they’ll be happy where they are rather than being at the side of the Sufferer
who offers you no say over your life’s choices and punishes you if you pick what
He doesn’t want you to pick. Anyway, I better go now. I don’t want to keep Lyana
and Hazin waiting for me back home for much longer. I’ve been away from them
for too long.”
“Wait! Mikheil! Brother!” The Light snaps his
fingers, and in an instant, my brother and the Light are gone in a flash of
light, leaving me alone as it starts to rain. Is this it? Is this what victory
looks like? I’ve lost everything dear to me, and yet, this is what was supposed
to happen. As I wander the streets on my way back to the alley, those few who
are saved turn away from me in fear.
It isn’t until I get closer to the alley that
I find someone unafraid of me. The man is heavily scarred and seems to be
missing an eye. He carries the statue of the Sufferer with him and hands Him
over to me. “We all know what you did. The Sufferer has told us and told me
that you must chase after your brother, alone but not entirely alone.”
“I…I understand. Thank you.” I take the
statue of the Sufferer and feel more connected to His pain than ever. My mind
recalls His carrying of His cross up a hill while being spit on and whipped.
While making my way out of the city, I fall to the ground and nearly drop the
Sufferer on the ground.
“Rest in that house. You’ve been through a
lot today and need to replenish your strength,” the Sufferer says while
pointing at a damaged house. The house barely has a roof on it and its door is
missing along with most of its walls.
“Lord,
can I ask you a question and can you please answer it?” I ask the Sufferer
while sitting on the dirty, damp floor of the house.
“Yes, what is it, my son?”
“Is…is this how things were meant to turn
out? Are we really going to succeed in taking back the world despite what
happened and the seemingly impossible task you have given me?”
“Yes, to both questions. Do not grieve long
for your friends because they are with me at my side. As I am with you always,
so will they be. Do not grieve over those lost and damned because they have
chosen their fate and chose lies over truth, hatred over love.”
“I know…” I say as I start to cry. “It’s…it’s
just that I lost everything and everyone who I’ve loved all at once…and…I can’t
handle it!”
“Let me bear your pains with you. Rest easy
in My love.” I hug the Sufferer who holds me in return. In His embrace, I feel
a peace I’ve never known before. It doesn’t take away how sad and bitter I feel,
but it’s enough to stop me from wanting to give up. For now, I try to sleep while
knowing that I have a long and hard journey ahead of me.