by David Walker
They approached an enormous, horizontally-aligned torus. Shade only had a clear view of the top half of the tightly-packed torus, which had the appearance of a dome with a massive tree planted at its center. The twinkling, deciduous tree had stars within its leaves. The translucent torus was surrounded by a prismatic halo embedded with ten onyx spheres, spaced evenly apart. Each onyx sphere had three silver rings that circled around them like electron orbitals around a nucleus.
In between the onyx spheres were ten colossal pillars that were taller than the celestial tree that they surrounded. The base of the pillars was composed of iron, which progressed into bronze, silver, and gold as the pillars went upward. The pillars were topped by another prismatic halo with two brilliant lights that moved along it in a clockwise direction. The luminosity of one of the lights fluctuated as it rotated around the halo. A bright, glowing cube was in the center of the upper halo. Once Shade had a full view of the colorful, cylindrical structure, he could see a darker version of it, aligned upside-down, starting at the bottom half of the torus.
“The earth's sky is the first level of heaven. It is underneath the top half of this torus. The earth's underground, which is composed of the four shadow elemental realms, is the first level of hell. It is underneath the bottom half of the torus. Through dynamic realms, these spirit levels affect physical reality,” Uriel said.
“Those are the temporary realms that can merge spiritual and physical reality, right?” Shade asked.
“You could fuse a dynamic realm with the physical world to create a dynamic fusion, yes. However, it would be extremely dangerous as it would leave your physical body vulnerable.”
“Yep. I've experienced that danger first hand,” Shade sighed.
“I see. As heaven proceeds the earth, the spirit world proceeds the physical world. As a result, every moment in physical reality is processed through a dynamic realm. If a dynamic realm terminates with a positive charge, its correlating points in physical space and time will be positively charged. The same concept applies if the dynamic realm were negatively charged,” Uriel explained as they moved inside one of the onyx spheres. Shade saw glowing objects all around which reminded him of the astral plane.
“This is a regional realm. It is associated with a physical region on earth. These realms have a direct influence over the human soul, as the subconscious mind dwells inside of them,” Uriel said.
“This looks like a realm in the astral plane.”
“Yes, the second level of the spirit world is often referred to as the astral plane. This second level is the only place in the spirit world where the alpha and shadow realms are fused together. The landscapes that you see come from the alpha side of the realm, whereas the constructs come from the shadow side of the realm,” Uriel pointed to the silver rings that spun overhead and continued.
“Those are time rings. Past, present, and future time each have a ring. There is a spark that moves along the present time ring called a time pulse. A time pulse fuses together with layers of its regional realm; together, they form dynamic realms. The time pulse will move along its ring until its time cycle completes. Once it does, its charge, be it positive or negative, is moved to the future time ring. The future time ring's previous charge is then moved to the past time ring, while the past time ring's previous charge becomes the new present time ring pulse,” Uriel explained.
“Ah, so a dynamic realm's charge has an impact on future dynamic realms.”
“Exactly,” Uriel said. They moved outside of the regional realm, near the cylindrical structure's lower halo. Shade saw that the top of the halo had vibrant colors and the bottom had dark colors.
“The colors on the top of this halo are alpha soul realms, while the colors on the bottom are shadow soul realms. They are also known as the spirit overworld and underworld, respectively. These are in the third levels of heaven and hell, where the unconscious minds of the children of man are located. These levels are associated with the moral states of the spirit spectrum,” Uriel informed.
“Wait, so the unconscious and subconscious minds dwell in separate levels?” Shade asked.
“Yes.”
“But I thought that the components of the soul were inside of the spirit. How could they be spread across multiple levels?”
“The spirit is ethereal and not restricted to a single location. A spirit can dwell inside multiple levels at the same time while encapsulating the components of the soul. Normally, a person's unconscious mind dwells in the soul realm that is most prevalent in their spirit spectrum, while their conscious mind manages their physical body. When someone is spiritually awakened, it is the opposite: the unconscious mind dwells in their physical body, while their conscious mind manages their spirit body. This is why you're unable to interact with the physical world when you're in the spirit world,” Uriel expounded.
“Ah,” Shade replied as he thought of the sleeping spirit bodies that he had seen at Pirate's Temple and Callisto. He looked into the various underworlds and saw Callisto inside of the orange underworld and Pirate's Temple inside of the green underworld. Wait a minute, Callisto is in hell? They moved upward toward the metal pillars.
“These pillars are the mastery realms in the fourth level of heaven. The pillars below us are the martial realms in the fourth level of hell. These levels are associated with focus, training, and discipline. Combat arts and craftsmanship draw their inspiration from these levels,” Uriel said. They moved toward the twinkling tree.
“This tree houses the observations realms in the fifth level of heaven. The tree below us houses the celestial realms in the fifth level of hell. These levels contain information about the secrets and treasures of life and time,” Uriel said. They moved up toward the cylindrical structure's upper halo.
“This halo is composed of the alpha color realms. The halo at the very bottom is composed of the shadow color realms. These realms are the orbits of the luminaries, or what you know as planets. The luminary that I govern, Jupiter, rotates in the blue orbit. As the luminaries rotate, they continually move up into the alpha and down into the shadow. As such, the luminaries are shared between the forces of heaven and hell. This means that I have no control over the shadow side of Jupiter.”
“Wow...this is nothing like what I've been taught in school,” Shade marveled.
“This fluctuating light is the moon realm, in the sixth level of heaven. The fluctuating darkness that is rotating around the shadow color realms is the abyss, in the sixth level of hell. The moon governs the flow of physical time itself. It is connected to each regional realm through their respective time rings. Time ring cycles are in sync with the revolutions of the moon realm. As for the abyss, it is a realm void of all structure and light, a source of great power and tremendous torment,” Uriel pointed to the other brilliant light and continued.
“This bright light is the alpha sun realm, in the seventh level of heaven. The black flame that is rotating around the shadow color realms is the shadow sun realm, the very core of hell. The positive charge itself is sourced from the alpha sun realm, while the negative charge is sourced from the shadow sun realm,” Uriel pointed to the glowing cube in the center of the halo and continued.
“This cube is Eden, in the eighth level of heaven. The black cube at the bottom is Sheol, in the eighth level of hell. Eden is composed of the four alpha elemental realms. Eden is a place where none of the Laws of Life can be violated, so it is able to sustain immortality itself. In contrast, Sheol is a place where the Laws of Life are void, so it is where eternal death exists. These levels also act as poles: a realm's position relative to Eden and Sheol will determine its coordinates,” Uriel said as he brought Shade back to his heart realm.
“The omega realm is the King of Heaven's personal realm, in the ninth level of heaven. It has no known location, yet is connected to every alpha realm. The omega realm has no correlating shadow realm.”
“Man, this is a lot to absorb,” Shade said.
“Indeed. F
ortunately, this information will be etched on the tablets of your heart so you'll have access to it later.”
“Thank you for the tour, Duke,” Shade said with a formal salute.
“The honor was mine, Matthew. I look forward to watching your destiny unfold,” Uriel said with a short bow. Uriel flew out of Shade's heart realm with a quick swoop of his wings. Shade took time to process everything that he had learned from the knowledgeable, angelic Duke.
* * *
Rachel sat down in an arena seat inside of the mastery realm of the Judges, in the fourth level of heaven. She had learned that every mastery realm was not only associated with a specific combat class but was also associated with a specific combat attribute. The longer she was exposed to the Judge mastery realm, the greater her spirit body's potency attribute became. The potency attribute determined the strength of the elemental energy that she could channel. This attribute was also affected by her personal, emotional passion.
Rachel cheered Caleb and Samson on, as they competed against two other angels in the combat arena. Gideon, seemingly uninterested in the competition, was reading a book, seated to her left. Jacob shouted out strategies to his squadmates, while seated to her right. Angels fought against each other in combat arenas as a form of training.
Samson and Caleb exchanged unarmed attacks with their formidable arena opponents. Samson's attacks were overwhelmingly powerful while Caleb strikes were quick and cunning. They fought side-by-side with disciplined harmony, able to anticipate each other's actions. After an intense contest, Samson and Caleb emerged victoriously. Rachel stood up out of her seat and clapped excitedly for them. Caleb tilted his head and looked at Rachel with a confused look on his face.
“What are those hand movements that you're doing?” Caleb asked.
“What, this? This is clapping,” Rachel answered, slightly amused. In the time that she had spent with her angelic companions, she had learned that many of humanity's common practices and quirks confused them.
“Clapping? What does clapping signify?” Caleb inquired.
“Well...you clap when you're...congratulating someone for a job well done,” Rachel answered.
“Clapping was a gesture of approval that was introduced during the Empire of Great Barilia in the eleventh age,” Gideon answered while keeping his eyes glued to his book. He was very studious and familiar with much of human history.
“The children of man certainly have interesting customs,” Samson bellowed with a hearty laugh.
“You're right! Hey, Rachel, why do the children of man like cats so much?” Caleb asked.
“You know, I'm not really sure,” Rachel laughed.
“Alright, soldiers, it's time for war counsel,” Jacob said. Rachel and her companions entered a rift to their war room. An image of the celestial Curse Cancer was displayed on the star map's holographic display.
“Rachel needs access to the causality celestial ream next, so our target will be Cancer. There are no alignments in play, so Cancer will be isolated during our assault. The only item to note is that Gemini has granted Cancer with celestial empowerment, so she will be much stronger than usual. This should still be an easy one for us. Rachel, are you ready?” Jacob asked.
“Yep,” Rachel answered. They entered a rift to the force celestial realm. Since banishing Aries, they had been able to set up a small base of operations there. Aries was being tormented in the abyss and would not be able to come back to his realm until the start of the next cycle of seasons. Rachel and the Angelic Special Forces were able to approach the causality astral gate without the assistance of their ministering spirit companions.
Cancer, the great crab of the zodiac, emerged out of the astral gate. The giant, hulking crab glowed with the power of the celestial boon that she had received. Cancer was the Curse that inspired the astrological sign that Rachel was born under. Rachel stared at the intimidating, celestial being and thought about the moody, clingy, and over-emotional tendencies in her character. She realized that these negative traits were a part of a curse that she was born under. Cancer was indeed a Curse; a curse that she had been subject to for her entire life.
Anger arose in Rachel's spirit. The Staff of Life glowed with intensity as she channeled energy into it. It transformed into a sword with a diamond blade and gold-rimmed circle above the hilt. The astral gate gems that she had acquired floated inside of the sword's circle. Rachel's angelic companions regarded the sword with awe.
“Jacob, can I take this Curse on by myself?” Rachel asked with eyes ablaze.
“We've been assigned to protect you, Rachel,” Jacob answered.
“If I get into trouble, go ahead and help out.”
“...Alright. Be careful.”
Rachel ran toward Cancer, who was roughly ten times her size. She dodged the clutches of Cancer's powerful claws and dashed to the crab's left flank. Rachel slashed the lower joint of Cancer's left, front leg. She darted toward Cancer's right, front leg and thrust her sword into the same spot. Cancer flailed her claws wildly at Rachel, who glided in and out of their paths.
Rachel systematically dismembered each of Cancer's legs, leaving the furious crab immobilized. She flew high into the air and channeled electrical energy into the Sword of Life. Rachel plunged her sword deep into Cancer's armored back with the impact of a lightning bolt. A mere daughter of man had depleted the spirit vitality of a mighty, celestial Curse. A red garnet materialized inside of her sword's circle. Samson and Caleb clapped enthusiastically for Rachel.
“Well done, Rachel!” Samson exclaimed.
“That was amazing. Our team is unstoppable!” Caleb added.
“You were able to shift the Staff of Life's form. Fascinating,” Gideon added.
“Can I keep it in this form?” Rachel asked.
“Now that you've unlocked its true power, you can mold it into whatever form you like,” Gideon answered.
“Very impressive, Rachel. We're honored to be able to fight alongside such a powerful warrior,” Jacob said with a bow of respect.
“Thank you,” Rachel replied with a smile. Her heart bubbled with excitement at the thought of witnessing the fourth age of history.
* * *
Rachel and Ramael entered the observation realm of causality. Lady Wisdom's light sparked the dawn of the fourth age. The Elder of Causality stood up from his throne and read from a piece of parchment in his hands.
“The formation of the luminaries has been decreed,” the Elder of Causality pronounced.
The Princes of Life poured their hearts into the luminaries that they crafted. Giant spheres of energy swirled around in their hands, like soft clay spinning on a potter's wheel. Prince Jaoel wanted to provide light and warmth to the land that he had formed on the earth, so he created the sun. Prince Metatron was so intrigued by the sun, that he created the moon, a luminary that periodically absorbed its light.
Prince Sathar crafted Mercury, the smallest luminary, which reflected his humble character. Prince Gabriel crafted Venus, the brightest luminary, which reflected his brilliance. Prince Michael crafted Mars, the most powerful luminary, which reflected his might. Prince Baal crafted Jupiter, the largest luminary, which reflected his confidence. Prince Mastema crafted Saturn, the ringed luminary, which reflected his unique personality.
“Let the Luminary Dukes come forth,” the Judge of Heaven loudly declared.
The Inner Luminary Dukes were birthed from the elements of life. Phanuel was named Mercury's Duke of Harmony. Suriel was named Venus's Duke of Balance. Raguel was named Mars's Duke of Accountability. Uriel was named Jupiter's Duke of Diversity. Raphael was named Saturn's Duke of Administration.
The Outer Luminary Dukes were also birthed from the elements of life. Mammon was named Mercury's Duke of Resource. Jezebel was named Venus's Duchess of Energy. Abbadon was named Mars' Duke of Force. Pythius was named Jupiter's Duke of Knowledge. Beelzebul was named Saturn's Duke of Growth. The Outer Luminary Dukes crafted the luminary orbits, while the Inner Lumina
ry Dukes pushed the luminaries into motion inside of their orbits.
“The foundational structure of life is set in place. A governing body must be established. The aristocracy is henceforth known as the Council of Heaven. The Elders are henceforth known as the Parliament of Heaven. Prince Sathar is henceforth known as the King of Heaven,” the Judge of Heaven loudly declared.
King Sathar was given a new, unknown name, composed of undecipherable letters. His new name was etched into his forehead. The auras of the Judge and King of heaven merged together and formed the first spirit realm: the holy realm. The Elder of Morality stood up from his throne and read from a piece of parchment in his hands.
“The Parliament of Heaven has drafted the Laws of Life,” the Elder of Morality pronounced.
The Elder of Morality handed the King of Heaven a scroll containing the twenty-four Laws of Life. The King of Heaven carefully read through the precious scroll. After a thorough review, the King of Heaven ratified the Laws of Life with his signature. In an instant, the King of Heaven crafted the auxiliary luminaries, including: Pluto, Uranus, and Neptune. The Judge of Heaven displayed the purpose of life inside of a mystery, using the luminaries.
Prince Gabriel threw a grand banquet for the King of Heaven to celebrate his appointment as king. Everyone in the Council of Heaven attended the party, however, there were mixed feeling about the king's appointment. Prince Mastema wondered why he was not granted the title of king since he was the eldest Prince of Life. Despite his feelings, Prince Mastema was the life of the party. Some of the council members offered the King of Heaven gifts, while others offered flattery. They each wondered what he would do with his kingship. The King of Heaven stood up from the large dinner table and presented a toast.