He ascended into the air and, as he did so, he spotted a group of four spirits. The four consisted of Ahab, who loved chemistry and was brilliant in that field, but not to the exclusion of kindness, charity and many other virtues. Also present was Annetta, who loved Ahab and was unswervingly faithful to her parents. Angela was always more concerned for others than she was for herself. Jessica was highly intelligent and would always use this for good.
Michael knew and loved each of them.
He rose higher and observed a group of spirits moving into a science lesson. He saw Caleb among them and noted his dimmer countenance, and a look of strain on his face, that was not consistent with the peace that pervaded the remainder of the class. He worried for him, and for Tara, and wondered what he could do to assist. He was tempted to confront Caleb but was divided as to whether doing so would help. He had already decided that it would not be appropriate to approach Tara directly.
In flight he passed Zachoneous, who was going to teach a lesson of his own. They greeted each other in a manner reserved for friendships of the purest kind, before parting to complete their respective service to others. As he flew he thought upon the state of the Kingdom. The growing darkness and gloom in the outer regions concerned him more than his cheerful demeanour revealed to those who knew him.
His heart ached as he wondered why any spirit would oppose his parents. Even if they didn’t fully comprehend the plan, he marvelled that they wouldn’t simply trust in the architects of the plan. He wondered who could be at the heart of this evil and wished that he knew so that he could better combat it.
He arrived at his class and noted that the numbers had dwindled further. When he commenced teaching that class about five months prior there had been approximately four thousand students. Today there would have been lucky to be three thousand. He wondered what the class would look like in another few months, but was comforted that a healthy proportion of those who remained seemed to be progressing well.
Michael had a complete absence of conceit within his soul and he would have been entirely satisfied if each of the one thousand absentees was studying something else that would benefit them on earth. Unfortunately, he was not convinced that this was the case. There was no doubt that this region had grown dimmer over the period, and there was more to concern Michael with each visit.
Within the class there was good to be found. Angie tried hard and had progressed well. Rekin struggled to understand, but not for want of trying. Oliver gave one hundred per cent every lesson. Cynthia had joined quite recently and appeared to really enjoy the class. Connor never missed a lesson and picked things up really quickly, he may soon need to move classes to further his progression as he was moving ahead of his class mates. Michael’s heart swelled with love for each of these spirits.
At the back of the class there were others whose diligence was not as evident. Bernadette and Casey often giggled and spoke. Dianne sat next to them and generally tried to appear as though she were listening, today though she was even less convincing than usual. David sat three rows in front of them and was trying to get the attention of Frederick in the row behind. These spirits sometimes disappointed him, but Michael still loved them and hoped that they were gaining something from the class.
He taught for six hours with the kind of patience and kindness that endeared him to all but the least thankful of those that he taught. When class ended Rekin desired some additional assistance, so for the next hour Michael obliged.
After leaving the class he walked for a while in preference to flying, taking some time to ponder the spread of darkness within the Kingdom. The fact that the region itself appeared to be a little dimmer at every visit was troubling, but of far greater concern was the number of spirits who now had a darker countenance. As he walked he heard two spirits arguing, something that he would never have heard in these parts just a year before. He did not interject as the altercation did not appear to warrant it. It was simply two spirits acting as they shouldn’t.
He wandered a little further and heard three spirits speaking disrespectfully about a fourth spirit who was clearly not in their presence. Michael detested this and couldn’t help but ask the small gathering why they didn’t go and tell the absent spirit their concerns directly. The trio looked ashamed and did not reply.
He wondered again who it was that had started all of this ill will. He was sure that there was a mastermind, and from what his parents had said it wasn’t Anas. There was no doubt that Anas was a key conspirator but there were obviously others involved.
He found no answers to his questions, and he longed for home, so he rose in flight. He noted as he flew, that there were still plenty of areas of light in that portion of the Kingdom and in this he rejoiced.
Shortly into his flight, the patches of darkness, and the spirits with darkened countenances, became increasingly difficult to find. There were still so many spirits making good choices and preparing well for life on earth.
At the conclusion of his journey, he landed immediately in front of the abode of his mother and father. As he did so he thought about his parents, but regrettably no account of his thoughts can be rendered. The purest language to be found on earth is not pure enough to do justice to the reverence that he felt.
Upon his return he longed to find Rachel, but Nathan needed some assistance and Michael obliged. After helping him he resumed his search and, seeing his love at a distance, his heart leapt. He and Rachel spent the remainder of the day together and they could not have asked for any more than each other’s company. Rachel’s happiness and comfort was his greatest joy.
48 pain
A few days hence, a large gathering of tier three students made their way into one of the few amphitheatres within the Kingdom that was large enough to accommodate them all. It was a solemn structure located close to the mastermind’s lair. Supporting the corners of the structure were four immense trees. Such great trees would ordinarily house many different varieties of birds and other animal life, but sadly each was devoid of such creatures. Not a soul that entered the structure that day noticed this phenomenon, and had they done so they would not have cared. Appreciating the beauty of nature requires a certain inner beauty that was not present amongst that rabble.
Each of the four trees felt the loss intently though, and they mourned at the weight of not carrying the wildlife that was part of the purpose of their creation. The tree on the south side of the structure was a great oak, and the bondage of her current predicament was almost more than she could bear. Until very recently she had rejoiced in every new day. So too had each of the birds, insects and small animals that had dwelt in her branches and her trunk, but something had changed. She knew precisely what had caused this change because she had witnessed all of it.
It was only three months since the said amphitheatre had started to be used for rebel gatherings, but the effect of those three months had been dramatic upon the area in general, and most particularly upon the structure itself. The first time Father and Mother had been cursed within those four walls the birds had taken flight and did not return. After the second meeting the koalas, squirrels and chipmunks all departed. The third meeting was too much for the snakes and lizards. They didn’t wait for the conclusion of the meeting before commencing their move north. The insects tried, but could not endure beyond the fourth meeting. With regret, they left the oak in search of a brighter habitation where their inner being would not be troubled by the sound of their creators being cursed.
Alas, the poor oak lost all of her friends. Had she been able she would have uprooted herself during the first meeting and relocated with all of her creatures at the far other end of the Kingdom. Sadly though, such was not her lot and she had no choice but to remain and endure that which went on within the building. If she had eyes, in her desperation she would even have gazed longingly at the tree located on the north side of the structure, thinking that there must at least be some relief being just that little bit closer to the light side of the Kingdom. Mortalit
y would be far preferable to this time for the hapless oak, and the three other trees that suffered the same plight.
49 ethan
Within that gloomy structure was gathered the vile and the stupid. It was the fifth such gathering for this particular group and the excitement was clearly visible. The cause of this excitement was the fact that they would hear from their esteemed leader, Lucifer, for only the second time.
Ethan was one of the spirits in that vast company and, as he walked in with his comrades, he was feeling a little overwhelmed. When he tried to sit, a spirit bellowed.
‘Hey, that’s my seat, get out of it!’
Not being as aggressive as most within that room, Ethan complied, moving a couple of seats further along the same row, so as to avoid sitting next to the aggressive spirit who had just yelled at him. Again though, he met with disapproval.
‘Don’t even think about sitting there you idiot!’ screeched another spirit from twenty yards away.
Ethan later realised that the second spirit was an associate of the first. Again he complied, and this time he moved several rows back and waited until every other spirit was seated before he dared to sit down. Unbeknown to him he had a couple of admirers, the spectacle having been observed by both General Anas and General Silick. This scene had only confirmed what they had already deduced about him.
Having sat, Ethan tried to be infected by the excitement in the room but was having some difficulty. As he struggled after this fashion, the huge screens at the front of the amphitheatre illuminated and images took shape, just as they had done at the commencement of each of the four previous meetings. Ethan was unsurprised by the foul content that flashed on and off the screens, as he had now become acclimatised to the very worst that earth could offer. The audio accompanying the visual display complemented it perfectly, but again it was uninspiring to Ethan.
The seating within the amphitheatre surrounded the front stage on three sides, and screens were placed at various angles to enable all to see them clearly. Ethan was on the left side, which afforded him the opportunity to study the facial expressions of some of the other members of his group who were opposite him and also to his right.
Each appeared to be completely engrossed in the blood and gore that littered the screen and he wondered whether he should be more interested, and just a little more moved. Certainly some looked more exhilarated than others, but each of them looked far more interested than he felt.
After numerous scenes of senseless murder and torture, the audience was treated to many and varied forms of sexual misconduct. Parts of this Ethan found a little more arousing but still, on this particular day, his heart was not in it. Indeed, he was feeling more than a little conflicted.
Throughout his progression through tiers one, two and three he had been very interested in the new plan but the aggression in some of his fellow students had, just recently, caused him to question where all of this was going. This was not the main cause of his doubts, however. He would have been able to suppress these concerns by focusing on the glorious outcome that was bound to eventuate, following adoption of the alternate plan. No, it was not really this that was troubling him. Rather, there was a greater issue that was magnifying the other doubts that he had. This particular issue, the matter entirely responsible for his lack of excitement and enthusiasm, related specifically to a personal interaction that he had had with the esteemed leader himself.
During the last meeting, Ethan had been as excited as each of his fellow ‘students’ to be addressed by Lucifer for the very first time. Due to his slothful nature and the littleness of his soul, he had actually found Lucifer’s address inspiring. Throughout his induction he had heard so many glowing words about his noble leader that he, like his comrades, was completely in awe of him. Indeed, such had been the build-up to his introduction that Ethan had expected to hear from a Godlike character.
Amazingly, due to complete blindness and stupidity, he and all of the other numbskulls in his group were not in the least bit disappointed with the dud that they were presented with. Each and every fool came away from that fourth tier three meeting thoroughly convinced that they had somehow heard the equivalent of the word of God. What had shaken Ethan’s ‘faith’ however, had occurred after that fourth meeting.
It had happened just two days prior, as Ethan had wandered from ‘nothing of use’ to ‘nowhere in particular’, as was his habit. Ironically, as he walked, he was actually using his marble matter for a change, but unfortunately that usage was merely to reflect upon the greatness of the words that he had heard just two days prior. To his delight and surprise, whilst in this daydream, he all but bumped into his idol in the very flesh, so to speak.
This apparent good fortune soon turned ugly however, as Lucifer dressed him down aggressively with a barrage of insults and obscenities, all of which were designed to let him know that he was a completely worthless spirit and that nothing he was doing, or had ever done, was of any use whatsoever. Indeed, Ethan had been the unlucky student who had come into contact with Lucifer while he was suffering the effects of a misery hangover and was looking for a victim upon whom to unload his venom.
As Ethan sat in this vast amphitheatre, observing the excitement of his brothers and sisters, this recent event was hindering his desire to join the fervour. Not only this, but it was causing him to question whether he ever should have become involved with this movement in the first place.
The images and accompanying audio had now ceased, and Ethan’s comrades became restless as they were purposely kept waiting in order to build their level of anticipation. The arguments and contention that erupted during this brief break in the program were interrupted by tumultuous applause when Ham entered to incite the crowd to a round of criticism of their parents’ plan.
Following this ‘blessed’ event, Troy entered and the excitement built. Troy and Ham joined forces to take aim at their parents with a barrage of accusations and insults, and then invited their students to do the same. This orgy of falsehoods took some time. It is amazing the extent to which even a perfect character can be attacked, if there is enough bitterness and deceit in the accusers.
Next Jezebel entered to great acclamation, particularly from the female contingent which was disappointingly strong. Her principal purpose was to slander Father and Mother and to build up Lucifer. She did it masterfully. At the conclusion of her performance there was an intentional pause before Lucifer entered. All was quiet initially, but the crowd grew impatient once again and began to chant.
‘Lucifer, Lucifer, Lucifer, Lucifer, Lucifer…..’
Ethan joined the chant, but his heart wasn’t in it.
Backstage the devil rejoiced. Could anything be better? He thought to enter but stopped himself. Why shouldn’t he enjoy this moment just a little longer?
After another minute, the crowd had just about reached fever pitch so he entered.
The noise that emanated from the crowd upon his entry could have powered a city, and it was minutes before he was able to speak. As best he could, he maintained a demeanour of humility and deference throughout this time.
Eventually, the noise subsided and Lucifer looked to commence his speech.
It was entirely intentional that Troy, Ham and Jezebel had launched into vile attacks on Father and Mother. That way when Lucifer took his turn to speak he would appear kindly, forgiving and generous in comparison.
He commenced:
‘My noble and wonderful spirits, you are a credit to me and to our counsellors. That we should be so fortunate as to find such as you within the bounds of the Kingdom does not cease to amaze me.
‘From backstage I have heard the conviction of your words against the misguided plan that has been conceived by our erroneous parents. I have heard your complaints against them. I have sympathised with you concerning the opportunities that they have failed to provide you with, and the accolades that you have been denied.
‘I empathise with you. So much credit has been given to
some of your brothers and sisters, when they are entirely undeserving of it.
‘I marvel at your wisdom, I applaud your determination, I cheer your foresight, I rejoice in your pure intentions.
‘I assure you, my beloved brothers and sisters, that your hour draws nigh. Before long, we will be afforded the opportunity of voting for the original plan and, of course, we shall vote against it. We cannot compromise our integrity and vote for a plan that is flawed in so many ways.
‘Imminently my friends, I will reveal our plan. It is a plan that addresses the flaws in the original proposal, one that will guarantee our safe passage from earth back to the Kingdom.’
At this revelation the amphitheatre exploded into shouts of acclamation and general rejoicing.
Again, Lucifer was forced to display humility, poise and a gentle nature. It was difficult but he did a reasonable enough job. Certainly he did enough to convince all but his counsellors, who knew something of his true nature, and the one other attendee who had also seen something of his other side.
Once the ruckus had died down he continued. ‘This is not all, my wise counterparts, it will also be a plan that rewards the faithful.’
The outburst caused by this final revelation dwarfed all that had come before it. Lucifer grew impatient towards the end but was able to disguise this ably. He had now been through this same performance a number of times. Although he loved the reverence he received, his disintegrating nature was not such as allowed him to suffer fools for any great length of time.
Eventually silence returned, and he continued to provide slim details of a plan that was yet to be finalised. With each new revelation he was forced to pause until each of the fools that he was enlightening had calmed down.
At the end of his speech, he exited to thunderous applause, and shouts of acclamation, which he did enjoy and waited backstage to fully savour.
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