GOD

    Ambrosia''s description of my majesty or the scene she saw will go undescribed, except for the rudimentary facts of the encounter.

    Long ago, the Jews refused to make idols of me. This is because like those following the Tao, they understood that to delve too deeply into description of ultimate things is to fundamentally rob it of its truest self. In fact, too much explanation can make the writer long-winded or confused. Yet just as Lao Tzu eventually had to share his knowledge, limited description was still necessary.

    As before, she saw a floating triangle shape in midair. Just as the Star of David had to suffice for the Jews, symbols are an effective tool for seeing what is beyond comprehension. The room wasn''t the same white empty room as before but rather they had stepped into a tent foolishly expecting the inside of a tent, and instead they encountered a cliffside with me floating over it (straight out of a 1992 puzzle-adventure game artwork on page 4 of the manual). But this is only a comparison, the same way as a scene of a man carrying a woman is only an imitation of Pietà by Michelangelo.

    Nearby were my angels, Michael, Gabriel, Cassiel, Estheriel, Raphael, and Uriel. Most of these were blond or white haired, with the exception of Uriel, who was also the only purebred Seraphim left in attendance among my archangels. Most of them were also extremely pretty, since it calmed people they had to speak with.

    There''s Uriel, an archangel with black wings. Of all archangels in my tent, Uriel is the only Seraphim left who was a child of two other Seraphim. His wings are typically darker than most archangels, and his jobs are many and varied. Usually, though he acts as a sort of watchman against misfortune. Uriel was archangel most known for the big ticket stuff, he was present during a number of floods, rises and falls of major empires, cosmic events, and so on. He refused to talk to the group. It wasn''t, as you might imagine, a matter of him feeling too important for little people like humans. Nor was it shyness. When Uriel talked, he generally talked about his work, which he loved. There was simply no frame of reference that those trying to talk to him would understand, so he kept silent. Ultimately, they gave up in frustration.

    Gabriel was the opposite extreme, telling them about his mission as a key messenger. Some of these messages were contradictory. Technically, all angels deliver messages, as the word angel literally means “message.” Satan''s role is also as a messenger called the Accuser. His job is to bring the message that humans are horrible people and deserve to die. I know, it''s a shitty message. But it helps motivate people. If Michael is the military commander of archangels, Gabriel is like the postmaster general in a post office, organizing messages to be delivered (this included not-so-good messages such as Justin Bieber memes). He was at his best when world-changing events are about to happen. These may not always seem to be in humanity''s best interest, but typically these messages serve a larger historical plan. Some of Gabriel''s messages were to warn of Uriel''s activities. A seven-year famine in Egypt, for instance, would have been deadly if people didn''t get advanced warning about it.

    Then there''s Raphael. This archangel is for healing, and for protection. Raphael had returned recently, and was eyeing Azrael''s sword Raphael, telling her to be careful with it, since it was one of a kind. Not that much of anything could actually hurt the sword, but such swords were possible to abuse by worthless owners. I didn''t suspect her as one, however. Raphael''s sword had been used to banish Adam and Eve from Eden.

    Cassiel was the archangel of tears. Yes, I understand that this sounds vaguely like Aquaman''s powers, that is to say incredibly lame, but actually he had an important duty. Cassiel mitigates human suffering. Because among archangels he was the only one that could feel as strongly as humans, he was chosen to govern the process of rebirth. He also brought rain. But this wasn''t all. Cassiel had a gift from Yomi, the Reaper of Death, known as the Sword of Sorrow. This long katana had an even longer chain attached to the handle with a metallic broken heart at the end. The sword had several powers, including the ability to raise the dead.

    Estheriel was the most troublesome among the archangels in my tent. Like Lucifer, he and I had a number of disagreements; however, he wasn''t jealous of humans. Rather, he was too kind and far too interested in justice. He didn''t seem to understand why human suffering had to exist. I could tell eventually that I was going to have a problem with him. Our visitors listened to him rant about me for a little while. Eventually though, they moved on and they saw Michael blocking the path.

    ELIAS

    This situation felt vaguely familiar.

    AMBROSIA

    Some big oaf was blocking my path. I mean, he wasn''t actually that big, he was actually kinda frail looking, but anyway! He had long curly light blond hair, he was willowy like a woman, and had a toga that reached to about knee length. In his hand was a cruciform sword, with a very wide guard, and a blade long enough to put a hole in me and three people behind me. He didn''t look very menacing, but you know, I''d seen all the strange things these guys could do, and frankly it scared me.

    I tried to ask him politely to pass. “Greetings,” he said, in a soft high voice, “I am Michael, Guardian of the Trinity, Preserver of the Way of Christianity, and Oracle of Light. How can I help?” I may have kinda sorta missed the point of what he just said, as I asked him, “Wait you''re a Christian? I thought they died off when Belial last came.” He shook his head, as if I''d said something foolish, “Well, that''s not entirely true. The town of Kushiyama has managed to revive it on a small scale, with help from me. Jesus was a good influence on it too.” Oh right, yeah, we even met the guy. “But besides, as near to God as we are now, nobody can really deny the truth of any religion. Speaking of which,

    are you at all religious?” he asked me point-blank.

    I can''t say that I''m religious, but I''m not an atheist either. I told him, “Umm, yea, I guess so.” He turned kinda stern there, “I don''t think ''sort of'' is quite good enough for my liking. How about this, you can surrender yourself to God, or burn in eternal torment for being weak-faithed.” This hand of his glowed with an awesome power. I was kinda wanting to, ever so slowly, run like my life depended on it, because I wasn''t sure it didn''t. Aqorm stated the obvious, “Ummm, Ambrosia, this guy is kind of intense.” We motioned him to take this outside somewhere, as we didn''t want innocent angels involved. And God said, let there be a battleground with which to settle things. And it was so. We appeared outside in a fluffy white cloudy platform suitable for fighting.

    Zoe and Aqorm tried to attack him. But their weapons kinda bounced off his skin, as though there were a thin coating around his body. He only seriously reacted to Nevras, Azrael, and me because most of the others had largely mundane weapons. Aqorm tried to use geomancy, but something felt weird. She tried again. Michael laughed, “It''s called geomancy for a reason. Your power uses ley lines drawn mainly from the ground below you. But Heaven has no soil, no ley lines, until you can draw energy from the air itself, you shall never attack me.” Aqorm sulked, feeling impotent. Zoe was next, calling out elemental spells and directing it at him. “Fire! Ice! Thunder!” she called in rapid succession, after Michael dodged some of these. It is said that angels fly as gracefully as doves, but honestly doves fly kinda goofy. From what I saw later, the way an angel flies is more like an eagle, able to quickly shift from upright flight to a dive, and powerful enough to grab and toss stuff in midair. But his regular movement was actually more impressive. If it were to be compared to a bird, it was more like a hummingbird, as Michael pivoted and dodged all three spells at such speed that he seemed to be vibrating on a higher wavelength from everything else. With a shift of his elbow, Michael pressed down hard with his wings generating lift enough to get above the rest of us. He looked prepared to dive at us, drawing his sword. But he didn''t get a chance to finish. S~ea??h the novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    “Gravity!” Azrael called. But this too missed. As large as Azrael''s spell was, Michael was simply moving too fast. That wasn''t what took him down. Vines snaked up from every corner, grasping and pulling him down. He managed to dodge quite a few of these, but then one caught his arm, and then his other arm, and then finally his legs. “H-how?” he asked Aqorm, “how did you...?” Aqorm shook her head, “Don''t underestimate me. I know all about ley lines. It''s a weakness that elves have. But we have ways around it. For instance, if I''m really desperate, I can draw geomancy from my own life energy. It''ll probably kill me, but it depends how desperate I am. And more to the point... did you know that the Earth doesn''t just have ley lines below it? It also has a magnetic field above it. But I''ve never been high enough to use this. Until now.” Zoe tried to follow up with an Ice spell, but Michael raised one hand and said, “Orbiting Defender - Radius: 5 ft.”

    This was unlike other spells that I saw before. I never saw any runes. Instead, a ball of light simply appeared around Michael and started orbiting around him. The ball sort of whacked the incoming spell, pushing it aside before reaching him. This might not protect against radius effects, but this was enough to keep him safe from smaller-scale spells.

    Nevras and Azrael tried to attack this guy, but despite the vines constraining him, he still proved to be very slippery, ducking at just the right moment for them to almost attack each other. As it was, they tripped over his body and rolled, until Nevras wound up in a heap under Azrael. Hey! You shameless hussy, get off my man!

    NEVRAS

    Azrael had a pretty soft body, I can see why those two are always cuddling. But she''s not really my type, and besides which I don''t really know her. I dodged a stray lightning bolt that God had apparently lost control of.

    After picking ourselves up, we tried again, this time being careful to stay on the same side or fight back to back. Michael was unbelievably fast, almost like we were moving in slow motion. The best approach was ironically not to try to outrun him, since as we had just found out we had no way of coordinating with each other on the split second, but to be slow and cautious with everything but defense. Slow and steady, huh? I suddenly realized that the blacksmith who fought with me was actually holding back. This was a real test of strength and skill, and so far we were failing. “Everyone, duck for cover,” I called out. Magic tended to be mostly fixed in the way it worked. A Fire spell could only be narrowed and widened by someone extremely skillful and above all strong-willed. On the other hand, techniques were basically dictates by speed and strength, and could be different from person to person. It was not only possible, but relatively easy to adjust my techniques. For instance, Jump Thrust became Standing Jump Thrust, and Void Slice could also be Void Spin. Right now, I was trying out Whirling Jump Thrust, doing a midair triple axel while spinning my sword, making a whirlwind attack to knock him out of the sky. As it turned out, it did connect, but I''m pretty sure I will never try that again, after flopping on the ground hard on by buttocks. It also destroyed all of those vines earlier. He was knocked on the ground, but quickly dusted himself off and charged forward, sending both of us flying with the flat of his sword.

    Ambrosia tried to rush him with her First Iron dagger, but he twisted his sword around and disarmed her, causing the knife to fall to the cloudy ground. She tried to pick it up, but he was too fast to allow her that opportunity, rushing forward with his sword. It was then that I saw the differences in the way they moved. I had always thought that Ambrosia had become faster or more graceful following her training under Lao Tzu but now I understood. In the face of someone actually reacting faster, she was close to normal speed, she was simply moving in the flow of the moment using her sense of prophecy to indirectly anticipate events. Michael was moving so fast that his actions were nearly a blur, yet Ambrosia with simple but precise sidesteps, pivots, and even what seemed to be accidental tumbles, somehow danced her way out of every strike from Michael. Michael swung his sword down, and Ambrosia dodged left. Michael slashed across to cut her torso, and Ambrosia ducked just then to pick up her knife. Michael said the words, “Hard Laser - Cone: 1 ft to 30 ft” and suddenly a laser blast blasted from his index and middle finger gradually widening until most of us had to run out of the way from an area about the size of a shed. Ambrosia was fine however, she had somehow slid under his entire attack, doing a split in the process. “Nice try, however...” Michael suddenly stabbed her point-blank, running her through with his sword. As her last moments, I saw her arms waving about apparently frantically. “Ambrosia! No!!!” I heard myself scream as I saw him pulling the blade out of her.

    JESUS

    God, in his role as narrator, asked me to insert this passage here simply to provide suspense. As much as it pains me to do so sometimes, I have always tried to obey my Father''s commands. And so, I have decided to prove you readers with a slice-of-life segment while you worry about Ambrosia''s fate. And yes, my Father could simply Reset time, but if this were done too often, other humans might start to become reckless. Maybe this time he didn''t do it?

    In this world, my role is often greatly misunderstood. You see, many people think of me as a single historical figure who died once for all, and that''s all there is to the story. But they forget all of those passages about how I''d often appear in the form of “the least of these” as random people who needed help, not to mention where it said that I was “in the beginning with God.” To say nothing of all the mentions about how the disciples “did not recognize” me because I was different after the resurrection. The truth is, I had long since come again with the Resurrection, but the public didn''t really get this, until the so-called “Second Coming.” Before the Earth was created anew, I often appeared under different forms before and after my historical life and had a host of different names. Sometimes, I was just another mortal, sometimes I appeared as a teacher, and sometimes I was someone beyond the limits of humans.

    There were far less problems to this New Earth, yet a fact of life is that there will always be a few in pathetic circumstances, because they didn''t understand how to receive blessings. That is to say, atheists had cool antimagic powers but had the unfortunate side-effect of a life that had no miracles to speak of. To them, Earth had not really changed, and was as depressing as the old one. In fact, their brains filtered out all thaumaturgy, explaining away such things as luck or privilege.

    It''s not that Father was judging them or anything. They were getting in their own way. By rejecting the world where thaumaturgy worked and miracles happened for those with a strong desire, they could only see the absence of such things, and lived in a world where everyone else seemed to have what they needed. They on the other hand could only see the injustice of how they were left out of such a place, since their unbelief warded off any ability to ask for good events.

    And so it was, that the average healer or priest couldn''t help them, and they were sick or poor or rejected wretches that could only be helped by me. Sometimes I appeared as an anonymous benefactor dressed in a cloak, sometimes I appeared as their peers in order to be a true friend to them. And sometimes, I was just a random person who showed up.

    I''m not constantly saving the world. I''m active in festivals, concerts, and banquets as the guests or the entertainment, or sometimes the waiters. This time, there was an Annual Pork Roast in Ghobli. Ghobli had set up stalls with pork kebabs, pork barbecue, pig-iron forged into little pig necklaces and earrings, pork-fried rice, and a large pot of some sort of stew. There was singing and dance, and I appeared this day as a blond woman with long curls. I sang some country/rock love songs.

    At one point during the festival, a group of about ten people got on the roof and threatened to jump. In the confusion of the crowd, I was able to disappear without anyone noticing, and I managed to get to the ledge where they were. Despite what you see in movies, it is harder to talk people out of suicide than you might think. Yes, there is an element of extreme sadness to it, but what surprises most people is that there are also huge amounts of unfocused anger. The suicidal person sometimes wants to hurt those around them, seeing them to blame for their suffering. Between sadness, anger, and other things, it is actually difficult to gauge what words I would need to say to resolve this situation. I could tell them everything about themselves, and show them why their life was so much more valuable than they thought. I could guilt-trip them about how the crowd in turn would be traumatized and probably follow them to some degree, and to think about what they were doing. Though, usually that one didn''t work so well. And I was done trying to make followers, since right now I was just a singer. And so, I sang Jumper by Third Eye Blind. They kinda hated it, and all of them jumped in front of me.

    Even I get depressed sometimes, and have to be cheered up. This was one of these times. But I knew better than to hurt others, so I dealt with it privately later. I couldn''t prevent the tragedy, I could only deal with the aftermath now. But since I was supposed to be in character, I asked the crowd to go back to the festival. I got help from the medics by whispering who I really was, and they agreed to carry the stretcher to somewhere private. But first, a lot of people had been impacted by this. I spent the next hour or two singing soothing music to try to relieve the trauma of what happened from their minds. Finally, I headed over to the place that these healers had mentioned.

    These jumpers were dead, all right. They had been since they hit the ground. Buildings weren''t terribly tall these days, but you didn''t need that much height to shatter your spine or split open your head. I sighed, then I began my work. “Katayla, arise and walk. Samantha, you too, come on you lazy bum. Terrianne, I need you up too.” I called all ten of them in turn by name, they opened their eyes and looked at me, a musician who had somehow saved them from death. They still had many of their wounds, but bringing them back from death did make these heal just enough for their body to function.

    Some were grumpy because they didn''t want to be brought back. Some refused to believe anything had happened and just saw themselves as having a sprain, limping off despite telling them that in fact they had been dead. Still others got angry with me when I tried to tell them about loved ones missing them, and others figured out who I was but believed that I wanted them to become Christian or something. Actually, I would have been happy if they just got their lives on track, and stopped hurting themselves.

    Of the ten, only one seemed changed by this experience. A girl named Taylor with brownish hair and blond highlights, wearing a gray top, black pants, and some fuzzy boots had looked back at where she jumped, and realized how lucky she was to be alive. She saw the experience as a new lease on life, and decided to meet more people and live with more joy. She kinda hugged me and also asked for my number, so I guess I was on a date for next week. She apparently knew who I was too, because she said, “Come as a boy next time and I''ll know it''s you, because you''re wearing something blue.” I think she used to be a poet before she went all suicidal.

    MICHAEL

    but I have made only two rules of worship: You love me with your whole heart, and you love others as you love yourself. The Ten Commandments are based on these two, as I Am Love. All these laws concern treating others with love. It is true that I said Jesus is the Way to salvation, but you must understand, your God is One. And I Am Love. All who put Love before other petty concerns, and strive to live the religion as an expression of that Love, follow Jesus and follow me, despite their dogma.

    He continued, That said, I can speak directly to humanity without need of intervention. I am omnipotent. Jesus is an offering for your sins, not a requirement to see me. In fact, he sundered the Temple curtain so now there is no more division between God and humanity. I favor interacting with mankind through nature''s weather, and through the advice of people. After all, I could use Jesus, but those who say Jesus spoke to them are met with distrust.There are many that claim to be paths to God, but there is only one Way to God. Regardless of religion, only by building a Personal Relationship with me can one connect to me, not by following laws. This is what I mean when I say Jesus is the only way to God.

    She asked other questions, “I have another question. Why does bad stuff happen to good people in this world?” This time God sighed. He told her, It is for the same reason as evil exists in this world. Aside from the Tao being part of my very fabric, evil exists because it is part of the nature of free will. Even I cannot interfere. Ambrosia looked puzzled, “You can''t interfere?!? I thought you were omnipotent. What''s the problem?” God explained, You''ve heard about the logical paradox about whether I can create a stone that I am unable to lift? Well, it''s true, and it isn''t a paradox. The true test of power is whether you can create something beyond yourself. The answer to this question is potential. You can design a rock that is only able to be lifted by training the body. I choose to limit my power so that others may rise to the challenge.

    She asked yet another question, this one about relationships. “What about... those two?” she said, pointing to Azrael and Zoe. They blushed. God answered, Ah yes, homosexual relationships. In the beginning, I chose Adam and Eve to represent a marriage. These were male and female, and they were supposed to show that my plan for marriage was to make children and raise families. I have been told by many of my followers that “God Hates Gays.” This is news to me, for I love all my creations. But I do expect them to understand that homosexuality is a sin. But all are sinners, all are in need of my forgiveness. If humans are able to accept their sin, and embrace my forgiveness and grace, I''m not sure whether I have a complaint. While two males can only have sex for pleasure, I have seen the plight of battered women, and have given them the means for reproduction through fingering. This is a small miracle that I could share to those who no longer trust men. She asked God, “But, you''re saying that you value lesbians over gay males. Isn''t all love equal?” God scoffed, That notion is bullshit. She looked confused that God would us such a word, but he continued, I am a male, am I not? There are many straight males that still enjoy watching two women have sex. Yet those same males would be utterly disgusted at the idea of a male receiving anal sex. Two women can nurture children, yet two men … that would be an abomination to a man like me. Ambrosia scowled. This might be God saying this, but it was also an opinion.

    Finally, she wanted to know, “One last question.” This time God could tell what it was, because it was her deepest desire. You want to know about your parents, God remarked. Your mother was named Manna Leaven, and she works in an old church. She mainly does repair work, trying to get new members. “And my father?” Ambrosia queried. God fell silent for a moment. I''msorry, he said, I cannot tell you about that.

    She was about to walk off, when God said, Wait, show me that. “What?” Ambrosia asked. That!!! he said, poking her fishing rod with a giant hand descending from above. She tumbled a bit. “Huh? It''s just a fishing rod, I''ve had it since...” Ambrosia was cut off as God finished her sentence, since you were a child, correct?She looked puzzled. That, he said, is a gift from me. It is known as Conception. Have you noticed that as long as the rod needs to be, it extends its string? As strong as it needs to be, it is? I want you to think of it as another object. Suddenly, the fishing rod changed its shape into a fishing spear. It wasn''t much difference in purpose but it was proof that what God said was true. Go, my children, and accomplish your mission.

    Apparently still favoring a fishing rod, she reverted the weapon back. The group walked out of God''s tent in silence, down the mountain, and headed back to the boat.