“After raising Himself back to life, Jesus ascended from Earth into Heaven. In a few days, He sent forth a gift to help His followers, the Christians, to minister to others: this is the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps people to recognize Jesus as the Christ, the Savior and Truth.
“Some of you are even now feeling the prodding of the Holy Spirit; He is telling you that my story is true. The veracity of it vibrates throughout your bones.”
Rashnir noticed some odd movements and directed Jorge’s attention to it, trying to point at the source without distracting those around him.
Kevin continued, “God always had a plan for mankind and He is even now fulfilling it. He granted this access to return to Him through His son, Jesus Christ, and will not let evil continue to feast upon mankind. He said that, at a certain point in time, He will pour out His wrath upon His creation, upon the Earth, but His believers would be spared this agony. Those who do not belong to God would be punished during this time as all of creation chooses sides in this epic battle and His very creation chooses to revolt against Him. During this period, God would have vengeance for all of the evil committed against Him.
“Some of you know the Luciferian doctrines. You know that Lucifer claimed that if he should ever kneel before Yahweh and proclaim Him ‘Lord of all,’ Lucifer’s creation will burst into flames and burn from east to west.” Kevin passed a gaze from left to right during a brief pause. “This is going to happen. It will occur in less than seven years. The outpouring of God’s wrath has already begun.”
Just then, Rashnir’s instincts kicked in. He lunged for Kevin as a group of men at the edge of the park sprang into action. In one smooth move they threw off their cloaks and leveled crossbows at Kevin. They fired their bolts at the preacher as Rashnir caught Kevin in a flying tackle, dropping them both behind cover of the platform rock.
Barbed bolts both clattered against the rock formation and sailed over the top, piercing the air where Kevin had stood moments earlier. Chaos ensued. People screamed and leapt up. The werewolves were instantly on their feet and, as quick as hair on wild dogs bristle, they transformed, standing as eight-foot tall juggernauts of fang, claw, and muscle. They corporately looked to defend against any threat to their safety; instinct urged them to attack it and they splayed their claws and faced the assassins.
Quick as the twinkling of an eye, Jorge cast off his cloak. The light from his alabaster skin radiated as he spread his angelic wings. He charged through the air with such speed that he seemed to teleport in the fray with Kevin’s attackers with his sword drawn high. Five feet of steel burned, licking the air with supernatural, azure flames.
With lightning quickness, Jorge’s roundhouse swing cleaved through the midsections of the front three attackers leaving four others to gasp in shock. They recognized the suddenly reversed situation much faster than their bodies could react. The whites of their eyes realized it too late, trapping them in slow motion.
The momentum Jorge wielded carried him through to an uppercut-like swing that split the next bandit from bottom to top. Jorge brought his blade around again for a short stroked swing, lopping off the head of the next attacker. His blade followed around and he threw it into the heart of one more attacker; it burst through his backside as the hilt drove all the way to his ribcage. Jorge struck out with the palm of his free hand, colliding hard against the jaw of the final would-be assassin. The blow knocked him several feet through the air until he landed in a crumpled, unconscious heap.
The angel retrieved his flaming sword. Jorge quickly scanned the area for any more threats, and then his blade ceased to be. It seemed to evaporate into the air that surrounded it; like a glowing ember suddenly submerged, it winked out of existence.
From start to finish, the whole altercation lasted less than three seconds. The entire crowd stared in awe at the display of fighting prowess. The fangs and animal features seemed to melt away from the werewolves as soon as the threat had been eliminated and they regressed back into their human form.
The angel drew his wings closely about himself and walked back to where he had dropped his cloak. Jorge clasped it shut and did his best to shrink back into the crowd.
Kevin resumed his position on the rock; Rashnir stood close by. “I apologize for that,” Kevin remarked as he dusted himself off. “My intent is not to bring death; I came to tell you the truth about good and evil and to correctly label Lucifer, Satan, as a liar and manipulator. It does not surprise me that the forces of evil engineered an assassination attempt.” He dusted himself off and regained his composure.
“I was telling you about God’s wrath. He has, even now, begun to pour it out on His creation. You may think that you are safe from the wrath of God while in this realm created by Satan…but you are wrong. In fact, you have an even greater handicap to finding Truth.
“When your ancestors came to this place thousands of years ago, they already walked in wickedness and rebellion. They had just begun to live lives opposed to their Creator. The evil that they harbored in their hearts condemned them, and it passed to their descendants.
“Those people who came into these lands from Earth learned many wicked things from the creatures that Satan created. The ekthro merely watered the seeds of wickedness that Lucifer had planted in the heart of man from the beginning; the ekthro taught them to resist God and pursue the evil desires of their hearts, claiming it was a ‘better way of life.’ They played on man’s desires and selfishness.
“Your ancestors brought these practices back through the Gateway and taught them to their kin on Earth, further enslaving mankind and enraging God. Men became so evil that God had to destroy everything on the face of the earth with a worldwide flood, killing all living things upon it except for one family and the animals that he preserved. Throughout the years, mankind has again become just as wicked as in that time, just as selfish and haughty as they were then, and God has triggered the beginning of the end.
“Those pre-flood men did more damage instigating the Great Flood. The floodwaters destroyed the earth, but they also blocked the Gate to Earth so that no living creature could pass.
“The waters rushed in through the gate and spilled into this realm as well. It caused the division of lands, here, and filled up your low areas and formed the seas. It killed many as it did so.
“From that time onward, you have missed out on many of the things God has done in His efforts to restore His people to Him. God gave His people laws and commandments to keep, showing them what holiness is, so that his people might recognize their need for a savior to rescue them.
“He took an extreme act of intervention: Christ came and died for you so that you would not suffer eternal death. Because you have been trapped in this place, most have had very little chance to hear of this grace. Because of the forces and powers that Satan created, you were left without access to the saving knowledge of grace that Jesus has supplied for you—Lucifer has robbed you for thousands of years.
“Those who do not accept this message remain an enemy of God because of the separation caused by sin. But how can you accept it if you have never heard it? How can it ever be preached to you if the wicked and selfish shut away this fact and any men who proclaim it? As you can see, I have protectors: guardians who help me bear this message.
“But very soon Satan will kneel before Yahweh and acknowledge Him as Lord. And then, the prophecy will come to pass. This place will burst into flames and all life here will cease, destroyed by flame. If you do not choose Yahweh then you belong to Lucifer and there remains a rift of sin separating you from God.”
Kevin reached down and grabbed Rashnir, clasping forearms in his surprisingly strong grip. Kevin pulled him onto the rock with him. “Redemption is the message of my almighty God!” Kevin shouted. “You all know this man; he was once a mighty warrior. He pursued life on his own terms and was successful, and then he fell. He became worthless in the public’s eyes. Just as we have been cast-out
from God’s grace, we too can be accepted back into His loving embrace once again.”
Kevin scanned the crowd; all eyes remained fixed upon him. Kevin fixed his eyes upon Rashnir and pulled a short sword out from under his own cloak. Grasping the blade firmly with his hand, he turned the hilt to Rashnir; Kevin beckoned for him to accept it.
“Regardless of man’s law, I accept Rashnir for who he is. I accept him even as a new man. The old condemned man has passed away and a new pure man has been born out of spirit.”
A gasp ran through the crowd as Rashnir accepted the sword and knelt. The gasp was not one of anger or betrayal, or even surprise, but more of awe.
“Not only does my God have the power to forgive you of sin, to grant you access to the eternal afterlife, and make you new; He is also a God of healing.”
Kevin closed his eyes and took Rashnir’s scarred and burned hands. He held them up for the whole crowd to see. They were already familiar with the brand, a cruel and ugly scar: a mark that identified him as a traitor to the king.
“Lord, I pray that You would heal my brother; restore him to complete fullness. Take away all of the wounds placed upon him by others and make him new. I pray that this would bring glory to You and testify to those here that You are the one true God and that You are a God who heals because You love us and not for any other motivation, not for greed or lust, but for love…out of Your love, make my brother whole.”
Rashnir stood and turned his hands to his face. For the second time in his life, he had experienced a healing from Yahweh; the skin on his hands was smooth and clear, like that of an infant. He stood there; slack-jawed, he faced the crowd. He turned his hands, marveling, so that they could all see. Many in the crowd stood in amazed wonder.
A voice cried out from the crowd, “What must I do to be saved?!?”
The crowd rose to their feet. A wave of humanity surged towards the rock, calling out to Kevin.
“I want to know God,” some shouted and, “help me meet Yahweh!” Two thirds of the crowd moved forward to encircle his location.
Kevin called as soon as the crowd finally stopped surging around him. “Christ loves you and desires you, but you have the freedom not to choose Him. You were born to the possession of the enemy whom He defeated; to claim that victory, you must simply ask of the Lord and He will save you. There is nothing that I can do but point out the way.
“It is easy to pray to the Lord; you simply speak; He hears you. If you do not know the words to pray, try this, ‘My Lord, I accept Your redemption. Save me, make me whole; I am sorry for my sins. I believe in You and I make you my Lord, amen.’”
All around, men and women of all ages began kneeling and bowing, praying to God. Rashnir and Kevin walked amongst them, as did the angels, talking and praying with people, embracing many. Kevin laid hands on some and prayed over them.
One such man that Kevin prayed over, dusty and drab, urged Kevin to come and greet his people. The man led the werewolf clan that had come. In fact, each of his clansmen had come forward. Kevin pulled him into an embrace.
“What is your name?”
“I am Zeh-Ahbe’,” he said. “I am the chief of my tribe, the Say-awr’.”
Kevin eyed him, intrigued. “I am unfamiliar with your kind. Are werewolves human, or just human in appearance?”
A look of concern flashed in Zeh-Ahbe’s eyes. “We are human, or at least, we are born that way.”
“Earth has many legends about werewolves,” Kevin explained, “In some of those legends they are men who are cursed or gifted at some point in their life, in some they are mere feral versions of insane men, in some they are born as wholly different creatures, similar to a man but really something else. I am concerned if this is the case; all creatures living but not human are simply this,” Kevin grabbed a pinch of Zeh-Ahbe’s flesh. “They are merely crude matter, material. They have thoughts and a mind and a body, but I do not believe they possess an eternal soul—an afterlife. The ekthro are similar to humans, but they’re just material: physical stuff created by God’s enemy. I do not believe there is salvation for the soulless.”
The look of trepidation passed from Zeh-Ahbe’. “Oh, thank you. We are fully human, but we take a pledge and a mark upon our body to show our allegiance to the kil-yaw’ and we are granted our powers from that moment on. Werewolf parents raise their cubs in obedience to the kil-yaw’ and scald their children early in life to make them tribemates. We are human, but more.”
Kevin’s face wore a dark look. “Your gift sounds like it could be a curse, an allegiance to the forces of this world, and an open door for the powers that oppose Yahweh. If your salvation required it, could you decide? Would you choose the power of the world, or would you choose to live for God and rely on His power?”
“Despite being a werewolf, I can still be saved from sin?”
Kevin nodded. “It may require, though, that you sever the ties to a dark power—you may lose your ability to shapeshift. I think that it is very likely.”
Zeh-Ahbe’ shook his head, “I do not care. What is the sense of having all the power of the kil-yaw’ or even the abilities of the whole Gathering of Demons? Possessing power is useless in the face of what is to come; who can be stronger than the one who is the friend of the one almighty God?
“I accept God’s salvation and friendship, even if it should cost my very life in the end. I hold nothing back.” Zeh-Ahbe’ took initiative and began to pray aloud, beseeching God for favor.
Kevin laid his hands on the head of the leader of tribe Say-awr’ and prayed over him. Jorge walked amongst the other tribemates who gathered behind their leader. Zeh-Ahbe’ began to praise God in language of the angels as the Holy Spirit filled him, confirmed to his people that God had accepted him; many of his tribemates did likewise and followed suit.
All across the park, people bowed their hearts; their souls yearned for the only thing that could salve the wounds of original sin carried into this realm so long ago. People scattered across the area and knelt in contriteness, surrendering to God, accepting a Savior that they had always known they needed, but had never known existed.
In the back, behind a couple of the vendor kiosks stood Minstra, the young monk who had earlier spoken with Kevin. Minstra bit his lip, torn by the message; he desired to give himself over to it, yet felt that he could not.
Minstra’s eyes darted nervously around, hoping that no one would recognize him for what he was. His eyes angled back to the temple where his master had, in all likelihood, discovered him absent. The rage of the Luciferian combat master, Jandul, could be a fearful—and potentially deadly—thing. He raised his gaze to the upper levels of the temple, to the tower.
He spotted the temple leader high up in the observatory. His body cast a silhouette against the yellowed glass, backlit by torch flames. The silhouette’s body language revealed enough; he must’ve seen everything that happened in the park, and he was not pleased with the outcome.
Minstra slunk away and into the shadows, uncertain of the future.
***
In the highest room of the temple, shadows danced across the fine stonework as torch and candle flames leapt about. Frinnig, the head priest of the local Luciferian Temple, stood in the tower and glared daggers towards Grinden’s park as he assessed the situation.
Jandul, Frinnig’s primary advisor, flanked him alongside three wretched-looking goblin envoys. The Luciferian ceremony had ended. Frinnig stood at the window still wearing his priestly garments and amulets, holding his toqeph—his rod of authority and staff of power—as he surveyed the scene below. The shama’ spell that Frinnig cast had let the group eavesdrop on the last few minutes of Kevin’s message.
Frinnig watched it play out like a general watching over a battlefield; his face drew long with dismay. His furrowed brow tightened the skin at its edges and pulled at the tattoos which displayed his rank as a twenty-seventh degree monk. Contrasting the shaven scalp of his advisor, Ja
ndul, whose tattoos of rank were imprinted directly on the top of his head as if it was a crown, Frinnig’s hair fell in wisps, framing his face
“I do not like this new threat,” Frinnig thought out loud. He turned and spoke directly to Jandul. “Just yesterday, if I had asked anyone on the street what they thought of these krist-chins they would have told me that they were a tiny group of insane vagabonds with a gift for storytelling. What will they say now?”
He paused for a moment before stating the obvious. “These people preach a doctrine that directly contradicts our own teachings.”
Jandul remained characteristically silent; he commanded enough authority with simple body language and grunts. He merely nodded his head in agreement with his superior’s statements.
Frinnig continued, “You know, I almost respect them for what they’ve accomplished. They have inspired people to greater faith than I’ve ever seen in any Luciferian service. I wonder what they have that causes them to respond like this. I felt no tug at the energy lines; no spells have been cast. They have little visual charm… could it be in their genuineness?” he digressed.
“If their message were not so blatantly in opposition to ours I might let it go. I would even see if I could harness this preacher’s gifts for my own gain… the gain of Luciferianism as a whole that is; I would seek for them to ally with the Order. It would only cost them a few minor points of doctrine. But I think that they would never do that, though, and we are left with only one option: to destroy them.”
Frinnig whirled to his goblin guests. “Tell me, tyr-aPt, what news from your brother?”
tyr-aPt indicated the oddly cut stone he held in his clawed hand, a seeing stone linked to a mate which usually hung around his brother’s neck. “My brother, grr’SHaalg, gave me the most recent news from the king’s court in Jand. King Rutheir has struck an accord with the ruling council of Ninda. They have given full possession of the Grinden lands to Jand and its ruler—relinquished any claims to it.”
The Kakos Realm Collection Page 16
