But I didn’t care. I had to try.
As soon as we got closer, I dismounted Matheus, and walked up to the gates. I studied them in wonder. The doors were made out of pure gold. I pushed the doors, but they were locked. I knocked as hard as I could and heard an echo from my knocks. Then there was a moment of silence.
I looked at Matheus who was also dazed staring at the doors. I knocked a few times again and no one answered. I sat there and waited for maybe two minutes. I turned disappointed and was ready to leave. As soon as I turned, they slowly opened up.
There was light, the brightest light I’d ever seen. I had to cover my eyes for a minute. After my eyes adjusted a little bit, I saw this figure in a white robe. He was tall and skinny. His skin was not white, nor black.
He was just perfect.
He had white hair and didn’t have a beard.
He was very different.
“I was expecting you,” the figure spoke. "I am The Creator, and you must be Ethasus!”
I went blank. I had so many questions to ask, yet there he was, standing in front of me and I couldn’t think of anything to say.
“I know why you are here.” He spoke again. “You are here because you need answers, and you have demands.”
He kind of took the words out of my mouth.
“Please, come inside,” he said as he welcomed me in.
“Why me?” I finally asked. I was a little shaken up.
This guy was THE GOD.
He stared at me, not believing I just asked that question. He walked past me, and with his back facing me, moved his right hand very gently to the side. I saw how a few clouds came apart, revealing the most magnificent and extraordinary view.
Five realms.
They were all aligned vertically, starting with Paradise, next my beautiful blue planet Earth, then Purgatory, Inferno and lastly, Hell. We were on the very top of all worlds, which was Heaven.
“Do you see those beautiful worlds?” he asked.
I was about to ask what was so great about Hell and Inferno, but when you saw them from this angle, they were the most spectacular perfect creations you’ve ever seen.
"Yes,” I replied amazed.
“What do you see?”
I looked closely for a second. “Uh, I see that some worlds are good, but there are some that are evil.”
“Exactly! The spirits that live in them make them what they are.”
I listened carefully to every word he said. The way he moved and spoke, everything about him, was perfect and magical.
“When you first heard about your destiny, did you not feel like it was a mistake? Did you feel like you were not fit for the task?”
I nodded.
“Why not?”
“Because, I—” I simply didn’t have an answer to that question. I stared at him blankly for a moment.
“You didn’t believe in yourself, did you?” he asked disappointed. I shook my head, admitting the truth. “The reason why I chose you was not to make your life miserable or make you go through horrible experiences. The reason why I chose you was simply because of how special you are. You have an amazing spirit that I myself admire. Just like these six realms, each and every one of us is a separate world, and we all have spirits in us. That special spirit you have inside of you has guided you throughout your entire journey, and I am proud to say you have done an excellent job listening.”
I felt proud of myself when he said that. “What will happen now?” I asked.
“The war is over now, and The Order is safe, thanks to you! Isn’t that what you wanted more than anything in the world?” he asked, taking me to my next question. It was like he knew exactly what to ask and what to say. He even knew my doubts.
He just wanted to hear it from me.
“Yes sir, I do.” I was trying to find the right words.
“But?” He waited.
“My city was destroyed, and most of the people that fought with me were injured. Some of them even lost their lives. Can you fix it?” I asked, waiting for good news.
“I really wish I could help you, Ethasus, but gods aren’t allowed to change history. It may cause the destruction of future destinies.”
Destruction of Future Destinies!
I put my head down and stared at the marvel celestial floor in dismay.
I was feeling sad again. I really wanted to help. Yet, he already knew that.
“But don’t worry. I’ll take good care of them in Paradise,” he guaranteed.
I was happy with that answer, and still sad at the same time. I really didn’t know what I was feeling really.
He placed his perfect hands on my shoulder, and smiled again.
“Not all is lost,” he said. "You’ve earned yourself a new guardian now.”
A new guardian? Who was he talking about? Was it Kate?
“Who?” I asked.
“You’ll find out when the time is right.”
I gave it a bit of thought. Everything he said made sense now. At least he answered all my questions.
“Thank you for taking a minute of your time and answering my questions, sir. I really appreciate it. I’m honored to have be chosen by you.”
I bowed in reverence. Then I looked at Matheus. I was ready to go back to Earth again.
“There is something else, isn’t there?” he asked as I turned away.
I looked straight into his eyes and he was concerned. I never expected that. He knew there was something else. Still, I was afraid to ask. I thought it would be very disrespectful to even speak about it. I kept quiet.
“I know you, Ethasus. I know exactly what you want.”
I wanted to say it but I just didn’t have the guts. I really did feel like a burden.
“I just—I just want to be a normal guy,” I finally said.
He smiled again.
“I always knew you did! That’s why I gave you an amazing family, awesome friends, and a beautiful girlfriend named Kate!” He winked at me after he said her name.
I felt a little embarrassed, but he was right though. I was as normal as anyone could be! Why ask for more, when I had it all?
“You are absolutely right, sir! I’m such an idiot for even asking that, I apologize,” I said feeling stupid and ungrateful.
“You don’t have to apologize, Ethasus. All you needed was guidance. You wanted answers, so I opened your eyes, showed you what you needed to see, and told you what you needed to hear.”
“Thank you for everything, sir.” I bowed again. I had so much respect for him.
“Please, call me Elios,” he said kindly.
I couldn’t wait to tell everyone back on Earth. I leapt on Matheus’ back again. As we descended back to Earth, Elios waved at us. I waved back.
I finally met his excellency, Elios!
Earth
Two years have passed since the war. New York City is still under construction and people are still searching for answers. They wanted to know who the guardians were? Where was The Book of Mythos? And who was The Chosen One?
Detarru Island is now a place of attraction, tourists, archeology and history.
Thanks to Christine and her connections to some government officials, Erick’s identity has been well classified. No one speaks about it, and no one to this day knows who The Chosen One really is.
—Erick is now 18 years old. Today is June 19th and it is his birthday. Ever since he started school, he fit right in and became one of the popular kids. He also became captain of the football team and everyone loved him. After he saw what a great leader and team captain Erick turned out to be, Mike and Erick became best of friends. Since then, they’ve been inseparable.
—Jack became a famous professor at NYU. There he teaches the history of Detarru Island to many of his students, and many who admire his work
as an archeologist. He got awarded for his research and now his findings are part of The National Museum of History. One of his favorite college students was Bruce. There Bruce became Jack’s personal assistant and after learning so much about Jack’s research, Bruce became fascinated by archeology and respected his work.
—Clara now owns the GBI Corporation. She funds many charities and smaller businesses who needed support after the war. After graduating from high school, Jimmy got an internship at GBI and there he applied his management skills and helped Clara by overseeing and supervising the business operations. A few months later, the company grew tremendously and is now number one in the world.
—Harris and Christine moved a few blocks away from Sunnyside Street and Erick loves the idea. He visits them every day and goes fishing with his grandparents once in a while. There is nothing he enjoyed more than spending time with his old folks.
—Matt finally retired and bought a house on the beach in Tampa Florida. There he lives happily with his best friend Matheus. Occasionally, Matheus will sneak out and come visit Erick once in a while and fly him around the city. Erick helped him develop his transformation skills and little by little he was able to transform into many more things in different dimensions.
—Craig decided to work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As Erick’s new guardian, he wanted to make sure The Gates of Hell were well secured. He also hired trusted Detarrunians to guard all seven gates around the world.
—Nathan felt really lucky to have Rebecca as a friend and she felt the same way about him too. They fell deeply in love and a year later, he decided to propose. They are going to get married soon and can’t wait to tell everyone the news.
—Patrick joined the military and served in the marines for a year and a half. There he got in shape and is now better looking than the rest of the archangels. He became great friends with Justin and Chris. Sarah and Chris consider him part of the family and he visits them all the time.
—Luis loves baseball so much he got drafted to the New York Yankees. He became one of the best players on the team and drives the Latinas crazy. Once in a while, he gets front row tickets just to have the guys support and watch him play. Erick and Larry always have a blast cheering for him and whenever he’s free, he gathers the rest of the team and they play a game at the stadium just like old times.
—Larry developed a need for speed and soon after graduation, he became a racecar driver. He won many championships and started to get recognized in the sport. A few months later, he got his racing license and is starting to get calls to compete in real NASCAR races.
—Kate pursued her career in medicine and was accepted at one of the best medical universities in New York. Erick and Kate are both madly in love with each other and their relationship strengthens more and more throughout the years.
That night
Sarah invited everyone for dinner to celebrate Erick’s 18th birthday. Clara was talking about Jimmy’s promotion as a business manager in her company, and Rebecca announced her wedding date for December. Everyone had a wonderful time together celebrating the good news. Hours later, Craig received a distress phone call from one of the security officers at the museum. He was told that The Gates of Hell were activating, and that he needed to come quickly. Everyone thought it was Satu.
Erick and the boys immediately headed to the museum with Craig. When they got there, there were police officers outside and choppers hovering over the building. They all had their guns pointing at something.
Two hollows and a demon.
Erick thought he was dreaming.
He walked up the stairs, but a police officer tried to hold him back.
“It’s okay, officer,” he said calmly. “They’re friendly.”
The officer looked at Erick awkwardly but then moved out of his way. Erick slowly walked up to the demon who was standing by the main entrance of the building.
Then he remembered something The Creator, Elios, had told him two years ago.
‘You’ve earned yourself a new guardian now!’
He smiled at her.
“Of course! Guardians don’t die!” he exclaimed. He hugged the demon who was now part of his team. His new guardian!
Craig and the boys couldn’t believe it either.
“I’m so glad you’re alive, Lola!” Erick said, excited.
“I’m glad to see you too, Ethasus!” She smiled. “I’m sorry to barge into your world like this, but we’ve got trouble,” she said with a serious voice.
“Satu?” he asked, concerned
“No. Far worse than that. The angel of death. Abaddon.”
Erick turned to his archangels. They were ready to save the world once more.
The End
Acknowledgments
Nothing is more exciting to me than having an idea and sharing it with the whole world through a book. I couldn’t have done it without the help of my great friends, coworkers and family who have been supporting me since day one. Special thanks to my editor Sherrie who helped me make this possible. Her editing was very professional and she was very helpful. You are awesome!
To my book designers Rebecacovers and Albert Nouel, you both are super talented and I'm super happy with my cover. Thank you to Euan Monaghan, who designed the internal pages.To my readers, thank you all, for supporting my work and for believing in me.
About The Author
Mickey Deymon enjoys painting, writing, acting, filming and music. She developed a passion for film after her first project in 2010 in which she directed and acted. Besides her passion for the film industry, she also wrote her first book Detarru Island in 2012 and had the opportunity to be published in the year 2018.
“Filming and writing is a gateway to my imagination. It is a place where I can escape reality for a moment in time and forget about my problems in life. It is such a great feeling to have an idea or a memory and share it with the rest of the world either through writing or a motion picture. One that you'll never forget and will always remember. Every time I film, I have the need for more. Every time I write, I feel the need to film. Through writing, I can express my feelings. Through film, I show the world what life is about. Life is a book, every day is a different chapter. Every choice you make creates a different scenario in which you must try to resolve, and based on the decisions that you make, that is how you’ll know how your story is going to end. As usual we don’t always like certain endings, but that is why today we are still striving and trying to succeed in life. Now that I found my true calling, nothing will stop me now. Welcome to the beginning of my life’s expedition: the beginning of story telling through writing or a Motion Picture because that’s what makes me happy. That’s what makes me stronger and that’s where I belong.”
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