The Stolen Star

by Halyna Franko

way! And it's simply not possible that mankind could just be some sort of highly developed animal. And I set out my arguments in great detail on this point.”

  “Yes, yes this is all well known. Along with your life's work in science and your knowledge of the Truth and also that you discovered many things and opened up great vistas of knowledge. The Satanists used the most hi-tech and cutting edge technology on you. They desperately needed to have that discredited atheist nonsense spouting from the lips of such a famous and respected scientist as you. But what you came out with was so anachronistic that it only served to surprise people, even the most unlighted of them. And although absolutely everyone understood this, the thought even entered my head.”

  “But how could he be saying this?!” The Angel continued.

  To the boys’ complete surprise for the first time since meeting him the Angel was evidently agitated.

  “I don’t know how it happened, it all seemed to happen automatically against my conscious will,” the scientist despondently tried to explain to the Angel.

  The boys began to feel quite sorry for the scientist. Michael even whispered to Ben:

  “Can you imagine what it must be like to be in the scientist’s shoes right now?”

  ”It must be simply awful, how on earth could any man stand up to such an onslaught!” Ben replied.

  No sooner had he finished speaking than the Angel answered: “In this life, as the folk saying goes: ‘Look with both eyes and see with three’.”

  "And there is another saying that is very apt here look before you leap!” Ben blurted out in reply.

  The Angel and the scientist could barely suppress a smile at the audacity of the cousins to come to the aid of the scientist. And the tension really was taken out of the situation. And then the scientist in the same vein as Ben added his own proverb:

  “Sometimes even pigs can fly.”

  The scientist’s joke was so audacious that everyone doubled over with laughter. When everyone had calmed down the Angel began to say goodbye to the scientist.

  “It’s time for us to go; I will leave you this notebook. Write down all your requests and wishes in it. Down here there are two buttons: the red one allows you to send information, the blue one allows you take back something that has been uttered.”

  The scientist turned the note book over in his hand. There was something unusual about it and it gave the impression that it was somehow full of spirit and light. He looked gratefully at the Angel. The scientist understood full well what he needed to do. The Angel nodded towards him as sign that he fully understood:

  “Yes, yes it will also be your defence."

  The scientist evidently wanted to throw his arms around the Angel but held himself back and instead began to shake everyone by the hand in turn.

  Several minutes later the boys and the Angel were already sat in the starship.

  “Now we are going to strengthen your spirit because you are going to face some serious tests, therefore we will start with your parents. They are both in Sofia and are beginning to get a little anxious. I will land the starship right next to Michael’s block of flats. You can tell your relatives about your adventures but don't mention anything about the dangers facing you. It’s better if you talk more about what your ancestors had to go through, and, of course, a little bit about your own achievements. Besides I will be with you, and even though they won't be able to see me I will be controlling everything. Well, let’s go.”

  And the Angel lightly pushed the boys forward.

  Michael rang on the door bell. Literally a second later Sophia had Michael and Ben embraced in her arms.

  “Where did you both get to? And you’re probably both very hungry, how worried we were!” Michael's mum’s torrent of words touched both the boys’ hearts.

  And then Natalie came rushing up and poured forth a tirade of reproaches of her own:

  “You haven’t been home the whole day! It’s a very dangerous thing to do!”

  Ben asked incredulously:

  “Really, the whole day?”

  He and Michael exchanged mystified glances.

  It had seemed to them that they had been away much longer. Michael nearly asked the Angel to explain how this could have happened. But the Angel just smiled silently and put his finger to his lips to indicate that they shouldn’t give away his invisible presence. He gave them a silver DVD disk and quietly said:

  “This recording of all your adventures has been made especially so that you can show your relatives what you have done.”

  But the sharp eyed mothers noticed the disk seemingly appearing out of thin air.

  “And what’s that?” asked Natalie.

  “Mama, it was me who threw the disk to Michael, it will show you where we have been, about our meetings with our family ancestors… with the help of the Angel and the Wise Old Man of course. And also how we transformed ourselves into all sorts of different animals, not to mention journeys into the past and many, many other things,” Ben explained with pride.

  “It is all really important for the fate of our family and the whole of our family line," Michael added significantly.

  “Well, my little heroes, give us the disk and we’ll have a look,” Sophia put the disk in the machine, “is everyone sitting comfortably… then let the show begin.”

  Of course, Michael and Ben’s mothers were amazed and extremely proud of their sons’ exploits. During the showing they laughed, cried and at times were simply astonished. At various moments they even jumped up from their seats and smothered their sons with kisses. The boys literally bathed in the praise and love heaped on them by their parents. Soon after the disk had finished the Angel whispered to the boys:

  “It’s time to go.”

  And Michael turned to Sophia with a request:

  “Can Ben and I go on holiday to the school camp? It’s right next to the sea. There will be a lot of my former classmates there.”

  “Of course, you can go,” Sophia replied, “but I hope it’s not going to be today?"

  “Unfortunately, it’s got to be today Mum, if we are to make it on to the bus. We've already packed our things," Michael replied sadly.

  And within a few seconds the boys were gone like the wind.

  “There’s something about the way that they rushed off like that that I don’t like,” said Natalie, “it’s not as if they haven’t already been on holiday."

  “Don’t worry, they have an Angel with them,” said Sophia reassuringly.

  “Do you think so?” asked Natalie hopefully.

  “I don’t have the slightest doubt about it. For example, where did that disk with their mysterious adventures come from? I immediately sensed that an Angel was amongst us,” said Sophia joyfully. “You know I could feel it in the atmosphere and energy that was all around us. What a true wonder!”

  “I would so like to see an Angel!” Natalie whispered in awe.

  At that moment the final image appeared on the television screen. It was the Angel.

  “We will meet!” he promised. “We will most definitely meet."

  And with that both mothers jumped up and down clapping their hands like two small children.

  Michael and Ben’s Souls are Strengthened

  But the children had some serious trials facing them. And the Angel was getting them ready for them. The two mothers understood this and the appearance of the Angel in the midst of their family was not only a joyful event but also gave them hope that this vital mission would be successfully completed.

  The starship flew purposefully straight up into the sky. The Angel explained:

  “We are flying to one of the smaller angel bases (at least that is how you humans would describe it), where you will recuperate your strength after all the difficult tasks that you have completed on Earth.”

  Soon the starship was flying in a horizontal trajectory through white fluffy clou
ds. The Angel stopped driving and told the boys to get out. Michael and Ben were clearly perturbed, how were they to step out on to thin air? The Angel immediately sensed their discomfort: “Don’t be afraid this cloud is as stable as solid earth. Put your best foot forward here on this little green path.”

  The cousins gingerly stepped out on to this doubtful looking surface.

  “Phew, it seems more or less okay,” exclaimed Michael.

  The boys looked out onto a small square in the centre of which stood a tree of the most astonishing beauty. It had huge green leaves and each one seemed to radiate with a multi-coloured tongues of fire. And this fire seemed to be alive. It moved constantly from leaf to leaf making the whole tree resemble a huge living firework.

  "Wow! That's beautiful!" the two cousins chimed in unison, under the tree stood a table with three chairs. And on the table were three cups. The Angel touched the trunk of the tree lightly and the cups immediately filled with a sparkling beverage, shot through with the tiniest multi-coloured sparkles of fire. The Angel invited the boys to sit down and did so himself. Michael and Ben looked on entranced at the magical draft.

  “Drink,” said the Angel, “It will restore your strength and reinvigorate your spirit. This is the libation of angels.”

  The drink was so unusual that after a few sips the cups remained as if frozen to the boys’ hands. The overwhelming sensation that greeted their taste buds was of concentrated air made out of various types of aromatic flowers. With each sip of this almost gaseous drink, the most