Our Prologue

Our Prologue

There exists, three realms. Of these, we know one intimately, we’ve heard rumors of another, but the third… is a complete mystery. The familiar one is the one in which we love, hurt, enjoy, bleed, laugh, and die in. We’ve heard that the other is split into two factions, a good side, and an evil one. We believe that our behavior here in this familiar realm will determine our placement in this foreign one.

However.

I suggest to you, that perhaps, there is a third. One from which all in the familiar realm originate. What if, the journey from the familiar to the foreign doesn’t begin at birth? Perhaps our time in this realm is simply a pilgrimage, the middle part of our journey that leads us to our final destination? This realm, the first, is the storehouse of souls. The Mall of Unborn Destinies. Follow me there…

Thousands of Years Ago

Inside a great hall, the Almighty sits at a table. The room glows because in his presence, even the inanimate cannot remain inert. The walls, the floors, the table and the stool, all house a light so deep and penetrating, mortal eyes simply could not bear witness without being overpowered. On top of the table lies the only piece of contrast in the entire room: A hefty lump of grayish-brown clay.

It doesn’t glow. It doesn’t shine. In fact, to a casual spectator, one might find it to be most unappealing. But the secret to its resistance to light is that unlike the rest of the room and its furnishings… it isn’t inanimate. It has a purpose that far exceeds that of a stool or table. It is able to do what the rest of the room wants so desperately to do: To worship the creator.

His strong hands take hold of the clay, kneading and warming it up. Certainly, this is unnecessary as he could choose any means of accomplishing his goal, but he’s always rather enjoyed getting his hands dirty. After the clay grows warm, he begins shaping it. His palms and fingertips deftly create the shape he’s envisioned.

An angel makes an entrance into the room, the door closing and disappearing behind him. He smiles when he sees God hard at work at yet another one, putting just as much thought and focus into this one as he has all the others. He chooses not to speak, and instead, watches from a distance so as not to disturb the great I Am.

The shapes begin to get more detailed. We can tell now, that his hands no longer seem to be cupping a piece of clay, but rather, a pair of cheeks. Between them he molds and forms a nose and mouth. His hands slide down and he starts work on the torso. It becomes apparent that he’s working on a female. His big hands sculpt her form with surprising grace and dexterity. Once the form is finished, he starts going over the details, working from the toenails up. Once he gets to her head, he forms a pair of ears (ears that in his eyes are perfect, but later on, she’ll feel that he was perhaps a bit too generous here.) and finally, the eyes. He always does the eyes last. In his mind, they’re his way of adding a signature to the piece. He rolls two tiny balls of clay, inserting them into the sockets, but made the sockets a little larger so her eyes would appear larger than average. He makes a mental note that when the time comes, the eyes are to be bluish-gray and sometimes green. Without looking up, he speaks.

“Gabriel!”

The angel starts for just a moment, though realizes immediately that it was silly to believe his presence was unknown. He approaches.

“Yes, Lord?”

With a musing tone in his voice, he asks, “What do you think?”

Gabriel arrives by his Master’s side, and inspects the work. “As finely crafted a piece as there ever was.”

A slow smile spreads across God’s face. “I’m glad you agree.” In his heart, God was glad Gabriel agreed. This image had been floating through his head for quite some time, and he wanted to make sure he got it exactly right. He always felt a little bit of pride after completing one of his creations, but this one… this one was a little different. This was good. And he said so. Out loud.

Gabriel, still staring at the sculpture spoke. “Do you think this one will talk?”

Yahweh chuckled softly. “Oh yes, I imagine so.”

God admired his work for a moment longer, and then prepared himself for what was next. With that, he began to concentrate. He leaned down, over the sculpture and closed his eyes. His powerful lungs filled with air, and slowly, he released it. As he did, he breathed a part of himself, his very essence, into his sculpture. This served several purposes. Most noticeably, it gave life to the clay. As he breathed, the color changed from its drab gray to peach and pink. Her body grew hair, and it grew blonde. The balls of clay in her eye sockets changed, and when her eyelids opened, they were bluish-gray.

Later on, that essence would serve another purpose. It would be her compass and her guide when she entered the second realm. Like a homing beacon, that essence would always lead her in the direction of God. It would guide her decisions; it would guide her thoughts and ideas… If she chose to listen to it.

For now however, it had accomplished its first task and brought the exquisite creature to life. Her lungs filled with air for the first time as her vision came into focus. She looked directly into the eyes of the Creator, and her reaction was immediate.

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty! Who was, and is, and is to come! Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty! Who was, and is, and is to come!”

God smiled. This reaction was in no way forced, but it was predicted. Every single one of his creations responds the same way when they’re come so close to his glory. With a gentle finger, God reached down and pressed his finger to her upper lip, just beneath her nose. He quietly spoke, “Shhhhhh, just listen.” His finger left a dent in her still soft skin. Obediently, she grew quiet, her big trying their hardest to match the brightness of the room.

Scooting back in his chair, God leaned way down so that he was eye to eye with his creation. He looked at her, his work, moving, breathing, beautiful and natural. After a moment, he spoke to her.

“Your name is to be Leah, but don’t let it fool you. I’ve seen to it that your beauty will leave you favored among my creations. What’s more, I’ve given you a part of myself that will allow you to love more than most. This is your main duty: To love relentlessly, selflessly, and without fail. You will hurt when others hurt, you will laugh when they laugh. More than that, you will heal. You will use your words to soothe the aching wounds of those around you. However, because you are sensitive to the pain in the world, I am making for you a man who will stand between it and you. He will be your shield and your cushion; your armor and your comfort. You will both exist on your own, but you will only be complete when you are together.

I am also giving you my love for life. This entails much, small one, so listen carefully. You will hold the sanctity of life dear. You will create art, for it is a means of bringing things into existence. You will rejoice and worship me barefoot in the mud. You will explore. You will play and laugh and become a well of joy. Those around you cannot be close for long before they begin to see the wonder of my Creation. This, more than even your beauty, will endear you to the world. You will not only love them, you will teach them how to love again.”

With that, he snapped his fingers, and immediately she was unconscious. She fell backwards into his waiting hand and he gently handed her over to Gabriel who took her in his arms. He then concentrated on his empty hand and slowly an orb of pulsating life became visible within it. “Take Leah and this portion of myself into the Mall, and then return here. I’ll have another for you when you arrive. See to it that Recorder marks them as soul mates.”

“Yes, Lord.” Gabriel turned and opened a door into another part of the realm.

The Lord set to work once more, creating a new creature. Now that he knew Leah, he knew exactly who she needed. He looked at the clay laying on the table, and frowned. He would need more. Taking an extra handful from seemingly nowhere, he added to the pile on the table and began the kneading process over again.

He set to work, forming several round shapes and placing them on top of each other. He stretched him out, making him nearly six feet tall. As he moved back up from the feet, adding details he decided the man needed a series of moles and freckles over his body. He got to the eyes and thought to himself, “Blue. Very blue.”

When he concluded, there stood before him a man. He was overweight, but he had a frame that hid it better than some. He wasn’t particularly strong, or particularly weak. He was simply an average looking man who fell on the portly side of things. God however, saw him as being perfect, and knew all along that where he would really spend himself was in the process of gift-giving. Excited, he breathed deeply and exhaled bringing the man to life.

“Holy, holy, ho--…”

God’s finger rested on his lip. “Shhhhhhh. Just listen.”

The man obliged and looked into the fire burning within his creator’s eyes.

“Your name will be Paul, and you are dear to my heart. You will naturally gravitate towards words as a form of expression. You will use these words to help those around you understand me better. More than that, you will learn to use whatever means available to you to cause others to think about me.

I have placed inside you the heart of a warrior, but don’t misuse it. This does not mean you are to get in fights, but rather, means you are not to fear. You will live your life with honor and chivalry, and you will not be alone. I have already made for you a woman who is strong where you are weak, and weak where you are strong.  Your body was made to fit with hers, as was your heart. You will grow much on your own, however you will only be complete when you have found her. It is your duty as a man, to protect her from the evil in the world. This means both stopping evil from harming her, as well as allowing it to infect either of you. Your path will not be an easy one, but I will be near always.”

With that, he snapped and Paul was unconscious.

The mall was more of a coliseum. In its seats were myriads of completed sculptures. It is in this mall that they wait to claim their destiny. Choosing one’s path was something that was felt, more than known. The wonder of it all, was that there was never a conflict. Every person instinctually knew the purpose for which they were created, and when it was called, they retrieved it and an angel named Recorder wrote it in a ledger. After that, they began to prepare for their journey.

Paul arrived with Gabriel, and they stopped next to the table Recorder worked.

“I have another one for you.”

Recorder nodded, and held up a finger then finished scrawling some notes and pushed a pair of spectacles up on his nose. He turned towards Paul and Gabriel, squinting for a moment.

“Alright, who have we here?”

“This is Paul Allen. He is to be given to Kerry and Paula Allen, April 2nd, in the year 1984.” Recorder was already writing in a book, but stopped when Gabriel continued. “He is to soul mate of Leah Nicole.”

Recorder turned and looked at Paul, then Gabriel. “A soul mate? Really?”

“It’s what He wanted.” Recorder nodded absently as he made a second note in the book.

“Alright. He’s in there.” He looked up at Paul. “You’ve got quite a wait. Feel free to mingle or chat with anybody here. If you have any questions, just ask.”

“Actually, there is one… What does ‘soul mate’ mean?”

Recorder smiled. “It’s rare. It’s very rare. Much more rare than people think.”

Gabriel sat his hand on Paul’s shoulder. “You see, what usually happens is God sends a portion of himself with me to give to Recorder here. This portion contains some details about who you will be on the other side, but also it holds information about your ultimate destiny.”

“My ultimate destiny?”

“When God breathed into you, he gave you a series of gifts. Traits and abilities. Things that will just be part of who you are once you’re born.”

“Okay…”

“Well, the destiny he sends with you, is sort of your going away present. It’s what he gives you to help you complete your journey to the third realm. Some people choose to wield it, and others don’t. What being a soul mate means, is that one of you didn’t receive a portion. Instead, you share one. In essence, the gift he has given you reach the other side is… each other.”

“And that’s rare?”

Recorder spoke up again. “Very. God chooses to invoke soul mates only when he’s made a creation with another in mind. Most of these people here will be born, grow up, bump into someone they think they can love, and get married. Some will live happily ever after, others won’t. But you… When you have a soul mate, God gets a little more involved. He acts in places and ways that he normally wouldn’t, just to make sure you discover the person he has for you. This means that no matter what you do, he’s going to make sure you ‘bump’ into the person he created you for.”

“So… this person… is she here now?”

Gabriel grinned. “Would you like to meet her?”

Paul’s heart skipped a beat. His palms were sweaty, but he knew the answer immediately. “Absolutely.”

Gabriel’s smile didn’t diminish while he watched the two stare. Even here, in this place, before the world happened to either one of them, Paul and Leah were head over heels for one another. Paul stuttered and stumbled through a greeting, and Leah giggled sweetly. The two began to talk, and Gabriel slowly turned and left.

The conversation never lulled. Time didn’t exist, so they never stopped talking. They laughed and they loved and they came to understand who the other was. Finally, it happened. The two were speaking when all of a sudden, a destiny was called out. Both of them immediately felt it in their stomachs. They turned their heads towards the center of the coliseum, where an angel had stood for millennia, reading the destinies to those in attendance and heard this:

“I have here, a double portion. It is meant for two who will share the same destiny. Both of you will be empowered to open the eyes of the lost, and show them the way. Both of you will be empowered to heal the wounds that life has given many a travel weary comrade. One of you will do so on an individual level. People will seek you out for help and healing. Your words will change the world of one person, then another, then another. The other will rise to fill the world with his voice. They will see what he sees and hear what he hears. In doing so, they will see and hear visions of Our Lord. However, with the power to touch others so intimately, comes the power to hurt them. The burden of choice is left to both of you. Who will accept this destiny?”

The two looked at each other. Paul swallowed and took her hand in his, and then both stood to their feet. Their voices carried loud and clear over the entire arena. “We will.”