CHAPTER 32

A MESSAGE FROM ETHRAL

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The living cannot pass into Ethral, so we stood at the barrier between. Shimmering transparent silver separated us from a brilliant city of crystal. In this place, God's love was overpowering, and Constance struggled with it. It was almost more than she could bear.

“I don't belong here,” she said. “I have done too much. I have seen too much.”

Humphrey laughed. “No one deserves to be in the presence of God. It is by his forgiveness alone that anyone can be with him.”

“Someone approaches,” I said, pointing.

Three figures in white flowing robes were walking toward us along a golden path. Long hoods shrouded their heads. As they neared, Constance covered her face with her hands.

Reaching the barrier, the one in the middle removed her hood. She was beautiful, with crystal blue eyes and fiery red hair that touched her shoulders in curls. Her expression was one of overwhelming compassion, and her gaze was fixed on Constance. “You do not need to be afraid, little one. You are loved.”

Constance dropped her hands and looked up. “Mom?” Her voice quivered.

“Yes, honey. It's me.”

Constance tried to run forward, but the barrier’s energy held her back. The woman placed her hand on the barrier. Constance did the same.

“You cannot enter where I am, sweetie,” the woman said. “Not yet. You have work to do.”

“I've missed you so much, Mom.” Constance choked on the words.

“I have missed you too, honey. But we must think of your father now. He is in a very dark place.”

“Yes. I know.”

“You must travel to Vrin and give him a message.”

“Then can we come and be with you?”

“When the time is right, but first you must do this.” She looked at Constance intently. “Tell him, he is a great man, and that great men must make great sacrifices.”

Constance nodded and wiped away a tear. “Yes, Mom. I will remember.”

“I love you, Constance. Be a good girl.” She gave a gentle smile.

“I will, Mom,” Constance whispered. “I will.”

One of the robed figures reached out and placed his hand softly on the woman's shoulder.

“I have said as much as you are able to bear, my darling. Come home, Constance.” She covered her head. And the three turned and walked back down the path.

“I will, Mom! I will!” Constance called after them. She crumbled to the ground and wept.

We stood by quietly for a moment, allowing her to grieve.

“We must travel back to The Circle,” said Humphrey over her sobs.

“Yes, I know.”

“Are you ready?”

“I am.” I looked down at Constance.

“It is not going to be easy,” he said quietly.

“Nothing important ever is.” I knelt down next to Constance. “It is time to take you to Vrin. Are you ready?”

“Yes,” she said, wiping away tears. “I want to see my father.”

I helped her to her feet and the three of us headed back down the stairs to a grassy field. The sun sat high in the sky. I looked directly at it. But it didn't hurt my eyes.

We traveled across the meadow and into a leafy path through a wood where we wound our way in and out of massive oak trees, until Humphrey stopped us at the edge of a clearing. He motioned for us to duck down. In the center, beings of light swarmed around a circular structure, floating in and out amongst each other. I noted that the light emanating from them was weak and faded.

“Who are they?” I whispered.

“Malignant spirits,” said Humphrey.

“Is that The Circle of Ghosts?”

“Yes.”

“How do we get in?”

“Hold on. You'll see.” He winked.

Suddenly, the air filled with light and the ground trembled. I looked up to see the massive form of Magnus descending. As he landed in front of The Circle, the ground split. And the lesser beings retreated.

“I AM MAGNUS! I STAND IN THE PRESENCE OF THE ONE TRUE GOD!”

“Go!” said Humphrey, gesturing wildly.

Constance and I bolted toward The Circle and Magnus allowed us to pass. In the shadows of the trees, the glowing demons paced like wild animals.

“Quickly! The fallen ones are coming!” Humphrey called after us.

I looked up to see bright flickers of yellow fire burning down through the atmosphere. And from them a haunted screech filled the air.

I looked at Constance. “Ready?”

She gave a quick nod. “I'm scared, but I'm ready.”

“Remember, Thomas!” called Humphrey. “Time does not exist in Dantra. You will enter Vrin precisely the moment you left, which will give you the element of surprise.”

“Got it.” I gave him the thumbs up.

Magnus stepped forward and gripped the structure, and in a flash of light, we found ourselves standing inside The Circle on Gaza's platform. Through a ghostly yellow veil, I watched, as if in slow motion, as the body of Charm collapsed onto the metal floor of the platform.

Kitaya, still holding the gun, also watched him fall. She turned and looked directly at me. How did she know? An evil grin appeared on her face as she threw the pistol aside and raised her arms in surrender.

I stepped through the veil.

Gaza's face showed anger then confusion. I was dead-- and yet there I stood. At first his eyes bore into mine, but then he looked past me-- and his expression changed. “Constance?”

I turned and looked back through the veil. Constance was standing in The Circle, appearing as a little girl.

“Yes, Daddy. It's me.”

He brushed past me and stood before the veil. “Where’s your mother, sweetheart?”

“She died in the crash, Daddy. But it's okay. She is in Ethral, waiting for us.

“In Ethral?” His voice was hollow. “But-- why didn't I go with her?”

“Because, Daddy, you are still living. The living may not pass into Ethral.”

He crouched down. “Are you alive?”

“Yes. I am in Dantra.”

“Why aren't you here? I thought I drew all the souls into Vrin.”

She looked at him warmly. “You didn't draw the souls into Vrin, God sent them in to help you, so you could move beyond the pain of the void. You don't have to hold on to that pain anymore, Daddy. You don't have to hang on to your anger. God did not do this to you. It just happened. Sometimes we think because God created everything, that he is responsible for all the bad things that happen to us. But the reality is, we cause darkness and pain by making bad choices, choices that go against the will of God. But God can take even our bad choices and use them for our good.”

“I've been searching for you,” he said softly.

The little girl's eyes filled with tears. “I was but a breath away. You couldn't see me, but I was there. --For many years I blamed myself for what happened. I convinced myself that if I had stayed by the car, they would have found you quicker and rescued you. But I was afraid, and I ran away.”

As she continued to speak, she began to increase in years. “I carried the burden for such a long time, every day, cursing God for what happened. And I hid from him. I didn't want his pity, I wanted you back. But it's clear to me now, I don't have to fear. All things are working out as God promised. And you, Daddy, you have a purpose here. There's something God needs you to do. --Then someday we can be together in eternity.”

As he contemplated her words, I interjected cautiously. “Perhaps, you were meant to stop Kric' tu.”

He looked at me, then back at Constance. “Is that it? Is that what he expects from me?”

Constance closed her eyes and lifted her face toward the sky, as if in silent communication. Her eyes opened. “Yes,” she stated with certainty. “That is what you were meant to do.”

“Then come through, and I’ll do it.” His tone had changed, he sounded sincere.

“I can't enter Vrin, Daddy. And I can't go back. The fallen ones have blocked the way.”

He squinted at her. “I don't understand. You've come this far. You must come through!”

Her eyes turned down. “I'm not allowed.”

“Please don't do this to me,” he said softly.

“You have to stop Kric' tu. It is what you were created to do.”

His face contorted. “You don't understand. I can't!”

“You have to.”

“I CAN'T!” His eyes were desperate. Then, all of a sudden, a look of realization appeared on his face. “You!” he said, spinning to face Kitaya.

She took a step back.

Gaza suddenly raised his arms, causing a tide of distortion to push outward. This sent Kitaya crashing back against the railing. Energy washed over her in torrents, crushing her violently against the metal rails.

She cried out, but it was not her voice that came out of her. It was in the voice of a man! Her body vibrated and her physical form melted away in the stream of electricity. And when the energy subsided, it was not Kitaya who lay on the metal grid of the platform. It was Rath!

Gaza's eyes glared. “I'll destroy you for this!”

“Go ahead! Destroy this body! And I will become a true god.”

“Ha! Is that the lie that abomination fed you?”

“Kric' tu understands more than you ever will!”

“He's a glitch in the program. What could he possibly know that I do not? I created Vrin out of the essence of eternity.”

Rath laughed. “Fool! Vrin is a delusion. Kric' tu is the reality. You know the people of Vrin are real. I know you do! You've searched pathetically for your wife and daughter in the program you yourself created. You think you know so much, but you’re such a pathetic loser, you can't even figure out what Davata Notrals is. You don't have a clue!”

“It is also a glitch.” Gaza sneered.

Rath laughed again. “It told us everything you would do. God thought himself clever to hide future events within the very structure of his book. But we found the code, and the code breaker.”

They found Hazel?

“We can't allow you to destroy Vrin. The code revealed how we would stop you, and for now we have allowed it to be as it is written. But God will one day see that he is wrong about humanity, and his code will be useless. Then I will become a true god!”

“Not before I break your FACE!” That was Kitaya's voice.

Materializing in front of Rath, her foot recoiled and smashed him on the jaw, sending his head back with a jolt. Rath's hand shot out, bringing her to the floor with a crash. He rose above her with a clenched fist, but Kitaya's fingers became long metal pins, and he let out a blood curdling scream as she pushed them deep into his sides. He pushed himself away and blood trickled from the wounds.

Anger flared in his eyes as his fist came up again.”

“Stop!” screamed Gaza. “Or I will send you both back to the void!”

Rath's hand stopped. He looked up at Gaza. “You have no real power!”

“Test me.” Gaza leveled his eyes at him.

Rath hovered for a moment, then slowly lowered his hand. “It doesn't matter.” He rubbed his chin with his knuckles. “You’ve lost. Even now Kric' tu prepares his forces.”

I looked out across the barren plain. There was movement in the black ranks.

Gaza turned back toward his daughter. His features racked with anguish. He knew what I knew, that closing The Circle would kill her. Rath and Kric' tu had set it all up. It was in the code that I would bring her here, and now Gaza was trapped, held hostage by his love for Constance. Kric' tu was betting that Gaza would not allow his daughter to die, that he would leave The Circle open, so the forces of chaos could take over Vrin.

Gaza swung back toward Rath with a fierceness that caused both Rath and Kitaya to withdraw. “Did the book tell you I would do this?” He stretched out his hand toward them, and Rath violently erupted into a ball of flame. Gaza walked forward and hovered over the screeching burning form. “Do me a favor.” He sneered. “Say hello to Kric' tu for me.” And in a rage of inhuman strength, he shoved the burning mass through the metal railing. Like a comet, Rath plummeted and exploded on impact.

As Gaza peered over the rail at the smoldering form, the fury on his countenance was replaced by sorrow.

“LOOK!” Armadon's voice boomed out. He pointed to the distance. “THE FORCES OF KRIC' TU ADVANCE!”

Gaza looked up and calmly studied the horizon. His face was stern yet contemplative.

“It is time,” I said. “He is coming.”

Gaza spun and strode to The Circle. “You must jump through!” he yelled at his daughter.

“I told you, Daddy. I can't!”

“Why? What is preventing you?”

“I have chosen to obey God.”

“Jump through!” He begged. “I can't live without you!” he said, beating his fists fiercely against the veil. But the very structure he had created would not allow him to get through.

Constance moved in close. “I want to, Daddy,” she whispered. “You have to believe me.”

“I can save this world if you come through.” He pleaded. “If I close The Circle you will die.”

“I will see you in Ethral.” Her chin quivered. “Promise you will come home to me.”

“I don't know how,” he whispered, pressing his forehead against the barrier.

“Mom sent me here with a message for you,” she said, her voice sounding surreal. “She said to tell you, you are a great man, and that great men must make great sacrifices. I know this is hard for you, but seek first the things of God, and he will give you what you need. Stop fighting, Daddy. Stop fighting-- and come home.”

His expression was one of pure anguish as he turned and ran back to the railing. The army of darkness filled the horizon, completely surrounding us now. Soon we would be overtaken. Racked with emotion, he stared intently at the approaching horde. He knew there was no way to destroy Vrin without killing Constance. He also knew that sealing The Circle would do the same.

“You can't take them,” I said, reading his thoughts. “There are too many.”

He scowled at me. “I have resources the others do not.”

“These creatures use the energy of The Circle. They are very powerful this close to the source.”

Gaza's eyes burned emerald in their sockets. “We shall see.”

He lifted his hands into the air and the earth quaked as a wall pushed up from the ground between the advancing enemy and our position. It encircled the entire structure. But an awful song filled the air, and instantly holes began appearing across the surface.

Gaza wiggled his fingers, and the ground became a sea of green acid. The creatures screamed as they entered the liquid, but again an awful song arose, and they began to sprout wings and take to the air.

Gaza waved his hand. All of the strands around the structure appeared as thin razor sharp wires. The strands stretched from the green acrid lake below to the now darkened sky above.

The demons wailed as the strands cut them to shreds. But there arose yet another song, and the black creatures phased into energy. Their faint outlines melted into each other, creating a dense dark cloud.

He tried again and again to thwart their advance, but they were no longer in phase with Vrin. Being this close to the power of The Circle gave them the ability to travel like apparitions through whatever Gaza threw at them.

He was becoming more frustrated.

I spoke in a calming voice. “Gaza. Your wife lives on in Ethral, and your daughter has turned toward the light as well. The question is, are you willing to give up Constance, to do what is right? Kric' tu cannot be allowed to take Vrin, it would have eternal implications. You can stop him.”

I watched as the darkness grew closer and closer. I wanted to take action. I could set things in motion to destroy Kric' tu and his army-- but the ring on my finger gave a gentle squeeze, reminding me that it was not my decision to make.

As I stood waiting, everything suddenly came together, and I understood! This was all a set up! God knew exactly what would happen. He’d brought me here because he foresaw every choice I would make. He knew the choices each and every one of us would make, and he brought it all together. I trusted now. It would happen, just as it was written. Because God said so. And God was never wrong.

Gaza turned and strode back to The Circle. He reached out and touched the veil gently. “Promise me I will see you in Ethral,” he said softly. It was clear in his tone, that he had made up his mind.

A single tear streaked down his daughter’s cheek. “I love you, Daddy,” she whispered.

His face hardened with grief. “I love you too, baby.”

He turned and raised his hands into the air. The sky shook. The Circle of Ghosts shimmered and shuddered. For a moment, eternity held its breath. Then all at once, The Circle collapsed in upon itself, causing a violent shock wave to erupt from the structure. It ripped through the ranks of the enemy. After reaching its full distance, it drew back like an undertow. Below The Circle a whirlpool began to form. The energy of Dantra was being drawn out of Vrin. Like black sand, the dark figures began to come apart and were swept into the funnel of energy below.

Soon The Circle would be sealed, just as the scripture had predicted.

I stood over Gaza and my form tore away as the whirlpool of energy pulled at it, for I too was made from the energy of Dantra.

The creator of Vrin fell to the ground, weeping bitterly. His daughter was gone. But now he had a new hope, a hope that one day he would be reunited with her in Ethral. “God forgive me,” he sobbed.

It was then that I noticed a ring forming on his finger. He looked at it with surprise.

I smiled. “It is the very seal of God.”

He lifted his hand and examined it closely. There was an inscription upon it.

It read, “Come home.”