Epilogue
In which the curtain falls for the performance. See you next time!
GOD
The tide was coming in. The little girl looked as her creations, knowing that this time she would not be able to rebuild. She knew that this time everything would wash away. She knew the world was ending. For you see, that little girl was me.
The so-called "Christian" apocalypse depicts me and by extension Jesus getting super-pissed with humanity and never forgiving them. I'd like to take a moment her and explain that no part of this is what I want or had anything to do with what I inspired the writers of the rest of the Bible to say. My book was inspired word but Revelation was man-made fiction, less even than what you are reading this very moment. It was a fantasy of revenge by very petty people, written after most of their friends died senseless and their temple was destroyed. But you see, I gave them plenty of warnings. After Jesus died, I visited on those who loved and cared for them the truth about what happens after death. They saw Jesus return. They saw Jesus appear in different forms, free from restraints of the physical reality. And they saw the power of the Holy Spirit, as they themselves lost fear of death. They were empowered and able to do miracles.
On the other hand, the Romans and the Jews abhorred my message, and tried to bury it under nonsense. The Jews that rejected me were experiencing several signs, which were recorded in the Talmud. The doors of the temple swung open, signifying that Jerusalem would be under threat of attack. The light of the temple traditionally had one candle that did not need to be relit, but now it was not lasting the night. The lot cast for the sacrifice continually went to scapegoat. And when they did make an offering anyway, the cloth stayed red instead of turning white. All of this meant something had fundamentally changed about how atonement worked, and more importantly that for the time being I wasn't putting up with their shit. Sorry, language.
Oh yes, I could get plenty mad at my creations. I was mad enough sometimes to punish them, after all. But no part of me getting mad involved destroying the entire world. And tossing a bunch of people into a lake of fire? That's what you might want for your worst enemy. But my eye is on even the sparrow. At every moment, I had to care about every living thing from the tiniest bird that chirped as it was dying. And I told the Jews that I loved them and I meant it. Just like a jilted girlfriend, I might do the equivalent of slashing tires. I helped Carrie Underwood write Before He Cheats, after all... especially some of the destruction effects in the music video. I also helped Sara Bareilles write Love Song for that matter, which has nothing to do with romance by the way. It's about her sadistic managers who kept pushing her to produce, and drawing a parallel between an abusive boyfriend and crappy managers.
So why was the world ending? I mean, right now, I wasn't particularly mad, and I wasn't more depressed than normal. Well, it's simple. Just look around you. Plants drop their leaves or fruits or otherwise during certain times of the year. The most notable example is autumn, where all deciduous trees lose foliage. There are cycles to the season, but there are also cycles to life and death. And even I must eventually die so that something new might be born. That was the Oracle cycle.
You're shocked, I can see. But consider this passage, "For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face." And this one, "And it shall come to pass in that day, you shall call me My Husband, and shall not call me anymore: My Lord." It was never my intention to be some aloof omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent being that just kinda sat around waiting for human prayers. But for that to happen, this world and everything about it has to die and be reborn. Like birds, plants, or people, even the Earth itself, everything must go. The humans will be sent to the Afterlife, and then Jesus will be how God is seen after that. If this seems out of nowhere, I've been dropping small hints to this effect for years. For example this was hinted in the hit video game series Lunar, which was re-released as Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, Lunar: Silver Star Story Touch, and Lunar: Silver Star Harmony. It also had a sequel Lunar: Eternal Blue, but never mind that for now (and there was Lunar: Dragon Song but really never mind that, as it is considered one of the worst JRPGs ever). The main girl turns out to be the goddess Althena, who decided to be made mortal to spend her life around other humans rather than them fighting over prayers. I'd like to believe that this series had some sort of reincarnation going on, though. I've always been partial to the idea that while our lives are precious, I can see the people I meet in some form at a later time, that nothing is lost, everything is transformed. There was also Magic Knight Rayearth, a quirky anime where the main characters are teleported from Tokyo Tower in Japan to a land of will known as Cephiro. In it, the Pillar rules everything as an all-powerful king or queen. But the Pillar cannot fall in love, because when they do, everything crumbles. So they send the Magic Knights to basically assassinate them, and nobody from Cephiro can do the job. The second season is about a struggle for succession as Pillar, in which one of the Magic Knights turns out to be the new Pillar candidate. She decides, however, that what she wants is to abolish the Pillar system and give the power to all the people who love Cephiro. The series ends as they want to visit Cephiro one last time, this time as historians. Having a loved one for each of them certainly helps too.
While Jesus coexisted with me and the Holy Spirit, there was this concept of the Trinity that nobody understood. But ultimately, I intended to revert the Holy Spirit to the power of human prayer, and have my son Jesus run things more directly. The tide began to churn. Very soon, all things will end and renew again.
AMBROSIA
I finished the steps required to release the Tao. I was glad that it managed to work, as things were very scary there for a moment. Jesus had already split my body through his actions into three separate bodies, myself, my dark side who insisted now that she wasn't dark at all but a shadow, or an "elucidation" as she liked to call it (referencing the fact that a shadow only appears when light shines on it, just as a good explanation "shines a light" on misunderstandings) or "Lucy", and the shadow of the part of me that astral projected as God. But to be honest, I think this name was chosen purely because of its similarity to a film by the same name where the heroine is a sort of goddess character.
But I think some part of me must not have wanted that anymore, wanted to abdicate as God in order that someone better was in charge, because now that body lay there empty of my soul. I didn't want the memories of the past that came from omniscience, and I definitely didn't want confusing images of the future. Omnipotence was a temptation to abuse power, and I increasingly learned that I was never cut out to be more than a regular human anyway. Doing things for myself meant I screwed up my life, no matter how much power I had. And all of this was before I used my power to murder Estheriel in cold blood. I think I must have also subconsciously wished that, because now my dark side was fully-formed and I couldn't merge her back into me. Now that I was emotionally healthy again, that should have been a simple matter. Was it just me, or did her skin have a sort of glow?
But the main thing we wanted to use the Tao for had been accomplished. Jesus's body had split in two. There was Rena and Jesus standing next to each other, two foxgirls straight out of a Doublemint commercial. However, you could easily tell them apart when they talked. Jesus was soulful and serious, while Rena was a frisky foxy lady with pretty high sex drive, who was suddenly looking pretty lonely.
I expected the Tao to disappear as it did its job, but it started to rotate on its own, giving off a Resonance that didn't seem to have anything to do with me. Normally , when I used the Tao, there was a sort of connection between myself and whatever I was trying to do, but right now I felt no connection to what was happening. It was like the Tao decided to resonate itself. What a mysterious force it was.
After watching it for a few minutes, I made a conjecture. When reviving Rena by giving Jesus a spare body, it had picked up on her desires. The Tao seemed to heal by splitting or transferring, so I let it do its thing. And its thing was to transfer a soul into God's empty body. Now Alicia had what was my body, but it had become the body of a cute and rather feminine guy. As I liked Nevras, I could see why Alicia had so much appeal to Rena.
Alicia looked like he hadn't shaved though. He was definitely presenting as male right now. And he was naked, having been remade as an adult from leftover parts from me. Rena looked him over, blushed, and pounced on him. "Alright then," she said, "You've been outside a real body for far too long. We need to give you a makeover." Rena shaved his arms, legs, chest, and face. She tucked Alicia's guy parts away, and put her in some nice lingerie and boots. She waxed Alicia's eyebrows, did her makeup, and slipped her into a long green dress, and permed her hair. By the end of this, Alicia looked vaguely like Fuu Hououji.
After Alicia was looking fully dressed and fabulous, Jesus explained though that the New Earth wouldn't last much longer. He explained, "The world would end eventually so it's no big deal, but I predict will probably end in only a few generations. All of you had better live your lives to the fullest. Hey, that's good advice anyway, I suppose!"
Elias, Azrael, Zoe, Aqorm, Yazim Jianne, and Selqui had been by my side for much of this time. I was in a coma after all. "Is there anything we can do?" asked Elias, concerned? If there were people that could help, it was Yazim Jianne, Selqui, and Elias. All of them knew advanced magical theory, and had studied a number of disciplines over the course of their lives. Aqorm, not so much, I think. Jesus looked at the group, and pointed, "You and you, the rest, no." To our surprise, Jesus had pointed to Azrael and Zoe. Azrael was nearly as bookish as Elias at times, but mainly only supernatural theories and methods of Exorcism, so she asked, "Why us?" To which Jesus explained, "Both of you put your lives aside to save each other. Both of you gained eternity as a result of your efforts." Zoe shook her head, "I still don't understand. Michael and Lilith..." Jesus interrupted, "Are immortal, not eternal." To this, Aqorm interrupted, "Is there are difference? I mean, I became an elf, and I wouldn't die a hundred thousand years from now."
Azrael explained, "According to Oxford Dictionary of the Supernatural, beings that are immortal cannot die of age. Beings that are invincible cannot be killed. And beings that are eternal are outside of time, having no beginning or end, and thus cannot die of old age or mot natural causes. Jackson Ward as the editor of the 5th edition theorized that there are really (at least) two tiers of eternity, greater and lesser. A lesser eternal is eternal with regard to the world they live in, but will die if it is wiped out of existence or suffers a time crisis. A greater eternal is outside not only time but regular existence, and there is nothing that will kill them outright. This is why Alicia and Ambrosia had to voluntarily give up their link to God's powers in order to transfer them over, God is a greater eternal, and also able to defy any attempts for another person to destroy him." Jesus nodded, "Yes but there's something you don't know." Jesus called the two of them over for a few moments of private discussion.
ZOE
So anyway, we went over to talk to Jesus, probably expecting that he'd tell us that Azrael's theory about eternal creatures was wrong. But instead, he asked us, "You remember hearing about the Reapers, correct?" Azrael may be bookish with glasses to go with it, but I was a bit... well, we'll say that although the Aiken monastery that raised me prized education, they also thought well of martial arts. I tended to be closer to a jock than a scholar. Not that I'm stupid or anything, but I immediately said, "I have no idea what you are talking about, and I am proud of this fact." Azrael explained, "The Reapers are eternal beings that are supposed to have come about just after God created light. Is this accurate?" Jesus nodded, praising her, "You have done your research. And it's surprising, because I wasn't aware that any written records existed of the history of Reapers." Azrael explained, "Some time during our journey, I forget when, Ambrosia accidentally opened a portal to the Unseen World. We met several Reapers in this room, one of which was named Rinne. She made enough of an impression on Ambrosia that Tamashii's middle name is Rinne. Anyway, after seeing these beings, I did personal research, and tracked them down myself."
Jesus appeared deep in thought, "Then I suppose explaining this will be easier. The two of you are the reincarnations of these eternal beings. Specifically, you are Seishii, Reaper of Life. And you are Yomi, the Reaper of Death." He pointed to us so quickly that I'm not sure I got it straight, so I asked him again, "Which of us is which?" Jesus said, "You are Yomi, Reaper of Death. And you are Seishii, Reaper of Life." This time, I think he got us mixed up, because he pointed the same way despite starting in a different order. In any case, he continued his explanation, "You two were around since all of existence was made. You were eternal before you were granted the secret of eternity. You existed throughout all time and space to assist in all births and deaths. Then you fell in love with each other, and became bound in a cycle of birth and death yourself." He quickly explained the events of Tales from the Reaper, including God's relationship with the Reaper known as Rinne. I asked, "So does this mean that you're dating Rinne? I mean,God is you, right?" He gave us some vague answer about time-space and the semblance versus actualizing of divinity, all while blushing profusely. I think what he meant was that he was sorta God, but not in the same way Ambrosia was, not yet anyway. So he couldn't date Rinne until... something happened.
"So anyway," Jesus said, "when all of created existence falls apart, you will survive. And unlike before, you'll be humans, not Reapers. But in terms of preventing the end of the world, no, I don't think you'll be able to help there. You will be there to teach the first new humans what's what, thought. As will I." There was a long pause, as we tried to process this information. Azrael asked, "So there is nothing that we can do about everything ending? What if you give us divine power?" Jesus shook his head, "If I gave you divine power, Conservation of Magic states that such power could be no more than the power I gave. Even if it was infinite, it's like the difference between an infinite number of fractions and an infinite number of multiples of two. That something is unlimited doesn't mean the portion also added would be greater than the sum of the parts. This rule is why I have struggled with being alone for all of my existence. You humans can't become equal to God. At least, I don't think so. The best God could manage was making you in his image and giving you limitless potential. But it's not like it's the end of the world either..." I spoke up, "Isn't that exactly what it is? The world is quite literally ending."
He clarified, "No, I mean, it's not as big a deal as all of that. Everything in existence goes in cycles. I was one with God in the Garden of Eden. I spoke with you humans directly. Then after Eden and knowing good and evil, you began to distinguish things as part of God ("good") or not part of God ("evil"). As if there is such a thing. Then people were so confused that I was born of a woman to tell them what was what. I wound up being hung for my trouble, but I made that work too. I was a kind of collective spirit called the Body of Christ for awhile, speaking indirectly to you humans over the generations. Then Rena gave me her body, and well, here we are now. All things that are eternal go through different changes or cycles, you guys, the Earth, me. The New Earth will die, and the Earth will become something else. Things that are eternal constantly adjust. But there is something you can do, come to think of it..."
TAMASHII
They were being boring, so I watched The Big O using mother's Tablet. She wasn't catatonic anymore, but surely it wouldn't affect reality too much to binge watch a show outside of time. And from the sounds of the discussion with Zoe and Jesus, it wouldn't be needed very much longer. And so I watched the full 26 episodes in under a second, before I returned it to Mom's purse. I don't think she ever realized I'd taken it.
The story, if you've never seen this anime, is on the surface pretty straightforward.. Roger is a man living in noir city called Paradigm, where nobody seems remember history before 40 years. But the surface isn't really how things are. We find out that one of the characters is a robot, and the main character is a clone or something, and that nothing even existed before 40 years because the story is actually a script or something. The director, a girl named Angel, wants to scrap the entire thing and start over. In the end, he "negotiates" the script, talking her out of the repeat she intends. The story does indeed reset, but it is a reset not a repeat. The moral of the story being that life goes on, and we learn and grow from things instead of mind-numbingly being stuck in the same patterns. And that a story, even if the result is the same, is totally different based on tone. I thought if the difference between the universe eventually having to restart because it is old and stale, versus some concept like Jesus judging all creation based on arbitrary morals, and I understood the distinction. Likewise for eternity. An eternity alone or with someone you hate would be torture, while getting to spend all existence with those we love might be wonderful (at least, for as long as we continue to love them). Any story, whatever happens, is all tone.
When I was done, Jesus told me, "Careful with that thing. Long periods of television will turn your eyes into little boxes." I glared at him, thinking he was being a busybody, but he had a smirk on his face. He was only teasing me.
AMBROSIA
Azrael and Zoe came back after discussing something with Jesus. I never found out what they talked about, but in any case, Alicia and Rena called me over to discuss something of their own. Then Azrael and Zoe walked up to me on the other side of Rena. "We need to transfer the power of the Oracle over to Jesus!" both groups exclaimed at the same time. I smiled, "Okay, no need to shout at me. But I do want some kind of explanation," only to get both groups talking at once, "one at a time, please." I had them sit down in a circle, only talking when they stood up. I didn't believe in raised hands.
Zoe went first, "Jesus told us that he needed the power of the Oracle and the power of God." I prompted her, "Did he say why?" She suddenly sat back down. "Okay, Alicia," I pointed to her, "Why should give my powers to Jesus? I mean, you literally just got back, and already you're wanting to give up your power and telling me to do the same." She stood up, and answered, "Well, this was my thoughts on the matter, and you can correct me if I'm wrong. I now have God's body, and the powers of the Oracle. I'm first in line for the 'throne'. You're second. You don't want it, right? From what I saw, watching as a spirit until I got my body back, you had a lot of really bad things happen to you, and can't handle that kind of role. I mean, you already had a breakdown where your daughter had to find a rare fruit for you to recover. And I don't want it. Rena and I would have similar lifespans on this Earth since we'd both be immortal, but after the New Earth is destroyed, I'd be eternal and thus survive, but she'd kinda sorta... not. Whatever Jesus plans to do, I trust him. Just as I trusted God enough to sacrifice my life those years ago to help out demons." I blinked, "Okay, I get what you're saying, but I'm a little dubious about your decision-making process when you say that you actually deliberately lost against Belial."
Alicia explained, "I guess a lot of people think of good as triumphing over evil. But when I look at two people fighting, I really have trouble saying that one of these is good and the other is bad. Well, unless one is torturing the other or something. So the whole cackling witch that says something like, 'Ahh! After 10,000 years I'm free! It's time to conquer Earth'? No, it doesn't seem realistic. That poor witch was trapped in a jar for centuries. Of course she'd be right to seek justice against those who mistreated her in the past." I'm not sure I bought what Alicia was saying, but it was an interesting idea. In any case, while I ultimately did away with Belial, I had to admit that his hometown in Hell has gotten a lot better. Lilith took over Hell and set up a great deal of reforms. It became a haven where demons would not be harmed by outsiders, hurt each other, or hurt outsiders. The place was still depraved, but it was run by demons after all. And I had noticed that more of them seemed to have developed souls, or some form of restraint.
Oh well. I suppose everyone deserves a happy ending. Kinda like in that show Once Upon A Time, in the last season where they all ate together in the last season. "That wasn't the last season," Jesus interrupted, clearly reading my mind, "that was the second-to-last season. The last season had Hyperion Heights and..." I shushed him, as he was speaking nonsense, and I did some thinking.
I had always thought I had everything that I wanted. I had a guy with a hot body that would fit into a better dress than I could wear. I had a cute little girl with a spunky attitude, and a pretty good head on my shoulders. But there was always something that nagged me, and I couldn't figure out what it was. And then I finally realized. Becoming an Oracle had helped me meet Nevras, and the work I had done to dispose of creatures had helped me out of poverty. But I had always been unable to do certain things. Like, before I was Oracle, I had latent potential to be one, and more importantly I had God's power buried deep inside. This made me a rare creation who couldn't pray for God's blessing, could even get a bit of good luck, and I couldn't in fact be a farmer. The reason I wanted to be a farmer, come to think of it, was that it was hard for me. Because it was a normal thing that normal people did. But I usually needed Nevras to help, because things that I planted took forever to grow. Not that I didn't want his help, but I wanted to work with him, and not have a sense that I was dragging him down.
After a pause, I said, "Okay. But we'll need to work together, Alicia. I've never done any of my powers with another Oracle of Tao before. You know what you're doing?" She nodded.
We tried using the Tao together, but the first time, the harmonic quality of Resonance was off. I was too slow, and she was done too fast. Something about premature rotation. And so I coached her to go slower, to try to match the rhythm of my body. We followed through with the motions, and the more we did so, the more in sync we became. Eventually, we climaxed, and two yin-yang circles spun into each other. Like two singers in a concert, the Resonance combined, and soon there was one big Tao over all the world. Alicia and I collapsed to the ground. I could definitely tell. My powers were gone. Oh, I still had the training from before, and could dodge or use martial arts. And that freakish rock pushing technique was still with me. But I had not an ounce of Oracle power. Which ironically meant that now I could probably learn magic from Elias or Zoe, because the power of the Oracle always prevented me from doing that. It also screwed with my ability to do farming, giving me a seriously brown thumb for planting things. Nevras and most of the population could plant something and watch it grow immediately, but I never had that happen to me before. I could tell that I wasn't God anymore, and I could tell that Jesus was. His floating in midair while Easter lilies bloomed below him was kind of a giveaway. But maybe that's just me.
He settled down to the Earth, and looked at us as we examined ourselves, "From now on, all living beings will live as long or as short as they desire. There will be no standards of lifespan. You can live as long or short as you wish, whether human or fox or mermaid or even angel. But no longer will there be any immortals. Even angels and demons can die of old age. These beings have lived a long time and done many duties for me, and it's time for them to rest. No longer will people pray to a distant God but I will be there directly for any who need me. I won't force anyone to worship me, you will have the right to believe as you wish. But I am everywhere that you need me." He was talking to us, but I later discovered that people even in Gruumi could hear this pronouncement. He was standing in from of them as easily as he was standing in front of us. It wasn't a holographic projection either. One little demon tried to tickle him as he made this speech in Hell, and he stopped the speech to chase them around before continuing, making that particular speech off sync with the rest. Jesus continued to speak to the entire New Earth, "However, all should know that when Ambrosia and Alicia transferred all their powers to me, the New Earth was damaged from the massive Resonance of the Tao, and will cease to be in a few generations. The Earth would have continued for several more eons if she didn't, but it was my desire to make a newer New Earth, simply called Earth." Wait, so he made us do this knowing that the New Earth would last much longer if we didn't?!? He continued, "I am sorry, everyone. But I will heal the sick, raise the dead, and banish the demons while this world exists. After that, all of you will go to the Afterlife, to be reborn in the world that will be made next." And with that, he walked away to do his mission. Over the years to come, Jesus visited us in many forms. But unlike the other two versions of the Oracle of Tao, he used his power to heal, not to fight. Even though Jesus could bust heads, it really wasn't his style.
NEVRAS
I remembered what happened in one reality. Ambrosia became God because she healed Estheriel, and her form was so radiant that I had a heart attack and to all appearances died. When I awoke, I was Beyond All Things with Ambrosia, a Saint in her presence. And my spiritual body reformed into that of a woman named Nevrasia. To be honest, I liked it better that way. I remember yawning, “I'm kinda tired. What will we do tomorrow? How about a date?” Ambrosia responded, “I'd love to. Let's meet near Phoenix. At around nine...” But that date would never happen now.
Or so I thought. As it turned out, it was fully as easy for her to arrange a date at Phoenix at nine o'clock as a mortal as it was when she was God. The only was that we had to sail there from Kushiyama instead of just appearing there. We were only going for a shopping trip, and maybe to grab some coffee. We were originally going with just the two of us, but Tamashii insisted that we would be regarded as irresponsible parents if she wasn't allowed to travel with them.
On the way into town, we noticed Rena and Alicia shopping for wedding dresses. Alicia was actually a guy, I suppose, but everyone likes to look pretty for their wedding. Alicia picked an off-shoulder column wedding dress for a simple but effective feminine shape, while Rena picked a ball gown since she didn't want to try to keep her tails transformed. They gave us invitations, and we took them up on this later. Even though we had met only in time to destroy the New Earth, for the rest of our lives we remained friends. I got to see them vow to be together for as long as both shall live. But this is a story for another day, I suppose.
We shopped around town, but we didn't get very far before seeing Jesus himself hanging out with some red-haired girl. She was definitely not human though. She was wearing a large golden hooded robe and carrying a scythe. I recognized her immediately by her height, which was roughly double mine. "Rinne! Is that you?" We had a short conversation, where Rinne introduced me to Jesus (who I already kinda knew), and we talked about how they met. Originally, she had hooked up with God, but then God kinda became Jesus so that sorta changed their relationship a bit, I guess. We eventually ran out of things to talk about for now, as I realized it was someone difficult to relate to her because I was now a mortal, while she and Jesus were eternal. Unlike Zoe and Azrael, who behaved as regular humans, Rinne was a bit awkward, since her job involved a like of weird things like sealing away gaps between dimensions or dealing with spirits. She was sweet though, and Jesus more than made up for her awkwardness around people.
Eventually we had enough of meeting family and friends though, and we decided to head to another area to have our lunch. Jesus mentioned a pretty good spot, and wrote some directions on a sheet of paper. From there, it is only a short hike to the cafe. I remember it from my childhood, so I knew it was a good recommendation.
"I still don't see why you brought me here," Ambrosia said. I pulls her inside anyway. "Relax," I said, "the food is great, and there are African, Asian, and European restaurants nearby. It's a regular slice of the old Earth here." Ambrosia argued, "How did you find this place anyway? I mean, we had to walk to the middle of nowhere, through some swamps and thickets. Couldn't you have gone to another town?"
I shook my head, "This lady makes the best coffee ever. It's like your coffee, only if you'd had thousands of years to perfect the art. And her churros are to die for! And it seems like everyone who attends her cafe gets helped out in a major way." Ambrosia scowled at me, "Didn't you say you'd only been here once and that was when you were a child? A lot can change over the years. This lady is probably old by know and no longer remembers how to cook." Ambrosia entered the store with me and started screaming. Tamashii follows behind, as she asked, "What are you two carrying on about, have you even ordered something for me... Aaaaaaaah!!!" For she saw that this cafe had mirror images of her parents working at the counter. The employee and the owner seemed unfazed by all this screaming. They asked, "What can I get you?" I quickly realized that these were an alternate reality version of myself and God. In this version of the events, Ambrosia became God and after our nine o'clock date, we lived all eternity until time looped in on itself, then we set up a coffee shop in the past. Damned parallel universes.
Ambrosia ordered a scone with little nuts and a couple of chopped up rose petals on top for decoration. I ordered a garden salad and some tea. Tamashii ordered a slice of pizza with anchovies and a strawberry milkshake. The barista sliced fresh strawberries to put on top. I remember Tamashii asking Ambrosia to make it like this more than once. We thanked them and left.
AMBROSIA
Time passed. Lucy was pregnant with Nevras's child, who I guess was technically my second child. But I was so totally jealous of myself. Why did she get to snuggle up to my baby while I was in a catatonic coma thingy? But I gradually lost my jealousy and decided to make up with her, right around the time when her water broke and I saw the kid. I felt more sympathy than jealousy at that point. She named her Yami (meaning "darkness") for she was black. No, not black as in African (or POS, whatever they call them now to be politically correct), I mean her child was quite literally as black as sin, with jet black eyes and no white part (sclera). She was a feral child, and Jesus explained that the sin of killing Estheriel in one version had been taken from me and been given to Lucy's child. "I never expected her to have a kid," Jesus confessed, "so I figured it would be okay to transfer all that darkness into her womb." I asked Jesus to fix Yami, but Jesus explained that these things had to play out naturally. "A lot of things I can heal," Jesus said, "but some things I shouldn't heal." I was outraged, but put up it it. I guess he seemed what he knew what he was doing.
More years passed. Lilith had finally found a place where she belonged in Hell, but it was a part of Hell that she had built herself just outside the main town, using a tree from Heaven known as a Mana Tree. The tree sucked darkness from the land around it, creating a downright pleasant area where both Aqorm and Michael agreed to live with her. Michael had retired, leaving his duties to Estheriel. She was a bit overzealous, but she appeared to enjoy her duties. The rest of the group also seemed happy, finding various ways to live out their lives.
Yami grew into a pretty feral boy, but it wasn't as bad as all that. Tamashii's friend Portia seemed to have left for awhile, and instead there was this boy named Bakamaru that hung around to play with Tamashii all the time. I expected Sastraneth to decide he was a prick or something, but she seemed like she knew him. Their child Rakuen was born, and despite the age gap, Yami immediately connected with Yami, and gradually the reverse became true. I was worried about how toxic Yami might be, and especially worried about the age gap and the incest part. But then, Yami also hung around Sastraneth, which was fine by me even though the age gap was even more extreme. Just ask any cougar, they'll tell you. A woman dating a younger man is perfectly fine! In any case, these two seemed to being a mellowing influence on Yami.
While all of this was going on, Tamashii had to talk to Bakamaru about something. After that, I assume Bakamaru and Tamashii broke up because I didn't see him anymore. But Portia was there constantly to cheer Tamashii up or whatever. In any case, Portia also helped Tamashii raise Rakuen, so it was all good. Tamashii, after years of feeling it from being driven out of Opening, finally felt like she belonged. She had become the archaeologist and famed researcher Tamashii Rinne d'Angeli, author of Raising a Jun'nō : a Survival Guide for New Owners, a popular bestseller. One copy somehow disappeared from the shelves though, making it into a library in the past.
Eventually it happened. Yami hurt Rakuen, and Rakuen declared they were so over. She never wanted to see him again, and used her barrier powers to arrange just that. With a magical equivalent of a restraining order, she removed herself from Yami's reality. Even if Yami was sitting right next to her, he couldn't see or hear her. Sastra tried to cheer him up, but he wouldn't stop crying. As he cried, black tears dripped from his body. Before, he was borderline psychopathic and incapable of remorse, but now, if only because he lost her, he was able to understand remorse. The black tears disappeared into a puddle that vortexed into somewhere unknown, while Yami's skin and hair lightened. His skin was the same color as Nevras, and his hair was the logical mix of Ambrosia's and Nevras's, a soft green (not like Tamashii's weird purple hair). His eyes were last to turn normal, moving from solid black to a white sclera with a dark brown iris. As Sastraneth continued to try to cheer Yami up, over the next ten years, they became a couple. Rakuen found her own partner too, don't worry. But I'm sure you're wondering, what happened to all that darkness released by Yami?
BELIAL
These humans. Despite my plans to destroy them again and again, I never could find enough darkness to snuff them out for good. I needed something truly dark, like a massive pool of darkness... Yes, exactly like that pool of darkness bubbling up from the ground! With this, I could craft Statues of Darkness to place at five key points to corrupt the Earth. Soon, my plans would come to fruition. I would have a land suitable for demons. And those two pesky nuisances, Rena and Alicia... well, I'd get rid of them too.
JESUS
The tide was indeed rising. Any day now, and even now coming, the tide would wash everything away. Time was passing quickly now, and reality was breaking down, to be replaced with symbols and dream imagery.
While you wait for the end, I shall tell you a parable. Long ago, there was an old bamboo cutter and his wife. One day, while cutting, the bamboo cutter found a shining stalk of bamboo. When he cut it open, inside there was a baby girl. As the old man and woman had no children, he decided to take her home to his wife. They named her Princess Kaguya. From that day onward, when he cut open bamboo, he'd find a small piece of gold inside each bamboo stalk. And so, the family became rich. As she grew, she became very beautiful, and news of her beauty spread to neighboring kingdoms. Five princes came and asked for her hand in marriage. But the girl actually loved her parents, and was not interested. So she set challenges to them, she met with each separately and asked them to bring a rare treasure. To the first, she asked to go to India and retrieve the great stone bowl of the Buddha. The second price was assigned to bring a branch from the jewel trees that grew on the floating mountains of Hourai. The third prince was to bring a robe made from the skins of the fire rats. The fourth was to bring a shell which swallows kept hidden in their nests. And the fifth was told to bring a jewel from the sea dragon.
The first prince was lazy and had a bad heart. He didn't go anywhere near India. He bought a large bowl from a potter, and dressed it up to look fancy. Then he delayed his return, saying that he was taking a long time getting back from India. Sakuya was no appraiser, but could recognize such an obvious fake. It had no spiritual power. When she received the bowl, she was so unimpressed she would not even see him, for although there was plenty of decoration to it, it had no heart.
The second one tried to trick her. He didn't believe Hourai existed (even though I happen to know it does exist, having met immortals that come from here), and so he hired three artisans to make it. Unlike the first artifact, this was made with love and care. It was more than a trinket, it was enchanted with permanent runes so that it would grow like a tree and drop green gemstones whenever it lost a leaf, and bloomed red gem flowers. Unfortunately, it was not the prince's love and care that made this relic. She was impressed with this, and was considering honoring her agreement when she noticed the artisans were squatting outside her place. After asking them what they doing, the truth came out. She likewise dismissed this man, but paid the artisans well for their efforts.
The third prince was very earnest and genuine in his love. He used all of his money, influence, and effort in order to find it, finally discovering it in China. And indeed, it was what it claimed to be. He fought these fire rats in a distant land of supernatural beings, and sewed a fine fireproof robe of their skin (as as fine as a robe made from the fur of rats can be. When it was put in the fire, it shined like silver and became bright instead of burning. But the bright robe attracted a dog demon, who gave it to his half-breed son. The man wrote a letter describing the events. When Sakuya read it, she could tell his feelings for her were true, and she considered marrying him after all. But he had left in shame, never to return.
The fourth prince was a brute of a man. He threatened and coerced others to do it for him. Many of them got hurt as they were pecked by swallows defending their nests. The man tried to do it himself. He climbed a large tree where one was rumored to be, grabbing his hand into the nest and shoving birds eggs out of the nest as he reached for the shell. The swallows became so angry that they all pecked his hand, and he fell to his death. Sakuya received news of his death, but having met him before, she didn't miss him. Of the five artifacts, this one was the only one not particularly rare, but she knew it would be too difficult for him, given his aggressive nature.
The last prince was a great coward. He went with his men on a ship in order to look for the dragon jewel, but as soon as a storm came up, he declared that the dragon was displeased with his quest. He set out towards land and the storm died down. But the prince never went to sea again.
Many years passed and Kaguya-hime took very good care of her old father and mother. The mother and father finally realized why Kaguya-hime had asked the princes to do such impossible things and that Kaguya-hime had just wanted to stay with her parents. And Kaguya-hime knew that if she refused to marry them, they might be offended and hurt her family. And as each day passed, Kaguya-hime would grow more beautiful, kind, and gentle. Eventually when she was 20 years old her mother died and she became very sad. And whenever the full moon rose, she would go and weep.
One evening, Kaguya was sitting on a balcony, looking at the moon and crying a great deal. Her adopted father asked her what was wrong. She revealed that she had discovered was actually the princess of the moon, and she was sent down to help take care of them, but that eventually she would have to leave. By the next full moon, she said, people of the moon would come to take her back.
Her father became concerned about this, and so he spent most of his money to ask the emperor to station guards around her house. He set up archers in watchtowers, pyrotechnics experts, and all manner of troops. The old bamboo cutter went home cheerful but Kaguya was sadder than ever. Kaguya visited her father in his bed on the night the full moon would come. He said to her, "I see now why you must go. It is because I am going too. Thank you my daughter for all the happiness you have brought to us." After that, he closed his eyes, and he was dead.
It was time for her to go, and the people of the moon came for her. But the emperor's guards refused to release her. They drew their weapons waiting for a great battle. Yet no battle came. A line of light like a bridge reached from heaven to earth and down this bridge came many soldiers with shining armor. The light turned emperor’s soldiers to stone and they could not do anything against them. Kaguya went to the leader of these heavenly visitors and said that she was ready. The leader handed her a cup with the elixir of immortality and she drank from it and she would no longer be mortal. She would become a princess of the moon and live on forever. It is said that now and then when a white wreath of smoke that curls around Mount Fuji, that a floating bridge to that city in the moon can be seen in the sky.
And this is the meaning of the parable. In our life, we have good times and bad times. But eventually we have to die when it is our time. Attempting to live forever through mysticism or science is nonsense. Things eventually do end, and if God gives us immortality or a short life, this is how things are. That isn't to say we should just say be fatalist, if our swimming pool turns into a breeding ground for mosquitoes because we didn't bother to clean it, if our yard turns overgrown, this is not God's doing. We do our work in this life, and when it's time to go, we have no attachments and no regrets. I remember it was like this when I was on the cross. And this was what happened now.
Ambrosia was a good kid, but she'd made some choices that really hurt her. In this life, the idea that sin is something that God judges us because is wrong. Ultimately, when we sin, we hurt ourselves. Ambrosia was not being punished here, she had already created karmic debt with all the fighting she had done. It was important for her to struggle, because she managed to find a way out of poverty, but the creatures she hurt caused her pain nonetheless. Likewise, I did not come to condemn the world. But it did have to end at some point, and it seemed fitting that it end for a good cause. Like with Kaguya dying at the same time as her parents, there was no ill intent behind this destruction. It just seemed like the right time for this sort of thing to happen.
The tides came in, and swept away all of the sand houses. It swept away all of the sand. It even knocked over the little girl, but she was a good swimmer. Then she got up, and all around her was the waters of a deep Void. Only, the girl wasn't the same anymore. Eventually, the waters receded, and there was land again. The was sky. There was a sun and moon. And there was the Earth again. It was peopled with primitive people, but these people were different from Adam and Eve. They had God in their heart. They worshiped as they pleased. I didn't really care what they believed, just so long as they took good care of the Earth and each other. They knew the little girl. They knew me.
THE CURTAIN
Rena, Alicia, Ambrosia, Nevras, Tamashii, Elias, Aqorm, Sastraneth, Portia, Yazim Jianne, Michael, Lilith, Selqui, Lao Tzu, and all the children from this trilogy stood upon the stage. So did Zoe and Azrael, and Jesus and Rinne, though they stood slightly apart from everyone else. Asmodeus, Satan, Estheriel, and Belial came from stage left, and walked being the main cast. Various kings, parents, and so on filled the rest of the stage. The stage was unlike any earthly stage, for the inside of the building was a white monochrome, with even the air appearing a misty white color. The audience were billions upon billions of souls, all of which were destined for the Afterlife after the clapping was done, if they had not already made it their home. Ambrosia and Nevras bowed together, followed by Tamashii, and they held hands and walked down toward the audience. They faded away into the crowd. Elias and Aqorm bowed together, then Elias walked off alone. Aqorm bowed with Lilith, then she too walked off while Lilith bowed once more with Michael. These two walked off separately. Yazim Jianne had a former wife nearby, she bowed with him, then Selqui bowed with Yazim Jianne, and they walked off together, carrying several strange lifeforms behind them. Sastraneth bowed with Portia, but then Portia ran off stage as if to catch up with Tamashii. The villains bowed together, and each walked of separately. Lastly most of the other characters just waved and left in loose crowds. Lao Tzu blended in with one of the crowds, so as not to make a fuss. Soon only Zoe and Azrael was still on stage with Jesus and Rinne. Zoe wanted to thank the academy, but nobody bothered to stick around. The audience had decided the play was over, apparently. The curtain closed. They returned to the Afterlife, leaving just those four sitting on the stage.
"What now?" Zoe asked. "Well," Rinne said, "the stage is part of the area Beyond All Things. You could step off the stage with the others, and become a regular human. Or you could come with us to check out the new world." She and Jesus walked backstage instead of towards where the audience had been, not waiting for their answer. After a few moments, Azrael and Zoe had consulted and were sure. They too walked backstage. Both couples held hands as they went. Eternity would be better this time.
Long ago, God had said to Adam, "It is not good for man to be alone," shortly before he broke him into two sides. God said the same sort of thing before making the universe. But none of them were alone. Not anymore.
