"Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven."
~Lucifer (from Paradise Lost by John Milton ... quoted by Emad Faraz)
__________
Bunter took Caprice to the Weather Stone and explained everything Walsh had told him. She was eager to help.
Emad, too, had some explaining to do! Bebhinn wasn't quite as eager as Caprice, but she stood by her husband.
Caprice summoned her fairy magic while Bunter did the same with his Djinn powers. She focused on the totem. Bunter concentrated on his medallion. He conjured images of his brother Emad and all he knew about him. And from Emad's heart and mind, he also found Bebhinn.
And just as the Weather Stone began to respond to Caprice's enchantments, Bunter discovered three other souls at the edge of his consciousness. The minions! Guilt by association. He pulled the three further into his power.
Emad: Hold tight, Bebby. We need to stay together!
Bebhinn: I won't let go.
Then they felt the Portal open! Space and time had been breached.
Emad: I'll make this up to you, gorgeous. I promise.
Bebhinn: Yes, Emad, you will. I'll make sure you do!
__________
Somewhere in a realm too distant to measure, the upper heaven split and a bright light flashed through! The locals would later gossip about the mysterious golden sphere that had blazed in the sky that day.
What they hadn't seen was the ray from that fiery orb striking the totem by the community center. Nor had they seen the two strangers who suddenly appeared beside the relic!
Neither had they witnessed the three black-clad men shot from the sky screaming and scurrying for their lives!
__________
After a time of panic and sheer terror, the three minions found one another and even managed to locate a rebuilt lodge. They were amazed that it was unoccupied and theirs for the taking. What luck!
Emad: We made it, Bebby! Are you all right?
Bebhinn: Yes, I'm fine. Just a little lightheaded.
Bebhinn: But Emad, where are we? What kind of place is this?
Emad: Well, let's take a look around and see what we can discover.
__________
Because Emad and Bebhinn (or the minions) were not ALL bad, neither was the world they found themselves in. Though the once advanced civilization had long ago been destroyed by the carelessness of its inhabitants, ruined by war and greed, the land itself had survived.
Nature had reclaimed her own. But it would be up to the current survivors and travelers to rebuild their Eden.
~Lucifer (from Paradise Lost by John Milton ... quoted by Emad Faraz)
Bebhinn: I won't let go.
Bebhinn: Yes, Emad, you will. I'll make sure you do!
After a time of panic and sheer terror, the three minions found one another and even managed to locate a rebuilt lodge. They were amazed that it was unoccupied and theirs for the taking. What luck!
Bebhinn: Yes, I'm fine. Just a little lightheaded.
Because Emad and Bebhinn (or the minions) were not ALL bad, neither was the world they found themselves in. Though the once advanced civilization had long ago been destroyed by the carelessness of its inhabitants, ruined by war and greed, the land itself had survived.
Nature had reclaimed her own. But it would be up to the current survivors and travelers to rebuild their Eden.
