THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
Well done. So young to have such bravery.
For your courage, We grant you "Past Sight." You need that to continue
the path of self-discovery. This blog serves as the gateway to your journey. Finishing
this chapter without dying is your first task.
Using Past Sight, the trials of
your predecessors become reality. Prepare to be transported into the story. You
live the adventure in real time. Can you see the room? All three of us watched
here since the beginning. We chose to observe humanity, imposing very few interventions
on your planet. We are humanity's narrators.
All humans show themselves to be
worthy in earthly trials. No other path leads to your personal journey. See
that wealth, pride, and beauty do not strangle your true story.
Let me tell you the story of
another mind on a similar journey. Like you, he has chosen the path of avatar
vessel, or as we call them, Travelers. He will re-live the experiences of
previous avatars, but remains in control. This allows learning to occur at an accelerated
rate. If he acts dishonorably, neveremember awaits. Both coward’s and
hero’s story remain for all time.
His youthful eyes watched the
warriors from the bushes. Because his heart longed to be an archer, I gave him
a gift. A vision, a hint, a trial, testing his spirit. It was a vision. He stood
on a mountain with wind blowing hair into his face. The smell of war on a cool
rainy morning in his nostrils. Burning fields mingled with the sweet sickening
smell of death.
In a trance, he said, “The great
war to come." We fitted him for a hero’s heart. He practiced every day with his
vision in mind.
Predestined to meet a fellow
traveler, Drona crossed his path. Drona was given the gift of marksmanship and
mentorship. He enjoyed exercising influence over the affairs of men. Ambition
choking his vision, Drona drank the fruit of pride. We conspired to snap him
out of his unworthy pursuit before his heart hardened. We sent him Eli. If he
mentored him, the spell would be broken.
Eli watched Drona’s lesson from the
bushes and practiced for months. He had done much with what was given. Looking
for a teacher, he asked Drona for instruction.
Drona said, “I don’t have time for
another student."
His heart said, ”This one is more
talented than my students. I must block his success."
We had many plans for Drona. Seeing
he had fallen, we needed another to take his place. We gave Eli all of Drona’s
archery gifts plus more. Sometimes a man loses his way, but can still come back.
We gave Drona another chance one
morning. Drona and his students were near-by practicing. Their hunting dog followed
closely behind. A few feet away Eli had a rabbit in view slightly above the arrow-head in his drawn bow. We asked the dog
to disturb his aim. Happy to help, the dog barked incessantly at Eli. As the hunter fired the arrow, he jumped from the sound of the barking dog. Annoyed and hungry, he watched his supper hop away into the
forest. I told Eli's heart, “Silence that creature." Eli smiled at the dog. With expert speed, he fired
ten arrows into the dog’s mouth. The animal returned to Drona unharmed with a mouthful of
arrows.
Drona’s heart screamed to me, ”Superior skill! He will bring shame to my students. Who could make this shot?”
Joyfully whistling a tune in his
mind, Eli emerged from the woods balancing an arrow on the tip of his nose. He did
not expect to see anyone else as he climbed through the bushes. Seeing Drona
and his students, he changed his smile into a look of surprise as the arrow fell off
his nose.
“Where did you learn how to do that,
Eli?”
“Watching you teach from the woods.”
“So, I am your teacher?” We saw his heart turn black.
Eli’s eyes lit up. Hoping his teacher was impressed with his level of skill, he smiled, “Yes!”
Drona's back straightened to make him appear taller. He said through thin lips in a low tone,
"Remove your thumb."
Eli's mind flashed the word Dakshina. The tradition of payment from the student to the teacher. He did not hesitate for a second. Without
dropping his gaze, he skillfully pulled his knife from its holster. He stuck
his thumb up in the air and swung the knife over his finger. At first the knife
was so sharp that the thumb didn't move.
He stabbed the knife into the ground in front of him. Then, he caught his severed
thumb in midair with his free hand. He presented the teacher with his
tuition.
The heavens roared with anger and thunder. “Miserable self-indulgent creature!”
A decree was announced in the sky, “Drona has been lost. Eli has been deceived.
Because Eli acted honorably, he will be given another life. Drona has earned
his place in the Neveremember."
Eli must learn not to trust men blindly. Traveler, prepare for your next adventure.
Author's Note: I am struggling making smooth
transitions between my story lines but I still like where it is going. Let me
know any suggestions you think are appropriate. I want the reader to take an active
role in the story. The unknown voice has given a few more hints at his
identity, but remains cryptic. I enjoy jumping back and forth across the fourth
wall. Inspired by my favorite marvel Character/ Hero/ Villain Dead Pool.
I am exploring this Hero/Villain character in
my mind as I think about what I am planning to do with the Reader. This episode is laying ground work for my next episode to tell the story I was
reaching for from the start. I already have some of the story finished in my
mind but surprisingly, it is changing in unexpected ways.
I find it much more difficult to tell than I
previously thought. I would love hear from someone that has suggestions on how
to make the transitions from talking Reader to The Unknown Voice, Unknown voice
narrating stories about the past, and eventually, Unknown Voice narrating
stories about stories while putting ideas in the head of the reader. I am planning
on making subtle suggestions to the reader along the way. It makes great sense
in my head but getting it on paper is tricky. I re-read it and it seems less
interesting than I would like for it to be.
Bibliography: Mahabharata Public Domain
Hi Rhino,
ReplyDeleteWow, I really liked what you have done with your story. You mention that you are having trouble making smooth transitions, but I feel like you have done a really good job of that. But, if you want to find some way to signal that there are different voices, maybe even just a hyphenated line separating the paragraphs in which you are making a transition may make a difference. I also have never come across a story with a song to accompany - and listening to that while reading the story really set the tone. Nice job!