Alfred held his wine-glass firm, the red liquid inside sloshing to and fro. The majestic (albeit dirty) fluid mesmerized him: but he couldn't figure out why. Something, just something was off about it. Could they have tainted his drink?... no, why would they do that? Maybe it was just the imperfection that fascinated him! Yes, the sheer ugliness grabbed his attention, for no reason in particular.
No, not that either.
After all, bad alchohol is nothing out of the ordinary.
So what was it? His question got answered almost instantaneously: the liquid inside his glass started turning a crystal-clear colour—one so brilliant, it gave the Maldives Sea a run for its money. Then, without any warning, a lady appeared in the glass, one which Alfred didn't recognize. His old eyes flickered; her youthful complexion made him feel as though his stress and wrinkles ceased; her long grey hair sparkled, waving oh so perfect... wait, no, what was he doing! Getting lost in some delusional daydream, that wasn't like him... but he couldn't look away.
He felt his head tilt inwards, the woman's once young face turning skeletal, it's forceful appearance sending him into never-ending hell—"Mr. President," said Ezax, "If you're not busy, may I have a word with you?" Alfred (still stunned) took a deep gander at the pale wizard's face. He then returned his attention to the glass: the image of the woman ceased to exist, reduced to nothing but a faint short-term memory planted deep within the back of his mind.
"Um—er—eh—of course not, I'd be happy to discuss anything you like." Ezax to one big gulp; he said,
"I know I mustn't ask Mr. President such personal questions, but before you became the leader of a great nation, were you once a wizard? If not, perhaps a mage or priest?"
"No," Alfred said, awkwardly holding his glass with two hands. "But I was a Baptist Minister in my youth, but that was fifty-something odd years ago now."
"Oh, Is this Baappptiisst a god your people worship?" Alfred's eyes shot up as if he had witnessed a murder.
"Oh goodness no! I'm an Evangelical..."—eee-van-jel-lickal? thought Ezax—"I worship one God only, and that's Christ almighty. Just the thought of being a priest for some false god makes my stomach turn. No, that can't even begin to describe the sickness I feel from that! Regardless, I wanted to devote my life to Christ back then: nothing made me happier than to please God with my everything; but life took me elsewhere. Ordination was not my calling, it seems. You know what..." Swiftly rummaging through his thin coat pocket, Alfred pulled out a beaten wooden cross—attached to an even thinner string. Placing it in Ezax hands, he stood straight and said, "Whenever your in trouble, I want you to hold tight to this... uh, holy object, and say,
"Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, Forever and ever. Amen." Alfred bent his aching back downwards, before blessing the cross. "Bless you, and may Christ find his way into your heart. I promise, as long as you have this object (a cross we call it) and God's blessing, you will be saved from any danger."
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That Time the USA Got Transported to Another World!
FantasíaGreat men of the past predicted an extraordinary event: one day, the gods would deliver the Trafane continent a new nation, one composed entirely of powerful warriors, hence the nickname 'Nation of Warriors'. That nation just so happens to be the la...
