Chosen

Chapter 10: Time Long Gone

     White mist drifted in the corners of her vision, casting a blurry, dreamlike haze. She watched, without a body, and yet joined to many.  She was connected to a sort of web, like a crisscrossing of minds all linked together, and yet inexplicably apart. The web seemed to whisper to her, planting thoughts in her mind in a voice that sounded like a choir of unearthly voices speaking in unison. 

     The minds she felt were completely alien, complex in ways that she never expected and simple in others. They seemed to feel  the earth moving, to sense the plants growing and the rivers running, the clouds drifting. All of nature became a ever moving, ever changing creature, strong yet utterly delicate, balanced and magnificent.  

     The vision showed her dragons, more than she ever knew existed. They lived all over the world, from the highest mountains to the bottom of the sea. A staggering variety passed through her eyes like photographs, replaced with a flash by the next, yet each one stood plainly in her mind. Dragons, scales the color of a rainbow, flashing in a glorious, ancient light. 

      The dragons in her vision were not evil or the devils she had known, as each picture came into her mind, she looked into their hearts, their souls. They carried as much variety in their aura that humans themselves did; they carried within them as much potential for evil as they did good.

       The minds showed her a deer, grazing peacefully on a clump of grass. It moved almost in slow motion as it's delicate head turned towards a lion, starting to run but falling as the animal bit deep into it's neck. The lion stood as the deer, now lying on the ground, it's warm brown eyes open and glassy, slowly sank back into the earth. Soon, the lion lay down as well, it's now old body transforming into a clump of grass. A deer tentatively walked to the clump and began to graze peacefully. The endless cycle played endlessly over, like a movie whose end led directly to the beginning. The voices began to speak as the vision was on it's second run.

   We can feel the earth turning,  the beautiful voices said, carrying such a clarity in the world that it was impossible not to listen. We were born with a connection to Earth, born with the knowledge all animals of the earth possess. The circle of life is our guide; predators eat meat, and in return they reproduce less and turn to grass in their time. Prey fall victims of the tooth and claw, and in return they breed often and their children are plentiful. 

     The vision changed to a world of darkness, then a sudden burst of light. A small naked child walked into frame, eyes wide and inquisitive. A large being in a brilliant white walked to the child, handing him a glowing orb in which he took from his robe. The child held the orb, looking up to the being and smiling. The child grew, becoming a man. He soon grew unhappy with the being's assuring presence, casting it out of the frame.

     Humanity, born not with the knowledge of life, born not with tooth, claw, or armor, was in peril. The Creator granted them something that no other animal possessed: the favor of Him. He gave them intelligence, hopes, dreams, and in return they gave Him spite. They took their talents and used them to destroy His creation, like a toddler in a childish rage. 

     The man then crafted clothes out of animal skins and cut down trees for a house. He, with his powerful mind, found ways to elude and hunt the animals far more powerful. Soon, every animal fled by the sight of him and his many children, each one as clever as he.

     You take the Creator's makings and use them for You and You alone; you kill animals for sport, using only the choicest sections of meat. You thought that you'd be better off without the Creator, so you cast Him aside, and to fill the hole in your hearts you take the brief possessions of earth to distract Yourself. You desire comfort and luxury, all in the purpose to forget your loss.

     And so, Your killing began. You multiplied to unimaginable numbers and took and took, leaving  nest to nothing for the other animals of the earth. Your territory expanded so greatly that We had no choice but to live on your doorstep of the wild. You explored Our caves, Our nests, Our webs, and when we defend what is Ours you call it murder.

     Horrific scenes flooded Annora's mind, showing her the bloody battles of the humans and creatures. Humans, wearing the skin of the dead, carrying the bodies of the trees, killing those who stand in their way without a second thought. Humans who hunt the Creator's makings for fun, for sport, who destroy His earth and laugh. Millions of animals falling victim, from the largest dragon to the smallest mouse.  

     Who, then, is the evil one? Are we not inhabiting the same ground, breathing the same air? If You call Us evil, then surely we have the right to call you the same.