Vision
Darren stayed on the ground, afraid to raise his head. He didn't think the King would kill him, but he also had no right to look up. No one had that right, as far as he was concerned. The warmth in his body put him at peace, somehow letting him know that he could relax, that he was there for a reason.
He could hear breathing next to him. He peeked over to see another person there, bowing down on the sapphire floor, breathing slowly. He snuck a peek the other direction and saw another person bowing down there. Neither of them looked familiar, and he wondered just how many others were all around him, similarly humbled.
Time seemed to stretch into eternity as he rested there, feeling no pain, no anxiety. He stayed immobile, basking in the peace and joy emanating from the throne.
A deep rumbling spread through the sea of sapphire below Darren as the a voice that was not a voice began to speak, crashing through his very existence, "PROTECT MY CREATION."
Those words settled deeply into Darren's soul, overriding every other hope and desire. He somehow knew that I could refuse, if he wanted to, but that was the farthest thing from what he really wanted. He knew then that, more than anything, he wanted to honor this Great King, who he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt was his Creator. He had a longing, a yearning, to live up to the trust the King was putting in him.
He didn't really know what that meant, but it was true, all the same. There was no question in his heart. He would do anything, suffer any pain, to do exactly as the Great King ordered.
Abruptly, light shone brightly all around, penetrating Darren's closed eyelids, lighting up every bit of darkness in him. The light was the same color as the translucent, sapphire floor. He was overtaken by joy, and peace, and love, and he never wanted to leave. He would stay in that place for eternity, if possible; if the King didn't want him to go back, and to fight.
It was over all too soon, and he felt a burden settle inside. It was foreign, and strange, but it seemed to be the weight of a new power of some kind. It felt like some part of him was expanded, or added to.
He didn't have the answers he sought, but he could sense that whatever he was going to face would be more dangerous than he could fathom at the moment. He remembered the others all around him and was glad that he wouldn't be alone in this fight. Although he had no idea who any of these people were, and they could live anywhere in the vast world, he still felt better knowing there would be others out there.
But it was more than that. Sure, there was solace in the fact that there would be others fighting, but when he realized that he would never be alone because the Great King Himself would be with Him, he experienced a level of euphoria he had never imagined possible. The King would be with him, forever!
YHWH is a warrior; YHWH is His name…
The words sounded in his mind, coming from he knew not where, but giving him further insight into just Who exactly this King was.
He felt the warmth start to fade away, and before he knew it he was falling…
…falling…
…falling…
toward…he didn't know what.
Soon, he felt a hard surface against his face. Someone was screaming nearby, and he thought he could hear sirens. He heard crying, too.
Where am I?
He opened his eyes and everything came rushing back in a torrential flood of emotions and confusion. He lifted his head from the table, breathing in deeply, feeling as though he hadn't been able to breathe for far too long.
The air felt muggy as Darren's vision cleared. The scene before him was chaotic. People crowded into the kitchen, suffocating any chance of fresh air penetrating the atmosphere. They all seemed to be staring at him, their faces in different stages of worry and bewilderment.
He could hear TJ yelling, "In here!"
"Move out of the way!" a deeper voice sounded a moment later.
The crowd began to split in the middle as a few men in black pants and navy blue shirts pushed a stretcher through the narrow aisle. One had a bright red pack on his back, and another couple of large packs sat atop the stretcher. They both wore communication radios slung across their torsos on black straps.
"Clear the way!" one of them shouted.
They made their way through the crowd, walking directly to Darren.
The next several minutes were filled with the men checking his vitals, asking questions, and writing things down. Everything seemed to be happening quickly, and he tried to get a grip and make sense of it all.
They told him his vitals were perfect and asked if he had consumed any alcohol. They inquired about the last thing he had eaten and if he had taken any unusual medications that day. TJ stood behind them, looking at Darren strangely, his face painted with anxiety. Darren answered their questions as well as he could.
Soon enough, the medics packed up their bags, stacking them on the stretcher, and left the same way they had come in. The people in the crowd had been slowly filtering out since Darren woke up, and they began leaving in larger numbers on the tails of the medics.
Darren felt somewhat... disconnected. It was difficult to tell if all of this was real or not. Momentarily, the sight of the Great King on His throne came to mind, and his heart felt that warmth once more.
Abruptly, he was struck with reality, and the disassociation disappeared.
"Are you okay, bro?" TJ asked.
Darren looked up at him, noting his still concerned expression. The kitchen was almost empty now, and the music, which he hadn't noticed had been turned off, started playing again in the other room. He could feel the sweat on his skin and his hair stuck to his forehead. His throat was dry and his body ached.
"Darren, did you hear me?"
"What?"
"I said, are you okay?"
"Oh, yeah, I think so."
Am I, though?
"Dude, what happened? You scared the crap out of me," TJ told him.
"I... don't know." The memories were still there, though they seemed strange and surreal, but he knew that he saw the King. He knew that for certain. But he was afraid TJ would think he was crazy if he told him about it.
You have new notifications.
"Huh?"
TJ looked at him strangely.
You have new notifications.
"Who said that?" Darren asked, looking around the kitchen. No one but TJ was looking at him, and TJ didn't say anything.
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"You can't hear that?" Darren said, starting to feel a little crazy.
"I hear you, sounding weird."
Darren was so confused. He shook his head, trying to get a grip on reality again.
"Maybe inviting you here wasn't such a great idea..." TJ said. "Did you even get to see Kaycee?"
Darren shook his head.
"Well, maybe that's for the best. I don't know what's going on with you, but it's clearly not a great time to be trying to impress any ladies."
Darren rubbed his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair, pushing it out of his face. He had to get out of this house.
"I'm gonna head out of here," he told TJ. "What about you?"
"Well... are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, I think so..." He didn't know what else to say.
"If you are actually okay, I think I'll stick around for a bit longer," TJ said. "Are you sure you can get back to your dorm by yourself?"
"As sure as I can be, I guess."
Darren felt fine now. Actually, he felt better than fine; he felt awesome. As long as whatever happened before didn't happen again, he couldn't see why he wouldn't be able to make it home.
"I'll call you if I need to, okay?" Darren grinned as he stood, stretching his arms and legs.
"Okay, be sure you do."
Darren patted TJ on the shoulder and began making his way out of the house. As soon as he exited through the front door, he could sense the shadows on the outskirts of the light. It wasn't an ominous feeling like it was before, though. It was more real; more tangible. He knew now that these weren't just strangely moving shadows... They were looking at him.
He stopped on the front porch, eyeing the darkness. It seemed almost like he could see eyes, just beyond the ring of light cast by the porch lights. The wind had picked up a bit, chilling the air. Several people were still milling about on the porch and in the grass, drinking and talking and laughing.
It seemed that whatever he was sensing out there, they were all completely oblivious to it.
Ding.
Ding.
You have new notifications.
The voice spoke again, this time accompanied by two bell-like sounds.
"What notifications?" Darren asked the open air. A couple standing near the banister of the long front porch looked at him strangely.
"Are you talking to us?" the woman said.
"No, I'm sorry," Darren replied with an apologetic wave. He continued on, walking down the steps and onto the small pathway leading toward the road.
He could still sense the shadows, and they were watching him, but he wasn't nearly as afraid as he probably should have been.
Open display to see notifications, the voice said. Darren realized that it wasn't an audible voice, so much as something he was hearing in his head.
"Open display?" he muttered.
Suddenly, a screen appeared floating in the air before him, halting him in his tracks. It was sapphire in color, reminding him once more of the floor of the throne room.
What is this?
In the middle of the screen was a sentence: Would you like to view your notifications?
"Uh... yes, I guess..."
A soft bell chimed as the screen changed to a list of notifications, and Darren was hit with them all at once.
-Welcome to the Earth Defense System [expand for more details]
-Specializations are now available [expand for more details]
-You have reached Level 1! [expand for more details]
-You have unlocked the Lightning Affinity [expand for more details]
-You have received a gift [expand for more details]