“There will come a time in your life when you will have the power to choose. Not a forced choice or an ultimatum. But true power to choose how you will want to shape your destiny. And that point the man who chooses good becomes godly. And The man who chooses evil becomes monstrous.”
-The Book Of Prophecies.
Michael: Wake up Johnny. Wake up!
Lucifer: No johnny, stay asleep. Never wake up. Stay asleep.
Johnny: Where … where am I? Am I dead? What is this place?
M: This is purgatory johnny. And you aren’t dead. You are just in limbo.
L: Don’t listen to him johnny. He is lying. You are dead now. And you have no other choice but to come to me now.
J: Who are you two? What the hell is going on?!?
M: What is the last thing you remember Johnny?
J: Only my mom called me Johnny. You can call me John.
L: Even in death, the kid’s got an attitude. I like!
M: What is the last thing you remember … John? Think hard.
J: I … I remember being in my car. I … I was in a rush. Yes, I was going very fast. Yes, I was breaking the signals, I was driving like a maniac!
L: Things which I love to do by the way!
J: I was behind this huge truck and … and the truck wasn’t giving me any space to go ahead! I was honking and honking and when the truck didn’t budge I accelerated without seeing ahead. And then … and … Oh God!
L: Yes johnny, I mean john … you know what happened next, don’t you!? I will tell you what happened. You crashed you crazy son of a bitch! You crashed right into the car which was coming in the opposite direction! Luckily for you, the driver in the other car survived. I mean, he will eventually live.
J: I am dead. ain’t I?
M: As I said John, you aren’t dead, you are here with us now. Well, at least for the time being.
J: Why am I not dead? I should be dead. Why are you keeping me hear! Answer me!
L: Well john, this is the place where all souls come before ‘The Guy upstairs’ decides what to do with them. And I am Lucifer. The Son who betrayed my father and who was thrown away to the underworld. And this guy over here who is treating you like you are his lost son, is Michael. Michael the angel whom I am ashamed to call my brother as he was the one who banished me to hell all those millenniums ago.
M: Lucifer is right on all of that John. Al though I disagree with the language he uses, what he is stating are the hard facts. You were deep in anger when you roared your car’s engine to life! And then you were driving like you wanted to get killed. And well, you know what all happened next. So here you are. With us, in this Limbo. Waiting to be judged. Judged for all that you have done. And judged for all that you will do from this point on.
"The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven."
A Few Hours Later …
J: This place really in purgatory. Isn’t it? I have been running for miles and there seems to be no end! It’s like I am stuck in a place where time doesn’t exist!
M: All who have come here have felt the same way you have felt. It is natural to be in state of shock.
L: Why are we wasting time in trying to know each other? John, this shit is real! This is happening right now and what is more important is what we are about to ask and tell you.
J: And what is that?
M: First you calm down. Take a deep breath.
J: Ok … I am calm. I am ready to listen.
L: Good boy.
J: I am not your boy.
M: Shut it Lucifer. Let me talk.
L: My lips are sealed.
M: John, we know everything about you. We know all that you have done till this very moment. We are angels. The first creation of god himself. And we always were told to listen to what he asked of us. And for centuries we have done that. We have never intervened or interfered in the life of humans. No matter how much love they shared and no matter how much blood they spilled. We have been watching over all of you since the beginning of time. But every now and then God picks one of you. He picks them for a purpose. A purpose which is far more greater than life or death. A purpose which altars the course of human civilisation forever.
L: In other words, Prophets.
M: Yes, prophets. And all of the greats who have shaped history have been here in this limbo, having this very same conversation with us.
J: You mean … I am a … Prophet? You guys are more screwed up than I am! I am a nobody! I fix cars for a living! I am a loser. No one cares if I lived or I died. I had nobody ok. I … I …
M: You did have somebody John. You had Sarah, didn’t you?
J: Sarah …
M: Yes, sarah, the only love of your life. We know all about her. She is a substitute teacher at the local high school. She has a kid brother. She works day and night so he can have a good life. Her car broke down one day, right in front of your garage. You were fixing one of those classic Mustangs you are always so much in love with it. But the moment she walked in and asked for your help, you fell in love with her right that moment. You knew that she was the only one you would ever love. And you both did find love in each other. You became her brother, Samuel’s best friend. When she worked you used to play video games with him. And on the weekends you three used to go to the park and have your very own picnic. You were a good man when you were with her.
L: You were a good man until the day came.
J: No … no, please don’t say it. Please don’t remind me of that day.
L: You had gone out of town. You didn’t tell her why. You wanted to surprise her, didn’t you? You wanted to win that Car race so you could buy her that ring and propose to her. Didn’t you? You did win that race. You did buy that ring. But when you came back …
J: Please don’t say it! Please don’t!
L: You saw her in bed with another man didn’t you? And when you rushed in, she said it was her ex. Did she had a vulnerable moment. That her ex promised to take her back and marry her and take care of samuel and her. You were standing there and listening, weren’t you? You had tears rolling down your eyes but you did nothing. You just went back into your car and then you drove off. Didn’t you?
M: That’s enough lucifer.
L: I think good old john here is finally beginning to understand, aren’t you?
J: Yes, now I know. Now I remember. I remember everything. I always thought I was a loser. I had no friends. I had no one who could understand me and love me and make me happy. Until sarah came along. She was the answer I was looking for. But then, she broke my heart. She … she tore into pieces. She made drive that car. She made me this monster I am. She made this soul trapped in purgatory. Oh! I hate myself! I hate everything! Why me? Why me?!?
L: It is ok John. You are here now. And now, you can harness all that rage. Consume it and make it into a power you never thought you had!
M: Don’t listen to him John. He is only manipulating you.
J: Maybe, I want to be manipulated.
L: That’s like my boy!
"Remorse: beholding heaven and feeling hell."
J: Take me to hell lucifer. That is where I belong.
M: I know you are in pain right now John. But anger isn’t the solution. Giving in to your hate won’t make the pain go away.
L: What do you know about pain Michael? You are god’s favourite child.
M: Banishing you from heaven was the most hardest thing for me to do Lucifer. You are my brother and it broke my heart to do what I had to do. And that burden only I will have to carry for all eternity.
L: Oh …
J: I truly loved her, you know. But in the end, she betrayed me. Why?
M: Humans are capable of doing extreme things John. Humans can give in to violence or can have control over their peace.
J: But I never did wrong to anyone! I always kept to myself. I remember in school, all the boys made fun of me. And none of the girls would talk to me. I remember my mom telling me that no matter what the world throws at you, always smile back.
L: But underneath that smile, there was always a hidden anger. Wasn’t there?
J: Yes, there was. I always hated them. No matter how much I smiled on the surface, within, I hated them. And I never forgot what they did to me.
L: That is why you started learning about cars, didn’t you? So that one day you would become a great race driver and shut their pile hole.
J: Yes.
L: But life didn’t turn out the way you wanted too. Did it?
J: No.
L: That is why I am here John. I am here to help you.
J: How can you help me?
L: I can give you purpose again. I can make you use that rage and anger and make you my weapon. I can give you the justice. I can give you the power to Punish all those who made you suffer. I can make you the Demon all demons fear!
M: I know that Lucifer’s offer is tempting John. But just the way Lucifer has seen your hate, I have seen the good in you.
J: There is no good in me.
M: There has always been good in you John. Remember three years ago, when you were crossing the road and you saw an old lady getting hit by a car? You saved her, didn’t you? Even though you didn’t know her. You took her to the hospital. You gave her blood and you also paid for her bills even though you were already low on cash. That goodness doesn’t come from hate. It comes from love. So no matter how tempting Lucifer’s offer sounds, I want you to be a part of heaven’s army. I want you to be Messiah of heaven!
L: I have seen what happens to souls when they go to heaven. It is all bright and calm and sun rises and sun sets. But with me, in hell, I offer you it all. All the addiction, all the seduction, all the power and all the darkness a man can observe. And it never stops there! With me by your side, you live forever!
M: You are better than this John. I have seen it in you. I have seen the light within you. Amongst all that hate and fury, there was always a stillness in you. Always a part of you that was good.
J: One of you wants me to be the demon of demons and the other wants me to be a Messiah. Ok. It looks like I have made my choice.
"To different minds, the same world is a hell, and a heaven."
J: Lucifer, when you reminded me of all the anger I have had, I actually remembered that even though I was always angry, I never used it to hurt anyone. All I did was hurt myself by keeping it in. And Michael when you reminded me of that old lady at the street, all I could feel was resentment and guilt ‘cause I had no power to avenge the pain that was caused to her. You both say I am a messiah. You both say that god chose me. So now, I say that I choose None of You.
M: What?
L: Come again?
J: You heard me, I choose neither. Neither heaven and neither hell. I choose to stay here in this purgatory until I make right of all that I have seen wrong. I know god is listening also. So you both tell him that I am staying right here.
M: Do you know what will happen to you if you say No? Your soul will be trapped in limbo forever!
L: You will be stuck here, all alone for all eternity! We are giving you a way out.
J: And that is what I don’t want. A way out. All my life I never dealt with the goodness or the evil in me. But now I will.
M: You will be sent back to earth! But not as yourself anymore. You will be … a ….a deformity!
L: Half Hell, Half Heaven.
J: All Rider!
M & L: …
J: Oh yeah, you heard me. I am going to be the Rider of earth. I am going to take your vengeance Lucifer and I will take your power to heal Michael and fuse it together and ride the earth for all eternity. I will now do what I was meant to do all those years ago.
M: This isn’t making any sense. This isn’t how it was suppose to be!
J: Everyone goes through hardships in life. Everyone’s heart’s gets broken. And all humans are deceived and hurt. But that doesn’t give us the right to hurt each other. I know it was my fault that I wasn’t good enough for Sarah. I have guilt that I let my mom die. I have rage that I couldn’t do things that I wanted to do. But now, I have a second chance. And I will make sure I fix the things I left unfinished.
L: Why carry this burden?
J: Because I know I can. And I will.
M: But you will be alone. You will have no one.
J: All my life I wanted people to look at me and talk to me and most importantly, understand me. But no one did. Today, that thought doesn’t make me angry. It makes me realise that I was meant to be alone to begin with. That some people just are.
M: What you are about to do is something no one has ever done before.
J: That doesn’t matter. What matters is what I have realised. What I am feeling right now. When I go back to earth. I promise to never hurt another soul again. And I promise to avenge the innocent. I know the price of this burden. That I will forever ride alone in the wilderness. But I will keep on going until I can’t any longer. I will fight until there is a single ounce of energy left in my body. I will be a ghost hiding in the darkness. I will be a stranger who’s name people would never remember. But no matter the pain and guilt this loneliness will give me, I will bare it. I will not quit. And I will do what I am set out to do. So hear this Lucifer and Michael, I am not the slave of good or evil anymore. I am a free man. I will not be tempted by lust or greed or darkness and I won’t be softened by love or compassion. I will do what is right ‘cause in the end, that is all that matters.
"Free will carried many a soul to hell, but never a soul to heaven."
Bravo John! Bravo!
John: Who was that?
Lucifer: It can’t be! He has never spoken to any soul before!
Michael: Well, he is now.
God: John, I am God.
John: So you heard what I said?
God: Yes I did. And to be honest I didn’t expect you to do what you are setting out in doing.
John: Oh Okie.
God: Before you go, I just want you to know that I have believed in you. That I was there, every step of the way. I saw your every move and I knew that one day, this moment would come. And today it has.
John: I am not changing my mind.
God: I have always given humans the choice of free will. If this is what you think is right then it shall be done. But do remember that I am very proud of you.
John: Thank you. I guess that’s the only thing appropriate to say now.
God: Your welcome John.
John: Uuuhhh … before I go, I just wanted you to know that your sons, Michael and Lucifer really love each other as much as they still love you. They may not show it but they still do. They are just too stuck up too admit it.
Michael: Ya right!
Lucifer: Jerk.
God: Thank you for telling me that John.
John: Oh ya and just one more thing.
God: What is it John?
John: I want My Ride.
God: :-)
"We never, ever judge someone on who's going to heaven, hell. That's the Almighty's job."
This is Me, Mahaakshay Chakraborty. And I Am The Rider.
With All My Might,
Your No.1 Fan,
Mahaakshay Chakraborty.
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