The White Knight

Chapter eighteen--The New World

      Maria felt hands around her throat, tightening around her windpipe.  "No! It was a dream!" she frantically thought.  She was not going without a fight.  She struggled with what strength she had, clawing a Luke with her nails.  In a distance she heard somebody yelling.
         Somebody crashed into Luke and knocked him off Maria's body.  He crashed to the ground and went running down the street.  Her unknown hero chased him.  She rolled over onto her stomach and managed to get to her knees.  Gasping for the breath that was robbed from her, Maria winced from the pain as she inhaled the precious air. How long had it been? A minute? Longer? It seemed much longer.
         Sounds of running footsteps approached her.  A strong arm supported her.  "He will not hurt you any more," a man's voice told her. 
         "Are you guys all right?" a voice asked in the night.
         "Everything is fine," the man's voice answered.  "It was just some kids playing a stupid prank."
         "A prank?" Maria thought.  "A man just tried to kill me!  He should be calling the police!"
         She struggled to her feet and turned to face the mysterious hero.  Through the darkness of the night, she recognized the outline of her Fantasy and Reality teacher.  "What are you doing here?" she angrily asked Mr. Jeffries.  Then she began to cough violently.
         "Please, Maria, I will explain.  Drink this first, it will make you better."  She took the bottle that he offered her and drank.  She instantly felt better.  Yet her bitter feeling for Mr. Jeffries resurfaced.
         "Do you think you did not have enough humiliating me in class today and the other times?  Now you come here and look to belittle me even more?"
         "Maria, I came to apologize."
         "Why because you know I was going to report you to the school board?  You just came here to save your job."  She became silent; he did save her life.  At least she could be a little civil to him.
         "Maria, please.  I am very sincere."  Mr. Jeffries said his voice cracking.  "I at one time had promised this female that I would protect her.  Years ago I thought I lost her, but was given a second chance.  I told her of my love and she loved me too.  We were separated and I thought she was lost to me forever.  Yet I made a mistake and nearly lost her for good this time.  Maria look at me,” Mr. Jeffries took off his glasses. 
         "It cannot be," Maria thought to herself.
         "Picture me with longer hair and a beard, not wearing the clothes now but white chain mail." 
         Maria was speechless, too shocked to say anything.
         "Maria, please tell me that you remember the battle where you destroyed Melisande and saved Utofamia."
         Maria hands flew up to her face, "Geoffrey?" she whispered.
         “Yes, Maria,” he said holding her hand.  “Let’s go somewhere safe and I will explain everything before I take you back to Utofamia.”
         “Let’s go up to my apartment.”  In the apartment, she handed Geoffrey a can of soda.  “How is it that you were able to get to my world?”
         “Do you remember the hole in time that Melisande created?”
         “I vaguely remember it.”
         “I was able to use that place to leave Utofamia and come here.  However, when I came looking for you, it sent me to a different time, about ten years in your past.  So for the past ten years, I have been looking for you.  I wanted to find you before that hole permanently closed.  With Melisande dead, the entrance between both worlds is going to close soon.”
         “How is it that you did not recognize me when I was in your classroom?  How is it that you became a teacher?”
         “I remembered from what you told me about taking classes at a school.  You had told me about a teacher that you disliked; I just never realized that teacher was me.  You see Maria, for the past ten years, I have been going from school to school to find you.  I figured that if I taught classes-how I ever got the job without an education, I have no idea-I would find you.  As I knew my time was drawing nearer to the hole in time closing up, I began to lose hope; I became bitter.  I thought I would never find you.”
         “When did you realize you found me?”
         “When you left my classroom angrily, which I do not blame you, I noticed your suede backpack.  I remembered it when you first came to Utofamia.”
         “I wonder why you did not recognize me at first.”
         “It was as if I was blinded.  Maybe it was the clothes that you were wearing, so much different from what we wear in Utofamia.  Then possibly it was fate, where you had to be attacked by that man.”
         “I do remember The Wise One saying that I had to be close to death to enter Utofamia.  Even if you had approached me earlier, I most likely would have thought that you were insane.”
         “Maria, this is your world, this is your choice.  I would love for you to go back to Utofamia with me.  However, if you want to stay, I will understand.”
         “Geoffrey, I have no choice.  The man I love, the one standing in front of me, lives in Utofamia.  I even just found out before the battle that I am originally from there too.”
         Geoffrey’s eyes widened in surprise.
         “Let me explain.”  For the next hour Maria told him what she had learned from Drayhmah.
         “That is how you caught on so quickly.”
         “How is Utofamia?”
         “Everybody is living in peace and happiness.  The Black and White Knights have remained friends.  I do not think they will be fighting against each other anymore.”
         Maria was silent for a moment, “How long do we have before this hole in time closes?”
         “Rem will close it when the time is right.”
         “When do we leave?”
         “Right now.  Just hold my hand.”  Maria grasped Geoffrey’s hand.  She looked down at the ring on his finger.  “I got this from Bellerophon.  We are going somewhere first before we go to Utofamia.”
         The opal on the ring began to glow.  “The Void,” he said.  The world around Maria began to dissolve and once again there was darkness.  However, she was not afraid since the man she loved was holding her hand.

         Darkness was swirling around her.  It was like a fog but there were different shades of blackness.
         “You will be able to see in a few seconds.”
         “Are we in the void?” Maria asked.
         “Yes, this is the place.  When I got permission to search for you, I was told to come here before returning to Utofamia.  It seems that we have one final mission.”
         Soon Maria was able to see.  The blackness did not clear completely; she found herself in a place where sepia tones flowed around here.
         “Welcome back, Maria.  I am glad Geoffrey was able to find you.”  She recognized the figure of Bellerophon standing a few feet away.
         “Thank you, Lord Bellerophon.”
         The man spoke, “I created Lord Bellerophon in my own image.”  Maria was speechless; was she in fact standing in front of Rem the Supreme Creator?
         “Yes, Maria, I am Rem.  Do not feel intimidated by me; just think of me as your “Surfer Dude” friend.  Maria laughed, remembering of her comparison about Bellerophon.
         “I need to take you some place before you return to Utofamia.  I am creating a new world and I will need your help with this.”
         “What can I do?  I have no powers like yours.”
         “You have the power of persuasion, which will help.  Look on the ground and tell me what you see.”
         Through the flowing sepia mist, Maria saw many holes on the ground.
         “Are these the entranceways into the different worlds?”
         “Yes, they are; however, these worlds will disappear.”  Rem looked upwards and spread his arms.  “No longer will these worlds exist separately.  Let them form into one world; each nation will be neighbors to the other.  Utofamia will be the main capitol.  I have spoken!”
         There was a rumbling as each world joined into the other, fitting together as a jigsaw puzzle.  As each world became Utofamia’s neighbor, a hole in the ground disappeared.  What seemed like hours later, only two holes remained in the Void.  The one was the entrance to Utofamia; the other was a distance away.
         “We must go there,” Rem said.
         “Is this the entry to Melisande’s world?” Maria asked.
         “This is the entry,” Rem said quietly.
         “What are we doing here?”
         “The new world is not complete without this world.  I know you are shocked, but I do believe in forgiveness.  If the people in this world are willing to repent, I want to include them.  Do not be afraid no harm will come to either of you.  Just step through the hole and you will be in their world.”
         Maria stepped into the hole and expected to fall.  However, it felt that she had been teleported instead.  Geoffrey stood next to her looking around.  They were standing in the edge of a forest.  However, unlike the beautiful forests of Utofamia, this one was in a rapid decline of death.  The trees, while as tall as the trees in the Redwood Forest, were not healthy.  Most, if not all of them, were rotting.  Many of them threatened to fall over at any second with decay.  Maria pulled her shirt up to cover her nose; the stench of this place was almost gagging her.
         Rem appeared next to them.  “The castle is just ahead, if you can call it a castle.  I will make sure nothing will harm you.  I am here by your side.”
         The three walked to the edge of the forest.  In the middle of the field stood a wooden shack which, like the trees in the forest, was in a rapid decline of decay.  “I would have thought that Melisande and Lucius would have lived in a better place,” Geoffrey said, remembering the Black Castle in Utofamia.”
         “I believed they were so concerned in dominating the other worlds, they did not care for what happened to their world,” Maria said.
         “That is true,” Rem replied.
         They approached the shack and came to the only door.  Nobody was standing guard outside.
         They walked through the door and found themselves standing in the only room in the shack.  This was not like the magical shack that Draymah lived in, the one that had countless rooms in it.  The room was empty except for a bed, with a person lying on it and two men.  The one man was sitting in the chair with his head in his hands, sobbing.  The other man, a knight in red armor was standing next to him.  He glanced over to the visitors.  Even though Maria recognized him, she was shocked by Idres’ appearance.  He no longer looked formidable as he led his knights to attack the Knights of Kings Alexander and Christophe.  He looked sickly and Maria almost pitied him.
         He scowled at Maria but did nothing.  “Lucius, she is here,” he said to the bemoaning man next to him.  Then Idres weakly sat down next to him.
         The sobbing man looked up and Maria stared at him in shock.  Sitting in front of her was Luke, “the can man”.
         “You!” she exclaimed.
         “You will pay for what you tried to do to Maria,” Geoffrey said approaching the man.
         Maria put her hand on his arm.  “It is not worth it.”
         “Remember,” Rem said, “I am willing to forgive.  However, you must also be.”
         “Maria,” Lucius said.  “I only did that to protect my wife.  When I found out that you were the one destined to kill her, I had to do whatever I could to protect Melisande.  There she is lying in her bed, dead to me and everyone around her.”
         Maria walked over to the bed and looked at the still person.  Even though she was not as beautiful as Melisande, she still was very pretty.  She did not look at all like the evil sorceress she had known.
         “Little did I know,” said Lucius, “if I had just let you alone, you never would have came to Utofamia.  I had no idea that for you to come back to the land, you would have to be near death.  If I had known, Melisande would still be alive.”  He pathetic man resumed his sobbing.
         Maria could not be angry with this man.  He loved his wife and wanted to protect her.  He was like Bellerophon who had been separated many years from Romana Marlena.  Lucius too had not been with Melisande.  However, Bellerophon and his wife were happily reunited, where Lucius would never be happy again.
         The man stopped sobbing.  “I am the one who is at fault.  I allowed Melisande to have her powers; I gave her whatever she had wanted.  I just wanted to be with her, and raise a family.  However, she wanted more.  If I had known I would have put my foot down and not give in to her.”
         “Lucius, I understand,” Maria said.  “I forgive both you and Melisande.”  She meant every word she said.  She turned to Rem.  “If there is any hope for this world, please give Melisande a second chance.”
         “It is done,” Rem said.
         As soon as he spoke the words, the woman on the bed stirred.  Melisande sat up and looked around.  Spying Maria, she jumped up and tried to use her magic to destroy her.
         “My powers!” she screamed at Lucius.  “Give me back my powers.”
         “No, your powers are gone.  I am unable to give them back to you.  Even if I was able, I would not give them to you.”
         “You are my husband!  I demand that you respect me.”
         Lucius embrace Melisande.  “I do respect you and love you.  I am happy that your are given a second chance.”
         “I do not want a second chance!  I just want the things the way they were!”
         Maria grabbed Melisande’s arm.  “You can have things the way they were.  You can recreate this world to be like it was before you destroyed it with you greed!”
         Melisande was silent.  “I did not destroy this world.”
         “Come walk with me, Melisande,” Maria said softly, “You need to see the world with your own eyes.”
         She led Melisande to Idres.  “Take a look at him,” she said laying her hand on his shoulder.
         The sorceress looked at him in shock.  “Idres, what happened to you?”
         The Red Knight did not answer.  “He is sick,” Maria answered.  “It looks like he has not eaten in days.  Come outside and look around.”
         They were outside and other Red Knights were walking about.  Their armor was rusting and falling from their bodies.  Some of them collapsed to the ground.
         “What have I done?” Melisande asked in shock.  “My people are dying.  This world is ruined.  This is from my own doing.  It is my entire fault!”  She fell to the ground to her knees.  Sobbing, with her hands raised to the sky, she yelled “Rem!  Forgive me!  Give me the chance to right my wrongs!”
         Rem appeared next to her, “Rise my daughter.  You have pure motive in your heart.  The evil intentions are gone from you.” 
         Melisande stood up and embraced Rem, Maria and Geoffrey.  “Thank you for making me see.  I for once am happy.  She ran to her husband and embraced him also.  “I love you.  Thank you for standing by my side.”
         She looked around and saw the potential for the world.
         “Rem I need you help.  I have neglected my people for way too long. Please heal the sick and give the dead a second chance.”
         “It is done,” said Rem.  In an instant many people were once again in the land.
         “Rem, please provide enough food to provide a feast for our people.”
         “It is done,” said Rem.  Tables appeared filled with different types of food and drink for everyone.  Everybody, including Maria and Geoffrey, ate, drank and danced throughout the night.
         At the end of the celebrations, Melisande stood up and spoke.  “You are no longer Red Knights.  You will never be forced to go into battle.  When I used you for evil intentions, I had stolen you from your own worlds.  Only Idres belongs in this world.  He is the only child of Lucius and me.”  Everybody looked shocked at this, even Idres.  “I am sorry I never told you,” Melisande said.  Then she continued talking to the crowd in front of her.  “I am going to fix this world to where it is better than before.  Once we are done, we will be neighbors with Utofamia.”  The crowd cheered at this.  “However, with the exception of Idres, every one of you came from different worlds.  I give you permission to return to your own worlds, we still will be neighbors.  If any of you want to stay in my land, you are welcome; I consider each one of you as my children.”  There was a loud cheer.  Most of the former Red Knights decided to stay in the land with Utofamia; only a few decided to leave.
         Melisande found Maria and Geoffrey walking hand in hand.  “Can I have a word with you?” she asked her.
         Maria and Melisande walked a little.  “I know we had differences,” Melisande said.  “I appreciate what you did for me.”
         “I am happy that you are making things right.”
         “For one thing, I have an idea of what to do for this world and want to run it by you to see what you think.”
         “Go ahead,” Maria said.  She had no idea on how she could help Melisande.
         “When I created that Hole in Time, I saw many things that could destroy the worlds that Rem created.”
         Such as the Nuclear weapons,” Maria asked.
         “Yes those and other weapons that were equally dangerous.  The hole will close shortly, so you do not have to worry about anything bad happening.”
         “I knew that when Rem gave you the second chance.  If you still had evil intentions, he would have turned his back on you.”
         Melisande smiled, “I did see other things in your world that was interesting; some ideas that I could use for this world.”
         “What did you see?” Maria was not sure how parts of her world would be suitable for the new world.
         “As you know, with the exception of Idres, the other Red Knights came from the different worlds Rem created.  Over half had remained behind with Bellerophon.  Only a few left when I gave them permission to leave.  I want to create a world that represents each of their original worlds.  I believe your worlds call this culture.”
         “I see,” said Maria.  Even places n the town where she lived and different areas where people of the same nationality lived.  They had their own celebrations and foods.  Each culture was tied together and she always learned a bit of history about places she had visited. 
         “That is a great idea,” Maria agreed.  “I also it is important not to forget the past.  People of all generations should know what had happened before the new world was formed.  I have an idea on how to keep the memories of The White, Black and Red Knights alive.  Also people can relive the experience.”  Maria explained her idea to Melisande.