Metanoia

andscape. The tall trees seemed to touch the clouds as they reached for the sky. Unseen but audi

dream?” he whispered to himself. However, the dewy air filling his lungs

gotten in his barren old world. His heart pulsed joyfully as he reached to claim one of the ripe apples. The apple released

all monkey with red fur appeared from behind the tree, dressed in elaborate, colorf

his voice laced with humor: “Greetings, re

d Elijah, making him drop the apple in

his words. He gently retrieved the fallen apple, placing it back ont

rules and a sense of order govern the rhythm of life here. You must understand, unenlightened on

e surreal revelation. He looked at the apple, its allure now laced with

these tales. These stories are foreign to me. The apple is h

hat you’ve been transported to the dawn of existence. And y

ijah, fueling a spark of intrigue.

is one of the chosen, tasked with salvaging

g was overwhelming—power, destiny, a dying world—but it was his reality now. H

palpable. “Where do we use these powers? D

of joy and severity. “Oh, naive one,” he began, a soft sigh punctuating his amus

ked at Vula, a silent plea in

Elijah’s spine. “You are to contest against the ultimate power, the one who se

each beat echoing the fear that filled his veins. This newfound reality—a reality of latent powers, cosmic battles, and ances

e no louder than the whispering breeze: “I can’t do this.” His heart ached with longing for the past—his past. The rusted remains, the sca

He yearned for the comfort of his crumbling world, its familiarity a salve to the open wound that was his current predi

m all he knew. He was a stranger here, lost in a world of bright colors, a clear sky, and a reality too vivid for his muted past. He missed his old life,

against the underbrush. For a moment, he said nothing, merely watching the despair play out on Elijah’s features. His s

quiet, softer than the rustling leaves around them, yet it carried an u

he held for his past life. He was not just physically displaced but also temporally severed. His home, his world, was gone. A cold realization dawned that h