Alchemist: A Journey of Faith

The City of the Bright Ones

The Alchemist guided Faith through the snow to the gate of the City. Caressing her face, he whispered softly, "Faith, I must go. But remember this. My Word prevails. Call upon My Name and I shall come. Warn the City that the Hypnotist is preparing for battle. Enter the City. I shall speak through you. Trust Me even though I will not be seen. I will be with you always, even unto the end of the age..."

As He said this, He vanished from sight, Faith reached out, with a longing ache in her heart as she no longer could see or feel Him.

"Do not fear, I AM with you..." He whispered her heart, as she turned and entered the gates.

People sat, neatly dressed in their shining armour. They lazed where they were, polishing over and over or they left their armour at their feet in a dirty mess. Others were bleeding and entering with wounds from one another, knives in their back. There's need here... but the higher level Bright Ones were pompous. There were middle-classed ones who didn't care and others who stood out. And the lower class were too hurt or being mended by another middle or lower class Bright One. There was something radically wrong here... It hurt Faith to watch. As she stood in the middle of the courtyard she reached out to one of the higher classed Bright Ones; "Sir, I have news from the Alchemist. You're going to be under se--"

"Get off me, how dare you touch me, outlander!" the man shrugged Faith's hand off and waltzed away.

Faith tried with many other higher-classed and was treated no better... Then she tried the middle classed and gained twenty believers of her word. She went to the lower-classed and gained eighty more. She went around with them splitting up and they all gathered up to three-thousand armed battle-ready Bright Ones... When the shadow horns blasted, the three-thousand were sent out to fight. Faith was being armoured up and yet was trembling in fear once more, she never fought in a war... When she was ready, she marched out with them.

---

Shadowlords, shadowesses, uglies, witches, witchlords, and hypnotists stood outside, roaring at the Bright Ones, who tremored and quailed, yet stood firm. The Hypnotist came out, sneering; "You all were my slaves at one point, 'bright ones'..." he spat, "Come back to me, and this will not be any harder than it has to be..."

Them Faith roared out a warcry and shouted, "FOR THE ALCHEMIST!"

Horns and pipes blasted and the entire army let out their own warcry.

"No prisoners... I want them all dead..." Faith heard the Hypnotist speak in all minds, including the Bright Ones' just loud enough for her to hear over the noise.

"Fear not, warriors!" Faith cried out, "Charge! For the Alchemist is with us! He has handed them over to our hands!"

With that, she shot her sword up in the air and lowered it. The army charged into the shadowspawn and she followed after and past them...

----

Bodies lay all around, blood stained on Faith's hands, face and vision. Imprinting on her memory, the irony smell, the scarlet colour, the screams leaving her mouth. She was engulfed by the shadowlords' and shadowesses' magick. Screaming out, her belief and strength was being seeped away... she began out strong and brave even... what happened? Many Bright Ones fled and the ones who wouldn't perished or were rushed back into the city for healing. Something sliced her and toyed with her in the abyss, chuckling softly as it did.

"ALCHEMIST! HELP ME!" Faith cried out through the fear she was experiencing. Just then, something shot out of her wounds. No, not blood, not pain... but light through her scars.

A blast of white mist from her legs and feet. Golden twinkling light with a pink hue just like a sunrise. Blue and violet smoke swirled and danced around her body as her back arched and her head gave off golden and blue flames. Stars swarmed from her eyes and mouth. As she landed on the snow, it melted away to become spring, the light shone and a trumpet sound from the east hill beyond the city called.

The dead bodies arose and the sun rose high as The Alchemists' cavalry charged in. The Alchemist leading it on... The shadows were eliminated and the Bright Ones, shining their light in their own colours, came together. The light became a Bride in white and The Alchemist reached out for them...

----

Our eyes were opened to colours we have never seen.  Lights twinkled in our eyes, and we all could hear music in the far distance of the mountains beyond this forest and fields. A twinkling city came from the sky as a scarred hand wiped away all tears. Visions of dancing in fields, with the Bridegroom, The Alchemist... laughter, joy, all sorrow since victored in one roaring swipe of this Lover's Hand. The rebirth of all the world... of the City of the Bright Ones, reflecting The Alchemist off the walls and roads of gold. The winds' colours blew through our hair.

The Alchemist stood just over the hill, and Faith's feet ran to Him and He ran to her, lifting her up He finally shouted, "MY CHILD! YOU ARE FINALLY HOME!"

He said it to every last one of us. He was intimate, no general greeting... each of us received a kiss, a hug, a blessing and a "well done".

"You were so brave, Faith..." he said to her, kissing her once more, and wiping her tears away.

"Welcome Home to the Eternal City of the Bright Ones. A brand new light has dawned... Come Home with Me..."

Leading the Bright Bride Home... we were healed, the scars removed, we had brand new bodies and lived with joy and peace eternally in the City that the Alchemist prepared for us.