He was out of his element, to put it mildly. It\u2019s not like he was a young, inexperienced person. He watched generations after generations of souls be born, mature and attain enlightenment, while he watched, grumbled and brooded darkly in his ignorance and stubbornness, until, finally, he had that fateful talk with Sanat Kumar, who was so incredibly bat-shit crazy, that Azazel finally stopped to think about his situation, and realised that he\u2019s standing on the edge of that abyss himself, and was looking into an embodiment of his immediate future if he doesn\u2019t get his shit together. He listened to that basket case rant and rave for a few more days after that; about the Jewel, about the opportunity, the once-in-a-lifetime chance to finally break free from the trap the Gods set for them, how he\u2019s going to create a proper world, of equality, without God, where souls will have to join together to become God together rather than each grow individually, and if his heart was in it, he\u2019d probably tell him that chopping everybody\u2019s heads off ain\u2019t no way to become taller, but he didn\u2019t give a shit anymore, because his thoughts were elsewhere.<\/p>\n
He planned to do the most radical, out-of-your-mind thing imaginable. He\u2019d call the most dangerous, most powerful person he ever saw, and ask him for instruction, because what he was doing for eons just wasn\u2019t cutting it anymore, and his only other alternative was to become what that demon next to him was: a completely unhinged, raving lunatic.<\/p>\n
And now, he was in what he was told to be one of the Eternal Worlds, surrounded by beings of crystallised spiritual light, mostly in various frequencies of blue, and he was one of them.<\/p>\n
He wasn\u2019t the smallest, or the palest, by any means; in fact, he looked like he was pretty much in the middle of the spectrum or slightly above, but he was for all intents and purposes a newborn baby there, and he needed someone to talk to, someone who\u2019ll show him the ropes of this place. Sure, he could call Lord Shiva as he was promised, but he didn\u2019t want to waste it, or annoy the God. He didn\u2019t have his head so far up his arse not to notice that Shiva was worried, tired and under a heavy burden of all the things he was doing, and, worryingly, they had something to do with that Jewel and Sanat Kumar\u2019s scheming. The fact that the Lord was so kind as to go out of his way completely to talk to him and guide him to enlightenment, despite his personal troubles, struck Azazel as something extremely precious, that spoke volumes about the God and his character. He was kind, compassionate and nothing he would have imagined a being of that power to be. No, he wouldn\u2019t bother the kind and graceful Lord with something as unimportant as finding his way around. He\u2019ll just ask someone here.<\/p>\n
He looked around and saw clusters of beings communicating, involved in their conversations, but then he spotted a girl standing alone, and looking about as lost as he felt. \u201cHow do I instantly know it\u2019s a girl, if it\u2019s a crystal of blue vajra?<\/i>\u201d, he asked himself. Probably the same way he instantly knew how a cloud of white fluff in the astral world was male or female. It was just obvious, and it communicated itself instantly, together with thoughts and emotions. This, at least, didn\u2019t change with enlightenment; one would expect everybody to be the same, having the same boring ideas, meditating on something, but nothing of the sort. They were just bright, pure, hard and dense and yet made of brilliant light; they had a purpose, but each their own, and they were perfectly, brilliantly individual. So, he approached the brilliantly individual but seemingly confused and lost girl standing there.<\/p>\n
\u201cHi, I\u2019m Azazel. I\u2019m sorry to bother you, but I am completely new here and utterly out of my element. Would you please be so kind as to explain a thing or two about this place and its people? Also, what\u2019s your name, if you don\u2019t mind me asking?\u201d<\/p>\n
The girl looked at him and smiled shyly. \u201cI\u2019m Karuna, but everybody except my Mistress calls me Kay. You say your name is Azazel? I\u2019m sorry if this will sound offensive, but isn\u2019t that a demon\u2019s name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can call me Zee; it\u2019s less of a mouthful and most call me that anyway\u201d, he smiled. \u201cI am, or as a matter of fact, I was indeed a demon, until, well, right about now. I decided that my demonic existence is an evolutionary cul-de-sac, and gathered enough courage to approach Lord Shiva and asked him to teach me, right when he was having tons of problems of his own and it was probably the worst timing in the world, but he was extremely kind and patient with me, guided me through knowledge of spiritual particles and their aggregation, and I attained crystallisation during that first conversation with him, so here I am now, completely out of my element and bothering strangers\u201d, he grinned mischievously. \u201cYou mentioned your Mistress; who is it and what do you do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHello Zee\u201d, Kay smiled angelically. \u201cThat\u2019s quite a story, and I truly commend your courage. My Mistress is Lady Lakshmi, wife of Lord Vishnu, and she\u2019s usually called Fortune, Wealth, Luck or Grace, because that\u2019s what her spiritual aspect is. I\u2019m her worshipper, or bhakta<\/i>, or maid-servant, depending on the occasion, but mostly a student who uses every opportunity to be in her company and learn\u201d, she laughed. \u201cI attained enlightenment and crystallised into vajra a few days ago, when she was describing her relationships and experiences with the other Gods, and the spiritual impact of that conversation was such, that I started crystallising in the middle of it, believe it or not. I can see that I\u2019m quite a bit smaller than you are, and also of lower specific energy, so I\u2019m curious as to how that may be, if you say you\u2019re completely new here?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we may actually know each other from before, in the astral nursery. You\u2019re the one they used to call Karen, bullying you for being so pedantic and obsessed with duties? Remember that huge cloud of darkness and gloom that laughed at your discomfort sarcastically from a distance? I\u2019m afraid that was me, and please accept my apology for that. I was quite an asshole\u201d, he admitted sheepishly.<\/p>\n
Her eyes turned wide. \u201cYou are that<\/i> Azazel? The greatest, oldest demon? Oh!\u201d But she recovered from her surprise quickly enough. \u201cI think I understand now. Your spiritual mass was enormous for the astral plane, because you grew horizontally for eons, since your demonic impurities didn\u2019t allow for ascension on a normal evolutionary timeline, and since you had so much astral mass at the point where you renounced your sins and approached Lord Shiva, that explains your greater size and advancement now\u201d, the girl successfully picked up the loose ends.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are exactly right, Kay, and, if I may say, you are exceedingly smart to pick it up so quickly; I greatly admire your intelligence\u201d, he bowed.<\/p>\n
She responded with a curtsy and a smile. \u201cThank you, Zee. You are very kind, and if I may say, there is absolutely nothing demonic in your person any more. In fact, I like you very much, and I hope we can be friends\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would like that very much as well, my Lady.\u201d, he bowed again, to which she blushed.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease, tell me more about Lord Shiva. My Mistress told me a few tidbits, and even that was enough to make me ecstatically worshipful of him to the point where I simply crystallised and attained enlightenment. Is he indeed as kind and as powerful as she said?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what she told you, but I expect she knows him much better and for far longer than I do, so I can only tell you of those two experiences I had with him. The first was when one of my demonic friends decided he had enough of life and challenged Lord Shiva to a duel. I thought I knew what power was until the Lord appeared, and I am embarrassed to say it, but I shit myself on the spot out of sheer terror of his presence\u201d, he shuffled his feet, while Kay giggled cutely.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe killed my friend on the spot, absorbed his corpse into his own body, and vanished from my sight\u201d, Azazel finished.<\/p>\n
\u201cWere you not mad at him for killing your friend?\u201d, Karuna was curious.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot at all. Ashanti was proud, arrogant and foolish. He challenged the God; Shiva answered his challenge with all the propriety and dignity of a warrior, he won fairly and gave Ashanti an honourable death. That is one of the two acceptable outcomes of every battle, and in a battle with a God, it\u2019s the only possible and expected outcome. I had no ill will towards Lord Shiva. I was, however, terrified by him beyond measure, and I had immense respect for his power and the manner in which he conducted himself. He was endlessly more powerful, and yet he treated this as a proper duel, rather than garbage disposal. The honour he gave his infinitely inferior enemy made me respect him as an incredibly honourable person, which is why I eventually managed to gather enough courage to talk to him and ask him to teach me\u201d, Zee finished, in deep contemplation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is fascinating, and I must admit that I\u2019m unfamiliar with those honour-based relationships between men, although I find that very sexy, especially the respect involved\u201d, she giggled. \u201cIt looks like a very virtuous way of conducting yourselves, without pointless grudges or vindictiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIndeed. Grudges are something that would occur if someone handled things in a disrespectful manner, but if all propriety was observed, a duel to the death gives honour to both sides, both the victorious and the defeated\u201d, he nodded. \u201cLord Shiva gave my friend an honourable death, and he treated me with incredible patience and kindness as I approached him. I must have been a mere bug to him, from his Divine perspective, and yet he smiled at me, called me \u201cson\u201d, sat me down and talked to me at great length, guiding me with his energy and blessings. I don\u2019t know what other Gods are like, for I hadn\u2019t met them, but Lord Shiva is an absolutely amazing person\u201d, Zee glowed deep blue.<\/p>\n
Kay glowed back sympathetically, and approached close enough to hold him in the embrace of her blue aura, drinking in his higher frequency of energy. \u201cYour story sent shivers of bliss through my soul, Zee, because this is exactly how my Lady described her experience with Lord Shiva. She said he feels so incredibly powerful, he could be the scariest person in the world, and yet he is always so kind, polite, gentle and always looking for an opportunity to bless, praise and shower you with gifts, that always feel undeserved\u201d.<\/p>\n
Something special passed through Azazel. \u201cKay, I know we know each other very briefly, but I feel something special when I\u2019m near you, something I\u2019ve never felt before with anyone else. I love you, and I admire your spirit and intelligence greatly. I don\u2019t know how those things work here, but Gods exist in couples, and I would want nothing more than for us to be married like that\u201d, he blushed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is probably too soon, and we barely know each other, but I feel the same way, Zee. I accept, and I would very much like to be your wife\u201d, she glowed and melted into him, as he embraced her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy is it that we feel so connected, and after such a short acquaintance?\u201d, Zee mused.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it is our devotion and admiration for the Lord, my husband\u201d, she glowed. \u201cWe both attained enlightenment out of this devotion, and as we both felt it, our mutual connection became too strong and too right to resist\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think you are right, my darling wife\u201d, he smiled. \u201cIt is something Lord Shiva explained to me, that the kalapas<\/i> in our souls react very strongly to powerful sources of sat-cit-ananda<\/i>, and our mutual devotion to the Lord made us such powerful sources of God\u2019s presence, that the particles of our respective souls willed us to be forever connected\u201d, he beamed, and they held each other like that in a blissful eternity.<\/p>\n
\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cZee, what do you think about that new world that was created recently? It is said to offer great potential for spiritual growth \u2013 literally, that we can become Gods there. Also, it is said to offer experiences of the sort that cannot be replicated anywhere else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a firm negative, my love. Absolutely not. I know the demon who created this new world using the Jewel of Creation that is presently in his custody. I know nothing of that new world, but I know a lot about its creator, and to say he\u2019s no good would be the biggest understatement ever. In fact, his deranged evil, egomania, paranoia and other ways of being a completely fucked up basket case convinced me to ask for Lord Shiva\u2019s blessed guidance, lest I end up like Sanat Kumar, who himself is a deranged maggot and yet wishes to be thought of as a God\u201d, Zee shivered from the terror of his memories.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh\u201d, Kay was shocked. \u201cI didn\u2019t know that a demon made that place. And you say you know him, and he\u2019s really bad?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know him alright. He\u2019s much smaller and younger than I was, and yet he was incredibly ambitious, pompous and conceited, almost as much as he was cowardly and spiritually insignificant. I was fascinated with him and kept his company because he seemed to be the worst person I had ever met, and as such he was something interesting and out of the ordinary, that alleviated my boredom, and listening to his ravings made me feel better about myself, until a point where I understood that the difference between the two of us was a mere matter of degree, and not of essential quality. So, instructed by the worst person I\u2019d ever known about what was to be my fate unless I fundamentally change my nature and my ways, I sought guidance from the best person I had ever known, which is Lord Shiva, which was the most blessed decision of my life, since it caused my redemption and salvation, and through which I also met you\u201d, he blew his wife a kiss, which she took in and shivered in giggles.<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks for the warning, Zee. To even think that I considered that seriously; it must be a blessing of Lady Lakshmi that I have your guidance in this matter, because this information would be completely unknown to others. And speaking of that, do you think it would be a good idea to inform others about what you know about Sanat Kumar? We wouldn\u2019t want them to get trapped in something a crazy person designed using a powerful artefact created by the Gods, would we?\u201d, she spoke worriedly.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou do have a point, my sweetheart. Sanat Kumar is obviously spreading false propaganda about his creation, and knowledge about his true nature is limited to a very narrow circle of people, all of whom are, or used to be, demons, in whom he had confided, or merely talked to himself out loud so that he could worship the sound of his own voice. However, I think this is seriously above our heads, and we should first consult the Gods\u201d, his face became serious with concern.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, what is it that you two newlyweds wanted to talk to us about?\u201d, Lord Shiva said, appearing from a shimmer in the surrounding space, dragging along a laughing Lady Lakshmi, who had all the appearance of a star-struck fangirl, as Zee and Kay froze in shock.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh come on, thaw the fuck down, kids, let’s sit down, have some coffee and discuss this\u201d, Shiva rolled his eyes and wielded a room, a sofa and a coffee set for four.<\/p>\n
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He was out of his element, to put it mildly. It\u2019s not like he was a young, inexperienced person. He watched generations after generations of souls be born, mature and attain enlightenment, while he watched, grumbled and brooded darkly in … Continue reading