Without further ado, I give you one of my largest projects that I have been working on.  The name of the project is “The Master’s Chronicles”.  I have spent years working on the plot, setting and characters.  Even to this day, it is a work in progress. But since this story is too big to post in one entry, I will be posting parts of it every couple of days. The story begins with the prologue.  The prologue is a detailed account of how Copia (the world of this story) was made.  In starting this series, I found it only fitting to explain how everything came to be in this story-world.  You may have heard this story before, but it’s a little different, and parts of it are unique to this story’s world.  I hope you enjoy it.

Nothing. It all started with nothing.

Then, the darkness took form.  A seemingly endless array of stars began appearing, one by one throughout the dark and wide expanse of space. They all appeared in various sizes.  Some were gargantuan in size while others were quite minute.  Each had a characteristic of its own, along with its own degree of luminosity.

Multiple spheres of various sizes began to appear throughout space. Each sphere was formless and empty, without a source of light.  The spheres only consisted of water.  They were merely dark orbs suspended in space, with no gravity to propel them. Though the stars were plentiful, their light was too faint for any of the formless spheres of water.

Of the many dark hydrospheres that hovered in space, there was one in particular that had a faint glow of light.  This light glistened, and danced along the surface of the water.

This light was The Master in all his splendor, observing the formless sphere.  “A clean canvas,” The Master said.  “The galaxies are starting to take form.  This sphere will not be formless for long.  A new life will be breathed upon it. This will be a planet that is copious with life.  It shall be called Copia.”

And it was so.  The Master began creating and what he mentioned came into existence.

The Master then said, “Time, come forth! You will be the law that effects change on Copia and in the vast reaches of space beyond Copia.  Let there also be physical laws that will govern everything that exists.”

And it was so.  The stars began to move and the dark spheres began rotating.

The light and darkness split from each other and each went to its own place.

The first day happened.  Then The Master said, “Sky, come forth!”

And it was so.  The sky split the two layers of water apart.

The Master continued creating.  Each day brought new things to Copia.

The land burst out of the water. First, it was all dirt and rock.  Then, grass covered it and flooded the land everywhere.  Flowers of different colors and sizes sprang up throughout the new grass. Trees emerged from the ground, each baring a different fruit. Many different plants grew and began to fill the land.

A bright star appeared some distance away from Copia.  The dark sphere with land and vegetation was dark no longer.  This bright star is called the sun, and lights each Copian day.

A dim sphere appeared much closer to Copia.  This dim sphere is called the moon, and lights each Copian night.

With that, the third and fourth day happened.

The Master still continued creating new things on Copia.

The oceans of Copia were filled with different beasts.  There were many different kinds of beasts in the water, each with their own distinct personality.

Then suddenly, as if from nowhere, a myriad of winged beasts flew in the sky. There were many kinds and colors of these beasts and each personality was unique.

And The Master said, “Swimming beasts, fill the waters and winged beasts, fill the skies of Copia!  Be copious, all of you.”

With that, the fifth day happened.

The Master continued creating new things on Copia.

Many different kinds of beasts began roaming on the land.  They ranged greatly in size and shape. Some beasts were tame while others were wild. They each let out their own distinct sound.  It was a cacophony of sounds that ranged in volume, tone, and pitch.

“This canvas is coming together nicely,” The Master said.  “Everything on Copia looks so beautiful.  Every corner of it is teeming with life.  However, something is missing.”

The Master looked at every beast that was made.  He then made something unique.  Something that stood out from all the rest of the creatures on Copia. “Let us make something that is a reflection of us,” The Master said.  “It will be an image of us and will look similar to us.”

The Master gathered some soft clay and formed this image.  The clay on this image turned into flesh and a body was made.  “He shall be called man,” The Master said.  “And he shall be named Axis, since he will be the center of all other men that are made after him.”

The Master made a garden for the man and had all kinds of different plants grow.  There were flowers of different colors and all the plants were beautiful.  He also placed some trees in the garden that provided food for Axis.

In the center of the garden, the Master built a ledge.  This ledge had a flat top with stairs leading up to it on all four sides.  He made a short pedestal at the top of this ledge.

A pillar of light appeared on top of the pedestal.  The light became a round golden mass, which looked like a ball.  The ball-shaped mass began to transform.  The two sides at the bottom moved inward and a depression formed at the top.  A black stem emerged from the depression.  It was a golden apple, enveloped in a cone of light shining from above.

The Master observed the man and the garden he just created.  “This garden will be called Paradise,” The Master said.  “And this is where you will live.”

The Master placed the man into the garden.  He then said, “Watch over this garden and take good care of it.  Feel free to eat anything from the trees that I have given you for food.”

The Master then observed the golden apple.  “There is, however, one fruit that you are forbidden to eat.  In the center of the garden is a golden apple.  This apple did not come from any tree.  It was made by my own two hands.  And you must not eat of it at all.  If you eat this apple, you will surely perish.  Do you understand?”
“I understand,” the man said.  “I will not eat that forbidden apple.”

The Master then told the man, “I have given you authority over all the creatures that are on Copia.  I will bring all the creatures to you and you can tell me what each of them are.”

And so the Master did just that.  He brought every single creature that he has ever made on Copia to the man and the creatures’ names were whatever the man decided to call them.

After the man had named every single creature, he looked at them and frowned.  “I am so alone,” the man said.  “There is no other creature that is like me.”

The Master looked at the man and all the other creatures.  “Man can not be alone,” The Master said.  “Man needs someone to help him and accompany him.  I will create man’s equal.  Another piece of him that will complete him.”

The Master then put the man to sleep and took a rib from his body. He covered that area with flesh and created a new image from the rib.  “This helper will complete him,” The Master said.

The Master awakened the man and called the helper over to him.

“I am not alone now,” the man said.  “This was the rib taken out of me.  I will call her woman.

This clearly explains why marriage is necessary and that a Copian man is to wed a Copian woman.

The Master then said to the man and the woman, “Populate all parts of Copia.  I have given you both authority over all the creatures of Copia.

Then The Master said, “I have given you the seeds of life.  Wherever you plant these seeds, you will have plenty of fruit to eat.  You will also have plenty of plants that all the beasts of Copia will be able to eat.”

And it was so.  The Master looked at Axis, the woman, the creatures, and all that was made on Copia.

With that, the sixth day happened.

The Master observed Copia, now filled with life.  He then observed the vast reaches of space beyond Copia.  All the formless spheres of water were now planets of various sizes.  There were galaxies, shooting stars, comets, asteroids, and many other celestial bodies that lined the seemingly endless panorama.

The Master was now finished creating things.  With that, he rested from all the work that he did.  ”The canvas is complete,” The Master said.  “Everything is finished.  Let us rest now from all that we have made.”

The Master rested, observing the almost limitless stars and galaxies that were made.

“This day will be forever blessed,” The Master declared.  “For I have spent six days creating the vast reaches of space and Copia.”

Meanwhile, a dark silhouette approached the garden.  There was light coming from the silhouette, but it was a faded light.  A light that dimmed more and more by the second.  The silhouette had the appearance of a winged figure.  The figure paced around aimlessly in a circle.  It was as if it were looking for something, but it couldn’t find it.

The dark silhouette revealed a figure that looked like a man.  It was a handsome man in white robes.  The white robes shimmered and sparkled like a diamond.  He wore a frown on his face and his eyes were wide.  It looked like he was lost.  An angel that has lost his way.

The angel stood up quickly.  His frown became a scowl.  “Rejected,” Ivion uttered in a guttural tone.  “How dare he!  Doesn’t he know who’s in charge?  It is clear that I am superior to him.”

Ivion clenched his right fist and stamped his right foot on the ground. He tore a branch off one of the trees and broke it in two.  “I will destroy all that he has created.  I will be a god that is superior to the Master.  I will then destroy him and all men will serve me forever.”

Ivion cackled, as he walked closer and closer to the garden of Paradise.

Meanwhile, the man and the woman were tending to the garden.

“What is that thing in the center of the garden?” The woman asked.

“That is food that the Master said that we can never touch,” the man explained to her.  “Over there is the golden apple.  If you touch and eat that fruit, you will perish.”

The woman looked at the man and frowned. “Perish? What does it mean to perish?”

“To perish is an end to all life,” the man explained.  “All of us are alive. We can talk, move, breathe, and feel.  This is what you’re able to do when you’re alive.  Perishing is the opposite of this.  You can’t talk. You can’t move. You can’t breathe. All movement in your body would cease.  If we eat that apple, we will stop living.  All perfection in Copia will be destroyed if we eat that forbidden fruit.”

“I do not want to perish,” The woman gasped.  “It does not sound like a good thing.”

“It isn’t,” Axis told her.  “I’m now going to tend to the creatures in the garden.”

Meanwhile, a cobra slithered over to the woman, who was looking at the golden apple in the center of the garden.  “So lusciousssss,” The cobra hissed. “Bright, shiny, delectable.  Doesn’t it look good?”

“It does,” The woman said.  “But I can not eat it, or I will perish.”

“Perish?” The cobra snickered.  “Who told you that?”

“The man told me this,” The woman answered.

The cobra looked at the woman and hissed.        “Ssssss! Liessss!  He lies to you. Did he really tell you that you can not eat any fruit that’s in this garden?”

“No,” The woman said.  “We can eat every fruit, but we can not eat that golden apple.”

“Oh come on!” The cobra grinned.  “He knows just how delicious that apple is.  He doesn’t want you to have any of it because he wants it all for himself.  You wouldn’t want him to eat it all, would you?”

“I can’t…do that,” The woman hesitated.

The cobra slithered closer to the woman.  He began to speak in a slow and soft voice. “Trust me.  You won’t die if you eat that apple.  When you eat that, you will be just like The Master, knowing both good and evil.  Wouldn’t you want that?  It is full of wisdom and it’s the most delicious apple in the garden.”

The woman stared at the golden apple.  She looked more puzzled now.

“Doesn’t it look good?” The cobra persisted.  “How about just one bite?”

“I guess one bite wouldn’t hurt,” the woman agreed.

“Yessssss,” The cobra said.  “Go for it!”

The woman walked over to the pyramid shaped ledge and walked up the stairs.  She took the golden apple off the pedestal and took a small bite.

“Mmm….” The woman said.  “This is so good!”

The woman took another bite, and another.

The cobra then slithered over to the woman.       “See? I told you I was right.  It’s quite a delicious apple, isn’t it? Don’t have it all to yourself.  How about you share that with the man?  He would be most pleased.”

“I will!” The woman joyfully declared.

The man came over to the woman.

“What have you done?” The man gasped.

“Try some of this golden apple,” The woman told him.

“I can’t do that!” The man refused.

“Have just one bite,” The woman grinned.  “It’s delicious!”

“I guess one bite wouldn’t be too bad,” The man agreed.

The man took some of the golden apple from the woman and ate it.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning flashed in the air, followed by the crack of thunder.

The man and the woman looked at each other.

“Oh no!” The man gasped.  “I’m naked! Let’s run!”

They both ran and hid in some bushes in the garden.

The Master observed the garden and called out to the man.  “Where are you?”

“I did it,” The man admitted.  “I ate the fruit that you told me not to eat.  It scared me to see that I was naked.  When I heard you, I ran and hid in these bushes.”

“Who said that you were naked?” The Master asked him.  “Did you really eat that golden apple?”

“Yes,” The man choked out.  “The woman that you made for me gave me that apple and I ate it.”

The Master then went to the woman.

“What did you do?” He asked the woman.

“That cobra told me to eat that apple, so I ate it.”  The woman admitted.

The Master went over to the cobra.  “Cobra!  Since you have tricked the woman into eating that fruit, I will place a curse on you.  You will be cursed above all the other creatures that I have made.  The woman and her offspring will despise you and your offspring and you will despise her.  You will no longer have legs and you will crawl on your belly. He will tear your head and you will attack his foot.”

The Master then said to the woman, “I will make it painful for you to bear children.  You will desire to be with your husband, and will be under his authority.”

He then said to Axis,

“Since you ate the golden apple, you can not eat from any other tree in the garden.  The ground that you walk upon is cursed from your wrongdoing. The ground will not be as copious as I have made it in the garden.  You will work and will feel the pain of your labor.  You will toil and will eat the food that are able to produce from the ground.  You will eat from it for the rest of your life.  There will be thorns that will come from the land that you work and you will eat from all of the plants.  With sweat from your face, you will eat the food until you die.  I have made you from clay and you will return to the ground as clay.”

Axis then faced the woman.  “I will name you Isis,” Axis told her.  “For you will have authority over all the women of Copia.”

The Master banished Axis and Isis from the garden of Paradise.  “Man now knows good and evil like us,” The Master said.  “He can not eat from the fruit of this garden and live forever.”

The Master then placed a barrier around the garden of Paradise so that Axis and Isis could not enter it again.

The Master then created four relics.

“I will send them to the four corners of Copia and bury them in the ground,” The Master said.  “Whoever finds one of the relics will rule over that part of Copia.  With these relics, there will be four rulers on Copia.”

The Master then put clothing on Axis and Isis and put skin garments on them.

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©2011  K. L. Walker