Gate: Ace of Cups

I entered the vision gate and stars were falling from the sky. I caught one as it fell and the twinkling ball of energy turned into a crying baby in my hands and then back to a shining star. I released the star to the ground and watched as the sky fell to the earth and everything turned the color of ash.

When all the stars had vanished from the firmament, the earth gave a tremendous heave and an obsidian statue of a man began to rise from the ground. It grew until it towered above me and I stood in the statue’s shadow at the end of the worlds.

“I require a guide for the stars have stopped shining for me,” I said, gazing up at the memorialized face of someone I didn’t recognize. “Are there any left who can guide me through the shadows? I still have not discovered my true nature.”

From out of the darkness at the end of all things, Badger appeared and ran to my side. “My dearest friend, you made it here too,” I said and embraced him. “Where are we going today?”

“To a place out of time,” he said. “Are you ready, Heidi? This may be an awfully big adventure.”

“I am as ready as I will ever be,” I said. “In some ways, it feels like I was born for this very moment.” Side by side, Badger and I approached the giant statue beneath the starless sky. A doorway appeared within the pedestal below the carven feet and we passed through into another world.

Once we cleared the doorway, I saw we stood upon a plain and scores of creatures of the earth were running past us. The panicking crowds of Nature’s children consisted of all manner of animals like deer, bear, lions, foxes, animals that came out of dreams like dragons and unicorns, and ancient, extinct animals that I have never seen walk upon the earth, the dinosaurs from before the dominion of man. Rabbits hopped around turtles who stoically pushed themselves along though they lagged behind the rest.

Here came the domesticated creatures such as horses, cows, goats, and pigs. Among them were the predators, the wolves ran with the mountain lions while hovering insects like ladybugs, bees, beetles and biting flies moved in clouds throughout the fleeing host. The birds of the air darkened the cloudy skies along with the monsters from the time before with their webbed wings and sharp claws out of nightmare.

Every creature ever born upon the earth were all running as if their lives depended upon it, but from what I could not discern. Badger grabbed my hand and began to run too.

“I cannot keep up with the rest of creation on two legs in this man form. Join with me as I embody my animal self,” he said. “I will keep you safe from whatever comes.” I moved through the connection in our hands as he shifted into his primal Badger self and became one with his consciousness as we joined the race of terror in an expression of Unity.

I was gazing through Badger’s eyes as we looked over our furry shoulder and saw a wall of darkness behind the fleeing animals and it came ever closer. I felt a wave of fear move through us as Badger placed himself next to the largest deer I have ever seen with antlers like tree limbs. “Friend Stag, what comes from the living void?” we said.

“The darkness, the devourer, the evil one,” he replied. “This is the end of all things. I am honored to die next to you, Friend Badger.” Hysteria moved through the crowd of animals at the Stag’s words and we raced even faster, driven as fiercely onwards by our fear as if the darkness wielded a whip over our heads.

We ran on and on until finally, I felt everyone’s strength coming to an end so, wordlessly, we gathered together on a high hill top, turning to make our last stand against the darkness. All of the animals moved closely together, arraying themselves like an army as the predators stood with the prey, the birds came from the skies to stand among the earth bound and all turned their faces towards the approaching shadow as I continued to gaze out of Badger’s eyes as if they were my own.

The wall of living darkness came unstoppably to our hilltop and divided itself into a crowd of shouting, angry humans made of shadow. They waved weapons at us forged of metal that were far sharper than our claws and teeth. The domesticated creatures shut their eyes against the shining weapons. “They will chain us all,” they whispered in despair. “Let us die rather than return to that.”

“Don’t be afraid,” Badger and I whispered to the creatures nearest us. “We of the free world within time stand with you. There will be no chains today.”

“You will see,” cried a mighty stallion. “Our children’s children will feed their war machines and carry them to their endless struggles between their kings. The horses know this is so. We lived this nightmare before.”

“They will cut off our tusks,” said an elephant. “For decorative purposes in their caves, leaving us defenseless against our enemies.”

“Let them try,” said a serpent. “The future is not promised, even for the two legs. The snakes have developed sophisticated poisons. Let them try to chain or cut us to pieces and we will take their children from them in the night with our fangs.”

“How about nobody kills anybody until we figure out what they want,” Badger and I whispered. “Who are they? Maybe they have words and can speak their true nature as we do among ourselves.”

One enormous shadow separated himself from the armies of darkness and moved forward until he stood before Nature’s army. He wore a crown on his head and dripped with darkness. Blood fell from his eyes like tears and I knew somehow that Death followed in his footsteps.

“Badger, do we know this shadow?” I said. “I feel like I do but I can’t remember from where or when.”

“Sshhhhhh,” Badger whispered back. “I can’t hide you if you insist on speaking. They will hear you and take you from us with their superior weapons.” I held my peace to observe the one who stood before the hilltop in silence with the rest of creation.

“Creatures of the Earth,” the Shadow King called, his voice reaching every animal’s ears. “We are many and you are few. We have dominion over you until the end of time. Your young shall feed our children and your bodies shall clothe our flesh. Present yourselves unto me and kneel in acknowledgement of my power and I will give you your true names and designations in creation. Resist and you will die here today at our hands and every day thereafter until the stars cease their motion in the sky.”