\ n the flying palace of the Great Beast, which had not yet departed back to Hell, an earnest-faced minion with the features of a ram approached his monstrous leader.
“Your Majesty, a thousand pardons,” he said, bowing. “An enemy ship just entered our security zone and is now waiting in front of one of our major ports.”
“Has it sent any communication?” growled the Great Beast.
“No, Your Majesty, but it seems to want to enter! We already have several cannons aimed, ready to eliminate the ship.”
The chief of all monsters focused mentally on the ship, trying to uncover its intentions.
“I feel a great hatred.... This pleases me! Open the door and let it land. Escort its crew straight to me.”
“Your Majesty, excuse me for saying, but I must stress the danger it poses to the safety of our ship.”
Immediately, in a single motion, the Great Beast cut off the head of the minion with one of his claws.
“I will not accept those who question my authority.” He turned towards another monster guarding the room. “Go and inform the commander of my orders.”
Yania saw the door of the flying palace opening, and she commanded her ship to enter. She descended from the ship with courage, 95
96
M a r c o s A r a g a o C o r r e i a
taking the body of Kami in her arms. Once again, she used her psychic powers to increase her muscle strength.
Eighty-nine guards escorted her through the long, cold, and dark corridors of the flying palace. Yania had the distinct feeling that she was approaching the most nefarious force of the universe. It was an overwhelming impression, like falling into a bottomless pit.
They arrived at a huge iron door, almost baroque in style and richly decorated with gold snakes. One of the guards entered a code into a small panel on the adjoining wall. The door opened. At the end of the room, there was a huge throne facing away. Though the beast’s back was turned, Yania could see gigantic horns, goat’s legs, and lizard arms resting on the throne. It was the Great Beast. She was certain, as she could feel a horrendous flood of feelings of wickedness such as she had never before experienced, even when she and Kami had been psychically attacked.
“Leave us alone,” growled the Great Beast, and all the guards immediately obeyed. The abominable chief monster already knew who was standing behind him.
Yania approached the throne and very gently placed the body of Kami on the floor in front of him.
“You filthy monster!” Yania said loudly. “You killed two of my best friends.”
The Great Beast did not react.
“Why so much violence? Why? Why do you feed on suffering, death, pain, hatred, misery, and bloodshed?” She raised her voice even higher. “Why all the wars, disease, old age, hunger, selfishness, evil, exploitation of man by man, and the rot and vermin that are satiated with this? Why so many children who cry desperately? Why, while some feast, are others consumed by hunger and suffer the cruelty of begging and stealing just to stay alive? Why the thieves, including the big thieves who hide behind big business and government? Why the killers, both those who kill for pleasure and those who kill in the name of corrupt laws? Why so many concentration camps, so many jails, asylums, and mental institutions? Why so many physically and mentally handicapped? Why so many animals that cruelly devour each other? Why so many weapons? What is the reason for so many so-called natural disasters that kill innocent people and destroy their T H E L O V E S P I R I T S
97
homes, crops, and animals? Why did you create money, the base metal by which so many human beings have been bought and sold? Why have you brought forth and encouraged so many and such horrible aberra-tions? Answer me!” she shouted.
But Satan was silent.
“Answer me, you hideous beast! I have the right to know! Why do you want human beings to drag themselves around on the ground like worms? Why have you cut off their understanding? Why thousands of philosophies, religions, and sects that all contradict each other and that so often give rise to devastating wars? Why does science, the modern mistress of truth, lie and cheat so much? Why are those who are most nefarious the ones who almost always sit on golden thrones and recline on beds of satin? Who gave them the right to judge and condemn? And why do so many fools kneel at their feet and kiss their hands? Why so many lies, so many falsehoods, so many evils, so much theft and corruption? The man you want, and whom you say is a casual evolution from apes, is there for all to see! Yes, he is your perfect image: malevolent, wicked, disloyal, violent, murderous, selfish, greedy, lying, hypo-critical, cowardly, treacherous, vicious, thieving, and capable of the worst evils! But this man that exists and destroys the world is not the true man! This is the false man, a monster whom you feed and who feeds you; you are his god. Yes, you are the false god of a false man!
Damned beast! Hideous beast!” she shouted with anger.
The greatest of all the devils remained undaunted.
“You have nothing to say? Why do you hide and not even look at me? At my feet I have the body of a true Human Being, an authentic Human Being, whom I loved so much. But that is exactly what you want, right? To destroy Love and kill all His Spirits.... You are disgusting! Wicked! Dirty!”
Suddenly, the Great Beast roared happily. “Yes! Hate me! Hatred feeds me! Hate me because I also hate you all!”
Yania controlled herself. She had learned in the village that hate was a feeling that had to be avoided, as it was not healthy for a Love Spirit.
“No, I won’t satisfy your wish! I do not hate you! I only loathe you!”
98
M a r c o s A r a g a o C o r r e i a
The Great Beast then turned around on his throne, facing Yania. He had remained facing away because he could not bear the direct view of a Love Spirit.
“You are going to die!” he shouted and opened one of his claws, releasing an enormous fiery serpent that he had created psychically.
Yania instantly created an energy shield to protect herself. The Great Beast responded by launching a shower of other horrifying fire serpents that burned through the shield. Yania fled to a corner of the room, looking for shelter. The Great Beast rose and followed with his thunderous steps, and Yania wished that the monster would fall to the floor. But nothing happened. The Great Beast laughed as he perceived Yania’s maneuver, feeling the energy of her desire, which he managed to repel. He kept moving toward Yania as she fled to another part of the huge room. Then suddenly, she began to feel an enormous sense of suffocation, much, much stronger than she had experienced before.
She invoked Love and His aid, and she was free. Then she created several large balls of fire and threw them at the Great Beast, but it was to no avail. The balls hit against his scales and fell ineffectively to the floor.
The monster rushed toward her like a mad goat and trapped her in a corner. He opened up a huge claw to cut off her head.
Suddenly, Kami appeared in spirit form, placing herself between the monster and Yania. When the monster swiped his claw to cut off Kami’s head, his claw was cut off as it passed through Kami’s spirit, falling to the floor. The monster gave a tremendous roar. Kami was no longer visible, but Yania thanked her in thought as she fled, taking advantage of the monster’s distraction.
Yania, you have the power to defeat this monster. The power of the Love of a child is the greatest power that exists in the world. Desire it, and you will succeed! It was the Spirit of Kami, communicating telepathically.
The monster again chased Yania through the great room. Yania thought about Kami’s words. She concentrated deeply. Think about Love and how beautiful He is. Yania stretched out her arms and opened the palms of her hands toward the approaching monster. She believed that she was capable of anything. Yania strongly desired that the monster fall and be tied by a chain of Love energy that would immobilize him and prevent his evil psychic energy from being released. She desired, T H E L O V E S P I R I T S
99
desired, desired... and done. The monster fell to the floor with a huge thud, which was so great that it caused the flying palace to shake. A stream of very powerful white light was now tied around the Great Beast, from his legs to his horns.
Yania hurried to the foot of the monster and, extending her hands again, emitted a dense beam of light directly into his eyes, trying to annihilate him.
“Wait!” cried the afflicted beast.
“Your Evil empire is finished! You will never be cruel to anyone again!” She increased the density of the beam.
“Wait! Your friend can come back to life!” he rumbled desperately.
Yania lowered her hands. “What are you talking about? Is this another of your lies?”
“No!” he roared. “There is an antidote to the poison of our demonic snakes. We can make a deal. I’ll free your friend from the bonds of death in exchange for my freedom.”
Yania hesitated. How could she rely on the word of the worst of all beasts? He was, after all, the leader of all evils, the progenitor of all the lies and falsehoods in the whole world. She thought for a moment.
What if it were true, though? What if he actually had an antidote to the snake poison? It might bring Kami back to life. Here was a life-and-death dilemma. On one hand, if true, it would save the life of her friend, even if it meant that the Great Beast could continue to reign. On the other hand, if it was a lie, it would surely be some kind of trap in which she herself would die needlessly. She hesitated for a few more seconds... and done. She decided. She had the chance to try to bring Kami back to her bodily life, and so she could not miss the chance, even if it was her last good act in this incarnation. Life for life, Kami! she thought.
“You promise that you will let us depart freely?”
“Yes, I promise,” he grunted.
“Okay, and I promise that if the antidote works and my friend comes back to life, I will free you.”
“Very good.… They say that one can always rely on the word of the Love Spirits!”
“It’s true! And though I know you’re an evil liar, I hope that at least this time you keep your promise.”
100
M a r c o s A r a g a o C o r r e i a
“Under the left arm of my seat, there is a carved gold snake biting a human. Press his head firmly, and the antidote will come out through its teeth. Then put this in the mouth of the girl.”
Without any further questions, Yania went to the throne and, with great caution, sought the said serpent. It must be this one here below, biting someone’s leg.
She held out her palm and, with her hands
beneath the golden snake, pressed firmly on its head with her other hand. Nothing. Could it be a trap? She tried again, pressing harder.
Then a rich, reddish liquid gushed out.
She carefully took the liquid within her cupped hands to Kami’s body. She had nothing to lose because Kami was already dead. She opened Kami’s mouth tenderly and poured in the liquid.
“Yania?” Kami asked, somewhat confused as she opened her eyes.
“Kami!” Yania embraced her friend strongly.
“Now you have to deliver what you promised! Set me free!” said the Great Beast, appealing to the values of Love Spirits.
Yania helped Kami to her feet.
“I will set you free, yes, but only after you let us return to our ship and leave.”
The Great Beast roared loudly. “Damn you forever! You were sup-posed to free me now!”
“I’m not a fool! I will fulfill my promise, but only after you let us go.”
The beast roared again. Yania knew that she could not yet release the big monster because he was sure to attack them again, so, acting very cleverly, she had concealed her moral values, just in the case that that this situation would arise. After all, if she freed the Great Beast now, she would needlessly put hers and Kami’s lives in danger, which would, in fact, run against their values as Love Spirits. The beast would be released only after both were safely out of that horrible ship.
“You deceived me!”
“No, your impatience is proof that you are the deceptive one and that I’m right in what I’m doing,” Yania said. “What is the problem if we first depart and we free you from the outside? Is it because it would be too late to try again to kill us? You are always so mischievous!”
“Guards!” called the beast with a fierce cry. Hundreds of monsters who until now had not dared enter the room without permission from the Great Beast swarmed inside. They didn’t want the same thing to T H E L O V E S P I R I T S
101
happen to them that had happened to the fervent minion, the Captain of the Bridge, who had lost his head only moments before.
“Open the door of the bay, and let them leave, along with their ship,”
he ordered with disgust.
Yania grabbed Kami’s hand. “Quickly, through here,” she said, leading her friend back to the ship.
Arriving, they quickly entered the ship. The monsters in the bay snarled with anger at seeing Love Spirits escape beneath their own beards.
Yania ordered the ship of Love to depart and to stop in the sky at a safe distance in front of the palace. Kami, meanwhile, put on her white-and-blue uniform.
Concentrating on the Great Beast, Yania wished that the stream of light that now imprisoned the monster would instantly disappear.
The beast quickly rose and gave orders that all available ships of the Evil fleet pursue and destroy Yania and Kami’s ship.
The attack ships took off at full speed while hundreds of others left the flying palace of the Great Beast.
The speed of the ship of Love was tremendous, so all the enemy ships were left far behind; however, a nefarious ship that was patrolling ahead detected the ship of Love and, having also received the chief’s orders, fired on Yania and Kami’s ship, hitting it with a laser beam.
“Kami, we’re hit, and we’re losing altitude!”
Kami was still a little shaky, but she managed to reach the control panel.
“Yania, don’t worry, this is one of the rare occasions when we need these buttons.” So saying, she pressed a big red button that was flash-ing intermittently.
Immediately, ten large parachutes opened at the top of the ship, and a distress signal was issued to all the ships of Love.
Almost immediately, they were surrounded by more than twenty of their ships, which immediately blasted the enemy ship into pieces small enough to not hurt anyone as they fell.
Yania and Kami’s ship touched down gently on the ground, and the children were promptly rescued by another ship of Love while one of its crew put a robot on repair duty.
102
M a r c o s A r a g a o C o r r e i a
Meanwhile, another ship descended. It was Ilya and Ceijo, the couple of Love Spirits that had first brought Yania to the village!
They embraced Yania and Kami and told them what had happened at the new village. The fact that Yania had entered the flying palace of the Great Beast had caused a huge disruption in the command of the attackers because a Love Spirit had been authorized by the beast to enter his palace. This was unthinkable to them, so they believed that the Great Beast must have gone crazy. Believing that their supreme chief was no longer able to rule Hell, the various generals in the forest near the village had begun to form factions of monsters, competing against each other to become the new leader. They had ordered their snakes to attack rival groups of monsters, and of the eight generals who headed the eight groups in contention, only one had survived. The monsters had decimated each other in their internal war, and only a few dozen of them had escaped alive. Seeing that he no longer had enough monsters for an attack, the remaining general had communicated to the bridge that the snakes had gone mad and killed all the monsters, and he had asked to be released from duty, claiming posttraumatic stress syn-drome.
Fortunately, most of the forest did not burn and the Love Spirits who lived in the new village did not need to change locations. Using their psychic powers, they were able to reconstruct almost everything within a few hours. The regular patrol of the skies over the village by the ships of Love was greatly increased.
Kami and Yania were both very pleased that everyone in the village was okay. Ilya and Ceijo said good-bye and descended towards a field near the village. Everyone’s necklaces shone again with a very bright pink light, joining the beautiful rays of the sun that was just now coming up. They were all happy to see that the forest had already recovered due to their intense outpourings of Love. Also, all the houses that had been destroyed were now rebuilt, and coming from several chimneys was smoke with the pleasant smell of wood-fired bread. In the vast plains of grass, the horses jumped and whinnied with pleasure. Many children were now playing happily on the banks of the river, playing games that used psychokinesis and telepathy. The beauty of the restored village helped the little ones to retain only good memories.
T H E L O V E S P I R I T S
103
Yania and Kami took off their boots, and, their feet feeling the soft, soothing grass, they walked quietly along the path that led to the village center. They wanted to enjoy every beautiful moment of life. They did not understand how anyone could reject Love, the most precious Good in the world, and devote themselves to spreading evil or to the accu-mulation of metals and papers. The real diamonds, the real gold, was everything that they were surrounded by: trees, plants, flowers, flowing rivers, singing birds, galloping horses, and, above all, the absolutely wonderful feelings of Love that united all the Spirits who lived there.
They were rich, very rich, and did not need or want anything else.
104
M a r c o s A r a g a o C o r r e i a
