Chapter 8 - The Price of Peace
A strange, heavy silence settled over the luxurious room.
The crystal chandelier hummed softly. The air smelled of jasmine and ozone, clean and pure. But suddenly, to Julian, that air felt... heavy. Thin. Like trying to breathe pure oxygen through a silk sheet.
He looked at his clean, manicured hands. He looked at the flawless marble floor.
"If no one needs anything..." Julian whispered, his voice barely audible, "then how do I keep your command? How do I... help?"
"You don't," God answered simply. "You enjoy the blessing. You rest."
God turned away, walking back toward the grand marble staircase.
"The test of poverty is hard, Julian," God said over his shoulder, his voice echoing off the vaulted ceilings. "It breaks the spirit. It turns men into beasts who fight over bread in the dirt. But the test of paradise... is far more quiet. It simply asks you to forget."
Julian watched the divine figure ascend the first few steps. The golden rays of light followed him, casting long, sharp shadows across the polished white floor.
"Forget what?" Julian called out, taking a step forward.
God stopped on the third stair. He didn't turn around, but his voice carried a sudden, heartbreaking weight.
"To forget the feeling of being thirsty," God said. "To forget the sound of rain on a rotting roof. To settle into the warmth of your blue silk suit and believe that because you are safe, the storm outside has stopped raging."
Julian stood frozen in the center of the vast, beautiful room.
He looked out the window at the glittering city. It was magnificent. It was perfect. It was a paradise built of light and glass.
Yet, as he stared down at the streets below, he realized something that sent an icy shiver straight through his veins. There were no people walking on those glowing sky-bridges. There were no shadows moving behind the glass windows of those towering skyscrapers.
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The city was clean. The city was bright.
The city was completely, utterly empty.
