Gatekeeper Read online

  “D..Dad?” Diego asked incredulously. How was this possible?

  “No,” the being paused. “This is merely a form I hoped you would not immediately reject outright. Someone you would trust.”

  “What...Why?”

  “Do you believe in God?”

  “I have begun to wonder a bit lately. Some weird stuff has been going on.” Diego couldn’t help the sound of sarcasm in his voice.

  “Oh really? This does not serve to bring you a little closer to my side?”

  “Well, sure, its all a bit overwhelming really. I guess I have a hard time thinking God would just appear out of the blue in front of me. I mean you’re here and everything.”

  “Yes, I am indeed. Who else could I be?”

  “I don’t know! I guess, something else, an alien with greater technology, maybe.”

  “Could not God be a being of greater knowledge and understanding about the universe?”

  “Well, what would be the point of your interaction with humans then?”

  “To bring them back to my loving arms, of course.”

  “Well, I guess some people might like the idea of a heaven of sorts.”

  “Of course they do. Why do you think Marta has sought me out? She wanted to be swept up in the arms of my love.”

  “I admit, its difficult to remain the skeptic with you shining brightly before me. But, why haven’t you just appeared like this before?”

  “You needed to be prepared for what you would see. Honestly, do you think I could have appeared to you a month ago and been able to convince you who I was?”

  “So why are you here then?”

  “I’ll get to the point. Diego, I need your help.”

  “Uhh, okay, what do you need?”

  “I need you to open the stargate for me.”

  “Why do you need me to open the stargate?”

  “You do ask a lot of questions. Why do you think? So I can come through it.”

  At that moment alarms began sounding throughout the command and control center.

  “Max, what’s the problem?!”

  “Sir, it looks like there is something approaching the stargate through the hyperspace corridor.”

  “See? I’m here already. So if you don’t mind I’d like for you to open the stargate.”

  Diego walked over to the command couch and sat down. He quickly brought up the necessary displays and functions. He honestly was not sure this was a good idea. His mind was still full of doubt about the nature of the being standing to the side of him.

  More alarms began to register as Diego went through the startup procedures.

  “Sir, we seemed to be experiencing some strange stresses in the hyperspace corridor as it relates to the local space time metric. I don’t know what is happening, but the sensors indicate we need to open the stargate and release the pressure or all hell is going to break loose.” Max actually seemed worried.

  The apparition laughed. “Very funny Max. Do you happen to believe in God? No, never mind we don’t have time to philosophise with a simulation.”

  Diego turned and looked at the being of light. That didn’t seem very godlike.

  “Diego, please if you would, open the gate. You’ll see what I’m talking about when I am fully here.”

  In a moment, Diego’s hand was poised over the activation button. It hung blinking before him, ready to rend space and time. He could see out over the stargate, the vast silvery ocean of the transit threshold filling its circumference. Something was straining against the surface of the vast ocean. It was impossible to tell what it was at this scale. The stargate and the surrounding substation shuddered, equipment crashed to the ground along the walls.

  What if he was making the wrong choice? Diego had always avoided the question of faith. It wasn’t rational. Yet, here was God, supposedly, standing in front of him. Maybe it was time to take a leap of faith.

  Diego dropped his hand and touched the activation button.

  Bright white light exploded from the center of the stargate. It was as if a vast star was trying to fight its way through the hole in the universe.

  “Humans, so predictable.” The light in the room began to fade.

  A scream echoed down the halls of the station. A figure could be seen running down the hallway from the sickbay, a blanket streaming behind. Marta ran into the command and control center, her arm stretched before her.

  “Nooo!! What have you done?! You’ve destroyed us all!” She collapsed to her knees, the blanket wrapped around her. Sobs escaped her as she rocked back and forth.

  “What are you talking about?” Diego asked, fear beginning to fill his heart. He jumped from the command chair and ran over to Marta, grabbing her shoulders. She looked up into his face.

  “Do you think God has to appear to you to prove he is real?”

  Soft laughter filled the control center. Soft, deranged, evil laughter.

  Diego raised his head and saw the face of the being of light. Only there was no light in his face, darkness filled his features. His eyes burned with a deep crimson heat.

  “Oh Diego, don’t worry, it will all be over soon.” The face faded into utter and complete darkness.

  Outside the station chaos reigned. The bright light that had filled the tear into the other side was no longer there. Instead, a deep mottled red filled the hole in space and time. It was as if it peered into the very depths of hell itself.

  Marta and Diego stood at the observation window, his arm wrapped around her, holding her from collapsing again to the floor.

  “I thought I had to go back,” Marta said softly.

  “I know. I read your journal.”

  “I never thought that it could be something else. That another being, of a completely different nature, had tricked me.’

  “He tricked us both.”

  “Someone imprisoned him in that place, long ago. I just happened upon it and he was ready to deceive me.”

  A dark something began moving from within the stargate. It seemed almost organic in the way it moved. It was hard to believe that anything of that size could move with such predatory grace. It sat on the threshold of the stargate as if it were a giant nest. It gathered itself and leaped from the tear in reality. Vast wings spread from it as it passed from the stargate and into the universe.

  Diego’s mind screamed at him in primordial fear. He knew what it was. Every man, woman and child knew deep within their heart what it was. The fear of it had been imprinted upon the soul of humanity in the depths of time.

  “It’s amazing that something so horrible can bring you hope,” Marta whispered.

  “What are you talking about?” Diego turned to Marta a look of surprise filling his features.

  “With so much evil, there has to be something to balance it.”

  The vast, dark creature swept back its wings, grabbing hold of the very substance of space and turned itself, as if it were soaring through the skies of distant Earth. Its massive head reminiscent of the predatory cats that inhabited the home of Humanity. Its mouth filled with teeth harder than any carbon. It turned and came back toward them. It took just a few moments. Only shards remained and the distant glimmering stars.

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