Eidos

Prologue: Bedtime Stories

Prologue: Bedtime Stories

" 'Tell me, what do you hear when you close your eyes?'

The question echoed across the surrounding mountains, shaking the trees, and rushing through the grass. The words were more powerful than anything the petrified young boy had ever heard. Jacob had only wanted to cut through the woods on his way home from the market, the same road he took each and every day. But on that particular day, for the first time in all of his trips along the forested trail, there had appeared another traveller. Only this was no mere mortal, this was one of the gods, a being that should never have existed beyond that world of legend and dreams.

Jacob was almost too petrified to reply, 'I hear only your voice. Please...please don't hurt me.'

It was then that the descended messenger from the heavens looked into the boy's eyes and lowered his voice to but a whisper, 'Do not fear me Jacob, I am Athos, the protector of all mortals. I have come here in search of you. For you above all other mortals possess the capacity to understand the sacred gift which I have brought.'

Jacob could not believe it. He did not feel worthy of such a gift. He was nothing more than the son of a trader, a simple boy whose sole purpose was to sell his father's wares in the marketplace. There was nothing he could offer a god.

With his eyes still closed, he answered the heavenly Athos, 'I am sorry, oh wise god. I am not worthy to do as you ask...I am just a boy....'

Before Jacob could finish, the god answered, 'But you are Jacob, son of Sarah and Joseph, are you not? If so, then there could be no other. It is not through your position that you hold the merit to bear such a burden, or such a blessing. It is by virtue of this very trail to which you owe your ability to undertake this task.'

'By the road? I don't understand. This is just a trail through the woods that is seldom travelled. Surely it has done its part in my passing, but nothing so grand.'

'Yet you are seldom simply passing when you walk along this path. There is a connection with the road that none other has ever possessed. You feel the way the trees sway along the mountainous ridge sway, moved by the gusting currents that burst through the cracks between the towering stones. It is in the feeling of the rocks and dirt beneath your feet when you take off your shoes, but only when you think no one is around to see. It is even through the rustling movement of the tall grass at the edges of the trail that you often brush along the tips of your fingers. You hold a deep connection with this place.'

Any doubt that this was truly Athos, a god from on high, was dispelled with his powerful words. Jacob was stunned that he had known the way he had felt about the woods. Rubbing his hands through the grass until they turned green, climbing trees only to cling to a hidden warmth resonating from inside, and the splendorous feeling of crunching dirt beneath his toes. These had been Jacob's most cherished secrets.

Athos spoke only in whispers, 'We have little time, so you must listen closely to these words. I am here to teach you how to reach out into the stars. To view distant worlds and different people upon those worlds. The universe is large and it is your time to learn how to connect with all that is to be discovered.'

Jacob could not imagine possessing such an ability, the thought alone had even scared him at first. No one could soar through the air, let alone out into the stars. 'How can this be? Only birds and creatures with wings can fly. I am only a boy, and I do not have wings.'

Athos placed his hand on the boy's shoulders, 'Yes you can. You must look past the limit of your senses to experience worlds that you could have never imagined. All you must do is keep your eyes closed, sit down on the green grass you know so well, and let your mind focus on nothing save your breath.'