Wars. Rumors of wars. Spectacular and tragic and disastrous wars, and such like that. Both large and little wars, and even invisible wars, personal wars, and such like that. And then, for those humans that have ever lived inside Earth's existence, there is the war of wars: the so-called war between the spirit and the flesh...perhaps the only war that can ever really be won--but never by one's own strength of will--nor without the aid of others, in some form or another.
When I created this, my Sacred Garden, many years ago, it was to exist inside the heart of Twillerbee, whom always I shall love. It was our "safe place," the ONE place where the only things that would ever happen were the things our imaginations desired. Eventually, Twillerbee and I parted ways, and I lost my Sacred Garden...until I decided to return to it much later, and my lovely gatekeeper wisely convinced me to re-enter it once again, and claim it as my own--despite the lack of Twillerbee. And now, here we are, 45 chapters later (46 if you count the introductory chapter which was never given a number or title). Throughout all these chapters, the only constants that remain inside my Sacred Garden are myself, Edwin the Bee, Cousin Eddie the Raven, and Freddie the Frog (who stands silently upon the dock in front of his Pond of Fanciness). I would later learn through the course of the stories that there were other constants that have always been there, but which I had yet to discover: namely my sweet Mama Bbaesh the Lioness, and my sister Zoe, the River that forms the Eastern edge of my Sacred Garden. Others have come and gone, which is the way this life goes, I suppose. The nature of a life confined to a fleshly existence...often waiting only for some room to finally spread our wings. May this chapter offer our wings a bit more room than they had before. On with the story:
At the time of this writing, Kev and dear Caesar Emeritus had flown off toward Flatlandia upon the back of the great dragon, Adamna Comnandra, to hold council upon the top of Dew Mound with good King Midas LeBottom, and Adamna's great dragon brothers, Blakena and Erikena Comnandra. [Together, the 3 brothers are called The Comnandrai, and they are the keepers of all portals in all existences.] By now, Adamna Comnandra had already explained to Kev and dear Caesar that the threat of war falling upon Interterrestria was due to the unexpected activation and use of a portal in their beloved lands...a portal which had been deactivated and locked by the Comnandrai many ages ago, after the Dragon Wars. Unexpected activation and use of a portal, it turns out, is far and away the most common precursor to any given war. [The dear reader will learn much more about the Comnandrai--and portals--later in this chapter]
Both Kev and dear Caesar Emeritus, of course, were deeply troubled by this news, of course, and both their hearts sank, though they resisted the urge to despond and fall into an utter state of worry. As they flew together through the Interterrestrian sky, dear Caesar maintained his hope by reading through a book on Xanaduvian history that he had brought with him, and Kev maintained his hope by listening to dear Ceasar Emeritus' soothing voice, and by looking down upon the still peaceful and lovely lands of Interterrestria. This was indeed the first time either of them had ever viewed these most majestic lands from above, and Kev especially found a unique and tremendous amount of comfort in this. Adamna Comnandra had also by this time explained that he and his brothers had already completed their sweep of all of the Interterrestrian portals, to make sure they were locked and sealed--except for the one which is watched over by Edwin the Bee Himself [more on this later, dear reader].
And now we take our story to Kev's Sacred Garden, where we find Kev's dear gatekeeper, Caw-Caw Carl, and Kev's Raven soulmate, Cousin Eddie, sitting side by side upon Achilles' Last Stand. Caw-Caw's invisible friend and mentor, Gemini Cricket was upon the gatekeeping Stellers Jay's back, of course, but he offered not even a chirp. All was silent inside Kev's Sacred Garden--most eerily silent. Not even a record playing, or the cracking open of a can of beer. None of them had spoken a single word to each other since the moment Kev tossed his Dragon's Eye to his Raven soulmate, Cousin Eddie, and told him that he loved him...and they watched Kev and Caesar Emeritus hop onto a great dragon's back and fly off into the Interterrestrian sky, not knowing if Kev and dear Caesar would ever return. Caw-Caw Carl and Cousin Eddie couldn't bring themselves to utter even so much as a sigh.
Kev's Dragon's Eye sat blank and motionless upon the top of Achilles' Last Stand, while the two corvids did nothing at all, except to stare into the silvery orb and hope to see a purple glow--which would mean, of course, that Kev was contacting them from the Comnandrai Council upon Dew Mound. Not even the flicker of a single photon did they see.
By now, Adamna Comnandra had landed gently upon the top of Dew Mound in Flatlandia, and Kev and dear Ceasar Emeritus had crawled down from the great dragon's back, equally as gentle. Kev and dear Caesar were greatly honored to be introduced to Adamna's brothers, Blakena and Erikena, and the other two Comnandrai were as kind and mighty as Adamna himself had been. Good King Midas LeBottom stepped down from his cottage's front porch, and waved enthusiastically, as he ran and embraced Kev and dear Caesar Emeritus most warmly in the midst of his courtyard. Many pleasant Xanaduvian greetings were exchanged between all of them, and it was decided that the Comnandrai Council would officially begin with the appearance of the moon in the night sky of Flatlandia. [Greeting the sun and moon, you see, dear reader, is an important tradition in ancient Xanaduvian culture...especially during sacred events--of which, a Comnandrai Council most surely is!]
As the sun drifted slowly down to its bed just beneath the horizon, and the first of Kev's cousins, the stars, began to appear, the 3 Comnandrai gathered around a massive circle of brick just north of good King Midas LeBottom's courtyard, and they exhaled, and created a great fire deep down inside it--from above. As he looked on, the massive circle of brick reminded Kev of the Great Kiva in Chaco Canyon, where he had once visited with his children. He thought of his children, and how much he missed them. This somehow made the threat of war upon Interterrestria feel both more and less tragic to him than it had before. And as the flame of the Comnandrai grew higher, so did Kev's sense of hope and resolve. Dear Caesar Emeritus came over to Kev's side, sighed, and wrapped his Baloo-eyed Akita foreleg around Kev's shoulders. They shared a tender and private moment. Kev concluded the moment by greeting more of his cousins, the stars, as they appeared--one by one--in the softness of the Flatlandian night sky. And then--finally--his cousin, the moon. Yes, it was time for the Comnandrai Council.
And now, dear reader, we return to the now broken silence of Kev's Sacred Garden. The silence was broken by the playing of Led Zeppelin's record album, Houses Of The Holy...from the turntable inside Cousin Eddie's garage constructed of beer cans. But it was not Kev's Raven soulmate, Cousin Eddie that was playing the record!--for, you see, Cousin Eddie was still sitting most silently and despondently beside Caw-Caw Carl and Gemini Cricket, upon Achilles' Last Stand.
And now we return to the top of Dew Mound, in the heart of Flatlandia, as the Comnandrai Council had officially begun:
It began with typical formalities, as such formal councils typically begin with...and a summary of what was known about the unexpected activation and use of a portal within Interterrestria. All present were most grateful to hear that none of the other portals in the lovely lands had been activated or used. It was also explained (by Blakena Comnandra) that Kev's presence at the council was required because he is the only one in Interterrestria besides good King Midas LeBottom that would have the capability of opening said portal. It was then explained (by Kev) that, though Kev may technically have the power to activate such a portal, he had no actual applicable knowledge as to how to do so...and that--even if he did--he most certainly would not do such a thing. Not intentionally, anyway. Fool, though he may be.
After that, dear Caesar Emeritus, perhaps sensing that Kev was feeling a bit awkward and out of sorts at such a formal council, interjected and asked if he might read a paragraph or two from his Xanaduvian history book...for the benefit of Kev's understanding. The council unanimously agreed that this would be beneficial not only to Kev, but also to the entire council (as the Comnandrai wished to confirm whether the information in dear Caesar's book was accurate). Dear Caesar thanked the kind Comnandrai Council, bowed, and read on as such:
"The Comnandrai were created directly by Ooun (The Great One) several ages after the Createds, the Seeders, the 3 Fates, and various so-called gods and demi-gods. It is not known why Ooun chose to make the Comnandrai in the form of a dragon, but they are by far the largest and most mighty of all dragons in all the existences. What IS known about the Comnandrai's creation is that it came about due to the wickedness and greed of many of Ooun's other creations, which increased over time--both inside and outside of time and space. Since the 3 Fates had been given charge of the destinies of all creations in all existences, their task eventually became overwhelming, and it was necessary that portals be constructed to separate the wicked and greedy dimensions from the loving and peaceful dimensions. Before any of the portals were activated, the Comnandrai were created to assist the 3 Fates by overseeing the use and activation of said portals. As the Fates numbered 3, so was the Comnandrai's number fixed at 3: Adamna Comnandra, his brother Blakena Comnandra, and their brother Erikena Comnandra. Though the Comnandrai were given tremendous power to indirectly alter the destinies of all creations in all existences by way of the portals, they were sworn to--and did swear--to serve only the wishes of Ooun and the 3 Fates. The Comnandrai were strictly forbidden to judge any of Ooun's creations, nor to condemn any of them, nor even to take sides in any sort of conflict, no matter how trifle or great.
Also, as there are 3 types of portals between the existences, so was the Comnandrai's number fixed at 3:
Adamna Comnandra was given charge over all of the physical portals between all of the physical existences and dimensions.
Blakena Comnandra was given charge over all of the spiritual portals between all of the spiritual existences and dimensions.
Erikena Comnandra was given charge over all of the mental portals between all of the mental existences and dimensions."
And thus concluded dear Caesar Emeritus' reading from his ancient Xanaduvian history book. Good King Midas LeBottom applauded the reading of it, then Kev applauded too, after seeing that the Comnandrai seemed content with the reading as well.
Blakena Comnandra finally bellowed (albeit much more softly than one might imagine), "Yes, very good, dear Caesar. Thank you. Your book is most accurate, I'm sure my brothers and I would agree." Adamna and Erikena did heartily agree, indeed. Then Blakena added, "Something I would add, however, is that though we are not to--and DO not--take sides in any sort of conflict, no matter how trifle or great, we are compelled by universal Love to protect those that cannot defend themselves...at least until the Fates have held council regarding that conflict and instructed us otherwise." Blakena's brothers heartily agreed once again, and the entire Comnandrai Council paused for a tender and grateful moment.
To be continued in Chapter 46, the conclusion to this hidden trilogy...
Thank you for joining me on this eternal journey of learning and application, dear reader.
Life remains beautiful beautiful.
Semba.
I love you.
Semba.
Kev
XX
When I created this, my Sacred Garden, many years ago, it was to exist inside the heart of Twillerbee, whom always I shall love. It was our "safe place," the ONE place where the only things that would ever happen were the things our imaginations desired. Eventually, Twillerbee and I parted ways, and I lost my Sacred Garden...until I decided to return to it much later, and my lovely gatekeeper wisely convinced me to re-enter it once again, and claim it as my own--despite the lack of Twillerbee. And now, here we are, 45 chapters later (46 if you count the introductory chapter which was never given a number or title). Throughout all these chapters, the only constants that remain inside my Sacred Garden are myself, Edwin the Bee, Cousin Eddie the Raven, and Freddie the Frog (who stands silently upon the dock in front of his Pond of Fanciness). I would later learn through the course of the stories that there were other constants that have always been there, but which I had yet to discover: namely my sweet Mama Bbaesh the Lioness, and my sister Zoe, the River that forms the Eastern edge of my Sacred Garden. Others have come and gone, which is the way this life goes, I suppose. The nature of a life confined to a fleshly existence...often waiting only for some room to finally spread our wings. May this chapter offer our wings a bit more room than they had before. On with the story:
At the time of this writing, Kev and dear Caesar Emeritus had flown off toward Flatlandia upon the back of the great dragon, Adamna Comnandra, to hold council upon the top of Dew Mound with good King Midas LeBottom, and Adamna's great dragon brothers, Blakena and Erikena Comnandra. [Together, the 3 brothers are called The Comnandrai, and they are the keepers of all portals in all existences.] By now, Adamna Comnandra had already explained to Kev and dear Caesar that the threat of war falling upon Interterrestria was due to the unexpected activation and use of a portal in their beloved lands...a portal which had been deactivated and locked by the Comnandrai many ages ago, after the Dragon Wars. Unexpected activation and use of a portal, it turns out, is far and away the most common precursor to any given war. [The dear reader will learn much more about the Comnandrai--and portals--later in this chapter]
Both Kev and dear Caesar Emeritus, of course, were deeply troubled by this news, of course, and both their hearts sank, though they resisted the urge to despond and fall into an utter state of worry. As they flew together through the Interterrestrian sky, dear Caesar maintained his hope by reading through a book on Xanaduvian history that he had brought with him, and Kev maintained his hope by listening to dear Ceasar Emeritus' soothing voice, and by looking down upon the still peaceful and lovely lands of Interterrestria. This was indeed the first time either of them had ever viewed these most majestic lands from above, and Kev especially found a unique and tremendous amount of comfort in this. Adamna Comnandra had also by this time explained that he and his brothers had already completed their sweep of all of the Interterrestrian portals, to make sure they were locked and sealed--except for the one which is watched over by Edwin the Bee Himself [more on this later, dear reader].
And now we take our story to Kev's Sacred Garden, where we find Kev's dear gatekeeper, Caw-Caw Carl, and Kev's Raven soulmate, Cousin Eddie, sitting side by side upon Achilles' Last Stand. Caw-Caw's invisible friend and mentor, Gemini Cricket was upon the gatekeeping Stellers Jay's back, of course, but he offered not even a chirp. All was silent inside Kev's Sacred Garden--most eerily silent. Not even a record playing, or the cracking open of a can of beer. None of them had spoken a single word to each other since the moment Kev tossed his Dragon's Eye to his Raven soulmate, Cousin Eddie, and told him that he loved him...and they watched Kev and Caesar Emeritus hop onto a great dragon's back and fly off into the Interterrestrian sky, not knowing if Kev and dear Caesar would ever return. Caw-Caw Carl and Cousin Eddie couldn't bring themselves to utter even so much as a sigh.
Kev's Dragon's Eye sat blank and motionless upon the top of Achilles' Last Stand, while the two corvids did nothing at all, except to stare into the silvery orb and hope to see a purple glow--which would mean, of course, that Kev was contacting them from the Comnandrai Council upon Dew Mound. Not even the flicker of a single photon did they see.
By now, Adamna Comnandra had landed gently upon the top of Dew Mound in Flatlandia, and Kev and dear Ceasar Emeritus had crawled down from the great dragon's back, equally as gentle. Kev and dear Caesar were greatly honored to be introduced to Adamna's brothers, Blakena and Erikena, and the other two Comnandrai were as kind and mighty as Adamna himself had been. Good King Midas LeBottom stepped down from his cottage's front porch, and waved enthusiastically, as he ran and embraced Kev and dear Caesar Emeritus most warmly in the midst of his courtyard. Many pleasant Xanaduvian greetings were exchanged between all of them, and it was decided that the Comnandrai Council would officially begin with the appearance of the moon in the night sky of Flatlandia. [Greeting the sun and moon, you see, dear reader, is an important tradition in ancient Xanaduvian culture...especially during sacred events--of which, a Comnandrai Council most surely is!]
As the sun drifted slowly down to its bed just beneath the horizon, and the first of Kev's cousins, the stars, began to appear, the 3 Comnandrai gathered around a massive circle of brick just north of good King Midas LeBottom's courtyard, and they exhaled, and created a great fire deep down inside it--from above. As he looked on, the massive circle of brick reminded Kev of the Great Kiva in Chaco Canyon, where he had once visited with his children. He thought of his children, and how much he missed them. This somehow made the threat of war upon Interterrestria feel both more and less tragic to him than it had before. And as the flame of the Comnandrai grew higher, so did Kev's sense of hope and resolve. Dear Caesar Emeritus came over to Kev's side, sighed, and wrapped his Baloo-eyed Akita foreleg around Kev's shoulders. They shared a tender and private moment. Kev concluded the moment by greeting more of his cousins, the stars, as they appeared--one by one--in the softness of the Flatlandian night sky. And then--finally--his cousin, the moon. Yes, it was time for the Comnandrai Council.
And now, dear reader, we return to the now broken silence of Kev's Sacred Garden. The silence was broken by the playing of Led Zeppelin's record album, Houses Of The Holy...from the turntable inside Cousin Eddie's garage constructed of beer cans. But it was not Kev's Raven soulmate, Cousin Eddie that was playing the record!--for, you see, Cousin Eddie was still sitting most silently and despondently beside Caw-Caw Carl and Gemini Cricket, upon Achilles' Last Stand.
And now we return to the top of Dew Mound, in the heart of Flatlandia, as the Comnandrai Council had officially begun:
It began with typical formalities, as such formal councils typically begin with...and a summary of what was known about the unexpected activation and use of a portal within Interterrestria. All present were most grateful to hear that none of the other portals in the lovely lands had been activated or used. It was also explained (by Blakena Comnandra) that Kev's presence at the council was required because he is the only one in Interterrestria besides good King Midas LeBottom that would have the capability of opening said portal. It was then explained (by Kev) that, though Kev may technically have the power to activate such a portal, he had no actual applicable knowledge as to how to do so...and that--even if he did--he most certainly would not do such a thing. Not intentionally, anyway. Fool, though he may be.
After that, dear Caesar Emeritus, perhaps sensing that Kev was feeling a bit awkward and out of sorts at such a formal council, interjected and asked if he might read a paragraph or two from his Xanaduvian history book...for the benefit of Kev's understanding. The council unanimously agreed that this would be beneficial not only to Kev, but also to the entire council (as the Comnandrai wished to confirm whether the information in dear Caesar's book was accurate). Dear Caesar thanked the kind Comnandrai Council, bowed, and read on as such:
"The Comnandrai were created directly by Ooun (The Great One) several ages after the Createds, the Seeders, the 3 Fates, and various so-called gods and demi-gods. It is not known why Ooun chose to make the Comnandrai in the form of a dragon, but they are by far the largest and most mighty of all dragons in all the existences. What IS known about the Comnandrai's creation is that it came about due to the wickedness and greed of many of Ooun's other creations, which increased over time--both inside and outside of time and space. Since the 3 Fates had been given charge of the destinies of all creations in all existences, their task eventually became overwhelming, and it was necessary that portals be constructed to separate the wicked and greedy dimensions from the loving and peaceful dimensions. Before any of the portals were activated, the Comnandrai were created to assist the 3 Fates by overseeing the use and activation of said portals. As the Fates numbered 3, so was the Comnandrai's number fixed at 3: Adamna Comnandra, his brother Blakena Comnandra, and their brother Erikena Comnandra. Though the Comnandrai were given tremendous power to indirectly alter the destinies of all creations in all existences by way of the portals, they were sworn to--and did swear--to serve only the wishes of Ooun and the 3 Fates. The Comnandrai were strictly forbidden to judge any of Ooun's creations, nor to condemn any of them, nor even to take sides in any sort of conflict, no matter how trifle or great.
Also, as there are 3 types of portals between the existences, so was the Comnandrai's number fixed at 3:
Adamna Comnandra was given charge over all of the physical portals between all of the physical existences and dimensions.
Blakena Comnandra was given charge over all of the spiritual portals between all of the spiritual existences and dimensions.
Erikena Comnandra was given charge over all of the mental portals between all of the mental existences and dimensions."
And thus concluded dear Caesar Emeritus' reading from his ancient Xanaduvian history book. Good King Midas LeBottom applauded the reading of it, then Kev applauded too, after seeing that the Comnandrai seemed content with the reading as well.
Blakena Comnandra finally bellowed (albeit much more softly than one might imagine), "Yes, very good, dear Caesar. Thank you. Your book is most accurate, I'm sure my brothers and I would agree." Adamna and Erikena did heartily agree, indeed. Then Blakena added, "Something I would add, however, is that though we are not to--and DO not--take sides in any sort of conflict, no matter how trifle or great, we are compelled by universal Love to protect those that cannot defend themselves...at least until the Fates have held council regarding that conflict and instructed us otherwise." Blakena's brothers heartily agreed once again, and the entire Comnandrai Council paused for a tender and grateful moment.
To be continued in Chapter 46, the conclusion to this hidden trilogy...
Thank you for joining me on this eternal journey of learning and application, dear reader.
Life remains beautiful beautiful.
Semba.
I love you.
Semba.
Kev
XX
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