Part 10, Naja Haje Abyss

When I opened my eyes I was standing next to Windoline in the Hall of Judgment. The hall was made of white marble and tall columns. In the middle of the room were four huge desks with judges sitting behind them.

“What happened, how did I get here?” I questioned Windoline, forgetting how beautiful she was when I had looked at her in times past. She was still very lovely, but not in a sensual way anymore. Peace flooded my soul, and I wanted to thank her, but she stopped me.

“You must not thank me. Thank The Son of Man.” She smiled and said, “You have found what those left behind in the Halls never will. Their hearts have been hardened beyond redemption, and they will spend eons in there until the Son of Man appears. When that time comes, Judgment will be passed for them to spend eternity in the Lake of Fire.”

We stood before Judge D. Ringtrue; he was one of the four judges. Windoline whispered to me that the D. stood or Discerning. The other three, Judge Always Rullbad, Judge Haveto Banishem and Judge Sorryforyou Goodfolk had books stacked high on their desks from which hung a four foot long metal gavel. All but Judge D. Ringtrue had their head down, muttering to themselves as they perused their books.

“What are those three judges doing?” I asked.

          “They are studying for Judgment Day, the day when people, dead or alive who reject The Son of Man will stand before God. Their souls will be sent to the Lake of Fire to burn forever.”

“When will that be?” I asked.

“Only God knows. Not even his Son or his angels know.”

Then I heard Judge D. Ringtrue call my name, “Trevor Bartlett, step to the bench please.”

I trembled and lowered my head, waiting for whatever curse I deserved. “You have found and embraced The Son of Man, therefore your sins are forgiven. Now we are sending you to the Naja Haje Abyss. We will watch over you from above and remember, do not call upon your angel for help. Angels only do the bidding of God; call upon The Son of Man. He will protect you with his angels, who will guard you as He asks. Do you have any questions?”

“Yes, your honor. Am I dead?”

“No, Mr. Bartlett.”

“Why did Windoline choose me, and will she go with me to the abyss?”

“Good Angels cannot go below,” Judge D. Ringtrue declared. “Only humans may dare it and return. You have The Son of Man with you now. He is all you need. Windoline will tell you why you are going and about being chosen.” 

He looked at me kindly, nodded his head and waved me on with, “God bless you.”

Part 9 -Naja Haje Abyss

From here on, I will call these Parts rather than teasers

“I’m Miss Zzmani Vengeance, and you had better get out of my way before I slash you into little bite size pieces.”

The strange, tiny woman glared at me for a moment and then picked up a razor sharp axe with a three-foot head on it. As she heaved the weapon over her shoulder preparing to use it on me, I ran. Like a rocket engine was strapped to my back, I headed straight for a grove of trees and right into a family of nasty gorillas.

One of them dove at me, grabbed me by my ankles and twirled me overhead several times. I was about to throw up when, rather than put me down, the hairy ape tossed me like a basketball to one of his buddies. When the other gorilla caught me, it climbed a very tall tree and hung me by my heels from a branch. Terrified by the beasts as I dangled from the tree, I thought I would surely die and cried out to Windoline for help. There was no answer. Then I whispered a prayer, though I am not certain what made me think to do so.

“Please God; I’m sorry for all my wrong doings, for robbing my customers and purposely giving back the incorrect change, for lying to my friends when I don’t want to see them, and for cheating on my girlfriend, Sally. Please Lord, help me, before I die from all the blood running to my head, or before I am eaten alive by these brutes.”

Then I heard the leaves on the tree whispering to me. “The Son of Man is Jesus our Lord. The Son of Man is Jesus our Lord and Savior.”

It came to me ─“Jesus Loves Me, this I know.” It was the song we used to sing in Sunday school. I tried to sing it while hanging upside down, and I saw my tears, shaped like perfect miniature pears, falling to the ground. My tears reminded me of the weeping tree where Windoline and I first sat. Then I remembered the River of Life.

“That’s it, that’s my answer,” I said out loud, “salvation─eternal life.”

I prayed to God again and called out the name of Jesus as I wept, truly repentant. The beasts danced around me, pointing and laughing. All at once, I felt myself tumbling through the air to the ground. I landed on my knees and looked up to see that the gorillas had been transformed into angry men and women. They began shouting and waving weapons in the air with one hand and clenched fists in the other. As much as they reached out to me, they could not draw near, because a protective glass cylinder surrounded me. The mad crowd pressed their faces up to the glass and gnashed their teeth. I lifted my head and raised my hands in thanks to God for saving me from the maniacs. Then all became still, and I closed my eyes and bowed my head.

8 Teaser, Naja Haje Abyss

“What are you staring at? Don’t you know me? My name is Ida B. Belligerent,” she snorted loudly. I moved down the bunker on hands and knees and heard her shout, “Go away and mind your business, Mr.”

Just as Ida finished jeering at me, a long spear zoomed overhead, and Ida let out a curse that was as shrill as the wind on the heels of the spear. I peeked over the edge of the bunker only to see a very tall, very thin young woman dressed in a black see-through, gown that was tied at the shoulder, like a toga.

“You rotten, good-for-nothing, miserable rat,” the woman yelled.

I looked around to see if she was talking to me, and she was. I ducked back for cover in the bunker and a second later another spear flew over me.

“What are you hiding from Mr. Havmyway? Are you afraid of Willameana Angry? You better run, cause I’m coming after you, now!”

       With the threat of Ms. Angry and her spears, and more bullets flying overhead, I spotted a sewer pipe and quickly crawled into it for shelter. I had gotten about twenty feet from the entrance when without warning a grate dropped behind me blocking any change of mind I might have had. Then suddenly there appeared four additional sewer pipes in front of me. Each pipe had a sign above the entrance that read, “Danger, Do Not Enter”.
        Without time to deliberate, I was suddenly faced with rushing water coming from behind—I had no choice but to go against the warning signs. I plunged into a pipe on my right and had no sooner pulled my feet in than the water surged past like a jet stream. There was no turning around. As I watched the torrent of sewer water go by, something kept it from flowing into the channel I’d chosen. I sat still for a few minutes wondering where my angel was.
       “Windoline,” I whispered, but there was no answer. Then I realized I could speak.

        I had never said prayers before, but I certainly had watched a plethora of movies, which called out the Lord’s name in rude and unholy ways. I wasn’t a religious man, as I said, but my deceased parents were devout Christians. As I sat there, I remembered some of my early Sunday school lessons. I’d stopped attending by the third grade and never went back, not even to church. My folks were killed in a car accident, and I went to live with my aunt, who despised the church, though she never said why.

Suddenly it came to me. Mr. Chew Smackum from the first hall continually searched for the Son of Man. Even though his reasons for doing so were wrong, I now knew the distinction. Before I had time to finish my contemplations, the water from the first pipe turned into mine. I immediately headed away from the gushing, smelly low, hoping with all my heart that I could reach the exit before the deluge caught up with me. I was almost immersed in it before I saw daylight. As soon as I reached the exit, the dirty water stopped. I stood up and stretched, hoping to see Windoline and wishing I were back at my bistro serving coffee. But no such good fortune awaited me.

7th Teaser The Naja Haje Abyss©

“Berthabode and Meanrake cheat and steal from all who come near them. In addition their sexual promiscuity outside of their relationship knows no bounds, despite that they are common-law husband and wife. As for Dirty Bob, though I dislike expounding on his affairs, you need to know the particulars─he is just one example of many who live against the laws of God and what nature intends.”
(Caution x rated paragraph)Windoline frowned as she continued, “You see, Dirty Bob’s outward filth is representative of his inward thoughts, his secret actions and his lustful desires. He commits fornication with his brother’s wife, his mother’s sister, and his father’s nieces, and a particular nephew that he favors above all. In addition, he does unnatural things with the neighbor’s dog.” 

“I am astonished.”

       Windoline signed and wiped her brow. “As for Ms. Fibbergiver and Ms. Whitelies, their practice of lying developed over the years. At first it was by thinking to save themselves from many inconvenient situations, but then telling a lie became second nature to them.”

I was grateful for Windoline’s explanation, and had only to reflect on the way everyone I knew, including me, often accepts right or wrong as suitable behavior depending on what the situation calls for. I had no more questions, except to ask myself where I fit into this picture. I did not like what I saw.

“Remember,” she said, leaning towards me, “When we enter this next place, you are still not to speak or answer questions from anyone. Do you understand?”

I nodded my head and once again, two foreboding angels waved us in at the Hall of Revenge and Rebellion. This arena was completely landscaped with brown trees, hills, rocks and boulders, trenches and dusty open space. When I turned to be reassured of Windoline’s presence, she disappeared before my eyes. In utter dismay I tried to call out to her but could not make a sound. As I looked around searching for her, I heard a gunshot and a bullet whipped past my ear. This was followed by a loud, angry voice.

“I’ll kill you if it’s the last thing I do, or my name isn’t Buckgeteven.”  

A beast like man came running towards me brandishing an oversized pistol. Again, I couldn’t speak to defend myself; hence, I saw a bunker up ahead and dove into it. There I found a strange dirty old woman who had burrowed under a rocky overhang. She puffed away on a huge cigar as she cursed and uttered ugly grunting and groaning sounds.

“What are you staring at? Don’t you know me? My name is Ida B. Belligerent,” she snorted loudly.

6th teaser

Naje Haje Abyss, continued

  Windoline nudged me on and told me that the conversations we heard were exactly the same from one day to the next. “They never change and no one knows the difference.”

    We walked toward a table where two women stood talking, one was Ms. Fibbergiver, the other was known as Ms. Whitelies. Leaning on her broom, Ms. Fibbergiver, with her unwashed, blond hair hanging limp and uncombed, looked as though she had not bathed in some time. Ms. Whitelies was similarly un-groomed, and both were oblivious to the cobwebs that surrounded them.

As we drew near, I listened to the truth-impaired, homely Ms. Whitelies who spoke loudly to Ms. Fibbergiver. “I have to tell you how pleased I was to meet your daughter, Bratwaller, the other day,” Ms. Whitelies said, holding her hand over her mouth to hide her sneer.

“Ms. Whitelies,” Fibbergiver replied, as she calmly brushed a cobweb from her mouth, “I declare, I know your daughter, Horridair, and my Bratwaller will become the best of friends, just as you and I have.” She looked over her shoulder as she spoke. “Oh I see that fool, Smackum, is coming by still mumbling about The Son of Man.”

“I hope he doesn’t stop to bother us,” Fibbergiver said. Then as Smackum drew closer, she smiled and waved. “Mr. Chew Smackum, how are you this fine day?”

He did not answer. As Windoline led us away, I noticed two brown spiders, both at least a foot in diameter, climbing a velvet covered partition next to Whitelies and Fibbergiver. Without knowing how, I found myself with Windoline standing in front of another glass wall. I could no longer see or hear those strange people we just saw. Above the doors where we stood now, it read, “Hall of Revenge and Rebellion.”

“Before we go inside,” I said, “can you explain to me about those people we just saw?”

“Some by appearance might be considered decent individuals,” she replied. “Take Mr. Smackum for instance, aside from his inconsiderate chewing, he appears to seek the Lord. However, his only purpose in finding The Son of Man is to argue that it is not right He should be the only way to The Living God. Mr. Smackum has lived his life believing he can meet God on his own terms. He is convinced that because he sees himself as a good person, he can save his own soul.”

I might have argued with Windoline at one time, but right at that moment I sensed God’s Presence. For some reason I knew that disputing her words was not the right thing to do.

“What about Berthabode and Meanrake,” I asked?

5th teaser Naja Haje

Naja Haje Continued

Soon after the stranger walked up, a rotund, older woman waddled over to us and announced for all to hear, “I’m prudent deficient, and my ‘significant other here is scruple impaired.” She cackled loudly, “Ain’t we a couple!” 

“Yeah!” the man blurted out. “My name’s Meanrake and this here is Berthabode.”

I did not have time to react before Windoline pulled at my arm and said we must be moving on. It was then I noticed goats wandering about. Behind me I heard a string of blasphemies accompanied by a loud belch, which came in unison from Meanrake and Berthabode.

“Goats, goats and more goats, will they never cease to be? These wretched animals eat everything in sight,” Berthabode shouted to make sure I heard—Meanrake broke into cacophonous laughter.

Windoline and I moved toward another part of the huge arena, while people continued to saunter aimlessly. They babbled and rambled to themselves or to whoever would listen.

Coming up from behind, a tall, well-dressed man tapped me on the shoulder. “My name is Mr. Chew Smackum, sir. Do you know where I can find the Son of Man?”

I wondered how he managed to talk, as he was completely involved with his gum chewing. I started to ask who he meant by the Son of Man, but Windoline reminded me not to speak. Several steps ahead of us, a man wearing soiled rags ambled over to Mr. Chew Smackum, who never ceased his gum sloshing and popping─Smackum was as clearly challenged with lack of etiquette as the man in rags was hygiene deficient.

“Hey Smackum, have you found the Son of Man yet?” The ragged man sneered then spit in his hands and used them to smooth back his filthy, brown hair.

“No Dirty Bob, but I’m going to keep looking,” Smackum said, holding his nose to get past Dirty Bob’s rank odor.

4th Teaser

Naja Haje Continued

“No, you’re not dead.” She smiled the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. “I’m not at liberty to say just now why you are here, only that the Wind has chosen you.” She reached out for my hand, and said, “We must go.”

       The next thing I knew we stood in front of a huge metal wall, which seemed to go on for miles around. Above two double-wide doors that looked like a glass curtain and must have been thirty feet in height was written, ‘Hall of Tolerance and Political Correctness.’ Two angels, with foreboding expressions on their ace, stood in front of the glass entrance and smiled pleasantly at Windoline. They nodded for us to go in, and without warning, she pulled me right through the center of the glass.

Once on the other side, she whispered for me to only observe. “You are not to speak or ask questions until we leave, no matter what,” she said. “Is that understood?”

        I nodded and held her hand tightly. The giant room was filled with all sorts of people. I gazed at the checkerboard-patterned floor of cold black and white marble. It was very disconcerting to me, but it didn’t seem to have any effect on the occupants milling around. Partitioned walls and dropped ceilings were draped in blood-red velvet. There were no windows or lights that I could see, but it appeared to be twilight inside. The furniture consisted of stark chairs and tables sparsely scattered throughout.

At first I heard nothing, but then the drone of voices talking all at once came at me. Before I knew it, I stood face to face with a thin, narrow-eyed man of color. He grinned and bared his white teeth at me and stuck his hand out for me to shake. When I didn’t take it, he said loudly, “What, no handshake!” He spoke with mouth full of something dry and crumbly—I could not tell what.