Finding Answers: Chapter Nine
Valley Of Desires
"But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed"
"Andy? Debby?" Ruth called out with a small, shaky voice. Where did they all go? They had been together just a moment ago. Andrew had been right behind her, and Deborah a little further back.
"Andrew..."
"Ruth," a male voice called back this time. Ruth almost sighed in relief– till she realized it wasn't the voice she was expecting. Still, it sounded oddly familiar.
She turned sharply toward the direction of the voice. Slowly, a figure began to take form in the fog, becoming clearer with each passing second. Soon, she could make out a full-grown man. Her jaw dropped.
"Father?" she gasped.
"Ruth" the man responded clearly. Tears welled in her eyes. Even though she had imagined this moment a thousand times, she still didn't know what to do, except cry.
"Come, my child," her father, Luke, said, arms wide open.
Ruth ran blindly into his embrace. She had so many questions, but all she could do was weep. Luke understood. He calmly stroked her hair as she let out the pain she had bottled up for years.
"You came back" Ruth whispered, looking up at him. She couldn't help but notice he had aged. A few wrinkles lined his face, and white hairs peppered his chin.
"Yes, I came back for you" Luke replied gently. "I'm so sorry..."
"But why did you leave?!" Ruth's joy quickly turned into rage. She pulled away from his embrace and turned her back. "We were happy. We had everything..."
"Ruth" Luke said, stepping in front of her, "no words I can ever say, can justify what I did. But I'm sorry. And I promise; I'm going to make it up to you and your mother."
Ruth stared into his eyes. This was everything she had ever wanted. And yet... something felt wrong. She shook the feeling off. It must be fatigue from the journey. Still, where were Andy and Debby? she wondered, clutching the book tightly to her chest as she began to move toward her father.
Meanwhile, Andrew had been trying to find Deborah and Ruth in the fog, but he couldn't. Instead, he'd found a group of four equally lost kids about five years younger. He was determined to help led them to safety.
They said their names were Kay, Jay, Tay, and Fay. They had been herding sheep when the fog swallowed them up.
In a short time, Andrew got to know them. Kay was the quiet one; barely spoke. Jay and Tay were best friends, with Fay as the self-proclaimed leader. Andrew couldn't help but like him. Fay reminded him of himself.
Andrew had always carried a quiet urge to be and do more, to prove he was more than just the tagalong twin. Deborah was the smart one, the quick thinker, the natural leader. He was just... there. The one who followed. But now, something had shifted. These four lost kids looked at him like he was their only hope, and for the first time, he felt it, that flicker of significance. A purpose. Their trust awakened something fierce in him. He was going to get them to safety, no matter what. And he would stay with them until the very end.
According to a map Andrew had found tucked in his bag, they were in a valley. If he could climb to the top of the mountain, he'd get a better view of the land, maybe find Deborah and Ruth, and help the boys find their sheep.
Using two small axes and a rope, Andrew began to scale the cliff. The boys clung to the rope behind him.
Eventually, they neared the cliff's edge. Andrew told the boys to climb up ahead of him to safety and scout the area.
The boys reached the top– then things went south.
The cliff began to shake violently; an earthquake was underway. The only thing keeping Andrew from falling was the axe he clung to.
Tay reached out his hand. "Let go of the book and grab my hand!" he shouted.
What book? Andrew thought, looking down at his hand. To his shock, he was holding the Book of Truth; the very one he, Deborah and Ruth had fought so hard to find.
"This isn't right," Andrew whispered, sweat dripping down his face.
"Let go of the book!" Fay shouted even louder. "Let go!"
And so, Andrew did.
He let go of the axe and plummeted into the fog below.
Deborah knew where she was the moment Elder Moses; the Great Scribe, materialized from the mist.
She was seeing what she wanted most. That could only mean one thing: she was in the Valley of Desires.
The Valley of Desires is a place of testing, where you are given what your heart longs for most, in exchange for something of true value. It's a mental construct, a trial designed to expose your core: would you choose personal gain or uphold your principles when faced with uncertainties?
If you fail, you lose everything.
Deborah looked at the image of her hero; crafted by her own longing, standing before her. Elder Moses, a man who had recorded more scrolls than anyone in history.
"I know you're not real" she said before the figure could speak. "So where are my friends?"
The illusion gave a sly smirk. "You're a smart one" it said, before vanishing into the fog.
The vision cleared. Deborah found herself standing at the place where they had first set off, with Andrew and Ruth standing close by.
Andrew and Deborah exchanged a look of realization.
"What did you see?" Andrew asked.
"Elder Moses the Great. You?"
"I was leading a great expedition. We climbed a cliff. I let go of my axe and fell– once I realized what was going on," Andrew said, clearly proud of his discovery.
Deborah burst out laughing.
"Hey!" Andrew protested. "I figured it out before I did anything stupid."
"And I knew from the very beginning," Deborah teased, poking his ribs. "Maybe if you paid more attention in class, you wouldn't have needed to climb any cliff."
"Whatever" Andrew muttered, turning away, only to spot Ruth who was a few steps away, silent and still, arms folded and eyes downcast.
Deborah noticed her too. The twins exchanged another look.
"Should we ask her what she saw, if it—" Deborah began.
"No," Andrew cut in, walking over and pulling Ruth into a hug.
Feeling the warmth of the embrace, Ruth broke down, weeping like a baby.
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