The Generation of Peace
Zip! Chase’s arrow sang through the air as he and Lucifer dodged the snarling, drooling wolves. The arrow struck a wolf in midair a second before it could slash the two friends, causing the canine to retreat into the woods, whimpering and limping. The pack, however, kept advancing toward the two humans.
“Chase! We’re about to become wolf food! What can we do?” Lucifer cried, his eyes reflecting the same panic his partner felt.
“I don’t know!” Chase swiveled his head wildly, trying to find an escape route.
Suddenly, in the midst of the chaos, Lucifer had an idea — a crazy, almost impossible idea. If we’re the ones being chased, how about we turn the tables? he thought.
“Yarrrrr!” Lucifer suddenly turned around and charged at the pack with his fists raised. Taken by surprise, the wolves flattened their ears and backed away.
Grabbing a stick in each hand, Lucifer sliced at one of the wolves, catching it in the eye and drawing blood. Beside him, Chase pushed away his fears and started shooting dozens of arrows at the wolves. Together, the friends battled the wolves until all of the beasts went running for their lives.
“We did it! Great teamwork, Chase!” Lucifer yelled with glee.
“You were the one who got the idea to turn the predator-prey tables, brother. I just assisted you,” Chase acknowledged humbly.
“Thanks. Well, what do we do now?” Lucifer wondered.
“Actually, the question is, where are we?” Chase corrected.
The two were standing on a rocky ledge. Around them, the oak trees rustled their leafy manes. Otherwise, the whole area was silent, as if time was frozen. Chase and Lucifer gazed in awe at their surroundings.
“Lucifer!” Chase whispered, breaking the silence. “Don’t move a single step!”
“Why not?” Lucifer asked. “Is there a problem?” He boldly stepped forward, only to feel empty air below his foot. Lucifer looked down, gulping as he realized a dark, murky abyss right under him.
Panting heavily, Chase pulled the scrambling Lucifer back onto the cliff. “That must be five hundred feet deep!” Chase exclaimed. “And the opposite side of the cliff has to be a hundred feet away!”
“How are we going to cross it?” Lucifer asked. Mysterious creatures hissed and spat in the depths. “There’s no way I’m going down there.”
“Hmm… If only we could climb a rope to the other side. Wait… Yes! I brought rope for this journey!” Chase, grinning from ear to ear, pulled out a long coil of rope from his backpack. “But how are we going to get a rope way over there?” He pointed at the cliff, which was three hundred feet away. Chase scratched the hickory wood on his bow, which he did every time he was contemplating an important subject.
“My bow… Aha! That’s it!” Chase cried. He took an arrow from his quiver and tied the end of the rope to the shaft. Then, Chase notched the arrow onto his bow and pulled back with as much strength as he could muster. The arrow shot forward. It lodged itself firmly into the trunk of a thick redwood on the cliff‘s edge.
“Yes!” Lucifer and Chase whooped with joy and high-fived. “Maybe we really can cross this abyss!”
“Okay, here’s how we’ll get to the other side.” Chase instructed. “Leap onto the rope and grab it with both hands. Our plan is to go under the rope, shuffling our hands toward the other side. When we get to the cliff face, we will climb the rocks to reach the top. I will go first.”
“Alright,” Lucifer saluted Chase.
Chase dived and gripped the rope tightly with his hands. Slowly, he made his way toward the rock face. Sweat dripped off his face, but Chase was a determined climber. When he got to the other side, he grabbed onto the rocks and started climbing upwards.
The rock under Chase’s feet suddenly crumbled, leaving him dangling on his hands. Frantically, Chase tried to place his feet on another rock, but that one was loose as well. As a result, he was forced to heave himself up onto the cliff, but Chase’s arms were too tired from the rope climbing. His hands slipped from the rocks, and Lucifer watched in horror as his best friend plunged down into the unknown pit of darkness. “Noooooo!” Lucifer shrieked, lunging for Chase. For a moment, Lucifer almost snatched Chase’s shoe, but gravity wasn’t so merciful. The hissing sounds of serpents surrounded the two, and Lucifer and Chase felt their demise was near.
