Chapter 1

A drop of water falls from the sky in the midst of a rainstorm. Where it lands depends upon influences so subtle that they are practically immeasurable. The dust particle around which the drop forms, the movement of a leaf due to a previous drop striking it, and the lifting of a deer's head can affect whether a drop lands on earth, leaf, or deer. The drop knows nothing of these influences.

The drop falls according to the forces applied to it. Alone, the drop may not be of much import, but in concert with other drops the consequences can have earth shattering effects. A drought relieved, a crop saved, a crop ruined, or a devastating flood. Yet, the drop knows nothing of these things.

One drop lands on saturated ground and triggers a mudslide that pulls up trees, destroys houses, and kills all in its path. Was it that specific drop that caused the mudslide? No, larger forces were at work and the drop was merely the trigger. Any other drop hitting that same location would have produced the same result. All of the previous drops of rain had produced the conditions necessary for the mudslide to occur.

The journey a person takes through life is a lot like the path of a raindrop. Where a person is born, what society was formed by those who came before, and the actions of nature; all affect a person's journey. The impact of a single life can be part of something much bigger than the individual.

Unlike the raindrop that knows nothing of the consequence of where it fell, a person may guess at the consequences of their life. Did a tired black women realize that she was about to trigger a social revolution because she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man? At the time of her death, the consequences of her actions were obvious. The political landscape of the world had changed.

One can argue that the specific person who triggers a social revolution is not important. The social landscape had already been saturated by the actions of thousands before and the momentum was continued by those who followed. The black woman wasn't the only actor in the drama that set off a social revolution. The man who wanted her seat, the driver of the bus, the policeman who arrested her, and the reporter who turned it into a national story were just as important.

In hindsight, the events of the past seem inevitable. If it hadn't been one person, it would have been another. If it hadn't been one event, then it would have been another. The difficulty in making that leap of inevitability is that it wasn't a different person or a different event. It was the specific person and the actual event that occurred. There is something magical about that in the minds of observers.

Is it fate, or random chance, that drives the life of a person to being in the right place and time? It isn't clear which the correct answer is, but it may be a better question to ask if it was inevitable that such an event occur. There is a sense of inevitability to the broad brush strokes of history, but it springs from events that are often overlooked by historians.

More often than not, the real people responsible for a significant social event never come before the review of historians. They lived decades before the event and miles from where it took place. Even they do not know that their daily life was saturating the ground of society providing for a mudslide of change.

Feeling restless, William took a seat where he could look out the window onto the canyon. The rugged features of the view could entertain his mind for hours. The varying hues of reds, browns, grays, and whites of the canyon wall were impressive. The magnificent view was usually sufficient to relax him, however today it wasn't having that effect.

William shifted nervously; he was thinking that he might find it to walk off his energy outdoors. He didn't understand why he was feeling so uncomfortable. He was filled with a restless energy that demanded to be released. It was as if he had drunk twenty cups of coffee.

Standing up, he sought out Lucy knowing that she would be in the library overseeing the shelving of their books. Although they had been in the new house for three weeks, there was still a lot of work remaining to be done before it would be comfortable. Lucy was taking her role as mistress of the house very seriously.

William walked through the open atrium. Lining the path were the waterfalls that Beth had designed. Beside each waterfall were exotic plants from South America that had been collected by his brother, John. Normally, William would walk through the atrium taking his time, but today his restlessness drove him without regard to his surroundings.

On reaching the library, he stuck his head in and shouted, "Lucy?"

Looking around a stack of books, she answered, "What?"

"I'm going outside for a bit. I just can't stay inside any more," William answered.

"Have fun," Lucy answered absent-mindedly while turning back to the bookshelf. She was trying to organize their science fiction collection by author's name. There were nearly thirty boxes of books remaining, she wondered if she was going to finish shelving them that day.

William went to the elevator and rode up to the surface level of the house. Driven by an urge to be alone, he left the house and got into his Hugger. Driving without a destination in mind, he ended up at the river's bank near the mouth of the canyon. He got out and looked around as the need to move fled.

Looking up the canyon he could see the house. Not once during the house's lifetime had he stopped to wonder what it would look like from below. Despite the fact that the exterior was made of glass, the building as a whole blended into the rough landscape. Rather than flat planes of glass, the exterior reflected the opposite side of the canyon. It was phenomenal and took his breath away.

He took two steps up the canyon and fell to the ground. The world around him was no longer the desert. Hard dry ground had transitioned to soft green grass. Looking up from the grass, William looked at the Two-Sided One. Unaware that the urge that had been driving him had come from the Two-Sided One, William asked, "What happened?"

"I have brought you to me, little one," the Two-sided One answered. The male figure blurred before turning into an attractive man and woman joined at the hands. The male aspect was caressing the breasts of the female aspect with his free hand.

Excited at being called by the Two-Sided One, there was only one explanation that made sense to William. He sat up and said, "So my service is about to begin."

The female aspect answered, "Oh, my poor little one..."

"... it is still not your time,..." the male aspect said.

"... although you might consider our request..."

"... to be the beginning of your service to us..."

"... but your true service..."

"... will not begin until Oscar has..."

"... finished his service," the female aspect of the Two-Sided One said.

"Then why have you called me?" William asked looking from one aspect to the other. He loved the Two-Sided One in all forms, but this was the easiest on the eyes. Both the male and female aspect exemplified the perfect person.

The female aspect sighed and shook her head. The male aspect said, "Oscar needs your vision."

"He needs my vision?" William asked wondering what that meant.

"Your vision will allow him to fulfill his service to us," the female aspect answered.

"You want me to give my vision to Oscar?" William asked stunned at the request. Oscar had been borrowing his foresight on many occasions and this was the first time that he had been asked.

"Yes."

"Why?" William asked.

"There can be only one," the female aspect answered in a soft voice.

"Only one what?" William asked.

"Only one prophet," the male aspect answered looking at William with infinite sadness in his eyes.

"There can be only one prophet," the female aspect said in a sad voice.

"Do you mean that Oscar can't bring peace to the Middle East without me giving up my foresight?" William asked finding it difficult to breathe. He was being asked to give up something that was integral to his being.

"Yes."

Swallowing, William asked, "Why?"

"Two prophets cancel each other out. There can be only one," the Two-Sided One answered with a sigh. There was a shimmer and the two figures formed backed into a single overweight man.

William was silent while considering what the Two-Sided One had asked of him. Oscar had been borrowing his gift and he had gotten used to living without it, on occasions. He wondered if he could give it up for good, but his mind kept shying away from that thought. It kept returning to a more significant thought and one that dictated his answer. Taking a deep breath, he said, "Take it from me."

"Why are you giving up your gift?"

"It is a price that I'm willing to pay to help bring about peace on earth," William answered. He sighed and said, "I'm willing to give my life. Giving anything less than that is a cheap price to pay. The loss of my foresight is nothing compared to the pain that I would be preventing."

"This will hurt, little one," the Two-Sided One said looking with fondness upon William.

It was a little after noon when Lucy went to the dining room and waited for William. She was worried, but couldn't put into words what was bothering her. After waiting fifteen minutes, she went to the kitchen and asked, "Have you seen William?"

Lisa turned from the stove and answered, "No."