Copyright © 2006

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My Name is Compassion. I am a guardian of time. I am, by human definition, immortal. I do not age. I was birthed near the beginning, and given the gift of controlling time. Please understand that I was limited to the technology of my small race. My limit was that my ability to influence things was limited to that which had happened since my birth. That is to say, I cannot go forward into the future. The forces that flow within me do not allow that to happen. So I had to wait until time passed. Then I could go back again and work, changing what was needful.

The Council of Guardians was formed from our ranks. I was given the responsibility to guard over the race of man. Others were given their assignments, each in accordance with their own abilities. My job was to protect Mankind from evil in this galaxy, which would destroy them, otherwise. I failed, though not literally. You see I suffer one shortcoming. I am compassionate, to a fault. Thus my name is Compassion. And because of my fault, I could not let the evil race of The Grays totally die on that day. I controlled time itself, you understand; but at the last, I could not bring myself to stop them from gaining the knowledge to save themselves. I let that time pass and did not interfere with it. That was my crime. It brought me before the Council of Guardians. I should have taken an active part, and allowed the black hole to swallow all of the Grays.

I awaited my sentence, standing before the Council that would judge my actions. The Council then spoke, with but one voice.

"Compassion, we find that you have shown compassion to those that deserved none. We also find that you're guilt is not entirely your fault. As such, we have devised a plan to rectify your error. Within that plan, also lies your punishment."

My heart skipped at hearing this.

"Compassion, you are hereby sentenced to serve as 'developer of minds', on the planet Earth, known to the Centauri as Sol III."

My mind could not find a reference to this planet.

The council spoke again.

"It is a new seedling world of the Centauri. You will be responsible to bring forth the man capable of finishing the job you failed at. You will find that one man. He will be the one that has the values needed for this job. You will mold his upbringing within the limits we now set forth.

"He will know Love, and be incorruptible by Wealth or Power. When you find this man, then and only then may you remove the limits placed upon his mind."

My mind raced! How could I do this?

"You will serve as the 'grantor of wishes', to people of this planet. You will grant one wish to each human, on their deathbed, whom your compassion deems worthy of such a gift. Your compassion will be your guide in this. Your compassion is your strength, as you have shown many times."

My mind wondered at the wisdom of the counsel. Mankind was highly intelligent, this may be nothing but a token slap on the wrist. Humans were good by nature, and had the betterment of all in their hearts. It's the deathbed part that got to me. Humans were not designed to die. They had to be killed in order for that to happen. It saddened me that I may be playing a part in causing such a thing to happen.

It was true, however, that the Centauri Federation had stagnated in their scientific growth. If there was one fault they had, it was that they were comfortable within their knowledge level, and not inclined to strive further.

"The Council has caused a changes be made to the people of Earth. Their minds shall be limited to a tenth of their nominal abilities. They also shall be limited in their lifespan, so as to allow them the illusion of physical death. In so doing, they will develop their minds into the warriors which their race is so capable of producing."

I was saddened at this news. That humans were to be handicapped in such a drastic way, and all this was just so that my job would be hindered.

I did not understand, at the time. I did not grasp that, from these limits, humans would evolve into more than they were now. I would not find this out, until time moved towards the end of my punishment. At that point, I would learn that compassion was the strength that had led me to understanding.

I was physically confined to the planet Earth, from the beginning of it's seeding. I was forbidden to interfere in the natural progress of human development. I was limited to granting the wishes of those that were on their deathbed. A small window of opportunity? Yes, it was. Most of my time was spent watching and learning.

How often did I ask myself: Why? Why am I doing this?

These humans were so handicapped, that they developed there own evil. Somehow, I thought, it must be the Gray's influence. I was disheartened most of the time. As each man that I had guided, got to the point where I could grant them a wish, I was disappointed at the wishes I received.

So often they wished for power or wealth. Sometimes they even wished for long life. For these things, I was without compassion. I never granted those wishes. What good does it do to give a man wealth, only to have him die a few moments later? What does power give a man, who dies without being able to use it? Besides, all I could really do was capture the spirit of a man or woman, and take it back in time. Then I could release it again into their young body or into another body.

I thought of a plan. I was not, after all, the creator. I was not everywhere at once, and could not see all men at the same time. I could read their minds, and more; however, I was forbidden to interfere with their minds.

From the beginning it was slow going. The First Man and First Woman, lived over 1000 years. That was far short of the 'forever' lifespan, this race was meant to have. They were the race meant to control space and guard over it. I was Guardian of Time, and my charge had been to protect it as well. The limits that had been placed on the humans of this planet, were more than I could stand at times. Compassion would lead to despair. Woe, is so many disappointments, and only limited hope. Woe was I. Doomed to continue on with the bad choices of men for ages. I would grant them their wishes, but none seemed to grow in the way the council intended. Too limited were they in their minds, to see the values that are prized by their Centauri parents.

I tried granting the wishes of their leaders. Always they asked for more power; when, as they were at the end of their lives, it would not help them in the least.

I granted the wishes of the wealthy, and they almost always wanted more wealth. Though it obviously would do them no good on their deathbed.

I received many useless requests though the centuries that followed.

The most intriguing wish that some of them requested, was to repeat a part of their lives. Many times, it was only to change the choices that brought them to their deathbeds. Some requested a week, some for a month, and some, years. As the years passed, the wishes become more creative. One day, to my surprise, a man asked too repeat the last week of his life, knowing what he knew at the time of his death. He was a professor at a college. He wanted to be able to avoid the accident that was now costing him his life. He was not the first to make this kind of wish. I had had a few others. And though I did not think it would better him that much, I let my compassion guild me. I granted his wish. I had learned long ago, to place conditions on such wishes, mostly for myself. After all, where do you think stories of fairies godmothers come from? So my condition was simple, he could tell no one of his pre-knowledge, or I would revoke his wish. For this kind of wish, I also made it a point to tell them when their obligation or restriction was ended. I also cautioned them not to tell others. I had seen some people do that only to find themselves placed in mental institutions.

Some people made wishes for their children, or for others. Those at least were mostly a joy to watch. Some made their wishes too late. Some whished they had had children when they were young. I could do something about that, especially when one made their wish in love for another. Often I waited, time was on my side (literally), and I would fulfill their wishes when I found the time was right, and the best souls to use for the children were available.

Now let me tell you of a few people that played a roll in what was to prove to be 'the right man'.

In 1935, a young woman was dying in childbirth. She wished that she could give love to the young man named Jim. He was the father of the child she was now losing, along with her own life. I gathered Ann's spirit, and decided to see what this young man would do with his life. For some reason, her desire to give him love, reverberated in my compassion. The young man turned out to be a waste of time. He lacked the wisdom, even at his end, to make a good wish. Instead, he wished for a harem of woman. As if I would give him anything like that.

In 1960, I decided to release Ann's spirit into the body of another girl. The infant had just died of what the people called SIDS.

'Such a waste, ' I thought, as I worked in the nursery of this hospital's labor ward.

When I released Ann's spirit into the child, with her full pre-knowledge, she was shocked. However her spirit knew how to breathe. Then, passing my hand once again over her head, I removed her pre-knowledge. I would see if she found someone worthy of her love.

I transported myself from place to place on this planet, this Earth. The technology at my control literally ran through my veins.

In time, I came across a woman. Martha was her name. I appeared in her last hour, at a hospital, in 1961. I was dressed as a nurse. After so many years of Woe, I now gave her my name as being 'Nurse Woe'. Her wish was simple, she wanted her new nephew to be president. I would wait and see how this young Tim's life went, before I did that. But she was a good person, and compassion got a hold of me. I had learned in the past, that it was best to let people live their lives out. Then I could change them after I had the knowledge to first know what they were like, and second to know what opportunities they needed to make the wish come about. I could not magically make a wish like this happen. However, if the person was worthy of the wish, I could provide them the resources needed to avail the wish.