The Northern Hemisphere

The Arctic

Noon

With the figure still standing silhouetted in the ligh, the group of couples slowly approached him.

"Do not be afraid," his voice called out to them. "Come. Follow me."

As they neared the doorway, he turned and walked back into the light. The others followed him and entered two by interior of the fortress appeared just as Kal remembered it. Everything seemed to be normal and in place. However, at the moment, everyone's attention was only centered on the one.

With Diana holding his arm, Kal hurried over to his side.

The figure turned, and appeared to be Jor-El. He smiled kindly as Kal stared intensely.

"Father?" Kal asked quietly.

"You'll see your father, Kal, in time," the one spoke solemnly, but with an eternal certainty in his voice. "I know how you have always longed to see him."

"You're not … my Jor-El … either," whispered Kal.

In answer, the one only smiled.

"Are you Him?" asked Diana.

"I am but a messenger, an angel by your terms, not The Angel of The Lord. I bring a message to all of you. Follow me."

As he walked, the others slowly gathered near, listening intently. Even though he had stated that he was not God, all of them understood that he spoke from the forces of Heaven.

"You're going to tell us why we're here, on this island?" asked Steve.

"As you know, from your closeness to The Word, Steven, truth is to be searched for as man searches for precious rubies. You personally have already deduced much of your purpose already, which you have kept to yourself."

"I hadn't told anyone about that," said Steve.

"Yes, but He knows, Steven. As He knows all things. Nothing is ever hidden from the eyes of The Lord."

"How were we brought here?" Natasha asked with a glance over at Steve. "What happened to us?"

"You were raptured," the one told them. "Let yourselves not be troubled. Your friends and families moved on well, and were taken care of. Much good was wrought from your transition."

"Then … why … aren't we in Heaven?" Jean asked quietly.

"We have seen your struggles, your constant and persistent longing to bring good to the world. We have offered you a special opportunity to do this in a very unique way."

"This place … this island … something about this realm?" reasoned Ororo.

"Indeed. This realm is an astral plane, existing within the one which you know."

"Like … a world within a world?" asked Sam.

"Somewhat," he smiled. "More of a deeper world, one which affects the core of the outer.

"But … why?" wondered Misty.

"During your time here on the island, all of your actions have effected change in your world, on a level none of you had been able to comprehend."

"Positively? How can we know this?" T'Challa asked respectfully.

"Go ahead, Bruce," the one said without even turning around. "You may proceed. Show the others."

The group stopped walking. All eyes turned to stare at Bruce, standing near the rear. He paused, looking to the one, who stopped to return his gaze. Then, Bruce looked beside him, and noticed a computer terminal. It was one of several which intermittently lined the main control room of the fortress. Without hesitation, he began keying in commands.

The blank screen came to life, immediately displaying world schematics almost before he even keyed in the commands for them. After a long moment, he stopped, his hands lifting off the keyboard in stunned silence.

"Bruce, what is it?" asked Selina, watching his reaction.

"Crime … in Gotham … down to three percent," he said quietly, turning to stare at her with a light in his eyes which she had never seen there before. "How?"

"The time index?" motioned the one with a nod.

"This decrease has been holding over the last few weeks," Gwen said, studying the analysis as a small graph appeared in the lower corner of the screen.

"Which would coincide with the approximate time we arrived here on the island," followed Peter. "Look, there have been decreases worldwide … less disasters, attacks, shortages … everything. Is this for real?"

"Very much so," the one answered. "All of you have made a difference here, much more so than your years of struggle there."

"Is this sustainable?" asked Scott. "Can this continue?"

"This is the choice now set before you," he said with a kind and knowing smile as he began to walk forward once again. "All of you have individually chosen to believe in the death, burial and resurrection of The Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore have accepted the salvation of Him as your Saviour, making you ready to be used of God. This age is coming to an end, and a new one shall soon begin. This realm will soon start to merge with the one you know, eventually to the point that you shall even be able to return to interacting with it in the physical. However, you have been blessed with a knowledge … a belief … a gift … which has given you the key to true victory."

"Wait. I don't understand," said Sam. "What did we find?"

"Remember the new commandment," the one said, before turning the corner ahead of them.

The others followed to fall back in step with him, but they rounded the corner to find … an empty hallway.

"Jor-El?" called Kal.

"Yes, Kal-El," the computer apparition said from behind them.

Everyone turned around in surprise. After a short moment, Kal walked toward him. "Replay time index of the last 3 minutes, please?"

"Of course, Kal-El," answered Jor-El. He looked down for a moment, his systems accessing data. Then, he stared back up at Kal with a slightly puzzled expression. "There is no data recorded for the last 3 minutes. Should I begin a diagnostic?"

"No, that's … quite all right. Thank you," Kal smiled.

"Finally, we understand," sighed Diana. "But, what commandment did he speak of?"

"'A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another,'" quoted Steve from The Holy Bible. "John 13:34."

"So how do we do this?" Natasha asked quietly.

"As a team," Steve said firmly.

"As a family," added Kal. "With love. God is love. Love."

End ...