Mount Story

by John L. Moore

Once upon a time there was a Great King with a beautiful kingdom. Then rebellion occurred and darkness came over the land. So the Great King sent His Prince and the Prince gave His life in a valiant victory to free the land and the people. And the Prince said to the subjects before leaving, "All authority and power is now yours. Do business in this land until I return." But gradually the subjects lost sight of this commandment and rather than occupying positions of authority they gave place by becoming entangled in civilian life. Turning their faces to heaven, they cried out: "We don't want power to remain, O King. We want to go home and be with you." So, by the rule of abdication, the darkness possessed the high places.

From these mountains the enemy launched fiery darts at the people. Unfortunately, the people who had not been introduced to the Prince did not see the arrows as fiery darts. They saw the arrows as innocent displays of light. "The enemy is evil and his darts will kill you!" the King's people shouted from their fortresses. "Nonsense," said the unenlightened. "This is all harmless fun." Now everyone knew that one of the highest mountains in the land was Mount Story. From there the enemy launched some of his most powerful devices and also had the perspective to spot and target the children of the land. Some within the fortress wanted to storm the mountain of Story and topple the enemy.

"Oh, no," said others. "There is only untruth on Story. We must protest the weaponry and preach against it, but Story lies in the Land of Fiction and everyone knows that Fiction is a lie!" But a few brave souls ventured forth. John Bunyan was one of the first and he did great damage to the enemy and took much land, but sadly, it was the people in the fortresses, especially the leaders, who opposed him the strongest. George McDonald led a raid of special forces against the mountain. So did G.K. Chesterton and Dorothy Sayers. Some wore the uniforms and carried the banner of the King, while others, like Charles Dickens and Harper Lee, were covert warriors who were not as easily seen. J.R.R. Tolkien took much land and occupied many sides on the Mountain of Story and from these heights he broadcast disguised stories of his own. C.S. Lewis followed his path and did much harm to the enemy and continues to do so today, for that is the great power of Story: the messenger may pass on but the Story continues to live! But for all these victories the enemy still held much ground, especially the highest areas where new weapons were forged.

"The Progress of Story has been from oral to print to visual," the Enemy briefed his troops. "We must especially control the visual." Meanwhile, in the fortresses, some of the King's subjects developed a plan of their own. "We don't need to attack Mount Story," they said to one another. "We can create a mountain of our own." So with great effort they used pails and shovels and some fashioned tall mounds, but sadly, the mounds reached only as high as their fortress ceilings. Still, many planted flags there and declared the battle won. Meanwhile, back on Mount Story, the enemy planned his great offensive. He had correctly scouted and seen that the hope of the people were their young.

"Keep the adults busy with their religious affairs," he told his minions. "And while they are distracted my strongmen will kidnap and enslave their children. Then, in due time, I will turn their own children against them." "How will you lure the children from the fortresses?" his lieutenants asked. "That will be easy. The adults have made a place the young do not want to be. We just have to sneak up and open the back door." But the Evil One had forgotten that he did not wage war merely against flesh and blood. The Prince still oversaw the land in the name of His Father and the Prince had His own plan.

"I will bring forth a generation that has the Story within them," the Prince declared. "I will especially seek out the orphan for I am a father to the fatherless. I will teach them of My ways and they will hear My voice and walk in My power."

The Enemy heard of this plan and he quickly fashioned his counterfeit. "Call out to all orphans, especially those who are eleven years old," he ordered.

"Tell them we have a special school for them. A charming place. They will only have to stay there for a spell." "But what about the adults in the fortresses?" his lieutenants queried. "Don't worry about them," said the Evil One. "I will keep them busy worrying about my work and self-righteously protesting my designs."

"How about the warriors who are still attacking Mount Story," they asked. "Weary them," the Evil One said. "Put many obstacles in their paths and cut them off from all supply. If they reach high ground they can call the children upward." "And where is this school where we are to take the children," the lieutenants asked. "Fools!" the Evil One hissed. "There is no school! There is only a pit. Our power is based on deception."

And thus the battle began and still rages. Many children even now are led astray while adults argue whether dark is dark and light is light; whether fiction is true or if there is any contemporary purpose for power, and if so, how to market it.

But warriors of the King still go forth. Called and sent, they assail the high places. They are committed to conquer because they have no plans for a kingdom of their own, but are willing to die in order to establish the King's standard. And the spoils of war is an entire generation of souls. Souls destined for warfare service. Be it one side or the other.

John L. Moore is an award winning novelist and journalist.

Click here to visit John’s Amazon Author Page.

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