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b'The chaos pressed around me, weighing down each step. The air was thick with it\\u2014tendrils of black vapor darting this way and that. I trudged forward, barely able to see even a foot in front of me, following the voice. Somehow, the soft voice had cut through the ever-present shrieks of pain and evil that filled this world. I didn\\u2019t know what the voice was or where it came from. All I knew was how desperately I needed it. My weary heart craved peace, and something deep inside me knew the voice had it.\\nMy stomach lurched as I heard a splash with my next step. Water quickly soaked my boot. I took one more step, and the world shifted. Silence. Sweet, sweet silence. That was the first thing I noticed. My shoulders relaxed. I hadn\\u2019t even realized how tense they were. Next, as my eyes adjusted to the light, I saw the pond. Gentle sunlight shimmered on the water that started at my feet and continued just to the edge of my vison. A smile tugged at my lips as I felt the sunlight warm my face. How long had I been starving for it?\\nThen, I saw Him. My heart started to leap with joy, but I quickly quieted it. He was a stranger. Why should I trust Him? He strode over to me, feet sloshing in the shallow water. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153You look weary,\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d He observed, a kind smile brightening His face.\\n\\u201cThat voice\\u2026\\u201d I wondered silently. \\u201cIs it Him?\\u201d \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153What is this place?\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d I asked sharply.\\n\\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Peace,\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d He replied, \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Rest. Wholeness. Whatever you want to call it.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nI turned, examining an invisible wall holding back the chaos. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Why can\\u2019t it get in?\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d \\n\\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Well, some of it can,\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d He said gently, eying a spot on my shoulder. A whisp ofchaos clung to me. Now that I noticed it, I heard its screech. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153May I?\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d He asked, reaching out His hand.\\nI saw He had an odd scar near His wrist.\\n\\u201cWhat is He going to do with it?\\u201d I thought. \\u201cWho can grasp smoke?\\u201d Curious about this stranger, I nodded. He winced as He wrapped His scarred hand around the whisp. I expected His hand to move right through the smoke, but the whisp seemed to solidify. It stopped moving for a moment, then started thrashing wildly, screaming even louder. With a grunt of effort, He ripped it from my shoulder and hurled it back out into the chaos. My mouth gaped open as I crumpled into the shallow water. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153What\\u2026what happened?\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d I asked weakly, trying to stop my head from spinning. It felt like a piece of me was missing.\\nHe reached down and helped me to my feet, His hands rough but warm. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153I\\u2019m sorry that was so painful. Evil often has a deeper grasp than one might realize. And removing anything so deeply entwined with yourself, even something that\\u2019s killing you, can hurt.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\n As He spoke, the pain inside me began to dull. I felt lighter\\u2026mostly. Something in me still wanted that missing piece. I examined His face more closely. \\u201cIf He can remove that from me\\u2026\\u201d I thought. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Did you make this place?\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nHis kind smile returned. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Yes, I suppose you could say that.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nQuestions piled up in my brain, quickly moving from suspicious curiosity to anger. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153But\\u2026If you can do that\\u2014if you can just chuck chaos away and make\\u2014make, well, this.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d I gestured around me to the pond, my voice rising. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153With all of its peace or rest or whatever you said it was, then why on earth wouldn\\u2019t you just get rid of ALL the chaos?\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d Before I quite knew what I was doing, I found myself making demands of this stranger. My arguments devolved into phrases from childhood. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Make it go away! Make it all just go away!\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d Sorrow, long buried under years of toughness and survival instinct, wormed its way'