The Paradise Behind the Mind: Genesis

By Adrian Cruz

In a far corner of the universe, dragons of creation have provided life to the dark land of Naibar through the mind of a ten-year-old boy. Within Naibar lives Samoilg, a vicious creature determined to take the boys life and Sufur, the young guardian of the land who has a newly-created mission to save the boy along with the planet. Unfortunately, Sufur has no idea how he will achieve his goal.

As Recotoa humanoid tree and guardian of memorybegins helping Sufur explore Naibar, he tumbles upon mystical places and, along with the boy, must confront Ilkey, a creature that feeds from fear and Iblis, a demon desperate to steal the boys soul. While the boy vacillates between two worlds in dreams until he is too ill to continue, Sufur and Recoto gather power and weapons to save him from a seemingly inevitable dark destiny. When they finally defeat Samoilg, now they must rescue the boys soul from Ilkey and Iblis, or he will never get a second chance at life.

In this fantasy novel, a boy trapped between reality and a fantasy world must rely on help from a guardian and a band of unlikely heroes to save him from a dark fate.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jan 10, 2017
• ISBN: 9781532013010

Book preview

THE PARADISE BEHIND THE MIND

GENESIS

Copyright © 2017 Gustavo Cruz.

Author Credits: Gustavo Adrian Cruz Carr

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

iUniverse

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.iuniverse.com

1-800-Authors (1-800-288-4677)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-5320-1300-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5320-1301-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016921424

iUniverse rev. date: 03/09/2017

Contents

Chapter 1   The Black Land

Chapter 2   The Guardian

Chapter 3   Illusion Falling

Chapter 4   The Calling of Souls

Chapter 5   The Discouragement of Life

Chapter 6   Reality

Chapter 7   The Awakening of a New World

Chapter 8   New Beginning

Chapter 1

The Black Land

I can’t move. I’m surrounded by dragons throwing flames at me continuously. I don’t know what color they are because all I see is their fire and their bright eyes staring at me. Though the flames coming out of their snouts don’t hurt me, I’m afraid.

We’re standing over a piece of black land floating in the cosmos. The dragons create a cloud of dust that obscures my vision. Despite my fear, I don’t think they will hurt me. I walk to one dragon and touch its head. We hear a violent thunderclap, which scares them, and they fly off. I’m alone on this dark land floating in space.

I wake up frightened. I crawl out of my bed. I want to sleep with my parents. I go to their room but don’t knock on their door because they’re fighting again. I’m too afraid to go back to my room; I might dream about those beasts again. I lie on the floor a few steps from the door and fall asleep. I start dreaming about the piece of black land floating among the stars. Fragments of rocks and dirt slowly meld with the land. From beneath, dragons fly out shooting blue, red, green, and white flames that weld the rocks and dirt to the land making it bigger.

The next morning, I wake up in my bed. I think my mom must have found me, picked me up, and tucked me in. Today is Friday, which is great. One day to Saturday and no school. I have to get ready quickly; if I’m late for school, my mom will ground me for the weekend.

I get dressed. Ten-year-olds such as me have a lot to do, but my favorite activity is playing. I look in the mirror and see a four-horned, yellow-eyed dragon extend its wings over my bed. Its body is all green-emerald scales. I turn around and am surprised; nothing’s there. My mom comes in to tell me breakfast is ready and sees me looking around.

What are you looking for?

I shake my head. Nothing. I can’t tell her the truth. She would think I was crazy.

After breakfast, I take food out to the dogs in the garden. They jump happily when they see me with their bowls. Barry is black with touches of gray hair that make him look like a cuddly big dog. When he stands on his back legs, he’s taller than me. Kika has pointy ears, and her white, shiny fur looks like silver in the sunlight. Mickey is small. His white-and-brown-spotted fur makes him look like a toy. He always salutes me with a paw high in the air; that’s why he’s my favorite. He loves being scratched behind his long ears.

I sit on the grass waiting for them to finish their food so I can go to school. Once their dishes are empty, I collect them and take them inside. They follow me to the door and wait for my return. They guard our house, which is yellow with white windows and doors. Their outpost is the garden surrounded by a wood fence. Kika watches the fence, Barry looks for anything out of the ordinary, and Mickey stares at the wooden door in the fence I take to go to school.

A few blocks away from school, a strange shadow passes over me. I look up and see only clouds and one or two birds. The shadow looked a lot like the dragon over my bed. I hurry to school. The bell’s about to ring. I get there just in time.

I sit on the third desk in the last line by the window. The teacher begins with a subject boring enough that I want to sleep. Numbers, more numbers, blah, blah, blah. I yawn and close my eyes for an instant.

When I open them, I realize I’m no longer in the classroom but standing on the black land. Something is different. It looks bigger. I sit on the edge and admire the stars and comets that are everywhere. A dragon approaches with four shiny stars as escorts. Its body is serpent-like. It has four eagle claws and is flying with a movement similar to snakes when they swim. The beautiful creature passes overhead; its body glows with a white-blue light. It has a strip of fur on its spine all the way to the tip of its tail. It roars impressively. I close my eyes so I can keep the moment in my memory.

I open my eyes. I’m back in the classroom. My teacher touches my shoulder. I’m glad you’re back with us. I want to see you at the end of classes.

I’m ashamed when I apologize to him at the end of the school day. He tells me there will be no problem if I clean the blackboard and dust the erasers. As I handle those chores, he is at his desk preparing for next Monday’s class. It looks as if we’ll have tons of homework.

Teacher, please, next Monday, don’t make the class as boring as today’s, I say while cleaning the blackboard.

Ah! So today’s teachings were boring? Well, if you hadn’t fallen asleep, maybe you would realize the other students had lots of fun.

Okay, but at least don’t give us tons of homework on Monday, please!

If you finish quickly, I’ll think about it.

I stand close to a window and bang the erasers against each other. I raise a cloud of white dust. I cough and stick my head out the window for some fresh air. I again feel a shadow passing over me. I quickly close all the windows.

Why did you close them? my teacher asks.

I finished with the erasers. I didn’t want the dust to blow back in.

He looks at me quizzically. The truth is, I closed the windows because I was scared.

After my chores, it’s getting dark. I hurry home and enter the garden to say hello to the dogs. Poor things—they missed me a lot and receive me joyfully. Barry actually knocks me down, and they all lick me. I pick up a ball and start tossing it to them till Mother calls me for dinner. I wash my hands and sit at the table; we’re having mashed potatoes and liver.

Why were you so late from school? Mother asks as she ladles dinner onto plates.

I am about to answer when Dad comes in. By the look on his face and the way he banged the door, I know there will be problems. Without saying a word, I head to my room. I hate liver anyway.

I don’t turn on my light. That way, nobody will know I’m here. I grab Rufus, my stuffed dog, and hide under the bed trying not to think of the problems in my house. I don’t like it when my parents fight. I can hear them arguing. I hug Rufus and curl up head and feet. I close my eyes and whisper softly, Make them stop.

Once again I’m on the dark land, which has grown some more. I can’t see the edge of it. The dirt under my feet is warm, and it smells like something’s burning. Rufus is nowhere to be found. I start exploring the place. I reach the edge and see a strange creature gazing at the stars. He is human-like, but he has paws instead of feet, and his body is covered in dusty, beige fur. I think he is a werewolf like the ones in movies, but this one isn’t that ugly in spite of a hump on his back. He turns to me. His long ears make him look as if he has long hair. His black eyes and snout make him look like Rufus.

Lightning flashes across the sky dazzling my eyes for a second or two. I recover and run to where the creature was standing. He’s not there. Another flash of lightning takes me back to my room.

I start to dream again. The stars that had been escorting the white dragon appear and dance around the black land, prompting green sprouts to stick their heads out of the soil. Their light makes the land glow green. In a lonely space, I see myself floating in the darkness.

Don’t be afraid, a kind voice says. You’re not alone. You have enough courage to confront this and more.

What does he mean? Will I suffer more anguish and pain? I’m only ten; I can’t do a lot of things by myself.

It’s morning. I get out of my hiding place, get dressed, and lay Rufus on the bed so he won’t be afraid when he can’t see me. I go out to feed the dogs. I wait patiently for them to finish breakfast before I get their leashes. They jump like crazy; they know I’ll walk them. It’s hard to get them leashed because of their excitement, but I manage.

I take them to the park. Rather, they take me. I unleash them, and they take off. I go to the swings. I think they like to go for walks as much as they like being fed, but I guess only they know the truth. Mickey likes to run in circles around me. He never goes far. It’s as if he’s taking care of me all the time. Even Barry and Kika never lose sight of me when they run around the park.

I start swinging higher and higher. I hear a voice behind me. Be careful! You’re flying too high. I slow down and come to a stop.

Boy, where are your parents? a man asks.

I don’t answer. I was taught never to speak to strangers. It’s none of his concern anyway, I think. His eyes don’t inspire me with trust.

It’s rude not to answer when someone is talking to you.

He starts to make me uncomfortable. He slowly gets closer to me. Mickey barks at him; he doesn’t like the man either. The man grabs my arm and pulls me to him. I resist as best I can, not letting go of the swing’s chains. Barry and Kika return at full speed to find out why Mickey is barking. The man ignores little Mickey, but his attitude changes when he sees Barry coming. He’s the one experiencing fear. He lets me go and runs away, chased by the dogs. Kika bites his butt and tears his pants. That will teach him not to mess with us, I think.

I whistle to my dogs, who come back once the stranger is far enough away. Barry and Kika return agitated with their tongues hanging out. I pat them on their heads to congratulate their efforts. I take the piece of the man’s pants out of Kika’s mouth and pitch it in the garbage. I put their leashes on and head home just in case the man is still around.

Back home, I pour water into their bowls and go to my parents’ room, the living room, bathroom, and all the other rooms in the house to make sure nobody’s home. I sit on the couch and turn on the TV. Great cartoons!

I catch a glimpse of lightning in the sky, which has grown very dark. I let the dogs in so they won’t get wet and can watch cartoons with me. Barry puts his head down and starts to snore. I guess dogs don’t watch cartoons.

The power goes out. I stay put rather than look for a flashlight. I am protected by my pets where I am. Rain pours down, and lightning creates strange shadows in the room—big shapes surround the sofa. Something with scales moves from behind the sofa to the curtains and shakes them. I hope it’s only the wind. What calms me is that the dogs don’t think we’re in danger, so I watch the dancing movement of shadows and bit by bit drift off to sleep.

Between dreams, I sense someone or something in the room. I think it’s a dog by the smell of it, but Barry, Kika, and Mickey aren’t wet—they got in just in time—so it must be another dog. The smell is very peculiar. Come closer, I say. Don’t be afraid. I’ll give you a biscuit. Wait! You’re not a dog!

If it’s a dog, it can walk on its hind legs. Maybe a humanoid dog has entered my home brought by the lightning. Is he here to protect me from that evil man in the park? Or has he brought me courage? I hope for both. It might be that my imagination is playing a bad joke on me. Images come to my head—dragons been interrupted by lightning, a strange creature in my living room, and my problems at home. I am sure of nothing. Suddenly, I feel a warm hug that calms me; I feel I’m living a peaceful, happy life.

I open my eyes to clear away my doubts of who or what is in the room, but I am again in the black land. I see a weird man dressed in brown pants, white shirt, and black shoes. They look like the clothes the man