57Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyjPL5IKfgGTHE FURNACED COUNCIL” cont.
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Snow drifts sideways across the trail as Metro and Gregory ride through the white silence. Metro checks his compass every few minutes, the needle trembling in the cold. Gregory rides beside him, goggles fogged, breath hissing through his mask.
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Hours pass.
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Eventually, they climb into the branches of a thick pine, sitting on a sturdy limb. Bows ready. Eyes scanning the forest floor below.
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Tracks everywhere.
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But no elk.
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Gregory:
“Thank you… for coming with me.”
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Metro smiles faintly, barely a curve.
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Metro:
“It’s a pleasure.”
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Gregory adjusts his goggles, voice low.
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Gregory:
“How do you stay so positive… when we’re facing starvation, sickness, and everything else?”
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Metro watches the horizon.
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Metro:
“I know there’s a reason for everything. A cause and effect. Sometimes… it’s divinely appointed. Sometimes we just fall by ourselves I suppose…’
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‘…That’s what I’ve seen in my life.”
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A beat.
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Metro:
“I guess just to believe—and act on that belief—knowing you’re doing something for a higher purpose. Not just for yourself.”
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Gregory looks down, snow collecting on his shoulders.
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Gregory:
‘My father was a pastor. Very strict. People say I’m uptight… I think I got it from him.”
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A beat.
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Gregory:
“We don’t get along anymore. And I’ve kept my distance from close relationships because of my military work. I never wanted anyone in my family to suffer or hurt because of me…”
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Metro turns slightly.
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Metro:
“How are you feeling about your current situation?”
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Gregory freezes. Breath catches.
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Gregory:
“…I’m happy.
Because I found a friend who works as hard as I do… but still tells me the truth when things are wrong. Because it’s the right thing to do.”
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Metro exhales softly.
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Metro:
“I don’t always do the right thing. But I think the main thing we need to focus on… is forgiveness.”
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The words hit Gregory like a blade to the heart. He sits perched, breathless, the last fog drifting from his mask.
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Gregory:
“What do you mean?”
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Metro looks over, gentle but firm.
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Metro:
“Forgiving yourself. Forgiving others. And carrying on with your life—even if it means leaving certain people behind. Not because you don’t love them… but because you need to grow.”
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He looks out over the forest.
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Metro:
“I was angry with my family. Angry with myself. Then one day… something hit me. I realized I needed to leave. To go through the fire. To be refined like a blade.’
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‘So I did.”
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His voice deepens.
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Metro: “And I was forged. The Master’s hammer struck me again and again. I begged to get out. But I felt prompted to stay. And I realized—I wasn’t strong. I faltered. I got distracted. I fell from grace.”
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Beat.
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‘But I kept getting back up. Reading the scroll. Praying. Giving charity to those who needed true love and brotherly discipleship.”
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Gregory stares at him, unmoving.
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Metro:
“Whatever you’re holding onto… look inside yourself first. Make sure you’re not making the same mistakes you’re angry at others for.”
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Gregory’s voice cracks.
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Gregory:
“I don’t know if I can forgive them.”
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Metro turns, eyes glowing with a quiet spark.
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Metro:
“You have to…”
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Gregory flinches. Something inside him fights—hard. But his spirit pushes back.
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Gregory:
“…How?”
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A long beat.
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Snow falls between them.
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Metro:
“Pray for help.”
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‘Let it out of your mind and keep it away forever.
Live in the present. Focus on the future.
Love others the way you want to be loved—even the difficult ones.”
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His voice softens, but grows more powerful.
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Metro:
“If your heart is open to the Savior, He will guide you to the correct path. You’ll feel it in your bones when things are right, when the angels are present—cheering you on in your acts of godly charity. Mending broken hearts. Strengthening feeble knees. Building souls.”
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Gregory drops his head, neck giving out under the weight of it all.
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Metro smiles gently.
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Metro:
“We keep forgiving. And we set boundaries.
It’s okay to love from a distance if you’re not ready to stand face‑to‑face. The evil one uses force and many other means for control—dominating souls.’
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‘That is not the way of the Spirit.”
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His breath fogs the air.
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Metro:
“The Spirit persuades gently. Invites. Never forces. It expands the inner self—properly, calmly, in order. And if your desires align with Heaven… it will be given to you.”
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Gregory’s voice is barely a whisper.
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Gregory:
“I can’t keep forgiving someone who keeps crossing the line.”
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Metro nods slowly.
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Metro:
“Then remember this. It was written in the scroll—
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“Vengeance is mine. I will repay and recompense.”
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‘As for us… it is commanded that we forgive all men.”
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Gregory looks at Metro directly.
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Metro looks forward.
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A shift in the wind.
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Metro:(points foward)
“There.
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…Look.”
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Across the clearing, an elk family steps into view—majestic, calm, moving with the grace of a living blessing. More herds appear behind them, drifting like shadows through the snow.
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Gregory’s breath catches.
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and then Add to home screen.