Luke never thought he'd see a T-Rex eat a Wooly Mammoth before. But with the Garden of Eden, anything was possible.

Was this the area where Pepe was sent into a coma? Did he get whacked with the tail of an Ankylosaur and sent into a deep sleep? Did he get pecked in the head by a giant Moa and grew a huge lump on his head like the characters do in the cartoons? Did a pack of Tasmanian Tigers lunge at him and slash him into an unconscious state?

Either way, Luke was starting to fear getting himself through this field without being trampled to death, let alone provide for Nil's safety.

"Didn't see these many animals the last time I came," Victor hummed as if thinking back to when he last did the Garden Run, whenever that was.

"Most of these animals have been extinct for like ever," Sirius noticed.

"Rawr!" Alpha approached a T-Rex and greeted himself.

Luke did one of those whisper yells to get Alpha's attention. "Alpha, that's enough. Did you not see what he did to that mammoth?"

Of course, Alpha ignored him. "Rawr!"

The T-Rex looked unamused at this squat teen-child trying to get his attention.

"Rawr! C'mon, say rawr back."

The T-Rex yawned. It's massive gaping mouth could be mistaken for a garage door opening followed by a blast of jet-turbine air. Alpha took that as a gentle roar.

"Did you see that!" He smiled. "He said hi!"

Victor shook his head. "Why am I always stuck with idiots." He kept walking across the field, maneuvering through the minefield of animals like it was a city street.

"Is he crazy?" Luke asked. "With so many of them out there?"

"Don't you know the creation story?" Sirius pointed at Alpha and Victor who remained untouched. "Here mankind is in command. Come on."

Sirius grabbed Luke's hand and brought Luke and Nil down the sand dune. They traversed across the grassland decorated with shrubs and stunted trees, but nothing more. Luke never felt so small, so insignificant until he stood next to a Sauroposeidon, a dinosaur that looked like the world's longest slide. When he had to stare up at an animal as if he were staring up a skyscraper, then he knew he felt powerless. Yet, Sirius said these animals wouldn't mess with them because they were in command, at least while they remained in good standing he presumed. It was here that God gave domain over the animals to Adam and Eve, the first humans God created.

But what surprised Luke most was seeing the same Yak he had defeated back at SGA.

It was grazing on a field of grass right next to an elephant bird that looked like a mix between an ostrich the size of a baby elephant and a kiwi (the brown furry flightless bird, not the fruit).

Luke reached for his whip when Sirius stopped him. "Don't aggravate it."

"But it's the same one that attacked the school."

"I know, just let it be."

"How is it still alive? I saw it dissolve to dust."

"I don't know. Maybe this is their afterlife." Sirius dragged Luke away from the animal before it could notice him. But Alpha's voice ruined that.

"Smelly Yak! It's back."

The Yak picked up its head as if wanting to know who was talking smack and saw that it was just a human and kept on grazing. Luke wished it would've been this peaceful back at SGA.

However, its head did a double take when it spotted Luke. Luke could've sworn the jig was up. The Yak was probably gearing up for revenge—to stomp Luke into his own afterlife. He was about to summon a surge of lightning. He felt his left-hand tingling, but Sirius put a cap on it by grabbing ahold of Luke's hand.

The confrontation Luke had been anticipating didn't come to pass. The Yak simply moved further away from Luke as if he had cooties, or simply didn't want to die again.

Luke felt like a heavy load was off of his chest. Apparently Iumenti do return here when they dissolve. He didn't want to stick around to see anymore.

"Can you guys hurry up?" Victor called to the three of them. "Are your shoes made out of lead or something? And why are you two holding hands? Gay."

Luke's face went red as he withdrew his hand from Sirius who seemed hurt not at the comment that Victor had made, but of Luke's reaction to the comment. "Shut up and pay attention to the Saber-Tooth Tiger behind you."

"The what?" He turned around and almost flinched out of his skin. Two curved fangs were staring Victor down, and Luke hoped that just this once, Victor's luck would run out.

But all Victor got was a sloppy lick from the giant feline animal. Once it coated Victor in his saliva, it walked away leaving Victor spreading his arms out like a scarecrow trying to comprehend what just happened.

"Gross!" He yelled. "Damn animals. The stuff I go through for this guy."

He took out a towel from his bag and started wiping himself down. Meanwhile, Alpha was at the base of the curvy hills that looked like one long camel's back. He was already running up the hill trying to get to the top for a view. Luke and the others followed. It was a heck of a hike. At some points Luke had to crawl up since it got so steep.

Once Alpha got to the top he didn't even bother turning back to see the beautiful Paradise Cove, Golden Mound Beach, and the Field of the Forgotten. His eyes were locked on what was ahead. But nothing else could top what Luke had already seen.

But Luke was wrong.

When he reached the top the first thing he noticed was the giant slope of an incline that led down into a valley below. Encircled by a stone sanctuary was a forest of trees and plants from across the world. Pines, cacti, oak, palm, you name it, it was there. Pristine lakes sparkled in areas where trees failed to colonize, and a flowing river curved through the center of the sanctuary.

But what moved him were the colors. Luke thought autumn was his favorite season because of the way the trees would change color on his college campus in D.C. It was simply amazing. He would walk to class and get an Instagram worthy picture view of changing tree colors with the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in the background. Green grass would be changed to gold, red, and orange as fallen leaves coated the ground.

But the colors here were like that and more. He saw trees from afar whose rainbow trunks looked like streaks of watercolors. He noticed plants whose petals glowed as silver as the shining moon. He saw an emerald river that looked like the liquid form of the gem sparkling in the middle of the sanctuary. He could only imagine the details he could immerse himself in once he got closer.

"It's a slippery hike down," Sirius noted.

A memory triggered in Luke's mind. He remembered standing here back when he was being escorted into the Garden. He remembered Xyi, one of his escorts, convincing Michael, another escort, to do a barrel roll.

He turned to Sirius. "I think we can roll down this hill."

Sirius studied the hill. "It'll be one long ride down."

Alpha jumped up and down. "Yes, yes! Bet I can beat you to the bottom." Alpha leaped and tucked in his arms and his body rolled like a log down the hill.

"Oh no you won't," Sirius jumped after him trying to gain speed.

"I'd expect such childish play from you three," Victor shook his head.

Luke had it, and in the spirit of fun, he did something he both relished and had been meaning to do for a long time.
"Come on, don't be a party pooper," Luke smiled and stepped closer to Victor. "Enjoy the ride."

He pushed Victor down the slope, and the air filled with curses, some in German because apparently that was his Speaking in Tongues elective.

Luke laughed and waved at Victor. Then he turned to Nil whose gaze had lowered a bit from the sky and towards the Garden below. Luke wondered if he could sense the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. Luke wondered if Nil knew this Garden was once the center of humanity, where people first looked up at their father.

And the memory of his first trip to the Garden resonated. He remembered Xyi, the Vietnamese ponytail young man, staring out at the valley below. "Look at it Michael. Just imagine, if enough people choose good, this could be our home again." And just as Michael couldn't help but smile back then, Luke felt the same intuition to let his worries go.

He laid Nil on his back, and for once he turned his head towards the Valley below and then back at Luke. He thought he was looking at Luke's eyes—the first time Nil has ever made eye contact.

But if he was, he didn't keep it for long. His eyes flew over his head.

"Sometimes," he found himself repeating his former chubby escort Michael, "I wish I could see what you see."

He gave Nil a nudge and then joined him as they both rolled down the hill.