The Great Altruist by Z. D. Robinson Read Free Book Online Page B

incredibly proud of you. Saying what you did to your father must have been very difficult. It took tremendous courage.”
     
                Jadzia accepted the compliment and laid her head on the lush grass and closed her eyes. “Do you mind if I rest a bit?” she asked.
     
                “Not at all.” Genesis left Jadzia to sleep and picked berries from the nearby bushes and ate.
     
                Although exhausted and nauseated from the experiences of their morning, Jadzia dreamed of only the happiest memories of life with her father.
     
                Genesis, on the other hand, found it difficult to sleep that night for the first time in ages. Even though her new life satisfied her desire to help people, something was missing. She tossed and turned all night while the voice of her conscience called out: “Do more.” Unsure of what that meant, she resolved anyway to listen to its command. Seconds later, she closed her eyes and entered a deep slumber.
     
     
     
              The following morning, Genesis awoke refreshed and gathered whatever food she could find from the surrounding countryside before Jadzia awoke. After eating to her heart’s content, she lied along the grass, closed her eyes, and enjoyed the symphony produced by the woodland creatures, trees, and trickling water.
     
                Jadzia awakened after almost an entire day of sleep and wiped her eyes clean. She first sought privacy behind the fallen tree beyond the border of the clearing, and then washed her hands in the creek. Her nerves still rattled by the prior day’s exertions, she ate the food Genesis collected and tried to calm her pulse. But then she realized what still lied ahead and that it would be just as taxing as before. Just the thought of her mission caused her pulse to race again.
     
                “Are you alright?” Genesis asked.
     
                “I haven’t slept this well in years.”
     
                “I can sense you’re nervous.”
     
                “I am. How do I say good-bye to someone forever?”
     
                Genesis remained silent. There was nothing she could say to answer her question.
     
                “Is there no way we can save them?” Jadzia asked again.
     
                “Anything can be done. The question is whether it should. I’ve witnessed extraordinary pain throughout history, and there is much I wish I could interfere with . I ’ m just not sure if I ’ d be doing the right thing. Maybe things should be allowed to unfold as they are. Otherwise, where would I stop? ”
     
                “Have you ever thought of stopping all of it?”
     
                “You mean all suffering?” she asked incredulously. “Again, I don’t think that’s why I’m here.”
     
                “You’re here to help people, aren’t you?”
     
                “Yes, but life needs to be allowed to run its course.”
     
                “What about me?”
     
                “I don’t have the answer you want, Jadzia. Perhaps I should never have to come to you either. Maybe one day I’ll regret all of this. Maybe stopping all human suffering is what I’m here to do. I’m still finding my own path.”
     
                “How do you know?”
     
                “I don’t. All I know now is that I’m going to help you to the best of my ability. You have my word.”
     
                Jadzia capitulated and said: “Then I should be more grateful. I’m just being selfish.”
     
                “Wanting your parents to escape death is hardly selfish. The power I wield must be used responsibly though.”
     
                “I know,” she said. “Promise me – if there’s any way to save them – you’ll save them.”
     
                “I