Interlude in the Afterlife

"Hello, Fred," the man said. "I'm Granas. Yes, what you exclaimed just now was correct: I do exist. You needn't be so fearful. Believe me, I've judged far worse individuals than you. And your heartbreak and remorse over what you thought was Tarsa's death count for a lot. Yes, I said thought, Fred. She's still alive. But what an idiotic thing you did, killing yourself like that! It would have been bad enough had you waited to find out if she was really dead, but given that she lived it's beyond stupid. I thought you were supposed to be the pragmatic type. Anyway, I'm sending you back. Not because you deserve a second chance, or any nonsense like that, but because Tarsa needs you and I need Tarsa alive. For her to perform the ritual is the only hope of defeating Valmar." [19824]

"Tarsa's alive!?"

"But not for much longer, without you to protect her."

"If you're as all-powerful as a god is supposed to be," Fred said, having recovered most of his composure, "then why do you need Tarsa to perform this ritual? Why do you need me to protect her? And why haven't you lifted her curse?"

"I am not about to explain myself to you, Fred. I am sending you back now. You will not remember any of this, since belief in me should require faith rather than be based on knowledge. You will think that you have miraculously survived your fall. When you discover that Tarsa is not dead, you will naturally no longer want to kill yourself." Then everything went black.

Part of the way down, Fred hit the side of the cliff and rolled down a steep slope covered with thorny brambles. He bounced off at the end, and smashed his face into an outcropping, spun around and around to smash his back against another outcropping, then rolled down several more thorny slopes before finally splashing into the water. [Borrowed from 61314, when Fred survived the fall]

1. Fred remembers nothing of his time in the afterlife. All he knew was that he must have somehow survived the fall.
2. Granas evidentally wasn't all-powerful, as Fred could remember everything about his brief time in the afterlife.
3. Meanwhile Sharon has found the broken-winged Skye, who tells her that Tarsa and Fred have both gone over the cliff.

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