“Sweet Jesus, take me,” cried a woman near the stage.
Reverend Cooke looked into the lens of the camera and through it into the homes of ten million of the United North’s forty-odd million inhabitants.
““He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him.’ To His martyr and prophet Allen Chandliss and to all his children He has spoken. Hear His herald announce his coming: ‘Beloved of Earth, greetings. I have heard your prayers and have seen by your acts that you are one with your Father. Let my children rejoice at this the end of thy tribulations and at the joy which will enfold you. Let the sinners wail for the time of judgment comes. I am the Father that loves you and the Spirit that calls you and the Son that redeems you. Prepare for the rapture. I come to gather my children to me.”’
It was at a meeting called to evaluate the application of the United North to join the Consortium that Rashuri first heard the name of the Church of the Second Coming.
“I’d turn it down for one reason and one reason alone,” said Weddell. “The Second Comers scare me.”
“Explain,” said Rashuri.
“Their growth rate has been nothing less than phenomenal for a country with only class-C communications,” said Weddell. “They’ve siphoned off most of the membership of the Lake State Protestant denominations and a good fraction of the Catholics in the Northeast.”
“So this is more than a cult?” asked Rashuri.
It was Moraji who answered. “It has certain cultish qualities, Devaraja. There is a great impetus to proselytize, no notable tolerance for alternative views, much reliance on a single inspirational leader. Every meeting place has a dish antenna pointed at Cassiopeia, and every service closes with the worshippers listening with bowed heads to one full cycle of the Sender message. But its real strength comes from a successful appeal to long-held Christian hopes for the return of a Savior. The Church of the Second Coming provides a clear alternative to those uncomfortable with the future we project.”
“And you say that they have their own translation of the message,” Rashuri mused. “A very free translation,” said Weddell. “Cooke claims to have been guided by the Holy Spirit in evolving it.”
“And that is enough for them? He has no other proof?”
“He relies heavily on quotations from Revelation. His audience comes prepared to believe due to their belief in the inerrancy of Scripture. As the history of cults shows, clever and selective reading of the Bible can be used to support some very un-Christian beliefs.”
“Yet that doesn’t seem to be the case here,” said Rashuri. “The message seems primarily hopeful, and lacks the antitechnological bent of the Collapse churches.”
He picked up the small staplebound booklet before him on the table. “ ‘In the age of mystery, God spoke as from a burning bush. In the age of humanity, God spoke through His prophet John and His Son Jesus. In the age of technology, God speaks to us through the tools which we have created with the intelligence with which He has blessed us. So does our Father call us into the future.”’ Rashuri looked to Weddell. “You have not made clear why you are concerned.”
The PANCOMNET director shook his head. “I’m not the only one concerned. In any event, I don’t believe we should allow another strong factor to enter the global equation. With the degree of personal allegiance Cooke commands, should the Church continue its growth he could soon be in a position to hamper our activities. The only condition under which I can see us admitting the United North is if Cooke is taken out first.”
Rashuri raised an eyebrow in Moraji’s direction. “And do you concur?”
“No, Devaraja. The time at which the elimination of Cooke would have crippled the Church is already past. He is not the best at what he does, merely the first. And I doubt very much that he is dependent on our help for the Church’s continuing existence. The Church of the Second Coming will not obligingly go away.”
“You offer little hope.”
“Not at all, Devaraja. The Church’s growth has been as a fire burns in a dry valley. The valley is consumed—but the world does not blaze. Rains fall. A river stops its advance. The next valley is green. Less than one human in four professes Christian beliefs. The church will grow—but it will not consume us.”
Rashuri nodded thoughtfully. “I find much to commend what you say. I myself do not believe in the Christian specter of evil loose in the world, and therefore the promise of salvation holds little appeal.” He looked to Weddell. “Is it perhaps that being a child of a Christian country, on some irrational level you mistrust your own ability to resist this man?”
“It’s possible,” said Weddell. “It’s just as possible that as a child of the Veda you can’t understand the emotional power of Cooke’s message and how dangerous he could be to us.”
“Conceded. But please remember that it is my responsibility to respect even those dangers I do not understand,” said Rashuri, standing. “See that the Assembly approves the application.”
Within a month, Cooke filed a request to meet with Rashuri on “a matter of great importance.”
“What do you think he wants? Access to the NET?” Rashuri asked Moraji.
“He wants and has it, thanks to the North American regional director. No, we have been monitoring his speeches. It is Star Rise that concerns him now.”
“How so?”
“Thus far he has done little more than bring it to the attention of his followers. Where once he never spoke of it, now he invariably does,” Moraji said. “His purpose in doing so is not yet clear. Perhaps he would make it so should you meet with him.”
Rashuri glanced at his video display. “His Church has no official relationship with Consortium machinery?”
“That is correct.”
“Thank you, Jawaharlal.”
Rashuri refused that request and another, more urgently couched, that quickly followed it. Then for several months Rashuri heard nothing except the reports filed by Weddell’s mediawatch team and by the agents Moraji had assigned to travel with Cooke. Through that time, the Church continued to grow, making inroads even among Consortium employees. Though Cooke ceased to mention Star Rise in his sermons and speeches, Rashuri did not allow himself to hope it had ceased to be an issue.
Confirmation came that spring, when more than forty thousand Consortium staffers worldwide, including a dozen assembling in orbit the core segment of Star Rise, laid down their work in the middle of the workday and went to Second Coming churches and meeting rooms. It was nominally a day of high celebration to commemorate the receipt of the Call by Scion of God Allen Chandliss.
But it was also a signal to Rashuri and the Consortium that Cooke expected to be taken seriously. Another request for a meeting was delivered an hour after workers returned to their jobs. In that context, it was more a demand than a request.
Ever the diplomat, Rashuri waited a week, then acceded gracefully and extended an invitation for First Scion Carl Cooke to come to Delhi.
Cooke arrived at Palam International Airport fully expecting to be met by Rashuri, and Church cameramen were ready to record the event for its Archives of the Second Coming.
But it was white-haired and soft-spoken Montpelier, director of the finance division, who greeted Cooke when the turboprop bearing the Church’s symbol, a black cross superimposed on a stylized white radiotelescope dish, landed.
“Where is Chairman Rashuri?” Cooke demanded.
“Chairman Rashuri has many duties which demand his attention, and he has asked me to extend to you his welcome and the welcome of the Pangaean Consortium,” Montpelier said. “I can assure you that he looks forward to your meeting with the greatest anticipation.”
“You’ll take me to him?”
“That is my charge,” said Montpelier. “He has also asked me to acquaint you with our organization before you meet with him. I have transportation waiting—”
Acquainting Cooke meant a two-hour tour by cl
osed car of the Consortium facilities scattered in the Delhi area—the Physical Laboratory, the Sun Rise antenna farm, the master PANCOMNET studios. While traveling between sites, the First Scion was shown short videodocs on remote facilities (Sriharikota, the high-orbit Assembly Station and low-orbit Operations Center) and various Consortium human welfare programs.
It was the A tour, intended to impress upon Cooke that he was to meet with the leader of an institution which in resources and influence still far outstripped the Church of the Second Coming. Whether it had its intended effect Montpelier was, to the end, uncertain. Cooke evinced no more than polite interest, asking few questions and at times allowing his attention to wander. Only the sight of PANCOMNET’s twelve-metre satellite dish at Hyderabad stirred him.
“Is this where you listen to the Creator’s herald?” he asked eagerly. His face fell when he was told that the monitoring program was handled elsewhere.
“A terrible waste,” Cooke said gravely.
When the convoy arrived at last at the administrative complex east of the city, Cooke was whisked to a private suite to refresh himself and then to a ceremonial dinner where he at last met Rashuri. Each seemed determined to take the measure of the other, with one difference: Rashuri was content to avoid controversy until a more private encounter, and Cooke was not.
“You’re not a member of the Church, are you, Mr. Chairman?” he asked between bites of the appetizer.
“That is correct,” said Rashuri.
“I’m interested—a man with your influence over the affairs of the world—do you profess any religious beliefs at all?”
“Is it your contention that a leader should involve his religious beliefs in secular decisions?” said Rashuri, casting a sideways glance at the Church camera crew recording the discussion from a few metres away. “It would seem to me that history offers enough examples that the rigidity of dogma and the emotion of deeply held beliefs rarely contribute to just government. The Consortium is not a government, of course—it is a free association of nations guided by their common interests and goals.”
“When one has a true personal relationship with God and a commitment to his coming Kingdom on Earth, there are no strictly secular decisions,” said Cooke.
“Exactly the danger I mentioned,” Rashuri said easily. “By not answering my original question, do you wish me to assume that you in fact hold to no faith?”
“You may make whatever assumptions you choose,” Rashuri said. “I would not presume to constrain your imagination.”
Cooke laid down his implements. “I would like to see the Consortium treat with greater sensitivity the deeply held beliefs of the millions for whom I speak here,” he said stiffly.
“I expect we will take up that question this afternoon,” said Rashuri, and mouthed a forkful of galub gamum. “This is really excellent, don’t you agree?”
An hour later, they had shed their aides and attaches and settled down to face each other. “I’m very surprised at your attitude,” said Cooke. “You’re a servant of the people. You’re obliged to consider their wishes.”
“Do you seriously believe that governments anywhere operate under that principle?” asked Rashuri. “I serve the people’s interests but not at their bidding, much as you do.”
“I’m not flattered by the comparison. I serve the Creator by serving His people.”
Rashuri raised his hand. “As you will. You came here with some concern more specific than respect for your Church. Perhaps it would be best if you expressed that now so that we may come to grips with it.”
“If 1 can assume that even as an atheist you are conversant with our beliefs—”
“You cannot assume the former but you can the latter.”
“And you must agree to drop the fiction that there is an alien spaceship heading for Earth.”
“I’m not certain I can do that. I know of course that you believe it is Christ and the angels that bear him who approach.”
“That’s no mere belief. It’s both a fact and an article of faith, confirmed by God’s own word and the testimony of His witnesses. Only the Master of Creation can travel with impunity through the hostile voids. Only God Himself can marshal the energies for a voyage at such speeds.”
“There you see our problem. I am willing to concede, for the sake of our discussion, that you may be correct, and act accordingly. You will not do the same. Now who is lacking in respect for the other?”
“You can’t confuse the issue by attacking my integrity.”
“Please, First Scion—there is no audience here. I attack only your reluctance to come to the point. What do you want that is worth the effort you have already put into it?”
“I want Star Rise abandoned. It is an affront.” Rashuri shook his head. “Impossible. But I invite you to explain why you make the demand.”
“It should be obvious. Is not Star Rise to be manned by scientists and equipped with all manner of probes and instruments? You propose to do nothing less than take the measure of God.”
“Star Rise will be an ambassador ship. We will send it out to make contact on our behalf with whatever beings call us. And did I not read in your writings that God made man a toolmaker? How then would our use of tools offend Him?”
“There is the matter of the spirit in the heart of the wielder. Chairman, the Church can close down Star Rise for six months as well as for six hours.”
“I expected that you would so claim. I do not believe you can.
“Many Church members are involved in it, at every level. It would take only a word from me and they would never work on it again. Many would be willing to undo the work they have already done.”
“I do not doubt they would if given the chance and a reason. But there is something which I think should concern you rather more—a tool which will be wielded by a very black heart indeed. Would you allow me to show you what I mean?”
Cooke gestured his agreement, and Rashuri rose slowly, grimacing as he did, and crossed the room to his video display. He darkened the room and stood by the display as Cooke watched with growing horror a five-minute account of the Gauntlet project, complete with film of the departure of Gauntlet A and the nearly finished Gauntlet B flying free at Assembly Station. Then Rashuri slowly returned to his chair.
“Star Rise or no, what sort of greeting do the Gauntlet platforms represent?” asked Rashuri. “What will their existence say about us?”
“This is an abomination,” Cooke thundered. “Hidden from our eyes, but God has seen. A perversion of His gift. Why was this allowed? Why was this done?”
“I opposed it, unsuccessfully. Some fear our visitors. The fear is powerful, as are the fearful.”
“And well they should fear Him, for Christ comes to judge them,” Cooke raged.
“Yet what they do reflects on all of us,” said Rashuri. “If you are willing to replace your anguish with action, perhaps something can be done. Accuse the Consortium of readying to declare war on God’s host. To cement your accusation, you will be provided with film of Gauntlet B such as might be taken through a powerful telescopic camera. Demand an explanation.
“The platforms are under Tai Chen’s command and manned by her hand-picked system pilots and engineers. I will let her explain. The explanation will not suffice; many will be angry. You will ask your followers to strike the project; I will see that many others join them. The crisis will threaten our unity. The Assembly will demand action. In such an environment I can terminate Gauntlet without fear of reprisal.”
“Yes,” Cooke said slowly. “Yes, all that could be done in good conscience. But the problem of Star Rise remains.”
“Star Rise must fly.”
“Then it must fly with only Scions of the Church of the Second Coming aboard.”
“It must fly with exactly the personnel best trained to complete the many dimensions of its mission.”
“If we can stop Gauntlet, we can stop Star Rise. And we will, if our Church is not well represented in i
ts crew.”
Rashuri shook his head. “I said before and I maintain—you cannot touch Star Rise. It is a symbol more powerful than you realize. But I would prefer you not feel obliged to prove me wrong in a campaign that would only divert us both from more important matters. I am told that, at most, one human in four shares in your basic beliefs. I am willing to guarantee that the crew will reflect that ratio.”
“I choose one fourth of the crew.”
“You will nominate them. If they qualify under the mission requirements, they will fly with Star Rise.”
Cooke folded his hands on his round belly. “You’d make those requirements known to us in advance, of course.”
“They are being written now. You are welcome to have an observer monitor their development.”
Cooke nodded. “Very well. We will stand with you against Gauntlet. And we will let Star Rise fly.”
Rashuri stood and offered his hand. “It would fly without you,” he said as they clasped hands. “But we welcome your blessing on it.”
Chapter 16
* * *
Nominations
It was a race with profound implications for the Consortium: Deer Lake and Carl Cooke’s whisper campaign versus Beijing and Tai Chen’s pressure on the Gauntlet B construction schedule. Whichever culminated first could well determine the future course of the Consortium.
For Rashuri had never forgotten that Mao’s teachings on guerrilla warfare had political dimensions as well.
Tai Chen had been well pleased by the bargain which gave her control of Earth’s space-based defenses. Except for Gu Qingfen’s continued presence in Delhi, Tai Chen evinced little further interest in other Consortium proceedings. At that, Gu seemed more and more to speak for himself rather than for Chinese interests. Tai Chen’s inattention was also evident in the Pangaean Assembly; though nominally intact, the Far East Cooperative Sphere had not voted as a bloc for two years.
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