The Glooming (Wrath of the Old Gods Book 1)

by John Triptych

  Steve shook his hand once more, then opened the door and walked through. The studio had a high ceiling and he could see catwalks above, along with assorted lighting and huge black curtains that served as background drapery. There were long, thick cables all over the floor as he stepped gingerly around them, while making his way around the front side of the hall. A little bit to his right, he could see the set that was made to look like a cozy living room with sliding doors at the back. It had a green screen as a background further out. Sitting on two ornate chairs that faced three strategically placed studio cameras on wheeled tripods were the hosts of the show. Pastor Erik Burnley and Janet Clancey were alternately addressing each other or talking directly to the cameras.

  “And I must pass the message once again to our loyal viewers and listeners of this broadcast. There is no need to fear. God is with you. God feels your pain and he feels your worries. All is not lost, your soul can still be saved. How? By simply embracing the Lord and believing in him with all your heart. Forgiveness is still possible- so don’t despair, my friends. Jesus will be coming very, very soon, so now is the time to repent and embrace the will of The Lord,” Pastor Erik said into the camera facing him. The pastor was approaching his mid-fifties, but he still looked lean and sun-tanned. Erik was a prominent figure since he was as tall as Steve. He would shave his scalp every morning so he was sometimes nicknamed the bald preacher. He had inherited the ministry from his late father, Pastor Michael Burnley, a former Texas oil millionaire who had found God and moved to Kansas to set up a ministry back in the 1960’s. Burnley’s little congregation ultimately grew into one of the world’s largest megachurches.

  Steve looked around. In addition to the video crew, he noticed there was a control room across from where he was; it was accessible by the stairs to the catwalks. He could see the director along with several technicians from behind the glass partition. Standing at the rear of the control room was a portly man dressed in a suit and wearing a white cowboy hat, along with a silver-haired woman in a white dress. Steve instantly recognized him as the Kansas state governor along with his wife. So it’s clear whose side he’s on, Steve thought.

  “As far as your closing thoughts for this evening, Pastor, when do you think our Lord Jesus will be coming?” Janet Clancey said to the camera. Steve didn’t know her personally, but he had read about her. A former Hollywood actress, Janet was the star of a top-rated situational comedy on national TV, but she gave it all up when she had a religious conversion and soon became the co-host of Pastor Burnley’s prime-time religious talk show on his personal network.

  “A very good question, Janet,” Pastor Erik said to her before turning his gaze to the camera once more. “I cannot tell our audience the exact date of our Lord’s return, but I can guarantee it will be any day now. You’ve all seen it with your own eyes and experienced the horrors of what is happening to the world. This, my friends, is the apocalypse. These are the final days of the Earth, and if you want eternal life, if you want eternal salvation, then the time is now for you to give yourself to The Lord. But you won’t be alone, for every good Christian is with you. If you are lost and you need shelter, then come join us here in Kansas. We have room for you to join the Rock of God Church. As I’ve been telling this to our church members for years, I predicted this would happen.”

  “That’s right,” Janet said to him. “Two years ago, you predicted that the apocalypse would come soon, and you urged all of us to prepare for the second coming of The Lord. We even have proof that you said it, and we will be repeating that episode after this broadcast for those of you that still have some doubts about Pastor Erik’s message to the world.”

  “Thank you, Janet,” Erik said as he smiled at her. “But I can’t take all the credit for this because after all, I am but a messenger for our Lord Jesus Christ, and it is only through Him that we will be saved.”

  Janet nodded. Steve could see that there were multiple cameras on her as well. “And how prepared is the Rock of God Church for the apocalypse, Pastor?” she said.

  Pastor Erik chuckled. “Another good question, Janet. Ever since I gave that speech about the second coming of The Lord all those years ago, our church donations have skyrocketed. We have used these gifts from our loyal members to build the Rock of God Church into an institution that is now functioning as a preparation point for our Lord Jesus’s return. We have our stadium right here in McPherson County, right by our headquarters that can house up to two hundred thousand of the faithful. The stadium has an all-weather dome and tents are not a requirement, but some of our more resourceful church members have set up their own. The parking lot around the stadium consists of multiple acres, and we have room for all sorts of cars. And if you want to bring your own RV or camper, then we have facilities to support those too. And don’t worry about electricity or food, because we have set up several distribution centers on church property to feed our loyal members. And one of our most gracious members, Governor Lloyd Mallory himself, who happens to be in the studio right now,” Pastor Erik said as he waved to the control room before turning to face the camera once more. “Governor Mallory has graciously donated the state’s petroleum reserves to our humble facilities, so that we will have ample power for anyone who wishes to join us here.”

  “So should anyone want to join our church here in Kansas, they really don’t need to bring anything with them then?” Janet said to him.

  “The only requirement is that they give themselves to God, and to believe with all their hearts in our Lord Jesus Christ, and we will accept them, just as The Father accepted his prodigal son back to his fold,” Pastor Erik said, smiling. “But of course, if anybody brings along transportation, food, tents, blankets, as well as guns and ammo, we will gladly accept those donations because we may need them to help those less fortunate.”

  “We have a question from some of our viewers about the enemy that we’re facing,” Janet said as she read off the teleprompter beside one of the cameras facing her. “They’re also asking if we ought to listen to the Federal Government and their emergency broadcasts that claim everything is under control, and people should stay where they are.”

  Almost immediately, Pastor Erik’s visage became a serious one as one of the studio cameras made a close-up of his face. “Let there be no mistake that Satan’s forces have grown in tremendous power. The Devil is here now: he is in Mexico, in Iraq, in Europe, in China, in New York City, and all those other places where man thought he could live away from God, and from the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is why I’m asking for anyone who wants to join us to bring their weapons here because we will have need to defend ourselves while we await our Lord. The Federals will not help us because they have thrown away their allegiance to God. They have instead thrown in their lot with the communists, the gays, and the liberals, and they have led many of us astray. They will all be cleansed in fire when The Lord returns. The only one we can depend on is ourselves now, which is why I am asking all good and decent Christians to join us here in Kansas, join us in the final battle because there is no doubt that we will win and ascend back to Heaven with our Lord Jesus. It’s a matter of belief, those others in those places I’ve mentioned have been destroyed because they refused to believe. Proof in what I’ve said is now all around you, so how can anyone still doubt what I’ve been saying all along? If you care about your soul, and your family, then you must join us here, it is the only way you can attain salvation. Come to Kansas and join with us now before it is too late.”

  As the taping ended, Steve watched as the governor walked out of the control room and headed over to Pastor Erik and both men shook hands and gave each other a warm hug. A crewmember nearly bumped into him, as the technician was moving one of the cameras to the rear of the studio as other crewmen began to dismantle the set. Pastor Erik quickly recognized him and walked over, along with the governor.

  “Steve, how nice of you to make it,” Pastor Erik smiled warmly as he shook Steve’s hand. “Might
I introduce you to Governor Mallory, of our great state of Kansas.”

  “Governor Mallory,” Steve acknowledged the shorter man as he shook his hand. “It’s an honor to meet you.”

  “Pleasure’s mine, son,” Governor Mallory said.

  “Steve here was a lieutenant in Dallas SWAT,” Pastor Erik said. “Let’s all go to my office, shall we?”

  The walk led them back into the main building through the glass concourse. Governor Mallory’s wife had stayed behind so she could chat with Janet Clancey. The three men went ahead and took an elevator to the top floor. Pastor Erik placed his thumb on the biometric scanner on the elevator’s control pad, which then gave an affirmative as it brought them up to the penthouse suite.

  “Did you just come from Texas, Steve?” Governor Mallory said to him.

  “Yes,” Steve said as the loud ping indicated that they reached the top floor. “Took me two days to get around the blocked roads and the flooded areas, otherwise I would have been here sooner.”

  Pastor Erik walked out into the room first. “Lloyd, have you been in contact with Governor Bishop of Texas?”

  Governor Mallory stepped out into the carpeted office. His cowboy boots were also white leather. “As you well know, I just came from that big governor’s conference in Colorado Springs a few days back, and I’ve also talked with him on the phone just before the main lines went down. He has his way of doing things and I have mine. That damned fool wants each and every one to volunteer and head to the Texas border to fight the devils and demons in Mexico. Of course, I disagreed with all of that.”

  As Steve walked into the office, the elevator closed behind him. He saw that the glass walls around the penthouse was unusually thick, that was when he realized that it was bulletproof, the kind of layered glass they used in building embassies overseas in high risk countries. The furniture was mostly tan leather, with numerous couches, oak coffee tables, and padded chairs. Pastor Erik walked around his massive, solid oak office desk and sat down on a high leather chair. Governor Mallory sat on a guest chair opposite him and began to pour himself some whisky that he took from a silver tray sitting on the side of the desk. Steve walked over to them and sat down on the other, identical chair.

  Pastor Erik leaned forward and placed his elbows on his desk while clasping his palms together in a triangular gesture. “I’ve brought Steve over because I would like him to go over our compound security,” he said as he looked at the former SWAT operator. “Did you have any other officers in your team that would like to join us here in Kansas, Steve?”

  Steve just shook his head. “The only ones left in my squad who didn’t go off and join up with prepper groups have gone south towards the border to help defend it. I’m sorry.”

  “Ah, that’s too bad,” Pastor Erik said. “We could use more experienced personnel here. What do you think of Art, my head of security?”

  Steve smiled. “He’s an amateur. I’ve noticed many things wrong with the perimeter the moment the guards at the gate let me through. Seems most of your security team are either kids or middle-aged family men with guns.”

  “Well then, I’m putting you in charge of security as of right now,” Pastor Erik said. “Do what you need to do in order to keep us secure here.”

  “Okay, I can implement new security measures ASAP,” Steve said. “Do your men have any riot gear?”

  Pastor Erik arched an eyebrow. “Riot gear? What in heaven’s name for?”

  “On my way here, I’ve noticed that law and order was already breaking down. People were setting up barricades in Wichita, and that’s only about twenty-five miles from here. In a few weeks, water and food will become scarce and people may head towards this compound. I’ve noticed that most of the church’s surrounding area is only protected by chain-link fences. It won’t be enough,” Steve said.

  Governor Mallory took out a cigar from his coat pocket, then bit off its rear portion and spat it out onto the ashtray before taking out his solid gold lighter. “I might be able to help with that, son. I’ve talked to General O’Neill and he’ll be giving us access to the armory over at Great Bend. Once he gives me the go-ahead this evening, you can have your men and their trucks over there and take what you need.”

  Pastor Erik clapped his hands. “Wonderful news, Lloyd! What about the Kansas Guard units themselves, will they be willing to join our growing congregation here?”

  “I’m afraid I can’t officially do it, Erik,” Governor Mallory said as he began puffing on his cigar. “I would get lynched by the rest of the state, and maybe the damned Feds at Homeland Security would try to come here and force me not to, so I would say the best way is to recruit men from the National Guard units individually. O’Neill told me he won’t have a problem with that as long as it’s all done under the table. Heck, he could barely call up half of the men at this point since everybody’s deserting anyway. It will take some time, but you ought to be having some ex-guardsmen with tanks and choppers here soon enough- the loyal ones to the church anyway. My office is coordinating with them so just be patient and give me a few days on it.”

  Pastor Erik was clearly in a good mood. “Wonderful, wonderful! I can’t believe this is all going according to plan. I had a vision about the coming apocalypse years ago, you know, and I took steps to prepare for this eventuality. I steadily bought up most of the land in this county, fenced it off so now we have farmland with which to grow crops, just in case The Lord’s return is delayed. My men took control of the local oil refinery just two days ago, so that means we have plenty of power for our private electrical grid and fuel for our vehicles.”

  Governor Mallory chuckled. “Don’t forget that damned water treatment plant you secretly built.”

  Steve was surprised. “Water treatment plant?”

  Pastor Erik winked at him. “That’s right, Steve, while you were away from the congregation and settled in Dallas, I had a water facility built at the west of the main compound. I also secretly acquired the rights to the refined petroleum storage facility in Conway, since it’s less than a mile away. If our Lord Jesus Christ decides to come back in six months, or even a year from now, then we will still be here, waiting for him. Now, why didn’t you bring your wife with you?”

  Steve looked down. “I’m sorry about that, Pastor. I tried to make my marriage work with Tammy, but no matter how hard I tried, she just blocked me off.”

  “Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Pastor Erik said. “When you wrote to me and said you were going to keep working as a cop in Dallas, did you keep tabs on them? Perhaps we may be able to get them and bring them here so that they can join you.”

  “Thanks for the offer, Pastor, but it’s a lost cause,” Steve said. “She took the children with her to Oregon and joined one of those New Age Satanic religions they practice over there. They’re all damned in my eyes now and I consider them lost to me permanently.”

  “Ah, well too bad for them then, their souls will be burning in Hell very soon I expect,” Pastor Erik said. “We have plenty of room for you here, Steve, so I’ll fix you up with a suite in the adjoining apartment complex we’ve recently built here in the compound. Unless of course, you’d like to join up with Governor Mallory here and his family over at the bunker.”

  “Bunker?” Steve said.

  “That’s right, son,” Governor Mallory laughed again. “While Erik here loves living in his penthouse suites, me and my wife prefer the safety of the underground bunker located two levels underneath this same building. It was built to withstand a nuke attack, if I recall.”

  Pastor Erik beamed with pride. “Yes, it was. Several layers of reinforced concrete, with additional seams of sand and gravel between them. This was the time when the church board had voted to make a bomb shelter since they thought, and wrongly I must add, that it would be Muslim terrorists that would threaten us here in the future. But as it stands now, I proved them wrong.”

  “How many more people are you expecting to come and join the church here, P
astor?” Steve said.

  “Well, let’s see,” Pastor Erik said. “We’ve had about seventy thousand active members before this apocalypse started, and as of yesterday’s count that number has more than doubled to about one hundred fifty thousand by now, and I expect more to be coming.”

  Governor Mallory kept puffing on his cigar. “Do you think we’re going to have the facilities available if say, a million people started coming over?”

  “Area-wise we have the land since the church property is several hundred square miles,” Pastor Erik said. “Long term food supply may be a problem for that many people, but I believe The Lord will be coming any day now, so I don’t think it will be a long-term problem.”

  “Any word from the other churches?” Steve said.

  Pastor Erik leaned back on his chair and crossed his arms. “Well, Joel Ostermann over at Blackwood church in Houston, and his seventy thousand followers wanted to join up with us here, but I still remembered that silly remark he made about me in one of his sermons on TBN so I told him no.”

  “Which sermon was that?” Governor Mallory said.

  “He was saying that I was some sort of false prophet of doom because I kept talking about the coming apocalypse in one of my sermons on JBN a few years back. He didn’t say my name on air of course, but I’m sure he was referring to me,” Pastor Erik said.

  Governor Mallory giggled a little. “Come on, Erik, can’t you find it in your heart to forgive the man? I mean, it’s not every day that your prophecies are proven right and his proven wrong.”

  Pastor Erik shook his head. “His flock is too big, they could end up being a threat to us. Besides, I’m so sick and tired of him and the others who preached about the prosperity gospel and all that. If there is a false prophet, it’s him and the others. I don’t want them tainting the followers of our church because we’re the one true church of The Lord. Not even the Vatican can say no to that. I never preached about material gain as God’s reward, every time I ever asked for a donation was to help build this compound for the coming return of our Lord. Those other churches won’t make it either. Pretty soon, I’m sure we will be the one and only vanguard for The Lord’s return.”