by Len du Randt
- - -* * *- - -
Andrew was staring out the window of his lofty apartment, looking at the bright lights of the city. The remaining dust that hung in the air after the meteorite struck gave the moon a permanent crimson glow.
The red moon now just served as a grim reminder of how terribly bad things were still to become. Not only could a large section of Earth not drink water anymore, but the damage caused by the meteorite was slowly and systematically killing all sea life.
Cheering and clapping from the television in the background pulled him back to his lounge. He walked to the couch and positioned himself comfortably in front of the television as a stern-faced Victor Yoshe took the podium.
‘My people,’ Victor addressed the world. ‘I have told you that I would come back. It has come to pass. In my absence, I have returned to the realm that I have come from before I have created this world and its inhabitants. I have gained secret insight into whom it is that is trying to plunge the world into darkness and chaos with their acts of terrorism.
‘They have now poisoned our water, killing many innocent people and will do even worse things in the future. I have seen the people responsible for this. They go under a title, calling themselves Christians.’
Andrew sat up straight in his chair. ‘What?’
‘These Christians...these terrorists have polluted a huge section of our fresh water supplies, hoping that it would cause a disruption in the peace process, and in turn lead to global warfare. They have joined forces with the terrorist group I have exposed before my death; the Messianic Jews, and they will stop at nothing to attain their goal, which is global anarchy.’
Cameras flashed as Victor paused for effect.
‘Dear citizens of the Empire...no...citizens of the entire free world,’ Victor said with thunderous passion. ‘We cannot allow this type of anarchy to throw our lives into turmoil. We must unite once again to overcome a threat to the human race.
‘We must rid the world of these Jesus followers so that there can be peace—true peace—once and for all.’
Victor’s voice exploded with emotion and conviction and the reporters cheered him on as an audible display of their agreement and support.
‘We will fight back. We will stand up to these bigots of humanity. We will unite against these hate mongers. They cannot be allowed to spread violence and turmoil anymore. They must be stopped!’
The cheering was deafening and Victor had to wait a minute before he could continue.
‘We do, however, still have a water supply problem. To get past this, N-Force will be driving through the streets of the infected cities and towns to hand out bottled water. Each bottle should be enough for one person to drink from for about three days. Please use your water sparingly until the poison has worked its way out of our water supply system. Thank you.’
The reporters cheered again as Victor nodded and stepped back from the podium. Some of the reporters fell on their knees and worshipped him. Others broke down and cried uncontrollably, while some just reached out for the honour of touching the edge of his clothing. He allowed this as he soaked in the worship and prayers.
- - -* * *- - -
‘Oh, Lord God,’ René wept as she prostrated herself in front of the television. ‘Forgive my sins and bless me with your divine presence.’
Trevor rolled his eyes and walked to his room. He had heard and seen enough and decided to retire for the evening.
- - -* * *- - -
René went to her room soon afterward. She read a few tracts on Yoshism and how the various beliefs all formed part of this new universal religion. According to the tracts, all religions were a small part of Yoshism. Together, they formed the larger truth. Thus, anyone could still practice their individual faiths, but with the added doctrine about Victor Yoshe.
So instead of religious division, all could now say that they embraced Yoshism, and that their ‘cell’ in this huge organism was called whatever their religion was.
René closed the tracts and turned off the light. After a quick prayer to Victor, she turned on her side, and a minute later she was fast asleep.
- - -* * *- - -
It started as a low humming sound at first. In his dream, he was driving an ’86 XJS Coupe down a countryside road. The wind ruffled his hair, but he didn’t mind. He was cruising. The soft humming of the engine grew gradually louder. It was only a matter of time before the engine hummed so loud that he thought it was going to explode.
Trevor jerked awake in his bed with a gasp. Something bothered him. It wasn’t the dream. It was something else. The humming. He could still hear it; in the darkness of the room it sounded as if millions of insects were swarming around him. He flailed his arms violently, trying to swat away that which was causing the sound. It didn’t work. The humming grew louder into a frantic buzzing. Trevor was about to get up and switch on the light when something stung him on his upper leg.
‘Ouch!’ he yelled out, hoping that René would hear him and rush to his aid. ‘Ren—’ he cried out, but was cut off short as another sting stabbed him at the base of his neck. Two more stings sent him sprawling to the floor. Four more stinging pains shot through his arms, and one into his inner thigh. He tried crawling for the wall as the relentless attackers stung him on his stomach, face, neck, hands and tongue. The pain had become unbearable. Trevor wanted to die. Never in his life had he felt a pain like this, let alone so many times at once.
‘Oh Jesus,’ he cried out of desperation. ‘Help me!’
There was no answer; no sudden burst of light. In fact, it appeared that his cry for help only antagonized his attackers even more. The buzzing grew more frantic as the stings pelted his body from every direction. He cried out again as they stung his eyelids, his lips, ears, nose, knees, feet, fingers, chest, and tongue.
Trevor finally managed to pull himself up against the wall. He quickly ran his fingers against the surface of the wall as the buzzing grew louder and the stinging continued. He finally found the light switch and pressed it. Light flooded the room and the buzzing and stinging ceased instantly. He would have thought himself insane if it hadn’t been for the excruciating pain still surging through his body.
He fell down to the ground and bundled himself as small as possible, still sobbing loudly as each part of his body burned as if he had been stabbed thousands of times with a hot blade.
- - -* * *- - -
It took Andrew a while before he answered his telephone.
‘This is Andrew,’ he said with much effort.
‘Andy...’
‘Trev?’
‘I’ve...I’ve been stung or something. I’m hurting badly...’
‘Me too,’ Andrew managed. His neck and lips had been under heavy attack.
‘You too?’
‘Yes,’ Andrew said and then flinched as the burning reached his lips. ‘I think it was a global thing of some sorts.’
‘Do you know what caused it?’
‘I’m not sure, but I have my theories. I think that GMN should have something on it soon enough.’
Trevor remained silent for a while.
‘Trev?’
Trevor weighed his next words before speaking them. ‘I prayed, Andy,’ he said. ‘I called to your Jesus.’
This time it was Andrew that was quiet. Eventually he spoke. ‘And...?’
‘And nothing,’ Trevor said. ‘Just as I expected: not a damn thing.’
Andrew didn’t know what to say. He was hurting too bad to register what the implications of any or no answer could be.
‘Anyway,’ Trevor said. ‘I have to go check on René...’
‘Okay, Trev. I’ll see you soon.’
Andrew hung up and lay down on the couch in front of the television. He switched it on, and twenty minutes later, a live GMN press conference with Victor was aired on every single channel.
- - -* * *- - -
‘The pain that most people worldwide experienced today,’ Victor said, ‘was caused by a secret
weapon used by the Jewish and Christian terrorists in retaliation to my earlier speech where I exposed them. It is quite tragic that they would stoop so low, but it just goes to prove my point even further.’
Although he appeared sympathetic toward those attacked, it didn’t appear to Trevor that he suffered as those he was addressing.
‘These people are trouble makers to the highest degree, and I urge everyone to stand up against them. It is your human duty to do so.’
René nodded in agreement.
‘Those individuals with the Shield were unaffected by the onslaught of this secret weapon, and it will continue to protect those who bear it should the terrorists strike again.’
‘That’s why nothing happened to me,’ René said and flashed her hand at Trevor.
He didn’t say anything. The burning still raged on inside his body. Outwardly there were no signs of abuse, but even the slightest touch or bump would send his body into a pain spasm.
‘Those who embrace Yoshism, but do not bear the shield yet, will also be protected against future attacks of the same device.
‘The Shield is the same as the mark of protection that I had my people wear in the book of Leviticus. Get yours as soon as possible, and you will be protected from any future attacks that the Christian terrorists could use upon the loyal citizens of the Empire, and even the rest of the world.’
- - -* * *- - -
The atmosphere was a lot tenser than what Trevor had anticipated. Not only were the people hurting from the invisible attacks, but they were slowly dehydrating as well. Almost seventy million people worldwide were without water, and if N-Force didn’t do something fast, even more people would die.
‘I’m relieved that it’s only tap water that’s affected and not bottled water too,’ René said as the three of them joined the crowd waiting for the N-Force Water Supply Unit. They still had ample water bottles at home, but they didn’t want to take any chances.
‘Yeah,’ Trevor said and rubbed his arms lightly. They still burned and he wondered if the pain would ever go away.
The gentle rumbling of an approaching N-Force truck momentarily drew Trevor’s attention away from the pain.
‘All right people,’ an N-Force officer called through a megaphone. ‘Gather around. We need to keep things running smoothly here.’
No one really paid any attention to the man, and everyone swarmed the truck at once.
‘We need all those with Shields up front first. No exceptions.’
‘What?’ someone cried out in disbelief. ‘Why?’
The N-Force officer ignored the outcry. ‘Move out of the way so that those with the Shield can pass through.’
‘This is outrageous,’ a man shouted, and the rest of the crowd without Shields cried out their support. ‘We have human rights too!’
‘Sir, please step away from the vehicle. There are people with Shields trying to get through.’
‘No!’ the man shouted at the officer. ‘I want my water! I’m entitled to it!’
‘Sir, this is your final warning. Stop disrupting the peace, or I will be forced to take action.’
‘No!’ the man protested. ‘Give me my water! I have just as much right to it as the next person.’
The officer warned the man again, but he didn’t listen. The man jumped onto the back of the truck, much to the amusement of the onlookers, and advanced upon the officer at a steady pace.
‘Sir, I have warned you already, and I shall not do so again. Get off the truck!’
‘Not without my water!’ the man shouted and flailed his fists through the air.
The gunshot left everyone stunned and a silenced hush fell over the crowd. The N-Force officer picked up the man’s limp body and threw it off the truck as a visual warning to the rest. It worked. They all took an instinctive step back.
‘Will those with the Shield please approach the truck in an orderly fashion,’ the officer commanded.
This time, the crowd did comply. There was an awkward silence as people shuffled away from the truck to open a path for those with the Shield to collect their water. Even though she was fifth in the queue, René felt as if every single eye of the Shield-less was upon her, burning with envy and hatred.
She finally reached the truck, and the officer scanned her Shield with a small handheld scanner. He then handed her three one-litre plastic bottles filled with water. She clutched the bottles in her arms, and made her way back down the path as quickly as she could.
‘Today you will receive your water,’ the officer said to the remaining crowd. ‘But tomorrow, there will be no supplies for those without Shields. I repeat: no Shield, no water. Is that understood?’
A shiver went down Andrew’s spine and he shot a glance at Trevor who appeared to be thinking the same thing. Slowly but surely the people were forced to use the Shield. If they didn’t get it, it could only be a matter of days before they would dehydrate or be arrested. He looked at Trevor and wondered how long his friend would be able to hold out before he would crack under the pressure and apply for his Shield.
- - -* * *- - -
‘Oh no!’
Trevor jumped from his bed as fast as he could. There was no doubt about it. He strained his ears and listened. The faint buzzing sound grew louder. He ran for the light switch and squinted as light flooded his bedroom. He had hoped that the light would drive away whatever it was that had stung him three days ago. He was wrong.
The buzzing grew louder still. It gradually became so intense that Trevor thought that whatever was generating the noise was inside his head. He held his hands to his ears, but it did no good. Whatever it was that was making the noise, was upon him; it surrounded him; it was everywhere.
Trevor ran for the door, but a sudden sharp pain in his leg sent him sprawling to the floor. He cried out when another pain shot through his neck. ‘Ren—’ he cried out, but was cut short as he was stung on his lips, cheeks, shoulders, and lower back.
‘Trevor?’ René gasped as she ran into his room. She saw him rolling on the floor, holding his face while shouting out in anguish every few seconds.
‘Help me,’ he screamed and jerked as something stung him behind his ear. ‘Please!’
‘What...what should I do?’ René asked. ‘Where is it hurting?’
‘Everywhere!’
She knelt down beside him to see if she could figure out what was causing the pain, but he recoiled when she lightly touched him.
‘Don’t touch me!’ he screamed and jerked again. ‘Please don’t touch me...’
‘Then I can’t help you, Trevor,’ she said.
‘Don’t touch me...’ he wept.
She sat helplessly against the wall, looking at her friend as he rolled around and screamed while some invisible attack raged on.
‘Pray to him,’ she said. ‘Pray to Victor and ask for forgiveness so that this madness can stop.’
‘N—no,’ Trevor said, but cried out again when something stung him on his lip again.
‘Pray to him,’ René repeated. ‘Do you see me screaming and weeping?’
‘I...I don’t pray...to any God...’
‘You’re a fool, Trevor,’ she lashed out. ‘You’re so full of yourself that you probably deserve this.’
Trevor cried like a baby. He didn’t want to pray to Victor. He didn’t want to pray to anyone. He just wanted the pain to stop. Another sting on the inside of his mouth made him jerk and cry out again and he banged his fist against the floor.
The spasms caused him to bite a deep gash into his lower lip and blood sprayed from his mouth as he screamed out in pain. Through his tears he could see René sitting against the wall, and he longed to be there with her; calm and free of the pain. For a brief moment, praying to Victor didn’t seem like such a bad idea. In fact, it seemed to be the only reasonable thing left to do. So that’s what he decided he would do.
‘Vic—’
No! he cut himself short forcefully. There were too many unanswered questions. H
e almost instantly regretted his decision when something stabbed into the side of his neck. He cried out again and again as the assault on his body continued; relentless and excruciating.
The attack lasted another hour, and at the end of it, he just lay weeping and moaning.
‘Are you okay?’ René asked, knowing that he wasn’t.
He just lay there, crumpled up and breathing heavily between sobs.
She got up and tried to help him up but he recoiled again.
‘Fine!’ she snapped. ‘Don’t accept my help then. But at least accept my advice: get the Shield!’
- - -* * *- - -
‘It’s the noise again!’
Malcolm sat upright in the cave. Darkness engulfed him, and he could hear people shuffling to light their candles and lamps. A woman at the far end of the cave shrieked and clutched her husband. Malcolm heard it too, and instinctively reached for Mary’s hand. The tiny flames of the candles slowly illuminated the cave.
‘It’s back,’ someone in the cave yelled, and more women shrieked.
‘Why can’t HaShem just crush us in this cave?’ another man yelled above the loud buzzing. ‘Why can He not just throw this mountain down on us and get it over with?’
‘Calm down people,’ Timothy said as loudly as he could. He wanted everyone to hear him above the deafening droning. ‘The demons are back, but they cannot harm us,’ he assured them. ‘We are God’s sealed ones, and they do not have authority to touch us.’