by Len du Randt
The crowd applauded.
‘We must collect as many of the terrorists’ hate-filled propaganda and bring it here to burn with the remains of his body. Find as many Bibles as you can, and bring them here. Bring their owners too, so that they can be burned along with their anarchist cookbooks!’
The crowd cheered and dispersed, all going their way to see if they could find a terrorist in possession of a Bible.
- - -* * *- - -
‘And there you have it, people,’ the news reporter shouted excitedly over the noise of cheering people and the constant buzz of Vuvuzelas. ‘You have just witnessed what will soon become a common occurrence as we stomp our foot down on terrorism once and for all.
‘This is Ryan Baxter reporting live from Pretoria, South Africa.’
Andrew’s father nodded in agreement. ‘It’s about time,’ he said. ‘Can’t say I never warned him. Always knew that pride would be his downfall.’
With that, Andrew’s father switched off the television and continued reading his magazine.
- - -* * *- - -
‘What started as an example to the rest of the world has turned into an income for some bounty hunters assisting N-Force with the tracking and capturing of thousands of terrorists around the world.’
‘I’m so sorry, Andy,’ Trevor said as he watched footage of people around the world being crucified.
‘N-Force has said today that the crucifixion method – although highly effective – is taking too much time and resources. It will now only be reserved for leaders of the terrorist faction, while the rest would be shot, hanged, or even decapitated by guillotine.’
Trevor’s stomach churned. In the past, he could always handle seeing bad things happen to people, but for some reason, since Andrew’s crucifixion, he just couldn’t stomach it anymore.
‘The time has come to do some gardening,’ Victor said in a clip aired by GMN. ‘We have to uproot the weed of this planet so that we can blossom into a society of true beauty and perfection.’
Trevor snapped off the television.
‘I’m sorry, Andy,’ he said and fought back a sob. ‘But I just cannot play this game anymore. I have decided to get the Shield. I’m sorry, my friend.’ He wiped at his face and swallowed hard. ‘I’m sorry that I couldn’t see things your way. When I get the Shield this weekend, I will show you that it wasn’t all bad. We’ll both laugh about it someday.’
He raked his fingers through his hair.
‘We’re different, you and I. We’re not the same. We both have our own beliefs. You were a great friend, but you’re dead now. If I continue playing your game, I will soon be dead too, and what good would that do anyone?’
He curled up on the couch and pulled the duvet tighter around his body. ‘I’m so sorry, Andy,’ he said again as exhaustion kicked in. He closed his eyes and had enough strength for one last, ‘I’m so very sorry...’
- - -* * *- - -
‘No!’ the woman screamed. ‘You cannot take my daughter!’
‘Get her to shut up,’ the N-Force officer commanded at the woman’s husband, ‘or I will kill you both like dogs, right here, right now!’
‘The man embraced his wife tightly and whispered to her that she should calm down. She fell to her knees as her three year old daughter was taken by an N-Force officer and placed inside a truck where a number of other children of similar ages were being huddled together.
Mommy! The little girl cried as two N-Force officers slammed the door of the van shut.
‘Anita!’ the mother cried and reached out for the truck. ‘Oh please, Lord,’ she cried, ‘not my Anita!’
‘Back to your quarters,’ the officer barked at the man and his wife. ‘Or you will be next.’
Crying softly, the man escorted his wife back to her section of the concentration camp. He looked back at the truck as it sped off to some unknown destination with all the children in the back.
- - -* * *- - -
Even though the thin layer of dust has left the night-time world in a state of total darkness, Victor’s mansion was lit up as if it were day. All around the mansion were tall walls with barb wiring. Just on the inside of the wall was electric fencing.
These were no problems for Benny and his two scouts to bypass. The hard part came once they were past the fence. Victor had around thirty-five Doberman-Rotweiler crossbred canines that roamed the grounds. They were trained to kill on sight, and just one of them could easily shred someone twice the size of Benny.
‘Target in sight,’ Benny whispered into a hidden microphone.
‘I have visual,’ his scout returned confirmation into his earpiece. ‘Just give the signal.’
‘All right guys,’ Benny said. ‘This is just like we discussed. Take out the dogs, and leave the guards for later.’
‘Affirmative,’ came the reply.
It took them ten minutes to take out all thirty-five dogs with their silenced rifles. They would have to work fast, for if anyone realized what was going on, there would be another hundred of those dogs before they could escape. Someone had tried to break into the mansion once before, and was never seen or heard of again.
‘All clear,’ Benny said.
‘Charlie, all clear,’ replied one of the scouts.
‘Echo, all clear.’
Under cover of his two scouts, Benny made his way across the lawn, avoiding the cameras and trip wires. He then took out the wall-climbing equipment and started scaling the first two stories of the house.
‘This is it,’ Benny said as he looked into the window of a lit room. ‘I can see the children.’
- - -* * *- - -
‘Are they all here?’ Victor asked Ryan as he entered the room.
‘They are all here,’ Ryan confirmed.
‘Tell me,’ Victor said as he hunched in front of a little boy. ‘How old are you?’
The boy just held out four fingers, too shy to answer verbally.
‘Four?’ Victor said and stood up straight again. ‘So innocent.’ He then glanced over all the children in the room, boys and girls, all the same age, taken from their parents only a day earlier.
‘Leave,’ he instructed Ryan without taking his eyes off the children. ‘Now.’
Ryan obeyed and left the room, closing and locking the door behind him.
‘Suffer the little children,’ Victor said as a smile curled his lips upward.
- - -* * *- - -
‘What’s going on, Bravo?’
‘I don’t know,’ Benny whispered. ‘The room is filled with kids, and he is alone with them. Wait! They’re—’
‘Bravo?’
‘My God!’ Benny gasped and jerked his head away from the window.
‘Bravo? What’s going on? Do you need backup?’
‘No!’ Benny screamed, almost giving away his position. ‘Stay away. I repeat: stay away!’ He felt nauseous, and his stomach swirled violently.
‘Are you sure? What’s going on?’
‘Charlie, Echo, I need you both to abort mission. I repeat: abort mission!’
‘Bravo?’
‘Just do it!’ Benny yelled. ‘Get back to camp and inform Alpha that I’m staying behind to eliminate that...that beast!’
‘We cannot—’
‘That’s a direct order,’ Benny commanded. ‘Now get going!’
‘Aborting,’ Charlie confirmed.
‘Aborting,’ Echo joined him.
Benny fought back the tears as rage welled up inside of him. He wanted to jump through the window and unload all his ammunition on Victor, but he knew that it would be a fatal mistake. He sat with his back against the wall, breathing heavily as tears streamed down his face.
Through the closed window next to him, only faint screams of children could be heard between the roars and growls of what sounded like an enraged lion.
- - -* * *- - -
It wasn’t long before the guards found the first few dead dogs. Sirens flared, and more dogs were instantly released, barking wil
dly as they chased after the false clues that Benny and his team had left when they first entered the compound.
Benny found himself a dark spot on the ledge of the second storey where he hid, and he didn’t dare breathe loudly. Each heartbeat exploded loudly in his ears, and he almost gave away his position twice when he had to cough.
After three hours of frantic searching, the guards finally gave up the chase, but the atmosphere remained tense and alert. It took two more hours before Benny was sure that everything had settled down a bit more, and that he would be able to continue with his mission.
‘Now you die, you animal,’ he hissed through clenched teeth. If there was any doubt in his mind that Victor was who Timothy claimed he was, all doubt had been removed only a few hours earlier. The images of what he had seen through the window flashed through his mind again, and he almost lost his balance.
‘Help me, Jesus,’ he prayed silently, ‘to put an end to this madness once and for all.’
He slowly made his way around the ledge to Victor’s bedroom window. He opened the window and climbed through it without making the slightest sound. Inch by inch he moved closer to Victor’s bed until, minutes later, he stood at Victor’s side. He slowly raised his silenced weapon and said one final prayer before squeezing the trigger again and again.
‘Forgive me, Lord,’ he whispered softly. ‘But I just couldn’t allow this to go on.’
With one swift movement he jerked the duvet away from the bed and instinctively spun around with his pistol raised. In the corner of the room, hidden by the darkness, he could barely make out the silhouette of a man sitting on a chair; observing his every move.
‘Disappointed, Eugene?’ Victor asked after slowly blowing the cigarette smoke from his mouth. ‘Did you seriously think that it was going to be that easy?’
‘You’re sick!’ Benny shouted. ‘A murderer! A...a monster!’
‘Sticks and stones, Eugene,’ Victor said calmly as he stood up and walked over to Benny. ‘Worship me, and I might let you live to tell your tale.’
‘Never!’ Benny cried, hoping that someone would come through the door and distract Victor for the split second he needed to get out of the room. No one came.
‘Then you had better pull the trigger,’ Victor said.
Benny tried to squeeze the trigger, but couldn’t move his finger.
Victor raised his hand slightly, and Benny dropped to his knees.
‘Come now, Eugene,’ Victor said with a smile. ‘Worship me. You’re halfway there already.’
‘Burn...in...Hell.’
‘Fine then, have it your way,’ Victor said without a hint of emotion in his voice. He waved his hand again, and Benny’s face turned a shade of purple. His veins became visible on his forehead and his bloodshot eyes filled with water. Another wave of Victor’s hand and Benny felt his wrist twist. Slowly, he started pointing his gun at his own head. He tried to resist it, but couldn’t. A few seconds later, the barrel of the gun was pressed hard against his own temple.
‘Final chance, Eugene. All it takes is one small prayer. If not, your life will end here.’
‘So...be...it.’
‘So be it,’ Victor confirmed and waved his hand as if dismissing Benny. The gun only made a soft chew sound before the lifeless body of Benny the Fist fell to the ground at Victor’s feet.
- - -* * *- - -
‘Where’s Bravo?’ Timothy asked as the two scouts returned.
‘He stayed behind,’ the scout that responded to the call sign ‘Echo’ answered.
‘To do what?’
‘We weren’t sure at first, but we didn’t return here immediately as he ordered, sir.’
‘What did you do?’
‘We stayed behind in Jerusalem for another two days. It was then that we saw...’
‘Saw what, Echo?’
The scout couldn’t get the words out. Anger and emotion welled up inside him.
‘Saw what?’ Timothy repeated.
‘It was Bravo, sir,’ Charlie said. ‘He...his head was impaled on a stake in front of the Lion’s Gate.’
‘Are you sure it was him?’ Timothy confirmed.
‘Positive.’
‘Could it not have been someone else?’ Timothy asked, grasping at anything other than the realization that his friend had been martyred.
‘It was Bravo, sir. No question about it.’
‘And the children?’ Timothy asked, looking for a glimmer of good news.
‘Impaled alongside him,’ Echo answered. ‘What remained of them, at least.’
Timothy’s head was spinning and he had to grab hold of a chair in order to stabilize himself again.
This cannot be happening, he thought to himself, but deep within his heart he realized the truth. ‘No!’ he shouted and ran from the tent.
‘Let him go, Echo,’ Charlie said and gently placed his hand on the other scout’s shoulder. ‘He needs to do this.’
- - -* * *- - -
‘Why Lord?’ Timothy shouted into the night air. ‘Why would you allow this to happen?’
He fell to the ground and sobbed uncontrollably, pounding his fists repeatedly into the soft sand.
‘Why didn’t you take me instead?’ he cried. ‘Why didn’t you take me?’
He ripped his shirt open and screamed into the night air. When his breath wouldn’t allow him to go on screaming, he fell forward and rolled over onto his back. ‘He was a good man. Despite his past he ended up choosing You. Those were innocent children!’ he cried. ‘Why?’
There were no answers. No lights from Heaven, and no comforting angel. There was only the soft wilderness breeze.
They are with me now, his heart told him. There is still a great task that I need you for before you can come home.
‘Why, Adonai?’ Timothy whispered softly as he regained control of his emotions. ‘Why me?’
Because I have chosen you.
- - -* * *- - -
The queue at the N-Force office was exceptionally long. Typical of South African culture, everyone had waited until ninety-nine to get their Shields. Trevor had taken a book to read with him, to avoid getting bored while he waited.
I should have brought two; he thought when he scanned the line ahead of him. There were about two hundred people in front of him, and even though they were called in five at a time, it still took a while before the queue even moved enough for him to bother standing up and sitting down again less than an arm’s length from where he initially was.
‘What on Earth is that?’ someone asked and pointed at the sky.
Trevor didn’t see the shape immediately, but his eyes eventually focussed, and he noticed the figure flying overhead.
‘It’s Superman,’ someone in the queue joked, and everyone laughed.
‘It has wings,’ someone else commented.
Trevor looked in amazement as the winged man flew over them in circles. If he hadn’t known better, he would have sworn it to be an angel.
‘Behold!’ the flying man shouted from above. ‘The Mark of the Beast as prophesied by the Apostle John!’
‘It’s that angel man thing,’ the woman in front of Trevor told him as if he had asked. ‘I heard about it on GMN when the people first started queuing for the Shield.’
‘Ah,’ Trevor said, pretending to be interested. ‘That’s nice.’
‘Some say that he’s a hologram; a cheap trick of the Christian terrorists to scare people away from the Shield and to con them into becoming terrorists too.’
‘And you? What do you think?’ Trevor asked, still trying to make up his own mind about the strange phenomena.
‘I think that it could be a demon...maybe an alien. It doesn’t want us to be protected in case it would want to attack and harm us again.’
Trevor looked up at the angelic being flying over them, constantly shouting warnings to the people below that they shouldn’t take the ‘Mark.’
‘Why doesn’t N-Force just shoot him...it down?’ he asked her.<
br />
‘Oh, they have tried,’ the woman answered. ‘But it’s as if they’re shooting at nothing. That’s why most say it’s only a hologram.’
Trevor frowned.
‘And he’s everywhere,’ the woman said, not letting up that easily, ‘shouting things to us here, then zipping to India and shouting to the people there, then North Korea, Alaska, South America, Botswana...the entire planet.’
‘Interesting,’ Trevor said. Andrew had mentioned a similar thing before when he warned Trevor against taking the Shield.
The Shield is the Mark of the Beast, Andrew would say. And if you take it, that’s it! No more turning back. You will swear your allegiance with the Antichrist, and renounce Jesus. From there onward there will be no turning back. Your heart will be black, and you will just grow more and more evil until your destruction at the very end.
‘Woe! Woe! Woe! To those who take the Mark,’ the angelic being shouted. ‘For it is they who exchange their eternal souls, and pledge their allegiance to their new master; Antichrist!’
Trevor was conflicted. Allegiance with the Antichrist. Mark of the Beast. His mind raced. He looked at those standing around him, all standing expressionlessly in the queue to be branded like cattle. In his mind, Trevor saw Andrew’s eyes, filled with tears and love, and for a split second he saw Jesus Christ hanging on that cross, and it were His eyes that Trevor was looking into.
Oh my Lord, Trevor thought as the realization struck him. It’s true. It’s all true! You were right, Andy, you were right all along!
‘You can move now,’ someone behind him said impatiently and nudged him in the back with his elbow. ‘Come on.’