“There is a Supervisor who patrols the corridors some nights. We’ll have to hide if he is on the prowl. He’s called Hansford. His face looks like a weasel and he’s just as unpleasant. If he catches someone, he reports Hansford catches him immediately. Do exactly as we say, and you’ll be fine.”
The nurse, Michael, led the four of them out of the ward, to a door. He checked the corridor and led them to some back stairs. They moved quietly. At the bottom of the stairs they headed along several more corridors. There were places where they waited while the nurse went to check that the coast was clear.
Uncertainty hung over Mark like a circling vulture: was he safe? Could he trust these people? Was it a trap? Would he be taken away with a hood over his head like the runner he saw?
Michael motioned to them to listen.
They could make out the sound of footsteps.
Michael beckoned them into a store and closed the door.
The sound of the footsteps was amplified in the bare corridor. They passed the door and continued.
They waited in silence.
The sound of footsteps faded.
They emerged into the corridor and continued on their way.
Eventually they reached a metal door. Michael listened intently then, when he was sure it was safe, he ushered them through and closed the door behind them.
It was as dark as a tomb inside but Sebastian and Michael had torches. They led the way down metal stairs and along a tunnel with many coloured pipes of various sizes. The temperature in the tunnel was uncomfortable: it was much warmer than the corridors.
At last they came to a door in a recess to one side of the tunnel. Sebastian opened it and they went into a dimly lit chamber. It was cool in here. Sebastian opened the first of three large, solid doors, closing each one carefully behind them before opening the next.
They entered a room with a high vaulted ceiling. There were about thirty men standing in a huddle. They turned as they approached.
An older man stepped forward and greeted Sebastian and Michael with a hug, then faced the three of them.
“Hello, my name is John Richardson. We are part of the church. We come here in secret to meet, to pray, to share and to worship. You will learn what I mean by these. You are here because you have been called in some way. There will be plenty of time to talk. We will meet here every night unless we are directed otherwise. There will be lots of time to answer your questions.”
Mark could not remember when he had last asked anyone a question.
“You three, Mark, Johnson and Sanjay, you were all approached yesterday morning by Sebastian. The Lord showed you to us some time back, and we have been praying for you constantly since. Two nights ago, he made it clear that it was time for Sebastian to speak with you because you were ready. He showed us when, where and how Sebastian should make contact with you. We welcome you to our group.”
The men in the group came forward and some shook their hands. This was a strange gesture to Mark.
John continued,
“We pray to God to add to our number. God gave us visions of the three of you. We have helped many young men like you. We want to help you begin to learn who you are and who God is. We know that this is a strange experience for you but it’s the beginning of an amazing adventure. You may not have any questions yet. You will find that as you learn more, your mind will be more and more activated. You will have time in the Sick Bay to read and think and pray and rest. And just be. Every night, we would like you to join us here. Sebastian will bring you. We are here to serve you and help you. We would like to pray for you. We want to talk to God about you. Is that okay?”
All three nodded.
For Mark, this seemed like it could be another dream. For years, he had only known the cold instructions of Supervisors, the reports of the Announcers and what he had seen on the screens. The care this older man had for each of them was apparent, and it had a calming effect on his worries.
“Okay, close your eyes and we will place our hands on you and we will ask God to do some good things for you.”
Men gathered around each of the three of them and began muttering words Mark could not understand. He heard John’s voice.
“Father, we bless you and thank you for three more of your children. You have drawn them out of the darkness and into the light. We ask you now to touch them by the Spirit. Lord, let them feel your presence here with us now and in the coming days…”
Mark’s eyes were closed. To begin with he felt nothing, but then he sensed a warm glow as he stood with five men around him. Their hands were on his shoulders, arms and back.
“God, touch their hearts. Give them eyes to see and ears to hear. We ask you to begin the healing tonight. We release the goodness of God over them.”
Then John began to sing with strange words. The men of the group joined in. The sound they made was like nothing he had heard before. He felt like he was lifting and floating up into blue brightness. Some words came into his mind.
“I have been waiting for you. ”
He felt safe like when he had been a small child in the Nursery. He had not felt love since that time, and he could not put into words what he was now feeling. It was like coming home after a very long and lonely journey.
“Let’s worship together,” said John, “D, Steve and Jake, will you lead us?” The three men he addressed moved forward. Two picked up strange objects while the other stood at a long thin box on a stand. Music filled the room as they played. The other men gathered round and sang together now in English. It was a song that spoke of the goodness of God. Mark stared with large eyes. He had heard music every day in the unit, but he had never seen it played. The words of the song were projected from the box on the stand. Mark could follow the words from the 3D hologram that was projected in the space above their heads.
The men were moving onto another song and some were lifting up their arms. They seemed to be the best of friends. Mark struggled to accept that it really happening and was not a dream. He stood in the same spot, wanting to move closer.
Now they were clapping to a new song. The words and the music washed over Mark like waves. The vibrations seemed to make his whole body resonate. He felt like he wanted to join in, but had no idea how. There was a disconnection that prevented him.
Now the men were kneeling, some were lying on their stomachs, arms out. The music quietened down to silence.
After a bit, John prayed, “Thank you God for the freedom you give, thank you for the healing you bring. Bless us and keep us safe until we meet again. Holy Spirit guide us in everything. In your name, we pray…”
“Amen,” the men all said together: it was a word of agreement.
They were offered some refreshments and the three nodded their thanks, still awkward.
Sebastian and Michael led them back to the tunnel and along to the metal door. The journey back to the Sick Bay seemed to Mark to not take long. His mind was full of the experiences of the meeting.
They arrived back in the ward. Sebastian said he would come for them the next night, and he said his goodbyes. They washed, changed and climbed into their beds.
Mark felt lighter that night and he was soon asleep.
In a dream, he was surrounded by darkness. In the distance, there was a glow that penetrated the gloom. He went nearer and realised that it was a door. He put his hand on the handle. He deliberated, hesitating. If he opened the door, there would be no going back.
* * * * * *
The hospital where the President’s granddaughter lay was all quiet in the dead of night. A nurse on night duty approached her room, passing the security guards. The nurse checked her pulse and consulted her charts. The security guards lost interest and looked towards a large screen showing a game. No one saw the nurse add a dose to the drip solution that fed into her arm.
* * * * * *
Flashback Saturday 16th January 1954
It was another cold night in London.
The four friends
met over dinner in a private room in the Royal Motoring Club in Pall Mall.
The walls were hung with paintings and photographs of racing cars.
The table was littered with the remnants of their meal.
A waiter poured out the brandy and then slipped out of the room.
“So, come on chaps, what do we think?” asked the American, seeing that they were alone. “Do we go quietly into the night, merging with the mass of humanity, or are we going to aspire to do something about this wayward world, as we talked about a year ago?”
“I am certainly convinced we should initiate something,” said the Indian prince.
“We could all live very well on our wealth,” said the English duke. “We could marry well, play well, and leave our fortunes to our offspring but be remembered for little when we are dead and gone. I say, let’s contrive a bright future. Let’s lay our hand on the world and see if we can guide its destiny.”
The others nodded.
“I think we need to infiltrate different areas,” said the American. “We need to gather intelligence so I have been thinking about how to use my contacts in New York, Washington and in the CIA. I am going to join the family bank in New York. It’s expected of me. I can use my position there. I will learn a huge amount about who really wields the power. Money follows power. They go together.”
“Like bat and ball,” said the Englishman.
“I want to find out who is doing what,” said the South African. “I have been thinking about media and journalism, so I think I am going to join an international press agency for a while. I want to travel and find out what is happening in different countries. It should give me lots of contacts. I might find others who will join us.”
“What about your minor mining interests?” asked the American.
“Well,” the South African grinned, “they are finding diamonds. I may have to divide my time somewhat. But I will not be going hungry.”
The others laughed.
“What about you, Uday?”
The American had turned to the Indian.
“Science is my passion, as you know,” said the Indian, “so I want to explore how the scientific community could serve our cause. I have been thinking about what science could do in a world under central control. I believe that science could be essential to what we aim to achieve.”
“The more I think about the world’s problems, the more I think the only possible solution will have to be a single government over every nation,” said the South African. “We cannot have a few rogue nations doing their own thing, they would be like rotten apples in the barrel. They would affect all the other apples until the whole barrel was rotten and we would be back to where we started.”
“I think you are right, old chap,” said the Englishman. “That all sounds very promising. As for me, I have to keep an eye on the estates of course, but I am interested in how Western Europe is going to develop. Can they work together to achieve some form of unity? I fancy a spot of travel: Berlin, Paris and Rome for starters. A bit of rubbing shoulders with the great and the good.”
“Well, you are rather good at that, old bean,” said the American.
“We will need to consider the criteria for recruiting more members to our esteemed group,” said the Indian. “The criteria will include the trust, discretion and secrecy we will require.”
“And genuine commitment to the cause,” said the American.
“And motivation, and shared passion,” said the South African.
“And a level of wealth,” said the Englishman. “Influence is going to be essential.”
“I think we are going to need lots of scientists,” said the Indian. “Although many of them may not have access to substantial funds.”
“We will want people who are not content with the existing structures and who yearn for greater power,” said the South African.
“Power is very seductive to most people,” said the American.
“In our different spheres, let us compile a list of potential members of our group,” said the Indian.
“And let’s also have a black list of people who will never join us, who will oppose us whatever happens,” said the Englishman. “We will have to consider what we do with them, so that they do not hinder us and our aims can be achieved.”
“There will be a middle group of people who we will be able to turn to our side, given the right circumstances,” said the American. “Maybe a nudge, maybe a push.”
“I do not know how we will do it but I am fully committed,” said the South African.
They stood to drink a toast.
“To the future the world does not yet know,” said the South African.
“And we happy few,” said the Englishman.
* * * * * *
14th April 2035
DAY 3
The room in the hospital where the President’s granddaughter was being treated had come to life. The girl had woken, as from a deep sleep. She was weak but was able to speak softly to her delighted mother. Her doctors were confident she would make a full recovery.
* * * * * *
Mark woke late in the morning and took a few moments to work out where he was. Then he remembered the Sick Bay, the doctor’s visit, meeting Sebastian, the journey to the meeting. The meeting. He closed his eyes again. He remembered the warm glow in his chest; the sense of floating up into the sky; the men’s voices rising in song; the friendship the men had together.
The nurse came over with a tray of breakfast and hot tea, and two more white pills. He was hungry. He sat up and worked his way through cooked eggs, potato, mushrooms and tomato, then toast and jam.
The nurse returned and said,
“My name is Michael. You can rest and sleep and read. The ward is yours. If you want anything, just press this.”
He showed him a button on a small controller.
Mark leant back with a sigh. In the unit, every single day was dictated by the instructions from the information screens. The notes were the regular signals, directing the whole unit. Here, he could browse on the hand-held device, read the magazines or a book from the shelves in the ward. He could shower when he wanted. He felt a sense of liberty that he had not had since his days in the Nursery, as a young child. The two other men were in a similar predicament. They were not used to a little freedom. They glanced at each other but did not speak. They all drifted into a sleep. The nurse woke them at lunchtime. They ate and slept again. While they slept, the nurse checked on them regularly.
* * * * * *
President Hussain was sitting at a desk in a drawing room in Buckingham Palace when the two aides were shown in.
He looked up from the report he was reading.
“Gentlemen, what have you found out regarding my granddaughter’s accident?”
“Well, Sir, there is nothing concrete we can point to as suspicious. It’s a mystery why she fell and suffered the head trauma. We interviewed the teachers and the children. There was no weapon found. She woke up this morning without any recollection of the incident. We understand that she was standing still when she collapsed, so she did not trip.”
“Do you suspect foul play?” asked the President.
His expression was penetrating.
The two aides looked at each other.
“We are not sure, Sir,” replied the senior aide. “The thing that does not add up is that the doctors said that it was unusual for a fall to induce a coma. She was well and healthy on the morning of the visit.”
The President pinched his lower lip.
“My hunch is that this was a hit. I have an ugly feeling that it was Sandher. I want you to look at his family; watch their movements. Give me some options on a hit on one of his grandchildren. Not fatal. Be discrete.”
* * * * * *
Later, they ate supper and Mark had a growing anticipation for the hour when Sebastian would come for them. The two other men seemed to be similarly watching the clock.
He lay down and explored hi
s memories. There were times in the Nursery when he was allowed to play with the other boys. They sometimes played a catching game. There was a sandpit where they loved to make roads and dig tunnels and drive their trucks. There was a tree in their playground and sometimes he used to feel content, sitting under its branches. Near the base of the trunk, there were two lumpy growths where he could perch. It was a place of stillness to him: a place to linger and be. He used to feel that that he was not alone. There was a sense of being protected.
At last, he spotted Sebastian with Michael. They came over and asked the three to get ready. It did not take them long to dress.
Soon they were retracing their steps down back stairs to the long empty corridors. Mark recognised the places where Michael would stop and check for Hansford. It felt like a game of cat and mouse: his heart beat in his chest with a mixture of excitement and anxiety.
They made it to the safety of the tunnel. When they came to the last of the three solid doors, Mark felt his heart lift a little in his chest. He was glad to be back.
The men greeted them. There were more men than the previous night. John came forward,
“Are you ready to meet with the Lord?” he asked them.
They nodded shyly.
“Let’s begin with waiting on the Lord for his direction.”
They gathered into a circle and John opened in a prayer, then they all fell silent, some standing, and some kneeling.
After some time, John prayed,
“Lord, come and speak to us, give us words and pictures. Spirit, guide us. We ask you to give us ears to hear and eyes to see.”
Mark’s eyes were closed. He heard different voices as different men spoke.
“I get a sense that the Lord wants to remind us that he will protect us - never will he leave us or abandon us.”
“I get the words - “Come close to me, and I will come close to you.””
“I see a picture of the Lord touching Johnson, Sanjay and Mark. He is healing their hearts. Their hearts were like stone but they now beat with life.”
2035 Revelation Page 3