Malevolent

by David Risen

  Schizoid: A fictitious alternative band of my creation made up of the characters Rhett Mueller, Alex Baldwin, Dale Parsons, and Mike Dyer. You’ll hear a lot more about them very soon.

  Shroud of Turin: Is a Roman burial shroud discovered in the 1980s thought to be the burial shroud of Jesus. It was later debunked by radiocarbon dating, but it remains a curiosity among scholars as none of them can explain exactly how the image of the man came to be in the fabric. And no one can quite account for how the wounds inflicted on the man depicted in the shroud exactly correspond to the wounds suffered by the Biblical Jesus.

  Sisters of Divinity: Although I’m certain that many groups in existence that go by the name Sisters of Divinity, the covert international coven The Sisters of Divinity that operates in churches and in philanthropic organizations is completely made up.

  Skitts Mountain, Tennessee: Though “The Great Smokey Mountains National Park” is a real place, the ghost town Skitts Mountain, Tennessee is a work of fiction.

  Viracocha: In ancient Incan Mythology Viracocha was the great creator of the universe. In Incan lore, Viracocha was white skinned, often dressed himself as a beggar and hid among men to see if they were keeping his commandments, and is often portrayed in their artworks crying over the plight of men. The name Viracocha itself means “Sea Foam.” The reason they called him this was that Viracocha disappeared from their lands by walking across the ocean, but just before he left, he promised that he would return. Fascinating huh?

  Vlad Tepes: Most people will know this one, but just in case, Vlad Tepes was also known as Vlad the Impaler. His father was known by his contemporaries as Vlad Dracul which means the Dragon or the devil, and for his bloodthirsty exploits Vlad Tepes earned the nickname Vlad Dracula or “Son of the dragon or devil.” The real man was a bloodthirsty military leader who often impaled his adversaries by sitting them on top of sharp, wooden spikes planted in the ground. This is the man on whom Bram Stoker based his character Dracula. I inserted this character in the story just for fun.

  Yeshua: Is the real name of the actual man that Christendom calls Jesus Christ. His spoken language was Aramaic, and he grew up in the town of Nazareth. Much controversy surrounds him. Many people say that he was married, some Jewish Scholars claim that he was not a direct descendant of King David as the prophecy said, and some people believe that he was the physical son of the man we call Joseph or the product of an iniquitous affair. To many Jews, he is merely a Rabbi, and some consider his teachings heretical even today. I did a lot of research trying to understand the world he lived in and the problems he faced from day to day to gain insight into his persona. I recommend that, because I found that process very illuminating, but don’t use religious texts as your only source.

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  About the Author:

  David Risen lives in Gainesville, Georgia with his two sons, Gage (8) and Ryder (5), and his fiancée Kelly.

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