13

***

“I am going to recruit an army,” said Father Lucas to his acolyte.

“That would be difficult, and most likely illegal.” Arthur was an eighteen year old boy. He had worked in the church since he was fifteen, after he read a book by Father Lucas. He had always respected the man for his moderate but firm beliefs. He saw him as the father figure he had never had, but since the event, he had been more and more aware that something was not right.

“Illegal has no meaning now,” Father Lucas said, while ruffling the kid’s hair. “It’s time we took action, the waiting is over, that’s what the Lord was trying to tell me when he used me as his voice. Today we start retaking the world in His name, today we create an empire.”

“I’m worried about what the bishop said.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“What if it wasn’t God speaking through you?”

Father Lucas smiled.

“It was,” he said. “Do you not trust me?”

He left the room without waiting for an answer, heading for the church were he was going to give his sermon, the first since the event.

“No, I don’t,” said Arthur, as soon as he was out of hearing range.

***

Her room was even better than she had imagined. At first, she had thought it too empty, tho white, but as she started pushing buttons she realized that she was liking it. The walls worked as a computer screen, and she soon saw that she could adjust lightning, colour and even add a nice background picture. She set everything to a low beige setting, that she found soothing. Another button opened a wardrobe full of predictably black clothes. However, the selection wasn’t bad and the fabrics were quite good. She changed into a silk robe, hoping that her room was private, even though she quite doubted it. Another button opened a previously hidden door revealing a bathroom were she found all sort of commodities.

She decided that she had time for a bath, and that she was going to take advantage of her hosts as much as she could. She let the water run, and played with the settings. She even found a musical service, and a minibar. She served herself a glass of wine, turned down the lights and gave herself a long, relaxing bath.

She got out a while later feeling much better, and with a much clearer head. She now felt ready to deal with the outside world, so she fiddled with the controls until she found how to turn on the TV.

The news channel was speaking about the kidnapping, and about the intervention of the General Dynamics CEO that was scheduled to happen one hour later. There were all sorts of conspiracy theories running around. One analyst claimed that this was all a marketing plot, she found that the most plausible idea.

Then, the news cut into an item about the ‘Eschaton Seekers’. They were a group that had been growing in alarming numbers recently. People from middle to high incomes, who usually had good jobs, and were educated and stable, but had recently started preaching about an upcoming apocalypse. The story followed on how many of them were active today, as opposed to other days, as they had taken the Event as further proof of their theories.

She considered the title “A World Gone Mad(der)” for her book.